The next day I went looking for the old man in the park... but there was no sign of him. I spotted a small cafe across the street... so I went to look for information.
A bell tinkled as I opened the door and I smiled... as a woman entered through a door behind the counter.
The woman... whom I guessed was the owner... was a tall, thin lady with her snow-white hair pinned up in a neat braided bun.
I told her I was vacationing in town and was looking for a man I had spoken to the day before in the park. He had been watching the ducks, and had also told me about Lilly White.
She looked surprised and asked what he looked like, so I described him as best as I could.
She smiled and shook her head. "It sounds like Josiah Martin. He probably knew Lilly better than anyone else around here. They both grew up here and apparently were good friends all through school. He was gone for many years, married, then widowed, and returned here when he retired. I don't know if they remained friends, but he's the only one who knew much about her."
"Can you tell me how to get in touch with Mr. Martin?"
"That would be very difficult. You see, Josiah died five years ago."
"Then who was I talking to? Who else would know about her?"
The woman sighed. "No one that I know of and I've lived here all my life."
I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them again. "Are you telling me that this... this, Josiah..." I shook my head in disbelief. "Are you saying that I was talking to a ghost... or spirit... or whatever he was... about another ghost?"
She nodded. "It does sort of seem like it."
"Has anyone else ever seen him in the park?"
"Not that I've heard about." She frowned. "In fact, I haven't heard tell of anyone seeing him at all since his death."
I thanked her for her time and left. I was beginning to feel uncomfortable... like I was seeing things the local residents weren't seeing.
What was strange... and a little frightening... was that I had never seen ghosts before... so why was I seeing them now?
I didn't know much about ghosts... and was kind of reluctant to learn... but it did feel as if the ghosts of this little seaside town were stalking me... at least some of them.
Why had I suddenly become aware of them... and open to seeing them?
Was it just to tell Lilly's story? And how could I do that if no one could tell me anything about her?
So, I returned to my borrowed cottage... determined to do a thorough Internet search for Lilly White... starting at the beginning... with her birth, baptism, parents and siblings.
Then I had an idea... completely unexpected.... that maybe she was trying to get my attention... so I kept watch for her.
When I next saw her, I took a deep breath... and slowly walked down to the beach... she turned, smiled, and held out her hand.
I walked towards her and suddenly landed with a hard thump!
As my eyes opened, I thought I could see the faint outline of... something... by the head of the bed.
Fully awake now, I got to my feet... ignoring what I knew would likely be a sore spot later... and turned on the light.
Then I pulled the bed down from the wall... and pushed it to the side... so I could inspect what I had seen.
It looked like a very small door... not much bigger than the fairy doors seen among garden ornaments.
* * *
