The Conduit

by Stacey Rourke

  ***

  The Old Shamrock Bar and Grill located on Gore Avenue was more bar and less grill. Sunlight had no place here. The lone window at the front of the narrow establishment had a blackout curtain over it to keep out the offending light. It was only seven o’clock, yet within the confines of these walls, darkness was a permanent resident. Regulations on smoking hadn’t reached this corner of the world. A thick haze of nicotine hung heavy in the air. An old juke box in the corner played a song from the eighties that I had heard my mom hum a few times. I think the musician was the prince of something, though I had no idea of what. On the scuffed-up wood floor, couples swayed. There were maybe eighteen people there, which wasn’t a bad turn out for a town the size of a postage stamp. We were the youngest people there by a good twenty years.

  My apprehension eased when I found that, just like with Alec, no emotions invaded me. I was free to relax. We took a seat at a tattered, round table and ordered a couple of burgers with sodas. As we waited for our food, Alec filled me in on his life back in Nashville.

  “I’m actually an intern at the station right now, which means they work me to death and pay me pretty much nothing. But I’m hoping when I get my degree, they’ll keep me on. Maybe even start paying me enough that I won’t need to have three roommates just to make rent.”

  “Cozy.”

  “Nope, not at all. But it’s better than living on campus.”

  “Easy on the horror stories, that’ll be me in September.” The waitress arrived with our burgers and we dug in.

  “No, it really is a good experience. It can just get kind of crazy. Don’t expect to have any kind of privacy while you’re there. But you’ll meet some cool people and have a lot of fun. What school are you going to?” Alec asked through his mouthful.

  I paused to swallow a huge bite I’d taken. “Rhodes College in Memphis.”

  “I heard that’s a really good school. Beautiful campus.”

  “It looks beautiful in the pictures.” I grabbed my napkin and wiped a mound of ketchup off my face. “I haven’t seen it in person yet.”

  “Have you picked a major?”

  I grabbed the salt shaker to season my fries. “I want to be an art teacher.” Alec gave an appreciative nod as he slugged down his drink. “So, how are you liking being in front of the camera? Is this a permanent change?”

  “I never wanted it to be, but I’m enjoying it. It’s exciting. I get to interview people, hunt for leads, even save the occasional damsel in distress.” He met my eye and graced me with another of his charming grins. I felt myself blush but doubted Alec could tell in the dim lighting.

  “What’ve you learned about the fabled panther of Gainesboro?”

  His eyes sparked at the mention of his story. He wiped his mouth and then leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table. “It’s really getting interesting. There have been three different sightings. Two of them were hikers in the mountains. One in broad daylight. They got a really good look and swear it’s a black panther. The third sighting though I’m convinced is a hoax.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “It was at a house on the outskirts of town, right at the base of the mountains. A little boy, I think he was like eight or nine, says he saw the panther. According to him he woke up and it was staring into his room with its front paws pressed up against the glass of his window.”

  I imagined waking up and seeing a gigantic cat with razor sharp teeth staring at me. The bed would need new sheets. “That would be terrifying!”

  “Yeah, it would be if it actually happened. But last time I checked panthers aren’t really known for their peeping habits. Not to mention, I scoped the house out. With the height of the window the panther would’ve had to stand on its hind legs. That’s just not realistic for a panther on the prowl. More likely, the kid heard some gossip about the sightings and made up a story to get attention.” He gave a dismissive shrug. “Either way, until I get some actual pictures, all the sightings are alleged. Now if I could get some actual footage, my producer at the station would love that!”

  “You might even get promoted up from intern to…hmmm, what’s a step up from an intern? Janitor?” I teased.

  He grinned and threw his napkin at me. “Laugh all you want, freshman. You’ll be in the intern trenches before you know it.”

  “I know.” I raised the back of my hand to my head in a melodramatic gesture of despair. Then, trying to sound casual but failing miserably, I asked, “How long do you think the story will keep you in Gainesboro?”

  “Like having me around, do ya?” Alec wiggled his eyebrows at me.

  My mouth opened but only, “I…uh…um…” came out.

  Alec laughed and rose from the table. “You think about it. I’m going to go take care of the bill. Maybe you can have an answer formulated by the time I get back.”

  As soon as he walked away, I smacked myself in the head for being such a doofus. It was a good thing Alec was a cool guy that didn’t seem fazed by my Celeste-isms. I settled back into my chair and waited for him to come back. Gazing around the bar, I reveled in how nice it was to be out having a normal evening. I hadn’t even thought about my new ability.

  Until now.

  Room full of unsuspecting people chock full of all sorts of emotions. I couldn’t help but wonder what it would hurt to take a little peek. In an incredibly bad move, I started with the bleached blonde woman in stonewashed jeans grinding against her boyfriend on the dance floor.

  Whoa! That’s not pretty! She has some plans for that guy! I quickly snapped off the connection. Unfortunately, not before I got a mental picture that I really didn’t want.

  Feeling a little gun shy, I decided to go a less traumatizing route. Our waitress seemed like a safe choice. She looked exhausted and was covered in a sheen of sweat. Her emotions were pretty straightforward; she felt overworked and underpaid. The man behind the bar became my next target. He was incredibly stressed and suffering from a sharp pain in his abdomen. Judging by the level of his anxiety, I was betting it was an ulcer. He should really have that looked at.

  I looked around for someone else to aim my ability at. The man leaning against the bar looked promising. He was definitely on the prowl. His tan cowboy hat was pushed down over his eyes. His shiny blue shirt was unbuttoned to the middle of his chest and a shock of black chest hair sprung out. A thick, gold rope chain hung around his neck but vanished into his mass of body hair. His tongue fiddled wildly with the toothpick protruding from his mouth. He probably thought it was sexy. It wasn’t. It was gross. His head bobbed along to the music as he scanned the room.

  Maybe I could find out who he’s planning to hit on and warn them. I giggled then opened up the channel to the cowboy.

  The emotion that hit me wasn’t his. My head whipped toward the door. It came from out there. My heart clenched in someone else’s crushing terror. Whoever it was didn’t know if they would live or die.

  My chair clattered to the ground as I sprang up.