Blacken Page 4

  “I don’t know if this will be much luck either. Anything else on your list?” The woman exhaled forcefully as she leaned into a book, her nose nearly touching the fold.

  He pushed away his own book, sighing in much the same way, “I did have a theory. Something darker if you’re interested,” he waggled his eyebrows, “maybe the town is on top of an ancient burial ground, its victims targeting the ancestors of those who wronged them!”

  She shook her head in disbelief, “Hmm, wow, incredible. And any other theories, Einstein?”

  “Just the usual things; electricity, radiation… Extraterrestrial lifeforms.”

  The redhead deadpanned, “I meant things that could actually have an effect!”

  “We’ve looked at a few of the other variables, I’m just throwing outside-the-box options into the mix.” Owen shrugged, light-heartedly entertaining the idea.

  Avie laughed once, “Yeah. Aliens. Totally plausible. Little green men wandering around, that’s why there hasn’t been anything in the news about any sightings or—” She stopped herself mid-sentence.

  It just clicked in her train of thought. Missing persons, no bodies found.

  Abductions.

  “Holy shit. That actually makes sense…”

  “You’re messing with me, right?” The blond cocked an eyebrow, his arms crossed as he leaned back in his seat.

  Avie waved him off, “No, it’s actually plausible, you said that there were missing person cases in Blacken, but never a body count to go with them. What if it really were aliens doing this?”

  “Drawing people in, and then taking them away?” He was intently staring at her, enamoured with the woman running with the idea of his.

  She could see her reflection in his oval glasses, expressing the same look of intrigue.

  “Should we abandon this part of the project and see if we can find anything more not of this world?” Avie whispered, leaning forward across the table, meeting Owen halfway.

  “I don’t think we have a choice, nothing else gave us enough evidence,” also whispering back, he was mere inches away from her face.

  Perhaps they were both worried about someone overhearing them, despite the dark and empty library. Skin breaking out in goose flesh across the two of them, they conversed about the paranormal, voices never cresting over a whisper. It was a far-fetched idea, but then again, the whole town’s situation was just as such.

  Excitement rose as they continued to speculate, the only thing that took a hold of them enough to connect the dots was the unbelievable. Could there really be aliens visiting Blacken? And if so, why? For what purpose?

  As much as they wanted to find a scientifically plausible answer, this was more captivating, breathing new life into the Dewey Decimal team and their search for answers. It was time to switch gears from searching the abnormal into researching the supernatural.

  CHAPTER 4

  “You were right. Gerald is being a hard ass.”

  Avie slouched on the striped couch, wine being poured into her outstretched glass as she huffed.

  “Wow. Not even a week in and he’s broken you,” Owen laughed before he twisted the bottle in an elegant fashion to stop the flow of liquid.

  They were celebrating Avie’s new job, finally. The blond invited her over for dinner and wine, having a night off from spending time in the library to be able to enjoy the other’s company in a more comfortable setting.

  “Hardly,” she scoffed, “it’s a flower shop. I don’t understand why he needs to create so much mess and hassle.”

  Owen swirled the pale drink it its glass, “But all that mess and hassle got you an apartment. You’re officially a member of Blacken, welcome to the club, Avie.”

  He lifted his glass to toast, Avie meeting his glass halfway with a soft clink.

  “Even more reason to celebrate, good thing we’re getting them all together in one night,” she laughed before taking a sip, pulling a face, “it’s so dry, is this what you usually drink?”

  “Usually, yes,” he took another swig, “I don’t like sweet things, it makes my teeth hurt. I can get you something else?”

  “Oh, no, it’s good wine! I’ll still drink it. Guess I’ve been too spoiled with the sweeter stuff.” She gulped another mouthful, smiling into the wineglass as if to prove her words.

  “Aww c’mon, we’re supposed to be celebrating you! I want to make sure you’re having something you like.”

