Unhallowed Ground

by Kristen Gupton

  “I don’t know. Before I left to go help you and my dad work on the equipment, she was okay.” Ryan’s jaw visibly tensed as he worked to keep his composure. “Dani said she went upstairs while I was gone. I didn’t see her again. The only reason we found her was Dennis stopping by. He demanded to see my stomach. The bastard even cuffed me while he checked me out! I said he should look at Madgie since she was the one at home when Robert ended up in her back yard so he went up...”

  Kelly took a long breath and instinctively looked out the window behind the couch, seeing the street light shining away. “And you came here? Isn’t Dani freaked the fuck out?”

  Ryan shook his head. “She didn’t seem all that bothered by it, honestly. In fact, she told me to leave, so here I am. I was gonna go home, but I...with all that’s happened, I think I’d rather be here.”

  “Well, Dennis was here earlier. He had a look at me, too. I showed him the articles I had printed off in Hays. Didn’t help his paranoia, I suppose.” Kelly offered up an uncomfortable smile. “I didn’t imagine he’d go over and cuff you, though.”

  “I don’t think he would have if I didn’t have the scratch I got from falling off the stupid tractor earlier. Seeing that freaked him out.” Ryan met Kelly’s gaze. “If he hadn’t come over, though, God only knows how long Madgie would have laid there.”

  “How long ago was this?” Kelly asked. Since he’d fallen asleep, he had no appreciation for how much time might have passed between Dennis’ visit and Ryan’s arrival.

  “Not that long. After we went up and found her, he called the ambulance. However long it took for them to get there...Dani told me to go away right after they’d arrived. I should have gone up and told Dennis I was going, I guess.” He stared down at his hands. “Then again, if he’d suspected me of doing any of it, he could have slapped the cuffs back on me. He didn’t seem to have a problem doing so earlier.”

  “We all know you didn’t do it,” Kelly said, “and I doubt like hell Dani could have taken Madgie down.”

  “Dennis was worried whoever took out Robert might have still been in the house.” Ryan’s nerves got the best of him, and he stood up to pace in front of the coffee table.

  Kelly watched him. While the news had shoved aside his remaining exhaustion, he still struggled to get his mind working right. “So, Madgie...if she died when you were over here, she would have been lying there for a good long time. If Dani was there when it happened, you think she would have heard something.”

  “Madgie wouldn’t have been quiet when she hit the floor, no,” Ryan agreed, reaching up fussing with his knit cap. “But, if she went down while Dani and I were with you earlier...Shit, I dunno. I’m sure some expert will come up with a better estimate of when she died than any guess I’d make. Maybe I should have stayed. What if there was someone in the house? Kel, I think I’m losing my shit.”

  “If there was someone else in the house, Deputy Bryant is the best person to have there, but I doubt like hell there was someone. Ryan, after what I saw happen to Grace, I’ll bet you Madgie cut herself open.” Kelly stood up, stepping around the coffee table.

  Ryan stopped and stared at him. “...this is really happening, isn’t it? Something came up from that coffin, it got into Grace, then Robert, now Madgie.”

  “So, where is it now?” Kelly asked.

  “I don’t know.” His shoulders rounded. “Dennis made Dani show her stomach earlier, so I know she’s in the clear. I just have the scratch from falling out of the stupid loader this morning.”

  Kelly glanced down at Ryan’s stomach, biting the inside of his cheek. “Can I see?”

  Ryan grit his teeth, but he looked to the side and tugged up the edge of his shirt.

  Kelly leaned in. The scratch looked nasty, but having gotten his skin caught on a bolt or two while working on equipment, it didn’t look particularly suspect. It didn’t look all that much different than it had earlier, at any rate.

  Ryan dropped his shirt back down as Kelly straightened up again. “Happy?”

  “Yeah.”

  Ryan remained where he was and quirked a brow. “Well?”

  Kelly sighed and pulled his shirt up, too. “Only fair, I guess. Dennis wasn’t too disturbed with seeing my gut, anyway.”

