Creeden, Pauline - The Clockwork Dragon Read online

  He nodded. “But first, we need to attend to your wounds. Does your mother have something for it?”

  She nodded. “In the—”

  “Misu!” Mother’s voice drifted on the currents. “Dinner is ready!”

  “We’ll be right down!” She glanced at Raef. “We can stop by the medicine cabinet on our way.”

  Raef stared at the little statue on the floor, and then snapped it with his tail. The dragon slammed into the wall and bounced out of the window. He shook his head. “We’ll find something else for your grandmother.”

  After Raef wrapped her hands and wrist, the two of them swam down to the first level. The water currents flowed through the open windows and swirled around the twisting pillars supporting the rock ceiling. Misu prayed the blood would be carried away and not bring danger to her family.

  In the kitchen, the stone table had been set with a platter of spiny sea cucumbers and a basket of mashed sea slug wrapped in seaweed. Her mother swam along the stone hewn shelves and plucked clay plates from their cubbies.

  “Hi Mother,” Misu said as she hid her hands in her hair.

  “Hey Misu, Raef.” Mother smiled. “Grandmother told me you two were out exploring. How did it go?”

  “It went all right,” Misu said. “We didn’t find what we were looking for, so we’re thinking we’ll head out early morning before Grandmother’s party.”

  “Oh, okay. I’m not having any luck finding the forked tongs. Can you set the table while I look some more?” Mother handed the plates to Misu and glanced at Raef. “Could you do me a favor and get one of the large knives for cutting the sea cucumbers?”

  He nodded and darted over to the other side of the kitchen.

  “Where is Father?” Misu asked. She quickly set the plates on the table and returned her hands into the safety of her hair.

  “He’s working late.” She sighed. “There’s a new crop of oysters to be harvested, and his crew is down two now.”

  Raef returned with the knife and placed it next to the spiky cucumbers. “Thanks for dinner, Mrs. Mara.”

  She smiled. “Now, Raef, I told you, there’s no need to be so formal.”

  “Mrs. Mara will have to do until I can call you Mother.”

  Misu’s cheeks burned.

  Mother’s eyebrow shot up. “Oh?”

  Raef slipped back to Misu’s side. “Which is why I would like to speak with Misu’s father this evening.”

  “Oh.” Mother’s face brightened. “Oh, indeed. Well, let’s hope he finishes quickly. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must help my mother.” She winked and swam away.

  Misu sighed. “She took that well.”

  “Indeed.” He winked. He grabbed a seaweed wrap and took a bite.

  Misu stared at the food, but couldn’t bring herself to eat. She rubbed her forearms. Her stomach still twisted inside, and her heart roiled with conflicting emotions. She waged war on the dragon’s poisonous thoughts and hoped they’d leave her before her father came home.

  Mother reappeared, leading Grandmother into the kitchen. Misu tucked her hands under the table again.

  “Smells delicious, my dear,” Grandmother said as she settled on a stool and eyed the basket of seaweed wraps. “What did you fix us?”

  “Your favorite, remember?” Mother smiled. “Smashed slug wraps and sea cucumbers.”

  “Delightful.” Grandmother selected a wrap and stuffed it into her mouth.

  Raef grabbed another two and placed them on his plate, then plopped another one into his mouth.

  “Well, I’m glad I made extra.” Mother laughed, and then glanced at Misu. She cocked her head. “Are you feeling alright?”

  “I think I’m a little tired.”

  Mother smiled. “Perhaps one too many late nights?”

  “Are you not going to eat, my dear?” Grandmother asked.

  “I’m not that hungry.” Misu glanced at Raef. His hazel eyes and smile reassured her; she had nothing to worry about. She tried to make herself believe it, but she couldn’t—wouldn’t until she destroyed the dragon.

  “What’s this I hear?” Grandmother asked as she took a large bite out of another slug and seaweed wrap. She chewed it vigorously. Her flabby, wrinkly skin shook as she ate. She looked down her hooked nose at Misu, her eyes glittering like dark jewels. “Is Raef ready to speak to your father so soon?”

  Misu’s stomach twisted, and her heart threatened to burn a hole in her chest. What was going on? Where was all this doubt coming from? Did her grandmother suspect something? No. It had to be the dragon’s poison burning in her veins. The doubt suffocated her. She pulled water through her gills and tried to calm herself. Once she destroyed the dragon statue, she’d be free from its poison.

  Raef reached over and patted Misu’s hand. He looked up and smiled. “Yes, ma’am. It is only right.”

  “Of course, my dear, and I applaud you for your courage. Marriage is a wonderful thing. Why, my own was a marvelous adventure.” Grandmother smiled her toothless smile. She chuckled. Her laughter deepened until it no longer resembled her grandmother’s grating voice.

