Show No Fear

by Brandy Isaacs

  "I don't know. We need to wait until Boss' men leave."

  "Why are they there?"

  "No idea. Even Gary isn't sure. It's making him really nervous."

  Xander sighed. "Just be careful."

  "I will." The edge to her voice warned him she was getting tired of being told to be careful. "If you are going to go traipsing off after berserkers...you be careful. You could be getting in over your head."

  "We will," Shay assured her.

  "I've got to go. Gary will be here soon."

  "Where are you going tonight?" Shay asked.

  "I don't know. We usually don't know until Moreno tells us. I have an idea why—gotta go!"

  When Sydney hung up, Xander's heart lurched. "Shit!"

  "Gary was probably there," Shay put a hand over his.

  "I know."

  "So, we do what we have to do then, right," Zak looked at them all.

  Everyone agreed, and since there was no time like the present, they piled into their truck and headed towards Roger's Park.

  "I'm surprised by how many people are out tonight," Shay remarked from the back seat with ET.

  Xander and Zak were in the front with Zak driving. "I know. You would think after the attacks last night, people would hesitate to be out."

  "Well, this neighborhood isn't the safest anyway. I think they are probably used to it," Zak pointed out.

  "You’re probably right," she agreed.

  They continued to drive the neighborhood while ET monitored his police scanner app. Finally, after nearly an hour ET sat up excitedly and pulled out his ear buds. "The corner of Lunt and Ashland" he yelled. Zak didn't wait for more details, instead he pulled a U-turn and floored it east.

  "What's going on?" Xander asked.

  "Someone just called in an assault."

  "Does it sound like a berserker?" Shay held onto the handle above her door to stop from being flung across the car when Zak squealed through a turn.

  "The caller said it was 'another one of those crazies.' So it sounds like it."

  They were close so they hoped they were early enough to find the Berserker and could possibly capture them before the cops arrived. Shay struggled to extricate the Taser they had purchased from her purse. Even though they were less than a mile from the scene when the call came in, they were, unfortunately, not the first to arrive.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  For three days Sydney bided her time. She barely saw Gary and when she did he spoke in grunts and annoyed looks. If she tried to discuss their plan he silenced her with scowls telling her to wait. She didn't know what Boss was making him do, but she didn't think he was enjoying it. The only time she saw him was when he came to get her to go on one of Moreno's hunting excursions. He led her from the closet, sometimes with Moreno sometimes without, to the truck where she had to ride with the Colombian and his goons. Sometimes Jason was with them, sometimes he wasn't.

  The first time Jason reappeared she was surprised at first. She looked him over for any lingering signs of a reaction to her scratches but he didn't show any. Except maybe for an increased hatred of her. Otherwise, he seemed his normal self. Gary, at least, didn't leave Jason alone with her anymore. But she didn't know who he was more worried about—his son, or her. During the hunts, Gary (and sometimes Jason) stayed at the car while she wandered neighborhoods and parks luring berserkers to come to her.

  The hunts never took very long. Sometimes, she only had to sit on a bench or stoop and wait for them to come. As the days went on they came quicker. The first night they only found one. The second night three. The third night four. Xander had told her of their theory that the Berserkers were coming closer to Chicago and Sydney had her own guess as to why. Doc had indicated that it took approximately twenty-eight days for a Dyian to hatch from their host. According to the lunatic "doctor" the Dyians traveled home like spawning salmon. The twenty-eight day mark for her return from her mysterious abduction was drawing closer.

  If, somehow, another round of implantations (infestations?) occurred as she returned from wherever, then hatching season was getting close. Syd had no idea who, or what, had taken her from the burning cabin. She didn't know why they brought her back. And she didn't know who was implanting Dyians into hosts. She suspected it was Moreno, but did that make the timing coincidental? She had given up on coincidences. Sydney had wanted to tell Xander and the others about her theory, but Gary's footsteps had interrupted her. At least she thought they were Gary's at first but she realized they were moving too quickly and hung up the phone just in time.

