diff --git a/go/store/nbs/ghost_store.go b/go/store/nbs/ghost_store.go
index a3e8be1232..c6a5bc772c 100644
--- a/go/store/nbs/ghost_store.go
+++ b/go/store/nbs/ghost_store.go
@@ -54,6 +54,7 @@ func NewGhostBlockStore(nomsPath string) (*GhostBlockStore, error) {
 		// Other error, permission denied, etc, we want to hear about.
 		return nil, err
 	}
+	defer f.Close()
 	scanner := bufio.NewScanner(f)
 	skiplist := &hash.HashSet{}
 	for scanner.Scan() {