by Alexie Aaron
“It would be my pleasure.”
“Oh, while you’re here, feel free to visit your lady friend.”
“About that…”
“Yes?”
“All she’s interested in is all the cleaning gadgets her kin have in her home. All she talks about is cleaning and the good old days.”
“And what do you want to talk about?”
“Trees, the farm, and PEEPs.”
“Huh.” Mia, the social misfit, didn’t have any advice to give him.
“I’m not interested in pursuing more than a friendship at this time.”
“Whoa, that’s kind of a canned statement.”
“I heard Cid say that about Patty when Ted asked about her.”
“Gee, Mike got dumped, and you and Cid are at loose ends. Seems to me that you bachelors should have a few nights out on the town while you’re here. There are a lot of pretty girls here, alive and dead.”
“Mia the matchmaker?”
“I know it doesn’t sound like me, does it?”
“No. I like Bad Mia better.”
“What are they talking about?” Ted asked Cid.
“Actually, me at one point. I got lumped into the bachelors-at-large group with Murphy and Mike.”
“I think Mia just wants you guys to be happy,” Ted said.
“Are you happy, Ted?”
“Yes.”
“Then act like it,” Cid advised. “You’ve been shooting daggers at Murphy and Mason since we left.”
“I didn’t mean to,” Ted said, rubbing his jaw. “Thanks for pointing that out, dude.”
“You climbed a building for Mia. She’s very aware of how much you love her. You don’t have to act jealous.”
“You’re right. It’s just, when I saw two Murphys before me, I was locked into the feeling that Mia could have done better.”
“We all know that, but the girl’s daft,” Cid said. “Come on, we have to connect into the electricity before my food spoils.”
Sabine paid the cabdriver, walked down the sidewalk, and slipped into the construction site. She, like Mia, felt incredible energy below her. She stopped and stared down, her eyes boring into the dark shadows.
“Do you see something?” Murphy asked, appearing beside her.
“No, but I sense someone, no, something watching us,” she said and rubbed her arms for comfort.
“Mia asked me to escort you into the trailer. They are about ready to begin.”
“How do I look?” she asked. She stood still for Murphy’s scrutiny. Sabine had chosen a pair of figure flattering jeans, a cashmere short-sleeved sweater and low-heeled boots for her first night on the job.
“Very nice, but you may score some points if you ask for a PEEPs shirt,” he recommended. “Or a hoodie to protect that sweater from harm.”
“You’re right, I should have thought about that. I’m temporary, but still part of this team. Thank you, Stephen.”
Sabine approached the command vehicle and noticed that the back door was lowered and locked.
“They have to do that if no one is around. It doesn’t reflect on the neighborhood but the guidelines set by my insurance company,” a voice said behind her.
Sabine turned around to see a pleasant man dressed in bright colors. His hair was sculpted to wave backwards from his brow.
“You have great hair,” they both said at the same time.
“I’m Sabine Norwood. I’m going to be working with PEEPs,” Sabine said and hoped she didn’t sound simple.
“I’m Dash Renee. PEEPs is working for me, so welcome aboard!”
Sabine could feel the nerves radiating off the man.
“I’m nervous too,” she admitted. “My cousin, Mia, has been doing this in front of the cameras for years. Me, I’m more comfortable behind the scenes.”
“I have no trouble performing. Every employee in my piano bar sings publicly, including my cleaner. But I’m worried about doing something dumb.”
“Dumb? Explain dumb.”
“Run screaming when I see a ghost.”
“Many people do,” Sabine said. “But just be yourself. The group will work with what you have.”
“I’ll take your advice to heart.”
“If you’re in a pinch, remember to call for Murphy. He’s the best of the best when it comes to battling unfriendly ghosts.”
“Murphy. I’ve met him. He’s got great hair for a ghost.”
“I take it your real love is styling hair?”
“Since I was a baby. My mother claims that I took out her hairclip and pushed it into a better place while she was burping me. Is your white hair natural?” Dash asked.
