Halloween Spooks
This is chapter 46 of The Inheritance, a serial fiction novel on FITK
Mareka had been virtually invisible all day. Jo and her classmates had been over in the morning when they practised the Halloween show they were going to give for their parents Saturday night. It was a ‘closed’ rehearsal. After lunch, Mareka had gone into her room and shut the door. When she emerged for three hours later she had a twinkle in her eye.
“What have you been up to?” asked Mary, “I haven’t heard a peep out of you.”
“Stuff,” was Mareka’s replied with a smile.
“Speaking of stuff, Kiddo, there are some decorations in the things that Mrs. Langley left behind,” said Sean, “Would you like to help me put them up before supper?”
“That would be cool, Pops.”
In an apartment above a dance studio/ballroom, Barbara Merrit was sitting at a vanity in the guest bedroom, pondering the inevitable.
“Do I go or do I stay?” she said to herself. After her disastrous ‘date’ with the mysterious ‘John’ last week, she had taken up with Marcel DuPage, the dance instructor who had helped her on her conspiracy search efforts. Marcel had previously invited her to ‘come over’ and, while he may not of thought of it as an offer to move in, he seemed delighted at the prospect of having her with him. “The first few days were awkward,” Merrit mumbled to herself but, overall, she found Marcel was a pleasant, if a trifle fastidious, companion. “Better to have a neat-nik for a roomie than a slob. He’s the Felix to my Oscar, we make a genuine ‘odd couple’,” she thought, “… and my lease is up at the end of the month.” She heard the apartment door open.
“Honey, I’m home!” said Marcel, breezing into the living room. Barbara caught herself smiling.
“I’d better not seem too enthusiastic,” she mused, “I’m in here in the bedroom, be right out!”
“I’ve brought Thai, I hope you don’t mind,” he said, “I’m not the best cook but I do great carry-out.”
Barbara came out and joined Marcel in the kitchen where he was setting the table.
“And you bought wine! Garnacha de Fuego, my favorite!” said Barbara, “What’s the occasion?”
“It’s the one-week anniversary of your coming here… ” said Marcel, “… let us rejoice in small blessings while we may.”
Sean and Mareka were decorating their house for Halloween using what the previous owner, Dorothy Langley, had left behind. It was all in a big box labeled SCARY STUFF.
“These are friendly jack-o-lanterns, they aren’t scary at all,” said Mareka as she emptied the box, “We aren’t going to have any trick-or-treaters, either.”
“Another Covid casualty, I’m sorry to say,” Sean said, ”Trick or Treating will have to wait for next year. I wonder if anyone will notice that these are the same decorations that Mrs. Langley had used?” he said, wrestling with a tangle of pumpkin-shaped lights, “We’ll get some new ones next year…
“Who’s Mrs. Langley?” asked the child.
“She’s the woman who owned this house before us,“ said Sean, “She used to hold neighborhood parties. Malcolm Wallen, Sara’s grandfather, was a close friend of hers. He will be here tomorrow night, so at least he’ll recognize these decorations.”
“Ooh! Dead people’s decorations. Spooky!” said Mareka, “Maybe Sara will remember them.”
“Speaking of Sara, how’s the preparation for the show going?”
“My lips are sealed.”
After Marcel and Barbara had finished eating they remained at the table, finishing the wine over conversation.
“That was wonderful, Marcel,” said Barbara. She became quiet for a moment. Her eyes began to glisten when she said: ”No one has ever been as kind to me as you have. All my life people have been cruel to me, or trying to take advantage of me, and you are just… just a nice guy.”
“Thank you.“ It was now Marcel’s turn to get misty-eyed. “I’m blessed by your presence.”
Barbara got up and went over to Marcel.
“Stand up.” she said.
When he did, she kissed him on the lips.
Next chapter: The Play is the Thing
