by R. L. Naquin
This puzzled me. Hidden hadn’t been able to integrate with humans for very long—less than a year since the disguises had changed things. So, how did this man—some sort of aquatic Hidden—have a restaurant that was decades old?
He might be a kind man fallen on hard times or he might be a serial killer. I decided poking him would be the best way to go. Maybe he’d blow up and tell me everything.
“I can’t imagine why this place isn’t filled with people all day long.” I glanced out the window. “I know Penny said the food trucks were making things difficult, but this place is far better than any food truck.”
He shifted his feet, and his gaze flitted to the window and back. A shadow crossed his face. “When my wife passed, I closed for a while. It was a very difficult time.”
“I’m so sorry. Of course it was.”
“It was also a huge mistake business-wise. By the time I felt well enough to reopen, the vultures—” he gestured across the street “—had landed and taken away my customers.” He sneered. “They keep multiplying.” His face turned red, and his hands became fists. He realized what he was doing and calmed himself. “Anyway. Yes. It’s the trucks. And soon, I’ll be forced to close because of them.”
“No!” Ash looked stricken. “That’s such a waste!”
He sighed. “I’m afraid so. But it was probably time to retire anyway. My health isn’t great. My doctor will be happy if I finally listen to him.”
I was at a loss. I wasn’t sure what I’d expected or even hoped he’d say, but it wasn’t this. I felt terrible for him. “Well, I won’t ever forget the meals we had here. Thank you for creating such wonderful dishes for us.”
Ash smiled up at him. “And thank you for coming out and talking to us. I know you must be busy.”
“Well, yes, you’re very welcome. I’ll let you ladies finish. It was nice to meet you both.” He shuffled away without looking back at us.
“So.” I pulled out some cash, counted it, then set it on the bill Penny had left for us earlier. “Did you get a weird vibe?”
“Yep.”
“An I’m-a-killer vibe?”
She shook her head. “I don’t think so. Maybe. Glad he didn’t recognize you out of your costume.”
“No kidding. I doubt he’d be a fan of the Toast Jeannie, no matter how much boob I was showing.”
We left the café and made our way across the street to the food trucks. I didn’t think Merle had come out of the kitchen to watch us leave, but I couldn’t help imagining him standing at the window, cursing us for being dirty food truck whores.
I shivered. “We probably should have gone around the corner or something before going to our truck.”
“You don’t think he saw us, do you?”
“I hope not. The food is really good there. I’d hate for him to ban us.”
* * *
Lunchtime wasn’t far off, so the Posse wasn’t standing around chatting like they sometimes did. Now was the time for chopping and prepping, not whispering and gossiping. We climbed into our truck and did our own prep work.
Of course, this didn’t take long. We sliced some cheese, set out bread and butter and fired up the grill so it would be nice and hot when the orders started coming in. Other than that, there wasn’t much else to do. We were a slacker truck. This wasn’t a career or even a real business for either of us.
With nothing left to do and the lunch crowd still a good half hour away, I settled in behind the steering wheel to wait and think. The way I was situated, I could see the café and its neighboring alley. Traffic was steady on the street between us, but no one came in or out of either the café or the alley as I watched. Apparently, the folks at Homer’s had been listening and passing on the information that the shortcut through the alley might not be the safest route right now. After about ten minutes, someone did come through, but they were in a group of three—two men and a woman.
So, they had listened. Travel in groups or stay put.
My phone rang, startling me out of my contemplation. I checked the display to see who it was, and my entire day brightened. “Maurice!”
“Hello, beautiful. How’ve you been? Are you eating? We haven’t heard from you in a while. Are you coming home anytime soon?” The closet monster spoke faster than most people, but the sound of his voice warmed my heart.
“I’m fabulous, I eat when I can, I’ve been superbusy and I’ll come home eventually. How’s everybody out there?”
“Sara’s bossy as ever, but now that we have the bakery up and running, she’s got people to boss around other than just me. Zoey’s due to have that baby any day. It’s making her supercranky. And Riley’s a nervous wreck waiting for her to give the word so he can take her to the hospital. Other than that, we’re pretty quiet here.”
Hearing how my friends were doing lifted my spirits and eased my frustration with the situation here in Kansas. My resolve to go out on my own and experience the world I’d missed while I’d been a prisoner wavered a little. “I’ll come visit soon. I promise. I’m on an assignment right now in Kansas. Maybe after I wrap things up here and check in with Art. We’ll see.”
Maurice snorted. “Art. I still can’t believe he’s in charge.” A muffled voice spoke in the background, and his voice pulled away from the phone. “No, the whipped frosting goes on the chocolate cupcakes. The buttercream goes on the vanil—You know what? Just leave it. I’ll take care of it.” He came back to the phone. “Sorry. I’m training a new kid this week.”
“Art’s doing his best. And I’m sure the new kid is, too.”
“Sure, sure.” He pulled away again. “No, the whipped. Whipped. Oh for the love of hairy hot dogs, just go clean the tables until I’m off the phone.”
I snickered. “Hairy hot dogs?”
“Hush. You have no idea how stressful it is to work in the food industry.”
