The Maddening: Book 2 in the Terror Saga

by Nicholas Head

  She laid back and propped her head up, resting it on her tired fingers. He disappeared for just a second, and she heard a painful grunt. She just about to go look for him when he returned, rolling an impossibly huge stump, and kicked it into the fire. A whoosh of hot ash and embers shot up into the night sky.

  “What was your plan for when you got there? It’s not like slave traders are interested in reuniting long-lost love.”

  Jude pointed at her and chuckled. “Tell me about it. I’ll tell you what I’d do. I’d beat down every door until I find her, and once I do, kiss her like there was no tomorrow. Kiss her like I did not know when or if my next breath was coming.”

  “How do you even know she's still alive?”

  He inhaled a huge breath and flared his nostrils as he let it out, “I don’t, but that’s no reason to quit trying.”

  “Maybe I’ll never get it.” She put a hand over her heart and pushed her brows together.

  “Let me guess,” he said, his smile still just as big, “You’ve never been in love.”

  “I don’t know. At least, I don’t think I know. Everything before a few days ago is a blank filled with a jumbled mess of sadness and aching, for something I can’t put a finger on.”

  He furrowed his brow, narrowing his eyes to stare at her.

  Until a few seconds ago, Marisha wasn’t sure she was sure about anything in her mess of a life. Especially something simple, like love or heartache. Things in her life felt familiar but never certain, but now she wasn’t so sure. Something tore at her insides, a longing for something lost or stolen. She had never bought the story Garrick had tried to spin. Something now told her this dormant desire was a lot closer than she realized.

  “What do you mean? You mean you remember nothing? Like amnesia?”

  “Worse. We’re not so different, you and I.”

  His hard eyes bulged, and his mouth fell open “You’re only… eighteen.”

  “I know.” Marisha felt all the happiness go out of her heart. It was as if she had shrunk several inches. “The hardest part is that I think I loved someone once too, but for the life of me, I just can’t remember who they are.”

  Fifty-Five

  Colleen

  This should've been her element. After all, Colleen had spent several months on the road, with just Jackson, and unable to see a thing. She had navigated hundreds of miles and still had never gotten as scared as she is now. Like always, it was mind over matter, but right now, her mind was feeling too weak. Her breaths were fittingly shallow and rapid, like a panting dog.

  What little light that escaped between the cracks of the flimsy sheet of metal was practically useless. Not enough to give any clue of where she was or how much further until the end. Colleen knew she could navigate blindly, but not if she was hyperventilating as well. She had to pull it together.

  Colleen closed her eyes and fought her instinct to breathe fast. She told her body to slow down, and to her surprise, it worked. It wasn’t instantaneous, but breath by breath, her heart slowed down, getting a hold of her sanity.

  “Jackson,” Colleen whimpered out. So quiet she wasn’t sure even she could hear it. She would have to wait to try again.

  Now that her body has calmed down, and her mind was close behind, Colleen inched forward. Each bit of progress was just enough to replenish hope. The skin on her elbows was rubbing raw, but giving up was no longer an option.

  Pausing for a few breaths and to let the cramps subside, she put her head to the metal and listened to the faint sounds.

  Nothing.

  But then, Ta-Ting Ta-Ting Ta-Ting

  Colleen couldn’t tell if it was a tinny voice or just the sounds of the metal flexing from her weight against the structure. She started up again, faster now, but careful not to make her heart race. The light at the end of the tunnel grew by the second now. First, a pinprick in a sheet of darkness, eventually enough to see.

  “The light at the end of the tunnel. I sure hope this doesn’t mean I’m dying.”

  Caw-ting Caw-ting

  The excitement of hearing the end overtook, pushing her faster and faster, the pain now an afterthought. She called out again.

  “Jackson,” and this time, it's loud enough for someone to respond. There’s no doubt it was him as his deceivingly vicious bark echoed down to her.

  “-Leen…-Leen.”

  The light was getting brighter. Almost illuminating an opening.

