The Silent Ghost (8 page)

Rhoda gave Tanisha a big grin. “Russ still loving the ladies in the building? When I lived there, I think he was making it his mission to bed every one of us. Me included. I believe he even nailed a few of my tenants. At least that’s what Bernice Taylor on the second floor suggested when I ran into her when I was getting ready to sell the loft. My relationship with Russ ended once I left the building.”

Tanisha raised an eyebrow at the news. “I see Russ in the building every now and then, but my hours are kind of odd.”

“He had a hard time of it for a while,” Rhoda continued. “About the time the building was
converted, his younger sister went missing. There were just the two of them. Their parents were both dead, and he looked out for her. I don’t think she was ever found, and I don’t think he ever got over it. He told me he hired all kinds of private detectives to search for her. He’s convinced she ran off with some lowlife she was dating at the time. He disapproved and they fought over it. Whenever we had a few drinks, he’d tell me over and over how it was his fault.”

“How very sad,” commented Kelly. “What was his sister’s name? Do you remember?”

“Let me see.” Rhoda closed her eyes a moment. “Ann. Audrey. I remember it starting with an A. Alice.” She opened her eyes and looked at them, pleased with remembering. “Yes, that’s it. Her name was Alice. Alice Savage.”

Rhoda put down her mug and stretched out the fingers of both of her hands. “You know, I haven’t had the shakes in ages, but as soon as I got your call today, they started up again. How odd.”

After telling Kelly and Tanisha as much as she could about the history of the loft, the neighborhood, and some of the longtime occupants of the building, Rhoda and Hans escorted them to the front door. Or rather, Rhoda escorted Kelly and Tanisha and Hans trotted alongside Granny.

“Thank you so much for your help, Rhoda,” said Kelly.

“I don’t know how much help I was, but it was surprisingly fun. I did so love that loft. Until I got ill, I had a wonderful time there.”

After taking a few steps towards the car, Tanisha turned back around. “I almost forgot.” She dug around in her bag and retrieved the drawing of the ghost. She stepped back to the door and showed it to Rhoda. “Does this woman look familiar?”

Rhoda looked at it a moment, then slipped on her reading glasses. “Where did you get this?”

“It’s a drawing I did,” answered Kelly. She hesitated, then added, “I sketched it from a picture we found while researching the building. We were hoping it would give a clue as to some of the people and time frame.”

“Do you know who this is?” pressed Tanisha, trying not to sound too eager.

“She looks vaguely familiar, but I can’t say for sure. Many of us wore our hair this way back then.” Rhoda laughed. “It was the Rachel cut.”

“The Rachel cut?” Tanisha looked at Kelly, who only shrugged.

“You know the show
Friends
?”

Both girls nodded.

“Jennifer Aniston wore her hair like this on the show. It triggered a whole new hairstyle. Everyone was getting their hair styled this way, hoping to look like Rachel.”

*  *  *

“We need to talk to Russell,” commented Kelly once they were on their way back to Cambridge. “Do you think the ghost visits him, too?”

Tanisha was very quiet. She kept both hands on the wheel and her face forward as she drove. She’d been stewing about something ever since they had left Rhoda’s. Granny had disappeared as soon as they hit the road home.

“What’s wrong?” Kelly asked. “You’ve been in a bad mood since we left the Browne house.”

“I’m such a fool,” was all Tanisha said and went back to glaring at the road like it was the root of her problem.

“Was the hairstyle a clue? Did you figure something out about the ghost from it?”

“No on the ghost, yes on me. I figured out that I’m a fool.” Tanisha curled her lip. “Russ is going to get more than questions, I can tell you that.”

Kelly watched Tanisha until it dawned on her. “Oh my God, you slept with him, didn’t you? You slept with that Russell guy.”

Tanisha pounded the steering wheel with one fist. “If I had known he’d slept his way through the building, I certainly would never have. He even used that sad sack line about his sister on me.” Again,
she pounded the wheel. “He probably never even had a sister.”

Kelly looked out the passenger side window, unsure of what to say to Tanisha to comfort her. Then another thought occurred to her. She turned back around. “Hey, wait a minute. If this guy was around during the conversion, he’d have to be at least in his forties about now. Right? Isn’t that a bit old for you?”

“Russ is forty-seven. What of it?”

“Ewwww, that’s the same age as my dad. Probably yours, too.”

“My dad is fifty-three. Not even close.”

