Chapter 5

Lulu pulled me out of the cafe when I began demanding to speak to the owner for answers, and the barista couldn't be of help. "How's that possible?" I kept asking her while she drove us back to the house. "He said he'd been working there for the last five years and hasn't encountered the old woman even when he took the late shift. I couldn't have imagined the whole thing, could I?" The houses were a blur when I glanced at the window. Beautiful, I thought, but it wouldn't lead to the solution I was hoping for.

"Have you heard of Harry's Pub?" Lulu said, after what seemed like a while. "The bar is located in Asia, named after Harry, the man who founded it. In the country where Harry was born, it was legal to operate a pub from 12 in the afternoon onward. The age limit was more lax too. When he migrated with his wife to Asia, he found that things were a bit complicated. They had a stricter rule with alcohol consumption and the time of opening. To keep cash flowing, Harry cleverly disguised his business as a family restaurant in the morning where kids and their parents can go there and eat pancakes and waffles. At night, it transforms into a pub for grownups. Clever huh?"

My reflection on the car window smiled at me. I saw where she was going with this. The cafe could be operating like Harry's pub, transforming with two different customers in morning and at night. That's why the male staff didn't know the old woman. "Lulu, you're a genius." I grabbed her face with both hands, kissing each cheek. "Where would I be without you?"

"Somewhere in Europe behind bars." She giggled. "And we'll both be dead if you continue that. Let me drive properly." I let her to do her thing, settling back on my seat. Tonight for sure. I would go back to the coffee shop, see the old woman, and ask for her permission to prowl. I didn't normally do that. But because everything needed to be documented properly, I might as well.

At midnight, dressed comfortably in jeans and t-shirt, determined to blend in, Lulu and I came back to the cafe. The lights were switched off inside, nothing like the lively place I was expecting to arrive in. "What time did you get here the other day?" she said, craning her neck to see past the darkness.

"Around two. They could be operating from one to six. We should wait here in the car." I opened the radio to pass the time.

By three o'clock, I had dozed off thrice and had been stunned into awareness by Lulu's violent shaking of my shoulders whenever she'd think someone would enter the building. At six o'clock when the world had once again opened its eyes, Lulu and I were so bleary eyed that we agreed to go home even without the success. In my own bed I drifted into a restless sleep, my dreams bordering on strange coffee shop disappearances and an unidentified woman with an animal designed ring on her finger.

Lulu was dressed and ready when I finally shrugged off the blanket and walked to the living room in my pajamas. "Its afternoon," she said, checking her phone for the time. "Our stakeout last night was a failure, so I thought you'd be bummed today. I'm taking you out for a movie date to compensate. Get your butt to the bathroom, Scottie." I smiled tiredly at her. Lulu always knew how to cheer me up. In these instances, I wished I could tell Casper to get his eyes fixed so he could see her as a potential girlfriend already. If only Lulu didn't want me to interfere.

We've only been to the movie house for five minutes and we were already bickering on what film to watch. "I want to see that spy movie," I said, pointing to a poster. My eyes shifted to another cooler poster. "I changed my mind. We should totally check that out."

"Hurry up," a guy grumbled behind us. "You're holding the line."

I turned to roll my eyes at him. "You should have gotten here earlier if you wanted to watch so badly," I said. "Unless you change the constitution, you can't make me move from this spot, mister. I'm going to stand here all day making my decision, you hear?" I received murderous glances from most of the people in the line, especially the women whose boyfriends have been eye flirting me. Geez. Couldn't a person choose a movie leisurely? It was a rare thing for me and Lulu to watch in actual theatres, given that both of us had one in our respective houses.

"They're going to start a riot if we don't pick soon," Lulu whispered nervously. "How about that movie with the kickass looking girl with big guns. You always choose those at home."

"Don't you want them to wait a little longer?" I said, intentionally irritating everyone. Lulu shook her head and reached for her purse.

While she was buying the tickets, I waved to the crowd and blew kisses to the gentlemen. I loved teasing people. They should be more relaxed, primarily since they came here to do so.

Lulu wanted to pacify everyone. "They're short on change," she explained to the couple behind us. "We're still waiting for it." She didn't have to say that. We didn't owe these people anything. It wasn't like we stood there that long to pick. They were just being rude. "Here's the ticket seller," she announced. The coins she was about to get rolled back to the counter accidentally. The ticket seller stooped low to retrieve it, disappearing from view.

A few seconds later, a hand appeared on the surface, pushing a dropped coin to the small hole. I wasn't paying much attention until I saw her finger. The ring was there, all shiny and pretty, beckoning to me like a lighthouse calling the seafarer home. The hand vanished as quickly as it materialized. It couldn't have been a coincidence. It was the third time.

