Charlie Holiday Box Set

1. The walls are closing in and the eyes are watching

The walls are closing in and the eyes are watching

It was late and he was tired. But it wasn't that late and he wasn't that tired

Charlie Holiday saw something, but it might have been nothing.

Even if he had seen it, he wasn't sure he would believe it.

But if he believed it, did he see it?

He closed his eyes and let the hum of the taxi lull him into a relaxed state and he hoped the hotel was deep into the city so he'd have just a few more precious minutes where he didn't have to think or do or plan or be anyone but a passenger riding into the center of Florence, Italy, for the first time. It had been a long day.

They stopped and started, slowed and revved up. Took corners as if they were in a hurry. He wondered how you said We're not in a hurry in Italian. Or even better, We'd like to take the scenic route and I don't really care if we ever get to the destination in Italian? He sank deeper into his seat and hoped the rest of his family was doing the same. He tried to keep his eyes closed, but every time he opened them, there seemed to be something more interesting to see than the back of his eyelids.

Then it happened again.

He reached over to touch his wife's shoulder as his eyes connected with a young woman standing in a crowd in front of a bar. It was almost midnight, but the city was buzzing with people. Her eyes seemed to light up like a cat at night, but she wasn't a cat although it was night. Complete with the yellow glow and the double-teardrop shaped pupil.

As his hand reached his wife's shoulder, they passed the woman and it was over.

"Hi," his wife said as she turned her head to look at him.

"Hi," he said back, not quite sure how to explain cat woman on the side of the road or if he even wanted to. He closed his eyes again and the car stopped. Open eyes again and they were moving forward slowly.

As they tunneled deeper into the city, the buildings on both sides grew in height and almost seemed to lean in so that there was less and less midnight moon in the sky above. There wasn't a tree to be seen, only grey and dismal walls that were closing in with each block. It was probably a beautiful city. In the daytime. From outside of a taxi. With more sleep. And less darkness.

Up ahead, a man stood in the middle of the road and faced them. The street was so narrow they couldn't have passed him on either side, so he would have to get out of the way. But he was looking right at the passengers in the car.

The driver didn't seem phased and didn't slow down or speed up although the world in Charlie's mind seemed to be going in slow motion. Then he saw the eyes.

This time, not catlike but a subtle deep orange and they only seemed to be looking at Charlie. He again reached out to the shoulder of his wife. He tapped her and pointed out the front windshield.

She took only a glance ahead and then looked back at him. She was tired and it was clear she just wanted to arrive and fall into bed. He looked forward again. Yep, he was still there, the orange eyes still penetrating his vision and somehow going inside and through Charlie.

"Uh, does that man in the middle of the street ahead have, uh," Charlie knew if he said this he'd be opening up a discussion he wasn’t sure he wanted to have. What if she saw nothing? Would she think he was crazy or paranoid or just plain weird? He checked ahead. Still there.

"Does he have orange eyes?" he finished finally.

She looked at him and then slowly looked ahead. He didn’t know if it was slow because she doubted him and wondered what oddball story he was starting at midnight in the taxi or because she believed him and was at least cautious if not a little scared.

She peered ahead and moved in her seat to get a better view from their back seat perch. She squinted and got even more forward in the seat. Then she rubbed her eyes and blinked.

"Do you see it?" he asked, but she didn't answer. She only looked ahead and stared. It was one of those moments where he wasn't sure if three seconds or three minutes had passed.

She finally turned back to him. He couldn't tell by the look on her face if she had seen what he had seen and if she was now going to launch into a tirade about how it was too late to start up with horror stories or maybe she would just calm him down and say that it was nothing and that he should just close his eyes or maybe she truly saw what he saw. It was time to stop guessing.

He asked again, "What do you see?"