"But by dragging me into it? Letting me start to like Mark?"

"I honestly didn't see that coming."

"No pun intended..."

Coco smiled. Sort of.

"I actually thought that was pretty fucked up of Mark to let that happen," she said. "But whatever."

"Well, I think you and I were both using him anyways to distract us. Me from my past, you from your future."

"True that." She sat back down close next to me. "I just felt that Blake was sucking the life out of me. I wanted to feel a spark. I needed to feel alive again. Mark helped me do that."

Now I felt bad for Coco.

"But I'm done lying and cheating. And you know the last thing I wanted to do was hurt you. Swears."

"I know."

She looked right at me and asked, "Will you forgive me?"

Before I even could, she pulled out her iPad. "This Tumblr might not be as elaborate an apology as Jason's IFckedUp, but I think you'll agree that S.H.A.R.I.'s knee boobs trump all."

"What are you saying?"

"Yep, www.kneeboobs.com!"

"Shut the fuck up! HYSTERICAL!"

There, at the top of the site, was S.H.A.R.I. in all her glory.

Coco had found some other random knee boob pics and uploaded them as well. AND there was a place for other peeps to submit and share their own. (So what are you waiting for?!) "You're freakin' crazy and that's why I love you!"

Coco took a deep breath. "So, we're good?"

"We're good." I lifted up my hand to high-five and we connected on the third attempt. Then we hugged.

"By the way," Coco added, "whatever you said to Blake-because of you, he's at least talking to me now. Thank you."

"Do you think you guys can work it out?"

"I don't know. There's a lot of stuff there that made me cheat to begin with, and now I don't know if Blake can ever get past this. But if you can forgive me, at least there's hope."

"Go talk to Blake. If you're meant to stay together you'll work it out. If not, you'll know you tried." I then repeated something my dad had said. "At least this way you won't be left wondering."

"For sure. And you? I'm not seeing Mark anymore. I swear. He's all yours if you want him. I know he's really into you."

"Honestly, it just sorta feels like being with him would be like Jason all over again," I answered. "I'm going after destiny. Whatever it ends up being. I'll be sure to let you know what happens, Catfish or not!"

"Yeah, sorry about that, too," Coco said. "I was just being protective. I really hope you find Mr. WTF and he's all you ever dreamed of and more."

"Thanks."

After Coco left, I braced myself as best I could before running into the apartment to get my computer and charger. I would then go to Fred 62, an all-night diner, and get back on track with the hunt.

S.H.A.R.I. wasn't home, and I was actually kinda relieved. Everything since my visit to San Francisco felt so drama-free. Maybe it was the start of a trend. Perhaps from here on in, my life would be easy and uncomplicated.

Then again...

Chapter 57.

DAY 12-NIGHT.

Clues I Gathered, and What I Ate at Fred 62 While Spending the Whole Night There Gathering Them By Mags Marclay 1). Someone had actually spotted what very much looked like the Dog with the Polka-dot Tongue, and posted the pic on ISpottedYourDog.com!!! It was taken at the Venice Dog Park, which was not too far from the Villa Seaside Apartments, so it could all fit. OR it could be the third time I thought it was her only to find out it was SO NOT. ("Bearded Mr. Frenchy"-French toast with a crispy cornflake coating.) 2). I found approximately eight more GIANT THINGS in L.A. including a few awesome ones that are no longer there-my fave being some large Mexican figures, which looked like the Bob Baker fiesta marionettes on steroids. ("Hippie Sandwich"-Avocado, thick tomatoes, alfalfa sprouts, and melted jack cheese on multigrain wheat.) 3). I got an email from stripteasela.com-a welcome letter that might have a clue in it!! ("Lil' Bow Wow"-a hot dog from the kids' menu.) I read the email over and over. If this site was only meant for me, Whitney the Victoria's SecretS modelS, and whoever else may or may not be in the running (literally!), then the email that was sent HAD TO be a clue, right? Or was it actually a real site and they just let Mr. WTF put that pic up there of the hunt graphic in the TV screen at the Herlesque Club?

