Waltz Macabre

by Mary Bowers

  “Of course not, dear. You have your own things to do. I’m going to be fine. It’s so kind of you to check on me.”

  We said good-bye in a way that felt phony, and I hung up, unsettled.

  Damn that Ed, he wasn’t working fast enough!

  I got the Contacts back up on my phone and hit the screaming ghost.

  “Ah, Taylor,” he began.

  “Don’t you ah, Taylor me. Are you making any progress at The Bookery at all?”

  He should have come flaming back at me, since even I knew I was being unreasonable, but for some reason, he seemed pleased. He began to murmur idiocies about how a paranormal investigation is conducted, and seemed like he was going to go on for hours when suddenly he got off-track and barked, “I have asked you not to interrupt me while I’m working!”

  Good. I was ready for a fight. But before I could bark back at him, I realized he hadn’t been talking to me. Through the phone that Ed must have been holding away from his ear by then, I could hear an argument going on at the other end of the line.

  When I could get his attention again, I asked, “Is that Teddy?”

  It was.

  “Put him on.”

  “It’s Taylor Verone. She wants to talk to you.” I heard swishing noises as the men traded the phone.

  “What?” Teddy said.

  “Don’t you what me,” I said, happier to be yelling at somebody tougher than Ed. “I only wanted to ask if I could see you tomorrow. Somebody in Tropical Breeze has told me about a haunting. I thought you might want to investigate.”

  It wasn’t a lie. Somebody in Tropical Breeze had told me about a haunting. The one I wanted Teddy to investigate just didn’t happen to be that one.

  “I’m not sure I can function now, Taylor. My life is in shambles. You know that. I have no crew. I have no producer. She left me.”

  “So you can’t investigate? Are you only in this for the fame and fortune? Or are you in it to help the haunted? Back when I first met you, you bloviated away about your higher mission in life, about how you couldn’t deny those in need when you had the talent and the resources to go to their aid. Well, here’s your chance. Go to their aid. So what if it doesn’t result in an episode of Haunt or Hoax? Don’t you want to help?”

  I waited. Teddy was a pushover for stuff like that. Really, I wished I could have been there, in the hallway outside Ed’s “haunted” office, so I could see his gorgeous eyes begin to glow and his buffed-up body straighten and look lordly. It was probably a beautiful sight.

  “Thank you, Taylor,” he said in a husky voice. “I needed that. I can’t expect the world to come to a stop just because I’ve suffered a tragedy. There are so many in need out there, and I will not deny them. Just tell me what to do. I’m ready. I’ll always be ready.”

  “That’s more like it. I’ll be there at 9 am tomorrow and we can go over your mission.”

  “Bless you,” he said, and he hung up, too overcome to say anything else.

  I punched out the connection on my cell phone and went down the list to the R’s.

  “Rita, it’s Taylor. Listen, it’s worse than I thought. You got a lot of psychological courses when you were in the FBI, right? You’re the only one I know with that kind of training. Can you please please please do me a favor? It’s Teddy. I just talked to him, and he’s on the verge of a complete breakdown. No, I’m serious. Could you have a look at him for me? I’m going over to Ed’s house to see him tomorrow morning at 9 am. Are you busy? Could you come with me? Just so you can evaluate him informally, make sure he’s not a danger to himself. Or the community. Or his dog. You will! Oh, you’re an angel! I’ll brief you on the way over there. You need to be a little deceptive, but just pretend it’s an undercover operation or something, okay? I’ll pick you up at your house at 8:30. Bring coffee. This is going to be a pain in the ass, but I think it’s important.”

  I set the phone down and looked at my desk, then glanced at my watch. Even after giving myself a pep talk, I couldn’t switch gears, and I needed to be able to clear my mind to write the monthly Orphans of the Storm newsletter.

  I pulled up my formatted prototype of the newsletter and began a story about Zippy’s find, but decided I didn’t want to go into the fact that he’d gotten away from a handler. Besides, dead guys in the woods are always a downer. I like to keep it uplifting. After about half an hour of getting nowhere, I gave up. Tomorrow morning was shot, but after that, I was getting back to work, and I wasn’t going to let anything get else distract me.

