Abstract Shadows and Painted Stars

The elk must have had a death wish.

That brainless animal appeared in front of me so unexpectedly, I had no time to slam on my breaks. With that bark-brown fur against the dense leafage of the forest, it was almost impossible to see him in the middle of the street. His breath, like vapor, clouded his soaring antlers as he stood paralysed, blinded by my beaming headlights, as I raced towards him like a speeding bullet. As his fish-like stare came into view, I sharply pulled the steering wheels to the left, and swerved into the other lane to safety.

As soon as my car zoomed past, the Elk woke from his rooted state and scampered back into the dark forest. Never to be seen again.

"Shit!" I held my heart still. "That was a close one."

Everything okay?

Swerving again, I barked in response: "Greyson! You need to stop doing that!"

I- he tried, but stopped himself. I'm sorry.

I took a deep inhale, suffocating the steering wheel with my deadly grip. It's okay, I told him, after a moment. I'm sorry I yelled at you.

I didn't mean to anger you.

You didn't. I was just startled, that's all. I sighed. Look, I was going to wait until we arrived at the cabin to tell you this, but... Greyson, we are about to live in the same house for a while, and I need you to stop roaming around my head anytime you feel like it. I don't want you eavesdropping on my every thought. Okay? Humans don't have that ability, so, I don't know how to block you out, and I certainly don't want to be walking around with a helmet just to keep my thoughts to myself. If it's not too much trouble, could you communicate with me by using regular speech only?

Yes. There was a tightness in his voice that sounded a lot like embarrassment. Of course, I can.

The whistle of the night air whizzed against my driver-window, and the darkness stretching ahead was unnerving. It made me thankful that I wasn't venturing alone in these woods.

Thank you.

It didn't take long for me to regret having been so stern with Greyson. At least, this way, I got my point across. Right? He now knew better than to use his telepathy without my permission. Still, I had to admit, I could have been more sympathetic. It wasn't his fault that I was this short-tempered right now, it was mine. Following through with the deal we made, had driven me to the knife's edge. And the closer we got to Leah's cabin, the harder it became for me to pull myself together. I was so damn worried about the future.

I glanced over at the dashboard. Only forty-five more minutes to go, before we arrive at our destination.

When I crossed the Agency's borders three hours ago, it had been an out-of-body experience. It was like I had been watching myself from above, the way I often did, when I was dreaming. None of the guards had stopped me when I crossed the gate, or asked why I was - yet again – driving home so late. Most everyone else, had left their office hours prior.

I shouldn't be surprised. Why would guards suspect anything from a gal like me? Being that I was the daughter of one of the most influential men in management... no one would ever expected someone like me to do something like this. No employee had ever - for as long as the U.N.P.A existed - hoodwinked the Agency like I had tonight. Throughout history, no one had ever even stolen a pen from the building, let alone an alien from the Filing Cabinet.

Given, most of the employees here were hired due to their close connection to one, or more, of our current staff members. In theory, this was how the Agency had successfully managed to avoid crimes against their code of conduct. The background checks were extensive, and most employees were bred into this world of paranormal investigation.