AWOL: A Character Lost (16 page)

Danny collected his lunch bag from the fridge, grabbed a soda, and watched the two men argue.

“I think we ought to nuke them all and let their God sort them out,” Mitchell replied, as he made himself a cup of coffee.

“Their God, what do you mean by that?”

“You know what I mean.”

“Nuke em, that’s your party’s answer to everything, isn’t it?”

“It’s the logical choice. What happens if they just want to let the world burn? Have you ever thought of that?”

“They’re not going to do that,” Bobby replied, rolling his eyes.

“Why not?”

“It would mean killing the world they live in as well. Who would want to do that? Who could be filled with so much hatred that they would rather see their world dead than alive? I can’t imagine a soul like that.”

“I can’t imagine it either, but these guys don’t think like you and I. They’ve made their peace, and they are ready to die in a moment’s notice.”

“What happens if we go in there and just light up that part of the world? If we just nuke this entire group? Don’t you think there would be more like them to rise up out of the ashes? This would give others a chance to make this group of terrorists martyrs. Can you imagine what it would be like then?”

“I still say we nuke em. Teach them and the world a lesson. Let everyone know they can’t mess with the old red, white, and blue,” Mitch replied, confident.

“This is a volatile situation. It won’t be answered with just one simple push of a button.”

“Funny thing, we are talking about using violence to stop violence. It seems kind of wrong to me.” The two guys stopped and looked at Danny. Danny looked at them. They had been going on for so long on this conversation that they didn’t even know he was there. “I’m just saying,” Danny replied, not sure if he should join in or not.

“We can’t talk these guys out of this. These aren’t the kind of guys you just talk to and reason with.” Mitchell finished his coffee and grabbed another cup. “So, what’s your take on it?”

“I honestly don’t have an opinion. That’s really the only thought I have on it. The whole thing just scares the hell out of me. What happens if this time is the time? What happens if this is the group that is going to turn the world nuclear?”

“Typical Democrat,” Mitch replied.

Danny didn’t take sides all that often, the best man or woman should always win when it came to politics. That’s the way he looked at it, but if he had to lean, was forced to lean; it would be towards the Democrats. They always seemed to have a well rounded view of the country and the world at large, so this wasn’t an insult.

“I honestly don’t think that will ever happen,” Bobby replied.

“You never know. I’ll let you guys get back to it.” Danny made his exit and left the two guys staring at each other in silence for a moment. As Danny walked down the hall, he heard them start up again.

Danny emerged outdoors seconds later to see that the day was sunny and warm. He ate his lunch, and watched all the college girls frolicking about in their skimpy attire. It was warm days like this that made him happy to be a college professor, hell, it made him happy to be a man.

While he ate, his mind went from the girls to the 5K he had to run tomorrow, which should have been the 10K (6.2 Miles) because he was more than ready for that distance. He figured he would wait and do that race later. Little did he know, on this warm spring Carolina day, that he would never have the chance to run that distance. The world would be in ruins long before he did a 10K race.

A Haiku popped into this head, while he sat there, and he quickly wrote it down.

Blue skies and no clouds

A warm, bright, and beautiful

Carolina Day

He finished his lunch and made his way home to a quiet house, which would be that way until dinner time. Danny watched a movie – Halloween III: Season of the Witch – and relaxed.

Barbara arrived with pizza a little later. The boys came home and ate most of it. Then they all went to their separate corners, to do their separate things. The evening melted into night, and the night into the next day.

*

Danny woke up early and looked towards the window in the bedroom.

It was still dark.

He looked at the clock.

It was almost 5 a.m.

He got up out of bed, as Barbara stirred momentarily, and then fell back asleep. He grabbed his running clothes, and made his way down stairs in just a t-shirt and boxer shorts. He went into the living room and put his running clothes near the other stuff he would need for the race, which he laid out last night, shoes, socks, a water bottle, watch, hat, race bib, safety pins, and snacks.

Confident he was ready; he took a seat in his chair, a big blue cushioned number that had built in leg support with the flip of a lever. A perfect friend for his body when the big game was on or the day was just a little too rough. Today it wasn’t sports that caught his attention, but more talk of the growing controversy in the Middle East. Danny usually didn’t watch the news because it depressed him, but this story was catching his attention more and more these days. He stomached just enough of it in order to get caught up.

