Judas

by Caleb Meeks

  Cadman look over at Newman, silently asking if he had any questions. “What’s his name?”

  “I’m sorry?” The doctor asked.

  “Her son, what’s his name?”

  “Oh, my apologies. His name is Judas.”

  “If I could ask, do you think this son she has so many issues with is real?” Newman asked.

  “Honestly, yes. It sounds crazy, but to have such a visceral reaction like she does, it almost has to be a real person.”

  “Thank you.” Newman said, trying not to look at Cadman. “Ready?” He asked Cadman.

  “Yeah, let’s go.” The doctor nodded, and led them out of the room. He led them through the facility, and stopped once they reached a room. It was closed, but it seemed to be a confinement room.

  “We stopped letting her out with everyone else because she was getting aggressive with other patients. You guys ready?”

  “Yeah.” Cadman said. “You take lead, Matt.”

  “You sure?” He asked.

  “Positive.” Cadman replied. Newman nodded. The doctor opened the door, and they walked in. Newman stepped to the front of them.

  “Mrs. Williams? My name is Matthew, I’m with the police. Is it alright if we ask you a couple questions?”

  The woman, who was sitting in a chair in the back of the room, looked up. She seemed to be fairly normal looking. A smile cracked across her face. “Of course, and please, call me Dara. Mrs. Williams is my mother.” She walked over and took a seat at the desk in the room. Matthew and Leo subtly looked each other in the eyes, shocked by the woman’s surprisingly normal disposition. They stepped up and took a seat just opposite her. “I’ve never had the police want to talk to me before. It’s exciting. What can I do for you gentlemen?” She asked.

  “Well, I was wondering if you could tell us a little bit about your son.” Newman asked, shakily. Both men waited for her to explode on them just from the mention of him.

  “Sure, what do you want to know?” She didn’t seem to show any signs of agitation, so Newman proceeded as normal.

  “Could you tell me how old your son is?”

  “Man, it’s been a while. I’d say he’s gotta’ be twenty-seven or twenty-eight by now. I wonder how many birthday’s I’ve missed. I should probably get a card soon.” Newman started to realize what the doctor meant by having to redirect her attention every now and again.

  “Do you know where your son lives?”

  She shook herself back to paying attention. “You know, sweetie, I can’t say that I do. We lived on…man, what was that street name…Hudson? Maybe. Jackson? Wilson! That was it. That was the last time I knew where he lived. I think the house got demolished. I could be wrong, though.”

  “Alright. How long ago was it when you last saw your son?”

  “Oh man, it’s got to at least have been ten years, give or take a couple.”

  “Could you tell me what your son looked like?” Cadman had pulled out a pad of paper to take notes, just so Newman could focus on keeping her engaged.

  “Well, he was tall. Not weirdly tall, but just above average height. He’s got brown hair, fairly muscular. Other than that, he looks like a normal guy. Sorry, that’s not very descriptive.”

  “That’s ok. If I may ask, did your son ever do bad things?”

  Without missing a beat, she replied. “Oh yeah, terrible things, He’s a monster!” She smiled the whole time and let out a hysterical laugh at the end. Newman looked at Cadman, and they both shared the same uncomfortable look.

  “Could I have a minute to speak to my partner?” He asked her.

  “Oh of course, take your time.” She said, still laughing and muttering, “monster,” under her breath. Always followed by a laugh, though.

  Both men stood up and walked to the back of the room. She didn’t seem to be paying them any attention. Newman leaned into Cadman’s ear. “I have to drop his name. It’s the only thing left to do.”

  “Yeah, I think you’re right. I want to get out of here. I’ll go out and prepare the nurses for what’s about to happen. Are you ok to be in here with her alone?”

  “I’ll be fine.” Newman replied. “Let’s wrap this up.” Cadman nodded, and walked out of the room. Newman sat back down in the chair.

  “Now, Dara, I just have one more question. Is that ok?”

  She stopped laughing just enough to reply. “Oh sure, sugar, fire away.”

