by Tim Miller
“You got that right,” I said as I turned to look back out at the walkway. It struck me as odd that with all the empty cells, they’d put this kid in with me. Maybe they didn’t want us to be lonely. Before I could think of anything else, there was a sharp pain in my side, almost doubling me over. The kid had his arm around my neck and was stabbing me in the side with something sharp. The pain shot up from my side, all the way up my back and shoulder. The whole side of my body felt like it was on fire.
“The cartel told me to send you a message, puta!” he said in my ear. Besides the pain, I felt angry at myself. I should have known something was off, yet I let him get the drop on me. The idiots in the cartel still thought I was involved in their drug shit. He thrust the knife deeper into my side. I grabbed his arm and spun around, slamming him against the bars. His grip loosened and I was able to pull his wrist away holding the knife, slamming it against the bars as well. The knife fell to the floor as I grabbed the kid’s head and sank my fingers in.
There wasn’t much information for me to steal. The kid was just a mule they sent in to kill me, though he did know that there was someone inside the Feds who was working with the cartel. That’s how he got put in here with me. After a few seconds, the kid was screaming and flopping on the ground. Blood was oozing out of my side like a fountain in the meantime. The screaming was so loud, it got someone’s attention. Two guards came running up and opened the cell door.
“What the hell is going on?” one of them asked.
“He tried to stab me!” I said. “I fought him off, and he started going nuts.”
“Move to the back of the cell!” The tall guard demanded. I did so as they came inside and tried to grab on to the kid. Knowing I had to make a move, I doubled over while coughing uncontrollably. One of the guards came over to me and knelt down.
“Are you okay? Can you breathe?” I quickly stood and kicked him square on the chin, knocking him out. The other guard ran over and I threw him onto the ground and placed him in a choke hold until he passed out. Once they were both out, I reached up and finished off the kid, as his limp body fell to the floor. I grabbed the keys off one of the guards along with a retractable metal baton, and I walked out of the cell into the corridor. I slid the cell door shut behind me. I had to get out of there. I had no idea how to get out, but I would find it even if it killed me.
Chapter 21
There had to be fifty keys on the stupid key ring, and I had no idea which went to what. I ran down the long hall to the first door. It had a large lock on it, so I put the biggest key in, and to my surprise, it worked. It went to another long hallway of course, but there was a flight of stairs at the end. I reached the stairs and started up. I had no idea where it lead, but figured I had to follow it until I found my way out. After the third flight, I realized how out of shape I was.
The sound of a door opening clattered from a floor below. Several men began yelling as I looked down and saw a guard carrying a rifle looking up at me.
“Up there!” he screamed as they all charged up toward me. It sounded like a stampede as the sound bounced off the concrete walls. I picked up my pace, but was stunned when a gunshot struck near the railing.
The fuckers are shooting at me! I dove to the ground and looked around before getting back up. Last thing I needed was to have my head blown off. I turned a corner at the next flight and heard steps coming from that direction as well. Shit! So much for the perfect getaway. I stopped as the officers came charging up behind me. There was nowhere left to go. I put my hands in the air to give myself up. There was no way I could fight my way through all of them. One of them ordered me to my knees, and I complied.
As I placed my hands on my head, the officer who stood in front of me took out his Taser and shot me right in the chest. Hot, burning pain shot through my body, causing me to go rigid. I fell to the ground and doubled over into a fetal position as the current coursed through my body. It really hurt, but I couldn’t move or do anything. He kept zapping it, as it surged through me over and over. For a minute I thought I might shit my pants. Finally he stopped and the other officer came up and kicked me square in the face. I felt the cartilage in my nose crunch under his boot as stars filled my vision and nausea overtook me. I tried to get to my feet but was too dizzy. I could taste the blood in my mouth and as it ran down my face. Before I could move any further, they were piling on me and handcuffing my hands behind my back.
