Seasons

By

1st endeavor

Disclaimer: See chapter 1

A/N: I truly appreciate your reviews. Thank you.

Chapter 21:

The quaint little town of Castle Rock was virtually deserted on Sunday evening, its normally bustling shops dark and uninviting; they're owner's home and resting in preparation for the coming week. The deepening shadows engulfed the town until the buildings became indistinguishable from one another; separated only by its shape or by its proximity to the street lights.

In the encroaching darkness the town's namesake the 400 foot high monolith of granite appeared to have a deeper, darker shadow than everything else around it. It was so massive that it seemed to block out a portion of the night sky and actually looked like it was at the edge of the town instead of miles away where it towered above the Wenatchee River. Given the recent revelations it was no wonder that the people in the approaching vehicles were apprehensive and even felt a sense of foreboding as they gazed at the black shadow seemingly looming over the town.

The small caravan left the darkened highway and turned onto the main street of Castle Rock; its street lights a welcome relief to the surrounding darkness. In the center of town another light permeated the shadows as the warm, yellow light from Faye's café illuminated the sidewalk in front of her restaurant. The bright light was a welcoming beacon to the uneasy travelers who although anxious about the upcoming meeting were nevertheless eager to get out of the darkness.

Faye's car was the only other car in sight so the drivers of the small caravan simply pulled into the parallel parking spots in the order that they had driven. Don glided the SUV to a stop in the parking space behind his brother's Prius then absently switched off the ignition; his thoughts on Schiller's outrageous claims…..or were they so outrageous after all? He suppressed a shiver as his eyes drifted toward the dark monolith; he couldn't explain it but for some reason he felt as if it had a sinister aspect to it. The agent rubbed his arms briskly and shook himself. "This is ridiculous," he thought. "It's just my imagination."

Alan opened the rear door and started to climb out hesitating when he noticed that his son was making no move to get out of the car. "Donnie?"

Robin who had also started to open her door turned a quizzical eye on her fiancé and waited for him to answer.

Startled from his reverie the agent merely shrugged and pulled out his cell phone. "You guys go ahead I just have a quick call to make then I'll join you."

"Sure," Alan huffed noting from Don's demeanor that he would get no further explanation. He climbed out of the SUV then with a flourish opened Robin's door and helped her out of the car. "My lady," he quipped offering her his arm.

"Thank you, Alan," Robin grinned playing along with a sideways glance at Don. "I could get used to this."

Don rolled his eyes at her then hit the speed dial on the phone as they walked away but kept his gaze on them as they joined the others at the door until a familiar voice broke the silence in the SUV.

"Sinclair."

"Hey, David."

"I'm surprised to hear from you, Don." The black agent teased, his eyes lighting up mischievously. "Colby bet me a twenty that you'd be out celebrating big-time tonight but I said that from the way you guys were hobbling around the bases you would already be home passed out on your beds."

"Huh?" Don asked momentarily distracted. "What's this…bases….what?"

"Hey, don't make me lose my twenty bucks, man," Colby yelled as he looked up from his computer and shared a toothy grin with his partner.

"Your grand slam, man!" David exclaimed excitedly, putting the phone on speaker and setting it down on his desk. "It's all over You Tube, Don. Someone watching the game uploaded it live and it's gone viral."

"Hold on a minute," Colby said quickly tapping a few keys on his computer. "It's at twenty thousand hits already."

"Really?" Don's astonished voice resonated over the phone.

The obvious surprise in their boss's voice had both men chuckling."That's right, Don." Colby smirked. "Next thing you know someone from the majors will be knocking on your door."

"Yeah…right. Like's that's gonna, happen." Don chuckled dryly then his voice took on a more serious tone. "Hey, listen guys I need to ask a favor."

"Yeah…sure," David answered softly noting the change in Don's voice. "What's up?"

Sharing a concerned glance with his partner Colby sidled up next to the desk. "What do you want us to do, Don?"

"I need you to check someone out for me but it's gotta be strictly off the books. Okay?"

"You got it," David said pulling a small notebook from his pocket; leaning over the desk with pen poised over the pad he asked his boss for the man's name.

"His name is Erik Schiller and he's from a town in Romania called Timisoara….he said that it was somewhere in the Banat Region… I think…yeah that was it…Banat.

A look of astonishment crossed both agents' faces then David asked quietly. "Don, did you say Schiller?"

Colby scowled then leaned over the desk. "As in Ludwig Schiller?"

