1 Broken Hearted Ghoul Read online

  It took me a minute to translate. “No. Women wear their hair short now. They were pants too. And go to school. Just like real people.”

  He nodded and smiled. “What if I truly am a killer sorcerer and have simply not realized it as yet?”

  “Then you must be Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” I touched his face. “You would have two competing personalities in there.”

  “You are correct, it would seem, about me killing ghouls. I did not believe I could kill Jasper. I was hoping I would not need to. He simply would not stop. Who knows what other knowledge is in my head?”

  “Tell me again—what do you remember before you ended up here?” I wasn’t sure I was ready for all of the truth today, but at some point, I would have to find out.

  “It was like going to sleep. I remember the place that I showed you—the place I think I’m from. I was there one minute—fighting, I believe—and here the next.”

  “Could another sorcerer have done that? I’m just spitballing here. I have no idea what sorcerers can and can’t do.”

  “I suppose it is possible. You could also be an illusion while I am locked away in a prison somewhere.” He kissed my forehead. “If so, I shall accept the illusion.”

  “Thanks. Maybe we should do some research. We could look up the name that Jasper called you, and go from there. I really don’t want to think that you’re an evil sorcerer in a prison somewhere.”

  “How would you envision that we would do this research? Have you a grimoire of some sort?”

  “Yes. We call it Google.”

  We went downstairs and had a snack with Addie and Kate. My head felt clearer. I was thinking about calling Debbie to come over and bring the van. The backyard felt naked without it.

  Abe called, and even apologized for disturbing me. “If you’re up to it, I have a job for you.”

  Addie frowned, and Lucas shook his head. But a job is a job. “Text me the information.”

  “Done. Be careful, Skye. I hope you can take your sorcerer with you.” As usual, he was simply gone, and the conversation was over.

  Kate groaned. “I thought I could go to the mall today if I was feeling better. I have to go back to school tomorrow, Mommy!”

  “I know.” I hugged her. “I’m sorry. We’ll have to go next weekend. Or maybe we can go one night after school.”

  “You always have to work!” She stamped her foot, and stormed out of the kitchen, crying.

  “That went well.” Addie sighed. “Go on. I’ll see to her—like I always do.”

  * * *

  I called Debbie and let her know we had a pickup. She wasn’t thrilled about it since she and her kids were baking cookies, but she understood, and said she’d be right over.

  Lucas was waiting at the back door when I was ready to go.

  “You’re going?” I asked.

  “I am ready, yes. The necromancer may have been the only thing standing between you and the real death.”

  I smirked at the way he said that. The real death. “You know, I really am dead already. I’ve experienced the real death.”

  “My apologies.” He bowed. “I sometimes forget.”

  “Brandon said you need a sorcerer to paralyze the ghoul with some charm and then you can cut the head off and burn the body. Does that sound right to you?”

  He shrugged. “I would not be telling you the truth, lady, if I said I ever recalled doing such a thing. However, the theory sounds like standard practice for killing any creature. I believe even your zombie master would die if someone cut off his head, and burned his body.”

  “Funny. What about the paralyzing charm?”

  “I do not have one, so far as I know.”

  Great! Why do I get the sorcerer who doesn’t know what he’s doing?

  “I guess we’ll figure it out when we get there—if we run into her.”

  Debbie honked the horn from the back of the inn.

  “I’m still not letting your drive,” she said when I walked to the driver’s side. “It’s bad enough I have to take a chance on my life with sorcerers and killer ghouls. I’m not risking a head-on collision!”

  “That’s fine.” I got in on the passenger side. “But drive faster, huh? I’d like to do this pickup, and be back sometime today.”

  “I’m a very good driver,” she told Lucas, glancing into the backseat.

  “Because you drive like a snail.” I fastened my seatbelt.

  “Did he bring anything to kill the ghoul?” she whispered, looking at him again. “I know we have the sword, but we need the other part to use it on her, right?”

