INK: Abstraction Read Free Page A

think
you’re smarter than that. She was spending an awful lot of time
in L.A. with him.” She puts her hand above my elbow and gives a
gentle squeeze. “Anyway, this isn’t what we need to be
worried about, we need to focus on finding her, and that’s what
I’m going to do.”
    She pulls me into a hug
and I stiffen. There’s something about this that feels wrong.
Possibly that she has the emotional acuity of a garden tool, but she
is trying to comfort me and I can appreciate that. “Thank you
Miranda, call if you hear anything.” I pull my lips into a thin
line.
    “You’ll be
the first one I call,” she reassures me while offering a
consoling smile. “We’ll find her and put an end to her
pain.”
    Miranda looks back at
me once more before closing the door. I run my fingers through my
hair. The madness is getting to be too much. All I want to do is find
her and hold her and stop sitting around here with my dick in my hand
waiting for something to happen.
    “Hey, how are you
holding up?” Trish’s voice pulls me out of my pool of
self-pity.
    “Not good, how
about you?” I can’t manage a smile.
    “Not good.”
She sits down at the breakfast bar with me and starts picking at a
doughnut. “No news?”
    “No, nothing.
Although, Carl’s thinking about doing something where he says
he’ll be able to talk with her. At least possibly find out if
she’s still alive.”
    “Really?”
She raises her eyebrows. “What is he waiting for?”
    “I guess it’s
pretty dangerous, so he’s trying to decide whether or not he’s
going to do it.”
    “Fuck that! What
is he, some kind of pussy? If he can save her, then why hasn’t
he already done it?” She gets irate and drops the doughnut on a
napkin. She stands from the stool. “Where is he?”
    “He’s
meditating, and I’m pretty sure he’s just trying to
prepare for whatever it is he’s going to do. Something about
astral projection or some shit.” I put my hand on her arm to
keep her from giving him a rude awakening. The last thing I need
while he's trying to prepare to help Shay is him being a victim of
Hurricane Trish.
    “Well, he’d
better make it snappy. We don’t know how much longer she has.”
Trish sucks in her bottom lip trying to hold back the tears. “That
is if she’s even still alive.”
    “Don’t talk
like that. We can’t give up on her; she wouldn’t give up
on us.”
    Trish cuts me a hard
look. “Hasn’t she though?”
    “No, she hasn’t.
Regardless of everything that’s happened, she never gave up on
either of us,” I bite back, angry with Trish for suggesting
that Shay has given up.
    “I for one am not
giving up on her.” McNab comes in from the patio.
    Trish and I stand
silent for a moment, waiting for McNab to say something more
inspirational.
    “I’m not
throwing in the towel. I know she’s going to be ok, that we are
going to find her and bring her home,” I say, trying to
convince everyone in the room including myself.
    “Good, she needs
you right now, Eli. You need to really focus your thoughts on her in
a positive way. If you don’t believe in her, she’s going
to feel it.” McNab raises his eyebrows to make his point.
    “Isn’t
there something that you can do? I mean, you are into all this
paranormal shit, why haven’t you done some sort of ritual or
sacrifice a fucking chicken to find her?” Trish asks.
    McNab rolls his eyes
and looks at me as though I could help Trish understand or help him
understand Trish. Either of which would be impossible.
    “I’m
ready.” Carl comes from the hallway with his standard serious
expression laced with worry.
    “You’re
sure about this, Carl?” McNab asks.
    “I need to know
she’s okay.”
    “Thank you Carl,
really, thank you.” Relief floods me at knowing that he’s
going to be doing something.
    “I thought you
didn’t buy into all of this.” McNab raises one eyebrow.
    “McNab, if you
told me that cutting off my right arm could get her back,