Page 92 of Toxic Wishes

“How the-what the,” he gets up and looks to Abigail. “Do you know him?” He points a finger in my direction.

“Ya, he’s-” Abigail speaks, but I cut her off intentionally.

“I’m Josh’s half-brother. Her friend. The place she told you she’s been living at is at one of my rental properties.” I would go into details about how I'm there because my house is currently under renovation, but her parents don’t act like they care for minor details. Hell, they barely care that their daughter is home after two weeks of being gone.

I didn’t hear one hello or any questions about why she was back or how she’d been. The only thing they said when she walked in was to close the garage.

Her mom was talking about the wedding last night and going on about the colors of Jenna’s wedding, having it outside with the mosquitos, and how she didn’t know why they couldn’t pick a different night to get married.

Ya, her mom had to be a narcissist or have some type of personality disorder.

As I quickly look around, I don't see one picture of Abigail in the living room. They had some of Adalee. I recognized who it was after meeting her sister last night when Jenna and Troy introduced me to her and some other her family members.

There was a photo of her sister from high school, prom, and her wedding, but when I looked on the bookshelf by the TV, I didn’t see any of Abigail.

Something was off. The whole vibe was off. And suddenly, I felt responsible for her well-being. I don’t think she needs to stay here. She’s not going to stay here.

“Well, I’ll be damned. Bolt Colt is standing in my living room. Can I offer you a beer? I have some whiskey?”

“Oh no i’m fine, thank you though.” I tell hm.

“How the hell do you know Abigail?” her father leans in closer to me. “You meet on an Only Fans page or something?” He whispers.

I cough as the saliva I try to swallow gets caught in my throat. “No sir, your daughter isn’t that type.”

“ I don’t know how else she’s affording a place on her own and putting herself through med school at the same time unless she’s, ya know.”

“I told you, I applied for grants this semester, Dad. I’ll have to take out grants and start working at Shifters.” Abigail says, making it known she heard her dad.

What in the actual fuck is going on? What kind of dad talks about his daughter like that.

He grunts to himself as he sits back down.

“Mike, don't you remember him from the wedding?” Abigail’s mom says.

“Now that I think about it. I remember seeing you and Josh, Ya, that Josh guy was all over the place. He got pretty drunk by the end of the night.” Abigail’s mom laughs to herself. “My sister and I stayed back to help clean, and we got a kick out of watching all the drunk people fall to the ground.” She laughed heartily, but it was an eerie sound, not a pleasant one, and it sounded like an old windpipe trying to work. I bet she didn’t laugh much, especially around her husband.

Ya, I needed to get Abigail out of here now. No way am I leaving her behind at this nut house. I’ve been here less than twenty minutes, and I felt uncomfortable. Unwelcomed.

The negativity oozed out of the walls, it was everywhere, and there was no way you could ignore it.

“Hey Abigail, you forgot those cassettes in my car,” I said the first thing that came to mind.

She tilts her head to the side, pinning her eyes on me.

“The ones you liked, and I said I would give them to you at the wedding last night.”

“Uh-no, you didn’t?” She squishes her eyebrows together.

“And that dress was gorgeous on Jenna. I will say she did a good job picking out that dress. I love the lace on any wedding dress.” Her mom continues to talk to herself. The dad is glued to the screen again, mumbling about money and Jenna's father.

Now would be a good time to bolt while her parents were distracted.

“Ya, I did. You didn’t hear me. Or you forgot.”

She left her suitcase in the car, and I know once I walk out of there, she will realize it's still in my truck. Thank God she left it in there. I didn’t offer to take it out because I wanted fate, the stars, to determine this path.

I'm sure she just forgot it. I could tell she was in her head the whole car drive here, and now I can see why.

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