Don't Wake Up Little Susie
October 15
“I have to be honest,” Di said quietly as she reached for her soda cup. “I’m still having a hard time believing or accepting that any of this is actually true. Part of me can’t help but think that any day now you’re all going to tell me that you’re secretly filming some kind of student production of a show like Punk’d, and I’m the ‘victim.’”
Honey smiled sympathetically at her friend. “I know. But it is real. You should have been with us yesterday at Lisgard House. Even if I’d thought they were playing a practical joke on everyone, not just you? Yesterday would have taught me otherwise. There’s no way they could’ve kept up the running conversations as long as they did if they were only faking it for a prank. They were definitely talking to dead people only they can see.”
“Including some guy who intended to poison his wife, but she shot him first?”
“Including him,” Honey agreed ruefully as she slumped back in her chair and let her gaze wander the half-full food court. “As far as I can tell? The reason some spirits end up hanging around? Is because they’re seriously messed up.”
“If they’re getting you to break into people’s houses and steal alcohol? Yeah. They aren’t just messed up. They’re trouble.” Di frowned as she spoke. “How much worse do you think it could get? What if… I dunno. What if one of them wants to harm someone living? Could they do that? Or could they make Trixie or Dan or Mart do it?”
“I don’t think they can force anyone to do anything for them. I don’t know. What I do know is we’re working with Professor Lee to come up with an actual spell if they need to stop a ghost from doing… whatever. Hopefully, they’ll have something before they get their big bluff called and the spirits find out they can’t really banish anyone. Yet.”
“And we can trust this guy? This professor?”
“Yeah. I think so. I know I’m always getting accused of only seeing the best in people, but I think he’s genuinely trying to help. He’s meeting with the boys at Lisgard House this afternoon to study Sarah’s journal pages. Maybe they’ll find something useful.”
“I think I’d like to meet him myself,” Di said, her brow furrowed as she remained unconvinced. “Form my own opinion… Look. Here comes Trix.”
The girls watched as their friend approached their table, carrying a tray with nachos and a drink. She shook her head once, sharply, but kept her gaze pinned firmly ahead. “Uh, oh,” Honey murmured. “I don’t think she’s alone.”
After setting her snack down, Trixie turned slightly to look at the older man standing a few feet behind her. “I think you’re missing the point,” she told him, trying to keep the frustration from her tone. “The reason they call it a bucket list is because it’s things you’re supposed to do before you kick the bucket. Not after.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“This is utterly fascinating,” Professor Lee said, his eyes scanning the neat row of papers glued to the wall.
Dan shot him a dubious look. “If you say so. Even knowing that she really was a witch and presumably those are working spells? I gotta kinda side with my uncle on this one. Maybe the town turned against Sarah because she was bringing the crazy to the party every day? I know they used to really frown on people with mental issues back then. And? If she was genuinely nutso? That might also explain why she only popped in to put on a carnival fun house show for us before disappearing again.”
“Hmmm. I suspect she may have appeared that way. Insane, I mean. But I’m thinking it might very well have been deliberate.”
“And you’re thinking this because…?”
“There’s a pattern here. A method to her madness, as it were. It’s almost like she was writing in code.”
“Yeah? Okay. I’m not really seein’ it.”
“Yes. Like this part here,” the professor murmured, more to himself than anything, as he ran one finger lightly across a page. “I don’t think she’s actually referring to talking plants.”
“Why would she be using a code in her own diary?”
“Hmm? Oh, well, presumably because she was afraid someone would read it. Someone she didn’t actually want reading it, that is.”
“I guess we have to hope that doesn’t include us, then. It would suck if she went all evil spirit on us. I’ll leave you to this for now. I need to get out front and help Miss Lonelyhearts.”
Professor Lee turned to look at him, brows raised. “Who?”
“Mart,” Dan replied with a snort. “At school? He’s actually the advice columnist for our paper. The job sorta fell into his lap, but believe it or not, he’s pretty good at it.”
