Drifters

by Santos, J. A.

  “Alex what do you want?”

  “I want you up here, alone, now.”

  “Okay you can have me, let him go.”

  “Not that easy.” He said and I could see how Alex with his free hand rolls the mask enough so I could see his opened mouth as if to bite Jeremy

  “No, stop, tell me how?”

  “Everyone should go, now! After they are gone you will climb the stairs and then I will let him go.”

  “Sara, don’t.” Max said grabbing my arm as soon as I started walking to the building.

  “I can’t let Jeremy die.” I said as the memories of that young girl at fifteen, alone and in terrible solitude came tumbling towards me, the idea of my father, or adopted father, no matter what he had done to me in the past; I could live with, and now his death would be something I couldn’t especially if it was my fault. Marino came to my side as he ordered everyone to leave the place. The truck stopped screaming its horrible sounds and the area became silent. I twisted my head towards Marino. “What did you do?”

  “We gave him a suppressant”

  “A what?” I asked

  “It is a cocktail to suppress the hunger and cut your strength.”

  “Well it is obviously not working.”

  “Something must be working see,” he said pointing at Alex. What does he sees that I don’t?

  I looked intently and saw what Marino was saying; his arm was trembling as if trying hard to maintain the weight of Jeremy with one hand, slowly moving up and down as losing strength every second. Max looks at Marino still angry a small growl could be heard as I yanked my arm away of Max’s grip.

  I walked straight to the building grabbing the door as soon as I opened it, silence inside, a dark corridor and the stairs way to the back. I turned my head and looked over my shoulder as the last of the people Marino had brought were moving away in their cars and that noisy truck. Marino and Max stood side by side waiting.

  Chapter Nineteen

  At the age of fifteen when I got closer to know what I am and who I really was, all I could remember was him. Jeremy. That old soldier with a gun in his hand and extending me one hand while in the other was the smoking gun that had turned down the nurse, he would say ‘don’t worry you are safe now’, and I would believe him. I loved him at the same time I hated what he had done to a younger me. Still that part of me could not let him go. I looked up at the window and Jeremy’s body had disappeared from it, gone, but not out of danger. I closed the door behind me as I step inside and forgetting all about Max and Marino, which I know they have a bad blood between them. Once I get out of this place if I get out, I would have to know if Jeremy’s offer would still uphold and I can get Max the same things he wanted me for.

  I climbed the stairs and with each and every step the floorboards creaked under my weight. I wanted to surprise him, but with the hard creaking of the floorboards I knew he would be waiting. Too bad I won’t know if he knew I was coming.

  “You better be alone” he had said as I was halfway up the stairs.

  “I am.” I hollered back. There was a puff and huff of some kind as soon as I got to end of the stairs I saw Jeremy bending over Alex, he was desperately gasping, seeking air, that intake of life, the reason of the huff and puffs sound.

  “What happened, Jeremy?” I said and rushed to their side. Alex in a sitting position backs and falls to the floor his back hitting hard. I took my eyes away from Jeremy’s for a second and saw Alex chest going up and down frantically. Alex turned his head, as he saw me he staggered to his feet pushing Jeremy out of the way with his left arm.

  “Alex stop, you can’t fight her like this.” I heard Jeremy scream at him as if scolding him. Alex turns halfway bearing teeth a mad glare came to him as Jeremy stood straight and tall over Alex. They had an intense look going forward and back getting ready to fight or to kill each other. I saw as Jeremy, the old man that once was a tight shift controller was not drawn away for the beast in front of him. Alex collapsed to the floor and I rushed to his side.

  “What happened to him?” I said as soon as Jeremy kneeled besides Alex.

  “Sara, Marino did something to Alex, maybe and adverse reaction to the suppressant mix, I don’t know.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “There is no time we need to do something or Alex will die.”

  “After all that he has done you still want to save his life?”

  “Yes I do.”

  “Why?”

  “Cause I save yours once and I never had regretted the decision.”

  “That does not make sense.”

