First Born (11 page)

Frank’s locked computer screen substantiated this. The odds were better that she could figure out Larry’s password. Larry used the kitchen desk. Lily sat in an upholstered chair staring at his laptop screen. She attempted words related to cartoons and musical references. Nothing was working, not even “Celine.” Just for kicks, she typed “Tashi.”
Bingo. What a dear, sweet man.

She perused the articles online to find out the latest information on her case. Mona’s obituary caught her eye. Mona Sinclair had freelanced for several children’s magazines including
Spider Magazine
and
Wee Ones.
Her picture books were about various jungle animals. She won the Mulberry Award for her book titled
The Littlest One.
The police were still investigating the circumstances of her death.

Lily scrolled back to the article about herself. Police had recovered her laptop from her silver Volkswagen bug. A warm blush spread across her cheeks when she thought about someone seeing her emails.

How much more humiliation could she withstand? Everyone knew she had “parked” behind a high school with a guy she met online. She continued down the article. Rage made her see black. A scraping like nails on a chalkboard drew her eyes down to the desk surface. Long claws dug into the wood. Her claws. She closed her eyes to bring her heart rate and breathing down.

Peeking through one eye, she looked down to see her regular, slender hand hovering above deep grooves in Larry’s desk.
WTF?
She swept curls of wood shavings into the wastebasket. The etchings in the mahogany looked like someone had used an awl. Guilt wouldn’t fix the blemish. She grabbed a notepad to cover the spot.

Lily breathed and relaxed the muscles in her body so she could look back up at the screen.

Phil Miller smiled from the pages of the
AJC
online. The headline: “Miller Tormented by Gruesome Attack.” Phil had suffered a concussion, lacerations to his chest and three broken ribs. Investigators stated that he had fallen from the crossbeam of the uprights of the high school goal post. Doctors noted injuries could have been more severe if he had tensed during the fall. He hadn’t since he was unconscious. He was under the care of behavioral health specialists. At the end of the article, the writer speculated whether or not Lily was somehow the cause of this vicious attack and questioned her mental stability after the death of her boyfriend. Lily took five deep cleansing breaths so she wouldn’t punch the screen. Glancing at the clock, she realized it was time to leave.

She left the house with the red wig in place. Her anger fueled each step she took. When she was halfway to Piedmont Park, it occurred to her that she had walked out of the boys’ front door as a human. She prayed no one saw her. How would her two friends explain the strange redheaded woman?

Her mind, reeling with images of Peter, Phil, and her monstrous wings, she almost walked past Seth. The look on his face, snapped her out of her funk. The muscles of his face froze in alarm. When he sat on the park bench, he chose the very edge like he feared she carried the Plague. “What’s your problem,” she growled.

He exhaled, before scooting closer to her.

“Nice disguise,” he said.

She glanced down at her pink mini dress and clear plastic flip-flops. She wasn’t winning any fashion awards.

“Yeah, thanks for all the stuff, except the dorky fanny pack.”

“It was the best I could do. You should be more appreciative. It took me forever to sew through that thick material and I pricked my finger a gazillion times.” He turned his head suddenly, looking behind him, in front of him and from side-to-side again.

“Geez Seth, don’t have kittens!”

He whipped his head back toward her. His eyes squinted in disgust. “I think someone is following me.” He kept his head still this time as his eyes scanned the park. A cool chill slid down Lily’s back. She followed his gaze, surveying the tennis bunnies running back and forth in their pastel skirts. A renegade black lab pissed on a Trek bike that leaned against a Dogwood tree.

“Cops?” she asked.

“I don’t think so,” he said. His mouth hung open.

Her long exhalation of frustration finally brought his eyes back to hers.

“I think we might be in danger.” He stretched his arms in front of him, splaying his fingers before planting them on his knees.

Lily rolled her eyes. She had dealt with the dead boyfriend and neighbor. She had been assaulted and turned into a mutant. Now she was dealing with her brother whose possibly well-warranted paranoia had taken control of him.

“Okay, Seth why are we in danger?” He stared at her, silent. She heard the tennis balls bouncing across the way followed by the ping of the racquet’s contact. Cries of joy and toddler woe reached them, but Seth held her captive.

