The Dying of the Light (Book 1): End

by Jason Kristopher

  “Now where were we, Mr. Blake?” she asked, running one hand over my chest.

  So much for going slow.

  Chapter Ten

  Fort Carson, Colorado

  Reveille came way too early the next morning, and I opened my eyes and sat up to see the dawn breaking. God, I hate mornings.

  I looked down at Kim lying next to me, the sun turning her hair to molten fire, and the half-smile on her lips reminding me just how good a night it had been. I sat and looked at her for a while, amazed at this beauty I’d awoken next to, and remembered the feel of her against me the night before. How we had just seemed to connect on a deeper level than before, and I wondered whether it was just the death of Victor that had caused it, or whether we truly had turned a corner.

  A little while later, Kim turned, trying to recapture the warmth I had taken away at sitting up. I smiled as I watched her stretch and yawn as she opened those emerald eyes, and she smiled back.

  “How long have you been watching me sleep?” she asked.

  “Only an hour or so. It was the snoring that really got to me, though.”

  “Ass,” she responded, giving me a smack on the arm and smiling wider. “If anyone should be complaining it should be me. Where’d you put the cabin, anyway?”

  Oh, sawing logs. I get it.

  My brain doesn’t work too well in the mornings.

  “Har, har, har.” I ran my hand up her side as the sheet fell away from her body, watching as the cold barracks air and the light touch caused her to flinch. “Hmm, I hadn’t realized you were that ticklish.”

  I ran my hand under the sheet and squeezed, and she jumped. “Now that I knew about,” I said, laughing as she smacked my hand and covered herself more fully with the sheet. Just then, there was a brief knock at the door, followed by Tom entering, bearing a tray of steaming food. He raised one eyebrow, smirking, as he set the tray down on the room’s only desk.

  Two cups for the coffee, I noticed. Subtle, isn’t he?

  I grinned back at him, the grin of every man who’d just spent the night with a beautiful woman and found to his surprise — and possibly hers — that she was still there the next day.

  “I was talking to the colonel this morning,” Tom said. “And he asked me to bring you something to eat. He figured you’d had a hard night, so to speak, and he thought I could use some mindless busy-work.”

  I chuckled, and Kim just shook her head. “Little boys; you’re all little boys,” she said, sticking her tongue out at Reynolds.

  “Don’t stick that thing out at me, darling. I know where it’s been,” he said, grinning from ear to ear.

  Kim had the grace to blush and I laughed, which earned me yet another smack. I must be a glutton for punishment.

  I looked up at Reynolds. “Any other messages from the colonel, Tom?”

  He straightened and was the professional soldier once more. “Yeah, he wants us all in the briefing room at 0800 for a meeting with Gardner.” Sneering the last bit, he winced. “Geez, I hate that guy.”

  Kim and I groaned. “Dammit, something about that guy just creeps me right the hell out,” I said. “What’s his deal, anyway? He’s like some sort of paper-pushing robot.”

  “Well,” Tom said. “From what I hear, he’s going to be the one doing most of the talking this morning.”

  Another round of groans, and I waved Tom out so we could get dressed. He chuckled and muttered as he left the room. “So much for my good morning!” he laughed as he closed the door.

  I waved in the general direction of the drawers that had all our gear in them as I sat back against the wall. “Ladies first.”

  Kim gave me that look that every man in the free world has seen from one woman or another; I knew I hadn’t fooled her a bit, but I wasn’t about to admit it.

  What can I say? I like looking at beautiful women, and Kim was that and more. She pulled the sheet with her as she left the bed, leaving me scrambling for the blanket to cover myself against the chill air of the room. Snagging a couple pieces of bacon off the tray, she moved over to the drawers, letting the sheet fall to the floor as she picked out her clothes for the day.

  I could only stare in silence as my brain turned itself off, leaving me to look like a drooling idiot as she dressed. She knew exactly what she was doing, too; a turn of the leg here, a twist of the torso there, and I was mostly a puddle of goo when she was finished.

  Mostly.

  She giggled and sat down to eat her breakfast as I stood to take my turn at the dresser. I dressed quickly, trying to think of baseball, cold showers, Margaret Thatcher naked on a cold day — thanks very much for that, Mike Myers — anything but her as I pulled my t-shirt over my head and salivated over the smell of the fresh coffee on the tray.

  “So do you think he’ll be okay?” she asked me as I sat down.

  “I dunno, really. It took me a long time to get over Rebecca, and this will be just as hard for him…” I broke off as I realized what I had said, and looked up to see Kim as stony-faced as I’d ever seen her.

  Oops.

  I’d really put my foot in it this time, and there was no way out but through. Well, it had to happen sooner or later. Now’s as good a time as any. I sighed and put down the coffee cup.

  I composed myself and then looked her straight in the eye. Honesty was definitely the best policy here.

  “Rebecca was the fifteenth walker I put down, and my fiancée. She and I had met a year or so before it all went to Hell in Fall Creek, and we were happy, for a time.”

