“Oh, hi, darling! It’s good to hear from you,” she said warmly, though distracted. I could hear the bustling sounds of the restaurant in the background. “Ah, yes… one pack of banana rolls with chocolate syrup, right? Hey, Grace, can you take care of Ms. Barley’s order for me? I’m on a call.”

  It sounded hectic on her end, with the hum of voices and clinking dishes filling the space. Mom was juggling her usual rush, but at least she’d taken my call. I just hoped she had some useful news about Aunt Marie.

  “Hello, Aria, darling. No, I haven’t heard from her since her last message about the parcel she sent here,” Mom said, her voice calm but slightly distracted. I could hear the background noise—cars honking, faint music, and chatter from people around her. It was classic city life.

  “We haven’t seen each other yet, Mom. I was hoping at least she would by the shore waiting for my arrival, but no one greeted me, mom.” I replied, my voice tinged with concern.

  “Oh dear, I hope nothing bad has happened to her,” she said, her tone now carrying a hint of worry. A car horn blared loudly on her end, underscoring the chaos around her.

  “Mom, what’s Aunt Marie’s full name? And how old is she? Does she have a husband, or did she recently get married? Does she have any kids?” I asked, quickly firing off my questions as I noticed Charlie, Luke, and Ghram starting to head in my direction.

  “You don’t know your aunt’s full name, Aria?” Mom asked, sounding surprised.

  “I only know her as Marie. That’s all I’ve ever called her,” I admitted, feeling a bit disconnected from my aunt.

  “Her full name is Christina Marie Smith,” Mom explained. “She’s 35, doesn’t have kids, and as far as I know, she hasn’t mentioned getting married or having any romantic relationships.”

  In the background, I heard the sound of plates crashing, followed by muffled commotion. “Honey, I’m afraid I have to go now. I think Grace, the new employee, needs some extra guidance. Take care over there, darling, and call me again later, okay? Bye!” Mom ended the call abruptly, leaving me holding the phone mid-sentence.

  I sighed, pocketing my phone as the others approached. At least I finally had Aunt Marie’s full name, but this means I have to look over with the records again.

  “You okay, Aria?” Charlie asked as he approached, his tone soft with concern.

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” I replied with a sigh as Ghram and Luke stopped in front of me. Gathering myself, I said, “My aunt’s full name is Christina Marie Smith. Does that name ring a bell? Did you come across it in the records?”

  Charlie shook his head. “No, I didn’t see anything close to that.”

  I turned to Luke, hoping for a different answer, but he simply gave a small shake of his head, signaling no.

  “Nope,” Ghram chimed in casually. “But if you want, I can list every Smith in the records for you. There were about 22 of them. I can give you their occupations, illnesses, causes of death, locations, resources—everything. Some of the Smiths are related, and some aren’t. I can break it all down for you if you’d like.” Her tone was confident, almost matter-of-fact.

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  I raised an eyebrow, unsure if she was exaggerating or just showing off, but then Charlie confirmed it. “Among our group, Ghram has a photographic memory and can recognize voices with pinpoint accuracy.”

  “That’s amazing,” I said, genuinely impressed. Some people really do win the genetic lottery. If I had an ability like that, I’d breeze through school without breaking a sweat.

  As we walked toward the inn, leaving the library behind, I caught sight of the orange-tinged-haired guy again. He passed by us in the crowd, his demeanor just as moody and distant as before. His eyes gave everything away—something was definitely weighing on him.

  “That guy,” I said, glancing at my companions. “Do you know him?”

  Ghram, Luke, and Charlie followed my gaze, looking in the direction I indicated.

  “What guy?” Ghram asked, squinting. I tried pointing him out, but by then, the orange-haired guy had vanished into the crowd, and I couldn’t spot him again.

  I brought him up as we continued walking, but none of them seemed to know who I was talking about. Shrugging it off, I pushed the thought aside. Within minutes, we arrived at the inn.

