I Was a Teenage Ghost Hunter II

Chapter 3

The Drenched Schnitzel was a small, dark restaurant on one of Arcata's quieter commercial streets. Not that Arcata had any noisy commercial streets. The town was known for its unusual, off-the-beaten path dining establishments and the Drenched Schnitzel was one of the most unusual and furthest from the beaten path.

Devin opened the heavy oak door warily, not pleased with meeting Nayra there at a time usually associated with dinner. He didn't want anyone to misconstrue their meeting as a date, least of all Nayra herself. And if Emily wandered into the restaurant for some hard-to-imagine reason, he didn't even want to think about the results. He tried furiously to recall if Emily had ever said anything about liking German food.

"Guten Abend!" cried a hearty voice in a bad German accent. A broad-faced cheery girl Devin vaguely recognized from school was behind a wooden counter. She wore a black vest with gold buttons and a ruffled white blouse making her look vaguely like a nineteenth-century Munich barmaid. Above her a stuffed elk with giant antlers loomed ominously. "Just one for dinner?"

"I'm actually meeting someone," mumbled Devin.

A loud, heartier voice boomed across the restaurant. "Devin, over here. By the bronze medal." Nayra's voice dominated the space. The other six diners at small, spindly tables looked on as Devin walked to a corner where a massive engraving of a hunter in the woods hung over the table.

The hostess put down a fake parchment paper menu. "Yvette will be right with you."

"Try the spaetzle with deer. It's incredible." Nayra narrowed her eyes. "Why are you wearing a hoodie to dinner?"

Devin looked up from the menu, where a sea of forbiddingly unfamiliar German nouns and umlauts had met his gaze. "Dinner? We're just talking, right?"

Nayra sigh heavily. "What's wrong with you, Mulwray? You don't go to the best German restaurant in Arcata and order ice water."

Devin shifted uneasily. "Sorry, I thought we'd just get German coffee or something. I already ate a big plate of chicken pesto. I'm stuffed."

Devin had to admit his gray hoodie didn't match well with Nayra's elaborate maroon and black dress, accessorized with a crimson scarf and massive crescent-moon-shaped earrings. If Nayra didn't always dress so elaborately Devin would think she was expecting the night to be a major occasion.

"At least order the bratwurst and kale."

"Maybe a salad?"

"A big plate of our special: Potato Salad with Deer Chunks," said a heavily accented authentic German voice. "Perfect for a growing Junge."

Looming over the table was a black-garbed woman with tangled black-and-gray hair and a wrinkled face that betrayed a lifetime of heavy dumpling dinners. She smiled with thin, cracked lips revealing a crooked set of small teeth.

"Dagmar!" Nayra sprang up and hugged her.

"Nayra! More energy than ever."

Nayra turned to Devin. "Devin, this is Dagmar Wiltschaft, the owner. She knows more about German cuisine than anyone in Arcata."

Devin clumsily rose and shook Dagmar's hand.

Dagmar gazed at him with penetrating dark gray eyes for longer than was comfortable. She spoke to Nayra, dragging out the words raggedly. "You were right about this boy. He has der tiefe Seele."