Cold Hard Magic (5 page)

Joan sighed. "Just my luck," she complained. "I finally got you to give up that nasty habit and now we have a poltergeist because of it.”

Carl nodded at that. "Yuup."

"Is there anything at all we can do that doesn't involve tobacco smoke?"

"Tobacco might be the simplest solution," Rob said giving Joan an apologetic shrug. He ignored Carl's twitching mouth. "But I can contact Dennis Stensen and describe the situation, if you want?”

Joan nodded enthusiastically. Carl scowled.

“He'd have to come all the way from Pennsylvania," Rob continued. "So it might take a while, but I will email him and see if he is interested.”

“We've heard of Dr. Stensen," Joan whispered. "He's the foremost expert in his field of the paranormal.” Her eyes glittered with excitement. "We saw him in your show."

Rob nodded. “Sure is, and in high demand. But you have a condition here that I think could warrant his interest and entice him into coming up to investigate.”

Rob scribbled on his notebook. It was really a great reason to get Dennis back on his show. Maybe even, talk to him about that glowing doe.

“Say," he said looking up. "Have you ever heard of a glow in the dark deer?”

Joan and Carl both paused for a moment, looked at each other then back at Rob. Joan seemed speechless for the first time since Rob arrived.

"You mean like Christmas decorations?" Carl finally asked.

"No," Rob shook his head. "Like a real live animal. All normal and like but it glows."

"Does it glow in the day or night?" Carl asked.

"Well, at night. I guess."

"There's no such thing as glowing animals, dear," Joan said.

"Actually, there are several species of fish that posses a protein—"

"But that's a fish not an animal," she pointed out.

“Strontium Aluminate!” Carl blurted out. “It comes in those glow sticks.”

Rob's head tilted to the side as the thought about it. “Ahh, yeeahh.”

“Some kids they break up those glow sticks and spray it around.” Joan said with a knowing motherly look. “Kids do silly pranks and so on.”

“Probably put some on that poor deer," Carl said. "Then you happened to come along.”

“That could… explain it," Rob said. He thought back on that night.

If it had been paint, it would have ended up in his hands or at least his coat since the doe had been so affectionate. But his coat hadn't glowed afterwards and he certainly hadn't. He looked up to see that the Hendersons were expecting something more from him.

"That’s a keen idea there, Mr. Hendeson,” Rob said with a nod.

“Nothing unusual about it," Joan said. "Some things are just explainable when you put your mind to it. The simplest explanation is usually the right one.”

Carl turned to his wife, his brow furrowed.

She looked up at him with a confident smile and nodded. "Right, Carl?"

He nodded slowly. "Yuuup."

“Well," Rob said, his eyes bouncing between both of the Hendersons, "I have enough here about your potential poltergeist.”

Joan bobbed her head. "That's wonderful, dear." She walked out of the room and down the stairs with a definite bounce on her step. “We appreciate you coming over, Rob," she said over her shoulder. "I just knew you would be the one to help.”

“You have a mighty interesting case here, Mrs. Henderson," Rob said as he climbed down the stairs.

Carl Henderson snorted behind him.

"Joan, please," she chided. "After this whole thing, I feel like we are practically family." She beamed.

"Joan," Rob said, a smile lighting up his features. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention.”

The couple walked with Rob to the front door and waved as he pulled out of their drive.

The sky was darkening as Rob drove home with only half a mind on the task at hand. He had started thinking about the Henderson's —
nice couple —
and their problem, which he had a nagging suspicion might not be much of a problem, after all.

But it would still be really be great if Dennis was able to make it down for another show. They always had the most interesting conversions. Rob smiled.

That made him think of Nancy.

His smile broadened. She was such an incredible girl. Smart, funny, sweet. Just…incredible. He couldn't wait to see her again tonight. They had spent the whole afternoon yesterday just chatting away like old friends. They eventually chatted long enough to grab a mall dinner and that's when he decided to take a chance and ask her on a real date.

Rob looked down at his clothes. He was glad he was wearing his nice jeans since the appointment with the Henderson's went long. There was really no time to go home and changed. He looked back up onto the road and slammed the breaks.

The doe
.

Rob stared at the doe, in all her glowing beauty, simply standing in the middle of the 810 looking back at him.

"You are definitely, not coated with paint," Rob murmured, leaning his chin on the steering wheel.

The doe tapped her hoof on the asphalt and shook her head. Then again.

"Now, don’t you worry," Rob said. "You can go about your business and I won't get in your way."

He recognized the futility of talking to an animal from within the confines of the truck, but he didn’t want to startle her so he stayed put. The truck idled in the middle of the highway until the doe finally moved.

Rob shook his head, wishing he'd thought of taking a picture with his phone.

The doe bounded off the highway and into a nearby grove of trees. Rob shook his head and put the truck back in gear, but before he released the clutch, something made him look back the way the doe had gone.

He had expected to see darkness, but the doe was there looking back at him. She moved a few steps then turned back to look at him. She was going the opposite direction from Nancy's and if he followed — because now he was mighty interested — he'd definitely be late for his date.

He decided.

“Nancy won’t be too upset if I am a few minutes late.”

Releasing the clutch, he pulled the truck to the shoulder and turned on his hazard lights just in case. He grabbed his coat with the trusty compass and locked the truck. Palming the phone in his pocket, he was confident that he'd have the proof he'd need to take to Professor Wallenstein.

It wasn't hard to follow her. If anything, she was glowing even brighter than before. Rob barely contained his excitement. He even fumbled with the phone camera, trying to get a picture but somehow the lighting was just off and he couldn't get a clear picture. He put the phone back in his pocket. Deciding to wait instead of fiddling with the settings. For all he knew, the doe was taking him to a herd of glowing deer and he'd have plenty of time to take pictures then.

