Special Bonnie

Special Bonnie

                      Bonnie is sitting outside the gas station in Daphne’s Jeep swaying head side to side slightly with the music one of her favorite songs lulls her into her memories for a moment too long. She’s suddenly startled when she notices the figure of a man just outside her door.

“Who the fuck is this creeper?” she mumbles to herself. “Does this moron think I can’t see him?” Rolling down the window she does her best impression of Jessica Rabbit as she says, “Don’t hate me because I’m beautiful.”

           “Who ya talking to Bonita?” Daphne asks in jest as she is getting back into her driver’s seat, hands full of what she refers to as her survival pack. Bonnie knows without looking at her friend’s sack contains 2 Dr. Pepper and 4 Bueno bars for Daphne, 1 bottle of water and 2 Slim Jims for her. Bonnie smiles at her friend’s thoughtful nature.

          Bonnie’s smirk is a clear indication of her amusement. Daphne gives Bonnie a lighthearted, “Ahh, Ha, Ha! Boo-Bitch-Craft,” a sarcastic comment based on an inside joke, then a wink as she looks over her shoulder to back out. Bonnie hadn’t expected her to turn towards Floberg when they left. They had spent the last 5 days moving everything to their new location, what could she possibly need from there now, after dark?

Instead of her usual loud rock ‘n roll, Daphne cues a lecture discussing supernatural spaces and lay lines, which are also known as key lines, or spirit paths. The partners share a fascination for the paranormal, and an endless curiosity about anything that can fall into the occult category. Attempting to be visibly eager to learn more about these energetic phenomena, Bonnie listens intently. Her inner voice listing the familiars about the current route; 13-mile drive, at average speeds of 45-60 MPH, the ride lasts for 11- 17 minutes depending on Daphne’s mood and the music, and her admiration and respect for Daphne’s exceptional driving skills, especially in tense, high speed situations. Then focused on the recorded male voice, and the warm tingle she felt where Daphne’s right hand rested between her shoulders.

           The lecture wasn’t over when the 2 arrived at their destination so Daphne left the Jeep running and they sat quietly until the speaker finished. “Did you see all the cars parked in front of Sally May’s when we come through, Bon? Wonder what that’s about, eh?” She turns in her seat to peer out the back passenger side window to estimate how many vehicles were present. 

Bonnie looks curiously at her partner.

“I didn’t plan on driving here, but when I realized I was, I decided my higher self, my intuition must be leading me back here for some reason, and I hoped it would become apparent once we got here. Now here we are,” she gestures holding her right hand out flat fingers pointed in the direction of the street corner residence, “Looks like it has become apparent.”

“Now what?”

  Bonnie’s excitedly fidgeting in her seat If we are staying in the driveway to watch what happens, at least turn the Jeep around and back in.” Bonnie can’t see into the neighbors’ yard from her position.

“Backing in is a good idea, in case we need to leave in a hurry,” she replied.

Daphne then begins maneuvering the SUV out and then back in the driveway. Once she has it in park the two of them have a clear line of sight from their position in the Jeep, they can see the vehicles belonging to the homeowners and their guests, as well as the side door, back door, and backyard. Previously when Sally May and her fella had a gathering, Bonnie noticed the hosts and all the guests converged outside around an inground fire pit. When she brought it to Daphne's attention she had initially dismissed the occurrence as a normal activity, assuming they were having a family Bar-B_Que. Bonnie begins recalling the buzz of strange energy she could all but see swirling around the Sally May house that night, she hated their dog, and how she was shocked Daphne hadn’t picked up on the vibe of energy spilling out not 100 yards from her.

“Are you awake? Hello?” Daphne strokes Bonnie’s shoulder softly. “Are you thinking about last time too?”

Bonnie looks over her shoulder agreeing with eye contact only.

“Fuck you want from me? I had to play along and take their happy pills for a few months, so they’d believe I was in compliance and back online to get them out my ass for a bit. I knew it wouldn’t stop them from keeping an eye on me, but it did take ‘em out my windows and cupboards for the most part.”

“You’re in charge, Partner.” Bonnie says with a sincere smile her cheeks could never fake.

“You always believe in me, huh Bon? I believe you’d sit right there if I attempted to drive this Cherokee through the gates a Hell. If I told you I believed we could make the decent into the underworld, escape Hades and roll out the other side, you’d say let’s ride. I got to hand it to ya for real Bonita, you are BEAUTIFUL, and you’re the best damn navigator I’ve ever had ride with me, and I’ve had me some good ones. But I know you are different; you’re a seer Bonnie. You can see them wee folk, ghosts, spooks, spirits, and the like from beyond the veil. I know you can Bonnie, don’t wink at me all coy.” Daphne paused to take several deep gulps of her Dr. Pepper.

