Toe to Toe Page 5

  “A bit off your rocker if you don’t drink,” Tatman said with a hardy laugh.

  Jack joined in the laughter good-heartedly and went back to unpacking his cases.

  “Aw, man, is that a Canon 5D Mark III,” Shaundelle asked when he pulled out a camera.

  Jack looked at Shaundelle, amused. “You seem to know your cameras.”

  “Hell, yeah, I know them. I’ve got a Mark III, a Wista 4 x 5 Field Camera, a Nikon D3S, and a Sony Alpha a99.

  “Impressive,” Jack said. “So you’re a professional photographer?”

  “Damn straight. I do weddings, funerals, and beauty shots. Most of those are half-naked men, but you know how it is. If you’re going to shoot something, you need to have the right ammo to get the beat down. Know what I’m sayin’?”

  “Sure do,” Jack said. “Since you’re so familiar with cameras, I’ll put you in charge of the Mark III and our night vision camera. Same style as a D3S, only you don’t need a flash to take a picture. It’s made to detect low light spectrum objects.”

  “Now that’s what I’m talkin’ about.” Shaundelle scooted to the edge of her seat so she could reach for the Mark III and check it out. Jack handed it to her.

  “What am I going to be using?” Buggy asked, her large, dark eyes wide with wonder.

  “Audio,” Jack said. I’ve got two digital recorders so take your pick. We use them to do EVPs.”

  “What’s a VPE?” Tatman asked.

  “It’s EVP, short for electronic voice phenomena. Whenever we do a hunt, we turn on the recorder and ask questions, like, ‘Is there someone in this room who’d like to talk to us? What’s your name? Are you male or female? Does it bother you that we’re here?’ Then we analyze the recordings later to see if we received any responses.”

  “Oh, I can so do that,” Buggy said. “I’ll question their butt off. If there are any ghosts where we’re going, I’ll get them talking. Don’t you worry.”

  Jack smiled, seemingly impressed with her enthusiasm.

  “What about me?” Tatman asked. “What’re you going to have me doin’?

  “I’ll need your help setting up infrared cameras in the rooms we’re going to investigate and wire them to a fifty-five-inch TV with splitters. We’ll put the TV in an area we’ll call our command center. From there, we’ll be able to see what’s going on in five rooms at one time.”

  “I’ve done that shit at the shop. Set up an entire security camera system by myself. So I’ll be a tech guy sorta?”

  “Yep, you’ll be my tech guy.”

  Nonie grimaced. Jack hadn’t assigned any equipment to her. Aside from seeing or hearing the dead, both of which she couldn’t let anyone know about, Nonie didn’t have any special talents that might impress Jack. There were still so many gadgets spread out on the coffee table, she feared he’d pick the most complicated one and hand it over to her, expecting her to make it work.

  “Are you going to be on this crew?” Nonie asked Lyle, who’d been sitting quietly on the couch taking in all Jack had to say.

  Lyle shook his head and grinned. “Just here to make sure the intros went okay and that everyone played nice.”

  Nonie gave him a small smile. There went her hopes for handing off some of the more complicated equipment.

  “And you,” Jack said to Nonie, his green eyes sparkling like dewy clover, “will handle a Rem Pod.”

  Nonie worked hard to swallow her saliva. “What’s a Rem Pod?” She’d heard about them on ghost hunting shows but had never paid attention to how they worked.

  “All you have to do is turn the switch on underneath the gadget.” He showed her where it was located. “Then place it somewhere in any room that may be a hot spot. A hot spot is usually where the owner of the location has either seen an apparition or shadow figure. Occasionally a spirit may show up but not in a way that can be seen by the naked eye. But the minute they get close to this antenna on the Rem Pod, it’ll start beeping loudly and these bulbs on top of the Pod will start flashing multicolored lights.”

  “Then what?” Nonie asked.

  “We’ll be watching from the command center. If we see the lights go off, I’ll radio Shaundelle to go in there with the I.R. camera and take pictures.

  Nonie nodded. Easy enough to understand. The problem she had was if the Rem Pod went off, more times than not she’d be facing the spirit that set it off. What if she showed up in every shot Shaundelle took? She feared it would be too obvious. Someone as smart as Jack would put two and two together quickly and blow the whistle on her to the others. And heaven only knew what chaos that would create.

