Renovation

by Alexie Aaron

  “You didn’t bet on the outcome of my date!” Audrey asked outraged.

  Mia smiled and pocketed the money. “Audrey, we bet on everything. Right now, there is a pool on whether or not Cid’s tool belt is going to weigh down his pants. I have butt crack showing in one hour available. After that, it’s pretty much taken.” Mia held up the clipboard. “Can I put you down for five?”

  Audrey opened her purse. She’d learned it was better to play along when it came to the PEEPs betting pool. A couple of times she had even won the pot. It was a snarky way of spending time, but it did alleviate the stress of the job.

  “Where are we schedule-wise?” she asked.

  “We’re backing up the first trip inside. Mike’s bringing pizza from the city, and we’re going to all eat under the awning. Burt thinks it will help the homeowners to take the edge off. They’re really great people, but things like this…”

  “You’re speaking to the choir,” Audrey said. “So pizza, and then who’s on the first team in?”

  “You can take the girl out of the office, but you can’t take the office out of the girl,” Mia said and sighed. Mia looked at the piece of paper Ted handed her and read it before answering, “Me, Murph, Mike with Cid filming. You’re next with Mindy, and Burt will be filming. Then I think we have Cid doing the whole Mr. Fixit with John, and Burt’s also filming that. After that, we’re not sure. His highness hasn’t passed on the rest of the schedule yet.”

  “Good, it will give me time to get my notes in order. I’m having the best time looking at Marilee Roux. She’s the woman the house was built for. She lived to be ninety-six. She emigrated as a young woman from France, and she brought over her brothers and sisters once she had raised enough money. I believe Arthur is a nephew, one of her sisters’ sons. Marilee didn’t have any offspring. She never married either.”

  “Poor dear,” Mia said.

  “Oh no, not poor dear, she had a kick ass life. Considering the time period in which she lived, she sure broke a lot of social rules, and they loved her for it.”

  “She and my aunt have a lot in common,” Mia said.

  “Speaking of Bev, anyone heard from her?” Audrey asked.

  “Nope. She’s not one that keeps in touch. She’ll turn up. And if she doesn’t, I’ll ask Angelo to go and look for her,” Mia said. “He’s still in Italy, but it shouldn’t be too far a distance from there.”

  “You mean as the crow flies?” Ted asked innocently.

  Mia and Audrey burst into laughter.

  ~

  Tim didn’t know which way to look. There he was, not only sitting at the adult table but the PEEPs table. He couldn’t believe that Mike Dupree, whom he had seen take the lead in mostly all of the PEEPs investigations, was sitting across from him. He was taller than Tim imagined. He was being very attentive to Tim’s mother which bothered Tim a bit. His father seemed okay with it, but Tim would keep an eye on the two of them anyway. After all, it was his mother, not some bimbo housewife, with a ghost in her closet.

  The sensitive, Mia, sat to his right. She wasn’t very talkative. It almost seemed like she had to stop and think before answering his questions. Her husband Ted on the other hand had what his grandma called a gift for gab. He sat next to Mia, and in between bites, he gazed upon her as if she were a hot new video game ready to be loaded. Tim was a very savvy twelve-year-old. His parents never spoke down to him, and he in turn, appreciated the things that they found interesting.

  Tim had a few chums at school but hadn’t found a best friend since they moved away from the old condo and into this house. Summer vacation didn’t help matters. The Wheatons lived in an isolated, older part of town. Most of Tim’s friends lived in the newer housing developments more than a bike ride away.

  “I heard that you attended a basketball camp. What was that like?” Mia asked.

  “Exhausting. I’m not very tall, and I play point guard. Lots of running and getting into the face of the opposition.”

  While Mia listened to Tim, she watched the yet to be formed entity hovering on the edge of the walk. It was listening; she was sure of it. It was very interested in Tim and in basketball.

  “Have you thought about putting a hoop on the old garage?” she asked.

  “I’d be afraid to. Mom and Dad want to keep the house as close to the time period as we can, without having to result to something called chamber pots?” he said wrinkling his nose.

