by Mel Todd
“Do you think we can watch TV for a bit, then go play? I wanted to see if I could find that rabbit again.”
Charley shrugged. “Sure.” They curled up watching TV for a bit, though nothing scary at all. After Alien he didn't trust sci-fi movies. A few hours later they stepped out and locked up. He hid the key with the clothes as he shifted.
Soon enough the two of there were out playing. He poked at the link for Jamie but he never responded. It felt wrong to be out here without him. He almost suggested they see if they could get close enough to the hospital to talk to him but he didn’t know where they took him. It could be anywhere.
Charley focused on helping Jessi hunt instead of giving into the fear and worry that flashed through him. Jessi didn’t catch the rabbit, but the exercise tired her out. He had noticed that playing as animals wore them out faster than playing as human ever had.
Jessi shook herself and looked up.
~It’s raining. I don’t wanna get wet. Nap?~
~Yeah, I could sleep a bit. I’m not super hungry, are you?~
~Nah, just a nap.~
They trotted back, Jessi twitching her fur with every drop that landed until they scrambled back into the pipe and back to where they had put the blanket. He collapsed on it with relief and closed his eyes. She curled up next to him and they fell asleep.
“Would you like to explain to me exactly why you haven’t tracked down your fourth? You know this assignment will require your squad a full strength. Why haven’t you filled the last position?” The familiar male stood in front of them and Charley found himself at attention.
“Sorry, Master Instructor, that Kaylid has not presented them self to us at this time.”
“Well maybe you should find them? You can’t wait forever. Our leaders will not allow the reclamation of our seeded Kaylid with fragmented squads. Get that fourth before we deploy.” He glared at them and then turned and stalked away, a long white stripe down his back turning into a pure white tail.
“Move to bodyguard training.” The voice said in and out of their head and they found themselves moving. This training only had six people and they felt an odd disconnect, knowing half their squad was missing. The training grabbed both of them and even if Jessi had been bored, which he didn’t sense, they seemed to have no option but to learn. They learned how to see weapons, scan a room, and track body language. That part fascinated him, not only because of what they were learning, but the variety of beings displayed. Humans were presented but so were so many different species, both in the half animal forms he was familiar with, and in the other two forms.
Lost in learning, the wetness tugging at his fur didn’t make sense. He kept looking down at the adult body. It was a body that he knew wasn’t his but still seemed like his. There was no water. Pushing the thought away, he focused on lesson and then choked, coughing as water went in his nose.
Blinking his eyes as he lifted his head, he snorted out the water than had invaded his nose. The pipe they were in had water flowing through it and it was rising quickly.
~Jessi!~ He jerked around to see her stumbling to her feet, still in cat form.
~Charley, what is going on?~
He shifted, not caring about nudity and grabbed their two bags. “Head to the house now. Run as fast as you can. I’m coming after you.” Jessi took off out of the pipe at a run, splashing through water that already hit her knee joints. He splashed out after her, crouched bent over, and moving slower. Even in the time it took him to get to the end of the pipe, the water had risen noticeably. He stood up and the water in the ditch crested around his knees. Standing up, he climbed out of the ditch and saw Jessi’s dark form headed to the house, her tail lashing as the rain pelted down.
The entire area lit up when lighting struck and he flinched as the thunder came right on the heels of it, cracking and rolling across the sky like angry gods. The rain poured so hard he only could find the house because he knew where it was, having spent the last few weeks mapping out every inch of this land. The wet ground made the walk less painful than it might have been. All the grass was soft and flexible and the stones sank into the mud.
Jessi waited for him at the back door, drenched, tail lashing and ears laid back. Lightning struck again and they both flinched. He fumbled for the key in the clothes and got the door unlocked. They slipped in and shut the door just as another huge crack of lighting hit so close he could smell it. The background hum of electricity in the house disappeared and the low lights in the kitchen all winked out.
~Charley?~ Her voice quavered in his head and he put his hand on her head.
“It’s just the electricity. I’ll get us some jerky and we can curl up.” He tried to convince himself of that as he headed to his room to grab some clothes. In the rainy late afternoon, with cracks of lighting that illuminated the strangest things, the house had looming shadows and sounds that he couldn’t place. By the time he pulled on some clothes he jumped at every sound.
A hand touched his arm and he almost screamed, spinning around to see Jessi standing there, one of McKenna’s night shirts covering her to her mid-calf.
“I don’t like this,” her voice wobbled, and another flash of light let him see her lips trembling.
“Yeah. Go get some blankets and curl up. I’ll be there in a minute.” She sniffed hard and nodded. He just wanted adults, someone to tell them it would be alright.
Something rattled against the windows and the door and Charley felt his heart start to race. They hadn’t checked before they came in here. They didn’t look at what cars were out front. What if the men came back? They should have never come here.
More sounds and creaks and groans had him trying to breathe as his head pounded so hard he almost couldn’t see.
I won’t let them take us.
He headed to the gun safe and with shaking fingers entered the code. Each sound made him jump and he had to do it twice before it unlocked and showed McKenna's guns laying there.
