Chapter One

Grace stepped off her family’s canal boat and tucked the keys in one of the pockets of the suitcase her uncle had brought with him. She took one last look at the boat, she didn’t want to leave but at thirteen she wasn’t old enough (according to her parents) to stay there on her own. She adjusted her rucksack and hovered uncertainly, her uncle had gone to make the arrangements for keeping the boat in the marina while she went to live with him. If only her mum wasn’t so afraid of leaving the canal to visit the doctors she would never have had to be admitted into hospital. Surely a quick trip to the doctors was better than being in hospital, after all there were very few ghosts in a doctor’s surgery but a hospital would be overflowing with them.

“Are you ready?” She turned to look at her uncle as he walked towards her with a forced smile on his face. He was a short man with a bald patch on the top of his head making it look as if he had a massive forehead. He had small eyes, big ears and a trimmed beard. He usually had a big, kind smile but today it was absent.

“I double checked and I have everything I need.” Grace’s voice was quiet and husky from crying and begging, but her parents wouldn’t have it. Her mum wouldn’t let her stay near the hospital with her dad because of all the ghosts. Not that her dad knew the reason her mum was making such a fuss.

Uncle James turned and lead the way out of the marina and to where he’d parked the car completely unaware of Grace’s nervousness. Ghosts couldn’t go in and around water so the canal was a safe haven for Grace and to leave it always made her very uncomfortable. She kept her head down and followed her uncle to the car, dumped her her bags in the boot and climbed in beside Uncle James.

The radio was playing quietly and Uncle James kept up a steady stream of conversation, all one sided. Grace closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep as they drove to his house in Ballachulish. It was a long drive and she soon got bored of staring at the backs of her eyelids but it was better than opening them and catching sight of a ghost.

She had no idea why should could see the dead but it seemed to be something that she’d inherited from her mum. It might be cool if she had any interest in history or dead but she didn’t, instead she wanted to go to school and make friends. Most kids seemed to hate or at least dislike school but she would love more than anything to go to school. Of course it would have its downsides (like getting up early) but she’d be around people her own age, she could have friends.

She indulged her favourite fantasy and imagined being cured of morbid-sight and going to school. Of course everyone would want to know why she’d never been to school before so she’d have to lie and she’d tell them such a cool and interesting lie that they’d all want to be her friend and they’d do anything to be her best friend. It was the game she’d always play when she was little but she stopped when it made her parents argue. Her dad said she should be able to go to school but her mum refused. Not because she’s mean but because she knew what it was like to go through school seeing ghosts and being a freak. She didn’t want that for Grace.

“She’s going to be alright.” Uncle James brought her back to the moment with a hand on her arm. Grace opened her eyes just as they turned a corner sharply. Her stomach churned and she clapped her hands over her mouth. Her uncle didn’t notice, instead he carried on talking.

“Pull over.” Her stomach churned again and she could feel the contents try to come up. “Pull over I’m going to be sick.” Her uncle quickly found somewhere to park, the car hadn’t even stopped moving when Grace threw open the door and stumbled towards a hedge. She heaved until she had lost her whole breakfast and then stood there looking at anything but the pile of sick. She didn’t want to wipe her mouth on her sleeve and she didn’t have any tissues so had to resort to a leaf.

“Feeling better?” Uncle James asked as she got back into the car.

“No.” She closed her eyes again and promised herself that she wouldn’t open them again until they’d arrived.

@

The house sits on the other side of the road to the village of Ballachulish and overlooks Loch Leven and has a stunning view of both loch and mountains. Fog had descended when they arrived at the house making it look as if the top half of mountain had completely disappeared. Grace stepped out of the car and shivered at the drizzle. She ran round to the boot of the car and pulled out her bags wanting to get inside although the idea filled her with mixed feelings.

There was two ghosts in the house and Grace spent most of her time here trying to ignore them. There was an old lady who stayed in the guest bedroom and a boy who could only have been a few years older than she is now when he died. His name is Nathan and he used to tell her stories when she couldn’t sleep at night and play imaginary games with her. That was until her mum found out and told her that it wasn’t safe to talk to ghosts.

Her uncle opened the door and she darted inside and out of the rain. She hung up her damp coat and left her trainers by the door. Uncle James walked into the kitchen and put the kettle on, then he went back into the hall and picked up her suitcase.

“I’ll show you to your room.”

“Aren’t I staying in the room I always have?” Grace grabbed her rucksack and followed him through the house and up the stairs. She normally stayed in a tiny bedroom off the hall.

