Beth could feel her heart racing. “Look,” she said, trying to hold her patience. “Talk to Doctor Masters, he knows I'm coming."
The guard finally seemed to relent and moved back, allowing them to enter. Then he turned and closed the chainlink gates against the throng of the crowd. “Sorry, folks,” he said. “You have to come back tomorrow. Clinic is full for the night."
He turned back to them. “Come follow me."
Although there was some ventilation inside, it was still stuffy and smelled of death and festering wounds. Beth had to jog to catch up with Magnus and the rushing guard. “Where is Doctor Masters?” she asked
"He's taking a break in the backroom. He's had a really bad day."
Beth glanced at Magnus but he was busy watching the hospital beds, trying to avoid being touched. Oddly, she found his apprehension amusing, since until now he'd seemed so indestructible.
They moved through the halls of the isolation wards. There were open bays lined with small cots. Each cot had a small space for privacy, separated by a cloth curtain. It reminded her of pictures she'd seen of early twentieth century sanitariums.
The guard stopped at a set of large double doors that led to a lounge area beyond. She and Magnus moved inside as the guard scurried off. The room smelled of rotting food and old garbage. A lone man sat by some vending machines, drinking what appeared to be coffee from a small paper cup. A cigarette hung from his lips as he scribbled furiously into a notebook.
He was dressed in a soiled white lab coat and black faded jeans. His hair was crow black, long and wavy. He was handsome in an odd sort of way and looked every bit the mad scientist.
"Doctor Masters?” Beth asked, moving forward slowly. He didn't look up, nor did he seem to hear her, he just kept writing. His lips moved with the formation of each written word. His cigarette bobbed with the cryptic movement of his mouth.
"Doctor Masters,” Beth said louder. She could feel Magnus a few feet behind her, tensely toying with the handle of his gun.
Even though he heard her, still Jason Masters didn't look up. He merely held a hand up, indicating for her to wait. Beth waited, studying the room.
Without warning, Masters rose abruptly from his chair, making a loud scrape as the legs scratched across the floor. A second after, Magnus pulled his weapon and held it at the ready. Masters didn't seem to care. “Your friend's a little jumpy,” he said, approaching them with a jerky, quick stride.
"He has trust issues,” Beth said. She took the hand that Masters offered her for a shake. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a bag of jerky and held it out to Magnus.
Magnus’ mood seemed to lift. He holstered his weapon and quickly took the bag, stuffing food into his mouth while he waited.
Masters stepped away from Magnus and gestured with his hand, like a circus ringmaster. “Let me show you around.” They made their way out of the break room and into the hall. Masters plucked the cigarette from his mouth and tossed it on the ground, not bothering to stamp it out.
The living quarters were in the back of the compound, guarded by heavy steel doors. “This will be your room,” Masters said, when they'd reached a large room at the end of the hall. Beth looked around. The bed was little better than the cots in the ward bay, but they sure beat the floor.
"I'm down the hall,” he added as an afterthought. After he had shown them around the rest of the clinic, they returned to the break room to talk. Magnus excused himself and slipped off.
Masters smiled after Magnus left. “I'm glad he didn't kill you,” he said. “He's quite notorious around here you know."
"You didn't send him?"
"I sent him to get you to the station. I'm not sure why he brought you all the way here, but I'm glad he did. I take it from your good humor he didn't rape you."
Beth felt goose bumps rise on her arms. Was it her imagination or was it getting colder in here? “No, he didn't,” she said. “We struck a deal."
Masters lit up another cigarette. He offered her one and she shook her head. “Lucky for you. He must really like you."
Yeah, what great luck on my part The local murdering marshal likes me. She guessed it could be much worse, if he didn't like her. She'd probably be rotting on the plains right about now. She vaguely wondered if Masters was a cannibal. She marveled at how many things people took for granted, like food.
Beth lowered herself into a metal folding chair across from Masters. “Do you know of anyone who successfully escaped this planet?"
Masters watched her cautiously, like a stray cat. He looked like he might bolt out of his seat at a moment. “I've heard rumors, like everyone else has. I doubt if they're true. I mean, even if you could get off, where would you go? Not many other planets are willing to take in Earth's less desirable citizens."
"But it can be done,” she said, watching his face for hope.
Masters puffed a few times off his cigarette and picked at his nails. “I suppose so, but look Magnus is one of the smarter criminals on this planet. If there was any possible way off, he'd have tried it."
Beth doubted Magnus had given it much thought. “I don't think he wants to leave. I think he likes it here as the king rat."
Masters glanced at her as if that possibility had never occurred to him. Then he shrugged, dismissing the subject. “So, do you want morning or evening shift?"
"I'll take morning,” she said, unsure if that was a good or bad choice.
"Fine, you'd better get some sleep. You're going to have a busy day tomorrow,” he said, rising. He put his cigarette out in his cold coffee.
Beth watched him walk out. He couldn't be older than thirty-five but he walked like an old man. Is that what this place does to you? Picks you off a piece at a time? She got up and made her way to her room, taking care to lock the door. She'd better try and sleep while she could—who knew what tomorrow would bring?
