Unfinished Business

It’s been 10 years since I died.

That is one heck of a way to begin a story. But how else can I begin it unless I start with my end?

Well as you might have guessed, I am a ghost. The proper term would be Spirit Remnant. That means I still have some things to settle before I can “move on”.

So sit back, relax and let me tell you my story.

Oh wait… Can this be? I have VISITORS!!! For the first time in 5 years! Someone has come to my little cottage!

I peer out at the four-wheel drive parked outside the little picket fence. Four youngsters stepped out of the vehicle. They looked like they were in their early twenties. They were laughing and gasping in awe at my little cottage. Well, that came as a surprise. Since I am no longer “physically” around to look after my little home, it has really gone to ruin. It is also in the middle of nowhere so it is not exactly in high market.

There were two guys and two girls. They looked like “city kids” with their fashionable clothes and bags of electronic devices. Even their bags looked fancy. The tallest boy took out a key. It was a beautiful engraved steel key. I held back my tears. That used to be mine. I stood in the main hallway to welcome my new guests. I may be a ghost but I still had to be a good host. I was raised proper, that way. The door creaked open and I saw four faces peering in.

“Wow! This place looks beautiful despite it being abandoned for so long!” exclaimed one of the girls from the back. She stood out from the rest with her neon green hair tied up in a ponytail. For easier identification, let’s call her Greenie. Now, the tallest one who opened the door seemed to be the one in charge so we’ll call him Boss.

I never quite got their names. Being a ghost, my memory is kind of weird. Now I understand why some ghosts get trapped for years wandering around. The longer you’re here, the more you start to forget things. Your short term memory is terrible. I could tell you what I did as a kid but I could not tell you what vehicle those kids arrived in just minutes ago.

The second guy stepped into the house. I felt a weird chill run through me and a sudden urge to attack him for trespassing. It took a lot of self-control but I held it in. He walked forward looking around. He had a crew cut and I noticed a tiny dragon tattoo on his neck. I made a mental note that his name was going to be Dragon. As he moved closer, I noticed the hair on his arms rise and gooseflesh appeared. He gave a shiver.

“Wonder why it’s so cold…” he whispered, staring forward. I saw the fear and uncertainty in his eyes before it hit me. I was the one causing it. Quickly stepping back and leaning into the wall near the kitchen I continued to watch as the other girl stepped in. The thing that stood out about her were the multiple rings on every finger. She had almost 15 rings on her 10 fingers. So now we have our last character. I called her Ringer.

I won’t go through the minute details of their foray into my little cottage but they settled in pretty nicely and got a good fire going on at the tiny fireplace. The clever things managed to find my portable heater and could heat up the back room nicely too. I beamed with pride that a lot of things I owned still worked pretty well. I just went from room to room observing everything now that the lights had been turned on and I could see everything.

As I was looking at my old bed and wishing for a chance to lie down on it again, I felt a pull coming from downstairs. I realised someone had called me. I reappeared in the kitchen behind Greenie just as I heard her say my name. Ashley James…

I crept closer to hear her better.

“… I feel so bad for that poor Ashley James. So young, dead at 32, killed for no reason!” Greenie whispered looking down at my favourite bowl.

“What happened?” asked Dragon, pulling up a chair and planting himself in it opposite Ringer who was stuffing her face with chips from an open packet on the table.

“Apparently it was some kind of robbery? She had gained fame as a collector of certain antiques and one day she came into possession of something she was not supposed to have. The robber decided to break in to steal it but she was home at that time. So he shot her three times, grabbed the item and left. He was eventually caught by the police but the antique was no longer on his person. Ashley’s sister, devastated by the death, locked up the house as it was and sold it off to an agent. Someone rented it for a while but moved after a year or so. Then three years ago, a travel agency decided to turn it into a vacation spot for summer holidays. I’d heard about the place and it looked like such a beautiful cottage,” Greenie sighed.

“This is definitely the perfect place for us since we’ve been planning to hang out for so long”, said the Boss, plunking a hot pot of tea in front of them. The kids settled down to their evening meal.

I knew I had forgotten to tell you something. Well, now you know. That is the tale of how I died. However, my unfinished business has nothing to do with antiques. You see, I had another secret. I had been waiting for the right person to come along. Something about these kids gave me the feeling that I could trust them.