  Ryan snorted and glanced, but there was clearly no evidence of any wound on his friend. That smile faded quickly, though. “We don’t really know how it gets into someone though, do we? I mean...what if it gets in some other way? We don’t really know what in the hell we’re dealing with.”

  “Well, what we’re dealing with isn’t supposed to exist. You didn’t see any trail that thing could have left if it was in Madgie and got out?” Kelly asked.

  Ryan shrugged. “The blood wasn’t exactly fresh, so I don’t really know what I was looking at. What if it’s still in the house? Shit, I should go back.”

  “Call Dennis,” Kelly said, going over to get his shoes on. “I’ll drive us over there. Tell him it might still be in there. After talking to him earlier, I don’t think he’ll believe you’re crazy.”

  Chapter

  57

  Ryan tried to call Dennis three times as Kelly made the short drive to Madgie’s house. He was just about to give up after the fourth ring, when Dennis suddenly answered.

  “Ryan?”

  “Yeah,” he replied, glancing at Kelly. “Sorry I left, but Dani told me to go.”

  “Where are you right now?” Dennis asked.

  “On my way back over with Kelly,” he said. “I think I’m losing my mind, but I’m afraid that whatever did that to Madgie is still in the house, and I’m worried about Dani.”

  “I’m still here.” There was a brief pause as Dennis shuffled around with something. “Sorry, I’m outside flipping the breaker like you said you were doing this morning. Shitty old wiring. Anyway, Dani’s fine, but you need to get here.”

  “We’re just about to turn the corner.” Ryan frowned, already seeing the flashing lights glowing in the misty air as they neared the turn.

  “I’ll meet you out front.”

  Ryan didn’t get a chance to say anything further as the line went dead. He lowered the phone to his lap and stared at the call-end screen.

  Kelly gave him a sidelong look. “Well?”

  “He wanted us to come back, anyway. Said the breaker tripped again.”

  Kelly’s hands audibly tightened around the steering wheel. “How often does the breaker trip in that house?”

  Ryan shrugged. “When it’s snowing or raining, it’s actually pretty common. The wiring in that place is probably a first-class fire hazard.”

  Kelly’s jaw tensed, but he could honestly recall the breaker failing when he’d been there in the past.

  Dennis was already standing behind his Expedition when Kelly stopped along the curb.

  Ryan didn’t immediately get out, staring as Dennis started to walk toward the passenger door. “Something’s not right.”

  “Let’s get out and see what’s going on before we get anymore freaked out,” Kelly replied, popping open his door and sliding out. “If he was out to arrest you, he would have just come over and gotten you instead of having you come back here.”

  Ryan took a hit off his inhaler before doing the same and moving onto the sidewalk, snow starting to fall again.

  Dennis waited for them to get out. His shoulders rounded, his hands shoved in his pockets. “The ambulance just left. Madgie’s body is still up there. Coroner is on the way, and they’re sending in some of the guys from the station in Colby to relieve me and work the investigation. They don’t like relatives involved in these things.”

  Kelly looked over at the house, taking some odd comfort in the fact all the lights inside were on. “She was your grandma, Dennis, not just Dani’s. Are you okay?”

  He shrugged and stared at the ground. “No. I know you said you felt like you were losing your mind earlier, and damn it all, I’m right there with you. Once my relief gets here, I don’t know what
I’m supposed to do. I’m days behind on sleep at this point, but I’ll be damned if I think I’m going to be able to do so after all this bullshit.”

  Ryan’s chest tightened from the cold, despite the recent use of his inhaler. “Should we go in?”

  Dennis nodded and spun where he stood, slogging toward the front door.

  Ryan and Kelly exchanged looks before following.

  The interior of the house immediately felt hot after being in the cold, and Kelly quickly tugged his coat off. He glanced around the living room, not seeing anything out of place. Then again, neither Dani nor Ryan had noticed anything prior, so that was hardly surprising.

  Dennis kept moving forward before landing on the couch and leaning with his elbows on his knees. “Thanks for coming back over, guys.”

  “I thought something was wrong from the way you sounded on the phone. Well, more wrong, I guess,” Ryan said, sitting beside Dennis. “Where’s Dani?”

