The Secrets of Ghosts (7 page)

Katie wasn’t about to explain that she’d seen Mr Cole in her dreams last night and then a magpie had asked her to find his watch. ‘Just checking that the room’s ready,’ Katie said, not able to meet his eyes. She’d always had a policy of being as honest as possible, partly because she was completely useless at lying. She felt a blush begin on her neck, travelling up towards her cheeks.

‘Right.’ Max was looking at her intently, as if he knew full well that she wasn’t telling the truth. Which he probably did.

He took a step towards her. ‘Did you know Oliver? Mr Cole?’

‘I didn’t even know his name was Oliver,’ Katie said, glad to be back on honest ground.

‘You were at the wedding. Did you see him give anybody anything?’

‘Like what?’

Max was still staring at her in an unnervingly calculating manner. Then his face cleared and he gave her a charming smile. ‘Never mind. Don’t worry about it.’

‘I won’t,’ Katie said, irritated. The voile was moving again. Then the mustard velvet twitched. It billowed outwards as if there was something behind it, a figure hiding. Which was daft. Her eyes were playing tricks. Perhaps her blood sugar was low or something.

‘Okay, then,’ Max said. ‘See you around.’

He left the room but Katie was distracted by the change in temperature. The room had been cool but now it was freezing cold, the skin on her arms goose-pimpling. She walked to the window but there was no breeze. The fabric of the curtain was moulding, funnelling into a solid column. There was definitely somebody hiding inside. Somebody moving.

‘Hello?’ Katie forced herself to speak, her voice coming out reedy and thin. Her insides went liquid with fear, but she stamped down on the urge to run. She certainly didn’t mean to scream, but the curtains had billowed inwards, all towering thick cloth, which had suddenly seemed full of malicious intent.

Now, with Max back in the room and saying, ‘What?’ they were lying flat. Playing dead. She backed away from the window.

‘I think there’s someone in here, but I can’t see them.’

Max didn’t laugh, as she expected. He stepped up to the curtains and, before Katie could stop him, pulled them away from the window. Then he checked the bathroom, inside the wardrobe and under the bed. ‘You’re just a bit freaked out. After finding Cole like that.’

‘No.’ Katie shook her head. ‘Look at the curtains.’ The floor-length curtains had gone lumpy again, in the shape of a column or a person. She blinked and they fell slack.

‘Did you see that?’ Katie moved closer to Max. She looked around the room. ‘Where’d they go?’

‘Just some air or something,’ Max said. ‘I’ll close the window.’ He stepped forwards but Katie grabbed his arm.

‘Don’t!’ Katie sounded properly panicked. ‘Stop mucking about,’ she said to the curtains. ‘It’s not funny.’

‘It’s okay,’ Max said soothingly. ‘There’s nobody here.’

‘I think there is. And it’s really cold.’ She was shivering and now her teeth clattered together. She felt Max’s arm go around her shoulder and she wanted to lean into his warmth. But he was a stranger and a thief, so she stepped away.

‘Let’s go outside,’ Max said. ‘You’ll feel better in the sunshine. Warm up a bit.’

‘Something’s wrong,’ Katie said quietly. She turned her head, sniffed the air. ‘Can you smell burning? And—’ She broke off. Shook her head.

‘There’s nothing in here,’ he began. Then a chair tipped over. ‘Fuck!’ He swore in surprise and moved to the door, Katie already a step ahead of him.

Max pushed Katie into the corridor and slammed the door shut behind them.

‘Oh, my God,’ Katie said. She took a ragged breath and leaned against the wall.

‘That was odd,’ Max said. His voice was level but he looked pale and his eyes were wide. ‘Shall we go out for that sunshine now?’

Outside the air tasted good and the afternoon sunshine warmed the skin on Katie’s face and arms, chasing away the chill. They walked around to the front of the hotel and down stone steps to the lower lawn.

Katie flopped down on the grass near to an enormous rectangular pond, the surface choked with lily pads.

Max sat carefully next to her. ‘You okay?’

‘Not really,’ Katie said, but she smiled, to reassure him.

‘Do you know anyone who would do this? To frighten you?’

Katie shook her head. ‘I don’t think so. I’m pretty popular.’ She stopped, realising how arrogant that sounded. ‘I mean. My aunt, Gwen, is something of a local celebrity. People either like her or they want something from her and I’m just kind of known by association. But people are nice to me.’

‘You haven’t fallen out with anyone? No big arguments?’

‘Not my kind of thing.’

‘Did you steal someone’s boyfriend? Something like that?’

