Strange Tales

By David Romo

Pedro Reeves is an ordinary young boy growing up in the City of Los Angeles. As far as he can remember, strange things always seem to happen around him and the only luck he ever has is bad luck. His parents seem to be hiding something but he cannot figure out what it might be. When he tells his best friend about it, he is advised to never repeat it to anybody else.

Pedro’s Father was in the military and disappeared many years ago without explanation. No one can explain to his family what actually happened or where he is. When Pedro discovers that his family’s home has been monitored ever since his father went missing, it is clear there is more to his father’s disappearance than he could have ever guessed.

Years later, Pedro is approached by an old woman who tells him a strange tale about two warring alien worlds battling for possession of Earth. She says she knows the truth about his father but will only tell him if he agrees to join her in the alien’s war. In hopes of finding his father, Pedro agrees and soon finds himself in situations he never thought were even possible.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jul 7, 2022
• ISBN: 9781669835431

David Romo

The Author set out to create a special story the that would be unique, entertaining and enjoyable. In this trilogy, there are new creatures, worlds, challenges, and more friend’s as well as enemies along their way to discover where the clear crystals are located, and to learn what secrets they possess. In this third book, Pedro who is the main human character, with his alien friends Red Eyes, Chris, and Grey Skin are put to the test when it comes to their relationships. In addition, their enemies have begun attacking in new ways, forcing them all to make difficult decisions on what will be best solutions for them to pursue. They are all aware that with every choice they make, there will be a lot of things to consider that might affect their futures, as well as their families and friends.

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Copyright © 2022 by David Romo.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,

recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the

product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance

to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 07/06/2022

Xlibris

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CONTENTS

Chapter 1 Family

Chapter 2 Brotherly Love

Chapter 3 Gifts and a Tale

Chapter 4 Hercules

Chapter 5 The Big Race

Chapter 6 Billy Shore’s Project

Chapter 7 Bull’s-Eye

Chapter 8 Sweet Revenge

Chapter 9 Learning New Skills

Chapter 10 The Attic

Chapter 11 Anonymous

Chapter 12 The Mission

Chapter 13 Where Am I?

Chapter 14 Strange Tales

Chapter 15 Operation Snowstorm

Chapter 16 New Acquaintances

Chapter 17 Military Base

Chapter 18 Hawaiian Excursion

Chapter 19 Return Trip

Chapter 20 Our Special Day

Chapter 21 Vickie’s Gift

Chapter 22 Red Eyes

Chapter 23 Blufirs

Chapter 24 Lisa Marquez

CHAPTER ONE

Family

Pedro Reeves had just turned twenty-one years old. As he lay in his bed, he was in a deep sleep unaware his entire body had been through an extremely traumatic experience. He was experiencing involuntary shaking, spasms, and painful throbbing throughout his whole body whenever he would move. It was something that had been inflicted on him by two complete strangers only five days earlier. Whenever Pedro woke up for a moment or two, it was in a complete state of grogginess. As he tried to look around, he kept thinking to himself, what happened to me, and why can’t I see anything clearly? then a few seconds after, he would pass out and fall into a deep sleep again for a few more hours.

By the fifth day, Pedro was finally able to stay awake for longer periods of time. Whenever he felt the aching beginning to throb inside of his temples, he would quickly put his hands to his head and try to massage them. The pain was so excruciating, he kept thinking his brain might explode at any moment. He then attempted to sit up on the bed and nearly lost all consciousness from the agony that suddenly began rushing throughout his entire body.

Pedro immediately laid his head back down on the pillow and tried looking up at the ceiling. The only thing he could see was one blurry spot of light. Why can’t I see anything? What’s wrong with my eyes? he wondered. That’s when he realized his eyelids wouldn’t open any wider than they already were. As he continued straining his eyes to look around, it would cause him even more pain. At times the pounding in the back of his eyes would become so bad, it would make him feel light-headed and dizzy. Then Pedro would need to close his eyes for a few seconds, hoping it would ease some of the pain. However, the moment he did, he would cause him to black-out and fall back into a deep sleep once again.

If Pedro would have been able to see his own reflection in a mirror, he wouldn’t have recognized himself. His head was completely disfigured, and twice it’s normal size. In perspective, his eyes were extremely black, resembling that of a raccoon. In addition, they were swollen and almost completely shut.

Pedro’s nose was covered with tape because it had been broken in three different places. His lips were the color of a purple plum, and there were several deep lacerations on his face. The rest of his body was black and blue from his head to his toes.

When he was finally able to stay wake for longer periods of time, he swiftly realized he wasn’t in his own bed or even his own bedroom. As he lay in bed thinking, he kept trying to recall anything that happened the day before. As hard as he tried, he wasn’t able to remember anything. Nor could he figure out how he managed to get into someone else’s bed. Where am I? What is going on? Why does my body ache so badly? and then he wondered if he had been in some sort of an accident?

***THIRTEEN YEARS EARLIER***

Pedro’s family and friends were all gathered together to celebrate his eighth birthday. During the afternoon, the children were all playing games, like pin the tail on the donkey, musical chairs, and hot potato outside in their backyard. A short while later, it was time for them to break the piñata.

