Back to E.P.I.C. on the .com blog, but for all you Heightened and Rebel fans they are available on my web-site at, http://www.miriamasdan.com . It is easier to keep the two separate.
I want to know what everyone thinks of E.P.I.C.. Please feel free to leave a comment, or a review on Amazon or Goodreads. I’ve decided to post the entire novella on my blog. So, you’ll be able to read it for free from beginning to end!!!
ONE
Paul collapsed in a heap on the floor. His fist made a muffled thud as it slammed against the dingy carpet. A cloud of dust exploded, sending tiny irritants directly to his already stuffy nose.
“God, I hate these cases,” he said.
His radio crackled, “I can hear you.”
He didn’t welcome Pam’s mother hen tone. She had made it her job to keep the rowdy crew in line during their investigations, and since Ava’s disappearance she had been unbearable.
He took a deep breath, “I’m sorry.” He said it, but he sure as Hell didn’t mean it. He wanted to shout, run, or slam his head against the wall. He hated house calls.
Sure it was where they had started out. Ethan’s company motto blabbed on about giving back and helping those who are unable to help themselves, but ignoring the exciting cases to investigate footsteps in another attic was just plain crazy.
He knew Pam couldn’t handle any more stress. He didn’t want to be the cause of another one of her massive meltdowns. When Oliver told her about their McKinnley Hall investigation and how they lost Ava, she unleashed an arsenal of rage and terror upon the guys that lasted over a week.
“Are you guys getting anything,” asked Oliver. His voice echoed over the radio.
Ethan usually took the lead, but he’s been a mess. He hasn’t done anything but search for Ava for the last two weeks. Every night he camps out in her parlor, waiting and hoping that she will magically return.
Oliver stepped up and took charge. He’s a good investigator and an even better leader, but the team just isn’t the same without Ethan and Ava. They had a chemistry that ignited the paranormal world into a blaze.
“This place is dead,” said Paul. “It is just an old, creaky house with too many active imaginations. We’re wasting our time when we could be investigating some real shit. We have to look into the mysterious creature that Ethan and I saw dart off into the woods, or what about all the calls about the girl lurking around in the shadows? This sucks!”
“Wow, tell us how you really feel,” said Oliver.
“You’re unprofessional,” said Pam. “We have work to do in the here and now.”
“You better tell your girlfriend to back off,” he said. “I don’t know how much more I can take.”
“You’re just pissed because Heather decided to go back to McKinnley Hall,” said Pam.
“No, I’m not,” he said.
“Yes, you are,” she snapped back.
“Oh my God you two are being ridiculous,” said Oliver. “It’s like working with a bunch of two-year-olds.”
A loud thud against the outside of the house stopped the conversation. Paul jumped up and ran to the window. He saw Pam leap out of the van. She looked around confused. Oliver darted out the front door and down the steps. He stumbled on the two-foot gnome that greeted everyone who used the front walk. He knocked it over, sending it tumbling towards the road.
Paul couldn’t see anything unusual from the second floor. He opened the window and leaned out. At first he didn’t see anything, but then he noticed a dark spot on the cream colored siding.
It wasn’t a large spot, maybe about the size of a baseball, but it was odd. He leaned out farther. The edges of the spot appeared to be sizzling, and he thought he could see smoke billowing from it.
“Hey, do we have a ladder,” he yelled down to Oliver and Pam?
“I don’t know,” said Pam. She looked at Oliver, “maybe the garage?”
Oliver ran around the side of the house. Paul met him just as he was lugging an old wooden ladder out of the garage.
“It’s not in good shape, but it might work,” said Oliver.
Paul grabbed his video camera and climbed the ladder. The bottom was uneven, and it wobbled every time he stepped up to the next rung. Oliver stayed on the ground holding the bottom. Pam stood back and recorded the whole situation.
Paul reached the spot. He couldn’t believe what he saw. It was burned, and it was spreading. It was now the size of a basketball. He turned on his camera and started to record.
“I need some water, or something to put whatever this is out,” he said.
“We have a fire extinguisher in the van,” said Pam. She turned around, still recording with her camera. She grabbed the extinguisher. She didn’t look as she swung around the end of the van, and she tripped over something. She landed on top of a bed of impatience. She jumped up and ran to the guys.
She handed Oliver the extinguisher, and he started to climb the ladder. He glanced over his shoulder to talk to her, but something crossing the road caught his attention.
“What the Hell,” said Oliver.
“What,” asked Pam?
“I thought I saw something,” he said. “I don’t know what it was, but it was fast, and it was red.”
“Where,” she asked?
“Crossing the road,” he said. “It looked like a kid, but it’s after midnight.”
“I don’t see anything,” she said.
“Hey, hurry up,” shouted Paul. “It’s getting worse.”
Oliver handed him the extinguisher and backed down the ladder. He pulled the trigger and sprayed the area with everything in the canister.
Paul descended the ladder and stood on the ground looking up at the spot. Oliver and Pam stood next to him. They didn’t speak. The wind picked up, and the smell of the charred siding drifted down to them.
