lived.
Where Julie had died trying to get rid of the evil spirit possessing Sami’s now-deceased husband, Steve.
Sachi yanked her thoughts right the hell off that train before they could get settled into seats and make themselves comfy. She had a job to do and didn’t want to get bogged down again in her relatively fresh grief over losing Julie.
Sitting back in the chair, she studied the satellite view once more. She’d gone on many investigations with Julie and had helped her debunk plenty of cases.
What would Julie do?
Sachi stared at the screen, willing the answer to come to her.
Believe…
The word quietly drifted through her mind with the force of a hurricane.
But what did it mean? Believe Tammy? Believe Mandaline’s insistence on taking a risk? Believe that there was hope for her lonely, pathetic life?
Temporarily stumped, she started to put together the investigation plan.
* * * *
Sachi both dreaded and eagerly anticipated the upcoming investigation. So much so that, by Tuesday afternoon, her body had decided to reenact the Normandy invasion in her stomach and lower intestines.
Mandaline knocked on the apartment’s bathroom door, where Sachi had retreated yet again for a little privacy and so as to not tie up the downstairs bathroom that both staff and customers shared.
“You all right? I have Imodium.”
“I’ll be fine,” Sachi grumbled. “This is all your fault, you know!” she added.
On the other side of the door, Mandaline laughed. “Sure, I’ll take the blame if it means you get past this and take a chance.”
“Right now I have to get past needing to stay within a ten-second sprint of a toilet.”
Mandaline was waiting for Sachi in the kitchen when she emerged a few minutes later.
She handed Sachi a glass of water and a tablet. “Here. It’ll help.”
“So will Valium. Or maybe Xanax,” Sachi muttered as she took the offered medicine and downed it with a few swallows of water. She’d always had this problem, from when she was a kid. Even before the attack that had changed her life. If she got nervous, her stomach took the brunt of it.
“You know what you’re going to say when you look back on all this, don’t you?” Mandaline asked.
“That I really wish I was into hexing and threw one on you?”
Her friend grinned. “Nooo. You’re going to be glad you took this step regardless of how it turns out.”
“You sound annoyingly cocky right now. You realize that, right?”
“Yep.” She hugged Sachi. “That’s because I see only good things happening for you.”
* * * *
Unfortunately, the Goddess apparently had an even more twisted sense of humor than Sachi originally suspected. A blob of showers moved in off the Gulf of Mexico and hovered over their area, with more rain behind it.
They wouldn’t be able to run their investigation that evening. Although, to be fair, that was a typical summer day in Florida, with a very strong chance of late-afternoon thunderstorms every day.
She called Tammy first, both relieved at not having to face the men, and irritated at the fact that her intestinal uprising had been in vain.
“I wondered if you’d have to reschedule,” Tammy said after Sachi broke the news to her. “It’s all right. I’m keeping track of things like you all asked me to.”
“Anything new happen since we left?”
“No, I didn’t see any lights yesterday, and I haven’t seen any tonight, either, but I suspect with the rain I might not be able to.” She had a thought. “Come to think of it, I usually don’t see the lights for a couple of days after a good hard rain. But then again, maybe I simply missed seeing them.”
“Okay. Would you mind calling your nephew and letting him know?”
“I’ll do that. Let me know when you want to reschedule.”
“Thanks, I appreciate it. I’m going to have to juggle a few things on my schedule, as well as my dad’s move here from Idaho. It might be a couple of weeks before we can
Where Julie had died trying to get rid of the evil spirit possessing Sami’s now-deceased husband, Steve.
Sachi yanked her thoughts right the hell off that train before they could get settled into seats and make themselves comfy. She had a job to do and didn’t want to get bogged down again in her relatively fresh grief over losing Julie.
Sitting back in the chair, she studied the satellite view once more. She’d gone on many investigations with Julie and had helped her debunk plenty of cases.
What would Julie do?
Sachi stared at the screen, willing the answer to come to her.
Believe…
The word quietly drifted through her mind with the force of a hurricane.
But what did it mean? Believe Tammy? Believe Mandaline’s insistence on taking a risk? Believe that there was hope for her lonely, pathetic life?
Temporarily stumped, she started to put together the investigation plan.
* * * *
Sachi both dreaded and eagerly anticipated the upcoming investigation. So much so that, by Tuesday afternoon, her body had decided to reenact the Normandy invasion in her stomach and lower intestines.
Mandaline knocked on the apartment’s bathroom door, where Sachi had retreated yet again for a little privacy and so as to not tie up the downstairs bathroom that both staff and customers shared.
“You all right? I have Imodium.”
“I’ll be fine,” Sachi grumbled. “This is all your fault, you know!” she added.
On the other side of the door, Mandaline laughed. “Sure, I’ll take the blame if it means you get past this and take a chance.”
“Right now I have to get past needing to stay within a ten-second sprint of a toilet.”
Mandaline was waiting for Sachi in the kitchen when she emerged a few minutes later.
She handed Sachi a glass of water and a tablet. “Here. It’ll help.”
“So will Valium. Or maybe Xanax,” Sachi muttered as she took the offered medicine and downed it with a few swallows of water. She’d always had this problem, from when she was a kid. Even before the attack that had changed her life. If she got nervous, her stomach took the brunt of it.
“You know what you’re going to say when you look back on all this, don’t you?” Mandaline asked.
“That I really wish I was into hexing and threw one on you?”
Her friend grinned. “Nooo. You’re going to be glad you took this step regardless of how it turns out.”
“You sound annoyingly cocky right now. You realize that, right?”
“Yep.” She hugged Sachi. “That’s because I see only good things happening for you.”
* * * *
Unfortunately, the Goddess apparently had an even more twisted sense of humor than Sachi originally suspected. A blob of showers moved in off the Gulf of Mexico and hovered over their area, with more rain behind it.
They wouldn’t be able to run their investigation that evening. Although, to be fair, that was a typical summer day in Florida, with a very strong chance of late-afternoon thunderstorms every day.
She called Tammy first, both relieved at not having to face the men, and irritated at the fact that her intestinal uprising had been in vain.
“I wondered if you’d have to reschedule,” Tammy said after Sachi broke the news to her. “It’s all right. I’m keeping track of things like you all asked me to.”
“Anything new happen since we left?”
“No, I didn’t see any lights yesterday, and I haven’t seen any tonight, either, but I suspect with the rain I might not be able to.” She had a thought. “Come to think of it, I usually don’t see the lights for a couple of days after a good hard rain. But then again, maybe I simply missed seeing them.”
“Okay. Would you mind calling your nephew and letting him know?”
“I’ll do that. Let me know when you want to reschedule.”
“Thanks, I appreciate it. I’m going to have to juggle a few things on my schedule, as well as my dad’s move here from Idaho. It might be a couple of weeks before we can
Similar Books
