There were balconies up towards the front of the room. A chair was set in the middle of the room with a small tangle of ropes around its legs. The woman saw no one around, just rows and rows of boxes and crates. They were stacked so high that they easily obscured her view of the rest of the room. She could only walk straight ahead, thanks to all the boxes and crates on either side of her. She walked on looking for any minute signs of where the girl might have gone or if she was even here. There were aisles of empty space that crossed the empty row she walked down. She cautiously peeked around the corners of those, past boxes filled with prizes. She stopped in her tracks when she heard the click of a gun behind her. She recognized and despised the raucous voice as soon as she heard it.
Blonsky: “It’s you again! You have some gall on you, little girl, coming in here and interfering with my operations again. Hands up and turn around.”
She did what he asked, but moved as slowly as she dared. When she turned to fully face him, she saw that his left arm was around Melissa’s tiny throat, while his right hand held the gun that was now pointed right at her. Melissa’s mouth was gagged with some sort of cloth.
Blonsky: “Good, good! Funny seeing you here. Just when I was starting to think that you didn’t like me, that you were trying to escape me, here you come right back.”
Dahlila: “I can assure you that I didn’t come back for your company or your conversation.”
Blonsky bore an overacted look of surprise on his face. Melissa looked straight at her, tears in the little girl’s eyes.
Blonsky: “Oh? Then why are you here?”
Dahlila: “I’ll let you figure it out.”
Blonsky: “That’s one thing my parents always told me. What about your parents? What did they teach you?”
Dahlila: “Never to trust strange men, especially bald ones.”
Blonsky laughed raucously to the point of almost doubling over, dropping his aim on her in the process.
Blonsky: “Oh that’s good! That’s rich! I’d expect nothing less. Oh, and sorry about that comment about your parents; I know you ain’t have ‘em. You took that surprisingly well though, compared to last time.”
He smiled at her and then straightened up as he stared into her eyes.
Blonsky: “You almost convinced me. That smart mouth of yours was spot on. What you lacked was the right kind of hatred. You see, I’m well versed in malice. I can spot a faker. You didn’t show the hatred of someone trapped by me for weeks being tortured, humiliated, belittled. The girl showed me that kind of venomous hatred every time I saw her. A hatred so deep you’re like to choke on it. You, however … your hatred belongs to someone who’s only been in my presence for a short time. Who’s been maybe slapped around and humiliated a little.”
Dahlila stood quietly still with an annoyed expression on her face. Blonsky smiled at her.
Blonsky: “You’re good, but you won’t fool me twice. That girl was spotted leaving with the boy when we had you. She couldn’t have escaped on her own like you did. Give it up already. We already know that you’ve been interfering at every step.”
Dahlila: “You meant to say, ‘You won’t fool me three times.’”
She laughed at him derisively.
Dahlila: “You don’t know nearly as much as you pretend to know.”
Blonsky’s frame became more rigid. The woman could tell that she had successfully angered him.
Blonsky: “I KNOW several things. I know it was you that caused that stadium explosion, which set me back a lot of money on Pickers’ games. I know you were the one who freed the girl that you’re masquerading as right now. I know it was you in my restaurant the day my boys got beaten up by a nut in tights. I know you were that nut in tights. I’ve lost a lot of money because of you, and I know that you’ll show me your real face. Otherwise, you and this girl will go bye-bye.”
He took his hand from the little girl’s throat to rub her head. The woman laughed, instantly calling his bluff.
Dahlila: “You won’t harm a hair on her head; we both know that. You don’t want to cross your boss. I’ll give you what you want anyway, just for giggles. I’m sure you pushed your brain to its upper limits trying to figure out just who I am, so I’ll help you out.”
Blonsky: “Well, go on, make with the magic already.”
With her hands still up in the air, her body began its transformation. She became thicker around her hips, waist, chest, and thighs. She grew taller and her skin darkened a few shades to a rich olive tone. Her hair became a sea of thick black curls atop her head while her clothes remained the same; dark jeans, a dark gray t-shirt, and her brown fingerless leather driving gloves.
