Grave Lies: A Psychic Investigator Mystery (Mercury Mediums Book 1), page 11
Jason lowered his tailgate, and they started loading up his order. He caught Penny’s eye, nodding.
“Looks like it’s our moment,” said Penny.
“I’ll do the talking,” Heather said. “I’d prefer if you hang back. I don’t want him to feel ganged-up on.”
Penny slowed her pace, letting Heather go ahead.
“Donovan?” The man hefted a bag into the truck bed and looked behind him. “I’m Heather Davenport. I was hoping you’d be able to find someone for us. A woman named Stacey who’s a former member of the Church of Universal Ascension.”
Donovan glanced at a couple who’d just emerged from the store. “And why would I do that?”
“I heard you keep in touch with former members. I think she might be able to help us answer some questions. It’s nothing about the church, really. It’s about my property. I live next door?”
Heather wasn’t being completely accurate, but Penny figured she wanted to keep Adelaide out of this if possible. Adelaide had seemed to trust her brother, but they had no reason to.
“Yeah. I know who you are. This Stacey have a last name?”
“Not that I know. But it’s very important. If there’s any way you can help, I’d be grateful. I could pay, if needed.”
Donovan’s eyes slid over to Jason. “You knew about this, Rainier?”
Jason grinned sheepishly. “I did. It’s a good cause, Don. I promise.”
“Then I’ll think about it. If I come up with anything for you, I’ll let Jason know. But don’t hold your breath.” With a frown, the man slunk back inside, leaving Heather to grumble.
“I doubt we’ll be hearing from him.”
“He did say he’d try,” Penny pointed out.
“Dang it.” Jason put his hands on his narrow hips, surveying the bags of feed on the ground. “Guess I’m loading the rest of that order myself.”
Back in Heather’s truck, Penny got a text from Zandra. She sucked in a breath.
“What happened?” Heather asked.
“Z got their names. Tabitha Daily and Wes Crenshaw.”
Chills ran through Penny’s body. From the look on Heather’s face, she guessed the other woman shared the feeling.
“I’ve been waiting over thirty years to know who they were. And now I know. It’s…anticlimactic, somehow.” Heather started the truck and put it into gear. “We’re going to the police station. With full names, it shouldn’t take Novak too long to check missing persons databases.”
Ten minutes later, they were in Chief Novak’s office. He flashed his usual grin at Heather. “Any progress yet?”
“Like you wouldn’t believe. We know the names of the bride and groom. At least, likely names. Enough to check into.”
His eyebrows twitched as his gaze moved to Penny. “Huh. Maybe I should hire psychics myself. You’re moving things right along.”
“If we’re wrong,” Penny said, “we’ll find out pretty soon.”
He held up his hands. “Hey, keeping an open mind, here. Why don’t you give me the names, and I’ll fire up the old PC and see what NamUs has got.”
“National Database on Missing Persons,” Heather explained to Penny.
Novak jotted down the names on his notepad. Then he typed the first one into the database. “Well, lookee here. We’ve got a hit.”
Heather’s hand reached for Penny’s and squeezed. Penny was surprised by the gesture, but she squeezed back.
He leaned closer to the screen. “Tabitha Marie Daily, reported missing on July 8, 1980. Parents made the report in Box Butte County, Nebraska, but her last known location was Wyoming. Looks like the record was updated with new contact info for her parents in 2005. It’s possible they’re at the same phone number.”
Heather pulled out her device. “Read it to me.” He did, and she typed it in.
“Now hold on,” Novak said. “Let me try Wes Crenshaw real quick.”
Penny bit her lip. She and Heather remained motionless as the man typed.
But this time, Novak sighed and shook his head. “No reports on him. Same with ‘Wesley Crenshaw’ and every other variation I can think of. Too bad. Well, try the Dailys. Maybe our luck hasn’t run out yet.”
