x Chapter 10

Around 7:00 pm Stacy heard a sound of guitars playing nearby. He called to Seeker, but the lab was sound asleep on the couch. So much for sleeping on the floor.

He wandered outside and followed the noise to the section where the RV’ers and pop up campers were parked. A huge bonfire was lit in the center of a large circle set aside from the parked vehicles. Two people were singing and playing instruments and three others were watching.

Audrey was one of them. She was sitting next to Tom, who had brought Stacy his groceries an hour earlier. Tom motioned to Stacy to sit in the folding chair next to him, so he walked over, nodding at the mixed group of campers and sat down. There was a man in his sixties, who wore a cap that read “Carson’s Garage”, who must have been the other cabin dweller Audrey told him about. A couple about Stacy’s age, both with jet black hair, male and female, were playing guitars and singing “Leaving on a Jet Plane”. He watched them for a few minutes before realizing they were identical twin siblings.

When they finished playing, Audrey, Tom and Carson clapped politely. “Wonderful stuff,” Mr. Carson said, stretching his legs. “Takes me back.”

The male twin winked at Stacy. “Yeah but back where is the question. Any requests for, uh , more current tunes?”

Stacy shrugged. He saw Tom and Audrey exchange a look and Mr. Carson stared point blank at him before looking up at the sky.

“I’m Mickey,” the female twin said. “And this is my brother Ricky.”

Ricky held his hand out to shake Stacy’s.

Stacy thought a moment, then put out his good hand, the one that wasn’t paralyzed. He saw Carson watching him again and tucked his paralyzed hand under his left thigh as if to hide it. “I’m Stacy Mack,” he said. “I answer to either name.”

“That’s convenient,” said Mickey.

“We answer to either name too,” Ricky added, strumming a few chords. They laughed and their voices blended together as if already in song.

Stacy found himself wondering at the way the twins looked at each other, as if there was a yearning. Perhaps it was merely a twin thing, a closeness that came from sharing a womb.

Carson was watching him watch them. His shock of gray hair fell over a pair of thick coal colored glass frames with thick lenses. Stacy couldn’t quite read his eyes.

Tom and Audrey were discussing whether or not it was going to rain and if they should put up the tarp for the cabin that was leaking, the smallest one which was getting a roof repaired.

Ricky broke into If I Had a Hammer and his twin followed with a few lines.

Carson grinned, then stood up. “Well, I’m going to head back home. Want to join me?” he asked Stacy. “You can show me this black lab of yours Audrey told me about.”

“Sure,” Stacy said, standing up. He stumbled slightly over a tree root as he followed Carson and waved goodbye to Tom and Audrey, who were getting ready to go put up the tarp. “Right behind you!” yelled Audrey to Carson, who nodded.

The trek back to the cabin was short. Carson asked Stacy his name again – as if he didn’t already know, then said “So what brings you to Serenity Camp?”

“Pets are allowed.”

“Have any family?”

Stacy nodded, but said nothing else.

“Guess it’s different coming back after a war. Not the same.”

He nodded again.

Carson stared ahead. “Vietnam was tough too. Weird vibes back home. My parents didn’t understand why I was disappointed about the reception I got, why I almost wanted to get back on the plane and go back to the war, where the rules were clearer.”

“I wouldn’t say the rules were clear in Iraq,” Stacy said quietly.

“Yeah. I hear that. But it can feel that way coming home.”

They reached The Lark and Seeker bounded onto the porch, whining when he saw Stacy and jumping up to lick his face.

Carson patted the dog’s head, then said “What a greeting. This dog loves you.”

“Yeah, well, he doesn’t know me long,” Stacy said.

Carson sat on the porch steps and lit up a cigarette. “Never gave this up after I got back. You smoke?”

Stacy shook his head no.

“Smart guy.” Carson patted the steps and Stacy joined him. “You see that tree over there?” he pointed to the horizon, where a huge tree towered over the others. “There’s a raven who flies around there. Big black sucker. Look for it when it’s light out.”

“Okay,” Stacy said, squinting, blinking a bit as the smoke hit his eyes.

“Did you know ravens are almost as smart as wolves? Probably have the most intelligence of any bird. Also called rooks, like the chess piece. Which I think is the smartest chess piece too. You play?”

Stacy shook his head. “No, sir.”

“You don’t have to call me sir. You don’t have to call anyone sir, ever again,” Carson said quietly. “Let them call you sir.”

“I’m not into being called sir,” Stacy said.

“Yeah, I hear that.”

“So this raven – does he have a mate?”

“Nah. A loner. He just flies way up high there, hangs out until you spot him, swoops down, does what he wants then repeats it, hiding as much as he can. Kind of our mascot here at Camp Serenity.”

“What’s that?” Tom asked as he and Audrey appeared suddenly out of the dark.

“The raven,” Carson said. “Our mascot.”

“That sucker is huge,” said Tom to Stacy.

“So why is it a mascot for Camp Serenity?” Stacy asked.

Tom laughed. “Because he’s noisy. Wakes you up. And people tell me all the time that it’s a hell of a bird to have flying over a place called Camp Serenity.” He sucked his breath in, then sang “Caw! Caw caw caw!”

Audrey sighed loudly. “Please. He’ll be at it soon enough.”

“Notice they took your deposit before you knew this,” Carson said.

“It’s not that bad,” Audrey said defensively. “Stacy can have his money back if he wants to leave.”

“I’m fine with a singing bird,” Stacy said.

“You say that now,” Carson said, standing up to leave. He pointed at the tree. “Wait until morning.”

It was eerily silent. Not a sound at all. The Marines marched, single file, through the empty streets of the town, listening. Waiting to hear a sound, a noise. But there was nothing.

Stacy’s boot accidentally hit a stone across the road. It bounced against a building. Three men turned to see what caused the noise and his face colored. “Sorry.”

One laughed, another cursed. The third Marine just resumed listening.

“I don’t hear nothing,” one said loudly so the officer could hear.

“Shut up and listen,” was the response.

“Nothing,” the Marine near Stacy said. “There’s nothing, no one left here. Just death. And that doesn’t make any sound.”

“No crows,” Stacy said, whispering. “Wouldn’t there be crows if there were dead bodies?”

“Ain’t no ravens in Iraq,” another Marine said, laughing. “Where do you think you are?”

“Just unmanned ravens,” said the officer, grinning. “Shut up and listen now.”

Copyright 2008 Ruth Harrigan