The Pride

by Patricia Morse

  “Jen! I need the crash cart, STAT!”

  Thane threw me onto the familiar bed and began tugging at my sweater. I could hear poor Jen rushing the rolling cart down the hall. I opened my eyes, meeting his worried gaze.

  “I’m alright for Pete’s sake. I just needed a moment to come up with a plan.” I whispered quietly in case we were being watched. Thane got up from my side and met Nurse Jen at the door. He whispered something to her. She nodded and gave him the large red cart. He rolled it to the side of my bed. He walked to the corner of the room and turned the camera that normally watched my every move before shutting the door.

  “Link will be here soon. He’s not one for running, so I’m sure he’ll wait for a vehicle to bring him here. He knows we kissed, Evie. That’s why he turned on Lexie, because he found out about us. I don’t want him to do the same to you. Damnit! Why can’t I control myself?”

  He was running his fingers through his hair, causing it to stand on end. “There’s no time for self pity, Thane. You are my doctor, so of course your smell would be on me. You pulled my stitches this morning, and dressed my wounds. That’s all he has to know. Tell him I fainted because I haven’t eaten in days. Tell him I need to hunt tonight. Make sure I’m near my fellas, and we’ll do our best to keep your friend safe. We’ll need something to defend ourselves, and radios to communicate. You should have a head set too so you can keep us informed. Oh, and have a vehicle parked on the access road to the west of the property. Can you handle that?”

  He nodded. “That should be easy enough. So am I to just sit back here and wait.” His voice was filled with spite. The alpha male didn’t like being told what to do by a lady.

  “No, Thane. You’re going to keep Lexie safe. If Link gets the chance, lord knows what he’ll do to her.”

  “Yeah Evie, because I’ve done such a spectacular job keeping her safe so far.” His comment was rich with sarcasm.

  “You’re feeling sorry for yourself again. Knock it off General! You’re troops need your mind to stay on the battle ahead.” My cynical comment got a chuckle out of him. “You know, for a second, when we were out there, I thought you had double crossed us.”

  “I don’t know who I’m doing what to anymore, Ev. It just keeps getting more and more muddled.”

  Before I could finish my conversation about Thane’s loyalties, Link burst through the door grabbing fistfuls of Thane’s sweater and slamming him into the wall. Thane showed no emotion.

  “Explain yourself doctor!” Link was sputtering mad.

  “There’s nothing to explain.” Thane held up his hands in a gesture of surrender.

  “Why is she reeking of your scent? I could smell your stench all over her!” Link was nose to nose with Thane. I was secretly hoping Thane would bite it off.

  “I spent the morning with her. I removed her stitches, dressed her wounds, and checked her over to make sure she was healing properly. Oh, and you sent me to retrieve her from the barn. I found her crying her eyes out in a corner, after you attacked her. I put my arm around her for comfort, but strictly as a doctor would to an upset patient, nothing more, Link. Look, I mean she’s gorgeous, but you know she’s a little stumpy and bullheaded for me. I like my women leggy and obedient.”

  Link appraised him skeptically before stepping back to the middle of the room. He crossed his arms and began looking at me. “If she was healing properly, then why did she faint Doctor?”

  “Her blood sugar was low. I gave her a shot of D-50.”

  “What?”

  “D-50, it’s a synthetic glucagon, raises the blood sugar. She should be alright soon, but Link, she needs to hunt. Fresh air and a nice juicy deer will do her some good.”

  “Why not just send her up some rare venison then? Wouldn’t that satiate her hunger?”

  “Link, she needs to be outside, hunting. It’s our nature. Trust me, she’ll feel much better afterwards. I’ll even send some of our best men out with her to make sure she doesn’t try to wander away from you.”

  “Fine, Doctor.” I could hear the snarl in his voice, and see the curl of his lips. “But if she leaves me, it will be your head!”

  Link stalked from the room, slamming the door behind him so hard the walls shook. I waited a few moments to ensure Link had enough time to leave the building entirely, before getting up from bed and joining Thane at the window. His arms were crossed in front of his chest, and his eyes seemed distant.

