by Alexie Aaron
Murphy was scouting out the place. He was pleased to find some hardwood trees on the hillside behind the cabins. He thought he would give Mia and Whit time together. He wasn’t upset exactly at the pairing, because he knew it was inevitable, but he still was jealous of the living and what joy Whit must be experiencing making love to Mia. The sane part of Murphy knew that he couldn’t give her children. Whit could, or if they weren’t careful, would soon impregnate Mia. Murphy couldn’t support her. All he could do was protect her and wait for her. It was like that old movie April and he watched on PBS one afternoon. It was called The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. Murphy thought it was improbable but entertaining at the time. Now he wondered. He thought about it a lot. Could he be that unselfish? Could he stick around and watch Mia grow old? Or would he have to leave like the Captain did?
If there hadn’t been the vortex incident when he actually felt her when she held his hand. If only he didn’t love her. If only Father Santos wasn’t watching the two of them from afar. Priests could be so unsympathetic. Murphy forced his thoughts back to the trees. He saw a likely candidate. It was an aged apple tree. He raised his axe and took out his pain and sorrow on the tree.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Burt looked up and smiled. Murphy had made it.
Ted saluted. “Great to see you, old bean!”
Mike shuddered. Murphy always picked on him.
Beth wondered if she could get some help with the groceries, or did she need an axe too? “Hello, woman here with food,” she called.
Ted stuck his head out of the truck and smiled. Mike walked into his room and closed the door. Burt moved forward and grabbed two of the bags. He led her to the cabin. “Ted’s got your key. Let’s put the groceries away first, shall we?”
Beth smirked knowing the we meant her. “Everyone arrive already?”
“All present and accounted for, you’re the last to arrive.” Burt opened the door to the cabin. It was a pleasant little place, an open space with plenty of couches and chairs. There was a kitchenette tucked in the corner. The bed and bathroom opened into the main room. Burt had his stuff in there. Since he was lead on this investigation, he claimed the best room.
She put the cold stuff away in the refrigerator, noting the bottom was filled with beers, and left the rest on the counter. “Well, I better get my key and get my stuff sorted.”
“We have a meeting in a half hour. Team meeting. And the team includes Mia and Whitney Martin. I expect you to have made up with Mia prior to us meeting. Or leave,” he ordered.
Beth was taken aback. “I hope you gave Mia the same lecture.”
“Mia hasn’t said a word about your message beyond asking big mouth about it.” Burt held up his hands. “She has a relationship with Whit. She isn’t sleeping with Ted who, according to him, isn’t your boyfriend. He is your friend, her friend, my friend and so on. I don’t know why you manufactured this romantic pairing in your head, but the guy isn’t worth your destroying my team with petty jealousy. We have to be able to count on each other. It wasn’t Ted that fought off that biker goon to set you free. That was Mia. It wasn’t Ted that covered for you when you were out of commission. That was Mia.” Burt slammed down his fist on the counter. “I can’t even act like the jealous ex because you are doing it for me.”
“I thought you dumped her?”
“At this point I don’t care if it was me or her. We had a good time together, and now it’s over. She’s moved on, and I haven’t. The two of them have been friends for years. I don’t like him, but that’s me. I don’t have to sleep with him. Besides he looks like a cover hog to me,” Burt said to lessen the tension.
Beth smiled. “Okay I hear yah.”
“Now go and be professional,” Burt said and showed her out the door. He closed it after her. He put his head on the door and banged it a few times. “Stupid, stupid, stupid.” His spleen vented and his balance restored, Burt proceeded to ready the room for a meeting.
Mia heard Murph’s axe as she exited the shower. She took her time dressing. She was glad for the new undies and clothes Ralph had bought for her because she wouldn’t have had anything clean to wear otherwise. She walked into the bedroom to get her bag and saw Whit curled up. Mia pulled the blanket off the other queen bed in the room and covered him up with it.
