The Legend of the Firewalker (8 page)

“Then I don’t get it,” he groaned. “What’s the problem?”

“The problem isn’t you or anything that you did,” she explained. She ran her fingers through her hair, placed her folded hands on her lap, and chuckled. “Jim and I were having problems long before the fruit punch incident.”

“Oh,” said Nathan, “I see.” He sounded at ease again. “Well, I figured it would happen sooner or later.”

Suddenly, a few frown lines appeared on Lafonda’s forehead. “What would happen?” she said.

“Well,” he said, pausing to reposition himself on his desk, “it’s just the way he would say and do things.”

Her eyebrows were raised. “Okay,” she nodded, “carry on.”

Nathan smiled. “Well, like the way he would make a
ssumptions about the way you felt about things,” he stammered. “And the way he would make decisions for both of you without asking your opinion.” He paused and then smirked. “Oh, and let’s not forget about his most recent attempt to mark his property.”

Lafonda let out a huge laugh and placed her hand on the charm around her neck, which Jim had given her earlier. “I know, I know,” she chuckled, while running her fingers across the gold letters J and D. “I really shouldn’t be wearing this necklace and I don’t want to encourage him.”

“Well,” Nathan shrugged, “then, take it off.”

She smiled and then fumbled to undo the clasp to her necklace. “Can you?” she asked, positioning her back t
owards him.

“Sure,” he said, springing enthusiastically from his desk. “I’ll be more than happy to get this off your neck.”

She moved her long black hair off to the side and Nathan carefully removed her necklace. She turned around to look at him, and he had a huge smile across his face. “Do you want me to throw it away?” he asked.

“Ugh, Nathan. No!” she spouted, quickly taking back the necklace. She stared at him with contempt and then shook her head. “And why are your hands so red? Is that from the fruit punch?”

Suddenly, they both turned around. The sound of car doors opening and then closing could be heard from Nathan’s bedroom window. “It’s nothing,” he stuttered, clutching his hands. “Like you said, it’s from the fruit punch.”

She sat in silence, staring at him. Nathan knew she was scrutinizing his answer.

“Well,” he said, while clearing his throat, “it sounds like your guests are starting to leave, so I guess you’ll want to get back to your party.”

“Most of them were here for Jim anyway,” Lafonda r
esponded slowly. “And since he isn’t here …”

“What? He left?” exclaimed Nathan. He had a surprised look on his face, but it quickly dissipated following a knock on his bedroom door. “Now, that has to be Roy.”

Nathan slid off his desk and trotted over to open the door.

“Nathan,” said Roy, “have you seen Lafonda?” He had a perplexed look on his face. “I can’t find her anywhere, and Jim’s car isn’t in the driveway.”

“How did you notice?” Nathan snickered.

Roy paused and then gave him a disapproving look.

Nathan huffed and then quickly rolled his eyes. “She’s here,” he moaned, stepping aside so that Roy could see in.

“Oh,” he responded, appearing shocked. “You’re here.” His face softened and then he directed his attention to Lafonda. “We couldn’t find you,” he said. “Did you know that Jim left the party? When we couldn’t find you, your grandmother and I thought that maybe you had gone with him.”

“Well, here she is, safe and sound,” joked Nathan.

Lafonda cast her head down and then diverted her eyes for a second before speaking. “Yeah,” she uttered, softly, “I spoke to Jim before he left.” She hesitated. “We both deci
ded that it was a good time to call it an evening.”

“Oh,” responded Roy. His eyebrows were raised and N
athan could tell that he was trying to be reassuring. “It was that bad, huh?”

“No, everything is fine,” she said. “Like I was just e
xplaining to your grandson a few seconds ago, everything is fine, and I plan to talk to Jim in the morning.”

“Sounds good,” said Roy. “But not too long after you and Jim disappeared, so did everyone else at the party.” He laughed. “It was as if someone sent out an emergency news bulletin. This just in: Jim and Lafonda have left the buil
ding.”

“Probably more like a text message,” commented Nathan.

The sound of car doors opening and closing and engines roaring before speeding down the driveway could still be heard from Nathan’s window. Lafonda sighed. “I don’t want to be rude,” she said. “I’d better get back to my guests.”

A buzzing sound emanated from Roy’s pants pocket. “No, don’t get up,” he said eagerly to Lafonda. He reached into his pocket for his cell phone. “It’s LaDonda. And she’s probably wondering where I went too.” He paused while looking at the two of them and then smiled. “LaDonda and I will take care of the guests. You kids keep talking.”

Roy shoved his cell phone back into his pocket and turned to leave the doorway. Nathan started to close the door behind him, but the door was quickly reopened, startling Nathan.

