Last Chances Die Softly

by James Bee

  “A needle, broken off by the looks of it,” he said. A needle? What had been injected into her? There were so many different things that could kill someone, more than any of them knew.

  “A needle. Dammit,” Hank said. Jason looked over at his friend. Tears were welling up and sliding down Hank’s face as he looked down at the corpse. Jason knew he should say something, but he didn’t have any words. Consoling had never been his strong suit.

  “Doesn’t make sense, why a needle?” Robbie said, scratching his face. “Why would he kill her like this?”

  “He might not have,” Hank said, his throat thick.

  “What do you mean?” Jason asked.

  “Mia. She was a heroin addict a long time ago. Her sister died beside her, overdosed. That’s why she got into all this. Why she came here. The guilt was eating her up. That’s why she was so good at the job. How she always knew what to say. Maybe she relapsed, maybe she started using again.” Robbie and Jason paused for a few moments to absorb this.

  “But why would she be here? In Mac’s room? And how wasn’t she found before. The police searched this whole floor. Every room. It doesn’t make any sense,” Jason said.

  “Maybe Mac found her first. Hid her and then brought her here?” Robbie offered.

  “Could be. We’ll ask him when we find him,” Hank growled.

  “Guess so. No matter what, I don’t think we’re going to be able to hand her over to the police,” Robbie said.

  “Oh, shit,” Jason said. All three men looked at each other, the scope of their predicament sinking in.

  Then, on cue, the voice boomed through the walls.

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  Chapter 20

  “ATTENTION, OAKVIEW! YOUR ALLOTTED TIME HAS PASSED! YOU HAVE FAILED TO SEND OUT ANY HOSTAGES OR SURRENDER. YOU MUST DO SO OR PROVIDE US WITH PROOF THAT THERE IS A HOSTAGE IN THERE. IF YOU DO NOT, WE WILL FORCIBLY ENTER. ANYONE FOUND INSIDE WILL BE DEALT WITH EXTREME FORCE!” As the echoes of the words died away, Jason felt his hopes die with them.

  “They think we’re all in on it,” Robbie said.

  “Seems like it. Also seems like they think that Mac is bluffing,” Hank said.

  “Pretty safe fuckin’ bet,” Jason said, gesturing at Mia’s corpse. “Not unless he found a way to grab someone else and bring them in.”

  “He could have. Don’t know how he’d have managed it, though, what with this place being locked down as tight as it is,” Robbie said.

  “I wouldn’t bet on it. Look, Kenneth and Chad are out there, as are those two bastard cops. They searched the whole building, twice. How they missed Mia’s body I don’t know, but they must think that it’s only us in here,” Hank said.

  “What about Stu?” Jason asked.

  “What about him?” Robbie said.

  “Why couldn’t he be the hostage? He’s not one of us anymore. He got through the program, he’s been out for years. Why wouldn’t they think that we’ve just taken him?”

  Hank set out a strangled wheeze, halfway between a laugh and a sigh. “Jase. He’ll never stop being one of us, a dangerous criminal. Not in their eyes. It’s not people like Mia out there making decisions. The men and women who’ll come bursting in here, looking to put a bullet between our eyes, they don’t care about rehabilitation. They don’t care that me and you have tried to turn over a new leaf, start a new life. We’re not people to them. Not really. We’re just numbers on a page. Nothing more than our rap sheet. Other than Robbie, we’ve all killed. Me, you, and Mac. They’ll just assume Stu is going along with all this. As we all are. That the three of us could be being held hostage here wouldn’t even pass through their minds. Not to mention that they already shot Juni. If he was innocent, then it was murder, a complete fuckup. Think they’ll want to admit that? No. Much easier to just come in here and clean the place out.”

  “He’s right,” Robbie said. “Kenneth’ll be there too, poisoning them against us. It was him who locked us in here with madmen. Think he’ll vouch for us? No? Didn’t think so. The only person in Oakview who would is lying right there. Don’t think she’s going to be much help.” Robbie walked out of Mac’s room and into the hallway. Jason followed behind him, eager to be free of the place. The voices were louder in that room. He’d stopped trying to deny their existence; it was pointless. Though they were still mere murmurs, half-whispers just beyond his understanding.

