Everyday Witches

Although the sun was out, the day seemed a little grayer to Richard as he stepped out onto the porch with the microwave, turning to lock the door behind him. A cool breeze drifted across from the large open parking lot, cooling his already chilled skin. He tucked the keys into a pants pocket and hitched the microwave a little higher and then headed out across the lot towards the office. There was no need to take the truck this time because most everything here was within walking distance. He tried to clear his mind and steady his nerves during the short walk. Although he probably would never admit it aloud, that thing with the glass had really shaken him. Especially coming on the tail of the whole microwave ordeal. The resort was beautiful right now, in the midst of summer’s full bloom, and he tried to banish the angst by breathing deeply and checking out the scenery. There were plenty of oak trees in residence and then of course the signature red maple, from whence Addie had created the commemorative coasters back home. The woods here came pretty much all the way up to the large parking lot and the surrounding buildings, with several thin roads snaking away towards the lake and entertainment areas. It had a real rustic feel and that was one of the things that Richard had always loved about it. He had grown up in the country himself and there was just something about being surrounded by trees and wildlife that felt like home to him. He loved it as much as Addie had loved the beach. His forehead creased at the memory and he forced himself to relax his face. He’d had enough of stress and grief for right now.

Across the lot a group of doves startled and lifted off from the trees, the sound of wings and avian voices dotting the peaceful silence. Richard stopped and watched them for a moment before continuing his trek to the office. A piteousness of doves, he thought, both sourly and with a little chuckle; remembering the term he’d read in a book of poetry back in high school. How fitting. This had been a pitiful day so far. He shook his head and vowed not to let the trend continue. He reached the other side of the lot and angled towards the sidewalk that led to the office’s door; trying to figure out what exactly he would say to Rachel when he got there. He had to tell her about the microwave and about the lights. Those were genuine mechanical errors that could be fixed relatively easily. The bourbon glass was another sort of thing entirely though. There was no mechanical, or even logical explanation there. He decided that he’d just fudge the story a bit to make it more believable, and hopefully that would be the end of it.

As he opened the door to the little cabin that was the office a tiny bell posted on the door tinkled. He wondered how on Earth he hadn’t noticed that before. He supposed it must be because his nerves were amped up to a whole new level since his visit here this morning, and he conciously tried to relax his shoulders under the weight of the microwave. Rachel looked up at the sound of the bell and smiled brightly as she recognized him. Her gaze flitted over the large parcel in his arms and her brow furrowed a bit.

“What have we here,” she asked, curiously. “I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.” She fidgeted with something on a fingernail and looked at him expectantly.

“Well, it’s the darnedest thing,” Richard replied sheepishly, feeling genuinely embarrassed about having to bring this up. “I’ve had a bit of a power surge or something to that effect,” he continued. He set the microwave down on his end of the desk and then stepped to the side so that they didn’t have to talk around the thing. Setting one hand on the slick black top of the microwave, he used to other to pull the door open and gestured inside. “The thing just suddenly powered up,” he said. “I wasn’t even in the room with it at the time. It just started going haywire and by the time I was able to pull the plug it had overheated, I guess.” He stared at his feet as Rachel leaned forward to look inside the microwave. She let out a little whistle as she noticed the scorch marks on the white plastic interior.

“You’re not kidding it overheated,” she responded, seeming a bit mystified. “I haven’t had any other complaints about a power surge, but if it happened as you said, I don’t see what else it could be.” She tapped a finger on the side of her face and stared off towards the other side of the room, in thought.

“There was something else too,” Richard added, now genuinely embarrassed for having had problems already when he had just arrived today. “The overhead lights in the bedroom…,” he said with a bit of a grimace, letting the sentence trail off as he decided how best to explain it without sounding like a lunatic. He sighed and relaxed his shoulders again, giving Rachel a genuine smile as he decided that “out with it” was the best and only way. “The lights were flickering a bit too. Kind of a forceful flickering. Really bright. Like the power surge must’ve affected them too.” He gave her a shameful looking grin and held his hands up in front of himself, in a gesture of innocence.

Rachel gave him another of the mystified smiles. “Well, someone has had an interesting day already, huh?” She paused. “And you’re sure that nothing happened to cause it,” she asked, tilting her head to the side and looking thoughtful. A flicker of embarrassment crossed her face and she quickly amended with, “Not that it’s your fault or anything. It’s just strange.” She patted his hand gently and then apologized profusely for sounding accusing.

