by Alexie Aaron
“Hello, Burt.”
“Uh, Mia said I should call you,” Burt said, irritated at the way he sounded on the phone.
“She did say that you and she were having trouble communicating. How is the investigation going?”
Burt listened to the buttery voice and was determined to sound more professional. “We may be in for a long haul here. But never mind that, can you explain to me what Mia is doing right now?”
“I’ll do my best. Forgive me if I go over anything you already know about.”
Burt listened with amazement. How had his girl gone from simple OOBing around the neighborhood to venturing to hidden islands in Lake Michigan? Gerald finished his explanation, and Burt filled him in on the antics of the poltergeists. The men laughed at the mention of Mike’s injury and request for body armor.
“Those spirits have a mean streak. Be watchful, they can do more harm than your rocking Granny can,” Gerald cautioned.
“I really hate to leave this property, but there is no way any of my team will spend the night in that house.”
“Ah, then I think I can be of service to you. I have a friend of a friend that owes me a favor…”
Burt smiled. Gerald’s connections were everywhere. There wasn’t any problem that he couldn’t find a solution for. “Thank you, I owe you one.”
“No, correctly, you, Mister Hicks, owe me two.”
Burt rolled his eyes at his own oversight. “Two, I owe you two. By the way, how many do you owe Mia?”
“If she pulls this off, I owe her a big one.”
“I’m a little nervous at the word if, Gerald.”
Gerald answered seriously, “Me too, my friend, me too.”
Beth was intently scouring her notes when Burt returned from making his call. “Did you get a hold of Mia?” she asked.
“Nah, voice mail. I talked to Gerald Shem. You remember him?”
“Yes, he’s the-guy-that-knows-a-guy, right?”
“You got the picture. Anyway, he’s been working on the same project as Mia, and he anticipates she will be out of contact for a half day or so.”
“That long?”
“Yes, there are no cell phones where she’s going, I assure you.” Burt sat down next to his researcher and asked, “What are you working on?”
“I’ve had no trouble tracing the Hofmann’s rocker. It originally belonged to the bride of an Edward Hofmann. They passed it down from eldest son to eldest son. I took a gander at the family tree, and there are no daughters in this branch, just daughters-in-law. But which Missus Hofmann is in there rocking is a puzzlement as they all lived to a ripe old age with the exception of George and Mark’s mother who died of breast cancer. I would like to talk to Mark tomorrow, er, today, and see if he has any ideas or family papers that could point us in the right direction.”
Burt nodded. “Good idea. What about the dueling pistols?”
“Marjorie’s brother bought the pair at an auction house in Montreal. She’s contacted him, and he will fax Susan the receipt and whatever papers came with the sale. So, I’m waiting on those.” Beth rubbed her eyes. “Sorry, but that dust hasn’t settled in the house yet. Changing the batteries was a bitch. I can’t imagine what the inside of that room looks like now.”
“That will wait until morning.” Burt yawned. “Where’s Ted?”
“He and Mike have gone to rescue Old Bertha. Mike’s keen on wrapping this up tonight and getting a shower at the motel.”
“I guess he can go. I’m camping out. I’ll talk Ted into staying with me.”
Beth bristled.
“Problem?” Burt asked.
“With all due respect, why Ted? I am plenty capable of handling this command center by myself. I’m strong, more coordinated than any of you…”
“You’re a woman, and my girlfriend’s got a temper,” Burt interrupted.
Beth sat back, astounded that someone noticed she was female. “Makes sense.”
Burt was pleased with how he handled the situation. He smiled warmly and pulled up a chair beside Beth. “I guess I don’t tell you enough how valuable you are. There is no PEEPs without you. Each of us is unique, qualified in different areas. You bring so much to the table. We would be stumbling around in the dark if it wasn’t for the information you gather. It’s more important in paranormal investigations than all the gadgets we have.”
