Welcome to the cereal serial version of Octave of Stars! Episodes will release every Monday and Thursday. If you’re finding this story for the first time, be sure to start at Episode 01 for maximum comprehension, or check out The Index for all available Episodes.
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Gayle offered to buy him lunch, and he gratefully accepted. They were quiet for most of the ride there, thoughts and feelings smoldering away and swirling around.
Ash spoke up, almost startling her. "When I came to the diner, the evening that Cas went missing, did you already know what had happened?"
"No, I didn't. I called Lumina right away after you left. My gut told me somethin' was wrong, but I had to talk to her first. She didn't know for certain 'til the tape arrived the next mornin'. That's when I called you and had Azalea meet you after she got off school."
"That makes sense," he said. "Thanks for that to-go dinner, by the way. It was great."
Gayle didn't smile. "Glad I could help."
Ash slid into the booth at Grace's, which felt familiar. Having Gayle scoot in across from him definitely didn't. She accidentally bumped him with her long legs while getting settled. "Sorry hon." Ash opened his mouth to say something dismissive, but didn't get a chance.
"Well, ain't this just a treat," the waitress who appeared by them said. She was a short, younger woman with cropped black hair and sported bright red lipstick. "Can't even stay away on your day off, huh Gayle?"
Gayle grinned at her cohort. "Angie, you know the reason I work here is to get a discount on the fabulous cookin'."
"Sure enough," Angie said, giggling. "I didn't know you two were friends, though."
"I'm helpin' him out with some personal stuff." Ash nodded in corroboration. She hadn't hesitated, he could learn something from her quick thinking.
"I got it. Ash, speakin' of friends, where's Cascadia? Haven't seen her in a while." She took on a wry expression. "Are you two fightin' or somethin'?"
Ash willed himself to look as unassuming as possible. "No, we're fine. She just had to go away for a while." It was getting easier every time. Hopefully his confidence would deflect any follow-up questions.
"Well, say hi to her for me. What'll it be then?"
Gayle rapped on the table. "I'll have the twenty-seven."
Angie scribbled it down. "Ash, your usual is… the eighteen, right?"
Ash put his hands on the table, struck by a strange fancy. "Actually, I'd like three eggs sunny-side-up, with a bowl of granola, whole milk, and a glass of orange juice. Please."
"Sure thing," Angie replied, noting it all on her pad. She made no indication she recognized that specific set of items, but another seasoned waitress did. "I'll be back with coffee in a minute."
After she had gone, Gayle looked pensive. "Feelin' nostalgic?"
His eyes fell on the table. "Yeah. We've spent nearly every day together for… over ten years now."
Gayle wanted to pat him on the shoulder, but he was too far away. She settled with the comfort of silence.
The door opened and a trio of new customers filed in. "Howdy y'all!" Angie chirped.
Gayle shook her head. "Just for the record, I got hired way before her. She started talkin' like that when she saw how many more tips I get."
Ash couldn't help the grin that took over his face. His partner was being held captive, his world was turned upside-down, danger was afoot, but despite all that, Gayle still kept her optimism. And her confidence.
Angie brought coffee and Ash took a sip, then remembered he had ordered an orange juice and pushed the cup away. He was still feeling energetic from the morning's exercise and decided to run with it. "Well Gayle, it just isn't fair," he said, folding his arms.
"What's that?" She raised a sharp eyebrow.
"You know so much about me, and I can't say I know nearly as much about you."
She chuckled, leaning back in the booth and pushing a stray wisp of her pale blonde hair back into a clip. "Well, I only know what I've learned from talkin' with you here, and what Lumina told me about you and Cascadia both, but that ain't much. Since we'll be workin' together, though, you're right, we ought'a get to know each other a little better." She was relieved he had broken the ice. Getting customers to talk about themselves was easy, but this was different. Ash knew her for what she truly was, and she wanted him to know who she was as well.
Gayle took a swig of coffee, setting down the cup with her slender fingers. "I grew up in Texas, but my family was from Georgia. We had a ranch, hundred and twenty-five acres of grass and rocks. But plenty of wind."
Ash realized they weren't exactly in a private location, so he would have to speak carefully when it was his turn.
"I remembered one year, on my ninth birthday, the storm clouds were rollin' in from far away, and I wished it wouldn't rain on my party. I wished so hard, the clouds went right around our house, even though the weatherman said it was definitely gonna rain that day." She paused, a wistful look in her eyes. "And yes, I got a pair of pink cowgirl boots with rhinestones on 'em that year."
