"There is something going on here, Eric. It’s bigger than we realize. I mean, first Kevin, then the therapist I was seeing was stabbed to death three days ago."
Eric bit into some fries on the table. "You serious?"
"Yes! Eric, something serious is really going down here. I don’t know about you, but I want some answers. I got an agent from the DEA saying they dropped the case, not even a day after it happened."
"That sounds a little fishy."
"Yeah, well get this," Danny said. "That night I dropped Anna off at her house---I swear it was the same car that I chased after last night. The same night that DEA agent told me to keep going to my AA meetings."
Eric furrowed his brow. "How does he know about that?"
"Exactly," Danny leaned in.
Eric laughed. "Oh come on, chief. Maybe you mentioned it by accident."
"Not a chance, Eric," Danny lowered his voice. "I went to Anna’s place this morning."
"Yeah, and?"
"Well, I hadn’t heard from her since that night I dropped her off."
"So what? She is grieving, man."
"Eric I went inside and found a .22 casing on the floor upstairs."
They both fell silent.
Eric rubbed his head as he thought over what Danny had said. "I mean maybe she has a gun and it fell out of her purse." A crash of pins pulled him back to reality.
"Eric," Danny said. "Two guys walked in when I was there. They went back for the casing."
"What?" Eric said in a whisper.
"I know these guys are following me because they even said so."
The bumpers on the bowling lane shot up as Chad grabbed a ball.
"Well that explains why you wanted to meet at a bowling alley." Eric leaned forward dipping a fry into ketchup. "Let’s say you find something out. What the hell are you gonna do about it?"
Danny sank into the chair. "I have some friends in high places. Maybe they can find out who these guys are."
"You are gonna go after these guys?"
"Eric, something bigger is going on here, and I can’t just let it go. I mean Anna could be fucking dead and for what? This all starts with Kevin. I have to start there."
Eric took another bite. "Can’t you be like all the old middle-aged men and just sit there watching golf reminding everyone about how great Pink Floyd was."
Danny laughed as he leaned in. "I mean, they were ahead of their time."
"See? Just do that. Don’t go poking around looking for trouble. Remember you’re a family man."
Chad reared back and then let the ball loose. It slammed into the left bumper and zigzagged all the way down the lane and suddenly fell into the gutter missing all the pins.
"Chad!" Eric yelled. "How the fuck, man?"
"You know what? Fuck this," Chad said storming off. "I’m getting drunk at the bar."
"Eh, you pussy," Eric said lowly.
The woman looked back at Eric in disgust.
Eric looked at her with glaring eyes. "Lady, is my dick out?"
The woman sighed heavily showing her back to them.
Danny stood up reaching for a ball. "Eric, I need to do this."
Eric sat there chewing furiously as he stared down Danny. "You are going to ask me, aren't you?"
"Well," Danny said shyly. "I mean, Batman always needs a Robin."
"Are you saying that because I’m shorter than you?"
Danny shrugged. "You are a couple inches shorter."
"I’m five-eleven, Dan," Eric said, throwing a limp fry on the plate. "That’s a normal fucking height!"
"I mean, if you are just a little chicken shit, then forget I even asked."
Danny reared back and slung the ball down the lane. All the pins made that perfect cracking sound as they all fell to the ground. He walked over to the seat and fell back into the chair.
Danny picked up a fry and bit into it. "I need you, pal."
Eric was about to say something, but his eyes grew wide. He stood, letting a fry fall from his mouth. Danny looked over and saw McGuiness standing there with a smug grin on his face.
No shit.
McGuiness was pulling a bowling bowl glove over his hand and smiling. "What do you got, Forbes?"
Eric looked up noticing he was up. "You want some of this?"
McGuiness laughed as did some of his bowling buddies. He pulled a ball from a black leather bag. It had an emblem of a stripper holding a pistol. McGuiness dropped the bag and walked up to the lane. He reared back and fired a beautiful ball that spun striking the center pin at an angle. All the pins cracked together and fell almost in a beautiful dance.
"I’ll show you something fat boy," Eric muttered under his breath.
He picked up the heaviest ball and approached the lane. In one smooth motion, Eric reared back and launched the ball. It was a perfect shot down the lane, but something happened. It spun a little too much and struck the pin to the left. All the pins crashed but at different milliseconds. All of them fell except for one.
Oh shit.
Danny put his hand to his mouth to hide from laughing.
Eric stared at the lane for a moment. He clenched his fist as he turned, but he quickly flushed all the anger from his body.
"You win that battle, McGuiness," Eric said, extending his hand for a handshake.
McGuiness just chuckled at him, giving him the finger.
"Laugh away," Eric said smiling. "You still can’t buy class." He walked up close to Danny. "I’m in, but I need a day to get things in order."
Danny smiled, patting him on the back. "There he is taking the high road."
"He’ll get his eventually," Eric sighed as he grabbed his shoes.
CHAPTER TWELVE
"THIS WILL DO, Chad," Eric said as he unbuckled his seat belt.
"You got a piece," Eric said, raising his brow.
"I left the old 1911 at home in the safe," Danny said.