“It won’t hold any dyes, so I just leave it white.”
“It suits you, but I have had a lot of luck with an after-shampoo product. I’m thinking we could pull some ice blue highlights…”
Sabine took the kind man’s hands and said, “My hair is in your hands.”
“Thank you,” Dash said, leading Sabine to the trailer.
“For what?” she asked, genuinely confused.
“For taking my mind off of all this for a moment.”
“My nanny says I’m very good at distracting people,” Sabine said.
The door opened and Mike stood there.
“Welcome to PEEPs in Chicago, how may we be of help?”
~
“I’d like to keep the bar open if I can,” Dash requested. “But you can have the place from closing to opening.”
“Would you mind if we wired the place for video and ran the cameras during working hours?” Ted asked. “That way we can intervene before one of your customers gets hurt.”
“I didn’t think that the ghosts would show up when there are a lot of people around?”
“From our experience, they are strongest after dark, but you yourself did see two of them during daylight hours,” Burt pointed out.
“I did,” Dash admitted.
“There is a lot of energy coming from the construction site,” Sabine added. “Ghosts feed off of energy. This gives them the… the…”
“Juice,” Mia filled in.
“Yes, the juice to manifest at all hours.” She smiled sweetly at Mia, sending her a thank you.
Mia, who had taken her usual place at the makeshift conference table beside Mike, was always amazed how nice her cousin could be. If Sabine interrupted her, Mia wasn’t sure she’d be as gracious.
Burt cleared his voice before continuing, “Here’s the schedule. We all need to help wire the inside of the bar. After, Cid, I’d like you to do a walk-through with the camera, with Mike interviewing Dash. Ted, work with Mason until he’s as proficient as you are. Sabine, I’d like you and Ira to walk the construction site before it gets dark. I’ll be filming you. Murphy, I would like you to be on hand in case we need you. Mia, I’d like you to find a spot in the bar to sit and warn us if anyone manifests during opening hours.”
“I have just the spot,” Dash said.
“I’m not sure I have anything appropriate to wear. The place is pretty fancy?” Mia said, thinking about the clothes she jammed into her duffle.
“Ralph dropped something off,” Dash said. “I have it hanging in my office.”
Mike saw Mia nod but felt her uncomfortable vibe. He had assumed, incorrectly, that Mia liked to be dressed by Ralph. He put himself in her shoes and realized that he’d hate it if someone assumed that he didn’t know what to wear. He saw her twist her hands under the desk. Mia was working hard to control her emotions. He had worked with pregnant Mia before and learned to be sensitive to her emotional swings.
“Okay, let’s get going. We have a long night ahead of us, so pace yourselves,” Burt said.
Mia was slow to rise. She hung back, waiting for the others to leave, so she could talk to Burt.
“How are you feeling?” Burt asked.
“Sidelined,” she said honestly.
“You’ll have more to do once I’m convinced that Mason can handle th
e com. Right now, I need your sight inside the building.”
“You have cameras.”
“You and I know that they don’t pick up half the stuff they’re supposed to,” he argued.
“And you’re being kind. I’m dead weight on this investigation. It’s not the pregnancy; it’s my lack of mobility.”
“Mia, we’re a team. I trust your instincts. You’re an experienced sensitive, and I trust you to keep Dash and his patrons out of harm’s way.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“Make sure your cell is charged. I hear that place can be quite noisy. You’ll have to text information to the guys.”
Mia nodded. “Well, I guess I’ll go and see what horrors await me inside.”
“I doubt there will be horrors. The encounter Dash spoke of seemed run of the mill.”
“I was talking about the clothes Ralph left.”
Chapter Eighteen
Ted and Mason had started to develop a rhythm while they were working. Mason’s aping abilities were impressive. If he had a better way of doing a task, he waited until he tried it Ted’s way a few times before asking, “What if we did this, what would the result be?” Ted would either have an answer or would try it Mason’s way and then weigh the two procedures. Never did Ted say, “It’s just the way we do things,” which impressed the youth.
