Glamorous - A Grace Bishop Novel - Chapter7

Glamorous - A Grace Bishop Novel - Chapter7

© Denise Bossarte

Grace sat in the campus cafeteria, pouring over a forensic journal while chewing on a ham and cheese sandwich she’d grabbed from the vending machine. The school deli stocked it with fresh food several times a day, and she didn’t have much guilt about resorting to a machine for dinner. She’d been in no mood to cook tonight before heading to work, her thoughts preoccupied by what she’d experienced with Beth at the hospital. The journal was a welcome distraction, being a favorite subject in college. She continued to learn as much about forensic science as she could to enhance her PI skills. 

The cell phone beside the discarded plastic wrap from her sandwich rang with a riff from her favorite Pink Floyd song, signaling a call from Billy. She swallowed the bite of food in her mouth and answered.

“Heya, Billy,” she said before taking a deep pull from her can of Dr Pepper to wet her throat for the conversation.

“Hi Gracie, are you on break?”

Spot on timing as usual; a somewhat endearing trait.

“Yep, I’ve got another few minutes before I need to head out.”

“Great. I wanted to hear what happened with the girl at the hospital…”

“Beth,” Grace interjected.

“Beth,” Billy repeated. “And I wanted to check on you. Find out how you’re doing, first time back and all,” he continued the concern clear in his voice.

“It sucked, but I got through it,” she said. “Danny ran interference for me, and I closed down tight to avoid attracting anyone. It worked out well.”

“Sounds like you faced your demons head on,” Billy said with satisfaction.

Grace barked a laugh. “I’m not sure you would say that. I almost threw up all over DL’s shoes by the time I made it to Beth’s room. The hospital smells always get to me.”

“Yeah, that smell gets me too,” Billy admitted. “Too many policemen in the family, too many visits to the hospital for gunshot wounds. I’m not looking forward to it being me any time soon.”

Grace made agreeing sounds.

“I was able to read Beth,” she said.

“What did you see?” Billy asked. “Anything helpful?”

“I definitely got a face and a bit of personality,” Grace stated before laying out the rest of the vision to Billy.

“His eyes changed color?” Billy asked and Grace heard the skepticism in his tone.

“That’s what Beth saw,” she said trying not to be defensive in response. “It was like someone threw a switch and there was a different person; one moment Dr. Jekyll, the next Mr. Hyde.”

“I understand it’s what you saw, Gracie. But it’s still a strong pill to swallow,” Billy said.

“For you and me both,” she replied with a sigh. “But what concerns me more is this sense of being under a spell. This man forced her to go with him despite how much he was creeping her out. I felt how desperate she was to get away, but she couldn’t control herself.”

“Like he hypnotized her?” Billy offered.

“Something like that. More like compelled against her will, but I don’t understand how he managed to do it,” she said.

“Do you think you’d recognize him in the mug books? Do you want to come down to the station? Have the police artist draw up a picture of him?”

Grace considered it for a few seconds before answering in the negative.

“No, I don’t believe this guy is someone who’s been in trouble with the law before; too clean cut, too professional looking. Then what are we looking for? Someone up the food chain in drug rings or a crime family?” she suggested.

“It would be an awful high risk of exposure for that type,” Billy disagreed. “No need to go trolling for girls on the street corner. Might be sex trafficking, but why such an open and obvious approach?”

“It’s possible he likes it personal, the thrill of the chase?” she proposed.

“Maybe.”

“Did Chris find out anything? Any other girls or women missing the last two years?” she asked.

“Yes,” Billy said, sounding satisfied. “Turns out the city has over 2 dozen main locations for prostitution inside the city limits. Plus several hot spots which come and go over time.”

“I didn’t know that,” Grace said. “Was Chris aware before he looked into this?”

“I’m sure he did,” Billy said, laughing with chagrin. “Because he bet me $50 he would get me the information I needed in two shifts. Fool that I am, I took him up on it and lost.

