The Sands of Borrowed Time

by Jeffry Winters

  “Sleep on it! We will get swallowed alive out there too!” Laren hastily replied with anger in her face. “I don’t think I'll be getting much sleep anytime soon.” There was a long strained silence as all three looked out into the swirling dusty air, knowing their fates were uncertain at best, if not already sealed.

  Bag your Man

  “Now!” Kyla shouted from the ridge, the man suddenly looking up in shock to see a large, black net fall over his head and body. Kyla jumped down onto his back, pulling a piece of rope tight around his neck. She could hear his mouth squelch as she pulled the rope even tighter, forcing him to stumble to his knees.

  “Stay down my stinky, little bandit or I will pull this rope so fucking hard your neck will snap!” Kyla shouted with brutal conviction as he struggled and whined in the net underneath her. Then, quickly, Demelza came from behind him as Hayley scuttled from the front. Kyla held the guys neck firm in the rope, arms outstretched, one holding his skull while the other holding the rope firmly stretched behind him. She pulled back hard, with one knee pointing into his back. The man was on the verge of choking as Hayley tied his arms together and Demelza likewise his legs.

  “Fucking job well done, girls!” Kyla shouted as she released the rope from around the man’s neck, rolling away almost breathless herself, looking across to their new captive struggling frantically on the ground as he attempted to free his bound limbs, coughing up blood all over himself.

  “Yes, we did it!” Hayley exclaimed, giving Demelza a high five, then hopping down to kiss Kyla.

  “What the fuck?” the man uttered as blood frothed around his mouth. “What the fuck is this?” he asked as he desperately squirmed beneath the net, looking across at the girls bewildered.

  “Hi,” Kyla said as she got back to her feet, waving at the bandit, Demelza and Hayley smirking.

  “Who the fuck are you lot!” the man angrily asked as he kneeled helplessly under the net. The girls stared at his confused, bloody face silently for a while, and then Kyla spoke, her face quivering with joyful ticks in the hot, dusty air.

  “We’re just like you, just getting along, day by day.”

  “What?” the man asked perplexed.

  “Just out making a damned living, our God born right,” she continued, her eyes looking excited from the exhilaration of it all.

  “What do you want?” the man asked, looking more focused. “You haven’t done this to keep me as your little pet, I guess?” he continued, licking blood from around his lips.

  “You guessed right my friend,” Kyla replied, walking closer to him as a show of confidence.

  “Really! That doesn’t surprise me, girl,” he snapped, looking at all three in turn. “Who you calling bandit anyway? You think I’m like those daft cunts out there; those drunken pricks,” he continued frowning. The three girls looked at each other bemused.

  Hayley said, “You look like a bandit.”

  “Oh really, and what does that mean,” he said in a derisive tone. “’Cause I’m a man wearing a leather jacket. Oh fuck off, come on.”

  Demelza cut to the chase, “What’s in the van?” picking at her broken tooth.

  “In the van? In the fucking van! You bagged me so that you can ask me what’s in the van.”

  Demelza shrugged, “Well, yes, we did, so what’s in there my big friend.”

  “What? Who the fuck are you girls; the three fucking musketeers. There’s fuck all in the van, that’s why I’m out here, as you rightly say, exercising my God born right to make a fucking living, for what it’s worth.” Hayley ran up to the van to check.

  The man shouted to her, “If you find anything, let me know, could do with some little trinkets to make myself a little prettier!” Hayley opened the rear doors and jumped inside. “Watch out, there’s a horde of evil maggot bandits in there, ha!” He began to laugh, looking across at Demelza’s and Kyla’s confused faces as Hayley pottered around in the back of his van. “What you expecting to find; gold, money, drugs? he continued. “I don’t even have a stupid fucking gun! Nothing is worth nicking anymore you dumb fuck girls unless you can fucking eat it.”

  “Were not fucking dumb ‘cause we’re girls,” Demelza said.

  “Well, you don’t impress me much, that’s for sure.” Hayley walked back despondently, shaking her head. “He has less than us.”

