Devrie Spaulding's Blog, page 7

SIREN’S MISTAKE PART 10

 

I tried to get off the couch, but Rosie lifted a single finger, stopping me. “Michelle? Did you say his name was Zagan?”

 

“Yeah. He is sexy as hell, too. Do I let him in?”

 

Rosie looked at me for a full minute as I silently pleaded with her. This was my proof. If they could see him, they would know he was real. Maybe after seeing him, they would be able to see the room, too. Finally, Rosie nodded and yelled. “Yeah, let him in.”

From down the entrance way, Michelle led Zagan into my living room. She kept looking back at him and nearly tripping when she did. Anger rose in my chest and mind. Zagan was mine! But was he? And why the hell was I even thinking this way? I usually didn’t give a crap about any man. I could never tell if they truly liked me for me or if it was the curse.  Sure, there was probably no such thing as curses, but it sure felt like one.

 

As soon as Zagan stepped around Michelle to approach me, Rosie blocked his path. It seemed to take some kind of effort for her to stand her ground. She was clenching her teeth, but she still wouldn’t let him pass. When it was clearly she had her composure, she glared daggers at him. “Are you responsible for how she looks right now? The torn clothes and blood? Missing days of work? Who the hell are you anyway?”

 

“Ma’am. I assure you, I made it to Andy as soon as I was aware she was in danger. She is safe in my presence.” He took a step closer to Rosie. His head tilted lower to make eye contact.

 

Some kind of exchange took place because Rosie stepped back and sighed in relief. “Of… Of course, she is safe with you. Michelle. We should leave and let them talk. Zagan, make sure she eats some soup.” Rosie grabbed her purse and Michelle’s arm and rushed out of my apartment, slamming the door behind her.

 

“What the hell just happened?” I couldn’t take any more. That was the last straw. I stood even though I had to hold onto my couch’s arm with one hand. My other hand pointed to my door. “What was that all about?”

 

“Sha. Do not get yourself so excited. You need your rest. Let me get you some soup. We do have much to talk about.” He turned away from me and went to my kitchen. Sounds of dishes clinked here and there. I was left standing where I was with my arm still stretched towards my front door.

 

When he came back, he sat the bowl down on my end table and lowered my arm for me. With careful hands, he helped me back onto the couch and under my blanket. “Where are your first aid supplies?”

 

“In the bathroom.” I have to say that I was a bit dazed by how delicately he helped me back onto the couch. Before he headed off, he handed me the bowl of soup.

 

“I did promise your friend that you would drink this. I may be a lot of things, Sha, but I am not a liar. Please. Drink.” He strolled down my hallway towards the bedroom like he knew where he was going. It should have bothered me, but I had other things to worry about, like what were those things that attacked me and where was I when they did.

 

Zagan came back just as I downed the last drop of soup. I had been pretty hungry after all. “What have you got there?” He carried more than just my small first aid box.

 

“You need to change if I am to dress those wounds. I hope I selected the appropriate items.” He handed me a pair of sleep shorts and tank top.

 

“Yeah these’ll do. Go back in the other room, and I’ll change.”

 

He didn’t argue. Instead, a small smile played at his lips. It made me almost forget why I was so angry with him. Almost. I shook my head to clear away whatever fog he was creating. The smile slipped from his face. He nodded and retreated back to my room.

 

I half stood to get changed. I wouldn’t admit to anyone, but I hurt all over. The scratches burned as if they were on fire. My muscles ached. I don’t know what he was thinking, but there was not a single thing in that little box that would help me feel better.

As soon as I was changed and back under my covers, I yelled to him. “All right. You can come back now.”

 

He slowly sauntered back over and kneeled down before me. A simple outstretched hand told me what he wanted. I untucked my scratched leg and presented it to him. Again, I was taken back by how gently he was. He moved my leg this way and that to get a better look at it while he used saline to clean it. “Would you mind if I used my own remedy on these wounds? I am afraid this box does not have what is needed.”

 

“Right? That’s what I was thinking. But sure. Go ahead. What else could go wrong?” As soon as I said it, I wanted to hit myself. In all the movies, you knew never to say that. It provoked bad things to happen.

 

Zagan laughed. It was such a musical sound. He brought out a canaster from his back pocket and unscrewed it. A silver looking cream sat inside. As it was placed on my burning skin, relief flooded over me. It was a miracle. He put more on and then used the gauze to cover it. I immediately turned so he could do the same to my arm.

 

With that taken care of, he scooted back to lean against the love seat. “That will heal your wounds nicely, Sha. Now, we can address the real concerns.”