Turns out last year a city councilman’s wife got upset about her husband’s late night escapades and threw a massive stink. The Chief did a bit of a crackdown on prostitution in response. It was more for show than for real effect. But Chris helped by identifying the prime areas based on earlier arrest records and interviews with patrol officers across the various precincts.”

“Well, it’s great for us. Sorry you lost $50, though. Did he find something to help our case?”

“He said it was curious. In the past year since he last checked there are several prostitutes whom dropped off the radar, not one arrests for prostitution, possession, etc. He talked with a few patrolmen too. They confirmed those girls hadn’t been around for some time.”

“They wouldn’t notice this earlier?” she asked.

“There’s turnover at those locations. But when asked, they admitted some of the most senior girls were no longer working those areas.”

“I take it there wasn’t a major social program underway to remove ladies from the streets in the last year?” Grace proposed.

“No, Chris confirmed that too. The data aligns with what you thought. But nothing conclusive yet.”

“That means we have three things,” Grace theorized, ticking them off on her fingers as she noted them out loud.

“One. Young homeless girls disappearing. Two. Prostitutes aren’t seen at their regular locations anymore. And three. A girl whose attacker convinces her to approach him against her will. But then he turns and tries his best to hurt her when someone intervenes.”

“That doesn’t mean they are connected,” Billy countered.

“I know. But I’d like you and DL to compare notes in person and test for a connection. Can Chris give you a list of names, locations, and best date estimates for when the prostitutes were last in those locations?”

“Sure, shouldn’t be a problem.”

Grace looked at her watch. Her break was up five minutes earlier and she needed to be back at work.

“I gotta run,” she said as she rose from the table, tucking the journal under her arm and carrying the remains of her dinner to the trash can. “Let’s all get together at my place Tuesday night and see what we can figure out.”

“Sounds good,” Billy said, already distracted as he turned his attention back to his job. “See you soon.”

Grace thumbed the talk button to end the call and headed out the cafeteria doors, her thoughts bouncing back and forth between DL’s case and the big reveal planned for Danny’s upcoming birthday party.

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Glamorous - A Grace Bishop Novel - Chapter 6

Glamorous - A Grace Bishop Novel - Chapter 6

© Denise Bossarte

 

Grace walked up the sidewalk to the front door of their townhouse, noticing the effects of Beth’s reading grow with each passing minute. Every time she used her abilities, it left her feeling drained, achy, and cranky afterward. She was getting better at using less energy during the readings, engaging less of herself it felt to her. But there still was a price to pay later.

She spotted an envelope taped to the door and yanked it down before unlocking and opening the door.

“What's that?” Danny asked, peering around her to see the note.

“Looks like a note from Sophie,” Grace said, dropping her car keys and backpack on the side table as she opened the envelope and scanned the note inside it.

“She says she has a client at 7 tomorrow night, but will be here right afterward. Typical Sophie,” Grace said shaking her head, “to leave a note rather than a text or voice mail.”

“Great!” Danny exclaimed, hurrying up the stairs to his bedroom. “I’m glad she’s still going to make it to my party!”

Grace wasn’t 100% sure she agreed, but she had promised Danny she would invite Sophie to his birthday party and she planned on keeping her word. There were few things she could give him these days from a material perspective. When he asked for a party and for her to invite Sophie, she couldn’t say no.

She knew they were opening a can of worms to let Sophie into their world. But maybe it was time to trust someone besides Billy. Especially someone who might know a thing or two about what was happening with them.

With Danny busy on his computer checking his email and his favorite science and paranormal forums, Grace went through the townhouse. She moved from one crystal geode to the next. The geodes were around all the rooms, sitting on tables and bookshelves, and in nooks and crannies. They ranged in size from small knickknacks to a large centerpiece on the dining room table.

