Page 6 of Investigation of a Quest

“Says the man whose shirt is practically painted on.” Bel pinched his abs, and he had the decency to fake a flinch.

“I see we both decided to play dirty.” Eamon moved his hand back down to her ass, clearly enjoying the Halloween magic lifting their spirits. “So, what should we do first?”

“Let’s get the judging out of the way while I’m focused, because there’s a truck selling hard apple cider calling my name.”

“Sounds like a plan. Do they know you’re a judge?”

“Yes.”

“So, I shouldn’t go inside with you.”

“Why wouldn’t you come in?” she asked.

“Because the actors will probably go out of their way to scare the living daylights out of you to earn their house extra points.”

“Awww, is the great Impaler afraid of getting scared?”

“Yup.” Eamon lunged forward and planted a quick kiss on her lips before shoving her onto the haunted house’s front walkway.

“Sending your girlfriend into a scary home all alone.” She shook her head. “Coward.”

“More like trying to save the actors from broken noses. It’s an unfortunate instinct. You scream, and I come out swinging.”

“Oh my god, stop. You aren’t going to punch an actor because I scream.” Bel grabbed his wrist and tugged her personal cowboy to the front door.

“If they terrify you just to get you to nominate this house, I might.”

“Fine, put your hands back where you want them.” She slid his hand down her hips, and hopeless to resist her, he followed her into the darkness.

“An alien ship,” Eamon marveled as they stepped out of Bajka and into outer space. Bel knew that these homeowners had selected aliens as their theme, but seeing the proposal did nothing to prepare her for the final product. The attention to detail felt a little too otherworldly, and she was suddenly glad that she’d bullied Eamon into accompanying her. This house looked too much like those horror alien films for her comfort.

“Your heart rate has quickened,” Eamon whispered in her ear as he pushed her gently through the décor.

“Shut up.” She swatted his thigh behind her. “Serial killers are a lot less scary than aliens—Oh my god!” she screamed as something fell from the ceiling and slapped her in the face. “Oh my god, nope!” She bolted forward, only to hear Eamon cackle at her reaction.

“Shut up, Mr. Prince of the Night,” she growled when she realized that the trapdoor above their head had released fake human guts to slap her in the mouth. Seemed an alien had disemboweled its first victim, and the way she’d screamed had made her a charming second.

The rest of their tour through the futuristic spaceship from hell proceeded with the same pattern. Something—or someone—scared the couple; Bel would scream, and Eamon tried not to laugh hysterically. By the time they reached the exit, she was exhausted and sweating from jumping out of her skin fifteen hundred times.

“Man, I wish things startled me like that,” Eamon laughed as he took her hand and led her to the hard apple cider truck. “You were having a blast.”

“If you call going grey from shock fun, sure.” She grabbed her brunette curls and shoved them in his face.

“You loved it.”

“I did.” Bel accepted the ice-cold drink as her boyfriend paid the employee. “I cannot believe we were inside someone’s house. It really felt like we were in an alien movie. That craftsmanship. People have too much free time and money.”

“You’re going to yell at me, but watching those actors and trap doors scare you made me want to jump out at someone. The screams I could get.”

“Careful, we don’t need anyone getting taken away in an ambulance. Besides, it wouldn’t be fair to the other competitors. You’d get this house the most votes.”

“Other families are doing mini haunted houses for fun, though.” Eamon pointed to a smaller home that boasted an easier zombie theme. “Wanna check it out?”

“Sure, but no scaring little kids.” Bel stopped by a trick-or-treat station and grabbed a chocolate before hurrying after him.

“If any parent brings a kid inside there, I’ll scare the living daylights out of them,” Eamon huffed, with a finger pointed at a particularly bloody zombie drooling by the front door, and she had to agree with him. This horror house was no place for young children. They’d passed a junior haunted hayride, complete with cute monsters, and after all these scares, she might need to ride it to calm her nerves. Although the hordes of screaming kids terrorizing this street promised the hayride might not be the relaxing trip she needed. Especially since the kids in their adorable outfits were painfully bittersweet.

She sidestepped a swarm of little girls, their mothers chasing after the princess group, and a familiar twinge pricked Bel’s heart. Dressing her daughter for Halloween was something she’d never experience if she stayed with Eamon, and she froze in the middle of the street to watch the feral princesses scream their way to the candy. Despite the eggshells they’d been dancing on since the Triton case, Bel loved Eamon. She couldn’t imagine a life without him, and she knew he was trying. He desperately wanted to be enough for her, and she had Cerberus to dress up for the holiday. She’d bought him a three-headed hellhound costume so he could represent his namesake, and she’d bought herself and Eamon Greek togas so they could be Hades and Persephone with him, but it wasn’t the same. It wasn’t a little girl that she could drape in tulle and pink and then watch explode from a sugar high. These were moments she’d never have. This was what she’d be giving up, and would that haunt her?