20 Bad Men and a Little Girl
“Tell me about your friend,” Dr. Sam said. “Is she your age?”
“No. She is a little older than me.”
Dr. Sam turned to him. “Does she glow like you?”
“No. She is not… an electric. I didn’t know there was anyone else like me.”
“More than you think,” Dr. Sam said.
Chispa pointed. “There by the yellow car.”
Sam stopped the truck next to the curb and shut it off. “Will she come with us?”
“If I am with her.”
“Okay. Let me get my medical bag.”
They opened a metal gate that led into a large concrete courtyard. Behind it was an old cinder-block building that looked like it had once been a day care but had fallen into disrepair and squalor. There was garbage strewn all around the courtyard, with children and rats running in and out of the mess.
A man walked out to meet them. He was short with a large belly, barely concealed beneath a stained T-shirt. His teeth were stained from tobacco.
“Where is Mia?” Chispa asked.
“She didn’t pay, so I kicked her out.”
“She was sick.”
“That’s not my problem. No pay, no stay.”
Chispa began to shake with anger, then slowly lifted his hand. Even in the fading light of day, a red glow began to show from his body.
“No,” Dr. Sam said, touching Chispa’s arm. “No. This is not how we deal with things.” He turned to the man. “How long ago did you turn her out?”
“An hour, maybe two.”
Sam turned to Chispa. “She’s sick; she’s probably not far. We’ll find her.”
“The fat man needs to pay for disrespecting us,” Chispa said.
“You need to pay me,” the man said.
Dr. Sam looked at the man. “You should be very careful about what you say next. I have very powerful friends. Very powerful. They can make your life difficult.”
The man looked nervous. “You leave now.”
“You’d better hope we find her,” Chispa said, sticking his bandaged finger out at the man. Chispa’s eyes were glowing still brighter red. The man had noticed the glow before, but now he was afraid.
Dr. Sam looked around at the other children who had come out to see them. Several had runny noses or pink eye. It was a situation he often encountered. He wanted to help them but had to choose between them and his current crisis.
“Let’s go,” he said.
“Don’t come back,” the man said as they left, trying not to appear completely cowardly.
Chispa was starting to turn when the doctor put his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “You must learn to control your anger, so it doesn’t control you.” Then he turned back to the man. “Pray that we don’t come back.”
Chispa just looked ahead. Who is this guy?
When they got to the truck, Dr. Sam said, “Franklin, Chispa’s friend is gone. Can you see her?”
“What does she look like?”
“She is smaller than me,” Chispa said. “She has black hair. It is very long. All the way down her back.”
“What is she wearing?”
“A T-shirt. It is yellow.”
“Pants?”
“They are pink with holes in the knees.”
Franklin looked around, then said, “Does she have a blanket?”
“Yes. She has a blanket with a duck on it.”
“I see her.”
“Where?”
“She’s over there,” he said, pointing.
Chispa looked over. “I see nothing.”
“She is a kilometer from here in that direction. I’ll guide us.”
As they drove along the dusty roads, Chispa asked, “Is that how you found me? With your special eyes?”
“Yes.”
“You can see through things?”
“Yes. For many kilometers.”
“Can you see through clothes?”
“You have two soles in your pocket.”
Chispa almost smiled.
Franklin pointed ahead. “Down that road, Doctor. She is on the right side walking. Hurry.”
“Why hurry?” Dr. Sam asked.
“There are not good men around her.”
Dr. Sam just shook his head. “Is there no stop to this evil?”
“If they hurt her, I will kill them all,” Chispa said.
“Killing is not allowed with us. Let’s get her before they hurt her.”
Dr. Sam pulled the truck up to the men. One had her by the arm and was groping her body.
“Leave her alone,” Dr. Sam shouted.
The men suddenly turned to look at Dr. Sam as he got out of the truck.
“Go away, hombre. She is ours.”
“They have knives,” Franklin said.
Chispa lifted his hand. “I’ll take care of them.”
“Wait,” Sam said. “I’ll get her.” He turned to Aristotle. “You’ve got me?”
“Yes, sir.”
Dr. Sam walked toward the men, close enough that he could see the little girl. She was dirty, like Chispa, only there was vomit on her clothing and she was shaking, whether from fever or fear, he didn’t know.
“She’s very sick,” he said. “Leave her alone.”
“What is that to us?” the man said. “She is ours now.”
Dr. Sam’s anger flashed. “You sick cojudo.”
“You insult us, and there is only you and children,” the largest of the men said. “You are the cojudo. When I am done with you, you would beg for death if you were able to speak through your toothless mouth.” He lifted a thick metal pipe about two feet long.
Dr. Sam just grinned at the man. “You’re making this easier for us.”
“What?”
He shook his head with incredulity. “You’re holding a lightning rod.” Dr. Sam raised his hand. “Now!”
Aristotle reached out and pulsed. Suddenly all the metal on the men began to spark, conducting the electricity Aristotle had sent them. More than fifty thousand volts jumped off every piece of metal they had, including their teeth fillings, earrings, and jean rivets.
The pipe the large man had threatened the doctor with was especially conductive and sparked in his hand like a severed power line. The man tried to drop it, but the muscles in his hand had contracted on it, making it impossible to release his grip.
The knives, belt buckles, and pendants the other men wore sparked wildly as well, as did the chairs one of them was standing next to. All the men were as stiff as if they were being Tased.
Dr. Sam walked up to the little girl, who just stared at him with fright.
“Hello, Mia. I’m not going to hurt you,” he said. “I’m a friend.”
She pushed away from him, her eyes wide with fear.
“Chispa,” Dr. Sam shouted. “Come out here.”
At the sound of his name, she stopped. Chispa came out of the truck, then ran up to his friend. Her expression changed from fear to happiness when she saw him.
“Come, Mia,” he said. “Hurry. We can go with these people.”
She looked around at the flopping men, then back at Chispa. “Who are they?”
“They are like me,” he said. “They are friends.”
“We have friends?”
“We do now.”
It was something he had never said before. She had never seen him smile before either.