Silenced

by Natasha Larry

  “No, you take her. Find the others and get to the car. I got these things.” Five or so wraiths pass over my head, and I duck. Then, I nod Kiwi toward the door. “Go on, now. Get the hell out of here.”

  She looks at me through narrow eyes for a few moments, then places her arm under Juliet’s shoulder and staggers toward the door with her. I follow, blasting sirens on my left and right with electronic pulses from my trident. After a few moments, I’m alone. I reach out and feel for the girls. I need to makes sure they’re out of my range.

  I don’t want to blow their heads off.

  Not yet, at least.

  Once I know they’re safe, I peer up at the cyclone of wraiths dive-bombing me. Half my mouth curls into a smirk. I suck in a huge breath, throw my head back, and wail.

  My lips vibrate in time with the walls and windows of the theater. Every inch of me shakes with power. With otherness. The sound of me is too much for them. They pop-pop-pop right out of my reality and back to the Underworld.

  *

  I stumble through the front doors of the theater and down the stairs. Silver moonlight spills onto the cracked brick and combs through whispering tree branches. Shadows dance on the ground. I pass over them and duck around the side of the building toward the parked vehicles.

  As soon as I round the corner, my feet sink into the earth. I glance down and make out a small crater in the shape of Tripp’s footprints.

  I hope he made it out okay. Not that I’m too worried. Smart money is always on the monster in any fight. My feet crunch the dead leaves on the ground until I make it the other side of the building, where my feet hit cement again.

  Within seconds, a glaring yellow light floods my eyes. I lift my hand to fight off the brightness. A horn blares. I squint through the light. A small armored car speeds toward me. I side step out of the cone of light and the car rushes forward, slowing to a crawl for long enough for me to see that the side door is open. Without thinking, I jump inside and slam the door shut.

  Panting, I glance around. Juliet is in the seat across from me, passed out. Kiwi is driving, glued to the steering wheel and tense with concentration. Beside her, Doctor Lee is crouched down in his seat, hyperventilating.

  I take a moment to regulate my breathing then ask, “Tripp?”

  Kiwi’s eyes meet mine in the rear view mirror. “Heading east… At least I hope so, I’m following his tracks.”

  As I slide back into my seat, I peer out of the window.

  “He shouldn’t be too hard to find,” I say, noting the collapsed trees and ruined landscape.

  “Is she going to be okay?” Kiwi’s question draws my gaze to Juliet. I note the steady rise and fall of her chest. With a shrug, I switch my gaze back to Kiwi. “I guess. We have bigger problems than her.”

  Kiwi sucks on her teeth. “You guess?” She snorts. “Oh, shit…”

  The car comes to a stop, propelling me into the back of Lee’s seat. He lets out a gasp and twists slightly in his chair as I flop back.

  “Damn, woman.” I say. “What the hell?”

  Without answering, Kiwi shoves her door open and jumps out into the still night. I rub the back of my neck and gesture with my head at Juliet. “Doc, do me a solid and keep that bitch alive.”

  Before he can say anything, I duck out after Kiwi, glance back at the two vehicles that trail us, then trudge around the front of the car. Kiwi is kneeled over a naked Tripp. I pause a few inches behind her as she gasps and strains in her attempt to get him off the ground by either arm.

  I’m too worn out to laugh. Instead, I tap her on the shoulder.

  “What?” She almost growls it without bothering to turn around.

  “Get back in the damn car, girl.”

  “Screw you.”

  I scoff. “Look, do you want to do this for the next few minutes then ask for my help, or do you want to save some time and just get back into the damn car?”

  She drops his arms with a clunk, then turns to me with a huff. She doesn’t scowl like she usually does. It makes me wonder briefly is she’s trying to be a little less psycho with me to make up for screwing a kid over. Just as quick, I decide it doesn’t matter, and she strolls back to the car, leaving Tripp and me in the harsh glow of headlights.

