Ballistic Kiss (Sandman Slim 11)

“Abbot said the spooks had killed some people, but nothing like this.”

I put a hand on Candy’s back.

“You want to get out of here? You didn’t sign up for mass murder.”

“First off, no, I don’t want to leave. But look beyond the blood. What else do you see?”

All I see is debris from destroyed rooms, but Candy shakes her head.

“Look in here. The dining room table and chairs aren’t touched, but everything is ripped off the walls.”

“Maybe the ghosts haven’t gotten to the furniture yet.”

“Maybe.”

She goes around to the side of the house and says, “It’s the same thing here. Pictures and mirrors are on the floor. The clothes are all shredded.”

“The bed is a bloody mess.”

“But it’s not destroyed. And see that chair in the corner? It hasn’t been touched.”

“What do you think it means?”

“Let’s look in another house.”

We stick our heads in through the shattered windows in a couple more houses. They’re about the same as the first ones. Some things utterly destroyed, but others untouched.

“See the connection?” says Candy.

“I think so. Beyond the blood, everything that’s destroyed is personal stuff. Photos. Clothes. Mementos.”

“Someone is very angry.”

Shadows are getting long in the street.

“We’ll know soon enough, I guess.”

We move back out into the street, walking around piles of ripped books, smashed dishes, and flipped cars.

“She,” Candy says. “They. Them. Sounds like someone is having pronoun problems.”

I scratch my ear.

“Have you ever heard of non-binary?”

She squeezes my hand and lets go.

“God, Stark. You’re such a babe in the woods.”

“This is so humiliating.”

“What is? Meeting someone who’s different?”

“No. My whole ridiculous life. I

know everything about monsters but nothing about people.”

Candy hugs me.