“We get to the stairwell as quick as possible, don’t stop for anything. I don’t have to tell y’all to stay on guard. Derrick, we’re not looking for Sam. If you want to do that, you tell me right now so that I don’t risk my and Brian’s life by chasing after you.”
“I know it’s going to take some time for me to earn your trust back. I promise you I won’t leave your side again,” he says while staring me in my eyes. I swallow and nod my head, turning away before I can let my emotions get the best of me. I count down from three on my hand before opening the door.
I’m met with complete darkness.
“What the fuck?” I exclaim quietly, wondering what the hell is going on. Brian and Derrick rush out, both of them flanking me on either side. Their facial expressions show me that they’re as perplexed by this as I am.
“Maybe they went to bed?” Brian asks, though his tone says that he doesn’t really believe that.
“Even if they did, they wouldn’t leave us completely unguarded. And what’s with the lights being turned off?” Derrick asks.
“We don’t have time to sit around and figure this out, let’s go.” I stealthily walk towards the stairwell we came out of earlier. I know it’s a risk, going the same way Sam knows we entered from, but right now we don’t have the luxury of finding another one.
We get to the door and I stop dead in my tracks as I notice that there is a note taped to the door. I can’t make out what it says, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t there earlier. I doubt it’s a maintenance notice. I reach for my flashlight, tucking it under my shirt to filter the light without having to release my hold on my gun.
“I see you couldn’t wait for The Game to begin. I knew you would try to escape. I could kill you three, right here and right now, but where’s the fun in that? You’re free to leave the building, I won’t detain you any longer. But for the sake of you and your friends, I’d watch my back at every corner.
Love, Alex”
“What does that mean?” Brian mutters, having read the note over my shoulder.
“It means he’s toying with us. They’re waiting to ambush us at any moment. We could open this door and get shot in the head immediately, or we’ll make it down a couple of flights before we’re ambushed. One wrong move and we’re dead,” I reply, heart starting to break as the reality of this situation starts to creep in. I grab the note and stuff it in my back pocket.
“So, what do you want to do? They could be watching us right now. We’re sitting ducks,” Brian points out helpfully.
“Let’s try the elevators. Maybe they didn’t cut the power in the whole building and just turned off the lights? If they didn’t, that would be the safer and quicker way out.” Derrick responds.
“If it's the safest and quickest, I doubt they'll have it up and running for us. Where’s the fun in that? He can’t enjoy the game if we use shortcuts,” I reply.
“We don’t have many options right now, Kiani. The stairs are pretty much a death sentence for us. It’s dark in there as well, they could be hiding on the steps, ready to take us out.”
“Fine, it won’t hurt to look.” We slowly walk further down the hallway, stopping only when we were at the elevator doors. Our hope of taking them slowly dies as we notice that there was another note.
“You couldn’t possibly think that it would be that easy, did you? I’ll help you out a little bit, for old time’s sake. There are four stairwells in this building, all at opposite ends of one another. I have men stationed in two of them. The rest are waiting in the halls to play. Will you disappoint them? Will you make them come and find you? Time is ticking, my dear.”
“Why is he only singling me out? He has Sam, I hope that’s enough for him,” I say, pretty disgusted at the thought of Alex having any kind of feelings towards me other than hate. I add this note to my ever-growing collection.
“I think he’s just trying to get in your head. He’s making it seem like our lives are in your hands, even though we’re all making these decisions together. It’s another tactic in The Game he’s playing,” Derrick says. His words are reassuring and terrifying at the same time.
“Do you think we should trust him?” I ask.
“Even if we do decide that his words are false, we would still have to gamble with which exit we chose to take. Either way, we’re in the same position we were in before his cryptic notes,” Brian responds.
“If I were him, I’d place men in all four of them. We’d be easier to kill if we thought we chose the right stairwell. Imagine our surprise if we’re halfway down and then we’re attacked. No, it doesn’t matter which one we pick, we’ll be fighting,” I state.
“Then let’s go down the one nearest to us. No need to walk around searching for the other ones,” Derrick says as he walks back towards the stairwell we found the original note on.
“Wait!” Brian whisper shouts. “Wouldn’t he expect us to go down this first one? It’s too obvious! We should look for the next one and go down there.”
“We’ll give ourselves a migraine if we sit here and try to think like his sadistic ass. Either way there will be Bandits waiting for us,” Derrick argues.
“That’s true, but we shouldn’t be so predictable. It would be smarter if we found another way!”
I can tell that Brian isn’t about to back down and we definitely don’t have time for those two to get back into another fight. “Don’t forget what the first note said. ‘But for the sake of you and your friends, I’d watch my back at every corner.’ We can’t just go walking around expecting not to get into a fight. If we turn that corner, we could get gunned down instantly.” I say.
“And if we go down that very obvious stairwell, we could be gunned down instantly. Either way Kiani, I would rather give myself a fighting chance.” He stares at me, pleading for me to take his side. I take a deep breath, knowing that he has a point and also knowing that Derrick is going to object. I look at Derrick and let him know with my eyes that we’re going with Brian’s plan. His jaw clenches and unclenches before he nods his head.
