The Seance (19 page)

He sighed in a combination of resignation and relief. “It's all right.”

“Come on in. I have people for you to meet.”

He decided that he hadn't met Genevieve before, because he would certainly have remembered someone so beautiful. She was tall, tanned and attractive, and she and Christie must have made a pretty sight, walking along the water's edge together. To his surprise, he did know the very tall, very blond man who was Genevieve's husband. “Thor Thompson!” he said.

“Jed Braden,” Thor returned, grinning.

The others stared at them blankly. “I was in underwater retrieval and recovery for a while,” Jed explained.

“He was a cop,” Thor said to his wife.

“Jed Braden—the author,” the older man said, offering his hand. “Adam Harrison.”

“Uncle Adam,” Christie supplied.

“Uncle Adam?” Jed said dubiously, staring at her. He knew Christina's family and knew she had no one left but her cousins. He would have known if there was an Uncle Adam.

“My uncle Adam,” Genevieve supplied quickly.

It was a lie. Jed knew it instinctively. But why were they lying?

“You're right. I am the author, Mr. Harrison,” he said.

“Adam. Just Adam will be fine. And congratulations. You've created a couple of real page-turners, including one on the Interstate Killer, if I remember correctly.”

“Yeah. Fictionalized, but…yeah,” Jed said flatly.

“Um…well,” Christina said, glancing at her watch. “It's a bit early, but how about lunch? Do you guys want to stay here? There's plenty of room. Why don't you all bring your things in, and then we can go out and grab a bite? Later tonight a bunch of us are going to go over to the new theme park and see my cousin Dan. He's the Grim Reader in their Halloween extravaganza.”

She looked anxious, Jed thought. As if she didn't quite know what was going on herself.

“Lunch sounds wonderful,” Genevieve admitted.

“We don't want to impose, though,” Adam said.

“You wouldn't be imposing,” Christina told him.

“I'll give you a hand. Let me help you get your things,” Jed offered.

They all went outside, Killer jumping up and down happily as he followed. As he was reaching into the back of the SUV, Jed saw Ilona, in her minivan, pull into the drive next door. She waved as she got out of her car.

“Are we still on for tonight?” she called.

“Yes, come meet my friends,” Christina called back.

Ilona walked over and shook hands as she met Genevieve, Thor and Adam.

“We're going to head out for lunch,” Genevieve said.

“Tony's down overseeing a new menu at the Mainstay.” She flashed them a smile. “You know where it is, Christina—right down the street from that place where your family hangs out all the time. O'Reilly's. Why don't you go there? Tony would be thrilled. He's added a new line of low-carb, low-fat entrées, really good stuff.”

“Sounds good to me,” she said, and looked at the others for confirmation.

“Why not?” Adam said.

Jed hadn't exactly been invited to lunch, but he didn't care. It suddenly seemed important that he go along.

 

Christina felt nervous all through lunch.

It wasn't difficult to explain Gen and Thor to Jed. Gen was a very old friend, and Thor was like a Christmas present, since he and Jed knew each other. But Jed was suspicious of Adam, and she knew it. She could see in the way his dark eyes measured the older man that he had strong doubts about the uncle story.

Tony greeted them at the restaurant door, and they were given a great, circular table that made conversation easy. Christina was glad they had listened to Ilona, except that Tony insisted lunch was on the house.

“As long as I get a real evaluation when you're done,” he told them.

“Of course we'll be totally honest,” Christina promised. “But you really don't have to buy us lunch.”

“It's my pleasure. Hey, how many times have I mooched off your family over the years?” Christina could tell that his feelings would have been hurt if they refused, so she gave in with good grace and they ordered.

“I gather you're not from Florida,” Jed said to Adam. He was leaning back comfortably, casually, in his chair, but Christina could tell that there was nothing casual about him at all as he studied the older man, waiting for his response.

“Nope. I'm a Virginian, by birth, choice and the grace of God,” Adam said, grinning. He lifted his beer to Jed. “But I do admire your great state, as well. There's a lot of history here—and some great ghost stories.”

