A Rose by Any Other Name (Haunted Series Book 18)

by Alexie Aaron

  Murphy got up. “You should have stayed with me.”

  “Yes, I should have,” Mia acknowledged for the first time in her life.

  Murphy turned and looked at her.

  “But I didn’t. So much would be different, but there is no going backwards. My child’s soul moved on. Neal and Lobo have moved on. I thought I had let them all go. That damn Renee, may she rot in hell.”

  “What happened to Renee?”

  “I killed her.”

  “Explain?”

  “I put my sword into her heart, and she turned to ash. Just like you would have had I not gotten you out of the house. You wouldn’t have moved on. Murphy, damn it, I would have… have…” Mia pulled herself together and said, “I would have taken my most generous, beloved friend and wiped away his existence and, in doing so, damned mine.”

  “Instead you rescued me,” Murphy said. “Thank you, Mia.”

  “Murph, I’m not doing so well. Could you get Judy for me?” Mia asked.

  Murph disappeared. He reappeared minutes later. He looked down, and Mia was crying inconsolably.

  Judy walked in, followed by Ed who was carrying a large satchel for her. Judy rushed over to the couch. She cut away Mia’s clothing and bandage. She examined the stitches and drain. “Mia, are you in pain?”

  “Yes.”

  “Have you taken anything?”

  “Not since yesterday.”

  “Stephen, let me see your axe.”

  Murphy produced it. Judy looked at it. “Spectral,” she acknowledged. “How long before the wound was closed?” she asked Mia.

  “Murphy and I fought for a while. After I killed the ghost, I had Ted take me to the emergency room. Maybe a half hour?”

  “Mia, the reason this will not heal is that you have lost too much blood. The human part of you is barely replenishing what you need to breathe let alone heal. Ed, she needs blood.”

  Ed took off his shirt and sat beside Mia. Judy prepared a direct transfusion.

  “Is he my blood type?” Mia asked, worried. She watched Judy quickly connect the apparatus to both of them.

  “Mia, you and Ed could be siblings it’s so close,” Judy said. “In Ed’s culture, this actually makes you his sister.”

  “I would be honored to have such a sister,” Ed said.

  Mia started to speak but passed out.

  Murphy was alarmed.

  “Don’t worry, my friend, she will be fine,” Ed said. “My blood is rather potent.”

  “She has changed so much since I last treated her,” Judy said. “Gone are the demon genes. Ted and Michael have each claimed her.” Judy pointed to the two tattoos. “You too have marked her.”

  “What?” Murphy asked.

  Judy pointed to the wound that was just now starting to heal. “This scar will stay unless her master, Michael, takes it away.”

  “I hate her having a master,” Murphy said.

  “I’m sure Mia doesn’t like it much. But, Stephen, this angel culture is older than Ed’s and mine. It demands allegiance.”

  “Ted said that he thought Mia would be watched over, but I still could have killed her.”

  Ed reached his free hand over and pointed at the neck tattoo. “Mia, could have called upon any one of these archangels at any time, but she chose not to. To do so, she would have sealed your fate. If you ever doubted her devotion to you, do so no longer.”

  “She showed me her soul,” Murphy said softly. “Yet I couldn’t stop myself from killing her.”

  “Murph,” Mia said, opening her eyes. “The entity was very powerful. She left false memories in our minds. Please, if you love me, let the guilt go.”

  Judy watched the interaction between the ghost and Mia. “Tell me about these false memories. Maybe I can help.”

  Mia nodded and let Murphy tell Judy what had happened. “I remember the day I asked Mia to marry me.”

  Mia jumped in, “It was in a glade of lilac bushes. The air was full of the scent. Stephen bent on one knee…”

  “I was so nervous, my glasses fogged. I asked her, and she accepted. She hugged me so hard, we both fell over.”

  “Stephen was so proper. He was afraid my father would come out and catch us frolicking in the bushes.”

  “This never happened?” Ed asked, confused.

  “No. It was a memory placed in our minds. Previous to this abduction, Cid and I were paired as the married couple. I can also remember his proposal.”

