Gnomes of Suburbia (12 page)

Someone wanted her blown to bits, and if it hadn't been for her little creations, she would have been. Three cheers for the gnomes.

Now it was time for serious business. A shower, a change of clothing and a set of comfy walking sneakers and she was ready.

The phone call that had occurred while he was with Abby was one he had been dreading. The instant that he got into his home, the phone rang again. He picked it up and answered with, “Hello Councilman. What can I do for you?"

"You can tell me why there was suddenly a pulse of magic that emanated from your location and continued outward?"

"The Nexus lost control for a few moments, Councilman."

"Have you learned her triggers?"

The spot behind her neck, the skin under her breast, the inches between her belly button and her sex. “I have identified a few of them, Councilman."

"When will you have your report ready? We need to know what we need to keep the Nexus happy."

"She seems to be embracing the environment that we have been creating and it seems to be stimulating her creative and energy producing urges. Oak Point is definitely the right place for her at the right time."

"It is good to hear. But please find a way to confine her emanations. They are setting off chain reactions across Canada and the United States. Garden ornaments are exhibiting a certain mobility that they have not before."

"Sir, before we conclude, there was an attempt on Abby's life today. Someone planted a car bomb in her vehicle."

The cursing on the other end of the line was indistinct, but heartfelt, “What was the result?"

Abby and I got naked and writhed around on every piece of furniture in her living room. “The bomb was removed and the explosion contained. The perpetrator has yet to be located.” It was probably best to stick to the basics.

"Find them. We only have one chance at a Nexus during this generation and I don't want her to die before the power she can bring is shared."

Of course the power would be the major concern. Abby's life meant nothing to them without the potential magic she could produce. “We are attempting to locate the assassin and will, of course, bring them to the Council for sentencing when they are caught."

"Excellent. Now keep the Nexus under control. I don't need my yard flamingo talking to me.” The councillor hung up the phone and Xander was left with a simmering anger.

He wanted to find the person who had tried to attack Abby and take them apart with his own hands. To hell with magic, he wanted to go medieval on their ass.

Abby was rapidly becoming a precious addition to his life.

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Freshly showered, teeth brushed and in a fresh set of underwear under her jeans and the t-shirt that she has been wearing earlier, she was ready for a change of venue. The gnomes were nowhere to be found and therefore her car keys were still AWOL. “I guess I am walking."

There was no one to hear her, but she felt perversely better for speaking into the silence. The air in the house had changed, it now felt friendlier. It had always been cozy, but now she was convinced that this was where she belonged. It felt good to be home at last.

On that note, she steeled herself and left the warm and comfy nest that she had created and headed out to score some chocolate. Abby warily moved around her once-beloved car, not sure how to feel about it now that it had almost become the instrument of her demise.

Her sneakers made a light thumping noise on the pavement. It echoed around the cul-de-sac of Oak Point Way. She passed Laura's stately home, then Randy's tidy yard and Seesee's funky and multi-coloured front door. The house on the end must host the fabled Miklos. The guy Seesee was crushing on.

Based on what she already knew about the inhabitants of the Way, she wasn't sure that she wanted to meet him. Just the way that Seesee talked about him made her shiver.

The walk was refreshing, the cool breeze lifting and frolicking with her still-damp hair and the path to the center of town led her clearly into Sargent. The countryside surrounding the small town was unspoiled. Brooks babbled, trees rustled and the path next to the main road was tidy and well maintained.

It was the perfect environment for Abby to calm herself after the near death experience that morning. She wondered idly how Seesee would take the events of Abby's morning?

Seven minutes of peaceful walk later, she found out.

Apparently,
How many Nexus’ does it take to defuse a car bomb in her front yard?
was not a good way to break the ice.

Upon hearing the flippant question and viewing the seriousness in Abby's eyes, Seesee's hair almost lost control. Her entire coiffure seemed to grow larger for an instant before it calmed and resumed its previous dimension.