“I do believe it. Mart seems like a particularly empathetic young man.”
“Yeah. So, anyway, you have at it with the journal and I’ll join Mart for office hours.”
“And where is Trixie today? Will she be joining us?”
“Probably not. She went to the mall with Honey and another friend of ours. Dress shopping for the Homecoming dance.”
“Ah. Right.”
Dan was almost to the front door, when the professor called him back.
“Sorry! I forgot to tell you. I did some digging in the archives at the historical society and found something interesting. Sarah Sligo had two children. A boy and a girl. They were born quite close together – less than a year apart, in fact. I couldn’t find any more information about them, though, other than the record of their births, so I don’t know what happened to them. Still, that answers Trixie’s question. Yes, Sarah had children, which means it is possible that she and Mart are direct descendants.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I hate shopping,” Trixie grumbled. “Either I can never find my size or the clothes are ugly or there’re too many people and a line for the dressing rooms.”
“Oh, cheer up, Trix!” Di said, shaking her head in exasperation. “Really! Aren’t you excited about going to the dance with Dan?”
“Yeah,” she admitted softly. “I am.”
“Well, then, let’s pick out a dress that will knock him dead.”
Both Honey and Trixie stared at their friend for a long moment.
“Oh. Ew. Sorry!” Di winced and cast Trixie an apologetic glance. “Probably coulda come up with a better way to phrase that.”
Honey turned to sort through some gowns on a round rack. “What about you, Di?” she asked, tactfully changing the subject.
“What about me? I told you. I already have my entire outfit picked out.”
“I know that! I meant are you excited about your date to the dance?”
“Of course. Drew isn’t just our star quarterback. He’s the hottest guy in the school.”
“Going out with the prettiest girl,” Trixie added with a small smirk. “Is there any doubt at all who’s gonna be crowned Homecoming king and queen?”
“None whatsoever,” Di said loftily, before tossing her head with a laugh. “Although, seriously, you and Dan and Honey and Mart are both perfectly adorable couples, so maybe the final outcome isn’t so absolutely certain, hmmm?”
Trixie didn’t reply. She was frowning at something behind her friends. Di turned and saw nothing but a row of shelves with folded t-shirts and jeans on display. “So… are you giving consideration to breaking all the fashion rules and dressing way down for the dance or is there someone there?”
“Ghost,” Trixie replied tersely. “And I think she’s trying to shoplift?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mart dropped down wearily on a rickety stool near the fireplace and rubbed both hands over his face. “Dude,” he muttered with a quick glance in Dan’s direction. “If I die before you and I come back? You are free to tell me to quit being an ass and get on with things.”
“Were the, uh, spirits being particularly difficult for you?” Professor Lee asked curiously, carefully setting down his notebook and placing his pen on top before turning his complete attention on the boys.
“Eh. Depends on your definition of difficult. I guess I should look on the bright side. No one needed me to commit a felony for them today. That’s gotta be considered a plus, yeah?”
“They weren’t necessarily being difficult,” Dan explained with a shrug. “It’s just that some of them? They’re stuck here because they’re hung up on the most ridiculous things. Like a lost library card.”
“Or my fave from tonight’s bunch,” Mart added, “I actually had a guy who was upset that he died before the final Lord of the Rings movie came out. Seriously. You’re missing the afterlife for that?”
Dan grinned at his friend. “I would think the geek in you could totally appreciate that one.”
“I may be a geek, but you don’t understand. He was upset because it meant he didn’t get to show off the Legolas costume he made specifically to wear to opening night and apparently it didn’t occur to his mom to bury him in it. It took me almost ten minutes to get him to accept that I was not going to go to his house and insist that his family exhume his body and change his clothes. And that I absolutely wasn’t gonna do the task myself, either. We already dug up one dead guy. That’s enough for me.”
