by John Mathews
Nancy rolled her eyes. “You really think you can pull it off without doing anything foolish if you get inside that room? So far you haven’t exactly impressed me as the most…”
“How do you know what fucking foolish is?” Jeffrey snapped. “We’re gonna do things my way. And I’m gonna get some damn results.”
Jeffrey walked up to the steel door, while Nancy stayed well behind him. He took a few deep breaths, relying on the confidence that he had learned from just a year in the military. Then he balled his hand up into a fist and pounded hard on the door.
“Whoever is in there, open this door up – NOW. I know what’s going on, dude, and am able to contact the police and report everything. I think that we need to talk and negotiate this shit between us.”
Jeffrey waited in anticipation for several moments. Everything remained silent. Then he pounded on the door once more.
“I know you can hear me, dude, or should I say, Jordan Davidson. You ain’t gonna play me like a fool, man, so give it up. I got cell phone reception down here, and am giving the police this address in sixty seconds if you don’t open this damn door. We are not playing games with you, but are also not threatening you. We just wanna TALK. You got that? So open this shit up now.”
Jeffrey waited. Nancy was crouched down on her heels and her heart was pounding relentlessly. Suddenly the thick metal door opened, and Jeffrey stepped eagerly inside the next room.
NINE
Kevin was seated at the end of a long office table inside another dimly-lit room with concrete walls, a window with bars on it, and two exit doors. He felt like he was inside a prison cell. He was grateful that he had been given an extra ten minutes to complete the online banking transaction. Once he received the confirmation that the money had gone through, a second door opened from inside the room marked “Money”. He had walked down a narrow passageway and into this other room with a table.
There were two seats, one at each end of the table, in this otherwise empty room. He had no idea what to expect next and was breathing heavily. He sat down nervously in one of the chairs and began to rap his fingernails against the wooden table to break the monotonous silence. I’ve been waiting here for 15 minutes! When am I getting out of here? I just want this bullshit to all be over with. I’ve only been out of prison for a few months and need to get back to living the good life again. I never deserved any of this because money has its privileges. Nobody has the right to call me spoiled – I’m the only child of wealthy parents. I wanna make dad proud again.
Kevin reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette and lighter. His hands were trembling a bit and he needed to calm his nerves. Just as he flicked the lighter, the second exit door from the room opened, and a man stepped inside. He was tall, with broad shoulders and a thick build. He had on a neatly pressed charcoal-colored suit and matching necktie. He was holding a large flashlight in one hand and a file folder in the other. He slammed the door closed behind him, turned the flashlight on, and shined it right at Kevin’s eyes. Kevin dropped the cigarette and lighter, squinting and holding his hand up to block the blinding light. The man stood still at the other end of the table staring at Kevin. Kevin peered over his outstretched hand to get a better look at this intimidating figure.
His face was entirely covered in a black leather mask with only small openings for the eyes and mouth. Kevin swallowed nervously, wanting to speak, but not sure about what to say first. The man dropped the file folder on the table. The black pits of his eyes just stared down at Kevin, as if penetrating into his mind. After a few more moments of silence, the dark figure spoke. It was the same deep, menacing voice that had been on the video tape.
“Kevin Thompson – I’m Jordan Davidson. At last we meet face to face – so to speak.” The figure chuckled while taking in big gulps of air through the hole in the mask. “You are clearly a man with no morals, no sense of human compassion, and no dignity. You have taken zero responsibility for your actions. Even when given the chance to make things right, you continue to try and evade doing what is honest, even if it destroys the life of someone else. You expect to be bailed out for your wrongdoings and care only about yourself. I like to refer to people like you as PARASITES. You are someone who sucks the life out of everyone around you. How can you go through life being this type of person?”
Kevin slid back in his chair a bit, feeling very uncomfortable and somewhat sick to his stomach. I paid the money, didn’t he get it? Oh God, don’t let him kill me. I need to be home with my dad. He fumbled for his words and his lips quivered as he spoke.
“Um…I don’t know…I mean, shit happens, you know…and it wasn’t all my fault. I mean there were four of us that went…”
“SILENCE!” The masked man leaned forward, slamming his palms down hard against the table. “I don’t want to hear any more excuses. I am talking about what YOU did, and only you. I want to hear about your part in the crimes committed on that day, more than three years ago. Now, answer these questions for me, and do yourself a favor – be completely honest. Did you plan to break into a house with the intent to steal with two other young men – Jeffrey Eldridge and Henry Walker? Yes or no.”
Kevin slumped back in his chair even more. “Yes.”
“And did you coerce Michael Jaworski to go along with the three of you, even though he had no idea what your intent was? And in fact did you tell him that you knew the owner of the house and were just playing a harmless prank?”
“Yes.”
“After you broke into the house, the homeowner panicked, and shot at Henry, killing him. The fault for this death was entirely with you and Jeffrey, since the two of you planned the events that day. But did you lie about these intentions, and pin the blame falsely on Michael to save yourself?”
It was Jeffrey who had the weapon. I just went along with it because I didn’t want him to go off on me. “I was scared of Jeffrey, which is why I lied. But, yes.”
