“Thank you.”
They ended the call, and Spencer—completely in tune—immediately questioned her change in demeanor. “What are you thinking?”
Tabitha’s hopes had risen. “There’s a game Sheila plays with some friends on-line. It’s called Kemonomimi Rascal, and it’s her favorite. Her character name is Hoshi-Shei. If she’s playing it, I might be able to message her through the game. Where’s my laptop?” She rose abruptly from her seat at the kitchen island and headed for the small pile of her things that remained downstairs.
“Whoa. Whoa. Slow down. Let’s think this through,” Tex cautioned, making her stop in her tracks. “The last thing you want to do is spook your sister if for some reason she’s trying to stay under your radar. Nor do you want to alert anyone who might be monitoring her that you’ve tracked her down. Let’s script out something that will help us ascertain if she’s okay. And if she’s not being coerced by any outside forces, let’s see if we can guide her into the moves we want her to make next.”
Tabitha sat down again and bit her lip. “Sheila’s smart. If she doesn’t want me to find her, she’ll immediately shut down.”
“But if she feels she’s in danger anddoeswant to be found,” Spencer told Tabitha, covering her hand with his, “her high IQ will find a way to let you know she’s under duress, and needs a rescue.”
Tabitha couldn’t argue with that. “If Ghillieisfollowing my sister with the thought of…doing her harm, Sheilamighthave noticed, and be looking for a way to contact me. In which case this could be just the thing.”
“Alright then. You’ll log in and look for her; see if you can join her current game, and then what?” Kyle asked.
“I’ll determine whether or not I can use the dedicated messaging system to contact her privately,” Tabitha asserted. “That permission will be up to her. But what should I say thatwon’t scare her off and also won’t put up a red-flag for someone who might be watching?”
“Have you ever played on-line with her before?” This came from Rowan, who’d been silently supportive up until now.
“Yes,” Tabitha responded. “I have. Quite a lot, actually.”
“What name do you use?” she probed.
Tabitha snorted. “Tabbi-cat34,” she revealed. “That will immediately let Sheila know who I am, but… Dammit. If Ghillie is really observing her, he’ll also know—from the Tabbi reference—that it’s me.”
“Okay. How about this,” Rowan continued. “Have the two of you ever had a pet?”
“A hamster when Sheila was ten. She’ll remember him.”
“Good. What was the hamster’s name?”
“Cheeky-puff,” Tabitha told everyone with a sad chuckle. “Sheila named him because… Well, you get it,” she ended lamely.
“Okay.” Rowan was not deterred. “What if we combineyouruser-name with Cheeky-puff? Like, Cheeky-cat34? Would that ring the right bell for her? Will she know it’s you and accept a message?”
“I think so,” Tabitha pondered. “But even if she does, what should I say?”
“Just tell her you’re worried about her, and you need to speak with her as soon as possible. Ask her if there’s an authority figure around that she can approach.”
“Oh, no.” Tabitha shook her head vehemently. “That will send her into a spiral, for sure. Me being worried is a trigger, and the last thing we need is for her to be non-functional.”
“What about…” Everlee tapped her cheek in thought. “What if you suggested a bad-guy as part of the game you’re playing? Like, have her look around to see if anybody nearby fits the bill as a likely rogue. If she’s in Ghillie’s custody, she’ll know what you’re asking and use his likeness. If she’s not under his control,it might make her ‘see’ that he’s there, and put him on her radar as a bad person. Perhaps she’ll juxtapose her gaming feelings into real-life caution.”
“It’s a long shot,” Tabitha responded. “But it’s worth a try. That’s if she doesn’t just shut me down.”
“Okay.” Tex took charge. “Here’s what you’re going to say…”
The whole thinghad been a bust.
Spencer strode along beside Tabitha as she walked off her disappointment, taking several fast laps around the yard. She cried a little, railed a lot, and leaned on him, hard, even though he felt helpless to move things along in a positive way.
Goddammit. After attempting to send her sister a simple message, Tabitha had subsequently been blocked. Spencer hoped it was Sheila who’d blocked her, and not the ghost-like Ghillie, but who knew?
During the sisters’ initial contact where Tabitha had simply joined her on-line, everything had seemed good. The pair had done some fun, in-game chatting where Sheila had seemed not only to understand it was Tabitha who’d joined the action, but she’d been excited that her sister wanted to play.
Things had still been okay when Tabbi had asked, wouldn’t it be fun if they introduced a bad-guy to the game? Sheila had some hilarious moments pulling characteristics from…Who? Ghillie? A fellow traveler on the train?
Nobody could tell.
