by Regan Claire
“There’s plenty if you’d like a second helping,” Tony tells me, taking a drink of his own wine.
I blush, because both of their plates are still half full. I was shoveling. “I’m sorry, I didn’t get a chance to eat today, and I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I took a bite. It’s amazing Tony, thank you.”
“You don’t need to apologize,” Eros says, grabbing the bottle and topping my glass off. “The real question is what you were doing all day that kept you from eating.”
Um. What do I say? Should I tell them I spent the better part of the day in the police station, being questioned for murder?
Hey new potential friends and employers. There’s a detective who thinks I helped kill a guy and chop off his hands.
I take another sip, or gulp, of wine to give myself time to think of something.
“Tony, I think April is about to lie to us,” Eros says conversationally to his partner.
The wine goes down the wrong pipe and I start coughing. “No, I wasn’t going to lie.”
“Love, ‘Crappy Day’ is written all over your face. Don’t get me wrong, you’re as beautiful as ever. Positively glowing with it, but you look like you’ve had a hard day. We’re friends, you can tell us.”
“Eros, don’t push,” Tony tells him.
I sigh. He said we’re friends even though we’ve only just met. Why does it feel so true then? I remember my dream, and how comforting it felt to have Dream-Eros by my side.
“I had a dream about you,” I blurt out. Not that I meant to or anything, I just did. It’s probably the wine. “Actually, I’ve had two dreams about you,” I add, remembering the first dream all of a sudden.
Eros smiles. “Have you now?”
My face burns, I’m sure it’s beet red. “Not like that.” I look at Tony, hoping he doesn’t think I’m flirting with his partner. He has an amused smile on his face. Phew.
“You have to tell us about the dreams, at least.”
“They were both weird.” I try to think about them, and realize both dreams are still crystal clear in my memory, unlike most of my dreams that fade away pretty quickly after waking. “I almost forgot, because this morning feels like a week ago. So, there was this room full of people, and I was really upset in the dream about something. There was this giant golden chair in the middle of the room too, and I think I had to get married because of it. It just goes to show you how weird dreams are if I had to get married because of a chair.” I don’t mention how Eros made me feel better in the dream, because I’m too embarrassed. I don’t want him to think I’m some weird clinger before we get the chance to become friends. I’m not sure why I’m so desperate for us to be besties, but I am.
Eros looks thoughtful. “Do you have that sort of dream often? Did you do anything different before having it?”
I shake my head. “No, there’s only been one other time, but it was just a tiny snippet, barely a dream at all. Just me walking onto the beach, from the water. I was a little scared, but felt better because there was someone on the beach waiting for me when I got out.”
“I wonder what made you have the dreams. What did you do both days before having them?” He’s completely turned in his chair, eyes wide. Is he excited?
I think back on it. “Well, the first one happened the night we met.”
He nods his head as if that makes sense. “What about yesterday, what did you do yesterday?”
“Oh, I went and got a couch. You know Rhys?” I blush. “He picked me up and took me to this bizarre thrift shop so I could get a couch with the money he owed me from the other night.”
“Okay, okay. Was there anything that happened on both of those days? Any similarities between them?”
I think about it, trying to remember exactly what happened. Heat rushes to my face when I realize exactly what both of those days had in common. Rhys. Or, more specifically, feeding from Rhys by accident.
“Anything at all?” Eros asks again, like he knows I just thought of something, and maybe even knows what it is. But he can’t, because that’s impossible. No one knows about how strangely different I am. And no one is going to.
“Nope, can’t think of anything. Weird, huh? Maybe there’s something in the water here in Virginia Beach.”
Eros seems to deflate like he’s disappointed.
“That’s probably it,” Tony says, agreeing with me.
Eros and Tony start talking about a get-together coming up, and I kind of tune them out. I’m having a good time. The wine is almost as good as the food, and my glass is empty before my plate of seconds is. This day has been full of ups and downs, but I’m glad it seems to be ending on a good note. It started on a good note, too, though an odd one, and waking up next to a delicious man like Rhys after a night of quiet sleep wasn’t even the oddest thing that’s happened today. My mind turns to what was the oddest thing. Obviously it was the hand thing, because being accused of chopping them off would typically take the cake.
“I think that’s a great idea. What do you say, April? Want to give me a hand?”
“What? No!” This time I don’t choke on my wine. I do stand up in shock quickly enough that my stool goes clanging to the floor. It takes a couple of seconds of halfway hyperventilating before I realize he isn’t asking what I thought he was asking. I see the shocked expressions of both my hosts and I can’t help it. A small bubble of laughter explodes out of me. I clamp both hands over my mouth immediately.
Eros and Tony are wide-eyed and exchange a look between them, probably silently asking each other how to remove the crazy person from their kitchen.
A tear creeps down one cheek. Am I crying? Another one follows on the other side and now it’s a silent stream pouring down my face. I can’t make it stop. This day has been too much for me, and just when I think a little bit of normalcy is possible, I ruin it.
“April, are you okay? Tony, get her a glass of water,” Eros says. He’s by my side, and instead of ushering me to the front door, he puts his arm around my shoulders and leads me to the next room to sit on the world’s largest couch. I barely have time to sit down before Tony is in front of me with a glass of ice water.
