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The sound of the evening ferry's horn blew loud and low as it pulled out of dock. I finished loading up a few carafes of coffee and boxes of our autumn treats as Granny tottered in. She had tucked spider webs and glittery picks with dangling bats into her black bouffant, and was wearing a tight orange sweater with a jack-o-lantern face.
"You're never going to believe what Marnie made me!" she exclaimed. She hit a button and struck a pose. Suddenly, green and orange lights lit up her sweater.
"That is AMAZING!" I said, coming closer to admire her friend's handiwork. "We're not going to get lost in the dark in that!"
The bell tinkled and Nate entered. He was looking so cozy and comfortable in his cable knit sweater and fitted jeans.
"All ready to go?" he asked, jerking his thumb toward the street. "I have my truck parked out front."
Tonight was the first night of Johnny's ghost tours and we figured we'd do a little table on the street for people who might want a toasty beverage as they wandered around, and plant the idea that the shop would be open late for those who needed to warm up after the fact.
"Folding table is in the stock room," I directed as I gathered up our goods and headed for the door. Granny opened it for me and then went for the rest of the stuff.
We weren't going very far, but it seemed a little more professional to come rolling in with a truck full of supplies than multiple trips schlepping chairs and tables and coffee and snacks down the clattering boardwalk.
We got everything loaded and Nate hopped behind the wheel. "Coming?" he asked.
"I need my exercise!" Granny announced, giving him a wave.
"And I'll keep her company," I added.
"See you there!" Nate replied, turning on his engine and heading to the halfway point between Johnny's surf shack and Trevor's saloon.
Granny linked her arm with mine and we strolled down Main Street. Darkness had fallen. The sound of the ocean waves mingled with the distant gentle chatter of those out enjoying the evening.
"He's a good one," she commented, giving me a squeeze.
"I really lucked out," I agreed.
"Thinking we should keep an eye out for a space that could accommodate a double wedding?" she teased.
"GRANNY!" I exclaimed with mock outrage. I could feel myself blushing as red as Nate's taillights. Of course I had daydreamed about what it might be like to spend my life with Nate, but that was private and nothing I wanted to admit to anyone... yet. Certainly not a member of The Posse. Knowing them, she and her friends would rope Nate into a proposal before the week was out, whether he liked it or not. I tried to steer the conversation a different direction. "But since you brought space up, how are things going with Richard and the wedding plans and the historical society?"
She waved my question away. "Oh, well enough. It's easy enough to get engaged. It's the getting through the rest of forever that presents the challenge."
It was an odd response. "Is everything all right?"
"Oh, sure! Sure. Like any new business, it takes a little adjusting to the different styles of your team to get things running like clockwork. He'll come around soon enough and see my way is right," she said with a wink, but then heaved a sigh. "The problem is that there may be another buyer for the hardware store."
"What?" I asked, riffling through my mental index of everyone on the island who might want the place, and coming up empty.
"Some mysterious bidder," she replied. "All I can say is that we were here first." She gave another sigh. "I sure would hate to lose it and have Richard proven right, that it wasn't the right place for us, by default." But then she regathered her fight and that little bit of worry disappeared like it had never been there. That’s one of the things I admired about Granny the most. She never took a challenge lying down. "Everything will work out exactly as it is supposed to," she assured me, but then tilted her head conspiratorially. "However if you run into any witches this Halloween, you tell them I need someone to throw down a curse on whomever is trying to steal this out from us. I pay well."
I laughed, giving her a little side-hug.
I guess our voices carried further than I thought, though, because Marnie stepped out of her yarn shop like she knew we were coming. She gave a wolf-whistle as she saw Granny in her light-up sweater. "Looking good, Cindy!" she said as she joined us.
Granny struck a pose as the orange and green lights flashed along the lines of the pumpkin's face. "What? This old thing? Some old bat knitted it for me."
Marnie flicked the dangling bats in Granny's hair. "It appears you have some in your belfry." She reached out and gave me a hug. "Good to see you, Paige. Quite a crowd we have tonight!"
So, Madison is a dumpster fire and one of the worst things to ever happen to this island. But, as much as I hated to admit it, it appeared for the first time in human history, she actually seemed to have a good idea. The ghost tours had brought in a bunch of people from the mainland wanting something fun and slightly out-of-the-ordinary to do on a Friday night. Everyone seemed to be about my age, some a few years older. I crossed my fingers. If tonight was a success, they'd go back to their college campuses and tell all their friends. It could be huge if this went according to plan.
"Want to come with us?" Granny invited. "We're going to set up a little refreshment table."
