by H. P. Bayne
“Come on,” Dez said. “Not here.”
The ghosts had always terrified Dez. Only his loyalty to Sully kept him from running away screaming any time one of them turned up. Seeing this one, even Sully struggled to stay put.
Some spirits, he’d read somewhere, appeared as they’d lived, free of any evidence of the death process.
Sully had never been so lucky.
Even with horrific injuries, some homicide victims moved normally in ghost form; others slogged along beneath the severity of their wounds.
This one fit the latter category.
While Sully was certain the ghost was male, little else was discernible, his clothing covered in blood and bodily tissue, and his skull crushed so severely his features were unrecognizable. His lean body bowed backward over a shattered spine, one arm twisted around him from the front and the femur of one leg jutted out where the thigh bent at a sickening angle. Bones poked through flesh in other areas, as did other parts of him clearly meant to be kept inside.
Sully swallowed.
Dez cut into Sully’s study. “Who is it?”
“I don’t know,” Sully said. “But I guess I’m going to have to find out.”
2
Dez had missed countless things about Sully.
His brother’s soft rumbles of laughter. The way he sometimes hid behind a curtain of hair when he spoke. His tendency to emerge from a self-imposed silence with some profound nugget of wisdom or, occasionally, self-reproach.
What Dez didn’t miss was this—running through a wooded area, an alley or an abandoned building as Sully led him on a hunt for one of his ghosts.
Like a bloodhound, once Sully caught the scent, there was no stopping him. Dez saw his role as something of a handler, and he took up his usual task with a lunge that ended with his brother’s bicep snagged in long fingers.
“Hold up. What are we doing, exactly?”
Sully’s eyes caught Dez’s only briefly before scanning the darkness around them. “Looking for the guy I saw.”
Dez played the beam of his flashlight around the area, one eye sealed shut as if a potential glimpse of a ghost would be rendered half as horrifying. “Where is he?”
“I don’t know. I can’t see him anymore. But I feel like he’s leading me this way.”
For his part, Pax seemed to agree, the outline of his black coat just visible about twenty-five feet ahead as Dez aimed the flashlight in the direction Sully had been running. Pax dropped back onto his haunches as if awaiting a command, and Dez hoped he and Sully could agree on what that order would be.
“Listen, man, we left the fire burning back there. It’s not safe.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” Sully said. “Why don’t you go back and keep an eye on things? I’ll take Pax and keep searching.”
“Better idea. Why don’t we both go back, and we’ll try this again tomorrow, when it’s light out? This isn’t safe, either. You trip on a rock and bust your head open, Pax isn’t carrying you back to camp. Anyway, the last time you took off on me to chase a ghost, you got yourself in pretty deep, remember?”
Dez had brought the flashlight beam back toward them, and the ambient light from the down-facing flare proved enough to reveal the relenting smile on Sully’s lips.
“Okay, point taken. We’ll pick this up tomorrow.” Sully cemented the statement with a solid double pat to his leg that had Pax trotting over, and the three of them started back in the direction they’d left the campsite.
“I hate to ask, but what did the guy look like?”
Sully’s hair was significantly longer than it once was, the better to hide the side-eye Dez was certain his brother was aiming his way now. “You sure you want to know?”
Dez wasn’t sure, but there was no getting around it. At one time, Sully would have taken his sightings to their father, but those days were over. Now all Sully had was Dez which, given the way the older man’s stomach was rolling, probably wasn’t saying much.
“Just tell me,” he said.
“I think it’s the guy from the cave collapse a few years back.”
“The high school kid? Carter What’s-his-face? That was ruled an accident.”
Sully shrugged, a move that had, over the years, come to say it all.
“So, not an accident, then,” Dez concluded.
“They never found him, did they?”
“Nope. Same way we never found you. No one could shift all the rock that had come down on him. It was too unstable, especially so soon after the flood, and they couldn’t get any large machinery this far into the woods. His family and friends figured they’d just let him lie. He was a spelunker, anyway. Guess he wouldn’t have minded going that way.”