"The one and only," Don replied grimly. "He's says that Ludwig was his uncle."

"Uncle?" David replied scratching the back of his head in puzzlement. "Why the hell would a relative of Schiller's attend a memorial ceremony for one of his victims?"

"I'll have to get back to you on that one," Don said forcing a laugh. "In the meantime I need you to run the usual background checks on him. He's traveling with his wife, Petra and his twenty something daughter named Marta." The agent hesitated a moment trying to decide how much to tell them but in the end decided they would need to know about the man's wild claims. "Ah…listen you should also look for any ….ah….unusual claims that he or his daughter might have made-I have a suspicion that they may be trying to run some sort of con."

"What kind of con?" Colby asked as he sat down at his desk; immediately his fingers began tapping on the keyboard."It's noon on Monday in Romania so it shouldn't take too long to get the info you want." He paused suddenly his fingers hovering over the keyboard. "What kind of con did you say they might be running?"

When no answer was forthcoming David shared a puzzled look with his partner then sat down on the corner of his desk. "Don?"

"Ah….well you're not going to believe this but he says that….ah…he and his daughter can talk to the dead and that he has a message for me and Charlie from Thomas Hill." Don replied scrubbing a hand through his hair while he waited for their reactions.

"I'm sorry," David exclaimed in disbelief. "Did you say dead….as in dead?"

"I know it sounds crazy but that's what I said."

Colby whistled through his teeth. "Sooo let me get this straight. The nephew of Ludwig Schiller shows up at a celebration honoring Thomas Hill, a man that his uncle killed, then tells the agent that killed said uncle that he has a message for him from the murder victim?"

"For me and Charlie," Don corrected him

"Bet that went over big with Charlie," Colby snickered sarcastically.

"Yeah…well my brother hasn't exactly kept his views on physic phenomena a secret," Don chuckled dryly.

"Big understatement there, Don," David chortled. "Listen, what does the guy want in return for delivering Hill's supposed messages?"

"Schiller say he doesn't want anything from us," Don replied absently, momentarily distracted by movement around the door to Faye's café; apparently Charlie and Hank had decided to wait for him and had stayed behind while the others went inside. "He said that he was just doing this for Tom. Look, guys, I've got to go. Call me as soon as you get anything, okay?"

"Sure thing, Don,"

"Right. Catch you later," Don ended the call then shoved the phone into his pocket as he climbed out of the SUV and hurried over to join his brother and the sheriff.

"Did you find out anything?" Charlie asked anxiously his eyes searching his brother's face for a hopeful sign.

"Relax, Charlie," Don replied giving the professor's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "They'll get back to us as soon as they know anything." His eyes drifted upward to Hank's questionable gaze. "Two of my agents are checking out Schiller's background."

Hank nodded approvingly then nodded toward the door. "I guess it's time to go in then."

"This is just a waste of our time!" Charlie said abruptly then lowered his voice with a glance at the door. "Can't you see that!" he hissed, desperately trying to get them to see reason. "Schiller is just trying to run some kind of …of scam on us."

Don studied his brother for a moment then spoke softly. "Come on, buddy," he said, taking his elbow and steering him toward the door. "What harm can come from just listening to the man."

Charlie started to retort then clamped his mouth shut; he could tell from Don's tone of voice that there was no way to sway him from hearing what Schiller had to say. The young man jerked out of his brother's grasp then turned to face the street; he needed a few minutes to get his emotions under control. A war was raging within his breast and he trembled as he fought to contain it; rational thinking was what he needed now not an emotional triad brought about by a mindless rage….no matter how justified it might be.

At his side the spirit of Thomas Hill wrung his hands together fretfully; guilt was eating at his soul. "This is my fault," he moaned softly, "all my fault." He hated to put his friend through this emotional upheaval but he knew that it was the only way that any of them were going to get any closure.

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Inside the bright café Faye with Emily's help had started serving coffee to the people already seated around a large oblong table; although the table normally sat only ten she had somehow managed to squeeze in two more chairs so that they could all sit together.

"So…ah…is Tom here now?" Robin asked casting a skeptical eye across the table at the Schiller's.

Without any hesitation the younger woman looked up and met her gaze. "No." Marta replied quietly then nodded toward the door with her chin. "Thomas Hill rode over with Professor Eppes and is still outside with him."

"Really?" Amita asked paling slightly as she shared an uneasy glance with Larry. "Was it possible that he had been right after all….had Charlie really heard Tom's voice in the car?"

