by B. Buechter
The Chief snatched the blade from Jake’s hand and returned it to the sheath on his desk. He returned to his position at his desk. “Precisely Thomas. I cannot have any child of mine be weak. I will not have a child of mine be weak.”
Jake and Tommy were at a loss for words. Dan McAvoy circled the desk and slammed his fist down. It had been a signal for the guards to enter and grab the boys to take them back to their room. This time, they would be separated. Just before they were dragged off the floor, their father called out to his eldest.
“You have one day to make the decision Jacob,” he said. “If you do not choose. Then I will.”
And with those parting words, The Chief’s chambers were closed behind them.
Chapter 18
Eva - Day Three
Sleep had been impossible for Eva that night. Her body and mind were exhausted but rest was fleeting. The day was upon her. It felt like her whole life had led up to this point. Most of the twilight hours were spent staring at the leather overhang blowing in the wind. There were only two things she cared about, Dan McAvoy lying in a pool of his own blood and Jake and Tommy’s safety. After hours of deliberation, she decided that it no longer mattered whether she survived or not.
She rubbed her eyes and sat up when she heard the Tigers marching down the yard with their guns and pans to wake the slaves. Wanda was sitting at the edge of her tent, as silent as the winter air. Something pained her. She hugged her bony knees to her chest, resting her chin on them. Everyone was filing to the meal lines after the gunshots, but one Doxie and The Wanderer stayed behind.
Eva crouched next to her friend, knowing that this could be the last time she ever saw her. “Is everything okay?”
“I could ask the same of you,” she sighed. “But no… I’m afraid of the world out there. This has been my life for so many years. What if I don’t make it out there?”
“Freedom is for everyone,” Eva smiled. She put her hand on Wanda’s shoulder. “You fight for it every moment you are in this compound. And you will still fight tooth and nail out there. But you will survive. And you will see Elaine.”
“And I hope that you are successful in your plan,” she added. “Whether or not I gather the courage to crawl out of this place…doesn’t matter… You need to fight for what you believe in. Revenge. Love. Whatever. Just never stop fighting.”
The two women embraced and Eva picked up a bowl for her final meal. She would go straight up to the top floor when The Chief walked the grounds of his “kingdom”. She would be waiting for him in his chambers between two bookshelves. When his guards left him for the night, she would strike. That was the plan.
But that is if nothing goes wrong, she reminded herself.
It could be the fact that she had not eaten since yesterday morning, but the slop in her bowl tasted better than normal. A tear slid down her cheek as she looked at the Hooded Demon that was invisible to everyone but her. If this truly was the end for her, at least she would be free of that shadow, whatever it was. She took one final stroll around the yard as the Bondsmen started another day in the Pits. Doxies made their daily, muddy trudge to The Castle, like skeletons standing in line for the cemetery. Eva left her bowl with the Tigers and walked up to the large metal doors. Tarrying only for a moment on the threshold, she took a deep breath and stepped inside.
Darkness overwhelmed her senses. The smell of cooking food filled her nostrils. A slight heat permeated the main floor from the kitchens. Her muddy feet were warmed and dried on the stairwell. She scraped off the layers of dirt with her gown. Realizing that some patches of her dress were crusted with a dark liquid, she lifted it up and examined her wraps. Her heart skipped a beat. Blood stained her chest as well as the linens wrapping it. At first, she thought it was her own blood, but then she realized that it was Tiger blood.
Suddenly, from a floor below, footsteps ascended towards her. She threw the gown over her torso and sprinted up the stairs. Yesterday, she wanted people to see her working. Not today. It would be like she was never there. This would make it much easier to creep into McAvoy’s quarters unnoticed. If no guard was posted at his door, infiltration would be even easier. As luck would have it, the hallway on the top floor was empty for the moment. Just as Eva entered the closet door where her armor and weapons were stored, Dan McAvoy and six bodyguards marched past her. He was spouting orders for the day. She pressed her ear against the door and listened as they walked down the passageway.
