A Girl Between

by Marjorie Weismantel

  I stroked each cat in turn. “What do you think these cats want from me?”

  Mrs. Petrov answered darkly, “They want you to understand their concern. They know what is coming. They will help in any way they can.”

  “I truly appreciate their offer, but honestly, what can they do?” I asked, as a feeling of despair swept over me. Suddenly, the three felines jumped up, stalking around my ankles and howling. What’s up with them? You’d think I slammed their tails in a door!

  Mercy laughed, shaking her head. “Tess, they’re upset because you’re dismissing them. Have you ever seen a cat in a fight? My cat, Prince William, almost killed a dog that was twice his size. The poor dog made the mistake of cutting across the corner of our property.”

  Mrs. Petrov nodded emphatically. “Tessie, my dear, cats are the only domesticated creatures that could survive in the wilds if they had to. It is because they are such fierce hunters and fighters. And these aren’t ordinary cats after all. They have the hearts and souls of witches.”

  “There’s something else. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it for myself,” Nadya said in quiet amazement. She went over to scratch Empress Stephania on the head before continuing, “It happened at our farm in New York about four weeks after Princess Hannah and Her Royal Highness were born. They were in one of the horse stalls in the barn. I was leading a horse back in when I heard a commotion near the cats. A wild boar was in there, circling them, about to attack. The momma cat was hissing and standing in front of her kitties, but she didn’t stand a chance. I was running around looking for a pitchfork when I head this insane shriek.

  “I turned to see a flying ball of fur and claws attacking the boar. I presumed it was the momma cat until I turned to the cats and realized that the momma cat was still there. Then, I watched Princess Hannah’s metamorphosis. She arched her back in an attack mode, stretched out her claws and hissed. Her claws actually GREW. They didn’t just stretch out, they grew about an inch. And her teeth grew! I remember thinking that she looked like vampire cat. Her scream was terrifying before she flew onto the pig. I realized that the other flying fur ball was Her Royal Highness. The two kittens eviscerated that nasty boar with their long claws and teeth. After a while, the boar stopped squealing. They tore it to pieces.”

  Mercy was incredulous. “So you’re saying that when they were attacked their claws and teeth actually grew?”

  “That’s right. They turned into little killing machines. It was incredible! After it was over, they changed back to cute, little adorable kitties. Afterward, I wondered if it really happened. But then, all I had to do was look at the scraps of flesh and blood that was left of the pig,” Nadya answered with a shudder.

  “Little killing machines”, I thought as I stroked their silky fur and looked into their beautiful seeing eyes.

  41. Tough Guy

  The weather was terrible when I woke up the next day. Even before I opened my eyes, I could hear howling wind and pounding rain. After a loud crash of thunder, Beauty Queen jumped off my bed and ran into the closet. I noticed she’s become more sensitive to thunder since we’ve moved here. Yesterday wasn’t too bad, only a heavy overcast of gray/black clouds. Today, we’re back to the depressing rain.

  The school day passed without any major problems. That’s a victory of sorts. There were more new students that showed up in a number of my classes, some of them with foreign accents. How far did they travel to get here? I didn’t want to think about it. I always made a point to sit as far away from any of them as I could. Each one of them would make a point to turn around to stare at me at some point during class. Some were just curious, but most of the new ones viewed me with open hostility. I was not in the mood to acknowledge any of them.

  At the end of the day, I found myself waiting in the lobby of the school for Will. He said that I could ride with him to the Robotics meet at Rockledge High School. It was a little early so I stared out the window at the crappy weather. There was something unnatural about it – the constant swirling of ever darkening clouds, and the perpetual wind that sounded like shrieks of despair. I’m not familiar with New England weather, but Grandma Edwina has been complaining about how unusual it is, and she’s lived here forever. Deep down, I think it’s related to what’s going on around here. It is just too coincidental. After all, nasty, tempest-raising, witches are flocking here from all over the globe. It only makes sense that they would affect the weather. It’s their way of putting us on notice.

