Dissolve (13 page)

I step out of the rusted purple mustang and felt the moisture cling to my skin. It was sticky and humid outside, a storm was definitely rolling in. I made my way into the gas station and frowned at the limited selection of snacks available. What a dump of a station.

The floors were grimy and their selection of snacks was limited to some dusty candy bars and a shelf of multicolored packs of gum. I swiped a few candy bars and sodas before setting my purchases in front of the very strange attendant.

I couldn’t wait to see the bathrooms in this place. An involuntary shutter coursed through me at the mere thought of their condition. Never the less, I was dying to pee and couldn’t afford to wait. I dropped off the snacks at the car, leaving them with Shane and headed the direction of the outside bathroom. The door was locked and I cringed, knowing I had to return to the attendant.

Finally I got the key and made it inside the bathroom. It looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in a century. Everything had a coating of grime on it and the toilet paper was sitting on the sink, slightly wet. I pulled off a tiny piece and wasted no time getting down to business. Then I went to wash my hands and there was no soap or any paper towels.

I decided to forgo the hand washing and opted instead for my pocket berry antibacterial instead. I didn’t feel better until I had doused myself in the stuff and traded seats with Shane since it was once again Nessa’s turn to drive. Shane had remained mostly quiet during this whole ride, although I couldn’t help but notice the looks he was sneaking at Nessa when he thought no one was looking. He was definitely into her.

Once Noah had hopped into the backseat next to Shane, Nessa adjusted the seat and mirror. Nessa settled into the driver’s seat and shifted the eight ball into gear. The car whirled to life and we were back on the highway, heading towards Tennessee. It was Noah who finally broke the silence. He looked at me hesitantly before speaking up.

“What do you think is in Salem? Do you think we will find the creepy man there? What if it is a trap? We really don’t know what we are walking into, I’m just saying.”

“I don’t know man, but the “creepy” man insisted we had to go there to get any answers. We are screwed no matter what so we might as well find out why,” Shane countered.

“True, I think it is our only option. As for what is there, it is anyone’s guess. If I ever see the creepy man again, I will have a lot of questions and he is going to give me answers. I don’t care if we have to tie him down to get them,” Nessa said, jumping into the conversation.

As we passed Atlanta, the storm clouds bore down on us with disconcerting force and the rain had begun. I settled back into my seat with a yawn and drifted in and out of consciousness as I let the sound of rain against the windows lull me to sleep.

At some point I woke to the sound of Nessa shouting my name, panicked. I realized that I had begun to dissolve and snapped back before I lost my clothes. I winced and gave an apologetic look to Nessa, “Oops, sorry.”

“Damn it Cora, you have to learn to control that. What if we had been near any passer-byes? You scared the shit out of poor Shane. He just got his first hand demonstration he was expecting later.”

“Holy crap Cora that is the most bizarre thing I have ever seen. I can’t believe you can really do that. I didn’t really believe it until just now. That is so incredibly freaky,” Shane said dumbstruck.

“Yeah, but not as cool as healing yourself, that is the most awesome ability. I just end up naked a whole lot.”

“Hey, we guys won’t complain,” Noah added with a playful grin.

I gave him a slight playful punch in the arm and pretended to be embarrassed. Really, it was a very flattering comment.

“So, can I see your ability now Noah? Can you look like Nessa?”

“I don’t know to tell you the truth. I have only really mimicked you the most successfully. Don’t freak out, I just needed a cover to see my brother and make sure he was okay.”

“Okay, that is a little too much for me. Try Nessa anyways, let’s see what you have to work with.”

Noah took a deep breath and rung out his hands before closing his eyes. It took several seconds before his hair began to grow and change to a honey blond color. When he looked up, he was the spitting image of Nessa and it sent a shiver through me.

“That is just wrong, cool as it is. Please change back now Noah. It is good to know you can handle it, but I just can’t. It is too disturbing,” I told him.

“Fine,” Noah said as he once again changed back into his old self. “Are you satisfied now Shane?”

“Umm, yes that is also insane. You guys are awesome. I don’t care if it is the creepy man that brought us together. We are like a pack of super heroes. It is fantastic.”

Chapter 12:

None of us had thought of this situation in quite that light and Shane’s optimism gave me hope. Maybe everything would be okay after all. Trying to stay awake, I turned up the stereo to sing to my favorite band. I tried to throw my worries out the window and enjoyed myself for a brief time as we crossed from Georgia into Tennessee.

It was late and the storm had passed when we pulled into a motel just outside of Knoxville. There was barbed wire surrounding the premises and a sign saying “Not responsible for lost or stolen items”. Great, another shady motel, but at least the police were not after us. That was a major bonus especially since we were returning to the state we were running from.

Shane actually volunteered to check us in and we waited in anticipation as he headed to the office.

“Sounds like this ability stuff went okay with Shane after all. I had no idea that he would react like that,” Noah said.

“Yeah well it helps when he wants to rip Nessa’s clothes off,” I said grinning.

“Hey, I might just let him. He is pretty hot,” Nessa joked.

Shane came back with the key and we moved our car to the spots just below room 235. Grabbing our bags, I felt the press of pavement below my feet as we hurried to enter our room unnoticed.

“Did you have any problems getting the room,” Noah asked.

“Nah, they didn’t much care and just tossed me over the key after I gave the clerk cash,” Shane said.

“Good. We really need a good night’s rest since we will be able to make it to Salem by late afternoon. We all need to be at our best. We don’t know what we are walking into,” Nessa said.

“I will take first watch,” I offered, hoping for some time to myself to sort out all my mental clutter.

“Sounds good, just wake Noah for second shift so you can get some rest too. I will take third shift,” Nessa replied.