  “Just help me here, okay.”

  We grabbed Alex from the floor and helped him sit. His eyes were cleared from the blackness they once were infused with around them. My thought went to Max that had the same thing around him starting to grow as if a creature was eating inside. I rushed to the window to look for him outside but did not saw him or Marino. Where did they go?

  I went back slowly a worry had started to carve inside me, a simple question unanswered. Besides Jeremy, Alex came to, his voice was dry as he had just woken from a drunken night.

  “Where, where am I?” he asked

  Jeremy, still kneeling put a hand to his shoulder. “Don’t you remember what happened?”

  “I remember you” he said looking up at me from his seated position. “We left you at the hotel after that I remember going inside the hotel to get our rooms and then nothing. Where is Max and Jane?”

  “Alex you attacked people at the hotel and broke Max neck after that I don’t know what you did.” I said trying to explain what had happened.

  “Wait what?” he said as he took his gaze away from me and turned to Jeremy. “Who are you?”

  “My name son, is Jeremy Garber, I am here to protect you.”

  “Jeremy don’t lie to him”

  “I am not Sara.” He said as he stood leaving Alex sitting on the floor.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Remember that I told you that I did not have much time?”

  “Yes.”

  “I am dying, I have cancer and my time is little, that is what I wanted to tell you earlier at the park. Now I want to right the wrong I did to you and him.” He said pointing at Alex that now was looking at the floor one hand over his head like he had a headache and wanted it to go away. I looked at Jeremy again my mind just a rambling mess remembering everything from the past two days.

  “What did you do to Alex?” I asked again as a fear started growing inside like a flowering cascade of water fallowing the endless abyss.

  “When Targus ended for me and Marino took over I had this experiment going to inhibit you, to suppress the hunger, to make you human. We tested it on you but it never worked, instead it turned out to be what made Alex and Max. It is a virus that attacks the human chromosomes and turned them to its make. Making the host same as you. Only there is a draw back.”

  “Which is?”

  “The blackness around their eyes is that same virus taking the host out of control. This is the first time the host has returned to normal.”

  I crossed my arms as I looked at Jeremy and the fear had just gone to terror. Jeremy wanted to repent for what he had done I still did not get why then did Marino say that he had given Alex a suppressant and then it hit me. Or why the story of the mothers seemed now so farfetched then before.

  “It’s Marino isn’t it? He is making you lie of how Alex and Max came to be isn’t it?”

  “Yes, I think he is trying to kill you; I guess that he still hold you responsible to what happen all those years back.”

  “He cannot hold me responsible for that.” I said uncrossing my arms and turning around looking outside the window putting my hands on its edge leaning forward and looking at the dirt road that leads outside the fertilizer plant. I put my head down. Trying to remember what Jeremy had said and then what Alex had said to Marino ‘boss’ that word meant something at that time but I did not quit got it. Now I d
o understand. Marino was behind all this, that lying bastard. I turned around my red hair falling over my face as Alex stood and the blackness of his eyes started to grow again, the small black veins started to take a life of its own as his eyes depend into a night and evil started to rise. I heard a growl and arched my back spreading my arms readying myself for the attack I knew was coming. Alex rushed forward snarling my name a deep growl was heard as Max appeared to Alex’s left and tackled him down. He had also the blackness around his eyes but less profound looked like a gray stamp instead of the black from Alex. They entangled on a snarling combat, Alex had Max by the throat and Max had Alex pinned down to the floor. One hand flew forward as it hit Alex squared on the face and Alex’s head jerked back hitting the floor hard that it cracked a little. The sound of clashing teeth was heard as both tried to take a bite of the other, I ran towards them holding Alex with my left foot on his throat and taking Max one hand on his collar and throwing him back. I did not measured my strength and sent him flying about ten feet towards the far wall hitting hard making a hole as big as him on it and he stayed there several minutes looking at me snarling baring teeth.

