Distinct

by Hamill, Ike

  “Don’t be,” Brad said, exhaling with relief. “I should have checked to see if Murphy wanted to go out.”

  Ty settled down to sit next to Brad on the stairs.

  “How’s the patient?” Brad asked.

  “I didn’t want to disturb him. Romie said he has been quiet. The Valium should wear off soon, and the longer we can go before we give him another dose, the better.”

  They heard the sound of footsteps and Cedric came up and squeezed between them. The dog climbed the stairs and stood at the door.

  “He’s a mess,” Brad said.

  “He knows what’s going on. That man put a hex on Tim. I suspect that’s what he has been doing to everyone.”

  “But how? He barely talked to Tim at all that I saw. Did he do something in particular in the kitchen?”

  “Not really. You were on the edge then. I saw it. How did you feel when they were talking to you?”

  Brad took a deep breath and thought about it.

  “Based on everything that’s happened, I want to be really careful to keep certain things out of my head. I think Romie is right—if that man wants us to dwell on a particular thing, it would be best to avoid it.”

  “Fair enough,” Ty said. “But how did it feel?”

  “It felt like I was really close to something that was going to be exceptionally good. There was an excitement building inside of me, even as I was trying to get a straight answer out of them. Then Romie shut me up, and I was relieved. I think I was close to slipping over the edge.”

  “I had a sense of it,” Ty said. “That’s why I ran before he could draw me in.”

  “Smart.”

  “Maybe if we can find a way to break the hex on Tim, we can help the other people who that man has hypnotized,” Ty said.

  “That’s a good idea,” Brad said. He stood up.

  Ty called for Murphy.

  ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪

  They walked back towards the sliver of light that spilled from the condo’s door. Cedric ran ahead, nosing the door aside so he could get inside.

  “Hypnosis is an interesting way of putting it,” Brad said.

  “I had a friend who was studying psychology,” Ty said. “She described hypnosis as giving a person formal permission to release their inhibitions. Without concerns about social expectations, they could act out, lose weight, quit smoking, or do anything. The only thing holding people back is fear of consequence. As soon as they had permission, the fear went away.”

  “But Tim wouldn’t want to be part of that guy’s cult.”

  Ty pushed the door open the rest of the way and held it for Brad.

  “The man found something that Tim didn’t even know he wanted and he used that as a lever.”

  Brad stopped, confused for a moment. Romie was leaning over Tim with her face close to his. Cedric’s nose was right there too. The two people and the dog were an inch apart.

  “Romie!” Ty shouted, pushing by Brad. “Don’t listen to him!”

  Brad understood as soon as Ty jumped over the coffee table and tried to pull Romie away. Tim’s lips were still moving. He was still whispering secrets even though Ty had pulled Romie back to her chair.

  “Give him a pill,” Ty said as he held Romie in her chair.

  “What’s happening?” Lisa asked as she emerged from the next room.

  Brad fumbled with the pill bottle, spilling half the contents into his hand. He plucked a single pill and shoved the rest back in. He had seen the way Ty did it—just drop the pill into his mouth, hold the chin, and massage the throat.

  “Is she okay?” Lisa asked, moving towards Romie.

  “Give him the pill, Brad,” Ty said.

  “What if there’s another way?” Brad asked.

  “Give him the pill.”

  “There’s another way,” Brad said.

  CHAPTER 30: VIRGINIA

  ROBBY WAITED UNTIL DARK.

  He didn’t want to execute the plan until he was certain that it was necessary.

  It only took a moment to verify that the pack was still out there. He went to the front window and clicked on his flashlight. A pair of glowing eyes retreated. A few seconds later, Gordie growled at the door to the deck. The coyote-things were looking for a way in.

  “Food must be scarce,” Robby said. “Hopefully, they’ll be hungry enough to be distracted.”

  Robby put the flashlight in his mouth and wheeled the cart to the front room. He followed the instructions printed on the door, and pushed the button to ignite the flame. As it came up to temperature, he dumped the first packet into the cauldron and turned on the battery-powered arm.

  “Lisa would kill me if she knew I was going to waste all this popcorn,” Robby said. “Brad has an emergency stockpile of those small microwave bags. As soon as they’re gone, Lisa said she won’t be responsible for her actions.”

  The oil sizzled as the popcorn heated.

  Robby moved to the hallway. When the first kernel fired off, Robby heard scrambling on the boards of the deck. He smiled. It was good to know that the pack wasn’t completely fearless. A few seconds later, the smell of fresh popcorn wafted over to Gordie and Robby.

  The dog immediately moved towards the machine and sat down. It was the same thing he would do when Lisa popped her afternoon snack. He knew that he would get a taste—either by looking cute or when Lisa accidentally dropped a piece or two.

  Robby let his eyes drift shut.

  When they had a weekend movie, his mom always popped the popcorn on the stove, in a big pot. She didn’t like the microwave popcorn—said it had the aftertaste of 10W-40. This machine smelled like his mom’s popcorn, but better. It had that fake butter smell of movie popcorn.

  The pops were slowing. The timer went off. Robby had the next packet already open. He dumped it in as he helped himself to a handful of the first batch. Gordie was drooling. Robby shared with him.

