Questioning Everything
2887 Words
Clayton
Why am I running through the woods? I wonder as my feet are being torn apart by sticks and rock. I am nearly naked as I find myself evading a beast snarling behind me. I only got a brief glimpse of fur and teeth before I took off running for my life. I pant heavily as I feel my endurance wane. I trip over a large rock and face plant into the ground.
The hot breath of the beast that had been chasing me fans over my neck. Slowly I roll onto my back and look up at a blue-eyed solid black wolf. The wolf’s lips are pulled back into a vicious snarl as it drools over my face. Then the wolf’s tongue falls out of its mouth and begins to lick my face as a dog would. The wolf lets out a playful yip and backs away. I sit up as the wolf’s tail wags like an eager puppy. I reach out and stroke the soft, warm fur.
‘Clayton.’ I hear a voice in my head. ‘Clayton Marshall, my name is Hazel.’ I swear the voice is coming from the wolf.
“Hazel,” I say out loud, and the wolf yip happily.
‘Follow me,’ She says to me and then takes off.
I am about to follow her when-
My alarm clock goes off, and my dream fades into daylight as I open my eyes. I groan and hold my head as I slowly sit up.
“Daddy,” I hear my daughter calling to me. She pokes her head into my room. “Are you up?” She asks.
“I’m up, Lily,” I respond as she trots into my room and hops onto the bed. “Sorry I didn’t see you all day.”
She shrugs.
“Did you have fun at the zoo with Grandma?” I ask her.
“Uncle Josh came too. He told me all about the animals,” She responds.
“That’s good. I wish I had been able to go,” I pat her back.
She shrugs again. “Uncle Josh says your job is more important than a zoo.”
“That’s rich coming from someone without one,” I mumble, and my daughter tilts her head.
“Huh?” Lily raises an eyebrow.
“Never mind, sweetie. I’ll be down in a few minutes for breakfast,” I tell her
“Do you have to go to work?” She asks, and I nod. “Fine.” She sighs and slides off the bed, and walks out of my room.
I sigh, get out of bed, and walk into my bathroom to take a long shower. My mind keeps finding itself thinking about Frankie Abernathy. The mayor of the weird little town. There is just something about her that I can’t get out of my mind. Then there are dreams about wolves I keep having.
I finish my shower and do the rest of my morning routine, including shaving my three-day-old stubble. I get dressed in one of my best suits, shine my shoes, and slick back my hair.
“Clayton!” I hear my mother calling for me. “Breakfast!”
I grab my badge and phone and head downstairs. “Good morning, everyone,” I greet as I walk into the kitchen. I pat Ranger on his head and sit at the table beside my brother. My daughter is eating a bowl of cereal with some pop tarts. I smell eggs and bacon. “You don’t want eggs and bacon?” I ask Lily.
She shrugs. “ I like my Coco Puffs, Daddy.”
I am about to respond when my phone rings. “Agent Marshall.”
“Are you on your way?” Eric asks.
I stand up and walk out of the kitchen. “No, what’s up, Eric?”
“Oh, Adam has some interesting findings he is eager to share with us this morning,” My partner tells me.
“Is it that urgent that I can’t have breakfast?” I ask.
“Adam says it is,” Eric replies. “What’s for breakfast?”
“The usual,” I reply.
“Hmm,” Eric muses. “Eat your breakfast. I’ll talk to Adam, okay?”
“Fine.” I hang up the phone and walk back into the kitchen just as my mother is serving Josh a plate of food.
“Do you have to leave right away?” Mom asks me.
I shake my head. “I have time for breakfast.”
She nods and walks away. Moments later, she places a plate in front of me. Part of me feels guilty that my mother still serves us like we were kids. But since my Dad died, she has been lonely.
I dig into my food and slip a piece of bacon to Ranger.
“Clayton, don’t feed him bacon.” Mom scolds me as she sits down.
“I dropped it,” I look down at the dog and ruffle his head. “Didn’t I?”
Ranger whines and turns his attention to Lily’s lap. Lily starts to give him a piece of her pop tart.
“Lily,” Mom drawls. “I am trying to get him off of people food.”
“Sorry, Grandma,” Lily frowns.
“So, are you going to work all day again, Clayton?’ She asks me.
“Probably,” I reply.
Mom rolls her eyes. “I see.”
“Mom, it’s a case,” I argue.
“It’s always a case, Clayton.” She mumbles.
