A Spirited Gift

Martha Segall was waiting outside Missing Pieces on the weathered boardwalk when I arrived. She was the town nuisance—although she’d been called worse by the town council. She attended every town meeting and was an alternate on the planning and zoning board. She’d run for town council when Duck first incorporated, but frankly, no one liked her well enough to vote for her. So she just came to every meeting and complained.

“About time you got here,” she said when she saw me. “I’ve got this package I want to send to my son in Dallas. When do you think it will get there?”

I had become the UPS packager for Duck recently—I didn’t make a lot of money from it, but every bit helped. I opened the shop and set down my bag before I answered. “I don’t think UPS will pick up or deliver until the repairs have been made to the bridges.”

“And when will that be? And before you say you don’t know, let me remind you that you are also the mayor and up for reelection next year, missy. So answer carefully.”

I thought about it. There was no clever response. “I know I’m the mayor, Martha, and I know I’m up for reelection. But what I don’t know is how much damage was done to the bridges or how long it will take to repair them. We can walk down to town hall and see what Nancy knows about it, if you want.”

“All right. Maybe then you’ll know what to tell the next person who asks.” She took a small notebook out of the pocket of her rain jacket and wrote in it. “That’s right. I keep track of these things. And it’s a sad state of affairs when the town clerk knows more about what’s going on than the mayor. Mad Dog Wilson might just get my vote for mayor next year.”

I smiled and closed the door to Missing Pieces. I’d rather have tea and look at all my treasures than spend time with Martha, but I was the mayor and that was part of my job.

Town hall was only a few doors down on the boardwalk. It was filled with Duck citizens complaining and yelling at Nancy, who was trying to answer their questions. The phones were working again—and they were ringing off the hook. It was like a scene from one of those badly made disaster movies I’d loved so much as a teenager.

And as much as I loved my fellow Duck citizens, this was no way to get the answers they needed. I tried to calm everyone down, to no avail. Finally, I grabbed my gavel from Nancy’s desk and pounded hard with it until everyone was quiet.

“I know this is hard for all of you,” I said to the crowd, “but it’s hard on us too. Now I want all of you to make a line, single file, and come to the desk one at a time with your questions and problems. We’ll do the best we can to get answers for you. I know most of you—Martha, Vergie and Andy—you’ve lived here all your life like I have. We get through these things together but not by going crazy.”

“Thanks,” Nancy whispered as the crowd grumbled but made a line that stretched out the door. “I was about to take out my pistol and shoot a few of them.”

“Why didn’t you call me?” I asked as I took a seat and got ready to talk to people.

“I did—I called you and everyone else on the council. I guess none of your cell phones are working yet. Home phones are still offline too. We’re just blessed up here to have working phones to add to the chaos.”

I apologized. I had no way of knowing about the chaos here. While Nancy manned the phone, I wrote down names and questions as each person had their turn. Basically, the Harris Teeter, the only grocery store in Duck, was running out of food and none was expected for at least another day. I told Martha again that I wasn’t sure when UPS would pick up, but I would keep her package until I heard from them.

Andy Martin, who ran the ice cream and Slushee store, was understandably upset because there was no power. “My ice cream is ice goo, and my Slushee machine won’t work without electricity. Isn’t there some way to get some? I know the hospital has power and some of the houses in Duck have power. Why don’t I?”

“You might want to consider buying a generator, Andy,” I said. “Since your business depends on your freezer, it’s a good idea. For now, I’d suggest you clean up and close down for a few days. We must be almost at the end of your season anyway.”

He nodded. “I close for the winter and these last few days are important to me. I don’t understand why the power comes on for some people and not everyone.”

“My best advice on this is to talk it over with the power company. You know there’s only so much we can do from town hall. I’m sorry about your ice cream, and I hope you have insurance to cover it.”

He nodded and put his cap on, then left the line.

Almost all the questions, the bulk of which focused on water leaks, power outages, and beach erosion, went the same way. People asked, and I offered suggestions but had no definitive answers.

Little Hailey Baucum, the daughter of Reece Baucum, claimed to have seen a ghost ship. “I saw it last night, Mayor Dae. It was real old looking, and there was no one on it.”

Reece, who’d been there to complain about a broken water main, grinned. “You know how kids are.”

“Sounds like the Andalusia,” said Vergie, Duck’s postmaster. “You know how people see her from time to time. Especially after a bad storm.”

I knew. The Andalusia was a Spanish treasure ship that had foundered off the coast of Duck around 1720. Several sailors had made it to the coast to tell of the huge treasure that went down with the ship. Though hundreds of people had searched for it, no one had ever found the gold and jewels that were on it.

Through the generations, Duck citizens, and even some vacationing visitors, had called or written about seeing the ship off the coast. The Andalusia was our resident ghost ship. We all knew the story.

“There was a moon last night,” Nancy reminded me while she was on hold with the North Carolina Department of Transportation asking for a time reference for the bridge repairs.

Hailey nodded her head with the vigor of an eight-year-old. “I got a telescope for my birthday last month, so I got a really good look. It was the ghost ship for sure. The moonlight was shining on it, so I could see no one was there. But it was sailing anyway. The sails were like big spiderwebs. No way they could catch any breeze like that.”

“Well, don’t worry. A lot of people have seen the Andalusia , but the ghosts never come to Duck,” I assured her. “They seem to stay on the ship, and they never bother anyone. We have a book here that we write down every time someone sees her. The sightings go back to the 1800s. You’re in good company.”

I felt a chill sweep through the room as I finished speaking. My own personal ghost appeared at the back of the line of people waiting to see me. “Why are ye filling the child’s mind with such drivel?” Rafe demanded. “There are no ghosts on that ship. Those poor souls lie at the bottom like so many others.”

I couldn’t answer him, since I was fairly sure no one else could see or hear him. I smiled at Hailey and gave her a sucker. Nothing like a ghost to put ghostly events into perspective.

As soon as possible, I was going to find Shayla and see if there wasn’t some way to lay this ghost to rest.

Chapter 16

“There are serious problems needing yer attention.” Rafe waited impatiently, the heel of his booted foot stamping on the hardwood floor. As the line of residents moved forward, so did he—until he was standing at the desk, his hands on the pistols he wore at either side of his hips.

Funny how I’d never noticed those pistols in the portrait or during our encounter in the bar. Maybe it had been an oversight on my part. Or maybe he’d added them from his ghostly wardrobe.

I also had never realized from his portrait what a large man he was—wide hips and shoulders, long legs and arms. Probably scared people long before they saw his cutlass unsheathed.

“I need a word with ye,” he said, glaring at Nancy. “Ditch the woman.”

“Thanks for your help, Dae,” Nancy said. “Is it me or is it getting colder in here?”

“You’re welcome. I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner. I’m going over to Missing Pieces for a while if you need me again.”