She didn’t have to tell me twice. I opened the book, flipping through to the center before looking up, perplexed.”
“They’re blank.”
“For now. Life events are stored in our own celestial cloud. Not unlike Google. Except our is completely impenetrable to hackers, and we never run out of space. Events are catalogued and kept until the deceased touches the book. Then, and only then, does it become a guide. Audits can take a Keeper far and wide, so it’s a necessary tool.”
“A celestial download.”
“Essentially, yes.”
“Why the canyons, then? Did Alistair leave someone behind to die?”
“No, but it would’ve made for an interesting audit.”
“Can you not joke? Why the canyons?”
Angelica twirled one hand. “As you New Yorkers say, for shits and giggles. Natural wonders are natural conducers. Raw ley lines energy runs through them, making past events easier to access. Plus, they’re awesome to look at.”
“I see. So I don’t have to go outside the city?”
“That’s up to the book.”
“Should Alistair touch the cover now?”
She shook her head. “Tomorrow is soon enough. I want to cover the rules governing the manual. I can’t stress the importance of these enough. The book must be stored in a secure place away from reapers. Your home is secure since it is an extension of your bond, but a hotel room, for example, is not.
“If you must travel for a charge’s journey, the book needs to be safeguarded in a specialized unit. I’ve hidden one in your messenger bag. The least attention called to its presence, the better. Reapers must never gain control of a Messorem Malleo. If that happens, I need to be informed immediately.”
“What happens if they do?”
Cade blew out a breath. “The books self-combust.
I found that hard to believe, looking at the non-descript cover. “Like mission impossible. This tape will self-destruct in thirty seconds.”
“Pretty much. They all go pear-shaped instantaneously. Including the one taken by reapers. A necessary failsafe or it throws off the balance of power.”
“What happens to the souls that are mid-journey?”
Angelica exhaled as if the thought was too overwhelming to bear. “They return to the in-between. The audit-to-date is catalogued, and they wait for a new book and a new Keeper.”
“Wow.” I nodded. “Okay then. Note to self. Guard this with your life.”
“Not quite, but I’m glad you’re taking the responsibility seriously.”
Angelica motioned for my messenger bag, and the moment she opened the flap, it was like looking at the inside of a fortress. “We had yours retrofitted.”
“When? That bag has been hanging on the coatrack by my front door since I quit the library.”
Cade touched the side of his nose.
“The book stays in the bag whenever you step past the confines of your brownstone. You can leave it in the case while your home, but definitely when you’re out. It opens the same as the ghost box.” Angelica lifted her palm. “As you say, easy peasy lemon squeezy.”
“Okay then. Have book, will travel. Too bad there’s no such thing as reaper repellent.”
Cade laughed. “There is, but that’s another level…and on that note we should get going.”
Chapter Seventeen
“STOP THE CAB!” I banged on the plexiglass to get the driver’s attention. “I need to get out.”
Cade unbuckled his seatbelt, concern hard on his face. “What’s wrong?”
“Look.” I pointed down the block to the ambulance and police vehicle with its lights flashing in front of Jefferson Street Park. “Something’s wrong.”
I barely waited for the cab to come to a full stop before getting out at the curb. The messenger bag hung across my chest to my hip, swinging back and forth as I ran. Stopping at the entrance, I craned over neighborhood rubberneckers, my heart in my throat.
George.
EMTs rushed with him on a stretcher out the ivied gate, and I ducked under raised hands too busy filming to care beyond their potential social media views.
“Ma’am, you need to step back. The EMTs have to get through.” A young police officer lifted her hands, ready to move me back behind the throng, but I wasn’t having it.
“George!” I yelled, and I don’t know how, but he heard me over the trundling gurney wheels on the sidewalk. His hand reached for me as much as it could beneath the safety straps, and that was enough for the cop to let me pass.
I rushed to his side, hurrying beside the stretcher as it bumped toward the ambulance. “Holy hell, George! What happened?”
“Ma’am, are you next of kin?”