  Rebecca picked up the pale yellow sundress and scowled at it. It wasn’t her color, and far too thin, and short. Trust David to pick out something like this, she thought. I really need to work on his fashion sense. She’d have to wear something else underneath it, or at the very least a jacket, but she also knew she’d have to wear it today, or he’d wonder why.

  And she couldn’t very well tell him he had the fashion sense God gave Michael Jackson, could she? She sighed and then smiled. Still, he’s the best boyfriend you’ve ever had, girl. Shaddup and wear the damn dress already.

  She had just finished pulling the dress over her head and settling it on her shoulders when she heard and felt Eric bounding up the stairs and around the corner, racing into the room and throwing himself on the bed. Her eight-year-old son looked up at her, his bright blue eyes shining underneath a mop of straw-blond hair.

  “Mom, guess what?”

  She ruffled his hair. “What, kiddo?” she asked as she pulled a silver watch that her father had given her out of her jewelry box.

  “Aw, come on, you’re supposed to guess!”

  She turned to him, one finger on her lips in a thoughtful pose. “Hmmm, let’s see. You’ve been kidnapped by aliens and they’ve replaced you with a robot?”

  He laughed. “Nope!”

  “Um, you’re actually a hundred years old but you pretend to be small so you can get out of paying the bills?”

  “Nah.”

  “You saw the scariest monster you’ve ever seen and now you know what you want to be for Halloween?” She said, grasping at straws as she took out a simple diamond necklace and laid it across her neck. It had been David’s Christmas present to her the year before. She hadn’t asked him what it cost, but she had snuck a look at the receipt and was astounded that he would spend that much money on her. Suddenly she realized how quiet the room was and turned around. Eric was staring at her, his mouth agape.

  “Close your mouth, you’ll catch flies,” she said automatically, to which he responded as automatically.

  “Better than your cooking, anyway.” Her lack of culinary skill had been a running joke in their small family for more than six months now. For whatever reason, she found it as funny as they did, and hey, at least it got her out of cooking. “How did you know?” he asked.

  “Know what, babe?”

  “That I saw a scary monster!”

  She was momentarily nonplussed, and ran the conversation back in her hea
d. “Wait, you really did see a scary monster?”

  His eyes were huge as he whispered. “He was all gooshy like he’d been dead for weeks or something, and he made this weird moaning noise, and he wouldn’t go away. He tried to grab Brandt, but we got away. He was like a movie monster, mom.”

  Now she was worried. Eric didn’t usually make up stories, so he must’ve seen something. “Where did you see this monster?”

  Eric grew shifty, and Rebecca knew he was lying to her. “Um, over by the park.”

  She walked over to her son and sat down on the edge of the bed. “Now, what have I told you about lying, Eric?”

  “I know, it’s just…” The little boy sighed and sat up, looking at her. “Please don’t be mad, Mom. We were riding bikes near the mine, and Brandt thought he saw something moving in the shack.”

  “Dammit, Eric,” Rebecca said, and then calmed herself, taking a deep breath. Getting mad at him now’s not going to help anything. “You know why I’ve told you over and over not to play there. Now you almost got grabbed by some homeless man or something!”

  “He wasn’t a homeless man, Mom! He was a monster! All gray and moaning, it was gross!”

  “It doesn’t matter what he was, you still knew you shouldn’t be there. Thank you for telling me the truth. You’re grounded for two weeks.”

  “Aw, Mom, I told the truth! You said I wouldn’t get in trouble if I told the truth!”

  “No, I didn’t. I said you’d get in more trouble if you didn’t tell the truth. Now go get in the car. We’ll go and see David; he can talk to the Sheriff about this monster you saw.”

  Eric jumped off the bed. “Can I start the car?”

  She laughed and shook her head. “Not this time, little man. Maybe next time.” She gave one more look in the mirror and tossed her long blonde ponytail over her shoulder.

  Downstairs, they climbed into her Wrangler, and she made sure Eric was buckled in. It was a short drive to David’s shop, but Eric had a habit of taking off the belt, claiming it choked him.

  A few minutes later, she pulled onto Main Street and stopped at Magnolia, then turned right and entered the rear parking lot of the small shopping center. The bell on the door tinkled as she entered the Fall Creek Bookshop. She bypassed the counter, waving at Jenny, who worked as David’s assistant and kept things organized. Jenny waved back and smiled at Eric, who blushed bright red and ran ahead into the back room.

  “He’s got a huge crush on you,” Rebecca told the younger girl.

  “I know, and he’s cute, but he’s a bit young for me,” Jenny said, winking. “David’s in the back.”

  “Thanks, Jenny.”

  She walked back through the shelves and shelves of old and new books and put her arms around David, sitting at his desk, frowning at his computer monitor. He looked up at her, and she was struck as always by the deep grey of his eyes, just as Eric careened into his lap for a hug and he smiled at both of them.

  How much happier can I get? she thought. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

  After Eric finished his story, I looked at him and Rebecca both. “This doesn’t sound good, babe. I think I need to tell the sheriff.”

