Without Foresight

by P. D. Workman

“I don’t know… I would have called you, I guess. Called 9-1-1.”

  “Would you?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?”

  “Maybe because you didn’t want to end up here, being questioned.”

  Reg shrugged. “Maybe. But I didn’t have to call anyone. You were already there.” She thought about that fact. “Did someone call you and tell you to check things out? Or tell you that I was there?”

  “We’re obviously not going to tell you about our internal workings. This is an investigation, not a free exchange of information.”

  Reg stretched. “That’s everything I know. Can I go?”

  “I have a few more questions.”

  “And I have a houseguest.” Reg stood up. Having remembered Etienne’s attendance at her cottage, she knew she’d better get back to him. He would be wondering what had happened to her. Maybe getting worried. Maybe snooping through her things to see if he could figure out where she had gone and if she needed help.

  “We’d like to get your statement typed up and signed.”

  There was no way Reg was going to stick around that long. “Go ahead and get it typed up. I’ll come back in to sign it tomorrow.”

  “If you could just stay around for a few more minutes…”

  “This is not a ‘few minutes’ job. And I’ve already been here and cooperated with you long enough. I’m going to head home. Take care of my guest and… have a drink and relax.”

  Jessup looked at Devaughn for any other ideas of ways to keep Reg there. But Reg wasn’t going to stick around to hear his views. She headed for the door. “I’ll just find my own way out.”

  She knew that Jessup wouldn’t let her do that. They would have to escort her to ensure that she didn’t get into any secure areas or see anything that she shouldn’t. Jessup was right behind her.

  “Slow down, Reg, let me just take you out. You might not remember the way.”

  Reg remembered the way very well. She always took note of escape routes. She didn’t want to be stuck in a maze of corridors, not knowing the quickest way out.

  “I’ll drop you at home,” Jessup offered, and Reg remembered suddenly that she didn’t have a car.

  “Where is my car?”

  “I’ll find out whether it has been released yet. Just come on out to my unit.”

  Reg scowled at the thought of having to sit in the back of the police cruiser again. “I’ll just get an Uber.”

  “You don’t need to do that. I told you I would drive you home.”

  “No, thanks.”

  “I have my own car in the parking lot.”

  Reg turned to face her. “Your own car, not the police car?”

  “Yes.”

  “So I don’t have to be handcuffed in the backseat?”

  Jessup looked embarrassed, flushing despite her complexion. “I’m sorry about that. I had to follow protocols.”

  “Yeah. I’ll remember that next time you want to do another girls’ night out.”

  “Reg! That’s not fair. I’m just doing my job.”

  “And I think that you should probably not be consorting with someone like me. We should just go our separate directions.”

  “You don’t mean that.”

  “I do tonight.”

  Jessup nodded understandingly. “You’re still upset. Once you’ve had a chance to relax and get a good sleep… things will look better in the morning. You’re just emotional right now. You don’t want to make any decisions based on emotion.”

  Reg rolled her eyes. She didn’t know whether she’d be able to forgive Jessup for the way she had been treated. She didn’t know if she wanted to forgive her. But it wasn’t going to be for a while.

  Jessup led the way to her civilian vehicle and let Reg in. They got settled and Jessup pulled out of the parking lot.

  “So, you want to tell me now what exactly was going on at the cemetery? Why did you go there?”

  “I can’t tell you.”

  “I won’t put it into any reports. But I’d like to know what’s going on.”

  Reg shrugged.

  “Come on, Reg. Don’t you think I should have some idea of what’s going on in my own town? Even if I can’t do anything about it officially, it’s still good to know whether I’m going to have more grave robbing or murders or if there’s something else coming down the pipe.”

  ”I don’t know what’s going to happen. Can’t help you there.”

  “Do you know how this guy died? Was it something supernatural?”

  “I only walked up on him when you showed up. You know more than I do about it.”

  “He didn’t have any identification on him. Do you know who he is?”

