by Stuart Boyd
***
The next few days left Stella even more frustrated, as she was unable to unearth anything more about Uncle Dodds. Her parents would change the subject every time she mentioned him, or send her off to do washing up, or upstairs to clean her room. Then something happened that pushed Doctor Dodds clean out of Stella’s mind.
It was Sunday, and Stella had decided to go on a bike ride around the fields near her house. The sky was murky, and it was a struggle to pedal across the mushy ground, with a slight shower drizzling onto her face. Helix bounded alongside her in the mud, although it made his paws wet and usually meant that he was made to have an unwelcome bath later.
The fact that she was cycling so slowly meant that Stella couldn’t avoid Shane Biggs. She spotted him hunched over a large pile of magazines, crisp packets and plastic bottles. He had a cigarette lighter in one hand and was trying to burn the rubbish with it.
Normally Stella was beneath Shane’s notice. He preferred to pick on smaller kids, although he did encourage others at school to trip her up or call her names. He hadn’t been able to start a fire and seemed bored.
“Hey, Smella, come here,” Shane called out, ambling towards her.
He reached out to grab the handlebars of Stella’s bike, but then seemed to notice Helix for the first time and thought better of it. The husky’s grey-green eyes flashed, and he started to growl at Shane and bare his teeth. Shane sneered, but backed away.
“Nice bike, Smella.”
Stella heard Helix sniff, “Coward.”
Thankful for her friend’s sharp teeth, she cycled out of sight and then gave up riding. She took shelter from the rain under a copse of small trees. She had come there to say hello to a family of squirrels who lived near there. Checking that no one was close by, she called out to them. Stella had learnt from an early age that it wasn’t a good idea to let anyone know she could talk to animals. There would either be a chuckling comment like, ‘What an imagination that child has,’ or an angry, ‘Stop making up lies!’ She eventually learnt that it saved a lot of trouble if she kept her ability a secret. Sometimes, though, she would get distracted by birds swearing at each other and squawking, ‘Get off my tree!’
Stella had been visiting the squirrels all year, and they were used to her visits. They soon scampered over to her, offering some of their fir cones and chattering away about how cold it was and how they seemed to feel tired all the time. Stella listened patiently and told them to find somewhere warm to sleep, as it would soon get even colder. The squirrels seemed dismayed by this, but gratefully ate the raisins that she’d brought for them.
Stella leaned back against the trunk of the tree and sighed. No matter how much she tried to explain things, the squirrels never could quite understand how the seasons changed into winter. They didn’t comprehend why they couldn’t find enough food anymore and why the cold hurt them so much.
Something disturbed the squirrels from eating the raisins. They lifted up on their hind legs, and their tails started to twitch.
“What’s wrong?” Stella asked.
A loud yell answered her from across the fields, and the squirrels scrambled up the nearest tree. Stella ran and hid behind a thick growth of bushes, urging Helix beside her. Peering between brambles, Stella could make out who was making the noise. A boy was sprinting towards her hiding place. It was Tom Warner, and he was being chased by Shane Biggs.
Tom was getting close enough for Stella to see that he was red faced and panting heavily. It was only a matter of time before Shane would catch up with him.
“Oi, Warner! What are you running for?” Shane called after him.
Tom slipped on the wet grass, and this was enough of a delay to allow Shane to grab his arm.
“Get off me,” Tom cried.
“What are you talking about, Warner? I’m just shaking your hand,” Shane sniggered, and he twisted Tom’s arm behind his back, forcing him onto his knees.
Stella heard Helix growling, and this added to an insistent buzzing she had started to feel in her ears. She could see Tom’s face twisted in pain, as he begged Shane to stop. The sound in Stella’s ears got louder, and she felt as if something was boiling within her. ‘Why should Tom get picked on just because he’s smaller?’ she thought. ‘Just because he’s different?’ The buzzing sound now felt like a deafening roar. Her whole body felt as if it would burst with the force of it.
Stella stepped out from behind the tree. “Let him go!”
Shane looked up and leered at her. “Oh, it’s little Smella Stella. What’s the matter, Smella? Am I hurting your boyfriend?”
“Stop it!” Stella’s voice sounded strange to her. It was calm, although inside she was burning with anger.
“Yeah? And what are you going to do if I don’t?” Shane mocked and gave Tom a shove on the back, causing him to fall face down in the mud.
“I SAID STOP IT!” This time Stella did shout.
There was a flash of light and a scream, although Stella couldn’t tell whether it came from Tom, Shane, or herself. The next thing she knew, she was lying on her back with Helix licking her face. She was dizzy, and it took a bit of time for her to stand up. The ground felt as if it was spinning underneath her. The rushing sound inside her head had stopped and had been replaced by someone shouting. She realised that she was now about twenty feet from where she’d been standing a moment before. Tom was standing by the bushes, where she’d confronted Shane. His mouth was wide open, and he was staring up into a tree.
Following Tom’s gaze upwards, Stella could see what he was staring at. It was Shane Biggs. He was caught in the top-most branches, yelling for someone to help. A thin trail of smoke curled up from his head, as if his hair had just caught on fire, and his jeans and jacket were torn.
“How did you do that?” Tom’s attention had turned to Stella, and he ran over to her.
“Do what?” Stella felt a bit sick now; her stomach seemed to have caught the dizziness.
Tom just pointed up at Shane Biggs. Stella wasn’t sure what she had just done. She just knew she needed to get away. Get back home, away from Tom’s wide-eyed stare and Shane Biggs clutching onto the tree.
She hastily picked up her bike, although it was a struggle to stay upright, and unsteadily clambered on top of it.
“Wait!” Tom called. “Wait!” But Stella was already riding back home as quickly as she could.