Richard waited an obligatory moment and then slid his hand out from under hers and off of the desk, tucking it away into a jeans pocket. If things were different, maybe, but definitely not right now. “Yeah,” he responded, clearing his throat gently before continuing. “I don’t know what could have caused it either, other than a power surge. They both happened right around the same time, and there didn’t seem to be anything else that could have caused it to happen. There was also this weird buzzing noise at the time, so I really think that’s got to be it.” He flashed back to the memory of the liquor glass sailing across the room and then shattering against the wall, shaking his head at the memory. He looked at Rachel, turning on one of his best smiles and hoping that she’d believe him.

Rachel’s face softened at the smile and she nodded and grinned back at him, her honey brown eyes warm as she said, “Of course that’s it. It must be. There’s no other possible explanation. Anyway, I would normally be glad to offer you better accommodations but you know that we’re completely booked right now. What can I do to make it right? I’d hate for you to leave already since you just got here. I can have a man out there to look at the wiring as soon as possible.”

Richard nodded emphatically, relieved. “Yes, of course, that’d be just fine. I’m not ready to give it up just yet either, but I’d appreciate it if you’d have someone come by to check it out.”

Rachel looked a little relieved herself. “Absolutely! I’ll call them right now and then I’ll let you know when to expect them, as soon as I know. Don’t you worry about a thing! We’ll get it all fixed up and I’ll have someone out to install a new microwave for you too, probably first thing in the morning. We’ll have to rustle one up, so it’ll take a little more time, but not too much.”

She took a step back from the desk and plucked at her skirt before looking back up at him. “I’m really sorry that you’ve had to deal with this today. Especially after everything…” she gestured vaguely with one hand and paused. “You, know,” she continued, looking a little helpless as she tried not to mention his wife again. “Anyway, I meant it when I said earlier that I’m here if you need anything. Anything at all.” Richard smiled gratefully and gave his thanks, then he made a beeline for the door.

After leaving the office, Richard spent a couple of hours just wandering around the woods. He found a hiking trail that ascended a small hill with a pretty good view of the lake, and when he had had his fill he returned to the resort for dinner. He had worked up a pretty good appetite and hadn’t been eating much lately anyway, all things considered, so he was looking forward to a good meal and a good night’s sleep afterward.

When he arrived at the dining hall, it was packed already. There were probably around thirty or forty people sitting at the long cafeteria style tables that lined the middle of the room, and another ten or fifteen lined up along the buffet at the far side of the room. He got in line behind a rowdy group of men, around his own age. They were talking loudly to one another as they perused the buffet offerings, piling their plates high with a little bit of everything. Richard made his way down the line, trying to stick with the type of balanced plate that Addie had always ensured he had. She had subscribed to one of those meal prep companies that delivered your food every so often, and it had worked for them. Their busy schedules hadn’t allowed a lot of extra time for things like extensive shopping trips for elaborate meal planning. And now, left to his own devices, he was trying not to resort to the age old men’s meals of meat and potatoes.

He picked out his food and gave his room number to the attendant; then he found an empty spot at the end of one of the long cafeteria style tables. He ate his food quickly, without much enjoyment. He had never been one to enjoy dining alone. He wasn’t much of a people watcher either, and he hadn’t even thought to bring his book along with him. When he was nearly finished with his meal, one of the rowdy men who’d been in line at the buffet ahead of him came up to his table. “Hi,” he said in a loud, friendly voice. “Me and the guys couldn’t help but notice that you were eating alone.” He reached up a work worn hand to smooth the tangled mass of brown curls that stuck up all along the back of his head.

Richard cleared his throat and nodded. “Yeah,” he replied. “I’m out here alone right now, doing a little soul searching.” He looked sheepish. “I thought it be a nice get away from real life at the moment, but it’s been nothing but a pain in the butt so far.” He pushed the tray back a little bit and started to stand up.

“Well,” the ruddy faced man continued, “The guys and I are going to get together for a little while tonight. Have a few beers around the campfire, tell a few stories, that kind of stuff. You’re welcome to join us if you’re interested. I don’t mean to overstep, but if you want to come out, you’re welcome is all.” He looked back at his group of friends who stood clustered around the dining room door. They nodded and waved, and one even gave Richard a little salute. He turned back to Richard and smiled. “What’da ya think brother?”

