Page 39 of (Mostly) Human Resources

“I work for Entity, you know?Entity, the company that specializes in monsters.” Alexys leaned forward, propped her elbows on her knees, and tried to hold herself together.

She attempted to channel the jaded, professional air of a more experienced Entity employee.

“I can’t report back that Elliot simply ‘disappeared,’ as you put it. They’ll need to know what’s happened, I … Ineedto know what happened.” Opal remained silent. “Look, I’ll go out there myself right now if that’s what it takes. But I am not leaving here empty-handed.” Alexys surprised herself then, her voice sharper than she believed herself capable of, in a strange place, in a stranger’s house, with one of her Warden’s MIA.

Opal didn’t flinch. She was resolute as she sipped her tea and considered Alexys’s words. “You’re messin’ with things you can’t even begin t’understand. Old things best left alone,” she warned.

“I have to find him.”

Opal sighed. “The Holler Walker is ancient magic. Sounds funny enough to people that aren’t from around here, but magic got roots in these mountains long before us people did.”

Alexys couldn’t believe this woman. A young man was in mortal peril and here she was, spinning ghost stories. Her critical gaze swept Alexys from head to toe, dark eyes weighing and measuring every inch of her. “What do you know of the Marrow Witch?” Opal asked.

“I’ve never heard of it.” Alexys put her face in her hands.

“Her,” Opal corrected her sharply. “Some call her the first witch, others think she’s the reason people in the hollers can do the things we do. Warding off danger, healing people, and the like. All I know is she’s helped me in a pinch or two, and I’m grateful for it.”

Opal finished her drink and set the glass heavily on the table beside her chair. “She doesn’t take kindly to strangers in her mountains. She’s protective by nature, and she’s spent a long time ensuring her people’s safety.”

“But what does she have to do with Elliot, or the Hollow Walker?” Alexys cried.

“You’re more impatient than a child!” Opal snapped, and the boom of her voice rocked Alexys. “If you don’t want the story, I’ll take my old bones to bed, and you can let yourself out.”

“I just want to find Elliot,” Alexys pleaded. “If I can find him, I can take us both home.”

“You’d be a fool to go after him.”

“I can’t leave him out there. I need to know where he is.”

“It doesn’t matter where he went.” Opal’s tone was matter-of-fact, and that only frustrated Alexys more. As though they were discussing the possibility of rain rather than a man’s life. “He followed after that beast and didn’t make it back by sunrise. He’s lost, child. He’s gone.”

“I refuse to accept that. Ihaveto look for him,” Alexys argued. “My entire career relies on it. A man’slifedepends on it.”

Opal finally shrugged. “Suit yourself. More the fool for it, but the choice is yours.” The witch hobbled to the window and pointed a crooked finger out toward the edge of the forest. “Based on where the whistling was coming from, your fella ran off in that direction. I know better than to go looking, so I didn’t see him leave, but that’d be my best guess.”

Across the yellowing field behind her cottage loomed a mountain surrounded by dense trees. The darkness that lurked under those branches should have been warning enough to anyone with sense that evil dwelt there. But to wander there in the middle of the night?

Foolish didn’t feel like a strong enough word.

“You aren’t planning on going out there by yourself, are you, child? Surely that big company of yours can send for some help?” Opal’s voice softened a little. The perfect combination of concern and condescension.

Once again, Alexys thought of Nic. Even without his boundless knowledge, it would’ve been nice to have a companion to go galivanting with off into the woods. But as much as she wanted help, shecouldn’t contact anyone at Entity. It would be career suicide, and her father’s legacy would be completely ruined. She’d just have to find Elliot and sort this whole mess out herself, come what may.

Sensing Alexys’s decision, Opal sighed.

“At least stay here for the night. Have some supper, get some sleep. It’ll be gettin’ dark soon, and I’d feel better about the whole thing if you went out at first light. These old bones can’t handle two young people wandering off into the darkness on my watch.”

Southern hospitality knew no bounds, but the offer did catch Alexys off guard. She wasn’t sure shelikedOpal, but she knew she was right. She couldn’t go out into those woods now, already covered in shadow, sunlight fading. She’d have to wait it out.

But the thought of leaving Elliot another night on his own nagged at her.

“What’ll it be, darlin’?” Opal drawled.

Alexys knew she wasn’t going to be any good to Elliot dead on her feet and wandering in the dark. Plus, what the witch said made sense, and it would give Alexys time to try to find more information on the Hollow Walker and the Marrow Witch.

“I’ll stay, thank you.” She sighed.

“Smart girl,” Opal said. “But don’t you go chasing any whistling in the night, you hear?”