"May Dusa - Threat Or Menace?"
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dochermes"May Dusa - Threat Or Menace?"
8/4/-8/5/2012
I.
Entering the living room with her second cup of coffee that morning, Lisa Lawson regarded her seventeen year old daughter with bemused affection. Haley was curled in a ball on the couch with her legs tucked up under her, her arms folded and her head drooping so the gorgeous auburn hair hung down like a curtain to conceal her face. She was rocking half an inch from side to side.
"That is the best performance I've seen in a while," Lisa said, dropping down into an easy chair facing the couch. "Did you join the Drama Club at school?"
For a reply, Haley emitted a low quavering sigh that started down near her belly button. She raised her head. Those large lime-green eyes were her best feature and, although they were sad, no moisture indicating immediate tears was noticeable. "I went and got the mail."
"Yeah, I have the same reaction when I see the bills." Lisa Lawson did not much resemble her daughter, being four inches shorter than Haley's five feet eight and sporting glossy black hair instead of deep red. But their eyes were a family trait and almost identical. "Oh. Oh, you got the results about your driver's license."
"Yes. Busted. Failed. Flunked." Haley sat up straight and smacked her forehead with the back of her hand. "It says I failed to change lanes when turning left from a two-lane one-way street but I do NOT remember it that way."
"Ah, honey, practice and take it again. You know, Jimmy failed three times. His parallel parking is still atrocious." She put down her coffee cup. "I saw the half-finished bowl of Chocolate Rice Krispies by the sink. How about some scrambled eggs and bacon to balance your innards?"
"No, thanks, mom." Haley bounded upright with the ease of youth. She was wearing her usual Navy blue shorts and white long-sleeved pullover. "I crave action! Excitement! The thrill of fighting evil will lift my spirits."
"What on Earth have you been reading, child?"
"Comics. BLAST WOMAN is my favorite. It gets me stirred up in the mood. Did I tell you I'm meeting your friend the Wolf Man next week?"
"Jeremy Bane is called by some the Dire Wolf," Lisa repeated. "Not Wolf Man. Yes. If you insist on using the Air Gem to get into situations where you're likely to break your neck, having him train you is a good idea. Just take his advice and respect him like he's your Marine drill sergeant, he knows what he's talking about."
Haley started from the living room but hesitated in the doorway. "Mom. You're not TOO worried about me being Windcatcher, are you?"
"Of course I'm worried. What do you think?" Lisa stood up and went over to her daughter and placed a hand on each shoulder. "But God forgive me if I don't remember I was as stubborn and reckless at your age. The risks I took. Ugh, makes me shiver to think about. But somehow I trust you. You think quickly on your feet and you're barely sensible enough to draw back if the situation s seem too dangerous."
"You're the best!" Haley laughed as he rushed from the parlor to the staircase leading up to her own room. A few seconds later, her voice drifted down, "Mommmm! I'm going out the window! Back by suppertime!"
"Be careful, dear." Lisa Lawson exhaled and slumped back in her chair. Once, before Haley had been born, it had been Lisa who wore the Air Gem and wielded its power to summon everything from hurricane winds to monsoon rain to Arctic blasts. That had been long ago and, she wistfully realized, it was further faded by time every day.
In her neat tidy room, noticeably free of frills and decorations but ornamented by an acoustic guitar in its case and stacks of books covering horrific crimes, Haley clasped the collar of an ankle-length dark blue cloak around her neck. Fastened at her throat was a lovely oval-cut blue gem that resembled pale tourmaline. She checked the slit pockets in her shorts for the few items she carried as Windcatcher, then flung up the wide window as high as it would go. A warm sunny August morning beckoned to her.
Sporting the widest grin her cheeks could handle, Windcatcher squeezed up onto the ledge of the window. She concentrated with full focus of the image she wanted, drew on the ancient mystic power of the Air Gem. From somewhere in Kansas, tornado winds at two hundred and sixty miles per hour shot her out and upward into the sky.
II.
Flying for Haley was not a graceful effortless gliding like a thrown paper airplane. She was held within a fierce vortex of churning air that pushed her up and forward, and she had to guide her motion by mental discipline. In the first few weeks, she had crashed so often that she usually practiced without her cloak over Lake Schoonmaker and swam back to shore most of the time. Even now, if she let her concentration lapse, she might easily wind up tumbling end over end or find herself in a nose dive.
But she loved it. Two hundred feet below her, her hometown of Glenville rolled past in the clear sunlight. Along the wide Main Street were the local bank, pizza joints, antique shops, a pet tending place called BARK AVENUE (ha!), the usual shoppers strolling. No one glanced up. When people did see Haley pass by, they often waved but just as often did not react. This puzzled and annoyed her beyond all reason.
A teenage girl wearing a bright blue cape soaring at treetop level over the town should have been the biggest sensation in history. Excited crowds should gather whenever she appeared. News crews with cameras should be following her every appearance, frantic requests for interviews, meetings with top government officials asking for her help... But, no. Nothing. Everyone simply said, "Hey, there goes the Lawson girl" and continued about their business as if they had seen a squirrel run across their yard. It drove her nuts.
Heading toward the north end of town, Haley remembered her mother explaining a theory about why this might be happening. As a teen herself with the rest of her family as the Heirs of Buliwyf, Lisa Lawson had been baffled by how people reacted so casually to them. An expert on the occult had theorized that it might be a side-effect of their talismans. The Air Gem's magick for some reason had a damping effect on peoples' emotional reactions. It wasn't that everyone forgot about seeing her fly or didn't realize how amazing it was... it was that the spell muted their responses to the point where the local folks honestly didn't see anything remarkable about it. The newspapers and local TV station seemed to be deliberately ignoring her. As far as she could tell, no one in Glenville had even mentioned her in social media.
Ahead was the hundred-year-old Lutheran Church sitting on the hill overlooking that end of the town. Haley's annoyance simmered at a low boil. Ah well, as much as she had dreamed of squealing fans demanding her autograph or seeing her image blazoned on a cereal box, maybe it was better this way. She still had enough privacy she could have lunch or go shopping in peace.
What was going on with that crowd in the field behind the church? Today was Thursday, there wasn't any bazaar or bake sale or anything as far as she remembered. Circling at three hundred feet, Windcather lessened the winds until she started descending slowly. A hastily nailed-together platform of two-by-fours rose seven feet off the ground, surrounded by what looked like at least a few hundred local denizens. Standing on that platform, speaking into a wireless microphone, was a tall slim woman with gorgeous honey-colored hair reaching down her back to her waist.
Then Haley saw the canvas banner waving from a pole, red letters on a white background...MAY DUSA. The cheering from the crowd stayed at a steady dull roar.
Seeing her friends Gina and Bentley at the rear of the mob, Haley dismissed the winds carefully, lowered her legs and came down for a landing that saw her stumble only a few steps. Her landings were improving, she had skidded on her stomach the first dozen times. "Hey, you guys! Gina! Bentley!"
Her classmates at Madison High, Gina was a small winsome girl of obvious Italian extraction and her steady boyfriend Bentley was a skinny gawky boy with an endearing crooked grin. Today, as so often, they were wearing matching concert T-shirts for the Plungers' Final World Tour. They both spun around to greet her. "Hales! Hi!" Gina chirped.
"What's the deal with blondie up there?" asked Haley, throwing her cloak back off her shoulders. "Is she selling something?"
Gina turned widened eyes toward her pal as if Haley had just barked like a dog. "You don't know about May Dusa? She is all OVER YouTube and Facebook. She caught three serial killers this year. She recovered a kidnaped baby that was being held for ransom. She's only the hottest person trending in the world right now."
"I bet she can't fly...." Haley mumbled to herself.
"And if she's out here on Long Island, you can bet she's going to have something major to announce," added Bentley. Lately, he had been letting Gina trim his shaggy brown hair with indifferent results. "I was following the FBI website, that freak Sepulchre is still at large."
"Wouldn't it be great if she caught HIM?" added Gina. "I have bad dreams when I think of that guy's grin. Ugh, Ick and Oh No."
Seeing that no one noticed her adorable pout, Haley unsnapped her cloak and rolled it up into a cylinder which she tucked under one arm. She even started listening to the speaker on the platform.
"..and so, since our elected representatives are too weak or too timid to take the necessary steps, I have decided to start creating tough laws to stomp down hard on crime," she cried out in a dramatic ringing tone. "Effective immediately, I, May Elizabeth Dusa, intend to be your next State Senator!"
Grudgingly though it was, Haley had to admit this woman was attractive. May Dusa was tall, only an inch under six feet tall and had the impressive bust and hips of an old-school pin-up model. Along with the long dark blonde hair, she possessed an clear-cut oval face with blindingly white teeth. Her eyes could not be seen behind mirrored sunglasses. May Dusa was wearing a neat dark blue pants suit outfit with a violet-colored blouse. She raised a hand to acknowledge the thunderous approval from the crowd at her announcement.
"Thank you, thank you, my friends. I will be running as an Independent. Also, I want to stress that there is no reason to think the public is in any danger but I am also following leads about the current whereabouts of a notorious madman who has escaped the well-deserved death penalty for too long now. By the end of this week, I hope to announce the capture of Sepulchre!"