  “Hey, what’s up Tess?” Will plopped down next to me. “How’s your neck?”

  Will was grinning at me. It was so nice to see him. I feel like I’ve known him forever, even though it’s been only a few weeks. I had a sudden urge to give him a big hug. The goofy expression on my face was probably making Will a little uneasy so he tipped his head slightly and asked, “Are you OK?”

  “Oh, sorry, I got a little distracted. Yeah, my neck is fine. It only felt stiff for a few days. It’s just so nice to see you.” I smiled warmly at him. I really meant it. Will’s been such a rock for me.

  “Really?” His smile went up a notch and the dimples appeared. “I’m glad.”

  He looked at his watch. “Hey, let’s get going. Sam and Doug are also riding over with us. I told them we’d see them in here or by my car.”

  As we were leaving the building, a large group of kids passed us on their way in. I only recognized one from my class on Monday. It was the scary girl with metal pieces stuck all over her face. All of them were wearing the baggy hoodies that hung over their faces. They were slinking in like a pack of jackals. A few of them deliberately swerved near us so we had to take an extra step just to get by them. I refused to move over so I bashed into the nearest one.

  He turned his face to me. Was that a nail in his nose? It looked hideous. He said to me in a low sneer, “Watch out, little girl!”

  What a jerk! He’s really pissing me off. I’m so tired of constantly feel anxious while I’m in school. I’m not putting up with this crap. Something made me grab his wrist tight and hang on.

  “Hey, let go of me,” he whined. Staring into his eyes, I knew he was getting nervous. He was just a bully. He enjoyed pushing a girl around when he was with his gang of losers.

  I smiled at him and mocked, “What? You’re not afraid of a girl, are you?”

  I stood there and concentrated on how my hand felt. It was getting hotter and hotter. It was feeling tingly now, close to pain. It didn’t matter though.

  “Hey, you gotta let go of me! It’s really hurting,” he moaned.

  I was barely conscious of the crowd around me. Everyone was just standing there watching. Suddenly, he screamed at the top of his lungs. Guess I should drop his hand. I leaned right up to within an inch of his face and hissed, “STAY AWAY FROM ME.” Then, I dropped my voice a little and added, “Man, you are ugly.” As I moved away, I glanced at his arm. It was pretty bad. There was a bright red burn ring around his wrist where my grip was. Streaks of red ran up his arm from his wrist. It looked like a nasty electrical burn.

  People from the crowd were staring at his arm and backing away from me. I swung around and looked toward the hoodie gang, deliberately staring at them as they moved away. Their macho posturing had ceased, at least for now. There was a swirling haze of dark colors interspersed with sharp streaks of dark red all around them. You’d think they were walking in a black fog. They were evil, spiteful souls. The streaks of red told me they were furious but they knew to back off. As I went off to join Will, I glanced down at my hands. They were unmarked.

  42. Lights

  Will put his arm around me and steered me quickly out of the school. Sam and Doug were right behind us.

  “Holy crap, Tess! What’d you do to him?” Sam asked in astonishment.

  “Yeah, that was unbelievable. It looked like he was burned or something,” Doug added excitedly. “I have to say, I don’t know where those kids came from but they’re freaks. They just showed up outta nowhere ea
rly last week. People started calling them ‘the Hoodie Rats’ cause one of them is actually called Rat. Two of their gang got suspended yesterday for starting fights with football jocks. Everyone else is totally afraid of them so they just back off.”

  Sam added, oblivious to Will’s stern look, “I saw one of them, they call him Gunnar, shove poor Arnold Rakin’s head into the toilet. I think Arnold made the mistake of not getting out of their way in the bathroom. You know how Arnold’s always in his own little world.”

  As I listened to Sam and Doug, I found myself shivering. It had nothing to do with being frightened. After these episodes my body always reacts this way. Will felt it too so he tightened his arm around me. When we reached his car, he settled me in the front seat and covered me with a blanket.

