Chapter 39 Strange Family
Chapter thirty-nine
Strange Family
“Every family has a skeleton in the cupboard.” — Victorian proverb
Parents' weekend at Bear Towne University was in full swing the next day, and Giselle’s mother and sisters had flown all the way from Hell to collect her for the winter break.
Hailey only went to the luncheon at Chinook Hall because: she had nothing else to do, was avoiding Fin, she hoped to see her roommate once more before she left, was avoiding Fin, and—oh, yeah—she was avoiding Fin.
Not even close to hungry, she stared blankly at the buffet, completely engrossed in counting the serving spoons when a disinterested voice rang through the hall. “Hey, Prostitute.”
Instinctively, and she had no idea why, she turned to look, and when she did, Giselle, who had done the yelling, pointed and laughed.
Hailey rolled her eyes but couldn’t suppress a weak smile.
Her roommate stood with three supermodels next to absolutely nobody.
It was funny. Even the professors gave them a wide berth.
Hailey caught a shiver just looking at them, though with their crystal eyes set into porcelain skin, they were a vision to behold.
Like Giselle, the other three banshees were beautiful, tall, and thin, but unlike Giselle, they had long flowing golden-white hair, which was constantly ruffled by an invisible wind that didn’t affect Giselle’s blondish-gray locks. They almost looked angelic.
Until they smiled.
Hailey wouldn’t have thought it possible, but Giselle’s family were much paler than she was, and as she drew near she heard them—ringing like crystals. It was beautiful.
Giselle threw her arms around her and lifted her off the ground in a powerful, frigid squeeze.
“Okay,” Hailey wheezed. “Put me down!”
Giselle dropped her and smiled.
Her family looked disgusted.
“Where’s your uncle?” asked Giselle.
“Ireland,” she mumbled. He’d gone back to the homeland for Christmas that year, satisfied that Hailey’d be safe under the watchful eye of an Envoy.
Her original plan had been to spend the holiday with Fin at his cabin, an idea Uncle Pix abhorred but had finally accepted.
But she was pretty sure her invitation had been rescinded sometime between the “don’t touch me” and “weeping cesspool” comments the night before.
Besides, she’d probably be dead before Christmas anyway.
“Are these your sisters?” Hailey asked, trying to sound upbeat.
“You mean the skanks?”
“…uh…”
“Yeah,” Giselle said finally. “My sisters, Marrakech and Amelina.” She jabbed her thumb at two of the supermodels.
Hailey extended her hand.
In response, they glared, and Hailey held her hand out for several uncomfortable seconds before finally dropping it.
“My mom, Lorelei.” Giselle motioned to the third supermodel.
“Why do you introduce me to this…girl?” Lorelei demanded of Giselle. Her lip curled as she looked Hailey up and down.
“She’s my roommate,” Giselle spat in response. “And my friend.”
Aw, thought Hailey. She called me her friend.
Lorelei grabbed her daughter by the shoulders. "Banshees don’t have friends.”
“I’m not a banshee, mother,” said Giselle as she wrenched herself out of her mother’s grip. “I’m just a big fat nothing,” she said smiling. “And I have a big-fat-nothing friend.”
Hailey straightened up and smiled.
“I’m going to stay with her in Pittsburgh this summer.”
Whoa. That was news.
Giselle looked at Hailey in a way that let her know she’d better play along.
“Oh, uh…yeah. Giselle is coming to work at our family pub…in the…in the pub.”
She looked to Giselle to see if she’d gotten it right, though she had no idea how she would pull this off.
Hiding a banshee in plain sight inside the most popular pub on the South Side?
Madness. Though contact lenses and hair dye seemed like a logical place to start, and if she never smiled, then maybe…
Or maybe she would have camo and not need it.
Oh shoot, what would her uncles think? She shuddered.
Pittsburgh was not ready for an un-activated, mal-tempered banshee.
But, Hailey probably wouldn’t survive the school year, so whatever. She shrugged and smiled sweetly.
Lorelei, however, radiated thermonuclear disgust.
“If you insist on fraternizing with humans, why don’t you just stay here with them this winter?”
“Fine!” Giselle yelled. “I didn’t want to come home anyway!”
“You’re an abomination, Giselle, and a disgrace,” said Lorelei dryly. She put her grimace next to her errant daughter’s face. “The sooner you lose your soul and die the better for everyone.”
Mama Banshee looked at Marrakech and Amelina.