“Oh, my,” Professor Lee murmured.
“Exactly. Anyway, now that we’re done seeing… clients? Patients?”
“Dead folks?” Dan suggested dryly.
“Whatever. Now that we’re done with them for the day, I have some questions, Professor. Can you think of any reason someone would be telling ghosts to be afraid of us? And who that someone maybe could be?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“She’s gone,” Trixie said, rolling her eyes. “I finally convinced her that stealing as an act of rebellion against strict parents really only works when you’re alive and there’s at least the potential of getting caught - that it’s kinda meaningless if your mom and dad couldn’t possibly ever find out.”
Di held up two dresses. “Are all ghosts just that stupid?” she asked. “Because it sure sounds like it based on everything you’ve told me… Which one do you like better? I’m thinking the green would look great on you, but Honey’s choice is the rose.”
“Uh… the green? I don’t know. I’ll try ‘em both on.”
“While you do that, I’m going to run over to the shoe department,” Honey told her. “I’d like to get a new pair of heels for the dance.”
Di perched herself on a padded footstool while she waited for Trixie to change. “I’ve been thinking a lot about this,” she said, idly plucking at the strap of her purse in her lap, “and I don’t know any more if it would be a good idea to have a ghost theme for our bash. You know, in light of… everything.”
“I know. Personally, at this point? I’m totally onboard with Dan’s suggestion about rainbows and unicorns. But that genie has left the bottle, I think, and I don’t see us getting him back in it. Not with the way the whole town’s gone bonkers over the idea.” Trixie opened the door and stepped of the changing room. “What do you think?” she asked, turning in a circle and holding out her arms.
“Nice. Honey’s right. That’s a good color on you. You look all sweet and fairy princess.”
Trixie had to laugh at that. “Which would be so not who I actually am! Maybe I should buy the other dress for the dance and this one to wear as a costume to the party. I could add some wings and a flower crown.”
“As long as you don’t dress up as a murder victim again, I’m good with it.”
“Hey! That was an awesome costume.”
“It was gruesome. All that fake blood and the knife sticking out of your chest? Yeesh. Try the green gown. Let me see how it looks.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I’m also interested in the fact that you’ve got a name in… er, ghost circles,” Professor Lee said seriously. “I’d like to know if that’s just a matter of convenience or if there’s some sort of significance to it.”
Dan looked over from the journal page he was studying. “You mean The Three?”
“Yes. It could simply be that they call you that as a reference they all understand, or it could have a deeper meaning. Throughout history, the number three has held particular meaning for people, in many different cultures and religions.”
“So you’re saying the name ‘The Three’ could be especially important somehow?”
“Possibly. Yes.”
“Dude,” Mart muttered. “Seriously. Stop saying it like that.”
“Like what?”
“Like you’re, I dunno, making a movie trailer or something.”
Dan grinned broadly at his friend. “In a world where troubled ghosts are real and walk among us, only The Three can save the day…”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Trixie completed her purchase and accepted the bagged gown from the salesclerk. “Wow. This one pretty much wiped out all the allowance I saved up,” she said with an exaggerated wince. “It really is too bad this whole ghost helping thing isn’t a paying gig.”
“You did pick the more expensive dress,” Honey pointed out. “You could’ve gone with the other one.”
“Nah. I like this one. Fairy princess aside, it fits much better, for one thing.” She turned and stepped aside to let a teenage girl pass her.
“Oh, my gosh! You can see me! Can you see me?”
Trixie heaved a sigh. “Yes. I can see you. What do you need?”
“I got a flat! I know it’s silly and helpless of me, but I don’t know how to change it. Can you help?”
“A flat,” Trixie echoed. “As in a flat tire.”
“Yes. What else would I be talking about?”
“A flat tire on a car you will never actually drive ever again.”
The girl blinked. “Well… yes.”
“Were you on your way to a Halloween party when this flat happened?”
“No. I was on my way to visit my grandmother.”