This time, they put a hood over my face and began carrying me. I wasn’t sure what kind of prison guards these were, that kicked me in the face, and carried me around with a hood over my head. We went through a door and I could hear traffic, which told me we were outside. They loaded me into the back of some kind of van or SUV. I was still feeling light headed as we drove, but before long I passed out.
When I woke, I was stripped to my underwear and hanging with my hands bound over my head, tied to some kind of metal beam. My feet dangled at least six inches off the ground. I couldn’t see out of my left eye and my lips felt swollen. They apparently beat on me some more while I was passed out. Looking around I saw I was in a camp of some kind, apparently out in the desert. There were a couple of tents around and a fire burning behind me. I heard some men talking in Spanish, then a few came over to me. They were carrying AK-47s over their shoulders. One went to a tent and said something to the person inside. Another Mexican man emerged and walked up to me.
The thing I was tied to was some kind of metal rack. It looked like something you’d roast a hog on, but was much larger. I guessed that meant I was the hog. My hands were cuffed around the large metal beam and hanging from a chain.
The man walked up to me and had a twisted smile on his face.
“So you’re the one, are you?” he said.
“I’m the one what?”
“That has been killing my men.”
“Look, I think there was some mistake. I killed that cop, but I didn’t know he was one of your men. I don’t even know who you are.” I knew the cop was working for the cartel, but I had to buy some time.
“I am Domingo Esteban. The second in command of the Guajardo Cartel.”
Well, wouldn’t that be my luck. The Guajardo Cartel was probably the most violent cartel in existence, perhaps in history. They have been known to torture people for weeks on end, while giving them just enough medical attention to keep them alive. A few years ago, they caught an undercover DEA agent. They surgically removed his arms, legs, lower jaw and eyes and dumped him on the front steps of the Federal Building in Del Rio. The poor guy is still alive to this day from what I hear, but nothing but a breathing piece of meat. Needless to say, I was in a bit of trouble.
“Listen,” I said. “I have nothing to do with any cartel or anything. I’m telling you. I had other business with the cop, that’s why I killed him. You got the feds to turn me over to you, so it isn’t like you aren’t in thick with US law enforcement.”
He looked at me and laughed.
“You must think I’m stupid. Who do you work for?”
“No one! Your other guy asked me that too.”
“Right before you killed him.”
“Well yeah, he and his boys were gonna kill me.”
“Yes, true. You should have let them. They were just going to shoot you. Me? I like a good show.”
I looked around and saw at least a dozen other men standing around. Two men with AKs came over to the rack I was hanging on and began pushing it backwards. It took me a second to figure out what they were doing. I knew when I felt the flames against my back. Before I knew it, I was hanging right over the fire. The man poked the fire with a big stick, causing flames to shoot up around me.
“Now, my gringo friend, you get to experience hell first hand!” He and the others burst out laughing as the flames licked around me. This was bad, this was really bad.
Chapter 22
Maria sat in her office looking out the window. It had been a slow week at the funeral home. That was the odd thing ab
out her business. In order to be successful, someone had to die. While she didn’t wish death on anyone, she knew if she wanted to pay her bills and keep the lights on, someone had to go. Things weren’t hurting financially for her, the business had been doing quite well for several years. For some reason, the past few weeks had been unusually slow. The sound of the front door opening shook her from her thoughts. She walked out into the foyer to see Charlie’s friend, Dennis, or whoever he was, standing there.
“Dennis? What’s going on?”
“Hey, I was going to ask you the same thing. Charlie wasn’t home, so I thought he might be here.” He didn’t seem as cute and charming as he had the last time she saw him. Worries over what was really going on with Charlie filled her mind. Anger at Dennis began to well up inside her. All of this got weird after Dennis had showed up. Whatever Charlie was involved in, it had to do with Dennis.
“What’s wrong?” He asked.
“Charlie was arrested this morning, that’s what’s wrong.”
“Arrested, for what?”
