A Town Hall to Remember

Audra found herself in the hot seat at the town meeting when the words "serial killings" were reintroduced to the crowd. It was a moment she would have turned to Cordero to take the lead, but he was still in New York requisitioning equipment for the team to use in the new temporary command post.

The high school auditorium was close to standing room only. The Mayor, James Broner, had opened the meeting with what Audra thought was almost an inappropriate prayer.

"Dear Lord, we thank you for another opportunity to meet as friends and neighbors to resolve the problems that this town faces. We know that the enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy. We also know that he or she comes in sheep's clothes and bearing gifts. Lord, please let us not be guiled by false beauty. Amen."

"Thank you for that, Mr. Mayor," Councilman Shelley said without hiding his sarcasm. "Now, on to real matters. There is concern for the safety of the school children in a town of specters. I want to be the first to remind everyone that we've had ten years of peaceful coexistence with the specters of this town.

"Without the generous support of our specter neighbors, this town would have died out like many others. I have it on good authority that the specter community is just as eager to find and apprehend the person responsible. Our Sheriff, Ethan Cole, is working closely with the FBI in order to resolve this case."

"Thank you, Councilman Shelley," the Mayor interjected. "I think parents have a right to be concerned with the impact having specters in our town will have on their children."

"That is ridiculous," another councilman piped up. "After ten years, our town has one of the lowest crime, unemployment, and high school drop-out rates in the entire country."

"Mr. Mayor, you may be a little eager to see our children bussed to the next county over but as a parent and a resident of this town, I don't think that it's the best thing for our students or this town as a whole," Councilman Shelley commented.

"Your children no longer live here, Councilman," the Mayor huffed.

As an audible murmur went through the crowd, Audra understood that the Mayor had given a low blow. However, Councilman Shelley let the comment roll off of his back.

"At any rate, the real estate the school was built on was donated in good faith by my family more than twenty years ago specifically for educating our children," Councilman Shelley replied.

"And then made your aunt the principal, in good faith," the Mayor sniffed.

"She has put her life into educating the children of this town, which is a damn sight more than you have managed to do as mayor. There is no reason the school or the specters have to go," Councilman Shelley said pointedly.

"Enough of this! Why should our children suffer because of these ghosts?" a voice called out. "Those specters need to leave!"

The councilman looked as if he realized he were on the wrong side of a losing argument. He turned to Agent Wheeler for backup.

"I'll take this opportunity to introduce you to Agent Wheeler of the FBI. She can tell you a little more about the investigation and what they have found so far. "

Audra was seated up front with Yolanda. She stood and glanced at Joshua Kane, who'd managed to tame his blond waves, as he roamed the crowd with a concealed camera in a pair of faux glasses that recorded the event for Cordero and the rest of the team to review again later.

She also spotted Benjamin Conner, the receptionist specter from the library, next to Gwyn's former colleague, Katherine Taylor, and boss, Charles Stuart. Audra noticed Charles' purple-haired specter daughter near the door where specter Dr. Shelley stood as well.

"I am not at liberty to make specific comments on an ongoing investigation," Audra said with an air that, even to her, was at once authoritative and definitive, as she made eye contact with Margret Shelley. "However, we do not believe the attack or murder of Gwyneth Miller to be random."

Margret made a strange, uncomfortable face that stung Audra's heart as she wished the face she looked into had been that of her sister Kendra instead of Kendra's twin.

"You are saying that she was targeted?" the local news reporter asked, breaking Audra's wishful daydream.

Audra was not sure how to perceive the woman reporter who was at least in her late forties with more than just a little too much makeup and a velvety sarcastic voice that turned almost every statement she uttered into a doubtful question.

Audra looked over the auditorium crowd as she answered the reporter's last question.

"It does appear that someone had motive to kill Gwyneth Miller." Audra let the murmur go through the crowd. "But, it is too early to speculate whether or not it was a specter. The FBI is working closely with the sheriff's office to bring this case to a close as quickly as possible."

Audra turned to acknowledge Ethan Cole who sat at the head table facing the crowd with the Mayor, Councilman Shelley, and the other town councilmen.

"Can you shed light on the possible motive?" the reporter asked.

"No, I cannot. But, we do ask that if you have any information that may help in this case, please call us." Audra gave out the number to their secure line at the B&B. She repeated it twice as citizens scrambled for pens and paper.

"What information can you give the public that will help them stay safe until you've brought the killer to justice?" the voice of a male citizen shouted.

Audra didn't have time to answer as another voice, female this time called out, "We need to drive the specters out of this town."

"We can start with that specter shop on the square," another voice shouted.

