by Alexie Aaron
“Activity on the other camera feed,” Cid announced.
The group turned to see what Disney had gotten only half right. The pirate George Wall and his men had entered the cave and filled it with menace. The camera could not pick up what they were saying, but they were searching it, turning over rocks, tossing unearthed garbage.
“I hear the captain. I’ll let them dig up some old bones while I open this… Oh hello…” Mia said. “It may be too dark for you to see, so I’ll describe her. There is a beautiful, dark-haired woman sitting on the top of what looks like to be a chest of some kind. There are other chests behind it. She seems rather angry, speaking in a rapid-fire mix of English and French. Now she used the ef word. Remind me to ask Cid when they first started to use that colorful euphemism. ‘Listen, Lady - and I’m using that loosely - there is a horde of pirates upstairs. Do you want to tell me how you found yourself in such a predicament?’” Mia asked.
The team watched as Mia listened to whom they all assumed was Rosa de Familiare explain herself.
“But, Rosa, you did keep the treasure safe for George. So, it’s not all here. He had to have expected you to have some expenses.”
Mia lifted up a small chest and said, “This one? K. Now you sit there pretty, and I’ll handle everything.”
Mia took the camera and pointed it at her and warned, “Watch the audio. I’m going to whistle.”
Mia whistled and shouted. “GEORGE WALL! COME AND SEE WHO I FOUND GUARDING YOUR TREASURE!”
“They are moving into the crevice. Ted, I think we need to get Mia out of there,” Cid said, worried.
“Give her a moment,” Ted said, spellbound by what Mia was doing.
She walked up to the pirate. Mia put her hand up to stop the angry captain from advancing on Rosa. “She died guarding the treasure. The Americans had landed, and her lover’s ship never came for her. Be nice,” Mia said as she squeezed by the crewmen and climbed out of there. She stopped to pour a generous supply of salt to cover the exit before she waved at the camera and jumped out of sight.
“I still have her feed. Wow. Maybe we can say this is a drone video,” Ted said.
“I don’t know if you can hear me, but I’m flying around the island heading for the sailboat. It’s a beautiful night for flying. Over there, I can see the Peacock. A few new friends of mine have taken the ship. And just entering the GSD is the Devil’s Pride. I’m extremely happy to see the back of that ship. Rounding the island, there are a few lights from some freighters. I’m seeing the harbor now, so I’ll sign off. This concludes the PEEPs adventure of Big Turtle Cave. Adios.”
The sound of feet dropping on the deck above them and Mia cussing as she tripped over something in the dark, brought Ted to his feet. He ran over to the stairs and gathered Mia in his arms as she descended. She was dragging a very heavy backpack.
“Here you go, Patrick. Don’t say I’m not a team player,” Mia said.
“Minnie Mouse, you stink,” Ted said, holding her an arm’s length from him.
“Is it the pirate smell or the fried ATzxes? Come on, be honest,” Mia said. She looked around. “Where’s Fergus and Kevin?” she asked.
“I thought they were with you.”
“Nope, I couldn’t find them,” Mia said.
“Jesus Mary Joseph,” Patrick exclaimed, opening up the small chest. Jewels of every sort spilled out on the table as he sorted through it all.
Ted put an arm around Mia. “You did good. Burt’s happy with the film, and Patrick is going to be busy trying to fence what was found on State of Michigan parkland. Rosa?”
“I expect, once the morning dew melts the salt, she will be joining the crew of the Peacock. I told her about how she could eat and drink in the GSD. I didn’t tell her she would age. But she did give me the jewels as a thank you for saving her bacon with Wall. Wall isn’t going to be too happy with me though because, while he was in the cave, the birdmen took his ship. But Wall finally has the rest of his treasure. It will probably weigh the boats down and end up on the bottom of the lake about fifty feet offshore if you’d like to return for a salvage operation.”
“No, I just want to go home,” Ted said.
“Me too. Our treasure is returning from Wyoming soon, and I haven’t finished with my honey do list yet.”
