September 1 | Sunday Afternoon
I slid the utility ladder to the next picture as Mys strolled into the studio with grocery bags. "They were out of avocado, but I managed to find the beignet mix you requested. Now, we can eat sweets and binge watch My Hero Academia. What are you doing?"
"Poltergeist-proofing your house. Could you hand me another Command-Strip?" I asked.
Dropping the bags in the kitchenette, Mys ambled over with my makeshift toolkit from the coffee table. The damage from the weekend was all but erased. Zyr had helped us clean before he left the city. I was putting on the finishing touches.
"Cabinet locks? Non-skid furniture pads? Where'd you find this stuff?" Mys dug through the bag.
"Walmart," I answered. I secured the final corner of the frame and hopped down, ignoring my roommate's shocked face. "A minotaur—a friggin' minotaur—cabbie saw me walking and stopped for me. You can't be worried. I made it back before you did."
"Did you send me on a lengthy store run so you could sneak out? Zyr is gonna kill me."
"He'll be fine. Wrap him around your pinky finger like you do the other boys," I said. Mys playfully shoved me, and I fell to the couch, snickering. I rested on an elbow and peered at them. "I notice you haven't been going out lately. What's up with that?"
"I'm taking a breather. It has nothing to do with him."
"Mm-hm, only a hit dog hollers." I grinned.
Mys grimaced with laughter. "What even is that?"
"Something my grandma used to say. It means, I didn't mention Zyr, but you did because my statement made you think of him. You keep telling me there's nothing going on between the two of you, but I know something is up. Y'all doing it?"
"Aurie Edison, what does your ass know about doing it?" Mys poked me and sat on my legs. I squealed in faux pain and made myself disappear, letting my roommate plop to the cushions. As I repositioned in my favorite chair, I stared at them.
"Not as much as you, apparently," I replied in a frisky tone.
"You've probably had more full-on sex than me in your lifetime." Mys scoffed.
I held up a hand and pretended to count. When my roommate parted lips to say something else, I raised a finger. "Wait a minute. I'm trying to carry the one."
"I'm serious. I don't follow-through with clients. I get them off, and I send them on their merry way," Mys opened up, settling in the corner of the sofa closest to me.
"Okay, but what about in your regular relationships?"
"This will sound pathetic, but it's not. I avoid relationships and casual sex."
My eyes popped. Dead-curious, I leaned forward. "So, what do you do when you...get horny?"
"Let's just say I'm glad you're not a roomie that eavesdrops at locked doors. I love myself. A lot." A shy grin materialized.
"Oh, my gosh! In the bathroom?" I laughed, filing that away for future reference.
"Anyway, I don't date because I don't have human anatomy." Mys hesitated before adding quietly, "Down there."
I fanned myself, even more intrigued. At their raging blush, I realized it was none of my business what was under their clothes unless they wanted me to know. Moving back to the couch, I grabbed their hand in solidarity. "Who cares about human anatomy? I accept you as you are, and Zyr is your biggest stan. You should ask him out."
Mys pulled a face. "Aurie, I'm not. Zyr is for you and your unfinished business."
"Hah! What on earth does he have to do with my unfinished business?" I sputtered.
"What could be more best-life than a wild romp with a werewolf?"
I choked on a laugh. "A wild romp?!"
"Yep. I know you want him. I can sense it, but you do this weird thing where you put everybody else's needs first. Your path to the Light is straight up Selfish Alley, Yokai," Mys said matter-of-factly over the sound of me rioting with laughter.
Catching my breath, I managed to get out, "I'm gonna pretend you didn't say you're trying to set up a hookup for me. Whew! Let's circle back to the part where you care about my needs. Mys, I couldn't have asked for a better guide to the Afterlife, but you sincerely have a one-track mind."
"I don't—"
"Forget the unfinished business, babe! Especially if you think it involves a wild romp with a werewolf." I giggled. "To me, being there for Haley is more important than living my so-called 'best life.'"
"Just don't even think about leaving again," Mys fussed.
"I am going, but I'll wait for Detective Zyr to take me since he won't even tell me what hospital she's in. I'm not doing my unfinished business. I plan to stick around until I get her out of the woods or until I lose touch with reality—whichever comes first." I blotted my lips in a taut smile as I settled down.
