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Gramps parked his SUV next to the curb two houses away, and we sat there. "Why aren't we getting out?" I asked.
"Because we're waiting for my boss."
I curled my upper lip on one side, though it was too dark in the car for Gramps to see me. "You mean the scary guy at the hospital?"
"Was he wearing a black suit?"
"And sunglasses."
Gramps chuckled. "That's him."
"What's his name besides Tall and Mysterious Man in Black?"
"Bernard Hoss. I call him Hoss."
"Hoss the Boss."
"Yep."
“I thought we were on our own.”
“We need muscle.”
A black—or, dark—sedan pulled behind us, motor quiet. Its lights extinguished quickly. Gramps whipped opened his door and got out. I followed. "Hey, Bernie. How's it going?"
He growled at me. The man still wore sunglasses. "What's the runt doing here?"
"I need him in case my powers falter."
"You say he's stuck in a mirror." Hoss’s brows came together.
"Yes."
"How can someone put a man in a mirror?"
"He'd have to be a powerful wizard." Gramps’s nostrils flared.
"More powerful than you?" Hoss asked.
"More out of control."
Hoss's lips curled up. "Great. Just what we need, an out of control wizard." He stared at me. A sigh followed. "What do we do?"
Gramps handed us a vial. "Drink up."
I gulped mine in one swig, scrunching my face afterward. The stuff tasted nasty!
"Give it a few minutes. And we'll take off our clothes."
Exactly one minute later, we were reenacting the invisible man movie.
When Gramps dropped his clothes to the ground, I removed my own. Hoss folded and placed his inside his car.
I left mine in a puddle next to the car door.
"Come on."
Walking behind Hoss, I followed his glasses floating through the air. "So Bernie what's with the sunglasses? I mean, it's dark out."
"They're night vision glasses," he muttered. "And don't call me Bernie. I'm Hoss, Boss or Sir to you. Got that?"
I swallowed. "Got it."
"Let's go through the front door. The mirror’s in the bedroom at the far end of the upper floor."
A concrete sidewalk stretched to the front of the house, followed by stairs leading to the door. Gramps used his wand, a sixteen inch piece of yew with a pentagram, the moon, and lightning bolt carved on it, along with the words, “Candeo Dilucesco, White Light, but the real translation was to shine white, glitter or glow with heat and to glow light, become day, become clear.” Gramps named his wand himself. Only highly, respected wizards were given such an honor.
Bright sparks of the translucent purplish-blue shot into the door lock. Click. The door swished open. Gramps’s heavy footsteps clomped up each step, but Hoss moved completely undetected as if he floated. In the dark, I lost his glasses.
I kept the door cracked open, in case we needed a quick escape. I climbed the stairs as quietly as possible. The house was quiet, not a clock ticking. The bed was still made, indicating no one had slept in it.
"David," Gramps whispered. He had already ventured to the end of the hallway.
"It's the one on the right." I quickened my pace and scurried into the room behind Gramps and Hoss. A spray bottle bobbed in the air.
"Come over here, David." Gramps turned the mirror.
Tom no longer stood, but had crumpled to the ground. He laid on his side, his arm extended, and his head rested on the ground. His index finger twitched.
"He's unconscious," Hoss murmured.
"Let's work fast." Gramps used a black marker and drew a hexagon on the mirror. He sprayed the potion on toward the bottom where Tom lay. "Sagmen "b sodes iuvi exonero abs vitreus laxo!" Bright purple-blue light shot out of his wand. The room lit up, irradiating the crevices and corners. Sparks danced and glittered as it collided against the dark magic guarding the mirror. Gramps increased his energy, reminding me of a welder firing on metal. It was strange seeing a light jet out from invisible hands.
A black dot formed and widened into a big O. I moved closer to the mirror and fell to my knees. As soon as the opening became big enough, I leaned into it. Gramps magic illuminated the mirror. A burst of cold air slapped me. My breath formed white puffs. I grabbed Tom’s arm. His skin was icy and body dense as a frozen log. "Ugh!" I pulled with all my strength. He moved a few feet, but enough to get his arms out of the mirror. Hoss pushed me out of the way and towed Tom out as if he weighed nothing more than an inflatable mattress. Tom’s feet thudded and dragged on the floor until Hoss flung him over his shoulder in a Fireman’s hold.
Gramps slumped, exhausted.
A menacing growl, like a rat-tat-tat of a motorboat, rolled and rose. I spun on my heels. The silhouette of a four-foot chupacabra on paws blocked the doorway. Wet hair permeated off his body, and the scent of animal blood billowed from his mouth. The stench was staggering, a pungent odor of animal demise. The goats, their bulging eyes and bloated bellies, stiff legs, and lifeless bodies flashed through my mind. He saw us, despite the invisibility potion working.
My skin crawled in shuttering waves, and heart hammered. I wanted to bolt from the room but knew I had to protect Gramps, Tom, and Hoss from this magical and wicked thing. I drew on everything Gramps had taught me, and lifted my shaking hands out in front of me, pulling in my energy from my solar plexus and willing it out my fingers in a steady stream. Flexing my wrists up, I spread my fingers. My blue light shot out of my palms at the chupacabra, forming a wall. I pushed the creature back step-for-step.
My magic lit the animal’s face, an ugly, hideous snarl of sharp fangs and red eyes. Hyena in shape, it had long, thick, sharp quills along its spine attached to the brown skin. Black hair perched between its ears. Drool mixed with blood dripped onto the hardwood.