  Ghram immediately went off to find Sky, eagerly playing with the cat as if she hadn’t seen her in weeks. Luke, ever helpful, headed toward the dining area to assist with setting plates and cups. I offered to help in the kitchen, hoping to stay busy, but Charlie waved me off with a grin. “Just relax for now. We’ve got it covered.”

  With little else to do, I crouched down near Ghram, settling onto the floor. I pulled out my phone and started sending messages—one to my brother, another to Beth, and finally to Dad. It felt comforting to check in with everyone, even if I couldn’t fully explain what I was going through. I sent a text to Aunt Marie too, hoping that, this time, she’d respond.

  As I typed, Sky, the cat, padded over to me and nuzzled against my arm. Smiling, I scratched her head gently. Ghram, who had been sitting nearby, suddenly stood up and crouched down right next to me. Before I could react, she reached out and grabbed my chest without warning.

  Startled, I raised an eyebrow. “What are you doing?”

  “Just checking if you’ve got bigger boobs,” Ghram replied casually, her tone completely nonchalant. “Surprisingly, it’s almost flat, Aria.” She said it as though she were commenting on the weather, all while squeezing me like it was the most normal thing in the world.

  I crossed my arms quickly, both out of embarrassment and as a makeshift defense. Before I could say anything else, Charlie noticed and immediately intervened.

  “Ghram, you idiot! What are you doing to Aria?” he scolded, marching over and thumping her lightly on the head with his fist.

  “Ah!” Ghram exclaimed, wincing slightly, but her reaction was far from remorseful. Instead, she flashed Charlie a teasing, mischievous grin. “I got lucky, hehe,” she said with a laugh before standing up and heading toward the dining area as if nothing unusual had happened.

  Charlie and I exchanged a look, still processing her bizarre antics. Turning to me, Charlie apologized, “I’m sorry, Aria. Ghram is... well, he’s weird in a lot of ways and, yeah, kind of a pervert sometimes. But I promise, he doesn’t mean any harm. It’s just... his way.”

  I blinked, still wrapping my head around the situation. “Sure,” I muttered. Weird and perverted summed it up perfectly.

  Ghram’s voice called out from the dining room. “Hey! Lunch is ready! What are you two waiting for?”

  Charlie and I nodded at each other before heading toward the dining room, Sky following close behind.

  I paused and told Charlie I needed to use the restroom. Almost immediately, Ghram jumped in, asking for permission to use it too, with Luke casually adding that he’d join us. The three of us headed toward the washroom together, Ghram in the middle, me on her right, and Luke on her left.

  As we walked, it dawned on me that our heights resembled the fingers of a hand. If Charlie were here, he’d definitely be the middle finger—the tallest. Ghram, just slightly taller than me, would take the ring finger spot, while Luke, being the shortest, would fit as the pinky. The random thought made me stifle a small laugh.

  Ghram had her usual carefree demeanor, hands resting on her head as she whistled, while Luke remained his quiet, composed self. As we neared the washroom, I turned to Luke and said, “You can go ahead. There’s only one restroom, anyway.”

  Luke nodded and stepped inside, but before I could blink, Ghram followed right behind him. I grabbed her shoulder to stop her. “Ghram, what are you doing?” I asked, a mix of confusion and disbelief in my voice.

  Ghram turned to me, completely unfazed. “I’ll go with Luke. It’ll be faster this way,” she said, as if it was the most logical thing in the world.

  “What? No!” I protested. “Give Luke some privacy!”

  Ghram ignored me and called out, “Hey Luke, what do you think?”

  From inside, Luke’s calm voice replied, “I don’t mind.”

  I stood there, stunned. My thoughts scrambled as I tried not to overthink the situation. Maybe they were close enough to not care, like siblings, but even so, it felt…awkward. Deciding not to say anything else, I stepped back and let it go. A few minutes later, the two of them emerged, their hands wet from washing up.

  I shook my head, still baffled, while Ghram shot me an innocent smile. Some people really had their own way of doing things.