  “Old houses also need people living and playing in and around them. It fuels them, keeps them happy. I’ll talk to your folks if you want me to - about the basketball hoop, I mean,” Mia offered.

  “Would you?”

  “Yup. I understand it’s important to practice, especially when you start catching up to your genetics. Look at your parents. They are both tall. I think, Tim, that you won’t have to play point guard for too much longer.”

  Tim caught her looking past him again. “What is it?”

  “I think you have an entity that has attached itself to you. I don’t know why yet, but since we arrived, I noticed that it has been following you around.”

  “What’s it look like?”

  “It hasn’t formed. I can’t tell if it’s a boy or a girl, but I do get the feeling that it died young. There is a playful innocence about it.”

  “No kidding?”

  “No kidding. How does this make you feel?”

  “Honored. And I suppose a bit creeped out. What should I do? Do I talk to it?”

  “I’d wait until we figure out what it is. I’m not exactly sure it came with the house at this point. It doesn’t seem to be tied to it and has no problem leaving the property.”

  “What do you see, Mrs. Martin?”

  “Call me Mia. Mrs. Martin is a mouthful,” Mia explained. “I see a smudge. Let me explain… Let’s say you just finished printing a photo on an inkjet printer. If you touch the paper before it’s dry, it smudges. In this case, the smudge moves around. I can just see behind it, so it is definitely a paranormal mass.” Mia’s eyes lit up. “Do you think your mother has some baby pictures, not posed ones, but you know, snaps of you as you’ve grown up?”

  “Are you sure you want that? My mother is into scrapbooking. She has a wall full of albums. You could be looking at them for days,” he warned.

  “I’ll have my friend Audrey help me. She’s our Nancy Drew… Oh, that’s a character from…”

  “Mia, I know who Nancy Drew is. My mother still has her mother’s collection. I’ve read a few, but don’t let the guys know.”

  “Tim, see that handsome lug across the table?”

  “Mike Dupree,” Tim said in awe.

  “Well, he reads romance books, but you didn’t hear it from me,” Mia whispered.

  “What are you telling the kid, Mia?” Mike asked

  “That he could take you in one-on-one,” Mia lied.

  “Oh, he probably can. I’m not very graceful,” he admitted.

  Tim’s mouth just hung open. Here was Mike Dupree telling the table that he, Tim Wheaton, could probably play basketball better than him.

  “Hey, how come you don’t have a hoop?” Mike asked, turning around to look at the garage.

  “We’re trying to keep the integrity of the property,” John answered.

  “That building’s no older than 1955,” Cid said. “I believe they had basketball in 1955. Didn’t they, Burt?”

  “I’m not that old,” he said, his eyes narrowing for a moment. “But yes, basketball’s been around since 1891. Cid, you used to play, didn’t you?”

  “Nope, lousy at it,” Cid said, wishing he hadn’t poked the bear. “Ted’s got game if you’re interested in a match up, Tim.”

  Tim took a look at the tall technician and said, “Give me a few years, and then I’ll challenge you.”

  Ted nodded. “You’re on. I have to warn you though, I use physics. Mia thinks it’s cheating.”

  “Oh no, it’s not, Mia,” Tim said. He proceeded to tell her about one of the ca
mp coach’s lectures about using math and physics to win the game.

  Murphy wandered around the table catching snatches of conversation. He too was aware of the entity, or smudge as Mia called it, that hovered near the boy. He couldn’t tell if it was male or female either. He didn’t feel it was threatening, so he moved by it and lowered his axe to indicate that he understood it meant no harm. Now the old guy in the attic was another issue all together. He hung out the circular window and shook his fist at the farmer. Murphy thought he heard him yell, “Get off my lawn!”

