The Death & Loralei Collection

by Judith Post

  Loralei crossed her arms. The boy had no more manners than Tammy. Just got straight to the point, what he wanted to talk about. "I take it you two didn't come here to go to the Light."

  "You deaf, lady? Didn't you hear me? Miz Rosalie's in trouble."

  Loralei pursed her lips, studying him. Rosalie was the name of the rich widow Gordon had married. She didn't like the idea of kids getting involved in murder plots, but she couldn't do much to control two, young ghosts. "What makes you think he means to hurt her?" she asked Chris.

  The boy spread his hands. "Heard him talking 'bout it, didn't I? To that woman he spends so much time with."

  Death came and squatted in front of Chris. "Most ghosts don't interfere with people they don't know. Why are you around Gordon?"

  Chris gave a derisive snort. "Don't have nothin' to do with Gordon. It's 'cause o' the barn. I like to stay there, around the horses. Used to be my Pa's place. Now it belongs to Rosalie."

  "And you like her?"

  Chris nodded. "She's real nice for a rich woman. Don't deserve the likes o' Gordon."

  Loraleigh took a deep breath. She didn't want to encourage him to get involved in human affairs. She wanted him to go to the Light. But it's not like she'd had any luck discouraging either ghost, was it? "Okay, what did you hear?"

  "He told his lady friend that him and Miz Rosalie been arguing so much, he talked her into a vacation. Gonna spend a week on a houseboat somewhere. They's supposed to be trying to patch things up tween 'em. But that ain't his real purpose. He gonna smack her on the back of the head and push her in, let her drown. Tell the cops she bumped her head when she fell."

  Death shook his head. "Does he really think he can get away with pushing someone overboard twice?"

  "He don't think," Chris said. "He plenty smart enough, but not much of a thinker."

  Loralei slanted a look at Tammy. She'd never leave here with this much excitement going on. The girl locked gazes with her and said, "Well? Help Rosalie. All you do is paint and fiddle in your garden. Tell Death to fix things."

  Loralei raised an eyebrow in warning. "You're awfully pushy for a kid."

  "Gotta be. Grown-ups make lots of promises, but don't keep too many of them."

  Tammy had a chip on her shoulder. Loralei got that. Her mom was nothing to brag about. But enough was enough. "Really? I could say the same about kids."

  "Then we're even, ain't we?" Tammy's gaze bore into hers. "Are you going to do something about this Gordon or let him drown Miz Rosalie?"

  Maybe Loralei could use this situation to her advantage. "If we help her, you and Chris won't have anything to worry about here. Will you go to the Light?"

  Chris' chin jutted out again. The boy seemed every bit as stubborn as Tammy. "We been talkin' 'bout that. Neither of us want to. We like it here." He gave Tammy an encouraging nod.

  "When he says here, he means here." Tammy motioned with her arms to include the yard and property.

  Loralei frowned at Chris. "You've been here before too?"

  He glanced down at his bare feet. "We've taken a hankerin' to your garden shed. I slip in there when you come outside."

  She stared. She could see ghosts, but didn't have any supernatural power to sense them. "I'm guessing this whole speech is leading up to something, right?"

  Chris broke into words. "I'm thinkin' you and Mr. Black can't have kids. Most couples want 'em. Tammy and me'll be yours, if you save Miz Rosalie and let me keep my horse."

  "Your horse?" Loralei pulled at a strand of her dark hair, twisting it around her finger. "I feel foolish asking, but is the horse real or a ghost?"

  Chris snorted. "Have you ever seen a ghost horse?"

  Death threw back his head and laughed.

  Loralei glared at him. "Have you ever heard two kids with so much nerve?"

  "No, but I like it." Death narrowed his eyes, studying them.

  Chris hurried on. "Tammy's mom wasn't worth botherin' 'bout, so she don't know what family's like. But I do, and I'll learn her. We'll be good, you'll see. You'll be right proud to call us yours."

  His tone came close to pleading. He didn't seem the type to ask for favors. It made Loralei wonder. "What about your pa? Don't you want to go to the Light and see him?"

