Ghost of Himself

by Pandora Pine

  “Thanks, Walker.” Jude waited until his friend was gone before he turned back to Copeland. “How are you feeling?”

  “Confused as hell.” Cope closed his eyes. “I still don’t understand why Hugh did what he did. Then there was the spell.”

  Jude was about to interrupt Copeland, but something told him to keep his mouth shut and listen. He obeyed.

  “There was more to that spell. More than just taking his magick and his soul. There were lines that would take his thoughts. His beating heart. The breath from his lungs. It would have only taken a few more words for me to kill him. The magick surging through me wanted me to do it. To finish him off. I wanted to do it. I wanted him to pay for everything he’d done to me, as well as everything Deacon had done too.”

  That was a lot to confess. “What stopped you? Was it Bertha?”

  Cope shook his head. “I wanted to listen to her. I really did. I wanted so badly to make her proud of me, but that wasn’t what stopped me. It was you.” He paused, looking up at Jude with tired eyes. “When you took my hand, I felt this flood of energy flow into me. That gave me the strength to fight the darkness and listen to you and Bertha urging me not to harm Hugh.”

  “You made the right decision.” Jude’s fiery eyes were filled with compassion.

  “I know. It didn’t exactly feel like it in the moment, but in every second since then, I know it was the right decision.”

  A nurse wearing purple scrubs walked into the treatment room. “Here are your discharge papers, Mr. Forbes. Doctor Harmon says he’ll see you in a few days to check on the stitches.”

  “Thank you.” Cope nodded at the nurse.

  “Are you ready to go?” Jude helped him down off the exam table.

  “I am. I just want to go home and sleep for a week, but we have to go to Carson’s.”

  Jude was dreading having to say goodbye to Bertha. “Is she safe?”

  Cope nodded. “I took the brunt of the hit from using the black magick. She should be fine. You said Crow was with her, right?”

  Jude had actually seen his elder standing at Bertha’s side during the confrontation with Hugh Fontenot. There were several occasions when Crow had stepped in front of Bertha to shield her from harm. “Yes, he was there the whole time.”

  When they stepped outside the hospital, Jude led Cope to where he parked the Thunderbird. He was about to open the passenger side door when he stopped. “Take a deep breath, Copeland Forbes. You’re free.” Jude smiled.

  Cope’s eyes went wide. He threw his arms up in the air and sucked in a big breath. He started laughing on the exhale.

  “How does it feel?”

  “Amazing, Jude. I wouldn’t be standing here without you.” Cope reached out to squeeze his hand.

  Jude squeezed back. “In you go, Cinderella.” He opened the door, shutting it gently when Cope was inside. Now came the hard part. Saying goodbye to Bertha.

  There were so many things Jude didn’t want to think about as he pulled out of the hospital parking lot, chief among them were Bertha and what was next for Copeland.

  He’d only had a few precious minutes with Bertha, and now he was going to have to walk into Carson’s house and somehow find a way to be strong enough to say goodbye. How? Jude had always been strong. He had to be. There was no crying in his grandfather’s house. He had to learn to hide his grief for his father and move on.

  In the seventeen years since he’d lost his father, Jude hadn’t experienced any kind of loss that had even come close. Part of the reason for that was that he’d been constantly on the move, never spending more than a year or two in one place before moving on.

  Like it or not, Jude had become quite attached to his new family here in Salem. He’d been trying to acclimate himself to these changes over time, but today was a double-whammy. He could lose Bertha and Cope all at once.

  Cope had this amazing life he’d put on hold for two years waiting for him to step back into in New Orleans like an old pair of comfortable shoes. Is that what Cope was going to do now? Was he going to pack his things and hop on the next plane for Louisiana? Sure, Deacon Boudreaux was still out there, but now Cope had the black magick skills, and more importantly, the self-confidence to win the battle this time around.

  He wanted more time with Bertha to sit and just be. Jude wouldn’t mind grabbing coffee once or twice a week and just talking. When it came to Copeland, Jude didn’t know what the hell he wanted, but it wasn’t for the psychic-witch to board a plane for The Big Easy. All Jude knew for certain at this moment was that he didn’t want to lose either person from his life.