  “Are you alright, Tess?” Will asked.

  “Yeah, I’m fine, just feel a little shaky. I haven’t eaten much today, plus I think I’m coming down with a cold,” I responded with a tired voice.

  Before he started the car, Will turned and faced me. “Tess, was that an electrical burn on his arm?” Sam and Doug quickly sat up to hear my response.

  I sighed. “I believe that’s the case.”

  Doug asked, “How’d you pull that off?”

  I turned around to Doug. “I’ll try to explain. Did you guys hear what happened to Tonya, Red and James Miller?” I quietly asked.

  “Yeah, I heard something about them. Didn’t they get burned with a lightning strike right in front of James’s house? I heard Tonya lost most of her hair. Wish I could see that!” Sam remarked with a wide grin.

  In a tired voice I admitted, “That was because of me. They were about to attack me in front of the Miller house. I was able to draw the lightning right to where they were standing. I’m wondering if I have some residual electricity in my body that I was able to use against Mr. Ugly today.”

  Will looked over at me, brows creased, “That was because of YOU?”

  I sighed. “Yes, it was.”

  Doug’s eyes gleamed intently as he asked, “YOU directed lightning in their direction. How’d you do that?”

  I shrugged before answering, “I don’t know. My instincts just take over when I get really angry. That’s what happened to me today, too.”

  Will put his hand on my arm and said sympathetically, “Tess, I have a good sense of what’s going on. There’s been an influx of strange people in the school and the community. Even the weather is really strange. I’ve had some crazy dreams about some of these people, as if I have a connection to them. It’s obvious to me that something’s coming our way, and it won’t be good. For some reason, you’re right in the middle of it. You have to tell us whatever you know so we can help you,” Will leaned in closer to me and added, “and we CAN help you Tess.”

  Sam affirmed, “Believe me, there are things we can do.”

  I paused for a minute while studying their grave faces. “I’ve been learning about what’s happening around here from Mercy and Miss Cassie. It’s a long story so it’ll have to wait until after the Robotics meet.”

  Will turned his head slightly, “Who is Miss Cassie?”

  Doug answered, “Don’t you remember her? She’s the old lady who came to the high school a couple years ago and helped the botany club plant an herb garden. She gave a talk about how different herbs can be used as medicines.”

  “I think I remember hearing about that,” answered Will as he glanced at his watch. “As interesting as all of this is, Tess is right. We have to get over to the meet. Let’s go to Wimpy’s Burgers afterward and we can talk there.”

  “Yeah, we should go. I told Mr. Kenney I’d help him out with the crank mechanism,” Sam imparted.

  Will backed up the car and headed toward Rockledge High School. On the drive over, Sam mentioned that the Robotics meet was almost cancelled due to high winds and a concern over possible black outs. When we arrived, it was still raining so we had to dash into the back entrance. I also noticed that it was getting colder.

  We followed the stream of people into the gym where all of the robotics displays were being set up. The heat must have been turned up making the gym warmer, or maybe it was all the people and activity. I started feeling better.

  “There they are.” Doug pointed across the gym to our group. “Those guys look like they need some help. Let’s see how much they messed it up.” When we got there, Mr. Kenney and Nathan along with some other guys were working on the pulley.

  Mr. Kenney grinned at Tess. “So, Tess, does it meet with your approval?”

  “It looks great, Mr. Kenney. I think we have a chance to place.”

  Will retorted, “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

  “Hey, let’s go check out the other schools, especially Andover. They beat us last year, but their display looks like crap from here,” Sam contended.

  We started wondering around the gym, checking out some crazy contraptions. I know our entry functioned well, but it wasn’t as original as some of the other ones. I don’t think we will be getting the prize for creativity. What are some of these mechanisms are supposed to do anyway? Were they really useful, or just a waste of space?

