by Eva Pohler
Ellen and her friends pretended to be viewing the building for the first time as they followed Gayle inside.
“This was originally the dining hall,” Gayle said. “It was last used as a room of curiosities by the circus. The two-headed woman, the man with no body, and other freakish things were hidden behind curtains in here and shown to each customer for a nickel.”
“How creepy,” Sue said as they followed Gayle from the room to the narrow hallway.
“Restroom facilities here and there,” Gayle pushed one of the doors open.
Ellen glanced inside and nodded before continuing to the first of the two large rooms.
“This was the ballroom, originally,” Gayle explained. “Then it became the gambling hall, and later a bunkroom for the men’s home. The circus brought in the risers and used the room for shows.” She pointed to the ceiling. “That chain up there is the last of a trapeze that once hung there.” She pointed to the north-facing wall. “And in that back wall is a dumbwaiter that lifts up to each of those two other floors. Would you like to see those rooms?”
“Yes, please,” Tanya said.
They followed Gayle up the first flight of rickety wooden steps as Gayle said, “They were originally VIP rooms for special out-of-town guests. Historians speculate that the rooms were used for prostitution when the place was a gambling hall. When the St. Vincent de Paul Society took over, the employees who ran the home lived in them. Later, some of the circus people lived in them.”
The first landing led to two doors, and behind each of them were identical rooms with a bed, table, and closet. The rooms were bathed with light from the windows, showing every scrap of garbage left behind by transients.
“Could people still be using this place?” Ellen asked.
“It’s possible,” Gayle said. “I’ll be sure and notify the city that the building needs to be secured, and that should help keep the vagrants out.”
Gayle showed them the third floor, where there were two more rooms, identical to the ones on the second floor. Then they went downstairs and into the second large room.
“This was originally a roller skating rink,” Gayle said. “The wooden floors are supposed to be of the highest quality—in the old ballroom, too. You may be able to salvage them.”
“It looks more like a barn,” Sue said, pinching her nose.
“Yes, the circus used this for their animal attractions, and I believe they kept the larger animals in those stables over there,” Gayle said. “They had elephants, lions, monkeys, and dogs, I believe. And when it was the men’s home, this was the sick side. So they kept the well men in the other room and the sick ones in here.”
As Gayle told more about the circus, Ellen went behind the risers to the north-facing brick wall. As in the ballroom, the skating rink had a dumbwaiter too. It was a stainless-steel box about four feet high, three feet wide, and two feet deep. It was full of dirt and old cobwebs. There was a steel handle at the top, and when she pulled on it, a sliding door came down, but not easily and not quietly.
“What are you doing?” Sue asked.
“Just checking out this dumbwaiter. It’s pretty creepy.”
She pulled the handle back up and was startled by a spider leaping out at her. She flinched, but didn’t scream, as she batted it away and regained her composure. Laughing at herself, she finished lifting the sliding door. There was a control panel to the right, built into the brick wall but without electricity, it was useless. As she turned to leave, she heard whispers: Don’t ignore us. We are here.
Ellen froze. Her first thought was that someone alive must be playing a trick on her. The voice had been too clear to have been made by a spectral. But as she re-examined the dumbwaiter, the control panel, and the brick wall, she couldn’t imagine how any living person could have gotten close enough to her to whisper. Maybe someone was speaking through the elevator shaft from one of the upper levels? No, she thought. This must be a ghost—had to be. Her skepticism and her desire to believe were at odds with one another.
In any case, she wanted to be brave and to ask the voice some questions—like who are you—but she chickened out and hurried back to the others.
“The upstairs rooms are constructed in the same fashion as the rooms on the other side,” Gayle was saying, “but I’d be happy to take you up there, if you’d like.”
“I don’t need to see them,” Sue said.
“Me either,” Tanya said. “Not if they’re identical to the others.”
“What about you, Ellen?” Sue asked her. Then she added, “Are you okay? You look flustered.”