“I won’t ever claim to be what I ain’t, I ain’t a seer, but seer or not I know what I hear doesn’t come from me, and I know what I feel, and I can create a visual image based on what I feel if it’s important I do, but I trust what I hear and feel, I know what I know, and I know that what I know from what I hear and feel is real, and accurate. I always advice acquaintances and clientele alike that there is a chance I could be wrong, anything is possible, but I haven’t ever been wrong and don’t expect I ever will be.” Daphne realizes she has been staring at an empty back yard while Bonnie politely listens.

“Let’s go inside Bon, I have to pee. The power is still on here, we’ll be fine, I left a few things here, I had a weird hunch we had yet another night to occupy this address.” Daphne states before opening her door and stepping out.

It’s not voiced, but Bonnie knows to sit still, Daphne insists on demonstrating good manners, she walked to the passenger side and politely opened the door for her partner, Once Bonnie exits the Jeep, she recognizes that Daphne has motioned quietly for her to walk ahead on their approach to the door, once Daphne was 2 strides away from the front door, Bonnie would step behind her and wait while entry was accessed. Once inside, Daphne relieves herself in the downstairs bathroom and returns to the living room area and seats herself on the overstuffed chair left behind and sacrificed to the move due to an inability to remove its feet and a string of cuss words left unexplained to Bonnie,

“You can lay down upstairs and watch out the window from there if you want, but we’re staying here until I can discern what in Hell’s tarnation those Sally May weirdos are up to this time,” she finishes her statement intaking a deep breath. The room is eerily quiet while Daphne’s inner thoughts are momentarily occupied with how the pen came to be in her left hand.

“The possibility for video proof or visual confirmation by camera are limited. The cameras that were previously set up around the perimeter have already been relocated, but I do have an out of service cell phone with a selfie-stick tripod I left here on a hunch. In minutes I’ll have an app downloaded and it will function as a motion and sound activated security camera. I will download the app on my main phone too, and I will of course have the handheld ready to grab. Nothing to do now but sit and wait I reckon, I’ll sit down here by the window, better signal here anyway. Maybe I can pick up on what’s going down if I try to meditate a bit too. Try not to fall asleep up there,” Daphne finishes her briefing, and Bonnie is dismissed with the point of a finger as her partner is already preoccupied looking down at her phone.

An unknown amount of time passed, and Daphne’s eyes suddenly popped open aware she was being watched. Her eyes focus on her partner standing poised at the door, holding eye contact she lifts her hand to hold a single finger in front of her closed lips. She pats her lap in search of her phone. When she has it in hand, she taps her camera app and turns the flash on. Standing slowly, she pulls her firearm from the inside left holster and takes it off safety, replacing it carefully before actually taking a step forward. It’s as if she is moving in slow motion, her mind takes note of the buzzing but can’t distinguish if she can truly hear it, or if she can feel it so strongly, she knows what it sounds like. She allows Bonnie to exit and then counts to 13 before she steps outside. She scans her surroundings with all her senses and can see Bonnie waiting at the end of the driveway looking up the street in the direction of Sally May’s, oddly enough she is standing not in the shadow beside the gate but where the streetlight allows her to be seen clearly. Daphne hurries toward her, becoming more and more aware that she can hear drums. She pauses in the same place Bonnie stood.

           She stands still, caught off guard by what she sees. Bonnie is cautiously making her way closer to the Sally May backyard entrance, now moving in the shadows. The backyard is no longer empty or quiet. There are a dozen figures wearing hooded cloaks and moving in a circular motion around a blazing fire, all holding a light in their hands, and chanting. Daphne doesn’t recognize any of the words, or even the language, but she does recognize the heavy feeling in the pit of her abdomen that tells her this isn’t a friendly gathering of witches trying to save the local forrest. With that realization everything clicks, her mind is flooded with images of the evidence, the clues she has been chasing for several months, the case that brought her to the area, all this time she had been searching for their leader, their headquarters, and here it is, it’s been 2 doors west of her on Glenn street the entire time. She shook her head stifling her urge to laugh at the irony of it all.

           “Follow the signs. Trust the guidance,” Daphne hears the elderly voice of her Granny echo in her mind’s ear.

           “Fuck me, now what?” Daphne curses quietly as she crouches down beside Bonnie and asks. “Can you see this too? Is this really happening on a Tuesday night in a backyard of a no place village? Please tell me I’m delusional and seeing shit.” Bonnie responds by looking back at her briefly making eye contact and then returning her gaze to further observe the ritualistic activities.

           “Damn it, you can see it too, huh?”

           “They know you’re here,” Granny’s voice comes through loud and clear.

           Daphne touches Bonnie on the shoulder to get her attention and without a word they both stand and make their way into the center of the street. Daphne notices a man now standing beside the gate where they were positioned just moments ago. She decides to fake ignorance, looking up at the night sky she points up and begins naming constellations off to Bonnie.

