Read Yesterday's Thief: An Eric Beckman Paranormal Sci-Fi Thriller for Free Online Page B

Stan asked.
    “You see,” she said to me. “He doesn’t believe me, even after that woman appeared.”
    “I believe you completely,” Stan said. “Just want to get a feeling for how often it happens.”
    “More’n ten times it’s happened, although I only saw the snake and the dog appear.”
    “You saw a dog?” Stan looked up from his notebook.
    She shuddered and pulled the Jesus statue toward her, making its head jiggle.
    We said nothing and she continued. “It was an abomination. Half dog and … and, oh Jesus, my savior, and … half inside-out dog.” She made the sign of the cross. “It tried to bark … I put it out of its misery.” She shuddered again. “But other times I’ve come to work in the morning and found dead animals behind the plate. A lizard, a rabbit, twice, and a turtle. More animals recently.”
    “No people?” Stan asked.
    “That, I would have reported.”
    After giving us some more dates and times, she led the way through the halls and onto the field.
    “Have you noticed anything else weird here?” Stan asked.
    “Like what?”
    “Strange feeling. Electrical charge. Funny smell,” he said.
    “Nothing.” Lawton bent down, lifted a corner of home plate, and set it back down. “And why are the police interested. Do you think this is a crime?”
    Stan shrugged.
    I stood right behind the plate and gazed around at the stands. What a trip it would be to come up to bat here.
    An incredible pain jolted me out of my daydream—as if a chef’s knife had been plunged deep into the back of my shoulder.
    Stan’s and Lawton’s eyes went wide. The groundskeeper reached over, then changed her mind and drew back. She kneeled and started praying.
    “What is it?” I yelled and pulled a muscle in my neck trying to see. The pain was intense. Whatever it was it was brown and flapping furiously. It bit me.
    That did it. My thoughts flashed white and my primitive brain took over. I ran, flailing at it as I headed toward first base. Faster than any all-star.
    Stan ran after me. “Stop, Eric.”
    As my higher brain functions recovered, I thought, “stop, drop, and roll.” Yes, I know. That’s for when you’re on fire. Close enough. I smashed myself down on my back, crushing the monster that was biting me. I got on my knees and did it again, a Fosbury flop onto the turf.
    Stan arrived. He had his hand on the gun in his shoulder holster.
    “What are you going to do, Stan, shoot me?” I yelled.
    “Hold still. Lie on your stomach.”
    “What the fuck is it?” I couldn’t see it.
    “It’s a bat.”
    “Shit. A bat? Get it off me!” I craned my neck, but I couldn’t see it. It was still moving.
    Stan took out the knife in his Leatherman tool and cut away my shirt. “The wing goes into your shoulder.”
    “Shit!” I slid my right hand to the front of my shoulder and cut my finger on the claw that protruded from my skin. A thin, bony, pointy thing with something membranous attached. “Pull it out,” I screamed, but I knew it wasn’t a good idea.
    “That’s not going to work, Eric.”
    “Well, cut it off.”
    Stan held me down. “It’s evidence for the scientists. We should—”
    “I don’t care if it’s the holy fucking grail. I want it off me. Now.”
    “There’s a pretty big bone here. The ambulance is on its way.”
    “Now, Stan.” I knew I wasn’t being rational. That can happen when you have a wild animal, like, say, a vampire bat, stuck in your body.
    Stan sawed away at it for a while, then broke it off with a rip and a snap.
    “The crack of the bat,” he said, deadpan as usual. He tossed it on the ground, along with part of my shirt, and I jumped up.
    “Jeez, it’s still alive.” The thing was writhing around. I raised up my leg to stomp on it, but Stan held me back.
    “We might learn more if it’s alive.”
    “Hey, who’s the ex-scientist here?” I pushed past him and stomped on the bat's head. Two heads, actually. It had one regular head, and one