Page 35 of White Raven
Sarah cackled, reaching into the nook to turn the music down. “I’m sorry! I knocked! You probably shouldn’t leave thedamn door unlocked. I honestly didn’t expect it to open when I tried the knob.” She handed Wren the empty mug. “You weren’t answering your phone. I’m proud to say I don’t give a fuck if you wanna see me or not, I’m here and I refuse to leave.”
“I’m not gonna be great company, Sarah. I’m still—”
“Oh, we’ll both be great company. I brought something that’s gonna cheer us right up.” Sarah held up a bag of—God, was that…
“Okay, what’s up with you, dude? Where didyou, of all people, get a fat bag of tree?” Wren asked, staring at what had to have cost her best friend a pretty penny. “You don’t even smoke.”
“I paid Leigh a little visit. She said to tell you that you’re a cunt for getting yourself fired. She’ll never forgive you.” Her eyes narrowed on Wren. “You didn’t tell me you got fired.”
“Not worth telling. Stop holding that bag up like it’s some kind of…” She grabbed it and peeled it open to stick her nose into it. “Damn, that’s…what are you planning to do? Eat it?” The sarcasm for Sarah’s inexperience didn’t stop her friend from pulling a couple of wraps from the pocket of her leather jacket. “Okay?”
“You thought I was kidding? I also brought this.” Sarah turned and went into the kitchen, lifting a case of beer at her through the breakfast nook.
“Is there something I should know, friend? You have a bad day or something, or is this your attempt at getting me out of this apartment?”
“Actually, I’ve had an incredibly fucking awful last twelve hours, and I wanna get trashed with my best friend and put you to work.” Sarah loaded the beer into the fridge while Wren stepped around the kitchen doorway and leaned against the frame.
“Put me to work?”
Sarah turned, shutting the fridge and tossing Wren a beer bottle while she snapped the cap off of her own. “Yeah, I need you to give me a tattoo. You’ve got stuff here, don’t you?”
“I do. But you know if you’re sloshed, you’ll bleed more, and the ink is less likely to—”
“I don’t care. Let’s do this. We both need an out.” Sarah sidestepped her and walked back into the living room, kicking her shoes off and losing her jacket. Wren tossed the mug into the sink and twisted the cap off her beer, pressing it to her lips as she approached Sarah, who now stood looking over the canvas.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” she grinned, swallowing.
“Is that?”
“Yep. Immortalized in all his glory.”
They both stood quiet, admiring the abstract painting of a man in a hideous sweater-vest. The head of the figure was nothing more than the cloud of an atomic bomb explosion, with bits of an American flag scattered around the background.
“I think this might be your best one yet,” Sarah smiled, turning her bottle up.
“Agree.” Wren moved to the round coffee table, dumping the weed out and sifting through nuggets. “I can’t believe you asked Leigh for pot,” she snickered, breaking it up and picking out seeds and stems.
“I don’t really know anybody else.”
“You wouldn’t. Goody-two-shoes whore,” Wren grinned.
“Whatever. If it isn’t a pill, and it could make us feel better, who really cares? Speaking of which…did I tell you Brent’s doctor prescribed him antidepressants?”
Brent…now that was an even better reason to get high.
“No, but that’s a beaten path I’m not trying to break my foot on right now.”
“Fair enough,” Sarah shrugged, sitting down on the carpet across from her. “Did I do okay?” Her chin jerked towardsthe mess Wren was still sorting through as she loaded up one of the wraps Sarah brought.
“There’s plenty that Leigh does half-ass. This isn’t one of them.” The corner of her mouth tugged up while she licked the end and rolled the rest of it. “So, you wanna tell me why your last twelve hours were so shitty?”
The way Sarah’s face dropped said it was something big. Wren gave her a minute to compose herself while she lit the end of the blunt. “I killed somebody yesterday.” Of course, she’d say that as soon as the burn of that smoke was hanging out in her lungs. She choked a little.
“I’m sorry?” Wren exhaled. “What the hell do you mean youkilledsomebody? Where? When…why?” She passed it to Sarah.
“I had an Athan moment when we left the funeral. Fed on a bum in the old subway across town.”
Wren’s throat blissfully burned while her mouth hung open. “Gravedigger’s Hole?” she asked, earning a slow nod while Sarah hit, holding her smoke. “Well,that’sfitting. What were you doing out there? Is Athan working a drug case?”
