“Yes, of course, you’ll take your time.” As the ghost faded away, no doubt to go and find him something pornographic to watch, Horrie reached out for his mate and felt nothing. Not a soft connection. Not even a wall, but nothingness. He knew then that she’d been murdered.
“My daughter had something to do with it, I don’t doubt either. Money grubbing whore. Taking up with those necromancers and now look at her.” Three ghosts appeared in front of him, but Horrie didn’t bother moving. They were not anyone he had a beef with, and as soon as he stood up, he knew they’d be on their way.
“Horatio Mower Graham?” He nodded. When someone or even in this case, something said your full name, you had no choice but to listen up and tell the truth. “We’re here to inform you that your wife and mate, Amber York Graham, is deceased. Staked through the heart. By order of the council.”
He waited for them to say more, at least tell him the name of the person who had done the deed, but they only stared at him. When it was apparent that they weren’t going to speak until he did, Horrie shrugged.
“What is it you want me to do about it?” They looked at each other, then at him again. “I’m assuming one of you guys did it. Well, thanks. Saved me having to find someone that could do it for me. She gonna be coming here at some point? You know, to spend her days with me?”
“No. She’s gone, sent on to where she needed to go to bother us no more.” He nodded. Figured she’d do something like that. Just up and leave him to be alone with his own plans. Now how the hell was he going to get into the house without her body to do some of the real work? “You have nothing more to say?”
“Not that I can think of.” He pretended to think on it then snapped his fingers. “Oh yeah. My daughter, is she dead yet too? That’s the one I really want to have a piece of. No sending her over without a farewell from her daddy dear.”
“Victoria has joined the Justice team of Bennett.” He felt his body run cold. She did what? “She and her mate have made some considerable donations as well. To the library as well as some of the museums that are around the world. You should be very proud of her.”
“No. I’m pissed if you want to know the truth. She took what was mine, and now she’s just giving it away like she don’t have a care in the world.” One of them asked if she’d really stolen from them. “No. But that crap in that safe was mine. I want it and as her dad, I think it should come to me, not get donated to some place where it won’t earn me a dime.”
“What need would you have for money? You do know that you are dead, don’t you? And not taking very good care of yourself either, if you don’t mind my saying.” He asked him what he meant. “You’ve not been resting properly. Have you even once been back to your place of death to rest? You can only get rejuvenated there. No amount of rest elsewhere will do the same for you.”
“I was staked out in the sun by my own flesh and blood.” The men looked at each other then back at him. “You want me to go back there and lay down on the earth and rest? What if someone comes along and finishes the job and sends me over?”
“Sends you to where, Mr. Graham? You have amounted quite a few years onto your sentence here. I do not believe, unless you are zapped over, you’ll be going anywhere so that you’d have anything like that to worry over.” They all laughed. “You will soon be nothing more than matter that will only stick to someone’s shoes if you don’t rest soon. Why have you not consulted your book to see what to do?”
“I made the guy take that stupid thing back. I can’t read anyway.” He told him it would talk to him should that be necessary. “Yeah, so they said. And what do you mean, my sentence? I served up my time when my daughter killed me.”
“She had the permission of the council to do that, I believe. It was a case that was heard some time ago, and she fulfilled her promise of making the event happen.” Event? His death was an event? Not fucking likely. “As for the things you think should belong to you, I’m afraid that is not going to come to you either. You are, as I have said, dead.”
“I fucking know that I’m dead, damn it. Why does everyone have to keep telling me that? I’m not stupid, you know?” None of them said anything, but he could see what they were thinking. “What the fuck do you want, anyway?”
“We have come to inform you that Steele Bennett’s man, Mitch Riley, has asked to zap you over, and we have told him he has our permission.” Horrie felt like they’d staked him too. “That is all.”
Then they just left him. Horrie was suddenly terrified.
Chapter 10