I pounded on the glass. "Who are you?" I said, trying to see inside. "Show yourself to me." Once my interest was piqued, there was no stopping me. I pressed my face on the glass.

"That's it, I'm going to watch in another theatre," a guy on the line behind us said. The chorus of frustrations from the people added to my own bewilderment.

"Scotland, what in the world are you up to?" Lulu said.

I inserted my hand into the small hole of the booth, then my arm, reaching to someone. "There's somebody there," I grunted. "She'd been following me for days. First on the taxi. Second time on the spa." She was messing with the wrong person. Lulu's arms circled my waist, pulling me backward. She mumbled about security. Forget that. Only a glass separated me from the mysterious person. I reached deeper. "I'll have you fired if you don't show me your face," I warned. "You think I'm joking? Try telling me that when you don't have a job."

A blue handkerchief was waved up, followed by a teenage boy with a gap on his front teeth, ready to piss himself. "Please don't take my livelihood away," he said. "The rest of the coins are still down there. I'm trying to search for them." What? The boy's eyes enlarged as I peered at him. There was no ring on his finger. It wasn't him. Somehow, I felt like I've been toyed with, though I didn't know by who or why. I snatched my arm back from the hole, none too happy by the development.

In the one week that passed after that incident, I have become a set of jumbled nerves. A paranoid freak. Back home with my parents, I never felt the need to get a bodyguard, even when my family's status meant that a number of people would be envious of us. While most articles had been made to contest our similarities in features, the reality was an ordinary person wouldn't recognize us in the streets. We weren't celebrities. We were bankers and innovators. Furthermore, I could defend myself fine. What I didn't like was the thought of having a stalker. It made it harder to walk around without looking over my shoulders.

At night, Lulu and I would go to the cafe to do a stakeout. Still nothing. The barista I've talked to and the other crew would leave the establishment at ten, sometimes eleven if customers left later than usual. Nothing would follow after. No second opening like Lulu suggested. No old woman. No lesbians. No subjects. Which meant, back to square one. But we were in the fifth chapter, friends and family, and I'd like to remind you that Scotland was a very determined girl. Square one was nothing to me. Nothing I tell you. Nothinggggggg. Fades away.

Come Thursday night, the house smelled heavily of perfume. The floor had been cleaned. The dishes washed. Things were in prime order. And Lulu, draped in a maroon dress and black heels, her hair pulled up, was spraying the house with more perfume. I sneezed.

"Bless you," she said on her way to the kitchen. Her eyes were brighter than usual, her cheeks redder. She was excited because Casper was coming for a visit. Done with baptizing the house, she went to me. "Do you think I should change?"

"With what? That's your fourth dress for the evening. Unless you've managed to have everything back home delivered here, you're going to run out of things to try." I tapped the sofa. "Sit with me, Lu. You're beautiful as you are. I'm sure Casper will like your outfit." She collapsed next to me, sighing. "I can talk to him for you," I volunteered.

"I'm not that desperate," she said. I thought of the voodoo stuff hidden away in her bedroom. Right. "Maybe a little," she admitted. "But I'd like him to make the effort, not me."

I pretended to impale my hand with a stake. "How much effort does it take to stick pins on the doll?"

"That's not fair," she said. "I took up that interest way before I liked your brother. It just happened that it can help me with him too, you know. It's like killing two birds with one stone."

"Don't talk about killing my brother in front of me," I mocked, a hand over my mouth. "You're making me an accessory to your crime." The doorbell rang before I could continue provoking her. "That's probably him. Are you ready?" She pinched my butt as a response.

A bouquet of flowers was thrust to me when I opened the door. "Hello to you too," I said to Casper. The flowers were momentarily squished between us when we hugged. "Welcome to my humble abode. Don't trip on your way in."

His eyes shone when he noticed Lulu. "Both of you are looking well," he said, dropping kisses on her cheeks.

I placed the bouquet on the table, promising to put it on a nice vase later. When I returned to the two, they were talking about the neighborhood and its niceties. It was a one-sided conversation, really. Casper's eyes roamed the room while Lulu drawled on. Damn, big brother. How could you be so dense? I put a protective hand on my best friend. "We can talk over dinner. I'm sure all of us are hungry," I said.

While I drove us to the restaurant, Casper told us about his own adventures. "My buddies from the university are planning to take a trip to Peru to see the Machu Picchu," he said. "I'm not sure if I'm going. I remember promising both of you that we'll see it together. Besides, I'm kind of scared to leave Scotland alone with only you there," he said to Lulu. "Not that I don't trust you. It's her I don't trust."