  CHAPTER SIX

  By the time Jack finished explaining all of the equipment he’d brought with him, Nonie’s head was spinning. Aside from what he’d already explained to them, he’d brought an OvilusV, a PX, an IR thermometer, a P-SB11, a Trifield meter, an EMF Field tester, a Flir TG165, sage, extra batteries, flashlights, cameras, digital recorders, and external speakers. Along with the Rem Pod Jack had already assigned to Nonie, he put her in charge of a second digital recorder, like Buggy. The rest of the crew and he would manage the remaining equipment.

  As if reading her thoughts, Jack said to Nonie, “I know this all looks intimidating, but you don’t have to worry about using all of it. Most investigations don’t require the use of all this equipment. But the instruments are great to have around if you hit a hot spot. Then you can use them to verify that you’ve picked up on something.”

  “Oh, I ain’t ‘timidated with none of this stuff,” Shaundelle said. “All you’ve gotta to do is show me once, and that’s gonna be locked in my head forever. I know I’m supposed to be workin’ the cameras and all, but I can take more if you need me to.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind,” Jack said. Then he looked around the room. “So does everybody know what they’ll be responsible for on our first scouting trip?”

  Heads nodded.

  “I think you’ve made it pretty easy for them to understand, Jack,” Lyle said. “At least the equipment they’ll be operating.”

  Silent, Nonie looked down at the Rem Pod in her hand and frowned, fearing more than the bells and lights that might go off on it.

  “Nonie, you look a bit disturbed,” Jack said. “Want me to go over the way the Rem Pod works again?”

  She looked up at him, pursed her lips, then said, “No, sounds easy to use.” Her eyes flickered about the room and the people filling it. “I do have a question, though.”

  “Ask away,” Jack said.

  “Why would the producers at WXRT choose us to do the scouting for the program, “Something’s Out There?”

  “Girl, stop with your stupid questions,” Shaundelle said with a scowl.

  “It’s not stupid,” Jack said. “If I was in your shoes, I’d be asking the same thing.”

  Nonie tilted her head, looking at him quizzically. “There are quite a few legit paranormal investigation teams in the state, some as close as Lafayette. Why would they pick us when we don’t have any experience with investigations?”

  “You tryin’ to blow the deal?” Tatman asked, then downed the last of his beer.

  “Of course not.”

  “Sounds like it to me.”

  “No one’s blowing any deal,” Jack said. “Nonie’s question is legit, and I can answer it. You may not like the answer, but it’s the truth.”

  Tatman belched. “Give it to us, big guy. What won’t we like?”

  Jack looked at Nonie. “You’re right. There are active paranormal groups around the state who would give their left arm for this chance, but they come with problems. First is cost. There wasn’t one group out there who would do a scout for less than fifteen hundred. A thousand if it was a dud. We were concerned that with prices that high, people might have a tendency to, let’s say . . . make up spooks and ghouls when there really wasn’t anything there. Second, every one of them wanted to be the stars of the show, and we already have the lead people chosen. They wanted cameo spots
, which we disagreed with. The last thing we needed was them claiming on camera that they were the ones responsible for finding the ghouls. And finally, they might call themselves professional paranormal investigators, but a lot of their members think they’re demonologists. A cat could move from one room to the other, and, sure as hell, one of them would declare it’s demon possessed. That’s simply not the direction we want to head.”

  “So it’s easier and cheaper for you to use people who have no clue as to what they’re supposed to be doing?” Nonie asked.

  “Cheaper, yes,” Jack said and looked about the room. “But if the money doesn’t work for any of you, you’re welcome to back out now.”

  “Hell, no on the backing out,” Shaundelle said. “That money works for me.”

  Everyone else in the room nodded in agreement.

  “Good,” Jack said, then turned to Nonie. “As far as inexperience is concerned, every investigator started as a newbie. Unless you’ve got a few marbles missing up here,” he tapped a finger against his right temple, “it’s far easier than it looks, and all of this intimidating equipment will soon become second nature as far as use.”