  Newman coyly looked over his shoulder at Cadman, who was now waiting outside the door. Through the glass in the door, he could see his partner give a thumbs up. With a preparatory inhale, he proceeded. “Is your son’s name Judas?”

  Her demeanor immediately changed. It was like the laughing, seemingly kind woman was ripped out, and the incarnation of evil stepped in. “Excuse me?” She said. Newman could have sworn her voice even got lower.

  “Your monster son. Is his name Judas?”

  She started inhaling deeply, her pupils becoming the size of her entire eye. Her fists balled up and turned white from the pressure. “Don’t ever say that name!” She yelled, getting louder on every word. “Ever!” She screamed. In the blink of an eye, she had jumped across the table, and landed on top of Newman. She started beating him, clawing at his face and throat. He tried to defend himself, but she seemed supernaturally strong.

  “Get him out of there!” Cadman yelled from the other side of the door. Nurses flew in, and tried to restrain her, but were unsuccessful at first. She was hellbent on taking as much of Newman’s flesh with her as possible. After what seemed like an adrenaline filled eternity, they managed to get her off of him. Cadman picked Newman up off the ground and helped him outside. From behind them, they heard her screaming, but one of the nurses slammed the door shut as soon as they cleared the door, and they couldn’t hear anything anymore.

  Chapter Nineteen.

  My whole body was numb. Watching your greatest enemy take away your best friend, and not being able to do anything about it, it cuts deep. That was the worst part. I can take care of myself. If they had tried to take me, I would have been able to take care of myself. That’s why they didn’t take me. It was no accident. They didn’t come for me on purpose. They didn’t put a bullet in my head for a reason. They took him because they knew he’s the only weakness I have, and they are going to use it to get to me. It’s genius.

  I was sure of one thing, however. There was no way they would kill him immediately, because he’s their only ploy at getting me to them. I would have to handle this with tact, but luckily tact came easily to me. This was the start of something I hadn’t anticipated happening so immediately, but evil doesn’t always wait until it’s convenient.

  I needed to find where they were taking him, but since they’re far gone by now, I’d need to be a little more creative. There were downed men in the building, and that would likely be the best place to start.

  Each step I took carried a new amount of intention. I hadn’t fought with intention in a long time, and it was a refreshing feeling. I ran across the breezeway and back into the building I had just come out of. My guard’s eyes locked with mine, but I quickly pulled my attention away. There was one of Abaddon’s guards lying on the floor just a few feet from the door. I knelt down and flipped his body over. The bullet wound oozed, but it didn’t affect me. His pockets were full of backup ammunition, knives, things like that. Useful, but not to me. I pulled open the bullet-proof vest, and saw a bulge in his breast pocket. I peeled the blood-soaked fabric from his skin, and pulled the item from the pocket. Just as hoped, it was his cell phone. I clicked the home button to turn it on, but it required a fingerprint unlock. Using his index finger, I unlocked the phone.

  I pulled my own phone from my pocket, and pulled up my contact list. I dialed a nameless number, but I knew who it was. A deep male voice answered the phone. “Hello?” It asked.

  “Anton. Nice to hear your voice.”

  He knew who I was just from the voice. “Judas? Wow, I never thought I’d get a call fr
om you again.

  “Under normal circumstances, you wouldn’t have.”

  “Well, what can I do for you?”

  “I’d like to call in that favor you offered last year.”

  “Anything. What do you need?” We go back a bit. I helped save his family from a power crazed drug dealer. It was fun, in an unorthodox way. He tried to pay me back for the help. Quite honestly, just getting to rid the earth of that dealer was payment enough but knowing he’s one of the most talented online trackers in the world, I settled with taking a favor.

  “I’m holding a phone in my hand, and I need you to figure out where it’s been. Preferably where it’s been that would resemble a crime boss’ residence.”

  “Do I ask?”

  “You’ll regret it if you do.”

  “Understood. I have faith you’ll take care of it, then.”

  I laughed, not because it was funny, but because I agreed. “That’s the plan.”

