Chapter 7: Ambushed

Jack watched Melissa flip her phone shut and turn his way. She looked a bit off. Just a few moments earlier, her eyes held comforting warmth, yet now they held a strong sense of caution. Had the friend she spoke to earlier told her of some disturbing news?

“Is everything okay, Melissa?” Jack asked.

It was like she’d seen a ghost, and Jack felt concerned. They were still sitting on the corner of the park’s giant fountain, bathing in the gentle breeze from the wind bouncing off the water.

“Everything’s fine. It was just my Mom asking me if I remembered to turn off the stove. I’m not really sure if I did or not, so I got a bit nervous. But thinking back, I’m pretty sure I did.”

Jack had the overwhelming sense that something had changed about her in the last few minutes, but he decided to drop it for the time being.

“Where do you wanna go now? Do you want to head back, or should we walk somewhere else?”

Melissa twitched at the question. “I think we should stay here for a few more minutes. It’s really comforting near the fountain.”

Jack shrugged and leaned back against the stone. At first, he had been nervous, but now he was relaxing and enjoying her company. There was something special about her, something that drew him to her like a magnet.

“You know, Melissa, you’re a really great person. You helped me with my math without asking for anything in return, and then you hang out with a loser like me when I’m sure there’s a zillion other guys that would die for your company. I really appreciate it all.”

Melissa shook her head and sighed. Jack couldn’t understand why she looked so bummed.

Did my remark make her uncomfortable? Was I too forward? I just blew it, didn’t I? Damn it all! I totally just freaked her out. Okay, calm down, Jack, we can recover from this. I just need to change the conversation. What is it that girls like more than anything? Is it flowers? There’s gotta be something I can talk about to connect with her. Think Jack, think! Girls, what do they like? Oh, wait! I know. Why didn’t I think of this before?

“So, Melissa, how about that Twilight? You know, I gotta say, all the other guys in school are all like ‘Twilight is so stupid, and vampires aren’t like that.’ But you know what? I think vampires should get all sparkly and glittery when they’re in the sun. In fact, I like that better than normal vampires. Cause like, if I were a vampire, I’d save a ton of money on art supplies. Who needs CVS, right? When you can just shave and have enough glitter to last you a lifetime!”

Hah! That oughta do it.

Melissa remained silent and motionless, save for flipping open her phone and checking the time every few seconds. Jack’s confusion doubled. Where had he gone wrong? She didn’t appear to be upset with him. Rather, she seemed lost in thought. She rested her elbows on her knees and her head on top of her palms. Her golden hair dangled back and forth like the swing of a pendulum in sway with the cool breeze.

Thinking of the time, Jack wondered what it was. He reached into the left pocket of his black jeans. The bright screen cast surprisingly far shadows in the darkness as Jack glanced downward.

Whoa, it’s almost midnight.

Being alone with Melissa was nothing short of a dream come true. Were it up to him, Jack would spend an eternity resting next to her on a warm, beautiful night, as the whispering breeze rustled the leaves and blew upwards into the trees. But his mother was expecting him home soon, and he didn’t want her to worry.

“Melissa, I can’t tell you just how much fun it was to hang out with you tonight, but I’ve really gotta get going. You don’t know my mom. If I’m home even a minute later than I promised, she worries herself sick. I don’t know what your friend said on the phone that’s got ya all worried, but I promise whatever it is, I’ll talk about it with you tomorrow. Adam says I can sometimes be a good guy to talk to when something’s bothering you, so don’t ever look to anyone else, okay? It’s the least I can do.”

Jack dusted off his pants and began to rise. Without warning, Melissa, as if snapping out of a trance, shot upward from the fountain and grabbed Jack by the elbow. Her eyes held a dangerous glare.

“Jack, wait! What are a few more minutes?” Hearing this, Jack beamed with delight.

Whoa, she’s totally into me! She doesn’t even want me to leave.

