Feathers

12. Don't Call The Cops

Michael's heart started pounding in his chest.

He pointed at the photo and asked in a croaky voice: "Who's that?"

Kobie looked at him quizzically.

"That's me when I was like five."

"No that... the man next to you."

Kobie pointed at her dad, "that was my dad" she said softly.

Enid gave him a strange look as well.

Surely if they could see the hooded figure in the photo they would say something. They couldn't see it. Michael's mind was racing. He'd heard of people hallucinating, seeing things that weren't there.

That could be explained with some sort of disturbance to the visual cortex in the brain or by a mental illness like schizophrenia. But hallucinating parts of a photograph that other people couldn't see? Was that even possible? It was such a precise illusion.

Kobie turned the page and more photos of her dead father and her young self stared up at them. She closed the album.

"Let's find one from when I was older."

Enid placed her hand on Kobie's back.

Michael's phone vibrated silently in his pocket. 

It was probably just a telemarketer. He didn't often get phone calls these days unless they were from scammers. The phone stopped ringing for a moment and then started up again.

He apologised and pulled it out of his pocket. The caller ID said "Wretched Gretchen The Babe". The name Gretchen had given herself in his contacts.

Michael had a bad gut feeling. Gretchen never called. Her main method of communication was tagging him in weirdly specific internet memes, or sending drunk selfies, or texting him at two in the morning. That was all normal. Calling him definitely wasn't.

Michael mouthed "sorry" to Kobie and Enid and answered the call.

Gretchen started talking before he said hello.

"Michael he's got a knife. He's got a knife and he says he's going to cut me if you don't come home right now and bring Kobie with you. I'm so so sorry."

Michael's blood ran cold.

"Who's got a knife? Where are you?"

"Home. I don't know who the fuck he is. He says Kobie will know."

Enid looked pale and Kobie was standing up now as well, she interrupeted him: "A knife? who is that?"

"It's Gretchen. Someone's threatening her with a knife, he said you'd know who he was."

Michael knew who it was before she said it, who else could it be?

"Dean" said Kobie, spitting the word out of her mouth.

"Gretchen, stay on the line okay, we're driving to you now".

Kobie bent down and kissed Enid on the cheek "I'm so sorry Grandma, everything's going to be okay".

"What the hell is going on?" Enid grabbed onto Kobie's shoulders as if to physically stop her leaving.

"It's not as bad as it sounds, I promise, it's just Dean. He's turned up at Michael's place. I'll sort it out."

"I think you should call the police dear, don't go there please. I don't want him to hurt you."

Enid looked more terrified than Gretchen sounded.

"Are you still there?" Michael hadn't heard anything from the phone "Gretchen?"

"He just said if you call the cops he'll kill me" Gretchen started crying, dry heaving sobs.

"What's she saying?" Kobie yelled.

Michael squatted down in front of Enid. "I'm sorry that we didn't get to stay for dinner, but we have to go right now. I promise I'll look after Kobie. We'll figure it out."

Enid didn't look convinced but loosened her grip on Kobie regardless.

Kobie kissed Enid again, "Talk soon Grandma"

She ran towards the front door and Michael followed her, waving behind him at Enid as they left.

"Okay we're on our way, be careful" he shouted into the phone.

Michael leapt down the patio stairs in one bound. Kobie was already at the car. He didn't hear any response from Gretchen. He checked the phone screen, the call had been ended. He hit redial and put the call on speaker. A tinny voice rasped from his phone "The person you are trying to reach is currently unavailable"-

"Goddamit"

He jumped into the car and Kobie twisted around in her seat to reverse fast down the driveway and out onto the street, narrowly missing a ute who beeped it's horn as it swerved out the way. Kobie straightened up and started speeding in the direction of home.

Now that they were on the way to Gretchen, Michael tried to clear his head, to think straight. This was crazy, what were they doing.

"I think your grandma's right. I think we should call the cops"

Kobie shook her head vehemently.

"No, it's too dangerous for Gretchen, he's the sort of guy that would be so upset in the moment that he'd hurt her if pushed without caring about the consequences, the police wouldn't stop him."

Michael didn't tell her what Gretchen had said about not calling the police. He didn't want to turn her off the idea even more. It had to be the best thing to do. Surely trained professionals would be able to handle the situation better than them.

"Wouldn't he do the same thing if we're there and we upset him?" Michael twisted his hands anxiously in his lap "I really think we should get the police."

"I said no!" Kobie shouted and banged her hands on the steering "I don't want to have to answer all their fucking questions about me and Dean okay. I don't want people prying into my fucking life. I can fix this!"

She flushed bright red and her breathing was suddenly faster and louder.

Michael sat in silence, feeling his flight or fight response kicking in. Wanting to say something but knowing that whatever just happened probably wasn't about him. He bit his tongue and waited.

"I'm sorry," Kobie said. "I'm just stressed. I'm really fucking stressed. Sorry for swearing so much. fuck!"

She banged the steering wheel again.

Michael tried calling Gretchen's phone but it went straight to message bank. They were making it back to the flat in record time. The fig trees in Civic Park went past in a blur, then McDonald's and the twin service stations. Kobie ran every orange light.

As soon as they pulled into the street, before the came to a complete stop Michael was opening the car door. He could hear Kobie not far behind him as he ran up the stairwell, there feet steps thundering in the echo chamber.

Michael arrived gasping for breath on the landing of the fourth floor. The front door was half open and the wood around the latch was splintered. Dean must have smashed his way in.

"Gretchen" Micheal called out.

"In here" Gretchen's strained voice came from the kitchen.

Michael and Kobie edged carefully down the hallway.

They looked at each other. Kobie felt for Michael's hand and squeezed it. She took a deep breath, and then still holding Michael's hand stepped through the doorway.