by J G Jerome
I think, ‘Oka-a-ay. I need to ask the ladies what’s going on here.’ I shrug and call, “You want a sweaty hug, Carla?”
She looks at me with a pronounced frown. “No!” she barks. “Go shower, William!”
I chuckle as I wander off to do just that. When I’m done showering, I pull on flannel pyjama pants and a light sweatshirt. They ladies are all wearing matching floral silk robes from Viktorija.
I walk past the kitchen and Carla looks at me while she stirs something. She says, “Much better, William. You may hug me now.”
I smirk at her. “Maybe the urge has passed, Carla.”
Rebecca spanks my butt as she walks past. “Don’t be an ass, William.”
I jump and hurry into the kitchen. Carla is still wearing a wool, above-the-knee skirt and a black turtleneck from work. Her feet are still in stockings inside a pair of pumps. I cuddle up behind her and wrap my arms around her waist. I give her a gentle squeeze. She stops moving before slowly pressing back her whole body into me and leaning her head into mine.
“Tough day, dear?” I ask softly.
She nods, “Cyrus’ widow was in the office today. I didn’t know what to do. Fortunately, the HR staff took care of it, but she wanted to talk to me. She apologized for Cyrus’ behavior. She seems like a really nice lady who’s had a hard life.”
I ask, “Did he have insurance?”
She nods. “Five hundred thousand dollars. It won’t carry her and the son for life, but it will give her a nice cushion over her job. Payment was due on his policy. If he had died three days later, they wouldn’t have paid. It seems they are going to behave. I told her to call me if they give her any trouble.”
I kiss her cheek gently. “Carla, that was a genuinely nice thing to do.”
“Thank you, Will.” Then she shimmies in my hug. “Now go away. This is getting to the delicate part.”
I go to hang with Audrey, Marissa, and Josie in the living room. Josie is tinkering on the piano. Marissa hands me a full glass of water. A couple of minutes later, Carla and Rebecca serve a lovely dinner of linguine carbonara, caesar salad with hand-made caesar dressing, and bread Rebecca baked in the afternoon.
Carla talks to Sidney for a while after dinner. She comes back up after about forty minutes and hands me the bolt. I can feel Sidney is there.
I ask, “Carla, are you joining us for training on Saturday. We’ll do dinner that night at John’s Chop House. Shall I reserve a seat for you?” She nods. “Please.” She collects hugs and kisses from all the ladies, and gives me a tentative hug as Marissa and I walk her to the door.
Thursday, I quit work at four o’clock and head back to the house via the passage. We do some quick Halloween decorations. Marissa arrives carrying five, count ‘em, five grocery bags of candy and a huge wicker basket. Carla comes with her carrying three more bags of candy. Carla is wearing a slinky black witch costume complete with cinnamon broom and pointy hat. Marrisa hands me her candy haul and runs downstairs. Carla leaves her broom and hat on the coffee table and sashays towards the stairs. Her runner’s physique is mesmerizing as it sways nonchalantly to the staircase in the slinky costume. She looks at me with a smirk and a wink as she turns to take the stairs. I shake my head as I fill the basket and set it by the door on a mysteriously convenient small table.
All of the ladies are dressed as sexy witches, except the sexy witch. She is dressed as a necromancer adorned with skulls and black eye makeup and a bright scarlet wig. The ladies have a blast making me up to look like Frankenstein‘s monster - the movie version, not the P.S. Power version. I bring Sidney out and explain what we are doing. I offer to power him up so he can camp around as a ‘ghost.’ He thinks it will be fun, so I do.
Starting at six o’clock, we have baskets of candy, popcorn balls, and bags of mixed nuts stationed on the porch. We have an apple bobbing station, and a choice of candied or caramelized apples on trays. We have cups of wine and beer for parents. We have a variety of ‘scary’ film music themes and campy pop halloween songs playing off speakers in the windows. About every twenty minutes the Monster Mash plays, and we all get out and dance in the yard. Trick-or-treaters are a little sparse until about seven, but things get quite brisk from then until about a quarter before nine. A lot of the neighbors stop by multiple times for adult beverages and dancing on the lawn, bobbing apples, etcetera. Sidney has a lot of fun ‘playing a ghost,’ but I do catch him admiring the ladies’ costumes a couple of times, too. I can tell he is pining to transition.
