Veterans Day
Page 21
I could feel myself changing. Not that I was all that upset about it. What Tucker said a few months ago about me being here long term was right. I knew that after what I did to that lady in China I couldn’t go back to a normal life. The Corps said that they were working on a program to erase things from our minds. Like all them fools that failed the project that disappeared. Tip says that they were killed. I asked The Corps and he just shrugged and walked away. I asked Mr. Hecksford and he stammered. Which means that Tip was absolutely... right.
I barely slept anymore. It was like my fucking body rebelled against rest. I usually fell asleep at midnight and woke up ready to fight at 3am. One morning I woke up running on a treadmill. Don’t know how I got there. I decided to visit Tip in physical therapy one day. He now had feeling in his legs but for some reason that seemed to upset him even more. He still couldn’t walk.
“It’s like my legs are teasing me!” he would shout.
As I watched him sweat like a slave the two of us heard someone scream nearby. I ran to the next room and there he was: Hollister. The scream had come from a guard. From the look of terror on his face he had to have been one of the ones to take Hollister down in the ring that day. The guard was crouching in a corner as Hollister slowly walked towards him grinning. Not a playful grin, but a “I got you now motherfucker!” grin.
“Holly!” I shouted. He stopped and looked at me. Like, right in my fucking eyes. And the look was so sad that it broke my heart. He stumbled and grabbed his hair. He now had a long beard and his nails were two inches long. He reached for me and then drew his hand back.
“Uncontrollable!” he cried before vanishing. As he disappeared I heard the sound of screams that Tucker had mentioned the day Hollister was “killed.” The guard was still on the floor whimpering. I chuckled at him and began to leave the room when I saw a note. I bent down and picked it up. The bottom of it had been burnt. It was from Hollister.
Later that night I brought the Twins, Tucker, and Tip together to read it. They were all excited that Hollister was still amongst the living... sorta.
“I knew he was a zombie,” Tucker said as we all sat around Tip in his wheelchair. I started reading the letter.
“I don’t know where I am. I keep coming and going. Woke up in Nebraska today. Never been here before. Need new pencil. This one is horrible. In water. Don’t know why. Why is God doing this to me? Back at the project. Grab more paper. The screaming is the worst. They sound like they’re being tortured. God, make it stop! Please, Lord! Hawaii is nice. Never thought I’d come here. If only I could die. But then I think of the screams. I want to die. I don’t want to die. Saw Raves for a few seconds. What have they done to him? Need a shave and a haircut. I miss my friends. I miss my family. Rome, Italy. Not as beautiful as I thought it would be. Jesus is great. Talked to Him for a few minutes before I woke up in Australia. The Devil is real. Saw Ronald and Tip O’Reilly together. I cried when I saw Tip in a wheelchair. Back home. I saw my brother for a moment before waking up in a cave. Don’t know where I am. Starting to not care. Maybe rest of life will be spent this way. Stop the screaming!!! Saw Devil again. He laughed at me. Spoke to Jesus again. He told me that I was special. I told Him that the Devil smiled at me. Jesus frowned. I woke up in the air. Vanished just before I hit the ground. Please stop the screaming!!! God, help me! Please!!! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable! Uncontrollable!Uncon...” I dropped the letter and broke down. I didn’t want to. I hadn’t cried since I was a kid. The idea of
Holly going through that shit made me want to die. Tucker just sat down on a nearby bed and covered his face. The Twins just rubbed their chins and shook their heads. Tip looked mad.
“This is fucked,” Tucker said as he wiped a tear from his cheek with the heel of his hand. “I mean, what can we do to help him? Anything? How do you train for this kind of shit?” None of us had an answer.
“All we can do is look out for him,” Tip said. “Crying like little bitches won’t help.” Then he broke down. His entire body shook as he sobbed. Then the door flew open and The Corps and twenty guards followed him with their weapons drawn.
“I want all of them separated,” he commanded. “Watch out for that one,” he said while pointing at Tucker.
“What about me?” I asked. “Am I not dangerous enough?”
“Jones,” The Corps said. “Those two can run through buildings. That one could knock over trains with his fists. Your friend there has lasers in his eyes. You run fast.” The guards began to laugh as The Corps reached for his weapon. I felt the burn.
“That’s right,” I said. “I do run fast.” I was near the door before they could blink. I grabbed one of the guards’ guns and fired three shots before I felt a sharp prick in my neck. I dropped the gun and felt the world closing in on me. “What the fuck...?”
The last thing I saw before I passed out was Mrs. Hecksford holding a big ass needle.
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