“Girls,” she beckoned as she swept toward the door.
The sisters obediently followed their mother without even saying goodbye.
Giselle flipped them off. With both hands.
Hailey shivered. “Why does your mother want you to lose your soul?”
Giselle turned to her and raised her arms like Frankenstein. Hailey put her hands up defensively, but Giselle threw her arms around her and squeezed.
Another hug.
Embracing a banshee was like standing shirtless in an icy breeze, and it cut right to Hailey’s core.
“Because they hate me,” Giselle said as she released her. “They always find an excuse to leave me here. I can’t remember the last time I spent Christmas with those Gorgons.”
Hailey shivered and felt her eyes sting again. She was so relieved Giselle was staying. It was her first Christmas without Holly, and she didn’t want to be alone.
“You’re not alone, you have Asher,” Giselle said, and Hailey tsk’ed.
“You mean the omnipotent, bag-of-cats-crazy Envoy? Stop reading my emotions or mind or whatever.”
Being with Asher made her feel more lonely than when she was alone, if that made any sense. Maybe it had something to do with his burning desire to save her by killing her, which still wasn’t making sense.
She missed Fin.
“Glad you’re staying,” she muttered, and Giselle smiled, looking rather pleased with herself. She was up to something. “What?”
“So is David,” she said proudly.
Hailey shook her head and watched, arms crossed, as Giselle’s awful demon family disappeared outside. But coming inside those same doors was a sight that lifted Hailey’s heart in a way she hadn’t felt since August.
He carried in his mittened hands a small burlap sack, and though he was 99% covered from head to toe in puffy brown denim pants and a puffier black jacket with a hood that obscured his face, she immediately recognized his awkward waddle and jump-sprinted to the door.
“Uncle Dale!” she yelled, and she barreled into his pillow-jacket, throwing her arms around his neck.
“Hah! There she is!” he said, gathering her up in his marshmallow arms.
He sounded just like Uncle Pix, and he smelled like Uncle Pix…and dirt. She gripped him tighter and buried her whole face in his shoulder.
“Sorry I didn’t call sooner, dear, we were against the clock on this dig.”
That’s okay, was what she wanted to say, but it wasn’t okay. She’d been trying to stand on her own two feet here, but the truth was she needed him, and she should have called him like Uncle Pix had told her.
She slid back and wiped her eyes. “I’m so glad you’re here.” She looked around his arm at the door behind him.
He knitted his brow together. “Pix had business in Ireland. Sure he’s really after missing you. Speaks of nothin’ else.”
She missed him too and wished Bear Towne had better cell phone coverage, or rather, any at all.
Giselle cleared her throat, and Hailey spun around.
“Oh! Uncle Dale, this is my roommate, Giselle.”
“Roommate, huh?” he said with a crocked eyebrow. “Well, let’s get a look at yeh,” he said, and he stepped back.
Giselle stood stone-faced.
“You’re looking well, yeh are.”
“You found one,” she said, side-eying the bag in his hand, and she wasn’t the only one. No fewer than ten students were staring at it, with another two who’d just entered the building stopping dead in their tracks and glancing its way.
Uncle Dale patted it and sighed.
“Right. I was half-set on stayin’ the day with ye, but, I’ll have to leg it. Sorry now,” he said. He pointed at Hailey’s face. “You remember what Pix told yeh.”
Hailey nodded quickly, gathering her thoughts, because there was so much she wanted to say before he left her…that Fin broke her heart, that a poltergeist stapled her back, and oh by the way she may not be home for spring break because two Envoys wanted to rip her soul out…
She moved her mouth, but nothing came out.
He squeezed her hand. “Ye’ve the love of me, now and always.” He smiled briefly, and still holding her hand, he turned to leave.
This was too short a visit. Hailey’s heart ached. She wanted to chat about Uncle Pix and the pub and and and everything! Her brain screamed, but still her words failed, and Uncle Dale released her hand.
Now he was walking away, and she just stood there, paralyzed. This was so stupid. He could spare another ten minutes. Finally, and with great effort, she lurched after him, but she stopped and he stopped when Asher emerged from the shadows.
Without a word, Uncle Dale bowed his head and handed Asher the burlap sack. Then he looked back at Hailey and nodded, and both he and Asher walked outside.
Hailey back-handed Giselle’s arm. “What was all that?”
Giselle stared at the door, shaking her head. “Some things should stay buried.”