 

THEY CAME PART 8

Before I knew what I was doing, my hand flew forward. My fist made contact with its oxygen mask and kept going until it smashed into scaled flesh.

 

One of the alien’s hands grasped me around my throat while the other searched its bio suit for something. In moments, it produced another mask and tried to fit it over its bleeding mouth. That was something I just couldn’t allow.

 

The voice in my head that was also mine whispered, “I’ve got this.” My body began moving on its own. My legs rose and flipped me over until I sat on the alien’s back, taking its grasp away from my throat. It continued to try and put the mask back on, but my hands reached down and yanked it away. I smashed it against a nearby wall and tightened my legs around its throat. Slowly, it began to stumble and finally fall. When it did, my legs made a quick jerking movement, snapping its neck.

 

A tingling sensation crept all over my body as I regained control. It felt as if a limb had gone to sleep but was now getting blood flow back to it. Instead of a limb, however, it was my entire body. For a moment, I lay limply on the floor, letting it pass, taking deep breaths.

 

I was finally able to stand, and when I did, Doug and the other three left alive stared at me with wide eyes. I opened my mouth to speak, but it snapped shut on its own. The voice whispered again inside of my head, “do not tell them. They would not understand.” With that, my lips parted. “I took classes in college before they came.”

 

“You must have had one hell of a teacher.” Doug took a step forward. His eyes searched mine. After a painful minute, he turned to the others. “Grab what you can. Let’s go before more show up. This was clearly a trap.”

 

When the others went about their tasks, Doug approached me. “You have the gift. Why didn’t you tell me?”

 

When my voice didn’t seize up, I realized this topic was ok to discuss. “I didn’t know until now. Do the others see visions as well?”

 

“Visions? What kind of visions?”

 

“I saw a huge ship out in space. I saw the aliens killing people.” A tear rolled down my face. “That ship. Is it where they took my sister and my brother-in-law?”

 

Remorse flooded Doug’s features. “They were taken, weren’t they?”

 

“Yeah, but I am going to get them back. I just need to get to that ship.”

 

He started to shake his head, but I held up a hand. “If you can’t help me that’s fine. I’ll go alone but don’t stand here and tell me it’s impossible. We all used to think it was impossible to fight the mind maimers.” I stared daggers into his eyes. “I am saving them!”

 

Doug continued to look into my eyes. Finally, he said, “You can really see visions from the mind maimers?”

 

“If seeing that ship is what it means, then yes, I can.”

 

A smile spread across Doug’s face. He hadn’t done that since I met him. “I do believe we can help each other.”

 

“As long as I get my family back, I don’t care what you get out of it.”

 

“Calm down. I don’t have anything sinister in mind. If you can believe it, I also have friends and family up there as well.” He glanced back as the three returned with their bags full of supplies. “Let me ask you a question, though.”

 

“Sure, what is it?”

 

“What did you plan to do after you save your family?”

 

SIREN’S MISTAKE PART 9

Loud knocking jolted me from my revelation. “Oh no, it can’t be him.” The knocking became pounding. Then, several female voices yelled through the locked door.

 

“If you don’t open this door, Andy, we ware gonna knock it down!” Rosie yelled. It was muffled from the hard wood door, but it was definitely Rosie. That must mean that at least Michelle was with her, too. They never parted.

 

“Hold on, I’m coming!” Wow, that really made my head hurt more. I pulled myself off the couch with a groan. This is harder than it should be, even for a hangover.

 

I finally made it to the door and opened it. To my ultimate relief, it was only Rosie and Michelle. There is no way I could handle all the girls right now. “Come on in, you two, and stop making so much noise.” I moved aside to make room for them to enter. Before closing my door, I glanced down the hall. His door stood silently closed. I closed mine, not so silently, making sure to lock all the bolts.

 

When I turned around to face my friends, they both stared at me in confusion. As always, Rosie was the spokeswoman. “Are you ok, Andy? You look like hell.” She clung to Michelle with one arm while holding a grocery bag full of stuff in the other.

 

“I’ve been better. My head is killing me. Any aspirin in that bag?” I rubbed the side of my head while holding onto the wall for dear life.

 

That seemed to jar them out of their shock. Rosie let go of Michelle and went to the kitchen while Michelle came over to me. “Here. Let me help you back to the couch. Girl, when was the last time you took a shower?” She grabbed me around my waist and helped me lay back down, then went to help Rosie in the kitchen.

 

“What are you talking about? I showered this morning before I called in to work.” I sniffed my arm pits to find that I did, in fact, smell. That was strange.

 

Michelle came back around with a glass of water and some pills. “This morning? Last time Steph talked to you was three days ago. She called us to come check on you.” She helped me sit up enough to take the pills and then lay back down. My world was spinning.

