Clark Palmer about 6,500 words

Cjp1282@yahoo.com

Right to Afterlife

by Clark Palmer

“Mr. Jones, let’s go back to the night you claim you

were assaulted, kidnapped, and falsely imprisoned.”

Larry Jones sat hunched forward in the witness box,

working desperately to control his anxiety and his body

language. His lawyer, Assistant District Attorney Robert

Kozlowski, told him that a little nervousness would earn

him some sympathy from the jury, which they desperately

needed to win such an historic case.

On the other hand, too much fidgeting or pausing

before answers usually made juries think the witness was

doing a poor job lying.

Kozlowski strode to the witness box. “Where were you

the morning of October 6th, Mr. Jones?”

“Grocery Emporium. I was workin’ my usual shift,”

Jones said. He was an off hours stock clerk. It was one

 Palmer / Right to / 2

of the few types of jobs a ghost could get. Most people

weren’t very comfortable around ghosts so business owners

were leery about giving them more visible jobs. And Jones

didn’t have the guts to challenge society on that issue

when he was looking for a job.

But it beat the hell out of his old job: dealing with

customers at the post office. To add insult to injury, he

didn’t even live to collect his pension.

“When is your usual shift?” Kozlowski asked.

“Eleven to seven in the morning. Every day.”

Kozlowski rested his forearm on the wooden railing

around the witness box. “Do you like your job Mr. Jones?”

“Yeah. Y’know, I was employee of the month again last

month.”

“Well, congratulations. It sounds like they’re lucky

to have you.”

“Objection,” Kozlowski’s opponent, Jack Donaldson

said. “Your honor, is there a point to all of this?”

Judge Carol McKorvee frowned at Kozlowski. “I’m sure

there is. Can we get to it sooner rather than later, Mr.

Kozlowski?” Her voice was tinged with the weariness of

someone who had witnessed every lawyer trick in the book.

“Certainly, your honor.” Kozlowski had been testing

his opponent for the entire trial to see what he could get
 Palmer / Right to / 3

away with. He expected an objection. He didn’t think the

other man would let him use an approach Donaldson had

employed for much of his career as a defense lawyer.

Kozlowski was so familiar with Donaldson that he knew the

man didn’t take kindly to “tasting his own medicine” so to

speak.

But Kozlowski was trying to irritate his opponent to

throw him off of his game. And maybe objections could work

in Jones’ favor. Kozlowski was just trying to make a

nervous man feel more comfortable. That might make the

jury view Donaldson as insensitive, which made his clients

seem insensitive.

“What happened when you left work that morning Mr.

Jones?” Kozlowski asked.

Jones’ chair creaked loudly as his obese frame shifted

around. “I walked home like always.”

“But you didn’t make it home did you?”

Jones rubbed his hands together slowly. “No.”

“What happened?” Kozlowski asked.

“I ah...I was on my street. I was a few houses away.

An’ somebody came up behind me. Then I saw somebody in the

street walking toward me. There were two more guys ahead

of me.”
 Palmer / Right to / 4

Jones glanced down at the discoloration in the

collection of electromagnetic plasma that made up his

elbow. His etheric form shimmered for a moment as memories

of that night welled up in his mind. That night was

without a doubt the scariest of his existence.

“I was gonna make myself invisible but then I

remembered I already was. I thought maybe they couldn’t

see me and it was just my imagination. But I kept walking

and they kept closing in on me. I saw they had some kinda

goggles on.”

Larry glanced at the four men who attacked him. Bobby

Joe Wright grinned back. He was a good ol’ boy if there

ever was one. His shoulder length dark brown hair flowed

out of the back of his big black cowboy hat. He wore a

gray sport coat over a denim shirt. His belt buckle was

almost as big as his arrogance.

Bobby Joe’s brother Travis sat next to him. He had a

bushy goatee and wore his hair slicked back. He sported a

tacky gold watch and gold chain around his neck. He had on

a checkered, short-sleeve, button-down shirt. Next to them

were the other two Ghostwranglers employees, Mark Fry and

Jake Walker.

Ghostwranglers was a local ghost-catching business.

Dozens had sprung up all over the country in the past 20

 Palmer / Right to / 5

years. Homeowners and business owners with ghosts living

or hanging around their property hired Ghostwranglers to

remove them. Rumor had it they wanted to call their

organization Ghostbusters but decided against it when they

found out they had to pay Columbia Pictures to use the

name.