“And you got hit by another car? Perhaps when you got out of yours to find help?”
“Yes! How did you know that?”
“Oh… lucky guess,” Trixie said, taking in the streaks of dirt and grime that covered her, along with the blood and bruises. “So this poodle skirt. That’s a legit fashion choice as far as you’re concerned. Not a costume. You aren’t playing dress up.”
“I don’t even know what you mean by that.”
“Just placing your time period. What’s your name?”
“Susie.”
“Susie. Right. Well, Susie, are you aware of your current state of deadness?”
“Yes. I know. So stupid! It really was a freak accident.”
“And I’m sorry about that. But meanwhile, you need to move on. Instead of wandering around here in a lonely dead zone, go to the next level, huh?”
“How do I do that?” Susie asked plaintively. “My parents always said death was just like sleeping. It’s nothing like sleeping. I wish I was sleeping and never had to wake up ever again. How do I move on?”
“Well… uh… I’m not sure. You’re the first ghost to ask me that. Usually, once they’ve settled their issues, they just sorta ‘poof’ away. Try… I dunno… close your eyes and concentrate?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dan gathered his things into his backpack. “You know, for a Suck Day, today really wasn’t all that bad, all things considered,” he mused.
“Oh, man. You had to say it. You just had to go and say it,” Mart groaned. “Why would you want to tempt fate like that? Now you know something-“
“Mart! Dan!” Professor Lee called from the foyer. “Quick! Come see!”
They hurried to join the professor. He pointed to a gold-framed mirror hanging over an old side table. They could see the reflection of the hallway behind them as they looked in it.
“This is truly remarkable,” the professor said, his tone low. “You can see the message on the wall when you look in the mirror, but if you look at the wall itself…”
“There’s nothing there. That definitely pings high on my Creepy Meter,” Mart said slowly. “What – what do you suppose it means, anyway?”
The professor shook his head. “I don’t know, but I sure wish I did!”
Beware! She is coming!
“I have to be honest,” Di said quietly as she reached for her soda cup. “I’m still having a hard time believing or accepting that any of this is actually true. Part of me can’t help but think that any day now you’re all going to tell me that you’re secretly filming some kind of student production of a show like Punk’d, and I’m the ‘victim.’”
Honey smiled sympathetically at her friend. “I know. But it is real. You should have been with us yesterday at Lisgard House. Even if I’d thought they were playing a practical joke on everyone, not just you? Yesterday would have taught me otherwise. There’s no way they could’ve kept up the running conversations as long as they did if they were only faking it for a prank. They were definitely talking to dead people only they can see.”
“Including some guy who intended to poison his wife, but she shot him first?”
“Including him,” Honey agreed ruefully as she slumped back in her chair and let her gaze wander the half-full food court. “As far as I can tell? The reason some spirits end up hanging around? Is because they’re seriously messed up.”
“If they’re getting you to break into people’s houses and steal alcohol? Yeah. They aren’t just messed up. They’re trouble.” Di frowned as she spoke. “How much worse do you think it could get? What if… I dunno. What if one of them wants to harm someone living? Could they do that? Or could they make Trixie or Dan or Mart do it?”
“I don’t think they can force anyone to do anything for them. I don’t know. What I do know is we’re working with Professor Lee to come up with an actual spell if they need to stop a ghost from doing… whatever. Hopefully, they’ll have something before they get their big bluff called and the spirits find out they can’t really banish anyone. Yet.”
“And we can trust this guy? This professor?”
“Yeah. I think so. I know I’m always getting accused of only seeing the best in people, but I think he’s genuinely trying to help. He’s meeting with the boys at Lisgard House this afternoon to study Sarah’s journal pages. Maybe they’ll find something useful.”
“I think I’d like to meet him myself,” Di said, her brow furrowed as she remained unconvinced. “Form my own opinion… Look. Here comes Trix.”