 

“Three days? That’s not possible. I just broke – “I stopped myself before admitting to a crime in front of them.

 

Rosie came around this time. “Just broke what?” She looked around my apartment. “Nothing seems broken, sweetie. Soup should be ready in a bit. Why don’t you tell us what is really going on?” Rosie sat down at the end of my couch while Michelle sat across from me on my love seat.  They both looked at me like I had grown a third eye.

 

What was I supposed to tell them? Hell, I don’t even know what really happened. Would they even believe me? For all I know, I’m losing my mind. Guess I could start with Zagan. Here goes nothing. “Do you remember me asking about the new guy?”

 

Rosie nodded. “Sure, but there isn’t a new guy on this floor. I don’t even think there has been a new guy in this building for a while now.”

 

I growled and ran both hands down my face. “Just entertain me here, will you?” When they both nodded, I continued. I told them how I ran into him and how I helped him move in. Then, I told them the strange part about his door not having a number on it. That’s when I really lost them.

 

Rosie stood up. “That is impossible, Andy. All the doors have numbers. I’ll prove it. I’m gonna go look for this suspicious door.” She left my apartment and, a few minutes later, came back holding her phone. “Here, I took a picture and everything.” She thrust it at me. On the screen was a picture of the two doors with numbers. His door was nowhere in the frame.

 

All I could do was roll my eyes. After the maintenance man, I expected this. I wasn’t sure how this was happening, but I knew it would. I also wasn’t sure what else I could say. Luckily, another knock at the door saved me from convincing them I was crazy.

 

Michelle went to the door while Rosie stayed with me. She gently patted my leg as if I were an animal that might get put down. Her eyes refused to meet mine. From the doorway, Michelle yelled, “Hey, Andy. There’s a guy here asking for you. Says his name is Zagan?”

THEY CAME PART 7

Before me stood five alien foot soldiers equipped in their full armor. Their faces covered like before triggered the memory of the one with no face. As soon as I thought that, my attention was drawn to the sixth member of their group, a mind maimer. It gasped. If an alien can even make such a sound. It was more like a hiss. Oh, no! It knows what they did!

 

As if time had stood still, now it erupted in chaos. The soldiers filed into the conference room at the same time I ran to the other door. “They are here! Everyone! They are here!”

 

Crashing from other rooms could be heard as the resistance group came rushing out of doors and towards me. Doug got to me first. He was about to ask a question but saw what walked out way. They didn’t run after us. They knew they had us. Doug grabbed me and hauled me out into the open space where cubicles formed desks for lower level employees. The other people in our group took refuge where they could and aimed their weapons at the opening I just vacated. Me and Doug had just made it to the first cubical when they burst out with weapons firing at us.

 

If you thought it would be like the movies and they had ray guns or lasers, then you would be wrong. Their guns fired just like ours. Projectiles being violently forced through a barrel and towards a target. The only difference was that when their projectile entered our bodies, it became almost alive. The ‘bullet’ would open at one end and become a mincer of sorts traveling through our bodies. To witness someone going through that kind of death was horrifying. To be that person? I never want to know.

 

I stayed down and only popped my head up when I could just to fire off one single round before they directed their aim to me. That is when I hunkered down behind as much as I could. Those projectiles shredded anything they entered, not just flesh. Luckily, it seemed to only last seconds. That was enough to kill anyone. But for us hiding in these desk areas, it meant we would live, for now.

 

Someone screamed from behind us. Another to our left and then another to our right. They kept screaming until the mincer was finished. An inhuman screech sounded from in front of us, one. The firing of weapons continued till another screech erupted, two. Sounds of thunk and then thunk could be heard at the same time as even more screeches, three, four. Finally, another screech filled the air, but along with a human scream, five. That left the mind maimer.

 

We all stood up, the few left alive. Mind maimers didn’t need weapons. They were weapons.

 

It glared out at us and then looked at its fallen soldiers. When those soulless eyes saw us again, they filled with rage. Green light began to form in the pits of its eyes, and we all fell to our knees, screaming. My head had already been hurting, but this made it want to explode.

 

We only had four of us left, but our screams were so loud it sounded like a crowd. In my mind, I saw visions of people being killed. Both my weapons and mind maimers. As the visions came, the pain in my head grew. Now I saw a ship. A massive ship with uncountable levels. It was somewhere in our outer atmosphere but shrouded somehow. I screamed louder and louder. Was everyone else having the same visions? I would never know because we were all going to die.