The wooded area eventually thinned, leading Rob to a rural part of town he wasn't familiar with. The doe suddenly burst into a run, forcing Rob to catch up. He burst out into a clearing and definitely someone's property as evidenced by the barn several feet away.

Rob sighed. "So much for the herd of glowing deer."

He shook his head. With heavy steps, he headed for the doe now dancing in front of the red barn door.

"Is this your home, girl?" Rob asked as he neared the doe. Hand outstretched he reached for the doe's head. "Did someone paint you, then locked you out?"

The doe butted at his hand and tapped a hoof on the ground.

"That certainly explains why you're so tame," he said. He shook his head, hoping Nancy was not going to be too angry at him being so late. The latch lifted and Rob pulled at the door, making room for the doe to enter, but she remained still.

"Go on, girl," he urged. "I'm late enough as it is."

The doe simply stared at the inside of the barn.

Rob leaned around the door and peeked.

The man was tall and stout. A true farmer's built that no amount of gym could replicate without the help of steroids. But it wasn't the man that mad Rob pause. It was the girl struggling against the ropes that that her holding her down on top of the sturdy wooden table. That and the axe the man was absently tapping against his worn denim overalls.

The doe forgotten, Rob stepped into the barn.

"Excuse me," he said, his eyes focusing on the axe.

The man turned and his eyes widened.

"Mr. Rumhilde?"

“Rob?" Mr. Rumhilde said. The wildness in his eyes clearing. "Rob from Cold Hard Facts?” He nodded and smiled, clearly relieved. “I remember you from your show. My wife watched it, before…”

A wan smile ghosted across his lips. Rob moved forward.

“Yes sir, that's me,” Rob said, taking another cautious step. "What are you doing, Mr. Rumhilde?"

Rob's eyes flitted over the woman on the table. That dropping sensation Rob always loved in the carnival rides immobilized him as tear stained brown eyes pleaded with him to help. It looked like he wasn't all that late for his date with Nancy after all.

Rob forced himself to remain calm. “Why did you hurt her, Mr. Rumhilde?”

“It’s not what you think, Rob," Rumhilde answered conversationally. "You see, she isn’t human. None of them are. You understand, don’t you?”

Rob glanced down at the axe and knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that no drifter had hacked Mrs. Rumhilde to death.

“They replace ‘em, you see," Rumhilde continued. "You get it, don’t you, Rob?" He turned, looking expectantly. The unnatural shine was slowly returning to his eyes and Rob took an inadvertent step backwards.

Rumhilde looked down at Nancy. His face crumbled. "They replaced my wife," choked out. "And this one too, maybe." He caressed Nancy's hair. "I loved her, you know, but the safety of the planet is more important. You understand what I mean, don’t you?”

“Mr. Rumhilde," Rob said, shaking his head slowly. "I don’t think so. I think you're not all there. I'm going to call the police and they are going to take you to a place where they can fix you.”

Rob reached inside his jacket and pulled out his phone. For an older man, Rumhilde was still quick. He closed the distance between them while Rob fiddled with his phone. A hand snaked out and knocked the phone into a pile of old tools.

Rob watched as his phone bounced off a myriad of old, rusty, scary sharp tools. His eyes widened. When did farming become so scary?

"If you're not with me," Rumhilde said. "Then you're against me."

Rob turned and ducked just in time to avoid the axe that came perilously close to his ear.

"Mr. Rumhilde," Rob yelled as he ducked behind a post. "We need to talk."

"All you do is talk," Rumhilde yelled. "Talk, talk but you don't see what's right in front of you!" He swung his axe again, missing his target but imbedding it into the post.

Rob saw his chance and leapt, pushing Rumhilde away from Nancy. Momentum carried them several feet across the barn and to the floor. Rob threw, but ultimately held back as he punched the older man. Despite the danger and the fact that Rumhilde was quite bigger, he just didn’t have it in him to actually hurt anyone.

Rumhilde apparently held no similar compunction. He wrestled with Rob until gaining the upper hand. Meaty fists the size of a brick house and just as hard, hit Rob until he saw stars. He barely noticed when the larger man got off him.

"You stay put," Rumhilde ordered Rob. "I have nuttin' against you." He walked up to the axe and tried to pull it free. "You aren't one of them. They just have you enchanted."

The axe didn't budge and Rumhilde spit at it in disgust, before heading for the farm tools.

Rob blinked the stars away and rose to his elbows to watch Rumhilde.

"I'm going to save you," he continued while rummaging through the tools, "and the world." He got up and turned with a wickedly sharp scythe in his hands. "All I have to do is kill her," he nodded to Nancy, "and the rest of her kind."

Rob pushed himself up to a sitting position, then on to one knee.

“You stay right there,” Rumhilde said, pointing at Rob. "This has to be done and I have the means to do it. Soon you'll be free like me." He moved towards Nancy.

"This is your fault," he told Nancy. “You come my around my place today, asking questions about my wife. I didn’t kill her. The aliens did. I just got rid of the replacement they put in her place. Now I have to get rid of you, too."

Nancy shook her head, tears streaming and pleading with her eyes as she tried to scoot out of reach.

"Can’t you see I am saving the world?" He shook his head. "But you're just one of them, aren't you? Come accuse me of murdering my wife when she's already been dead by your kind. Using some evil witching spells. All that nonsense you girls were doing and got my wife involved in. It's that nonsense that got her killed. And now I'm going to finish this."