TV ANCHOR:

In foreign news today, The Middle East Nuclear Arms Association had more harsh words for not only the United States, who were among the first nations to criticize them, but also for the nations supporting the United States. This group, which the media is now calling T.M.E.N.A.A., promises a reaction soon to the ever growing presence of resistance around them. They released a statement earlier stating that soon all the world will know their power and might. That the world would suffer for their meddling. That it was time to show everyone what they were capable of. The president had this to say when asked about it . . .

Danny turned the channel and found a sitcom worth watching. He settled in and relaxed. After the episode was over, Danny made oatmeal and poured a big glass of water. This was what he ate before he ran in the mornings or before races. He found oatmeal to have the right amount of substance to fill him up, but not weigh him down. Some of his best runs had come after a hot bowl of oats.

Once breakfast was over, and a couple more episodes of the sitcom completed, Danny shut off the TV and prepared for the 5K. He placed the water bottle, watch, hat, and snacks into a bag and put it by the front door with his keys, phone, and wallet on top. The running clothes, shoes, socks, and bib he took with him into the half bath.

Moments later, Barbara’s voice startled him. “Are you about ready to leave?”

Danny turned to see Barbara standing there, sleep like a blanket across her face, eyes drooping, yawning. She was dressed in pajama bottoms and a long sleeve top – one of his old Jimmy Buffett concert shirts. He thought he could just skip the race and have her right then and there. She looked that good. He controlled those urges and pushed them back. He would use that for fuel when the race got a little bit tough.

“What are you doing up?” Danny was almost fully dressed, but he was having trouble with the race bib, which always gave him fits. He could never get it straight across his chest when he did it himself.

“I didn’t want you to leave without saying goodbye and wishing you luck.”

“You really didn’t have to. I know you’re not a morning person.”

She stepped into the bathroom and slid in front of him, butt against the sink. “Who else would fix your bib?” She finished her work, and it was perfectly placed across his chest. “There, all better.”

“Thanks.”

“Nervous?”

“Somewhat. I know I’ve run this distance a couple times before, but I still get the butterflies before I go. I think it might be the crowds. So many people just gathered in one spot. It’s intimidating.”

“You know, you have about fifteen minutes before you have to leave.”

“I can’t. I need my energy. It helps, believe me.”

“Are you sure?” She leaned over and kissed his neck, his ear, and then his lips. He returned the kiss with passion, and she returned it back. Danny could feel himself getting larger in the shorts. Man he wanted her so bad.

“Just a little,” Barbara replied, as she slid her hand down inside his shorts and grabbed it, massaged it, encouraged it.

She really wasn’t playing fair, and Danny, of course, was done for. He couldn’t help it. This time he was going to have to break his no sex before a race rule. He slid his shorts down, revealing himself to the bathroom (running shorts are a lot like swimming trunks with a mesh lining inside so you don’t have to wear underwear), and to Barbara. She slid off the sink and slipped off her bottoms. She then jumped back up onto the sink and opened her legs. A second later Danny was kissing her and she was guiding him inside.

It took about six minutes to complete.

They cleaned up and dressed.

“That was fun,” Danny replied.

“Sorry if it messed you up today. It just seemed like -”

“The perfect moment, I know. We don’t get them as much as we use to.”

“After twenty years of marriage, you take it when it presents itself.”

“I better go.”

“I’ll see you to the door.”

They walked out of the bathroom hand in hand. At the door she kissed him long and deep, he returned it.

“I love you,” he replied.

“Love you.”

He collected his stuff and made his way out to the car.

Barbara thought about going back to bed, but decided against it. The kids weren’t up yet, so she thought a good cup of coffee and a TV show would be better than sleep. She went into the kitchen and got her day started.

*

Danny arrived at the 5K, which was being held in Cary, NC, and it seemed to him that this town always had a big turn out when it came to running races. He had run a few other races in a few other spots; but this town, when it held a race, it really brought out the crowds. Today was no different.

Danny parked his car, turned off the engine, and sat there a moment. He said a silent prayer, checked his nerves, and stepped out of the car.

The brisk morning air hit him all at once. He rubbed his arms, stretched his legs, and tried to warm up. He then fought the crowd to the start/finish line.

This area was set across a road, which ran between two large brick buildings. This created a wind tunnel effect, which only increased the cold of the morning. Danny shivered and ran in place to stay loose and warm, trying to slip his mind into race mode. He watched the countdown clock clicking down with big red numbers. He felt his nerves tighten, as he looked down to make sure the timing chip was tight on his shoe. It was.

