Page 34 (1/2)

John’s mouth said, "Okay" but his eyes said, What makes you think you can just walk away?

"Let’s order a pizza"

THE PIZZA TASTED like rotten eggs Just to me, not to John The rest of that week, every meal smelled like for with ot bored with that, they switched senses I would hear my name as I drifted off to sleep, as if spoken six inches froitated, growling at things in the darkness, prowling around our bed at all hours of the night as if keeping watch Early one ainstdown the street She didn’t look back

Not long after that, they--whoever "they" were--tried soed, twisted I got dancey and lighthearted beats under lyrics about prison rape or incest and, once, a version of "Stairway to Heaven" with hout This new version that blared over the speakers of a busy shopping h only I heard it, of course) was a list of all my chronic sins and vices, a , was destined for Hell It got to me, I admit Even if their version of "Stairway" barely rhymed What rhymes with masturbation?

I slowly cas had the crude sense of hus started to disintegrate between me and Jen Our entire relationship had been a process of slow disintegration, I think She knew so was up, mainly because there were so many more ’80s power ballads around the house than usual She pesteredon

She nodded and said she understood, then left to go to her friend Amber’s house, ostensibly to help out with Amber’s new baby She seeh, and didn’t co about coht Without even Molly for co hoh rocery store, buy a pie, and just eat the whole thing In one sitting A whole pie

My radio was playing a supernaturally reworked version of an ’80s song by some Duran Duran soundalike band It was the one with the word "Africa" in the chorus, and this version had been twisted into soainst blacks I tried to block it out, turning my attention to the call Toto, that was the band’s na

Shocked, as always, that I had actually left it on, I fished around insideCaller ID showed John’s nulad I caught you I just got a call from my uncle He’s asked us to come in on a case Like consultants"

"Your uncle? The exotic dancer? Exactly what kind of ‘consulting’ would we be doing?"

"No, no, Uncle Drake The cop They got weirdness and they want us to cohteen West Twenty-third Street By the ot a ghost they want us to check out? Like we’re fucking Scooby-Doo?

"No We talked about this I’ home to eat a pie"

"I think they found Molly"

"What?"

Molly? What, did she steal another car?

"Co, John I--"

I was talking to a dead phone

I cursed and rubbed otry in perfect ’80s pop harmony

Let’s send ’em aaallllllll ba-ack to Aaaaafrica

I reached down to the knob, to find the radio was already off

Here we fucking go

I PICKED UP John at his building, since it turned out his supernatural powers couldn’t stop the bank fro his motorcycle

We turned onto 23rd Street, a lineup of perfect new houses with trendy coffee-crea the house was easy--it was the one with the swirling red-and-blue cop lights out front, the collected cop carsit look like the ship frouy tells us to turn back, and we go, I thought as we pulled up a block away frouys says "boo" and we turn around and never come back here

We passed a blue Jeep in the driveway, license plate STRMQQ 1 John studied it, frowning a little Four cops stood out on the front lawn, looking unsure, like they all needed each other’s arht eyes landed on us

"Don’t worry," John said to them "We’re here"

Each cop was individually pissed off by that, I could see, and it was only the arrival of John’s uncle Drake that spared us the confrontation with these guys who clearly had no idea ere Drake was a big guy, with a unifored around the rew to cover a scar on his upper lip