Other Side Tales - The Fourth Turn

Susan turned flipping her black hair, the purple streak in it hanging in her face. She blew at it but the stubborn lock of hair stayed put.

“Welcome to John’s Coffee House, what can I get you?” she asked the man standing in front of the counter.
The man spent a few minutes staring at the menu before he ordered a special house coffee with hazelnut, cream and made it extra large.

Susan set about putting his order into the cash register and took his money, the machine printed out the receipts needed and she passed one to the barrister.

Outside students and lecturers streamed passed; some came into the coffee house, others simply walked by.

Susan watched them for a moment wondering if she would ever be that carefree again. The attack on her by the creature three years ago had more than just scarred her leg. It had left her with the knowledge that something was after her, she just never knew what.

Her only clue being a story by Lewis Carroll regarding the bandersnatch.

She had changed her degree from Law to one in the Humanities faculty, learning anything she could about ancient stories, old books and creatures found in bedtime stories.

So far her research had not helped much, she was not sure what she was looking for though every now and then she found some item that seemed promising.

But since the bandersnatch, that is what she had taken to calling the strange dog-like beast, nothing else had tried to attack her.

Her best friend, Janice, entered the coffee shop and walked behind the counter putting on an apron she bumped Susan with her hip lightly.

“How’s it going, girl?” she asked.

“Boring as usual,” replied Susan still watching the students outside the shop.

“What you looking at? Any cute guys out there?”

Since the attack Susan had barely gone out let alone tried to go on one of the many dates Janice had tried to set up.

“Susan?… Helloooo, earth to girl-purple…”

Girl purple was a nickname Janice had given Susan when she first dyed her hair black and purple, the university counsellor had said that it was a phase and Susan would grow out of it, so far Janice had not seen that happen.

“Huh? Oh… Yeah I guess,” mumbled Susan in reply.

“You know they said it was some rabid animal that got into the library, remember?” said Janice worriedly knowing that Susan often thought about the attack.

“Right, yes animal attack… Ugh sorry Janice, I’m not really here today.”

“I can see that, silly… Hey why don’t you come out with us tonight?”

Susan turned to look at Janice, one eyebrow raised, “I swear I’m not to trying to hook you up … after you nearly broke the last guy’s arm with your kung fu I won’t try that in a hurry.”
“It was Ju jitsu not kung fu… also I have school work to finish…” replied Susan in the same half-hearted voice.

“Nu-uh, you’re not getting off that that easy space-head. And I won’t take no for an answer.”

Janice pouted her lower lip out at Susan and opened her eyes to stare at Susan.
“Not the puppy dog eyes. You fight dirty,” laughed Susan, “Ok, ok, I’ll come out tonight.

“Yay!” exclaimed Janie and hugged Susan as a student walked in.

“Hey girl-on-girl action, yeah.”

“Mike!” said Janice and ran to hug her boyfriend, Susan simply nodded to him.

“Babes,” replied Mike picking Janice up, “You joining us tonight girl-purple?”

This last was directed at Susan who had started wiping down the counter, “Yeah sure, Janice asked nicely.”

“She made the face didn’t she?”

“Yup.”

Mike laughed and put his girlfriend down, he ordered himself a plain cup of coffee giving Janice a kiss who had pulled him into a deeper, more lingering kiss.

“Move it lover-boy, we have customers,” said Susan after a minute, not caring much for the public display of affection.

Mike broke the clinch first and kissed Janice on the nose before winking at Susan and leaving the shop.

The rest of the day passed by slowly and the two friends left just as the sun set. It had been a good day in tips none the less and Janice was excited about the evening.

“Ok so I’ll pick you up in two hours time?” asked Janice as she got into her car.

“Yeah, seven is fine.”
“You’ll enjoy it Suzy, don’t worry.”

Susan waved her friend off and walked to her apartment a block away from the university. Since turning twenty she had gained control of her inheritance.

Though her uncle had been sad to see her go, Susan knew that he was secretly relieved. He knew nothing of taking care of a teenage girl and still battled his own demons at the bottom of a bottle. So Susan had moved out soon after the attack, she knew that she needed her own space.

During the short walk she felt like she was being followed but no matter how much she tried she could not see anyone on her tail. Susan made her apartment door without incident letting herself in with a nod to her neighbour across the hallway. The girl waved at her and sorted through her post.

