Kylie parked Ray's car rather clumsily outside the Riveras' house, quickly shut off the engine and then turned to Eduardo, wrapping her arms around him and very nearly climbing into his lap.

'Your place first?' she said, with a purr in her voice.

Eduardo shook his head. 'I can't. I'm sorry.'

Kylie raised her eyebrows. 'Can't?'

'I can't concentrate if I know I have to go talk to him after.'

She sighed heavily, leaned her forehead against his shoulder and said, with more than a hint of irony, 'You're killing me.'

He smiled, dropped a kiss on the top of her head and said, 'I'll be as quick as I can.'

'Do you want me to go with you?'

'No. Thank you.'

'Oh, very decisive,' Kylie remarked, but she was smiling when she drew back to look at him. 'Are you ashamed of me or something?'

Eduardo looked at her. 'No, querida, I'm ashamed of him.'

'Well, whatever you want. But I think I should just get close enough for you to give me our tablet half after you show it to Carl, and I'll put it in the glove box.'

'Why?'

'Because if you do happen to find the other half, I think it'd be sensible to keep them apart as much as we can until we get back to the firehouse. You know, in case something happens.'

'Something could happen anyway,' said Eduardo.

'Well, sure,' said Kylie, 'but we'd better try, hadn't we? If Carl does have the other half of the tablet, you can put it in the trunk.'

'I really don't know how likely it is to be there. I mean... it's probably not.'

'I don't think anyone's expecting too much from this, sweetie, but we have to try. Come on, let's go.'

She squeezed his hand, and then they were forced to let go of each other in order to get out of the car. Kylie hung back a few paces while Eduardo took the tablet to his brother's front door and rang the bell. It was Beth who answered, to Eduardo's relief; he'd still have to talk to Carl, he thought, but perhaps Beth could soften him up a bit first.

'Eduardo, hi!' she said, smiling with genuine warmth. 'What can I do for you? Is everything okay?'

'Yeah, fine,' said Eduardo. 'I just need to ask Carl about something. Or... you might know, come to think of it,' and he brightened at the thought.

'Well, I'll certainly help you if I can,' said Beth.

'Do you remember seeing anything like this before?' Eduardo asked, and held up the tablet.

Beth looked at it for a moment, then her face became pensive. 'Oh, that does look familiar...'

'It's half, like, a marriage certificate kind of thing. Lucía used to have the other half in her living room. At least, that's what Adela says. So we think now it must've come down to Carl.'

'Oh, you talked to Adela? How is she?'

'She seemed fine. And very interested in this thing.'

'Well,' said Beth, 'I'm afraid I don't know – you'll have to ask Carl. Oh,' as Carl suddenly loomed behind her and looked suspiciously at Eduardo. 'Good timing, hon. Eduardo wants to ask you something.'

Eduardo couldn't be bothered to go into all the details again just for Carl, so he held up the tablet and said tersely, 'Yaya used to have the other half of this thing in her house. Do you remember what happened to it after she died?'

Carl looked impassively at the tablet for a few moments. Then he said, 'I guess maybe I saw that with some of the stuff Dad inherited from her.'

'He didn't get rid of it?'

'Why should I know?'

'Well,' said Eduardo, 'if he didn't, then it would've come to you, wouldn't it? Since I don't have it.'

Carl shrugged. 'Maybe. If it's anywhere, it's with all the junk he never got around to looking at.'

'And where's that?'

'I don't know. I didn't keep track of it.'

'We have some of her stuff up in the attic room,' said Beth, jumping in before Eduardo could respond to Carl's remark. 'Those boxes with her name on... it could easily be in one of those, couldn't it? Come to think of it, it probably is!'

Carl's face darkened. 'Maybe.' He looked at Eduardo. 'What the hell do you want it for?'

'We think it's haunted,' said Eduardo.

Carl gave a derisive snort before retreating back into the house. Beth watched him, then turned back to Eduardo with an apologetic smile.

'I'll take you up and we'll look for it,' she said.

'Thank you,' said Eduardo. 'Just give me a sec,' and he turned to make his way back towards Kylie, who met him halfway with her hands outstretched for the tablet.

'Give me your door key, too,' she said. 'I'll go up and get ready.'

Eduardo raised an eyebrow. 'Get ready?'

'Well, actually,' she said, with a seductive smile and a coquettish lowering of her eyes, 'I've been ready since you touched me in the kitchen.'

He smiled at that, found his door key, then stooped to kiss her as the key changed hands. After several lingering moments, they went their separate ways, she to the staircase at the side of the building and he back to the main house, where Beth was waiting for him in the doorway.

'So,' she said, giving him a playful nudge, 'you and Kylie!'

