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“What?” I startled, knocking over a box of crackers. “No, no. Nothing like that. Honestly, it’s been a nice distraction.”

“Ireland has plenty of history. Plenty of ghosts to chase.”

“If I wanted…if I wanted to speak to it? Him?” I corrected quickly. Tommy stared at me blankly. “We’re going to be roommates for two months.” I lightened my tone, knocking my elbow into his. “Would be nice if he wasn’t slamming doors in my face all the time.”

He chuckled, tension slipping away from him. “Isadora runs a little shop down the way. Does tarot and sells crystals and the like. She’d be the one to speak to.”

I nodded my thanks and hauled my basket to the counter. Half the items in here were ones I didn’t need but I paid for them anyway, hauling my bags further down the sidewalk to seek out Isadora.

Her shop curved on the steepest part of the hill, windows angled on a slant. I shifted my bags to my other hand and pressed inside, the sweet scent of incense and candles settling over me.

The woman behind the counter certainly looked like an Isadora. Silver-white hair, rings on every finger, two crystals around her neck. A bird sat perched in the back of the shop, large black eyes trained wholly on me.

“Welcome in.” Her voice was smooth, barely above a whisper. “How can I help you?”

“Hi.” I dropped my bags, flexing my fingers. “My name is Avery. I’m—”

“Ah, so you’re the American in Kilmorran.” She bobbed her head and slid from behind the counter. “You’re here for the ghost.”

I stared at her, taken aback. “I’m—yes, yes I am.”

She moved to a basket and collected a handful of white candles. She turned to look at me, eyes narrowing. It was a shrewd perusal of my person. Finally, she had whatever information she deemed necessary and grabbed incense from a basket.

“You wouldn’t be the first to try and reach him,” she warned. “He is famously difficult to reach.”

My head snapped up. “You’ve tried?”

“We’ve all tried, dear. They brought a television crew out and everything. Ghost hunting.” She rolled her eyes. “He didn’t take kindly to that.”

“I see.”

“What is your interest in him?” She held the candles back, fingers curled protectively around them.

I gave her the same explanation I gave to Tommy—that I would like to live in a peaceful, non-hostile environment and enjoy my time in Ireland. It seemed to be the correct answer, because Isadora rung me up for my supplies.

“Have you ever done a séance?” she asked warily.

“Nope.” I took the bags. “I’ll figure it out.”

She laughed, the sound high and shrill. “You can’t just ‘figure it out’. You might invite something far worse into the castle. Now, here’s what you need to do.”

I stood there for forty-five minutes while Isadora gave me precise instructions on how to set up the space, how to center myself, and who to call for. Holding an object that belonged to the person was a start and would ensure that they alone came through. She said to make my intentions clear and ask my questions and let them come to me. To sense what is beside me but remains unseen.

I did my best to remember everything. Before I left, she handed me a bundle of sage and a crystal.

“When you’re done,” she said. “Cleanse the space and your own energy. Don’t want to be dragging anyone around with you, do you?”

I shook my head, heart stuck in my throat.

Arms loaded, I hiked back to Kilmorran to catch a ghost.

Chapter 6

Wolfe

The woman was incessant.

The perk of being dead, he supposed, was that he could watch and snoop and draw his own conclusions without being perceived.