Nick of Time

by Julianne Q Johnson

  "Daphne?"

  A flash of movement and she's in my arms, kissing me like her life depended on it. It's a short kiss, but no less devastating for being so.

  "Are you all right? Nicky, are you okay?"

  "I'm fine. Honey, I'm fine."

  There are tears in her eyes, but Daphne is no delicate flower. She shakes them off and gives me a tight hug. She might look like a pixie, but she's tough. Tinker bell tough.

  "I was very worried."

  "I know. Me too. But I'm fine, promise."

  "What should we do now? Call the police?"

  "Yes. He's their problem now. Go out on the porch and call 911."

  "I want to stay here with you."

  "Please go wait on the porch. I'll feel better if you aren't right next to Douche here." I gesture at the weakly moving form crumpled at our feet. "I'll keep an eye on him. Believe me, I'm not going to let him go anywhere."

  She releases me with reluctance and then leans up to give me another short kiss. Doing as I asked, she heads for the front porch, already pulling her cell phone out of her back pocket. She leaves the front door of the house wide open. I don't think she likes leaving me alone with Adam.

  Adam continues to lie on the floor. The movement has all but stopped, and now he's whimpering a little bit.

  Good.

  Satisfied he isn't going to spring up and dance the lambada anytime soon, I walk over to the sectional and crouch down. Pulling out my trusty if old-fashioned handkerchief, I use it to retrieve the pistol. It takes me little time to unload the thing. I've had to do it more times than I can remember. I stick the bullets in my pocket and set the pistol on a seat of the sectional.

  There's nothing left to do but wait. I'd tie the guy up if I thought this empty house had anything to tie him up with. Douche whimpers now and then, but he doesn't seem inclined to give me any more trouble.

  I stand over him and watch him anyway. If there's one thing my crazy life has taught me, one truly is better safe than sorry.

  Sirens approach and stop in front of the house. The cavalry has arrived.

  "This the guy who threatened you with a gun?" a tall policeman looks from Adam, to me, to the gun lying on the sectional.

  "Yes. His name is Adam Kripke. The Indy police department told us he has a warrant out.

  "I'll check it out." The policeman leaned down to place handcuffs on Adam, which made him moan again. "Looks like you've made it easy for me."

  "He threatened me and my girl with a gun. Acted crazy. I thought it was better to get the gun away from him. Oh, here's the bullets. I used a handkerchief, so I don't think I messed up any prints when I unloaded it."

  "I'll take those," a second policeman with blond hair entered the room. "And I'll get the gun into an evidence bag."

  Two more policemen arrived and the empty house became a busy place for around thirty minutes. Daphne and I both gave statements.

  "And you don't know how he got in the place?" Blond policeman asked me.

  "No. But I haven't had time to check. All I can tell you is the front door was locked when we got home."

  "Basement." Tall cop returns to the living room after a short tour of the house to make certain none of Adam's friends had come along for the ride. "There's a window busted down there, glass all over the place."

  Adam is escorted out to a waiting police car. The gun and bullets are tucked away. One by one, the policemen wish us a good night and take their leave.

  "Can we go home now?" Daphne flops onto the sectional. Her head lolls back and she closes her eyes.

  "No, not yet. We can't leave before I talk to Quan about the busted window."

  "You're right. As much as I want to get out of this house, we can't leave it unsecured."

  A quick call to Quan to tell him what's happened, and then a return call to let us know Quan's uncle is on his way. Daphne and I sit on the sectional cuddled together until Mr. Nguyen arrives.

  "You okay?" a worried Vietnamese man asks us when he arrives. He has an accent, but speaks enough English for us to get by.

  "We're fine, thank you. I'm just sorry your window got broken."

  "Not worry. Not worry. Window I fix. People harder to fix."

  I show him the window and ask if he needs any help, but he waves us away and tells us again not to worry. He's a nice old guy, and both Daphne and I thank him profusely before we leave. He seems embarrassed about the fuss.

