Chapter Eight #2
“Fine. But I’m keeping my fingers crossed that you get something good out of this week.”
“I got balsamic. That’s all the good I need.”
“Ooh, that actually is good. Can’t wait to have some.”
“Yeah, yeah. Keep barking up the wrong tree and I won’t let you have any of it.”
Zora laughed, but the rest of the conversation was cut short by the other balcony door opening.
Audrey turned to see Hallie stepping out, wrapped in blankets again. If they really were going to talk out here, she probably needed to grab some too. But the whole thing felt far more risky than it needed to with Zora’s words bouncing around Audrey’s head.
There was nothing going on. She was genuinely happy for River and Hallie.
“Hey,” Hallie whispered, shooting Audrey a warm, friendly smile.
“Zora, I’ve got to go. Thanks for talking, yeah?”
Zora groaned, clearly thinking it was one of the annoying members of Audrey’s family interrupting their conversation. “Okay, babe, but look after yourself, call me any time you like, know I’m just teasing you because you need some comedy relief in this whole thing, and try to look after yourself.”
“Yeah,” Audrey said softly. It made sense. It was very Zora. And she knew Zora was not interested in pushing her into a relationship and marrying her off like her family was. Zora respected her choices, her boundaries, and knew there was more to life than that.
So why did looking at Hallie suddenly feel so loaded?
“I love you bigger than the whole sky,” Zora said genuinely. “Even all that sky you can see out there.”
Audrey breathed a laugh, looking up at it. Clear tonight, dotted with stars. “I love you bigger than the whole sky too. Night, Zora.”
“Night, babe.” And she hung up, leaving Audrey to turn back to Hallie, who was suddenly staring down at the ground, looking more than a little awkward.
“Hey,” Audrey said, trying desperately for normal.
Hallie winced. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt you.”
She shook her head. “You didn’t.”
“Objectively, I did.”
Audrey smiled back at her as River slid the door open and stepped out to join them.
She shivered immediately, despite the layers she was wearing. “This is where you two chose to hang out? We couldn’t do it somewhere warmer?”
Audrey looked at her. “I’ve got to enjoy the cold weather while I can. It doesn’t get like this in LA.”
“Yeah…” River said skeptically. “Well, given that I already know about Audrey’s job, any chance I can skip this little rendezvous? I’m cold.”
Hallie shot her an amused smile, one that felt exactly like the kind Audrey would give Zora... “Of course. Do you want us to just come inside?”
“Nah. You two have fun freezing your butts off.” She looked at Audrey. “I can’t believe you moved to Cali when you’re this excited about the cold.”
Audrey shrugged. “People contain multitudes.”
She scoffed. “It was for the bugs, wasn’t it?”
“Maybe a little.”
“Well, you can put me in the same category as the bugs. I need warmer temperatures than this. Enjoy your ice-cold chat.” And, with that, she practically ran through the door and back into the bedroom, leaving Hallie and Audrey alone.
“Do you think I should point out that the bugs she’s likely to run into at this time of year are going to be in there with her?” Audrey asked conspiratorially, knowing River wasn’t the biggest fan.
Hallie laughed. “I beg you, don’t. She’ll be up all night otherwise.”
Audrey mimed zipping her lips shut.
Hallie looked up at her, her eyes a tangled web of emotions in the low lights strung around the cabin. “Are there many we have to worry about?”
“No,” Audrey reassured her with a smile. “A few are still active at this time of year, but you’re unlikely to run into them, especially if nobody has mentioned them so far.”
“Like what?”
“Moths, maybe, but I haven’t seen any signs of them in the house.”
Hallie scrunched her nose up, hugging her blankets tighter to her body.
“Not your favorite, huh?” Audrey asked with a smile.
“I don’t know. I get that they’re important and all, but just… the way they move…”
Audrey laughed and stepped a little closer to Hallie. “Yeah, I’ve heard that before. But they’re actually pretty cool.”
“I… doubt that. Sorry, entomologist,” she said, shooting Audrey a challenging grin, like she didn’t really doubt what Audrey was saying, she just wanted Audrey to prove her wrong.
Audrey grinned. “Did you know they’re locked in an evolutionary battle with bats?”
“See, if you describe it like that, of course it sounds cool!”
“Because it is cool,” Audrey shot back, feeling more like herself than she had since landing in Michigan.
“Bats use echolocation to find moths to eat, right? And, for years, we all believed that moths developed tympanal membranes, like ears, to hear those sounds and evade the bats. A couple of years ago, though, there was new research that suggested moths developed ears independently of evading bats, but, the fact remains that they do use those ears to avoid becoming prey. Some of them can emit sounds to block or trick the echolocation. Some non-toxic moths can imitate the sounds of toxic ones so the bats know not to eat them. Or, upon hearing the bats, they can perform evasive maneuvers in the air, folding their wings and dropping to the ground if needed, all just to stay alive.”
“Wow,” Hallie breathed, looking up at Audrey in awe, and something self-conscious rushed through Audrey. Her brain knew Hallie’s reaction was less a newly developed love of moths and more something to do with Audrey’s passion. “Yeah, I definitely didn’t know about all that.”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to go off about moths like that.”
“No, I’m glad you did. It was amazing.”
Audrey laughed, a little embarrassed. “Should I then also tell you that moths have resonant scales on their wings that are capable of absorbing up to eighty-seven percent of incoming sound?”
“You absolutely should tell me that.”
They looked at each other for a minute too long, at which point, Audrey’s brain kicked back in and she cleared her throat, stepping back. “Yeah, so, that’s moths.”
Hallie laughed, the sound a little breathless. “Are they your favorite insect?”
“No, but they are interesting.”
“Yeah, I’ll give them that. Two minutes with an entomologist and I’ve got a whole new respect for them.” She shot a look at Audrey. “What’s your favorite?”
“Fireflies—lightning bugs.” She shrugged, allowing whichever name Hallie used for them.
Hallie beamed. “Oh, that’s a good choice.”
Audrey laughed lightly. “Yeah, there’s a whole argument to be made about the fact that they’re scientifically fascinating, and they are—bioluminescence, their communication and mating rituals—but I just remember seeing them as a kid and feeling like I was seeing magic made real.
These fascinating, mesmerizing flashes of light, so beautiful and… unreal.”
Hallie nodded gently, moving closer to Audrey again. “Yeah, I can see that. And I guess you finally answered that question I’ve been holding onto without me even having to ask it.”
“How I got into bugs?”
“Basically? Yeah. Still not clear on how you went from magic in the real world to forensics, but I’m no longer confused about the bug thing in general. Passion suits you.”
“Oh. Uh. Thanks.” Audrey looked away again, across the frosty landscape. “I can… explain the rest of it, but it might take a minute.”
Hallie elbowed her softly. “I’ve got all night.”