Wings In Darkness

by Gregory Kay

  “I noticed the limp,” she began, but he only nodded and continued his story.

  “He never let his wife know anything was wrong over there; she was the one constant in his life, so he didn’t want to worry her, and never talked about the war at all with her in his letters and phone calls. He loved her, but he didn’t tell her he was coming home; he wanted to surprise her. Funny, I guess,” Luke said through clenched teeth, “because he sure managed that; walked right in and caught her in bed with their neighbor.”

  “Oh my God!” Fiona exclaimed, trying to imagine the impact of that final blow on an already cracked psyche, but unable to do so beyond her own experience with Cliff, which, considering what Whitey had been through previously, paled by comparison.

  “That was the first time he was arrested, after he beat the hell out of both of them; damned near killed them, and probably would have if the cops hadn’t shown up. Fortunately, they dropped the charges rather than letting it go public, but he was already on the downhill slide.”

  She eyed him curiously, and her lips twitched.

  “You wouldn’t have had anything to do with those charges being dropped would you?”

  He shrugged, full of meaning.

  “I was one of the investigators, and it seems, when they weren’t screwing each other, she and her neighbor were running a little business venture selling weed and a few pills; not a huge amount, but that’s a pretty serious felony, so...” His shoulders rose and fell once more.

  “So you let them walk in exchange for them not pressing charges on Whitey.” She paused a moment. “And, I’ll bet she was willing to walk away empty-handed from the divorce too, leaving him everything, wasn’t she?”

  “I never said that,” he answered in a thoroughly non-committal tone.

  “You didn’t have to; my dad is a cop too, remember? That sounds just like the kind of thing he would do; you two would get along fine, I’ll bet.”

  “I’d like to meet him and find out sometime,” Luke told her with a reappearing smile, and, seeing where things were going, Fiona couldn’t bring her self to revisit the subject just now, so she quickly steered the conversation back onto more comfortable ground.

  “So, how do you know this Sam Gordon?”

  “Sam and I are friends because of Whitey; he introduced us years ago. We’re about the only ones who still care what happens to him, and I’m in a better position to keep him out of trouble. Damn it!” he suddenly hissed, startling Fiona with the first real, apparently unprovoked loss of self control she’d seen him display, those two words even stronger in intensity and emotional content than the episode with Rodger had been, “I know, no matter what I do, it’s just a matter of time until he either does something I can’t get him out of, or, more likely, commits suicide by cop. I’m scared to death that, if he does, it’ll be me he picks to do it.” He showed her his teeth in a skull’s grin. “Why wouldn’t he? After all, I’m his best friend!”

  Fiona wanted to tell him it would be alright, but she knew she’d be lying. Guys like Whitey seldom, if ever, got alright; maybe better, but never alright. All she could do was to grab Luke’s hand and hold it momentarily, squeezing reassuringly while promising him that, however the story turned out, she wouldn’t make a spectacle out of his best friend. He responded by bringing the back of her hand to his mouth and briefly kissing it before telling her, “Thank you. I owe you.”

  Feeling the imprint of his lips that seemed to linger on her skin, and the even stronger press of the mental vibes he was giving off, as unmistakable in their meaning as the look in his eyes: feelings that were echoes of her own, she shook her head.

  “No, Luke, I owe you; I appreciate everything you’ve done for me more than I can tell you, and all of the crap you’ve put up with from me. I...” Her voice trailed off, and suddenly, just like back in the Sheriff’s Office, she couldn’t stop herself. “I’m starting to like you way too much, way more than I should in this short a time, especially when we both know how this is going to end. I don’t want to hurt you like I know I’m going to, and – “

  Why the hell do I keep spilling my guts to this guy? It’s like there’s something about him that just drags it out of me!

  “Then don’t; at least, don’t do it until you have to. We’ll only worry about today, because that’s all we know for sure any of us have; remember that, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  “Alright. There’s no use worrying about tomorrow, because anything could happen by then. What’s that word you all use up north? Kapeesh?”

  “Yeah,” she said, lowering her head with a sad smile, “kapeesh.”

  Oh God, why is something that feels so good, so right, going to end up feeling as horrible as I know it will?

  CHAPTER 14

  By the time they finished the interviews Luke set up for her that afternoon – four by phone and three in person – Fiona actually knew very little more about Mothman than she had before, but she found out enough to know that ‘something was going on,’ as each and every one of the interviewees put it. She was certain she had enough information to do a good side article on the cattle mutilation phenomenon, both in general and as it related to the immediate area...but it wasn’t just cattle. A pony and a llama had been victimized too – why in the world would anyone around here keep llamas? – as well as one sheep and two goats, and a small flock of chickens had been torn apart too. Still more sheep, goats, and pets were missing; in fact, so many local dogs and cats had disappeared that rumors were flying that they were being stolen for use in laboratories. That last thought in particular had led to a highly-charged and very dangerous atmosphere. People were afraid, and many of them were turning that fear into anger.

  Fiona couldn’t blame them. She’d never had a pet of her own any bigger than a goldfish, but she had no trouble grasping the sorrow in the people’s faces and voices, almost like the loss of a family member in many cases. It was particularly hard when the children started crying upon hearing their parents talk about it.

