He shook his head. “Life is an adventure.”
“It is,” I agreed, risking a glance at Millie, who looked so happy I almost wanted to shove a slice of cake in her mouth to get her to stop grinning. “I’m looking forward to it.”
THE FEELING LASTED FOR the entire ride and only grew when we reached our destination. The overblown houses, kitschy bars and sprawling trees took my breath away as I climbed out of the SUV.
“Wow!”
Jack caught me before I could trip over my own feet. “Watch where you’re going,” he admonished, although he looked more amused than alarmed. “I take it you like what you see.”
“It’s ... I don’t even know what to say. Look at that house.” I pointed toward an ancient-looking behemoth. “I read a lot of Hollywood stars live here.”
“I read that, too,” Jack said, his hand automatically moving to my back. He seemed happy with the brief touch, making sure not to linger, but I found the covert way he moved cute.
“There are definitely a lot of stars here,” Millie agreed. “Myron was going to buy a house here for me because he knew I loved the city. We did some research. That was before we divorced, of course. I still check from time to time because this is my end goal. I would love to end up here.”
Bernard shot her a fond smile. “Then I have a feeling you’ll end up here.”
“And not alone,” I teased, poking her side before moving around her to get a better look. “What stars live here?”
“Sandra Bullock, John Goodman, Brad Pitt, Drew Brees, Nicolas Cage.”
“Is Nicolas Cage still a star?” Jack asked. “I’m not all that impressed with him. John Goodman, ... him I would love to call a neighbor.”
I laughed as the second SUV pulled up. Laura, her expression just as sour as when we left the hotel, was the first to climb out. She glared directly at me as she crossed to us.
“I’m glad to see you waited for everyone to arrive before entering,” she sneered. “I thought for sure you guys would take off and ... play games or something.”
“I rarely play games in cemeteries,” Jack countered. “It’s not respectful to the dead.”
“Let’s go in,” Chris said. He was practically overflowing with excitement. “I want to see this place. It’s famous.”
“Movies were filmed here,” I agreed.
“I don’t care about that. I care about the dead people who rose and walked out of here. Those are the people I want to see.”
“Yes, we’re all dying to see them,” Jack deadpanned. “I don’t suppose you know which direction we’re supposed to look?”
“I only know that it’s in there ... somewhere.” Chris threw out his hands in a wide arc to signify the whole of the cemetery. “Let’s find some dead people, shall we?”
IT WAS EASIER SAID THAN DONE to find tombs and mausoleums that had been messed with. This particular cemetery was rough around the edges in some parts. Some of the edifices looked as if they were one stiff breeze from collapse.
“It’s sad,” I noted as Jack followed me through the cemetery. We’d split into groups, essentially pairing off as couples. Someone had ended up with Laura, of course, but it wasn’t us, so I refused to worry about her.
“What’s sad?” Jack asked, his eyes on the window of a mausoleum.
“People put their loved ones in here because they thought it meant they would be remembered forever. The problem is, so many people die that few can be remembered forever. Even famous people get forgotten.”
“Are you worried about being forgotten?”
“No. I’m just thinking about life and death.”
“For now, I prefer you focus on life.”
I turned my eyes to him and found a smile waiting for me. “I’m not being maudlin,” I reassured him. “I just think about these things sometimes. I can’t help it.”
“And you don’t think that’s maudlin?”
I shrugged. “I wonder if my parents are dead. Maybe that’s why they left me. Then I wonder if they’re alive, and it’s almost worse to think about that because then it makes me wonder why they didn’t want to keep me. Maybe there was something wrong with me and they knew it.”
I hadn’t meant to say the last part aloud. I wasn’t fishing for sympathy. I often lost myself in “what if” scenarios. Maybe my parents realized I was different from the other kids and that made them abandon me. Or, in more fanciful moments, I imagined they abandoned me to keep my abilities a secret from some unseen enemy. I much preferred that daydream.
