Echo

to know all there is to know about our tails. Scotty, can you wait until we bring Echo home to deal with this?”
    Yawning, Scotty agreed. They had come this far, a few days more wouldn’t kill them. A seventeen-year-old boy needs lots of sleep and he needed to crash. Now that Jose was on the job, most of his anxieties simply disappeared, just like krill at a whale convention. Looking over at Echo, he marveled at the fact that his boyhood fairy was wilder than he could possibly dream. It occurred to him that no one would ever believe this. He noticed Echo poking her leathery finger around inside Barney’s ear, who then turned around, wiping Echo’s face with his sloppy tongue, Echo spinning her head around 180 degrees before it snapped back. Echo’s feet and hands flew up in the air, rocking her back on her bottom. Auras flashed with gold and rainbow colors as Scotty wondered if Echo could communicate with Barney. He watched as the leathery arms snaked around the delirious dog’s neck, holding tight. Yup, I guess Echo’s right. Barney belongs to her; interesting development. Echo sure appeared as harmless as a house pet.
    Their trek back home proceeded uneventfully, although it cost them extra time to explain to Echo why Barney couldn’t stay with her in the cavern. Her answer to all of their objections; the Womb will provide . Eck. The guys decided they didn’t want to know more about the Womb just yet. Telling Echo they needed Barney for guard dog duty satisfied her, although she quickly pointed out that the Womb will guard them too. Lovely, Scotty thought. Yup, time to go.

Chapter 8
    Organized chaos reigned at Lily Pond Road. The whole neighborhood turned out with cakes, deviled eggs, casseroles and sandwiches. Even neighbors who never said boo the many years they lived there, brought goodies to the house. The Preston and the Diaz family felt honored and grateful, knowing full well their neighbors had little to spare.
    The turnout for the funerals impressed everyone. Abby didn’t realize her mama’s life touched so many others. Of course, when a youth is lost, many turn out to lament the sadness. And the whole grocery store turned out, having lost two popular employees. The demands on Abby were extraordinary, having missed a vital treatment so she could attend the funeral. She played gracious hostess, compassionate nursemaid and proficient housekeeper as she tried to mourn her mother’s passing.
    Her harried tasks didn’t prevent her from noticing the strange behavior of Scotty and Jose. She frequently noticed their heads together, speaking in cryptic whispers, hushing as she passed to clean around them. What could possibly merit this show of male skullduggery? Abby supported anything that helped Scotty out of the adolescent sulking that dominated his personality these days but their behavior irritated her. And what the heck is with the sunglasses; new fad, perhaps? She wasn’t worried though. She knew the quiet responsible Jose would be a good influence. God knows she could use the help with Scotty. Her eyes lingering on Jose’s wide shoulders as his hand reached up to rake back his unruly black and gold hair with his masculine fingers. Gold? Not an attractive combo. Why the strange hairdo? It almost looked like he wanted to follow in Scotty’s footsteps. Someone should tell him his color combination just made him look older.
    She knew nothing about seventeen year old boys, especially her own secretive brother. She didn’t date at all, so she couldn’t rely on much exposure to how the male of the species worked, romantically. Gee, where did that come from? Why think about that now? Unable to stop this train of thought she reflected on how most guys shied away from her when they found out about her kidney disease. Her classmates labeled her the sick girl, not intentionally meaning to be cruel. By the time most girls reached their late twenty’s, falling in and out of love became a habit. Unfortunately, Abby’s experience in the romance department, sucked. She longed to have an innocent flirtation with a boy. Or a not so innocent one. The only guys that ever paid attention to her were Jose, Tomas and Hero. But they hardly counted. Sighing, she pulled her thick reddish brown hair back, securing it with an elastic band. Sinking her hands into hot soapy water, she began to wash the dishes.
    The guests finally departed. Mama Diaz fussed, almost ready to leave with Tomas and the girls. They had