Page 57 of Paws & Order

The rest is torn away.

"No marriage record exists," Miss Nettles says.

"No death record either."

I stare at the clipping.

At the missing woman.

At the gap in the story.

"Who was she?"

Miss Nettles shrugs.

"That's the mystery."

By the time she leaves, I can't stop thinking about it.

Not the haunting.

Not the flowers.

The woman–Emily St. James.

Because that's who E. S. turns out to be.

The records take most of the afternoon to untangle.

Whitmore's name appears everywhere. Boarding records. Tax rolls. Property documents. Then, finally: Emily St. James.

One census entry. One mention. Then nothing. No marriage. No future records. No explanation.

Just absence.

The kind that lingers. The kind that leaves a mark.

For the first time, I stop thinking about Theodore as a ghost.

I start thinking about him as a person. A lonely one.

My phone buzzes.

Cassian: On my way.

Cassian: Should I bring actual food or are you planning to eat crackers for dinner again?

Me: The crackers are artisanal.

Me: Also yes. Bring food.

And maybe wine.

Three dots appear immediately.

Cassian: You're perfect.

I stare at the message longer than I should.