Blonsky: “Well, look at you!”
He whistled in a derogatory way.
Blonsky: “I can’t believe my eyes. You’d make Mrs. Blonsky really jealous right now. Well, ex-Mrs. Blonsky. Why, look at me! I’m blushing. You know, if your friend hadn’t told me firsthand what you looked like, I wouldn’t have believed that this was your real face.”
Liandra: “So my face amazes you, not the fact that I can change it?”
Blonsky snorted loudly.
Blonsky: “Seems you’re the one who doesn’t know as much as she thinks. I’ve seen magic before. I see it every day, as a matter of fact. Yours ain’t special.”
She assumed he was talking about Patrias. He lifted the gun back at her chest and wrapped his arm around Melissa’s neck again.
Blonsky: “Now, this has been fun, but it’s time I took my leave of you, permanently.”
Melissa's scream was further muffled by Blonsky's hand. Liandra couldn’t think of anything else to do or say. She was surrounded by a wall of crates and boxes, leaving her with limited options for escape. There was only one way out of this, but she knew it would hurt. She looked at Melissa and motioned for her to close her eyes so she wouldn’t see what was to come. The little girl was already crying a river of tears, wetting her cheeks and shirt.
THWACK! CRACK! SNAP!
The British Grenadiers March filled the air for a few seconds before slowly fizzing out. Blonsky crumpled to the ground, dropping his hold of both Melissa and his gun. Joe stood behind Blonsky’s prone body, clutching a broken giant wooden model of a British soldier from the game Revolutionary Heroes.
Melissa flinched from him at first, until she realized that it was Joe. His smile was worn well, but also looked to be well worn. He did all he could to assure the little girl that it would all be okay. He was fond of her. He picked her up and embraced her as if she were his own sister. He whispered to her so low that only she could hear it.
Joe: “It’s over. You’re okay.”
He put her down on the ground and she ran over to Liandra. Blonsky jumped to life and grabbed Joe by the wrist. He looked at the figure in Joe’s hand, and then up at Joe with a look of painful confusion painted on his face.
Blonsky: “The British!?”
He released his hold and fell to the ground unconscious. Liandra walked up with Melissa behind her to observe the man.
Joe: “I think we should handcuff him too.
Liandra: “Noted.”
Joe: “Thanks … Dahlila.”
They both looked at one another and smiled.
Liandra: “When did you figure it out?”
Joe: “Only after I woke up with your necklace on me. Dahlila wouldn’t know about it. I kept thinking about that when you were asking me to find it.”
Liandra turned her attention to Melissa.
Liandra: “Are you alright, little dove?”
Melissa beamed up at her.
Melissa: “Yes, thanks to both of you. Thank you so much!”
Liandra smiled back at her.
Liandra: “Let’s get out of here. You two wait downstairs. I’ll get this guy.”
Joe: “No. I’m not letting anyone else clean up my messes. I’ll bring him down and call the police.”
Liandra chuckled at his stubbornness.
Liandra: �
�I can honestly say that you’ve mostly helped me clean up my own mess and you’ve done so excellently. Let’s do this together.”
“There’s no need,” came a familiar voice from the steps. When they looked around they saw Dahlila, the real Dahlila. At least Joe hoped it was the real Dahlila.
Chapter 38
The Wrap Up
Melissa: “DAHL!”
Melissa ran up to Dahlila and jumped into her arms, almost knocking her over in the process. Dahlila looked like she hadn’t slept for a while, and was more haggard looking than when Joe had last seen her. She wore the same bloody clothes that they had left her in.
Dahlila: “I came as soon as I got your text message. The police are on the way. I had to commandeer a car and sped past them to get here, so they shouldn’t be too far behind. We can leave him for them.”
They all trotted quickly down the stairs towards the first floor.
