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  LAST HERO

  Copyright © 2015 by Timothy D. McLendon

  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 written consent from the author. Please direct all requests to [email protected]

  BOOKS BY TIMOTHY D. MCLENDON

  Last Hero

  Twisted Endings

  Twisted Endings 2

  Twisted Endings 3

  CONTENTS

  1. BEACH BIRTHDAY PARTY

  2. NO STEROIDS NEEDED

  3. STRUCK BY LIGHTNING

  4. FOLLOW THE STARS

  5. SPEAKING OF THE ENEMY

  6. EXPLODING TRASH

  7. SUIT MAN WEARS DIRTY SOCKS

  8. MOVING ON

  9. PLAYING DEAD

  10. MR. SILEN HAS A TAIL

  11. SHAKESPEARE WASN’T AMERICAN

  12. FROG LADY MAKES MEATLOAF

  13. TURNING DOWN THE THERMOSTAT

  14. REVEALING THE ENEMY

  15. SUGAR AND SPICE

  16. MS. SPIN AND THE BROKEN DESK

  17. SNAKE LADY WEARS A SHORT DRESS

  18. ARE WE BOYS OR ARE WE MEN?

  19. OFFICER CERBER HAS DOG BREATH

  20. TRAINING ON THE FOOTBALL FIELD (WITHOUT A FOOTBALL)

  21. MUD IN THE CORNFIELD

  22. THE BEAST AND THE FIRE

  23. PARENTAL ADVICE

  24. SHOWDOWN AT THE BIG RED BARN

  25. FRIENDS FOREVER

  26. THE NAME ON THE MAILBOX

  CHAPTER 1

  BEACH BIRTHDAY PARTY

  “MAKE A wish, Danny,” Becky said and smiled. “I hope you get everything you want.”

  Danny Neumann chuckled at Becky and looked around the room at the dozens of his friends cheering and clapping for him. Most of them were from school, and one was from church. Danny stared down at the sixteen sparkling candles on his vanilla birthday cake with vanilla whipped icing. He didn’t believe in wishes, but there was one thing in this room he wanted more than anything else.

  Becky lived across the street, and they had been friends since they were four. They knew everything about each other and kept the other’s secrets. He had told her years ago he wanted his sixteenth birthday on the beach. She drove him the thirty minutes from Cooper City to this rented Fort Lauderdale beach house tonight and surprised him. She truly was a good friend. Something changed over the last summer break, though. Her big brown eyes pierced his heart every time he looked at her now. Her hair was like golden silk that flowed down the length of her back.

  Danny took a deep breath and blew the candles out.

  “Where’s Kevin?” he asked Becky. Her boyfriend had been his best friend for years until they returned to school from summer break a few months ago. Danny had told Kevin how he was falling in love with Becky and was going to ask her out before school started. Danny was devastated the next day when he found out Kevin had asked Becky to be his girlfriend, and she accepted. Now Kevin acted like he didn’t even know Danny. He had lifted weights all summer and grown another foot taller. He only hung out with the popular kids now.

  “He had other plans,” Becky said, looking away.

  Danny shook his head when he realized the truth. Kevin didn’t know anything about this party. He probably didn’t even remember it was Danny’s birthday. Becky wouldn’t have reminded him because he would never have allowed her to organize this.

  “It wasn’t a lie,” Becky said. “I told him I had to go out of town to meet some friends.”

  Danny’s face grew hot and turned red, like it always did when he was angry. “I’m going outside for a minute.”

  “Danny, wait,” he heard Becky call after him. He was already at the sliding glass door that led to the back porch and couldn’t turn around. He hated for her to see him like this. He opened the door to the sounds of crashing waves in the near distance.

  “Better get your boyfriend,” Danny heard someone tell Becky. He turned and saw that it was Becky’s friend Marc. He was a short Asian kid with spiked hair. He always talked in a high-pitched voice and wore make up.

  Becky laughed. “We’re just friends, Marc.”

  “Sure you are.” He winked at her.

