Last Chance

by Bradley Boals

  April yelled out, “Just leave her car there!”

  Matthew replied, “I’m going to help Amanda and her family.”

  April ran over to the car and grabbed Matthew by the arm. “No you’re not! I’m the adult and your mother and you will do as I say!”

  Matthew peered at his brother, and with one glance, Connor knew that he needed to help him. Matthew put his hand on April’s shoulder and placed a small carrier stone. With the help of the new attribute charm, he stole every ounce of strength from April and said, “Catch her.”

  April felt the loss of the ground below her as Matthew picked her up and tossed her back toward Connor. It was like an afterburner had been lit as the background of the house in flames created a silhouette around her frame. Connor caught his mother and they both fell to the ground. Matthew yelled back, “Sorry, Mom, but I have to try.”

  Matthew jumped in the car and started the engine. April yelled to her son, “Stop! You can’t!” The car was already down the driveway before April could make it to her feet. She glared back at Connor and said, “Why didn’t you stop him?”

  Connor brushed the grass from his pants and replied, “Because he’s right.”

  April walked back to her car and pounded her first on the hood. She had lost her composure and needed a moment to clear her head. She opened the driver’s side door and said, “Fine, we’ll go to the Curry place and help him.” Connor grabbed the last of the bags and threw them in the car.

  She started the car, only to be blocked by the fire trucks that had arrived to put out the blaze that still raged behind them. April told Connor to stay in the car while she talked to one of the firefighters.

  “Oh, thank goodness you’re here. Our home is being destroyed.” The firefighter promised that they would do everything they could to save what was left of the house.

  “Please, ma’am, you need to stay back.” April turned around and saw the familiar face of Danny Charles.

  “Danny, over here,” she yelled. Officer Charles was relieved to see the lovely single mother and ran over to her location.

  “You OK, April? I heard over the dispatch that there was a fire in this area and I just wanted to check on ya.” April knew how Danny felt about her and she had some fairly strong feelings toward him. She hated to ask him what she was about to ask him, but again, she would do anything for her family.

  “Danny, I need your help.” April explained that Matthew had taken off and she needed his help to find him. “Would you mind following me out to the Curry place?”

  Officer Charles asked, “You wanna go looking for Matthew while your house is burnin’ up?”

  April replied, “There’s nothing I can do here, and I’m really worried about Matthew.”

  Officer Charles relented and said, “OK, I’ll follow you out there.”

  April jumped back into her car and Connor asked, “What’s going on? Why were you talking to Officer Charles?” April shifted the car into drive and sped down the driveway.

  She put her hand behind her neck and replied, “We have to get to your brother. Don’t worry about Officer Charles.”

  Three figures emerged from the woods as the fire department continued their battle with the house fire. Cassie and Jack had listened to all of the talk between the Chance family, and Jack had set Beth Perry free. They walked to the front of what was left of the house and Beth screamed, “They took my car too! I’ve gotta find a phone and call my father.”

  The twins chuckled but were quickly brought back to reality when Jack asked, “Do you think Matthew can get to Amanda fast enough to save her?”

  Cassie looked to the sky and replied, “Do you think we’ll ever see Matthew or Connor again?”

  Jack paused and reassured his sister, “I don’t think we’ve seen the last of Matthew or Connor Chance. Maybe they’ll come back to Earth someday.”

  Matthew sped toward the Curry home as fast as he could. He almost ran off of the road a couple of times. He decided to take the back route that Jack had told him about earlier in the week. It was faster and would allow him to sneak up on the house if Keith and his men were still around. As he approached the back of the house, he could already tell that something wasn’t right.

  It was getting later in the day and the air around the Curry home looked darker than the sky around it. He made his way down the old back path to the house and it became obvious that one of the oldest homes in all of West Tennessee was going up in flames.

  Matthew could see the smoke pouring from the house as he jumped out of the car. He would never forgive himself if he was too late to save her. All Matthew could hear was the voice of Mr. Curry from the weekend before: “You take care of my daughter.”

  The back door of the home was engulfed in flames, so he had to find an alternate path into the house. He didn’t see any of Keith’s men around, but was still careful to keep a low profile around the grounds. He remembered that there should be a door behind the house, around a large bush, that would lead him into the basement.

  Jack had told him to go from the east corner of the house at a forty-five degree angle. He found the door, just as Jack had told him, and he followed the dark path to the basement. The basement was full of old family mementos, but the fire had not reached it. Once there, he found the door that led into the house.

  He yelled out, “Amanda! Amanda!” He didn’t hear a reply, but he forged on. He made it to the edge of the kitchen and noticed a slight gap in the flames. He yelled out again, “Amanda!”

  “We’re in here! Help!”

  Matthew barely made out the faint cry for help that resonated from the adjoining room. He knew that if he could just run past the ridge of fire, he would be in the main living room. Matthew mustered some courage and jumped through a ridge of fire just outside of the kitchen. As he oriented himself, he realized the magnitude of the problem.

  “Matthew, is that you?” cried out Laura Curry from the corner of the room, closest to the stairs.