  The man who opened the door wasn't Gary. And it wasn't Jason. So, she was glad that she’d had just enough time to stash the phone under her pillow. The man looked vaguely familiar, but it wasn't until he smiled at her that she put two and two together. He was one of the men in the board-type room that she had been brought to when she first arrived. The one who had grinned condescendingly at her and Moreno as they talked. It had been clear to her, at the time, that none of the other men put much stock in their craziness. So why is he here now? she wondered.

  "Good evening, Sydney," he said pleasantly enough.

  Playing the helpful kidnappee, she returned his smile. "Hello. I don't think we've been formally introduced.” She stood and held out a hand that the man didn't take. She let it drop awkwardly.

  "We have not. My name is Mark. I work for the Boss."

  "Does he not have a name? Or do none of you know it?" She smiled to show she was just making conversation.

  Mark was thoughtful for a moment. "Some people are better known as their title."

  Sydney nodded as if that was a good enough answer for her. "What can I do for you?"

  "I want to see a demonstration."

  Her mouth went dry and her knees felt like glass. "What kind?"

  "I want you to show me what you and Moreno have been up to?"

  She tried to laugh but it sounds forced and hollow. "Parlor tricks?"

  Mark tilted his head at her. For the first time, she paid attention to his clothes. He was dressed in a blazer and slacks. She didn’t know anything at all about men's clothes, but she guessed they were expensive. His hair was combed to razor precision and his skin was so clean it looked dry, as if he washed his face fifty times a day. Despite how clean he looked, Sydney couldn't shake the feeling that he was slimy. It was the same feeling that came from looking at a snake. They gave a slimy vibe even though their skin was smooth and dry.

  "You are saying it is all a trick?" he asked slyly.

  "What exactly are you asking about?" she decided to be cagey too.

  Mark laughed. "Moreno is so excited about your ability to control these...what does he call them?"

  Sydney snorted. "Dyians?"

  "Yes. Yes. That is what he called them. I need to see this for myself."

  Sydney debated on her chances of lying. She had spent a lot of time lying since first waking up with no memory, and she had gotten quite good at it. Always go with a lie that is as close to the truth as possible. "I really don't know how it works. I've wanted to research hypnotism...but...." she raised her hands to indicate helplessness.

  "So you think you are...accidentally hypnotizing them?"

  She shrugged. "Who knows? It's possible, right?" Plant a seed of doubt.

  "Perhaps," he smiled at her again, his teeth looking like blunt, viper fangs. "I'd love to see for myself."

  He stepped back from the doorway to give her plenty of room to exit. If he wasn't so clearly eager to avoid touching her, she would have expected him to take her arm as Gary usually did. But, considering he gave her at least five feet of space, she knew that wasn't likely to happen. "After you," he held out one hand and the other he rested on his waist. Conveniently, she saw the gun in the holster hooked to his belt. She got the message. Behave or I'll shoot.

  "Where am I going?" she turned and made for the elevator.

  "Fifth floor. To the Dyians."

  She took a deep breath and did her best t
o not let him see a slump in her shoulders or the look of fear on her face. She had no idea what this man's goal or intentions were, but she knew they couldn't be good. Where the hell is Gary? She knew her ability to trust him was limited, but he was a vastly better choice than Mark. She knew Gary didn't intend on killing her. For all she knew, this man was going to squeeze her to death then eat her.

  Riding the elevator, Mark stood as far away from her as he could get. She wasn't sure if he was just a run-of-the-mill germaphobe or if he was afraid of her and whatever abilities she had. Either might be used as an advantage for her at some point though. Off the elevator she led the way to the conference room. There were enough berserkers that they needed a room large enough to house them and she had directed them there earlier this morning. She was relieved to see Gary standing outside the door. But the look on his face was so grim that it twisted her stomach. Moreno fidgeted next to him looking annoyed and worried. Oscar and Javier stood behind them scowling, but clearly trying to be as unobtrusive as possible.