Eros still has his arm around me, and I resist the urge to melt into him and have a good cry, or a better cry, since I’m already technically crying.
“Will you please tell us what’s going on now?” Eros moves back a little, his hand now rubbing small soothing circles on my back.
I look at him, then over at Tony, who is now on my other side holding one of my hands. I take a deep breath that sounds an awful lot like a hiccup.
“Someone left me a box with a hand in it and the cops came and apparently I’m a suspect because of a few reasons but I didn’t have anything to do with it and why would I send myself a hand in a box if I did?”
I’m met with silence.
“Say what now?” Eros asks. The comforting circles stop for three beats then pick back up.
“I think she just told us she’s suspected of cutting the hands off a person.”
I hiccup again and nod my head. “A dead person.”
They are for sure going to kick me out now, and maybe get a restraining order so I can’t come chop their hands off too.
“Well that’s absolutely outrageous! They think you did this? What evidence do they have?”
“The night that we first met, the job I did for Rhys? I helped him get a guy arrested. It’s the same person who was killed. And my last…boyfriend killed himself after we broke up. They must have talked to the people where I used to live and I’m not very fondly remembered. They think it’s way too big a coincidence and if I didn’t do it myself, then I probably know who did.” It sounds really bad now that I’ve said it out loud. Like, I’d accuse me too.
“They’re grasping at straws. At best, you’re a person of interest. Definitely not a full-on suspect.”
“They seemed pretty convinced I was involved somehow. The police arrived at my place all of two minutes a
fter I opened the package. They already suspected I knew something.” I pause. “They did warn me that if I wasn’t responsible for it, then I might be in danger. They think I know who did it, but I just moved to town. I don’t know anyone!”
Tony squeezes my hand. “You must be terrified.”
I’m not though. It is a pretty big coincidence, and even though it’s hard to believe that I’m involved somehow, having a hand left on my front step kinda erases any doubt I have about that. I’m not afraid because I don’t think I’m in danger.
“And you have no idea who could have done this? Maybe an admirer?”
“I’ve lived here for two weeks. It would take longer than two weeks for someone to admire me enough to commit murder for me.” But it does make me think. Could it be someone from my past? Could someone have followed me here? I make a promise to myself to come up with a list of former ardent admirers to give to the police later. I feel a lot calmer now. Eros and Tony seem shocked, but don’t look like they suspect me, and a knot I didn’t know was there releases in my stomach. It’s probably because of the weird dream that I’m so relieved that Eros still seems to be in my corner.
Eros stands up, I think sensing that I no longer need to be comforted, and goes to the kitchen. He comes back with a bottle of fancy water and some glasses. Tony grabs the glasses and holds them to be filled. They’re so in sync it’s as if they’ve been together for decades. I wonder if Eros is just attracted to much older men, or if they were friends first and just kinda fell in love. Either way, Eros is way too young to have been with anyone for one decade, let alone more than that.
“Do you know why the police suspected you in the first place?” Eros asks while I guzzle my water. I had more wine than I thought, because now that I’m calmer, I can feel the warmth in my face and my mouth is certainly dry.
“Honey, she might not want to talk about it anymore,” Tony says. I look at him and smile, because I wouldn’t mind a change of topic. I’m pretty tired, actually, but am too buzzed from the wine to attempt driving home quite yet. Their glasses are untouched.
“You’re right. April, you look beat. Why don’t we just get you home so you can get in bed. We can talk more later,” Eros says.
“I am pretty tired.” But I’ve had too much wine to drive and don’t have the money for a ride-share, which I don’t say out loud.
Eros, apparently, can read my mind, or is just a very responsible host. “Where are your keys? I’ll drive you home.” He looks towards his partner. “Love, you don’t mind following us so April can have her car in the morning, do you?”
Before I can protest the imposition, Tony agrees. I’m actually thankful, because as soon as I stand up the room spins.
I don’t think they noticed, but Eros does walk by my side making small talk until we’re in my car. There’s a flush of embarrassment when he gets in my old Pinto. Something tells me he’s not used to such humble transportation, and my car is a few steps below humble. I put my phone in the holder so that he can see the GPS clearly and lean my head against the cool glass of the passenger window.
“How are you holding up?” Eros asks after a couple of miles.
I sit up. “I mean, I guess I’m okay. It always seems like it’s something though. I’m just so ready for normal, but I guess that’s not in the cards for me.”
He looks over at me before returning his gaze back to the road. “Why would you want normal? You’re extraordinary. Don’t settle for less than that.”
“You don’t even know me. I might be an awful person. What makes you think that?”
“Let’s say I have a good feeling.”
I laugh, even though I want to cry. It’s probably just my power making him like me. I thought he was immune, but maybe I’m wrong. “I’m not that good a person,” I say quietly, but he hears me.
“Yes you are.”
“And you know this how? Another feeling?” I snap.
He’s quiet, and I wonder if I’ll have to surgically remove my foot from my mouth.
“I’ll tell you all my secrets if you tell me yours,” he finally says. What does he mean by that? Does he suspect there really is something weird with me?