  “No. Never seen him before that I can remember.”

  Jessup shook her head in frustration. “So you’re just sticking with the story that you went out for a walk and happened to stumble across him.”

  “Yeah. That’s what I’m sticking to.”

  “You won’t tell me anything else, off the record, one friend to another.”

  “Nope.”

  “You didn’t go there just for some fresh air.”

  Reg shrugged. Jessup could ask it in as many ways as she wanted to; Reg wasn’t going to give her any more information.

  Because she didn’t have any more information. She had no idea what had happened that night.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Reg was glad to be home. She couldn’t wait to be in her own space again and away from the cops and even Jessup’s probing questions. She needed to figure out what was going on. Or she needed to get to bed. Something. As long as it was in her own cottage and she didn’t have to worry about anyone looking over her shoulder.

  Except there was still Etienne. Reg didn’t really think about him until Jessup was a block away from the house and asked, “Who is your house guest?”

  “Oh.” Reg’s face warmed as she remembered who was waiting for her. She wasn’t even sure what she had told Etienne before she left. He would certainly be thinking that her behavior was strange. But then, he was used to Homo sapiens acting impulsively rather than sitting and thinking things over for a few weeks or months before deciding. Or years. Maybe it wouldn’t seem any stranger to him than the typical Homo sapiens behavior. “Right. I forgot about him.”

  “Him?”

  “Yeah.”

  “And it isn’t Hunter.”

  “No, it isn’t Corvin. I already said that.”

  “But I still don’t know if you’re telling me the truth.”

  “Then why ask again?”

  “I guess I shouldn’t expect to get a different answer. So who is it? I thought you and Damon were sort of on the outs.”

  “Why would Damon be staying at my house? He has his own place. I’m not inviting anyone over romantically. That’s not what this is. A friend of mine who isn’t from here is… may be getting married. I’m just putting him up and helping him for a few days.”

  Though she still didn’t know where she was going to put him. It would be better if Etienne found a hotel, since Reg didn’t even have a pull-out bed for him to use.

  “And what did he have to do with this business at the cemetery?”

  “Nothing.”

  “A mysterious out-of-town visitor and it’s just coincidence that you stumbled over a body? I don’t believe that.”

  “Believe what you like. Et—he doesn’t have anything to do with a mysterious body showing up in the cemetery.”

  “What are we going to find out about his cause of death?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Maybe you could use some of your psychic ability to find out.”

  “Why should I? Leave it to your medical examiner.”

  “Did you see his ghost?”

  “No.”

  “Hear it?”

  “No. I didn’t communicate with him in any way. I keep telling you, there wasn’t time for anything. You just showed up when I came across him. Like you were waiting to ambush me
.”

  “Nobody ambushed you.”

  Reg looked at her, eyebrow raised.

  “We saw your car parked at the gates where it didn’t belong and stopped to see what was going on. We could see that you had climbed the fence and followed you in. That’s all. It was just a simple trespass investigation.”

  “Seems a bit convenient.”

  “Well, unless you told someone else you were going to be there, I don’t know how we would have found out to plan anything ahead of time. Did you tell people that’s where you were going?”

  “No.”

  “Then we couldn’t exactly have ambushed you. How do you think I would know you were going there?”

  Reg had to admit that it made some sense. But she wasn’t about to tell Jessup that. She wasn’t feeling particularly charitable toward Detective Jessup.

  Jessup pulled the car over at the curb in front of Sarah’s house. Jessup clearly intended to talk some more, but Reg didn’t have to stay and listen. She yanked the door handle and slid out. “Thanks for the ride and a lovely evening,” she said in a sweet tone, and left, ignoring Jessup trying to call her back. She stomped around the big house to the cottage in the back, hoping that no one would cross her path. Not because she was afraid for herself, but because she might just fear for them. Nothing was getting in between Reg and her safe haven.

