Read Bestial Online

Authors: William D. Carl

Bestial (32 page)

“‘One of us’ … hehehe … I liked that movie.”

“You have any ideas, Mom?” Christian asked. “We’re stumped.”

“Well,” Cathy said, “I doubt they’ll be moving over the river—the creatures, that is. The only way they have of getting across is the bridges. I don’t think those things can swim. On my way here, I kept seeing them floating facedown in pools of water. I saw a bunch of them in a man-made lake. They’re probably too heavy to swim.”

“They were made for running, not for the breaststroke,” Christian said, looking at his mother in amazement. “Their shoulders and chests are so massive, I think you might have something there, Mom.”

Rick asked, “But how’s that gonna help us? It’s a nice thought and all, but—”

Christian jumped from his chair, sending it rolling backward. “Oh God, I’ve got it! I really think I’ve got it! I’ve been living down here in a warehouse for some time now, and there isn’t a lot to do when you don’t have money or friends. …”

Cathy’s hands went to her chest. “Oh my God, you were living on the streets? Homeless?”

“Mom, not now. Anyway, you do what you can for entertainment, and I used to go down to the river, sit on the snake wall, and watch the boats go by … and the barges. They haul coal up and down the river to the various power plants.”

“Am I dense?” Rick asked. “I still don’t get it.”

“Yes, you are dense,” Chesya said, elbowing him. “Now let the boy talk.”

“Thanks, Chesya. So these barges float in the middle of the river. Get it? The middle of the river?”

Cathy was the first to grasp the idea. “Oh! So we get on a barge and float where the things can’t reach us. They’ll drown if they try.”

Christian said, “And the officials in charge across the river will see us standing on the barge and they’ll know that we’re still human. They’ll see we’re immune.”

“Jesus Christ,” Rick said. “That is one fucking beautiful idea. Sorry, Chesya.”

“I think even Jesus would understand getting caught up in the
moment,” Chesya said. “We only have a few hours until those things start changing again, so I propose we get going. Rick, find some flashlights and anything that we can use as a weapon. Also, you seem to have the best rapport with the Russian, so you better tell him where we’re going.”

“All right,” he said, and he rushed from the room.

Clucking after him, Chesya said, “That boy’s always running. Chris, I need you to get into those snack machines and fill some bags with the remaining food. I don’t care what it is; we just need something to get us through the night.”

Watching her son dash off to the break room, Cathy asked, “What do you want
me
to do?” Chesya could see in her eyes that she desperately wanted to follow Christian. He’d been out of her sight for long enough.

“I need you with me,” Chesya replied. “Let’s go through this office with a fine-tooth comb and grab anything you think we could use. I know you say those things can’t swim, but we’re working on sheer supposition here. We haven’t actually seen any of them drown.”

“Oh Lord, you’re right. What if I’ve—”

“Now, now, don’t get upset. I think it’s a good theory. Makes sense to me. Still, if we’re out there and those creatures suddenly start making their way through the water toward us … well, I just want to be prepared. Also, try to stop touching the boy.”

Cathy blushed. “I’m just excited to see him. That’s all.”

“I understand that. But he’s a man now, not your little kid.”

“He’ll always be my little kid.”

“In your mind, woman. Look at him. He’s been surviving on the streets, and he’s more an adult now than that crazy bank robber in the next room. I think he’s wearying of all your touches and pats, but he doesn’t want to hurt your feelings. You’ve found him, and you’ve got him back. Now just be happy and let him prove himself to be the man he is.”

Cathy frowned, but she knew Chesya had a point. She’d thought of Christian as her little boy for so long that the idea had overwhelmed the reality of his age and wisdom. Nodding, she said, “I’ll try.”

“That’s all I can ask for.”

They began searching through the desks, pulling out anything that might be useful outside. They talked a bit, and Chesya took advantage of Christian’s absence.

“That son of yours has had a really hard time of it. He’s been living on the streets, surviving any way he can. He’s putting on a brave front for you, but I think it’s gonna take a long time for his scars to heal.”

“I know,” Cathy sighed. “I hope you’re not criticizing me.”

“Oh, I was just—”

“What I mean to say is, I know I made a mistake. A really big one, and for once I’m not the one who paid for it. My son did. I’ll do anything to make it up to him. Anything.”

“Just be careful what you ask about what he did out there. Probably a lot of things a mother wouldn’t want to know about her baby.”