  Chris shrugged. "He don't miss me much. I wasn't really his. He got me when he hitched up with my ma. They made babies o' their own, and nobody paid me much mind. They was good to me and all, fed me, kept clothes on my back…." His voice trailed off.

  Loralei's heart did a tight twist. "Nobody came for you either."

  Chris' shoulders squared. "Don't rightly matter. Me and Tammy like it plenty where we are."

  Death asked, "What's this horse you want us to buy?"

  Loralei blinked, surprised. Of all the things Death could say, that wasn't what she'd expected. A horse? What was he thinking? And then she realized Death wanted to adopt two children. Did she? They'd never talked about it, never considered it possible. But the more she thought about it, the more she liked the idea. Death's gaze never left her face. She gave a small nod. "The house isn't very big…."

  A smile started at his lips and lit his eyes.

  Tammy shook her head. "We don't want to live with you. But we'd like to stay in your garden shed and call your property home."

  "Why now?" Loralei asked, suddenly suspicious. "You never wanted to before."

  Chris' voice tremored. "Gordon talked Miz Rosalie into sellin' everythin'. Said they'd buy someplace smaller and travel. She was all happy 'bout it. Guess she was thinkin' if they traveled, Gordon wouldn't be 'round his lady so much. She put everythin' on the market, and some'un bought it a while ago. Goin' to move in soon. Don't want horses."

  Tammy slid an arm around his shoulders. "Chris has always been around horses. Never been without one."

  He turned his back to them and scrubbed at his eyes.

  Death sounded too cheerful. "No worries. Loralei will call and try to buy your horse. Is there only one?"

  Chris took a minute to turn back to face them. "She sold the others—all racers, went to the highest bidders. But Chestnut's older. Nobody wanted 'im, and if someone don't take 'im…."

  "I'll call," Loralei said. "When we go in the house, I'll see what I can do."

  Death frowned, obviously unsure about something. "I don't understand. If Gordon got his way, and everything's sold, he should be happy. There should be lots of money for him to work with."

  Chris glanced at Tammy and spread his hands. "I ain't know much 'bout legal stuff, but Miz Rosalie fumin' and said somethin' 'bout nuptials."

  "Prenuptials?" Loralei asked.

  "Yeah, that's it! That's what she called 'em."

  Loralei looked at Death. "She's more practical than I thought. She had Gordon sign a prenuptial agreement."

  "Which means, if he divorces her, he gets nothing. But if she dies…."

  Chris ran a hand through his hair. "You gotta help her, and you gotta save old Chestnut."

  Death and Loralei nodded in unison.

  "When's the trip?" Death asked. "Do you know?"

  "Soon's the new owners show up," Chris said. "This comin' Monday."

  * * *

  Loralei stayed true to her word and called Rosalie Carr as soon as she walked in the cottage. "I'd like to buy a horse, and I heard that you have one for sale."

  A soft, feminine voice answered her. "I do, but Chestnut hasn't raced for a few years now. I just want you to know that he's past his prime."

  "He sounds perfect. I want a horse for afternoon rides, a gentle, dependable animal. I'm an amateur."

  Rosalie sighed with relief. "Chestnut would be a good fit for you then. He has a lovely disposition. I'll even give you a good deal on him. The stalls are all empty except his. He's been so lonely lately—as though he's lost his best friend..."

  Well, he had, hadn't he? The young ghost who hung around him was spending more time here. Loralei couldn't say that. Instead she asked, "When can I come for him? The sooner,
the better."

  "Tomorrow?" Rosalie asked. "Do you own a trailer?"

  Loralei hadn't thought about transport. "Can I rent one?"

  "You can use ours if you bring it back. We've sold everything, and I won't be needing it anymore, but I promised it to a friend."

  "I'll see you tomorrow then." When Loralei closed her cell phone, she pressed her lips together tightly. After talking to Rosalie, she'd found herself liking the woman. Chris was right. She seemed "real nice" for a rich woman. She and Death were going to have to find a way to protect her.

