Chapter 25: Fake Psychic

The next morning, Ed awoke in the plush bedroom at Ellen’s mansion. It had been ages since he was in his own bed.

He got up, showered, and packed his bag again. He carried it downstairs to the main entrance.

Should he go to the family room? There’d be delicious coffee, but he’d have to face Ellen. Before he knew it, he’d postpone leaving again.

Something told him it was best to leave now.

Ed stepped outside and found his car parked in front. The keys were inside. That decided it for him. He put his bag in the back seat. Ed wondered about Absaroke. Someone probably let him out last night.

Ed got in the front and started the ignition. He’d have to stop by his apartment before going to work. He drove off, waving at the gate guard on the way out.

The guard called the main house. “Excuse me, miss. Your guest just departed. You said to inform you.”

“Yes, thank you.” Ellen ended the call.

Ed returned to his apartment and dropped off his bag. He then left again for work.

Ed arrived at his workplace. He checked in with his boss before starting on bug fixes. Fortunately, his boss didn’t ask questions.

Mid-morning, he got a call from Ellen.

“Hello, Ellen.”

“Hey, Ed. Missed you this morning. Are you okay?”

“I wanted to get to work early. I have to catch up, since my productivity numbers tanked recently.”

“Oh, okay. Well, I have the report on the fake psychic.”

“Can I visit this evening to review it with you?”

“Sure.”

“Great, see you this evening.”

Ed ended the call.

While he worked on bug fixes, he thought about the problem with the fake psychic.

By quitting time, Ed had an idea. He left work and drove to police headquarters.

Ed parked and walked out near the entrance. Soon, Ed found Sara floating overhead. He waved at her and she descended to greet him.

“Hello, Ed,” she said.

“Hello, Sara. Ellen has a report on the fake psychic. I’m going to see her this evening. Could you find the poltergeist and bring him to Ellen’s home?” asked Ed.

“Sure. We’ll meet you there,” she said.

Sara floated off and Ed returned to his car.

Ed arrived at Ellen’s mansion. The security guard at the gate waved him through, and he drove to the front entrance.

Ellen wasn’t waiting at the front door. Ed entered and walked to the family room. He felt strange visiting after staying there for the last few days.

Ellen stood when he arrived. He walked over to her and they hugged.

“I missed you today. I was getting used to us here together. How was your work?” asked Ellen.

“It was good to return to work. I’m worried I could lose my job with so many absences.”

“I’m glad you’re back where you’re happy,” she said.

“Thank you. I asked Sara and the poltergeist to visit. I have a plan for this fake psychic.”

“Okay. We can wait for them to arrive. Would you like a coffee?”

“I’d love one, thank you.”

Ellen poured two mugs of coffee. She knew how much he enjoyed his coffee, and she knew just how to prepare it for him.

“Since you just came from work, I had some sandwiches prepared. Please help yourself.”

“Thank you, Ellen.”

Soon, they sat on the sofa with their coffee and sandwiches. Sara and the poltergeist arrived through a wall.

“Ellen, our guests have arrived,” said Ed.

“Okay. Shall I read the report now?” asked Ellen.

Ed nodded. “Sara, this is a report on the fake psychic.”

“Understood.”

Ellen read the report from her laptop. The report detailed how he cheated people of their money, pretending to be a psychic. He moved occasionally whenever people got suspicious.

“So, he’s a piece of work!” said Sara.

“Exactly,” said Ed. “Sara said he’s a piece of work.”

“So you have a plan, Ed?” asked Ellen.

“Yes. Sara, can you escort the poltergeist to visit this Guy Selig? If the psychic uses tarot cards or a ouija board, he can mess with it. During readings or seances, he can throw objects at the psychic. Our poltergeist is to have fun.”

“Sure, we can do that. Can we see a picture of him and his address, please?”

Ellen put up a photo of Guy Selig and also showed his address. She even pulled it up on Google maps for them.

“Thank you. You know, as a ghost, we don’t have notebooks, so we have to use our memory,” said Sara.

