Free Monster by A. Lee Martinez
Authors: A. Lee Martinez
mailroom. Blessed brownnoser.”
Monster said, “Work sucks.”
“Yes, work sucks.”
She slid away from him. Liz wasn’t much for cuddling in the afterglow.
“How are you going to work now?”
“I’ve got a ride,” he said. “At least, for tomorrow.”
“Who with?”
“Just some woman who wants to go on a ride-along.”
“Really.”
Liz’s tone was flat. Not surprising. She wasn’t the jealous type. She didn’t need to be. Not when she could glimpse every lustful thought running through Monster’s mind. And there was no way to actually have sex with another woman without Liz instantly knowing at a glance. One of the disadvantages of having a succubus girlfriend.
Not that it was an issue. Monster wasn’t interested in Judy. Sure, he’d noticed she had a nice ass, and maybe she had a bigger chest than her loose T-shirt let on, though he couldn’t be sure.
Liz fixed him with a knowing stare.
Monster quickly redirected his mind. “So what’s on TV?”
“I stopped by the video store and rented a movie on my way home. We can watch it together.”
He plastered on a forced smile. “It’s called
Red Fury.
”
And for a moment he had hope of something involving commandos and machine guns.
“It’s about this young boy and this wild horse who struggle against racism and…”
He zoned out after that.
* * *
Judy spotted a convenience store just a few blocks from Monster’s house. It was her only hope.
She could feel the memories seeping to the bottom of her brain, becoming buried beneath more ordinary recollections. In a few minutes, perhaps less, she’d forget. Or at least stop thinking about it until something reminded her of it in a way she couldn’t casually dismiss. She couldn’t let that happen.
Judy ran a yellow light and bounced over a curb as she recklessly screeched to a halt in two parking places. A car that had been going for one of the spaces honked, but she ignored that. She had no time.
She ran inside the store and dashed to the short aisle of writing supplies. Quickly, she tore open a black marker and scrawled on her forearm in thick letters.
MAGIC IS REAL.
She grabbed a notebook and quickly started writing everything she could remember.
TROLLS ATE YOUR APARTMENT. PICK UP MONSTER TOMORROW AT 10. DON’T BE LATE. PAULIE KNOWS ABOUT MAGIC. CHESTER IS A PAPER MAN.
She filled a half page with these notes before she was interrupted.
“Miss, are you going to pay for those?” asked a kid in a blue and red shirt with a name tag labeling him a “sales assistant.”
“Relax, junior. I’m not stealing them.”
The kid didn’t look entirely convinced, but he retreated to the safety behind his counter.
Judy grabbed a beef jerky, some orange juice, and a few other items that caught her eye. She went to the register and bought a carton of cigarettes too.
“Why’d you write on your arm like that?” asked the sales assistant while Judy pulled some cash from her wallet.
“Huh?” she said. “Your arm. Why’d you write on it?”
“What are you—”
Judy read the words on her forearm. And she remembered. She flipped open the notebook and scanned the contents and smiled. The details were fuzzy, but they were there. The trolls, the big thing with all the arms (red or black, she wasn’t quite sure which), Paulie and his faerie skulls. It wasn’t perfect, kind of like remembering something somebody had told her instead of something she’d experienced herself, but it worked.
It wasn’t a permanent solution. Something better would have to be worked out in the long run. But for now, the act of writing the memories down and reading them allowed her to recall, at least to some degree. Why hadn’t she thought of this before?
Maybe she had. Maybe there were notebooks full of reminders back at her apartment before the place was trashed by…
By something.
She glanced at her notebook and read her notes. “Trolls,” she said to herself, though she was looking at the
Monster said, “Work sucks.”
“Yes, work sucks.”
She slid away from him. Liz wasn’t much for cuddling in the afterglow.
“How are you going to work now?”
“I’ve got a ride,” he said. “At least, for tomorrow.”
“Who with?”
“Just some woman who wants to go on a ride-along.”
“Really.”
Liz’s tone was flat. Not surprising. She wasn’t the jealous type. She didn’t need to be. Not when she could glimpse every lustful thought running through Monster’s mind. And there was no way to actually have sex with another woman without Liz instantly knowing at a glance. One of the disadvantages of having a succubus girlfriend.
Not that it was an issue. Monster wasn’t interested in Judy. Sure, he’d noticed she had a nice ass, and maybe she had a bigger chest than her loose T-shirt let on, though he couldn’t be sure.
Liz fixed him with a knowing stare.
Monster quickly redirected his mind. “So what’s on TV?”
“I stopped by the video store and rented a movie on my way home. We can watch it together.”
He plastered on a forced smile. “It’s called
Red Fury.
”
And for a moment he had hope of something involving commandos and machine guns.
“It’s about this young boy and this wild horse who struggle against racism and…”
He zoned out after that.
* * *
Judy spotted a convenience store just a few blocks from Monster’s house. It was her only hope.
She could feel the memories seeping to the bottom of her brain, becoming buried beneath more ordinary recollections. In a few minutes, perhaps less, she’d forget. Or at least stop thinking about it until something reminded her of it in a way she couldn’t casually dismiss. She couldn’t let that happen.
Judy ran a yellow light and bounced over a curb as she recklessly screeched to a halt in two parking places. A car that had been going for one of the spaces honked, but she ignored that. She had no time.
She ran inside the store and dashed to the short aisle of writing supplies. Quickly, she tore open a black marker and scrawled on her forearm in thick letters.
MAGIC IS REAL.
She grabbed a notebook and quickly started writing everything she could remember.
TROLLS ATE YOUR APARTMENT. PICK UP MONSTER TOMORROW AT 10. DON’T BE LATE. PAULIE KNOWS ABOUT MAGIC. CHESTER IS A PAPER MAN.
She filled a half page with these notes before she was interrupted.
“Miss, are you going to pay for those?” asked a kid in a blue and red shirt with a name tag labeling him a “sales assistant.”
“Relax, junior. I’m not stealing them.”
The kid didn’t look entirely convinced, but he retreated to the safety behind his counter.
Judy grabbed a beef jerky, some orange juice, and a few other items that caught her eye. She went to the register and bought a carton of cigarettes too.
“Why’d you write on your arm like that?” asked the sales assistant while Judy pulled some cash from her wallet.
“Huh?” she said. “Your arm. Why’d you write on it?”
“What are you—”
Judy read the words on her forearm. And she remembered. She flipped open the notebook and scanned the contents and smiled. The details were fuzzy, but they were there. The trolls, the big thing with all the arms (red or black, she wasn’t quite sure which), Paulie and his faerie skulls. It wasn’t perfect, kind of like remembering something somebody had told her instead of something she’d experienced herself, but it worked.
It wasn’t a permanent solution. Something better would have to be worked out in the long run. But for now, the act of writing the memories down and reading them allowed her to recall, at least to some degree. Why hadn’t she thought of this before?
Maybe she had. Maybe there were notebooks full of reminders back at her apartment before the place was trashed by…
By something.
She glanced at her notebook and read her notes. “Trolls,” she said to herself, though she was looking at the