“Backup? You got the Psychic Friends Network on speed dial?”
“Not exactly,” Sadie said. “But you’ve met my friend Maeva Morrison.”
“Ah, geez, the one that runs that freaky new age store downtown?”
“Madame Maeva’s Psychic Café.” Sadie held up a hand. “I know. I know. You don’t want a parade of weirdoes running around your crime scene.”
“You got that right. It’s bad enough I had to ask you to do your—” He waved his hands in the air. “Your, um, mumbo jumbo thingamajig. No offense.”
“None taken. But I think I should talk to Maeva about this and see if she can help. She’s a pro.”
“A pro?” Petrovich had a pained expression on his face.
“Don’t worry. We’ll keep it low-key. Nobody needs to know.”
“Why do I get the feeling I’m going to regret this?”
10
Sadie found Maeva saying good-bye to her last customer for the night. Her staff were locking up, and Maeva looked at Sadie in surprise.
“To what do I owe the pleasure of this unexpected visit?” Maeva asked.
“To the fact that I’m a little stressed and you’ve been known to listen to me when I need to unload,” Sadie replied.
“This unloading, is it going to make me miss the new chicken parmigiana recipe that Terry has simmering at home?”
“Since I’ve never cooked chicken parmigiana, I have no idea how to answer that.”
“Well, living with a high-end caterer means there’s always something to eat, so I guess I can get him to keep it warm until I get there,” Maeva replied. She said good-bye to the multipierced young lady who worked the front counter and then called her boyfriend and asked for her dinner to be kept warm. Next, Sadie and Maeva walked down the hall of Madame Maeva’s Psychic Café. Each door in the hall was painted a different bright color. Maeva chose the blue one. The door opened into one of Maeva’s reading rooms, where she offered psychic consultations for a hefty fee. Sadie had met Maeva at just such a reading, and they’d bonded over an immediate dislike for each other that had morphed into a strong friendship based on acknowledging each other’s inner weirdness.
Sadie lowered herself onto an overstuffed cushion on the floor next to a small square table.
“What’s up?” Maeva asked, plopping down on a pillow across from her friend.
“Let’s see,” Sadie said, taking a deep breath. “My mom caught me having a conversation with my dead father so I told her about how I talk to the dead, but I’m not sure if that was the right decision or not. Then I caught Paula kissing Zack’s sore foot and I’m worried that Zack might be heading down the wrong path ’cause he’s pumping painkillers and washing ’em down with vodka, not to mention the fact he won’t call me back. Also, Detective Petrovich just had me at the Wickses’ house trying to work things out with an angry ghost there ’cause he believes I’m some sort of witch doctor gone voodoo crazy. Of course I made no headway there because this ghost has no interest in doing anything but piss people off.” Sadie took a deep breath. “And so I was wondering if there’s anything you could do to help.” Sadie had been ticking the items off on her fingers, and now she tossed her hands in the air and added a simple, “Help.”
“Yes, yes, and no,” Maeva replied calmly.
“Excuse me?”
“Yes, it was the right decision to tell your mom about your ability because you couldn’t keep it secret forever. Yes, you should be concerned if Zack is back popping pills. Get him professional help and bitch slap Paula. No, I won’t help you with the pissed-off ghost at the Wickses’ house, because whenever I get involved in something like this, we both end up way over our heads, and Terry has forbidden me from risking my life on any more of your harebrained escapades.”
Sadie absorbed all that and came back with a simplified answer of her own. “How?”
“How what?”
“How everything? How do I get my mom to accept the truth? How do I convince Zack to get help? How do I bitch slap Paula without being charged with assault, and how do I let a mummified baby case go unresolved because of some stubborn ghost?”
Just having one person whom she could talk to about every single one of her troubles gave Sadie an immense feeling of relief. Maeva offered her comfort but, even more important, she always had solid, practical advice. Sadie continued to talk, and mostly Maeva just listened and let her get it all out. After a while Maeva began gently making suggestions, and they talked through Sadie’s situation before Sadie casually glanced at her watch and then abruptly jumped to her feet.