  “Is it similar?”

  “Yes until the end,” Mia said blushing. “Cid wasn’t worried about being proper.”

  Murphy raised his eyebrows. “No wonder he’s feeling so guilty.”

  Judy disconnected the transfusion. She was quiet while she put her things away. “Mia, tell us about Ted’s proposal.”

  “We were walking in the woods, up the hill, just past where Murphy’s grave was. I was talking about burdens, of all things. Ted said, ‘Let me help carry some of that for you. Let me be your partner in life. I will share my life, my love and my worldly possessions with you.’ He dropped to one knee; he didn’t care the ground was wet. He said, ‘Mia, do me the honor of being my wife.’ I was so happy, I jumped in the air screaming, ‘Yes, oh yes, yes yes yes!’ I flew into his arms and knocked him over. We rolled down the hill and ended up in a patch of flowers. Ted kissed me, and I answered him with his own words, ‘Ted, I will marry you. I will be your partner in life. I will share my life, my love and my worldly possessions with you.’ He gave me this ring. The only ring I wear.” Mia pulled off her left glove and showed Judy the ring.

  “Now tell me about Murphy’s proposal.”

  “I beg your pardon?” Mia looked at her with confusion.

  Murphy was stunned.

  “How about Cid asking you marry him?”

  “Is this some kind of a joke?” Mia asked.

  “How did you do that?” Murphy asked.

  “Mia did it without knowing it. By telling us about her real proposal, the fictional ones disappeared.”

  “How can you help me?” Murphy asked.

  “How about you tell us about when you asked Chastity to marry you?” Mia asked sweetly.

  “My mother and Chastity’s parents had already arranged the marriage. I arrived in the wagon to have dinner with the family. We ate together, and then Chastity and I went into the parlor together. She was so shy, she barely made eye contact. I asked if she would do me the honor and be my wife. She looked at me for a while. I thought she was going to say no, but she smiled and said yes. We didn’t have engagement rings in those days. All I gave her was my promise to be a good husband.”

  “Do you remember asking Mia to marry you?”

  “No. I should have, but I didn’t think a ghost could marry the living,” Murphy said seriously.

  “What about the other memories?” Mia asked.

  “Work with each other, and tell a true memory to take its place,” Judy suggested. “Do the same with Cid and Burt.”

  “Cid hasn’t proposed to anyone,” Murphy told them.

  “Maybe another adventure will take its place. Or when he does ask someone, the fictional one will disappear,” Judy said confidently.

  “Hopefully it will be before then,” Mia said.

  “The poor guy is besotted,” Murphy said and winced. “I wasn’t supposed to tell you that.”

  “Wow,” Mia said.

  Murphy looked at her funny.

  “Oh, not that look.” Mia pointed to her wound. The angry red line was fading. The drain was pushed out and, aside from a silver line on her porcelain skin, the axe strike no longer presented a danger.

  “Mia, now that you have my blood, I ask for some of yours,” Ed said seriously.

  “Yes. Do I cut my palm? Forgive me for not knowing the custom.”

  Ed took his knife. He lifted Mia to a standing position. He sliced her upper left arm horizontally. He bent down and drank from the wound.

  Mia looked over at Murphy with wide eyes. He
looked back. Both were rather alarmed but resigned to see the ritual through.

  When Ed was done, he put his large hand on Mia’s lower stomach. “The next son you have will be of my bloodline. He will be my nephew but also my son. I will protect him with my life.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I am not through yet. I have to give you a new name. He took Judy aside and asked her something. She thought for a moment and nodded slowly. Ed came back. You are Mia to all who knew you before, sister of the light to the angels, but to me, you shall be She-who-walks-through-time.”

  Murphy looked at Mia. She was taking in more than a new name. Mia had just realized that with Ed’s blood there would be more changes.

  Judy motioned to Murphy. “Come walk with me. Leave them.”

  Murphy did so.

  “Murphy, Mia is going to live the life of a superhuman. Unless she dies in battle, she will outlive her husband and first son. She will need you to help her through her grief.”