  Someone is doing something; I think that’s a given at this point. But what, if anything, does it have to do with this Mothman legend? I know Whitey insists it’s all connected, but even he’s at a loss as to exactly how. Unless I can figure that out, it’s nothing but coincidental ‘color,’ really, at least as far as this particular assignment goes. And right now, no one can seem to figure out anything!

  Luke’s neighbor, Benjamin Pickens, or ‘Benny’ as he demanded that Fiona call him, was skinny, gregarious bald man in his mid-forties, an employee of one of the local power plants, who took to Fiona right away. When Luke knocked on his door, he and his wife invited them inside for glasses of RC Cola over ice, and then spent a couple of minutes complaining about how he could only taste it on one side of his mouth after his trip to the dentist earlier.

  “So what do you think is causing all of these goings-on here?” he asked her, making her smile.

  “I think that should be my question, Benny; after all, that’s what I’m here to find out. In fact, since you work for the power company, I have a couple of questions for you.”

  “Okay, shoot.”

  “Alright...Do you mind if I record this?” she asked, showing them the pocket-sized machine, and not only did they readily agree, but Mrs. Pickens – Midge – seemed thrilled with the idea.

  “Just as long as you don’t make me sound like some fat woman in a muumuu talking about a tornado in a trailer park.”

  The reporter laughed and promised, and then flipped the switch and began.

  “You said you work in a local power plant; is it one of the coal plants or the nuclear plant?”

  She noticed Luke and both her hosts looking surprised at the question.

  “There aren’t any nuclear plants around here,” Benny assured her, then gestured toward the west “The closest one is the Pickaway Plant, about two hours away over in Ohio.”

  Fiona’s frowned, making her brow wrinkle.

  “But some of t
he books I’ve researched claim that there’s a nuclear plant right across the river, and it might have something to do with Mothman, presuming he exists.”

  “Ah!” he exclaimed, “I’ve read that too, and it sure came as a surprise to me, especially considering that’s Kyger Creek, the plant I work in.

  “A lot of people just driving by and not from around here might think that, but I reckon most of those writers, unlike you, never bothered to check it out for themselves. See, Kyger Creek isn’t a nuclear plant, but it is part of the nuclear power system, part of the grid that supplies power to the nuke plants themselves; it runs off of coal. Most of those researchers see the sign and never bother to wonder about those thousands of tons of coal piled right behind it.”

  “So nothing can be blamed on nuclear contamination. You work in a power plant; do you think electromagnetic fields can cause hallucinations, feelings of fear, things like that?”

  Benny thought about it for a minute, then shook his head.

  “No. Cancer, maybe, but nothing like you or those Yankee ghost chasers on TV describe. I’ve worked around them every day for better than twenty years now, on a way higher scale than anything you’d find in any residential or commercial building, and I’ve never seen them affect anyone like that.

  “Now I do think that maybe ghosts and bogeymen can get strength from those fields; harness the power and use it to manifest themselves. Either that, or maybe the power does something to weaken whatever walls God put in place to separate us, the living from the dead.”

  “I talked to Whitey Walker earlier today, and he told me pretty much the same thing.”

  Benny nodded his satisfaction and drained the last of his soda.

  “Whitey might be a little messed up from the Army, but he’s way smarter than most people like to give him credit for.”

  Dropping his hands onto his knees, he raised himself out of his chair.

  “I reckon we might as well go get that saw.”

  Midge sighed in exasperation.

  “Aren’t you going to tell Luke about that guy?” Shaking her head, she said, “Benny, I swear you’d forget your head if it wasn’t fastened on!”

  “What guy?” Luke inquired, getting to his feet as Benny shrugged sheepishly.

  “I don’t know; just some weird guy that’s been hanging around here lately. We’ve seen him twice now, once last night and once this morning in back of your house, just standing there in the alley, staring at your place.”

  Fiona suddenly shivered with a cold chill that felt for all the world like a big centipede running down her spine on its hundred spiked feet. It can’t be...

  “What’s he look like?”

  “He’s some kind of a foreigner,” Midge informed them, and Benny glared at her.

  “Do you want to tell him or do you want me to?”

  “What kind of foreigner?” Luke asked, carefully not looking at either of them so as not to direct his question to a specific target. Living next door to them for most of his life, he knew the pair too well.

  If those two get to arguing, I’ll never find out anything!

  “He’s just...foreign,” Benny said, “You know we’ve got all these foreign doctors around here, Indians and Arabs and Filipinos and whatnot? He kind of looked like them, only different.”

  He spread his hands helplessly, looking for words to fit the concept he was trying to get across, and Midge happily jumped back in.

  “He’s kinda dark; not black like a colored man, and not as dark as most of the Indians, but more like a Turk or an Iraqi or something, only his bone structure doesn’t look exactly like anybody from over there I’ve ever seen. He had short black hair, straight as far as I could tell, since he had a hat and sunglasses on.”

  “Could he have been Mexican, or some kind of Latino?”

  “Maybe, but I don’t think so. He didn’t really give that impression; he just...”

