by Hunt, Jack
Nick frowned. “Um, I…I need to get in touch with my mother.”
Devan thumbed over his shoulder. “You can do that later. We need to get out of here.”
“Hold on a second. There is probably a rational reason for this,” Callie chimed in.
“Yeah, and there was probably a rational reason why Winters just swan dived off the roof too but that didn’t end well, and I’m not sticking around to see what those soldiers want,” Devan said turning and grabbing up his bag and making a beeline for the door. “You coming or not, Jackson?”
Nick looked at Callie, shrugged, grabbed up his bag and made a run for it.
As soon as they were in the hallway, they could hear yelling, and what sounded like a gun going off. Nick’s eyes widened and they bolted heading for the west side of the school. Coffield was close, about ten minutes away from the school by foot. They hurried down one hallway and were just about to cross into another and go through a set of double doors when Nick spotted soldiers coming in from the other side. He grabbed Devan and pulled him back into a washroom just in the nick of time.
Chapter 6
Outside they heard the sound of yelling and soldiers ordering people to stay where they were. This was followed by another gunshot. Devan was freaking out trying to text his father while Nick stood by the door with it partially cracked. He couldn’t believe this was happening; it was like something straight out of a movie. He turned and looked towards the window then shook his head. There was no way they were getting out of that, it was too narrow. He entered a stall while Devan continued to rant about how the government had to be behind all this and how his father had told him that one day they would take over. “It’s martial law. This is where it begins. The downfall of America.”
“Devan, keep it down.”
He lifted up one of the ceiling tiles to gauge how much space was above it. The chances of them being able to walk out of the building without being stopped were slim so their only chance was to hide.
“You think you can fit up there?”
“Are you serious? I am not going up there.”
Above the ceiling tiles, thick dusty pipes snaked away into darkness. Nick reached up and checked to see if they were hot. They were cold. He hauled himself up by standing on the toilet’s tank and using the wall as a support. While he tested it out he continued talking. “I figure we have minutes before they start locking this school down and performing a search.”
“Why would they do that?”
“Toby Winters.”
“The guy leapt to his death. What the hell do we have to do with that?”
“Don’t you see? He leapt to his death, the kid in the gymnasium jammed his hand in the bleachers, there are videos of people doing all manner of weird shit all over the county and then we had that incident the other day at the zoo. Ourselves and everyone else have been in contact with them.”
He hauled himself up into the tight spot and wrapped his leg over a pipe and then tried to put the ceiling tile into place. It was possible. It was tight but it could work at least for now.
“Devan. Get up here now.”
Devan went over to the door and cracked it ever so slightly. Within seconds he turned and hurried to get up into the same spot just one over from him. “They are everywhere, going room to room, bringing kids out.”
They pulled the ceiling tiles back into place and waited there in the dark, resting on top of the thick pipes in an awkward position. “So you think this is some kind of virus, disease or such?” Devan asked.
“They’re wearing masks, goggles, gloves. What do you think?”
“So we’re infected?”
“I don’t know,” Nick said, turning on his cell to provide a smidgen of light. He turned the brightness down low, just enough so they could see one another and he could look online to see what was happening. If the military had taken over the town, there had to be some kind of general alert put out. The first thing he accessed was the local news website. Nothing. No article, no video, no headline on the first page. “All I know is that these kinds of events don’t end well, especially for small towns like ours. You heard what the news said. That guy in El Paso was from our town. So it makes sense that they would be coming here. They probably think we’re infected with whatever that guy had.”
“So it is infectious,” Devan said.
“Devan, I haven’t a clue right now, I’m just…”
He was just about to finish when they heard a door open and slam against the wall, and a deep gruff voice bellowed, “Check the stalls.”
They stared at each other for a second before Nick turned off his phone.
Below they could hear someone kicking each of the doors on the stalls.
Nick swallowed hard, a bead of sweat trickled down his temple.
“No one’s here.”
“All right. Let’s go.”
The sound of footsteps against the tiled floor, and then they were gone. The door closed and then Devan’s phone started ringing. Nick’s eyes widened, and Devan wrestled to get his phone out of his pocket to turn it off. He hit silence just as the door reopened. Both of them froze, as the sound of boots slowly walking back through the washroom got closer. Whoever was down there had stopped walking. Nick held his breath and prayed to God that they didn’t start searching the ceiling.
“Private. You’re wanted out here.”
“I thought I heard something.”
“Soldier.”
“Yes, sir.”
The sound of him leaving was a welcome relief but they couldn’t be sure he was gone so they remained there for several minutes not moving until Nick decided to take a look. “They’re gone.” He put the ceiling tile back into place and Devan texted his father to tell him only to text from now on and that they were trapped right now but would meet him at the park as soon as they could get out.
“Who you calling?” Devan asked, seeing Nick on the phone.
“Trying to get hold of my father. If anyone is going to know what’s happening it’s him.”
