by Ben Follows
Amelia scoffed. “I’ll take my fish cooked with nice seasoning.”
Norman grinned despite himself and sped up, causing a yelp from Amelia in the back seat. Within ten minutes, they could see Root Island.
Norman slowed the boat and circled the large island, wondering where to beach it. Amelia looked around as well but seemed too afraid to say anything.
The island contained an immense cottage, encircled by trees.
Parked around the island were boats and empty barges, but there didn’t appear to be anyone there. The barges would have been more than large enough to carry the equipment from the lab.
“I’m going to land on the other side,” said Norman.
“Just do it soon,” said Amelia. “I’m going to be sick.”
Norman navigated around the back of the island. He pulled up to the shore and tied the boat to two trees. He was sure that the motor would scratch against the rock bottom of the lake and damage it, but it was a risk he would have to take.
Amelia jumped off before Norman had the boat fully secured, landing with one foot in the water and scrambling onto the shore. She fell to her knees and grabbed a tree as though holding on for dear life.
“Thank God,” she muttered. “Dry land.”
“Still scared?” said Norman with a grin.
“Bite me,” muttered Amelia. “Let’s get this over with. Julia is here somewhere, and we’re going to find her.”
Norman nodded, becoming serious. “Be quiet, and let’s move toward the house.”
Amelia nodded. They drew their guns moved on. They snuck through the trees and up to the back of the house. They couldn’t hear anything and certainly didn’t see anyone. They moved around the corners, peeking into the windows and trying to see anyone inside.
There was no one.
“Are we sure this is the place?” whispered Amelia. “It looks empty.”
“I’m sure,” said Norman. “The boats are here.”
“What if Gary lied to us?”
“What if he didn’t?”
“Shut up,” said Amelia suddenly.
“What?”
She held a finger to her lips.
The sound of a soft conversation drifted through the trees. Norman and Amelia snuck around the corner of the house. In the distance, on the edge of the water on the dock, was the glow of a cigarette and two figures.
The second figure took a cigarette from the first and the conversation continued, although Norman and Amelia couldn’t make out the words. They were a man and a woman dressed in white lab coats.
“Let’s follow them,” whispered Norman.
Amelia nodded.
After about ten minutes and another cigarette for each of the scientists, they tossed their butts into the lake and turned back to Norman and Amelia. They continued talking as they walked up the dock and into the house.
Norman put a finger to his lips and stood to peek into the window. He looked inside and watched the two scientists walk past and into the basement. As they opened the basement door, sounds and lights exploded from the door, only to disappear as quickly as they had appeared once the door closed behind them.
“There’s something happening in the basement,” whispered Norman. “I think that’s where they set up the new lab. We need to get in there.”
Norman went to round the house then frowned and turned back.
“Amelia?”
“Let’s not be too hasty, Norman,” said a deep voice behind them. Norman slowly turned.
A broad-shouldered man was standing behind Amelia, holding her arm behind her back. Norman slowly stood and looked at him. A gun was shoved into Amelia’s back.
“Let’s just take a walk,” said the man. “No one has to get hurt.”
Norman stood up straight and looked at Amelia, whose eyes were filled with fear. He took a deep breath.
“I’m not going anywhere,” said Norman, taking the gun from his waistband. “You’re going to let go of her, and then you’re going to tell us where Thomas Ruutu and my fiancée are.”
Amelia frowned for just a moment at the word “fiancée,” but it didn’t seem out of place to Norman at all.
The big man laughed. “Why the hell would I do that, puny man? I have your friend captive.”
“Because of this,” he said, gesturing to the gun in his hand. “The moment you shoot her, I shoot you.”
The man laughed. “I don’t think you have the balls.”
Norman grinned. “Really?”
He fired into the ground, just inches from the big guy’s foot. The sound of the gun reverberated through the trees and birds scattered.
“Fuck,” the bug man muttered, taking a step back.
“Amelia, now!” Norman shouted.
In the big man’s moment of distraction, Amelia drove her elbow back into his groin. The man lost his grip on Amelia and crumpled to the ground.
Amelia scrambled back against the wall. The big man’s gun bounced along the ground, and she picked it up.
“Help!” the big man screamed, grabbing his groin.
Norman walked over and looked down. “You’re a terrible guard,” he said. “You weren’t ready to actually shoot. Have you ever actually pulled the trigger, or has the intimidation factor always been enough?”
“Fuck you,” muttered the man.
Norman reached down and grabbed his hair, making him shriek.
“Where is Thomas?” he said. “Amelia, keep an eye out.”
“Help!” the man screamed.
“Where is he?” said Norman.
“Basement lab,” muttered the man. “Please don’t shoot me.”
“What security is there?”
“Fuck you.”
Norman shoved the gun deeper into the back of the man’s neck.
“Ten guards. Armed. Machine guns.”
“Where is Thomas?”
“I told you. He’s in the basement lab.”
“Where, specifically?”
As the big man was about to answer, the fire alarm within the house went off.
The big man started laughing. “They know you’re here,” he said. “They’re going to find whatever dingy you came here on and kill you both.”
