Chapter 2: Chapter 2
The large woman clapped her hands for attention. “Okay, I think most of us are here now. I know it’s New Year’s Eve, but don’t forget this is a solemn vigil, not a party. It’s now sixteen years to the night since Veronica Parker met her strange and untimely death. On several occasions since then, her ghost has been seen to haunt this chapel. If we keep a quiet watch we may…”
At this point the door burst open and another woman entered. This one was tall, slim, and striking-looking, with short dark hair and metal-rimmed glasses. Most eye-catching of all, she was dressed neck-to-toe in a tight-fitting black leather cat suit. The woman looked distinctly flustered, darting her eyes about wildly.
The large woman addressed the newcomer. “Ah, Eris—I’m so glad you could make it.”
Eris! With a start, Roxy realized the tall, dark-haired woman must be the famous psychic detective, Eris King. She was a stunning sight—if a little crazy looking.
Eris was clearly anxious about something. Her gaze roamed around the chapel, staring at each of the occupants one by one. Finally her gaze settled on Roxy, and her eyes widened. She raised her hand to her glasses and tipped them down on her nose, staring over the top of them straight into Roxy’s eyes. Roxy, who had always had a thing about tall, slim women with short dark hair, stared straight back. Eris nodded faintly, pushed her glasses back up on her nose, and relaxed visibly.
The large woman was still talking. “…and we’re very grateful to Hamilton Drake for allowing us to use the chapel tonight. He was, of course, the host of the New Year’s party at which Veronica Parker died. I’ve asked him to say a few words about that fateful night.”
The tall man in the white suit stepped forward. He still had the faint trace of a sneer on his face. “There really isn’t that much to tell. It was the big millennium party at the end of 1999. I’d just inherited the house following the death of my father. Veronica Parker was one of the guests, although I don’t remember her very clearly. She came from another wealthy New England family, and was just past her nineteenth birthday. No-one knows exactly what happened, but she must have overdone the celebrations. She was found dead the next morning, lying naked in the churchyard out there. The autopsy evidence was inconclusive, and the inquest returned a verdict of accidental death. There’s absolutely no reason to believe otherwise. There were no other footprints in the snow around the spot where she was found.”
“How tragic, to die at such an early age,” the woman observed. “As for the ghost—have you ever witnessed it yourself?”
“Of course not!” The famous millionaire playboy snorted with disgust. “There is no such thing as a ghost—just people with overactive imaginations. But each to their own, as they say. You’re welcome to play ghostbusters while my guests and I party the night away next door.”
* * * *
As soon as the introductory briefing was over, Roxy was pleased but not too surprised to see Eris making a beeline in her direction.
“I think I can use you.” Eris stared down at her with an eager look on her face. “Quick, let me see your hands.”
“What?”
Without bothering to repeat the request, Eris grabbed Roxy’s right hand and examined it carefully. “Hmm…nice long fingers, very dexterous-looking—do you play the piano?”
“No, I…”
“Or do crochet?”
“No, but…”
“Never mind. Stick out your tongue.”
Resigned to the fact that she was talking to a lunatic, Roxy stuck out the tip of her tongue in the most ladylike way she could manage.
“It’s not very long, is it?” Eris frowned. “Can’t you stick it out any further?”
“You mean all the way?” Roxy had always been embarrassed by the length of her tongue.
“All the way, yes.”
Roxy’s tongue protruded to its full, unexpurgated length.
“Can you touch your nose with it?”
“Eathy.” She curled her tongue up until it touched the tip of her pointed little nose.
Eris breathed a sigh of relief. “Excellent—you’ll do perfectly! Who are you, by the way?”
“My name’s Roxy Silverstein. I’m a student of, ah, psychology.” She mumbled the last word
“A student of what? Psychology, did you say?”
“Well, parapsychology, if you must know. Telepathy and that sort of thing. But it’s all very scientific.”
“I’m sure it is.” Eris nodded vigorously. “I’m a psychic detective, you know. But I can’t do it without an assistant, and my last assistant just did a runner. She left me a note this morning saying she had to go back to Europe.”
Roxy looked puzzled. “An assistant? I thought psychic detectives always worked alone. Like you have to tune in and pick up the etheric vibrations, or something.”
“Yes, that’s right. But I’m what they call an ecstatic visionary. The only time I can pick up etheric vibrations is at the height of orgasm. That’s why I need an assistant, you see—I can’t concentrate on two things at once.”
“I see.” Roxy did see, too. She saw how a long tongue and dexterous fingers might be important prerequisites for this particular job. She also saw that Eris King was as nutty as a fruitcake. Nevertheless, it sounded like fun. “Okay, you’ve got yourself an assistant.”
But Eris wasn’t listening. Her eyes were darting around the chapel again. “Shhh…we need privacy. I haven’t told you the whole story yet.”
The leather-clad brunette grabbed Roxy and ushered her over to a confessional. Before she knew what was happening, Roxy found herself sitting in the sinner’s seat. A second later the screen opened and she saw Eris on the other side of the grille, sitting in the priest’s place.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone