by Tim Moon
Still, Ben couldn’t help feeling both nervous and excited, like high school dating all over again.
Finished in the bathroom, Ben walked back into the room and noticed that Ty was still sleeping.
Ben went over, shook Ty’s bed and yelled, “Earthquake!”
Ty’s foot shot out at him, but Ben easily dodged it. The look on Ty’s face was priceless. “Your turn,” Ben said, still laughing at the glare he’d received.
“Yeah, yeah.”
Ty got out of bed, slapped Ben on the back of the head, and ran into the bathroom. Ben heard the click of the door lock, which made him laugh harder as he rubbed the back of his head.
Thoughts of those thirty-six dead people invaded Ben’s head. Worst of all were the images of the woman’s brain – thankfully no longer Charlotte’s – splattering on the overhead bin. His mind had a hard time mulling it all over. Even though he hadn’t spoken with any of the other passengers, the fact that Ben had seen them in their last hours was a strange feeling.
Ben turned on the TV and flipped to a local station, hoping to catch some news on whatever had killed the passengers. If knowledge was power, Ben hoped that knowing what had actually happened would help put it to rest.
The gorgeous weather woman was cheerfully going on about how sunny and warm it was going to be, as if they didn’t know. She spoke with the enthusiasm of someone who was used to reporting rain, like the weather guy back home did when they had their few days of summer.
Seriously, the entire 10-day forecast was sun and mid-80s. This had to be the most boring place to be a meteorologist. Maybe that’s why they’d apparently hired a supermodel. Anything to keep things interesting.
After the weather model was done talking, they cut to a video of a hotel fire. Fire fighters hosed down a building before the image cut to fire inspectors poking around in the ashes. At least two floors of the hotel had collapsed into what had been the lobby. Flame and smoke damage could be seen everywhere the camera panned.
A reporter interviewed one of the inspectors who said that the cause of fire was undetermined. Eye witness reports led the reporter to suggest the fire may have been caused by one of the small stoves that kept food warm during the breakfast buffet. A few of the witnesses came on camera and mentioned an altercation between two men. The inspector was shown again, refusing to comment until the investigation was complete.
At least three people were dead.
Next was a piece about a local school sporting event and the impending annual triathlon.
Nothing was said about the dead tourists. Perhaps, there wasn’t much more to say. But not knowing specifics about what had happened and why they’d died kept the issue percolating in the back of his mind.
A quick internet search on his phone only brought up short articles that repeated what he already knew. There was still no word on whether they’d been exposed to something or contracted a disease, how they’d become sick, or why they apparently rose from the dead with a taste for human flesh.
Thinking about that part grossed Ben out. He flipped through the channels to find something entertaining to take his mind off it.
October 9 | Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway | 1945 Hours
THEY CRUISED DOWN the highway from Waikoloa to Kona on their way to meet the ladies. The sun sat low on the horizon, casting a warm glow on the island. Nature put her best face forward with every sunset in Hawaii.
Soon, the island would be drenched in darkness. If Ben were to turn off the headlights, the road would be pitch black, like a cave. Only the faint glow from the impressive blanket of stars overhead would illuminate the night. When he’d asked about the lack of street lights along the highway and the sparse lighting in town, one of the hotel staffers mentioned there were light restrictions on the island because of the observatories on Mauna Kea.
Ty leaned forward and turned the music down a little.
“So what do you think of Charlotte?”
“She’s nice,” Ben said, casually. “Why?”
“Just nice?”
“Well, I mean, she’s funny, easy to talk to, and you’ve seen her – she’s smokin’ hot.”
“Anuhea said she seemed into you. Too bad she lives so far away,” Ty said.
Ben couldn’t help but laugh. “You know I’m moving to China, and we’re on vacation in Hawaii. No matter where she lived, it wasn’t likely to be near me.”
Ty shrugged. He enjoyed setting people up, like a real life Cupid. Maybe because meeting people came so easily to him, he wanted to share the connections he made and redistribute it to those who were less adept.
