Blur (Blur Trilogy) by Steven James Read Free Book Online

future.
    Honestl y, however, it wasn’t those kinds of dreams that were on his mind as much as the hope that he would be able to move past Emil y’ s death without an yt hing else m ys terious or unexplainable happening to him. “Latel y, I’ve been having a hard time . . . well, focusing. You know, like m y thoughts are getting awa y from me.”
    “Getting awa y from yo u?”
    “Wandering out of formation. But that’s not a dream, so much, it’s more o f—”
    K yl e tapped a finger against the air. “Keep that. It’s a good image. Thoughts wandering out of formation. I like that. Write it down.”
    Daniel made a note of it.
    “So, yo u’ve got this deal going on with yo ur thoughts wandering out of formatio n—m a yb e fl yi ng out of formation, something along those lines. Who knows. An y other impressions about what’s happenin g—s omething to do with flight?”
    “Vultures.”
    “Vultures?”
    “Yeah, picking them clean.”
    “Picking yo ur thoughts clean?”
    “Picking clean the carcass of m y dreams.” The words just came out.
    K yl e stared at him oddl y. “You just come up with that?”
    “I guess so.”
    Where did that even come from? What’s going on with yo u?
    “Write that down, bro. You’re on yo ur wa y. ”
    It went like that for the next fifteen minute s—D aniel throwing ideas out, K yl e helping him sort through them. It reminded him a little of how he helped K yl e sometimes with calculu s—n ot giving him the answers, but reviewing the equations so he could find the answers himself.
    At last, K yl e said, “Read me what yo u have so far. I want to see where this thing’s at.”
    “Give me a sec.” Daniel drew lines across the page from one idea to another, marked off the phrases he definitel y did not want to use, wrote a few transitions, then read,
The bo y remembered a time not long ago, when he was in control of his thoughts, when the y lined up where he asked them to, with onl y the usual flutter of spontaneit y, with the stra y ideas wandering into and out of formation like the y’ re apt to do.
    Back then, like most people, he was able to pull them together, keep them in order, and there was a comfort to that, a sense of saneness and rightness.
    “Wh y’ s it in third person?” K yl e asked.
    “I don’t know, exactl y. It just came out that wa y. ”
    “Works for me. Go on.”
But now he sees them, like birds in flight, and the y wing into the spaces be yo nd his understanding. And sometimes vultures land in their place.
Vultures.
Dark birds that feed on the flesh of his dead dreams. Picking them clean until onl y the bones remain.
White bones, clean in the sun. Bones where his carefull y ordered thoughts used to live.
    K yl e stared at him. “I’ve never seen yo u write an yt hing like that before.”
    I never have.
    “Well, I’m definitel y not reading this one in front of ever yo ne. People would think I’m going nuts. I mean, dead dreams being eaten b y vultures? That’s prett y depressing. And besides, it’s not reall y about what I hope to accomplish before I die.”
    “I don’t think Teach will have an y problem accepting that. It’s implied that yo u want the vultures to go awa y. She’ll dig it.” He tossed Daniel the football. “And besides, I know one of yo ur dreams, even if it’s one yo u don’t want to write about.”
    “What’s that?” He tossed the football back.
    K yl e went over to the desk, picked up Daniel’s cell phone, and handed it to him.
    “What’s this for?”
    “Calling Stac y. ”
    “No, listen, even if I wanted to call her, I—”
    “Which yo u do.”
    “Oka y, ye s, which I d o—b ut I told yo u, I don’t have her number.”
    K yl e pulled out his own phone and before Daniel could stop him, he’d speed-dialed Mia.
    Daniel just shook his head and listened to one side of the conversation. “Yeah, no . . .” K yl e said. “I know . . . . Hang on.” He asked Daniel for Stac y’ s last