“Why are your hands so red?” Roy asked, with a pe
rplexed look on his face. “Have you been using the ointment I gave you?”

“Yep,” said Nathan, holding up the ointment from his desk. “I have it right here.”

Roy frowned and then stared at him incredulously. “That doesn’t answer my question,” he said. “I have long caught on to your plays on words since trying to treat you for the chicken pox, when you were seven.”

Lafonda let out a stifled chuckle.

“Okay, Grandpa,” said Nathan, sounding annoyed. “I thought you were leaving.” The frown lines on Roy’s forehead deepened and he continued to stare at Nathan.

Nathan sighed heavily. “It’s the fruit punch!” he groaned. “My hands are stained from the fruit punch.”

“Next time I come to this room,” said Roy, “that ointment bottle had better have been opened.”

Reluctantly, Nathan nodded while attempting to close the door again.

“And used!” Roy said.

Lafonda laughed uncontrollably. “What was that all about?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” Nathan said, shaking his head. “I swear it has to be from the fruit punch.”

“No, not that!” she laughed. “Roy and his you-kids-just-keep-talking bit.”

Nathan shrugged. “I don’t know,” he sighed, sounding tired. “Move over.” Sluggishly, he walked towards the bed and gave a forced smile. He placed his hand behind his head as he rested on a pillow. “He probably was just shocked that we were talking without being made to.”

“Nathan,” Lafonda said in a soft voice, taking the spot next to him.

Nathan noticed that she smelled good; almost like caramel candy. Instantly, he became embarrassed when Lafonda noticed him taking a whiff of her hair.

She smiled. “Do you remember getting the chicken pox?”

“How could I forget!” he exclaimed. “For almost a year you constantly reminded me that I gave it to you and that I caused you so much pain and misery.”

Lafonda laughed heartily. “Well, you did!” she said. “And mine was the worst. I just couldn’t stop scratching!”

“Yeah, I remember,” said Nathan, laughing now. “And LaDonda and your mom kept chasing you around the house. They couldn’t get you to put ointment on or to stop scratching!”

“I still have some of the scars,” she laughed, tears for
ming in her eyes.

She sat up in bed, and there was silence in the room now. “You know, Nathan,” she said softly, “we may be older and in college now and have new friends and different interests, but you and Roy will always be a part of my family, and we will always have our m
emories about the chicken pox.”

5

STEPHEN MALICK

It was Friday and camp day had finally arrived. Nathan had spent most of the morning and the day before packing for his time away at camp. LaDonda had been looking forward to this day since Nathan and Lafonda returned home for summer.

“So,” said Roy, arriving at the doorway to Nathan’s be
droom, “all packed for your four weeks at leadership camp?”

Nathan sat with two suitcases strung open on the floor. They were a part of a set of four suitcases he had used to pack for his first year away at IUCF. Around him, clothes hung from half-open and closed dresser drawers or were tossed on and around his bed. He figured he could probably fit all that he needed for four weeks into one suitcase, but to avoid any opposition from Lafonda and LaDonda, he’d op
ted to pack a second one as well. 

“Well,” said Nathan, with a smile on his face, “I pro
bably would be done if I didn’t have to spend time guessing what Lafonda and her grandmother would want me to wear this summer.” He paused for a moment while glaring at the second suitcase. “I mean, besides a few shorts and a couple of T-shirts, what else do I need?”

Roy cleared his throat. “Well, that’s probably why they want me to give you this,” he said, handing Nathan a gold sheet of paper.

Nathan’s face frowned. “What is this?” he asked.

“Just keep reading,” smiled Roy.

“Guys are to wear a suit and tie for the closing ceremony!” Nathan blurted out. “A suit and tie in the summer?” He continued to stare at the gold paper and in frustration plopped down on the edge of his bed. “Why on earth would someone want to wear a suit jacket and tie in the middle of the summer?” He shook the paper in Roy’s direction. “Did you look at this?” he cried. “She also wants us to bring Dockers or slacks to wear!”

He glared at Roy as Roy tried to hold back his laug
hter.

“I swear,” he ranted. “Every year that woman comes up with more and more ridiculous stuff!”

“Now, Nathan,” said Roy, while trying to control his laughter, “you know how much the Leadership Camp means to LaDonda.”

“Grandpa,” he moaned, standing up from his bed in fru
stration, “there is nothing on this list that says pack shorts, T-shirts, or even gym shoes!”

“Okay, okay, let me see,” said Roy with a chuckle. He quickly scanned the list of items on the paper. “It’s there. It falls under bring comfortable and loose clothing.”

“Ha!” shouted Nathan. “And right under that we have Dockers, khakis and loafers listed as examples.”

“Just pack a pair or two,” sighed Roy, placing the gold paper on the desk.

