The Guardian

Asher felt the blood running down his face as his feet pounded the sunbaked pavement: he needed a way out. Just up ahead, he noticed a small opening in the barbed wire fence to his left. He looked quickly behind him before tossing his hiking bag over and attempting to squeeze through, the group of men chasing him close behind. He could hear them hooting and hollering as they closed in on him. He realized he could smell whiskey; it permeated the air as they came closer. Panicking, he tried to push through the fence, but his shirt caught on a rogue wire. No, please no. He thrashed desperately to free himself, but it was already too late. The biggest grabbed his foot and yanked Asher across the sharp gravel. “Got you now!” he hissed, spittle forming at the corner of his mouth, yellow teeth bared. The other three men formed a half-circle around Asher’s crumpled figure. “You think you’re better than us, huh? You don't gotta work for your money?” he mocked, disdain in his voice.

“Begging for it. Just get a job!” The smallest, a squirrely guy gestured towards the gang of men. “Lazy, greasy bum.” Suddenly, Asher felt a swift kick to his ribs, followed by an audible crunch as his glasses were smashed next to his head. The wind rushed from his lungs, and he barely had time to gasp as blow after blow landed. The voices began to fade in and out, Asher’s consciousness slowly slipping away.

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“Oh man….just get outta here!” Asher slowly opened his eyes as he came to, his head pounding. He heard the group of men panicking amongst themselves and the rhythmic thump of shoes on the pavement as the men left him in the middle of the empty backroad. he looked to his right where his pack sat, and saw to his surprise, the outline of a small bird of brown and white standing near the opening in the fence staring at him, its eyes dark. Just as soon as it was there, Asher blinked, and it was gone. Strange. Soon, the footfalls belonging to his attackers grew faint as they scurried off, and Asher breathed a sigh of relief. He grabbed his maimed glasses and slowly stood back up, the pain in his ribs now very apparent. Inspecting them, he saw that one lens was still intact, and popped the shattered one out. One eye is better than none, he thought. Hobbling back over to the gap in the barbed wire he carefully slipped through to grab his pack, being mindful to avoid the snags. It was now dusk, the sky covered in ominous dark clouds. Just as soon as he got situated, he began to feel tiny droplets hit his forehead as a low rumble rolled across the pinkish-grey horizon. Asher sighed, just my luck. limping into the cornfield to his right for some sort of cover, he knew he had to find shelter soon or risk the last of his belongings getting soaked. He couldn't afford that. For that matter, he couldn't afford anything. Ever since his drunk-for-a-dad kicked him out at sixteen eight months ago, he'd just been trying to survive from town to town. Some people were nice, often welcoming, but some, like here in Wellspring were the opposite. He tried to find the means to leave but look where it got him.

Moving deeper into the field, he began to see a tall, weathered building that looked to once be white that he didn't see before. Probably a barn, he thought. Perfect! The crunch of dead stalks under his feet and the swish of his bag and canteen were the only noise to accompany his thoughts as he moved through the field. Finally letting his guard down, he stopped to wipe the blood from his cheek and quickly bent to tie his loosened shoe. Suddenly, he heard a rustling to his right and saw a streak of brown and white swoop toward the building. Hey! There it is. He honestly thought he was just concussed when he saw it near the fence before. It let out a screech as it circled near the entrance. Following close behind, he made it to the clearing where the barn sat and approached as it flew inside. By this time, it was getting dark, so he rustled around in his pack to find his lantern and matches, lighting it and casting a soft glow inside the barn. Setting it down on an upturned bucket, he surveyed his surroundings. Bales of hay littered the floor, although they seemed to be old and abandoned, and old farming tools hung loosely on the wall, casting sharp, ominous shadows across the slat walls. Looking up he, pushed his dark hair out of his eyes and saw his friend whom he now recognized as a barn owl, sitting on a rafter and watching him curiously with glittering black eyes.

"Hey there, fella." he spoke softly, afraid to spook it. "Just here for the night, don't worry." he settled down on a bale and gently pulled a pack of tuna out of his bag, eating it slowly as to avoid aggravating his now loosened teeth. After finishing what he could of his food, he set out a bit of it for his roommate, hoping to earn its good graces. By this point, the pain in his ribs was becoming unbearable and he lifted his shirt, noting a large, purple bruise on his abdomen. I guess I'll sleep it off and see how it feels tomorrow. "Have a good night," he called to his friend, settling against the bale and closing his eyes.

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Asher woke up in a cold sweat, his body somehow numb, and breathing heavily. Trying to reach his pack, he just didn't have the energy, as his abdomen seemed to be on fire, and he couldn't move. "Help..." he croaked in a whisper. "I need help!" He mustered up the last of his energy to call out. In response, the owl let out a deafening screech, swooping out of the door in a flurry. "No, please come back..." he whispered. He knew something was seriously wrong, but he didn't think it was that serious before. Asher began to slip in and out of consciousness, dreaming of the flurry of brown and white wings and echoing screeches.

Waking momentarily, Asher saw wobbly beams of light pierce the darkness, harrowed voices cutting through his consciousness.

"Over here, Betts!" He saw a middle-aged man with a burly beard approach in the darkness, as his lantern had burned out. "God, you're in a bad way...good thing she found you." He motioned towards the bird above. He then gently leaned down towards him, setting his hand on Asher's shoulder. "Can you go call an ambulance, and fast?" He hollered behind him towards a woman who Asher assumed was Betts, and she swiftly made her way out of sight. He sighed in disbelief. "You're safe now, don't worry. You're lucky Mouse over there let us know you were here. She just wouldn't stop screechin' outside our window" he gestured above them, Mouse giving a small screech of what Asher assumed was pride.

"Thank you..." Asher managed to croak out, as the man, whose name he learned was Tom sat with him. After what seemed like an eternity, blue and red lights flashed harshly against the darkness, and his rescuers swirled around him as he lost consciousness once more.

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His mouth was so dry. Opening his eyes, he took in the brightness of the hospital room.

"Asher! You're awake!" The woman from last night, Betts sat in a chair to his left, reading a cheesy romance. "I'm so glad you're okay. Tom couldn't make it today, he had to feed the livestock. But he sends his prayers your way." She stood and poured him some water, holding it out to his cracked lips. "You had some pretty bad internal bleeding there. Just an hour and you wouldn't have made it. Good thing Mouse let us know. We found her and raised her from a baby, and she decided to stick around. Now, she lives in the old barn and always lets us know when there's trouble." She set the cup on a table and looked at him seriously. "Can you tell me who did this to you?" Asher cleared his throat, trying to gather his voice.

"Four men....smelled like whiskey. There was...a larger one and three smaller guys." He whispered hoarsely. A shadow crossed over her face as the recognition hit her. "I know exactly who did this. I'll take care of it with the Sheriff, you can give him your statement later when you are feeling better. You won't have to worry about those men anymore." She stood up, gathering her composure. "Tom and I talked for a while last night, and we would like you to think about staying with us when you're released. I know we're practically strangers, but we can give you a new start. We'd love to help you."

"Really?" Asher squeaked, dumbfounded. "I don't want to impose!" he didn't know what to say. Betts smiled. "I had the Sherriff look into you, and it seems before you dropped out because of family issues, you were an honors student! We'll even get you registered for Junior year so you can finish out strong. Just think about it." With that, she walked towards the door and turned around. "Mouse seems to like you too," she smiled, gesturing towards the hospital window. Outside on the narrow ledge sat Mouse, his head cocked in curiosity. Asher smiled as Mouse gave the window a "tap" with his beak, before letting out a screech and flying off towards home.