The girls watched as their friend approached their table, carrying a tray with nachos and a drink. She shook her head once, sharply, but kept her gaze pinned firmly ahead. “Uh, oh,” Honey murmured. “I don’t think she’s alone.”
After setting her snack down, Trixie turned slightly to look at the older man standing a few feet behind her. “I think you’re missing the point,” she told him, trying to keep the frustration from her tone. “The reason they call it a bucket list is because it’s things you’re supposed to do before you kick the bucket. Not after.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“This is utterly fascinating,” Professor Lee said, his eyes scanning the neat row of papers glued to the wall.
Dan shot him a dubious look. “If you say so. Even knowing that she really was a witch and presumably those are working spells? I gotta kinda side with my uncle on this one. Maybe the town turned against Sarah because she was bringing the crazy to the party every day? I know they used to really frown on people with mental issues back then. And? If she was genuinely nutso? That might also explain why she only popped in to put on a carnival fun house show for us before disappearing again.”
“Hmmm. I suspect she may have appeared that way. Insane, I mean. But I’m thinking it might very well have been deliberate.”
“And you’re thinking this because…?”
“There’s a pattern here. A method to her madness, as it were. It’s almost like she was writing in code.”
“Yeah? Okay. I’m not really seein’ it.”
“Yes. Like this part here,” the professor murmured, more to himself than anything, as he ran one finger lightly across a page. “I don’t think she’s actually referring to talking plants.”
“Why would she be using a code in her own diary?”
“Hmm? Oh, well, presumably because she was afraid someone would read it. Someone she didn’t actually want reading it, that is.”
“I guess we have to hope that doesn’t include us, then. It would suck if she went all evil spirit on us. I’ll leave you to this for now. I need to get out front and help Miss Lonelyhearts.”
Professor Lee turned to look at him, brows raised. “Who?”
“Mart,” Dan replied with a snort. “At school? He’s actually the advice columnist for our paper. The job sorta fell into his lap, but believe it or not, he’s pretty good at it.”
“I do believe it. Mart seems like a particularly empathetic young man.”
“Yeah. So, anyway, you have at it with the journal and I’ll join Mart for office hours.”
“And where is Trixie today? Will she be joining us?”
“Probably not. She went to the mall with Honey and another friend of ours. Dress shopping for the Homecoming dance.”
“Ah. Right.”
Dan was almost to the front door, when the professor called him back.
“Sorry! I forgot to tell you. I did some digging in the archives at the historical society and found something interesting. Sarah Sligo had two children. A boy and a girl. They were born quite close together – less than a year apart, in fact. I couldn’t find any more information about them, though, other than the record of their births, so I don’t know what happened to them. Still, that answers Trixie’s question. Yes, Sarah had children, which means it is possible that she and Mart are direct descendants.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I hate shopping,” Trixie grumbled. “Either I can never find my size or the clothes are ugly or there’re too many people and a line for the dressing rooms.”
“Oh, cheer up, Trix!” Di said, shaking her head in exasperation. “Really! Aren’t you excited about going to the dance with Dan?”
“Yeah,” she admitted softly. “I am.”
“Well, then, let’s pick out a dress that will knock him dead.”
Both Honey and Trixie stared at their friend for a long moment.
“Oh. Ew. Sorry!” Di winced and cast Trixie an apologetic glance. “Probably coulda come up with a better way to phrase that.”
Honey turned to sort through some gowns on a round rack. “What about you, Di?” she asked, tactfully changing the subject.
“What about me? I told you. I already have my entire outfit picked out.”
“I know that! I meant are you excited about your date to the dance?”
“Of course. Drew isn’t just our star quarterback. He’s the hottest guy in the school.”
“Going out with the prettiest girl,” Trixie added with a small smirk. “Is there any doubt at all who’s gonna be crowned Homecoming king and queen?”