“Don’t play stupid! Arrested for murder. They said he killed some weird cult in El Paso, and some Mexicans here. They also think he had something to do with those church deaths in El Paso and Mexico. You know anything about that? He was with you a lot of that time.”
“Damn,” Dennis said.
“Yeah, Damn! Who the hell are you? Everything was fine until you showed up! Now whatever you got Charlie into, people are dead. The FBI said Charlie must have used some biological weapon, so they can hold him under the Patriot Act as a terrorist, without trial. I’m not even sure what all that means.”
“It means they can make him disappear and don’t have to tell anyone where he went, is what it means. Where’d they take him?”
“I think to the Federal building here, why?”
“Let’s go. He didn’t kill anyone in El Paso.”
“How do you know?”
“I was there, remember.”
“Why should I believe you?”
He took a step closer and was about to speak, but stopped before he could open his mouth. Something wasn’t right.
“Maria, you okay?”
“No I’m not ok! This whole thing with Charlie has been…”
“That’s not what I mean. Are you ok? Have you felt different lately? Any strange behaviors, blackouts or blocks of time you can’t remember?”
Her mouth fell open as he spoke. There were several blocks of time in the past few days she couldn’t remember. Then there was last night with Charlie, she still had no idea why she had gone and slept with him. It all seemed like a haze, as if it was a dream.
“What’s going on Dennis? Do you know something?”
He walked over and leaned against the desk, crossing his arms.
“First off, my name isn’t Dennis.”
She glared at him for a moment. She had figured that wasn’t his real name. A strange feeling came over her. Something dark was stirring inside her, rising up. She tried to shake it off, but couldn’t. In a matter of seconds, the feeling intensified to the point that she could feel herself slipping away. As she did, something else took over. She could still see and hear, but was no longer in control. It was as if she’d become a passenger in her own body. Unable to speak on her own, yet a voice did come from her. This voice was deeper and darker; practically a growl.
“Lucifer,” she said.
“Maria?” Lucifer could feel the presence. It was the Ghost. He’d felt it in El Paso, but it had gotten stronger.
“Hahaha, yeah, sure. I’m Maria.” Her eyes were no longer brown, but glowed white.
“I know it’s you,” Lucifer whispered.
“Of course you do. It’s time for reckoning.”
“Why did you take her? She’s got no part in this.”
“I am God! She’s mine! They are all mine to do with as I please. The Lord giveth, the Lord taketh away!”
“You three are so full of yourselves. Why can’t you just leave them be?”
“Why can’t you butt out! Oh right, you don’t want to end up in the Abyss with my brother.”
“What are you going to do with her?” Lucifer said, ignoring the backhanded threat.
“Oh I have a plan. But I need you out of the way.” As the Ghost spoke from within Maria, she lunged at Lucifer, yanking him from the desk and slamming him against the wall. Her hands burned into his flesh. Lucifer screamed as he tried to push her off him, but she was too strong. The hands burned through him, into his chest. He felt her fingers touching his still beating heart, wrapping around and searing through it. He couldn’t catch his breath as he shook and convulsed. The body Lucifer had been using fell dead to the ground.
Lucifer stood over the body, and then looked to Maria. He was now in his spiritual form. He wanted to jump away from this place, but he was too weak. Taking human form always took a lot out of him. He hadn’t expected to fight right after coming out. Maria ran her hand through him and laughed as everything went black.
When Lucifer awoke, he tried to look around, but everything was dark. He knew he was awake, he had to be. He could hear screaming off in the distance, but when he tried to scream, there was no sound. He couldn’t’ move or talk. All he could do was think, and listen to the screams of others. A feeling of dread and hopelessness came over him as he realized where he was. This was the Abyss.
Chapter 23
The flames were really starting to hurt. The flesh on my feet and legs began to bubble and peel as the flames whipped against them. I wiggled around, but there was nowhere for me to go. I cried out in pain as the flames rose around me, burning my sides and underarms. I hated screaming in front of these assholes, but it was almost involuntary. I could see them laughing through the flames. It made me want to kill them even more.
