Page 56 of Something Cryptid This Way Comes
Their guilty expressions say yes. My stomach drops. Is the whole town in on it? Have they been laughing at the jock-turned-podcaster? Shit. I rub my hand over my mouth so I don’t lash out. What does this mean for my podcast? For my sponsors?
Agnes adds a splash of whiskey to her cup, then downs it. “I admit to wearing the costume.”
Eleanor bumps her arm. “Can’t tell them that without telling all of it.”
I look at Trevor. “All?”
Eleanor and Agnes seem to have an entire conversation with just narrowing eyes and meaningful stares.
With a sigh, Agnes tucks her hair behind one ear. “I made up the story about the winged thing flying over my car. Eleanor and Rae didn’t see a hairy creature, and there’s no wolf-man.”
“After learning you were behind the creature in town, I had the suspicion that the rest of the stories weren’t real.” But hearing the admission still guts me. My knees weaken and I lean on Trevor for support. “Why did you do it?”
“I thought cryptids were the best way to get you here. Help you and Trevor see what you mean to each other. And that part worked.” She gives our joined hands a satisfied nod. “When you’d talk about each other, I could see how you felt. But you both were too stubborn,too afraid to risk what you already had. You needed a push.”
Pressed against my side, Trevor’s entire body goes taut. “You could’ve just invited Bram up for a visit. And you didn’t have to invent new cryptids. We already have Mabel.”
She pours more whiskey into her cup then tips some into Rae’s tea. “Coming up for a weekend or a week’s visit wouldn’t be long enough. You boys needed to spend a lot of time together. Investigating was the only thing I knew would work. And Mabel is lovely, but one lone cryptid wouldn’t keep you here like chasing down several.”
Swinging between shock and disbelief, I pin Agnes with my stare. “You acted scared. Told us you were unsettled and afraid. You manipulated us.”
“You’re not getting any younger, and when you get to be my age, and more of the people you know fade away, you realize how precious and fleeting time is.” Her chin raised at a stubborn angle, she folds her hands. “I acted out of love.”
Eleanor lays her hand over Agnes’s shoulder. “We all did. Agnes needed our help, so we helped. The intention was never malicious.”
Rae nods. “All of the Mabel sightings people told you about were real. We’d never fake with Mabel. Just the others.”
The reality of those faked cryptids sets in. “I did an entire investigation and episode about those fake cryptids. I spentdaysresearching and talking to people who were lying to my face the entire time.”
The women look at each other.
“If I count the number of people I spoke with, and add in the number of people they probably told, and the way news and gossip spreads in this town, it’s impossible to believe word won’t travel further than that.”
They exchange glances again. Celia and Lydiashrug at each other.
Fresh frustration flares that they still don’t seem to get it. “Since I make money off those podcasts, and I hosted Cryptid Night, people could think I played a part in this hoax.”
Agnes sips her tea-whiskey without a care in the world, while my livelihood could be in jeopardy. “Not anyone who knows.”
“That’s the point. Most people won’tknow.Twenty people told me they saw the same five cryptids, which they know is not true. They mention the hoax to other people, and soon, the fact that you did it to trick me, morphs into my being in on it.”
“He’s not wrong,” Rae murmurs. “I didn’t think of that before.”
“I could lose my sponsors over this. I could lose my subscribers, and any faith that people have in my credibility.” Anger bubbles in my gut like molten lava, erupting into my throat and incinerating all the words. I suck in my cheeks, biting the insides and stare at my aunt. The betrayal is bitter on my tongue. Even more so because my own family member was at the heart of this. And too many people in this town went along with it.
Trevor pulls me back, then shifts his weight forward like he wants to protect me from the world.
I glance at him, and a new thought pops into my head. “It affects Trevor too. As co-host, people could think this hoax was a scam to drive more business to the inn. Did any of you think about any possible consequences before forging ahead with this scheme?”
My breath gets caught in my lungs and my world shifts like the garden walls are closing in on me. Anger pounds in my ears and my muscles twitch at the thought that this could potentially hurt Trevor. Every cell in my body burns with frustration and the dousing chill of betrayal. My skin feels tootight. I wrench my hand through my hair. Hades dances around my legs. “I need to get out of here.”
With a terse command, Trevor calls the dogs to his side.
My keys digging into my palm, I hustle across the side yard to the street. I’m not sure where to go, only that if I don’t move,now, and blow off some of this energy, I’ll explode.
I unlock the car, open the back door, and Hades hops onto the seat.
Trevor stops me with a single touch to my back. “Where do you want to go?”