Ash chuckled.
"Then, I grew up." Her mirth faded quickly. "I graduated from our high school, got a job at the only grocery store in town. I met a fella there, but…" She shook her head. "He turned out to be Mr. Wrong. After the divorce, I moved up here." Ash came up short. She had never mentioned being married before, much less divorced too. "Thank the Lord it was just me and no littles too. Then I started workin'," she gestured to the room around her, "and I started findin'… community." She gave him a knowing glance. "Weren't long before Lumina found me. And… that's about it."
He wasn't sure where to start. "I'm… sorry about the divorce," he said quietly.
"Don't be, please," Gayle replied quickly. "What's past is past." She waved her hand, as if she could swat the memory away. "Here and gone, just like the wind. I'm used to it."
"Here y'are!" Angie crowed, standing beside them with an armful of food. Gayle's plate was loaded with pancakes and eggs, sausage and potatoes, while Ash's custom order was on a small tray to hold the individual vessels. "Anythin' else, just holler."
After Angie had been thanked and left, Ash pulled his tray closer to him and clasped his hands, closing his eyes to say Grace. As he finished with the Sign of the Cross and kissed his fingertips, he noticed Gayle was praying too. Her lips moved with silent thanks for a few moments longer, after which she opened her dark green eyes and noticed his gaze on her.
"Looks like you got the Cascadia Special," she said, picking up her fork.
Ash took up his orange juice and raised it in a toast. "To Cascadia," he said solemnly.
Gayle toasted with her coffee, warm mug against cold glass. "To Cascadia," she returned. After they drank, her voice dropped. "We'll get her back, hon, one way or another. Don't worry."
Ash prayed she was correct. Conversation picked back up as they ate, in between bites.
He resumed the thread. "Do your parents know?"
"Nope, I worried 'em enough when I was young. I was a daredevil even before I learned not to be afraid of fallin' off of things. My sister and me, we told each other everythin', but she…" Gayle let out a breath. "She's keepin' the secret for me in Heaven now."
Ash said another prayer, this time for the soul of Gayle's sister. The lady across from him pushed her eggs around with her fork. "Alright sir, it's your turn. Gimme your life story."
He set down his spoon. "Oh gosh. Well, I was born and raised just north of here. Cas and I met in second grade, so we've known each other for nearly forever. But, we didn't hang out at first, just saw each other around school. We didn't know about each other's… gifts until later, until…" He swallowed. It was harder to recall this than he thought it would be. "None of my family knows at all, or, I don't think they do. In a way, that made things worse." He paused. "I got in a lot of trouble as a kid. I was pretty lonely. My parents were too drunk or stoned to care, and my brothers and cousins were too busy dealing to do anything I wanted to do. So, I decided to act up the best way I knew how." He gave her a deliberate look. "I always brought gas and a lighter, but if it went out or didn't burn, I helped it along. By the time I finished junior high, I'd been brought in nine times for arson and disturbing the peace. But that was where it ended, fortunately."
Gayle said nothing, just studying him with her usual half-lidded expression.
"My brothers wanted to get back at one of their enemies, so they told me to burn a shed where they were keeping their stash. So I go to do it, and as soon as it really starts taking, water just starts dumping out of nowhere. Cas comes stomping around the fence shouting at me, saying she's been watching me and any fires I start, she'll be there to put them out."
Gayle had closed her eyes, smirking as she envisioned this scene.
"And we've been friends ever since. It was really nice to finally have someone we could be fully honest with, you know? After graduation, she went to college and I… I tried a couple of different jobs, but they didn't work out. I was still living at home, since most of my brothers had moved out." He idly cut an egg with his fork. "Then, I decided to go to school, and the apartment next to hers opened up, so clearly God was telling us to stick together." He turned away from her gaze. "When I quit school, she kept going, and… here we are."
They continued to eat. "That's somethin'," Gayle said after a while.
After the initial revelations, the two Stars kept the conversation light for the rest of their meals, which felt odd to Ash. He felt guilty, like he was ignoring Cascadia, but would she want him to just mope around all day? He didn't think so.
Gayle's phone rang, she fished it out of her jeans pocket. "Lumina," she said, then answered it. "Howdy…" Ash watched and listened. If the diner was quieter, he might have been able to make out Lumina's voice, but not as it was. "Oh, that's wonderful. He'll be so glad to hear that… Yep, I'll pick her up on the way there… Alright, see you soon." She pocketed it. "I hope you understand what all that means."
