Free INK: Vanishing Point (Book 2) by Bella Roccaforte

house, I will
get to Gabriel and no one can stop me.
    Carl’s face flushes with reds and
purples and I hear the voice in my ear, “That’s it, my
love. Feel the power within you.”

    ***

    Eli
    Sitting in the living room watching the
game, I can’t stop myself from stealing glances in his
direction. This guy is creepy quiet. I’m not buying into this
paranormal shit. Aiden shot Shay plain and simple. I don’t know
why, but I’ll be damned if he’s going to get near her
again.
    Carl is a little too sympathetic to
Aiden, but the cop outside isn’t. He’ll keep him away
from her. That is if Aiden ever comes back. I seriously doubt he’ll
be showing his face around here anytime soon. He doesn’t know
what she does or doesn’t remember, just left her there alone
bleeding. She could’ve died.
    The theory that Shay stabbed him just
doesn’t make sense unless she was protecting herself. Leave it
to her to bring a knife to a gunfight; that’s my girl. A laugh
escapes on a breath. Carl glances in my direction with a hint of a
smile. Shay couldn’t hurt a fly and I know she would never harm
Aiden or she would have killed him already.
    I tick my head in Carl’s
direction, “Good game?”
    He nods coolly, pretty typical for this
guy from what I’ve seen. I focus back on the game, Miami is
tearing Syracuse a new asshole. In my peripheral vision I see Carl
shoot forward from the couch, throwing his water bottle onto the
coffee table.
    “What the hell?” Who throws
an opened water bottle on a table? I turn to tell him he’s an
asshole; I don’t care how big he is and I see his face.
    Carl is turning three shades of purple
and grasping at his throat. I have to help him; he’s choking.
“What were you eating?” I'm trying to figure out what
could be lodged in his throat. I try to get him to stand so I can try
the Heimlich maneuver. He shakes his head and points to the hallway
where the bedrooms are.
    “I don’t understand; let me
help you.” I pull at his arm to get him to stand.
    He shakes me off and sputters out,
“Shay.”
    “Shay? What about Shay? Dude,
stand up so I can help you.” I’m totally freaking out
this fucker is going to die in my living room and he won’t let
me help him.
    “Wake Shay,” he’s
barely able to gasp the words.
    “She isn’t going to know
what to do; let me help you.” I tug at him some more; I wish he
wasn’t so damned big.
    Carl points at his neck. I stumble
backward looking at him in total disbelief. I rub at my eyes to clear
the madness, but it’s still there. I can see the depressions on
his skin, there are invisible fingers digging into his neck, pushing
on his Adam’s apple. I shake my head “What the fuck is
that.” I'm astonished, frozen in place.
    “Wake.” He rasps.
    Shaking my head in confusion I back away
and run to the guest room and burst through the door. Shay is curled
up on the bed asleep but restless. “Shay! Wake up! Get up!”
I pull on her hip to turn her to onto her back. “Shay!”
    Her eyes flutter open, “Eli,
what’s wrong?”
    “Jesus Christ!” I jump away
from her off the bed. Her hands and arms are bloody. “You’re
bleeding.”
    “Eli?” Her eyes are heavy
and she’s confused by being startled awake. All I can do is
look at her hands and back toward the door.
    Carl rushes in and goes straight to her.
Her face washes in guilt and she can’t look him in the eye.
“Carl?” She puts two fingers up to his neck where it is
raw and red, “Oh God, I didn’t know.”
    “I know you didn’t, but it’s
about time you did.” He takes one of her hands, looking at the
blood. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”
    Her eyes round out with fear at seeing
the blood on her hands, “Oh God, oh God,” She chants
pulling her knees into her chest and her shoulders to her ears,
making herself as small as possible. Carl wraps his arms around her
to comfort her.
    “It’s okay we’re going
to figure this out.” He rocks her and turns to me.