Thank you for registering at www.stripteasela.com. We will send you periodic emails with suggestions of iconic places to celebrate burlesque throughout the greater Los Angeles area. Today's recommendation is quite a find. It's Sylvia, the Stripping Psychic! Go get a reading from her in Arcadia. For every accurate thing she "knows" about you, she'll take off a piece of clothing. Gives new meaning to the Naked Truth!

www.The-Naked-Truth.biz OK, the site looked too cray cray brill to be real, but who woulda thunk a giant boot car would really exist?! There were pics of Sylvia in action, and a poster that stated her skills: "Cunning Clairvoyance! Titillating Tarot! Extra Sensual Perceptions!"

The only other thing I could do was drive all the way out to Venice and hang in a dog park for hours to maybe or maybe not spot the dog that was maybe or maybe not Mr. WTF's. At least I'd get a good laugh meeting Sylvia!

I had just one more day to see if destiny was all it was cracked up to be, and if anyone knew how to get me there, it could just be the Stripping Psychic.

Chapter 58.

DAY 13-MORNING.

Arcadia? What kind of Stripping Psychic lives all the way out in Arcadia? There was a number on the website to call for an appointment, but there wasn't enough time to leave a message and then have to wait to make an appointment. So a surprise visit was def in order.

After a little Google sleuthing, I was able to find her address. It looked like it was right smack in the middle of Santa Anita racetrack. Well, if Sylvia could really foretell the future, perhaps she'd give me a hot tip and I could win, place, AND show and get enough money to move out of S.H.A.R.I.'s.

It was still early enough in the morning that I could ride my scooter on the streets, instead of risking life and limb on the freeways, and get to Arcadia in under an hour, according to Waze's "avoid freeways and toll roads" setting. Colorado Boulevard was a straight shot through Glendale, Eagle Rock, Pasadena, and Sierra Madre, long enough for me to pass TWO Targets, TWO people twirling signs for auto repair shops, and TWO Uncle Sams-in one location! (Hello DIYintheUSA.com! I'll be uploading as soon as I stop!) I spotted FOUR psychic reading places, none of them stripping, but one in a neon-pink shack, and another with a killer sign: Do you think the psychic is giving better readings now that there was new management?

It was hard to hear Waze's sultry robotic directions with my helmet on, so I had to keep pulling over to look at the map, which was even more difficult since my right eye, where the spider bit me, was getting totally swollen.

Once I finally got to Santa Anita racetrack, Waze did NOT tell me to turn into the driveway. Instead, it said to make a right, then another right, and suddenly I was in a total suburban neighborhood with ranch homes and lawns dotted with orange trees and cherry blossoms. The air smelled like candy. Was I going to Sylvia's house?! I rode around until I found the address on an unassuming home with cement bunnies on three stairs leading up to the front door. I was hesitant to pay a visit so early-not even 8:00 a.m. yet-but I only had twenty-eight hours left, so I had to dispense with manners.

I parked my scooter and suddenly heard a loud SQUAWK. I jumped even farther and higher than when the sassy parrot at the food trucks yelled at me and Coco. Could he have been in on the hunt and was now here in Arcadia to continue his avian torture? And then I saw a sight I don't think I'll ever forget. There, on the front lawn of the Stripping Psychic's suburban home...

...were SIX PEACOCKS!! Was this staged for my benefit? Or were these Sylvia's pets? I stared in wonder for quite some time, then started goading them, "Come on, somebody spread their tail. Fan it on out. You can do it. Show me what ya got."

And as if the Stripping Psychic had trained them in her spare time, on cue one fanned his extraordinary tail. I actually gasped.

While taking pics of my new friends, I suddenly noticed through the kitchen window an old woman was eating a fried egg. Was I at the right address? Was that Sylvia's mother? Maybe Sylvia was under new management, too. There was only one way to find out. Should I knock? Or maybe call first? Yes, good idea. I dialed the number I had already input into my phone.

"Hello?" a woman's voice croaked. I could see through the window it was the elderly lady eating breakfast. She had picked up a red phone with a long, curly cord.

"Hi. Sorry to call so early, I'd like to make an appointment to see Sylvia as soon as possible."

"Sure, honey," she growled, "what time would you like to come?"

"Well, I'm actually right outside her door. Any chance she could see me now?"