'Yeah,' said Eduardo.

'That's so great! I'm really happy for you.'

'Thanks, Beth.'

'Oh dear, this house really needs a big clear-out!' Beth said, minutes later, as she stood shame-faced amongst piled-up boxes and some loose bits of junk. 'I'll have to make that my next big project.'

'Well, we're making a start, anyway,' said Eduardo, as he rummaged around in a box marked Lucía. Carl was watching him with a look of mistrust, leaning against the door frame with his arms folded across his chest.

'Hey, Carlos,' said Eduardo, his head almost inside the box as he delved among its contents, 'have you ever actually looked at this stuff?'

'I don't remember,' said Carl.

'These are old diaries and letters of hers – did you ever read them?'

'No.'

'Carlos,' said Eduardo, surfacing at last to look at his brother, 'do you even want any of this stuff?'

'I don't know.' Carl took a few steps into the room and hovered protectively over the nearest pile of cardboard boxes. 'Probably some of it... most of it.'

'If there's anything you don't want, can I have it?'

'Why? What would you do with it? Lose it, if I know you.'

'Don't be stupid.' Eduardo closed the lid on the box of letters and diaries. 'Okay, no tablet in there.'

'I've found another one,' said Beth, looking inside a Lucía box. She was crouching by one of the two small windows at the side of the house, through which Eduardo could have seen the flat roof of his own apartment, if he had cared to look. 'This is all ornaments and... and other shelf-type stuff... ah-ha!' She looked up, beaming. 'Eduardo, you're going to love me!'

'I already love you,' said Eduardo.

'Aww!' Beth's smile turned gooey.

Carl scowled. 'Do you mean you've found this stupid thing he's after?'

'Well... I might have.' Beth reached into her box, took out a hunk of flat stone and blew the dust off it. 'Yes, I have! This is it, isn't it? Capitán Gaspar etcetera?'

'Beth, you're a star!' Eduardo crossed the room, wrapped his arms around her shoulders and looked down at the tablet in her hands. '"This stone the marriage of What God has joined". Yes, this is definitely it. Whoa.' He had raised his eyes to the crudely carved portrait of Captain Gaspar just above the number 15. 'Carlos, this is the guy who brought the Gaspar nose.'

Carl strode massively over to them; Eduardo took a step back from Beth, dropping his arms to his sides.

'So Yaya was right,' said Carl, sounding completely uninterested. 'She used to insist on it going all the way back to some Captain person. I guess you're too young to remember.'

'No one told me any of this,' said Eduardo, half to himself.

'Here, Eduardo,' said Beth, handing over the tablet.

'What are you going to do with it?' said Carl.

'Never take it out of its box or even know it's there,' said Eduardo. 'Oh no, wait – that was you.'

'You probably want to take it to the firehouse,' said Beth, before Carl could respond, giving Eduardo a light shove towards the doorway. 'I mean, if it's haunted...'

'You're right, I do,' said Eduardo, seeing no need to tell her that there was something else he wanted to do first. 'Thanks for your help, Beth.'

'Any time,' said Beth, as she waved him off down the stairs – the first flight of three before he reached the front door. Once out of the house, he put the tablet in the boot of Ray's car as Kylie had instructed, then ascended the stairs to his apartment and let himself in.

Eduardo opened his mouth to tell Kylie they had found the tablet, then let it hang open, silent, when he saw that her idea of 'getting ready' was to make up his sofa-bed, strip naked and make herself comfortable. She smiled at him. He quickly came to his senses, pushed the door shut behind him and said, smiling back at her, 'I've had this dream before.'

'It's not a dream, babe,' said Kylie.

'Are you sure?' He resisted the urge to go straight to her, instead passing her to fetch a condom from the bathroom. 'Finding exactly what we need in Carl's attic, and then putting it in the trunk of Ray's car, sure seems like a dream.'

'Oh, you found it. Great.'

'Beth found it.'

'Well, good for Beth.'

'Yeah, Beth's one of the good ones, all right.'

'Okay, that's enough thinking about Beth,' said Kylie, as Eduardo lay down beside her and she took him into her arms.

'Okay,' he said hoarsely.

She let out a throaty sigh, gazing at him with half-lidded eyes, and said, 'This feels so much better already. I've been just aching all over for you to touch me.'

'I'll touch you wherever you want, querida.'

'Eduardo... aah... say it...'

'Te tocaré donde quieras.'

'O-oh...'

Those who remained at the firehouse, including Slimer, had gathered around the computer in Egon's lab with Ray at the controls.