Hearing that name, Haley's mouth fell open. It felt exactly as if someone had slid an ice cube down her spine. Unconsciously, one hand reached up to clutch hard at the Air Gem worn at her throat.
III.
After taking a few questions and posing for a few selfies with some of her fans, May Dusa retreated to a long black SUV with tinted windows. A driver swept her away, and an equally ominous-looking Nissan sedan followed with two more of her staff. The crowd took forever to disperse as everyone stood around excitedly chatting.
Arms folded across her chest, Haley frowned at the two vehicles which turned right on the road to head north. Her eyebrows were down so far they nearly met.
Gina stepped closer and threw an arm across Haley's shoulders to give her a sideways hug. "I know that expression! Come on, Windcatcher girl, what's eating you?"
"You're not jealous of May Dusa getting the attention, are you?" asked Bentley. "Let's walk to Dallas Hot Weiners, I got twenty bucks."
"I wouldn't mind a chili dog. And some onion rings, AND a Dr Pepper. Whaddya say, Hales?"
Making herself smile, Haley Lawson put a hand on each of her friend's shoulders and drew them closer. "Sounds good. I'm in." She joined them trekking downhill toward the town itself. The chat wandered from Bentley's part time job at the Price Chopper to Gina's father promising her a trip to visit family in San Diego around Christmas to which celebrities they hated and how to fight global warming in their own lives. Soon enough, they were seated outside at a bench next to the Dallas Hot Weiners and attacking the food as if a time bomb were about to go off.
Coming up for air, Haley wiped her mouth with a crumpled napkin. "You know, I have to come right out and say it. I fly around town, I put out that house that was on fire with a blast of supercold air, I found that little girl who wandered out in the woods, I even broke up the knife fight between the Naglia brothers. I'm as close to a legitimate super-hero as Glenville is ever likely to see!"
Gina cocked her head to one side. "I never heard anybody say anything bad about you, Hales. As far as I know, everybody likes you and is kinda tickled to see our own Windcatcher whiz by overhead."
"Oh, hold-up there now," Bentley interrupted. "I get it. You're jealous of May Dusa."
"Well... yeah," Haley admitted in a low tone.
He studied her face for a moment. "You know, there's something else. I saw your reaction when she mentioned Sepulchre."
"That's what is really rattling my cage," Haley said. "You're right, Bent. You're absolutely right."
"And, and only a minute before that, Bentley was talking about Sepulchre," Gina burst in. "I don't believe in coincidence. Something bad is going on. Haley! You have to investigate, we'll help you."
"What? No, wait. Where am I even gonna start?" asked the Windcatcher. "I'm not a cop. I can't flash my badge and ask questions. And I bet May Dusa has a posse of lawyers ready to throw me in the slammer."
Gathering up all the debris from their impromptu meal, Gina disposed of it in a wire-frame trash barrel, then slapped her hands together as if dusting them. "Let's think. Burn some brain cells together. May Dusa said she's going to be in the area. Where would she stay?"
"Ummm. If she's not going too far, there's the Holiday Inn by Gloverton, that's maybe ten miles away. And there's the Restwell Motor Court up on Route 211, it's a little shabby but who knows what her plans are?"
Haley stood up, unrolled her blue cloak and clasped it at her throat. With her mother's help, she had weighted the lower hem and inserted three stiffening nylon rods running the length of the heavy cotton material. Although her flight ability came from the Air Gen, she found the cloak was a big help in staying stable. Crashing and landing on her nose had been much less common since altering the cape.
"We need to be your sidekick squad," Gina said. "Sure there aren't any more of those magic stones tucked away somewhere? Did you search your house?"
"Sorry. Far as I know, this is the only Air Gem ever and by now it's locked onto my lifeforce." She tucked her shirt more neatly into the waistband of her shorts and smiled at her buds. "I promise, if I find out about any other mystic talismans, I'll call you guys right away."
"I want a ring that shoots lightning," Gina giggled.
"Get me a hammer that comes back when I throw it," said Bentley.
"I'll keep my eyes open." Haley Lawson took a few quick steps away from her friends toward the empty parking lot behind the Hot Weiner place. Her mind instinctively located a hurricane thousands of miles away, blowing off the coast of Haiti. A roaring gust of wind lifted her clear of the ground and flung her up into the formerly placid sky.
IV.
At five-thirty, Haley alighted on the patio behind her house. Her stomach muscles and lower back hurt. Holding her body in flight meant keeping her legs extending out behind her, requiring a lot of abdominal strength, and she had started landing to take breaks after searching for any sign of May Dusa's vehicles. The Windcatcher slumped down into one of the redwood chairs and stretched gingerly.
From the sliding glass door behind her, her mother said, "You look like you need a long hot bath. I've got black beans, rice and chopped peppers simmering but they can wait. Here, give me that heavy cape before it pulls you to the ground."
"Thanks, mom." Haley unclasped the cloak and handed it over. "I didn't get anywhere. Maybe I'll see if the library has some books on basic crime investigation. Jeremy is right, I need lessons."
"Well, you have until September to learn some useful detective skills. After that, it's your senior year and you need to keep your grades up to be accepted at any decent college." Lisa gave her daughter a light playful dope slap on the back of the head. "Soak in hot soapy water for a while."
Half an hour later, hair wrapped up in a fluffy towel like a turban and wrapped in a flannel bathrobe that had comforted her many times, Haley descended the stairs with a lighter heart. Her mom was ready to start ladling the black beans and rice onto the two china plates set out on the dining room table. Before she sat down, Haley fetched the butter dish and the half a loaf of Italian bread left from the day before to accompany the meal.
As they ate, Haley blurted without preamble, "What's going on with that Jeff guy?"
"Hmm. Oh, I don't know. We might see each other again, we might not. I'm fine without a man in my life. I'm more worried about your sister."
"Oh. She'll be okay," Haley said. "She knows what she wants. Nobody's gonna talk her into anything. Listen, Mom, I've got a BAD feeling about May Dusa. I don't know why."
Lisa was using a piece of Italian bread crust to round up fugitive rice kernels. "You could be a little resentful of all the attention she's getting?"
"Okay, maybe. Maybe there's something to that. I'm human, you know. But something about the way she mentioned that monster Sepulchre, only to immediately assure everybody it was gonna be okay. That doesn't smell right."
For a long moment, Lisa Lawson did not comment. Finally, she folded her hands together in front of her and nodded solemnly. "I feel the same way. When I heard that May Dusa was coming to Glenville, I went online and did some research. She seemed kosher and yet...I guess I have the same reaction you do. She's too good to be true. She feels like she's posing as a hero."
"Hey! Glad you see that too. I don't wanna be just some jealous kid."
"In fact," Lisa went on, "This afternoon, I made some phone calls. I may not be active in the Midnight War these days but I have kept some contacts. It seems that May Dusa's background is too clean, too smooth to suit Jeremy. He says it looks like it was all set up a year or two ago."
"Jeremy Bane, huh, well he should know, he's been in the game for ages. What does he mean?"
Lisa raised an admonishing finger at her daughter. "This is all on a need to know basis, dear. Jeremy has arranged a lot of false identities over the years, both for himself and his friends. I still have a passport and driver's license for someone named 'Linda Larsen' who looks exactly like me except for a blonde rinse in the hair. But I never had to use it. Anyway, Jeremy says that you can hack into the Motor Vehicle Bureau and the IRS records and so forth, and find evidence that May Dusa is real. You could even go to the town where she supposedly attended school and find her in the yearbook. Or if you call where she used to work, someone will answer the phone and remember her being there."
"Not...not sure I get the point of all this," Haley said, but her green eyes were wide and eager. This was drawing her in.
"Creating fake yearbooks to sneak into local schools and libraries and planting fake tax records is not only expensive as hell, it involves major felonies. No one does it for fun. So, whoever is behind May Dusa has big plans for her future."
"That's another thing. Why the retarded name? May Dusa, be serious. Why pick a name so ridiculous."
"Haley, we do not call things 'retarded,' remember. What hooligans are you hanging out with?!" Lisa stood up and gathered together the plates, glasses and silverware. "You wash and I dry?"
"I'll put away the leftovers," Haley suggested instead. "In the Tupperware. There's enough for another meal tomorrow. So, mom, I think there's one more thing you have to tell me."
Turning on the hot water, Lisa Lawson fixed a suspicious glance at her younger daughter. "Go on."
"Hee hee, I know you. I'm gonna bet you've already got the address where May Dusa is staying in this area!"
V.
In the long dim twilight of summer, Windcatcher soared at two hundred feet above the outskirts of Glenville. The familiar sting of adrenaline burning through her veins was exceedingly welcome. Next summer, right after graduation, Jeremy Bane had promised Haley that he would sponsor her to meet the Teachers of Tel Shai. IF and it was a big IF, she was approved by those ancient shamans and wisemen, Haley could start training in mystic disciplines not taught anywhere else. She could join the Kenneth Dred Foundation, become a ghostbuster and monster chaser and maniac smasher. Windcatcher would finally become a full-fledged hero.
