by Schafer, Jon
Drawing the easy floor was for Meat’s benefit. Although he had managed to learn how to handle the .45 pistol safely, he was still unsure of himself in his actions. On the first few offices that he and Steve checked on the fifteenth floor everyone had seen that Meat needed a little more experience, so when Steve was given the twelfth floor no one argued.
Now, at the final office on twelve, Steve was more confident in Meat's abilities. The older man had loosened up and now moved in unison with him without having to be told what to do and when.
Holding his M4 automatic rifle in his left hand by the pistol grip, Steve slid the key into the lock on Brian Harrison's door with his right. Turning it slowly, he noticed right away that something was different. He didn't hear the telltale sound of the bolt sliding back or feel any resistance. The door was already unlocked.
Not wanting to move forward in light of this new development, and not wanting to improvise without telling Meat and possibly throw the man off the routine, Steve decided to back up and figure the situation out before proceeding. Although they had decided to open up each office the same whether they found live people or dead ones, Steve knew that behind this door they definitely would find a living breathing human being and this made him hesitate.
Waving Meat back down the hall a short distance, Steve told him his suspicions. He explained about his brief meeting with Mister Harrison days earlier and how he had helped drag the suitcases to the office.
"They were probably full of canned goods now that I think about it," Steve said. "That's why they were so heavy. He's probably been in there for days sucking down cold tomato soup and listening to us move around out here."
"So why didn't he come out?" Brain asked.
"My thoughts exactly," Steve replied. "He knew other people were here, but he stayed hidden. Today, with all the noise you and I've made, he must know we were coming, but he's still hiding. I'm worried that he might do something crazy when I open his door."
"Are you going to shoot him?" Meat asked, shocked at the thought.
Steve thought about this before answering, "Not unless I have to. Live humans are in short supply and I don't want to deplete the population any more than it’s been already."
"So, what do you want to do?"
"I guess I'll just have to go knock on his door," Steve replied matter of factly. "Cover me," he said, then turned and walked back to Harrison's office.
Positioning himself to the side of the door, Steve reached over and rapped firmly on the wood while calling out, "Mister Harrison, it’s Steve Wendell. We met the other day on the stairs. We're searching all the offices to make sure none of the dead are hiding anywhere."
This was met by silence so Steve reached over and turned the knob, easing the door open a few inches. Looking over at Meat who had taken up a position where he could keep him covered, Steve gripped his M-4 tighter and swung the door all the way open.
A slightly rancid smell wafted out, but Steve determined it was from spoiled food and old cigars rather than decomposing flesh. With his rifle pointed into the office, he eased back away from the door so he could look in at an angle.
A harsh voice suddenly called out loudly from inside, causing Steve to jump, "What the hell do you want?"
Regaining control, Steve looked at Meat to make sure he hadn't panicked. The older man looked calmer than Steve felt, so he turned his attention back to the door.
"We'd like to talk to you," Steve replied to the demand.
"You can't have my gold," Harrison suddenly screamed. "I've got a gun and I'll use it."
Shit, this is going downhill fast, Steve thought.
Quickly considering his options, he decided to try talking first. If that didn't work, he'd use a tear gas grenade. Since they were right down the hall from the station though, tear gas would be used as a last resort as he didn't want to make his own area unlivable.
"I don't want your gold," Steve said, keeping his voice even. "I'd like to talk to you though, since we're neighbors."
This was met by silence, so Steve risked a quick look around the doorjamb. He saw a man, who he recognized as Brian Harrison, crouched behind a desk in the reception area of the office. In an instant, he also saw what looked like the barrel of a shotgun pointed at him over the top of the desk. Pulling his head back quickly, he said, "Put the gun down on the ground and kick it out the door, or I'm gonna drop a tear gas canister on your ass. Do it now," Steve ordered sharply.
Harrison laughed insanely, "Who the fuck do you think you are, the cops?"
"No, but I can get one." Steve replied angrily. "Then she'll drop some tear gas on your ass."
Harrison's voice came back excitedly, "The police are here? They can protect my gold." He paused and then said warily, "Prove you're the cops and I'll come out."
Seeing a peaceful way out of the situation, Steve reached down to the radio clipped on his belt and contacted Heather on the next floor. After he explained the situation, he ended by saying, "Come on down here and help me out. And bring your badge."
After a few moments, Steve saw Heather emerge cautiously from the short hall that served the elevators and the stairs. She waved at him and took in the situation at a glance before pointing in the direction of the station, indicating she had to go there first. Steve gave her a thumbs up and waved her on.
When she came down the hall toward him a few minutes later with her badge and I.D. in hand, Steve backed away from Harrison's door so they could talk.
"He sounds kind of nuts," Steve said. "Like I told you on the radio, he keeps talking about how we're trying to steal his gold. He'd said he'd come out if he knew the police were here to protect him."
"What's his name?" Heather asked.
"Brian Harrison."
Heather nodded as she looked around the hallway. "Take Meat's place. We don't have time for niceties, so I want you to estimate where this guy is inside that office. If he starts shooting, I want you to shoot through the wall back at him. Keep Meat behind you, and tell him to hold his fire no matter what. If this guy Harrison freaks and comes out shooting, I don't want Meat accidentally hitting one of us in the confusion."