“No, but I take care of him.”
George struggled to pull the oxygen mask from his face, his breathing strained. “She’s…my daughter.”
“Georgie, no…”
“Look, you two can fight it out at the hospital,” the lead EMT interrupted. “He’s severely dehydrated, and we need to move.”
The EMTs hoisted George into the back of the ambulance, closing the transport doors without another word, and I watched them pull into the street, sirens already blaring.
The police officer who let me pass stopped me as I searched for Cade in the crowd. “C’mon. Let’s get you out of this mob.”
She pushed past the dispersing throng to where Cade waited with another cab. He held open the door and I slid in, my heart rapping against my ribs. He warned this would happen, but I didn’t actually believe it.
“Where to?” the cabbie asked.
“Mount Sinai Hospital,” I replied, my voice as numb as the fear circling my gut. “Emergency Room entrance.”
“He’s not dead, Lou. Hold onto that.”
I didn’t know if Cade read my mind, or just guessed my thoughts, but right now I didn’t care.
“I SHOULD’VE TAKEN YOU MORE seriously.” I verbalized my guilt. “It has been George and Emmie against the world for so many years, I just can’t fathom them being gone.”
“I know.” Cade laced his fingers with mine, sitting on the hospital waiting room’s hard plastic chairs. “However you define their relationship, he loved Emily, and vice versa. George is tired, Lou. People die of broken hearts. It’s a real thing, and it happens every day.”
I pulled my hand back with an aggravated puff. “I know death is your business…hell, our business, but don’t talk so matter-of-factly. Not here. Not now.”
It wasn’t just what he said about George. I bristled against the same hollow pit in my gut whenever I thought about my own marriage. Was it a love to lay down and die for?
Yeah. No.
Marcus and I definitely didn’t qualify. That my marriage ended the way it did was a testament to that. Did I believe in that kind of love? I didn’t used to, though I witnessed its quiet grace every Monday for the past three years. Did I want it for myself? I looked at Cade and the concern on his face as though he really could read my mind. Truth was, I didn’t know.
My phone buzzed, and I reached for it in my pocket. “It’s Thea,” I said aloud, saving myself from my own thoughts. “She’s texting about Alistair’s funeral. It’s set for tomorrow morning at ten a.m.”
“You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”
I scrolled through the location information she sent, and the funeral home write-up. “I’m his Keeper, Cade. I should be there. His audit journey starts tomorrow, and the cemetery might be one of his stops.”
“I’m going with you, then.” He squeezed my hand, making me look at him. “No questions and no arguments.”
Any other man would’ve earned a singular eye roll, but I was grateful for the sentiment and the company. Both tonight as well as tomorrow. Truth was, I liked Cade. Liked having him around all the time.
“Trust me. I’m not going to argue. Strange as it sounds, you offer a continuity in the crazy. Besides, you’re the lead on this audit.”
Saying he was the lead wasn’t a cop-out or a passive aggressive dig. It was a necessary truth, and even that was comforting.
I locked my phone, leaning back on the hard plastic chair. “If they’re taking this long, Georgie was more than just dehydrated.”
“Lou—”
I shook my head, getting up from my seat. “I should call Thea. Let her know I got her message.”
Did I need to speak with Thea that instant? No. But I needed a distraction, and getting up to pace with my phone was just the ticket.
“Hey, girl!” Thea answered with her usual sparkle. “You home yet?”
I exhaled, trying not to push more unease into my voice than was already there. “I’m at Mount Sinai with George. He collapsed in the park, and someone called the police. They brought him in by ambulance.”
“Damn.” I didn’t have to see her to know she paced in time with me on the other side of the phone. “Do you need me to come down?”
I knew she’d be here in a New York minute if I said yes, but right now less was more. “Thanks, but Cade’s got me covered.”
“Have they said anything yet?”
“They’re still working on him, and haven’t come out to speak with us. My guess is his kidneys failed, so it’s a crap shoot.”
The possibility of things going south was so palpable, neither of us verbalized it.