  I gave him a playful nudge with my hip. “Stumpy and bull headed huh?” I winked at him

  His cheeks reddened a bit. “If I told him what I really thought of you, my heart would be splattered all over your floor right now.” He nudged me back playfully with his elbow.

  “How are we going to do this Thane? I mean, how can we defeat Link and his army?”

  “I thought I was unable to strategize, Evie. I’m just a world renowned surgeon after all.”

  “I’m sorry I was so harsh. Being subtle isn’t exactly one of my strong suits. Friends?” I coyly bumped his arm with my shoulder and extended my hand as a peace offering.

  He took my hand and shook it gently with a smile finally perched on his lips. “Alright Evie, I’ll be back here in an hour. I’ll get as many of your boys as I can, but I can’t make any promises.”

  “If you can’t get my fellas to hunt with me, at least find a way to fill them in.”

  “Of Course. Now, I’ll have your Camaro filled with your supply request parked on the access road to the west, where we first came in from right?”

  “Right, the road that leads easily back to the interstate should we need to make a break for it.” I shot him a fiery look. “Wait a minute! You still have my car?”

  “I’ve been driving it all over town, and it’s been one hell’uva ride!”

  I smacked him playfully on the back. “You little devil! If there’s a scratch on her….off with your head!” I made the motion of cutting my throat as he turned to leave the room.

  “Be back in an hour.”

  “I’ll be here, Thane.”

  He closed the door behind him. I began rummaging through the duffel bag for appropriate hunting attire. I had nothing in camouflage, so I settled on a black, long sleeved turtle neck and black cargo pants. The only shoes remotely suitable for hunting were a pair of running shoes. They were black and neon pink. They wouldn’t be easy to run in on the wet forest floor, but I would have to make do. I opened the door to see if Jen was still at the end of the hallway, but she was nowhere to be found. I casually walked down to her desk and began rummaging for something to cover up the pink areas on my shoe. I found a black Sharpie in the top drawer, dropped it into my pocket, and nonchalantly walked back to my room, shutting the door behind me. I sat on my bed, and carefully covered every inch of the bright pink leather on my shoes with the black marker. It took two coats before I was satisfied that no pink would show through. I was nervously clicking through channels on the television while watching the clock slowly click through the hour. As usual, I landed on the weather channel. We were going to have another stormy night in Bowling Green, which was good because the storm clouds would conceal the moonlight, giving us more cover. I turned off the television and began to visualize how this plan was going to play out. I liked to be ahead of the punch, and right now I felt like I was in reaction mode. At least tonight we might be able to gain an upper hand on Link. It all started with us trying to catch an ingenious bank robber, and now the end game was freedom; freedom for my team, freedom for morality, and freedom for the human race. I wondered if this was how George Washington felt before going into battle with the better armed British. Was this our little Revolution, or was it something greater?

  I had been so lost in my thoughts that I hadn’t heard Cam and Lenny walk into the room. “Do you see dead people, Evie?” Cam was doing his best Haley Joel Osmet impression while wiggling his fingers in a creepy, witchy manner. I sprang from my bed and heartily embraced both of them.

  “Ganyon filled us i
n, Ev. He was a bit sketchy on the details, so I’ll leave that up to you.”

  “There’s not much I can tell you right now, Len.”

  “Gotcha Ev. When do we leave?” He looked towards the camera in the corner of my room.

  “Dr. Ganyon will be back in a few minutes with our instructions.”

  Cam was now sitting on my bed, his legs crossed in front of him, scanning the channels. “Hey Ev, got anything to eat? The game’s on,” he chuckled.

  Cam’s sense of humor always melted away my tension. Thane arrived moments after Cam and Lenny. He checked to be sure the camera was still turned away. He took three cell phones from his jacket, handing one to each of us.

  “I couldn’t get radios Evie, but we can text. The silence of it will be safer. You never know how close I’ll be to Link at any given moment, and lord knows he hears everything. On your phones I am listed as contact P, Evie is R, Lenny is I, Cam is D, and Grizz, who also has a phone is E. This button will send messages to all of us.”

