THREE
PUBLIC FOOTPATH NEAR WICK, 2022 AD
I expected to be up before Aria because the sun had just nosed over the horizon but he was dressed and wide awake. That he had been waiting for me was apparent when he sprang from his armchair with,
“Ah, there you are Jake! Good morning. Up bright and early then. Coffee?”
Refreshed by the beverage, we put on our respective footwear and went out to the car.
He lost no time after bundling me into his black Audi, “I expect you’ll want to hike along the ley line at least as far as St Mary’s at Beckford?”
“I’ll do that Aria if I don’t meet your ghost before I come to Wick. Frankly, my main objective is to complete what I came here to do—to establish who is haunting the footpath. By the way, have other people reported sightings of this phantom?”
“H
