Wrapped Up Like a Blog

“What do we do now, Misty?” He asked, roughly tossing the skinny young man in the back of the vehicle next to Dru and hopping into the driver’s seat. Misty was already settled into shotgun and was buckling her seat belt. Thomas turned the ignition and spun the vehicle around on the gravel, knowing only that he wished to be somewhere other than in the presence of the flaming monster. He tried to keep the jeep as steady as he possibly could on the rough terrain. Thomas was well acquainted enough with Misty to know that she had no love for cars under normal circumstances, never mind a life-or-death chase with a—

He whipped his head toward Misty. “What is that thing, anyway?”

“Head for the bridge,” came the response from Jonas. “Those things are always exactly like they are in the book.”

Dru filled in the rest. “And all Ichabod had to do to get away from the Headless Horseman was to cross the bridge.”

“But that’s just a—”

“It’s why they call him the Author, Dom. Now go! Closest bridge.”

By now, Dom had enough experience with the world of the supernatural to have learned a thing or two. He’d witnessed vampires mauling unsuspecting tourists who wandered too deep into the wilds of Southeast Washington. He’d encountered criminals who turned into clay men when smashed on the back of the head. And he knew a mystically-connected detective who must have somehow cast a protection spell upon herself to thus far elude his romantic charms. But even the murders of Reiser and Byrd had not prepared him for this—a being who could summon monsters from literature itself. Thomas suddenly wished he’d paid more attention in his one lit class in college, rather than staring at the curvy brunette in the front row. He had paid attention in Driver’s Ed., though, and demonstrated those skills as he whipped the car into a sharp turn toward Boulder Bridge…

…which they were within shouting distance of, as a fiery explosion erupted a few feet away in their tire tracks.

“Did he throw his head at us? Or was that a pumpkin bomb? Is he the Headless Horseman or the Green Goblin?” Dru was straining to see out the back of the vehicle, cursing Thomas for putting the top up and obscuring their line of sight. In a panic, he was tossing off rapid-fire questions to anyone who would listen.

“A little of both, I think.” The tired voice came from the passenger strapped in next to Dru. “The Author cannot create, but he can combine. And he had Jonny’s comic book collection in his possession for a while. It really fascinated him.”

Now it was Thomas’ turn to be concerned as he looked in the rearview mirror and saw that the galloping ghoul was gaining on them. “So he’s got a Goblin Glider engine in there, too?” At this, Misty shot him a dirty look. “What? I can’t go to the movies?”

“No,” replied Jonas. “That’s in the original story. That monster would be catching up with us as we approach the bridge no matter how fast we were travelling.”

“But in the original story, he didn’t have unlimited—look out!” Dru’s warning came too late, as the glowing pumpkin arced over the top of the vehicle and landed square in their path. The flaming fruit exploded just as the car passed over it, flinging the vehicle up into the air, where it made one full rotation with a twist and landed on its side. Fortunately, all passengers were wearing their seat belts.