by J. D. Cavan
“Exactly the way we came in,” Charlie told them. He carefully stepped around the corner of the room and out into the living room. He carefully followed his path, as best he could remember, toward the door. He watched Luca, Samantha and Sarah do the same thing. They all walked softly and calmly toward the front door. Charlie kept his eyes peeled for anything that looked suspicious or appeared out of place, but there seemed to be nothing.
As the group finally reached the entrance, Sarah stopped. “That’s weird,” she said. “The timer on my oven is on.” She was staring at her kitchen and Charlie quickly glanced at the oven. The digital display was counting down, the timer showing less than ten seconds left. Charlie felt a spike of panic and searched below him, down at the front-door entrance. Then he detected it—another thin line, and it ran from the door and into the kitchen, behind the stove. He’d been wrong. They had tripped a trap when they walked inside the house, and he hadn’t noticed it! They had started the timer on the oven, and now there were less than three seconds on the display!
“Run!” Charlie screamed, pushing Sarah out the front door and grabbing Samantha by the arm. As they flew through the air, and just as Charlie reached the porch steps, an explosion ripped through the house. He felt his legs go out from under him as he attempted to leap from the porch to the small front yard. He felt the heat and then heard the fire begin to rage. Charlie slowly dragged himself up and then helped Sarah. He watched as Samantha got up from where she had landed in the bushes. There was another loud explosion and the upstairs windows blew out, sending glass down on them. He covered his head and face and closed his eyes as the shards of glass rained down on him.
“Are you alright?” he shouted over the noise of debris falling everywhere.
“Where’s Luca!” Samantha was searching the area, panicked.
“I don’t think he made it out of the house,” Sarah cried.
“Yeah I did,” Luca said. He had been thrown clear across the driveway and was covered in soot and dirt. He started to knock it off with his hands, then touched a small cut on his forehead. Charlie heard sirens in the distance.
“Let’s go,” Sarah uttered with tears in her eyes. Her body was shaking.
“All your things,” Samantha said to her.
“It’s all gone,” Sarah replied in despair. It was terrible but Sarah was right. The house was ablaze; there would be nothing left inside.
“We can wait for the fire department. Maybe they can salvage something—at least get some insurance money,” Luca said.
“I don’t have any insurance. It’s not even my house; it’s a rental.” Sarah turned away from the roaring fire. “I can’t watch anymore.” Charlie put his arms around her and walked her over toward the pickup truck.
He felt sick to his stomach as he helped Sarah into the truck. Not only had he almost gotten her killed, she’d lost all her things, including her artwork and of course, Jamie. He felt the misery of it all. Lang, the sedan killer, the Destroyer and now the sniper zombie. And number five was next, with no clue as to where, who or when! What had he done to deserve this curse? Was the Serial Seven the punishment for some wrong he’d committed in his past life? Some kind of karmic debt?
He watched as Luca pulled the truck down the street, Sarah’s house and all her things still burning in the distance.
5
EVEN THOUGH SARAH had lost everything—the life she’d built and her artwork—she was so resilient. It wasn’t long before her smile was back and she was talking about all their new possibilities. She said that when life takes something from you, it opens up new opportunities for you as well. She was sitting in the back cab of the truck now, with her backpack in hand.
“Good thing I grabbed this before we left for the show,” she announced.
“All your important things?” Luca turned to say to her. He was sitting next to Samantha, who was driving.
“Yep, my wallet and passport—we’re going to need that to sneak past the border and into the U.S.” Sarah had convinced the group to head to San Francisco. She had been driving there often recently to ship artwork to the many galleries there, and she said she could likely get a job at one of them. There would be enough work in the city for all of them to get jobs, she said. “But this is the most important thing—my Tarot deck.” She pulled a deck of cards out of her backpack. “I use them sometimes when things get tough. It gives me a sense of where I am psychologically.”
