by S. E. Meyer
Soon enough the evacuations will begin and this type of thing will go away. There won’t be any room for hardcore drugs down there, and maybe everyone can get the help they need to get well. John thought. At least he hoped that would be the outcome, and hoped Braedon had plans to control those types of things.
“Okay, can we get to my brother’s place now?” John asked again.
“That where we go’in man. I tol ya, relax. Just got a couple stops to make on the way, dats all.” Juice got back on the main street and they drove several more blocks before pulling up in front of another apartment complex. J Dog got out and left the three of them in the car.
“I guess this isn’t it either?” John said, but he didn’t get a reply. J Dog came back carrying a plastic grocery bag that he stuffed under the passenger seat and walked around to the front of the car. Skinny and Juice got out too and they all looked at John.
“Hey man, you got a driver’s license right?” J-Dog asked John through the window.
“Yeah, why?” replied John.
“Well you the only one who do. Need you to drive the car man.”
“I’m not driving this car, what’s under the seat?”
“Just some weed man, look if you want to see your brother then you gonna drive dis car or we jus gonna sit here and wait.”
“Fine, but we are going directly to James’ house from here and nowhere else, this is ridiculous.” John knew it was a bad idea, but the way things were going he had to get the hell out of there and get to James’s house as soon as possible. He definitely didn’t want to sit where they were parked any longer then he had to. “So where to? I have no idea where we are or where we’re going,” John asked as he slid into the driver’s seat. He was getting angry, and his waning patience was starting to show. “Straight to James’s from here,” John said looking J-Dog in the eye.
“Dat’s where we going man, I tol you,” replied J-Dog.
“You’ve been saying that for three hours!” John yelled. They directed John back out onto a main street and they drove for several blocks. Then J Dog told John to pull into the parking lot next to a Subway.
“I'm guessing James doesn't live in a Subway restaurant.” John said with a sigh, shaking his head. He glanced passed the closed sign in the window, taking in the many pictures of food on the walls inside. The scene wasn't helping John's hunger.
“Just a little further now but we gotta pick up my otha wheels and leave the car here.”
“What? Really? Now we have to switch vehicles?” John asked, exasperated. J Dog, Juice and Skinny all got out of the car and J Dog grabbed the bag under the seat. They all walked over to a white Escalade parked in the end stall and got in the back and passenger seats, waiting for John to get in and drive. John got out of the Caddy and slammed the door. He stomped over to the Escalade and got in.
“This is just ridiculous you know? I have never had to go through so much bullshit in my life. Why the hell did we have to change vehicles?”
“Um cause John, dat car got expired tags man. We don wanna be driv’in round with weed it dat car.”
John completely lost his cool. He had been trying very hard to keep his composure, but now he just went off. “What? You’ve got to be kidding me, right? That's exactly what we've been doing! No wonder none of you wanted to drive that car. Big ass bag of weed under the seat in a car that just got released from the impound, reeking like there’s a bale of it in there, and has expired tags. Are you guys trying to send me to jail?”
“It’s not like that man. It cool, we good,” replied J-Dog.
“No, it’s totally not cool and we are not good!” John got out to check the sticker on the license plate and make sure the truck was legal before getting back in. “I swear to Christ you better take me to James’s place.” John said as he turned the key.
They drove for several more blocks before J Dog instructed John to take a right turn into a long drive in what looked like a commercial area of the city. At the end of the driveway was a junkyard with tall fences all the way around the perimeter. Someone opened the gate for them and John pulled the car inside then followed the road around a large pile of rusty cars before stopping.
“So, we’re here now right?” asked John.
“Yeah man, just like I said John, we was heading to James’s crib, just had a couple stops on da way.” He was laughing as they all got out of the Escalade, but John was ready to punch J Dog in the mouth.
“This better be the place, otherwise I’m calling a cab and going back to my car.”
“It cool John, it cool. Follow us.” John followed the men around the corner and through a service door that opened up into a large shop building. John looked around as they came in and noticed half of the shop had been converted into living quarters. As they entered that part of the building James came out through the door to meet them.
“John! Hey man what the hell are you doing here?” James fist pumped John’s hand and then gave him a hug, slapping him on the back. J Dog handed James a thick envelope that looked to be full of cash.
“Thank you my man,” James said as he slapped J Dog on the shoulder. “You guys take care now.
“No hard feelings, right John man?“ J Dog asked.
“Well you got me here, thank you for that anyway.” The three men headed out the door and John finally answered James.
“I came to talk you James and you would not believe what I just went through to get here.”
“Oh if you were hanging out with those guys I could believe it.” James smiled.
“What the hell are you doing man, selling crack?” John asked.
“Oh, no I don’t have anything to do with drugs.”
“I’m telling you, those guys are selling crack.”