 

An audible snap reverberated in my head. The pain instantly was gone. I stood up to look at this creature. The rest of the group still screamed. It made it hard to concentrate, but for some reason, I was no longer affected.

 

The alien switched his gaze to me. My group fell silent. Its eyes scrunched together. I felt a light nudge in my mind but nothing more. It scrunched even more, and another nudge formed. Now its eyes grew wide, and the glow faded.

 

For some reason, I felt the need to walk up to the alien mind maimer. I was maybe five feet away from it now. In my mind, and in my own voice, I heard, “Punch that mother fucker!”

 

SIREN’S MISTAKE PART 8

I awoke to pure darkness. I couldn’t even see my hands or body. Was I dead? Was I still alive? Standing up at least told me there was a floor. I reached out for walls but found none. How long had I been out? But most importantly, where was I?

 

“Hello?” My voice sounded muffled. It was as if it didn’t reach farther than my mouth.

 

Something darted past me. All I could tell was a sound of fast tapping coming and going from all around. I was glad I could hear that but at the same time not so glad. The hairs on my arms rose along with goose pimples. There was something in this blackness with me, and it was playing a game. A game I was sure I didn’t want to play.

 

Something sharp cut across my upper arm. Maybe I should have worn a shirt with sleeves. It might have protected me. How the hell was I supposed to know I would be in the dark being hunted by something, though? Another cut was made just below the last one. For it to be so precise, this thing had to be able to see in the pitch blackness.

 

Panic rose in my chest in the form of a sharp pain under my breastbone. I swirled left and right, trying to find my way out as my lungs refused to fill. Running couldn’t be an answer. What if I ran in the wrong direction? I could be lost in here forever. A few steps left brought no more answers. Neither did stepped backward. I took another couple of steps backward. Still nothing.  “You idiot. Yeah, just go break in. It will be fine. What could happen?” I chastised myself.

 

A familiar voice floated through the empty space to my ears. “Sha? Sha. Walk towards my voice.”

 

“Zagan? Is that you?” I swiveled towards his voice. “Where are you?”

 

“Just follow my voice, Sha. Come to me.”

 

A warmth rushed through my entire body. I was so relieved to finally be saved that I didn’t even think about where I was anymore. All I knew was that I wanted out. There was time for questions later. A screech sounded from somewhere behind me.

 

Even though running would have been my first choice, I took small steps. I didn’t know what I was walking on and didn’t want to fall in a hole or something.  Skittering sounds grew closer. It sounded like more than one now. I needed to hurry, but I also needed to get to Zagan safely.

 

“Hurry! Please!” Zagan’s voice had never sounded so panicked before.

 

“To hell with it.” I started running. The sounds are getting closer and closer behind me. A rush of wind blew past my left side, and something clipped my ear. More screeches erupted. I could almost feel them touching me.

 

Out of the darkness, a white arm appeared. “Grab my hand, Sha!”

 

I did, and the arm pulled me through the darkness and into the electrified light. It shocked my entire body. The last thing I saw was Zagan staring down at me. Worry etched over his face.

 

 

                            *********************************************************

 

“Oh my head…” Sitting up on my couch, my head throbbed.  I threw off the covers and took in my surroundings. I was home, and apparently, I slept on my couch. “What happened?”

 

A half empty glass of whiskey sat on my end table. Had I drank too much last night? “Wait. What time is it?” I really needed to stop talking to myself. Pulling out my phone, I clicked the side button to see that it was six in the afternoon. I felt like I had slept an entire day, but my head was complaining about it.

 

Memories came flooding back. The door. The darkness. The things in the darkness. Was it all just a dream? I knew I had crazy dreams when I drank before going to sleep, but that was a doozy. I went to run my hands through my blonde hair. A sharp pain from my ear lobe stopped me. It couldn’t be. I carefully touched the injured part. There was crusted blood caked on it.

 

Now, I took one hand and went to feel my other upper arm. There were two deep scratches also with dried blood. “What the…” I threw off the blanket to stand up. Inspecting every part of my body, the only other disturbing things I found were small tears on the backs of my jean’s calves.

 

“Holy shit! It wasn’t a dream!”

SIREN’S MISTAKE PART 7

 

“Screw this.” He was gone now for the day, and I was home. I needed to find out about that apartment. I know it’s there. I know it! Hell, I helped him move in! There was only one thing to do. I needed to break in, but how? It’s not like I am some kind of bad ass detective or anything. I don’t know how to pick a lock. They make it look so easy on TV. I can do it!

 

I went to my bathroom and found two hair pins. After straightening them out, I put them in my back pocket. “Yeah I am hard core now!” I looked around for what else I might need. What the hell do people need when they are gonna scope out someone’s pad. I had my phone to take pictures. There is a light on that, too. Who knew phones could be so multi-purpose?

