by Deanna Chase
Oh for Pete’s sake. “Sounds interesting. Maybe we can interview you about that later? Right now we’re in the middle of an investigation of room 1538. I like to stay focused.” I gave him a coy smile.
“Right. Sure. Understandable. When you’re done, don’t forget to ask me about Claudette. The stories I have…” He chuckled. “They might be R rated. Not safe for the PG crowd, if you know what I mean.”
Just what I wanted to hear. Dirty ghost stories from the guy with a Peter Pan syndrome. “I might just have to do that.”
There was a slight chill in the air, and a faint tickle brushed my skin just as Ida May appeared next to me. “Sounds delicious. X-rated starlet. I always knew those Hollywood types were freaky.”
I gave her a side-eye glance, wondering where she’d been for the past twelve or so hours.
“With Bootlegger of course.” She covered her mouth as she giggled.
“You’re reading my mind now?” I blurted.
“Huh?” Surfer Dude asked, confused by my apparent one-sided conversation.
“Oh, sorry. Nothing. I was just— Never mind.” I glared at Ida May.
“Relax. I know you well enough to know what that look meant. And now you’re wondering what ghost sex looks like.”
“God, no.” I jerked my gaze away from her, hoping if I ignored her, she’d go away. Or at the very least stop talking.
“Are you all right?” Surfer Guy’s brows pinched as he stared at me like I’d lost my mind.
“She’s fine,” Julius interjected. “She sometimes talks to herself when she’s working through a problem.”
“The ghost hunting?” he asked. “Did you guys find anything?”
I gave Julius a grateful smile and then turned my attention to Surfer Dude. “Maybe. But now we’re trying to fill in the pieces. If you have any information, it would be really helpful.”
He pursed his lips. “Other than the usual noises and flickering lights, you mean?”
“Yes. Anything you’ve seen or heard.”
He shrugged. “That room has been cursed for years. The odd thing is that men are the only ones who ever talk about it. They report feeling like they’re being watched, shadows in the mirrors, the room feeling stifling even when the air is on full blast. That’s all I know really. But you might want to talk to Xavier. He’s the maintenance guy assigned to that floor. If anyone knows the history, it’s him.”
“Thanks.” I whipped out my phone and noted Xavier, maintenance. “That was tremendously helpful.”
“No problem. Always glad to help a fellow ghost hunter.” There was an excited gleam in his eye that at one time I would’ve encouraged. I’d dated a ghost hunter for a while, and when he’d left town, I’d sort of taken over his role. But now? Mostly I didn’t want to get involved unless there was something nefarious going on.
“I didn’t realize you were a hunter,” Julius said, eyeing him up and down as if a surfer bartender dude couldn’t possibly know anything about ghosts. A giggle bubbled up in the back of my throat, but I swallowed it, not wanting to offend our informant.
“Well, just the experience back in California. But it was something else. You should’ve been there when Claudette decided to strip right down to her—
“Hey, one more thing,” I interjected, this time mentally rolling my eyes. I already had one inappropriate ghost. I didn’t need to hear about another. But as long as we were here, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask about a certain ghostly rock star. “We’re trying to gather data on Vienna Vox for the memorial celebration. Did you happen to be around during her tragic demise?”
“We are?” Julius asked under his breath.
“Sure,” I mumbled back.
Surfer Dude pulled a towel from his back pocket and started wiping the counter as his expression sobered. “I worked on the ship. Yes.”
Jackpot!
Julius turned, giving the bartender his full attention. “Did you know her?”
He didn’t say anything at first, but then he shook his head. “Know isn’t quite the right word. I knew of her. Served her a few times. Heard rumors, but if you’re looking for anything more than hearsay, you’d be better off talking to our production manager, Cydney.”
“She’s in charge of the entertainment?” I guessed.
“Yeah. She’s the one who books the acts and keeps the performers happy.” He glanced down at the older ladies again as he continued to wipe the same section of the bar.
“The rumors,” Julius said, narrowing his eyes. “Can you tell us about those?”