Chapter 13
The first thing Magnus heard, as he crept through the darkened hallway at dawn, was a woman weeping. It was such a strange sound to him he had to stop and make sure that was what he had heard. He'd heard many things during his time on this planet—screaming, howling, hysterical crying—but nothing like this soft and gentle sound. He walked up to Beth's door and realized she was the source of it. He tried the door but it was locked. He knocked gently.
"Doctor Masters?"
"No, baby,” he said. “It's Magnus.” There was a moment, a quiet time in which he thought she would refuse to open the door, but then he heard the bolt pull back. She had dried her eyes but he could feel, in them, the depth of her despair.
Beth moved back from him and he circled around her, taking her into his arms. He felt her stiffen, not fighting him but not hugging him back. Leaning his head down, he buried his face in her neck.
The effect was like lancing a boil. Her emotions, so long held in check, flooded out of her and her body. She shook against him with the passion of it. He comforted her the only way he knew, running kisses up her neck and face, finding the seduction of her mouth. To his delight, she kissed him back, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into a desperate embrace, as if they were two shipwreck survivors clinging to the last floating piece of wood. A moment later, she collected herself and released him.
She moved across the room and folded her arms across her chest. “Now that you've delivered me, are you leaving?"
He looked around the room, taking in its meager accommodations. He guessed it was better than sleeping in the great outdoors. At least for a woman anyway.
"I was kind of hoping you'd stay,” she said. He looked up and studied her face. That was a huge admission from her. He was surprised she'd said it. Could it be the young nurse found me attractive after all?
"I'm too restless to stay here. I'd go nuts.” Beth was chewing her lip, avoiding his gaze. He wandered around the room, finding her shampoo, and picked it up to smell. “Of course, you might be able to convince me to hang around, if you used your imagination."
"I'm a growing boy, I need my exercise,” Magnus teased. He approached her and watched her eyes dart away. Oh yeah, you like me. He stopped in front of her, trying to force her to meet his gaze. He pushed his lips against hers, moving his tongue against their plum fullness and inhaling the gentle musk of her skin.
Her mouth parted, taking his tongue into her mouth and rubbing her own against his. His passion boiled, and he struggled to touch her gently while his animal side fought to devour her. He moved his hands along her waist and up her back, lusting to touch her bare flesh. She yielded to everything he wanted, his hand moving under her shirt to stroke her back, then racing up to find her breast. For the first time in many years, he found joy in his lusty heat. But just as the scalding twist of passion tortured his groin, a mighty crash sounded from somewhere at the front of the clinic.
Beth pushed away, breaking the spell. “What the hell was that?"
Magnus fought down the urge to ignore it. He moved over to the entrance and pulled his weapon. Opening the door, they were met with the frantic screams of patients and Doctor Masters’ angry yelling.
Magnus didn't need to see what was happening to know. Cannibals. Growing hungry for meat and drugs, they were becoming bolder, and a few had probably infiltrated the clinic in order to let their colleagues in. He had seen this kind of thing before. As a general rule, they usually had to be very desperate to do something like this. That made them doubly dangerous.
From where he and Beth were, they could hear the smashing of vending machines and the ransacking of the break room. Masters was pursuing them, protesting that this was a medical facility. A moment later, he was silenced. Peeking out the door, Magnus could see them carry him out of the break room slung over one man's back.
"We've go to get out of here,” he ordered, grabbing Beth and dragging her to the back emergency exit. He couldn't think of more of an emergency than this.
Unfortunately, opening the door would sound the alarm, and they'd have to sprint to the town. He hoped Beth was up to it. He could feel her pulse pounding hard in her wrist where he held it.
Before Magnus could trip the alarm, Beth broke his grip on her. “We can't just leave Doctor Masters."
For a moment he thought she was joking. “Are you insane? There are probably twenty cannibals out there. Besides, they already have him. He's dead, Beth, forget it."
Beth pulled her automatic from a holster under her arm and started back down the hall. He hissed through his teeth. “Beth, wait!"
"What?"
"You're never going to be able to kill them all. They're not going to care how many of them you shoot up, they'll keep coming. Just hold on, we'll help Masters, but not right now. Let's do things my way first."
Beth hesitated. “Won't they kill him if we don't get him back tonight?"
"He might already be dead. If he's still alive, they probably want him for something. We'll have time, but we need to catch them by surprise. Going back in there now is suicide."
She holstered her weapon and followed him to the back door again.
"We're going to have to make a run for the town,” he said. “Are you ready?"
Beth shrugged. “Do I have a choice?"
Chapter 14
Magnus spent an edgy, sleepless night with Beth in the town. He doubted the cannibals would attack a place as fortified and armed as here, but those killers were capable of anything. Beth had been restless, getting up every few minutes to check out the window. Every once in a while she would speculate on whether or not they had killed Masters, but he was careful not to give her any false hope. He prepared her for the inevitable; the man was probably dead.
When they returned that morning, they walked through the carnage of the clinic. They righted things as they went; a chair here, a table there. Beth kept muttering under her breath about the stupidity of attacking a medical clinic. She seemed to vent all her fear and anger internally, and he admired anyone who could do that. Magnus had coped by killing. He didn't like to admit that, but it was the truth. Killing on this planet was his way of trying to murder it as a whole, one ruined convict at a time.
