The sound of something breaking, as if something was shattered. Freya pushed open the door, leaving it wide open, and called out, “Zane?”
No one responded.
Freya was about to walk into the house when Elijah held her back. “Don’t go in.” He stepped forward. “I’ll go in and check, you wait here.” The situation inside the house was unclear, and he was afraid there might be some danger.
Freya nodded.
Elijah went in to investigate. He found Zane behind the couch. The sound just now was caused by a bottle of alcohol falling off the table and shattering. The whole room reeked of alcohol, and there were many empty bottles on the floor. He had no idea how much Zane had drunk. The smell of alcohol on Zane made it like he had been pulled out of a distillery. Elijah frowned.
“Is it Zane?” Freya tried to walk in.
Elijah confirmed with a nod.
Zane must have been in the house for a long while. The curtains were drawn, the lighting was dim, and a ray of light shone in from outside the door. Zane was a bit uncomfortable with the brightness and raised his hand to shield his eyes.
“Zane.” Freya walked over.
Zane squinted at her. Seeing her without any surprise, he said, “Freya, you’ve come to see me?”
He mistook Freya for the spirit of his deceased sister. He chuckled. “How did you manage to bring Elijah along?”
Even though Freya’s ghost had returned, he could still comprehend things. But Elijah was alive; how could he return with her ghost?
Zane scratched his head, unable to understand.
Freya couldn’t stand the strong smell of alcohol and covered her nose. “Go take a shower, sober up. I have something to ask you.”
“What do you want to ask? Just ask! I’ll tell you everything. Do you need anything there? I’ll get it for you…” Zane rambled.
“Wake up.” It was only now that Freya realized that he mistook her for a ghost. Zane was completely unconscious. Seeing him like this, Freya felt both heartbroken and angry.
She went to the bathroom, filled a basin with water, and poured it over his head. The ice-cold water startled Zane, making him scramble up from the floor.
“Ah, so cold…” He hugged himself, shivering. “Fuck! Who…”
“Are you more sober now?” Freya looked at him. “If you’re sober, go take a shower. I’ll be waiting for you outside the door.”
The room was filled with a foul smell from his mess. She couldn’t stand it.
“Are you a human or a ghost?” Zane stared at Freya.
Freya took it in stride. “I’m human. I have something to ask you about Luna. Clean yourself up, sober up a bit, and tell me where Luna went, what really happened…”
As she spoke, Zane reached out and pinched her arm. He pinched hard. Freya winced in pain.
“You feel pain? Are you really human? You’re not dead? Then whose body was it?” Zane’s head was spinning. He couldn’t make sense of all these questions.
Freya emphasized her tone. “Go take a shower.”
Zane had a bewildered look on his face as he thought and walked away. Freya waited for him outside the door. Elijah stood beside her, adjusting her coat. “With him in that state, you probably won’t get much out of him. Let’s go back first and let him sober up.”
Zane’s condition was indeed far from satisfactory.
Freya said, “We’ll need to hire a domestic service to clean up this place.” Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to enter the house.
“I’ll have Evan find someone.” Said Elijah.
Freya knew that Elijah was busy, yet he still took care of these small matters for her. “Thank you,” she said sincerely.
Elijah lightly tapped her upturned nose. “What are you thanking me for?”
Freya gently lowered her gaze. She and Elijah were about to have two children. Deep down, she felt that her relationship with Elijah wasn’t truly that of a husband and wife. Perhaps, it was because they hadn’t been together for a long time.
“Let’s go back home now.” Freya knew things wouldn’t be resolved since Zane wasn’t clear-headed enough yet. So, she followed Elijah’s advice.
Just as she was about to get in the car, Zane walked out.