Molly had loved her life. Money almost seemed to seek out and find them. Friends envied their high-rise apartment. The future looked as bright as the sun on a clear day. Then Mark had become paranoid and abusive. It was only a matter of time before he killed her. She pulled the trigger.

The man on the bed barely moved. He just went from sleeping to dead.

Molly needed a few seconds to gather herself. After all, it wasn’t every day that she murdered her husband. Once the nerves settled to a manageable level, she would place the gun next to him and scream. Then she would run out of the apartment crying that her husband had shot himself.

A second before she was going to place the gun, she heard someone clear their throat and turned to see a man in the open doorway. Doctor Phillips, a balding shrink who lived down the hall, looked at her dead husband and grinned. How could he make such an expression right now? Why had she had not heard him come in? Had the ringing in her ears from the gun blast been that loud?

Doctor Phillips surprised her further. "I’m going to help you, Molly."

"What?"

"Just stand there, and I’ll take care of everything."

Footsteps clambered from the hall, bringing panic that nearly paralyzed her mind. Helplessness ruled her while someone ran through her apartment into her room.

Joe Ramsey, a tax lawyer, who also lived on their floor, looked at Doctor Phillips. "I heard a gunshot." He looked at the corpse, looked at Molly, and said, "Oh."

Joe, a strong-spirited man, would no doubt take action. Doctor Phillips spoke before he could.

"Not to worry, number seven. You remember seeing that masked man run down the hall, holding the very gun Molly is holding right now? He was of average height, but burly."

Joe stared at the doctor and kind of winced, like he thought a mad man stood before him. Then his countenance changed, as if he had just figured something out.

"Yeah," Joe said. "I remember that."

"Well," said the doctor. "He’s long gone now. Why don’t you go back to your apartment and wait for the police to arrive."

Joe hesitated, then said, "Yeah, that’s a good idea." He walked out, shaking his head.

The doctor’s smile gave Molly a sense of relief mixed with apprehensive confusion. "He’ll come around even more once the suggestions have had time to set in."

Seconds later, a woman came into the room. Felicity Bower, a surgeon who lived two doors down, gasped at the sight of Mark.

"Yes, number five," said Doctor Phillips. "You remember when you were walking through the parking garage last week and witnessed Mark being accosted by a man who threatened to kill him? You didn’t get a good look at the man’s face, but you noted that he was of average height and burly."

Felicity reacted in about the same way as Joe, except she took a little longer to come around to the realization. "Yes, I remember. That must be who shot Mark."

The doctor looked as if in thought. "It seems likely."

Other people came in and talked with Doctor Phillips. It was the same every time. The doctor would call them a number and then mention a memory kind of like it was a question. The person would always come around.

Doctor Phillips and Molly finally went to his apartment and waited.

"The police will be here soon," Doctor Phillips said. "I trust you’ve got the story down by now."

She nodded. The fearful parts of her mind couldn’t compete with a sense of relief. The abuse was finished, and it looked as if she would be consequence free.

"Thank you," she said.

Doctor Phillips smirked. "No. Thank you, my dear."

His words caught her off guard. Why he would thank her? She waited for elaboration that didn’t come. The doctor just went to a liquor cabinet and poured himself a drink.

"What do you mean?" she finally asked.

He stirred the beverage in his hand. "Your husband was a peaceful man. Never once hurt a soul, but he did make the mistake of confiding too much in the friendly shrink down the hall."

Doctor Phillips had called Mark a peaceful man, but Molly remembered otherwise. She whispered, "He hurt me."

Doctor Phillips chuckled. "No, he loved you very much. He told me about six months ago that he had taken out a huge life insurance policy, for which you are the sole benefactor. Of course, that would have been negated in the event of you being convicted of murder, or in the case of you successfully making it look like a suicide."

Thoughts seemed to move too fast. Tears formed and fell down her face. He was lying. He had to be. Mark hadn’t taken out life insurance. "No. He’d gone mad. He’d hit me. I killed him to protect myself."

The doctor laughed. "Did he hit you, or is that just what you remember?"

Molly tried to stop her spinning thoughts to focus. Had she missed something? She’d witnessed what Doctor Phillips could do, but at the same time, her memories were vivid and clear.

The doctor looked hard at her. "He told you about the policy, you know. It’s just that I helped you forget." He grinned. "Now you’ll receive that money and all else Mark has earned. You’ll fall in love with me, and we’ll get married. Then you’ll become depressed and commit suicide in a very public manner, but not before leaving all you have to me."

The memory of dropping the gun to the floor entered her mind. Could she get to it now? The doctor spoke before she could make her move.