  Glancing down, I groan at the sight of him. He’s naked and in human form. Of course. Because why would things get any better from here? I glance up and pinch the bridge of my nose. With a sigh, I bend over with my eyes half closed. I grip one of his arms, then wrap my other hand around his waist. As I stand up, I pull him with me, then fling him over my shoulder.

  I turn around and head back for the car and try to ignore his face slapping against my ass. I reach for the back door, slide it open, and then lean over to let Tripp flop onto back seat. I’m panting when I get back into the car. I wipe a pool of sweat that has gathered on my forehead.

  “You okay?” Kiwi asks from the driver’s seat.

  I shut my door and kick the back of Doc’s seat. “Hey.” Huff. “Man.” Huff. “I need you to make sure he’s Tripp’s ass is alright back there.”

  Lee’s nod is curt. He twists in his seat and makes his way past Juliet and myself, stiff as a Popsicle stick. I lean back into my chair and close my eyes.

  “Drive. Get us somewhere to sleep tonight,” I say in a heavy voice.

  After a few moments, the car glides forward again.

  Kiwi clears her throat. “You giving the orders now?”

  “No,” a strained voice pipes up beside me.

  I glance over as Juliet struggles to sit upright. “But I am, and he’s right. We need…” She pauses and places her hand to her throat. After she clears it, she continues, “We need to rest.”

  “Agreed,” Lee says from the back. “Tripp is well, but in need of nourishment and rest.”

  “Okay,” Kiwi says. “Any suggestions?”

  “Yes.” Juliet starts to stand. Her knees buckle, and she falls down between our seats. She glares up at me, and I shrug. Then, she shakes her head, reaches for the passenger seat, and pulls herself up into it.

  I buckle in and let out a long sigh. Juliet pushes a few buttons on the front console, and a map populates on the screen. I let my heavy eyelids close, and after the next few beats of my heart, I slide into unconsciousness.

  Something smacks me hard in the chest. I jerk awake and throw my fists in front of my face. I blink Tripp, now thankfully clothed, into focus.

  He leans away from me. “Take it easy, Sleeping Beauty.”

  A rush of chilled air stings my eyes. I close them and groan, then stretch out my legs and rip off my safety harness.

  “Where are we?” I ask through a cough.

  He holds his hand out toward me. I take it, and he pulls me out into a flickering, butter-tinged light.

  “Bristol, or what used to be Bristol. Close to what used to be Virginia,” he tells me, looking around.

  The sound of feet smacking pavement, car doors slamming, and people muttering buzzes in my ears as I take in my surroundings. Like most of what I’ve seen up to this point, everything is a ruined pretender of the world I used to know. We’re in a parking lot with shredded metal décor and rocky asphalt. It looks almost like a horde of giants came through and gnawed on everything, just for kicks, leaving behind ruined shells.

  Everything except the fenced-in building on the left.

  Tripp mutters something to me as he hands me my pack and my trident. I nod at him like I’m listening and peer through the fence to get a better look at the building. After a few seconds, I realize it’s a small country jail. It’s so well preserved, looks like a mirage in the middle of a wasteland.. Like something spat it back from the pre-shit world. Tripp smacks me on the shoulder, leaving a low, throbbing pain. I peel my eyes from the jail and narrow them at him.

  “You heard anything I said, beauty?”

  I open my mouth to answer, someone claps. My eyes dart around the parking lot before landing on Juliet.

  “Okay, peo
ple,” she says with her hands still pressed together. “We’re staying here for the night. According to our Scouters, this is the most secure location in the area. That being said, I don’t want to take any chances in light of the recent attack we came under. So, we’re going to clear the entire area before settling in for the night.” She pulls her Browning and cocks it before aiming it at the ground. “Anything inside gets a death blow. I don’t care what it is.” She nods behind her toward the jail. “Let’s move.”

  I slip my trident into its holster and pull out my side arm. I nod at Tripp before following Juliet, Kiwi, and the rest of the group through the fence and toward the front doors. My heart pounds my mind wide-awake.

  Juliet brandishes a long, silver stick and places one end of it into the lock, securing the fence. One of Compound Six’s gadgets. Universal lock pick. There is a low click, then Juliet slides the lock off and opens the gate. It lets out a whining creak.