  Owen set his glass down on the coffee table in front of them, standing and making his way to find something in the kitchen. Avie followed him, still taking sips of the dry wine in an attempt to not seem rude.

  “It’s fine though, see?”

  Opening the fridge, he ignored her words, crouching in the doorway and searching its contents. “Hrm, what if we threw some fruit in it? That’s fancy, right? Might help the taste,” he wondered aloud.

  Avie couldn’t respond.

  The blond waited a few seconds. Realizing he wasn’t getting a reply, he stood upright and turned to face her with an eyebrow cocked, watching in that moment as her shaking hand fell numb and glass slipped through her fingers.

  “Avie?”

  The glass dropped and shattered on the linoleum, Owen hastily moving around the door of the fridge to get to her, mindful of the broken pieces. Her distant expression caused immense worry to wash over him as it showcased to her, blurred in all his motions.

  She went numb, her mind reeling into overdrive and causing everything around her to suddenly halt, caught up in the slew that was her psyche.

  Owen grasped at her shoulders, “Avie! Avie, c’mon, talk to me, what’s happened? What’s wrong?” He tilted her chin up with a gentle thumb and finger, causing her eyes to meet his.

  “It’s back. The vibration. It’s fucking back,” she eventually stammered out, eyes wide in an internal panic.

  “What do you mean? It’s impossible! How the hell do you mean it’s back?”

  “I don’t know, I just feel it! The same as it was when I had to be here. What does it mean, Owen? What does it mean?!”

  Avie was terrified. All the conspiracy theories conversed in the past few days littered there in her mind. They mingled with the foreign feeling, the itching underneath her skin that she knew all too well. It didn’t make any sense; everyone had it stop when they came into town…. She was still in Blacken!

  Were there actually little green men responsible? Were they coming to take her away?

  Were they going to kill her?

  “Whoa, whoa, breathe now, Avie. I’ve got you. I’m here. There are never any witnesses to the disappearances, remember? No one’s going to take you away, you’re going to stay right here. We will figure this out,” Owen spoke as if reading her fears. The thoughts inside her racing as fast as the frequency drummed through her circulatory system.

  He breathed with her, trying to get her to calm.

  Deep breath in, let it go, repeat.

  He held her face in his hands and kept direct eye contact.

  Avie’s breathing started to slow by mimicking the man in front of her, just his presence being a huge help with calming down the intruding thoughts. God. She wouldn’t know what she would have done if she was alone.

  Owen’s hands moved, readjusting the woman’s arms to rest around his shoulders before picking her up. She made a noise, not expecting the action, and before she could ask what was going on, she was set down on the couch.

  “Stay and relax, I’m going to get you some water, I’ll be right back.”

  She tried to focus on a spot across her, the buttercup walls and macramé plants strung up swirled around each other unless she absolutely focused her vision. Grabbing the afghan from the back of the couch, she wrapped it around her shoulders just as Owen returned. Avie sipped on the cold liquid as he sat beside her, rubbing small circles on her back.

  “Was it something to do with the alcohol?”

  “I don’t think so, I’ve had a few drinks before, and nothing h
appened then. Damn it, I can still feel it. Could it really be something beyond our comprehension? Why is my experience with this different from everyone else’s?”

  “Whatever is happening, the rabbit hole goes deeper than expected. This opens up way more questions. I’ve got a heating pad; do you think it might help?”

  Avie nodded, wanting to try anything to relieve the pressure.

  The blond returned with medication and a warm bag, giving her a massage to try and ease the stress and lift some of the vibrating that wracked her body. It took a few hours of distractions and trials, but eventually, the feeling tapered off, much to their relief.

  “I’m sorry,” she spoke from his shoulder.

  “Hm? What for?”

  “I feel like I ruined the night, we were supposed to be celebrating.”

  Owen turned, she readjusted to see his face, “You don’t have to be sorry, Avie. You didn’t do anything wrong. This is an awful thing that makes you uncomfortable. It took over. All I want is for you to feel better. The night isn’t ruined, just interrupted.”