  I have a mission in life, too, and it ain’t chasin’ ghosts.

  Chapter 10

  “I know you don’t want to talk about the lady they found on the beach,” I began, swinging my SUV onto A1A for the drive north.

  “Alison Wickert,” she said.

  “Right. But hang onto your hair, Rita, I talked to Edson Darby-Deaver yesterday, and Alison’s house actually is being haunted. I’m not making this up. And her mother has hired Ed to investigate.” I kept my eyes steadily on the road ahead so she wouldn’t pick up on the fact that I’d figured out that Alison’s mother was also her client.

  “Her name is Wanda. I’ve met her.”

  “Oh, really? Well, Ed is busy on another case, and I’ve convinced him to put Teddy in charge of the investigation at Wanda’s house. Like I told you, I think he needs to be kept busy. So I need you to help me sell him on the job, but while I’m explaining the situation to him, I want you to evaluate his mental state.”

  She chuckled. “You mean his emotional state?”

  “Right. Stay away from his mental state. You don’t want to go there. I talked to him last night about the project, and he just didn’t react the way I expected him to. He’s depressed. Morbid, even. We don’t want him to do anything rash. Just give him a look-over and let me know if I’m doing the right thing. After all, we don’t want to make things even worse. Then afterward you can give me your diagnosis.”

  “Hardly a diagnosis, but I’ll help if I can.”

  There was an odd feeling in the air between us, and I wondered if she was really buying my line of baloney. I sincerely hoped that when she “accidentally” met Dan, she wouldn’t figure out that it was all a set-up. And she would “accidentally” meet Dan, I was sure of it. My timing was perfect. He would be just setting out for his run when we got there.

  “Being in law enforcement, you’ll get a kick out of this,” I told her as we reached Santorini. “Their gate code is #-1-2-3-4.” Good. Now she’d be able to get in if Dan forgot to give her the gate code if and when they should, perhaps, make an assignation.

  “Oh, there’s Ed’s neighbor, Dan something.” She gave me an expressionless look, but I didn’t think I was being obvious. “The guy in the running shorts, talking to Teddy.”

  “The one not Teddy,” she said evenly. “Where’s Ed?”

  “Oh, he’s working on a job somewhere. He would have only gotten in the way anyway.”

  “I see.”

  “It’s Teddy we’re really here for,” I said, just before getting out of the car. I held her gaze a moment, emphasizing it.

  “I see.”

  Damn. Maybe she really did see. It was obvious why the FBI had hired her.

  * * * * *

  All my doubts melted away as I introduced Rita to Dan, though. Once she got closer to him, I sensed a change in her. When they met, she was charming, suddenly a little more alive, and he seemed impressed too. There was something happening; I could tell.

  I knew it!

  I managed to get Teddy off to one side while they chatted. Every time Teddy tried to look around me at the two of them, I moved to block his view and keep him focused on his favorite subject: himself.

  “Are you feeling any better than you did yesterday?” I asked him. “You know . . . about her?”

  “Huh? Oh, Lily. Yeah, I guess I’m getting over it.”

  “You certainly look better.”

  “Thanks. I’m ready to tackle the new p
roject. I need to get back to work. And it helps to gear up. Gets me focused.”

  He had dressed in his ghost-hunting clothes: a black jumpsuit with the sleeves ripped out (his bare arms are nice and bulgy), and black combat boots. The Haunt or Hoax? logo was across the back shoulders in green, and “Team Leader” was embroidered above the left breast pocket in serious block letters. He looked fabulous, and he wanted Rita to notice.

  I blocked him again and kept him talking. Porter was slamming into us by turns, so that was another distraction. But pretty soon I heard Dan explaining he was going to the beach for a run, and he set off down the driveway, waving good-bye.

  Bingo, I thought, just like that, they’re interested. I was so pleased about it, and so focused on the budding romance that I was totally unprepared to see Ed coming out of his house. I didn’t want to see Ed. Besides, he should have been in town, helping Barnabas.

  I nailed him with a cold stare and said, “Oh, Ed, how nice to see you. I thought you’d be out somewhere working this morning.”

