A Little More Dead

by Jordaina Sydney Robinson

  “Suspect options?” Sabrina asked.

  “Crazy Katie,” I said with a shrug. “And Anna, if he really did have that chat with her about her competency. And maybe Alex, who fed us that story about Timothy doubting Anna’s competence. Maybe Jason was thinking about retracting his recommendation that Alex should be released and spoke to Timothy about it and Alex found out.”

  “I agree. I can’t think why anyone else would kill him.” Sabrina sipped some of her coffee as we stared out over the gardens. GA members from both groups had splintered off into small groups and were throwing furtive glances our way. “Mendall’s totally still a suspect. And now Gary too, because he’s here. And Burt because he’s not.”

  “You are aware you’ve just included them as suspects for contradictory reasons?”

  Sabrina nodded. “Yep.”

  “Okay.” I wasn’t going to argue with that since I doubted there was a way I could win. I placed my mostly empty mug of tea down on the bench since my bladder was letting me know there wasn’t space for anymore.

  We sat in silence as Sabrina tapped her digestive on the rim of her mug.

  After over a minute of the biscuit tapping tune I reached and and grabbed her wrist. “That’s really annoying.”

  “Sorry.” She dunked her biscuit in her coffee then took a bite, chewing slowly. “Something about this whole thing feels off. You know what I mean?”

  “People are getting murdered. I’m pretty sure it should feel off.”

  “No, I mean about who’s being murdered. For example, why would Crazy Katie hide the night before her escape to make everyone think she’d already escaped, then kill the nurse, and shove him in a cupboard, then put the murder weapon back in her room, then escape to come here and kill her old GA leader?” Sabrina shook her head again.

  “She hid early to distract people? Maybe she had to nip back to her room to get something before she escaped and just accidentally took the murder weapon back to her room with her and left it there,” I suggested. “Or maybe she meant to take it with her and accidentally left it behind in her room when she escaped.”

  Sabrina jabbed her half-eaten digestive at me. “This is exactly what I’m talking about. It’s all so easy to explain away. Even if it wasn’t Crazy Katie, Anna or Alex could’ve placed the murder weapon in her room. Or Gary. Or Burt. All have valid-ish motives to kill both people. It’s all so logical, but I just can’t get behind it.”

  “What about Mendall?”

  “Maybe he and Jason disagreed.” Sabrina snapped her fingers and pointed at me. “Jason’s indiscretions were reflecting negatively on the asylum so Mendall killed him to maintain its reputation.”

  “Incredibly tenuous but not outside the realm of possibility,” I admitted.

  “Exactly! That’s why I don’t think any of them did it.”

  “Right, so what you’re saying is you don’t believe anyone we suspect is a viable suspect.”

  “Yes. No. It could be anyone.”

  “Except the people we suspect?” I clarified.

  Sabrina nodded as she scanned the crowd. “Everybody’s a suspect.”

  “Well, isn’t that a pleasant thought?” I mumbled and watched as the police moved around the grounds. “Also, I think you may need intense therapy for your pathologically suspicious nature.”

  “I have a theory about you,” Warren said, moving to sit next to me and forcing me to scoop my biscuits out of the way of his rapidly descending bottom. “I think you’re secretly an assassin.”

  “If she were an assassin she wouldn’t keep hitting people over the head,” Sabrina scoffed and leaned forward to talk to Warren across me. “She’d use a variety of methods so no one would connect the bodies by type of death. That was if the bodies were found at all.”

  “Notice she doesn’t say that type of violence isn’t in me,” I pointed out to Warren. “Especially when someone takes up my biscuits’ bench space.”

  Warren stole one from my plate. I slapped at his hand but he kept hold of it. I’d taken a few too many so I was really secretly happy for him to help me clear the plate.

  “Who’s your take on the murderer if it isn’t you?” Warren asked Sabrina. “And don’t say me.”

  “It’s funny you should ask. I was just saying to Bridge that the Debbison duo—”

  “Alibie,” I corrected.

  “Who are the Debbison duo?” Warren asked.

