by Alexie Aaron
“How do you know so much about this?”
“Mia has been blowing past me for a long time. I’m only just now starting to catch on.”
Mark laughed. “She’s loyal, but she can be conflicted. She sees the big picture.”
“I’m aware of that. Now go, I think your coach is looking for you.”
Mia handed him his helmet and walked up and sat down next to Michael who looked like he wanted to stay. “Tell me about his father?” Michael asked.
“Locked-in syndrome. Ted has developed a communication device for Mark to talk to him, but the conversation is stilted and can’t be satisfying.”
“You know Raphael’s specialty is damaged minds.”
“How can I be so stupid? He told me that when he took my tumor out. Can I ask him? I don’t want to step on…”
“My tender ego?”
“Well… yes.”
“I’ll ask him to visit Mark’s father. Now watch. I put the idea in Mark’s coach’s mind to run a few plays with Mark in a running back position. Let’s see if Mark listened to me.”
Mia sat back and enjoyed the spectacle. Mark faltered on the first play, but by the second and the third, he moved quickly around the defensive player who outweighed him by fifty pounds. On the fourth play, he blocked for the quarterback successfully.
Michael got up. “Come, Mia, I’ll fly you home.”
Mia was amused.
“No, I won’t carry your books,” Michael teased, reading her mind.
Mia slid into the PEEPs meeting in progress. Mike looked at her windblown hair and said, “Nice of you to fly in, darling.”
“Sorry, I’m late. I had an appointment that ran late.” She quickly raised her hand.
“Yes, Mia?” Burt asked.
“I would like to thank everyone who made my homecoming so easy for Ted and me. I want to assure you all that I’ve been to my… doctor, and I am one hundred percent fit and ready to rock this investigation.”
Ted grinned.
“Anything else?” Burt asked.
“Nope, that’s it.”
“I’d like to start with what Patrick and I’ve been doing and how I think we can take advantage of the situation we find ourselves in to the betterment of PEEPs.”
Cid whirled around from the computer and pulled out his notebook. He stared at Mia and looked pissed.
Mia shot her hand up again.
“I had a feeling,” Burt said. “Mia…”
“For those of you who don’t know, Stephen Murphy has decided to take a leave of absence from PEEPs. I’d like us to hold his position open for when he returns. So, I’ll be filling in as security officer. I would like permission to ask Kevin Murphy and Fergus O’Connor to help me out. Fergus is a great guy to have in a fight. Kevin is an even thinker. They aren’t much older than Mason, but I feel that Mason has more than stepped up to the task. Oh, and I’d like to recommend Sabine to take on my duties. She did an excellent job on the Chicago investigation.”
Burt stared at Mia indulgently. “Are you done?”
“Yup.”
Burt waited and everyone looked at Mia. She slunk down in her chair.
“Patrick, could you explain where the Wall treasure hunt is at? And I’ll talk about the investigation that PEEPs is going to do.”
Patrick stood up. “We went down on Gerald’s dime and found out that there was indeed a treasure of some kind sent to Guadeloupe on the French battleship the America. It wasn’t offloaded there because the cousin of Olympe de Gouges had moved to New Orleans. We found ourselves following up a lead of where the ship may have deposited the items. It was a false lead. Burt, here, had also continued researching the Wall treasure after the Gifford ghost-napping investigation. He found information that points us to another island, just not one in the Caribbean. We have every reason to believe that, if there is any treasure left, it is contained somewhere on Mackinac Island, Michigan.”
“That’s a jump,” Mike said.
“It was me,” Mason admitted. “I screwed up when I was researching the shipping records. I’m the reason all that crap went down on Lucifer’s Lip. Me and the Feds.”
“It was no one’s fault,” Mia said. “Facts are, the Feds would have opened up the can of worms you had half-opened anyway. I got some footage of the Devil’s Pride, didn’t I?”
“We have the exterior. It transmitted to the boat, and Ted picked it up,” Cid said.
Mia had a sinking feeling. She forgot about the camera. What else recorded but didn’t transmit? “What about the button cam itself?”
