Encounters (3 page)

“So”, he began without preamble, “I had an odd experience last night and I won’t pretend that it didn’t frighten me.”

“
What happened” asked Helen?

“
I had the strangest dream that I was flying over the Earth but it was an Earth that looked like it had been ravaged. Almost like those apocalyptic movies where everything is desert.”

Helen leaned forward at his words with her brow furrowing in concentration and worry, but she didn
’t say a word. She could tell that even though he was trying not to show it, he was clearly rattled by his dream.

“
I crossed what had once been the Mississippi” he began again, “but it was just a dry river bed with a bridge over it. Everything was dead or dying, but in the shadows I could see things moving. They were some kind of creature that just didn’t seem to belong here. I made it almost to the coast before I woke up to the sound of Stephen calling my name.”

At that Helen sat bolt upright!
“Stephen? You heard from Stephen?”

“
Well, yes and no”, he replied. “I know that this will sound crazy, but I heard him calling from my radio. He sounded terrified, but before I got to the handset he was gone. I wrote down as much of my dream and what I heard as I could remember.” He had brought his notebook from home planning to discuss it with her and he pulled it out then.

“
Here is where I wrote everything down” he said while passing it across the table to her. He was silent while she read through his account and when she finished she had a nervous look on her face.

“
I suppose that you think I’m nuts now” he said.

“
No, not at all” she responded. “I believe in more things than you could imagine and you certainly seem lucid enough.”

After that they both were quiet for several more minutes until Tommy broke the silence asking,
“What is our next plan of attack? Where do we go from here?”

“
Aren’t you the former FBI agent? Shouldn’t you be telling me what to do next” she asked jokingly.

He chuckled and said
“if you’d like me to intercept messages or transcribe recorded conversations then I’m your man, anything else is a little out of my league.”

Helen pursed her lips and looked down at the table as if thinking to herself. Finally in response she said
“Monday, we’ll go see Chief Hughes and ask about the books. I’ll tell him that the library needs them back. We can go at noon if you like. The library closes from noon to 1:00 for lunch.”

“
That sounds like an excellent plan. I’ll meet you at the library a little earlier and browse through the stacks a bit.”

They made small talk for a while and he offered to help her clean up, an offer which she politely declined. He thanked her again before gathering himself up and making his way out into the night air. The car ride home was silent and for once even his normally chaotic thoughts were still.

When he arrived home he didn’t feel like facing an empty house so he went to the back yard. He spent an hour gazing at the stars. He was amazed again at how many could be seen without city lights to get in the way. There was a vast ocean of lights and he felt that he could fall into them forever.

Day 4: Saturday

He was woken the next morning to the boom of canon fire and a fierce rebel yell. He all but fell out of bed and raced to the window facing the back yard. In the open field behind his property a line of grey clad, musket wielding men charged a line of men in blue. Roaring their battle cry the two lines collided with a clashing, clanking cacophony. He got dressed quickly and went outside to the back yard to witness this awesome spectacle.

Once there he stood at the base of a large magnolia tree on the edge of his property and watched men struggle. It took a moment for the sleep to clear completely but when it did he laughed. When he had first woken he had thought that the world, or at least his house, was about to be swept away, but now he realized that he was watching Civil War re-enactors. It was then that a grey clad man looked up and spotted him. Holding his saber to his side and his hat to his head he began jogging over to him. He slowed as he got closer to him and stretched out his hand.

“
You must be Agent McCain. I’m Lee Roberts”, he said upon shaking his hand. “I’m sorry we woke you, ‘specially how we woke you.”

“
It’s quite alright, but what in the world is going on?

“
Well, this is the local chapter of The Sons of the Confederacy. During the civil war there was a battle fought here. It was one of the worst Union defeats in this state. Every year on the anniversary we stage a reenactment in commemoration.”

Looking up and scanning across the
“Battlefield” he saw a figure on a horse directing troops. The man on the horse turned as if he noticed the scrutiny and stared in Tommy’s direction. Even at distance his gaze was filled with intensity. Unconsciously Tommy moved to place Lee between the two of them.

“
Who is the man on the horse?”

“Oh, that’s
capt. Tuesday. He comes out and plays the role of General Cryer every year.”

“Who is, or was, general
Cryer?”

General
Cryer led the Southern forces. Supposedly he lost his hand to a cannon ball. I think Cap is distantly related to General Cryer somehow. Cap always laughs and says it’s the perfect role for him to play.”

“
I agree with him.”

“
Is it true, Agent McCain, that you’re investigating Stephen’s disappearance?”

“
Just Tommy, please, and yes I suppose I am; although, I certainly didn’t intend to when I moved here, at least not so soon and not as aggressively.”

“
Well, I’d love to help anyway I can.”

“
I appreciate the support. How about we discuss it later Monday evening over a beer? I’m sure you have a battle to fight.”

“
That sounds fine Agent McCain. I’ll be at the Nest around 7:00.”

Saying that he nodded briefly and then jogged back to join the fray.

***

The roar of battle not appealing to him he left the house in search of breakfast. Which is how he found himself at McDonald
’s before 8:00 indulging in a senior citizens discounted pancake plate. His mind churned as he ate trying to make sense of everything he had learned. Before he went missing Stephen had been researching something but he couldn’t figure out what that something was.