As the pain intensified, it occurred to me I might have one chance. I hadn’t done it in years, so I wasn’t sure if it would work, but I had to try it. I reached out with my mind to the men standing around the fire-- the two men with guns and Domingo. Within a few seconds, the three men were themselves screaming. I’d never fully controlled people when I turned them into zombies before, but this seemed like a good time to try. With little effort on my part, walked right into the fire, causing the flames to kick up even higher and hotter. It was like they were moths flying into a bug zapper. I finally began to swing my legs. One of the burning zombie men was just feet in front of me. I propped one foot on his shoulder and kicked with the other leg.
I got enough momentum going to kick my legs high enough to wrap my ankles around the beam, up by my hands. I was no gymnast, but it was definitely time to start doing more stretching. Once I got both legs up, I unhooked the handcuffs from the chain and dropped to the ground. Landing square in the middle of the fire was incredibly painful. Despite my pain and soreness, I was able to jump up and out of the fire. The cool air felt like heaven on my burning skin. I had no idea how much damage I’d taken, but I felt like death.
The rest of the men in the camp stood watching me wide eyed. I wasn’t sure how long they’d been there. Long enough to watch their amigos walk straight into a fire, and then see me jump off it like I was an Olympic gymnast For some reason I had hoped one of them might help me after all that, but they just stood there like they were paralyzed. I walked toward one of them as I put my hand out, but he stepped away, pointed at me and screamed.
“El Diablo Blanco! El Diablo Blanco!” He screamed as other began yelling while running away. El Diablo Blanco? It means “The White Devil.” They were calling me The White Devil. Not A White Devil, but The White Devil. I’d been called a lot of things, but this was a new one. I kind of liked it, but, unfortunately I was in way too much pain to enjoy it. I didn’t bother with the men who were running. They were no threat to me, and I didn’t have the energy to chase them. Instead, I stumbled into one of the tents and climbed inside. My feet were killing me, along with the rest of my body. The zombie men finally stopped screaming; the fir
e had consumed them.
Once inside the tent, I looked for something useful. There were several bottles of water lying around. I drank one, and poured the others over my burns. The water stung as it cooled my skin and wounds. Looking at my legs, I could see parts of them were burned black. I didn’t know how I was going to walk on them in that condition. I didn’t even know where I was. I assumed it was somewhere in Mexico, but that could be hundreds of miles from the border. As I lay there, I wondered how I would get back to Del Rio. I also wondered how my life had gotten so complicated in such a short period of time.
There was a drug cartel trying to kill me. The Feds wanted me in prison, yet it was the Feds who handed me over to the cartel. There was no telling who is working for who in this mess. And I can’t forget the “Holy Ghost” himself drifting around trying to end the world, beginning with me. I suppose if I let that happen, it would solve the other two problems, but not my first choice. I had no idea what the creature was up to at this point.
There was a duffel bag in the corner of the tent. I sifted through it and found some clothes, a .38 revolver, some boxes of ammunition, a bag of weed and a satellite phone. The phone surprised me at first, but when I considered it, it really wasn’t that surprising. The cartel thugs would need a satellite phone if they were this far away from anything. I dialed Maria’s number, but it went to voice mail after four rings. I dropped the phone and lay back down. It’s not like I could call a cab way out here. The slightest movement hurt like hell, except in my lower legs where there was no feeling at all. I knew that this was not a good sign.
As I started drifting to sleep, the phone rang. I grabbed it and answered it.
“Hello?” I said. It was harder to speak than I thought, even after just having drunk the water. My voice sounded grainy and raspy. I recognized the number calling, it was Maria’s phone.
“Well, hello Charlie,” a weird voice said. It sounded like a man’s voice, but not a natural person. It reminded me of one of those guys on TV who are in witness protection and give an interview with a voice disguiser.