“Ed, I think you should talk with the widow, or she’ll find another psychic,” said Ellen.

“Good idea.”

“Agreed. And Sara agrees with you. I’ll fit her in tomorrow.”

“I can text you her contact info.”

“Thanks. Can you print me a copy of the report without the cover page?” asked Ed.

“Sure. It’ll be ready in a couple of minutes.”

“Ed, we can leave now, unless you have something else to share?” asked Sara.

“No, that’s all we had. Thanks for coming by. Have fun torturing the psychic!”

The two ghosts disappeared.

“They’ve gone.”

“Good.”

Ellen closed her laptop and leaned over and kissed Ed.

A while later, Ed left Ellen’s mansion and drove home.

He wondered what he’d say to the widow to convince her the psychic was fake. He didn’t want to claim to be a psychic himself. The scenarios he envisioned didn’t work.

On the way home, Ed stopped at the local grocery store and picked up some cream and fresh roasted coffee beans. After the delicious coffee from Ellen, he felt nothing would compare.

Ed returned to his apartment and put the cream away in the fridge. He was all set for tomorrow’s coffee.

Then he got ready for bed.

Next morning, Ed woke up in his apartment. He was relieved to be home again. He showered, dressed, and got a coffee.

Ed sat on the sofa and picked up his book. No matter how he tried, he couldn’t get beyond chapter one. His life was too busy.

He put the book down and sipped his coffee. It wasn’t as good as Ellen’s.

Ed’s phone rang. He didn’t recognize the number. The caller ID said “Seattle Central College”.

Ed picked up his phone and answered the call.

“Hello, this is Ed.”

“Is that Ed Tanner, the medicine man?”

“Yes, that’s me. Who is this?” asked Ed.

“I’m Bob Wilkins, I’m deputy principal at Seattle Central College. I was told you might help me.”

“Good morning, Bob. What sort of help do you need?”

“Well, this is rather embarrassing. We have a ghost problem. One of our classrooms is haunted.”

“Yes. That sounds like a problem. I have work today, and I have an appointment to see someone this evening. Perhaps I can meet you at the college tomorrow evening?”

“Okay,” said Bob. He gave directions where to meet.

“See you tomorrow, Bob.”

Ed ended the call. Now his calendar was booked out two evenings ahead!

Ed finished his coffee and left for work.

Ed arrived at work. He said hello to his co-worker, Blake, before diving into work on software bug fixes. He got through lots of issues.

In the early afternoon, Ed called the widow Catherine Clark.

“Hello?”

“Catherine Clark, my name is Ed Tanner. Would it be okay to stop by this evening? I need to discuss an urgent matter with you.”

“What urgent matter?”

“I’d rather not discuss it on the phone, which is why I’d like to talk with you in person.”

After confirming her address, Ed ended the call.

Meanwhile, Guy Selig was working with another client, to relieve them of their hard-earned money.

“If you’ll come this way, Mrs. Pearson,” he said.

Guy escorted the elderly lady into his back parlor.

“What happened to your Neon sign?” she asked.

“I don’t know. It just went on the fritz earlier today. My phone isn’t working either.”

“Oh, dear!”

“Perhaps it’s the spirits trying to communicate. Let’s see if we can contact the spirit of your departed husband,” he said.

Guy had a ouija board on the table to receive messages from beyond the grave. Actually, it was child’s play to move the pointer wherever he wanted and spell out a suitable message.

“Now gently place your finger on the pointer, and we’ll begin,” he said. “Are there spirits present who wish to communicate with us?”

The lights in the room flickered. Guy looked up, surprised. He hadn’t done that, but it was perfect timing.

Guy pushed the pointer to “yes”, then returned it to the middle. Something he’d done so many times before.

“We’re fortunate. Someone wants to talk to us. Please share your message with us.”

Guy had a message prepared. Something to lure the client into paying more money.

When he tried to push the pointer, it wouldn’t move. Then it moved a different direction.

Guy looked up at the old lady. She only had her finger lightly on the pointer. Nobody else was there.