by J. Thorn
Lying on top of the creature, Dax looked up at the children and Papa Midnight. “Find a place to hide! Now!”
He looked back down at the Screamer. It wore a dark blue utility shirt with a patch on each breast. One read “Janitor” and the other “Rick.”
Rick bared his teeth at Dax, who backed his head away. Dax had leverage, sitting on top of the Screamer as he was. He tried pushing the broken oar down toward the thing’s chest, but the Screamer fought back, twisting and thrashing beneath him.
Dax looked up. He couldn’t kill the thing, and he wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold it off. He had to make a run for the door.
He looked into the Screamer’s glowing eyes.
“So long, Rick.”
Holding the oar with his left hand, Dax landed a right cross on Rick’s cheek. The impact was hard enough to dislodge one of the Screamers sharp teeth and send it flying against the wall. Dax used the opportunity to flee. He jerked the oar away, jumped to his feet, and ran.
Rick screamed, and Dax glanced back to see him rising to his feet.
Ahead, the horde in the food court continued to beat on the door. And they had almost made it through. The screws holding the latch to the wall were working their ways out.
Dax reached the door of the room where Papa Midnight and the kids had hidden. He banged on it.
The end of the latch popped off then, and the double doors opened three inches. Fingers reached through the opening. The janitor-turned-vampire raced toward Dax from the other end of the hall.
The door in front of Dax opened, and he squeezed inside.
Rick’s face appeared in the crack as Dax slammed it shut and locked it.
The Screamer cried out and slammed his fist against the metal door several times, but he stopped when the double doors from the food court finally caved in behind him, and the mob of other Screamers filled the hallway.
Dax fought to catch his breath. Adrenaline surged through his bloodstream.
They were safe.
For now.
Chapter 10
Darkness cloaked the room, leaving only a thin line of light at the bottom of the door. But the children managed to find Dax regardless and embrace him.
“I didn’t think you were going to make it,” Monica said.
“I told you I wasn’t going to leave you. And I keep my promises.”
The Screamers snarled outside the door, but they’d stopped banging on it. Dozens had gathered on the other side, and Dax knew they could easily break the door down if they wanted to. What were they doing?
Dax suddenly realized he only felt one pair of small arms hugging his leg.
“Where’s Kevin?”
“He’s with us,” Monica said. “He’s safe.”
Dax reached into his pocket and pulled out the flashlight. Clicking it on, he shined the light around the room. Monica and Darius shielded their eyes. Dax found Papa Midnight standing against the wall first—and he, of course, didn’t notice the light being aimed directly at his face. Then Dax shined the light in Kevin’s face.
The boy was sitting against the wall, facing away from Dax. He had not turned to face the light and hadn’t said a word. In fact, Kevin stared at the opposite side of the room and didn’t acknowledge Dax.
Dax stood the flashlight up in the middle of the room and pointed the light towards the ceiling, providing a soft glow which chased back the utter darkness. Then he walked over to Kevin and sat down next to the boy.
“You doing all right, my man?”
The boy breathed heavily, but he didn’t speak.
Dax put his hand on the kid’s shoulder. “Look, Kevin, I know you want to see your mom, but—”
Kevin pushed Dax’s hand away. “Forget you! You don’t know anything about what I want! You don’t know anything about me!”
“Kevin!” Monica said sharply.
She started to make her way toward the boy, but Dax held up his hands as he stood, urging her to stay back. “It’s all good. Give him some space.”
Dax could feel the fear radiating off of Kevin. Everything they had been through was almost too much for a young boy to process. Dax hoped he would be all right, although he thought the kids would be scarred from the experience. For now, he would give the boy room to breathe and an opportunity to calm down.
“Why aren’t they trying to get in here?” Darius asked.
“I’m not sure.” Dax turned to Papa Midnight. “You got any ideas about this?”
