Chapter 32
Chapter Thirty-Two
Natalie’s early morning meeting with Letisha rolled right into the Village meeting, which Letisha chose to stay for.
Of course she did.
That wasn’t a surprise really. Even though Letisha had mentioned more than once how busy she was, the woman loved attention. Even more, she loved to offer her expert opinion to anyone who would listen and Natalie had assembled the perfect audience for her.
Natalie didn’t even mind. That’s how defeated she felt right now.
In fact, it was good Letisha was there and, apparently, more than happy to run the show, because Natalie was more than happy to let her. As the village residents eager to help arrived, Natalie had enough on her plate trying to dry her tears and concentrate on keeping a fresh wave at bay.
At nine o’clock there had to be two dozen Mudville residents in the meeting room. With more people than chairs, it was standing room only.
She didn’t know how many ghosts were there too because, of course, she didn’t know that kind of stuff anymore. And might never know it again.
Natalie felt fresh tears gathering and shoved that thought away.
Luckily for her Liam was there to help because those assembled seemed to have about a hundred questions—each.
Liam, thank goodness, fielded the demands for an explanation of how the brain got to be there in the first place.
Brave of him since there were those in the crowd who would probably like to have the planning board ban his lab from the village, which she had no doubt they would happily do.
Then he added how he believed the entity gained its power from small, rechargeable, easily accessible batteries, such as those in cell phones.
Next Letisha, standing up front straight and tall as Natalie slumped behind her against the pastry table, dazzled the crowd with her usual showmanship.
Natalie hated to admit it, but Letisha did a really great job of fielding questions and explaining things to those unfamiliar with the spirit world. She covered the more esoteric side of spirit-living interactions. Things such as how an entity without a body could physically attack a human being.
Like a tag-team, Liam jumped back into the discussion with Letisha, explaining the physical side of the attacks and what they did to the human body… and Natalie felt the sickening green fog of envy creep over her. Letisha was experienced and well-spoken, and she still had her powers.
What could Natalie add to this conversation Letisha and Liam couldn’t handle without her? Nothing.
Liam had whipped out his little ghost notes notebook to write down something Letisha had said about gaining her powers when she hit puberty and Natalie couldn’t even get annoyed at him for it. It was a fascinating tidbit. TMI, yes, but fascinating none-the-less.
Admittedly there were far too many things they didn’t know or understand about this world—the world Natalie used to be a part of. Of course the researcher in Liam wanted to explore answering all the many questions. She just hated he was now doing it with Letisha’s help instead of her own.
Natalie was deep in thought, and yes self-pity, when she heard her name.
Whipping her attention back to the proceedings, she said, “Hmm?”
“What’s your plan to get rid of this thing?” someone in the back said in a tone that was less than patient.
“That’s what we’re here to work out,” she said, too beat up already by life and the universe to feign being polite. She’d probably regret that later.
“I have an idea.” It was Millie’s disembodied voice that spoke those words.
Hearing her almost brought tears to Natalie’s eyes once more. But then she noticed the expressions of most of the attendees in the room and she had to smother a laugh. It was like most of them had never heard a ghost before.
She allowed herself a smile because she knew that most of them probably had not.
Just like how she knew there were plenty of people who’d watched the reality show she’d gotten roped into doing who’d heard Gabe and Millie on the show but still didn’t believe any of it was real.
Smoke and mirrors and the magic of television is what they thought.
But there was no production team here now manipulating what they’d just heard.
Natalie smiled. “Go ahead, Millie. What’s your idea?”
“Wait, wait, wait… Who the hell is that and how are you doing it?” That moderately belligerent question came from someone seated in the front this time.
“Millie, Gabe, I know we can’t technically explain the phenomenon behind why we can hear only you two and only when you’re together and touching, but could you explain how you both came to be here in Mudville?” Natalie prompted.
Why talk for the ghosts when they could talk for themselves?
Besides, she had to think a little shock and awe was exactly what this crowd needed. If she couldn’t warm them up to her, Natalie was perfectly willing to scare the hell out of them instead.
By the time Gabe had finished the tale of how he was murdered and his body donated to research as a John Doe just a few years ago, only to become one of Liam’s cadavers, and Millie had regaled them with the story of the night of her own murder over a hundred years ago, the room was dead silent—no pun intended.
