13 Ghost Stories in 13 Days

The Girl with the Puka Shell Necklace

The girl in the puka shell necklace was bent over a tombstone, trying to take a picture with her phone. Barry almost stepped on her. They exchanged awkward hellos. She said her name was Lucinda and he must have been “dying” to meet her. He thought that was funny.

He was confident that he wasn’t living in one of those stories where the beautiful and mysterious girl turns out to be dead the whole time. The truth is, he’d been hoping for something like this. His two best friends had called him crazy when he told them he thought the old cemetery on Ridge Ave. was a good place for a meet cute. He felt redeemed.

The first date they ate too much Mexican food and laughed and drank so many margaritas that he didn’t really remember the end of the night. She called him the next morning and a few days later they went for a long walk along the Schuylkill River and it was so enjoyable, even though he again didn’t quite remember the end of it. After the third date (mini golf), he wanted her to meet his friends.

They all met up for Quizzo at the bar. She answered the question (Turkmenistan was the answer) that clinched third place and a $20 gift certificate. Bill and Terri laughed the whole time, which they did not always do when he brought new girls around.

When he and Bill went to the bar with the gift certificate to order one more round of lagers, Lucinda stayed behind and chatted with Terri. They grew up in rival towns it turned out, and they knew some of the same people.

“Looks like you finally found a good one,” Bill said, as they met the next morning to discuss things over brunch, which they did every time he introduced them to a new girl.

“I can’t believe your dumb cemetery meet cute stunt worked,” Terri said. “She’s perfect.”

The next weekend they went on a double date to the apple orchard and all four of them got into a playful apple fight. They made pie together that night and drank spiked cider and things got fuzzy after that. The following weekend they planned a weekend couples getaway in the mountains to look at the foliage.

Friday night was fun, but by Saturday Terri and Bill had begun to act odd. They exchanged glances when Lucinda wasn’t looking that Barry noticed because he knew Terri and Bill.

Lucinda excused herself to go to the bathroom. Barry finally spoke up.

“Why are you guys acting so weird?” he said.

Bill looked at Terri.

“It’s nothing,” Bill said. “Probably.”

“What is it this time?” Barry asked. “Does Terri think she has ‘los ojos de diablo’ like Samantha did? Does she have a vocal fry that only Bill can hear? Is she a vampire?”

“Her voice is pleasant,” Bill said. “It’s just…”

“Don’t you ever notice that she never takes off that puka shell necklace?” Terri said. “No one wears those anymore.”

“So what?” Barry said. “She’s a beach bum. She loves the ‘90s. I think it’s cute.”

Terri gave that little Marge Simpson throat clear of displeasure she did when she wanted Bill to speak her mind for her.

“Terri thinks,” Bill started. Terri gave the throat-clearing noise again. “Sorry, we think, uh, that if you remove the necklace, her head will fall off.”

“We think she died 50 years ago tonight!” Terri blurted.

“That’s nonsense!” Barry said. “It’s just a puka shell necklace. She’s just a cool girl from the shore. You’re both just bitter my meet cute worked out and you guys are stuck with each other.”

Then Lucinda came back with a plate of nachos so they all got quiet and ate.

Back at their motel, Barry was getting undressed for bed. Lucinda did yoga in the corner of the room.

“You want to hear something funny?” he asked.

“Mmm?” she said.

“Bill and Terri pointed out that puka shell necklace you always wear,” he said.

She softly touched her neck.

“They think your head will fall off if I remove it.” Barry said. “Talk about crazy, right?”

“That is crazy,” Lucinda said softly.

“I told them you’re just a girl who loves the sun in your hair and the sand in your toes.”

“Those guys sure are something,” she said. Then she got quiet and softly touched her neck again, like she was contemplating the ocean.

Later that night they were getting a little frisky and curiosity got the best of him. He went to remove necklace.

“Don’t…” she whispered.

“Why?” he asked. “Will your head fall off?”

“No,” she said.

“My god,” he said. “They were right the whole time. You’ve been dead for 50 years. How does this keep happening?”

“You just can’t take it off,” she said. But it was too late. He grabbed at the necklace. Puka shells cascaded off their chain and onto the floor of the motel room.

Lucinda’s head stayed in place. She reached her hand up to cover her neck, but it was too late. Barry saw two puncture wounds on the right side of her neck. Like someone stabbed her with a barbecue fork. Or…

“What the…” he said.

“Oh Barry,” she said.

“What are these?” he said.

“I thought you knew.”

“Who did this to you?,” he said.

“Oh Barry,” she said again. Her eyes were so sad.

“I’ll kill the bastard.”

“You did this to me Barry,” she said. “You’re a vampire. You stole me from my family and made me into your unholy wife in a ceremony at the cemetery. I thought you knew.”

“What?” Barry rolled over and stared into the mirror. There was no reflection.

“Oh Barry,” she said one more time. “You’ve been a vampire the whole time. You reveal your true form every night. I’ve been too afraid to tell you.”

He refused to believe this. He had a lot to think about. He turned into a bat and flew away. He never called Lucinda again.

A few days later Bill and Terri asked what happened to Lucinda. He told them her head fell off. Terri smiled triumphantly.

The only rule of 13 Ghost Stories in 13 Days is that the story must be posted the same night I started it.