But that was almost a year away. Tonight, her sights were focussed on learning more about this May Dusa woman. Down below, she spotted the narrow stretch of Lake Schoonmaker, only four miles across and six miles long but so deep in many spots that swimming was outlawed. Set up next to its shore were a cheerfully blazing bonefire and three vehicles, with about eight or nine people moving around. Haley decided she needed to invest in a pair of binoculars, small and powerful as she could afford. She was already carrying a flashlight, some first aid items and a folding knife with a three inch blade.
Swooping lower, she saw the tall figure of May Dusa, with that golden hair blazing in the unsteady firelight. Two of the men in her party seemed to be arguing with considerable heat, since their faces were almost touching. When Haley touched down near the black SUV, it seemed no one had noticed her arrival.
"I don't care what that plan is, that ghoul gives me the creeps big time!" one of the men yelled.
"Excuse me," Haley said, wrapping the blue cloak around her. "Hi. May Dusa? I'm called the Windcatcher..."
The long blonde hair swirled as the woman swung around. "How did you get here? Why didn't Carl catch you? I'm paying for security."
"You might have heard of me," Haley continued but with a sinking feeling in her chest. "Windcatcher? I've been doing some rescue work on this end of Long Island."
Seen up close and in person, May Dusa's strong nose and long jaw gave her an intimidating aspect that photos did not capture. She pressed both fists against her hips. "Oh yes, some of the local hicks were talking about you. Get lost. I don't care why kind of circus tricks you use to fool these yokels, I'm not falling for it. I don't need jailbait getting in the way of my campaign."
"But...but I could help you?"
"Are you dense? I said, get lost! Carl, Lennie, show this baby to the road."
In a suddenly low voice, Haley Lawson said, "I can leave by myself." She summoned the most powerful winds her mind could locate on the planet. Winds in excess of two hundred miles per hour not only flung her straight up and out of sight, they bowled over everyone there as if struck by speeding cars. A burst of heavy cold rain came with the winds to instantly douse the bonfire with a gout of steam and to thoroughly drench everyone in the area until they looked like drowning victims.
From high overhead, above the howling of the winds, an outraged voice shouted, "Circus tricks, huh?"
As May Dusa sputtered in helpless fury and her men tried to wring out their clothes, the rear door of the black SUV swung open. Out stepped a painfully thin man dressed all in white... flannel trousers, sneakers, dress shirt with the collar open, lightweight jacket, all white. Sepulcher could not help grinning. The hideous smile was frozen on his bony face from the muscles having tightened up during his botched execution and never relaxing again. The thinning brown hair was combed straight back. With the sharp pointed nose and wild hazel eyes, Sepulcher was an unsettling man for even hardened cops or FBI men to confront. The henchmen could not help but avert their gaze when he showed himself.
Sepulchre went over and confronted May Dusa. "This is unexpected," he said quietly. "I was not looking for the Midnight War but it seems to have found me."
"I don't understand. What happened? How did that storm appear out of nowhere that way?" she demanded.
"The wind and the rain were called here, perhaps from the opposite end of the world," Sepulchre replied. "That young girl carries the Air Gem. It's one of the most potent talismans ever known." A low chuckle escaped his frozen grimace. "But it will not remain hers for long."
VI.
She was not going to cry. She wasn't. With her lips pressed tightly closed, Haley Lawson whizzed over Glenville so fast that her cloak made snapping noises. She headed for Gina's house down on Linderman Street and was relieved to see her friend and Bentley cuddled up next to each other on the porch. Windcatcher swung her legs down, come in way too fast and botched her landing. Her forward momentum swept her off her feet into a graceless loose somersault that ended with her sitting up on the lawn and finding her cloak draped over her face.
"You've landed better," Bentley observed mildly.
"Haley? You okay?" Gina jumped up and ran over to help.
With a disgusted grunt, Windcatcher disentangled herself from the cape, stood up and dusted herself off. "I'm fine. I'm fine. That bitch! Do you know what she said to me?!"
"Your MOM?" asked Gina in a tone of unprecedented horror.
No! Of course not! May Dusa!" Haley launched into the whole story, not missing any descriptive detail and relishing the final scene of five water-soaked and confused offenders left behind.
"Boy, Haley, you did not deserve to be treated like that," Bentley said. "That woman is a real world class jerk."
Pacing to burn off steam, Windcatcher had her arms clasped behind her back. "They don't know what they're messing with, I wanna tell you. Suppose I brought a thunderstorm down right on top of them? Or maybe a night of hundred degree temperature air from Brazil absolutely saturated with humidity. Serve 'em right. But no." Haley paused and raised a single index finger for emphasis. "Great power such as mine should be used sparingly."
"Sweetie, you have GOT to stop reading those comic books!" Gina told her. "I swear, you need to try some romance novels this summer for a change."
"In any case, I need to decide what to do next. Maybe I should ignore them? Just go about my business as usual. It's no skin off my nose what that old bleached blonde is up to." Haley turned to her friends, calming down visibly. "So, what are you guys planning tonight?"
"Nextflix and chill," said Bentley.
"And I'm seriously Netflix. I want to watch that movie about young Queen Victoria. It looks so elegant and ritzy."
"Hmm. I bet you'll make it to the end credits," Haley said. "I think I really should head home. Give my mom one night where she's not chewing on her nails about me." Brisk winds began to circle around her, making her cloak swirl. "Call me in the morning, Gina. Bentley, let yourself get into a chick flick, you might be surprised." And with a whoosh, she was gone again.
VI.
After a rare quiet evening where they watched TV for a while and both turned in early, Haley woke at daybreak boiling with enthusiasm. During most of the year, her school work and night patrols at Windcatcher left her surviving on naps, but during the summer she was eager to save the world. Her morning routine was taking longer and longer. For one thing, her hair had reached a length where drying it and brushing it out took forever. Shaving her legs had lately seemed more and more crucial to her as well, especially since she wore shorts so often. Haley spent further time swirling her hair up into a bun on top of her head, exposing her long neck for once. It was over an hour before she started digging through her wardrobe.
Poking around, she decided to go civilian. It was supposed to be about eighty and breezy that day, with a good chance of showers. Haley picked out a favorite pair of jeans, a snug dark red polo shirt that went perfectly with her hair and eyes, and a pair of bright red sneakers she hardly ever wore. After wriggling into everything, she hauled her school book bag out from under the bed. There were three identical pairs of the Navy blue shorts and white longsleeved shirts she wore as Windcatcher and she tucked them into the pack. Then, carefully, she folded up the thick cloak and stowed it away as well.
On a choker under her polo shirt, twisted to one side so no one would see it, the Air Gem gleamed with its own lambent turquoise light. The stone fastened to her cloak was a beautiful but mundane tourmaline she had picked up in a crystal shop as a close match. Modesty be damned, Haley thought she was incredibly clever to have come up with this ruse. She grinned as she thought of it.
Skipping downstairs, she found her mother had gone to the office. Lisa worked part-time for a realtor, helping with bookkeeping and records, sometimes discussing issues with new clients. Although they didn't live as if wealthy, Lisa did have a comfortable income from some Heirs of Builwyf adventure that had involved lost Zhune gold and silver bars... but she seldom mentioned that.
Haley moped around the kitchen, finally threw five sausage patties into the toaster oven for a few minutes and wrapped them in a few paper towels. She munched on the salty meat as she wandered around the living room. What to do, what to do? Finally, she went back up to her room and plopped down at her dresser to see if her Ipad was charged. The next half hour found her lost in reading up on May Dusa.
Within a few minutes, her "Oh Come ON!" reaction was stirring. No one was such a saint. While in high school, she had been a volunteer at a hospital for terminally ill children and then doubled as a volunteer bringing meals to the elderly. She had gotten her four year degree in criminal law in two years by being so brilliant; she had worked for a San Diego law firm handling victims of unsafe working conditions, then she wrote a best-selling pop culture paperback INSIDE THE CRIMINAL MIND. This was all before the age of twenty-four, when she started tracking down serial killers.
Oh brother, Haley thought. Next she'd find out that May Dusa had invented a cure for cancer and ended world hunger. She thumbed the Ipad off and shoved her chair back. Too much was too much. She ran through her pockets inventory: wallet, comb, tissues, Chapstick, keys, phone. Slinging her bag over one shoulder, Haley went back downstairs and outside.
There were two blocks of residential streets before she reached the main drag. Here was the Quick-Chek. Next to it was a combination barber shop and nail salon run by an elderly brother and sister. As she passed by, old Chet Johnston called out, "Haley! Look at you. Prettier ever day!"
"Oh, hi, Mr Johnston. Whassup?"
"Heh, I was just talking to Louise about how you used to come in here when you were what, seven? Eight? And sit and read the magazines after school. Seems like yesterday but now you must be about done with school, right?"
Moving a little closer, Haley shifted her bookbag and put one sneaker up on the lowest step in front of the salon. "I'm a Junior, next year I graduate. Mr Johnston, you know what I've been wondering?"