She had told him she carried two, a nine m-something for work and something with the numbers thirty-eight in it for back up. Over all Charley didn’t care that much about guns but now he’d never seen anything so pretty. He picked up the smaller one, the one she said was her back up piece. Just holding it made him feel better and with it held awkwardly in both hands he headed to the kitchen.
Glancing into the living room he saw Jessi swaddled in blankets. It helped and, feeling silly, he put the gun down on the counter. He grabbed jerky, granola bars, and peanut butter. He headed to the piled of blankets that contained the girl and dropped down next to her.
“Here. I got us some stuff to eat.” She nodded, her eyes fastened on the raging storm outside. Charley wanted to cuddle in with her. Try and make them both feel better. He didn’t know what else to do to help. With a sigh he got up and headed back to the kitchen to get some water for both of them. As odd as it sounded, all the fear made him thirsty. The water in the tap still worked, so he filled two glasses and headed back to Jessi.
A loud bang by the door that lead to the kitchen made him jump and he dropped one of the glasses. It hit the ground with a crack of plastic on wood, spilling water everywhere. He looked at the door and in the dim light the cloud cover allowed in, he saw the knob turn. Panicked, he dropped the other glass. The men in black taking McKenna flashing through his mind.
~Jessi, RUN~ he shouted in his mind. Her head jerked over to him as he grabbed for the gun, fumbling it and trying to hold it. He cocked the hammer back, heard it click and pointed it at the door as he rested it on the counter. Part of him was aware of Jessi’s sob of panic as she ran to the bedroom. Unable to breathe or to swallow, he focused on the door. It swung open with a jerk and he panicked, pulling the trigger as he tried to hold the weapon up. The pistol fired and the recoil knocked it out of his hand as he looked at the person standing in the door.
16
All Fall Down
In an alarming turn, more and more children between the age of six and
ten are being given up to the state. All of them have one thing in common, they can shift and neither parent can. Parents are declaring they are unable to handle the children now that they are shifting and they are terminating their parental rights freely. What does this mean for the future of these children? ~TNN News Special
The figure in the door ducked and came up holding a weapon. “What the hell?” A muffled voice said. He couldn’t hear it clearly because his ears rang from the sound of firing the gun.
Charley started to hyperventilate as the figure came in, the bullet having obviously missed. He scrambled for the gun but knocked it further away.
“Charley? Is that you? It’s me, Sergeant Anne Holich.”
He froze looking at her as she came more fully into the kitchen, already putting the gun away.
“Charley?”
A crack of thunder split the air and Charley lost it, dropping to the floor and bursting into tears. “I can’t do this, I can’t keep us all safe. I got Jamie hurt and then I almost shot you.” He just sobbed, letting out all the worry and stress. Even as strong arms came around him and pulled him close he couldn’t quit crying.
“It’s okay. Is Jessi here?” He tried to nod but his head was clogged with snot, and tears, and fear he couldn’t figure out how to express.
“I’m here,” Jessi’s voice answered so he didn’t have to.
“Oh child, we have been so worried about you two.” Charley felt her reach out and pull Jessi close and she started sobbing, wailing softly.
“I want my momma back.”
“I know. I want her back too.”
At that Charley gave himself over to the tears, not even trying to stop, just leaning into an adult and let her take his weight.
He didn’t know how long they sat on the floor of the kitchen with Anne holding both of them as they cried but after an eternity of crying, he felt better. He sniffed hard and looked up at her. “Is Jamie okay?”
“Yes. A little smoke inhalation and a nasty broken arm, but everyone is taking good care of him. Carina is worried to death about you two.”
“Sorry,” sniffed Jessi and Charley felt her burrow in a little deeper.
Anne rocked both of them. “It’s okay. I’m just really glad you are safe.”
They sat like that a while more and the thunder and lightning didn’t seem as scary.
“I’m glad I didn’t shoot you.” Charley kept his head tucked tight against her body, not wanting to see her face.
Her arm tightened for a second. “I’m glad you didn’t too. Why did you get the gun?” There wasn’t any anger in her voice but even if there had been, Charley figured he deserved it.
“I got scared and thought the men in black were coming back for us.” He admitted waiting for her to blow up at him.
“Ah. That would scare me too. But no, I think you are safe.” She took a deep breath and Charley spoke before she could.
“I’ll go with the man from the services. I’ll stay with a family. I won’t cause any problems.” The words tumbled out of his mouth in a stream that tripped over each other he talked so fast.
“Charley,” her voice held something he couldn’t understand as she pulled him to him in a hold so tight it hurt. He leaned into it, enjoying the hurt cause it meant she had a hold of him in a good way. “How would you like to go home to Carina? Jamie should get out of the hospital tomorrow.”
He looked up at her, not understanding. “I don’t have to go with that man?”
“No.” Her voice flat and unmoving. “I wish you had trusted us a bit more but I do understand why you ran. Carina and I raked him up one side and down the other for a long time after you three disappeared. We rushed through some paperwork and Carina is registered as an emergency foster parent.”