“I think someone killed Peter and your neighbor.”

“Thanks for clearing that up, Miss Marple,” she replied.

“I know you always suspected there was more to Peter’s death. That it was no accident. But now with your neighbor, it’s just too much of a coincidence,” he said.

“And?”

“And just from a proximity standpoint, you’re next.” He bounced his left knee, shaking the bench.

“Well if it was Phil, then we don’t need to worry. I’m hoping they keep him in the looney bin for a while,” she said with genuine malice.

Seth looked skeptical, “I don’t know if it has anything to do with him, Lily.” He chewed his bottom lip. “By the way, they showed pictures from his attack. You really do that?”

She didn’t look at him. “I’m afraid so.” She had always been a nonviolent person except for her recent fascination with cage fighting.

“Seth, I need some help here. Please tell me you talked to Mr. Liu.”

He nodded.

“So?”

“He was okay.” Seth looked down at his legs stretched out before him.

“Okay? You want to elaborate a bit?”

“I’m not sure he is trustworthy.”

“Dad trusted him. As far as we know he’s kept that secret for years.”

“Yeah, Dad trusted him, but Dad is dead. And that
secret
should have been shared with the people it affected most.”

“What are you saying?”

“I don’t know. He just gave me the creeps. He started out all friendly, but he was examining me.” Seth squirmed on the bench.

“Well if you were acting anything like you are now then I don’t blame him.”

Seth caught her eyes and didn’t blink.

“Perhaps he didn’t know what kind of animal he was dealing with. For all he knew, he was sitting across from the elusive Big Foot. You’re not Sasquatch are you, Seth?”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Lily,” he said folding his arms across his chest. Paranoid, she stared him down. He wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“Then what’s your hang up with him?”

“He initially wanted to help, but I got the feeling he wasn’t telling me everything. He wants me to train with him at his martial arts studio in Kennesaw.”

“Good.”

“Good? Do I look like the Karate Kid?”

“You can earn his trust and learn about this shifting,” she said, exasperated.

“Maybe you should do it!” he said.

“Gee, I don’t know Seth. I think that might blow my cover.”

Edgy, she wiggled her flip-flops back on to her feet before standing up to walk away. Seth followed, but then hung back; perhaps suspicious she may pop out a wing in the middle of the park.

The seething look she sent him pushed his legs to do double time to catch up with her.

“What did he tell you?” she probed.

“Waipo knew about Dad, Mom doesn’t,” he blurted. Their grandmother had always been a mystery to them.

“Weird. How is that even possible?”

“No idea,” he said. “He thought Waipo talked to us at Dad’s funeral about his condition in case either one of us had a similar situation.”

“It would have been helpful for someone to have clued us in,” she quipped.

“I explained to him that we really didn’t know Waipo and that Mom told us she was crazy.”

“Maybe Mom’s the crazy one,” she retorted.

“I’m starting to think you’re right.”

“Did Mr. Liu tell you anything we haven’t already figured out?”

“Dad had an easier time shifting at night and he shifted on a daily basis, otherwise he got headaches. He used deep breathing and relaxation to control it,” he offered. Seth glanced at her, apparently reluctant to be the bearer of bad news in her current state.

“What?”

“It’s permanent, Lily.”

“I know.” She looked off toward the Atlanta skyline. Symphony Tower seemed to be mocking her as it had the night of Phil’s attack. Two glass fins topped the forty-one story skyscraper and lit up at night redolent of Gotham City. Today they looked like wings.

She could feel his eyes on her. Looking anywhere but at him, she gazed up at a bronze statue looming about fifteen yards in front of them—it was the Civil War monument of the winged goddess, “Peace,” announcing the South’s surrender and ordering a Confederate soldier to lay down his weapon.
I’m surrounded
.

Blowing out a stream of hot air, she plopped down on a nearby bench. “Seth?”

“Yeah.”

“The wings really petrified me this morning.” Her voice was quivering and she began to sniffle. He searched his pockets for a tissue, but came up with a gum wrapper.

“Mr. Liu said he didn’t know of anyone that could shift into multiple creatures,” he mumbled while shoving the wrapper back into his pocket.

