|
By Ana Riley © 199, 2003 Ana Riley
“Oh, Dear God in Heaven, I promise never to call Marti ‘Marti’ ever again and I’ll even try tolerating him if You will just protect Ethan from the horrible boars. God, what do I to do to help? I need answers, NOW!” I don’t know if this is Your idea or not, God, but it’s coming out of my head which was designed by You, so I’m going to run with it. I just hope Ethan left the keys in the jeep … Yes! They’re here! Now, start, baby! Okay, we’re rolling! God, let the horn be loud and obnoxious so it will scare those creatures away! [Loud horn beeping obnoxiously!] I wish you could see what I’m seeing. There’s divine Ethan sitting next to an alien creature [Ooops! Sorry, God!] – I’ll reword that – sitting next to my brother on the top board of the corral fence, while a hundred of the ugliest creatures known to mankind, are oinking and snorting at two pairs of dangling feet. The big boars are huge! They must weigh over a thousand pounds! And there are boars with tusks. Whatever would happen should one of those tusks move in closer to Alex and manage to poke him and he fell off the fence and …? I did it again, God. I’m sorry. I’ll rephrase that last thought – I hate to think what might happen should those large boars with the tusks get too near the boys and someone gets hurt! Better honk louder! [More honking that is no louder than before, but when one feels the power of pushing the horn, it seems to get louder!] That got everyone’s attention! DOORS, UNLOCK! Don’t stick on me now! UNLOCK! God? The door locks are … undone. Thanks! [Jeep horn still beeping obnoxiously!]
Ethan is smiling, even though he just came out of a terrifying, potentially death defying experience. What did I say? “So, Tiger, let’s see how well you chase wild boars with a jeep!” “Watch me!” I don’t mind saying that even I’m impressed. Surprising what one can do when one has to. I like this jeep and the boars don’t, so I think we have a win – lose here! Just a few more turns and they’ll be chugging their ugly behinds down the road! There! One last butt to get moving and … We did it! “Hey, Tiger! You can save me any day!” I think now’s a great time for a kiss. Go for it, Ethan. I don’t care if the Martian is watching. [Oooh, God, I apologize. It slipped out! Habits take weeks to break! ] Ethan looks like he's thinking about it, but he’s not doing it. He’s just smiling and, well, okay, I’ll admit he’s gasping for breath after having run around the pasture with a bunch of boars after him. Maybe later he can find out what kind of a tiger I really am. “Park her by the house. Was anyone home?” “Mrs. Milikin, and she’s not doing great!” “Let’s check it out. I hear sirens. She may have called the police.” “Come in! Is everyone okay? I saw what happened. ” “Alex overheard some boys bragging about having caused damage with horses and pigs. I took a chance.” Mrs. Milikin is crying again, but this time, it looks like she’s doing so out of relief. I’m going to get her some water “Mrs. Milikin said the boars appeared in the garden and chased her and the children. Where did the boars come from?” “Neighbor’s farm across the road. Mrs. Milikin, are your horses alright?” “The horses? I, uh, suppose. I don’t know. I haven’t seen them all morning, but that’s nothing unusual.” “You said your husband is coming home.” “Yes, he’s with the others at the harvester’s show. They decided that since everyone was planning to go “And the police. Someone must have called them also. And Mr. Gustafson. And my dad …” “Excuse us for a moment, Mrs. Milikin. I think the police would like to know what happened to Alex as well as what’s gone on here. Alex? We’ve got to go outside for a few minutes.” “Gia, Alex, why don’t you two wait in the jeep.” Sometimes Ethan sounds like my dad when he’s giving orders. Maybe Ethan will decide to be a teacher instead of a doctor. Do you think it’s true that we marry people like our parents? Ethan is talking to my dad. My dad is pointing towards some broken fencing in the distance. The horse coral is “Hi, Dad. What’s happened?” “Fences cut here and at Aitkin's across the road. Aitkins lost over a hundred wild boar which have since trampled adjacent crops, uprooting every garden along the way. Milikins’ horses are missing and their cattle are everywhere they shouldn’t be.” My dad often rubs his left ear when he’s thinking hard about things. He’s rubbing his ear now. “What are you two doing here?” “Gia and I were on the way to Weldon when Alex called me from the mall. ” “What happened, son?” Even though Alex is calmer as he’s telling my dad his adventure at the mall, his voice sounds like it did when he was just a little boy. Fear. It can transform a person from one thing to another. Fear, the metamorphoser for humans. That’s a cool word -- metamorphoser . Hearing Alex tell the story frightens me deeply. He must have really been scared in that washroom cubicle. “I want Constable Pearce to hear this. I’ll get him.”