'Well,' he said, as he closed the database he'd been looking at, 'it really wasn't worth all of you looking over my shoulder for that, was it? There's no record of Lucía Gaspar or any ghost like her.'

'What about this "Captain" guy?' asked Peter.

'Oh, yeah, him.' Ray reopened the database and started searching. 'Although he hasn't actually done anything, has he?'

'He might have,' said Peter. 'We don't know.'

'If he has,' said Roland, 'I guess no one noticed, or they'd have called us.'

'Not necessarily,' said Ray. 'Someone might've seen him and not worried much about it. Thousands of people have seen ghosts just wandering around, like Lucía was, and didn't think it mattered.'

'Or else thought they were imagining it,' said Peter.

'But I guess we shouldn't speculate,' said Ray. Then, 'No, nothing on Captain Gaspar either.'

'If you ask me,' said Garrett, 'this whole case is getting silly. Ray's right: we shouldn't speculate, and yet we're trying to help a ghost who doesn't even seem to want help anymore, and who won't let us see her or talk to her. I'm starting to agree with Dr V: we should just leave her in her tablet in peace.'

'Well,' said Ray, closing the database yet again, 'if Eduardo comes back with nothing, I guess that's what we'll have to do.'

'I wish we knew what she was doing this morning,' said Roland. 'And if I were Eduardo, I'd want to know even more. Why does someone's great-times-whatever grandmother suddenly wake from the dead and start looking for her husband one night?'

'If that's what she was doing,' said Garrett. 'We don't really know anything for sure, do we?'

'Guess not,' said Peter. 'When you put it like that, Garrett, it makes me sort of hope Eduardo does come back with nothing.'

'Well,' said Roland, 'all we can do is wait. I wonder how long it'll be.'

Ray, before he could even think about stopping himself, said, 'Probably about five to six inches.'

There was a stunned silence. Then, 'Ray!' said Peter, laughing delightedly.

'Ew, ew, ew, ew!' said Garrett, moving away from the group and turning his back on them.

'I don't get it,' said Slimer, looking at Roland, who only shook his head in reply.

'I'm sorry,' said Ray. 'I don't know what came over me.'

'Don't!' said Garrett, whipping his chair round and raising a halting forefinger in Peter's direction.

'I wasn't going to say anything,' Peter said innocently. 'Ray's the one with the dirty mind, not me.'

'So it would seem,' Ray said sheepishly. 'Shall I make everyone some more coffee?'

Garrett, looking pained, shook his head. 'You can't just go back from that to being the coffee fairy, Ray.'

'Oh my God, that was so good,' said Kylie, the words floating on a long sigh as she and Eduardo lay wrapped in each other's arms.

He sighed as well, and kissed her on the forehead. 'Amazing.'

'You're amazing.'

'Mmm... seems I'm better than I thought I was.'

She propped herself up on her elbow to look into his eyes. 'You're a lot better than you give yourself credit for, sweetie.'

He gazed up at her for a moment or two, then raised his hand to the back of her head and brought her down for a tender and heartfelt kiss. They were in the middle of enjoying this, and both starting to feel it might soon change from tender to passionate, when a loud hammering on the door interrupted them. They sprang apart, Kylie startled out of her wits while Eduardo, though furious, was not exactly surprised.

'What the fuck?' He scrambled out of bed and grabbed his jeans on the way to the kitchenette, where he hurriedly disposed of the condom and ran his hands under the tap. 'Cover up, quick, before he breaks the door down.'

'Jesus, really?' Kylie had already picked up Eduardo's T-shirt, and now hastened to put it on.

'I don't know, maybe not,' said Eduardo, as he headed for the front door. 'Nothing's on fire.'

'Not in the literal sense, anyway,' said Kylie, giving him another smile as he looked over to see that she was decent (or at least, decent enough).

Eduardo smiled back, very briefly, before opening the door. The expression with which he greeted Carl on the threshold could not have been further from a smile.

'Carlos, what the –?'

'What the hell have you done now?' barked Carl.

Eduardo didn't know what to say. He heard Kylie stirring behind him, and when she came to stand by him in the doorway, each of them wearing half of the clothes in which he had arrived, he thought it was probably quite obvious what he had done.

'What do you mean, Carl?' Kylie asked levelly.

Carl glared at her. Eduardo didn't like that, and placed a protective arm around her shoulders.

Beth's voice could be heard from the bottom of the stairs, saying in wavering tones, 'Carl, please...'

'So,' said Carl, ignoring her and continuing to glare at Eduardo and Kylie, 'you haven't even noticed. No... I don't suppose you would've. Well, take a look!'