“You’re not what I expected,” Mason said.
“You’re a surprise to me too,” Ted confessed. “I expected someone more like Dave, and you’re far easier to work with.”
“Hult can be an ass. He’s pretty messed up inside.”
“Being sensitive wears on the soul,” Ted said.
Mason turned and looked at Ted. “Are you talking about your wife?”
“She’s had a hard road and probably a harder road to come,” Ted said, still typing code into the computer. “But she’s still my favorite superhero.”
Mason smiled. He liked Mia and couldn’t understand why such a beautiful creature would choose to spend her life with a goofball like Ted. His words, “She’s still my favorite superhero,” echoed in Mason’s mind. That was probably the highest praise in nerdom. To be someone’s superhero was more than a compliment, it was the ultimate compliment.
“And right now, you’re thinking that I don’t deserve her.”
“No, actually, your relationship makes sense to me now. You’re each other’s superhero. As Mia is fond of saying, ‘Cool beans!’”
“What’s going on in your life, Mason?” Ted asked.
“Trying to find a job. I’m qualified in computers, coding, and fixing. I want to make enough money so Patrick can have his life back.”
“How is he?”
“He’s not fencing goods anymore, but he’s still acquiring vehicles and machinery that have been left behind in fields, deserted farms and junkyards. He fixes them up and sells them. He has me run the VIN numbers of the autos he finds. A lot of them have been stolen and dumped. Sometimes, we get a reward. Other times, the insurance companies send us the pink slip, so he can sell them and sometimes there is no record. Like that old truck I left at your place. I sure hope it wasn’t used in a crime or something.”
“Me too, since it’s on my property,” Ted worried.
“He’s going to drive up and exchange it for a Mustang he was working on. The Mustang he paid for and rebuilt for me. I would really like to do something for him. Heads up, camera three has a vision walking.”
Ted brought up the camera feed on the big screen. Mia was being guided through the throng of the bar by Dash. She was wearing an emerald green, pleated chiffon dress with small straps and a low rounded neckline. The irregular hem floated around her, and to Ted’s relief, Mia had on low-heeled nude pumps, instead of the killer high heels Ralph sometimes insisted on. The dress was cut higher in the front and back and showed off his petite wife’s legs. Ted saw that someone had fashioned a green garter to hide the wound. Mia’s hair was pulled into a French knot, and he suspected Dash’s hand with her makeup.
“She’s a stunner,” Mason said. “Patrick was hoping your marriage had fizzled, but I’m going to report that the Martins are forever.”
“I appreciate that,” Ted said. He was having a hard time not leaving his post. He wanted to be with Mia. Instead, he waited until she sat down to check her earcom. “Minnie Mouse, you look wonderful.”
“Thank you, Teddy Bear. I feel like a fraud though.”
“Just think that you’re an undercover agent.”
Mia giggled. “How’s the kids?”
“Mason is rocking the keyboard, so no problem here. Inky is getting ready to tour the construction site with Sabine. I’ll keep you posted.”
“It’s starting to get loud in here. I’ll text you if I see anything,” she said.
The Eighty-eight was filling up fast. Mia watched each person who entered. She noted that her preconceived notion about the clientele was incorrect. The majority of customers were part of the LGBT community, but heterosexual men and women dined there too. They came in groups, but a few lone wolves were sprinkled in here and there. A few approached Mia. She politely declined. When they didn’t take the hint, Dash’s bouncer Tony led the offender out the door.
From time to time, Mia felt cold eyes upon her. The crowd was too dense to tell who was giving Mia the heebie-jeebies. It could have been someone wondering how she rated a whole corner booth to herself, so she dismissed it.
Inky helped Sabine over a mound of concrete. “They said that the supports were pulled before the stuff was dry,” he told her. “They will have to break all of this up before reforming the walls and pouring the foundation.”
