The Fringe Dwellers

by Patrick K. Ball

  “Ed Nanreit, mam.”

  A look of recognition flashed across her face. “You’re that boy who done gone off and became a reporter for some big-city paper. I know exactly who you are. Let me give you some advice, ‘cause you seem like a nice young man, let the dead stay buried. You don’t want to go diggin’ around stuff that don’t concern you.”

  “Thank you for your concern, but if it’s all the same to you, I’d like to see the files relating to the investigation of that death,” Ed said, trying his best to be pleasant, but forceful.

  It didn’t work. Shannon immediately got defensive. “We don’t allow no reporters to go snoopin’ around our files. Now, if-”

  “With all due respect, mam, the Florida Sunshine Laws as well as the Federal Freedom of Information Act says that I’ve got a right to look at those files. If necessary, I can have my paper serve your department with an injunction requiring you to release the information, but I’d rather just have your cooperation.” Ed wasn’t really sure about what he was entitled to under the law, but he guessed that a small town police department would rather not go toe to toe with a national tabloid newspaper.

  His bluff worked. “Fine. You want the records, you got ‘em. But I ain’t gonna help you find what you’re lookin’ for. We’ve got a file room back in the tombs where all the old case files are stored. You have to fill out a request form to git access which needs to be approved twenty-four hours in advance. The hours for the tombs are from eleven to three o’clock, Monday through Friday. You fill out this form and leave it here with me,” she said as she handed him a form.

  Ed scanned the form. It required name, address, phone number and social security number in the first section. The second section had four lines to write a description of the material you were searching for. That was it. Ed had the form filled out in a couple of minutes.

  “Here you go, Shannon,” Ed said as he handed her the form.

  “Since we’ve gotten all legal-like, I’d appreciate you calling me, Officer Moore, thank you,” she said curtly. So much for the informalities. “You can come back by tomorrow afternoon to go through the tombs. Have a nice day now,” she said, although it didn’t sound like she meant it.

  Ed looked at his watch as he walked out of the police station. It was after four. He still had almost three hours before his date with Torrie. He decided to go back to his hotel room and email an update to the Chief about the potential connection between Gibsonton and Edge Key.

  Page one, here I come. Ed was almost skipping back to his car.

  Ed never got a chance to email his boss.

  “Hello,” Ed said as he answered his cell phone while driving back to the hotel.

  “Hi, Ed. Morley, here,” said the voice on the other end. “I got the story you sent me. Good stuff, but I hope you’ve got some more. Anyway, don’t worry about that for now. I wasn’t calling about that. I just wanted to find out what the situation is with your uncle. Is he okay?”

  “Thanks for asking, Chief. They’re running all sorts of tests on him right now. The doctors don’t seem to know much right now,” Ed said, purposefully leaving out the part about Uncle Kane looking fine.

  Ed wanted an excuse to stay in town for at least a couple of more days. Sure, the possible connection between the Gibsonton body and the Edge Key body might give him that freedom, but he didn’t want to take any chances. He had a date tonight, and who knows what after that. He wanted to play out this hand without worrying about anything else.

  “Well, I wish him the best. I mean that,” Morley said. “Now don’t take this the wrong way—take as long as you need there—but do you have any idea of when you’ll be finished there?”

  Take as long as I need. Yeah, sure you mean that. A couple of days ago, my job was hanging by a thread.

  “I’m not sure yet,” Ed said into the phone. “With these tests they’re running . . . you know how that . . . I’m just not a doctor, so-”

  “Ed! I told you, take as long as you need. I was just really impressed with what you’d sent me. It left me wanting more and I was hoping there would be a follow-up . . . or an expanded article . . . something like that.”

  “Actually, Chief, there is more; I do have more. Lots more. I think this story is much bigger than what happened in Gibsonton. You’re not gonna believe this, but I’m pretty sure I found a link to another death right here in Edge Key with the same M.O., and there’s a possibility of links to similar deaths all-o-ver-the-coun-try!” Ed said and paused to let what he’d said sink in with his editor.

