The Rook and The Raven

by R. H. Burkett

  “He’ll be here if I need him,” I lied. “Tell me about Angelina.”

  “She’s one of Panama Jack’s girls.”

  “Panama Jack?”

  “Yeah.” She squirted ketchup over the fries from a red plastic container and glanced up at me. “The meanest, craziest son-of-a-bitch that ever drew breath.”

  Fear squeezed my heart and I coughed. “Don’t worry about that,” I said with more bravado than I felt. “Just tell me where I can find her.”

  “Round about nine, look on DuPont Street. Three blocks down. Can’t miss her. Got a tattoo of the moon and stars on her arm.”

  “Thanks,” I said and got up to leave. Her hand shot out and grabbed my shirt tail.

  “I hopes you ain’t fibbin’ about your Rook being with ya, hon. Nobody takes Panama Jack’s girls away from him. Nooo-body.” She patted my arm. “You’re a sweet young thing and so is Angie. You be careful, honey child.”

  I rushed out of the dive and unlocked the truck with trembling fingers. Locking the door back, I slumped behind the steering wheel. Where was I going to find the courage to follow through with this?

  DuPont Street smelled like a chicken coop on a hot, sultry country night. The homeless huddled in littered doorways drinking who-knows-what from brown paper bags—their eyes vacant and hard. Worn-out, harsh looking women paraded up and down on pointy thin heels, skirts so short and tank tops so tight it was a wonder they could breathe. My truck slowly crept along the narrow road while I searched for a girl with the moon and stars inked on her arm. My courage was running close to empty when I spotted her leaning against a brick building.

  Dressed all in black, blood-red lipstick, blue-black hair cut short and spiked, Angelina looked like some kind of Goth bat.

  I motioned to her.

  A brassy red head snickered. “Hey Angie, didn’t know you was into women.”

  “Shut up, Velma.” She sauntered over in thigh-high boots with heels so tall and thin she could pierce Hell’s ceiling. I rolled down the window. A whiff of spearmint gum wafted in.

  “Velma’s right. Unless you got a man in the back you’d better keep on lookin’.” She turned to go.

  “Wait! I need to talk to you.” I flashed a twenty at her. “How much time will this buy?” Jackrabbit-quick she grabbed the money from my hand and tucked it down her blouse.

  “Ten minutes.” She slid onto the passenger seat and sniffed. “Startin’ now.”

  I reached across her and locked the door.

  She snorted and snapped her gum. “That ain’t gonna stop nobody from getting in. Clock’s tickin’.”

  Heavy black eye-shadow and liner made her look like the walking dead, but I could see the youth and beauty in her heart shaped face. High cheekbones accented with dark, almost purple blush spoke of pride and strength. Skin the color of toasted almonds gleamed with sweat. Deep cinnamon eyes followed my every move in the glazed-over expression of someone who is high.

  I didn’t waste any time. “Angelina, my name’s Raven. I’m a good friend of your grandmother’s, and I’ve come to take you home.”

  Snap. Crackle. Pop. Her gum took a beating, and she stared at me like I had horns.

  “Don’t know what you talkin’ ’bout.” Her voice a mixture of street-smart teenager and Deep South. “My name’s Angie. I got no Grandma.” She sniffed again and wiped her nose on the back of her hand. “Least ways none that wants the likes of me sittin’ in her parlor.”

  I reached in the glove box, pulled out a pack of tissues and handed her a couple. “That isn’t true. Madame Katanga’s been searching for you for a year. She’s heartbroken.” I took hold of her hand. “Come back home with me.”

  Tired, bloodshot eyes shifted from my face to the truck window. She took a deep breath and watched the window fog when she exhaled. Drawing a heart inside the steam, she sighed. “Even if what cha sayin’s true, I can’t.”

  My heart leaped. At least she’d stopped denying she was Angelina. It was a start. I scooted closer.

  “Why? Because of Panama Jack?”

  She stiffened at the sound of his name. “Him. And other things.”

  She wiped her nose with one of the tissues. Her dull gaze returned to me. “Look at me. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not that innocent little granddaughter who played dominos with Grams at the kitchen table no more.”

