Page 77 of Medium
Ms. Jackson sat down and manifested the Ouija board on their chest.A-C-T-I-N-G-L-I-K-E-A-J-E-R-K-W-O-N-T-R-E-P-A-I-R-Y-O-U-R-R-E-L-A-T-I-O-N-S-H-I-P-W-I-T-H-E-L-L-I-S.There was a pause, then they flashed,B-E-S-I-D-E-S-Y-O-U-H-A-V-E-A-J-O-B-T-O-D-O-A-N-D-Y-O-U-L-L-N-E-E-D-O-U-R-H-E-L-P.
They stared meaningfully at Arch for a moment, then they nudged Pia toward the door, sparkling outW-O-R-K-T-O-G-E-T-H-E-R-R-H-Y-T-H-M-N-A-T-I-O-Nas they left the room.
Damn, Ms. Jackson hadn’t been that wordy since I’d known them.
Ellis rounded on me and Shane. “Manny wasdisemboweled? You said he’d been injured, but what happened?”
I eyed Arch, who stared after Ms. Jackson and absently holstered his gun. I didn’t notice what he’d done with the knife. “Um, we’ll tell you later. I think you and Arch need to chat.”
“What the hell is that thing?” Arch was not interested in Manny’s injuries.
Ellis crossed his arms. “Their name is Ms. Jackson. They’re an Elven artifact, and they’re sentient. I thought you Hunters would’ve been briefed about them. They even have an entry in the Compendium Cal put online.”
A Compendium? That sounded like something I needed access to.
Arch threw up his hands. “I’ve been in the field. I haven’t had time to check my emails. I only heard you were kidnapped because Dominic called me.” Theand you didn’twas heavily implied.
A sharp knock sounded. Pia shouted, “Lunch is here!” and we all heard her feet thundering to the front door.
Ellis and Arch were involved in some sort of stare-down I didn’t want any part of, so I squeezed Ellis’ shoulder, picked up my drink and his, and left the room. Shane followed me out carrying his iced tea.
Pia raced by carrying bags of food. Manny was sitting at the small breakfast table with Ms. Jackson, who was for once seated in another chair. An open package of Fig Newtons sat on the table between them, and the chair added enoughheight that Ms. Jackson’s head hung over it, as if they were about to scoop up the entire package as soon as Manny turned his head. When Pia dumped the food bags on the table, it was clear Ms. Jackson would be able to reach every inch of it.
Ellis’ table was a smallish rectangle. It could probably seat six in a pinch, but he only had four chairs. We now had five adults, plus Ms. Jackson and Pia.
“Ms. Jackson, you’ll have to sit on the floor.”
They gave me a sour look but hopped down agreeably enough. While they weren’t looking, Manny swiped the Fig Newtons from the table and held them out to Shane, who snagged them smoothly on his way into the kitchen.
I went into Ellis’ office and rolled his desk chair out and over to the breakfast table.
Shane retrieved a small ottoman from the living room and placed it directly across from where Ms. Jackson had positioned themselves. “Arch is tall enough to sit on that and still see over the table.”
Manny laughed and held up his hand for a high-five.
Pia wrinkled her nose. “Uncle Arch isn’t as friendly as Ellis.”
I patted her shoulder and guided her to the chair next to Ms. Jackson. “Let’s give Uncle Arch a chance. He and Ellis seem like they might have had some issues getting along, but that doesn’t make him a bad person. He did try to protect you when he thought Ms. Jackson was dangerous.”
She made ahmmmnoise and started opening the bags, so I guessed she wasn’t buying what I was selling.
Shane helped me portion out food onto plates. Luckily we’d ordered a variety of Indian dishes, so there was plenty for everyone, Manny’s comments to Arch notwithstanding.
When we all had our plates filled, I stood up to go get Ellis and Arch, because, dammit, Ellis needed to eat after yesterday. But they came out on their own. They weren’t smiling exactly, but they didn’t seem as hostile as before.
I wished I knew how to tap into these so-called connections, since apparently you could check on your partner’s emotions. But Shane seemed relieved, so I’d just pretend everything was fine and move on.
I filled a plate for Ellis while Arch eyeballed the ottoman between me and Manny. “You’re tallest,” I pointed out.
Ellis, who I’d seated between me and Shane, shook his head. “Sorry. I don’t entertain much.”
Shane bumped shoulders with him. “We made do. Don’t worry about it.”
Arch sat down and scooted the ottoman up to the table, which was chest-high on him. He had to lift his elbows to fill his plate and eat. I grinned to myself.
We ate quietly for a few minutes, then Arch cleared his throat. “Um, Ms. Jackson, I apologize for freaking out earlier and pointing weapons at you. I was not aware of wha—who you were, and I promise it won’t happen again.”
The Ouija board appeared on their chest.T-H-A-N-K-Y-O-U.
