A Ghost to Die For (20 page)

We examined every inch of the brocade exterior, giving special attention to the bodice and front of the skirt for telltale signs of food or beverage stains. There were none
.

“Rats! Alex, do you think Ruby would have had the costume cleaned before she put it on the fortune teller?”

“No. I believe she was too confident to do that. And besides, had she done that, she would have sent the costume out for cleaning, leaving a possible paper trail. Also, almost any stain from food or beverage served at the party, would still have left a stain on the silk brocade.”

I chuckled at Alex’s thorough analysis. “I forgot that as a professor and expert of the history of maritime trade, that you would have knowledge about textiles.”

“Textiles were a crucial focus on maritime trade, especially in a sea port town such as San Diego. From its very beginning, San Diego was the destination for a wide array of exotic and expensive textiles, imported from all over the world.” Alex explained.

I pondered what he just explained because it struck me as a hint. Then it dawned on me. “Alex, was tobacco a crucial commodity for sea trade, here, in the 1800s?”

“Certainly was. Raw leaf tobacco was imported from the Indies and the Caribbean, and it was an excellent investment. Didn’t Geraldine mention that Ruby Red had financed several shop owners and one of them was a tobacconist?”

“Yes, exactly! Alex, help me turn this costume inside out.” I know I must have looked crazed when I asked him to help me, but he did it all the same. Once we had the costume inside out, the chemise slip told me everything I needed to know. I stepped back and proclaimed, “I know how Ruby poisoned Andalyn.”

Chapter 35

“Shannon, that’s a serious statement, are you sure?”

“I’d bet my money on it, that is how serious I am.” I stepped over to the costume and pointed to the chemise underslip. “Look, see that color, that is not from age and the description said it was a tea-stained, well that’s not quite true. Alex this slip was tea-stained but not with the ordinary everyday type of black tea, that was the custom back then. It was dyed with tobacco tea. And it was done deliberately to kill Andalyn through nicotine poisoning.”

“Oh, I’ve heard of that, I never knew it was actually possible.”

“Alex, trust me on this, if for no other reason than my Southern ancestry going back to the James River colony of Virginia. This is how I know about nicotine poisoning, one of my lines of ancestors came from Barbados, and in the early 1600s, Barbados was a major supplier of tobacco to the new colony. The beginning of America’s huge tobacco plantations got their start this way, with seedlings shipped from Barbados. Tobacco was shipped to Virginia as green leaf tobacco, full, uncut huge leaves of what you called raw tobacco. The leaves were washed, and dried over smoldering fires. This processing of tobacco was an economic boon in the new colonies of Virginia and the Carolinas. The colonies grew rich exporting the processed and cut tobacco to England and Europe. However, in the process, numerous settlers died from skin absorption of the nicotine that stained their hands and arms. Especially when handling the washed leaves that were soaked in the water that they called tobacco tea, and then reaching into the water and pulling the leaves out of barrels, and laying them out to dry. And, the tobacco tea water was experimented with as a tinting agent, to dye fabric. Not only did people die in the processing of tobacco; anyone wearing fabric dyed with tobacco tea absorbed the nicotine through their flesh and died. Contact the Center for Disease Control in the U.S., they will tell you it is true. In fact, nicotine poisoning through skin absorption is still happening in third-world countries that grow and export tobacco.”

“I believe you.” Alex smiled. “I would never doubt the word of a Southern belle whose ancestry goes back to Virginia of the first colonies. I’d bring down the wrath of the entire nation of the Daughters of the American Revolution if I did that.” Alex chuckled at his tease.

