Omniscient Leaps (9 page)

“I promise to share more when I see you next. It’s time to get some rest.”

Luke stood up and was waiting by the library door—he was notably exhausted. His concern for my well being made me hopeful and I wanted to let him know just how much I appreciated our time together. Without giving it too much thought, I stood up and ran into his arms. I gave him a strong hug, the kind of hug you give someone when you haven’t seen them in a really long time. My body closed the distance between us with each breath. Then, when I finally felt myself realizing I should let go, he hugged me back. It was weak at first, but as the seconds past it became more desperate.

“Thank you, Kara,” he rasped softly. Choked up or just surprised, he didn’t hide his emotions. “I don’t know how you knew I needed that, but thank you.”

“A lifetime without some close bodily contact would make anyone starved for affection,” I said awkwardly. “Besides, it gave me an excuse to touch you.” I looked up into his eyes and found myself wanting to kiss him again. My throat dried up and I spoke very softly. “I— I know you could read my thoughts earlier so you know that wasn’t the only thing I was thinking. Don’t worry, I’m not going to embarrass myself, or you. I promise.”

I closed my eyes as he grabbed my hands and I felt him plant a kiss on my forehead. It was so sweet, so tender, and so not what I was thinking. It wasn’t the kiss I had hoped for, yet I reveled in the short-lived bliss the gesture created within me. As I followed Luke back into the church, the all-consuming flash whisked me away quickly. There wasn’t even an opportunity to say goodbye.

“Ugg!” I said, throwing myself down on the bed. “That was the kind of kiss an older brother’s friend gives a girl to show pity. I’m pathetic. The boy, the man, is so out of my league and yet I can’t stop myself. I really need to get a life!”

I laid there for what seemed like hours just staring at the ceiling. I wasn’t sure if I wanted Luke to appear in my dream tonight or not. The humiliation of my open mind had done enough damage to my psyche. Maybe once we were good friends I could find out if he ever had feelings for one of his leapers, feelings that were romantic and not based solely on sympathy. Then again, the answer might only enrage me. I was falling, and falling hard.

The next few weeks were uneventful. All the Young Life meetings I attended were enlightening. They deepened the bonds of the new friendships I had formed and helped me keep the faith when I was questioning different aspects of my life.  The relationships I had severed continued to protest with unfriendly pranks and uncomfortable encounters. I tried to keep my cool, but some days were more wearing than others.

Part of my gloom was due to the fact that I had hardly seen Luke since our long chat. We’d intermittently spent a few nights together in my dreams discussing various things, but he’d kept his distance. Luke’s obvious pity for me had ended. There was no leading me on. Although I should’ve been grateful, my feelings continued to grow in spite of everything.

The flashes had stopped as well. Even with Luke’s reassurance, I felt like God had abandoned me. Gage was back to his predatory acts and mistreatment of the female psyche, leaving me to believe I hadn’t done anything to neutralize that situation as of yet. For someone who thought I had everything figured out before God came into my life, I certainly felt lost now.

When the day of numerous flashes settled in, I suddenly felt remorseful for not enjoying the peaceful lifestyle of my non-leaper existence.

It was a cold Tuesday in March when I walked into school ready to endure another day of the same monotonous routine. I had barely closed my locker when the space around me illuminated to the brightest capacity and I jetted off through time.

“That was unexpected,” I said to myself when I finally stabilized. My spirits were immediately lifted and for the first time in weeks I felt useful.
God hasn’t given up on me after all. He had just been giving me a breather.

I was standing in the middle of a large Wal-Mart. It was an unforeseen location considering the only places I had flashed to thus far had been neighborhoods or God’s church.  I rushed to the front of the store to get my bearings straight. Yanking the nearest magazine off the rack, I scanned the cover and found what I was looking for, the date—September 20
^th
, 2000. It was only a few days after the last encounter I had experienced with Lilly.
This time traveling stuff is mind-boggling
.

Figuring I was here to find her, I kept my eyes peeled. The store wasn’t swarming with customers, but it was a vast space. Contrary to what some people might think, it was possible to lose track of someone in Wal-Mart if you don’t know where they’re headed.

