Kali's Story (Not the official title!)

“Master of puppets I’m pulling your strings, something, something… Oh shit!”
Kali pulled the steering wheel of her sports car hard to the right and slammed on the brakes. She shoved the car in park, killed the engine, and got out of the car. “What the hell dude? I almost hit you.” Her voice squeaked.
“You really need to chill,” a voice from the front of the silver two-door car, said.
“Chill? You just ran out in front of my fucking car! I could have killed you.” Kali’s voice began to regain strength.
“Well, if you wouldn’t ignore me, I wouldn’t stoop to such measures.”
Kali stepped around her door and looked down on the individual speaking. A large brown and grey jack rabbit with short ears that appeared to have been eaten at stood looking up at her. Smoothing her long bangs back to their place behind her ear, Kali said, “Shit Samuel, I’ve got other shit to do then answer your every call.”
“You know I only call if it’s important. Besides, Diane received the email we’ve been expecting and you haven’t responded to her either.” Samuel was sitting on his hindquarters straightening his fur as he spoke.
“I didn’t get a call from her.” Kali’s eyes darted across the street.
“Yes you have. You’re the worse liar I’ve ever met. Listen; meet me at Diane’s tomorrow, or else…”
“Or else what? I end up with a fate worse than those I put away?” Kali’s eyes rolled up.
“Be there,” Samuel warned as he hopped across the road, shifting from rabbit to cat.
“Damn Lepun!” Kali got back into her car, cranked up her Metallica CD and sped off.
“What was I even doing this road?” She asked herself as she noticed she was far from her normal hangouts. The road was at least ten miles outside of town, nearing the outskirts of Mansfield even. She busted a u-turn and headed back to town.

Kali could not help that Samuel showed up tonight. He actually had been showing up a lot lately. Her family thought he was just friendly stray cat but he was a nuisance. His presence always meant Kali had work to do that only Diane and Niamh would understand. They were there when she got this stupid job. She put away the bad guys. Niamh nicknamed her “God Spawn” because of her prior obsession with the Spawn series on HBO.
Now those days were long passed. The glory was gone. Now it felt like any other job, tedious, interfering with other wants, like to sit on a beach and it not be to watch for sharks. She luckily finished her bachelor’s degree before all this came crashing down on her.
Kali maneuvered her car into the parking lot of the Waffle House. A tall blond man sat in the booth in the corner. His wire-framed glasses kept slipping down his nose.
“Over here!” He exclaimed upon noticing her walk in the door.
He looked at Kali as she moseyed over. Her 5’4” frame was all torso it seemed; breasts, waist, hips. She had legs, but they were nothing compared with the rest! Kali was “thick,” as his friends said, but she had a perfect hourglass shape. Well… her boobs could be bigger, but that brain of hers made up for it.
“Hey Myth! How’s it going?”
“Heard you got a bit lost this evening.” Myth’s grin was more shit eating than not.
“Shut up. What did he tell you?”
“What you havin’ hun?” An older woman with permed hair and too much perfume and make-up asked.
“Coffee, black, and a waffle.” Kali sipped on the water Myth had passed her prior to the waitress’s appearance.
The waitress walked off, occasionally looking back at the two who showed up in that booth periodically.
“Not much, just we might have a lead on Mr. Carter, as Samuel calls him. I prefer ‘dumbass.’” Myth said.
“I prefer ‘douche.’”
Kali snickered as her coffee arrived.
“Whatever dude. All I know now is things are getting nuts. Will you be coming by later?” Myth’s face lit up.
“I don’t know… hmmm” Kali grinned.
Diane walked into the Waffle House. “Hey!”
Diane’s blond hair was to her waist. She was built like a short opera singer but walked in her pink stilettos like a runway model. The waitress rolled her eyes as Diane walked to the booth.
“Seriously, why is it always booth 13? You guys are so weird!” Diane flipped her hair over her shoulder.
“Says the woman who tracks squirrel for me!” Kali joked.
Diane and Kali met at the University of Texas – Arlington in a German class. “Finkst dien en Knie!” Diane shouted and the entire restaurant turned and stared.
“That’s my job!” Kali replied. “Where’s Niamh?”i
“Ich weise nicht.”
“Shieβe!”
“Enough of the German guys!” Myth knew Spanish, not German.
“Ich habe durchfall!” Kali and Diane shouted simultaneously.
“Lawdy!” Myth could not believe these two!

The food finally arrived and no business was discussed. The group decided they would meet up at Myth’s place for that. Myth’s place was not too far from the Waffle House. His apartment was about 3-4 miles north of the restaurant near River Legacy Park in North Arlington. The group paid their tabs and drove in convoy formation to Myth’s pad, Myth in the lead in his blue sedan, followed by Diane in a maroon BMW, then Kali in her silver Acura Integra. A person on the sidewalk would hear something like “I’m different, random, puppets” as they passed by, with music blasting loudly, all three with their windows down on the temperate evening.
Myth made a sharp left on Green Oaks and Diane and Kali followed suit, Kali being the most cautious of the three. They quickly turned into a poorly lit parking area in a nicer apartment complex with lots of trees and animal sounds coming from the park near the complex. Myth parked in a covered parking area directly in front of his apartment, the girls parked nearby in unmarked parking spots, making sure to lock their cars and secure any valuables. They marched single file up to his third floor apartment. Myth opened the door to a sweet “meow” of a small black cat with a pink sparkly collar.
“Well hello Spit!” Myth said.
“Look who’s up to greet us!” Diane exclaimed.
“I see.” Kali rolled her eyes. As much as she loved the cat, and honestly could not live without her, she sometimes tired of Diane’s enthusiasm.
The trio walked in, making sure not to let the little black cat out the door. As they walked through the door and through the front hall, they passed a Van Gogh print of “Starry Night” and an ancient mirror discolored with age. As they entered the living room, Diane was in awe of Myth’s latest creation. He regularly covered a wall in a large canvas and painted it with a mixture of spray paint and tempra paint. This time it was a street tag of the word “mYth” (as he liked to write it) barely legible unless you knew his style of tagging. It was in shades of blue and yellow. Across from the tagged wall was a print of Homer Simpson as “The Scream.” On an adjacent wall was a poster with the London Underground symbol above the patio door. At an odd angle next to the patio door’s wall, was the fireplace with a movie poster for Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas above it, perfectly centered and level.