NOLA (32 page)

“I don’t really know.  It felt right at the time.”

“Maybe you’re attracted to the demon,” Murphy teased.

“What’s not to like?  He’s tall and reminds me of a tree.”

“You both have yellow eyes.”

“Sometimes, not all times, I hope,” Mia said uncomfortably.

“Ahem,” Ralph said, standing there.  “Mia, honestly, can’t you be satisfied with Ted?  Why must you insist on having all the guys?”

This made Mia burst out in surprised laughter.  “Oh, yes, I’m such a femme fatale.  Where was everyone when I needed a prom date?  Sticks would have been an interesting choice,” Mia mused.  “Or you,” Mia said, looking at Murphy.  “Oh, how about you Ralph?  Want to trip the light fantastic with your goddaughter?”

“It would be a pleasure, as long as you let me wear that blue sequined suit.”

“Never!  I’ve had my fill of sequins this trip.  Nothing shiny in my future.”

Ralph sat down and buckled his seatbelt.  He watched as Mia went through the motions of belting Murphy in before herself.  He saw her grab what Ralph assumed was Murphy’s hand as the jet rolled out onto the taxiway.  Mia had told him of Murphy’s problem with flying, but he didn’t like the intimacy of the way she held the ghost’s hand.  He worried about Mia and hoped that Murphy would be moving on one day.  Mia had a husband and a child.  This should be more than enough for any woman.  Bernard told him that Mia’s capacity to love was endless.  “Don’t fault her for little flirtations from time to time.  She has a good head on her shoulders.  She will always come around to what is right in the end.”

~

The creature moved through the trees, taking delight in dropping nuts and twigs on the picnickers underneath.  Sticks leaned back against the old oak, taking time to figure a few things out.  He decided that he would continue to cause trouble until Father Peter caught up with him and sent him back.  He didn’t know why the door opened so soon or who opened it in the first place.  He initially thought it was a trap, but when he had walked out into the N’awlins night, he sensed the squishy human with the yellow eyes was in trouble.  He followed his instincts and embarrassed himself by getting into more trouble.  But the female chose to fight for him.  A human fighting to save a demon was an interesting occurrence.  One in a million, he figured.

Sticks heard the sound of a jet engine overhead. He looked up and sensed that Mia was leaving on that aircraft.  He didn’t blame her.  NOLA wasn’t for everyone.

Chapter Twenty-four

The counter attendant smiled at the tall man carrying the infant in identical clothing.  The little Chiefs hat on the baby was so cute.  She made a note to see if they had something similar in a Bears cap for her new nephew.  What was it about new fathers that she found so damn sexy?

“Ah am ah am,” babbled Brian.

“Yes, Minnie Mommy’s plane is landing.”

“Ooh ooh.”

“Murphy too.  I expect he isn’t too happy.  Murphy doesn’t like to fly.”

“Ah am ah am, ooh ooh.”

“Yes, Mommy made him.”

“Pblssp.”

“You’re too young to swear, kiddo,” Ted said.

Bernard walked into the lobby and straight over to Ted.  “He’s getting so big.  May I?”

Ted reluctantly handed Brian over to Bernard, unsure what his reaction would be.  The kid’s eyes got really big, but he smiled.

“See, he remembers me.  Ted, you’ve got a genius on your hands.”

“It runs in the family,” Ted said proudly.

“Yes, Mia is pretty smart,” Bernard teased.

“Everybody’s a comedian today.  Well, except for those guys.”  Ted indicated the somber looking men in suits that Gerald sent.

“Who?”

“They’re artifact retrieval guys.  They handled the pistols until Angelo could take them to the birdman vault.”

“Phew, I thought they were the IRS,” Bernard said.  “Ralph’s been a little too creative with his deductible expenses.”

Ted nodded and accepted Brian back so Bernard could answer his phone.

The plane was moving in front of the FBO.  Ted waited until the steps came down to leave the protection and heat of the building.  The wind caused Brian to gasp and sputter a bit, but he still was in good humor by the time Ted reached the stairs.

Mia almost flew down the steps.  She launched herself at Ted, and he bore both her and Brian’s weight like a champ.

“I missed you so much,” Mia said, kissing Ted’s face all over before she tenderly kissed her son’s forehead.  “Brian, you’ve grown.  You promised Mommy not to grow.”

“Pblssp.”

