Fire Defender

by Rodney Hartman

  A warm tingly feeling in Tess’s right hand drew her attention. A wave of dizziness swept over her as her vision blurred. Slowing the bike down, she pulled to the side of the road and shut the engine off but left the headlight on. The air seemed to take on an electric feel. She looked all around, seeing nothing unusual about the dark trees on either side of the road. In spite of the coolness of the night, a drop of sweat ran down her face.

  What’s wrong with me?

  Closing her eyes, she repeated a calming mantra for a good thirty seconds. The dizziness slowly went away. When she opened her eyes, everything looked different.

  What the hell? Everything’s black and white.

  Tess looked around, bile rising in her throat. She forced the fear down, concentrating on what she was seeing. What she saw looked strangely familiar.

  It looks like…

  Tess reached down and turned off the cycle’s lights. The clarity of the terrain and features increased dramatically. Everything was black and white, but it was very clear. She spotted a beer can in the ditch ten feet away and could see that the letters on the label spelled out a popular brand with the locals.

  It’s night. There’s no moon. Yet I can read the name on the can clear as day.

  The familiarity of what she was seeing came to Tess. She remembered once back in Texas when she’d come upon a group of hunters one night while she’d been riding a lonely backroad. One of the men had let her look through a set of high-end thermal binoculars.

  That’s what I’m seeing, Tess thought. It’s like I’ve got night vision or something.

  On impulse, she turned the bike’s headlamp back on. She twisted the handlebar to point the light in the direction of the ditch. The red lettering on the beer can showed up normally.

  The warmth in Tess’s right hand increased dramatically, drawing her attention away from the can. Jerking her glove off, she stared at her ring. The normal yellow color of the gem was showing minute flashes of blue deep within the gem. The blue flashes began to intensify. As they did, the warmth in her right hand increased as well, then began moving up her arm. Panicking, she grabbed her ring finger with her left hand and jerked the ring off. As soon as she did, the warmth disappeared. Looking around, she noticed everything outside the light from her bike’s headlamp had turned pitch-dark. She cautiously placed the ring back on her finger. The warmth returned as the surrounding terrain outside the motorcycle’s headlight once again showed up in black and white. The warmth in Tess’s right hand began spreading up her arm.

  Stay calm. It’s just warm. It doesn’t hurt. Wait and see what happens.

  The warmth continued spreading until Tess’s whole body felt as if she was covered with a warm blanket taken right out of the dryer. The vision of her surroundings became even sharper. Suddenly the air around her turned cold in spite of her internal warmth. A puff of fog came out as she exhaled. A fluttering sound overhead drew her attention. Looking up, she noticed a darting shape high overhead.

  Is that a bat? It’s dark, but I can still see it flying around.

  She noticed several more darting bats apparently in search of insects. They’re strange looking bats. Bigger than I’m used to seeing around here. Doesn’t matter. Bats are the least of my worries right now.

  Tess waited five minutes on the side of the road to see if anything else happened. Nothing did. Finally, she hit the start button on her bike, relieved to hear the motor’s roar. Thumbing the light switch, she turned off the motorcycle’s lights before speeding off into the night. She had no problem seeing the road. She kept the lights off until the familiar outline of her trailer park came into view just ahead. Flipping on the cycle’s lights, she turned into the gravel drive, shut the engine off, and coasted up next to her trailer.

  Tess glanced at her watch. Two-thirty. I’m not going to be worth a darn during classes today. I’m way too excited to sleep.

  She was wrong. Five minutes after she entered the trailer, she was sound asleep in her bed, wrapped in a comforting-warmth. She dreamed of her mother. In her dream, Tess smiled.

  “Never take this off,” said her mother as she placed a yellow-gemmed ring on Tess’s finger.

  “I won’t, Mom,” Tess’s dream-self promised. “I’ll never take it off again.”

  * * *

  The bat-like creature landed lightly on the trailer roof. When the light from the window at the rear of the trailer went out, the imp shape-shifted into a spider and crawled down the side of the trailer, seeking an opening. It found one under the trailer, near a rusted pipe. Squeezing past the rotted wood around the pipe, it made its way inside.

