Page 44 of Possessed By Shadows

Chapter 13

Itook pictures, stuffed everything back in the box, and then headed to the parking garage to look for the car. Micah texted that he was awake and mobile if I needed him. Though I knew it meant he’d had coffee and was showered and dressed. He would leave the house if he had to, but usually spent mornings sketching out project ideas or sewing to clear his head before work. I texted himI love you, see you soon.

He sent back a smiling emoji with heart eyes.

The parking garage was big, set on Canal Street amongst all the high rises that made up the meager New Orleans skyline, and about as boring as any city parking garage could be. I knew it to be long-term lease only, and you had to check in with the guard to even get inside. But I knew Hal and had chatted with him on more than one occasion.

He was a very friendly and very dark-skinned Black man with an enormous Cajun accent that I just loved to listen to. He was old enough to be my grandfather, but always smiling and friendly. He’d even come by the shop a few times to get gifts for family and had dropped his grandkids off for a craft day. The stories he could tell about New Orleans would keep anyone entertained for hours.

“Hey Hal,” I greeted him. “Have you seen my brother lately? I’m wondering if his car is here?”

Hal waved to me to pass the little gate. I opened the door to the security office where it was a wall of monitors and the small side section that led out to the street side walk-up check-in. He flipped through a few monitors and pointed to an empty space. “Car isn’t here. Let me look for his checkout date. You’re looking good. Heard you were sick for a few days.”

“Yeah,” I agreed. Possession came and went. Sick was a good way to define it.

“Checked it out a few days ago,” Hal said staring at the computer screen. “Hasn’t been back since.”

“You weren’t in?”

“Nah, looks like it was late at night. You know this old man is in bed by eight.”

I laughed. “I hear you. Some days I’d like to be in bed by eight.”

“As long as that pretty boyfriend of yours is with, right?” Hal teased. “My Sissy says the two of you bring all the girls fawning. Just to watch two boys loving? How funny is that.”

“Micah is pretty hot,” I agreed. “Not like we’re celebrities or anything.”

“To hear those girls talk, you’d think otherwise.”

“I’ll tell Micah. He’ll find it entertaining. Do you know if my brother was the one who checked out the car for sure?”

“The signature matches your brother’s,” Hal said as he pulled up a dual screen of signatures. They looked similar enough that it had to be Lukas driving out. Didn’t mean he was himself, or even by himself. None of that was recorded in these logs.

“Thanks,” I said, reaching to shake Hal’s hand.

He clapped mine and shook. “See you soon, boy.”

I stepped out of the office feeling a bit frustrated. The school wasn’t that far of a walk, maybe forty-five minutes? But I had to be at work in little more than an hour, and didn’t want to leave Micah hanging. I headed home. Micah would have more rational things to say about all of this. He wouldn’t be lost in a nightmare of emotions over things his twin brother hadn’t told him.

Was it fair to be mad?

I crossed Canal and headed down St. Charles toward the Garden District. Could have taken the streetcar as it was loading at the corner, but they were slow and rickety. I needed time to think. Too bad it wasn’t a craft day at work. I sighed, trying to not look brooding as I walked through awakening streets of people. A handful I knew, and I waved hellos, even if I didn’t stop. I forwarded the pictures to Micah, and told him about the garage and the car being gone. Had Micah known about all the meds? Sky hadn’t.

The vegan bakery that was a new pop-up was on the way, and I stopped to grab some croissants with the plan to make Micah breakfast before work. When I arrived, he was sewing, and there was a bag of trash to go out, beside the door. I set my stuff down on the table, and took the bag out before coming back in to wash my hands and kiss him hello.

He gave me a warm smile and kept sewing. It had to be some sort of bag because the fabric appeared to be leather, but was probably vinyl. It was a bright pop of purple. Which meant it was something he was either thinking of on the fly and would be added to the website we had, or a request from a fan. I left him to his work and headed into the kitchen to throw together some breakfast.

Egg filled croissants with a side of chicken sausage, and fresh cut strawberries were on the menu today. My nutritionist gave me a list of things to add to each meal to ensure I was getting enough protein and nutrients. I’d top everything with a bit of avocado and call it good. And cooking to the whir of the sewing machine was relaxing. I hadn’t realized my shoulders had been tight until I found myself loosening them while I assembled the food. It was just after ten, which meant we’d need to eat and head to the shop.

“Food’s ready,” I said quietly, knowing he’d hear. The machine whirred a few seconds longer, then stopped.

Micah got up and ran a lint roller over his stomach and thighs, catching the stray threads that always accumulated there. He brought an empty coffee cup with him, placing it in the sink before joining me at the table. “Thanks for food,” he said, sitting down across from me.

We ate in silence, while my brain still ran through a thousand questions about Lukas’s secrets. I finally asked, “Should I be digging into any of this? Is it my business? Am I being an asshole for worrying? For wanting to help?”

Micah reached across the table, offering his hand and I took it to grip, feeling a bit more grounded under his touch. He didn’t seem bothered by all of this mess, but Lukas wasn’t his twin. “I think it’s okay to be worried. And to be upset that he didn’t reach out. Though not everyone does. He may not want our help.”

“But no one knows where he is.”