I turned the corner and decided to back track to my original destination point. There, in the aisle right in front of me, was Lilly with Gage and his younger brother. The boys were sitting quietly in the cart as she pulled different clothing articles off of the racks. She was clearly window shopping because she didn’t keep anything she selected no matter how big her smile was when she held it up to herself. The boys noticed too, they enjoyed watching her.

A man approached the cart without detection, at least not from Lilly. I wanted to call out to her, but I decided against it, at least for now. The boys gave the stranger the perfect opportunity to make his move simply by unintentionally distracting Lily—pointing to something up in the rafters. The man riffled through her bag and although I didn’t see him take anything, I found the entire situation disturbing.

He darted off as quickly as he had come with no one noticing his presence, no one except me of course. I decided to follow him, to see what he was up to. He entered one of the dressing rooms while I positioned myself along the backside of the flimsy walls hoping to eavesdrop. The conversation was muffled, but there was more than one person speaking. Pulling back the curtain to exit his prearranged meeting, I watched the sleazy man pocket a wad of cash.

I grabbed a shirt off the rack, partially covered my face with it and waited for the man’s counterpart to leave. I almost threw up when Fred Parton blew past me with a large smile on his face. He was donning his police uniform and was surely up to something. Had he paid someone to mess with his wife’s purse?

Then it dawned on me as I hurried through the aisles to find her. Her own husband had set her up. I spotted her nearing the front of the store and I panicked. Her cart was empty and she was going to be leaving the store with the boys as soon as she slid through the checkout area.

“Lilly,” I called. When she didn’t react I yelled her name. Gage poked his mom and she turned around.

“Do I know you?” she asked confused.

“We met a few days ago. In your house.” I tried to whisper, but I was still panting from the sprint. My words came out very jumbled.

“What are you doing? Is something the matter?” She seemed almost frightened and she had good reason to be.

I turned her away from her boys so they couldn’t hear. “I think your husband had someone plant some articles in your bag. I saw someone riffling through your belongings when you were shopping in the clothing department. I followed him and discovered he had some kind of deal with your husband.”

“What?” she said horrified. “You were spying on me?”

“No. I mean yes, kind of,” I admitted.
Gosh I’m bad at this
. “Just please check your bag, okay?”

She pulled her cart back into an aisle and found a load of expensive jewelry and several objects from the electronics department in her bag. They were all items that should have been purchased directly from a clerk. How he’d managed to obtain the merchandise was mind-boggling. He was an employee and obviously a pro.

“I don’t understand,” she said tearfully. “Why would he do this to me?”

“I don’t know. Let’s find someone and report this,” I grabbed her hand and steered her cart towards one of the jewelry counter employees.

The woman was horrified when we dumped the merchandise on the display case. I explained what I had witnessed and she said she would report everything to her manager. They’d watch the security tapes and get back to us. Lilly was still shaking as we exited the checkout area.

What was even more upsetting was seeing her husband waiting by the exit. He immediately grabbed her bag and began yelling for security. “I’m sorry to have to do this, but we have an experienced shoplifter here,” he screamed as he arched his eyebrows condescendingly at his wife.

Security grabbed her bag and searched it. “There’s nothing in here, sir.”

“That’s because he planted the items on her and he was trying to set her up,” I announced.

“That’s ludicrous,” he bellowed as he grabbed my arm. “Just who do you think you are, young lady?”

“Someone who’s been watching you. You tried to set up your own wife for shoplifting. How could you do that to your children?”

Fred didn’t answer me. He just stared at me with a hatred so strong I thought in that moment he might strangle me with his bare hands—something he was probably capable of. Lilly stood silently. She was too scared to move. All kinds of chaos had erupted around us with the manager, security personnel and other customers. No one seemed to notice when the white light engulfed me and took me away. I was grateful for the timely departure, but worried about Lilly as I disappeared from her side.

Returning to my time, I found my lips dry and my throat parched. I needed to find a drinking fountain before the bell rang. Seeing how most of my teachers disapproved of taking bathroom breaks, I couldn’t wait fifty-five minutes for another opportunity.

