42- By What Right

When morning came, much to Quayleigh's surprise, Yechiel was still asleep, although at some point he had stretched himself out on the couch.

"He's still here?" Tau whispered into her ear before kissing the back of her neck.

"Good morning to you too," she replied, turning to face him.

"Yes, it is a good morning." A bright smile crossed his lips as she looked up at him, stroking the apple of his cheek with the back of her hand. "I don't want to ever get used to this."

"Something tells me you won't have to," she replied with a wink as she motioned towards Yechiel. "I don't plan on inviting him to stay over for at least a few days. But all joking aside, we should probably get him up, so he isn't late for work."

Reaching up, Tau swept the tips of his fingers out across her forehead and behind her ear, as he muttered, "If you must."

"I must," she sighed and reluctantly slid from the bed.

If truth be known, she had no desire to leave him or the bed they shared. It was warm, cozy, and comfortable. However, she had no desire for an audience either, and with the overstay of their guest, privacy in the bachelor pad was non-existent, and that left only one option.

"Yechi, time to get up," she said as she shook at his shoulder.

With a groan Yechiel turned and opened his eyes mumbling incoherently, "What are you doing here? Mom doesn't let me have girls in my room…"

"Yechiel, come on, wake up! I'm pretty sure you don't still live with your mother."

And then, as if he had been struck by a bolt of lightning, his eyes shot open, and he sat straight up. "I feel asleep! I am so sorry!"

"It's okay," she remarked with a giggle as Tau burst out laughing behind her, both finding his reactions to be rather amusing. "We figured you must have needed the sleep since you didn't budge when I came home last night. Thanks for the food by the way."

"Yeah, no problem," he replied as he calmed down and rubbed at his face. "Still though, I fully intended to head home after we finished watching…" he paused and looked towards Tau, his eyes shifting in thought. "I must have been completely exhausted. I don't even remember what we were watching."

"Well, it doesn't matter. You're here now, so, red bin under the sink for a toothbrush, and I'll get the coffee started," she told him as she made her way into the kitchen.

"I really appreciate it."

"Did you sleep well?" Tau asked, sitting on the side of the bed as Quayleigh filled the coffeemaker with water.

"Yeah. Your couch is surprisingly comfortable, even if it a bit on the short side."

"Hey now, beggars don't get to be choosers," she said as she walked behind them and went into the bathroom.

She had her own morning routine to get through and since no one else was moving, she went ahead, as it would be several minutes before the coffee was ready. When she emerged from the washroom, Tau was in the kitchen watching the coffee drip with his usual curious focus, while Yechiel was checking his phone, still on the couch.

"You're up," she said as she moved passed Yechiel to her closet. "And take your time. I need to get changed."

"Ah, how about I just wait for you to tell me that it's safe to come out," he replied as he put down his phone and went into the bathroom.

"Oh, I like that plan," she replied with a mischievous grin.

Once he had closed the door, Quayleigh changed into a clean pair of jeans, black tank-top, and her favorite fuzzy, mauve sweater, given that it was growing chillier with the changing season.

"It's finished," Tau announced as he watched the last drip fall. "Blue or Sloth?"

"Sloth," she replied, joining him in the kitchen. "Should I let him out or make him wait?"

"As curious as I am to see how long he would remain in there, I do need to use the washroom. It really is very inconvenient how often I need to go in there."

"Welcome to being alive." She smirked as they embraced and kissed each other 'good morning'. "Oh, yeah, you still taste like beer." Turning away from him she raised her voice, "Come out, come out. Coffee's ready if you are."

"You get the blue mug," Tau told Mazurka as he poured the coffee.

"Let me guess, green one's yours?" he asked as he made his way over to the counter.

"How did you know?"

"Green was always your favorite color. It was the foundation of your wardrobe, and aside from that wraith in the parking lot, I've never seen you drive anything that wasn't in some shade of green."

"How odd," Tau uttered as he set down the coffee pot and wandered into the bathroom.

"That got him thinking about something," she remarked while retrieving the milk from the fridge. "He mentioned that you wanted us to go down to the station with you last night, but he didn't get into why. Care to fill in the blanks for me while we have the time?"

He looked into his mug and sighed. "I wanted you to speak with a coworker. If you were up for it. But Harlowe, my partner, he has other plans. Especially after yesterday," he said as he motioned towards the coffee table. "There are pictures in the bag. You're going to want to see them."

After she had fixed her coffee the way she liked, leaving the milk out for Tau, she moved to the couch and pulled the bag out from beneath the table. Yechiel had followed her and explained that he had brought the pictures of the crime scene that she had asked for previous, as well as photos from the hidden camera from the day before. As she pulled the files from the bag and set them on her lap, Yechiel set his hand on top of them, stopping her from opening them up.

"What you are about to see, it's not easy to look at," he cautioned as he slid his hand away. "I don't know what it is. I've never seen anything like it before. Our video analyst, Skye, she's certain that the footage was legitimate and hadn't been tampered with, but in a way that almost makes it worse."

"It could just be an illusion," she remarked as Tau stepped out of the washroom.

"I showed these to Dylan last night, but I want your opinion on what you see."

Opening the file, she held up the first picture and found herself mesmerized by the image.

"How many have seen these?" she asked as she set down the picture and then picked up the next, examining each with her human eye, fascinated by the unfamiliar form of Uroxuz that wasn't lost in the shadow of the room.

"More than enough. Why?"

"You really need to ask?" She looked over at him. "This could cause a panic if it got out to the public."

"Quayleigh, I need you to be honest with me. Is that Death or one of his servants?"

"It's not Death, that much I can tell you. What I can't tell you is what it is based on these pictures alone. As incredible as these pictures are, the details are lacking. It's hard to tell where the shadows end and the being begins. Regardless, it certainly is remarkable and nothing like I have ever seen."

"You aren't afraid," he swallowed as she switched photos again, "of what that could mean?"

"What exactly is this supposed to mean?" she questioned as Tau came and joined them. "You feared what you saw when you first looked at these, probably because it is an unknown? Its purpose, assumedly, to kill. It's motivations, unclear. And so many questions. Why now? Why here? Why kill? Did someone send it? Is it acting alone? Has it been here before or something like it? So many mysteries in an unknown thing. You don't even know if it's an enemy. If it's permanent. If it can be stopped. And what if it is an agent of Death? Then what? What would that mean for you and the rest of us? To be honest, I know very little about Death and his agents. That day, when I was dying on the floor, my blood pooling around me, the day Death loomed over me, that is the only day I was ever able to speak to him. It's true that he gave me his eye, but no matter how many times I've tried, I've never been able to reach him. I don't even know if it's possible. But, if this is an agent of Death, by what right do you have to try and stop it? By what right, do you think you can stand in its way?"

"It's killing people."

"Yes, but that is what Death does. That is its entire purpose for existing. From beginning to end, everything belongs to Death. Can you really judge it for doing what it was meant to do?"

Yechiel stared in silence, his mind working over and through the words she had spoken, the questions she had asked, all while she returned to the pictures and made her way through them, one after the other.

"Well, these were worth the wait," she remarked as she set down the last one and closed up the file placing it back into the bag on the coffee table. "My guess is that this is either an illusion or it is something not previously known to our world. Now, the more pressing matter. Tell me Yechiel, what was it that Harlowe had in mind for me?"