“Oh, man,” Brian said, without opening his eyes. He had a bad feeling the icy hand shaking him by the shoulder belonged to a ghost. He opened his eyes and was disappointed to discover that he was right. The ghost looked like it must have been a casualty in a car accident. Starting under the nose, the face had a semi-circular concavity where the steering wheel had not given way.

Brian went to his computer on the kitchen counter. The ghost followed, moaning. “Please, can you stop that?” Brian said. The ghost moaned a little lower. Brian opened up a few applications on his laptop. “Do you have your W-2?” The ghost appeared to remember. Still moaning, he searched through his pockets, found the document, and handed it over. Brian helped the ghost complete work through the required forms. Brian help the ghost submit both State and Federal tax returns. He helped the ghost get the largest possible return.

As soon as Brian pressed the “submit” button, the ghost’s incessant low moan stopped— the translucent body began to radiate light in the dark. The ghost lifted up off the ground. Brian yawned as the ghost became a being of unspeakable glory. Its business finished, the ghost shimmered and then faded, passing on to the next realm, the next life. Brian walked back to bed. He hated being an accountant for all these stupid ghosts.