“Good point, because it is my Virginia and Carolina ancestors who are also my Revolutionary War patriots in the archives of the Daughters of the American Revolution, of which my mother was a member, by the way. Anyway, look at the way this chemise would have fit Andalyn, you can see that the bodice is fitted, it was snug on her, and the waistband was snug, The slip starts to become full below the thigh. That means, from the bodice, along her shoulders and back and especially at her waist, the fabric was snug, right against Andalyn’s bare skin. With any amount of activity and perspiration, the tint in the fabric would leach into her bare skin. Andalyn died a good time after her party was in progress, she probably had this costume on for several hours, and all that time, her skin was absorbing the nicotine. And nicotine poisoning has the classic symptoms of death that are described in the coroner’s report.”

“Honestly, Shannon I believe you. But what do we do now?”

“We must have this costume tested, otherwise the museum’s board will not believe my theory. Alex, you can take the costume to the university tomorrow, ask your colleague in the chemistry lab to test the underslip. It is a simple, quick test and it will not damage the costume.”

“How do I explain taking this costume from the museum?”

“If we put the box back in the storage room, maybe no one will notice? And you will not need to explain, at least not until your presentation tomorrow evening at the board meeting.”

Alex did not like my plan, I could tell by the way he would not meet my eyes. He stared at the costume. Then he turned to me. “I hope you appreciate how much I believe in you.” Then he rolled up the costume, and stuffed it underneath his arm. “The storage room is just down the hall, take the box and put it back on the shelf. I’m going to the supply closet to get a large bag to put the costume in. Then, I’ll close up Greg’s office. Meet me at the foyer. Make it quick Shannon.”

“I will.”

We left the museum under the cover of the night’s moonless darkness. Had anyone witnessed us leaving and walking to the car, the plastic bag Alex carried underneath his arm appeared to be a generic shopping bag. Alex dropped me off at home and then he went to  his house. He said he’d call his colleague first thing in the morning and let me know the results of the test. He asked that I write a summary of my theory and detail a solicitation for the Museum of Mystery to consider purchasing the rights to the story in conjunction with the safe deposit box, its contents and my painting.

I changed into my pajamas and went to work immediately writing the story and solicitation. I saved the documents to my flash drive and then sent them as attachments to Alex at his personal e-mail address. By the time I fell into bed it was after two in the morning. I slept soundly until ten the next morning, when my phone rang. Fortunately I had left it on my bedside table, and I didn’t have to make a mad dash to locate it.

Chapter 36

“Hello.”

“You were right.”

“Alex?”

“Yeah, early this morning, I called Karl Jankowitz, the professor at the chemistry lab on campus. By eight this morning he was performing the tests on the costume. The underslip had enough nicotine stain in it to poison several women. Had another woman wore that costume after Andalyn did, she would have been poisoned, too. The waistband was heavily saturated with nicotine.”

I was groggy from sleep and my brain had not wrapped itself around this information. Nicotine poisoning? In an instant, the puzzle pieces came together and I blurted out, “Costume is the key to deception.”

“Uh, Shannon, what did you just say?” Alex asked.

“In the visit, the spectral visitation of the ghosts of Bum and Andalyn, that phrase, costume is the key to deception, that it was she said to me.”

“Right, okay. Maybe I should come over and we can have breakfast. Look, I’ll stop and get fresh bagels. Why don’t you go put coffee on. I’ll be there within the hour.”

“Sure.” I hung up, and in a zombie trance walked into the kitchen to brew the coffee. Then I zombied myself up the stairs to get dressed. In looking back at that moment, that huge revelation, I was mesmerized by the truth of what had happened to Andalyn. And to be honest, I was riddled with eerie thoughts that the dead had come back and had reached out to me. I had no idea how this power manifested itself within me, or why I had this ability. Was I chosen for this specific purpose, or am I no more than a convenient vessel, a blank canvas upon which ghostly beings can project their needs? Am I blessed or am I cursed?

