Page 12 of Air Of Mystery
Zakary checked his watch. “I have to leave. My shift starts in a half hour.” He stood and both girls ran to him for a hug and a kiss. Amanda walked him to the kitchen door, and they exchanged a kiss too.
“Nice to meet you, Skye,” he said, giving me a nod.
“You, too.”
“Be safe,” Amanda told him, kissing him again before he left.
Zakary ran his hand over his wife’s hair. “Love you.”
After Zakary left, Amanda offered to put a movie on for her girls. Their loud whoops of delight at the offer had me jumping in surprise, as the girls ran from the kitchen and into the family room. A short time later I heard the familiar music of a Disney classic and Amanda returned.
“So,” she said, taking her seat once more. “Let’s talk.”
I nodded and took a sip of my tea.
“You investigate haunted houses for a living?” she asked.
“Among other things,” I said, placing my mug back on the table.
“The YouTube channel, the show that you do...” She nodded. “It’s very popular.”
“Are you a subscriber?”
“No, but I do watch occasionally.” She picked up her own mug. “As the branch manager and head librarian here in Ames Crossing it pays to keep up to date on your episodes.”
“Really?” I did a double take at that.
“Umm hmm,” she said. “Typically, there will be a run on books that relate to whatever the topic of your recent episode was.”
“I had no idea,” I said. That information made me smile.
Nyx was apparently bored with the conversation. The cat hopped off my lap, went to the corner of the kitchen, and sat tucking her tail around her. It seemed to me that she was on sentry duty.
“Will today’s adventure make it onto your channel?” Amanda’s voice was polite, but for some reason I sensed disapproval.
“No,” I told her. “No, it won’t.”
“May I ask why that is?”
I narrowed my eyes. Again, her tone of voice was perfectly polite, but still, I felt judged. “For starters,” I said, “my sister and her boyfriend were involved. Tyler was attacked—injured—at the location and was taken to the hospital.”
“What happened?” Amanda asked.
Quietly, so the girls wouldn’t overhear, I told her. I’d managed to fill her in on most of it, but right before I could finish, the back door swung open and a stunning brunette blew in.
And I do meanblew. The wind was strong enough that it had blown the door open.
“Hola amiga!” Estella Marquette waltzed right in—without knocking.
“Estella.” Amanda smiled.
“Wait until you hear about the crazy shit that happened in Alton today!” Estella brushed the hair from her eyes, spotted me at the table, and immediately stopped speaking.
I waggled my fingers at her. “Hey.”
“Well, well.” Estella glared at me suspiciously. “If it isn’t Skye Golden. The person who likes to stir up the crazy shit.”
I shrugged. “I’ve been accused of worse things.”
