Nocturne

Long ago now.....

My son and I were returning from a visit with neighbors down the street.

The sun had long gone, but we had nothing to fear. We were not afraid of the dark.

We had several blocks to go. My son and I have always enjoyed long walks and runs.

The neighborhood had not gotten as deteriorated as it is now, though we were still in condition yellow.

As we marched up the street, two girls approached from the opposite direction.

They were striking to me for several reasons.

Besides the fact they were in a kind of lockstep, aka almost a slow dance step, they seemed to be in a slow motion compared to my son and me, until they got to us.

They were remarkably beautiful, though the first seemed a bit taller than me and the second just shorter.

Long, dark hair framed their faces in what could be called porcelain skin.

Their eyes were seeminly both soft and demanding.

I looked, regarding them and their questions . After all, I needed to engage them, but not at the expense of my nor my son's safety.

Now, the ladies in our neck of the woods were not so bad. But then, you had the crack whores, and other bottom rung people of the inner city nearby.

The girls were almost symmetrically perfect, flawless, and, um, proportionate.

They were dressed alike, or at least very similarly. Short, black dresses, with just a hint of cleavage. Sleeveless, but a bit of material over the shoulder.

I'm no fashion plate, but it was both tasteful AND hot. Just enough to attract, but not enough to say 'slut'. They would attract attention but not more than the street demanded.

They both had almost look alike hair. It was dark brown and, for the life of me, I can only say 'bouncy'.

High heels and dark hose offset the look.

They were severely out of place for the near eastside working class neighborhood they were in.

I was naturally cautious, as always no matter where nor when, no matter who, as we approached one another.

We stopped a few feet from one another, almost congruously.

The one girl said, 'Could you give us directions? My friend and I are lost.'

Obviously, I thought dressed like you are and looking like you do.

'Sure', I said, never taking my eyes off them (A pretty face could hide an evil mind!).

'We were looking for.....'

The direction and place are lost to me now. It didn't matter. What was happening did. Vivid details still remain, but only of what I thought was important.

As I listened to her, I watched the other girl. She looked briefly at me. Then she looked at my son.

She seemed to have a great interest as she observed him.

He stood there, resolute, I thought later, all 3 plus feet of him, for he was round about 3 years old.

The second girl regarded him, I noticed, strangely.

It was not just the 'Aw how cute' most folks would gave him. It was more of a predator stalking a prey. She moved in what seemed a semicircle, pacing, watching, seeing only him, as her 'sister' talked.

Strange, I noticed, that she only came so close and no further. She seemed more than intrigued by my fair haired boy.

I noted this as the other one asked 'directions'.

Maybe they were actually going where she was seeking. Maybe not.

My interest was what they were up to as we stood there.

The whole time this girl was talking, I saw she was 'reading' me. She was sizing me up.

My instinct spoke strongly. All was facade.

There was no doubt in my mind that they were examining us, that some kind of weird 'takedown' was in the offing.

As I watched, and as 'sister 1' talked, 'sister 2' continued to pace my son.

The odd thing flashed before me that '2' couldn't get past a certain point.

She paced and seemed to be restricted by some barrier. There was an invisible tension that she could not surmount. She simply could not get past that.

As '1' concluded her questions and I answered her, there was a quick shake of the head from her to her sister.

The dark, lonely street, was suddenly lighter, not in actual light, but in feeling.

We nodded and each went on our separate ways.

The reflection was that as beguiling as they were, they could not trap us.

Were they human? Were they something else?

Were their designs passing or were they after something we would not surrender?

PS: This is the first of a few stories I intended for October. Circumstances took me beyond that, but I am going to present them here and now.