The Empty Bookstore

If you have not yet read Part One of Angel Wings and the Broken Blade, do so now.

He was wearing a blue polo shirt, black tandem jeans, and a Giant cap.  He smiled from ear to ear and made me feel so special, like I was his only customer. I never minded at all. Billy was unique in his own way.

Dad says he started dating Tilly when they were teens, and they have been together ever since. A lovely pair of children fills their lives with pleasure, and he talks about nothing else.

Bill, really William Jefferson, likes to talk comics. He was always on the rogue’s side and was a heroic villain on his own. Sometimes he could make the entire store roar with laughter, especially when he disguised himself as a ninja assassin.

Then there was that one time when he donned himself as a Japanese warlord, with a full beard and mustache.  He offered a free book, The Slain Corn, to anyone who could tell who he was. No one was able to, except me. Bill always wore his wedding ring with the horror cross and a dove.

He did not remember to remove it.  ‘Hello Bill, where is everybody?’ I noticed at that moment that Laura, the cashier, was not there either.

‘Look, Lacy, I would have gone too, but was just waiting for you. Here, I saved you the last copy of the ninja trilogy.’ He handed me the comic, and I gasped, impressed by the impelling design of the cover page. I was so anxious to read it.

‘Laura has already billed it to your mom’s account. So, you are all good to go.” He gave me that smile again. Just a cheery fellow.

‘Say, Bill, really, where are all the people, Marlon, David?’ I was so curious. This was a bit unusual, being mid-day and all.

‘Everyone else is at the stadium. Ben Rin and the three ninjas are there. Will you be going?’

‘Come on, Bill, how come no one told me about it? The ninjas are the most famous in this town, would have been all over the news.’ I thought he was fibbing.

Bill smiled at me again, but this time there was a line of pride in his eyes. He pulled two tickets from his pants pocket and handed them to me. I was so disappointed. How come no one shared this news with me? Why didn’t the news channels carry this story?

‘One is yours, Lacy. But there is one condition..’  I hugged him, bumping my knees into the counter. He felt amazingly warm, close to having a fever. He was wearing a Jordache perfume and a strong body lotion. Bill was my great hero today. There was no way I was not going to go; this was my big moment in my teenage life.

Would I get to meet them personally? Would they sign my comic? Would they let me take pictures?

‘Lacy, would you like to go?’

‘Of course, hell yes! What do I have to do?’ I noticed for the first time that he had brown eyes. I remember that once, about two years ago, one of my classmates fell in love with Bill. He was everything to her, the best and most handsome guy in Anchovy.

Once she confessed to the class that she was going to elope with him. She disappeared shortly after and to this day has never been found.

‘Lacy, will you go on a first date with me?’ He had even set white teeth without fillings or gold pieces.  I was fifteen years old and had never been on a date before, nor had I ever been kissed. I learned from the romantic novels that dates often ended with kissing.

I had long removed kissing from my list of things to do before I finished high school. It was just not for me. Swallowing someone else’s spit was in no way thrilling, not even if the Romeo was a Rhinestone cowboy.

I looked him in the eyes and held his gaze for a moment. Was he really serious, or was he just being the same old funny Bill? I had to admit it, he was rather cute, but he was married, and I was a child.

Dad always warned me about my smile. Be careful, most men are not what they seem to be; use your smile only with those you know well.  I believe I know Bill long enough to be honest with him. Was he misled by my smile? Did I express some kind of interest in him?

How will he react when I tell him no?  ‘Why me, Bill?’

‘You are young, beautiful, and have no boyfriend.’

‘But you are married..’

‘It’s just a date, Lacy,’ he smiled again.  ‘Not like we are going gaze walking, hands in hands.’

‘What would my parents say?  They will surely be mad.  Plus, townsfolk are just looking for a sweet gossip to dig their teeth into.’

‘Listen, you don’t have to tell your parents, and if the people bother you so much, you can always wear a wig.’  I giggled beside myself.

‘That’s not for me, Bill. I am not into the dating thing yet, and when I think I am ready, life will send me someone.’  I might have been mistaken, but his brown eyes turned black.

I have seen that in the vampire movies. Just before Dracula bites his prey, his eyes turn all red and fiery. I did not expect Bill to change into something else, but in our modern world, you never know.

Slowly, the smile disappeared from his face, and his jaws grew cold and hard. A sneer appeared and with it, an angry stare.

‘So, you think that you are too good for me, is that it.  You are above everybody, there is no lad that fits your desire…’

‘Look, Bill, we should not be having this conversation; you are a married man, take your wife.’

‘Do you know how hard it was to get those ninja tickets? And you just threw it right in

my face. Old Bill is not worth your time or love….’ The anger rose inside me, and I shouted at him.

‘Just stop right there! I did not ask you to buy them, and there is absolutely nothing romantic between us. So get a hold of yourself, or Mr. Smith will hear all about this.’

He stared at me for a while, but said nothing. I picked the comic up from the counter and started towards the door.

‘Goodbye, Bill, we can still be friends.  Just friends.’ I really meant every word of it.

It was not unusual for someone to fall in love, even if it was not reciprocal. I have seen a lot of my classmates and neighbors pass through that nightmare.  They fall head over heels, only to discover that the other side does not feel the same.

Some of them just shrugged it off and moved along, like nothing had happened.  Others did not have the will to face the truth and crashed into the blues.  There was this one girl who fell in love with my uncle Denzel.  My uncle was more attractive than my father but had eyes for no other woman than his wife.

When mom and dad were still a number, he would visit us on weekends. One weekend, he bumped into Carol as she came running from the backyard. They both fell to the ground, in pure movie style, only that Carol fell on top of Uncle Denzel.  He was quick to help her up, made apologies, and chatted for a while. She fell for him right away.

