“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before, or at least try to. And I know it’s hard to believe.”
“It is. But you seem so sure… Why? How?”
“I thought it might be ghosts, or some sort of hallucination, but they comeevery night. They remember conversations they’ve had with me, with Aunt Marigold, Lucy, and Cristobel. The things they say—I know they’re real. My imagination isn’t that good.”
“You’re a writer. I’d say it’s better than average.”
“Maybe,” Aurelia said, casting around for more evidence. “Oh, my book! The reason I wrote about Count Vronsky was because I met him here, in the shop.”
“Aurelia,” Antonia sighed.
“We talked about his novel, how it ended, and we worked for months coming up with a new ending for him.”
“Okay. Sure,” Antonia said, disbelieving in spite of her words.
“There were other characters in the shop when he was here, and they helped us come up with ideas, too. They were sort of a sounding board for what happened in the book.”
“Just like your writing group,” Antonia said sarcastically, then her eyes widened as her mouth fell open. “Oh no, Aurelia… Please tell me—when you said you were working with a writing group—”
“That was them, yes.”
“Aurelia… This has been going on foryears?” Antonia shook her head. “Alright. Well, I’m at the point where I’m not sure whether I should be calling Oliver, or Dad, or whether we should go to a hospital and have them run some tests on you.” Her tone was serious and concerned, all sarcasm gone.
Julia stepped into the hallway.
“They’d have to run tests on both of us,” she said.
“Don’t tempt me.”
“We’re telling the truth, Mum. We’ve seen them. And I’m going to see them again tonight because we’re not going to a hotel. We’re staying here.”
“This little rebellion of yours isn’t helping you or your aunt Aurelia.”
Julia took a few steps back toward the guest room.
“How can we prove it to her? Haven’t you thought of anything?” Julia asked Aurelia.
“I don’t know… I’ve told her about my book, about Aunt Marigold… I told you, Julia, when people can’t see things it’s hard for them to believe, especially when it’s as unusual as this.”
“I wish Biscuit or Fezz could talk. They could tell her.”
“Oh, now the animals can see and hear these characters?”
“They can, yes.” Aurelia rolled her eyes, knowing it was just more fuel for Antonia’s disbelief.
“Maybe Mum can come down tonight and just try it. Maybe she’ll see them too.”
“I mean, we can try,” Aurelia said doubtfully. “But when Oliver comes down, they just disappear.”
“Of course they do,” Antonia said under her breath.
“Actually,” Aurelia said, brightening for the first time in many hours. “He’s heard them.”
“Really?” Julia asked eagerly.
“Mm-hmm. One time I’d just come up from talking with the characters and they were still in the shop. He’d heard their voices—just barely, and not as clearly as I could—but he heard them.”
“So if I go downstairs right now, I’ll hear them, but I won’t see them? You realize this is getting more and more ridiculous?”
