Page 45 of Jacob Michaels is Not Crazy

Andrew looked up at me, shocked.

“So, if you are, you may as well get over that,” I said. “I want to know why you said I smelled special, Andrew.”

“You don’t understand about Esther Jean. She’s—”

“A witch.”

Andrew’s eyes grew wide.

“I’m not scared of her,” I said. “Maybe I’m lucky. I’m her grandson, so I know she would never do me any real harm. At least not on purpose. But I notice that a lot of people around here are scared of her. I don’t care. I want to know things she won’t tell me.”

“Esther Jean would—”

“I don’t give a shit.” I scoffed. “Someone is going to give me answers, Andrew. And it may as well be you since you’re already on hers and my shit list.”

He grimaced.

“I’m scared of Esther Jean,” Andrew said. “Well, I wasn’t really scared of her until I was sure of what she was. I don’t want to be on her bad side any more than I already am.”

I snorted.

“A werewolf scared of a lil’ ole witch.”

He looked down and sipped his coffee.

“Tell me why I smell special.”

Andrew grimaced, obviously having an internal debate, a struggle with himself.

“You owe me.” Maybe that was low.

I didn’t care.

“I can’t.”

“Then don’t tell me directly,” I said. “Tell me without telling me.”

Andrew’s head rose with a quizzical expression affixed to his face.

“Everyone around here is an expert at speaking in riddles and telling half-truths and using subterfuge to cover up dirty little secrets. Surely, with your condition, you have similar experience. So…tell me without telling me. I’m becoming an expert at deciphering that shit lately.”

Andrew’s eyes darted around.

“Goddamnit. Tell me.” I leaned in to hiss.

“I wasn’t really scared of Esther Jean until I figured out what she was.” He blurted it out lowly. “And I wasn’t scared of you. Until…I figured you out. And I’m scared of you the same way I’m scared of Esther Jean.”

I stared at him.

“That’s why you smell special.” He lowered his eyes. “But I wasn’t aware of the reason when I said it.”

This would be the moment where I should tell you that I sat back in shock, as though slapped across the face with a sudden realization. That my whole world came crashing down and I had a sudden existential crisis—that I suddenly realized my whole life was a lie. That I’d been swindled. Bamboozled. That I didn’t know how I could go on living knowing what I now knew. That’s not what happened. I just picked up my coffee and brought it to my mouth. What Andrew said just confirmed the theory I had swirling in my brain.

“You don’t seem affected by that.” Andrew’s brow furrowed.

“It’s been kind of hard to shock me for a few days now.”

Andrew just watched me.