Read Online Hungry Spirits [Spirits 04] by Alice Duncan - Free Book Online

Emmaline Castleton, undoubtedly one of the richest people in the universe, to know what a thrill it was to have her call me. But the truth was that people I didn’t know never called me except when they wanted me to work for them. I regret to say that dollar signs began to dance in my head.
    “ I understand you’re going to conduct a séance at Mrs. Bissell’s home in two weeks.”
    It wasn’t exactly a question, but I answered it anyway. “Yes, I am.”
    Another pause ensued. Evidently, this woman was either timid or didn’t know what she wanted. At last she said, “I hope to meet you there, then.”
    Oh? Well, hmm. Deflated, I said, “That would be very nice, Miss Castleton.”
    I glanced over my shoulder to see Ma standing there. I think she’d begun to hover impatiently, but when she heard the name Castleton, her mouth dropped open and she only stared at me.
    “ Well,” Miss Castleton said, “I don’t merely want to meet you. I’m hoping that perhaps you can help me. In your capacity as a spiritualist, I mean.”
    Whew! Feeling more confident, I slathered the spiritualistic charm into my next words. “I’d be more than happy to help you if I’m able to, Miss Castleton.”
    I heard a soft sigh rustle through the telephone wire. “Thank you. Madeline Kincaid has told me so much about you. So has Mrs. Bissell.”
    That was nice. I said, “Ah.”
    “ Then we’ll meet in two weeks,” said she in her soft, low voice. She sounded sad, actually.
    “ Yes,” I said, getting confused again.
    She replaced the receiver on her end so softly, I didn’t even hear a click. I waited on the line just to see if any of our party-line neighbors had been listening, but I didn’t hear any other clicks, either. Nuts. I wouldn’t have minded if the nosy Mrs. Barlow had heard me speaking to Miss Emmaline Castleton.
    As I pushed Billy’s wheelchair up the street to the First Methodist-Episcopal Church on the corner of Marengo and Colorado, as usual, and after I’d answered Ma’s eager questions about my call from an honest-to-God Castleton, I pondered that telephone call.
    Everyone in Pasadena knew who the Castletons were, and most of us knew more than that about the family. For instance, I knew that Miss Emmaline Castleton, she of the recent telephone call, had been engaged to marry a young man who’d been killed in the war. I expected that was why she wanted me to work for her. I’d actually met her intended once, at a party I’d worked for Mrs. Bissell. Occasionally, you see, if the cause was good enough, I would read palms and so forth for charity events, and that event was one of those events, if you know what I mean. I think the cause had been to make money for crippled soldiers’ families, a cause I more than fully supported.
    Interesting. Now I could hardly wait for Mrs. Bissell’s séance! I resolved, on my next trip to the library, to look up articles about the Castletons and Miss Castleton’s late fiancé, as well as books on dog breeding and showing. But by that time, we’d reached the church, so I had to stop thinking.
    Billy always sat in the congregation with my parents and Aunt Vi while I donned my choir robe and took my place in the alto section. I was in the choir room donning said robe when the choir director, Mr. Floy Hostetter, broke into my musings, which weren’t very interesting anyway.
    “ Mrs. Majesty?”
    I looked up. “Yes, Mr. Hostetter?”
    Mr. Hostetter referred to a notebook in his hands. “Would you and Lucille Spinks like to sing a duet next week?”
    Would I? Why not? I liked performing. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be a spiritualist. “Sure. What song do you have in mind?”
    “ Since Thanksgiving is approaching, I’d like for the two of you to sing ‘This Is My Father’s World.’ ”
    “ Oh, I like that one. Have you asked Miss Spinks yet?”
    “ I’m going to do that right this minute.” Mr. Hostetter bustled off, presumably to find Lucy. I didn’t doubt that