italktodeadpeople-blog1

[italktodeadpeople-blog1]

king-verona:

This decision is not an easy one. Verona knows she’s on borrowed time right now. There is a part of her which knows she should probably be getting back to the office.Yet there’s another part of her which feels as if she’s needed, someone will call. That’s usually the way that works…isn’t it? She’s pulled from her reverie in time to hear Mason mention his aunt. Stormy Llewellyn is not a name Verona is unfamiliar with. Maybe it’s from being lifelong friends, his family is her family. And there isn’t much that she doesn’t know. His father, Odd Thomas, has a habit of rehashing his good times with Stormy. She seemed like one hell of a woman. Verona is saddened by the fact that she’ll never get to meet her.

“I’m up for a mini roadtrip. And getting to poke around Papa Thomas’ stomping ground is just a perk.” She twists the steering wheel, making a sharp right turn before she heads in the direction of Pico Mundo. She’s familiar with the area. “And that shouldn’t even be a question Mase. You know we can visit your aunt. I’d be honored, in fact.” She flashed a sympathetic smile in Mason’s direction. She knew it was hard on him. People often say it’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. The problem? Mason never had the opportunity to love her at all. He’d never even knew her. It was a shame, really. 

Pursing her lips, Verona tried not to outwardly laugh. She’s not trying to make fun of Mason. It’s sweet, the way he feels about her.”Love of your life, huh? You better be careful what you say, I might be crazy enough to believe it”

“Thank you Verona! It means so much to me. I’m glad to say I am sharing this experience with you.”

Mason looked out the window and watched the side of the highway as they drove. They whizzed past palm trees that lined the beaches up and down the PCH. As he people watched Mason couldn’t help but see the couples walking hand in hand. He often thought of him and Verona doing the same. As he thought of this he checked out of actual time and into a day dream.

Verona and Mason walked hand in hand down the beach, Zero in front of them, while the tide came in and water hit their feet and ankles. Mason paused and pulled Verona in close. She smiled and he pressed his lips against hers, his hands moving towards the back of her head. His hands wrapping through her blonde tinged waves.

Just before he could plunge deeper into his dream, Mason is brought back to reality by the sound of a car horn. Coming from Verona never the less. He looked ahead to see what the ruckus was about and saw a man in the middle of the street. The mans eyes looked tired. Bloodshot and low from what looks like heavy drug use and maybe a couple of days with out sleep. Behind him was a ghost.

“Pull over Verona, he has a ghost with him, we need to help him.”

The Ghost Told Me About it.

[italktodeadpeople-blog1]

king-verona:

Verona is shaken by things that she’s hearing. It’s not like she doesn’t deal with psychos and mobsters on the reg, but still, blowing up a building? These guys were serious. Pursing her lips, she raised a brow listening to Mason’s plan. It wasn’t half bad. There was honestly no way they’d take these guys down on their own.

“Do it.” Verona affirms, beginning to slowly drive away. At the mention of coffee and food, her mood instantly brightens. “Can’t say no to that. But do tell, you know a great place that we haven’t already been to? I’m shocked. Next you’re gonna tell me you’re taking some other girl out to dinner.” Playfully she elbows him. “I know I said I’m not ready for commitment but moving on so quickly? I’m hurt.” Naturally she’s just bullshitting. It’s what they do.

“I was talking to my dad the other day and he told me about this diner he used to work at in Pico Mundo. He said he hasn’t been back there since he relocated to Ventura. Its about a half hour away.”

Mason has always wanted to visit his dad’s hometown. His father, Odd always told him about the great times he had there. Plus, his aunt Stormy is buried in PIco Mundo, and EVERYONE tells him so many cool stories about her. It was his mom’s sister, but from what everyone says, she was so much more spontaneous then his mom.

“Plus would it be cool if we visit my aunts grave while we are up there? I never got to meet her, but I feel like we would have gotten along great. And you know that there is no way in hell that I am going on a date with another woman. You may not be ready to settle down into a committed relationship, but I will be here ready for you when you are ready. You are the love of my life Ms. Verona Imara King.”

Though he always knew that there was a chance that he may never have Verona, he has remained hopeful. They have been friends the entirety of their lives and he couldn’t imagine spending the rest of his life with anyone but Ms. King.

The Ghost Told Me About it.

[italktodeadpeople-blog1]

king-verona:

“I was totally kidding about waving your arms, but hey, it worked.” Verona smiles proudly, pulling her car to a stop at a nearby curb. Her tongue pokes out to wet her lips as she surveys the surroundings. Concern is plastered all over her face as Mason voices yet another minor issue. “Just hurry your ass up. I’m strapped and just looking for an excuse to use it.” Okay, it’s possible she’s exaggerating but she definitely would not hesitate if some thugs tried to come after her or Mason.

Verona taps her fingers along the steering wheel impatiently, breathing out a soft sigh of relief only when she sees Mason approaching the vehicle. “How many times do I have to ask you to call me before there’s danger lurking?” She questions, one brow raising sharply as her eyes meet his. She does as earlier instructed and heads down the block, parking around the corner to be safe. “Now can we go back to the part where you’ve deemed these people terrorists. What in the hell is going on?” She demands.

Mason pulls out all the papers he took. “Look Verona, these are all papers about the building they plan on blowing up, how to make a bomb, and all the other info they need to execute the act.”