“I got your text,” I said, changing the subject. “I thought Alistair’s family decided to have him cremated.”
“They did. They arranged a columbarium niche in a mausoleum in Brooklyn. If you don’t want to go, I can make your excuses.”
“Thanks, T, but I’ll be there.”
“Alone?”
“No, Cade wants to come.”
Hearing his name, he glanced up from his phone, but I turned the other way, putting a finger in my ear.
“That’s not who I meant,” Thea pressed.
“I know.”
“Louisa, you can’t let Alistair haunt his own funeral. It’s not appropriate. Plus, it’s beyond creepy. What if people aren’t nice about him? He might go all Casper the not so friendly ghost, and freak everyone out. Especially me since I’d know.”
My hand was on my forehead, half in my curls. “I don’t know if he’ll be with me, T. Either way, you won’t see him.”
“No, but I’ll sense him.”
I didn’t want to get into a paranormal pissing match over ghostly protocol. Angelica would call the shots on that, or the Messorem Malleo would. George was my concern at the moment. “Look, I have to go. Text me the train directions to the cemetery if you’ve got them. Otherwise, I’ll uber it with Cade.”
Thea snorted at that. “You should expense the fare to Death Central.”
“Seriously.”
I ended the call, and put my phone back in my pocket just as the doctor came out to speak with us.
“Ms. Jericho?” he asked, walking toward me as I got back to my seat beside Cade.
“Yes. How is George?”
“He’s very weak, but he’s asking for you. He was severely dehydrated, and it has affected his kidneys and his cognitive ability. We’re admitting him for more tests to gauge the severity of the damage.”
Cade and I followed the doctor to the examination room. George was as white as the hospital sheet covering his legs and chest. His face was sunken and pale, making the stubble on his cheeks look like short white spines.
I steeled myself, plastering a soft smile on my face. How did he deteriorate so quickly? He was fine just days ago. Sharp as a tack and diving into the Monday treats with gusto. This made no sense.
“Louie Belle,” he rasped, moving to reach for my hand.
“Ssh, George. Just rest. Don’t try to talk.”
“In my pocket.” His hand dropped, too weak with the effort. “It’s for you.”
Cade dug in the hospital storage bag for the old man’s ratty pants, pulling a beautiful pendant from the front pocket. Handing it to me, I turned it over in my palm, surprised at how smooth it felt to the touch. The design was immaculate and unique, made of individual mosaic stones that formed a curious, coiled shape.
“It was Emmie’s.” George coughed, scraping a breath. “She gave it to me a year ago. Said it was for protection.”
I spared a look for Cade, but he just shrugged. If he didn’t recognize the ornament, then maybe it was just a love charm rather than a Keeper’s tool.
“Em made me promise it would pass to you if anything happened to her.” His face pained saying the words. “I should’ve given it to you that day when we sorted her things, but I was too—”
“I understand, Georgie. Don’t worry. You fulfilled your promise, and even if you completely forgot, Em would never hold it against you.”
Slipping the chain over my head, the pendant nestled between my breasts, and instantly warmed. It was uncanny, but utterly calming.
I sat on the edge of the hospital bed and took George’s hand, making him look at me. “Georgie, I know you’re tired. And I know you miss Emmie every second of the day. I know because I miss her just as much. But you can’t go. I’m not ready for you to go. Em isn’t done with her work, and I’ve just begun mine. I need you to stay with me. Help me the way you helped her.”
He squeezed my hand, and his cracked lips struggled for a smile. “It’s not up to me to be there for you, Lou. You have the person meant to help you.” He nodded toward Cade. “It’s my time. I think you know how much I love you. As much as I did Em. You are the child of my heart.”
He never spoke this way before, and I wondered if it was the meds or if it had something to do with cognitive ability like the doctor said. Or maybe he wanted to say what he felt before it was too late, like it was with Em.