“None whatsoever,” Di said loftily, before tossing her head with a laugh. “Although, seriously, you and Dan and Honey and Mart are both perfectly adorable couples, so maybe the final outcome isn’t so absolutely certain, hmmm?”
Trixie didn’t reply. She was frowning at something behind her friends. Di turned and saw nothing but a row of shelves with folded t-shirts and jeans on display. “So… are you giving consideration to breaking all the fashion rules and dressing way down for the dance or is there someone there?”
“Ghost,” Trixie replied tersely. “And I think she’s trying to shoplift?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mart dropped down wearily on a rickety stool near the fireplace and rubbed both hands over his face. “Dude,” he muttered with a quick glance in Dan’s direction. “If I die before you and I come back? You are free to tell me to quit being an ass and get on with things.”
“Were the, uh, spirits being particularly difficult for you?” Professor Lee asked curiously, carefully setting down his notebook and placing his pen on top before turning his complete attention on the boys.
“Eh. Depends on your definition of difficult. I guess I should look on the bright side. No one needed me to commit a felony for them today. That’s gotta be considered a plus, yeah?”
“They weren’t necessarily being difficult,” Dan explained with a shrug. “It’s just that some of them? They’re stuck here because they’re hung up on the most ridiculous things. Like a lost library card.”
“Or my fave from tonight’s bunch,” Mart added, “I actually had a guy who was upset that he died before the final Lord of the Rings movie came out. Seriously. You’re missing the afterlife for that?”
Dan grinned at his friend. “I would think the geek in you could totally appreciate that one.”
“I may be a geek, but you don’t understand. He was upset because it meant he didn’t get to show off the Legolas costume he made specifically to wear to opening night and apparently it didn’t occur to his mom to bury him in it. It took me almost ten minutes to get him to accept that I was not going to go to his house and insist that his family exhume his body and change his clothes. And that I absolutely wasn’t gonna do the task myself, either. We already dug up one dead guy. That’s enough for me.”
“Oh, my,” Professor Lee murmured.
“Exactly. Anyway, now that we’re done seeing… clients? Patients?”
“Dead folks?” Dan suggested dryly.
“Whatever. Now that we’re done with them for the day, I have some questions, Professor. Can you think of any reason someone would be telling ghosts to be afraid of us? And who that someone maybe could be?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“She’s gone,” Trixie said, rolling her eyes. “I finally convinced her that stealing as an act of rebellion against strict parents really only works when you’re alive and there’s at least the potential of getting caught - that it’s kinda meaningless if your mom and dad couldn’t possibly ever find out.”
Di held up two dresses. “Are all ghosts just that stupid?” she asked. “Because it sure sounds like it based on everything you’ve told me… Which one do you like better? I’m thinking the green would look great on you, but Honey’s choice is the rose.”
“Uh… the green? I don’t know. I’ll try ‘em both on.”
“While you do that, I’m going to run over to the shoe department,” Honey told her. “I’d like to get a new pair of heels for the dance.”
Di perched herself on a padded footstool while she waited for Trixie to change. “I’ve been thinking a lot about this,” she said, idly plucking at the strap of her purse in her lap, “and I don’t know any more if it would be a good idea to have a ghost theme for our bash. You know, in light of… everything.”
“I know. Personally, at this point? I’m totally onboard with Dan’s suggestion about rainbows and unicorns. But that genie has left the bottle, I think, and I don’t see us getting him back in it. Not with the way the whole town’s gone bonkers over the idea.” Trixie opened the door and stepped of the changing room. “What do you think?” she asked, turning in a circle and holding out her arms.
“Nice. Honey’s right. That’s a good color on you. You look all sweet and fairy princess.”
Trixie had to laugh at that. “Which would be so not who I actually am! Maybe I should buy the other dress for the dance and this one to wear as a costume to the party. I could add some wings and a flower crown.”
“As long as you don’t dress up as a murder victim again, I’m good with it.”
“Hey! That was an awesome costume.”
