CHAPTER SIX
It was hanging suspended over the lake. Not that they could exactly see the lake.
But between the trees, where Michaela knew the lake was, there, that’s where it was.
She strained her eyes to make it out and wiped her breath from the window.
‘We have to go outside, get a closer look,’ she said.
Trisha backed up. ‘No way,’ she said.
‘Come on,’ Michaela answered. ‘It must be a ghost light or something.’ She was dragging Trisha towards the door. ‘I’ve read about them. Never thought I’d see any though.’
‘What are you babbling about?’ Trisha said, following Michaela out onto the porch. ‘What is it?’
Michaela looked over at Trisha. ‘Don’t know,’ she said. ‘Not for sure, anyway.
But it looks like a ghost light. You know, caused by gases rising from the ground?’
She stopped a moment. ‘Or something like that.’
They stood on the top step watching the light bobbing in the air over the lake.
Almost a perfect sphere, it glowed a soft white.
Trisha reached out for Michaela. ‘It’s pulsing,’ she said. ‘Is it supposed to do that?’
Michaela shrugged. ‘Let’s go closer,’ she said and twined her fingers in Trisha’s.
They walked down the steps, both of them only in socks. Michaela didn’t even notice; she focused on the light, which was bobbing gently as if in a breeze over the lake. They walked down the path to the water.
Trisha squeezed Michaela’s hand. ‘I’m not going out in the open,’ she said. Michaela nodded. ‘We’ll stay in the trees.’
They veered off the track and kept to the shadows.
‘That’s spooky,’ Trisha said when they were peering out over the lake at the light that hung above it as though suspended from an unseen string. Michaela watched it, wishing she hadn’t had quite so much to drink. The fresh, cold air was making her feel a little unsteady.
Even so, she decided, it was the light that was swaying. As they watched, it dipped and dived over the water. Michaela poked Trisha in the ribs.
‘Shit!’ squealed Trisha. ‘Are you trying to give me a goddamned heart attack?’ ‘What’s over the far side of the lake?’ Michaela asked.
‘Well, there’s another place over there. Bigger than this one though. Don’t know whose place it is or anything. It’ll be empty this time of year anyway.’
Michaela was frowning. ‘There’s something weird about this light,’ she said, shaking her head.
‘No shit, Sherlock,’ Trisha replied in her now-familiar refrain. ‘Something spooky, you mean.’
‘Maybe,’ said Michaela.
Trisha grabbed her sleeve. ‘Let’s go back inside okay?’ ‘In a minute. Look, it’s moving away.’
It was drifting over to the far shore, growing fainter as it moved. It reached the tree line and exploded in a shower of sparks and a loud bang.
The women grabbed each other.
‘Fuck, that was loud,’ Trisha said. She pulled Michaela back toward to cabin. ‘Enough freaky stuff,’ she said. ‘We’re going back inside and I’m going to have another goddamned drink.’
Michaela cast one last glance at the spot where the light had exploded, then turned and let Trisha lead her back inside. She realized her feet had gone numb.
Back inside, Trisha held up the bourbon, waving it at Michaela who shook her head. She put it back and dropped down onto the couch. ‘Yeah, me neither,’ she said.
Michaela sat in front of the fire and put another log on, stirring it back to flames. She felt woolly-headed and her mouth was dry. She got up and went to the kitchen for a glass of water. She stared out of the window, back toward the lake, but the night was dark and quiet. She drank down the water.
‘So that was a… what did you call it?’ asked Trisha when she went back into the main room.
‘Ghost light,’ Michaela replied. She sat down in one of the armchairs and fingered the fringe of a purple throw. ‘I’ve never seen one before, only read about them.’ She looked over at the fire as it spat sparks onto the tiled hearth. ‘I didn’t know they exploded like that though.’
Trisha moved. ‘But you said it was what, caused by gases or something, right? So even though it was as freaky as shit, we don’t have to bolt the doors and stay up all night waiting for giant alien insects to break their way through the windows or anything, right?’
Michaela snorted out a laugh. ‘And I thought you would be wondering about the sort of stuff I read,’ she said. ‘Yeah, it’s a natural phenomenon.’ She thought for a moment. ‘I’d like to go have a look at the spot where it exploded tomorrow though.’
Trisha shrugged and held her watch up. ‘Later today, you mean.’ She stood up. ‘I’m hitting the sack, Sherlock.’ She winked at Michaela. ‘Bit of a shame the night ended the way it did, it was warming up in here.’ She blew a kiss and headed for one of the bedrooms.
Michaela sat back in the chair and gazed at the fire. Something bothered her about the light they’d seen, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. Trisha was right though, it had been spooky for sure. Trisha. Michaela closed her eyes and rubbed her face. Trisha had been right, things had been getting just a little too warm in here. Michaela groaned, pushing the thought away. Time to get some sleep.