  The scent of the girl was strong. Following the flow of energy, the imp crawled along the floor on its eight legs and passed under a door. The girl was in bed, eyes closed. Crawling up a wall, the imp eyed the girl’s neck. Its spider eyes picked up the pulse of her main artery. The sensation of warm blood was overpowering. The imp resisted the urge to change form and suck the life force from the sleeping human. I have a task, the imp thought. I must obey. Still, the thought of warm blood grew on its mind.

  The girl breathed, blowing out a puff of fog. As she drew her blanket around her neck, a flash of yellow lit the room for one brief instant. The imp was tempted to laugh, but the fact that spiders couldn’t laugh helped it control the impulse.

  Woman said follow, thought the imp. Woman said find where girl lives and send others back. The imp tried to laugh again but failed. Stupid woman did not say to report if I find ring.

  Once more the imp tried to laugh before settling down to wait. The beat, beat, beat of the girl’s heart was ever present on its mind. Poison dripped from its spider fangs as it imagined the pulsing neck artery just under the blanket. The smell of the girl’s blood was overpowering. Ever so slowly, the spider lowered itself towards the floor. It had an idea.

  * * *

  Mick opened the rear hatch of the SUV and pulled the cages closer to the end. The air grew suddenly cold. A fluttering sound drew his attention overhead. Something dark dove towards the rear of the SUV, landing in one of the cages. Other somethings followed until all but one of the cages were filled with chittering, leathery-winged creatures.

  “That’s the last of them,” Cynthia said. “Close the door, fool, before they leave.”

  Mick reached out with his left hand and slammed the door of the cages shut. As he shut the fifth cage, a clawed hand reached through the bars and scratched the back of his hand.

  “Crap!” Mick said sucking at his hand. “The blasted thing drew blood.”

  Staring at the cage, Mick reared back a fist as if preparing to strike the horned head that protruded through the bars. Apparently, the imp’s wicked-looking fangs and fiery-red eyes gave him pause because he lowered his hand. The miniature demon hissed before extending its leathery wings and jumping to the other side of the cage.

  “Drew blood,” squeaked a high-pitched voice. “Drew blood.”

  Other high-pitched voices joined in the squeaking, saying, “Drew blood,” “Fool,” and “Crap.”

  “These things give me the creeps,” Mick said shoving the last cage farther into the back of the SUV before covering them with a blanket. As soon as he did, the chittering stopped.

  Cynthia raised a corner of the blanket and locked eyes with a purple-hued imp. “Did you find where the girl lives?”

  “Yes,” squeaked the imp.

  An image of a trailer formed in Cynthia’s mind.

  “Does she have the Fire Ring?” Cynthia asked.

  The imp seemed to shrug its shoulders. “Wear gloves. No see. Leader inside. Maybe he know.”

  Cynthia frowned. “When will your leader return?”

  The purple imp hissed a laugh. “You no say come back. He stay until you fetch.”

  Gritting her teeth, Cynthia shook the cage. “Don’t play me for a fool. I’ll—”

  The sound of a smothered laugh stopped her from saying more. Cynthia turned and glared at her driver. He patted a bulg
e under the left breast pocket of his jacket.

  “We’re wasting our time with these things,” said Mick. “If you want to know whether the girl has a ring, just let me at her. I’ll find out soon enough.”

  Cynthia shook her head. “I told you we need to be discreet. We can’t take any action until we know for sure. What happens if you had to kill her and she doesn’t have one of the rings? Then where would we be? We’d have the entire police force snooping around the county, asking questions. The colors will be here soon. We can’t afford any mistakes now.”

  Mick nodded before grinning. “Anything you say, Cap…err, Boss. It was just a suggestion. Where to now? Back to the safe house?”

  Cynthia stared at the imp before looking back at her driver. “Yes, the safe house. We’ve done enough for tonight. We’ll see what else we can find out about the girl and the sisters tomorrow.”