  “We’re working on it.” I checked my Beretta. “If we can’t paralyze her, maybe we can distract her with a few shots to the head.”

  “Yeah,” she scorned. “Because that went so well for you and the police detective.”

  “It’s all we’ve got right now, unless you have a magic charm I’m unaware of.”

  “You should expect her to be there.” Lucas’s tone had an edge to it.

  “Why? Have you remembered something?”

  “Uncertain. Perhaps.” He put his hands in his pockets. “Ghouls target their victims, as she has Abe. Since she has seen you, and not killed you, the chances are you are next.”

  “I’ve seen her before.” I told him about the encounter at the bar, which had probably cost Martin his life. “She didn’t come after me then.”

  But didn’t I have the same impression? I knew in my gut that Mary was coming for me.

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  Debbie drove to the address Abe had sent. It was a diner, not too far from The Parthenon where Jacob and I had visited once on a date. The building, completely replicated from the old Parthenon in Athens, Greece, was impressive. I considered that I’d have to bring Kate there one day. Jacob and I had loved it.

  I had to start thinking of other things to do with Kate besides going to the mall. I knew she liked shopping, but there were plenty of other interesting things to do in Nashville. We could visit the Grand Ole Opry, or go to the zoo.

  It was just a matter of creating those opportunities for us. I needed to take advantage of our time together. I wanted her to remember me that way when I was gone.

  Debbie parked the van on the street in front of the diner. She had a hard time doing it too. Lucas finally got out, and guided her into the spot.

  “Don’t say it,” she warned when I got out. “I’m not used to driving a white elephant like this. You should get Abe to buy you something newer and easier to drive.”

  “Thanks. I’ll get right on that.”

  We walked into the diner, nothing more than a greasy spoon with a big grill and a Formica counter at one end, and about a dozen tables and booths in the other. It smelled like French fries and burgers—nothing wrong with that.

  “Look! They do fresh peach shakes!” Debbie was excited by the idea. “Maybe I’ll have one while we’re waiting.”

  The diner wasn’t busy with the lunch crowd gone and not many customers before dinner. The place probably didn’t have much of a dinner rush anyway. There were too many other nice places to eat close by.

  It was an odd place for a pickup. I’d never had anyone who wanted to leave from the place they worked. Maybe she was homeless. Or maybe she lived with someone who didn’t know about her twenty years of service to Abe.

  “What can I get for you all?” The waitress had black hair streaked with gray. It was piled up on her head, and held there with a silver clip. Her uniform was pink and white, and her nametag said she was Elaine Talos.

  I looked at the name on the phone—Elaine Talos.

  “I’d like a peach shake,” Debbie said with a smile. “Are the peaches really fresh?”

  “Fresh as they can be coming out of a can,” Elaine said.

  “Oh.” Debbie was disappointed.

  “We’re not here for something to eat and drink,” I said. “Abe sent us for you.”

  She blinked a few times. Maybe she’d lost track of what
day it was. She seemed surprised. Her big blue eyes were confused. “Is it that time already? It goes so quickly. You hardly realize it, and twenty years is gone.”

  “I know,” I whispered back. “But you know how this goes. You have to come with me.”

  “I can’t. I haven’t had a chance to tell my family goodbye. Let me call him. He’ll give me a few extra days.”

  I’d never known Abe to do that, but it didn’t matter to me if she tried. I nodded, and she walked away, taking her cell phone out of her pocket.

  “I hope he gives her some extra time.” Debbie sympathized. “Maybe he should start doing a pre-pickup phone call or text so people are ready.”

  “You should talk to him about that.” I looked around. No sign of Mary anyway. That was good news.

  Elaine came back out of the kitchen. “He won’t take my call. I don’t understand. Why is this happening? I did everything he asked of me. There’s no reason for this.”

  I hated it. I’d been stone cold a few times with zombies I’d picked up. I’d learned to be. It was probably having my brain rattled by the ghoul. “I’m only doing what he told me. I’m sorry. Today is your day.”

