“‘Anyway, Sam and Pete decided to investigate the source of all the commotion at the Johnson’s farm, and walked over to the farmhouse. They found out, as you must’ve earlier, that they weren’t home—and thank the Good Lord for it! What the Aderleys also found was that the Johnson’s farmhouse has been destroyed. I mean completely destroyed. The house has huge holes running throughout the main floor, and everything inside has been either crushed or ripped apart. Even the barn closest to the house, the one you went to, got ransacked. One side of it’s now completely burned away, though the fire didn’t spread to the rest of it for some reason. It’s just like what happened in the woods. Carl here thinks whoever or whatever was responsible for all of this may have gotten spooked and ran off.’
“The sheriff suddenly looked down at his feet and fidgeted quietly in the recliner. The room grew very quiet until he couldn’t stand waiting for some kind of response from me. ‘So, Jack’ he said, steadily lifting his gaze. ‘Did you see or hear anything unusual this afternoon?’
“I thought carefully about his question and the best way to answer it. I was truly surprised to learn Pete Aderley could see me, and yet Grandpa and Jeremy couldn’t until after I returned to our backyard. Of course, I knew what’d happened. Vydora finally escaped from the woods and followed my trail, destroying everything in her path. She was probably erased from this reality when the angels and Genovene reached the climax of their battle and disappeared from the area. I wasn’t about to tell the sheriff this.
“I looked over at my grandfather, who seemed to sense my dilemma. I then looked back toward Sheriff McCracken, and was about to say I hadn’t seen or heard anything at all, when Grandpa suddenly spoke for me.
“‘Jack told us tonight he thought he saw a huge lizard-like critter that may have started the fire in the woods,’ he said, perhaps figuring a partial truth was as decent as any place to go with this. I hoped his offering of a little information the sheriff already knew something about would keep me from having to run through the entire story again.
“‘Is that true, son?’ Sheriff McCracken asked me, surprisingly straight-faced as he leaned ever closer to me. I nodded ‘yes’, and he turned his attention back to Carl Peterson. ‘Show him, Carl. Go ahead and show him what we found in the farmhouse rubble.’
“Carl walked over and showed me a large envelope he’d kept under his arm up to that point. ‘We found this, Jack,’ he said, and proceeded to open the envelope and pull out the same reptilian scale that’s sitting here now. At the time, it was carefully sealed in a plastic bag to protect it.
“Jeremy’s eyes got really big and he moved closer to get a better look at the strange specimen in the bag. I just sat there, unfazed and not at all shocked to see the small leftover from Vydora’s visit to the Johnson’s place. I even smiled slightly as I realized this was such a small part of the monster, perhaps no more to it than the dozens of body hairs people cast off each day. Grandpa watched my reaction to this, as did Carl and the sheriff. Even his eyes were lit up from excitement and wonder as he looked on.
“‘We also found two enormous footprints in the mud around Ben’s tractor near the woods,’ Carl advised. ‘We’ve got pictures of them that should be developed sometime tomorrow morning along with a few Polaroids that didn’t turn out as well as we’d hoped. Plus, we’re setting plaster casts right now to save the footprints before nature gets an opportunity to destroy them.’ He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. In the meantime, Sheriff McCracken resumed his interrogation.
“‘What did this ‘lizard-thing’ look like, Jack?’ he asked. “I mean, how big was it and all?’
“‘It was very big. Enormous is a good way to describe it,’ I told him. ‘You’ll probably find this hard to believe, but it looked a lot like a tyrannosaurus rex except that it had horns on its head and was covered with those scales.’ I hoped this was good enough. Telling him the critter could also fly and blow long streams of fire, as I stated to you earlier, seemed like such a bad idea.
“‘So, you’re saying, what...it was forty to fifty feet tall and Godzilla-like?’ he clarified, unable to control a wry smile. It disappeared when he saw my expression. How could my description be so hard to believe when he’d seen the evidence?
“‘It was at least that big,’ I told him, confidently.
“‘Um-hm-m,’ he nodded. ‘Where’d you first see it?’
“‘I saw it in the woods.’
“‘In the woods. When was that and what were you doing in the woods? Was this after the fire started or before?’
