Now completely confused, he turned back to the double doors, and looked over them carefully, wondering what to do next. It took only one look for him to find a keypad just to the right of the doors. Seeing it, he again reached for the access card on his breast pocket, and brought the card down to the pad. It beeped, and the light flashed green as the door clicked. This has to be the doors to the offices. It just has to be. He opened the doors, and went through them as they closed behind him with a gentle thud.
Now where in the hell am I? He walked into what looked like a darkened room. In fact, when he looked down, he couldn’t even see his own shoes. This is not the offices. He looked back up and saw nothing. With it all, he turned, and reached back for the door.
“Who’s there?” a voice came from the darkness behind him.
A deep, gurgling sound that caused him to jump almost as fast as it did come. He gasped not expecting anyone to be there, and it froze his legs in place. “I’m Jimmy, or James Walls.” He turned and looked back into the darkness. His voice sounded rushed. He sounded scared and he hated himself for both.
“Who?” the voice asked just before a bright flash of light flowed throughout the room.
Light that completely blinded him. “I’m James Walls, the night security guard.” He repeated and tried to focus. He raced his right arm up and over his face to help with the glare of the lights that now hurt his eyes. It helped some, but only a little. It took a few minutes for his eyes to adjust, and when he could see again, he saw a tall lanky looking man standing maybe three feet in the center of the room just ahead of him.
The man moved slowly towards him, almost hesitant at first and stopped right in front of him. “How did you get in here?” He brushed his long shoulder length and rather shabby looking blonde hair from his face.
Jimmy’s eyes continued to focus. When he could see clearly, he looked deeply into the man’s deep blue eyes. “I did with this.” He showed the tall, lanky man the card that he used to get into the room.
The odd-looking man looked at it and his eyes widened. “You can use it anywhere?” He moved still closer.
He now stood only a foot or less from him. “Yeah.” He stepped back one-step. God, he stinks! The man’s breaths reeked with a heavy, sour smell that reminded him of rotting meat. The stench roared. He almost gagged, and had to hold his breath.
“Nice.” The man stopped, noticing the young guard move back. “My name is Collins.” He smiled and showed yellowish, brown colored teeth behind his chapped looking lips. Both made him look almost dehydrated.
Seeing his yellow teeth made Jimmy gasp. They looked shabby and out of place from the rest of him. His face looked pale but clear. His neck looked slim, but he looked somewhat muscular. Every part of him looked healthy, but the teeth. Seeing it all, made him feel a little bit surprised. His teeth don’t seem to match the way he looks.
“Doctor Collins?” He forced his thoughts back together again. He felt like he had to explain why he was there. “I’m sorry to interrupt you. I kind of got lost.” That was an understatement if there ever was one. He smiled to himself, but on the outside, he still felt scared and that had to be showing.
“Lost?” Collins turned and walked back to the center of the room. He sighed, or maybe it was a laugh.
Jimmy couldn’t tell for sure, but what he could tell was that the man seemed to be completely out of place. Now that he was turned, he could easily see the muscles in the man’s back through his white t-shirt. Seeing the shirt, he looked over the rest of him and saw that he was also wearing white slacks. He was also wearing what looked like white tennis shoes as well. Everything that he saw made him have to think. It didn’t look like something that a lab worker would normally wear, but then again, he had no real idea what they would wear anyway. Still, everything about him looked different. It made everything feel all too weird. He didn’t look like he was supposed to be there. It all felt like just a hunch, but with all of it, he didn’t know what else to think about anything.
“No worries. You didn’t interrupt anything.” The man stopped and turned back towards him. “I was doing nothing really. I never do anything lately.” He bowed his head, causing his blonde hair to fall in front of his face.
Jimmy turned, watching him move. He looked through the room around him, and could see what looked like a bed at the far wall on his left. It looked disheveled and slept in. On the right, there was what looked like cages built into the wall itself. Other than that, there was nothing else in the room.
