And then I can feel Kendele there, hugging me tightly. “You’re an idiot,” I hear her whisper hoarsely.
McNeil had fled. Okiku is nowhere to be seen, and I’m worried about what she might do if left to her own devices. I’m in no condition to go after her, and my hope is to get out of here, at a farther distance from McNeil than she can stray from our bond.
“Can you get up?”
“Barely.” There’s a crowd of people who’ve gathered at some point during my ass-kicking, though no one but Kendele bothers to help. With her support, I get back on my feet and reject her worried offers to bring me to a nearby hospital.
“I’ll be all right. I don’t think anything’s broken, and I, ha, still have all my teeth.”
“Don’t you dare treat this like a joke!” Kendele looks on the verge of crying.
“Sorry. I have to get out of here, Kendele.”
“What do you mean? We need to get you medical—”
“I have to get out of here!” I’m trying hard not to panic. “McNeil’s life depends on me getting the hell out of here as fast as possible. The farther away I am, the better. It’s important, Kendele.”
She relents at the distress in my voice. “Fine. But I’m going with you then. This party’s outlived its fun anyway.”
McNeil’s blows turn out to be less painful when I’m standing, and I’m able to totter down the stairs with little assistance and make it to my car without any other interference. Once Kendele slides into position beside me, I gun the engine, taking one last look back at the dark house. There’s still no sign of McNeil.
What worries me is that there’s no sign of Okiku either.
Chapter Five
The Date
“I’m not going home,” Kendele says the instant the car is out of the McNeils’ driveway. “And I want you to see a doctor.”
“You’re not my mother, Kendele.” I feel like a herd of cows has been stampeding the flamenco somewhere between my fourth and fifth ribs, but I keep my driving steady. “And it’s not like she had much say for most of my life either.”
“Tark, anyone with a brain can see that you’re hurt. You have to at least make sure nothing’s broken. Are you seeing double? Is there anything you can’t move?”
“I’m fine, Kendele. I’ve been in enough fights to know the difference between getting beat up and getting a pancreas kicked in.”
She crosses her arms, assessing me. “I suppose,” she concedes, although reluctantly. “So typical of you men not to want any help. What did you do to make McNeil punch you anyway?”
“I punched him.”
She stares. “You punched McNeil? Tark, you’re crazy! Whatever possessed you to do that?”
“Did Trish ever tell you that McNeil’s been harassing her?” We stop at a red light, and I turn to face her. Okiku is still nowhere in sight.
“What do you mean?” The expression on her face tells me all I need to know. “What are you talking about? What did Trish say?”
I set my jaw. “Never mind.” If Trish hasn’t told her, then it isn’t my place to, though it may be too late to close that particular box. “Look, let’s just forget about it.”
“Easier said than done,” Kendele says, but to my surprise, she’s quick to change the subject. “Look, whatever it was, I’m sure you had good reason to punch him. If you don’t want to tell me right now, that’s fine. But I want something in return.”
“And what’s that?” I ask, suddenly wary.
“I was serious when I said I didn’t want to go home just yet. If you’re as uninjured as you claim to be, then we should have time to grab something to eat first, right?”
I open my mouth. For the first time in my life, I can’t think of anything witty to say, so I close my mouth again. “Are you…asking me out?”
She flashes a triumphant grin. “Now you finally get it.”
***
I probably wouldn’t have chosen a food truck for a first date, but it’s late, most of the restaurants of choice are closed or closing, and I didn’t want to fall back on someplace trite like Denny’s or Applebee’s. Kendele admits that she’s never had pho before, so I drive us over to the corner of Twentieth and L Street, where one of my favorite food trucks—easily noticeable by its punk decor—is stationed.
Okiku’s absence worries me though. I keep an eye on the rearview mirror, expecting her to appear at any moment, and my nervousness increases with every minute that goes by.
It’s probably nothing. Okiku knows never to stray too far, and the lack of other spirits in the area trying to haunt me seems to imply that she’s nearby, even if I can’t see her. Besides, if anything happened back at McNeil’s, I’m sure Trish would have contacted Kendele about it by now.
“This is amazing,” Kendele says and slurps happily at her bowl.