Old Bones (Haunted Series)

by Alexie Aaron

  Mike jumped out of the command truck and greeted Audrey warmly. He congratulated her on her discovery commenting, “You’re our very own Nancy Drew.”

  “Thanks, I’m not that good, but I try.” She took her briefcase and headed into the house.

  Burt climbed out of the truck and handed Ted the iPad to which he had transferred the camera feeds. “Nothing’s happening in the house. Not even a peep out of Esta.”

  “Dare we hope things are trailing off?” Mike asked.

  “Calm before the storm more likely. Look at the low batteries,” Ted said as he flipped through the data. Someone’s drawing energy. We better eat and replace those batteries before the show.”

  Audrey returned and helped Mia set up the table. She was told to sit down and relax, and soon Mia was filling the soft buns with gobs of tender pork and sauce. Cid groaned as he sat down. There goes our eating plan.”

  “Now hold on,” Mia started, “I assure you these pigs ate a vegetarian diet.”

  “Keep telling yourself that, Ma Kettle.”

  “Well then, you won’t need a sandwich. You can eat the cucumber salad. There’s lots of it, dig in.”

  Cid frowned. “No, I’ll eat the pulled pork.”

  “Yeah, I bet you’ll hate it too,” Mia said sarcastically.

  Cid started to say something but stopped. He looked at Ted, whose mouth was hanging open and his eyes gazing at the iPad screen. “What’s up?”

  “I’m not sure. Mia, why is Murphy chopping a hole in the study wall?”

  “What?” Audrey jumped up. “They’re never going to understand this. First the wallpaper, now…” she said as she ran into the house.

  Mia put down her serving spoon, grabbed a sandwich and grumbled something about being right back and left.

  Mia arrived in the study just in time to catch Audrey as she backpedaled and tripped over a box of books. She looked over at what had frightened the woman half to death. Murphy had succeeded in chopping a hole through the oak panel and into a cavity in the wall.

  Stacked inside the cavity was not one, but six mummified corpses of little girls.

  “Mary mother of God …”Audrey started to pray but ended up in tears.

  Mia looked over at Murphy. “But how did you know they were there?”

  He set his axe down and pointed to the notebook he had taken from Audrey’s briefcase lying open on the desk. “I can’t read Eye-talian, but I can read a blueprint.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Father Santos walked into the study. He was trailed by his go-to pathologist/coroner Doctor Nam. They studied the opening in the wall for a few moments. Santos walked out and encouraged Mia to bring Audrey to him. “We need to clear the room.”

  “I’ll have the men do it,” Mia said.

  “Good. Audrey, I’ve talked to the cardinal whose jurisdiction the charity falls under. He and I go way back. He is going to smooth the waters for us. I told him an overzealous exterminator opened the wall and found the bodies. This is not far from the truth. Stephen Murphy has exterminated many pests in the past for Mia. My friend has asked us to determine how old the bones are and investigate why they are here.”

  “They were put here before the church took possession of the building,” Mia informed him. “The Church has nothing to worry about in relation to their staff.”

  “Good, this will reassure him and help you to regain control of the investigation. Doctor Nam, who helped you with the Gruber mansion, has agreed to help you here.”

  “I didn’t have permission for PEEPs to be here,” Audrey admitted. “After I was attacked, I feared for the new occupants of the home. I thought we could clear this up in a few days and no one would be the wiser.”

  He looked at her, his eyes soft. “You did the right thing. I don’t think that these children would have ever been found otherwise. Now we have the opportunity to give them a proper Christian burial.”

  “If Esta is one of them, I need to take her to Cold Creek Hollow to bury her with her father,” Mia informed him.

  “The hollow?” Father Santos sighed. “Why am I not surprised it has raised its ugly head again. Come, Mia, fill me in on everything.”

  “I’ll get the guys,” Audrey volunteered and left them.

  Father Santos put his arm protectively around Mia, walked over to the stairway and encouraged her to sit down. She reluctantly did so but had her back to the wall and sat as far away from the rail as possible.

