Patty sat in her room at the office. She looked out the window. A picture of her

husband, Kevin, sat on the sill. She supposed she should get dressed and get

something to eat. She decided it was better not to move. Eating didn’t seem that

important right then.

Someone knocked on the door. She didn’t look at it. Maybe the knocker would go

away.

“Miss Page?” Dr. Hadron’s voice pierced the door. “Can we talk for a moment?”

Patty frowned at the door. She pulled her light blanket around her and walked to the

door. She cracked it so she could look out at her employer.

“Yes, Dr. Hadron?” She noted he was wearing the business casual he affected when

he wasn’t working on something. “What’s going on?”

“I just wanted to let you know I’m heading out.” Dr. Hadron’s lip twitched in what

might have been a smile. “I’m handing everything over to you.”

“Hold on.” Patty pulled her blanket tighter. “You can’t do that. You’re the boss. I’m

not really a boss type person. I’m more of a background person.”

“You led the others to New York, you picked out where Crenshaw was going to strike

twice, and you kept the police from throwing us in jail, as well as handling the D.A.

and court.” Dr. Hadron indicated his points with the fingers of his holed hand. “And

you’re the one the others look up to to keep them out of trouble.”

“I don’t think I can do it.” Patty frowned. “Your backing and weapons did most of the

work. The others did the rest. Mostly I loafed around and stayed out of the way.”

“You’re the leader, Miss Page,” said Dr. Hadron. “Your friends won’t follow anyone

else. Without a crew, this office space will be for nothing. And I have other jobs to

look at. I can’t stick around to hold your hand. You wanted to stop Crenshaw. Now

it’s time for you to stop anything else bumping in the night.”

“I guess so.” Patty rubbed her nose. “Are you leaving now? The others are out

celebrating not being in jail. Don’t you want to wait for them to come back?”

“No,” said Dr. Hadron. “You might want to hire an office manager to help file your

reports. Janie will keep an eye on the finances from her end. Any equipment problems

that Jean can’t solve, just call me on the lab computer.”

“Let me get changed. I’ll drive you to the airport.” Patty closed the door. She

exchanged her lounge around sweats for jeans and a flannel shirt. She pulled on her

jacket. Running shoes were last.

“Do you really think the city will give us a license?,” asked Patty.

“We already have a license.” Dr. Hadron picked up his carry on. “They just don’t

want us to break traffic laws again from what I read. You did a good job talking them

down.”

“Kevin’s friend is a lawyer,” said Patty. “He did the negotiating. The city wanted us

to work for free. Jerry got them to agree to a steady retainer and some tax breaks. I

sent Janie the paperwork for her to look at and sign.”

“Never do anything for free,” said Dr. Hadron. “They’ll want you to take care of

anything that closely resembled haunting.”

“You’re going to need help in New York.” Patty led the way to the elevator. “How

long do you think you have?”

“I don’t know.” Dr. Hadron pushed the call button. “A couple of years, maybe. Right

now the turbulence is slow and steady. Ghosts and monsters will start appearing in

mass, then whatever is behind it will show up. I expect it will be bad when it does go

down.”

“We’ll handle it.” The elevator doors opened so they could step in. Patty pushed the

ground floor button. “How many recruits has Janie gotten?”

“One so far.” Dr. Hadron closed his eye. “Most of the people she talked to can’t pass

the mandatory tests.”

“What kind of mandatory tests?,” asked Patty. She and her friends hadn’t taken any

tests.

“They can’t pass the eye exam, or the drug test,” said Dr. Hadron. “You can’t use the

weapons if you can’t pass the eye exam. And you don’t want to be high when you are

dealing with some of things we deal with during a job. That will get you killed, or

turned into something that isn’t quite human anymore.”

“What about us?” Patty wondered how they had avoided that.

“I did a scan the first night we met when you barged into my place.” Dr. Hadron

shrugged. “You were all twos and threes.”

“What about the drug thing?,” said Patty. She remembered the scan. He had tried to

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

pawn them off with a single copy of the long gun Kathy had selected for herself.

“Since I didn’t expect Janie to butt in, I skipped a drug test in the hopes you would

go home and not get in the way,” said Dr. Hadron. “Who knew Janie was such a

mother hen?”

“You did,” said Patty. “She’s the only one you listen to. Everyone knows it.”

“Really?” Dr. Hadron’s eyebrows lifted. “What makes you think that?”

“If she wasn’t, you wouldn’t have helped us set up.” The elevator door opened so

Patty could lead the way out of the elevator. “You would be all frowny, and I can

handle everything, and all that.”

“You think so?,” asked the doctor. He switched hands for his bag as he walked.

“Extra frowny.” Patty smiled at him.

“You know me so well.” Hadron almost smiled. “I commend your observational

skills.”

“The high number on the scanner means we’re psychic, doesn’t it?,” asked Patty.

“You’re touched,” said Dr. Hadron. “Something caused your brains to flex. I doubt

it was your first run-in with Crenshaw.”

“How reliable is this touchiness?” Patty raised her eyebrow.

“I wouldn’t bet my life on it.” Dr. Hadron covered the empty socket where his eye

used to be for a second. “Depending on it could get you killed.”