He stepped back and gestured to the street below. Kylie stepped out first, the oversized T-shirt slipping down one shoulder as she stepped away from Eduardo's arm, and he followed. They found themselves looking down at the ghosts of Captain and Lucía Gaspar having a blazing row in rapid Spanish over the roof of Ray's car.

'Well?' said Carl. 'What are you going to do about it?'

'What's going on?' said Kylie. 'What are they saying?'

She looked enquiringly at Eduardo, and saw that his mouth had set into a line and his eyes had hardened. He only shook his head in answer to Kylie's question, then stalked off down the stairs, bare-torsoed and bare-footed as he was. Kylie, trying not to feel annoyed, turned her enquiring look onto Carl.

'This has nothing to do with me,' he said tersely, and retreated down the stairs.

Kylie, having no better ideas and unmindful of her state of undress, also descended the stairs. At the bottom, she stayed a few feet behind Eduardo, who was watching and listening to the ghosts' display with a frown on his face and his arms folded across his chest.

'Hi, Kylie,' said Beth, sidling up to join her.

'Oh, hi,' said Kylie.

'I'm really sorry about Carl.'

'That's okay, Beth. He's not your fault.'

'Would you like to come to dinner with us one night this week?' asked Beth, surprising Kylie with the sudden change of subject.

'Well, that's very kind of you,' said Kylie. 'If it's no trouble.'

'No, no trouble at all. I want you to come.'

'Oh. Then yes, I'd love to. Thank you.'

'How about tomorrow?'

'Sure.'

'Good,' said Beth, smiling. 'I'm looking forward to it.'

'Me too,' said Kylie, though she wasn't sure if that were entirely truthful. She turned her attention back to the ghosts, saying, 'Can you understand any of that?'

Beth listened for a moment, then shook her head. 'Too much and too fast, I'm afraid. But I'm sure Eduardo'll tell you.'

'I'm not,' said Kylie, mostly to herself, as she noticed that the ghost of Captain Gaspar had turned his gaze onto her. The gaze she gave straight back to him was challenging, as she didn't like the way he was looking at her, though she couldn't put her finger on what it might mean.

'Itzel, mírala,' he said, turning back to Lucía but gesturing towards Kylie. 'Una putita!'

Whatever that meant, it was evidently the last straw as far as Eduardo was concerned. His movements stiff, he opened up the back of Ray's car, took out the trap they had brought and aimed it at Gaspar's ghost. Lucía, who had been telling Gaspar in no uncertain terms what she thought of his last remark, retreated into the car's glove compartment the second she saw the entrapment beam; Gaspar, meanwhile, was sucked inside, crying out in explosive Spanish all the way.

'I think those are curse words,' Beth said helpfully.

'I think you're probably right,' said Kylie.

Eduardo put the trap back into the car, then turned and made his way up the stairs without even a glance at Kylie. She turned to follow him, frowning.

'So, I'll see you tomorrow night,' said Beth, before heading back to the house.

When Kylie re-entered the apartment, she found Eduardo putting on a fresh T-shirt and making for the bathroom.

'Eduardo,' she said, and he turned to look at her. 'Please don't get like this.'

'Like what?'

'You're not going to tell me what they were saying, are you?'

Eduardo shrugged, trying to look as if nothing could matter less. 'It was just family stuff.'

'It was important enough for you to trap him over,' said Kylie.

'He was just kinda pissing me off.' He went into the bathroom, washed his hands thoroughly at the basin, then went to the mirror and started messing with his hair. 'Wish I could do that to Carlos when he gets like that.'

'Well... what are you going to do next?'

'About what?'

'About your ghost. Are you going to put him in the containment unit, or what?'

Eduardo stepped back from the mirror, stood in the bathroom doorway and folded his arms. 'He's not my ghost. He's our client's, if he's anyone's.'

'Okay,' said Kylie, 'but that doesn't alter my question: what do we do about him?'

'I don't know,' said Eduardo. 'Take him to the firehouse, for starters.'

'Right.' She tried not to sound frustrated. 'Before we do, I need to freshen up a little. I guess we used all the hot water this morning, didn't we?'

'You could probably have a lukewarm rinse,' he said apologetically.

'Well, that sounds like exactly what I need.'

She made her way towards the bathroom; Eduardo stepped aside to let her pass, but also lowered his arms in order to put a halting hand on her elbow. She looked up at him while he wondered what the hell it was he wanted to say to her, until at last he came out with, 'I'm really glad you're here.'

Kylie smiled at that. 'Me too, babe.'

Proceedings had completely stalled at the firehouse and Peter, Ray, Roland and Garrett had ended up playing cards around the coffee table, all with at least half an ear open for Kylie and Eduardo's return.