“I’ve done mine,” Ted said.
“What was on that list? I forgot.”
“It said, ‘Don’t bother Mia when she’s napping on the couch.’”
“And what did you do?”
“I bothered you on the couch when you were napping.”
Mia kissed Ted. “I want to be on the first ferry out of here. Let the rest of them clean up.”
“In the meanwhile, you will not believe what happened while you were playing pirate.”
“What?”
“Burt tossed a hundred-dollar bill on the table and paid for our drinks.”
“And I missed it!” Mia exclaimed. “Not fair!”
“Little Bird,” she heard in her head.
“Excuse me a moment. I’ll be right back,” Mia said, leaving the others as she climbed up on deck.
Angelo stood on the dock and helped her disembark. They walked for a while through the silent town before he spoke, “I don’t know how to get you to understand that, no matter what happens, what you or I do, that I have your best interests at heart?”
“I believe you, Angelo. I just don’t want you to be tainted by what I’ve become.”
“You fought it for your whole life. You resisted and tossed away relationships to do things your way, but you ended up an assassin all along.”
“It’s just warfare. No big deal,” she said, silently thanking Captain Waite for his philosophy. “Sometimes, I have to do what I have to do. I don’t mean to hurt anyone by my actions, but I’m starting to understand the costs and the benefits of letting the little things go.”
“Orion thinks that the Cooper curse…”
“Curse! Pah! I’m too strong to let something that someone devised - I wonder who that was by the way, who cursed we Coopers - take ahold of me. Yes, it’s quite possible that my first love was the very fallen I was engineered to kill. Funny thing about it, in this situation, the curse worked for me. Because of this, Abigor and I are inextricably interrelated. We don’t exist without the other. I’ve accepted that.”
“What about Murphy?”
“I think time will sort that out. Right now, I’m riding high on a win. A big win. Let me have this without worrying about another insecure male.”
Angelo studied Mia a moment. “I think you’ve grown.”
“I explained that two inches…”
“No, you’ve matured.”
“Thank you, Angelo. I think I have too. Maturity, though, will never stand in the way of me having fun. Remember that,” Mia said and hip-bumped him into a pile of horse manure.
He stepped out of the dung and looked around. Mia had already taken off and was flying back to the boat.
He laughed. It felt good to laugh.
Kevin and Fergus stumbled out of the harbor bar where they had spent the day and night trading stories with German ghosts. The immigrants had worked their way down from Canada and were killed when the wall of a hastily constructed hotel fell on them. Their bodies weren’t buried in a churchyard. The cheap foreman chucked them in the ground, and they just became part of the foundation. By the time they pulled themselves out, eighty years had gone by. The first thing they did was seek out refreshment, and they had been in that bar ever since. When they found out how Kevin and Fergus died, they felt they had met long lost brothers.
The drinks were served by a stalwart barman who had died on the job serving a group of tourists from Minsk who thought he had cheated them and tossed a knife into his heart. He was very happy to move through the living to bring on spectral ale and whiskies to the quartet. After a few rounds, Kevin remembered what they were supposed to be doing. He looked around and didn’t see any British soldiers, so he
sat back down and considered his mission accomplished.
Mia and Ted were looking at the stars when she felt them board the boat. She looked over and smiled. “The inebriated souls have made it back safely. I can check them off my list.”
“You were worried about them?” Ted asked.
“With two pirate ships in the vicinity, I feared they would have gotten themselves conscripted.”
“They’re no Murphy when it comes to having your back.”
“No, but they are amusing,” Mia said.
“What are you going to do about Murphy?” Ted asked.
“He has a mind of his own, and I’ll leave that up to him,” Mia said.
“If he becomes too much for you, we can move,” Ted said.
“That’s very generous of you, Teddy Bear, but I love that farm. I want to raise our sons there. Cid will be next door, and we have the aerie there for our unusual guests. I don’t think Murphy hates me that much to evict us. I don’t really know what was in play to make him act that way. Maybe he’ll tell me one day. All I care about is being with you, sharing a life with you, being Mia Martin.”