“I’m fine,” she said. “And yes, I’d like to see the upstairs on this side, too.”
She followed Gayle up the rickety steps, and Tanya decided to come, too. Sue waited below.
The two rooms on the second floor were identical to the ones on the west end, except the one in back, against the north-facing wall, had at least a dozen dreamcatchers strewn about and hanging on the walls. There were also crucifixes on the bedside table and one glass candle holder with the image of the Virgin Mary on it. A quilt covered the one bed.
“It looks like someone lives here,” Ellen said. She studied the north-facing wall at the end of the catwalk, where the dumbwaiter elevator was, and wondered if whoever lived here could have been the one whispering a few moments before.
Ellen kept her eye out for signs of a person hiding in the building as they took the stairs to the third floor and looked around. Of the eight rooms in the building—four on the west end and four on the east end—only the one with the dreamcatchers appeared to have been recently used. The other beds contained bare mattresses and discarded junk on the floors, whereas the one with the dreamcatchers and crucifixes had a blanket and appeared tidy in comparison.
Downstairs, Gayle told them about the nine-pin bowling alley that was once operated in the most western room. “This is one area that stayed the same through all four owners. Even the illegal gambling club used the bowling alley. The home for men used it, and the circus, did, too, though they added a few carnival games over there.” She pointed to the south-facing wall.
“How interesting,” Sue said.
“Why don’t we step out into the fresh air, and I’ll answer any questions you might have,” Gayle said as she slipped her key into the side door.
“So what do y’all think?” Sue asked Ellen and Tanya once they were outside waiting for Gayle to lock up.
“I don’t know,” Tanya said. “It sounds like the asbestos removal would be too costly. Would we really be able to make any money?”
Gayle turned from the door. “The city is anxious to unload this property and to see it developed. They’re asking $10,000, but I bet you could get them to come down in price.”
“How far down are you thinking?” Ellen asked.
“If it were me,” Gayle said, “I’d offer half and see what they say. They just might take it.”
The corners of Ellen’s mouth twitched into a smile. “We should think about it, ladies. Even with the asbestos removal, $55,000 for a property this big in this location could be a lucrative deal for us.”
Tanya folded her arms in front of her and asked the realtor, “Can we have the name and number of that psychic you mentioned earlier?”
“Of course,” Gayle said.
The two ladies took out their cell phones.
“Oh, I’ll have to text it to you later,” Gayle said. “My phone just died.”
“Mine, too,” Tanya said. “That’s so bizarre. It was fully charged.”
Ellen and Sue checked their phones as well.
Dead.
Chapter Seven: The Local Psychic
When Gayle’s psychic still hadn’t returned Sue’s phone call or texts by dinner time, Ellen suggested that they look for someone else. “We only have a few more days here.”
“I have a feeling there aren’t many psychics in Tulsa,” Tanya said from where she lay propped on pillows against the headboard of her ho
tel bed.
After their tour of the abandoned building, they’d gone to the Philbrook and Gilcrease museums and were now resting in Ellen and Tanya’s room until dinner.
Sue sat in the armchair with her iPhone. “Google shows two. Should I call the other one?”
“Might as well,” Ellen said from the desk chair, where she sipped at a water bottle. “Maybe we could schedule a reading and feel her out.”
“Him,” Sue corrected. “His name is Eduardo Mankiller.”
“Mankiller? You’re kidding,” Tanya said. “That’s not creepy.”
“Okay. Here goes.” Sue put her phone on speaker, and they waited for someone to answer.
When they were greeted by a voicemail message, Sue glanced at Ellen and Tanya and mouthed, “Should I leave a message?”
Ellen nodded.
“Um, hello, this is Sue Graham. Could you please call me back? I’d like to schedule a session at your earliest convenience for me and my two friends, while we’re in town.” Sue recited her phone number and then ended the call.
“Now what?” Tanya asked.
“Let’s go eat,” Sue suggested.
