The Bottom Feeders and Other Stories by Aaron Polson Read Free Book Online Page B

Maggie
Bloch, complained. Beneath them, the road smelled engine exhaust,
purred with the sweet rumble of a straining engine, woke, and
called its children home.
    “ What the hell were you
thinking, Jimbo?” Maggie asked. Her long fingernails carved deep
into the smooth faux velvet bench seat as the car groaned, its
wheels spinning in place.
    Jimmy’s beefy paws clutched the steering
wheel, gripping so tight that his knuckles turned white. “Look, I
figured it hadn’t rained in a couple days, so it’d be okay.”
    “ Well, a couple of dry days
don’t matter much when it rains for a week straight.” Jimmy ran a
handful of stubby fingers through his sawed-off brown hair. “Hell,
I thought the full moon would be nice.”
    Maggie wasn’t ready to play nice. “Real
romantic,” she said, glancing out the window and catching a ghost
of her own, thin-faced reflection in the glass. “It isn’t even a
full moon.”
    “ Like hell.” Jimmy released
his foot from the gas, and the car sighed with relief. He pushed
his face against the windshield and searched for the
moon.
    “ No, it’s only about
three-quarters.”
    “ Awww,” Jimmy moaned,
dropping his head to the steering wheel. “I wanted to, you know, do
something you might think was romantic.” His hands dropped to his
chin. “I really fucked up. If the Charger was ready, we wouldn’t be
stuck.”
    Maggie’s face broke into a smile. “You think
your dad’s old clunker could get us out of this mud pit?”
    Jimmy’s face sprouted with
red blotches. “First of all, it’s a ’69. A classic, not a clunker.
And no it
couldn’t get us out of the mud. Once I get that puppy humming, I’m
not taking it out in this stuff, anyway. If the road was dry, hell
yeah. I can’t wait to—”
    “ What? Spin out on the flat
mile and end up in the ditch?” Maggie shook her head and brushed
her auburn hair away from her face, pulling back into a loose
ponytail. “Listen, sweetie. You get me out of this mud-hole, and
I’ll make sure we find a dark, quiet spot for some real romance.”
Her hand slid onto his lap, and stroked the inside of his
leg.
    Jimmy slowly straightened in his seat. He
glanced at Maggie. “I love you, babe.”
    “ I know.” She smiled, but
her face suddenly dropped into a stunted frown. “What the hell was
that?”
    “ What was what?”
    “ I saw something move
behind you.” She shivered. “Look, the sooner we get out of here,
the better.”
    “ Don’t freak on
me.”
    “ I’m not, I just …want to
get back to town, okay? Civilization?” She waved her fingers toward
the blue glow of Springdale. “I don’t like this road. The
stories—”
    “— are mostly silly legends
to scare kids; to keep people from driving too fast.”
    “ Well, they’re working. I’m
scared.”
    “ Right. I’ll get us out of
here, then.” Jimmy pushed his door open with a squeak of rusty
hinges.
    “ Where are you going?”
Maggie’s voice eked out with a taint of panic.
    Jimmy had slipped from the car, but
momentarily ducked back into the dim glow of the dashboard lights.
“Just going to find some wood or something I can wedge behind the
tires. You know – for traction.”
    “ All right,” she said
slowly. “Just hurry, okay?”
    “ Don’t worry about it. I’ll
be back in a jiffy.”
    Maggie jabbed the automatic
locks as soon as Jimmy slammed his door. She huddled on her side of
the car, feeling a bit chilly in the April darkness. If he would just hurry ,
she thought. She twirled a bit of hair on her finger. This place is creepy, but the old full-moon trick
is kinda sweet. He’s a —
    Maggie’s thoughts were interrupted by a loud
bang on her door. Jimmy’s face hovered just outside her window.
    “ Gotcha,” he muttered, loud
enough to be heard through the glass.
    Maggie snapped the door open, smashing it
across his knees. “Damn it Jimbo, I nearly wet myself.” She stood
up next to the door, and looked into the darkness, past