The race started, the runners bunched, and filed through the tight start/finish line.

Danny started out slow, letting the pack go ahead; time was no issue for him. He just wanted to run and enjoy it.

Mile 1:

Danny’s legs were tight and hurting. His shins were also screaming at him because he didn’t warm up enough. He thought about stopping because of the pain. He pushed on.

Mile 2:

Warming up, and his legs were starting to feel good. Shin pain was going away. He was also starting to pass people, a good sign; maybe his time wouldn’t be so bad.

Mile 3:

Still passing people and now on pace for a 25 minute run. His legs and body were warm, and he was feeling great. He could see the end.

Mile .1:

Believe it or not, this is the hardest part to run in a 5K. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that you have crossed 3 miles, and you think that should have ended it. Your body and your mind start shutting down, you start running out of steam, and you just don’t think you can go on, but you have to somehow find a way to keep moving forward. That was what Danny did. He pushed hard, passed more people, and crossed the finish line just under 25 minutes. Not a personal best, but close. It was a nice way to leave it, because this would be the last race he would run while the Earth was still clean and green.

Danny came to a slow jog, stopping long enough to let someone take the chip off his shoe. He made his way over to the concession area, grabbed a piece of bread, a banana, and water since his hand held bottle was empty. From there, he made his way over to the car, ate and stretched then slid behind the wheel. He left the race and headed home.

Danny turned into his driveway and pushed the button on the garage door opener. He sat there a moment and let the door roll itself up. He noticed his wife’s car was gone, which was odd because he didn’t know she had anywhere to be this morning.

He looked at the dashboard clock.

It was just after 11 A.M.

He pulled his car into the garage, turned off the engine, and got out. He fumbled for his keys and made his way inside.

“Hello,” he asked, no one answered.

The house was empty and silent.

Danny stripped off some of his running gear (watch, hat) and left them by the door. Then he went up to the master bedroom and took a shower.

He toweled off, put on a pair of jeans, and a Jimmy Buffett concert shirt. He then went to the kitchen for some food. That’s when he saw the note.

Danny picked it up and read it.

Johnny was riding his bike this morning when a car spooked him. He swerved to miss it, but wound up taking out several garbage cans and a mailbox when he did. He’s okay, but I had to rush him to the emergency room, just to be on the safe side. Michael is out with friends and should be back later. Enjoy the silence. – love, me.

Danny tossed the note and made a sandwich. He popped open a bag of chips, and grabbed a soda.

“I enjoyed your race.”

Danny had his food and soda in hand when the voice snuck up on him from behind. He nearly dropped everything, but managed to hold on long enough to get his meal safely onto the counter. Danny turned around, knowing who it was before he made the turn.

“You have a nice running form. You make it look easy,” the red haired guy replied. He was wearing khaki pants, collared shirt, and sandals. It was sort of an odd mixture of attire, but it seemed to work.

“First my garage, now you’re in my house.”

“We just need to talk some more.”

“I haven’t said anything about our meeting. So why are you bothering me now?”

“I need to prepare you for the next step.”

“Next step?”

“In human evolution.”

“Can I eat first?”

“Please do.”

Danny collected his food and drink and made his way into the dining room. He sat down, and so did the red haired guy.

“What’s their deal?” Danny asked, pointing towards three others, standing just outside the room. It was like they wanted to be hidden and known at the same time.

“The shadows,” the red haired guy replied.

“Original.”

“We don’t have time to come up with clever names. We just call it like we see it. They are of no importance to you. Just think of them as dark angels, here for only my protection.”

“Protection?”

“Let’s just leave it where I left it. Okay.”

Danny did, and started to eat, quieting the growl in his stomach. “You got me, now speak.”

“I have to give you credit for not calling the number on the card. It shows tremendous will power.”

“I kind of just filed it away like a bad dream.”

“We appreciate that. A lot of the others we’ve contacted already have tried to call the number. They get nothing of course. The number won’t be activated until the proper time.”

“Wait, what – others?” Danny nearly choked on his sandwich asking this question.

“We’ve assigned roles and picked out those we think will be worthy of existence in the next life. We’ve had to be selective because we won’t have room for the entire human population. We will only have enough space for a few. It will be up to them to carry on the human race.”