“Oh, my God!” she shouted. “Damn! It’s after six and I was supposed to take Zack to the doctor at four o’clock. I totally forgot!”
Sadie apologized to Maeva as she left the shop in a frenzy and speedily dialed Zack from her cell phone. No answer at home. She tried his cell and got his voice mail. She left a frantic, babbling, and apologetic message as she drove straight to the house. She expected to find Zack still asleep on the sofa, but there was no one there, except Hairy.
“Don’t suppose you know which way he went?” she asked the rabbit.
Hairy gave his nose a twitch and hopped away.
She tried Zack’s cell twice more without leaving more messages. Then, with a deep feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach, she considered dialing Paula’s number but resisted. Instead, Sadie paced the house and threw in a load of laundry. Finally, she tried Zack’s cell again and the call was answered. There was some fumbling before a voice came on the other end but, unfortunately, it wasn’t Zack’s.
“Hello?” came Paula’s breathless reply.
“Put Zack on the line,” Sadie snapped, dispensing with polite greetings.
“I would, but he’s in X-ray right now. You would know that if you’d remembered to bring him to his appointment.”
“I did remember,” Sadie said, a furious edge to her voice. “I was just running late on a job.”
“And you expected what? That Zack would wait in agony?” Paula emphasized the word agony.
“I didn’t expect—” Sadie began, but was interrupted.
“I suppose you also expected that the specialist Zack was scheduled to see would also just wait around for you?”
“Maybe if I wasn’t so busy cleaning up your mother’s mess then—”
“Just leave Sunnyside Avenue alone. All you two were supposed to do was throw out some trash. It wasn’t exactly rocket science. Now I’ve got another can of worms to deal with over there. You were a big help. Maybe if you’re not busy sticking your nose in someone else’s business, you’ll have time to take Zack to the doctor next time.”
“I was late but I would’ve gotten him there,” Sadie said slowly and evenly. “You don’t have to rush in and rescue him like—”
“I had to rush,” Paula said. “Someone had to pick him up. It’s not like he could’ve driven himself. I’m sorry if you feel I stepped on your toes, but I didn’t call Zack. He. Called. Me.”
Ouch.
Paula added, her tone changing from confrontational to sickeningly sweet, “I guess it makes sense since I am a nurse and I fully realize how an injury of this magnitude can affect a man like Zack.”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake! He broke his foot. He didn’t suffer a spinal cord injury that will confine him to a wheelchair for life.”
“It’s easy for you to play it down like it’s no big deal. You’re not the one suffering, and obviously you don’t have the kind of empathy that goes along with helping people. After all, the surgery alone will be devastating for Zack and—”
“Surgery?” Sadie cut in. “What surgery?”
“I guess Zack didn’t want to worry you that an operation is a definite possibility but—” She stopped short. “I’ve got to go. He’s being wheeled out of X-ray now.”
“I’m on my way,” Sadie replied.
“Don’t bother. By the time you get here, we’ll be done.”
The line went dead in Sadie’s ear.
Sadie didn’t know what to do. If she rushed to the doctor, Zack would most likely already be gone and, hopefully, on his way home. She settled in to wait for Zack to be dropped off by Paula. She felt tremendously guilty for missing Zack’s appointment and she’d be sure to apologize profusely, but she also planned to give Zack an earful about calling Paula instead of her and—She stopped herself short and went to dig her cell phone from her purse. She checked and had one missed call. It was from Zack and had come in a couple hours ago. Sadie dialed her voice mail, and there was a slurred yet distinct message from Zack asking if she was going to be driving him to the X-ray appointment. Oh, crap.
“I’m a bad girlfriend,” she cried, and hung her head with shame.
Guilt sat heavy and acrid in her belly while she waited for Zack. To pass the time Sadie sat in her office and powered up her computer to mindlessly play FreeCell. The card game had her clicking the mouse without even thinking.
Petrovich called and Sadie almost didn’t answer when she saw the incoming number, but then she relented just to have something else to think about. “Hello?”
“I’m afraid to ask. . . .”