  “Please. You have to let me say goodbye. I have everything set up, but the kids weren’t getting’ together until later tonight.” She smiled at me as she wiped tears from her face. “They planned a big going away party, you know?”

  This was an impossible situation. Abe wanted her back right away. He was worried about Mary waiting out there for us. Elaine wanted time to say goodbye. What was I supposed to do? This one was hard.

  Debbie nudged me with her elbow. “Maybe we could give her more time, huh? So she can say goodbye.”

  I looked at Lucas. He shrugged. I didn’t blame him for not wanting in on this one.

  “How fast can you get your family together?” I sighed heavily, knowing it wasn’t a good practice to give people extra time. It was never easy to leave your life. Maybe that’s why death usually sneaked up on you.

  “It would take a few hours. Two of them live in Knoxville. Another one lives in Sevierville. They’d come if I told them what was happening. Can you let me do that?”

  I was going to hate myself for this. Abe would make sure of it. “Call them. Have them meet you where you live, not here. I won’t take you until after you’ve said goodbye. I’ll make up some excuse for Abe.”

  “Thank you so much.” She hugged me as she cried. “I’ll tell my boss there’s an emergency. He’ll let me go. Not that my standing with him matters much now. I won’t ever forget that you did this for me.”

  “Give me your address and phone number.” I took out my cell phone and put the numbers into it. “Here’s my number. My name is Skye. Call me as soon as you’re ready.”

  “What about Abe? Will you be all right? I know how he can be.” Her laughter was tinged with regret. “I was his lover for several months after he first took me. I would’ve been dead from pneumonia if he hadn’t given me the deal, so I felt like I couldn’t complain.”

  “And after the two of you broke up?” I glanced around the diner. “He wanted you to work here?”

  “Oh no. This came later. I was a notary for a long time. I was at his office so I could notarize important papers and things that came in. I guess after a while he didn’t need me to do that job anymore—like he didn’t need me in his bed.”

  “I see.” I hardened my resolve. I was giving her the time she needed whether Abe liked it or not. If I were lucky, he’d never know. I had a strategy worked out. “Call me when you’re ready. Don’t try to contact Abe again. It could be very bad for both of us.”

  “I won’t. I’ll call you as soon as all my kids know. I just don’t want to leave them this way. I’ve seen that too many times with the people who have served Abe. Thank you again, Skye.”

  I left the diner hating the world. Abe was toying with Elaine’s life, probably for his own satisfaction. Maybe he was just trying to keep another zombie from being ripped apart. I didn’t know.

  “His lover,” Debbie whispered, clutching my arm. “Is that what could happen to me?”

  “You already told him no,” I reminded her. “You aren’t working in a diner yet. You’ll be okay.”

  Across the street was a bar called O’Brian’s. I needed a few shots of whiskey to get me through this. I hurt all over, and my brain was starting to feel like wet spaghetti again.

  I really needed the ghoul to hold off trying to kill me for a while. I hoped Elaine would be a nice, easy pickup with no flak from her kids when we left.

  “Are you sure you want to go in there?” Lucas asked.

  “Yes. I definitely want to go in there. If you don’t drink, you could get some juice or a soft drink.”

  “I don’t drink,” Debbie said almost defiantly.

  “That works for you too,” I told her.

  Once I was seated in a dark corner of the almost empty bar, I called Abe. “I’m having some trouble finding Elaine Talos. She didn’t show up for work today. Do you have a home address for her?”

  “Do you think she’s a runaway?”

  “I don’t know. If her time was up today, it’s possible. I wouldn’t go in for one more day at a sleazy diner if I didn’t have to.”

  “Good point.” His deep voice didn’t alter. I hoped he believed me. “Here is her home address. Let me know if you can’t find her there.”

  I thanked him, and checked the text. I had an idea where her apartment was located. It was only a few blocks from the diner.

  “Be careful,” Abe advised. “This could be a trap.”

  “I will. Thanks.”

