Page 36 of The Ghost of Ellwood

“Harvey wouldn’t have written about me, Mr. Cross, if that’s what you’re after.”

“Why not? You wrote abouthim.”

“No one was supposed to find that.” Theo’s body blinked out of sight before he reappeared beside the window. He leaned against the wall and peered at the moon.

“The first time Carter came inside and told me about the deaths on the property, you did something to me when I was by the fireplace.” I couldn’t believe I’d forgotten about the incident. It had scared the hell out of me. “It was like the air was sucked from my lungs and I couldn’t move.”

“My apologies, Ben.” Theo flinched as if he was in physical pain. “You had mentioned the journal to Carter, and I panicked. I was protecting Harvey’s reputation. I never meant to hurt you.”

“So, you never told anyone about you and Harvey?”

“We were so careful, knowing the fate we’d face if caught. But I was naïve. Foolish. Father never found my journal. No, I was careful about concealing it. I wasn’t as careful in other regards.”

“Will you tell me what happened?”

With his arms crossed, he faced me. “If it matters so much to you…perhaps one day I can tell you. When I’m ready.” He then moved toward the door. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

I was restless for hours, unable to shut off my racing thoughts. When I finally fell asleep, I dreamed of two teenaged boys; one with raven black hair and the other strawberry blond. They chased each other through the woods, and when one tripped on a raised tree root, the other went down with him.

Tumbling, they wound up in each other’s arms, breathing heavily with twigs stuck in their hair and dirt on their noses.

I woke before they kissed.

The sun made me squint as I sat up in bed. It took me a moment to remember where I was; I must’ve slept hard. As I went down to the kitchen to make coffee, Theo greeted me with a smile.

“Good morning, Ben.”

The awkwardness from last night was gone.

“Morning. You don’t sleep, do you?”

“No.” He walked over to the coffee pot and filled it with water before dumping it into the machine. I watched him, amazed, as he then measured out the coffee and pressed start. “I greatly appreciate you adding to the library’s collection. It gives me something to do when you’re sleeping.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

Gradually over the weeks, I’d added books to the library. Some I’d already had, others I’d bought from the bookstore, and the rest I had ordered online and had delivered. Mostly classics, like Charles Dickens, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Lewis Carroll. I also had the complete Sherlock Holmes collection. There were some modern horror stories as well, since that was my preferred reading.

“Thanks for making my coffee,” I said, once it was finished brewing.

“You’re very welcome.”

The morning went on as usual. I had breakfast while he sat beside me, then I showered. And when I went into my office to work, Theo joined me.

He read a book in the chair about five feet away, and when he glanced up to find me staring at him, he’d smile softly and continue reading.

I could get used to this.

A gut feeling told me I already had.

Chapter Nine

I learned more about Theo over the next week.

He was a master at chess, something I’d already suspected but he proved even further. Every day we played at least two games after lunch, and every day, he beat me. Oftentimes he had me at checkmate within the first ten moves.

I also saw more of his twisted sense of humor, such as the instances he joked about him being dead. I laughed at his witty remarks, so I wasn’t much better, I guess. He told me stories about his teenaged years, of him and Harvey ‘running amuck’ all over Ivy Grove. They’d had a tendency to sneak into places they shouldn’t and take booze from his father’s private collection.