Then he took out what looked like a business card.
'Keep this okay? We have to keep in touch no matter what.'
The card was written in gold calligraphy ink, which made me want to use it as a toilet roll.
It's contents were intresting though:
Queensland Australia
Vere Arwen
Sprite of Godfall peak.
"What's-?" I began.
'Don't say it' Vere hissed. 'You'll attract undue attention.'
I gave him a weird look. Did he think the boogeyman man was going to barge into the train in broad daylight because I read a dimb card?
'Okay fine,' I said while shoving the card into my pocket. 'So, like, If I want to visit your fancy lodge...'
He nodded. 'No... so I can always find you.'
'Why would you need to?' .
Vere opened his mouth like he wanted to say samething difficult before closing it again. Then after a deep breath, he said. 'Look, Abel, the truth is..things might get crazy from here on out...."
I stared at him deeply. 'Vere,' I said, 'what exactly is going on?'
There was a loud grating noise from the engine and dark fumes poured out of the blast pipe. The train rattled and coughed like it was having a stroke, before coming to a stop.
'F*ck' The conductor cursed and went out to inspect the problem.
After a few minutes meesing around in the engine room, the driver impolitely told all of us to get off the train.
Vere and I went to get pretzels at a stand in the subway while we waited.
As of now, we were forty miles away from my neighborhood (The greenwood district)
As usual, the Subway had itsrich ecosystem of hobos, breakdancers and mentally ill ex carnival workers.
Today there was an additional creepy air thrown into the mix.
Across the train tracks, somewhat veiled by a shadow, was an old-fashioned rusted bench.
It wouldnt have caught my eye, except that there were was a strange man in a trench coat. His eyes were hidden in the shadow cast by his fedora, but I could feel his gaze, fixed on me and Vere.
I mean there would always be creeps on the subway, but this was something else.
I turned to Vere to draw his attention, and
saw he had paled with fright and his forehead was matted with sweat.
'Vere?' I lightly shook him. 'Hey –'
'Why-why is this happening again? If he's here that means...'
'Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit me?'
'Lets get back on the train,' he suddenly said.
'Huh?' I said. 'It hasn't been fixed yet.'
'Hurry!' He pried open the door and went inside.
I was in no hurry to follow him. Across the tracks the man in the trench coat still sat unmoving, and I could still feel the weight of his gaze.
He slowly raised his head and I gasped. I could've sworn I saw only the outline of one eye in the middle of his forehead.
I hurriedly followed Vere into the Train.
At the same time, the driver finally got the engine to start. The train shuddered with a cloud of fumes going out the blastpipe, and the engine roared back to life.
'Thats f*cking right!' The driver yelled triumphantly and slapped the train. 'Were setting of immediately!'
Once we left the subway. I started uneasy feeling I jad lifted, but vere looked as worried as ever.
He had soaked his clothes with sweat and was shivering like a pneumonia patient.
'Vere?'
'Yeah?'
'What's going on? Why are you so weird right now?'
His knuckles were clenched so hard that they were practically white. 'Abel, after I left what did you see?'
'Yeah what was with that dude?
He's not like… Ms Weber, is he?'
Vere didnt say anything, but his expression was the gloomiest I jade ever seen it.
Something told me that the man in the trench coat's appearance was a very....very bad thing. He said, 'Did you see anything weird?'
'Yeah...when he lifted his head, I could have sworn...he only had one eye?.'
Vere took out a strange amulet, closed his eyes and muttered something as if he was praying.
Then his eyes opened and he asked. 'He had only one eye.'
'Yes is he another-?'
'No,' Vere mumbled, interrupting me. He started prattling nervously. 'He wont harm us. Not directly at least. He's a placeholder, a harbinger. If hes here..'
'No..no...no....this is not right. I thought we had more time.. He was despairing now, his pupils quivering.
'I cant believe this is happening again?'
'Why is this happening now, when Im so close..'
'Vere,' I said very slowly, because he had clearly lost control. 'What is going to happen?'
'No matter what, dont leave without me. Im serious Abel.'
He was serious. For the first time, this skinny asthmatic guy was scaring me.
He was beiing weirdly intense, so I agreed instinctively.
'Vere – I'm asking again, what is going on?'
He gave me a sad look while his shoulders slumped like he had given up.
Somehow I just knew what he was trying so hard not to say.
Okay reader, Im going to square with you. I lost Vere as soon as soon as our train stopped at the subway. And look, in retrospect I wish I hadnt done that, but he was being way to freaky.
