The Innocent

by Michelle K. Pickett

  Sighing, I turned and walked back to the kitchen. First, I unlocked the back door. I wasn’t sure why. He had a key. Then I grabbed the ice cream and two spoons. Dropping on the couch facing the street, I settled in for a night of watching Jord and Himmel watch my house.

  I wonder if they know I’m watching them right now.

  “Hey.” Chay kissed me gently before easing himself next to me on the couch. He licked his lips, making a smacking sound. “Mmm, mint chocolate chip. Where’s my—?”

  I handed him a spoon before he could finish. He smiled and dug into the ice cream. “So,” he said around a mouthful of green ice cream, “who’s visiting tonight?”

  “Jord and Himmel, I think.”

  “Ah. How long have they been out there?”

  “Not sure, I just noticed them. Shouldn’t you know? When’d you get the feeling to come over?”

  He rolled his eyes. “I always want to come over, and it has nothing to do with the demon duo out there or their sidekick, Azazel.”

  “No? Why then?”

  Chay lifted his spoon. “The ice cream.”

  I laughed, slugging him on the arm.

  “Ow,” he rubbed his arm, “that hurt. Kiss me and make it better.”

  “Nope. Have some ice cream instead.”

  He shrugged. “Okay.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  I wonder if I should feel offended that he’ll substitute my kiss so easily for a bite of ice cream. Nah, it’s mint chocolate chip. It’s almost better than his kiss—almost. Well, okay, not really.

  “Do you remember having visions when you were a kid?”

  “No. Well, not really. I remember some things. Why?” Chay angled his body toward mine.

  “Ben’s having visions. He doesn’t really know what they are, but he doesn’t like them.”

  “None of us liked them at first, Milayna.”

  “True, but he says he doesn’t like doing what the visions tell him to if it’s helping someone he doesn’t like.”

  “That’s understandable.” Chay took a big bite of ice cream.

  “You think so?”

  “Yeah. He’s seven. This is a lot to work through.”

  “I guess. You’re probably right.” I smiled at him before sticking a spoonful of ice cream in my mouth. “I wonder what they get out of standing there all night?” I nodded toward the window where Jord and Himmel still stood watching the house. “I mean, do they learn anything? Or is it just a way to freak us out?”

  “I don’t know. My guess would be that it’s just a way to freak you out. I don’t see what they could learn by watching your house all night, other than when your bedtime is.” Chay chuckled. “Whatever their evil plan is, I think they’re leaving.”

  The two figures turned and walked out of the circle of light, disappearing in the inky blackness beyond. A third figure materialized and walked toward the house.

  “Who is that?” I strained to see the person’s face, but it was masked in shadows.

  “I don’t know.” Chay dropped his spoon in the tub of ice cream and moved to the window. “Whoever they are, they just walked up the porch stairs.”

  A rap sounded against the front door, and I jumped. Chay looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

  “What? I’m not answering it. This is a typical horror movie scene. Someone knocks on the door in the middle of the night and a dumb bimbo answers it, getting her throat slashed in the process. Nope. Not for me. But you go ahead and answer it if you want to.”

  Chay laughed. “I think you watch too many movies.”

  My cell phone beeped and vibrated against the wood coffee table, making me jump a second time. Chay pursed his lips to hide a grin.

  I grabbed the phone, read the text message, and groaned. Tossing the phone on the couch, I yanked open the front door.

  “What the hell, Xavier? What are you doing wandering around in the middle of the night, knocking on people’s doors?”

  “Him? He’s worse than a throat-slashing, horror movie serial killer,” Chay muttered.

  “I thought you might need help,” Xavier said.

  “Why?” I asked.

  You knew Chay would be here if I needed help.

  “Jord and Himmel.”

  “They were here, but they’ve left.”

  But you know that already. You had to walk right by them on your way to my house.

  “I guess I’ll go, then. I didn’t realize you’d be… entertaining.” Xavier stared at Chay.