  The drive to Speedway is a blur, I'm that tired. It's a relief when we make it to the hallway outside our apartments. It's not until that exact moment I realize Daphne need not stay with me any longer. She's free of the Adam threat, and I have no reason to suggest she remain with me.

  We stand awkwardly in the hall for a bit, saying little and shifting from foot to foot. Then we say goodnight, and she's gone, disappearing through her front door.

  Tired as I am, it takes me far too long to fall sleep.

  Fifteen

  "Da, tell me the rest. You didn't get to finish last night."

  "All right, lass, but only because you were good and went to sleep when your mum told you too. Where did we stop last night?"

  "The room! The room!"

  "Aye, that's right. I had fallen off the fence, hit my head, and I was out like a light. Then I had the oddest dream anyone's ever been having. I dreamed I woke up in a great room. The ceiling was a dome far above my wee head. I saw no lights or lamps anywhere, yet the room was as bright as day. On the walls were hung fancy tapestries with fantastical beasts pictured in some of them. On one was a rampant unicorn. Another had a dragon breathing fire. The floor of this great room was made of stone polished so well it gleamed. Around me were several long tables, so long twenty people could sit on one side, and each table was laden with food the likes of which I've never seen."

  "What kind of food, Da?"

  "I don't rightly know, lass. There were roasted haunches of meat, to be sure. There were breads baked into funny shapes and food with such bright colors it didn't look real."

  "And there were people there. A great crowd of people."

  "Now, exactly who is telling this tale?"

  "You are, Da."

  "And there was a great crowd of people standing over me. Tall, slender people, with bright eyes and fierce expressions."

  "And tell me what they said to you, Da."

  "Lass, I'll tell you, if you stop interrupting me. Mum's right. You are feeling much better this morning."

  There's a noise. Tired. What is that? It should stop. It's not stopping. Damn it.

  Bleary eyed, I struggle out of bed and grab a pair of sweatpants out of the laundry basket. I feel like crap. Too much adrenaline last night and not enough sleep to deal with it due to hellish insomnia last night. I know better than to try to sleep right after some crazy event has got me all hopped up, but I had felt so tired when I got into bed.

  When I open the door, there's Daphne, holding a brown paper bag and two takeout coffee cups in one of those bumpily cardboardy drink trays. I feel better already, and I don't know if it's because of the impending caffeine fix or because it's good to see my pixie again. We'd only been thrown into each other's company a few days, but it had felt weird to say goodbye last night and go our separate ways.

  "Oh, I'm sorry. I woke you up." Daphne's smile fades and she looks worried. "Should I come back later?"

  "No." I realize my hair must look like its usual mad scientist impression and hurriedly try to smooth it down with my hands. "Come in...come in. Make yourself at home. I just need a minute to...I don't know...find my brain or something."

  She giggles at me and heads to the kitchen table with the food. I hightail it into the bathroom to comb my mop top and brush my teeth. A short detour to the bedroom to put on some actual clothes, and I am as ready as I'm going to be.

  "Bagels!" I join Daphne at the table and gratefully grab a cup of coffee. I need the caffeine. "I love bagels."

  "Good. There's two different kinds of cream cheese too.
The one with the bits in it is vegetable herb."

  "Sounds awesome."

  We're quiet for a while, busy with the business of eating. It's a nice quiet. Comfy. Companionable. I could get used to this.

  "Okay...so...I was thinking." Daphne takes a moment to eat the last bit of her blueberry bagel. "Now Adam is back behind bars where he belongs, I think it's time we go to see your grandmother."

  "What? Today?"

  "Yeah. I mean, if we can. Do you think she's busy today?"

  "Well, it's Wednesday. She's got Euchre club tonight, but it isn't until after dinner. I'll give her a call."

  The call doesn't take long. Gran obviously approves of Daphne, because the moment I tell her we want to visit, she suggests we come in the afternoon and stay for dinner. Grandma Fiona is a great cook.

  We spend the rest of the morning sitting on the sofa with the television on, though we don't pay much attention to it. Later, I won't remember exactly what we talked about. I will remember with crystal clarity the way I felt that morning. Content, expectant, at home. My apartment never felt much like a home until Daphne came into my life.

