The mutated pigeon with a human nose fluttered in front of Auntie Barb and Miranda. Miranda was walking beside Barb again, this time with a smile on her face in anticipation of seeing her sister. The pigeon was large and pink, and since it was hovering only a few feet off the ground, it rammed into random objects, like legs and abandoned cars. A rusted Toyota began to honk when the pigeon smacked the windshield and let out a squawk.
The pigeon cut through laws and over fences. At these times Auntie Barb would put Miranda on her shoulders and use her super-human strength to kick down anything in the way. The fences would splinter and shards of wood became lodged into the ground and neighboring houses. The pigeon waited calmly on the other side of the gate when this happened.
After about twenty minutes of walking the pigeon landed on the porch of a two-level brown house. Then it pecked at Auntie Barb’s ankle as if it was expecting something.
“More payment?” The bird hopped on one leg. Auntie Barb fished a child’s scalp out of her bag and placed it before the bird. “Tell your keeper he’s a price-gouging thief.” The bird stabbed the scalp with his green beak and took off with it dangling in front of him. Gods knew how he saw in front enough to fly.
Miranda was already trying to open the door by standing on her tippy toes. Her pink filth-covered dress looked almost pretty when the girl did this. The door opened with a small push. The body of a middle-aged man was at the bottom of the stairs near the entryway. A Barbie leg stuck out of a huge hole in his stomach. A length of intestine was pulled out of the abdomen and a little girl exactly like Miranda had it draped over her shoulders like a feather boa.
“Sissy!” Miranda ran forward and wrapped her tiny arms around her sister.
Lisa returned the hug, and soon the two girls were babbling in their own language. At one point a length of their father’s intestine became draped over both girls. Miranda turned to Auntie Barb and said, “Do we wook fabwous?”
In the living room a few feet away Project Runway was showing on a flat-screen television on the wall. Auntie Barb could see a blinking red light on the DVD player. Lisa and her father must have been watching reruns when the little girl decided to kill him. But then, how did he end up at the bottom of the stairs? These were things Auntie Barb would never know.
Auntie Barb kneeled in front of the girls, undeterred by the draping of familial viscera. “Of course your fabulous. “ She turned to Lisa. “What’s your name, sweetie?”
“Lisa.”
“Would you like to help me find my niece, Lisa?”
Two little heads bobbed in unison.
Auntie Barb stood up. “Great. Now let’s finish this episode of Project Runway before we head out. This is the one where Brandon accuses Shermaine of copying her sweater design.”