Norman shook his head. “That’s not going to happen. You’re coming with me.”
He wrenched the man up to his feet with his hands behind his back.
“This won’t work,” said the man.
“Amelia,” said Norman, ignoring him, “I want you to shoot this man if anything happens. Understood?”
Five scientists sprinted out the front door and into the boats and then drove away. As their boat disappeared across the lake, the island returned to a peaceful serenity. Norman and Amelia exchanged glances.
Norman looked down at the big man. “Where are the guards? I thought you said they were coming.”
“They’re coming,” said the man, sweating. “Let me go and escape while you still can.”
Amelia walked around the corner of the house and listened.
“There’s nothing,” she said. “Where the hell is Thomas?”
The big man shrugged.
Norman shoved him into the wall, making the glass in the windows shake. “Tell me the truth, goddamn it!”
“Fine,” said the big man. “I assume you know that the police can’t come here because Thomas’s father intervened?”
Norman frowned and nodded. “Jacobi Ruutu called the chief of police personally and told him to stop the investigation.”
“That isn’t all he did,” said the big man. “Jacobi didn’t know about Thomas’s illegal drug business until a few days ago, when he heard about the raid on his warehouse. He was furious with Thomas and cut off access to his trust fund. Thomas had almost no money left. That information spread pretty quickly between those of us that work for him. Most of the guards and scientists left. Thomas doesn’t have enough money to pay us.”
Norman smiled. “Come with me.”
Norman le
d the big man around the house, still holding the gun on him. The boats with the scientists were disappearing across the lake. Apparently they had decided they weren’t being paid enough to risk getting shot.
Amelia opened the front door, and they walked inside. Norman shoved the big man a few feet ahead of him and pointed the gun at him.
“Walk,” he said. “Lead us to where Thomas and Julia are.”
The man nodded and walked into the kitchen, then through a door into the basement. Norman and Amelia followed a few steps behind. The staircase turned twice as it descended toward the light at the bottom. Norman kept the gun trained on the big man’s back and Amelia stayed a few steps behind him, her gun ready as well.
As they approached the doorway at the bottom of the stairs, the sound of mumbling and fidgeting came from the basement. It had to be Julia. Norman was so close to her. They turned the last corner into the spacious basement filled with lab equipment.
The big man stepped into the basement first.
His head exploded in the same moment Norman heard the gunshot. Pieces of his head exploded in a thousand directions, and he fell backward. The bullet lodged in the wall beside Norman, making him jump backward against the staircase.
Amelia screamed as the big man fell backward onto the stairs, the remaining half of his face looking up at them.
“Oh, Norman,” came Thomas’s voice from inside the basement. “Why don’t you come out and we’ll play?”
“Thomas,” said Norman, trying to ignore the body on the stairs in front of him. “Let’s talk about this like two adults.”
“Not a chance,” said Thomas. “I’m not an idiot.”
“Where’s Julia?”
The sound of someone screaming through a gag came from the basement.
“Let me see her,” said Norman, trying to think of a plan. “I need to know she’s okay.”
“This isn’t a fucking trade,” said Thomas, laughing. “I’m going to walk out of here, and all of you are going to be a distant memory.”
“That isn’t how this is going to happen, Thomas,” said Norman. “Not at all.”
“Why’s that?”
Norman tried to figure out where Thomas was in the basement, based on his voice, but without knowing the shape of the basement he couldn’t be sure.
“Stay right where you are,” said Thomas, his voice slightly fainter than before. “And Julia stays alive.”
Norman took a deep breath and stuck his head out past the corner for just a moment, stepping over the big man’s big body. He retracted his head a second later as a bullet flew past and embedded in the wall behind him, but it was enough.
Not only did he now know the layout of the basement but he had seen Thomas dragging Julia backward, her mouth duct-taped shut and her arms and legs tied with ropes. Her face was cut and swollen. Her feet had been scrambling against the ground, unable to get any leverage. Thomas was dragging her toward a cellar door, through which a thin sliver of sunlight could be seen.
Norman leaned backward to Amelia. “There’s a cellar door he’s going for,” he whispered. “Go outside and find it.”
She nodded and scampered up the stairs.
“Thomas, this doesn’t need to end this way,” Norman said into the basement.
“You brought this on yourself,” said Thomas. The sound of a cellar door opening came around the corner. “Wait there and you might get Julia back.”
The sound of a door slamming shut echoed through the basement.
The moment he heard it close, Norman sprinted around the corner, over the dead body of the guard, and looked around the basement. It was crammed with machines for designing and making the drug.
Norman walked to the cellar door and pushed it open. He stepped back and waited. There was a slight whistling but no indication that Thomas was watching the cellar door. Norman slowly stepped out into the small forest encircling the cottage just as the skies opened up.
Black storm clouds circled overhead, and rain pounded down from every direction.
“Norman!” Amelia shouted from between the trees. “He’s this way.”
Norman sprinted in the direction of her scream. He burst through the trees and froze. Rain continued to pound down from overhead, and the wind sent his jacket flapping.
“Norman,” said Thomas. “How nice of you to join us.”
