by Michael Bray
He walked towards them, the tangle of corpses at his feet doing nothing to slow his graceful approach.
“We have to run. We have to go now!” Donald said, grabbing Leena by the arm. Nobody moved. Everyone was rooted to the spot, perhaps in fear, or hopelessness or the sheer magnetism which poured from Nicu as he watched them with calm assurance. He seemed more at home here, more comfortable in this chamber surrounded by the remains of the dead than upstairs in the supermarket.
He smiled as he walked among them hands clasped behind his back, and Garrett was again astounded at how regal he appeared.
“In a way, it’s such a shame. Mr. Garrett did almost lead you to the way out. That passage, so close yet so far, does indeed lead to the freedom you so crave. Sadly, it is a freedom you will not taste. Not all of you at least.”
The butcher, huge and barrel chested, lumbered out of the tunnel, almost completely filling it as he stood at the entrance with his arms folded. The group watched with dismay as the rest of Nicu’s staff walked down the steps from the supermarket, their footfalls making no sound whatsoever as they joined him in the circular chamber. Nicu walked toward the group, looking at each of them in turn. He paused in front of Garrett.
“You brought them so close, Mr. Garrett, so very close to their freedom.”
Nicu stood back and looked at the rest of the group, and that horrible, knowing smile reappeared.
“Do they know their deaths have paid for your freedom?”
All eyes fell on Garrett, who in turn lowered his gaze. Nicu grinned and clapped his hands together.
“Ahh, the sweet moment of realization. Tell them, Mr. Garrett, of our arrangement.”
Garrett couldn’t face them. Instead, he remained silent and tried to ignore the bitter taste of guilt which was almost as sour as the hostile and disbelieving stares of the group. Nicu was enjoying the moment, grinning as he walked leisurely among them.
“Since Mr. Garrett seems reluctant to divulge exactly what I refer to, then perhaps you will allow me to explain on his behalf.”
“Don’t… please…” Garrett said, still gazing at the floor and wishing it would open up and swallow him. Nicu smiled and continued.
“When Mr. Garrett came to see me earlier, we had a discussion, as you know, about your freedom. However, what he neglected to inform you is there was more to our discussion than he chose to divulge…”
There would be no quelling it this time. No quenching for the guttural outburst of terror which was about to project itself, and he dimly thought if he allowed it to escape, then he would surely die. He brought his hand up to his mouth and bit down hard, hard enough to see white spots dance in front of his eyes. However, it served its purpose, and instead of a scream, he let out an anguished groan. Nicu seemed satisfied, and with agonizing leisure reverted back to his more normal self. He looked at Garrett with a teasing half-smile and leaned close. Garrett couldn’t help but flinch away.
“I think now you understand the futility of any uprising, Mr. Garrett. Now go. Go and tell your people their fate is decided. Tell them you have until midnight to decide who will be given to us.
“What if I want to make a deal? For my own freedom,” Garrett asked, forcing himself to lock eyes with Nicu, who in turn clapped his hands together and threw his head back in laughter.
“Wonderful! What do you propose?”
“I have a group with me,” Garrett said, knowing he had no choice now but to bargain for himself. “Small right now, but they’re looking to me as a leader. They trust me. If you give me some time, I can get more, maybe five or six in all.”
“And all you wish for in exchange is your own freedom?”
Garrett nodded, feeling his gut tighten as he went on.
“I have a family. If it means stepping on a few people I barely know, then I’m fine with that. I’ll do whatever it takes to get back to my wife. As I said, they trust me. I can use that.”
“Very good, Mr. Garrett! Very good indeed!” Nicu said, obviously enjoying the unexpected turn of events.
“Look, I’m not thrilled about it, but I’ll do what I have to if it means I get out of here. How do you want me to do it?”
Nicu thought for a moment, pressing his index fingers together and tapping them against his lips.
“The most obvious way is a staged escape, I would think. Perhaps through our butchery preparation area? Guide as many as you can into the catacombs below the supermarket. Take them to the room below the sub-basement and you shall have your freedom. You shall not be harmed, nor stopped or obstructed by any of my staff, although it would be in your interests to behave appropriately in order to ‘sell' the illusion. Are we in agreement?”
Nicu held out a wiry, long-fingered hand, which Garrett shook cautiously. He expected it to be cold, but Nicu’s skin was surprisingly warm – another vampire myth dispelled.
“I’ll do it,” Garrett grunted. “I’d ask for a guarantee, but I suppose I have to take you on your word here.”
“Yes. I’m afraid you will need to show a little faith, Mr. Garrett. Just like the faith your friends showed you,” Nicu replied, enjoying the way Garrett squirmed as he said it.
“I still don’t understand. What’s in it for you when you can obviously just kill us all anyway whenever you choose?”