The animal lunged towards me growling and snapping, but my wall of energy kept him out. I pushed him into the bedroom across the hallway. Gramps and Hoss scuttle behind me, carrying Tom out of the house. The chupacabra lifted on two legs to seven-feet, towering above me. My eyes widened, and energy wavered, allowing the creature to snap at me. I jerked back. A cry rang in the air. It took me a moment to realize; that guttural scream had come from me!
I had to get out.
Slowly, I backed up, starting down the darkened hall. The chupacabra pushed at me, snarling. I hit my backside on the railing, glancing down the long drop. I heard a click. The front door bounced precariously close to shutting. Jagged fangs flashed yellow as the creature curled its lips in a snarl. He pounced at the energy wall, one paw breaking through. Razor claws swatted at me, a hair-width from my slicing skin wide open.
My mind whirled. Flicking my wrist, I widened the front door. It banged against the wall. Cold air flooded the house, yet sweat beaded on my forehead. My energy was nearly gone. I had to do something and fast. With as much power as I could muster, I threw it at the creature. It slid back, maybe five feet.
Scrambling, I lunged down the stairs three steps at a time. Claws scraped against the floor to the top of the stairs. As I hit the landing and vaulted over the threshold, I whirled, jerking my head up. The chupacabra bound at me, ripping wallpaper and snapping wooden balusters. Grabbing the doorknob, I yanked. The creature crashed, the door frame cracking.
I stared wide-eyed, backed up slowly.
Sprinting across the lawn to the lighted sidewalk, I saw my arms and legs; the invisibility had worn off. Despite the freezing temperatures, a sheen of sweat coated my shaking body as I stood next to Gramps’s idling SUV. I snatched my underwear and jeans and jumped into them. Jabbing my feet into my socks and shoes, I next slipped my shirt over my head and coat on my back. Uncontrollable shivers raced through me.
Tom was laying in the back seat of his SUV a blanket over him. Gramps rolled the passenger’s window down. "Get in."
I jumped into the car, the heater humming on high. Gramps jerked the vehicle away from the curb. His boss followed us as we sped through the neighborhood, cut through back roads, and arrived ten minutes later at the hospital.
Hoss must have called ahead because medics waited for us at the emergency entrance. They took Tom and left us alone. Hoss strode behind the gurney inside.
The sliding glass doors shut, yet the bright interior spilled onto the car. Silence, stillness filled the inside, and yet I felt as if one of those creatures would spring out at any moment and attack me. Dark shadows lurked in the bushes where the light couldn’t reach. A shiver raced through me.
Gramps rested behind the wheel. His hands trembled as he squeezed the steering wheel.
The scene kept repeating in my mind, the creature rising on two paws, the long, sharp teeth, the drool and blood dripping, it lunging at me, and the crack of the door. My chest rose and fell, and sweat broke out again on my skin. Even though we had succeeded tonight, I felt no sense of accomplishment because I didn’t know if Tom would live. I glanced at the glass doors, seeing nothing but a white wall.
Gramps broke the silence saying, "Thanks for your help back there." His voice quivered.
"You okay Grandpa?"
He twitched his head in my direction. "Yeah. Yeah."
"You're worried about Tom aren't you?"
"He was pale, weak, and unconscious."
"He was cold too." Darkness filled the sky, the parking lot, the night, my thoughts, and no doubt tonight my dreams. "Once he warms up, he'll be okay. Right?"
Gramps squeezed his lips together and nodded. "I'd better get you home, or your parents will have our heads."
I stared blindly at the dashboard. "I do have math homework."
He shifted the vehicle from park to drive and rolled forward. A heavy silence filled the car.
"Did we ever find out who lives in the house?" I asked.
"No. It's a rental and the owner; Marie Anderson is out of town. We can’t get a hold of her."
"You can't find her?"
"We called her cell, but no answer. And because she doesn’t have it turned on, we can’t get a signal on it." Fifteen minutes later Gramps pulled into our driveway.
"Do you want to come in?" I studied him. His pasty skin and shaky hands emphasized how he’d overdone it tonight.
"No. I'm tired. I'm going home to rest. I'll check on Tom in the morning."
I nodded and hopped out of the car. Before I shut the door, Gramps raised his hand. "David. I want to apologize." Gramps’s thick bushy brows formed a V.
"For what?"
"I didn't have your back tonight. I left you in the house alone on your first mission. I should have come back and helped you."
"Everything turned out okay."
"I'm taking on too much too soon."
"Go home and rest up. I'll call you tomorrow."
He nodded.
I shut the door, waved, and strolled inside.
"Where have you been?" Mom asked the second my foot hit the entryway.
I headed into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. "What'd we have for dinner?"
She trailed me. "Meatloaf."
I grabbed the leftovers from the refrigerator, piled them on a plate, and heated them in the microwave.
Mom stood in the kitchen; her arms crossed over her chest, her lips squeezed and eyes narrowed on me. "Who were you with?"
"Gramps. We went streaking through the neighborhood."
"Don't get smart with me young man. Why didn’t you call?"
"Sorry, Mom. It's no big deal. I was just hanging out with him. You know, keeping an eye on him.”
"How's he feeling?" Her tone softened.
"Okay." I lied. Tonight's escapades took too much out of him. Hopefully, now since we had found and rescued Tom, Gramps would get the rest he needed.
"Next time you're going to be out this late, I want you to call." She stomped from the kitchen.
I rolled my eyes. Geez, you'd think it was one or two in the morning instead of seven-fifteen. I gobbled my dinner of meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans, and fruit cocktail. After setting my dishes in the dishwasher, I hibernated in my bedroom, hunched over my books, and studied.
