Amber by Dan-Dwayne Spencer (e book reader .TXT) 📕

When we got to the river, the aroma of lilacs blew across the deck. I looked for the bushes, but I didn’t see any. They must have been near the shore, where the darkness bustled with glittery movement. Hordes of diminutive twinkling lights illuminated the shoreline. Lightning bugs dodged between every reed and grass. I wondered how I could have not seen those beautiful little fluorescents last night. Then I realized I didn’t see them because they weren’t there. The last time I saw them was in the field when the Sheriff’s men were destroying the collectors. Right before I saw Jimmy wearing armor—well, I glimpsed it.

Pointing to where I sat and splashed my feet the night before, I said, “This is the spot I came to sit at.”

We dangling our legs over the edge of the deck and splashed our feet in the water.

He pulled his shirt over his head, stood, and unzipped his pants.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m going swimming. The water is perfect.”

Swishing my feet in the water again, I thought it felt a bit cold, but after all, it had been a very warm day and Jimmy deserved to cool off. I glanced over at him. Usually, Jimmy did things his way and if anyone didn’t like it, he was very willing to knock their block off. But I had started to see him for the Jimmy I knew on this trip, full of compassion and false bravado. Not until I learned more about him, did I peg Jimmy as being a bit shy, but he was.

To my astonishment, Jimmy stood there in the wide-open spaces—naked, and began gyrating around on the deck like a groovy go-go dancer. I would have expected him to have left on his boxer briefs to dance, but no. He was doing the Twist and the Pony then did a strange version of the Bop and the Watusi before jumping in the water. I mean, he didn’t exactly do anything wrong; it was just us and it wasn’t like I hadn’t seen him naked in the gym shower before, but this was different, it was something I never want to see again.

Thinking about it…it wasn’t just the naked dancing troubling me, it started with how things I expected to bother him didn’t. Jimmy didn’t freak out when he learned the carnival was cursed or when we told him the Sheriff’s dead body was being possessed. Dugan didn’t even freak out at the fact the Hoochie Coochie Dancers were carnal spirits called Nymphs, or at the news of Venus being real—and an angel. He went beyond calm. Except when he mentioned the color of the dead girl’s nighty, then he seemed to be excited. He had really changed.

Rose’s voice from behind startled me. “Hey there, can I sit with you?”

I involuntarily jerked and almost fell into the water, clothes and all. “Sure, I guess,” I answered.

“I was looking for Jimmy,” she said.

I nodded toward the river. “He gulped a lung full of air and went under the water. He’ll pop up any time now.” He didn’t pop back up as I expected. We waited. I began to worry. Even my swimming instructor couldn’t go that long without a breath. He’d been under a long time and my nerves hit DEFCON three. Finally, I stood and considered diving in to find him when he surfaced. I never saw anyone hold their breath so long, but I guess Jimmy must have been a natural. My nerves calmed down, and I cautiously took my seat again.

“Hi Rose,” Jimmy said as his head splashed up from the water.

“Oh, Jimmy,” Rose yelled, “you scared me.”

“You want to join me. The water’s great.”

That was when Jimmy casually stood up. Being a lot taller than me, more of him came out of the water, and suddenly my face flushed, my ears burned hot, and I was completely embarrassed. Thank goodness for the darkness. It would allow me some deniability so I could keep my manly, cool card intact.

“No,” she replied, acting as if seeing Jimmy in his birthday suit was normal. “I just wanted to come down to sit and talk with you a while. You know, just us,” she said, as she sat dangling her legs over the edge of the deck.

That was my cue. “I’ll see you guys when you get to the Roundhouse,” I quickly headed up the path as Jimmy swam toward the dock’s steps leading out of the water. Not looking back, I hurried up the incline to the top of the hill and down to the meadow. I never knew Jimmy to be so brazen. It was like he had no self-respect, or maybe he had given totally over to the bohemian hippie lifestyle.

I guess it was my night to notice things because even under the pole lamps things looked different. Not until then had I noticed how beautiful and aromatic the wildflowers in the meadow were. Cheating death at the carnival made everything brighter, fresher, and more fragrant. Stopping to take a moment, I inhaled the crisp air. With every breath, my nostrils filled with the scent of lavender. I paused and looked at the flowers in the field. There were daisies, snapdragons, and marigolds—but no lavender. Something like a cloud passed over the meadow, darkening the moonlight, but as I looked across the field, the darkness was only around me. Without warning, a brilliant light flashed beside me. I expected some kind of concussion to follow what I thought was an explosion, but nothing did. Not even a stirring of the wind blew to mess up my shoulder-length, pool bleached hair.

There before me appeared a giant of a man wearing a robe of multicolored light. He hovered in the air reminiscent of an enormous dragonfly; his