Ricky
Ricky made his way up the stairs and closed the basement door behind him. Though he left the basement hall-light on. He set the flashlight on the counter, before making his way over to the sink and turning on the faucet. He reached up, opened the cabinet and retrieved a small blue plastic bowl. He placed it under the running faucet and filled it with cold water. Ricky smiled to himself as he waited. "Poor guy is probably going to be really thirsty when he wakes up."
Once the bowl was full, he turned off the faucet and began walking very slowly to the basement, being very careful not to spill the water.
When he was almost to the basement door he heard an unexpected knock at the front door and he froze. Another, more demanding, knock followed.
Ricky stood for long moments, his mind finding it difficult to process his next move when sudden realization dawned on him. He let out a groan of frustration and glanced over at the kitchen clock. It was a little after twelve. Rosy must have gotten away from the restaurant earlier than expected, he surmised.
"Crud!" he exclaimed, setting the bowl on the kitchen counter next to the flashlight. He glanced down at himself, making sure that there was nothing suspicious about his appearance that would draw undo scrutiny and complicated questions. Happy with what he saw, Ricky headed out of the kitchen and toward the front door, yelling, "I'm coming!"
Ricky inwardly winced at the shortness in his tone. Whenever he was really frustrated or overtired or sick or overwhelmed, Ricky had the tendency to come across short and rude though he did not mean, too. It was like his mind was on a shorter fuse at these times and he was more apt to be less guarded in his behavior. It had gotten him in trouble a time or two in school and at home. This was definitely one of those times.
He only hoped that Rosy didn't think that he was yelling at her. She was a very nice woman and he didn't want to make himself look like a bad punk kid. He made his way over to the door, unlocked it, and opened it.
"Hi Ros..." Ricky started but clamped his mouth shout the instant he realized it wasn't Rosy.
Instead of Rosy, there stood two very large, very intimidating, very strange looking Caucasian men on the front porch. Very Caucasian, Ricky noted. Their skin was extremely pale. They wore black trench coats, black berets, black gloves, and black sunglasses. 'The new men in black,' Ricky thought crazily as he stared at the sinister looking men on his uncle's doorstep. Two strange men whom he had never met! Ricky felt shivers run down his spine, and it had nothing to do with the storm that was still brewing outside. Something wasn't right with these guys.
The one on the right was a short, middle-aged guy with grey eyes and grey hair. He looked kind of shifty despite standing military straight as if he was an authority figure to be respected.
The other man was younger, probably in his thirties. He was much taller than his friend, but whereas the other man stood tall this man slouched. He had piercing pale blue eyes and long brown hair contained by a rubber band in a ponytail. He had a wide toothy grin that revealed shiny white, but somewhat pointy teeth. It didn't help ease Ricky's nerves that the wide toothy grin was focused directly on him.
Despite the fact that he had never met these two men, Ricky couldn't help but feel that he'd seen them before. He just didn't remember where though. Before he could figure out from where a voice interrupted his thoughts, almost causing Ricky to jump in fright.
"Hello there young man. How are you today?" The shorter man asked in a rather proper manner. While Ricky tried not to be rude and gave the talking man a quick glance his eyes strayed over and over again toward the taller man with the creepy grin. There was something about how the man stared at Ricky that was freaking him out. Ricky likened it to a trapped, cornered mouse about to become the morsel of a starving, deranged cat. Ricky shivered again.
"I'm fine," Ricky answered, finally directing his attention to the man who spoke. This guy wasn't as terrifying as his partner. "Who are you?" Ricky asked cautiously. He had one leg extending out behind him. Just in case he needed to, he would bolt. He didn't know who these guys were and if necessary he would slam the door in their faces, lock it, and hide somewhere... preferably in the basement.
The bad feeling he had gotten as soon as he had opened the door was turning to a downright icky one. Ricky so regretted opening the door so rashly. His assumption that it was going to be Rosy at the door had been a rooky mistake. He was no rooky. He had been taught at a very early age to never to talk to strangers or open the door to a stranger and that was a lesson he had never failed to obey. Now in just one rash move, he found himself in a potentially serious situation. He hoped that he was just overreacting.