  “What if we can’t find anything out because no one wants to talk? Then what?”

  Cynthia pointed at the man’s left breast pocket. “Then we may have to do it your way, but only as a last resort and only if I say so.” When the man frowned, she added, “Do you understand?”

  Mick nodded and looked away. “I hear you. I don’t agree, but I hear you.”

  Cynthia made a mental note to keep a close eye on her driver. He’s trouble, she thought. Maybe I should just get rid of him now and be done with it. A squeaky voice interrupted her thoughts.

  “What we do?” asked the purple imp. “Mission over? We go home now?”

  Cynthia shook her head. “No. I have something else for you to do.”

  “What?” squeaked the imp.

  Forming an image of a building in her mind, Cynthia sent it to the imp. A sign in front of the building read ‘Covington Library.’

  Chapter 13 – Absent

  ___________________

  Alec glanced at his watch as he drove past the library early Thursday morning.

  Twenty ’til, he thought. I’ve got time.

  Turning around, he pulled into the alley and drove into the employee parking lot located behind the library. He looked for Tess’s motorcycle, but the only vehicle in the parking lot was Aunt Mamie’s sedan. With a shake of his head, Alec parked and shut off the truck’s engine.

  We’ve got to convince Aunt Mamie to stop driving. That was a battle Alec knew he didn’t want to fight. Actually, he thought. The one I really don’t want to fight is someday having to tell Grandma she needs to give up her car keys. He winced at the thought of some of the choice words that request would probably elicit.

  Ears burning at the thought, Alec hurried to the back door. It was locked. After a couple of loud knocks, the door opened revealing the bespectacled librarian.

  Aunt Mamie gave a big smile as soon as she saw him. “Alec, what a surprise. I didn’t expect you until tonight.”

  “Tonight?”

  “Why yes. Didn’t my sister tell you? I’ve been going over my notes on those rings. Myiata said she’d let Tess and you know to be here at seven.”

  Alec unconsciously reached for the back pocket where he normally kept his cellphone. He didn’t need to pat to know the pocket was empty. It figures, he thought. I’ve got to stop being in such a hurry that I forget and leave my phone on my nightstand. That’s the second time in the last week. I’ll bet Grandma tried calling me and all she got was voice mail.

  “Nope, I didn’t get the message,” he told his aunt. “Did you tell Tess? I’m guessing she’s already left for class.”

  Aunt Mamie shook her head. “Actually, Tess didn’t stop by this morning. That’s unusual, but you know how kids are nowadays. Why don’t you send her a ‘tap-chat’ or whatever it’s called and let her know about our meeting?”

  “It’s called— Never mind. We’ve got a couple of classes together today. I’ll let her know when I see her.”

  “All right, dear. You know, she’s such a sweet girl. In case I didn’t mention it, she doesn’t have a date for the school dance Friday. I wouldn’t wait too long to ask if I was you. A pretty young thing like Tess won’t wait forever.”

  Smiling, Alec bit back the reminder that he already had a date. Let her think what she wants, he thought. It really doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. “Uh, I’ll keep that in mind, Aunt Mamie. Got to go now. See you tonight.”

  “Tsk, tsk. You young people are always in such a rush. Why don’t you come in and have some cookies?”

  Backing away smiling, Alec said, “Wish I could, but can’t. Mr. Jenkins hates it when students are late. I can’t afford any more fails on assignments.”

  As Alec climbed into the cab of his truck, he heard Aunt Mamie mumble something about Mr. Jenkins and her deceased husband both showing up on the same night to take her to a dance. He smiled, started the truck, and drove the four blocks to the school’s parking lot. He made it to his seat next to Scott with a minute to spare. Looking around, he saw no sign of Tess.

  Scott leaned over in his seat. “If you’re looking for your biker girl, she’s not here. I got to class early for once. I even beat you. You’re falling down on the job, old buddy.”

  “She didn’t show up at the library this morning according to Aunt Mamie,” Alec said more curious than concerned.