I swerved the car deliberately, making them hold on for dear life. "Be careful with your words, Caspie. I'm the one behind the wheel today." I chuckled under my breath. "You should go with your friends to Machu Picchu, then visit with us again. I don't take the touristy route. It will be like your first time."

He turned to Lulu. "This is why you should keep an eye on her. She'll get you killed."

"I will," she confirmed. "When do you think can we visit? I heard the Incan citadel was really impressive. Their technology at the time was so great that it was thought they used magic. Wouldn't that be awesome, seeing what was left of that?"

"Yeah. . ." Casper trailed, frowning. He was no longer as enthusiastic as he was a while ago.

It was always like this with them. Casper would warm up to her, then she'd mention voodoo, magic, or something disturbing that would make him clam up and ignore her. I wasn't so sure that her hobby was helping with him. If any, it was turning him off. I didn't want her to choose one over the other though. That's what made it sad.

There was a parking spot reserved for us when we got to the restaurant. The Maître D' was quick in identifying who we were. He must have researched what I looked like after I told him my name last night when making the call. "Miss Roth," he said, flashing his white teeth. "And Mr. Roth. Miss Sullivan." He nodded to Lulu. "This way please."

He lead us past tables of people enjoying their meals for the night, straight to another private room. The three of us chose our places, familiar with the treatment. Since I've told the Maître D' what we wanted to order beforehand, he excused himself from our side after getting us seated.

I wouldn't dwell too much into the food. It was passable. The wine was even better. When our meal was done, and we were only delaying our stay because of good conversation, Casper got to the issue of my project, as I knew he would eventually. "How's it coming along?" he asked. "You told me that you found a place to conduct your observations. Have you gotten to the first phase?"

Lulu and I exchanged looks. I lowered my wine glass. "Actually, no. I haven't started anything," I said. "The place mysteriously vanished. Poof! They were gone the next day, and the succeeding week after that."

"Why not get another place to survey?"

"Casper, Casper," I said, frowning. "It's like you don't know me at all. I rarely change my mind when it's set. It's either that cafe, or nada." I drank from my glass to remove the taste of bitterness. Two things have been evading me so far. "Did you send for the bill?"

"Yeah, I'm still waiting for them to bring the card back," he said.

My mood had soured from the direction of the conversation, mainly because instead of triumphs, I was telling him about a rut I've hit early on in the makings of my book. When I was in that frame of mind, sometimes I liked dragging everyone with me to hell. "So how's Jessie?" I said, itching for a fight.

Lulu's brows raised. "Jessie?" she said.

Casper poured himself more wine, ignorant to the change of temperature in the room. "She's incredible," he answered. "I never thought I'd see someone like her, but you know how these things go. We found each other at the right time." Asking him the question was an oversight on my part. I thought he was going to say that she was just a friend. I didn't actually think that they'd become a couple. He'd been single forever. "I should introduce you sometime," he said. "You too, Lu. You'll love her."

While Casper took his card from the waitress, I stared at a deflated Lulu, giving her what little assurances I could. On the bright side, I might have made a mistake in bringing the conversation, but this was the closure she needed. She should rise from the ashes and become the phoenix she was born to be. Her lips trembled. Or she could cry for days over ice cream. Either way would be acceptable.

The person who delivered Casper's card spoke from the doorway. "I hope you enjoyed your stay."

That voice. Low, a bit throaty, really, really sexy. My eyes snapped to the door, but she was no longer there. My heart yammered. "Did you see what she looked like?!" I screamed to Casper.

He almost dropped his glass. "Who, what now?"

The napkin on my lap fell to the floor as I made a mad dash to follow the woman. The room beyond ours was filled with people, waiters, and a bustle of activity. How was I to find someone in this chaos of cutlery and orders?

There, at 12 o'clock. A woman with her hair tied up, covered under her hairnet, was making her way to the back area. I trailed after her, making sure she'd stay in my sight. "What are you doing here?!" a chef shouted to me when I entered the kitchen. A flash of silver ring at 9 o'clock. She had gone through another room. You wouldn't escape from me, girl.

Snaking passage in the angry chefs kitchen, I burst through the door she went to. The cold night air hit my face as I scanned the place. There was an alleyway, stacked boxes on the side, a dumpster on the other, and billows of smoke were coming from the vents. The woman I was looking for was ten or more yards from me, wearing the same white uniform as the waiters from the restaurant.

"Freeze!" I yelled, hands on my knees, panting. She stopped. "Who are you? Why are you following me?"

She turned her head, her face occluded by the smoke. "Shouldn't you ask yourself the same thing?" she said. I didn't move. My feet were rooted to the spot. From where I was standing, I couldn't make out her features, yet somehow I sensed that she was smiling. "Goodnight," she said, before she was swallowed by the fog.