"Give me a couple of quarters for the laundromat and we'll call it even." Liz kicked off her boots with a sigh and made herself at home. An intruder hardly seemed like enough reason to be uncomfortable. "It's not the first time there's been blood on it."
She smirked at him over the rim of the beer can, noting the scar on his jaw and a number of other cuts and bruises. "You don't say. I would never have guessed." Ashley J Williams, the name still wasn't familiar. Williams was a common enough name, but there wasn't anyone she knew well enough with that name that they'd have a reason to dump some random person on her. No one who had issues with her that would have considered this a sensible way to deal with it. More likely, it was someone he'd been dealing with and her truck was just random chance. Couldn't have won the lotto, huh? No, no. Just won a no expenses paid trip to Elk Grove, Michigan.
"What's the last thing you remember?" She nodded to the passenger chair she'd vacated. "You owe anyone anything? Anyone dumb enough to think this would send a message you'd actually understand?"
What Ash lacked in brains he made up for in very poor instinct. Which...wasn't saying that much, as these 'instincts' mostly pointed toward 'paranoia'. It's fine, he thought, she's just a normal lady who is definitely not possessed. Deadites couldn't keep up a casual conversation this long. And he was pretty sure they didn't drink beer.
He hesitated a moment later before finally lowering himself into the offered seat. "Huh. Last thing I remember." That was a loaded question. He didn't remember much of anything anymore. "I'll be honest with you, I've been uh...drinking pretty heavily." Ash looked down at the beer in his hand and wondered if it was a bad idea to be saying all this to a total stranger. Then again, it wasn't exactly a secret that he'd been boozing it up all over Elk Grove. How else was he supposed to deal with all the nightmares?
"And no. I don't owe anyone a damn thing," he snapped. "This would be a hell of a way to get payback, wouldn't it? Not exactly the most intimidating move to take my hand and leave me in a random truck."
He tried very hard to think. He really did. There was a hazy memory of muffled noise, cigarette smoke, awful electronic music...but that could have been half a dozen places just within walking distance of his trailer.
"I guess the last thing I really remember is..." He'd been at home, getting ready to go...there had been a knock on the trailer door...
"Alright, alright, I'm comin'. Hold your damn horses." The banging had been incessant, and a spike of anxiety had gone through him for just a second when he considered it might not be a welcomed guest. Ash had quickly pulled the boomstick from its storage place and kicked the door open, pointing it right into the face of-
"Ah shit." He sighed heavily and rolled his eyes. "Chet."
The revelation that he'd been drinking didn't exactly come as a surprise. Just looking at him, she could have guessed. And, having spoken to him, there was very little doubt in her mind. At least he didn't seem like a mean drunk.
"I'm just trying to figure out why the hell you're here. I could just as easily tossed you out and driven on without giving it any thought at all." She said a bit pointedly. "Something to think on before you get snippy about reasonable questions."
Liz dragged a box out from under her bed and dug through it for the proper map. It didn't take her long to find where they were, and a little longer to spot Elk Grove. Mentally running through the possible routes and trying to figure out what would fuck her schedule the least.
I could still dump him here. It's not like I owe him anything. She glanced from the map to Ash and back. Dammit.
"Who or what is Chet?"