  * * *

  Death couldn't go with her to get the horse. Once he left their property, he became the Grim Reaper again. Loralei suspected that Rosalie wouldn't be overjoyed to see him coming to her stables. So she drove to the Circle Carr Ranch by herself. She pulled into a gravel drive that led to a small paddock where they'd agreed to meet. When she parked, Rosalie came to greet her. The soft voice on the phone didn't fit the solid woman with graying hair who pumped her hand. Her round face was tanned and lined. She wore no make-up. Her fingernails were cut short. Dirt spattered her boots.

  "Sorry to send you way out here, but there are moving vans in our driveway. Everything's a mess. We're downsizing, so I sold most of our furniture and possessions. It's being carted away today."

  Loralei pressed a hand to her heart. This woman was trying so hard to make a fresh start with Gordon, and for what? He meant to kill her. But she couldn't say that. How would she explain? A ghost told me? Who'd believe her?

  Rosalie went on. "Let me introduce you to Chestnut. I hope you love him as much as I do."

  The horse was sleek and reddish-brown with a white star on its forehead. Loralei, who knew nothing about horses, loved him on sight. She loved Rosalie on sight too.

  "Looks like you two will be a good fit." Rosalie pressed her lips firmly together. She gave Chestnut a hug good-bye before she loaded him into the trailer and stood in the drive to watch Loralei drive away.

  Loralei glanced in her car's side mirror. The woman made a sad sight.

  It was a forty-five minute trip back to her cottage, where Chris helped her unload the horse—who snorted with happiness to see his "boy" again. It was another forty-five minutes to return the trailer, then another drive home in her sleek, black Chrysler. By the time she was finished, she was ready to stay put. But that would have been too easy.

  "The horse needs some place to stay," Death said. "And food and straw. None of us can go get them…." He handed her a list.

  It was nobody's fault. Loralei had called Rosalie last night, driven to get the horse today. Things had moved too fast. They weren't ready. But still….there was a lot of grumbling before Loralei was finally finished for the day. Her beautiful, rolling lawn now housed a paddock before the woods started, and Death, with Chris' supervision, was assembling a small stable while she sat on the patio and sipped wine. There'd be no cooking. She'd grabbed pizza on her way home. She nibbled at a slice while they worked.

  They'd built a roof on four poles before the sun set, and Death looked inordinately proud of himself. As he strode toward her, he called, "Chris is going to stay with Chestnut at night until we get the stable and fences finished."

  Loralei grinned. It had been a long time since she'd seen Death this happy with the world. Tammy and Chris had dragged two lawn chairs to the back of the property and were happily watching over the horse. She shrugged. It made a cozy picture. As much as she hated to admit it, she did get lonely sometimes when Death was off doing his duty. It might be nice to have two ghosts pop in now and then.

  Death offered her a hand to help her up. She gladly accepted and followed him into the house. It had been a long day. She was tired. The bed beckoned. As she turned on her side to go to sleep, Death's long, muscled body spooned against hers. She sighed, content.

  * * *

  When Loralei got up the next morning, Death was already gone. She felt disappointment wash through her and started to the kitchen. That's when she saw him and Chris outside, working together to finish the stable. She blinked and reached for a cup of coffee. Her eyes must be playing tricks on her. The boy held a hammer. He pounded nails. She took a long sip and looked again. That's when she noticed Tammy walking toward the house, and her footsteps brushed aside fallen leaves.

  Ghosts aren't physical, she reminded herself. But Tammy reached the door and bumped against it. Her hands flew her to forehead and rubbed it. Then Tammy pushed on the door handle and entered the cottage. Loralei stared.

  "I forgot I can't walk through walls," Tammy said.

  "Why not?"

  Tammy thought a minute. "Death says it's because this property is magical. It makes things different. I'm hungry." She spotted the box with the leftover pizza. "Can I have some?"

  "Sure." Loralei watched as Tammy bit into a slice and moaned with pleasure. Death became flesh here. She hadn't thought about Tammy and Chris reacting that way too. Damn. That meant she'd have to feed them.

  Tammy finished eating and sighed. "I forgot how good food can taste."

  "Do you have to eat?" Death ate because he enjoyed it, but it wasn't necessary.

  Tammy shrugged. "I don't have to, but boy, is it great."

