by J A Whiting
“I assume smuggling routes were well-protected by the gangs that thought they owned certain sections of the business?” Libby tapped her fingers together.
“Absolutely. From what I’ve read and researched, it could be nasty business.” Anton was well-informed on any of the topics that involved the island and discussing the illegal business caused a look of alarm to wash over his face. “People lost their lives over the smuggling and trade of alcohol.” He leaned forward. “Some were murdered to protect routes and to keep interlopers from horning in on someone else’s territory.” An involuntary shiver ran over the man’s shoulders. “Nasty. Nasty behavior.”
“So,” Lin asked, “You think these ghost-men are actually involved with moving alcohol?”
“Were involved. Indeed, I do, yes.” Anton removed his glasses and cleaned the lenses with the edge of his shirt. “Of course, I might be wrong,” he sniffed.
Lin suppressed a giggle at Anton’s farfetched suggestion that he would ever think he was wrong.
“Your idea about Prohibition and what the men are doing makes sense,” Libby agreed. “The ghosts are going through the motions of the work they did years ago. They aren’t preparing shipments of alcohol in the here and now. It’s as if they are reliving a night of long ago, over and over.”
“But, why? Why now?” Lin asked again. “Why show up now?”
Libby looked down at Lin who sat in the grass with her little brown dog resting next to her and when she spoke her voice was gentle and kind. “I guess that is what you are going to find out.” Libby’s magnetic blue eyes were soft. “I’m very glad that you’re on the island with us, Carolin.” After a few moments, the woman checked her watch and stood up. “I have an appointment I must get to.” She said her goodbyes to Lin and Anton and then started around the house to head to her car, but she stopped abruptly and turned back to Lin with a grave look on her face. “Be sure to always wear your necklace. There might be something about it that can help protect you.”
Lin’s mouth opened and formed the shape of an “O” while she watched Libby walk away. Flicking her eyes to Anton, she saw that his surprised expression matched her own. Lin protectively wrapped her fingers around her horseshoe pendant. “Why did she say that? She’s never said that before.”
Anton’s eyebrows were raised. He shrugged. “I have no idea, but if I were you, I’d do what she suggests.”
Lin tucked her necklace into the front of her tank top and went back to weeding the flowers. “Why can’t I see those ghost-men? Why can Mrs. Perkins see them, but not me? What does it mean?”
Anton cradled the book on the Prohibition era in his lap and turned to a different chapter. “How on earth would I know? You’re the ghost expert, not me.”
“Some expert,” Lin muttered as she planted some new perennials in the bed. “Half the time, I don’t even know what’s going on. Make that ninety-nine percent of the time.”
Anton kept his focus on the book. “Not knowing anything doesn’t seem to interfere with your ability to get to the bottom of things.”
“I wish the process was easier.” Lin packed the soil around a new planting.
Nicky let out a loud woof causing Lin to jump and whip her head up just as a mass of cold air surrounded her. Turning her eyes in the direction the dog was facing, Lin saw the ghost from last night standing on Anton’s deck staring at her. The intensity of his gaze caused Lin a moment of dizziness and she slipped back onto her butt. The ghost lifted his arm and pointed at her and a second later his form broke apart into a million shimmering atoms that swirled like a tornado until they disappeared.
Anton glanced at Lin who was still staring at the deck. “What’s wrong with you?” He flashed his eyes to the deck and then turned back to Lin. “What’s wrong with you?” Anton dropped the open book on the ground and hurried over to the young woman who sat on the lawn blinking across the yard at nothing. Placing his hand on her shoulder, Anton’s voice trembled a bit when he asked, “Was it a ghost?”
Lin gave a nod. “The new ghost. He was on the deck. He pointed at me.”
Words poured out of Anton’s mouth in a torrent. “Can I get you anything? A cold drink? Are you okay? What did he want? Did he say anything?”