After depositing five pairs of scissors in a box, Cathy said, “I’m not naïve, Chesya. I’ve had a privileged life, and I realize that. I’ve lived most of my life in a gated community. Still, I know what happens in the world. I probably have a good idea what Chris has been through, and it makes me sick to my stomach. I could’ve prevented that from happening if I’d only acted sooner. But the sad fact is, I didn’t do anything. And now … well, I hope Chris can get through the rest of his life without having nightmares. I pray that I can change his life, and maybe my own as well.”

Chesya said, “Sounds like you’re on the right—holy crap!” She reached into one of the drawers and held up a small pistol. A dainty Black Widow .22 Mag. She took aim across the room, marveling at how comfortable the weapon felt in her small hands.

“Who do you suppose kept this in their desk?” she asked.

“More important, why would they need such a thing at work? Is it loaded?”

After fumbling for a few seconds, Chesya popped out the magazine. “Yeah,” she said, snapping it closed again. “Five itty-bitty bullets. Doesn’t look like they’d do much harm. They’re so small … but I suppose any bullet can do damage if it’s aimed at the right place.”

In the break room, Christian searched through the drawers.
He discovered several plastic grocery bags in the trash can. He filled the first bag with a set of knives he found in a drawer. The blades didn’t look very sharp, but he figured if you stabbed hard enough, they’d puncture a lycanthrope’s skin. Walking over to the snack machine, he pulled out every remaining bag of chips, cookies, or candy, almost filling the second plastic bag.

Munching on a pilfered Snickers bar, he opened the refrigerator. The smell nearly knocked him down. There was definitely rancid meat in the warmth of the fridge. He couldn’t find anything edible in there, but when he checked the freezer, he found it still slightly cool. Several people had left their frozen lunches in there, and he grabbed a Lean Cuisine and checked it. The surface of the lasagna had melted, but the center was still frozen. He looked around, saw no one, and quickly devoured the meal. It was disgusting, the center crunchy and the outside slick with sweat, but it filled his stomach, and he immediately felt better, stronger. The freezer held six more meals. He placed them in his third sack and took all his booty to the laboratory.

To Andrei, Rick was saying, “But we’ll be back in the morning, probably with some kind of support from the army.”

“You leave me here? Alone? I take medicine. I will be all right now. You see. You see.”

“I’m afraid we can’t get you out of there just yet, dude,” Rick said. “I don’t want you turning on me. There’s enough to fuckin’ worry about already.”

“You no worry about me,” he replied. Andrei caught Christian’s eye, and he pleaded with him. “Please, you tell him. I am all right. I am human now. The shot will stop me from the change. I feel good now. Not hairy.”

“No dice, man,” Rick said.

“Actually,” Christian replied, “how are we gonna know if he becomes a creature tonight? How will we know when we come back in the morning? He’d be back to human anyway.”

“I’ll leave that to the goddamn scientists. They supposedly know what they’re doing.”

“Oh yeah, right,” Christian chuckled. “They really knew what they were doing when they unleashed this on the world.”

“Don’t be sarcastic.”

Chesya entered the room, carrying the box of weapons they’d found in the desks of the workroom.

“We found a gun,” Cathy said.

She handed it to Rick, who gave it a quick perusal after weighing the little pistol in his hand. “Very nice. A Black Widow .22 Mag five-shot revolver. These babies have really nice fixed sights. You can get a good bead on your target. It’s one of the best mini revolvers out there.”

“Two days ago, the fact that you knew that much about a specific gun would’ve scared me,” Chesya said. “Now I can’t help but be proud.”

“So I’m impressing you with my thorough knowledge of weaponry?”

“I wouldn’t go that far. Still, we can definitely use a gun. We have scissors and sharp envelope openers, too.”

“I got a bunch of knives from the kitchen area. They aren’t too sharp, though,” Christian said.

Andrei approached the edge of the Plexiglas. “I know of weapon, too. I see them use it here. It would be very … how you say it, handy.”

“Another weapon?” Rick asked. “Sounds like a con. What is it?”

The Siberian shook his head. “Oh no. For this I, how you say it, bargain. I come with you, then I will tell you about weapon.”

Chesya shrugged. “I don’t see the harm.”

“Are you crazy, woman?” Rick shouted. “He’ll turn on us the second the moon comes up.”

“Not if the drug worked,” Cathy reminded him.

“If … if … IF!”

“Is a good weapon.”

Chesya aimed the barrel of the Black Widow special on the man in the cage, and she said, “If he starts to change, we’ll take him out. One good shot to the head, and he’s history. If he doesn’t change, he’ll be another person to help, another strong pair of arms. I say we vote on it. This is a democratic society. Or at least, it was.”

