29:16:04:59 (14 page)

It was scouring the hallways, looking for who knows what. The creature passed without a notion of entering this room. Trailing off into another corridor down the prison, the clicking faded away until I could no longer hear it.

              I waited.

Slowly, I touched the doorknob and turned it. The door swung open with a small squeak that sounded like thunder in the stillness. Sinking back into the room, I gritted my teeth, stopping to listen. I heard nothing, so I hesitantly passed through the opening.

Squatting in the middle of the hallway made me feel like I was alone in the center of the city again. The dank illumination was not nearly enough to ease my torn concentration. Bringing the sphere forward, it at least gave off a blue glow. I stood up slowly and tip-toed down the concrete, wishing I had a gun.

              The prison was rather small, if I remembered correctly; only ten cells and a few sparse rooms. Nothing could really hide in such small quarters, so when I reached the exit in a few seconds I made sure to open it slowly and look out into the world before taking the leap. Outside the prison, everything was calm. It was late after all, and the world should be asleep, though I doubted it was. Monsters were running amuck in the city.

              I stepped out into the openness. The sweet sense of freedom didn’t escape me. But I had a lingering feeling that this was all wrong, that my taste of freedom would be short-lived. One of those monsters could come screaming out of the prison, or someone who wasn’t so into me living outside a cage would see me and bury a bullet in my head.

              Scampering over to the rocks and trees over to my left, I hid behind them for the moment. Neither man nor creature sought open space. My eyes turned to Downtown, and lights caught my attention.

              The Timer.

              The timer was flickering again, as if it was struggling to come back to life. The numbers continued to roll backwards in between the power outages. I looked at the sphere and realized that it too flickered with the timer, the flashing completely synchronized. The sudden and violent occurrence of the creatures from the center were linked. I just didn’t know how.

              As if answering my question, the timer Downtown shined bright and vivid, remaining steadily lit. As it did, the sphere’s light died. They were surely linked.

              Shouts drew me back to the outside world. Near the entrance of the prison, several deputies and civilians had gathered around the open door. I saw Joey, still alive and well. He seemed to be talking and helping those who were injured or scared. I couldn’t understand what they were saying from where I was, but there was a very noticeable panic in the crowd.

There was a lot of crying, shouting, and questions being slung around. I assumed that the creatures had gone away, possibly back into the center, but these people wouldn’t know that. They would still be looking for them, and if I stayed here, they might eventually find me too.

              Joey filed the group of alarmed individuals back into the prison, guns still drawn. When the last entered, Joey looked around the landscape, searching for someone, or something. For a second I swore he saw me, as his eyes lingered in my direction for a second too long. But he disappeared in the building with the rest after another few seconds.

              “Sherriff,” I sighed. Joey had told me what I needed to hear.

              My mind raced back to Kyle, thinking about his remaining moments, his wounds that covered his body. Susan with the markings around her neck, turning black and purple as I watched. Thought of Olivia and the bag of hair with blood still on the scalp. It was utter torture, and it was beyond my control. Yet for all the pain, and all the hate, there was something else to think about.

              I leaned heavily and Joey’s words, and on Glasses’ comments. If I failed, if I were to give in, then everyone would become what I saw tonight. These monsters, they were human after all. Or at least, had been.

My thoughts returned to Kyle, Susan, Olivia, Ricky, Jamie, Kelly, and even the Palmers, anyone who was affected by this damn city and the damn turning. I couldn’t live with Olivia anymore; I knew this. But I could live
for
her
.
With my last two days, I could at least try once more. The timer glared bright, and the idea took hold in the darkness. With the sphere in hand, my mind was already made up.

I was going to the center.

Chapter 19: A discussion with Evil

             
I still had on the same clothes since I was thrown in jail. The front pocket of my sweatshirt was still the best place to hold the sphere. I tucked it in and made my way Downtown, tracing directly back toward the barrier. Thankfully the prison was located near wooded park, and it kept me hidden.

The community was abuzz with the sudden influx of screaming creatures that had come and gone. In fact, everyone was out and about, even at this late hour. They were out in the streets with lanterns and flashlights, scouring the earth for the cracked skin beings. And if they discovered me, it would be just like discovering one of those things. I would be strung up by my heels and proclaimed as the reason everything was happening, again.

Using the forest as camouflage, I watched as the main road ran parallel to my position. This road would wrap around in a semi-circle toward the barrier. Old street lamps that used to run on electricity were powered by candles now, and a multitude of people lined the sidewalks. They were scared, bewildered, angry, and hostile.

I kept low and silent. The last thing I wanted was to draw attention. Even in this forest there were people with flashlights. They scanned the dirt, jumping at anything that swayed. A bush or the wind blowing through the trees was mistaken for creatures, and they senselessly attacked with whatever they had as weapons.

Beams of light flashed over me as I lay on my belly. I stayed motionless, people stepping within mere inches. They carried bats and iron rods, and they were scared out of their minds. I thought about running sometimes, but that would attract even more attention. If I did, I would soon have to be running away from the very people I was trying to save.