Not wanting to go far, they drove across the street to the Hard Rock Café and Casino to eat and to play a few slot machines before heading back to the hotel just before dark. They hadn’t yet made it to the La Quinta when Sue received a text from Eduardo Mankiller.
“He wants to know if we can come now,” Sue said.
“How far away is he?” Tanya asked.
Sue texted him for an address and then searched it on Google Maps. “Fifteen minutes down I-244 West. But…”
“What?” Ellen asked.
“Well, he doesn’t live in the best part of town.” Sue shrugged. “But hopefully he’s not a serial killer or someone who just plans to kill us for our car.”
Ellen rolled her eyes. “Thanks a lot, Sue. Now we’ll never get Tanya to go.”
“I’ll go in the morning,” Tanya offered.
“Let me text him.” Sue pushed on her phone and, in the next moment, read, “’Won’t be available tomorrow. What about Friday afternoon?’ That won’t work. We’ll be gone by then. What should I say?”
“Say we’re coming tonight,” Ellen said. “We’ll be extra careful. Okay, Tanya?”
“I don’t know about this,” Tanya said. “It sounds like a dumb idea to me.”
“Too late,” Sue said. “I told him we’ll be there in fifteen.”
Ellen was surprised to find herself back near the Brady Arts District, in the residential area known as Greenwood. The buildings on the street where Eduardo Mankiller resided looked like they were falling apart. The lawns were all dead and, in many cases, served as additional parking. The street wasn’t far from the Oklahoma State University-Tulsa campus, so she told herself again and again that the area was probably safe and full of poor college students and not thieves and killers.
By the time they pulled up to the white wooden duplex, night had fallen, and the house was in darkness except for the light cast by their headlights.
“Call him and make sure this is the right place,” Ellen said.
Sue tapped in the psychic’s number. Then she said, “Hello, Mr. Mankiller?”
Tanya crossed her arms and whispered, “This is stupid, guys.”
Sue continued. “Yes, of course, Eduardo. We think we’ve reached your house, but there aren’t any lights on.”
At that moment, a porch light came on.
Ellen and Tanya exchanged worried looks.
Sue laughed. “We just want to make sure you aren’t planning to kill us, given your name.”
“Sue!” Ellen cried.
“That’s true,” Sue said into her phone. “We’re women, not men. So we should be safe then? Hahaha. Yes, I bet you do get that a lot. Sorry.”
Then Sue whispered, “He’s going to meet us on the porch.” Into the phone, she said, “Okay, Eduardo. Oh, yes. I see you now.”
Once she had ended the call, Sue added, “I don’t think we have anything to worry about. He sounded gay.”
“How does someone sound gay?” Tanya, whose oldest son had just come out, said in an exasperated voice.
“Well, you know how I have a gift for detecting ghosts?” Sue asked. “I have a gift for detecting gays, too.”
“Oh, Sue,” Ellen said, still worried about what they we’re getting themselves into. “Stop teasing.”
“What has being gay got to do with anything, anyway?” Tanya asked defensively.
“It means we’re not in danger of being raped,” Sue said calmly. “Now let’s go.”
Ellen busted out laughing. Fear and a kind of delirium had taken over. If she was to be killed tonight, at least it was while trying to do something good.
As she followed Sue up the steps to the front porch, she was relieved to see that Eduardo did not look like a hoodlum. Given his run-down house, she was impressed by how impeccably he was dressed—in a black long-sleeved shirt and black trousers. He had short black hair, black eyes, and a short black beard, and his face was very attractive, especially when he smiled down at them. His body looked strong and lean, and he appeared to be in his late twenties or early thirties. All of this didn’t mean he wasn’t a killer, though, Ellen thought.
“Hello, dears. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He shook each of their hands as they introduced themselves. “Why don’t you have a seat here on the porch? I can do the reading out here. Or, if you would rather go inside…”
“Out here is fine,” Tanya said.
“You’ve brought someone with you,” Eduardo said to Tanya. “Someone from the other side.”
Tanya clasped her hands together. “Who?”
