Mythical Link ▸ Link Neal {Book One}

Thirty Seven

     Link slept most of the day away.  When he opened his eyes, it was already 2 in the afternoon. He could hear the kids laughing and playing downstairs. They had probably gone to church and just left him sleeping. His muscles were so tight that he could barely stand up straight. It wasn't easy cramming a 6ft guy in a twin sized bed.

     He groaned and decided to get dressed, brush his teeth and style his hair before heading downstairs. He already felt lazy for sleeping most of the day, but figured he probably needed the sleep and was glad the others realized that too. He went into his bedroom and pulled a blue flannel shirt out of his closet, then walked over to his drawers for a pair of black skinny jeans. After he was dressed, he brushed his teeth and styled his hair in his normal fashion.

    Link tried hard not to look around the bathroom like a paranoid criminal, but he couldn't help himself. After what had happened the past few days, he had to be vigilant.  It was a good thing too, since it was the day of the full moon. He didn't know if the full moon affected the days' events, but he knew once nighttime came, his world would be shaken up. 

     It was the feeling he had bubbling in his chest before he went to bed the night before. He took a deep breath before he skipped downstairs. 

     Rhett walked up to him the instant he'd seen him and he wrapped an arm around Link's shoulders. "Can I talk to you for a second man?" 

     Link looked around the room, before his eyes fell on Rhett. "Yeah, sure. What's up?" 

     Rhett veered Link out of earshot of the kids and their wives. "Do you remember yesterday when you were drawing in the dirt while we were waiting for the sheriff to arrive?" 

     Link narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about?" 

     Rhett was afraid Link would say that. He pulled the image up on his phone and showed it to Link. He peered down at the phone in Rhett's hand, an eyebrow raised. 

     He actually started chuckling. "There's no way I drew that man." Link folded his arms across his chest and shook his head.

     Rhett's eyes widened. "You did draw that. I sat there and watched you!" 

     Link took a step back. "I can't even make a stick figure look that good. You're messing with me," Link said playfully. He knew Rhett liked messing with him, as he liked to mess with Rhett. It was something that they did as best friends. 

     Rhett was silent for a few moments. "You're gonna wish I was messing with you. Watch this." 

     Link moved closer to Rhett again, and Rhett flipped the image. Link's stomach felt like it had hollowed out, his smile fading from his face. He took several steps back before he'd hit the bottom of the stairs. He slowly took a seat. His mouth hung open in shock.

     "No... no. Why... why would I do that? Rhett, why would I write that?" Link's voice rose in octaves.

     Rhett held his finger to his lips. "Shh! Both Lily and Locke discovered this last night and if they hear you freaking out about this, they're gonna know something is up!" 

     Link gave Rhett a defeated look as he shot up to his feet. "They already know there's something wrong! What's the point!" He turned on his heel and ran up the stairs. 

     Rhett took off up the stairs after him. The both of them sounded like a herd of elephants climbing up the stairs, and Rhett would be very surprised if that didn't draw everyone's attention to them. "Link, wait! Link, come on." Rhett made it to the final landing before Link had closed his bedroom door behind him. 

     Rhett sighed heavily as he rubbed the back of his neck. He felt bad that Link reacted that way, but he had to show him. Fortunately Christy and Jessie kept the kids occupied, and it didn't appear that they heard the ordeal. 

     Rhett knocked on the door softly. "Link, please listen to me. I didn't want to show you that to upset you, alright?"

     "You don't want to talk to me," he heard Link's muffled voice from directly behind the door, and it sounded like he'd been crying. 

     Rhett's lips curled into a frown. He pressed his back against the door and slid to the floor, imagining that Link had done the same exact thing. "Of course I want to talk to you, man. I always want to talk to you." 

     Link's sobs grew louder. It ripped Rhett's heart right out of his chest. Repeatedly.

     It was very rare to see Link like this. "Why would you want to talk to me? I'm going crazy." 

     Rhett couldn't help but smile, and he twisted his back to face the door. "Going crazy? You've been crazy since the day you were born." Silence fell between them for a short while before he heard Link shuffle and the handle to the door rattle. The door came open, revealing Link. Rhett looked up at him. 

     His eyes were red and puffy, his face paler than normal. "You always know the right things to say." Link sounded frustrated even though he had smiled. "It's very hard to cry when you say things like that." 

     Rhett laughed and held his hand up to Link. They clasped hands and Link helped him up, Rhett pulling him in for a quick hug. They parted and he looked him in the eye. "Link, I think you have an incredible ability. I didn't stop you from drawing this picture because I truly believe it could mean something. I think this is something you should just come to terms with, man. Being afraid isn't going to make it go away." 

     Link tilted his head to the side, his smile fading to a slight frown. "It's just hard to come to terms with something so terrifying. I've never had this ability before. Why is it suddenly happening now?" 

     Rhett took a moment to think about that. He lowered his eyes to the ground. His gut told him that it had something to do with the supernatural aura that blanketed Burbank the past three days. Maybe Link was supernatural himself, but he wasn't going to dare suggest that. Rhett looked into Link's eyes again. "Maybe you're going to save a life." 

     Intrigue fired up in Link's blue eyes, but apprehension wormed its way into his belly. "I'd probably believe that if I didn't find already dead bodies."