Mia’s eyes opened wide.  “Did our three-month-old just swear at me?”

Ted looked guilty.

“Ah am ah am,” Brian burbled.

“I love you too.”

Ted set Mia down and handed her Brian.  He stepped aside so Bernard could give his goddaughter a hug.

“There she goes again, stealing the attention of all the men,” Ralph said, feigning irritation from the top step.

Bernard walked up and hugged his fiancé.  “Come on, you.  Let’s get your luggage, and you can spill all the dirt about Mia and her so-called business trip.”

“Hey now, what happens in NOLA stays in NOLA,” Mia reminded Ralph.  “Where’s Murphy?”

“Ooh ooh,” Brian said, looking up.  “Ooh ooh, pblssp.”

“He’s trying to tell you that Murphy looks a little put out,” Ted said, looking at the green-tinged ghost.  “Although, he looked worse coming back from Haiti.”

“Shorter trip.  Could you hold Brian a minute?  I’ve got to deliver the ticking time B O M B to the suits,” Mia said.

“TSA can spell.  At least I think they can?” Ted asked Brian.

Mia climbed the stairs, walking by a wobbly Murphy, and unfastened the box.  She examined the clasp to make sure it was holding before lifting it down and carrying it out of the jet and down the stairs.  She was approached by two vaguely familiar men.  She waited until they gave her the code words Bernard had told her before letting go of the box.

“Under no circumstances is that to be opened,” Mia ordered.  “It almost destroyed New Orleans.”

The senior of the two nodded.  They walked back into the building.

“That bad?” asked Ted.

“Did I ever tell you that I hate ancient beings?” Mia asked, leading them toward the building.

“Really?  Do tell.”

“They don’t speak the language, have no reverence for the clergy, and have the manners of charging rhinos.”

“Well, it’s over now.  Isn’t it?” Ted said, opening the door for her.

“Oh yes,” Mia said, brightening up.  “And I’m done with favors.  Unless PEEPs has been dealing with Gerald?”

“I assure you, Burt has made it clear that we are on a no Gerald diet.”

“Mia, Mia!” Ralph called.  “Come over here a minute, please.”

“Excuse me,” Mia said.  She walked up to Ralph who handed her a large manila envelope.  “What’s this?”

“It’s your take of the reward on the Mardi Gras mask.  I took 15% as your agent.”

“Um, I told Alexei that I wasn’t helping him for money, and besides, you should get half.”

“Fifteen percent is all I need, believe me.  You take that money, put some away for Brian’s college, and then blow it on something for you and Ted. That’s an order.”

“Yes, sir.  Aren’t you coming over to see Brian before you leave?” she asked.

“Oh yes, I have a present for the little man,” Ralph said, reaching into his carry-on bag.

Ralph walked over to Ted and handed him the gift to open for Brian, while Ralph held on to the boy.  Mia worried that her son was going to feel like a toy pretty soon being passed around.  She didn’t like being picked up. She was surprised that her son was so agreeable.

Ted tore off the wrappings and was flabbergasted.  He held on to an abacus.

“I had the beads tested to make sure they were baby safe,” Ralph said.  “I thought that it was never too early to start on math skills.  Mia was pretty behind by the time she hit kindergarten.”

Mia opened her mouth but couldn’t really disagree since it was the truth.

Brian reached his arms out and began moving the beads.

“See, the kid’s a genius,” Ralph said proudly.

The flight attendant walked through and let Mia know that their packages and suitcases were being taken to where the cars were parked.

Mia thanked her, and when she tried to tip her, the woman refused.  “All taken care of.”

“Ted, I guess we can load up the baggage and go home.  I can’t wait to be at the farm again.  I expect Murphy is already waiting by the van.”

Mia retrieved Brian and bundled him into his little Chiefs coat.

“Mia, you better get that kid a Bears coat before the other babies beat the crap out of him,” Bernard teased.

“I applaud his going against the grain, but I, too, wince when I see the crimson colors,” she admitted.

“Pblssp Ah am ah am.”

“There it is again.  Bernard, I think the kid just swore at me again.  I leave Ted alone with Brian for four days, and look, he’s a hoodlum.”

“I think he takes after his mum, dear,” Bernard replied.

Ted picked up the large, heavy, wrapped package and shook it to figure out what Mia was bringing back from N’awlins.  He didn’t remember her having all these clothes with her either.  He supposed Ralph was responsible.  It was a good thing Burt still let them use the PEEPs van until they found a family friendly car because there was no way the three of them and all this baggage would fit in Mia’s truck or his old car.

