got nothing. “Um, is he off for the night?”
“Who wants to know?” There was no attitude in her question, just mild curiosity. I had the feeling she passed the time with the question more than anything else.
“Rue Darrow. I used to work with him.” I hoped Carl could lead me in the direction of a place hiring because I recalled he was good with that type of information. “He still works here, right?”
She rotated her shoulders as if it were a supreme effort to speak. “He’s on sick leave. Attacked by those weird people.”
I stilled, and she leaned toward me, squinting. Recalling I should at least give the appearance of being alive, I shifted my weight from one leg to the other. “Are you sure about that?”
“Yup. Happened a few nights ago.” Talking about Carl’s health animated her a little more. “Heard the boss say he’s in the hospital. Got some strange fever they can’t get to go down.”
“How is a fever strange?”
Her eyes widened. “Do I know? I’m not a doctor.”
Again, the words were combative but absent of heat. I tapped a hand against my thigh and peered up and down the alley. Then I looked at her again. “Are you sick?”
“Why would you ask me that?”
I pressed. “ Are you?”
She glanced over her shoulder to see if anyone was nearby. “I don’t know why I should tell you, but I have cancer. I can’t afford the treatment, and I don’t know that I would get the chemo even if I did. They say it makes you sicker.”
“It could save your life.”
She shrugged and went back to smoking. I left her where she stood and headed down the alley. For the next hour, I put in applications at various businesses that might hire me. Funny enough, I even offered my services at a rival cleaners and drew great satisfaction in thinking about helping them grow beyond the Stanleys’ “success.”
Since I had met the goblin Stanley, I had wondered why they would settle for such a moderate income from the business they owned, especially when they had to split it among however many brothers there were. Then it hit me—laundering. I was sure I was right. The Stanleys were probably using their business as a cover. Interesting theory, but I had no reason to pursue it. My employment prospects were limited because even while many businesses stayed open late, most needed someone to work starting late afternoon. During spring and summer months, the sun was still in the sky during that time of day.
When I was ready to admit temporary defeat, I headed over to the paranormal library and slumped into a chair to lie dramatically across the table. Lily hovered over me, patting my back. Each time her hand came into contact with my body, a tiny electric shock zipped through me. Nothing painful but enough to alert me she was there.
“I’m unemployable, Lily,” I complained.
“There there,” she cooed.
“Where’s Bill?”
“He’s here.”
I sat up and looked around. “Where?”
She pointed, and I looked toward a bare wall with nothing adorning it.
“Unless Bill has become a wall, he’s not over there.”
“Look harder,” she said, and I squinted. The wall fell away, and there was one of the other dimensions he had showed me at my first visit. Bill walked about an identical library, helping customers, smiling, and seeming to enjoy himself. While Bill spoke to one woman, a man strode up to him. I recognized the wild man who had come rushing into the library previously.
The two men finished their conversation, and the stranger turned in my direction as if he planned to cross the dimensions to my side. Bill caught his arm and shook his head. Then his gaze slid to me, and I knew just as before when Bill rushed me out of the library, he didn’t want me there at the same time as the man. When I first met him, he’d admitted to signaling when other visitors weren’t welcome if I was already in the library.
Realizing the truth of what Bill did, I huffed and folded my arms. Well, that
“Who wants to know?” There was no attitude in her question, just mild curiosity. I had the feeling she passed the time with the question more than anything else.
“Rue Darrow. I used to work with him.” I hoped Carl could lead me in the direction of a place hiring because I recalled he was good with that type of information. “He still works here, right?”
She rotated her shoulders as if it were a supreme effort to speak. “He’s on sick leave. Attacked by those weird people.”
I stilled, and she leaned toward me, squinting. Recalling I should at least give the appearance of being alive, I shifted my weight from one leg to the other. “Are you sure about that?”
“Yup. Happened a few nights ago.” Talking about Carl’s health animated her a little more. “Heard the boss say he’s in the hospital. Got some strange fever they can’t get to go down.”
“How is a fever strange?”
Her eyes widened. “Do I know? I’m not a doctor.”
Again, the words were combative but absent of heat. I tapped a hand against my thigh and peered up and down the alley. Then I looked at her again. “Are you sick?”
“Why would you ask me that?”
I pressed. “ Are you?”
She glanced over her shoulder to see if anyone was nearby. “I don’t know why I should tell you, but I have cancer. I can’t afford the treatment, and I don’t know that I would get the chemo even if I did. They say it makes you sicker.”
“It could save your life.”
She shrugged and went back to smoking. I left her where she stood and headed down the alley. For the next hour, I put in applications at various businesses that might hire me. Funny enough, I even offered my services at a rival cleaners and drew great satisfaction in thinking about helping them grow beyond the Stanleys’ “success.”
Since I had met the goblin Stanley, I had wondered why they would settle for such a moderate income from the business they owned, especially when they had to split it among however many brothers there were. Then it hit me—laundering. I was sure I was right. The Stanleys were probably using their business as a cover. Interesting theory, but I had no reason to pursue it. My employment prospects were limited because even while many businesses stayed open late, most needed someone to work starting late afternoon. During spring and summer months, the sun was still in the sky during that time of day.
When I was ready to admit temporary defeat, I headed over to the paranormal library and slumped into a chair to lie dramatically across the table. Lily hovered over me, patting my back. Each time her hand came into contact with my body, a tiny electric shock zipped through me. Nothing painful but enough to alert me she was there.
“I’m unemployable, Lily,” I complained.
“There there,” she cooed.
“Where’s Bill?”
“He’s here.”
I sat up and looked around. “Where?”
She pointed, and I looked toward a bare wall with nothing adorning it.
“Unless Bill has become a wall, he’s not over there.”
“Look harder,” she said, and I squinted. The wall fell away, and there was one of the other dimensions he had showed me at my first visit. Bill walked about an identical library, helping customers, smiling, and seeming to enjoy himself. While Bill spoke to one woman, a man strode up to him. I recognized the wild man who had come rushing into the library previously.
The two men finished their conversation, and the stranger turned in my direction as if he planned to cross the dimensions to my side. Bill caught his arm and shook his head. Then his gaze slid to me, and I knew just as before when Bill rushed me out of the library, he didn’t want me there at the same time as the man. When I first met him, he’d admitted to signaling when other visitors weren’t welcome if I was already in the library.
Realizing the truth of what Bill did, I huffed and folded my arms. Well, that
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