Town Haunts (7 page)

“This goes in
the north corner of the room,” she said. Carrying the candle there,
Tiernay crouched to set it on the floor. “Guardian of the earth,
protect this coven against evil,” she intoned, waving her hands
over the flames three times. She rose in one fluid motion, bowed,
and returned to the cabinet. Choosing the red candle, she lit it
and carried the candle to the southern corner.

“Guardian of
fire, protect this coven against evil,” she prayed. She followed
the same procedure with the blue and yellow candles, calling upon
the elements of water and air for protection. When she had
finished, she rejoined the others at the table.

Removing a
dainty black silk pouch from her cleavage, Tiernay said, “I’ve
chosen a stone or a crystal for each of you. I want you to kiss it
and place it in the centre of the table to form a protective ring.”
Opening the drawstring, she poured the objects into her palm and
handed one to each person.

“A fire agate
for strength and courage for Anna, a white selenite for peace and
safety for Erna, a black obsidian to thwart negativity and enhance
resilience for May, and a purple amethyst to open psychic channels
for Sherman. For myself, I chose amber to melt opposition.” They
all kissed their stones and laid them on the table top as bidden,
making a colourful ring around the candelabra.

“Now that we’re
protected, we can begin,” Tiernay said. “Sherman, light the
candles, if you please.” Sherman rose and lit each of the white
tapers with the match shaking in his fingers.

“Thank you.
May, turn off the ceiling light.” May rolled her eyes at Tiernay’s
imperious tone, but jumped up to flip off the wall switch, dousing
the electric chandelier. In the flickering candle light, the room
assumed a magical quality, no longer bare and forlorn.

Covering her
face with her hands, the young woman muttered a string of words to
herself, raising her head to finish more audibly with, “Mother
Earth, we find our strength in you.” That done, she gazed in turn
at the others.

“Let’s join
hands,” she directed, holding her hands out to Anna and May. When
Anna took Sherman’s hand, she found it cold and rough. She watched
him out of the corner of her eye, wondering how he would react to
the upcoming events. His face was anxious, and his attention was
focused entirely upon Tiernay.

The young woman
peered toward the shadowy doorway. “We are here tonight to summon
the spirit of Evelyn Mason,” she intoned. “Evelyn, Sherman heard
you calling to him in the graveyard last Monday night. He believes
that something troubles you. We want to help you to find peace.
What disturbs your slumber?” She paused, and Anna held her breath,
wondering what Tiernay had in store for them.

Nothing
happened. Tiernay seemed content to wait, however, staring into the
shadows. The other women waited in silence, glancing at each other
and around the room.

After a minute
had passed, Tiernay added, “Please don’t be afraid, Evelyn. Speak
to us. Tell us what’s wrong. We’re your friends. We can help you.”
She waited again, her chest rising and falling with slow, measured
breaths, her eyes staring into the doorway. When another minute had
passed without result, she turned her gaze upon Sherman.

“Why don’t you
try summoning her?” she suggested.

Sherman licked
his cracked lips. “I wouldn’t know what to say.”

“Tell her that
you love her. Let her know that you’re worried about her.”

He nodded. “All
right, I’ll give it a try.” Peering around the room first as if his
wife’s spirit might be hiding in the corners, he licked his lips
again and said, “Evie, it’s me, Sherman. Are you okay, honey? I
thought I heard you calling to me in the cemetery the other night.
Is there anything you need, Evie? Anything at all?”

He paused, and
suddenly there was a loud rap on the table top. Everyone jumped;
everyone except Tiernay.

“Don’t be
afraid,” she said, squeezing Anna and May’s hands. “We’ve made
contact. That’s excellent. Just keep holding hands and maintain the
circle. Try to focus your inner eye on Evelyn.” In an encouraging
tone, she added, “You’re doing fine, Sherman. Keep talking.”

Sherman cleared
his throat before saying, “Are you there, Evie? Is there anything
you want to say to me?”

As they waited,
Anna thought she heard a tinkling sound. She glanced at May and
Erna, wondering if they could hear it, too. May winked and Erna
nodded. After a few moments, the sound grew louder, and Anna
realized that it was music. It sounded odd, however, as if it were
being played on an old-fashioned player piano. It was just a
fragment of a song, the same two bars of melody being played over
and over again.