There was a tap on the door. Mia looked through the peephole and saw it was Beth. “Just a minute,” she called and grabbed Whit’s shirt and pulled it over her silk underwear. She grabbed the key, opened the door and slid out onto the porch.
Beth looked at the tiny disheveled woman and started crying.
Mia held her and said, “It’s over with. I’m not a gypsy, I’m a freak, and both are cool.”
“You’re not mad at me?”
“I was, but figured you picked up something in the bar. Something that made you a bit crazy,” Mia reasoned.
“I don’t know. I was just crushed when Ted left with you.”
“We were chased out of town. He just went with the momentum.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m sorry if I made you feel insecure.”
Beth hugged her. “We have a team meeting in a half hour at the cabin.”
“Okay, I better get Whit moving. See you there.”
Mia walked back into the room, and Beth stood there a moment before heading for her room.
Ted watched the scene from the safety of the truck. Mia’s choice of coverup did nothing to hide what she was and wasn’t wearing. Beth, although attractive, didn’t get his joystick going like Mia did. But that ship had sailed and was bobbing around with deputy dog in attendance. He would drown his sorrows in some Mountain Dew and get back to work.
Whit, fresh from the shower, was dressed in jeans and a tee. Mia preferred cargo pants as she needed the pockets. She pulled on the sweater she had worn at the museum after smelling the armpits to make sure it wasn’t stinky. Whit witnessed this and laughed.
“What?” she asked confused.
“You are uniquely you,” was all Whit said before he picked up the keys and opened the door. “I’ll meet you at the cabin. I’m going to stretch my legs.”
Mia watched him leave and went in search of two matching socks. Murphy eased through the door and watched her crawl on the floor. He slid his axe on top of the dressing table.
Mia heard the scratching sound and turned around. “Hey, Murph. I’m looking for the mate to this.” She held up the red sock and asked, “Help me out? I know I packed two to them.”
He moved through the room and found it under the washstand. He tapped the sink.
“Cool beans! Thanks.” Mia sat on the bed, put the socks on and started to put on her shoes. “Hey, I know we both wish things could be different, but are you alright with Whit?”
Murphy pushed back his hat and sighed. He then walked over and touched her stomach and, with extreme regret, shook his head.
She felt the tingle and agreed, “I know. We would have had stellar kids. I want kids. Even freaks like me.” Her face softened. “I will always love you. That will never change,” she said as he looked seriously at her. “Whit and I aren’t a sure thing. Hell, I’m not sure I’m cut out for a serious relationship, but I’d like to try.”
Murphy looked at the hope in Mia’s eyes. It was something that he hadn’t seen before. If Whitney pee pants gave her hope, he wasn’t going to interfere with that. He nodded in understanding and pointed to her and then to his chest.
Mia returned the sign and sighed. They were going to be okay.
Ted knocked on Burt’s door with his foot. His arms were full of equipment. Burt opened the door, grabbed the laptop projector and stepped aside for Ted to enter. Beth was busy putting away the rest of the groceries that she was certain Burt could have lifted a finger to do. Mike sat sulking in the corner, glaring at Whit and Mia who were sitting way too close. Ted set up his projector and laptop on the table. He directed the projector at the wall. Whit got up and removed the velvet painter’s h
omage to dogs playing poker.
“Perfect,” Ted said as the wall became a screen.
“I’m glad to see you all safe and rested,” Burt began. “I thought I would bring us all together to brainstorm. We’ve lots of information to share. After, we have been invited to a barbecue at the home of a new friend of ours, Homely Homer.”
“Cool beans,” Mia said. “I like barbecues.”
“Food, Mia, you like food,” Ted commented.
“Yes, especially when someone else is cooking,” Mia agreed.
“Children,” Burt warned. “Okay, this is what we know. Since we’ve been gone, there has been a steady increase in violent paranormal activity at Lucky’s. A child, a teenager, Manny Ramirez has been killed. His body is still on the tarmac of the parking lot. It’s still too dangerous to recover it.” Burt nodded to Ted who had clipped together highlights of the state cops vs biker ghosts that happened that morning.
