The Rolling Calf

Grandpa said that the people who died during an encounter with a rolling calf, died because of their fear. The mystic animal would increase its size based on the amount of fear it smelled on them. He did not consider the animal dangerous, and although he never met one, he was always hoping to do so.

Brandon was my best friend since grade school, and we have been trying to trap a rolling calf ever since. We slept in the woods, climbed the mountains, visited the coral reef, and even vacationed on a small island. Yet, the animal was never meant to be found by us.

Last week, everything changed. She came into our lives during a calypso festival. We were dancing in the Ring Road alley that had been strummed to life with some of the greatest musicians. I was dressed in a full white tunic. black pants with green stripes, and a yellow tie. Brandon wore a similar outfit, except that he wore green pants. We were part of the local folklore dancers.

First Encounter of a Different Kind – The Rolling Calf

She ran up to us and hid behind me. She stooped low against our feet. She held onto my feet, and I felt the hot hair blowing sharply against it. Two men followed her. We could tell that they were armed since they kept one hand pressed against their waistband.

These were not dancers. They wore solid craft shoes with laces, used mostly when touring the mines. They pushed through the crowds and vanished as fast as they appeared.  I knelt down and helped my refugee to her feet. The first thing we noticed was how pretty she was. She was a live Barbie escaping from two furious Kens.

We took her to the dressing room, which was still buzzing with artists and dancers. Brandon was the detective.

“Well, princess, what is your story? Why are you hiding from those men?’
She kept looking at the door as if the men would come crashing through any minute now.
‘I am a thief, and I took their money. They want me dead.’ She had said that too calmly. Neither of us believed.
“We love your nails. They are well-kept. What is your story, young lady?’ Brandon was as frank as they get.
‘How can I trust two weird men like you?’
‘You just held on to my leg. We are your saviors, if you don’t notice.” She had a necklace around her neck. My Grandpa belonged to that Club, The Lions Rare. She was a hunter of mystical beasts.
‘Where did you get that necklace, Barbie..’
‘Don’t you ever call me that! You spoiled brat!’
‘Will you tell me your name if I kissed you?’ she looked at me carefully.
“Fonda. Dialee Fonda, this necklace belongs to my dad.’’
‘What do you hunt, Miss Fonda?’
‘What I hunt, you guys don’t think they exist.’
“Try me. What did you do?’