Talk about mood changes.
We didn’t say a word to each other until we took our seats on the open-air top deck. We were the only passengers. The driver said we’d wait until the bus filled up.
“Do you think the stuff Madame Destiny told us is true?”
“I don’t know, Phil. I just don’t know.”
“Does it usually come true?”
“I don’t know.”
“I thought you knew all about this stuff.”
“Not really. I only do it for fun. I thought she’d say your family was playing some kind of joke on us. Or I’d be rich and famous. I never expected to get freaked out.”
“But who could she be talking about? Three people? Do you think she means my great-aunt and -uncle and Angel Not?”
“Who else could it be?”
“Did you ever rescue anyone?” I asked.
“No, did you?”
“Does it count when that kid at school lost his balance going down the stairs and I grabbed his backpack to stop him from falling?”
“Yeah, that counts when that’s all you’ve got.”
“Here’s the thing. If everyone is safe when we get back to the house, then we’ll know not to believe it. Right?”
“Right.”
“It was your reading. You need the help of a friend. That friend must be me.”
“It looks that way.”
“Let’s put it out of our minds. It’s another cool story to tell the kids at school.”
“Right…I guess.”
As the bus pulled out, the guide introduced herself and explained how the tour worked. She talked up a storm. I half listened to the words that blared over the microphone.
We passed Reverend Zombie’s House of Voodoo on the way. Nestor couldn’t resist. “Maybe we can go there on the way back?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“No. Don’t ask again.” I had made it clear. Nestor dropped the subject.
The sidewalks were filled with people. I noticed a pretty girl staring right at me. She waved. I waved back. Any other day I would have jumped off that bus right then.
Nestor noticed her, too. “Hey, Phil, you’ve got a fan club here, too.”
“That’s the last thing on my mind right now.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously.” Nestor complains that I pay more attention to girls than to him. Somehow, I just wasn’t in the mood. Madame Destiny’s words weighed heavy on my mind. If only things weren’t so weird at my great-aunt’s house…
My thoughts wandered. I pictured the two of us planning a rescue.
Would we wear capes? Climb the sides of buildings? Fly at the speed of light? Shoot rays from our arms? I laughed out loud.
“What’s so funny?” Nestor asked.
I told him.
“You really are losing your mind.”
We took turns making up rescue scenes—one funnier than the next. My favorite was releasing Aunt Delphine and Uncle Antoine from the locked room but leaving Angel Not there to rot. That was Nestor’s idea. I have to admit he’s got a great imagination when it comes to nonsense. That makes him great as a friend, but it doesn’t fly at school.
By the time we finished our hero fantasies, we were ready to hop off the bus.
First stop: City of the Dead No. 1.