“Hmm,” the voodoo priest said. He had been silent for quite some time. Dax waited for him to speak more, but the old man said nothing. Dax felt the blood rushing to his face.
“That all you got? ‘Hmm.?’”
“I do not know what you expect me to say, Dax. Those are my children out there.”
“Bullshit. You can’t see what they’ve become.”
Papa Midnight snorted. “You think because my eyes do not work that I cannot see with my heart?”
Dax leaned in and whispered into Papa’s ear, “Listen to me, you old bastard, and you listen good. I don’t know what kind of fucking game you’re playing here. But if you put these kids’ lives at risk with your ‘congregation’ or whatever the fuck you want to call your little cult, then I swear to God I’m going to cut your goddamn throat and watch you bleed out in front of them. Do you understand me?”
Dax backed away. The little bit of light in the room illuminated enough of the old man’s face for Dax to see the smile stretched across it.
“Yeah. I understand you.”
Dax studied Papa Midnight’s face. Part of him wanted to knock the old man out. But what kind of man would he be if he decked a blind guy with a cane? Especially in front of the children. He shook it off and returned his attention to Monica, Darius, and Kevin.
“All right, guys. Let’s stay calm. I’m going to figure out if we can—”
A knocking on the door cut Dax off. He retrieved an oar and picked up the flashlight. Would Screamers knock?
“Get behind me. All of you.”
Monica took Darius’ hand and hurried behind Dax. Even Kevin got up and joined the others. Papa Midnight stayed put. That was fine with Dax. The voodoo priest was the least of his concerns.
Dax gripped the handle of the oar with sweaty palms. He waited, not sure who or what was now on the other side of the door. Monsters, gang-bangers, hungry people. They all posed the same threat to their group now, and he’d be damned if he wasn’t going to take down every last motherfucker he could to protect the children.
“What the fuck are you waiting for?”
Dax felt the little hands tighten on his legs and he heard Monica hold her breath.
“Please.” The voice came from the other side of the door. “Come out. Do not make this more difficult than it needs to be.”
The female voice had startled Dax at first. He hadn’t heard any of the creatures talk—not since Serafino.
“I know that voice,” Papa Midnight mumbled.
“Don’t say a word,” Dax said back to him.
“You do know my voice, Papa Midnight,” the voice returned. “Yvonne Lussier.”
“Yvonne?”
“It’s me, Papa.”
Transfixed by the woman’s voice, the blind man took a step toward the door. But as he passed the center of the room, Dax stuck out his arm and held the voodoo priest back.
“Let me go,” Papa Midnight said. “Those are my followers—my children.”
“You’re not going anywhere.”
“Let me go, Dax.”
Grabbing the collar of Papa’s trench coat, Dax shoved him against the wall. He twisted the fabric of the coat in his fist as he pulled Papa Midnight closer.
“Listen to yourself. You’re not thinking straight. Those things out there—they aren’t anyone who you know. Not anymore.”
Papa Midnight shook his head. “You don’t know that. Listen to her talking to me. That’s Yvonne.”
“No, it’s not. It might
sound like your friend, look like her… hell, it might even smell like her. But it’s not. Serafino is trying to use her against you.” Dax let go of the old man’s collar and stepped back. “Now I want you to let me handle this.”
Papa Midnight gazed blankly at Dax, but he did not speak again. Dax turned toward the door and refocused his attention on the woman outside.
“Do not make this any harder than it is,” Yvonne said. “Open the door and come out. We don’t want to hurt you.”
Dax laughed. “Don’t want to hurt us? What about your boy out there, Rick, the janitor? He came at me.”
“And do you not think that, had we wanted to, we couldn’t have killed you already? You think that we are not strong enough to break down this door?”
“That’s what it’s going to take. And you’ll be dragging my dead body out of here before I let you touch these children.”
“Maybe we should listen to her, Dax,” Monica said.
“Hush, Monica!”
“No,” Monica said. “Listen to me.”