  She was tied up, back to back, with her husband. Mr. Curry screamed out, “Get Amanda and Steven Jr. out of here!” Matthew turned his head and saw both Amanda and her little brother tied up and lying on the floor. Both of them were passed out from the smoke.

  Matthew ran over to Mr. and Mrs. Curry. “I’ll get you loose; don’t worry.”

  Mr. Curry shook his head and said, “No, you have to get the kids out first. Don’t worry about us.”

  Matthew stopped and reassured Amanda’s father, “OK, I’ll get them first, but then I’ll come back and get you.”

  Parts of the ceiling started to fall in around Matthew as he rushed over to Amanda and her little brother. He could feel the heat against his skin. Burns were healing within seconds due to the Hathmec. Matthew was able to get Amanda up on his shoulder, but when he tried to pick up Steven Jr., he ended up dropping them both.

  Mr. Curry yelled to him, “Come on, you can get them! Matthew looked to Mr. and Mrs. Curry and saw the panic that engulfed their faces. Both parents feared their own deaths, but the thought of their children dying in this hellacious inferno was unbearable.

  Matthew opened his hand and revealed to Amanda’s parents the stones that he had created. He dropped a couple on both Amanda and Steven Jr. and then tossed the dust over to Mr. and Mrs. Curry. The mother and father had no idea what Matthew had just done, but Matthew reassured them again. “I’m getting them out of here.”

  Matthew felt the rush of borrowed strength from the Curry family. He easily lifted both Amanda and Steven Jr. and threw each of them over a shoulder. He dodged the falling debris and flames that surrounded the path to safety. He kicked open the front door with one mighty thud and ran the children of Steve and Laura Curry to safety.

  Steve Curry turned his head toward his wife and tried to kiss her cheek. He said, “They’re out; Matthew got them out.” He could feel the tears from his wif
e’s eyes on his lips.

  Laura Curry asked, “Are you ready?”

  Her husband responded, “The lord will protect our children and we will watch them from heaven.”

  Matthew made it far enough away from the house that he knew Amanda and Steven Jr. would be safe and he put them in the cool grass. They were a little worse for wear, but the fire couldn’t get to them. Matthew oriented himself and headed back for the parents.

  Matthew ran back toward the front door when a giant explosion erupted in the house and large flames jetted into the early evening sky. Matthew was tossed onto the hard sidewalk of the home. He landed on his side and turned back to see a house that looked more like a fireball than a home.

  Matthew could still make out the door that he had kicked open and he began to crawl to it. The heat from the flames pierced Matthew’s skin as he came ever closer to the home. He began to realize that something else was wrong. The incredible strength that he had gained from Amanda’s parents started to leave him. Within seconds, the same strength that had helped Matthew save the lives of the Curry’s children was completely removed from Matthew’s body and in turn, from Mr. and Mrs. Curry’s bodies.

  Matthew walked away, as flames continued to billow out of windows, the walls of the home, and the roof. The stark reality of the situation encompassed him as he staggered back to Amanda and Steven Jr. Steve and Laura Curry had died in the house fire that had been set by Keith Kellington.

  Matthew fought back the tears that began to well up in his eyes. As he reached Amanda and Steven Jr., he began to realize that both of them were suffering from the smoke. Neither of them was breathing well and each had several burns on their arms and legs. Matthew took his Hathmec pendant and held it in his hands. He asked for two copies of the pendant and they started to form around his own.

  They were copies of his pendant, just less powerful. He made a copy of the health charm and placed one into each pendant. He placed the pendant over the little boy’s and young girl’s necks. He could tell that their breathing started to improve, and he could see the burns on their arms start to heal, ever so slightly.

  Matthew sat on the ground while flames continued to erupt in the background. He removed the ropes that bound Amanda and Steven Jr. He held Amanda and Steven Jr. in his arms and rocked back and forth, waiting for one of them to wake up. Matthew thought, What am I gonna do now? He yelled out in anger, “Keith Kellington’s gonna pay for this!”

  “Oh, I don’t think that is going to happen.”

  A harsh voice pierced the smoke and fog around the home and Matthew turned his head to see none other than Keith Kellington himself. Matthew responded, “I figured you were too much of a coward to stay here and watch what you did.”

  Keith lit a cigarette with the same lighter that had set fire to the house, and replied, “It looks like it was a good thing that I did. Seems there are a few loose ends that need to be cleaned up.” He slowly walked over to Matthew, who still caressed the girl that he had both saved and, in his mind, destroyed. Keith towered over him and explained himself, in his own sick and twisted way.

  “Once you realize that you can’t die, the entire idea of death becomes something of a mystery. The terror that I saw in the eyes of Steve and Laura Curry at the thought of burning alive in that house—now that’s power.” Matthew gently put Amanda’s head back onto the ground and stood to his feet.

  “The power that I have to control death and control lives—it takes all the fear away.” Keith took a drag from his cigarette and looked at the wreckage of the Curry home. “You cannot even begin to understand what it feels like to control everything.” He flipped his cigarette on the ground and said, “I no longer fear death, so I create it, just to make sure I always remember one thing.”

  Matthew asked, “What’s that?”

  Keith placed his hand on his chest and replied, “That I’m the top of the food chain.”