Feeling drained, Lin managed a weak smile. “I’m okay. Will you sit with me for a minute?” She patted the grass next to her.
Anton nudged the book he was reading to the side with his foot and sat down on the ground beside Lin.
Sucking in a deep breath, Lin’s eyes flicked to the book lying open on the grass in front of her. A photo of several men standing together caught her eye and caused her heart to skip a beat. She moved forward on her hands and knees to get a better look. Leaning close to the page, a gasp escaped from her throat.
Anton scurried over to her. “What’s wrong?”
Lin pointed to the picture in the history book. Her index finger rested on the image of one of the men. “It’s him.”
Anton stared at the photograph. “Who?”
“Right here.” Lin jabbed her finger against the page. “This man. It’s him.”
Lin’s eyes bore into Anton’s. “That man in the picture is my ghost.”
10
Anton and Lin stared at each other with wide eyes until Nicky woofed and shook them out of their amazement that the man in the photograph in Anton’s history book was Lin’s ghost.
“Are you sure?” Anton lifted the book from the lawn and peered at the photo. “Which one is he?”
Lin touched the picture gingerly. “I thought the ghost was pointing at me when he appeared, but he must have been pointing at this book.”
Anton adjusted his glasses and read a few paragraphs. “The caption doesn’t list individual names. The group of men was called the Rum Row Watch-Dogs.”
Lin and Anton shared a quick glance before Anton returned his attention to the book. Reading the passages quickly, he summarized the information. “The Watch-Dogs were a group of private citizens who banded together to take turns patrolling the waters around the island to assist authorities in controlling the illegal movement of alcohol.” Anton lifted his head and looked across the lawn to the deck off of his kitchen. “Hmm.” He read another passage. “Citizen-groups could not make a dent in the illegal trade and members of these groups placed themselves at great risk in dealing with the organized gangs who profited from the activity, hence, many disbanded.”
“My ghost was trying to help uphold the law.” Lin took off her sun hat and placed it on the ground. She ran her hand over the damp strands of brown hair that stuck to her forehead. “Did my ghost get into trouble with the gangs?”
“Quite possibly.” Anton pushed his short wiry, body off the lawn and took a few swipes at his bottom to remove the bits of grass that clung to his trousers.
Lin swallowed. “Did he get killed for interfering with the gangs?”
“There’s a very good chance.” Anton headed for the deck table that was shaded by an umbrella. “I must get out of this sun.”
Nicky put his paws on Lin’s lap and stretching his small body, swiped his tongue over his owner’s cheek. Lin looked down at the dog. “How can I help this ghost? What does he want? How am I going to figure this out, Nick?”
The little brown dog rubbed his head against his owner and Lin pulled him close and wrapped him in a hug.
At the end of her work day, Lin decided to drive over to meet up with Leonard at his last client’s home to go over some garden designs for a large job they had planned for next week. The sun was lower in the sky and a pleasant breeze had kicked up while Lin and Leonard sat in the back bed of Lin’s truck eating slices of apple dipped in honey and peanut butter. The dog had no interest in what they were nibbling on so he rested quietly between them with his head on his front legs.
“Anton is researching the Prohibition era on the island.” Lin dipped another slice into the little pot of honey she’d brought in the lunch bag.
“Why?” Leonard joked. “
Does he feel the need to make alcohol illegal once again?”
Lin smiled. “He’s doing it just for interest sake. You know how Anton can’t get enough of the island’s history. He found out that some of the citizens of the time joined forces to help the authorities police the waters to the southeast of Nantucket where illegal trading took place.”
“Yeah, that area was called Rum Row.” Leonard munched on a piece of apple. “It was noble of the citizens to get involved, but it was also pretty dumb of them.”
Lin gave Leonard a look.
“Ordinary people up against armed gangs who would kill whoever got in their way?” The man shook his head. “Smuggling booze was big business, lots of money at stake. It’s my understanding that those citizen policing groups disbanded pretty quickly. It only took a few of them getting killed for the others to high-tail it back to the harbor and quit the idea of monitoring the illegal activity.”
