Chasing Flyflies

4247 Maplewood Dr

Sunday, August 11, 1991

6:25 PM

The perfect evening, Lee thought.

Dusk was beginning to fall, the smell of honeysuckle fragrant in the warm summer air. His stomach comfortably full from the barbeque and his wife’s homemade potato salad, he leaned back against the picnic table, watching his daughter and stepsons as they played, rolling the soccer ball back and forth between them.

“Here, roll the ball to me, Jenna,” Jamie told her.

“Not to him,” Phillip said. “Give the ball to me—come on.” 

Jamie snorted. “In your dreams, wormbrain—it’s my ball, anyway.”  He clapped his hands. “Roll it right here."

Ball in hand Jenna hesitated, looking from one to the other.  Still holding the ball she took off across the yard.

“Hey!” Jamie said.

“My ball—” Jenna called out teasingly as her brothers began to chase her. “Tan’t tatch me!”

“Bet I can!” Phillip replied.

“No,” Jenna said. “I faster!”

“Oh yeah?”  With one quick motion Phillip swept his little sister into his arms and she shrieked with laughter, legs kicking as he swung her around and around.

“Who’s faster now?” Phillip asked her. “Huh?”

“You,” Jenna giggled. The ball fell from her hands and rolled onto the ground.

“That’s right.”  Carefully Phillip put Jenna back down on the ground. Clearly dizzy, Jenna toddled unsteadily for a moment before quickly regaining her bearings.

“Swing ‘gain, Phillip,” she asked her big brother. “Pease?”

‘That’s my girl—my family.’ Lee felt a smile spreading across his face as he watched them.

“Penny for your thoughts,” his wife’s voice sounded in his ear, her breath tickling the hairs on the back of his neck.

“Getting pretty good at sneaking up on me, Mrs. Stetson.” Lee murmured. He captured her hand briefly, pressing his lips to her palm.

“Well I learned from the best, you know,” Amanda sat down beside him. 

“That you did.” 

“Mother’s upstairs with her milk and Galliano,” Amanda watched him closely as she spoke. “She’d thought she’d have an early night.“

Out in the yard Jenna let out yet another shriek as this time Jamie lifted and swung her around.

“She’s got her brothers wrapped around her little finger, you know,” Amanda said.

“That she does,” Lee replied. “But look at whose daughter she is—I think it runs in the family.”

“True, “ Amanda said. She looked over at him. “Something on your mind?”

She fought to keep her tone casual, even as thoughts of their most recent case haunted her— trapped together  in that factory—for a little while there she hadn’t been so sure if they would make it—a tiny shiver ran through her body as Amanda pushed those thoughts out of her head.

‘You can’t think like this, Amanda.’

What was it Lee had once told her? No agent can think that way and be effective.  She and Lee had been in tight spots before, Amanda thought, and they would be again—and they would come through. She had to trust in that.

Lee shook his head.  “Nothing’s on my mind.”   He must have known what she was thinking—he pulled her close and she relaxed against his side, her body molding perfectly with his. “Just enjoying the evening, that’s all.”

“Hmm,” Amanda smiled. “I like the sound of that.” 

“Daddy!” Jenna tugged at his hand.

“What is it, munchkin?” 

“Look—” Jenna pointed. “Over dere—what dose?”

“What—”at first Lee didn’t know what she was talking about—but as his eyes followed his daughter’s pointing finger he could see them—the tiny points of light that glowed and flickered intermittently as they swirled around the bushes. “Those are fireflies.”

“Flyflies?”  Jenna looked up at him, her dark eyes wide.

“Close enough.” He ruffled her hair and Jenna giggled.

“They always come out this time of night,” Amanda told her. “You can even try to catch one.”

“I have an idea,” Jamie said. “Come on, Phillip.” With that the boys ran into the house.

“I tatch—”Jenna said. At that moment one of the bugs flew past her. She reached up a chubby hand, crying out as the creature evaded her grasp.

“No,” Jenna cried out, running after it. “Oh, tome back—pease—tome here!”  As the bug soared higher than her arms could reach Jenna let out a high-pitched wail. 

“No—I want him, I want him!” 

“Sweetheart don’t worry,” Amanda assured her. “There are plenty of other fireflies.” As she spoke another one flew by and Jenna ran after it, arms outstretched.

“I get one—I get you!” But they flew too fast for her. Lee and Amanda exchanged a glance .

“Here, sweetheart,” Amanda rose from the table. “I’ll help you catch one.”

“You tatch one too, Daddy?”  Jenna’s eyes looked up at him, pleading.

“I’ll catch one too, munchkin,” he told her. Even if he wanted to, he could never say no to those highs.

The task, however, proved to be easier said than done. Whether it was due to the increasingly dim light or the speed at which the little buggers flew, every time Lee was sure he had one he would open up his hand to nothing but find empty air.

“Here,” Jamie said as he and Phillip came back outside with a mason jar. “We can catch some in this.”  Working together he and Phillip managed to catch a few of the luminous insects and drop them into the jar.

“Damn!”  Lee swore softly as he made a grab for another one—almost—but  before he could get a firm hold it flew into the bushes.

“You missed the flyfly,” Jenna said reproachfully.

“I know, but Daddy’s really trying,”

“Problems, Lee?” Phillip asked.

“No problems at all.” Lee spoke between gritted teeth as he made yet another unsuccessful snatch. What was the problem here? It seemed to be easy enough for the boys, but for him—

“Jenna, I’ve got one,” Amanda crouched on the grass beside the bushes. “Come here and look.”

Jenna walked over to her mother, who gently cupped the bug in her hands.

“See him?”  Amanda asked.

“Oh—so pretty,” Jenna’s voice fell to an awed whisper.  And it was beautiful, Lee thought—every few seconds the light flickered, glowing across Amanda’s skin. “How does he do that?”

“Well, he makes the light to attract a mate—a friend,” Amanda explained when her daughter looked confused. “It’s so that all his friends will see him, sweetheart.”

“Other flyfies?”  she asked.

“That’s right,” Amanda said.  “You can even touch him if you want—just be very gentle.”

“’kay,”  Reaching out hesitantly Jenna touched the bug with just the tip of her finger.

“That was very good. Now let’s let him fly away,” Amanda said. “So he can go back to his friends—say bye bye, Jenna.”

“Bye bye,” Amanda stood and opened her hands . Jenna waved as the bug left and soared into the air.

“Tell me how you did that,” Lee said. “I didn’t even manage to catch one.”

“What?” Amanda’s eyes widened—even in the dim light the look of amusement on her face was unmistakable. “You’re telling me there’s something the great Scarecrow can’t catch?” 

At that Lee pulled his wife back against him.

“Maybe that’s because I already caught what I want.”  He blew into her ear and she shivered slightly in response.

“Look,” Jamie walked over, holding the jar.   “We caught a bunch of them, Jenna—see that?”

“Oh,” Jenna’s eyes were huge as she watched the ‘flyflies’ swirl and bump into each other and against the sides of the jar.

“They won’t last very long, though,” Phillip added. “Not in that jar without any holes in the lid.”

“No—let fly?”  Jenna reached for the lid.  “Let go—pease?” 

“All right,”  Jamie unscrewed the lid—one by one they flew out, spiraling upwards. 

“Bye-bye, flyflies,”  Jenna waved again .

The End