With each geode, she touched the surface with the fingertips of her right hand, focusing her attention on the inner glow emanating from the crystal. To a casual observer, it would appear the glow was a play of the light over the crystals or that they were working lamps. The larger crystals had electrical cords running from them to outlets to encourage the idea, but there were no real light bulbs in them.

Grace concentrated on sending energy into each geode as she touched them. Not too much energy, as drained as she felt, but enough to make the spark a tiny bit brighter in each. A real recharging needed to wait until she recovered. But she always made it a habit to walk through the house each time she came home to ensure every crystal got a small boost. She wanted to be sure Danny always had access to as much energy as he needed to manifest whenever he wanted.

This was something she and Danny stumbled upon a few months back. She was trying to learn as much as she could about her abilities and how to deal with them. Danny knew about storing energy in crystals from his science classes. They worked to determine if Grace’s ability could do something similar.

Danny helped set up what he called a “systematic evaluation” of several different types of crystals to find the best ones for storing her energy. They narrowed it down to a few types. Now they were one of the most frequent visitors to the local shops specializing in crystals.

Grace was not able not get the energy back for herself. But once she stored it in the crystals, Danny could use the energy to become almost corporeal. Over the months since their discovery, Danny learned to use the least energy necessary. The more a physical presence he wanted, the more energy it took. Now he used only enough energy to have a physical presence to work with the computer and for his photography hobby.

He could also become corporeal by touching Grace and using her energy directly. But they tried to avoid the direct method too much. It was harder to regulate the energy flow under direct contact, and it might lead to a habit of manifestation whenever they touched. That would cause some unintended and troublesome consequences if it happened in public by accident.

Grace finished up the downstairs and her office upstairs and then went to check on Danny. It was enjoyable to have a younger brother in the house without all the clothes lying strewn around. But Danny made up for it in the number of books, papers, and “projects” spread throughout his room. The agreement was he could do what he wanted in his bedroom, but the mess needed to stay contained and not spread to the rest of the house.

Sure enough, Danny was hard at work typing away on the computer, head phones on, music blaring. From what Grace saw gazing over his head at the computer screen he was already researching mind controlling abilities. She held out her wrist in front of the screen to show Danny the time on her watch. He finally focused on the watch rather than the screen behind it, and turned to give her a quick nod without removing his head phones.

She raised an eyebrow at him and he grinned and nodded a few more times before returning to the screen. Satisfied he had gotten the message, she pulled her arm back. She had to remind him on occasion not to stay manifested for too long. He tended to get nightmares if he did. They didn’t have a real explanation of why, but they had learned to monitor things to keep the dreams at bay.

She smiled to herself as she moved around the room, touching the various geodes and replenishing the ones Danny used to manifest. She passed by Danny’s ashes where he kept them in an old science fair trophy. Another example of his special sense of humor. Knowing Danny, he wouldn’t come up for air for several more hours. This gave her the time she needed to recharge herself before work.

She paused on her way out of his bedroom to reach out and touch the frame hanging on the wall. Inside was a copy of the paper based on Danny’s research published in a scientific journal after Danny’s death. Danny’s mentor was generous enough to send her a copy after its publication. Once they received the paper, Danny insisted they frame it and hang it in his room.

Each time Grace saw it she experienced both pride at his accomplishment, and sorrow for what he had lost. For her it was a bitter-sweet reminder of everything that would no longer be a part of his life. For Danny it was a badge of honor for all his hard work. It was a reminder of how lucky she was he was still with her, even as a ghost. She sighed to herself, and then left the room closing the door behind her.

Grace moved into her bedroom and changed into a comfortable t-shirt and some loose sweat pants then went to her exercise room. Her run that morning gave her an aerobic workout for the day. But yoga and some meditation were necessary to unwind and re-energize her body and mind.

Starting with a series of simple stretches that helped her maintain her flexibility and strength, she progressed into a restorative yoga sequence. She finished with her legs up the wall and her head supported by a blanket. Shutting her eyes, she let her breathing settle into a deeper rhythm.