  Colleen slowed down and paced herself. She could smell her puppy’s familiar, musty scent. Two black dots reached towards her, and she flinched, pulling back. She isn’t getting far while stuck in there. The black dots went for her again, this time latching on to her.

  “Let me help you,” said a familiar voice.

  Lito pulled, and she pushed, helping her emerge from the tunnel on top of a cavernous room. Yamuna grabbed her legs, making sure she wouldn’t fall headfirst into what appeared to be an underground room. They lowered her to the ground, and Colleen let out an exasperated sigh and collapsed.

  She looked around, noticing all the walls were made of concrete, with yellow fading lines painted on the floor. Her vision was still blurry as she tried to take in her surroundings.

  “What took you so long?” Lito said, “I was about to send Jackson in after you.

  “Oh whatever,” she said, rolling her eyes, “You aren’t about to do anything. There’s no way you were getting him back in there. He hates tight spaces more than I do.”

  Colleen could hear the Kutta scratching and clawing to get to them, but with their wide build, they weren’t getting anywhere near them anymore.

  Jackson walked up to her, his backside wagging back and forth with his tail stuck up in the air. He covered her face in wet puppy kisses. She wasn’t sure who was happier to be out of there, her or him. He rolled over, and she scratched his stomach, his whines of relief filling her ears with joy.

  Colleen gently pushed herself up and turned her attention to Yamuna, “I assume you had a plan in mind when you led us down here?”

  Yamuna put her hands up in mock surrender. “I didn’t have time to make a plan in the two seconds I had to choose. All I know is I had to get everyone out of there, and it just happened to lead down here.”

  “You mean—”

  “Colleen, don’t. She saved our lives.”

  “Don’t what—I just want my girlfriend back. I miss the hell out of her right now. The longer we sit here, the—”

  She was tired of all the slowdowns, the diversions, the feeling that nothing was going her way. She knew it wasn’t the case but, every step not in Marisha’s direction fell like a waste. All she wanted right now was to hold her favorite person again. It wouldn’t be so bad to feel her warmth against her chest either, as they clumsily melted into each other's arms. Marisha was always the one who would nuzzle up to that spot between her chin and chest, and they would talk all night long. At some point, Marisha would tire of conversation and turn to face her, first kissing her cheek to distract her. The chills would start there, no matter how many times it happened or even if she knew it was coming. That girl did something to her she couldn’t explain.

  Eventually, the kissing would become such a distraction that they’d both forget what they were saying and move on to something fiery, deeper. Again Marisha was the one to initiate it, but all it took was a little push to have her lips press deeper, her fingers squeeze harder, and her tongue probe more fiercely.

  Truth be told, Colleen had never kissed a girl before she met Marisha; She’d never kissed anyone, period. Colleen wasn’t clueless, or a prude, or picky. She just hadn’t found an occasion or person who felt right to try it with. Their first few were awkward, fast, with almost always someone turning bright red. The first time they French kissed led to both of them looking that way. Both of them passionately kissing, her fingers pressed into Marisha’s back, her lips glued to hers, and then suddenly there’s a tongue inside her mouth, flitting around. It didn’t last long before
Colleen would try it too, the tip of her tongue hesitantly parting Marisha’s lips, her tongue running along with her teeth, ultimately their tongues getting tangled up in passion.

  Her heart was so broken all she could do was scream, but she had better get a hold of herself if she was going to find Marisha. This Yamuna girl didn’t owe Colleen anything. As a matter of fact, she had saved all their lives, so if anyone was in debt, it was her. Now all they had to do was think of how to get out of there.

  “Yamuna,”

  “Yes?” the girl said hesitantly. Obviously still annoyed with Colleen’s earlier jab.

  “Where did that tunnel drop us out at?”

  “The loading area. The docks are over there,” she said, pointing to three rolltop doors in rough shape. “Freedom is just on the other side. Your horses should be tied up there too.

  “Then what are we waiting for. How hard can it be to prop the door up just enough to squeeze through?”