Dax exhaled as he turned around.
Monica continued, “She’s right. They could’ve killed us by now if they wanted to. So what’s holding them back?”
“The girl is smart,” Yvonne said. “You should listen to her, Jackson.”
Dax jerked his head toward the door. “Shut up!”
“Dax, please,” Monica said. “We have to try this. Even if we stay here and they don’t come and get us, we’re still going to die—whether it’s from lack of water inside or that storm outside—it will happen. We have to take our chances.”
Dax had put the pressure on himself to make all of the right decisions since taking the children into his protection and care. He hadn’t wanted to be in charge, but now it was his burden. Monica made sense, and he knew it. With so few options left, perhaps it was best to gamble and go along with her idea.
He sighed, then nodded.
“I’ll open this door, but on one condition. Your fucking monsters have to step outside into the food court. You and I talk, and they stay the fuck away from the kids.”
There was a brief moment of silence as Yvonne considered Dax’s demand.
“As you wish.”
“Then back them up, and we’ll come out.”
Chapter 11
“Are you serious?” Kevin asked. “There’s no way I’m going out there.”
“We don’t have a choice,” Monica said. “We have to listen to them.”
“We do, too, have a choice,” Darius said. “We can wait for the sun to come back out and toast them. Or what about the rain? Couldn’t we just wait for it to drown them out?”
Monica rolled her eyes. “The rain would drown us out, too, idiot. And there are no windows in that hallway to let the sun in. They can stay out there as long as they want.”
“Don’t call me an idiot!”
“Why don’t you make me?”
Darius got into Monica’s face. He was about to shove her when Dax interjected and pulled them apart.
“Stop this! What do you two think you’re doing?” He let go of the two kids, then flashed the light around the group. They blocked their eyes and protested.
“Stop it!” Darius said. “You’re hurting my eyes.”
Dax lowered the light. “We aren’t discussing this. The decision is mine, and it’s final.” He bent down, scanning each of their faces. “I know you guys are scared. I’m scared, too. But I promise you that I will get us out of this. Have I failed you yet?”
The kids glanced at each other, then shook their heads.
“And I won’t this time. But you’ve got to trust me. All right?”
Dax turned around and walked to the door before he spoke through it. “You all backed off yet?”
“We await your company, Jackson Harper,” Yvonne said.
Dax pushed on the door. He only cracked it at first, careful to make sure Yvonne had held up her end of the bargain. The hallway appeared clear of Screamers, so he pushed the door open.
“Stay right behind me.”
Dax exited the room. He glanced down the long corridor to find it clear. Water was now surging under the single exit door at the end of the hall—a less urgent problem which could be dealt with later.
He waited for Monica to come out of the room. She held the hands of Darius and Kevin. Papa Midnight anchored the group. Dax knew he was going to have to remember to keep his eyes on the old man. The voodoo priest still held some delusion that these were his people.
When they were all in the hallway, Dax looked through the propped open double doors.
The Screamers had formed a semi-circle at the far end of the food court. They had clearly been commanded to step back, and from the looks on their faces, Dax didn’t think they had been pleased with the order. Yvonne stood before him, the orange tint in her eyes highlighting her naturally red hair—not the hair color Dax would have expected to see on a woman with a French name. She was thin and beautiful, with straight hair and bangs cut evenly across her forehead. She wore a stark white, tailored pants-suit which appeared to be brand new.
The children gasped as they stepped into the food court. Dax looked around.
There were at least two dozen Screamers spread out along the back wall. They had blocked all the exits. Each creature stared at Dax’s group, some of their orange eyes pulsing with an animalistic desire. He had begun to doubt whether or not Yvonne could control this horde.
What am I doing?
“The only thing you can do,” Yvonne said.
Dax narrowed his eyes at her. If Papa Midnight had truly known her when she had been human, how had she developed her powers so quickly?
He looked the woman up and down before locking onto her eyes.
“Nice suit.”