“You have no idea how much I’d love to stay, Melissa, but I really, really need to get going. My mom’s crazy when it comes to being home on time. I’m sixteen and she treats me like I’m ten. Don’t worry, I’m free all week, so we can hang out any time you want.”

Jack knew he should be more concerned with her worrisome glances, but he was too happy at seeing how disappointed she was at him leaving.

"Come on, what’s the worst that can happen if you’re five minutes late?”

She was definitely making this hard for him. Every last fiber of his being wanted to stay with her and drink in her majestic blue eyes. But if he angered his mother, the consequences would be vast and far-reaching. No, he really had to go.

“You’re killing me here, but I just can’t. In fact, as it is if I don’t sprint I won’t make it home in time, and then Mom is gonna take away my Xbox.”

(Monday, June Fourth 11:47PM -> Jack’s Heart Rate: 95 BPM)

“So, you’re really just going to leave me? Without even a goodbye kiss?”

(Monday, June Fourth 11:48PM -> Jack’s Heart Rate: 1,402,182,154 BPM)

Did I just hear that right?

“I’m sorry, Melissa, what was that?”

Melissa released his arm and instead playfully tugged on his shirt, pulling him close. Jack’s mind reeled in surprise. Instinctively he hoped, no, he prayed that his mother had signed him up for a donor list, because the way his heart was hammering in his chest, it was going to burst out of him.

It was only a millisecond, but the time it took to go from arm’s length to a distance close enough to be mesmerized by her enchanting eyes felt like an eternity. He could feel the soft touch of her long hair on his forehead. She had the scent of cherries, and her perfect features were the only sight that filled his vision.

This close, he could feel her chest pressed against his body, aflame with white-hot passion. His emotions transitioned at a maddening speed. From nervous, to excited, to exalted, to a feeling of bliss so pure it could remove the dark from the murkiest swamp.

Her breath was sweet as she pulled him in, her powerful arms wrapping around his neck. Her lips came into view, moving ever closer to his. His heart beat faster, faster …

When their lips connected, fireworks brighter than a thousand suns lit off with glamour to the sound of a million beating drums. A pure joy and sensation of ecstasy far beyond that which he had ever known possible blossomed and coursed throughout his heart. Not even an eternity burning in the fires of the deepest layer of hell could make him forget this moment.

The sweet-cinnamon taste of her lips covered his and any thought of returning home vanished. The kiss seemed to last a lifetime, a perfect moment repeated on a loop throughout the infinitum. It was powerful, like a concrete floor slamming into the back of his head.

Wait, what?

The pain was so great that Jack didn’t feel the boot on his throat blocking his airway, and the fuzzy feeling almost distorted the furious roaring words that Melissa shouted, in a booming, angry, and commanding voice from lips that moments ago were so passionate and filled with lust.

“MOVE A MUSCLE, EVEN A MUSCLE AND I’LL END YOU HERE AND NOW.”

Jack blinked, trying to clear his mind. He was on his back, his ears ringing, pain shooting in and out from under his eyes. The impact of the fall had disoriented him—he struggled to make sense of something, anything.

His inability to breathe came to him as a sudden burst of recognition. With a gasp, he gripped his arms at the boot slamming down on his throat.

“I said, don’t move! Stop struggling this instant or so help me god I will kill you.”

The confusion was so strong that it hurt. Jack’s brain scrambled to find some kind of answer. He had kissed her, he was sure, but then something had happened. She had lifted him off his feet and tossed him on the ground as if he were an infant.

Jack’s body cried to him for oxygen. “Wh—” he struggled to speak. The words came out between raspy half-breaths. “Wh-why?”

“Is that what your victims asked you, you sick freak? Did they ask to know why? Did you even bother to tell them the reason they had to die?”

Is this a dream?

Jack fought frantically to remove the leg pinning him. The strength of it was not natural. It carried the force of a tree trunk. It was as if an SUV parked on top of him. How was this even possible?

“Understand one thing, Jack. As of now, you are under arrest. I’d like to bring you in without having to resort to further violence, but if I feel so much as an inkling of threat coming from you, I won’t hesitate to crush your windpipe and end you where you lie. Others will be here any moment to take you with them. Cooperate until then, and I can promise you’ll live.”

At once, she lifted the boot from Jack’s throat, and he looked up at the girl he had kissed. Her face revealed an anger so terrible, so fiery, that Jack wondered how it could be contained within a single person.

“Me—” he tried to speak. He choked and coughed as his body attempted to reclaim the lost oxygen.

“Melissa, is this a game or a joke?”

Jack didn’t think it was possible, but somehow her anger seemed to multiply. She bent down and did the unthinkable. With a single rowing-pull of her arm, she grabbed Jack by the scruff of his neck and lifted him. Not just to his feet, but off them, leaving him dangling in midair like a key on a chain.

“Does this look like a joke? You know what the real joke is? It’s that scum like you are allowed to live in this world.”

She released him, and he fell to his knees. The confusion reached such a level that Jack was no longer sure he even cared what was happening. Survival was the only thing that remotely mattered to him.

On his knees, he looked up at the woman of his dreams, now the woman of his nightmares. Thoughts bounced back and forth between the corners of his mind. His brain scrambled for any kind of explanation, likely or otherwise, and the pain from being thrown to the ground made the confusion worse.

Melissa walked behind him and nudged him forward. He fell on his chest with an “oohf.” Then, he felt her hands overlapping his as they were bound and tied.

“What’s happening to me?” Jack asked.

He was still in a daze. He felt her hands tie his own with a thick cord.

“I’ve pictured this quite a few times, but this is definitely not one of ways I always imagined you tying me up.” Jack was no longer sure what words he was spouting. Spots danced before his eyes while dizziness overtook him.

Melissa grunted as she sealed the knot on his hands. “You know, I wasn’t supposed to do anything until my team arrived, but you were trying to go running off. I couldn’t just let you leave.”

Jack tried to crawl away on his stomach, but Melissa sighed and took a seat on his back, holding him in place.

“I guess I’ll just sit here until they arrive. I’ve got to say, you really disappointed me. I thought you’d be tougher. But then again, only a pathetic slob would do what you did to all those people. God, you sicken me.”

A few minutes passed, and Jack’s head cleared while the dizziness faded. His confusion remained, but at the very least, he felt slightly more grounded in reality and aware of his situation.

“Melissa, please, just tell me what’s going on.”

She made no attempt to respond, content to simply sit on his back and leave him on the ground. She didn’t speak a word, until moments later, the sound of nearby feet gliding through grass resounded from a few yards away.

“It’s about time!” she called.

“My, my, my. Oh what, oh what do we have here?” a man’s voice asked. The shadows of two dark silhouettes could be made out from a nearby brush. Jack didn’t recognize either voice, but he was too distracted by his current situation to care who they were.

“Ruin, Darling, do you have any idea why that horse of a woman is sitting on my prey?”

“Not even a clue, my dearest Requiem. Perhaps this is some kind of new sex game?”

Two figures exited from the brush. One was a tall, languid-looking man. He was handsome, with neatly trimmed hair and a kind, sincere face, though Jack suspected it was all a front. The other was one of the most striking women Jack had ever seen. She almost ranked up to Melissa, but her face was what disturbed Jack. Her smile was wicked, and her expression was one of pure, unfiltered madness.

Jack felt a weight lift as Melissa got off Jack’s back. “Who the hell are you two? What’s happening here is none of your concern, and I seriously advise you to turn around and leave.”

“Do you hear that, Darling? This creature is making demands of us. Shall I kill it?”

Melissa’s face darkened. “What did you just say to me?”

The woman called Requiem ignored her. Instead, she shifted her gaze directly towards Jack. Her face lit up with delight, and she clapped her hands.

“That’s him, brother, that’s him! He’s the one I want, the one the other boy told us about. Why is he tied up? Did the pig do this to our new brother?”