 

I looked at my phone, and the charge was at 98%, check. Did I need gloves? My prints were already on his things. Well, on the boxes, his things came in. I really wish I had a sidekick right now.

 

Maybe someday I would have friends, but that would require trusting another person with your secrets and stuff. I got along better with men than I did women. But we all know how that ends. One accidental eye contact and that friendship is over. Another problem for another day. I needed to tackle this problem now.

 

I left my apartment and locked it back up. No one was in the hallway. The maintenance man would be sound asleep by now while the rest of the building would be just like him or at work. I walked as quietly as I could towards the door between 313 and 314. It was there now. Why wasn’t it there before? Whatever. I am going to go inside that damn thing right now.

 

I finally approached the door and knelt down to get a better look at the locks. A strange electrical feeling came over me when I touched the handle. It didn’t hurt, but it didn’t feel good either. Wonder if there was a short in his apartment. It’s not like I could tell the maintenance man about it, though. I rolled my eyes even though there was no one there to see me do it.

 

I slipped both hair pin into the first lock and fiddled them around. I had no idea what I was doing, but there had to be some method to this. I wasn’t going to stop until I got in. The electricity feeling grew, making the tips of my fingers numb. I almost dropped the pins but gripped them tighter instead.

 

 

The pins caught on something. Both of them unable to move anymore. I tried turning them in the same direction at the same time, and the lock clicked open. Now, it was time for the dead bolt. I wasn’t too sure thin, simple hair pins were going to unlock this one.

 

Luckily, I could stand up for this one. My legs were going numb from the field of whatever it was. I placed the pins inside the dead bolts lock and tried to find that spot again like I did on the first one. Twisting and turning, the pins just couldn’t seem to find the right connection. Minutes turned to an hour as I tried. Nothing was working.

 

Then a thought came to me. What if the dead bolt wasn’t locked? I took a step back. “There is no way.”

 

An older lady came walking past me. To cover what I was doing, I went to knock on the door. She quirked her eyebrows up and shook her head. When I took my eyes off her to look at the door, there was just a wall in front of me. “What the hell!” The old lady shuffled faster towards the elevator. When she was gone, the door reappeared again.

 

“OK, I am definitely losing my mind.” If I didn’t make it in there and find so me tangible proof this guy and his apartment existed, I needed to see a shrink.

 

With a huff, I reached one hand out and turned the door knob. To my surprise, it opened. From where I stood, I could see a hallway but nothing else. It was way too dark inside to make out any turns of any kind.

 

“It’s now or nothing. Get a grip, Andy.” One step and I would be inside. I took it, but that isn’t what happened.

 

Blackness swirled around me. My head buzzed, and my heart pounded. The blackness blurred and became fuzzy. That is when I collapsed.

 

THEY CAME PART 6

 

“We are going on a supply run. You’re going with us.” Doug had come up to me while I was sitting drinking my nasty coffee they had made. Who was I to complain.  I couldn’t remember when the last time I tasted the evil bean.

 

“What do you mean? Why am I going? I need to find my sister and her husband, not become a part of your group.” The coffee was now forgotten.

 

“We need to see how you handle yourself out there. From what you have told me, you are new to being free. Let’s see what you can do. Maybe we can come to some sort of agreement with finding your family.” He handed me a small hand gun and walked away. Well, hell.

 

A large group formed at the inside the front entrance again. No one wore combat gear. That wasn’t a thing out here in the “free world”. You wore whatever you had. This group wore dark colors, mostly browns and blacks. I am sure if they didn’t own what they wore, it was borrowed. Someone threw a black beanie hat at me to cover my blonde hair. It smelled like the zoo on a bad day.

 

When we were all ready, it was the same as before but in reverse. Doug led the group out, but we left in pairs.  Each pair moved from shadow to shadow before darting across the road and up the steep small path leading to the gardens. After that, we were taken in a different direction.

 

My head was killing me. For some reason, after I witnessed my sister and brother-in-law being taken, I just couldn’t shake the pain. Then, when that poor child had to see her father killed right in front of her, it went from a headache to a mild migraine. I could function, but just barely.

 

Doug whispered something to one of the lead men and stopped to let everyone pass. As soon as I came in close enough, he fell in line beside me. “Are you doing alright? You seem to be squinting a bit too much.”

 

“My head is hurting pretty bad, but I will get past it.” I tried to open my eyes more to prove I would be ok, but the light was like sharp needles in my head.