“...And what of The Wanderer?” he asked. “No one has discovered her yet? I find that hard to believe.”
“No sir,” a woman answered. “We have doubled our presence in the yard and every tower. Nothing suspicious to report.”
“Then all of you are imbeciles,” he snapped. “Of course she would not draw attention to herself. Do you really think that I am looking for a simple slave? No. This woman is significantly more intelligent than my Tigers, it seems. Triple your efforts. I want every woman questioned relentlessly.”
The group stopped right in front of the closet door. Eva placed her hand next to her ear. One of the male guards spoke. “If I may ask, why do you care so much about one person? The Wanderer is just one woman against an army.”
“You obviously do not have a single shred of intelligence, do you?” All of a sudden, the crack of fist on bone and the metal door shook violently as a body smashed against it. “Insubordination will cost you your rank. And you should be grateful it will not cost you more.”
“Thank. You. Sir.” The footsteps continued down the hallway until it was completely silent. Everyone had left except the man who had been thrown against the door. Eva could hear him stagger to his feet, moaning and slurring his words. She opened the door a crack to see him hobbling towards the stairs, unsteady and stumbling against both walls. As he turned the corner to the stairwell, she heard a scream, and then a sound like someone had dropped a heavy bag down the stairs. The moaning stopped but Eva had little time to investigate. She quickly changed into her armor.
The thick leather tightened around her curves and seven knives wrapped around her thighs and chest, crisscrossing over her body. Finally, she strapped her gun, only second in importance to her blades, around her waist. It provided a feeling of safety and comfort. She no longer felt vulnerable like a slave. She felt like The Wanderer again.
Eva needed to bolster herself up. She repeated the phrases she told herself long ago, when she was the Mistress of the Serpents, “Play the game better than anyone. Better than anyone. Don’t let anyone stop you… You may not have your blades, but any weapon with Dan McAvoy’s blood on it will suffice.”
Her words were dark. Almost as dark as her demon. When she whispered the final phrase of murder, the Hooded Shadow completely dematerialized. Why disappear now? But she didn’t have time to dwell on it. She focused herself on the next step, getting into The Chief’s room. Eerie silence filled the corridor as she closed the closet door painstakingly slow. On the other side, where she felt the jolt from the guard’s body, were two dents. They were about the size and position of a human head and shoulder. A thick, crimson liquid near the top of the larger indentation dripped onto the floor.
Eva tiptoed down the hallway. With her back pressed against the wall, she peered around the corner. It was empty. The Chief’s room was unguarded for the moment, but she was not out of the woods yet. This was just the first step. Everything had gone according to plan up to this point. She knew it was only a matter of time before things would shift. Whether her day ended up looking down the barrel of a gun or had a knife at her throat, things would change.
The door was unlocked. Everything was starting to seem too easy. There was a good chance that McAvoy was slipping. On the other hand, he could be planning for her to find him. He may already be one step ahead. She closed the door behind her with a soft click and her eyes locked onto her blades on the desk. The urge to take them was overpowering. That will be the first thing he notices when he returns. It would be stupid of me to
take them now. But when I confront him…
Squeezing in between the bookshelves directly next to his bed, she felt a shroud of invisibility around her. With the way the lanterns were positioned, they illuminated the entire room except for where she hid. No one would be able to see her unless she stepped out and only when she was ready to face McAvoy would she reveal herself. It would be hours before he returned and even longer before he was left alone for the evening. She knew that, since Jake and Tommy had been dragged into the building, that their father had discovered them. They would likely be held in a room near the Chief. Eva would use that to her advantage after striking down her enemy.
I hope they’re close, she pleaded. Maybe they will be brought to his quarters.
The lack of meticulous planning stung. Over and over, she scolded herself for missing one huge detail. Perhaps this was the turning point for her. She would kill McAvoy and lose the only people she cared for, Jake and Tommy. All she could do was hope that they escaped while she was pursued.