“I think we should call the homeowner,” said Pam. “Maybe the fire department, just to be sure it is out.”
“Okay,” said Oliver.
“Did you hear that,” asked Paul? “It sounded like a cat hissing.”
He walked over to the bushes next to the front sidewalk, and sure enough there was a gray tiger cat with a bobbed tail hissing and staring underneath a rose bush.
“Whatcha looking at kitty,” said Paul. He bent down and peered under the bush, but a rustling from the bushes behind him snapped his attention in that direction. “What the heck.”
The cat growled and arched its back. Every hair on it was standing straight up. Paul stepped towards the bushes and something scurried away, making an unusually human like gasp as it fled. The cat dashed up the front porch steps and hid under the white rocker by the door.
“I called the fire department,” said Oliver. “Pam is talking to the home owners right now.”
“Something was just right there,” said Paul. “It ran off into the woods. It freaked the cat out.”
He turned his attention back to the rose bush. He leaned down again and saw something moving around. He knelt down and turned on his flashlight. It was a bird.
It hobbled and wobbled. He scooped it up and took it to the van. It was charred.
“What happened to it,” asked Pam. “You don’t think it had to do with the house, do you?”
“Hell yeah,” he said. “I think whatever hit the house hit this poor little guy first.”
“He’s not looking so good,” she said.
“I’m going to take him home and see if I can help him,” said Paul. “Do we have something to put him in?”
“Let me see,” she looked around the van and came back with a small box. “The donuts are gone, and it closes up so he can’t escape.”
“Perfect,” he said.
“You’re not going to take that thing home,” said Oliver. “Put it out of its misery, or let the cat finish him off.”
“That’s mean,” said Pam. “I can’t believe you’d say that. I think Paul is a sweetheart for trying to save him.”
“Bob,” said Paul.
“What,” asked Oliver?
“I’m naming him Bob,” he said.
“You named it,” asked Oliver? “You two are insane.”
He walked away, and into the house. He walked out a few minutes later with their equipment. Apparently he was done with the investigation.
TWO
An SUV with a flashing light pulled into the driveway. Chief Rowland Parker walked up to the trio and laughed.
“I think I’ve heard it all,” he said. “Show me this spot.”
He climbed the ladder, inspected the spot and climbed back down. He searched the ground, and a few minutes later he laughed again.
“Here it is,” he said. He took out his cell phone and dialed. “Hey, send out a crew. It looks like we have one of those meteors like over at Riverbend.”
“Meteor,” asked Oliver?
“This is our first one, but there have been reports all over Central New York,” he said. “They aren’t big, but they can cause some damage. They started a couple of fires over in Riverbend last week.”
“It was on the news,” said Paul. “There’s some sort of meteor shower passing by the Earth.”
“The Perseid meteor shower,” said Pam. “It comes by every summer. It’s just starting, the peak isn’t until the 13th of August. It should be a fantastic show this year; the moon will be waning towards a new moon, so it won’t interfere so much.”
“Wow,” said Oliver. “I didn’t know I was dating an astronomer.”
“I like the stars,” she said. “I feel connected to their celestial magic.”
“Okay, that sounds more like my zany, but serious girl,” he said.
Paul sighed and walked to the van to put away the rest of their equipment. Listening to Oliver and Pam’s corny banter was not high on his list of things to do at that moment. He finished packing away the cameras and closed the doors. He turned around and leaned against the van.
He stared into the darkness between the trees and brush. He went over everything that had happened since the meteor hit the side of the house. He leaned around the side of the van and peered towards the front walkway. He thought about the sound he heard from whatever it was in the bushes.
He grabbed a flashlight and searched the flowerbeds and bushes. The batteries were drained causing a weak beam that didn’t illuminate efficiently. He gave up and headed back to the van, but he stopped dead in his tracks.
Across the road, at the edge of the woods stood a child dressed in dark clothes with a hood over its head. He couldn’t tell if it was a boy or a girl. It looked directly at him. It didn’t move.
“Hey,” he shouted. He took a step in its direction.
It turned and ran into the woods. He darted across the road and stopped at the edge. He was about to jump the ditch when a rustling sound from back across the road grabbed his attention. He whipped around and saw something scamper towards the house. He ran towards it.
He leaped over the flowers and directly in the path of a skunk ready to strike. Paul didn’t have time to dodge the assault of stench. He gagged and spat. He stumbled over the edge of the flowerbed and fell on the ground. He rolled and wiped his face in the grass.
“Did it get you,” asked Oliver? “Oh man, you stink. Where did it go?”
Pam grabbed a sweatshirt from the van and handed it to Paul. He wiped his face and managed to stand.
“I need some water,” he said.
Pam grabbed him a bottle from the van. “What were you doing?”
“Did you see the kid,” he asked?
“What are you talking about,” she asked?
“I saw a kid run off into the woods,” he said.
“You must have been seeing things,” said Pam. “It’s too late for a kid to be running around in the woods.”
“It was staring right at me,” he said. “I didn’t imagine anything.”
“I saw something earlier too,” said Oliver. “It was about the size of a kid, but it was fast. I didn’t get a good look at it. Hey, was it wearing red?”