“I’m just saying, she’s a great girl. Though, she would have to be to be such good friends with Anuhea.”
“Oh what’s this? Has Cupid been hit by his own arrow? We hardly even know these girls. We’re definitely not at the falling for them stage.”
“I’ve known Anuhea a while,” Ty said, defensively. “It’d be nice to give it a real go for once.”
“Are you having an emotional crisis?” Ben smirked as he glanced at his friend. When Ty didn’t answer right away, Ben realized that he was. In a way, maybe they both were. “What’s up, Ty?”
“Well, it’s just…you know, life’s short. With all those people dying out of the blue, it kind of put things in perspective – how quickly things can end. I might be good at meeting girls, but I’ve never had a real, long-term relationship,” he said softly.
This was an unusual conversation for them to be having, but Ben didn’t want to push his friend back into silence.
“I understand the feeling. My only long-term relationship was with Kristin, and we both know how that turned out,” Ben said through the awkwardness. “But I think we should just focus on having a good time. If something develops between you two, cool. If not, no biggie. For me, it has never turned out well when I’ve tried too hard.”
Ben thought for a moment. “I wish I could offer you something better, but that’s all I’ve got.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” Ty sounded reluctant, but he leaned forward and turned the music back up. He rolled down his window and began to sing along.
8
October 9 | The Brewing Company, Kona | 2010 Hours
“IS OUR SERVER on a lunch break?” Charlotte said, with a frustrated shake of her head before standing up. “Be right back.”
She walked away before any of them could say anything, heading toward the bar.
Ben watched her go. Blue shorts hugged her curves, and firm, athletic legs led down to a pair of what looked like short Spartan sandals.
When Ben looked up both Ty and Anuhea were smiling at him.
“What’s that?” he asked innocently, pretending that he’d missed a question. He could feel his face burning.
“Nothing,” Anuhea said, laughing.
Ben took a drink of his brown ale to hide his embarrassment.
“How’s your drink?” Ty asked with that knowing grin.
He was holding Anuhea’s hand, stroking her knuckles slowly with his thumb. Ben glanced down at his glass and realized there was maybe one sip left. He gulped it down and stood up. “Empty.”
He joined Charlotte at the bar. “Hey, I figured you could use a hand.”
“Not really.” A coy smile played across her lips. “But thank you. Those two are really hitting it off, huh?”
She glanced over her shoulder at Anuhea and Ty. Ben knew they were holding hands, but he turned to see what she meant. He couldn’t help the groan that escaped. Ty was holding Anuhea’s hand up between them like he was going to kiss it. Their faces were inches from each other, smiling like newlyweds.
Charlotte laughed at the scowl on Ben’s face and punched him lightly on the shoulder.
“By the time we get drinks and get back there, they’ll be planning their wedding,” Ben said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.
“Shut up, it’s cute. I haven’t seen Anuhea this happy in a long time.”
Ben turned away fr
om the love birds to say something to Charlotte, but a movement behind her caught his eye.
Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, a guy lunged toward a couple leaving the restaurant. He looked drunk. The girl shrieked and the boyfriend stepped forward and pushed the guy who stumbled and fell. The couple turned around and quickly walked away.
“Did you see that?” Ben asked Charlotte.
“I turned when I noticed you staring outside. Just another drunk guy falling over, happens all the time at bars,” she said with a wave of her hand.
Ben agreed that drunk people could be dumb, especially on vacation. He decided that the man was probably a tourist from the mainland, giving all visitors a bad name.
Their drinks finally arrived, no thanks to the still-absent server. They each grabbed two of the pints and started back over to their table.
“That took long enough,” Charlotte muttered.
The normal murmuring of the crowded restaurant was interrupted by an explosion of shattering glass. Shards from the main window tinkled onto the concrete floor, silencing everyone in the restaurant. Everyone turned toward the source of the noise.
Startled, Ty’s drink slipped through Ben’s fingers and smashed on the floor in a burst of golden ale.