Jose Reeves, Pedro’s father, instructed all the children to line up according to their age. Since it was Pedro’s birthday, he was going to be allowed to be the first person to hit the airplane shaped piñata. He was followed by the youngest to the oldest of the kids. As his father put the blindfold over Pedro’s face he told him, `You have three tries to break the piñata open. Good luck.` At the time, his father didn’t realize that Pedro could see out through the bottom of his blind-fold.

Once given the bat, everyone else started chanting `Go Pedro, Go!` With the first swing of his bat, he barely nicked the plane’s wing. With his next one, he managed to tap the tail knocking off a small piece of it. As for his last and final swing, it was a direct hit to the planes left wing, tearing it completely off. To his disappointment, after taking off his blindfold and handing the bat to his youngest cousin Jamie, his father whispered, `Better luck next time. He then watched as his cousins and friends all continued taking turns hitting the piñata with the bat. There were a few good hits, but no one was able to do much damage to the piñata. Finally, it was his older sister Lori’s turn.

She was part of the girls’ softball team at Kenneth Berry High and she was extremely good with a bat. On her first swing, she managed to clip the tail of the piñata completely off. Next, she crushed the nose inward causing the piñata to tear and expose its contents. With the final blow, the piñata was split completely in half and suddenly it was raining candy all around. Everyone quickly scattered along the ground, trying to grab what they could. Pedro quickly dove on top of the largest pile of candy to stop anybody from stealing his stash. When Lori noticed what he was doing, she yelled out, `Dog Pile on Pedro!` and every boy swiftly ran over and started piling on top of him.

When the adults saw what was happening, they quickly started pulling the kids off of Pedro. Jose rushed over and picked him off the ground to make sure he was all right. As he was holding him back to brush him off, Pedro quickly noticed the stash of candy he had been protecting was quickly disappearing before his eyes as the others all began grabbing all of the candy. By the time his father finished dusting him off and let him go, all that was left was a shattered green sucker and two large spots of chocolate that were smeared on his shirt.

`I’m sorry’, his father apologized. `Now I think it is time for everyone to sing happy birthday and watch you open your gifts, don’t you Pedro?’ `Okay’, he answered excitedly. `All right, but first, you need to change your shirt’, his father suggested.

`Yes sir’, he agreed, and ran into the house to put on another shirt. While he was changing, everybody else went into the living room to wait for the birthday boy to appear. After a few minutes, Pedro walked into the living room and saw Maria, his mother, lighting eight candles on his birthday cake. Pedro couldn’t believe his eyes. His mother had remembered to bake him his favorite triple-layered chocolate frosted cake with red, yellow, and orange sprinkles.

`Ok Pedro, it’s time for you to blow out your candles and make a wish’, Maria suggested. As Pedro walked over, he inhaled as much air as he could to fill his lungs. Then with one loud exhale he blew as hard as he could putting out all eight candles at the same time. Everybody else began to clap their hands and then they all started singing Happy Birthday.

When they finished singing, Maria then took the cake into the kitchen to cut it into pieces and she started passing them out to everybody. While she was doing that, Pedro began opening all of his gifts. When he finished, his mom reminded him to thank all of his family and friends. About an hour later, the party came to an end and his guests began to leave one by one. Soon after, all that remained in the house was Pedro, Lori and their parents.

Later that evening, Pedro was sitting at the kitchen table with his father and they were both eating a piece of chocolate cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream piled on top of it. When they finished, his father informed him, `Your mother and I got you a special gift’. Then he handed him a large present.

`Please let it be what I wanted’, he exclaimed. Pedro didn’t hesitate for a moment as he excitedly ripped open his gift. To his amazement, it was the bright blue Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat Fighter Aircraft Plastic Model Kit he had been wanting from Andrew’s Flight Shop.

After he opened the kit, his father began showing him how some of the different parts fit together. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Pedro was startled by the voices of two strangers who came walking into the kitchen unannounced. Where did they come from? Pedro thought as he looked up noticing an odd-looking man and woman who were both walking towards them.

`Hello Jose, how are you this evening?` the man asked. `I’m doing fine’, his father answered back. `How have the two of you been and what have you been up to lately?` `We’re both doing great’, the man responded. `Thanks for asking’.

Next, the woman spoke up and asked, `Is Maria going to be joining us this evening?` she inquired. `Yes of course she is. I think she may have gone to change into something that didn’t have so much birthday cake smeared all over it,` Jose stated. Then he joked about his wife and remarked, `You know how long it takes for Maria to get ready these days,` and everybody started laughing except for Pedro. He was still trying to figure out who the strange couple were as he picked up another piece of the plane and tried to fit them together.

`Excuse me Jose, if you don’t mind me asking. Who is that handsome young man who is sitting next to you?` the woman asked while smiling at Pedro. `Allow me to introduce you to him. This is my son Pedro,` Jose said proudly. `If I remember correctly, the last time we saw him he was only four months old. Wow, I can’t believe how fast he’s grown up!` the man commented. `He sure has,` Jose agreed. `Did you know it’s his birthday today?` `Well Happy Birthday Pedro. So how old are you?` the woman inquired.

