The Ghost of Sander Jones

Chapter 7: Disappearance

I hurried down the stairs to meet everyone just coming in. "Hey." I said breathlessly. "Hey honey. Can you help us get the bags from the car?" My dad came in carrying many paper bags both arms full. "Sure." I walked out to the car my mother and the house help coming back with hands equally full with bags.

"It's nice to see you found your way back." My mother said scornfully. "Yeah it's nice to be back." I grabbed a couple bags and brought them though the house and came back. There were a few shopping bags that were left and it looked like they had clothes in them. I grabbed them then closed and locked the car and went inside. I brought them to the kitchen and sat them down on the table. Everyone was offloading everything from the bags. "Oh good you brought the clothes in. Here take his," she handed me a few bags, "and put them in your room. I'll be there to get them in a couple of minutes."

I nodded and scurried up the staircase trying to get to my room and clean it up before she got there. I burst though the door shutting it behind me, depositing the bags onto the floor. "I have to pick up the room quickly!" I scooped up the journals lying on the bed and tossed them onto empty shelves in the closet. "I put the wand back into its box and put it in the suitcase with the spell book. When I was done I gave the room a quick sweep and then put the bags on the bed. "Hide, go invisible or something!" He gave me a quick okay and then clapped his hands. He disappeared. "Go into the closet and wait." I reopened the door and walked toward the stairs. My mother was walking up.

"Hey I put all the bags on my bed like you asked." I hoped I didn't sound too suspicious. "Good. I bought you a dress for the funeral next month." She started walking down the hall toward my room. I followed close behind her. "You did?"

Yes I did." Then she muttered. "It's not like you needed another dress. Your whole wardrobe is all dark." I rolled my eyes and continued down the hall. She walked into the room and picked up the bags. I stayed in the doorway. "This one's for you," - she tossed one at me - "this one is mine, and this one is your fathers suit." She left and I moved out the way closing the door behind her. I heard a quiet clapping and a glow came from under the closet door. Sander entered the room. "Hey, is that a new dress?" I pulled the black satin from the bag examining it.

"Yea it is. My mom got it for the funeral next month." The dress was knee length, all black and had a lace ribbon in the center of it that tied around the back. It was short sleeved. I set the dress aside on the bed and looked back in the bag. There was a large cardboard box and I pulled it out and lifted the lid. There was a black felt pair of boots that would cover a part of my calf. I sat on the bed and pulled them out of the box slipping them on so that I could examine them closer. They fit wonderfully and had soft fibers on the inside.

"Nice boots," Sander said sinking to the floor inches away from my feet. "Thanks! I love them; they're so soft and comfortable!" I wiggled my feet as if to prove their coziness. But you don't want to ruin them especially if you are going to be wearing them for the funeral." I frowned, he was right; I slipped them off my feet putting both boots back in the box sliding the lid back over. "I don't get why were here so early. If the funeral is next month then why are we here now?"

"I don't know everything Elizabeth. I don't, but if I had to take a guess then I would probably say it's because your uncle wants to get his estate in order..." I stood back up putting the new items back in the bag walking to the closet. "Right, a dead man needs to get his estate in order after he's dead. Make a lot of sense, not like anything has made sense lately. It seems like everything that I've known has changed in the last twenty-four hours, like literally."

"Well sure it has but it was for the best even if it was at bad timing." I put the bag on the shelf where I kept my dresses. While I though of a reply on what to say to his comment I said, "I guess I should unpack especially if we would we staying here for about a month." I shut the door walking over to Sander sitting down in front of him and crossed my legs, making sure my dress hung low, my knees just a few centimeters away from his. I shivered. "'Bad timing?' What? It was very bad timing!" I sighed, nothing ever seemed to just ease on my plate, it always just took a dive right there, smack in the center even if Sander did try to help make it less shocking. Why was it always this way?