  “What about the van?” We can take the van,” Kyla said. “It would be easier to travel in than the land ship?”

  “Sure would,” Demelza added.

  Hayley nodded, “And him?”

  “Him? What about him?” Demelza asked, shrugging her shoulders.

  “Where there are winners there are losers,” Kyla said.

  “Obviously, I don’t have a fucking say in this, in my van?” the man protested.

  “Well no, you’re our prisoner, are you not?” Kyla said. “The van is now ours.”

  “Ha! Oh really, and how you going to start the fucking thing?”

  “With your keys,” Kyla said.

  “It’s a bit more complicated than that, girl!”

  “How complicated?”

  “Well, you’re smart girls, as she fucking said, the blonde one over there, looking all confused and dippy. I will let you work it out. I’m starting to like living under this net, all tied up anyway!” The three girls looked at each other, unsure what to do. “Do you know why I’m out here, how long that van has been sitting there?”

  “We know how long you’ve been here, we watched you drive up the ridge,” Hayley replied, starting to feel unsure where this was leading.

  “Yes, and fucking when?”

  “A few days ago?”

  “Yes, a few days ago, and have you seen me leave, use the van in the meantime.” The girls shook their heads, looking worried.

  “For fuck sake, young Einstein’s, work it out, come on!” The man looked at the ground out of breath, then looked across at the three girls, shaking his head before continuing, “The van is fucked! Buggered! There’s no gas for starters, and then the engine’s knackered!” He looked across at Kyla, pulling a strained smile, “Job well done, turquoise!”

  “You think he’s bluffing?” Kyla whispered embarrassed.

  “Don’t think so,” Demelza whispered back, Hayley rolling her eyes and sighing.

  “For fuck sake!” Kyla snorted under her breath. “What a fucking waste of time, and such a perfect catch too!”

  Hayley bit her lip, looking across at the man tied under the net, “What shall we do with him?”

  “Well, untie me for starters, for Christ’s sake! I have no weapons and nothing for you to take!” The three girls stared at each other before Kyla walked across, knife in hand, cutting the ropes binding the man’s arms and legs.

  “Thank you so very much, you’re so fucking kind,” he said as he lifted the net off himself. The three girls stepped back a little, unsure what he would do. Demelza gave Kyla a stern look as if to ask was releasing him a good idea.

  “Don’t you three little chickens look a bit cuckoo,” the man said, and smiled. “Daniel, my name is Daniel,” he continued as he took a swig of water from his hip flask, offering it to the girls. All three shook their heads as they watched his blood drenched mouth paint the lip of his flask a dark red.

  “And your names?” he asked. “Everyone has gone shy all of a sudden after the initial introductions,” holding up his hip flask as if to say cheers. Hayley looked nervously across at the guy and was just about to utter something when he pointed at Kyla.

  “You, the vicious blonde one, your name please?”

  “Kyla,” she responded timidly, hiding her face towards the ground aware of her nerves, “and these are my friends, Demelza and Hayley,” pointing to each in turn.

  “Cool, now that the introductions are out of the way, what was that all about? What were you hoping to gain?”

  “We heard the bandits talking one night,” Kyla said. “They spoke of a place; a place where it rains and snows, where the g
rass is green, where there’s life, as it was before.”

  “The bandits talk shit; they drink, and then talk bollocks.”

  “We know,” Hayley said, “but this was different. They were making plans, careful plans, writing things, making drawings. This wasn’t drunken talk.”

  “And me, my van? What have I and the van got to do with their careful plans?”

  “As we said earlier, you, looking like a bandit...”

  “…might have those plans stashed away somewhere.” Daniel broke in, finishing Hayley’s sentence.

  “Not just plans, but maps, the location of this wonderful place,” Kyla added, waving her hands in frustration. “A place, like it was before. We caught you not for gold, nor silver, not even for food and water, but for life, a chance for life.”

  “At the cost of my life, it seems?” Daniel offered to their plight. The three girls looked around with guilty faces.

