by Paige Watson
“Evey, are you ok?”
He bent down to look at me but I had already started screaming again. The woman was scrambling up from the floor and lunged toward him. In a movement that was so fast I barely had time to acknowledge what was going on. Conrad reached down to his leg, pulling up his jeans and withdrew a long knife. He thrust the knife into the woman’s throat, causing her to reel backwards. A wail escaped her lips and black liquid began to pour from her mouth. It coated her chin as she crumbled to her knees.
Conrad stepped to her and kicked the handle of the knife, cutting her throat so the back of her head collided with her shoulder blades. Black sludge poured from the woman’s neck and spilled onto the floor. The woman started to melt into a puddle. Her eyes were fixated on me until they burst, dissolving into the tar like substance that was quickly starting to swallow the white linoleum. Conrad lifted me up from the floor and turned to look at the kitchen. Mickey and Kit ran out and stared at the woman.
“Fulton, it’s not safe here anymore. I need to take her to the house,” Conrad said to Mickey.
“Ok,” he said with wide eyes. “Go get Marie and Guy. Kit and I will clean this up and get in touch with you later.”
“How did they find her?” Kit’s eyes were wide with shock.
“I don’t know,” Conrad answered. “We’ll have to figure that out later. Right now, we have to get her out of here.” I looked back and forth from Mickey to Conrad wondering what they were talking about. “Evey, we have to go,” Conrad said, grabbing my hand. As I opened my mouth to speak, the window behind us shattered, showering us with broken glass. Ten more deranged homeless looking people crawled in through the broken window. Their clothes hung in shreds from their bodies. The edge of the rotting fabric was singed, as if it had been held over an open flame.
“Oh, my God. There are even more of them outside,” Kit yelled, pointing to the glass door.
“Bourdet, you take Evey and head out the back of the restaurant. Kit and I will fight them off. Take her to Guy and Marie, we’ll meet up with you later,” Mickey said in an authoritative tone.
“Ok,” Conrad said, pulling me to the break room.
“No, I’m not leaving without them,” I said.
“Evey, there isn’t any time to explain. We have to get you out of here,” he pleaded.
“Not without Mickey and Kit. I won’t leave them.” Just as I finished speaking, another window was smashed.
“Evey, get out of here. Go with Conrad, he will protect you,” Mickey ordered.
The strange people stumbled over to us with their arms outstretched. Mickey ran behind the counter and pulled out an axe and a sword. He tossed the axe to Kit and swung his sword, slicing off the outstretched hand of a man with long black hair. I kept expecting a river of red to flow from the stump, but to my horror, more of the tar like substance dripped from the arm. I could feel my knees starting to give out. I held on to Conrad even tighter, praying I would stay on my feet.
“Evey, get out of here now!” Kit yelled. Conrad pulled on my hand, and we ran to the back door in the break room. I glanced back and saw a tornado of black. Mickey and Kit were slicing people, spilling their tarry insides onto the floor. Their weapons moved at a surprising speed as they plunged into the swarming mass of bodies. The once pristine interior of the diner was now a tomb, reeking with the smell of decaying bodies. Conrad gave my arm one last jerk and pulled me through the door. We burst outside, almost knocking into the dumpster.
“Come on,” he called, jogging ahead. I tried to keep up with him, but he was too fast.
“Conrad!” He looked back at me and I pointed to the left. A swarm of people were charging for us.
“Run!” He reached out for my hand and started sprinting for the front of the diner. “We have to get back to my car.” I followed his lead, but I couldn’t keep up with his pace. I tripped on a rock and was sent on a collision course with the ground.
“Damnit Evey! Why the hell are you wearing those shoes?” Bits of gravel stuck to my palms and knees.
“It was our first date, I wanted to look good,” I said, defending myself. “And up until just now, you didn’t seem to mind.”
“Yeah well we weren’t exactly trying to outrun a horde of tortured souls earlier!”
“Tortured what?”
“Souls. Never mind, I’ll explain later,” he said, grabbing my waist and throwing me over his shoulder. Then he took off in a sprint toward his car.
“Hey, put me down!”
“Not until we get to the car.”
“Then at least get your hands above the equator!!”
“What?”
“You’re grabbing my butt and I’m starting to think you’re doing it on purpose.”
“Well, don’t think, because I am doing it on purpose.”
“You are such an—” The rest of my sentence dropped as I started to scream. A melting body hurtled itself toward us, narrowly missing Conrad. A small woman coughing up black bubbles of tar reached forward to touch me. Without having to look, Conrad spun around, slashing her face with his knife. I wasn’t sure when he’d grabbed another knife, but she fell backward, erupting in an ear piercing scream. We made it to the car, and Conrad threw me across to the passenger’s seat. As he started the car, his headlights illuminated the horrible scene in the diner. Twenty bodies were clawing through the windows right for Kit and Mickey. I could still see the silver from their weapons glinting in the dim light. “We have to help them,” I cried, feeling the hot tears as they slid down my cheeks.
“We can’t. I have to get you out of here.”
“Please, I can’t leave them.” He took my face in his hands and wiped away a stray tear.
