The First Ghost (29 page)

Desperate for noise, I turned on the radio in the office and set the speakers to broadcast. This played music in the sanctuary while I gave everything a good dusting and placed the large photo of Mrs. Bierstock on the easel. Harry would bring the urn. So maybe Blue Oyster Cult wasn’t the most tactful choice for a funeral home, but it was just me and the dog.

I turned to go back to the office and Mrs. Bierstock’s photo attacked me. Actually, it fell off the easel and hit me, but I jumped like I had been attacked.

Deciding that the smell of fresh coffee would steady my nerves, I went back to the employee break room.

“Hiya, doll. Seen Mrs. B. around? I’m real hopeful I can get her at the funeral.”

I was never so relieved to see Death in all my life. I dropped into the chair next to hers. “She was still in the kitchen, still bawling away.”

“That ain’t good. She’s gonna have to get a grip. Her time’s just about up.”

“It can’t be. Didn’t she just die a couple of days ago?”

“Six.”

“Oh, shit. I had no idea she was so close. Is the mark gone?”

“Fading,” Hephzibah confirmed with a nod.

“So what about the kids, the ones who died with her?”

“Oh, they’ve been dead a long time. See, this lady was in a coma for months. It would’ve been easier if I could have crossed them all together. She might have gone then. Sometimes when they get stuck in limbo for as long as she did, makes it hard for ’em.”

“Now I’m feeling sorry for her again.”

“What is this caterwauling? This is worse than Boris!” Lady Hildegard sniffed with disapproval.

“It’s classic rock. I’m guessing you’re not a Clapton fan,” I said.

“I prefer Wagner to anything recent generations have to offer.”

“I keep telling you, he was a bloody Nazi.” Boris materialized behind me.

“And I keep explaining to you that my admiration is for his understanding of a woman’s voice and his dramatic use of rhythm. His Gotterdammerung is quite simply--”

“Absolute crap.”

“How dare you...”

“You want rhythm? I’ll show you.”

They both vanished. In moments I could hear dueling voices in the sanctuary.
It’s Delovely
vied with
Welches Unhold’s List Lieges Hier Verhollen
.

With a sigh I turned off the radio and left them to it. Hephzibah was gone, and I started the coffee.

A sudden chill alerted me that I wasn’t completely alone.

“Hello, Starla.”

“Hi, yourself.”

“What are you doing here?”

“Why shouldn’t I be here? It’s safe. Joby’s at work anyway, and he ain’t no fun there. I got nothing better to do. Until tonight. Then the fun starts again.” She rubbed her hand and cackled, sounding for all the world like the green-faced witch in
The Wizard of Oz
. “I think he’s about to crack wide open.”

“Seriously. Why are you here? I thought you made your feelings clear the other night. You were rude to Fierro. He’s put in a lot of time and effort on your case, and that’s his own time and effort because the department doesn’t think there is a case.”

“That don’t mean I don’t need help.” She lowered herself a few inches so that we were at eye level with one another.

“Would it have killed you to be polite?”

“That’s funny. Real clever.”

“You know what I mean. You could have at least said thanks or something. Instead you threw a hissy fit.”

She swooped closer. “So he’s pissed at me?”

“
I’m
pissed at you. Fierro is a nice guy who’s trying to help you, and you treated him like crap!”

“I’m sorry,” she muttered.

“You should be apologizing to him.”

“I would if I could. Okay, so I got a little heated. Tell him I’m sorry. I won’t do that again. I still need your help.”

“If I help you, will you cross over?”

“No. No way. I don’t want to be totally dead.”

“You are dead.”

“But that would be like really dead, like it’s really over.”

“It is over, Starla.”

“No, it ain’t. I’m a bona fide free mover now. I ain’t never crossing over, and that’s a fact. Will you help me?”

“Why should I? Give me two--no, give me
one
good reason I should help you.”

“But, but...” she sputtered. “But I need you. You’re all I’ve got. My husband killed me, and nobody wants to do anything about it.”

“I’ll think about it,” I said, more harshly than I’d intended.

Starla began to cry and then vanished. I sat and hung my head in my hands, feeling lower than dirt. I started as something snuffled at my hands. Billy licked me and then nudged a hand to be petted. I was starting to get why people have dogs.

I reached for a mug and my cell rang.

“Portia? It’s me.” Fierro’s deep voice was a welcome sound.

“Hey, you. I was just going to call.”

“You were?” He sounded pleased.