Danny put down his sandwich. This was just a little much to take while eating his roast beef and cheese. “First off, before you fuck me buy me dinner first; and, second, can you tell me just what in the hell you’re talking about? You come into my home. You invade my life, and then you start rambling on about stuff like this. Maybe I should just ask you to leave? Maybe I should call the cops? How would you like that?”

The shadows inched forward, ready to protect, the red haired guy motioned them back. They slid back into their non hiding spots.

“I understand your concern.”

“Do you?”

“I know this is a lot to take in, and it will be hard to wrap your mind around all the stuff I have to tell you, but you will have to try,” the red haired guy replied, trying to keep the situation calm. “The important thing is that we get you to the next level with as much knowledge as you will need.”

Danny sat there and focused on his food, tried to let everything he was just told sink in. Should he believe this guy or shouldn’t he? He didn’t just didn’t know.

“Who do you work for?”

“The government, of course, but we aren’t known. You wouldn’t be able to find us even if we had a name.” The red haired guy cleared his throat and without Danny noticing, he motioned to one of the shadow people. The shadow guy began to creep forward, undetected. “One other thing before I go. It is important. I’ve told the others, to keep an eye on the situation in the Middle East. This is your clock and the alarm you will wake up to.”

The shadow man moved up behind Danny and gave him a little jolt to the neck, just a little prick of something, strong enough to knock him out. Danny fell forward into his plate. The red haired guy turned Danny’s head so he could breath, his head resting on the sandwich like a pillow.

That’s the way Barbara found him about an hour later.

She helped him lift his head off the plate, a head which had a slice of bread sticking to it – mayo exposed to the world. She took off the bread and placed it back onto the half-eaten sandwich. Barbara looked down at Johnny, who had a small bandage over his right eye and a couple of bruises on his face. Other than that, Johnny seemed to be okay. “Why don’t you go and play.”

“Is dad okay?”

“I’m okay. Listen to your mom and go play.”

“Fine.” Johnny left in a huff, hating to be excluded from whatever it was his parents were going to talk about.

Barbara waited till the front door slammed shut. When she was sure they were alone, she looked down at Danny, still groggy, still waking up. “Two times I’ve found you like this.” Barbara sat down at the table beside him. She stroked his hair while she talked. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”

Danny thought about the red haired guy, the card, and everything else he had learned from this strange stranger. Should he tell her anything or just play it up? He wasn’t sure, but he knew he had to say something, so he could calm her worried mind. “I think it was just the run today. It got me kind of tired.”

“So tired you fell asleep on your roast beef and cheese?”

“The week’s been kind of long too, a lot on my mind.”

Barbara got up and went into the kitchen. Danny could hear the water running and waited for her to come back. On her way back, she started to talk to him. “Have you been keeping up with this stuff in the Middle East?” She took a seat at the table.

Danny looked at his sandwich and decided to skip it. Having his face planted in it killed that part of his appetite. He munched on the chips and drank the soda while he talked to Barbara. “It sounds kind of scary.”

“What if you’re right this time? That maybe this one is for real. That maybe this group actually will set the world on fire,” Barbara replied, stealing a few chips.

“I’m sure it’s nothing, just another group trying to earn some respect with idle threats,” Danny replied, the red haired guy flashed across his mind, the information he just learned slamming hard into his brain.

“So, how was the run?” Barbara asked, switching to a more pleasant subject.

Danny was glad she shifted gears. He loved talking about running, and it allowed him to focus on something else. “It was good, almost got a personal best.”

“Really, that’s great!”

“I was more than happy with it.”

Silence for a moment as Danny finished his chips and drink. “At least Johnny is okay,” Danny chimed in, breaking the silence.

“He had me scared, real scared. I heard the crash from inside the house.”

“Really?”

“I was in the kitchen when I heard this loud bang. Johnny came running into the house with a stream of blood running down his face. I dropped everything. I wrote the note quick and rushed him off to the emergency room.”

“Didn’t you say a car spooked him?”

“Johnny said it was a big black government looking car.”

“You don’t say.”

“This car came from out of nowhere, it spooked him, and he tried to avoid it. That’s when he wiped out. ”

“How would he know what one of those cars look like?”

“Video games, TV shows, kids know,” Barbara replied.

Danny thought about it for a moment. Red haired guy in his house, strange government kind of car lurking about, Johnny’s accident, was it all a coincidence or part of a bigger plan? He just wasn’t sure.

“I need to go and get some stuff done. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine Barb. Go do what you got to do. I just need some rest.”