“She’s not yet ready to talk to me, but I’ll let you know if she opens up,” he said. “She’s an older woman. Perhaps a relative?”
Tanya said nothing, and although Ellen wanted to ask if it was Vivian, she kept her mouth shut. She was glad that Sue did the same. This man could be a fake.
Ellen and Tanya sat on a bench while Sue took a wicker chair. Eduardo pulled up a stool and sat so that he was within arm’s reach of each of them.
“Who would like to go first?” he asked enthusiastically.
“I’ll go,” Sue said.
Eduardo reached into his back trouser pocket and pulled out a—Ellen held her breath, hoping it wasn’t a gun—deck of cards. She sighed with relief. The cards were small and worn, as though they’d been used for years. As he shuffled and cut them, Ellen realized they were regular playing cards—not what she’d expected.
“I’m asking the universe to speak to me through these,” he explained. “If the universe has a message for Sue, may it please reveal it in the cards.”
Eduardo asked Sue to pull out three cards from the deck.
He took the first card—a three of clubs—and said, “In the past, you were an important part of someone’s healing.”
Ellen widened her eyes, thinking of Marcia Gold, but then she realized what Eduardo was saying was broad and could be applied to anything.
“I get the sense that the person you healed had already died,” Eduardo said. “And this spirit continues to dwell close to you—no, not to you, to your mother. The person you healed now watches over your mother. Oh, that’s so incredible. Could this be right?”
Not so broad anymore, Ellen thought.
Sue nodded at Eduardo as he took the eight of hearts from her.
“This card is telling me, warning me, that you need to do something fun and interesting at this time in your life. You’ve been working hard recently, and your energy needs to be revitalized.”
“My daughter was just married,” Sue said. “And I did work hard.”
“Oh, you poor thing. Now would be a good time to go on a trip or to begin a new adventure,” Eduardo said.
Sue raised her brows at Ellen and Tanya as Eduardo took her final card.
“The ace of spades is telling me that in the future, you will make a
profound sacrifice for a higher good,” he said.
“What kind of sacrifice?” Sue asked.
“One that could harm you, if you aren’t careful,” Eduardo said. “Just be sure not to put your own health and spiritual wellbeing on the back burner, okay Sue? Take time to meditate and exercise so you can build the strength and endurance required of this noble sacrifice.”
“I’m not sure I like the sound of that,” Sue said.
“Oh, you will be magnificent,” he said. “Just be careful.”
Then he turned to Ellen. “Ready for your turn, dear?”
Ellen nodded as he returned the cards to the deck, shuffled, and cut. Then she chose three and handed over the first.
“The two of hearts tells me that you have a gift for picking up signals from the universe,” Eduardo said. “Are you also psychic?”
Ellen shook her head. “I don’t think so.”
“Oh, this card suggests that you are, and that, in the past, you used this gift to help others. You can improve your talent through practice and through meditation or by keeping a journal. I can also recommend some books, if you’re interested in developing your gift further.”
Ellen didn’t have to look at Sue to know she was green with envy. Ellen simply nodded at the psychic and handed over her second card.
“The ace of hearts,” he said and then frowned.
“Is that bad?” Ellen asked.
“Well, this card is telling me that you are currently struggling in your love relationship. You feel estranged from the one you love, and you long for a deeper connection, but something is in the way.”
“What’s in the way?” Ellen asked, stunned by the accuracy of the card.
“You,” he said.
Blood rushed to Ellen’s face. How was she in the way of her own happiness with Paul?
Eduardo took her third card. “The ten of diamonds. Harmony.”
“Harmony?” Ellen thought this sounded like a good thing.
“You must restore it,” he said. “Oh, I’m sorry, dear, but this card is saying that you are in need of harmony, that you need to pay attention to your feelings. The card is also telling me that once you restore harmony to yourself, you will then be able to restore harmony to the world around you. The card suggests that this is a goal of yours. You want to bring balance and peace to others. This is good but futile if you remain imbalanced in your personal life.”