  “Stop” I said as I bent down at Alex that now he was clawing my jeans to take my foot out of his neck. I was about to take the ski mask off when my eyes locked to his and he stopped moving. His eyes still baring the black mark, he looked in pain, his eyes deep as the feeling of despair would be if he had felt it that moment.

  “Boss, will kill you for what you did?”

  “Marino, he is your boss?”

  “No,” he said smiling, “Who is it?”

  “I will eat you, I will consume every inch of your wretched body and I will enjoy it.”

  Jeremy came to my side, his weapon out ready to kill Alex.

  “I thought you came here to help him?”

  “I am; this is just a precaution.”

  I did not believe him. I bent down again trying my best to grab Alex mask and try to stand him up, but as soon as Max came out of the hole in the wall he jumped and stomped on Alex’s head, crushing it, as if it was only a watermelon being hit with a hammer. His head exploded as his skull was crushed under the pressure of Max foot, and clots of blood and pieces of dark gray matter spread on the floor. The grey matter blowing out his head dispelled a hard Metallic smell and I remember the car smell when I saw him first. I looked at Max not believing what he had done to his friend, they guy with the plan to kill me.

  “I can’t let him do that to you Miss Sara.” He said with a smile on his face of pure enjoyment.

  I stayed there my foot still at the motionless body of Alex’s headless corpse. My shoes now splattered with blood from Alex and a stupefied look plastered on my face.

  “I thought he was your friend.”

  “He is. I did what he wanted me to do if he ever got out of control and I say he was out of control.”

  I said nothing as I took my foot away its neck, now an it, a body with no name and no head. Alex was gone only it remained. Jeremy had his gun raised at Max, his hand trembling.

  “Jeremy don’t he could have just saved your life right now and I thought you were here to help what had changed?”

  “His eyes.”

  “I know.”

  “Look Miss Sara I am okay I am not losing it yet, and you can put it down as I said before I am okay.” He said and as soon as he said those word he collapse to the floor, gasping for air and the gray around his eyes started to grow darker, long steady little lines around them started to appear and as they grew his body twitched and jerked up and down, like if he was having a seizure.

  “Max, Max!” I screamed and bent down holding his head as his body kept twitching and moving. I look back at Jeremy his gun still forward, legs spread and ready.

  “You want to help then go leave me here with him.” I screamed back at him. He did not move.

  “Get out!” I growled at him as he straightens and ran outside.

  Two new people in my life, two new just like me, one dead and the other probably turning to a mindless animal in my arms. I could not let him go on a rampage like Alex did inside the hotel. Then I saw it a needle mark at Max’s neck, small red dot. I look at Max as his body stopped moving and he opened his eyes.

  “Hi there beautiful.” he said with a smile on his face and the blackness around his eyes was being sucked inside his body as if his eyes were now two small black holes sucking everything around them even my gaze. I moved downward and kissed him, again why? He kissed me back and embraced me. For a reason I could not understand I felt something for him, not the same as I do for Marino, it was different less profound but still there it was inside me.

  Chapter Twenty

  Many years back the only thing I had was a back pack with a shirt a pair of jeans and an ID. Now twelve years later I only have an ID only thing that did came with me after leaving the Lab. I remember watching Marino take my blood and hold my hand he was skillful with the needle I was Squamish at first but his skills put me at ease. I remember his eyes looking tender at me and asking so many questions. I fell in love the first time he spoke to me.

  “Hi there Sara,” he said as he entered the room. “I’m here for a sample and don’t worry I won’t take long.”

  “Take all the samples you want” I blurted out and I extended my arm, he smiled and I let out a sigh. He was handsome then and still is handsome now, but now he has an agenda for us and this suppressant Jeremy had talked to me about. I think Marino is using it for something more sinister. Could it be he wants to show us to the world? To say ‘hey people look at these monsters natures had brought upon you.’ I started to feel that revulsion I felt the first time I saw that other nurse come inside my room and me dealing his death, only then I did not knew who he was and only did I learned after years the he was Marino’s Brother. I said to him I was so sorry, that I did not mean to it was just out of control. He glared at me with hateful eyes every time since that incident. During the viewing of the video, the first time I saw my Zombie like state I remember Jeremy telling me everything, leaving out the most important thing. Where did I come from and why did I not remember anything till fifteen years in my age. I was always wondering were and who my parents were and now at this age I still look deep inside my memory but only thing I can remember is a Song in a humming sound, a musical note I did not know words for. It hangs over my head and I hum it every night as to inspire my memory to return, but it never does.