  “Alibie,” I corrected again, pointing blatantly at Alison and Debbie, two members of our GA group.

  “The Debbison duo are looking pretty shifty,” Sabrina finished.

  Warren searched the crowd despite the fact I’d clearly pointed them out. His eyebrows inched up when he found them. He looked to Sabrina, then to me and back to Sabrina. “They’re crying.”

  Sabrina nodded. “I know, right? They didn’t find him. They didn’t know him and yet they’re crying? Very suspicious.”

  “I can’t tell if she’s joking or not,” Warren said to me.

  I patted his shoulder. “Your life must be so hard.”

  “We could feasibly be both suspects and victims here and you two are joking around.” Warren sounded a little panicked.

  “It’s not like that’s a new experience for us,” I said. “And why would you be a suspect or victim?”

  He leaned closer. “I have a death shadow!”

  “What?” Sabrina asked with a quick glance at me but I shook my head. I didn’t know either.

  “Do you mean ‘shroud’ ’cause join the club,” I said, gesturing around myself as if to remind him.

  “No, a shadow,” Warren hissed and checked over his shoulder.

  “Okay, just to be clear, there are death shrouds, death clouds and death shadows?” I asked.

  “There are also death shards, death hazes, death drifts, death blankets, death forecasts, death—”

  “Is this because we’re dead?” I asked. “Are all these different type of death things only visible here?”

  Warren shook his head. “They exist all the time.”

  “Okay, so what does a death shadow mean?” Sabrina asked.

  “It means death is close,” Warren said and checked over both of his shoulders again as though he expected to find a blunt object whizzing toward his head.

  “Are you kidding me right now?” Sabrina asked.

  “No,” Warren hissed.

  “He’s an idiot. An idiot,” Sabrina said, shaking her head at me. “Warren, you do realise that you’re surrounded by dead people and someone has just been murdered. It’d be amazing if all of us didn’t have shadows.”

  “Then why is it just me?” Warren asked.

  “Just lucky, I guess,” I said and turned to Sabrina when I noticed Oz was heading our way. “Are we going to do that thing tonight with you-know-who?”

  “Do you think you can get out?” Sabrina asked.

  “Not a clue but will you do it if I can’t get there?” I said and Sabrina nodded.

  “Do what?” Warren asked.

  “You good to go?” Oz slowed as he approached out bench.

  “No one wants to interrogate me?” I asked, almost disappointed in my dip in popularity.

  “Officer Leonard overruled Johnson and deemed your initial statement enough. Let’s go before he changes his mind.” Oz offered me his hand. “How are you doing, Sabrina? Are you okay?”

  “Yes, thank you, Mr Salier, I’m fine.” Sabrina used her professional voice, which I assumed meant Oz’s check on her welfare had caught her off guard.

  “Mr Salier? You’re such a suck up,” I mumbled as I stood and gave him my hand.

  He tunnelled us before she could reply and we landed, once again, at the far end of the garden.

  “What’s your relationship with Anna?” I asked as we slowly headed toward the house.

  “Where did that come from?”

  “Just curious. She has motive to kill both of the victims but you don’t seem to even consider that she might have been in
volved. I was just wondering if that was because you knew her so well that you knew there was no possible way she could do something like that or because you were blind to it because you were sleeping with her.”

  “I’m not sleeping period,” Oz said.

  “That doesn’t answer my question.”

  Oz stared out over the grass. “We’re not in a romantic relationship, no, and I fully trust that she didn’t have anything to do with either of these murders.”

  “So, you think it was Katie?” I asked.

  “Stop, Bridget.” Oz reached out and wrapped his warm fingers around my wrist and pulled me to a stop. “Don’t investigate this. Not in any way, okay?” It wasn’t a command; it was more of a request.

  “Who do you think it was?” I pressed.

  “What did I just say?” Oz asked.

  “I heard you but, see, I think we both know I can’t pick a murderer out at twenty paces, so really I’m just trying to look out for myself here. If you have any suspects, then I’ll be more cautious around them.”

  “I wouldn’t let anyone I suspected of murder anywhere near you. Or your housemates. Or inside our home. You know that, right?”