  It's another lovely summer day, but I miss the breeze. Now, it's just hot and humid, typical Indiana weather. The car is air-conditioned, and the drive to my grandparents' house should only take about twenty minutes.

  "Why are you going so slow? The speed limit's fifty-five."

  A glance at the speedometer shows me Daphne's correct. For some reason, I've slowed to forty-five. Strange. I usually have to watch myself to keep my speed down. I've got something of a lead foot.

  "Don't know. I'll fix it." I merge into the right lane and build my speed up to just over the speed limit.

  "You're doing it again."

  Now I know something is not at all right with this bright hot day. Ahead, I see two cars pulled to the side of the road. A large man is standing next to the driver's side door of the front vehicle and waving his hands. Without even thinking about it, I pull off and stop my car on the shoulder behind the other two.

  "Nicky, what's going on?"

  "I don't know, but I think I should find out. Wait in the car, please. Lock the doors."

  "Please, be careful."

  "I will. Promise."

  The moment I get out of the car and head for the man waving his arms, he takes one look at me, dashes to his own car and drives off, making cars squeal their brakes as they avoid crashing into him. There was definitely something going on. I see the remaining car has a flat tire, and as I walk up to the driver's side, I note the girl driving it is very young. Possibly just turned sixteen. She's crying. Whoever the man was, he must have been a creep. How is it that every man I know is a good guy, but I keep running into so many creeps lately? I think the curse gives me a skewed view of humanity.

  Turning back to my own car, I wave Daphne to come join me. This girl will feel safer if there's another woman present. When Daphne is standing next to me, the girl smiles at her in relief.

  Rolling down the window a few inches, she speaks to us, her tears are drying but she sounds frightened. "Thank you for stopping."

  "No problem." I keep my voice calm and resist the urge to bend down to talk to her. She doesn't need me looming over her. "Are you all right?"

  "I'm fine. Thanks. It's just a flat tire, and I've already called roadside assistance. But the man was trying to get me out of the car. He kept saying he'd give me a ride. I locked the door and wouldn't talk to him, but he wouldn't leave."

  "You did the right thing." Daphne does lean down to speak, and the girl seems comforted. "That guy was obviously trouble. Don't worry, we'll stay until you get back on the road."

  "Oh, thank you so much."

  By the time the tow truck arrives, we are all three sitting on the grass by the shoulder, and Millie is telling us all about her high school drama club. The fear is gone, and she's back to her happy teenage self. Once the tire is replaced by the spare and Millie is ready to roll, we wish her well on her small role in Oklahoma, and go back to our car.

  "How did you know?" Daphne asks as I carefully pull out into traffic.

  "I don't know how I know. I guess after enough practice, I just know how to read the signs."

  "You're a wonderful man, you know."

  "Awww...shucks. You'll make me blush."

  I try to laugh it off, but I fear I might actually be blushing a little. I'm used to helping people. Having people thank me is also common. This amount of praise from someone I know is not something I'm used to.

  The rest of our trip is thankfully uneventful, and we pull into my grandparents' driveway in their quiet neighborhood near Eagle Creek Park. I love this house. It's a two-story farmhouse, a holdout from when the city was much smaller than it is now. It used to be white painted wood, but they recently had powder blue siding and new white gutters installed. It looks like a brand new house, and they are pleased as punch with the work.

  Grandpa Dylan greets us at the door with a big smile and a kiss on the cheek for Daphne. Oh, yes, the grandparents like her. They've been after me to get a girlfriend for a year now, but I was so burned by my last experience on that court I was considering hanging up my racket for good.

  The truth is that I like her too. I'm simply not certain how much she cares for me. Sure, there've been some kisses. Mostly in the aftermath of some sort of emergency, so, I'm not convinced those kisses are a sure sign of attachment. I guess I'll have to wait and see. It seems passive, I know, but I don't actively woo women anymore. I've found it's best to give them time to see if they can deal with the heart-pounding insanity that is my life.