“If we could figure out the mindset of the spirits, it would go a long way in getting them to speak to us,” Sabine said. “Why do you think they have dug so deep?”
“The contractor’s report mentioned that there was a suspicion of sinkholes,” Burt said from behind the camera.
“Did they have a geologist survey to use?” Inky asked.
“One would hope so. I would like to use a ground penetrating radar, but these masses of concrete will have to be removed first.”
“What if you just concentrate on the middle. Like I do when I’m vacuuming in the girl’s playroom. I start in the middle and push the toys away to the edges. Then I… I’m sorry, you’re not interested in my housework.”
“On the contrary,” Inky said. “You’ve given me an idea. I’m going to take a core sample from the middle of the excavation. All I need is…” Inky listed his materials.
Burt touched his earcom. “Did you get the list, Ted?”
“Yes we did, and Cid’s on his way out to procure the materials,” Ted replied.
Inky looked pleased. “In the meanwhile, let’s poke into the dark corners. This is where I’m getting the creeps.”
Sabine laughed. “One minute you’re an engineer, the next you’re a kid. I’m glad I’m paired up with you.”
Inky smiled.
Mike walked into the bar and was swept away by the energy. The piano player was pounding out his rendition of Adele’s Rolling in the Deep. The wait staff took turns singing the song. Each person had a unique voice. The bar staff worked quickly to get the orders out. The faster they worked, the more booze that was drunk, which meant the tips were higher and the night a success. Mike spotted Mia sitting in a corner booth at the front of the place, which enabled her to see down the length of the restaurant. She was nursing a virgin fruit-adorned drink. He slid in beside her.
Mia turned sharply and was about to say something when she recognized her fellow investigator.
“So how many suitors have you had to turn away?” Mike asked, motioning for the waiter.
“Not too many. This place is more of a gay bar, but there are a few heterosexual wolves on the prowl.”
Mike gave his drink order and added several appetizers that he knew Mia would enjoy. “That’s because we heterosexuals know that women like to come to gay bars so they won�
�t get hit on.”
“But you hit on them anyway?”
“Not until they’ve had a few drinks. I find I get handsomer the more vodka is consumed.”
Mia shook her head. “I’m sure you don’t have any problem with the ladies. You don’t hit on pregnant ladies, do you?”
“I haven’t, but Mia, in that dress, you don’t look pregnant.” Mike’s drink arrived, and he held it up. “Here’s to gay bars full of available women.”
Mia clinked her glass with his. “You need help, Dupree.”
“Oh yes, that’s a known fact. I take it no ghosties have made an appearance?”
“Not that I’ve seen. The piano player is good. How did the pre-investigation interview go?”
“Dash is full of personality. He gave us the tour and introduced Cid and I to his chef and a few of the wait staff. Did you know that everyone who works here has to audition with a song before Dash will even look at their resume?”
“I’d never get hired,” Mia said glumly.
“You have many other talents. You don’t need a singing voice,” Mike scolded.
“Can you sing?”
“But of course. It goes with my basic gigolo training. Ma made sure I could impress a lady.”
Mia, having stopped herself from a spit-take, argued, “Your mother did not train you to be a gigolo.”
“Come on, the dance and voice lessons…”
“You have a point. So you think your mother, who is still supporting you… Oh, I see your point. She’s just waiting to hand you off to a rich old woman.”
“But it isn’t going to happen, unless you’re the old woman.”
Mia laughed. “You liar, but thank you from the deepest reaches of my cold cold heart.”
The appetizers arrived. Mike concentrated on the food while Mia took little bites, still watching the restaurant for uninvited entities. She didn’t like the layout of the place: too narrow, too many people, and not enough visible exits.
Ted looked over at the restaurant feed and said, “He can’t leave her alone.”
Mason looked at Ted. “You’re pretty damn insecure.”