For all the investigative training she received at the police academy and the skills she developed on the job as a rookie cop, she had figured out her best weapon to bring to bear to a situation was intuition. First a logical analysis of the problem to narrow down the options, but then using her intuition, her gut feeling, to identify the best approach.

She found after her accident she connected the most with her intuition after doing meditation. During the time afterward when she was resting and her mind was open to free association, problems solved themselves. She let her body relax and focused her mind on her breath. She would need all the intuition she had to handle the situation with DL’s girls and the man who was stalking them.

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Glamorous - A Grace Bishop Novel - Chapter 5

Glamorous - A Grace Bishop Novel - Chapter 5

© Denise Bossarte

 

Grace took a deep breath as she stood outside the main entrance of the hospital. Danny slipped next to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, giving her a tight hug.

“Don’t worry Gracie,” he said. His voice was rough in its seriousness. “This won’t be like before. You’re healed, now, and you have control over your abilities that you didn’t last time. I don’t notice you from even a few feet away. No one else will sense you’re around when we go into the hospital.”

“I guess all the practice we did to get this thing under control was worth it, huh?” Grace replied her voice tinged with uneasiness.

“You were a slow learner, but you figured it out,” Danny said, poking her in her ribs with one finger.

Grace grinned despite herself, letting Danny’s attempt at humor bolster her for what was coming. She turned with renewed determination to look down at Danny’s earnest face. She was careful to focus on the situation and not her underlying emotions.

“Can you go on up to Beth’s room and make sure no one but DL’s around?” she asked.

“Sure. I’ll do the preliminary recon and meet you up there,” Danny agreed, giving her a final two armed squeeze then moving through the walls into the hospital.

Grace gave him a 5-minute head start before walking through the sliding doors leading to the interior of the hospital. She breathed through her nose in an effort to reduce the impact of the multiple nausea inducing smells. After a few minutes navigating through the maze of floors and nurses’ stations, Grace found DL standing outside Beth’s room. He was rocking from heel to toe and back again in his black Converse tennis shoes. He stopped once he saw her coming up the hallway and moved to meet her a few feet from the door.

“Everything ok?” he asked when he noticed the stiffness of her face and the tension in her shoulders.

“I’m fine,” she said, gesturing for DL to lead her into the room.

DL turned and entered the room, approaching the bed where a small, bandaged form lay, tubes connecting to both her arms. Grace followed him, stopping at the end of the bed. Danny shifted from the back of the room to stand near the door. He gave her a quick nod to confirm no one else was around to interfere with their conversations.

“How’s she looking?” Grace asked him.

“Good for someone attacked a few days ago. Her aura is stabilized, but there’s something…”

“What are you seeing?” she asked, peering at the sleeping figure, wishing she was able to see what Danny was seeing.

“I see some sort of black ‘stain’ I guess you could say, moving around the edges of her aura. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“Do you think it’s from her attack somehow?” she asked.

“I’m not sure. But be careful when you touch her. I don’t know what this stain is or what it might do to you,” he admonished her.

Grace nodded her agreement then turned her full attention to Beth.

“Beth, honey?” DL whispered, hoping to wake her up but not startle her.

The girl’s eyes opened sleepily, revealing a pair of brilliant emerald green irises and large pupils, most likely from the pain killers she was taking.

“Beth, honey,” DL said again, putting one hand on her head as he bent close to her. “I’ve brought a friend I’d like you to talk to about what happened to you.”

Beth’s eyes focused on DL and then moved to take in Grace at the end of the bed.

“Is she a cop?” Beth asked, her voice husky and dry, and carrying a note of worry.

“I’m a private eye, not a cop,” Grace responded, noticing how Beth managed to appear skeptical underneath all the bandages covering her face.

“I was a cop before my accident, but now I’m a PI,” Grace amended.

“What accident?” Beth asked her voice growing stronger and taking on some energy.