Marta's eyes flickered between them then she tilted her head to the side. "You already know that, don't you…he spoke to you?"

Alan paused with his coffee cup halfway to his mouth then shared a curious look with Robin while they waited for her to answer.

"No…no...I….I didn't hear him." Amita stammered out hastily, her eyes darting from face to face.

Marta turned to Larry but he just shrugged, rubbed his forehead and shook his head in denial.

"Ah, would you like tea or coffee?" Faye asked Erik, filling in the awkward silence. She picked up his cup as he twisted around to look up at her and had the oddest sensation that she had served him before.

"Do you serve Chai tea my dear?"Eric asked hopefully.

Faye didn't answer, she just stood there staring at him, her thoughts suddenly swirling back to another time:

"Do you serve Chai tea my dear?" Ludwig asked hopefully.

"Of course, I'll get it for you right away." Faye left quickly but returned a few minutes later with a cup of steaming hot tea and placed it on the table in front of him.

"Have you had a chance to decide what you would like?"

"Ah…yes…but I'm not sure what it is," he said with an apologetic smile, "could you tell me which meal is creating that enticing aroma?"

Faye beamed at him. "That smell just happens to be my homemade ravioli and I make it every Thursday." She leaned over; whispering conspiratorially, "It's my specialty and people have been known to come all the way from Portland just to have a plateful." She waved her hand at the empty tables. "This place will be full by seven-thirty."

"I'll take an order of ravioli please." Ludwig said quickly.

"A house salad and fresh bread comes with it too. What kind of salad dressing would you like?"

"Do you have any raspberry vinaigrette?"

"Yes, of course. I'll be right back."

Faye left immediately and true to her word returned quickly with his salad. In no time at all, his salad plate was empty and she had replaced it with the main dish. "Are you just passing through or visiting the attractions in the area?" She asked as she placed a small basket of fresh bread on the table.

Ludwig buttered a slice of bread while he answered, "Actually I'm on a sabbatical." He started to take a bite and noticed her confusion. "I'm a Professor at Princeton University and I decided to take some time off to see the country."

"Well now," she replied, her eyes lighting up, "isn't it a small world. Tommy graduated from Princeton University. Do you know Tommy Hill?"

"Oh dear lord!" Faye screamed as her thoughts abruptly returned to the present; trembling she stepped back from Schiller, her face a deathly white, her expression bleak. The cup she was holding slipped from her nerveless fingers hitting the floor with a resounding bang and sending shards of glass skittering across the tiled floor.

" Oh no," she moaned brokenly covering her face with her hands," I can't believe it….. I just can't believe it."

Concerned for his friend Alan rose from his chair just as the front door banged open when Don, Charlie, Tom and Hank rushed into the café.

" What happened?" Hank yelled rushing to Faye's side." Did he do something?" He asked with an angry glare for Schiller.

"What did you say to her?" Charlie demanded angrily.

"Noth….. nothing," Erik stammered out hastily, his eyes flickering nervously from face to face." I swear I didn't do anything to her.

"No... no," Faye spoke up quickly in his defense "He didn't do anything…. I…. I just remembered something… that's….that's all."

"Faye what could have been so terrible?" Alan asked coming around to stand at her side." You're as white as a ghost. Come on-I think that you need sit down." Taking her firmly by the elbow he gently steered her into one of the vacant chairs.

"Now," he suggested quietly, patting her gently on the shoulder. "Why don't you tell us what's going on?"

She lowered her head as if to get herself together then took a deep breath; raising her head she glanced at each of them before fixing her eyes on Erik. "It was the way that you asked for the tea that brought it all back to me. " An involuntary shudder coursed through her body as she spoke." "I never knew what he looked like…..our local paper just listed his name but didn't print the man's picture - guess we were just too relieved to hear that the F.B.I had killed him to be curious about what he looked like."

"Faye what are you trying to say?' Don interrupted; he really didn't need any more reminders that he had killed Ludwig Schiller no matter how justified it had been.

"I'm sorry-I didn't mean to ramble on," she said, her face coloring slightly. "What I'm trying to tell you is that he was here. That horrid man sat in my restaurant on the very day that he killed Tom."

"What?" Emily gasped.

"Faye, why didn't you tell me this before?"The sheriff demanded irritably. "I asked you if you had seen any strangers, remember?"