When she had calmed herself, and her hair, Seesee felt she needed to ask, “Are you all right? Were you hurt?” Her gaze assessed every inch of Abby that was visible to the eye.

"No, just kind of stunned. Xander was there and he helped to remove it from my car.” She stopped her conversation there and waited for the latte that she had ordered when she came in.

The beverage was delivered by a smiling server and Seesee held her patience no more. “Abby, tell me everything."

"Well, I wasn't much of a student in school, mostly Bs and Cs. It was only when I took clay and sculpture in art class that I found my true calling.” She paused for a sip of the latte. Mmm ... lovely.

"That is not what I was talking about Abby. Tell me about this morning. I felt the magic pulse, what caused it?"

"The long story or the short one?"

"The long one."

"Goody. There isn't a short one. This morning I had my usual tutorial with Xander, then showered, then got ready to come here for a visit. The gnomes wouldn't let me leave. They had barricaded the door and all other entries or exits had been nailed shut. A pyramid of growling gnomes stood between me and my car and when Harby swallowed my car keys, I knew I wasn't going anywhere."

"Bitsy had run out while I was in the shower to fetch Xander and he arrived at the door as I was contemplating gnome bowling. As soon as he arrived, the pyramid dispersed, little buggers. Bitsy came up to me and said
boom
, then ran with the others to watch Xander levitate the bomb."

"It must have had a solar trigger, because as soon as it came out from under the car, it blew.” Abby shuddered in remembrance. “It was only after the shock of the explosion wore off that we saw that the explosion had been frozen in time and space. In a power ball of my own making. That was a shocker."

"Really? Your power held it?” Admiration filled her face. Apparently Abby's feat was a little tricky.

"Is still holding it. Will hold it until the power is diverted somewhere else I suppose.” She shrugged.

"Really? So that was the power wave that happened? The bomb?"

"Uh, no. To be honest, the power wave came later. I had an uncontrolled moment and that was the side effect.” She hoped her blush would be explanation enough. Apparently it was. Naked details were best left between her and Xander. And of course, the gnomes. Little perverts.

Seesee expressed the shock that was still reverberating within Abby, “Who would want to kill you?"

"You have got me. I don't really go around ticking people off and I don't date much so it must be a Nexus related vendetta."

"What does Xander think?"

"He said he was going to look into it."

"I should hope so.” Seesee's lips twitched. She was not hiding her amusement well at all.

"Well, it isn't like a Nexus is born into modern society every day. Perhaps someone feels that magic has had its time.” The philosophical approach seemed the best one to take. The adage of
tough tacos
would not be appropriate to the mood.

"The world would be a sad place without magic in it."

"I don't know about that. I managed just fine without magic for most of my life."

Seesee looked surprised “But, Abby, whether you knew it or not, magic was always with you. It was inside you and waiting."

"Okay, now that is just getting creepy.” The thought of something nesting inside her and waiting for its moment made her shiver.

"Nevertheless, you have always been the Nexus, the gateway through which magic would flow. Speaking of which, what did manage to make you lose control enough to loose that pulse earlier? It was quite the blast of energy."

Damn, now they were back on that track. “It was a residual charge that I dissipated after the bomb. There was just so much energy and I suppose I am still a little sloppy when it comes to controlling the power."

Thankfully, Seesee seemed to accept that answer. “Well, sure. That makes sense. I say, all that time you are spending training with Xander is really paying off if that is the result."

Her mind skittered down a whole other path before she could stop it. Finally she realized what Seesee was referring to. “What? Oh. Yeah. The lessons in self-control are working just fine. I suppose.” She remembered their other topic. “I mean, aside from that accidental burst."

"I have to say that I am impressed. You have hugged me every time you have seen me this week and no power has transferred. You are doing very well, Abby.” The gorgon was all support and warmth.

Abby was blushing at the praise. She could feel the heat in her cheeks. “Yeah, you are right. And my toilet seat has only bitten my ass once. I may be getting good at this magic stuff."

"Self-control is never wasted."

