The girl in the lake

Harriet Dorothy Li

Second day, they were sitting in the cafe again, but there was a difference, Samantha was with them.
"So, " said Samantha. "You said" she turned to Chris. "Ms Li is a witch, Lisa, mermaid"
"No, that was just a theory and now we know it wasn't a mermaid." Said Lisa.
"I don't think it was a witch, Chris, sorry" said Samantha. Chris moaned again.
"Maybe it's a ghost, but I have another theory about that." She said, took the book and opened a page witch writes;
Nymphs- theories and stories
"A nymph? " said Chris, gazing at the page.
"What on earth is a nymph? I haven't heard about it."
"Chris," said Lena, looking at him a bit furious and a bit surprised. "Don't you read anything?"
"I don't read anything unless I have to!" Said Chris.
"Really? What a pity, because you have to read this page now!" Said Lena and passed the book to him. Chris stared at the page but finally he started to read. Edward leaned on and he read too.
A nymph for Greek mythology is a living think that sometimes can appears in the water.
"I still don't understand anything." Muttered Chris to Edward.
"So?" He said to the girls. "We are living in Appaloosa, remember? We are not Greek."
"Just a theory, Chris!" Said Samantha. "And at least it is not ridiculous as your theory! Ms Li? A witch? No way!" She shouted.
"Keep- your-voice-down!" Said Lena to both of them. "Neither of us said they are real, we are just looking for some theories to understand what is it, talking to theories, Chris, did you find more proofs about your witch theory?" She said.
"Nope, but it writes all witches have a wand, and I saw hers too. And it says if you find someone behaving suspicious, you need to chase them! Hey!" Chris gasped.
"Keep- your -voice-down!" Said Lena again.
"Oops, sorry Lena, but I find Ms Li suspicious, why aren't we chasing her? I mean, we could watch her for a while and then we could find out if she is a witch or not!" Chris whispered.
"Hey, good idea!" Said Edward. Suddenly Chris gave him an idea. Chris looked at him hopefully and nearly stood up. "But not about Ms Li, sorry Chris" said Edward. Chris sat back. "We could watch! But not Ms Li, why aren't we watching the lake to see the figure that we are talking about? You could come to my house for a night, and we could watch the lake and perhaps we can see the figure properly!" Said Edward.
"Ed!" Said Lena. "That is an unbelievable idea! We could, really! But while we are watching, we all need to be available and stay in your house. It's gonna be hard to find a day like that"
"What about tomorrow?" Said Edward excitedly.
"No," said Chris.
"Saturday?"
"Not in weekends, nope"
"6 days later?"
"Right"
"Right"
"Ok"
"All right"
"Done, then" said Edward. "Six days later, 9 o'clock, in our home."
"Ed," said Lisa. "I think we'd better camp near the lake. We could see it properly"
"Right"
"But before we go," said Lena. "Let's look about other theories. What did you say yesterday, Chris?"
"Witches?" Said Chris
"No, that was something like ghost"
"Soul?"
"Yeah, " said Lena, she took the book and started to turn the pages. "Wow, Chris, they are nearly the same think! Look," she started to read aloud. "Souls are generally stay in its old house. They are like ghosts, there is not any big difference between them. But a ghost can be seen from people,  but a soul is always there but no one could see it unless the soul wants to be seen" she finished.
"Maybe, soul wants to be seen from us!" Said Chris.
"I don't think so" said Edward. "It was looking to the house at the other side of the lake, not us."
"You're right" said Chris, his face faded.
"So" said Samantha. "We think this figure is either ghost or a nymph."
"Or a witch" said Chris.
"Or a mermaid " said Samantha, smiling.
They didn't meet for a few days. Edward was still thinking about what was that. He was looking at the lake some nights. But he never saw the figure again. And the water in the lake seems more than the night that they saw the figure. Edward thought it was because of the rain. Because yesterday night was rainy. When that night came, the night they will camp, Edward made his breakfast, said goodbye to Mr Davies and he went to the market, John was there, like he always did.
"Hi, John!" Said Edward.
"Hi, mate! What are you doing doing here?"
"I wanted to ask you something" said Edward.
"Me?"
"Yeah, you"
"What is it?" Asked John, looking surprised.
Edward checked around to see if anyone else is listening. Ms Li was walking a few meters away. Edward suddenly remembered Chris's theory, grinning to himself, he turned back to John, who, was still looking at him, waiting fir him to say something.
"Could we go inside?" Said Edward, he looked back at Ms Li. Still thinking about Chris's theory.
"Yes, of course" said John, they went inside and sat down to the chairs inside of the market.
"What happened, mate? What do you want to ask me? Why are you looking so anxious?" Asked John, he was talking so fast and too much that Edward could hardly understand him.
"I wanted to ask- about the house at the other side of the lake." Said Edward.
"Yeah?"
"Who was living there ?" Asked Edward.
"Oh," said John. "That was- that was years and years ago. "
"Approximately? How many years?" Asked Edward.
"Hmm" said John, with a thoughtful voice.
"Maybe 50 years or something like that."
That was Edward's turn to think now. So, the woman, who lives in the house at the other side of the lake, can be a ghost now. But Edward needed to be sure. But, 50 years, Edward thought, was that enough to be a ghost. But then he remembered the page at the book theories about magic- are they really exist?
What was the book said about to be a ghost?
Edward suddenly remembered.
A ghost catcher's theory is (was saying the book) to be a ghost, you need at least 45 years.
Yeah, thought Edward, 50 years is enough to be a ghost.
"What was the woman's name, John?" Asked Edward.
"Harriet Dorothy Li," said John. Edward was really confused, and surprised. Li?
"Harriet Dorothy Li? Is she-" said Edward, thinking hard.