  There was silence on the other end for several seconds, then Morley said, “You’re shittin’ me, right? Tell me you’re not shittin’ me. If you’re . . . I want . . . You are . . .”

  The Chief was flustered. That was good. Ed had his boss impressed. “I haven’t been spending all my time here at the hospital, Chief. Always working. I’m following up on a lead here tomorrow and I’ve got some feelers out around the country for some other connections. Even if none of it pans out, I’ve got the makings for a great article. Keep a space open for me on page one. You won’t be disappointed. I mean it.”

  “Can you at least throw me a bone, Ed? You’re kinda vague. I have faith in you, of course, but . . .”

  “Okay. What would you say if you had evidence that some kind of preternatural force or monster has been traveling across the country, impersonating a human and sucking the life-force out of hundreds of drifters for over thirty years?”

  “I’d say I’ve got myself a page one story that will out-sell The Enquirer. I won’t ask you any more—for now. Keep up the good work and keep me apprised. We’ve got about two days or so to make next week’s issue, but don’t rush it. If need be, we’ll run a teaser in next week’s issue with a follow-up blockbuster lead story in the following week’s issue. I’m excited, Ed. There was a reason I never lost faith in you: I knew you had it in you,” he said and hung up.

  Ed felt good. His job seemed safe again. Now the only thing he had to worry about was his date with Torrie. That scared the hell out of him.

  CHAPTER 11

  “The greatest obstacle to love is fear. It has been the source of all defects in human behavior throughout the ages.”

  —Mohmoud Mohammed Taha

  “To fear love is to fear life, and those who fear life are already three parts dead.”

  —Bertrand Russell

  “Oh no! What am I gonna wear?” Ed said to Shepard Smith, who was reporting on the Fox News Channel about the latest developments in the Iraqi reconstruction effort.

  Ed had only packed a couple of day’s worth of clothes in his overnight bag when he left his house. He didn’t expect to be gone this long and he certainly didn’t expect to be going out on a date. A date with the girl of his dreams, at that.

  Ed remembered that there used to be a local mom and pop clothing store on Goldust Avenue and HBK Street—H-B-K were the initials of Edge Key’s founder, but Ed couldn’t remember what they stood for.

  What the heck was his name? Ed wondered, thinking it was important to remember for some reason. That’s going to drive me crazy. Ah, just forget it. It’s probably not important anyway.

  Ed had plenty of time before his date to grab a pair of jeans and an oxford, assuming the store was still there. Ed slipped his shoes on and was out the door of his hotel room a minute later.

  What’s going on here? Ed wondered as he drove down Goldust towards HBK.

  There was some kind of commotion about a block away from where the clothing store used to be. A police car, a paramedic unit and about ten people were gathered in front of Goldberg Furniture. Ed slowly passed the scene and tried to get a view of what was happening. No luck. He couldn’t tell what was going on, but he didn’t have time to investigate; he needed to find some clothes. His luck held here. The Gator’s Lair clothing store was in the same place where it had been twenty-three years ago, right next to Seminole Uprising, the local book store that looked like it had expanded its inven
tory since Ed’s tenure on the island to include CD’s and DVD’s.

  The respective owners of the two stores were brothers, but had attended rival schools—University of Florida and Florida State University. Upon their return to Edge Key, each brother started a business named after his university’s mascot. The locals jokingly referred to the corner of Goldust and HBK as “family feud corner,” even though the brothers remained close, the best of friends—except during football season.

  Ed parked in a spot right in front of The Gator’s Lair. Gotta love a small town. It only took him about ten minutes to pick out and pay for his evening wardrobe. When he walked out of the clothing store, Ed noticed that there were still a few people milling around the scene of the earlier excitement, although the paramedic unit was gone. He had time to investigate now. Ed walked down the block towards the crowd, his purchases still in hand.

  “What’s going on?” Ed asked the first gawker he saw, a teenage girl with multi-colored hair and a pierced nose. A large, ornate, silver cross hung around her neck and she was dressed from top to bottom in black.

  “Some chick was just, like, freakin’ out,” she said, sounding like she had a mouth full of marbles.