"No need to fear us young man," the shorter one spoke softly, calmingly, seeming to pick up on Ricky's fear. Ricky found no threat in his tone but he still kept his guard up as the man continued to speak. "My name is Fletcher, and this is my part...friend, Darius."
Ricky tilted his head a little at the hesitation. "Do you guys want to... sell something?"
Fletcher chuckled at the innocent question. "You misunderstand. We are not salesmen. We work with animals. Now... have you seen anything unusual today?"
'No!' A strange rough voice fairly shouted in Ricky's mind, confusing him. Had that been him? Of course it had to have been his own voice screaming in his mind, Ricky assured himself. It had to have been the panic making him, funnily enough, sound unlike himself!
"Son?" the stranger named Fletcher prompted.
Whoever's voice it was, Ricky decided, he would follow its lead. "No," he answered. "With the weather and everything, I've been in the house all day." He had no intention of revealing the wounded wolf in the basement. Plus he still had the nagging, strange voice in his head repeating that he should not allow the men inside. Ricky decided he should never ignore the voice inside his own head. "Why do you ask?" he asked back instead.
"Oh nothing really." Fletcher said casually. "It's just that Colorado tends to have sightings of wild animals wandering near civilization," he explained without really explaining anything.
"Wild animals?" Ricky quizzed.
Fletcher's eyes flickered, "Yes, unfortunately wild animals. Have you seen any wandering around here today?"
"You mean like squirrels and deer?" Ricky asked doing his best to play dumb. These men were making him twitch and the newly discovered inner voice inside his head was repeating an internal rhythmic warning to 'Get rid of them. Get rid of them,' that was impossible for Ricky to ignore. "Because I have seen a few deer," Ricky lied. These men, he felt, were up to no good and he wasn't taking any chances that it was his wolf they wanted. Whatever he needed to do to throw them off the trail was fine by Ricky. Whatever made them leave was even better. Ricky's heart was still racing with anxiety. The strangers at the door were freaking him out though he was trying his best to mask his fear.
Fletcher flashed his own toothy and intimidating grin. "I mean animals that shouldn't be near human civilization. The kind that could bring harm to hu- people if they wondered up on them. Big carnivores. You know like bears, mountain lions," he hesitated before emphasizing, "wolves."
Ricky inwardly winced. "No... I haven't seen any of those," he mumbled, trying so hard to act normal. He quickly added, "Though that sounds really cool." He hoped he was coming across like a typical kid.
The two stared at him long and hard. Darius was trying to see what was inside the house. He also appeared to be... sniffing?
"Are you two hunters?" Ricky suddenly asked, thinking that was more than likely what was going on. They probably trekked big game and didn't like it when their victims got away. They were the ones that most likely shot the wolf. Convinced that that was most likely what was going on, Ricky felt no sympathy for misleading them. In fact, he more determined than ever to send them on their merry way.
"Oh quite the contrary my dear boy," Fletcher answered. "Darius and I are part of a group known as VAMP.
"Vamp?" Ricky asked, confused and newly scared. That sounded like a cult. Ricky was ready to dash back into the house and to safety when Fletcher answered, explaining the unusual acronym.
"V.A.M.P. It stands for Vigilant Animal Mammal Protectors." We are a society dedicated to protecting wild animals, particularly the ones that people are most afraid of."
Ricky stayed on guard. Something about them didn't seem right. Although he couldn't help but think that some part of what Fletcher was telling him was the truth. Still he wasn't getting any less suspicious of these two. He needed more than their words and they weren't providing any credible proof except for their words. And their words were not nearly enough to sooth Ricky's suspicions. The guys were just, too weird.
"Oh!" Ricky answered, deciding to play along nonetheless. He would do what he could to appease them and get them to leave. "That sounds really cool and I would love to help you, but like I said, I've been stuck inside all day watching movies. I haven't seen anything."
Darius and Fletcher stared for long seconds at Ricky as if trying to gauge if he was telling them the truth. It took every bit of self-control Ricky had to keep his faced composed. If they stayed much longer he was afraid they would see through him. He wasn't a mastermind. Just a kid with anxiety hiding a wolf. His mind was on overload and Ricky was at his breaking point. He needed them to leave. Like right now!