  “Its tough out there. How do we know the good from the bad?” Kyla asked tearfully. “We’re at our wits ends. I don’t want to turn into a demon. I just want a decent life. I don’t want to fight it every day.”

  Daniel looked across at the girls, “You all look like you’ve been dragged through the sand by your hair. You actually believe this place exists?”

  “Yes, it has to! Otherwise, we're fucked!” Kyla exclaimed, her lips quivering. “I can’t take much more. This isn’t fun anymore,” she trailed off as she sat on the floor looking defeated, her eyes sullen as she ran her fingers through the hot sand. Daniel looked sad. He shrugged his shoulders.

  “Life is life, wherever it is,” he muttered. “This place, if it exists, how far away, do you have an idea?”

  “Several days by car,” Demelza said, Kyla looking up hopefully towards Daniel.

  “That’s it, Kyla, never give up hope, he responded to her glance. This place must be far up north,” Daniel pondered aloud.

  “Why North?” Kyla asked, her eyes brightening.

  “Because the Sun causes the hot winds to blow from the South. No one in their right minds would go south. And the mention of snow, must mean the North, surely?”

  “All we need is a car?” Kyla said. “We have a land ship, but it’s so slow. I fear we will never make it.”

  “These bandits you talk of, they have vehicles as you mention, would it be too daring to try again, what you did today. Think of me, today, as your trial run, which may I say was a resounding success.” Kyla smiled shyly with pride, her face lighting up at the idea.

  “I guess you have all the details planned out, as you did today. All you need to do is get the right man, this time, a motor vehicle that actually works, and everyone is fit to go,” Daniel advised with a positive smile. The three girls laughed nervously.

  “The only problem being, getting one alone,” Hayley said, “more often than not they roam in gangs. We saw you as an opportunity, rather than something we planned.”

  “Then we will bide our time,” Daniel said, “watch their movements and wait for the right moment.” They all looked at each other as if in agreement, except for Kyla.

  “Time,” Kyla said, “is something we don't have. We have to keep moving.”

  Consumed

  Callee found it a struggle to stand, let alone walk through the dust ladened hurricane.

  I feel so weak. I don’t know how much longer I can last, she thought as Laren held her one arm and Jeff the other, all three bracing each other, struggling onwards, the sand blasting hard across their faces, the dry air screaming around them like a frenzied spirit. So thirsty, so tired, she thought as she stumbled forward with her eyes closed, her muscles aching. I feel awful, this dizziness, this blinding headache; the pain is spreading throughout my whole body, she continued in anguish. She wanted to tell the others to stop and rest awhile, but there was no hope either way.

  “Dammed if you do, and damned if you don’t,” she slurred under the sound of the whistling wind. She staggered forward, fell to her knees and got dragged back up with the aid of Jeff and Callee, all three trying desperately to keep going. The day got darker as the storm got stronger. “Can’t breathe,” Callee gasped, not hearing herself above the swirling wind. Laren looked across at her, only seeing despair in her face.

  See looks like a living ghost, Laren thought. Callee felt the same looking at Laren, her usual jolly face was inanimate, dead. What had brought them to this; a star? Laren asked. “A star exploding into the galaxy, spreading stardust which is meant to create life? In order to create, you must first destroy,” Laren continued out loud, no one hearing. She had heard that phrase somewhere. It had resonated with her, and now she could see it working its peculiar magic. Wipe the slate clean, squish all the slugs and start again, she continued to ponder, brutal, indiscriminate, but necessary. But why take down the good guys also? Why take so long to create something good, then destroy it on a whim? It just doesn’t make sense. It doesn't seem natural for God’s sake! Callee could feel Laren’s grip weaken, Jeff trying to urge them both on, setting the pace a footstep ahead, pulling at Callee’s arm.

  “We have to keep moving?” Jeff shouted, shunting them forward. “We have to try!” Callee closed her eyes, the lashings of dust across her face turning her skin numb; the colours, the patterns dancing before her eyelids getting intense. The noise of the howling wind felt distant as her mind struggled to focus on the grim reality surrounding them.

  “We have to keep going!” Jeff shouted again. “Let’s keep moving!”