“No, I’m having to store some of my research there while I go through everything in my study. I’m having a clear out.” He leads her to the bedroom where he usually sleeps when they stay over winter. Uncle James unlike his sister can’t see ghosts and so he had no idea why she refused to sleep in the room but after a huge argument he gave in and let her and her husband stay in his room for their stay.

“This one?” Grace gulped. It was the room with the old lady in it.

“Yes.” Uncle James sighed loudly. “Don’t tell me you’re like Seonaid with all that superstitious nonsense.” Grace wasn’t sure how to react, she’d never thought about when her mum was younger but if she could see ghosts her whole life just as Grace could then of course she would have mentioned it to her brother.

“No,” Grace desperately tried to think of a reason that he’d accept as to why she couldn’t stay in that room. She could think of anything. “I’ll have this room. Can I have a torch?” He gave her a smile almost as if he was proud of her.

“Of course.” She watched him leave, braced herself and entered the room. It was a large room with big windows which looked out over the loch, there was a double bed and three doors that lead into three different walk in cupboards. The other door lead into a small en suite. The old lady was no where to be seen.

Grace let out a sigh of relief and unpacked her bags. She wondered how her mum was but she wouldn’t find out until her dad called later that night as he had promised to do. She wished she had mobile so that he could keep her updated, but her parents had decided that she didn’t need one.

Grace put her clothes in one of the cupboards and then put the books she had brought with her in a pile by her bed. They were her favourites, while she read them she didn’t feel so alone. She traced the covers and wished not for the first time to meet a boy who would love her unconditionally and do anything to be with her. It was another of her favourite fantasies, she’d meet a boy and they would have an instant connection, he’d sneak around her parents to see her and they’d fall in love. It didn’t matter where she was he’d find her and her parents would see how in love they were and would be happy to let them get married when she turned 16. It was a silly fantasy and utterly impossible but it was beautiful.

She pulled the photo frame of her and her parents sitting at the table in their canal boat with mugs of tea and big smiles. Her mum with her ginger hair that came to her shoulders and the dark blue ribbon she always tired it back with. Her skin pasty white that was so quick to burn and her sun glasses hanging on the front of her flowery top. Grace traced her face and hoped that she would be alright. Her dad sat on the other side of the table with an arm around Grace’s shoulders. He was overweight and smiled more with his eyes than his mouth. He had shaggy brown hair that he kept at mismatched lengths. Then there was her with her mum’s pale skin and her dad’s brown hair although her hair was wavier than theirs. Her eyes were red from the glare in this photo instead of their normal grey. There were three distinct scars on her face which she got when she fell into the canal as a baby. They weren’t very big scares but one of them disfigured the shape of her left eye. When people looked at her she was always worried that they were judging her for it.

Grace set the photo frame down on the bedside table and unpacked the last of her things. She was looking over her shoulder at the faintest noise, half expecting for the old lady to be standing right behind her. Every time she looked round however there was no on there was she felt as if she could breath a easier at least until the next noise when the cycle would start all over again.

She walked down to the kitchen where her uncle was sitting with a mug of tea and a plate of shortbread. He looked up when she came in and pointed to a torch which sat on work top.

“Will that do?” Grace grabbed it and turned it on.

“It should be fine. Thanks.” She said awkwardly.

“I’ve got to go to work tomorrow, will you be alright on your own?” He asked. So she was staying with him because her parents didn’t want her to be on her own but her mum was fine with him leaving her in a house haunted by two ghosts while he was at work. How did that make any sense?

“I’ll be fine.” She said instead.

“You know where everything is don’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you want to go on a walk with me before I make dinner?” He looked hopeful.

“No, I’m really tired.” Grace lied, there were ghosts all over this village ans she wanted to avoid them whenever she could.

“Of course.” Uncle James sounded disappointed. He stood up and put his mug in the dishwasher then left the room. Grace stood nervously in the kitchen, she didn’t want to be left alone in the house.

“Actually I will come.” She ran after him and was rewarded with a smile.

Chapter Three

The phone rang just as they finished dinner giving Grace an excuse not to help with the dishes. It took her a while to track down the phone and she thought that it would go to voice mail before managed to find it. It ended up being in the cupboard with all the games, why it was there Grace had no idea.

“Hello?” She answered hoping that it was her dad so that she could guilt him into letting her stay with him.