“That may be, but they’re not selling it for me. I only deal with documents, ID’s, birth certificates and stuff like that. Occasionally I’ll pull a bullet and sew up a wound so someone doesn‘t have to go to a hospital and can avoid the police report. That’s it. My guys are reliable and loyal so that’s why I work with them. I don’t really care what they do on their own time,” James explained.
“Well you should care. Would you believe I’ve been all over this city, driving in a car with expired tags that just got out of the impound, while smoking weed with three guys selling crack to pregnant women!” exclaimed John.
James laughed so hard his face turned red. “Wow, you’ve had quite a day already. You were smoking weed?”
“I didn’t really have a choice,” argued John.
“Let me guess, you didn’t inhale right?” James was bent over, laughing so hard now his sides were shaking.
“It’s not funny man! I was sure I was going to jail at any moment. On top of that, my car is who knows how far from here.”
“John, let’s go get a drink and catch up a bit. I’ll buy okay? Now where did you leave your car at?”
“At the Beaver Tail, wherever the hell that is from here.” John threw his arms up in frustration.
“Oh that’s perfect!” James led John through the other side of the building and through the back lot where he had another door in the fence. James unlocked it and they walked through, then crossed the ally. As soon as they came around the corner John noticed they were walking up to the back door of the Beaver Tail.
“See, it’s perfect, I live right next door to the Beaver Tail.”
“Son of a bitch!” John yelled.
“What?”
“They made me go all over God damned Chicago because they needed someone to drive their POS car, and you were right next door all along? asked John
James was laughing again. “They didn’t tell you I was right next door?”
“It’s not funny James, I’m so pissed right now.”
“Let’s have a drink brother.” They walked inside and sat down at a table. John told James everything that had been going on and the two brothers got caught up on their lives. John didn’t mention anything about what happened
underground, or anything about Braedon. He told James the same thing he told Jenny’s sister. That he was now working for the government. He also explained what he knew of the disappearances and what happened to their parents.
“Really? You watched it happen? Holy shit John, that must have been awful.” James said and moved in to hug his brother. “So mom and dad are...?”
“Gone James, they're gone,” John replied. “I have the equipment with me so I can give you an implant right now James, tonight, so the same thing doesn't happen to you. It will save you from having to go stand in line for hours at one of the clinics, and you could get kidnapped at any minute. It’s just not worth the risk to wait, I mean look at what happened to mom and dad.”
“I’m not putting one of those things in me. Are you kidding? It’s like some kind of government tracking device, I don’t want any part of it.”
“James, it will save your life, it will protect you from being abducted,” John pleaded.
“How do you know that? How do you know that isn’t just a ploy to get everybody chipped?”
“Let’s just say I know a lot more than am telling you, and I know a lot more than I can tell you, okay?” John explained.
“I’m still not getting it. Did you get one?”
“Yes, I was one of the first.”
“If I were you, I would get rid of it. I’m going to take my chances without it.”
“Really James? You’re telling me everything I went through today, to track your ass down and come here, so I could get to you early and save you from disappearing, and you’re going to tell me no?”
“Exactly, sorry John. Not happening, and really you should get rid of the one you have.”
They had several more drinks and the more John thought about it, the more uncomfortable he was about the implant in his neck. It was put there without his knowledge or consent when Braedon first rescued them. He thought that was a little strange. He brushed it from his mind for the time being. John felt good spending some time with James and the drinks were putting him in a chipper mood. He was just enjoying their time together. They were talking about old times and stories about growing up. After several hours they were staggering back to James’s place through the back alley.
“James? I love you brother!” John said as they made their way into the house side of the shop with one arm around each other.
“I love you too John. You know, I have all the equipment, I could pop that thing out of your neck for you with no trouble at all.”
“Ya right.” John started giggling. “My luck you’d cut my jugular, you did drop out of med school after all. Maybe you missed the day they learned how to do that,” John teased, slurring his words.
James laughed. “You’re still giving me shit about that, man.”
“That’s what brothers are for right?” John smiled.
“No, pretty sure I was there that day. Seriously though, you know I almost finished all four years, I learned everything a doctor learns, I just didn’t do my residency.”
“Why didn’t you finish?”
“Fell in love with my ex, remember? It was stupid. I could go back any time if I wanted to put the time in. I’m just not sure I want to, and I’m doing pretty well here. Let me show you something John.”
John followed James through the large living room area and into the back part of the house. John would never understand why a guy that could be earning a doctors salary and hold a very respectable, legal profession, would trade it all for an illegal one and the risk of prison time. John thought about asking him why he didn’t just go back, but thought better of it. It didn’t matter anymore anyway, they would all be living underground soon. James led him through a doorway and into a large room full of printing machines and computers with large flat screen monitors. James picked up a small device and held it up close to John’s neck.
“This is a transmission scanner. I want to check something out. I want to see exactly what this thing is doing.” James hit a few keys on the nearest computer and the screen flashed out of standby. “Wow, look at that John. That thing is sending all kinds of info to who knows where?” The computer screen was scrolling lines of code that didn’t mean anything to John.