  “You really think it’s that serious?” Rebecca asked, surprised.

  “Well, even if he’s just a homeless man, he needs to be stopped from attacking people or at least threatening them. And who knows? He could be hurt and just need some help. Either way,” I said, turning to Eric. “You are not going anywhere near that mine again. Clear?”

  He looked down, embarrassed. “Okay.” He looked back up at me and met my eyes without flinching. “I promise.”

  I nodded at him, as one man to another. I’d often found that showing a little respect seemed to go a long way with children, and Eric was no exception. “Okay then.” I looked back at Rebecca, marveling yet again how someone so beautiful could be so taken with me. “I’ll talk to the sheriff about this, but I think you and Eric should get home. Do we have enough stuff for dinner at the house?”

  Rebecca shook her head. “Not really. I’ll stop by the store, and dinner will be ready by the time you get home.”

  I smiled and pulled her close as I stood. “Thanks. Just make sure to lock the doors, okay? The house is too close to the mine for me to feel comfortable with you two there all alone. I’ll try to wrap this up as quickly as I can and get home.”

  She smiled and laid her hand on my cheek. “You’re sweet. We’ll be fine, love. See you later.” As she kissed me, Eric made the requisite barfing noises of all eight-year-olds, and begged for them to go. Rebecca and I just laughed, and I smiled at her as she left.

  It was about two hours later, and I was deep in my work, cataloging the newly arrived books when the sheriff walked in. I looked up as I heard Jenny greet him and he came around the corner of the doorway.

  He wasn’t a large man, either in height or girth, and he wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer, but Sheriff Jasper Inson was everything you’d expect from a small-town sheriff. Friendly, tough, kind, all in equal measure, except for the ironclad core of his personality: justice. I’d never met a man so devoted to the ideal as Jasper, and it showed in everything he did.

  “Hey there, sheriff,” I said, smiling at the man who worked just two storefronts over. “I’m glad you stopped by; I was actually going to come see you.”

  Jasper’s laugh boomed out of him like he was a natural loudspeaker. “Oh really? Well, how… uh… fortuitous… that I happened to stop by, then.” He raised an eyebrow at me, and I nodded, smiling.

  Jasper had been trying to expand his vocabulary, and being as this was the only bookshop in town, he’d enlisted my help in providing some fiction that was a bit wordier than your average cop novel. Ever since, he’d been trying out the new words on me when I saw him. Except for the occasional gaffe, he was doing quite well.

  “Yep, it certainly was serendipitous,” I replied, and chuckled as Jasper snagged the pad from his shirt pocket and made a note. “S-e-r-e-n-d-i-p-i-t-o-u-s,” I said, helping him out.

  “Ah, got it. Thanks, David.” He put the pad away, and was suddenly serious. “What were you coming to see me about?”

  “Oh, nothing too important, I think. Just a homeless guy near the mine. Eric and his friend were playing over there and he said this guy tried to grab his friend. Apparently he was moaning, too, so he might’ve been hurt and just needed some help.” I noticed Jasper carefully concealing a quick look of surprise, but I continued as though I hadn’t. “Even if he is homeless and hurt, he doesn’t need to be bothering a couple of kids.”

  “And when did this happen?”

  Okay, Jasper is serious about this. Something else must’ve happened. But what? “Eric told Rebecca it was about five or six hours ago, now. Why? What’s wrong?”

  “Settle down, David, it’s probably nothing. I just got a third call about some weird guy hanging out around the east side, about a half mile from the mine. Kenneth Ackerman said he tried to grab his dog, of all things, and the damned thing went crazy barking as soon as it saw the guy. He’s all barricaded in his house now, and I sent Charlie to take a look.” He chuckled. “That guy’s almost as bad as Feldon, or getting there, anyway. Anyway, I thought you might have heard something about it. Looks like it was a good idea to come talk to you after all.”

  “Well shit, Jasper! Why didn’t you tell me? That’s over near my house, man! Rebecca and Eric are there all alone! What if this crazy fucker decides he’s going to go after them? I’ve gotta get over there.” I stood up, grabbing my keys from the desk and my coat from the chair.

  “Now hold on, David. Charlie will take care of this; there’s no need to get all crazy.”

  “Jasper, that’s my girl and my kid over there,” I said, moving to go around him as he blocked the doorway. He didn’t move, but he put one hand on my arm, and I looked at him, my heart in my eyes. “I was going to propose to her tonight.”

  He looked back at me, searching for something und
efined, and nodded, releasing my arm. “Just be careful, David. Who knows what this guy is capable of, if he’s attacking dogs and kids? Stay in your house, with your family. Ok?”

  I nodded as I walked out front. “Will do!” Looking over at Jenny, I stopped for a second. “Jenny, go ahead and get out of here, ok? Lock up, but don’t bother with any of the other paperwork. We’ll take care of it tomorrow if we need to. Just head home and stay there.”

  She looked surprised, but shrugged. “Sure thing, boss. See you tomorrow.”