Larry thought that going to the police when he escaped

would be harder than anything he’d have to do after that-–

preparing to testify, talking about what happened,

testifying. But as he recounted the attack it hit home how

much danger he was putting himself in. There was no

telling what the Ghostwranglers would do if he lost the

case. Maybe this was the wrong time to finally stand up to

people who mistreated him.

Kozlowski walked over to the evidence table. “Do you

see the goggles your attackers were wearing among the

evidence we’ve collected?”

“Yeah.”

“Could you point them out for the members of the jury?”

Jones pointed to four pairs of thick plastic goggles,

each connected to square electronic devices via a bundle of

wiring. The electronic devices had belt hooks attached to

them. They were night-vision goggles that had been

modified to allow the wearer to see electromagnetic plasma.

 Palmer / Right to / 6

“Each person was also holding one of these, correct?”

Kozlowski indicated a clear plastic shield with two grips

inset on the outside. It had a large electronic device

with metal housing in the center of the underside. Thin

strips of plastic with bundles of copper wiring in the

middle connected that device to 12 smaller electronic

devices that were evenly spaced around the rim of the

shield.

It was an electromagnetic deflector. It generated a

field that restricted movement of electromagnetic plasma.

Two or three created a sphere around ghosts through which

they couldn’t pass.

“Yes. They held ‘em up and got into a circle around

me.”

Kozlowski quickly put on latex gloves, picked up the

deflector, and approached his client.

“Is this how they came at you?”

Jones nodded and looked away.

“What happened next?”

“Well...after they got into a circle, all of ‘em

pressed buttons or fiddled with something on those shield-

lookin’ things. They lit up.”

Kozlowski came a few steps closer. “They got closer

didn’t they? So close you felt trapped.”

 Palmer / Right to / 7

“Yeah.”

“In fact, you were trapped. Isn’t that correct?”

“Objection,” Donaldson said. “Your honor, the

question has already been answered. He’s also blatantly

leading the witness.”

“Your honor,” Kozlowski said, “I think it’s only fair

that I be able to reiterate what this device is used for.”

McKorvee leaned forward. “The jury has been here for

the whole trial Mr. Kozlowski. They don’t need to be

reminded. Please, move on.”

Kozlowski conceded, nodding slowly. He actually felt

like Donaldson was giving him a compliment. He was

flattered.

Donaldson knew what Kozlowski was trying to do. The

longer Kozlowski could talk to Jones and show how scared he

was on the night of the attack, the more sympathy he could

get from the jury.

Donaldson wanted Kozlowski’s questioning over quickly.

He couldn’t let Jones get comfortable. Then Jones might

not react to Donaldson’s questions the way Donaldson

wanted. When all was said and done, Donaldson had the

advantage in the trial and he didn’t want to give the jury

any reason to go against his clients.

 Palmer / Right to / 8

Kozlowski walked back to the evidence table and set

down the electromagnetic deflector. “So they had

surrounded you, activated their deflectors, and...what

happened next?”

“I floated up to try to get away. I thought that was

the only thing I could do. But I got a few feet off the

ground then I couldn’t get any higher. There was somethin’

blocking me. I pushed at it but it wouldn’t budge.”

“Go on,” Kozlowski encouraged.

“Something closed around my arms and I got pulled back

to the ground. Then one of the guys dragged me toward him.

He had one of those sticks for catchin’ dogs. It had a

cord at the end. That’s what he wrapped around me.”

Kozlowski pointed to the ghost snare. “This is the

stick you’re talking about, right? The cord has small

electromagnetic deflectors on it.”

“Right. And those things next to it is what they tied

me up with.” Kozlowski indicated the electronic device

with two loops of plastic coming out of either end.

“Could you describe how they tied you up, Mr. Jones?”

“When the one guy dragged me toward him he dropped the

stick and jumped on top of me. He punched me in the face

then flipped me over on my stomach--”

 Palmer / Right to / 9

“--Hold on Mr. Jones,” Kozlowski said. “The living

can’t grab or hold electromagnetic plasma. How did this

person punch you and turn you over?”

“He had gloves on. I found out they had those

electromag’ things all over ‘em from that guy who

testified. Gary Wright.”

That was Bobby Joe’s other brother, the one with half

a brain in his head. He designed all of the ghost-catching

technology Ghostwranglers used. He never intended to turn

it into a business.

“OK. So, he jumped on top of you-”

“-His legs were going through me. I guess he didn’t

have any deflectors on his legs.”