My dad walks slowly when there’s a huge problem. It’s as if he needs to spend extra time thinking with every step. I walk really fast when I’m stressed. People do different things to handle different problems, don’t they? “Constable Pearce, these are my children, Gia and Alex. Alex, will you tell the officer what happened at the mall?” Alex’s voice is back to normal. He’s probably trying to impress the officer with how macho fifteen year olds can be. I still feel sorry that he had to go through that experience, though by the time he’s told this story often enough, he’s going to see himself as some hero. Even now, his tale has more punch and drama. “Thanks, Alex. I think it’s best for you two kids to stay out of the way until we’ve got things under control here. Ethan isn’t saying much. He’s just doing what he’s been told to. “I’m going to help round up the cattle. Lock the doors, okay?” Ethan is back to looking like a thirty-year old man again. His face takes on this age whenever he’s doing serious adult work. It’s great that these farmers have so many friends and neighbors helping them out. I am again amazed at how the community is pulling together. Hmmm, Constable Pearce is coming towards us, and he’s got two other officers with him. One of the officers is a woman. I wonder what it would be like to be a female police officer? I wonder if criminals would respect a woman the same as a man. “Gia, this is Constable Lemaigre. She’s going to stay in the jeep with you. I’ve brought along some bottled water, in case you need it.” Constable Lemaigre is young, very pretty and Aboriginal. Alex is red in the face. He’s obviously attracted to her. She’s not too tall, has jet black hair which is braided tightly, and she has perfectly white teeth. She’s lean and fit. I wonder if she knows karate. How am I going to tell this professional woman that I was out ghost hunting at the same time as trying to save my life? How can I word this so she sees me to be the mature young woman that I am? I better not pause too long. “You know about the rock through our window?” “Yes, and the two threatening messages. What I’m curious about is that your dad mentioned that you were headed to Weldon this morning, and that you were going to be staying with friends in Kinistino. What’s your interest in the tiny town of Weldon?” “To speak to a woman there and hopefully see her house.” “Do you know this woman?” “Not really. My dad’s coaching friend in Kinistino knows her. He was going to introduce us. Have you ever been “Yes. I have a good friend there. She’s a nurse.” “A nurse? Does she live in a ghost house?” I can’t believe that slipped out! Now, Constable Lemaigre will really think I’m nuts! “Odd you should ask. Yes, she does. I’ve stayed with her a few times and that house is as haunted as it could ever be.” I am tingling with excitement from head to foot! I can’t believe my luck. I’m stuck in a jeep with my brother and this Constable Lemaigre who’s been ordered to protect us from some weirdo, and she just happens to know a nurse that I was on my way to meet and discuss ghosts with. This is too wild! This is more than a coincidence! “Do you mind if I ask you about the house?” “Ask away. I think we’re going to be here for awhile.” I’ve been trying hard to not show my overwhelming enthusiasm about this turn of my luck, but I’m going to divulge all. You better look that word up. “What happened when you stayed with your nurse friend?” “First of all, let’s give the nurse a name – Dora. I’ve known Dora since I was a little girl. She was my Sunday School teacher at our church in Birch Hills. She bought her house a few years ago, from friends of her parents. The house is newer, so no one expected it to be haunted. Most of us think of older homes as the ones being haunted.”