“I’m really sorry about this, but we can’t. I want to help them too, but I can’t let you get taken.” He slammed the car in drive and spun out of the parking lot, stirring up a cloud of dust as we pulled onto
the road. I looked back at the diner and saw more bodies appearing at the entrance. As we raced away, the scene faded in the distance.
“Evey, you need to put on a different pair of shoes. Look in the back.”
I looked behind the seat and found a purple duffel bag that was mine. I grabbed it and immediately started searching through it.
“Why do you have my stuff in your car?”
“I got it just as a precaution. I went by your house this afternoon and got it in case something happened, I knew Aden was looking for you and I wanted to be prepared for any situation.”
“Who is Aden?”
“I’ll explain everything in detail later, but all you need to know right now, is that he is a very bad guy and he wants to hurt you.”
“You went through my underwear drawer?!” I held out a pair of undies waving them in anger.
“What, do you not wear underwear or something?”
“Of course I do,” I said, aware that my cheeks were burning.
“Personally I like the pink ones.”
“Really? You’re going to say that right now?!” My voice was starting to quaver with rage.
“Well, I thought I’d try and lighten the mood.” The car took a sharp turn with speed and I was sent flying to his side of the car. He reached over me to grab my seatbelt and fasten it.
“What about you?”
“I’m ok,” he said, taking another curve. I reached across him and pulled his seatbelt on. “Thanks,” he muttered.
“What were those crazy homeless people? I mean, obviously they weren’t human because they didn’t bleed. Did they turn into black tar?”
“No, they aren’t people. They are what we call, tortured souls. They are souls that have been released from hell. Aden sent them after you. They are pretty fast but not as tricky to kill as demons. However, when you get a ton of them, they can be deadly.” His eyes fell to my arm. “Are you ok?”
“It hurts, but I’ll be fine.” Red welts covered the entire length of my forearm.
“They don’t turn into t
ar. When they are destroyed, their bodies decompose and turn into the cibus inferni.”
“What does that mean?”
“In English, it means fuel of hell.”
“Fuel of hell?”
“Yes, they are the fuel that keeps the fires of hell lit.”
“But that’s horrible! Those poor souls,” I said, drawing my hand back from my mouth.
“If it makes you feel any better, they were in hell for a reason.”
“No, that doesn’t really make me feel any better.”
“I’m sorry,” he replied, returning his eyes to the road. “I can’t believe he found you, someone has to be helping him,” he said, more to himself than to me. “I wasn’t expecting so many of them.” He pushed on the gas even harder, causing the car to lurch forward. “We need to get to the meeting place soon, it’s not safe here. I’ll bandage your arm when we get out of town.”
“Her hand,” I said, hearing my own voice shake. “Because they become the cibus inferni, is that how she burned me?”
“Tortured souls burn with the fire of hell, that’s what makes them deadly if you get a large number of them. Their touch burns anyone, as if that person were touched by a hot flame.”
“So, are they controlled by the devil or something?”
“Exactly, although I am sure Aden sent them after you. He is definitely up to something, and it’s not good." His eyes narrowed as he focused on the road. A small cut on the side of his head trickled blood.
“You’re hurt,” I said, pointing to the cut.
“I’ll be ok. You’re sure you didn’t get hurt anywhere else?”
“I’m ok.” I wiped the smear of blood from his face with my hand. “Thanks for saving me.”
“Like I said, it’s my job.” I rummaged through my stuff, pulled out a pair of pink converse sneakers and a pair of socks. I threw my heels back in my bag and slid the shoes on. I finished tying my laces as he parked the car on the street. He looked up and down the road both ways before getting out of the car. After he saw there were no immediate threats, he opened the trunk.
“What is that?” I asked pointing to a lethal looking weapon.
“It’s a mace.” He picked up another long knife and stuck it in the back of his pants. Then he grabbed the mace in his hand and handed me a small knife. “Get behind me,” he said, walking toward the front of my house. The light blue paint on the house glowed in the darkness. The house looked perfect, untouched and the white door loomed ahead of us. However, as soon as we reached the door, I could tell something was wrong. Conrad looked back at me before walking inside. “No matter what happens, stay behind me and don’t go off on your own.” I could feel my heart hammering inside my chest. Instinctively I grabbed onto the back of his shirt, positioning myself right behind him. His muscles were tight beneath
his shirt and his weapon was raised in the air, ready to strike. Glass crunched beneath our feet and we walked carefully around the overturned furniture.
“Where are my parents?” I choked on the last word, not really wanting to know the answer. Pictures from my childhood lay broken on the floor.
“I don’t know,” he answered in a whisper. “There is a light on in that back room,” he said, pointing ahead of us.
“That’s my room.”
“Evey, have your knife ready.” I held the knife in my right hand, pointing it out to the side. The house was eerily silent, causing my knees to shake. I looked at Conrad; he was collected, completely ready to attack and kill anything in his path. He reached forward to push the door to my bedroom open. Everything in my room had been torn apart, leaving a trail of destruction. Then my eyes fell to the crumpled body.
