Dissolve (3 page)

“Nessa, if it happens again, the disappearing I mean. Will you keep the clothes for me, I don’t want to end up in a tight spot,” I asked.

“Sure, let me just grab a bag. I will do one better and pack us both some extra clothes” she said as she popped into her closet.

“I guess I won’t need this bridesmaid dress now,” she added trying to lighten the mood.

It didn’t work. My tears just began to flow more freely and I sunk to the ground in broken sobs. My breath was catching in my chest and my blond hair was sticking on my face from all the tears.

She rushed out and knelt down next to me. “Oh Cora, I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to be so insensitive. I love you, you know. Let me just finish packing the bag and we will be on our way.”

She was out faster than I expected and herded me towards the door. Nessa shut the front door with a snick of the lock and we stepped outside into the warm summer air. I was so on edge; I couldn’t even enjoy things like flowers blooming or the feel of basking in a sunny afternoon.

I grasped Nessa’s hands in mine and peered into her gentle and understanding eyes. “Thank you so much for your faith and trust in me. I am so lucky to have you,” I told her with true sincerity.

She just gave me a crooked smile and said “anything for you Cora,” before pulling me into a tight hug. I sighed in relief at the comforting gesture before pulling away reluctantly. My tears had dried up slightly and I wiped the remaining evidence away with my index fingers.

I looked to Nessa, wide eyed and hoping she had a plan. I couldn’t fathom a scenario like this and wasn’t thinking the straightest. She had to be the rock in this, I was too broken.

“What now? Where can we go?”

“Well, we can’t take my car because they can track it in no time. Let’s hail a cab and head for someplace busy that we can blend in until we have a solid plan. I would preferably choose somewhere a little further away,” Nessa replied.

“Oh and we need cash. There is an A.T.M. around the corner and we should pull out the maximum daily limit. We don’t know what will happen and we need untraceable money,” I added.

“That’s an excellent plan. I took my rainy day fund from the house as well as your emergency credit card in my closet, but the more we have the better off we are going to be,” Nessa said already heading around the corner to the A.T.M.

We took our turns each pulling out the cash and sliding them into our back pockets. I looked around nervously and hoped we could get away in time to avoid the police. I returned to our original conversation finally.

“Okay, we are looking for someplace busy and far enough from here. How about the Science Center? It is usually packed on a Sunday afternoon?” I asked as we hurried down the cobblestone sidewalk.

“Good idea. We need a good plan and I don’t think anyone would be looking for a murder suspect there.”

I winced at the words even knowing they are true. Murder suspect sounds so sinister. I shook it off though and followed Nessa down the street. She effortlessly hailed a cab and I slid in next to her on the warm leather seat.

“Kingshighway please, the Science Center,” Nessa told the cabbie.

He nodded in understanding and I nestled into Nessa as the tears started to roll again. She held me tightly and just let me cry. Several minutes later I managed to regain my composure and pulled away. I wiped at my tears and took a deep breath. My glassy blue eyes met Nessa’s brown ones and I could see the compassion in them.

“I love you Cora. Everything will be ok,” she told me.

“I love you too. I hope everything works out,” I said.

“It will, just wait and see.”

In no time we managed to make it to the Science Center and Nessa paid the cab fare. We slipped inside into the throng of people and I relaxed slightly. We managed to blend into the crowd easy enough. There were lots of families out on this particular Sunday afternoon for the new dinosaur exhibit. Signs for the exhibit were plastered all over and lots of kids were whooping and hollering.

Now we just had to find a place to talk. I was just about to suggest the café to Nessa when out of nowhere, someone pushed into her very hard. She nearly clattered to the floor in a heap.

I frowned and prepared to yell “Watch it,” but when I looked around; I saw no trace of anyone nearby. Confused, I leaned down to help Nessa up.

“Yuck! Floors are so gross!” Nessa exclaimed as she stood up and dusted off with a shiver.

“I looked, but I couldn’t see who knocked you over. Are you ok?”

“The jackass stabbed me in the arm with something. It burns something wicked,” she said pointing at a tiny needle mark on her right arm.

“Nessa, this is so not good. There is no telling what that could have been. Maybe we should take you to the hospital,” I offered.

“NO! I am going to help you. It is probably nothing serious. It is just weird.”

I spotted a bench nearby and steered Nessa to it, now anxious to get out of the sea of people. Her skin was growing pallid and moist. Whatever she was stuck with was no ordinary item, like she tried to rationalize. A cool chill raced down my spine and I tried not to show Nessa just how freaked out I was.

“How do you feel?” I asked in concern.

“Fuzzy. I just need a few moments and I will be fine,” Nessa insisted.

“At least let me take you into the bathroom and wash off the wound site,” I pleaded as a drop of blood welled up on her arm.

Reluctantly, she agreed and I put her arm around my shoulder. We murmured excuse me several times but made it to the bathroom without incident. I kicked the door open with my foot and ushered Nessa inside. She was looking paler and paler by the minute and I was starting to worry. First there was clearly an attack on me and now, there was clearly an attack on Nessa. This was not good, not good at all.

“Please Nessa we need to get you to the hospital. You don’t know what you were jabbed with and it could be awful. I will gladly turn myself in if it means saving you.”

“No, and that is final. We are in this together. Creepy as it sounds; it looked like that guy you were drinking with the other night. Sounds like a conspiracy to me and you know how I feel about them. If you take me to the hospital and it is something strange like you acquired, they will lock me up and throw away the key. We need a plan and soon.”

“Where can we go that they won’t be looking? This isn’t just a boyfriend or something. It is the freaking police. They have resources that exceed ours so we have to be smarter,” I said in a hushed tone.