"I know, Hank, but there were a lot of tourists coming and going that week….you've seen what it's like around here when the restaurant is full. There were just too many to remember them all." Suddenly she caught her breath as the memory of that long ago conversation began to surface. "Oh, Hank," she said miserably; tears flooded her eyes as she looked up at the sheriff. "I remember now….we…we talked about Tommy."

"He asked about Tom?"

Faye shook her head. "No, I brought Tom's name up when he told me that he was a professor at Princeton University." She wiped at a stray tear and gazed sadly around the room as she explained. "You see….I loved that boy like he was my own….and I was always bragging about him so naturally when he mentioned Princeton I talked about how Tommy had graduated from there, too."

"Oh, Faye," the ghost of Thomas Hill sighed softly; his gaze gentle and loving. "I loved you too."He knelt by her chair to try and console her but she couldn't see him there. Erik moved, caught his eye with a questioning gaze. "Should I tell her what you said?" Tom shook his head side to side, answering no to the unspoken question then said aloud. "Maybe later." With the barest of nods Schiller acquiesced then re-focused on the woman's story.

Hank rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a moment then asked. "What else did he say?"

"I remember asking him if he knew Tom." Faye's forehead wrinkled and she gazed off into the distance; her eyes vacant and staring as she tried to recall the rest of their conversation.

Schiller carefully chewed his bread and then swallowed before answering; the voice in his head suddenly coming to life and ordering him to be careful. "Thomas Hill? I don't seem to recall a Thomas Hill but then I've taught a number of students over the years and I daresay that I can hardly be expected to remember the names of all of them."

Taken aback by his sudden change in demeanor Faye quickly apologized. "Oh…sorry…. that was a pretty stupid question."

"Not at all my dear." Ludwig replied soothingly; trying to put her at ease as well as cover his own tracks. He started up the conversation again but pretended that he had forgotten the man's name. "Is…ah…Mr. Hill," he glanced at her for confirmation, "up here on vacation as well?" "Careful", the voice in his head hissed, "don't make her suspicious!"

"Tommy is a volcanologist and he works for the U.S Geological Survey. He's here to monitor Mount St. Helens." Faye answered, visibly relaxing as the professor's friendly manner returned.

"That's an interesting career choice." Ludwig said as he continued to eat his meal. "Do you know him well?"

"Well enough to know that he'll be in here," she paused and glanced at the clock, "in about twenty minutes to get a take-out order of my ravioli." She grinned broadly. "He hasn't missed a Thursday night since he's been in Castle Rock."

"Really?" Ludwig asked, trying to remain calm; it wouldn't do for Hill to recognize him.

"Faye, did Schiller admit that he knew Tom?" Don asked, hoping to bring the woman out of her daze.

She glanced up at him, her thoughts returning to the present and shook her head side to side. "No, as a matter of fact he said that he couldn't be expected to remember all of his students then he asked me what Tom did for a living." Her shoulders slumped dispiritedly as she recalled all of the information that she had given him. "I told him and he wanted to know if I was close to Tom and of course I said that I was and that Tom would be arriving soon to pick up his take-out order."

"What happened then, Faye?" Hank asked sharing a knowing look with the agent; they'd both speculated what Schiller's next move would have been.

"Let's see…he said really….then I had to attend to another customer and a few minutes later he paid his bill and left." She shrugged her shoulders and sighed. "I never saw him again." Her eyes became misty as she added softly. "Ten minutes later Tom came in to pick up his order….and…and I never saw him again either."

Don and Hank weren't the only ones who had surmised that Schiller must have gone outside to wait for Tom to pick up his order so that he could follow him home; the room had gone deathly quiet as everyone contemplated the distraught woman's last sentence-Faye had unwittingly given Ludwig the perfect opportunity to follow his victim home.

"Did…ah," Hank coughed to clear his throat. "Did you mention the man to Tom when he came in?"

"No," she said softly with a shake of her head. "He was in a hurry and the restaurant got really busy so I didn't get much of a chance to talk with him."

Hank's eyes were sympathetic as he gazed at her; there was no point in telling her what he was thinking-nothing could change what had happened. The sheriff could tell by everyone's expression that they felt the same way he did so he just shrugged and jammed his hands in his pockets. "No sense in dwelling on it, Faye-what's done is done." He turned away but abruptly halted when she suddenly gasped and clasped her hands to her mouth.