  “So when do we get started with this ghoul patrol?” Tatman asked. “I’m itchin’ to get going. Oh, hey, is our scouting these boogers a secret or can we tell our friends and family? I mean, most of them see me as a loser who can’t do more than stock shelves at the hardware store. It’d be nice to let them know I’m part of something that had some gonads to it.”

  “Now that we have our team in place, you’re welcome to throw all the gonads you want at them,” Jack said and grinned. “As for when we get started, that’ll be tomorrow. We’ll be heading for a place about forty minutes from here. Opelousas. Supposed to be an old haunted house out there.”

  Nonie felt panic ride up her spine. “What time tomorrow? I mean, we all have jobs. I work at Broussard’s Funeral Home with my family, Buggy at Meemaw’s Café, and Tatman at the hardware store.”

  “No worries,” Jack said. “It’ll be at night. We’ll meet here, if that’s okay with you, around seven-thirty. I’ll have the van so we can all ride together.”

  Buggy clapped her hands like a school girl. “This is so exciting. I can’t believe we’re really going to be scouting for ghosts!”

  Lyle patted one of her thighs as if signaling for her to calm down.

  “Now what happens if we find us one?” Shaundelle asked. “Besides run like hell. I can take all the pictures you want, but if I sees me a ghost, like up close and personal, I’m outta there faster than poop down a toilet.”

  “Shaundelle,” Nonie said, eyeing her. “Think we can keep the language decent?”

  “What? I didn’t say nothin’ dirty. Ain’t nothin’ bad about poop going down a toilet. We all seen it happen.”

  Jack chuckled. “Look, y’all, I’m about the easiest guy you’ll ever work with. Hell, I’ve been

  known to throw an expletive around myself from time to time.”

  “See?” Shaundelle said. “He throws exploits around, too. So there. Ain’t nobody gotta act Miss Prissy Prissy around the man. That’s what he’s sayin’, right?”

  “Right,” Jack said. “All you have to do is watch what you say when you’re near one of the cameras we’ll be setting up or one of the digital recorders. Don’t need the big boss to hear all the shits and damns.”

  “Not a problem,” Buggy said. “I promise not to say shit or damn or worse when we’re recording something.”

  Lyle, who was sitting beside her, gave Buggy a quick hug. “That’s my girl.”

  “But you didn’t answer the more important question,” Shaundelle said. “What we supposed to do if we find some ghoulie or ghost somewhere? Offer them a drink? Dinner? I’m for running like hell out the place myself.”

  “Just grit your teeth and work that camera, girl,” Jack said. “I know you’ve got the grit to do it. You wouldn’t be on this team if I didn’t think you had it in you.”

  “Grit,” Shaundelle said, rolling the word over and over in her mouth. “Yeah, I gots grits out the ass. I’ll get them pictures. You’ll see!”

  “How long does a scouting event take?” Nonie asked.

  “Depends,” Jack said.

  “On what?” Tatman asked.

  “We might luck out and get something right away. Or we may have to hang around for hours waiting for something to make itself known.”

  “What if there’s nothing there to be known?” Buggy asked. “We can’t stay until eight in the morning. I’ve got to work the breakfast shift at Meemaw’s.”

  Jack shook his head. “Nothing like that. If we don’t pick up something, anything within a couple of hours, three at the most, we call it a bust and head home.”

  “To hell with a bust,” Shaundelle said. “You best have a lot of them haunted places lined up ’cause the cash we get is goin’ right in my bra. Savin’ for my own Tint and Tip shop. That way I ain’t gotta work for Ricky Rich no more. He can find hisself another gopher to do his work. Hell, that man don’t even know how to do a decent shampoo much less tint a woman’s hair.”

  Nonie couldn’t help but grin. Judging from the size of Shaundelle’s breasts, she could’ve held a bank load of cash in her bra, and no one would notice.

  “Not to worry,” Jack said. “There are so many places that claim to be haunted in this state that it would take us two years to cover them all.”

  “Now we’re talking,” Buggy said. “Let’s get this thing rolling.”

  “When do we start?” Tatman asked. “Oh, yeah, yeah, tomorrow. We start tomorrow. Meet here at seven-thirty. Gonna do a place in Opelousas. I got it now.”

  Jack nodded. “Hopefully we’ll pick up something there.”