Jack wasn’t sure, but assuming no dogs were around, he heard Melissa literally growl in response.

“Your new brother? What does that mean? Who are you two?”

Requiem laughed. “Hah! Oh, look at this, Ruin, look! It’s still trying to converse with me. I’ll deal with it later.”

Jack felt a foreign sensation on his wrists, and then, as if by magic, his bonds were cut, freeing his hands. With a trembling palm, he pushed himself off the ground and slowly stood to his feet. Melissa looked over, panic now on her face as Jack stood freed before her.

“Okay, everyone. I’m not even gonna try, pretend, or better yet even ask to know who you guys are.” Jack dusted off his pants and shirt with a shaking hand. “But I think I finally understand what’s going on here. Actually, I’m sure of it.” Jack felt his confusion fade a little as the pieces finally came together.

“I have somehow activated a portal to a parallel dimension, where Melissa is as strong as a troll, and everyone has names that start with R.”

Requiem put a gloved palm to her face and laughed with delight. “Oh, look at him, Ruin, look at him! He’s a funny boy. Our new brother is a very funny one. Oh, this is so lovely!”

Melissa turned to Jack. Her face had gone cold, but raw anger seeped through her expression. “What do you mean by that, Jack?”

“Well, Melissa, if you’d been paying attention—see what I did there? You’re always saying I don’t pay attention but now you’re the one who isn’t—you’d have heard that both their names start with the letter R.”

“Not about that!” she screamed back at him. “About you having no clue who these two people are.”

Jack scratched his head. “Nope, not ringing a bell. I haven’t seen these guys anywhere.”

Requiem clapped her hands yet again with delight. “Oh, Jack, you’ll come to know us as family soon enough. We’re your liberators, the ones who will allow you to step forward and take your birth right and yes, even shake the very heavens!”

Jack, still trembling from Melissa’s roughhousing, limped forward past Melissa to stare directly at the two weirdoes.

“I,” he began, “have absolutely no idea what any of what you just said means!”

Now, even Ruin joined in the laughter.

“Oh, Ruin,” Requiem said, “I love this one already. I can’t wait to have him.” Her face changed, the madness growing but now a perverse lust seeped through her haunting eyes. “I’ll wait no longer.”

Melissa took two steps forward to stand beside Jack. It was apparent from her expression that she was trying to piece together the situation. The park wasn’t very large compared to others, but it did have the basics. They were in the front, near the swings and jungle gym, and a few feet behind them sat a large fountain, and just beyond that a grassy playing field.

“I don’t know what’s going on here any better than Jack here seems to, but may I please ask you two a question? For some reason, I have a feeling you’re crazy enough to actually answer it. First of all, are you two the ones who have been killing the children around this town? Specifically, Jonathan Herbert, age sixteen, Pepe Alguerra, age fourteen, and Don O’Rielly age … ten.”

Jack looked at Melissa and noticed the way she twitched as she spoke, as if it were taking all of her willpower just to contain her fury. She seemed to be bubbling with rage on the inside, yet despite such tremendous hate she kept her voice to a conversational level.

“Secondly, did you recruit Jack Harris to commit the murder of the entire Davins family, including all but the father?”

What is she on about now?

Ruin stepped forward. “Now why would we refuse such a question? We would never be ashamed of our work. Yes, we committed those works of art as you have described. Why wouldn’t we? It’s our right to choose who lives or dies. And as for your second question, I might as well say yes, for while the names may be different, eventually our Jack Harris here shall do the same. But to answer your question more specifically, we did not order the murder of the Davins family. We ordered three murders, if you can really call them murders, as a murder by definition is an unjust killing, which, ours were most certainly not.”

“But I digress, we only asked for three. Our Brother chose to add a few more, filling us with such pride, I might add. We hope that after we retrieve Mr. Harris we can feel the same pride over his accomplishments.”