Nicu shrugged.
“We are not a greedy race. We take only what we need to. Besides, in our experience, flesh that has tasted even the faintest glimmer of hope is all the sweeter. It gives a certain…delicate flavor.”
“But that still doesn’t explain why you have agreed to let me live.”
“Isn’t it obvious, Mr Garrett?”
“No.”
“It’s quite simple. I believe this world is a much better place with people such as yourself in it. A man who will give away the lives of people who trust him without a thought for their well-being in order to save himself is both rare and…refreshing.”
Nicu grinned, but Garrett remained stony faced.
“I don’t care about any of that. Just get me out of here alive, and I'll deliver you the people. Just make sure your staff knows not to tear us to pieces before I can get them to the sub-basement. I’m sure you appreciate convincing them won’t be easy.”
Nicu began to laugh. “And they call us monsters!”
Garrett didn’t reply. He remained stony faced as he fought with the moral consequences of his decision.
“Very well, Mr. Garrett. We are in agreement. Go now and do as you will. Get the rest of your group to the catacombs. Give them their hope and you will earn your freedom.
“What about the door in the butchery. The metal one for deliveries. I saw it earlier. They’ll want to try for that. I need to be able to convince them to go to the sub-basement with me.”
“Don’t worry about the door. It will be secured.”
“And the butcher?”
“He won’t trouble you, although it may be beneficial for you to keep the threat of him close to ensure they follow your lead.”
“All right,” Garrett said, standing on legs which felt like they would collapse under him. “Then we have an agreement. Give me some time to convince them.”
“Very good, Mr Garrett. I look forward to watching this scenario unfold.”
Betrayal.
The guilt hurt Garrett a lot more than he could ever have imagined. All along he had convinced himself he could go through with it and live with his decision, but now that he had, he found he was unable to look any of them in the eye. Even Bernard had peeled away into the main group and was glaring at him in disbelief, leaving Garrett standing alone.
“Look, I’m sorry…” he said, then let the words fade to nothing. He wanted to explain, to make them see his reasons, but there were no more words that seemed suitable. No matter how he tried to angle it, there was no justification, no explanation he could give other than selfish ones. He looked at them, and each time he made eye contact felt like a hammer blow.
“D
onald, I…”
Donald spat in Garrett’s face, his eyes glaring and fierce. Nicu simply watched it unfold, amused as Garrett wiped the mucus from his eyes.
“You’re worse than them, Ray. At least they’re honest.” He growled as Helen grasped his arm.
“I had no choice…”
“There’s always a choice!” Donald raged. “I just hope your conscience can live with what you’ve done, you son of a bitch.”
Garrett was desperate to explain, to do anything to ease the guilt which raced through him. He lowered his head and found even the corpse-littered floor was easier to look at than the accusing eyes of the group.
“And so," said Nicu cheerfully, “I believe that concludes our business. I am a man of my word, Mr. Garrett. And as I said, to deny the world of somebody with your unique brand of selfishness would be a crime. So go. Go to your freedom. A prize you have truly earned.”
Nicu gave the briefest of nods to the mountain-sized butcher, who immediately stepped out of the tunnel and moved aside.
“Go down the tunnel,” Nicu said as Garrett paused at the threshold.
“You will eventually surface through a sewer outlet pipe by the river. From there, go back to your life. Live well and enjoy the fruits of tonight’s labour. But take warning.” Nicu leaned close, his face by Garrett’s, his breath hot in Ray’s ear. “You may feel the urge to tell people of what has happened here tonight, and that is your decision to make. But know this.”
Nicu stepped back and held up a warning finger.
“Even though you are free, we will always be watching you. Just remember, our kind has infiltrated every level of your society. You will never know who it is safe to talk to, who you can trust, or who you can rely on. I wouldn’t like to think I have made a mistake in allowing you to live.”
“I already told you. All I want is to be with my family. Besides, I have too much blood on my hands as it is to ever be able to tell anyone about this. I just want to go home.”
Nicu nodded. “Then go. Go into the world, Mr. Garrett, and enjoy the gift I have given you.”
“Gift?”
“The gift of appreciation.”
He smiled and stroked Leena’s trembling cheek with a long, bony finger.
“I don’t understand what you mean.”
“You have tasted death. You have seen a small glimpse of another world that lives in secret alongside your own. From this day forth, you will appreciate every waking moment of what remains of your life, because you know intimately how fine the balance is between what you will have, and what could have been.”
There was so much that Garrett wanted to say, so much he wanted to explain to the people that had thought of him as a friend, people he had then betrayed in the worst possible way. However, there were no words. Not that he knew, or would be able to articulate if he did. He stepped into to the tunnel and then turned back to Nicu.
“How many of you are there in the world. Your people, I mean?”