“Right,” Kozlowski approached the witness box. “Is

that where the bruise on your cheek came from?”

Jones rubbed it with the back of his palm. “Yeah.”

“It wasn’t there when you died?”

“No...you can check the pictures.”

“Well, that’s exactly what we did. And you’re right.”

Kozlowski grabbed an 8.5 x 11” photograph from his table.

“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, this is a picture

of Larry Jones before his body was prepared for his funeral

and burial. You’ll see no bruise on his left cheek.”

 Palmer / Right to / 10

Kozlowski walked to the jury box and showed them the

picture.

“You’ll also notice no bruise on the inside of his

right elbow.” Kozlowski pointed to the pale left elbow in

the picture. “Mr. Jones could you raise your arm to show

the jury the mark on your elbow?”

Jones raised the arm over his head and held it there.

“You can lower your arm Mr. Jones. I have just a few

more questions. After they tied you up, they dragged you

into their truck. Correct?”

“That’s right,” Jones said. “They pulled me with that

dog catcher thing. They locked me in the bed of the truck

and drove off.”

“Then they took you to their ranch and locked you in a

barn with several other ghosts. Right?”

Jones nodded. “I was in a horse stall. They had

deflectors in there so I couldn’t get out.”

“Did they leave the restraints on?”

“I could barely move. They hooked it up to an outlet

so it wouldn’t run out of power.”

“How long were you there, Mr. Jones?”

“When I escaped I found out it was a week. But it

felt longer cuz it was hard to keep track of time. They

blocked out all the sunlight. Then the power went out.
 Palmer / Right to / 11

And I got outta those cuffs and just opened the stall and

ran away.”

After Larry pointed out his attackers, Kozlowski began

to wrap up his questioning. “There’s just one last area I

want to cover with you Mr. Jones. Can you feel?”

“Whaddyou mean?”

“Emotions. Hate, love, envy, joy, anger, sadness,

fear. Do you experience any of those?”

“Yeah. Doesn’t everybody?”

Kozlowski smiled. “Yes, we do. I think everyone in

this courtroom would agree with you. And were you afraid

when you were attacked? Were you afraid when you sat in

the horse stall as you called it? Were you happy

or...relieved when you escaped?”

“Yeah. I was definitely afraid. And I was really

happy when I got out.”

“You seemed happy when you mentioned being named

employee of the month when I started questioning you. Are

you self aware?”

“What’re you talkin’ about?”

“Do you ever think about what you’re doing in your

afterlife? Do you ever worry that you’re not doing what

you’re supposed to? Do you have certain values that you

aspire to? Anything like that?”

 Palmer / Right to / 12

“Oh, all the time. I mean, when I first died the

other ghosts told me I’m here because there’s somethin’ I

didn’t do when I was alive. I still don’t know what I’m

supposed to do. I hope I don’t mess it up so eventually I

can move on or do whatever I’m supposed to do. I always

thought it’s important to have a job.”

Kozlowski nodded and quickly pressed on, hoping to

make the jury forget his client’s mention of other ghosts

and the time when he was alive. “So you are self aware?”

“If that’s what it means then yeah.”

Kozlowski turned to face his opponent. “Just one more

thing Mr. Jones. You have a Social Security Number, right?”

“I had to get one so I could work.”

“Your witness,” Kozlowski said quickly. Then he sat

back down behind his table. He gave his client a

reassuring look.

He was actually glad that Larry couldn’t change

clothes. The stained wife beater and open postal worker

pants he died in were a stark contrast to Donaldson’s

men’s-fashion-magazine look. Larry looked like a

sympathetic character while Donaldson looked like the

slick, money grubbing lawyer he really was. Not that he

didn’t like Donaldson’s look, he’d eventually be as good or

a better lawyer than Donaldson and be able to afford

 Palmer / Right to / 13

finely-tailored, expensive clothing like his. Especially

the cuff links.

Meanwhile, Larry was so relaxed that before he knew

what was happening, Jack Donaldson was standing in front of

him, presenting a form to him. Larry took it.

“Please tell the court what you’re holding?” Donaldson

asked.

Larry looked at the top of the form then unconsciously

held his breath.

“Mr. Jones?”

Larry looked up at him and muttered, “A death

certificate.”

“For who?”

Larry looked down at his lap. “Larry Jones.”

“But how can that be? You’re sitting right in front

of me?”

Larry remembered Kozlowski’s advice about answering

quickly and trying not to fall for Donaldson’s attempts to

get ambiguous, drawn-out responses.