I knew I had to start early. But I would also need to be careful. I couldn’t just haunt them like ghosts usually do. I stood in the main hallway. My secret was hidden in my safe behind a panel in my old bedroom. The bedroom was at the end of the hall. I needed to get them into my bedroom. I had two options; scare them in that direction and point the way or lead them with clues. I decided to go with the second one. I didn’t particularly like scaring people. After my death, I had met the other resident ghosts of this cottage. Some had been causing me trouble when I was alive but they were generally pleasant folk.

I apologise for the digression. Now back to the story.

I had been working and practising very hard for what I was about to do. I moved to a small vase at the edge of a coffee table in the main hallway. Mustering my energy I pushed at it. It wobbled a little. I pushed harder. It toppled and fell with a crash. I heard the sounds of chairs being pushed back and running feet. Good, they had taken the bait. Without looking back I zoomed into my bedroom. Thank goodness they had left the light on. I had mastered the “Flickering Lights” technique thanks to a couple other ghost friends I had. I made the lights in the bedroom go nuts.

I heard footsteps slowly approaching the bedroom and the door swung open. Greenie bounced in brandishing a club. Dragon and Boss had knives while Ringer peered fearfully from the entrance. The panel was under my bed so I went under it and thumped. This took a whole year for me to master but I did it well.

The sounds quietened. For a moment I was afraid they would be scared off. Then to my relief the boys pushed the bed to a side, revealed a small panel in the wooden floor. The four of them looked at each other in amazement and began to discuss what to do. Greenie knelt on the floor and examined the panel. It measured about 10cm by 30cm and could be identified by the small grooves around the edges. It was definitely not easily noticed.

She carefully pried the panel from the ground and shone the flashlight from her phone into the hole and gasped. She pulled out a sheaf of papers and showed it to the others.

“This is a will,” said Boss in an awed voice.

“And a sealed letter,” added Dragon.

“Should we open it?” whispered Ringer.

“We could be tampering with evidence,” said Greenie.

“Let’s read the letter then,” cried Ringer bouncing with excitement.

They slit it open and began to read.

My dearest sister, Nova.

If you are reading this, then I would have been dead for some time. First of all I wanted to apologise for dumping little James on you all of a sudden and then disappearing. I did not want our argument being the last conversation between us. I bit off more than I could chew with my multiple adventures.

You know how I met Max and how James was conceived and born. I am so sorry I can’t be there to watch him grow. After Max was killed I knew they were coming for me next. The Organization is a very wealthy one with a very wide reach and once they set their sights on their target its game over. I could have given the items back to them and that was my original plan. However, that idea led to Max’s death.

When I was three months pregnant with James I knew I could not live on the run and my son needed a place to grow up safe and sound. That is why I made the decision to leave him with you. The only person in the world that I trust. This will holds the details of my numerous bank accounts and my lawyer will get in touch with you for all the information. In the nine months leading to the birth I was able to hide away everything I owned to be passed on to you and James in the event of my death.

Now, here I sit in my little summer cottage, waiting for my death. I hope it will be a quick one. I am so very sorry for all of this. I love you very much and I hope my little boy will grow up knowing his parents loved him with all their hearts. Thank you my dearest sister. I love you.

Love,

Ashley.

There was a stunned silence in the room as Greenie’s voice faded out.

I sat on the bed brushing at my tears. Hearing my words I was reminded of that night before I died. Watching the four kids, I felt a weight lift from my shoulders when they began looking for my sister’s address. They had a short debate about going to the police but then realised it would probably draw too much attention. So they decided to pay my sister a visit and give her the items themselves. Dragon apparently lived in the same neighbourhood as her.

Feeling happier than I’d ever felt in years I left the house, walking towards my sister’s. I could have moved there quickly but I was very tired after all the effort earlier. Who would have thought that ghosts could get tired. Finally I arrived at my destination. It was odd seeing the place I grew up. I watched my brother-in-law enter the house with a bag of groceries and my sister standing at the door to greet him. I floated up to the window of my room I used to sleep in when I was a kid. I saw a little boy sitting on my old bed. He looked about ten years old and was the spitting image of his father.

As if sensing something, he turned to look at the window and for a moment it was as if he could see me. I choked back sobs as I looked at my little boy for the last time.

“Mama loves you James,” I whispered. I could feel the world fading and I knew it was my time. I closed my eyes and let the waves wash over me.

My boy was safe. He would be provided for financially with the money I’d left him. Now, 10 years later, I can finally rest in peace.