“I know, I just… I wondered, what if he was out there trying to follow the call too? And I—shit, I did nothing while he probably laid there in the dirt.”
Rhulle wasn’t the one to kill him, she had to remember that. But he did have to seek someone else out in order to feed, a victim that could have been anyone unsuspecting, anyone who potentially did not even go into those woods that night. She didn’t even know who that woman was the last time she traversed out there.
Had she been overlooking the importance because of special treatment?
Owen hugged her, “You don’t know that for sure, it was probably only coincidence that you even saw him out there. Would it help if you talked about it to a professional? There’s a group therapy session that the town is putting together.”
Avie closed her eyes, sighing at the gentle strokes on her back, “Maybe I can check something out, it may help put the pieces together. I don’t know about group therapy though.”
“Of course, I’m still here if you need to talk it out. What are friends for?”
Friends…
Her eyes opened. She thought of Rhulle and the friendship they started. He was alone, for who knew how long, feeding on people only when necessary, never going out of his way to harm someone. If he did, the woman wouldn’t be here today.
No, she still did not view him as inherently wrong in his actions. He even admitted to trying alternatives to humans, unfortunately, farm and wild animals couldn’t be tolerated. Rhulle drew every inch of her captivation, she only needed to think of him, and the disposition fell away. If she could know more about him, it was a long shot, but perhaps there really was a way to keep everyone alive.
“Thank you. That means the world.”
He broke away slightly, “Do you need a distraction? Or do you need to keep venting?”
“Distraction, definitely.”
Owen’s eyes lit up under the mop of blond bangs, “Want to get your blood tested?”
“… Excuse me, what?” She blinked, taken aback at the question.
“They didn’t take your blood at the hospital, right? Maybe it’s not your body as a whole reacting, maybe it’s something in your blood that can help lead us in the right direction.”
Holy. Shit.
“Yeah, I mean—hell yeah! Let’s check it out,” she said, enthralled in the new topic.
Owen grabbed a small box of supplies, sitting back down beside her—pulling out tuning forks, magnets, hertz meter, a small radio, and a blood type kit.
“Wow,” she snorted, “you pulled out all the stops for this.”
“It hit me like a ton of bricks the other night, we needed to find the effect too, eh?”
Sanitizing her index first, with a prick of her finger, they started the home blood type kit, smearing the samples onto the card, then pooling extra droplets onto a petri dish. Over the course of an hour, Owen tested different frequencies, pitches, magnets, and radio waves with her blood, seeing if anything would react dramatically, with no success.
“Another dead end,” Avie sounded a little defeated.
“Well, not quite. There is something off about your blood, it’s not matching with any of the blood types.”
She spun her head, “What do you mean,” taking the card from him, she examined the results, “did we do it wrong?”
“No, it’s right, the test is just inconclusive. You may have some sort of mutant blood there, Aves!”
Her interests peaked, explaining that she would book an appointment to get it properly tested. Another puzzle piece added, yet no picture in sight…
Owen pitched the idea to watch a movie, that it would be a better distraction, and they were spending a lot of time on research. Avie agreed wholeheartedly, helping herself in the kitchen to bring out wine and snacks.
Turning to look at her, Owen heard her laugh translate into the most dazzling string of melodies. Taking a sip of his wine, the blond returned his gaze to the television, watching Avie from the corner of his periphery, taking in her better mood.
Everything about her was beautiful to him, the dark freckles, the curly hair that frizzed even on a good day, the hook of her nose… She had been the only person in town to try to get to know him when he was the social outcast. Whether it was from asking too many questions or his overbearing nature, he still wasn’t sure. One thing that he was sure of, was that she came to him and matched his passions, not bothered by his energy or obsession.
And now, here they were, best buddies with a mystery that tied them together.
What would she think if he said he harbored other feelings for her?
Owen never had much luck with dating, let alone girls in general. But the way Avie made him feel, so accepted as a person… He could only think about the ‘what ifs’ if she also felt something for him. He was the only person that she spent time with, and a lot of their free time was spent together.
How would he go about seeing if she felt the same pining burn as he did?
The redhead laughed again, himself joining even as he was caught up in his thoughts. He dared an arm around her and was met with no resistance—a blush hinted at his cheeks that could have been passed off as the alcohol.
Elongated fingers drew indents and small scratches into the trunk’s wood.
Rhulle watched from a perch, hidden in the dark and away from the streetlights. He observed the pair inside laugh and have fun, Avie giving out smiles he only seen given to him.
His feathered self attempted to seek her out at her dwelling, proudly wanting to show off improvements and cleaning done to his own, only to find her residence empty. After waiting to see if she would return after a while, he became bored and decided to look elsewhere. Seeing