I sigh. “I’m sorry, I’ve just had a really long day.”
“You’re fine. I get it. I still don’t understand why the police suspected you in the first place, though.”
“His ex-girlfriend told the police we were together.”
“You weren’t, were you?”
“No! She misunderstood. I was just bait for Rhys to grab him outside the bar. I thought he was in jail this whole time, but he got released and his phone had a lot of stalkerish pictures of me, so they probably would have come after me anyway. Being stalked is apparently motive for murder.”
“It sounds like she’s the one who has the best reason to kill him. You said ex-girlfriend, right? So, she murders him and frames you: two birds with one stone. We should go talk to her.”
“What? No we shouldn’t, that’s crazy.”
“No crazier than you being suspected for murder and mutilation. We should absolutely go talk to her, see if we can shake anything loose.” His voice has a certain energy to it that matches a gleam in his eye. Why is he excited?
“What if it wasn’t her? He wasn’t a small guy, and it probably is kind of hard to chop a guy’s hand off after murdering him. She was kinda petite.” On the other hand, she was filled with fury and tried to stab me.
“That’s why we need to talk to her. Even if it’s not her, she might know something else.”
It’s probably because of the wine, but I can’t think of any arguments against it. In fact, it seems entirely reasonable.
“What are you doing tomorrow?” he asks.
“I have work until three.”
“Perfect, I’ll pick you up from work and we’ll go from there.”
We’re in the parking lot of my apartment complex now. Eros and I both get out of my car, and I give a small wave to Tony as Eros gets in his car before I trudge up the stairs. I’m undressed and in bed before you could say “murder investigation.”
Needs to Recover
I definitely shouldn’t drink so much wine when I have to work the next morning. Luckily work is slow, because I don’t think I can manage to move at anything faster than tortoise speed without rattling my brain loose. I’m glad I have one of those giant water bottles that keeps it ice-cold for hours.
“Did you have a good day off?” Cora asks while I upend my water bottle, voice pitched in concern. I bet I look as hungover as I feel.
“Oh, I went to dinner at a friend’s house,” a warm feeling rushes through me at the word ‘friend’, “and he topped off my wine glass a bit more than I was prepared for.”
The bell on the door rings as it opens. Smith is here. Is it his normal delivery day? Does he always come to the shop so often or is he coming so often because I’m here? Ugh, ego much April?
Cora doesn’t acknowledge Smith, she’s still trained in on what I was saying. “Doesn’t sound like a very courteous date if he was loading you with alcohol.”
My face warms, and I purposely don’t look at Smith before I answer. “No, it wasn’t anything like that. I’m not dating right now, and besides, he has a partner who cooked dinner. I just had a stressful day and they were trying to help me relax.”
Cora’s look of disapproval melts immediately. “Oh, good. I was worried you had bad taste in men! Hey Smith, how are you doing today?”
“Hey Cora. Are you still coming to the cookout this weekend?”
“Sure am. I told Adrian he doesn’t have a choice,” Cora says.
“April, what are you doing on Saturday afternoon?” Smith asks me.
“Uh.” He’s not asking me out right in front of my boss, is he?
“Don’t worry, I remember our conversation from the other day. I just thought it would be a good way for you to meet some new people.”
I still don’t think it’s a good idea to hang out
with him socially when he has a crush on me. He’s a sweet guy and I don’t want to lead him on.
“That’s a great idea! April, you have to come.” Cora is beaming at the idea. “Smith, you can pick her up. It’ll be perfect.”
“Okay, I guess I can come. I can drive, though.”
“It’s out a little bit. My brother-in-law lives in a kind of secluded area, right on the water.” Cora’s mouth is turned up in the corner in a very sly smile. I wish she would stop trying to play matchmaker.
“Cora, stop pushing. How about we meet here beforehand and you can follow me out?” Smith asks.
Relief floods me and I smile. “That sounds like a plan.” Maybe I don’t have to worry after all. Smith seems able to control his crush around me, and it would be nice to meet some new people.
“Great. I can’t wait.” He has a nice smile. It’s very warm and genuine.
He leaves shortly after that, and because it’s so slow, Cora lets me go home early, so that I have time for a quick nap to sleep off the rest of my hangover before Eros picks me up.
Needs to Remember
I was told that love would bloom with time and patience, but as I look at my husband all I feel is a growing resentment. A growing rage at my circumstances. I feel as though I’m choking here, in the confinement of unwanted matrimony.
“Is my lord unhappy with me?” He hates it when I am so formal with him, but as my unhappiness grows, so too does my pettiness.
“No, Aphrodite. I want only your happiness. I want only your love, but you insist on depriving me of that. I’m your husband; it is my right to be loved by you!” He hardly ever raises his voice, but his pain is great.
A pang of guilt shoots through me. I feel his need to be loved. It gnaws at me, this need of his. I’ve tried. I’ve given him as much loving attention as I could, but it’s as fleeting as a mirage in the desert. Without real love sustaining it, even with my powers, his feeling of being loved fades, more quickly each time.
He rubs his hands over his face. “What more can I give you that you don’t already have? I’ve built this home for you. I give you everything. How can I make you love me?”