  “I’m right here,” she said, emerging from the kitchen. “I made some coffee.”

  Dennis shook his head. “I’m sorry if I scared you with that. I’m just so burnt out that...I dunno. I felt like I might miss something.”

  “Honestly, I don’t think any of us want to be alone, anyway.” Kelly stared at Dani for a moment. She looked tired, but it was to be expected given the circumstances. “I’m gonna go make a cup. I’ll bring you guys some, too.”

  Ryan and Dennis both nodded before he turned to get to the task.

  Dani stepped aside and let Kelly pass into the kitchen.

  He felt her eyes upon him as he pulled a few cups from the cabinet. “Want me to pour you one, too?”

  She let out a sigh. “Sure.”

  Kelly got all four prepared and turned to hand her one, finding she’d moved a lot closer.

  She took it and tipped it up to her lips immediately.

  “Taking it straight, huh?” Kelly asked as he turned to pull the creamer from the refrigerator.

  “Yeah.” She stared down into her cup.

  “I’m really sorry about Madgie,” he said, stopping before her.

  Dani’s lips pulled into a frown. “I can only hope that all this madness is coming to an end.”

  “Me, too.” Kelly offered her a smile before taking the other three cups along with the creamer and heading into the living room.

  Dennis took his cup and stared down into it. “Kelly, have you heard from Tim? I was wondering how he was doing?”

  Kelly’s brows rose. “Crap, no, I haven’t. You don’t think it’s too late to call him, do you?”

  Dennis shrugged. “I couldn’t even tell you what time it is.”

  Kelly set his cup down on the coffee table before reaching to his back pocket.

  ...but his phone wasn’t there.

  He patted his other pockets before going over to where he’d abandoned his coat. After digging through all the pockets, he froze in place.

  “Shit, I still have no idea where my phone is,” he said. “Never found it.”

  “Really?” Ryan asked.

  “Not yet.” Kelly reached up and pressed his hands against his temples. “I honestly forgot about looking for it. I’m not all that addicted to holding it up to my face all the time.”

  “When was the last time you saw it?” Dani asked.

  “I don’t know...” he stood in the middle of the living room, scanning the floor. “The last time I remember checking it was out at the job site before you showed up, Ryan.”

  “Did it come out of your pocket while you were worming around with the wiring harness?” Ryan asked. “Maybe it fell out when I took my swan dive onto you?”

  “I hope not, but since that’s the last place I want to go looking for it, I promise it’s out there. By the time tomorrow rolls around, the stupid battery will be dead, and it will be buried under the snow,” Kelly said, his shoulders rounding.

  “Well, there hasn’t been that much snow yet, and it will light up and be pretty easy to find in the dark, won’t it?” Dani asked. “Assuming you left it on.”

  The cold rush returned to Kelly’s skin, and he stared at the two of them. “Well, yeah...”

  Ryan knew exactly what Kelly was thinking, and while he wasn’t exactly eager to go out to the job site in the dark, admitting as much to Dani wouldn’t get him anywhere good.

  Dennis laughed to himself. “You guys go on and find it if you need to. I’ll be okay here for a while alone.”

  Ryan met Kelly’s gaze. “I’ll go with you to look for it. I’d have to be there to know when to call and light it up for you, anyway.”

  “I’ll go, too,” Dani said.

  Ryan quirked a brow, surprised she’d volunteer. “Really?”

  She offered a weak smile and looked off to the side. “Yeah. Being here isn’t doing me any good, and I think we should stick together.”

  Dennis nodded. “I can take care of what’s going on here. I’d honestly feel better if you guys went as a group, anyway.”

  Ryan remained where he was for a moment, still shocked at Dani’s voluntary offer. Maybe things between them would be okay after all. “All right, then.”

  Kelly looked back toward the front door. “Okay, let’s go.”

  Chapter

  58

  Ten minutes later, the three of them were in the minivan creeping down the road toward the worksite. While it made sense his phone would have fallen out when they’d worked on the machines, it didn’t make it any easier for Kelly to act as though he wasn’t on the verge of losing his cool.

