“No. I’m not.” Dammit, if reading the article set off her aunt’s psychic sonar, Meredith had to take it seriously. Something akin to static electricity arced through her entire body, and stars danced in front of her eyes. What the hell?
Her phone pressed to her ear, Meredith leaned over and put her head between her knees for a few seconds. “I just read an article by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management about—”
“Are you free for lunch?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll get takeout,” Beth said. “You can show me the article when I’m there, and we’ll talk.”
“Okay, but text me when you get here; the door buzzer is broken,” she said to no one because her favorite aunt had ended the call mid-sentence.
An hour later, Meredith stood on the stoop in front of her eighties-era apartment building and watched the matriarch of the fae-gifted in their family—Elizabeth MacCarthy Brandt—attempt to parallel park her 1960 Cadillac Eldorado. It took her three tries before she successfully wedged the gas-guzzling monstrosity between the other two cars parked in front of the building.
Meredith waited as her aunt made her way up the sidewalk. Petite, an up-scale-salon blonde with very few wrinkles, Beth could easily pass for much younger than her sixty years. Meredith prayed she’d inherited the particular genes responsible for her aunt’s youthful looks. Smiling, she shook her head.
Her aunt shifted the paper bag holding their lunches and arched a brow. “I know what you’re thinking, and you can forget it. I’m not selling the Cadillac. Thanks to your uncle, it runs perfectly, and that car holds many fond memories.” She drew in a breath before continuing the familiar refrain.
“Gordon bought me that Cadillac when your cousin Dylan was born. We were just a couple of kids back then, and we didn’t have much.” Her expression turned nostalgic as it always did when she spoke about the past. “He said the Eldorado reminded him of me—a classic beauty.”
“I know, but how many miles per gallon does it get? Eight? Think of the carbon footprint.” Meredith opened the front door for her aunt.
“I’ve heard it all a thousand times. I only drive the Eldorado when it’s nice out. The rest of the time I drive the gas-sipper. Besides, we’re looking to buy one of those totally electric cars. That’ll balance things out nicely.”
Meredith led her aunt down the hall to her first-floor apartment and unlocked the door. She gestured for Beth to precede her. “What are we having for lunch?”
“I brought smoked turkey sandwiches on caraway rye with all the fixings. I also have chips, pickles, and coleslaw. I stopped at Hammond’s Deli down the street.” She set her purse and the bag on the counter in the kitchenette and started unpacking the food. “I also bought sweet tea and two chocolate chip cookies.”
“Sounds yummy. Thanks for lunch. I’ve been grading essay tests all morning, and I probably would’ve had canned soup if not for you.”
After they were settled at her table with their meal before them, Meredith handed her aunt the article she’d printed about the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s search for volunteer residents.
Her aunt put on her cheaters and began to read, making noises now and then. She swallowed her food and pointed to the URL at the bottom of the page. “The deadline to apply is tomorrow. I heard through the grapevine the summer class you had planned to teach fell through, so there’s no reason for you not to fill out the online application and hit send.”
“I can’t, Aunt Beth. I need to find a summer job that pays.”
“Borrow money if you have to. I don’t know why, but I’m certain you are meant to help those poor souls.” Her aunt waved a potato chip in the air. “As you know, I’m never wrong about these things, sweetie. Think of the good you could do.”
Being in debt gave her the hives, so borrowing money or living on a credit card was out of the question. “I’m not suggesting you’re wrong. I’m simply refusing to get sucked into this. I don’t want to spend my summer volunteering just so I can help a bunch of recalcitrant spirits cross over.” Selfish? Maybe, but why should she put her plans on the back burner for dead people? “You’re more experienced at ghost whispering than I am. Maybe you should apply.”
Her aunt leveled a pointed look her way. “Tell me what happened when you saw the article for the first time.