Page 35 of Stalked By Shadows
“I know it’s crochet,” I told him, putting a hand on his knee. “I’m teasing a little. So why are you stressed? Last night? The graveyard rescheduling? Would talking about it help?”
He stared into the room for a few seconds like trying to decide how to answer. “I don’t know. I feel uneasy. Like there’s something coming. I can try to be prepared, which for me means locking down my life. An entire process itself that is broken. But I’m not sure how else to react. What if nothing happens and I’m preparing for nothing? What if something huge happens and my world falls apart again?”
“What if you lean on your friends and let us help you carry some of the worry?” I wondered.
Micah looked at me, his gaze meeting mine. “Do you feel anything weird?”
“I pretty much always feel weird. It’s the fact of my existence now.”
“But not like doom weird?”
That night I’d felt doom. When I’d watched that strange man-thing walk toward the base through the darkness. That had been growing doom in my gut. Right now, not so much. Worry was a part of my life. But doom, not so much. “Did it start last night? Or sooner?”
“I’ve had a few incidences in the past few weeks that aren’t the norm.”
“You’ve had the feeling before?”
“Yes,” he admitted, but looked away.
“When? Did something terrible happen?” I asked before I realized where it was all coming from. “Maybe right before you disappeared?”
“I didn’t know what the feeling was then.”
“But you had it then? On the trip?”
“It started before we left. I also had it last year when Sky… well she went through something big. I sort of just knew. Went to Lukas for help. Wouldn’t have found her in time if I hadn’t. I think that day changed all three of us.”
This was news to me. What had happened with Sky? The question must have been clear on my face because he shook his head. “Another time,” he promised. “It was a while ago, but I think we’re still pretty raw. At least Lukas and I. Sky seems to have moved on okay, but she’s stronger than most people give her credit for. I think that’s why Lukas worries so much about you. He’s seen some of the ugliest of people in this world. He wants better things for you.”
“I don’t think I’m very strong.”
“You are,” Micah said. “If you weren’t you wouldn’t still be here. Me either. Sometimes life tests us in ways we never thought would matter, until it does, and we survive. We have to learn to thrive like Sky has. I’m trying. Just not there yet.”
I studied him, his seriousness and the tension in his posture. Did he look tired? Was it physically or emotionally? I could tell he wanted badly to thrive, maybe to rise above. Honestly, so did I. Was there a life beyond the memories? There had to be, or else what was the point?
“Then best we get to trying, right?” I said.
Micah gave me a faint smile. “Sure,” he agreed.
My stomach grumbled. I got up from the bed and made my way to the kitchen to find the food I could smell. “But food first.”
Chapter 12
Lukas had ordered me a huge serving of red beans and rice and andouille sausage from my favorite restaurant. Leave it to my brother to keep me fed at least. “Have you eaten?” I called back to Micah. It was well past lunch but not yet three. “I can share.” There was enough for at least three people, even if I was super hungry, which I was. I pulled a couple of forks out of the drawer and headed back to the bedroom with the container.
He glanced up from his crocheting like he hadn’t heard my question. “Huh?”
“Food,” I offered him a fork, and sat down, holding the container open.
“Oh, thanks.” He took the fork and stabbed a slice of sausage, nibbling in between his crochet counting.
“What are you thinking about so hard?”
“The tour,” he said. “I have a route, but I do try to change it often so as not to have a lot of repeating or people copying me.”
“Tell me what to expect on the tour,” I prompted as I ate. The food was the best thing about New Orleans in my opinion. Always something new, and a lot of favorites were easy access.
“We do a couple of regular fan favorites, like the dancing girl at the Bourbon Hotel, Jackson Square and the French ghosts in the fog. Then there are a bunch of smaller areas that are more locally known that I hit up. I avoid two largely popular places: The Upstairs Lounge and the LaLaurie Mansion. Opposite sides of the Quarter. Often, we walk by the LaLaurie Mansion. There are always tours standing around it. It’s really popular now that there was a TV show about some of the history. The Lounge, I avoid.”