  Amanda and Steven Jr. were still prone at the feet of Matthew. Keith rested against a large oak tree and asked Matthew, “So, you were able to save the girl and the boy? I guess Mom and Dad are charbroiled pretty thoroughly by now.”

  Matthew could feel the anger building in his gut, but he had no idea how to repel the larger, more experienced man. Keith looked at the Curry kids and then back at Matthew and said, “I don’t know how you got them out of that house, but it’s not gonna happen again.”

  Keith began to move his hand toward his coat pocket when a siren went off behind him. He turned and saw a red sports car barreling up beside him. Then a police car ran right in behind it. April and Conner jumped out of the first car and rushed over to Matthew. Keith recognized each of them and said, “You people are a real pain in my ass.”

  Officer Danny Charles popped out of the police car. His pistol was pulled and he yelled to Keith Kellington, “Put your hands where I can see ‘em, right now!”

  Keith raised his hands and smirked at the country officer. Officer Charles reached into his car, pulled out his CB transmitter, and spoke into it. “Need the fire department at the old Curry home; send backup.”

  April reached Matthew and the Curry kids and made sure that Matthew wasn’t hurt. April told the boys, “We have to get out of here, now.”

  Matthew could barely speak, but he told his mother, “He killed Mr. and Mrs. Curry.”

  “I know, son, but we can’t help that now. How do we get out of here?”

  Matthew pointed to the back of the blaze. “The car is in the back. We can take the back road.”

  “Get down on the ground, right now!” Officer Charles continued to yell to Keith Kellington. Keith began to slowly move to the ground, talking as he did.

  “Are we really going to play this game again, officer?”

  Danny Charles replied, “You shut your damn mouth and get your face in the dirt!”

  Matthew picked up Steven Jr. and Conner picked up Amanda. They slowly made their way to the back of the house. Officer Charles called out to April, “What are you doin’? You need to leave those kids there until the medics can take a look at ‘em.”

  April didn’t react to Danny’s calls. He again yelled out, “April, where are you goin’?”

  April yelled back, “Thank you and I’m sorry.”

  He replied, “Sorry for what?”

  Keith Kellington replied from the ground, “She’s sorry because she knows that I’m about to kill you.”

  Officer Charles looked down at Keith Kellington and started to speak, but before he could, Keith said the following, “Don’t move a muscle.” Keith had taken control of Danny Charles with the use of a carrier stone.

  Officer Charles was unable to move at all as Keith Kellington got up from the ground. Danny strained and grunted as he tried to make even the simplest of movements, but he couldn’t. He was only able to shift his eyes as Keith walked around him.

  “You see officer; you just thought you had everything under control here. You may be a big fish in this little pond, but I’m one of the biggest sharks on the planet.”

  “Put your gun to your head.” Officer Charles put his revolver to the temple of his head as he was instructed. “Now, put your finger on the trigger.” Officer Charles put his finger on the trigger as he was instructed. He tried to fight the commands but it was no use.

  April turned to see the gun pointed at Danny Charles’s head, but she couldn’t help him. Keith yelled out to April, “Don’t make me kill him! Come back now and we can work something out!”

  Connor and Matthew had loaded the still unconscious Curry kids into the car, and April screamed, “Hold on, we’re gettin’ out of here.” The car started and she tore off down the dark back road. She looked in her rearview mirror just long enough to see Keith standing there and then he was gone.

  Keith approached Officer Charles and started to mock him. “Such a little country bumpkin.” Keith tapped the top of
Danny’s head and said, “Did you know I was in here? I know your memories and your thoughts. I know about your poor wife who lost her life and how you struggle so hard to just get by from day to day.” Keith lit another cigarette and said, “I’m just curious—how does it feel to know that you’re about to die? You can answer.”

  Danny Charles regained the use of his mouth and replied, “Just leave my family alone.”

  Keith interrupted, “I didn’t ask you that. I want to know how you feel.”

  Danny responded, “Y’all can go to—”

  Keith stopped Danny before he could finish. “I will miss that lovely accent of yours, Mr. Charles. I may keep it for myself.”

  Keith could hear the sirens of more police and fire trucks coming down the road. He plucked the badge from Danny Charles’s shirt and said, “Well, I guess our time is up. Pull the trigger.”

  A shot rang out and the body of Officer Danny Charles fell to the ground. Keith watched as more police cars and the fire department arrived at the Curry residence. He began to slowly disappear, as if he was evaporating into thin air. The view of the flames from the Curry home fell away from Keith as a new image of a warehouse wall, filled with pictures of Amanda Curry and her family, took shape in his eyes.

  He walked up to the wall and placed slashes through the pictures of Steve and Laura Curry. He looked at the pictures of the Curry children, first Amanda and then Steven Jr. A familiar voice echoed in the background that asked, “What about the kids? Did you take care of them?”

  Keith replied, “No, I think we have a bit more work to do on that one. Don’t worry about it; we’ll find and take care of them. They have nowhere to go.”

  Keith signaled for one of the several large men standing around the room to come over to the wall. “Did you get all of the information that I requested about April Chance and her boys?” The large man handed Keith a stack of papers, and he began to review them.