  They pulled to the shoulder of the highway, but not far enough to risk getting the van stuck in the snowbank left by the plow.

  While Dani had only grabbed a sweatshirt to toss on, the boys had put on their coats. That wasn’t unusual for her, and it drove Ryan nuts. She’d always end up complaining about the cold and stealing his coat.

  Kelly scanned around the loader, but if his phone was there, it was already covered by the snow and not readily visible in the diffuse moonlight coming through the clouds.

  “All right, try calling it,” Kelly said keeping his eyes fixed on the ground.

  Ryan quickly dialed Kelly’s number and then lowered his phone to help watch.

  Several seconds passed, and Kelly began to worry if the battery had already died. Perhaps it had been broken in the fall.

  There was the muffled sound of his ringtone, and a distinct little rectangle of snow flashed blue as Kelly’s lock screen illuminated.

  “Yes!” Kelly shuffled forward and pulled his phone out from beneath the snow and shook it off. He looked at the screen. It didn’t appear to be cracked.

  “There, that wasn’t so bad,” Dani said, walking forward and away from the boys.

  Ryan shoved his own phone back into a pocket, the frigid air already drying out his throat. “Good, now, let’s go.”

  Kelly put his phone in a coat pocket and went to stand beside Ryan. “I can’t believe I didn’t crack it when I fell on it, but it looks all right. Let’s go.”

  Dani hesitated, staring out over the remaining headstones, their black silhouettes standing out in stark contrast to the snow.

  “How many more people do you guys have left to move?” she asked, not turning from the scene.

  Ryan sighed. “I don’t remember exactly, but about a hundred, I think the funeral guy said. This place was in use pretty regularly for a long time.”

  Since she’d not been out there since high school, she’d forgotten how big the cemetery was. “Dang...and you’ll open every coffin?”

  Kelly and Ryan looked at one another before Ryan replied. “Any of the lead ones, at least. I don’t know what the plan will be if we find wood coffins or whatever. I’m just here to help Kelly dig holes.”

  She turned around and looked at the two of them, wrapping her arms around her torso. “I guess I can’t really blame you guys for being a little spooked after working out here.”

  “To be fair, we weren’t at it long bef
ore the machines got messed up,” Ryan replied.

  She looked back over her shoulder. “Whoever came out here in the middle of a storm to mess things up had to be nuts.”

  Kelly’s gut knotted. “Nuts or really motivated. With the way things have gone since, I don’t know anymore.”

  She flashed a quick smile, making no move to go back to the car.

  Ryan shoved his hands into his coat pockets, the cold wind cutting through him. “Dani, you have to be freezing in just that hoodie. Let’s go.”

  She turned away from them, again staring over the cemetery. “I’m fine. It’s been too hectic in town. Being out here is a lot more peaceful, you know?”

  Kelly looked over at Ryan, finding his friend staring right back at him. Kelly tipped his head back toward the van, wanting Ryan to hurry her along.

  Ryan frowned and shook his head, whispering. “Dude, I’m not gonna piss her off again. She’ll get cold sooner or later.”

  Dani laughed, still facing away from them. She started to walk forward through the snow, quickly vanishing around the side of the loader the boys had worked on earlier.

  “What the hell is she doing?” Kelly asked, starting to move forward to follow her.

  Ryan reached out and grabbed his arm. “I’ll get her.”

  Kelly motioned toward the loader with a hand. “Be my guest. I don’t want to stay out here any longer. It’s freaking me out.”

  “Dude, she’s been through just as much as we have with Madgie dying and all. I’ll handle it.” Ryan let go of Kelly and started to trudge forward in the snow.

  Kelly didn’t like any of it. The wind was picking up, the headlights of the van dimming behind him as the snow in the air thickened.

  He waited, wondering exactly how long it was going to take the others to stop screwing around. He listened, but the only sounds beyond the drone of the van idling back at the roadside was the whispering sound of the dry snow blowing around him.

  A scream cut through the air, Kelly’s hackles instantly prickling. He sprinted forward as best he could through the knee-deep snow toward the loader.