  “She isn’t going to age?”

  “She will, but slowly, like Ed.”

  “The Council took away her ability to conceive. Ed talked about a child.”

  “The child will come later, and more after him. Ed has seen all of this. He knew she would have wings, that she would become his sister, and she would have many children. He has seen it.”

  “The future can change.”

  “Yes. It can. Ed has had many visions of Mia’s future. But in every one of them, you are there by her side.”

  The enormity of what Judy was telling him pushed away any fictional jealousies. He fully accepted Mia’s marriage to Ted. Murphy finally saw his role in Mia’s life. He would be her counselor, protector, and her friend. He would work hard to become more powerful. No entity was going to get the best of him again.

  Chapter Eleven

  The doorbell rang. Ted, who was warned by a phone call, ran to open the door. There stood Mia. She was wearing the Kevlar top Ted had made for her and form-fitting leather pants stuffed into her boots. She had a leather strip tied to her upper arm. She had Curly the uber robot clamped around her waist. And she was cold.

  “Brrrrr. Last time I go out without my coat,” Mia said.

  Ted drew her into the house and took her into his arms. “I missed you!”

  “Me too!” she said energetically. Mia kissed him hard on the mouth.

  “Whoa, we aren’t alone here,” he cautioned. He unlatched the robot and set it down on the floor. It rolled into a ball shape. Ted picked it up and held it under his arm as if it were a basketball.

  “Do I smell food?” Mia asked.

  “Burt and I went out for it,” he said, looking into her face.

  “So he told you why we don’t want southwestern food?” Mia said, looking back.

  “Yes, all was explained. Cid’s going to show you what we’ve collected so far in the pantry later. Maybe you can work with him on a problem he’s been having.”

  “The one I mentioned on the phone?”

  “Yes.”

  “I would be happy to. Now, what about this house here? Any more lighting fixtures dropped?”

  “No, but we have captured some things on film you’ll find interesting.”

  Mia took Ted’s hand. “You don’t have an extra sweatshirt in the truck I could use?”

  “Burt brought back your coat. Put that on until I find you something more comfortable. I notice you’re wearing armor.”

  “Judy’s orders.”

  “What’s this?” Ted asked, touching the leather strap.

  “It’s kind of a Band-Aid, Ed style.”

  “Did you injure yourself?”

  “Not exactly. Can I explain that later?” Mia asked sweetly.

  “Yes, pumpkin.”

  Mia took Ted’s arm and walked beside him into the kitchen.

  The PEEPs were sitting around the bar. Glenda had put together a plate of pasta for Mia.

  “Thank you, Glenda,” she said. “Who cleaned up the chandelier?”

  “I did,” Mike said. “Audrey helped me sort out some interesting items.” He reached into his pocket and drew out several gold chains. “The crystals were phony, but these chains are gold, twenty-four carats.” He handed them to Mia.

  She drew off a glove and was hit with a vision so strong that she grabbed the counter with her free hand for support.

  The chains swung from the broken neck of a woman dressed in a flapper costume. She was hanging from the chandelier.

  “Gemma Stone,” Mia said. She put the chains down and took a deep breath. “Gemma Stone was a young woman dressed in either a flapper costume or she died in the 1920s. She was hung from either that chandelier or another one that looked like it. These chains were her jewelry. Why would they be incorporated in the lighting fixture?” she asked.

  Ted put her coat over her shoulders. “I’ll be right back with a PEEPs hoodie.”

  “Thank you, Ted,” she said, trying to work the vision out of her head.

  “I’m getting the idea this is a charnel house,” Glenda said.

  “Did you find any bones?” Mia asked.

  “Not yet. I guess we can add hers to the list,” Audrey said.

  “Not necessarily. She could have been buried,” Mia said. “After I eat, I’d be glad to put in some time looking. Any news on whether we can get the walls X-rayed?”

  “Bernard tracked down the machine. It was loaned out to a university in Kentucky. It will be back next week,” Burt reported.