 

“Why suffer when you don’t have to. I’ll be right back.” He quickened his pace to catch up to the medic in our group. After about two minutes, he was back with me. “Here, we have ibuprofen. Us your flash of water to make sure it goes down better.  They are a bit out of date.”

 

“Whoa! You actually have that? We ran out of it within a year at my compound.” I took them from Doug and downed them instantly. Hopefully, in about thirty minutes, I would have some relief.

 

Doug jogged back up to the front of the line. We had taken several terns and came to a tall office building. It was at least eight stories high. He held up a closed hand, and we all came to a stop. I only knew the signal from watching movies before life became a living hell.

 

In a lowered voice, Doug sent people off in groups. The numbers weren’t all the same, so I guessed the jobs were all different. When only me, another six people, and Doug were left, he said, “We are taking the top floor. No one really thinks to look in office buildings. They stored stuff for the higher-level executives all the time. We will go quietly and by twos.”

 

We took off at a run, crossing the main road as quickly as possible. Once at the building, the side door was locked. Doug brought out a simple pocket knife and used the back side to break the glass at the handle. We made it inside and started up the stairs. I may have worked the river grunt jobs, but my legs were not ready for this.

 

Surprisingly, I made it all the way up even though I thought my legs were going to fall off and my lungs were going to go on strike. Doug came back to me as the others went onto the floor to scout for food. “I’m impressed. You made it all the way with no complaints.”

 

Between breaths, I answered, “Yeah. Well, I couldn’t complain if I couldn’t breathe.”

 

He simply laughed and held the door for me. We started with the main conference room. It was huge and everything super plush. A giant dark oak table sat in the middle. “Check the cabinets.”

 

Doug took one end of the cabinets, and I took the other. He wasn’t wrong about them stocking for the executives. It was full of sodas, coffee, snack cakes, and even heat able meals. “Jack pot!”

 

Doug came over to see what I was talking about, and his excitement couldn’t have been contained if he tried. “Let me go get the others, and we can pack all this up and head out.”

 

After he left, I took to loading my empty bag. I only had it halfway full when a noise caught my attention. It came from an adjoining room. It must be one of the other teams, so I walked over and opened the door. It was not one of us.

 

 

THEY CAME PART 5

The only thing that kept me from screaming was not wanting to attract more of these things to where we were. The mutilated flesh of its face seeped blue liquid all over the concrete. The smell was worse. It was almost a mixture of old fish and vomit. I turned to retch.

 

Doug placed his hand on my shoulder. “We need to move. Come on.”

 

The small group they rescued were quickly absorbed into their own. The child stayed with the woman who originally held her. Bright blue eyes glistened with tears. We all made our way around the building again but quickly left it behind.

 

Now we were surrounded by trees. It wasn’t a forest. There wasn’t a real forest anywhere close to this city. No, it was just a gathering of trees between streets. We crossed many of those streets. Doug must have been the leader because he was always the one to look for any alien activity before the rest crossed.

 

I knew the area we were in. It led to a sunken garden of sorts. Maybe that was where we were going. There were plenty of places to hide in that place, but not enough for a huge resistance. My heart sank at the thought of them not having the numbers I needed to save my family.

 

To my surprise, we passed up the gardens. Instead, the entire group moved in single file down a small utility street surrounded by trees. On each side, where the trees stopped, cliffs of about five feet formed before ending as well. We moved silently. There was no way we were going where I now suspected we were.

 

As the small paved road ended, another larger one crossed in front of it. On the other side was the city zoo. My wide eyes found Doug’s face. He quirked a half smile and nodded. My jaw dropped. We were going into the zoo. THE ZOO!

 

Just as before, Doug looked to make sure it was clear and safe to cross. They moved in pairs toward the entrance and hid inside until everyone was there. Doug brought out a single key, no key chain to jingle, just one key. It fit into a lock to release one section of large and heavy fencing. Two men had to open it just enough for each person to slip through. When we were all on the other side, they closed it again, and Doug secured the lock.

 

I looked around, and my heart sank again. This time, it was for the animals that were no longer there. What fate had befallen them? Were they alive somewhere or all dead? Just then, a huge bear and lion walked around the corner. I stumbled backward into Doug, who held me firm.

 

The animals approached slowly. My heart rate kicked up to overdrive. Luckily, I wasn’t the only one scared to death at this. The other new people were being held in place as well by more of the original resistance group.

 

The bear came straight for me. I struggled in Doug’s grip. The lion went to the closest new person near me. A wet nose came within inches of my shirt, huffing and sniffing me. It traveled down to me feet, then back up to my hair as if looking for something. Seeming to not find what it wanted, the bear moved on to the next person it clearly didn’t know. Doug finally released me.