"You always know how to turn a profit," Marnie replied, admiringly. She checked her pedometer. "I sure could use a couple more steps today. Hang on while I grab my keys."
She stepped inside for a couple minutes and then was back to join us wrapped in a thick, shaggy shawl that had been crocheted in a spider web pattern.
As a bonus, the little delay waiting for Marnie meant that by the time we reached Nate, he had already unpacked almost all our stuff.
"Perfect timing is perfect!" I exclaimed.
"I'm sensing a conspiracy," he replied, as he put the last box down on the boardwalk. He gave me a quick kiss. "I'm going to go park my truck and will be right back."
I gave him a wave as he hopped in the cab and drove around the corner to the public parking lot. Granny, Marnie, and I sped to get everything set up. People were lined up for coffee and cocoa before we even finished.
"And we'll be open late tonight!" I told the umpteenth person as I handed them their steaming hot beverage.
Nate and Marnie hung off to the side, getting caught up on all the Seaside gossip as Granny and I worked our magic. As the crowd began to thin, though, Granny said, "Paige, you and Nate should go on the tour. Text me when it is wrapping up so that I can know when to expect people."
"No, it's okay," I protested. "It's late..."
Granny was having none of that, however. She called out to Nate. "NATE! Paige is acting like an old stick in the mud. Take that granddaughter of mine on Johnny's tour."
Nate shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged, checking in with me to make sure I was okay with this plan. "Fine by me. Paige?"
"I don't know..."
Granny leaned forward, layering on the guilt thick. "I'm sure it would mean an awful lot to Johnny to have his only family and his best friend since childhood supporting him on this very first tour..."
Granny was a master. Defeated, I admitted the truth. "It sounds like it could be a lot of fun." I took a mental inventory of all the stuff we had brought. "But you'll need help loading everything up and bringing it back to Bitter Beans."
Marnie stepped forward. "And that is why your Granny has so many great friends. I'll help her clean. Go! We need eyes and ears to see if this thing is going to be a success or a disaster!"
"Are you sure?" Nate asked, still ready to scrap it all to help her, which is another reason why I liked him so much.
"Go make Paige have some fun and don't make me tell you twice!" Granny scolded with a twinkle in her eye.
He stuck his hand in his pocket. "Well here, at least take the keys to my truck."
"That'd be lovely," Granny replied.
"Now, I don't want to get a call from Stan and Fred saying they caught you doing donuts in the school parking lot," Nate joked as he slowly gave them over, pretending like he didn't know if he could trust her.
"Well, there goes our plan," Marnie pouted. "I guess drag racing up and down Main Street is out, too?"
"Shotgun!" Granny called. "Now, shoo! Don't miss the tour!"
Nate interlaced his fingers in mine and we jogged toward the surf shack.
I loved Seaside at night. The wash of the golden light from the streetlamps. The feel of the wooden boardwalk beneath my feet. And now the laughs and cheerful chatter from all the people who had come to the island.
But, of course, my least favorite person had to ruin all the good vibes.
"Headed to that other tour?" Madison busked from the street corner at the passing pedestrians. "Check out Seaside's ORIGINAL ghost tour." She handed out a flyer to a person walking by. "Because I invented it. This was all my idea." She looked up and saw it was Nate and me. She wrinkled her nose. "Oh. I suppose you're here to support your cousin," she accused.
Nate took one of her flyers. "I'm here to support all small business on the island."
"You're such a liar," she said, rolling her eyes.
Nate doubled down. "Today I'm going on Johnny's tour and tomorrow I'll come on your tour."
"But you did pick his tour first," she pointed out, trying to scrounge up what emotional blackmail she could in this moment.
"It's because I'm coming along," I informed her. "And I don't like you."
She squinted. "Fair. The feeling is mutual."
Nate stopped us both. "Come on. Think of it as me letting you work out any kinks before I see your tour." He jerked his thumb back to the coffee shop. "By the way, Bitter Beans will be open late if you hear of anyone needing something warm."
"And so will Trevor's saloon," Madison haughtily informed us. "Now, if you two would get off my corner, you're scaring away my customers."
"My pleasure," I replied, taking Nate's hand and dragging him away. "She is just the worst," I muttered.
"The worst." He tried to find a positive spin, because that's the kind of guy he is. "But hopefully it will bring people back for a return visit."
"Kind of funny that the ghosts won't scare people away but Madison might."
Nate let out a big sigh and glanced over his shoulder. "I think this is actually a really good thing we're going on both tours. It'll let me know how much damage control we need to do."
