smiling, not even answering Lorie.
“What’s wrong? Is someone moving in with him? A girlfriend? A boyfriend?”
“No,” Tara answered, still smiling, “I haven’t seen anybody else with him.”
Lorie laughed and pointed at Tara. “So, you’ve been spying on him.”
Tara looked at Lorie, shocked by her words. “Uh, no, I’m not spying on my neighbors.”
They walked along a little farther, Lorie’s high heels tapping on the sidewalk, Tara’s sneakers as silent as a cat.
“You should bake something sweet for him,” Lorie said.
“You just won’t let this go, will you?”
“I just want you to be with someone. I just want you to have what Mike and I have.”
Tara didn’t point out to Lorie that she and Mike had only been together for a week and a half now.
“Take him some cupcakes or something,” Lorie went on. She was like a bulldog about things, she wouldn’t let anything go. Ever. “It could be like a housewarming present, or a welcome-to-the-neighborhood present. Who knows where it could lead?”
“You know where it leads to.”
Lorie sighed. “There has to be a man out there somewhere who could learn to cope with your … your condition.”
Tara was about to say something but her words were cut off as a homeless man jumped out from an alleyway right in front of them. The man grabbed Tara’s upper arms in an iron grip; he was face-to-face with her and he stared at her with wild eyes.
“He’s coming for you,” the homeless man said in a low, gravelly voice.
The man’s face was only inches away from Tara’s face. She could smell his sour breath, and something underneath that sour breath smelled like rotten meat. His face was mostly grayish-black beard with those dark and wild eyes staring out from the dirty skin above his beard. He was dressed in layers of clothing even though it was nearly eighty degrees outside. But what caught Tara’s eye the most was the large, homemade cross that hung from his neck on a string of leather. The cross was two pieces of rough-hewn wood, maybe hand-carved from some pieces of scrap wood, tied together with a dirty string to form a crucifix.
“Get out of here, you psycho!” Lorie screamed.
The homeless man didn’t even seem to notice that Lorie was there – right now Tara was his whole world. His fingers were still clamped on Tara’s arms and his wild eyes were still locked on to hers.
“He’s coming for you,” the man said again. “He can see you. He can feel you.”
Tara didn’t fight back; she only stared at the man with wide eyes. Something about his words brought back the feelings from last night and this morning, the feeling that hadn’t completely gone away, the sense of dread and fear that pressed down on her, trying to crush the breath and life out of her.
Lorie dropped her shopping bags on the sidewalk and rummaged through her six hundred dollar purse for her cell phone. “I’m calling the police!” she shouted at the homeless man.
But the man still didn’t look at Lorie; he focused on Tara like a laser beam. And then his eyes widened in shock as he stared at her, like he’d just realized something.
“You already know, don’t you?” the man whispered. “You already know he’s coming for you. You’ve already seen him.”
He let Tara’s arms go, and his wild eyes cleared slightly like he’d just woken up from some kind of dream (or night terror). He looked around like he didn’t even know how he’d gotten onto this sidewalk and this street by these shops.
Lorie pulled her hand out of her purse and clutched a small can of pepper spray. “Back off!” she yelled. “I’ve got pepper spray!”
The man backed away, but he still didn’t look at Lorie; he never took his eyes off of Tara. “You have no idea what you’re dealing with,” he whispered to her. “You’ve never seen evil like this before. He’s not a man. He’s not human. He’s the devil .”
The man turned and took off down the sidewalk, one
“What’s wrong? Is someone moving in with him? A girlfriend? A boyfriend?”
“No,” Tara answered, still smiling, “I haven’t seen anybody else with him.”
Lorie laughed and pointed at Tara. “So, you’ve been spying on him.”
Tara looked at Lorie, shocked by her words. “Uh, no, I’m not spying on my neighbors.”
They walked along a little farther, Lorie’s high heels tapping on the sidewalk, Tara’s sneakers as silent as a cat.
“You should bake something sweet for him,” Lorie said.
“You just won’t let this go, will you?”
“I just want you to be with someone. I just want you to have what Mike and I have.”
Tara didn’t point out to Lorie that she and Mike had only been together for a week and a half now.
“Take him some cupcakes or something,” Lorie went on. She was like a bulldog about things, she wouldn’t let anything go. Ever. “It could be like a housewarming present, or a welcome-to-the-neighborhood present. Who knows where it could lead?”
“You know where it leads to.”
Lorie sighed. “There has to be a man out there somewhere who could learn to cope with your … your condition.”
Tara was about to say something but her words were cut off as a homeless man jumped out from an alleyway right in front of them. The man grabbed Tara’s upper arms in an iron grip; he was face-to-face with her and he stared at her with wild eyes.
“He’s coming for you,” the homeless man said in a low, gravelly voice.
The man’s face was only inches away from Tara’s face. She could smell his sour breath, and something underneath that sour breath smelled like rotten meat. His face was mostly grayish-black beard with those dark and wild eyes staring out from the dirty skin above his beard. He was dressed in layers of clothing even though it was nearly eighty degrees outside. But what caught Tara’s eye the most was the large, homemade cross that hung from his neck on a string of leather. The cross was two pieces of rough-hewn wood, maybe hand-carved from some pieces of scrap wood, tied together with a dirty string to form a crucifix.
“Get out of here, you psycho!” Lorie screamed.
The homeless man didn’t even seem to notice that Lorie was there – right now Tara was his whole world. His fingers were still clamped on Tara’s arms and his wild eyes were still locked on to hers.
“He’s coming for you,” the man said again. “He can see you. He can feel you.”
Tara didn’t fight back; she only stared at the man with wide eyes. Something about his words brought back the feelings from last night and this morning, the feeling that hadn’t completely gone away, the sense of dread and fear that pressed down on her, trying to crush the breath and life out of her.
Lorie dropped her shopping bags on the sidewalk and rummaged through her six hundred dollar purse for her cell phone. “I’m calling the police!” she shouted at the homeless man.
But the man still didn’t look at Lorie; he focused on Tara like a laser beam. And then his eyes widened in shock as he stared at her, like he’d just realized something.
“You already know, don’t you?” the man whispered. “You already know he’s coming for you. You’ve already seen him.”
He let Tara’s arms go, and his wild eyes cleared slightly like he’d just woken up from some kind of dream (or night terror). He looked around like he didn’t even know how he’d gotten onto this sidewalk and this street by these shops.
Lorie pulled her hand out of her purse and clutched a small can of pepper spray. “Back off!” she yelled. “I’ve got pepper spray!”
The man backed away, but he still didn’t look at Lorie; he never took his eyes off of Tara. “You have no idea what you’re dealing with,” he whispered to her. “You’ve never seen evil like this before. He’s not a man. He’s not human. He’s the devil .”
The man turned and took off down the sidewalk, one
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