 

In as calm a manner as I could muster, I whispered, “What the actual hell was that about? I thought you were feeding me to him.”

 

Doug laughed. “Nah. We only feed them the aliens.”  He nodded to a pair of burly men that I hadn’t noticed before. They came through the gates on their own but carried all the aliens they had killed to save these people. Bags were wrapped around any wound so blood wouldn’t drip. They placed the aliens on the ground with space between them and took off the bags.

 

Doug produced a small silver whistle and blew into it. No sound came from it, but from around every corner, more animals ran towards us. There were hyenas and more lions, tigers, and things I didn’t know the names of. Hey, I was no zoologist. The bear and lion lead the other to the bodies. It was as if they delegated who ate which one. Finally, the bear and lion shared one together. I had to turn away and cover my ears. Sounds of wild animals eating bodies are not on the top of my list to remember.

 

A hand grasped mine. Doug pulled on it to lead me away. The whole group went with us and left the animals to eat in peace. When we were far enough away, Doug spoke again. “We have to make sure you are fully human.” He pointed back towards the animals. “They can tell. And since we feed them the aliens, they now have a taste for them. No pure human will ever be harmed by them.”

 

“Pure human?” What could he mean by that? 

 

“Yes, pure. We found out that the aliens are breeding with some of the lesser humans to produce a mix. They can easily infiltrate camps to see if there are any resistance there.” He continued to walk ahead of me, still holding my hand. I yanked it out.

 

“That’s disgusting. There is no way they are doing that. They don’t need to. All their strength and weapons and armor… they could just take whatever information they needed with their mind crap.”

 

He smiled back at me. “And yet, we are still here.” He continued on, letting me trail behind him and think about what he said.

 

How would you know who was an alien outside of here?  Not everyone had a bear or lion to sniff them out. This was absurd. Getting to my sister and brother-in-law was going to be a lot harder than I thought if this was true.

 

SIREN’S MISTAKE PART 6

The next morning, I left my apartment early. I knew the maintenance guy would be on our floor about that time. He worked overnight doing simple things but spent the evening in apartments after people got home from work. Right now, he would just be making it to my floor so he could get a few hours of sleep. Lucky for me, his own apartment was on my floor.

 

I had just made it to the elevators when he came around the corner. “Oh, hi there, Mr. Henderson. Have a good night?”

 

He ran a wrinkled hand through his thinning gray hair. “Oh, you know. Everything tries to break at night. That’s why I sleep while everyone heads off to work.”

 

“That’s a smart move, sir. Hey, I have a question, if you don’t mind.”

 

“Sure, honey. What is it?” Mr. Henderson adjusted his tool belt. Clearly, he expected a repair question.

 

I looked back nervously, hoping Zagan didn’t come out right now.  “Well, what’s up with the apartment between 313 and 314? Is it going to be something like 313b? How did it even get there?”

 

“I believe that is more than one question.” His eyes scrunched together. “And what are you talking about. There isn’t a room between 313 and 314. Not even a broom closet.”

 

“No,no. I helped a man move his things into it. I know it’s there. Come here and look.” I took his free hand and drug him with me. Again, I counted the numbers, and I went to make sure I didn’t miss it. “312, 313, 314… Wait. It was here.” I looked back at the maintenance man. “I don’t understand. I helped him. He even had drinks with me.”

 

“Listen. I don’t know what you are playing at. There has never been a room between these two. That is just not possible.” He yanked his hand away and turned to walk away. As he did, he mumbled, “always the pretty one that are cruel to old people.”

I stood there stunned, watching him hobble away. I wasn’t being cruel. It had really been there. Was I losing my mind? Strolling toward the elevators, I heard a door open. “No no no no. Not possible.”

 

“Hey Andy! Wait up!” His words were rushed but clear.

 

Vomit. I was going to vomit. The ding of the elevators scared the crap out of me, but I didn’t go in. Instead, I turned on my heels and darted past Zagan. He tried to reach for me but luckily didn’t make contact. The door!  The damn door was there now. What… The… Hell?

 

Before he could come after me, I was inside my apartment, locking all the locks. He knocked on my door. “Sha? You all right?”

 

Without thinking, I answered, “Sick! Gotta vomit.” As immature as it sounds, I made stomping noises as I went to my living room. There’s no way I could go to work right now. He must have taken the hint because he didn’t knock again.

 

I pulled out my phone and dialed the shop. Hopefully, my secretary was already there. She usually was. The phone rang two times before she picked up. “Andy’s Auto Shop. This is Stephanie speaking. How may I help you?”