"Oh my God," Faye exclaimed abruptly as her own words hit home, "You don't suppose….suppose that he waited for Tommy to pick up his dinner, do you?" She shook her head mournfully before anyone could answer; covering her face with her hands she moaned softly. "It's my fault…..it's all my fault." Tears began to spill down her cheeks. "Oh, Tommy, can you every forgive me," she whispered, sobbing uncontrollably.

Tom was shaken by her revelation, her admission unexpected; tilting his head to the side he thought back to that night. He'd been in a hurry because he had been on the verge of a remarkable discovery and had only taken the time to get the food because he'd realized that he hadn't eaten for almost two days. Tom had rushed into the café chatted for a couple of minutes and had hurried back to his car. Now that he thought about it he could remember noticing someone sitting in a SUV in front of Faye's café but he hadn't connected the headlights following his car to the same vehicle. If only he had been more cautious when he had answered the knock at the door but his mind had been on his work and he had figured that it was just a tourist who had taken a wrong turn. What a shock it had been to see Ludwig Schiller standing on his doorstep, even more so when he'd noticed the gun in the man's hand.

"It wasn't your fault, Faye," Emily said soothingly, patting the woman on the back. "There's no way that you could have know what that evil man was up too."

Emily's voice brought Tom's thoughts back to the present and as he gazed sadly at his friend he realized that he had to talk to her; without shifting his gaze he asked Erik to tell her that he was there.

After a moment's hesitation the older man straightened in his chair then leaned toward the woman and quietly announced the dead man's presence. "Thomas Hill is here and would like to speak with you."

Charlie's eyes flashed angrily; how dare Schiller try and take advantage of Faye while she was in such an emotional state! He opened his mouth but closed it quickly when first Alan then Don caught his eye to urge him not to say anything. "Fine! He mouthed silently then crossed his arms in front of him; he'd be quiet ….for the moment.

Faye raised her head, her face pale. She gulped, a dry, wrenching sob. "What…what did you say?"

"My dear lady," Schiller spoke gently. "The spirit of Thomas Hill is kneeling in front of you and wishes to speak with you." Erik waved his hand toward the empty floor space in front of her chair. His eyes drifted toward the ghost. "What do you want to say?"

"Tell her that she didn't do anything wrong…tell her that Schiller was a very clever man and would have found me anyway." He sighed heavily as he thought over the events of that night. "Tell her that it was more my fault than hers because I should have been more careful when I opened my door but I was irritated by the intrusion and just jerked the door open with the intent of getting rid of whoever it was so that I could get back to my work".

Erik nodded and turned to Faye. "Tom wants you to know that you didn't do anything wrong. He told me to tell you that my Uncle was a very clever man and would have found him anyway. Tom says that he should have been more cautious that night but he was distracted by his research and just flung open the door when Ludwig knocked without checking to see who was there."

A look of bewilderment crossed her features, her eyes drifting from the medium to the empty space in front of her. Cautiously she extended a trembling hand but felt nothing as she waved her hand through the air. She met the gaze of the medium; her own eyes filled with doubt. "He's really here?"

Thomas laughed as her hand passed through the top of his head. "Tell her that if I was still alive today and she had a pair of scissors in her hand right now she would be in a position to cut my hair the way that she used to threaten to do when I was around." He smiled and glanced sideways at the medium. "She used to tell me that I wore my hair too long and that I would get more dates with the ladies if I would cut it shorter and then she would show me her scissors and offer to shorten it for me."

Noting the fondness in the spirit's voice Erik smiled sadly and said quietly. "You cared a great deal for her." It was a statement, not a question and Tom merely nodded in response. His eyes flickered back to the woman. "You should know that Thomas laughed just a moment ago because your hand touched the top of his head and he said to tell you that if his physical form was still here and if you had been holding those scissors that you enjoyed threatening him with so much then you would have been able to cut his hair the way you always threatened to do."

Faye gasped clasping her hands to her mouth in astonishment and she wasn't the only one because behind her the jaws of Emily and Hank Fisher dropped open in amazement. Stunned, Emily opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out then Hank's eyes drifted across the faces of everyone in the room before he uttered in a shocked tone of voice. "It's true. Faye used to threaten to cut Tom's hair all the time….but how would Schiller know that?"

Erik had said enough to convince Faye however so she leaned forward and cautiously patted the air where she thought Tom's head would be; a loving and hopeful gleam glistening in her eyes. "Oh, Tommy, I have missed you so much," she whispered her lips quivering as she spoke. Her head tilted sideways and her smile saddened. "I'm so sorry Tom…can…can you ever forgive me for being so stupid?"