Jack crossed to me and snagged my hand. “I don’t know what happened to your parents, but if they purposely left you they don’t deserve another thought. I don’t know why anyone would leave you.”
There was one reason, but he was still in the dark about that. The longer I let things go like this, the more I would regret it. I would have to tell him ... and soon. It could wait until after this investigation. After that, though, I had no choice. It was time.
“Maybe they just didn’t want me,” I suggested. “Or maybe they did want me and changed their minds at a certain point.”
“We can try to find out,” he offered, somber. “If you want, I can do some digging. There must be records from when you were found. A search was likely conducted. I can try to get those files.”
It was an enticing offer. It was also terrifying. “Maybe,” I said after a beat. “I need to think about it first. Is that okay?”
“Absolutely.” He dipped in quickly and gave me a kiss. “Whatever you want.”
I smiled at his earnest expression. “Right now, I just want to find a zombie. I think it would make Chris really happy.”
“Yes, well ... .” He scuffed his foot against the hard-packed earth. “I think Chris is going to be disappointed. I don’t see any zombies running around.”
As if on cue, an excited voice called to us from across the cemetery. “Over here!” It was Chris, and he was waving excitedly.
When we reached him, the reason for his enthusiasm was obvious. The doors of four tombs, all standing wall-to-wall, gaped wide. It looked as if someone had come through and ripped the doors off their hinges to get inside.
“What the ... ?” Jack forgot about me and moved to the nearest vault. “Someone definitely wanted in here,” he said, his hands running over the door.
I left him and Chris to explore and focused down one of the narrow aisles. I was almost certain I’d seen a hint of movement and wanted to reassure anyone — whether it be a visitor or security — that we weren’t up to no good. The aisle appeared to be empty, though.
On a whim, I moved down another aisle, increasing the distance between my co-workers and me. Sure enough, a man stood alone. He wore simple jeans and a black hoodie. He was white, unbelievably pale in fact, and he looked to be staring directly at me.
My heart skipped, and I raised my hand to wave at him. He didn’t wave back, instead disappearing behind another mausoleum. I walked to the next aisle and looked, but he wasn’t there. That propelled me to go down another aisle.
This time he was there, and he’d moved closer. His blue eyes were pale, almost icy, and the look he graced me with was dark. A nervous tingle ran down my spine and my throat dried to Death Valley humidity level. I decided to call out to him despite the fear.
“Hello.”
He didn’t respond.
“It’s a nice day, huh?” It was hot and humid, just like the day before. That begged the question of why he was wearing a hoodie. Of course, we were from the Northeast. This might feel cool to a local.
“We’re just looking around because we heard there was a disturbance here last night,” I offered, doing my best to memorize the man’s face. He had dark hair that looked dirty. His cheekbones were high, his eyes sunken. He looked like a meth addict almost, although that association didn’t feel right.
“Do you need something?” I asked. “Are you hungry? I can buy you a meal if you’re hungry.”
He didn’t answer, instead
turning on his heel and walking in the opposite direction.
“Where are you going?” I called to his back.
He didn’t answer. By this point I didn’t expect him to. I took one step to follow and then stopped. What if he was trying to entice me to give chase, perhaps isolate me from the others? What if he was something other than human?
I opened my mouth to call out a final time, but he’d already disappeared. I checked one aisle over but he looked to be gone. When I turned back, I realized I’d put quite a bit of distance between me and the rest of the group. Only Laura was close, and I got the distinct impression that she’d been following me. That left me unsettled for a different reason.
“Do you need something?” I asked finally.
“No. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t wander off. Poor Jack would be despondent if we lost you.”
I was in no mood to put up with her attitude. “There was someone walking between the aisles. I wanted to check him out.”
“Right. You wanted to find the zombie so you would be the big hero. I know how your mind works.”
“I definitely wanted to find a zombie,” I agreed. “I don’t care about being a hero.”
