more. Just a bit more, though. "How about tomorrow night? I can meet you there right after my work."
"Can Quentin come too? He's also very interested in see ing the house."
Oh crap. Immy wasn't up for threesomes. "I guess. But I need to know something right now. I need to get in touch with my landlord."
"You don't need to do that. We're the property managers."
"Well, the thing is, my uncle is in jail for trespassing or something, and I don't think that's fair. He's my uncle. Can you or Jersey tell the cops he should not be charged with anything?"
Vance leaned forward, putting on an earnest expression. He was still adorable. " He's already been charged. Anyway, we do have policies, Immy. We can't let people squat on land that we're in charge of. Can't set precedents like that. We manage a lot of vacant properties. It would get out of hand if we let vagrants invade them."
"Not vagrants. Only one vagrant. And he's my uncle. Can't they just charge the other guys who were there ? "
"And who were they?"
"I can find out from Dewey."
"I think Dewey is the only one they can locate right now."
"And the dead one. Dewey's cellmate. He was squatting there too, right?" Hell, anybody could locate him .
"Yes, the victim, Lyle Cisneros. But there was supposed to have been one more. The police can't locate him. Why doesn't Dewey tell them who the third man is? "
"He doesn't know! He only knows a first name, Abe, and a nickname, Grunt. You have to have a name to find a person." Vance had clearly never had to locate a missing person. But the subject was coming up for her again and again. "So you're not going to tell me where to find my landlord."
"The police want to talk to him, too, Immy. He's out of touch right now. He'll show up in a few days . He doesn't tell us where he goes." Vance looked at the corner of the ceiling. "Although Jersey might know where he is."
She might as well ask her other question. "Do you want me to get rid of the ghost?"
Vance paled slightly. "The one that knocked me off the ladder?"
Immy wasn't sure if a ghost had knocked him over or if he'd merely lost his balance , but she said, "Yeah, that one. There's only the one in the Tompkins House, right?"
"How are you going to do that?"
"I have a book that tells me how. I just have to buy a few things. "
"Well, sure, go ahead."
"But I should get a reduction in my rent if I do that. It'll cost me money and it'll improv e the property , too ." She tilted her head and batted her eyelids. No response.
"You're improving the property anyway, you said. Putting up a fence and fixing the porch . There's no reduction for that."
She decided she'd talk to Jersey Shorr about it , and about where Geoff , the landlord, was . Maybe she'd be more reasonable. Immy got up and headed for the door.
The thing that was hovering in the foggy back of her mind shot forward and came into focus . Jersey did know where Geoff was. She had phoned him to ask about her putting a fence in the backyard . She had to know where he was.
"See you tomorrow at the house?" Vance called after her.
"Sure. Whatever."
Chapter Nine
That night , right after Immy got off work, Ralph met her again at the old house and he got started on the new fence for the pig. He'd decided to start from scratch rather than use parts from the one in the Saltlick backyard . He dug holes, poured cement, and set the posts.
Then he managed to find half a d ozen good porch spindles in the storage shed behind the house.
By that time it was almost fully dark. He decided to take the porch pieces with him . Immy watched him gather an armload and followed him to his truck, parked at the curb in front.
"I'll use these for a model to make new spindles ," he said as he loaded the salvaged ones into his truck. "I have to replace the rotten and missing ones . Might as well repaint all of them while I'm at it . You want them gray?"
Immy gazed at the twilit house and considered. The posts were gray now. In fact,
"Can Quentin come too? He's also very interested in see ing the house."
Oh crap. Immy wasn't up for threesomes. "I guess. But I need to know something right now. I need to get in touch with my landlord."
"You don't need to do that. We're the property managers."
"Well, the thing is, my uncle is in jail for trespassing or something, and I don't think that's fair. He's my uncle. Can you or Jersey tell the cops he should not be charged with anything?"
Vance leaned forward, putting on an earnest expression. He was still adorable. " He's already been charged. Anyway, we do have policies, Immy. We can't let people squat on land that we're in charge of. Can't set precedents like that. We manage a lot of vacant properties. It would get out of hand if we let vagrants invade them."
"Not vagrants. Only one vagrant. And he's my uncle. Can't they just charge the other guys who were there ? "
"And who were they?"
"I can find out from Dewey."
"I think Dewey is the only one they can locate right now."
"And the dead one. Dewey's cellmate. He was squatting there too, right?" Hell, anybody could locate him .
"Yes, the victim, Lyle Cisneros. But there was supposed to have been one more. The police can't locate him. Why doesn't Dewey tell them who the third man is? "
"He doesn't know! He only knows a first name, Abe, and a nickname, Grunt. You have to have a name to find a person." Vance had clearly never had to locate a missing person. But the subject was coming up for her again and again. "So you're not going to tell me where to find my landlord."
"The police want to talk to him, too, Immy. He's out of touch right now. He'll show up in a few days . He doesn't tell us where he goes." Vance looked at the corner of the ceiling. "Although Jersey might know where he is."
She might as well ask her other question. "Do you want me to get rid of the ghost?"
Vance paled slightly. "The one that knocked me off the ladder?"
Immy wasn't sure if a ghost had knocked him over or if he'd merely lost his balance , but she said, "Yeah, that one. There's only the one in the Tompkins House, right?"
"How are you going to do that?"
"I have a book that tells me how. I just have to buy a few things. "
"Well, sure, go ahead."
"But I should get a reduction in my rent if I do that. It'll cost me money and it'll improv e the property , too ." She tilted her head and batted her eyelids. No response.
"You're improving the property anyway, you said. Putting up a fence and fixing the porch . There's no reduction for that."
She decided she'd talk to Jersey Shorr about it , and about where Geoff , the landlord, was . Maybe she'd be more reasonable. Immy got up and headed for the door.
The thing that was hovering in the foggy back of her mind shot forward and came into focus . Jersey did know where Geoff was. She had phoned him to ask about her putting a fence in the backyard . She had to know where he was.
"See you tomorrow at the house?" Vance called after her.
"Sure. Whatever."
Chapter Nine
That night , right after Immy got off work, Ralph met her again at the old house and he got started on the new fence for the pig. He'd decided to start from scratch rather than use parts from the one in the Saltlick backyard . He dug holes, poured cement, and set the posts.
Then he managed to find half a d ozen good porch spindles in the storage shed behind the house.
By that time it was almost fully dark. He decided to take the porch pieces with him . Immy watched him gather an armload and followed him to his truck, parked at the curb in front.
"I'll use these for a model to make new spindles ," he said as he loaded the salvaged ones into his truck. "I have to replace the rotten and missing ones . Might as well repaint all of them while I'm at it . You want them gray?"
Immy gazed at the twilit house and considered. The posts were gray now. In fact,
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