like?” I asked when the footsteps had stopped and he came back into the room, chewing his bottom lip in what was either agitation or deep thought. “I’ve heard that encountering a ghost is like plunging into ice water.”
“You have, huh? Sorry, this didn’t feel like anything at all. I heard the steps walk toward me then walk away. I didn’t feel anything.”
“So you don’t think it’s a ghost?” I rubbed my arm with my free hand, to get rid of the goose pimples. Derek might not be cold, but I was.
“What happened to ‘there’s no such thing as ghosts’?” Derek asked.
“That was before I heard footsteps walking around in an empty house,” I answered.
“There are other explanations, you know.”
“Like what?”
“Somebody’s trying to scare us.”
“I thought about that.” I nodded. “Specifically, I thought about you trying to scare me .”
Derek rolled his eyes. “What are you suggesting? That I rigged a sound system and set it off by remote while I was away?”
“Or on a timer.”
“I wouldn’t do that,” Derek said. “What would I gain by scaring you, Avery? If you refuse to come back to work, I’ll have to do everything by myself.”
He had a point. He had also brought up another one. “What would anyone else have to gain by scaring us both?”
“I’m not scared,” Derek said. I rolled my eyes.
“Of course not. Pardon me. I’m sure it would take a lot more than a few unexplainable footsteps in an empty house to scare you . You didn’t answer my question.”
“No idea,” Derek said cheerfully. “Maybe there’s a safe full of cash under the floorboards, and somebody’s looking for it? Maybe Mr. Murphy was a jewel thief and the Hope Diamond is hidden in the chimney? Maybe somebody else wanted to buy the house, and they’re upset that we got it instead, and now they’re trying to force us out so they can take over and renovate the house and make all the money?”
“If so, wouldn’t they have come to us with an offer already? What’s the good of getting rid of us if they can’t be assured of getting the house? For all they know, someone else is trying to buy it from us, and we’ll sell it to them instead. You’ve been in the crawlspace, so you should have been able to see if there was a safe under the floorboards anywhere. And if there is something valuable hidden in the house, why wait until now to start looking? They had seventeen years to find it while the house was just sitting here.”
“Fine,” Derek said sulkily. “What’s your suggestion?”
“I’m not sure. But it seems to me that either there’s a ghost walking down the hallway at five past two every afternoon, or someone is playing a joke on us.”
“Why would someone do that?”
“Because it’s fun to see us sweat?”
“Who’s sweating?” Derek asked. “And nobody’s here to see our reactions anyway. But if someone is doing it, there’ll be evidence somewhere. Wires, speakers, something like that. At the very least a tape recorder or something in the attic.”
“There’s an attic?” I glanced up at the ceiling. Considering how low the roof was, I hadn’t considered the possibility of more space up above.
Derek nodded. “I stuck my head up there when I first looked at the place. The entrance is in the master bedroom closet.”
He headed down the hallway, following the path the footsteps had taken. I trailed behind, looking around. The carpets were gone, so there was nowhere to hide a trip wire, and there were no suspicious holes in the walls or unexplained electrical thingamajigs, either. Just the stuff you’d expect to be there: switch plates and outlets for the electrical system, an old-fashioned phone jack or two, and the vents for the heat and air. “Funny place for an attic access.”
“Not really,” Derek said, turning into the master bedroom. “It’s just a hatch in the ceiling with a makeshift ladder nailed to the wall. I guess they wanted it somewhere
“You have, huh? Sorry, this didn’t feel like anything at all. I heard the steps walk toward me then walk away. I didn’t feel anything.”
“So you don’t think it’s a ghost?” I rubbed my arm with my free hand, to get rid of the goose pimples. Derek might not be cold, but I was.
“What happened to ‘there’s no such thing as ghosts’?” Derek asked.
“That was before I heard footsteps walking around in an empty house,” I answered.
“There are other explanations, you know.”
“Like what?”
“Somebody’s trying to scare us.”
“I thought about that.” I nodded. “Specifically, I thought about you trying to scare me .”
Derek rolled his eyes. “What are you suggesting? That I rigged a sound system and set it off by remote while I was away?”
“Or on a timer.”
“I wouldn’t do that,” Derek said. “What would I gain by scaring you, Avery? If you refuse to come back to work, I’ll have to do everything by myself.”
He had a point. He had also brought up another one. “What would anyone else have to gain by scaring us both?”
“I’m not scared,” Derek said. I rolled my eyes.
“Of course not. Pardon me. I’m sure it would take a lot more than a few unexplainable footsteps in an empty house to scare you . You didn’t answer my question.”
“No idea,” Derek said cheerfully. “Maybe there’s a safe full of cash under the floorboards, and somebody’s looking for it? Maybe Mr. Murphy was a jewel thief and the Hope Diamond is hidden in the chimney? Maybe somebody else wanted to buy the house, and they’re upset that we got it instead, and now they’re trying to force us out so they can take over and renovate the house and make all the money?”
“If so, wouldn’t they have come to us with an offer already? What’s the good of getting rid of us if they can’t be assured of getting the house? For all they know, someone else is trying to buy it from us, and we’ll sell it to them instead. You’ve been in the crawlspace, so you should have been able to see if there was a safe under the floorboards anywhere. And if there is something valuable hidden in the house, why wait until now to start looking? They had seventeen years to find it while the house was just sitting here.”
“Fine,” Derek said sulkily. “What’s your suggestion?”
“I’m not sure. But it seems to me that either there’s a ghost walking down the hallway at five past two every afternoon, or someone is playing a joke on us.”
“Why would someone do that?”
“Because it’s fun to see us sweat?”
“Who’s sweating?” Derek asked. “And nobody’s here to see our reactions anyway. But if someone is doing it, there’ll be evidence somewhere. Wires, speakers, something like that. At the very least a tape recorder or something in the attic.”
“There’s an attic?” I glanced up at the ceiling. Considering how low the roof was, I hadn’t considered the possibility of more space up above.
Derek nodded. “I stuck my head up there when I first looked at the place. The entrance is in the master bedroom closet.”
He headed down the hallway, following the path the footsteps had taken. I trailed behind, looking around. The carpets were gone, so there was nowhere to hide a trip wire, and there were no suspicious holes in the walls or unexplained electrical thingamajigs, either. Just the stuff you’d expect to be there: switch plates and outlets for the electrical system, an old-fashioned phone jack or two, and the vents for the heat and air. “Funny place for an attic access.”
“Not really,” Derek said, turning into the master bedroom. “It’s just a hatch in the ceiling with a makeshift ladder nailed to the wall. I guess they wanted it somewhere
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