Tortus Bay

2.07: Uninvited Guests

Henry leaned against the light-post on the corner of 2nd and Fuller, doing his best to keep a low profile, phone pressed to his ear. "Do I even need to say that it was a weird conversation?" he asked. "I don't think I've had a single normal conversation since I got here."

Kara laughed. "You want to talk about taxes?"

"I have no doubt that even if the mayor and I had been talking about taxes, he would have made it sound sinister."

"By now you've met enough of the Brihtes and the Gauthes to know that they're strange people. Something about generational wealth scrambles the brain."

He repositioned himself slightly, double checking that he was still alone on the street. "He didn't turn me in."

"So you're in the clear. What's got you so paranoid?"

In the distance, he watched the door of his house swing open. Sheriff Leia Thao stepped out, rolled out her shoulders, and leaned up against her squad car. He flattened himself further against the post. "I can't tell them where Emmaline's body is. Not after what happened the last time somebody messed with it."

"That 'somebody' being you?"

"Irrelevant information. I already let it slip that it was in the park. Do you think they'll do some exploratory digging?"

"Not likely. Even if they knew exactly where to go, they'd have a hard time convincing people to let them tear the place up."

Leia rustled through her pockets for a moment, produced a small bag of sunflower seeds, and popped a few into her mouth. She spat into the gutter. "Then I'll just have to avoid them for a while," Henry said.

"It's a small village. You're welcome to pop around the Anderson. Lots of hidey holes I can stick you in."

He took a few slow, careful steps backward, then pivoted and hurried off in the opposite direction. "As much as I might like you to fold me into a wall, there's something else I have to take care of."

"Oh really?"

"We haven't said a word to each other since we kissed."

Kara made a noncommittal noise. "He's a busy guy."

"Everything is getting so complicated. It would be nice to have one thing going that was simple."

"Romance is a rocky road if you're after simplicity."

***

Henry worked to master his frayed emotions, walking up to Niles' house. He tried to move fast, but not so fast as to be suspicious. Every voice he heard, and every car turning a corner, made him whip his head around to investigate the source. How long could it possibly take the sheriff to track him down? In a village like Tortus Bay, it felt like it would be a matter of minutes until the rumor mill alone found him.

Then he would find himself in front of Leia once more; except this time, she might take him seriously. She might force him to point out exactly where he dug down to Emmaline's grave. There was nothing he could say to stop her, if she wanted to check. No threat of magical repercussions would sway a woman who did not believe in the first place. And there Henry was, knocking on Niles' door instead of dealing with any of that.

He felt ridiculous. There was no way around that. But of all the questions he had, this one would certainly be the easiest to answer. He knocked again, and Bruce's deep booming finally replied. The dog audibly skidded down the hallway, then resumed barking.

That was all, for a while: the barking, which started slightly deeper than normal and gradually piqued into a whine. "Are you okay in there?"

The whining redoubled. Bruce pawed at the door. Henry tried the knob, and found it unlocked. He only experienced a moment of indecision, before pushing it open. The dog did not bound at him, lick him, or even raise a hackle at the near-stranger. Instead, he took one look, turned around, and raced into the kitchen—where the loud whining continued.