F
U T U R E B A R R I E R
( The
3rd Novel )
Secret Technology,
Unrequited Love, Absolute Vengeance
© May 2018 Written by David Wicker
Please do
not reprint without permission
 CHAPTER 52 -
"Afterthoughts Of Katrina"
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This chapter is Rated: TEEN
Bright and early the next morning, I was all ready for school.
I was just having some oatmeal for breakfast when Tyr arrived. My Mom, Suzy, had a little chat with us before we headed out - about safety. Always walk in pairs and always be aware of everything around us - have our heads on a swivel !
Despite these warnings Tyr felt very safe. For having gotten rid of Stefani she suspected there would be no danger. And - perhaps for today that would be true.
It was a blistering hot day outside. Fortuitously I had packed myself a canteen and shared it with Tyr. We were approaching the school and while everyone seemed really happy to see me again, they downright avoided crossing paths or even greeting Tyr.
"What gives ?" she finally yelled. "Am I chopped liver or something !?"
I couldn't understand it myself, unless it had something to do with the fact that students were afraid of her for some reason. Sure enough I caught telltale whispers of others saying she was in league with the devil and could put a curse on you so much as blink her eyes at you.
Likely Scant started this awful rumor, and it would be hard to overcome as Tyr did indeed days earlier drag his heavy bulk to that construction yard and with just one hand behind her.
Looking at Tyr she was not the least bit muscular. This would be difficult to explain indeed how she could've done the feat without calling on something "magical" outside her current telekinetic ability.
Fortunately for me however, people flocked to my side and patted me both on my back and arms saying how glad they were to see me since the awful kidnapping ordeal. At this point I wanted to set the record straight that afterwards Scant had me tied down with masking tape during Buford's party - but I didn't want to break the festive and encouraging mood, so I kept quiet.
Tyr sought out her close friends and they were certainly not afraid of her as everyone else seemed to be. So both her and them all piled back into the girl's restroom near my locker and I could hear them all whispering and giggling like mad.
Then the school bell rang for everyone to be in Homeroom. I went and so did Tyr as we shared that same activity. Then there was Math class. During which Tyr kept writing me silly love letters. It wasn't so bad really except that she was an awful speller and her handwriting was atrocious so it was difficult for me to decipher just what she was saying.
Suddenly as I was handed another letter from my friend, Marty, it was snapped up by the teacher.
"Well, Dev. Here I was missing you from the terrible ordeal you went through and you pay it back by passing notes in class ? You don't mind if I read this one aloud, do you ?"
I was pretty angry at her. She knew I could keep up in this class with one hand tied behind my back, but I indulged her. "Sure, you go right ahead."
I wiggled two of my fingers at her and SIM activated a special little joke I had in mind for her.
"Dearest Dev." she said, but suddenly she had Tyr's tiny child-like voice ! It was as if she had taken a great big puff of helium down her lungs.
"You know I loverest you the mostest, you are the biggo beanie in my burrowtee !"
"I think you mean, bean in my burrito." I said, correcting the teacher. She threw the note on the floor in a huff and gasped, "What's wrong with my voice !?" She shrieked and ran out of the room at which point I wiggled my two fingers and put her back to normal.
Everyone now murmured with concern, and all eyes fell to Tyr. "Meee !?" she yelled. "I didn't do that, it was Dev. He's the magic guy thisso time !"
A few eyes turned to look at me. I greeted them with my most doleful and innocent eyes. They then turned to look back at Tyr with silent apprehension. "Witch." someone whispered with contempt.
The teacher returned, her chin a little wet, clearly she ran out to get a drink of water.
"Want to read the rest ?" I said, lifting the note back up for her.
She looked at it with fierce eyes. "No." she said in her own voice, glad it was back.
"No, that's fine. Just - keep it to yourself, will you - and pay attention !"
I nodded and, folding it up, stuck it in my pocket.
She continued the math lesson without any further problems.
Tyr met me at lunch beneath the shady tree just outside the field of recess and we talked a bit.
"They're all blaming me for what happened to Scant !" she said all at once.
I nodded, "Well, you did drag him a good distance with only one hand - is what people saw. They'll never forget that. You'll have to be more careful with where you use that telekinetic power."
"Yah well ..." And in a rare fit of anger, she was silent.
I reached in my lunch bag to pull out my dessert, the chocolate-covered Suzi-Q dessert. Her eyes got wide seeing it, and then I just handed it to her outright.
"You're learning !" she said with a grin as she hurriedly peeled off the wrapper and stuck the whole dessert in her mouth.
"You'll choke if you're not careful."
* * *
"Mee moo mut my mooing !" she muffled around the fluffy treat.
"Stefani is gone." I said, changing the subject.
Tyr was silent as she finished down the dessert. "Yeah, and good riddance." she said, licking her fingers of any treat that might've stuck to her.
"I don't know if I can call it murder as you - well - you had her - murder herself. I know to a lot of people that would seem like just desserts, but still ..."
"She deserved it !" Tyr angrily quipped back. "You have no idea what that horribibble woman was having me to do !"