  Sydney's fear of the man behind her cranked up several notches. His presence intimidated the most intimidating men she had met. Her dread of what was coming increased until she had to make fists of her hands to stop them shaking. All too late, she realized that she had not had the time or chance to grab either her knife or her phone. She struggled to take a deep breath and jumped when Mark spoke behind her.

  "Open the door."

  Xander

  Xander gaped at the crowd of people at the corner of Lunt and Ashland.

  "Damn," Zak muttered.

  It wasn't just the gathered crowd that drew their attention. It was the van pulled up to the side of the curb. The people gathered were angrily gesturing towards it and shaking their heads. Two young men were walking away from the crowd towards Zak's truck. One called back over his shoulder, "Police brutality, muthafuckas!"

  The other one echoed his outrage. "Black lives matter!"

  Before he could stop her, Shay rolled down the window and called to the two men. Zak had pulled over against the curb a block away from the commotion. "Hey!" she yelled.

  "Shay!" Xander growled at her.

  She ignored him. The two boys, who looked to be in their late teens, eyed her warily. Their suspicion gave way to interest eventually when they realized she most likely wasn't a cop, and especially since she was pretty. "What's going on?" she asked as they approached.

  The boys eyed Xander, Zak, and ET and decided they must not be cops either, but weren't sure enough of that to come closer than the sidewalk. "What do you want, mama?" one of them asked.

  "What's going on?" Shay asked again, nodding towards the crowd.

  "Some pig muthafucker Tased the fuck out of one of those berserker guys. Just threw him in the back of the van."

  "No shit?"

  "No shit. Didn't even read him his rights."

  Xander wanted to tell the boys the cops didn't have to read someone their Miranda rights until they were actually charged, but he decided it was best to keep his mouth shut for now.

  "What did the guy do?" Shay asked.

  "Some girl said he attacked her," the boy who had been quiet so far finally spoke up.

  "Damn."

  The boy scowled over his shoulder again. "Some of the boys saw them fighting. Held him until the cops got here. This asshole," he nodded towards the van again. "Just comes and Tases the guy and throws him in the van. Now, there he go. Off to who knows where."

  Xander turned back to the crowd who was yelling louder now as the van pulled away from the curb. He glanced at Zak and Zak nodded. He took his foot off the brake and hurried after the van. Shay called out the window to the boys. "Thanks!"

  "What are we doing?" she asked, leaning into the front seat.

  "Follow them?" Zak asked, looking at Shay, Xander, and ET in turn.

  Xander nodded. "You think that guy is an actual cop?"

  "Hell no," Zak shook his head. "More like one of the 'men in black.'"

  "This is a bad idea," Shay leaned back again.

  No one disagreed but they kept going anyway. "Do you think we'll finally find out what's been going on with the supposed arrests?" ET asked.

  "I hope so," Xander looked over his shoulder.

  Xander didn't have a lot of experience following people, but he was pretty sure Zak was doing a good job. It was still early enough there were plenty of other cars out to help camouflage them even though they were always within a car or two of the plain, white van they followed. They tailed him north on Sheridan into Evanston and, eventually, Xander lost track of what city they were in but he figured Wilmette or Kenilworth.

  "We are going to have to stay back farther," he cautioned Zak. The amount of cars was thinning and eventually it would be obvious they were following.

  "I know," he grumbled, chewing at his lip. "See if you can tell where we are on the GPS. He's definitely not taking him to booking—wherever that is—but maybe we can get an idea..."

  Xander and Shay both pulled out their phones and fiddled with maps. "It looks like we are in Winnetka," he said. "But nothing says alien holding facility on here." No one laughed.

  "There is a country club though," Shay pointed out.

  "I'm not really feeling up to golfing," Zak snorted.

  "Smart ass. But that's the only thing in the immediate vicinity besides houses. I could be wrong, but...you guys make the call."

  Zak and Xander looked at each other before Xander shrugged and Zak replied. "I like to gamble."