Carol was the go-getting type and was never hesitant in writing to my uncle. At first, he would respond to her with gifts and solid counseling. When she turned fifteen, Carol invited him to her birthday party.

Uncle Denzel brought his wife with him that day. This was too much for Carol, and she demanded that my uncle Dentil declare his love for her. His reply was that of surprise as he made it clear that he felt nothing at all for her.

Carol almost died. She cut her wrist with a razor blade, but was found in time, and taken to the hospital, where she recovered.

‘Sorry, Lacy, can’t let you leave’, Bill leaped over the counter just as the ninjas do,

and like a cat landed without a single thud. He grabbed my hand and hurled me

backward, and once again I bumped into the counter.  Where did he get so much strength and speed? Was he a monster of some sort?

Bill walked forward and locked the door. He pivoted on his feet so that he was now

facing me.  His hands, now folded into fists, seemed to give him more power with each step he took toward me. I was expecting more violence from him, but he just walked past me.

He started closing the windows, and I rushed to the door. I yanked it so hard that a sudden pain shot up my arm. I believed I just tore a muscle, or maybe all of them.

I ignored the pain and kept on yanking the door. It was securely shut.

‘Don’t waste your time, Lacy. There’s no way out of here. At least not without the keys.’ There was that reassuring smile on his face again.

‘What are you doing, Bill? Are you crazy?’ I was so mad. I rushed at him and tried to punch him in the face. But I only managed to make claw-like movements, from which Bill easily evaded. I tried various times, until, frustrated, he took my hand and threw me to the ground.

The floor was fully carpeted, but that was not enough to reduce the impact when I hit the dirt. I landed on my buttocks before my back and head crashed against the carpet. The pain raced to my head, and it felt like it would burst apart.

‘Bill, what are you doing? Have you lost your mind?’ I could not let him see any weakness in me, even though I so badly wanted to cry. Bill came over to me and extended his hand. ‘Sorry, Lacy. Never meant to hurt you. Here, let me help you up.’

I took his extended hand and waited for him to help me up.  When he had all of my weight on his hand, I suddenly leaped upward, planting my left knee solidly between his legs. Bill uttered a groan and covered his private parts with both hands. He doubled forward and then raised his head to face me.

‘You bitch!’ An unexpected slap rocked my left cheek, sending hundreds of bells ringing in my ears. I fell to the floor again. Hot tears rolled down my cheeks, and I rested my face between my knees to hide them. For a brief moment, I let them flow as I tried to figure out how to get away.

Bill was pacing the room, trying to appease the pain without hitting me again. Where

was all this heading? How would it end? What would become of me and Bill?

Miss Mazzel. How did she know? Did she become a witch? Why didn’t I take her advice?

I don’t believe in witches or witchcraft; these are nothing more than ancient

myths. Yet here I am with a clairvoyant woman.

‘Lacy, you’d better control yourself, or I may have to bind your arms and legs.’ It

dawned on me then that I was being held hostage.  Why would he do that? What did he want?’

‘How do you plan to do that? I wish you luck in tying my hands. Don’t you have a gun I could use? Put you out of your madness!’ He just stared at me. ‘Say, Bill, won’t you help me up again? I promise not to use my knee this time.’

I giggled, and Bill swore under his breath. ‘You will remember this night, I swear!’

What did he mean by that? Was he planning to keep me here until nightfall? If I don’t act now, it could mean exactly that.  What could I do?

An idea occurred to me. I have seen it in many movies. Could it work in real life?

‘Bill, can you get me some water, please?’

‘So that you can scream to a passerby? Won’t help, the building is soundproof.’ He was

smiling. ‘Be right back with that water.’

I waited for Bill to leave, cross the counter, and head to the back office. Quickly, I pulled my cellular from my pocket. Most people didn’t know that I had one.  I never use it.  No contacts on WhatsApp. No Facebook, no video conferencing.  My world was mostly comic and book review websites.

So Bill never bothered to check if I had one. No, it never occurred to him. I dialed mom, and she took her time answering. Maybe thinking that I wanted to spend more time at the bookstore, or more money from her card to buy more comics.

Finally, she answered. ‘Hmm, umm, Lacy..’

‘Mom, please do not hang up. Just stay online!’

‘Lacy, what do you want? I don’t have all afternoon, you know.” She was always so impatient with me.

‘Mom, don’t hang this blasted phone up, it is important.’ I have never been rude to any adult, let alone my parents. But I needed Mom to understand the seriousness of this call

‘Lacy, what are you smoking? We will talk about it when you get home, you ill-mannered little wretch!’ She hung up.

My mother was a boy lover. She gave all her love and attention to Marley and Bebe Joe, named after my dad.  Bebe Joe was born on a rainy day, during the tropical storm, Misty. I remember wishing and praying for a baby sister. Another broken heart, another unanswered prayer.

She never sits me on her lap, and she surely does not notice how my breasts are transforming into perfect triangles. She throws a birthday party for my brothers, buys them new outfits, toys, and bikes. I never even had a doll. Mom says that dolls are used to groom girls into housekeepers.  So, she gets me all the books that I could read.

She was always head over heels for Tommy, and I sometimes believe that Dad could not have left sooner.

The whole world was jealous of my mother’s eyes.  She was as slender as I was, black with curly hair. Only Bebe Joe came out with curly hair. But I was jealous of her attention.  I always wanted to sit on her lap and hear her read a story.  Never happened.

And now, just when I needed her most, Mom hung up on my life. It almost worked, just like in the movies. Nobody has my mom. The tears came again. This time, it had nothing to do with Bill or pain. There were only two numbers in my phone book – mom and dad. Dad would not be landing until later.

I was all alone.