http://www.tdcooperbooks.com
Pixies and Dragons Live Among Us
The sidewalk below Joanie’s feet growled. She stopped and
glanced over her shoulder and down the vacant dark street. The rain had
drenched the area moments before. The umbrella dropped below her head as she stared
in wonderment, goosebumps pricked her skin. She saw nothing, no movement, no
cars crossing at the intersection behind or in front of her, nothing.
“Where did everyone go?” she muttered and continued toward
her new apartment.
Joanie had been lucky. The housing in this area of Chicago
was hard to come by, and the list for this flat was lengthy. “You must be so
tired from moving that you’re imagining things,” she berated herself.
She turned and began her trek toward the new apartment.
Stepping off the curb, her boot landed in a puddle. The foul smell of sewer
filled her nostrils, making her glance down the alley. “Man, its dark tonight,
and what is that odor?”
“Grrrr!” the sidewalk said again.
Her breath caught, and her pace quickened. “What was that?”
she said as her head jerked in all directions. “Maybe the previous tenant’s
accident wasn’t an accident after all.”
“Grrrr!” This time the angry noise came from a grate in the
gutter below her feet. She’d heard that a maze of tunnels existed underground,
but never thought any of it was true. Just then, a flame shot up and out of the
vent.
Joanie screamed and ran. Her breathing came in short pants as
she fumbled with the umbrella and yanked on the locked door leading to her
building. “Combination? What’s my code?” she shouted. A man saw her struggling
with the keypad and came to her assistance.
“Are you all right? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” he
said as he stepped aside to let her in through the glass door.
“No, actually, I think it was a dragon…” Joanie said and
waited for him to make a snide comment. “Close that door!” she shouted as he
stared at her.
“Dragon? Okay, do you really think this glass door is going
to keep Henry out?” he said sheepishly.
“Henry?”
“Oh, yeah, you’re new here, right?” he asked. Joanie shook
her head, trying to blink and refresh her dry eyes. “He’s just welcoming you to
the neighborhood,” the young man about her age said and smiled.
“Are you kidding me? The next thing you’ll tell me is that
the pixies cleaned my apartment while I was at work today,” Joanie said curtly.
“Oh, I don’t think pixies clean, but they are mischievous.
If I were you, I’d keep a spare set of keys around your neck,” he said, pulling
a string out of his shirt, showing her his car key and door key.
“Really? Is there anything else I should be on the lookout
for?” Joanie asked.
“Why don’t you come in and dry off. I’ll fix some tea and
fill you in on our special block.”
https://amazon.com/author/tdcooper
http://www.tdcooperbooks.com
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