from the pile of toys, jumped on the bed, and leaped at Maryann, screeching all the way.
“Mom!” She heard Nate’s voice behind her in the hall.
Maryann held her hands up in front of her and snatched the six-inch tall creature out of the air with her left hand, closing her fist around it firmly. She screamed as sharp pain lanced through her palm. Opening her fingers, she realized that the thing held the tiny sword from Gordie’s Swashbuckling Pirate Play Set. She had closed her hand around the blade; now her palm was sliced open and bleeding. She switched hands, making sure that the sword was positioned above her enclosed fingers.
Nate stood in the door as and stared in horror as the scene unfolded. The creature struggled in his mother’s hand. It raised the sword and plunged the blade repeatedly into her hand as she winced in pain.
He cried, “What do I do, what do I do?”
“Get the sword, get the sword!”
Nate stepped forward and wrestled briefly with the creature, trying to grasp the tiny sword with his fingertips. He finally managed to wrench the sword away.
“Go get a cold, wet towel!”
When Nathan stayed rooted to the spot, transfixed, Maryann shouted, “Nathan, go! ”
He started, then ran upstairs to the bathroom and grabbed the towel off the rack and turned on the “Cold” tap in the sink. As he ran water over the towel he heard his mother screaming.
“You ate Harry P! That’s my child’s pet, you little bipedal rat thing! ”
Leaving the water running in the sink, Nate raced down the stairs.
“Put the towel over it! Quick!”
Nate threw the cold, dripping towel over the thing’s head. Even as Maryann screamed at him to wrap the creature up, he was swaddling the writhing creature, rendering it immobile.
Maryann gasped, sweat running in rivulets down her face. Her hands dripped blood.
“Mom, are you okay?” Nate looked as though he was going to cry.
“I’m okay, I’m okay, see? All I need to do is wash my hands and wrap them up, and I’ll be fine. Could you help me?”
The two of them headed up to the bathroom, Nate still hanging on to the struggling thing in the towel.
Maryann rinsed her trembling hands in the cold water Nate had left running. There were several nasty puncture marks in the webbing between the thumb and forefinger of one hand, the other had one single slash across the palm. There were teeth marks in several places where the creature had bitten her.
Nate held the bottle of peroxide firmly in one hand while Maryann turned the cap. She held her hands over the sink and he dumped the peroxide liberally on them. She inhaled through her teeth at the stinging.
“What is this thing, Mom?” Nate asked.
“I don’t know. It came out of Gordie’s toy box.”
“What are we going to do with it?”
“I’d love to kill the thing, but we’re going to call Animal Control and let them deal with it, because I have no other ideas.”
Nate found some gauze and a couple of rolled bandages; they worked together to get her hands wrapped.
When the Animal Control officers arrived, they managed to get the screeching creature into a cage.
“You’d better make sure that cage door is chained up so that it can’t get out. Because I can almost promise you that it will figure out that simple slide latch. And it’s mean!”
“Where did you find it?” Asked Officer Patel, the younger of the two responders. He didn’t look much older than Nate.
“It came out of my younger son’s toy box,” Maryann told them. She led them to Gordie’s room and showed them the spit, the ashes, the pile of bones, and the tunic under Gordie’s bed.
“That thing roasted my little boy’s hamster on that spit and ate it while he was sleeping in his bed last night,” she said “Then it attacked me when it came sneaking out looking for more. Have you guys ever seen something like this before?”
The two men looked at each other. Officer Dillard, the elder and stouter of the two, said,
“Mom!” She heard Nate’s voice behind her in the hall.
Maryann held her hands up in front of her and snatched the six-inch tall creature out of the air with her left hand, closing her fist around it firmly. She screamed as sharp pain lanced through her palm. Opening her fingers, she realized that the thing held the tiny sword from Gordie’s Swashbuckling Pirate Play Set. She had closed her hand around the blade; now her palm was sliced open and bleeding. She switched hands, making sure that the sword was positioned above her enclosed fingers.
Nate stood in the door as and stared in horror as the scene unfolded. The creature struggled in his mother’s hand. It raised the sword and plunged the blade repeatedly into her hand as she winced in pain.
He cried, “What do I do, what do I do?”
“Get the sword, get the sword!”
Nate stepped forward and wrestled briefly with the creature, trying to grasp the tiny sword with his fingertips. He finally managed to wrench the sword away.
“Go get a cold, wet towel!”
When Nathan stayed rooted to the spot, transfixed, Maryann shouted, “Nathan, go! ”
He started, then ran upstairs to the bathroom and grabbed the towel off the rack and turned on the “Cold” tap in the sink. As he ran water over the towel he heard his mother screaming.
“You ate Harry P! That’s my child’s pet, you little bipedal rat thing! ”
Leaving the water running in the sink, Nate raced down the stairs.
“Put the towel over it! Quick!”
Nate threw the cold, dripping towel over the thing’s head. Even as Maryann screamed at him to wrap the creature up, he was swaddling the writhing creature, rendering it immobile.
Maryann gasped, sweat running in rivulets down her face. Her hands dripped blood.
“Mom, are you okay?” Nate looked as though he was going to cry.
“I’m okay, I’m okay, see? All I need to do is wash my hands and wrap them up, and I’ll be fine. Could you help me?”
The two of them headed up to the bathroom, Nate still hanging on to the struggling thing in the towel.
Maryann rinsed her trembling hands in the cold water Nate had left running. There were several nasty puncture marks in the webbing between the thumb and forefinger of one hand, the other had one single slash across the palm. There were teeth marks in several places where the creature had bitten her.
Nate held the bottle of peroxide firmly in one hand while Maryann turned the cap. She held her hands over the sink and he dumped the peroxide liberally on them. She inhaled through her teeth at the stinging.
“What is this thing, Mom?” Nate asked.
“I don’t know. It came out of Gordie’s toy box.”
“What are we going to do with it?”
“I’d love to kill the thing, but we’re going to call Animal Control and let them deal with it, because I have no other ideas.”
Nate found some gauze and a couple of rolled bandages; they worked together to get her hands wrapped.
When the Animal Control officers arrived, they managed to get the screeching creature into a cage.
“You’d better make sure that cage door is chained up so that it can’t get out. Because I can almost promise you that it will figure out that simple slide latch. And it’s mean!”
“Where did you find it?” Asked Officer Patel, the younger of the two responders. He didn’t look much older than Nate.
“It came out of my younger son’s toy box,” Maryann told them. She led them to Gordie’s room and showed them the spit, the ashes, the pile of bones, and the tunic under Gordie’s bed.
“That thing roasted my little boy’s hamster on that spit and ate it while he was sleeping in his bed last night,” she said “Then it attacked me when it came sneaking out looking for more. Have you guys ever seen something like this before?”
The two men looked at each other. Officer Dillard, the elder and stouter of the two, said,
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