“Honey is that you?” Her mum’s voice filled her ears and she sank down on the sofa. It was wonderful to hear her mum’s voice, the last time she’d seen her was the evening before her dad had rushed her to hospital. She took a deep breath and tried not to cry.

“Hey Mum.” Grace closes her eyes and digs her nails into the palms of her hands. “Are you going to be alright?” She held her breath dreading the possible answers, she couldn’t carry on with out her mum. She was the only person who could possibly understand what Grace saw was real and not some sort of mental condition or attention seeking activity.

“The doctors say that your father got me here in time and that I’ll be fine. I’m sorry we had to go without saying goodbye. Is James taking good care of you?”

“It’s ok.” Although it wasn’t she had been so frightened when she’d read the note on the table telling her what had happened. “He made me go on a walk and kept talking about the Massacre of Glencoe. It was really boring. Do they know what’s wrong with you? When are you coming home?”

The hairs on the back of Grace’s neck stood up on end and a shiver ran down her spine, every nerve in her body tingled and hesitantly, fearfully she cracked open her eyes. A glance around the room didn’t reveal the ghost but she knew it was there, her senses were never wrong.

“Sepsis, apparently I had a kidney infection and because I didn’t get it treated I got blood poisoning. I don’t know when I’ll be able to come home. But don’t worry the doctors should be able to sort me out.”

“Should.” Grace cried out in fear momentarily distracted from looking for the ghost. “But what if they can’t?” Her voice was getting panicky and the tears finally followed through on their threat and streamed down her face.

“Will, I meant will. Honestly Honey there’s nothing to worry about.” Her mum hurried to reassure her but it was to late, the damage was done.

“Why didn’t you just go to the doctors when you knew there was something wrong?” Her voice was broken from the tears and her palms were hurting where she was digging her nails in. Her nerves calmed slowly and the hairs on the back of her neck laid back down but she was still shaken by how close the ghost had been.

“I know I should have but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it, I hoped it would just go away.” She can hear her mum crying to now.

“Are there many ghosts?” She whispered the last word not wanting Uncle James to overhear her.

“There everywhere but so far they haven’t bothered me.” There is a false lightness to her voice that makes Grace think that she’s lying. “I’ve got to go now Honey but your dad said that he would talk to you when I call tomorrow.”

“Ok, talk to you soon then.” Grace hung up and wiped her face roughly and set the phone on the side table. She was on hyper alert for any signs of a ghost, every sound made her jump and any slight moment out of the corner of her eye made her freeze. She walked up the stairs the shadows on the landing made her heart beat faster and she ran her hand along the wall in search for the light switch.

She knew she was being silly but feeling the presence of the ghost had put her on edge. As she got to the top of the stairs she took a breath to try and calm herself. She couldn’t sense any ghosts and even if she could the two that she knew of in the house had never harmed her before. She found the light switch and flicked it on, she relaxed when she saw that the landing was empty but for her. She needed to trust her senses more, but the first night was always the scariest.

The hairs on the back of her neck stood back up and a shiver ran down her spine once more but this time the sensation was weaker and Grace supposed that the ghost must be further away than last time. There was a faint glow from inside the guest room, her heart beat faster at the sight of it and she found it difficult to swallow. She took a step forward and then another, the old lady ghost was sat in the corner of the room in a rocking chair which hadn’t been there before. She, the chair and her knitting all gave off the eerie glow and Grace lost her nerve. She turned tail and ran down the stairs and into the kitchen.

Uncle James looked up with a worried frown, he got to his feet and walked over to her. Grace stood just inside the doorway and panted heavily, her breathing and heart rate soon evened out and she leaned against the worktop her face hot with embarrassment.

“Grace what’s the matter?”

“Spider, there’s a huge spider in my room.” She said the first thing that came into her head. She wasn’t actually scared of spiders and in fact found them rather cute but her uncle didn’t need to know that he also definitely didn’t know she could see ghosts. “Can you get rid of it please?”

“Of course, show me where it is.” Grace gulped, that would mean going back up to the guest room and she wasn’t ready for that.

“It was on the wall above the bed. Please don’t make me go back up there.” Grace begged afraid he’d tell her that she was being silly.

“Alright, I’ll see what I can do.” Once he was gone Grace collected herself, she’d have learn to deal with ghosts without running away all the time. She didn’t want to end up like her mum, too scared to leave the safety of the canal even for her own health. She turned when she heard Uncle James come down the stairs. “I couldn’t find any spiders, maybe it’s gone.”

“Did you check the whole room?” Grace asked.

