Chand shrugged. "If you say so," he said, and pressed a button on the wall. There was a click and then a very faint beeping. Chand waited a few seconds and pressed the button again. There was no response.
"Security's not answering," Chand told them. "I'm not sure they're even there."
"What the hell..." Roberts muttered. "What the hell is going on? Who's on the roster today? Was it Coleman? The skinny guy?"
"Yeah, it's Coleman," Chand said quietly. "I saw him on the way in. I, uh... I think I should go down there and check on him, boss. See if he's still there. Okay?"
"Fine, whatever," Roberts grunted. "Just don't take too long."
They stood there in silence, the two of them. "So," Werner said at last. "You think he'll come back?"
Roberts shrugged. "Coleman? How the hell should I know? I don't know the guy from Adam. I've no idea if he's - "
Werner smiled bitterly. "No, not Coleman. Chand. He strikes me as a bright fellow."
Roberts glowered at him but said nothing. Minutes ticked by; and then, in the distance, they heard slow footsteps approaching. Chand reappeared in the doorway, looking rather pale. "Coleman's gone," he said. "They sent him home."
Roberts spun towards him. "What? Who sent him home? He's supposed to be here 'til five..."
"The army," Chand said. "The army sent him home."
"What?"
"They're outside the plant," Chand said. "They've surrounded it. I went out to, uh... to talk to them... but they sent me right back in. They said the place is under quarantine: no one goes in or out."
Roberts rounded on him in a fury. "And how the hell do they know what's going on?" he demanded. "Did you spill your guts to them, Chand? You spineless bastard. I'll - "
"You fat asshole, I didn't spill shit," Chand said coldly. Roberts cut off, staring at him in astonishment. "You spilled it," Chand told him. "You and that big fat mouth of yours. You used your goddamn walkie talkie to call Price, didn't you? Blabbed the whole story to him on an open RT channel. Of course it got back to the fucking general, you idiot. You do know how walkie-talkies work, don't you?"
In the silence that followed, Chand pulled up a chair and sat. His eyes went to the clock on the wall. It read 12:45 p.m.
"We're trapped in here," he said.
Return to the House of Todd
Oooh! Foosball!
The clock on the den wall read 1:07 p.m.
The door to Todd's house had been open, and strangely there had been no sound from either of the girls. Armageddon's nerves were jangling as she entered, but when she walked in the first thing she heard was laughter. When she came through into the den, she saw Josh and Dillon bent over what appeared to be a foosball table. Dillon gave her a wink as she came in. "Hey, sexy," he said.
Armageddon chose to ignore this. "Is everyone all right?" she asked. "Where are Todd and the girls?"
"Todd's in the bedroom," Josh told her. "Violet's working on her apples or whatever, and Cherry's sulking. Asshole!"
This last was directed at Dillon, who giggled as he retrieved the ball. "That's a buck fifty you owe me, dickface."
"The handles are sticking!"
"No they're not. You just suck, you - "
"Boys!" Armageddon shouted. Josh and Dylan subsided, looking rather shocked. "I need to talk to your father. Josh, go get him, will you please?"
Josh looked at her blankly. "Uh... Todd's with my mom, Miss Armageddon Lady, and my mom is in a real pisser of a mood right now. If you want talk to them, be my guest. Her room's just up the hall there."
Armageddon sighed and headed in the direction of the hallway, but even as she did so Todd came hurrying out out of the bedroom. "What's all this shouting... Oh! Miss Armageddon! Where have you been?"
"It's a long story," Armageddon said. "Todd, listen... there's an emergency, and... and I have to get you out of here."
She floundered even as she said it. What kind of emergency, exactly? Buttfuque seemed in no worse shape than it had ever been - once she finally freed herself from the parade, the drive over here had been quiet and peaceful. What possible disaster could be coming that could destroy an entire town in less than an hour's time?
Todd was looking at her, waiting for her to go on. "I've come to warn you," Armageddon said. "You must gather up your family and leave this place. I've been told... I've been told this town will soon be destroyed. We have to get you all out of here before that happens. You understand?"
A look of concern flickered over Todd's face. "Miss Armageddon, what are you saying? Who told you this?"