After we got off the subway he went to the restroom to make a 'very important call.'
And Instead of waiting for him, I got my suitcase, then ditched him rigt there.
I got onto the first bus going to '308 Queen St': My and my mother's apartment.
What can I tell you about my mother hm?
Her name is Sasha Hayes, she just about hit her mid thirties...oh and:
I am fundamentally unable to believe that a a person kinder than her could exist.
But of course that was just the cue for the universe to ruin her life.
She was pratically born in an orphanage with nothing to her name. She had a perfect gpa in high-school but then she met my dad during her second year of college and I came along.
Not that she'll ever admit that I wasn't the best thing that happened to her, but she had to drop out of college and look after me. She had practically abondened her pursuit of journalism for a troubled kid.
Worse, my dad died, and she had to do it all alone. But she was never bitter, never complained.
And when it came to my dad, well I really didnt know anything about him.
My mom didn't talk about him either because the memories got very painful for her
She never kept any of his momentos or told any stories. She didn't even have a single picture to remember him by.
But whenever she took long walks in the parks at sunset, I knew she was thinking about him. They had met soon after my mom graduated from high school at her favourite meadow.
My mom thought that he enjoyed the quite there, just as she did. They fell in love, and they got married. About a year into their marriage, I came along. They were happy...for a time at least.
Then one day, he went back to his country to resolve some big issue, and he never came back.
No one knew what happened there, and my mother never went looking for him, as if somehow she knew the worst had happened.
She worked as hard as she could, took even the lowest paying jobs, and raised me alone.
And she was always patient and kind with me, even when I disappointed her.
Enter my uncle Luis.
My uncle Luis was probably the nastiest person to ever exist, but what are you going to do?
He was our landlord after all.
He smelled about as good as the the salmon sandwich I left under my bed for a month and was always holding a bottle of cheap whiskey.
I had lost count of how many times I'd asked my mum to move out of this Smelly bum's apartment.
Unfortunately his price was the only one we could afford.
You see, he had a crush on my mom and I couldn't blame him. The woman was gorgeous. I had to put up with 'is she really your mom' type comments whenever she came for the pta meetings at Vida.
But my mom never gave him the time of day. She always paid her rent on time so she'd never owe him anything and tried to keep him as far away from us as possible.
But this guy never got the hint, instead he tried to take his anger out on me whoever he got the chance.
Take what was about to happen as an example.
I entered the apartment and closed the door behind me with the key my mum left for me.
"Mo-" I had just barely gotten a word out when I saw Uncle Luis sitting on the couch and holding my report card with his grubby, oily hands.
He was showing my grades to his other fat hobo buddies and laughing.
He had messed up the living room; Chilli stains everywhere on the carpet. And cigars going out on the couch.
The entire room reeked of failure and Urea, his favourite cologne.
After downing another glass of vodka, he finally looked at ne, 'Look who's back.' He said while flashing his blackened teeth.
'Where's my mom?' I got straight to the point, not wanting to talk to him anymore than I had too.
'Work,' he said. 'Got any dough?'
I didnt think it was possible, but he had actually gotten uglier.
He was pudgier now, all the fat on his face jiggled whenever tried to speak. Over all, he looked like a really, really fat pig with brown skin and male pattern baldness, stuffed into a one size too small stained singlet.
He did nothing but drink, watch the superbowl, and demand rent. I didn't know why he was in our apartment. I just knew that I wanted him gone.
'Why are you even here?' I asked, already annoyed.
'Oh look who's a big boy now.' Uncle Luis laughed evilly.
Then suddenly he threw the silver tray of half-eaten ribs and Buffalo sauce at Mr.
I didn't move. The tray clanged against my forehead and pieces of chewed out bone got stuck into my hair.
'Shut your smartass mouth before I break my foot into that c*cksucking mess. You hear me?' Luis shouted. You know, if you got past the screaming and saw the way his frown warped the fat on his face, it was almost funny, but I wasn't laughing now.
But I couldnt hit him either...
'Take it,' I said expressionlessly. I dug a wad of dollars out of my pocket and
threw the it out onto the table.
Then I left to my room.
'Saw your report by the way. Dont remember that last time I had such a good laugh. Thanks for that!' he shouted after me.
I closed the door to my room. As I expected, my mom had routinely kept the place tidy and left the gummy bear jar full.
I smiled, the knot of anger in my chest dissolving.
I dropped my suitcase on the bed before heading to my bath room to wash up.
Then I unpacked into my wardrobe.