“That’s a different Larry Jones.”

Donaldson turned to face the jury. “Well I’m sure

there are other Larry Joneses in the world. There might

even be one in this courtroom. But...Mr. Kozlowski

presented a photo of your corpse to the jury. The

 Palmer / Right to / 14

resemblance between the man sitting in front of me and the

one in that picture is uncanny. I find that to be an

amazing coincidence, don’t you?”

“Well I-”

“-Objection your honor,” Kozlowski said. “Relevance?”

Judge McKorvee didn’t even lean forward in her leather

chair. “I’ve given you a lot of latitude in your

questioning Mr. Kozlowski. It would be unfair to deny the

same latitude to Mr. Donaldson.”

Kozlowski said, “I object on the basis that he’s

trying to provoke my client into an argument.”

“Denied,” McKorvee said slowly. “You’re reaching.

Continue Mr. Donaldson.”

Kozlowski kept his hands clasped in his lap, trying

his best to prevent his facial expression or body language

from giving away what he was thinking. He didn’t want the

jury to know Donaldson could potentially destroy his entire

case with one particular line of questioning.

He feared he’d already given too much away to the jury

and Donaldson. Kozlowski knew that throughout Donaldson’s

career, whenever he saw a weakness, he exploited it until

he was blue in the face.

 Palmer / Right to / 15

“Let me rephrase the question,” Donaldson said slyly.

“Maybe your attorney was right. That picture he showed the

jury was you before you became a ghost, wasn’t it?”

“Yes,” Larry said quickly.

“You’re a ghost aren’t you?”

Kozlowski couldn’t wait to object. The law hadn’t

defined the line between ghost and human. But he’d look

even more desperate if he objected. Plus, that would only

drag things out longer and he needed Jones off the witness

stand as soon as possible.

“Yes,” Larry said.

“The form I gave you shows the date that Larry Jones

passed away,” Donaldson said. “Could you read it for the

jury?”

“February 24th, 2071,” Larry said without looking at

the form. Kozlowski’s face tensed for the briefest of

moments before he got it under control.

Donaldson faced Larry. “You didn’t read it from the

form. You already knew didn’t you?”

Larry didn’t respond.

“Didn’t you?”

“Yeah, alright!”

“Of course, how could you forget. I’m sure there’s

not a day that goes by that you don’t think about it. But
 Palmer / Right to / 16

does your anger over your death give you the right to haunt

Chris and Miranda Foley’s house?

“I wasn’t haunting their house. I just--”

“--You were just what? Hanging around scaring their

daughters half to death?! That’s what they stated in their

testimony.”

Larry didn’t know why he hung around the house where

he used to live. All he’d ever done there was watch TV and

argue with his wife. In fact, he died of a heart attack

after getting off the phone with his wife while watching TV

and eating greasy take out from a burger joint he

frequented when he was alive and could eat. Home was home.

Even if you hated being there.

Larry said, “I never meant to--”

“--I’m sure you didn’t but that’s what happened. They

were within their rights to hire my clients to keep you out

of their house. Not defending their home would be

considered grossly negligent on their part!”

Kozlowski stood quickly. “Objection, your honor.

This is irrelevant. My client is not on trial here. He’s

trying to prove the guilt of Mr. Donaldson’s clients to the

jury.”
 Palmer / Right to / 17

“Your honor, this goes to the heart of Mr. Jones’

credibility,” Donaldson said. “He’s made some very serious

accusations against my clients and--”

McKorvee slammed her gavel down twice. “--Both of you

need to calm down. Now, Mr. Donaldson, I agree with Mr.

Kozlowski. This is an issue for another trial. Not this

one. The jury will disregard the comments about the

Foley’s testimony.”

Kozlowski was happy to score some kind of a victory

during cross examination. But the damage had already been

done. He didn’t know whether to admire Donaldson’s ability

to always get his point across to the jury or bemoan the

state of the U.S. Judicial System. Did a jury ever forget

something said during a trial just because the judge told

them to?

“Do you age, Mr. Jones? Does your hair grow? Do you

get sick? Do you have to shave?”

“No,” he said.

“Will you die?”

“I won’t be a ghost forever.”

“I need a “yes” or “no” Mr. Jones.”

“Not like you. I mean...I’m not threatening you or

anything.”
 Palmer / Right to / 18

There was some sparse chuckling in the court room. It

got a smile out of Kozlowski. Those kinds of things

sometimes had a strong influence on what the jury thought

of a witness.