  “I have to rest,” Callee demanded anxiously as she fell to her knees, watching Jeff’s stricken face. “Just for a few minutes. I just need a few minutes,” she continued, looking pleadingly into Jeff’s eyes.

  “Of course, of course you can, Callee,” Laren said. “We all need to rest for a bit,” Laren continued as she knelt down next to her, lifting up her face in the palm of her hands.

  “Don’t give up on us,” Laren cried, tapping Callee’s face gently.

  “Go, go on ahead, I’ll catch you up,” Callee replied with unfocused eyes.

  “No! No! Just rest a bit! You’ll get your strength back.” Lauren replied crying, hugging her, not wanting to let her go. “You’ll feel better in a minute.” Jeff looked down at them both kneeling in the sand, feeling helpless. What could he do?

  Callee looked up at Jeff, tears rolling down her cheeks, her voice pleading with him, “You have to go, Jeff, while you still have a chance.” She ushered him onwards. “Go…please go while you still have strength left,” her voice sounding dry and tired, the colour in her eyes and skin draining away. “You deserve a chance,” she finally said before closing her eyes, the tension in her face dissipating until she looked like a pale, sleeping doll, held up by Laren’s shaking arms.

  She’s a ghost, Jeff thought in his tired, delirious state. They’re both ghosts. He began to panic, turning from the girls, running, stumbling through the sand. He fell, looking over his shoulder as he got back to his knees. There was no-one, the girls had gone, just the dark, sandy air swirling around him.

  Ghosts, he thought as he deliriously continued northwards.

  Bracelet on the Blanket

  “Down the hatches,” Cain said as he slammed his bottle of brew into Carla’s bottle, spilling beer over her legs, his manic and blue eyes burning deep into hers, his tough gaze hard to break from.

  “I do believe these are the last of our outstanding brew,” he said matter of factly as he put his nose to the open bottle top, closing his eyes as he savoured its bittersweet smell.

  Carla stood up to wipe the mess from her skirt, “That’s a relief then, maybe we can do a nice wine next time, something that doesn’t make your bowels explode, there are enough problems without you gassing half the planet.”

  “Wine!” Cain broke into a rapturous laugh. “Wine! Fucking wine! What the fuck with? Don’t see many award winning vineyards around here, do you?” Carla sat back down in a huff.

  “Would be so nice, though, wouldn't it, a n
ice glass of fruity, red wine,” she said dreamily with a broken smile. “With some red meat, sitting out on a patio in the evening summer Sun.”

  “Uh, what the fuck are you like, red wine on a patio,” he said shaking his head. “You need to wake up girl, there will be no red meat and wines on summer patios for us anymore.”

  “I know, but a girl has to dream, doesn’t she?”

  “Dream on babe, you’ll only be tormenting yourself. Dream on.” He took another swig of beer, beads of sweat on his forehead catching the sand from the breeze.

  Carla looked across at him as he swiftly finished off the bottle with a satisfying belch before tossing it across the plains, watching it bounce across the hard, dry ground and out of sight into the brown, dusty haze.

  “You enjoy all this shit don’t you?” Carla said, looking at him sternly. “You enjoy this misery, this fucked up world, and it’s fucked up people. To you it's like a game, a challenge perhaps, to see what a big man you are.” Cain looked across at her with a sarcastic, sweet smile, the furrows of his tanned brow wrinkling.

  “This, my dear girl, is what life is all about,” he said softly. “This is as real as it gets,” pointing his finger towards her. “You think that cosy life you had before was real; waking up every day in your pretty, little, brick cage, working day after day for a prick you didn’t give a fuck about, while the rich rested in their mansions all day long, spending your wages on shit, then more shit, thinking a holiday was a well-deserved treat because you had been working so… damned… hard.”

  “I must say, I,” she paused and gave out a forced, sarcastic laugh, “I didn’t quite see it that way.”

  Cain quickly broke in, “That’s because like every other dimwit you were blind to what was really going on, what the truth was, like lambs to the slaughter.”

  “And what was the truth, Professor?”