“I didn’t know about her,” I yelled.
She sighed. “Let’s go talk in the kitchen.”
So we left the ballroom and headed to the kitchen to chat about the fact that my dead grandmother has come back from the grave to ruin my life.
Yay, me.
As soon as we’re settled in our cozy kitchen that for some reason has five wooden mug trees that are all filled with cups with printed catch phrases like, LIFE IS BETTER AT THE LAKE and MISSION ACCOMPLISHED, my mother slumps into a chair and gives my grandmother a worried glance before saying, “I know how this looks.”
“It looks like I’ve come back as a ghost,” Nana says proudly.
Not only is it bad, but Nana seems to have forgotten how bad this is.
“Blair! Where are you?”
Chelsea appears in the doorway, now dressed for the ball in a black gown with long sleeves. “Oh, there you ar—” Her gaze lands on Nana, and she screams right before slithering unconscious to the ground.
Ovie shakes her head. “If this keeps happening, we won’t have any Thornroses at the ball because they’ll all have fainted.”
I crouch beside Chelsea and pick her up by the shoulders. “Who else?”
“Me,” Mama says, giving Nana an eyeful while my grandmother just shrugs innocently. “I fainted.”
Nana sniffs. “I do have that effect on people. Hey, it’s better than not having any effect, right? What if folks took one look at me and just kept on walking? That wouldn’t be any fun.”
I slap my forehead.
Chelsea shifts in my arms, slowly waking back up. Her eyes flutter open, and her voice is wobbly. “What happened?”
“I did,” Nana tells her.
Chelsea passes out—again.
“Must be the power of the undead,” Nana whispers proudly.
“You ain’t undead,” Ovie snaps. “You’re just a ghost who’s come back to make our lives hell, is what you are.”
Mama shoots Ovie a hard look. “Let’s try to calm down.”
“How am I supposed to calm down when my mother’s returned from the dead to do God knows what with the ball I’ve organized?”
“If you weren’t so busy with that good-for-nothing husband of yours, I wouldn’t have to come back,” Nana spits.
Oh wow. This has gotten really ugly, really fast. But it is true that my aunt has an awful husband. Spends all her money, leaves for months at a time on gambling binges and only returns when he’s out of cash—which Ovie always gives him.
None of us can stand Charlie, but no matter how much I assume that my mother has talked to my aunt about it, Ovie keeps taking him back.
“Mother,” my mom says coolly, expertly pulling the conversation away from Ovie, “it’s wonderful that you’ve come back, but other people won’t think it’s so spectacular.”
“We’ve got to keep you hidden,” Ovie says.
“I will not hide,” Nana says in her regal voice. “The world should know that I’m here.”
“No,” my mother and Ovie say in unison.
“Nana,” I start, keeping my voice as gentle as possible, “have you forgotten what it means when someone returns from the grave?” No point in waiting for an answer. “It’s bad luck. It means the family has done something wrong. Things have gone so far south for them that one of their ancestors had to return to straighten things out. If people catch wind that you’re here, you can forget any chance of getting me married. No one will want to be with me because they’ll think that we’re ruined before we even get started.”
Nana grimaces. “I didn’t think about that.”