  She smiled, relieved at his words. The guilt hit her hard over the fact she couldn’t do what they originally planned for the evening, all she wanted to do was have a break and a fun night, but it turned into an ordeal.

  “Can we watch a movie? And maybe I can have some of that wine with fruit?”

  Owen chuckled, “Absolutely.”

  They watched an old movie, the hours dwindling into the early morning as they finally enjoyed each other’s company, the sensation finally long passed.

  Owen mulled around the small space, looking for an appropriate place to set the box he cradled in his arms.

  “Would just anywhere for these be alright?”

  Avie watched from where she made up her bed in the next room, seeing him struggle with the heavy box, “Yes, that can go anywhere! Thank you!”

  She smoothed out creases from the satin sheets, glancing out the window, finding that the line of the forest met on the other side of the street. The redhead grabbed an empty box before standing to meet Owen in the living space, looking in tentative apprehension at the mess she would have to sort on the wooden floor.

  A multitude of boxes littered the small space, they piled up on furniture and counter space, leaving the floor a maze to weave in and around. Avie had been able to pick up a few items for her new apartment, as well as have other materials expedited to her new town. The librarian helped out tremendously with a few of the necessities she needed to get by before she could start spending again.

  Owen huffed, setting the container of books and papers he brought from the library down on the ashen kitchen counter; the only thing that separated it from the open living room.

  “I gotta say, at least the kitchen and your bedroom look nice. Your sitting area looks like a hoarder’s den.”

  “Half of the stuff here is the junk you bring from the library! I’ve got nowhere to keep all of it,” she laughed, starting to organize the boxes of various knick-knacks onto a bookshelf in the corner, “are you sure you don’t mind helping unpack this much?”

  “Of course not! I wouldn’t leave you to do everything on your own, besides you were able to get everything in before any snow hit. If it was the middle of winter, you may have been on your own,” he sucked in a breathy laugh, joking around with his friend.

  “Thank you for being such a gentleman,” her tone dripped with sarcasm as she wiped at a smudge on the floral wallpaper, “have you found any other leads for the Dewey Decimal team?”

  Owen thumbed through a few containers of movies, reading each title before packing them in the T.V stand, “Just a few more natural occurrences we can look at. Extraterrestrial and U.F.O information is in short supply.”

  “Damn, it figures. I wonder what happened the other night then? Do you think it will ever come back?”

  “I guess it’s a wait and see. But if it does, call me. I can be over in minutes.”

  Avie nodded, finishing placing items from the box and standing up to stretch out. A whine escaped, drawing his attention to her.

  “We’ve been moving and unpacking for hours,” she glanced at her wristwatch, “it’s almost time for lunch, want to brave the rain and go over to J&K’s?”

  He agreed with excitement.

  Soft music played in the diner as they entered and were seated. The small mom and pop shop had an older 1950’s aesthetic, with black and white tiles, jukebox, neon signs and thunderbird car themed seats. J&K’s was easily the most fun diner in town and had amazing food, of course meaning it was always busy.

  “Heya, Avie!” A woman with dark brown hair highlighted with silver came up with pen and paper.

  “Hey, Sandra! It’s been a bit, how’ve you been?”

  Sandra flashed her eyebrows, pulling a brief exasperated face, “Busy as usual, though it’s good to see ya again. And this must be your friend… Owen, was it? Can I get you two somethin’ to drink?”

  “Just water for me, please.”

  “Same.”

  Sandra nodded, “I’ll come back for your order in a bit, sugar.” The older woman started off to other patrons in the restaurant on quick feet, leaving Avie and Owen to their own devices.

  “She’s never remembered my name before. What have you been up to?” He leaned forward, voice a bit lower as if he were worried the waitress could hear him over the noise of the restaurant.