"Haven't the faintest idea what goes on in your head," he said with a smile.
"Okay. You've seen me in my Windcatcher costume. You've seen me fly overhead. You saw me make it rain to put out that fire. The whole town has seen me doing amazing things."
"Sure. You're Glenville's very own super-heroine."
"But no one ever makes a big deal about it," she complained. "Everybody acts like it's perfectly ordinary. I'm, well honestly, I'm a little disappointed no one seems to notice."
Johnston put a big warm hand on her shoulder. Haley didn't mind, there was nothing creepy about him. "You know, dear, I wouldn't expect any parades or medals. You're this amazing Windcatcher but you're also OUR Haley Lawson. We've known you since you came home from the hospital in a diaper. Maybe we're a little protective of you."
She smiled for the first time in a few days. "Yeah. I appreciate that."
"Oh, there's one more thing," Thomston said as he started to go back into the salon. "Twenty years ago, your mother and your uncle Jimmy were up to the same sort of thing. The Heirs of Buliwyf. I saw them once helping with flood victims over on the North Shore. So this town is a little bit familiar with weird goings-on."
"I s'pose. See ya later." Haley started walking briskly again, past the HOWELL AND SONS hardware store and pausing at the S.L. GROUTER hotel at the corner. Now that she thought of it, she had never really heard why the Heirs of Buliwyf had gone inactive around the time she had been born. She knew Charles and Kathy were still alive, out in Colorado somewhere. And she sometimes saw her Uncle Jimmy, who lived in Manhattan. But why had they stopped using the Fire Gem and the Earth Gem and the Water Gem? Why had her mother packed away the Air Gem, which Haley had only found while digging through an attic closet? Still thinking in melodramatic terms, Haley figured that here was an Untold Story. Once this May Dusa business was over, she'd look into it.
Across the street was the OUR LITTLE BOOKSTORE, which she liked because it always had such amusing posters in the windows: "Books Do Decorate A Room" or "Sit Outside With a Book Today" or even "Travel Anywhere While In Your Chair." But today, the biggest picture window had a long yellow banner which read: "Book Signing Today - Meet MAY DUSA in person."
After a few minutes of fuming and cursing mentally, Haley settled down enough to decide that she would wander over and peek inside the open door of the store. It wasn't that she had doubts about misjudging May Dusa, because Haley trusted her instincts as if they were infallible. It was pure curiosity. Digging in her school bag, she found her pair of over-sized round-framed sunglasses and slipped them on. With her hair done up on top of her head and wearing shades, not to mention being in regular clothing, she looked quite different.
The interior of the bookstore had been kept open and avoided any sense of clutter. A pleasant cedar aroma lingered. Against the far wall, May Dusa was seated behind a folding card table with a stack of her book on serial killers. At least twenty people were waiting in line. Each would take a copy of the book, exchange a few pleasantries with May Dusa while she signed it with a brief inscription, and then go over to the register to pay for the book.
Despite her wish to spot something sinister or incriminating, Haley had to admit it was a dull, mundane book signing. Often, May Dusa made a remark to a fan which provoked a laugh and this irritated Haley quite unreasonably. She was still stewing over her resentment and about to leave when she saw a big man in work clothes come stalking in from the street.
From the corner of her eye, Haley caught May Dusa rising to her feet. Uh-Oh. This might be a case for Windcatcher, she thought hopefully. The big bruiser had three days growth of beard and smelled noticeably of beer. He stomped past the line waiting for signatures and jabbed a thick finger at May Dusa.
"You phoney!" he yelled. "Yer book is fulla lies! Where do you get off with that crap?"
"I'm going to ask you to leave," May Dusa replied, as horrified customers drew back from the scene. One of the bookstore owners came here in an attempt to stand beside May Dusa but was gently pushed away by the author. In the next minute, the big man reached out and grabbed a handful of her jacket front. May Dusa whipped one arm back behind her own ear and snapped a beautiful right cross that smacked the man's head around on his neck until he could have seen down his own back. With a dazed grunt, the intruder fell to his knees and stayed down with his head drooping.
In the excited buzz of outrage and confusion which erupted, May Dusa raised her voice. "I'm all right! This is quite all right. Please don't call the police. Where's Jeff? Jeff, come here and help me load him into the car. We'll take him to a quiet place and see what his supposed grudge is."
"Miss Dusa, please, let's press charges..." began the owner.
"I don't think that will be necessary. Maybe he can be straightened out. He smells like he has been drinking." As her assistant appeared, they carried the stunned brute out of the door into the street. "I will have to reschedule this signing, I'm afraid. Thank you all for coming."
The crowd was carrying on a dozen conversations at once, mostly praising May Dusa's courage and her punching ability, not to mention how humane she was to not have the attacker arrested. But, standing by herself, Haley Lawson was sporting a wicked triumphant grin. She had recognized the attacker. He had been one of the men working for May Dusa the night before.
VII.
Suddenly jubilant, Haley hurried out of the bookstore, vaulted across narrow Partition Street and galloped into the Dallas Hot Weiners. She ran into the ladies' room, found it was conveniently empty, and in a few minutes had wriggled into her blue shorts and white pullover, clasping the cloak around her neck. She jammed the clothes had been wearing into her school bag and ran back out again. A dozen people were standing around eating footlongs or waiting for their orders.
Haley felt a twinge that no one announced in awe, "Look, it's Windcatcher!" The best she got was a friendly wave from the young Greek guy working the grill but he had a crush on her anyway. Out in the parking lot, it took a few seconds for Haley's mind to somehow locate a hurricane forming in the Caribbean. How this worked was a mystery to everyone, even scholars of the Midnight War could not explain it. Lifted by two hundred mile per hour winds, she flashed upward with a swirl of dust and loose wrappers from the parking lot following her a second. Haley straightened out her body like a diver, arms out in front of her, and hurtled over Glenville with a gleeful heart.
There by the shore of Lake Schoonmaker was the SUV and two other dark vehicles. A large tent with a peak had been erected next to a fire that was much smaller than the one extinguished the night before. Standing in a tight circle were six men and a blonde woman that was recognizably May Dusa.
Without the slightest flicker of apprehension, Haley Lawson came down fast and thumped to the ground right in front of the crowd. She had landed a bit harder than she had expected and her arches hurt but that would have to wait. She flung her heavy cloak back behind her and announced loudly, "I knew that punch was fake! You didn't even plant your feet first. This joker took the punch and acted like it hurt him so that you could impress the crowd!"
One of the men blinked and whispered out of the side of his mouth to May Dusa, "Who IS this chick? Like, what is her problem?"
"She likes to be called Windcatcher," May Dusa said. "Luckily, she is not our problem. Right, boss?"
Seeing them all gaze past her, Haley was not experienced enough to step to one side so as to watch them and behind herself simultaneously. She spun around. Standing on the shore of Lake Schoonmaker, grinning at her with the hideous rictus of frozen facial muscles, was Sepulchre.
"Gack," said Haley. "I mean, I don't wanna be rude but there is such a thing as plastic surgery."
The longtime criminal mastermind did not visibly react. He said, "I claim that Air Gem you are wearing, child. If you surrender it, you may live through this encounter."
"Wait, wait, I read about you," Haley responded irrelevantly. "You were given a lethal injection in Texas, right? But something about the poison was mixed badly and you survived with your face frozen like that..."
"Enough. I will take that gem." Sepulchre lifted both arms. Ingenious spring mechanisms within his sleeves thrust a tiny weapon into each hand. These were specially crafted two-shot derringers of a .15 caliber, only lethal because of his extreme accuracy. He thumbed back the hammers...
And a howling blast of tornado wind flung him out over Lake Schoonmaker at three hundred miles an hour. Any scream was lost in the roaring, and no splash could be heard to indicate if he had fallen into the water. A second later, the winds died down.
Haley wheeled around to find one of May Dusa's men was hastily stowing a revolver away inside his waistband. "Yeah, you better watch out!" she yelled. "You'll go straight up and fall a couple miles onto your head!"
All color had faded from May Dusa's face. "You.. killed him!"
"Maybe. I don't know. Is he a good swimmer?" asked Haley. "Anyway, he was pointing two funny-looking little guns at me. I think I can claim self-defense."
"There's no reason to hurt us," May Dusa changed her voice to seem pleading and pitiful. "We are no threat."
"Maybe not. I dunno. Maybe you should all go for a swim," Haley said, and indeed she was thinking it over.
"That horrid man was holding us hostage," May Dusa went on quickly, "You've heard of him. He's a notorious killer. We were trying to find a way to escape.."
"Oh, please, stop the baloney. I don't believe anything you said. Listen. Tell you what. I'm going to go out over the lake and search for that grinning freak. Maybe I'll rescue him if he's treading water. While I'm doing that, it would be a good idea if you guys packed up and drove away. Deal?"
"Yes, yes, thank you...."
Haley lifted clear of the ground, still keeping a suspicious eye on the ground. If she saw another gun, she was ready to freeze them solid with Arctic winds at sixty below zero. Before she rose out over Lake Schoonmaker, she yelled down, "And don't come back to Glenville. This is MY town."
