Page 6 of Ghost in the Night

THREE

Afterdinner, I check my phone. I have about forty-five minutes to make it to the meeting point.

Daddy is on the sofa, dozing off after some good food and a long drive. I step into the kitchen, where Lena is putting away dishes while Robby helps her dry them.

“Hey, Lena, can you point me in the direction of the bus?”

She cocks her head with a frown and looks out the window as if searching for the sun that is about to set.

“Um. Well, where you off to, Miss Harmony?” Lena asks, trying to sound innocent.

“I’m going on a ghost tour.”

Hand on hip, she moans, “Oh Lawd. Not those silly things. You really want to waste your time on that? You haven’t even been on a real tour of Savannah yet.”

I repeat something a ghost tour guide said in Nashville. “You can learn a lot from the dead about their city.”

She looks at me like I have five heads. Robby snickers.

But it’s true. On ghost tours, you find out about the real nitty-gritty stuff that happened. Stuff they’d never say on the Disneyland-type tours.

Lena shakes her head. “Those people don’t know what they’re talking about. They’re making stuff up, taking tourists’ money, and messing with spirits.”

I stare at her and stay silent. Does she think that’s going to change my mind?

She wipes her hands and steps into the living room.

“Albert!” she shouts, and Dad jerks awake.

“Hmm. Huh? What?”

Lena crosses her arms. “Are you really going to let Harmony go off on her own to some ghost tour? She’s a young girl.”

Dad yawns. “Stuff gives me the heebie-jeebies, but she’s into it. Can’t hurt. Plus, I trust her. She’s built Harlem tough.”

I smile at Dad. We’ve become so tight over the last six months on the road, I guess since all we have is each other. He respects me. He thinks I’m old enough. And that’s all that matters.

“Well, all right, I guess,” Lena mumbles. “There’s a bus stop on the corner, Harmony.”

“Thanks,” I say, grabbing my camera bag.

Robby rushes to his mother’s side, hopping up and down. “Mama, can I go too?”

Lena shakes her head. “Absolutely not. That stuff is too mature for you, buddy. And it’s getting late. You haven’t taken your shower or your vitamins or said your prayers or—”

Robby groans. “Mommmmm.”

“Let the young man live a little,” Dad says with a laugh. “Harmony got him. Those tours are harmless, Lena. Let the kids have fun!”

Lena rubs her arms, looking unsure. Her hands are evenshaking a little. “Al … I don’t think they should be taking the bus so late. Especially after—”

She stops herself, and I know she must be thinking about her friend Tim Truman and his nephew. Which I kind of understand. Itiscreepy. But ghost tours are safe.

“How about Albert and I go with you?” Lena suggests. “We won’t follow you on the tour, but we’ll stay somewhere close by, just in case. Maybe we’ll get ice cream or something. When you’re done, we’ll pick you up. How’s that?”

From the nervousness in her eyes, I can tell she’s trying to play it cool but is really freaking out.

I sigh and look over at Dad. He nods.