“Alright, well pick one for all of us. We could all use some direction right now,” Samantha chimed in while Luca groaned. It was obvious to Charlie that Luca didn’t buy it. Charlie had never seen a Tarot deck before. He knew they were used for psychic readings, and for predicting stuff. There were strange images on the cards and Sarah shuffled them around before she picked one and held it up.
“Oh boy,” she muttered.
“What?” Charlie asked out of curiosity.
“It’s the five card, the Five of Swords,” she said shaking her head. Charlie got an instant chill. She held the card out for them to see. There was a man on the card holding a sword, like a knight or a prince, with other swords strewn about around him.
“In the present it means there’s a violation of trust, a selfishness that leads to conflict and fighting. It’s not good, sorry guys.”
“Then pick another card!” Luca was laughing, as if to make fun of the whole thing.
“So that’s all it means? As if we don’t have enough bad stuff going on.” Samantha turned in her seat.
“It can also represent hope in the future position, if that means anything,” Sarah said. “It’s not a full reading anyway—”
“Alright, that’s enough,” Luca interrupted, sounding pissed off. It was quiet in the truck for a moment.
“I never mentioned something, and apparently no one noticed,” Sarah said.
“Noticed?” Samantha replied.
Sarah sighed, almost as if she didn’t want to go on. “Do you guys know Dante’s Inferno?” There was a pause.
“A long poem, right? About traveling through hell or the underworld or something,” Samantha said. Luca had a curious look on his face. “What? I paid attention whenever we were actually in school,” she said to him.
“Sam’s right, Dante’s poem depicts his travels through the different circles of hell with the poet Virgil by his side as a guide—”
“Yeah, so what?” Luca interrupted again.
“My painting, the one we thought Jamie had stolen and hung at his art show, was one I painted of Dante’s Inferno. It was during one of my dark phases.”
“I’m still not getting it,” Luca said.
“Maybe the killer was trying to tell us something,” Sarah said. Charlie felt chills run through him.
“It’s a coincidence,” Luca replied.
“The Destroyer, and the sniper killer, they did look like they came directly from the depths of hell, you can’t deny that—the totally undead,” Samantha uttered.
“Do you know why people have to travel through the circles of hell?” Sarah asked the group.
“Nope, and I don’t care,” Luca replied.
“I think I do,” Samantha said. “It’s the soul’s journey toward God, and the consequences of sin—like punishment for something, but if you can resist sin in the circles of hell, you can make it through. It’s like you become better, transformed and stronger if you can survive.”
“That’s pretty close to right, Sam. So what do we know about the first three killers?” Sarah questioned.
“Lang, he was a total mystery. A knife-throwing assassin, I guess. And the sedan killer, all we know is that Samantha seems to think he’s the same serial killer I was trying to stop,” Charlie replied.
“What about the Destroyer?”
“Your typical psychopath,” Luca replied.
“Wait a second, didn’t he refer to his dogs as the Cerberus hounds?” Samantha buried her head in her phone. “Here it is. Dante’s Inferno, circle three, Cerberus ho
unds!” She held the phone out to Sarah.
Charlie felt chills again. “Clearly, we’re dealing with something evil.”
“Don’t read into things too much. If we have zombie killers after us, then that’s what we have. There are nine circles of hell in the Inferno, not seven, for one thing—if you’re talking about seven, it’s the seven deadly sins.” Luca stopped for a moment and glanced at Samantha, who looked surprised. “I listened in school too, so don’t look so blown away. And Tarot cards are make-believe distractions. So pay attention. If there really is a five and it’s coming for us, we need to be on our toes.”
“That’s what we’re trying to do, Luca. Get ready. Figure out some clue,” Sarah replied.
“Alright, then what’s next? Who comes to get us from the circle of hell now?” Luca asked, sounding like he was mocking the whole thing.
Samantha looked up from her phone. “Wrath is next.” She held it up and showed them the image. Charlie felt sick to his stomach as he gazed at the picture. It looked like an old painting. A dark, creepy-looking horned and winged demon stood in a boat with many naked people, their dead bodies piled around him, some still alive and moaning in pain.
