Genesis

by Michael McCarthy

  Ilsa’s mind was foggy, but still clear enough that she could work through some things although the screams that kept interrupting her thoughts were making it difficult. Still, she was able to reason out that it had to be some sort of poison. Probably in the tea or champagne.

  Those screams, were they real?

  A sharp prick.

  A burning sensation in her neck.

  An injection. The fog was lifting.

  Ilsa opened her eyes, and Cooper was standing watch over her.

  “Oh Coop, what have you done? I heard screaming.”

  Cooper sat on the edge of her bed and wiped her mouth with a damp cloth.

  “Sorry about that. I didn’t know you could still hear what was going on around you.”

  “It faded in and out. Coop, did you kill that man?”

  “No, I questioned him for hours, but he stuck to his story. It’s possible he’s telling the truth. But I can’t take that chance. We can’t let him go. He needs to stay locked up in the attic. He’ll be safe there.”

  Ilsa nodded in understanding then took an offensive tone with Cooper. “I can’t believe you drugged me with the baby.”

  “Well, with everything going on, I gave you a light sedative, to help you sleep. You needed the rest. The baby needed the rest. It was perfectly safe. Trust me. I’m a doctor,” Cooper smiled.

  “Yeah, but not a medical one.” Ilsa looked in her purse for her pills again, found one, and then took it. “I think we need to leave.”

  “We can’t. Look out the window.”

  Ilsa got up from the bed and crossed to the window, pulling back the shade and taking a look outside.

  “I only see one…no wait…two of those things.”

  “It’s the ones you don’t see that get you. There’s a lot more of them out there than you can see up close to the house, trust me.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “I think we need to get what we can and head someplace safe. Before more of those things arrive.“

  “We can’t leave yet. I still have some work to finish.”

  “When can we leave?”

  “Not much longer. I promise. He may not be Agency, but now that the virus is out, it won’t take them long to figure out who did it. In short time, they’ll be here, and when they arrive, I have no intention of being here.”

  From outside the room, another voice called out.

  “Grandpa! I’m home!”

  “Excuse me!” Cooper turned and rushed out of the bedroom.

  Cooper came down the foyer stairs swiftly, ignoring his grandson completely and instead going directly up to the young man who accompanied him.

  “Are you Riley Williams?” Cooper asked directly to the young boy.

  The boy was clearly scared, but nodded yes to the question.

  “Riley Williams, son of Levi and April Williams of Loveland, Colorado?”

  “Yes, is my mom still here?” *Riley asked.

  “Sorry son, they were never here. This is a trap!” Cooper shoved a Taser against Riley’s neck and activated the device. The loud sound of electric snapping was momentarily eclipsed by the scream of shock, surprise, and pain that Riley emitted before collapsing to the ground unconscious. Cooper then turned to his grandson, Christopher, giving him a warm welcoming embrace.

  “Great work! You got him! Any trouble getting back to the farm?”

  “No problem at all, Grandpa. Everything went exactly as you said it would.”

  Cooper took out his pocket watch, making note of the time and then making some mental calculations.

  “How’s the old mine road, by the cemetery?”

  “It’s getting crowded, I saw quite a few clusters starting to follow the blood trail up the mountain before it started to rain.”

  “Any fast ones?”

  “No, the fast ones seem to be mostly hunting in town,” Christopher said, as he wiped the sweat from his forehead.

  “In the dark they’re nice and slow, but in the sun they go-go-go.”

  “I know, Grandpa. You don’t have to keep telling me. The slower ones are even slower at night, but they will speed up in the day as their bodies warm up in the sun. Like a cold-blooded reptile.”

  “What about the newly infected?”

  “Come on, Grandpa. I know it,” Christopher replied, annoyed with his Grandfather’s constant nagging that he rely on rote memorization. It was annoying and got on his nerves, but still, he had to admit, it did help. He might was well answer him. It was the only way to make him stop. “The newly- infected are always enraged. They are always dangerous. They are still living on some level, hunt in packs, and many can still use basic reasoning. But they can only have that speed and reasoning for a short period of time after their initial infection. Then they slow down, and well, die, but not really.”