I nodded. I only briefly recalled the event. Today it was a bit like a mist. Melancholy and sleepy, all at the same time. Not entirely a happy memory, but not entirely bad either.
"What do we do now ?" I asked Tyr.
"We still gotta get back at Scant." she said in reply.
"Oh, what for ?" I asked.
She huffed, "Remember you told me that he tied you up with masking tape to their toilet ?"
I nodded. "Yeah, but then I heard from Mom who was talking to the police earlier that someone was murdered at the party."
"Yeah ? Who ?" Stefani's eyes grew wide in curiosity.
I lowered my eyes. I really didn't want to face this as I was so, well, I guess the word was "fond," but I knew it was so much more.
But I also didn't want to show Tyr that I had an interest though or she might get nasty with me again.
"Some girl named Katrina. She was - nice to me - for the time I knew her."
"Stefani did it ?" she asked.
I nodded. "Yeah, Stefani murdered her. I guess she really did have quite a bit to answer for. Maybe - maybe her death will help save many other people that she can no longer get her hands on - including us."
Tyr leaned back against the tree to regard the clouds. "That can't be all bad, right ?"
I looked down at the grass to see a small grasshopper blending almost perfectly against the dew-dropped blades. "Murder is murder. However you want to look at it. I would like to believe that the difference between humans and lower animals is that - we don't kill our kind - and yet, we most certainly do."
Tyr was going to comment on that when the bell rang to return to class. "See you after school." I told her. My next item for the day was P.E. or Physical Education. This was the one class I shared with Scant.
I quickly changed into my gym clothes and stood in a horizontal line with the others, waiting to see what our coach had planned for today.
Scant hurriedly shifted order with everyone until he was standing right beside me. He clapped a heavy hand on my back and held it there.
"Katrina is dead, you know." he said quietly and venomously.
"I know." I said. "And I'm sorry for that."
"Not yet you're not." Scant said and pushed hard on my back causing me to trip over my own feet and fall forward. I fell painfully on one elbow.
I heard the coach blow his whistle sharply then stand where I was.
"Whatsmatter, Dev ? Can't wait to hear the good news ?"
"What good news is that ?" I asked, pulling myself from the floor to stand away from Scant.
"Today I'm going to teach you mugs how to fall. At some point in your life you're going to fall down, and there are many ways to do it. The wrong way, the way you did just now, and the right way, where your shoulders and arms cushion you from the blow."
He stood back and yelled so he could be heard, "Repeating, listen up ! We're going to learn to fall today - the right way. You need to pair off and choose a partner for this exercise !"
I saw my best friend, Marty scrabble around the bunch of other students to stand next to me. I smiled wide in appreciation.
"I'm here for you, Dev !" he chirped up cheerfully.
"And I'm glad you are." I nodded. Well, this wouldn't be so bad after all then.
But suddenly Marty pitched forward and ungraciously hit the ground. I whirled to look, and wouldn't you know it, there was Scant again.
"We're not done yet, shrimp." he told me, narrowing his eyes.
I sighed, knowing he was blaming me for the whole thing. "Look. I know someone got killed at your party, that's what the police said. But honestly ! And I wasn't even there or I would've remembered."
Scant focused his eyes on mine. "No, you weren't there. But she was."
"Who ?"
"She calls herself Stefani." His eyes narrowed to mine, "I KNOW you know her."
The blood left my face leaving a white Q-tip of a face. Scant saw this.
"See ? You do know her ! So YOU'RE responsible for her death, understand now ?"
"No no !" I held a defensive hand up. "I know her, that doesn't mean I like her. She's an assassin alright ? A very nasty one at that and ... " I paused to find the right words. "You won't be seeing her again. I guarantee that."
"How would you know this !?"
I explained, "She's gone herself. You know Tyr is a bit of a witch, right ?"
Scant nodded and shivered slightly. "Yeah, it seems that way."
"Well she 'hexed' Stefani and Stefani is now deceased, do you understand ? You'll never see Stefani again. She is gone and buried !"
Scant scratched his stubbly chin. "How do I know you're telling me the truth ?"
I sighed, "Because that's what I do. You know me. Do you ever remember me lying - about anything at all ?"
Scant's face puzzled up in thought. Finally, "No. You've always been honest. Even if it was gonna hurt you, you've been honest. You're WEAK like that."
"Fine, I'm weak, but you can see - it wasn't me. I'm not responsible for what she did."
Scant was not satisfied, "But she was asking for you - by name !"
I shook my head in frustration, "Yeah. She liked me alright, but I didn't like her. She said weird stuff about wanting to be my Mother and my lover - combined."
"That's messed up." Scant said, finally grinning.
I smiled with him. "Yeah, it is. So hey, let's do this exercise thing, okay ?"
Scant nodded, apparently satisfied that it wasn't my fault after all. "Alright."
And, fortunately during the exercise, Scant was nice to me and we both learned two good things. One, of course, how to fall without hurting yourself. And two, just because you know someone bad that likes you, it doesn't necessarily mean that you are responsible for their actions.
END OF
CHAPTER 52
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