He tried but his call just went to voicemail.
Hi, this is Chief Brody Jackson. Sorry I missed your call. Leave your name and number at the beep and I will get back to you shortly.
“Damn it.”
Harry’s Tinaja was a bar with a lot of character located on the main drag in Alpine’s downtown. It was unique in that it offered loaner guitars that patrons could play at their table, and had by far the cheapest beer in town. It was also a perfect place to chat without anyone eavesdropping. Sergio Leon sat in the far corner, waiting on a friend — his mind churning over the past week and the death of Viola. He twisted the glass of ale in front of him and eyed the patrons with a look of disgust and skepticism. The image of Viola’s last moments replayed in his mind like a movie; the sweet loving call to invite her over for dinner, locking the doors on his apartment and bringing up the topic of her extracurricular activities without him. He’d seen the way she’d changed. Hiding her passwords from him. Keeping her phone out of reach. In the fourteen months he’d been dating her he thought they had something going, something strong, he’d even introduced her to his family thinking that one day they’d walk down the aisle together. But that wasn’t to be. No, she wanted to move away. Go to a different college. See other people. Of course she wouldn’t come out with it. But it was clear. She’d stopped inviting him to nights out and then the lies started. He could feel his blood boiling inside of him at the thought of it. He recalled the night she’d told him she was staying home only to find her with a group of friends, some of which were guys, down at the local movie theater. He hadn’t approached her but took the opportunity to ask her the next day how her night in had gone. Sure enough she lied.
This wasn’t how it was meant to go.
She wasn’t meant to pull away, walk away and lead another life.
He had other plans — plans of them getting a place together, finishing college and settling down in Alpine, but that wasn’t t
o be. Then he finally caught her. Caught her with another man. She said it was just a friend but that was bullshit. She knew how much it riled him up to see her hanging out with other guys.
For that she would pay.
A glass shattered, breaking his train of thought and setting his nerves on edge. He glanced over to see Harry getting out a broom to sweep it up. He apologized and everyone returned to their mundane chatter. C’mon, Lars, where the hell are you? he thought as he took a large gulp of his drink and recalled the night she breathed her last breath. He’d managed to convince her to head back to his apartment for a meal. He’d buttered her up telling her that he thought it was good that she was going to study elsewhere and that maybe she was right. Perhaps, it was best they saw other people and gave each other the freedom they wanted. She fell for it hook, line and sinker.
He’d considered not doing the deed, gone back and forth in his mind, but her betrayal was too much. She needed to understand that she couldn’t just draw people in then throw them away like they were nothing more than an old rag. He had a heart. He felt. It hurt like hell.
She arrived, and he locked the door behind her and took her coat. She wandered through his apartment one final time soaking it in but turning up her nose as if turned off by what she once found great. She turned and smiled. Oh, he planned to wipe the smile off her face. The dinner was just a ruse to get her comfortable. He’d turned the music on real loud so the neighbors couldn’t hear her screams and then he called her out on her lies.
The look on her face was priceless.
She knew what was coming, he was sure of that but it was too late.
Instead of answering him she went to the door to get her coat, but she never made it. He pounced on her from behind. She fought him as he pinned her to the ground, wrapped his hands around her throat and told her she was a bad person and the world would be a better place without her in it. Seconds turned to minutes before she stopped kicking.
He watched as the light went out in her eyes and the sense of satisfaction kicked in.
All that was left after was to dispose of the body. He’d wrapped her up in bed sheets and called his friend Lars Randall. There were very few people he could rely on but Lars was one of them. Through good and bad, they’d had each other’s backs and the death of Viola was no different.
Lars had the truck and Sergio knew a good spot out near the mountains. He’d camped there countless times over the years. It was isolated, barren and far from the regular trails. It was going to be her final resting place, a spot he could revisit from time to time to reminisce, but that was then, before the cops started sniffing around his property. They’d already been over his place with a fine-tooth comb but they wouldn’t find anything. Any hair fibers, blood or anything that tied Viola to his place was all circumstantial. She’d been there hundreds of times. Of course her DNA would be there. It was his word against theirs and with his father a lawyer in Alpine with deep connections, he didn’t see this going any further than a month.
The door to the bar opened, flooding the inside with daylight as Lars stepped in and looked around. Sergio eyed him and he made his way over, threading around small round tables and a couple of sleazy chicks dancing. Lars slipped in across from him and sighed removing his baseball cap. He was in his early twenties, a mechanic by trade, and so his hands were always covered in grease even long after he’d cleaned them.
“So? I thought you didn’t want us to be seen together?”
“I didn’t. But things have changed. I need you to give me a hand to get rid of it.”
He knew what he meant.
“I thought it was already gone!”
“The cops pulled me in for questioning twice now. They are honing in on me. It’s only a matter of time before they put two and two together and…”
“They don’t know squat,” Lars said raising his hand to gesture to the waiter to come over and take his order.