“I couldn’t find it on your uniform,” Ted said.
“Maybe it fell into a pocket?” Mia asked.
Fergus manifested behind Ted and waved her off.
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t myself after.”
Patrick cleared his voice. “But you did get the ship. Can we see it?”
Cid brought up the footage.
“Oh my goodness,” Sabine said. “It’s beautiful.”
“Who’s with you?” Mike asked.
“Kevin and Fergus. That’s what ghosts look like in the GSD,” Mia said. “They are living and breathing. According to one source, they can live forever unless they are killed in a fight, spend too long when they cross the veil, or die from a shipborne illness. Our guys could cross back over without a problem because they are land deaths.”
“That’s a nasty piece of equipment,” Mason pointed out. “Were they a whaler?”
“Nope. The captain hunted birdmen. He shot a barbed harpoon into the wing of the birdman and reeled him in. The victim suffered not only being yanked out of the air, but having a sizable hole in their wing. The three I saw were being held in squalor until they could be sold to a demon ship.”
“So, while the ship may be beautiful on the outside,” Sabine started, “it may actually be a very horrible place.”
“Only if you’re a birdman. The sailors looked very fit,” Mia said. “They, however, did complain about the food.”
The footage ran out but resumed when Mia pulled away from the Devil’s Pride. Another larger ship loomed up on the starboard side of it.
“I know that ship. I saw it,” Sabine exclaimed.
“That’s the Peacock. It’s a slaver. It crosses the veil to pick up sea deaths. During hurricane season, the boat crosses frequently. It enslaves the ghosts and sells them to other ships. It was doing business with the Devil’s Pride when we snuck out of there,” Mia narrated.
Sabine stood up and pointed to the big monitor. “Look!”
“Jake, bring it back two minutes,” Cid instructed.
He did.
“Slow motion please,” Cid told him. “And freeze.”
“Do you see them?” Sabine asked.
Everyone looked at the screen. Three birdmen were in frozen in flight.
“They escaped!” Sabine said. “I love a happy ending.”
Mike grabbed Mia’s hand under the table. She had balled it into a fist.
“Patrick, let’s move on,” Mike said. “We can look at this footage again later. I think, if we crop out the birdmen, we can use it for filler.”
“Hang on, let me… Yes. After the hurricane, Burt and I boarded a plane and made our way north. We picked up some equipment and drove to Mackinac City and took the ferry over. We had to lug our equipment on our backs, no cars allowed on the island. Once there, you can rent a buggy or bike to get where you want to go. Burt and I checked out a few places. Jake, put up the stills I shot with my camera.”
Patrick went through the possible places he felt that the cousin could have secreted the treasure away.
Mia shot her hand up.
“Yes?”
“If it were a woman, wouldn’t she have hidden the treasure in the quarters she was housed in?”
“Mia, it depends how large it was,” Burt pointed out. “We’re looking for a sizable haul. Crates of booty. The manifest from the ship listed six crates destined for Rosa de Familiare.”
“We scouted out a number of places but lacked the personnel and the equipment to adequately search for it. I’m thinking it would be best to sail up there and live on the ship while we search the island.”
“It still sounds like a logistical nightmare,” Mike said.
“That’s where PEEPs come in. I propose we do a standard ghost-hunting adventure in the hotels and restaurants that want to have us. I have applied for a license to film and have spoken to the tourist bureau. As long as we get permission from whomever we film - and steer wide of the numerous weddings they have there during the season - we are welcome. This way, we can move large boxes of equipment all over the island under the guise of filming. Plus, we may get lucky and have a few ghosts show up.”
“Aside from being pack mules,” Mason said. “It sounds like a vacation. You girly-girls may want to bring your teeny-weeny bikinis.”
Mike let go of Mia’s hand so she could slug Mason. No one, aside from Mason, objected to the violence.