  Danny’s face felt even hotter. He closed the door and raced toward the beach. He had to get away from all of this. This was not how he’d imagined his sixteenth birthday.

  “Slow down,” Becky screamed after him. He heard the sliding glass door close again. She ran up behind him and tackled him in the sand. “You can’t run away every time you’re scared of something. Not with those chicken legs.”

  “I’m not scared.” He sat up and ran his fingers through the sand like a fork.

  Becky sat next to him and leaned against his shoulder. “I’ve known you most of my life, Danny Neumann. And this is exactly what you do when you’re scared.”

  He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and looked into her big brown eyes. He hesitated. “Why can’t we be together?”

  “Maybe if things were different…” She sighed. He could tell she was lost in thought when she folded her hands under her chin and stared straight ahead. “We’re always there for each other. Isn’t that enough?”

  “I’m in love with you.”

  Becky took Danny’s arm off her shoulder. She spoke slower than normal, “I love you to death, and you’ll always have a piece of my heart.” She stood and grabbed a handful of sand. “But you’re just too boring.” She threw the sand at him and ran away laughing toward the water.

  “What does that even mean?” he shouted after her.

  “Can’t catch me, Chicken Legs!”

  “Oh, yeah?” He jumped up, cleared his pockets, threw his cell phone down, and raced after her. Her feet were already in the water. She walked backward and wriggled her fingers at him, daring him to catch her.

  He ran in and tackled her the same way she had tackled him. They were at waist level in the water now. They both popped their heads out of the water and laughed.

  Becky splashed some water in his face. “You wear the same clothes, eat the same food, and go to bed at the same time every night. Even your birthday cake is plain.”

  Danny never liked change. “At least I don’t forget to shave my hairy legs.”

  Becky smirked. “You shave your legs?”

  “Not me!” Danny splashed water back at her. “You!” Her drenched hair lay straight down behind her. Her eyes sparkled in the reflection of the water. Her shirt was snug against her body, showing her shapely form.

  She pursed her lips and batted her eyes. “Leave my legs out of this. What did they ever do to you?” She cleared her throat and moved in closer to him. “Maybe one day things will be different.”

  I knew wishes were worthless.

  “We should head back inside,” Becky said, staring up at the sky. “It looks like there’s a storm coming.”

  Danny agreed, when he noticed the sky had darkened and a distant roar bellowed from the ocean. They stepped out of the water and headed back up the beach toward the deck. He opened the sliding glass door when they got there, and let Becky in first.

  “Put on a smile and let’s have some fun, Danny.”

  “Sure. What else am I going to do with my boring life?”

  “Happy birthday, Danny.”

  HALF OF the birthday cake was gone. It looked lonely and naked sitting on the table with only the word ‘Happy’ left stranded across the top half. Danny’s friends danced around the room to loud techno music with paper plates full of cake crumbs. A few of them gulped down cans of beer.

  “Hey, girl,” Marc said to Becky. “I see you got your man.”

 
Becky looked at Danny and mouthed I’m sorry. “I think you’ve had too much to drink, Marc. Kevin is my boyfriend.”

  Marc winked at Danny. “This is club soda,” he said, holding up his red plastic cup. “It doesn’t take beer goggles to see that you two are wet for each other.” He clicked his tongue and turned around. “Time to get my dance on!”

  Danny couldn’t move. He didn’t realize anyone knew how he felt about Becky. It didn’t help that they were the only two people soaking wet. If word got out to Kevin then there would be trouble.

  “I’m going to dry off and see if I can find other clothes for us,” Becky said. She reached behind her and grabbed her hair then wringed it like a wet towel. Water splashed all over the floor. “And I’ll get a mop.” She smiled and headed for another room.

  Danny watched her walk away and imagined what it would be like if they were together. Kevin always took her to fast food restaurants and movies, and got her roses on her birthday. But those weren’t things Becky liked. She liked the fresh scent of yellow carnations. She always wanted to go to a rock concert and jam with the group backstage. Her favorite food was mint chocolate chip ice cream.

