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eyes and started to pray.
As suddenly as she had appeared, the bear growled and jumped out of
the truck bed, and with her cub, moved back into the forest. Only then did
Caroline see the reason: a group of ghosts had come to her rescue. There
were Indians, trappers, sailors, farmers men of several generations and all
walks of life. Most seemed to be rotted, but some were whole.
92 Beverly Sims
They looked at her and slowly faded away. Wait, Caroline yelled after
them, but they ignored her. Please wait. Then they were gone. There was
literally no sign that they had even been there. But they had saved her life
of that she was sure.
No sooner had they disappeared than she heard another truck, coming
toward her from deeper in the woods. As is came into view, she saw it was
Jeff, this time in a State Patrol off-road vehicle. She did not move or even
acknowledge him as he stopped and moved to her door. He opened it and
reached inside to put his arms around her. She was still shaking and petrified
with fear.
Hey, honey, what are you doing out here by yourself? Whose truck is
this? What happened? Caroline, talk to me! He was patting her back as he
held her close.
Now she started to cry. Oh, Jeff, it was horrible. A baby bear and then
the mama came out of the woods, and she tried to get at me. I honked the
horn and she got madder. Look at the back window. She would have had me
in seconds if the& . She stopped. How could she tell him ghosts had scared
the bear away?
Jeff moved just far enough away to look into her face, red and swollen
with tears. In seconds if what? he asked.
How did you find me? she asked.
I heard the horn. I was in the brush, looking for poachers. Had found
some dead deer and was searching for clues. Now, again, what are you
doing here?
How could she tell him she was chasing Larry and some ghosts?
Instead, she slowly related seeing some people in her field and wanted to
know who they were and why they were there, so she called Georgia, and
from that point on, what she said was truth. Up to the bear leaving, which
she said must have been because the bear heard his vehicle. She knew Jeff
did not believe her completely, but he said nothing. She would have to warn
Georgia about her lies before Jeff talked to her. She knew her friend would
back up her words.
Jeff took a gas can from the back of his State vehicle and poured fuel
into Doc old truck.
Can you drive with that bum ankle? he asked. Caroline nodded,
started the engine, and backed down the old logging road until she found a
Caroline s House 93
place to turn around. Jeff followed. About halfway across the field, they met
Georgia and the garage man from town.
As they all drove back toward the house, Caroline noted that the police
trucks and coroner s car were all back. This time they had a couple of
backhoes and small dirt moving equipment. The coroner motioned to Jeff to
stop. They talked for a few minutes before Jeff came to the house.
Caroline paid the service man and hobbled inside, Georgia beside her. I
had to tell a couple lies to Jeff about the see-through people who ran off the
bear that was trying to crack open the safe, so to speak, with a morsel called
Caroline inside. I sure couldn t tell him about ghosts or that we were
chasing that Lying Larry, so please don t give me away.
When she returned, they were chatting like the old friends they were.
She sat and listened, letting them catch her up on folks in town. Finally, Jeff
looked at her. Caroline, are you sure you told me everything?
What more could there be? she asked in reply. But, Jeff, I would like
an explanation as to what they are doing out there in my yard now. They left
this morning without so much as a word. Now they are tearing up
everything within sight. Why? She hoped that would stop his questions, at
least for the moment.
Well, it seems that our illustrious Mr. Good Humor Man and his gang
have found another, perhaps two bodies. Until they are satisfied that is all
there is, they will be working here for who knows how long. They will do
their best to stay out of your way and put things back as well as they can
when they are finished.
Georgia shivered. That is kind of creepy, having a bunch of dead folks
stuck in groups willy-nilly around here. Do you suppose there was a
cemetery here at one time?
Probably not, Jeff replied. It will probably turn out to be the burial
place for those 1920s shoot-out bodies. We will probably never know
exactly who they were or who buried them, but it will be investigated that
I promise.
Georgia indicated she must go also but would be back later, after the
restaurant closed. For that, Caroline was grateful. She then returned to her
dining room, where the pictures were in envelopes. The pile with her house
and its inhabitants was missing.
94 Beverly Sims
Chapter 20
Caroline stood looking at the empty spot on the table. She moved to a
chair and then, taking a deep breath, she yelled, MALCOLM. Come here,
NOW! The house was silent. I mean it, Malcolm. Show yourself. Again,
nothing. Okay, any of you. Come here. All of you!
In seconds, figures seem to materialize through the walls, the floors,
down from the ceilings. Caroline sat quietly, amazed. There were so many!
She tried to count, but some were so faint she was not sure they were
actually there.
She spied Taffy York in her hospital gown. Taffy, did you take the
pictures? I know you think they belong to you, but they actually belong to
the newspaper. Do you have them?
Taffy would not look at her. Finally, there was some movement among
the others. As if listening to voices, Taffy extended her hand full of old
photographs. Caroline took them, depositing them on the table. She was not
sure what to do or say now. She had called them. They had come. Now
what? Finally, she spoke.
Do you all live, or should I say, stay here? How many are there of
you?
Yes, a voice came from somewhere this time it was not in her head.
Sometimes there are many of us, sometimes only a few. We come and go
when we want, but we liked it better before you came. Now we have to be
quiet and stay hidden. So, would you please just go away again and leave
our house to us?
Caroline felt a flash of anger. First, this is MY house. Not yours! And
no, I will not leave. You all can leave. Every one of you. Go back to
wherever ghosts live when you are not haunting MY house.
The voice in the room answered. Some of us will leave because we do
not like it here anymore. We will move on to other empty places, or back to
Caroline s House 95
the homes where we lived before we died, or the ocean if that is where we
ended our lives. Most will go back to their graves, where you won t disturb
them. Some of us must stay here. Like Malcolm and Dean and Donald and
Heather and some others. We have been here since we died and have no
other place to go, except to live on the beach or in the wood. We cannot go
until the records are in order for us to go. You would not like to throw us out
onto the street, now would you?
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