  We all pass through and wait for Juliet to close the gate behind us.

  “Lee, Jameson, Stiles,” she says. “Stay out here while we clear the building.”

  Jameson nods, and we continue forward. Juliet picks the lock on the glass doors that lead into the jail, and we turn on our flashlights at almost the same time. The room fills with four tunnels of light, each one of them darting around to focus on various corners of the room. I train my light on the center of the jail.

  A mid-sized, circular desk sits in the middle of the room. I pause at it and then wave Tripp by me so that I can bring up the rear. From the main room, there are three separate hallways. Kiwi and Juliet take the one to the far left while Tripp heads down the middle hallway, leaving me with the one on the far right.

  The corridor is wide with six doors lined up on the left. Pressing my back against the wall, I creep up to the first door and point my flashlight and gun inside. The room is empty except for a bare cot pressed up against the wall opposite the door. I step in and peer behind the door to make sure no monsters are hidden, ready to spring out.

  I repeat this ritual as I move down the hall. In the last cell, I almost slip on something near the door and have to reach for the wall to balance myself. Pointing my flashlight down, I see a small pool of black liquid.

  “Ugh.” I run my boots against the floor in an attempt to get the shit off of them while I examine the pool closer. While I’m flicking my flashlight along the floor, I see something that makes my gut tense.

  Bits of hair and sheets of flesh are scattered throughout the black pool. I realize it’s blood. I follow the trail of hair, blood, and teeth and find a woman dressed in a cop uniform squatted in the left corner of the room.

  I say woman, but it’s more like a woman-thing. Something that used to be human.

  The woman-thing is slowly ripping her hair out with one hand, while gnawing on the other. Her fingers, long and bone pale, are ruined flesh sticks that look like they’ve been through the meat grinder.

  I gag.

  Her dead eyes snap over to me.

  I pause and wait.

  Her eyes roll back into her head, turning into oversized, milky white marbles. A low moan fills the room. The thing takes her fingers from her mouth and plants them on the floor on either side of her. I holster my gun and remove my trident. I snap it open to its full length and creep closer to her.

  Footsteps echo behind me. It tries to slide closer to me using her ruined hands. In one swift movement, I plunge my trident through her skull. She tumbles to the floor. Behind me, someone clears their throat.

  I turn to take in Juliet. She looks past me and nods. Another set of footsteps echoes from down the hall and, within seconds, Jameson and Stiles come up behind her.

  “The rest of the place is secure,” Juliet says. “Jameson, Stiles, get that body out of here. Richards, I need you to come to the main room for a minute. Then everyone can turn in.”

  I nod, press the button on my trident, then wait for it to shorten. As I put my weapon back in its holster, I step away so that Jameson and Stiles can remove the body from the room. I make my way down the hall at Juliet’s heels. Tripp, Lee, and Kiwi are already there. Kiwi and Tripp are on the circular desk, leaned into each other, sharing some conversation. Tripp looks up first, and then their muted voices stop and Kiwi straightens.

  I saunter over and lean against the desk on the other side of Tripp, then train my eyes on Juliet. She claps her hands.

  “Okay, people. The good news is that we’re making great time. This place is secure. We can eat and rest up here.” Her ice blue eyes flicker to me and she sighs. “The bad news is, something is on to us. Something that doesn’t want us to reach the crossroads.”

  Tripp straightens at this. “What’s onto us?”

  Juliet shrugs. “No idea. Most likely a witch.” Her eyes are still locked on my face. Her voice is matter-of-fact.

  “Why would you think that?” Tripp asks.

  She sighs again and doesn’t say anything for a few moments.

  “Because of the wraith attack,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest.

  Kiwi looks between me and Juliet. “Okay, you obviously know something we don’t. Why does a wraith attack tell you someone is on to us?”

  “Yeah, why can’t it just be what we expected? Monsters running around unchecked.” Tripp’s nose scrunches up.

  I shake my head. “Because wraiths don’t just run around. They’re conjured and sent after specific people.”

