Abigail slowly came back to the world. The light filtered through the blinds in her office casting a striped pattern over her face. A long stream of drool hung from the side of her mouth. She rubbed her eyes and smacked her lips. She was going to need more than the weeny bottle of water from her emergency kit. The woefully inadequate amount of sleep really underscored the exhaustion that had ground its way into her bones over the past 48 hours or so.
She sat up and scanned the room. Tess was nowhere to be seen. Her eyes fell upon the briefcase and then the spirit trap. It looked to be intact. Phew. It was meant to be a temporary thing and she was unsure how long it would contain a being of great power like Jilliup. It was an ingenious piece of equipment that her father had invented and held the spirit in an “in between” place. To the casual observer it looked to be nothing more than a silver pocket watch. It would have to do for now. The briefcase was another matter. Also completely innocuous looking, it was a portal into the fae realm. It would have to be secured somehow to keep any unsuspecting dopes from opening it. She slipped the pocket watch (and Jilliup) into her jacket pocket and ran her thumb over it’s surface. It felt warm and satiny to the touch. She thought of her father’s work she had taken up and allowed herself a brief moment to feel the hope rush in now that she knew he was alive. She was still pissed though, she’d allow that to mingle with the hope. What a boon to have captured the Eldrich Elder. She’d be able use her in her “negotiations”. She was feeling powerful and ruthless.
Abigail turned to the postcard with the combination and examined it closely. There was no address or any other text on it at all actually. She let out a sigh- that would have been too easy and gods forbid anything in her life have a feeling of ease to it.
Just then the bell above the door jingled abruptly and Tess busted through the door rear end first, her hands full of what Abigail knew were her favorite donuts from the local shop and two very tall to go cups. The smell of strong coffee filled the room. “Tess what would I do without you” Abigail practically had tears in her eyes.
“Well you’ll never have to find out but after this is all over I’m expecting a raise. If they don’t evict us that is”. Having the electricity and phone cut off and having Specter Detectors tossed out on the street seemed like a cake walk compared to recent events. Abigail knew there was still a way to come out on top- she just needed to get through this big “case”. The biggest of her life.
The two women sat and scarfed down their donuts and caffeine. Even though she wasn’t able to glean any info from the physical remnants Dexter had left behind, Abigail felt sure she would be able to track down the headquarters for Dark Star. She tipped her cup back getting the very last dregs of her coffee, tossed the cup at the overflowing trashcan, and headed towards her desk. It was a monstrosity of oak, fashioned in the days of the arts and crafts movement. One of side drawers opened with a bit of effort and Abigail dug around for a moment before withdrawing one of her most prized tools- her dowsing rods.
From the very beginning of her training she had been a consummate dowser. The pendulum would come alive in her grasp, the rods of various types would easily bend to answer her questions. It was one of the skills she trusted most and she knew with the help of these copper rods she now held, that she would be able to accurately pinpoint Dark Star. Abigail straightened her pants. She should change. It wasn’t that long ago that her socks were dripping with swamp water. Just her socks maybe. “I’m going to be off Tess, I’ve got to track down these hooligans. I’ve got the spirit trap with me- you won’t have to worry about it.”
“Are you kidding me??” Tess scoffed. “There is no way I’m not coming with you on this one. You can’t stop me. This is a big one boss- you are going to need backup.” Abigail didn’t have the energy to argue. She didn’t want to put Tess in danger and she was moved by her bravery and loyalty. Another big sigh. “Alright then let’s move.”
Tess squealed with delight as she watched Abigail follow the the direction the rods were pointing her down the street and away from the office. “This is so exciting! I’m on a real case! Not just someone who is hearing knocking on their walls or getting ectoplasm buildup in their washing machine!” Tess exclaimed. “They are ALL real cases Tess and they all pay the bills.” Abigail swept with ease through the streets of town, the copper rods like reins in her hands, gently guided by an unseen horse. She held the image of the Dark Star Industries logo and the plea in her mind- bring me to Dark Star.
They continued for quite some time until the intrepid paranormal investigators found themselves in a not so familiar part of town. Abigail had been here before on a pretty mundane case years ago and she’d driven through on her way to elsewhere, but the shoddy storefronts had never captured her attention. Suddenly as they approached an intersection the rods did something perplexing. Usually to indicate a yes or to signal that they’d reached the destination desired, the rods would cross each other. At this moment the rods split apart into completely opposite directions. To their left the road headed towards what looked like an abandoned strip mall and to the right what appeared to be a brand spanking new car wash. Were the rods telling her no? Were they indicating that they didn’t know which way to choose? “Well shit. We are going to have to make our own choice.” Abigail muttered.
👍Like to have Abigail and Tess head towards the strip mall
❤️Love to have Abigail and Tess head towards the car wash
POLL RESULTS: 1 ❤️ 6 👍
