Madame waved her hand over the spiraling smoke, as if sending it heavenward. “The spirits will see your questions, and if they choose, they will answer them.”

Persephone slipped out of the room, taking her funny little bag with her. Madame then instructed everyone to lay their hands on the table. No need to hold hands since the small lamp still burned, so everyone could see that no funny business was going on.

“You will tell me who you are,” Madame said. “Just your name. I do not need to know more. The spirits know you already.”

She turned her piercing gaze to Elizabeth, who was so startled, she almost gave her maiden name. “Uh, Elizabeth, um, Bates. Mrs. Gideon Bates,” she added for accuracy.

Everyone introduced themselves, even though Madame presumably knew at least half of them. When they were finished, Madame said, “Now I will try to contact the spirits, although as I said, it will not be easy. My spirit guide is named Peter. He was a monk in sixteenth-century Germany. If he chooses to communicate with you, he will speak through me. He may answer your question or he may have something else to communicate to you. When he does speak, I will be unable to hear or respond to you as myself, and I will have no memory of what he said. Peter will quite take over my body. Try to remain calm. The spirits do not like to be disturbed. Am I clear?”

Everyone nodded. The excitement in the room was almost palpable. Even Elizabeth could feel it, the sense that something momentous was about to happen. No wonder poor Mrs. Vanderslice was so determined to continue this. Her life had been incredibly boring even before David’s death had sent her into seclusion. Something as fascinating as this would be irresistible.

For a long moment, no one spoke or moved, and then Madame closed her eyes and began to hum. The Lindhursts and Mrs. Vanderslice closed their eyes as well, and after a while, Mother Bates did, too. Anna and Elizabeth exchanged a glance. Anna’s eyes were enormous, silently telling Elizabeth she didn’t intend to miss a thing.

The humming seemed to go on for a long time, but then Madame stiffened visibly, as if she had sustained a slight shock. “Peter, are you there? Can you hear me?”

Madame shuddered slightly, and when she spoke again, the voice was deep and resonant, like a man’s voice. “I am here. I sense the presence of new beings. Anna, are you there?”

Elizabeth thought Anna’s eyes were as wide as they could possibly go, but she had been wrong. “Yes,” Anna replied uncertainly.

“David is here. He wishes to speak to you.”

Anna didn’t look like she wanted to speak to him, but she said, “All right.”

“He says to tell you he is in a better place, and he is quite happy.”