“You ready for the big test or what?” Jer asked, startling me while unexpectedly getting a face full of water.

“Sorry,” I began. I wiped the regurgitated mess from his face.

“That was refreshing,” he teased. “You seem to be in high spirits. I guess you plan to ace this one without any trouble.”

“Yep,” I admitted as I followed him to Physics. I was really just glad to be back into action with my secret job. It gave me the perfect excuse to see Luke again without seeming desperate.

Thankfully I finished my test ahead of schedule. I was sitting with my head down, waiting for the rest of my classmates to wrap it up, when the light consumed me once again. Twice in one day. Maybe it was time to wrap this mission up. I couldn’t believe it had been so easy.

After getting my bearings, I found myself downtown near the police station. It didn’t take me long to realize it was the same day I had visited earlier. Fred Parton was standing on the steps to the entrance of his workplace appearing enraged and defeated all at once. I crept along the road so I could listen in to his private conversation.

“My wife was caught up in a big commotion at Wal-Mart this morning. I need to hang out here for a while to cool off,” he said. His voice was calm, almost pathetic sounding. He really knew how to don ‘the nice guy’ act when he needed to. “It’s too bad the video tapes were missing. Now they’ll never catch the person responsible. I can’t believe someone would prey on my wife like that.”

What?
Suddenly I felt sick. All that work and nothing. If anything he was going to be even nastier to Lilly. He had plotted his demise of Lilly better than I thought. She was in serious trouble. Something more severe was likely in the works and now I had to figure out what.

I ducked out of sight, waiting to uncover more of Fred’s unstable temperament. He was headed in my direction, nostrils flared with his fist pounding his opposing palm. He was waiting to blow off steam and that’s exactly what he did. He caught someone jaywalking, pulled him into an ally and began to beat on him. Then he clocked himself repeatedly with a scrap of plywood he’d lifted off a nearby pile of rubbish. He was mental, seriously mental.

He hauled the badly beaten man towards the station, playing the victim the moment his partner laid eyes on him. “This here is a cop hater. He attacked me out of nowhere. I had to hit him to get him off of me.” Fred spit some blood on the sidewalk and groaned. His partner patted his back and glared at the suspect Fred was gripping tightly.

“Please,” the man moaned. He hadn’t committed any crime, something that disturbed me more than anything.

Against my better judgment, I stepped out into sight. “That man was maybe jay walking when your officer grabbed him up, pulled him into the ally and beat on him. It was police brutality at its finest and I’ve never been more appalled,” I announced.

Fred dropped the man he was holding as if he were a rag doll. He grabbed me by the throat and slammed me into the wall. His partner was right beside him in no time. “Put her down, Fred. What are you doing? I know you’ve had a rough day, but this is not like you. Come on man, she’s just a kid.”

“This little floozy was with my wife today. I bet she left the store with the goods. She’s probably the suspect we are looking for.” His eyes flared with abhorrence. “You left the scene rather quickly and now I’ve got you.”

“Let her go, Fred. NOW!” His partner screamed, clutching Fred by the shoulder and pulling him aside. My breath was faint as the world around me began to spin.

“Kara, come on. Class is over. You must have passed out.” I sat up to see Jer staring at me. His relaxed smile abruptly disappeared. “What the… what happened to you?”

“What?” I croaked.
Why did my throat hurt so badly?

“Your neck is bruised as if…as if …” he swallowed hard and continued to stare. “Who did this to you?” Everyone had cleared the room including the teacher. He pulled me over to a mirror and I instantly saw what he was talking about.

I had been wondering whether my real body traveled through time and space or just a part of me and now I had my answer. At least I thought I did. “Oh, that’s nothing… I… I was babysitting these kids last night and they got a little rough. You know how kids are.”

“Yeah, I don’t remember seeing those earlier.” His anxiety was not requited.

“I think I was lying on my arm. It’s probably just some kind of sleep mark. You ready to go?” My voice continued to sound gruff and he definitely wasn’t buying my story. I was going to have to ask Luke how to cover my tracks better. Or at least not return with physical scars.