`I am eight years old,` Pedro answered shyly. Then leaned over and quietly whispered into his father’s ear, `Who are these people and where did they come from?` Jose chuckled for a moment before answering Pedro’s question and said, `You were too young to remember them, but this is your Uncle Redmond and Aunt Chris.`

`We are related?` Pedro asked in total surprise. `We certainly are sweetheart,` his Aunt Chris replied. Pedro quickly faced his father and asked, `Why didn’t you ever tell me about them before?` `I can answer that question very easily for you,` his uncle interrupted while chuckling. `We live on the other side of the world and we rarely get the chance to visit your wonderful City of Los Angeles.`

Though Pedro didn’t let them know, it really bothered him a lot knowing his parents had never mentioned anything about him having an Uncle Redmond or Aunt Chris. He also thought it was strange for both them to just show up unexpectedly. In his mind, he kept thinking, why are they here? and wondering if something was going on?

A short while later, Maria walked into the kitchen to greet their guest. `Hello everybody. Did I miss anything important?` she said as she walked over to give the two of them a hug. `No, nothing special.` Jose answered her. `I was just introducing Pedro to his Uncle Redmond and Aunt Chris.`

`Maria, my dear, Pedro is so adorable,` his Aunt Chris commented. `Well it’s obvious he got his great looks from my side of the family,` she joked. Then everybody laughed loudly but Pedro sat still with a curious look on his face.

A moment later, his father turned to Pedro and said, `Son, I need you to do me a big favor.` `Sure dad, what is it?` `There is something very important your mother and I need to discuss with your aunt and uncle in private,` he said in a serious tone. `I need you to sit here and continue working on your airplane while we have our little chat in the living room. It shouldn’t take us too long, and I promise I will come back to continue helping you build it, all right?` `Sure Dad,` he answered.

As everyone left the kitchen and went into the living room, Pedro pretended to be working on his model airplane. Once the adults were out of sight, he quietly tiptoed over to the doorway to eavesdrop on their conversation.

However, Pedro could barely hear any of what they were saying. Everybody was speaking too softly, making it extremely difficult for him to understand what they were discussing. Every now and then, he was able to hear a few sentences and heard his Uncle Redmond say, `We will need to continue hiding them.` `That shouldn’t be a problem. We believe the shield should hold up for a while longer,` Jose mentioned. `Just remember Jose, we will always be here to protect you, Maria and your children,` Aunt Chris promised.

As soon as he heard it, Pedro started thinking, I wonder who Uncle Redmond was talking about when he said they needed to hide somebody. What was dad talking about when he mentioned they had a shield that would last a little longer? I’ve never seen any shield around here. Besides, why would we need protection?

As he continued listening, Pedro couldn’t comprehend anything else that was being discussed. Then he realized their conversation was ending and quickly hurried back to the kitchen table and started fumbling with a couple of large pieces of the airplane’s wings. A moment later Pedro noticed a bright flash of light in the living room that illuminated the entire kitchen a second later.

Not knowing what was going on, he kept quiet as his father walked back into the kitchen and then he asked him, `Where did Uncle Redmond and Auntie Chris go?` His father quickly let him know, `They had to leave. There was somewhere else they needed to be,` he explained. `Really, I didn’t see them leaving,` Pedro remarked. `Trust me Pedro. They are gone.`

`But I was watching the front door and I didn’t see anybody leaving.` `They left Pedro.` `Yeah, but ... ?` `I don’t want to hear another word about it. Do you understand?` his father snapped at him. `Yes, sir,` he reluctantly agreed.

`Pedro, I know that I promised I would help you with your airplane after I finished our conversation with your aunt and uncle. But before I do, I need you to join us for a family meeting.`

`Okay,` Pedro agreed and followed his father into the living room. As soon as they walked into the living room, he noticed his mother and sister Lori were already sitting on the sofa waiting for the meeting to start. Pedro quickly sat down on the sofa next to his sister. His father then looked at the two of them and said, `Lori, Pedro, I’m sorry you didn’t get a chance to talk with your Uncle Redmond and Aunt Chris. There was an important family matter they needed to attend and had to leave in a hurry.

`However, before they left, your Uncle Redmond gave each of us a special gift.` `He did?` Lori asked in a surprised tone. `Yes he did,` Maria answered. `Let me give them to you,’ his father said and grabbed a paper bag off the counter behind him.

As their father pulled each gift out of the bag, he read the person’s name out loud that was engraved on the lid and handed it to them. Pedro was surprised when he realized they all had the same gift which was a small silver-plated box.` I wonder what it could be,` Lori said excitedly.

`Wow, another birthday present. I think I could get used to doing this every day,` Pedro joked. `Well don’t just sit there, open them up,` Jose encouraged them. After opening their boxes, Lori and Pedro were both surprised when they discovered that they all had received the exact same gift. It was a golden necklace. Every chain link was engraved with unique and distinct symbols that were strange looking to them. Neither of them had any idea what the weird symbols signified. In addition, there was an aquamarine hexagonal prism crystal pendent attached to each of the necklaces.

