Page 34 of Malice

“Thirty-four. You?”

“Thirty-six. Are you from Salem?”

He glances up at me. “I was raised in Gloucester until I was thirteen. We moved to Salem to be closer to Boston for my dad’s job. You?”

“I was born in Connecticut, but we moved a lot. My parents landed in New York, and I was living in Somerset until I found this house. I always wanted to live in Salem.”

“Yeah?” He glances up, pausing. “Why?”

“I’m a writer and it feels like a place writers live. That probably sounds stupid.”

“It doesn’t. What do you write?”

“Fantasy. Dragons and things.”

“That’s really cool. I used to read when I was younger, but I guess I grew out of it. Are you published?”

“I am. If you used to love to read I bet you just need to find the right book to get into it again.”

He smiles. “Maybe your books. I love dragon stuff. Anything paranormal too. Vampires, witches, haunted houses.” He scrunches his nose. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay. Is that how you got into this? Helping people with ghosts?”

“No. It’s a long, weird story.” He brushes by me. “I’m almost ready. I just need to grab toiletries.”

“Okay.”

I’m aware of him dodging the question but I assume he has his reasons. Not like I’m a great judge of character, but his presence feels comforting. I can’t let myself trust him completely, but at least I’m not freaked out by him.

While I wait, I walk over to his bookcases, looking through the titles. His dog yips at my feet so I scoop the little fluffball into my arms. Aster has a lot of gay fiction and literature, so at least my weird fantasy wasn’t completely off base. I suppose he could be an ally or these books could belong to someone else, but something tells me he’s gay. That thought makes me wonder what his coming out experience was like since we’re close in age.

“Told you I used to read,” Aster says, coming back into the room with a duffel bag. “For the longest time, all I could do was read about men like me.”

“You’re gay?”

“Yep. I was so scared to tell my friends and my parents.” He laughs. “When I finally got the nerve, it wasn’t so bad. My dad wasn’t thrilled, but he’s…” Aster pauses, swallowing hard. “He’s better now.”

“That’s great. Not my experience but I’m happy for others when it goes well.”

“Do you only date men?”

I nod. “Yeah. Totally gay. Never even questioned it. My parents didn’t take it well. I was raised in a super strict, religious home. I waited until I was twenty-five to tell them because I knew. I only told them because I published my first book and it was very queer. I knew there was a chance they’d find out in the media, so I told them after church one Sunday.”

“What happened?”

I scratch Otto’s head to distract myself from the flood of unpleasant memories rushing back. “It was the last time I talked to them. My dad called me an abomination and said the devil had snatched my soul. My mom cried.”

“God, Hudson. I’m so sorry.”

“Thanks. I still have my sister though. She loves me.”

“That’s clear.” He tosses the bag over his shoulder. “They don’t know what happened to you?”

“No. I made Jocelyn promise not to tell them. I don’t want their forced concern. I’m sure they’d find a way to blame it on me for dating a man anyway.”

He nods, his face filled with concern. He cares more about me, a stranger, than my own parents do.

“How did you find me?” I ask. “How did you know I needed help?”

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