Katie snorted. ‘No.’

Max looked as if he were trying to work out an algebraic equation. ‘Anyone you know likely to play a joke like that? For fun?’

‘That wasn’t a joke.’

He shrugged. ‘Maybe we’ve got heatstroke. Or we’re drunk.’

‘I haven’t been drinking,’ Katie said. ‘Have you?’

‘Not that I remember.’

Katie stood up, brushing grass off her skirt. ‘I’m going to look for a watch.’

‘What?’ Max shaded his eyes and looked up at Katie.

She shrugged, looking embarrassed. ‘Mr Cole’s watch. I just need to find it. I’m going to check Lost Property.’

‘Hang on,’ he said, getting up. ‘How do you know about the watch? Did he give it to you? I wouldn’t put it past the old letch—’

Katie’s eyes widened slightly. ‘What do you know about his watch?’

Max put his hands on his hips and they stared at each other in silence for a moment or two. Max broke first. ‘I need to find it.’

‘Well, so do I,’ Katie said. She turned and walked towards the hotel.

‘It belongs to me. I won it,’ Max said. He followed her across the grass.

‘I don’t know anything about that,’ Katie said.

‘What’s your claim to it?’ Max said.

Katie didn’t answer.

‘If you find it, you need to give it to me. It’s mine.’

This wasn’t good. Was Mr Cole’s spirit asking her to get his watch off Max, because that seemed dangerous. Max seemed like the kind of person who wasn’t going to give up in a hurry. Unless Mr Cole’s spirit really did feel bad about not paying his gambling debt. Maybe he did want Katie to find the watch and hand it over to Max. If only the magpie had been a bit clearer. That was so often the problem with magic. It was so bloody cryptic.

Inside the hotel felt blessedly cool after the scorching garden. Anna was behind the reception desk, fanning herself with a brochure.

‘Hello,’ Max said, bypassing Katie and smiling at Anna. ‘I’ve lost something and I was hoping you could help me?’

‘Of course,’ Anna said, putting the brochure down.

‘I’ve lost a handkerchief,’ Max said, leaning on the desk and gazing into Anna’s eyes. He smiled a little. ‘It’s not worth anything, but it’s of sentimental value.’

‘You could look in Lost Property,’ Anna said, dimpling back at him. ‘I could show you—’

‘A handkerchief,’ Katie said. ‘Really?’

‘Katie was just on her way there. I’ll tag along,’ Max said. ‘But thank you. Everyone has been so helpful.’

‘We aim to please,’ Anna said automatically, looking from Katie to Max.

‘No chance,’ Katie said, her hand on the door. ‘Staff only. No MOPs.’

‘What is this MOP business?’ Max said.

Katie opened her mouth to tell him not to change the subject but Anna answered him: ‘Member Of Public. MOP.’

‘What about “lifer”?’

Anna frowned. ‘Have you worked in a hotel?’

Max shook his head. ‘I heard Katie say it.’

‘Permanent resident,’ Katie said. ‘Like Hemingway or Fellini.’

‘Yeah,’ Anna said. ‘Patrick would love a couple of those but I keep telling him this isn’t London or New York. We don’t get people with that kind of money.’

‘Really? This place is pretty swanky.’

‘Okay, say you were a millionaire with a yen to live in a hotel, with all the choices you’d have, would you choose this one? In Wiltshire?’

‘Fair point but some people want the quiet life.’

‘If you want it quiet, you don’t live in a hotel. You live on an island or on your own private estate or something.’

‘But there’s quiet and then there’s silent. If you live in a hotel you get to be around people, but not have to interact with them — at least, only on your own terms. You get to be alone but not lonely.’

‘You sounded almost wistful then,’ Katie said. She pushed open a door marked ‘private’, then turned to Anna. ‘If I’m not back in five minutes, send out a search party.’

Anna gave her a thumbs up.

Katie stepped aside so that Max went in front of her down the short flight of stairs. If you walked in front of people on steps they could push you down them.

‘You know, we don’t keep any cash in Lost Property,’ she said, wanting to distract herself from the fact that she was entering an enclosed space with a strange man.

Max shot a charming smile over his shoulder. ‘Handkerchief, remember?’

‘Of great sentimental value,’ Katie said, her voice heavy with sarcasm.

He nodded. ‘I’m distraught.’

‘I can see that,’ Katie said.

Downstairs, underneath the kitchen and next to the wine rack, was a short, wide corridor.

One side was completely filled with shelving and boxes.

Max pulled one out a little way and put his hand inside.