Chapter Twenty-nine
Ted, Mia, Mason, and Kevin drove up to Mackinac City in the PEEPs truck. Mia worked out a deal to get some help, on both ends, loading the boxes on the ferry and unloading the boxes once they arrived on the island. She was taking her job very seriously. She even booked a two-room suite with Wi-Fi in the Royal to use as a base of operations. Kevin loved sitting next to the unsuspecting driver as he encouraged his dual team of draft horses up the long and winding hill. Mia, Mason, and Ted chose to walk, stopping along the way to make note of things only Mia could see.
“There are a lot of British and American soldiers walking the streets. Ladies and men in all manner of dress. A few Odawa, but they seem to be moving through the buildings. I think they are residual haunts,” Mia said. “There are quite a few buildings built over graves. We may want to see if Kevin and Fergus can get a feel for what would be the best story for PEEPs to tell.”
“This hill is going to kill me,” Mason said.
“Just think of how easy it’s going to be on the way down,” Ted said.
“When are the others arriving?” Mason asked.
“We have probably thirty-six hours or so depending on wind.”
“Thank you, guys, for bringing me. I couldn’t bear another night on any boat,” Mason said.
“We knew that Kevin wasn’t going to get aboard the yacht,” Mia said. “What’s one more?”
“Tell you what, I’ll keep track of Kevin, and you guys go and have yourselves a mini honeymoon. I packed Cid’s noise-canceling headphones. Have yourself a good time.”
“How gracious of you,” Mia said dryly.
“You and Cid seem to be at odds,” Mason said.
“Cid and I are fine,” Ted said.
“No, Mia and Cid.”
“I don’t bear him any ill will, but he hasn’t said anything to me, aside from a few glares. I think he’s pissed about Murphy. He thinks it’s my fault he’s gone,” Mia said.
“No, he’s pissed about you not being broken hearted about Murphy,” Ted said.
“He said that to you?” Mia asked, flabbergasted.
“Oh no, he and Mike were talking on the phone and I walked by.”
“Damn. I thought Cid was on Team Ted,” Mason said. “Hey, girly-girl, do you want to join Team Mason?” he asked Mia.
“In your dreams. There is only one team, and it’s Team Ted,” Mia said.
Ted put his arm around Mia. “It’s a damn fine team, but we don’t have cheerleaders. Mia won’t allow them.”
“You guys are real jokers,” Mason said.
They had caught up to the wagon and helped unload the suitcases while Ted checked them in.
“Mia, should you be doing all this lifting?” Mason asked, concerned.
“My heart’s fine, Mason.”
“Who’s your doctor? Maybe I should give him a call.”
“Actually, I have two miracle workers, both of whom cleared me.”
“Any of them plastic surgeons? Because you look younger than when I met you at the school.”
“Why, aren’t you the little charmer,” Mia said, lifting her end of the console box. They hefted it on one of the three luggage carts.
Ted walked out with the keys. He helped Mason finish loading while Mia hunted Kevin down.
Their suite of rooms wasn’t far from the elevator, and the view from the room more than made up for the walk up to the hotel. The hotel itself was mostly from a grander era. It had, however, been added on to and improved where space allowed. Several films had used the hotel, taking advantage of the grand porch and impressive manicured grounds. There were rumors it was haunted, and Mia was pleased to find that their suite wasn’t haunted by anyone other than Kevin Murphy. He had stretched out on one of the sofas and was fast asleep.
“Is this what it means when they say, I can sleep once I’m dead?” Mason asked, looking at the ghost through Ted’s special glasses.
“I don’t think so, but Kevin’s got the right idea,” Ted said. “Let’s leave setting up the console for after supper. Right now, there’s a beautiful woman in my room all alone.”
“I’m too tired. You take care of her, will yah?” Mason said, giving Ted a dollar.
~
Sabine sat back and enjoyed the sunshine while the others toiled on the yacht. Patrick had worked a few summers on a large vessel like the one Gerald had found for them, and Cid had read a book on how to sail, which now didn’t seem like a waste of his time. Between them, they had a few rocky starts but ended up heading north, courtesy of the nice breeze coming up from the southwest. Mike and Burt worked on a few PEEPs scripts. Mike made the decision on the teams that would be in front of the camera.