  It was her turn to be at a loss for words, and Benny saw his opportunity.

  “It’s his body language; the way he stands and moves. It just looks...foreign.”

  It was taking a real effort for Fiona to keep her features neutral. If I let on I know, they’ll ask, and what the hell do I say then? Luke will think I’m an idiot! It was suddenly very important to her that he not get that impression, but at the same time, if his home was directly involved now, he needed to know.

  “He’s not a very big fellow,” She heard Midge promptly jump back in. “Not much taller than me, and I’m five-six. He dresses odd, too, for someone around here.”

  Finally, Fiona could no longer contain herself, and decided to let the chips fall where they may.

  “Black suit, tie and hat, and a white shirt?”

  “Yes!” Benny and Midge exclaimed at once, “Have you seen him too?”

  “Yeah,” she admitted, feeling Luke’s eyes lock on her and feeling strangely guilty about not telling him, although in truth, there was really nothing to tell, other than she saw some guy who gave her the willies, “I saw him outside the hotel last night when Luke dropped me off, and then I saw him walk past the restaurant this morning. He paused and looked in the window for a second while we were talking with Whitey, and he looked right at me and smiled, then went on.” She shivered. “I’ve never seen anybody smile like that in my life; I have to admit it scared me.”

  Luke touched her upper arm, his face showing nothing but concern.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  She waved her hands in an abbreviated motion.

  “What was to tell? That I didn’t like his looks? You couldn’t very well run out in the street and arrest him for that. I just thought he was some weirdo.”

  Midge crossed her arms stubbornly over her full breasts and said, “Harrumph! Anybody who looks that strange ought to be arrested, just on general principles. Something ain’t right about any man who just stands there and stares at people.” She shook a warning finger at Luke. “You just mark my words, Luke Carter; you’re going to have trouble with that one, if he hangs around long enough.”

  Benny laughed and head for the door. Over his shoulder, he said, “And you’re going to have trouble cutting off that tree limb in the dark if we don’t get that saw for you!”

  It’s currently sixty-nine degrees. People in the tri-state area will be enjoying a few more hours of this unseasonable warmth, with temperatures falling to the high forties by midnight. After that, though, we can count on them plunging through the early morning hours into the low thirties. Frost warnings are being issued for low-lying areas...

  Luke reached down and turned off the radio.

  “I need you to promise me something.”

  They were on their way to the TNT area, in Luke’s Jeep this time, with Benny’s pole saw strapped to the roll cage, since it wouldn’t fit in the cruiser.

  “What’s that?”

  “Promise me that the next time you see anything the least bit suspicious involving you, you’ll tell me.”

  “Luke, it wasn’t that big of a deal.”

  Taking his eyes off the road to look directly at her, he said, “It is to me.”

  Fiona sighed in exasperation, part of it because she knew he was right.

  “Look, it was just some weird guy.”

  They turned onto Camp Conley Road, and Luke told her, “Yeah, he was just some weird guy; so were Henry Lee Lucas and Ted Bundy and the Green River Killer. They were all just ‘some weird guys.’”

  “I don’t think a town this size could support too many serial killers.”

  “He’s not from here, remember? Nobody knows him.” He sighed. “Look, I’m not trying to be difficult – “

  “You’re doing a good job of it. Listen, I’ve been taking care of myself just fine for twenty-six years without your help,” she informed him, but he ignored the remark.

  “But I’m still not going to quit until you give me your word.”

  Glaring at him, she asked, “Has anybody ever told you you’re a really
stubborn pain in the ass sometimes?”

  “I’ve heard rumors to that effect,” he confirmed, “Now – “

  “Alright already! I promise I’ll let you know every time somebody looks at me funny! I wouldn’t want you to get in trouble with your job just because I got a hangnail or something!”

  “This has nothing to do with my job, and I think you know that by now.”

  Her swelling anger instantly deflated, and the only thing she could find to say was, “I know.”

  After that, they drove on in silence, all the way to the turn-off, each wrapped up in their own thoughts and wondering what the hell they were going to do.

  The quiet was broken by stunned swearing on the part of both of them when they pulled into the turnoff and the high-beams picked up a neat, flat circle of freshly-cut wood overhead, marking the spot where the branch Fiona had fallen off of used to be. They got out, and Luke used his flashlight to look around, but there was no sign of it except for some sawdust and chips that had fallen to the ground when it was removed.

  “I don’t think Mothman did this,” Fiona observed angrily, and Luke said, “Not unless he used a saw!”

  He shook his head. “Somebody is trying to hide something.”

  “Gee, do you think?” she shouted, rounding on him in a fury, both fists clenched tightly at her sides lest they start swinging on their own.

  Luke sat in silence, a half-empty water glass of straight bourbon in his left hand. It was his second...so far. He had tried working out, attempting to drive the anger and frustration out of his system by heaving his weights and violently swinging the kettle bells until his muscles screamed, but to no avail.

  He shrugged without feeling, except for the ache in his overworked shoulder joints. It was worth a try, I guess. Holding up the glass and looking at the light distorted and refracted through the amber liquid it contained, he shook his head.