"And what kind of drugs were they on?" Dillon asked.
Before Armageddon could think of a reply, Violet stalked in, looking huffy. "Dad, I keep telling you, I need those jars for my work. Can you please not - " she trailed off. "Oh, Armageddon... are you okay? We didn't know where you'd gone."
"From the sound of it, she was talking to some tweakers," Josh said, grinning.
Violet gave him a truly vicious look and took a step towards him. "You just keep your goddamn mouth shut, you asshole."
"Violet!" Todd said. Josh held onto his smile, but it faltered noticeably as Violet advanced on him. He went to stand on the other side of the foosball table.
Armageddon looked at them in confusion, her eyes finally alighting on Todd. "What - "
"Violet and her brother had a little disagreement over something that happened last night," Todd said. "And I must say, Josh, I don't approve either. But - "
"Oh yeah, you don't approve," Violet sneered. "That's great, Dad. Real strong stand you're taking."
Dillon gave her a sly look. "Hey baby, it was just a game - don't be mad..."
If the look Violet gave her stepbrother was violent, the look she gave her husband was pure murder. "You put him up to it," she growled. "Don't think I don't know that, you asshole. You always put him up to it." She turned to Armageddon. "You know what Rat Baiting is, Miss Hyde?"
Armageddon frowned. "Erm... no?" Oh Lord, she thought, we don't have time for this! But she could think of nothing to say, no argument that would break them out of their squabble. As she tried to find the words, Violet went on.
"It's this charming little sport that the citizens of Buttfuk like to engage in," Violet said. "You know, since they outlawed setting cats on fire a few years back."
"Hey, that's a fire hazard!" Dillon put in.
Violet ignored him and went on. "They set up in this big building," she said, "with a concrete pit in the center. People sit around the edge of the pit, which is filled with a couple of hundred rats. They drink, they yell, they make bets. It's a great time, you know - like a... a night watching football, or something." She shook her head and went on. "So they put the rats in the pit - and then they let a series of dogs loose in there. The bet is to see how many rats a particular dog can kill in sixty seconds."
"It's a very distasteful way to spend an evening," Todd said, giving the boys his best stern look.
"It's fucking barbaric, Dad!"
"It's not barbaric!" Dillon said. "It's pest control. We were doing the city a service, man!" He and Josh dissolved into laughter. "Anyway," Dillon went on, "you didn't tell Miss Geddy here the best part. About how your brother was the MVP of the whole evening!"
Violet turned to Armageddon, a look of disgust on her face. "Oh yeah," she said. "That. Back in medieval times, if they were rat baiting and they didn't have enough dogs - if one was sick or something - well, they'd put a guy in the pit. For laughs, you know? They'd tie his hands behind his back, and then they'd see how many rats the guy could kill. By smashing them with his forehead."
"Oh, lord," Armageddon murmured. "That really is distasteful -"
"Five rats in sixty seconds, baby!" Dillon hollered. "All time Buttfuk record!! EM! VEE! PEE!" He ran over to Josh and gave him a chest bump that almost sent him sprawling. "Seriously, it's the coolest thing your brother's ever done."
"He's no brother of mine," Violet muttered.
"Sure baby, whate
ver," Dillon blew her a kiss. "Love you!"
As disgusting as the whole story was, Armageddon could not allow herself to be drawn in. She turned to Violet. "Violet - I've come back here because I have to warn you. I received some information last night..." she floundered again. "The outcry against this place has been very great. And I fear the town is in danger, and soon..."
Violet looked at her, confused. "Outcry? What outcry? What information?"
"The whole town is going to be destroyed," Armageddon said desperately. "Violet - I don't have time to explain, but I have to get you out of here! Please - for your own safety, you have to come with me..."
She expected scorn, but Violet spoke to her calmly. "Look... I can see you're upset, but, um - you're not making a whole lot of sense. The town is going to be destroyed? How do you know that?"
"I can't explain," Armageddon said. "I just... look - please - will you just come with me? If I'm wrong, I'm wrong - the worst that happens is that you wind up wasting an afternoon. Right? I mean..." Spineless, she told herself angrily. Woman, where is your conviction?