11/24/2020
8/4/-8/5/2012
I.
Entering the living room with her second cup of coffee that morning, Lisa Lawson regarded her seventeen year old daughter with bemused affection. Haley was curled in a ball on the couch with her legs tucked up under her, her arms folded and her head drooping so the gorgeous auburn hair hung down like a curtain to conceal her face. She was rocking half an inch from side to side.
"That is the best performance I've seen in a while," Lisa said, dropping down into an easy chair facing the couch. "Did you join the Drama Club at school?"
For a reply, Haley emitted a low quavering sigh that started down near her belly button. She raised her head. Those large lime-green eyes were her best feature and, although they were sad, no moisture indicating immediate tears was noticeable. "I went and got the mail."
"Yeah, I have the same reaction when I see the bills." Lisa Lawson did not much resemble her daughter, being four inches shorter than Haley's five feet eight and sporting glossy black hair instead of deep red. But their eyes were a family trait and almost identical. "Oh. Oh, you got the results about your driver's license."
"Yes. Busted. Failed. Flunked." Haley sat up straight and smacked her forehead with the back of her hand. "It says I failed to change lanes when turning left from a two-lane one-way street but I do NOT remember it that way."
"Ah, honey, practice and take it again. You know, Jimmy failed three times. His parallel parking is still atrocious." She put down her coffee cup. "I saw the half-finished bowl of Chocolate Rice Krispies by the sink. How about some scrambled eggs and bacon to balance your innards?"
"No, thanks, mom." Haley bounded upright with the ease of youth. She was wearing her usual Navy blue shorts and white long-sleeved pullover. "I crave action! Excitement! The thrill of fighting evil will lift my spirits."
"What on Earth have you been reading, child?"
"Comics. BLAST WOMAN is my favorite. It gets me stirred up in the mood. Did I tell you I'm meeting your friend the Wolf Man next week?"
"Jeremy Bane is called by some the Dire Wolf," Lisa repeated. "Not Wolf Man. Yes. If you insist on using the Air Gem to get into situations where you're likely to break your neck, having him train you is a good idea. Just take his advice and respect him like he's your Marine drill sergeant, he knows what he's talking about."
Haley started from the living room but hesitated in the doorway. "Mom. You're not TOO worried about me being Windcatcher, are you?"
"Of course I'm worried. What do you think?" Lisa stood up and went over to her daughter and placed a hand on each shoulder. "But God forgive me if I don't remember I was as stubborn and reckless at your age. The risks I took. Ugh, makes me shiver to think about. But somehow I trust you. You think quickly on your feet and you're barely sensible enough to draw back if the situation s seem too dangerous."
"You're the best!" Haley laughed as he rushed from the parlor to the staircase leading up to her own room. A few seconds later, her voice drifted down, "Mommmm! I'm going out the window! Back by suppertime!"
"Be careful, dear." Lisa Lawson exhaled and slumped back in her chair. Once, before Haley had been born, it had been Lisa who wore the Air Gem and wielded its power to summon everything from hurricane winds to monsoon rain to Arctic blasts. That had been long ago and, she wistfully realized, it was further faded by time every day.
In her neat tidy room, noticeably free of frills and decorations but ornamented by an acoustic guitar in its case and stacks of books covering horrific crimes, Haley clasped the collar of an ankle-length dark blue cloak around her neck. Fastened at her throat was a lovely oval-cut blue gem that resembled pale tourmaline. She checked the slit pockets in her shorts for the few items she carried as Windcatcher, then flung up the wide window as high as it would go. A warm sunny August morning beckoned to her.
Sporting the widest grin her cheeks could handle, Windcatcher squeezed up onto the ledge of the window. She concentrated with full focus of the image she wanted, drew on the ancient mystic power of the Air Gem. From somewhere in Kansas, tornado winds at two hundred and sixty miles per hour shot her out and upward into the sky.
II.
Flying for Haley was not a graceful effortless gliding like a thrown paper airplane. She was held within a fierce vortex of churning air that pushed her up and forward, and she had to guide her motion by mental discipline. In the first few weeks, she had crashed so often that she usually practiced without her cloak over Lake Schoonmaker and swam back to shore most of the time. Even now, if she let her concentration lapse, she might easily wind up tumbling end over end or find herself in a nose dive.
But she loved it. Two hundred feet below her, her hometown of Glenville rolled past in the clear sunlight. Along the wide Main Street were the local bank, pizza joints, antique shops, a pet tending place called BARK AVENUE (ha!), the usual shoppers strolling. No one glanced up. When people did see Haley pass by, they often waved but just as often did not react. This puzzled and annoyed her beyond all reason.
A teenage girl wearing a bright blue cape soaring at treetop level over the town should have been the biggest sensation in history. Excited crowds should gather whenever she appeared. News crews with cameras should be following her every appearance, frantic requests for interviews, meetings with top government officials asking for her help... But, no. Nothing. Everyone simply said, "Hey, there goes the Lawson girl" and continued about their business as if they had seen a squirrel run across their yard. It drove her nuts.
Heading toward the north end of town, Haley remembered her mother explaining a theory about why this might be happening. As a teen herself with the rest of her family as the Heirs of Buliwyf, Lisa Lawson had been baffled by how people reacted so casually to them. An expert on the occult had theorized that it might be a side-effect of their talismans. The Air Gem's magick for some reason had a damping effect on peoples' emotional reactions. It wasn't that everyone forgot about seeing her fly or didn't realize how amazing it was... it was that the spell muted their responses to the point where the local folks honestly didn't see anything remarkable about it. The newspapers and local TV station seemed to be deliberately ignoring her. As far as she could tell, no one in Glenville had even mentioned her in social media.
Ahead was the hundred-year-old Lutheran Church sitting on the hill overlooking that end of the town. Haley's annoyance simmered at a low boil. Ah well, as much as she had dreamed of squealing fans demanding her autograph or seeing her image blazoned on a cereal box, maybe it was better this way. She still had enough privacy she could have lunch or go shopping in peace.
What was going on with that crowd in the field behind the church? Today was Thursday, there wasn't any bazaar or bake sale or anything as far as she remembered. Circling at three hundred feet, Windcather lessened the winds until she started descending slowly. A hastily nailed-together platform of two-by-fours rose seven feet off the ground, surrounded by what looked like at least a few hundred local denizens. Standing on that platform, speaking into a wireless microphone, was a tall slim woman with gorgeous honey-colored hair reaching down her back to her waist.
Then Haley saw the canvas banner waving from a pole, red letters on a white background...MAY DUSA. The cheering from the crowd stayed at a steady dull roar.
Seeing her friends Gina and Bentley at the rear of the mob, Haley dismissed the winds carefully, lowered her legs and came down for a landing that saw her stumble only a few steps. Her landings were improving, she had skidded on her stomach the first dozen times. "Hey, you guys! Gina! Bentley!"
Her classmates at Madison High, Gina was a small winsome girl of obvious Italian extraction and her steady boyfriend Bentley was a skinny gawky boy with an endearing crooked grin. Today, as so often, they were wearing matching concert T-shirts for the Plungers' Final World Tour. They both spun around to greet her. "Hales! Hi!" Gina chirped.
"What's the deal with blondie up there?" asked Haley, throwing her cloak back off her shoulders. "Is she selling something?"
Gina turned widened eyes toward her pal as if Haley had just barked like a dog. "You don't know about May Dusa? She is all OVER YouTube and Facebook. She caught three serial killers this year. She recovered a kidnaped baby that was being held for ransom. She's only the hottest person trending in the world right now."
"I bet she can't fly...." Haley mumbled to herself.
"And if she's out here on Long Island, you can bet she's going to have something major to announce," added Bentley. Lately, he had been letting Gina trim his shaggy brown hair with indifferent results. "I was following the FBI website, that freak Sepulchre is still at large."
"Wouldn't it be great if she caught HIM?" added Gina. "I have bad dreams when I think of that guy's grin. Ugh, Ick and Oh No."
Seeing that no one noticed her adorable pout, Haley unsnapped her cloak and rolled it up into a cylinder which she tucked under one arm. She even started listening to the speaker on the platform.
"..and so, since our elected representatives are too weak or too timid to take the necessary steps, I have decided to start creating tough laws to stomp down hard on crime," she cried out in a dramatic ringing tone. "Effective immediately, I, May Elizabeth Dusa, intend to be your next State Senator!"
Grudgingly though it was, Haley had to admit this woman was attractive. May Dusa was tall, only an inch under six feet tall and had the impressive bust and hips of an old-school pin-up model. Along with the long dark blonde hair, she possessed an clear-cut oval face with blindingly white teeth. Her eyes could not be seen behind mirrored sunglasses. May Dusa was wearing a neat dark blue pants suit outfit with a violet-colored blouse. She raised a hand to acknowledge the thunderous approval from the crowd at her announcement.
"Thank you, thank you, my friends. I will be running as an Independent. Also, I want to stress that there is no reason to think the public is in any danger but I am also following leads about the current whereabouts of a notorious madman who has escaped the well-deserved death penalty for too long now. By the end of this week, I hope to announce the capture of Sepulchre!"