The smells in the room were even stranger. It smelled musty. It smelled different. He couldn’t place what it smelled like, but it did smell strange. It all made him look back to the man, and in doing so, he had the sudden feeling that he had just walked in on him doing something that he wasn’t supposed to see him doing. The sudden feeling of wanting to run again crept up into his heart. “I’ll leave you now.” He turned to leave.
“You don’t have to go.” Collins raised an arm out to the young guard and motioned for him with a wave. His voice cracked some, sounding almost surprised. He also sounded almost like he was pleading. “I don’t get too many visitors.” His voice turned demure, almost serene. He sounded almost like a little kid that was bored and wanted someone to stay to play with him.
Hearing it all surprised Jimmy even more. “Visitors?” He stopped as his hand touched the doorknob. He turned it, just before, and found it surprisingly locked. He didn’t really think about it more than that and turned back around. “You work here right?” he felt that he needed to ask, so he did. This all feels weird. It doesn’t feel right. If what he felt was right, he needed something more to go on. He had no idea what else to do.
“Work.” The man laughed. It sounded deep, almost childish. “I guess you can call it that.”
Jimmy could see something that looked like shame in his eyes. The look surprised him some, and he didn’t know why. Why would he be ashamed to be there? He didn’t know what to think about it, so he tried not to. “What do you do?” he had to ask next. I had to come into the room with a card. If I had to do that, than he would have to do that too right. It made sense, but he still felt obliged to ask about it anyway.
“I’m a guinea pig.” The man shrugged and laughed again. “I help with research,” he added after catching his breath.
Jimmy nodded, trying to understand everything. However, he now knew that he didn’t want to know anything else. “I should go.” He turned again.
The man obviously didn’t want him to leave. “I was wondering if you could do me a favor first,” he asked, sounding rather rushed.
“What?” Jimmy stopped just as he used his card on the pad just next to the doorjamb, and opened the door.
The man left the center of the room and made his way towards where he stood. “I was wondering if you could get me something to eat. I haven’t had anything to eat for a while.” He smiled.
His breath smelled beyond bad, it almost smelled as if it was petrified. “I’m not sure that I should.” He bowed his head, and again held his breaths.
The man, Collins, nodded. “That’s okay.” He truly looked disappointed. He looked like the child was just told that he couldn’t have the friend stay and play with him after all.
Jimmy nodded and quickly swung the door open and left as fast as he could go. He made it down the hallway and back to the intersection, and there he stopped and turned back to the double doors.
Collins now stood there, holding the left of the double doors open and looking straight at him. He smiled, showing his deep yellow teeth.
Jimmy couldn’t do anything else but stare for a brief moment and take a deep breath. He didn’t know what he had just walked in on, and for the life of him, he now knew that he didn’t want to know it. He couldn’t figure out anything more than that, so he just turned and moved on. The need to run felt overpowering, and the need to be back on his tour had become stronger than that.
When he reached the next intersection, he looke
d down at his watch, and saw that it was now 12:45. Shit! I am really running late. He had to find his way back. He had to run. He had to get back to the lobby and now.
He turned and headed down the hallway to his left, and at the next intersection, he turned right. He ran for what seemed like an eternity. He kept going until he found a set of double doors and flew through them, and before he knew it, he was back in the hallway of the office side of the building. Again, before he really knew it, he was back on his tour. He reached the lobby after a good half-an-hour of trying to find his way back. Just as he made it to the counter, two tall men wearing dark blue uniforms with badges covering their left pockets seemed to be waiting for him by the front doors. Seeing them standing there instantly made him wince. They found me out. They’re waiting for me, because I’m late.
“Where the fuck have you been?” The larger of the two men, the one with blonde hair and a mustache, came up to the counter, and stopped. He placed his right arm to the top of it, and stared at him with haunting eyes. The other man, the younger one, stayed at the front doors by the glass.
