Page 12 of Dead of Night

I leaned over to examine the photo. Ray sat in a chair with a small girl on his lap, presumably a preschool-aged Alicia. “Yes, he looks the same.”

Ray smoothed his ethereal shirt. “Why, thank you. I try to keep active in the afterlife.”

Alicia tucked away the phone. “Is he wearing that plaid shirt he was buried in?”

“You remember what he was buried in?”

“Sure. It was his favorite shirt. He wore it at least once a week. My mom chose his burial clothes right down to his socks.”

Ray glanced down at his red plaid shirt. “It’s still my favorite. No regrets.”

“He says he’s quite happy with his funeral attire,” I told Alicia.

“Ask him if he knows where my mom hides the swear jar. I need twenty dollars.”

Ray folded his arms. “Now why on earth do you need twenty dollars, young lady?”

Alicia seemed to anticipate his question. “Tell him it’s for a school charity. There’s a day when we get to wear pajamas to school and donate to a worthy cause.”

“What’s the worthy cause?” I asked.

She bit her lip, as though debating her answer. “Pancreatic cancer awareness. It was my idea. Mrs. Schute helped me organize it. We’re calling it Ray Day, you know, because it rhymes.”

Ray appeared visibly shaken. Nana Pratt patted his shoulder consolingly.

“She has her grandma’s heart,” he whispered. “Tell her I appreciate her thinking of me.”

I tried my best not to get caught up in their emotions. There was a reason I didn’t offer ghost translation services. “Ray says thank you.”

Alicia wiped away a stray tear with the back of her hand. “Oh, and tell him I finally got my period. Last girl in my class. Well, my mom says I’m a woman now.” She scrunched her face. “I wish she wouldn’t say things like that. It’s gross.” She looked at me. “You don’t have to tell him that last part.”

“There’s nothing wrong with his hearing, Alicia. He can understand everything you say.”

“Oh, I thought maybe he’d have to speak in ghost tongue or another language, like Pig Latin for ghosts.”

“There’s no such thing as ghost tongue.” Neither literally nor figuratively.

Alicia smiled. “It would be cool if there was, though, wouldn’t it? Like Elvish.”

“She and I used to readTheLord of the Ringstogether,” Ray explained. “Well, I would do most of the reading. She liked to rest her head on my shoulder and listen.” He closed his eyes, remembering fondly.

“I like the movies better than the book,” Alicia admitted, “but Grampa had the most comfortable shoulder in town. I would’ve listened to him read the dictionary if it meant I could snuggle on his lap.”

“That’s sweet,” Nana Pratt said, smiling.

“Oh, and tell him he was wrong about Caitlin Pinchot,” Alicia continued. “Turns out she’s both boy crazyandgirl crazy.”

I placed a mocking hand to my chest. “Oh, the horror.”

“Tell her if she likes girls, I’m okay with that,” Ray said. “Girls are a safer bet.”

Amen to that, I thought.

“Tell him I saw one of the Mustaches today,” Alicia rambled. “The grandmother.”

I shot Ray a quizzical look.

He glanced at her with amusement. “Tell her to be respectful and call them by their real names, please.”