Surfer Dude froze for a second. Then he straightened and rolled his shoulders. “None of that is true. Just a bunch of BS gossip. Nothing worth repeating.”
I sucked down the last of my margarita. Shoving my empty glass toward him, I said, “Oh, I bet you have some good stories. Even if they aren’t true, I’d love to hear a good cruise ship tale.”
“Do you need a refill?” he asked, relaxing slightly as he gave me a hint of a smile.
“Yes, please. And don’t forget to give me the gossip.” I rubbed my palms together as if I were full of evil. “I just love a good conspiracy theory.”
Julius pulled his wallet out and slid a twenty-dollar tip toward the bartender, further eroding any hesitation Surfer Dude might have had.
After a nod of thanks and pocketing the twenty, he placed his elbows on the bar and leaned down close to us. Lowering his voice to a whisper, he said, “There was a rumor that Muse, her backup singer was carrying a torch for her. That she and Vienna, along with Vienna’s boyfriend, Razer, had some sort of agreement.”
“What do you mean, ‘agreement’”? I asked, eyeing my empty glass. He’d apparently forgotten all about my refill. Heck, at that point, I’d have been happy with just a tequila shot.
“You know, they shared. Vienna was dating them both. Apparently sharing a bed with them both at the same time.”
Julius raised his eyebrows, but there was no shock in his expression. More mild curiosity.
I tried not to laugh at Surfer Dude’s drama-ridden explanation. Who cared if they were all sleeping with each other? Unless there was a crime of passion. “Okay. Are Muse and Razer still an item?”
He jerked back, surprise in his pale blue eyes. “Razer? No. The night after Vienna was lost, he left the ship when we got into port in Jamaica. He just disappeared. Some people still speculate that he killed her, but no one has seen or heard from him since. Not even Muse.”
I bit down on my lower lip as all my alarm bells went off. There had to have been some sort of falling out with the trio. That meant I had to talk to Muse if I wanted to find out what happened between them.
Julius’s body tensed slightly. I eyed him noting his knuckles turning white as he gripped the edge of the bar.
“Julius—”
“You know Muse?” Julius asked, his voice suddenly taking on a rasp that wasn’t normally there.
“Sure,” Surfer Dude said. “She comes back every year on the anniversary of Vox’s disappearance. I’ve even partied with her a few times. Man, that girl can throw back some tequila. And when she gets going—”
“Where can I find her?” Julius’s tone was urgent now, almost desperate.
I placed my hand on his arm, but he ignored me as he stared intently at Surfer Dude.
“Uh, her room, maybe? The theater?” He shrugged. “Knowing her, she’s probably passed out in some random passenger’s bed.” Surfer Dude glanced at me. “She’s a little promiscuous. Feisty, that one.”
Ida May did the eye rolling this time. “Don’t listen to him. She’s in her room, hiding from the band.”
I glanced at her and then back at the bartender. He was frowning at Julius.
“Are you okay, man? You look a little upset. Here, let me refill that beer for you.” And without waiting for an answer, Surfer Dude finally went to work on our drinks.
“Want to tell me what that was about?” I asked Julius.
“Huh?” He tor
e his gaze away from the beer Surfer Dude was pouring to glance at me.
I sucked in a small startled breath as I stared into brilliant blue eyes.
Eyes that didn’t belong to Julius.
16
Before I could say anything, Surfer Dude was back with our drinks. “So what’s the plan? Are you two doing any more investigating today?”
“Maybe.” I hedged, trying to be as vague as possible. Our ploy to use ghost hunting as a cover was backfiring.
“Great!” Surfer Dude glanced at the clock. “I get off at two. I’d love to come observe if you don’t mind. I know all about EMF detectors and gathering data. I could set stuff up, hold the video camera, anything. Just let me know what I can do.”
Crap on a cracker. The last thing we needed was an amateur hunter getting in the way. We didn’t have time for that. “I think we’re just conducting interviews today. Maybe next time.”
I jumped to my feet and grabbed the edge of the bar when dizziness kicked in. Whoa. Those drinks had been stronger than I’d realized. Of course, we also hadn’t eaten lunch.