'There they are!' Ray said brightly, when he caught the sound of his own car engine from below, shortly followed by the bang of the doors closing and then muffled conversation.

'Uh-oh,' said Garrett.

'What?' said Roland.

'They're having some kind of an argument,' said Garrett, making a face. 'Listen.'

The voices coming from below were not raised, but they were tense.

'I don't know,' Eduardo was saying. He was carrying both halves of the tablet, one in each hand, as they made for the stairs. 'Ask Ray or somebody – it's not my decision.'

Kylie, carrying the trap, said, 'You trapped him.'

'That was just on impulse. You can un-trap him if you want – I don't care.'

'You don't care?'

'Not about him, no,' said Eduardo.

'And you don't want me to know why,' said Kylie. 'Maybe it's none of my business, but –'

'I don't mean it like that,' he said, stopping halfway up the stairs to turn and look at her.

'Okay. Look, I'm not trying to make you feel bad, and I know I'm not entitled to anything just because we...' She stopped, took a breath and started again. 'The problem is, how can "Ray or somebody" know what's best to do if you won't tell anybody what was happening?'

Eduardo sighed. 'I don't know. I guess maybe I will.'

'When?'

'Later.' He turned, carried on to the top of the stairs, went to the couch and dropped both tablet halves onto it, between Roland and Ray. 'Here.' Then he turned and headed for the spiral staircase.

'Oh, look, they found it,' said Ray, understating his surprise, and he picked up Captain Gaspar's tablet half.

'That's not all.' Kylie dropped the trap onto the coffee table with a clatter, disarranging the playing cards that were on it. Then she flopped down onto the arm of the couch, gestured at the trap and said, like a butler in a costume drama announcing a guest, 'Captain Gaspar.'

'Wow, really?' said Roland.

'What happened?' said Ray.

'It doesn't sound like she knows,' said Garrett.

'I know what happened,' said Kylie. 'I just don't know what it was all about. He and Lucía both came out of their tablet halves, and they were having this huge fight in the middle of the street. I have no idea what it was about, but apparently it was worth Eduardo trapping Gaspar over.'

'But not Lucía?' said Ray.

'No,' said Kylie. 'She's back in her tablet. Again.'

'And Eduardo won't tell you what it was all about?' said Roland.

Kylie shook her head.

'Maybe Gaspar said something about you,' said Garrett.

'I think he did, actually,' said Kylie. 'He was looking at me right before he said it. I think he called me some kind of name.'

'Can you remember what it was?' asked Garrett. 'Maybe I learned it in school.'

'No, it didn't stick,' said Kylie. 'But it probably doesn't matter very much. A lot of other things were said between them – I don't suppose it was all about me.'

'It would explain why Eduardo doesn't want to tell you,' said Roland.

'Right,' said Garrett. 'He doesn't seem to want to tell you a damn thing. You guys aren't gonna go back to square one, are you, Ky?'

'No,' said Kylie. 'We can't – not now.'

'Square one-A, then,' said Garrett.

Peter, sensing that everything worth hearing had been said for the time being, put down the cards he was still holding and made his way over to the spiral staircase. He found Eduardo on the roof, leaning on the parapet and gazing at the street below.

'Some day you're having,' said Peter.

Eduardo looked round briefly, then turned away again and rested his chin on his hand. 'Have I blown it already?'

'With Kylie?' said Peter, as he drew up beside him. 'I don't think so.'

'Huh,' said Eduardo. 'Hope not. But I guess you came to ask about the ghosts, didn't you? How much did Kylie tell you?'

'They were having a bust-up in the street; he said something to make you trap him; she went back into her tablet.'

'That's about the size of it.'

'But you won't tell Kylie what he said.'

'No.'

'Tell me,' Peter said invitingly.

Eduardo sighed, then took a few moments to organise his thoughts. Peter did not press him.

'Gaspar doesn't like her,' Eduardo said at last.

'Who,' said Peter, 'his wife, or Kylie?'

'Kylie. That's what it was all about... as far as I could tell. I don't know – it seems like a weird thing to wake up for after four hundred and fifty years.'

Peter didn't say anything.

'But that's what he was saying, anyway,' Eduardo went on, after a pause. 'He said she was inadecuada... unsuitable. Not what a woman ought to be, and all that kind of stuff.' Then his facial muscles tensed, almost imperceptibly, as he added, 'He called her a whore.'

'What an asshole,' said Peter.

'A little whore.'

'No wonder you didn't want to tell her. And no wonder you're angry.'

'It's not just that,' said Eduardo. 'I mean, it's not exactly any of the other stuff he said about her. I don't know... maybe I'm reading too much into it...'

'Tell me if you want to,' said Peter. 'It won't go any further.'

