to ride up a few car lengths to an intersection. He had the option of a few different routes, and considered which one would get him to the school faster.
“In a hurry?” Rex was sitting to Eric’s left, on the back of a black motorcycle behind a tattooed thug in a leather jacket. Rex pulled the man’s fringe on the back of the vest.
“It’s none of your business.” Eric darted his eyes, trying not to turn his head or move his mouth. After pulling his life back together, Eric realized that Rex wasn’t leaving, and it wasn’t because he couldn’t. Rex could go anywhere he wanted. Sometimes he would leave without notice for days to possess someone else, but he would always come back.
“Everything is my business, especially you.” Rex pointed at him. “I have a responsibility. I could be possessing anyone right now, but here I am.”
“I hereby absolve you,” Eric said through gritted teeth. “Again.”
“‘Preciate that. So, where you going?” Rex asked.
Eric shook his head. “Didn’t you hear me?” Then, after a few seconds, the muscles in his face tightening, he said, “I could go left and take the service road, or go straight down Main, or head right and go through the side streets.”
The thug turned his head like a gargoyle coming to life. “You talking to me?”
Eric’s heart thumped faster. He tried to act like he was just waiting in traffic and had maybe been repeating complicated directions to himself. The light changed but there was no room for the cars to pull forward, so all but one moron stayed put. Eric was nearly frozen with anxiety. Any path he chose would be the wrong one, as it had been for most decisions he had made in his life, even as simple as
Look, a free sample of a drink. I’m thirsty and in a hurry. I’m going to stop and take one
. And now he had this guy who wanted to pummel his face in.
Main Street seemed like the most obvious wrong choice, but it could clear up, and it was the most direct path to the school. If there were a truck on the service road, it would block the whole thing, and make passing dangerous. Taking side streets through the town would be time-consuming.
“I’ve seen that look before,” Rex said. “You want my opinion, I say service road.”
“Oh, really,” Eric said. “What makes you think I want your opinion?”
Rex smiled. “You’ve asked for it about a million times.”
The thug snarled and revved his handles.
Eric waited a few minutes so it wouldn’t look like he was just blindly following Rex’s suggestion, or like he was intimidated by the thug, then rode left to the service road, where he promptly got stuck. A commercial truck had broken down and another, smaller truck had pulled up next to it. He heard the thug’s motorcycle rumble up behind him.
Eric rode his bike over to the side streets on the opposite side of Main Street, zipping through narrow spaces, between cars and fire hydrants, wherever a motorcycle couldn’t go. There were a couple of close calls when the thug drew close and even drew a blade. With one deft move, he reached out and drew a shallow cut on Eric’s thigh, then pushed the bike frame until Eric almost fell over. Eric regained his balance and shot through a narrow alley between a pizza restaurant and a real estate office.
He didn’t get to the school until 5:40 p.m. Forty minutes late.
Eric held the cooler close to his chest and ran with it inside the school. At the last minute he remembered the bandages he stuffed in his pocket at the house. Even though his cut was shallow, it was bleeding, and he didn’t want to distract Taffy. He set the cooler down on the floor and ripped open one of the bandages. He let the wrapping flutter to the floor and affixed the bandage on the cut. He wiped some blood off with spit then picked up the cooler. He burst through the heavy double doors of the gymnasium into the science fair and looked around frantically for his daughter.
“You’re too late,” Taffy
“In a hurry?” Rex was sitting to Eric’s left, on the back of a black motorcycle behind a tattooed thug in a leather jacket. Rex pulled the man’s fringe on the back of the vest.
“It’s none of your business.” Eric darted his eyes, trying not to turn his head or move his mouth. After pulling his life back together, Eric realized that Rex wasn’t leaving, and it wasn’t because he couldn’t. Rex could go anywhere he wanted. Sometimes he would leave without notice for days to possess someone else, but he would always come back.
“Everything is my business, especially you.” Rex pointed at him. “I have a responsibility. I could be possessing anyone right now, but here I am.”
“I hereby absolve you,” Eric said through gritted teeth. “Again.”
“‘Preciate that. So, where you going?” Rex asked.
Eric shook his head. “Didn’t you hear me?” Then, after a few seconds, the muscles in his face tightening, he said, “I could go left and take the service road, or go straight down Main, or head right and go through the side streets.”
The thug turned his head like a gargoyle coming to life. “You talking to me?”
Eric’s heart thumped faster. He tried to act like he was just waiting in traffic and had maybe been repeating complicated directions to himself. The light changed but there was no room for the cars to pull forward, so all but one moron stayed put. Eric was nearly frozen with anxiety. Any path he chose would be the wrong one, as it had been for most decisions he had made in his life, even as simple as
Look, a free sample of a drink. I’m thirsty and in a hurry. I’m going to stop and take one
. And now he had this guy who wanted to pummel his face in.
Main Street seemed like the most obvious wrong choice, but it could clear up, and it was the most direct path to the school. If there were a truck on the service road, it would block the whole thing, and make passing dangerous. Taking side streets through the town would be time-consuming.
“I’ve seen that look before,” Rex said. “You want my opinion, I say service road.”
“Oh, really,” Eric said. “What makes you think I want your opinion?”
Rex smiled. “You’ve asked for it about a million times.”
The thug snarled and revved his handles.
Eric waited a few minutes so it wouldn’t look like he was just blindly following Rex’s suggestion, or like he was intimidated by the thug, then rode left to the service road, where he promptly got stuck. A commercial truck had broken down and another, smaller truck had pulled up next to it. He heard the thug’s motorcycle rumble up behind him.
Eric rode his bike over to the side streets on the opposite side of Main Street, zipping through narrow spaces, between cars and fire hydrants, wherever a motorcycle couldn’t go. There were a couple of close calls when the thug drew close and even drew a blade. With one deft move, he reached out and drew a shallow cut on Eric’s thigh, then pushed the bike frame until Eric almost fell over. Eric regained his balance and shot through a narrow alley between a pizza restaurant and a real estate office.
He didn’t get to the school until 5:40 p.m. Forty minutes late.
Eric held the cooler close to his chest and ran with it inside the school. At the last minute he remembered the bandages he stuffed in his pocket at the house. Even though his cut was shallow, it was bleeding, and he didn’t want to distract Taffy. He set the cooler down on the floor and ripped open one of the bandages. He let the wrapping flutter to the floor and affixed the bandage on the cut. He wiped some blood off with spit then picked up the cooler. He burst through the heavy double doors of the gymnasium into the science fair and looked around frantically for his daughter.
“You’re too late,” Taffy
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