  Chay looked at Xavier. A grin pulled at the corners of his mouth. “See ya.”

  “Goodbye, Milayna.”

  “‘Bye.” I watched Xavier walk away until I couldn’t see him any longer.

  “What was that about?” Chay asked. “Does he always stop by unannounced in the middle of the night?”

  “No. I have no idea what that was.”

  How did he know Jord and Himmel were here? I didn’t call him, and he doesn’t have Chay’s gift of knowing when one of us is in trouble. And if he thought there was going to be a problem with two demons, why would he show up alone?

  Monday morning. It was chilly when I walked Benjamin to school. It was seven in the morning, and I’d only had about four hours of sleep by the time everyone left the night before. I just wanted to curl up in a ball and go to sleep.

  Ben, of course, was so chipper it made my head pound. He talked the entire trip to the school. I wasn’t sure he even stopped to breathe…

  Today we get to play dodgeball… Melissa likes Trevor… it’s so gross… too much homework… I can’t wait to tell… bumper bowling… firefighters… so cool!

  On and on and on he talked. My mind tried to keep up, but he talked so fast and changed subjects too quickly. I gave up. Just nodded my head and smiled—until I heard him mention his visions.

  “I hope I don’t have any dreams today. They make my stomach feel weird just before the pictures come.”

  “Do you have them every day?” I bit my lip, waiting for him to answer. I hoped his answer would be no. I should have known better.

  “Pretty much.”

  Oh, Ben. I’m sorry.

  A school bus rumbled down the road, passing us. Black smoke billowed behind it, the noxious fumes filling the air. It was so loud I almost didn’t hear the next thing Ben said.

  “I hope the weird man doesn’t come today. He gives me the creeps.”

  My heart skipped two beats. I felt it stutter painfully in my chest. “What man?” I pulled Ben closer to me.

  “I don’t know his name. He comes during recess. He’s there at lunch recess and if we go outside for gym and for our afternoon recess. He stands by the fence and watches.”

  The blood rushed behind my ears, and I could feel sweat beading on my forehead even though the morning was chilly. “Um…” My voice came out strained, and I coughed to clear my throat. “Hmm… have you ever talked to him?”

  “Nope. He motioned to me once, but I didn’t go over there.”

  “Good, that’s good, Ben. Ah, what did he look like?”

  Ben shrugged. “He had a long, black coat on with a big hood. The hood covered most of his face, but I could see a little bit. His skin was really white and looked like someone had colored on him with chalk. He looked weird.”

  Which one is it, Himmel or Jord? They’re so close to him! Why haven’t the teachers done anything? Surely, a strange man standing around a school playground watching the children would draw attention.

  I could see the school a block ahead of us. The yellow buses in a line in front, kids climbing down the stairs and running into the building. Their laughing and chatter carried on the breeze. I stopped walking and crouched down to look at Ben.

  “Wanna stay home from school today?”

  “How come?”

  “I don’t know. Just because,” I said with a smile. “We’ll find something fun to do.”

  Ben looked to his right at the school and then back at me. “But the firefighters are comi
ng today. Remember? I just told you.”

  He did? Crap. I really need to listen.

  “Oh. Okay, but I don’t want you to go near that man and if you see him, tell your teacher.”

  “I will.” Ben turned and yanked on my hand. “C’mon, Milayna, I don’t want to be late.”

  As we walked up the stairs to the door, Ben shook off my hand. I smiled. Seven and already too old to hold his sister’s hand in public.

  “Okay, Ben, have fun with the firefighters. And remember what we talked about.”

  “I will. Don’t go near the man and tell my teacher if I see him,” he called over his shoulder as he ran up the rest of the stairs and pushed through the door of the school.

  As soon as Ben was inside, I reached in my pocket to grab my cell phone.

  I’ll call my mom. She’ll make an excuse why Ben has to leave school—a fake doctor’s appointment or something.

  My pocket was empty. I checked the other side. That pocket was empty, too. I tried to think where I saw my cell phone last.