  Mia sighed. She looked around. “Where’s Cid?”

  “He’s taking a turn at watching the camera feeds,” Burt said.

  “Cool beans.”

  “How are you feeling, Mia?” Audrey asked.

  “Much better. After I talked with Murph, Judy helped me out.”

  “How is everything at the farm?” Burt asked.

  “Ed’s trying to train Maggie,” Mia reported. “It’s not going well. He says she has the brain of a butterfly.”

  “He’s not being mean to her?” Audrey asked.

  “No, Ed looks mean, but he’s a softy.”

  “Your father didn’t think so,” Burt reminded her.

  “Well, he wasn’t… Come to think of it, I was rather upset with Ed myself. He’s come a long way, but in some ways, he hasn’t changed at all.”

  “Does he still think he’s a god?” Mike asked.

  “You’d have to ask him that. I try not to bring it up in conversation.”

  Ted came back and set a pile of PEEPs clothing on the counter behind Mia. “I’d let them warm up a bit,” he advised.

  “Are we going to do an actual investigation? You know, interviews and stuff?” Mia asked.

  “I’m surprised that you’re still interested,” Mike said.

  “I think this place has a few surprises in store. We may need to bring in some big guns since Murph is on the bench.”

  “How big?” Burt asked.

  “Santos big. Glenda, how much do you want this house?” Mia asked.

  “Less and less,” she said honestly.

  Mia finished her meal and sat there and thought a moment. “I kind of want a little revenge, but it could backfire.”

  Ted leaned in and looked at his wife. “Who are you, and what did you do with my wife?”

  Mia laughed. “I’m her evil twin, and I left her shoveling the driveway.”

  Mia pulled on a tee and a hoodie before going into the pantry. “It’s so interesting that this is called a butler’s pantry when it’s actually a room,” Mia said to Cid who was sitting, watching the camera feeds.

  “We’ve caught some shadows on the upper floors,” Cid said nervously. He held on to the table a moment to fight the urge to pick up who he still thought was his wife and kiss her.

  “Cid, do you remember when you were lost in the snow?” Mia asked.

  “Yes.”

  “I was OOBing, and you couldn’t see me. I screamed in your ear, and you heard me. Do you know how special that
is?”

  “You saved me.”

  “Actually, Tom and Whit did, but I let you know that help was coming. You were so brave that you made me brave. That was the first time we were alone together.”

  Cid smiled and let go of the table. He showed Mia the shadows on the third floor while she and he reminisced about old times with Ted and the fun they had testing out Curly.

  The planted memories disappeared. The only uncomfortable memory that remained was his exploration of Mia’s body before they were brought to their senses by the sound of Murphy’s axe. He could live with that. He smiled.

  “I see three different shadows,” Mia said. “They are probably too weak to fully manifest. Whatever is here isn’t giving them enough energy. It’s as if they’re on a leash.” Mia pulled out a chair. “Can I have a monitor please?” she said, pulling over the second keyboard.

  Cid gave her the small one.

  “Cid, I was having trouble with this line of code. Watch me, and see where I went wrong,” Mia said and started typing.

  Cid leaned over and read the screen as she typed. No sooner had the words appeared then they disappeared. Using this vanishing-word style of communication, Mia caught him up on all that she suspected, all that happened between her and Murphy, and finally, that she valued his friendship so much that they shouldn’t let a little item from Menu A get in the way.

  “That’s what Menu A is,” he said aloud. “You wouldn’t mind going through all the menus with me, would you?”

  Mia looked at him, shocked.

  “On paper,” he said, quickly blushing.

  “When we get back home. Ted and I invented them, so I’ll have to ask him.”

  “Fair enough. Thanks, Mia, I feel better.”

  “Judy figured it out. When we have memories thrust upon us, a real memory will take it away. I still need to work with Burt. He wasn’t affected as strongly as you, I and Murphy were. The role of the boarder was one of a stooge. If the original boarder had any feelings for Mrs. Roustan, it was to protect her, and there’s nothing wrong with that.”