As beautiful as it was, Pedro felt there was something else that was special about his. He could sense there was some kind of energy that was flowing out from his crystal. The longer he stared at it, the more hypnotic it became, and he was having a difficult time trying to look away from it. `Pedro,` his father called out to him. `PEDRO’! he had to holler at him a second time to get his full attention. `What did you say?` he asked completely disoriented. `I need you and Lori to listen to what I’m about to tell you.` `Okay,` Pedro agreed.

His father took a deep breath and said, `From now on, everybody in this house needs to wear the necklaces your Uncle Redmond gave us whenever we leave this house. There are no exceptions, and it’s not up for debate,` he insisted. `Why?` Pedro complained. `I don’t mind wearing my necklace. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful,` Lori commented as she continued staring at her crystal.` `Maybe it’s fine with you, but I can’t go around wearing a girl necklace,` Pedro protested. `Everybody at my school will think that I am a sissy if they see me wearing it.`

`Trust me Pedro, you will be just fine,` his mother remarked. `Yeah, but...` `Stop the drama. I understand how you feel, but it’s for your own protection,` his father informed him.

`Really. Just how are these necklaces supposed to protect us?` Lori questioned him. `I can’t go into the details right now. Besides, you wouldn’t understand even if I told you,` he answered. `Nevertheless, I promise to explain everything to you when the time is right.` Pedro and Lori both looked at each other with uncertainty but didn’t question him any further.

Both of them sat quietly trying to figure out what their father meant by when the time is right. Feeling completely frustrated, Pedro stood up to leave. `What’s the matter Pedro?` his father swiftly asked. `I was wondering what is supposed to happen if one of us accidentally forgets to wear their chain when they are leaving?` `Not only will you lose your protection, but it could put everyone else in danger as well,` his father stated with a serious tone of voice. Lori was feeling nervous and complained, `You’re beginning to freak me out dad.

Pedro remembered something else he wanted to know and asked, `But what will happen if ...` This time he was interrupted by his mother when she spoke up and said, `Pedro, stop questioning your father.` `Just wear it!` she scolded him. `Fine, but I don’t like it,` he said disappointedly, `When will I ever get a break?`

Knowing Pedro was really upset about having to wear the necklace, his father wanted to comfort him and said, `It’s still your birthday and I did promise to help you with your model airplane kit. Are you ready to work on it?` `Sure,` he said with eagerness.

`Ok boys, while the two of you work on that airplane, Lori and I will clean up the house,` Maria suggested. `But mom, why do I have to clean up?` Lori complained. `Because I said so, that’s why!` she snapped back. `It has been a long day and when we’re finished cleaning, I want everyone is going to bed. And I mean everybody.`

An hour had already passed when his mother walked into the kitchen and let Pedro and his father know it was time for them to go to bed. `After you put on your pajamas, don’t forget to brush your teeth,` she reminded Pedro and she walked out of the kitchen.

While he was lying down on the bed, Pedro’s mind began to think about the family discussion they had earlier. What are my parents trying to hide from us? Why do we need protection? Is someone trying to hurt us? Are they planning to do something to our family? Something doesn’t feel right... No matter how hard he tried, Pedro couldn’t figure out what was going on. Soon after, his eyelids became extremely heavy and without a struggle he fell asleep and began to dream.

Within his dream, he found himself riding his bike to Andrew’s Flight Shop to purchase the ultimate airplane, which was a remote-controlled Aluminum Jet-Propelled S10 Fighter. Upon entering the shop, he began searching for it but was unable to locate the plane he wanted. He then tried looking through the columns of stacked boxes throughout the entire shop but failed to find it. Next, he used a long ladder to reach to the boxes on the top shelves behind the counter near the cash register. However, he was unsuccessful yet again on locating the plane.

`Where can it be?` Pedro questioned himself. Continuing on with his search, he noticed there was an iron cast door with a large glass window in the center of it. I don’t recall ever seeing that door before. As Pedro approached the door, he tried peering through the glass, but was unable to see through it. Without hesitation, he grabbed the door handle and slowly turned the knob. When the door opened, he immediately realized he was standing inside of a huge warehouse. It was filled with thousands of different colored boxes on pallets and they were all stacked on top of metal racks.

`You’ve got to be kidding me!` Pedro said loudly as he began climbing up to the top of the first metal rack. Then he worked his way down, opening every box as he did. After what seemed like an eternity, Pedro was finally down to the last few boxes. To his disappointment, the airplane wasn’t inside any of them.

`What am I supposed to do now?` Pedro yelled out in frustration and started looking around. Then, in the distance he noticed there was an individual who was walking towards him. I wonder who that is? Pedro thought and then realized the individual was a janitor when he saw his cart and broom in his hand.

Pedro was so excited to see someone, he started running towards him. `Excuse me sir!` Pedro exclaimed. `Could you help me with something?` The janitor looked at him with a blank expression for a moment and said, `Oh hey there little fella. What can I do for ya?` Pedro explained, `I have been searching everywhere for the remote-controlled Aluminum Jet-Propelled S10 Fighter. Would you happen to know where I might find it’?

`Hmm, let me think about it for a moment,` the janitor replied. `I believe they keep that particular model inside the room behind the secret wall.` `A secret wall?` Pedro repeated. `Where do I find this secret wall?` `It is right behind you sonny,` he answered.