“No,” he said. “It was dressed in dark clothes, a sweatshirt, or something with a hood.”
“You both are hallucinating,” said Pam. “But I guess that since both of you claim to have seen something we should come back in the daylight and take a look around.”
“Sounds good,” said Oliver. “I think we’ve all had enough of this place for one night.”
“I’m ready to go home,” said Paul.
“You’re not getting into the van like that,” said Pam. “We’ll never be able to get the smell out.”
“I’ll take him home,” said Chief Parker. “He can ride in the back with the windows opened.”
“I can walk its only a couple of miles,” he said. “I could use the airing out.”
“Are you sure,” asked Pam. “It’s late.”
“No one is going to come near me smelling like this,” he said. “I think I will be safe.”
“You have a point,” she laughed.
The fire crew finished gathering the meteor and Oliver and Pam packed the rest of the equipment into the van. Paul sat on the porch watching and waiting.
He waved to everyone as they left the house. He waited until their taillights faded before he started towards home. Pam had left him a flashlight with fresh batteries. He clicked it on and stepped onto the road. There were no sidewalks this far out of town. He didn’t cross to the other side.
He half expected to see the child watching him from the shadows, but the woods seemed empty. He looked over his shoulder towards the house. Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary, but he had a sinking feeling that he had just witnessed something extraordinary.
The road leads straight to the main road, but it took about fifteen minutes to walk it. He passed three other houses. They were all dark. The residents sound asleep, unaware of his presence.
He turned right at the corner and started the thirty minute trip into town. He moved into the apartment over Ethan’s grandfather’s auto mechanic shop about two years ago. Ethan’s grandfather was still more than capable of taking care of himself, but he had a difficult time climbing the stairs to his apartment. So he moved into the local retirement home. He still came to work every day. He loved working on the cars. Ethan hired a local boy who had graduated from the county vocational school in auto mechanics. He did most of the repairs with the supervision of Ethan’s grandfather.
Paul had walked for about ten minutes when he saw the gates to Ava’s estate. He stopped. They were closed. He took a closer look. A chain with a padlock hung from the iron bars. He had known Ava for a long time, and he couldn’t recall a time that she had ever locked the gates.
Almost two weeks ago she had gone missing. Ethan had spent every night at her place. Paul wondered why he had locked the gates tonight. Maybe Ava had returned, and he didn’t want anyone interfering.
Paul walked for another five minutes until he came to the path that lead straight to Ava’s estate. He paused before he entered. It was almost the exact spot that he and Ethan saw the naked, hunched creature escape into the woods.
He checked his phone it was 4:23 am. The sun would be coming up soon, but he wanted to check out the estate. He jumped over the ditch and entered between two old maple trees.
It didn’t take him long to backtrack to the estate. He turned off his flashlight and waited just inside the tree line. The path emptied out on the side of the house, but towards the back of the yard. He couldn’t get a good look at the front, but he could see a car, not a truck parked in the driveway.
He stayed in the shadows as he crept around to the front of the house. He saw a black Cadillac and a black van, neither belonged to Ethan or Ava.
There were lights on in the downstairs. He decided to get a closer look. He ran across the lawn and hid behind a tall arborvitae. The curtains were drawn. He couldn’t see or hear anything. He moved to the back of the house.
The back porch light was on. A man leaned against the post by the stairs, and a woman was sitting on the porch swing. He couldn’t see her face, but she had long dark hair.
He crouched and listened.
“You know I will do anything for you,” he said. “I’m like the others.”
“How’s that,” she asked?
“I won’t fail,” he said. “I can do what they couldn’t.”
“Do you smell something,” the girl asked?
“It’s a skunk,” he said. “Maybe we should go inside.”
Paul sunk down as far as he could go. The girl looked out across the lawn. He strained his eyes, but he still couldn’t see her face. Deep down he knew who it was, but before he could tell Ethan he needed proof.
The shadows were retreating, and Paul knew he wouldn’t be able to make it back into the woods undetected once the sun came up. He darted across the lawn and ducked into the trees. He waited until the light replaced the dark.
He made it back to the road and walked the rest of the way home. He opened his door and flopped down on his couch. He closed his eyes and allowed the warmth and numbness of sleep to engulf his weary body.
The first thought to pop into his mind was of tacos. He had meant to grab some the night before, but he had gone to talk to Heather. He waited on her staircase for over an hour, but she didn’t respond to him.
“Oh shit,” he sat up and grabbed his keys off the coffee table. “I forgot Bob.”
Miria
E.P.I.C., Episode Two
Star Gazing
By: Miria Masdan
Published by Miria Masdan
Copyright 2015 by Miria Masdan
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be copied, distributed, transmitted, reproduced, or otherwise made available, in any known or future form, or by any known or future means, including without limitation electronic, digital, mechanical, photocopying, printing, recording, or otherwise, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author, except for short quotations in a book review. Any person who does commit any unauthorized act in relation to this book may be liable to criminal and civil actions for damages.
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, persons, living or dead, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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