“Close enough.” Kelly shook her head.

“You haven’t met Russ. He’s cute and charming.” Tanisha pounded the wheel again. “And a liar.”

“What did he lie about?”

Tanisha contained her outrage long enough to think. She didn’t like the answer, but it didn’t dampen her anger. “Nothing, actually. But neither did he admit to sleeping with other people in the building.”

“I’m sorry, but was confessing to that a requirement for dating you?”

“I ended it with Zak to date Russ,” Tanisha shouted at the windshield. “I didn’t play the field, even though I could have.”

“You still seeing this guy?”

“Once in a while, but not like before. We were hot and heavy, but he’s been really busy lately.”

Kelly groaned. “Face it, T, he’s a player. It happens to all of us at one time or another, so don’t beat yourself up over him. He’s not worth it.” Kelly braced herself as Tanisha steered the Mini Cooper around the pickup truck in front of them, barely missing its left bumper. “And slow down, would you. I don’t want to be a victim of your road rage.”

Tanisha growled, then shook her head and turned to Kelly, her eyebrows raised. “Hey, you just called me T. Does that mean we’re finally friends?”

“Considering all the stuff we’ve shared today, we’d better be friends by now.”

Another mile down the road, Kelly said, “I ran into a guy in his forties this morning in front of your building. He was coming out as I was going in. I have to admit, he was super hot.” She described him to Tanisha.

“That’s Russ.” She cast a look to her right. “Please don’t tell me he hit on you.”

“Nah,” Kelly lied.

When they returned to Kelly’s dorm, Tanisha placed a call to Russell Savage, but only connected with his voice mail. In as even a voice as she could muster, she left him a message saying she needed to speak with him about the building. Kelly was glad he wasn’t home because she didn’t want to be a spectator when Tanisha confronted him.

As Kelly was getting out of the Mini Cooper, Tanisha cleared her throat. “Kelly, I have a favor to ask.”

Kelly slung her bag over one shoulder and leaned into the car. “Sure. What?”

“Considering how awful the ghost was last night, I really don’t want to be alone. Do you think you could stay over tonight? We also might be able make contact with her.”

Kelly thought about the schoolwork waiting for her attention, but one look at her new friend’s face made up her mind. “Sure. How about I pick up a pizza on the way. There’s a great place just a block from your loft.”

Tanisha beamed. “Angelo’s. I go there all the time. But I can order it for delivery.”

“No, that’s okay. I’ll pick it up.”

“Doesn’t it strike you funny,” Kelly said to Granny while they waited for Tanisha to buzz open the door, “that it’s Saturday night and I’m not out with my friends, but ghost hunting?”

“Yeah,” answered Granny. “Seems like a step up to me.” When Kelly shot her a dirty look, Granny added, “You can go out with your friends anytime. And, this way, you get pizza.” The ghost indicated the large square box in Kelly’s hands. “I love the smell of pizza.”

“I can get pizza anytime, too.”

“Maybe, but pizza and a crazy ghost? How often does that happen?”

Kelly raised an eyebrow in Granny’s direction. “More often than is probably good for me.”

“I hope you’re talking about the pizza.”

Without answering Granny, Kelly hit the buzzer again.

Granny hovered around the front door, peering in through the glass front. “She knew you were coming about now, didn’t she?”

“Yes. In fact, I’m a bit late. The pizza wasn’t ready when I went to pick it up.” Again, Kelly rang the buzzer.

Digging her phone out of her pocket, she placed a call to Tanisha. Before parting earlier, they had traded phone numbers. “It’s me, Kelly,” she said when she reached voice mail. “I’m downstairs. Call me or buzz me in or something.” Kelly paused, then added, “Please do not tell me you’ve forgotten about tonight.”

“I’ll pop up there and see if she’s home,” offered Granny. “Maybe she’s in the shower or
something.”

“Good idea. If she’s not, maybe I can slip in when someone comes out and wait for her upstairs where it’s warmer.”

Kelly didn’t have to wait long before someone came out of the building. It was Russell Savage again. He gave her a wide, bright smile of recognition. “You again. You sure you’re not stalking me?”

Kelly felt another blush coming on. He was as handsome as any of the movie stars she’d met in Hollywood.

“If your friend isn’t home,” he told her, “you can share that pizza with me. I’ll be back in about an hour. I’m on the top floor. Just knock.” He winked at her.