“Yes. Come on lets watch telly.” Grace was glad for an excuse not to have to go back up to the guest room. Grace followed Uncle James into the living room, they ended up watching a house building program which she tried to immerse herself in to distract herself. Her uncle watched with interest but she was quickly bored. She would have left him to it but the thought of being alone made her stay and curl up. She closed her eyes and listened instead, tired from the strange day it wasn’t long before she was asleep.

@

She was at the tiller steering the canal boat through the narrowest part of the four counties ring when she heard her mum scream. Grace tried to call out to her unable to stop the boat in this part of the canal as it only just allowed their boat to pass through, there was no way another boat would be able to pass if it needed to. Her voice however got stuck in her throat and she could only listen to her mum’s cries of pain and fear.

Grace was shaken awake by Uncle James who was knelt down in front of the sofa where she’d fallen asleep. She stretched, her neck ached from where she’d slept at a weird angle. The telly was off and the curtains closed.

“I think it’s time you went to bed, your clearly exhausted.” His voice was kind and gentle but it didn’t make her feel any better. How was she supposed to explain that she didn’t want to go to bed because there was a ghost the in the room.

“But the spider.” It was a weak argument, she could tell by the look on his face that it wasn’t going to be good enough.

“If it bothers you in the night then knock on my door and I’ll get rid of it.” Grace nearly snorted but held it in. Uncle James sleeps like the dead, she’d be better off banging on a drum right by his head. Instead she nodded.

“You’ll have to make your own breakfast and lunch tomorrow as I’ll be at work, I’ll be back by 6o’clock.”

“Ok.” She followed him hesitantly as he turned off all the lights downstairs but none had been left on upstairs. The house was pitch black as they walked up the stairs. Grace had her eyes open as wide she they would go and looked in every direction for any hint of the glow that all ghosts gave off.

Uncle James didn’t turn on the landing light instead he walked into his room and shut the door. Grace could see light spill out from the crack under the door, it was the only light she had to get to the guest room. She held her breath as she edged towards the guest room expecting at any moment to feel the sensation caused by the presence of a ghost. Nothing. She let out the breath in relief and flicked on the light, the room was just as she left it when she unpacked her things. She closed the door, pulled down the blinds and plugged in the bedside light.

She was nervous to go into the en suite to get ready for bed just in case while she was in there a ghost came into the bedroom. She couldn’t stand there the whole night so she threw the covers back on the bed so that a ghost would know that this room was in use and hopefully leave her alone. Then she went into the bathroom and got ready in record time. The room was very white and shiny with a large mirror above the sink which made the small room feel less cramped.

She rested her hand on the door handle her heart rate picking up as she tried to get up the courage to see what was on the other side of the door. With a yank and pull she opened the door before she lost her nerve and felt herself relax, no ghosts. Once she’d switched all the lights off apart from the bedside lamp she crawled into bed and closed her eyes. Her senses were on hyper alert as she lay there hoping that they wouldn’t sense any ghosts.

@

She didn’t remember falling asleep but she knew that she had as when she opened her eyes. She sat up sharply and looked around the room before she registered that her senses hadn’t detected any ghosts. Her bladder however was making a insistent point that it was full. She climbed out of bed and walked into the bathroom.

On the way back to bed she stopped and turned towards the window, she wanted to get a look at the landscape at night. When she was little and the ghosts in the house were bothering her she would creep up to where her parents were sleeping and climb into the bed with them. She could never get comfortable though and kept wriggling until she woke both her parents. Her dad would grunt for her to be still or go back to her own bed but her mum would get out of bed and take her over to the window. Together they’d look out the window at what little they could see and talk in whispers for hours.

Grace pushed back the blinds desperate for the comfort it had always brought before. The bedside lamp shed too much light so that all she could see was her own reflection. She glanced at the lamp and then back at the window as she tried to decide which she wanted more. After some internal debate she turned off the lamp and returned to the window.

She could make out the loch and the silhouette of mountains that enclosed that valley. The sight was comforting and brought back of happy memories although it looked different this time of year. It wasn’t the same without her mum there and she ached to be with her now. She looked up at the sky and chose a star to make a wish for her mum’s recovery. As she went to move away from the window she glanced down at the bank by the house.

Her breath stuttered and she could feel her body break out into a cold sweat as she took in the form of a young girl that glowed majestically. It was a ghost but this one felt different from the others, her body’s reaction to the sight of her was more violent than towards any other ghost. She frowned down at the figure, it was too close to the water, she’d never seen one so close before. Ghosts that didn’t obey the usual rules were dangerous, that was what her mum had always told her and if she saw one than she was to get away from it as quickly as possible.