  “Is she still here?” Ed asked.

  “Naw. The paramedics took her to the nut house,” she said. Ed noticed when she spoke this time that her tongue was also pierced; that was the source of the marbles in her mouth.

  “What exactly was she doing?”

  “She was acting all crazy and stuff, like something was tryin’ to kill her or something.”

  “See that lady over there talking to the police, the one with the Chihuahua?” another gawker—a normal looking middle-aged man this time—said to Ed. Ed followed where he was pointing and nodded. “The woman they took away was terrified of her dog. She started yelling, crying and screaming until she just collapsed on the sidewalk, curled up in a ball and rocking back and forth. No one knew what to do, so I called 911. She either couldn’t or wouldn’t talk, so the medics took her over to the psych-ward at Ivory Rock. It was all very strange.”

  “Bizarre,” Ed agreed. “Thanks for the info,” he said and walked back to his car. It was interesting, but not that interesting. He had a hot date to get ready for.

  Ed was ready for his date by six o’clock—a full hour before he was supposed to pick Torrie up. He had nothing else to do, so he decided to call and check on Uncle Kane.

  “Ivory Rock Clinic,” the receptionist answered.

  “Could you connect me with Kane Nanreit’s room, please. He’s a patient there,” Ed said.

  Ed heard fingers tapping on a keyboard followed by, “Please hold.”

  Ed heard a click, followed by the Muzak version of, Stairway to Heaven, by Led Zeppelin. John Bonham must be rolling over in his grave, Ed thought.

  “I’m sorry, but there’s no answer on that line,” the receptionist said when she came back.

  “Um, he’s okay, isn’t he? He hasn’t been released or anything, has he?” Ed said.

  Hearing the concern in his voice, the receptionist said, “Give me a second, and I’ll call down to the nurse’s station to have someone look in on him for you.”

  “Thanks,” Ed said as the Muzak popped back into his ear.

  It seemed like an eternity before the receptionist came back on the line. “The nurse said he’s still there and he’s doing just fine. He’s sleeping. Is there anything else I can do for you?”

  “No . . . oh wait, yes. What’s his room number?”

  Tap, tap tap, “It’s three sixteen, sir. Anything else?”

  Three sixteen! Ed almost dropped the phone. “D-Did you say, three sixteen?!”

  “Yes, sir. Is there a problem?”

  “Ah, no. No problem, I just wanted to make sure I wrote it down properly. Thank you very much,” Ed said and hung up the phone. There was no need to write that number down. It was already burned into his brain.

  It’s just a coincidence, Ed tried to reassure himself.

  Fifty-five minutes to go. Ed tried to pass the rest of the time by flicking through the channels, but he was so nervous that he couldn’t focus on anything. Ed hadn’t been this nervous on his first date when he was a teenager. He’d dated plenty of women since then. This was ridiculous. He finally couldn’t take it anymore and he left for Torrie’s house a lot earlier than necessary.

  Maybe she’ll be ready early, Ed tried to convince himself as he started up his Saturn and began driving over to her house.

  Although he’d never been to Torrie’s, he at least knew the location of the street she lived on from the address she’d given him. The island wasn’t that big and he remembered exactly how to get there. Now it was just a matter of reading the house numbers and finding the right one. Ed found the house number corresponding to the one written on the back of Torrie’s business card. It was a medium sized, light blue, Florida Keys style house that was fairly common in southern Florida, especially on the islands. Only one thing of interest to Ed stood out about Torrie’s house. It didn’t look like anyone was home.

  He was still twenty minutes early, so he decided to drive around for awhile. When he came back fifteen minutes later, it still didn’t look like anyone was home. Ed decided to try the door anyway. At least now he was only a couple of minutes early and didn’t look too eager.

  No answer. Visions from several movies passed before his eyes. The ones where some poor, misfit girl is in a prom dress crying her eyes out after learning she’d just been stood up by the captain of the football team and ditched for the cheerleading captain. At least a limo wasn’t passing by with someone throwing eggs at him from the sunroof. Ed went back to his car feeling dejected.