All these misgivings ran through my mind as I dressed. Then, while looking in the mirror and brushing my hair, a reflection of thought occurred to me. Maybe, just maybe, my family’s beliefs and whisperings about blood memory is true, and this ability I have is a gift. I remembered my cousin in Vicksburg, Corlah, who from the time she was a little girl said she talked to our ancestors. Oh, never mind that they were ghosts. They meant no harm and often helped her figure out riddles in life and overcome obstacles. Corlah swore that after her beloved cat named Callie died, that the spirit of our grandfather had visited her and comforted her, saying that Callie, who had died old and crippled with arthritis, was now a kitten again, and enjoying a perpetual summer of chasing after butterflies. I set down the brush and turned away from the mirror. I was ready to face the reality of what had happened. And, boy howdy, as my Uncle Leo used to say, my stomach is so hungry it is rattling my backbone in protest.

I was pouring coffee when I heard Alex drive up. I pulled out another cup and poured coffee for him. By the time he entered the kitchen, I had set the table with mats, napkins and flatware. I sat at the table, facing the kitchen door. I looked up at him as he came through the door.

“Good morning,” I greeted him. “Have a seat, I’m starving.”

Alex set the bag of bagels in the center. He went to the refrigerator and took out a jar of jam. “I got cream cheese for the bagels, but not jam. Rosario’s jam is better anyway.” He took a seat across from me.

“Rosario’s jam is the best,” replied. I reached in and pulled out a bagel, sliced it, and then spread cream cheese on one side, and jam on the other side. Then paired the two sides together. “Yum. Thanks so very much for breakfast.”

“My pleasure.” Alex helped himself. We didn’t say a word for the first five minutes. Alex broke the silence.

“Shannon, on the way here, I considered a different approach to the meeting tonight. I’m going to be totally up front about what we did. Given the circumstances and your write up of the story, plus your offer to sell the story, the safe deposit box and the painting to the museum, I wholeheartedly believe that being honest about the costume and the testing is the best policy.”

I pondered Alex’s plan, refused to meet his eyes and sipped my coffee. In actuality, I was keeping him on the hook for a little while longer. I expected that he excepted me to protest his plan. For drama, I drummed my right hand fingers on the table’s top. It made Alex nervous. Then, with as much melodrama that I could muster, I replied. “If you insist.”

Alex went into overdrive, attempting to explain the logic of his plan. I sat there frozen in a neutral expression, not a sound slipped from my lips, until I burst out giggling.

“What’s so funny?” Alex demanded.

“Actually, I agree, honesty is the best policy. If the museum is eager to buy what I have to sell, and let’s face it, it would be stupid for them not to, they definitely will not hold these actions against me. Nor you.”

The blank expression on his face was priceless. “Well, okay then.”

“What’s the rest of your plan?” I asked.

“The meeting is at six this evening, first dinner, then a business meeting. I’d like you to stay by the phone, on call, so to speak, in case the board would like to speak with you, or even ask you to come in. Will you do that?”

“Sure, I can be around the corner at the Horton Grand, within a short walking distance to the museum. Let them know I am there.”

“That is perfect. I will present your case, and I plan to show them the costume and the lab results. It is after this presentation that I suspect that they may want to speak to you.”

“And before the meeting, today?” I asked.

Just the usual work load at the university. I teach my regular class this afternoon, after class I’ll drive over to the museum. Before class, I have a load of student papers I need to grade. In fact, after I leave here, in a few minutes, I will be busy at the university until the meeting tonight. We can ride together Shannon, I’ll drop by and pick you up on the way to the meeting. Okay?”

“Sure. I’ll be ready. As for me, with Rosario coming back in two days, I thought I’d tidy up around the house, maybe read for pleasure, do laundry.”

Alex got up, rinsed off his dishes and coffee cup. “Okay, I’ll see you later.” He left without fanfare or words.

I had the distinct feeling he was not telling everything about his plan. But I had no idea what it could be. So, I did exactly what I said I would do for the rest of the day. And when Alex came by to pick me up, I was ready and waiting. I had dressed casual in gray slacks and an emerald green fitted blouse, and I wore my hair in a ponytail.

Alex parked in the same lot, across from the Horton Grand and around the corner from the museum. I went one way, he the other.