“Daddy!” I screamed, running toward the center of the room. I turned him over onto his back and looked at him in horror. His entire face was covered in red pustules. Every inch of visible skin had been burned beyond recognition. The area around his eyes was so puffy that his eyes only opened to slits. “Daddy, I’m here,” I said, bursting into tears. I gently took hold of his hand and bent low enough for him to see me.
“Evey?”
“It’s me.” Conrad bent to his knees beside me.
“Rhodes, there was an ambush at the diner. Twenty maybe thirty souls attacked us there. We barely made it out.”
“Fultons?” He coughed, spitting up blood. I took the bottom of my dress and wiped away the crimson droplets.
“We had to leave them at the diner. They were in a swarm and I had to get Evey out. I’m sorry, I didn’t want to leave them.”
“No, you did the right thing.”
“We have to get him to a hospital,” I said, looking at Conrad.
“It’s too late,” my father, said coughing up more blood.
“No, you’re going to be ok. If we can just get you to the hospital, you’ll be ok.”
“Evey,” my father said, reaching out to me with his blistered hands. “Go with Conrad, he will take care of you and explain everything that’s happening.”
“No, I won’t leave you.”
“Listen to me, they came for you, but you weren’t here so they took your mother. They will use her to find you and if she doesn’t help them, they’ll kill her.” His voice cracked at the effort it took for him to speak. “You have to leave; you are more important than any of us.”
I shook my head, feeling the tears stream down my face. “I won’t do it.”
I softly touched his cheek and he winced at my embrace. “I love you, but you have to get out of here right now.” The small puddles of scarlet on his shirt were getting larger by the second.
“I love you too,” I said, wiping at my tears.
He grabbed Conrad’s hand and pulled him down close to him. “They are looking for a consiliarius.”
Conrad’s brow furrowed. “I thought all of them were still in hiding.”
“They are, but he has already found one and he won’t stop until he’s destroyed all of them. He wants their powers.”
“Do the other secundae know about this?”
“No. There wasn’t any time to warn them.”
“How do I get in touch with the nearest consiliarius? They need to know what’s going on.”
Conrad waited for my father to answer, but my father started convulsing. Blood poured out of his mouth and nose. With the last of his strength, my father pulled me to him. “It’s in the field.”
“I don’t understand, what’s in the field?”
He looked back and forth from Conrad to me. “The consiliarius, how to find them is in the field.”
“What field daddy?”
He stared right into my eyes. “The field.” I tried to wipe the blood away from his mouth, but there was too much. “I love you. I love you so much,” he smiled at me.
I shook my head. I knew he was trying to leave me, but I couldn’t accept it. “I love you too daddy.” My tears rained down on his burnt skin. “Please don’t leave me,” I begged.
“I will see you again.” Then he released his last breath and his eyes went blank.
“No! Daddy!” I lunged myself toward him but Conrad’s arms held me back.
“We have to go Evey.” He looked around the room. “Now!” Startled by the tone in his voice, I looked at him. “Is there anything you need from here?”
I looked around my room that was in shambles. I walked over to the table beside my bed and picked up a photograph of my parents and me. “This is all I need.” I looked back down at my father’s body. “We can’t just leave him here.”
“I don’t want to either but we have to. He wouldn’t want me to risk your safety.”
I shook my head at him. “No, I am staying right here. I won’t leave him.”
“Then you leave me no choice.” Conrad scooped me up in his arms and carried me down the hall.
“I’m not a child! Put me down!”
“I know you don’t understand right now, but I can’t. I have to get you out of here.”
“Put me down,”
I cried. Unable to stop it; I burst into tears in his arms. He squeezed me tightly against his body. Still holding the photograph, I wrapped my arms around him and buried my face in his neck. I was crying so loud we barely heard the shattering of a window down the hall. Conrad stopped just short of the front door.
“Can you run?” He set me down on the ground and turned me to face him. “Evey, can you run?”
“I think so, why?” A loud wail rang out through the house. I could feel panic taking over my body. The wail sounded just like the old woman had at the diner. “Is that?”
“More souls.” He grabbed my hand and peered out the open door. “Ok, the front yard looks clear but they run fast. Faster than we can.”
I swallowed hard, trying not to choke. “What do we do?”
“Hold on to my hand and run as fast as you can to the car.” He reached out for my hand and interlaced our fingers, raising the mace in his other hand. I slid the photograph into the inner pocket of the jacket. He pulled the other knife from his back and handed it to me. “Let’s go!” We tore out of the house and started sprinting across the yard, heading for the car down the street. I looked behind us and saw a mass of bodies. His feet moved quickly, dragging me behind him. A tall bald man was gaining ground on us. He had his brown teeth barred in a snarl. We reached the car and I leapt inside. Conrad turned around and threw his mace at the man. It spun through the air with speed, crashing into the man’s face. The force of the blow sent him stumbling backward as his face turned black. Conrad jumped in the car, driving off before he even closed the door. He sped off down the street going five times the speed limit. I looked in the rearview mirror and saw that the souls were hot on our tail. I grabbed my seatbelt, flinging it over my waist and clicked it shut; then I turned to Conrad and fastened his.