Tom took her hand in his and gazed deeply into her eyes, "Faye, you have done nothing for me to forgive you for so please don't let it trouble you anymore. I loved you in life and still do so all I ask is for you to hold my memory in your heart and move on with your life." He glanced at Erik and nodded for him to relay his words.

"Tom says that you have done nothing wrong…..that there is nothing to forgive you for." Erik said gently then waited until he caught her eye. "He wants you to know that he loved you very much and wants you to move on with your life but hopes that you will keep his memory in your heart."

"Always," Faye whispered earnestly wiping the tears from her eyes.

Tom rose to his feet and stepped back; his eyes flitting around the room. He could tell from the expressions on Emily and Hanks faces that they now believed he was there with them. Alan, Larry, Amita and Robin's expressions had softened a bit but a hint of skepticism still shown in their eyes. Don's eyes, on the other hand, were dark and unreadable; his emotions guarded and well-hidden from years of practice. Charlie, unlike his brother, couldn't hide his feelings even when he tried and what Tom saw now was nothing more than he had expected. Charlie held his chin up in defiance, his dark eyes full of skepticism; his stance rigid and unyielding. Thomas sighed audibly; he needed Charlie more than anyone else to believe that he was there and he was going to be the hardest one to convince. His pale blue eyes shifted back to the agent; perhaps if he talked to Don first and was able to convince him then maybe Charlie would be more inclined to accept the truth. The sound of Faye's voice distracted him and he turned in her direction.

"Is he still there?" Faye asked, stretching out her hand once again; she had stopped crying and almost seemed her old self again.

"No," Erik replied, his eyes on the spirit. "He's walking around the room now."

"Good," she said smiling. "I'm glad he's still here. Oh, my, just look at the mess I've made." She knelt down and started picking up the pieces of the coffee mug. The sound of a scraping chair was heard as Petra then Emily joined her to clean up the glass. In no time at all the ladies had cleaned up the mess and served fresh cups of steaming coffee and tea to everyone at the table. The room had remained virtually silent but every now and again snatches of quiet conversations could be heard as the friends discussed Faye's paranormal encounter.

Tom walked over and stood behind Don and Charlie's chairs. The brothers were seated side by side with Amita to Charlie's left and Robin to Don's right. Alan was sitting beside of Robin and Larry was next to Amita. Directly across from the Eppes brothers was Erik Schiller; Petra was on his right and Marta was seated to his left. Faye sat down next to Alan with Emily and Hank occupying the next two chairs.

Everyone was seated now; eleven pairs of eyes locked on the medium and waited for him to begin. Erik colored slightly, his lips parted as if he was about to say something when suddenly with a loud bang the door to the café slammed shut with such force the it rattled the windows; startled, everyone turned toward the door.

"Ah, sorry, Faye," Charlie apologized. "I guess we forgot to close the do…." His words died on his lips as he turned back around to find Erik and Marta on their feet. He tilted his head curiously and shared surprised looks with the others around the table as the two mediums began to look about the room. "Ah…hmm. What's going on?"

Amita shivered suddenly then rubbed her arms briskly. "Do you feel that chill? It must have gotten really cold outside."

Erik ignored their questions then raised his hand to silence any further comments. He glanced sideways at his daughter. "Do you see anything?"

"No," Marta replied anxiously, her eyes narrowing as she searched the shadows."Papa, there is another presence here-I can feel it."

"As can I," Erik muttered beneath his breath, his expression darkening. His troubled eyes met those of Thomas Hill. "Can you see anyone?"

Tom strode to the middle of the cafe and turned slowly around as he perused the darker shadows in the room but even to his eyes the room appeared empty….and yet…somehow he knew that someone else had entered the café…a man….someone dead….like him.

"I know you're here," Tom called out suddenly. "Why don't you show yourself?" Hill waited in silence but no one appeared and after a few minutes turned to face Erik. "Why does he stay hidden? Why doesn't he come forward?"

"I cannot answer that, Tom," Erik said grimly, casting a nervous glance about the room. "For some reason this spirit does not wish to be seen."

"There's a strange feeling about his presence, Papa," Marta muttered anxiously. "Something that I have never felt before."

"Yes, daughter, I can feel it too." Erik swallowed, licked dry lips. He took a deep breath, fending off panic and added grimly. "It has a cold…almost…evil feel to it."

TBC