Clarity by Kim Harrington

Frankie. I figured the more eyes the better. I didn’t exactly stop to talk about the weather.”
    He put his hands up in surrender. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry. Chill.”
    I turned away, my anger dissolving as quickly as it swelled, replaced again with sadness.
    Gabriel approached me slowly and put a gentle hand on my shoulder. “Something happened. What?”
    “It’s personal,” I whispered, and shrugged off his hand, despite the little part of me that liked it there.
    He waited for a few moments. “I don’t think either of those guys we’re looking for are here. Between the two of us, we’ve been up and down the length of the beach. I’m going to call it a night, start fresh at some of the local joints in the morning. They’re bound to turn up.”
    I agreed, said good-bye, and watched Gabriel walk away. But even that pleasurable sight couldn’t cheer me up. All I could think about was Justin’s face as he’d walked through the door that night. He’d been so happy to see me, with a goofy smile and the surprise in his pocket. My ability had ruined it all.
    For a moment, I wondered if it would have been better if I hadn’t found out about his betrayal. It was a drunken mistake. He regretted it. It wouldn’t happen again. If I was a normal girl, instead of a psychic freak, I wouldn’t have gotten the vision. I would have accepted his promise ring. We’d still be together. I’d be happy.
    No, I chided myself.
    Justin was the one to blame here. He’d cheated. Even if I hadn’t found out the psychic way, Tiffany would surely have told me, to rub it in my face. Nothing would be different. I’d still be here, alone and angry.
    I began to walk back home, sticking close to the shadows along the boardwalk in the hopes that I wouldn’t be stopped by anyone else who wanted to talk. I was all talked out, all thought out. I just wanted to go to bed.
    And that’s when an arm snaked around my neck and dragged me backward and under the boardwalk.

ELEVEN
    I CLAWED AT THE HAIRY ARM AROUND MY NECK and dug my heels into the sand, but he was stronger than me and was still able to pull me into the darkness. I wanted to kick him in his two little vulnerables, but couldn’t get my leg up that high backward and ended up flailing at the air. I stopped trying to pull his arm off my neck and simultaneously brought down both of my elbows into his gut. He grunted and let me go.
    “Wait,” he said, before I had a chance to run. “I wasn’t going to hurt you.”
    Despite the complete darkness surrounding us, I recognized that nasal voice. “Frankie?”
    “That’s twice in one week I’ve taken your elbow in my stomach. Jeez, Clare, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
    “Then why did you attack me?”
    “I didn’t hurt you! I’m the one whose arm is bleeding from those fingernails of yours.”
    I pulled him out from under the boardwalk so I could see him. His face was unshaven, his hair disheveled. His eyes darted back and forth.
    “What’s going on?” I demanded. My breathing returned to normal, but my heart still raced.
    Frankie scurried back under the boardwalk, just enough to keep hidden. “I heard you were looking for me. I need to talk to you, but didn’t want anyone to see me.”
    “You idiot. You’re lucky I don’t have a Taser or Mace on me.”
    “I said I’m sorry!” His voice trembled. “Why are you looking for me?”
    “I’m looking for Billy.”
    He paused. “So am I.”
    “You don’t know where he is?”
    “No. I can’t find him anywhere and I’m worried.”
    “When was the last time you saw him?” I asked. I couldn’t believe I was standing here, talking with Frankie about Billy as if either of them were my friends. If Billy didn’t hold the key to the case, I wouldn’t have cared one ounce about where he was. And Frankie was talking to me like I was a fellow human being for once, instead of mercilessly mocking me. But only because he needed me. He thought I could