Fort Lupton

by Christian, Claudia Hall

  “I thought we could have dinner and . . .” Jill nodded to the tray in her hands. “Sandy made us some cupcakes.”

  “What if you just tell me and we go out for dinner?” Anjelika asked with a smile.

  Jill looked away for a moment.

  “Okay,” Jill said.

  “Good,” Anjelika said. “Now what do you want?”

  “You and Dad, you have a contract, right?” Jill said.

  “Yes,” Anjelika said. “It’s standard when a human marries into their kind. You’ll see when your friend Heather’s parents marry. Eros isn’t a Titan, but it’s similar. It sounds barbaric, I know, but it’s very beautiful.”

  “He is supposed to come whenever you call,” Jill said. “Is that right?”

  “Yes,” Anjelika said. “It is sworn in blood. If I need him, I only have to call. You kids too.”

  Jill nodded.

  “Why?” Anjelika asked.

  “I wondered if you would call him,” Jill said.

  “He’s working, Jillian,” Anjelika said. “I don’t call him unless I really need him. Anything else would be disrespectful.”

  “I called him,” Jill said.

  “I know,” Anjelika said. “He said he would be gone for a bit to take care of something rotten in the fairy world.”

  Jill nodded.

  “Please?” Jill asked.

  “You know your father isn’t a toy,” Anjelika said. “You can’t just . . .”

  “Mom!” Jill exclaimed. “Dad’s in trouble.”

  “Oh,” Anjelika said. “What kind of trouble?”

  “He’s trapped in the Sea of Amber,” Jill said.

  “Good Lord,” Anjelika said. “How did that happen?”

  “I have no idea,” Jill said. “We know that Jacob and Prince Finegal are there. We assume Dad, Delphie, and Keenan are there as well.”

  Anjelika swallowed hard.

  “Call him,” Jill said. “Some magic is more powerful than . . .”

  “Perses!” Anjelika said. “I need you!”

  Nothing happened. Anjelika scowled.

  “Now what?” Jill asked.

  “This has never happened before,” Anjelika said.

  “What about when he was held captive?” Jill asked.

  “I could hear his voice calling to me,” Anjelika said. “I knew he was captured, I just lost hope and . . . It’s a long story.”

  “Try again,” Jill said.

  “Perses! My love, my husband, my life,” Anjelika said. “I need you.”

  The condo was so still and quiet that they could hear the click of Candy’s fingers on a keyboard in her room. Anjelika’s eyes welled with tears.

  “Beloved Perses,” Anjelika whispered. “Follow my voice. Hear my prayer. Come home to me.”

  Weeping, Anjelika dropped her face into her hands. Jill wrapped her arms around her mother.

  “I thought it would . . .” Jill started.

  There was a loud “whomp” from something very heavy falling from a great distance onto the marble entry. There was a swooshing sound as if something very heavy sliding across the marble entryway.

  “Dad!” Candy screamed in the hallway.

  Anjelika and Jill ran out into the entry and found Perses curled up in a ball. He was wet head to toe with liquid amber, which hardened with each passing moment. Candy was shaking his shoulder.

  “He’s not breathing!” Candy said.

  Jill dropped down and hit her father’s back. He sputtered and spit out a mouthful of amber.

  “Get out of your clothes!” Anjelika yelled. “The amber will kill you if it dries!”

  Candy ran for a towel. Jill helped Anjelika undress him. Candy gave Anjelika the towel before running back for another. When Candy returned, their father was naked and holding her mother. Jill took the towel from Candy and wrapped the towel around him. He hadn’t yet said a word.

  “Dad?” Jill said in a low voice to Candy.

  “I know!” Candy whispered back. “It just came out. It’s just . . .”

  Anjelika kissed their father.

  “He’s been so awesome, you know, these last couple years,” Candy said. “About everything and . . . our dad was pretty awful.”

  Jill nodded in agreement that the father who had raised them, Candy’s biological father, had been cruel.

  “Jillian?” Perses said quietly.

  “Yes, Dad,” Jill said.

  “You’ll have to . . .” Perses collapsed.