Donaldson didn’t wait for the laughter to subside.

“Well, if you don’t age, you can’t die–-you actually

already have died-–and you admitted earlier that you are a

ghost. Are you a human being?”

“Yes.”

Donaldson raised his eyebrows. “Are you sure? You

don’t have any of the characteristics of a human being.

Sure you wouldn’t like to change your answer?”

“Your honor, my client has answered the question,”

Kozlowski said. “Mr. Donaldson can’t ask for Mr. Jones’

opinion on something and then demand that he answer the

same question again just because he disagrees with it.”

“Your honor, this isn’t a matter of opinion.”

“That hasn’t been established. And besides, my client

already answered the question. The jury gets to decide

whether they agree with him or not,” Kozlowski said.

McKorvee looked back and forth between the attorneys.

“Move on, Mr. Donaldson.”

“The defense rests your honor,” Donaldson said before

returning to his seat.

 Palmer / Right to / 19

“Redirect, your honor?” Kozlowski said.

McKorvee nodded.

Kozlowski walked over to the witness box. “You just

stated an opinion about whether or not you’re a human

being, correct?”

“Yeah, so?”

“Well, animals don’t have opinions. You had to weigh

both sides of an issue and then come up with the best

answer for Mr. Donaldson’s question. How did you come up

with your answer?”

“I just said what I thought. I think I’m a human

being.”

“Thank you.” Kozlowski smiled at his client. “The

prosecution rests your honor.”

McKorvee called a twenty-minute recess, after which

both sides presented their closing arguments. Then

McKorvee sent the jury to the jury room to reach a verdict.

Kozlowski and Jones waited down the hall from the

courtroom on a wooden bench. Kozlowski ordered lunch while

Jones fidgeted and looked around the hallway.

“Whaddyou think they’re gonna decide?” Larry asked.

“No clue,” Kozlowski said through a bite of his

chicken salad sandwich. “It’s not going to be an easy

decision though. I can tell you that. We really gave them

 Palmer / Right to / 20

something to think about though. I think that’s all we

could’ve asked for.”

Larry shook his head. “I blew it didn’t I?”

Kozlowski set the half of his sandwich he was holding

back in the Styrofoam container it was delivered in. “No.

You did fine. Trust me, there are people on the jury who

were thinking about some of the stuff Donaldson said before

they were even picked for jury duty.”

Kozlowski reached over to pat Larry on the back but

his hand went straight through him. “Sorry. I always

forget that.”

Kozlowski set his hands back down in his lap. “It’s

not like that stuff was never gonna come up during the

trial. No matter how much I objected to his questions or

downplayed it when I questioned witnesses. That’s why I

didn’t object all that much.”

“You really think I’m human?” Larry asked.

“Larry, you’re as human as anybody else...except for

Jack Donaldson. I think you’re way more of a human being

than he is. That guy looks like he came out of a J. Crew

catalogue.”

Larry chuckled.

“And look, I know...this may not be the best

consolation. But if we don’t win, I think someone will

 Palmer / Right to / 21

eventually break through. Society’s changing. It just

takes some time.”

Kozlowski would make sure a ghost got recognized as a

human being under the law. The notoriety he’d get from

defending just a few ghosts would help him get clients as a

defense lawyer when he started his own practice.

Technically he was the prosecutor in Larry’s trial but he

was really defending Larry against a system that didn’t

recognize him. That was the way it was being spun by the

media and by ghosts and living protestors who supported

Larry.

Kozlowski stood. “I have to use the restroom. I’ll

be right back.”

Larry leaned back on the bench and looked down the

hall by the door to the court room. Bobby Joe Wright stood

against the wall, the heel of one of his boots resting on

the top of the floorboard. Wright stared back, his eyes

slowly narrowing.

He was almost as terrified of Bobby Joe Wright as he

was of his wife, which he’d never thought was possible.

She could suck the happiness out of a room with one word.

The best part of dying was that he didn’t have to deal with

her anymore. Being trapped in a barn and barely able to

move was one thing. But at least in that situation he

 Palmer / Right to / 22

wouldn’t have to deal with her nagging. The fact that he’d

stood up to Wright really said something.

“Larry.” The voice was serious but subdued.

Larry looked up and his eyes went wide. “Brent?”

Larry studied the ghostly image of his long-dead best

friend that stood in front of him. Larry hadn’t seen Brent

since his funeral. He got killed in a three-car accident

when he was only 17.