Melissa’s shoulder tensed, and her hands turned to fists. “Thank you. That was all I needed to know.” She turned her head to face Requiem. “And as for you, Mrs. Crazy-eyed skank. I am not an ‘it’, I am not a ‘horse’, and I most certainly am not a ‘pig.’ But I’m going to enjoy making you say oink.”

In a blinding display of speed so incredible that Jack barely managed to see it, Melissa dashed towards the two. With a swift motion, she brought her fist down on top of them. Nimbly, the two leapt out of the way, and with a thundering boom, her fist smashed into the cement, cracking through it and spraying debris as if struck by a grenade. Jack blinked and wondered if he was watching a movie. He had never seen anything even close to what he had just witnessed. It was as if Melissa was some kind of superhero.

“Well now, she’s like us, is she?” Ruin said. “No matter, it looks like all she can do is break things,” He pointed his index finger at her, and Jack watched as an invisible force swept her off her feet and sent her crashing into the blue fixture of a nearby jungle gym.

Jack was stunned. His eyes darted from the pothole she had somehow made in the ground then back to Melissa. She was panting and rising to her feet.

“I didn’t expect you to be this strong.” She charged at the two yet again, and this time, she only made it a few steps before her body took a nose dive into the ground, as if an invisible truck had fallen on her.

Jack was speechless. He didn’t know what was going on—he didn’t know how to react.

“Hey, Harris-boy, want to see something cool?” Ruin asked. He carried himself with an air of confidence, yet his smile and relaxed posture only added to the overall menace.

“We’re going to literally rip her heart out. She was bullying you just before, no? I think you’re going to enjoy this.”

Rip her heart out?

Were they serious? Jack was never a deep thinker. Throughout his life, he had never been one to examine things closely, accepting most stuff on face value. He had just seen the love of his life pound a hole into the ground, get thrown through the air and back again. Jack guessed that most people would stop and think, “Can this be happening? Is this real?” Not Jack, however.

For almost every living person on the planet, when faced with the revelation that human beings possessed these kinds of abilities, it alone would be enough to send them into mental turmoil for weeks. They would contemplate, they would question. But to Jack, what was, simply was. It was another part of life that had to be accepted.

In a single moment, Jack came to accept something that would take others weeks, months, or even years. He realized in a fraction of a second what might even leave some insane. That this was how life was, and how it would be from now on. This was the way the world worked.

“Are you really going to do that to her?” Jack looked at Melissa. She was pinned down by something, yet her eyes showed defiance. Whatever invisible force had bound her, she kicked her legs and struggled against it.

Requiem smiled. “Of course we are, and I do hope you enjoy it. I promise I’ll make it slow so you can watch.”

Melissa struggled but to no avail. “Don’t expect me to beg or plead. I won’t even scream.”

A wave of urgency shimmered down Jack’s spine.

They’re going to kill her!

For the first time, in many, many years, Jack felt the cold touch of anger. It was a foreign emotion, something that revolted him and instilled him with nausea. But he felt it nonetheless.

They’re going to kill my Melissa. They’re going to rip her heart out and make me watch!

Melissa, as if lifted by a rising noose, tilted her head upward and floated above the ground. Despite her convictions, she screamed. She must have known what was coming.

“Say ‘Ah’ for the doctor, love,” Requiem teased. “This one is going to be a pleasure to … Hey, do you feel that, Ruin?”

“Feel what? You know I’m not good with sensing things, sister.”

“The Harris-kid, his emotions—they’re gone. I can only feel emptiness.”

“Hmm, what’s he up to anyway? He’s just standing there. Hey, what’s wrong with his eyes?”

Jack walked at a sedate pace towards the two. All of his passion, fear, rage, it had vanished. Somehow, in the back of his mind, he remembered feeling this way before, but he couldn’t place it. A single thought emerged within him, a single reality made bright.

I would never allow Melissa to be harmed.

The phrase at once meant both something and nothing—it was both understandable and inconceivable. Yet he understood it, while at the same time it remained a mystery.

