Tick Tock (Storage Ghosts) Read Online Free PDF Page A

said, “Well, Grace, this is a right carry on!”
     
    Chapter 8
     
    Lynne
gave Grace a gentle smile and said, “You’ve grown into a lovely young woman,
hasn’t she, Tom?”
    Tom
Opendale looked up from his work table and nodded towards Grace. “She has.” He
returned his attention to his work.
    “It’s
good to see you again, even if you are ...” Grace faltered.
    “Even
if we are dead!” Lynne said with a laugh. “We don’t mind being dead as long as
we’re together, do we, Tom?”
    Tom
nodded without taking his eyes away from his desk. Grace looked a bit closer,
he seemed to be working on the insides of a watch.
    She
remembered that her mum always referred to the Opendales as ‘the bird couple’.
She said that Lynne was like a colourful parrot, always chattering away, whilst
Tom was like a quiet, wise owl. Both very different but strangely suited.
    Lynne
stepped closer to Grace, her multi coloured blouse making her face seem even
paler. “How are you coping, Grace? We heard about your parents. So, so sad. How
is Frankie doing? I remember when you used to visit our shop. You were
fascinated with that tiger clock! Your dad bought your first watch from us, do
you remember?”
    Grace
smiled. “It had a pink unicorn on it, I’ve still got it. Can I ask you
something?”
    “Fire
away! Whether I can answer it or not is another matter.”
    “How
long have you been dead? Mum and Dad died recently. I haven’t seen you two for
years, your shop was suddenly empty, no one knew what had happened to you.”
    Tom
looked at his wife and gave a slight shake of his head. Lynne frowned, “I have
to tell her, Tom, she has to know.”
    Tom
pursed his lips and once again gave his attention to the watch in front of him.
    Lynne
said, “We died about 5 years ago. Our shop was sold quickly. Our daughter,
Clare, I don’t know if you remember her, dealt with our affairs. There was a
notice in the paper about our deaths. I don’t know if your mum and dad saw it.”
    “They
never said anything if they did,” Grace said. “If you died 5 years ago then how
do you know about Mum and Dad? Have you seen them? Is there some sort of place
where dead people go? If you saw them, what did they say?”
    Lynne
put a hand on Grace’s arm, Grace felt a coldness shoot through her body. Lynne
said, “Don’t get yourself in a state, Grace love, we haven’t seen your mum and
dad, we just know that they’ve passed on.”
    “Oh,”
Grace said. She sat down on a wooden chair. A sudden feeling of hope about her
parents had just as suddenly disappeared.
    Lynne
sat next to her. Grace could smell a faint aroma of the rose perfume that Lynne
used to wear.
    Lynne
said, “There’s something you need to know. Tom and I have appeared to you for a
reason.”
    Grace
nodded. She’d helped other ghosts that had shown themselves to her.
    “We
can’t quite remember how we died. We need you to find out.”
    Grace
frowned. “But how will that help you?”
    Lynne
shook her head and gave Grace a sad smile. “We aren’t here to ask for your
help, we’re here to help you.”
    “Help
me? Why do I need help?”
    Lynne
looked over at Tom. “Tom, you explain, I can’t bear to say the words.”
    Tom
put the watch down and slowly stood up. He pulled his cardigan tighter around
his thin frame. He walked over to Grace, his eyes shone kindly through his
spectacles. He said, “We were murdered, Grace. And the same person that
murdered us, murdered your parents.”
     
    Chapter 9
     
    “No!”
Grace jumped up. “No! That can’t be true. Who would murder Mum and Dad?
Everyone loved them.”
    Tom
waited for her to calm down. “Think about it, Grace. You must have had your
suspicions. We heard that your parents died in a car accident, and that your
dad was driving whilst under the influence of drink. He never struck me as a
drinker and I’d known him for years.”
    Grace
sat back down. She couldn’t ignore the feeling in her stomach. Dad hadn’t been
a