  “What do we do with her?” Hank asked, following them out.

  “Leave her there. Now’s not the time to be interfering with bodies. Whoever did for her, there DNA’ll be all over the body. Might help us if we don’t get plugged first,” Robbie said.

  “Just doesn’t feel right. She deserves better,” Hank said. Jason nodded. He wanted to ask a question, but he kept it inside for fear of hurting Hank. Could she have simply overdosed? Maybe her and Mac were doing drugs together, and he panicked. Hid her body away. How could the other deaths be explained? Coincidence? Maybe there actually is another person inside. Jason couldn’t shake the feeling that something else was happening. The three of them were avoiding one hard truth, one that would divide them. Someone had killed Stu, and it wasn’t Mac. If there wasn’t someone else in here with them, someone bent on murder for some reason. Then it was one of them, or Juni. Jason knew he hadn’t killed anyone. This time he was positive. There was no drunken haze to cloud his memory. The thought that the killer could be Robbie or Hank was too painful, so he pushed it from his mind.

  “What are we going to do?” Jason asked.

  “Fuck if I know. Could still try to hunt Mac. Beat some answers out of him,” Robbie said.

  Hank sighed. “It doesn’t matter what we do. We’re doomed. All of us. Even if they don’t kill us right away, our lives are over. We’ll go back to jail on some charge or another. They’ll find a way to pin it on us. You’re still young, Robbie. You have time. Me and Jase, though, it’s over for us. By the time they let us out again, we’ll be old and gray,” Hank said.

  “You don’t know that. No point giving up yet,” Jason said, trying to project a hope that he didn’t feel. “We haven’t done anything wrong this time. Mac’s a goddamn psycho. Won’t be hard for them to believe that he did this. That he went crazy.”

  “Maybe. Maybe,” Hank said.

  “Either way, let’s just figure out what to do now. I agree with Robbie, let’s go find Mac,” Jason said.

  “All right. Might as well see if we can track down the bastard,” Hank said.

  “No point in you fellas going through all that hassle on my behalf,” a voice from behind them said.

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  Chapter 21

  Jason whirled around, fists raised. Mac was standing in the staircase, a wide grin plastered on his face. In one hand he held the same club as before, but the other clutched something different, something dripping with blood. Stu’s cleaver. Fucking bastard.

  “What the hell are you doing, Mac?” Hank yelled, taking a step toward the doorway. “Why? Just fuckin’ why?” Mac didn’t respond, just shrugged slightly, still smiling at them.

  “You’re going to get us all killed, you know that. The police are going to break in at any moment, and they’re going to kill all of us. Because of you,” Robbie yelled.

  Mac shook his head slightly. “You three should be thanking me. I’ve been keeping the police out, keeping them away. Though it seems as though they are no longer scared by my threats. Too bad.”

  “Thank you? We should bash your brains in and toss your body outside,” Hank growled. Jason shot a quick stunned look at his friend. Where had that come from? They were all scared and angry, but that was different. There was more than rage in Hank’s voice; there was hunger.

  “Now, now, Hank. You’re supposed to be the rehabilitated one, aren’t you? The shining example. Thought you were done with killing. Guess all that training with Mia didn’t stick, eh? You too, Stitches? Been making weapons again. How typical. Bet you two have been talking about how unfair all this is. That no one cares th
at you’ve changed. Didn’t take long for you to fall back on bad habits, though, did it? For you to go right back to the way you were before. The past isn’t done with us yet, boys. You can hear it too, eh? Both of you?” Mac said, pointing to his head. “It’ll get louder, trust me. I can barely hear myself think for all the racket. Nothing screams quiet as loud as a baby, eh?”

  “You’ve lost it, Mac. You’re crazy,” Hank said, though Jason could hear the uncertainly in his voice. He’s been hearing it too. His own voices. What’s going on?

  “Don’t believe in ghosts, eh, old man? The dead aren’t through with you yet. Trust me. Robbie. Want some advice? Stay away from these two. They’ve got blood on their hands. It stains everything they touch. Best steer clear. This story doesn’t have a happy ending.”

  “You want to talk about blood? Why’d you kill Mia, you bastard? She was nothing but good to us. Why’d you do it?” Hank screamed the accusation.