'Apart from... that,' said Eduardo, finding he didn't want to repeat Gaspar's insult again, 'it wasn't what he said about Kylie that bothered me. I mean, it's okay that she's what some dick from the fifteen hundreds calls "unsuitable". I like that about her.'

'Of course.'

'It's the rest of them.'

'The rest of who?' asked Peter.

'People like my mother, and Beth... why didn't he show up for them? Okay, maybe they're a little more... what's the word?'

'Traditional?'

'Yeah, okay,' said Eduardo. 'But that don't make them weak and submissive and shit like that.'

'Of course not,' said Peter.

'The tablet was in Carlos's attic, about ten or fifteen feet from where we were... from where we were. But even if you wanna say it didn't happen to anybody else because they weren't close enough to the stupid thing when they first got together, that doesn't explain about Bess.'

'Weren't you just talking about her?'

'No,' Eduardo said heavily. 'Beth is my sister-in-law; Bess is my ex. And she's a first class human being. She was sort of shy, y'know? So now I'm thinking Gaspar took that to mean she was some kind of doormat.'

'Does it really matter what he thinks?' Peter asked.

'No. I shouldn't care.'

'You told Kylie you didn't.'

'I told her I didn't care what happened to him. That's different.'

'Y'know,' said Peter, 'I'm sure the guy hasn't thought about any of this half as much as you have. I don't for one moment think he's spent time getting to know Kylie, or any of them, and made a conscious decision. She just happens to have something the others don't have – or at least your ex doesn't – that's set him off. Probably some kind of a sexual thing, now that I think about it.'

Eduardo gave him a sidelong look. 'Don't think about it. I told you, I'm not talking about that.'

'I'm not asking you to tell me anything; you clearly respect them both too much for that. But it's a thought, isn't it? You said this Bess was shy. Kylie's not. Maybe... and remember, I'm not asking for any details... maybe Bess was more submissive sexually?' He couldn't quite help putting the question mark into his voice, despite his insistence that he wasn't asking.

'Submissive sexually.' Eduardo echoed the words as though they tasted bitter. 'Those kinds of ideas are so outdated, man.'

'Yes,' said Peter, 'I think so too. But Captain Gaspar doesn't, does he?'

'Yeah, well... I don't guess it really makes a difference to anything.'

'Doesn't it make you feel better?'

'Should it?'

'Yes! That was why I made the suggestion: so you'd stop thinking of it as some kind of personal attack. And y'know, I think I'm right. I mean, if he called Kylie a –'

'Don't say it,' said Eduardo. 'I don't like it. I know you're not agreeing with him or nothing, but... I just don't like it, that's all.'

'Okay,' said Peter.

'But anyway, the... the really weird thing is... I had a dream just like it.'

'What do you mean?'

'Last night. I was dreaming that my dad was around, and he didn't like Kylie.'

'Ugh,' said Peter, wrinkling his nose. 'Dead parent dreams don't get any easier, kid. Well... they're bittersweet, I guess.'

'Oh, mine aren't that bad,' said Eduardo. 'Just weird. I mean, I always remember, and I say to him, "I really thought you died," and he says, "No, I was just injured," and I say, "So where have you been all this time?" and he says, "In the hospital," and I think: I'm sure that's not right.'

'Nice dream for you to have, last night of all nights.'

'It's fine. I only mentioned it because I thought it might be relevant... like, maybe Gaspar caused it, or it caused him... I don't know. It's just like something my dad would think, and I'm half expecting something like it from Carlos. But I really didn't expect it from a ghost.'

'Your brother doesn't like Kylie?' said Peter. 'Well, that sucks.'

'He hasn't said so,' said Eduardo, gazing hard at the street below. 'But whenever anything good happens to me, he tries to sabotage it. Well... I don't know how hard he really tries, but he does it anyway.' Then he stopped abruptly, stood up straight and looked warily at Peter. 'How do you get me to talk so much, anyway?'

'Maybe you want to talk,' said Peter. 'To somebody whose opinion doesn't matter much. Hell, I don't even have an opinion.'

'Sure you do.'

'Okay, I have the opinion that Kylie's good for you, and that your brother sounds like a dick. But y'know, he might surprise you this time. He might think Kylie's really, really great.'

'I don't think so. Not now. And it's not fair because he called us outside to see what the ghosts were doing, and I really think she forgot she was only wearing my T-shirt.'

'She was?' Peter's expression became suddenly much less serious. 'I love when they do that. Oh, don't look like that – I don't mean out on the street. I just mean when they walk around with your shirt on. That's sexy.'

Eduardo returned his gaze to the street below. 'The sexiest thing is that she wants to wear my shirt.'