  “Madame K knows that. She doesn’t—

  “Tell her I didn’t mean for this to happen. You don’t know what it’s like to be raised by a bone-rattling-fortune-telling-witchy woman. Everyone laughed at me at school, called me names. Had no friends.” Her voice broke. “I was so alone. All I wanted was to get away. So I got on a bus and went as far as thirty dollars would take me. I ended up in this garbage pail of a town. No money. Hungry. No place to stay. Then Panama Jack found me.”

  She gulped for a breath and played with the hole in her fishnet stockings.

  “At first he wuz real nice. Brought me food, some clothes, got me a place to stay.” She bit her lip. “I trusted him. He gave me this white powder. Said it’d make me forget all about being called a freak. It made me feel good. Got hooked before I realized what I was doing.”

  Another sniff. “He ain’t so nice anymore.” Her voice turned shaky. “I really am a freak now. Grams don’t want someone like me. She’s only fooling herself.”

  “Angie! Get your skinny butt out that truck. Alligator Slim is lurking around here somewhere.”

  She rolled down the window and spit her gum out. “Mind your own, Velma. I bought and paid for.” With a quick glance at her watch, she added, “For the next five minutes anyway.”

  “Who’s Alligator Slim?” I asked.

  “Panama Jack’s number one goon. Keeps his eyes on all of us girls. Velma ain’t jokin’. I gotta git. Slim is bad news.”

  “Not yet. Madame K knows all about what’s been going on, and she doesn’t care. She loves you. We can go right now. Before Slim gets here.”

  “Your Rook man gonna help us get out of town?”

  Her words punched me in the stomach and I gasped. “How do you...?”

  “I’d know that silver streak anywhere.” She laughed. “Most kids get Goldie Locks and the Three Bears for a bedtime story. I got the Rook and the Keeper.”

  “She didn’t tell me much about the Keeper.”

  “You’re kiddin’.” She leaned her back against the truck door and grinned.

  “No, she just barely told me about the Rook...”

  “Huh. Bet you love him, don’t you?”

  I nodded.

  “Does he love you?”

  “Says he does.”

  “Never heard of the Rook falling in love, but they always tell the truth.” She shivered. “I must go. Tell Grams I love her, but it’s too late. I can’t go home.”

  I grabbed her hand before she opened the door. “It’s never too late. Just answer one more question,” I said. “Tell the truth. Don’t you miss her?”

  For an instant, just a brief second, her hard core demeanor slipped and a shy, naïve Angelina sat before me. Tears streamed down her smooth cheeks.

  “Yeah, more than you know. It wasn’t as bad there as I thought. But...” The mask fell back into place. “It ain’t gonna’ happen. Panama Jack will come looking for us before we get a mile out of town, probably kill you, and God only knows what he’ll do to me.” Frightened eyes darted back and forth. “He’s probably spying on us right now. If I wuz you, I’d be calling your dark winged boyfriend for help.”

  “I can’t.”

  “Why?”

  It was my turn to slump against the truck door. “We had an argument.”

  “You’re pissed off at the Rook? What he do?”

  Tears stung my eyes, and I turned from her. The stale thick air in the small truck cab closed in and threatened to smother me. Muggy and warm, the night wind smelled like dirt and sewage when I rolled my window down. Which was worse? Stagnant air or putrid?

  “It was
n’t him. It was me. I got mad because he won’t stay with me.”

  A loud snort bounced off the dash. “He can’t.”

  She pushed the tissue box over to me then leaned back in the seat and propped her boots up on the dashboard. “You got any gum?”

  I shook my head.

  “Chocolate?”

  “I don’t understand.” I said and scrounged in my purse looking for candy.

  “You weren’t fooling when you said Grams didn’t tell you much, were you?”

  I shrugged.

  “The Rook hangs out in a dimension that vibrates at a higher frequency than ours. When he steps down into our time, his whole being slows down. It’s like walking in molasses for him here. He runs the risk of not being able to speed up enough to get back to his time if he stays too long. The longer he remains the more dangerous it is.”

  “I’m like kryptonite to him, aren’t I?

  She snorted. “Not that bad.”

  “I didn’t realize.”

