Page 69 of Stalked By Shadows

I found a couple of neat prints, some with Halloween stuff on them, that I grabbed before heading to the front. The woman rang me up and I was surprised that the whole batch barely cost me forty bucks. Three pairs of slacks, four cargo pants, a half dozen pair of shorts, and five T-shirts, plus three hanks of fabric. I even bought a reusable tote so I wasn’t adding to the whole environmental plastic bag issue.

“Thank that other girl for me, will you?” I said looking around for her. “I’m normally intimidated by shopping for clothing, but she showed me right to the correct rack.”

“What other girl?” The girl at the register asked. Her nametag read “Eleanor.”

“The gal in the seventies clothes? She met me at the door? Long dark hair?”

Eleanor gaped at me. “I’m the only one working today.”

I frowned. “No. I saw that other girl. Maybe she was a nice shopper?”

“You’re my first customer today.” She pointed to the clock and the hours posted on the wall. The store had been open less than a half an hour.

“Um…”

“I’ve heard of people seeing the ghost, but never so vividly they thought she was real,” Eleanor said.

“That was not a ghost,” I said. “I talked to her, she answered.”

She shrugged. “I don’t know who else it could be.”

Fuck. I looked around the store, even did a full walk-through, searching the single bathroom and glancing in the tiny backroom. No one. The cashier watched me like I was nuts and she was waiting for a reason to call the cops on me. But the other girl was nowhere to be found.

I took my purchases, thanked the cashier and made my way out of the store still looking for the other woman. Maybe it was a hoax to try to draw more people in. Could she have darted out without me seeing her? Why go through the trouble? And what if I was seeing full body apparitions now?

Had a ghost help me pick out clothes,I wrote to Micah.

He sent back a question mark.

Long story. I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to feel. Afraid? Not really. She didn’t seem menacing. There had been no shadows or skin prickles. I hadn’t felt anything different at all. Except calm. As soon as she had smiled at me, my anxiety about shopping had eased. Well fuck.

I headed out of the shop and made my way down Ursulines, avoiding the LaLaurie mansion, but stopping outside the church to admire the architecture for a minute.

You can come over if you want. Micah sent me.

My heart skipped a beat. I wanted to race to his house and check on him, but knew I had to tread carefully.I should wash this stuff.

You can use my washer.

I smiled.Sure. Have you eaten? I can bring food.Because Micah didn’t keep food in his house.

Ate the last of my eggs last night. Food would be good. There’s a small grocery on Bourbon and Canal near the back of the church, right past Walgreens.

I google mapped Walgreens to point me in the right direction.Okay, let me get food and I’ll head your way.

Hanging with Micah seemed like a better way to spend the day than reading alone. I ran into the Walgreens and got a package of boxer-briefs in my size, now that I knew my size, then found the grocery and filled up on stuff that looked good, while avoiding dairy, as I recalled Micah saying he was allergic. I sent him pictures of random foods with funny names.

Butt rub. A spice mix for ribs.

Cock flavored.A type of soup.

Cream between.Oreo-like generic cookies.

OMG!He wrote back.You’re such a perv.

It’s just food, I sent back adding a picture of Crunchy Nut Balls to the mix.Are you hungry for some balls? Not my fault if you’re thinking of sex.I got the laughing emoji back in reply which made me smile.

Chapter 21