On that note, Abby finished her complicated coffee, hugged Seesee goodbye and returned to the path back to Oak Point Way.

She was lost in thoughts about magic, gnomes and a naked Xander. Traffic passed her by and birds chirped in the trees with squirrels cursing at them. It was all terribly bucolic until she vaguely registered the sound of a car moving off the road and onto the shoulder. Fast.

When it didn't slow, she turned to confront the car while backing off the path in case the vehicle could not stop. Adrenaline pounded through her as the car inexorably approached her, her nerves burned and flared as the grill of the vehicle took up all of her attention. Impact was a bitch.

Abby flew through the air with her hands out in front of her. It had been the final gesture of defence before her magic had kicked in. She skidded to a halt on her back when the momentum of impact fetched her up against a pine tree. Sparks of energy danced in front of her eyes as she blinked to clear her vision. Bolts of pain replaced it.

"Ow. Son-of-a-fucking-bitch.” Shaking like a leaf, she crawled out from under the pine to rise to her feet. The car that had almost killed her was long gone, the tracks that it had left behind chilled her. The driver had sped up to hit her. The gouges on the turf and across the walking path were brutal proof of murderous intention. That was it, Abby lost her latte.

Someone was really trying to kill her. Really. And they were in one fucking hurry.

Oops, there went the rest of the coffee.

As she limped back to Montrose's Munchies, she mulled over the event in every detail. She had been walking, then she heard the car, then turned to look at it, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember the damned license plate number. It had a plate, she was sure of that, but she couldn't read it. It was fuzzy for some reason.

The car itself also kept slipping through her memory. Now that she actually knew magic was real, she suspected that it had something to do with her faulty memory.

She had reached out with her hands to stop the car and a bubble of magic had formed around her. The car had not bounced so much as slid off her. The pressure of the compressed magic had thrown her backward and, based on the looks that passersby were giving her, she looked like she had been writhing in the mud and leaflitter.

Abby pulled open the door to Seesee's emporium and was gratified to see the gorgon's eyes widen when she got a look at her. The phone leapt into her hand and she was calling the neighbours in a second. Abby took a seat and waited.

A coffee appeared near her hand and, in light of her recent disgorgement, it was not at all appealing.

"Drink it. It will steady your nerves.” Seesee's hand was on her shoulder.

When Abby looked up, she was astonished at the concern in her face. It was more than just the concern for the Nexus, it was concern for Abby. “Can I get green tea with four sugars instead? My last coffee is decorating the forest floor.” Her friend nodded and gave the order to the barista manning the counter. Her hands were being held in a warm soothing grip and she realized that her body was ice cold.

"Abby, what happened?"

The sympathy almost moved her to tears. She took a deep and shaking breath. “Walk. Car. Bubble. Bang. Ouch. Here.” Her earlier eloquence escaped her as it kept sinking in. Someone was trying to kill her.

The sweet tea was refreshing and she noted that there was a hint of lemon. A smile spread over her as heat and warmth sank back into her body and soul. A cool tugging at her hand made her aware of the first aid that Seesee was applying to her hand and she traded her tea from left to right as each hand was treated in turn. The blood on her hands hadn't sunk into her consciousness. It was just as well she had gone to Seesee for help. She was obviously in no shape to help herself.

They sat in silence, Abby drinking tea and remembering to breathe and the gorgon tending to her wounds.

Finally, as if years had passed Abby watched Xander walk through the door, the rest of the neighbourhood behind him. The cheerful tinkling of the bells was a counterpoint to the pure hell in his eyes. For some reason, she felt lighter and smiled as his scowling countenance drew closer. He was here. As he reached out to hug her, the embrace was fierce and tender at the same time. No power on earth could separate them at that moment.

As the rest of the Oak Point Way inhabitants drew around them, she realized that all of the regular patrons had left the shop. The two remaining employees were closing up for the day. In mere minutes, they were all alone. A deep rumble in her ear took her a while to decipher.