Page 61 of Cadaver Lab: Mind Over Murder

“Don’t. They’ll be here in a little while anyway for the village meeting about the… you know what.” She refused to say the words brain ghost in case it was listening.

She certainly couldn’t tell if it was listening, but that had been true before she’d lost her ability too. The damn thing could hide like no other spirit she’d ever encountered. As if it had the ability to be invisible. From her. From other spirits.

Maybe it did. She didn’t know. They were all working without an instruction manual here. Although Liam had been steadily constructing one with all his ghost notes.

Without her ability, she wouldn’t be helping him with those anymore… She let out a deep sigh.

Liam drew in and let out a big breath. “No. I think you need Gabe. Here. Now. And yes, I realize how ironic it is that now that you can’t see ghosts anymore you’ll—we’ll—probably have to spend even more time with your ghost bestie since he’s the only one, beside Millie, you can still hear.”

Liam was right. Gabe was the only ghost she could still communicate with, and only when he was with Millie. But that was the case for everyone else in the village too.

Every living could hear Gabe and Millie when they were together. She was just like everyone else now. Not special at all.

That thought put her in an even worse mood and she moved on to the anger step in the stages of grief.

Natalie glared at Liam. “Well, I’m sorry if you’re going to have to be around Gabe more often. You’re just going to have to deal with it. I’m going to be willingly spending the morning with Letisha, so we all have our crosses to bear right now, don’t we?”

His dark brows rose at the harsh tone and the mean comment but, exceptionally intelligent as he was, he kept his mouth shut.

Since Liam wasn’t going to rise to the bait and fight with her, even though she felt like she was raring for a good fight with somebody, anybody, right now, she stood.

Scooping up her coffee mug, she said, “I’m getting dressed.”

Behind her as she turned toward the bedroom, Liam said nothing.

Smart man.

Chapter Thirty-One

By the time Letisha arrived, Natalie’s ever swinging pendulum of emotions had swung back from cranky and raring for a fight to sad and depressed again.

Being suddenly ghost blind had her so out of sorts, she couldn’t even rally the energy for her usual professional rivalry with Letisha.

Granted, the psychic had moved from nemesis to frenemy during the time they’d spent together in Utica facing a dangerously unhappy spirit that had affected them both psychically as well as physically. But that didn’t mean they’d ever be friends.

They tolerated each other. Not much more.

Admittedly Letisha coming to Mudville on a mere twelve hour’s notice after Natalie sent up the Bat Signal asking for help was pretty impressive.

But as Letisha stood there now, eyeing Natalie critically from head to toe, she had to wonder if she’d made a mistake calling her.

“You look horrible,” Letisha finally said, before turning around to face the coffee and pastries Harper had arrived early to set out beautifully on a table along the wall of the meeting room.

“Thanks. Nice to see you too, Tish.”

Letisha glanced over her shoulder with a raised brow, probably over the nickname Natalie had come up with just now, mostly to annoy her.

Pivoting back to face the room, Letisha lazily swirled a teaspoon through her coffee while visually evaluating Natalie intensely once more.

“Tell me what happened,” she demanded.

Natalie sighed.

The last thing she wanted to do was relive that moment. But she had summoned Letisha. She should at least answer her questions on the slim chance the woman could help. Not that Natalie believed Letisha would be able to fix her, but maybe she’d have some useful advice or past experience in situations like this.

While Liam leaned against the wall and Harper sat, riveted even though she’d heard the story more than once, Natalie launched into the dark tale.

Her collapse and paralysis on the train tracks. How she couldn’t draw breath into her lungs. How her heart pounded painfully.