He labored to sit up, and when I gathered him to me, he whispered, “Don’t let them tell you otherwise. Em came to you the other night because she came to see me, as well. He wants what you have, and he won’t stop until he gets it.”
George’s body shuddered in my arms. “Cade…” I motioned to the door with my head, holding the old man tighter. “Get a nurse, quick.”
I helped him lay back on the pillow, and he gripped my forearm, even as his eyes drifted toward the open door. “That one’s good man, Lou. Don’t push him away.”
“Georgie.” I forced a smile through my rising worry. “Why would I do that? Cade’s a Keeper, like me. Remember?”
His eyes fluttered closed, and his body seemed to melt into the bed as though he did what he set out to do, and could now rest easy.
“George?” When he didn’t answer, every muscle tensed in my shoulders.
I sat stock still holding his hand. I didn’t move or breathe, and as his last breath left his lungs with a low, rough rasp, tears pricked my eyes.
Laying his hand across his chest, I had no time to indulge my own grief, not when George’s ghost materialized beside the bed. He looked bewildered, but otherwise at peace, and that look of release was mirrored in his deceased face.
I stood from the bed, moving to stand where he could see me. “George…there’s no reason to be afraid or confused. I’m here to help you.”
Keeping my voice calm, I watched his eyes for recognition, but before the ghost could reply, Em’s pendant flared iridescent.
Every sense was as alight as the ornament between my breasts, and my hackles rose. I turned for the door, not sure what I’d fine.
“You can’t keep them all for yourself, you greedy girl. Didn’t your mother teach you how to share?”
The woman in the doorway looked like any other on the street, until she opened her mouth. Her words were double-timbred, and the susurrated cadence seemed to shimmer in the air. When she blinked, flashing a horizontal nictitating membrane, I knew this was bad.
“Cade!”
Em’s pendant flamed red hot, and the woman hissed snake-like, backing up. Her lizard-like eyes darted back and forth, and I swear they rolled backward as if she could see out the back of her head.<
br />
In a flash, she was gone, and I rushed to the hospital room door to track her, just as Cade came from the nurses’ station. “There’s an active cardiac code, but they’ll get here as soon as they can.”
“They don’t have to rush. George doesn’t need them anymore.”
I didn’t elaborate because I didn’t have to. Cade looked past me to the ghost standing beside the bed.
“I’m so sorry, Louisa.”
He reached for my shoulder, but I dodged his hand. “Oh, and we had a surprise visitor.” I told him about the reaper, and her bizarre blink.
“Here?”
“No, in the lobby gift shop. Of course here.” At the look on his face, I dialed back on my sarcasm. “Are you okay?”
Cade cleared his throat. “Yeah…sorry. I’m a little stunned you saw what you saw. Are you sure?”.
“If not, then I’m hallucinating. Is there such a thing as delayed shock?”
“Sadly, yes,” he raked a hand through his hair, “but that isn’t the case, and Angelica is going to have a cow.”
I sat in the chair next to the bed, watching the ghost examine everything in the room. “It was weird. There was no warning. No hot flashes. No sweats. No chills.”
Cade was already on the phone with Memento Mori, and from the way he held his cellphone away from his ear, I knew Angelica wasn’t happy with the news.
“Does she want us back at H.Q.?”
He ended the call and then fished in his pocket, pulling out the mini ghost box. “No. Unfortunately, she’s coming here.”
Unfortunate? Obviously, that was a bad thing. “And that’s not good, why?” I had to ask.
He didn’t answer. Instead, he whistled low, and Alistair materialized in a huff.
“Do not summon me that way. I am not a dog.”
“Sorry about that, Alistair, but I’m not heading back to the brownstone, and the travel box goes where I go. That means you’re following Louisa home the old-fashioned way.”
Cade motioned for George, but the ghost turned for me instead. His eyes were lucid again, shining with the same mischief he had in life.
“Remember what I told you, Louie Belle.” He touched the side of his nose, and then blew me a kiss before vanishing into the ghost box.
Jeepers Reapers: There Goes My Midlife Crisis Page 14