Heather stood, holding the phone to her ear. “Hello, could I speak to Mr. or Mrs. Daily please?” She tapped her foot. “My name is Heather Davenport. I’m with the Cheyenne Field Office of the FBI.”
Heather paused, listening, eyes shining. “Yes, ma’am. I’m calling about your daughter. Tabitha.”
Chapter Seventeen
Ben was waiting in the hallway when Zandra stepped out. She tucked Tabitha’s handkerchief away.
“Got what you needed?” he asked.
“I did. Thanks. Apologies for griping at you earlier.”
He fell into step beside her. “My mother can be a handful. Her assistant told me she brought you up on stage? I’m sorry about that. I swear I didn’t know. But I can’t say I’m surprised.”
“How much does she know about us?” Zandra hadn’t been able to tell, which was probably for the best. The experience had been difficult enough already. Yet she had to wonder if Gwen’s choice to pull her onstage had something to do with protectiveness over her son.
“Does she know about how you and I…jeez, I’d prefer not. But I grew up with her as my mother. I went through puberty in her house. Everybody in my family expects that she knows all, at all times. I learned to get over it.”
Zandra laughed in spite of herself. And she thought her childhood had been awkward. Ben’s mother didn’t read energy or thoughts, like she could, but object reading would reveal plenty. She could just imagine poor Gwendolyn cleaning her son’s room. Doing his laundry. Ugh, too much information for anyone.
“But everybody in my family is para-sensitive,” Ben said. “There were no secrets from anyone, really.”
“Now that you’re old enough to pick whom you spend your time with, wouldn’t you rather hang around someone who can’t read your thoughts?”
“Are you implying I like you because you remind me of my mother?”
They both laughed. “I would hope not,” said Zandra.
His glance burned into her. She knew exactly what he was thinking about, and it was not the least bit familial.
They reached the exit and pushed out onto the street. Gwen’s theater was located on the north side of downtown Denver. Zandra had found street parking a block away, in front of a dispensary. Colorful murals decorated the sides of the buildings. It was sunny, but the chilly air bit at Zandra’s nose and cheeks.
“I should get going,” she said.
“Do you have time for lunch? There’s a taco truck down this way.”
She looked at her phone. Plenty of time to swing by the Mercury office, then head back to Coldwater. And a few more minutes with Ben did sound nice. His energy reached out to her, eager for more time together.
She’d been avoiding him for this very reason. He tempted her, made her want to get closer. Even though she knew they’d never work out. One of them would end up getting hurt.
At the moment, however, temptation was winning. “Lunch sounds good.”
As they walked, Zandra told him about Heather Davenport and the ghosts on her property, then about some of their other recent cases.
“Sounds like you and Penny are doing well as partners,” he said.
“We’re a good match. Our strengths complement each other’s.”
“She needs someone like you to help her focus.”
“And sometimes, I need her to remind me of my priorities.” Like helping as many people as possible, living or dead. “What about you? How’s your new partner?”
“He’s okay. We get along all right. But I’m not loving the cases we’ve been assigned lately. Not everybody has your setup, getting to choose your own.”
“It’s been nice, but I’m starting to wonder if Mercury is having second thoughts. I don’t think they’re thrilled with this case in Coldwater. Guess it’s not our typical haunting. But Penny was right. It’s worth spending a few days of our time if we can help.”
“Sounds like she’s making you less cynical.”
Zandra shrugged one shoulder. “She’s the happy-go-lucky kid sister I never knew I wanted. Hard to say no to her. And I can’t deny her talent.”
“You traded up, then. Penny suits you a lot better as a partner than that last guy. What was his name, again?”
His crooked grin made her stomach flip. Hello, temptation.
“My last partner wasn’t so bad,” she said. “Even though he didn’t last long.” And for good reason. Their attraction was much too distracting.
They ordered tacos, then sat on a curb to eat. Some teenagers skateboarded on the steps of the building across the street.
“I was glad to hear from you, Z,” said Ben. “Even if it’s just for a case.”