“‘It was around five o’clock, I guess,’ I said. ‘I was chasing Banjo because he got out of the backyard and was running for the woods. I didn’t catch up to him until he had already gotten pretty far. The fire hadn’t started yet.’
“Believe it or not, Agent McNamee, I really hated lying, and was sorely afraid I was going to trip on my words. I looked over at Grandpa and saw he looked amused, perhaps even a little proud at my attempt to remain vague as possible. I knew he was certainly one who valued secrecy if the information being withheld wouldn’t prove beneficial to whomever requested it. He’d protected us for years that way, especially in regard to the sphere and its origins. I guess he figured we’d know if, or when, we needed to know. I felt the same principal applied right then. They likely weren’t going to find Vydora again, so why tell them more than was necessary?
“‘Well, that explains the broken weeds and downtrodden grass in the field behind your backyard,’ Sheriff McCracken advised. ‘But, where in the woods did you see this thing?’
“‘I don’t remember exactly,’ I told him. ‘It came out of nowhere and I grabbed Banjo and tried to get out of the woods. I guess I got turned around and came out over by the Johnson’s place. I ran to their house, hoping to get them to call the authorities. When they weren’t there, I checked the doors to the house and barn, but they were all locked. So, I ran home to get help. By then, we all saw the fire raging in the woods and Grandpa had Jeremy called the fire department. I don’t know how the fire got started—honest. I hope you don’t think I set it. There’s no way I would, or could, have started one that large and that quickly.’
“Even though I was new to the art of deception, I felt I was doing a good job. Quite a bit of my reply was true, and I started to feel pretty good about my chances of surviving this interrogation with my incredible experience intact and untarnished by anyone’s ridicule. Other than Jeremy’s, of course, which I figured I could live with.
“Sheriff McCracken sat in silence. After about a minute, he looked up at Carl, who shrugged his shoulders. Then he looked back at me, releasing a deep sigh as he concluded our interview. ‘Well, your story definitely fits the facts we have so far,’ he said. ‘Sorry if I was a little rough on you, Jack. That certainly wasn’t my intention. But, as you can imagine, we’ve got a pretty delicate situation on our hands. I’ve got to have some answers, or at least know as much information as we can gather on this event, and still keep things quiet around here. I mean, we don’t want the media involved, because it could stir everyone around here into an awful panic. Already, the Palmers are snooping around out there. Carl tells me you’ve always had trouble with them.
“‘Aside from a few folks like them, I’m sure y’all agree our community likes privacy and wants to uphold Carlsdale’s reputation as a good community and a quiet town. We don’t want a lot of curious types hanging around here, is what I mean to say. Let them join the other tourists visiting the space center or Gulf Shores and places like that. The last thing we need is some giant lizard running loose around here and becoming the state of Alabama’s biggest attraction.
“‘One other problem is we’ve got some explaining to do once the Johnson’s come back from their Florida vacation and find their home in ruins. I suppose you know they’re pretty temperamental folks as it is. Since I’ve got a close nephew that works for the FBI, I’m planning to contact him in the morning and see if I can fax the
pictures to him. He might know of someone in the bureau, or somewhere else who can help us with this—especially if the critter comes back, which I fully expect. I doubt seriously it just vanished into thin air.’
“Sheriff McCracken eyed me knowingly, as if he could decipher the rampant thoughts racing through my mind. I waited expectantly for him to tell me what he really thought of my responses to his questions. But it never happened. Instead, he stood up and pushed the recliner back. He looked over at Carl, who motioned for him to join him at the front door.
“‘I guess that’s it for now,’ the sheriff said as he looked back at the three of us. ‘Sorry to have kept y’all up. If you don’t mind, until we know how to better handle this thing, if anyone asks y’all what happened, please say it was just a brush fire. We’d sure appreciate it.’ He nodded to Carl to confirm this. ‘Jack, Jeremy, and Marshall...y’all have a good night,’ he said, before turning toward the door. ‘Take care.’