Jack and Darcie show up about nine-fifteen in costumes as Mortimer, AKA ‘Squint’ or ‘Grandpa’ and Letitia Addams. They look great. We’re all well on our way to inebriation by the time they arrive.
Dan and Maria show up about nine-thirty via the passage to Dan’s shop. Dan is dressed as a zombie cop. Maria is dressed in a white garbage bag. She laughs, “I’m white trash!” Apparently she is well lubricated, too!
We all have a great laugh and get a couple of more Monster Mash dances in prior to shutting down a few minutes before ten. We turn off the music and thank all the neighbors for joining us.
I’m picking up the apple bobbing station when Officers Bird and Johnson drive up with flashing lights. They leave them on while the officers get out of the car and puff up their chests. Officer Johnson tells us, “Ten o’clock folks. Time to shut it down.”
I notice that Officer Bird doesn’t have her vest on under her uniform. I’m also pretty sure that the three buttons unfastened on her shirt make her ‘out of uniform.’
I wink at her before I ask Officer Johnson, “Does that mean you don’t want a caramel apple?”
He grins like a kid. “I thought you’d never ask.” He hurries over to grab one off the tray while Officer Bird shuts off the lights on the car with a chuckle. Dan engages Officer Johnson in conversation, while Officer Bird walks up and pulls her shoulders back to display her modest cleavage. I see red lace peaking out of her open shirt. She sways back and forth like an ingenue on the beach. “How is your leg, Mister James?”
I chuckle, “Healing nicely, Officer Bird. I like the Prescott PD’s Halloween uniform. You look good in it,” I tease her in return.
She grins at me. “I’m glad you noticed.” She winks and fastens two buttons before sauntering over to get a hug from Rebecca and a sticky treat from Audrey before joining Johnson and Dan.
After we have everything cleaned up outside, all of our guests leave. The family, including Carla, move inside. We strip, remove makeup, and shower. I put Sidney back in his bolt, but he is gushing about the time he had. Marissa takes Carla downstairs to stay the night. Marissa apparently stays with her, because I don’t see her again until morning.
33
Souls for zombies
Friday, my work runs late. We are staging our code for deployment, and the automation to deploy to the staging area fails at three-thirty in the afternoon. It takes us two hours-and-a-half to get it fixed. By the time we do a review of final deployment, I don’t wrap up and get home until six-thirty. The ladies shower me with affection and ply me with a lovely meatloaf meal. We do dishes and crawl into bed.
I get back up at midnight, pull on pyjama pants and a sweatshirt, and crawl through the portal into the apartment to start the call for the deployment. Thankfully, it goes off without a hitch. I finish and crawl back through the 'passage' to the house at two-thirty in the morning. After a glass of water and a piss, I crawl back into bed at a quarter ‘til 3:00am.
Saturday, I wake up to the smell of bacon at just before 8:00am. I get up, pee, and pull on workout clothes. I stumble into the kitchen, and Rebecca gives me a wet kiss and a bacon, egg, and cheese taco. I wolf it down with a cup of coffee while leaning against the counter. Carla arrives for training at 8:30. The plan is martial arts in the morning and firearms in the afternoon. Jack and Darcie join us at 8:45 for the morning session, and they meet us at the range with their pistols for the range.
Monty and his girlfriend, Monique, join us at
the range too. Monty brought another load of weapons, including four brand new Sig P365 pistols for the ladies with clip-on holsters, two Aero Sig Sauer M400 rifles with 30-round magazines, and cleaning kits. He talks us through cleaning the new weapons, and then we fire them. Once again the pump .20-gauge Maverick 88 turns out to be the shotgun of choice for most of the ladies. Even Rebecca and Darcie do well with it. Rebecca, Darcie, and Carla are more partial to the XT3 Tactical semi-auto .410, but we ended up going with five of the Sig rifles, and a couple of the Maverick 88 .20-guage shotguns so we could standardize on ammunition. Carla orders a 9mm and an XT3 .410 from Monty. I send him the money via Zelle, and Carla does the same for her weapons. We fill out a bunch of paperwork on the hood of Monty’s Escalade then head home.