"Yes," said John, smiling. "You are thinking the right thing, Ed, she was Ms Li's grand grandmother. She died 50 years ago, but Ms Li, hasn't meet with her. "
Edward thought about Chris's theory, he needed to tell this informations to him. Edward stood up quickly, said "thanks" quietly and opened the market's door, but he stopped and looked at John again.
"How did you know all of it?" Edward asked quietly.
"From my mum," said John. "She knows everything about Appaloosa's past."
"All right," said Edward. "Bye, then..."
He opened the door and went outside. Then he heard a voice behind him.
"Hey, Ed!"
That was John's voice.
"Yeah?" Said Edward, he wanted to leave here as quickly as possible, so he was talking fast.
"Why did you ask me all of it?" Said John, looking him suspiciously. "Is it Chris's theory again? If you ask me, it's possible, I always find her a bit strange, and I was talking to Chris about that"
Edward was listening him carefully.
"And if you are searching Ms Li, feel free to ask me, maybe I couldn't come with you to search, but I know everything about Appaloosa's past, my mum always tell me."
"Right, OK, I will tell you when I need, thanks John. Have a nice day!" Edward started to walk to Chris's house, nearly running. When he arrived to Chris's house, he stopped at the doorstep, thinking is it good to bother someone at the morning. He checked his watch, 11.55, he thought it's nearly midday, they needed to be awake for now. And he knocked the door. He heard a sound coming from the house.
"CHRIS! OPEN THE DOOR! AND TELL ME WHO IS IT! IF IT IS MRS CHARLES, TAKE THE CUP FROM THE KITCHEN!!!"
That was Mrs Rogers's voice, Edward grinned and after a few seconds, the door opened. Edward saw Chris standing at the door. He was smiling too.
"WHO IS IT?" Shouted Mrs Rogers from inside.
"Just Edward, mum, not Mrs Charles!" Said Chris, sounding bored. No one answered.
"Sorry, mate. Just mum, she was waiting for John's mother. My mum made yogurt for her in a cup, long story..." said Chris. "What makes you come here, anyway? I thought we are meeting at the night"
"Don't worry, we are still meeting at the night. But I have some important informations from John." Said Edward quietly.
"Would you like to come inside?" Asked Chris, respectfully. "But to my bedroom, please,mum is at the sitting room, knitting something... Dunno what it is... Come," Chris opened the door a bit more and welcomed Edward to his house. House was looking old from outside, but it was well decorated and very modern from inside. "Just tiptoe, will you? I don't want neither Mark nor mum to hear us." Muttered Chris. They tiptoed to a room. Which has a writing on it like;
Christopher's room
And there was a room looking bigger next to it.
Mark's room
"Is it-" began Edward but Chris whispered "shh! Later!"
They entered to the room. Room wasn't so big nor small there were leaflets on the walls, there was a bed at the windowsill and wardrobe behind the door.
"Right," said Chris. "Make yourself at home, sit down," he took a chair fir Edward to sit. "And tell me what had happened." he sat down to his bed. Edward told him all he know, when he saw Ms Li when Edward was in front of the market, what did John told him about Harriet Dorothy Li, and what did John told him about help. Chris watched him open mouthed, and he took a deep breath when he heard about Harriet Dorothy Li. "So," said Chris. "Harriet Dorothy Li is grand-grandmother of Ms Li? And you think she was the ghost?"
"Yeah, she could be the ghost when she died, and for your theory, maybe she was magical, so she turned to a ghost and her magic passed to Ms Li, so she is a witch" said Edward, but he still wasn't believing Ms Li- is-a-witch theory.
He was just thinking, and giving ideas.
"Did you ask John why did Harriet Dorothy Li died?" Asked Chris.
"Oh, no, I forgot!" moaned Edward, he felt angry to himself.
"We could ask him," said Chris. "But I think we oughtn't go to camping tonight."
"What?" Said Edward, surprised. "Why?"
"Because we have too much things to do first." Said Chris, sounding like Lisa. "Look, we got to much information, you told Mrs Charles knows all of the people's past that lives in Appaloosa. We could ask her more about Harriet Li and we could visit the house at the other side of the lake."
"What?" Said Edward. "Are you mad? Visiting the house- you know, it is a long name we need to find a nickname to that house so no one could understand what we are talking about"
"A nickname..." muttered Chris. "Mysterious house?"
"Mysterious house? Maybe, but there is not a house which looks mysterious. Do they could understand we are talking about the house." Said Edward.
"Could we say 'unknowable' then?" Said Chris.
"Unknowable?"
"Yeah,"
"Yes, brilliant!" Said Edward excitedly. "We need to tell the other about it."
"So, we are not going camping today, are we?"
"No," said Edward. "I think that is really early, we gotta ask about Harriet Dorothy Li to Mrs Charles, and we could have another clues-"
Chris cut in.
"And we could watch Ms Li!"
"What?"
"Mate, Harriet Li is grand grandmother of Ms Li! She could be something magical, I am not telling you she is a witch, but I am sure that she is magical, we could watch her!" Said Chris and he stood up.
"C'mon, " said Chris. "Let's tell the others, maybe they can give is more ideas, and mark my words now,"
Edward stood up too and Chris opened the door slowly and quietly.
"Tiptoe and be quiet, I don't want Mark to hear us" whispered Chris.
"And don't forget, nothing is-" suddenly Chris crashed to a boy who looks taller than Chris and Edward. He was looking serious and angry to Chris. Edward understood he is Mark, Chris's brother.
"Impossible..." continued Chris his sentence.
"You don't want me to hear you, then, Christopher, eh?" Hissed Mark, looking sharply to Chris.
"Er- hello brother" said Chris, not looking at Mark.
"Hello," said Mark. "And now... GO AWAY!"