“I thought Carl and Sheriff McCracken were almost as tired as I was. The three of us watched them as they reached the front door and opened it to step outside. The sheriff stopped suddenly and turned back toward us. This time he was smiling. ‘Marshall, how’d you ever get that big ole’ round rock inside your backyard?’ he asked. ‘Carl tells me you and a bunch of guys put it there as a prank on your late wife, though he says it’s a secret as to how you actually got it over the wall. Is that so?’
“Grandpa looked over at Carl, who gave him a wink unseen by the sheriff. While still holding Carl in his gaze, Grandpa smiled and answered the question. ‘Yeah, Joe, that’s how it got there, all right,’ he said. ‘Maybe some other time I’ll fill you in on the details. Elsie was fit to be tied on account of it. That’s for sure!’
“The three men joined in laughter while Jeremy and I looked on, half smiling and barely able to appreciate our elders’ sense of humor. Once the laughter died, Carl and Sheriff McCracken said goodbye again before walking outside, closing the door behind them as they left us in peace.
“‘Nice job, Jackie,’ Jeremy said. A definite tone of admiration was evident in his voice as he drew out a fresh cigarette from the pack in his shirt pocket. He looked like he wasn’t going to survive another minute without one. The two visitors had stayed nearly half an hour and he’d already been dying for another smoke well before their unexpected arrival. He quickly lit the cigarette, inhaling and then exhaling a long stream of smoke.
“‘I thought for awhile old Joe McCracken was going to corner your ass and stick it to you with a red-hot poker. Man, I really did!’ He threw his head back in laughter, but it ended quickly once he started to cough and had to take another long drag from his cigarette. ‘But, you know, Jackie. You’ve got to wonder what did become of...was it Vydor? No, Vydora...yeah, that was it. Vydora. You’ve still got to keep an eye out for that thing because you didn’t see her leave now, did you little brother?’
“I shrugged my shoulders and nodded ‘no’.
“‘I mean, I would’ve been very, very skeptical of all this since it’s beyond weird,’ he continued. ‘But, there’s no denying the concrete evidence available to support it all. And, Grandpa, what about that sphere, anyway? You know...you never have told us a goddamned thing about it, really. So, what’s up with that? As a matter of fact, the most I’ve ever heard about it was tonight from Jack and Sheriff McCracken. You know, old man, now would be as good a time as any to come clean on the subject. Wouldn’t you agree?’
“‘Not tonight, son,’ said Grandpa, much more weary than irritated. ‘Definitely not tonight. I’m beat. I’m sure Jack is too, and we should all turn in before it gets much later since we’ve got a big day ahead of us tomorrow. I’ll tell you this, though. I promise to tell you everything I know about it before tomorrow’s over and done with. How’s that sound?’
“‘Sounds great to me, Grandpa!’ I told him, but Jeremy hesitated before agreeing he could wait one more day.
“‘All right, I guess,’ he finally agreed.
“Grandpa walked over to the gun case and pulled out a semi-automatic pistol from the bottom drawer along with the very same Winchester he’d taken out the previous evening. After making sure both weapons were properly loaded, he brought them over to the recliner and sat them both down on the seat of it.
“‘What are you doing, Grandpa?’ I asked, more curious than alarmed.
“He stopped and looked over at Jeremy and I, regarding both of us evenly. ‘Just preparing for the rest of the evening, son,’ he said. ‘The ‘‘Season’’ ain’t quite over yet.’
“‘What do you mean?’ I was a little more alarmed now.
“‘I could use some enlightening as well, Grandpa,’ added Jeremy.
“‘All right, then,’ he agreed. ‘Although I do believe everything you told us tonight, Jack, I think I should be considered a fool if I didn’t prepare, just in case, for the return of the lizard-thing, this ‘Vydora’ you’ve spoken of. At night, especially, one can’t be too careful about such things. Tomorrow when we visit the area around the river, I’ll be packing some iron, too. Now, don’t worry yourselves about this. I don’t expect we’ll find anything there to remind you of Genovene’s presence, Jack, or Vydora’s for that matter. But, that’s tomorrow in the full light of day, and right now its nearing midnight. Who knows what could be out there in the night’s shadows, hiding and waiting for us to lower our guard, regardless that a full moon’s out tonight.’