“It's true,” Jed said. “We're not far from Ocklawaha, where Ma Barker and her son Fred had their massive shoot-out with the feds back in 1935. The place was shot to pieces, more rounds fired than you could ever imagine, but one chandelier went untouched. The place is supposed to be haunted to this day.”

“My favorite Florida ghost is up in Tallahassee,” Genevieve said. “In Tallahassee Old City Cemetery.”

Christina chimed in then. “I know that place. It's a beautiful old cemetery, very haunting, with lots of old trees dripping with Spanish moss.”

“And Elizabeth Budd Graham, right?” Jed asked politely.

Tony had come up while they were talking and overheard the last bit of their conversation. “Who's Elizabeth Budd Graham?” he asked curiously.

“A well-known ghost,” Jed answered, looking intently at Christina.

“She was born sometime around 1886,” Gen said. “She was supposed to be a witch, though not a mean one. In fact, she married, had a child and was apparently well loved, but she died young. Her grave faces west, and there's a beautiful epitaph on her stone. ‘Doubly dead that she died so young.' Very sad. You've never heard about her or been to the cemetery, Tony?”

“Can't say I have. What does she do?” Tony asked.

“Nothing bad. People bring flowers to the grave. Supposedly, when you're there, you can feel a sense of peace and solve problems in your own heart.”

“Florida is just full of ghosts, huh?” Jed said politely.

“Full of tourists, thank God,” Tony breathed, then frowned and looked at Christina. “Christie, with everything going on…you know that Ilona and I are right next door if you need us, right?”

“I do. And thank you.”

He nodded. “I'd better leave the ghosts to you guys and get back to the kitchen. Enjoy.”

When they finished lunch, they drove back to Christina's house. Before they even went inside, Jed started to excuse himself, but Christina slipped around in front of him, trying to manage a little privacy.

“You're still coming tonight, right?” she asked him, annoyed that she sounded so anxious.

He nodded. “I'll be back in time. It's the late show, right?”

“Right. So…where are you going?” she asked him, then backpedaled. “Sorry. It's not really my…business.”

She was surprised when he openly smiled at her. “I'm going out to see Larry Atkins again. Beau Kidd's partner. His place is huge.”

She was startled. “You think Beau Kidd's old partner…you think he might be the killer?”

He shrugged. “Why would he have shot his own partner? He said Beau drew a bead on him, and that was why he shot, but it seems strange to me that Beau didn't just drop his own weapon when Atkins drew on him. Hell, why did Beau pull a weapon in the first place?”

“Beau drew his gun because he'd discovered the body when it was still warm, and he heard a noise and thought the killer was creeping around behind him,” she said, then saw that he was staring at her and realized what she'd said, what she'd revealed. She inhaled quickly. “I mean, that's certainly one way it might have gone, right?”

“It's a possibility,” he said, still looking at her skeptically.

“I take it you've developed an interest in the new killing spree,” Thor said, his tone casual as he walked over to join them.

“Yeah, well, I kind of had to,” Jed admitted.

“Do you have plans for the rest of the day?” Thor asked him.

Christina watched the way Jed studied Thor, then shrugged and looked down for a moment before meeting his old friend's eyes again and replying, “I'm off to see someone.”

“Can you go where you need to without a badge?” Thor asked him.

“Right now, I'm glad I don't have a badge.”

“Want some company?” Thor asked.

Jed weighed the question. “Sure,” he said after a moment.

“What are you thinking?” Genevieve asked Christine a few minutes later, as they stood on the lawn and watched the two men drive away in Jed's car.

“I'm thinking he's never going to believe me when I try to tell him that the ghost of Beau Kidd has taken up residence in my house,” Christina said. She looked anxiously at Genevieve and Adam. “He is in there, I swear it.”

Killer started going crazy behind the front door, so she let him out. He ran to the front of the lawn, where he sniffed the air, then started running in circles.

“What on earth is the matter with him?” Christina wondered aloud.

“He's guarding you against a swarm of mosquitoes, obviously,” Adam said with a smile.

She smiled, the tension broken.

“Well, we might as well unpack,” Adam said. “We're going to a park tonight?”