Dahlila: “One of us needs to explain what happened here to the police.”
They all jumped at the sight of an old man in a light gray suit appearing at the bottom of the stairs.
Borland: “Don’t worry about that. I’ve got it covered. You two should leave. Dahlila and Melissa, you’re with me.”
Dahlila walked up to the old man’s face and put her hands on her hips.
Dahlila: “I haven’t seen you for a whole ten seconds yet and you’re already bossing me around. It’s been weeks since we’ve last seen each other, and that’s all you can say to me?”
Joe saw something he hadn’t expected to see. Borland sighed and relented to Dahlila.
Borland: “Okay, kid, you’re right. I’m sorry. I’m glad that you’re okay. Now would it have killed ya’ to pick up a phone and call to tell me you were okay?”
Dahlila: “I couldn’t put you or us in danger like that. I did what I had to do. I did what you’d have done in my place.”
Borland: “Fair enough. I didn’t raise a fool.”
He turned to Joe and Liandra.
Borland: “Now you two get out of here. There’s a back door over there.”
Liandra: “His car is still out front so we’ll just hurry and go that way before the police come.”
Dahlila: “Why do I have to stay?”
Borland: “Cuz you’re a troublemaker, that’s why! Stealing a car, jeez! I should just let them take you away in handcuffs.”
Dahlila: “Sheesh! Here we go again! I only commandeered that freakin’ car to look for Melissa.”
Borland: “Commandeered!? You ain’t no freakin’ cop!”
Liandra tugged at Joe’s arm.
Liandra: “I think it’s time for us to go.”
Joe nodded.
Joe: “Well … I’ll see you all around.”
Somehow those words saddened Joe. Silence enveloped the group afterwards. Melissa walked up and hugged him around the waist.
Melissa: “Thank you, Joe!”
She reluctantly let go of him. Dahlila then walked up and hugged him, reaching her arms high around his back. His heart leapt in his chest when she kissed him on the cheek.
Dahlila: “Thank you, Joe…”
Borland shuffled forward in awkward haste and patted him on his shoulder.
Borland: “Thanks … for everything kid. You did good by us. If you need anything, let me know.”
Joe nodded his head. He was embarrassingly close to tears, and had wiped his face to make sure they weren’t there, even though that made him look guiltier.
Borland: “Now get out of here, both of you.”
Joe and Liandra bolted away towards the double doors leading out of the kitchen. Joe looked back one more time at the strange group of people he had so recently met. Thousands of words raced through his mind describing each one of them. The one that stood out the most was “extraordinary.”
The two made it out of the front door of the Fun Zone to a cool night breeze. They saw no one close, or any cops for that matter. So they hopped into Joe’s car, with Liandra taking the driver’s wheel, and drove off.
They didn’t drive very far. She parked only a block down the street from the Fun Zone. They had managed to leave just in time as the police were just arriving to the scene.
Joe: “Why’d you stop here?”
Liandra stayed focused on the action at the Fun Zone.
Liandra: “I just want to make sure those monsters get what’s coming to them.”
They waited and watched the police go inside. Joe nervously fumbled with his owl medallion.
Joe: “What’s so special about this necklace? It looks pretty goofy to me.”
Joe could hear Liandra chuckle.
Liandra: “That goofy little pendant is the only thing keeping you alive when I’m not around.”
Joe: “What!?”
Liandra: “That owl represents the guardian’s eye. It alerts me to the dangers of its current 'wearer.’ It contacted me each and every time you were in danger, like tonight.”
Joe: “That’s why you were always the first to help me.”
Liandra: “Not always, but it definitely helped tonight.”
Joe: “But his spells—Patrias’ spells—wouldn’t work on me. I was starting to think it was the necklace saving me.”
Liandra: “What Patrias was using to try to kill you was called a crafte. You can think of it like magic but it works a little differently. The user has to focus their energy and willpower into some sort of conduit, like a wand for instance. Wands are a strange choice, though, because they yield low power. With a great use of effort, emotion, and concentration, craftes like the ones Patrias used are possible. His own desire to kill you fueled all the harmful craftes he tried to use on you.”
