Free Space and Time Issue 121 by Hildy Silverman

face.
    “Greetings,” Taylor said calmly to the clown. “We wish to communicate with you. Please identify yourself.”
    “I hate to be a party pooper but I don’t think this guy is the chatting type,” Dan said.
    “Let me try,” Taylor whispered. He turned his attention back to the ghost. “Hello, we wish to communicate with you. We come in peace.”
    The clown swished through them once more, making their hair fly back.
    “Why do you haunt this place?” Taylor inquired. “Perhaps we can assist you in moving on. Please respond.”
    The clown, floating near the ceiling, came at them again, with more furious intensity this time, almost knocking down one of the laptops.
    “Uhh, I think we need to move on to plan B, Professor,” Jan whispered.
    The clown knocked the flashlight out of Dan’s hand. “That wasn’t cool.”
    Taylor took out a handgun from his briefcase, aimed it at the clown, and fired. The round of rock salt hit the white, mist-like entity, making it scatter in a cloud of smoke.
    “What the heck was that?” Dan asked.
    “Plan B,” Taylor replied calmly.
     
    * * *
     
    “Your time’s up,” Skyler said.
    “But we made contact,” Taylor reasoned. “Give us a little more time and maybe we can get rid of this ghost.”
    Skyler leaned back in his office chair, putting his boots up on one end of his desk. “It ain’t botherin’ me none. It ain’t hurtin’ business.”
    “You don’t care if your employees or visitors get hurt?”
    “Of course I care! I care so much I gave all those little runts a raise. Ain’t that nice of me?” he asked, shooting him a sly grin.
    Before he could respond, Skyler added, “And I gave them all health benefits! What do you say to that, mister witch doctor? Ain’t that real nice of me?”
    “Well, that’s very generous of you,” Taylor replied, not liking the label witch doctor one bit.
    “Damn straight! So don’t run around accusin’ me of not looking after my workers, Hoss. I take it real personal, you hear? Oh, I care all right. I care up to my eyeballs. Selfish, mean, I ain’t. I got people here who’ve got families to feed, kids to put through school, the whole nine yards. I ain’t no fascist dictator, you hear?”
    “Whoa, whoa! I didn’t mean to knock you off your high horse. I’m just trying to help you prevent further accidents at the park. Which, by the way, brings up this murder that occurred here years ago. Can you elaborate on that?”
    “Don’t know nuthin’ ’bout that.”
    “You have no information at all?”
    “You got wax in your ears or something, witch doctor?”
    “Can you tell me more about these fatal accidents at the park?”
    Skyler glanced at his watch. “Your two days are up, witch doctor. I want you and your assistant outta here pronto. Now git!”
     
    * * *
     
    Back at the hotel room, Taylor and Jan analyzed the video and audio recordings. Taylor used his mouse and clicked the ‘PLAY’ button on the laptop’s screen. They, along with Dan, who was sitting in a chair, listened to the wailing sound again. Taylor studied the jagged peaks and lows registering on the screen. He replayed the clip, enhancing the sound quality on the computer. They listened to one version that featured just the wailing and nothing else. No background noise, no distortion.
    “That’s the purest, most raw cut of the wailing,” Taylor said, rubbing his chin. “I don’t think it’s fraudulent.”
    “How can you be certain?” Dan asked, leaning forward.
    “Well, for one thing there’s no background hiss that usually accompanies audio recordings of this nature. I’ve listened to continuous loops of sound bytes that generally contain some form of hissing, and that have a redubbed, echo-like quality. I mean, you can hear the echo of the wailing in the tunnel, but it sounds natural. Also, Jan and I checked the mine and Funhouse and didn’t find any projection or sound equipment that could’ve produced that ghost and those