  Chapter Three hundred & twenty-eight

  Sun and earth

  Candy and Jill screamed and rushed to help their mother hold up his weight. Candy and Jill slipped on the hardening amble. They all went down with a thud. Perses landed face down on top of them

  “All right, girls?” Anjelika asked.

  “Here, Mom,” Jill said. Candy grunted.

  “Who can get out?” Anjelika asked.

  Candy pulled her legs out from under her father’s body. She got up to lift her father a few inches off the ground. With her help, Jill was able to scoot out. They lifted him so their mother could get up.

  “Is he dead?” Jill asked.

  “No,” Anjelika said. “Just out.”

  “He was going to say something,” Candy said.

  “We have to assume he needs our help,” Anjelika said. “Let’s turn him over.”

  “But Mom!” Jill said. She gave her mother an uncomfortable look.

  “What’s wrong?” Anjelika asked.

  “He’s naked!” Candy said.

  Anjelika swore in Russian. She pointed to Perses. Candy backed away. Anjelika said something else in Russian.

  “If you’re trying to make us help, you could at least do it in a language we understand!” Jill said.

  “Net vremeni! Speshite!” Anjelika said. Having heard it all of their lives, they knew it meant “Hurry up. We have no time.” Or something like that.

  Jill bent across Perses’ body to grab his left side. Candy didn’t move.

  “Candace!” Anjelika said.

  Candy shuffled to Perses. She grabbed his leg.

  “Close your eyes if you don’t want to see him,” Anjelika said. Anjelika held onto his shoulder.

  “Eyes closed, Mom,” Jill said.

  “Candy?”

  “Shuttered,” Candy said.

  “Good,” Anjelika said. “Because I am not paying for therapy for the trauma of seeing your father’s genitals.”

  Jill snorted a laugh, and Candy groaned.

  “Better,” Anjelika said. “Now, one, two, three.”

  With great effort, they rolled their father over. Candy turned her back, and Jill closed her eyes.

  “Mom!” Jill said.

  “Forgive me. I was enjoying the view,” Anjelika said with a laugh.

  Candy made a gagging sound while Anjelika placed a towel over his genitals.

  “Candy, sit.” Anjelika pointed to Perses head. Candy dropped down and crossed her legs. She scooted up and put Perses’ head on her lap.

  “Jillian, I will take his feet.” Anjelika trotted to his feet. “Candy, you and I will ground.”

  “Yes, Mom,” Candy said with a nod.

  Jill watched her mother sit at Perses’ feet.

  “Would it be okay if I tried something?” Jill asked.

  “What?” Candy asked.

  “I thought of it before, when I had foresight and all those crazy powers, and really it was Heather that made me think of it — you know I’ve been reading this book about Hedone — and it might not even work and . . .” Jill started.

  “Jillian!” Anjelika said. “Your father asked for your help!”

  Anjelika pointed to Perses.

  “But . . .” Jill said.

  “Just do it, Jilly,” Candy said. “If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work.”

  Jill nodded to her sister and rubbed her hands together.

  “Speshite!” Anjelika said.

  Jill put a hand on Candy’s heart and one
on her back.

  “Love you,” Jill said.

  “Whoa,” Candy said.

  She went to her mother and did the same thing.

  “What is this?” Anjelika asked.

  “Now,” Jill said. “Focus on loving him.”

  “Why?” Anjelika said. “This is not the way we do it.”

  “I think it enhances our power,” Jill said.

  “We use the same technique as our ancients,” Anjelika said.

  “Time for an upgrade,” Jill said.

  “But . . .” Anjelika said.

  Jill gave her mother an impatient look.

  “Okay,” Anjelika said. “We’ll try it, but . . .”

  “Yes, Mother, we get it,” Candy said.

  “Go on!” Anjelika ordered.

  Jill rubbed her hands together.

  “Focus on loving him,” Jill said.

  She crouched and placed her hands on his heart.

  “We love you, Dad,” Jill said.

  She felt a rush of power flow to her father. Feeling woozy, she dropped to her knees. Before her, she saw the Sea of Amber. She felt the stuck, desperation that was slowly suffocating the people she loved. She watched Perses fight to get them out before succumbing to the desperation surrounding him.