  Step two was done. Abe didn’t sound suspicious. He hadn’t asked any unusual questions about what I was doing. Everything was going to be fine. It was a good thing to let Elaine and her family have a moment alone together. It made me feel—human.

  Debbie excused herself, and went to the ladies’ room after ordering a ginger ale in a glass with a straw.

  Lucas had mimicked her request, probably because he didn’t know what else to order. “You seem uneasy. Is it the task—or lying to Abe?”

  “Both.”

  “Perhaps you simply have a healthy fear of what could be waiting out here for you.” He smiled. “It is all right to admit when you are afraid.”

  “I’m not afraid. It’s a normal pickup for someone whose time has come. I think I can handle it.” I glared at him. “Are you afraid?”

  “All the time. I am not ashamed to admit it. Only a fool does not feel fear.”

  “Is that a wise sorcerer saying?”

  “Take it as you will.”

  Debbie came back as the drinks arrived. When the waiter was gone, she whispered, “This place isn’t very clean.”

  I laughed as I swallowed a gulp of whiskey. “I’m not surprised. Good thing you’re drinking through a straw.”

  “Why are we here?” Lucas asked.

  “We’re killing time until we can pick Elaine up. I don’t think we should leave the area, in case she decides to go sooner. I don’t want her to call Abe because we aren’t there.”

  I admit that I was feeling fatalistic. That was unusual for me because I’m normally realistic about the job I do. Everyone knows what they’re getting into when they take those twenty years from Abe. I tried not to feel sorry for them. I was okay with no one feeling sorry for me either when my time came.

  “It was good of you to give that woman a chance to say goodbye to her family.” Debbie peeked at her watch. “I was surprised after what you’ve told me, you know, your experiences.”

  “Me too.” I took another drink. “I think I’m getting soft.”

  “I knew you had a soft heart inside that tough exterior.” Lucas smiled as he examined the straw.

  “A soft heart that will probably get me in trouble with Abe—and that’s saying that Elaine doesn’t make a run for it. We’d have to take her down.”

  “You mean kill her.” Debbie didn’t like that
idea.

  “She’s already dead,” I reminded her. “I mean collecting her where she goes in through the back door of the Taxi for the Dead. Most sit on the seat.”

  Lucas tasted the ginger ale and then studied the glass with an odd expression on his face. “If you thought she would become so much trouble, why give her this time?”

  “I don’t know. I felt sorry for her.”

  Yet even as I said it, I realized what was bothering me—something was wrong. I couldn’t put my finger on it. It was more than Elaine asking for extra time. I hoped I was mistaken, and it was just my brain still coping with the ghoul’s attack.

  “We have to go.” I swallowed the last of my whiskey, and got to my feet.

  “Elaine didn’t call yet,” Debbie reminded me.

  “I know. We’re going early.”

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  My phone rang before we got outside. Elaine said she’d been able to get her family together faster than she’d anticipated. “I’m ready to go now. Come get me before I change my mind.”

  “Her voice is . . . different,” Lucas said. “Perhaps you should call others to aid you as well, Skye. This could be a ruse.”

  “I have the only available sorcerer,” I replied. “Let’s hope we can handle it.”

  I had a general idea where Elaine’s apartment was. Debbie started the engine, and headed that way.

  I tried to focus on what we were doing. It wasn’t easy. After encountering Mary earlier, I wasn’t sure we could handle her.

  If Lucas’s magic was more certain.

  If I didn’t feel like I’d been kicked in the head.

  If there was any chance Debbie could cope.

  None of those things was going to happen—at least I didn’t expect them.

  “Are you sure about this?” Debbie pulled into a parking space in front of Elaine’s apartment building. “It reminds me a lot of what we already tried.”

  “Stay out here, if you like, and I’ll call if I need help.”

  “Not a good plan,” she disagreed. “What if you need help right away?”

  I pulled out my Beretta. “This is my right-hand man. He’s always there when I need him.”