“Well, whaddya expect,” Jamie said. “He’s a man! Every man I know forgets to raise the seat; he just forgot to raise the lid also!”
At that, they both started laughing—loudly. And they were right outside of Kane’s room. Kane didn’t move a muscle. Satisfied Kane was asleep, the nurses closed his door. He continued to lie still for another fifteen minutes before he got out of bed and dressed. Kane positioned his pillows under the blanket so it appeared that a sleeping body was still there.
At nine o’clock, the hallway lights were dimmed throughout the clinic. Not long after, Kane made his break, being sure to blend into the shadows whenever the opportunity existed. Kane could hear the nurses talking down the hall at the nurse’s station, but they never noticed his door open.
He wasn’t out yet though. Kane still had to make it past the receptionist in the lobby before he’d be free. Luckily, he didn’t have to wait long for his chance to slip past her. The receptionist left her position to use the bathroom in the lobby and Kane bolted through the front doors of the clinic within seconds. By the time the receptionist returned from the bathroom, Kane was two blocks away, running down one of the alleys off of Goldust Avenue—his alley. Now, Kane needed to find Hulk—before the creature found him.
CHAPTER 24
“Fear, if allowed free rein, would reduce all of us to trembling shadows of men, for whom only death could bring release.”
—John M. Wilson
“. . . but he is afraid,” it said to its reflection in the mirror as it nervously paced the room. “Why do you think he’s been trying so hard to find us?”
“Maybe he’s just curious about us,” it answered its reflection. It was the only living thing in the basement room, although what qualifies as living can be a subjective term to some. Regardless, besides the large dressing mirror propped against the wall, the twin sized mattress it slept on and the single candle that provided little light, it was the only thing in the small, dark room. “Have you thought about that possibility?”
“Curious,” it repeated to the reflection. “You really don’t believe he’s just curious, do you? Remember who we’re talking about here. You do remember, don’t you?”
“Of course I remember,” it answered itself. “The one we spared.”
“That’s right. Our experiment. Our failed experiment.”
“I don’t think you can consider him a failed experiment.”
“You don’t? What about the nightmares? How do you explain them, then?”
“Maybe he’s just . . . um . . .”
“Just what?! Quit trying to rationalize this! You’re driving me crazy!”
“I’m not rationalizing anything. I’m just trying to get you to consider an alternative explanation. Why does it always have to be your way or the highway? Not everyone is afraid all the time.”
“You can’t really believe that? Listen to what you’re saying. Don’t you remember anything about what we learned back then? Haven’t I proven time and time again that they’re all afraid of something?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“And what do we do when they’re afraid?”
“Release the fear,” it sighed into the mirror. “I was only suggesting that he might be different.”
“Okay, let’s forget about the nightmares for one minute; assume they’re irrelevant. Even if you completely ignore the nightmares, we’re left with the fact that he’s not only been trying to find us, but he’s getting close to finding us—real close. I know you can feel him too.”
“Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?”
“Jeez, sometimes you can be so dense. Think back to how all this started. We were chosen to eradicate fear. Neither of us asked for the job, but that’s our destiny.”
“Yeah, but I still don’t see how any of that makes a difference.”
“Do you remember how we first met him?”
“He was the boy in the alley when we released the man from his fear of Hell. We didn’t even know he was there until he screamed.”
“That’s right. He screamed. That means he was afraid.”
“Okay.”
“And do you remember why we didn’t release him from his fear?”
“Because he was part of us?”
“And?”
“And what?”
“We released the fear from us. Remember the bees? Remember what the bees would do to us? Remember how scared we used to be until we released our fear, before our rebirth? Just because he was part of us wouldn’t be reason enough to spare him from the release of his own fear. We were put here to help everyone release their fear regardless of whether they’re part of us or not. Everyone needs to be born again without fear; they need to be saved.
“But that wasn’t only one reason he was spared. Don’t you remember the other reason he was spared?”