~Yes!~ Jessi’s voice in his head and she grabbed him tight, making everything seem much better. He sagged a bit.
“That being said, at least she has power. Why don’t you guys go pack a bag and this time don’t escape out the window?”
Charley barked out a sound that maybe he meant to be a laugh. He really didn’t know. Pulling away from her warm strong arms he trudged to his room with Jessi trailing. Neither spoke but he could sense her relief through their link. It didn’t take long to dump out his wet clothes and load it full of some dry clean clothes. Walking back out Anne stood there talking on her cell phone.
“Yes, I have them both. Wet, scared, and tired but they are fine. No, Carina, they are fine. We are headed that way. Why don’t you order some pizzas and I’ll have them there in a bit? Okay, sounds good.” He watched her but in the shadows he couldn’t tell. It sounded like she really did talk to Carina.
Trust her. You don’t have a choice.
His head sagged a bit at the thought. He trudged towards her then raised his head. “Did I totally destroy JD’s house?”
“Did we,” interjected Jessi, her lower lip out. “I made it way worse.”
Anne sighed. “It is pretty damaged but not destroyed. I think he might be crashing here for a while though.” She glanced at her watch. “Come on, it’s almost six. Let’s head back to Toni’s and get you two fed.”
She didn’t sound mad. I’d be mad. JD is going hate me.
His dejected thoughts followed him to the door.
“I parked outside the garage, so you’ll need to dash to the door.”
Before he could answer a jangling sound filled the room. All three of them paused, looking around. Bright light filled the room pouring out of McKenna’s cell phone.
“McKenna’s phone,” he gasped the word out as he stared at the phone.
Before he could move Anne had strode over and answered the phone, clicking speaker so they could all hear it.
“McKenna Largo’s phone.”’
“This is Toni Diaz, Anne is that you?”
Anne started to respond, but Jessi beat her to it, rushing over to her and all but climbing up the woman to get to the phone.
“Momma?”
“Jessi,” the word a gasp of relief and love and Charley thought he might cry again.
“Is Charley there? Is everyone okay?” McKenna voice came through
He felt his legs give out as he heard her voice. Anne answered for him since he couldn’t.
“Charley is here too. Everyone is fine. What happened?”
“They’re okay?” the joy in McKenna’s voice wrapped around him like the best blanket ever and he closed his eyes, past the ability to speak. “It’s been eventful, but we’re coming home.”
That was all he needed to hear. His mom was coming home.
Decisions
Kaylid Tales
Mel Todd
Bad Ash Publishing
Atlanta, Georgia
Copyright © 2018 by Melisa Todd
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior written permission.
Bad Ash Publishing.com
Atlanta, Georgia 30127
www.badashpublishing.com.com
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.
Book Layout © 2017 BookDesignTemplates.com
Cover by http://www.ampersandbookcovers.com/
Decisions/ Mel Todd -- 1st ed.
ISBN 978-0-0000000-0-0
Doug – thank you for all the ass kicking.
Not deciding is making a decision.
― Cassandra borden
Surprise!
The solar flare that has been caressing the Earth for a few days, has spawned Aurora Borealis as low as Medfod, Oregon. Tonight promises to have them be just as spectacular. While we in the Sacramento Valley won’t be so lucky, we do have a gorgeous day ahead, so do
n’t forget to wear that sunscreen. ~KWAK News
Cass dragged herself from bed, rubbing her head and headed for the kitchen. With a dry throat and pounding headache, water, icy cold water had priority.
"Damn, if I'm going to have a hangover, I'd like to have at least drank something last night." She muttered, her voice scratchy, even as she poured water in a glass and drained it. She’d shut off the alarm but didn’t manage to drag herself out of bed until well after nine. Normally she’d be at work before eight.
The water helped with the throat but not the aching pain and headache. "Wonderful. How in the world did I catch a virus? I never talk to anyone, well not in person, if I can avoid it." She leaned her head against the cool stainless-steel fridge and moaned with relief. She stood there for far too long before she pulled herself up.
“Come on, work remember. You need to get to work. Even if you don't want to." Her voice bounced off the walls in her kitchen and convinced her to get moving. Talking to herself had become a bad habit. She'd lived alone for so long and worked in almost total isolation that sometimes the sound of her voice was the only thing that convinced her she existed.
Cass enjoyed her job, working as a researcher on plant extracts for a local start up lab, Demeter, LTD. Today, she wanted to crawl back into bed. In the bathroom she downed a few ibuprofen and winced as she caught sight of herself in the mirror. Normally her shoulder length dark brown hair lay flat and straight, today it stood up in weird swirls and whirls, and her pale blue eyes were blood shot and felt swollen.
She drew back blinking. "Umm, maybe I should stay home? I look like an extra in a zombie movie." This time she took a serious assessment of her body and frowned, achy, fever, bloodshot eyes, headache, but no congestion, no heavy lungs, and where did that ringing in her head come from?