  Pulling his car up in front of Ronan and Tennyson’s house, Jude looked down the street at Carson and Truman’s house. He shut off the ignition and just sat there silently.

  “Are you okay?” Cope asked gently.

  Jude shook his head. “I hate saying goodbye. It’s part of the reason I never let myself get too attached to anyone.”

  “This isn’t a permanent goodbye for Bertha. She’s only been like this for a few hours now. It won’t take long at all for her soul to reenergize itself and heal from this.”

  “I’m glad to hear that.” Jude meant it. He was glad. “When she comes back though, I still won’t be able to see and hear her like you all can.” Jude sounded like a five-year-old jealous that he didn’t have something all the other kids had.

  Cope set a hand on Jude’s. “Come on. Everyone’s waiting for us.”

  Nodding, Jude pulled away and got out of the car. He found himself trudging toward Carson’s front door the way a small child would approach the dentist’s office. He really needed to pull it together. Taking a deep breath, he rang the doorbell. From inside, Jude could hear laughter.

  “Hey, guys!” Carson greeted. “Come on in! Mom’s been waiting for you.” Carson hugged each of them as they stepped through the front door.

  “There are my boys!” Bertha yelled from the living room floor. She was surrounded by four of her five grandbabies. Brady was the only one missing. “Excuse me, my little loves.” She climbed to her feet and hurried to Jude.

  “Hey, Bertha.” He hugged her tight. That feeling of never wanting to let her go was overwhelming.

  Bertha loosened her hold a bit, her blue eyes laser focused on him. "I'm always going to be there for you Jude. You just have to learn to listen."

  “How to listen?” That didn’t make any sense. He couldn’t speak to the dead like Cope could. How could he possibly hear what Bertha was saying to him?

  “It’s a good thing you’ve found a friend in the perfect teacher.” Bertha winked and hugged him again. “I love you, Jude. Never forget how much. Everything I did today was for you.” Reaching up on tiptoes, she pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I knew I’d need to be here today to pull Cope back from the edge. Whatever price I have to pay for that is worth it, ten times over.”

  Jude stood there stunned as Bertha moved on to Cope. She was hugging him so hard the psychic’s eyes were practically bugging out of his head. Jude could see Bertha was whispering something to Cope, but couldn’t hear the words. He couldn’t help wondering what the hell she meant by saying everything she’d done today had been for him. Didn’t she mean everything she’d done today had been for Copeland?

  “Okay, everyone, this is it! I’ll see you all soon.” Bertha’s blue eyes were misty. She turned around the room slowly, looking at everyone and smiling one last time. All of the kids ran to her side, grabbing on to her and holding on for dear life. Shouts of, “Mimi!” rose to an ear-piercing crescendo.

  Jude could see there wasn’t a dry eye in the room.

  Bertha turned back to Cope and nodded before turning back to smile at her sons.

  Copeland took a shaky breath. “In the name of the Goddess, I release thee, fly free, fly free. So mote it be.”

  Turning around, Bertha winked at Jude and disappeared.

  The room was silent for a moment. Truman and Carson’s little ones spun around in a circle before burs
ting into tears. Instead of running to their fathers, they ran toward Jude with their arms out, tiny tears tracking down their cheeks.

  Jude got down on his knees and opened his arms to the inconsolable toddlers. Laurel joined them a moment later. He set his own heartbreak aside and tried to heal their tiny broken hearts as best he could. He felt Copeland wrap an arm around him from behind. Then Ronan was on his other side. Soon, it looked like a giant prayer huddle after a college football game. Everyone was hugging and crying.

  If Jude hadn’t thought he was a member of the family before, he knew for a fact he was now. His tribal elders had told him he’d been brought to Salem for Copeland and now Bertha Craig was telling him everything she’d done was for him. There was a mystery to be solved involving Copeland Forbes, but it could wait until tomorrow. He had a family to hug.