  Maybe she’s just running late, Ed tried to console himself. He waited around in his car for about fifteen minutes clinging to that theory, but he was beginning to feel more and more like he was wearing a big, poofy, prom dress. Ed was just about to give up and return to his hotel when he saw a car screaming down the street towards him. It pulled in right behind him.

  Torrie jumped out of the car as Ed was getting out of his. “I’m so glad you’re still here,” Torrie said as she rushed up to him and gave him a big hug—and a kiss on the cheek. “I got hung up at work. There was this . . . Oh, you wouldn’t believe . . . I-”

  “Relax, Torrie. Don’t worry about it. It’s okay,” Ed said, smiling and stroking her upper arms. She was here now. That’s all that mattered.

  “I must look a fright. I haven’t had time to change or get ready or even freshen up my makeup. This is just awful.”

  “You look beautiful, but if you want, I can come back in a little while, after you’ve had a chance to relax and get changed.”

  “No, that’s not necessary. Come on in. I’ll open a bottle of wine and you can have a drink and relax downstairs while I freshen up. I’ll be quick. Promise,” she said while crossing her heart and smiling.

  Who could resist that offer? Ed allowed himself to be led by the hand into her house and sat on the couch where she motioned while she walked into another room of the house. Ed looked around the living room while she was out of sight. It was a spacious room, tastefully decorated, but with a definite feminine touch to it. Ed noticed a picture of Torrie and her mom in the entertainment center to the left of the television that had probably been taken when Torrie was in high school. That was right before her mom got real sick, so it was probably one of the last pictures taken of them together.

  Another picture also caught his eye. It was a high school graduation picture. Torrie and Ed were wearing their caps and gowns with their arms around each other. They both had frozen laughs on their faces. Ed was holding a bottle of champagne in his hand and Torrie was leaning against him with her leg kicking off to the side. He remembered that day well. That’s the day he’d promised to call or write her all the time. He’d promised her they’d be friends forever. It’d been a happy day. Ed got off the couch, walked over to the picture and picked it up to get a better
look.

  “Remember that day?” Torrie said as she reappeared with a glass of Merlot for Ed.

  “Yeah, I do,” Ed said with a tinge of sadness in his voice.

  “I can’t believe we’re actually together again. You, here in my house. Never thought that would happen,” she said, handing him the glass of wine.

  “I should’ve kept in touch. Will you accept my apology?”

  “Only if you’re still here when I get back down from trying to make myself presentable,” she said and gave him another quick peck on the cheek. “I’ll be back in a jiffy.”

  Ed watched her bounce up the stairs. God, he was an idiot for not staying in contact with her. It just came to him. There’d been a hollow spot in his very soul since she’d been out of his life. That’s probably why he’d gone through most of his adult life feeling so apathetic about everything. Now that she was back in his life, he vowed to never let her go again, although, somewhere deep in his mind, he was scared that the promise wouldn’t be kept.

  WHAT SCARES YOU?!

  Ed choked on his wine when he heard the voice in his head. Get a hold of yourself, Ed. Problem was, he still heard something in his head. It sounded like scratching. It wasn’t the shower upstairs. He’d heard that stop a couple of minutes ago. As Ed listened to the intermittent scratching sound, he realized that the sound wasn’t in his head. It was coming from somewhere in the back of the house. Ed cautiously followed the sound to its source.

  Strange, scratching noises scare me, Ed said in answer to his mind’s previous question.

  Ed nervously passed through the kitchen until he found the source of the sound. He almost burst out laughing when he saw what had spooked him a moment ago. It was a Jack Russell Terrier scratching on the sliding glass doors, which led out to a deck in the backyard. There was a doggy-door built into the doorway, but the gizmo that could be slid down to keep the dog in the house had slipped halfway down, preventing the dog from entering the house. When the little dog saw Ed, it started wagging its tail, barking and jumping up on the glass. Ed pulled up the slide on the doggy-door and the little critter bounded through it instantly. Ed barely had a chance to fully stand up as the dog started bouncing up and down in front of him, barking loudly and occasionally using Ed’s stomach as a springboard to get more height.