"Yes. He made me check it all with my Geiger counter. "
"Ray, why the fuck do you have a Geiger counter?"
"Lily, why do you have a nose stud shaped like a bat?"
Lily ignored the question and picked up the ceramic frog from the night before, which now had a note taped to it that read DO NOT SELL OR DISPLAY in Charlie's meticulous block-letter printing. "This was one of the things? This?"
"That was the first one he freaked out about," said Ray matter-of-factly. "The truant officer tried to buy it. That started it all. "
Lily was shaken. She backed over to Charlie's desk and sat in the squeaky oak swivel chair. "Do you see anything glowing or pulsating, Ray? Have you ever?"
Ray shook his head. "He's under a lot of stress, losing Rachel and taking care of the baby. I think maybe he needs to get some help. I know after I had to leave the force - " Ray paused.
There was a commotion going on out in the alley, dogs barking and people shouting, then someone was working a key in the lock of the back door. A second later, Charlie came in, a little breathless, his clothes smudged here and there with grime, one sleeve of his jacket torn and bloodstained.
"Asher," Lily said. "You're hurt. " She quickly vacated his chair while Ray took Charlie by the shoulders and sat him down.
"I'm fine," Charlie said. "No big deal. "
"I'll get the first-aid kit," Ray said. "Get that jacket off of him, Lily. "
"I'm fine," Charlie said. "Quit talking about me like I'm not here. "
"He's delirious," Lily said, trying to pry Charlie out of his jacket. "Do you have any painkillers, Ray?"
"I don't need painkillers," Charlie said.
"Shut up, Asher, they're not for you," Lily said, automatically, then she considered the book, Ray's story, the notes on all the items in the back room, and she shuddered. It appeared that Charlie Asher might not be the hapless geek she always thought him to be. "Sorry, boss. Let us help you. "
Ray came back from the front with a small plastic first-aid kit. He peeled back Charlie's sleeve and began to clean the wounds with gauze and peroxide. "What happened?"
"Nothing," Charlie said. "I slipped and fell in some gravel. "
"The wound's pretty clean - no gravel in it. That must have been some fall. "
"Long story. " Charlie sighed. "Ouch!"
"What was all the noise in the alley?" Lily asked, needing badly to go smoke, but unable to pull herself away. She just couldn't imagine that Charlie Asher was the one. How could it be him? He was so, so, unworthy. He didn't understand the dark underbelly of life the way she did. Yet he was the one seeing the glowing objects. He was it. She was crestfallen.
"Just the Emperor's dogs after a seagull in the Dumpster. No big deal. I fell off a porch in Pacific Heights. "
"The estate," Ray said. "How'd that go?"
"Not well. The husband was grief-stricken and had a heart attack while I was there. "
"You're kidding. "
"No, he just sort of became overwhelmed thinking about his wife and collapsed. I gave him CPR until the EMTs came and took him off to the hospital. "
"So," Lily said, "did you get the - uh - did you get anything special?"
"What?" Charlie's eyes went wide. "What do you mean, special? There was nothing special. "
"Chill, boss, I just meant will we get the grandma's clothes?" He's it, Lily thought. The fucker.
Charlie shook his head. "I don't know, it's so strange. The whole thing is so strange. " He shuddered when he said it.
"Strange how?" Lily said. "Strange in a cool and dark way, or strange because you're Asher and you're out of it most of the time?"