The Garden (Haunted Series)

by Alexie Aaron

  Mary angered and charged towards Mia. Mia shot her with both barrels of rock salt. The widow lost form and pooled once more on the ground. Confused at her loss of power, Mary retreated back into the tunnel, leaving a snail trail of slime behind her.

  Richard took the opportunity of Mia’s spent gun to advance towards her. She worked as fast as she could but was unable to load the shotgun in time. Richard grabbed her leg and pulled her down. She hit the counter hard.

  He picked up the gun, cocked it and stuck it to her head. “Let’s see how you…”

  CRACK!

  Mia watched as Murphy’s axe sliced through a surprised Richard. The gun dropped beside Mia. She grabbed it and turned, ready to fire. Murphy raised his hands, and she lowered the weapon.

  She turned around, looked for Terrance and found that he too had gone. Mia climbed off the counter and walked over to Cid and Burt who were alive but battered. “Jesus Christ, what happened to you?”

  “Mia Cooper! Do not take the Lord’s name in vain!” Father Santos admonished from the end of the stairway.

  “Lord, what’s his problem?” Ted hissed in her ear.

  Mia had to turn away. The smile that he caused refused to be denied and filled her face. She swallowed and turned back, looking contrite. “Sorry, Father.”

  Chapter Thirty-nine

  “Heads up, Mary’s on the move again,” Mike warned.

  “Father, stand away from the opening,” Mia cautioned. She looked around for Murphy, but he beat feet as soon as the priest made his presence known. Mia cocked the shotgun and raised it.

  Father Santos put a restraining hand on her arm. “Let me talk to her.”

  “I’m not lowering my guard. Do not be taken in by her widow’s weeds, she’s killed in her righteous indignation,” Mia hissed at him.

  Mary formed, as before, out of the pool of darkness.

  “Mary Bonner, I ask you to repent your sins.”

  A very surprised entity scowled. “I have no sins, priest.” She smoothed her gown and raised a hand and pointed to the entrance of the subbasement. “He’s the sinner.”

  Richard appeared at the entrance looking amused.

  Mia glanced down at Cid who was crouching by Burt who was waking up. “Salt,” she hissed.

  Ted’s voice came over the com, “Cid, in the storeroom there is a bag of road salt. Pour it around you and Burt. Mia can’t cover all of you.”

  There was a creak of the stairs, and Audrey advanced down. She was holding the family bible. “Get her out of here, Ted. Richard is functioning again,” Mia growled.

  Audrey slid the book towards Mia before running back up the stairs. Mia stopped its progress with the heel of her boot. “Father, the family bible is at my feet. I take it you requested it.”

  He kept his eye on Mary as he squatted to retrieve the book. He flipped open the pages and scanned the family tree. “Mary Collins Bonner, I ask you to repent your sins in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

  She wavered briefly before reaching down and ripping her prayer beads from her belt. “You think I care about the Holy Trinity, priest? Where was God when Richard beat me? Where was he when he tied my sons to the bed and left them, without food or water, to lie there for days in their filth? Where was God when he impregnated those women? Where was God when the bastard killed my daughter and replaced her?”

  “Where was God when he put a bullet in my brain?” Terrance asked as he formed and stood beside Mary.

  “Terrance Bonner, I ask you to repent your sins in the name of…”

  Mia put her left hand on Santos collar and pulled the priest back hard. Terrance’s fist missed Santos by inches.

  “Ted, plan B,” Mia whispered, keeping an eye on Mary and Terrance. Richard was in her peripheral vision, but for how long?

  Audrey ran around the house and, with all her might, tossed the red backpack over the wall to Mike.

  Her aim was good, but her strength wasn’t. It sat on top of the wall.

  Murphy who had been waiting out Father Santos’s visit by sitting on the wall, got up and walked over and tossed the backpack to Mike.

  His aim was so good that it grazed Mike’s shoulder on the way down.

  Mike jumped down off the ladder. He rifled through the bag, grabbed a few familiar things and climbed back up the ladder.