'Oh, absolutely. That's the best: when they want you as badly as she clearly does.'

'For now.'

'Hey...'

'So what about these ghosts, anyway?'

'Right, the ghosts,' said Peter. 'One in a trap and one in her anchor object. Our client's a really nice lady, y'know – we're going to have to decide something. All of us. So would you let me tell the others just the facts? That Captain Gaspar was talking trash about Kylie – I won't tell them what you told me he said – and that made you mad enough to trap him.'

'Okay,' said Eduardo, 'you can tell them that.'

'Great. I'll go do that now, then.'

'But I'd better be the one to tell Kylie. She wants me to.'

'Good idea,' said Peter. 'Are you coming down, or shall I send her up?'

'Send her?' said Eduardo, with a wry smile. 'I don't think I'd better have her sent.' He straightened up and stepped away from the parapet. 'I'll come down.'

After learning 'just the facts' from Peter, Ray went to the kitchen and produced a huge, steaming tray of lasagne from the oven. The smell of this enticed Peter, Roland and Garrett to follow him, and Garrett to say, 'Ray, if any of that's for me, I forgive you for being gross earlier.'

'There's plenty for everyone,' said Ray, as the tantalising aroma brought Kylie and Eduardo down from the top floor.

'We're definitely keeping him,' said Eduardo, taking a seat at the table with Kylie while Ray spooned out generous portions of lasagne.

'Thank you, Ray,' said Roland.

'Me, me, me!' said Slimer, appearing on the scene but soon departing, content, with a family-sized portion of pasta.

'I wasn't even thinking about lunch,' said Kylie. 'Thanks, Ray.'

'It's a working lunch,' said Ray. 'We have to decide what to do with Captain Gaspar.'

'Shouldn't Eduardo decide that?' said Roland.

Eduardo scowled at him for that, and said, 'What the hell for?'

'He's your ancestor,' said Roland.

'So?' said Eduardo. 'Sharing DNA don't give anybody any rights over anybody else.'

'There can't be very much of his own DNA left by now, anyway,' said Ray. 'Remember, it halves with every generation.'

'This has nothing to do with DNA,' said Eduardo.

'So what does it have to do with?' asked Garrett.

'I don't know,' said Eduardo.

'It has to do with Lucía,' said Kylie. 'As far as I'm concerned, Gaspar can go into the containment unit and stay there, but where would that leave her?'

'I think,' Ray said tentatively, with a sidelong look at Eduardo, 'we should try to talk to her.'

Eduardo nodded. 'So do I.'

'Oh, good.' Ray was pleasantly surprised. 'I thought maybe you wouldn't want to.'

'There's nothing wrong with her,' said Eduardo. 'Just the opposite, in fact. She defended you,' he added, looking at Kylie.

'Oh, then we like her,' said Roland.

'Let's get her into Heaven, quick,' said Garrett.

'It's not that easy, though, is it?' said Eduardo. 'How are we supposed to get her out of that tablet?'

'Recreate the circumstances of the last two times?' said Peter.

'What,' said Garrett, 'you mean send Ky and Eddie upstairs to –?'

'Oh, don't be stupid, Garrett!' snapped Kylie, glaring at him across the table.

'I'm just being practical, Ky,' said Garrett. 'I don't like it any more than you do... probably a lot less, actually, but... that's what triggered this thing, right?'

Kylie looked about to say more, but Eduardo took hold of her hand under the table and said, 'Me and Kylie triggered Captain Gaspar at some point. He wakes up to act like an asshole, and then his wife comes and tries to get him to stop being an asshole. So we can't recreate the circumstances without releasing Gaspar.'

'That's interesting,' said Ray, 'as ghost activity goes. It doesn't sound like it's really about you, Kylie; they must have something to work out between themselves.'

'Thanks, Ray,' said Kylie, 'but I really don't care what some ghost conquistador thinks of me.'

'So... should we release him?' asked Peter.

'We could try that,' said Ray, 'but first, I think we should try everything we can to get Lucía by herself. It sounds like she's reasonable and he's not.'

'Y'know,' said Eduardo, 'her name's not really Lucía.'

Everyone looked at him, dumbfounded. Then Roland said, 'What do you mean?'

'I mean Lucía's not really her name.'

Roland gave him an irritable look.

'Her name's Itzel,' said Eduardo.

'Itzel?' said Peter. 'Really?'

'That's what Gaspar called her,' said Eduardo. 'She must be an Aztec or a Mayan or something.'

'Of course!' said Ray. 'That was her cultural dress.'

'So,' said Roland, 'he gave her a Spanish name but didn't use it?'