Jimmy held his breath. “I got a little lost.” He bowed his head, removed the radio from his belt, and placed it to the top of the counter before taking his chair. He didn’t know who this man was, but knew that it had to be one of the other security guards employed at the labs. They were the ones that he knew were armed, and the fact that they were, scared him to his very core.
“Figures.” The big one stared down at him from the other side of the counter, and puffed.
“I’m sorry.” Jimmy swallowed a now dry mouth. He had to think of something to say. He had to think of a good reason to be in the labs. He wasn’t allowed in there, he knew that, so he had to come up with something that made sense. “I’m still trying to get used to this place.” That sounded good. He only hoped that it would work.
“You do know that the labs are off limits to you rent-a-cops don’t you? There’s classified shit back there that we can’t let some cheaply paid shit like you see.”
The big man’s eyes showed none of the anger that his voice showed and that made Jimmy feel nervous. It also made him feel surprised. He looked more than just pleased; he also looked like he was enjoying himself.
“Like I said, I just got a little lost. I’m sorry, it won’t happen again.” He nodded and winced.
“It better not.” The large officer walked around the counter to his left side and there he stopped, looking down at him. He also caught the hint of a smell on him. It smelled like a musty odor on the breeze. He recognized the scent. It made him feel strong again, but he hid this feeling. He had to know what it meant and this guard—this fat asshole—wouldn’t tell him the truth. He knew this, so he just looked down. Everything else, he would find out soon enough. He just hoped he was right. He felt pride that he no longer had to stay calm.
Standing right next to him, he looked like a tree.
“If I see you back there again, I’ll have your ass out of here so fast that you won’t know what bit you.”
Again, Jimmy nodded, and again he winced.
The large officer smiled and brushed his neatly combed blonde hair from his forehead with the back of his overly large hand. “Good. I think we understand each other then.” He said nothing else, turned, and went to the stairs and quickly made his way up them.
The other uniformed officer came to the counter and stopped directly in front of him.
The young man watched Gary reach the top of the stairs, and when he was sure that he wouldn‘t hear him, he looked down to the counter. “Don’t mind him. He hates everyone.” He smiled down to the new guy. “In fact, I think he hates himself more than others.” He laughed.
Jimmy smiled. It took everything he had to do just that.
“I’m Mattie.” He held out his right hand over the top of the counter for him to take.
Jimmy leaned forward, shook the man’s hand, but stayed seated. “Jimmy—or James Walls.” He tried to smile again, but still couldn’t bring himself to do it. He still had no idea what he was supposed to do, so he stayed with what always worked for him best—he said nothing at all.
“Nice to meet you Jimmy.” The man let go of his hand. “I’m rather new here too, so I know how hard it is to find your way around this place.” He smiled. He looked pleased. He looked like he meant everything that he said.
It made Jimmy relax some. It made him feel better.
“See you around.” The young officer turned and headed to the stairs, and like Gary before him, went up them and disappeared to the second floor.
Jimmy watched him leave carefully. When they were both gone, he turned back to the Closed Circuit TV screens on the counter and took an enormously heavy breath. He could do nothing else and now felt hesitant to do anything else for the rest of the night.
9
The woman ran. He caught her scent easily with the slight breeze blowing at his face. Within seconds, she ran right past him, as she followed the road near the labs. She didn’t stop. She didn’t look at him once. The black of his fur hid him so well that this didn’t surprise him at all. His camouflage always worked better than he ever thought it would.
She jogged on.
He followed her, and kept to the tree line along the road. Behind her, with the breeze in coming at him, her scent grew stronger until it came to him like a taste. He could taste her sweet smell. He could taste her flesh at its scent blew at his mind. It made him hungrier than he had ever felt in years.
She ran on.
He picked up his strides.
He came right behind her, and moved hard.
The hunger grew stronger.
Her sweet smell made it drive him to the point of losing his mind.
He was almost there. She was now only a foot from his face.
Without thinking, without doubt, he jumped.
He pounced.
He grabbed her legs with his front claws.
