Page 28 of Mack's Horribly Hellacious Ghost Town
She groaned again. “I’ve a mind to go back and wring the fool’s neck. You Yanks don’t eat at those things, do you?”
“Well, some of us avoid them. I can’t speak for the adventuresome.”
Davina snorted.
“We’re thinking of hitting a grocery store on the way to the new place, as it has a kitchen. Can I get you soup or anything?”
“Soup and sports drinks,” she requested. “I don’t know your brands over here.”
“That’s fair. Did the doc give you anything for meds?”
“Aye, some.”
I’d get her a few over-the-counter things, too, just in case. “Text me if you think of something.”
“Thank you, Mack.”
I backed out of the room and chose not to tell them yet just how crazy things might get. Better to settle in at the ranch and talk about it tonight, when Beau and Hannah got here.
The next hour was eaten up with our trip to the grocery store and then to the new place. The cattle ranch was large, to the surprise of no one, with a long, winding gravel driveway.
An older woman in jeans and cowboy boots greeted us at the end of the driveway. She waved, smiling.
“Hi, everyone. Welcome! I’m Melody. Let me show you the bunkhouse. Who’s who?”
I knew instantly we’d get a good welcome because she had a pride flag flying under the American flag nearby. It let me feel at ease, and I shook hands with her, introducing the party and all.
Melody was a good host and showed us immediately inside the bunkhouse.
This was clearly an older renovated building. The outside looked weather-beaten, but the inside was freshly painted with white walls, the orange-and-red terra-cotta tiles were pristine, and comfortable-looking leather furniture dotted the room. Stepping through the main doorway actually took us into the middle of the building, where the living room and kitchen were in an open space. Then there was a split to the left, with three rooms and en suite bathrooms, which was mirrored on the right.
Plenty of space, and I was relieved to have it.
Most of the rooms had a queen bed, but one had a California king, and we let Eli, Quinn, and Booker have it. I took the far room on the left side, putting Gwyn in the bedroom next to ours, just in case. That left Lachlan and Davina to take the rooms nextto Eli’s. Hannah and Beau would have the remaining room. A perfect setup for us. Not sure what we’d do if Falisa and Ken joined us later, though. Maybe Davina and Lachlan would share again?
I wandered back to the kitchen after putting things away to find Brandon already in there, chopping ingredients. It was time for lunch, granted. Davina sat slumped at the kitchen island, draped over the granite, watching him. Or kind of watching him—her eyes kept losing focus.
Without my asking, Brandon tilted his head to look at me and volunteered, “Making coconut soup for this one.”
“Oh, a great idea.” To Davina, I said, “This is the cure-all soup in the family. I ate my weight in it while I was recovering from Jon.”
“It’s easy on the stomach and nutritious, so it’s a go-to for sick people.” Brandon picked up the chopping board and headed to the stove. “Plus, it cooks up fast. I’ve got rice going too. You want to help me do a quick stir-fry to feed everyone else?”
“C’est bon.”
Both of us were decent cooks, and we enjoyed making meals as a couple. At this point of living together, we had developed a rhythm to working in a kitchen at the same time. I prepped things to go into the stir-fry, Brandon taking over when he wanted to get the meat going, and then I switched to monitoring the soup to make sure it didn’t burn and getting plates out for people.
Gwyn opened the back glass doors, uncertainty written in her body language, her arms crossed around her like she was holding herself in. She stepped inside and called, tone hesitant, “Mack?”
Alert, I immediately put the plates down on the island and went to her. “What’s wrong?”
“There’s a lot of ghosts outside.”
I looked past her shoulder and blinked. Damn, a good thirty ghosts altogether, maybe more, stood in the yard. All were white in aura, and no one looked aggressive, but still! That was a lot of ghosts. From the look of them, they seemed to be miners, with worn-out knees, suspenders, and white shirts. A few had on hats, but most were bareheaded.
“Um, they approached and said hi, they’re not being mean.” Gwyn cast a glance over her shoulder. “They said they’re stuck here and want help passing? I said I’d ask.”
Davina groaned and sat up a little. “Personally, I don’t like the idea of so many underfoot while we’re trying to rest.”