“I was in a car accident that killed my little brother and put me in the hospital. Took 6 months and a dozen surgeries to get my arm and leg working again.” Grace made a point to keep her eyes focused on Beth despite the urge to glance over to Danny where he was standing. She sensed his eyes on her, realizing it wasn’t easy on him to hear this part of their story.

Grace stepped to the side of the bed opposite of DL and rolled up her sleeve for Beth to see the scars covering the skin of her right arm. Pulling away the collar of her shirt, she pointed to her neck. There was a thin white line running from behind her ear to her collar bone on the right side. She was aware of Danny shifting uncomfortably by the door, focusing his gaze on Beth rather than on Grace’s scars.

“Will my scars look like that?” Beth asked, raising a bandaged hand to hover near her face, her voice heavy with concern.

Grace shook her head. “From what DL tells me, the doctors say the wounds will heal well and won’t leave too much scaring. But you will have some scars to deal with now.”

No sense pulling punches for the kid, Grace thought. She would need to learn to deal with perceptions of disfigurement in order to move on with her life. More likely the psychological scars would be more difficult to handle than the physical ones. Grace understood that from personal experience.

“Beth, I know how scary it feels being hurt and alone in the hospital. But would it be ok if I asked you a few questions about what happened to you?”

Beth stared at DL, fear clear in her eyes at the thought of revisiting the night of the attack.

DL stroked her head a few times. “It’s hard, Beth. But I believe Grace can help catch the man who did this to you if she can get information about what happened. I’m hoping she’ll be able to stop him from doing this to anyone else. Do you think you can help her?”

Beth swallowed then shifted in the bed to get more comfortable.

“Ok,” she said, with a tremor in her voice, not meeting DL’s eyes, “but can I talk to just her?”

DL removed his hand from her head and reached down to squeeze her arm once. “Of course,” he said turning to walk to the door. “I will be right outside if you need me.”

“Is it ok if I sit down?” Grace asked Beth once DL was out of the room.

“Oh sure, uh, sorry,” Beth responded a bit embarrassed, the tops of her checks flushing pink over the bandages.

Grace grabbed a chair from the corner and brought it over to the edge of the bed.

“Where do you want me to start?” Beth asked, shifting in the bed, grimacing a bit in pain with the movement in her arms.

“Beth, I know about you and Chris and why you were on the street that night. We don’t need to talk about it, as I don’t think it is relevant to the case,” Grace began. She hoped to put Beth at ease by moving past that point. “I want to learn as much as I can about the man who attacked you and why he did it.”

Beth hesitated for a minute, digesting what Grace said.

“Ok, well, I was on the street, doing this ‘favor’ for Chris,” Beth started, her eyes begging Grace to accept this version of the truth. 

“You were searching for a man who’d help you get the money Chris needed,” Grace filled in for her, prompting Beth to continue.

“Yeah, right,” Beth said moving. “I saw a car cruising along, checking each of us out, like they all do. The weird thing was when he’d stop the car, someone would go over to chat with him and he wouldn’t even roll down the windows to speak to them. He would pull back into the road and continue checking us out. It was creepy, but you get all kinds down there.”

Grace nodded, encouraging Beth to continue with the story but making a mental note of the deviation of behavior Beth noticed. Danny would pay particular attention to what Beth was saying and would be able to repeat everything back later when they got home.

“He had a sweet car, one of those fancy sports ones. I figured he’d have a bunch of money to spend,” Beth continued. “When he came to my spot I went right up to the curb to meet him and this time he rolled down the window.

‘What beautiful eyes,’ he said and gave me this huge smile. But something felt off, ya know? I don’t know what it was but the guy was definitely giving off a major creep vibe.”

Beth’s face crinkling in distaste at the memory, making her wince when the movement tweaked her wounds.