“Aw thanks,” Beth said, keeping her voice even. She didn’t want to be the “emotional” female of the group. “I know this, but it’s nice to hear it, boss.”
Ted knelt by the broken remains of the camera while Mike watched the door behind the tech. It had been an hour since the infrared camera detected that the entity had left the window and the dust settled. He and Burt agreed to wait until daylight before venturing into the room again. There was no rain in the forecast so the window being left open wouldn’t be a problem. Sure they may have a few pests fly in, but who would notice considering the big pests already in that room.
“Ah, Dude, Bertha’s days of glory are finished. I can cannibalize some of the extra stuff, but it’s the scrapyard for her.”
Mike sighed. “I remember when Burt bought her at that second hand store in the valley. It cost so little, but at that time it was a bloody fortune.”
Ted kept his face turned away from Mike. He didn’t want the douche to see the tears in his eyes. The cameras and devices were more than tools to Ted. They had personality. Sure Bertha was old, but she didn’t deserve to die this way. He carefully placed all the pieces in the plastic box and got to his feet. “I guess that’s all of her. We better check the charge on the battery packs on the cameras before leaving the house or Burt’s going to have our livers for breakfast.”
“How that guy can eat liver is still beyond me,” Mike commented as they walked down the hall to the staircase. “Beef liver, chicken liver. Pâté’s one thing, but fried liver and onions makes me want to barf.”
“Your ma never makes you eat liver?” Ted questioned, letting Mike descend first.
“Used to. Not now though. Doctor Baloney, the latest guru on the morning television said that you have to be careful of organ meats.”
“His name’s really Baloney?”
“Nah, I just call him that. Gets the old woman’s ire up.”
Ted smiled behind Mike’s back. He knew the true lay of the land. Mike’s mother scared the crap out of her son. She was formidable. The douche would never get away with calling her old woman. He respected Mrs. Dupree and ladies like her. Those farm women only got stronger as they aged. What strength left their bodies manifested in their resolve. He wouldn’t want to go up against Mike’s mom when she was angry. A low creak drew Ted’s eyes to the front room. He touched Mike’s shoulder and pointed to the rocker.
They carefully approached the chair that had stopped and was vibrating. Ted looked in the viewfinder of the camera and saw old hands shaking the e-reader.
“Dude, check the charge on the book. Grandma’s having trouble.”
Mike cautiously walked over to the table and gazed at the device on the table. He noted the bookmark and smiled. “The charge is fine. It’s just that she’s finished the book. Do you know how to get another book on this thing?” Mike pointed to the e-reader that stopped vibrating.
“Piece of cake, but what do you think Geema wants to read next?”
“Leave that to me. I know what women like to read.”
Ted walked over, and before putting a finger on the e-reader he asked, “Okay if I gets you set up, Geema?” He waited, wishing Mia was there to confirm the old woman wasn’t going to bite his hand off. He carefully picked up the e-reader and showed Mike how to access the store. Mike looked over his shoulder, taking in the instructions. “I hope the Hofmann’s don’t mind if we spend a little on Geema. Okay, it’s like a MP3 player, you search, select and buy. Marjorie has her credit card all set up and didn’t password protect the device. I’ll have to give her class 101 on basic security.” He handed the e-reader to
Mike.
Mike smiled as he typed in the author of the book she just finished and found the book he was looking for. “This should keep her happy,” he said to Ted. “I just bought it for Ma.”
Ted hid his smirk by turning his head. He knew that Mike was reading Loves Crusade. He found it in the guy’s gig bag when he was unpacking the truck. What was it with women and knights? He didn’t understand why a sword-carrying hunk was more desirable than a technical genius armed with computers, for cripe’s sake. “Dude, plug that into the charger. We don’t want Geema throwing a fit if she can’t read.”
Mike did as was instructed. He made a mental note to get him one of those e-readers. It would make it easier to get his romances. As it was, he bought them two towns away from home, telling the clerk they were for his mother. Everyone in his hometown knew that Mike’s mom read Sci-Fi.
