Ghostly Games

by K. E. O'Connor

  “They never left you,” I said. “I’m not sure why they decided to stay here as well, but Annie has been looking after them.”

  “So, the toys that move on their own in the nursery,” said Francis, “that’s the children?”

  “Yes, it is.” Relief flooded through me. Francis did believe in ghosts! I knew she couldn’t dismiss all the evidence she'd been seeing and hearing.

  “And how are you going to help Michael and Mirabel?” asked Francis.

  “I’ve had an idea about that, but I need to reach Annie again and see if I can get some information out of her about why Michael and Mirabel are still here,” I said. “Right now, I need to focus on helping Annie and get her out of here before the family returns.”

  Francis’s eyes widened. “Oh, yes. They don’t need to see this. It will bring back terrible memories for them of their own loss.”

  “Exactly. Can you help us? We need some tools.”

  Francis looked into the fireplace. “Is this really happening?”

  “It is. And we’re in need of your help.”

  “Yes, of course. I can get you some tools.” Francis hurried to the door. “Once you have the bones and lay them to rest, this other child, Annie, she’ll be happy?”

  “I hope so,” I said. “Annie led me to her remains. She must want us to do something with them.”

  “Right.” Francis straightened her spine and gave a stiff nod. “I’ll help you. We must help every child in need.” She dashed out of the room in the direction of the kitchen.

  “I hope she’s going to be all right,” said Helen. “Francis went grey when you revealed the ghosts to her.”

  “She’s going to have to be,” I said. “Annie needs our help, and so do Mirabel and Michael.”

  “So, what do you think is going on with Mirabel and Michael?” asked Helen as she watched me shuffle back into the fireplace. “Why are they still here?”

  “Annie has something to do with it,” I said. “She’s been here a long time, and Michael and Mirabel suddenly arrived. She may have seen them as playmates. She could have convinced them to stay here with her.”

  “You don’t think they were harmed, then?” asked Helen.

  “I’m not sure they were. They seemed happy when I saw them, and neither of us were certain about any of our suspects,” I said. “Chris is a busy, stressed out businessman; Jasmine is suffering from ill-health, but I was never sure that was the reason she’d do harm to the children. And Francis dotes on them.”

  “They stayed because they wanted to be with Annie?”

  “They’re young and may have made a friend in Annie,” I said. “Or she convinced them to stay with her for a while and keep her company. Annie has been alone a long time. It must be frustrating that nobody can see or hear you and no one knows what really happened to you. It could have been too much of a temptation to ask Mirabel and Michael to stay with her and be her friends.”

  Helen let out a relieved sounding sigh. “I do hope it’s that. The thought of anyone hurting those innocent little children is too much to bear.”

  “Well, Annie was harmed, and she was innocent.” I pulled out another two bricks and passed them to Helen. “Now, we need to make sure she gets the rest she really deserves.”

  Chapter 25

  It took me an hour, some sweat, and a chisel, but I broke through the rest of the bricks and discovered Annie’s remains. Between the three of us, we extracted Annie’s bones and wrapped them in a sheet provided by Francis.

  Helen carried Annie to the safety of our rooms, and Francis helped clean up the dust from the chimney, before hurrying away to her kitchen.

  I had just replaced the final brick, and wiped the worst of the dust off my hands, when Jasmine and Chris returned from their meal at the pub.

  “Did you have a nice dinner?” Helen dashed along the hallway and stood in the doorway, blocking me from their view, and giving me a few more seconds to make myself look presentable.

  “Lovely, thank you.” Jasmine looked around the hallway as she removed her jacket. “Something is different in here.”

  I shoved the chisel under the sofa and joined Helen by the door. “What do you think is different?”

  Jasmine inhaled deeply. “I can’t put my finger on it, but the house feels warmer and happier somehow.”

  Chris hugged Jasmine to his side. “You’re right. It must be thanks to our hard-working employees.”

  “I don’t think we have anything to do with it.” I exchanged a glance with Helen. “We’ve not been doing much tonight.”

  “Whatever it is, I’m glad of it,” said Jasmine.

  “It could be because we had a lovely night out, just the two of us,” said Chris.

  Jasmine kissed his cheek. “You’re right. It was nice to have a date night together, like we used to.”

  I was pleased to see the positive effect removing Annie’s bones had already had on the atmosphere in the house. But I now needed to wash the evidence off my hands and deal with Annie’s remains as quickly as possible.

  We made our excuses and returned to the annex. I washed up and then sat at the kitchen table as Helen made a pot of strong tea and placed a plate of chocolate chip cookies in front of me.

  “We need caffeine and sugar. We’ve both had a shock.” Helen joined me at the table and poured out the tea.

  A wave of exhaustion ran over me as I thought about what I’d just done. “It’s the first time I’ve ever had to do anything with the actual bones of a ghost. I’m still not entirely sure what we should do with them.”

  “Why don’t you ask Gwen?” suggested Helen. “As her mother, she will know where Annie used to play. That could be a nice place for her final resting spot.”

  “I was wondering about the play area we saw the other day,” I said. “That’s where Annie first appeared to us. She might like that. I doubt it was there when she was alive, but it could be somewhere she goes to with Mirabel and Michael now they're ghosts.”

