by P B Kane
The bridge...
Daniel recalled the first words Greg had said after seeing John lying there on the beach. “God...” He was half right. Not God, but a god. Daniel thought back then, to the moment they’d figured it all out. Who John really was. The references to Norse mythology in that book from the library. References to their deities, able to travel to Earth via the Rainbow Bridge. But one especially. Not a trickster, but the greatest Trickster of all time. Loki, who took delight in meddling with the lives of lesser beings.
But that was only half the story, wasn’t it. Loki was one of two warring brothers forever at odds. His sibling: the god of thunder, with his blond hair and his hammer, always trying to prevent Loki from causing trouble.
Both able, it would seem, not only to cross over, but also inhabit the bodies of humans.
Had John been right? Had Thor taken over (Daniel preferred to think “ride along with,” like he had himself in those patrol cars) Lorraine Routh’s husband for his own amusement—or was that another lie? Daniel liked to think the god had enhanced and extended the man’s life, choosing a protector to experience the human condition through. An agreement between the two, some kind of mutually beneficial symbiosis?
What was absolutely certain from the short conversation Daniel had on the cliff-top with John, was that the original battle at the town hall between him and Daniel’s father(s) had taken its toll, forced both deities out...
Your dad stopped him, saved a lot of lives...
Daniel found out later on that Hamilton had simply collapsed not long after the fight, given up the will to life; if there had been any in there to start with.
Me? I prefer them already empty. Soul-less, like the arsonist...
While his human dad had suffered a more drawn out end, gradually succumbing to his fate: that terminal disease. At least he’d fought it, Daniel always told himself...
Remarkably, there weren’t any photos left behind of John anywhere. And the footage of that night was pretty much wiped by the fire. Within a month of his disappearance, it was as if he’d never been there—but he had changed things. Some for the better, some for the worse.
Daniel’s mum had given up the booze, which was why she went on to live so long in the end. And the Rouths became much closer as a family because of the lessons learned. But some relationships, like that of Susan and her folks, McLean and Lily (she woke from her coma not long after John vanished, and refused to have anything more to do with her new husband), or Greg and his father, never got back to where they’d been before. How could they? It was probably why Greg ended up leaving once he turned eighteen.
Taking Jill with him.
They still visited from time to time, though. Brought their own kids to see Daniel, who eventually took over the island’s police force. Following in his fathers’ foot-steps—both of them—a protector of this place. Some said he was wasted there, that his detective skills would see him do well over on the mainland, but Daniel preferred it where he was.
Following his fathers’ footsteps and, of course, Yeats’.
Poor Yeats, who they’d found in his place. Who couldn’t handle the pressure and had taken the easy way out. Or was pushed... They’d never really know for sure.
“I froze. I mean I literally froze up, I was useless.”
All it takes sometimes is a little nudge.
Daniel visited his grave every now and again, chatted to him as though he were still around. He’d known Yeats much better than he had either of his fathers.
And Daniel lived a good life, an honest life. A quiet life.
Although whenever there was a storm, you’d find him the next day down at the bay between the Clown’s Feet, with a now fully recovered Vincent. The collie that had been left in his care after Jill moved away; an animal who’d seen past the colours, to the black and white of things: black and white, good and evil... or grey?
The only one, other than Daniel, who’d seen what John truly was... (Daniel was convinced that it was only his own influence that had finally persuaded Jill and Greg to see it too; one of a few gifts from his real dad... like that strength when he needed it, and resistance to electricity... though that sometimes worked against him, as he still had trouble with computers, TVs and the like).
Later Vincent’s pup, Shadow Jr, had accompanied him on the beach after each storm. Daniel, on one of his adventures. Looking for another rainbow.
Vigilant, just in case.
