My entire body was bruised, and I was covered with cuts, scratches and nasty-looking claw marks.
Teag wore a long-sleeved shirt despite how hot it was, and he moved like his back hurt. I remembered how the ghosts had shredded his shirt and the skin beneath it, and I winced just watching him move.
It figured that for the first time all week, we were slammed with customers almost from the time I opened the door in the morning.
“How long did it take to get all the sawdust out of your hair this morning?” Teag asked sotto voce.
I rolled my eyes. “Who says I got it all out?” Sawdust was still sprinkled all over my bathroom floor from my attempts to get it out of my hair, my clothing, even my eyebrows.
“Did you get rid of all the splinters?” I whispered.
Teag sighed. “No, and I swear I’ve got them everywhere – and I do mean, everywhere.”
“TMI!” I protested, but I could relate. When I took off my clothes, fine splinters poked through the fabric of my jeans, my hoodie, even my socks. My whole body itched, and no amount of lotion had helped.
Business was so brisk, I didn’t even have time to run out and pick up lunch, so we ordered pizza delivery and grabbed bites in between customers. All the while, my mind kept going over everything that happened at the warehouse. I was sure that the next step was finding out more about the missing salvage crew. There might be more unknowns, but that seemed to be the logical next step.
Since I was functioning on only a few hours sleep, I promised myself that the elusive clues would surface once I got some rest. In the meantime, I tried to keep myself alert with conversation, coffee and a few trips to the washroom to splash cold water on my face when my energy began to droop.
As the customers browsed, I wondered whether Sorren was still recovering in the lightless safe room beneath the shop. It wouldn’t be good for business if customers knew we had a vampire in the basement. I finally gave up worrying, and figured that Sorren would heal and feed again on his own schedule.
In between sales, I surreptitiously began making notes on a list by the register of key points we knew about all the haunted objects. The day sailed by, and I gauged how time passed by how full the coffee pot was. Finally, I was down to the dregs, of the day, the pot, and my energy level.
Five o’clock rolled around, and the last customers chose their treasures, paid the bill, and ambled off in search of dinner. I followed the last shopper to the door, chatting about restaurant recommendations – hard to go wrong with Charleston’s fantastic options – and turned the lock when I closed the door behind her. With a sigh of relief, I flipped the sign from ‘open’ to ‘closed’ and sagged against the door frame.
“I swear today was forty-eight hours long,” I said. I let my head rest against the wood and immediately regretted it. There was a goose egg the size of a large marble under my hair where one of the bolts had hit me. Every muscle ached, and my head throbbed.
“You’re just out of practice,” Teag teased. Despite his teasing, he had dark shadows under his eyes and looked haggard. He moved stiffly, and I knew he probably hurt as much as I did.
“How badly was your back scratched up?” I asked.
Teag grimaced. “I have welts everywhere from all the stuff that fell on us. My back looks like a tiger used it as a scratching post. Anthony had to work late last night so he didn’t come over, but I’m going to have to think of how to explain this that doesn’t include breaking and entering.”
Anthony’s position as a lawyer meant that Teag couldn’t always be completely forthcoming about our activities. We both thought Anthony suspected that we sometimes bent the rules, especially about things like trespassing, and intentionally did not press for details to avoid conflict with his conscience and his law license. “You could always say we went to play paintball as a teambuilding activity,” I chuckled. “Leave him his plausible deniability.”
“That explains the bruises, but not the scratches.” He paused. “I guess I can say I fell on one of those serrated gratings.” Teag sighed. “That’s the only thing I dislike about what we do. I hate not telling Anthony the whole truth.”
“He’s safer not knowing,” I replied.
Teag gave a lopsided smile. “He could handle it.” I could see from his expression it was time to change the subject. “So… what were you working on every time the customers walked away to browse?”
I walked back to the paper I had next to the register and waved it at him. “Looking for points of similarity between the haunted items. Any thoughts?”
He chuckled and walked over to the table where he usually served clients and withdrew another scribbled list. “Great minds think alike I guess.”
“Come up with anything?”
“Maybe. I’m thinking the location we didn’t get to,” Teag said. “I checked out the address, and it’s some kind of self-storage company, now defunct.” He paused. “Remember, Rebecca said the Foo dog statue had been in storage? Nothing new on the salvage crew though, I was too tired last night to follow-up.”
“We have some work to do,” I agreed. “Is Anthony expecting you for dinner?”
He shook his head. “Unfortunately, no. He’s still tied up with that big case and that means sporadic late nights for a while. Good for me being able to keep odd hours without having to explain, but lousy in the relationship department.”
My last semi-serious relationship had been with a young doctor at St. Francis hospital, and the love affair had foundered because of his long, unpredictable hours. I sincerely hoped that Teag and Anthony could adjust and make it work. “Does that mean you’re available for dinner?”
“Works for me.”
“Want to pick up take-out and then see what we can find out about the missing salvage team? Maybe we can see if there is any connection to the storage unit.” I suggested.
“My thoughts exactly.”
Teag paused. “Should we check on Sorren? I mean, shouldn’t we do something more to help him recover his strength?”
I raised an eyebrow. “I think you did your part. He’d tell us if things were dire.”
Teag shrugged. “I don’t know. He looked pretty ragged when we got back.”
I agreed, but since Sorren had never stayed in the safe room before, I had no prior experience to go on. “Tell you what. It’s still early. The sun hasn’t even set yet, so he’s not awake. Maybe we can stop by after supper and at least knock on the door and see if he needs something.”
With that, we finished closing up for the night and slipped out the back. It was a beautiful evening, so we decided to walk a few blocks to Forbidden City, our favorite Chinese restaurant. It was busy when we got there, and I was glad we weren’t trying to get a table.
Fortunately, the owner, Jay Chau, likes us. Jay saw us in the doorway and waved. “Long time, no see!”
he said, crossing the room to give me a hug and shake hands with Teag.“Business looks good, Jay,” I complimented, looking around the packed dining room.
He gave me a broad wink. “Thanks to friends like you, it stays busy. Give me a moment, and I’ll get your reservation ready,” he said in a voice that would carry to the two parties that were waiting for a table. “Just take-out tonight, Jay,” I said. “Been a long day and we’re ready to crash.”
“Too bad,” he said with a grin. “I had the best table in the house for you. Keeps your backs to the wall. You’d see everyone who comes in.”
“You’ve been watching old mobster movies again, haven’t you, Jay?” Teag joked.
Jay shrugged, palms up, as if to say ‘busted’. “I can’t help myself. Scarface was on late night cable, followed by Wise Guys. They’re my favorites.”