She backed away from the window and practically ran to the lamp, when she had switched it back on she felt a little better. The air was cold against her sweaty skin and she curled up under the covers unable to calm herself enough to go back to sleep.

Her senses hadn’t detected the ghost so it must have been too far away to be on her bodies radar but then the reaction of her body was strange when she had spotted it. There was something very wrong away that ghost, Grace hoped she wouldn’t see it again. 

Chapter Two

Andrea stood at the top of the bank to Loch Leven, it always drew her attention and she doubted there was a more beautiful place in the world. Not that she had seen anywhere other than this little village, or if she had she didn’t remember it. There was a lot about her life she didn’t remember, the only thing she could recall with any clarity was that she had drowned not far from this very spot by the family of the man who claimed to love her. Nathan had told her things about her life but how could she ever trust him?

She sighed softly and turned her back to the water that had played a part in her death and instead looked at the house which contained the ghost of her former love. It had changed a lot over the years, there was an extension which Nathan often complained about because he couldn’t enter it and she had seen it’s many owners change the colour, windows and door. What it had looked like when she died she didn’t know, the only thing about it she remembered was the lights shining out through the windows.

The front door opened and the current owner along with a girl Andrea hadn’t seen since last winter stepped out. The man set off at a brisk walk while the girl set a slower pace. Her shoulders were hunched against the rain that Andrea couldn’t feel unless she really tried. The effort to make herself solid enough to feel rain drops always required more energy than she was prepared to use.

When the living were out of sight she walked to the house, closed her eyes and stepped forward with as clear a head as possible. She felt constricted and caught as she passed through the wall and into the room on the other side. Entering this house never got any easier although she’d been here more times than she could count. She’d never been in this house while she was alive and so the effort of entering always exhausted her and left her mind aching.

She stood in the living room that had large glass doors overlooking the loch and a granite floor that she couldn’t feel beneath her feet. Her steps through the house were soundless and the water that she dripped from her drowning never hit the ground. It was only her hair that remained wet she’d managed to make herself solid long enough to dry her skin and change her clothes to a more modern outfit. For some reason however her hair would never dry no matter what she did to it. She fiddled with her braids as she moved from room to room in search of Nathan who usually waited for her in the living room.

Upstairs she found Mrs Watkins in the bedroom she had died in. The old lady didn’t like many people but after Andrea had told her to shut up one time when she had repeated herself for the fifth time in the space of an afternoon she had taken a liking to her. It turned out that Mrs Watkins hated to repeat herself and would remember that she had indeed told that story if she was reminded of the fact.

Mrs Watkins sat in the old rocking chair that only appeared when she wanted it to. Andrea had yet to workout how she achieved this although she had attempted it many times. Mrs Watkins set aside her knitting at the sight of her and gave her a gummy smile. She had more wrinkles than face, even her wrinkles seemed to have wrinkles. Her eyes were bright with life even though she had none.

“You’re looking for that young man of yours.” Andrea stepped further into the room noting the photo frame and the pile of books.

“I am.” She liked Mrs Watkins who had never cared that Andrea was black. She had died recently and was in fact the owner before the current, from what Andrea had gathered the world was striving to remove racism from society. Whether they had managed it Andrea wasn’t sure but from what she heard it was an improvement from when she had died in 1935.

“He’s hiding I believe. The girl that’s staying here is one of those just like her mother.” The tone drew Andrea’s attention.

“She can see us?” That was never good.

“She can. I’d make yourself scarce if I were you. She’ll want to banish you just for being a poltergeist.” Mrs Watkins was correct, she should leave before the girl returned.

“Could you tell Nathan I was here but had to leave before the girl came back?” He wouldn’t be happy but it was his own fault for not meeting her.

“I will.” Mrs Watkins resumed her knitting and Andrea retraced her steps out of the house. It was strange and inconvenient that the girl was there, she’d have to be careful until the girl was gone. She had just rematerialised on the outside of the wall when she heard the sound of footsteps on gravel. She darted around the side of the house and out of view, not moving until she heard the sound of the front door open and close. That had been closer than she was comfortable with.

@

There was something about the village that made Andrea self conscious and uncomfortable, she had never been able to workout just what it was. Her current theory was that it was something to do with how she had felt while she was alive. Still she couldn’t bring herself to leave, she had tried in the past but never got far. Whether it was Nathan’s presence keeping her there or the reassurance of being near the one place she could clearly remember, even if it had been where she died, she wasn’t sure.