She smiled. “They were having a sale at Macy’s.”
Dax chuckled. He hadn’t expected the thing to have a sense of humor.
“What is it you want from me? Why haven’t you killed us?”
“I have not been commanded to kill you.”
“Then what are your orders?”
“To wait.”
Dax tilted his head sideways. “Wait for what?”
The woman smiled. She took a step forward, and Dax tensed. He raised the oar, ready to strike. Behind Yvonne, the Screamers snarled. Some were hunched forward, ready to pounce. Yvonne raised her hand, signaling to the horde behind her. She stopped after one step and smiled, keeping her eyes on Dax.
“How is Papa Midnight treating you? Has he fed you all his lies?”
“They are not lies, my child.” Papa Midnight stepped forward, stopping next to Dax. He detected where Yvonne’s voice had come from, and stared at the Screamer. “It really is you. Isn’t it, Yvonne?”
She didn’t respond, but the grin remained on her face as she watched Dax’s reaction.
“Please, come back to me, my child. You and my entire congregation.” The voodoo priest stepped forward, but Dax grabbed onto his arm.
“Let me go.” Papa Midnight tried to break free, but Dax was too strong.
“This is not your congregation. Can you not understand that, old man? These are monsters.”
“Do you not think that monsters can be saved?”
Dax could think of nothing to say to the remark. The man wasn’t thinking clearly.
“You must let us go, Yvonne,” Papa Midnight said. “We have children. You would not harm children.”
Yvonne’s smile disappeared. For a moment, Dax wondered if there was still something human inside of her. She looked to the Screamers on her left. Her eyes brightened and the creatures stepped away, clearing a path at the edge of the semi-circle. She then looked at Dax and nodded toward the opening.
“Go.”
Dax remained still. “Excuse me?”
He looked around and saw the same look of bewilderment on Monica’s face. Was Yvonne really going to let them go, just like that?
Silence fell upon them, lasting long e
nough to make Dax increasingly uncomfortable. He looked at the woman and the Screamers who appeared to be salivating.
“The priest is correct. We have no intent to harm children. And as you are the keepers of these younglings, we shall let you pass, as well.”
Papa Midnight bowed. “Thank you, Yvonne.”
The voodoo priest took a step, and Dax held him back again.
“Dax, what are you doing?” Monica asked. “They’re letting us go.”
Keeping his eyes squarely on Yvonne, Dax said, “I don’t trust her.” He pulled his arm away from Papa Midnight then and stepped toward the lead Screamer. “Why would you let us go?”
“Have I not told you enough? We do not want children put in danger.”
“Bullshit.”
“Jackson,” Papa Midnight said.
Dax bit his lip as he stared into the Screamer’s blazing eyes. Sweat gathered around his palms. He wanted to drive the sharpened remains of an oar into her chest.
“I would suggest you don’t do that,” Yvonne said.
Her spoken words made him think twice about doing anything that would get them all killed. Instead, he backed away, deciding to take the fight to the Screamers another day. For now, he would have to believe her.
He ushered the boys past Yvonne while Monica walked next to Papa Midnight.
“Let’s go.”
Dax led them slowly past the horde moments after Yvonne had telepathically commanded her minions to clear a path. He still had an unsteady feeling crawling inside of him, though, and he held the oar up and ready to retaliate if one of the creatures attacked.
As they approached the aisle created by the Screamers, Dax turned to face them. None of the Screamers moved although he could feel the anger coming off them in waves. They looked at the children with, wide, hungry eyes. Dax led them toward the door as they walked between two lines of creatures with glowing orange eyes.
A few hundred yards from the food court, the mall’s exit came into view. Outside, the rain continued to fall. Waves crashed against the building and more water was flooding into the mall, coming from underneath the doors. Dax hoped the boat was still outside. If it had floated off or been ripped away by the wind, he wasn’t sure what he was going to do. There wasn’t another option.