  “Oh, yes, I’m doing some research in Barnabas Elgin’s archives,” he said quickly and heavily, doing everything but winking to show he’d caught on. The mention of research and archives did the trick, though. Teddy lost interest.

  I did the introductions without mentioning Rita’s background as an FBI agent, and we all went inside, tripping over Porter all the way. As soon as he could, Ed drew me aside and whispered, “If you’re taking him to Wanda Wickert’s house and handing her off to Teddy, I think I ought to be there to do the introductions. After all, she hired me for the job.”

  “Oh, yeah,” I said, keeping a sharp eye on Teddy. I didn’t want him fastening onto Rita. I had other, better plans for her than a quick jog around the watering holes of Tropical Breeze with the likes of Teddy Force. She was a keeper, not a shoulder to cry on followed by a little slap-and-tickle.

  As Ed and I lagged behind, I could see that Teddy was already getting a little silky with Rita, so I moved ahead and got between them.

  “Why don’t we sit down and explain the situation to Teddy,” I said.

  Rita sat next to Teddy and began observing him a little too ostentatiously, I thought, but at least she was taking what I’d asked her to do seriously. I was really glad I’d brought her along, and not just so she could meet Dan Ryder. She even helped describe how Alison’s body was found on the beach. Ed waited through all this impatiently, then started in before we were quite finished, describing his own interest in the matter.

  “And so you see,” Ed said, wrapping it up, “the project has expanded from a missing-person case to one of murder and residual haunting. So I think we need to divide the workload in the usual way, Teddy. I’ll do the routine spadework, while you stay on the front line, using your paranormal abilities to assist the client in person.”

  Teddy was nodding intelligently, brows lowered. He zipped his attention to Rita and said, “I’m more of a people person than Ed is.”

  “I can see that,” she said.

  “Will you be assisting in the investigation?” he asked her.

  “Oh, no, I’m just out for the day with Taylor,” she said blithely. “I don’t know anything about ghosts, but of course, being a former neighbor of Alison’s, I’m interested.”

  “I see,” Teddy said heavily. “Did you know her?”

  “Not really. Oh, well, I may as well admit it. Taylor just did me a favor and brought me along to meet you.”

  “I’m glad she did,” Teddy said devastatingly, gazing into Rita’s big brown eyes.

  I hadn’t anticipated this, but I should have. I admired Rita’s quick thinking, avoiding having to tell Teddy about her real interest in Alison Wickert, but the way she’d done it was unfortunate, in my opinion. It was almost like she was flirting.

  “Okay, guys,” I said, “I think we’ve got a handle on things. Ed, you’re going into Tropical Breeze with us? Why don’t you bring Teddy in your car.”

  “The little green gremlin?” Teddy said. I’d forgotten about Ed’s Metro. Teddy is six-foot three. “I’ll just come with you and Rita in your SUV. There’s more room.”

  “Actually, Teddy,” Ed said, “if you don’t mind driving, why don’t you take Rita in Taylor’s car and I’ll bring Taylor in mine. I’d like to talk to her before we get there. You understand, I’m sure.”

  He caught me off-guard. They were all out the door ahead of me, and before I could say, “Oh, hell no,” Teddy had taken my car key out of my hand and the whole thing was settled.

  But as I prepared to scrunch myself into the passenger seat of Ed’s little bonger, something happened to brighten the day once more. Dan Ryder came back from his run, all glistening and gorgeous.

  Rita looked thunderstruck. As well she might. The man was a masterpiece.

  He came ambling over to say hi, and she stood before him breathless, gathering herself up for speech. Then she told him, “I like to run every day, too. How I envy you, being able to go out your front door, run down the street and be on the beach in less than thirty seconds. The sand is nice and firm here on Anastasia Island, isn’t it? Perfect for running. Down at Tropical Breeze, it’s kind of loose and gritty, and you can’t run on it at all.”

  “I know,” Dan said. “It’s one of the reasons I settled here instead of going further south. Hey, if you’d like come for a run with me, you’d be welcome. I go out about the same time every day.”

