Stars and Other Monsters by P.T. Phronk

Author:P.T. Phronk [Phronk, P.T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Forest City Pulp
Published: 2014-06-09T23:00:00+00:00

There was snow on the ground when Stan emerged from the hotel. He let Bloody off her leash to frolic in the soft powder.

Dalla pulled up in a convertible Beetle, red this time. She gracefully stepped out in a new flowery hat and sleeveless dress. Her skin was perfect again, with not a burn or splotch to be seen.

“Nice ride,” said Stan.

“I couldn’t resist,” she said. “And the creamy filling was delicious.”

They drove for hours after having Bloody do her thing with the Damien Fox T-shirt. The agreement was to head in the general direction of both Fox and the vampire hunter that Dalla could track, then stop and deal with whoever they hit first. Only Stan knew that they’d hit both at the same time.

They were passing Seattle when Dalla remarked, “jeepers, maybe he really is in Canada.” Her fears were confirmed when they started passing signs warning that the border was imminent.

Stan rummaged through the glove compartment. He found the vehicle’s registration, a small emergency car kit, and among other assorted slips of paper, a picture. It depicted a family, all of them pale as Kleenex; two older kids, a mom, and a dad, all smiling in front of an old-fashioned Starbucks. He wondered which of them were now in Dalla’s stomach. If a kid lost a parent or a parent lost a kid. Merely because they were driving a shiny car that she liked.

“We’re going to have trouble getting over the border,” said Stan, pulling out the car’s documents.

“Honey, we’ve already got trouble,” she said, glancing at the rear-view mirror.

Flashing red and blue light flooded the car. The border came into sight ahead of them. Two more police cars blocked the way through.

“Hold on to the dog,” said Dalla. “Grab your stuff.”

“Wait,” said Stan. He started wiping the car’s door handle, dashboard, and glove compartment with the sleeve of his shirt.

“Always worried about the details,” she said. She reached behind her to grab her bags. Then the door to the car was open, she’d grabbed Stan’s arm, and they were outside, flying straight up.

Stan looked down. The car continued to careen forward, veering off to one side. The police car behind it slammed to a halt as the Beetle slammed into some sort of fuelling station beside the booths that lined the border. The subsequent explosion was so bright that Stan had to squint, and it was followed by a boom that echoed through the night. The windows of the border booths shattered, one after the other.

Flames continued to light up the line between the U.S. and Canada as they passed over it.

The air in the sky was frigid. Stan could feel the snot in his nose freeze with every breath, and Bloody shivered in his arms.

“You know I’ve never been to Canada? Oh, this road trip gets more exciting every minute, doesn’t it?” said Dalla. She looked at the sky. “I’m assuming we’re still supposed to be heading northwest-ish? My father taught me to suss out direction from the locations of the stars.

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