  “Why?”

  “Because once they run out of initial energy and die, unless they are separated from their brain, they simply rise again. Only slower this time. And then the same rules apply as before. Don’t worry Grandpa, I studied all your notes. I am ready.”

  “Well, it looks like we might have a variable.”

  “Is everything ok?” Christopher looked concerned.

  “Yes, I have the situation under control now.” Cooper places his hand on Christopher's shoulder. “You’ve done me proud, boy.”

  “I’ve been waiting a long time for this.”

  “I know you have. We all have. Now, drag this piece of shit out to the barn. I’ll be right out after I take care of Ilsa upstairs. But for Christ’s sake, suit up, will you? I don’t want you taking any more chances than you have to now that we have him.”

  Cooper turned and headed back up the stairs as Christopher grabbed a roll of duct tape off of the foyer table and quickly wrapped Riley’s hands securely. Christopher waited until his grandfather was well beyond the landing on the second floor before he quietly opened the front door and began dragging the still unconscious Riley out to the barn. Christopher paid no attention to his grandfather’s request that he suit up, and instead took some level of pride in the fact that he was so exposed. Christopher idolized Che, and honestly at his core, he wished he had the courage to hunt naked the way Che did, but quite frankly lacked the self-confidence in his physique to do so.

  Back on the landing, Cooper stood outside the bedroom door and debated if he should knock or just walk right in. It was his house, after all. Still, hooker or not, she was a lady. He better knock.

  Cooper knocked on the door lightly and did not have to wait long.

  “I saw what you did to that boy.” Ilsa’s voice quivered through the door. “What are you going to do with him?”

  “I am not going to do anything with him,” Cooper replied. “My grandson, on the other hand, well, I better get out to the barn and make sure he doesn’t get carried away. We need the boy as bait. Nothing more.”

  “Bait for what?” Ilsa asked, unsure if she really wanted to know the answer.

  “It’s not like that. Trust me. I have to run out to the barn for a bit, but don’t worry. Those things can’t smell me through the chemical suit. Make yourself at home. There’s food in the kitchen if you’re hungry.”

  “Thank you.”

  Cooper hesitated for a moment, wanting to say more. Instead, he turned and headed down the stairs.

  …

  Ilsa knew she was going to have to move quickly. She shuddered as the image of the boy’s jerking body replayed in her mind.

  She took off her shoes and snuck down the stairs, careful to avoid the boards that creaked so reliably.

  At the bottom of the stairs she carefully peered into the kitchen. Cooper was just beginning to reassemble his plastic armor.

  She had time.

  It would take him awhile to suit up, and even longer to make his way to the barn with all those things out there. In fact, if she kept it short, she could kill two birds with one stone…

 
If she hurried.

  Quickly, Ilsa retreated up the stairs and back to the landing, but she did not head into the bedroom and instead quickened her pace as she headed to the door to the attic, slowly opening it, and carefully and quietly heading up into the darkness.

  The attic was filled with boxes and assorted memorabilia from many years of world travels and farm living. Several dress forms stood in one corner, and a small forest of plastic Christmas trees stood in another. In the middle of the attic was a large brick chimney that started in the basement and went up the center of the house and out the roof like a backbone.

  Mounted to the brick structure was a wire bed frame, and attached to that, a car battery. One terminal was currently disconnected, but it was clear the intention and reason for the device. Torture.

  Wired to the bed frame was the man she had seen chained to the fireplace grate earlier in the evening, a man she had hoped to never see again, but here he was, unconscious, or possibly even dead. For a moment, she allowed her emotions to get the best of her, and she rushed forward, gently caressing William’s face.

  “Oh, Billy. Look at you. What has he done?”

  William opened his eyes slowly.