“Sorry, Dean. I’ve got nothing. Maeva doesn’t want to get involved in this one.”
“That’s fine. I’ve decided to handle this differently anyway,” he announced. “I’m going back to Cedar House to talk to Mimi Wicks.”
“That’s probably a good place to start,” Sadie said, absently clicking on the cards on the screen in front of her.
“I want you to go with me,” Petrovich said.
“I don’t know what purpose that would serve,” Sadie said. She had no desire to go back to the senior center and look at the dead and near dead.
“You might be able to help,” Petrovich insisted. “I can ask her about other deaths in the house, but I don’t exactly want to be asking the old bat if she had a pissed-off ghost that she failed to mention, or if the house she owns has always been haunted.”
“Right, but I’m kind of busy right now,” Sadie said, clicking on more cards to win her game.
“Fine,” Petrovich said in a clipped tone that suggested it was far from fine. “I’ll let you know if I’m able to find out anything.”
After a couple more rounds of cards, Sadie glanced at her watch. There was no way it should’ve taken more than an hour for Paula to drive Zack home. Where could they be? Had Zack’s possible surgery become an immediate necessity?
Sadie dialed Zack’s cell but the call went direct to voice mail again, and she could do nothing but wait. Wait and pace like a caged animal. When the house phone rang, she snatched it up and barked out a hello.
“I think I’ve finally got Mom calmed down,” Dawn told Sadie over the phone.
Sadie looked at the phone like it was a live snake and then placed it back to her ear. “That’s good but I’m kind of busy. I’ll call you back.”
She disconnected the call, then paced some more and called Zack’s cell phone again and again. When she couldn’t think of another thing to distract herself from the waiting game, she called Dawn back.
“Sorry. What were you saying about Mom?”
“She’s calm, or at least not hysterical.”
“Good.” Sadie went to her fridge and grabbed a beer. “You think she’s ready to hear me talk about Dad’s ghost?” she asked, popping the tab and taking a sip.
“No. I said she was calm, not enthusiastic. I’ve stopped her from calling up the men with the white coats to come and lock you up. At this point, that’s the best I can do.”
“Oh. Thanks. I guess.”
“You okay? You sound . . . distracted.”
“I’m worried about Zack.”
“Mom told me about his foot. Is he okay?”
“I hope so. I’m waiting for him to get back from the doctor’s office now.” Sadie waited a beat. “But you didn’t call about Zack’s foot or even about Mom. Something else is up.”
“I’m wondering about Dad,” Dawn admitted.
“What about him?”
“Oh, Sadie, I’d love a chance to talk to him!” Dawn said, her voice suddenly filled with emotion. “How is he? Is he okay?”
“As okay as a dead guy can be,” Sadie replied flippantly, and then kindly added, “He’s just figuring out things. He doesn’t have a handle on the whole appearing and disappearing thing, and he’s ready for closure. He wants to move on.”
“Don’t let him move on until I get a chance to talk to him,” Dawn pleaded. “Promise?”
“I don’t have total control over that, you know,” Sadie snapped. “It’s not like I’m God or something.”
“Then we should hurry and set up a time for me to talk to him before he’s gone. When can we do it?”
“I don’t know. . . .” Sadie said truthfully. Sadie chewed her lower lip. She wondered now if keeping her dad around had been a mistake. Maeva was right. Her job was to help him go over, not to keep him around for her own amusement. Now she was going to be in the role of mediator between Dawn and her dad. She decided to try to put Dawn in touch with Dad, and if it didn’t work . . . oh, well. Sadie also vowed to have deeper, more meaningful conversations with her father so that she’d be ready when the time came to let him go.
Sadie redialed Dawn and suggested they meet at their parents’ home.
“But what about Mom?” Sadie asked.
“I won’t bring her along. She’s not ready for this. I’ll just tell her I have to step out for a while and get her to watch Dylan. Maybe watching her grandson for a couple hours will help get her mind off things.”
Sadie doubted a couple hours of anything would make her mother forget that she just buried her husband and that her daughter was barking mad.
The phone beeped, signaling that she had another call coming in, and the display said it was Zack.
