Given Enough Rope (Haunted Series Book 20)

by Alexie Aaron

  ~

  Patrick’s phone buzzed. He picked it up and saw that it was Pavel Matveev. He walked out of the aerie and answered the phone.

  “Patrick, tell your brother we have a deal. The price my client is offering is three million seven-hundred-fifty thousand dollars.”

  “That sounds more than fair,” Patrick said. What he thought was, “That’s pretty high for the jewels and the books. Especially, since they were stolen.”

  “The exchange must happen as soon as possible,” Pavel emphasized.

  “I’ll have to speak with my brother, but I think we can have all the items by this evening.”

  “Bring them to me.” Pavel said. “I’ll have half the money here, and I’ll receive the other half when I deliver the goods.”

  “Fine.” Patrick knew that he wasn’t going to see the rest of the money, that the amount he was going to receive came from Pavel’s bank and not Edward Jones.

  Patrick walked back in. “It’s time.”

  The items were placed back in the velvet bags and the books wrapped, keeping to the exact folds of the previous wrapping. Fergus had finished his adjustments. Jake ran the new coordinates. The information given would take Edward Jones so far off course that, if Bea did indeed want to spend the rest of her retirement years looking for the pirates’ booty, she could do so without interference from Jones.

  Chapter Thirty-nine

  Mia moved carefully over the sunken gravestones. She had alerted Andy Carmichael that there may be something happening tonight at the graveyard. He met her at the gate and drove her as far as the crossroads. He left her and went back to wait at the gate to let Tom and the other deputies in when they arrived.

  Murphy, his father, and Fergus moved ahead of Mia, ducking in and out of the mausoleums and around the large cemetery monuments.

  The four of them stopped and watched as the Countess approached the Heinz mausoleum. She was backed by creatures that crawled in and out of the ground.

  “Hello, you there!” she called to one of the large ghosts at the door of the edge of the Heinz plot.

  “Go away. You’re not wanted here.”

  “I beg your pardon. Do you know who I am, young man?”

  “No. Go away.”

  “Minions, tell the moron who I am.”

  The air was filled with the screech of vocal chords that hadn’t been used since their last dying gasp. “The Countess!” they yelled.

  A second Heinz brother walked out of the mausoleum to see what the noise was about. He saw a graveyard full of decomposing and deranged souls at the feet of a statuesque old woman. He put a hand on his brother’s arm. “What’s going on?”

  “What a coincidence,” the Countess called out. “I wanted to ask you what was going on? I heard rumors that you are harboring living things,” the Countess said, her words dripping with disgust.

  “That’s no business of yours.”

  “Au contraire,” she said. “Everything is my business. Where is your father?”

  One brother paled. The other fidgeted.

  “Well?”

  “Taken and held hostage,” one of them blurted out.

  “Your brothers? I believe you have four more of them,” the Countess said.

  “Guarding the chapel.”

  “Why?”

  The brothers whispered to each other. One looked up. “We were ordered to. They make us do horrible things, or they will grind papa’s bones and feed him to the pigs.”

  “That’s deplorable. Bring one of those creatures out.”

  “There is only one here. It’s a witch.”

  “Bring her out. Unless you’re going to invite me in?”

  Gloria felt a change in the astral wind. She looked up from her Tarot cards and looked around her. Everything seemed well. The four goons were watching the doors and the stained-glass windows of the old chapel. The other two were outside. One of those brothers walked in.

  “Yes?”

  “You’re requested outside, ma’am.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding.”

  “She says she is the Countess and demands to see you.”

  “Tell her to fuck off,” Gloria said.

  The other brothers gasped.

  “What? You’ve never heard a lady cuss before?”

  “Ladies don’t use swear words,” the largest said.

  Gloria closed her eyes and called for her snitches. No one came. She opened her eyes and thought perhaps it was because of being in a chapel. So she walked into the mausoleum and tried again. Aside from the sound of ripping cloth, there was no sign of her snitches. “What the hell?” she asked as she walked past the sarcophagus and out to the front of the tomb.

