Shadow Play

4

“Bec, there won’t be a day we don’t talk so don’t you even worry about it. You need to do this and I know I'll miss you, but I’m also thrilled for you too—how could I be mad that you're getting to chase after your dream?” She gave me a warm hug as I tried to comprehend how I had lucked into finding such an amazing best friend. “Thank you, Ash.” “When are you supposed to leave?” “I told Fergus, that’s my new boss, that I could be there in two weeks.” She nodded to herself, eyes narrowed in concentration before she spoke. “Here’s what we’re going to do. I haven’t taken hardly a day of vacation since I started my job so I’m going to pack my s**t and I’m going with you for the first couple weeks while you settle in. We can get your new place set up, check out the area, and see how many gorgeous Irish men we can round up.” My mouth fell open and for a moment I had no words. “Are you sure? That’s a long trip, and it's such short notice—I don’t want you to get in trouble with your boss. Not to mention how expensive it is to get over there.” I knew from the determined set of her lips and narrowing of her eyes that she had made up her mind and there would be no arguing with my stubborn friend. “It’s my vacation time and I can use it if I want, and don’t start about it being expensive—I’m an independent woman with no kids and a decent job, I can decide to jet off to Europe if I want to.” I laughed at my best friend and my chest warmed. She jumped up and clapped her hands together. “I'm so excited! I'd say I'm too excited to eat, but we both know that will never happen.” OceanofPDF.com 2 Stepping out of the airport in search of the taxi line, I squeezed my eyelids shut and froze in place as my eyes struggled to adjust to one of the handful of sunny days in Belfast. We had learned in our studies preparing for the trip that Northern Ireland, due to its hilly nature and geographical location, only averages a whopping sixty days of sunshine a year. “You okay there?” Ash asked. “I don’t know if it was from the dark flight or what, but this sun is killing my eyes. Just give me a second to adjust.” “No rush, I’ve got two weeks and nothing but time on my hands, it’s going to be amazing! I know we have to get you all settled in the city first, but I can’t wait to tour around the countryside and see all the sights.” She brushed her hair out of her eyes before she continued. “Speaking of sightseeing, that guy across the way has been staring at us the entire time we’ve been out here—what a creeper.” Standing about fifty feet from us, a man glared unabashedly in our direction. He was not necessarily unattractive, but his narrowed eyes and clenched angular jaw made him wholly terrifying. Broad shouldered and easily over six feet tall, he wore a dark trench coat and cream-colored scarf around his neck, leaving his closely shaved head exposed. His cheeks were hollowed out and he had a bit of stubble on his jaw, but the most unsettling part was how his leering gaze held my eyes unapologetically. “I saw that movie Taken, let’s get a cab and get out of here before we end up stolen and sold as s*x slaves,” I said as I broke his stare and we hastily pulled our bags over to the taxi line. Once inside the cab, I glanced back at the man. He had not taken his eyes from us and only after we were almost too far to see did he turn to walk down the sidewalk and away from the airport. After a while, we pulled up to a line of two-story, attached row houses. The stretch of red-brick buildings made me think of soldiers standing shoulder-to-shoulder. There were no trees and the collection of homes had seen their heyday come and go. The neighborhood didn’t appear too bad and it was only a ten-minute walk to work. At just under six hundred pounds a month, it was a great deal compared to the other options I had seen. The front door opened straight into the living area with no designated front entry. The walls were ivory and the small living room had a beige loveseat, sofa, and a small oak kitchenette table with two chairs on white linoleum floors. The large windows let in ample light, which was good because an unadorned lightbulb hanging from the ceiling in the middle of the room served as the solitary light source for the downstairs. “Nice,” commented Ashley as we both stood with our eyes on the unimpressive fixture. “Yeah well, it works. That’s more than I could say for some of the stuff in our efficiency back in New York.” There was a tiny galley kitchen with a small oven, microwave and a refrigerator that was several inches shorter than me and I was relieved to find that they all seemed to work. The old wood cabinets were painted a light blue and had seen better days, but they would serve their purpose. “It’ll do, let’s go up and checkout the bedroom and bath.” The stairs didn’t creak, which was a bonus. The bedroom contained a queen-sized bed with a small particle board chest, and while cramped, also had two large windows making it feel more spacious. The bathroom was lined in white tiles throughout and had a shower stall, commode, and pedestal sink—not exactly overflowing with storage, but it was decently clean and would suffice. That night I lay awake in bed, haunted by the man at the airport. I couldn’t get his penetrating stare out of my head and just thinking about it made my palms sweat with anxiety. Normally, I was very independent and unafraid of being on my own, but as I lay there in my new bed, I was glad Ash was with me.