She dialed ten numbers and waited. And waited. Theyallwaited. Finally, her eyes lit up and she said, “Hi, Jason. You’re just the one I wanted to speak with. How’s your father?”
“Who the fuck cares… I want to know who shot me. Can you hurry it up, please?”
Morgaine frowned. Fortunately, her eyes focused in the opposite direction, so she might as well have been frowning at the toaster.
“Oh, good. I’m glad to hear that,” Dottie said. “Listen, dear… I’m sitting here with Morgaine, the girl from 3B who can hear our ghost. And, well… apparently the ghost is here too.”
“Chad. My name isChad. Or Charles. Or Mr. Washington. Look, just because they took away my body doesn’t mean you can just forget my name. I’m an entity with an identity. Hey, I like that. Tell her that, Morgaine!”
Morgaine shook her head.
“Oh, I’m all right, but the ghost is pestering Morgaine to find out what’s going on with the investigation. I was hoping you could tell us something.”
Dottie grabbed a pen and paper. “Yes, I’m ready. Okay… Joe Murphy. 555-4329.” She appeared exceedingly pleased. “Thank you, Jason. I’m sure that will help to satisfy our spirit visitor. So, when are you coming home?”
“Hey, Morgaine… maybe you can ask her to invite the detective over and you can practice your medium lessons. That way I can give the detective some leads and ask him questions directly.”
Morgaine nodded toward Dottie as if to tell Chad to wait for her to get off the phone. Damn manners.
She continued blathering on to give her love to all the other family members while Chad yawned and drummed his virtual fingers on the desktop. He was just about to blast her with a gust of cold breath when she finally, finally hung up.
“I’m sorry to make you wait, dear,” she said to Morgaine.“But I think we have what we need.” She waved the telephone number as if it were a clue to her own mystery. “I’ve been dying to talk to him anyway.”
“Ah ha, just as I thought. The woman couldn’t resist sticking her nose into it, could she?”
Morgaine put on her nicest smile and said, “I don’t suppose you could invite the detective to come here? Perhaps that way, Chad could speak to him through me?”
“Oh.” Dottie straightened, looking somewhat offended. “You’re a medium too, I suppose.” Then she glanced around the apartment and whispered, “Is he still here?”
“I think so. I can’t see him. I can only hear him, since I’m clairaudient, not clairvoyant. I’m still just learning to be a medium.” Morgaine cocked her head. “Chad, are you still here?”
“Tell her I’m so fucking here that I’ll kick her through the ass, if she thinks for one minute she’s going to take away my right to participate in my own cold case and let her try to manage it.”
Morgaine nodded. “Yes, ma’am. He’s here.”
“Okay, I’ll call the detective and we’ll see what we can arrange that will be convenient for all of us.” She paused with the receiver in her hand. “I don’t suppose he has any appointments I should work around, does he?” She laughed.
“That does it.”Chad blew a big gust of cold air right in Dottie’s face and she shivered, rolling her eyes nervously around the room.“Finally, an appropriate expression of fear. It’s about time! I was ready to sing my rendition of R-E-S-P-E-C-T.”
Chapter 8
Merry couldn’t believe how much she missed Jason. Had they only been together for a few weeks? It didn’t seem possible, although she had to admit that certain fine details of his face were fuzzy in her memory.
When she opened her door and threw her arms around him, every nuance came rushing back. His subtle scent, how his stubble softly scratched her cheek, his dimples when he smiled. She wanted to drink in his essence and etch every single detail into her memory. The straightness of his nose, except for the slight bump from when it had been broken, the clarity of his blue eyes…
“God, I missed you,” he whispered into her hair. “You were all I could talk about while I was home. My family really wants to meet you.”
“I missed you too!” How and when did his presence disarm her so completely? She’d always felt a strong pull, but now the yearning seemed overwhelming. If she had been a spy and he James Bond, she’d hand over the art, cash, and/or passwords. Anything he asked for. All she wanted was to be in his arms.
And to her relief and delight, the feeling seemed mutual. He hugged her close against his hard chest as if he needed to fit her against him so tight a gust of wind couldn’t come between them.
“I’m sorry. I should have asked about your father before getting so carried away.”
“He’s going to be fine. And now that I’m here, so am I.”
Merry raised her eyebrows. “Did anything happen to make you feel otherwise?”
“No, not really. Well, nothing specific. You know what it’s like to go home after you’ve been away for quite a while and your life is…”