We send Audrey home on Sunday with a rolled up portal and her pistol. She installs it inside her closet. She plans to set a framed canvas of Paris in front of it. Our side is set up inside the closet in Audrey’s room in the upper basement - there’s already a canvas of Amsterdam in front of it and clothes in front of that.
Audrey pops in after volleyball practice on Wednesday for dinner and some loving, but goes home first thing in the morning. She plays volleyball Thursday night, and comes home again Friday night for the weekend.
Carla is in New York on business for the entire week, but she joins us for training again on Saturday. She is quickly getting a handle on the martial arts basics. We practice hard on weapons and open hand tactics on Saturday morning in the playroom. We go to the range after lunch. Upon returning to the house we hear someone walking around. Two pistols, three tasers, and a jo staff appear quickly when we hear the noise.
Rebecca and Carla cover the stairs from the living room. Audrey, Josie, Marissa and I walk around back and start clearing the basements. Josie and Audrey take the top. Marissa and I take the bottom.
As Marissa and I head up the front stairs I hear Audrey yell, “Dammit, Erica! I just about killed you, you silly bitch! What are you doing here, slut?”
I call up the stairs, “Coming up!”
Audrey calls out, “All clear! It’s just my nosey roommate!”
We walk up in time to hear Erica. “I missed you! I was worried.” I see Audrey dragging Erica by the ear towards the stairs to the top floor.
We catch them in the corridor heading to the front room. Audrey says, “You don’t ‘miss’ people, Erica. You don’t ‘worry,’ either. You and I both know that, so just stop putting on the act. Why are you here?”
Audrey releases her ear and points to a chair. Erica flops down into a chair with pursed lips.
She says, “I saw your car in the lot yesterday afternoon, but you weren’t around. You weren’t there this morning. I was concerned something might have happened to you, and I was more than a little curious. I thought maybe you were hurt in your room.”
Audrey sighs. “So you decided to root through my closet? I left you a note saying I would be back Monday. Wait a minute...I locked my bedroom door, too. How’d you get past that?”
Erica looks at her like she’s stupid. “Seriously? That little key thing on top of the door frames opens it right up.”
Audrey shakes her head. “I didn’t even consider that. I should have put a deadbolt on it.”
Erica says, “You locked yourself in your room Wednesday afternoon, too. Did you come here then, too?”
Audrey asks, “Why does it matter Erica?”
Erica stands angrily. “Look, Audrey. Just because I don’t have a full range of emotions doesn’t mean I don’t care. I’m not just a fuck doll for you. Stop being such a cunt!”
Audrey is rocked back. I walk over to stand in front of Erica. She looks at me funnily for a moment until I open my arms. She has the whole scared rabbit thing going on like Carla does when first faced with me, but she slowly wraps her arms around me.
I hug her firmly, but gently. “Erica, we didn’t expect anyone, and we have had some weird shit in our lives recently. I’m glad we didn’t harm you inadvertently. Welcome to our home.”
She looks up at me. “That isn't what I expected from you.”
I give one more squeeze and release her. “Does that mean you’re joining us for dinner?”
She gives me a smile. It doesn’t come anywhere close to her eyes, but she’s learned to fake it better than Carla. “Please?”
“Of course,” I tell her and release her. She slowly sits back in her chair, and I give her some space.
Carla says, “You’re like me. Missing a part.” Her stare is fixed on Erica.
Erica asks, “You mean a soul? Yeah, I’m missing that. Supposedly I have the seed that was supposed to bloom into one when you’re born, but it never did.”
I look at Audrey. She grimaces and says, “I told her.”
Josie says, “You are even more unique than Carla, and she’s damn unique as such things go.”
Rebecca asks, “Are all zombie women beautiful? The one male I’ve met was handsome. The three females have been very pretty.”
Josie says, “I don’t think so, but I’ve not met enough to know.”
“Cyrus wasn’t. He was ugly through and through,” I say as I pull out my phone.
Carla says, “Yes, but he was that way before you pulled his soul out.”