In case the Rainbow Man should ever return.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
P.B. KANE (Paul Kane) is an award-winning writer and editor based in Derbyshire, UK. His short story collections are Alone (In the Dark), Touching the Flame, FunnyBones, Peripheral Visions, Shadow Writer and The Adventures of Dalton Quayle, with his latest out from the award-winning PS Publishing: The Butterfly Man and Other Stories. His novellas include Signs of Life, The Lazarus Condition, RED and Pain Cages. He is author of the novels Of Darkness and Light, The Gemini Factor and the bestselling Arrowhead trilogy (Arrowhead, Broken Arrow and Arrowland), a post-apocalyptic reworking of the Robin Hood mythology. His new novel, Lunar, introduced by Ramsey Campbell, is set to be turned into a feature film. He has also written for comics, most notably for the Dead Roots zombie anthology alongside writers such as James Moran (Torchwood, Cockneys vs. Zombies) and Jason Arnopp (Dr Who, Friday The 13th). He is co-editor of the anthology Hellbound Hearts (Simon & Schuster)—stories based around the Clive Barker mythology that spawned Hellraiser—The Mammoth Book of Body Horror (Constable & Robinson/Running Press), featuring the likes of Stephen King and James Herbert, A Carnivàle of Horror (PS) featuring Ray Bradbury and Joe Hill, and the forthcoming Beyond Rue Morgue from Titan.
His non-fiction books are the BFS Award-nominated and critically acclaimed The Hellraiser Films and Their Legacy and Voices in the Dark, and his genre journalism has appeared in the likes of SFX, Rue Morgue, Fangoria, Dreamwatch and DeathRay. He has been a Guest at Alt.Fiction five times, was a Guest at the first SFX Weekender, at the comic convention Thought Bubble in 2011, plus The Derbyshire Literary Festival, Edge-Lit and Off the Shelf in 2012, as well as being a panelist at FantasyCon and the World Fantasy Convention. His work has been optioned for film and television, and his zombie story, Dead Time, was turned into an episode of the Lionsgate/NBC TV series Fear Itself, adapted by Steve Niles (30 Days of Night) and directed by Darren Lynn Bousman (SAW II-IV). He also scripted The Opportunity, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, Wind Chimes (directed by Brad “7th Dimension” Watson) and The Weeping Woman—filmed by award-winning director Mark Steensland and starring Tony-nominated actor Stephen Geoffreys (Fright Night). You can find out more at his website www.shadow-writer.co.uk which has featured Guest Writers such as Neil Gaiman, Charlaine Harris, John Connolly, Robert Kirkman, Dean Koontz and Guillermo del Toro.
Other Titles
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Rocket Ride Books
Who Goes There? (aka THE THING)
by John W. Campbell
ISBN: 978-0-9823322-0-7 (Print) | ISBN: 978-0-9823322-1-4 (Audio)
The story that formed the basis of THE THING motion pictures. Includes William F. Nolan’s introduction and never-before-published screenplay treatment. Available in both print and first-ever audio edition (unabridged)!
“The definitive edition.”—SF Signal
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TWILIGHT (Audio)
by John W. Campbell
ISBN: 978-0-9823322-7-6 (Audio)
The seminal SF tale of a mysterious time-traveler who arrives from the far-future to tell of mankind’s final enslavement to machines.
Voted one of the best-ever SF stories by Science Fiction Writers of America (Nebula Awards)
Available at Amazon/Audible/iTunes
KINCAID: A Paranormal Casebook
by William F. Nolan
ISBN: 978-0-9823322-2-1 (Print)
A headless corpse... A shape-shifting demon... A house
of unspeakable horror... When the case goes cold, baffling L.A. police, David Kincaid is the man—a different kind of investigator with talents both worldly...and otherworldly.
Multiple award-winner William F. Nolan (logan’s run) takes us to the intersection of terror and mystery in a trilogy of tales that will delight crime and horror fans, alike.
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The Underdweller (Audio)
by William F. Nolan
ISBN: 978-0-9823322-9-0 (Audio)
The classic “last man” tale by William F. Nolan in a brand new AUDIO edition, with special introduction by the author.
Lewis Stillman occupies a small world, a world of one, for he is the last man alive. Hounded by a menace above and haunted from within, he hides below...in the Los Angeles sewer system, knowing his next trip to the surface might be his last.
“Wild, fascinating, beautifully written.”—Rod Serling
Available at Amazon/Audible/iTunes