“Other reason? I don’t remember any other reason.”
“The experiment, you idiot! Jeez, we were just talking about it.”
“Oh, yeah! The ex-per-iment. That’s right. Help us fulfill our destiny, that’s what he was supposed to do.”
“Damned straight! He was part of us. He was supposed to help release fear, but what has he been doing instead? He’s been causing more fear, especially lately.”
“Okay, I see your point.”
“Well, now that he’s come home too, I think it’s time we bring our little experiment to an end. The only reason we spared him in the first place was so he’d help us, but he’s never done that. It’s time to reclaim him. He needs to be reborn.
“Not only that, but since he’s been searching for us, he’s been bringing others close to us. We can’t let that happen either. If they imprisoned us again, then who would be left to help all those people release their fear?”
“Fine. We’ll reclaim him; hunt him down. Are you happy?”
“I won’t be happy until all fear is gone. We’ve got a lot of people left to help.”
“You’ve always got to be so difficult. I hate you sometimes.”
“No you don’t because you know I’m right.”
“Sure, first you wanted to reclaim the creators, now you want to reclaim the experiment, but what about the other part of us? What about the ones they’ve told? I suppose you’ll want to reclaim them too?”
“We must be allowed to fulfill our destiny. We did not choose this existence, it was chosen for us. We cannot and will not rest until fear has been completely eliminated. We’ve allowed too many of them to know about us for too long. We’ve been getting sloppy, especially lately. What’s done is done though. It’s time for us to tie up all the loose ends so we can do our work without worrying about being imprisoned again. That’s why we came home in the first place, to tie up the loose ends. Besides, they’re all afraid. Can’t you feel their fear?”
“Yes.”
“That’s all we have to do, follow the scent of fear and we’ll find them all. Hunting down fear is easy. We’re only doing what we were brought here to do in the first place.”
“Release their fear.”
“Exactly.”
CHAPTER 25
It was raining. Not the cool, refreshing type of rain, but more like warm bathwater. Kane didn’t care. He was free again from the confines of Ivory Rock; free from its sterile, antiseptic odor; free from its artificial, air conditioned atmosphere; free from . . . everything. Well, almost everything. Kane didn’t stop running when he reached his makeshift house in the alley. He felt like they were right behind him—or was it something else he sensed was hunting him? Kane shuddered. He didn’t want to think about that.
Gotta find Hulk, Kane told himself as he went through the hole in the chain link fence across from his alley—the same hole Ed and Torrie passed through a couple of days ago when they were searching for Tazz.
Kane knew where Hulk usually hung out. It shouldn’t be too hard to find him. The wet bushes against his skin felt good as he made his way through the woods to the gathering pla
ce. Kane felt sure that the Vagrant-ville regulars—including Hulk—would be at their normal spot. A little rain doesn’t bother someone who’s lived most of their life without a permanent shelter. They would be huddled around the fire pit. Of course, there would be no fire tonight since it was raining, but the fire pit acted as the Vagrant-ville Community Center. The fire itself was inconsequential, mainly serving as a light source that was usually unnecessary, especially on night like this when the moon was full.
Kane got to the fire pit quicker than Ed and Torrie had a couple of days earlier, but he knew these woods like the back of his hand. This was home. As expected, the regulars were there.
“Who’s there!” one of the regulars yelled towards the sound of Kane crashing through the bushes—it was the same person who’d also challenged Ed and Torrie.
Kane smiled. He recognized the voice. “Spike, you dumb, old watch-dog, can’t you at least tell the difference between a friendly scent and your master’s scent?”
Spike had an uncanny ability—probably just keen hearing—to detect when someone was approaching the fire pit. He was better than a watch-dog, which led to his nickname. “Spike” conjured up images of a white, cartoon bulldog with a spiked collar sitting in front of a “Beware of the Dog” sign—it was a good name for a watch-dog. Spike was especially useful when it was the police who were trampling through the woods on a mission to harass the Vagrant-ville Community Center. He gave everyone present a chance to get rid of anything that might get them arrested, or to bolt into the woods.