  “We love you, Dad,” Jill said.

  “I love you, Dad,” Candy said.

  “Perses, my love,” Anjelika said.

  Minutes passed, and they hung on. Jill focused on the things she knew her father loved — the open ocean, long white ski slopes, laughter, a good meal, and her mother. She felt the tide shift. Desperation eased, and Perses began to rise again.

  “Made of sun and earth,” Jill said. “Perses the Titan, we ask you to return.”

  He opened his eyes and saw Candy.

  “Candace,” Perses said. “Have you seen your mother?”

  Candy nodded to his feet. Perses smiled at Jill before leaning up on an elbow.

  “There you are,” Perses said.

  “Welcome back, my love,” Anjelika said.

  Perses’ eyes flicked to Jill.

  “Made of sun and earth?” he asked.

  Jill shrugged, and he laughed.

  “Come on, Candy,” Jill said. “They want to be alone.”

  Jill helped Candy to her feet and they went to Candy’s bedroom near the back of the condo.

  “How do you feel?” Jill asked.

  “Like I could do anything,” Candy said.

  “Love again?”

  “Maybe.” Candy smiled. “Just maybe.”

  Jill laughed.

  “Girls!” Anjelika called from the front of the condo. Jill leaned out of Candy’s rooms. “Let’s get dinner. Say in an hour?”

  “Good plan,” Jill said.

  They heard their mother giggle.

  “Wanna play a video game?” Candy asked.

  “Something loud?” Jill asked.

  Candy nodded.

  “I’m in,” Jill said.

  ~~~~~~~~

  Tuesday evening — 6:25 p.m.

  “Dad!” Tanesha whispered into her phone.

  She was sitting in the end stall of the bathroom next to her lab classroom. She only had a five minute break. If she wasn't standing at her lab bench in exactly six minutes, the teacher would mark her absent for the entire class — even though she had been there since four.

  “What’s wrong?” Rodney asked.

  She heard him close the door to his home.

  “I think I’m losing my mind,” Tanesha said.

  His footsteps on the concrete told her he was walking out to his truck.

  “What do you mean?” Rodney asked.

  His truck door slammed closed.

  “I’m seeing things,” Tanesha said.

  “What kind of things?” Rodney asked.

  His truck started.

  “The answers, for one thing,” Tanesha said. “Like I’m supposed to separate out this chemical, but I forgot to read about it last night. It’s not a big deal because no one did. Then I was holding the beaker and I could see how to do it.”

  “Words?” Rodney asked.

  “Like a little video,” Tanesha said.

  “And did it work?”

  “Yes,” Tanesha said. “Yes it did.”

  “That doesn’t seem like such a bad thing,” Rodney said.

  “Then I looked around the room,” Tanesha said. “I could see what everyone was thinking. Most people were thinking about themselves or their work, but the guy on the end . . .”

  “What about the guy on the end?” Rodney’s voice rose with tension.

  “He’s the mole,” Tanesha said. “He hates me. Calls me a ni . . .”

  “Don’t say that word,” Rodney said. “It demeans you and every single one of your ancestors who fought like hell so you that you could be where you are today.”

  “And a bi . . .”

  “Or that one,” Rodney said. “You are not a dog.”

  “Well, combine the words and that’s what he calls me in his mind. So, he’s the one who’s been selling me out to the gossip rags.”

  Tanesha stopped talking.

  “So?” Rodney asked.

  “Well, I thought ‘Oh, fuck you’,” Tanesha said. “One minute, he’s just standing there, and the next minute, he’s falling over backward. Broke his leg.”

  “Again, not such a bad thing,” Rodney said.

  “I’m scared,” Tanesha said. “What if I kill Jabari or my teacher or . . . Jeraine! You know how likely it is that I’ll end up killing Jeraine?”

  Rodney chuckled.

  “Where are you going?”

  “To get you,” Rodney said.

  “What?” Tanesha asked.

  “I’ll tell you when I get there,” Rodney said. “Tell your teacher you have a family emergency. Your father’s coming.”

  “Okay,” Tanesha said. “That’s a good idea.”

  “I’ll be there in a minute,” Rodney said.

  “Thanks, Dad,” Tanesha said. “And Dad?”

  “Yes.”

  “How did you know you needed to come?” Tanesha asked.

  “It’s happened to your mother before,” Rodney said.

  “I have to go,” Tanesha said.

  “Try not to kill anyone,” Rodney said.

  “I’ll try.”

  Tanesha hung up the phone and went back to class.