  “Hey, Lover Boy,” someone said.

  Danny turned to see Marc standing in front of him again. He had a devilish smile on his face and shook his head. “You’ve got it bad.”

  Marc pointed to the front room by the door. “Some scary old guy is asking for you. His nails are dirty, and his hair is a jungle. But I’m not one to judge.” He swayed his shoulders from side to side and snapped his fingers when the music changed. “That’s my song!”

  Danny stepped through the crowd. Several guys fist pumped him and wished him, “Happy birthday!” He didn’t really know most of the kids at the party. Becky had probably convinced them to come for the beer. Truth was, he only had a handful of friends, and they came from both sides of the spectrum.

  “Can I help you?” Danny said when he entered the front room. An old man in a trench coat faced the door. He carried a top hat in his right hand. He was the tallest man Danny had ever seen. The guy’s head nearly touched the ceiling.

  Danny lost his breath when the man turned around. His face was a mask of grooves and pock marks. His eyes were pitch black.

  “Hello, Alexandros Helen.” His voice was the deepest Danny had ever heard. It echoed through the room like thunder.

  Danny swallowed hard. His stomach churned. He had no idea who Alexandros Helen was. “You have me confused with someone else,” he heard himself say in a raspy whisper. “My name is Danny Neumann.”

  The man threw his head back and laughed. His chortles bounced off the walls like a drum solo. “Neumann? That’s what they told you?”

  Danny tried to breathe at an even pace. He wanted to run but somehow knew this man would never let him get away. “I need to get back to my party.”

  The old man shook his head and widened his eyes. “It’s a shame your parents aren’t alive to see this.”

  Danny stopped breathing. He saw his parents just a few hours ago. They couldn’t be dead. “What are you saying? Who are you?”

  “You can call me Ty.” He put his hat on and stepped toward Danny. “I’ve waited sixteen years for this. It’s time for the last descendant to die.”

  Ty reached out, extending long, bony, filthy fingers.

  Danny flinched.

  He felt a surge of energy build as his body tightened, and his fingers clawed into his palms. He yelled and threw his hands out to release the energy. A ball of light shot out from his hands and slammed into Ty’s body.

  The old man was thrown back and crashed into the wall. He slumped and fell face-first.

  Danny stared at his hands. He turned them over and flexed them, studying the appendages like he had never seen them before. He had no idea what just happened. He felt stronger than he ever had. Invincible.

  Ty stood back up and glared at him. His eyes seemed to move from side to side like he was confused. He cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders back. “I will defeat you.”

  “What’s going on in here?” Marc called out as he stepped into the room. “It sounds like all hell broke loose.”

  Danny held out his hands for Marc to stay where he was. He turned to protect him from Ty, but the old man was gone. The front door was wide open, and the dark, rainy night stared back at him.

  “Everything okay?” Marc asked.

  Danny panicked when he patted his pockets and realized he had left his phone on the beach. He raced over to Marc. “Give me your phone.”

  Marc stared at him. “Seriously? Where are your manners?”

  Danny jammed his hand into Marc’s pocket and yanked the phone out. There wasn’t any time to explain.

  Marc put his hands up. “Okay, that’s new. I thought you were playing for the other team.”

  Danny dialed his home phone number. His parents couldn’t be dead. The old man was trying to scare him for some reason. The phone rang and rang. “Please pick up. Please pick up.” He hands trembled.

  Becky stood next to Marc. “What’s going on?”

  “I think he’s mad we ate his cake.”

  Danny threw the phone back to Marc. It bounced off his chest and fell to the floor. “I need your car right now, Becky.”

  “Okay. Calm down.” She stepped up to him and cupped his hands. “You’re shaking. I’ve never seen you like this. What’s wrong?”

  “My parents are in trouble.”

  Becky searched his eyes then snagged her purse. “Let’s go.”

