by B. P. Kasik
The man’s nerves were on fire as the bar scraped alongside his spine as it went through. He dropped the weighted towel.
And the man in spandex grabbed the bar and twisted it.
The man in the v-neck shirt responded with more screams, but he grappled with the attacker and dragged him toward a nearby treadmill, where a runner was obliviously running. He took his attacker’s head and shoved it against the spinning treadmill.
The facial skin was ground away in a shower of blood and the smell of burned meat was thick in the air. He spasmed and thrashed as the treadmill sanded his face down to the bone. And then the man in spandex stopped moving.
Covered in blood, the man in the v-neck shirt raised his fists to the ceiling and howled in victory.
The guy running on the face-smashing treadmill noticed his sneaker soles seemed a bit sticky. He took out one earbud, looked down and noticed that he was running on blood and meat. He shrugged, put his earbud back in, and continued his workout.
And the rest of the exercisers exercised on.
Chapter 32
Ben and Jerry sat in the hallway outside the City Manager’s office.
Jerry fidgeted. “This is stupid. There’s nothing anyone in government can do to help us.”
Ben shook his head. “I’m not driving an hour—”
“Hour and a half…”
“Hour and a half to another town just to see the damage inflicted by the Gym on another town. That’s pointless.”
“You never know what we could learn from that trip!”
“What I DO know is that we need to take steps to stop the Gym here.”
“How is government supposed to help? Government is the problem, not the solution.”
“We’re not gonna have a political debate.” Ben pointed at the door. “My wife set up this meeting with the City Manager. She can help. And contacting our local government about this was YOUR idea, remember?”
“Yeah, but that was before I knew how deep this weirdness went. Before I talked to that guy, who’s probably…”
“Yes, he’s probably dead. You haven’t heard from him. The Gym still stands. So that’s a reasonable conclusion. But we still need to do this.”
“Why?”
“Do you even know what the City Manager does?”
Jerry leaned back and crossed his arms. “Nobody knows that, c’mon.”
“The City Manager is the person who really makes the decisions. All the things you think the City Council or Mayor do—those functions are actually performed by the City Manager.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Did you know the first City Manager in history was appointed right down the road from here in Staunton, back in 1908?”
“Didn’t know, didn’t care.”
“Fine, was just a fun fact. But look—the City Manager position is also known as the city’s CEO. They do all the planning, administering, directing, overseeing, and evaluating city activities and operations. This includes community development, operations, administrative services, public relations with businesses, public safety…”
“I get it, I get it. The City Manager’s a big deal.”
“And we get to talk to her. This is the person who can take the most direct action against the Gym. Any other public official—you’d have to lobby them and I can guarantee you that the Gym has already lined their pockets. They’re lobby-proof.”
“How do you know the City Manager hasn’t been lobbied?”
Ben looked Jerry right in the eye. “Have you ever heard of a City Manager being bribed?”
“No.”
“Exactly. No one thinks to bribe a City Manager because no one realizes that’s the person making the real decisions.”
“Huh.”
They sat in silence for a minute. Then Jerry muttered, “I still hate waiting.”
“Nobody likes it.”
“Seriously—I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been standing in line at a store and then just put the merchandise back on the shelf when I decided I didn’t want it enough to wait in line for it.”
“Really?”
“Yes! I hate lines! Why can’t—”
Jerry was cut off when the door opened and the City Manager’s administrative assistant nodded at them. “The City Manager will see you now.”
They were ushered into a conference room adjacent to the Manager’s office and seated in two pleasantly soft rotating chairs on the long side of the conference room table.
After they were left alone, Jerry spun back and forth. “These chairs are amazing.”
“Your tax dollars at work.”
“The City Manager has great taste in furniture.”
“I’m telling you, this is gonna work. My wife says she’s met her multiple times and she’s great.”
“Okay.”
They only waited a few more seconds—not long enough for Jerry to start fidgeting—when the City Manager walked in.
She strolled with purpose into a chair across the table from them and set a bulging file folder on the table in front of her.
Two guards follower her into the room and stood on either side of her.
Jerry and Ben looked at each other, then back at the human tableaux.
The City Manager was dressed in full-body skin-tight pink spandex. Her physique was perfect—zero body fat, with large, tight, and toned muscles rippling up and down her arms and legs.
Both guards were barrel-chested, nearly bursting the buttons on their gray police uniforms. Their crossed arms were thicker than a healthy person’s legs.
All of them had a blank, intense look on their faces.
The City Manager broke the long silence. “So you came to discuss the Gym?”
Ben’s mouth was dry. He couldn’t respond.
Jerry rolled from side to side in his comfortable chair. His phone buzzed, but he ignored it. They needed to focus. And Ben wasn’t saying anything, so he nudged him.
Ben snapped out of it. “Yes, we’ve noticed some...improprieties at the Gym.”
