The Silent Ghost by Sue Ann Jaffarian Read Free Book Online

skeptical. “Come on.”
    “Really. As for reporting back to my mother, we’ve set boundaries. Mom said Granny can onlyvisit me if she doesn’t interfere with my studies, and I only allow her to visit if she respects my privacy.”
    Tanisha’s mouth twitched. “Kind of what happens in Boston stays in Boston?”
    Granny pointed at Tanisha, but spoke to Kelly. “She said the same thing I did, but you rolled your eyes at me.”
    Kelly relayed Granny’s words to Tanisha, who still wasn’t sure what to make of it. If not for her own experience and Nonna’s stories, she might have dismissed Kelly Whitecastle as a kook—a spoiled rich kid living in a fantasy world. Maybe even a modern-day Elwood P. Dowd. “I wish my ghost was as friendly as Granny.”
    Granny went back to drifting about the room. “I don’t sense any other spirits here today. Whoever this ghost is, she’s a no-show.” Kelly passed along the comment.
    “She’s probably worn out from harassing me last night.” Tanisha rubbed a hand over her tired eyes. “It was the worst yet. I was actually wondering if she was going to hurt me.”
    “My mother says ghosts can’t harm us physically, but they can intimidate us emotionally and mentally.”
    “That’s exactly what’s happening.” Tanisha held her hands out in a pleading gesture. “I don’t experience much depression, but when that ghost is around, I feel so…so…” Tanisha looked for the right word. “Abandoned. That’s what I feel. Abandoned and hopeless. Like I want to crawl into a hole. At the same time, I feel it’s trying to tell me something but can’t.”
    Granny came near again, her face swathed in concern. “Tell her to be careful. Remember how Emma had that ghost earlier that was making people kill themselves.”
    Kelly wasn’t sure she wanted to tell Tanisha something that might scare her more. Instead, she warned, “Just make sure this ghost doesn’t make you do things you don’t want to do. My mother has run into that situation. A vicious ghost might get into your head and screw with you. When you feel it attacking you mentally, you have to fight it off.”
    Tanisha seemed on the edge of breaking. “I can’t do this forever.” She turned to Granny. “Can youhelp, Granny? Can you find this ghost and tell her to knock it off?”
    “I can try,” Granny answered. “But it sounds like she needs help and might not stop until she gets it.”
    Kelly relayed the words, then asked Granny her own question, “What should we do then?”
    The ghost drifted around the room as she gave the situation thought. When she returned to the two young women, she said with determination, “The real question is, what would Emma do?”

Chapter 6
    “But I don’t want to call Mom about this,” Kelly answered. “It will only upset her.”
    “What did Granny say?” asked Tanisha, looking from Kelly to Granny.
    “I didn’t say to call Emma,” Granny clarified. “Just think about how she would handle this.”
    After filling Tanisha in, Kelly decided Granny might be right. Her mother had handled lots of difficult spirits, usually by finding out more about their background when they were alive. But how could she do that if the ghost didn’t show itself?
    After a few minutes, Kelly turned to Tanisha. “Did you say you only feel this way here in the apartment?”
    “Yes,” Tanisha admitted. “Maybe I should move after all. Dad will just have to suck it up.”
    Kelly got off the stool and walked around the living area, circling the perimeter. “I’m thinking the ghost is attached to this place specifically. Could be a prior owner trying to tell you something.”
    “Or trying to get her to leave,” added Granny.
    “Or trying to make me leave,” Tanisha commented almost at the same time.
    Granny studied Tanisha, then turned to Kelly with a grin. “I like this girl. We think alike—great minds and all.”
    Kelly ignored the remark and continued walking around the loft as if the