  CHAPTER 2

  NO STEROIDS NEEDED

  KEVIN SKINNER lay on the Olympic weight bench, sucked in as much air as he could, and grabbed the barbell above him in a wide overhand grip. He pressed up in an attempt to bench two hundred and thirty pounds for the first time. His personal best was two hundred and twenty. He grunted and strained, but the bar wouldn’t move.

  “Frickin A!”

  He let go of the bar and rested on the bench for a minute. He had reached his natural potential. Three months ago he lay here and could barely press the forty-five pound bar by itself. He hated his former weak pathetic scrawny self at one hundred and thirty pounds. Now he was one hundred and sixty-five pounds of Grade A muscle.

  Kevin didn’t have time for anyone who didn’t try to build the best body they could. Those kinds of people didn’t have enough respect for themselves. People like Danny Neumann. Sure, Danny was a good guy, and they’d had good times together, but he would always be a pathetic loser. He could have asked Becky out, but Kevin liked her, too. Danny should have asked.

  Kevin sat up and flexed his chest. Who’s the man? I’m the man!

  “You’ll get it next time,” Susan said. Kevin had invited her over to watch him workout in his garage. She purred and ran a hand over his rippled chest.

  Kevin grasped her arm and pulled her onto his lap. He kissed her deeply. Sure, every guy at school had been with her, but she had one smoking body with her long legs and double D chest. The old Kevin could never get a girl like this. The new improved Kevin could get everything he deserved.

  “Bet your girlfriend never let you do this.” She put his hand on her chest. Second base! “You like that, don’t you?”

  Kevin pulled her in closer. She was right. Becky barely let him get past first base. She was always so obsessed about being a proper lady. The new Kevin deserved more than a boring relationship like that. But he would never let Becky go. It was only right to keep a beautiful girl like her away from a pathetic loser like Danny.

  The garage door opened. Darkness and water seeped in.

  Kevin reached over to the garage remote and pressed the button to close the door. It wouldn’t respond. As the door rose he thought he could see a body on the other side standing there, waiting for him.

  An old man stared back at him when the door was fully raised. He was a mountain of a man and the ugliest Kevin had ever seen. Water splashed all over the concrete when he took two steps into the garage.


  “I can make you stronger,” the old man said.

  “I didn’t think you’d ever get here,” Kevin replied. Joe, the biggest kid at school, said he’d hook him up with a good steroid dealer. He’d been waiting for 2 weeks and had more than a thousand dollars set aside for this.

  Kevin pushed Susan out of his lap and stood. “Get out of here,” he said to her.

  “But it’s raining!”

  “Get out of here!”

  Susan slapped him and ran out of the garage. “Don’t ever call me again!”

  The garage door closed as soon as she ran out. Kevin looked at the remote in his hand. He hadn’t pressed it.

  “I don’t want a limp noodle or big boobs,” Kevin said. One of the guys at school got a limp noodle from Deca and another got big boobs from D-bol. Kevin just wanted something to make him bigger and stronger without any side effects.

  The old man cracked his neck. Water crept down his long gray hair and splashed in little drops on the floor. “Alexandros Helen must die.”

  Kevin froze. What the hell was the old guy talking about? He had to be crazy, and must’ve wandered from off the streets. “Joe didn’t send you, did he?”

  The old man stared at him like an ant. “Alexandros doesn’t know who he is yet. He can’t control his powers.”

  Kevin snatched a dumbbell bar off the floor and took a wide stance. “I don’t know who Alexandros is, and I don’t know who you are. But if you don’t get out of here, I’m going to kick your ass.”

  The man laughed. “Alexandros calls himself Danny Neumann. You can call me Ty.”

  Kevin loosened his grip on the dumbbell bar. What did Danny have to do with this? What the hell was going on here?

  “He tried to hurt me, but he only made me stronger,” Ty said. He shot an arm out toward Kevin and tightened his fist.

  Kevin couldn’t breathe. He felt like his throat was being crushed. His feet lifted off the floor like he was floating. He could see the old man was lower than him now.