Nicu grinned, showing a glimpse of his pointed second set of teeth as his family members moved towards Garrett’s group.
“There are more than you might think, Mr. Garrett. You might not recognize the name above the door, but every city has a Grueber’s, in purpose if not in name. You should bear that in mind.”
Garrett nodded and then turned back towards the tunnel, careful not to make eye contact with his group. He took a deep breath, and even though it went against every fiber of his being, entered its dark maw. He walked, and hoped he would be far enough away not to hear it when it happened, but he was wrong, and as those wet tearing sounds and agonized screams bounced off the walls around him, he found himself walking faster and then breaking into a loping run. He was not a religious man, but he prayed anyway. Prayed Nicu stuck to his word. Prayed that when the screams silenced, Nicu wasn’t still hungry. Prayed he could trust the word of a foul, unearthly creature not to dangle the carrot of freedom in front of him, and then hunt him down and tear him limb from limb anyway, because hope made the meat sweeter. Right now it was all Garrett had. He could still hear the screams reverberating off the tunnel walls, and he wondered absently why they were still so loud despite his progress into the black depths. It was only then he realized the screams were coming from him.
Garrett lowered his head and started to sprint.
AUTHOR NOTES
This edition of Meat has been on my mind for some time. Initially, it was a story idea intended to go into Dark Corners, but I quickly realized after starting to write that it was going to be much too big for a collection, and it eventually grew into the novella that was released in December 2012. I like the story, I love the character interaction, but since it was released, something had been nagging at me. Even though the short story had become a slightly longer story, I still felt there was more to tell. Those early restrictions I had set on myself in order to keep the story short had stayed with me as I composed it, and there were more areas I wanted to explore. I also wanted to change a few things and make a few edits to the original manuscript. I toyed with perhaps exploring these areas with a sequel, but didn’t really want to do that, as I felt although there was more to tell, I didn’t think there was enough to justify another visit to Grueber’s. As is my way, I mulled on it and stewed on it, and even tried to ignore it, but I couldn’t stop the little voice nagging away in the back of my mind reminding me there was more story to tell here, and it really needed my attention.
It was later when I was speaking to a fellow author and friend of mine, who suggested perhaps I should release an extended edition, a director’s cut if you will, of the story with all of the things I wanted to add to the story. It was a eureka moment, and with much excitement, I dusted off the original manuscript and began to look at how and where to fit in all of the things I wanted to do.
Now I openly acknowledge that some might prefer the original novella, and that’s absolutely fine with me. I’m not releasing this as the definitive edition of the story, this is simply an alternate edit of the same story that some might enjoy.
For me, personally, I much prefer this version. This is the story as I wanted to tell it. I also like to think that with a lot more writing behind me since I first wrote the story, I have improved enough to refine the original text of the novella.
Some people have said they find the ending too bleak, and Garrett’s betrayal a surprise. To that I say re read the story again after knowing how it turned out and the clues are plenty that Ray Garrett is a man who would do anything to survive. Some of the other characters within the story also saw it in him. Mark saw through Garrett for who he was around halfway into the story, he just unfortunately lost the battle to retain his sanity before he could help. Then, of course, there is Bernard. The man who was painted as the villain, who, granted was an irritating son of a bitch, might have been the hero of the piece after all. He might have gone off track and committed murder in the end, but I like to think he and Garrett weren’t too dissimilar. Both were desperate to escape, both were natural leaders, the difference in the end was that Garrett made a deal with the devil whereas Bernard didn’t. Take from that what you will.
If there is one question I have been asked countless times since I finished this story, it has to be the one around Garrett and if he made his escape. I think I know the answer, however, I’ll keep that to myself. I think I like leaving his fate up to the imagination of you, the reader. Who knows, maybe one day, we will return to Grueber’s and answer that question one way or the other. Until then, I’ll leave it for you to decide.
Michael
15th of June, 2014
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PLEA FROM THE AUTHOR
Hey, Reader. So you got to the end of my book. I hope that means that you enjoyed it. Whether or not you did, I would just like to thank you for g
iving me your valuable time to try and entertain you. I am truly blessed to have such a fulfilling job, but I only have that job because of people like you; people kind enough to give my books a chance and spend their hard-earned money buying them. For that, I am eternally grateful, my friend. If you would like to find out more about my other books then please visit my website for full details. You can find it at www.michaelbrayauthor.com Also feel free to contact me on Facebook, Twitter, or email (all details on the website) as I would love to hear from you. If you enjoyed this book and would like to help, then you could think about leaving a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or anywhere else that readers visit. The most important part of how well a book sells is how many positive reviews it has, so if you leave me one then you are directly helping me to continue on this journey as a full-time writer. Thank you in advance to anyone who does.