Secrets, Lies and Dragonflies

Chapter 48

This is a first for me. It wasn't hard to slip out when Mr. Peter and Ms. Morris left to watch Monique and Elizabeth. I yank my bike from the rack thinking about how impressed Vincent would be. He's always egging me to cut class. By the time they discover I'm gone, I'll be halfway to the only Philadelphian I know of. I don't understand how I could have forgotten about that Conner party. Still a little groggy on the details, I recall being in a room plastered with the Philadelphia Eagles memorabilia. It must be the connection Ms. Morris was talking about.

I can't remember why Chuck Conner gives me the creeps, but somehow I must convince his stepmother to come with me. Maybe then, Mr. Peter will tell me what the heck is going on. Why all the secrecy? What is D-Day and Ascending? And the concerns about this projecting business? But most importantly, is my brother going to be safe?

Lingering heat from the evening sun still radiates from the blacktop as I peddle, searching for the gravel drive. The road curves slightly to the left and narrows even more. I know I'm in the right place, but the driveway is yet to appear. When I come to a fork, a bridge crossing a marsh is to the south. I believe that's where the Conner Estate should be. A faint glow in the distance might be their house. It's dark so I could have missed the long winding canopy entrance that Chuck took us down.

The crunching of my tires on the weathered, decaying planks quiets the choir of frogs grunting and croaking loudly from the cattails and Lilly pads below. When I reach the other side, the fragrant smell of the pines and thick forest of oaks are gone. I squint and cannot find a single tree anywhere. It must be a hundred degrees. When I pause to tie my sweater around my waist, I notice an aged sign stuck in the ground. I can barely make out the faded red paint, but I think it reads, "Pilate's Landing." The rumbling of an engine is approaching. A small plane unexpectedly blasts in front of me and skids down a runway. An airport? No trees? Hot? Where am I?

"What are you doing here?" bellows a voice from under the bridge. I spin and find a dark figure built like a bull coming at me. I can't make out any features yet, but it's got to be over seven feet tall. I wasn't expecting to actually face off with one of those creatures. Those Invaders.

"I said, what are you doing here, kid?" the creature demands from the shadows.

"Ah..um...I was...I was just trying to get home. I must have made a wrong turn." Can it detect my voice is quivering? I try to settle down. It won't know I can see it for what it is.

"Did you come with anyone?" The giant shadowy figure demands to know. He advances and I muster the strength to act indifferent, bracing to face the horrible monster.

When he finally comes into view, the shock of what I see gives way to complete confusion. It's not a creature at all. But just a man. A very large man, mind you. But just a man. "Go back to where you came from, girl."

Another set of voices are emerging from the runway. This time, there's no mistaking what is coming my way. The glow from the building beyond lights up the freakish figures. Heads of bullfrogs complete with bulging eyes.

I'm getting the idea that this was a very bad idea.

"Hey Pit.  What ya got here?" says the shorter one; although he is anything but short. Erected high on the torso of what looks like the body of a scorpion, he has a tail at least ten feet long. The tip so razor sharp, it could pierce straight through a grown man. He points at me with clawed amphibian hands. "Oooh. She's mighty fresh looking."

The other frog faced beast grins, flashing rows of dagger sharp teeth. "Yeah, Pit. Groader and I just want to know what you've been up to?" If I had to guess, this one was fabricated with a hornet's body. Standing tall on a set of long and narrow hind insect legs covered in fine hairs, his chunky striped abdomen barely hides the haunting stinger he bears. Insects the size of trucks stalking the earth. How can this be? "I guess I was wrong, writing you off. Maybe you ain't no has-been after all." His other two sets of legs function more like hands and he slaps Pit on the back with two of them.