“Fuck the democratic bullshit!” Rick said. “I say we leave him.”

“I say we take him with us. We’ll kill him if we have to,” Chesya said.

Cathy added, “I don’t think he’d be much of a problem. It’s all of us against him. I say we take him.”

“I have to say take him, too,” Christian said, standing.

“I say I go also,” Andrei shouted.

“You don’t count, ya communist bastard,” Rick said bitterly. “All right. I’m outvoted. But write this shit down and remember it: I don’t like it. I’m against it. I wanted nothing to do with it.”

“Noted,” Chesya said. “Now how do we get him out of there?”

Rick said, “And get him some damn clothes. I’m not running beside this guy with his wang flopping around.”

Cathy volunteered to find clothes, and Rick opened the cell with the key on the ring. The door hissed again, popping open a few inches. Immediately, Andrei stepped out of his prison, keeping his eyes on Rick in case he tried to shoot him with another dart.

“I still no trust you,” Andrei said.

“The feeling’s mutual, big guy.”

“I feel human. No animal is left inside me. The hairy feeling, that is gone.”

“For all of our sakes, I hope so.”

Cathy entered, holding a heavy one-piece coverall, the material stained with some kind of disinfectant. “I found these in the janitor’s closet,” she said. “They’re a little dirty, but aren’t we all?”

As Andrei stepped into the clothes and zipped up the front, Rick moved toward the window. Looking outside, he said, “It’s like a ghost town out there. The streets are completely empty as far as I can see.”

Cathy asked, “Isn’t that a good thing?”

“The freaks come out at night,” Chesya sang. “And we don’t have a lot of time left. We need to get ourselves down to the water and pray we can figure out how to get one of those barges into the middle of the Ohio River.”

“While not getting shot in the process,” Christian said.

“Hey, where’s that weapon you promised?” Rick asked Andrei. He felt a little better now that the man was clothed.

The big Siberian smiled. “I am that weapon. It is me.”

“You son of a bitch!”

“I can kill anyone with these hands—my, what, bare hands. I am strong, my friends.”

“Better than spitting at them,” Cathy replied.

“Is good weapon, no?”

“Hey, another set of eyes, another set of hands to hold those things off …,” Chesya began.

“If he doesn’t change into one himself,” Rick said.

“Then we’ll blow him away,” Christian finished, looking at Andrei. “It won’t be the time to get all emotional. You start changing, even a little, I’ll kill you myself.”

Cathy glanced at Chesya, not recognizing her son’s low, serious tone.

Chesya said, “I guess you’re a good weapon, Andrei. Something tells me we’ll need all the help we can get.”

Rick patted the tall man on his back and said, “Yeah, well, I guess you’re a part of the team now. Don’t change tonight.”

“No, I will not. Andrei makes promise.”

“Come on. Let’s get down to the river,” Chesya suggested. “It’s gonna be dark soon, and I don’t want to be helpless and surrounded by those things when the sun sets.”

The group moved for the hallway. Andrei, dart rifle slung over his shoulder, took a final look back at the open prison cell where he had been restrained for so long. He gave it a jaunty little salute before turning his back upon it and leaving that part of his life behind him.

PART 3
42

SEPTEMBER 18, 5:45 P.M.

C
aptain Taylor Burns watched the banks of the Ohio River from his perch in Covington, Kentucky. The binoculars wearied his nearsighted eyes and he handed them to his assistant, Chief Warrant Officer Tom Granger. Blinking, the general let his pupils adjust to the dying light, noting the position of the sinking sun. If he hadn’t been wearing a bulky biohazard suit, he would have run a hand through his close-cropped salt-and-pepper hair.

The muddy river ran slowly, churning as though troubled by the bad weather. The Ohio River divided the shores of Cincinnati and Kentucky, about a thousand feet across and roughly forty-eight feet deep. The undertow was treacherous, sucking several swimmers a year into its murky embrace. Five bridges stretched across the river, the most impressive being the Brent Spence Bridge, one of the largest suspension bridges in the world. It had lost much of its previous grandeur when the military had blown the middle out of it. The other five bridges had also lost their centers to explosions; large, ragged, still-smoking holes now revealed the dark river below.

Other books

A Solitary Blue by Cynthia Voigt
Jihad Joe by J. M. Berger
Four Doors Down by Emma Doherty
Star by Star by Troy Denning


readsbookonline.com Copyright 2016 - 2024