  EPILOGUE

  Copeland

  Two weeks later…

  The text message from Carson came out of the blue. [1PM meeting West Side Magick.] Cope stared at it for a few minutes. The text was only addressed to him and no other messages accompanied it to explain what the meeting could possibly be about. He answered in the affirmative and then hurried through a quick shower.

  Cope was still living with Jude. After that day with Hugh Fontenot and saying goodbye to Bertha Craig, Cope had come home with Jude like he’d done every other day since he’d moved into the condo. Jude hadn’t said a word about him moving out. There hadn’t been any repeats of the night before the shit hit the fan with Doctor Fontenot, but Cope could honestly say that was for the best. He was not in the right headspace to deal with a lover of any kind, casual, serious, psycho. His dick was staying in his pants or in his right hand for the foreseeable future.

  Leaving his room, he could hear banging from downstairs. “Jude? Are you okay?”

  “Oh good, you’re ready to go.” Jude walked into the living room carrying a hammer.

  “Where are we going? And why do you have a hammer?” Cope was more afraid of the answer to the second question even though he was going to need Jude to drop him off at the Magick shop. He still hadn’t made any decisions about his future. If he decided to stay here in Salem, he was going to need a car. Depending on people for rides was going to get old fast.

  “I hung the picture of all of us with Bertha in the dining room.” Jude motioned Cope to follow him.

  “Oh, wow!” Cope was expecting to see an 8”x10” framed picture but wasn’t prepared for the 18”x24” that dominated one wall of the dining room. It was one of the pictures they’d taken at West Side Magick. This picture was the only personal touch in Jude’s condo. “I can’t believe that was only two weeks ago.”

  “Neither can I.” Jude shook his head. “Are you ready to go to the shop?”

  “Wait, you got an invitation too?” Cope hadn’t seen that coming. Maybe everyone had been invited. He knew Ten and the guys had gotten right to work on the repairs to fix the damage that had been done to the shop courtesy of Hugh Fontenot. Maybe this was a grand reopening of sorts?

  “Yeah. I have no idea what Carson wants to talk to us about. Do you?” Jude grabbed his keys and wallet and headed out the door.

  “Not a clue. I tried reaching out with my gift, but I’m getting nothing.” Cope climbed into the car, remembering to shut the door gently.

  “What do you think about the Essex County DA declining to prosecute Fontenot based on your decision not to press charges against him for assault?” Jude’s hands were white knuckling the wheel.

  Cope sighed. This was the only thing they’d disagreed about in the time that they’d known each other. Jude wanted the doctor prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and Cope wanted the whole thing to end. He’d tried to explain to Jude that when you go through something like being stalked, it’s an ongoing day to day process. Cope was sick of living in that cycle. He wanted it to be over. Not pressing charges against his former doctor was the easiest way to do that. “I’m okay with it, Jude. I wish that you were too.”

  “He tortured you. Hurt you for months. Then he followed you here and tried to kill you. I appreciate your need to forgive and forget, but it’s not that simple for me.” Jude’s eyes burned with anger.

  “It’s not a matter of forgiving and forgetting, Jude. I need to work on being able to do both of those. It’s a matter of stopping the madness. I want Hugh out of my life. This is the best way to accomplish that goal. I want to be free. Letting him go sets me free too.”

  “He shouldn’t be rewarded for haunting you with his freedom. When you showed up on Ten and Ronan’s doorstep you were a ghost of yourself. Listening to the stories Onyx told about you before Deacon came into your life, you’re nothing like the man you were before.”

  “People change. They grow. Evolve. What’s important is finding out who I am now.” Cope was actually looking forward to that. He wasn’t going to let the “ghost” of Deacon Boudreaux keep him from living this new life to the fullest.

  Jude parked the car across the street from the Magick shop. He turned to Cope with a smirk on his face. “So, if Carson asks us to swing with him and Truman, our answer is no, right?”

  Cope started to laugh. “Yes, Jude. Our answer is no. Now, if Ronan and Tennyson asked. That would be a different conversation altogether.” He climbed out of the Thunderbird before Jude could question him further.