Fletcher finally spoke up. "Okay then. That is good to hear. The V.A.M.P. wishes for you to have a nice day." And with that oddly phrased salutation, the two men turned around and made their way down the porch steps.
Ricky didn't bother to watch them leave, he quickly slammed the door shut and bolted the lock. Ricky collapsed back against the door and let out a deep breath. He fought of the overwhelming urge to cry. That had given him the complete creeps. The men had been scary and had definitely sketchy. He hoped against hope that he would never ever have to see them again. He would never open the door again without checking who it was first.
Long minutes passed as Ricky tried to collect himself. The world, though still wonky was clearing. The stark shades of fear that had crowded his vision had dissipated, returning Ricky to the here and now, with his back pressed firmly against the front door and his mind functioning clearly once again, or almost.
Ricky replayed what had just happened over and over again in his mind. He wondered what the two men were really up to and if it had anything to do with the wolf in the basement, knowing that they most likely did. He had the feeling the two men from VAMP were responsible for the strange bullet he found lodged in the wolf's shoulder. It didn't sound like a coincidence that those two men arrived just as a severely injured wolf did.
Ricky shook his head. Maybe he was just being paranoid.
Ricky made his way slowly back towards the kitchen. He needed to get the bowl of water to the wolf. He grabbed the bowl of water that was still sitting on the kitchen counter, picked it up, and carried it down the basement stairs, setting in down by the still sleeping wolf's head. Ricky could not resist rubbing the wolf's forehead affectionately before standing back up. As he gazed at the wolf, he walked around to take one last look at the wound. What he saw pleased him. His efforts seemed to have been effective. Ricky eyed the wolf and his wound one more time before turning around and making his way back up the stairs. He would check on the wolf regularly but he also needed to be upstairs for when Rosy arrived.
As soon as Ricky reached the top step there was another knock at the front door. Ricky jumped. He hoped and prayed it was Rosy and not the two men in black again.
The knock sounded again.
"Ricky?" came a familiar and feminine voice.
Ricky sighed in utter relief. He dashed towards the door and pulled it wide open to see Rosy Andrews. She looked even wetter than she had earlier this morning. Ricky may have not known her all that well, but he didn't care. His uncle trusted her so Ricky automatically did too, and after everything that had happened today, it was nice to see a friendly face.
"Woah Ricky happy to see you to!" The woman said smiling widely, though a bit surprised at the speed and abruptness of how Ricky opened the door.
"Uh hi Rosy... how are you?" Ricky said putting on a smile. He tried to make it big and wide for her. She didn't buy it though. She frowned in concern.
"Are you okay Ricky?"
"Yes, I'm okay," he said rather quickly.
"Are you sure?" she pressed on. "You look shaken up, a bit pale. Did something happen?"
Ricky's mind instantly flashed over the last few eventful hours. A huge storm; a wolf in the basement with a bullet; performing minor surgery; two creepy guys. 'Yep,' he thought to himself, 'You could say something happened.'
"Ricky?" Rosy prompted with a look of concern on her sweet face.
"What?" he asked, still somewhat lost in his own reflective litany of today's events.
"Did something happen?" Rosy repeated her question with more concern.
"Well nothing really," he stalled trying to figure out in light speed what he should and should not say about today. He decided to go with the most obvious and safest event that was completely beyond his control. "It's just... a couple of guys came to the front door."
"Oh?" she prompted.
Feeling more comfortable because he knew he would not have to lie he continued explaining, "They came here and knocked on the door. Of course, I assumed they were you so I opened the door without looking and they startled me pretty badly. I never open the door to strangers," Ricky explained sincerely to Rosy.
Rosy smiled. "Living in New York I'm sure you don't," she assured him. "What did the men want?"
"Nothing really. They said they looked out for wild animals and wanted to know if I had seen any today," Ricky explained, inwardly praying the she did not ask him if he had seen any. He really didn't want to lie to Rosy. Scratch that he didn't want to lie period!
