12 Seconds Short of Eternity

12 Seconds Short of Eternity Ch. 2

Padded feet made no noise, as her body moved with deliberate silence across the bedroom floor. Pausing, she listened with care to the slow and steady breathing of the unsuspecting prey. Crouching, calculating then moving. First from the top of the shoe rack, then onto the cedar chest, finally landing within striking range. Ears pinned back against her head, body coiled, waiting patient, a natural predator.

Lucifer stirred in his sleep, and her forest green eyes narrowed. She found an opening, easing under the disheveled sheet, closer and closer. Her body tensed as she found the warm soft flesh she craved.

Fangs exposed, she leapt onto her target.

The front claws wrapped tight to hold her victim, as teeth closed together on flesh. Her rear claws raking her quarry with razor sharp nails again, and again, and again.

Lucifer continued to awaken as the sunlight crept between his eyelids. He moved his arms and shifted his feet. He began to stir, then stopped and yelled in pain as he flipped aside the sheet.

"Nibbles! Stop that!" He shouted at the overweight cat gripping his foot. The all white feline looked up at its owner, a pinkie toe was still in its mouth. With a quickness, she released him and jumped away to the other side of the bed. She stopped, and began to walk across the mattress, gliding with purpose. Her eyes glowing with satisfaction that the kill was a success.

Lucifer patted the pillow next to him and called out to her, "Puss, puss, puss."

Nibbles walked up and plopped down on the pillow beside him. She flexed her paws against his shoulder. The translucent ends of the claws lightly pricked at his nightshirt as she made air biscuits.

He lay there a few more moments, petting his chubby kitty. He looked at the little flecks of dust swirling in the sunbeams that pass through the bedroom window. In what appeared to be a calm air, they moved on the faintest of breezes, as if alive.

Stretching from head to toe, then tossing aside the sheets, he sat up and rubbed his empty stomach. Carnaval and the others would be here soon, but he couldn't wait that long to eat. Pulling off his nightshirt, he slid into a pair of canvas colored britches, and a light green tunic. He then shuffled off to the kitchen.

Spying a flat wicker basket that sat upon a small table in the kitchen, he picked up a large red apple. Picked fresh the day before from Michael's orchards, he won it at cards last night. Lucifer took wide, deep bites. He continued to munch as he went out the back door to relieve his bladder behind the bushes ringing his yard.

Too much wine and not enough meat, he thought as he began untying the drawstring holding up his pants. A slight crackling sound caught his ears as he realized his britches weren't moving. He struggled with an urgency as his kidneys threatened to release at any second. The cotton fibers had transformed to solid granite and were not going to budge.

"Arrrrrrrcaaaaaaade!!!" Lucifer yelled in frustration as he rocked back and forth like a waddling penguin. Attempting to somehow slide the stone pants off and allow nature to take its course.

His actions had now caused him to lose his balance in the unyielding rock clothing. With each movement the legs of the stiff stone pants cracked. They made snapping noises like a broom handle breaking yet would not budge. He began to teeter, wobbling to the back, then forward, farther and farther each time. Waving his hands, he tried to maintain his balance, his eyes were wide in alarm. Finally, he stopping swaying, paused at the tipping point as he was about to go all the way over backwards.

Lucifer relaxed and exhaled in relief that he was no longer falling. That little gust of his breath was the difference. He toppled backwards, hands grabbing wildly at the bushes around him as he tried to stop the fall.