“Lead the way,” Derrick says to Brian.
23
Kiani
My ears begin to ring as I strain them to detect even the slightest of disturbances. Brian takes the lead, even though I think Derrick chose him to be the spear head because he wanted him to take the first bullet. Brian places his back against the wall when we reach the first corner. I copy his movements, holding my breath to see if I hear anything.
I motion towards my flashlight, signaling that it would be best to use it now. Rather lose the element of surprise than to be surprised ourselves. He nodded his head, taking out his own flashlight. He flicks on the light and immediately turn the corner. I didn’t expect him to jump into it so quickly. I move after him, gun held up.
The hallway is completely empty.
My heart doesn’t stop beating ferociously in my chest, even though it seems that we’ll be able to live another five minutes. Derrick walks up beside me, glancing around with his eyebrows pulled together. Brian signal for us to keep moving. His strides gain more confidence the further we get towards the next stairwell. Oh look, another fucking note.
“You can’t go back from the way you came. Open this door and let’s continue the game.”
I immediately turn around, noticing for the first time that there is light coming from the hallway that we just left. I swear, realizing that we may have just made the right choice. Those Bandits could have been hiding in that first stairwell. We can either go down this one or keep walking to look for the next. Derrick and Brian follow my gaze, both of their faces scrunching up with the realization that there is someone occupying the area that we just left.
I point towards the door and then point towards the hallway. Asking whether or not they want to take this exit or keep on going. Derrick points towards the stairwell and Brian does the same. Ok then. We’re doing this. I point at my flashlight again, doing a thumbs up or a thumbs down. I don’t know why I’m
asking for confirmation every step of the way. Strategy is what I’m good at. I love strategy games and I was a beast at chess. I guess I let his notes get the best of me.
Derrick nods at the flashlight. I guess the same thing goes for the stairwell. We’d rather lose the element of surprise than to be surprised. I grab the handle of the door, but Derrick stops me from opening it. He pulls me beside him and gestures for Brian to open it. I want to protest, but it would be stupid for us to get into it at this time.
Brian opens the door, flashlight held over his gun, both arms held up. We creep into the stairwell, our footsteps echoing throughout the area. I want to take the lead on this, but it’ll hurt us more than help us if I try to shove my way to the front. I just don’t like the thought of Brian being used as a sacrifice.
He swings his flashlight around the edge before turning to go down the next flight of steps. With every step we take, my heart feels as though it’ll explode. I empty my mind, trying to just focus on the task at hand. Kill them before they can kill us.
I hear a shuffle as we began to round the next corner. I quickly pull Brian back by his shirt and dash past him. I turn the corner, firing off three quick shots into the dimness. The noise in the small space was painful. One shot hit the wall, causing sparks to bounce off of it. But two of the shots found their targets; one in the throat and the other in the head. My pulse didn’t slow down until I crept down the stairs and saw that it was just those two sitting waiting to ambush us.
My ears are still ringing when I turn around to make sure that the bullet that ricocheted off the wall didn’t hit any of my boys. Besides the shocked look on Brian’s face, they both look perfectly ok. I let out a deep breath, absently tugging at the end of my braid. How did Brian not hear them? Or maybe my heightened state of anxiety made me think I heard them, and I just got lucky? I shoot him a look, imploring with my eyes for him to tell me exactly how he didn’t hear them. His face hardens as he understands the accusation in my face. He leans in so that he’s so close to my ear that I can feel his lips brush against it.
“I knew they were there. I heard them move just like you did. Next time trust me to take care of it or you’ll get yourself killed.” I couldn’t ignore the amount of steel and frustration that laced his words. I realized that me pushing him out of the way may have come across as me not trusting him to protect us. I just couldn’t stomach the thought of him getting sprayed with a bunch of bullets; especially if I could prevent it. I swallow the saliva that has built up in my mouth as he spoke and nodded my head. I took a step back so that he can resume his position as the spearhead of our group. I reach out quickly, before I can lose my nerve, and I grab for his wrist. I would have grabbed his hand, but he still had the flashlight in it. I gave his wrist a quick squeeze, saying sorry without risking being overhead. He turns his head and meets my eyes, the tightness around his eyes loosening up as he offers me the barest of smiles. I exhale, taking that as a sign of me being forgiven.
We make it down another five flights before we come against another obstacle. This one in the form of a note. At this rate, I’ll have no empty pockets to keep putting them in. I know, you’re probably thinking why would I save the notes to begin with. I want to show Christine and them the things we had to go through to get out of here. Thinking of us laughing over these notes, after we all made it back safely, brings me a sense of peace and unfounded confidence. It gives me a short-term goal to work towards; getting them these notes.
“I see you easily disposed of my men, that’s such a shame. Just six more flights and you’ll win the game. I don’t like to lose, so that just can’t be. Please exit this door to face your destiny. If you decide to keep going, that’ll be a damn shame. I doubt Sam would appreciate a bullet in her brain.
Love, Alex”
“What the hell?” Brian exclaims. “Did he turn into the black Dr. Seuss with each note?”
