“Yeah, ’cause wait, I might have miscounted!” Kelsey agreed.
She looked happy, laughing with Katie. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes appeared exceptionally blue and, in the sunlight, her hair was still as glossy as a raven’s wing. She’d started to acquire a tan, and he realized that, in his mind, she was the perfect woman. Not too tall, not too short, lean and athletic, beautifully shaped, not enormous in the chest but perfectly formed and firm and…if she weren’t, he’d still be crazy about her, her honesty, her laughter…
“Hey, let’s look around in the shop for a minute, Kelsey,” Katie said. “My side is hurting.”
Katie, of course, knew that Bartholomew was there, and that he apparently wanted to talk to Liam, and for once Bartholomew wasn’t going to try to get him in trouble or make him look like a fool.
There were a few tables near the bar. David and Liam took a seat and Bartholomew came over to join them. “So, what’s up?” Liam asked. People walked around them, not noticing anything. Every once in a while, he saw someone pause. They didn’t see Bartholomew, but they had a touch of the sixth sense that let them know something was in the air. Usually, they would stop whatever they were doing for a heartbeat, frown and move on, forgetting the sensation.
“I described the book to Lucinda,” he said. “And she remembered it. We were chatting in the cemetery, and another fellow came by. Pete Edwards. His real name wasn’t Edwards, of course, but that’s what he was called after his death. He owned the book at one time, and I believe that Cutter Merlin bought the book from his estate. Pete died and his estate went into probate for ten years. Then his belongings went up for auction.”
“And?” David prompted.
“And someone should read the book and find out more about its history,” Bartholomew said. “Cutter Merlin probably paid a very high price for it because of all that happened after the book was salvaged, and what happened during the Civil War.”
“What happened during the Civil War?” Liam asked.
“Something with the fight in Key West between the Northern and Southern states,” Bartholomew said.
“It was a strange time. Florida was the third state to secede from the Union, but the forts stayed in Union hands, both Fort Zachary Taylor and Fort Jefferson,” Liam said.
“Look,” Bartholomew said, “I was dead during the war. I’ve gone this far. You’re a cop, Liam. Investigate. My new spectral friend, old Pete Edwards, says that there was a book written about himself, a fellow named Abel Crowley and all sorts of stuff going on in Key West. We should find that, too.”
“Thanks,” Liam said. “What’s the name of the book?”
“He didn’t say.”
“Great. Does it even exist still?”
“I don’t know. Hey. What do you want out of a ghost?” Bartholomew asked. “It’s not as if I can walk into the library and ask to get on one of the computers.”
“You’re getting very good with computer keys,” Liam told him.
“Excuse me—do you want my help or not?” Bartholomew demanded.
Liam smiled. “Yes, of course, and thank you.”
“Your Miss Donovan is returning, Liam,” Bartholomew noted.
Liam turned. Katie was announcing their return as they walked toward the table from the shop. “I don’t know—you have so many things already! I perfectly understand you wanting to sort through what you have before buying so much as a magnet!” she added with a laugh. Katie looked at Bartholomew. He grinned. He wasn’t leaving. He was going to torment the three of them through breakfast.
And he did. He might pretend he couldn’t push the keys of a computer yet, but he did well at knocking over the salt, making Liam’s cup rattle and shaking the table now and then. If Kelsey noticed, she didn’t comment.
David and Katie helped Liam trying to rescue various items on the table. Maybe it didn’t matter; Kelsey seemed distracted throughout the meal. When they had idled over a second cup of coffee, she said, “I think I’m going to head home. I have no idea what will happen at the viewing tonight, whether there will be a dozen people there or a hundred.”
“It might be a huge turnout,” Katie commented. “People were fascinated by Cutter Merlin.”
Until we all forgot him at the end of his life, Liam thought ruefully.
“Anyway, I’m going to head home and get ready,” Kelsey said.
Liam started to rise, too.
She placed a hand on his chest and smiled. “I’m all right. Honestly. I think I need a little time. I’ll see you there. Early.” She smiled. She did want him with her at the funeral home.
She also needed time alone.
He nodded, wishing he didn’t feel as if his stomach knotted each time she was going to head to the house alone.
She left them, and he sat back down.
“I think you should do some studying on the occult,” Bartholomew told him.
“Because of the book Cutter Merlin was holding when he died?” Katie asked.