“Grandpa had a faraway look in his eyes. Meanwhile, I wondered what good a gun would do on Vydora. As if reading my thoughts, he suddenly frowned. ‘Well, regardless of what either of you boys think, I’m camping out here in the living room,’ he said, ‘Consider this strictly a precaution, since ‘better safe than sorry’ has always been my motto.’ He smiled and pushed the recliner back over to its original position and placed the firearms on the floor beside it. He then obtained a warm blanket from his bedroom and headed for the kitchen. Grandpa didn’t return until he found an unopened bottle of scotch whiskey.
“I knew he was now set up for the remainder of the night, and was planning to stay awake till dawn. Usually, whenever he did this he’d take a catnap for an hour or two until either Jeremy or myself got up.
“I wasn’t afraid, but I felt a strong urge to keep him company for awhile. ‘Would you mind if I join you, Grandpa?’ I asked him.
“‘Not at all, son,’ he said. ‘But, you’ll need your rest. Why don’t you sleep on the sofa, Jack.’
“‘All right,’ I told him.
“‘Count me in here, too, Grandpa,’ Jeremy said. ‘I’ll get my sleeping bag and set it up on the floor, though it’ll be strange not having any female action to keep me company tonight—just kidding, y’all! I wouldn’t really do that...at least not here!’ Jeremy shot a wry smile toward Grandpa while winking at me. I couldn’t believe the camaraderie we now enjoyed. We hadn’t been like this to one another since grade school, and I secretly prayed it’d be a lasting thing between us.
“Jeremy left the living room and I caught up with him at the foot of the staircase. We went upstairs together to both get our sleeping bags, and returned downstairs to the living room a few minutes later. We set up the bags near the fireplace and told Grandpa we’d decided to give him the sofa to sleep on. He declined our offer, stating again that he’d be just fine right where he was, sitting in his favorite chair. He turned on the light next to the recliner, switching it to its lowest setting so as not to disturb us. I could tell he expected us to drift off to sleep once we got comfortable in our bags.
“My brother and I conversed with each other for another twenty minutes or so, discussing several different aspects of my story. In the meantime, Grandpa picked up a mystery novel he had nearly finished. Every so often he’d look up from his book, perking his ears as if listening closely for some suspicious noise hidden amid our whispered voices. He didn’t have to do that for long, as his earlier presumption was correct. Jeremy and I did fall asleep.
&n
bsp; “I found out later that he continued to read his book. After getting up twice to explore the premises and finding nothing out of the ordinary, he returned to his chair and opened the novel for the last time that night. By then, it was the wee hours of the next morning, and he later said he found it increasingly difficult to keep his own eyes open despite the fact he lacked just a few pages to the book’s conclusion. Around two am he finally drifted off to sleep.
“When Grandpa awoke, around 4:30 am the morning of July 21st, he still held the opened mystery novel on his lap. Luckily for him, he managed to avoid a stiff neck this time, as he usually didn’t when falling asleep in the recliner. Since Jeremy and I still slept, he sat the book down quietly on the floor and got up from his chair, leaving the living room for his bedroom and bathroom down the hallway. Once there, he showered and got himself ready to meet the day.
“He arrived in the kitchen not long after this, and was surprised to find Jeremy waiting for him at the kitchen sink, his first cigarette of the day nearly finished. He raised his cup of freshly brewed coffee to our grandfather in salutation.
“‘Good morning, Grandpa,’ he said. ‘Coffee’s nice n’ hot, the way you like it.’ Jeremy poured him a cup and handed it to him. Grandpa thanked him and eyed him curiously, probably wondering what the hell had gotten into his oldest grandson. It wasn’t at all like him to be so agreeable and congenial this early in the morning.
“‘Did you sleep all right, son?’ asked Grandpa.
“‘Yeah, I did,’ replied my brother. ‘I’d say better than I have in years. It may sound strange, and maybe even a bit sappy, but something about Jack’s story really gets to me. I don’t know for sure what it is, but maybe it’s the stuff about Mom and Dad. All I know for sure is I feel better, Grandpa. I mean, I don’t feel near as mad at the world, like I usually do. I know I can be a real asshole sometimes, and I’m sorry. I hope to God this feeling lasts!’
The Golden Talisman Page 25