  “We don’t need God’s justice anymore. I am god enough for Terrance. I am the supreme gardener of all roses,” Mary bragged. She turned to her husband and pointed her hand. You will bend to my will, Richard, just as Terrance has. But first we will clean this house of your whores!”

  Mike took the hammer and broke the glass. He used it to break away any remaining shards. He then took two road flares that Ted had enhanced with accelerant and lit the fuses. Mike dropped one in the process, but the other he managed to jam in the slack mouth of the desiccated corpse who was Mary Bonner. He jumped off the ladder yelling, “Fire in the hole!”

  Mia pulled the priest out of the direct line of the tunnel just before a flash of light and fire burst out.

  Mary was consumed in seconds. Terrance disappeared. Mia turned and shot Richard twice more to stall his activity. Hopefully it would give them time to get Burt and Cid to safety.

  Mike ran in from the garden. Mia gave him a high five as he passed her. Burt was dizzy but hadn’t broken any bones. Cid smiled and credited his escape from harm to Mike’s suggestion earlier, to roll with the ghost toss. They followed Father Santos up the stairs, each having a firm, steadying grip on Burt. Mia stood looking into the tunnel. Embers floated out of the tunnel and the window in the garden.

  Murphy appeared at her side.

  She looked at him and scoffed. “Where were you? You left me with all of this,” Mia complained.

  Murph touched his neck and shook his head.

  “You’re afraid of Father Santos sending you on your way? Come on, he was a bit too busy to pay any attention to the likes of you. I’d like to be mad except I have the feeling you helped Mike out there.”

  Murphy nodded.

  “Did you know she was in the wall?”

  He shook his head.

  “She was a bit nuts,” Mia told him. “I don’t know if I should pity her or not. Santos would want me to forgive her. But she thought in the end that she was a god. Where do these creatures come up with this malarkey?”

  “Saint Mia, are you talking to yourself?” Ted inquired.

  “Nope, Murph’s here. He and I are on fire watch. What the hell was in those flares? Almost took Santos’s eyebrows off.”

  Murphy mimed the explosion on the other end by waving his arms around wildly.

  “Stuff,” was all Ted would commit to. “Want some coffee?”

  “Oh yes. Maybe some marshmallows.”

  “In your coffee?”

  “No silly, I could roast them for S’mores with the heat that is billowing out of the tunnel. I have some Hershey bars in the truck and…”

  “Stop it, you’re making me hungry.”

  “Before I forget, don’t send Audrey down here or anywhere by herself. Richard’s still on the loose. What is it with you redheads?”

  “We are irresistible even to the dead,” Ted bragged. “Cid’s coming down with the coffee and a folding chair. He thought you might be tired of standing.”

  “What a nice young man. They raise them well in your neck of the woods,” Mia commented. She looked at Murphy and added. “In my neck of the woods too. One last thing, I’m out of ammo,” she admitted as she checked her pockets. “I was sure I brought twelve shells and…” She paused to mentally count up her shots, four were unaccounted for. “I think I should have some left. Did I leave them in my other pants?”

  “Just keep Murphy close. I’ll look in your duffle. Before I forget, I’ve taken us off universal, so you can speak freely.”

  “Good to know,” Mia said. She heard Cid come down the stairs. He handed her a big steaming mug of coffee before opening the folding chair for
her. She thanked him and sat down. He opened another chair and sat beside her.

  “How’s Burt?” she asked.

  “Audrey is taking him to Quick Care. He landed on his head. Mike is consulting with the father, and Alan called and said he’d been delayed.

  “Well that’s everyone accounted for,” Mia said. She took off a glove and reached out towards the tunnel. “It’s still too hot to investigate, but after the fire I witnessed, there’s nothing left but ash.” She put her glove back on and sipped her coffee.

  “You looked pretty tough up there on the counter. No Lara Croft, but still pretty damn impressive,” he complimented. “You seem distracted.”

  “I’m thinking. Without knowing what all she did, without a record, will we be able to find all of the bodies? I fear her gardening journal may have been burned up with her corpse. And there’s the question of who put her there? I don’t think she was placed there until she died.”