Mia put Brian in the baby seat, and he smiled as Murphy got in and sat next to him.  Mia sat in the front with Ted.  They no sooner got out of the parking lot when Mia looked back and Brian was asleep.

“I guess the trip tuckered him out.”

“Yes, Murphy looked at bit worn out to me,” Ted said.

“I was talking about…” She looked at the fading ghost and said, “nevermind.”

“What’s in the mysterious envelope you have jammed in your new purse?” Ted asked.

“Remember when I told you that Alexei Alexandrovich wanted to pay me to find his Mardi Gras mask?”

“Yes, you refused.”

“Well, he decided that he would get around my wishes by labeling it as a reward.  I think he and Ralph cooked it up between them.”

“The image of an old Russian Grand Duke and Ralph conspiring against you is quite delightful,” Ted said and shook his head, trying to contain his laughter.  “You could always send it back.”

“It would insult him.  Besides, after what I went through, I think I’ll keep it.”

“How much are we talking, Pumpkin?” Ted asked.

“Ralph took fifteen percent.  I thought he should have half.”

“His fifteen percent would be how much?” Ted asked, angling to find out how much money was in that envelope.  He had already calculated the size of the envelope, but he was stuck without knowing what denomination the stacks of cash were.

“I didn’t want to be one of
those
sensitives who can be bought,” Mia stated, well aware Ted was on tenterhooks.

“Anyone that knows you, can attest that you can’t be bought.  Although, you did give a reading to Mike for a box of cookies once,” he reminded her.

“Girl Scout mint cookies are no ordinary box of cookies,” Mia said, stalling.

Ted put on his turn signal and pulled over to the side of the road.  “Mia Cooper Martin, I’m going to throttle you unless you tell me how much cash is in that envelope.”

Mia started to giggle.  “A lot.”

Ted put his head on the steering wheel in frustration.

“Okay, I’ll tell you.  Ralph’s cut was fifteen thousand dollars.”

“You have eighty-five thousand dollars in your bag?”

“I don’t know how much after taxes.  Now that’s going to take some thinking.  How do we tell the IRS it came from a ghost?” Mia mused.

Ted was stunned.

“Ralph suggested we put some away for Genius’s college and blow the rest on something for us.”

Ted and Mia looked at each other and chorused, “A car!”

Brian made noises that he was waking up.  Ted pulled back onto the road while Mia sang, “We’re going to get a car,” softly.  She stopped and said, “Can we afford a car and a deer-proof fence for Murphy’s seedlings?”

Ted nodded.  “I have been working on the problem but lacked the funds to put my plan into effect.  With the extra cash, Murphy will have his tree sanctuary.”

Murphy, who had been following the conversation with rapt interest, tapped his axe lightly to show his approval.

~

Mia fed Brian and rocked him to sleep while Ted watched her from the doorway.  He loved how gentle she was with their baby, yet he also knew how fierce she could be in battle.  There was an amazon tucked up neatly in her very desirable body.  He noticed that she favored one leg, and she promised to explain the injury tomorrow.  Tonight, she just wanted to enjoy being home with her men.

Mia laid Brian down and tiptoed out of the nursery.  She looked up at her handsome husband and sighed.

“Take me to bed or lose me forever,” she said softly.

Ted scooped her up and paused a moment at the spot where Brian was conceived in the hall.  He decided that he needed the bed tonight to show Mia just how much he missed her.  He walked into the bedroom and laid her gently on the bed.  He removed her clothing, kissing all the exposed skin.  Mia gasped when he entered her, and as they moved together, Mia became part of Ted.  She not only felt her ecstasy but his.  Gone were her unfounded fears of Ted growing tired of her. They were replaced by emotions so deep and so erotic that it would be days before she could look at her husband without growing wet.

Chapter Twenty-five

Mia looked over the footage and examined Audrey’s research.  She had Jake run some footage over and over again.  She could see the children Murphy had described.  She saw a little more than the sketch that Murphy had given Audrey.  The age-old wisdom of the sister was amazing.  Greggy, too, had put the experience of his horrible death behind him.  She watched Cid, very impressed with his natural ability to nurture.  It didn’t matter that he couldn’t see the children; he was every bit as emotional and protective of the Jones children as Audrey was.