“Kane! Welcome back,” Spike said.
Kane spent the next several minutes saying hello and shaking everybody’s hand as if he’d just returned from an extended vacation overseas. All the regulars were present, except, of course, for Tazz. Everyone was obviously happy that Kane had returned, but at the same time, the group was still somewhat subdued. The shock of Tazz’s death was still fresh and nobody seemed willing to broach the subject with Kane. Even Hulk was unsure as to whether Kane was aware of Tazz’s death. It was Kane himself who finally mentioned Tazz, but only to Hulk, and only after he was able to get Hulk out of earshot of the others.
“I read the letter from Tazz,” Kane whispered to Hulk, who was sitting next to him. “Did you read it?”
“No, I don’t read so good,” Hulk said. “Plus, it didn’t have my name on it. It was addressed to your nephew. I thought it might be private. He got it, didn’t he? I gave it to Dr. Wilson so she could give it to him.”
“Yeah, he got it,” Kane said. “I was there when Torrie gave it to him. He read it out loud so the three of us could hear.”
“What did it say?” Hulk asked.
“Have you ever heard the stories about the creature who hunts our kind?” Kane asked.
“You mean that boogeyman legend about the monster who eats your soul or some bullshit like that?” Hulk said. From the look on his face, it was apparent that he didn’t give too much credence to the stories he’d heard.
“It sucks the life-force outta ya-”
“Whatever.”
“And it’s not bullshit, Hulk. That’s what killed Tazz.”
“The pigs said he killed himself.”
“How long’d you know Tazz? There ain’t nuthin’ in this whole wide world that woulda made him kill himself.”
“That’s what I always thought, but them pigs said-”
“I don’t give a shit what the fuckin’ pigs said!” Kane growled, trying to keep his voice low so only Hulk could hear him, but without much success. Some of the others started to notice the heated tone of their conversation. “You were one of Tazz’s closest friends and there ain’t no way in hell that he killed his self. You know it’s true.”
“Calm down, Kane. I’d rather believe what you’re sayin’ instead of what some dumb cops told me. It’s just that I don’t believe that there’s a boogeyman out there huntin’ us. That don’t make no sense neither.”
“Are you tellin’ me that it makes more sense that Tazz killed his self?”
“I dunno what to believe no more,” Hulk said as he looked away from Kane and stared at the ground in front of him. “I still can’t believe Tazz is gone.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean,” Kane said softly. “That’s why I want your help.”
“Whaddya have in mind?” Hulk asked.
“I need you to stick close to me. We’re gonna go do some huntin’ ourselves. We’re gonna find this creature together and kill it.”
“You want to go lookin’ for some creature who goes around killin’ people? Are you nuts?”
“You’re the biggest mother-fucker I know and not even the creature would dare fuck with you. Besides, I thought you said you didn’t believe in the boogeyman,” Kane said. “So, what do you care? While you’re with me, I’ll make sure you got everything you want or need. You’ve got nuthin’ to lose since there’s no boogeyman. Right?”
Hulk didn’t want to show any fear, but he also didn’t like the idea of actively searching for Kane’s creature—if it existed. Hulk had heard rumors of the creature since he’d been on the streets, but he’d never believed them. Hulk knew that Kane could provide him with more food and booze than he could get on his own. Kane had been living on the streets forever—just like Tazz—and knew all the tricks. It would be a cozy existence with Kane providing for his every need and all Hulk had to do in return was be Kane’s bodyguard. It sounded like a good deal.
What if Hulk was wrong though? He sure as hell wasn’t suicidal, and this is exactly what it sounded like if Kane was right. As Hulk was contemplating all this, Kane landed a cheap shot that made his decision easy.
“Even if you don’t want to do it for me, do it for Tazz,” Kane said. “He was practically a father to you. You owe it to the memory of Tazz.”
