I Can Barely Breathe by August Verona Read Free Book Online Page B

gathered their children and ran,
while a few stood staring in horror. The police were informed
immediately, and patrols arrived just in time to witness the
dirt-covered man making his way down one of the cemetery roads,
toward the highway.
    ***
    “All I know is,” Tom explained from the
driver’s seat of his Buick, “I woke up today, and I didn’t hurt
anymore. My limp is gone.” He, Carver and Kattic had just finished
lunch at a diner outside Sorrow’s Sky. Today was
all-you-can-eat-ribs for two dollars, so they got their money’s
worth.
    “You are so full of shit!” Carver laughed,
as Tom smiled and held back a chuckle. “Have you been faking it
this entire time?” Carver asked, as he dangled his cigarette out
the passenger window and glanced back at Kattic.
    “Wanting extra sympathy?” Kattic asked
staring at Tom’s reflection in the rear view mirror.
    “Look at it, God damn it! Even the scar is
gone!” Tom pulled his pant leg up above his knee, showing smooth
skin.
    Carver shook his head. “I don’t believe you,
but I’m glad you’re feeling better.”
    “Yeah, well, we don’t believe you about that
shiner of yours. How’d you really get it?” Tom asked, smiling again
at Carver.
    Carver laughed once more. “Don’t try to
change the subject.”
    “Detective Mallik?” a female said over the
radio.
    “This is Detective Mallik. Go ahead,” Tom
replied, pulling down his pant leg.
    “We need your team at Arpac Hills Cemetery.
There’s a situation,” the woman said.
    “Tell me what I’m walkin’ into, Jean.”
    “Reports from officers on scene describe a
man rising from a grave. He’s hostile and confused. Could be a
drunk. Either way they’re asking for you guys. The medics are
already on scene.”
    “Jesus,” he said, his finger off the call
button.
    “No, He was risen a few thousand years ago,
Tom. I’m guessing this is someone else,” Carver said, reaching back
over the headrest of his seat to hand Kattic a lit cigarette.
    “OK, Jean. We’re on our way.”
    Tom grabbed the emergency light from under
his seat and placed it on top of the car. He plugged it in, and let
the siren and rotating red light clear a path for them.
    “Maybe it’s a college prank. It is that time of year,” Kattic chimed in, between puffs.
    “You never know in this town.” Tom pushed
hard on the accelerator.
    ***
    As they pulled into the cemetery, they saw
two police cruisers with flashing reds and an ambulance with
flashing blues. The uniforms were standing next to a man, who was
leaning against the hood of one of the units, being examined by a
medic. Dirt covered his face, arms and clothing. His attire
consisted of a torn puffy-sleeved shirt that had four large buttons
holding it closed. The black suspenders over his shoulders kept his
baggy brown slacks from falling down. His bare feet stood on the
hot asphalt.
    As the guys got out of the car and
approached the officers and the mystery man, Tom got a good look at
his eyes, which were searching the sky to find the clouds and the
burning yellow sun.
    “My name is Tom. This is Kattic and Carver.
We’re with the police. Can you tell me your name?”
    Daniel opened his brown eyes; there was pain
in them. “What is this place? Is this heaven?” he asked
sincerely.
    Carver squinted at him. “You’re in Colorado.
Who are you?”
    “Daniel. Daniel Wallace.” His voice was
hoarse.
    “What’s the last thing you remember,
Daniel?” Kattic asked.
    “I was on the hill. Took a knife to the
chest.” His hand lifted up his shirt to find a scar above his
heart. The purple skin bulged out in the shape of the shaft of a
large bayonet. “Did we win?”
    “Do you remember waking up?” Tom pointed to
the disturbed grave site where a mound of upturned dirt lay.
    “I do. I was in a cave. It was black. The
walls were all around me. I used my feet to kick my way out.”
    “Do you know what year it is?” Carver
asked.
    The man looked around, scanning the