‘I wouldn’t do that.’ Katie pointed to the handwritten label on the outside of the box, faded from time and barely legible.

‘Teeth? You’re serious?’

‘You’d be amazed at the number of people who leave their dentures in their room.’

‘Uh-huh.’

‘And then there’s the knickers.’

‘Pardon?’

‘Look.’ Katie pulled out a bigger box from further along the row and produced a handful of silk and lace from inside. ‘Women bring their best undies when they visit a hotel. Then they have a night of passion and leave them at the bottom of the bed. Totally forget about them and — bam — they end up in our knicker box.’

‘Please tell me you’ve washed those?’

Katie dropped the crotchless pink thong back into the box. ‘Of course. Well, Housekeeping did. Not me personally.’

‘Why do you keep them?’

‘In case their owners come to reclaim them. We’re custodians of the lost pants, the dentures, the vibrators—’

‘No. Really?’

Katie nodded.

‘Any jewellery?’

‘Sure.’ Katie stepped closer and stretched her arm to reach for a shoe box on a high shelf. It was filled with watches. Leather straps, plastic straps, a red Swatch and a huge diver’s watch.

‘Why don’t you send these on to the guests? You must have their details.’

‘Anything really valuable — like a diamond ring — we do break the pact and contact the MOP, but for everything else...’

‘What pact?’

‘The pact of “see nothing, hear nothing”. Very important in the hotel trade.’

‘Okay,’ Max said, looking confused.

‘It breaks the illusion of invisible service if your knickers turn up in the post three days after your holiday. It’s like slapping them in the face with them.’

‘Right. Fair enough. But this is worth about three hundred quid.’ He picked up the diver’s watch.

‘Really?’ Katie peered at it. ‘It’s fugly.’

‘It’s waterproof to two hundred metres, measures depth up to one hundred metres and is made of titanium.’

‘Woo-hoo,’ Katie said.

‘Ah, come on. It’s shiny.’

‘And being more evolved than a kitten that isn’t enough to excite me. Sorry.’

There was a pause that lengthened past the point of comfort.

‘Okay, then. Moving on,’ Katie said, hating the fact that she knew she was blushing.

Max was standing close. He leaned towards her and, just for a moment, Katie leaned towards him.

Then she regained her senses and took a step back. ‘You want to look for your handkerchief?’

‘My what?’ Max’s voice had gone a bit husky. He cleared his throat.

‘Your hankie,’ Katie said. ‘The deeply sentimental one.’

‘Right. Is there a box for those?’

Katie pointed further down the corridor.

‘Oh, bugger,’ Katie said, sorting through the shoe box of watches. ‘How am I supposed to know which one is his?’

‘You didn’t see him wearing it?’

‘I wasn’t looking closely at him, no.’ Katie felt cross. She hadn’t known she was going to be quizzed on Oliver Cole’s accessories.
Culpeper’s Herbal
had never warned her about that.

‘May I?’ Max held out his hand.

‘I’m not letting you take Mr Cole’s watch,’ Katie said, gripping the box tightly. ‘I don’t care if you won it.’

He shook his head. ‘I doubt we’re after the same thing, that’s all. The watch I won was a woman’s one. Diamonds around the outside. Flashy in a mobster’s moll kind of way.’

‘So he was gambling with his wife’s watch?’ Maybe that explained why he wanted Katie to find it. Maybe his spirit felt bad about losing his wife’s property.

‘You didn’t tell me why you need to find it. You don’t even know what it looks like?’

‘No.’ She raked through the box, holding up the Swatch then dropping it back in. ‘I’m an idiot. I’ll just ask his wife. I’ll say he mentioned it was missing — I don’t need to tell her when he told me. Then I’m not lying. Perfect.’

‘Perfect if you trust his wife not to pick the Breitling watch and sell it for a tidy profit.’

‘Just because that’s what you’d do.’

‘In a past life, perhaps,’ Max said. ‘I’m turning over a new leaf.’

‘Is that a fact?’ Katie had the box held against her hip. ‘You done, here?’

‘Yeah,’ Max said and they walked back upstairs, into the light.

Chapter 5

Cam was working late at the office and Gwen had taken the opportunity to go through all of Iris’s journals. Back when she’d first inherited the house and had been reading the journals for the first time, it had often felt as if they fell open at exactly the place she needed. These days, she practically knew them by heart, but had to go through them in the normal way. Since there wasn’t any kind of index system, that meant the slow way. After hours, in which the heat of the day made her want to put her head on the table and sleep, she wasn’t at all sure the effort had been worth it.