“Yes. All the parks make a big spooky deal out of October,” Christina said.

“October,” Adam repeated. “A big spooky deal in a great many places. And,” he added softly, “it ends with All Saints' Day.”

A while later, their unpacking done, Christina entertained them with a few of her jingle ideas on the piano, then came to an abrupt halt.

“I was supposed to go into the studio to record that last piece on Monday.” She inhaled deeply. “My singer was the third victim.”

Adam, who had been sitting back with his eyes closed, appeared to have drifted off, but appearances were obviously deceiving, because he spoke up immediately. “Maybe there's more to Beau Kidd showing up here than you know,” he suggested.

“What do you mean?” Christina asked.

“Maybe he's here to protect you,” he said softly.

Chills shot down her spine.

“We will have a séance,” he told her.

“Now?” she asked doubtfully.

He shook his head. “No. We need everyone here who was here the night you used the Ouija board. Saturday night?” he suggested.

She nodded, suddenly terrified.

There was no reason for her to be frightened, she told herself. She wasn't alone in the house any longer. Adam, Genevieve and Thor were all installed on the second floor, and that was reassuring, right?

And Jed? she asked herself.

She wasn't afraid at all when she was with Jed.

She stared at Genevieve. Her friend seemed so relaxed, so confident, despite the fact that they were talking about ghosts. And despite the fact that a serial killer was roaming the state.

Christina realized that Adam was watching her.

“It is a gift, talking to the dead,” he said softly. “If you can just learn to accept it.”

A gift? she thought. Maybe so.

A very dangerous gift.

“I
told you, Jed. You need a horse. You need to quit going over old history, quit trying to make a monster out of a good man, and buy a horse.”

Larry Atkins had been sitting in the rocker on his front porch, as if waiting for Jed. He barely seemed to notice Thor getting out of the car with him, not that it was easy to ignore Thor.

“Hello, Larry,” Jed called.

Larry Atkins stood up. “I know what you're thinking, Jed. You're a little ahead of the guys wearing the badges, but go ahead. Search the place. Sure, now I'm a suspect. Hell, I shot my partner.”

“Nice place you have here,” Thor commented.

“Right. Nice place. Off the beaten track. Means I must have been a sick killer, right? I even shot my partner so he'd take the blame. I might be at it again. Hell, I have room, I have privacy. I must be bringing women here, tormenting them, their screams going unheard…. Search the place if you want, Jed.”

“I don't have a warrant, Larry,” Jed said.

“I know you don't. Damn it, Jed, I'm not guilty of anything. Come with me, and I'll show you.”

“Larry, no one is accusing you of anything,” Jed said.

“You're here, aren't you? With that Scandinavian bruiser over there.”

Jed glanced quickly at Thor, who grinned with amusement, unoffended.

“Come in,” Larry insisted.

There was little help for it, and hell, they had driven all the way out there. Larry led the way, and he did a thorough job of it. They went through all the rooms, then down to the small basement, which was really more of a glorified crawl space, and then out to the stables. He took them through the tack room and every single stall.

“Are you happy?” Larry demanded when they were finished “I have a question for you,” Jed countered.

“Yeah?” Larry said.

“Today, looking back, do you think Beau meant to draw on you? Do you think there's any possibility he thought you might have been someone else?”

Larry stared at him blankly; then he swallowed hard. “He drew on me,” he said at last.

“But it was dark, right?”

“The killing stopped,” Larry said.

“Right. But you're not answering my question.”

“I had to draw my gun. I was cleared,” Larry told him.

“Right. Thanks, Larry.”

They left, and Jed found himself staring at Thor when they got back in the car. “Well?”

“I think it was dark, and Beau Kidd did draw his weapon. I suspect that Larry Atkins didn't identify himself. But other than that…”

“What?”

Thor shook his head. “I don't know. Underwater mysteries are more my thing. But I don't think this guy is guilty of killing those women.”

“No, he's not the killer,” Jed agreed. “The thing is…”

“What?” Thor asked him.