  “Don’t call me Billy,” he mumbled gruffly.

  “Oh Billy, not tonight,” Ilsa said softly as she wiped some of the blood off of William’s face.

  “Especially tonight.” William’s tone was harsh. Cold. “Funny, after all these years, your voice hasn’t changed. I can still hear it.” William mocked her. “‘Oh Billy, not tonight’.”

  “Don’t Billy, please stop.”

  William pushed on, still mocking her voice; “‘Believe me, Billy. I love you.’”

  “Stop it! Please! I don’t understand why you can’t get over it.” Ilsa backed away from William.

  “Get over it? How long were we together?” William asked.

  “We were never together. We were undercover, on assignment. Fucking was just part of the job.” Ilsa’s tone took on an impatient tone. Clearly William was fine if he was already bringing up this shit.

  “You said you loved me.” The quiver in William’s lip was almost imperceptible, but Ilsa noticed, and almost felt sorry for him again. Almost.

  “Part of the job, Billy.”

  “But you said it off duty, too,” William quickly retorted.

  Flustered, Ilsa took another step backward. “It was a long time ago, Billy. I honestly don’t remember.”

  “Well, I remember. I remember every single time you told me that you loved me because it made my heart flutter. Every single time. But you know what? I mostly remember the last time you said it. When you left me in that hotel room to go get some smokes.”

  “I was called away on assignment,” Ilsa stated, all business now.

  “I searched for you for months.” William was on the verge of tears.

  “The mission was need-to-know.”

  “And you didn't think I needed to know?!” William half cried, half yelled at Ilsa.

  “You know the rules, Billy,” Ilsa quietly replied.

  “We never followed them before.”

  “Things change, Billy.”

  “That’s fine. You know what? That’s perfectly fine.” Clearly, it was not fine. “Let me just ask you this…when you fuck him, do you tell him that you love him, too?”

  “Grow up, Billy, he’s a target. The Agency assigned him to me.”

  “You chose the method.”

  “I most certainly did not choose the method. You really think I wanted to spend the last two years literally pumping him for information? Wind up pregnant in the process, ruining my chances at a promotion? Fuck you, Billy!” Ilsa was angry now, and it showed in her tone.

  “No thanks, I don’t fuck pregnant chicks.”

  Instead of enraging her more, Ilsa almost laughed at William’s charm. Fuck. Did she hate him or love him? Did it really matter?

  “I won’t be pregnant for long. It’s not like I’m keeping the thing.” Ilsa lit a cigarette to underline the point.

  “I was in this shithole bar trying to decide the best approach to use on him, when he suddenly just walks up to me. At first I was like, shit, he made me. But that’s impossible. We have no connection, which is why the Agency chose me. Before I could say anything to him, the son-of-a-bitch propositioned me. He thought I was a prostitute, so I just went with it.”

  “Well, playing a whore suits you.”

  “Are you ever going to grow up, William?”

  Ilsa pulled a compact out of her clutch and reapplied her lipstick, pursing her lips in the mirror contemplatively.

  “Are you going to help me get out of this?” William eventually asked, clearly swallowing his pride in doing so.

  “You need me to, Billy? Where’s your backup? Don’t you Agency people always travel in pairs? That’s what I’ve heard.” Ilsa laughed at her own joke, but William did not smile or answer her.

  “You know what I think, William? I don’t think you’re even here on official business. I think you’re here for his treasure. Using the Agency for your own personal and financial gain. Typical. And you have the nerve to question why I bailed on our relationship?” She took a long draw on her cigarette. “That’s the only thing that can explain you being here alone and me not knowing about it. I’m here on official business, Billy, for Christ sake. Are you doing this just to fuck with me? Or are you trying to get me killed? Fuck, you are such a child!”

  William smiled.

  “What the fuck are you smiling for?”

  “You just admitted we were together.”

  “You are fucking impossible,” Ilsa replied.

  “Am I? Let me ask you this. Why haven’t you called for backup yet?”