“Thanks, you two. Now, Millie, you said you had an idea?” Natalie asked, so proud of how the shy young Victorian woman had melded so seamlessly into modern society since Natalie and Gabe had discovered her spirit hiding in Harper’s attic.
“Yes,” Millie said while Natalie wished she could see her. And Gabe. And Harriet and Rick and even Train Track Tim, who she’d bet were all there even though she couldn’t see them.
“We know we as spirits have geographical limitations. We can’t stray more than a certain distance from where our remains are—”
“So then ship that damn brain back to where it came from and get it out of Mudville!” someone shouted from the back.
“Oh, great idea. I never thought of that. That was sarcasm, by the way, in case it went over your head.” Natalie scowled deeply.
“And in answer to your comment, Liam and I agreed dooming the people of wherever the brain is sent to next is not an option. Now, you interrupted Millie. Please let her finish.”
Liam pressed his hand against her back. A show of support. She glanced up at him and he smiled. She smiled back. Taking on the doubters in the audience had somehow chased away her blues.
“Both points are valid,” Millie began again. “We can’t keep the brain here, but we can’t send it to a populated area either. So, why don’t we send it to a non-populated area?”
“But where?” Agnes asked.
“That depends on how far we can travel and if all of us have the same limitations. Once we determine how many miles spirits are limited to, you bury the brain in the center of an area with no population within that circumference,” Millie explained.
“Like in the middle of a desert,” Gabe chimed in after Millie.
“Or… the ocean,” Liam said, glancing down at Natalie with eyes wide with excitement. “We can do this. We just need to test and record the limit on the distance.”
“And how do we do that?” Margaret Trout asked.
Natalie’s instinct was to glance over at Gabe… whom she could no longer see.
Hating the loss of her power more than ever, she aimed her gaze in the direction from where his voice had come from last. “Gabe, I’m afraid we’re going to have to depend on you and Millie again, since I can’t help with communications right now.”
Or ever again.
“It’s okay, Nat. We got this,” Gabe said. “The ghost council will pass the word to every spirit in Mudville.”
“What the hell? There’s a ghost council?” a man she didn’t recognize grumbled.
Since that reality show the existence of ghosts and Natalie’s ability to see them—make that former ability—was not a secret.
In fact, it was well known in Mudville for those paying attention.
It seemed there were plenty who hadn’t been paying attention and they’d all crawled out of their holes for this meeting.
Too bad it took a murder and multiple attacks for them to notice.
Gabe ignored the comment and continued, “Every ghost in Mudville can be tested. Millie and I will accompany them. We’ll walk until we reach the barrier. We’ll see if it’s the same for all of us, or different. But we will need a living to record and then calculate the exact distances.”
“The B-Listers and I can help with that. We can follow along on our trikes.” Alice’s voice behind her had Natalie spinning to see the old woman standing in the doorway.
Alice had a colorful bruise on her cheek and a white gauze bandage on her forehead but she was the best thing Natalie had seen in a long time.
Natalie ran at her. She restrained her emotions enough to give the ninety-year-old the gentlest of hugs as she said, “I’m so glad you’re all right. But should you be up and walking? And I really don’t think you should be riding your trike so soon.”
Or at all…
Alice waved away the concern with one bruised hand then said in a firm loud voice that went a long way to alleviate Natalie’s concerns about her health, “Whatever it takes, we need to do it. To save Mudville.”
Natalie smiled, and ignoring the haze of tears said, “To save Mudville.”
A few people in the crowd echoed the sentiment.
Alice turned to Natalie. “See. Simple.”
Natalie nodded, even though this didn’t seem simple at all.
In fact, it felt very complicated, especially now with her new limitations. She couldn’t help with the distance test the way she wanted to. Couldn’t keep track of the brain ghost.
It could be listening right now and she wouldn’t know it, and now more than ever that scared the hell out of her. What if it heard their discussion about getting rid of it?
If she knew anything from her interactions with the entity, it was that it was not going to go easily. It would fight against them. And it had already proven that it could win.
“Nat,” Liam said next to her.
She glanced over and saw the concern in his expression.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
He lifted the cell in his hand. “My battery is dead.”
“Did you forget to charge it?” she asked, hopeful this didn’t mean what she feared it meant, but knowing she was wrong.
He shook his head. “It was at one hundred percent when I unplugged it from the charger this morning.”
She felt the press of fear creep up, pushing against her from all sides. And she could swear she heard a nearby deep and decidedly evil chuckle.