With no physical form unless she made it happen she took a strange pleasure in walking down the middle of the main road which ran along the edge of the village. It was a odd feeling to have a car, van or lorry drive through her. It made her feel constricted and uncomfortable just like passing through walls did but the speed and weight that travelled through her always managed to give her a thrill.

She walked along the road with her eyes closed savouring the sensations that for a moment replaced the numbness that had taken up residence inside her. It was a horribly common feeling that she was forced to endure, she wished she could drive it from her but the only time it truly left her was when she was around Nathan. It was stupid but part of her still loved him although she couldn’t remember why she’d fallen for him or even what their relationship had been like when they had been alive. She was left with so many questions and a deep resentment for him. He had all his memories and she couldn’t even tell whether he spoke the truth about the two of them.

She turned off the road and greeted the other ghosts that were out with a smile, but she wasn’t in a mood to talk. The ghosts were a close knit group in this village as it took more effort than most were capable of to travel to the next village and still more to go further than that. New ghosts were always welcomed with open arms and the grief would linger for years at the loss of one of their number. The newly dead were often confused by this but just because ghosts were dead didn’t mean they didn’t live.

“There you are.” Andrea turned at the sound of the girls voice. Cathrine approached in her long plain dress which still had a hole in the chest and a large blood stain down the front. She was a pale girl who had been a few years older than Andrea when she had died. Her ginger hair was tied in the lose plaits she had been put it in before she’d been murdered. She had walked this village as a ghost for longer than any other and refused to cross over to the other side.

“How can I help you?” She wasn’t sure when Cathrine had died or if Catherine was even her real name but it was the name she told everyone to use and Andrea thought that it suited her.

“There is a gathering at the park to welcome the young girl who died.” She linked arms with Andrea and stirred them in the direction of the park. “How is your Nathan?”

“I haven’t seen him today, the girl who can see us is staying.” Andrea wasn’t sure if Nathan was hers or not anymore but never felt the need to correct anyone.

“Ah. I will make sure to inform the others, we must all be on are guard with one of them around.” Catherine’s face held a worried expression before it cleared to her usual kind smile. “I am sure your Nathan will be fine, it is so difficult not to like him, I fear for Mrs Watkins however.”

“She has been fine every other time they visited, with luck this time will be the same. It’s strange that she is here this time of year and without her family too.”

“I would feel better if you avoided the house until she is gone.” Catherine said as they walked into the park and made their way to the group of faintly glowing figures that mingled in the middle of the park. They two girls broke apart as they reached the group and Andrea greeted Harold with a smile. Harold was the only other black ghost, his skin colour was lighter than hers and while she kept her hair in braids his stood out from his head in an afro. He had been in his forties when he died in the eighties, he’d burnt to death wearing his pyjamas.

“Have you seen the new girl yet?” Andrea asked as she looked around the gathered ghosts for a new face. She found none.

“Gladys is bringing her, died in her sleep from what I heard.” Andrea sucked in a breath at his words. Those were the worst as they often didn’t know they were dead and had a hard time adjusting to the idea.

“Are you sure?”

“She died in the middle of the night, most living spend that time sleeping.” Andrea court sight of her then being dragged along by the excitable Gladys who’d only been five when she’d died. She didn’t talk about how it had happened but the rumour was that her father had smothered and her two brothers. Gladys had been the youngest and the only one to remain.

Catherine stepped forward to great the new girl who shied away from everyone. She was a tall girl and couldn’t be more than fifteen. Her hair was long, ending halfway down her back and two-tone. Andrea stared in confusion the blue bottom half that surely couldn’t be natural, the rest of her hair was blonde.

“I hope she likes her hair that way.” Harold mused from beside her.

“She’s looks frightened of us.” It was strange to see her scared, in her opinion there was nothing remotely scary about them.

“You’ve been dead to long.” Harold’s face held a fond smile. “The living fear the dead, they always have.”

“Perhaps we shouldn’t overwhelm her then.” Catherine had taken the girl’s arm and was introducing her to everyone.

“You want to leave?” There was no judgement in Harold’s expression.

“She can hardly remember all our names, it would be better if we introduced ourselves when she’s had time to settle in. Walk with me?”

“Sure, I could do with the exercise.” Andrea laughed politely and took his arm, they turned away from the gathering and walked, chatting comfortably out of the park.