  Ted looked at the iPad and nodded. “Excuse me, folks, but we have activity. First team, report into the trailer for coms. Second team, get ready.” He jogged over to the big truck and rolled up the back door. Tim watched as PEEPs moved quickly to the trailer. Mia seemed to look around the yard, and then she smiled and called out, “We’re going in five-four-three…”

  Tim looked at the spot in the lawn but didn’t see anything. Could this be the spectral member of PEEPs that the internet was abuzz with rumors about? Lots of speculation in the forums, but no one knew anything beyond that this ghost used an axe to cut its way out of problems.

  Mindy helped Audrey clear the table of plates. “I wouldn’t have thought we’d have such an insect-free picnic,” Mindy said as she consolidated the pieces of pizza into one box.

  “We have Ted’s latest gadget to thank for it,” Audrey said, pointing to what Mindy had mistaken for speakers attached to the poles of the open air tent over the table. “I don’t know how it works, but it keeps all but the ants away.”

  “Ants are difficult,” Mindy commiserated. “Audrey, I’m a bit nervous.”

  “That’s natural. Is it the ghosts or the camera?”

  “Both.”

  “As far as the camera, pretend it’s not there. Don’t address any questions to Burt because he won’t answer you. He’s too close to the mic,” Audrey explained.

  “And the ghosts?”

  “You’ve been living with them some time now. They don’t seem violent, so if we are lucky enough to see them, talk to them like you would a family member. I think we’re going to be visiting the dancers anyway. They won’t talk back.”

  “Yes, they’re residual,” Mindy said proudly. “Tim’s been coaching me.”

  “I’ve found out some interesting things about the first owner of this house. I’m not going to spoil the surprise by telling you she was French.”

  “Really! Can I tell John? He’ll be so happy to hear that. You see, we’ve been trying to figure out how a French Revival stone house found its way to being built in this farm town. This used to be a farm town,” she repeated.

  “I know, and then it was eaten up by the suburban sprawl.”

  “Where you lay commuter tracks, people will follow,” John Wheaton said, approaching the women. “Do you need help with anything?”

  “John has an incredible sense of timing,” Mindy teased. “He knows instinctually when all but the crumbs have been cleared before he makes his entrance.”

  John smiled and nodded. “Not everyone can boast of this talent.”

  Audrey had a soft spot for this couple. She hoped that PEEPs would be able to sort out their ghostly problems. Sometimes they couldn’t. Sometimes a priest or pastor had to be called in. Once they had a pagan priest cleanse the apartment of a Baptist pastor. She had learned that it wasn’t the belief of the owner of the abode that mattered, but the belief of the entity within.

  “I think it’s our turn to go and get our equipment. John, you may as well get in line. Cid will be back to take you to the basement after he finishes with Mike’s tour of the house,” Audrey explained.

  Tim sat still, watching the monitors as Ted handed out, explained and tested the ear communication devices.

  “Just tap it lightly. Too much will not only give you a pain in the ear but will sound like a shotgun blast here in the trailer. Sometimes we may have you on open mic. This means that everyone can hear everyone. So no talking about Burt’s second chin because he will hear you. I hear you at all times. If you’re frightened, simply say so. I’ll have the PEEP in charge escort you out of the situation.”

  Mindy looked over at her son. “I feel bad you’re not going in, but your father and I think that public exposure of this kind may backfire on you in school,” she explained.

  “It’s okay, Mom. I’m happy just to be part of this,” he lied.

  Ted waited until the parents left the trailer before motioning Tim closer. “You see that unfocused area in the attic?”

  “Yes.”

  “That’s where I’m sending the first team.”

  “Who’s Murphy?”

  “He’s Mia’s ghost hunting partner. He’s a ghost, but a team member all the same. He protects my wife, and she has his back in return. They’ve been friends since she was about your age.”

  “Really?”

  “Really. Old friends. They’ve been through a lot together.”

  “I can’t see him.”

  “You have to have the sight, unless Murphy is pulling a lot of power, then you can see a glint of light off of his axe.”

  “An axe? Cool!”

  “Guys always say cool,” Ted commented. “Excuse me.” He opened the mic and said, “Team A, your entity is hovering right above the attic entrance.”

  “Well, fuck me, how am…”

  “Mike, this is a PG show,” Ted reminded the investigator.