  He gave us a quick tutorial of the phone, showing us how to call, text, and radio if needed, but advised against using that option. “Only in the direst of circumstances should the walkie talkie option be used. It could blow cover if the wrong person is selected, and give away location if someone is hiding.” Thane had an icy cold seriousness in his instructions. “Now, the Camaro is parked where Evie instructed. I’ve loaded it with guns and ammo. I also managed to get my hands on a few crossbows. There are machetes in the trunk. The glove box is full of cash, should you need to flee.”

  “I don’t think that will be necessary.” I was being smug.

  “Evie, don’t underestimate your enemy. You’ll be seriously outnumbered, and they have the same strengths and abilities as you.” I could see the seriousness in his eyes.

  “But, we’ll have the element of surprise.” I was trying to remain positive.

  “Thane, do we possess any advantages over your creations.” Lenny asked with the authority of a seasoned commander. “I don’t exactly count the element of surprise as a tactical advantage, no offense Ev.”

  Thane thought carefully for a moment. “Lenny, the only advantage I can see is your military training. Most of these men came to Link looking for a wrestling contract. Very few have any military history, only what they’ve learned since becoming hybrids.”

  Lenny and Cam nodded before shaking Thane’s hand and thanking him for his insight.

  “We really appreciate all that you have done, Thane. Thank you. Are we all ready fellas? There’s no turning back once we leave this room.” I was trying to envision George Washington as he rallied his men into battle. I could only hope to evoke a bit of his spirit to inspire my rag tag band of troops. Thane handed me my long lost keys, and we darted from the room.

  Cam, Lenny, and I burst through the doors of Thane’s hospital and made a beeline for the western woods of the property. The moon was high in the sky, bathing the tops of the trees in light. That storm was going to need to get here quickly. We sprinted through the woods, trying to remember every tree, rock, hill, and mud puddle we could in order to gain an upper hand when the hunt began. I received a text message from Thane. Talon had been brought up to the yard. Link was allowing him a twenty minute head start. The hunt would begin at midnight. The fellas and I bolted to the car. Thane parked it exactly where I had asked. We decided to lock the heavy artillery up in the trunk, as we each slipped a machete through our belts. Even though I hated to do it, I busted the cup holders from the center console of my beautiful new car. The plastic tore easily in half, giving me two vessels for holding liquid.

  Lenny looked puzzled. “What are you doing?”

  “Later Len. We gotta get back. They’ll be starting soon.”

  I locked the car, and placed the keys in the tailpipe. We spread out and ran back towards the main house. I doubted Link would actually give him a head start, so as soon as the hunt began; I’d need to be at Talon’s side.

  The forest was expansive. Lenny and Cam hung back, flanking me on each side a few hundred yards back. I was directly in front of Talon, thirty feet up a tree, but unseen thanks to the dense cover of the trees. I pulled out my phone and sent a text to Thane and Grizzly.

  Directly west and ready

  A bonfire was roaring behind Talon. Thane approached him, I can only assume, to tell him which way to go to find me. Link was giving another expansively animated speech to his troops. Thankfully I was too far away to hear what the lunatic was saying. The wind blew the bonfire to the side and I caught a quick glimpse of Lexie. She was chained to the large oak tree once again. At least this time she wasn’t dangling from its limbs. Showing rare kindness, Link wrapped her like a mummy in chains to make sure she couldn’t escape before his freak show was over. She was either sleeping or drugged, because she wasn’t moving. I waited for the wind to blow again so I could appraise her condition, but it didn’t happen. There was a gun shot, and a wide eyed Talon began running right at me. I watched as Link and Thane directed the snarling hungry army to stay back. I waited for Talon to pass under me before leaping out of the tree right behind him. He startled, but I just grabbed his arm and started leading him silently through the forest. Lenny was at our side in a matter of seconds. I could hear the minions beginning to enter the woods. So much for Link’s promise of a head start. We ran into Cam, who slung Talon onto his back, so we could all run at top speed. They were getting too close. I tore Talon’s shirt from his back, and handed it to Lenny.