I finish my breakfast and set the dish in the sink. “I have to go,” I tell everyone. I lean down and kiss the top of my daughter’s head and then kiss my mother's cheek.
“Please don’t kiss me,” Josh throws his hands up.
“I wasn’t planning on it,” I punch my brother’s arm. “Bye everyone,” I say as I pat Ranger’s head and leave the room. I walk out to my car. I swear I see the same Mercedes that followed me last night speed off down the street. I shake it from my mind, get into my car, and head for work.
After a thirty-minute drive, I reach the office and am immediately greeted by my partner. “Morning, Clay.” Eric smiles.
“What has you all smiley?” I ask him.
He shrugs. “Life.”
“What’s up?” I ask him as we walk into our office.
“Oh, well, I was going to wait to tell you, but Jenna is pregnant,” He announces.
“Really?” I laugh. “Well, congratulations,” I shake his hand. “I didn’t know you were even trying.”
“We weren’t,” He laughs.
There is a knock on our office door, and the forensics guy Adam walks in. He drops a folder on the desk. “Do you want to know what I found?”
“Sure, Adam,” I look at Eric with a raised eyebrow. “
Adam looks between Eric and me. “Well, I tested Larry Johnson’s DNA, and it was weird. Like he is not human or something.”
“What do you mean?” I ask.
“His blood is almost canine. And the weirdest part is that the other blood we found is also canine.”
“That is freaking weird,” Eric adds. “What’s on the agenda today?”
“I think we should go back to that weird little town and talk to Larry’s co-workers,” I respond.
“I’d love to go with you, Clay,” Eric states, but I have some work to do here.
“Fine, I’ll go by myself,” I say with mild relief. A huge part of me wishes to see Mayor Frankie again, and I don’t want Eric around for that.
“Why are you grinning like an i***t?” Eric interrupts my thoughts.
I hadn’t realized I was grinning and quickly returned to my usual expression. “I was just thinking of something that Lily did.” I stand up. “Well, I’ll be back later. Keep me informed.”
“Ditto,” Eric responds.
I walk out of the office and head back to my car. It’s about a forty-five minute drive to the gates of the town. I am stopped by the same guard from the other day. He regards me for a moment. “What?”
“I was here yesterday investigating the murder of Larry Johnson. Today I am here to speak with his co-workers.”
“We have that investigation under control, sir,” The guard responds. “Now turn around.”
“I can’t do that. That man was found on federal land. I have jurisdiction. If you don’t let me in, I will be forced to get a warrant, and there will be more than just me milling about this weird little cult town.”
The guard sighs, and his eyes glaze over. It’s a minute before he speaks again. “Fine, Mayor Frankie will meet you at the front of the school,” He explains. He points down the road. “The school is about a mile down this road on the left.”
“I remember,” I mention. The gate lifts, and I drive down the road. I pull into the school and park my car. I see Mayor Frankie pacing in front of the door, smoking a cigarette. She is wearing a pair of dark jeans and a plaid shirt.
She looks up as I approach, and I swear her eyes turn solid black. A ring of smoke blows out of her lips, and she shakes her head. “Agent Marshall.” She says as I stop in front of her.
“Smoking on school grounds, huh?” I say awkwardly.
She drops the cigarette and stamps it out with her boot. “Yeah, I know.” She laughs dryly. “So, I’ll take you to the principal’s office.”
“You didn’t have to come down here, you know,” I tell her.
“The townspeople are a little on edge since Larry was killed. I need to be present to assure them that everything is fine,” She explains and opens the door. “This way, Agent.”
I follow her down the hall and accidentally brush my hand against hers. The strange tingling sensation makes me jump, “Why does my hand tingle every time I touch you?”
She shrugs. “I don’t know what you are talking about.”
We reach an office, and she knocks on the door before going in. A middle-aged man sits behind the desk. He looks up and stands. “Alpha,” He nods at Frankie. “I mean Mayor,” He stumbles and glances at me.
“Principal Poole, this is Agent Clayton Marshall of the FBI. He is here to investigate what happened to Larry,” Frankie introduces me.
“Poor Larry,” Principal Poole nods. “He was a good guy.”
I pull out my notebook. “How long did Larry work here?” I ask.
The principal indicates the chairs in front of his desk, so I sit down. Frankie remains standing and stays behind me. “Oh, Larry worked here for twenty years or so,” Principal Poole replies. “He was here before I was.”
“Was there anyone that disliked Larry or had any problems with him?” I ask.