  Grandpa Dylan shoos us into the kitchen where Gran is cooking and then he heads out to the back patio where he's finishing off a brisket in the smoker. Fiona sits us at the kitchen table with a cup of tea so we can keep her company while she continues shaping the dough for a loaf of soda bread.

  "It was a nice surprise to hear you were coming for an impromptu visit." Gran flips the dough over and begins to fold it. "What's the occasion?"

  For a few seconds, I'm at a loss for words, but Daphne makes emphatic gestures with her hands and eyes for me to jump in and spit it out.

  "Gran, do you know anything about why my life is the way it is? You know, the curse?"

  The hands shaping the dough freeze for a long moment.

  "You know something, don't you?" Daphne asks softly. "Please tell us, Mrs. Malley."

  "Call me Fiona, dear."

  "All right, Fiona. Would you please talk to Nick? He's worn out from all of this. And he's getting discouraged. We had to stop on the way here to help a girl. It's every day and it never stops."

  "Every day?" Fiona stops even pretending to work and turns towards us. "Nicky, is it true?"

  "Honestly, I'm lucky these days if it's only once a day. I don't get days off, not even if I try to hide in my apartment. Something always happens."

  "Why didn't you tell me?"

  "What's to tell? The entire family knows about my curse. It's no big deal. Why talk about it?"

  "Oh, Nicky, I had no idea. Let me get this bread in the oven, and then I think it's high time we had a talk."

  I wait until the loaf is baking and Gran has poured herself a cup of tea before I speak. "You know how I got cursed? Why haven't you told me?"

  "It's not a curse, it's a debt." Fiona has her hands wrapped around her mug of tea and she stares into it as she speaks.

  "What do you mean it's a debt? I don't see how I can owe anyone something which would cause these bizarre coincidences that are ruining my life."

  "It isn't your debt, it's your great-grandfather's...my father, Ronan Brennon."

  "How can Nick owe a debt because of somebody else?" Daphne didn't look puzzled so much as pissed off. "It isn't fair at all."

  "The folk who did this aren't known for their sense of fairness." Fiona took a sip of her tea and looked up for the first time since she'd sat down. "I'm getting ahead of myself. My Da told me a story when I was a
young lass. It was my favorite story, I have no idea why. It certainly wasn't very nice, but I would beg him to tell it to me. You have to understand, Nicky, I always thought it was nothing but a tall tale...or maybe a dream. Until you turned eighteen…then I knew."

  My grandmother told us a tale of a man who died before I was born. A man who, when he was a boy, tried to help his friend when they were running from a bull. He failed and fell in a moment of clumsiness. It was the same tale she had told Daphne in the car, and one I had heard many times, but this time she finished it. Knocked unconscious, my great-grandfather dreamed of a room under a hill.

  "Ronan was surrounded by people. They were tall and thin, with fierce bright eyes and long-fingered hands. They were angry and argued over what to do with him. His injured friend was cherished by these people because he was such a beautiful boy and they were furious your great-grandfather failed to help him."

  "It was an accident." Daphne sounded astonished. "How could they blame a little boy for an accident?"

  "As I mentioned before, these are not a fair people, not where humans are concerned at least. They are capricious and unpredictable with humans. Dangerous. Not to be trusted."

  "What do you mean humans can't trust them?" I was having trouble processing all of this. "Who are these people?"

  "They are the Daoine Sidhe."

  "The Dina sheep?" Now I was really confused.

  " DEE-nih SHEE," my Gran patiently corrected me. "In Irish Folklore, the Daoine Sidhe are the most powerful of the fairy folk. They live underground in hills and rarely have anything to do with humans, which is good because they are so mercurial. It is said they may bestow fantastical gifts for the smallest favor and horrendous punishment for the tiniest slight."

  "So, they punished your father for not saving his friend?" Daphne stood to fetch the teapot and pour us all another cup. "But why is Nick affected by that?"

  "My Da told me the fair folk argued for a long time about what to do with him. Some wanted him to save others until the debt was paid. Others said he was too stupid and too clumsy to pay the debt. It was ultimately decided the debt would wait until my Da had his first male descendant, and it would begin on this child's eighteenth birthday."