  Misu frowned. She had heard that laugh before. She glanced up. Her grandmother’s brown eyes burned red like glittering rubies. Misu’s chest constricted.

  Her grandmother dabbed at her flabby lips. She picked up the large knife and stabbed a bloated sea cucumber. “But it would be wise to remember some promises are never broken, my dear.”

  Chinatown ~ Pauline Creeden

  Flames licked the night sky and washed out the stars over Chinatown. The dancing light mesmerized me, and I couldn’t turn my face away. My eyes watered; my skin baked in the heat. A firm hand shook my shoulder. Aaron shouted in my ear over the din of the mob around us, “Hey, Bryan! Come on, man!”

  My kid brother, Will, pushed me from the other side and I grabbed his arm to keep from tripping over the curb. Hoots and hollers hung in the air like the songs of wild animals. And that’s exactly what I saw in Will’s big eyes. The animal. My little brother’s red hood covered his head, but his white eyes and grin glowed in the light from the fires. The excitement built in my chest. I jumped into the air and kicked the side view mirror of a Honda parked on the curb. The glass shattered, and the plastic casing swung back and forth from a single wire.

  Screw ‘em.

  It was about time our neighborhood showed this side of town they didn’t belong here. Let ‘em all swim back to their own land. They didn’t even speak English. They think they’re better than us. How much better were they now?

  In a flash of dirty t-shirt and black plastic, my dad hurried passed with a flat screen TV in his arms. He nodded toward the three of us and scooted down the block. An old lady threw a whiskey bottle over Will’s head, and he ducked just in time. The bottle flew through the window of a shop. Glass shattered and cascaded in little bits all around us like snowfall. I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. Every step I took crunched, and the balls of safety glass underfoot made my brother slip.

  Will’s face contorted somewhere between embarrassment and anger. “What the hell, lady?”

  The lady’s narrowed eyes looked right through us like we weren’t even there. She stepped past without a second glance and pulled herself into the shop she’d opened up. With a shrug, Aaron hopped in after her.

  “Son of a…” Will pushed his hood back and looked both directions as if someone was going to stop us and then jumped through the window after them.

  I hesitated. Sirens wailed a far flung warning in the distance. They had not gotten any closer in the past hour. More glass shattered down the street. The autumn wind picked up and blew the fire across the street into a blazing tornado toward the sky. Destruction felt good. It felt right. It felt like justice.

  Before I even took a step toward the shop window, three more people had already made a move in. This was one of the few stores on the block that didn’t have bars on either side of the window. I glanced behind me. More people coming. It was now or never.<
br />
  My eyes took a moment to adjust to the dark. The fire’s glow outside didn’t light the way into the dark recess of the building. To my left, a couple of women played tug of war with a stereo, and their argument reduced to a series of grunts and whines. I snuck past them before it turned into a cat fight.

  Will chuckled as he bumped shoulders with me, holding another flat screen TV. “There’s nothing in here, man. Let’s go.”

  I nodded and started back with him when a bright flash of light came from the back room. “What was that?”

  Will shrugged and set down the TV.

  Aaron almost coughed on the Cheetos he’d stuffed in his mouth. The residual glow from the back reflected on the orange pieces he sprayed when he spoke. “Let’s go check it out, man.”

  Aaron wiped his cheese fingers on my hoodie. I smacked his arm away and glared at him. He grinned. Gobs of orange stuck between his teeth. I shook my head and continued to follow the gold light.

  My nose tickled at the sharp smell of cinnamon and other spices I couldn’t place. I rubbed it to keep from sneezing. We followed the glow around the corner. As oldest, I took the lead with Will and Aaron directly behind me. Their hands pressed against my back, and their playful urgency drove me forward. There was no turning back.

  We started up the stairs. I choked out a nervous laugh, and my breath clouded in front of my face. My exposed skin chilled, and I shivered. The temperature had dropped more than ten degrees.

  “What the…it’s a ghost, man!” Aaron yelled, and I turned toward him. His eyes were wide as he backed down the stairs and took off for the door.

  “He’s a wuss.” Will scowled, smacked my shoulder, and tipped his chin toward the gold light. “Come on, man, let’s find out what this is.”

  At the thought of a ghost, gooseflesh popped up on my arms, but I nodded and stepped forward. We reached the top of the stairs. The cold air reminded me of one summer when I worked at McDonald’s and went in and out of the freezer to cool off from the hot kitchen.

  The door to a bedroom stood open and the glow swallowed us as we stepped in. I had to squint until my eyes adjusted to the brightly lit room. The woman who broke the window stood in front of a tall dresser. In her hands, a gold dragon-shaped statue radiated.