“How do you know this stuff?” Lin licked a bit of peanut butter off of her finger.
“My wife had a relative involved.”
“On which side?” Lin questioned.
“The watch-dog side.”
Nicky raised his head at the word ‘dog’ and Leonard gave him a scratch behind the ears. “Marguerite kept some old newspaper articles that had been handed down from her grandparents. I’ll see if I can find them if you think Anton would be interested.”
Excitement caused Lin’s heart to skip a beat. “Oh, I bet he’d love to see them. So would I.” Lin couldn’t reveal the real reason she wanted to read the newspaper stories about the watch-dog groups during Prohibition, so she said, “I love reading about the island’s history.”
“I think the box is still in the attic. I’ll see about digging them out.”
“The citizens must have known how dangerous it was trying to prevent the alcohol smuggling.” Lin ran her hand over Nicky’s back. “Why would they even attempt it?”
Leonard shrugged a shoulder. “Adventure, moral inclination, a sense of importance. People get involved in dangerous things for any number of reasons.”
Lin narrowed her eyes. “Which side would you have been on?”
Leonard raised an eyebrow and smiled. “The smuggling side, of course. I wouldn’t mind some financial security.”
Lin gave the man a playful poke with her elbow. “I bet you wouldn’t have.”
“Who knows what you’ll do until you’re in the actual situation.”
“Did Marguerite’s relative stay involved long?”
Leonard’s voice was matter-of-fact. “No. He got killed.”
“Oh, gosh, he did?” The thought that her ghost might be related to Marguerite flashed in Lin’s head. “What was his name? Do you know what he looked like?”
“Denton Mullins was his name. He was a minister at one of the churches here. He was a small guy, round in the middle, bald.”
Lin breathed a sigh. Marguerite’s relative didn’t match her ghost’s description. “He must have thought he was protecting his congregation.”
“From reading the stories, Marguerite had the impression that Minister Mullins didn’t know the first thing about boating, but he blustered his way into the watch-dog group. The smugglers didn’t kill him. He fell overboard while out on patrol one night. Besides being ignorant about boating, it seems the good minister couldn’t swim either.”
Lin groaned.
Leonard took a swig from his water bottle. “The man would have done better to stay in the pulpit.”
After a few minutes, Lin brought up Mrs. Perkins. “It turns out that I’m expected to attend an event at Mrs. Perkins’s mansion after the renovations are complete. I should have made you do the work there then you would be the one who has to go, not me.”
“Don’t go if you don’t want to.”
“It is expected. John said not to cross the woman. I guess she has a reputation.”
“I’ve heard.” Leonard nodded. “Who knows which parts are true and which parts are rumor.”
“Libby also told me not to cross her.”
“Well, that’s probably good advice when dealing with just about anyone.” Leonard poured some water into his palm and splashed it on his face.
“Have you heard bad things about Mrs. Perkins? Is she dangerous?”
Leonard wiped his wet palm on his jeans. “I’ve heard she’s put some people out of business. I’ve also heard she had a man killed for trying to cheat her.”
“What?” Lin almost shouted.
“No charges were ever filed. The whole thing could have been an exaggeration.”
“How do you exaggerate getting killed?” Lin’s eyes widened like saucers. “Either he got killed or he didn’t. You’re either dead or you’re alive. There isn’t anything in between.”
“I meant that rumors fly. The story could have been made up.”
Lin’s shoulders sagged and she half-joked. “So just in case, I’d better go to the party and not cross Mrs. Perkins.”
“That might be for the best.” Leonard grinned.
Lin looked at her landscaping partner out of the corner of her eye. “You’re an equal partner in this business. Want to go to the event with me?”
“Nope.” Leonard jumped off the back of the truck. “Time to head home.”