           “This is private property,” the man says loudly.

           “And this is a public street,” Daphne retorts.

           “What do you want, Witch?”

           “To foil your plans, proof of your guilt, and ultimately justice for your victims. If you’d be so kind as to hand that over, I’ll be on my way.”

           “You can’t possibly be that naïve. Who do you think you are? What has given you the audacity to believe that you can stop us? You’re a solitary witch too careless to cloak her energy signal, we’ve known who you are and what you’re up to since the moment you arrived.”

           “Indeed, you have Sir.” Daphne states unable to keep the coy smirk from her face. “But I assure you, I am neither naïve nor careless.” 

           Then unexpectedly she spots it, the amulet. A powerful talisman that allows the wearer to syphon energy directly from the hearts and minds of others, energy that is meant to bring about their manifestations, unexpected blessings, energy to give them the will and the drive to succeed, to push forward and overcome obstacles. In a nutshell the amulet is giving this megalo-maniac the power to destiny swap. It’s an unfair trade; he takes their good fortune, and they are left in a repetitive cycle of loss and struggle. It’s a horrible reality loop to be caught in when your own mind traps you there, it’s even worse when it is unjustly put upon a person like an evil curse there is no escape. Daphne has been in direct contact with several of this group’s victims. Family members seeking answers, individuals confused and perplexed as to what happened to their lives, why everything they had worked so hard for seemed to dissipate without warning and regardless of what they tried, they were unable to recover, and their circumstances getting worse, never better. They had come to Daphne seeking curse removal, cleansing rituals, protection spells, energy healing, and divination readings seeking answers. Frustrated that her efforts only brought her clients temporary relief at best, Daphne had decided she and Bonnie needed to investigate. She began by following the unseen threads of energy, unable to follow them directly to the source due to well-placed blockades, she decided to trace down the source in the physical realm, and here she was, standing not 10 feet in front of this asshole. Daphne’s mind was racing through possible scenarios on how she could take the amulet from around his neck, the sorcerer had 12 of his dedicated followers standing at attention about 20 yards behind him, she had to be fast and accurate when she made her move.

Then as if on cue Granny’s voice spoke, “The beautiful one sees more than she says.”

           Daphne looks past the braggart still prodding on how he is smarter, stronger, faster, and Daphne’s imminent defeat and sees her partner has somehow gained entrance into the man’s yard. Bonnie is low to the ground demonstrating the intimidating stare, eyes locked on her target. The energy she is holding inside her all but visibly vibrates from her.

           Daphne lets out a giggle when the man finishes his villainous taunt reaching into her jacket pocket and says, “If you’re all done pruning your tail feathers and parading about, I’ve got one for ya.”

           “What could you possibly have for me?”

           “THIS!”

           Daphne flung the tennis ball underhanded hoping to place it above his head, a lucky shot, the yellow-green object of Bonnie’s desire never failed to get her attention right where Daphne needed it. As the tennis ball flew through the air in his direction Bonnie and Daphne both lept towards him too. As expected, Bonnie planted her front paws on the man’s shoulders, enabling her to jump further in the direction of the ball, and he was plunged forward. Daphne knew the moment he hit the ground was her opportunity to snatch the amulet and run. As he face planted Daphne could hear the commotion erupt from the onlookers, but maintained her focus on the amulet, snatching it in one motion as she rolled away from him with it in her grip she felt the chain break. Scrambling to her feet she yelled out to her partner.

           “BONNIE, ROLL!”

           Daphne heard short bursts of growling followed by screams of pain and cursed words but kept running in the direction of her Jeep. Patting herself down for the keys, when she felt the familiar shape in her pockets, a short-lived sense of relief came over her before she realized Bonnie wasn’t beside her.

           “BONNIE1 ROLL!” She screamed as loud as she could desperation causing a rasp to her voice as she fought back panic. As she reached the door of the Jeep she heard a voice scream.

           “She got away!”

           Breathing hard and fast Daphne stood next to the open door waiting. To her heart’s relief Bonnie came pounding into the driveway at top speed and knew this was no time for good manners. She lept into the passenger seat and Daphne hopped into the driver’s seat, closing the door behind her. Daphne had just stomped the gas pedal when the first of the hooded cohorts made it to the edge of her driveway. Daphne leaned low across the console towards Bonnie pulling her head to the seat as she did and sped out of Floberg, bullets now being fired at the vehicle.

           “That was a close one, eh Bonnie?” Daphne says as she lifts herself back into a proper driving position, realizing the amulet is still in her hands. “Once we destroy this, our work here is done girl.”

           Turning to check for traffic she realizes Bonnie is chewing a bloody tennis ball like its bubblegum. Daphne can't help but release a short burst of laughter before patting her head and stating, "You are special, Bonnie."