  “It all began when Audrey had the grandfather clock removed…” Mia went on to tell him in detail what had occurred and why they took the chance they did in entering the hollow. “Burt’s in charge of the investigation. He could fill you in on anything I missed.”

  “I’ll talk to him. What else is wrong? Something hides behind your eyes, child. Ted…”

  “Ted’s wonderful, and his family likes me. That’s where we were when this all started. It’s me. I’m changing. That bas… bad Angelo did something to me.”

  “I understood he saved your life. Healed you. How can it be bad?”

  Mia got up, leaned over and whispered in his ear. “I have wings.”

  Santos sat back stiffly. “I don’t understand. Wings, like birds wings?”

  Mia nodded. “Have you seen evil or been under the influence of evil?”

  Father Santos looked back at her as if she were stupid.

  “Sorry. Only those that have can see them. Burt and well…” She told him about the possessed entity they rested recently.

  “Come, let’s find a private spot. I’ll tell you what I see.”

  They walked upstairs and into the room Mia knew that Ted didn’t have a camera in. She turned around and raised her shirt.

  “I see wings. Angelo’s wings,” Santos identified. “But I don’t think he gave them to you. He’s not that powerful. I’m not sure what’s happening, but I will find out for you. In the meantime, have faith. I don’t see you turning into a bird.”

  “Well, that’s a relief!”

  “Did you ever consider you were being called into service?”

  Mia pulled down her shirt and turned around. “There’s no way God wants me wearing a penguin suit. I’m marrying Ted and having babies.”

  “No you misunderstand. Your gift…”

  “Can be used to help the lost. That’s what I’m doing.”

  “There is a group of very special people who take care of the evil we mortal men cannot.”

  “Angelo’s group. Ah, no thank you,” she spat.

  “You really should forgive him his trespass, Mia,” Santos counseled.

  “He took away my memories of love. I’ve had so few experiences of being loved that I treasure even the heartbreaks. He had no right.”

  Father Santos couldn’t argue with her because he knew Angelo was in the wrong. “What do you want from him?”

  “I want him to leave me and my friends alone. I know sometimes our paths cross, being in the same business. Hagan’s demon for example. But I fear his agenda will get me or someone I love killed. I don’t trust him. I don’t know how you can. I respect he is your friend, but he isn’t mine.”

  “This saddens me, but I respect your concerns. I will have to think on your problem. I will come to you when I have a solution or at least an answer. I promise to look into this on your behalf.”

  “Thank you, Father.”

  There was a knock on the door. Father Santos opened it.

  Doctor Nam stood there. “Excuse me, but I think you should look at something before we remove the bodies.”

  Mia and the priest moved towards the door.

  “No in here,” he directed. “This room is over the study,” he explained. He turned around to get his bearings. He walked over to the closet. “From below I can see a panel that slides. I think the monster that put those girls in the wall put them in from here. They have settled one on top of the other.”

  Mia looked over his shoulder. She handed the man the pry bar she carried that hooked on t
he outside of her pants.

  He ran it along the flooring of the closet. He pulled the floor up, and underneath he found what he was looking for. It took three tries, but he opened the panel. “See, I was right. The bodies were dropped in from here.”

  Mia waited until the Father had looked before she looked down. The lights from the study illuminated the face of the last child to be buried this way. Even though her body had lost its fluids and time had shriveled the once vibrant complexion, Mia looked down on the face of Esta. “That’s Esta Basso,” she identified, stumbling away from the closet. “She and I had tea together.” Mia closed her eyes to rid herself of the image of the dead child. “She was such a happy child. Who could do that to her?” She opened her eyes and asked, “Why does God let this happen?”

  “I can’t answer that. I can only provide comfort,” he said sadly. He walked forward, took her in his arms and let her cry.

  Murphy stared at them from the corner. He wasn’t sure he liked what the priest had to say, but he was providing comfort for his friend. Mia had a good head on her shoulders. She would suss out what was right and what was wrong on her own. And if she needed help, Murphy had her back.