He followed Ted, turning off lights after them. The sun was rising, and it was time to get some sleep. Burt and Beth had cleaned up the trash in the command center. He noticed that the console was still up and running. “We staying?”
“No, you and Beth go and get some shut eye. Ted and I will take turns here. I don’t feel comfortable leaving the house unprotected.” He indicated the open window upstairs.
“Fine, you’re the boss,” Mike said, meaning none of it. “Come on, Beth, let’s get going.”
Beth rolled her eyes and followed the dust-covered Mister Hollywood out of the yard. She got in her car and waited until Mike got settled before pulling away from the house.
“If Burt wants to wreck his back sleeping on the ground then so be it. Me, there’s a hot shower and a soft bed in my immediate future.”
As they turned on to the main thoroughfare, they passed a truck pulling a posh trailer fit for a movie star going into the subdivision. She smiled and said, “Gerald Shem does it again,” to herself. To Mike she said, “Camping sucks, poor bastards.”
~
The sunrise on Lake Michigan was spectacular. Mia moved behind Captain Duda and looked over the shoulder of Gerald’s driver. He had been dutifully writing down ETAs on a pad of paper as instructed by Shem. She moved back to Bev and Brian. “We have another hour.”
“Which will seem like an eternity,” Bev complained. “Bi-location has its benefits as we move faster, but time seems to crawl. I have seen enough water, thank you very much.”
“Not I,” Brian confessed, “I’ve never been on the water. My family wanted to take me on a cruise once, but the doctors forbade it.”
“Why?” Bev sat up from her lounging position, interested. “There’s usually a doctor aboard.”
“True, but not the materials needed if I get into trouble.”
“Cruise ships are boring, just food, food, and, yes, food. I gained ten pounds the last time I was aboard one,” Bev said.
“I wonder how many spirits would be roaming the decks. It would be horrible not being able to get away from them.”
Brian’s face lit up. “Ghosts? Like murder victims?”
Bev shook her head. “More like suicides, and they are the worst spirits, always roaming about moaning and groaning.”
“I don’t understand,” he admitted.
Mia looked at her aunt and asked, “Shall I?”
“Go ahead.”
“There are thirty to forty people that jump from cruise ships a year. They are in anguish and end their life. It’s a sad, selfish thing to do.”
Brian turned to Bev, “Have you ever seen ghost ships while you were out there?”
Bev smiled indulgently at him. “No, but anything is possible. Remember the Disney version of pirates is far different from the real thing.”
“I guess I must seem so naïve to you. I live my life from a wheelchair or bed these days. I don’t remember a time when I could walk, let alone run. All my adventures before this were from the pages of books.”
“Me too,” Mia said sympathetically. “I didn’t get out much. Too much craziness to deal with…”
“Your craziness,” Bev butted in. “Brian, Mia handicaps herself.”
He looked at the young, hooded woman and asked, “Why?”
“I can’t leave my house without seeing spirits. They follow me and get up in my face when they know I can see them. Driving is a nightmare. Sometimes I can’t tell the difference between them and corporal beings. With them comes their baggage. The world is very noisy for me. I haven’t learned how to tune them out like Bev has. So I built myself a house on a peninsula. The land bridge is fortified with salt and crushed red brick. The only way I can get a peaceful night’s sleep is knowing I won’t be awakened by a spirit wanting my attention. They take, take, take…”
“Not all take,” Bev interrupted. “Your friend Murphy for example.”
Mia was forming the words to debate the issue with Bev when she saw the knight’s face change. He put up his hand as if asking for silence. He whispered, “I hear her.”
Bev moved closer, and the two women waited impatiently for Brian to speak again.
~
“Komal, my friends are coming,” Sabine said as she opened her eyes from her meditative trance.
“Good, are they corporal or travelers?”
“They are in spirit form. They travel on a boat navigating along the ley line. They will be here in under an hour.”
“How many?”