  I left it on the kitchen counter after we ate breakfast. Great. Real smart, genius. That’s the second time I’ve needed my phone and left it on the counter. What’s the flippin’ point of having it if I can’t remember to take the damn thing with me?

  I jogged the half-mile home. My stomach was tied in knots and the cereal I ate was seriously close to reappearing. I burst through the front door and ran straight to the kitchen. My cell phone lay on the counter next to the cereal box. I grabbed it and punched in my mom’s number.

  I got her voicemail. I called again. I got her voicemail. I called a third time.

  “Milayna, I’m in a meeting,” she answered.

  Geez, she could at least say hello.

  “Jord and Himmel have been visiting Benjamin at school every day. Is that more important than your meeting?”

  “I’ll call you right back.” She clicked off the line.

  No goodbye either. She really needs to work on her telephone etiquette.

  My phone rang just seconds later. “Hello?”

  “Milayna, tell me everything.”

  “Ben told me that a strange man has been hanging around the school every day. When I asked what he looked like, he described Jord and Himmel. I can’t tell which one it is because they both look the same, but one, or both, have been hanging around the school.

  “Why’d you let him go?” she asked, her voice rising.

  “I tried to talk him into staying home, but firefighters are coming to the school today and he wanted to be there. I didn’t want to force him to come home and scare him.”

  “You should never have let him go. “

  “Why don’t you call and tell the school that I’ll be picking him up early for a doctor’s appointment or something? Then it won’t scare him.”

  “What are you going to tell him when he doesn’t go to the doctor? You don’t think he’ll notice that he doesn’t have an appointment?”

  “Geez, Mom, I don’t know!”

  “I’ll call you right back.” She clicked off the line.

  I paced the kitchen, waiting for my phone to ring. After picking up the dishes Ben and I used for breakfast, I wiped the plywood we used as a breakfast bar off—twice. I put the cereal box in the pantry and the milk in the fridge. Things were in order and my phone still hadn’t rung. I walked the hallway. From the front door to the back wall of the house I paced, waiting for my mother to call. I was just getting ready to call her back when my phone rang, making me jump. I fumbled with it, trying to push the talk button.

  “Yeah?”

  “The firefighters are coming this morning. I want you to go to the school and act like you’re there to see them. Take the camera and get some photos. When the firefighters are done with their demonstration, sign Benjamin out of school for the day. If he asks why, tell him you don’t know, but I told you to.”

  “Okay.”

  “Call me as soon as you are both home.”

  “I will.”

  We ended our call. I ran upstairs to change and grab my camera. I was pulling on my sweater when my cell rang. Shoving my arm through the sleeve, I grabbed my phone.

  “Hello?”

  “What’s up?”

  “I figured I’d be hearing from you. Want to go back to elementary school? The fire department is going to be there with their big, red truck.”

  “Cool. Be there in five.” Chay clicked off the line.

  I ran my fingers through my curls and spritzed them with some anti-frizz serum. My hair still looked like I’d slept on top of my head, so I pull my hair into a messy bun and put on some mascara. I was just pulling on my shoes when I heard Chay at the door.

  “So why are we going to school?” he asked as soon as I opened the door.

  No one says hello anymore.

  I stepped outside, pulling the door closed behind me. “Because Jord and Himmel have been.”

  “Interesting.” Chay wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close.

  “Ben wants to see the firemen, so we’ll stay until the demonstration is over and then sign him out for the day.”

  “Sounds good. Then we can get a few games of bumper bowling in this afternoon,” Chay said with a grin.

  I really hope he’s kidding. I still have a headache from the last time we went. And, bonus, I learned I can’t bowl worth crap.

  Chay and I checked in at the school office before we made our way to Ben’s classroom. The school’s hallways were painted a cheery yellow and decorated in finger paintings, drawings of stick figure families, and other art projects.

  “Is this where you went to elementary school?” Chay asked, looking at the art hanging from the wall.

  “Yes. Everything seems a lot smaller now.”