Richard thought it over briefly and then nodded. “All right,” he said, reaching a hand over the table to shake. “I’m in.” He took the man’s hand in his own and gave it a firm shake. “The name’s Richard,” he continued. “I’m in room 104 and I’ll be here for a couple of weeks. I just got in today and I’d be glad to have some company to chat with tonight.”

The ruddy faced man smiled and clapped him on the back. “Well, all right then,” he responded happily. “I’m Jack, and I’m glad to meet you! My buddies over there are Brad, Allen, and Chris. I’m in room 209 but we’ll be getting together over by Brad’s cabin tonight.” He pointed to the burly, dark haired man standing closest to the door.

Just then, the door opened and Rachel walked in. She really was a beautiful woman, Richard thought as she appeared. She was young and nicely tanned and the smile she flashed to the room as she entered turned quite a few heads. Jack let out a small whistle and elbowed Richard in the ribs appreciatively. He looked like he was about to say something, but he held his tongue as he noticed Rachel making a bee line towards where they were standing. She came over and stopped beside Richard, tapping his shoulder with a delicate hand.

“Richard,” she said warmly. “I was hoping to run into you here. I wanted to let you know that the electrician has been out to your place.” Her brow furrowed a bit as she continued. “He couldn’t find anything wrong with the wiring at all but he did go ahead and reset the circuit breakers. Hopefully that’ll fix whatever it was that was going on in there. Anyway…” she shook her head slightly, her hair shifting attractively around her slender neck. “I see you’re getting to know some of the regulars here. How are you Jack?” She looked at Jack expectantly and he jammed his hands into his pockets and grinned.

“Well, I’m doing pretty good Miss Rachel,” he replied, giving Richard a devious wink. “Me and the boys here were actually just inviting Richard to come have a few beers and a little bit of fun with us tonight. You’re welcome to join us if you’re free.” His eyes twinkled with the invitation. “Isn’t that right boys,” he continued, louder, so that his friends over by the door could hear. They nodded and hooted in agreement, but Rachel just blushed and shook her head.

“I’m sorry guys,” she replied. I have yoga after work tonight. She glanced at Richard as if she had considered giving a different response, but she quickly looked away. “And I’ve still got work to do this afternoon, so I better hop to it. Good to see you boys anyway.” She smiled again and then headed over in the direction of the buffet attendant.

“Good lord man,” Jack said softly, under his breath. “What did you do to catch the eye of that one?” He stared appreciatively in Rachel’s direction as she walked away, noting the way that her skirt clung to her toned legs as she glided across the room. He turned back to Richard once she had reached the buffet attendant. “I’ve been coming here for years and she’s never looked twice at me. And nowhere even close to the way she looked at you!”

Richard grinned but it faded quickly with the guilty memory of Addie and the recent loss. “I don’t know buddy,” he replied, trying to enjoy the moment, but feeling hollow inside. “I guess when you’ve got it you’ve just got it.” He smiled again but this time it didn’t reach his eyes.

“Well,” Jack responded. “Whatever it is you’ve got, maybe you can give the boys and me a few lessons.” He laughed loudly and clapped Richard on the shoulder once again. “Anyway,” he began, returning to their conversation from earlier. “I’m in room 209, but Brad’s in 205, and we’re going to be hanging out behind his cabin tonight. There’s a little open area just a few yards out back of his place with a little campfire and whatnot. We’ll be heading over there in about an hour or so. I’m just gonna make a beer run first. We’ll see you there?”

Richard nodded in agreement fished his wallet out of his back pocket. He pulled out a twenty and pressed it into Jack’s hand. “Pick me up some while you’re out and we’ll make a night of it!” This time his smile was a little more genuine. Hopefully a night with the boys would be just what the doctor ordered. Jack pocketed the cash and then headed off in the direction of his friends. They struck up a quick conversation and then disappeared out the door, leaving the place a little quieter and less warm with their absence. Richard leaned down to pick up his supper plates, and as he reached for the spoon it skittered across the table away from him. He frowned and reached for it again, watching in disbelief as it rolled further across the table and then onto the floor. What the heck was it about this place, he wondered. He circled around the table and knelt beside the opposite bench, reaching a hand out to grab the errant spoon. But just before his fingers grasped it, it shot out from under his hand and went sliding along the floor towards the buffet.