The City Manager’s eyebrows rose. “Is that right?”
“Yes. They seem to have some business practices that are harmful to your citizens.”
“Like what?”
“Well, they—”
Jerry interrupted. “They tore down my house. They tore down every house on my block.”
The City Manager nodded and shuffled through some paperwork. “Now when you say YOUR house, do you mean they destroyed your property?”
“No, I was renting, but—”
“Because it says here that they legally purchased all the property and were within their rights to tear it down and rebuild on the land.”
“But they didn’t give me any notice!”
“They weren’t legally required to, but yes, they did give notice.”
“What?”
“The local Gym franchise’s blog explained their plans. Your membership agreement advised you that their blog would have important announcements.”
“Their blog?”
“Yes. They tell me that they advised you to check their blog for announcements.”
“Of course they did, but that just sounds like generic marketing nonsense.”
“I can’t help your misinterpretation of their information. But the information was there, perfectly transparent, and you were advised to look at it.”
Jerry and Ben stared at each other.
Ben looked back at her. “I assume you’re aware of their abusive behavior toward their clients?”
“I know they have some aggressive business practices and their methods are slightly unorthodox. But everyone at the Gym is there by choice. They don’t have to be exposed to these practices or methods.”
“Let me take a wild guess here. You’re a client.”
“Of course! It’s a beautiful facility. Did you heard about the Gym’s extended free trial for government employees?”
Ben looked at Jerry. Jerry nodded, then pointed at the two
guards. “And they’re Gym members, too?”
“Of course again! We love their facility. And you can’t argue with their results.” She struck a pose and flexed her biceps. “Look at these guns!”
The guards followed her example and showed off their triceps. Then they pulled up their pants and showed their thickly muscled calves.
Jerry bit his lip and looked over at Ben. “I’m gonna hit her,” he mouthed.
Ben got wide-eyed and shook his head vigorously.
Jerry then leaped across the table and swung his arms at the sides of the City Manager’s head while she was distracted by her own muscles.
The guards stopped flexing immediately and one of them leaped out and grabbed Jerry, yanking him back before he could make contact.
“Get them out of here!” shouted the City Manager.
The guard dragged a thrashing Jerry out of the room. Ben put his head down and hands up, making his way quickly for the door as the other guard approached him.
Out in the hallway, the guard finally let Jerry go, then turned around and went right back into the City Manager’s office. Jerry caught one last glimpse of the City Manager, still smiling as she looked at her own muscle-ripped arms, before the door closed.
Jerry stormed down the hallway toward the stairs. Ben ran after him. “What were you thinking?”
“I was thinking about how I knew that would be a waste of time, but I didn’t think it would be that bad. I wish I didn’t know how deep the Gym’s hooks were digging in.”
“I mean about the lunge across the table. What the hell, man?”
“I was trying to salvage a bad situation. I almost got her.”
“You almost got killed! It’s a miracle those guards didn’t at least give us a beating or break our bones!”
“So what if they did? I’ve already got a broken bone, anyway. I lived.”
“Yeah, you’re walking really well.”
“Thanks. I’ve been working hard to rehabilitate it.”
“But still—you can’t just attack public officials.”
Jerry stopped halfway down the stairs. “I knew they wouldn’t retaliate. There was no risk.”
“How did you know?”
“Because we’re insects to them. We don’t matter. The Gym and all the people they control...it’s nothing personal. I sense that. They only hurt us to amuse themselves. But hurting us isn’t their goal.”
“What is?”
“I don’t know.” He continued down the stairs. “But I’ve got to get my ex-wife out of there.”
“How do you plan to do that?”
“I need to cool down and suggest it as calmly as possible.”
“You’re not cool right now.”
“I know, I know.” As they reached the bottom of the stairs and walked out the front door, he stopped again. “My phone buzzed while we were in that meeting, hang on a sec.”
Jerry looked at his phone.
“What is it?” asked Ben.
“I just got fired.”
Chapter 33
The city’s homeless gathered in the demolished remains of the houses across from the Gym.
They constructed shacks from fallen drywall and stood in circles, muttering about the homeless shelter’s abrupt closing.
They’d awakened that morning only to be ushered out of their beds and out the front door. They were disoriented and barely even conscious yet as they found themselves on the sidewalk in front of the facility.
The front door was then locked and barred.
No one knew how to respond.
And worst of all, they smelled pancakes. The facility was serving breakfast in there and they couldn’t eat it.
They congregated and walked a few blocks, like a hive. The down-on-their-luck mix of men and women from all races and backgrounds discovered the aftermath of the wreckage across from the Gym and settled there.
No one objected and no one called the cops because no one cared what happened there.
As the sun beat down on them, they realized they were going to need to find a new place to live. The nearest shelter was 30 miles down the road in another city, so they debated how they could get there. Some of them had family nearby and realized they’d have to stay with them.