  Juliet nods. “He’s right. They hunt specific souls. As far as I know, a god can control them, or a powerful witch. Either way, something sent that hive after us.”

  I glance back over at her. For someone that hates my kind so much, she sure is schooled about our world.

  “So, what does that mean for us?” Tripp asks Juliet.

  She stares over at him and flips her hair. “We stick to the plan. But we stay alert. We have to assume that whatever sent the soul hunters has a few more surprises to send our way.”

  Tripp chuckles. “Doesn’t sound like much of a plan. Do what we told you, but look out for even more dangers than anticipated.”

  “Well, it’s the best option we have,” Juliet says.

  I straighten and tap my fingers on the desk. “Did the wraiths attack Lee, Stiles or Jameson?”

  Juliet looks at me with a furrowed brow. “What?”

  “The wraiths. Did they attack them?”

  Juliet frowns, so I look at Kiwi, then Tripp, for an answer. Kiwi just shrugs while Tripp gives me a blank look.

  “Where is this going, Richards?” Juliet asks.

  I slide my gaze back over to Juliet. “I’m just betting they weren’t. Humans… they don’t tend to survive a thing like that. The only reason you’re still kicking is because you’re bound to me.”

  Juliet’s expression doesn’t change. Not that I expected it to. It never does.

  When no one speaks, I sigh and say, “I’m just wondering if you have a witch back at Compound Six… and if that witch has any ties to our group. And by our group, I mean those three motherfuckers.”

  I flash her a wide smile. Her face still doesn’t change, but I can tell I’ve given her something to think about. Well, it’s more that I can feel that I’ve given her something to think about. There is a quick stab of suspicion in my gut.

  She flips her hair, then claps. “I’ll look into it,” she says in the same polite tone she always uses. The one I can’t stand.

  She picks her pack off the floor and points to a door at the far right of the room. It’s set next to a wall with a large plastic window. I can’t make out what’s on the other side of the plastic.

  “We found some kerosene lamps in there. Pick a spot and get some rest. We leave at first light.” With that last command, she stalks away, down the far left hallway, where she vanishes into the dark.

  I’m not feeling too social so I give Kiwi and Tripp a small smile. “Night, guys.”

  Then I turn on my heels and head for the room with the kerose
ne lamps. After grabbing one, I head for one of the holding cells and slam the door shut behind me.

  The room falls into absolute darkness. I mean, I can’t see shit. I wave my hand in front of my face to prove it. I take my flashlight from my pocket, then set it on the cot where it fills the cell with a narrow cylinder of light.

  Then I peel the pack off my back, along with the trident, and place them under the bare cot. The yellow light from the lamp casts looming shadows on the peeling walls. The cot whines under my weight.

  I start the long task of removing all the weaponry I’m saddled down with:

  The two Browning BDM’s, the 870, extra ammunition and four ka-bar, fixed blade combat knives. Good thing the AR-15 is still in the car, or I might be at this all night.

  I know I’m supposed to stay dressed and combat ready, but fuck that. After the wraith attack I’m tired. I just want to feel normal for one night.

  I rip my protective vest off and toss it on the floor, then peel the tight Kevlar suit down to just below my waist.

  With a sigh of relief, I pick up my flashlight and flop down on the cot. The frame squeals its welcome. I turn off the light and try to drown in darkness. I lay back and pretend the mattress is comfortable. I try and hide from all the shit falling down all around me. But most of all, I try not to think. After a few moments, I let my eyes shut.

  My thoughts drift to Sadie, and I try and bat her face away. It bounces back like its being served by an enthusiastic tennis instructor. The fourth or fifth time her face fills my thoughts, I sit back up. Then, my door creeps open.

  I glance up. Tripp is there with a smile and dangling a lamp on two fingers.

  “Thought you might want this, but I see you have one already.” He comes in without waiting to be invited. I guess after you carry a dude naked, there’s really no point in observing any social contract.

  “Thanks, man.” I rub my eyes with my thumb and index finger.

  “No problem.” He places the lamp next to the cot, then sits next to me. “You hungry?”