  “This guy goes everywhere. Seems like he spends a lot of time in an old office building. It’s falling apart, though. Hasn’t been used in decades.”

  “How fitting.” I said, picturing everything he’d surely have in store. Especially if he’s been hiding out there for as long as he’s been gone.

  “I’ll get that address to you.”

  “Thanks, Anton.”

  “And if you ever need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask. With everything you did for my family, one favor will never cut it.”

  A genuine smile came across my face. “I’ll keep that in mind. I appreciate the help.”

  “Sure thing. Stay safe out there.”

  I hung up. For the first time in my life, the feeling that maybe I’m fighting for something good crossed my mind. My phone beeped, and I looked down at it. The address popped up on the screen, along with a picture. I opened the message. The address was on top, but below it was a picture of Anton, his wife, their daughter, and a new baby boy. Below the picture, it just said, “Thank you for giving me this.” I stared at the picture for a few seconds. Then, I took a deep breath, and stood up. I stuffed the phone back in my pocket and walked back out the door just in front of me. The breezeway led across to the door to my office, where Dominic was working on me.

  I opened the door, and it was just the way it was when I had left. His medical supplies were still laid out all over. The locker next to the door had a large duffel bag in it. I pulled it out and set it on the desk. Inside that same locker was an arsenal of weaponry, from grenades to throwing knives. I pulled everything out of it, except for the explosives, and set it all in the bag. There were several pistols, a shot gun, a few tactical knives, and ammunition for all of it. While I didn’t plan on using much of it, there’s never a case where being well prepared doesn’t benefit you. I walked over to the other side of the desk and opened a few drawers. Within them, there was more weaponry, which I unloaded into the bag as well. At the bottom, though, was what I was looking for. It was a sleek, black pistol, that I had never used before. It was a gift from Dominic a few years ago. I figured I would pull it out when I needed it, and now seemed like that time.

  I grabbed one of the rags he was using to wipe the blood off me before and did my best to clean the fresh blood from Abaddon’s guards off. It had less time to dry, so it came off much easier. Once I had finished, I walked over to the storage cabinet in the back of the room. I kept spare clothing in it for situations like this. There was a pair of black pants, a black shirt, and a sleek black jacket. I quickly stepped out of the bloody clothes I was wearing and slipped into the new outfit. The gun from Dominic slid in the small of my back comfortably. With that, I closed the duffel bag, picked it up, and walked out of the room.

  I stepped into my car and turned it on. My eyes glanced over to Dominic’s car, and it sent another jolt through me. I quickly pulled out of the complex and took off down the road. My phone was telling me instructions on how to get there, but I tuned it out most of the time. It was a long drive, so I would have a lot of time alone with myself.

  While I tried my best not to imagine what was happening to him, it was almost impossible not to. Even though I felt confident that they wouldn’t kill him right away, that didn’t mean they wouldn’t do horrible things to him. I know this guy, and I know his team. They thrive on inflicting pain and fantasize about dealing it. Dominic is strong, but I don’t know how long he can last under Abaddon’s rule. With any luck, they wouldn’t touch him until they get there, and they are undoubtedly still driving. They didn’t have much of a head start, so with any luck, he’d still be unconscious in the back of their vehicle.

  This is why I’ve never let people get close to me. If you get to the place where you love somebody, they can be used against you. And a man like me is at risk of that every second of every day. I should have known that Dominic would end up in a position like this, but he wedged himself into my life, and didn’t show any chance of leaving. We’ve been friends for years, and I guess I call him a thorn in my side because I always worried something would happen to him. What I do know, though, is that I wouldn’t be here without him, and that’s why I have to get him back. No matter the cost.

  I tried my best to shift my focus from what might happen to Dominic to what I’d do when I got there. The problem with Abaddon is that you never know what he has in store. He may come at you with an army of fifty highly skilled guards, or he could have one guard in his whole arsenal. He’s incredibly dangerous, and cunning. Like a predator, he watches and learns what his prey does, and is always looking for someone to destroy. He’ll undoubtedly know that I’ll be there, but my best advantage is how I control myself. It’ll be easy to lose control of myself in there, but all that will do is get us both killed. I’ll have to be patient and level-headed, which has never come easy to me. This time, however, there was far more on the line.