  While the second batch popped, Robby scooped out some popcorn into the box. The coyote-things were having a conference outside. Robby could hear them from the parking lot. He hoped that the smell was driving them crazy.

  Gordie was not delicate with his share of the popcorn. He wolfed it down and then stared as Robby ate one piece at a time. It was time for the third batch. Robby pushed the cool popcorn up the sides as the machine filled.

  He set his light on the edge of the desk and unfolded the park map on the floor. Robby and Gordie hunched over it as Robby went over the plan.

  “The deck stairs end here, which means this gate must be open. That doesn’t get them into the park though. Unless a tree has fallen down and taken out a fence or something has burrowed underneath, the only way inside is through the lobby or through the maintenance entrance by the tractors.”

  A drop of Gordie’s drool fell on one of the roller coasters depicted on the map. Robby frowned and threw some popcorn to distract the dog.

  “We run here, get some fresh fuel, and then come back around.”

  Gordie finished chasing down all the popcorn. He was back at the map with Robby.

  “The only problem is the bad fuel,” Robby said. “I tried to syphon a Hummer back in Gladstone. Couldn’t get it to work, remember? There’s a screen or a valve that I couldn’t get the hose past. Then Brad suggested that we… I don’t want to kill the battery.”

  His eyes went to the popcorn machine. While the thing continued to pop, Robby pulled off the back panel and got a look. The motorized arm inside worked on a tractor battery. It would have more than enough power to pull off Robby’s plan.

  ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪

  Robby filled a half-dozen trash bags with popcorn and dragged them down the hall to the window on the end. He opened it up and looked down. He had to be quick with the flashlight to catch them. The coyote-things would stay right at the edge of the circle of light. Only occasionally would he pick up the reflection of their eyes.

  The tops of the bags were loosely tied. Robby tossed them through the window, trying to scatter them
on the ground, two floors below. He waited a second to see if there was any interest. His light caught one coyote-thing sniffing at the top of one bag.

  A chill went down his spine when he heard a yip from another area. Robby’s light caught a coyote-thing trying to drag off one of the popcorn bags, scattering the contents all over the sidewalk.

  With a few more yips from below, the rest of the pack began to gather. They were emboldened by the food and didn’t run away when Robby pointed his light at them.

  Robby checked the back deck. The sentry was gone—off to join the rest of the pack at the feed.

  “Okay,” Robby whispered. “You have to stand guard.”

  They went to the bottom of the stairs. Robby pushed the door open enough to look around. All the coyote-things were outside, eating.

  “Stay here. I’m serious,” Robby said.

  He wedged a chair in the door and gave Gordie the hand signal.

  Robby crept to the defunct Hummer. His backpack was digging into his shoulders the bag was weighed down from the heavy battery inside. Robby opened the door to the Hummer as quietly as possible. When the lever released the hood, he cringed at the loud clunk. He pointed his light at Gordie. The dog was still at the door to the stairs, standing guard.

  He had planned the steps in his head, using the memory of watching Brad.

  The easiest way to pump fuel from the vehicle was to use the fuel pump. It made perfect sense. All he had to do was disconnect the lines and send power to the pump directly. That’s where the battery from the popcorn machine came into play. He didn’t want to drain the Hummer’s battery, but he needed to empty the tank.

  Robby clipped the jumper into place and waited.

  It sounded like something was happening, but there was no fluid coming from the line.

  Gordie barked.

  Robby looked up. His flashlight caught a pair of glowing eyes coming around the corner of the Hummer. From his backpack, Robby pulled a small bag of popcorn that he had brought, just in case. When he threw it, the coyote-thing flinched but didn’t take the bait. He was still coming at Robby.

  There was a piece of popcorn hanging from the hair on the coyote-thing’s weird, short muzzle.

  Robby backed up towards the stairs as Gordie began to growl. He dropped his pliers into his backpack and slung it on his shoulder.

  The Hummer gurgled and spat. Foul-smelling fuel began to spill from the line. It was the least of Robby’s concerns in that instant. For the moment, the coyote-thing was distracted by the fuel pump and the disgusting, tainted diesel that was spilling. Robby spotted another coyote-thing right behind the first. They probably had even more on the way.

  Robby was close enough to the stairs to bolt for the door, but that wouldn’t help him. He really needed to get inside the park, where the walls and fences would give them some time to get some real distance from the pack. Robby saw the doors at the back of the lobby.

  He whistled and Gordie jumped over the chair. The two ran.

  He heard the claws on the floors behind them as they sprinted. Robby’s light flashed all around the lobby as his arm pumped. Gordie got there first and slid to a stop to wait for Robby to press the bar that opened the door.

  Robby slammed into it, barely slowing. The door was heavy and had a mechanism on the hinge to slow its close. Robby pushed back on the door, trying to rush it shut as the sound of the coyote-things approached.

  It latched shut as animals slammed into the other side.

  Robby heard them scratching immediately. It might only be a matter of minutes before one of them accidentally hit the mechanism to open the door.

  Gordie was panting.

  Robby looked up at the signs on the paths.

  “Come on.”

  They ran.