Pedro then turned around and saw a wall with a picture of a large old fashioned padlock and said, `I don’t remember seeing that wall there a few minutes ago.` `Well, it looks like you might need to get yourself some glasses sonny boy,` the janitor said sarcastically.

`Okay, that answers the first part of where I can find it, but how do I get to the other side of the secret wall?` `You will need to use the key,` he informed Pedro. `All right, but do you happen to know where I can find the key?`

`I have it right here in my pocket,` he replied as he reached into the right pocket of his overalls and pulled out a large tarnished skeleton key. `I can lend it to you, but I will need it back.` `Agreed.`

`Thank you sir,` Pedro said gratefully while reaching out to take the key from the janitor’s hand. `There is just one more question I need to ask you.` `What is it young fella?` `How do I use this key to get into the secret room?` `You put it into the keyhole of course,` the janitor chuckled.

`Okay, then you better make that two questions,` Pedro said slightly irritated. `Do you know where I can find the keyhole?` `I seriously think you need to get yourself some glasses young man,` he remarked and then he asked, `Can’t ya see it’s in the center of the picture hanging on the wall?` Pedro immediately walked over to take a closer look at the picture. When he was only a couple of feet away from the picture, he quickly discovered there was a large keyhole in the center of the old-fashioned padlock inside the painting and inserted the key into the keyhole. The instant he turned the key, the floor began to shake hard causing the wall to begin cracking. Next, the painting fell off the wall and part of the wall crumbled into pieces and fell to the ground leaving a large opening that led into the secret room.

Before continuing on his quest Pedro turned around and noticed the janitor was nowhere to be found. He then looked forward and began climbing over the debris to enter into the secret room.

To his surprise, it was a brightly lit room and he couldn’t help admiring the glorious architecture. The entire room was decorated in black and gold fused marble that reflected off the light coming from a large box in the center of the room. The box was sitting on a hexagonal shaped table and Pedro cautiously walked towards it.

As he approached the table there was a tag sticking out above the box with something written on it. With a closer inspection, he was able to read it and quickly understood it said, `Property of Pedro Reeves.’ This has to be it, Pedro shouted happily, crossing his fingers at the same time. But just as he took the lid off the box, he heard an odd rattling noise, which caused him to wake up from his dream.

What was that rattling noise? Pedro asked himself when his eyes opened and he realized something had woken him up. He hurriedly sat up on the bed and started glimpsing around his room for anything moving. It was too dark for him to see anything but dark shadows and he thought, that noise sounded like there was something in my room. It must have been my imagination, `He told himself` as he laid his head back on his pillow and fell back to sleep once more.

The following day when Pedro got home from school, he went straight to the room to work on his history homework. While sitting at the desk, he was turning a couple pages of his book when he thought he noticed something moving through the side of his eye. He swiftly glanced over at the mirror on the wall but by the time he turned his head there was nothing there. After staring at it for a few moments, he thought to himself, I must have imagined it, and he picked up his book and continued reading.

That same evening Pedro was getting ready for bed. As he was putting his pajamas top over his head, he saw something moving inside of his mirror. Startled by the sight of movement, Pedro ran over to the mirror to get a closer look. Once more, he couldn’t see anything but his own reflection.

As he stared at his own reflection looking back at him, he began to wonder why he was beginning to imagine strange things moving. What’s happening to me? Why do I keep seeing things that aren’t really there? Am I going crazy? he mumbled as he sat quietly on his bed to think about it. Soon after, he felt tired and decided to go to sleep. After turning off the light he jumped into bed, wrapped himself in his favorite airplane blanket and fell asleep.

Several hours had already passed when Pedro heard a loud creaking noise in his room which woke him out of his sleep. He then checked the time on his alarm clock, and noticed it was 2:08 AM. What was that weird sound? he whispered softly. As he looked around his room, all he could make out were the shadows of tree branches moving swiftly back and forth outside of his window. The lack of light made him feel nervous and uneasy.

However, once his eyes were able to adjust to the dark, he started looking around the room again. This time he noticed there was something sitting in the corner of his room that instantly made the hairs on the neck stand up. Though Pedro couldn’t see it clearly, he could tell it was something hairy and huge. It was the scariest thing he had ever seen and he quickly pulled the covers over his head in terror. Did I really see that? he wondered. Pedro’s heart was already racing rapidly and he didn’t know what to believe.

He waited a few minutes before convincing himself to take another look. I can’t believe I’m going to do this, he thought as he slowly lifted the covers off over his head just long enough to see if the thing was still in the corner of his room.

This time when he looked, not only was it still there but noticed it was staring back at him with its blood-red eyes. Pedro instantly froze in fear as he clutched his pillow tightly. Then every muscle throughout his whole body began to shake uncontrollably and he couldn’t think clearly.

What should I do now? and without thinking he panicked and started crying out for his parents who heard him. Jose and Maria both jumped out of their bed and rushed down the hallway to Pedro’s room. His father swiftly opened his door, turned on the light and asked, `What’s the matter? What happened?`

With a trembling voice Pedro answered, `I saw something in my room and it was watching me. It was sitting right over there in the corner,` he said and pointed his finger towards the spot where he saw the red eyes that were staring at him. `What did it look like dear?` his mother asked softly.