“Damn it.” Ben hated to waste such good beer.
The damn drunk that had fallen outside had somehow smashed through the window, leaving a jagged hole behind him. He stood clumsily, growling like a dog. He was pale, with dark, ominous eyes and a thick mane of sun-bleached surfer’s hair. A sliver of glass fell as he pulled himself upright, unzipping his cheek. But he didn’t even flinch. Ink-colored blood started pouring down his cheek. The drunk groaned like an old man as he shuffled through the broken glass, people scattering away from him as he approached.
Arms reaching out, the man went straight toward a small group sitting at the bar. All five of them just sat there looking at him, too stunned to move.
The crazy guy lunged the last few feet toward the group at the bar. Most of them scattered like sandpipers, but one girl was not fast enough. With a wild look in his dark eyes, the man latched onto the girl’s arm and sank his teeth in.
Like the sweet juice of a ripe peach, blood dripped down his chin as he savored the bite. He tore in for a second bite, devouring her arm like a chicken wing.
A collective gasp of horror was punctuated by the agonized screams of the girl. Out of the corner of his eye, Ben thought he saw someone vomit.
“Holy shit, not again,” Ben said. A chill transformed his arms into braille. How could this be happening here?
Charlotte glanced at Ben with a confused look. He grabbed her elbow and pulled her back toward their table. Fear saturated the restaurant. People bolted for the exits, yelling and screaming in panic.
Flailing wildly, the girl at the bar battered the drunk with her free arm. Her nails tore at his face like a wildcat, opening the tear on his cheek even wider and leaving angry trails across his face that began dripping with dark, almost black, blood.
Her red blood glistened brightly on his lips, a contrast to his own hideous, blood drenched face.
One of the guys in the girl’s group plucked up enough courage to punch the man in the face. The attacker’s head cocked back with the force of the blow, but it did little to deter him, as he closed his mouth around her arm again.
Adrenalin coursed through Ben’s veins. Memories from the plane made him hesitant to step in, but he’d hate himself if he just stood by and watched like an idiot as this girl was devoured.
Ben set his drink on the table and glanced at Ty, he was transfixed like the others.
Ben’s hands clenched into fists as he started forward. He felt a pull on his arm. Surprisingly, it was Charlotte, trying to hold him back.
“Don’t go.” Her eyes pleaded with him to leave it to someone else.
“I have to help,” Ben said as he gently freed his arm.
“Ben, wait,” Ty said. But he pretended not to hear Ty.
Ben hadn’t been able to do much on the airplane to help anyone. He couldn’t let that happen again.
A server yelled for someone named Keanu. Ben saw a muscular man with a Brewing Company shirt emerge from the kitchen. He looked at the crazy man, assessing him. It was obvious that Keanu was the restaurant’s problem solver.
Before Ben could act, Keanu ran around the bar, pushing his way through the fleeing crowd, and almost knocked Ben over as he barreled past. People were still fighting to push their way out, causing a traffic jam as they tried to flee. The fear that rolled off of them was almost tangible.
Keanu charged the attacker, grabbed the man by the arm, and twisted sharply with trained skill as he tried to pull the man off the girl. The attacker barely seemed to notice the awkward position of his arm and lunged in for another bite with the determination of a starved dog.
So, Keanu changed tactics. He slung an arm around the man’s neck, to keep him from biting the girl, and hauled him off with brute strength. Once he forced the man away from the girl, Keanu threw him against the bar. The attacker slammed into a stool and tripped.
Now free, the girl sobbed as she cradled her shredded arm. Stark white bone could be seen through the stringy bits of muscle that wobbled free of the jagged wound. The guy who had tried to punch the attacker, possibly her boyfriend, reached out to help her but she slapped him with a resounding crack and ran through the broken window and down the sidewalk. A trail of blood followed her escape.
