Ghosts of Coronado Bay by J. G. Faherty Read Free Book Online Page B

rising from the sidewalk. If the passerby happened to step through the twisting waves, they might have shivered in response to a sudden, momentary chill.
    To each other, the ghosts appeared as solid and normal as the world around them.
    They kept sharp sailors’ eyes on Blake and Maya until the two teenagers disappeared around a corner.
    “P’raps this be something Mister Hamlin ought to be knowin’ about,” said the taller of the two, a gruff-looking, whiskered man who looked to be about sixty, the same as when he’d died.
    “Aye.” His companion, a wide-shouldered mate with tattooed arms and a scarred neck, nodded. A pipe stuck out from the corner of his mouth, wisps of gray smoke trailing upwards from the bowl. The two figures turned and headed for the museum.
    In their wake, a man exiting the barbershop paused as he caught a whiff of cherry-scented tobacco, similar to the kind his grandfather used to smoke. He looked around, but no one else occupied the sidewalk.
     

 
     
     

Chapter 6
     
     
    “This is your house?”
    Maya and Blake stood in her driveway, Blake looking in awe at the four-bedroom brick and wood colonial.
    “Yeah, that’s the old homestead. We’ve lived here since I was like two.”
    “Your family must be very well off.”
    Having grown up on an island where they were one of the few families who didn’t own second homes in Florida or New York, and who didn’t drive a BMW or Mercedes - or both - Maya was taken aback by the thought of someone considering her rich. She wondered what Blake’s family had been like. It was hard to tell from talking to him. He dressed in work-style clothes, but then on a boat that made sense. He didn’t speak like a sailor, though. His words were well thought out, and his vocabulary better than a lot of the kids she knew, even if it was out of date.
    “Actually, we’re basic middle class. Even though my parents own the diner, they both have to work just about every day because they can’t afford to hire a full-time manager. Compared to a lot of the people in town, we’re sort of the opposite of well off.”
    Blake pursed his lips. “Truly things have changed.”
    Before she could respond, Maya’s cell phone rang. Blake jumped and stared as she pulled out the phone and glanced at the screen. “It’s my mom. Shhh. I’m not supposed to have boys over when no one’s home.”
    Clicking the talk button, she said in a louder voice, “Hi, Mom. What’s up? Huh? Yeah, I got everything you wanted. Yes, I’ll be there on time. I’m getting ready right now. Bye!”
    After making sure she’d closed the connection, Maya turned to Blake. “Sorry, but I gotta get to work. We’re still on for tonight, right?”
    Still gazing at the cell phone, he said, “Yes. Coronado Lanes.”
    “Nine-thirty. See you then.” Maya stepped back, but stopped when Blake moved forward and grasped her hands. Before she knew what was happening, he leaned in and kissed her, a long, full kiss that left her speechless when he finally broke it off.
    “Nine-thirty. Goodbye, Maya.” He turned and walked away, his body gradually fading into nothingness as he left her sphere of influence, until nothing of him remained except an exciting tingle on her lips and tongue.
    Shaking herself out of her daze, Maya went inside and quickly got dressed for work. As she did so, her mind kept replaying Blake’s kiss, followed by a question she couldn’t answer.
    How stupid is it to fall for a ghost?
     
    *  *  *
     
    Silence ruled the hallways of the Maritime Museum once it closed for the night. Lit only by emergency lights, the high-ceilinged hallways and exhibition rooms acted as a passive alarm system, reflecting and amplifying the slightest of sounds from one room to the next, in the same manner as a system of caves. For that reason, Gavin Hamlin always held back from searching for the lost key until he was sure all the employees had taken their leave for the night. He never wasted his time,