"Armageddon..." Violet spoke kindly, but there was clear worry in her eyes. "Who exactly were you with last night? Because you're, uh... you're acting a little strange, you know?"
As Armageddon struggled to form a reply to this, there was a loud bellow from up the hall. "TODD!" it said. "I TOLD YOU TO GET ME SOME GODDAMN COFFEE!"
Todd jumped, his face going rather pale. "Oh," he said. "Coming right up, dearest!" He gave the rest of them an apologetic look. "My wife, uh... lost some of her medication last night," he said. "And so she's a little bit cranky this morning - I'll be right back!"
He turned and scurried into the kitchen. The room went quiet in his absence: Dillon and Josh turned their attention back to the foosball table, while Violet looked daggers at them both. No one's listening, Armageddon thought. No one's going to listen. Except - maybe -
"Cherry!" she called out. "Cherry, you have to come down here!"
There were footsteps on the stairs, and then Cherry appeared in the doorway. "Oh... Aunt Amy! You're back! I just had my headphones on and I didn't hear..." she broke off to glare at Violet. "This place is so noisy at times. People talking nonsense about stuff they know nothing about."
Violet huffed. "Bitch, I don't even have time for you right now. Talk to your cousin. I've got nothing to say to you."
Cherry stiffened. "What did you just call me?"
Todd reappeared from the kitchen, coffee in hand. "Now now," he said. "Be nice, you two!"
Armageddon looked at the Field family, her eyes going from face to face, and felt despair pulling at her. No one was going to listen. What was she even supposed to say? What words could she find that would possibly make them understand? She didn't even know what form this disaster was going to take...
There was a sudden squeal of brakes outside, followed by the sound of tires crunching on gravel. A door slammed, followed almost immediately by the sound of running footsteps on the deck outside. As the family looked up curiously, Armageddon reached inside her coat and put her hand on her .357.
Hellfire Price, pale and disheveled, appeared in the doorway. "Todd," he said, "you have to get the family out of here. The chemical plant at Werner/Roberts is about to blow, and when it does it's going to take half the city with it."
Worst. Mob. Ever.
Rudy is nothing if not persistent.
The clock on Armageddon's dash read 1:31 p.m.
She threw one last bag in the back seat of the truck, and then turned and headed back toward the house. The bed of her truck, and Hellfire's as well, were loaded with gear and household items. For all their constant fighting, the Fields could move quickly when they had to: in the space of about fifteen minutes Todd and the two girls had gathered all they needed. Now, it was just a matter of getting in the trucks and going.
Inside the den, Todd's wife stood in a nice pantsuit, hair slightly disarrayed, guzzling water from a plastic bottle. The two boys were at the foosball table, ignoring everybody. Cherry was standing in the door to the kitchen, staring at Josh with wide, worried eyes. "Sweetie," she said, "I really think you should come with us..."
"Naw," Josh said, not looking up. "Nothing's gonna happen. And even if it did, the plant's what... five miles from here? It's a freakin' chemical plant, not a nuclear bomb. We'll be fine. You guys can run away if you want. I'm staying here."
Cherry's hands twisted at the front of her shirt. "But honey..."
"QUIET!" Todd's wife shouted, glaring in Cherry's general direction. "I'm sick of you two bickering."
"Josh and I aren't bickering, Mrs Field. That's me and Violet."
Todd's wife did not deign to reply. "Where the hell is Todd?" she demanded.
Cherry wrinkled her nose. "He's in the garage, helping Violet with her chemical crap."
"Well, tell him to bring me some candy. I've got low blood sugar."
Hellfire came hurrying in. Armageddon shot him an angry glare, but he hardly appeared to notice; it was one of the few times in her life that Armageddon had seen the man look genuinely worried. "I think we're about done," he said. "Violet's picked out what she can't afford to lose, and Todd's loading the last of it into my truck now. Are the rest of you all ready?"
"I told you, we're not going," Dillon said.
"I think that most unwise, Brother Dillon," Hellfire said quietly. Dillon, without looking up, gave him the finger. Hellfire shrugged and turned to Armageddon. "What about you, cousin?"