Amelia and Thomas were pointing their guns at one another. Thomas had his free arm wrapped around Julia’s neck. She was fighting, but her restraints restricted her movement. She was completely under Thomas’s control. The ropes on her wrists and ankles had a thin layer of dried blood.
They were standing on the edge of a small rocky outcropping. A few feet behind Thomas was a small cliff overlooking the water. The sounds of large waves smashing against the rocks came from behind him.
Her eyes opened wide when she saw Norman, as though she was silently begging him to save her.
Thomas put his gun to Julia’s head. “This ends now.”
Julia closed her eyes, as though preparing for the end.
Norman raised his gun and took in his surroundings. Thomas was standing on the edge.
“We have you surrounded,” said Amelia, taking small steps toward Thomas. “Just let go of Julia and we’ll let you get away.”
Norman glanced at her.
Thomas laughed. “How stupid do you think I am?”
“Honestly,” said Amelia with a smirk, “I think you’re pretty fucking stupid. You’ve got your daddy saving you from your own bad decisions, but that doesn’t make you a successful person. Do you think this is success?”
Thomas gritted his teeth. “I’ve worked my ass off to get where I am. If you were in my shoes, there isn’t a chance in hell you’d be able to accomplish what I’ve done.” He grinned. “What have you accomplished? The only reason anyone knows who you are is because your brother and sister were murdered.”
“Fuck you!” said Amelia, taking a few steps toward him. “If not for you, they would still be alive. I would be sitting at home with a loving family instead of standing here on some piece of shit island pointing a gun at you.”
Thomas stepped toward the cliff. “This is your peak, Amelia. Enjoy it! I’ve got nowhere to go but up.”
Norman held up his gun. “Drop Julia and no one gets hurt.”
Thomas looked over at Norman. “Oh, Norman,” he said, “you’re both idiots. I’ll see you both back in Toronto, where I’ll be testifying about how you killed my workers and framed me for spreading an illegal drug. Have a good life.”
Julia’s eyes went wide as Thomas walked backward, her feet scrambling against the stone. Thomas walked to the edge, letting his heels hang over the edge of the small cliff. He held Julia in a headlock in front of him with the gun raised.
Julia screamed through the tape.
“Thomas,” said Norman, realizing what he was doing. “Stop now!”
“Sorry, Norman,” said Thomas. “Guess you’re the loser, like always.”
Thomas fell backward off the cliff. Julia screamed through the tape as she was dragged with him off the edge.
“No!” Norman screamed.
A moment later came the sound of Thomas and Julia hitting the water.
“Julia!” Norman screamed, sprinting to the edge of the cliff and looking down. Through the waves and the approaching storm, he could make out two figures.
A few feet under the water, Thomas was swimming toward the docks and the boats.
A dozen feet behind, Julia was flailing violently, trying to get out of her restraints but not having any luck as she disappeared into the darkness.
“Amelia,” Norman screamed. “Get Thomas.”
He jumped off the cliff. Just as he did so, a crack of lightning illuminated the sky and the island. He landed hard on top of a wave, losing his grip on his gun as it skipped a dozen feet across the water.
He looked down into the water, desperately trying to find Julia. The sky was too dark and he couldn’t
see more than a few feet below the surface. He looked up at the sky and begged for some way to find the woman he loved.
A wave splashed against his face, filling his mouth with water. Just as he spat it out, the skies answered his wish. A strike of lightning illuminated everything, threading its way through the sky toward a nearby island.
Norman silently thanked whatever god was listening. In the brief moment of light, he had seen where Julia was struggling underwater. She was just a few feet to his right and about a dozen feet down, within the weeds at the bottom of the lake.
Norman took a deep breath and dove into the depths.
The water was freezing cold, and his coat flapped against him, holding him back. He pulled his arms out of the sleeves and let the jacket float to the surface.
The water was frigid and his skin was burning, but he couldn’t stop.
He swam down. His lungs began to scream out and beg him to surface, but he ignored them. He remembered every moment during his athletic career when his coaches bellowed at him for one more length of the ice, one more lift, one more shift, one more chance, one more opportunity.
One more stroke.
One more chance.
One more moment.
That was all he thought about as he plunged deeper.
One more stroke, then I can surface.
A flash of lightning bathed the lake in its glow. Julia was just a few feet away among the seaweed. She had stopped moving. Her legs and body were moving in time with the seaweed around her.
Norman took another few strokes downward and grabbed her arm. He tried to shake her, but she was nonresponsive. The ropes and duct tape were still securely fastened. Norman grabbed under her armpits and, using the bottom of the lake as a springboard, he launched himself upward.
With Julia’s weight pulling back against him, his launch only got him a few feet. She was dead weight. He pulled against the water, trying desperately to surface, but it seemed impossibly far away, even as another strike of lightning lit the surface. He pushed as hard as he could, his arms joining his lungs in protest.
He pushed and pushed. Just when he thought they were both going to die and float back down to the bottom, his head breached the surface. He pulled in the biggest breath of his life and let air fill his lungs. Rain pelted down on them from above.