Waiting for the Chief to return felt like only a short breath. He returned after completing his rounds, snapping his fingers and having servants tortured or maimed. The sun was breaking through the window by midday and basked the room in a brilliant light. From where Eva was sitting against the wall, she studied every trinket and treasure hoarded in his room. And while McAvoy spent most of the day staring out his window, occasionally commanding his personal bodyguards, Eva examined the trinkets. Scattered across his desk were a number of newspaper articles from the Old Times. She could not make out the headlines, but saw their yellowed, brittle pages cracking under a periodic breeze. Directly across from the bookshelf was a larger shelf. Although it did not house books, dozens of knick knacks were organized in two perfectly straight lines. She immediately recognized the smaller figures on the top shelf. They were the same trinkets The Tigers had taken when they ransacked her home.
My things. So that’s where they went. Years of collecting… all to be taken by this man. It’s funny, this isn’t the first thing he’s stolen from me.
Fatigue started wearing on Eva as the day went on. She nodded off a handful of times only to be awoken by the Chief yelling orders at another Tiger. It was a long wait. Finally, the room darkened with the sky. The guards took their leave for the evening, but not before receiving one final demand from their heartless leader.
“Retrieve my boys.”
Day 3 - Jake and Tommy
Tommy was the only brother that slept that night because he trusted that his brother would make the right decision. At first, when they had been thrown into separate rooms, they were terrified. Jake never believed his father would suggest something as heinous as killing his only family. He berated himself the entire night. I should have trusted Eva when we first met. She was right. Their father was in a compound and he was dead. The parent Jake remembered no longer existed. This new life outside the Vault had changed them all. Jake had grown a lot and learned a lot. So did his brother.
But it also changed my dad. He stared out his window at the vast forest that separated the region. Right outside his window was freedom, seven stories down. No one would make it very far after jumping from that height. He looked around and found nothing to throw over the side and climb down either. It seemed like there was no way to avoid his father and his proposition, but Jake had already made his choice.
The sunrise was giving him a headache. Jake sat up in his cot and waited for a Tiger to unlock the door. Nobody came. Neither he nor Tommy would be working that day. They were given a day to ponder. Jake, about his choice. And Tommy, about his existence. His father was malicious in that way. A bowl of food was slid through a crack in the door around midday before being locked tight. The boys ate their meals in silence.
While Jake was sulking in his room, Tommy got to work. He discovered a rusty old drill under an overturned chair that still worked. He started boring a hole into the stone wall. Paint chips broke away easily, but the concrete block was thick. He would have to be diligent to burrow a hole into Jake’s room. All he wanted was to speak to his brother before being taken up to their father late in the evening.
It did not take long for Jake to hear the grinding. At first, he thought he was imagining things, but heard it getting louder. The sound came from the corner of the room where Tommy’s room shared a wall. He had to move a few pieces of old furniture out of the way. Throwing a few things aside, he searched for an item to help his brother break through. Other than a handful of metal chair legs, he found nothing of use. Being forced to wait until Tommy made it through was maddening. It took hours. Eventually, he spotted a tiny patch of the brick giving way. It cracked and crumbled into small pieces of dust and rock. It grew in size until the drill pushed through and Tommy pulled it back in.
“Jake?” he called. “You in there?”
“Yeah buddy.” Jake could not hide his grin. “I’m here.”
“Good,” Tommy sighed. “I thought dad had taken you… maybe… trying to get you on his side.”
Jake swallowed the lump in his throat. “No. Still stuck in my room.”
His brother did not want to ask the obvious question. So he changed the subject. “Think Eva’s still alive?”
“I saw her last night. When I was making runs. She was dressed like a Doxie. Really, Tommy. She cut her hair too.”
“How did you know it was her?”
“At first, I didn’t. But it was. And if I know that amazing woman, she’s trying to break us out. Both of us.”
There was a long pause. Jake stood up and pressed his ear to the hole, thinking he had missed something.
“Do you think she will kill Dad?”