“Then the answer is YES. So confirming this, Michael was a completely innocent bi-stander who was in the wrong place at the wrong time on that day. Is that right?”
Kevin sighed. “Yes.”
“And did you bribe the prosecuting attorney Nancy Dorsey for a sum of 250 thousand dollars to hide evidence against you and go along with the lies made about Michael?”
“Yes….yes. I did it. All of it. But it wasn’t all my idea to…”
“And finally – just a little while ago, did you demand that your father send another 300 thousand dollars to continue to cover up this injustice?”
“Yes – but you were the one that told me that I had to do that. I had no choice but to…”
“SILENCE! You have had choices and alternatives every step of the way, Mr. Thompson. You’ve been making pathetic excuses your entire life and never want to take responsibility. Now, open the folder on the table. You will find a sheet of paper inside with a series of statements written on it. Sign at the bottom where you see your name printed. After you sign this sheet of paper, you may go out the door that I came through, which leads outside. From there you can go home.”
TEN
Jeffrey went through the steel door and into the next room with Nancy trailing a certain distance behind him. To his shock he saw John Madison seated alone in what looked like an office. He appeared to be unharmed in any way. Jeffrey motioned for Nancy to come inside.
Jeffrey stood in front of John, looking him square in the eye. “Do you wanna tell me what in the hell is going on here? What happened when you went inside that room marked ‘Punishment’?”
John took a deep breath before replying calmly. “I had to bargain with him. It was for my own good. I made a deal so that I would be safe.”
Jeffrey shook his head in dismay. “A deal? What the hell does that mean? Bargain with WHO?”
“Jordan Davidson. I did what was asked of me inside the room and agreed to the conditions. Then I came down the hall to this office to…”
“What was it that you were asked t
o do, John?” Nancy interrupted. “What are these conditions? Can you be more specific?”
“All I had to do was sign an agreement saying that I would take a 30-day leave of absence and withdraw from handling any of my pending cases. So I figured what the heck, I’ll use it as a little vacation. I’ve been wanting to take some time off for myself anyways.”
Nancy was puzzled. “That’s it? A leave of absence is your punishment? So what’s the motive? Exactly who IS this Jordan Davidson?”
John shrugged with a look of despair. “I don’t exactly know – nobody does. But it just appears that he wants to make things right for Michael. I can understand that, and I don’t want to damage the rest of my career. So I went along with what was asked of me.”
Jeffrey turned his hands palm up in disbelief. “But what about those snakes, dude – in that room? What the hell was that all about?”
“Those were there to force me to comply with the conditions. I think that if I didn’t do what was asked of me, they would have been turned loose. This Jordan guy will definitely use force if necessary. Not all of us can get away with murder like you did, Jeffrey, since it was you who broke into the house with a weapon, causing the death of your friend.”
“Shut up,” Jeffrey retorted. “If the other guy who was with us hadn’t startled that old man, I would have just killed the old bastard myself and nobody would have known anything.”
“Relax, Jeffrey,” John replied. “You already did your time. You can’t be tried again on the same murder charges. I guess you were smart enough to pin the blame on Michael using Kevin’s money, right? But how did you come up with such a clever solution?”
Jeffrey puffed out his chest. “Experience from the street life, man. I always take care of number one and am sure to win in the end.”
Nancy looked around at the surrounding office space. There were six video screens mounted high on the walls just below the ceiling. Each screen was showing an image of one of the other rooms or hallways. There was also a control panel with two rows of switches. On the back wall was another closed door.
“What are all of these screens, John?” She bent over to have a better look at the panel.
“Those display the images that video cameras pick up in each of the other areas inside the warehouse. Remember the one that we saw in the hallway with the four doors? They are used to keep an eye and ear out for everything that anyone says or does.”
“But then why are YOU sitting here observing them, John? Where is this Mr. Davidson?” replied Nancy.
“Well – this is the second part of the conditions set for me. I was asked to keep watch on all of the other areas inside the warehouse.”
“And what do all of those switches do?”
John paused for a moment. “The first row…well…they cause the gas to come out into each of the other areas when switched on.”
Nancy and Jeffrey stared at each other for a moment. Jeffrey was steaming from the inside. “So what the fuck, dude, you’re like IN on this shit? You’re watching all the damn rooms and make the gas come out if we don’t do what the fuck they want us to?”
“More or less, that’s right. But it’s just to be sure that each of us does what is asked. Honestly, if you just go into the room that you were assigned to and complete the task at hand, then nothing bad will…”
Jeffrey grabbed John by the shirt and yanked him out of the chair and onto his feet. “Let’s get something straight, man. I don’t get treated like a caged rat and you are not gonna tell me what I have to do or not do. You got that? Now, if YOU don’t want to get hurt, right here and right now, then you’ll take me to Jordan Davidson. It’s time to talk to the puppet master.”
Nancy motioned towards Jeffrey. “Wait – don’t hurt him.”
Jeffrey slapped her hand away. “Mind your own damn business. I’m in charge now. John – take me to meet the boss. Where is he?”
