Intaglio: Dragons All The Way Down Read Online Free PDF

flashed back to swimming in the cove with Hanna  The moments of dread
after she'd gone under, the fear that she’d never come back up again and Cole
would be left alone.  Waiting, terrified... and then the shaky relief when her
laughing face broke surface once more.
    Here in Marta’s
office, he had the same feeling.
    “I can do that.”
     

Chapter 5:  Bedtime Stories
     
    Ava waited in
her truck, her eyes on the monochrome street.  The light changed as afternoon
slowly wore away.  Earlier, there’d been a distinct lack of sharpness, just
dulled layers of grey, like a murky watercolour painting with too much ink
wash.  Now bands of light slanted down as the sun moved toward the horizon. 
Bright yellows eked out of the drab day, hints of O’Keefe’s bluish shadows in
the alleyways and under cars.  Ava smiled to herself, eyes half-shut, capturing
it all for later. 
    ‘Cole should be
here soon…’
    A woman in a
black coat pulled the building's door open and disappeared. 
    Another five
minutes passed.
    The door opened
a second time and Frank Thomas strode out, face tipped into his collar.  It was
cold out, the wind coming gusty and brisk off the ocean as a winter storm
brewed in the distance.   Cole’s father looked tired, more careworn than he had
since the first weekend Ava visited.  Her shoulders tensed as she followed his
progress.  He was heading to his vehicle, a grey SUV parked a few spots down
from her own.
    Seizing the
opportunity, Ava rolled down the window, leaning out.
    “Hey there,
Sarge!” she called, grinning as he jerked up in surprise.  The first hint of a
smile pushed up one side of his mouth as he saw who it was.  He changed
direction, wandering over.
    “Afternoon,
Ava,” Frank said, pausing by the window, his arm against the side of the
vehicle.  “What’d you and Nina get up to today?”
    “She tried to
teach me to make crepes,” Ava scoffed.  “Not sure that she knew quite how
lacking I am in the kitchen.” 
     “She always
needs an assistant,” Frank offered.
    “She did NOT get
an assistant though, she got me,” Ava giggled. Frank’s smile broadened.  “We
had to open all the doors to get the smoke out.  The fire alarm beeped for a
good ten minutes!”
    His low chuckle
joined hers and for a moment everything felt easy and right.  Ava smiled to
herself.  ‘See…?  This is going to work.’
    “So how’d the
meeting with you and Cole go?” she asked.  With her words, a curtain fell
across Frank's face, cold control replacing his laughter.
    “Mmph…”
    “Not good?” she
prompted. 
    He grumbled
again, lifting his hand from the truck, and taking a step back.  Pulling
away.
    “You know,” Ava
rushed to explain, “the first session’s the hardest.”  Frank’s eyes widened in
surprise.  “At least that’s how I remember it.”
    He cleared his
throat, standing silently.  He glanced back to the building, then back to her.
    “I’m glad you’re
here to pick him up today,” Frank answered, the lines on his face deepening. 
“I don’t know if this will work, Ava.  Cole’s just not...”  He shook his head. 
“It’s like he’s not interested.”
    “It’ll take
time,” Ava said quietly.  “Cole’s here.  That’s huge.  Try to keep that in
mind.”  Her voice dropped.  “And of course it’s hard to begin with.  I’m sure
you and Nina found the same thing.”
    He pulled his
glasses off and cleaned them on his shirt.
    “Maybe,” he said
tiredly, putting the glasses back on.  He reached out, rapping his knuckles
once on the side of her truck.  “Alright then, Ava, I’m gonna head home. 
Thanks for coming by for Cole.”  He stepped up to the curb, then turned back. 
“Nina’s right, you know.”
    Ava tipped her
head, confused.
    “About what?”
    “You’re good for
Cole.”
    Heat rose up her
neck to her cheeks.
    “Um… thank you,
sir.”
    Frank laughed at
the formality.
    “Why do I think
when you say