  Mac held up his hands. “I have my own share of blood, but not hers. Mia is no different than the rest of us. Her mistakes caught up with her. The guilt pulled Mia under. I just moved her to somewhere you would find her. Doubt anyone would have been come across the body until she started to smell bad, of course.” I don’t think he’s lying, Jason thought. Mac’s eyes were wide, bulging, but seemed strangely clear, lucid.

  “What about Billy? You hacked him to bits. I saw what was left of him,” Robbie said.

  Mac shook his head. “Billy was reckless, took too many risks. Run your hand through the flames enough times and you’ll get burned. Billy had that coming.” A strained silence followed the words as everyone struggled about what to say next. No one bothered to ask about Stu.

  “Put your weapons down, Mac. We’re going to turn you over to the police. You can deny all you want, but I know you had something to do with all this,” Hank said, moving toward the stairs.

  “My life is not yours to take, nor the police’s. These weapons are not for you. I don’t plan on leaving this world softly. If the devil wants to come take me, he better come ready.” With those words, Mac disappeared from sight.

  “Get back here, asshole,” Hank yelled, running after him.

  “Hank! What the hell! Stop! He’s too dangerous!” Jason screamed after him. He made to follow his friend, but Robbie had a hold of his arm. “Let me go. We have to follow. Have to help.”

  Jason watched helplessly as Hank also disappeared into the stairway.

  “No, Jason. Listen to me. I’m not running after that lunatic,” Robbie said.

  “But Hank. He could be in trouble. In danger,” Jason protested.

  “Jason. Listen to me. Hank killed Stu. He must have. I know you and Mac didn’t do it, and I know I didn’t do it. Juni was all talk, and he only just arrived a month ago. It must have been Hank. Maybe he did the others too, I don’t know. Either way, we’re not safe around him. Turn our backs and he might cave our heads in with that sock you gave him,” Robbie said, speaking rapidly. Jason’s head began to spin. No. It can’t be. Why would he do that? Stu was a friend to both of us. Hank looked up to him. He wouldn’t have killed him.

  “No, Robbie. You’re wrong. You have to be. Hank wouldn’t do that. There has to be some other explanation. Someone else.”

  “Who? Who could have done it? Who else?”

  “Maybe someone did sneak in. Like you said, a victim’s family member or something. Someone who has a grudge against us. Or a crazy person, someone who thinks they’re doing the world a favor by getting rid of us or something,” Jason said. He knew he was grasping, but he couldn’t accept the alternative. That his best friend, maybe his only friend in the whole world, could be killing people. If Hank couldn’t shake his old life, then what chance did he have?

  “If someone else was here, we’d have found them by now. Heard them. Seen some sign. No one’s in here but us, Jase. It’s just me, you, Hank, and Mac. We need to find somewhere to hide. To bunker down until the police come in and take over. We can back each other up, tell them what happened. How the other two killed everyone. Put the blame on Hank and Mac, where it belongs. We haven’t done nothing, neither of us. We don’t deserve to take the fall for these sick fucks. I know your record, I know what happened. A drunken bar fight, that’s all. You’re not a killer, Jason. A fighter, yeah, but not a killer. Me and you can make it through this together. We just have to trust each other.” Robbie’s words wormed their way into Jason’s head. Can he be right? Can it be both Hank and Mac? Maybe this whole thing is a ruse. Maybe Hank isn’t actually chasing him. Maybe they were working together, trying to set a trap for us. Suspicion and paranoia were taking hold of him, slowly yet inevitably. The only thing he knew was that someone was doing the killing, and it wasn’t him. He had to figure out who before it was his turn to die.

  “How do I know you didn’t do Stu? You could have put the cleaver in his skull. Could be trying to get me to turn on Hank so you can get me alone and do the same,” Jason said, staring hard at the other man. He liked Robbie, but he was still an outsider. It would be much more pleasant to imagine him as the murderer. Robbie’s face darkened, but he put his razor blade-studded comb in his pocket and held out his hands.