“I am not wearing slacks during the summer when it’s like 85 degrees outside,” he protested. He drew a big breath and sighed. “And I don’t even own loafers!”

“Then what are those?” asked Roy, pointing to a pair of brown leather shoes covered in dust in Nathan’s closet.

Nathan’s eyes suddenly grew wide. “Come on!” he cried. “Those things are so old and I haven’t worn them since like tenth grade!”

“Good,” responded Roy with a smile. “That means they should still fit.”

Nathan gritted his teeth and glowered at him.

“I’ll take that as my cue to exit,” said Roy. “You have your list now.”

“Yeah,” Nathan mumbled, underneath his breath. “Whatever.”

“Happy packing!” concluded Roy, still trying to control his laughter.

Contemptuously, Nathan eyed the gold paper sitting on his desk and then tossed it on his bed amidst the other jumbled items. He sighed. While he enjoyed helping out with the leadership camp and serving as a camp counselor, Nathan detested the whole ritual for the first day at camp. He loathed the packing, first day check-in and sitting for at least an hour in the cafeteria listening to LaDonda’s welcome-to-camp speech. Besides the enjoyment Nathan got from hearing the high school kids complain about how boring the first day of camp was, the first night would be quite uneventful.

This sucks
! he thought, and then reluctantly looked at the chaos of clothing in his room.
And I’m sure Roy is expecting me to clean up this mess before I leave.

An hour or so passed, and he finally finished packing what he thought was a good balance between appropriate attire for summer and LaDonda’s clothing request.
Grudgingly, he also tossed his old pair of brown leather loafers in the suitcase. Next, he cleaned his room, and he almost didn’t mind it. It gave him a welcome break from the constant thoughts about the absence of his nightmares and how boring camp would be.

Since Lafonda’s birthday party, the past two days had been quite normal. For two nights in a row, there wasn’t a single tingling sensation in his hands, nor did he wake up in a cold sweat from the same dream that had plagued him for weeks. Although he was relieved not to have the tingling or the uncontrollable shaking in his hands, he couldn’t stop
thinking about the mousy-brown-haired woman who was the star of his dreams.

He remembered what Lafonda had said about the girl at her birthday party. There were so many similarities b
etween her and the girl in his dreams.
Could it be the same person?

Now that the dreams had stopped, Nathan found hi
mself even more consumed with finding out if they were actually real and helping the girl. He sighed as images of the fair-skinned girl replayed through his mind.
At least I have a name,
he thought.
Leah.

There was a quick knock on his bedroom door, and N
athan jumped and turned around to find Roy smiling in his doorway. “Looks like you’re almost done in here,” Roy said.

“Yeah,” muttered Nathan, sounding a bit surprised. He’d been so distracted by his thoughts about Leah, he hadn’t n
oticed that he had folded the last item to be put away. 

“You’ll have fun,” said Roy, reassuringly, and with a grin. “Don’t look so
… spaced out.”

Nathan paused, giving himself a moment to return back to reality and then he nodded. Roy cleared his throat. “Um, Lafonda has already started packing her car,” he said. “I a
ssume you guys will actually ride together this year?”

“Uh, yeah,” stuttered Nathan, pausing to grab a sui
tcase. “No problem.”

“Good,” said Roy. “Because LaDonda has already left for campus, and I don’t want to have to drive you over there.”

“Okay, Grandpa,” said Nathan, while shaking his head.

Outside the cottage, Nathan saw Lafonda struggling to load what looked like several overloaded suitcases into the trunk of her new Ferrari. Casually, he approached her from behind. “So,” he said in a playful tone, “need any help?”

She put down what looked like a humungous suitcase in comparison to her size and faced Nathan. Her long black hair, still slightly curled from the party, danced softly across her windswept face. The small gold locket around her neck occasionally caught the sun’s rays and reflected brilliantly in the light.

“Good
afternoon to you too, Mr. Urye,” she responded with a confident grin. She paused, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. “It’s so nice of you to volunteer to place all my bags in the trunk for me. You’re such a gentleman.”

“Sure, sure,” he mocked her, with a huge grin. “So, what time do we have to be there?” he asked. “Shouldn’t we have been there hours ago to help with check-in?”

She leaned against the car and grinned. “Not this year. My grandmother said this year she had enough counselors volunteer to work check-in, so we’re off the hook.”

“Oh, really?” mumbled Nathan, while loading the trunk. “Well, that’s no fun.”

Lafonda had a surprised look on her face. “Really?” she responded, folding her arms. “I thought you would enjoy not having to wake up early in the morning to work check-in, especially being that it’s summer.”

“True, true,” he said, pausing to catch his breath in b
etween loading Lafonda’s bags. “But I was looking forward to seeing all the excited faces turn sour after the first night.”