Constable Lemaigre may look formidable in her uniform, especially with that gun in her holster, but right now, if you could see her, she looks like a fun girl about my age. Her eyes are actually smiling with this conversation. “How old is Dora’s house?” “Twenty-five years or so.” “Is it big – two story, bungalow?” “Bungalow, with a rumpus room in the basement. Three bedrooms and a guest room. I usually stay in the guest room, though I haven’t been there for a visit since Christmas. I really need to get up there to see her. She’s getting on in years…” Constable Lemaigre speaks as if she is very close to Dora. “Work and more work. That’s no excuse, is it?” “My dad has the entire summer off and he never has any time!” This is the first Alex has spoken since Constable Lemaigre got in the jeep. “Does Dora believe in ghosts?” “She does now, but she never used to believe in anything she couldn't see or touch. Dora has always thought there was a reasonable explanation for everything that happened. Sometimes she would allow herself to believe in the possibility of a miracle, especially when it had to do with sick children. Otherwise, there was no room for the paranormal in her thinking.” “Then this ghost must have made quite the impression.” I’m still trying to get my mind around the fact that my trip to Weldon was cancelled because my brother was hiding out in a washroom cubicle after overhearing bad guys talk about our living room rock episode, and after finally accepting that ghost hunting expeditions were not going to be part of my life at this time, I’m discussing ghosts with a police officer in a jeep on a vandalized farm. Isn’t it interesting how Life twists and turns around us? Ethan’s helping to repair the fences and my dad is rounding up cattle. Alex is staring, google-eyed, at Officer Lemaigre and I’m getting an account on a ghost I had set out to chase only a few hours ago. If the police can nab the guys that are causing all this destruction, life may actually return to normal. “What did Dora do next, about the ghost?” “She called friends over and asked them to house-sit while she was away on vacation. They had the same
Constable Lemaigre’s story is so similar to the ghost story at Hampton. I’ll mention a few things and see what she thinks.
Profile – I think the constable will see me as mature, using vocabulary like that. “Well, whatever the reason this ghost has, Dora’s now convinced that ghosts do exist and she’s decided to do something about this one. She’s contacted various people and has devised a plan to rid her home of her visitor.” “I’d love to meet Dora someday. I was hoping that day might have been this weekend, but I’m also glad that we turned around this morning and that I’ve met you. Your information has been really helpful. Thank you.” “What got you started on this ghost hunting expedition of yours anyway? “High voice – could be either.” “How long does your ghost sing?” “For quite awhile, but never long enough for us to run downstairs and try to see it. It runs off as soon as we open the back door. I’ve never been able to see it close up.” “Are there footprints the next morning?” “Some, but who knows if they belong to the ghost. Do ghosts leave footprints, especially unusually small ones?” “I don’t know about ghosts’ footprints. Does your ghost sing all the time or just in August?” “Why, just in August. How odd that I never noticed that before.” I wonder why Constable Lemaigre asked that question. “And does your ghost ever sing outside your garden or is it always in the garden?” “Always in the garden. Why? Do you know something about garden-variety singing ghosts?” Constable Lemaigre has dimples when she smiles. “A little. I’m not doubting that your ghost is real, but you may want to do some reading about garden visitors. Here, I’ll write down the name of this book. You can probably get it at I can’t imagine what book Officer Lemaigre could suggest. I’m sure I’ve read every book in the library on ghosts. Her fingers are thin and she’s not wearing any rings. Maybe she’s single. Maybe she doesn’t wear her rings on the job. She’s torn a slip of paper from her official police notebook. Cool! “What’s the name of the book, Gia?” Alex has found his voice again.
|
This website is the creation and property of Brainwave Ink. All rights are reserved. © 2004-2010 Brainwave Ink |
MYSTERY OF THE SINGING GHOST
while Ethan is guiding her to the chair.
anyway, that they’d call a meeting about all the problems going on in the area.
empty.
“Oh, it did!
experience with the ghost.
“I’ve been reading about hauntings and they can happen by people that suffered unusual deaths.
the local library.”
