Vomit and Rapists and Boys, Oh My!

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Cell reception didn't reach that room, so John had to go upstairs to make the call. While I kept my hands over my face, Naru moved on to the next statue.

"How can you just go on like that smell is nothing?" I asked.

"I study dead people."

"So does the history professor, but you don't see him exhuming dead bodies like pulling out of date tortillas from the fridge."

"Exhuming," he said. "Is that one of your vocabulary calendar words?"

I didn't reply. Because yes. Yes it was.

John was back down in the room just in time to help Naru lift off another angel from a pedestal. At least he looked a little green behind his pallor, which brought out the freckles on his face like dirt flecks.

"And there's two," said Naru, as though counting flowers. "You doing alright, Father?"

John just nodded, probably afraid of what would happen if he opened his mouth.

There wasn't much I could do but try to get the cellar-like doors open on the other side of the room to let some fresh air in. It was locked.

When Naru got to decaulking the next statue, John handed me a key from a great ring.

"Thanks," I said, hand still to my nose.

Again, he just nodded.

"If you're gonna puke, you might as well go and get it over with."

He blinked at me, then half ran out of the room. I couldn't help but smile and sigh at the same time before working on getting the copper key into the doors that might as well be on top of me. Once I heard a click, I tried to heave them open, but no go. Either they were so heavy you need real muscles to get them up, or I hadn't unlocked them at all.

"Mai, where's Father Brown?"

"Taking care of business, never you mind? You want help getting the statue off?"

"That would be appreciated."

So, taking a few clean breaths through my mouth, I went over to take hold of one end, because my professor was opening up essentially coffins like Christmas presents, so don't anyone even think of asking him to wait.

"Frick, what is this thing made out of?" We had started to lift and the stone corners were already digging into my hands like an anvil.

"White marble," he said, the strain in his voice less than mine, but still there, so celebrate! "Alabaster would have done just as well, but I suppose this artist was fonder of the first."

Halfway off, my arms shaking and burning like a mother, I had to take a fresh gulp of air, this one tainted with the rotten stench. I coughed, my stomach twisting, nearly dropping the angel.

"Oh! Mai, you shouldn't!" Came Father Brown's voice, and he appeared at my side, taking hold of the statue. "Not with your arms still injured."

I would have protested, but now I was the one afraid of opening my mouth. Which was a pity, because I had a nice witty remark to make at Naru for that comment. Making his little weak student do the heavy work with injured arms, just because he was too excited to find dead bodies, how heartless.

"It looks like they were roughly burned," said Naru, ignoring John's pants. He must have run back. "Then cut apart bone by bone, with whatever flesh was left, and dropped in. Though judging on the smell of the first one we opened, whatever fire source our suspect was using wasn't working on that particular occasion."

I was back at the cellar doors, fighting to get outside. John soon joined me, and with an odd super strength got them open in one great heave. Warmer chapel air came in and we both crawled out to open the front chapel doors.

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