Lost Souls by J. Bishop (the giving tree read aloud txt) 📗

to be surprised. Especially if the detectives on this case discover it first.”

Chad hovered over Cissy, and she ran her hands over her upper arms and shivered. “It’s cold in here.” She put her tea down and pulled a blanket off the back of the chair to lay over her shoulders.

“Cissy?” asked Trick.

Cissy adjusted her position on the chair and sat cross-legged. She scratched at something on her jeans. “I wasn’t completely honest about something.”

Mason held his breath, waiting for the hammer to the fall. “What is it?”

“I haven’t told anyone. Not even the cops. Or my parents.” Cissy stared off at some distant point. “I, uh, I did something stupid.”

“Oh, hell,” said Trick, sighing. “Did you cheat on Chad?”

“No,” said Cissy. “I mean, I thought about it. I was angry with him, and I thought about cheating, but I knew that would only make it worse.” She bunched the blanket in her hands. “No, I…uhm…hell…I did see Lydia. I found out where she lived and went to her place to confront her.”

More tingles traveled up Mason’s arms.

“What happened?” asked Trick.

“I knocked on her door,” said Cissy. “She answered, and we argued. She acted dumb about Chad. Said I didn’t know what I was talking about. That I was crazy.”

Mason’s tingles intensified, and he watched in shock as another spirit began to materialize beside dead Chad.

“I yelled back,” said Cissy. “Told her to stay away from my husband, or I’d drop kick her ass back into her momma’s womb. She just cackled at me and grinned, like I was making jokes. I saw red and told her to either back off, or I’d make her wish she’d never met Chad, much less screwed him.”

The spirit began to take shape, and Mason stared with wide eyes. A woman appeared beside dead Chad, her face pale, her lips blue, and her wet hair stuck to her face and neck. Water dripped down from her clothes and skin. Mason forced himself not to react. Dead Lydia had joined dead Chad.

Cissy shook her head. “I should have never gone, I know, but I had to see her, to tell her to leave us alone, but then I realized something was wrong. Something was off about her. Her eyes kept darting around, her hair was dirty, she had a strange empty stare, and her pupils were wide. I think she was on something, and then I wondered if Chad had gotten in too deep.” She reached for her tea, her fingers trembling. “He’d slept with a madwoman, and now he had to pick up the pieces after a horrific mistake. It made me question everything about him. What kind of man would do that?” She closed her eyes. “What the hell was he thinking? Was our life that miserable? How could he have had an affair with someone like her?”

Mason tried to stay with Cissy, but watched in disbelief as the ghost of Lydia Stanford reached down and slapped at Cissy’s tea. The cup fell from Cissy’s grasp and liquid splashed all over Cissy’s lap. Cissy yelped and sat up, pushing the blanket back.

Mason pulled himself out of his shock and stood, but his attention remained on dead Chad and Lydia. Trick leapt up and grabbed for a napkin on the tray.

Cissy swiped at the liquid. “What a mess. I don’t know what happened. I guess it just slipped out of my hands.”

“Here,” said Trick, holding out the napkin. “I’ll go to the kitchen and get some towels.”

Cissy took the napkin and dabbed at her pants. “I’m such a klutz.”

Mason wanted to help, but was riveted by the presence of Lydia, who smiled as Cissy cleaned up, and then her gaze found Mason’s. The prickles became shards of ice and anxiety crept up his spine when Lydia grinned, opened her mouth, and began to cackle.

Chapter Nine

Mason sat at the bar, nursing a tequila. A soft country song about a lonely man and his beer played, and he rested his head in his palm, trying to get Lydia Stanfield’s face out of his mind.

“Can I get you another?”

Mason looked up. “No. Thanks, Charlie. I better stop here.”

Charlie nodded and walked away to help another patron at the bar.

After their interview with Cissy, he and Trick had returned to the office and Mason had decided he’d had enough for the day. Mikey had given him a look but hadn’t said anything. Trick stayed to go through the phone and credit card records and Mikey had agreed to drive him to Mason’s later.

Mason had returned home and taken a hot shower, but feeling restless, he’d left and come to Charlie’s. It was a small hole-in-the-wall bar that played country music, and the customers wore boots and cowboy hats. It was a little slice of Texas in the Golden State, and it soothed him when he needed to clear his head. It had been a while since a communication with the deceased had disturbed him so much, and he needed to distract himself.

Mikey had called earlier, telling him she’d dropped Trick off and had used her key to get in. Trick had also called, but Mason hadn’t answered. He needed a little time away from his old partner, and if Trick knew Mason was in a bar, he wouldn’t hesitate to join him and Mason didn’t want that right now. He told Mikey to let Trick know he’d be home soon, and to make himself comfortable, and he’d left it at that. Trick would be fine, but Mason wondered about his own state of mind. This case was summoning some alarmingly determined apparitions when he was usually adept at warding them off. Now Mason had to figure out how to deal with them. If he was going to help Cissy, he’d have to determine why Chad and Lydia had shown themselves, and why Lydia held enough acrimony toward Cissy to physically knock a cup from Cissy’s hand. Was Cissy telling the truth about Chad and Lydia? Or