Mason looks around, still a little scared that one of these goons might find them and kill them. “Verona, thank you for coming to get me. How about I call and we can put in an anonymous tip. I will tell them the papers fell out of his bag or something and I called as soon as I realized what was written on them. Then we can go grab a coffee, maybe a little food? I know a great place.”

The Ghost Told Me About it.

[italktodeadpeople-blog1]

king-verona:

This was a fair representation of the majority of their interactions. Verona and Mason have a special relationship. The aforementioned gift could easily be mistaken for shit luck in situations such as these. “Wow, you sure know how to excite me.” Verona quips condescendingly. “You had me at domestic terrorists.” She laughs quietly, amused by her own sarcasm. 

“Alright, alright. You’re lucky I’m in a generous mood today, Mason. Or I’d leave you there to shrivel up like a raisin.” Verona pinches the phone between her shoulder and her chin as she reached for her keys. Without any hesitation, she unlocks a bottom drawer on her desk and retrieves her handgun. “I’ll be right there, Mase.” She adds after a beat, growing only slightly more serious. 

Verona was thankful for her ability to momentarily abuse her position of power to zip through the occasional red light and weave around traffic. Only when she became aware of the closer proximity to  Del Norte did she cut the lights. “I’m here, well on the street anyway. Wave a hand or something…” Her eyes dart up towards the roof of each house, keeping a watchful gaze.

Masons eyes dart from left to right as he scans the roadway for Verona’s grey Dodge Charger. She turns the corner and he waves his arms like she asked.

“Look up to the left. I’ll meet you behind the building. I’m coming down the fire escape now.” says Mason as he makes his way to the ladder.

Down the ladder and on to the first platform. That’s as far as he makes it before he hears the roof door slam open. One of the thugs blurts out “Whoever they are, they couldn’t have gotten far! Look around!”. 

Mason quietly rounds each corner as he moves down the fire escape as quickly as possible. “Verona, we have an issue. They know that someone was inside the apartment. They are on the roof looking for me. Hopefully one of the goons doesn’t come down the fire escape and find us. I’m going to get in and then we will drive down the block and park; is that cool?”

The Ghost Told Me About it.

[italktodeadpeople-blog1]

king-verona:

An array of paperwork litters Verona’s desk. Softly, she sighs as she rises from her chair and swipes her now emptied coffee mug from the corner of her desk. If she spent anymore time in here she was going to lose her mind, for sure. With a sense of no real urgency she leisurely strolls through the hall as her thoughts wander over the last few hours she has spent pouring over the information she obtained in the wee morning hours. She is closing in on this guy and she knows they are likely mere hours from catching the son of a bitch, she can feel it. It was rare that she was wrong. Her free hand reaches towards her back pocket and her brow furrows when she realizes she must have left her phone on desk.

Verona shrugs it off, guessing she’ll have to retreat sooner than originally planned. She pops in a k-cup and exchanges pleasantries with her fellow coworkers while waiting for her coffee to brew. “Any luck tracking down our guy?” She inquires as she takes note of her partner who comes strolling in appearing half dead. In frustration he shakes his head, “Nothing yet. I’m not giving up, though. I’ve got a couple more places to comb over. We’ll find him, and when we do…” He doesn’t need to finish his sentence. Verona simply nods her head in understanding. 

While en route to her office, the faint sound of ringing grabs Verona’s attention. She picks up the pace but not quickly enough. As she crosses the threshold into her sanctuary she notices she’s missed the call. “Ah, shit.” She mutters lowly when she picks it up and realizes it was Mason. Quickly she redials and greets him promptly when he answers. “If you’re calling in a favor, you’ve run out of them. This one is gonna cost you.” Verona teases playfully, a sweet smile gracing her lips.

“Have i really called in THAT many favors?” A grin crosses over Mason’s face, knowing damn well that he has called in more than his fair share.

“Your payment is taking down a group of domestic terrorists! I met a ghost today and he was telling me he needed my help. They killed him in cold blood trying to steal materials from his warehouse. Now please, I’m stuck on the roof of the apartment building where they have been planning the attack. I know it sounds crazy because the I’m saying the ghost told me about it, but you know my gift is real! I’m on Del Norte Street. We can discuss semantics later.?”

The Ghost Told Me About it.

[italktodeadpeople-blog1]

The Ghost Told Me About it.

[italktodeadpeople-blog1]

The Ghost Told Me About it.

“What do we have here?” says Mason as he rummages through a bunch of papers on a decorative table. 

As he looked through the papers, he starts to think about who the people are that were devising these plans.  They have to be some pretty bad people. They are trying to blow up City Hall for cripes sake.

Mason continues to look around in the dilapidated apartment. Past the desk in the entry way, was the living room. A tattered up, floral print couch lay under the window to the left. It had stains and holes from whats looked to be years of heavy use. In front of that was a coffee table with an over filled ash tray and a bunch of empty take out containers. The floor was a raggedy carpet. What was once new and white, now light brown with darker brown spots.  It was pretty obvious this place was lacking the basic cleaning supplies.

As he rounded the corner to head into the kitchen, he heard multiple car doors slam in rapid succession. He looked out the window and saw 3 brawny men walking towards the apartment entrance. He turned and ran back towards the door, grabbing the papers as he passed the table. As he exits the door he hears the men getting close. He runs up the stairs towards the roof, while trying to call the only person he could trust. Verona.

*ring* 

*ring*

*ring*

“Verona, answer your phone, dammit”

[italktodeadpeople-blog1]

Chester’s Universe