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“Thank you, captain obvious. I had no idea.” I cross my arms over my chest and lean back in my chair. A fiery ball of rage forms in my stomach and my leg starts rapidly bouncing as I struggle to rein it in.
“Don’t interrupt me. I was going to say that you’re blind to the fact that youcan’ttake care of yourself. Not in a situation like this. Even without this direct threat to you, you have a habit of getting yourself into trouble. Only by pure luck have you made it this far.”
“Don’t. Don’t go there. I am perfectly fine on my own! I can absolutely take care of myself. I’m not fucking worthless just because I’m blind!” Moisture gathers in my eyes and I thank whoever created dark sunglasses and their unintended ability to hide my emotional weakness from view. But that doesn’t help the break in my voice, or the quivering of my jaw. I’m about two fucking seconds from a full on breakdown.
“You’re not worthless, Wicked!” Alan shouts at me, making me jump. He takes a deep breath before lowering his voice, his tone far softer this time. “You’re not worthless. You’ve never been worthless, and you never will be. You’re…you’re all I have, Iz. If anything happened to you, I-I don’t know what I’d do.”
A tear falls down my face at the rare glimpse into Alan’s soft side, but I don’t allow it to soften me. It’s not his life that’s being derailed. This isn’t his decision. “He doesn’t want to hurt me, Alan. He protected me in his own crazy, terrible sort of way. I shouldn’t have to hide because of him.”
Alan makes a loud, guttural sound before a loud bang causes me to flinch and cover my ears. “We both know that’s a bullshit excuse. You know, as well as I do, that people like this guy are never content to stay away. It will escalate and escalate until the object of obsession, AKAyou, is all he can think about. All he wants! All heneeds! We’ve seen it happen. We know what their kind are capable of.”
Ignoring the pleading, desperate tone of his voice, I turn my head away, focusing on the pulses from Gizmo and Snitch as they take cover under the desk. “Then you’ll have to fire me.”
“What?” He stops pacing, stunned into stillness.
“I’m working this case either way. And I willnotbe shuffled away into hiding. End of fucking discussion.” I stand, snapping my cane open as I move to the door.
“This isn’t over,” Alan calls at my back as I leave while whistling for Gizmo and Snitch.
“No, I don’t think it is,” I whisper to myself, no longer talking about my safety. At least, not in the same way.
This is definitely far from over.
6
I’m on my third glass of scotch three days later as I contemplate through the haze of my glorious buzz on what the fuck to do. I haven’t been back to the office and I haven’t heard from Alan since I walked out. But I will not be letting it go. This guy has already taken so much from me and he’s just getting started. I feel it in my gut, in the air, in the pulsing of my gift.
It’s only just begun.
No, I can’t see into the fucking future. That shit doesn’t exist, as far as I know. The most I can getpremonitionallyis a general feeling about somebody. Like I can feel the aura of the old lady next door and know that she doesn’t have much time left. I can then feel her granddaughter and know the little cherub has a long, but difficult, road ahead. One filled with trials and errors, but also love and joy.
It doesn’t always work that way either. I can’t see my nana’s timeline, or Alan’s. Actually, now that I think about it, I can’t see anyone’s timeline who I’m close to at all. Maybe it becomes clouded if I come across them too much. Who the fuck knows?
But it would be mighty fucking useful if I could see into the future right now, I know that much.
A knock at the door causes me to jump and I spill my drink down the front of my shirt, making goosebumps speckle over my already chilled skin. It’s late fall, so temperatures are starting to drop and I’m a total pansy when it comes to the cold. With my heat cranked up to seventy-four degrees, it’s still not warm enough.
“Goddamnit! That was good fucking scotch!” Snitch jumps up on my lap and tries to lick at the liquid on my chest–the little shit is always looking for something to eat or drink–but I push him off. “No. Go answer the door, will you?” He squeaks at me in a way that definitely said something along the lines of:you do it, bitch.
“Ugh, fine.” I stand up, placing my half empty glass of scotch on the kitchen island and make my way to the front door. The knocking continues to get louder and more insistent the longer I take to reach it, making me debate slowing myself to a crawl just to spite them. “I’m fucking coming, you impatient twatmunch!”
I know, I’m like, super hospitable.
I finally reach the door, but paranoia keeps me from opening it without checking who it is. I might be slightly on edge knowing someone is out there probably watching my house right the fuck now. Either that, or he’s on the other side of this door ready to snatch me as soon as I open it.
“Who is it?” I ask, but no one answers. I focus on the four muted auras on the other side and groan loudly. “What the hell do you want?”
“Open the door, Wicked. I have a present for you!” Kai’s voice is muffled through the thick wood, but I smile slightly at his excited tone.
“Will I like it?” I question instead of opening the door.
“I hope so, sexy-butt!”
I unlock the deadbolts and pull my chain off the door before cracking it open. “Only ’cause you called me sexy.”
His aura pulses with a pleased amusement before the door shoots inwards and knocks me back a foot. Luckily, I manage not to fall on my ass, but Gizmo and Snitch hiss on my behalf. Their ire being far easier to gain than ease.
A surly and extremely angry aura moves past me, his footsteps heavy and exaggerated with a click of his dress shoes on my hardwood floors. A loud thwack sounds from where he stops, like something heavy was dropped at his feet. “What the fuck, Nic? Get out of my damn house!”