We reached Johnny's surf shack. There was already a large crowd. Johnny was handing out flashlights to everyone. "Safety first," he directed. "Don't shine it in anyone's eye. Keep it on the ground." He noticed us with surprise. "Nate! Paige!" He came over and gave us thumping hugs. "What are you doing here?"
"Keeping you out of trouble," Nate laughed.
"We're here to celebrate your very first ghost tour," I informed him.
Johnny stepped back, truly touched. "Dudes. Duuuudes. That's like... huge."
I suddenly was really grateful Granny had thought of this. She's always right.
"Really excited to see what you've pulled together," Nate added.
"Well, come on! Come on!" Johnny pulled out two flashlights and gently handed them over, like we had been found worthy and he was entrusting us with his two favorite ones. "Get ready for some ghostly adventures!"
We joined up with the group. They were giggling and laughing, getting ready for all sorts of fun. There was a hush that fell over the crowd as Echo stepped forward. He was dressed from head-to-toe in black and carried his black messenger bag.
He flipped back his stringy, black hair from his eyes dramatically. "Welcome, one and all," he said, his face deadpan and his voice grave with the weight of what we were about to embark upon. "My name is Echo. Like the call sign. Not the scientific phenomenon." He raised an eyebrow, as if challenging them. "Or maybe both... But today, I am going to be your host as we explore some echoes of the dead here upon the island. I ask all of you to take this seriously." A girl snickered and he glared at her. "The dead are repelled by mirth. I have been a psychic medium since I was a child and tonight, I share my gifts with you." He held out his hands and took a bow. A couple of us applauded politely. "Now, if you would follow me."
I stole a glance at Nate, amused by our host.
"Stop smiling, Paige," Nate cautioned, tickling me in the ribs. "You're scaring away the ghosts."
I choked back a laugh as Echo turned to frown at me.
We hiked up the hill and pulled to a stop at the point where the pier meets Main Street in front of the ticket booth. Echo held up his hands and closed his eyes. We all waited in hushed anticipation.
"No. No, there is nothing here," he pronounced and then marched us down the street some more.
I looked at Nate, starting to get a little worried as Echo stopped us in front of Marnie's shop and closed his eyes. "No, no there is nothing here. Moving on."
Was this going to be our entire night? Just this guy telling us he didn't feel anything? Fortunately, he stopped in front of Trevor's saloon. He held up his hands as if pressing against a great wall. "This is a place of great evil. I invite all of you to refuse to enter upon danger of possession."
Madison shouted from the doorway. "Blow it out your ear, Echo!"
"See?" Echo said knowingly as he led us away. "Great evil..."
We all started laughing, but controlled ourselves as Echo threw us another warning glance.
"Well, at least he is going to drum up more business for Bitter Beans," I muttered, "because everyone is going to be dead asleep by the end of this tour and needing some caffeine to even make it to their hotel room."
"He's certainly not going to drum up any business for the island if this is the tour he's leading," Nate said under his breath. "How do we break it to Johnny that this dude is a dud?"
We paused in front of the hardware store. Echo held up his hand and then closed it into a fist, signaling that we should stop like he was some sort of a soldier leading a platoon. Swiftly, he turned to address us. "There have been rumors of a haunting here at the hardware shop. I have brought a device that detects vortexes to other realms. We shall see if it is merely a spirit in unrest... or a portal to the underworld."
He whipped out of his bag a small grey square. He pulled up the antenna and flipped a switch. There was the sound of radio fuzz, like someone was scrolling through the dials really quickly. "This is spirit box. It is a communication tool for paranormal entities. It sweeps the radio bandwidth, and the spirits can boost the electrical signal to select the words they want to speak with us." Then a couple words jumped out. "Run. Fast."
"How did you do that?" asked one of the guys on the tour, jostling his way to the front of the crowd.
"It wasn't me," Echo informed him, as if insulted that the guy would insinuate he had. "It was the ghosts telling us what they want us to hear." He turned off the radio and then pulled out his black box with the blinky green lights. He swung it around and checked the gauges, like he was trying to figure out where the strongest ectoplasmic pull was coming from. He held his hand up like a blade. "Follow me. There is a vortex this way."
We passed by the Grand Hotel. There was a lot of stuff that happened there during the bake off two months ago and it was a likely spot for some sort of otherworldly activity. But that wasn't where he stopped. He kept leading us beyond, out into a field that ran into the sparse Seaside forest.
"Here!" he said. "There is great evil here." He then switched off his box and closed his eyes, placing his fingertips on the side of his temples to concentrate.
As everyone sat there with rapt attention, wondering what was going to happen next, I wandered off a bit, sweeping my flashlight through the tall grasses.
My light fell upon a blood soaked body.
And I screamed.