“Freezer, what’s a... oh, right, the extra cold part of the icebox. Where Charlie keeps those sad little one-person meals. Andice cream. I really miss ice cream.” He stares off wistfully as if the mountains in the distance are large, unreachable scoops of mint chocolate chip. His head tilts as his focus returns to Gretchen. “I also miss pickles, of all things. Those big dill ones from the barrel. Didn’t even like them that much when I was alive. Who’d have thought?”
“What do youwantfrom me?” Gretchen’s voice comes out as a combination of a shout and a whine. “I have a life. A business. I need to go back to DC. I can’t stick around here for your amusement.”
He pauses as if considering the question. “While there’s a lot about you that I’m sure I would findveryamusing...” The way Everett looks at her lands somewhere smack-dab in the middle of charming and overly intense—really his vibes in general. “What I actually want from you is your help.”
“My help?”
“Yes. With Charlie.”
She shakes her head. “Ha, well, sorry to break it to you, babe, but that guy hates my guts. There is no way I can help you with anything regarding Charlie.”
Gretchen’s phone vibrates, informing her of Sulayman’s imminent arrival. Five more minutes.Thank god. She continues forward. This time, she decides, she isn’t going to stop no matter how many times Everett makes her feel like she’s been cryogenically frozen.
“Pleeeeeease,” Everett begs from somewhere directly over her shoulder. A slight chill radiates from him the same way heat would off a living person. “What if I told you it’s a matter of life and death?”
“Yeah, well, you’re already dead, so I wouldn’t be too concerned about it, to be honest.”
“I might be, but Charlie isn’t.”
Gretchen stops in her tracks, as frozen as if Everett had touched her even though it was only his words that reached her ears.
“Not yet,” he continues. “But he will be soon if we don’t stop him from leaving.”
5
Gretchen spins on her heels to find herself nose-to-nose with Everett. Or, well, not nose-to-nose, since he’s quite tall. Also, he kind of floats an inch or two off the ground, adding to their height difference. It’s actually more nose-to-not-exactly-corporeal-chest.
“Ah, so that got your attention,” he says.
Gretchen steps to the side to put space between them. “Explain,” she orders.
“I’d love to.” His focus drifts to something behind her. “But is that jitney here for you?”
“That what?” Sure enough, when she glances over her shoulder, a mud-speckled white sedan is waiting at the mouth of the driveway.Five minutes, my ass.“Shit,” Gretchen says under her breath. Except this is good. Because now she can get in Sulayman’s back seat, speed away from Everett and Gilded Creek Goat Farm, refund some of Mrs. Van Alst’s money as penance, and leave thisnonsense behind. Possibly even convince herself it never happened at all.
She pauses, half-turned toward the car.
If Charlie’s life really is in danger and Gretchen is the only living person who is aware and therefore able to do something about it...
Ugh.
Having a conscience and something to prove is truly the worst combination for someone in this line of work, she thinks. No wonder her dad didn’t want to do jobs with her anymore.
Sulayman sighs through the open passenger window. “You again, huh?”
“Yeah, me again, but...” Everett watches, a fist to his mouth as he waits to see what choice she’ll make. His eyes light up, and he starts doing that damnAlly McBealbaby dance again as soon as Gretchen says, “I’m so sorry to have wasted your time, but I actually don’t need a ride anymore.”
Sulayman frowns more deeply. “There’s a fee for that, you know.”
“Yes, I know, but something came up just now and I can’t leave yet.”
His responding glare effectively communicates his mixture of ire and boredom and doesn’t leave her until after he’s rolled his window back up.
Gretchen calls out one final apology as the car pulls out of the driveway and onto the road. The rideshare app alerts her to the resulting charge to her credit card.
“You’restaying! Woo-hoo!” Everett finally ceases his spinning and hand-waving. “We’re going to have so much fun, you and me. Ev and Gretch on a mission. Like a buddy cop show.”
“We are not going to haveanyfun together. The only reason I’m still here is to find out what the hell you’re talking about. There is absolutely no guarantee—in fact, the likelihood is infinitesimally small—that I am sticking around longer than another few minutes. So you better get talking.”