  As we walked around, I made a point to observe everyone around me. At Woodley High there were more and more wackos showing up every day, sending out bad vibes and giving me the evil eye. It’s become second nature for me to have to be watchful of my surroundings. Hopefully, things will be better for me here, after all, except for the robotics team, no one knows who I am. I just want to blend into the crowd. Unfortunately, my sense of unease began to grow. I heard the sounds of the storm over the chaos in the gym. I started to perceive things out of the periphery of my eye, unexplained flashes of light that would quickly dissipate. I noticed that people were looking at me just a bit too long. When I returned their stare, they held mine before looking away. Was I just being paranoid?

  “There sure are a lot more kids here than last year. Have you guys noticed that?” Doug asked.

  Sam replied, “Yeah, I guess.”

  Will remarked, “Actually, it does seem a little weird. A lot of these kids don’t look like the robotics type, if you know what I mean.”

  “And what’s the deal with the Halloween costumes? Who said anything about dressing up? This is a robotics meet, not a Halloween party.” Doug questioned.

  “Maybe they came from some activity at one of the schools, Halloween is just around the corner,” I speculated.

  “Yeah, maybe. I still don’t recognize any of them, though. You get to know most of the robotics kids in the other schools,” Will contended.

  “Maybe they’re freshman. You wouldn’t know them as well,” I offered.

  Suddenly, the lights flashed off for a second, then came back on. My heart skipped a beat. I’m getting way too jumpy. Two boys walked by in zombie costumes. Their dead hanging skin obscured part of their faces but I could still see their eyes. They were staring at me. They looked hostile, but what do you expect with the dead person getup? Is that their aura? It resembled the color of the gym wall of beige/ brown. They were stupid, follower, no-minds.

  We noticed the judges making their way over to our entry so we ran over there. On the way over, I heard a weird sound coming from somewhere, sort of like a muffled scream.

  “Will, did you hear that?” I asked him.

  He looked at me, puzzled, “Hear what?”

  “I thought I heard a scream from over there,” I explained, and pointed in that direction.

  He shrugged, “I didn’t hear anything. I think the girl’s locker room is in that direction.”

  “Guess I was just imagining it.” I frowned. Maybe it’s the wind.

  The lights went off again. It got real quiet for a minute and then everyone started talking. Will moved next to me and held onto my hand. “Don’t worry,” he whispered in my ear. “I think this is just temporary.” I knew I should take my hand away, but it made me feel better.

  Next, we heard over a loud speaker: “Fo
lks, don’t worry. We have someone checking out this situation. I’m sure the lights will be up and running in a couple of minutes. Everyone just be patient.”

  Sure enough, the lights soon came back on. I blinked. It was so bright. I noticed a pack of zombies close to us. Were they there before? I wasn’t sure. Why was I so anxious? I didn’t have any reason to be. I could hear the storm raging outside and I saw flashes of lightning, but so what? It was just bad weather. It’s very peaceful in here and I’m surrounded by my friends. I took a deep breath. I must calm down. I don’t see those zombies looking over here. They’re not even noticing me.

  I heard the muffled scream again so I insisted to Will, “You must have heard it that time.”

  He looked over at me frowning. “No, Tess, I really didn’t hear anything. You want me to go and check?”

  I sighed, “No, I don’t know what I’m thinking. This storm is making so much noise outside. That must be it.”

  The judges finally arrived to view our entry. Nathan was setting up the pulley to demonstrate how it worked. Will and Doug’s role was to explain each step as it moved along. I found myself getting so nervous about our project that I had to leave. I’m such a coward. I was afraid of a dumb screw-up. In situations like this, I’m always the pessimist. I think it’s time to find a distraction before I drive myself crazy.

  There’s one display I was meaning to get to all night. It was the entry that was assembled by an all-girls robotics club. As I strode across the gym to check out their display, I could see a gleam of shiny pink through the crowd. When I got close, I observed a vehicle of some kind that was built of giant pink and purple plastic building blocks. It was driving around in circles. Was that a dog driving it? Very clever!