She fell hard as she was in mid step, and spilled forward to her face.
With her down, he flew on top of her back and quickly plunged his sharp, razor like teeth, deep into her neck.
She didn’t make a sound as he tore her flesh. She stopped moving as he broke her neck.
He felt her die quickly. He made his kill well.
Confident, feeling stronger than he had in years, he took his time. He kept patient as he ate her flesh. He enjoyed every bite that she gave him. He loved his meal more than he had ever loved it before.
10
Jimmy woke up a little after five in the afternoon, feeling even more tired than what he felt before he went to bed. Working overnight felt tough, he knew that it would be, but at the same time, he found it difficult to function right. He could only hope that it would all soon pass, sooner rather than later. He climbed out of bed feeling more than just wobbly, he felt downright weak. It took everything he had just to get out of his bedroom, and slowly, he made his way through the living room and into the kitchen. Making a fresh pot of coffee, he went back to the living room and sat down on the sofa, and turned on the television to the five o’clock news on channel six. Since beginning his new schedule, this became his ritual, and a habit that he started to like. With the TV on, he sat back and waited for the coffee to finish brewing.
Today in Redford Forge, a gruesome discovery happened this morning, and it’s our top story of the day, the head newscaster stated first and foremost. He looked like a middle-aged man with white hair and a smooth voice, and looked the very part of a seasoned newscaster.
Jimmy watched him, but never really heard what he said. He just stared at the anchorman, and found himself just staring at his face. They always sound and look that way. He watched and thought of nothing else.
The news anchor continued; The police discovered an unidentified body of a young woman just outside of Forge Road, east of town, early this morning. Police have made little description of the victim, but they did say that an animal attack happened early in the morning
and that it appears that the woman was jogging when the attack occurred. More details are forthcoming and we will keep you informed as those details come.
Jimmy listened to the coffeemaker brewing. The smell of deep coffee filtered all around his apartment. It smelled so damn good that so much so, he couldn’t wait to get a cup. He hated this feeling and hated having to wait for anything. He was far less patient than most people ever gave him credit for, and he knew it.
Unsatisfied, he stood up, left the living room, and walked back into the kitchen. He looked down at the pot, found it only half-full and half finished, and seeing it, he sighed. It appeared that he had to wait a little while longer, so he decided to go ahead and take a shower instead. By then, it should be finished. By then, he should be more awake and better able to enjoy it when it was.
He left the kitchen and made his way to the bathroom, down a narrow hallway near the bedroom, and went inside and took a hot shower. He let the water wash away all of the tiredness from his mind.
When he finished, he walked back out to the kitchen and looked back to the maker again. It looked ready, so he poured himself a cup and went back into the living room and sat back down on the sofa. He took a deep sip. The coffee tasted hot, but it satisfied. He continued drinking; casually taking small sip after small sip, until he noticed the clock on the left wall now read that it was nearly six.
Damn time flies. It was almost time to get dressed. It was almost time to start his night. Sitting there, slouched down some in only his towel, he looked down at his belly and gasped. He couldn’t help but notice it. He brought his left hand up, and rubbed it with an open palm. I’m getting fat. He slapped it hard with his still open palm with a hollow echoing sound bouncing off the walls after he did it. By the looks of it, it was also getting larger. I have to get things back together. I have to get back into shape. He took another sip, and found the coffee no longer hot, but now only lukewarm. It also looked nearly gone. I’m thirty-three years old and I’m starting to look like I’m forty. He stood up from the sofa, looked down, and couldn’t even see the towel or his own feet beneath the belly. He was getting fat all right. He almost felt like he was spiraling out of control. He shook his head and then nodded right after the thought, sighing with a heavy wince. I have to start eating better. I need more exercise. I have to get back on track. He was right of course, but later. He couldn’t do anything about it now, so why think about it further.
A Werewolf's Saga Books 1, 2, & 3 (A Werewolf's Saga Boxed Sets) Page 6