“Larry, it’s time.”

“Time for what?” Larry said as he intently studied the

cuts and bruises on the electromagnetic plasma cluster that

made up Brent’s face.

“Time to take the next step.”

“You mean, it’s time to crossover? Or whatever it’s

called?

Brent nodded. “Just follow me.”

“I can’t. I’ve gotta see if we win the case.”

“Larry, if you don’t come now, you’ll be trapped in

this stage of existence forever.”

Larry exhaled irritably. “But can’t you wait like a

couple hours. It won’t take the jury that long.”

“This is the way it has to be,” Brent said

cryptically. “You have to make a decision in the next

couple of minutes, according to human-being time.”

 Palmer / Right to / 23

“Can I talk to my lawyer first?”

“He won’t return for several minutes. It has

something to do with bad Mexican food he ate last night.

By then I’ll be gone.”

“Well,” Larry said frantically, “what’s crossing over

like? Are my mom and dad there? Can me and you hangout?”

“No one can know until they crossover. You wouldn’t

comprehend it.”

“You’re not much of a negotiator are you?”

“My job is not to negotiate.”

“Why’d they pick you to bring me there?”

“They wanted someone you’d respond to.”

Larry stared at his former best friend. “So lemme get

this straight, you know my lawyer’s gonna be in the

bathroom for a long time but they thought I’d just go with

you, no questions asked?”

Brent kept his expression solemn for a few more

moments then shook his head and stared up at the ceiling.

“I told you guys we shoulda done it my way. No no no, you

had your chance. Lemme just try my way for a couple

minutes, and if it doesn’t work, we’ll go back to the ‘I’m

the Dalai Lama’ approach.”

Brent paused as if listening to something. “Oh

really, he’s offended? What a shock. I swear, that guy’s

 Palmer / Right to / 24

the biggest prick on the southwest side of the etheric

plane. Tell him to come down here and do this if he’s so

good at influencing people.”

Brent sighed and took a seat next to Larry. “Alright,

here’s the deal. You really do have to come with me. If

you don’t, you’ll be a ghost forever. There’s nothing I

can do. There’s an appeals process but that hardly ever

works. It’s gotta be a really special case and you’re not

that special. No offense.

“And we actually can’t predict the future. Well,

sometimes we can, but not usually. I just saw that your

friend Kozlowski had a lot of Mexican food last night so I

figured he’d eventually have to...”

“What’s it like there?” Larry said.

“The DMV...no, I’m just kidding.” Brent patted Larry

on the shoulder. “That’s just the registration process.

After that it’s really cool. But it’s hard to explain.

It’s a lot different than here. It’ll really blow your

mind, trust me. And your family’s there and some other

people you used to know. They’re all waiting. They’re

excited to see you.”

Larry leaned forward and slowly rubbed his hands

together. “But what about the case?”

“You’ll hear about it. We got the Internet up there.”

 Palmer / Right to / 25

“Yeah, but...what if we lose the case? I couldn’t

appeal it. If I stay here I might get attacked again and I

could try one more time.”

Brent frowned. “What, you wanna get attacked again?

Cuz, I’ve been following the trial and it didn’t sound all

that pleasant.”

“It’s not about that. We shouldn’t have to worry

about gettin’ attacked or locked up. I mean, we work and

pay taxes just like everybody else.”

Brent shrugged. “Well, this is your decision. But

you’ve got about a minute left. I think your lawyer’s

gonna be back real soon.”

Larry sighed. “What would you do?”

“I’d go. I mean, I wasn’t a ghost but everybody’s

told me it sucks. There’s nothing to do. People are

always harassing you. It’s even worse now that they’ve got

ghost catchers. Before that it was just those stupid TV

shows with people wandering around in the dark with a

camera. I’m glad you guys decided to make yourselves

visible to everybody and stop taking that crap.”

Brent chuckled for a moment. “They do not like those

guys from the ghost-hunting shows on the etheric plane.

Some ghosts just follow ‘em around all day long and watch

them do stuff. It’s hilarious.”

 Palmer / Right to / 26

Larry said, “I don’t think I’d be able to live it down

if I left and I didn’t finish this.”

“So you’re staying?”

Larry took a quick breath and let it out. “Yeah. I

just can’t leave right now. I’m sorry man. It’d be really

cool to hang out again. It really sucked when you died.”

“Well, it was good seeing you again man. I’m sorry I

died when I did. We probably would’ve had some good times

after high school.”