“Fine, I’ll do it for Tazz. I still think that creature-legend is bullshit, and that you’re probably mental for believin’ it, but if all I gotta do is keep you in my sights and protect you from sumthin’ that don’t exist, that would make me the wacko one for refusin’ such a primo offer.”
“Then it’s settled.”
“Yep.”
“Spit,” Kane said, spit into his hand and held it out for Hulk. Hulk spit into his own hand and they shook.
The deal was sealed. A spit/handshake was Vagrant-ville’s version of a valid, binding contract, and this type of contract was unbreakable under penalty of being ostracized by the rest of the Vagrant-ville community, which was a worse penalty than any court could impose.
“So, what do we do now?” Hulk asked.
“We go lookin’ for this thing.”
“How? Where?”
“I guess I just follow my gut, but even if we don’t find it, I’m sure it’ll find us. I get the feelin’ it’s hungry.”
Hulk didn’t say anything, but he was starting to have reservations about the deal he’d just made—as well as a sickening feeling in his own gut.
Kane and Hulk wandered around aimlessly for several hours. Kane wasn’t real sure what he was looking for and Hulk was simply following Kane around like a puppy dog. Hulk was actually pretty bored with his new occupation.
“How’s that gut doin’?” Hulk asked and snickered. “You know where this creature of yours is yet?”
They were the same questions he’d been asking Kane every twenty minutes or so starting somewhere around the first hour of their search for the creature. It had become Hulk’s way of teasing Kane. Kane ignored him. He was taking the search seriously and his gut told him he would somehow know when he was close.
Another couple of hours went by. Neither of them knew what time it was—watches weren’t common accessories on the street—but Hulk guessed it was probably somewhere between two and four in the morning. He’d had enough of this bullshit for one night, and he had something else on his mind.
“I’m gettin’ thirsty, Kane. Whaddya say we knock off our search for the night and you go get me sumthin’ to drink, preferably whiskey,
but I ain’t picky. It’s time for a partial payment for my services.”
Kane wasn’t ready to give up the search yet, but he didn’t want the big man to get angry. “How ‘bout if I get you a bottle outta my personal stash, we take a break for awhile so’s you and me both can get numbed up a little, but then we continue the search. You can even bring whatever’s left in the bottle with you.”
Hulk had heard about Kane’s stash of liquor. It was like the legend of El Dorado except instead of gold, Kane had an unlimited hoard of liquor hidden somewhere. Not the cheap swill Hulk normally drank, but top quality stuff that was usually too expensive to afford. The thought of having a bottle of good whiskey for a change wasn’t the only tempting part of Kane’s offer though. Hulk might actually be shown the location of Kane’s El Dorado. This was an offer he couldn’t refuse.
Hulk tried his best not to sound too excited, but what came out of his mouth was, “A whole bottle? Shit yeah!”
Kane had no intention of showing Hulk the exact location of his stash. He wouldn’t have a stash for long if he did something idiotic like that. When they got as close as Kane was willing to risk without leading Hulk to the precise location of his liquor supply—a small, natural limestone cave hidden deep in the woods that was barely big enough to house a family of raccoons—Kane told Hulk to remain put. Kane figured it would take him ten minutes maximum to get to the cave, pick out a bottle and get back. Since he’d be within yelling distance the entire time, he didn’t think he’d be in any danger.
Kane was right. He wasn’t the one in danger. As soon as Kane was out of Hulk’s sight, a man’s image appeared from behind a tree.
“Hello, Hulk,” said the image.
“Who’s there?” Hulk answered as he took a defensive stance. There was a full moon, but it was still night and they were in the middle of the woods, which shaded the man’s face from Hulk’s view.
“Curious. You’ve been searching for me, yet when you find me, you don’t even know who I am.”
The realization of who was standing before Hulk struck him immediately, but for some strange reason, Hulk had no desire to run. At the moment, the only desire Hulk had was to go to sleep.
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