This year I am working on a story called Bob vs. The Alien Slug Monsters. Instead of an outline I have a basic list of plot points I want to cover between meeting Bob and sending him off to fight the king of the slugs. There is more of a cast of characters than an actual outline, so we will see how the story develops. And with that intro we continue with Bob Versus the Alien Slug Monsters…
Day 24: Bob reached the front corner of the building.
Bob reached the front corner of the building. He peered around. The front parking lot was empty. Not a single car was around. It was an eerie sight to see it so empty. Usually when he visited there were not enough spaces. It wasn’t a large lot.
Trees were planted around the lot making it seem far more private. Bob wasn’t sure if the land near the retirement community was part of the failed redevelopment scheme or if it was just left to grow wild on it’s own. It did shield even the larger buildings from the street and town. Despite being located on a bit of a rise, if you looked towards the community then you would just see the road curving off into the forest. You would have no idea the community was there if you didn’t know.
‘But it also means I can see the town from here.’
Knowing he needed more information, Bob took a deep breath and left the shadows by the side of the building. ‘Its just a parking lot,’ he told himself. ‘I’m not doing anything clandestine.’
Still it felt strange. ‘Everything feels strange today,’ he decided.
Bob crossed the parking lot and reached the trees. From thee he could see the road. Unfortunately that didn’t help him. The road leaving Centerville and heading towards the home curved before it reached the main buildings. Trees were planted on the other side of the road as well and he couldn’t see town. He did know that this road was an often used access road and it seemed strange there were no cars on it. While it could be used to get to the retirement community, it also served as a loop. If you wanted to get from one side of town to the other without using service streets in town, you could shave off a few minutes and not have to turn in town by using the road. It was their own little bypass and it was rare not to see it in use.
‘But I still can’t see anything from here.’ Knowing he needed more information before he set off any alarms, he left the cover of the trees and walked down the road. Not only was the road often a busy one, the lack of stoplights cause people to speed down it. There was no side walk and Bob debated whether sticking to the side of the road or walking down it’s center was a better option should anyone come racing past.
Given the emptiness, he thought the center was fine, but he simply couldn’t make himself walk down the center of it. He had too many voices in the back of his mind telling him not to walk in the middle of the road for him to ignore. He moved to the edge of the road and began walking towards the curve.
‘Herman said the road was out,’ Bob told himself. ‘That could be why the street is empty. No one can take the bypass and they are just using the intown surface roads.’ As he walked Bob tried to picture what could have taken out the road. They hadn’t had a massive rain lately so the odds of flooding were slim.
‘And that also knocks out being washed out,’ he thought. Bob’s thoughts turned back to the bridge. Eddie was adamant that he hadn’t blown it up. ‘He did admit to the misplaced charge.’
Bob frowned. That was the thing with Eddie. He did strange things with explosives, but he always owned up to what he did.
Ten til Midnight 