 

“Hey Steph. This is Andy. I’m not coming in. I think I have some kind of bug. Can you close up shop? You’ll be paid for the day so don’t worry.”

 

“Oh, dear. I hope you’re gonna be ok? I can definitely close up and go home. My nephew is in town anyway, and I want to spend time with him.”

 

“Sounds good. Why don’t you two treat yourself to a good meal on the company card?”

 

“Are you sure? I know business has been good, but is it really appropriate?”

 

“Oh please, Steph. You’re like family. Go. Have fun. I need some time. I’ll call later to let you know if I am coming in tomorrow. Bye.”

 

We both hung up, and I fell back into my soft sofa. This was insane. Maybe I should make a doctor’s appointment. Hell, maybe I needed a shrink.

 

I sat straight up. “No. I’m gonna find out what the hell is going on before I commit myself to an asylum.” Oh great! Now, I am talking to myself. Where is my sidekick. Investigators always had sidekicks.

SIREN’S MISTAKE Part 5

She could feel his eyes on her as she led him to the living room. Andy had no idea what to expect. This guy had come on like a Mack truck before. If based on how all the others behaved was any indication, she might have to bite the bullet and give him what he wanted just to have him leave her alone. Not that it would work that way. Sometimes, it made the ‘call’ stronger.

 

Andy sighed in resignation and sat on the couch, allowing him the choice of sitting next to her or choosing the love seat. To her surprise, he didn’t sit next to her. She tried to covertly smell her pits to see if she offended his senses. From what she could tell, her day had been crazy but she stayed in the garage where it was always cold.

 

Realizing it wasn’t her. She began to feel a bit slighted. Any other guy wouldn’t hold back if they had the opportunity this one did. Yet, he sat across from her with a gentle smile placed on his handsome face. This was very bothersome.

 

“Soooo… How was your day?” Ugggg. She felt like an idiot asking that.

 

“It was good. How was yours?” His smile grew.

 

This was getting very bothersome indeed. “It was a rough day. Listen, what is going on here? I feel a bit out of my depth.”

 

“We are two friends sharing some quality time, is all. Do you have anything to drink?”

 

Duh! “Yeah. Sure. Sorry. What do you want? Water, tea, soda? I do have some whisky if that’s what you want.” She quickly stood and walked the ten paces to her kitchen. It was an open layout so she could still see him. He didn’t even try to watch her go by. So bothersome!

 

“Whiskey, please. I feel it helps relax you after a long day.” Not even a swivel of his head towards her. Now she was getting angry.

 

“Whiskey it is, then.” She got two small glasses down and filled them with ice and halfway with whiskey. “What do you do for work?” Andy handed him his glass and resumed her place on the couch. This time, she relined and acted as if nothing bothered her. Even though everything about this guy bothered her.

 

She took a sip from her glass. The cold liquid burned down her throat and into her stomach. It was just what she needed. As if reading her mind, he nodded and said, “Now that feels better, does it not?”

 

Her eyes widened slightly, but she caught herself, hopefully before he noticed. “Yeah it is. Now, what do you do for a living?”

His smile lessened. “’Living’, such a strange way to put it, but I understand. You could say I am in public relations.”

 

“Well that clears it up.” Andy laughed, but he didn’t. It was awkward. Silence fell over them again, His eyes, this time, never left her. She tried very hard not to fidget. She was about to make some kind of excuse for him to leave, but he stopped her with a raised hand.

 

“You said you had a garage? What do you work on, if you do not mind me asking?”

 

This was a topic she could handle. “Mostly cars and trucks. I dabble in the occasional motorcycle or diesel. Today, it was engines, but sometimes I do body work as well. People come in and want things added to look cooler, too.”

 

“Cooler? Is it hot and needs cooling?”

 

“Ummm… No. It is a way to look better.” She had forgotten he must be a foreigner since his accent was so thick.

 

“I see. Please continue. I find this fascinating.”

 

They talked until late in the night. The focus was solely on her. That was a strange turn of events. Conversations were usually one-sided but never her side.

 

Midnight came, and the conversation dwindled. He stood. “Thank you for your time and conversation, Andy. Would it be too much to expect another such time to occur?”

 

Again, she thought, what the hell. “Yeah, I would like that. Here, let me show you to the door.”

 

“No need. I can find my way.” That smile broadened again. “Until next time.” He bowed and was gone.

 

When enough time passed that Andy knew he couldn’t hear, she yelled, “What the actual hell was that?” She stood and went to wash the glasses but stopped. “It can wait till tomorrow. I need some sleep.” It was Monday after all, and another day of work was just a few hours away. Even though she knew she needed sleep, she also knew she wouldn’t be getting any.