Epilogue
Three Months Later
Dalton
I stand at the hotel window and look into the snow-covered courtyard.
Rayna wanted to go north for winter, so we hoofed it back up to New York to stay for a bit.
We still move around a lot, just to avoid drawing too much attention, but we tend to stick around one spot for a week at a time.
It makes Rayna’s oddities business a little easier to operate.
She got the idea when we were driving out of Oak Hollow. When we got back to our car, Samuel had fixed it up and loaded it down with gifts. The entire backseat had been filled with all sorts of unique taxidermy pieces. It was more than we could tote around, so Rayna decided to sell some of it.
Well-done taxidermy goes for a fucking premium. Who knew?
Now she’s turned it into a money-making machine. With the profits from one piece, we typically have enough to pay for our living expenses for a few weeks. We’ve even managed to stash away a small nest egg. We’re saving for an RV.
“What do you think about this one?” Rayna shoves her phone into my face.
I pull the device back so that I can see whatever it is she’s trying to show me. It appears to be a wedding dress made of latex, but it’s been designed to look like sewn-together chunks of human skin.
I clear my throat. “I think it’s unique, but you’d never be happy with the facsimile. You’d want the real thing.”
“You’re right.” She lowers the phone and sighs. “I feel like I’ll never find the perfect dress.”
“The dress doesn’t have to be perfect. It’s just going to end up on the floor.”
She swats my chest and laughs. “I still want to feel pretty on my wedding day.”
“We’ll be the only ones in attendance.”
“Exactly. I want to look good for my man.” She stands on tiptoes and plants a kiss on my cheek.
I pull her against my side and smile as I stare out the window again. Never in a million years did I ever think I’d propose. Now it seems like the best decision I could have made.
The clouds break enough to let a bit of sunlight catch in the diamonds perched on Rayna’s hand.
Her vintage ring gets compliments galore.
I felt weird about it at first, but seeing how much she loves it lets me know it was meant to be.
Nothing I came up with would have had quite the punch. Or the memories behind it.
We’ve watched the Florida papers for any mention of what occurred in Oak Hollow, but we’ve seen nothing.
The town’s website was quietly shuttered one night, and we haven’t heard anything since.
Wherever Samuel and his grandmother are, they made good on their promises.
They didn’t return to Oak Hollow, and wherever they are, they’re keeping their heads down and their mouths shut.
“We should start planning for next Halloween,” Rayna says as she takes a seat in the chair by the window. Van Gogh stands on the small table beside her. “The killing was pretty great, but there wasn’t enough of it. Now that we have a van, we gotta up our game.”
That’s another change. We’ve swapped the car for a van. It was white with no windows, which draws entirely too much attention, so we painted it a pretty shade of purple and emblazoned it with Rayna’s business name: Beautiful Bones. Oddly, we get fewer looks than we did when it was white.
“Speaking of the van,” I say, “I should probably bring in that lemur you were working on. Didn’t you want to practice some more today?”
She nods. “Yeah. I’ll never get good if I don’t practice. Once I can touch up pieces, the next step is learning how to do it from start to finish. Let me throw on some shoes, and I’ll come with.”
We dress in coats and trudge into the winter wonderland. By the time we reach the parking lot, she’s stopped no less than three times to make a snowball and throw it at me. I let her because it makes her laugh. I love that sound.
As we draw closer to the van, I spot a set of footprints around it. Despite the heavy snowfall a couple of hours ago, the tracks are crisp and clear. Someone’s been snooping around.
“Bones, do you have your blade on you?”
She nods and pats her hip, taking note of the footprints.
I ready myself beside the van door as she holds the blade in her hand and prepares to attack. Gritting my teeth, I grip the handle and pull. Rayna’s hand lowers from its stabbing position, and her eyebrows pull together.
I step forward and look into the van. Nothing looks amiss; Rayna’s lemur project still sits in a box on top of fifty other boxes, and nothing has been disturbed. But then, I see it.
“Mr. Fox?” Rayna whispers as she steps forward and plucks the familiar taxidermy creature from the floorboard.
A slip of paper flutters to the snow. I bend and pick it up.
It seems you two are doing well, and I’m happy for it.
Grandmother wanted Rayna to have this. I promised I’d deliver it myself, so I’m making good on that promise.
I had to go back to Oak Hollow to bury her, which means I broke the promise I made to you.
I hope the gift on Mr. Fox’s neck will make up for it.
Rayna’s is from my mother. Yours is from my father.
I hope the wedding is beautiful. Thanks again.
I reach over and take the fox from Rayna. Attached to his neck is a small satchel, and something inside clinks around as I open it. I pour the contents into my hand, and Rayna gasps.
“Are those wedding bands?” she says. “What are they made from? Wood? Did Samuel carve these himself?”
I pass the note to her, and she takes a moment to read it. As realization dawns, her mouth transforms into a wide grin.
“Oh, fucking sick, dude! He made wedding bands from their bones! Please tell me we can wear them when we get married. I know you didn’t like Samuel, but—”
Shutting her up with a kiss is one of my favorite things to do.
I pull back and grip her face in my hands.
“I didn’t like the thought of losing you.
Now I know nothing can tear you away from me.
You’re mine, and that will never change.
If you want these to be our wedding bands, then I want that too.
If you want Samuel to be my best man, we’ll start hunting him down. Whatever you want, bones, it’s yours.”
“With a little convincing, sometimes.” She smirks and grips my dick through my pants. Then her smile falls. “I’m sad to hear about his grandmother, though. Now he’s all alone. I hope he finds his someone special someday.”
Yeah, it can be a lonely life to be so deranged and have no one to share it with. I hope he finds someone too. He deserves to know the happiness I’ve found.
I take Rayna’s hand in mine as we start back for the hotel’s warmth. “Now, let’s get you inside. We’ve got a Halloween wedding to plan.”