Zandra could tell he was being sincere. It wasn’t some guilt trip for her failure to call him. Ben usually said just what he meant, and she admired that about him.
She couldn’t help thinking of Heather and Chief Novak back in Coldwater. Heather had a good reason to avoid starting anything with the man, even if she returned his feelings. She only had a few months to live, and it was Heather’s choice how she wished to spend them.
Zandra had no such reason to be holding back. She did like Ben. A lot. He didn’t mind her ability to read him, and she enjoyed being around him.
But when she imagined actually trying to have a relationship with Ben, it felt like she was visualizing someone else’s life. Penny was the romantic, not her. Boyfriends always tired of her hectic schedule, her uncanny intuitions.
Outside of work, she preferred to spend much of her time alone. She wasn’t exactly happy, but she also couldn’t say she wanted anything different.
It was much easier to read what other people were feeling. Not so simple to pull apart her own inner motivations.
“I didn’t just come to Denver for this case,” said Zandra. Ben’s energy lifted with hope, and she cursed herself for her lazy wording. “I—um, I got a call from Dari Bautista. She wanted me to come in.”
Dari was Ben’s handler, too. She covered all the agent teams in their region.
“Oh.” He was trying to cover his disappointment. “What about?”
“I was hoping you might have some idea. Maybe you’ve heard something? Talked to the other teams?”
He thought. This was something else Zandra admired about Ben. He gave his all, no matter what he was feeling. “We’ve been getting assignments pretty close to home lately. And not very many. Other people have complained about the same thing. Everyone says there’s more work than we could possibly do. So why don’t they have us out there doing it?”
That did seem strange, especially since Mercury had asked her and Penny to take care of so many cases further afield. But if their employer was trying to clear the decks in preparation for something, it might make sense.
“And what do you think of our new regional handler?” she asked.
“Dari? I haven’t had enough interactions with her to say either way. You know I wasn’t a fan of Anderson.”
Anderson Green had been Zandra’s mentor and handler for over a decade, but he’d chosen to take a step back for personal reasons. Though he was still with Mercury, he’d moved across the country to work as a field agent on the East Coast.
“But at least Anderson respected our abilities,” Ben said. “With him, I knew we would work hard, and we’d get things done. Lately? I guess I thought Mercury was giving all the interesting hauntings to people like you.”
Zandra didn’t know about that. “I’m meeting with Dari this afternoon, so I guess I’ll find out.”
“Want me to come with you?”
“I hardly need an escort.” Between them, she was the senior agent.
“I wasn’t saying you needed…” Ben shook his head. “You really don’t make things easy, do you, Z?”
This was exactly what she’d wanted to avoid. Expectations, hurt feelings. “Maybe Penny and I can get together with you and your new partner when we’re all in town next.”
His mind was already moving away from her. He stood, brushing off his jeans. “Yeah. Maybe.”
Zandra walked into a generic building and took the elevator to the second floor. She reached a plain door, down the hall from a law firm and across from an accountant. The sign out front simply read, Mercury Group, with no further descriptors.
A bored-looking receptionist looked up when she entered. “May I help you?”
“Zandra Mendes. Here to see Dari Bautista.”
“Is she expecting you?”
“She’s been bugging me to come in, so I should think so.”
Mercury had offered Zandra this handler position not long ago. They’d thought her reading ability would make her a strong manager. But Zandra didn’t want to be stuck behind a desk. Looking around this office, she knew she’d made the right decision. The Mercury Group had a lot of money behind their operations, but they weren’t spending it here. This office was all beige walls and furniture, with generic abstract prints as the only pops of color. It had more the appearance of a “typical” office than a true identity. This space was supposed to blend in, draw as little attention as possible.
The receptionist picked up a phone and said a few words. “She’ll be with you in a moment. You can take a seat.”
The chair was hard and creaky. Zandra bet few people ever sat on it.