  “We aren’t getting out that way. Kali has had those barricaded shut for years.”

  Colleen looked to see the doors, chains cut, the wheels off the rails, and piles of junk stacked against it.

  “Well,” Colleen said, slowly turning in a circle until she spotted an exit solitary door. She ran over and tried the handle, to no avail. She pulled out her knife and slid it between the doorjamb and the lock.

  “Stop!” Yamuna yelled. “That just leads back to where we came from. I thought the idea was to get away from those things.”

  “We could put Lito back up in the tunnel for bait while we make a run for it. It should draw them off for at least a few minutes.”

  “Funny, Colleen.” He said, “What if we just wait it out. I’m sure the dogs will lose interest.”

  Colleen braced the door with her shoulder and turned the handle. “Kutta may lose interest, but everyone else guarding that front door is going to be looking for us.”

  She got the door halfway open, only for Lito to slam it shut.

  “Hey, what gives!” Colleen said, throwing her hands up.

  “Lin, that’s what.” He said, slapping the door.

  Lito rubbed his brow, moving his fingers to his temples.

  “Colleen, you’re doing it again.”

  “What?”

  “You’re being sloppy again. I know you want to get out of here, but we aren’t going out that front door, not if we're going to live. It’s my responsibility to help,” Lito averted his eyes to her stomach, “both of you get out of here alive. Let me take this one, okay?”

  Colleen said nothing, looking down, defeated. He was right. She lost edge when letting emotion get the best of her.

  “Yamuna, once we go out this door, is there another way out besides the front?”

  “There’s the roof access. It takes you to the outside staircase, and from there, you can sneak into the stable's back door and get all your things. There’s just one minor problem.”

  “No…No….”

  “You have to go past the planetarium.”

  Fifty-Six

  Colleen

  They would have to head right back to where they had just escaped and with no doors or obstacles to stop them from being torn apart by the still ravenous animals.

  “Why do you keep saying you, and not we?” Colleen said, moving away from the door.

  “Did you think I was going with you?” Yamuna said. “I barely even know you people, and I’m not about to just up and leave my home.”

  Lito gripped the back of his right arm, nervously rubbing it. “I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but they aren’t letting you back into the fold after you’ve been helping us all this time.”

  “What? That’s stupid. Yes, they will. I’ve just… I’ve just got to talk to—” Colleen could see it in Yamuna eyes once it set in. The acceptance, no matter how reluctant. Her entire body bent forward as she put her face in her hands. Lito walked up, trying to put a hand on her shoulder, but Yamuna quickly pulled away.

  Before Colleen had finished mouthing, “Give her a minute,” Yamuna had smoothed out her features and was headed back to the door.

  Lito opened the door, looked to the right, then to the left, and headed through the doorway. As Colleen came up behind Yamuna, she patted her on the back, gave her an enormous smile, and said, “Welcome to the team.”

  Luckily for them, the vast expanse of a room was still in a state of utter chaos. People huddled under tables, others still running around, trying to find a place to hide. Colleen looked to the top of the stares and spotted what she thought to be the largest Kutta. It had perched itself atop one of the tables, his head gliding side to side, surveying the floor below.

  As Colleen looked back to the room, something caught her attention: no one seemed to be injured. No blood or people hobbling around, missing limbs, and the only screaming seemed to be coming from people who were just scared.

  Lito stayed low, and they all followed his lead, cutting through the tables to the left with relative ease. Her stomach was doing her no favors, though, making it hard to stay bent over for long. Pretty soon, her back would start yelling at her.

  Once they were to the base of the stairs, he stopped, signaling them all to bunch up and wait. The Kutta let out a guttural growl and panned the room again. He stopped, staring in their direction.

  “Just wait,” Lito whispered. “He can’t see us.”

  “That doesn’t mean they can’t smell us.”

  Lito pointed to the stairs on the other side of the room, curving up to the second floor. He stared up to the Kutta, watching, holding his hand up for them to wait. Someone screamed across the room, catching the dogs, attention. The animal jumped all the way down to the first floor and barreled toward the sound, not missing a beat. This would be their window. Lito burst ahead, keeping close to the wall, everyone closely behind. Jackson by her side, looking as terrified as ever.

