Page 40 of Cadaver Lab: Mind Over Murder

Gabe walked out into the dark before her. And as she glanced back into the brightly lit lab before she flipped off the light switch, was that a flash of motion? In the back by Liam’s big industrial brain freezer?

She froze and stared at the spot as a chill ran down her spine, but there was nothing.

“What’s up?” Gabe asked from where he stood waiting for her outside.

She shook her head. It must have been her imagination. Liam being spooked had gotten into her head. “Nothing, I guess. I just thought I saw something.”

Gabe let out a snort. “Probably that damn mouse again.”

“Probably,” she agreed, then flipped off the lights and slammed the door closed.

Chapter Nineteen

“Are we all clear on our roles today?” Natalie scanned her audience as she asked the question.

Gabe nodded. Holding Millie’s hand so the living attendees could hear, he said, “The ghost patrols will keep on Doug until he breaks and tells us exactly what scared him to death. Harriet’s out on shift now. She’s good. She’ll use her therapist skills to get him to talk.”

“Screw talking. I wish we could waterboard him. That’d get him to talk,” Rick mumbled.

Natalie ignored the disturbing suggestion, grateful that as ghosts they couldn’t actually waterboard Doug’s spirit and that the livings in the room couldn’t hear the comment, and moved on.

“Team Trout, are you ready?” she asked.

Agnes dipped her head. “I’ve already baked my famous apple crumble. It’s Margaret’s favorite. I’ll bring that over to her house. Now that she’s home from the hospital, I’d of course want to check in on her. She’ll no doubt invite me inside for tea and pie. Then, while expressing my concern over her health, I’ll prod her for information about the day she collapsed.”

“Perfect.” Natalie loved how easily, and efficiently, Harper’s great aunt embraced her role as undercover agent.

“And if Agnes can’t get anything out of her, I’ll visit next. I know Margaret’s going to want to catch up. So much has happened since she went into the hospital,” Mary said.

“Sounds good,” Natalie agreed.

If anyone knew everything that was happening in the village, and was very willing to share, it was Mary Brimley. Maybe Mary’s personal Mudville news report would get Margaret talking. They could only hope.

Natalie glanced around the room with a frown. “I was hoping Alice would be here. I wanted to see how the B-Listers were doing with their community patrols.”

Since it was a weekday morning, the meeting was limited to the spirits and the livings in Mudville who didn’t have businesses to run.

Dee Flanders, the village attorney, was at her law office. Red was manning her thrift store. Bethany was at her bakery.

Natalie had grown to count on Alice, ninety years old and long retired, to be here when the others couldn’t.

“I can call her,” Agnes offered, then groaned. “Never mind. My cellphone is dead. I could have sworn I plugged it in last night.”

“Maybe the charger came unplugged?” Harper suggested. “It’s fine. I can text her.” Harper pulled out her cell and frowned. “Mine’s dead too.”

“Maybe the breaker tripped and the outlets in the house were dead?” Agnes suggested.

“But you charge your phone in the kitchen and I charge mine in my bedroom. I’m no electrician, but would a single breaker control the third floor and the first floor outlets?” Harper asked.

Gabe, Rick and Liam, the only males in the room, all shook their heads.

“Not likely,” Liam said.

“Definitely not. The third floor has its own breaker box,” Gabe informed them. He should know since he’d moved into Harper and Agnes’s house after he got serious with Millie.

Rick pressed his lips together, looking like he had something to say.

“Rick?”