  “I’m usually in when she works, she’s been on constant overtime because of scheduling mix-ups and call-ins, and we just get talking every time. Sometimes I’ve talked about you with her; all good things, don’t worry.”

  “Sandra always acts like she’s got a bug up her ass. Maybe she can take a lesson from you, you’re always too nice to everyone, I don’t get it.”

  The waitress in discussion walked up and set down their beverages, “Do y’all need a little more time?”

  Owen looked down and away, readjusting uncomfortably and fiddling with the glossy menu; outwardly worried if she heard his comment.

  “I’m good, Owen?” He nodded in response. “The usual for me, please,” Avie sang, handing the pamphlet back.

  “Gimme the Big Breakfast.”

  Sandra scribbled down the order on her small notepad and collected their menus, “Sounds good, we’ll bring that out as soon as we can.”

  “I’ve never seen her on the right side of the bed. She’s really taken a shining to you!” Owen commented, bewildered at her change of character as she strolled away.

  “Sandra’s got a lot of work to cover, and a lot of people who treat her like an expense. Everyone deserves kindness. A little of it can go a long way,” she smiled, sipping on the ice water.

  “Yeah, I guess I haven’t really thought about it. You were the first person to be nice to me, too. But you can’t help everyone, some people are beyond that.”

  The pair began to chat over what happened with Avie the other night, gathering any info they could about what may well have caused her to feel the vibrating pressure again. It was unheard of. If people did feel the sensation again, it was because they left Blacken. The Dewey Decimals had a whole new can of worms added to the mystery, one that caused another detour with the investigation.

  “They examined me at the hospital when I first got here. An MRI and CT scan was done, and they didn’t find anything abnormal, they released me after they got the results. I’m absolutely certain it wasn’t anything else. You couldn’t forget it.”

  “I’ve got to say, I am feeling a little left out. If I just knew what it was like, maybe I could help more, maybe we could narrow some choices down.”

  “You’ve talked to a lot of people about it, right?”

  The waitress returned to their table with food, Owen in the middle of confirming Avie’s question.

  “So sorry for the wait! Anythin’ else I can get ’cha?” Sandra was slightly panting from running around the lunch rush.

  “It looks amazing, we should be all good, thank you!�
��

  “I second that, it’s perfect timing, thank you.”

  Pleasant surprise wrote over Sandra’s features, “Enjoy, sugars!”

  Avie turned her attention back to Owen once she left, “See? She’s already starting to treat you the same way. All because you were giving her a break and treating her like a person.”

  The blond nodded again, mulling over the change in Sandra, “I was starting to think you had a superpower. Or maybe it is.”

  Avie giggled, digging into the chicken parmesan, “I think the world just needs a little bit more love, that’s all.”

  They ate, resuming conversations about the additional wave of vibrating and how they could figure what was causing it to come back. Or even if it would come back again. The woman briefly brought up that she could talk with Jim, even if he didn’t seem to have very many answers to begin with. It may be worth a try. J&K’s atmosphere was bubbling with other conversations, masking their own.

  The redhead picked up on a conversation that came from the couple on her right, “Did you hear? They think Dale went missing…”

  She didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but the conversation was along the lines of what they both were looking into… probably. Keeping concentrated, Avie waved at Owen to be quiet and listen too.

  “What, why? When did he leave? He had such a good job here.”

  “Who knows, maybe he went back to the States, I hear they pay better. It was just a few days ago now.”

  Jade eyes widened, locking them with Owen’s pale face. Her attack was only a few days ago.

  Shit, this wasn’t good. Was it just coincidence? Owen grasped her hand.

  “Owen, we need to do something, I don’t like this. I don’t like knowing people are going missing with no follow up,” coarse whispers fluttered over the table.

  “I know Avie, we’re working on it. We’ll find something soon, there are clues, we just have to follow them.”

  Squeezing his hand, the woman nodded, worried about the fates of those in Blacken, and herself. Who really knew if they would find any answers any time soon? Would it be too late by the time they discovered something?