Hearing that name, Haley's mouth fell open. It felt exactly as if someone had slid an ice cube down her spine. Unconsciously, one hand reached up to clutch hard at the Air Gem worn at her throat.
III.
After taking a few questions and posing for a few selfies with some of her fans, May Dusa retreated to a long black SUV with tinted windows. A driver swept her away, and an equally ominous-looking Nissan sedan followed with two more of her staff. The crowd took forever to disperse as everyone stood around excitedly chatting.
Arms folded across her chest, Haley frowned at the two vehicles which turned right on the road to head north. Her eyebrows were down so far they nearly met.
Gina stepped closer and threw an arm across Haley's shoulders to give her a sideways hug. "I know that expression! Come on, Windcatcher girl, what's eating you?"
"You're not jealous of May Dusa getting the attention, are you?" asked Bentley. "Let's walk to Dallas Hot Weiners, I got twenty bucks."
"I wouldn't mind a chili dog. And some onion rings, AND a Dr Pepper. Whaddya say, Hales?"
Making herself smile, Haley Lawson put a hand on each of her friend's shoulders and drew them closer. "Sounds good. I'm in." She joined them trekking downhill toward the town itself. The chat wandered from Bentley's part time job at the Price Chopper to Gina's father promising her a trip to visit family in San Diego around Christmas to which celebrities they hated and how to fight global warming in their own lives. Soon enough, they were seated outside at a bench next to the Dallas Hot Weiners and attacking the food as if a time bomb were about to go off.
Coming up for air, Haley wiped her mouth with a crumpled napkin. "You know, I have to come right out and say it. I fly around town, I put out that house that was on fire with a blast of supercold air, I found that little girl who wandered out in the woods, I even broke up the knife fight between the Naglia brothers. I'm as close to a legitimate super-hero as Glenville is ever likely to see!"
Gina cocked her head to one side. "I never heard anybody say anything bad about you, Hales. As far as I know, everybody likes you and is kinda tickled to see our own Windcatcher whiz by overhead."
"Oh, hold-up there now," Bentley interrupted. "I get it. You're jealous of May Dusa."
"Well... yeah," Haley admitted in a low tone.
He studied her face for a moment. "You know, there's something else. I saw your reaction when she mentioned Sepulchre."
"That's what is really rattling my cage," Haley said. "You're right, Bent. You're absolutely right."
"And, and only a minute before that, Bentley was talking about Sepulchre," Gina burst in. "I don't believe in coincidence. Something bad is going on. Haley! You have to investigate, we'll help you."
"What? No, wait. Where am I even gonna start?" asked the Windcatcher. "I'm not a cop. I can't flash my badge and ask questions. And I bet May Dusa has a posse of lawyers ready to throw me in the slammer."
Gathering up all the debris from their impromptu meal, Gina disposed of it in a wire-frame trash barrel, then slapped her hands together as if dusting them. "Let's think. Burn some brain cells together. May Dusa said she's going to be in the area. Where would she stay?"
"Ummm. If she's not going too far, there's the Holiday Inn by Gloverton, that's maybe ten miles away. And there's the Restwell Motor Court up on Route 211, it's a little shabby but who knows what her plans are?"
Haley stood up, unrolled her blue cloak and clasped it at her throat. With her mother's help, she had weighted the lower hem and inserted three stiffening nylon rods running the length of the heavy cotton material. Although her flight ability came from the Air Gen, she found the cloak was a big help in staying stable. Crashing and landing on her nose had been much less common since altering the cape.
"We need to be your sidekick squad," Gina said. "Sure there aren't any more of those magic stones tucked away somewhere? Did you search your house?"
"Sorry. Far as I know, this is the only Air Gem ever and by now it's locked onto my lifeforce." She tucked her shirt more neatly into the waistband of her shorts and smiled at her buds. "I promise, if I find out about any other mystic talismans, I'll call you guys right away."
"I want a ring that shoots lightning," Gina giggled.
"Get me a hammer that comes back when I throw it," said Bentley.
"I'll keep my eyes open." Haley Lawson took a few quick steps away from her friends toward the empty parking lot behind the Hot Weiner place. Her mind instinctively located a hurricane thousands of miles away, blowing off the coast of Haiti. A roaring gust of wind lifted her clear of the ground and flung her up into the formerly placid sky.
IV.
At five-thirty, Haley alighted on the patio behind her house. Her stomach muscles and lower back hurt. Holding her body in flight meant keeping her legs extending out behind her, requiring a lot of abdominal strength, and she had started landing to take breaks after searching for any sign of May Dusa's vehicles. The Windcatcher slumped down into one of the redwood chairs and stretched gingerly.
From the sliding glass door behind her, her mother said, "You look like you need a long hot bath. I've got black beans, rice and chopped peppers simmering but they can wait. Here, give me that heavy cape before it pulls you to the ground."
"Thanks, mom." Haley unclasped the cloak and handed it over. "I didn't get anywhere. Maybe I'll see if the library has some books on basic crime investigation. Jeremy is right, I need lessons."
"Well, you have until September to learn some useful detective skills. After that, it's your senior year and you need to keep your grades up to be accepted at any decent college." Lisa gave her daughter a light playful dope slap on the back of the head. "Soak in hot soapy water for a while."
Half an hour later, hair wrapped up in a fluffy towel like a turban and wrapped in a flannel bathrobe that had comforted her many times, Haley descended the stairs with a lighter heart. Her mom was ready to start ladling the black beans and rice onto the two china plates set out on the dining room table. Before she sat down, Haley fetched the butter dish and the half a loaf of Italian bread left from the day before to accompany the meal.
As they ate, Haley blurted without preamble, "What's going on with that Jeff guy?"
"Hmm. Oh, I don't know. We might see each other again, we might not. I'm fine without a man in my life. I'm more worried about your sister."
"Oh. She'll be okay," Haley said. "She knows what she wants. Nobody's gonna talk her into anything. Listen, Mom, I've got a BAD feeling about May Dusa. I don't know why."
Lisa was using a piece of Italian bread crust to round up fugitive rice kernels. "You could be a little resentful of all the attention she's getting?"
"Okay, maybe. Maybe there's something to that. I'm human, you know. But something about the way she mentioned that monster Sepulchre, only to immediately assure everybody it was gonna be okay. That doesn't smell right."
For a long moment, Lisa Lawson did not comment. Finally, she folded her hands together in front of her and nodded solemnly. "I feel the same way. When I heard that May Dusa was coming to Glenville, I went online and did some research. She seemed kosher and yet...I guess I have the same reaction you do. She's too good to be true. She feels like she's posing as a hero."
"Hey! Glad you see that too. I don't wanna be just some jealous kid."
"In fact," Lisa went on, "This afternoon, I made some phone calls. I may not be active in the Midnight War these days but I have kept some contacts. It seems that May Dusa's background is too clean, too smooth to suit Jeremy. He says it looks like it was all set up a year or two ago."
"Jeremy Bane, huh, well he should know, he's been in the game for ages. What does he mean?"
Lisa raised an admonishing finger at her daughter. "This is all on a need to know basis, dear. Jeremy has arranged a lot of false identities over the years, both for himself and his friends. I still have a passport and driver's license for someone named 'Linda Larsen' who looks exactly like me except for a blonde rinse in the hair. But I never had to use it. Anyway, Jeremy says that you can hack into the Motor Vehicle Bureau and the IRS records and so forth, and find evidence that May Dusa is real. You could even go to the town where she supposedly attended school and find her in the yearbook. Or if you call where she used to work, someone will answer the phone and remember her being there."
"Not...not sure I get the point of all this," Haley said, but her green eyes were wide and eager. This was drawing her in.
"Creating fake yearbooks to sneak into local schools and libraries and planting fake tax records is not only expensive as hell, it involves major felonies. No one does it for fun. So, whoever is behind May Dusa has big plans for her future."
"That's another thing. Why the retarded name? May Dusa, be serious. Why pick a name so ridiculous."
"Haley, we do not call things 'retarded,' remember. What hooligans are you hanging out with?!" Lisa stood up and gathered together the plates, glasses and silverware. "You wash and I dry?"
"I'll put away the leftovers," Haley suggested instead. "In the Tupperware. There's enough for another meal tomorrow. So, mom, I think there's one more thing you have to tell me."
Turning on the hot water, Lisa Lawson fixed a suspicious glance at her younger daughter. "Go on."
"Hee hee, I know you. I'm gonna bet you've already got the address where May Dusa is staying in this area!"
V.
In the long dim twilight of summer, Windcatcher soared at two hundred feet above the outskirts of Glenville. The familiar sting of adrenaline burning through her veins was exceedingly welcome. Next summer, right after graduation, Jeremy Bane had promised Haley that he would sponsor her to meet the Teachers of Tel Shai. IF and it was a big IF, she was approved by those ancient shamans and wisemen, Haley could start training in mystic disciplines not taught anywhere else. She could join the Kenneth Dred Foundation, become a ghostbuster and monster chaser and maniac smasher. Windcatcher would finally become a full-fledged hero.