  There, standing patient as could be, was an elegant old woman with about three hundred dead backing her up. Gloria saw two of her snitches tied up and being used to wipe dirt off the monuments like dust rags.

  “Release them or I’ll burn all your bones, send all of you to hell,” Gloria demanded.

  “I’ve been there. It’s not so bad,” a petite pregnant woman said, walking past Gloria. “Hello, you must be one of the Heinz brothers. I understand someone has messed with your father’s remains.”

  “Kill her!” Gloria demanded. One of the boys put a restraining hand on Gloria. This was a pregnant lady, and they were raised as gentlemen.

  “They have taken his bones out and hidden them,” Arthur Heinz explained. “They took us from our rest and have made us their servants. They have imprisoned a ghost and a woman.”

  “Oh, dear, this won’t do. Mind showing me where?” Mia asked sweetly.

  “If you don’t kill her, I’ll…”

  “You’ll what?” Mia asked, turning around and facing Gloria. “Stand there and behave, or take your chances out there.” Mia pointed to the where the Countess was holding court.

  Gloria knew when she was defeated. She stepped back.

  Murphy, Kevin, and Fergus moved into the mausoleum. One of the Heinz boys lifted the lid off the sarcophagus. Mia reached in and helped the young woman out. She was shaking and filthy. Her captors hadn’t provided her any way of relieving herself. The girl clung to Mia. “How long have you been in there?” Mia asked.

  “I don’t know. They gave me oxygen and water, but I never had any light.”

  Mia tapped her earcom. “Ted, send in the EMTs and police.” She pulled off her coat and draped it around Shelia’s shoulders before she reached into the stone coffin and picked up the sealed cube of wood. She set it on the ground and pulled the wax seal away from the lid. Mia took Varden’s knife and pried the lid off the box. Inside, was a pale gray mist and a chunk of salt.

  “Edwin, can you come out of there or shall I lift you out?”

  The mist moved quickly. Mia slammed the lid down and watched as the mist thickened and twirled in and around itself. Soon the gentle old man she remembered so well, stood in front of her.

  “Mia Cooper?” he asked the plump woman.

  “Edwin!” Mia exclaimed. “While you’ve been gallivanting around, Bea has been worried sick. Time to get yourself home,” Mia said.

  Edwin pointed at the young woman cowering in the corner. “She was very brave. I couldn’t get out to help her.”

  “Her name is Shelia. Shelia, this is Edwin Gifford. He was trapped in that tomb with you.”

  “Hello, sir,” the girl said before fainting.

  “Now look what you’ve done. It’s all that animal magnetism of yours.”

  Edwin’s lips twisted in sort of a smile before he disappeared.

  “Ted, warn Bea, Edwin’s on his way home.” Mia moved to Shelia and gently sat her up. Shelia’s eyes opened in alarm and then softened when she saw Mia. “You didn’t perchance see where they put the bones that were in your prison?” Mia asked.

  “Yes, I did. It was a box with linen on top.”

  The EMTs rushed in followed by Tom. Tom started to interview Shelia which gave Mia a chance to look around. “A box with linen on top,�
�� she said aloud.

  Murph appeared next to her. “I can’t get any further then the steps to the altar.”

  “Altar cloth!” Mia said and stumbled up the stairs. She righted herself and pulled the cloth off of the altar and then used her knife to break the seal of the chest under the table. Inside, she found a skeleton with two heads. “Two heads?” Mia puzzled and then laughed at herself. “Which one of you is Damian?” she asked the skulls. She took a look at the Heinz boys and noticed that each had a rather prominent chin with a slight under bite. She left the skull with a similar trait and gently set the other down, wrapped her headscarf around it, and slipped it into her backpack.

  Mia examined the steps. “Crushed pink salt!” she exclaimed. Mia took her foot and pushed the salt off the steps and broke the line. She called out, “Your dad’s in the chest under the altar, boys. As soon as the humans clear out, I’ll help you put him back.”

  The Heinz ghosts walked up and made a wall of ghosts to protect their father from further intrusion.

