but empty tables, but once seated kept their voices low and kept glancing around as if they were on the lam from some government agency. Brendan’s voice was barely above a whisper.
“Look, there’s no reason not to say it straight out. We both know what we’re talking about, here.”
She felt a wild urge to burst into not entirely sane laughter, but managed to keep control. “You want to track down a poltergeist.”
He looked across the table at her. “Don’t you?”
Now she did start to laugh.
“I don’t even know what that is.”
“It’s the farthest reaches of human consciousness.” He said it with radiant conviction. “It might be pure discarnate personality, who knows? However you want to say it, I’m fine with that.”
Laurel’s smile died and she watched the students passing by, in groups, in couples. All animated with the same quality of—of life, longing, promise. And she realized she was jealous … she was tired of feeling worn out, discarded, used up before her time.
She thought of the test papers with Leish’s notation about the Folger Experiment in her roller bag and was two seconds away from reaching down to pull them out and hand them to Brendan—when he reached into his own backpack and pulled out a file folder and removed a single sheet of paper. He looked at her and his blue-gray eyes were serious, now.
“All right, here it is. I think Leish was brought in to investigate this case.” He handed her over a document, a police report form. She immediately noticed three things: it was old, typed on a real manual typewriter; it was dated March 13, 1965; and parts of the text had been blacked out. She glanced up at Brendan. He made a motion for her to read.
She bent over the page, and as she read, she felt a growing incredulity … and then a powerful surge of excitement.
POLICE REPORT
NOTIFICATION: Complainant, XXXXXX reports to XXXXXXX Desk Officer, that strange occurrences had been taking place in and around the XXXXXXXXXXXX in which she worked. Electrical appliances had malfunctioned, household items had disappeared or been moved, and on the day in question, a large number of rocks had been thrown on the roof and back veranda.
DETAIL INTERVIEW: On Tuesday, 11 March 1965, the complainant, XXXXXXX was interviewed by this officer, XXXXXXXX and Officer XXXXXX. XXXXXXXXX is a housekeeper in the employ of XXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX groundskeeper on the estate, XXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX family occupy the servants’ house, attached to the main house.
Complainant stated that on Monday, 10 March, 1965, at about 1530 to 1615 hours, she was at home with her daughter XXXX, age 14 years, and her son XXXX, age 12 years. The complainant and the children heard pounding and rattling on the roof, for a period of approximately three minutes, on and off. When the noises ceased, the complainant went outside the house and found hundreds of rocks of various sizes lying on the back veranda. When she picked up a few of the rocks they were hot to the touch.
The complainant then called the XXXXXXXXXXX police department and I and XXXXX responded. Complainant proceeded to show myself and Officer XXXXX the scattered rocks outside the main house.
Complainant stated that there had been other disturbances at the house in the previous weeks which the family had attributed to an electrical problem: lights and household appliances had turned on and off at odd times of the day and night and/or had refused to work at all. An electrician had been called and could find no fault in the house’s electrical wiring.
Complainant further reported household items, including a sugar bowl, a serving platter, and a skillet had disappeared and subsequently reappeared in inappropriate places, such as the upstairs bathtub and in the complainant’s bed.
While I and Officer XXXXX were in the complainant’s quarters, all the family was present with us in the living room when the complainant’s son ran in from the kitchen, reporting that rocks had fallen in the kitchen as well. When Officer XXXXX and myself went into the kitchen with the complainant’s family, we found the kitchen table and floor covered with rocks of various sizes, and the sugar bowl, a ceramic fruit bowl, and a glass plate smashed, though no rocks were nearby.
I initially suspected the boy of placing the rocks in the kitchen and smashing the glass, but as I and Officer XXXXXX and the family stood in the kitchen, we heard pounding sounds all around us in the kitchen and the sound