"I'm ready," Armageddon said shortly. "Do you have a destination, or are we just running blind?"
"Right now, our destination is the edge of town, by whatever route is available to us," Hellfire said. "We can work it out in more detail once we're out of the danger zone. I think we should go by Mungavin Avenue and then take the east road out of town. It's not the shortest way, but it is the quietest, and I don't want to risk getting caught in traffic."
"Fine," Armageddon muttered. "I'm sure you know best." She expected some sort of smart-mouthed reply, but Hellfire only nodded and retreated to the garage.
"Hey, Miss Armageddon," Dillon said, "it must kinda burn you that they listened to him, huh? They just ignored the hell out of you, but us soon as Price shows up they're ready to cut and run. Kinda sexist of them, right?"
The story, according to Hellfire, was that he received a call from Werner/Roberts - whom he'd been 'working on a little project' with - and was told there was a problem at the plant. After driving there in his truck, he had found the whole area sealed off, surrounded by scores of army troops; they had cleared the area for two blocks in each direction, but Hellfire did not think that was nearly enough.
"You should come with us," Armageddon said, addressing Dillon. "You'll be safer if you do." Dillon gave her the finger as well.
"It's just Guerrero having a freakout, lady." Josh giggled. "You know he's the biggest junkie in town, right?"
"Hey, man, show some respect!" Dillon said. "He's a doctor of strategy, man. Did you know that he was a Spacehammer 3000 champion? For two years running! Guy made bank, man!"
Dillon's real voice and his sarcastic voice were virtually indistinguishable, and by this point Armageddon had lost interest in trying to tell them apart. "Cherry," she said softly, "it's time. Go get in the truck."
Cherry's eyes got very big. She walked slowly, carefully to Josh's side and then kissed him on the cheek. "Be safe, baby," she said, her voice trembling.
"Yeah yeah," Josh said. "Get out of here, you're cramping my style."
Cherry, stiff-backed and near tears, turned and walked out of the house. Armageddon turned, heading for the back of the den. "Violet!" she called out. "Are you ready? We have to go now!"
"I'm here." Violet stood in the doorway to the den, rather nicely dressed in jeans and a brightly colored blouse. She had worked quickly and efficiently with the rest of the family, packing bags and loading goods, while still finding time to denigrate Cherry's dress sense. "I'm good
to go," she said, looking Armageddon in the eye. She looked serious, but rather less distressed than the rest of the family. She glanced over at Dillon. "You coming, babe?" she asked briskly. Dillon gave her the finger. She smiled at him: a small, secret smile. "Okay, babe," she softly. "You enjoy the rest of your day." She turned to Armageddon. "Are we going?"
"We're going," Armageddon said. "You and Cherry and your stepmom are with me. We're following Hellfire, since he knows the best way out of town."
"Have fun!" Dillon called after them as they headed for the door. Josh giggled.
Violet joined the other women in Armageddon's truck, while Todd climbed into Hellfire's vehicle. Hellfire stood in the driveway, waving for Armageddon to join him. She gave him a surly look but went over.
"Listen," Hellfire said quietly. "I know you're mad at me right now, but there'll be time for that later. We have to work together if we want to make it out of town. Can you do that?"
"Is there a point to this, Hellfire?"
"My point is..." Hellfire sighed. "Listen. I know things look peaceful right now, but you never know what might happen in a town like this. If anyone tries to stop us..." he patted the pocket of his coat. "If anyone stops us, it'll be up to us to stop them. Understand?"
"Fine," Armageddon snapped. "Get in the truck, Hellfire. Like you said, we don't have much time."
Hellfire nodded, turned - and then a voice rang out from the end of the driveway.
"You!" it said. "I've got a bone to pick with you, you crazy bitch!"
The voice sounded familiar; Armageddon took a moment to place it. When she looked up, she saw a large SUV hulking at the end of the driveway and a man climbing down out of the driver's seat. "Rudy," she muttered.
Hellfire glanced at her. "Who?"
"Someone I met at the market," Armageddon said. "We didn't get along."
"Isn't that a surprise," Hellfire murmured.
"Excuse me?"
Armageddon Hyde in The Chosen and the Damned Page 12