"Good. We can’t have anything traced." Eric held out a shortened 1911 to Danny. "It's got no serial numbers and no way it can be traced to any of us."
"You know I’m a cop right?"
"Yeah, I know," Eric said nonchalantly.
Danny shook his head as he grabbed the pistol out of Eric’s hand.
"Thanks for getting me an actual gun," Danny said.
Eric slammed a magazine in a small Glock and racked the slide. "Like I told you before, Glocks are way more reliable than that dinosaur of a gun you're holding."
"Can't buy class, Eric," Danny said, holding out his hand. "Mags, please."
Eric unzipped another bag and handed over three magazines for the 1911. Danny slammed one in the pistol and racked the slide. He shoved the other two in a leather carrier that was in his belt line.
"Remember, Dan," Eric said softly. "We are in and out in ten minutes. If nothing is going on, we bounce."
"I got it," Danny said sternly.
"You boys watch your six," Chad replied as he cut the lights.
"Chad, you have my number. Be ready to go if I call." Eric holstered his pistol in his beltline and pulled his jacket over it. "Alright, boys, in and out."
Danny and Eric hopped out of the car and made way to the chain-link fence that lined the alleyway. There was a slight gap that both men snuck through. It opened up to a small grass field that was a straight shot to the complex.
Eric walked up close to Danny as they made their way to the left complex. The grass gave way to asphalt that seemed to crunch with each step. The building's windows were all boarded up, except for a few that looked like black holes.
"Place gives me the fucking creeps," Eric whispered as they walked up to the left side of the building.
"This place used to be a YMCA of all things back in the day," Danny said quietly.
"No wonder why kids are so fucked up these days."
They approached a dark opening that was the side entrance to the complex. The sound of dripping water echoed down the dark hallway as both men walked up to its dark abys
s. Nothing stirred, making the hairs on each man's neck erect. It felt like tiny needles that were being buried in their skin as they took a step forward. The dripping sound echoed off the walls making it seem like it was neither close or far.
Just find out why this all started.
The dripping drowned out his inner thoughts, bringing him back to the dark hallway that he and Eric looked down. He grabbed a small flashlight in his pocket and shined it down the hallway. Eric did the same.
"I am not liking the feeling of this, chief," Eric whispered.
Danny got close to Eric's face. "No kidding."
A heavy sigh came from Eric.
"Let's just see if anyone is here," Danny said as he shined the light down the hallway. Seeing it almost made it worse. A wooden chair sat in the middle. Graffiti lined both walls, but four doors stood open, breaking the harsh artwork, two on the left and two on the right. The light from Danny’s flashlight only reached the four doors leaving the rest of the hallway a dark abyss.
What was beyond the light?
Eric moved behind Danny now and shined the light to the rear. The sound of dripping water became louder as they passed a dark staircase.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
Dirt scraped lightly against the tile as two sets of boots began slowly working down the hallway. Danny took each step slow, which in turn Eric did as well.
Drip. Scrape.
Drip. Scrape.
Drip. Scrape.
A choked laugh came from the abyss. The flashlight shined down the hallway. It was completely dark at the end, except for that lonely chair. Nothing had changed.
"Dan, what the fuck was that?" Eric whispered.
"I don't know." Danny was sure it was someone.
Or it could have been just an animal shuddering away from the light.
They walked past the open door, slowly shining inside to make sure it was clear. The light only showed a small corner of the room. It looked barren, lifeless. Danny took another deep breath.
Scrape, scrape. Drip, drip.
On the right was room 119. The door was closed, and no light seemed to come from underneath the door.
"Dan, let's get the fuck out of here," Eric protested.
"Eric, we need to be sure," Danny assured him as he walked up to the door.
Danny pulled down on the handle, and the door swung open on whining hinges. Immediately a smell hit them both.
"Oh god," Eric said as he covered his mouth.
"Goddamn," Danny muttered under his breath using the sleeve of his jacket to cover his nose.
The darkness was broken up as Danny shined his light into the room. An old couch sat in the middle. Danny found a camping lamp that had been tossed on the floor near his feet.
Eric walked towards the bathroom shining his flashlight at the ceiling, illuminating the entire room. There was a bed in the corner with junk food sitting on the small kitchenette.
"This looks like a dream home," Eric muttered as he walked further into the room.
"Just look around. Try to figure out where the hell that smell is coming from," Danny said as he started searching through the tv cabinet.
Eric turned into the bathroom. "Dan?" he said in a hollow voice.
"What?" Danny said as he walked back into the small bathroom.
The smell grew worse as he walked from the carpet onto the tile floor. Eric was standing there, staring in the corner. Danny was about to turn away when he stopped.
"What the fuck?" Eric said as he shined the light on the tub.
A bunch of dismembered body parts were stacked in the tub. Danny took a step closer. There were several arms and legs all cut up in a heaping pile.
A laugh echoed outside.
"What the fuck is going on here?" Eric panted as he pulled out his pistol.
A metal scraping sound came from outside the room.
