Page 20 of Ella’s Data

“Right? The good news is, we seem to be okay with our trick-or-treat pumpkins,” Holly says as she does a quick inventory count.

“So, we’ll make fresh stuff for the interactive table every day?” I ask.

“Yeah, just because of the potential for germs. We may give them something to clean their hands off, but realistically, kids are petri dishes, especially at this time of the year,” Fee replies as she dumps each one into the trash bag. “Esther has the eggs, so she said she’d keep putting that concoction together. I’ll take the containers home and wash them tonight so they’re ready for tomorrow.”

“I can do the corn syrup and peel the grapes,” I offer.

“Good, I have the grapes in the fridge over here,” Holly says from the back of the garage.

Last year, the guys built a false wall so there was a dedicated space for a refrigerator, as well as any inventory that wasn’t being used. They also stored the bags that were used to fill with candy on one of the shelves they built into the wall. Now, the filled pumpkins are lined up on the shelves, organized by color, with the peanut allergen ones off to one side in totes. I love that all the kids who came through tonight enjoyed themselves, and seeing the two moms whose kids did have peanut allergies tear up made everything we did to avoid cross contamination worth it.

“Same time tomorrow?” I ask as we each carry what we need to put together for the next night, Holly stopping to arm the alarm and lock the door. Pipes already took the money that was taken in over to the clubhouse after the last group of kids came through. I’m glad we don’t have to worry about that part; Psycho does as the club’s secretary and treasurer.

“Works for me,” Marnie says.

“Same,” Fee and Holly reply in unison.

“And Esther and Paul are okay with watching all the kids while this is going on?” I ask.

“Fee, Marnie, and I will alternate nights so it’s not too much,” Holly replies. “We’ve got two weeks of this, after all, and my grandparents aren’t getting any younger.”

“Plus, Fee’s still nursing,” I muse, looking pointedly at my bestie’s shirt. She grins and flips me off, because about thirty minutes ago, when we started cleaning up, her milk started leaking and it completely soaked the nursing pads inside of her bra. “What if I handle the bulk of it and y’all can pop in and out? I mean, Pipes will be the mummy, and Esther has her church ladies on a schedule to handle out the buckets and oversee the stuff outside. Maybe another brother could come help me, and we can plan for all of us to be here on Halloween?”

“You’re supposed to be on vacation, Ella,” Fee points out.

“Vacation implies I do what I wanna do,” I retort. “I’m having fun and since Data has shared it far and wide that I’m his ol’ lady, I know with my job I won’t always be around to physically help with stuff like this. Since I am, take advantage of it.”

“I like the way you think,” Holly says. “And that will work because too many late nights and my girls will become witches in truth, and nobody wants to witness that at all.”

“So will Becca,” Marnie adds. “But if you’re going to do that, then let us handle remaking the body parts at least.”

“Yeah, Ella, teamwork makes the dreamwork,” Fee sasses, using one of Thelma’s favorite sayings.

I’m about to answer when I hear a bloodcurdling scream from the front yard at the house and burst out laughing as I see a huge, muscular adult man turn and run down the sidewalk away from the house, and apparently, his wife. She comes out, walking no less, laughing her ass off while shaking her head. Then she calls back, “Celia, guess y’all are gonna have to give me a ride home when we’re done,” before she turns back around and gets in line once again.

CHAPTER

THIRTEEN

Data

“Oh, that was fucking epic,” I finally manage to gasp out thanks to laughing so hard I’m doubled up. “Seeing Jared Osborne abandon his wife after Colt came out of the coffin and reached for him was worth every fucking minute we’ve spent getting ready this year.”

While my brothers are ensconced in various rooms to oversee shit, I’m in the small room that’s off the kitchen that holds all the cameras, as well as everything needed to make the magic happen just in case a hidden mechanism fails. With a lot of trial-and-error last year, we figured out that bringing in a group of no more than twelve people at a time allowed us to ensure everyone got their spook on, so to speak. Those waiting don’t see the people who go inside leave as there’s a hidden staircase next to the last room that Rebel, dressed as a demonic entity, leads them down. They exit outside, keeping the flow going.

I was waiting for Red to let the next group in and saw that blowhard, Jared, standing in line with his wife and some of their friends. He’s had no problem sneering at us whenever he’s seen us in town, calling us lowlifes and criminals, yet he was here. I reached out to Colt via the mic he was wearing while inside the coffin and told him when to reach out and grab and well… here we are; Jared is somewhere far, far away, and his wife is taking shit from their friends about how he’s nothing but a pussy.

Red lets the next group in, and I turn to the first set of monitors with the switches for the room. “It’s go time,” I murmur, rubbing my hands together.

“Fuck, I’m tired,” Rebel complains as we do a final walk through once the last group has left.

“Brother, you definitely got in your steps tonight,” I reply as I straighten the tablecloth on the fortune teller’s table. “You did leg day and didn’t even know you were doing it.”

“I wonder how they did next door?” he questions as we walk into the kitchen. The actor who is playing our mad scientist this year has already dumped all the ‘potions’, rinsed the beakers and they’re drying on the rack. They’ll be freshly made each night; it’s a pain in the ass, but it’s something we’ve opted to do.

“Damn, I’m impressed,” I state as I look around. “Did we get a teacher or something this year?” Because last year, everything was handled by the club.

“No, it’s one of the students like last year, but she asked what we did at the end of the night and I told her but also emphasized that we would take care of it. Guess she figured she’d give us a hand,” he replies.