As they worked to figure out their next move, it seemed like the sun just got brighter. And then darker. And brighter again.
They turned and saw that it wasn’t the sun. It was the Gym’s blazing orange sign above their front entrance.
It was flashing in an erratic rhythm.
They were hypnotized for a minute.
And then they were captured by the light. It told them what to do.
Their eyes rolled up in their sockets and they started shaking.
The group scattered as they ran in every direction, blank hunger and rage on their faces.
Chapter 34
“How can they fire you? You’re on disability. Can’t you sue?”
Jerry shook his head. “Virginia’s a right-to-work state. That means anybody can fire anybody for any reason at any time.”
“Yeah, but that’s ridiculous. There’s no reason you should be fired.”
“Great. So what can I do about it?”
Ben was silent.
“I got screwed. And I’m roughly 101% sure the Gym is involved. They know we just went to the authorities. And they retaliated.”
“How could they know?”
“You saw the City Manager. You saw the guards. The Gym is everywhere. They’ve got their fingers in every pie. For all intents and purposes, they own the city now. They can do anything. They can...”
“What?”
“They can do anything. And my wi…my ex-wife works there. I have to get her out of there.”
“How?”
Jerry ignored him and called her. No answer. He texted her. Nothing. She usually texted back within a minute.
“She must be at work right now. We have to go there now.”
“Jerry, are you insane? Think for a minute. We painted a target on our backs by going to the City Manager. The Gym is the last place we should go.”
“Then...I’ll call them.”
Jerry looked their number up online and called the Gym’s front desk.
The desk worker answered the phone with, “Our hours are posted on our website, numbskull. So if you’re calling to ask when we open or close, then piss off.”
“Excuse me?”
“Yes, can I help you, sir?”
“Is that how you answer the phone now?”
“Of course, sir. We get a lot of phone calls asking for our hours, so we’ve taken the step of addressing this matter immediately so that our customers can know how to find the information they seek. It’s all for your health!”
“Of course it is. Can I speak to Becky?”
“She didn’t show up for work today.”
“Did she call in sick?”
“No, she just didn’t show up. Very unprofessional. Given a chance, I would chop off her arms and legs and hold her stumpy torso down in the pool until she drowned. That’d teach her.”
Jerry swallowed. “Okay, thank you for your help.”
“Always happy to help, sir! Have a nice day!”
Jerry slowly lowered his phone.
Ben looked at him. “So what’s the verdict? Can we go now?”
“She lives out in the county. That’s on the way to Harrisonburg. We’re stopping by there on the way.”
Ben nodded.
She wasn’t there.
The house was abandoned. Ben had a key and looked around the place. No sign of a struggle. But she hadn’t shown up for work and still wasn’t responding on her phone. It didn’t look good.
Jerry heard Ben out on the doorstep. He was calling his wife to let her know what they were doing. And asking her to get out of town.
Jerry wished he’d warned her sooner. He should have called her immediately after his mind was fixed. He should have been there for her. For the kid
s.
The kids are gone, too.
Ben ended his call, then came up and put his hand on Jerry’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, man.”
“They took her.”
Ben bit his lip. “We don’t know that.”
“We do.”
Jerry texted her again. Called her again. Got no response on either front.
Ben stood next to his friend. “We should call the police.”
“The ones controlled by the Gym?”
Ben stared at the floor. “We can’t just let them do this.”
“We have no way to stop it. We’re just puppets to them.”
Jerry pocketed his phone, then grabbed the edge of a couch to steady himself.
“What’s wrong?” Ben asked.
“My head. It’s not...working. Something’s missing.”
“Talk to me, man. What is it?”
“I can’t remember things. The wiring’s…faulty…Where are we going? What’s happening?”
Ben grabbed Jerry by the shoulders. “We’re at your ex-wife’s house. We’re on our way to the Gym in Harrisonburg.”
“Why?”
Ben started to answer, then stopped. He took a step back and swung his fists, slamming Jerry above the ears on each side of his head.
“Ow!” Jerry collapsed from the pain. Punch-drunk, he lay on the carpet for a moment. “What was that for?”
“You were acting weird and I realized it’s been a day since that guy punched you and cleared your mind from the Gym’s influence. So I hit you again.”
Jerry nodded. “Good catch.” He climbed to his feet and steadied himself. He shook his head a couple times, feeling like he was knocking the last drops of the Gym’s poison from his brain. “Thanks, Ben.”
Ben smiled and nodded. Then Jerry sucker-punched him with a pair of fists to the sides of his head. Ben leaped backward and grabbed the sides of his head. “What the hell, man?”
Jerry shrugged. “Can’t be too careful! Want to make sure the Gym doesn’t get a grip on your mind, either.”