A Shady Plot

Synopsis:

This ghost story revolves around the three characters namely John Hallock, his wife Lavinia and the Ghost Helena. Lavinia suspects that her husband maintains a secret relationship with a girl and she says this with surety as she has seen him talking with her alone. She decides to break her relationship with him. Luckily she comes to know from the ghost itself that it is helping him write a ghost story. Now they reconcile with each other. Jenkins, a magazine publisher asks the writer to give some story on super natural things. The writer accepts. The writer has no specialization in the ghost story writing. As he sits for writing about ghostly things issues like house hold matters crop up in his mind. Then he hears a voice and starts his conversation with a she-ghost as it were. The ghost says that she has come on his request through Ouija board to help him write a story. The ghost asks him to avoid calling through Ouija board. His wife calls him then and the ghost disappears and warns him about their strike. His wife asks him why he is sitting in the dark. She brings an Ouija board to know about historical events to help him write a story. He does not like the idea and asks her to return the board aback and get something else in its replacement. His wife stares at him. He tries to write a story, but cannot do it. Then next Saturday he writes his story. When he comes back, his mind is churning and his house is brightly lighted. The room is filled with middle-aged women belonging to his wife’s book club. They are sitting with Ouija boards. He is scared that his wife may notice the ghost. When his wife asks him to join the Ouija board, he refuses. Somehow his wife comes to know from the Ouija board and the board operator namely Laura that John has betrayed his wife by having relationship with a girl called Helen. She decides to break the relationship, but luckily she comes to know from John that Helen is helping him to write a ghost story. 

1)      Why does John says that it was difficult to contradict Jenkins?

John Hallock is a writer but unfortunately he has only written ghost stories because his boss wants him to write only ghost stories. John cannot argue with Jenkins because Jenkins is the only publisher who employs John as a writer. Also, Jenkins somehow comes to know about John’s urgent financial needs such as paying the rent, paying the grocer, etc. In such situations, John too cannot say NO to Jenkins.

2)      How does John end up writing an interesting ghost story?

Though John doesn’t want to keep his talent confined only to write ghost stories, he is very good in writing ghost stories. Everytime Jenkins asks him to write one, John, at the start, would not feel like writing, but ends up writing nice ghost stories. It is simply because Helen, the ghost, who has been helping John to write.

3)      Why are the ghosts going on strike?

Helen is the ghost who has been helping John writes ghost stories. John isn’t aware of this. When he meets Helen, he comes to know about it. Helen tells him that he would not be getting any help now as the entire ghost community is going on strike. Helen further mentions that the reason for the ghosts going on strike is humans who keep calling them to ask questions using Ouija Board. The humans, just for the sake of their fun, have made the ghosts’ lives miserable. Ghosts are left with no leisure time. Helen is ready to help John write ghost stories if he successfully convinces his acquaintances not to use Ouija Boards.

4)      What does Lavinia bring for John?

John’s wife, Lavinia, is a shopoholic person. She would buy any new fad in the market. She buys Ouija Board for John at bargain sale thinking that it would help him in writing historical novels, because talking to a historical figure directly by calling his or her ghost using Ouija board is better than going through piles of history books in the library.

5)      What is John’s reaction to see the gift his wife has brought for him? What does Lavinia say to him?

John is in dilemma as he has promised Helen the ghost that he would convince his acquaintance not to use Ouija board, and on the other hand, his wife has got one a present for John. He tries convincing his wife saying that she doesn’t believe in such stuff and asks her to return that. She cannot do it because she has got it as a gift for him and goods bought at bargain sale cannot be returned.

6)      Why doesn’t John remember about his wife’s call to his office?

John almost forgot about the ghost story he has to write, the ghost Helen he came across and the Ouija board his wife bought for him as he was very busy the other day. It was month end, and work has already been piled up a lot. He was so busy that he even forgot that a clerk had come to tell him that somebody called him. It was his wife who called him to message that he has to come home early.

7)      What does John see when he arrives home from the office?

John’s wife has arranged Ouija Board party for all the women members of her book club. Mrs. Augustus, at the last time, doesn’t come so Laura Hinkle was left with no partner. Lavinia forced John to be her partner. John doesn’t like to be her partner because Laura is a flirtatious woman.

8)      What is the strange thing that happened during the Ouija Board party?

During the Ouija board party, all of a sudden, from all the Ouija board, came the sound of the same ghost named Helen who wants to say something about John who according to her is a TRAITER. She calls John traitor because John has promised her that he would convince his acquaintances to stop using Ouija board, but his own house, his wife has arranged party. Thus he has not kept his promise to Helen.

9)      What does Lavinia decide to do when she guesses her husband’s affair?

John’s wife Lavinia decides to leave the house and go to her grandmothers. She further says that her lawyer would communicate with John for their divorce. She is doing so because she thinks that John is having an affair with Helen the ghost who wanted to speak to them the previous night. Lavinia too thinks that John is a traitor who has cheated on her.

10)   What is John’s reaction when he knows that his wife decides to leave him?

When Lavinia tells John that she was going to her grandmother’s place and gives him a clue of their divorce, John shows agreement to her going to her grandmother’s place. Because he knows that if Lavinia stays there for one more moment, she might see the ghost Helen in there. So it is easy for John to convince the disappointed Lavinia after than making her encounter the ghost creating a huge scene.

11)   Why does Gladolia want  to leave the house and the job?

Gladolia, John’s cook, wants to leave the job and the house because she doesn’t want to stay in the house where such voodoo things like Ouija Boards are kept. She is a woman who is scared of ghosts a lot. But Lavinia convinces her to stay as she asks Gladolia to break the Ouija board and use it for kindle wood. Lavinia does so because she too is fed up of that Ouija Board as it is one of the reasons for her fight with her husband.

12)   What was Lavinia’s reaction when she sees Helen the ghost? Why?

John is too foolish to hide that giant ghost behind him. Finally, Lavinia encounters with the ghost. But instead of fainting while looking at that phantom, Lavinia is happy to see Helen. Lavinia thought that the ghost is Helen of Troy, the most beautiful historical female. Lavinia is possessive of her husband and doesn’t want her husband to have an affair even with a good looking female ghost. On the other hand, this Helen, the ghost is not good looking. So, she feels relax to see her.