“But it could be useful if I knew how to use it.” Patty smiled. “I could work on it so

I could be the next Mark.”

“Number twos will never be able to match the Mark.” Dr. Hadron shook his head.

“Better start smaller. Maybe you could be Positive Man.”

“Positive Man is dead.” Patty opened the doors on her car. “Didn’t he get bitten by

a giant snake?”

“Exactly,” said Dr. Hadron. “You have to work up to the giant snake before you can

take on the strongest man in the world.”

“Okay.” Patty got behind the wheel of her car. “I get it. I’ll work on reaching the giant

snake first.”

“Good.” Dr. Hadron put his bag in the back seat before settling in the shotgun seat.

“Don’t call me. I don’t like snakes at all.”

“They’re cute,” said Patty. “Constrictors make the best pets.”

“I’ll take your word for that.” Dr. Hadron looked out the window as Patty pulled out

of the lot. “The things I have dealt with have turned me off snakes for good.”

Some of the things in the casebook were shining examples for the need for animal

control in the spirit world.

“Which airport are you flying out of, Doctor?,” asked Patty. San Francisco

International was south from the office. Oakland International was across the Bay.

“SFI,” said Dr. Hadron. He checked his watch. “I’m scheduled for the five, but I like

to get there early. If we get there before the departure is called, I’ll buy you some food

from the hot dog place there.”

“I don’t really like hot dogs,” said Patty. “Maybe a hamburger would be okay.”

“Why did you come to talk to me in New York?,” asked Dr. Hadron. “Why the

personal interest in this?”

“I don’t understand.” Patty nearly hit a sidewalk but quickly pulled back on the road.

“Okay.” Dr. Hadron closed his eyes. He had a long flight ahead of him. He didn’t

have time to pry a story out of an employee.

“I came to you because of Kevin.” Patty found a place to pull over so she could talk

without driving into a wall, or another car.

“Kevin?,” asked Hadron. “Your husband?”

“He’s in the hospital.” Patty refused to start crying. “He’s in a coma.”

“This happened during the first attack.” The women had arrived with a video of an

attack by Crenshaw to get him interested in chasing down the ghosts.

“That’s right,” said Patty. “A piece of the building fell on him. No one knows when

he’s going to wake up if he does wake up. He suffered extreme damage to his brain.

Even if he does wake up, he won’t be the same man.”

“What are you going to do?,” said Dr. Hadron.

“There’s nothing I can do about it.” Patty pulled from the curb. “A ton of specialists

have looked at him. They say he doesn’t have any hope. He’ll be a vegetable, or

mentally disabled, for the rest of his life.”

“After you drop me off, take one of the empty lamps and leave it in your husband’s

room.” Dr. Hadron glanced at her. “It might help him out some.”

“Because of the flame?,” said Patty. She dipped her head in understanding. “Does that

actually work?”

“Sometimes.” Dr. Hadron looked out the window. “It’s a chance. Even if it doesn’t

work, he doesn’t have anything to lose, does he?”

“You’re right.” Patty nodded. “Thanks.”

“If he comes out of it, he might need the lamp for the rest of his life.” Dr. Hadron

shifted in his seat. “The aura might be enough to keep him going.”

“It’s better than what he has now.” Patty nodded. “We’ll be ready when you need us

in New York.”

“Good,” said Dr. Hadron.

The car rolled through traffic until the signs for the airport pointed Patty to the

terminal. She drove up to let the doctor out. He looked at the terminal with his one

eye before he grabbed his bag out of the back.

“Remember to hire someone to handle the paperwork.” Dr. Hadron leaned down to

talk to Patty through the opened passenger door. “You’re not going to want to

wrangle your friends over administrative stuff. Call Janie if you need anything else.”

“Be careful,” said Patty. “Thanks for the idea about the lamp.”

“It might not work.” Dr. Hadron straightened. “Good luck.”

He shut the door and turned away. He walked into the terminal without looking back.

Patty rubbed her eye with the back of her hand. What did she do now?

She made up her mind and headed back to headquarters. She didn’t have anything

else to do. She might as well try Dr. Hadron’s idea out.

She didn’t have anything to lose.

Patty pulled into the lot slightly faster on the trip back than on the way to the airport.

She opened the building and went up to the workshop part of the lab. She glared at

the storage lamps still holding Crenshaw in pieces as she looked for an empty lamp.

She smiled when she found one.

She tested it to see if it worked. The blue flame danced merrily inside the case.

She shut the place back down before getting back in her car. She drove to the

hospital. She hid the lamp in a gigantic hand bag. She smiled at the size of the thing

before she locked her car up and walked into the main building for the hospital. She

had been there enough that the guards let her by with a wave. She rode the elevator

up to Kevin’s floor, and walked down to his room. She walked in and looked around.

The nurses wouldn’t be happy with an open flame in his room. She needed to hide the

lamp so it could work without interference. She opened the closet and put the lit

lantern on the shelf. She closed the door on it. It should be okay there.

She sat down beside her husband and took his hand. Would he ever wake up again?

She hoped so.