“Well, if you change your mind, just come by the bar. Whoever is here can get in touch with me.”
“Yeah, sure.” I tugged on Julius’s arm.
He slid off the stool, beer in hand, his eyes still blazing blue. He let me lead him away, but he didn’t speak and kept sweeping his gaze back and forth over the deck as if searching for something.
Spotting a deserted corner in the shade, I made a beeline for the table. “Sit,” I ordered Julius as I sat across from him.
He didn’t respond.
I stifled a sigh. “Julius?”
Still no response.
A twinge of panic pinched my gut. Time for a new tactic. “Who are you looking for?”
“My girlfriend,” he said, squinting into the sun. “Have you seen her?”
Yes. She’s right here, I wanted to scream, but it was clear to me whoever was speaking through Julius definitely wasn’t Julius. “Maybe. Who’s your girlfriend again?”
“She’s missing,” he said.
“Okay. When did she go missing?”
A muscle in his jaw started to pulse. “Last night.”
“At the chocolate competition?”
He finally turned to stare at me, anger flickering through his steely gaze. “What are you talking about? She was in the elevator. You were there.”
Oh holy hell! The image of the woman singing in the moonlight flashed in my mind followed by her reaching out to Julius. Only she hadn’t been seeing him, she’d been seeing whoever was possessing him. My heart started to pound, and I sucked in a sharp breath, regaining my composure. “You’re looking for Vienna Vox.”
He nodded once and scanned the deck again.
I replayed what he’d said. He was looking for his girlfriend. How could that be? The bartender said Razer had gotten off the ship right after Vienna had disappeared, that he’d never spoken to Muse again. But what if he hadn’t left? What if he’d been trapped in room 1538 for the past ten years?
“Razer?” I asked.
“What?” he barked out, then downed half the beer before placing the mug back on the table.
Son of a mother. That explained why Julius had called Vienna Vivi the night before and why he couldn’t remember leaving the chocolate party. Julius had been taken over by Vienna Vox’s boyfriend. Presumably the prime suspect in her murder. I stood abruptly, knocking the beer over. Dark liquid spilled over the table and dripped onto the deck.
He stared up at me, puzzled. “Going somewhere?”
Was I? I took a tiny step back and shook my head. I couldn’t leave. Couldn’t let Julius out of my sight. Swallowing my panic, I sat back down. “Sorry about the beer.”
He glanced at the still-dripping liquid. “I can get another one.”
I supposed that was true, but he didn’t move. And neither did I. What was the best way to proceed? Just ask him if he knew what was going on? Pretend this was completely normal? Run screaming across the ship to Jade?
“You’re taking this awfully well,” he said.
A high-pitched giggle sounded from behind me. I turned and glared at Ida May. She’d finally left the bar and whatever tourist she’d been drooling over this time. Ignoring her, I turned back around. “You realize you’ve invaded Julius’s body then?”
He nodded once. “That couldn’t be helped.”
I let out an irritated huff. “I think maybe we could’ve found a better solution.”
“Yeah, like turning him over to me,” Ida May said, fanning herself. “Hot damn. He’s hot!”
“Thank you,” Razer said, nodding in Ida May’s direction.
She let out a gasp, then squealed. “You can hear me?”
“Sure. I am a ghost after all.” He ran his gaze down the length of her body, nodding in approval. “Nice legs.”
“Thank you.” She brushed her thick curly hair back and all but preened. “Nice tats. Dragons are so sexy.”
“Tats?” I peered at him, seeing nothing, not even a freckle on Julius’s tanned arms. And hadn’t she called him hot? How did she know? Razer might have invaded Julius’s body, but he still looked like Julius.
Ida May floated next to him, running her finger along his forearm. “Right here. This is the head and then the fire.”
I concentrated on his arm, imagining brightly colored scales and a piercing dragon eye. After a moment, the dragon began to take shape. It was red and orange with a yellow eye. Fire blazed around his wrist. The same design I’d seen earlier when Jade had used magic to reveal the hidden tattoo.