`I’m not really sure. It was too dark to see it clearly. Whatever it was, it was definitely watching me with its scary blood-red eyes,` he mentioned. `Sweetheart, you were probably having a bad dream. I’m sure that’s all it was,` his mother remarked. Then she sat down next to Pedro on his bed and tried to comfort him with a big hug. `Try not to think about it anymore.`

`But it wasn’t......` Pedro tried to explain but he was interrupted by his mother who told him, `Trust me. Everything will be fine. Now go back to sleep.` `But it wasn’t a dream, Mom!` he exclaimed.

`Pedro, you were dreaming, and that’s all it was,` his father snapped at him. `Now go back to sleep because starting tomorrow there will be no more late-night snacks for you after dinner. Is that understood?` `Yes sir.` he replied because he knew better than to argue with his parents. Even though he was certain it wasn’t a dream.

In Pedro’s mind, he was still terrified at the thought of someone or something in his room watching him. Soon after, his parents stood up to leave. `Dad, can you do me a favor?` Pedro asked hesitantly. `Certainly Pedro, what is it?` his father asked. `Could you please leave the light on?` `Of course I will, now go to sleep.` `Thank you.` `Good night Pedro,` his mother said softly and the moment his father closed Pedro’s door, she whispered to him. `He is supposed to be protecting Pedro, not scaring him to death,` she complained.

`I agree, but he’s getting older and I don’t know how much longer we will be able to hide things from him,` his father whispered back. `Maybe we should tell him the truth when I get home from work tomorrow,` he suggested. `But he’s only eight years old,` his mom objected. `I agree with you Maria, but things are getting out of control. I just want to make sure he will be ready when the time comes.` `I understand how you feel Jose, but I want Pedro to have a normal childhood for as long as possible,` Maria sighed sadly.

When they got back to their room, Jose and Maria lied back down on the bed and tried to fall asleep. Neither could because they were both too worried and anxious about things that were happening. Neither of them could decide whether it was time to tell Lori and Pedro what was going on or not. Eventually they agreed not to say anything until they both felt the timing was right.

SEVERAL YEARS LATER

Pedro was in his room getting dressed for school. At the age of eleven, Pedro was thin and slightly shorter than most of the boys his age. He had an olive complexion with straight brown hair and light brown eyes, which complemented his baby face.

Pedro was a trusting individual who could be gullible at times. His sister Lori was fifteen years old and she knew how easily he could be manipulated and took full advantage of him. It was one of the reasons Pedro felt so insecure and had such a low self-esteem.

Ever since the incident when Pedro first encountered the creature with the red eyes, he became afraid of the dark. It had gotten so bad that Pedro developed a habit of sleeping with the lights on. In addition, he was terrified of mirrors. Whenever he passed by any mirrors, he looked in the opposite direction to make sure he wouldn’t see anything watching him. Because of this, he neglected combing his hair, making him look shabby most of the time.

To keep his mind off his fears, Pedro continued building all types of models. During the years, he had accumulated various models of planes, cars, and boats. With great satisfaction, he proudly displayed his work on several bookshelves in his bedroom. However, he felt his collection was incomplete without the ultimate model airplane: It was the remote-controlled Aluminum Jet-Propelled S10 Fighter he always dreamed about.

Since the day Pedro saw the model airplane at Andrew’s Flight Shop, it was all that he could think about. He knew he would have to pay for the model airplane and continued to save up his allowance. While doing his domestic chores, he earned three dollars a week. When Pedro checked his savings, he discovered he was only three weeks short of obtaining the full amount of fifty-eight dollars and ninety-five cents.

Pedro’s neighbor Eric Alverez lived on the adjacent side of the street and two homes to the right of his house. He met Eric at school after a couple of bullies shoved Pedro into a trash can in the boy’s restroom. After they left, he helped him get out of it and they started talking.

Due to family circumstances beyond Eric’s control, he was forced to repeat the entire school year. Though he was a year older than Pedro, they were both in the same grade at Kenneth Berry High. Eric was about three inches taller than Pedro, with a slender build. In addition, he had a light complexion, long blond hair, bright blue eyes, and lots of freckles on his nose. Eric spoke fluent English and Spanish but preferred to talk in English.

Eric started hanging around with Pedro and developed a crush on his sister Lori but his crush didn’t last long. Soon after, Pedro and Eric became the best of friends. Eric was considered a very popular guy in school and he had no problems talking with other students.

On the other hand, Pedro was shy and found it difficult to hold a conversation with the other students, especially with the girls in his classes. Even so, Pedro also had a really big crush on a girl named Vickie Wright who he thought was the most beautiful and fascinating girl he had ever known. Correction, the only girl he ever wanted to get to know but never found the nerve to walk up and strike a conversation with her. Sadly, day after day, Pedro could only watch as Vickie passed him by without ever acknowledging he existed. But that didn’t stop him from dreaming because he had already made up his mind that she was going to be his wife one day.