She took his dish and trash, kissed him, and then left the dining room. Danny sat there a moment longer before getting up and leaving himself.

The day drifted forward in a lazy way.

Evening arrived and folded itself into night.

*

Danny woke up the next morning around 5 A.M. He looked over at the window and the darkness, which was still stretched across it like a thick fabric. He lay there a moment and listened to the ticking clock. He could feel the effects of the 5K, lingering in his body, as he rolled over and sat up.

Barbara stirred beside him and then fell back asleep.

Danny sat there a moment, and thought about the run he had planned with Barry later on that morning. He really wasn’t feeling it today, but Barry had just started running so it should be a rather easy outing for him. It would probably be a lot of stopping and starting.

Danny got out of bed, dressed in his pajama pants and nothing else. He walked across the room, grabbed his shirt, and slipped out into the hallway.

He pulled his shirt over his head as he descended the stairs. He wasn’t quite ready to eat, so he slipped into his favorite chair and turned on his computer – a small tablet that was perfect for searching the internet. He logged into his blog and checked to see if he had any comments or likes on last night’s post, nothing much, which was typical. His blog wasn’t all that popular.

He had written about his run the previous day and he had hoped for a little more interaction. To say he was a little disappointed would be an understatement. He left his blog and moved on to the other blogs he followed. One of them had posted something that looked like a kid had put it together in two minutes, and it had 60 likes and 100 comments. The post showed a cartoon stick figure of a guy sitting on a toilet and the caption below it read –
“Sit Happens!”

Danny threw up his hands in disgust. He had taken so much time to orchestrate his running post that he thought it would shine, but that’s the way it went in the blogging world most days. The best posts sometimes got swallowed up by pure drivel.

5:45 A.M. and Danny was done with blogging. He logged off and thought about turning on the TV, but decided against it. There was nothing much on at this time of day. Instead, he went into the kitchen and made a small breakfast – good hot oats – getting him ready for his run. The body responded to this healthy fuel and started to wake up.

6:04 A.M. and his stomach was full, he was ready for his run, plenty of time to stretch, let his food digest, and get ready to go. It was going to be another cool morning, so he dressed in the appropriate attire, long sleeve wick away shirt, shorts, hat, and a few other basic accessories.

6:30 A.M. and the Subaru was running, waiting for Danny to leave. He backed the car out of the driveway and off to the Tobacco Trail he went.

*

In case you don’t live in the Raleigh/Durham area, the Tobacco Trail is a nature trail carved out of an abandoned rail line. They took up the rail road tracks, so now it is a nice soft surface to exercise on. Most runners like it because it is good on the knees, and it gets you off the hard surfaces, which permeate most neighborhoods and cities these days. The trail winds across roads, through woods, and swamps. It is full of nature’s beauty, and it is somewhat peaceful, if it isn’t too crowded with people. However, if you are out there by yourself and no one is around, then it can get kind of spooky. The isolation can and will let your imagination run wild. It’s hard not to look through the canopy of trees and see something foul and evil coming after you. Maybe that’s just me. Now let’s get on back to the story.

*

Danny pulled up to the traffic light and stopped the car when the light turned red. He banged his head to a heavy beat as Municipal Waste poured out of the speakers, a new band, and one he was starting to get hooked on, because they sounded a lot like old school Anthrax. While he was jamming, something caught his eye, just to his right. It was that strange old man again, the one he saw a few days ago, the one who was at least eighty, with the scraggly beard, and unkempt and unwashed hair.

Danny’s eyes went from the man to the sign on his chest. This time the sign didn’t just say something about the end of times. This time the sign had Danny’s name written on it, and below his name were the words:

Your Time Is Up,

Prepare For The End

Danny looked from the sign to the guy’s face, and it changed while he looked at it. The guy’s face blurred out, and then three faces formed in its place.

On one side there was a dark and demonic face with two piercing red eyes. On the other side was a light brown and angelic face with eyes a sharp piercing blue. In the middle was the face of the red haired guy. He winked at Danny, and the three faces flashed out.

The light changed.

Danny looked up at the green ball and then back at the man. The old guy was back to normal, and the sign no longer had his name on it. It just said “The End Is Near.”

Danny drove on, glancing in the mirror several times, until the old guy was no longer in sight.

He arrived at the Tobacco Trail promptly at 7 that morning; and, for a Sunday, it was packed. “Guess nobody goes to church these days,” Danny thought, as he found a place to park.