  Unfortunately, the animal wasn’t distracted as long as they had hoped for. Before they make it to the base of the stairs, it had already lost interest, seeing that whatever had made the sound wasn’t Colleen. They were far smarter than she had expected. She hadn’t given them enough credit. Colleen saw the Kutta pivot and dig its claws into the old carpet, launching itself in their direction.

  “Go!” she yelled, her legs churning, allowing her and Jackson to take the lead.

  They pound up the stairs, taking two at a time. The animal was already halfway across the room. If nothing slowed it down, they wouldn’t make it to the hallway before he would be on their backs.

  Halfway up the stairs, Jackson peeled off and into the direction of the Kutta. She called to him, her voice weak, demanding that he came back. Jackson was almost to it before they had made it to the top. His teeth were bared, looking at intimidating as he ever could, going at full speed with long powerful strides. He was on a collision course with something four times his size, and there was nothing she could do.

  At the last second, Jackson strafed to the left, his claws skittering across the polished floor, and the Kutta went headfirst into a stack of chairs, the sound of the collision filling the entire room. The animal recovered but not quickly enough. Jackson was already on his way back to them, still faster than any other dog she had ever seen. He had bought them maybe ten seconds, and that would have to be enough.

  Colleen was to the doors. Jackson nearly there. His paws pounding up the steps as his pink tongue hung from the corner of his mouth. Their pursuer had lost a step as it limped toward them, its back left leg dragging behind in an unnatural position. She didn’t want to feel sorry for the thing that tried to kill her, but part of her couldn’t help understanding its terrible station in life.

  They all burst through a set of swinging doors. Colleen pulled up, letting Yamuna head the way. They wind through the hallways, finally coming to an exit with the words FIRE above it. Once outside, they cut back and forth up two more floors. The precarious outdoor stairwell, creaking and groaning with the abuse of each step. Coll
een paused, they were almost to the top.

  “Hey,” she said, catching her breath in between words, “Don’t we… need to go… down?”

  “Too… dangerous,” Yamuna called back as she grabbed the rail and pulled herself forward.

  Colleen looked down to see a door blast open. Instantly, people began filing out of the building and into the parking lot. Before anyone could see them, they were on the roof; the others slipping through the maze of vents and heating units. Yamuna made it to the west wall and stepped onto the ledge. She peered down, bent her legs, and jumped.

  Fifty-Seven

  Colleen

  Lito was only a few feet behind her when she jumped. He threw his arms up and jumped up on the edge, staring down. His jaw fell open in what looked to be utter disbelief, shaking his head back and forth. Colleen slowed up her pace, not wanting to see what could be at the other end of that leap of faith. She stepped up on the ledge, totally unprepared for what she saw. Down below was a healthy, if not a bit banged up, Yamuna, rubbing a minor scrape to her knee.

  Lito shook off the initial shock and called down to her, “Are you sure that was a good idea?”

  “It’s the only way down, so it doesn’t matter if it a good idea or not. Suck it up and jump.”

  Colleen leaned over and whispered to Lito, “I like her. She’s a keeper.”

  Lito pressed his lips together.

  “You did a good job choosing a girl. In what? All of fifteen minutes? She’s pretty hot, too. If I wasn’t already taken—”

  “Shut up, Colleen, now’s not the time.”

  “Her family is crazy, but you can’t be too picky. Plus, it looks like you locked her down. That girl isn’t going anywhere now.”

  He inched up the ledge.

  “You’re going to catch me, right?” he said, pointing at Yamuna.

  “What? No! Don’t—”

  But before she could finish, Lito jumped. His arms flailed out at his sides. Falling in what looked like slow motion, he collided with the railing, chest first. His mouth fell open again, but this time he was gasping for breath. Luckily, it only took a few seconds before he drew in another breath and started coughing.