When Ghosts Speak - Mary Ann Winkowski [46]
“How do you know this?” the old man asked, visibly shaking now.
When I said the ghost’s name aloud, the old man went white as a sheet. The butler appeared out of nowhere and quickly gave the old man a few shots from an inhaler. When the old man was stabilized again, the butler straightened up and glared at me.
“How did you know that name?” he asked evenly.
“The ghost is standing right here, and he told me,” I replied.
The old man composed himself. Showing a flash of the forceful personality he must have once possessed, he ordered the butler out of the room. He looked directly at me, his gaze unflinching. “So you know everything, yes?”
I just nodded.
“Tell him I’m not scared of him anymore,” the old man commanded.
“He’s a liar,” the ghost sputtered.
“You can make him leave.” The way the old man said this was less a question than a command.
“I can try,” I replied, hoping that I really could convince this spirit to cross over. It wasn’t an easy discussion, I can tell you that. But in the end, after telling a few silent lies assuring the ghost that he could become far more powerful and cause more harm from the next realm, he agreed to leave the house and the old man.
After I released the spirit into the Light, I gave the old man quince seeds and explained how he must put them up all over the house. The old man nodded and, satisfied that he had prevailed against his former henchman, rang for the butler. I was silently escorted to the door.
For a while, I watched the newspapers, curious to see if there would be any fires at the old man’s house, but I never did see anything. And I really wasn’t surprised.
Seeking Justice
As I’ve said, it is extremely rare that a ghost will seek me out. The only spirit whom I can remember coming directly to me was one who needed justice and knew immediately that I was probably the only person who could help him.
I had no reason to think that my night was going to be anything other than ordinary. Ted and I had gone to bed at the usual time. I’d read my book for a few minutes and then turned out the light. I couldn’t tell you how long I’d been asleep when I suddenly awoke with the strong feeling that there was someone in the room with us. As a mom, I’d had this feeling before when my kids would wake in the night, creep into our room, and silently stand by my side of the bed waiting for me to wake up. Even though our kids were grown and living in their own homes, I guess my “mom-radar” was still working.
Opening my eyes, I was shocked—and honestly, more than a little scared—to see a man standing beside my bed. Ghosts rarely come into my home, so it took me a few minutes to catch my breath and whisper, “Who are you?”
“It’s me. Sal. The DEA agent,” the ghost replied.
I sat up and put on my glasses. I immediately recognized the ghost of the stocky agent with the graying crew cut. I had worked on a case with him and his partner about three years earlier. “Aw geez, Sal,” I said sadly. “What happened?”
Sal was speaking quickly, like someone who knew he didn’t have much time. “I was undercover and things went bad,” he said. “Listen, Mary Ann, they’re going to try to dump my body. I need you to call my partner so he can get there right away. Tell him where my body is. My wife—she’s going to want it.”
Then he gave me a couple of names. “Tell him this, too. Tell him I want these guys bad.”
He gave me a phone number. “I’ve gotta go,” he told me. “Please, call quickly.” And then he was gone.
I glanced at my alarm clock: 2:30 AM. Telling myself that DEA agents were probably used to phone calls at all hours, I went to the kitchen to make the call so I wouldn’t wake Ted.
“Hello, Dennis?” I said, when I heard a voice on the other end of the line.
“Who’s this?” The man answering the phone didn’t sound as if he’d been asleep. He sounded alert, and suspicious.
“It’s Mary Ann. I worked with you and Sal on that case with the murder and the ghost.”
“Why are