"So who here knows what they're doing?" Tom Hartman asked once everyone had arrived at Steve and DeeDee's house, the former home of the slain Mary Austin. Tom looked at Steve and DeeDee with appreciation. They were such a cute couple, they way they bickered with each other but in a nice kind of way. He wouldn't mind being part of a duo like the two of them. His eyes wandered over to where Veronica Chandler was sitting and wondered if maybe...
"I know exactly what I'm doing," Mindy Cooper announced, interrupting Tom's pleasant train of thought. "I rented a bunch of scary movies last night and stayed up until four this morning watching them. It's very easy. We just sit in a circle, put our fingers on the Oujia board thingie and ask Mary Austin what happened that night. We should have a response in a few minutes."
Veronica and Tom looked at each other and Tom could tell that Veronica was thinking the same thing he was: Ah, youth! So optimistic. So know-it-all. So occasionally obnoxious.
"I'll be glad when this is over," DeeDee said. "I'd much rather have people over for munchies and drinks than conjuring up spirits."
"You're all nuts," Steve told the group in a calm voice. "You can't honestly expect to get some kind of response from Mary Austin and if you do--are you sure that's really what you want?"
"Well," DeeDee told him, "I want to be able to get up in the middle of the night without being scared out of my mind and it would be nice if that poor woman could be at peace."
Tom had to agree with Steve: they all were nuts. Still, maybe there was a chance that they'd figure something out. The group sat around the dining room table after DeeDee had removed all of the appetizers she'd prepared. Steve opted not to participate but instead sat in a chair a few feet away from everyone else.
"Now hold hands," Mindy ordered and everyone obediently linked their hands together. Tom was sitting next to Veronica and enjoyed the touch of her smooth skin. Even if he didn't get anything else out of this evening, he liked this part. "All right, now put your fingers on the Oujia thingie," Mindy said. Again everyone did what she instructed. Mindy began speaking in a low voice. "We are here tonight to ask Mary Austin a question. Mary, if you're in this room, please let us know."
The sheer curtains hanging at the windows began to blow, sending a stiff breeze into the room and giving everyone at the table a sudden case of goosebumps.
"She's hear!" Mindy whispered excitedly. "This is easier than I thought it would be!"
"I don't like this," Veronica muttered to Tom. "This is creepier than I thought it would be."
Tom silently agreed. Not only was it creepy, it also seemed plain wrong and he wished that he hadn't agreed to join in but at the moment couldn't see a way to leave graciously.
"Mary, thank you for joining us tonight," Mindy said somewhat formally. "Now will you please tell us who murdered you?"
A tremor seemed to run through Tom's body and for a split second he thought he was having a heart attack. But then he realized it was his cell phone that he'd set on vibrate. It vibrated again. "Excuse me," he said as he pulled the phone out of his pocket. Rude, undoubtedly, but he was happy to have been interrupted. "I should take this," he said with an apologetic nod to Mindy.
"Can't it wait?" Mindy demanded.
Truthfully, it could. But also truthfully, Tom couldn't wait to get out of that room. Looking at Veronica, he saw that she felt the same way. "Actually, it can't wait and I believe I'm going to need Veronica too. Would you excuse us?"
Veronica jumped to her feet gratefully and followed Tom into the kitchen. "Who is it?" she asked.
"It's a wrong number," Tom replied, "but let's get out of here just the same. I don't like any of this."
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