Steve nodded and did as he was told. Once Heather saw he was in position, she approached the door and called out, "Mister Harrison, this is Heather Johansen with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office. Put down your weapon and come out and talk. You're safe now. I won't let anything happen to you."
"Prove that you're the police," Harrison called back. "I need the police to protect me."
Heather took it as a good sign that he sounded hopeful that she was who she said she was, as she wanted to end this situation without bloodshed. Holding her badge and I.D. out into the doorway, she slowly eased her head around the jamb.
Heather couldn't see anyone right away and wondered if Harrison had fled deeper into the office. Her eyes were drawn to movement from behind a desk positioned a few feet away. As she watched, Brian Harrison poked his head over its top and stared at her. His eyes flicked between the picture on her ID and her face a few times before he stood up with a huge smile on his face.
"Am I ever glad to see you, Officer," he said with relief. Then, in a voice that Heather thought sounded on the verge of madness, he added, "Everyone wants to steal my gold."
"No one here wants to steal your gold, sir," Heather assured him. "Please put your hands where I can see them and step away from the desk."
Harrison did as she ordered and Heather breathed a sigh of relief. Without taking her eyes off him, she waved Steve forward.
"I think I saw you on an episode of Cops once," Steve whispered to Heather as he joined her. "But you're a lot sexier in real life."
Heather smiled briefly and then said, "Be serious."
"I am serious. The TV made you look washed out, short, fat, and if I remember right, you had a mustache."
"I shaved that off," she replied. Stepping into the door of Harrison's suite she asked him, "Do you have any weapons, sir?"
"Just this pipe," he answered as he reached down by the side of the desk and brought up a three-foot length of heavy steel tubing. Laying it on the floor in front of him, he said, "I point it at people and they think it's a gun."
Steve, who had joined Heather in the doorway said, "Had me fooled." Entering the office, he noticed the smell of sour food was stronger and was joined by the aroma of long unwashed body. Wrinkling his nose, he asked, "What are you doing for food? Road kill?"
"You can't have any of my food either," Harrison shot back angrily.
Steve held up his hand saying, "If it smells like that, I don't want it. I just want to make sure you’re okay."
"I'm fine," he said abruptly.
Steve thought that in this case fine was an acronym for Fucked up, Insecure, Neurotic and Emotional, but decided not to voice his opinion.
Heather confiscated Harrison's pipe and assured him that he would be safe here in the building while she was around. She promised that she would protect him and his gold since was a sworn Sheriff’s Deputy and it was her duty to do so.
Harrison was reassured by Heather's professional manner and answered the questions she asked as she tried to assess his mental state. He knew the date and was aware of what was happening around him, so Heather decided he wasn't delusional. Although he was a large man, he didn't seem to be any threat to them physically now that he was unarmed. He seemed almost docile while answering her questions. When she was done, she shrugged at Steve as if to say 'now what'.
Steve tilted his head and flicked his eyes toward the hall, indicating he wanted to speak to her in private. Heather excused herself and followed him into the hall.
"So, what do you think?" Steve asked.
"Mild mental illness," Heather replied with a shrug. "But everything is fucking nuts in the world right now, so who can tell? Then again, he might just be greedy. His biggest worry is his gold, so as long as no one tries to take it he seems harmless."
Steve thought about this before saying, "Let him know we have some food we can share with him when he runs out. I really don't want a whole bunch of extra mouths to feed but I can't let him starve. Tell him if he needs anything, to come down to the station."
Heather nodded and turned to go, but Steve halted her and said, "Let him know the water's still running and he's free to use the bathrooms to wash up. A few more days and we'll be able to smell him from down the hall."
Heather smiled and kissed him. Steve had told her his policy of not sharing anything they had with anyone, and she was glad to see that when it came down to it that he showed compassion to someone in need.
After breaking off the kiss, she leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Don't wear yourself out too much today because I've got plans for you later."
Steve smiled and was about to reply but Heather had already reentered Harrison's office. Turning to see Meat watching him, Steve said, "Get ready because we’re moving down to ten next."
Heather came back out and gave Steve's butt a squeeze as she passed by, before nonchalantly headed for the stairs. Steve watched her go and after she went around the corner out of sight, turned to find Meat looking at him with amusement. He opened his mouth to ask what he thought the man was doing, standing around when they still had offices to check, when the lights went off.
The generator kicked in seconds later, but in that short span of darkness, Steve heard a muffed laugh come from Harrison's office and what sounded like, "Soon. Soon it's mine. All the gold is mine."
Steve wanted to tell his new neighbor where he could put his gold, but his radio crackled to life as Tick-Tock called, distracting him from the crazy man.
"Now when I say boom, boom you all say, out go the lights," Tick-Tock sang.
Smiling, Steve pushed the transmit button and asked, "What's the matter, are you afraid of the dark?"
"Nooo, just what's in it," came Tick-Tock's reply.