“Mia Cooper Martin, Assassin,” Ted said, moving his hands out in front of him as if he were placing letters on a movie theater marquee.
“Don’t have my cards printed yet. I may not be called upon to use my abilities anymore.”
“Bummer.”
Mia hit him on the arm.
Ted retaliated with a bear hug, a Teddy Bear hug.
Chapter Thirty-six
Murphy saw the truck pull in and his father and Fergus topple out before Mia, Mason, and Ted did.
Kevin walked towards Stephen. “Son, I would like to have a word with you.”
“I’m working.”
“Cutting wood can wait. Let’s go for a walk.”
Murphy took a moment to stack the last pieces he’d quartered and followed his father into the woods.
“I can see why you love this place,” Kevin said. “The trees are so beautiful.”
“I’m sorry I was responsible for so many of them lost, but I needed them to build the farmhouse for Chastity.”
“You’ve replenished the forest. I don’t think Mother Nature is going to fault you for a few borrowed trees,” Kevin said.
Murphy smiled. “I guess not. How was your trip?”
“Stephen, it was an adventure. I hated the water - it made me sick - but I loved working with PEEPs. Such a great team. You’re a lucky fellow.”
“So, there wasn’t any infighting, power-struggle, or whatnot?”
“There was plenty of whatnot. It was fun. Fergus and I met quite a few ghosties.”
“I’m glad you had yourself a good time, Father.”
“You sound odd.”
“I do?”
“Normally, you’re gruff with me. Now you sound like one of them morning talk hosts, interviewing me.”
“I wasn’t aware I was,” Murphy said. “A lot of things have happened to me. I guess I’m still sorting them out.”
“About that, I saw how abysmally you treated Mia on the Devil’s Pride. You had no call to behave that way. Even if you felt she was acting different from how you would like her to behave. You’re a gentleman raised by a God-fearing woman. You’re not to ever degrade someone who is fighting for your soul that way again.”
“I’m not exactly proud of myself. I also realize I misread the situation. I should apologize.”
“Yes, you should. I’m not sure how it will be received. She’s spoken kindly of you and asked me not to make a fuss. Mia blames your behavior change on the blast and the GSD. She likes working with you. I can’t protect her the way you have.”
“I’m not sure I want to anymore.”
“That’s a shame. Take some time. Work the farm, and as you are making up your mind, remember to weigh all the good against the bad. Mia doesn’t need you. She faced down a demon that the fallen were all afraid of and won all by herself. But I think she would rather have you at her side. Not fawning over her, but as an equal. She made sure Burt kept your job open for you. She was kind to Fergus and me. She offered us a place here as long as we want it. Fergus and I have this yen to see the west. The Callens may join us on some ghost-mine investigations. You’re welcome to come, son.”
“I appreciate that,” Murphy said.
It didn’t escape Mia that Kevin took Murphy off into the woods. She sighed. She really wanted to get the initial confrontation over with, but she had plenty to do. It would have to wait.
“Mom, Dad!” Dieter called, running out of the farmhouse.
Dieter shook Ted’s hand and scooped up Mia and swung her around. “I missed you so much! Guess what, Mark made varsity!”
“That’s wonderful!” Mia said.
“Murphy came back. He’s like a robot. You’ll see. He’s as dry as toast.”
“Put your mother down,” Ted said. “She’s not a bag of potatoes.”
Dieter did so and walked over to help Mason unpack the truck.
“If you want to go and see him…”
“No, I don’t,” Mia said quickly. “Let’s get this stuff put away, and then I’m going to use all the hot water to shower away the stench of the trip.”
~
The large monitor in the office was set up for the Martins’ Skype call to Wyoming. Brian stood waiting until someone behind the computer said it was time to talk.
“Mom! Grandpa and I found some groundstones, pottery, and projectile points.”
“Projectile points?”
“That’s what Grandpa calls things like spearheads.”