“I started to back off then it felt like something grabbed ahold of me. It was pushing me towards his car and I couldn’t do anything to fight it, no matter how hard I tried. That’s when I got scared. I wanted to yell for Chris to come stop this guy, but I couldn’t even open my mouth.” Beth began crying, heavy sobs racking her body as she relived the encounter.

“I don’t remember anything more,” she said between sobs. “I woke up here looking like this and I don’t want to remember any more about how it happened!”

Grace reached out to grasp Beth’s hand in both of hers, stroking the back of the palm to calm Beth again. She brought her awareness to her hands and visualized a dark material sliding away from her fingers and palms and up her arms, leaving her hands in direct contact with Beth’s small one. Once she finished, the vision came quickly.

Grace felt the fear that filled Beth’s body as she moved with her towards the man in the car. She concentrated on finding distinguishing physical features she could memorize. The man appeared to be in his mid-fifties; somewhat distinguished in appearance with gelled and styled salt and pepper hair of medium length. A strong jaw accented his broad smile filled with capped teeth. His high cheekbones were topped by intelligent gray eyes that stared at Beth, the smile not reaching them at all. It was a handsome face but something lurked there beneath the surface giving rise to the “creep vibe” Beth described.

The broad smile broke when Chris distracted Beth’s attention by grabbing her arm and attempting to pull her away. Grace was aware of the pressure on Beth’s arm, but it was nothing compared to the pressure she felt pushing her to go with the man in the car.

Without warning, the man’s eyes morphed to a dark shade of brown and his features contorted into a mask of rage. Without taking his gaze from Beth, he reached over to the seat next to him. Then he pulled out a long knife, lunging out of the car to strike cat quick at Beth’s face, arms, and torso. Grace heard gunshots right next to her body. But Beth did not even shift as the man struck her, the bullets never getting close to either of them.

When Chris rushed in to attack the man with the pistol, the man jumped back into his car and slammed it into gear. He drove away with a screech of tires as he sped down the road. Beth collapsed like a puppet with cut strings, blacking out as the pain in her face and arms flared to agony.

Grace came back to herself, feeling Danny’s hand resting on her shoulder as she struggled to pull herself together and separate herself from Beth’s memories. Working past a fatigue that weighed down her whole body, she visualize the dark material sliding back down her wrists and hands, cutting off her connection to Beth.

“Are you ok?” Danny asked.

“Yeah, I will be in a sec,” she sighed, turning her focus on the Beth present in front of her in the hospital bed.

Beth’s tears were slowing and her breath was more regular, not having relived the parts of the night Grace had accessed in her memories.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t remember anything else,” she said, the disappointment evident in her voice.

“That’s ok, Beth,” Grace said, letting her sympathy show in her tone. “You’ve been through a lot and what you shared with me will help with the case.”

“Are you sure?” Beth asked with hope lighting her eyes. “Will you catch him?”

“I will do my best, I promise,” Grace said.

“Great!” Beth said before settling back deeper into the bed. “I’m really tired though. Is it ok if I rest for a bit?”

“Yeah, sure thing,” Grace said, letting go of Beth’s hand and standing to leave.

“Will you come back and see me, again?” Beth asked as her voice slurred with sleepiness.

“Yes, I’ll come back to see you,” Grace said as she moved to the door. “Sleep tight, Beth.”

“Umhmm’,” was the answer from the bed, Beth already slipping into sleep.

Grace found DL outside the room waiting anxiously.

“Any luck?” DL asked his tone hesitant but his face hopeful.

“Not much, but it’s a start,” Grace assured him. “I’ll reach out to Officer Winiarksi with what Beth was able to remember and see if it matches up to anything he’s found on his end. I’ll call you once I find out more.”

DL nodded his thanks and turned to reenter Beth’s room. Danny joined Grace as she started back through the maze, happy to be heading out of the hospital.

“Did you read anything from her?” Danny asked, knowing how much the readings drained her.

“Yes, I did. It looks like we’re going need outside help on this one,” she said, remembering the inescapable pull she felt from the man with changing eyes.

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