On the Far Side of Darkness by R. C. Graham Read Free Book Online Page B

inside it is.
    Christy pales, her eyes grow wide and her mouth slits in an unmistakable admission of guilt.
    I face Ms. Richardson once more and continue my criticism. “So an F is all you get.”
    Mandy’s gaze flares at me and her face gets very hard. “Mr. Belleveau, you had better change that mark.”
    I blink at that statement. What I really am stirs inside me. Instead I shove my instinct down to snicker instead. “ Mademoiselle Richardson, you don’t give me orders. I might take requests, from the Dean or the board, but not orders from you.” Still chuckling, I start for the front of the room.
    A snarled “Come on,” from Mandy follows me up the aisle. As I face the class, I see The Court trailing out in her wake. Christy is looking at me and her face is blank with fear.
    But once again she’s not scared of me. She’s scared for me.
     
    * * * *
     
    The sun goes down and I rise from the earth. Literally. I can sink into the ground as if it were a thick soup. The small cottage where I currently have my haven has an old fashioned root cellar that is perfect for this ability. The coffins and such that others of my kind use are too exposing in my opinion. Resting surrounded by Mother Earth is much safer, and very comforting.
    I go to my bathroom to shower. After that I brush and floss my teeth. I don’t need to worry about rot, but with my eating habits halitosis can be a problem.
    As I clean, I ponder the previous night. I can’t say I’m worried, but there was something about Ms. Richardson and her actions that disturb me. Still, I don’t have much more than a feeling and stop wondering once my toilette is finished.
    I dress and check my messages. Surprisingly there is one. I haven’t given out this number to many people so I rarely get calls. This single missive is from the Dean. “I need to see you,” is all she says.
    The fact that she doesn’t mention a time makes me chuckle. The reputation I’ve been building as a bit of a prima donna is working. Everybody knows I work all day and only show at night. They think I’m writing my next book. I’ve worked hard to create some notoriety as a rather odd, somewhat snobby Eurotrash genius.
    I have no class tonight so I can see Dr. Metaxas right now. Leaving my haven, I start walking. I like using my own feet. It’s relaxing and lets me think.
    A half hour later, I arrive at the Dean’s residence. She answers the doorbell and invites me in. It’s then I receive my first intimation of trouble. Her normal mien towards me is friendly and charmed by my eccentricity. This time her face is disturbed. I sense that she is torn on the horns of a dilemma.
    And unlike other times, she leads me to her home office rather than the living room. After closing the door when we enter, she seats herself behind the desk and motions me to the chair across from her. The formality of the gesture deepens my unease.
    As I sit my slim frame down I look her over again. Another thing seems out of place. It’s her clothes I decide after a second’s thought. Helen is wearing a skirt, and a rather tight blouse. Her garments would make an observer focus on her beauty. This is quite at odds with her usual garb, meant to do much the opposite.
    She breaks into my pondering with, “I need to talk to you about one of your students.”
    Let me guess, flashes into my mind.
    “Mandy Richardson,” confirms my supposition.
    “There’s a problem?” I ask.
    The Dean grows flustered. To my wonder she chews on her bottom lip, frowns with her eyes, flushes slightly with embarrassment. I’ve never seen her more uncertain. Abruptly, she takes a deep breath and shivers.
    “Well,” she goes on after that short pause, “I think you’re being unfair to her. Ms. Richardson needs a better mark.”
    Two odors now waft across the desk and tickle my nose. One I’m very familiar with, a sharp tang of fear.
    The other, after a moment’s thought, is also known to me. I encountered it barely twenty