  A few hours into the drive, I was starting to squirm. They were most likely there by now, and there was no telling what was happening. Unfortunately, the directions to the exact location were not very descriptive. It was taking me to an area near the complex, but since it hadn’t been in operation in years, it wasn’t technically a place on the map anymore.

  I reached the place where the GPS was taking me. I was in a small town outside of the city. I remembered it from my past, but I tried not to. I just kept replaying the moment they dragged him away in my head. Every time it replayed, I tried to imagine what I could have done to save him, but each scenario I played through in my head ended up getting either one or both of us killed. After replaying it over and over, I eventually realized what it was he had mouthed to me as they were dragging him away. “Don’t come after me.” Such a humble, and very altruistic sentiment. He had to have known it was pointless. After years of living around me, he’d come to realize most of the advice he gave me was ignored, or at least altered. He always tried to protect me, but I never listened. Luckily, he was always there to patch me up when I did the opposite of what he said. My scars reminded me of each instance every time I saw them.

  I climbed out of the car. The town, albeit small, was always charming. It had been rundown since the last time I had seen it. It was nestled in the mountains. Under normal circumstances, it might be a nice getaway from the city, but under these circumstances, I just wanted it to go back to normal life…whatever that meant. The air was crisp and cool, somewhat like my house. That was another part of life that had totally changed. So much was unsure right now, but I had one task, and that was by far the priority right now.

  I popped the trunk of the car and opened the duffel bag. There was no one around, so I felt comfortable loading up. I holstered a few guns and a few knives, but in reality, I wouldn’t need more than that. I had brought the other guns, but the reality is that a shotgun wasn’t necessary. I left a hearty portion of the weapons in the car, and closed the trunk. There was a path just in front of the car, and there was a rusty sign on the ground next to a wooden pole it likely had once hung on. I checked aro
und me for people once again, but there wasn’t anyone around. With a town like this, most of the people were preparing dinner with their families. At least that’s how most of them worked.

  I walked to the entrance of the trail and picked the rusty sign up off the ground. It had clearly been there for a while. A thick layer of dirt had formed on the face, but I was able to break it off. Through faded writing and rust, I could read the words Welter’s Industrial Complex. It had been a commodity to the town years ago, but time marched on and it was eventually abandoned. Most of the outskirts of the town had been abandoned, it seemed.

  I started down the path. It was shrouded by trees, and the sun was just beginning it’s decent. Before long, it would be dark. Darkness has always been a valuable asset, and in a situation like this, it was priceless. The forest was widely undisturbed, aside from the trail that had been formed from people walking it for years. It resulted in an infestation of wildlife, and it wasn’t long before the entire environment had changed. The path led around a bend, so looking back didn’t even give a glimpse of the path entrance. The only sounds I could hear were birds chirping back and forth, settling in for the night. Every now and then I could catch a glimpse of a deer in the distance, but as soon as they sensed I knew they were there, they ran away. It was an entirely whole different world. Who knows, maybe after all this ends, I could end up somewhere similar. I guess I had to survive this before I started making life plans.

  I’d been walking for a while but hadn’t been tracking the exact minutes. It was long enough that the sun had mostly set, resulting in almost total darkness. Due to the tree cover, it seemed darker than it probably was, but since it was progressively getting darker, my eyes were able to adjust as the light changed. The path was barely detectable by now, but I had a sense of where I was going. Animal presence was almost nonexistent, so it was mostly silent and dark. On a night like this, it starts to feel eerie. I tried to ignore the feeling that there were things following me, but in the dark, it’s hard to determine what’s in your head and what’s real. While I’ve never been a religious person, I know I’ve got demons, and I know that they are both in my head, and very real. I couldn’t focus on that right now, though.