“Starla wanted me to apologize for her. She’s sorry for her little tantrum the other night.” I didn’t tell him I’d read her the riot act beforehand for treating him that way.

“Tell her it’s okay. I didn’t take it personally. But my news is better. We’ve got Tamaguchi.”

“That’s fantastic. Where did you find him?”

“Actually he found us.”

“Is he talking? Did he tell you anything? Does he have a partner?”

“No, I meant that he surrendered himself. He walked in all lawyered up. He hasn’t said a single word. They’ve booked him, and his lawyer has been here trying to get a bond set but that ain’t gonna happen. He’s suspected of killing two women. With that purple shirt as evidence, no way is he getting out. It doesn’t get better than greed as a motive and physical evidence.”

I frowned. “Did you say purple? Is that the bloody shirt you found? I never saw Tamaguchi in anything but white.”

“It was in his laundry. Who else could it belong to?” Hard to argue with that logic.

“So it’s over.”

He was quiet for moment. “I guess so.”

“But he might still have a partner out there.”

“This is true.”

“And we still have to sort things out for Starla,” I said. “She did apologize.”

“Portia, I’m not going anywhere.”

I exhaled. “That’s good. I’ve gotten used to you being around.”

“Like I said. I’m not going anywhere.”

The pleasure in his voice warmed me down to my toes. “I’m counting on that.”

“How about we try that church you talked about on Saturday night? Unless you’ve got a date or something else to do.”

“I don’t. That would be great.”

* * * *

Mrs. Bierstock’s funeral was the saddest thing. There were maybe a handful of people. I counted four before I had to excuse myself. Mr. Bierstock stood stoically by, and I was pretty sure the woman who held his hand was more than a friend. No one cried except for Mrs. Bierstock herself. Did they blame her for the kids’ deaths? Had they been distanced emotionally by the time she spent in a coma?

Mrs. Bierstock sat in a corner, sobbing. She stayed there all day and was still there when I left.

* * * *

I prefer it when things are busy, but for the entire next week Mahaffey-Ringold was, well, dead. I cleaned the chapel for lack of anything better to do. Boris and Hildegard squabbled like siblings or an old married couple.

Mrs. Bierstock wept quietly in the corner where she had become a fixture. She hadn’t left since her funeral and either sat and cried or prayed at the altar. I had given up trying to make contact with her. I couldn’t help her. Perhaps she could help herself.

I found Hephzibah kicked back in Mother’s office, yakking her ear off.

“Hey, doll.”

“Hey, yourself.” I flopped into a chair.

“Don’t you have a date?” Mother said. “Go home and get fixed up. It’s been a long day.”

I didn’t need a second invitation. I fetched my purse from the chapel and headed for the door. The weeping sounds grew closer. I glanced over my shoulder. I was being followed. “Mrs. Bierstock? Mrs. Bierstock, you should stay here. You don’t want to go out there with me.” I was pretty sure her mark had faded, but I kept walking and she kept following me.

“Mrs. Bierstock?” I stopped and turned. “You need to stay here. You’ll be safe.”

She ignored me and kept crying. Finally, I left. If she followed me, she must have her reasons. Perhaps the woman wanted to be eaten by demons. There was nothing I could do for her if she wouldn’t listen to me. I went home.

* * * *

I must have been in the kitchen for a good fifteen minutes before I noticed something was wrong. I had completely tuned out Mrs. Bierstock and was making myself a cup of tea, when I spotted the first one. I thought it was a shadow near the cabinets. I had to look twice to be sure.

There was no shadow, but a dim figure standing in my kitchen. The figure didn’t cast a shadow as much as it sucked in the light. It was an absence of color and feature. A slight movement drew my eye to the fridge. Two more Reclaimers. My heart beat faster.

They almost blended with the wall, but not quite. I opened my mouth to warn Mrs. Bierstock, but nothing came out. I felt the vibrations in my chest before I heard the hum. The walls cracked from the intense vibrations.

For the first time, Mrs. Bierstock seemed to notice things around her. She lifted her head and looked around. “No,” she said. “Oh no! Not this.” They were the first words I heard her speak.

Her eyes roamed the room searching for escape. She made a break for the outside. The Reclaimers were on her the second she moved.

I rushed after them and opened the back door. Three had their arms around the struggling woman. No longer crying, she fought them viciously, but she was no match.

“No!” she screamed. “Let me go! I don’t want to!”

When the humming became screech, I clapped my hands to my ears. The night sky split wide, and a light pierced my eyes so that I had to look away. I could hear the rumble as the sky continued to open. The wind had picked up, rushing from the gaping hole in the sky. My hair whipped my face, stinging me.