  “Is that why you had me moved from Timothy’s GA group?”

  Oz’s shoulders stiffened and the expression on his face shuttered down to blank. “How do you know that?”

  “Timothy told me.”

  “When? I thought he was dead when you found him.”

  “He told me this afternoon,” I said and Oz sighed heavily. He let go of my wrist and placed one hand on his hip while the other rubbed the back of his neck as he stared at the grass. It was becoming his signature stance. I figured he wanted an explanation so I quickly whizzed through the excitement of the afternoon.

  “Leonard abducted you and then abandoned you at one of Timothy’s meetings?” Oz’s voice was doing that scary calm thing that always put me on edge. I never understood that type of temper control. If you were mad it was much healthier to just let it out.

  “Abduct is a strong word,” I said. “And it wasn’t as if he threw me into an arena with him and shouted ‘choose your weapons’.”

  “That’s not the point. Timothy told you I had you transferred from his group? He actually told you that?”

  “Yep. And I told him that was because you knew I wouldn’t be able to manipulate Eleanor as I could have him.” I patted Oz’s shoulder. “I didn’t tell him it was really because you didn’t trust him with my adjustment. That was why, right? Because Katie was struggling and he didn’t tell you?”

  Oz didn’t answer, which I took to mean yes. He placed his hands on my shoulders and turned me to face the house, keeping his hands in place for a moment as he urged me forward. I squinted at the windows.

  “Are there—did you put bars on the windows?”

  “Not personally, but I had them added, yes. There are also extra locks on the doors, even the internal doors, and an alarm system.”

  “Uh-huh,” I said, surveying the changes. “You don’t think this is maybe overkill?”

  “Nope. Someone broke into our home and shredded your things. What if you’d walked in on them? Or Lucy had? Or Pam? Or Petal?”

  “Fair point, I guess,” I said.

  “For now, work with me, okay?” Oz handed me a set of keys and I nodded.

  All the keys were labelled. I used the one that said “back door” to open the back door. I’d barely stepped inside when all three of my housemates jumped me and wrapped me up in a hug, all chattering at once.

  “Ladies, I need to go out for a while,” Oz said over the chatter. “So pick a film and get settled in the lounge, okay?”

  They replied with a chorus of agreement. Oz stepped out of the room and waited for me to close and lock the back door before he disappeared.

  I waited a few minutes until I was sure he wasn’t going to pop back for anything and then turned back to my housemates, who were arguing over what film to watch.

  “I need to nip out for a minute as well,” I said and all three heads turned my way.

  “Why?” asked Pam.

  “Where?” asked Petal.

  “Okay,” Lucy said with a shrug. “But let’s be quick because I want to get settled into our film before Oz gets back.”

  I shook my head. “No, you guys need to stay here and keep all the doors locked.”

  “Well, that’s just not going to happen,” Pam said.

  “Who would keep you safe?” Petal asked and it sounded like she meant it seriously.

  “Where are we going?” Lucy asked.

  “We’re not going anywhere. You guys need to stay here and be safe. I’ll only be a few minutes.”

  “Well, then we might as well come,” Pam said.

  “No.” I shook my head like somehow it would add enough weight to the word to make them all agree. It didn’t.

  Lucy pointed a bright red talon at me. “I think what Pam meant to say was ‘take us with you or we’ll set the alarm off, which will call Oz back and we’ll tell him you were sneaking off’.”

  “Okay, but when the GBs find out and imprison us for eternity it’ll be all of your own faults,” I warned.

  “But we’d be imprisoned together, so every night would be like a sleepover,” Petal said.

  I looked around at the three hopeful faces staring back at me. That hadn’t been quite the deterrent I’d thought it would be. “Right.”

  After making sure the house was locked up behind us I tunnelled everyone to Madame Zorina’s office. I’d managed to send Madame Zorina a sneaky text earlier in the day asking her to wait for us because we needed her help with something. Happily, not only was Madame Zorina there but so was Edith. They were hunched over Madame Zorina’s desk, focused on the screen of a laptop and deep in conversation. Both looked up when we appeared. Neither spoke.