Jed shook his head. “There's something I should be seeing. Something I need to see. The connection…”

“The connection to what?”

“I don't know. And that's it. I can't even figure out why I'm so certain that there is a connection, but I know it's there.” He hesitated for a moment, then stared at Thor as he finally turned the key in the ignition. “So just what the hell are you really doing here? What's your connection to all this?”

 

There was mist everywhere, so much artificial mist that it was almost impossible to see.

But then, this was October in a theme park, Christina thought, and the customers were paying extra for the privilege of being scared right down to their Nikes.

“Christie?” Ana called softly.

“Right here.”

Ana giggled. “I think they got a bit carried away with the fog. Did you see the monster in the lagoon? Incredible.”

“Did you do any of the makeup?” Christina asked her.

“I gave a workshop for most of the vampires. There—if you can see it.” She pointed. “That one is my design.”

“Good look,” Christina complimented her.

“Thank you. And the zombies over there…my design, as well,” Ana said proudly.

“Nice and gruesome,” Christina told her. And it was true. They were walking down what was referred to as the Hallway of Horror, heading toward the giant chair where the Grim Reader was about to tell a heart-stopping tale. The mist was not just ample, it swirled around them. The makeup on the “creatures” who strolled alongside them was excellent, and the effects along the way were done extremely well. It should have been delightfully spooky.

Except that Christina felt as if nothing could spook her anymore.

She had a ghost living in her house.

“Where are the others?” Christina asked, finding Ana in the mist.

“Behind us, I think.” Ana laughed softly. “I think Thor is scaring all the creatures away.”

“He's not spooky. He's just very good-looking.”

“He's just so tall, looming out of the mist and all.” Ana linked her arm through Christina's and shivered, lowering her voice. “It seems so strange, doesn't it? One of the victims worked here. And everyone is still…still trying to creep out the audience.”

“I'm sure that this place is chock full of security,” Christina said.

“I guess.”

Suddenly they heard a scream, and Christina felt genuine panic rush through her for the first time all night.

But then the scream was followed by laughter, and Ilona and Tony broke through the mist to join them.

“Ilona was shrieking like a girl,” Tony announced.

“I am a girl,” Ilona reminded him. “And when that huge tree thing just appeared out of the mist, it scared me.”

A moment later, the others caught up with them, as well. Mike was deep in some kind of philosophical debate with Adam, and Genevieve was walking between her husband and Jed.

“There's way too much mist,” Jed said.

“Well, it's a new park. They're probably trying to get a handle on it,” Tony said with a shrug.

“Dan should be just ahead, up in a big chair where those freaky lights are,” Mike told them.

“Almost there,” Ana said cheerfully. “Oh, look at the ghouls over there. Those are mine. I'm especially proud of them.”

The mist swirled around Christina again as she stopped to stare at Ana's ghouls. Then, when she turned back around…mist. Nothing but mist.

“Hey,” she called uncertainly.

No one answered.

She felt…something. Someone touching her. Fingers stroking her hair…

“Hey!” she protested, then spun around. No one was anywhere near her, and she felt panicked again.

Don't be ridiculous, she told herself. She was in a theme park. She might not be able to see them, but there were lots of people—undoubtedly including plenty of security personnel—around.

She turned, forcing herself not to panic, to look up toward the lights. Dan would be in that direction. She started to move, but her foot lodged against something hard. She cried out as she lost her balance and went crashing down to the ground. Into the swirling mist.

She lashed out and struck someone, then heard what sounded like someone sucking in their breath. She reached out, fumbling around, trying to find something to grab for balance so she could rise, and touched…

A body.

The mist began to clear, and she blinked, peering more closely at the woman on the ground next to her. The woman's eyes were closed, her face deathly white. Christina swallowed the scream that rose in her throat when she realized it was white makeup, and that the other woman had on a long wig, black and gray and white. She was one of the vampires, Christina realized quickly.

“Are you all right?” she asked anxiously, when she noticed that the woman wasn't moving. “Hey,” Christina said, reaching for her.

She was cold.

And there was a thin line of blood seeping from her lips….