They hugged briefly then Brent stood. “Last chance

man.”

“That’s OK,” Larry said, smiling. “I think I’m doin’

the right thing.”

“Well, you’ve gotta make that decision yourself. I’ve

got horrible judgment. Look at how I died for chrissake?

Anyways, so long. Enjoy eternity. You’ll have a long time

to get used to it.”

Brent chuckled briefly before stopping himself.

“Y’know, I’m sorry. I don’t know where it comes from. I’m

sure you’ll be fine. Good luck buddy.”

Brent turned and walked away. After a few steps he

slowly evaporated.
 Palmer / Right to / 27

Larry watched the last traces of the ghost-–or

whatever it was-–of his former best friend disappear into

the air and cursed under his breath.

“What’s wrong?” Kozlowski said as he picked up the

container with his sandwich and sat back down.

“Oh, nothin’. Just worried about the case.”

Kozlowski took a big bite out of his sandwich.

Larry said, “Must’ve been some bad Mexican food, huh?”

Kozlowski froze, his mouth full. “Yeah, how’d you

know?”

“I was just guessin’. I was right?”

Kozlowski nodded slowly. “Maybe you guys really

aren’t human. Do you have psychic powers you didn’t tell

me about?”

Larry shook his head.

After Kozlowski finished eating they talked for an

hour before the jury reached a verdict.

“Has the jury reached a verdict?” Judge McKorvee said

after the court room had filled back up.

The foreman stood. “We have, your honor,” she said.

She handed a folded piece of paper to the bailiff who

walked over and handed it to the judge. McKorvee quickly

read it, her expression not giving anything away. She had

too much experience for that.

 Palmer / Right to / 28

“Will the defendants please rise,” McKorvee said. All

four men stood, along with Donaldson and his defense team.

The foreman read from another piece of paper. “On the

charge of battery we find the defendants not guilty.”

“Yeah,” Bobby Joe said, grabbing Travis’ shirt collar

and shaking his brother. Donaldson patted him on the back.

“Order,” McKorvee said angrily. “Be quiet until all

of the verdict has been read.”

“On the charge of kidnapping we find the defendants

not guilty.”

Bobby Joe made a fist and shook it in front of him.

“On the charge of misdemeanor false imprisonment we

find the defendants guilty as charged.”

Larry looked up, his eyes wide.

The foreman said, “The jury is recommending a $3,500

fine.”

“That’s bullshit!” Jake Walker said. The other ghost

catchers stared angrily at the jury.

McKorvee slammed her gavel down. “Order in this

court! You can spend the night in jail if you prefer,” she

said, pointing her gavel at him.

Bobby Joe looked over at Larry. “Just gotta make sure

he don’t get out next time,” Bobby Joe said so most

everyone in the court could hear him.

 Palmer / Right to / 29

“That’s it,” McKorvee said. “Bailiff, arrest Bobby

Joe Wright. He can spend the night in jail to cool off.”

While the bailiff walked over to Bobby Joe to handcuff

him, McKorvee continued. “I’m going to take the jury’s

suggestion but raise the fine to $4,500 because of the

defendants’ actions here this afternoon. That concludes

this trial. Dismissed.” She banged her gavel and rose

from her chair to leave.

As Bobby Joe passed by Kozlowski’s table he looked

over at Larry. “When we get out, your ass is mine! You’re

gonna be in that barn till we figure out how to kill ya.

Nobody messes with the Wright’s.”

Travis, Jake Walker, and Mark Fry left relatively

quietly. Travis gave Larry a dirty look. As they walked

away, Donaldson came over to Kozlowski and Larry’s table.

“That’s a fine job Kozlowski,” Donaldson said. “I

didn’t think you’d get one guilty verdict but you surprised

me. You better enjoy it because I sure as hell won’t let

it happen again.”

They quickly shook hands and Donaldson left. When

Donaldson walked away Kozlowski had the look of an 8-year-

old boy who received a compliment from his favorite

professional athlete.

“So...?” Larry said, staring at his attorney.

 Palmer / Right to / 30

“It’s a victory,” Kozlowski said. “It’s not exactly

what we wanted but it sets a precedent. It’s illegal to

hold a ghost against his will. If you’re found guilty

they’ll punish you. It’s not that big of a leap to say

that more laws should apply to ghosts. The law has to

consider you guys now.”

“But they could still attack me and lock me up,” Larry

said. “As long as I don’t get out nobody’s gonna do

anything.”