  ~

  “Yes, sir, I understand. Thank you,” Audrey said. She set her phone down on the console and sighed.

  “Are we in trouble? Do we need to get out of town fast, Bonnie?” Ted asked, his eyes on the camera feeds.

  “Father Santos saved my butt. I’m coming out looking like a hero instead of… Well, you know.”

  “Sorry we lost track of Murphy. I keep forgetting that he is quite capable of thinking for himself and acting independently. I will have a word with him, but I never know if he’s listening…”

  “Murphy’s kinda like a teenager that way, huh?”

  “He can be a handful, but I assure you he is on our side,” Mia said, climbing into the truck. She took Audrey’s hands. “I’ve got some bad news for you.”

  “Clyde, how fast can you drive this thing?” she asked Ted.

  Mia looked at the two of them and smirked. “Bad news before car chase, K?”

  Audrey nodded.

  “Giuseppe’s Esta is on the top of the pile of little girls.”

  Audrey sat down with a thump. “That means…”

  “She was killed last and hopefully the last one. Doctor Nam is going to okay the walls of the place to be x-rayed or some such nonsense.”

  “That has to be expensive. I hate to pass that kind of bill onto the charity, the idea was to save them money…”

  “I think the county is going to pick up the tab.”

  “Ask him to hold off until I can do more research. If I can get the notebook translated…”

  “Father Santos has asked a priest to do it for us. He says this man can be trusted and won’t share the information like Ralph would. Ralph is a dear, but when it comes to keeping secrets, he’s like Ted.”

  “Watch it,” warned Ted.

  “He likes to share, like my sweet, adorable, strong, handsome…”

  “Keep it coming, you’re still in the dog house,” Ted cautioned her.

  “Yikers, well you get my drift,” Mia said and planted a kiss on top of Ted’s head.

  “Um, Mia, can you ask Murphy to stop by when you next see him?” Ted asked.

  “Geeze, I’m everybody’s messenger tonight. Why?”

  “You know the battery drain?”

  “Yes, I was worried the Basso entity was going to make an entrance with all those forensic techs in the building.”

  “Well, I’ve run the film, and it was Murphy. He drew all that power…”

  “In order to slice through the veil into this world,” Mia finished.

  Audrey watched the two of them. “You guys finish each other’s sentences, how cute.”

  Mia and Ted looked at her. “She says we’re cute,” Ted started.

  “Mike thinks we’re annoying,” Mia finished.

  Audrey laughed. “Thanks guys, I needed that. Now point me in the direction of Doctor Nam.”

  Mia held out her hand. “Come on, I’m headed that way. I saw Murphy lurking in the library.”

  “Murphy did it in the library with an axe,” Audrey said and laughed at her own joke. “Did you ever play Clue as a kid?”

  “Didn’t have anyone to play with,” Mia admitted. “I saw the movie with Ted.”

  “I’ll bring over the game when we are on an all-nighter together. You’ll love it.”

  “What’s Nancy Drew? Is that a game?”

  “No. It’s a young adult mystery series. I read all the books. You never read a Nancy Drew novel?”

  “Nope.”

  “You did read as a kid?”

  “Yes, I read a lot. But I was limited to what I could find at home. There was a mean looking ghost in the community library, so I avoided the place.”

  “Okay, well maybe we read some of the same books. How about Anne of Green Gables?”

  “Nope, my turn. Did you read In Search of the Indo-Europeans?” Mia asked her with a straight face.

  “No, I must have missed that one. I get the idea your parents didn’t read fiction.”

  “You got it in one, Sherlock,” Mia said and opened the door for her.

  “Before I go in there, one more question. How old were you when you read in search of the whatsit whosit?”

  “Ten. I remember because it was my birthday. My dad gave it to me. A signed copy too.”

  “Oh they spoiled you,” Audrey teased.

  It took Mia a moment to understand her joke and she smiled. “One day you’ll have to school me on what I’ve missed. I’m a fast learner.”