“Only he didn’t go that way,” Sully said. “I mean, it’s pretty obvious the guy I saw was crushed to death. But it was no accident.”
“If it was, you wouldn’t be seeing him.”
“Bingo.”
“Let me ask you something. Most of them, the people you see, they make sure you see them, right? They don’t make you play Blind Man’s Bluff.”
“I know. I almost have the feeling he’s hiding.”
“From you?”
Sully tilted his head. “Maybe. He doesn’t know me.”
“Neither did most of the others. They sure didn’t seem to care.”
“Could be he’s scared. Or maybe he’s embarrassed about how he looks.”
“Ghosts get embarrassed?”
“I don’t know, man,” Sully said. “I’ve never been one. But you know what high school’s like. Appearances are a big thing. Add the fact that, as a spelunker, he was probably in pretty decent physical condition. It’s got to be a far slide from where he was to where he is now. The mechanics of death are a lot to take in for anyone, let alone a teenager. At the end of the day, he’s still a kid.”
Dez narrowly missed tripping on a large branch in his path. “If he’s ashamed of how he looks, what makes you think he’ll show himself to you again?”
“Because one thing isn’t going to change. He’s trapped here, and he’ll stay that way unless he can find someone to help him.”
Morning was a long time coming.
The rock in Dez’s back was now nothing but added incentive to stay awake, his main reason for insomnia the mental picture he’d created of the ghost that had found them in the dark.
Sully had no similar problems sleeping, a reminder he’d come a long way from the days when, as a small, terrified kid, he’d crawled into Dez’s bed and hid his face in his foster brother’s pyjama top. The man Sully had become still grew uneasy about the things he saw, but he no longer feared them.
Sully was an early riser, and Dez waited until he heard his brother rekindling the fire for what would soon be coffee and breakfast. Knowing Sully would keep all three of his working eyes open for anything paranormal, Dez finally allowed himself the sleep he desperately needed.
When he awoke, Sully was sitting on the log that served as a campsite bench, nursing a coffee next to a crackling fire while Pax rested next to him.
Dez stretched and let out a groan as his back protested the movement. “Please tell me you made extra.”
Sully quirked up one side of his mouth and waited until Dez had joined him on the log-bench before placing a steaming mug in his hands. “You didn’t sleep, did you?”
“I kept thinking your new friend was going to come back.”
“He wouldn’t hurt anyone, you know. He isn’t the type. And like I said, he seems to be a hider. Now that he knows I can see him, he’ll probably avoid me unless I can convince him otherwise.”
“So you’ve got nothing to worry about then, right? I mean, if he isn’t going to harass you like the others, you can just let this one lie.”
Sully’s answer put an end to that thought. “Aiden’s a hider too. Wouldn’t you want someone to help him? It’s no way to exist, Dez. I’ve seen them when I’m able to help them cross. The peace they find in it, there’s no w
ay to describe it.”
“You said you think this guy might be hiding since he’s embarrassed about how he looks. Why would Aiden hide? Did he look… bad? I mean, I didn’t see him after they found him, but I’ve seen bodies after they’re pulled out of the water. Does he—”
Sully cut him off. “He looks all right, like he must have right around the moment he died. Anyway, you know that, don’t you? You told me you saw him during the fire you pulled me out of.”
Dez remembered, mind flashing back to the image of his little brother’s spirit, dripping wet and intent as he urged Dez forward through the poisonous smoke and encroaching flames, leading him to Sully and, from there, to safety. “I didn’t want to ask. I was afraid I hallucinated it, what with all the smoke I was inhaling.”
“I saw him too, Dez. You weren’t hallucinating.”
A building heat warned of tears, and Dez pressed at the corners of his eyes to hold back what had already surfaced. “How did I see him? I don’t see things like you do.”
“Maybe it was partially because of the smoke, or maybe it was because—like when you were buried alive—you were close to death. But it might be simpler than that. Maybe you saw him because you needed to.”