  “Who says I haven’t?”

  “Well, then let me out before they get here. Please.” William swallowed his pride again.

  “I will. But first, admit you are here for the treasure.”

  “I would, but that would be a lie, and I promised myself I would never lie to you again. Ever. No matter what. I am not here for the treasure.”

  Ilsa knelt in front of him.

  “Look at me when you say it.”

  William looked directly into her eyes. “I am not here for the treasure.”

  Ilsa looked at him for a moment, then got back on her feet.

  “You are lying. I could always spot your tell. You didn’t think I could, but you were wrong. You’re using all of this chaos outside as an opportunity to make your move on Cooper’s treasure in the confusion. Only, your luck holds true to form, and you stumble into the middle of an ongoing domestic terrorist operation being run by your ex-girlfriend and almost fuck the whole thing up. You are a real piece of work, Billy. A real fucking American original. If you will excuse me, I have to get back to work.”

  “Don’t think you fool me. I saw how you were looking at him.” William tried to get in the last word, but Ilsa stopped, halfway down the stairs and turned back to him.

  “Maybe those looks weren’t for him.”

  Ilsa continued down the stairs, closing the attic door behind her, and then began quickly heading down the hallway, stopping for a moment to look at herself in the hallway mirror and reapply another coat of lipstick.

  “Coop! Coop! Wait! Don’t go yet! I need to tell you something!” Ilsa yelled out to Cooper, smiling at herself in the mirror. One last kiss.

  Ilsa made it almost to the bottom of the steps before Cooper arrived fully dressed in a chemical suit, minus the hood, at the bottom of the stairs.

  “What is it? Is everything ok?” Cooper asked, concern on his voice.

  “It will be.” Ilsa grabbed Cooper by the side of his head and kissed him, hard.

  It tingled. But then again, kissing Ilsa always made Cooper tingle.

  No wait, it really tingled.

  Fuck.

  Poison.

  The last thing Cooper saw was Ilsa smiling as she took a wet-wipe from her purse and carefully wiped the po
ison lipstick off her lips.

  The fog was rolling in.

  It occurred to him for just a moment that this was definitely not part of his plan. Betrayed.

  But then, he suspected that all along, didn’t he?

  His last thought was one of satisfaction, knowing that Christopher would finish things in the barn.

  Then nothing.

  The lightning flashed, illuminating the exterior of the barn momentarily before plunging it back into the darkness of the night. Inside, Christopher counted the seconds in his head until he heard the thunder so he could estimate the location of the storm.

  Three seconds.

  The storm was getting closer.

  He looked up at Riley, who was struggling to free himself to no avail. Upon arrival in the barn, Christopher had bound Riley’s hands with rope, then using the block and tackle for the straw bales, pulled Riley to a vertical position where he now hung suspended a few inches off the ground. The rope was beginning to cut into Riley’s wrists, and the small trickle of blood brought Christopher back into the moment. He began to search Riley’s pockets, finding only a small amount of cash, a marijuana pipe, some car keys, and a few gum wrappers.

  Christopher examined the pipe for a brief moment, then placed it carefully into his own pocket, discarding the cash, car keys, and gum wrappers onto the dirt floor of the barn. Riley was scared, and through his gag, it was easy to tell that he was begging to be let go.

  Christopher slapped Riley hard, causing him to hit his head against the wooden post he hung from.

  “I am not afraid of you. I don’t see why everyone else is.” Christopher said, looking directly into Riley’s eyes. Christopher pressed his hand against Riley’s chest, feeling his heart beat. It was beating fast, like an animal in a trap, and that, too, pleased Christopher.

  The knock at the barn door shook dust from the rafters and made Christopher jump just slightly.

  It was time.

  It was time to finish this.

  Christopher ran to the barn door and pulled on the latch, allowing the massive wooden door to swing open, and Che entered the barn. Christopher closed the barn door behind him, then took a good look at his old friend.