“Oh, thanks for telling me. Did Varden behave?”
“Sickly so.”
“He was ill?” Mia asked quickly.
“No, he was so good that Amanda kept calling him her little darling. Barf.”
“I think the word he was looking to use was saccharin,” Cid said, walking by, carrying equipment from the van he had brought back from the sailboat.
“Did you hear that?” Mia asked Brian.
“Tell Cid that, no, Varden was sincerely sweet not artificially so,” Brian corrected.
“Good to know. Here comes your dad. I’m going to let you men talk,” Mia said. “I can’t wait until you come home.”
“Me too!” Brian said.
Mia walked out into the workshop. “Cid, I don’t understand. What’s your problem with me?” Mia asked.
Cid turned around. “How can you cast Murphy aside so easily?”
“First, you claim I have a broken heart, and now you tell me I have no heart. Make up your damn mind! When you do, then I’ll talk to you, but put this in that pedantic mind of yours: I love Ted with my whole being, and I’m not going to let anything past, present, or future get in the way of my relationship with him. Do you know how blessed I am to have a man like him? Someone supportive, loving, funny, and brings out the best in me. Cid, I’m not living in a cloud of self-delusion. I’m very aware of the toll my extracurricular activities take on him. But he rarely complains. If he does, I try to understand.”
“Mia,” Ted interrupted. “I’m sorry, but Varden wants to see his mommy.”
Mia pushed past Cid and ran into the office, wiping her tears off her face with her hands.
Ted stood staring at Cid a moment before speaking, “Did you have to upset her?”
“No, she did that on her own,” Cid said.
“She trusts you. I think in a strange way she loves you. I don’t see the attraction. You’re handsome, skilled, smart, funny, and loyal. Who the hell wants that around?” Ted said. “Figure out what is keeping you from resuming your friendship with her and then discuss it. I know she ambushed you, and you weren’t ready to talk about it, but she has been feeling that you’re punishing her. She needs to know why.”
“She’s keeping secrets,” Cid said.
“You mean about how Murphy all but seduced her on the porch with my son sitting there?”
“How did you know that?
”
“We talked about it. She was honest enough to tell me she didn’t know what to do. I told her to think on it for a while. I couldn’t answer for her. Remember how horribly I behaved when someone was seducing me? Do you think I’m going to pin an A on her chest because of Murphy? She will always love him, even if she’s fooling herself now. But she loves me more. I’m not as obtuse as you all think I am. I see it in everything she does: when she hesitates before indulging Mike in some devilry and when she apologizes for being called by Michael. I mean, can you see Moses apologizing to his spouse for spending time on the mountain with God?”
“No.”
“She’s afraid of losing me. I see it in her eyes just before she leaves. I also see the rush of gratitude that I’m here when she gets back. When she said I was her everything, she meant it.”
“She’s wearing a gold chain, you never could afford,” Cid said.
“It’s Abigor’s. I think, by wearing it, she’s protecting something… I don’t want to guess, because it’s a secret that she feels needs to stay buried. He didn’t give it to her initially. His concubines entwined it in her hair, and she left Hell with it. She took it to the Devil’s Pride to buy Murphy’s freedom. It was just currency. That’s all it means to her. As you know, he didn’t want to come back, so she bought the freedom of the birdmen after she used mind control and a lot of flirting with Captain Crocker to get the keys to set the birdmen free.”
“She told you that?”
“No. Fergus plugged in the button camera he brought back with him. The old laptop he was playing with left a file that he didn’t destroy.”
“How do you feel?”
“I’m upset she was put in that position. I wanted to kill Crocker for even assuming he could have her, but someone else did it for me.”
“Mia?”
“No.”
“Abigor?”
“No. I thought it was Murphy, but I no longer think so. But I think it’s something that we’re not supposed to know. It would cause a domino effect, and something vital would be exposed. Eventually, it will come out, but I’m not going to be the one to cause it with my big mouth. I’m asking you to let it go too.”