“Forgive me James, but I didn’t drop out of MIT so I have no idea what all that means.” John smiled showing James he was kidding about the dropping out comment.
“It's biometrics. Your heart rate, blood pressure, look it’s even sending audio. Jesus John it’s sending out conversations with anyone you talk to. It’s sending our conversation right now as we speak. What the hell? You have to get that thing out of you. Who knows who's listening, and what they’ve already heard. I‘ve got a business to protect here,” James pleaded.
“I can’t James. As much as I want to, I really shouldn’t,” replied John.
“Well then I’m going to have to quit talking to you.”
John thought it over. He had been having an overwhelming urge to get it out of him all afternoon, but John just thought it was the weed that made him paranoid. Now he thought that maybe it would be a good idea, especially with what James was telling him. “You said you have a bunch of those discs anyway right? So if you want to you can always just pop another one in your neck later, if you think you have to have it.” John finally gave in. He wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol or James’s reasoning, but he agreed to have James remove it.
“Okay, come back to my med room.” John followed James into a smaller room leading off from the computer room. There was an exam table there and several glass door cabinets with medical supplies and tools. It looked like a doctor’s office or emergency room.
“This isn’t going to hurt much is it?” John asked
“Naw, I’ll give you one of the caines under the skin before I pop it out of there with the scalpel,” James said as he looked through his cabinets for the right bottle and a syringe. He filled the syringe halfway and told John to lie down on his stomach. He took out a swab and rubbed iodine thoroughly over the back of John’s neck. James then stabbed John’s neck in several places and pulled out a scalpel as he turned on the big spot light above his head.
“Okay, this might feel a little weird.” James touched the scalpel to the back of John’s neck and made a small incision exposing the dime-sized disk underneath the skin. He grabbed it with a small forceps and pulled on it.
“What the hell is that?” asked James.
“What?”
“I don’t know. There’s like a string coming out of it, buried deeper in your neck tissue. It looks like a tentacle or something. I’ll just cut it at the disk.” James cut the strange tail off the disk that was holding it in place and pulled it out, dropping it into a stainless steel pan next to John's head. The incision was small enough that James didn’t need to put in any stitches. He used butterfly strips and tissue glue to put the small wound back together and then covered it with a bandage. “There we go, that wasn’t so bad was it?”
John didn’t respond and James tried to gently shake him. “John, are you alright?” John’s body suddenly jerked and he rolled over, falling off the exam table onto the floor. He began to convulse. “Shit, no what the hell. John, talk to me.” James knelt down and was in John face trying to get him to come around. John stopped convulsing just as abruptly as he started and suddenly sat straight up with his eyes wide-open, knocking James over and landing him on his backside.
“Oh my God James. I have to go,” John finally said as he relaxed and had a more comfortable expression on his face.
“Go where? What are you talking about?” asked James. There was a sudden flash of light in the room making the two brothers squint as they looked to see its source. There was a radiant figure standing in the corner and through the exam room doorway John could see a pod in the next room nestled in between two computer desks. He immediately got up and went into the next room. The figure appeared to be much more beautiful than the one John remembered seeing at his parent’s house. It took a few st
eps toward him and spoke.
“John, you removed the device. We have been waiting for you to make that decision. You can come with us now, are you ready?
“Yes” John replied.
“John wait, what the hell is going on?” James asked as he reached for John’s arm.
“I’m leaving James, I have to go and see for myself. I know this now, now that you helped to open my eyes by removing that thing. Now I can see the big picture, it makes sense. I’m leaving James and you should come with me.”
“I’m not going anywhere man, I am just fine right here.” James had a terrified tone in his voice as he spoke and was shaking. He kept nervously glancing at the radiant figure. “And John, I would suggest you do the same. After everything you told me about these disappearances, now you want to walk right into the lion’s den?”
“Yes, I have to see for myself.” John turned back to the brilliant figure. “I can come back, when I want to right?”
“No-one wants to come back here John,” the figure answered.
“But if I did, you would take me back here?”
“Yes. I suppose. You are a Sura, so you have more of an understanding in these matters.”
“I have your word that you will take me back here,” John asked again.
“Of course John, we only take those that choose to come and if you want to come back here we will not hold you against your will,” the figure explained.
“I still think this is a bad idea John. You told me they were taking slaves.” James said.
“I’m sorry brother, but I can’t help it. I have to know, I have to see for myself.”
John shook James’s hand and then gave him a hug. “I will see you again J-Bone.” John said and then laughed as he walked over to the pod and climbed inside. James watched as the figure and the pod holding his brother suddenly disappeared, leaving him alone in the dark room. The only light was the faint glow of the monitors illuminating the blank white walls. James slowly dropped to his knees and then sat down on the floor with his head in his hands as he asked himself. What the hell just happened?