  Now Max in my arms, Alex dead on the floor, I hum that tune towards him as he put a hand on my cheek and smiles at me. I smiled back.

  “Miss Sara you are so beautiful,” he started saying but I had to make him stop talking he needed to rest.

  “Hush, rest a while, after that we will go back in the forest.”

  “You are so kind Miss Sara after all I did to you back at the forest, I am so sorry for that.

  “Doesn’t matter now the past is the past, it is behind us now.”

  “Thank you Miss Sara you are a kind soul.” He said and closed his eyes for a second or two. I looked up at the structures ceiling, the bare cement ceiling was cracked and chipping away. The high raised metal beams that made the structure stable for now, were all rusted, they looked like if they were cover in dried blood. Then came in my mind the question of those twenty Alex turned earlier, could he have done it all by himself? I looked at Max. There was no time, it could not be that maybe somehow Max was with his broken neck and still moving about before he came back and even how did he moved from the plant to the morgue without being detected. I moved my head from side to side ignoring that question that still ringed in my head and I put my hand to Max chest feeling, hearing his heartbeat. I was glad he still had one; I really enjoy hearing that music box in his chest.

  Chapter Twenty One

  After a while on the floor still Max resting we decide to go back to the forest hide ourselves from Marino while also thinking what we should do. Do we drift away from this place and let the chase start
all over again this time with Max at my side or do we finish Marino’s little plan and put him to rest once and for all. That idea broke my heart, the feeling of dealing a death to that one man that I still loved could also be the death of me. We walked towards the forest nothing said between us, Max just holding my hand as my eyes stayed glued to the ending start of the forest as we entered. We fallow the same old trail we were used to and found the clearing again, no dead cop, no yellow tape that said it was off limits. Still the brownish stain of the cops’ blood was seen on the grassy floor where he laid just last night. It was weird, but I knew this has to be cause of Marino or even Jeremy’s handy work so he knew exactly where to find me.

  Sitting in the clearing I looked up to the moving leaves, swaying with the soft breeze, the day is still warm, and the breeze was cool and nice onto my skin. The birds chirped as they flew above not knowing what the ground creatures were up to. Neither was I. Marino had injected the suppressant to Alex and that had turned him to a mad man, a monster if you may. Now I knew he had injected Max too and he was turning. What was Marino’s actual plan? Was Jeremy part of it too? Nothing made sense, nothing at all. I looked at Max still resting his back to a tree, eyes closed arms crossed over his chest and I wanted to hear his heart again maybe kiss him one more time. He looked up and smiled.

  “Miss Sara, are you okay?”

  “Yes I am. Why you ask?”

  “I see you there staring at me it is kind of creepy at times, like if you are looking at a meal.” He said smiling

  “That’s not funny.”

  “Okay I am sorry.” he said as he stood and moves to the tree I was resting and sat at my side.

  “You know Miss Sara, all this has been wonderful. Do not get me wrong the death has been atrocious and things I have done have never crossed my mind, but meeting you just is the most wonderful thing that had happen to me.”

  “Stop, I really cannot….” He twisted his head right next to me his hand went to the underneath of my chin as he drew me closer to him and kissed me again. His lips touched mines and the electricity started flowing through me. I do not love him, I love Marino, came the words to my head yet I did not dispelled what was happening here. I turned and drove myself up to his arms and threw my weight over him. We fell by the tree as the bird’s chirps in the distance, as the wind blew the surrender of my will through my hair on to his face, we still kissed and when his hand landed on my breasts I stopped urgently and stood embracing myself as old memories started to rise.