Nicky stood for his final patting of the day from Leonard.
The tall man looked at Lin. “Just in case, be careful around that woman, Coffin.”
Alarm shot through Lin’s body. “Why are you saying that?”
Leonard gave a shrug and headed for his own truck. “Don’t be like those Prohibition watch-dogs nosing around in stuff they shouldn’t be nosing around in. Self- preservation, that’s the number one rule.”
Leonard got into his truck and, with a wave of his hand, he backed out of the client’s driveway and drove away leaving Lin standing beside her vehicle, her mind rehashing the two warnings she’d received in one day and wondering how on Earth she was going to figure out what her ghost wanted from her and how she’d ever be able to help him.
11
Lin and Viv parked their bicycles in the bike rack and followed the sandy path past green bushes and fragrant rosa rugosa down the hill to Steps white sand beach. The azure ocean stretched out before them under the bright blue sky and the cousins couldn’t wait to get into the water.
Unzipping their backpacks, they took out towels and spread them on the warm sand. Just before they pulled off their shorts and tank tops and raced each other into the sea, Lin reached for her pendant necklace thinking she should remove it for safekeeping. Her fingers were just about to undo the clasp when Libby’s words rang in her head. Be sure not to remove your necklace. Lin left the pendant around her neck.
The cousins swam and dove and floated in the refreshing water for over an hour under the hot sun before returning to the beach to dry off.
“This was a great idea.” Lin removed her lunch container from her backpack and nibbled on her sandwich. Viv had suggested a late afternoon trip to the beach and Lin worked like a wild woman until 2pm to get most of her clients’ work done in order to meet Viv for the late lunch beside the water. “We need to do more of this.”
Viv finished her yogurt and placed the empty container back into her backpack. Both young women smoothed out the towels and rested on their backs to soak up some sun.
“Tell me more about the picture of the ghost in the history book and what Anton and Leonard told you.” Viv rubbed some sunscreen on her arms.
Lin recapped what she’d learned. “I thought the ghost was pointing to me, but it turns out he was indicating the history book. He wanted us to find his picture in the book.”
“Too bad their names weren’t listed in the caption.” Viv put on her sunglasses. “It would be a bit more information to go on.”
After more discussion about the ghost, the ghost-men, the rum runners and the danger in trying to curb the smugglers’ illegal activities, Viv bolted up into sitting position. “For Pete’s
sake.”
Lin lifted her head and shaded her eyes. “What’s wrong with you?”
“I own a bookstore. There’s an entire section of books on the island’s history including the Prohibition era. We need to look at those books when we get back.”
“Right in front of us.” Lin grinned. “How will we help the ghost if we miss things that are right under our noses?” Shaking her head, Lin added, “This new ghost may want to rethink who he’s asking for assistance.”
When their swimsuits were fully dry, they packed their things into the backpacks and headed up the sandy hill.
“Going up is a lot harder than coming down.” Although she loved being outside biking on the pathways around the island and swimming in the ocean, Viv wasn’t much for exercising in the heat and preferred the comfort of an air conditioned room. “Carry me.”
Lin smiled and took Viv’s backpack from her to lighten her load. “How’s that?”
“Much better, but now I feel guilty.”
Chuckling, Lin held Viv’s backpack out to her. “Want it back?”
“I don’t feel that guilty.” The sunlight caused the gold highlights in Viv’s light brown hair to sparkle like the bright tones of her laugh.
Glancing at the beautiful seascape stretching out behind them, Lin thought about the rum runners and how some of them committed murder to keep hold of their smuggling routes. She shook her head in disgust at how greed could trump consideration for life and caring about a fellow human being. The rumors and what people thought about Mrs. Perkins popped into Lin’s head and if what was said about the woman was true, then she wasn’t much different than the rum runners.
“On the way back, would you take a detour with me?” Lin unlocked her bike and tugged on the cord that ran through hers and Viv’s tires.