  “That’s just…No!” Jude called after him. He pulled the door open, but there was no familiar jingle of the bell. The window to the door had been blown out during the skirmish with Hugh Fontenot and had not been replaced yet. Ronan had to take the bell down so the wickedly sharp shards of glass could be safely removed.

  “Hey, guys.” Tennyson greeted. “You’re both looking better. How are you sleeping?”

  “A little better.” Jude shrugged.

  Cope knew that was a lie. He heard Jude pacing around his room after they went to bed. Most nights they stayed up until past midnight marathoning shows on Netflix. Cope knew they’d probably sleep better in the same bed, but he wasn’t going to open that can of worms. He was going to only rely on himself, just like he did for all of those years in Galveston. “I’m doing well too.”

  “That’s bullshit, but okay.” Tennyson shook his head and led them toward Carson’s reading room. “What do you think of the new door casing?”

  “Looks great.” Jude put a hand on the new wood. They’d been able to save Bertha’s original door, but the framing had to be replaced.

  Walking into the room, Cope could see Carson and Cole were both seated at the table. “Hi, guys.”

  “Thank you both for coming on such short notice.” Carson was smiling. “I have some good news. When I was getting the babies up this morning, I heard Mom’s voice. It was faint, but she told me she was fine. A little weak, but on the mend.”

  “Oh, thank God!” One of the things that had been keeping Cope from his rest was his worry over Bertha.

  “I knew you would be especially interested in hearing that Cope, but that’s not the reason we asked you here today.” Carson looked back and forth between Cope and Jude.

  “It isn’t?” Jude sat forward in his seat, a suspicious look in his fiery eyes.

  “No, we have a business proposition to offer you.” Cole grinned. “We’ve been getting a lot of calls from local homeowners and businesses about hauntings. Some of these people want the hauntings investigated and the spirits removed, while others just want a history of the spirits who live with them.”

  “A history of the spirits? Why?” Jude turned to Copeland for clarification.

  “Didn’t you say that you met Abigail Churchill out at The Black Cat Inn?” Cope asked.

  Jude nodded.

  “Being able to brag that your B&B plays host to the spirit of one of the Salem Witch Trial victims could be a huge tourist draw. Haunted houses are big business. I imagine if you could offer a pedigree of who you’re being haunted by complete with the gory details of how that person passed on, well then
you could really up your tourist buck.”

  “I still don’t get it.” Jude shook his head.

  “Places like the Lizzie Borden house do a huge business every year. People want to visit the house where she famously gave her mother ‘forty whacks.’ It’s the same reason people flock to Graceland. They’re hoping to catch a glimpse of Elvis’s ghost.” Tennyson grinned. “That should be our next vacation. Could you imagine all of us roaming around that place. One of us is bound to run into his spirit.”

  “Yeah, Ten, but only one of us wants to.” Carson rolled his eyes. He turned his attention back to Cope and Jude. “We want the two of you to be our spirit investigation team. Jude, you would be responsible for doing the research into the house or structure. Who lived or worked there? How did they die and when? Cope, you would be the one talking to the spirits. If the customer wanted them to move on, you would be the one helping to facilitate that.”

  Copeland couldn’t believe his ears. “You want us to be ghost hunters?”

  Ten shrugged. “Sort of. I mean we all know ghosts exist. You’re not going to be running around New England trying to capture them on video. The people who are contacting the shop are in need of real help here. We just don’t have the resources as our staff is situated now and with the baby due in a few months, my time is going to be even more limited. Cope, you’re also welcome to have your own clients here for readings and if you’re interested in starting up classes like you did in New Orleans, it’s something that we’re all open to as well.”

  “I don’t know what to say, guys. I’m overwhelmed.” Copeland couldn’t believe his ears. Tennyson and his friends were offering him the opportunity to start his life over here in the Witch City. He turned to Jude. “This sounds like an amazing opportunity. I want to know what Jude thinks. From what I’ve heard, he has a thriving P.I. business.”

  Jude turned to look at Copeland before looking back at the psychics seated across the table. “What about my business?”

  “You’d still be free to work cases around your workload here. I know Ronan and Fitzgibbon are very interested in keeping you on as a consultant for the Boston Police Department.”