  Her eyes opened so wide, I thought they might pop out. Tears streaked her cheeks. She mumbled, “No, please. No.”

  “What’s going on man? Is that some kind of lamp or sumthin’?” Will’s voice trembled behind me.

  I shook my head, but my body froze where I stood.

  The woman’s voice cracked, and she cried harder. “Please, help me, God.”

  Her face contorted in pain, and her body shook as if she’d been electrocuted. It lasted only a moment. When her eyes opened again, the red lines of veins shot across the whites. In desperation, she sobbed and snot gushed over her top lip. She blubbered, “Help me, Jesus.”

  The dragon statue slipped from her fingers and clanged to the hardwood floor. Her face turned ashen, and her eyes rolled in the back of her head. Darkness took the room once more as the dragon faded to a faint glow. The fires outside kept the room in a half light. The frigid chill waned as if someone shut off the air conditioning.

  I rushed to the woman’s side, my heart frozen in my chest. Was she dead? I didn’t know how to check for someone’s pulse. When I put my ear to her face to see if she was breathing, she moaned. Relief washed over me.

  Will scooped up the gold statue. “I bet this thing’s worth a fortune. Did you hear the sound it made when it hit the ground? It might be solid gold.”

  My jaw clenched, and I jumped to my feet. “Put that thing down. Didn’t you see? It shocked the woman. It’s like, electrified or something.”

  The light from the dragon slowly faded so that I could only see it reflecting on Will’s face. His eyes were consumed and twinkled in the glow. He shook his head. “No way, man. It’s just a statue, and it’s real gold. I’m sure of it.”

  On the floor, the woman moaned again and twisted her body. Will backed for the doorway, his eyes locked on the woman. He cast his glance back to me and shook his head again. Before I could say a word, he darted out of the room with the statue. The gold light went with him.

  The room sunk into the half light. I started for the door, but the woman grabbed my ankle. Her eyes were wild, and her face shined from the tears and snot on her dark skin. “The dragon is real. It almost had me. It’s real.”

  Her breath smelled of whiskey and vomit. I swallowed hard. The woman was drunk and had gone crazy. I shook my leg from her grasp and dashed for the door.

  Her voice followed me as I rushed down the steps, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

  “The dragon is real, it’s alive!”

  About the Authors

  Pauline Creeden

  Pauline is a horse trainer from Virginia, but writing is her therapy. She creates worlds that are both familiar and strange, often pulling the veil between dimensions. She becomes the main character in each of her stories, and because she has ADD, she will get bored if she pretends to be one person for too long. One of Pauline's short stories has won the CCW Short Story contest. Other short stories have been published in Fear & Trembling Magazine, Obsidian River and Avenir Eclectia. An urban fantasy short will appear in The Book of Sylvari: An Anthology of Elves from Port Yonder Press, and a vampire short will appear in Monsters! from Diminished Media Group. http://paulinecreeden.com

  Lynn Donovan

  Lynn writes from her heart and five decades of experiences she has accumulated as daughter, wife, mother of four, and grandmother of seven when creating her stories. She categorizes herself as the “sandwich generation” because she is caring for her mother who has Alzheimer’s and is one child away from an empty nest. Besides blogging, Lynn enjoys reading and writing mainstream fiction and speculative fiction, but you might find a historical romance among her collections as well. She currently lives in Southwest Kansas but looks forward to building a home in Colorado. She attends a Creative Writing class at the local college to sharpen her talents and increase her creative juices. You can learn more about Lynn at her blog: http://SittingOnThePorchWithLynn.blogspot.com

  J. L. Mbewe

  Writing as J. L. Mbewe, Jennette is an author, artist, mother, wife, but not always in that order. Born and raised in Minnesota, she now braves the heat of Texas, but pines for the Northern Lights and the lakes of home every autumn. She loves capturing the abstract and making it concrete. She is currently living her second childhood with a wonderful husband and two precious children who don’t seem to mind her eclectic collections of rocks, shells, and books, among other things. For more information about her journey as a writer mama and all things creative, visit her at: http://www.jlmbewe.com/

  Table of Contents

  Copyright

  Here and Now ~ Pauline Creeden

  The Precious Hour ~ Lynn Donovan

  Lost at Sea ~ J. L. Mbewe

  Aborted Plans ~ Lynn Donovan

  The Vow ~ Lynn Donovan

  Death Without Shoes ~ Lynn Donovan

  Bloody Fairy ~ Lynn Donovan & J. L. Mbewe

  A Mermaid’s Desire ~ J. L. Mbewe

  Chinatown ~ Pauline Creeden

  About the Authors