Audra looked at Mackenzie Knox as she shifted in her chair with an amused smile. Ethan took that as his cue to stand up and address the crowd.

"Turning on other citizens of this town is not the answer. We are fairly certain that we are not looking for a specter in the murder of Gwyneth Miller. The town –"

"If I may, Sheriff Cole," the Mayor interrupted him. "I have taken it upon myself to order a shipment of specter shields to pass out to every household. This is just a cautionary measure as I believe an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of shoulda-coulda-wouldas."

Audra took note of a strange fluctuation through the specter members of the audience and allowed herself to look directly at specter Dr. Kenneth Shelley, the second. Even from a distance she could tell he was disappointed by the announcement.

Audra felt herself warring with mixed emotions. Before she landed in Specter, Georgia she would have encouraged anyone living to set up specter shields as a viable form of household protection. Any uninvited specter should not feel offended by a living household guarding against their easy entry.

However, she was fairly certain that passing out specter shields would not stop whatever was targeting Abigail Stevens' progeny. As her sister and Margret were still alive and most likely the last two targets, she didn't see much harm in allowing the public to feel as if there was something they could do to protect themselves. But, Audra had to admit to herself, without the killer's motive there was no telling who was next or why.

"As Special Agent Wheeler has pointed out," Ethan cut back in, "the evidence isn't enough to conclude that this is a case of specter homicide."

The crowd erupted, and Sheriff Miller materialized into the room, hushing everyone.

"Hello everyone," he said.

Audra took note of the hollow way his otherworldly voice bounced off of the high school auditorium walls. "I know I'm the last specter any of you expected to see in this town, but, here I am." Audra sensed another strange shift in the crowd and turned to watch as people settled down.

"I was once one of the biggest opponents to specters living in this town, but that was because I didn't understand what specters were. Now that I am one, I can tell you we pose no threat to the living. Here to speak as a witness in her own murder is my daughter."

With that, Gwyneth materialized front and center and all went silent.

"I was not killed by a specter," she began. Audra could tell that she was having a hard time holding her form. The level of her otherworldly voice fluctuated and echoed off of the walls in apparent anger and frightened frustration. "I was killed by a person. I was killed by one of you!" With that her face seemed to melt as she phased out. "I will find out who."

As Gwyn's voice echoed off of the walls the crowd panicked and tried to escape.

"Stay calm!" Audra jumped up shouting as she looked to Yolanda who sprang from her seat to avoid being trampled by people exiting. Audra tried to get to her but felt a strong arm around her waist pulling her back.

She turned to find herself face-to-face with Ethan, whose expression showed that he would not let her go. He pushed her behind him and backed up to a far wall. Yolanda managed to scramble away from the crowd and pressed herself against the same wall not too far away.

Councilman Brendon Shelley sat in the middle of the town council table banging a gavel.

"Please, people!" Brendon shouted into the microphone. "I know that was unsettling but please, exit in an orderly fashion."

The Mayor seemed somewhat pleased by the sight of frightened people leaving in chaos. Audra looked from the Mayor back to the crowd and spotted Joshua as he wormed his way through the crowd to Yolanda. Audra witnessed a tender moment between them as he placed her behind him, but she could see that he was holding his side in pain.

When she looked back at the crowd she took note of Mackenzie Knox in the middle of the chaos still seated as if she dared the mob to so much as touch her. To Audra's bewildered amazement, as if an invisible shield protected Mackenzie Knox, the mob seemed to be giving her at least a three-foot berth as they left.

The entire exodus of the town took less than five minutes, but it was one of the scariest five minutes Audra had ever experienced. When it was all over only a few people remained, including Mackenzie Knox, the town council, the Mayor, and Margret Shelley, who stood near specter Dr. Shelley.

As the echoing footsteps of the town's people died out, the specter population made themselves known by materializing and filling nearly half of the room. Dr. Shelley stood next to Sheriff Miller. Amanda Stuart, with her purple hair set against her pale ghostly face, looked at Audra as if this were all her fault. Gwyneth Miller appeared in front of Audra looking slightly embarrassed.

"I'm sorry." She shrugged as her voice traveled over the empty auditorium, and then giggled. "I couldn't help myself."

Mackenzie made her way to Gwyn's side. "What you said and did was brave," she assured the new specter. "Someone is trying to drum up a witch hunt and you made it known that it was one of them, not a specter."

"How do you know it was one of them?" Audra asked.

"A string of murders comes full circle. Who was here then and now? Who has something to lose?"

Gwyn looked pointedly at Dr. Shelley, who seemed to be affected by it.

"Maybe you all should come back to the shop and talk," Mackenzie offered.