  “Yeah. And then, of course, there’s that other thing.”

  Still rummaging around in my bag, I glanced up at her. “What other thing?”

  “His whole purpose for being.”

  “Which is?” I prompted.

  “The Sentinels were created to protect life. They can shift into any life form—human, alien, animal, reptile, fairies, elves—anything that breathes. But they’re not compassionate beings. They’re cold. No feelings. If need be, they’ll kill many to save the one.”

  “Here.” I handed her a half eaten bag of M&M’s. “What’s that got to do with him running off all the time?”

  “Protecting life is more than a job or destiny. It’s a God-given command. He can’t ignore that commandment even if he wanted. I mean it would be like praying to Jesus and he say, ‘Don’t bother me, I’m on a date.’ Understand?”

  Her street smart way of explaining things hit home. I didn’t realize what a sacrifice Roark was making to be with me. Made me love him all the more. Also made guilt gnaw away at my gut.

  She grinned, pieces of red-and-yellow-hard-candy-shell between her teeth. “Sounds like your Rook’s a rebel. Bet he drives the Keeper crazy. He’s probably broken a fistful of rules spending as much time with you as he does.”

  “I’m torturing him when I beg him to stay, aren’t I?”

  “Yeah.” Her voice lowered. “And if you love him like you say, you won’t demand it anymore. Besides, if he has to choose between you and the universe, it’ll be no contest. Universe wins every time.”

  “Angie! Watch out!” A loud yell rang out from the alley.

  Velma’s warning came too late.

  A huge hand attached to an arm bigger than a telephone pole reached through the window and grabbed Angelina by the collar.

  “Get your ass outta that truck and start earnin’ your keep!”

  “Slim, she paid me!” Angelina whined. She reached down her shirt and pulled out the twenty dollar bill. “See?”

  Not loosening his hold, Alligator Slim snatched the bill out of her hand and jerked harder. “I said, now!” He turned his fury on Velma. “What you lookin’ at gal’? Git!”

  Velma didn’t need to be told twice. She lit out like a scalded dog.

  Afraid he was going to pull Angelina’s thin body through the window I leaped out of the truck and hurried around to the passenger side. His huge size stopped me cold. Dressed like a storefront cowboy complete with silver belt buckle and alligator hide boots, Slim was bigger than a gorilla and just as stinky. His name should’ve been Baboon Bob.

  “Get your hands off her!” I yelled and kicked him in the leg which was about as effective as spitting into a hurricane.

  He let go of Angelina and whirled on me. Thick monkey lips curled in a nasty sneer. “And just who might you be?”

  “Slim, don’t hurt her.” Angelina said and struggled out of the truck. “She’s my cousin. Just come to check on me, that’s all. She means no harm.”

  “Don’t fuck with me Angie! You and her were making plans to sneak off.”

  He grabbed me up by the front of my shirt and shook me like a ragdoll. “Ain’t that right, bitch?

  My brain rattled around in my head like dice on a crap table. If I didn’t get loose quick, he was going to break my neck.

  It’s funny how a person’s mind works when faced with danger. Some faint. Others cry. Many run. I was one of the latter. I’d run from confrontation all of my life rather than face it—never stood up to Walt, blamed myself for a failed marriage and for everything that went wrong in my life. Always the victim.

  But this time, for some reason, fear gave way to a white-hot all consuming need to save Angelina.

  I spit in his face.

  Shocked, he dropped me to the pavement. Half crawling, half running, I gained my feet and grabbed Angelina’s arm. “Run!”

  “Take one more step and I’ll blow your head off, bitch!”

  Even looking into the barrel of pistol didn’t scare me as much as it should have. But Angelina trembled against me so hard I stopped in my tracks. “He’ll kill you, Raven. Just let me go. I’m not worth saving.”

  “All life is worth saving.”

  The words came out of my mouth before I even knew I’d said them. What was going on inside of me? My heart fluttered, and I remembered Roark’s hand on my chest. It was his courage and purpose that burned in my heart.

  I stepped in front of Angelina and glared at Slim. “You won’t shoot. What if you hit Angelina? Bet Panama Jack wouldn’t like that.”