Hours passed as I crawled through the forest inch by inch, the entire time feeling such an awful tiredness creep in. My insomnia was catching up again. I started seeing things that weren’t there. Too many times, I reacted to nothing but the wind, or a shadow catching just right. My shoulder was on fire too, and it probably would never heal right.

Can I do this?
I wondered. There was nothing left for me here, this I knew. But could I really drag myself beyond the barrier? Even then, what was I looking for?

Branches broke behind me and I stopped dead. I kept myself close to the tree trunks, their branches spread out far enough to envelope my entire body. Thankfully, no one wanted to scrape themselves walking too close to a pine needle.

“See anything?” someone asked.

“Nah. Haven’t got anything. Let’s just get outta here. It’s too damn dark anyway,” another replied.

“Right-o,” the first answered. Their voices trailed off, leaving me alone once more. Time and time again this happened, they crept up so silently. Sighing, I carried on, wishing this was somehow quicker.

Then as if answering my wish, the forest came to an abrupt end, where the concrete forest took over.

I looked out from the coverage and saw only a few people down the street. They didn’t really pose much of an issue at this point. Maybe they wouldn’t even notice me. They seemed too focused on finding those creatures. It still remained dark enough, but the sun was starting to peak its head over the horizon.

“I know you’re here Jackkksssooonnn! I can smell you!” Frank shouted at the top of his lungs. He had rounded a corner down the street, perhaps only fifty feet away. His lackeys were in toe.

He looked like a wreck, and walked with the aid of a cane. Had that familiar knife slapping at the side of his leg. He was probably drunk too, looking for a fight.

“Frank… man, it’s been a while. Shouldn’t we…” a guy standing next to Frank said before getting cut off. Frank backhanded the man, leaving what looked like a bleeding, broken nose.

“You dicks listen to me. You’ve all heard the news—Jackson is gone. I want that bastard found!” Frank announced.

“Damn it, Frank. I think you broke my nose!”

“Go ahead. Give me a little more lip. See what happens…” Frank started tracing the tip of his dagger on the chest of the one who spoke.

“Okay, Frank…” the other raised his hands above his head, yielding to Frank’s intensity.

“You two.” Frank pointed with his knife at part of his group. “Head back toward the jail. Search all the spots, all the buildings.”

“Sure thing, boss,” one spoke.

“Gotcha,” the second one agreed. Together the two set off running in the same direction. They flew past my position, not slowing down.

“You,” Frank said, pointing at another. “You search the forest while heading back toward the jail. If he’s anywhere, that’s where that son-of-a-bitch will be.” The third one in his party rocketed towards my position, and I stuttered.

I slowly got up and backtracked toward a full grown pine tree and ducked behind it, facing away from the advancing foe.

Frank babbled at a few more of his goons. He had quite the party this morning. But I couldn’t worry about the rest of his entourage. I stayed focused on the one who now crept closer.

Branches snapped as the man entered the forest. I heard him swearing under his breath as a flashlight snapped to existence in the dim forest. Even though the sun was peeking out, it remained dark in these woods, the canopy overhead too thick for the dim sunlight to pass through.

Tilting my head slightly, I glanced over to see the figure coming closer. With each step, my doom seemed to approach. In his other hand he held frying pan, an unusual choice, since it was too bulky to swing in the close-knit tree line. That at least gave me a fighting chance.

Slowly, I pulled the sphere from my pocket, readying it in my hand.

              “Damn it… getting tired of this…” the man mumbled.

              He passed the tree, shining the light around. It came to rest on me. Without thinking, I swung the orb as hard as I could and connected. The metal let out a soft
thud
, and his body went instantly limp, crashing to the ground. A small trickle of blood formed where the sphere hit him.

              “Shit,” I whispered. Maybe I’d hit him too hard. I didn’t want to kill him. The guy let out a groan, but failed to move. Good, at least he wasn’t dead. I collected his flashlight. It might help for what was ahead.

              Frank and the others were out of sight as I pushed toward the tree line again. Slowly, I entered the street, keeping my head on a swivel. They could be anywhere, could be watching. The barrier sat close enough, but if I wasn’t careful I would miss my opportunity. Frank probably didn’t have a plan this time.

              Crossing to the other side of the street, I slipped behind some concrete slabs that had broken off the side of a building that loomed overhead. Waiting, looking both ways, I didn’t see anybody. A sigh of relief washed over me as I squatted low to the ground. I rounded the corner of the building, out of sight.

              “Why, hello champ,” Frank said and grabbed me by the shoulder, putting a hand over my mouth. He spun me around and wrestled me into a choke hold. With an elbow around my neck, he managed to keep his hand over my mouth. He was strong. I couldn’t get free. He stood taller than I, even bending over, probably because his leg still buckled from the self-inflicted gunshot.

              “Where ya been, friend?” Frank asked and tightened his grip more, cutting off oxygen. “Come on, let’s have a chat, huh?” He dragged me backwards. I couldn’t see where he was going, but we passed through a doorway into a small room. I glanced to my left, understanding the barrier was only a short distance away.