I try not to laugh at his joke, even though I’ve been thinking the same damn thing. What’s up with all of the rhyming? I guess it does make the notes even more cryptic. And it wouldn’t be too much fun if he just wrote any boring ol’ note. I put the note in my pocket with the others and turn to go down the stairs. He wouldn’t hurt Sam and she’s no longer our problem. She’s proven that already.
“Ki…,” Derrick began.
I turn around as quick as I can, nearly tearing my ankle apart with how fast I pivoted. I knew what he was planning. I knew I couldn’t trust what he had to say earlier when he promised not to go for Sam. I knew it was going to take time for us to build our trust back to where it used to be, but I didn’t think he was going to mess up this damn fast.
I march back up the few steps I just took, stopping when I’m pretty much chest to chest with him. “Derrick, don’t,” I grind out. He can’t keep fucking doing this!
“He said he’d hurt Sam! We can’t just leave her!”
“Are you dense?! I’ve never known you to be this fucking dumb! She’s pregnant with his Bandit spawn. Do you really think he’d kill her?!”
“We can’t be too sure, Kiani!”
“You need to stop thinking with your fickle ass heart and start thinking with your head,” I say. “You do this, and you might as well consider me and the family dead to you. I will not continue to let them fall second to your wants.”
I hold my breath, heart breaking at the thought that he was going to be an idiot and go off for Sam again. I notice the moment that he made his decision. He brushes past me and Brian and starts to descend the stairs. Brian and I exchange a look, not entirely trusting Derrick at this point for him to lead us to safety. It’s not that we think that he’s working with the Bandits, but he clearly isn’t thinking straight. A mind full of that much indecision wouldn’t be that focused. We shrug our shoulders at the same time, causing us to have another shared moment.
We’re three flights away from being on the ground floor when we’re caught by surprise. Two more Bandits were waiting for us on the third floor. Derrick had just passed the door when it burst open. I reacted quickly, but not quick enough. I fired off two shots when I felt fire shoot across my ribs. I gasp, falling to the side and sliding to sit on the floor. Brian finishes off the Bandits before he rushes over to me. I press my hand to my side, trying not to cry out in pain. Derrick runs back up the steps, panic seeping into his eyes as he takes in my state.
“Fuck!” he exclaims. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”
“That doesn’t help, bro,” Brian says, voice strained more than I’ve ever heard it before.
“I’ve been shot,” I say helpfully. “Not grazed, shot.” I know I’m not in shock because I can feel the pain acutely. My blood is pumping out of me like lava with every beat of my stressed-out heart. I take off my small bag, handing it over to Brian. He gives me a questioning look before rifling through it and finding the first aid kit I packed. It wasn’t a simple one. This one had stuff that people fighting for their lives would need. A suture kit, gauze pads, antibiotic ointments, and numbing cream. I put band-aids and stuff like that in there too. My bag was only big enough to carry that and our water bottles.
I lift my shirt up so that they can see my side. Their sharp intake of breath lets me know that it looks just as bad as it feels. Brian takes out the numbing cream and spread it around the wound after wiping it down with an alcohol pad. I grip Derrick’s hand as if he was the only thing keeping me here.
“How long does it take for the numbing cream to kick in?” Brian asks.
“It doesn’t matter. We don’t have the time to sit here and wait for it not to hurt. How deep is the bullet?” I ask.
Brian flashes his flashlight directly on my wound, leaning closer so that he can get a better look. “Thankfully, you seemed to have turned a little so it’s not that deep. I can barely see the butt of the bullet, but I can get it.”
“There are long tweezers in there. I guess I knew I was going to get shot, or one of you,” I try to laugh but it only caused me to wince in pain. Brian takes
out the tweezers and takes a deep breath. I don’t know why he’s looking as if he was the one about to get gutted like a fish. He glances at me and I nod my head, trying to give him the courage to take this damn bullet out of me.
“Derrick, I need for you to hold the flashlight over the wound so that I can use both of my hands and see as well.”
Derrick leans forward to kiss me on my forehead before moving to kneel beside Brian. Brian gently guides me so that I can lay down on my side. The small movement was so painful, I tried so hard to swallow the groans but some managed to slip out. “I’m so sorry Kiani,” Brian mutters.
“You’re fine, just hurry up.” I try to take my mind off of what’s happening by focusing on Derrick. He moved so that he was kneeling right by my head, still able to assist Brian out. I press my forehead into his knees, hoping that if things get too bad, he won’t mind if I use him. I feel Brian’s strong fingers as he firmly presses into my side. I thought that pain was bad, but it doesn’t have anything on the feeling of them tweezers entering my flesh.
I bite Derrick’s knee as the pain blazed through my side. I can’t scream out or they’ll know where we are. I appreciate Brian for keeping a leveled head even though I’m acting like I’m dying. He continues on with his task, guiding the tweezers deeper into my wounds until he came in contact with the bullet. That pain was different from the others, too, as though the bullet was holding on to my muscles for dear life.
“Dammit, Brian, hurry up!” Derrick mutters.
“Don’t rush him, it might hurt more,” I whisper, noticing for the first time that I’m growing weaker with the blood loss. “On the other hand, Brian, hurry up. I’m losing too much blood.”
Kiani’s Journey- Mayhem Page 17