  “That’s a nice idea,” said Helen. “Any sign of the children since you moved Annie’s bones?”

  “I haven’t heard anything or seen them,” I said. “And Flipper has been quiet.” I looked over to where Flipper lay on his side in a deep sleep. I was not the only one who found ghost hunting exhausting.

  “Maybe what you’ve done is enough,” said Helen. “Perhaps Annie revealing her resting place was enough for her, and she’s now able to move on.”

  “I’d still like to give her a proper burial,” I said. “And we need to do something with her bones.”

  “Yes, you’re right, we do.” Helen selected a cookie from the plate and took a bite. “And are you going to reveal to me why you’ve been so miserable? I know it’s not just the ghosts bothering you.”

  I sagged in my seat. “I had a fight with Zach about my ghost seeing ability.”

  “I thought he believed in your ability?”

  “He does,” I said. “But Zach’s not sure he wants ghosts in his life.”

  “He has no choice but to have them in his life,” said Helen. “If he’s with you, there are always going to be ghosts.”

  “That’s the problem,” I said. “I’m not sure how much Zach does want to be with me. If he’s not willing to accept that seeing ghosts and helping them is a big part of my life, then I’m not sure we’re going to be together much longer.”

  “Don’t say that.” Helen offered me a cookie. “You make a great pair.”

  “I’m not willing to give up on the ghosts.” I grabbed a cookie and took a large bite. “I do find them a nuisance at times, and sometimes wish they’d leave me alone. But I do like to help them. Zach must be able to see that.”

  “Maybe you’ve got him a little spooked.” Helen grinned at me. “I mean, your ability is an unusual one. And you often put your desire to help ghosts above your own safety. I know Zach doesn’t like that.”

  “My ability means there are always going to be other people in our relationship,” I
said.

  “Absolutely. I’m not going to go away, just because you have a boyfriend.”

  “I didn’t mean you. I know I’ve got you for life.” I smiled at Helen. “But unlike the living, a ghost can float through the wall at any time. I can’t simply ignore that because Zach finds it an inconvenience.”

  “Don’t give up on him yet,” said Helen. “You know Zach’s not all that good at showing his emotions. His concern for you is real, and maybe he just said the wrong thing. Men can be silly at times.”

  “I hope so.” I hated the way my stomach churned whenever I thought about the possibility that Zach would no longer be in my life. Although we hadn’t been together long, I’d gotten used to having him around. And I knew how much Flipper would miss Jessie if we split up. Who was I kidding; I'd miss Zach like crazy if he decided a life with ghosts, and me, was not for him.

  “So, what’s next?” asked Helen. “We need to do something about Annie’s remains.”

  I stood from the table. “And we will, later tonight. But I want to see if I can find Annie first. I need to make sure she’s not preventing Mirabel and Michael from being at rest.”

  “Where are you going to look for her?” asked Helen.

  “I’m going to start in the nursery,” I said. “She might be hiding out somewhere she feels safe after seeing her parents fighting downstairs.”

  “Annie must be terrified of Saul after what he did to her,” said Helen.

  “That’s someone else who needs justice brought against him,” I said. “But I’m not sure how to punish a ghost.”

  “Another question for Gwen?” suggested Helen. “She wasn’t afraid of tackling him when he appeared in the living room.”

  I nodded. “Gwen could be just the ghost we need. She clearly cares about Annie and wants to see the right thing done at last. Maybe she can figure out a way to punish Saul for his mistreatment of their daughter.”

  “It would be nice if we can have Gwen there when we lay Annie to rest,” said Helen.

  “It may give Gwen the comfort she’s looking for as well, and she can finally leave this house after so many decades haunting it.” I patted my leg and Flipper came to join me by the door. “I’ll meet you outside in an hour. Bring Annie’s bones with you, and we can find a suitable spot for her.”

  Helen looked at the sheet containing Annie’s bones. “I’m not sure I’m comfortable dealing with the bones.”

  “There’s nothing to be scared of,” I said. “We all have them.”

  “I know that.” Helen tutted. “But those bones were once a person.”

  “A person who now needs our help,” I said.

  Helen sighed but then nodded. “I’ll bring the creepy bones with me.”

  I left the annex and crept up the stairs to the nursery. I didn’t want to disturb Chris or Jasmine, who were downstairs in the living room. I inched the nursery door open and looked inside. Everything was quiet, but Flipper gently whined and brushed against my leg, suggesting he sensed something.

  “In you go.” I opened the door wider, and Flipper hurried in ahead of me, his nose in the air as he sniffed around the room.

  “Who’s in here with us?” I asked him.

  Flipper continued his inspection of the room, stopping to sniff discarded toys on the ground as he did so. He paused in one corner and his tail wagged.

  “Annie, are you in here with us?” I asked. “Now that I know what happened to you when you were alive, I want to talk to you about what will happen next.”

  The air chilled, but Annie didn’t appear.

  “I’d like to do something to make sure you have a comfortable resting place. Would you like that?”

  A hazy image of Annie emerged in the corner. She bent down and ran her hands along Flipper’s back several times, not making eye contact with me.