  ~~~~~~~~

  Tuesday evening — 6:45 p.m.

  “Hi, I’m looking for my son, Nash Norsen?” Aden asked the small, bright red-haired man standing at the bakery counter.

  “Well, you see,” the man said in a thick Northern Irish accent, “about that.”

  “What’s happened?” Aden instinctively put his hand on his heart

  “It’s not exactly what has happened, but what has been done,” the man said.

  Aden scowled and looked at the man’s name tag. It said: “EOIN”. Aden had heard Nash say his name but he couldn’t remember how to pronounce it.

  “What?” Aden asked.

  “It’s not exactly what has happened, but what has been done,” Eoin repeated.

  “Does that mean anything?” Aden asked.

  The man tipped his head to the side and thought for a moment.

  “Now that you mention it, I don’t think it does,” Eoin said with a nod.

  Aden put his hands on his hips and squinted at the man.

  “I’m looking for my son, Nash Norsen.” Aden tried again.

  “About that. . .” The red-haired man looked up at the ceiling. “Well, actually. . .”

  “His sister was attacked, as was our friend Sissy Delgado,” Aden said. “The Denver Police caught one of two killers set to kill Charlie Delgado, and our friend Wanda was nearly killed in the hospital.”

  “And the girls with fairy names?” Eoin asked.

  “Who?”

  “Tink and Ivy?”

  “They were out,” Aden said. “The killers missed them.”

/>   “We know all about the attempts to kill and the almost-killing in the hospital.” Eoin nodded. “Brutal business for such young people.”

  “Is there someone else I might talk to?” Aden asked.

  “Nope,” Eoin asked.

  “Are you always like this?” Aden asked.

  “It’s an affliction,” Eoin said.

  “Affliction?” Aden asked.

  “I’m better in Irish,” Eoin said. “You speak that?”

  “No,” Aden said.

  Eoin nodded. They stood there staring at the walls behind each other.

  “What would it take for you to tell me about my son?” Aden asked.

  “Those other kids,” Eoin said. “They okay?”

  “We’ve been very lucky,” Aden said.

  “I like that girl, Wanda,” Eoin said. “She’s a tough kid in a tough situation. Her dad brings her here on the weekends. She likes the peanut-butter chocolate-chip cookies — eats them in tiny bits.”

  Eoin nodded.

  “’Course, we think of Noelle as one of our own,” Eoin said.

  “Why is that?” Aden asked.

  “Theodore is family,” Eoin said.

  “Who?” Aden asked.

  “Teddy,” Eoin said.

  “And my son?” Aden asked.

  “Is he your son?” the red-haired man said.

  “Yes,” Aden said.

  “Teddy?” Eoin asked. “I thought he was . . .”

  “Nash!” Aden said. “Nash Norsen is my son.”

  Aden scowled and tried to think of a way to get this man to connect him with Nash. Annoyed, he turned around and looked out the plate glass windows onto the South Platte River.

  “Hey Eoin, have you seen my dad?” Nash’s voice came from behind him.

  Aden spun around.

  “There’s a man who claims to be your father,” Eoin said. Aden sneered at him. “He hasn’t shown me his proof.”

  “Dad?”

  Nash came around the counter, and Aden stepped back. Nash’s face was a quilt of red and purple bruises, dried blood, and stitches. Aden grabbed him and held him close. Nash grunted.

  “Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Eoin said. Aden glanced at him and he gave an indignant sniff. “He’s the worse for wear, but fine none-the-less.”

  “What happened?” Aden asked. He set Nash back to look at him.

  “We were jumped,” Nash said. “Teddy and me, because of the trial and all.”