“But he was aware of others out there like Dad and me?” she asked in surprise.

“He was very elusive about that, but yes, said there were others.”

“I know one thing; I’ll never look at a dog the same way again.” She tried to laugh.

“Or a bird,” said Seth staring at the statue. He stretched his hands out in front of him as if admiring his manicure. Lily noted that he had finally stopped biting his nails.

“I wasn’t a bird, I just had wings,” she said, hoping to avoid the maelstrom of emotions threatening to take hold of her. She couldn’t bring herself to mention the fangs.

He was silent.

She stood up again. “Let’s get away from here,” she said, shaking her arms as if they had been asleep. Lily walked down the path with Seth in tow.

They came to a stop on the bridge overlooking Lake Clara Meer. The view was straight out of a Monet painting. Pink and white petals from dogwood trees swirled ethereally on the sparkling blue surface. A group of ducks swam and sunned themselves on the bank.
Great, more wings.

As they approached, the ducks went into a quacking frenzy. One duck hissed their way before launching into the sky, pulling the whole flock with him.

Seth gasped while stretching his neck up. “Remind me not to take you duck hunting.”

“Go piss up a rope.”

“I don’t know why you’re so upset. It seems like you’re making progress.”

Nostrils flared, she turned to him, “Progress?”

“Let’s face it, a Shih Tzu is kinda wimpy, but a
flying
Shih Tzu is sic.”

“Are you baked?”

He stretched his fingers again before rolling his neck. She hadn't noticed this nervous tic before.

“Sorry, Seth. I shouldn’t lash out at you. I just want my normal body back. And for the record, I was not a dog with wings, just me with wings.”

He chewed his lip while he considered her.

“Maybe I should go to the police,” she said.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” His pupils dilated.

“I’m desperate Seth. What’s the worst that could happen?”

“Really bad science experiments!” His face flushed. His hands curled into fists.

“Okay. Chill. I wasn’t going to turn myself in, just make a phone call to that Simms guy.”

“I’ll go train with Mr. Liu,” he said, “ask him more questions. We’ll figure something out.”

“Okay.” For the life of her, she couldn’t figure out why he looked terrified. They had circled back by the tennis courts. “I’m hungry.”

Seth seemed to recover from his anger. “I have enough time; why don’t we grab some pizza? Reggie will cover me.”

With the windows down, they cruised up Piedmont Avenue bobbing their heads to Seth’s Ludacris CD. He took her by the Walgreen’s Pharmacy first and waited in the car while she ran inside. She snatched a big Sweet Leaf iced tea/lemonade from the fridge and Twizzlers from the candy aisle. The underwear aisle was her next destination. With a sigh, she added the high-waisted granny panties to her stash. Seth ran into Ace Hardware next door to make a copy of the key and find Super Glue.

After splitting a carnivore pizza between the two of them, Seth drove the car back to the Manor. They shared the tea and gorged on Twizzlers as he drove. Lily let out a belch that rattled the windows. Seth swerved, barely missing a minivan.

“What the heck was that?”

“Excuse me,” she said giggling.

Eyes bugged out, he stared at her as if trying to gauge what kind of creature lurked within. His hair stood on end. Honestly, having her brother regard her with fear and awe was the ultimate ego boost.

When he turned the corner on to the Prado Northeast, he slowed the car. A white minivan sat out front. Lily gasped when she saw a dog handler with a bloodhound searching the periphery of the Manor’s front lawn.

“Fuuuuuuuck,” Seth said. “Get down.” Seth pulled into the driveway of a house about five houses down and across from the Manor. Lily’s knees hit the glove box when she slid down in the seat.

“What’s going on?” she whispered.

“I can’t see from here,” he complained.

“Let’s not panic,” she said, tasting the carnivore pizza again. Her stomach gurgled.

Seth looked at her. “Don’t. Burp.”

Her brother checked the side mirror and rearview mirror. He put his cell phone to his mouth and pretended he was talking to someone. She caught on and handed him a map from the side pocket of his truck door. Hopefully no one was looking out the windows of the home in front of them. If they were, Seth was just some guy lost in Ansley Park with a map spread out on the dash.

He stopped talking suddenly and swallowed. “Oh, fuck me running.”