  “I’d love to!”

  “See you tomorrow?”

  “You bet.”

  Teddy stood by my SUV trying not to look jealous. I suppose I should have been more sensitive to his emotional state, just being jilted and all, but I was so thrilled at how my secret plan was working out I didn’t care. Rita wasn’t for Teddy anyway. Somehow I’d known that Dan was the one for her. Maybe I was psychic after all.

  Chapter 11

  “So whaddaya want to talk about?” I asked Ed as we headed south on A1A. He took me literally, as always, totally missing my flat tone of voice. I didn’t believe he really wanted to talk to me about anything.

  “I’m unclear about your role in the Alison Wickert investigation. Have you decided to take part in it after all? If so, what changed your mind?”

  “Sorry Ed, I didn’t have any prophetic dreams last night that changed everything, and as for the investigation, I keep telling you, this is all a set-up. I’m just going to get Teddy started and let him go.”

  He was shaking his head. “You haven’t thought this through, Taylor. Teddy needs supervision or he creates mayhem. And I believe that you still haven’t internalized the fact that this is a real haunting, not just something you made up. Do you believe in coincidences?”

  “No.”

  “Neither do I.”

  I hadn’t thought that one through either, and his implication dawned on me too late. I tried to rally. “I also don’t believe in messages from The Great Beyond, Ed. The woman died by violence, and her mother thinks she’s psychic. You draw your conclusions, I’ll draw mine, but I think Wanda Wickert thinks her daughter is haunting her because she misses her and wants to believe she’s still there, somehow.”

  “She doesn’t miss her daughter. They didn’t get along. She wants Alison to move on.”

  “Oh.”

  I let that information percolate for a while, then said, “Maybe she feels guilty and that’s why she thinks Alison is haunting her. If they didn’t get along, and now this awful thing has happened – just what kind of evidence does she have that she’s being haunted, anyway?”

  “Things moving in the night, especially in areas Alison used most. Strange sounds and lights. An overwhelming sense of menace.”

  “Sounds a little like what Barnabas is going through. What about that? Do they know one another?”

  “No. Two completely different cases.”

  “Weird. Either Tropical Breeze has a sudden infestation of poltergeists, or we’re missing something.”

  He came to attention. “Do you
sense a connection?”

  “I don’t sense anything. Calm down. Forget I mentioned it. Just get the investigation at The Bookery over with as quickly as possible so I can stop wasting my time trying to distract Teddy. After that, he’s all yours.”

  “Don’t remind me.”

  He pulled his car behind my SUV on Redbud Street, and we got out and looked at the houses. They were a mix of elegant mini-mansions and charming little bungalows with touches of gingerbread. The whole neighborhood was beautifully manicured and quiet. Birds in the oaks and magnolias called out territorial warnings to one another, repeating the same chirps and whistles, calm but insistent. Redbud Street was the next one north of Palmetto, where Rita’s mansion was. Rita’s house was the Tropical Breeze showplace, but Redbud had a more generally upscale neighborhood.

  Teddy and Rita were out of my car and walking toward us by the time we got our bearings, and when we were all together, without pointing, Rita said, “This is Wanda Wickert’s house.” She was looking at a purple-and-sage cottage with windowboxes filled with pink petunias. A curving walkway made of brick pavers went from the cement sidewalk up to the brick steps before the front door, and I was reminded of a witch’s house in the woods, where children are lured inside with cookies. It was pretty, but no match for the larger houses on either side of it.

  I found myself gazing at the one on the left, a cool, boxy structure in dark wood and glass. It had strong horizontal lines that made me think of Frank Lloyd Wright. It was definitely the real thing, contrasted with Wanda Wickert’s little dollhouse. It made a strange impression on me, and I couldn’t take my eyes off it, even though it had nothing to do with our reason for being there.

  “Who lives in that one?” I asked.

  “That’s the Carteret house,” Rita said. “They’re moving. It’s kind of sad.”

  For the first time, I noticed the “For Sale” sign.

  “Ah, yes, we know about that,” Ed said. He gave me a significant look, then turned his attention back to Rita. “Did you go to the estate sale?”