  When she got to the door, she found she had left it unlocked, which had been a stupid thing to do. She let herself in and looked around. Etienne was cooking something on the stovetop. Whatever it was, it smelled good. Etienne turned and looked at her. With his bushy whiskers, it was hard to discern his expression. But she’d could feel his concern.

  “You are back.”

  “Yeah. Sorry about all that. I shouldn’t have left you alone here.”

  “I am fine alone. But I was concerned about you. You seemed… very strange.”

  Reg folded herself into the couch. “Why? What did I do?”

  “You do not know?”

  Reg didn’t answer that. She waited for him to tell her more.

  “You were very white, very pale. I thought maybe you were sick. But you said you were not, that you didn’t need anything… except a snake. Then you had to go out… for a few minutes, you say.” He looked at the window. “It was several hours ago.”

  “I feel bad about leaving you here to fend for yourself. I should have known that you would need to eat,” she nodded to the stove, “and I don’t know what other help you might need to get ready for Ilka, or how your talk with James went. Did you get everything worked out with him?”

  “He is going to call Ilka’s family. Try to get it smoothed over.” Etienne nodded at this. “He is a good brother. I should do more to keep in touch with him.”

  “Does he write letters?”

  “Not much. A Christmas card, sometimes. But he likes to send those emails. Through the clouds. I do not do that. He says I should at least get a phone like you have.”

  “We can look at some while you are here. Maybe you’ll find something you like.”

  He waved away this conversation with a gesture of his hand, then stirred what was cooking on the stove. “Did you find a snake?”

  “No.” Reg tried to remember what she had been thinking before she left. Why she would have given Etienne the impression that she wanted a snake. But she couldn’t come up with anything. “Is that all I said? That I wanted a snake?”

  “I think you said the snake. Like it was a certain one. I do not know.”

  “I guess I owe you an explanation. But I don’t have one. I have these… memory issues.”

  Etienne cocked his head slightly, without looking at her. “More than memory issues.”

  “Well, I suppose. But I don’t know what it is being caused by.” She sighed. “Everyone says get more sleep. Maybe I’m fighting a virus.”

  “I do not think so. You acted like… you were someone else.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “I do not know. You talked differently. Looked at me differently. You were very… irritable and angry.”

  Starlight was crouching nearby, watching Reg. She made a noise to call him and patted the couch beside her. He didn’t jump up. “Oh, come on, Starlight. Don’t act that way.”

  “Perhaps he wants to make sure you are yourself again.”

  Reg looked back at Starlight. With the way that Starlight and Etienne seemed to communicate without words, she couldn’t very well argue that he didn’t know what he was talking about.

  “It’s me, Star. Really. I’m back to normal again.”

  “What was it that changed you?” Etienne asked. He pulled a couple of bowls out of the cupboard and started ladling the pot’s contents into them.

  “I don’t know.”

  “You were playing with Starlight. With a string.”

  Reg looked around and saw the shoelace. She vaguely remembered Starlight bringing it to her.

  “I guess… I don’t know, it must have just hit me suddenly. I don’t remember.”

  “You said the snake looked like that.” Etienne pointed to the shoelace. He shrugged his wide shoulders. “I have not ever seen a snake that looked like that.” He carried the bowls over to the table and put them down. Reg got a couple of spoons from the utensil drawer. A bigger one for Etienne. She sat down at the table, where she actually never ate. The steam rising from the stew was hearty and fragrant with spices.

  “Mmm. I didn’t think I was hungry, but this smells delicious. Thank you. I didn’t even know I had the ingredients to make this.”

  Etienne made a snuffling, laughing sound. “You did not have very many provisions here. And I could not rely on what you might be bringing back. Some is from your fridge, some from the witch you said to ask, and some from plants growing in the garden.”

  “Really? Wow. You’re really good at this stuff. I can’t make anything without a recipe. Actually, I can’t make anything with a recipe. The best I can do is warm something up.”