“I’ll have you know I’m currently the owner of a shiny food truck. I’m in it right now.”
He was quiet for a moment, then he burst out laughing. “Honey, I’m sorry to tell you this, but you can’t cook to save your life.”
“That’s why we only sell toast. And grilled cheese.” I paused. “Okay, and I’m not the cook, either.”
“Now that I can believe. And I want to hear all about it. But I need to go before my muffins burn.”
I was glad he couldn’t see how sad my smile was. I didn’t want to get off the phone. “Well, I’m glad you called. I’ll come out as soon as I can.”
“Oh, wait. I forgot why I called. Someone was looking for you.”
I frowned. Who would be looking for me? I didn’t know very many people, and they all had my phone number. “Was it someone looking for money? Cause he’s out of luck.”
“No, no. Nothing like that. It was a guy. I wrote it down somewhere. Tom? No. Yes. Does Tom ring a bell? He said he was a friend from childhood.”
My skin grew cold, and my stomach threatened to eject Merle’s excellent cooking. “Tahm? T-A-H-M?”
“Yes! That’s it. He came through town asking about you.”
“What did you say?”
“What do you think? We said we kind of knew you, but that you left months ago. I have his number if you want it, but I pretended not to have yours.”
A little of the tension eased from my shoulders, but not all of it. “Thanks, Maurice.”
“Did I do the right thing?”
“Yeah. You were perfect.”
After I hung up, I sat frozen in my seat, staring off into the distance. My time for running around exploring the world was nearly up. Tahm was looking for me, and eventually he’d find me, no matter where I went.
Apparently, a hundred years was long enough, and my fiancé was done waiting for me to come home.
Chapter Seventeen
The afternoon crowd was kind of slow. For about a half hour we did well, but it tapered off as the sky grew overcast and the temperature dropped. At the end of the lunch mosey—rush was too strong a word—a dozen or more folks from Homer’s poured in and ate the rest of our inventory, which made me happy. We’d made enough money to get by and to purchase more bread and cheese. Seeing hungry people eat made it easier to forget my own problems and focus on theirs.
Once the last of the customers—paying and otherwise—was gone, Ash and I retreated into the truck to clean up and make a list of what we’d need for the next day.
“Slow day,” Ash said. She swept crumbs into the palm of her hand and shook them into the trash.
“Small crowd.” The bin overhead stuck, and I pounded it with the side of my fist. “Mother pus bucket.” I slammed it again, and it popped open.
“You okay?” Ash gave me a concerned frown. “You’ve been weird all afternoon.”
I shrugged and shoved the box of trash bags into the bin. “I’m fine.”
“Uh-huh.” She dropped the sponge she was using to wipe the counter. “Look. You didn’t make me talk when I wasn’t ready, so I won’t try to force you. But I felt a lot better once I finally did share my problems.”
I stopped what I was doing and turned to look at her. This crazy girl wasn’t even eighteen yet, and I’d known her for only less than a week. Yet she was much wiser than her short number of years would indicate, and I was much more attached to her than the amount of time we’d known each other should allow.
I leaned against the cabinets and closed my eyes. “I had a disturbing call from home. Someone’s looking for me. Someone I didn’t expect to ever see again.”
“Someone dangerous?”
I chuckled, but there was no humor in it. “You could say that. He’s my fiancé.”
Ash coughed. “What?”
“It was arranged when we were kids. I ran away from my world to get away from the wedding.”
“Are you serious?” Her eyes were huge. “Is he horrible? Should we run?”
I swallowed hard and covered my face with one hand. “He’s not horrible at all. He’s wonderful. I’ve been in love with him since I was twelve. And yes, we’ll have to run. I can’t get caught.”
“Wait. What?” She put a hand on my elbow and tilted her head. “You love him? Why are you running?”
I gently shook her off and climbed into the driver’s seat so I could scowl out the front window. “It’s an arranged marriage with the baby sister of his best friend. Would you want to be married to someone you’re in love with when they’re only married to you out of duty?”
She came behind me and wrapped both arms around me and the seat I was in. “No. No, I wouldn’t. That would be hell.”
“Exactly.” I glanced up at her over my shoulder. “Thanks.”
She gave me a squeeze, then let go and settled into the passenger seat. “We stick together. Once we’re done here, we’ll find somewhere else to go.”
“You decided to come with me then?”
“More exciting and interesting things have happened in the last five days with you than in the last five years before I met you.”
I nodded and smiled. “Okay then.”
She nodded and smiled back. “Okay then.”
One of us might have instigated a hug right then to seal the deal. We got distracted when someone outside screamed.
* * *
By the time we scrambled out of the vehicle and made our way around the other trucks to find the source of the scream, a full-on battle had started.
Lisa was inside Doodlebug Cookies, leaning out the window and yelling directions and warnings at Aaron. “He’s got a knife! Watch out!” Her voice was shrill and panicked. “Aaron, duck!”
Aaron was doing his best to dodge the swipes coming from one of the three people I’d seen coming through the alley together earlier. Aaron grunted and grabbed the bigger man’s arm, slamming it against the truck in an attempt to force him to let go of the weapon.