  CHAPTER 31: NORTHAM

  “YOU CAN SIT IN front,” Abe said to Carrie. “You have long legs.”

  “Actually, I prefer the back,” Carrie said with a smile.

  In the back, it would be easier to disengage. Carrie had been up a long time. She needed rest and she needed some time to let her thoughts work themselves through. Private time was not something that Mike, Terry, and Abe allowed each other. They stayed together and they kept talking. Carrie felt their voices bouncing around in her head.

  “Suit yourself,” Abe said. He climbed in the front seat and then twisted to look back at her. She smiled again—light and natural, she hoped—and he smiled back. Mike sat next to her. Terry took the wheel.

  “Head to Boston first, right?” Terry asked.

  “Yup,” Mike said. “That’s what I understood.”

  “Me too,” Abe said.

  As Terry pulled around the roadblock outside of Northam, Mike looked over at Carrie.

  “Is that what you understand, Carrie?”

  She smiled at him. “Absolutely. I understand there are three firm tethers in a neighborhood downtown. Once we have proximity, we will introduce ourselves and call him in.”

  Mike smile back, satisfied for the moment. She knew what was in their heads. They had all received the same transmission and understood it in the same way. The constant repetition was a way to reinforce the orders and also make sure that everyone was still on track. If any of them began to slip at all, the rest would call in The Origin to straighten things out. Carrie didn’t want that. She wanted them to believe that she was fine while she took a little time to think for herself.

  The Origin wasn’t the only voice in her head. The good news was that they didn’t know about the other voice. The bad news was that the other voice was really difficult to understand. It had a language of its own, and it took forever for Carrie to get a sense of what it was trying to say.

  “I understand that one of these tethers will be a quick conversion,” Terry said.

  “That’s right,” Abe agreed. “If we find him first, we can use him to help us make contact with the other two.”

  “And a fourth lives separately, up in Medford,” Carrie said.

  Mike’s head snapped over towards Carrie. She had overstepped. This wasn’t the first time it had happened. When she was going around with Mike and Terry, gathering what they needed for the trip, Carrie had mentioned something about Abe coming with them. Mike and Terry hadn’t yet gotten the word. Suspicion had gathered over them like a fog until Abe had caught up with them and announced that he was supposed to come along.

  For whatever reason, she was getting some of the information early, and it rankled the others. She would have to keep her mouth shut if she wanted to keep the peace.

  After an awkward silence, Terry finally cocked her head and said, “Yes, Medford. There’s a young woman who lives in the back of an Indian restaurant.”

  Mike smiled too. Carrie guessed that he was finally up to speed.

  The interaction raised a million questions that had been swimming in the back of her consciousness. Where was this information coming from? Why was it so important that they go out into the world and track down everyone who hadn’t yet met The Origin? Why did The Origin call them firm tethers?

  It wouldn’t do any good to ask the others. They clearly didn’t have any information that she wasn’t privy to, and asking them would only arouse their suspicion again. She was going to have to figure it out on her own, or maybe with the help of the other voice.

  Carrie turned to look through the window at the passing terrain. They had left before dawn, but it was starting to get light out. She kept her eyes open but forced her attention inward. It took all her concentration, but the other voice was in there, whispering its unintelligible nonsense.

  ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪

  Carrie jumped slightly in her seat. She looked to make sure nobody had noticed. They were all in a quiet period—uncharacteristic, but certainly welcome. When she was sure that nobody was scrutinizing her, Carrie turned her attention back inward.

  He’s not from here.

  The voice was clear this time. It wasn’t speaking any language she recognized, but t
he message was precise and clear.

  Where is he from?

  Here. But not here.

  Carrie started to doubt herself. Maybe the voice was just her own imagination.

  Everything turns on him. He’s the center.

  The Origin, Carrie thought.

  But he can’t spin it freely. First, he needs to unbind the tethers.

  What are you? Carrie wondered.

  She didn’t get an answer.

  What happens when he unbinds the tethers?

  Still no answer.

  “We’re being influenced,” Mike said.

  Before she knew that she was going to answer, the words came out of her mouth.

  “Yes, we are,” Carrie agreed. Terry and Abe chimed in as well.

  “We should bring The Origin to purge the outsider,” Mike said.

  Terry responded first. “He’s busy.”

  “Yes, he is,” Carrie said, relieved. It took all of her will to not agree with Mike. He was right—there was an outside influence in the vehicle and it was going to try to subvert The Origin’s will. She had to protect that other voice. She had to keep it safe, but the urge to contradict herself and demand that they bring The Origin was beginning to overwhelm her.

  It was just luck that Abe bailed her out.

  “The Origin is too busy,” Abe said. “We will try later if we have to.”

  “Later,” Mike agreed.

  Carrie clenched her teeth and prayed that she could stop herself from betraying the other voice.

  CHAPTER 32: LONG ISLAND

  THE SUN WAS COMING up behind the building, casting its long shadow across the water. They were all standing on the balcony. Lisa hugged her arms close to her chest and shivered. Brad slid the door open just enough to snatch a blanket that was sitting on the chair. As he slid the door shut again, they heard Tim’s voice.

  “How’s she doing?” Brad asked.