The Secrets of Ghosts (17 page)

After
Amélie
had finished, Katie clicked off the television and turned to Anna. ‘See? Greatest film ever. Well, in the last twenty years, anyway.’

‘I prefer
Hitch
,’ Anna said. ‘But I did like it.’

‘I’m going to ignore that,’ Katie said, hoping that Anna was teasing her.

‘What shall we do now?’ Max said, stretching his arms above his head. Katie tried not to stare at the way his muscles flexed. It was ridiculous. She’d seen men before. Seen muscles, seen arms, seen flat chests and nice jaw lines and all that. Why was this particular mix of them making her feel so off balance? He smiled at her in a way that suggested he’d noticed her looking.

She got up quickly and went to refill her glass.

In the kitchen she took a moment to regain her equilibrium. Max joked around as if he were Mr Easy-Going, but he had a focused intensity she found alarmingly attractive. He had a way of looking at things as if he was calculating the odds of every single possibility. Katie felt as if she’d met hundreds of guys who were good at having a laugh. Guys like Stuart who were friendly and fun and would move furniture for you if you asked them nicely. At first, Katie had loved Stuart’s relaxed attitude to life, but she’d felt as if she had to keep cracking jokes to remind him of her existence. Max never gave the impression that he’d forgotten about her. It was flattering. And probably an act. She wasn’t going to be naive and get sucked in by the first charming guy she met.

She smoothed down her skirt. She was going to keep her head and keep her distance. Not let things get too personal. And he was here to see Greg Barton’s show. After that, he’d be on his way. She was perfectly safe, as long as she kept her head.

‘So,’ Max said, when she finally picked up the courage to walk back in. ‘Anna tells me you’re a witch. Is that for real?’

Katie almost dropped her glass. ‘What?’

‘I didn’t,’ Anna said, waving her wine glass, her face flushed. ‘Jo told him and I just confirmed it.’

‘Jo told you I was a, what?’ Katie had practised her look of innocent confusion, adding increments of outrage until she had just the right blend of ‘what the fuck?’. It was hard, trying to work out how a normal person would react to that kind of statement. She suspected most people would just laugh, but she’d never been able to pull that off. Fake laughter was really hard.

Anna was sitting forward. ‘Oh, come on. It’s not like it’s a big secret. Everyone in town knows. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.’

Katie took a sip of her drink to buy time.

‘I’ve been wanting to ask you about this stuff for so long. I mean, you’re a Harper. Your aunt—’

‘I don’t want to talk about my family.’

‘But it’s so cool,’ Anna said. ‘And Max was saying that he met Gwen the other day. I mean, you took him to End House, so I assumed—’

‘No,’ Katie said.

Anna looked devastated and defiant in equal parts. ‘I thought we were friends. I thought you’d open up eventually but I guess I was wrong on both counts.’ Anna got up.

Katie wasn’t sure if she was mock-offended or really offended, but she knew she didn’t want to lose her. She took a deep breath. ‘There are certain abilities in my family, yes.’

Anna let out an excited little squeak and sat back down. ‘See!’ She turned to Max. ‘They can do this stuff for real. I heard that Gwen can find lost things and then there’s all that stuff that grows in her garden—’

Max was looking at her with an amused but faintly disgusted expression.

‘Can you read my cards?’ Anna was practically bouncing on the chair. ‘I’ve wanted to ask ever since we met but then we became friends and I didn’t want you to think I was using you or anything—’

‘But you’re fine with it, now?’

‘Please,’ Anna said. ‘Everything’s a bit rubbish at the moment.’ She tried to calm down, look serious, but she was too hyper to pull it off. ‘I think it would really help.’

‘Fine,’ Katie said. She didn’t dare look at Max.

She fetched her tarot cards from the bookshelves and opened the box. ‘I’m not really good at this, but I can do a little bit. My gran has the fortune-telling gift. She’s scary good.’ Katie fixed Max with what she hoped was a compelling gaze. ‘And I do mean scary.’

‘Me first, me first,’ Anna said, even though Max hadn’t shown the slightest inclination to want to join in.

‘Okay. Can you sit opposite me?’

Katie moved the cups and mugs to the side of the coffee table and put a bowl of popcorn on the floor. She opened the wooden box and unwrapped the black silk from around the cards.

Max’s expression was stony, but she ignored him and put the stack face down in the middle of the table. ‘Okay,’ she said. ‘I’ll do the tree of life but I warn you now, if I don’t think you’ll benefit from knowing something, I won’t tell you it.’ Katie had had enough lectures from Gwen on the importance of responsibility. Apparently her gran had a different policy — you asked, you got answers. Even if it meant you left her house in tiny little bits.

