The Hidden Picture: A Ghost Mystery Story (Second Hand Ghosts Book 4) by Gillian Larkin

Chapter 1
     
    “We
need something eye catching, something to draw the crowds in,” Carol said.
    I
looked around the shop, “We need better things to sell.”
    “One
thing at a time, Kate. If we get people into the shop then we can flog them
other things,” Carol said.
    It
had been one month since Rose, the owner of Second Hand Rose, had died and left
her shop jointly to me and Carol. We were struggling to make a profit, mainly
because we had a lot of old and bulky furniture to get rid of.
    “We
could try a sale again,” I suggested.
    Carol
shook her head, “We’ve had two already, people will think we’re one of those
companies that are always having ‘closing down sales’. We’ve got a reputation
to think of. Come on, Kate, think of something.”
    “I’m
trying,” I told her.
    Carol
fixed her gaze on me.
    “Well
I can’t think if you’re staring at me!” I retorted.
    The
shop door opened. Carol’s eyes lit up as she spotted a potential sale.
    A
woman who looked to be in her mid thirties staggered in with a large cardboard
box. I ran over to help her. Together, we put it on the counter.
    Carol
frowned as she realised the woman was here to sell something, and not to buy
anything.
    “Yes?”
Carol asked rather rudely.
    The
woman huffed for a bit as she caught her breath.
    Then
she spoke, “I need to speak to Rose, please.”
    “You
can’t,” Carol replied.
    “But
it’s important. I have to speak to her,” the woman went on.
    “I’ve
just told you that you can’t. You’ll have to speak to me instead.”
    Carol
is so embarrassingly rude sometimes.
    I
smiled at the woman and said, “I’m sorry to tell you that Rose passed away
recently. She left her shop to us. If you have business with Rose I’m sure we
could help.”
    The
woman’s shoulders dropped and she looked down at the box. “That’s such a shame,
I really needed to speak to her.”
“I’m sure she didn’t die on purpose,” Carol sniffed.
    I
shot Carol a glance. It was obvious that the woman was upset.
    “We
might be able to help you, if you tell us what your visit is about. I’m
assuming it’s something to do with that box,” I said.
    The
woman looked at me and gave a little smile. “Okay, I’ll tell you why I’m here.
This box belonged to my granddad. He died about three months ago. We’ve only
just got round to clearing out the attic of his house. We found this box up
there. And inside we found a letter addressed to ‘Rose at The Second Hand Rose
shop’.
    The
woman took a letter out of her handbag. It was unopened.
    I
looked at Carol and said, “What should we do? Should we open it?”
    Carol
hesitated, “We should really pass it onto her family.”
    “But
it might be something to do with the shop, something we need to know about,” I
ventured.
    Carol
didn’t look sure.
    “We
could open it, read it and if it’s nothing to do with the shop, then we can
pass it on to her family.”
    Carol
looked satisfied with my reasoning. Secretly, I think she was just as curious
as me to open the letter.
    The
woman passed me the letter and said, “Do you mind if I look at the contents
too?”
    She
gave an embarrassed smile. She was just as nosey as us.
    “I’ll
read it out,” I said and I carefully opened the envelope and took out a piece
of paper.
     

Chapter 2
     
    Carol
and the woman seemed to hold their breaths as I opened up the folded notepaper.
It looked old and the words were written in black ink.
    I
cleared my throat.
    “Get
on with it,” Carol warned.
    ‘Dear
Rose, I trust you are keeping well. I know that your dream, or part of it, has
come true. So, as promised, here they are! Love always, Ernie Ford’
    “Is
that it?” Carol asked. “That’s not much, is it?”
    I
folded the letter carefully and put it back inside the envelope.
    “It
depends what’s inside the box,” I said.
    “I’d
better be going,” the woman said hurriedly.
    “Just
a minute! Do you know what’s inside?” Carol asked her.