  “Or you can do it,” Mia said, raising her hands.

  Mia felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see Stephen Murphy smiling down at her. “Shall we leave now?” he asked.

  “Yes, thank you.” Mia accepted Murph’s arm, and together the two walked out of the chapel.

  “Looks like the two of you just got married,” Fergus teased as he waited for them outside.

  “My son would never knock up his intended,” Kevin said, taking a swig out of his flask. “His mother would have killed him.”

  Murph moved Mia quickly past his father and then past the deputies. He brought her to a large flat monument. Mia knocked on it. “Do you mind if I sit down? It’s been a hell of a day.” Mia took the silence as permission, and she sat down.

  The Countess sat down next to Mia. “Hell of a lot of noise for this time of night,” she commented.

  “I think we living need to talk loud in scary places.”

  “Why?”

  “I’m not sure. I think it’s counterproductive because the louder we are, the more our voices echo, and that just makes it scarier,” Mia mused. She turned and looked at the Countess. “You know, for a serial murderer, you’ve never looked better.”

  “It’s because someone is remembering me this way. I suspect it’s you, Daphne.”

  “I wonder how I’ll be remembered? Will it be the Bodacious Beach Bod? The sullen misfit? Or the woman who fought beside the greatest of the birdmen?”

  “Be glad you have a choice. Most people didn’t like me at all.”

  “It’s hard to form an attachment to a poisoner. Makes having tea a bit threatening.”

  The Countess twittered and then laughed. She looked over at the farmer. “I suspect it’s going to be how he sees you.”

  Mia looked over at Murphy and smiled. “Then it’s the sullen misfit.”

  This caused more laughter from the Countess. “Come on, Daphne, walk with me. You can bring your fella. I promise not to entomb you tonight.”

  “That is very kind of you. Come on, Murph, let’s walk the lady home.”

  Chapter Forty

  Patrick walked into Pavel’s office with Ed at his side. No one questioned his need for a bodyguard; everyone was well aware of the importance of the large boxes he was carrying. He had been informed by Burt that Shelia had been rescued. He didn’t know if Pavel knew this yet or not.

  “Patrick!” Pavel greeted him with quick steps and a handshake. He leaned in and whispered. “The monster is behind the Georgian screen.”

  “I hope this won’t take long. I have a plane to catch,” Patrick said in a bored business manner.

  “Put the boxes down, and let me inventory the contents,” Pavel said.

  Ed set the tied boxes down on Pavel’s desk and stepped back.

  “Your friend may leave now,” Pavel instructed.

  Ed moved towards the door, opened it and let it fall shut, moving silently into the shadows of the room.

  Pavel witnessed this but made no comment. He took out a list. He took his time examining everything to make sure no counterfeit items had been put in to substitute the real thing. “Is this all?”

  “No, you have one of the gold guinea coins,” Patrick said.

  “Oh, yes, I’ve got it in the safe. If you will excuse me.”

  “While you’re at it, I’d like my payment. I believe you said it would be one million eight-hundred seventy-five thousand dollars.”

  “Yes, I assumed you wanted cash,” Pavel said, opening the panel and opening his eye to let the retina scanner read him.

  “You know me so well,” Patrick said.

  Ed sensed movement behind the screen. He slid behind the screen as Edward Jones walked out carrying a revolver.

  “I’ll take that money and the boxes.”

  “Not without releasing my daughter,” Pavel said, brandishing his own pistol from the safe.

  Patrick stepped out of harm’s way with his hands up. “I’ll leave this to you two gentlemen to sort out.”

  “Drop your weapon or your daughter dies,” Edward demanded.

  Pavel put his gun down and asked, “How do you expect to leave here? My security won’t let you leave.”

  “I have Damian,” Edward said.

  The large ghost manifested and lifted Pavel away from the vault. A rolling sound distracted the four. A cloth-covered bundle rolled out from behind the screen. As it rolled, the scarf slipped away, and Damian’s skull landed at his own feet.