She grabbed my arm when I moved to brush past her. For some reason, the simple act of aggression — she’d done far worse things to me since I’d joined the group — was enough to set me off. “Don’t put your hands on me!”
“Oh, so sorry.” She rolled her eyes and released me. “You think you’re hot stuff, don’t you? You think that because you got Jack you’re higher in the pecking order than I am. Well, I’m here to tell you you’re wrong. You’re still the intern.”
“Fine. I’m the intern. Will you excuse me?”
“We’re not done talking.” Disdain dripped from her tongue. “This isn’t going to last. You know that, right? You’re just a momentary distraction. He’ll get bored. When that happens, he’ll drop you.”
I shook my head. “Your infatuation with Jack is getting sad. You need to let it go.”
“Maybe you should let it go.”
“Why would I do that? I’m happy. He’s happy. The only one who isn’t happy in this arrangement is you. That seems to indicate you’re the one holding on when you should let go.”
“I’m going to win.”
“Is that what you’re worried about? Winning isn’t everything.” I felt inexplicably sad for her. “Besides, you can’t win a person. You should try to better yourself. What you’re doing now is only going to blow up in your face.”
“And what am I doing?”
“Nothing good. But I don’t really care.” I was forceful when I pushed her to the side. “Laura, I don’t know what you expect to get out of life, but all you’re doing is making yourself miserable. I’m not going to let you hurt me ... and Jack won’t let you hurt him. So who are you helping by acting like this?”
“I’m not acting like anything.”
“You are. You’re acting like a spoiled brat. Look around.” I gestured toward the street, to where the fancy houses stood winking at us in the sunlight. “This is a beautiful place. It’s magical. All you see is ugliness. All you project is ugliness. Why not try to make life better for those around you instead?”
“You really are annoying, aren’t you? I mean ... grow up. Life isn’t puppies and ice cream.”
“It’s not venom and vitriol either. You have to let it go. You’re the only one hanging onto this. You can’t have a triangle when two sides aren’t in the game.”
“Oh, whatever.”
Perhaps sensing trouble, Jack picked that moment to appear. His gaze was leery as it bounced between the two of us. “What’s going on?”
“Don’t worry,” Laura snapped. “I was just making sure your precious girlfriend didn’t wander away. She’s perfectly fine.”
“I wasn’t worried.” Jack shifted his eyes to me. “Come on. Chris wants to go inside the vaults. I didn’t think you would want to miss that.”
“Definitely not!” I smiled as I hurried to follow. “Did he find any zombies?”
“Nope, but he’s nowhere near done looking.”
Eighteen
Jack was in a playful mood despite our location. He managed to slide me into a corner when no one was looking and give me a long kiss. I understood what Millie meant when she said we looked “shiny.” I saw it in Jack.
“What was that for?” I asked, breathless when he pulled back.
“I’m still mad our morning got cut short,” he admitted, grinning as he smoothed my hair. “I think I should be able to arrange for us to break off alone once we’re done here.”
I studied him for a long moment. “What about the zombies?”
His face fell. “I don’t believe in zombies. We’ve been over this.”
“I don’t know if I believe in zombies either,” I admitted. “But something is going on. Look at those vaults. They’re empty..”
“I agree, and Chris is preparing to call Thibodeaux.” Jack turned serious, his earlier smile essentially forgotten. “I would rather not be here when he arrives.”
I could translate exactly what he meant. “You want me gone.”
“I want you out of his line of fire.”
“Isn’t that the same thing?”
“I guess, but it doesn’t matter.” He was calm as he regarded me. “I think it’s best if I take you out of here before Chris makes the call, just to be on the safe side.”
I understood what he was saying. Worrying came naturally to Jack, and even though he was feeling invigorated and happy that didn’t mean he had any intention of putting me at risk. I appreciated that about him. I had a more practical side, though.
“Hiding won’t do me any good,” I said. “Laura will make sure that he knows I was part of this excursion no matter what. Her nose is out of joint.”