The thought had not crossed his mind. “Dunno. Maybe she knows that is the only way to save us. Now that he knows we’re alive…if we escape, he will hunt us.”
Both brothers felt their hearts stop when they heard a scream coming from the direction of the stairwell. It was followed by the sound of something being dropped down a flight of stairs. And afterward, complete silence.
“What was that?” Tommy grabbed his chest. “Sounded like someone…”
“Maybe Eva did it?”
“Or Dad’s… Jake, was he always like this?”
No. He was a great father who took the time to teach me many things. “Yeah, but not this heartless. Always cold.” Jake lied. He didn’t want his brother to think he missed out on being fathered by a kind man.
“Are you scared Jake?” Tommy’s voice quivered.
“Terrified. You?”
“Remember the statue that Eva let me have? The one with the sitting man?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“When the Tigers took all of our things. They didn’t notice that I had it in my hand. I held it so tightly, Jake. But then they left us… Every day since we’ve been here, we haven’t been killed. Hurt, a little. But we’re still alive. Maybe I’m not afraid because this gave me luck. I know Eva will save us… Before dad gets us.”
Jake smiled and wiped his eyes. His brother, on the surface, sounded naive, but the meaning of his words carried wisdom far beyond his age. Even if they were to die today, they had no control over that fact. Oddly enough, that epiphany brought an unusual peace to him.
Neither of the boys noticed that the sky had gone dark hours ago until the Tigers came. They stood at the doorway of each room and only said one thing, “Your father is ready for you.” Both of the young men stood up and dusted off their ragged clothes. They were ready for whatever came next.
***
Eva had positioned herself so she could see the front door of McAvoy’s chambers. When it opened, her hand slipped over to the handle of a knife. Directly behind four guards were Jake and Tommy. She quietly gasped, but could not allow herself to be overwhelmed by emotion. For now, they were swept to the back of her mind. The Chief, with the flick of his wrist, ordered away his guards leaving only his sons in the room. He had no idea that The Wanderer also shared the same space.
/> “Welcome back.” Dan McAvoy had already pulled out one of Eva’s blades and stood between the desk and his sons. “I have two questions for you. One, I am sure you have been pondering the answer. The other, you may have forgotten by the severity of the first.”
“Then ask of us the latter.” Jake tried to match his father’s eloquence but not his lifeless tone. He felt the Chief’s lifeless, blue eyes on him, tearing away at his courage.
“As I intended… What do you know of The Wanderer?”
His eldest son gave no pause. “Nothing aside from stories. We have answered this question before.”
“Have you?” His anger surfaced only in his words, never his face. “And what if your answer does not please me?”
“Then you would have me lie to please you. I remember how highly you value the truth.”
“As always, my eldest. You impress me with your responses… My absence has taught you well… And what of my proposition? I have given you plenty of time to dwell on the implications.”
“One day to make a decision to end my brother’s life, by my hand, or you end both of ours?”
“Precisely.”
Eva covered her mouth to muffle her surprise. She had to move fast, but lingered just a few minutes longer. McAvoy had to take a few steps towards his sons so she could slink out of the shadows. Also, Jake seemed like he had crafted a plan of his own.
“Yes. I suppose I have made my decision.”
“And?”
“I choose… neither.”
McAvoy took a step back in confusion. Eva’s brow furrowed in the darkness. Tommy’s eyes widened in surprise. Then, The Chief laughed. It started as a silent snicker as he covered his face then exploded into laughter of pure rage. His stance straightened and words spewed out of him like lightning.
“It is laughable that you think you have a third option, petulant boy.” He started taking long strides toward them. He did not see Eva creep out from between the bookshelves and grab her remaining blade, securing the sheaths to her back. This was the first time anyone had seen true madness in McAvoy’s eyes. “You are just as weak as your brother. I believed that you were different. Shame. I admit that I was wrong about you. And in the event that I am wrong… I wipe out everything that reminds me of my mistake.”