  “Is that why Mia’s been all schoolmarmish?”

  “I am not. What the…”

  “Minor on premises,” Ted prompted his wife.

  “Heavens,” Mia edited. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Dupree.”

  Ted laughed. He sat back and shook his head.

  “Is that why she hesitates when she talks to me?” Tim asked.

  “Mia’s not used to being around minors, especially with their parents handy. My wife grew up with no time outs for foul language,” he explained.

  “Oh. I have.”

  “Me too,” Ted said. He pointed to the hall camera feed and spoke, “Cid, you’ve got an entity forming behind you, over.”

  There was a subtle single tap.

  “That’s Cid telling me he heard me. He doesn’t want to speak and spoil the shot,” Ted explained.

  “On television it looks like there’s no cameraman. I forget that someone has to be filming the investigation.”

  Ted smiled. “That’s quite a compliment, thank you. We spend hours scouring the footage to find the right shots, and then sometimes when Mia and Mike aren’t careful with their language, we have to edit out the audio.”

  “Is it just those two?”

  “They have the most camera time. Mia doesn’t really like to be in front of the camera, but she is needed in active haunt situations. You see, Mia can see and hear the ghosts. It’s what gives us an edge over our competition.”

  “You do have a lot of competition,” Tim said.

  “We just try to be true to the philosophy of PEEPs,” Ted said.

  “And that is?”

  “Do the best we can, and when odds are against us, run like hell!”

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  Audrey sat down at the kitchen table while Mindy handed her album after album.

  “I’m not a good photographer. I always manage to get a smudge in the pictures.”

  “Is it with all the pictures or just the ones with Tim in them?” Audrey asked, turning the pages.

  “Just Tim. My bad photography started when he was three and had left the stroller. He’s always been an active boy. Running all the time,” Mindy related. “When he was little, he had a…”

  “Imaginary friend,” Audrey supplied.

  “Yes, how did you know?”

  “Most kids have them. I did. According to my mother, my friend was named Bobby. She said this Bobby and I used to play cowboys and Indians in the backyard. I don’t remember it, but she does.”

  “Tim’s friend lasted until
Kindergarten. Once Timmy had friends, the imaginary friend wasn’t talked about anymore.”

  “Kids tease each other about such things. I imagine that Tim quickly grew out of that stage and left his invisible friend behind. But...” Audrey pointed to several photos of Tim at different ages where there was a smudge or a mist next to him. “His friend never left him.”

  Murphy moved through the ceiling and motioned the man away from the access door. They squared off, but the entity took one look at Murphy’s axe and moved to the far side of the attic.

  “Thank you kindly,” he said to the older man and tipped his hat.

  CRACK!

  “The coast is clear,” Mia said.

  Mike pulled the access stairs down and began to climb up. Before his head cleared the opening, he lifted a small camera over his head. “Ted, do you see anything that will harm us up here?”

  "The immediate area is clear. There is an entity at the far end of the attic, over.”

  Mike moved swiftly up the stairs followed by Mia. Mia stopped and took the camera from Cid, so he could move quickly up the steps. Behind Cid, a young man stood looking up at her. He looked like he wanted to join the party. “Well, are you coming?” Mia asked the entity. He shook his head and disappeared.

  Once they were all assembled, she approached the elder ghost. “Hello, my name is Mia. This is Mike, and Cid is holding the camera.”

  There wasn’t any response from the ghost.

  “I’d like to ask you some questions,” Mike said. “Who are you?”

  “It’s none of your damn business,” the entity spat.

  “Did you hear that?” Tim said. “OMG, it’s the voice that asked me for the crowbar!” he said excitedly.

  Ted repeated the information to the team. Cid tapped once to let him know they heard.

  “I understand you’re quite a handyman around here,” Mike said. “John, Mindy and Tim have felt your presence and have benefited by your assistance.”

  Mia watched as the ghost stood a little straighter.

  “The Wheatons love this house and are trying to take good care of it. They want to know if there is something that you see that needs doing?” Mike asked.