Page 24 of A Most Abhorrent Vessel

“How very curious,” a smooth voice interrupts my wallowing.

Startled, I turn. The shadow of a man approaches the nearby street lamp. I press myself against the wall, holding my breath, only watching.

He leans against a pole, crossing his arms over his chest. Clad in a coffee-coloured suit that perfectly harmonises with his brown skin, the man lingers there, watching me silently. Long black hair, shaped into thin lines, hangs unfashionably long over his back. Below these, hooded eyes are fixed on the spot where I’m standing.

Impossible.

“I can’t smell you. I can’t see you. But I can hear the air leaving your lungs,” he says. His soft lips stretch into a mischievous smile.

My breath halts midway. His expression is entirely dazzling.

I take a moment to collect myself.

Maybe there’s… I look behind me, but I’m still pressed to the wall, and there is no one else down the alley.

I begin to slowly move backwards, trying hard not to make a sound.

“There is no use, you know,” he says, still smiling broadly.

I stop mid-movement. Had something, miraculously, changed?

Hopeful, I lift my hands in front of my face, but I see nothing.

“How odd you are, dove. I can see your blood, but why can’t I see anything else?”

He approaches fast. Too fast. Before I can react, the man is standing so close, I can almost touch him. He reaches out with a slender hand, as if trying to ascertain exactly where I am.

“What are you?” he asks.

“I’m no one,” I answer, looking at his hand. He pulls it away, never making contact with my skin.

“I very much doubt that. I haven’t seen anything as fascinating as you this entire century.”

“It’s only been 19 years.”

“Fascinating and funny. What luck I have to find you here.” He smirks.

“How can you see me?” I say, stepping to the side.

He follows my movements with his eyes so quickly, I wonder if he can read my mind.

“I can see the ghost of your blood.” He waves his hand in a flourish. The gesture looks oddly antiquated.

I look down at myself. I see no ghosts. I see no blood.

He steps closer.

“Oh, how tall you are. Must be exhilarating, suddenly being unperceived.” The man steps closer still; this way, it’s clear that he’s above most men’s height himself. Even so, how can he possibly know?

“I stopped feeling when I started to disappear,” I confess, then close my mouth quickly. What possessed me to say such a thing to an utter stranger?

“That won’t do.” He presses a finger to my chest. “Sensations. Feelings. Passion…” He moves the finger up. “… are the only things worth living for.”

I watch his hands pull away. My mouth opens in astonishment. I have never been touched like that before.

“I wondered if your garments were translucent, but it seems that you are…” He pauses for a moment before whispering the word bare.

I take a step back. What a brazen man he is. It is utterly—