  Cid bent down and picked up the family bible that Santos must have dropped when Mia yanked on his collar. He opened up the book and thumbed through it until he found the family tree. “Let’s see who was still alive when Mary died. Robert and John.”

  “Don’t forget faux Eleanor.”

  “Who out of the three would be so sick or weak to do the old lady’s bidding?”

  “I don’t want to think it’s Eleanor, but she did hang herself.”

  “Robert maneuvered John out of the will. Eleanor inherited for ‘services rendered.’ What did she do?” Cid took off his glasses and cleaned them with the edge of his shirt.

  Mia did a double take. “Tell me, Clark, how long are you going to remain in disguise?”

  “After we get paid. Then I will be able to schedule the surgery.”

  “It will be nice not having to deal with glasses for a while.”

  “Actually, I will probably need them for reading. But, hey, I won’t have to walk around in them.”

  “You know the women are going to flock to your doorstep. You may need a bodyguard. I could consult with Murphy and get you a fair price.”

  “I think I’d rather have them flock than not,” Cid admitted.

  “Heads up, Father Santos is on his way down,” Ted warned.

  Cid opened the bible and began reading aloud. Unfortunately he chose the Psalms of Solomon. Mia rolled her eyes and tried to disappear.

  “Miss Cooper, may I have a word with you?”

  “Yes, Father.” She waved him over towards the storeroom end of the basement. “We can talk here.” She braced herself for a lecture.

  “Thank you for saving my behind earlier.”

  Mia was surprised by this but rebounded fast. “No problem, Father, I’m glad you weren’t hurt. I operate on my instincts and sometimes can be a little rough. Sorry about the collar burn.”

  He rubbed his neck. “I’d rather have a sore neck than receive a punch from that monster. Do you know where he went?”

  “I suspect he’s hanging around his grave out by the old hog barn. His brother is in the subbasement trying to draw power there. I suspect both of them were able to siphon power off of Mary Mary Quite Contrary.”

  “Now that’s she’s gone…”

  “They’ll find another source. That’s why we have to unearth the dead and move them to consecrated ground.”

  “My team is en route. I’m a bit concerned about the activity here. I’d like to bring Angelo here.”

  “No,” Mia said firmly.

  “You don’t trust Angelo, do you?”

  “I know you are aware of what happened to me under his care. If you were me would you trust him?”

  “No,” he answered honestly.

  “I am not a pawn to be used by him or PEEPs for that matter. I was given this gift by God, and to put this frankly, God gave me a healthy dose of freewill to go along with it. I will not be controlled by Angelo and his minions. I appreciate him stepping in and saving my life, but I will not be used again without my permission or…”

  “Ted’s?” Father Santos filled in. “You surprise me, Mia. You fight so hard for your independence, but you give it all away for this man. Why?”

  “I love him. I trust him, and I’m not giving away my independence,” Mia corrected. “I’ve found a partner that cares. Someone, other than Murphy, who has my back. Someone I don’t want to worry, if I’m late. Someone to help me make decisions.”

  “Why don’t you marry him?”

  “He hasn’t asked me.” She wanted to add, “It’s none of your business,” but as a priest who probably suspected that they were already doing the horizontal tango, he probably thought it was his business.

  “If you are a married woman, Angelo has to abide by the laws of his religion, which negates his involvement with you unless it is sanctioned by your spouse,” Father Santos said quickly as if he was telling her something that was confidential.

  “I can’t get married just to protect myself from Angelo,” Mia said softly. “But, man-oh-man, that’s good to know. Thank you, Father Santos.”

  “Attention, attention, there are six hearses, four SUVs making their way up the drive, and a truck pulling a backhoe,” Ted announced in her ear.

  “Father, your team has arrived,” Mia said as it occurred to her that Ted could hear everything she and the priest talked about. She closed her eyes a moment. “I’ll stay down here and keep an eye out for Richard while you look over the data we collected.”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  She watched him walk away and touched her ear com. “You busy, Ted?”