“Where’s it
coming from?” May asked, looking over her shoulder.

“I’m not sure,”
Anna said, craning her head upward. “From above us, maybe?”

“I recognize
that melody,” Erna said. “It’s ‘Lara’s Theme’.”

“What’s that?”
Anna asked.

“From the movie
Dr. Zhivago,” Erna replied.

“Sherman, is
there some significance to this music?” Tiernay asked. Anna turned
to look at the caretaker. His eyes looked haunted.

“Evie loved
that movie. She used to have a music box in her bedroom that played
that song. It sounded just like this. I don’t know what happened to
it. I haven’t seen it in months.”

“Good, we’re
making more progress,” Tiernay said. “Stay focused, everyone.”

Anna looked at
the group seated around the table. Tiernay’s eyes were closed in
concentration, Sherman’s face was haggard, May looked impatient,
and Erna was staring fixedly past her toward the hallway.

“Look,” Erna
said in an urgent voice, nodding toward the door. May gasped as
Anna turned to see.

A white fog was
seeping into the doorway. It accumulated on the threshold,
thickening into a cloud until the sill disappeared, and spilled out
over the floorboards. It crept in tendrils across the floor,
inching its way toward the table. Holding her breath, Anna watched
the fog reach her feet and felt its moist cold wrap around her
ankles. Staring as her shoes disappeared, she heard an odd wheezing
sound coming from nearby. She turned to look at Sherman. His breath
rattled through his open mouth as he stared at the fog.

“It’s okay,”
Anna said, giving his hand a squeeze. For pity’s sake, this little
show was supposed to help the poor man, not give him a heart
attack. She gave Tiernay a sharp look, wishing that she would get
on with a comforting message from Evelyn, but the young woman
didn’t notice her. She was staring into the candle flames,
oblivious to everyone around her.

“Tiernay,” Anna
said, giving the young woman’s hand a shake, but Tiernay’s eyes
were fixed and unblinking, glittering strangely in the candlelight.
She didn’t seem to hear.

“Tiernay, are
you all right, dear?” Erna asked.

As everyone
stared, Tiernay’s mouth dropped open. “Sherman,” she whispered, her
lips moving while the rest of her face seemed set in stone.
“Sher-mannn.”

“Is that you,
Evie?” the caretaker asked, his expression strained.

“Murder,”
Tiernay muttered.

“What’s that?”
he asked.

“My murder must
be avenged,” Tiernay said in a monotone. Anna stared at her. Was
she insane? This was so not the message that she was supposed to
give to Sherman.

“Avenged?”
Sherman said, his voice cracking over the two syllables.

“I suffer. I
cannot rest. There is no peace while my murderer lives.”

Sherman gaped
at her, his face a mask of horror.

“Stop it!” May
hissed.

Slowly, the
young woman turned to Sherman, fixing him with terrible, staring
eyes. He recoiled from her gaze, ripping his hands from Erna and
Anna’s.

“We are bound
together in both worlds,” Tiernay said. “You cannot escape me,
Sherman.” He moaned and buried his face in his hands.

Erna rose from
her chair, marched around the table, and thrust herself in front of
Tiernay. Grasping the young woman’s shoulders, she gave her a good
shake. Tiernay’s head bobbed up and down like a limp doll’s, but
her eyes remained fixed and staring. Erna took hold of her chin and
slapped her hard across the face. The sound reverberated around the
room. The ceiling light flashed on, and Tiernay slumped,
face-first, onto the table.

Sherman broke
into a sob, his shoulders heaving. Dismayed, Anna jumped up from
her chair and hurried to slip an arm around his shoulders. May
stood beside the light switch, staring at Erna.

“Well!” Erna
said with a frown. “This is certainly not what I expected.”

They got
nothing useful from Tiernay that evening. Erna had to use smelling
salts to revive her, and when the young woman awoke, she protested
that she could not remember anything after the fog had appeared in
the doorway.

“Evelyn’s
spirit possessed me,” she groaned, holding her head in her
hands.

May bustled
over to take command of Sherman, releasing Anna to join Erna and
Tiernay.

“I’ve got to go
home,” the young woman insisted. “My head’s splitting.”

“I don’t know,
dear. You don’t look as if you’re fit to drive,” Erna said.

“I’ll take
her,” Anna offered. “That’s your red car out front, isn’t it?”