  He tried to remember if Tess had ever been late to class before. He wasn’t sure. Truth be told, he thought, I never really paid that much attention to her until now. What a difference four days make.

  Any more thoughts of Tess disappeared as Mr. Jenkins started lecturing on applied physics while covering a whole slew of formulas that he assured everyone would be on next week’s test. Alec forced himself to take better notes than usual while making sure he got an extra set of handouts when they came around. By the time class was over, his mind was more confused by his teacher’s explanations than he’d been before coming to class.

  I’ll be glad once I graduate so I don’t have to worry about useless formulas that I’m never going to use, Alec thought. Things should be a whole lot easier once I’m out of high school.

  As he gathered his things, Alec thought he heard the roar of a motorcycle through the open window. Glancing out, he saw only an old beat-up truck with smoke pouring out of its tailpipe. He sensed someone looking over his shoulder and turned to see a big grin on Scott’s face.

  “Don’t worry, old buddy. I’m sure she’ll be running down the sidewalk to meet her white knight any minute now.” With a slap on Alec’s back, Scott said, “Speaking of running, I’ve got to get a move-on myself. I’ll see you at lunch.”

  “See you,” Alec said holding his temper.

  For some reason, his friend’s continuous jokes about Tess were growing increasingly irritating. We’re just partners on a science project, that’s all, he thought. An image of dull-silver rings with yellow and blue gems flashed in his mind, reminding Alec there was more than just a science project between them. He thought of her blonde hair, gold eyes, and their near kiss the day before. Definitely much more than just project partners, he thought.

  He looked out the window hoping against hope to see a motorcycle speeding towards the library. All he saw was an empty street.

  Come on Tess. Where are you?

  Chapter 14 – Late

  _________________

  Tess shivered, then snuggled deeper into her blanket. Opening her eyes, the first thing she focused on was a spider web in a corner of her ceiling. A large orange-colored spider sat in the middle of its web seeming to eye her.

  I knocked all the webs down yesterday, she thought. Just my luck to get a spider from hell that refuses to die. No matter how many times I knock these webs down, they seem to come back.

  Tess got an idea and laughed, her breath visible from the cold. “Enjoy yourself while you can, little buddy. I’m going to pick up a can of bug spray after school. We’ll see how fast you rebuild your web then.”

  She had a sudden thought about a movie she’d once seen where bug spray only made the spiders grow stronger. Sh
e laughed again. Probably my luck to get a spider that’s immune to bug spray, Tess thought. Pulling the cover up to her chin, she glanced at her right hand. It was no longer warm. The yellow gem on her ring was just a normal yellow.

  The thought suddenly hit her that she’d seen the spider web much too clearly. It’s daylight. Throwing the cover off, she reached for her cellphone. Seven-thirty? It can’t be. Jenkins is going over the test this morning. I can’t be late.

  With no time to shower, she pulled on her pants and blouse while heading for the bathroom. Looking in the mirror, the sight of a red bump on her neck drew her attention. She looked closer, seeing what appeared to be two small fang marks. The thought of the spider made her shiver. She made a mental note to buy the strongest bug spray she could find.

  Making a quick pass with her toothbrush, Tess headed to the kitchen to grab her books. The sight of a thin man sitting at the table brought her up short.

  “Dad! I… Uh…”

  “I’m semi-sober, if that’s what you’re wondering,” John Wilkerson said. “I wanted to talk to you last night, but you were later than usual.”

  Tess noticed her dad’s eyes. They were bloodshot, but clear. His words weren’t slurred.

  “I’m late for class, Dad. Can we talk later?”

  He shrugged. The action raised the collar on his sweat shirt, revealing the burn scars on the side of his neck.

  “Sure, it can wait. I, uh…” Reaching down to the chair next to him, he placed a gray laptop on the table. “Sorry about borrowing your computer. I, uh…I got it back last night. I, uh, sorry.”

  Tess wasn’t sure what to say and grew suspicious. “Where’d you get the money?”