  Tatman stood up and headed for Nonie’s kitchen. “You sure you don’t have another Bud hiding in the fridge?” he asked Nonie.

  “If I do, it’s hiding from me, too,” she said. “You’re welcome to look, though.”

  Tatman was already in the fridge before she made the offer. While he rummaged through the few condiments and milk she kept inside, Jack came over and sat on the arm of the couch, close to where she was sitting in her kitchenette chair.

  “You up for this?” Jack asked her. “You’ve been pretty quiet tonight. Not that I know you to be a talker since we just met. But, well, I don’t know. Maybe quiet isn’t the right word. Worried maybe?”

  “I’m good,” Nonie said, lying through her teeth and offering him a small smile. “A little nervous since I’ve never done this before, but this Rem Pod thing you have me working with seems easy to operate. I’m not worried about that at all.”

  “Then what are you worried about?” Buggy asked. She leaned forward on the couch so she was able to look past Jack and eye her friend. “You worried about . . .him?”

  “Who’s him?” Jack asked.

  “Oh, I meant them,” Buggy said. “You know small towns. A lot of blabbermouths. I’m sure as soon as word gets out that we’re doing this, rumors will be flying from the Exxon to Sonic.”

  Jack gave Buggy a long, wary look as if knowing in the pit of his gut that she was lying. He obviously, and thankfully, decided to drop the subject when Tatman came back into the living room.

  Behind him, as clear as the tattoos on Tatman’s arms, Nonie saw Guy walk into the room, fury on his face. Evidently it had been fine with him for Tatman, with his long scraggly hair and tats to sit beside her, but a hunk like Jack, no way.

  Guy plopped himself down on the arm of the couch, right behind Jack. Nonie glared at him, tried to signal for him to leave, but he ignored her. He glared at Jack, then looked over at Nonie and waggled his eyebrows, a gesture he knew she hated. She claimed it made him look like a letch.

  Suddenly, Guy turned ever so slightly and flicked a finger hard against Jack’s cheek.

  “Whoa,” Jack said, putting a hand to his face.

  “What’s the matter?” Lyle asked, leaning forward to look over at Jack. />
  “Something just flew against my cheek. Stings. Must have been one hell of a bug.”

  “Nonie doesn’t have bugs in her house,” Buggy said defensively. “You sure you didn’t accidently hit it on the edge of the couch? You know, on that wooden piece near the headrest?”

  Jack rubbed his cheek and evidently chose not to make a big deal out of it. “You’re probably right.”

  In that moment, Guy with the biggest grin Nonie had ever seen on his face, turned and slapped Jack hard on the top of his head.

  Jack’s hand went from cheek to head. “What the hell?”

  “What now?” Shaundelle asked. “Another bug? I ain’t seen one since we got here.”

  “Not a bug. Felt like somebody just whacked me on top of the head with a hand or a book. . . something.”

  Jack glanced over at Nonie. “Are you sure your place isn’t haunted?”

  Nonie did her best to laugh off his question. “You think I’d be living here if it was?”

  Buggy, evidently catching on that Guy had made his way into the room and planned on making Jack’s life miserable because he sat too close to Nonie got up from the couch. “Okay, guys. What say we call it a night. I know Nonie’s got a big funeral to work tomorrow, and we all have jobs to tend to before the hunt.”

  Everyone stood at once, except for Shaundelle, who had to scoot her butt to the end of the chair until she was able to get traction with her feet to stand. As she worked herself upright, Jack stood and began repacking his cases. A look of confusion and something else Nonie couldn’t quite identify clouded his eyes. His expression had gone from open, friendly, and helpful, to get me the hell out of here.

  Embarrassed, but trying to act cordial, like nothing happened, Nonie walked everyone to the front door. Fortunately, Ms. Dora wasn’t sitting on her porch, chain smoking and swiping mascara on her lashes. She must have gone inside shortly after Nonie because Buggy would have mentioned being interrogated by Ms. Dora if she’d still been outside.

  “See you tomorrow,” Nonie said. “Seven-thirty.”

  “You got it, girl,” Shaundelle said. Before getting into the van, she suddenly stopped and put her hands on her wide hips. “Wait up a second. We didn’t talk about the most important thing for tomorrow.”