  “See any blood on these? I ain’t never killed no one. I sure as hell haven’t killed three. Mia, Billy, and Stu. None of them deserved what happened to ’em. Whoever did it will have to pay. And we’ll make ’em. You and me.” Robbie held out his hand, and Jason took it. What else could he do? Robbie was persuasive, and he’d never been much of a thinker. Besides, the younger man was right. Whoever had done this would have to pay, even if that person was Hank.

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  Chapter 22

  “We should make a barricade or something. You know, get all the beds and stuff and block the doors. Maybe go to one of the bedrooms and lock ourselves in,” Robbie said. The two of them were sitting the hallway, backs against the wall. Jason knew they should go somewhere else, but neither moved. There hadn’t been any sounds after the footsteps had died away. For all they knew, Hank had caught Mac and killed him, or vice versa. Going into the staircase was unthinkable, terrifying, so for now they were trapped.

  “Yeah, maybe. But then we’d be trapped inside. They could light a fire or something on the other side. Burn us out. I’d rather keep out options open, keep an escape route,” Jason said.

  “True. Still, if the police break in, I don’t want to be standing out in the open. We’ll be sitting ducks, an easy target. They’ll tag us, just like they did Juni.”

  “That’s not gonna happen. We’ll figure out a way to talk to them, let ’em know what happened. It’s just people on the other end of the gun. They don’t want to kill us. They just want to get this over and go home to their families,” Jason said.

  “Yeah, maybe,” Robbie said. A bump from downstairs made them both start. Jason strained to hear over the roar of his beating heart. Oakview was silent, for now at least. It was the calm before the storm. Before long, something had to happen. Either the police would burst in, guns blazing, or whoever was murdering everyone would come for them. Either way, Jason just wanted it to be over.

  “We should go down there. See what happened. Might be able to help,” Jason said, though without much conviction. The constant stress had worn him down, left him numb. What did it matter what happened to him now? He didn’t want to die, but life didn’t hold much appeal either. There had finally been hope, finally the promise of a change. After years, decades in prison, surviving, just holding on to reach another day. Now it was all gone. Gone in the span of a few days. Still. Not dead yet. Could be worse, he thought, thinking of the others.

  “Fuck that. You can go. I can’t move, man. I just can’t. If we stay here, they can’t sneak up on us. They can’t get us like they got the others,” Robbie said. Jason could see that the younger man was also starting to unravel under the strain. Robbie doesn’t deserve this. He shouldn’t be here. He hasn’t killed anyone. There shouldn’t be any ghosts coming back for him
.

  “That’s right. Everyone else died alone. So long as we don’t split up, we’ll be safe. Just have to survive, Robbie. Can’t let whoever’s doing this get us,” Jason said. The words came out automatically, without much thought. Jason knew he should be focused, senses alert for anything that might signal approaching danger. Yet he wasn’t. He couldn’t. He was distracted. The voices weren’t growing louder, they were just becoming more … sharp. If he really strained, really concentrated, he could almost make out what they were saying. Almost. His nose was also under assault. The stench of blood was growing more potent, so much so that he was almost choking on it.

  Can he smell it? Or is it just in my head? Jason thought, looking sideways at Robbie. He didn’t dare ask about the smell or the voices. What if he was really coming undone? Unhinged? Would it get worse and worse until he ran away, fled from Robbie to find his own private room to die in? How long can I last? How many more hours until I break down? What if Robbie loses it first and leaves me alone. What if Robbie is the killer, and he’s just waiting for me to show weakness? To expose myself. I could attack first. Put him down. It’d only take one punch. One punch and I’d be safe. Safe but alone.

  Jason shook his head, driving the thought away. Standing, he rolled his shoulders and arched his back. He knew that he should be hungry, but he wasn’t. There was a knot in his belly, so tight he knew anything sent down would come right back up. Still, he knew he should eat, if only to keep his strength up. There was no telling how long the siege could last.

  “Wonder what’s keeping the cops? How long will they wait to see if we’ll send anyone out before they come in and try to give us some of what they gave Juni?” Robbie said.

  “Don’t know. Not sure if I want them to come sooner or later. Might be nice to just have all this done with. The waiting is killing me,” Jason said, looking down the hallway toward the staircase. The longer he stared, the more ominous and forbidding it became, like a forest in the night. The thought of entering its confines filled him with a dread that he couldn’t understand.