He squinted at Melissa. How did I not see it before?

It was around her neck, the projection from the tall man to her, such a trivial, simple thing. It was much like a child’s knot of a shoelace—if he would only just give it a small tug …

Melissa fell to the floor, gasping for breath. Ruin’s eyes widened in surprise, as did Requiem’s.

“Incredible!” Ruin said. “That’s never happened to me before. How did you do that?”

Jack spoke. His voice was calm, his emotions nonexistent. He passively looked at Requiem. Seeing her maddened face, he felt nothing.

“I don’t believe we’ve met. My name is Jack Harris. I’m sixteen years old, and I attend Elms High. My favorite movie is ‘Back to the Future’, and I love popcorn. Oh, and could you please do me a favor and leave?”

Ruin opened his mouth to respond and then cried out as he was lifted a dozen feet into the air and sent soaring through the brush where he’d first appeared. Melissa, now in a crouched position nearby, looked on with amazement.

“Brother!” Requiem shouted. “You monster, what have you do—”

“Goodbye,” Jack said with a soft, uncaring voice. She looked like she had more to say, but Jack didn’t give her the chance. She too was hit with the same force. An invisible wall slammed into her, flinging her back a dozen paces. There was a crash as she collided with a tree-trunk, and she cried out in pain.

“Now I’m the one that wants to know what’s going on.” It was Melissa’s voice. Looking over, Jack saw she was back on her feet. She was clutching her left side.

“Where did you learn to do that?” she asked.

“Do what?” Jack had the feeling he’d forgotten something important, but at the very least, he was glad to see Melissa was unharmed.

“Don’t you remember? You just sent those two guys flying.”

Jack shrugged. “Not really.”

Melissa ignored the reply. “Listen, I think they’re getting back up. Can you do that again? If you can hold them still for just a second, I can knock them out cold.”

“Are you crazy? You want me to hold them down? They’ve got like, powers and stuff. How would you like me to fight against them?”

“Jack, who do you think just knocked them off their feet? It was you.”

“That’s impossible, Melissa. I don’t even know how to fight.”

Jack and Melissa watched in horror as the two rose back to their feet. They did not look happy. Worse, they looked more or less unharmed.

“That was not nice, Brother.” Requiem said. “You’re going to learn to be nice to your sister or you’ll be punished.”

Ruin nodded. “After we kill the woman, I’m going to break in the new guy. He’s going to learn not to raise a hand to his new family.”

“I’m not your family!” Jack was going to make sure Melissa explained everything to him when this was over. She looked like she knew what all this was about.

“Can you really not do that again?” Now there was a sound of morbid fear in her voice, and Jack wondered if the two crazies were going to resume where they left off. Would they re-grab her by the neck again and try to slice out her heart?

“I don’t even know what I’m supposed to have done.”

The two approached, confirming Jack’s earlier fears. They were very much unharmed. To make matters worse, they seemed to be enjoying themselves.

“That was a really impressive burst from the Harris-kid, wouldn’t you say, Requiem?” Ruin licked his upper lip.

Requiem nodded. “Did you see the way he tried to protect his pig-faced lady friend? Oh, I want him even more now! I can’t wait to see him weep over his first kill. Maybe he’ll cry himself to sleep like our new brother.”

New brother? What’s a ‘new brother’?

The two approached, and Melissa stepped protectively in front of Jack with her hands balled into fists.

“Jack, I’m sorry if I hurt you earlier, but I was so sure that you were this ‘brother’ they keep going on about.”

“I still have no idea what any of this is about, but it’s okay. I forgive you.”

Ruin was now only a footstep away from them, and Jack could see that behind his smile, there was a deep sadness, but it was downplayed by an overwhelming evil. Requiem stood to his side. There was no sadness in her, just a bottomless pit of madness and despair.

“Oh, Ruin, how sweet. Maybe we should just leave them alone after all?”