“Three: my mentor, her niece and the knight.” Sabine looked at Komal. “We will be able to leave.”
Komal looked at the hope etched on Sabine’s face, and though he didn’t want to see it vanish, he had to tell her the truth. “You will be able to leave. I will stay here and make sure Sire does not follow you.”
Sabine stood up and reached out to her teacher. “My friends have important people as their friends. I will return and free you and the slaves on this island.”
“I believe you, my daughter, but I may not be able to leave. Part of me is scared that maybe this is my eternity,” Komal confessed.
She looked at him sorrowfully. “There is power here that holds you. Please do not give up on the thought of transitioning to your heaven, teacher.”
“You give wise counsel. I will think on it some more.” He smiled. “Now, ask your knight to grasp the hands of the others.”
Sabine closed her eyes and did as instructed. “He asks why?”
“Tell him you are going to send all of them information they will need to be able to navigate the island to find and rescue you.”
“He says they are ready.”
Komal took both her hands in his and placed his forehead on hers. The glow of the room moved through him and into her.
~
If Mia was in her corporal state she would have peed herself when Komal connected with her. He sent information and power. She tingled and fought the urge to pull away from the others. She heard Bev gasp and Brian moan. The connection lasted just a few seconds, but she had to fight to hang on. When it was over, she opened her eyes and looked at the others. Was it her imagination or did each display a green light amongst the other colors of their irises?
Bev let out a string of curses that would have had Murphy pulling out his bar of soap. Brian stumbled back away from the women and said, “Comic book stuff.”
Mia laughed. “Maybe, but I hope it’s real.”
Bev composed herself and said in a bored tone, “You can say that as you stand here in an out of body bi-located form hundreds of miles from home? This is your reality, Mia, and I suspect there is much, much, more.”
Chapter Nineteen
Burt woke up puzzled about his location. He wasn’t at Mia’s although the bed was as soft. He rubbed his eyes and took in the light color, paneled interior of a trailer bedroom. He swung his feet over the bed and into some slippers that he suspected Ted had found among all the doodads in the Pamper the Client bag left along with a hamper of delectable goodies on the table of the posh eating area. The air-conditioning hummed softly. Last night, after Ted recovered from the shock
of their “camping out” accommodation, he had plugged the trailer into the house current. Burt would worry about reimbursing the clients for the electricity after the investigation.
He followed his nose to the recently brewed coffee. Ted left a post-it note on a walkie-talkie instructing Burt to call him when he read the note. Burt poured a cup of coffee and sat down at the table before complying. “Ted, over.”
“Dude!”
“Thanks for the coffee.”
“Hey beats a sharp stick in the eye. Everything is quiet in the house. I want to get in there to replace some batteries and see if we can reestablish contact in the nursery. How soon will you be ready to rock and roll, over.”
“Give me ten to drink my coffee and find my pants. You didn’t see where I put them my any chance, over.”
“Dude, they’re over the shower door. I beat the crap out of them trying to get that drywall dust off and hung them there, over.”
“Thanks, mom, over.”
“Don’t be a douche, over.”
“Copy the douche. Will see you in ten, over.”
“Cool, bring me a cup of joe, Moe, over.” Ted ended the transmission.
Burt found his pants. He vaguely remembered crawling in at 5:00AM after his shift and Ted insisting he leave the nasty things outside. He complied, very aware that he was giving the two old women across the way a peek at his Portal boxers. He didn’t care as he was exhausted.
He looked around at the trailer, taking in the accouterments. It was filled with an abundance of mirrors and soft comfortable chairs. There was a sizeable television with games and game hook-ups provided. Oh, he would owe Gerald two tremendous favors. He shuddered at what this would cost a non-bartering individual. The coffee was rich, and by the time he finished his cup and located his pants, he was caffeinated and ready to go. Ted had done a great job, and the black cargo pants had a nice gray patina instead of the white sludge the sweaty drywall dust had made in the humidity of the backyard.