Embarrassed, and with a dizzy sense of unreality he looked quickly around the room to see if anyone else had seen what had just happened. There were several groups of people still enjoying their dinners and chatting amongst themselves and Rachel was still over by the buffet attendant, a small stack of papers in her hand that she and the attendant were both looking over. Nobody else seemed to have seen the thing with the spoon but Rachel did look up as his glance passed over her, and she smiled sweetly before returning to her discussion. Richard gave a little sigh of relief at not being overseen chasing a flying spoon. Then he quickly moved over to where it had landed, about halfway up the table next to the one where he had been sitting. This time, instead of reaching down for it he stepped on it first, pinning it to the ground with a muddy hiking boot before bending to pick it up. He carried it back to his table and dropped it onto his tray, wiping his hand across a denim clad leg, as if the spoon had left some kind of unwanted residue behind.

He picked up his tray and carried it back to the repository, setting it gently on top of the stack of used trays. He looked curiously at the little spoon, willing it to move again, and wondering to himself if that had even really happened. Spoons don’t just up and move on their own. When the previously offending utensil failed to make any sort of movement he turned with a sigh and headed to the exit. He would go back to the cabin for a quick shower, and to kill a little bit of time before meeting up with the guys. Then hopefully he could put all of this weirdness, and his grief out of mind for a little while at least.

The shower had been nice and relaxing and, luckily, uneventful. No flying cutlery or malfunctioning electronics at least. He had been unable to keep himself from thinking about how nice the large hot tub sized bathtub had been, when he and Addie had visited here together. But at least those were good memories. And even if they did bring along with them the memory of her loss, at least it felt good to remember for a little while how good things had been at the time. And he could allow himself to believe that they would be again, at some point; once he had gotten past this grief. He wasn’t in any rush, since it was still so new and so raw; but at least he could see a way out of it eventually. He whistled to himself softly as he navigated the darkening parking lot, searching for room 205. The guys ought to be settled in with their beers by now. He had taken a good, long shower in order to clean off the residue from his aftenoon hike.

The resort and its inhabitants were much more subdued at this hour than he would’ve expected. With the rooms all being full he would’ve figured that there’d still be quite a few people out, but he guessed that they must still be out at dinner or off enjoying the many nature oriented activities this place had to offer. There was one older couple sitting on a bench outside their cabin, holding hands and talking quietly to each other, but the rest of the area was eerily deserted. He could hear the faint strains of country music coming from somewhere up the way, but otherwise it was mostly silent.

A crow sat perched on one of the streetlights that were interspersed along the sidewalk in front of the cabins. It watched him with interest as he walked past, but it didn’t make a sound. A slight breeze blew, ruffling the leaves in the trees that grew up along the back of the cabins and also in between. The music grew louder as he counted down the cabin numbers towards his destination. When he finally located the cabin he was looking for it became obvious that it was coming from the area where the guys must be gathered.

He circled around the cabin and found the guys lounging in folding chairs that were placed in a semi circle around a large bonfire. One of them had backed their truck around to the rear of the building and had left it running with the windows rolled down. The throaty sounds of a Chris Stapleton song blared from the open windows. Jack pushed himself up from his chair and bent to grab a beer, before coming to meet Richard as he arrived.

“Hey man, we were just talking about you,” he said happily, obviously a few beers in already. “I was telling the guys that our resident Romeo was gonna give us pick up lessons tonight.” He slapped a meaty hand against his thigh and let out a good chuckle. The other guys all laughed along good naturedly. He held out the beer to Richard and pointed to an empty spot next to Brad.

“Come on, pull up a chair and crack one open with us.”

“Yeah, how is it that you’ve got Rachel all wrapped around your finger already,” the one called Chris asked with a wink. “We’ve been coming out here every summer for a long time and that girl never fraternizes much with the guests. None of us has ever had any luck with her. Although Jack here has been trying like mad.”

He let out a little whoop and made a lassoing motion with one hand. Jack crumpled up an empty beer can and chucked it in the direction of his head, missing by at least a foot. The can sailed over and instead smacked into one of the truck tires before settling into the dirt. Allen let out a muffled oath and leaned over to smack Jack in the back of the head.

“Hands off of my truck, man! Or cans off, or whatever,” Allen said half-menacingly. “I’m still making payments on that thing. I find a scratch on her anywhere and it’s your ass.”

Jack reached up and pulled off the ball cap that he’d donned in between dinner and now, placing it over his chest and apologizing, only half sincerely. As he placed the cap back on his head the truck’s alarm began to blare, the lights flashing in time to the siren screams.