"It doesn't feel right. You're playing with life and death. What about the case?"
I got up and moved the ladder to the other side of the studio. "What about it? The detective has all the evidence I can give him. Hand me another command strip, would you?"
"What about me? I feel everything you go through. As you lose it and poltergeist out, I'll go through it, too."
"You won't feel anything when I leave." I didn't mention Resurrection out loud. I hadn't found the voodoo loa's business card. I knew Darcy would be back, though.
Mys seemed exasperated as the cellphone rang, delivering me from further what-abouts. "Yeah?" My roommate answered and paused. "Let me put you on speaker."
"Is that the detective?" I hopped from the ladder to move it to the next frame.
Dropping to the couch, Mys put the phone on the teak coffee table, and Zyr's voice rang from the device with a sense of urgency: "Guys, we have a problem. Aurie, did you know your internet stalker was near the hotel the night of the hit-and-run?"
"What the hell?" Paul Jameson. Last year he had seen my picture on Haley's account and developed an obsession that led to threats and hate-mail when neither of us would go out with him. "Why was he even in New Orleans, Detective?"
"According to him, he was on vacation, but Mayfield isn't buying that so we're bringing charges," Zyr announced.
"You mean he's the one who did this?" I asked in confusion.
"I don't believe that. Darcy is trying to get to you for a reason. He'll think the pressure is off once we put someone else behind bars for his crime. The Council won't even consider investigating him if Jameson becomes the fall-guy."
"Are you saying Aurie is stuck here in hiding?" Mys lolled on the couch, staring at the ceiling. I wondered the same thing, but I was peeved they were basically asking when I was leaving. On the other hand, when had that stopped being my main priority?
I refocused on what Zyr was saying, "I'm doing ninety to get back and fix this with the Council. I need them to keep the screws to Cyprian. Here's what I need from you, Aurie. Think back to the night of that party. Did you see who your sister was following into the hotel?"
"You're being hella cryptic. She wasn't following anyone," I said.
"Are you certain? I reviewed her witness statement. She was adamant that you two got into the party with this man, but you didn't see him?"
I shrugged at Mys as if my roommate would know any better than I did. "I mean, Haley was always chasing hot guys, but I didn't see her pursuing anyone, in particular, that night."
"That's what I was worried about. You're not the special one Cyprian was after," the detective sighed.
Ice went through my veins as his meaning took shape. I was off the step-ladder and halfway to the door without even knowing my destination. "What hospital? Where is she? Hurry up!" I shouted over my shoulder at the phone. My hands twitched with panic at the doorknob.
"You have to stay there to avoid putting her at risk, Aurie." The levelheaded detective made me want to shake him.
I doubled back to the coffee table. "Zyr, I don't want to see my sister in Overlay City. Please, tell me where she is!" I begged. Mys wrapped me in a hug.
"Listen to me, honey," Zyr soothed. "If my theory is right, Haley can protect herself. Not to mention, Cyprian doesn't seem to know she's the one he wants. For the time being, stay put. When I'm done with the Council, I'm headed to the hospital to get more answers."
"Better answers," Mys emphasized. "The dishes are rattling."
"I'm counting on you to keep it together, Aurie. Focus on your unfinished—"
"Would you both shut the hell up about my unfinished business? I'm here for Haley!"
The detective sighed. "Okay, I've seen a Guardian Angel twice while working this case. Should Haley run into anything she can't handle, I think he'll keep her safe, too, alright? I'll talk to him while I'm out. See you soon."
"Wait, Zyr!" The call ended, and I turned to Mys in dismay. "No! H-he can't do that. How does he expect me not to worry when all he has is speculation and conjecture about whether or not Haley is okay? I want to be there for her," I cried.
"I understand that, Yokai, but we can't fly off the handle."
"I'm not flying off the handle! Fuck!"
At my shout, every single picture I thought I had secured to the wall simultaneously hit the floor with a loud crash. Mys flinched. I hitched in a breath, unnerved by the poltergeist activity I couldn't control. The lights brightened to their normal luminosity, and the cabinets stopped trembling.
My roommate studied me with Empathy and more than a modicum of ire. "See?"
"I am so sorry. I didn't mean..."
"How will losing your shit help with Haley? You can't put it off forever. You have to take care of your unfinished business, Aurie."