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camera she held and rotated the lens. It squeaked and came off in her hand. “You mean this?”
    Michael sighed. “Cheri, after you change into something warmer, would you like to come back here for your interview?”
    “Okay.” She went out the door.
    Angus gave the light fixture a disappointed look before turning to Suki. “What was Cheri wearing? She looked like something from an old photograph.”
    “I put her in one of Charlotte’s nightgowns.” Suki brought the camera over and showed Angus the screen. “We have this Victorian house and a lot of antique furniture, so I thought I’d go for an old-fashioned look. I don’t know if the kid has any talent as a photographer, but she’s a natural in front of the camera.”
    Angus clicked through the photos and gave a low whistle. “Brilliant.” He looked at Michael. “If your writing is half as good as these pictures, this article could see Tripping really take off.”
    “Don’t worry about my writing,” Michael said.
    Angus handed the camera back to Suki. “Ivan should be back from his smoke break. I’d like you to get a picture of him beside a poster he has in his room. He’ll show it to you.” He looked at Michael. “Could a Chihuahua jump between a man’s arms like that?”
    “I think you might have to toss it.”
    “All right, scratch that. It was just an idea.”
    Cheri knocked on the door frame as she came in. “Are you ready for me?”
    “Absolutely,” Angus said. “Have a seat. Michael can show me his interview technique.”
    Cheri wore her regular clothes again, but had put little sparkly clips in her hair. She sat next to Michael on the settee and looked at him through her eyelashes. “Ask whatever you want.”
    “Do you mind if I record our conversation?”
    “Feel free.”
    The recorder sat on the coffee table in front of them. Michael leaned forward to switch it on, scooting slightly away from Cheri as he did so. “You said something about a poltergeist.”
    She clasped her hands. “When I was fifteen, strange things started happening around the house. The windows opened during the night, which drove my dad nuts, and all the stuff in our cabinets would be rearranged in the morning.”
    “Sounds like a prowler,” he said.
    She shook her head. “Nothing was missing.”
    “Maybe it was one of your brothers or sisters.”
    “I’m an only child.” She stared at him a moment. “And I didn’t do it.”
    “I didn’t say you did. How long did this go on?”
    “A little over two years. When I left home for school, it petered out, so we think I was the focus.”
    “Did you have any incidents at school?”
    “Once, in the dorm. My roommate and I woke up because we heard drawers opening and closing. I said, really loud, ‘I’m sick of this and I want you to get out!’ After that, it never came back.”
    “Well done,” Angus said. “That’s pretty much what a professional would do.”
    “A professional what?” Michael asked.
    “Ghostbuster.” Angus leaned forward. “Cheri, why do you think Petey appeared to your grandmother?”
    She looked at her hands for a few moments. “I don’t know. Maybe because she’s lonely.”
    “She has a houseful of people,” Angus said gently.
    “I know, but Thomas … Well, Petey was really special. When he was younger, he used to jump into her arms.”
    “It’s handy she’s so short,” Michael said.
    She smiled. “And when Petey was old and couldn’t jump, he used to put his front paws on her leg and sort of hop until Charlotte picked him up. I know she misses him.”
    The sound of raised voices filtered up from downstairs. Michael turned toward the doorway. “What is going on down there?”
    “It’s probably Grandpa,” Cheri said bitterly. “He’s always yelling about something.”
    Angus and Michael went to the doorway and listened. Across the hallway, Suki appeared in the door to Ivan’s room and did the same.
    The wooden staircase made an admirable conduit for