‘Fine,’ Anna said, sitting forward.

Katie put a hand over the pack and held it there, waiting for the tingling sensation that had always come before. Nothing. She picked the pack up and shuffled it. Put it back on the table and held her hand over it again.

Anna said, ‘Do I ask a question or something?’

‘No.’ Katie shook her head. ‘I can’t do it. Sorry.’

‘Why not?’ Anna looked disappointed.

The familiar sense of failure settled across Katie, making her feel tired and a little bit weepy. ‘There’s nothing there.’ She gestured to the pack of cards. ‘I don’t know why. Maybe I’m tired.’

‘Some other time,’ Max said. He looked at his watch. ‘Don’t we have more filmage? Unless you want to go to the pub, instead?’

‘No.’ Anna stretched and stood up. ‘I’m knackered. I’m going to head home.’ She picked up the empty muffin plate and took it to the kitchen.

Katie followed. ‘Don’t you dare.’

‘I’m tired.’ Anna didn’t meet her eye. ‘Early shift tomorrow.’

Katie’s stomach swooped. ‘Are you angry with me? I’m sorry about the cards—’

‘It’s okay,’ Anna said, but she still didn’t look up. She eased past Katie and back into the living room. Katie heard her saying goodbye to Max and then she was gone. Katie willed her heart to stop hammering. She was okay. He was a stranger but he wasn’t dangerous. He was just a guy. And Anna was right: she was never going to meet anybody new if she didn’t take little risks now and then.

Max was standing in the middle of the room, looking at the art prints and postcards on the walls.

‘Do you want more wine?’ Katie said.

‘Aren’t you having any?’

‘No.’ Katie shook her head. ‘I’m not a big drinker. Especially with people who think I’m insane.’

‘Sensible,’ Max said. His calculating expression was back again.

‘What?’

‘Why didn’t you read the cards for Anna?’

‘You know why,’ Katie said. ‘I couldn’t do it. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but—’

‘But you know her — you’d hardly have to cold read her. You could’ve just made some stuff up, made a few vague statements.’

Katie put a hand on one hip and regarded him coolly. ‘I don’t do that. I’m not pretending. The women in my family have unusual abilities. For real.’

‘I think you really believe that,’ Max said slowly. Then he smiled. ‘Luckily, I have a high tolerance for weirdness.’

‘Thanks a lot,’ Katie said. His expression made her bold, made her want to shock him. ‘I can talk to ghosts. There’s one at the hotel and her name is Violet. I was talking to her the other day. And I’ve been dreaming about Mr Cole. He keeps asking me to look for his watch. That’s why I want to find it.’

Max waited a beat, as if expecting her to smile and say she was joking.

‘You were brought up with conning. I was brought up with this,’ Katie said. ‘I don’t expect you to believe me, but I think it was a ghost that dropped the vase the other day.’

‘It’s a theory,’ Max said.

‘I’m only telling you for your own safety. If you get cold all of a sudden, look out for flying ceramics.’

‘Okay, this is just your thing,’ Max said. ‘Like a hobby. And it’s not that weird. To be fair, lots of people believe in ghosts. Not so many claim to chat to them, but—’

‘Just because you can’t see the giant rabbit, doesn’t mean it isn’t real.’

‘You’re seeing rabbits, now?’

‘No,’ Katie said. ‘Like in
Harvey
. Jimmy Stewart could see this rabbit but no one else in the film can.’

‘Like in
Donnie Darko
? There’s a rabbit in that, isn’t there?’

‘No,’ Katie said severely. ‘Like in
Harvey
. It’s not a scary rabbit. It’s life-affirming.’

Max shrugged. ‘Sorry. I haven’t seen it.’

‘I’m going to have to educate you.’

‘You and I have very different ideas about education.’

‘We have very different ideas about a lot of things. It’s one of the many reasons I’m not going to drink with you.’

‘You will eventually.’

‘Now you sound dodgy and arrogant again.’

‘Sorry,’ Max said. ‘Occupational hazard.’

‘How’s that new leaf going, anyway? Are you liking an honest day’s work?’

‘The bar?’ Max said. ‘It’s fun. For now.’ He moved closer to her. ‘Not as much fun as this, though. I just wish you weren’t frightened of me.’

‘I’m not frightened,’ Katie said. ‘I’m being sensible. You’re only here because you think I’ve got your watch.’

