The Stinger Jack Spaniel

Tom made you think of a stinger, with his head tucked into his shoulders and his feet like wings taking him to the goal line. Funny thing, no one thought of calling him the jack spaniel, although the people in the Islands knew what that vicious black and yellow insect could do.

Tom’s hair was black and he kept it cut about an inch high. He had flashing black eyes and glowing brown skin, a cross between the dark skin of his mother and the light brown of his father. His cheeks were high and his nose was pointed and slightly flared. When he smiled, his even white teeth lit up his strong features and made his eyes close a little. This action excited many of the girls who knew him. Most of the cheerleaders were fascinated by his six-foot-odd frame and his handsome features, but most of all they loved his wit.

Tom kept mostly to himself, but he was buddy to all the track and field athletes and the other football players. Most of the other students liked him and he got along with all of them. Tom kept his eyes on a few screwed-up students to let them know he knew what they were putting down. Quiet as he was, no one, no one, ever thought of threatening him except the few tough guys who hung around in front of the school in Barbel Plaza.

Tom was born on the Island of St. Thomas and spent some of his holidays with his father’s sister Bella, in Christiansted, St. Croix. Tom’s father, Feel, was born in St. Croix, but moved to St. Thomas when he was twenty. Feel met and married Tom’s mother, Sara, soon after he settled in St. Thomas.

Tom was only sixteen, but could think like a thirty-year-old. He moved like a pro boxer or karate fighter. At his parent’s insistence, he worked with a trainer three times a week after school. They felt that in so doing, they would not have to worry about him getting hurt in the changing moral climate of the island. The children who could not defend themselves got roughed up by the bullies outside the schoolyard. For some reason, only when something happened could you see the police around the school.

On one occasion, Tom went to buy a paté, which he paid for with a five-dollar bill. Two of the guys who hung around the parking area thought they could have part of the change. Tom counted his change and put it in his wallet, then walked toward the porch, leaning against the building to relax while he ate his paté and drank his soda. One of the guys approached him.

"Say, bud, could we have the change?"

"Let me tell you something," Tom said. "If I was your age, which I guess is about twenty, I would be working and not begging."

"You cheap bastard! We saw you put at least two dollars and change in your pocket and we need something to eat!"

Tom continued to eat without saying anything. The larger of the two men reached into Tom’s pocket, but his hand came out empty as his feet were kicked out from under him and the edge of the soda can crashed against his ear. Tom resumed eating as the man fell to the ground, blood running down the side of his face. The other guy lifted his buddy up and pulled him away, keeping his eyes on Tom, who kept on eating as though nothing had happened.

"Cold. Cold as ice, man. You are a killer. I swear to it, man."

Tom didn’t answer. He ate his paté and walked back to the schoolyard. Those who witnessed the event whispered among themselves.

"Did you see his eyes?"

"Yeah, man, yeah. I looked into his eyes and they frightened me," a student said. "Cold!"

"You bet for sure they were brutal and cold. I thought he was going to kill that other guy!"

"I, too," responded another student. "I have never seen Tom’s face like that before, never."

"I’ve seen him on the field cool, but he looked cold and vicious," said another.

"He sure did," one of the girls remarked.

On another day, Tom was standing by the gate when he saw a man selling drugs to a boy of about sixteen years old. Tom walked over to the boy.

"Don’t buy that crap, man, you will never get off of it or be free again."

The boy looked at Tom.

"Have you ever tried it? This guy says it is the best thing to free any problems I have, and believe me, I have a lot."

"Look at it this way," Tom said. "How long do you want to be free of your problems?"

"Now, man, right now and forever, man."

"You’ll never be free of problems. They’ll come and go, but you must always be cool, clean of mind, body and soul, to be able to solve them."

The boy looked at Tom and changed his mind about buying the drugs.

"Son of a bitch!" The pusher said, glaring at Tom. "What is it with you, man? Are you a preacher or a saint? You made me lose a client, man. You gonna have to buy it, or I’ll push it down your throat!"

"Let’s go, man," the boy said, pulling at Tom’s arm. "I don’t want you to get in trouble for me."

"It’s no trouble. As I said, you have to have a clear head to take care of problems. They come, but you can solve them if you are prepared and cool."

"Bullshit, preacher!" the pusher said, and swung a right at Tom’s head.

Tom pulled back quickly.

"Easy man. I have no quarrel with you."

The inflection of Tom’s voice made the pusher feel even more aggressive. He drove a kick at Tom, but his foot fanned the air as Tom again slipped out of his way. The man continued to whip punches that Tom blocked or slipped. Then, like a viper, Tom switched from defensive to offensive. His right hand, with palms forward, caught the man a vicious blow to the forehead as he came forward to release a right hand. Then Tom delivered many blows to the face as the man tried to defend himself.

The man staggered backward and shook his head. He lashed out with a right kick that caught Tom on the hip, sending him backwards. Tom regained his balance as the pusher moved in for the kill. Tom slipped the right cross and avoided the left hook that the pusher released. He then moved in with a knee to the pusher’s groin. The man screamed and fell to the ground, holding his groin. Tom backed off and waited. The man stood up, reached into his pocket and pulled out a gleaming steel and very ugly knife.