But that was almost a year away. Tonight, her sights were focussed on learning more about this May Dusa woman. Down below, she spotted the narrow stretch of Lake Schoonmaker, only four miles across and six miles long but so deep in many spots that swimming was outlawed. Set up next to its shore were a cheerfully blazing bonefire and three vehicles, with about eight or nine people moving around. Haley decided she needed to invest in a pair of binoculars, small and powerful as she could afford. She was already carrying a flashlight, some first aid items and a folding knife with a three inch blade.
Swooping lower, she saw the tall figure of May Dusa, with that golden hair blazing in the unsteady firelight. Two of the men in her party seemed to be arguing with considerable heat, since their faces were almost touching. When Haley touched down near the black SUV, it seemed no one had noticed her arrival.
"I don't care what that plan is, that ghoul gives me the creeps big time!" one of the men yelled.
"Excuse me," Haley said, wrapping the blue cloak around her. "Hi. May Dusa? I'm called the Windcatcher..."
The long blonde hair swirled as the woman swung around. "How did you get here? Why didn't Carl catch you? I'm paying for security."
"You might have heard of me," Haley continued but with a sinking feeling in her chest. "Windcatcher? I've been doing some rescue work on this end of Long Island."
Seen up close and in person, May Dusa's strong nose and long jaw gave her an intimidating aspect that photos did not capture. She pressed both fists against her hips. "Oh yes, some of the local hicks were talking about you. Get lost. I don't care why kind of circus tricks you use to fool these yokels, I'm not falling for it. I don't need jailbait getting in the way of my campaign."
"But...but I could help you?"
"Are you dense? I said, get lost! Carl, Lennie, show this baby to the road."
In a suddenly low voice, Haley Lawson said, "I can leave by myself." She summoned the most powerful winds her mind could locate on the planet. Winds in excess of two hundred miles per hour not only flung her straight up and out of sight, they bowled over everyone there as if struck by speeding cars. A burst of heavy cold rain came with the winds to instantly douse the bonfire with a gout of steam and to thoroughly drench everyone in the area until they looked like drowning victims.
From high overhead, above the howling of the winds, an outraged voice shouted, "Circus tricks, huh?"
As May Dusa sputtered in helpless fury and her men tried to wring out their clothes, the rear door of the black SUV swung open. Out stepped a painfully thin man dressed all in white... flannel trousers, sneakers, dress shirt with the collar open, lightweight jacket, all white. Sepulcher could not help grinning. The hideous smile was frozen on his bony face from the muscles having tightened up during his botched execution and never relaxing again. The thinning brown hair was combed straight back. With the sharp pointed nose and wild hazel eyes, Sepulcher was an unsettling man for even hardened cops or FBI men to confront. The henchmen could not help but avert their gaze when he showed himself.
Sepulchre went over and confronted May Dusa. "This is unexpected," he said quietly. "I was not looking for the Midnight War but it seems to have found me."
"I don't understand. What happened? How did that storm appear out of nowhere that way?" she demanded.
"The wind and the rain were called here, perhaps from the opposite end of the world," Sepulchre replied. "That young girl carries the Air Gem. It's one of the most potent talismans ever known." A low chuckle escaped his frozen grimace. "But it will not remain hers for long."
VI.
She was not going to cry. She wasn't. With her lips pressed tightly closed, Haley Lawson whizzed over Glenville so fast that her cloak made snapping noises. She headed for Gina's house down on Linderman Street and was relieved to see her friend and Bentley cuddled up next to each other on the porch. Windcatcher swung her legs down, come in way too fast and botched her landing. Her forward momentum swept her off her feet into a graceless loose somersault that ended with her sitting up on the lawn and finding her cloak draped over her face.
"You've landed better," Bentley observed mildly.
"Haley? You okay?" Gina jumped up and ran over to help.
With a disgusted grunt, Windcatcher disentangled herself from the cape, stood up and dusted herself off. "I'm fine. I'm fine. That bitch! Do you know what she said to me?!"
"Your MOM?" asked Gina in a tone of unprecedented horror.
No! Of course not! May Dusa!" Haley launched into the whole story, not missing any descriptive detail and relishing the final scene of five water-soaked and confused offenders left behind.
"Boy, Haley, you did not deserve to be treated like that," Bentley said. "That woman is a real world class jerk."
Pacing to burn off steam, Windcatcher had her arms clasped behind her back. "They don't know what they're messing with, I wanna tell you. Suppose I brought a thunderstorm down right on top of them? Or maybe a night of hundred degree temperature air from Brazil absolutely saturated with humidity. Serve 'em right. But no." Haley paused and raised a single index finger for emphasis. "Great power such as mine should be used sparingly."
"Sweetie, you have GOT to stop reading those comic books!" Gina told her. "I swear, you need to try some romance novels this summer for a change."
"In any case, I need to decide what to do next. Maybe I should ignore them? Just go about my business as usual. It's no skin off my nose what that old bleached blonde is up to." Haley turned to her friends, calming down visibly. "So, what are you guys planning tonight?"
"Nextflix and chill," said Bentley.
"And I'm seriously Netflix. I want to watch that movie about young Queen Victoria. It looks so elegant and ritzy."
"Hmm. I bet you'll make it to the end credits," Haley said. "I think I really should head home. Give my mom one night where she's not chewing on her nails about me." Brisk winds began to circle around her, making her cloak swirl. "Call me in the morning, Gina. Bentley, let yourself get into a chick flick, you might be surprised." And with a whoosh, she was gone again.
VI.
After a rare quiet evening where they watched TV for a while and both turned in early, Haley woke at daybreak boiling with enthusiasm. During most of the year, her school work and night patrols at Windcatcher left her surviving on naps, but during the summer she was eager to save the world. Her morning routine was taking longer and longer. For one thing, her hair had reached a length where drying it and brushing it out took forever. Shaving her legs had lately seemed more and more crucial to her as well, especially since she wore shorts so often. Haley spent further time swirling her hair up into a bun on top of her head, exposing her long neck for once. It was over an hour before she started digging through her wardrobe.
Poking around, she decided to go civilian. It was supposed to be about eighty and breezy that day, with a good chance of showers. Haley picked out a favorite pair of jeans, a snug dark red polo shirt that went perfectly with her hair and eyes, and a pair of bright red sneakers she hardly ever wore. After wriggling into everything, she hauled her school book bag out from under the bed. There were three identical pairs of the Navy blue shorts and white longsleeved shirts she wore as Windcatcher and she tucked them into the pack. Then, carefully, she folded up the thick cloak and stowed it away as well.
On a choker under her polo shirt, twisted to one side so no one would see it, the Air Gem gleamed with its own lambent turquoise light. The stone fastened to her cloak was a beautiful but mundane tourmaline she had picked up in a crystal shop as a close match. Modesty be damned, Haley thought she was incredibly clever to have come up with this ruse. She grinned as she thought of it.
Skipping downstairs, she found her mother had gone to the office. Lisa worked part-time for a realtor, helping with bookkeeping and records, sometimes discussing issues with new clients. Although they didn't live as if wealthy, Lisa did have a comfortable income from some Heirs of Builwyf adventure that had involved lost Zhune gold and silver bars... but she seldom mentioned that.
Haley moped around the kitchen, finally threw five sausage patties into the toaster oven for a few minutes and wrapped them in a few paper towels. She munched on the salty meat as she wandered around the living room. What to do, what to do? Finally, she went back up to her room and plopped down at her dresser to see if her Ipad was charged. The next half hour found her lost in reading up on May Dusa.
Within a few minutes, her "Oh Come ON!" reaction was stirring. No one was such a saint. While in high school, she had been a volunteer at a hospital for terminally ill children and then doubled as a volunteer bringing meals to the elderly. She had gotten her four year degree in criminal law in two years by being so brilliant; she had worked for a San Diego law firm handling victims of unsafe working conditions, then she wrote a best-selling pop culture paperback INSIDE THE CRIMINAL MIND. This was all before the age of twenty-four, when she started tracking down serial killers.
Oh brother, Haley thought. Next she'd find out that May Dusa had invented a cure for cancer and ended world hunger. She thumbed the Ipad off and shoved her chair back. Too much was too much. She ran through her pockets inventory: wallet, comb, tissues, Chapstick, keys, phone. Slinging her bag over one shoulder, Haley went back downstairs and outside.
There were two blocks of residential streets before she reached the main drag. Here was the Quick-Chek. Next to it was a combination barber shop and nail salon run by an elderly brother and sister. As she passed by, old Chet Johnston called out, "Haley! Look at you. Prettier ever day!"
"Oh, hi, Mr Johnston. Whassup?"
"Heh, I was just talking to Louise about how you used to come in here when you were what, seven? Eight? And sit and read the magazines after school. Seems like yesterday but now you must be about done with school, right?"
Moving a little closer, Haley shifted her bookbag and put one sneaker up on the lowest step in front of the salon. "I'm a Junior, next year I graduate. Mr Johnston, you know what I've been wondering?"
"Haven't the faintest idea what goes on in your head," he said with a smile.