The others watched in silence. Mia piped up. “The holy water didn’t work?”
“It did on some of the ghosts. But that big brute you, Ted and I tangled with was only stopped for a moment.”
“He must not believe in the power of the church,” Mia reasoned.
“Maybe it was too much water for the monk to bless at one time,” suggested Ted.
“Or he was too powerful to be affected,” Mike pointed out. “Like in the hollow. The hag had no context of Christianity and so didn’t baulk when presented with Father Santos’s tricks.”
“Okay, let’s say this is similar to the hollow. What is driving these folks? What are they drawing their power from?” Burt asked.
“I’ve learned a few things,” Beth started. “I think that we are dealing with anniversary haunts. Two of them.” She flipped open her notebook and read. “In 1966, as we know, two bikers wandered into Lucky’s, oblivious that they were in a rival gang’s territory. They were killed, as was one of the berserkers of the home turf’s gang. Lucky’s gang allowed the rival to collect the men’s bodies and leave unscathed. Or that is what the newspaper reports.”
“Why the massing of both gangs now?” Mike asked.
“Perhaps as the bikers died they were drawn together. The souls of the two weren’t released because of the makeup of the building. I think they assume that the Lucky’s gang are still holding their men,” Burt offered.
Mia nodded, it sounded true, and asked, “What was the other anniversary, Beth?”
“1926, Lucky’s was dealing with prohibition in its own special way. The top floor was used as a restaurant. The cellar was a speakeasy. Everybody in the area knew about it, and the cops turned a blind eye. That is until a group from Chicago decided it wanted a piece of the business. There was a confrontation, and by the end of it thirty people were dead, most of them innocents.”
“They couldn’t move on either, because of the yellow dolomite,” Mia said sadly. “They are trapped in a sealed foundation of stone and mortar.”
“So we have two anniversaries on the same day, which is when?” Mike asked.
“Day after tomorrow,” Beth said.
“What happens if they don’t get their guys?” Mike asked.
“I imagine they will tear up the diner and the town on their side of the iron bridge. Maybe move down Route 66. It all depends on how much power they have drawn.”
“Is there any stronger energy source than anger?” Burt asked Mia.
“It feeds off of evil and evil is ever present. We need to defuse the anger. Release the pent-up spirits and blow the fucking bar up,” Mia advised. “It’s a trap for good as well as generating power for evil.”
“I wonder,” Whit began, looking at Burt for permission to speak. He got a nod and continued, “I wonder if there was another way out. Seems to me that if I was operating an illegal enterprise I would make damn sure I had an exit strategy.”
“You and I are of the same mind.” Burt nodded to Ted who pulled up some photos Burt and Homely took. “These are from this side of the river. See that falls? I think the water that Beth, Mia and I heard flows out towards the falls. There are supposed to be a series of caves behind it. Beth has been in contact with a few people that have gotten pretty far back in there.”
“They never connected with the bar,” Beth added. “There are signs of manmade tunneling, but it is blocked off and partially underwater.”
“How much water?” Mia asked.
“I don’t know. They didn’t say. I imagine it depends on the time of year and whether there have been any recent rain storms. Why?”
“I could bilocate and go with Murph to check it out. But he and I can’t move through water easily, it zaps our energy. He may be able to recover, but since I’m bilocating and not a spiritual being, I won’t be able to draw energy as easily. We also can’t move through the blessed rock.”
“But you could scout it out.”
“Yes. I would be blind because I can’t carry a light with me. But Murph could guide me.”
Whit took her hand and squeezed it. “How dangerous would this be?”
“Don’t know. Hopefully less than the museum,” she answered honestly. “It would help if we could wait until daylight, and I would need to get across the river before I OOBed. So add a boat to your list, Ted.”