"Enough of this sadistic baiting. You should be ready when the police get here. Isn’t that right, hypnosis subject number one. You remember . . ."

"Remember"
Copyright: © 2010 Joshua Scribner

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Joshua Scribner is the author of the novels Mantis Nights, The Coma Lights and Nescata. His fiction won both second and fifth place in the 2008 Whispering Spirits Flash Fiction contest. Up to date information on his work can be found at joshuascribner.com. Joshua currently lives in Michigan with his wife and two daughters.

“Are you sure we can trust him?” asked the dwarf called Wyatt.

“Yes, I walked with him to meet you,” replied the dwarf called Yan. “We traveled a dangerous route, and what is in his pocket drove many creatures away.”

“Yes, but the path to the Sword of Light is the most treacherous in the world.”

“You speak the truth, but we must press on. We must have the sword or our kind will forever hide underground, and our children will never dwell in the light.”

They both watched ahead, where the the dwarf called Gard boldly entered the forest.

Wyatt stopped Yan. “Why does he not show us what he has?”

Yan raised a finger and spoke pedantically. “The wizard who gave it to him has not even laid eyes on it. It endangers all who stare at it, except for the wielder. Now, let’s not get far from him. The forest is too dangerous without his protection.”

They followed Gard into the woods. Within minutes, growls came from their side, and there was rustling in the trees.

“Avert your eyes!” shouted Gard back to them.

They did.

The growling and rustling continued, until it sounded as if an attack was imminent. Then there was the yelping of large dogs, followed by the sounds of retreat.

“You may look now,” said Gard.

They did. Gard, who had never been admired and had been mocked when he set out on a quest to find magic to save the dwarves, turned resolutely and moved swiftly. They followed.

More creatures attacked in the forest, and they too were repelled. Each time, Wyatt and Yan waited with their eyes closed.

Then they were onto a lake, where they found a floating log. They found sticks, and Wyatt and Yan paddled as Gard sat still at the log’s front.

A creature showed itself. Its scaly body moved in curls in and out of the water.

“Avert your eyes!” commanded Gard. “I will deal with the giant snake!”

They obeyed. Seconds later, the creature screamed as if in pain or great fear. They were left bobbing, gripping to the log in the creature’s wake.

“Open your eyes,” said Gard, and they did.

There were more vile monsters to be driven away in the lake, then they were onto Stone Mountain.

“I am afraid,” said Wyatt. “There is only one type of entity that lives here, and the only thing it fears is a certain dragon, and I’m sure Gard doesn’t have that in his pocket.”

“But he has been true to this point, and we must have the sword.”

They moved upward, and then the part of the mountain they were on shook. They hung on, and when the rumbling ceased, a massive creature glared down at them.

Gard didn’t have to tell them to close their eyes this time. It was a natural reaction to a stone monster’s attack.

The stone monster’s guttural sound may have been the most frightened they’d heard yet. When the scream was gone and the surface of the mountain no longer shook, they were left with the sound of Gard’s gloating.

“Run, you coward! Run and tell all your friends that dwarves will soon rule the world!”

They reached the peak of the mountain and started down the other side. What was next was a level field of grass. Across the field stood the tower that contained the sword.

“According to legend, there is only one beast left,” said Yan.

“Yes, the one even stone monsters fear.”

“They say it has diamond claws and diamond teeth to cut through the stone.”

“Yes. I’ve heard the legends. They say it even . . .”

Wyatt stopped. It all made sense now.

“Where did you get them!” he shouted at Gard. “Who was the wizard?”

Gard stopped. He looked back at them with a bold expression. “His name was Likehearst.”

“Likehearst! You fool! He’s an enemy of dwarves.”

“He told me he has changed his ways. And hasn’t that been proven? Have I not thwarted all attacks?”

Wyatt laughed, but he wasn’t overjoyed. “Tell me, are they diamonds? Are they oval shaped? If you look closely at them, can you see a tiny speck in their center?”

Just then, Gard turned from them. He brought something from his pocket, inspected it for a few seconds then returned it to the keeping place.

“How did you know?”

Just then, there was a mighty roar, and a beast came from the tower.

Wyatt laughed once more and said, “The dragon lays diamond eggs. No creature would dare risk harming them, and no wise creature would be caught with them in his possession.”

Gard actually turned and showed them to the beast. It didn’t turn back.

.

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"Inside Gard's Pocket"
Copyright: © 2009 Joshua Scribner

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Joshua Scribner is the author of the forthcoming Mantis series, as well as the novels The Coma Lights and Nescata. He's published over 100 pieces of short fiction. Up to date information of his work can be found at joshuascribner.com