Ash nodded.
"We'll talk in the car." She got her leather wallet out to count bills and coins on the table. Ash noticed Angie had not returned with their final bill, and wondered if Gayle knew the exact total just by what they had ordered. He wouldn't put it past her.
He pulled out his wallet as well. "What's my half? I got a little extra from what she usually had."
"Now, I said I'd pay," Gayle admonished.
"I know, but you don't have to," Ash said. "It's fine."
"No, I insist," Gayle said loudly, then her voice dropped again. "This's the least I can do to make things up to you, hon."
Ash frowned. "Make up what? What did you do?"
Gayle's mouth turned down as well. "It's what I didn't do."
Ash looked her directly in the eye, his gray stare surprising her. "This isn't your fault, Gayle. Don't blame yourself." He picked up the largest bill she had set down and placed it on her side of the table, then replaced it with one of his own.
Gayle did her best to smile. She watched as Ash added more folding money to the pile. "That's a little too much, now."
"Great, I wanted to leave a tip."
"Good grief, don't encourage her…"
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As they left the diner, Gayle greeted the regulars she walked past, and Angie called out twangy goodbyes from the counter. They had hardly pulled away from the corner when Ash heard a siren and saw flashing lights in the mirror.
"Just great," Gayle said, maneuvering into a parking space. "Stay cool," she said, then smirked. "Both kinds, please."
"Did you forget to signal?"
"Nope." She rolled her window down with the crank on her side. Ash did the same on his. "Be a dove and get my papers from the box?"
"Sure thing."
Ash pulled out a folded registration form while Gayle got her wallet out of a jacket pocket.
The officer approached the window, a middle-aged fellow whose stature suggested he had done most of his work behind a desk recently. "Howdy officer," Gayle said, holding the papers and license out the window as elegantly as ever. "There a problem?"
He took them from her gently. "This your car, ma'am?" he answered, his voice level.
"Sure is, ain't she a beaut?"
The officer wasn't amused. "Thank you ma'am."
"My pleasure, but, if'n you don't mind, what's the occasion?"
The officer raised his notepad. "This car was reported stolen last night. It's registered to an Abigayle Earhart, who appears… to be you."
"I was when I woke up this mornin', officer," she said sweetly.
The officer frowned. "There must have been some kind of mistake. I'll check this out and be back with you shortly."
Gayle nodded. "No worries at all."
As soon as he had retreated to his car, Ash spoke up. "Is that the best Frost can do? Really?"
Her voice returned to its normal tone. "Not the worst we've dealt with."
"Wait, so they already know who you are?"
"Yep, and you can bet they know you too. Hard to watch Cascadia without watchin' you."
He would have to go back to always looking over his shoulder again. "So any of us could be next, then?"
"Not you or me, that's for certain."
"Why's that?"
She leveled her gaze at him. "After Lumina, we two are the most dangerous Stars around. They try to take you, they end up in the burn unit, or worse. They come for me…" She looked back at the road. "I'll level the block before they touch me."
Ash regarded her warily. He didn't doubt her words for a second.
The officer resolved the mistake quickly enough and apologized for the trouble. Gayle handed her paperwork to Ash to put away, including her license, so they could get going quickly. He examined the plastic card and noticed multiple things. First of all, her full name was indeed Abigayle D. Earhart, he had to remember that on the off chance he needed to scold her. Next, the Gayle in the photo had her hair down, it fell straight around her head and shoulders, but she had the same calm expression on her face. He also couldn't help but glance at her birthday, something he had always been curious about, but would never have been so dumb as to ask directly. According to the piece of plastic, she would turn thirty-one in just a month. He would have to remember to wish her a happy birthday.
"So, Lumina called," she said, annoyed by the interruption. "She thinks she's figured Cascadia's whereabouts."
"That's great!" Ash said, allowing himself to be excited.
"Emphasis on, she thinks. She ain't certain. But it's the first lead we've got, and we ought'a take it. We're goin' to pick up Azalea now, and we'll all meet back at the library to talk strategy."
"Wow," Ash exhaled. "That's a little scary. Where does she think it is?"
"A warehouse down in the river district."
"Seriously? Do I need to get my trenchcoat and fedora?"
"If'n you wanna."
Octave of Stars is currently airing on Substack for free, with two of the 45 total posts per week. It’ll be fully released at the end of April 2024. If you don’t want to wait that long, you can get the entire story right now, in either Ebook or paperback. Every purchase supports the ZMT Books mission of family-friendly entertainment.
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