Supernatural... But Better (Vol. I)

Chapter Four

"There's something you're not telling me."

I continued staring absentmindedly out the window, thinking. "I haven't told you a lot of things, you'll have to be more specific."

Sam sat down next to me, drawing my gaze to his face. "About this case. What is it? What do you know? I want it all."

Searching his gaze for trustworthiness, I worried at my lip as I debated whether I should tell him everything or still just take care of it on my own. But he and his brother had proven that they knew what they were doing, and were helpful enough. Perhaps... well, if I shared everything I knew, maybe we'd be able to combine resources and figure it out faster.

I pulled my hair behind my ear, leaning towards him. "Okay, fine. Everything I know. Steven Shoemaker died after his daughter, Lily, got dared to do the Bloody Mary ritual in the downstairs bathroom. He was seen to be alive immediately after, but then was later found dead in the upstairs bathroom with his eyes liquefied into blood. On that mirror, I used a black light and found a handprint and the name Linda Shoemaker, who was Steven's late wife and I'm, like, pretty sure he killed her and made it look like a suicide. Anyways, now Jill's dead, after she did the ritual herself, as witnessed by Charlie. And if we're going along that same vein, then a couple years ago, Donna came to me crying that a boy got killed in a hit and run and she was worried it was Jill who did it because the car matched hers, but the cops never really pursued it because they had so little to go on. Now, we know this spirit is probably that of Mary Worthington, a girl who was murdered, but they never figured out who did it. If my hunch is correct — and my hunches usually are — we'll find out her spirit's tied to her mirror. With any luck, Dean will be able to figure out where that is. But I also think she's seeking out people who are killers that were never caught, just like her own."

Sam blinked, processing everything that I just said, because, to be fair, it was quite a lot of information. "Wait, how do you know all this?"

I shrugged. "I'm close with the Shoemakers, and it just so happens that this case pretty much revolves around them. And I just know stuff."

He leaned back in his chair. "Why—"

Just then, his phone rang. Checking it, he answered the call, putting it on speakerphone and setting it on the table. "What's up?"

Dean's voice crackled through the phone. "So, basically, Mary was seeing this guy named Trevor Sampson, a surgeon. The Detective thinks that's who cut out her eyes, and the T-R-E on the mirror was her trying to spell out the name of her murderer."

I sent Sam a look, as if to say that it aligned with my theory perfectly.

"But," Dean continued, "she was cremated, so we'll have to find a different way. I asked about the mirror she died in front of, and they said it was given back to her family. He gave me their number."

His brother nodded. "Make sure you call and get the location of the mirror, that's important."

"Well, actually, I already did," Dean interceded, and I could hear the smile in his voice. "Just got off the phone with her brother. Apparently, he just sold it to an antique store, Estate Antiques, and get this— it's in Toledo. I'm sending you a picture of the mirror now."

I pumped a fist into the air in mock victory. My theory was perfect.

After giving me a weird look, Sam thanked his brother, then ended the call. "What say you and I go find that mirror?"

The moment the words were out of his mouth, I stood, going over to grab my keys. "You wanna drive, or can I?"

He ended up driving.

When we got there, it was open, thank God, and we went inside to inquire about the mirror. Mr. Yamashiro was sitting behind the counter. I only knew his name because Linda had been into antiques and told me all about him, though I'd never actually met the guy.

"Mr. Yamashiro, right?" I called, going over to shake his hand. "Hey, I'm an old friend of Linda's."

He regarded me, recognition flashing in his eyes as he grasped my hand in his own. "Ah, you must be Evelyn, then? I've heard so much about you. Oh, I'm so sorry about Steven."

I donned an expression that was sufficiently sad. "Yeah, it's a tragedy. But... I actually think I've learned something from the experience, y'know? We never know how much time we've got, so it's best to live every day like it'll be our last."

He gave me a certain look that belied his shopkeeping ways. "Oh? And, might I attribute your visit here to just that?"

"Exactly," I praised. "The mirror in my hallway broke a couple months back, and I've been meaning to fix it — oh, it's so annoying not to have one there — but I've been putting it off. Keep telling myself I'll do it tomorrow, that sort of thing. I just thought... well, no time like the present, right?"

Mr. Yamashiro's eyes lit up, and he walked out from behind the counter, eagerly waving me along. "Oh, yes, of course, right this way. Anything in particular you're looking for?"

I looked to Sam. "Well, my cousin here's helping me, he's surprisingly good at interior design, and he said he's got a perfect idea of what type of mirror would look amazing in my house. I'm sort of hopeless with these things, so I'll just be leaving it to him."

He took point then, subtly explaining what the mirror looked like without actually telling the shop owner that he was describing a real mirror. Eventually, we were led to a specific item, one that Sam immediately identified as being Mary's mirror.

So, we bought it.

"Oh, thanks again, Mr. Yamashiro!" I said as we — and by 'we', I meant Sam — carried it out to my car.

He waved goodbye to us. "Come again, dearie!"

As the door closed behind me, Sam gave me a playful look. "Cousin? And what about me screams 'interior design'?"

I rolled my eyes at him, smiling. "It was the first thing that came to mind, and besides, he bought it, didn't he?" Once the mirror was safely secured in the trunk of my car, I turned back to him. "Okay, so... what's the plan?"

He raised an eyebrow at me, getting into the car. "I thought you had all the answers, Evelyn?"

I scoffed, sliding into my own seat. "Yeah, well, we have to break the mirror, that much is obvious, but... how do we make sure that actually gets rid of her? I mean, what if she just clings to a different mirror then?"

Sam laughed, shaking his head at me. "Watch and learn."