Joe: “Oh…”
Liandra: “What’s important to remember is that you were right. The necklace did protect you from Patrias’ craftes, with a little help from me that is. The necklace is charmed. A man I knew once put a charm on the necklace to protect me. That charm had since faded, so I reactivated it to protect you. Mine’s nowhere near as good as his, but it protected you from Patrias’ vicious craftes this whole time. Anything he tried to use to harm you was nullified. I’m just lucky that he’s a hack and didn’t know anything stronger than he did.”
Joe: “He was trying to hurt me before today?
Liandra: “He was trying to kill you the moment you stepped back into your school. I was getting warnings left and right every time you stepped foot in the building. I didn’t have an inkling that it could’ve been him until the day of the governor’s speech when I saw you talking to him. I began to doubt that, though, once the shooting began. I thought the warnings might’ve come from the assassin.”
Joe was speechless. He was more oblivious than he thought. He and Liandra looked on as the cops emerged from the building with the bruised and bloody pair of Patrias and Blonsky. The men were both unceremoniously dumped into the back of a squad car. The cops chatted it up for a bit before they left the scene.
Liandra: “And that, my friend, is a wrap! Your life will be much safer with them behind bars.”
Joe gave a great sigh of relief. He felt truly free for the first time in a long time.
Joe: “Thank goodness and thank you, for everything. I’m sorry I made this so much more difficult for you.”
Liandra: “Difficult? I couldn’t have done this without you. I should be the one thanking you. You are dull, unskilled, and unremarkable in just about every way, but somehow you were a great help. If nothing else, your actions show that you have a great and wondrous heart.”
Joe laughed and stared off at the moon. She was honest when she said she didn’t mince her words. He took it all in and in the end felt good about what she had said.
Joe: “My parents taught me to help those in need. That day at the stadium I saw that you were in need and so I helped. It’s that simple.”
She smiled.
Liandra: “I don’t think that’s the only reason. Admit it, I saw you checking me out.”
Joe: “I didn’t, I mean I did cuz—I mean you came out of nowhere … and … and…”
She laughed.
Liandra: “Don’t worry. I’m not squeezing in on your girlfriend’s territory. Now let’s get you home.”
Chapter 39
Busy Day
Joe was in a tremendous amount of pain. His back and neck were sore from when Patrias launched him into the wall. His bruises had swelled. He’d decided to go to school anyway. He didn’t want to miss a Patrias free day and he wasn’t disappointed.
Joe’s school day went by effortlessly. Joe now wasn’t under the impression that everything he did was wrong. Without Patrias, the teachers that normally hated him seemed to ignore him for the most part, though Mr. Serano gave Joe a grimace that chilled his bones. Just knowing that Patrias wasn’t in the building was enough to rid Joe of most of his scholastic anxiety, though he still worried about his grades.
Fleez and Dozz stayed consistent with their harassment of him and his friends. They still wanted him to join Team Badd Azz, but he stayed as resolute as they seemed to be. At least now he had Mod watching his back.
Mod had successfully counter-pranked them after they hosted a round of “What’s in the wad?”—where they threw wads of mysterious substances at Mod and asked the audience to participate in guessing what the substance was by feeling it, smelling it, or for those braver souls—tasting it.
Mod got his revenge after he strapped two buckets of warm melted cheese in the ceiling tiles above Fleez’s locker. Mod waited and watched as Fleez opened his locker, which triggered a mechanism that Mod and his buddies from shop class had set up. The mechanism was hooked to string in the back of the locker that ran upwards. When tugged back, the ceiling tiles above Fleez’s locker released the two buckets of cheese. He was covered front to back. Mod loudly proclaimed in front of everyone that this was the correct way to make a grilled Fleez sandwich.
Average Joe and the Extraordinaires Page 21