Dari made her wait for ten minutes before finally strolling out to the reception area. “Zandra, thanks for coming in.” She beckoned for her to follow.
They went into Dari’s office, and the woman shut the door. She had a computer on her desk, stacks of papers, and filing cabinets behind her. This could’ve been a duplicate of one of the law or accounting offices from down the hall. Dari herself was equally generic: hair in a tasteful twist, a black suit.
Dari took a seat. “But where’s Penny?”
“You didn’t say Penny needed to be here.”
The handler’s energy flared with annoyance. “You’re partners. I assumed you would know what I meant.”
“I can only read in person, not over the phone.” Zandra hoped her glare conveyed her real meaning: Don’t even think about lying to me. “What is it you wanted to discuss?”
“Mercury is making some changes.” Dari held up a hand, like she wanted to stave off any interruptions. “This is coming from on high. Way above my pay grade. All I know is that I’m supposed to bring my teams in to await further instructions.”
Zandra was trying not to jump to any rash conclusions. This might not have anything to do with her and Penny specifically. But how far would these changes go?
In her years with Mercury, she’d had the same handler and partner—Anderson and Janice—for nearly the entire time. Not once had she ever been pulled off a case for some nebulous administrative reason.
“Penny and I haven’t finished with our current case yet. I’m heading back to Wyoming this afternoon, and it’ll be at least a few more days.”
“That’s not ideal. Can’t you go back there another time? The ghosts will wait, right? They’re probably not going anywhere.”
Zandra narrowed her eyes. This wasn’t the way Anderson had ever spoken about their mission. “There are time pressures involved. It’s complicated. But I can give you a full briefing on the case if you feel that’s necessary.”
Dari flipped through the papers in front of her, though she wasn’t actually reading them. “I have to know exactly when you’ll be back. I realize you’ve been operating with a certain amount of freedom, and you resent my interference. But I’m not the enemy here, only the messenger.”
Zandra crossed her arms. “Keep going. Tell me more about how I’m feeling. It’s fascinating.”
Dari was losing her patience, but Zandra wanted to get beneath the woman’s cool demeanor. So far, everything she’d said was true. But Dari knew more, and she wasn’t foolish enough to project that information in a way Zandra could pick it up. Perhaps rooting out the Mercury Group’s secrets wouldn’t be quite as easy as Zandra had imagined.
The handler didn’t take Zandra’s bait. “You say a few days. I’m assuming you mean three. Today is Tuesday. So I’ll expect you and Penny to check in here on Friday afternoon. That’s all for now. Oh—and don’t bother to go over any new case summaries. You’ll hear directly from me when it’s time for your next assignment.”
“I want to talk to your boss. He’s the one who gave me clearance to set my own cases. If Mercury’s going back on its word, I want an explanation.”
“I’ll pass along that request. You can go. I’ll see you Friday.”
Zandra didn’t have much choice but to leave. It was a good thing her visit to Gwendolyn Kwan had been so fruitful, because she’d rarely felt so powerless.
But she wasn’t the type to panic. Mercury was her family, for better or worse. Zandra had been a loyal agent for thirteen years—probably far longer than Dari had worked for them. That had to mean something. Once she and Penny were finished with the case in Coldwater, they’d get this sorted out.
Chapter Eighteen
Penny listened to Heather’s side of the phone call. The Dailys wanted to meet face-to-face—today.
“They live in Alliance, Nebraska,” Heather said when she hung up. “It’s about three hours from Coldwater. But they offered to meet us halfway. There’s a travel center on I-80 near the border.”
“Surprised they wouldn’t come all the way here,” Chief Novak mused. “Seeing as Coldwater is where Tabitha died. She’s buried here, too.”
“I wondered about that. But if they’d asked to come here, I would’ve discouraged them. We have enough attention on us as it is.”
Penny wondered if the Dailys might have some other reason for avoiding Coldwater, but she guessed they’d find out soon enough.
