Jackson Humes is Not a Superhero

CHAPTER NINE

Time came to a screeching halt. The heightened sense of awareness made me dizzy. It felt like hundreds of drums were beating inside my head. I wanted to run, but my body was paralyzed. There was a loud thump from somewhere inside the cabin. All of this unfolded within a couple of heartbeats. My feet shot up behind me and I flew headfirst through the air like Superman at an alarming speed. I unintentionally shot straight at him and slammed my right shoulder into his stomach.

I heard the rush of air leaving lungs and saw a bright flash of light as the gun went off. It was the loudest noise I'd ever heard. I knew I was screaming at the top of my lungs, but I couldn't hear myself over the ringing in my ears. Somehow we both ended up on the floor. We twisted and pushed frantically against one another. I kicked and punched hard, landing a few jabs, but with little effect. I felt far removed from my own body. I'd had no idea I was capable of such violence. My cheek exploded in pain. Had I really just been punched in the face? My head slammed against the floor and everything dimmed for a second. I felt a sharp pain on both of my shoulders. He'd pinned me to the ground with his knees and was pressing both his hands against my throat. I struggled for air, bucking my legs to try and get him off of me.

I saw a brief look of confusion on his face before it turned to horror. The velociraptor slammed into him and sent him flying across the room. I took a huge gulp of air and gagged on it. Through my coughing and tears I saw that the man was on the floor. His arm was bent at an impossible angle and he was moving his mouth, but I couldn't hear what he was saying. He scrambled onto his knees, picked up the gun, and fired a single shot. The velociraptor spun to his side and slammed against a wall. The man ran past me and out of the room.

My ears were ringing more than ever as I ran up to Marv. My movements felt fuzzy, like I'd just woken up from a long nap. "Are you okay?" I didn't know if I was whispering or shouting.

Marv was trying to reach for something. That's when I saw blood trailing down the side of his body. I grabbed the blanket from the floor and pressed it against the bullet wound.

Warm blood quickly soaked my hand. I kept repeating that it was going to be okay until the ringing in my ears subsided and I was able to hear the words I was saying. Hot tears were streaming down my face.

"It stings like crazy," he croaked, "but I think it only broke the skin."

"Are, are you sure?" My question came out more like a sob.

Marv nodded his head. His eyes were a little glazed over. "I think so."

Outside, I heard a dog barking. My hearing still wasn't working properly, so I couldn't gage if it was close or far away. Marv needed to hide, but where?

"Where's Shannon?" The velociraptor didn't wait for a response and ran out the room. "Shannon? Shannon? Where are you?"

I ran after him and saw Marv basically rip the door off its hinges as he barreled into the room, scattering wood and dust all over the place. Shannon was lying on the floor. Marv leaned over and urgently shoved him with his muzzle. I got down on my knees and grabbed his wrist. Relief like I've never experienced washed over me when I felt a strong pulse.

"Do you think he passed out?" My voice was still unsteady.

"More like knocked unconscious," said someone behind us.

The two of us yelped as we spun around. My neighbor, Mr. Saltzman, was standing in the doorway, his Great Dane close to his side. The dog's hair was standing on end and he was letting out a low, continuous growl directed at Marv. Mr. Saltzman slowly took in the scene. His eyes lingered longer on Marv than anything else, but he didn't seem surprised by the fact that there was a velociraptor in the room.

"Easy there, Graham." He tugged sharply on the Great Dane's leash, but it continued to bare his teeth. "I'm not going to hurt you, but you need to do exactly as I say. I know how to help you."

"How can you help us?" Marv asked, forgetting Mr. Saltzman couldn't understand what he was saying.

Mr. Saltzman eyed him for a moment before he turned to address me. "Jackson, tell me what he said?"

"He, he wants to know how you can help us," I repeated, startled.

Mr. Saltzman pulled back on Graham's leash. The enormous Great Dane had inched forward, eager to get a closer look at the strange creature. "You're going to have to trust me for the time being. Explaining will take too long and I want to get out of here in case those two come back."

I felt an abrupt jolt of terror in the pit of my stomach. Of course there were two of them. How else had Shannon been knocked unconscious?

"So what should we do?" I asked, after a long fretful moment of silence.

Mr. Saltzman held out Graham's leash. "You're going to have to hold him for a moment. Be careful," he warned, "he's really strong."

He was right. The moment I took hold of the leash the dog lunged forward, as if sensing I wouldn't be able to control him. He managed to drag me several inches across the floor before I dug my heels into the ground. I pulled back with all my strength, but it was just enough to keep him stationary.

Mr. Saltzman removed a short pocketknife from his back pocket, picked up one of the blankets off of the floor, and began cutting it into long strips. He walked over to Marv, and examined the wound, before letting out a low grunt.

"You're very lucky you only got grazed by the bullet." He held up the strips of fabric. "May I?"

Marv nodded once. Although the pain was written all over his reptile face, he remained completely still while Mr. Saltzman deftly tied the long strips around his body to stop the bleeding. I was amazed by his efficiency.

"There," he took a step back, checking his work. "That'll have to do for now."

He shifted his attention to Marv's unconscious friend and bent down beside him. With a series of light, rapid slaps to his cheeks, he was able to wake Shannon. My awe and respect for my grumpy old neighbor had just shot up by leaps and bounds.

"Welcome back," Mr. Saltzman said kindly. Shannon looked very confused. He looked from me to Marv, his expression full of questions. I gave him a slight nod letting him know everything was okay. Mr. Saltzman held one finger close to Shannon's face and moved it back and forth. "Follow my finger with your eyes." Shannon's eyes struggled to follow Mr. Saltzman's long crooked finger. "Hmmm."

"Shannon smoked some pot a little while ago." I thought it was necessary information.

"Blabbermouth," Marv grumbled. I shot the velociraptor a dirty look and he rolled his eyes at me. At least the bullet wound hadn't affected his attitude.

Mr. Saltzman slowly stood up. "I think you're going to be fine." He helped Shannon to his feet and stayed close to him as Shannon took a few tentative steps forward.

"Should I be worried that my neck hurts?" Shannon asked, slowly moving his head from side to side.

"He put you in a sleeper hold." Mr. Saltzman explained, taking Graham's leash out of my hands. "It doesn't feel good afterwards, but it's nothing to worry about."

The good news, if there was any to be had, was that the two men who had attacked us were nowhere in sight. The bad news was that the rain was now coming down hard. Within minutes my shirt and jeans were sticking to me and my feet were squishing in my sneakers.

Mr. Saltzman led us out of the woods, single file, taking special care to retrace our original path. He instructed Shannon and me to make sure all signs of Marv's strange prints were wiped away. This made the wet trek home an even more grueling ordeal, but at least we were finally able to put the rake Shannon had brought with him to good use.

We were coming down a particularly slick slope when Mr. Saltzman stopped in his tracks. "Do you all see that?" He was pointing through a small clearing in the trees. I could see my house in the distance. There was a patrol car parked in front. Until that moment, I hadn't thought it was possible to feel any worse that I already did.