She could have said something—anything at all!—to convince my grandmother that I was in contact with the other side. Instead, she slammed an “Out to Lunch” sign on our communication channel. I begged and pleaded with her, yet nothing worked. So I tried to summon a spirit. I visualized a protective white light shielding me like armor against any dark spirits. Most spirits were cool and eager to find someone who could understand them, maybe pass on a message to a loved one. But you never knew when a stinker would butt in. Nona stood by with a patient, sympathetic expression while I concentrated hard. “Is anyone there?” I mentally called out. Nothing. “Can you hear me? I just want to talk.” But apparently no one wanted to talk with me. And I blamed Opal. “You’re doing this to get back at me for telling you to go away,”
