by Jeff McDargh
The Light
By Jeff McDargh
Copyright 2014 Jeff McDargh
For Hushpuppy
Stay Golden
A storm was coming.
I remember the day that they first arrived; I was working as an assistant professor at the university. I was sitting at my desk I had about an hour or so before class started so I spent the first half hour pouring over our bills. The lights in the building would flicker every so often and I was having a little trouble concentrating. My wife Molly and I were expecting our first child and had decided to buy a small cabin just on the outskirts of town, the lights shut off for almost a minute before coming back on this time. The cabin was a fixer upper but Molly had fallen in love with the place but with the mortgage and the renovations I was starting to think maybe we had jumped in to the deep end without a life preserver. I spent the next half hour reading an old book id received in a huge manila envelope in my office mail box there was no postage on it just my name written in black magic marker. The lights flickered again, or at least I tried the book didn’t seem to be written in just one language. The only word on the leather cover was Umbra with the symbol of an eclipsed moon or sun I couldn’t quite tell. I ran my hand across the cover, the lights flickered again, there was a slight tingling in my hand and I jumped when the lights flickered which made me feel stupid and I laughed self concisely. If I’d only known how stupid I really was. The book was obviously old, stitched together with some type of animal hair, horse most likely, the pages where thick and ruff. Some of the chapters seemed to repeat with each retranslating of the text some in one language or another several different languages in everything from what looked like Greek to Chines to Czech to Russian to Hindi. The lights in the room where still flickering but now was accompanied by the sound of rolling thunder in the distance. It looked like it had been translated in every language except English. I flipped back to the front of the book and found one of the chapters in a language I could read but not well. I had taken Hebrew for half a semester, I couldn’t remember much of what was taught in the class but I could still remember how good Jenny Goldstein looked in those tight sweaters she always whore. When I met Molly I kinda lost interest in the class and Jenny and transferred in to a class Molly was in just to be closer to her. I read the word out loud following along with my still tingling finger.
“אני יהוה umbra החשבונית שלך מגיע עם הזרם של התא הקולי שלי, כדי להציע את הגוף שלך אתה לשמש כלי יהיה שלכם”
The light in the room swelled with a power surg.
Translated it read (Lord Umbra I invoice your coming with the power of my voice and offer my body as your vessel to be used for your will)
“Umbra?”
There was a bright flash out in the hallway one of the lights must have popped when the power surged. I looked up to see a shadow of movement. “Is someone there?" For a moment nothing, silence. There was a burning sensation in my finger as another light in the hallway popped I jumped and I could hear the glass shatter and hit the floor. My whole hand was hot now the burning sensation was working its way up and I still had the feeling I wasn't alone.
I called out again "is someone out there?" I got my answer it stepped out of the shadows and approached the glass. It was the form of a man dark and featureless, I froze with fear. The heat was up to my shoulder now. It flickered in and out like the lights; the longer I stared at it the more it came into focus the more it changed until the face staring back at me was my own. It raised its hand and placed it on the glass. A small blue speck of light shown in the center of its palm slowly growing outward until it's entire hand glowed with a blue phosphorescent, the glass rippled like he'd touched the surface of a calm pool not something as solid as glass. My neck and temple where on fire, there was a brief but bright flash of light then the room and world went dark. When I opened my eyes I could see the last of the sunset over the city skyline through the second story window from the hospital bed I was laying in. A dim light was on over the bed and Molly was asleep in a chair. I tried to call her name but my throat was dry like I had been eating sand, I rolled my tongue around in my mouth, licked my lips and tried again.
"Molly." Her eyes fluttered as she raised her head and she was on me in a moment her arms wrapped around me kissing me with joy and then buried her head in my chest as her pint up tears released in a shuddering flood.
"Hay baby, baby what happened?"
"You don't remember?"
"No, the last thing I remember I was sitting at my desk and..."
"And what?"
"Nothing really." Molly said fixing me with an odd look of skepticism and fear.
"Umm...flashing lights."
"Flashing lights?"
"Yeah I think so, why?" I'm not sure why I didn't tell Molly about the rest of it but I didn't.
"The doctors think you might have had an aneurysm or something."
"How long have I been here?"
"Uhm..." Molly looked up at the clock "about ten hours."
"Ten hours?"
Molly started crying again, after a while she stopped and we talked for a while until an elderly nurse came in to check on me.
"O my goodness you’re awake!" Then she turned to Molly "you should have told us."
"I know I was just so happy to have my husband back." Molly said with up turned hands like a scolded child
"I know." She said padding Molly on the shoulder and fixing her eyes back on me.
"Well how do feel?"
"Ok I think a little headache and a little tired."
"A little headache huh, I should think so." She laughed as she started to check me over.
"Can't all this wait for just a little longer?" Molly asked.
"Well you're in luck the doctor on call tonight is delivering a baby at the moment so it'll be a bit before he's into check on you and you look like you’re doing pretty good. Hungry?"
"Yes ma'am." I smiled and I was too, starving.
The nurse looked back at Molly "If he shows any signs of anything out of the ordinary you call me got it?"
"Got it."
"Ok I'll be back with some food in a bit."
Molly and I talked for a while longer then the nurse brought the food she'd promised and checked me over once more.
"What about the doctor?" Molly asked.
"It'll be a little bit its twins I think." The nurse smiled and slipped out.
"What's the matter Mol, worried?"
"Yeah a little."
"Don't its fine I'm fine." I smiled.
"Ok." She finally said but she didn't look very reassured.
Another hour passed and I started getting sleepy and nodded off a few times as we talked.
"Sorry, you look exhausted."
"Thanks, so do you."
"A little, things like this don't happen every day you know."
"True, thank god, why don't you go home and get some sleep?"
"No way, I'm staying!"
"Molly I'm fine and there’s no reason for both of us to get a bad night’s sleep."
"Nope and I'd like to hear that from the doctor first."
"It might be triplets you know." I smiled again, she still didn't look reassured.
After about an hour the conversation had been settled and I was asleep in the bed with Molly squeezed in next to me.
My dreams ran dark with me running from the cabin, the wind sweeping me and the midnight rain along the muddy path deeper into the night. Lightning crackled across the sky illuminating the world in blue light for a brief moment only to plunge it into deeper darkness as my eyes tried to adjust. Fear spurred me on, wasn't sure if I was running to or away as I ran down the sloping tree lined path towards the lake until I reached the dock.
The lightning flashed again and for a split second I could see the outline of a woman lying face down on the deck, she was turned away from me so I couldn't see her face.
Something was with me now I could feel it, the air had gotten a weight to it was thick and there was an odd metallic taste in my mouth, it was moving closer.
The lightning flashed again this time followed by a deafening crack of thunder that shook the ground. I jumped reflexively and tried to run to the dock but something had a hold of me.
I woke still struggling Molly was shaking me.
"Hay, hay wake up." Molly's face was creased with sleep and concern" you ok?"
"Yeah just dreaming I guess."
You sure maybe I should call the nurse."
"No I'm fine well except for my left arm it’s asleep." I said exaggeratedly rubbing my arm and shoulder.
"Shut up."
"No really how much does your head weigh anyway?"
"You’re such a jerk!" She said with a smile and a light hit to the chest.
"I love you."
"I love you too but you're still a jerk, I don't know how you ever managed to get an amazing girl like me."
"O brother! Someone