“Yes. Thank
you, Anna,” the young woman said, glancing up at her with genuine
gratitude in her kohl-streaked eyes. “I really don’t feel up to
driving.”

“That’s okay,”
Anna said. “But what are we going to do about Sherman?” May was
talking earnestly with the caretaker, who looked shrunken, huddled
in his chair. After a moment, she nodded and got up to join the
others while Sherman stumbled from the room, turning on the hallway
light as he passed.

“Sherman’s
coming home with me tonight,” May said, her face determined. “He’s
just gone to collect a few things. We’ll drop you off on the way,
Erna.” Erna pursed her lips, and May added, “Well, we can’t leave
him here alone tonight. Not after what she just said.” She jerked
her head toward Tiernay.

“But your
apartment is so small. Where will you put him?” Erna asked.

“On my couch.
He won’t mind,” May said, glaring at Erna as if daring her to add
any more objections.

“Whatever you
think best,” Erna said, dropping her eyes.

Anna nodded. It
seemed a practical solution to her. Sherman looked far too upset to
remain alone in the house tonight, and none of them were going to
volunteer to stay in this spooky old place with him.

“Well, if
that’s settled, let’s go, Tiernay,” Anna said. “You look like
you’re just about dead on your feet.” She retrieved the leather
pouch the young woman had slung over the back of her chair and hung
it over her shoulder. “You can pick up the rest of your séance
stuff tomorrow.”

“Whatever you
say,” Tiernay replied, rising unsteadily to her feet.

Anna slid a
steadying hand under Tiernay’s elbow and turned to her friends.
“I’ll call you tomorrow,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows
suggestively at May and Erna. They had to hold a war council to
figure out how to fix things with Sherman. Erna nodded, and Anna
led the tottering young woman to the door.

“So, what was
that all about?” Anna asked as soon as she and Tiernay had fastened
their seat belts after climbing into the car. She put the VW sports
car in gear, checked over her shoulder, and made a U-turn back
toward town. “You were supposed to help Sherman tonight, not
terrify him. Now he’s afraid to stay alone in his own house.”

Tiernay laid
her head back against the headrest, allowing the air pouring
through the windows to blow across her face and tousle her hair. “I
don’t know what happened. I told you, I don’t remember anything
after I saw the fog coming through the doorway.”

“You’re
kidding, right? Come on – Sherman’s not here – you can tell me the
truth. How’d you do the fog, by the way?”

“Greg did it.
He rigged a machine inside the black cabinet in the dining room. I
activated it with a remote and made the rapping noise on the table,
but that’s it. That’s all I did. Everything else was one hundred
percent genuine.” She closed her eyes.

Anna gritted
her teeth, but didn’t say another word until she pulled up in front
of the young woman’s home. Tiernay and Greg lived in a residential
neighbourhood one block north of the Healing Hands store. Their
house was a two-storey timber frame with three naked poplars vying
for space in the stony front yard. Anna turned off the ignition and
glanced at Tiernay, who drooped against the seat. Anna had earned
her living as an actress for a couple of years after her marriage
to Jack. As far as she could tell, if Tiernay were play-acting, she
was seriously committed to her role.

“What can I
say? How can I believe such a fantastic story?” Anna asked.

Tiernay opened
her eyes to gaze sullenly through the windshield. “Believe what you
like. You’ll see. I only hope it isn’t too late.”

“Too late for
what?”

“The evil I
sensed following you. Maybe it was Evelyn’s spirit searching for
her murderer. We’ve got to help her before she gets desperate and
takes matters into her own hands.”

Anna paused to
think. Why was Tiernay so insistent in maintaining her ruse about a
ghost? Of course, she had faked the entire séance. What did she
have to gain by withholding the truth? It just didn’t make any
sense.

The porch light
was on, and Anna nodded toward it. “Is Greg home to help you?”

“I don’t know,”
the young woman said. “I’ll try calling him on my cell.” She pulled
the phone from her bag and punched in the numbers. The phone rang
several times before it was answered.

“Hi, it’s me.
No, the séance didn’t go well. I’m not sure. Listen, I’m out front
in the car, and I’m feeling pretty shaky. Anna drove me home. Can
you come out and help me? Thanks.” Tiernay tossed the phone back
into her bag and covered her eyes with one hand. “My head is
killing me.”