One Foot in the Grave: An Almost Zombie story

Chapter Thirty-Five: Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's Off To The Lich We Go

I scrape the last of the brains out of the plastic container with a spoon. Noelle's sitting across from me, her arms folded across her chest. I run my tongue over my teeth. I'm not used to eating in front of people and she's making me nervous. Albin is nowhere in sight.

"You're not the only one who screwed up by going under the church, you know."

I blink. "I'm not?"

"I'm pretty sure Albin's the only half who hasn't gone through that little side door. Father Moss uses that darn half Komodo as a lesson in obedience. I think he makes sure that particular cell door is built out of paper mache." She flashes me a quick smile. "You are the only one who took a hell hound, though. That was pretty smart. The rest of us just ran for our lives." She pauses for a minute before continuing. "Supposedly, there was an even more dangerous half under there in the 1800's – it even killed another half. A wendigo. It was really messy. Father Moss buried her in the cemetery."

I nod. That explains the headstone. "Did you all have to help Lydia heal Ra'kul afterward?"

She shakes her head. "Nah, you're the only one who's managed to injure her, to my knowledge."

"Well, that was more Maxx than me, but okay."

"You look rough," Noelle says. "You okay?"

"I've been dreaming about eating brains."

She just stares at me. "How's that a nightmare?"

I sigh. "They're human brains."

Her nose wrinkles up. "Ewww. Gross."

Yeah. You could say that. "It scares me," I say honestly.

"Talk to that creature you told us about...the one you met at the club."

I blink. The solution's so simple; I have no idea why I haven't thought of it sooner. Nacelles or his legion of undead club-goers might know something about brains. In fact, if they don't know, it probably doesn't exist.

I scoot my chair back from the old wooden table and stand up. "I'll go see him later."

"I'll go with you," Noelle makes an unexpected offer. "I've never met a lich before. Sounds like it might be interesting."

I decide to be blunt. "Why? You don't even like me." I take my bowl and spoon to the kitchen sink and turn on the faucet. Hot water pours out and I turn on the cold to balance out the steam I see rising from the sink.

"Someone needs to make sure you don't kill yourself," she answers. "And Father Moss would never forgive me if something happened down there."

"Yeah, okay. You can come with me." Trust has to start somewhere, right? I frown. "Does Nacelles sleep during the day?" Were liches even related to vampires? I have no idea.

Noelle shrugs.

I add dishwashing detergent to the now lukewarm water, turn off both taps and grab a sponge. Yeah, I'm more domestic now than I was when this whole mess started. It's a good skill to have, just in case I ever wind up with a boyfriend. I almost giggle at the idea. My heart hasn't healed from Andrew yet, and I'm not quite sure it ever will.

"What're you doing up so early?"

The half-fae shifts from foot to foot. I don't expect her to answer but she surprises me. "I have some abilities I can't explain well," she says. "They make sleeping through the night kind of problematic."

Huh. That's not an answer I thought I'd get. "You mean like the illusions?"

She mumbles something under her breath and I strain to hear her reply. "What'd you say?"

"Wait, I'll show you." Biting her lip, Noelle closes her eyes. I'm not sure what to expect, so I just watch her. Before long, she starts to hover. Like feet off the floor, around two feet up, the hem of the long dress she's wearing held in one clenched fist.

I blink. "You...fly?"

She shakes her head. "No. I hover. Father Moss is teaching me how to control it, but I still tend to float at night. I've bumped against the ceiling more than once."

Yikes. "What do you do all day?"

"Go to auditions when I can, teach dance when I can't." She smiles. "It's not so bad. I love kids and at Christmas time I take a few of the little girls to see the behind-the-scenes stuff when The Nutcracker comes to The Fox. They love it."

I wouldn't have pegged Noelle to be so...what's the word? Altruistic? It's kind of cool. I wish I had a passion like that. The only thing that's been keeping me going is the hunt for Andrew, and becoming human again. The whole revenge idea's pretty much fallen apart after our last conversation, though. I wonder if that makes me a sucker.

"So, let's go see this lich of yours," she says. "Day's not getting any younger."

No, as a matter of fact, it's not. The sun is beating against the kitchen window like it's determined to pierce the stained glass and come inside. I've become such a night owl that a trip to The Blood Bank might be just what I need to wake up completely, odd as that sounds. I eye Noelle. The dress she's wearing is a blinding lime green. Maybe it will keep the ghouls confused long enough to reach Nacelles.

Father Moss is nice enough to call us a cab from the church. I guess he's got one on retainer for emergencies because I overhear him say 'I've got a pick-up', nod a reply and then hang up. And just like that we have a ride to The Blood Bank which doesn't cost us a dime. I don't remember the address, but the taxi driver gets us there, no problem.

"Didja need a pick-up, too?" The cabbie asks as we get out.

I pause with one foot still in the taxi. "Ummm...I have no idea." I look at Noelle. "Do we?"

She nods. "I'd think so, yeah. A couple of hours should do it."

"A'ight. Be outside at..." he glances down at his wrist. "Twelve. I'll be here."

"Thanks," I say, closing the back door. The huge bouncer, whatshisname, isn't on duty and the neon lights aren't lit, either. It looks pretty dismal in the light of day.

"This is where the lich lives?" Noelle asks.

"Not exactly." I pull at the club door, which doesn't open. What a shock. "He lives under the club."

"So how do you expect us to get inside? Got a key?"

I bite my lip. Hadn't really thought of that, darn it. I'm so fixated on getting to Nacelles, I forgot to figure out how to actually get inside the locked building. "Ummm..."

Noelle rolls her eyes. "Seriously, Isis?" She reaches up into her hair and pulls out a bobby pin. Putting the ends in her mouth, she spits out what I assume are those weird plastic ends.

"Are you really going to pick the lock with a hair pin?" If the police come by, we're so screwed.

It takes her like a minute and a half to jimmy open the door. I slip inside, praying the ghouls aren't out. I don't hear anything weird, so I gesture to Noelle. She follows me and pulls the door closed. It doesn't take us long to reach the staircase.

"Do you know what a revenant is?" I ask her. I don't want to scare her, but she deserves to be warned. Tucker is, well...Tucker.

She shakes her head. "Is it like a ghost or something?"

"No." There's no easy way to say it. "He's a reanimated corpse that eats meat."

Her face is blank, so I elaborate. "Flesh, Noelle. He eats people."

The half-fae gasps. "And that's where you're taking us?"

"Tucker just mans the door to Nacelles. And he can control himself." I try to reassure her, but I'm not sure if it's the truth. The last time I was down here was with Maxx. Maybe the hell hound was the only thing keeping Tucker from chowing down. It's a sobering thought, but I try not to let the growing dread show on my face. It's pretty much too late to back down. I need answers.