Meanwhile, Lucas had his hands full with the woman I’d seen. She shrieked and jumped on his back with her hands around his neck. He spun, trying to dislodge her, then slammed himself backward into a light pole.
A gargoyle from Sausages Express, I thought his name was Rick, came out of nowhere and grabbed the woman, yanking her off Lucas’s back. She hit the ground on her feet and charged into Rick, hitting him square in the chest with her head. If he’d been out of his human disguise, she might have crushed her skull against his stone chest at that speed, but as he was, she knocked him backward instead.
Aaron clocked the big guy in the jaw, and the man fell to his knees. The knife was still firmly gripped in the man’s hand, and he took a swipe at Aaron’s left leg. Aaron managed to dodge it, only to have the other man grab Aaron’s pants leg and yank him off balance.
Lisa screamed and threw a pan through the window, narrowly missing the guy’s head. She moved out of the window as if to come out.
I ran to her door and stopped her. “Stay inside!” I had to shout in order to be heard over the yelling around me. “Did anyone call Truman?”
She gave me a blank look. “What?”
“The OGREs. Did anybody call them?” I was picking up movement from my peripheral vision, and I really wanted to dive into the fighting so I could try to stop it. “Ash, go in and help her call. Make sure she stays inside.” I shoved my phone into Ash’s hand and took off toward Aaron.
He had the man pinned to the ground. The knife had skidded out of reach. The big guy snarled and snapped at Aaron as if something wild had taken over his prone body. I looked into his black, soulless eyes, and my throat clenched.
I’d given him Gruyere on wheat less than an hour earlier. He’d liked the cheese puffs and hadn’t thought it was cheese overkill at all. He’d told me when he was a little boy he’d had a cocker spaniel named Butch. Adam. His name was Adam.
It was no longer sensible for me to pretend to be there because I wanted to sell toast. I pulled my soul stone free from under my T-shirt and hovered it over the thrashing man. Nothing. Not a twinge of activity in the stone.
“Careful,” I said as Aaron struggled with another bout of squirming and lurching. “He’s human, and he’s not home right now.”
Aaron grunted and pinned an arm that almost managed to slip free. “What do you mean?”
“Somebody took his soul.”
Grace tore out of Lisa’s truck and jumped on Adam behind Aaron, pinning the lower half and giving Aaron backup.
Reassured the two should be able to keep the guy down until the OGREs came, I looked for Lucas.
I found him on the far side of Gareth’s Authentic Fish & Chip Shoppe. He and Gareth were doing their best to corral the wild woman snarling at them. Rick was out cold on the ground, a trickle of blood leaking from the corner of his open mouth.
The woman—Lara, American cheese on white, plain potato chips—held a beer bottle in her left hand. Lucas and Gareth seemed more concerned with cornering her than they were about the bottle. After all, they weren’t close enough to her for her to knock them over the heads with it.
They didn’t see what she was planning. But I saw. I saw the subtle way her grip changed on the neck of the bottle. I saw the shift of her gaze.
“Gareth, get down!” I launched myself toward Lara to stop her, but I was too slow.
The bottle went flying in a perfect arc that connected with Gareth’s temple. Gareth went down with barely a groan. I grabbed Lara’s wrist while it was still in the air from her epic throw and twisted around to pull her arm up her back the way I had with Mr. Grabby Hands.
Her wrist and my hands were slick with sweat. I lost my grip, and Lara landed a fist to my jaw, knocking me back. That entire side of my face t
hrobbed, and pain seared through my tongue where I bit it.
Lucas jumped in and grabbed her by the neck, pushing her into the side of the fish truck. I held my fingers to my cheek and winced. It already felt like it was swelling, and my jaw clicked painfully when I opened my mouth.
Lara’s face turned blue, and she choked for air.
“Stop!” I pulled him away, and she collapsed. “Hold her down. Don’t hurt her.”
He dropped on top of her, pinning her to the ground the way Aaron had with Adam. “She tried to...” He trailed off, and his eyes grew unfocused as he looked at her. “Holy shit.”
I held my soul stone over her to check that she, too, was missing her soul. As if I couldn’t tell by looking at her dark, bottomless eyes. “What?”
“Her soul. It’s gone.”
I frowned and stared at him. “How do you know that?”
He flicked his gaze to the soul stone in my hand. “Reapers aren’t the only ones who know things.”
I stood and wiped my hands on my jeans. “I’m not a reaper. I’m a chaser. What the hell are you?”
His eyes narrowed. “Why exactly is a chaser selling toast from a food truck?”
“You first. Answer my question.”
“I’m an Aegis. I was sent to investigate a missing reaper.”
Heat flared up my neck into my face. My eyes, no doubt, gave a good visual of that heat. “Who sent you to investigate?”
He gave me a disgusted look. “Headquarters. Who else? Now your turn. Why is a chaser here?”
“Same as you. I was sent by HQ to find Pete—or at least his stone. I’ve been investigating the whole time. Why the hell didn’t you tell me?” I stopped and looked over my shoulder toward where Adam was pinned. “Shit.”