Inside Susan let her back drop onto the floor and collapsed into a couch face first, “You understand me couch… Let me just sleep.”

After ten minutes she levered herself out of the couch knowing that if she stayed she would fall asleep and Janice would not be pleased . Her friend would not let her hear the end of it, so in the end Susan shuffled to the kitchen and made herself a sandwich with a cup of tea.

Since working at John’s Coffee House she had gone off coffee even the instant kind. So she stuck to her tea and rather enjoyed it.

Half an hour later she walked into her room and removed her clothes throwing them onto the floor, she would clean it up in the morning.

Looking down at her left thigh she ran her fingers across the three scars there.

Three years and she still felt anger at the attack, no one had believed her when she had said that the beast was not normal and that it had been a person before changing.

The doctors said that misplaced memories were common in such a trauma, and that the student she had seen had probably been in the library when the animal attack happened. She would heal in time, but Susan knew what had attacked her.

So far all she knew was that the Pied Piper, jabberwocky and bandersnatch were real in one form or another.

“All I need now is for vampires to sparkle,” Susan chuckled to herself and walked to the bathroom to shower.

An hour and a half later she heard hooting and looked out her window where Janice waved at her, she waved back and picked up her bag.

She also strapped a knife to her waist which she hid under her shirt and another long bladed knife to the inside of her boot.

She caught her reflection in a mirror and looked into her own eyes, "What? I'm not crazy."

Ready she exited her apartment and made her way downstairs.

Twenty minutes later she was at a local bar as Janice ordered them a round of drinks, and shots. Eyeing her friend she said nothing as a few minutes later the waitress brought them a tray of tequila shots.

“Wooow!” shouted Janice as the first round of shots was finished, “Ugh, that tastes terrible.”

Susan shuddered as the warm alcohol wormed its way down her system, looking at Janice and mike she asked “Then why order it?”

“’Cause,” was the reply.

Susan shook her head and took a sip of her drink, luckily the next day was Saturday and they were both off from work, it looked like it would be a long night.

The night wore on as they drank more and told stories, even Susan felt herself relaxing as the fifth round of tequila shots was finished.

“This… This tastes like ass,” she said as the empty shot glasses were tapped on the table.

“A Mexican’s ass!” called Mike next to Janice as he ordered another round of drinks.

“So where’s that stick up your butt tonight?” asked Janice nudging Susan.

“Dunno, guess it’s in for repairs shop,” said Susan straight faced before she descended into peals of laughter Janice leaning on top of her laughing away.

“You know, you need to come out more, girl-purple. Live a little,” said Janice still leaning on her friend.

“Yeah, guess it’s just been a crappy few years,”

“Yeah but you’re no victim,”

“Nu-uh, we ain't starting the 2AM philosophy until…” Susan squinted at her watch and squealed in laughter as Janice grabbed her arm to look at the watch.

“In three hours, fine, 2AM philosophy here we come!”

The three friends finished the last round of shots and Susan excused herself from the table as Mike called out “Where you going Suzy?”

“To find some girl on girl action, Mike!” she called after him, he whooped as a few other people around the bar heard her and cheered after her as well.

Susan stumbled and dodged a few dancers as she made her way into the women’s bathroom.

Sitting down she closed the stall door and breathed for a few minutes as she got her bearings back.

“Ok Suzy, don’t puke… Don’t puke,” she murmured to herself putting her head in her hands.

 The nauseous feeling in her stomach soon faded and Susan slowly stood up feeling the room spin a little.

“Whoa, a little too much alcohol girl-purple,” she said and staggered out of the bathroom.

As she exited the bathroom she bumped into a man who had been standing near the entrance, he grabbed her arms as she nearly fell.

“Sorry, she half-shouted over the loud music looking up and instantly recoiled.

The man in front of her had no eyes to speak of, just black pits where they should have been.

“No, no, no, no…  Not again… Not here,” she said trying to stumble backwards but the man held onto her.

She kicked him hard in the shin causing him to stumble, this allowed her to pull her arms from the man’s grasp.

Susan quickly tried to lose herself in the crowd of dancers as she made her way back to Janice and Mark, the adrenalin making her very sober.

She stopped at the table and leaned into Janice saying “Can we leave? I don’t feel too good.”