              Frank tossed me like trash to the floor. I hit my head and the room spun. I felt sick to my stomach. I had nothing to defend myself with besides the sphere in my pocket, but felt it not necessary to show him my one and only device that I needed for this journey. Escaping was my only choice.

The room appeared to be an old shop with wooden floors and walls, just like the bar where I’d met Eve. There were three windows, each one broken with jagged glass sticking out of the frames. A staircase lead upstairs, but I wouldn’t know where to go on the second floor.

              “Jackson, stop,” Frank ordered, as he readied his large dagger once again, “Take a seat.” He nodded towards a table before walking over and plopping down in one of the two chairs. He waved his dagger at the seat opposite, and pushed it out with his foot. I didn’t expect this, nor did I want to do anything.

              “What do you want?” I asked, stunned.

              “I want you to sit your ass down now before I cut your tendons at your ankles and you can’t walk anymore,” Frank hissed as he slammed the blade down, sticking it into the surface of the table. He leaned back in his chair, putting his feet up, as he stared out the window.

              I followed orders, thinking, or not thinking, that this may be my end. Whatever this was, it was strange as hell.

              “Where ya going?” he asked as I sat down.

              I didn’t know what to say.

              “Come on, bo-yo,” Frank said and slammed his chair down, resting his elbows on the table. Those black eyes burrowed into mine.

              “You should know, Frank,” I said and kept my distance.

              “What?” Frank laughed out loud. “What’d that mean?”

              “It means…” I looked at the floor. “I have nowhere to go. So maybe you should tell me, considering what you did to my home.”

              “Ohhhhh…” Frank leaned back again. “Well, cause and effect.” He shrugged. “Cause: you came back here. Effect: you can’t go back home. Furthermore…” Frank hesitated. “You somehow managed to escape that cage. Still trying to figure out that one.” Frank reached up and stroked his black, greasy, hair.

              I failed to answer back. Looking around again, there wasn’t a good away of getting away from Frank. I slipped my hand back into my pocket. The metal surface of the sphere was cool to the touch. Gripping the ball, I didn’t know what my plan was, but at least I still had the sphere.

              “You know what,” Frank said and grabbed his knife. He slammed the blade down near my hand. I didn’t have time to react, nor would I. The blade was close enough where if Frank tilted it just a bit closer it would cut flesh. “I don’t like this…” Frank twirled his finger my direction. “I don’t like that even after all of this, you’re still out here, doing whatever the fuck you’re doing. You, and your conniving, scheming, under-handed bullshit should have ended when I killed what you had left. I mean, are you even human? No, no, no, you can’t be, can you?” Frank withdrew his dagger and placed it on his side of the table.

              “What?” I could feel the rage fill my stomach. “You talk about being human? Who the fucks hurts an innocent girl that can’t even defend herself? What the fuck about you!” I wanted nothing but to grab that knife and stick it between his ribs. Olivia was all I had. Frank had ripped that away, along with Susan and Kyle, in the most brutal way possible.

              “You speak like you’re innocent yourself. I know the truth, and so do you,” Frank said and glared.

              I was too angry to speak.

              “Let me tell you a little something, Jackson,” Frank said and stood, moving toward the front door. “About the first time when I realized and came to understand our destiny. You know how tragic it is to realize the exact moment you die? But even that I can appreciate. It’s not like I can change that fate, right?”

Frank leaned against the doorway that lead outside. For whatever reason, he had left his dagger behind. Keeping one eye on the blade, I followed his movements, thinking that even with all the time in the world, he was still too quick for me to make the initial move.

              “Don’t forget for a second that I know that damn timer is ticking away to your birthday, you wretched piss-ant,” Frank said and laughed.

I remained mutely shocked. No one else knew this, and how he’d uncovered this truth was far beyond my limited knowledge.

              “So?” I asked and went along with it. No reason to hide what he already knew.

              “And you’re the reason why I’m here right now. Isn’t it?” Frank gambled.

              I thought back to my vision in the desert. Frank may not be far from the truth, as absurd as I wanted that fact to be.

              I shook my head.

              “Damn you, Jackson. Damn you and all your… familiarity. Your aptitude. You make me sick. You make all of us sick. Why don’t you just admit it already? No one has memories like yours, dreams like yours. I sure as hell don’t. Neither does Greg. Neither does Lin. Neither Paul, Sarah, Juan, Travis, Heather, nor Rachel. You’re it!” Frank yelled.

              I didn’t know how he’d figured out all my truths. It was like he’d followed me ever since the beginning. And maybe it was just that. He knew where I lived. He knew my relations. He recalled my strange ability to gain memories, more than the rest in this wretched city. Perhaps he was always there, watching, waiting.

              “You think I wanted this?” I said and felt off balance, weak. I couldn’t overplay my hand, and I shouldn’t bring out the worst in him, but it was going to happen anyway. “I never asked for this. You think it was a good life to lead, hiding away, praying for all of this to end? You believe that watching all the people I love die or walk beyond that barrier was a choice I happily made? You know what, fuck you, you dirty son-of-a-bitch.” My anger spilled out and caught Frank by surprise.