  “I bet you are, Mia Cooper, I bet you are.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Burt watched as Audrey consulted with Doctor Nam. He couldn’t hear the conversation from where he and Mike stood, but her body movements started off tentative, and as they conversed, she gained confidence and seemed to dominate the conversation. Doctor Nam ended up nodding and shook her hand.

  “Ah, an accord has been met,” Mike said. “Hopefully, she’s held off the techs for a while.”

  “One can hope. Lord, I went into this investigation all backwards. I don’t know what I was thinking. I knew that we didn’t have permission. I thought… I don’t know what I thought,” Burt lamented.

  “You led with your heart,” Mia said from behind them. “That’s alright in my book. Don’t sweat it. Cid says the bookshelf can be repaired. He’ll take a panel out of the back of a closet, and once the shelves are back up, no one will be the wiser.”

  Burt turned around and smiled at her. “Your Father Santos was very helpful.”

  “Our Father Santos,” Mia corrected. “Burt, when the outsiders clear out, I’d like your permission to check the place out for more hidden cubbyholes in the walls.”

  “I don’t see why not? Maybe retrieve Esta Basso’s toys. I’m sure you’ll want to bury some of them with her.”

  “I think she’s attached to that expensive doll. Audrey was counting on the money from the sale of it, but I think the clockwork bird will be a nice compensation.” Mia started to walk away but changed her mind, turned around and said, “Thank you both for coming to the engagement party. It made me very happy to have family there with me.”

  Mike’s face lit up. “We are a sort of dysfunctional family, aren’t we? Speaking of dysfunctional, have you found Murphy yet? Ted’s been chewing my ear about it,” he said, touching his ear com.

  “Nope, not yet. He knows he’s in trouble, but not what for yet. Burt, you’ll have to give him the being a team player speech you give me every investigation,” Mia suggested.

  “Me? Why do I get the dirty work? The guy carries an axe that can cut through wood like butter, and you want me to dress him down. Oh no, Mia, I hereby leave that up to you. Besides, look at the result, six lost girls found. Perhaps one ghost rested. I wonder if the Basso entity will hightail it now the cat’s out of the bag?”

 
“Until we get the notebook translated, my gut instinct says no. Well, I better see if I can locate Murphy before Ted gets another frown line.”

  “I bet you’re sorry you came back in time to be pulled into this,” Burt said to Mike as he watched Mia walk away.

  “Actually no. This is what we do. We investigate haunted houses, solve mysteries and rest the dead whenever possible. In between, we talk about investigating haunted houses, solving mysteries and… Well you get the idea. Too bad we can’t put this on television, the fans would eat it up.”

  “Fans? You mean those nuns that saved my ass?” Burt said.

  “Them and a half-million others. Our numbers are growing. We may just have raised ourselves from unknown amateurs to prime time viewing.”

  “Prime time on some obscure cable network.”

  “Hey don’t dis cable; it got us into Comic Con didn’t it?” Mike pointed out.

  “Much to Ted’s delight. Speaking of which, have you noticed he seems more mature since the Kansas trip?”

  “Don’t worry, that’s the parental influence. It will soon wear off. Mia’s already swearing, losing her temper and becoming the girl we all love. He’ll snap out of it soon,” Mike assured him.

  “I don’t know if that makes me feel any better,” Burt said, scratching his head.

  Ted heard a scratching on the side of the truck. “I think Murphy needs a word,” he told Cid as he handed him the headset.

  Ted hopped down from the truck. Stephen Murphy stood there, waiting to be yelled at. Ted couldn’t do it. Instead he waved him to the back corner of the lot and produced an energon cube. He opened it up and set it down. Murphy looked at him puzzled.

  “When you need energy, come to me. Don’t wipe out the cameras.”

  Murphy nodded and placed his axe in the groove and absorbed the energy.

  “In my neck of the woods we call that negative reinforcement,” Mia said from the shadows. “Our children are going to be juvenile delinquents.”

  “I thought about yelling at him, but he didn’t do anything but act on his gut instinct. He’s a being with a brain and, yes, a rather sharp axe. He’ll learn, like we all have, how to function in a team setting.”