“Luca has a point,” Charlie said. “We really have no evidence the killers are following Tarot cards, or Inferno circles, or deadly sins for that matter. We know that the seven are after me primarily. That’s really all we know.” The truck got quiet for a moment.
“Okay, so how do we catch them before they catch us?” Samantha asked. There was a long, silent pause.
“If anything, put me out there as bait. Let me draw the next one in and when we get the chance, see if we can capture it and get some answers.”
“That’s crazy, Charlie, and way too dangerous,” Sarah said immediately.
“It’s not a bad idea,” Luca followed.
“Agreed,” Charlie said.
Samantha shook her head. “We’re sticking together. We need to get some clues, and they’re probably right in front of our faces.”
“I can tell you what I wish was right in front of my face,” Luca chimed in. “Food. I’m hungry. Oh, and jobs, because we are beyond broke.” Luca then turned off the highway and they headed for downtown San Francisco.
* * *
BY THE TIME the group reached the city and checked into a hotel room they could pay for, they decided to split up to look for jobs. Luca was right, Charlie thought, they were very short on cash, and trying to catch serial killers on empty stomachs with no money would never work. So the group looked for jobs, and after a week of total frustration, they found nothing. As their money dwindled, so did their patience for each other.
Before they decided to head to another city, Charlie suggested they go out once more and search. Sarah and Samantha went to a different art district this time and planned to hit the art galleries first and then see if there was a waitress or bartender job downtown for Samantha. Luca and Charlie set out together for one last-ditch effort to find work.
“We have to celebrate!” Sarah said, almost as soon as she and Samantha walked back into the hotel room at the end of the day. It seemed that they finally had some luck.
“We’ve got good news too,” Charlie replied. He and Luca had been back at the hotel awhile waiting for them.
“Go first,” Samantha told Charlie.
“We found jobs at the youth center. We start tomorrow giving out meals!” They had checked the local paper and noticed Youth Aid workers needed. They’d marched down to the main office, which was really just a room in a soup kitchen for all the people who were homeless in the area, and met the Director of Youth Aid, Robert. He gave them jobs on the spot and they were to start the very next day.
“Cool. Okay, so I got a job at one of the top galleries here,” Sarah started to say.
“Awesome, that’s three jobs!” Charlie said.
“But that’s not the best part of it. Sam, tell them your new gig.” Sarah turned toward Samantha and put her hands out. Samantha seemed embarrassed for a second, and dropped her head.
“Who knows what will come of it? It’s not a big deal anyway,” she muttered.
“It is a big deal! And if you aren’t going to tell them, I will,” Sarah said, giggling as she spoke. Charlie glanced at Luca and raised his shoulders.
“Guess who we ran into at the top gallery where I landed the job?” Sarah asked.
“Just tell us already,” Luca said impatiently. He plopped down on the chair and turned on the T.V.
“BKB!” Sarah almost screamed his name and Luca shook his head. “He felt totally bad about what had happened to Jamie and all of us. He also has a totally cool penthouse mansion downtown. He shops at that gallery all the time for cool art to put there.”
“Yippee,” Luca said, sarcastically.
Sarah scowled at him. “Let me finish,” she said. “BKB told Samantha he was getting her a meeting with his agent and his private photographer. She’s going be a famous model, and maybe even a celeb!”
“Really?” Charlie asked.
“Doubtful, but he’s a nice guy, thinks I can make some money modeling. I’m not interested in that, but money is money and we need it,” Samantha replied.
“You’re totally downplayin’ it, Sam. He totally loves you!” Sarah said, excited. Charlie felt it again, the envy. How could he compete with that guy?
Luca was lying on the couch now, flipping through the channels. “I’m bored, and since Sam’s gonna be rich and famous we’re going to the most expensive restaurant in San Fran tonight!” he announced.
