Page 22 of The Ghost and the Graveyard (Knight Games 1)
My pulse pounded in my temples. Instinct told me to run. But where would I go? I swallowed hard and rolled with the conversation. "You're a g-ghost?"
He lowered his eyes. "Yes. But don't be afraid. I'm not going to hurt you."
Well, that was a relief-said no one after seeing a ghost, ever! I took a few steps back until my ass hit one of the kitchen stools. I sat, less by will and more because my knees gave out. "How many of you are there? "
"Just the two of us."
"You and the old woman from last night. Prudence."
"Yes. I'm sorry we scared you."
Was this real? Was a ghost really apologizing to me? He seemed friendly. I tried to think of friendly ghosts, like Casper, to keep from peeing my pants-which, incidentally, were yesterday's scrubs. I seriously needed a shower.
"And you switched the wine and made me coffee?"
"You said you needed the coffee, and that wine choice was a travesty. I had to do something."
I wrinkled my brow. "Are you some kind of phantom food critic?"
"No. To be honest, I don't know what I was before I died. There are lots of things I don't remember. But Pinot gris is definitely the better choice with salmon." The corner of his mouth curled up in an uneven smile I found oddly endearing.
Swallowing hard, I tried to calm my racing heart and focus. "What do you want? Why are you in my house?"
"Technically, you moved into our house. Prudence and I are waiting for someone. We thought you might be her."
"Waiting for someone to do what?" I asked. "Wait, Prudence asked if I was the sorter last night. What does that mean?"
"If you were the sorter, you would know."
I squirmed, uncomfortable with his non-answer. No further explanation was offered. "Are you going to hurt me?"
"No. And neither will Prudence. But for your own safety, I'm here to deliver a warning: stay away from the attic... and the caretaker."
I took a step back. "The caretaker, as in Rick?" I narrowed my eyes. The request seemed strange. To clarify, everything about this moment seemed strange, but this was especially odd. Rick had suspected the house was haunted, and now the haunter was warning me about Rick. What was the relationship? My curiosity temporarily trumped the pressing horror of the moment.
"The caretaker is dangerous for you, Grateful, as is the attic. I'm not sure why you were allowed to come here, but if you are going to stay, these are the rules."
Hmm. I tapped my fingers on my upper arm. Allowed to come here? Who was this guy to tell me what to do? I hadn't lived through abandonment by my last boyfriend, losing everything I owned, and swallowing my pride to move into my father's house to let a guy without a body boss me around. Still, I had no idea the kind of damage he and Prudence could do. I changed the subject.
"If you are going to be haunting me and choosing my drinks, the least you can do is tell me your name."
He frowned and looked at the floor. "I can't."
"You can't."
"I don't remember."
"You mean, you don't remember who you are-were-at all?"
"No." His green eyes hovered like two drops of rain under his lashes. "One day, I was just here. Before that..."
"But Prudence has a name."
"Yes, well, she lived here, so I think she's more attached somehow to this reality."
The story my father told me about the house came back to me all at once. "Holy crow! That's right. She's Prudence Meriwether. She's why I'm here. She left this house to my dad, Robert Knight, when she died. He hasn't been able to sell it since her death."
He blinked, not his eyes but his entire body. Gone and then back again, like what I'd said had blown through him. "You are Robert Knight's daughter?"