Beth stopped and turned around. Her mouth was set in a grim line. “How long do you think it will take to fix all this?"
Magnus looked around at a few shattered windows, and the back door hanging from a hinge. “If it's just you and me? Probably a while."
"Great.” Beth pivoted and resumed her tour. She walked into the medicine storage room and swore. “Of course they only took the things I need the most!” she yelled out to him.
Magnus watched her pick through the debris, a worried frown working the edges of her mouth. It was a girl's mouth, sweet and luscious. He wanted to fuck her so badly he could barely hold himself still. Thick locks of blonde hair fell forward, shielding her face from view. Long, elegant fingers slicked them back behind her ear. He imagined her as a young girl and an old woman. He imagined her naked on her back, gasping as he fucked her. It all made her seem more beautiful to him.
She noticed him watching her and met his gaze with those light green eyes. “I hope you aren't offended by this,” she said, slapping her hands together to clear away some dust, “but there's something about you that scares the shit out of me. I can't help thinking there's so much more to you than what you're telling me."
Hot, lustful fury flashed through his blood. Take her now. Take her. He held himself very still until the moment passed. He rubbed the back of his neck and smiled. “Everyone should have a little mystery to them, don't you think?"
Walking away from her, he passed the storage room on his way to the break room. All the vending machines had been smashed, even though none required currency to deliver a product. Magnus shook his head slowly. Destruction for destruction's sake.
Beth rushed up behind him. “Will you help me secure the front door? Patients are starting to arrive and I'm not ready."
He turned and followed her down the hall. “When are you planning to see patients again?"
"As soon as I can."
"I don't really think that's safe, Beth."
"I didn't ask you, Magnus."
He stopped, and it took her a moment to realize he wasn't walking with her. She turned, her breath heaving in her chest. “I'm sorry,” she said. “I need to keep the clinic operating—not just for them but for me."
He thought of telling her this entire exercise was bullshit. He didn't give a shit about any of these people. As far as he was concerned, the best they could hope for was a quick and painless death. For himself, he didn't know how much longer he'd be alive here either.
Beth's stubborn clinging to this clinic angered him. It made him feel as if he'd assassinated the human part of him and no one, including himself, had attended the funeral. He was confused. He didn't even know what he wanted anymore. He needed to get out of here and away from her.
"I'm getting out,” he said. “You fix this place. I'm gone.” He strode forward toward the door and she stepped in front of him.
"Please don't go.” Her eyes pleaded with him; the softness in her was breathtaking.
"I don't give a shit about these people, Beth. You want to help them so bad, you fix this place up.” The rage in him pounded around in his head with nowhere to go.
"If you leave, where will you go? Back out to the desert to feed off the vestiges of humanity until one day someone makes lunch out of you? We have a chance to make a difference here."
She really believes this crap. He looked beyond her, to the open door and the golden rods of sunlight streaming in through the smashed walls. Magnus glanced back down at Beth. “This place is a dream, baby. It's a lie you're telling yourself. It's just a dirty barren island in a sea of death. Nothing you do here will make any difference. Your patients walk out healed and get cut down a day later by the human hunters waiting out there to pick them off. You're just kidding yourself if you think yo
u're giving them anything they can use."
She glared at him and squared her shoulder. “I think you're wrong, but even if you're right, at least I did something to try and make this a better place. All I've ever seen you do is add to the mindless destruction.” Then she seemed to reconsider. “Please stay and help me. I need you."
She was right of course, he had no place else to be. “All right. But we're going to need some guns to prevent them from getting in again. All the guards are dead or gone and not likely to come back. We're also going to need to send a message to the government for another medicine drop."
They made their way out the front door. Several people had begun lining up waiting for help. Beth was trying not to look too closely at them. “I'm sorry!” she shouted so they all could hear her. “It's going to be a few days before we can open. I have no medicine to give you. Please return to your homes until we reopen."
Grumbling, some of the patients got up and hobbled off. Others, who had more serious ailments, lowered their heads and closed their eyes.
Magnus spent the rest of the day reinforcing and rebuilding. The work made him feel good—it was busy and absorbing. Toward the end of the day, Beth, who'd been working inside, brought him dinner. Just some stuff she'd scraped together. It was the best meal he'd ever had. She sat next to him as he ate and they enjoyed a quiet thirty minutes together.
"When are you planning to leave?” Beth leaned against the wall, with her eyes closed.
He studied the tiny lines forming around the corner of her eyes. “Tomorrow."
"I think I'm going to miss you, Magnus."
He chuckled and stood next to her, so their bodies touched. “I'll miss you too, baby. We'll have a little killing lesson before I go tomorrow. Just to keep you safe."
When he looked over at her, she was asleep.
Chapter 15
Beth opened the clinic early that morning, and was so busy the rest of the day she didn't have time to concentrate on Magnus. He haunted the back of her thoughts though, like a phantom lurking in her mind. God, what if I am falling in love with him? She tried to quiet her mind, but the lingering fear remained no matter how hard she tried.
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