  And it was certainly a gamble. If they headed off towards the club and the van went somewhere else, they would lose them. But if they kept following the van driver would spot them soon—if he hadn't already. Shay directed Zak to take the next left and keep going straight.

  "How do we even find the van once we are there?" ET asked.

  "Luck?" Xander muttered.

  He didn't know if it was luck or not, but they managed to find a service road that wasn't gated and they boldly drove onto the property as if they belonged there. "Where would you go if you were transporting a literal illegal alien?" he asked the van.

  "Some kind of private building?" Shay wondered. "I mean, if he did come to the country club, I would assume it would be because it is secluded and no one is around."

  "What do you think he is doing with the guy?" Zak wondered out loud.

  No one even wanted to hazard a guess. Xander began to suspect they were having at least a little luck when they found themselves in a parking lot housing numerous work vehicles that apparently belonged to the club. "Kill the lights" he told Zak. "Park over there," he pointed to the western edge of the lot. The fleet of maintenance vehicles overlooked a wide expanse of grass. "I think that's the edge of the golf course," he told them. "See. You can see the main road from here. There's something moving."

  Everyone looked in the direction Xander was pointing. "I think it's the van. Unless it's another random van driving around the golf course."

  He could barely believe their luck. From their vantage point, they were able to watch the van as it came to a stop near several sheds immediately behind the clubhouse. They were too far away to make out any of the man's features, but they watched him climb from the van, remove something from his coat or waist, then move to the back door. When he opened the door their view was obstructed, but they heard loud yowling sounds that cut off in a yelp.

  After leaning into the cargo space, the driver hoisted a body over his shoulder, he gave a little jump to readjust the weight, then slammed the van doors. "Holy shit," Zak breathed.

  "Where is he taking him?" Shay was leaning into the front seats again.

  "I'm going to find out," Xander reached up, flicked off the overhead light then opened the door.

  "What the hell?!" Shay tried to grab him over the seat but missed. She hissed at Xander to get back inside.

  "No." He raised his hood, hoping his dark jacket and jeans would help hide him. "This is our chance to find out what the hell is goin
g on." The driver was lugging the berserker towards the woods that flanked the clubhouse and golf course.

  "You don't know your way around these woods!"

  He held up his phone. "GPS."

  "I'm going with you," Shay started to climb out of the trunk but Xander shut the door. Nearly catching her foot.

  "No. One person will make less noise."

  "He's right, Shay," Zak agreed. "And arguing with him is only going to cost us time."

  The driver was making his way towards a path that cut into the well maintained woods. Considering this wasn't an actual wilderness, Shay knew Xander wasn't likely to get dangerously lost. He had her, and he knew it. "I'll be back," he assured her.

  "Have you ever seen any scary movie?" she snarled at him.

  Instead of continuing to argue, Xander turned and hurried across the field that separated the maintenance facility from the head of the course. For better or worse, Xander told himself, I'm about to get some answers.

  Xander

  By the time Xander made it to the edge of the woods the mystery man was far enough down the path he couldn’t be seen. The forest was well manicured and most likely planned. So, worried that he would be spotted, Xander debated on trying to follow the path through the trees or if he should just stay on the path itself. Before he could decide, a noise behind him caused all the hair on his body to stand on end. He felt the heavy presence of being watched and tried to tell himself it was just Shay and the others watching from the truck, but he knew that wasn’t true. None of them would have tried to sneak up on him.

  “Don’t do anything stupid. Just turn around. Slowly.”

  The man’s voice sent anger more than anything else shooting through him. He was mostly angry at himself for letting someone sneak up on him. And angry at the man for getting the drop on him. Even a little angry at the others for not warning him. But when he turned, he realized why they hadn’t. A man, dressed all in black, was crouched in the shadows near a large, decorative bush. Xander couldn’t even tell how tall the man was, but he could tell he was holding a gun. The moonlight glinted off it and highlighted its dangerousness. “Fuck,” Xander sighed.