  That pretty much answered Loralei's question. She glanced out the French doors at the men again. Two sides of the shed were up, but the fence only consisted of four posts, one at each corner, with rope stretched between them. Loralei heard a truck rumble down the driveway. Men drove across the back yard to unload plastic fencing for the paddock. Death paid them, and they left. He and Chris were talking, deciding how to assemble the pieces, when Death's expression crumpled. He looked toward the house, saw her, and finished a quick conversation with Chris.

  "What's wrong?" Tammy asked, watching him.

  "People have died somewhere. He has to go to them."

  Her eyes went round. "But what about the fence? What about Monday? Will he be able to help Miz Rosalie?"

  He heard her worries as he stepped inside. "Chris can finish the fence. He'll need your help. And I'll be there for Miz Rosalie. She's my top priority."

  "But what if more people die? What if you're busy again?" Tammy's voice rose with panic.

  "Loralei can't deal with Gordon alone. I'll be there." He gave Loralei a quick hug and started for the front door. "I have to go."

  Tammy's breath caught when he crossed the threshold and shifted into the Grim Reaper as he stalked down the gravel drive, then transported away from them. "Is that what we'll do?" she asked. "When we leave the property, we'll shift back to ghosts, won't we?"

  Loralei nodded.

  "Then I'm staying here." Tammy smiled. "I've always wanted to ride a horse. Never got to. You have plenty of room for riding."

  A ten-year-old girl's bucket list. Not very long, but Loralei had suspicions the more comfortable Chris and Tammy got, the longer their list would grow.

  * * *

  By the time Death returned, late Sunday night, the shed and fences were finished, Tammy and Chris came into the cottage every day to join her for meals, and then disappeared into the shed after supper. They had the beginnings of a rhythm. Loralei liked it.

  Death went to his favorite, easy chair and plopped down. "When do we leave tomorrow? How far do we have to drive?"

  "Chris went back to Rosalie's this afternoon. He listened in. She and Gordon are leaving at eleven and driving four hours to Rockhill Lake. The riverboat's there."

  Death grinned. "It's nice having a ghost around who can dig out information for us."

  Loralei had to agree. "I feel sorry for him, though. He's just a kid. He shouldn't have to deal with stuff like this."

  "He's a kid who's over a hundred years old."

  She laughed at herself. "I forget that sometimes."

  "What will the kids do while we're gone?"

  His question caught her off-guard. She'd never had to worry about leaving before. "I have cans of soup, frozen pizzas they can pop in the oven, and some deli meat for
sandwiches. The food's covered."

  He glanced outside toward the garden shed. "They made a little nest in there for now, but it'll be cold in winter. They'll have to stay in ghost form when they're outside the house or they'll freeze. I didn't think about them shifting here. I didn't mean to make you extra work."

  "I don't mind. It's nice to have someone to eat meals with."

  "It had to get sort of lonely for you sometimes. You got so excited to have Felice come for lunch."

  She raised an accusing eyebrow. "Is that why you wanted them to stay? Were you worried about me?"

  He hesitated. "Not just that. I've had this job since the first couple got kicked out of the Garden of Eden. I've watched mortals. Wouldn't want to be one. There's too much uncertainty, too many disappointments and challenges. But there are some things I envied. Being loved." He looked at her. "I have that now. And having children." He paused. "We sort of have that with Tammy and Chris."

  She looked toward the shed too. "Close enough."

  "Right. And someday, instead of leaving the nest, our kids will go to the Light."

  She hadn't thought of it that way. She liked it. She hadn't thought of him being around at the Garden of Eden either. She cocked her head to study him. "What are you exactly?"

  "You've heard of the angel of Death? That's me."

  "An angel?"

  "A working angel, sort of in-between two worlds." Death glanced at the clock on the mantel. "We have a big day tomorrow. If we have to be at Rosalie's at eleven, we'd better call it a night."

  He didn't want to talk about it. Fine by her. She'd love him no matter what he was. But an angel? No wonder he was so compassionate...and sometimes so fearsome.

  They climbed the stairs to the second floor together. Loralei loved its slanted ceilings and painted floors. She thought she'd be too nervous to sleep, but once she curled beside Death, she drifted off with no dreams. He woke her in the morning.