"Okay. You've seen me in my Windcatcher costume. You've seen me fly overhead. You saw me make it rain to put out that fire. The whole town has seen me doing amazing things."
"Sure. You're Glenville's very own super-heroine."
"But no one ever makes a big deal about it," she complained. "Everybody acts like it's perfectly ordinary. I'm, well honestly, I'm a little disappointed no one seems to notice."
Johnston put a big warm hand on her shoulder. Haley didn't mind, there was nothing creepy about him. "You know, dear, I wouldn't expect any parades or medals. You're this amazing Windcatcher but you're also OUR Haley Lawson. We've known you since you came home from the hospital in a diaper. Maybe we're a little protective of you."
She smiled for the first time in a few days. "Yeah. I appreciate that."
"Oh, there's one more thing," Thomston said as he started to go back into the salon. "Twenty years ago, your mother and your uncle Jimmy were up to the same sort of thing. The Heirs of Buliwyf. I saw them once helping with flood victims over on the North Shore. So this town is a little bit familiar with weird goings-on."
"I s'pose. See ya later." Haley started walking briskly again, past the HOWELL AND SONS hardware store and pausing at the S.L. GROUTER hotel at the corner. Now that she thought of it, she had never really heard why the Heirs of Buliwyf had gone inactive around the time she had been born. She knew Charles and Kathy were still alive, out in Colorado somewhere. And she sometimes saw her Uncle Jimmy, who lived in Manhattan. But why had they stopped using the Fire Gem and the Earth Gem and the Water Gem? Why had her mother packed away the Air Gem, which Haley had only found while digging through an attic closet? Still thinking in melodramatic terms, Haley figured that here was an Untold Story. Once this May Dusa business was over, she'd look into it.
Across the street was the OUR LITTLE BOOKSTORE, which she liked because it always had such amusing posters in the windows: "Books Do Decorate A Room" or "Sit Outside With a Book Today" or even "Travel Anywhere While In Your Chair." But today, the biggest picture window had a long yellow banner which read: "Book Signing Today - Meet MAY DUSA in person."
After a few minutes of fuming and cursing mentally, Haley settled down enough to decide that she would wander over and peek inside the open door of the store. It wasn't that she had doubts about misjudging May Dusa, because Haley trusted her instincts as if they were infallible. It was pure curiosity. Digging in her school bag, she found her pair of over-sized round-framed sunglasses and slipped them on. With her hair done up on top of her head and wearing shades, not to mention being in regular clothing, she looked quite different.
The interior of the bookstore had been kept open and avoided any sense of clutter. A pleasant cedar aroma lingered. Against the far wall, May Dusa was seated behind a folding card table with a stack of her book on serial killers. At least twenty people were waiting in line. Each would take a copy of the book, exchange a few pleasantries with May Dusa while she signed it with a brief inscription, and then go over to the register to pay for the book.
Despite her wish to spot something sinister or incriminating, Haley had to admit it was a dull, mundane book signing. Often, May Dusa made a remark to a fan which provoked a laugh and this irritated Haley quite unreasonably. She was still stewing over her resentment and about to leave when she saw a big man in work clothes come stalking in from the street.
From the corner of her eye, Haley caught May Dusa rising to her feet. Uh-Oh. This might be a case for Windcatcher, she thought hopefully. The big bruiser had three days growth of beard and smelled noticeably of beer. He stomped past the line waiting for signatures and jabbed a thick finger at May Dusa.
"You phoney!" he yelled. "Yer book is fulla lies! Where do you get off with that crap?"
"I'm going to ask you to leave," May Dusa replied, as horrified customers drew back from the scene. One of the bookstore owners came here in an attempt to stand beside May Dusa but was gently pushed away by the author. In the next minute, the big man reached out and grabbed a handful of her jacket front. May Dusa whipped one arm back behind her own ear and snapped a beautiful right cross that smacked the man's head around on his neck until he could have seen down his own back. With a dazed grunt, the intruder fell to his knees and stayed down with his head drooping.
In the excited buzz of outrage and confusion which erupted, May Dusa raised her voice. "I'm all right! This is quite all right. Please don't call the police. Where's Jeff? Jeff, come here and help me load him into the car. We'll take him to a quiet place and see what his supposed grudge is."
"Miss Dusa, please, let's press charges..." began the owner.
"I don't think that will be necessary. Maybe he can be straightened out. He smells like he has been drinking." As her assistant appeared, they carried the stunned brute out of the door into the street. "I will have to reschedule this signing, I'm afraid. Thank you all for coming."
The crowd was carrying on a dozen conversations at once, mostly praising May Dusa's courage and her punching ability, not to mention how humane she was to not have the attacker arrested. But, standing by herself, Haley Lawson was sporting a wicked triumphant grin. She had recognized the attacker. He had been one of the men working for May Dusa the night before.
VII.
Suddenly jubilant, Haley hurried out of the bookstore, vaulted across narrow Partition Street and galloped into the Dallas Hot Weiners. She ran into the ladies' room, found it was conveniently empty, and in a few minutes had wriggled into her blue shorts and white pullover, clasping the cloak around her neck. She jammed the clothes had been wearing into her school bag and ran back out again. A dozen people were standing around eating footlongs or waiting for their orders.
Haley felt a twinge that no one announced in awe, "Look, it's Windcatcher!" The best she got was a friendly wave from the young Greek guy working the grill but he had a crush on her anyway. Out in the parking lot, it took a few seconds for Haley's mind to somehow locate a hurricane forming in the Caribbean. How this worked was a mystery to everyone, even scholars of the Midnight War could not explain it. Lifted by two hundred mile per hour winds, she flashed upward with a swirl of dust and loose wrappers from the parking lot following her a second. Haley straightened out her body like a diver, arms out in front of her, and hurtled over Glenville with a gleeful heart.
There by the shore of Lake Schoonmaker was the SUV and two other dark vehicles. A large tent with a peak had been erected next to a fire that was much smaller than the one extinguished the night before. Standing in a tight circle were six men and a blonde woman that was recognizably May Dusa.
Without the slightest flicker of apprehension, Haley Lawson came down fast and thumped to the ground right in front of the crowd. She had landed a bit harder than she had expected and her arches hurt but that would have to wait. She flung her heavy cloak back behind her and announced loudly, "I knew that punch was fake! You didn't even plant your feet first. This joker took the punch and acted like it hurt him so that you could impress the crowd!"
One of the men blinked and whispered out of the side of his mouth to May Dusa, "Who IS this chick? Like, what is her problem?"
"She likes to be called Windcatcher," May Dusa said. "Luckily, she is not our problem. Right, boss?"
Seeing them all gaze past her, Haley was not experienced enough to step to one side so as to watch them and behind herself simultaneously. She spun around. Standing on the shore of Lake Schoonmaker, grinning at her with the hideous rictus of frozen facial muscles, was Sepulchre.
"Gack," said Haley. "I mean, I don't wanna be rude but there is such a thing as plastic surgery."
The longtime criminal mastermind did not visibly react. He said, "I claim that Air Gem you are wearing, child. If you surrender it, you may live through this encounter."
"Wait, wait, I read about you," Haley responded irrelevantly. "You were given a lethal injection in Texas, right? But something about the poison was mixed badly and you survived with your face frozen like that..."
"Enough. I will take that gem." Sepulchre lifted both arms. Ingenious spring mechanisms within his sleeves thrust a tiny weapon into each hand. These were specially crafted two-shot derringers of a .15 caliber, only lethal because of his extreme accuracy. He thumbed back the hammers...
And a howling blast of tornado wind flung him out over Lake Schoonmaker at three hundred miles an hour. Any scream was lost in the roaring, and no splash could be heard to indicate if he had fallen into the water. A second later, the winds died down.
Haley wheeled around to find one of May Dusa's men was hastily stowing a revolver away inside his waistband. "Yeah, you better watch out!" she yelled. "You'll go straight up and fall a couple miles onto your head!"
All color had faded from May Dusa's face. "You.. killed him!"
"Maybe. I don't know. Is he a good swimmer?" asked Haley. "Anyway, he was pointing two funny-looking little guns at me. I think I can claim self-defense."
"There's no reason to hurt us," May Dusa changed her voice to seem pleading and pitiful. "We are no threat."
"Maybe not. I dunno. Maybe you should all go for a swim," Haley said, and indeed she was thinking it over.
"That horrid man was holding us hostage," May Dusa went on quickly, "You've heard of him. He's a notorious killer. We were trying to find a way to escape.."
"Oh, please, stop the baloney. I don't believe anything you said. Listen. Tell you what. I'm going to go out over the lake and search for that grinning freak. Maybe I'll rescue him if he's treading water. While I'm doing that, it would be a good idea if you guys packed up and drove away. Deal?"
"Yes, yes, thank you...."
Haley lifted clear of the ground, still keeping a suspicious eye on the ground. If she saw another gun, she was ready to freeze them solid with Arctic winds at sixty below zero. Before she rose out over Lake Schoonmaker, she yelled down, "And don't come back to Glenville. This is MY town."
11/24/2020