Not looking forward to returning home to a raging battle he was at the library shortly after they opened. Helen gave him a perplexed smile when she saw him come in,
but laughed when he explained. She was still laughing as she led him to the break room and poured him a cup of coffee. He thanked her and shuffled over to the magazine section and gingerly lowered himself into a chair to read the paper.

Around noon Helen startled him by touching his shoulder and he realized that he
’d drifted off while reading. He glanced around and saw several half concealed smiles on faces. He rose from the chair blinking and rubbing his eyes.

“I guess I fell asleep. Sign of getting old I suppose.”

“Happens to the best of us. Old man” she added with a smile. “How about I buy you lunch?”

“That’s the best offer I’ve had all day. I’ll fly if you buy.”

She giggled and followed him out to his car. He turned the key and the car came to life and with it came the radio. For a moment country flowed from the speakers but it was replaced by screeching static; and then they heard a voice.

“Help Me!”

Tommy was frantically trying to turn the volume down from the deafening level it was at but the knob had no effect.

“Oh my God, that’s Stephen’s voice” Helen cried out.

“It hurts! Help me! Make it stop!”

Suddenly the radio and the car died. Tommy tried to crank it back but it wouldn’t start.

“Come on. Crank damn you.”

On the third attempt the engine roared to life and the radio was back to playing country music. He glanced over to see Helen taking in quick breaths, hand on her chest. Her eyes were staring straight ahead and he had to snap his fingers in front of her face to get her attention. She met his eyes but it took her a minute to speak.

“What was that?”

“I don’t know” he replied. “That was even stronger than through the ham radio at home.”

“I don’t think I’m hungry anymore.”

“Honestly I don’t think I am either.”

She started to respond but instead leaned over quickly and kissed him on the cheek. Grabbing her purse she jumped out of the car. She left the door open and in the rearview mirror he could see her covering her mouth as she walked briskly back inside. He turned the radio off altogether before leaning over to close the door. The silence seemed much preferable on the way home.

Day 5: Sunday

He spent Sunday in doors hiding from the heat. He briefly debated trying out the Methodist church down the road from his house but decided against it. By that evening he was curled up in his favorite chair reading a book.

The thunder cracked close enough to make the windows of his house rattle. He sat up in the recliner spilling a glass of sweet tea in his lap. He set the dripping glass on the end table beside and
and stood up wiping at his pants.

“Damn.”

He swore and walked to the kitchen for a towel. Just as he opened a drawer to grab one the power went out.

“Damn. Where did I out those candles?”

He walked around the dark kitchen, with only a few bumps and bruises, opening drawers digging for candles and matches. Finally he found what he was looking for.

“Let there be light” he said as he struck a match. The match lit and washed the room instantly in pale yellow light. He lifted a candle to light it and jumped back. In the doorway of the kitchen was a figure.

“Stephen?”

There in the doorway was Stephen. His arm was outstretched towards Tommy. His lips were moving but no sound was coming out. Tommy was frozen in place until the match reached his fingertips.

“Ouch” he cried out while flicking his hand in pain. He quickly struck another match but the light revealed an empty kitchen.

“Stephen? Stephen! Where are you?”

He quickly walked through the kitchen back into the living room but there was no one there. The thunder boomed again. It sounded like the hammer of a very angry god. Then he heard the rain begin coming down. He lit his candles and used them to find his storm lanterns. He spent awhile staring out the back window watching the rain and waiting.

Day 6: Monday

He was rubbing the sleep from his eyes when he walked into the library. Helen was on the phone but she looked up at him and smiled. She gestured toward the break room behind the counter where the coffee pot was. He gave her a thumbs up and walked past her. He was stirring his cup when she came into the room.

“Good morning handsome.”

“Good morning yourself beautiful.”

“You look exhausted.”

“I didn’t sleep well last night. Something strange happened. Again.”

She gave him a wide smile and asked “Are you ready to go? You can tell me all about it in the car.”

He smiled back at her. "Lead the way madam."

She poked her head out the door and called out “June, I’m running up to the Police Station. I’ll be back in a few.”

He followed her out the back door into the heat and slid into the passenger seat of her car. As soon as he sat down sweat began to pour from his skin due to the oven like temperature. He turned the vents in his direction for maximum air flow and then proceeded to tell Helen everything about his encounter.

“I feel like I’m going nuts. I don’t believe in all this supernatural nonsense” he said.

“Trust me, even if I wasn’t open to the supernatural, after Saturday I’m a believer. You are not going nuts. We just haven’t figured this out yet is all. But we will.”

He sat back farther in his seat and felt his shoulders relax a little at her words.

“Oddly enough, that makes me feel much better. Changing the subject, can you satisfy a curiosity for me?”

“
Absolutely" she responded. She batted her eyelashes at him saying "I’d love to satisfy you. And your curiosity of course."

He felt his face blush hot. Realizing that his mouth was hanging open he rushed to say
“There is a man who lives just outside of town who I pass on the way in.”

Helen started laughing immediately cutting him off. "You must mean Logan, Logan Keith. Always dressed in a different strange outfit?
”

“
Yes, that’s the man. Yesterday he was standing out by the road dressed like a clown.”

“
That’s not the strangest costume he’s worn and no doubt he was drunk as a skunk. He’s just a bit of local color. He must have been here forever. Anyway, we’re here” she said. He looked up to see the station as she pulled into the parking lot.