With a trembling hand John adjusted his spectacles to keep them from falling off of his face. “I don’t know where he is – I’ve never even seen him myself. I was given my orders when I went into my room, that’s all I know. A video there told me what I was supposed to do here, in this office. I don’t have anything else that I can tell you.”
Jeffrey had a scowl on his face. “Then we’re gonna get moving, just the three of us, until we discover who’s behind all of this. Where does that door lead to?” He pointed to the back wall.
“I don’t know,” John shrugged. “I’ve only been sitting inside this office.”
“Calm down, Jeffrey.” Nancy spoke calmly. “Why don’t we take a look at the video screens and see if there’s one that can show us what’s through that door.”
Jeffrey kept a firm grip on John’s shirt. “Fine. Which one is it, man?”
“The fifth one – there,” John pointed. “It appears that the door leads to another corridor which ends at another larger room.” John adjusted his spectacles, trying to get a closer look. “And it looks like there is an exit door in that room, and also a stairwell heading back up to the narrow hallway with the big screen TV and the four doors.”
Nancy let out a deep breath. “What does the second row of switches do?”
“They unlock the exit doors.”
Jeffrey pushed John’s head down towards the panel, squeezing the front of his neck with his other hand. “Like the door that we came in through in the big room with the food? Unlock the doors, all of them.”
John fumbled for his words. “You’re choking me.” He started to cough. Jeffrey lightened his grip a bit. John reached down and flipped some switches in the second row.
Jeffrey yanked John again by the neck, enjoying the feeling of power that he had over him. “And what about the fucking tear gas? How do you shut that off and keep it off?”
John cleared his throat. “They’re all off now. But I’m not the only one controlling the gas, so there’s no guarantee that…”
“Whatever, man.” Jeffrey shoved John towards the door. “You’re going first. Get moving.”
Reluctantly, John opened the door in the back of the room and started down a dim corridor with Jeffrey and Nancy following closely behind him.
ELEVEN
The hallway with white concrete walls went straight along for a while and then made a sharp turn to the right. The ceiling was much higher here, and on either side of the walkway there were boxes, sealed with duct tape, and stacked one on top of the other. The boxes were held firmly in place by metal wire and most of them were covered in dust. John felt rather nervous about Jeffrey’s aggressive behavior, but felt sure that once they got into the next room the situation would improve.
Jeffrey grabbed John by the shoulder causing him to stop. “What’s in all of these boxes?”
John looked to either side of him. The boxes didn’t have any markings on them. “I don’t know. This looks like an old storage warehouse that’s been closed down for a long time. In the big room that we first came into from the parking lot, there was a piece of plywood that said Heavy Freight Rooms. So whatever is in these boxes must be stored here for a shipping company.”
Jeffrey let go of John and cleared the dust off one of the boxes. Then he started to yank the box out from the wires that held it. John jumped back in fear that the stack of boxes on top might come tumbling down. He acts purely on instinct, and is dumb as a stone. I don’t see how I will ever get him into the room to hold up my end of the bargain.
After struggling for another minute to free the box, Jeffrey set it down on the floor, while the other boxes remained in place. He pulled on the duct tape along the edges of the box until it tore, and ripped the cardboard to see what was inside.
Inside the box were four metal canisters marked “Zyklon B”. Jeffrey had a look of confusion on his face. “What are these, John?”
John peered into the box. “Oh my. That’s…um,” He cleared his throat. “That’s hydrogen cyanide. Deadly gas used to execute people. Just think of Nazi Germany.”
“So what are you telling me, dude? That this warehouse is used to store gas that kills people? And we’ve already been gassed up in that hallway, and now you want me to go inside some closed room by myself to see what happens?”
The heavy puffs from his exhales blew against John’s neck. “I don’t know all the answers. I just think that if we each did what the video…”
“FUCK the video!” Jeffrey interrupted with a scowl on his face. His hand stung as it landed hard against John’s temple. “Can’t you see that someone lured us in here to kill us? We need to get out of here any damn way that we can. Take us into the next room. You said that there’s an exit door in there, right?”
Stunned by the blow, John hesitated. “Well…I saw what looked like one on the monitor, but I can’t be sure that…”
Jeffrey jerked his head up in agreement. ”Good enough. Get moving.” With John leading the way, they continued along to the end of the corridor and stood in front of a wooden door. John tried the handle and it opened. The three of them stepped inside another room.
This space was different than the other rooms in the warehouse. The concrete walls on either side of the door they came in through were curved a bit. These walls joined in the back of the room with what appeared to be an antique library. A mahogany bookcase supported rows and rows of books, which were separated by divisions every couple of feet. In front of the bookshelves there was an old desk table with a small globe on top, a reading lamp, a fancy looking ink pen, and an open scrapbook. On the floor beneath the table was an elegant oriental rug.
On the right wall there was an arch-shaped opening and a flight of stairs leading upwards. Nancy looked over the rows of books and then down at the scrapbook. She picked it up to examine it more thoroughly and began reading an article on the first page out loud.