“Dang man,” Allen continued. “I told you, you better lay off of her. What now?” He got up and went over to the truck, reaching inside to where the keys dangled from the steering column. He clicked the button on the fob and the alarm went off, only to come right back on a second later. This time Allen was really ticked off and he ripped the keys from the ignition, jamming his finger repeatedly into the little button and cursing under his breath. The alarm went off and thankfully stayed off this time. He shoved the keys into a pants pocket and returned to his seat; the evening much quieter now without the music from the truck. He looked at each of the guys and they looked back at him, each one of them surprised by the errant alarm. Then they settled back into their chairs, sipping at their beers.

“Well, that was interesting,” Brad piped up. “Maybe we’ve got a ghost out here or something. I mean Jack’s arm isn’t that good or anything.” They all laughed and Jack tossed another can at Brad, this one connecting with his knee. Richard though, looked thoughtful. A ghost, he mused. Could it be possible? It would explain all the weird things that had been happening out here. But no. Those things weren’t real. Were they? He shook his head as if to clear the thought from his mind. If there were ghosts, then it certainly wasn’t something he wanted to dwell on right now. He had enough on his plate already, and he wanted to relax for a little bit. Apparently, Brad was thinking along those same lines too because he spoke up, changing the subject back to more pleasant things.

“So Richard,” he said in a suggestive voice, pausing to take a long drink from his can before continuing. “You were going to tell us more about Rachel.” He nodded at Richard and made a motion with his hand for Richard to begin his story.

Richard sighed. He didn’t know why he had thought he would be able to avoid having this conversation, but here they were. There was no way to tell them about Rachel without bringing up Addie, and possibly putting a damper on the whole night. The other men looked a little confused by his lack of enthusiasm, but they waited patiently for him to speak. Richard looked at the beer can in his hand and then took a long swallow. Finally, he explained to them what had happened and how he had ended up at the resort alone. The guys were surprisingly accepting of his story and by the time he had finished, Richard actually felt a lot better, having gotten it off of his chest.

Jack responded jokingly that Chris and Allen had been betting on Richard being Rachel’s secret lover. But, that he and Brad had figured nobody would end up out at the lake resort alone unless they were looking to escape their real life for awhile. And they hadn’t figured him for the type to be running from a life of crime. They all chuckled, but it was dampened with a tinge of sympathy.

They sat by the campfire for several hours, finishing off several twelve packs between them all, and swapping lots of stories of loves lost and the ones they’d been lucky enough to keep. It was a fine evening and by the time they were all ready to call it a night Richard was feeling quite drunk, even after the bourbon inoculation he’d been working on for the past month. Someone along the way had handed out cigars to the group, and as Richard tottered to his feet he flicked the butt of his into the fire.

Against all belief, the cigar butt bounced off of a burning log and hurled itself back at him with surprising speed and strength; landing on his chest and singeing a small hole in his button down shirt. He gaped in abject surprise and looked over at the other men to see if they had noticed. At the time, Jack was telling a story about an old flame to Brad and Chris, but Allen had seen. Allen was staring at the fire, his face as slack jawed and amazed as Richard’s, and he turned his head to look at Richard, almost in slow motion.

“What, in the name of all that is holy, was that,” he asked slowly and in shock. “It was like someone threw it back at you.” Richard nodded in agreement and patted absently at the new hole in his shirt.

“I have no idea,” he replied, feeling dazed. “This has been the weirdest vacation of my life.” He briefly considered telling Allen about all the other things that had happened during the last twenty four hours but decided against it. Just because he’d seen the boomerang cigar didn’t mean that he’d believe any of the rest of it. Hell, he barely believed it himself, and he’d lived it. No, he’d better just try to figure this thing out, he thought to himself, a chill settling in over him. He hadn’t realized it had gotten so cold out here, but his arms were covered in goose bumps now and were cool to the touch. He shook hands with each of the guys in turn, thanking them for the drinks and the company and then hurried back around the cabin towards the parking lot, hoping to get home quickly and without any more strange happenings.

For part 1, click here- https://everydaywitches.blog/2026/09/21/grief-a-short-ghost-story-part-1/

For part 3, click here- https://everydaywitches.blog/2026/09/21/grief-a-short-ghost-story-part-3/

If you’d like to check out the novel Everyday Witches, click here- Everyday Witches: chapter listing