Janice looked at her smiling, the smile fading as she looked into Susan’s ashen face “Honey? Are you ok?”

“Yeah, just feel kind of sick.”

“Ok, let me just get my things, alright?” she replied worrying about her friend.

Susan bounced up and down on her heels anxious to leave, she kept on looking around as Janice explained the situation to her boyfriend.

As her friend got up from the table Susan looked around one last time making sure the strange man was not around, she began hoping that maybe she had lost him and there would be no incident this time.

Checking her watch Susan saw that it was after 12:00AM, she was officially twenty three years old. Fear gripped her and she nearly snapped at Janice to move but managed to keep her mouth closed. Alarming her friend would not help the situation.

The two friends left the bar and made their way to Janice’s parked car.

Susan looked back one last time as Janice said “What’s this really about? You have been on edge since you came back.”

Susan looked at her friend and sighed “Some creep tried to come onto me and I just feel uncomfortable and want to go home.”

Janice looked at her for a moment and simply unlocked the car not saying a word.

“Sorry if I ruined your night,” mumbled Susan as Janice got into the car, the young woman opened the car door opposite and stopped.

“Get in the car already,” said Janice but stopped as Susan closed the door and walked away from the car.

The man was standing a few feet away simply watching the two women, Susan slowly approached stopping a meter away. Janice looked at Susan and then at the man. To her eyes the man did not look right, it was as if he had no fear. Susan on the other hand looked terrified yet in control at the same time.

“Suzy? What’s going on?”

“Janice… Go back inside.”

“What do you mean go back inside? Is this the creepo you told me about?”

“Janice,” Susan was almost shouting now, “Just go back inside.”

The man looked at Janice then disregarded her, his gaze fixing on Susan.

“Well? What do you want this time?” called Susan to the man, “I’m getting tired of all this bullshit on my birthday.”

Janice struggled with her seatbelt as she heard Susan talk to the man, she was confused by her friend’s comment and was now feeling scared. She had to get inside and find Mark.

Finally getting her seatbelt off Janice half stumbled out of the car and looked at her best friend. Susan looked small close to the man. It was not that he was big, in fact he was rather average. He just radiated a palpable sense of fear and a wrongness that Janice could not put her finger on.

“Suzy?” she called again in a quiet voice but Susan did not seem to hear her.

“I’m going to get help!” Janice called in a louder voice and ran as fast as she could to the bar to fetch Mark, Susan barely acknowledged her friend glad that Janice was now gone.

“Alright you bastard, let’s get this over with,” growled Susan as she fell into a fighting stance.

The strange man took a step forward and was abruptly gone, Susan gulped as she felt a hand grab her jacket.

The young woman twisted out of the grip slipping from her jacket and took three steps backwards but the man was next to her again, this time swinging a haymaker for her head.

Susan ducked and drove the palm of her hand into the man’s chin staggering him. She waded in and grabbed his one flailing arm and with a heave threw the man over her shoulder using her own leg for leverage.

The man slammed into the concrete and simply stood up throwing two wild punches at Susan. The woman ducked under the blows and lashed out with a foot hearing the man’s knee crunch but he kept on coming, this time his punch caught Susan on the side of the chin. The young woman went down seeing stars.

The strange man walked in not uttering a word and raised his boot to hammer it into Susan but the young woman drew the long knife from her boot and stabbed upwards with a savage thrust. The blade entered easily, parting flesh until it hooked on the man’s sternum. Susan gave it a twist as she pulled it free.

The man looked at Susan with an expression of surprise on his face and toppled over onto the ground dead.

Susan stood wincing as she felt the bruise forming on her jaw. Looking over to the bar she saw Janice standing just outside the entrance, her hands over her mouth. Susan looked at the blood on her hands and at the knife on the floor. Dropping it in horror Susan looked again at her friend, climbed into Janice’s car and drove off.

A few minutes later Susan was in her apartment throwing clothes into a backpack along with a few personal items. As she turned to exit she spied her Tibetan prayer beads on the entrance table. She picked them up and stared at them for a moment before she stuffed them into her pocket.

She had murdered a man but it was also not a man. The police would not understand, Janice would not understand, so Susan did what she thought was best.

She ran.

Out into the world she ran and disappeared into the night leaving behind the only life she had ever known.