“There are only two people who know about this.”
Lars squinted at him. “You think I would say something?”
Sergio shrugged. “People do a lot of things when they’re under pressure.”
“I would be throwing myself under the bus. Why would I do that?”
“To get a better deal.”
Lars snorted. “You are paranoid. Look, it wasn’t me who did the deed. I didn’t have to help you but I did. If you can’t trust me we are done.”
Sergio studied him trying to see a crack in his veneer. He wouldn’t think twice about killing his friend if he knew he was going to give him up to the cops.
“Listen,” Sergio said leaning across the table. “Are you going to help or not?”
“Of course I will. We are in this together.”
“So we do it tonight.”
“Can’t be tonight.”
“Why?”
“Didn’t you see the police presence out on the roads? The military in town?”
“So, even more reason to do it. They will be distracted.”
“I think you’re missing the point here. Something is going on. They have set up checkpoints on the north, east and west sides of town.”
“So we take your truck and head south. We have to go south anyway.”
A waitress came over and interrupted him, asking for his order. He asked for a beer and she smiled before walking away. Lars stared at her ass like he always did.
“I don’t know, man. It’s risky. Besides, I was chatting to a buddy of mind down at the garage and he said his cousin is being held at the hospital because they have the place on lockdown.”
“So they’re worried about a virus or something. Look, who gives a shit? We need to dispose of it, immediately. The cops have been sniffing around my place and I’m pretty damn sure they have someone watching me.”
“And how do you intend to do that?”
“I have my ways. You’ll see.”
“In the meantime, you still got that Glock?”
“Why?”
“I’m not going down for this, and if we get caught…”
“You’re going to shoot yourself?”
“Hell no. But I sure as hell won’t think twice about dropping a cop.”
“And if they close in on you?”
“Like said, I’m not doing time. I couldn’t handle it inside.”
Lars looked at him as the waitress returned with his drink and dropped it off. He thanked her and slapped her on the ass as she walked away. He wouldn’t have got away with it had it been anyone else but Lars had dated her at one time and he liked to make it clear that he was still interested.
They clinked their glasses together.
He was free and he wasn’t going to let anyone change that, including his pal.
Chapter 7
“Is the coast clear?” Devan asked peering over Nick’s shoulder as he checked for the third time. Soldiers were going room-to-room and bringing students down to the main gymnasium. Nick threw up a hand to make it clear they needed to wait. It was all about timing. One mistake and they would find themselves staring down the barrel of a gun. It seemed almost too unreal to believe that this was happening. Not in their school. Not in their town. Nothing big ever happened here. The plan was simple, they would sprint to the next room, a room he’d seen that had already been cleared, and continue to do that until they reached an exit or they found a room where they could exit via one of the windows. Nick was well aware that they might have to change their game plan but they couldn’t remain where they were. Devan’s father wouldn’t wait for them forever.
“Okay, let’s go!” Nick said dashing out of the bathroom, not even waiting to see if Devan was following. His heart was thumping in his chest, his thoughts raced as he put his head down and kept his back against the wall and moved at a fast pace towards the nearest classroom. Even though he knew it had been cleared, he still expected to find a soldier in there. It was strange how the mind worked. It could hang on to hope and entertain disaster all at the same time.
As soon as he was in the door, Devan barreled in after him. They stayed low to the ground and made their way over to a window. Outside they could see even more military trucks than before. It was like they had fanned out, expecting students to run.
“This is not good, not good at all,” Devan muttered with a look of fear and apprehension. “How the hell are we supposed to get by them?”
“They can’t be surrounding the whole school,” Nick replied.
“Well it sure as hell looks like it.”
Nick kept looking back over his shoulder, expecting to be caught. His anxiety was through the roof. Jogging at a crouch they headed back to the door and peered through the glass. “You ready to move?” Nick said.
“No. But what choice do we have? I think I’m going to be sick,” he said before curling over and gagging. Nick placed a hand on his back.
“Hang in there, buddy.”
He cracked the door open and peered out one last time before grabbing Devan by the collar and dragging him out. They dashed to the next classroom and proceeded to do the same for another four more classrooms until they could see the exit. A wave of relief over having not been caught so far washed over him only to be replaced by disappointment when he saw a large chain and lock on the door.
“Oh you have got to be kidding me!” Nick said.
“What?”
“They’ve locked the door.”
Devan obviously didn’t believe him as he had to see it for himself. He exhaled hard. “We are screwed. We might as well just hand ourselves in.”
“Hold on a minute, weren’t you the one ready to get out of here?”
“That was until seeing they’d locked this place down like Fort Knox.”
“They might be able to lock doors but they can’t lock windows.”
“No, but they have no need to when they have a fleet of military vehicles outside, and armed soldiers patrolling the school.” Nick hurried over to the window and looked out. He’d done this in each of the classrooms to get a better idea of how the military was tackling this.