Once inside, Kelly took a deep breath, easily understanding how Tanisha had been attracted to Russ in spite of the age difference.

She was on the landing of the floor just below Tanisha’s when Granny popped up. “Quick,” the ghost told her with urgency. “It’s Tanisha.” Granny disappeared almost as soon as she appeared.

Kelly shot up the last set of steps. Reaching Tanisha’s door, she knocked, “Tanisha, it’s Kelly.” Getting no answer, she tried the door, it was unlocked. A chill went through her as she put her hand on the door. She hesitated.

Granny popped back out into the hallway. “Don’t just stand there! She needs you.”

Taking a quick, deep breath, as if jumping into the deep end of a cold pool, Kelly shoved the door open and scanned the place with her eyes. At first glance, she didn’t see anything odd. And no sign of Tanisha.

“Over here,” called Granny, who was hovering by the bed.

Kelly heard a moan. Dropping her bag to the floor and the pizza box on the coffee table, she dashed to where Granny indicated. Leaning against the bed and tipped to her right, Tanisha was nearly wedged between the bed and nightstand. Her eyes were closed. Her body quivered. She let out another moan. Pushing the nightstand aside a few inches, Kelly knelt in front of her. “Tanisha, it’s me, Kelly. Are you
hurt?” She noticed Tanisha’s nose and one cheek were scraped and freshly scabbed, like she’d gone down face-first on concrete.

Tanisha mumbled something and slowly shook her head side to side. Not taking her word for it, Kelly ran her hands swiftly around Tanisha’s body and limbs, gently pressing, and watching Tanisha’s face for any sign of pain. Finding no injury, she slipped her arms under the limp girl’s armpits and started to lift her up.

“Can you help me out a bit?” Kelly asked with a grunt. “Come on, try to stand. Or at least get up enough to sit on the bed.”

Slowly opening her eyes, Tanisha focused on Kelly and seemed almost surprised to see her. Finding her legs, she helped Kelly raise her enough to set her on the bed. Once there, she shook herself, as if coming to from a faint.

Kelly noticed the circles under her eyes were even darker than they had been that morning. “How long have you been sitting on the floor?”

Tanisha scrubbed her hands up and down over her face. “Ow.”

“Your face is scraped. Do you know how that happened?”

“It is?” Tanisha lightly touched her nose, then flinched from the sting. “No clue.” She looked around, still half dazed. What time is it?”

“About seven-thirty.”

“After I dropped you off, I went to the store and picked up some sodas and other stuff.” Tanisha’s voice was slow as she tried to piece together the afternoon. Her fingers gently touched her check. She winced. “Then I decided to work on a new article I’m doing. I sat down at my desk and starting working.”

“That’s the last thing you remember?”

Tanisha shook her head. “At some point I took the trash out. I remember that, but not exactly when I did it.”

“That’s probably why her door was unlocked,” suggested Granny. “Wonder if she fell outside.”

“We found your door unlocked,” Kelly told her.

Tanisha’s eyes gained focus. “How’d you get into the building?”

Kelly sat on the end of the bed. “Russell Savage was leaving. He let me in, and I’m glad he did.”

Tanisha looked around, as if trying to remember something important. “You saw Russ? I don’t think he ever called me back.”

“He said something about being back in an hour. Maybe we could ambush him then, if you’re up to it.”

Granny move closer and peered into Tanisha’s eyes. “Is she okay?”

“No!” Without warning, Tanisha raised a defensive arm in front of her face and cried out. Granny backed up.

Both Kelly and Granny looked around the loft but couldn’t see the other ghost.

“This is Granny,” Kelly explained to Tanisha. “Not that other ghost.”

Tanisha opened her eyes wide and studied the apparition in front of her. “Oh, Granny, I’m so sorry.”

“Did that other ghost try to hurt you?” Granny had her hands on her hips, ready to get to the bottom of Tanisha’s problem.

Kelly relayed the question, then added one of her own. “You let her get into your head, didn’t you?”

“It happened so fast.” Tanisha got up on unsteady feet and started to move slowly around the loft as if testing her limbs for soundness. “One minute I was working, the next I was crying. I remember that. I started to cry. Then I was sobbing. I tried to shake it off.” She stopped moving and looked at Granny and Kelly. “I remember now. I got up and faced her. I got right up in the face of that ghost and asked her what she wanted. I asked her why she was doing this to me.”