Page 9 of Something Cryptid This Way Comes
Bram’s laugh bellows out loud in the small space. With Hades circling his legs, he faces Ever. “Mabel cockblocked you?”
Ever tucks the box of treats underneath the counter and pulls out a box of tissues. “I guess you could put it that way.”
“Oh, man. I need the full story.” Biting his lip can’t hide Bram’s smile. He pats Ever on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, it won’t be in the podcast.”
“Thanks.” Ever swipes a tissue over spatters of brown liquid dotting the counter. “And thanks for sharing that, Trevor.”
Giving him the most innocent expression I can muster, I sip my drink. “Where is Dmitri?”
“Teaching violin lessons at Harmonic Circus.” He tosses the wet tissues in the trash can, then props his butt on the stool, his arms folded over his Honey Spot T-shirt. “That day in the woods, we saw something move in the trees. I had a feeling it was Mabel.”
“Maybe she’ll reveal herself again. You’re coming to Cryptid Night?” Bram unwinds the leash from his legs.
“We’ll be there,” Ever confirms easily, like there was never any doubt. He’s a good friend. Always supportive. Though I’m sure he’s guessed my feelings for Bram, I know he won’t say anything to him.
The door opens and two women enter, one pushing a stroller and the other holding the hands of two toddlers. Hades starts wagging his tail, straining his leash, and Bandit does the same. Bram and I meet each other’s gazes.
“Time to go.” I angle my head toward the door and he nods his agreement.
We bid Ever goodbye, let the kids pet the dogs, then hustle our furry friends out the door.
Bram touches my shoulder and inclines his head in the direction of Clover Street. “Ever looked good.”
“Being in love agrees with him. Dmitri is awesome.” We pass Scoops on Maple, the vet clinic, and the town hall before turning down the street where Agnes lives. “Do you know who will be at Agnes’s house?”
“The Rocktogenarians. They’re sticking around after band practice.”
I groan and grin. The five women in their eighties, making up a band whose music is as eclectic as its members, are a force individually, but when they get together, nothing stops them. “We might need adrink after this.”
“Oh, I know. I needed two after I met up with them in Philly when they played in that music festival a few years ago. They’re great, but overwhelming.”
We reach Agnes’s house with its sprawling garden. Multiple voices come from the backyard. Bram opens the gate and gestures for Bandit and me to go first. I slide past him, and my stomach flips at the way his eyes twinkle.
Hades’s and Bandit’s twin barks announce our arrival. Agnes comes around the side of the house, and she lights up upon seeing Bram. “You’re here. Come, let me look at you.”
Bram ambles over and stoops to hug her. “It’s good to be back.”
She kisses my cheek, pets the dogs, then links her arm through Bram’s. “The girls and I are on the back deck.”
We round the corner, and the four women sitting at the bright blue table call out cheery hellos.
Rae, the band’s front woman, with her halo of white hair, leather jacket, and oversized sunglasses, raises her glass to us. “About time you got here. Agnes has been going on about you for hours.”
Eleanor, the drummer and Rae’s partner, sits beside her, elegant in black silk. “Hello, Bram, Trevor.”
Celia, who plays the bass guitar, waves a manicured hand that matches her red platforms toward the open chairs on the table’s opposite side. “Sit, please.”
I drag out a chair for Bram, then one for myself. “Thanks. How was practice?”
“Fun. We’re experimenting with death metal.” Clad in paint-splattered overalls, Celia’s partner and the band’s keyboard player, Lydia pushes back her chair and welcomes the dogs with open arms. “So handsome, both of you.” Then she raises her head to smile at Bram and me. “Bram, Agnes tells us that Hades found you?”
He drops into the chair at my side. “Yeah. I’d just come back from England, where I did an investigation on the myth of the black shuck in the British Isles. They’re spectral hounds. Some call them hellhounds.” Resting his arm on the back of my chair, Bram sits back and stretches out his legs. “Anyway, I went camping on my own to unwind. A large, shaggy-haired black dog wandered out of the woods and came right up to me. My first thought was of the black shuck. He didn’t have a microchip, and no one in the area reported a missing dog. I think he’d been on his own for a while. He’s been with me ever since.”
“According to the legends, the black shuck can range from being kind and nurturing to vicious and baneful.” Repeating what I learned from Bram about the myth, I may or may not press into his side a little. Only to keep warm in the slight chill of the late afternoon, of course. “Like what people think of Mabel. Some stories are of her helping people and others are of her scaring them.”
Bram shifts in his chair causing his thigh to rest against mine. “You know I’m here for the Mabel stories, but also to investigate what you saw last month. Is it okay with you if I record our conversation?”
“Of course, dear.” Agnes gives him a regal wave.