She shook her head. “Nathan,” she said in a weary voice, “you never cease to amaze me.”

“Yeah. And ditto here,” he responded. He stood up straight and leaned back to stretch his back. “So, how much crap are you taking to camp anyway?”

Lafonda glowered at him, and he protested by shaking his head.

“Leadership camp is only for four weeks, Lafonda,” he continued. “And it’s not like you’re going to Rome, the Devaro Mansion is only 22 minutes away.”

“I hope that explains why you only packed two suitca
ses,” she retorted in a disapproving tone.

“Hey, you kids ready to hit the road?” asked Roy, arri
ving from the main house. He grinned. “LaDonda’s already called twice to see if you two have left the house. I told her you two were happily riding over together.”

Nathan turned to examine the almost full trunk and scowled. “I guess we’ll be leaving as soon as I finish stuf
fing the trunk with the rest of Lafonda’s entire wardrobe,” he said. 

She rolled her eyes and pursed her lips into a sarcastic smile.

Roy cleared his throat and grinned. He gave Nathan a hand with the last of the suitcases while Lafonda climbed inside of the car.

“Thanks, Grandpa!” smiled Nathan. “You’ve still got some life in those arms of yours.”

Roy slightly chuckled and then huffed through his nose. “Go get in the car,” he responded halfheartedly, “before I show you just how much life I have left in these arms.”

Nathan smiled at his grandfather and then proceeded to open the door to Lafonda’s Ferrari. He paused and then a puzzling smirk appeared on his face. “Uh, Lafonda?” he asked, sounding bewildered. “Why are the seats and interior of your car a light blue?”

Immediately, she sat up straight while quickly examining the vehicle. “What?” she responded innocently.

With wide eyes, Nathan gawked at her and took a few steps back from the open car door to look at the vehicle. “You are aware that your car is red and the trim is a light blue,” he said. He paused again and then slowly shook his head. “And you don’t see a problem here?” 

“No,” responded Lafonda slowly. “Blue is my favorite color.”

He stood there looking at her with wide eyes. “And it never occurred to you to maybe just ask for a blue car?” He suddenly released a quick snicker. “I don’t know why I didn’t notice it before,” he continued with a perplexed look on his face. “Surely, I would have said something earlier.”

“Just get in the car, Nathan!” she spouted, sounding annoyed. She had a smug look on her face. “And it’s not light blue. It’s carta da zucchero.”

“And what is that?” he grinned, “Italian for light blue?”

“Can we go now?” demanded Lafonda, clearly irritated.

He slid into the passenger seat. “Okay!” he said in a high-pitched voice. Nathan inspected the blue trim in her car again and mumbled. “Good luck when it’s time for resale.”

Roy approached the driver’s side of the car and sighed while slowly shaking his head. “Can you two please play nice while driving into town?” he asked.

Lafonda looked up at Roy and smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry, Roy,” she grinned, “we’ll be fine.”

Roy took a deep breath and then released it quickly. “Okay,” he said. “Now please, don’t go over the speed limit, and let me know when you get into town.” He glanced over to the passenger seat at Nathan, and his chest heaved again. “And Nathan,” he said, “do you have your cell phone?”

“Yes,” said Nathan, sounding annoyed as he patted his pockets.

Roy looked away and then back at Nathan again. “Good,” he said. “Then use it.”

Nathan smiled.

During the summer, the back road into town from the Devaro Mansion was always lush with greenery. There were so many trees alongside the road that they often blocked out the sun. Occasionally, there would be pockets of sunlight, and you could spot deer grazing amidst the trees or along the road. But on cloudy days and just before nightfall, the dense cluster of trees made the road seem mysterious. It was still inviting, yet quite menacing.

“What time is it?” asked Nathan, while looking at the clock on the leather dashboard to Lafonda’s Ferrari. “It’s suddenly so dark.”

“Yeah, it is darker,” Lafonda agreed, removing her sunglasses. She chuckled. “I noticed things were a little darker through my sunglasses, but then again, they always are.”

He glanced over at her and laughed too. Nathan squinted as a prism of gold light reflected from her locket. “I see that you’re wearing the locket your grandfather gave to you.”

She quickly glanced down before returning her focus back on the road. “Yeah,” she smiled, placing a hand on the locket.

Nathan settled back into his seat and turned to look at the locket again. He smiled. “You look good,” he said. Abruptly, his eyes fluttered and he began to stumble. He could feel his cheeks turning red. “I mean
… it looks good on you.”

She turned to face him and smiled. A few moments passed, and Nathan abruptly cleared his throat. “So,” he said, while awkwardly clasping his hands, “how does Jim Darding feel about you not wearing his necklace?”