“I’ve gotta go,” she told Dawn, and disconnected one call to take the other.
“I am so-o-o sorry I wasn’t here to take you to your appointment,” Sadie blurted without any other greeting. “Where are you? How’s your ankle?”
“The foot’s not so good,” Zack said, and it came out “not show go-o-od.” But he didn’t answer her first question.
“What did the doc say? Are you going to need surgery?”
“Maybe do-o-own the road.”
Sadie cringed at his slurred words. “Did you ask the doctor about the painkillers?”
“They put a cast on it but my foot still hurts like hell, so, yeah, I’m taking the fucking painkillers.”
The anger in his voice touched a nerve. “You mean Paula kissing it all better didn’t help?” she asked with a saccharine tone.
“Christ, Sadie, that was nuthin’. You don’t have to go around spying on me now.” His voice had grown loud and snarly.
“Spying?” Sadie’s jaw dropped in surprise. “I wasn’t spying, Zack. I walked into my own house only to find you on my couch getting your foot kissed by your ex-girlfriend!” She was near tears and her voice wavered around the edges.
“Your house. Your couch. Shit. Guess I never should’ve given up my apartment. At least then my recuperating wouldn’t cramp your shhtyle.”
“That’s not what I mean and you know it. Where are you? How about if I come pick you up?”
“Don’t bother. And don’t wait up for me.”
Sadie couldn’t think of any way to respond but she didn’t have to. Zack had hung up on her. She was simultaneously so wounded she could’ve cried buckets and so furious she could’ve spat nails. She knew Zack was stoned out of his mind. She could hear it in his voice and could tell by the way he acted. The real Zack wouldn’t talk to her that way. But where was the real Zack and how could she get him back?
11
Sadie was suddenly grateful she was meeting Dawn. She really needed to keep busy and get her mind off Zack. Sadie hopped in her Honda and drove.
When she pulled up to her mom’s house, Dawn’s car was already in the driveway. Sadie was weary with emotion when she dragged her feet inside.
Dylan was coasting with tentative steps between the coffee table and the sofa, and when Sadie walked in, he smiled at his aunt and promptly plopped down on his well-padded behind.
“How’s my man?” Sadie asked. She walked over and sat down on the floor next to her one-year-old nephew.
“I’ll be right there,” Dawn shouted from the kitchen. “I’m just making some coffee.”
“Take your time,” Sadie called back over her shoulder. “I thought Mom was going to watch Dylan.”
“She decided to go visit Aunt Lynn so I didn’t want to stop her.”
Sadie tugged Dylan onto her lap and kissed the wispy chestnut curls on the top of his head and breathed in his babiness. “Promise me you’ll always be cute and sweet and never be a pigheaded jerk of a man,” Sadie said, snuggling her face into his neck.
“Go. Go,” Dylan said, wriggling out of Sadie’s arms to attempt to walk again.
“Go, go is right,” Dawn said as she walked into the room with two cups of coffee in her hands. “Ever since he took those first couple steps last month, he’s never content to sit down for long.”
Dawn handed a hot mug of coffee to Sadie.
“Thanks,” Sadie replied, sipping tentatively.
“What’s wrong?” Dawn asked. “You look like you’ve been crying.”
“Zack’s being a dick.”
“That’s what men do.” Dawn waved it away with a flick of her wrist and sipped her coffee with her other hand. “Just this morning John was supposed to get up with Dylan. It’s his morning, but what does he do? He woke me to ask me where to find the applesauce. Can you believe that? I mean, what’s the purpose of giving me three mornings a week that I can sleep late if he’s friggin’ waking me about applesauce!”
“No offense, Sis, but this is bigger than applesauce,” Sadie said, getting up from the carpet and sitting down on the nearby sofa. “I’m losing him, Dawn.”
“What are you talking about? Zack? Of course you’re not losing him! You’re just emotional because of Dad and you haven’t had regular work for a while, right? And he broke his ankle too. That kind of stress adds up. Things will be fine. Zack loves you and you love him.” The last was said with an assurance that Sadie wished she felt.
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