Edward Kane, Advocate in The Supernal Sisters. Chapter 1: 'Jesus Was Just Like a Ghost'

Sarah Spooner – Spirit Medium – began to speak in a low, croaky (and in what sounded like) long-dead voice: ‘Oh, my son, my son…’

The well-dressed man in his twenties sitting across the table (presumably the ‘my son’ referred to in the communication) placed his hands to his temple. This action made the medium snap out of her trance and – like an angry school-mistress – point over at the young gentleman: ‘Hands! Hands!’. The fellow put his hands back down and interlocked them with the others around the circular table. Spooner sat back and closed her eyes. Croaky voice again: ‘My son…why have you not avenged…my death?’

The young fellow sat still. But was that a tear running down his cheek?

Edward Kane. Illustration: Lesley-Anne Barnes Macfarlane

*****

Edinburgh. The Old Town.

‘Do you believe in ghosts, Mr K?’

Edward Kane, Advocate was rather caught on the hop by the question.

It was breakfast time. Kane’s Cockney manservant, Mr Horse, had already performed near-Biblical miracles in securing for that impecunious household (what he had assured his master was) ‘a nice bit of bacon’.

That last piece of breakfast was poised to enter the master’s mouth, but the act of inserting it was now frozen in mid-air. It seemed to Kane impolite to complete the action now that he had been asked the direct question.

Mr Horse chuckled and pointed to the young Advocate: ‘Sorry, Mr K – I put you off your stride. I was just wondering, like.’ He nodded towards the poised fork hovering at his master’s mouth: ‘Get that breakfast down you – while it’s hot, sir.’

The manservant, sitting on his low stool by the open fire, went back to toasting the large heel of some day-old bread, holding the darkening surface against the flames with the safe distance of a long fork.

Kane resumed the completion of his breakfast. He then took a sip of tea and considered the question. ‘Ghosts? Why do you ask, Mr Horse?’

‘Just wondering. I’ve been talking to some people down the Doric Tavern. And you always know all about this stuff, about The Bible and all…’

The young Advocate gave a little chuckle: ‘I’m not sure what The Bible has to do with ghosts, Mr Horse.’

The manservant rubbed his stubbly chin: ‘Me old nan used to say that Jesus was just like a ghost when he was walking on the water, sir.’

Kane sipped his tea. ‘Certainly, his men thought he was one during the storm, but he soon disabused them of that.’ He nodded towards the blackening bread on the flames: ‘Now, I wonder if we could leave the topic of “ghost” and focus on the issue of “toast”.’

Horse blew out the now-flaming piece of bread, walked across and plonked the toast onto his master’s side-plate: ‘Wery droll, Mr K, Wery droll. I’ll just lay out your things…’

*****

‘I’m worried about my man, Horse.’

‘I’ve met him. You ought to be…’

Edward Kane and his friend and colleague, Collins, were sipping their morning coffee in the Reading Room in the Advocates Library.

Easy chairs, pipe smoke, newspapers and coffee.

Kane placed his cup onto its saucer: ‘My man appeared to be obsessed with the after-life this morning. Kept asking me about ghosts in The Bible…’

Collins frowned: ‘Are there any?’

This type of Biblical inquisition (apparently now from all directions) was not unusual. Kane’s late father had been a Church of Scotland minister. One of Kane’s earliest memories was being dressed in his Sunday best, sitting on his mother’s lap in church, and hearing one of his father’s sermons. That was the first of, perhaps, thousands of homilies to which the young Advocate had been exposed throughout his childhood, his teen years then early adulthood. His father had joked that Edward’s residual knowledge of the Bible would ultimately resemble the ring of dirt left in a bath-tub after an extremely long soak.

Kane sat back in his chair and considered the question. Ghosts in the Bible? His manservant’s example came to mind: ‘I suppose when Jesus’ men saw him walking on the water, they became alarmed because they thought that he was ghost…’

Collins pushed his horn-rim spectacles against the bridge of his nose: ‘And didn’t the good Lord actually conduct a seance at one point?’

Kane frowned: ‘A seance??? I think not, my friend. If you mean ‘Lazarus’, then…’

Collins sat forward: ‘No, no – he did. Near the end. Jesus went up a hill and he had a long conversation with Elijah and Moses. And those two chaps must have been well dead by then.’ The friends laughed.

Collins took off his glasses, fished out a little piece of silk from his waistcoat pocket and began to polish the lenses: ‘It always reminded me of the appeal court here, when our three judges go into a sort of holy huddle against the back wall before they hand down their decision.’

Kane smiled: ‘As always, you are, of course, right, Collins.’ He thought for a moment, then: ‘Although, I think that Elijah was never recorded as dead. Carried away by a tornado straight up to heaven, as I recall.’

Collins raised his teacup: ‘Well, if you see him - give him my best…’

The friends laughed and sipped their tea.

Collins gave a chuckle and sat back in his chair: ‘So what does today hold for that illustrious young Advocate, Edward Kane, my friend?’

A shake of the head: ‘If you were to substitute the word “impecunious” for the word “illustrious”, then I would answer to that, Collins.’ Kane took his Hunter out of his waistcoat pocket and studied its face: ‘Although, in some forty-five minutes, I am due to consult.’

‘About what?’

Kane laughed: ‘I have absolutely no idea. Don’t even know the client’s name. Just a very odd letter of instruction. The whole thing is a mystery.’

Kane reached into his briefcase and produced an envelope. He handed it to his friend. Without opening it, Collins took the envelope and held it under his nose. Kane furrowed his brows: ‘Is it scented, my friend? I hadn’t…’ Collins gave a mischievous grin: ‘No Edward. It just struck me from the quality of the paper that these instructions have the distinct aroma of a very, very wealthy client…’ The friends laughed and Collins continued: ‘Now – let’s see what’s in it, shall we?’

Edward Kane and Mr Horse Collected Short Stories Volume 1 is available on Amazon, Kindle and from all good bookshops