Eric came from a large family with three brothers and two sisters who were all loud and boisterous. Because of this, he too was just as loud as the rest of them. Eric would be the first person to admit his house was anything but quiet. There was always some kind of conflict going on between one of his siblings.

Whenever anyone had a difference of opinion, a loud argument would occur shortly after they were finished. Regrettably, once the quarrel was initiated, the entire block had the privilege of hearing their verbal disagreement as they exchanged words. It was one of the many reasons Eric preferred to spend most of his time away from his house.

Despite everyone’s differences, his family enjoyed various types of music. Each sibling was musically inclined, with the exception of Eric. All of his siblings could either sing, play a musical instrument, or do both. Although Eric was given many guitar lessons from his eldest brother Sergio, he just didn’t have the patience to practice.

In addition, his sister Rita attempted to give him vocal lessons on several different occasions. Sadly, no matter how hard Eric tried, he just could not hold a note. It was probably the one thing his entire family could all agree on, including Eric. Then again, Eric knew how to tell a joke better than anybody in his family, and he was very proud of that fact.

Besides having a large family, they also owned several pets. There were two Chihuahuas, one named Romero and the other named Julieta. With such a very short stature, Julieta was intimidated by any strangers who came to their house. It was the main reason Eric’s eldest sister Carissa would always go out of her way to coddle and spoil her.

Eric would always get angry whenever he saw Julieta walking into his bedroom. The reason being she had a bad habit of urinating on his beige carpet at the very same spot each time. Because of this, there was a large yellow stain about a meter in diameter in front of Eric’s closet.

Whenever he noticed the stain in his carpet was wet again, he would start searching around his room for Julieta. The instant he saw her, he would start yelling at her to get out. Like clockwork, a few moments later Carissa would come running into his room and she would start blaming Eric for upsetting Julieta and causing her to pee on his carpet.

On the other hand, Sergio’s mongrel Romero was a mean dog, and Eric disliked him the most. Whenever Eric was alone by himself, Romero wouldn’t hesitate to sneak up from behind and bite him on the leg. Of course, it didn’t help that Eric would always kick Romero in the rear whenever no one was looking. Whenever Sergio took Romero out for a walk, he would have to always keep him on a short leash. He would also have to warn anybody close by that Romero was extremely fierce and he wouldn’t hesitate to bite them.

Another pet Eric wasn’t fond of was his sister Rita’s Cockatoo named Elvis. Rita had taught him how to say `I Love You,` but she couldn’t teach Elvis to say any other phrases. Eric hated to pass by Elvis’s bird cage that was on the backyard patio. Whenever he did, it would irritate him to hear Elvis repeating over and over, `I Love You. I Love You, I Love You.`

Normally Eric would just walk past and completely ignore Elvis. However, on this particular occasion, he turned around and told him, Shut Up, as he walked away. The next day he did the same thing, but this time when he told Elvis to, Shut Up. He responded, I Love You, Shut Up.

Eric thought it was so funny, he made it a habit, and every time there was no one around, he would purposely pass by Elvis’s cage and yell at him to shut up. Little did Rita know that Eric had actually taught Elvis a new phrase until one day while she was feeding him. Rita happily told Elvis, `I Love You, I Love You,` but he didn’t respond. Surprised he didn’t respond, she repeated the phrase, I Love You, I Love You.

This time Elvis did respond and he told her, `I Love You, Shut Up.` `What did you say?` Rita asked amazed to hear him say something new. So she repeated the phrase, `I Love You, I Love You.` very slow and clearly. This time Elvis repeated, `Shut Up, Shut Up, Shut Up.`

`I guess I should be happy you finally learned another phrase, but that wasn’t very nice,` Rita said in a hurtful tone. Then she became angry and without thinking asked Elvis, `Who taught you how to say that? I am going to find out right now,` and she ran into the house. Rita started questioning everybody, but no one would admit they knew who taught Elvis how to say Shut Up. At this point in time, Eric has never admitted to Rita that he was the one who was responsible for teaching Elvis how to say, `Shut Up.`

Eric’s brother Andre enjoyed studying subjects such as Biology and Mythology. He was so fascinated with reptiles and medieval tales that he gave his Leopard Gecko the name Dragon. As a freshman at Valley Rose College, Andre became so overwhelmed in his studies he began neglecting all of his pets.

Andre felt so bad, he decided to ask his brother for help which is something he wouldn’t normally do. When he got home that evening, he called Eric to his room and asked him nicely, `Hey Eric, can you do me a favor?` `Maybe, I guess it depends on what it is?` Eric answered cautiously, trying to figure out what he was about to ask him.

His brother explained, `I have been so busy with schoolwork lately that I forget to feed Dragon and clean out his tank. Would you be up to the task or do you think it might be too difficult for you to handle?` he joked. At that moment, Eric was feeling special because Andre had never trusted or asked him to do anything with any of his pets before. Just knowing how much Andre loved Dragon, he gladly accepted his offer for assistance.

Pedro had a bad habit of not completing his homework. Although he was quite capable, he chose to play games and watch the television instead. He didn’t care for school because he found schoolwork much too easy and boring, which was the reason he continually got himself into trouble at school.

