Page 72 of Shake Your Boo Thang

I reach out my hand and shake Ken’s again. “Thank you so much for your time. We’ve learned a lot, and we appreciate you sharing what you remember from back then.”

Ken pulls out a card and hands it to Beau. “My grandson helped me get these made for my Instagram channel. I meet people all the time who want to learn how to stay fit as they get older so it helps to have these to give them. It’s got my email address on the back. If you get a chance, could you send me some information about your show? My grandson might be interested in it.”

“Yes, sir. It’s been a real pleasure speaking with you today. We need to be on our way, but you take care now, you hear?”

Outside, we wave our goodbyes and head off in opposite directions.

“Well, that conversation sure was enlightening. The plot thickens, as they say,” Beau muses.

“We’ve got our next objective confirmed. We need to track down Reggie and his nephew.”

CHAPTER

TWENTY-ONE

So I’ve been reading up on the most haunted spots in London, and boy howdy, are there a lot of them! I’ll admit, I’m not even sure where to start.

Now, one spot I definitely need to check out is the Tower of London. The stories about that place are absolutely fascinating. Then again, places associated with tragic death often have a higher likelihood of spirits lingering around. The Tower of London’s history is bloodier than most, that’s for sure.

Will I meet the ghost of Anne Boleyn? She’s reported to haunt a chapel there. Then there’s the Princes in the Tower. Personally, the spirits of children always break my heart, so I hope I don’t run into them. But heck, y’all, there’s even supposed to be the spirit of a bear in the Tower! Now that would be a new one for me, I guarantee it.

I’ll let you know what happens, but I sure do hope I get to meet that ghostly ursid!

–Beau’s Boos and Beyond, Episode 68

Beau

After we part from Ken, Callum pulls out his phone and starts filling Liz in on what we’ve found.

“Put her on speaker,” I whisper.

He nods once he finishes the story. “I’m putting you on speaker, Liz, so Beau can hear too.”

“Let me guess,” Liz says dryly. “You two want me to help you track down the owner and his nephew.”

“See, you still get me,” Callum says with a grin.

I snort out a laugh.

“We have reason to believe they’re not in London anymore, which is why you might be able to find them faster than we can,” Callum adds.

Liz heaves a put-upon sigh. “Fine. I’ll try, but no guarantees.”

“Of course,” Callum agrees.

“In the meantime,” I add, “we’re going to work on locating the people who escaped the building that night. From what we’ve uncovered, a few may have managed to get out before the fire turned deadly.”

“Aye,” Callum says. “If any of them are still alive and in London, we should be able to find them.”

“You still think there’s something fishy with the findings of the arson investigation?” Liz asks, tone serious.

Callum’s tone matches Liz’s. “Too many things aren’t quite adding up. And now we learn the owner was in debt because of a gambling problem.”

“Are you thinking insurance fraud?” she asks, voice sharp.

“Something like that seems likely, yes.”

“The payout from an accidental fire would probably arrive right on time to solve all his problems,” I add. “How convenient.”