“Yeah. I saw you two talking. I don’t suppose you want to tell me what she said?”
“The same stuff she normally says. That I shouldn’t get comfortable because you’ll get bored. That you’re only with me to make her jealous. That I can’t keep you over the long haul. Her repertoire never changes.”
His eyes narrowed. “You know that’s not true, right?”
“Which part? Are you saying I can keep you forever?”
The question obviously flummoxed him. “I’m saying that ... nothing I feel for you has anything to do with her,” he said after a moment’s contemplation. It was far too soon to promise forever. He got as close as he could, though, without crossing a line.
“I know.” I rested my hand on his forearm. “She’s going to tell Thibodeaux I was here, though. There’s no sense slipping away.”
“She can’t tell him if we take her with us.”
That sounded as if we were trading one form of hell for another. “Do you really want to do that?”
“No, but I really don’t want you here when Thibodeaux arrives. You’re right. She will tattle. That means we have to take her.”
“Take her where?” That was the ultimate question. “Where are we going?”
“Leon. I haven’t talked to him since before dinner yesterday. I want to see if he’s found anything.”
I knew what else he wanted to do with Leon. He wasn’t nearly as slick as he thought. “You just want him to distract Laura and have him take her off our hands.”
“Is that such a bad thing?”
“No, but ... she’s only pretending to be interested in him.”
“And he recognizes that and wants to see how far she’s willing to go. He’s not some fragile flower. He doesn’t need to be protected.”
“Okay, but I want lunch. That doughnut for breakfast wasn’t enough.”
“I’m sure I can arrange that. I was thinking someplace light today. Maybe we’ll take a break from the local cuisine and you can have a hamburger or something simple so we can make sure your stomach is okay.”
I had information he didn’t – I knew what caused my stomach issues – so
I was having none of it. “I can’t be one of those people who totally ignore local cuisine.” I meant it. “I want something regional.”
“Fine.” Jack held up his hands in defeat. “If you get sick again, I’m going to be really upset. I have plans for you.”
That sounded intriguing. “Is this before or after we dump Laura on Leon?”
“After.”
“Okay, but let’s get a move on. It looks like Chris is getting ready to call Thibodeaux. I don’t want to be here if I don’t have to. I swear that guy hates me.”
“I’ve got it. I won’t let him go after you. I promise you that.”
LEON PICKED A HUGE restaurant in the Garden District that was supposedly famous. Commander’s Palace boasted cheap martinis, gregarious customers and some of the friendliest wait staff I’d ever met.
“They keep trying to make me drink a martini even though it’s only noon,” I told Jack as Leon got settled across from us. Laura’s attitude had been nothing but evil since we’d left Lafayette Cemetery, but she perked up when she realized Leon was joining us.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” she announced, batting her eyelashes. “You’ve just made lunch a tolerable affair.”
Jack rolled his eyes as Leon snickered.
“Well, I’m glad I made it, too.” He gave her hand a pat before focusing on me. “And how are you, Little Miss? You look better than you did yesterday.”
“Oh, she wasn’t sick.” Laura’s expression momentarily darkened. “She made that up to get attention.”
Jack’s anger surged. “She did not. Not everything is about attention, Laura. You saw her. She was sick. You can’t fake that.”
“She seemed perfectly fine when you went back to the hotel early,” Laura shot back. “We all know what you did then.”
His interest piqued, Leon angled his head in our direction. “I don’t know what you did.”
“That’s none of your business,” Jack snapped. “Why must you keep digging into things that aren’t your business?”
“I want to know what you did whether it’s my business or not,” Leon announced. “In fact ... .” He trailed off as his gaze bounced between us. “Oh, I know what you did. You dawg!” He grinned and wriggled his eyebrows, causing Laura’s expression to darken as Jack’s cheeks flushed with color. “It’s about time. You guys were so sweet you were giving me a toothache.”
The Undead Uproar Page 17