This time, a tear escaped Dez’s defences, and he swiped it away as he felt his brother’s hand, warmed from the mug of coffee it had just been holding, settle on his shoulder. “We’ll get there, Dez. I’ll find Aiden, and I’ll figure out a way to help him. I promise.”
Dez sniffled and nodded. There was no way he’d manage further conversation until he’d fought back the lump in his throat, and he did what he could by taking a sip of coffee and swallowing it down hard.
“You okay?”
Dez nodded again, managed to form a croaky but not overly shaky response. “Fine. Thanks, buddy.”
Sully gave Dez’s shoulder a solid pat, then returned his hand to the mug. “Any ideas for how I’m going to get out to the acreage without Mom seeing me?”
“One thing at a time,” Dez said. “This guy you saw. You’re right. We need to help him. He’s just a kid. It’s no way for him to exist, floating around in the state he’s in. Question is, how do we handle it?”
“Same way we’ve always handled it, I guess.”
“Sure, but that’s not going to work very well now, is it? I’m not a cop anymore and, as far as the world at large is concerned, you’re dead.”
“You’re working for Lachlan Fields, aren’t you? I know you can’t keep going to Eva for help, but Lachlan must still have some contacts on the force. Maybe he can get us access to the kid’s file.”
Dez shrugged. “Good a place to start as any. Biggest problem’s probably going to be the family. I can’t imagine they’re going to deal well with it if we turn up on their doorstep, telling them their son was murdered and is roaming the woods near where he was killed.”
“Maybe we can cross that bridge later. For now, let’s just head to Lachlan’s. He’ll have some ideas for us probably, right?”
“Knowing him, he’ll have plenty of ideas for us. And most of them will involve telling us where we can shove our problems.”
Having packed in a storied career on the Kimotan Rapids Police Department, Lachlan Fields handled retirement in much the same way as an outdoorsman might view a grizzly bear.
For some, nature and retirement were there simply to be respected and enjoyed; for others, they were a beast to be conquered.
Lachlan would never willingly go gentle into that good night, whether he was talking about death, illness or boredom. He continued to endure what, for him, was the ultimate hell, a debilitating concussion that prevented a full return to his private detective business.
It also meant a need to rely on other people for help. Dez had become one of those people—though, thankfully, Lachlan had stopped short of ordering the younger man on grocery or pharmacy runs.
Dez had been to Lachlan’s North Bank-area home only once since the man’s discharge from hospital, and had stayed just long enough to pick up an extra set of keys to the office. Lachlan had brought the previously unemployed Dez onboard to keep the investigation business running while he recovered, and already there had been no end to the run of menial tasks needing done.
Nor did it appear an end was in sight.
Dez was barely in the door when Lachlan started dishing out instructions on a matter he’d been asked to investigate.
“Man called to say his wife lost her wedding band and engagement ring,” Lachlan said, reclined on a sofa in one of numerous art-filled rooms in his gallery of a house. Papers surrounded him, and it was testament to the state of the obsessively organized man’s health that they weren’t neatly stacked.
“I actually came here about something else.”
“Do you want the job working for me or don’t you?”
Dez looked for an out, found it standing slightly behind him. “Uh, Lachlan, this is Sully.”
“I assumed that much. What’s he doing here?”
“We were camping.”
“What’s that got to do with it? It’s broad daylight, and no one’s supposed to know he exists. Or have I missed something?”
For Lachlan, sarcasm spilled from his mouth as naturally as breath. Dez suspected the loss of either would spell instant death for the man.
Dez was reminded why Lachlan was admired but not missed by the KRPD.
“You already knew about Sully being alive, so there was no problem bringing him with me.”
“No problem, except the possibility of his being seen. We all know that’s a risk he can’t take.”
“I’m careful,” Sully said.