 

“And there, my children, you have it. Another tale from the ghastly, ghoulish pen of our renowned literary giant, Edgar Allan Poe. Come back tomorrow for a story straight from the pages of another American literary great—along with a few suggestions of the Grim Reader's favorite places, where the mist and the graves and the hauntings are real.”

God, he loved applause, Dan thought as he listened to it. He relished the sound; he lived to perform.

As he stepped down from his chair, his smile brightened, though he wasn't at all sure anyone would realize that it was a smile. Not with his makeup, which was one of Ana's designs.

And there she was, he realized. Tiny, adorable, standing at the front of the audience. While the others began to break away, she just stood there, rapt.

“Hiya, kid,” he said, striding toward her. He was on such a high from performing that he grabbed her, dipped her and planted a kiss on her lips.

A park-goer passing by looked at him, startled.

“That was great,” Ana cried, struggling up.

“I agree,” Michael said, coming up and patting him on the back. “Congratulations, that was terrific. And I hear you got your part. Congratulations.”

“Thanks,” Dan said, grinning.

Mike rolled his eyes. “All we need is you walking around thinking you're a god. Hey, do you remember Christie's friend Genevieve?”

“Sure do,” Dan said, reaching out to give Genevieve a quick hug.

“This is my husband, Thor,” Genevieve said.

Dan looked up. He was tall himself. This guy was taller.

“And this is Adam Harrison,” Michael finished.

“And you know us,” Ilona said, waving to him.

“Terrific show,” Tony told him.

Dan frowned. “Where's Christie?”

They all stared at him, then looked around.

“Shit,” Michael said.

“Where the hell is she?” Jed, who'd been silent until then, demanded. Then he turned and disappeared into the mist. As he did, a bloodcurdling scream tore through the night.

“What the hell?” Ana gasped.

A teenage girl burst through the fog, screaming, then giggled.

Mike looked at her in disgust, then turned to the others and asked, “Where the hell is Christie?”

 

“Help! Help me!” Christina shouted.

She had found the other woman's wrist and checked her pulse. She was alive but unconscious, and she wasn't responding to Christina's anxious attempts to revive her.

Around her, Christina heard screams and laughter. “I need help here!” she shouted, trying to make herself heard above the general revelry.

A moment later, she heard footsteps and someone calling her name.

Jed.

“I'm over here, Jed. Help me!”

A dark shadow moved through the silver mist, and seconds later, she saw his face. “She's hurt!” Christina cried out.

“What?” he asked, looking puzzled.

“One of the vampires. Help me. She's hurt.”

He got down on his knees beside her, his police training evident as he moved efficiently to determine the woman's condition.

She heard her name called again. Ana's voice, followed by Tony's, then Mike's and Genevieve's…

“Over here!” Jed yelled. “Call an ambulance and park security!”

A floodlight suddenly cut through the mist. A park employee who introduced himself as Dr. Saryn knelt down to help, and while the others crowded around, Christina saw two nurses hurrying over with a rolling stretcher.

Suddenly she had a terrifying thought. Half the people here tonight were in costume. What if they weren't real medical personnel? What if they were going to take the woman away and…She told herself not to be ridiculous and returned her attention to what was going on.

“Oh, my God!” Dan said, his eyes on the girl being lifted onto the stretcher. “What the hell happened?” he asked anxiously.

“Who knows, in this fog,” one of the nurses said irritably.

“I know her,” Dan said, upset. “Her name's Marcie…Marcie McDonnagh. She's my friend, she's my…Hera.”

“As of now, she's my patient,” Dr. Saryn said. “I've sent for an ambulance. Her pulse is strong, and she doesn't seem to have any broken bones. It looks as if she tripped. There's a good-size hematoma on the back of her head.” Saryn turned to Christina. “You found her?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Well, she owes you her thanks. She could have gone unnoticed for a long time in all this.” He waved to indicate the mist, which seemed even more surreal as it swirled in the beam of the floodlight.

Arms slipped around Christina from behind. Jed's. She was amazed to realize that she wasn't feeling afraid anymore; instead, she was angry. But she didn't mind the support.