  It makes me feel old being back. I’m almost old enough to be a teacher here.

  Chay laughed. “Yeah, I guess it would.”

  “Milayna!” Ben squealed when I walked through the door. Then he saw Chay. “Chay! Are you here to see the firemen, too?” And it was all over for me. I could have been dripping in gold and he wouldn’t have cared. Chay was there, after all.

  “Yeah, buddy, I am.”

  “Cool. You can sit with me at my table.”

  “Where’s Milayna going to sit?”

  Ben shrugged and pulled Chay toward his table.

  “That’s okay. Don’t worry about me. I’m just gonna take some pictures.”

  The firefighters arrived at the school shortly after Chay and I did. The kids climbed on the truck, checking every cubby, switch, button, and hose. One of the firemen patiently explained what each did and was the coolest guy ever when he turned the lights and sirens on.

  C’mon guy hurry up.

  “He’s taking too long,” I whispered to Chay.

  “It’ll be fine. There’s no sign of Jord or Himmel. I don’t think they’d risk showing up with all these people here.”

  They risk showing up every day when there’s a playground full of kids and teachers.

  “Chay, I just thought of something. When I first saw the hobgoblins and demons, I wondered why they could run around our backyard cackling and screaming without our neighbors seeing. My dad said it was because we could see things other people couldn’t. They aren’t able to see underworld beings because they aren’t equipped to handle it. Wouldn’t it be the same for Jord and Himmel? They’re demons, right? That’s why none of the teachers have seen him hanging around the school every day… they can’t.”

  “Probably,” he answered, his eyes never leaving the fire truck.

  When the firemen were finally done with their presentation and Benjamin had thoroughly examined the truck—twice—we told him we were leaving.

  “I don’t wanna go home,” Ben whined.

  Here comes the tantrum. Please, let’s just skip it and go home without making a scene.

  “Mom said you are supposed to come home with us, Ben.”

  “Why?”

&nbs
p; “I don’t know why, frog freckle. She just said you’re supposed to come home with us. You can ask her why when she gets home.”

  “This sucks.” Ben shoved his container of crayons into his cubby before grabbing his coat.

  My stomach curdled and heaved. Covering my mouth, I grabbed the waste bin.

  “Across the hall,” Ben’s teacher said quickly.

  I dashed across the hall, making it just in time. The cereal that had been swirling in my stomach spewed into the toilet.

  “Eww,” a little girl with curly, blonde pigtails said.

  I looked over my shoulder and smiled. “Yeah, I know. Gross, right?” I turned my head and puked a second time.

  I rinsed my mouth at the sink, made sure I hadn’t dribbled any of the grossness on my shirt, and hurried back in the classroom to get Chay and Ben.

  “Let’s go.”

  “Everything okay?” Chay asked.

  “Yeah. I just yakked. It’s a job perk.”

  We’d just walked into the hallway when the headache hit. I was hoping we would make it to the car before the vision hit, but no luck. Stopping, I leaned my forehead against the wall, pressing my fingers against my temples. My pulse raced under my fingertips.

  A bus… Kids laughing… Tires squealing… Screaming….

  I wasn’t sure how to interpret the vision. The kids were already at the school. It must be a bus taking kids home after school. I concentrated. I needed a bus or route number to help me, or even the bus driver’s name. Something to distinguish the bus in my vision.

  “C’mon, Milayna.” Ben pulled on the hem of my jacket.

  “Just a minute, Ben, and we’ll go. Milayna has a headache. It’ll be gone soon.” Chay wrapped his hand around Ben’s.

  “Oh, she’s having a dream,” Ben said, sitting down by my feet.

  Blood… Smoke… Screaming… Route twenty-three….

  I ran to the office. “Is there a bus leaving the school? Route twenty-three?”

  The secretary was on the phone. She was an older woman with white hair curled tightly against her head. She wore too much makeup and had blood-red lip liner ringing around her mouth. And she was pissing me off because she wouldn’t get off the damn phone.