Mindfield (Sideways Eight Book 1)
Read Mindfield (Sideways Eight Book 1) Online
Authors: A Wallace
MINDFIELD
Sideways Eight Series (Book 1)
AJ Wallace
sidewayseightseries.com
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, place
s, and incidences are products of the author’s imagination or are fictional. Any resemblance to actual events, locations, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 AJ Wallace
Publisher: SES
All rights reserved.
ISBN-10: 1497419638
ISBN-13: 978-1497419636
Cover Design: LiTD Creations
Cover Art: Stock photo - Brain Synapse
Dedication
To my mom, Pauline, from the hereafter, who has her loving hand on my shoulder, encouraging me to keep writing.
Chapter 4 – Senter of Attention
Chapter 6 – Stars are the Freckles of the Night Sky
Chapter 8 – It’s Good to be Back Home
Chapter 10 – Big Yellow Twinkie
Chapter 18 – Sweet Suffocation
Chapter 24 – Two Spares and a Strike
Chapter 28 – Sidelined Red Shirt
Chapter 29 – Everyone Loves the Ice Cream Man
Chapter 32 – Some Things Don’t Need Repeating
Chapter 33 – The Bicycle Did It
Chapter 34 – How to Peel a Tangerine
Chapter 37 – Stars and Bananas on the Side, Please
Chapter 38 – Please Don’t Fear Me
Chapter 40 – Then There Were Five
Chapter 42 – Two Brains, One Idea
Acknowledgements
Catherine H., Charles O., Chris D., Norm M.,
Randy K., Rikon G., Ron V., Shian S., Sly J., Trish W.
Ms. Mary Sue Dean, because of you, I can.
Reston, VA - Sunnyvale Recreation Park – Soccer Field
Tuesday, 15 March – 7:20 AM
The frozen grass crunched under the soles of Justin’s sneakers. Each rumple on the turf marked another moment of missing his best friend. Until two weeks ago, she would bebop beside him, tousling his hair while on their way to school. Justin would crook his elbow around her neck and drag her along.
He trudged through the backyard, passed through the wrought-iron gate, flipped the latch, and locked it. Beyond the soccer field, buses lined the school entrance waiting their turn to unload students. Justin frowned. These days his smiles were few and his tears many.
A grove surrounded the recreation park and butted against each side of the pool house to the east. Ahead, hidden in the pre-dawn, the vague outline of Laurel View Elementary School came alive as lights flickered from the rear windows.
A trip across the soccer field sliced the travel time in half instead of using the sidewalk. The walk once granted him the opportunity to de-energize, but the daily ritual ceased to exist.
The crisp air teased the tip of Justin’s nose and stung his rosy cheeks. He shivered and snugged his hoodie around his twelve-year-old frame.
Fourteen days ago, Robin Senters disappeared. Since that night, Justin searched their neighborhood every day, calling her name, begging her to come home, her silence no longer a game.
He dug into his jeans pocket and clutched his keyring. His thumb traced the design of a green handcrafted relic made from electrical wire from his father’s workshop. Justin lagged unhurried, another day late to class. His daily trek had lost its fun without her by his side.
The sun crested the horizon. The warming rays pierced the naked trees, covering the field with a glow, highlighting the closed Sunnyvale swimming pool. A flicker of light in the middle of the soccer pitch snared his attention.
In the center of the pitch, a faint glow flickered. He quickened his pace. The closer he approached the faster his feet sped. Recognition flared when he captured a glimpse of scarlet hair. His breath hammered his lungs. The cold, stinging pain in his throat did not stop his determination. His feet tangled, sending him to the grass. He clawed his way from the icy ground, ripped his backpack from his shoulders, and slammed it onto the turf. He ran while droplets from his eyes crystalized on his cheeks. Every breath he took spewed a vapor cloud. Closer to the figure he dug in and hustled, stumbling to his knees. A strange scent soared up his nose. Encircled by nine candles, Robin lay motionless.
He froze, trying to make sense of the scene. A single burning candle lost its luster. Denial tried to shunt away his logic.
Justin howled, “Robin.”
Several tapers toppled onto the ground as he plunked upon her chest. His body shook, his hands trembled, twisting her copper curls around his fingers.
“Robin,” he whispered through an agonizing gurgle. Justin rose, grabbed her shoulders, and shook her. A dried marigold tumbled from her hand and landed on a green flannel blanket protecting her from the soulless ground. “Robin,” he whimpered, “wake up.”
Clothed in a frilly dress, one Robin would never choose. A tomboy, she preferred jeans and a simple t-shirt, despite her dainty features. Her happiest moments included softball and tumbling in the back lawn with Justin. So many summer afternoons spent splashing in the pool, chasing and pushing each other into the crystal blue water. Her laughter fine and crisp, her smile warm and friendly, never to be heard again.
Justin screamed her name, begging her to stop faking. Refusing to accept the truth, he wrapped his hand around her tiny fingers, stiff and chilled.
Robin did not respond.
Horror shifted into grief. His breath labored, his hands trembled as he tapped her cheek, willing her eyes to open. Robin would cackle and tell him she had fooled him again.
Justin swallowed hard, choking on his spittle. He wiped his nose with his sleeve and coughed violently. He shook her, pleading for her to leap to her feet, dance around him, and tease him. Robin would laugh and bounce in his midst, hug him tight, and tell him he’s the best friend a girl would want. She would pinch his nose as she giggled and dash away with him behind her.
He smoothed her hair and squeezed her hand. “I’ll go find help.” Quick on his feet, an unknown pain spawned within him, as he remained rooted to the ground while his body quivered against the icy spring morning. His furtive glances led his gaze to the enclosed swimming pool. Next to the diving board stood a man, wearing cartoonish sunglasses with neon-green frames. Justin called out to him. The man turned and ran to the other side of the pool, climbed the chain-link fence, and escaped into a grove of trees.
Justin scrunched his fists to his cheeks, his mind shattered. His best friend lay before him, lifeless. Adrenaline spiraled and saturated every muscle and vein. He veered to the side and barreled toward the school.
Panic and grief flowed within him as he hustled to the front of the building. Close to the main entrance, he pushed and shoved other students out of his way. His hand grasped the door handle. He swung it open with all his strength. He ploughed through the corridors overflowing with idle students without consideration of injury, sending many children tumbling to the floor. Teachers attempted to grapple him and chased him down the hallway. He fought them, swatting his arms as he resisted, hitting one teacher in the jaw, refusing to stop. Salty droplets flooded his cheeks to his mouth. Sweat dribbled down his forehead as he turned the corner of the passageway, leading to the administration office.
Justin’s feet pounded the tile, accelerating his speed he slammed into the oak door. He stepped back, yanked it open, and entered. Grief and unimaginable torment robbing him of speech, he raised his arm and pointed towards the soccer field. The administration staff behind the counter witnessed his blustery face, a droplet of spit dripping from his trembling lower lip.
Ms. Copper rushed around the counter with Mr. Thurgood on her heels. She gripped his shoulders. “Justin, what’s wrong?”
His body convulsing, his chapped red hands held in front of him, shaking.
Justin cried, “I found Robin.”