Kozlowski nodded. “I know. And so far, the only

punishment is a fine. They didn’t get any jail time. But

this is how the law works. Baby steps.”

Kozlowski stood and pushed his chair under the table.

“I know. It’s hard to wrap your arms around. But

sometimes that’s the way these things go. You have to take

what you can get.”

Kozlowski began to walk away but stopped when he was

halfway to the exit and turned back around. “What we need

is more cases. Then we can get some of these guys in jail.

Talk to your friends. Send them my way if they get

attacked.”

Larry watched the double doors close. He was alone.

Actually, he’d been alone from the moment he went to the

police. Larry believed Kozlowski when he said ghosts were

 Palmer / Right to / 31

human. But Larry knew that Kozlowski lobbied to try the

case for the publicity. When he left the courtroom he

probably rushed to the first reporter he could find.

Larry thought he’d done the right thing. He wouldn’t

really have been seeing things through by going with Brent.

But he wasn’t going to get any confirmation from others

that he’d stood up for something. He found that really

depressing.

“You did it,” a familiar voice said.

Larry looked up and saw the ghost-Brent leaning back

in the chair in the witness box with his feet propped up on

the railing and his hands intertwined behind his head.

“This is your ‘unfinished business’ as they say.”

“You mean this case?”

“Yeah,” Brent said. “Literally and metaphorically.

See, we needed you to get some kind of victory to get

things moving. We can’t have humans just running around

all willy-nilly capturing ghosts. They’re keeping ‘em from

finishing what they’re here to do. It’s really screwing up

our system. They don’t do something. People get killed

before they’re supposed to. Something doesn’t get done and

the whole course of human history changes. And we can’t

make you guys go back to hiding. You’ve taken things too

far.”
 Palmer / Right to / 32

“So I can still crossover?”

Brent nodded. “If you want to. I mean, it’s still up

to you. But if you don’t come, you’re gonna piss off a lot

of people on the etheric plane and make my life a living

hell. Especially with the Dalai Lama. He’ll never let me

live it down if I don’t get you to come with me.”

Brent stood and walked over to the table Larry was

sitting behind. “The other part of your unfinished

business was to stand up to somebody who treated you like

crap. You’ve never done that your whole life, which is

actually pretty amazing. So this is one of those rare

occasions where we killed two birds with one stone.”

Brent laughed. “I just realized...y’know, that

expression takes on a whole new meaning when killing is one

of the things we do up there.”

“So before you were just trying to make me stay? You

were testing me or something?”

“Yeah, I mean, I did throw in some things to try to

encourage you to stay but in the end it was all up to you.

You had to take a stand. And boy will I be glad to have

one more person up there who knows how to stand up to

people. They still let in losers with no backbone.

They’re just no fun and they’re always asking for help with

everything.”
 Palmer / Right to / 33

Larry shook his head. “What a weird day?”

“You’re tellin’ me. Two trips to your plane of

existence in the same day. This is murder on my senses.

You don’t understand how big of a change it is from one

place to the other. Anyways, you ready to go?”

Larry stood up and walked around the table. “I guess.”

“What’re you worried about?”

“I don’t know. I’ve been so used to this place. Now

I’m never coming back. I mean, it’s dirty, there’s a lot

of bad people, there’s so much going wrong...”

Brent smirked. “I think you should be happy about

that. Your existence so far has sucked. I’ve been

watching. You should be thanking your lucky stars you get

a second chance to crossover.

“Oh, and before we crossover, lemme just tell you,

don’t expect a big party when you get there. I mean,

people are happy about what you did but most of the time

you don’t get a lot of recognition for doing something

right. I can read your thoughts. You’ve just gotta be

happy for yourself Larry.”

“OK.”

“It’ll just take some time. You’ll get it.”

“Alright, now we’re not gonna float up or anything.

This isn’t a place or destination like your used to. It’s

 Palmer / Right to / 34

a whole other state of being. You just have to let go of

this plane of existence-–your senses, everything--and

you’ll be there.”

“Was everything you told me before true?”

“Yeah...except, the registration process really does

take forever. After that it’s smooth sailing.”

Larry tried to do as he was told. It took a few

minutes for him to truly start crossing over. He could

feel himself fading away. It was almost like dying. His

senses just vanished. But he was still conscious. He

heard Brent’s voice, or was it his thoughts, in his mind,

“That’s it, almost there. Let go.”

And then...