Danny pulled out his pistol and raised it at the door they came through. Something was there. He could feel the energy shift. Somewhere a door creaked. Danny could see Eric swallow heavily. Fear filled the room, just like the light had. Danny walked to the door, angling himself so he could see down the hallway from the room. He aimed his flashlight down the darkness. The hair on his neck felt like little needles, and he could feel the blood pumping through his veins. Something had changed.
"The chair is gone," Danny said lowly.
"What?" Eric replied in a faint whisper.
"There was a chair in the hallway, and now it's gone."
Danny only saw Eric's silhouette, but he knew what the expression was on his face. There was a door that was open across the hall. Sweat dripped into Danny's eye, causing it to sting. He went to wipe his eye, causing the light to dip to the ground. Suddenly, someone ran past the door in the other room. Danny could feel the blood pulsing through his body. He wanted to leave. He was ready to leave now.
I don't think I want the answers.
"Etter, what's the plan?"
Danny didn't want to think.
Tick tock, Dan. Time is running out.
There was no point in whispering. Danny called out to Eric, "I'll take point. We are leaving. You have the rear."
"On you," Eric replied as he walked up, grabbing Danny's shoulder.
"Stay close. We are going back the way we came." Danny got close to the wall looking down the hallway. Eric kept his weapon up as he tried to clear the left side of the hallway, from where they came.
Danny called out to Eric, "It looks clear behind us, but someone might be in that left room. How's the left side?"
"I can only see a quarter of the way down. You're gonna have to pop out quickly."
Danny readied himself, he took a deep breath and moved. He popped out of the door and looked back the way he came. It was dark, but the entrance showed the high grass that swayed in the wind.
"Someone’s running down the hallway," Eric said.
"Stay on me." Danny started to walk forward, going back the way they came. He timed his footsteps with the dripping water.
Drip, drip, drip.
Danny shined his light on the stairs to the left of the entrance and something caught his eye. He aimed his flashlight on it. Two clean streaks traced a path on the dirty floor to the base of the stairs. The wooden chair sat at the base, but someone was sitting in it with their back facing Danny. He stopped in his tracks, as Eric bumped into him.
Eric called out, "Dan, what's going on, man?"
"Someone is sitt---"
Sobbing cut Danny off.
Oh god.
It sounded like a woman, and it was coming from whoever was sitting in the chair. A smell started to encompass both men. It was unlike anything Danny had ever smelled before, making him want to vomit as it seemed to stick to his throat.
Eric called out, "Dan, we should keep---"
The sobbing suddenly became hysterical laughter. Danny froze, with his weapon aimed at the woman. The legs of the chair rocked back and forth making a squeaking sound.
We should leave.
There was movement at the entrance that pulled Danny’s eyes away from the chair. Someone walked in from the main opening. The ambient light made them look like a pitch-black figure that contrasted with the outside. Danny shined his light on the dark silhouette. It was a dark-skinned man. He was close enough that Danny noticed gashes on his face. His clothes looked torn and dirty. Tattoos covered his neck.
The woman stopped sobbing again. She stood from the chair now and turned slowly. Danny moved his light to her as she faced him. Her bare feet exposed long toe nails that clicked on the floor. Long strands of hair covered her face. She wore no shirt, but her breasts had been cut from her chest, showing only two red gashes.
What is this place?
She moved her fingers in a wave like motion making it seem as though her hands folded backwards on each other.
"Back the fuck up," Danny yelled. He started to step backward, pushing Eric to start moving back. "Go back."
"Dan, someone is in there," Eric replied, his voice was labored and heavy.
"Move!" Danny yelled.
The man started to walk forward. Another man walked down the stairs next to the woman. The woman laughed hysterically now.
Suddenly she started to sing in a horrible voice. "Ring...a…. round...the ...rosie…"
Shit! SHIT!
Danny walked back.
Eric called out. "Dan, I have someone walking down the hallway!"
What!
The woman walked closer with her head down . Both men, behind her, followed. "Pocket... full...of...posies" '
Drip.
Scrape.
"Ashes....ashes...we...all...fall---" The figures stopped in the tracks. The woman stood still with her hair covering her face. Danny stopped. The pistol in his hand felt slippery as he kept it aimed on the woman. It was silent now except for the dripping water.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
The woman looked up smiling with large gashes on her face. "Down."
Suddenly, all of them screamed at the top of their lungs. The woman sprinted towards Danny making him almost panic. The two men were only a few steps behind her. The woman's face appeared from her hair. Her lips had been torn from her face leaving large teeth that were yellow and crooked. Danny started to pull the trigger as he backpedaled. His ears whined as he saw his first-round impact on the woman's torso. It didn't seem to faze her as she ran even faster now. Danny fired again, this time the round impacted her face splitting her nose to pieces of tissue hung limply .
Someone grabbed Danny from behind with a death grip and yanked him through the door. He fell backward, tripping over something. His light flew from his hand as he slammed on the ground. It danced on the floor and rolled to a stop as Danny lost all the breath from his lungs. The light rolled, finally settling on the next to the bed. Danny's eyes adjusted, and he saw a young teenage boy smiling at him from under the bed. The boy's face was distorted with a smile that seemed almost too large to be comfortable. His eyes looked like black marbles.
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