It was a late spring afternoon, and the weather was glorious. Though it had been a bit chilly when he left for work in the morning, the skies were clear, and Emery felt comfortable walking to his office, rather than driving, since it was only a little more than a mile away. 'Hmph,' he thought, 'Just my little way of sticking it to the oil barons.'
Though the day was nice, it got only better when he found out that he had indeed been selected for that promotion he had filed for. Along with a nice little extra chunk of change going to his bank account, he would finally be leaving cubicle city for his own private office. Granted, it was small and had no windows, but it did have the most important thing any office could possibly have: a door. Not that he didn't get on well with his co-workers, but the ability to shut out the insanity of office politics from time to time was a more than welcome addition to his life. 'Indeed,' he thought, 'today is a good day.'
Strolling along, happiness exuding off him in waves for anybody that paid attention to see, Emery casually came to a stop at the lighted intersection that would lead him to his street. Hitting the button to signal his desire to cross, he spent the few minutes as he waited for the light to change taking in the sights around him.
There were many other people walking to and fro, making their own little journeys in life. A few were obviously having the same kind of good day he was having, smiles on their faces, their strides easy and carefree. Others fell into the opposite spectrum, with frowns on their faces and their bodies moving stiffly. Most, though, just droned along, the slightly dazed look of worker bees on their faces, just glad to have survived yet another day of the grind.
Casting his gaze across the street, Emery's eyes were drawn in by an old woman who was also waiting for the light to change. She was small, no more than five feet tall he thought, and slightly hunched over. Her hand gripped tightly to an old, intricately carved cane that was obviously serving its purpose of support. What caught his attention, though, was what she was wearing. She had on a full-length, heavy wool dull-gray dress. The sleeves reached all the way to her wrists, and the skirt ended just below her ankles. It was the kind of garment Emery might expect to see at some old west reenactment, not in the middle of downtown America, USA. To top the whole look off, she had her shoulders snuggly wrapped in a long, heavy shawl.
'God, she must be hot as hell under there,' he thought idly. Just as his mind was about to ponder this further, the little red man across the street changed to green. Emery began crossing, as did the over-dressed woman, both heading toward each other, his pace much faster than hers.
Just as he reached the middle of the intersection, Emery heard a squealing of tires and looked to see a fiery red Camero pull off from its parking spot a few cars down and head straight for the intersection. The fact that the light was red didn't seem to matter very much to whoever was driving, as they quickly picked up speed. With horror dawning on him, Emery realized suddenly that the old woman was right in the car's path. Looking back to her, he saw that she was aware of what was coming, and had started to turn back the way she had come.
'She's never gonna make it,' he thought, a split second before his own feet began moving seemingly of their own volition. Dropping his briefcase, Emery sprinted toward the woman as fast has his legs could take him, ever aware of the red beast looming to his right. 'Hell, I'm not even gonna make it,' his mind concluded rather bluntly as he leapt into the air a couple of feet from the woman. Grasping the woman in both arms as he passed, the now two flying forms tumbled onto the grassy shoulder of the intersection, the car's front fender coming mere inches from their feet as it never bothered to slow down.
Taking ragged, deep breaths, Emery rolled off the woman he had landed on and slowly sat up. Looking to his left, he could see the elderly woman still lying on the ground, having yet to move. 'Shit, I hope I didn't kill her just by landing on her,' he thought darkly. Slowly coming to his feet, he crouched down and gently shook the woman's shoulder, praying to whatever God might exist that she was indeed still alive.
"Hey, uh…Ma'am, uh, you alright?" he asked, his voice shaky and broken.
Finally rolling over, the elderly woman ran a slightly shaky hand through her steely gray hair, but didn't respond. Seeing that she seemed to be moving alright, Emery extended his hand in an offer to help her up. Slowly, she took it. As he helped the woman to her feet, a small crowd of onlookers formed a circle around the two.
"Hey, lady, you okay?" asked a largely over-weight man wearing an entirely-too-tight t-shirt.
"My God! That was the closest call I've ever seen!" proclaimed a stunned middle aged woman.
"Hey, buddy, that was incredible! You're practically a hero or somethin'!" an overly excited teenager shouted.
When she got to her feet, the old woman lightly dusted herself off, her shakiness now seemingly absent, then raised a hand and spun in a slow circle, facing each member of the crowd. "I am fine. You all can go about your business," she said with impressive authority, her voice carrying a thick, Eastern European accent. Emery was still too shocked to notice that each and every member of the crowd immediately turned and left the area.
Handing the woman her discarded cane, Emery again sought verbal affirmation that the woman was alright. "Are you sure you're OK? I'm sorry if I landed on you, but, well, I didn't really have much of a choice."
Finally turning her gaze to the man before her, the woman stared directly into his eyes before replying, "No need for apologies, Emery. You have saved my life, and for that I am grateful. I believe a reward should be paid for such an act." Emery, suddenly confused that this woman he was sure he had never met before somehow knew his name, was about to ask her who she was when a soft hand suddenly stroked his cheek. The action was so slight, yet somehow so captivating, that all current thoughts flew from his mind. Replacing it was a sudden stream of random thoughts and memories that raced through his consciousness seemingly of their own accord. Somewhere deep in the recesses of his brain, Emery knew that what was happening should be frightening, yet seemed powerless to stop them.
The two stood that way, the woman's hand lightly placed on the man's cheek, for what seemed to Emery a small eternity. Finally, she lowered her palm, and his mind once again became his own. Not allowing him to speak, the woman's voice suddenly pronounced, "You are a complicated man, young Emery Michaels. I have seen what it is that you truly desire, though you do not seem to be able to see it clearly yourself. Normally, I would not bother myself with such trivial conflicts, but as you have done me a great deed, so shall I return the favor."
Finally coming to his senses, Emery began to take a step back as he said, "Look, lady, I don't know what you just did, but uh…don't worry about the whole life saving thing. As far as I'm concerned, we're squa…," the words died on his lips as the woman took a swift step forward and placed her open palm on his forehead.
Looking deeply into his eyes yet again, she said in a quiet but strong voice, "I have seen into your mind. It is the photographs you wish for, and so it is the photographs you shall have." Finishing her statement, the woman gave his head a slight shove, though the surprising force of it actually knocked Emery back a couple steps. Grabbing his head and standing still, he struggled to fight off a sudden wave of dizziness.
Finally feeling more under control, he opened his eyes prepared to ask the woman just what the hell she had done; however, Emery was shocked to see that she no longer stood before him. In fact, after scanning the crowd, he was amazed to see that she had somehow disappeared all together.