“It was gruesome. All that fake blood and the knife sticking out of your chest? Yeesh. Try the green gown. Let me see how it looks.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I’m also interested in the fact that you’ve got a name in… er, ghost circles,” Professor Lee said seriously. “I’d like to know if that’s just a matter of convenience or if there’s some sort of significance to it.”
Dan looked over from the journal page he was studying. “You mean The Three?”
“Yes. It could simply be that they call you that as a reference they all understand, or it could have a deeper meaning. Throughout history, the number three has held particular meaning for people, in many different cultures and religions.”
“So you’re saying the name ‘The Three’ could be especially important somehow?”
“Possibly. Yes.”
“Dude,” Mart muttered. “Seriously. Stop saying it like that.”
“Like what?”
“Like you’re, I dunno, making a movie trailer or something.”
Dan grinned broadly at his friend. “In a world where troubled ghosts are real and walk among us, only The Three can save the day…”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Trixie completed her purchase and accepted the bagged gown from the salesclerk. “Wow. This one pretty much wiped out all the allowance I saved up,” she said with an exaggerated wince. “It really is too bad this whole ghost helping thing isn’t a paying gig.”
“You did pick the more expensive dress,” Honey pointed out. “You could’ve gone with the other one.”
“Nah. I like this one. Fairy princess aside, it fits much better, for one thing.” She turned and stepped aside to let a teenage girl pass her.
“Oh, my gosh! You can see me! Can you see me?”
Trixie heaved a sigh. “Yes. I can see you. What do you need?”
“I got a flat! I know it’s silly and helpless of me, but I don’t know how to change it. Can you help?”
“A flat,” Trixie echoed. “As in a flat tire.”
“Yes. What else would I be talking about?”
“A flat tire on a car you will never actually drive ever again.”
The girl blinked. “Well… yes.”
“Were you on your way to a Halloween party when this flat happened?”
“No. I was on my way to visit my grandmother.”
“And you got hit by another car? Perhaps when you got out of yours to find help?”
“Yes! How did you know that?”
“Oh… lucky guess,” Trixie said, taking in the streaks of dirt and grime that covered her, along with the blood and bruises. “So this poodle skirt. That’s a legit fashion choice as far as you’re concerned. Not a costume. You aren’t playing dress up.”
“I don’t even know what you mean by that.”
“Just placing your time period. What’s your name?”
“Susie.”
“Susie. Right. Well, Susie, are you aware of your current state of deadness?”
“Yes. I know. So stupid! It really was a freak accident.”
“And I’m sorry about that. But meanwhile, you need to move on. Instead of wandering around here in a lonely dead zone, go to the next level, huh?”
“How do I do that?” Susie asked plaintively. “My parents always said death was just like sleeping. It’s nothing like sleeping. I wish I was sleeping and never had to wake up ever again. How do I move on?”
“Well… uh… I’m not sure. You’re the first ghost to ask me that. Usually, once they’ve settled their issues, they just sorta ‘poof’ away. Try… I dunno… close your eyes and concentrate?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dan gathered his things into his backpack. “You know, for a Suck Day, today really wasn’t all that bad, all things considered,” he mused.
“Oh, man. You had to say it. You just had to go and say it,” Mart groaned. “Why would you want to tempt fate like that? Now you know something-“
“Mart! Dan!” Professor Lee called from the foyer. “Quick! Come see!”
They hurried to join the professor. He pointed to a gold-framed mirror hanging over an old side table. They could see the reflection of the hallway behind them as they looked in it.
“This is truly remarkable,” the professor said, his tone low. “You can see the message on the wall when you look in the mirror, but if you look at the wall itself…”
“There’s nothing there. That definitely pings high on my Creepy Meter,” Mart said slowly. “What – what do you suppose it means, anyway?”
The professor shook his head. “I don’t know, but I sure wish I did!”
Beware! She is coming!