Nessa’s pupils were starting to dilate and I watched her splash cold water on her ashen complexion.

“I agree. Something is definitely up and we are going to have to do this smartly. The police think you did this and I know you didn’t. That means the real person is still out there. We have to figure this out in order to clear your name.”

“Not here. This isn’t a coincidence even if you think otherwise. We need to leave discretely” I whispered to Nessa.

“Agreed, but there is only one entrance and exit. How are we going to do this? We didn’t plan this out very well,” she responded.

“I say we buy a scarf and a hat at the gift shop and walk out the front door.”

“No, that is way too risky. I think I have a better idea,” Nessa said as she eyed an old lady washing her hands.

“Excuse me, mam. I was wondering if I could buy your scarf. It is so beautiful; I just have to have it, how much?” Nessa asked the woman sweetly.

A frown forms on the woman’s face and then fades to indifference. “Fifty bucks and I will consider it yours.”

“Oh thank you so much mam. Here is a fifty. I am going to try it on right now,” Nessa said as she pulled out a fifty and the woman traded the money for the scarf.

As soon as the lady exited the restroom, Nessa turns with a wide grin holding a sheer floral scarf. “See, that was easy. Now we just have to get you something.”

“Easier said than done, considering we are hiding out in the women’s restroom,” I said, looking down at the grey tiled floor.

“Ok, maybe I can give you the scarf and we could just Hail Mary it. The longer we stay the bigger chance that we are going to be found. What do you say?” she responded.

I reluctantly agreed but still felt shaky about the plan. It was better than anything I could come up with and I took the scarf from Nessa. I was surprised at how remarkably different I looked with the scarf. I looked like a middle aged woman out on a Sunday afternoon with family. I lingered for just a second in the mirror then nodded to Nessa to indicate I was ready.

We casually swept out of the restroom and into the main corridor of the science center. People were swirling all around us in different directions and we made our way as calmly as possible to the exit.

We moved in slightly closer to a father and his son, hoping to detract attention from us. We slid out of the turn styles and headed behind them until we were clear of any peering eyes that could be on us. Then we parted from them and came to a stop.

“Ok genius, what do we do now?” I asked Nessa.

Chapter 3:

“How about we go across the street to the park? We could sit and figure out what the heck is going on and no one would really pay much attention to us. Sitting for a while would be good to dull this headache I am getting,” Nessa replied.

I tried not to let the concern show on my face as I agreed. I connected my arm with hers and we walked down the city street towards the park. The crush of the pavement beneath our feet radiated heat on the soles of our shoes. Eclectic shops formed the streets as well as local restaurants. Wrought iron street lights lined the sidewalks and flowers were in bloom everywhere.

Nessa and I managed to make it to the city park in record time and searched for a place to settle. We finally agreed on a spot under a willow tree just below art hill. I dropped to the ground in exhaustion.

I blew at a nearby dandelion and watched the wind carry the seeds away. Nessa rubbed at her temples and I could tell she wasn’t feeling the best. I worried that she could get what I got and dissolve into nothing as well. Just the thought sent a shiver up my spine even in the warm breeze.

“So you really think that guy could have started all this?” I asked.

“It is oddly coincidental. The chances of you meeting him and getting something crazy; then him being in the same place as us when I was stabbed in the arm with something are slim to none. He has to be the link. I wish I remembered more about him.”

“He had brown hair and green eyes. That is mainly what I remember. He said his name was Joe but that could be a fake. It isn’t much to go on,” I said solemnly.

Then I continued. “Thanks for sticking by me. I know it is a lot to ask let alone process.”

“You are my best friend and I would never desert you. I trust you and if you say it wasn’t you I believe you. I admit the dissolving thing is strange, but I saw with my own eyes. It is a lot, but we will get through it together,” she answered as she placed a sweaty hand on mine.

Alarm coursed through me at the feel of her warm sweaty hand as it touched mine. “Nessa, how do you feel?”

“I have a slamming headache and I am all sweaty. My thoughts are all jumbled up in my head and I can’t separate them. It is like a thousand voices churning around in my head,” she admitted.

“Ok, that is different than what happened to me. I got a bad headache too, and then I passed out and was in and out of consciousness all day afterwards. I just thought it was the alcohol. Maybe you just have a migraine,” I said hopefully even though I had a sinking feeling that wasn’t the case.

“Do you think this mystery guy could be involved in Tom’s death?”

I thought about that for a minute before responding. “I don’t know. I was so completely panicked that I just dissolved right there on the spot. I didn’t get a chance to look for signs of forced entry or anything out of the ordinary to clue me in.”

A couple holding hands passed by obviously smitten and Nessa frowned. She seemed to shake it off and turned her attention back to me.

“Nessa, what just happened? Don’t tell me it was nothing. I could tell it was something.”

“I could have sworn I just heard him thinking about the proposal he had planned. Red roses and champagne waiting at the restaurant, but maybe I imagined it.”

I frowned in turn. “You could read his thoughts?”

“It is probably just my imagination running away with me. I am so freaked out that I plucked the idea from my own head. I am not a mind reader.”

“Well, it is easy enough to test. Try to concentrate on me and tell me what I am thinking.”

Nessa looked like she was concentrating hard and I kept repeating the same phrase over and over in my head. If she could do this, it would be so cool. Mind reading was much better than dissolving.

Finally Nessa’s eyes lit up and met mine. Amused, she quirked a smile at me. “Really Cora, that is lame. I love fluffy bunnies is not what I expected.”

“My god, you did it! I can’t believe you are a mind reader. That is an awesome power,” I exclaimed. I threw my arms around her and grinned.

Then the idea truly set in and tears sprung to her eyes. “This means we are in so much trouble. What the hell are we going to do?”