Raising my gaze, I blinked. Julius wasn’t standing there at all. In his place was a tall, lanky guy with shaggy, shoulder-length hair. He had a row of piercings on his right ear and only one on the left.
He held out his hand. “I’m Razer. And you are?”
Stunned, I automatically clasped his hand, shaking it. “Pyper Rayne. I’m a medium.”
I had no idea why I’d felt it necessary to divulge that information, but there it was.
He dropped my hand and shoved his into his pockets, his expression all business. “Have you seen Vienna?”
I nodded slowly. “A couple of times last night.”
“She’s dead, isn’t she?” The question was matter-of-fact, devoid of emotion.
“Of course she is,” Ida May answered for me.
He jerked his head to glare at her. And I swear if looks could kill, Ida May would’ve died a second death right there near the blue lagoon pool.
She held her hands up and floated away from him. “Sorry. Didn’t realize you’d be so touchy about it. It’s been ten years.”
“Ten years!” His eyes went wide in shock as the blood drained from his face. Then he sank back down into the chair, his shoulders hunched and his expression stricken.
“Ida May, go away,” I said, completely annoyed.
“But—”
“No. You’ve done quite enough. Now isn’t the time.” I waved a hand as if to shoo her away. “Razer, what is the last thing you remember before last night? Before you saw Vienna in the elevator?”
His brow furrowed in concentration. “I don’t know.”
“Do you remember joining with Julius?” What I really wanted to know was if it had been a conscious effort and if he was here to stay. Or was he just as much a victim of circumstance as Julius was?
Silence stretched between us.
Ida May had moved to lie in a lounge chair, her head tilted up to the sun as if she could feel the warm rays. Maybe she could. A small pang of jealousy surprised me. The idea of lounging near the pool without a care in the world sounded like heaven. But only if I had Julius with me. And right now, even though he was literally sitting across from me, he was unreachable. I had to figure out how to bring him back to the surface, to push Razer back until we found a way to separate the pair of them.
“How did you end up trapped in that room?” I asked.
“I don
’t know,” he said, his voice so faint I almost didn’t hear him.
“Razer?” I peered at him. His lanky frame morphed to Julius’s more built one and then back again.
When he spoke this time, his tone was stronger, full of confidence as his brilliant blue eyes blazed with passion. “I tried to save her. I was too late.”
Nervous energy had me tapping my foot. “You saw what happened to her?”
He shook his head, sadness radiating from him. “I warned her she was in danger. Knew I should’ve stayed with her, but we had a fight. By the time I shook my anger off, she was already gone. It’s my fault she died.”
“But you weren’t there—”
“Exactly.” He ran a hand across the back of his neck. “I don’t remember anything after I went after her killer. At least not until I stepped into this body.”
My eyes widened and my pulse sped up. “You know who did it.”
But again he shook his head. “I never saw his face. But I knew he was the one. He had the necklace her mother gave her. The one she never took off.”
I sat back in my chair, processing what he’d said. Then my heart nearly broke. What an awful thing to endure.
Those tortured eyes met mine, and what I saw there nearly tore me in two. Pain so raw it brought tears to my eyes. Then he spoke. “I was going to ask her to marry me that night.” His voice cracked when he continued. “But we got into a stupid fight. I never did ask. She stormed off, and it was the last time I saw her.”
I reached for him, unable to keep my distance. And the minute my hand covered his, the air shimmered between us. Razer’s image blurred, and just like that Julius was back.
He stood abruptly and came around the table to stand in front of me. “Pyper?”
I blinked the tears from my eyes, already reaching for his hand. “Julius?”
Our fingers entwined, his warm hand solid in my chilled one. He pulled me to him, our joined hands smashed between us as we clutched at each other.
His rapidly beating heart thundered beneath my ear, mine thumping just as fast as his.
“I can’t believe that just happened,” I said, my voice muffled from his shirt.
He let out a humorless chuckle. “Sadly, I can. But at least now I know why I was dreaming of Vienna. They weren’t my dreams. They were his.”