  Edward looked horrified. He grabbed the stack of books and started running for the door. Damian caught him and hung him upside-down.

  Ed stepped out from behind the screen and took hold of the sensitive from the ghost. Mia walked out from behind the screen where she had waited behind Ed since he let her slip in the door. “Edward Jones, or is it Norman Grant or Henrik Miller? There are so many names to choose from.”

  “You bitch! Why can’t you stay out of my business?”

  “I’m sorry, but when your business involves ghost-napping, kidnapping, and disturbing the rest of the dead, then it’s my business too.”

  “Go ahead and arrest me. I’ll just get out again. I’ve got so many ghosts on retainer that you’ll never be able to keep me anywhere,” he bragged.

  “Oh dear,” Mia said, looking perplexed.

  There was a scratching sound of long nails on brick.

  “What could that be?” Mia asked Ed.

  “It sounds like di inferi,” he said. “But why would Dis Pater, the Roman God of the Underworld, be sending his creatures up the elevator shaft of this building?” Ed asked, knowing full well the answer.

  “Gee, the last time I dealt with these creatures, it was in error. You see, Edward, they don’t like people that dig up the dead, much less use them to commit crimes, like murder, kidnapping and thievery.”

  Edward’s eyes bugged out. “Please, I’ll confess everything!” he lied.

  “Gee, what do you think, Mr. Matveev? Can we trust this man?”

  “He lied to me, took my daughter, and would have killed me and Patrick here if you hadn’t showed up.”

  “Damian?” Mia asked. “You’ve worked with Edward… excuse me…. you would know him as Norman. Do you think Norm is telling the truth?”

  “No, ma’am, I don’t think so.”

  “Sorry, Edward, time to face Dis Pater,” Mia said. The lights went out. “I suggest everyone stand perfectly still. I wouldn’t want the di inferi to get confused.”

  The door burst inward and there was a rush of wind bringing the smell of freshly turned earth with it. The scratching of long nails on the expensive carpet preceded the screams of Edward Jones. He screamed as they carried him out of the office. He screamed as they dragged him down the hall. He screamed as they tossed him down the elevator shaft. Finally, his screams ended. Mia turned the lights on and fanned herself. “Phew, it’s warm in here. Mind if I sit down?”

  “How did you get here so fast?” Patrick as
ked.

  “Ted drove. I suspect the man folds time. Just don’t get him distracted though. Once he gets talking…”

  “So what do we do now?” Patrick asked.

  “I’m going to go and pick up my daughter from the hospital. Take the money. It’s a reward for saving my daughter.”

  “No, sir,” Patrick said. “PEEPs don’t ask for rewards. The justice brought to the undead is justice enough.”

  Mia was surprised.

  “But, if you would like to use this as seed money for the search for the Wall booty…”

  Pavel smiled. “Yes, Patrick, I would love to go on pirate quest with you.”

  “We have another partner. The nice lady who loaned us this stuff,” Patrick said, repacking the items. “Her name is Bea, and you’re going to love her.”

  Mia got up and left Patrick and Pavel to their plans. Ed escorted her and Damian out of the building. They stood on the sidewalk and looked around.

  “I think Ted’s circling the block. He’ll be along soon,” Mia said. “Damian, can we drop you off somewhere?”

  The ghost who had rewrapped his skull in Mia’s scarf asked, “Would Cedar Park be out of your way?” he asked.

  “Not the way Ted drives,” Mia said. She turned to Ed. “Please don’t emulate my husband. Cid is a better example as a good driver.”

  Ted turned the corner, barely keeping all the wheels on the road.

  “See,” Mia said.

  ~

  Bea put down the phone and walked over to the hearth where Edwin had pulled up the wing chairs.

  “That was Patrick. He’ll be bringing back your mother’s things tomorrow if that is alright with you?”

  “That would be fine.”

  “He also said that he had an investor in our salvage operation.”

  Edwin smiled. “Ah, my grandfather’s loot.”

  “How do you feel about taking a look see? We may get lucky or we may just have a good time looking.”