'Looks like it,' said Eduardo. 'I guess they must've used it publicly, mustn't they? I mean, that's what they used to do. Typical invaders. But today, he was calling her Itzel. I like that better, anyway. Lucía was my grandmother.'

'All right,' said Garrett, 'Itzel it is. But to get back to the point, if we aren't going to release Gaspar, what are we going to do?'

'Well,' said Ray, 'I thought perhaps the ghost beacon...?'

'Ugh,' said Kylie.

Eduardo, squeezing her hand under the table, said, 'The ghost beacon makes shit happen.'

'Well,' Roland said reasonably, 'it did the only time one of us used it. You heard about that, right?' he added, looking from Ray to Peter and back again.

'We've heard something about it,' said Ray. 'But it'll be different this time, in controlled conditions, with all of us here.'

'Right,' said Kylie, sounding a little sick, 'and we have her PKE signature, so we'll know if it's something else pretending.'

'Pretending?' said Ray, who had not heard this part of the story.

'Never mind about last time,' said Eduardo, changing his squeeze on Kylie's hand to a light caress with his thumb. 'What about this time?'

'It'd be best if you operated the beacon, Eduardo,' said Ray. 'Despite what we were saying a few minutes ago about DNA not meaning anything and being halved every time, you do share some of hers, and it will make a difference.'

'Madre de Dios,' Eduardo muttered, and he felt Kylie give his hand a squeeze, just as he had done to hers. He took an audible breath, then said, 'Okay, fine, whatever. I mean, if it won't make any difference me not trusting the thing.'

'Could you, maybe, try to trust it?' said Ray.

Eduardo looked doubtful. 'Sure, I could try...'

'That's decided, then,' Peter said bracingly. 'I love this plan. I'm excited to be a part of it.'

Eduardo gave him a sceptical look. 'What are you gonna do?'

'I know the kinds of questions we need to ask her,' said Peter. 'So does Ray. You're our interpreter. These three are going to listen,' he added, gesturing vaguely towards Kylie, Garrett and Roland.

'Oh, really?' said Garrett.

'You might learn something,' Peter said facetiously. He was trying to lighten the mood – anybody could see that – but by the time Eduardo was piling up tomato sauce-smeared plates in the sink, he was still looking far from light-hearted.

'Whenever you're ready,' said Ray, with an encouraging smile at the back of Eduardo's head, as he filed out of the kitchen behind Peter, Roland and Garrett, with Kylie following.

'Kylie,' said Eduardo.

She broke away from the group and turned to face him. He turned too, and leaned against the edge of the sink.

'It wasn't supposed to be like this,' he said.

Kylie gave him a cock-eyed look. 'It wasn't?'

Eduardo laughed at that. 'No.'

'Was it supposed to be like last night?' She crossed the room, wrapped her arms around his waist and held her cheek against his sternum. 'And first thing this morning? And later this morning?'

'Yes. Well... more like the first two.'

'I loved all of it... every moment alone with you. You've made me very happy, Eduardo.'

He smiled, then bent his neck to kiss the top of her head. 'I'm happy too.'

Kylie raised her head and kissed him on the lips. The kiss went on for a great number of seconds, then Eduardo pulled his head up and out of her reach, saying, 'Okay. Work to do.'

'Yeah,' Kylie said with a sigh.

'Do you want to sit this one out?'

'Why?'

'Well, because... you know. You obviously don't like the idea.'

She smiled at him. 'That's sweet.'

'You didn't know I'd be so sweet,' he murmured, recalling what she had said in his arms the night before. 'Well, why should you?'

'Hey. I didn't mean I was surprised.'

'If you don't want to be there...'

'Of course I want to be there,' said Kylie. 'For you.'

Eduardo smiled. 'That's sweet.'

'So... we'd better go get started, hadn't we?'

'Yeah...'

They didn't move.

'Okay,' said Kylie, 'let's just remember that we have something to look forward to. I'm taking you home with me later, sweetie. If you'll come.'

'I'm absolutely positive that I will come,' said Eduardo, grinning, and Kylie laughed.

'I'll make sure of it,' she said. 'Remember, when we've got all night, you're going to show me exactly how to –'

'Kylie, Kylie, querida, you bewitching little goddess,' said Eduardo, holding her tightly against him and resting his chin on the top of her head. 'I absolutely love hearing this stuff from you. In fact, I love it too much for the workplace.'

'Right, right, I'm sorry,' said Kylie. 'I haven't learned. Think about something icky.'

'Like using the ghost beacon?'

'Ha... yeah.'

'Okay,' he said, and gave her a peck on the forehead before dropping his arms so she could step away. 'Let's do this.'