With an angry growl, the crazed man came lurching back at Keanu. Keanu took a quick step back to create some space. Blood dripped from the man’s mouth and bits of flesh dangled between his stained teeth. Keanu’s muscles tensed as his arm cocked back. His fist rocketed twice, squarely into the man’s horrid face.
The attacker stumbled back, off balance, but Keanu reached forward and grabbed the front of his shirt, pivoted, and hurled the man into the bar with one hand. The man’s head slammed against the stained wood, and he crumpled to the ground.
“Dude, we should get out of here,” Ty said behind Ben. His voice was urgent and panicked.
“No way, we’re witnesses,” Ben said, pulling out his phone and dialing 9-1-1.
Keanu rolled the crazy guy over, fighting to hold him down. He pulled a long, white towel from his pants pocket and attempted to bind him. But, just like the marshal on the airplane, Keanu couldn’t control the man’s blood slicked hands and bind them at the same time.
“Here. I’m going to help,” Ben said firmly. He pressed his phone into Ty’s reluctant fingers.
Ben went over, knelt down, and grabbed one of the guy’s arms at the wrist. With his other hand, Ben applied pressure to the attacker’s shoulder, so he could wrench the guy’s arm behind his back. It was a trick Ben had learned in college thanks to a self-defense class he’d taken for P.E. credit.
“Thanks. This asshole won’t hold still,” Keanu said, glancing at Ben.
“My friend’s calling 9-1-1. That was pretty impressive, the way you handled him.”
He shrugged. “I’ve had a lot of practice.”
Ben’s fingers felt sticky as he held the man’s wrist out for Keanu. The smell of blood registered, and Ben crinkled his nose. It was becoming far too familiar a scent.
Keanu rolled the towel up, like jocks did in high school locker rooms to whip people, and began to secure the man’s hands.
It was odd that the attacker didn’t say anything while he was restrained. No cursing. No yelling. The only sounds were an occasional groan interspersed with growls when he attempted to bite.
“Thanks again for the help. I think I got it from here,” Keanu said, standing up. “I’m Keanu, what’s your name?”
“Ben, and you’re welcome,” Ben said, putting his hand out.
Keanu glanced down and smiled at him. Ben realized his hand was covered in blood, and chuckled nervously.
Ben walked back over to the group. Anuhea was hugging Charlotte who was clearly distressed. Ty was t
alking softly to them both, so Ben went to the bathroom to wash his hands.
He used a lot of soap because he didn’t want to catch anything from that guy, something Ben hadn’t thought about when he went to help Keanu. Once his hands were scrubbed raw, he splashed his face with a couple of handfuls of cold water. Then he blew his nose to clear out the metallic scent of blood. It didn’t feel like enough, but it helped a little.
When Ben came around the corner, he noticed two police officers through the bathroom door. They stood in the foyer chatting about how this wasn’t the first attack. One looked up and saw Ben peeking out at them. Feeling a little awkward, he emerged from the bathroom, drying his hands on his shorts. Both of the officers stared at him for a moment then turned and walked away.
Most of the customers had run away when the fight broke out. Other than Ben, Ty, and the two girls, only six others had stayed. Two officers corralled the remaining customers into a group on the far side of the restaurant while the other two had Keanu back off so they could properly detain the crazed attacker.
Apparently, the officers knew Keanu because he exchanged a hearty bro hug with one of them. Ben figured that when you’re the go to guy for dealing with douche bags at one of the best restaurants in town, the cops get to know you.
“That was really brave of you to help,” Charlotte said softly. “I only tried to stop you because I was worried about you getting hurt.”
Ben was touched that she would show such concern.
As Keanu talked with an officer, who was taking notes, he raised a hand and pointed at Ben. The officer looked up from his notebook and waved him over.
Ben gave the officer his statement and contact information. The officer thanked him for sticking around and helping. He inquired about the female victim, but Ben could only give him a physical description. The officer said not to worry. Based on the severity of her injury, the officer figured she would show up at a hospital soon and he could get her statement there.
October 9 | Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway | 2120 Hours
