Small Tales a n d T r u e A short story in four parts PETER KENNEDY, 2005 2011
1 The Naked Guy 5.36 am and dark he leaves his friend on the path at the feet of a man with a baseball bat who crouches to pick up a torch which seconds before hurtles past flashing and with terrific force knocks his friend to the ground he shifts from a lope to a run running reckoning reckons it s the biggest torch he has ever seen and planning figures the lane ahead his best chance and earlier 5.28 am it's dogs that wake the guy whose house they re in 1
the same guy who in a minute or two will come after them with a torch and baseball bat and who now surprises them both the way he comes at them silently in the darkness of his living room and naked catches them red-handed helping themselves he asks them to wait while he puts something on they wait maybe an opportunity to grab one last thing? in an instant he s back 2
still naked only now he s got a state of the art army camouflaged crossbow and he s pointing it right at him and the arrow from where he s standing looks like a bullet he figures protection is essential grabs the nearest object a clothes rack waves it in front of the crossbow an abject defence his friend who's pulled a knife decides to run not a bad idea it s dark enough here to grab his bag with the stuff if it wasn t for that crossbow he manoeuvres 3
apologises says his name is Paul apologies too for his friend and that knife there is nothing left to say no explanation no story not here not now nothing it s time to go running his friend up ahead he keeps a few paces behind they choose a path the same path as that traversed by a projectile which with its target drops to the ground reverts to being a torch shines on blades of grass his friend s shoe thrown off at the moment of impact 4
he sees it from a distance sharing the spotlight with a baseball bat 5
2 The Voice 5.41 am at last he can walk a relief from all that running then 50 metres away a woman appears with a dog closes the gate turns and walks away he follows opens the gate follows the path down the side of the house eyes peeled (it s still too dark to see the hole in the back fence) a door unlocked his soft push meets no resistance entering 6
silence no dogs taking a deep steadying breath his previous exertions unspool 5.37 am the running faster slower faster again just a minute ago he s running like like a man on the run to the east a pale light sign of a new day a siren quickening his pace he runs towards the end of the lane and that fence dilapidated up ahead with loose palings the temptation to get through to the house behind is irresistible his sleeve snags slap of tin unnerving barks 7
only luck will ensure the racket is ignored and now this fence and the tearing to make a hole through which he can slip to gain entry to a voice at his back what s he doing whatareyerdoin? people are trying to sleep peoplearetryintosleep whatareyerdoin? trying to get through again he hears himself say try using the footpath tryusinthefootpath says the voice it s time for him to apologise for the disturbance and introduce himself his hi John goes unreciprocated time too for an explanation it s his mother 8
she s been rushed to hospital with serious burns a fire lit by someone who wished her harm her house razed he s only just heard needs to see her urgently he s been staying nearby with a friend this neighbourhood unfamiliar especially at night he s lost his way has his story worked? best forget the hole cancel the plan go the same way he came turns to the left in the distance the police and that naked guy a cop s holding the baseball bat 9
to his right trees shadow it s dark no one around a clear run putting distance between himself and turmoil he takes the first turn to the right and the first right again he s almost circumnavigated the block then the surprise 5.41 am the woman appears with a dog unseen he follows knowing what she ll see in a few seconds there upon turning the corner will be police the naked guy his friend maybe still on the ground 10
maybe she ll see that baseball bat too all of it will float before her on that little island lit up in the darkness with its wreckage 11
3 The Thief 5.41 am so here he is now inside her house the second in fifteen minutes breathes in the silence gets his bearings considers his options moves quietly down the hall big stuff the bathroom notes the impressive array of toiletries and shampoos retraces his steps floats up the stairs the bedrooms two are childrens rooms 12
sleep spills out at a guess a six year old and a child no more than three make small sounds their vulnerability registered he glides downstairs goes back down the hall the shampoos the expansive living area its full length glass walls its long dining table and the black leather handbag from which he pockets $300.00 maybe more and which he then hides in the front garden (along with the credit cards, mobile phone, etc.) to be retrieved later back in the living area he grabs almost anything then the bathroom 13
scans the toiletries runs his eyes over the shampoos hits on the hair remover in less than a nanosecond up flashes the naked guy the naked guy he hasn t thought of him for the last five minutes he can t imagine a more deserving case for treatment the risks he calculates are minimal daytime s best when the naked guy s not at home he ll figure something for the dogs probably break in the same way as before replace the naked guy s shampoos with hair remover do the naked guy s girlfriend s too and his dogs why not? and he sees chickens like those at the supermarket all plucked and ready for the fire oven 14
he ll bide his time he can wait there ll be a right moment for the naked guy it s that or or he ll shoot him revenge for his friend mainly the two thoughts linger both are pleasurable the dog s back most likely the woman too he s got all the stuff and the hair remover runs to the front door spots the dog through the glass it runs to the back fence and vanishes just like that now he sees the woman through the gap in the door 15
she's inside confronts him stuff slips from under his shirt he slides past outside he grabs the handbag embraces her it s OK it s OK he says consoling the personal touch time to introduce himself Peter and to tell his story a story with a fire theme like that one before only different she wants her handbag back he relaxes his embrace hands her the bag nothing more to say he backs away 16
at the gate he almost turns to the right a route that leads back to the police and the naked guy the island and its wreckage he s still got the hair remover he walks in the opposite direction leaving his story behind for others that woman the naked guy the voice and all the all those dogs 17
4 The Woman 6.02 am his face nonchalant a look he s turned on for this woman he has just embraced it s a look that is non-threatening and meant to calm so too his first words (Although his veiled threat has a slow release effect and should serve him well in the next hours, days, maybe weeks) he says his name is Peter he puts his arms around her he s come to help to warn her and the others those asleep in the house his friend he says was about to set fire to their house as an act of revenge 18
he explains why she should be grateful for his having prevented it there must be some mistake she has never reported his friend to the police nor laid charges or been responsible for his friend s day in court or time in jail she has done nothing and knows nothing about his friend everything this friend of his accuses her of and all that has occurred in the last few minutes is bizarre she is crying demands that he return her handbag he steps away she watches him and grips her bag he passes through the gate and turns left with all of her money
reassured by her handbag her thoughts are directed to retracing it starts badly dogs barking the din in the back lane crashes banging splintering voices shouting 5.30 am she s wide awake the morning walk her and the dog it s eventful too police someone injured a fight perhaps and this man who looks like a neighbour not much on 5.56 am she returns preceded by the dog and its half-hearted bark goes through the gate
which is open? notices the front door is ajar catches sight of someone inside too big to be one of the others she hopes they are all still asleep upstairs and safe? he has some objects none of much value her handbag not amongst them he runs hides she confronts him demands he get out he slips past her outside he almost stumbles retreats down the path she follows watching
he turns confronts her Peter his story again the friend revenge the house a fire 6.10 am it s dawned she knows now all of it a story Peter Kennedy