“No, of course not. Everyone loved Larry,” The principal responds. “He did a great job cleaning. I’m afraid the cleanliness of this building has lapsed since Larry died.”
“We’ll find more help for you soon, Kevin,” Frankie chimes in.
“Thank you, Alph- Mayor.” The principal corrects himself.
“May I speak with his closest co-workers?” I ask.
“Do you want me to call them in here?”
“Sure,” I respond.
We wait while Principal Pooles makes some phone calls. While we are waiting, my phone rings. I pull it out of my pocket and stand up. “Agent Marshall.”
“Hey, Clay,” Eric answers. “We identified who the other DNA belonged to. It belongs to Roscoe Graves.”
“Thanks, Eric,” I respond to him and hang up the phone. “Do either of your know a Roscoe Graves?” I ask and watch Frankie’s eyes go wide.
She shudders and then presses her lips together. “No, never heard of him.”
“Really? Because your body language when I mentioned his name would suggest otherwise,” I tell her.
There is a knock on the door, and the Principal gets up to answer it. A tall, burly black man walks in. “Come on in, Dan.” He turns to me. “This is Dan Purvis. He is our other custodian. He and Larry worked together for years.”
“Larry was my best friend,” Dan says to me. “Our kids are even all friends.”
“Do you know of anyone who would want to hurt Larry?” I ask.
“Just that dumbass Todd Wiggins. For years, he has had beef with Larry,” Dan wrinkles his nose.
“I spoke with him yesterday,” I mention.
“Well, if anyone killed Larry, it was Todd,” Dan spats.
“Why do you say that, Dan?” Frankie speaks up. Dan stiffens.
“I-I don’t know, Alpha,” Dan sputters.
Frankie tilts her head. “You don’t know? Are you sure that’s what you are going with?” Frankie asks, and I watch Dan and the Principal both seem to stiffen and tilt their heads, seemingly exposing their necks.
“Todd is a bully, Alpha,” Dan spits out. “He asserts his dominance over omegas every chance he gets.”
“I’ll talk with him later,” Frankie mumbles and looks at me. “Sometimes, I am called Alpha. My father was called Alpha, and we kept up the tradition when I became mayor.”
I glance at Dan, who narrows his eyes with confusion. “What are you talking about, Alpha Frankie?” Dan snorts.
“Don’t worry about it, Dan.” Frankie waves him off.
“I spoke with Mr. Wiggins yesterday. He claims he was training Larry and that they were friends,” I explain.
Dan rolls his eyes. “Todd is a liar.” He looks at Frankie. “I need to get back to work, Alpha.”
“Are you done with Dan, Agent Marshall?” Frankie asks me.
I nod. “For now.” I pull out my card. “If you think of anything, call me,” I hand Dan my card.
After Dan leaves, I question four more people about Larry, and they all say the same thing. That Larry was a good guy that everyone liked. Todd Wiggins is the only one that had any problems with him. Though my gut says, it wasn’t Todd. I finish up my notes and look at Frankie. “I think that’s all I need for today. Thank you,” I say to her and nod at the principal. I walk out of the office, keenly aware of Frankie on my heels. “Can I help you, mayor?” I ask her.
“You can call me Frankie,” She smiles, and I am nearly floored by it. Her beauty is too much for me.
“Frankie, why Frankie?” I ask as we walk down the hall.
“My father used to call my Frankie because I didn’t like being called Franny.” She chuckles and then frowns. “Anyways, it just stuck.”
“So no one calls you Francine?” I smirk.
“Just my mother,” she replies. “Though you can call me anything you want,” She flutters her eyebrows. We stop, and I stare into her blue eyes. My heart swells as I feel some mysterious connection to this woman. Her eyes flash to black briefly before returning to blue. I lean in, and the next thing I know, my lips are on hers. She wraps her arms around my neck, and I swear I hear her growl.
I try to pull away from her, but the kiss's tingles are too much, and I push her against a set of lockers and deepen the kiss. I slide my hand down her shirt and am about to touch her breast when the bell rings, and the hall is suddenly filled with students. I pull away from her, and she growls again. I shake my head and continue down the hallway.
We walk outside, and I look at Frankie. “I-I-“ I stutter, trying to find the words.
“Would you like to go to lunch?” Frankie blurts out. “I mean, I would like to have lunch with you. Unless you can’t because-“ She trails off.
“I would love to have lunch with you.” I smile at her.
“Cool,” she smirks. “We’ll take your car.”
- Writer