  “Never too busy for you, Mrs. Ted.”

  Mia laughed, and for the first time that day, she felt the stress ease. “I’m glad you’re in my life.”

  “Me too,” he said softly. Ted cleared his voice and told her, “I’ve got a foyer full of men in white jumpsuits. I feel like NASA. We will revisit this in our time, Mia, I promise,” he said softly.

  Mia smiled and returned to her post.

  Chapter Forty

  Burt and Audrey arrived back to see the full deployment of Father Santos’s team. Alan okayed the destruction of the wall ten feet from where Mary Bonner’s ashes lay smoldering. He perched himself in the library where he sat and enjoyed a Subway meatball sub while watching what could be the end of his career. Audrey wandered up after escorting Burt to the command console to relieve Ted.

  “Quite an enterprise there,” Audrey said, looking out the window beside him.

  “Father Santos has gotten someone to issue paperwork stating that they’re moving a private graveyard. There even is a local lab standing by to run DNA tests.” He looked over at her. He was puzzled by her continued enthusiasm. “I heard I missed the barbecue.”

  “It was memorable. Mia’s still watching the tunnel for anything that would ignite the house.”

  “I wish they’d burned the place down,” he said honestly. “The lives this is going to ruin by the time we’re done here…”

  “Why?”

  “The scandal the remaining Bonner family will face.”

  “Who has to know?”

  “Crimes have happened here. Innocent men and women murdered.”

  “Rumored, not substantiated,” Audrey reminded him.

  “Not you too. You drink the Burt Hicks-Mia Cooper Kool-Aid?

  “No, I just can see the profitability of keeping some skeletons closeted. The shelter gets the house. Hagan gets his white collar haven. We can sleep nights. Sure there will always be a tinge of what if, but all in all, I think we can rescue the situation with common sense,” she told him.

  “The whole faux Eleanor bit…”

  “Hearsay from a ghost.”

  “No. It just won’t carry with my conscience. I’ve ordered DNA tests on Eleanor and Gruber. And Hagan has volunteered to be swabbed.”

  “Don’t they already have his DNA?”

  “Yes, law enforcement. This is private,” he clarified.

  “Oh.”

  “I thought that I wo
uld check out the theory that through marriage Eleanor deserved to inherit the mansion.”

  Audrey smiled. She lost interest in the garden and began to look at the remaining books on the shelves.

  Alan followed her with his eyes when he spotted something. “Audrey, stop. Run your hand back three books. Yes that one. What is it?”

  “Bonner Family Bible,” she read on the spine. She pulled it off the shelf. “Why would the family need two bibles?” She walked over to Alan and set the heavy tome on the desk.

  Alan looked over her shoulder as she opened the book. “Hidden in plain sight,” he sighed. “The real gardening journal of Mary and Eleanor perhaps?”

  “Burt, we’ve found the gardening book. Do you think Mia would like to see it? over,” Audrey asked.

  “I’ll ask, over.” Burt came back on, “She’s happy you found it but isn’t much into reading at the moment. Mia says she’ll wait for the movie, over.”

  Audrey laughed and relayed the information to Alan.

  He chuckled and pulled over an extra chair for him. “Then it’s up to us,” he said sitting down.

  Under the title “Splicing” they found Mary’s Copperplate-like handwriting.

  Richard thinks I would not notice the difference. Imagine a mother not knowing her own daughter! The man’s insane. Where did this poor girl come from? Are her parents looking for her? She doesn’t even know her own mind.

  It’s been a few weeks, and Eleanor no longer questions why we all don’t look familiar to her. Is her memory coming back? What will Richard do? I found out from Robert that Elly is planted in the garden, but he won’t tell me where.

  Under the section titled “Planting New Roses,” Mary wrote between the typed instructions:

  Another pregnant Rose. At the rate my husband is going, I will have to lay in quite a supply of arsenic before winter. I decided the pit is good enough for them. Richard’s father kept his mother down there after he stopped her before she could run away with the portrait artist. Such a scandalous family I married into.