Heather broke in saying, "Everyone meet on the twelfth floor, over."
"She sounds so professional on the radio," Tick-Tock said, "maybe we should do that."
"Do what?" Steve asked as he headed for the stairs.
"Say over." Tick-Tock replied.
"Do what?" Steve repeated.
"Say over." Tick-Tock said.
"Do what?" Steve said and they both broke up laughing.
"Children -." Heather said.
Steve rounded the corner and found Heather and Brain waiting by the door to the stairs. Heather gave him a disapproving look, so he smiled disarmingly at her until she finally smiled back. Shaking her head, she said, "Give a kid a toy..."
Tick-Tock and Susan joined them, and they went over how they would search the offices on the floors that were now almost pitch dark. Deciding they would have to leave the doors open behind them to let light into the dark hallway to augment the weak illumination provided by the emergency lights, they split into two teams of three so that the third person could watch their rear to make sure none of the dead might have waited for them to pass by before coming out. It would take longer to search the building this way but would be safer.
As they discussed the details of their plan, they were unaware of the small figure listening to them from inside the stairwell.
***
For days she had been hiding on the eleventh floor, eating candy and microwave food taken from desks in the offices her daddy leased. Her father had brought her here on Sunday evening and ordered her to wait for him until he returned. He explained that he was going to try and buy them some food, if he could find a grocery store that was still open. He also reminded her that all strangers were dangers and to stay away from them. She waited as patiently as she could but by Monday afternoon her daddy had not returned, and she had gotten so hungry she thought she would faint. Remembering that her daddy's secretary kept candy bars in her desk, she snuck one out and ate it. Feeling guilty because she’d stolen it, she had written an IOU and put it in place of the missing candy, promising in the note that she would replace the item as soon as she received her allowance. Feeling that she had done the right thing, she checked some of the other desks when she grew hungry again Monday night. Finding a wide assortment of lunch type meals that her daddy's employees had brought in, each time she took something, she left a note promising to replace it.
She had seen on the news that bad people were going around biting each other and she knew this was true. Her little brother had been bitten and had to be taken away after he went crazy and hurt her and her mommy. That was the reason her daddy had brought her to the office. He had said something about keeping her safe until he could find out more about what was going on with the disease.
She found a radio to keep her company but was scared by what the people on it were saying, so she turned it off. She kept herself amused by playing games on a computer and reading the stacks of magazines she found in peoples’ desks. Although limited to the eleventh floor, she didn't feel confined because her daddy's office stretched along one whole side of the building. With doors connecting the different rooms, she could move from one end to the other without ever going into the hallway. Her only regret was that she didn't have anyone to play with. She decided it would be awesome to have a game of hide and seek in her daddy's offices.
She had thought she was alone in the building until this morning, when she heard people calling out as they banged open doors. Remembering that all strangers were dangers, she had crawled into the knee space of a desk to hide.
She heard the voices getting closer and felt herself getting more and more scared. The fear made her need to go to the bathroom, and she thought she would burst when all of the sudden the lights went out.
The loss of light made her tremble, thinking that in the dark the strangers would rush in and grab her. From out in the hall she could hear their voices as they talked and felt relieved when she finally heard them move away.
She waited until she was sure they were gone and then crawled out and peeked out the door. Seeing it was clear, she ran
down the hall, making it to the bathroom just in time.
When she was done, she crept out and looked around. The strangers were gone, but she knew they'd be back soon to look for her. She felt abandoned and helpless, being a ten-year-old girl on her own, and started to cry. Calling herself a baby, she remembered one of her heroes from the books she read. Nancy Drew wouldn't cry like a baby, she told herself. She'd follow the strangers to see what they were doing and then make a plan. Bolstered by this thought, she crept to the stairs, and after a moment's hesitation, went up.
She heard the strangers’ muted voices through the door and stopped to listen, excitement flowing through her as she eavesdropped on the conversation. When it sounded like the strangers were going to break up and start searching again, she slipped back down the stairs, content now that she knew their plan. All she had to do to avoid them was go to one of the rooms they had already searched in her daddy's office and hide. Once they finished looking in the other offices, she could come out again.
Quietly closing the door to the stairs behind her, she went back and entered her dad's office. Locking the door behind her, she cut through the connecting doors and in no time was hidden under a desk in the room next to the bathrooms, where she’d heard the strangers searching when they first showed up. She was so sure she wouldn’t be found that in minutes she was fast asleep.
***
Steve flopped down on the couch and announced to Heather, "That's it. The whole building is clear. Besides Harrison, we didn't find anyone else living or dead."
From her position behind Steve's desk, she replied, "So you're ready to tackle the next project?"
Steve groaned, "Can I tackle you instead and we can wrestle?"
Heather gave him a half smile and said, "Later. Right now you've got to get Brain working on routing power to the coolers in the deli. When he and I got back a while ago, Mary told us that she went down there to get something to eat and they were off. We've got to get them back on before the food spoils."
Oh shit, Steve thought, why didn't I think of that? Consoling himself that at least they had caught the problem before it became a disaster, he asked, "Why didn't you just tell him to do it?"