  Etienne took his first bite of the meal, closed his eyes, and nodded slowly. “It is very good. My grandmother was an excellent cook.”

  “Is that who you learned from?”

  “I taught myself, living alone in the swamp. But I suppose I must have remembered something from her in my early years. I must have watched her cook dozens of times, and perhaps I absorbed some of it from her.”

  “Yeah.”

  Reg took a couple of bites of the stew. It was delicious and satisfying, and she knew she was going to want more than just the one bowl he had dished up. And she generally ate a steady diet of fast food, which she had been told would destroy her taste buds for anything else. “It’s awesome. Thank you so much. I’m exhausted tonight.”

  “How about your grandmother? You did not learn to cook from her?”

  “No. I don’t even know who she was. I was taken away from my mother when I was four.”

  “So young!” Etienne tsked. “I feel sorry for the child Reg Rawlins. Why did they take you from her?”

  “She wasn’t a good person. She couldn’t take care of me. She was a drug addict. I didn’t get much to eat or much care.” Reg hesitated, wondering whether to tell Etienne that her mother had been part siren. It explained her inability to parent. Sirens were very competitive and often killed off their own children. If Reg had not been taken away from Norma Jean when she was so young, she probably would not have lived to adulthood. She had been upset to be taken away from her mother, but it had been a good thing.

  But Etienne might react the same way as the others did when finding out she was part siren. She didn’t want to have to face his disappointment and fear or anger. It was nice to just have a friend, even if he was only there for a day or two.

  “Are you going to stay here tonight or find a hotel? I don’t have a second bed; I don’t really have anything to offer you.”

  “I don’t need anything special. A couple of blankets. Nothing much.”

  “What are you g
oing to do, sleep on the floor? That’s not going to be comfortable.” She’d been to his house. It had been furnished just like a Homo sapiens’ house, with chairs and a table, and beds in the bedroom. He wouldn’t want to go from sleeping in a soft bed to sleeping on her floor.

  “I could pay for a hotel for you. I don’t like to think of you laying on the floor.”

  “I would prefer sleeping on my friend’s floor to sleeping alone in a hotel,” Etienne said. “I sleep alone at home. This is… like a vacation. It’s my one chance to be around people. A person. It’s been nice.”

  Reg felt even more guilty for having neglected him while she went off gallivanting to the cemetery and police station. She sighed, looking for a half-way point, some kind of compromise, but she couldn’t find one. He was happy to sleep on the floor. She didn’t need to provide any amenities. She just had to accept his presence there.

  She could go to the store and buy a blow-up mattress or cot. But she really didn’t have the energy to go out again.

  “You’re welcome to stay here,” she told him, not wanting him to think that she was trying to get rid of him. “I’m just afraid you won’t be able to sleep.”

  Etienne ate a few more bites of the stew before speaking, chewing it slowly. “I do not know if I will sleep tonight,” he confessed. “Thinking about Ilka being here tomorrow. My whole life could change.”

  “Yeah. That’s big news, isn’t it? I’d have a hard time sleeping too. I’m excited just thinking about the two of you meeting, and it isn’t anything to do with me. After all the time you spent writing to each other, are you ready to see her in person? I mean, it doesn’t matter if you are ready or not, since she is going to be here. But how do you feel about it?”

  His hair bristled. Etienne patted it down, trying to look calm and collected. “I am very excited,” he confessed. “I did not think something like this would ever happen to me. If I met my mate, it would only be after a long courtship and negotiation. Not like this, all at once.” He dropped his eyes to his bowl for a few minutes before looking up again, shyly. “She is magnificent.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Since Etienne didn’t think he would be able to get to sleep, and Reg didn’t usually sleep until several hours after midnight, neither of them made any attempt to go to sleep until very late. Or early, depending on who was calling it. They stayed up watching streaming movies, which Etienne viewed with some level of shock and alarm, frequently looking over at Reg to see how she would react to an intense scene on the screen.