* * *
CHARLIE HAD A great time with the three of them that night. Exploring San Francisco and eating at one of the coolest restaurants he’d ever experienced was just what he needed. The night air and soft breezes were near perfect temperatures for the hilly city with old Victorian homes and vibrant life that seemed so exciting to Charlie. No one mentioned the horrible events of the last couple of days and he forgot about the Serial Seven for a minute. His jealously over BKB and Samantha seemed to disappear as well.
Although they’d stayed out late, Charlie and Luca were right on time for their new positions in the morning. They met at the soup kitchen again, where many people were already lined up outside for food and any extra money the shelter could provide. Charlie had never seen—or couldn’t remember ever seeing—poverty like this before. There were homeless in Vancouver, but this seemed different for some reason. Maybe because San Francisco was such a rich city and they’d spent the night out in the nicest areas. It was hard for him to see. Luca, he could tell, was used to it.
“Hey guys, you made it. Your first day,” Robert said. He handed them both maps. “I want you in the parks today. I’ve got a lot of reports of homeless kids living there, not too much younger than you probably.” Robert was a young, really energetic guy who wore jeans and a button-down shirt. He had a small desk in his office with a computer on it and a picture of his wife. He was in charge of all the soup kitchens and homeless shelters in the city and was very passionate about his job. He was busy, Charlie noticed, constantly checking and answering calls coming in on his phone.
“What do you want us to do?” Charlie asked.
“Bring some of these pamphlets, educate the kids about our services, try to convince them to get off the streets,” Robert replied. Luca was shaking his head at Charlie but stopped when Robert looked up at him. He then nodded his head in agreement.
Luca and Charlie started to head out of the office when Robert stopped them. “Oh, and stick together. It can be dangerous out there. There’s been reports of some kids going missing lately, more than usual,” he said, then answered his cell phone and started to talk to someone on the other line.
As the two walked out of the soup kitchen and headed down the street into their first city park, Charlie turned to Luca.
“Missing kids, did you hear that?”
“Homeless kids come up missing all the time, Charlie. It’s a sad fact. I unfortunately kn
ew a bunch of them that did when I was living on the streets with Sam.”
“I’m not taking anything for granted now. If the next killer is out there in the parks, we have a chance to find it before it finds us. And remember, I’m the bait, Luca,” Charlie said anxiously.
Luca stopped walking and turned to Charlie. “Alright, so if you’re the bait for the fish, I’m the nasty spear we’ll catch it on. If five is out there, let’s go get it,” Luca said with determination.
They spent the morning and most of the day searching the parks. Charlie would go out ahead, alone, while Luca stalked him closely. He tried to mingle with the street kids but they usually just ran from them, or if they actually talked to one, they would deny knowing anything about missing kids and then ask for or demand money before taking off. The sun was setting and dusk was falling when Luca finally plopped himself down on a park bench before stretching out completely on it.
“Taking a break?” Charlie asked.
“Yeah, forever.” Luca looked up into the sky.
“That’s it?” Charlie asked.
“Yep. But you can wander around and try to find serial killers if you want—seems like a wild-goose chase to me. Plus, I’m starving.”
“You’re always hungry. Come on, one more time through the park. It’s getting dark, which would be the time the killer would strike.” Charlie stood there for moment.
“Alright, but we’re not gonna find anything.” Luca pulled himself up off the bench and followed Charlie back into the park.
They weaved through the giant city park as night began to fall and people began to clear out. Charlie had areas circled in pen where homeless kids were known to live. After many hours, they had the same luck as earlier in the day.
They were about to head back when Charlie heard shouting and could see bright lights off in the distance. He looked down at the map and noticed an area he and Luca had missed. It was off the main park trails and down a hilly slope under a ramp that looked like it used to be a car bridge. The noises seemed to be coming from there.
As they ran over to check out the commotion, Charlie thought it looked like a park maintenance lot. He could see some trucks parked down one of the dirt roads and what looked like a huge maintenance shed. The place was abandoned and off to one side, an enormous metal cylinder stuck out of the hillside. It looked like you could drive a train through it. They suddenly stopped as bright floodlights lit the area. They both crouched down below some bushes and Charlie peered at the scene in front of him.