“Do you think you and Mia could behave yourselves?” Burt asked when Mike showed him the rotation. “I thought I’d pair you with Sabine this trip. Cid and Mia are an interesting fit.”
“Mia and I know when to be professional. Besides, she’s a bit miffed at me.”
“Had I been consulted, I would have stopped you. Telling her family in person of her illness was one thing, but claiming she had a broken heart was another.”
“I don’t believe I actually said that,” Mike related. “But I damn well agree with Cid that she’s hurting.”
“I think it was a ruse. No one bounces back from a heart event as fast as she did,” Burt said.
“Ah, but she had supernatural help. I noticed she’s minus two things: the scar around her calf, and her tattoo is gone. It would take a miracle man to counter Altair’s magic.”
“She wouldn’t appreciate us talking about her,” Burt said. “I’m thinking of putting Mason on com when I have to rotate Ted off. Cid’s got a lot on his plate with trying to fit into your shoes.”
“Then don’t put him in them,” Mike said, irritated.
“Honestly, you can’t be two places at once. And you do need to sleep to keep your youthful appearance.”
“Gee, thanks a lot, bud,” Mike said. “I’m going up to leer at Sabine and see if she’ll hit me.”
“You can’t make her into Mia,” Burt said.
“No. There is only one Mia.”
“I don’t get it. You’ve got the world on a string now. You can have any woman you want, and you still want Mia.”
“I’ve never met someone so accepting of all my flaws. You don’t have to work to be with her.”
“That’s true, but she’s so changeable. I’d have a problem with not knowing who was coming home.”
“It doesn’t bother Ted,” Mike pointed out.
“He loves it. But remember, he’s emotionally about thirteen. To him, she’s a constantly changing toy.”
“Burt, is that fair? Seems to me he’s a father of three boys…”
“His best friend still lives with him,” Burt quickly added.
“Well, there’s that,” Mike assented. “Ted and Mia seem like such a solid match.”
�
�Is that why you’re constantly trying to break them up?”
“Oh, Burt, I simply remind Mia there is a better alternative waiting for her. If I wanted to break them up, it would already have happened.”
Burt looked at Mike aghast.
“I love her too much to put her through that,” Mike said, leaving the stateroom.
~
Mia lay awake next to Ted. He was snoring. She knew he would be out for hours, so she decided that this would be a good time to OOB. She hadn’t had an out of body experience since Raphael had taken out the tumor. Mia worried that if she didn’t practice her craft, she would lose the ability. She closed her eyes and, in moments, was able to rise out of her body.
She chose a persona of her present self, dressed in clothing from the 1820s. She picked clothing that a visitor to the Royal may have worn. Her upswept hairstyle reflected the time. She moved out of the room and over to where Kevin lay sleeping. She nudged him.
“Kevin,” she said softly.
His eyes opened. He looked at her and sat up quickly. “Where’s the party?”
“Would you escort me through the hotel and maybe down into the town?”
He patted his pocket to make sure his flask was there before standing up. “Mia, you look beautiful. It would be an honor to escort you. I take it you left your body behind?”
“It’s easier to appear to be a ghost this way.”
“Well, I may want to suggest a few things.”
“Please.”
“Leave the army boots. Women wore slippers. And don’t pull me into a vortex or I’ll kiss you too.”
“Honestly,” she said. “Let’s address this right now. I’m not looking to replace your son. I really believe he will return. But dead is dead, Kevin.”
“I know. Come on, let’s paint the town red.”
They moved out of the suite of rooms and into the hall. Kevin played the ardent suitor as they passed a group of spirits. Mia made a mental note that the Royal may be a good place to set up a few cameras.
“This is a grand hotel. I would never in a hundred years have been able to afford to take Catherine to such a place. I did take her to have tea once in a hotel in Chicago. She liked that there were tablecloths on the table. We ate these little sandwiches and some tiny cakes. She sat there with her back ramrod straight. I think she was afraid we’d be tossed out at any minute. I told her, as long as we could pay, we were as good as the toffs.”