“Don’t tease them, sister. Let’s kill the girl and take the Harris-boy.”

Melissa did not wait idly for her death. Again, she charged forward, and again she collided into an unseen barrier. Her fist was stopped mid-punch, and she struggled against a force that Jack had no understanding of.

“You’re nothing, child,” Ruin said. “You’re a lifetime too early to take me on.”

Melissa looked up into the murderous, smiling face that would send her to the death, and Jack realized he was powerless to do anything to help her.

“What about me? Am I too early?”

Ruin howled in pain as an enormous fist crashed into his temple, bringing him to his knees. Blood dripped from his nose and mouth as a kick met him in his jaw, sending him scrambling backward.

Standing before them, with a look of outrage on his face, was a large, muscular Japanese man. Tears fell from Melissa’s eyes. “Kazou, you came! You finally came!”

Ruin, losing all composure, screamed at what Jack suspected was the top of his lungs. “Another one comes to die! I’ve had enough of this. I will kill you all and take the Harris-boy.”

Kazou went in for a second attack but stopped in his tracks the moment Requiem placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Did you forget about me? I’m a Telepath, Darling. Right now, you should be losing your will to go on, and fatigue should be filling your muscles.”

Kazou grunted and struggled, but it seemed to be useless. He halted in his tracks and showed no indication of moving again anytime soon.

“Do it now, Ruin.”

Jack stared in horror as a four-foot bar of metal from the jungle gym snapped free of its hinges and sped straight towards the Japanese man. Jack was no metal-scientist, but he didn’t have to be one to know that at the rate it was traveling it would surely kill the man.

Maybe I should be a metal-scientist. At least then, I’d get free metal.

“Kazou, no!” Melissa yelled. She struggled to break free but was still pinned by whatever force Ruin had used against her.

From somewhere out of sight, an even faster piece of a metal, which on closer inspection appeared to be a lead pipe, collided with the first broken piece of jungle gym, and in a shower of sparks both fell lifelessly to the ground.

“Well, well, I reckon things have finally gotten interesting around here. Hey, who is that hotty? She available?” Standing on top of the giant fountain, a man in a cowboy hat waved at the Japanese man.

Where did these guys come from? Jack wondered. And how many of them are metal-scientists?

Ruin and Requiem looked around frantically. The odds were no longer in their favor. With an exhausted grunt, Melissa ripped free of whatever constraints had been holding her and stood up. The Japanese man, too, seemed to be recovering.

Ruin took a few steps back and frowned. “Requiem, we need to leave. We can get the Harris-boy another time.”

The man in the cowboy hat jumped down from the fountain, a distance of at least ten feet, and yet he landed with ease. “Like hell I’m letting them get away.” Both the broken piece of jungle gym and the lead pipe glided along the grass, over Melissa’s broken concrete and into each hand of the man as if pulled by a hidden string. “I’ll bash them over the head until they see stars.”

Ruin and Requiem turned to flee, and the man chased after them.

“Michael, stop this instant!” There was yet another new voice. Jack looked over his shoulder and saw a man with short black hair approach with a woman by his side. They both appeared to be in their mid-twenties.

“We have injured. Do not pursue.”

Michael spat and dropped the two pieces of metal. Appearing to regain himself, he faced Melissa, almost diving to her side.

“You okay, sweetie?”

“Yeah.” She winced as she spoke.

Jack decided to slip away while he had the chance. He got as far as stepping on the nearest twig. The man they called Michael set his gaze upon him.

“And what about you?”

“Umm, I’m just the local metal-scientist. I’m not involved in whatever’s going on here, so if you’ll please just excuse me, I’ll be on my way.”

Michael, the Japanese man, and the two newcomers all shot a look of amazement at Jack and then in unison turned to face Melissa.

“You guys, meet Jack Harris. You know, the boy I’ve been telling you all about?”

As all five people converged on him, one thought stuck out in Jack’s mind.

Well, at least I remembered to TiVo the new episode of Dexter.