Thankfully all she said was, "Well that's kind of strange but there are all kinds of animal activities out there and our beautiful woods are full of many beautiful wild animals." She smiled down at Ricky, "Do you want me to stay here with you until your uncle gets home? I'd be happy to if you're afraid they may come back."
Ricky was grateful and appreciated her offer. A part of him wanted to jump at her suggestion, but he didn't want to take a chance that she would find out about the wolf. Besides, she had a diner to run and he didn't want to be a burden. He was a big boy of fourteen now. He could handle this. He had handled it well so far, all things told. The whole point of this vacation was for him to grow up a bit and conquer his fears. Today had been a huge test for Ricky and so far so good. He wanted... no he needed to do this on his own.
He smiled reassuringly and appreciatively at Rosy. "Oh no thank you ma'am I'm good. They were just a couple of men who worked for some kind of wildlife protection society like you said. It just scared me because I was expecting you and instead it was them." His hands were on his hips and his chest was slightly puffed out in an attempt to make him look bigger and more confident than he felt.
Rosy smiled back, apparently buying every confident word Ricky was throwing at her. Ricky just wished he felt as self-assured as he was apparently sounding.
"Okay then. If you're sure?" Rosy answered.
Ricky nodded. "Yes. I'm sure. Thank you for offering to stay though."
"My pleasure," she answered with a warm smile at him before turning around and leaving. "Have a nice day Ricky!" she called over her shoulder as she descended the porch steps.
"Thanks Rosy! Bye!" he called out, closing the door and taking extreme care in locking it back.
Feeling a little more even keeled and secure, Ricky returned toward the kitchen. He wondered if he should go check on the wolf again but decided against it. Truth be told he really just wanted to go down and be near the wolf. Doing that would most likely wake him and that wouldn't be good for the wolf. He needed to rest and move as little as possible to help heal himself. He shouldn't be selfish and chance waking him.
If he was honest with himself, Ricky was feeling a little self-satisfied and a little bit hungry. He felt like it had been hours since he had eaten the bowl of cereal from this morning. Glancing at the clock, Ricky realized it had been hours and decided lunch was next on his agenda.
He went into the refrigerator and took out an apple, carrying it to the sink to wash under the water faucet. Once done he went back to the refrigerator and grabbed a block of cheddar cheese before closing the door back. He carried the block of cheese along with the apple over to the kitchen table. After setting them down, he went back and grabbed a paper plate and a butter knife and sat down. He began cutting the apple along with a few pieces of cheese. After he was done, he set the knife aside and began to snack on his lunch, getting up half way through to grab his iPad so he could read while he ate. But instead of browsing on his iPad, as he ate, he ended up reflecting back on his day.
Ricky realized he couldn't have planned a more adventurous day than the one he had had today. The wild storm, the wild wounded animal, and the creepy men equaled a surreal day unlike any he had ever experienced. The fact that he had dealt with every single event as they had occurred and had not broken down in fear was amazing. To top it all off the fact that he had let Rosy leave even after she had offered to stay with him was a really huge thing for Ricky. He was proud that for once he ruled his fear, instead of letting his fear rule him.
Ricky finished his last bite of apple and got up from the table to put the apple core in the trash. He rewrapped the cheese and put it back the fridge. Kitchen clean, he made his way into the living room to look outside. The blowing tress and the grey cloudy sky indicated another powerful storm could be brewing.
Ricky reflected that back in the city, whenever he was by himself in the apartment he sometimes spent days like this all alone. On those days he would feel scared, small, and most of all very lonely. But today, here, he had stepped up. Yes he had moments of fright and had been more than overwhelmed at times, but he had dealt. He had acted instead of reacted and he had held his own. It made him feel bigger... just a little bit older. It made him feel proud of himself.
Here he was, thousands of miles from New York City standing alone in his Uncle Steve's house, alone with the exception of a wild and wounded wolf in the basement that he had treated. He had dealt with two unnerving strangers all by himself. He had endured a maelstrom of events the past few days. The only noise now was the sound of his own breathing, his heartbeat drumming steadily, the rain pattering, and the thunder clapping outside.
He had survived it all.