“One boat. Will you need climbing gear?”
Mia looked at him oddly. “I don’t need gear to float.”
“K, one boat.”
Chapter Thirty-four
Mia parked the PEEPs’ six passenger black SUV on the apron of the drive. She had drawn the short straw and wouldn’t be drinking tonight. The team piled out, and Whit handed her the bag with Murphy’s axe head in it. She secured it in the glove box, locking it before she left the vehicle.
She took Whit’s offered arm and made her way up the long drive to the back yard. She nodded at some familiar faces. Fast Eddie was regaling the others with his rescue of Dave from atop the roof of the bar. A short, bespectacled gentleman, who was introduced to her as Doc, pointed out where the beer was. He offered to keep Mia company while Whit helped himself.
“I’m the guy that filmed the rescue today and gave Burt the blessed sand,” he explained.
“Thanks for the dolomite. It came in very handy,” Mia said.
“My wife was glad to be rid of the pile. Tell me, are you really a psychic?”
“No. I am not a psychic. To quote the movie, “I see dead people.” His face fell. Mia laughed. “Sorry, no lottery numbers or life directions from me. I have a hard enough time choosing long distant carriers.”
“Do you do séances?”
“Um, I’m not a medium. Are you a man of science?”
“Yes.”
“Here’s the deal.” Mia thought a moment. “The human brain is a brilliant machine. Yes?”
“More or less.”
“We can run our bodies with it while solving math problems or learning languages. We don’t have to stop breathing in order to think.”
“I see where you’re going with this.”
“My brain from birth had an extra bonus, some call it a gift, some call it a curse. I can see into a world that moves at a higher speed but is in the very same dimension that we are in. This is where ghosts move. Some, as you saw within that viewfinder, have found a way of interacting physically with us. I can also move in this world faster than the ghosts. This is what happens when one develops their brain in order to bilocate. Bilocation is sending my essence, my thoughts and, perhaps, soul out into the world while my body continues to function.”
“Bilocation, is that a gift?”
“No. It’s a skill. It can be learned. Not everyone has the ability, but you don’t have to be able to see ghosts in order to do it. Facts are that the majority of bilocating humans do not see or interact with ghosts or other entities. My gifts may make it easier for me.”
“Interesting.”
“What are you a doctor of?”
“A psychiatrist.”
“Ah, I bet yo
u get tired of people calling you a shrink.”
“Goes with the business.
“As does being called a psychic, in mine,” Mia said.
“What else can you do?”
“I’m not a circus performer. I don’t do tricks,” Mia said with an edge to her voice.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t’ mean it that way. I meant, can you read minds?”
“No. Although, I know a few that can. Again it’s all in the brain. And how you train it.” Mia looked for Whit and saw he was caught up in a conversation with Homely and a few others. “Doc, is there a reason for your particular line of questioning? Are you looking for a lost relative or answers of some kind?”
“Maybe. I think we all want to know what happens when we die.”
“Well, if you pass over, out of this dimension, I can’t tell you what to expect. If you stay, like the ghosts in your video, I can pretty much give you an idea of what you’re in for.”
“Do you have a choice?”
“Some do, some don’t. Some choose to stay. Some are afraid to move on. Some find each other or wait for someone. You noticed I say some frequently. There aren’t a lot of them out there, but a lot more than you think. If I can release them by using my gifts, I will. If they need a man of the cloth, I will find one for them. If they are doing harm, I will destroy them,” Mia underscored the last sentence with an intense stare over Doc’s shoulder.
He turned around. “What?”
Mia continued to stare at the man who was sitting on the back of a Harley smoking a Lucky Strike cigarette.
“Whose bike is this?” Mia asked pointing to the hog.
“Mine. I found it in my Aunt Edith’s garage. Homer helped me fix it up. It had been in a crash.”
“Killed the driver?”
“Yes, my Uncle Henry’s friend, Roger.”
“You wouldn’t have a picture of him would you?”