The woman looked out at me, put her plate down, wiped her mouth with a napkin, then said, "Sure, honey." She opened a tube of lipstick and applied it to her lips, which I could tell were chapped even through the window. "I'll come open the door."

"Oh, wait!" I stopped her. "I first need to know if Sylvia charges for her readings."

"Of course!" she sputtered so emphatically that maybe even some fried egg shards flew out of her mouth. "It's $100.00 an hour."

Fuck. I was fucked. After my bus ticket, the cab ride, all the food fuel I consumed at bus stops and Fred 62, not to mention filling Lola's tank up, too, I had $12.00 and change left. Unless I used the money I had put aside to pay Jason back. But I just didn't want to feel like I ever owed him anything.

"Sorry, I can't afford that," I said. "Would it be cheaper if Sylvia didn't strip? That's not why I'm here."

"Then why ARE you here?"

"I'm... uh... looking for guidance. Sylvia was recommended by stripteasela.com. Do you think she would consider prorating and taking $10.00 for just five minutes?"

"Come on in," she said, hanging up the phone. Then she walked to the door and opened it. She extended her hand to shake mine. "Hi, honey. I'm Sylvia."

WHAT?!?! She looked like she was a fabulous, beautiful stripper... IN THE 1950s!!! She had to have been at least eighty-five years old. The deceiving pics on her website were clearly from decades ago. She wore a short black silky robe, black seamed stockings (like Coco's tattoos but real!), a lace garter belt, and she teetered on open-toe heels. The house smelled like an ashtray, and she now had an after-breakfast cigarette dangling from her candy-apple-red lips.

"Hold on a minute," she said, looking me up and down as she started coughing.

Could she tell I hadn't changed my clothes in days? If so, wouldn't she at least psychically know I had washed out my underwear yesterday morning?

"You're not who I thought. I can't do a reading for you." She started to usher me out and added, "What the hell happened to your eye?"

Damn spider. "Forget my eye, why can't you do a reading for me?"

"Something's missing," she answered, taking a long drag off her cig.

What could she have possibly been talking about?

"The shirt." She finally answered, like she was trying to prove she read my mind. "You're supposed to be wearing a certain shirt."

"OF COURSE," I shouted! "The shirt!! I know exactly what you mean. I accidentally left my house without it." After I described it in great detail (minus the fact that it probably STANK like the Stanktress now), she let me in and led me to the couch, motioning for me to sit. The Today Show was on the TV with the sound off.

She coughed again. It sounded so familiar. Wait a minute... OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had heard that cough hundreds of times when I listened over and over to the message that was on the phone number that was on the receipt that was with the dead chicken that was at the giant rooster!!! The coughs that had led me to the Villa Seaside Apartments!

"Sylvia," I shouted! "You're that SYLVIA!"

"Shhh," she said, as she put her hand on my shoulder and closed her eyes. With her other hand, she touched her heart. Or it could have been her large left breast. It was hard to tell.

I remained quiet as she spent several of my five minutes in that position. Finally, she said, "You have not been lucky in love."

"Well, that's true," I replied.

She kicked off one of her shoes.

"You long for a mate."

Well, who wouldn't if you're unlucky in love? She really could be talking about most of the population. I decided not to answer. She could keep her other shoe on for that.

"You hunt for him," she continued.

OK, now she was getting somewhere. "Yes."

She kicked off her other shoe.

"Look, I know you know all about this hunt, Sylvia. Please tell me more," I begged.

"You've been thinking big, right?"

"Right."

She untied her robe and took it off. I couldn't help but notice that Sylvia had a slammin' body for an octogenarian. "Well, now it's time to think small and focus on the key things."

"What does that mean exactly?"

"Sorry, time's up. $10.00, please."

"Wait, that's it? Just tell me what that means. Who's behind this? Where I can find him?"

She put her one hand back on my shoulder, the other one back on her breast. "You know that you're getting closer, don't you."

"Sure, I guess."

She unhooked her left hose from her garter belt, rolled it down, and slipped it off.

"Well, for $200.00, maybe I could tell you more."

I stood up. "$200.00?! I told you I didn't even have $100.00!"