I shrug, “Hard to argue with that. Excuse me just a moment. I need to add Erica to our reservations.” Carla fidgets until I tell her, “You’re already counted, Carla.” She nods slightly and relaxes.
I call El Gato Azul to change our dinner reservation from nine to ten people. I follow that by calling Prescott Station to update our Sunday brunch reservation from eleven people to twelve.
Dinner at El Gato at seven is a celebration of Rebecca’s ‘official’ birthday. Dan, Maria, and Judith join us. Jack and Darcie had a commitment, but they plan to join us tomorrow for brunch. We drink too much, eat too much, talk too loud, and have a great time laughing with each other. We send Judith home in an Uber, and we sober up a bit by the time we finish the uphill trek back to the house. Dan and Maria walk back with us because they came via passage, but they head home directly once we get to the house. Maria is frisky enough that I think Dan’s getting lucky tonight.
We play music in the living room afterward. I put my guitar down after a while to listen to Rebecca play classical piano.
As Rebecca lets a final note ring, Erica asks, “Can you fix me?”
I tell her, “There’s nothing wrong with you, Erica.”
“Yeah, there is. I can feel it,” she says. “Can you make the seed grow? Audrey said your magic is all about souls, life, and death.”
I shake my head gently and her expression falls. “I don’t know, Erica. I’m learning as I go. I think I can make the right kind of energy, but I just don’t know what will happen when I try to push it into the soul seed.”
She grabs my hands. “Please try. I can’t keep living like this.” Her eyes are leaking tears. For being emotionally broken, she is doing a great impersonation of sorrow. Maybe it has something to do with the seed.
I look at Audrey. She nods at me.
Josie shrugs at me when I look at her. She says, “I have never heard of anything like that, Will. Then again, I’m not an expert.”
I look at Rebecca. “Anything, Baby?”
She grimaces, “I read a recipe one time for something called ‘sickness of the soul,’ but I think it is what you call ‘clinical depression’ these days. It couldn’t hurt to give it to her after you treat her. There’s nothing potentially harmful in it; it’s all common therapeutic herbs.”
I look at Carla. She is watching me carefully, but completely without emotion.
Apparently Erica has lost her fear of me; she’s got my hands in a death grip. I tell her, “You’ll need to stay with us for a while, Erica. We’ll need to keep an eye on you after I try it.”
Audrey says, “You can stay in my room, Erica.
Carla asks, “Can you put Sidney into me tonight, too?”
I l
ook at her expressionless stare. I nod, “Yes, Carla. I can. I think that is fairly straightforward by comparison.”
Carla says, “I had been planning to ask you to do it this weekend, so I already put in to take next week off to adjust. I was planning to wait until tomorrow since today is Rebecca’s birthday.
Rebecca hugs her, “What better present could I get for my birthday than for my friend to be happy.”
I tell everyone, “Downstairs in the playroom, everyone. Let’s take care of our friends.”
I go to the safe in the bedroom closet and retrieve the bolt with Sidney in it. Josie comes along. I ask her, “Is there anything special I need to do?”
Josie says, “If you had marked one of them, you might want to remove it. I’ve never heard of it interfering, but I wasn’t taught how to do it. I can teach you how to create golems, though.”
I ask her, “Do you want to do this?”
Josie says, “Carla wants you to do it. We talked about it.”
“How about Erica?” I ask.
Josie says, “I don’t know if I have enough energy.”
I tell her, “I’m going to use the same white energy you use for thaumaturgy. I bet you could do it.”
Josie shrugs. “Maybe. I’ll back you up regardless.”
We meet everyone downstairs. I tell Carla to sit on a cushion half-lotus, but she goes full-lotus.
I joke, “Well I know who the new family yoga instructor is.” She gives me the cross-eyed tongue expression before closing her eyes and immediately takes up a relaxed, meditative breathing routine.
I stand behind her and open the bolt for Sidney and pull him gently out.
“Sidney, these are your last moments as a male. Are you sure you want to do this?”
He responds very seriously. “Yes, Mr. James. I feel like we are about to correct a great wrong. I’ve waited for this as nearly long as I can remember.”
“Carla, these are your last moments as a ‘soul-less’ person. Are you certain you want to do this?”