A swirling funnel of wind surrounded me, tugging at my clothing and sucking me toward the gaping hole in the clouds. My feet lifted off the ground briefly.

And then everything was still. And quiet. The crushing light dimmed. I was standing on the ground.

I carefully opened my eyes. They were gone.

I went back inside and canceled my date with Ethan. I wasn’t feeling like company.

* * * *

I had the house to myself. Mother and Walter were always looking to expand their horizons. At least, Mother was. Making her happy made Walter happy, and so they had signed up for salsa dancing lessons. Harry was gone with Violet to one of her art shows. Just me and the pug.

The doorbell surprised me. A glance at the clock showed me it was eight o’clock. I left Billy on my bed, lovingly mauling his Dingo, and closed the bedroom door behind me. Frantic knocking quickened my step.

I peered through the peephole, then opened the door. Duncan Werner swished past me, running a hand across his head as if he had hair to muss. I stared in bemused silence at my former boss pacing my living room.

“They won’t let Ken out. Did you know that? Why won’t they let him out?”

It took me a moment to realize he meant Dr. Tamaguchi, who was still in jail. “Because he killed Ruth. Why are you here?” I closed the door, leaning back against it.

“Because you work for them undercover, right? You would know what’s going on.”

I swallowed hard. My lies had returned to haunt me. “How did you get my address?”

He stopped pacing and stared with red-rimmed eyes. “Your job application. You listed this address.” He put his hand on his hip. “I don’t even know why they arrested Ken. I took care of it.” He began to pace again. “I was sure I got everything.”

It hit me like a slap. Duncan was the mystery partner, the one who helped Tamaguchi clean up his messes. He must have told Tamaguchi I was asking questions about the burritos. Duncan’s lip trembled. He was emotionally invested in this. Tamaguchi had been his friend.

I made my voice as gentle as I could. “Duncan, go home. There’s nothing more you can do. You’re not a bad person. You tried to help a friend, but he’s already been arrested. There isn’t anything you can do.

Tears leaked down Duncan’s cheeks. “If Ken talks to them... If he has... Has he? Did he say anything?”

“Not that I know of.”

He sighed and leaned against the mantle, wiping the tears on his sleeve. “I should have known he’d be faithful.” He looked at me. “I’ve made mistakes. I should have handled everything myself. Ken counts on me.”

“You don’t have to help him anymore, Duncan. He made this mess, not you.”

“Ruth made this mess! Ken may have been sleeping with that little slut, but it was me that he loved. I was the one he shared himself with, told his hopes and dreams to. She was useful to him, but he never should have fucked her. She thought that made her special.” He sniffed. “She killed Corinne, you know. Ruth did that, not Ken.”

He looked at me and I nodded. “That’s what I think too. Ruth must have thought Corinne knew about her passing Seleman’s research notes over to Dr. Tamaguchi.”

“Which is not illegal. Career suicide, maybe, but people ride scandals like that out. The bitch panicked. Poor little Corinne. Ruth poisoned her with Seleman’s heart medicine because she thought it would throw suspicion on him, but it just drew attention to Woll Ag. Ruth was such a fool. She should have let me handle things. I could have helped them.”

“Duncan--” I circled him uneasily, trying to put the couch between us. “They were using you. Ken Tamaguchi used you because you care about him.”

“Shut up! You don’t know anything! I don’t know what you said that made them arrest Ken, but--”

“I said? Excuse me? I didn’t make them arrest him. I’m not with the police, Duncan. That detective is just my friend. But the police know Tamaguchi was involved. Personally, I think Tamaguchi knew everything Ruth was doing. He helped her kill Corinne.”

“That isn’t true!” Duncan was crying again.

I stopped moving. The couch was firmly between us. Duncan stood next to the end table with the lamp and phone. “Tamaguchi got Ruth to do his dirty work for him. Everybody knew Corinne was eating other people’s food. Ruth might know she ate Seleman’s burritos, but how would she gain access to Seleman’s medicine? All the scientists officed together on the same floor. Ken Tamaguchi had access to Seleman’s office, and he cleaned up the burritos. See, Ken and Ruth couldn’t know which one Corinne would take, so they poisoned all of them. They didn’t care if it was Corinne or Seleman who ate those burritos. And you want to know the worst part? Corinne didn’t know anything. She died for no reason. Ken Tamaguchi has been using you, Duncan, just like he used Ruth. He used her and then he killed her.”