“If you’re out in public, you’re not being careful enough. We don’t want any repeats of last week, do we? I sure as hell don’t. One more blow to the head like I took, and they’ll have to dig me a grave next to your old man. Now, before I hand over the missing ring file, you want to tell me what you’re doing here?”
Dez met Sully’s eye, waiting for the nod he received. They’d discussed it en route, how honest to be with this relative stranger. Dez told his brother Lachlan already knew about Sully’s ability to see the dead, the detail having been included in a file the man kept hidden inside a locked storage container in a secure compound. Even so, Dez had spent a lifetime helping Sully conceal the secret, and it felt wrong to talk about it to anyone who wasn’t family.
Sully knew it, and Dez was relieved when his brother provided the explanation. “Dez thought you might be able to help with something I saw overnight. Ordinarily, I would have gone to Dad, and he would have looked into it for me. But, obviously, that’s off the table.”
“Is there a point you’re planning on getting to this year?”
Dez glared at the man. Sully chuckled.
“Yeah, actually. Dez told me you know I can see the dead.”
Lachlan raised an eyebrow. “That’s what Rhona told me when I was working for her. I gotta say, it’s going to take some convincing. I don’t believe in that stuff.”
Sully’s reply sent a shiver through Dez.
“You’ve got three of them attached to you. I’m guessing they’re ones you never solved. One of them is a woman, a blonde Caucasian in a long, white dress. She’s missing her shoes, and her back is to me, so I can’t see her face. There’s a baby near her, but although I think they belong together, she doesn't seem aware of him or her. The man doesn’t appear to be with them, so I’m thinking an unrelated case. He’s Indigenous, short, dark hair, wearing dress pants and a white button-down. Do you want me to go into their injuries?”
By the look on Lachlan’s face, Dez figured they’d be lucky if the man managed to form a thought, let alone a verbal response. Point for Sully. Dez would have been shocked to learn Lachlan had ever worn that expression.
“How…? How did you—?”
“I’ve been seeing ghosts for as long as I can remember. Just the ones who were victims of a homicide. They appear because they need something. Usual
ly they want justice, but sometimes they just want to pass along a message to someone or lay something to rest.”
“Hang on. You’re telling me you can see these people? Does that mean you can help me figure out what happened to them?”
“Maybe. I can’t ask them, if that’s what you’re wondering. I can see, but I can’t hear them. Whenever they try to talk to me, there’s no sound and their mouths look garbled, like they’re moving at ten times the normal speed. I’ve learned to work around it.”
“I need you to help me with these people. It’s been years. I need to find answers for them, for their families.”
“I’ll help you,” Sully said. “But first I need your help with the guy I saw last night.”
“Deal. What do you need?”
“There was a high school kid who was killed during a cave-in shortly after the flood four years ago. I think this has to be him.”
“Carter Devereaux. I remember. Made the news for weeks. Went searching for adventure, found death instead. It was reported as an accident, that he was trapped and presumed crushed to death. What makes you think it’s anything else?”
“I told you. The fact I’m seeing him means there’s way more to it than a simple accident.”
“And he can’t tell you, is what you’re saying.”
“I’m not even sure he’ll come around again. He took off on me as soon as he realized he was visible to me. Could be he’s ashamed of the way he looks. He’s in really bad shape.”
“That’s a given. I’m guessing you want a peek at the police file.”
“Can you get it?” Dez asked. “I don’t have easy access anymore, and I can’t keep putting my wife in a bad spot.”
“Fair enough. Not to worry. I’ve got some handily placed friends. I’ll see what I can do. In the meantime, I need you to go deal with the missing ring. It’s a crap case, but it’ll pay the bills. Can’t ask for better than that.”
“I kinda thought you’d be at us to get to the bottom of your three-ghost problem,” Dez said.
“Nuh-uh,” Lachlan said. “They’re mine. I worked my ass off on those two investigations. No way I’m letting some psychic and his upstart brother walk away with the credit. We’re not touching those until I’m in a fit state to join you. Right now, I want you working the ring case. In the meantime, I’ll see what I can do about that file.”