  “We’ve removed your bones from the wall, and I wondered if you might like to be buried in the play area close to this house? It’s nearby, so you can still see the house, and it will give you somewhere safe to go.”

  Annie looked up at me and gave a slow nod.

  So far so good. Now onto the tricky bit. “I also want to talk to you about your friends, Mirabel and Michael.”

  Annie’s eyes narrowed.

  “I know how nice it is to have friends. But they are very young and may not understand why they’re still here. Don’t you think it’s time they moved on to whatever is next for them? You don’t want to keep them trapped here.”

  Annie focused back on Flipper, before looking around at the toys in the nursery.

  “You can’t want Mirabel and Michael to stay here forever,” I said. “I know you must have a lot of fun together, and they may remind you of your own siblings. But it’s time for all three of you to move on. And you never know, wherever you are going, you could still be together. You can still be friends.”

  A small red toy train trundled along the floor and stopped by my right foot. I bent down and picked it up. “It looks like your friends are here as well.” I looked around for any signs of Michael or Mirabel.

  Annie nodded and pointed to a toy doll that fell over onto its face.

  Although I couldn’t see the other two children, I did feel they were in the room, and turned in a slow circle to catch a glimpse of them. “Mirabel and Michael, I know this was your home, and I know your family is still here. And your new friend, Annie, has been looking after you. But it’s time for you to go. You don’t have anything to worry about by moving on. And when you do go, it won’t mean your parents will forget about you. I know how much they love you and want to know you’re safe and happy. But if you stay here, they may not think that.”

  The doll lifted from the floor and danced across the room towards me. It was closely followed by a bright green toy car. They both stopped by my feet.

  “Is that a sign you’re happy with what I’m suggesting?”

  The doll danced round my feet a couple of times before stopping and sitting on the floor.

  “And you don’t have to worry about Annie; she’s coming with you as well.” I looked over at Annie, and she nodded at me. “She’s been here such a long time that she might be scared about going somewhere new, so you must make sure you look after her. I know Annie has been a good friend to you while you’ve been in this house, and you’ll want to help her and make sure she feels safe and looked after.”

  Annie stopped stroking Flipper and stood. She extended both her hands and Mirabel and Michael appeared on either side of her, each holding onto her hands.

  “Are you ready to go?” I felt sad at their passing. It was a tragedy what had happened to all of them, more so Annie, who had her life taken from her by someone who should have been her protector.

  The three children nodded at me. Michael gave me a shy wave goodbye, and Mirabel stuck her thumb in her mouth. They turned and walked through the wall.

  Flipper stood and moved to my side, leaning against my leg as he looked up at me.

  “Everything’s going to be okay now,” I said to him. “Our ghosts can finally rest.”

  Chapter 26

  I snuck out of the house with Flipper, sticking to the shadows to make sure I wasn’t spotted. I needn’t have worried. I knew Jasmine and Chris had already gone to bed.

  Francis was with me, her collar turned up, and a woollen hat tugged over her ears. “It does feel different in the house.”

  “You sense it too?” I whispered.

  “Since you moved those poor child’s bones, everything is calmer. The house can finally relax.” She shot me a glare. “Although I’m still not sure about ghosts.”

  “Yes, you are,” I said. “And you know now that Mirabel and Michael are at peace. That’s important to you.”

  Francis sniffed. “It is.”

  “Are you sure you don’t want to come with me and Helen when we bury Annie?”

  “No! I don’t want to know anything about that.” Francis took a step away but then paused. “But let me know wher
e her resting place is. I could stop by with some flowers now and again. I don’t like to think of a child being alone and no one looking in on her.”

  “I’ll do that.” It turned out that Francis wasn’t so narrow-minded after all. She was still a terrible cook, but she had a good heart when it came to children.

  Francis hurried away into the gloom of the evening. I imagined she was in shock about the revelation there were ghosts in the house, but she hadn’t said anything to the Bellamys about what had gone on with the fireplace, and I got the impression she wouldn’t. And she must have been relieved to know that she wasn’t losing her mind because she’d been hearing the children even after they’d died.

  “Over here,” whispered Helen from an inky black shadow.

  I hurried over and saw she was carrying the bundle of bones in her arms, along with a shovel. “I spoke to the children. They’ve moved on. Everything should be fine in the house now.”

  “Glad to hear it,” said Helen. “And Annie is happy with our plans for her remains?”

  “She liked the idea,” I said. “She did seem reluctant to leave without the others, but they all left together. I don’t think the Bellamys need worry about hearing any strange noises in the middle of the night anymore.”

  “Any sign of Gwen?” asked Helen. “What does she think of our plans?”

  “She didn’t turn up in the nursery,” I said. “Maybe that’s a sign she’s happy with our idea too.”

  “Let’s find a suitable spot for Annie,” said Helen. “If we lurk in the shadows for much longer, someone will call the police.”

  I nodded, and we walked swiftly along the lane to the play area. An owl hooted overhead making us jump, but other than that, silence surrounded us.

  “If we go into the trees a little way, we should find some soft ground,” I said. “We’d better make sure we place the bones in a deep hole, so they don’t get scavenged by animals.”