  The metallic click of the hammer being pulled back bounced off brick and pavement. My stomach lurched at the sound. Unlike Roark, I wasn’t immortal. There was no doubt Slim would shoot, and I was sure he’d hit whatever he aimed at, which was me.

  A jolt of panic ripped through me. Sweat trickled down the side of my face. Roark was right. I never should’ve come here alone.

  How the hell was I going to get out of this mess?

  A roaring sound louder than a flying freight train split the sky. Brilliant light burned my eyes and illuminated the street. A fiery figure, taller than the two story ratty apartment buildings standing behind us, swooped between me and Slim.

  Angelina gasped.

  The baboon with alligator boots peed his pants.

  Mammoth wings threw flames of orange and red into the scorched sky and spread a blazing shield in front of Angelina and me. Golden light surrounded the massive body. The Rook’s face loomed sinister and malevolent.

  Slim fired, point blank.

  Not one bullet touched us.

  Eyes the color of blood pierced the dazzling light and fixed on Slim’s pasty face.

  Lightning crackled.

  Slim disappeared.

  Angelina fainted.

  Radiant light faded.

  Silence fell like a stone.

  Time stood still.

  Roark stood in front of me. “Are you all right?” he asked and opened his arms to me.

  I flew into his embrace, blubbering like a baby. He crushed me to his heart. “I’m so sorry,” I sobbed into his chest. “I know. It was stupid. I never should’ve—

  “Shh,” he said, his voice warm and gentle. “An act of compassion is never foolish.” His arms tightened. “I knew you would come here regardless of my warning. Your heart beats with too much caring to turn your back on a child in need of help.”

  He lowered his gaze and his voice. “Did you doubt that I would be with you? You are never alone, Raven. I am always near. I would never let harm come to you.”

  Afraid of the answer, I asked, “What happened to Slim? Is he...dead?”

  “No. Relocated. He will not harm anyone again.”

  Relocated? Where? In galaxy far, far away? I didn’t ask.

  “You must go now. No one will follow you.”

  “Oh my, God. Angelina!”

  I broke from his hold and ran to her. He knelt beside me and placed his hand on her cheek. “Not to worry. She is
safe.”

  In one easy move, he gathered her into his arms and placed her on the truck seat. Again, his hand brushed her cheek. “She will not wake until you reach home.”

  I studied his serious expression. “Can you take the addiction away?”

  Sadness clouded his rugged features, and he shook his head. “I cannot. Take her to Madame Katanga. She knows many things and will be able to draw the poison from her body.”

  Shocked, I gawked at him. “You never told me you knew Madame K.”

  “All Sentinels know Madame Katanga.”

  “How?”

  “Let’s just say, she’s a close friend of the Keeper’s.” He winked then sorrow returned to his face. “Raven, it is time. I must—”

  “Go. I know.” It took more courage for me to gaze into his eyes and pretend my heart wasn’t kicking and screaming than it had to spit in Alligator Slim’s face.

  “It’s okay. I didn’t understand before. I do now.”

  Relief replaced his look of concern, and I couldn’t resist the urge to touch his handsome face. My voice came soft. “You are the Rook. The Protector. I’ve caused you so much pain asking you to be someone you are not. It was selfish of me. Besides, if you were anything different, you wouldn’t be the man I fell in love with.”

  Quick and commanding he pulled me to him.

  My breath caught.

  His eyes gleamed like glassy volcanic rock and held me captive in their stare. “It is I who is the self-centered one. I tied you to me many years before out of loneliness and desire refusing to acknowledge how the bond would make you suffer so.”

  Love flooded my heart and brought the sting of tears to my eyes. Struggling to keep my voice calm, I took his hand in mine. “I would rather steal brief moments in time to be with you than spend an eternity without you. Perhaps that day at the beach was predestined, but for love not death. Our souls instinctively knew what our minds did not, that from the very beginning fate determined we be together.”

  Tears broke and crawled silently down my check. His hand trembled when he wiped them away, causing more to fall. I fought for air. “What does ‘love’ know or even care about dimensions or time? If I’m mortal and you are not? Love answers only to itself and refuses to be ignored or denied. Who are we to fight against a power greater than the both of us?”