…from the case files of Detective Pagasmo…

(continues from Freeze Frame)

Gaia opened up a hole for me, and the ground under my feet pushed up, raising me until I could step up onto a dark street corner. When this was all over, I’d plant a tree for her or maybe ten. Fluffing up my coat’s collar, I ducked out of the alley into the street. A car’s headlights lit up a sheet of paper and the wind toyed with it. The damned thing ended up plastered against my legs as nature whipped up a good gale.

For Gaia’s sake, I peeled the paper away from my shins and moved towards a mesh receptacle waiting to receive this bit of trash. Its edges were singed as if it had survived a fire or the explosion which had destroyed my home. But my hand halted as I spied another emblem, the third I’d seen in as many hours:

I had to figure out what this ‘IBMC’ business meant and those numbers. Turning it over, I found a disjointed bit of nonsense:

‘The light bulb burns brightest at dawn, dimmest at dusk.’

‘Beware the bulbous-nosed lout; he bears thee ill will.’

‘With a butter knife, the thief was slain.’

‘Purple is as purple does but what do Purples think?’

‘Run far and fast from the deadly wind tailing thee.’

‘3 of 10, 2 of 12 and six cats to skulk about…’

‘In thine eyes, I find peace but in thy sink, I sate my loins.’

‘The butterflies are invading…hide in cocoons…or be snatched!’

‘The eye sees all but the kindest acts.’

‘Big sister is spying on you.’

Shaking my head, I added that weirdness to my duster pocket and to my collection of oddities. Across the street, fire trucks were pulling out, their lights dark now since there was no emergency. A smoking pile of twisted iron and bricks remained. I’d expected my second hand Ikea finds to go up in smoke, but still I’d hoped something had remained. But if it had, I’d never find it among the ruins.

It was time to move on. I’d stayed on this corner too long, and those headlights had come back around again. Had they not had distinctive blue-white headlamps, I might not have noticed. But these thugs had failed surveillance 101, and I’d marked them. Stepping up onto the grass, I crouched down and patted Gaia. As the car swerved and headed straight for me, she opened and lowered me down. My head dipped below street level just as a chassis flashed past.

My girl Gaia’s always ready for a quick save.

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For the Incredible Blogger Marathon Challenge #03, join me in it. It’s 10 challenges, and you can do them whenever.

More Detective Pagasmo stories: The Boxes Are Doors, Descending into Trouble, Epistemology, Novitiate, Lulled by Rhymes, News, Clues and Howitzers, Mixed Media, No Truth in Quotes, Haiku Hunt, Random Risks, Freeze Frame, The Mark of Destiny, Detective Pagasmo in Playing Dead, Detective Pagasmo.