5 Years After
Page 31
Late in the evening, sitting at the colonial desk in his study with a single overhead lamp burning, he once again weighed the envelope in his hands before tearing it open slowly. A single sheet of paper and a DVD were the contents. He reached for his bourbon and water and sipped it slowly. The DVD was the most curious of all. He decided its explanation lay in the letter. Leaning back in his work chair, he folded open the paper and began to digest the contents.
Mayor Patrick:
I do hope this letter finds you well and at peace.
I wish to thank you for the more than generous contribution to my church. The money will be used to feed and aid children who have lost parents in this current storm we are weathering. We will also be using your kind donation to fund discussion groups for those of our soldiers and civilians suffering from mental disorders and addictions brought on by this crisis. Should you have any projects you wish to see your donation go to please let me know.
Please allow me to bring some information to you I came across while in Louisville. The information is on the DVD.
I do wish you peace and contentment in this difficult time and again, my thanks.
Yours Respectfully
Isaiah Deacon
He regarded the DVD in his hand. He turned slowly in his chair and walked over to the bookshelf. A twenty-inch flat screen resided between the dusty law books and copies of American classics. He rested the case on an old copy of Huckleberry Finn as he slipped the DVD in the machine.
The mayor fumbled with the controls and found the right channel. He returned to and leaned back in his chair. On the screen, a darkened hallway lit by video flashlight. They were descending a staircase of concrete, iron railings and steel doors. A rhythm filled the background, like the sound those bass bins make in some kids’ car when they drive by with the stereo cranked.
“This is Audubon Hospital. We are approaching the morgue.” It was the Deacon’s voice, off camera. The mayor leaned forward. What the hell was this? “We have talked about the dead starving to death in a few years and then we will return to the cities.”
“The bodies in these refrigerators have been deceased for over five years with no means of sustenance.” The Deacon’s voice continued. “They should be the first to be weakening and starving.”
“Let’s see how they’re doing….”
The Deacon’s hand reached out and opened the steel door. It was clearly a heavy fire variety. As the door opened wide and then wider the rhythm became clearer, louder. It looked like a room filled with stainless steel filing cabinets. The doors filled every space on the two walls in the video.
They were all shaking, reverberating from blows on the inside. Some doors were shaking so hard the mayor swore they would burst open at any moment. He tried counting the cabinets. No, that was senseless. He just watched as they continued to fight to be free so they could feed on the thing they sensed was on the other side, the thing that made them so very hungry. Over five years and they were still like this. The mayor suddenly felt a shiver bolt up his spine. How long was this going to last? He was dumbfounded by the answer. He rewound the DVD time and time again into the night. Watching them pounding on the doors.
Pounding on the doors
Pounding on the doors
Pounding on the doors
Pounding on the doors