‘Not any more. You’re not stupid so if you were trying to con me, you’d be making a better job of it than this.’

‘Thanks,’ Katie said. ‘I think.’

‘Besides, I don’t think I’ve ever met anybody less suited to grifting. I mean, you were embarrassed tonight. When you couldn’t do that card trick, but you didn’t gloss over it or pretend.’

‘Tarot isn’t a card trick.’

‘Not always, apparently,’ Max said. ‘I still think Barton is faking, though.’

Katie frowned. ‘Don’t put me in the same category as him. A true psychic would never get up on stage and dish out information. It’s morally corrupt, unethical, wrong. And it’s not even the way it works.’

‘You’re not a fan, then,’ Max said, looking a little bemused. ‘I’d have thought—’

‘Well, you thought wrong.’

‘Do you want to come and see the show? See if we can catch him out together? I’ve got a plus one on my ticket.’

Katie felt a rush that started from her toes and went straight to the top of her head. He wanted to see her again. She was crap at kissing and had told him she could see ghosts and he still wanted to see her again.

He dipped his head. ‘Katie?’

Katie realised she was clutching her necklace and she made herself let go of it. Safety-wise, it was one of the best dates she could accept. She would be in the hotel, surrounded by people. On the other hand, it would involve sitting next to Max for an hour or two. A prospect that made her heart rate kick up and her palms go all sweaty.

He gave her a quick smile. ‘No problem if you’ve got other plans or would rather jump off a bridge. I can take a hint.’

‘No,’ Katie said.

‘It’s cool.’ Max held up his hands.

‘No. I mean, I don’t have plans. Yes. I’ll watch the show with you.’

‘I’ll say goodnight, then.’ Max kissed her quickly on the cheek, then got up from the sofa and made for the door. ‘Until tomorrow.’

Katie sank back onto the sofa and stared at the glasses on the coffee table. She was going on a date with a con man. Ex-con-man, whatever. She couldn’t stop picturing Max and every time she conjured his face, her own split into a wide grin. This wasn’t good. The last time she’d felt this excited she’d been fourteen and madly in love with Luke Taylor. That hadn’t ended well, but, no matter how much she tried to frighten herself with bad memories, she couldn’t ignore the fizzing in her veins. It was as if her blood had been replaced with lemonade and her vital organs filled with helium. Katie pictured Max’s face as he’d asked her out, replayed the sound of his voice when he’d said ‘until tomorrow’ and then had to cover her mouth to stop an excited squeaking sound escaping.
Tragic
. She was glad that Shari wasn’t around to witness her giggling and gurning like a fool. One thing was clear, though: she had a crush on the con man.

‘Not, sensible, honeybunch,’ she said out loud, trying to channel Gwen and regain some semblance of sanity.

Unfortunately, Gwen’s voice echoed back saying, ‘Women like sex, too,’ which wasn’t at all helpful. She got up and cleared away the glasses and took them into the kitchen, before heading to bed.

For once, she was glad when the Oliver Cole dream began its nightly rerun. At least I’m not dreaming about jumping Max, she thought, before the dream took over and she was back in The Yellow Room watching Oliver Cole die.

*

The next day, Katie went to find Mrs Cole. She’d been distracted from Mr Cole’s watch but it seemed pretty clear that the bad dreams weren’t going to stop until she found it. She used the hotel database to find the address and drove to the Cole residence in a cul-de-sac in Chippenham.

The houses in the street were all detached new-builds with conservatories and at least two cars to fill their double garages. The woman who answered the door was wearing stretchy workout clothes and a purple sweat top. She must’ve been in her late fifties but had incredibly shapely legs. Katie dragged her gaze upwards. ‘Mrs Cole?’

‘Yes?’

‘I’m very sorry to bother you,’ Katie said. ‘This is a bit awkward, but it concerns your late husband. May I come in?’

Mrs Cole narrowed her eyes. ‘Are you one of his?’

‘I’m sorry?’

‘You’re a bit young, even for him.’ Mrs Cole gave her an exaggerated look up and down.

‘No,’ Katie said.
Ew
. ‘I work at The Grange.’

‘Oh.’ Mrs Cole looked confused. ‘Is there a problem with the bill?’

‘No, nothing like that. I’m really sorry to bring this up, but had your husband lost a watch? Before he passed away?’

‘I knew it, you’re of them—’

Mrs Cole went to shut the door and Katie stepped forward to stop her. ‘I didn’t know your husband. I’m just trying to recover some property. Did he give you a watch? It belongs to a friend of mine.’