Everyone bustled around, getting ready for bed, and going through the sack of thrift shop purchases. Nessa bought a flowery sundress to wear and it looked cute. She bought me an edgy black skirt and a sheer black top with tank top to match. It wasn’t much my style, but then again, that was the point.

“This outfit makes me want to get my nose pierced and spend some time at the tattoo parlor,” I said, frowning at the clothing.

“Hey, we can make that happen,” Nessa joked.

“That is very funny Nessa,” I said as I pulled out the knee high black combat boots and black fishnet stockings to match.

“It is better than the plaid cowboy shirt and wranglers they got me,” Noah said as he pulled up the outfit complete with worn leather cowboy boots.

“Oh Nessa, we will pay you back dearly for this,” I said sarcastically.

Of course, Shane managed with another pair of frayed jeans and a Just Do It tee. I somehow thought that they plotted against us but didn’t really care anymore. We were freaks of nature and on the run from everyone under the sun. Style was the least of my worries.

Everyone got settled and I sat in the corner chair while I watched them all fall asleep one by one. Once I was sure they were all asleep, I turned most of the lights out except the soft glow of the bathroom light. Then I sat on the floor and concentrated on practicing my ability.

I pretended once again that I was a small dandelion seed being blown across the warm summer winds and felt myself grow lighter. I felt my particles bubbling and breaking apart until I was weightless. I flooded the area, taking in every inch of the germ infested room and cringed until I noticed something metallic and sharp just at the edge of the headboard, wedged.

With a snap, I reassembled and form. Naked, I rushed to get dressed only to notice Noah watching me intently. I blushed and hurried to throw on my shorts and tee.

“What are you doing up?” I asked him.

“I couldn’t sleep and then I saw you practicing your ability. It is truly amazing,” he said. There was something lustful in his voice but I just shook it off. His eyes never left mine when he asked, “Do you mind the company?”

“No, of course not,” I replied. “I was just trying to occupy the time.”

Then I remembered the metallic sharp object and my eyes widened.

“What is it Cora?” Noah asked.

“Behind the headboard, there is something wedged there.”

I went around to the side of the bed and sat down next to where the object was. There was a small black jeweled handle and I wrapped my hand around the hilt. Then I gently slid it out of its spot. My eyes grew even wider at what I found.

“It’s a knife and there is blood caked all over it,” I told Noah in shock.

A shiver slid over me as I stared at the bloody knife in my hand. I immediately dropped it to the floor and inched away. In seconds, Noah was there, his arms around me. He was obviously trying to calm my frayed nerves, but it was no use. The knife was there, proof of a crime committed.

“Go wash your hands, now,” he insisted.

I wasted no time scrambling up and heading to the sink. I scrubbed at my hands until they were a brilliant pink. Tiny pinpricks danced in my vision and deepen every second. I took a few deep calming breaths and my vision slowly returned. Soon, we had caused enough commotion that we had managed to make Nessa and Shane stir.

“What is going on?” Nessa asked with concern thick in her voice.

“Umm, Cora stumbled upon a murder weapon.”

“What?! Are you sure?”

Noah picked the knife up with his thumb and index finger dangling it up for them to see. Nessa went white and Shane frowned.

“What is it?” I asked Shane.

“Well, that is not exactly a standard issue knife. That is jewel encrusted and very expensive. This is not a premeditated murder weapon. It was more like a crime of passion if I had to guess.”

That made perfect since, though it didn’t make it any less creepy.

Nessa spoke up with a questioning tone in her voice. “Did you see any blood? Maybe did you smell anything unusual?”

“It was mostly dark so I only saw the glimmer of the jewels. It smells rank in here, but I just assumed it was typical shit hole smells.”

Shane went around and turned on every light in the room and then focused on me. “How about now, do you think you could find anything?”

“I can give it a try,” I said.

“Then please try,” Nessa said with a quiver in her voice.

I nodded, and then sat cross legged on the floor all too aware of the three pairs of eyes settled on me. I closed my eyes and repeated the routine that was fast becoming second instinct to me. Before long, I was floating on the breeze of the air conditioning and searching out anything suspicious.

What I found gave me a heart stopping jolt. There was blood everywhere. So much blood all over the floors, scrubbed clean but leaving residue behind. The trail led to the bed and stopped. I knew what to expect and was snapped back when I discovered it.

I stood there naked and in shock for a few minutes, trying to absorb what I just saw. Soon, Nessa tossed me my clothes and I noticed both guys just staring slack jawed. My cheeks turned pink and I rushed to toss my clothes back on, all too aware they were not even bothering to look away. Jeez, it was like they had never seen a naked woman before.

“So, what did you see?” Nessa asked, ignoring the boys.

“Blood, so much blood everywhere and the underside of that mattress is covered. It looks like it was a blood bath in here. I have never seen anything like it except umm Tom,” I said solemnly.

The thought of Tom brought tears to my now glassy blue eyes and Nessa reached out to embrace me. Tears flow freely but I tried to suck it up, place it in a little box of grief and tuck it on a shelf in my mind. Soon the tears dissipated and I turned to Noah and Shane.

“Hope you have got enough rest, because this place is creepy and I am not staying her one more minute.”

They both nodded, equally freaked and we began to hustle around, getting dressed and packing our bags back up. I didn’t say another word until we were back in the car and on the road again.

“I am going to have nightmares from that. It was totally disgusting. I can’t believe they even rent that room out.”

“You’re telling me, I slept in that bed. I am going to be showering for days to get the creepiness off me,” Nessa said.

“Let’s just get to Salem and get this whole mess straightened out. The sooner we get there, the sooner we know what the hell is going on,” Shane replied from the back.