Whenever any of his teachers would question him why his homework was incomplete, he would make up an excuse. Regrettably, every time Pedro did, it would only make matters worse because he was terrible at it. And yet it never stopped him from trying. Over the school year Pedro had developed a bad habit of daydreaming during his classes. This was another reason you could often find him sitting in detention after school ended.

Eric, on the other hand, had a great personality. He was witty, humorous, and fun to hang around with. Though he was very bright, it sometimes caused him big problems. Eric was the class clown who was constantly finding new ways to irritate most of his teachers. Although he was a Straight A Student and had no problems with his schoolwork, he was always getting himself into some kind of trouble.

Generally, Eric had a pleasant personality, but he wasn’t afraid to say what was on his mind. Eric could make just about anybody laugh and his classmates always found him very entertaining when he decided to challenge his peers. However, his teachers weren’t as receptive to his kind of humor. They were constantly reprimanding him for his joking and interruptions while they were speaking in class.

Most of the time, Eric would quit joking around whenever his teachers asked him to stop, and they were able to continue on with their teaching. Then again, if he was in a bad mood, Eric would just ignore them and finish saying whatever was on his mind.

Most people were not aware of the fact that Eric had a very bad attitude when it came to people in authority. He didn’t like anybody telling him what he could or couldn’t do. Most of the time, Eric was able to control his temper and hide his true feelings. However, if Eric felt someone was being treated unreasonably or unfairly, he wouldn’t hesitate to let the guilty party know how he felt.

Usually, it was one of his teachers, and whenever he finished giving his assessment of their behavior he would end up back in detention. On the other hand, his principal Ronald Owens was well aware of Eric’s lack of respect for authority. As a former Drill Sergeant in the U.S. Army, Principal Owens enjoyed intimidating all of his students at Grand View. At times, he would make his students do push-ups, run laps, or stand at attention for long periods of time during their time in detention.

Since Eric was constantly butting heads with his teachers, it wasn’t surprising to see him sitting in detention almost every day after school. Although Principal Owens always enjoyed making the students squirm during their detention, he didn’t like it when Eric was sent there. He knew exactly what would happen after he arrived.

The first thing Eric would do was say something funny and before long he would have the other students all laughing with him. Soon after, he would have anybody else within hearing range laughing as well. It really bothered Principal Owens.

He was worried that one day somebody important would walk into the office and hear all of the commotion. He didn’t want anybody to get the wrong idea about how he was managing his students during their time in detention. He tried on several different occasions to get Eric to stop joking, but after numerous attempts, he finally gave up.

Pedro and Eric always enjoyed their free time. They liked playing basketball, riding their bikes around the neighborhood, playing board games, and especially using their slingshots. They loved to shoot at anything that moved and nothing was off limits when it came to their target practice.

Still, as Pedro continued growing up, life was definitely becoming more confusing for him. There were so many unanswered questions with nobody for him to ask why. Questions like, why, is it that whenever there are any bees flying around, I am always the first person who gets stung by one of them? If there are any birds flying overhead, I will be the guy who gets crapped on. Why do I see things that nobody else seems to notice?

Although Pedro didn’t know it at that time, the answer was simple. All he had to do was ask his Uncle Redmond or Aunt Chis. If he had, they would have informed him everything had to do with the crystal he was wearing around his neck. It attracted certain kinds of insects, animals, and sea creatures. Bees, birds, and sharks were exceptionally sensitive to the crystals energy it released.

One afternoon, Pedro felt a strong desire to speak to somebody about his strange encounters. It was bothering him so badly, he couldn’t stop thinking about it. He was so desperate, he made a phone call to a friend. `Hello Eric, I need to talk to you about something that has been bothering me for a long time.` `Sure, what’s going on?`

`I want to ask you a question.` `All Right, go ahead.` `Great, but first I want you to promise me you won’t laugh when I tell you what it is.` `Let me guess, You’re afraid of the dark, and hate looking into mirrors.’ `How did you know?` Eric smiled and said, `I overheard your parents discussing it when I was at your house last week. I thought it was strange. The moment your parents noticed me sitting in the living room, they quickly changed the subject and started talking about the news. I personally don’t think it’s that big of a deal, but obviously they do.`

`What did they say?` `I really didn’t hear too much, but my guess is they were probably trying to decide whether or not to send you to a head doctor,` he joked.

`What is a head doctor?` Pedro asked nervously. Knowing how gullible Pedro was, Eric leaned close to him and he whispered into his ear, `You know, one of those doctors. The kind who makes you lie down on their couch. Then they start asking you all sorts of odd questions to see if you’re, well you know what I mean.`

`But I’m not crazy.` `I know, and that’s the reason you can’t go around telling people that you are seeing strange things and hearing weird sounds.` `But I do!` Pedro objected. `Trust me Pedro, you need to stop.` `Why? I’m only telling the truth.` `Just think about it. Sooner or later, somebody might think that you are going loony. Believe me, once that happens, you will be sent to one of those places. The kind where they lock you up and throw away the key. Do you understand what I’m trying to tell you?` Eric tried to emphasize.

`I guess so,` Pedro said half-heartedly. `Great, now go grab your slingshot and get your bike. I want to go to the park and get some