Page 66 of Light As A Feather
I nod, and she answers the video call.
“Hey, Z. What do you think?”
“Well, I agree that their past is absolutely a major factor in why it’s been so hard to break the connection, but I also think that there has to be more. She said that when she first started seeing him, it was only in or around Hawthorne’s house. When she left was the first time he ever followed her to a secondary location, right?”
Hale turns the phone toward Sol, who brings up her mask after a few awkward seconds of silence.
“I’m so sorry. Yes, that’s right.” She hesitates a moment. “Well, as far as I’m sure, at least.”
“No worries. Z, nice to meet you.” Zoey smiles easily, like they’re talking to an old friend. “If that’s the case, I think something was tying him to the house long before you arrived. Otherwise, I can’t imagine why he wouldn’t follow you to your house to have more access to you, especially if your house was as hostile as Hawthorne says; entities like this usually thrive in those environments.” Zoey clears their throat. “It’s just all that negative energy can be really draining for the desired host and also bolsters their hold on you.”
“That makes sense.” Sol takes a sip of the water I put in front of her. “So, how do we find out if that’s the case—if there’s something else that connects him to this house?”
“Well, luckily for you, that’s where I come in.”
“Zoey lives and breathes haunted objects.”
“Oh right, you own the oddities shop?” Sol jumps into the conversation excitedly.
“I do. You’ll have to come by sometime.”
“Do you think you could check it out?” Mendez interrupts, getting us back to business,classic.
“Yeah. I’m out of town for a convention right now, but how about Tuesday?”
“Sounds good; we’ll see you then,” I confirm, and they end the call. If Ozzie is straight to the point, Zoey is pleasantly blunt.
“It’s settled then. I think we got what we needed, so just follow up when you have an update.” Mendez pulls me in for a quick hug—as tough as he likes to appear, he’s such a softie on the inside. “We’re gonna head out. But if anything big happens in the meantime that you need help with, don’t hesitate to call.” He pulls away but holds me by the shoulder, meeting my gazewith a seriousness that reveals just how worried he is even though he doesn’t want to alarm anyone. I return his look with a tight nod.
“Yeah, for sure. We’ll be fine in the meantime. I’ll give you a call after Z leaves if there’s anything to tell.”
Ozzie nods. “Ready?” He turns to Hale.
“Yep.” She slips her phone into her back pocket and pushes in her chair. “It was really nice meeting you, Sol. If you ever need anything, don’t hesitate to ask.”
“It was nice to meet you too, thank you so much for your help.”
And then there was just us and Jayden. Sol tangles her fingers together nervously, clearly picking up on the same uncharacteristic hostility I’m feeling rolling off him in waves.
Clearing her throat, she steps backward. “I’m going to go take a hot shower. I need to decompress a bit.”
“Okay.” This will give me another chance to try to sort out this rift that’s forming between Jayden and me before it gets out of hand. It’s definitely one-sided, but it’s starting to grate on my patience with him making Sol uncomfortable.
Jayden doesn’t even look at me as I approach the table, continuing to shove his equipment back in the bag more forcefully than necessary. Picking up one of the microphones, I start to pack it up.
“You don’t need to do that,” he snaps.
“What’s going on with you? Jay, you know you can tell me anything.” He can. I want to get to the root of it so I can fix it.
“Don’t do that,” he sighs.
“Do what?” I cross my arms over my chest, becoming defensive despite my intentions.
“Try and be—you know what, never mind. It doesn’t matter.” Jayden swipes a hand through his short, blue hair. “Let me askyou something.” He doesn’t look at me as he fidgets with the chain hanging at his side.
“Of course…”
“Are you happy now?” The bloody edge in his voice guts me like a hunting knife.