  “Use this to lead them away from us. Maybe they’ll follow the scent!”

  Lenny broke off and headed north at lightning speed. When we reached the edge of the forest, Cam placed Talon on the ground.

  “Talon, Cam, switch clothes quickly!” I handed Talon the cup holders I’d ripped from my Camaro. “Talon you need to urinate in these. Quickly, now go! Cam go south and spread his urine somewhere. We need to confuse the scent away from the car.”

  Talon managed to pee under pressure. He handed the cups to Cam, who disapprovingly scrunched up his face, but he took the cup anyways. Both men were still in their underwear.

  “You can change later. C’mon! Cam go!”

  I grabbed Talon’s arm and led him quickly to the car, as Cam headed south heavy with Talon’s scent. I ripped the keys from the tail pipe, unlocked the door, and threw Cams clothes into the passenger seat. I looked Talon dead in the eyes as I handed him the keys.

  “The glove box is full of cash. I want you to take this car and get as far away from here as you can. Drive north about ten miles. Turn right at the first road you come to, and that will take you right to the expressway. Forget you saw any of this! Now GO!”

  Without even thinking, Talon leapt into the car and sped away leaving a cloud of dust behind him. I didn’t have time to retrieve the weapons, so I guessed my big knife was just going to have to do. I sent a text message to everyone.

  Human freed. Game on.

  I took to the trees and began looking for members of Link’s army. As I saw them, one by one, I swiftly swooped down on them decapitating them with my machete. I said a quick prayer for each oblivious hybrid as my knife sliced through their flesh. I’d finished off my eleventh enemy hybrid when I found Grizz. He was already nearing his thirtieth kill, and beaming with adrenaline. Our priority now that Talon was safe was to incapacitate Link’s soldiers. Grizz headed north towards Lenny, and I took the southern route in search of Cam, killing swiftly as I made my way. The storms began rumbling through the hills as three a.m. approached. I heard a helicopter roaring overhead through the rumbling of thunder. The cell phone began to vibrate through the pocket at my thigh. I rapidly made my way up the nearest tree and retrieved the phone. It was a message from Thane.

  Chopper up. No soldiers have returned. Link suspicious. Return ASAP.

  Cripes! I’d only managed to mildly thin out Link’s minions. Hopefully the fellas had had better luck hunting than I did. From my perch I messaged the boys.

  How
many?

  I waited in anxiously for the tiny black tablet to vibrate.

  “I” responded 22 and counting.

  Next response was from “E” 37 Boyeeee!

  Wow, Grizz was busy. No response from “D”. I was counting to one hundred silently. I decided that if Cam didn’t respond by one hundred, I’d rally my fellas to search for him. His response came at 88 seconds.

  Just finished 25 & 26.

  I breathed a quiet sigh of relief. With my eighteen kills, we’d managed to off more than half of Link’s Kentucky militia in less than three hours. We were more than halfway to our first victory, but there was still an uphill battle to be fought. Somehow we had to kill Link, allowing Thane to take the reins and end it all together. Satisfied with what we had accomplished, I sent a message to the boys.

  Return to point A

  I decided to circle the property and leave the cover of the trees near the hospital building. I stashed the machete between two branches near the top of a huge old willow tree. Attempting to seem inconspicuous, I returned to my room. I pulled the phone from my pocket and texted all.

  In room for shower and change of clothes

  I tossed the phone into my bag. It was a handy little thing. I was completely soaked by rain and blood. I tore off my dark clothing and stashed it into the waste basket before climbing into the shower. I quickly lathered, making sure to remove any traces of blood from my body. I toweled off and dressed in a comfy pair of faded jeans, my favorite brown knee-high boots, and a cerulean blue sweater to make my eyes pop. I tied my damp hair back into a quick pony tail and applied a bit of mascara before scampering out the door. Cam, Lenny, and Thane were waiting for me at the first floor entrance. It looked like Cam and Len had time to clean up too. Thane was completely on edge.

  “When I said to return, I meant that instant! Not a half an hour later, Evie!”

  “Thane, did you expect us to return to Link covered in the remains of one hundred and three hybrids?”