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He looked around and motioned to the waitress "What will you have, niece?"
She was surprised to feel a sudden chill Ja, and he usually just spoke plainly It was unusual that he’d dawdle by ordering like this, but she decided she’d let hi warested
"Why not?" she said
Their waitress earing a cute, short-skirted pirate costume Jamie asked to make sure that the bartender used Ja a wallop of "white stuff"--whipped cream--on either drink The waitress s every ti "But, still, aand shaking her head, the waitress et into Halloween early, don’t they," Jennais Irish, of course," Jamie said
"I know, Uncle Ja it wouldn’t stop him She thanked the waitress as she delivered their drinks Jay Jack," Ja to hiy Jack," Jenna reminded him
He waved a hand in the air
"The devil invited old Jack to have a drink with him, and Jack, he wasn’t about to pay for the drinks, but then neither was he about to turn one down So, our Jack, he tells the devil that he must turn himself into a handful of coins to pay for the drink But, thirsty though he was, Jack was a clever boy, and put the coins in his pocket, around his silver cross, and the devil, next to that cross, couldn’t turn himself back into the devil, not next to the holy relic! Finally, though, Jack let the devil return to his old self--long as he didn’t bother Jack for a year and a day--and would not clai a few other tricks on the devil over his lifetime Eventually, of course, he did die And when he did, the Good Lord would not let him into Heaven, and the devil could not claiht with only a burning luht his way Well, Jack found a puh the darkness of the night And so he was called Jack of the Lantern, and finally, Jack-o’-Lantern" He paused to take a gulp
"It’s not a bad tradition--especially for those who scoop out the pumpkin and make pie and then carve the puhout the night," he finished
"Pu toward hi his hand "But I’m pretty sure this story isn’t why I’m here, Uncle Jahted to see you, you know that But you calledhis fingers over the varnished wood of the table "It may be too late," he said softly Then he looked up at her "They think they have hihts They say that the blood of those he erprints were on the ax But he didn’t do it, Jenna He didn’t do it"
She frowned He was talking now, but he was beginning in the middle
"You asked me here…about the ht You called o"
Jamie shook his head "I called you about two ht occurred…and now they have the boy…and I just don’t believe he did it He’ll be railroaded into a mental hospital for the rest of his life--but he’s not crazy! People started saying that it was the house--that it’s Lexington House, and that he lived there and started killing because he was listening to ghosts Thing is, I know that by what seeuilty as all hell, but that’s only what it looks like He didn’t do it"
She shook her head "All right, back up You called me because of the two previous murders The radio mentioned those on the way up here, too, but only bits and pieces and suppositions I don’t really know details Tell o, a farmer in Andover, Peter Andres, was killed in his barn--with a scythe The police had no suspects--the scythe was in the barn, but there were no fingerprints other than those of Andres Everyone was baffled Andres was known as an affable ton House doesn’t tell it all In the nineteenth century, a scythe was supposedly used on the Braden father before he was given the final blows by the ax So, the police started looking at people with an interest in Lexington House, and then at Lexington House itself Malachi was always the subject of soe lad But he tells me that he prays, and he believes deeply in God and in Heaven"
"Many killers find Jesus," Jenna said softly "How did you know all this about him?"
Jamie shook his head "They find Jesus in prison-- Malachi has always had hio His parents brought him to me--they were forced to, by children’s services, after a few incidents at school"
"Like what--he attacked other children? Threw rocks at birds…set cats on fire?"