AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"Think you can hold down the fort while I kick some ass, fuzzball?" I pulled on my leather boots with more force than necessary. He blinked slowly, the white streak in his fur a mirror to my own that ran through my jet black hair. We were two freaks in a world that didn't quite know what to do with us.
Smudge chortled softly, and I swore he understood every curse word that flew from my mouth. "Yeah, thought so. Let's just keep the skunk-spray to a minimum today, okay? We've got assholes to hunt and asses to kick." I slung my bag over my shoulder and the cool air hit me like a slap to the face, sobering and sharp.
"Shit," I muttered under my breath, staring down at the welcome mat that was anything but welcoming. There it was—a small red box, inconspicuous and yet glaringly out of place among the usual junk mail and flyers.
"Smudge, you seeing this?" I nudged the box with my boot, half expecting it to tick like some cliché movie bomb. Smudge only sniffed at it with disinterest before sauntering back to our door. "No help, as usual."
I squatted down and the rain pelted my back, tracing rivers along the contours of my leather jacket. My fingers itched to pry open the lid right then and there, but something about the box felt too... intentional. A puzzle meant for me, a lure to reel in the curious cat. But hell, curiosity hadn't killed me yet. Time travel had that perk—I always landed on my feet…. Eventually.
The box hadn’t been there four days before- well, my four days before- the first time I lived that day.
"Fine," I swiped the box off the mat. I tucked it into my pocket and the edges dug into my thigh—a constant reminder of the unknown nestled against me. My mind raced with possibilities.
Could be a gift. Could be a threat. Knowing my luck, it’s probably both.
"Alright, let's not let this spoil the party." I patted my pocket, ensuring the box wouldn't fall out as I picked up the pace. Whatever was inside that box, it'd have to wait—there were bigger demons to chase than whatever Pandora's bullshit was waiting for me.
Today wasn't about surprises or my twisted past; it was about a little girl whose face wouldn't stop flashing behind my eyelids. She needed me to be the hero, and hell, maybe for once, I could be.
I shook my head, banishing the shadows of doubt as I locked the door behind me.
Nothing like a little kidnapping to spice up your day, huh?
This was personal. Someone messed with the wrong PI, and they were going to pay. Whether it was with their secrets or their blood didn't really matter to me.
When it came to surprises, most people got flowers or candy. Me? I got cryptic boxes and the chance to play savior in a city that chewed up heroes and spit them out without a second glance.
Lucky me.
I pulled the collar of my jacket up around my neck. I didn't bother with an umbrella. It felt like a shield I didn’t deserve, not when that little girl was out there somewhere, scared and hoping.
Chapter
Two
The sky pissed rain like it had a grudge against the city. I bolted through the soggy playground and mud splattered up my calves—just fucking great. The park buzzed with squealing kids and hovering parents, but there was no sign of the curly-haired moppet or the sick fuck who'd snatched her.
"Shit," I hissed and surveyed the area. My hand found the steel hidden under my jacket, a comforting weight as I retreated to my unmarked car, the leather seat cool from the rain.
"Show yourself already," I grumbled and eyed the swing sets with irritation.
My hands trembled as I tried to steady my racing thoughts and push away the anxiety that bubbled up inside me. I caught a glimpse of something red in the corner of my eye and immediately flicked to the mysterious box that rested on the seat next to me.
"Fine, you win, you inanimate bastard," I sighed and gave in to the itch in my fingers to rip it open. The lid came off with an almost sensual ease- which is how you knew it'd been way too long since the last time I'd gotten laid.
In a single agonizing moment, I was completely oblivious to the man and girl in front of me.
"Fuck." The word exploded from my lips, punctuated by a surge of adrenaline and fear.
The paper crackled under my fingers like an autumn leaf destined to crumble. I pulled out the newspaper clipping, and even in the dim light of my car, I could see it—the headline that had haunted my childhood dreams: "Local Woman Vanishes Without a Trace."
"Twenty years," I whispered and traced the faded print with a finger that trembled. "And still no fucking closer to the truth."
But it wasn't just any old clipping. No, fate—or whatever dickhead was playing games—had a sense of irony twisted enough to make me respect them.
"Jesus Christ…" The words got caught halfway up my throat, tangled in a web of memories and curses.
I had to shove the box away; the weight of it was suddenly unbearable. But as my gaze snapped back to the present—a clusterfuck of laughing kids and doting parents—it landed on something far more pressing.
