The Ghost of Mahogany Lane, Page 3

  I looked up at him.  I’m not sure if he noticed the deadly stare I gave him.  If he did, it didn’t seem to bother him.

    “Do tell.”  I said flatly.

  “You didn’t notice anything did you?”  He asked and I shook my head like I thought he was crazy.

  “Yeah I thought so.”  He conceded.  “That one family did though.  You know they were black. Packed up and left in a hurry.  They were… peculiar…”

  “Maybe it was a racist ghost.”  I growled and he laughed.  I wasn’t really joking.

  “Aw... too many stories told.  You know.  Mr. Smith, he was adamant that it was haunted.  Whenever he came he asked if anyone saw anything.  He claimed there were shadows and he heard noises and things moved around. Said the lights came on by themselves and he always complained that he couldn’t keep the doors locked.” He said.  "Said he saw a woman.  Which was funny 'cuz ain't no woman lived there before him.”

  “A woman.”  I repeated.  He had to be kidding me.

  “Yes ma’m.  Said she looked pert near as scared of him as he was of her.”

  I wondered if I wasn't seeing a ghost at all.  Could it be that we were... somehow... seeing each other?

  “Said she spoke to him too-something about some number.”

  That got my attention. I think my eyes got big as hubcaps. 

  He rubbed his head like he was trying to think of something he’d forgotten a long time ago. “Aww… shoot… I can’t remember… Ninety Six.  You know he was really superstitious about that number?  He was supposed to ride a train once and he found out it had that number and he wouldn’t ride it!”  Mr Jackson laughed like he thought the whole thing was hogwash.  “He waited all night for the next one.”

  I stared at him.

  I think my heart forgot to beat and my mouth fell open.  A gnat flew in it as it hung open and I coughed and strained at it like I had swallowed a June bug.  Mr. Jackson shook his head and chuckled.

  He rubbed his chin and continued his story.  “I don’t know… that was the train what derailed… Might have saved his life… I guess the Good Lord works in mysterious ways.”

  Yeah, I guess He does.

  Someone told me later that Mr. and Mrs. Smith live in Odum, not far from where the train derailed.  I returned to the library later and asked to see the clipping I had found earlier from the newspaper.  Try as we might, we couldn’t find it.  The Librarian shook her head and told me she didn’t know what I was talking about.  We did find one mention of the train derailing but there was nothing about anyone being hurt or killed.  You can go on over to the Wayne County Public Library and look for yourself if you want, but I’ll tell you right now you won’t find it.