  “Okay, so I can see Sabrina hasn’t arrived yet and explained the situation,” I said into the silence.

  “Will she be able to explain this, dear?” Edith asked, gesturing to my three housemates, who were suddenly huddling behind me like shy children.

  “I couldn’t leave them at home,” I said.

  “Why?” Edith asked, stepping from behind the desk to get a better look at all three.

  Edith was late sixties, tall, slim and dressed in a classic grey suit. With her hair swept up in a perfect chignon she reminded me of Anjelica Huston. With a wonkily cut fringe.

  “They blackmailed me,” I said.

  “Well, are you going to introduce us, dear?” Edith smiled. It wasn’t quite her mother shark smile but I felt my housemates cringe further down behind me.

  “Have you not—” My attention ping-ponged between them. “Have you all not met?”

  “We were all at your funeral but you didn’t actually introduce us, dear,” Edith said, which very much sounded like a rebuke on my manners.

  “Well, if you’d gotten there on time …” I mumbled and Edith gave me a flat look. “This is Lucy, Petal and Pam,” I said, gesturing to each housemate in turn.

  I stepped out of the way so Edith could shake hands with each of them.

  “Can I borrow your suit?” Lucy asked, her eyes roving enviously over Edith’s outfit.

  “And this is Madame Zorina,” I added quickly, rescuing Lucy from Edith’s reply.

  “Hi,” Petal said, giving her a shy wave. “I like your hair.”

  “Oh. Thanks.” Madame Zorina fluffed up her dark curls, her numerous bangles clinking together with the movement.

  I could see why Petal liked it. It was very similar to her own hair. “I’m glad everyone is suddenly getting along.”

  Just as all of the nice-to-meet-you’s finished Sabrina appeared. She took one look at my housemates and grinned.

  “Family outing?” she asked.

  “We need you to do something for us,” I said, ignoring Sabrina and turning to Madame Zorina.

  “Oh, you do, do you?” she asked, folding her arms and leaning back in
her chair.

  “Yes. We need you to summon someone called Katie,” I said. And then everyone started talking at once.

  Once we’d managed to shush everyone long enough to explain the summon-her-and-tie-her-up-and-hand-her-over-to-the-authorities plan everyone was onboard. Well, nearly everyone.

  “So, you want me to summon a crazy, possibly serial killer of a ghost?” Madame Zorina asked.

  “Yes, please,” Sabrina said, helping herself to some coffee and holding the pot up around the room to ask if anyone else wanted any. Edith nodded and so did my housemates.

  “Absolutely not,” I said, making a slashing motion with my hand. “You are not having coffee before bed.”

  “But it settles my tummy,” Petal said, giving me a blast of her puppy dog eyes. “And it’s all churny right now.”

  I covered my face with my hands for a moment before dropping them. “Okay, fine. Everyone can have coffee.”

  “Where are the biscuits?” Lucy asked and Sabrina handed over a packet of chocolate digestives.

  Madame Zorina leapt up from behind her desk and grabbed the biscuits out of Lucy’s hands. “We’re not having a picnic here!”

  “Wow, she’s rude,” Petal mumbled. “And I complimented her hair and everything.”

  “There you go, dear,” Edith said, slipping the biscuits from Madame Zorina’s hands and passing them to Petal.

  “They’re for clients,” Madame Zorina snapped.

  “We are clients right now,” Sabrina said.

  Madame Zorina folded her arms and arched her eyebrow in challenge as she glanced between Sabrina and I. “And how are you going to pay me?”

  I shrugged. “How about you just take it out of our wages?”

  Edith barked a laugh. “She’s got you there.”

  “Fine. This one time. I’ll help you this one time.” Madame Zorina held out her hand, palm up.

  I looked from her palm back to her face. “What?”

  “I know you don’t think I can summon someone with their first name and nothing else. I’m good but nobody is that good,” Madame Zorina said while she fluffed her hair.

  I glanced to Sabrina, who shook her head, and then back to Madame Zorina. “But that’s how you summon me.”

  “I’ve met you.”