Fluorescence: The Complete Tetralogy

by P. Anastasia

  “Yeah,” added Kareena, rolling a cherry tomato around on top of her salad with a fork. “You’re right, but my parents are not going to let me ditch law school. They’d drop dead of heart attacks if I even suggested it.”

  “Can I have the syrup, please?” Alice pointed toward the far end of the table.

  Kareena reached for the glass syrup carafe and passed it to her.

  The bell on the diner door jingled and I glanced over, paranoid, expecting to see Jane… or the police stroll through.

  A middle-aged man dressed in a dark grey suit and tie came stumbling in off the street. He toppled into the jukebox by the door and started heaving out ear-splitting, stomach-sickening coughs, while holding his chest in pain. Each inhale made a gut wrenching whooping sound. My appetite instantly waned.

  He came tumbling down onto his knees and the hostess dashed to his side. “Someone call 9-1-1!” she shouted. The three of us veered around in our booth to watch the commotion.

  “Holy shit!” Kareena leapt from her seat and held a hand over her mouth.

  “What? What is it?” I stood, too. “What do you see?”

  “He’s… infected. But… it’s all weird and shit. Like, ugh. I don’t know. I can’t… Oh my God.” She scowled with disgust.

  “Can I help him?” I slid out of the booth toward the huddled mass of restaurant staff surrounding the man. He gasped for breath and stared up at the ceiling, his pupils engorging, gleaming with fear.

  “I don’t know…” Kareena started.

  I knelt onto the cold tile floor.

  “Do you know him?” the manager asked hysterically.

  “I… uh… no. But I can help.”

  “EMTs will be here soon. Are you trained to handle this?”

  “Yes,” I lied. “Sort of. Just give me a little space, please.” I reached out a hand and clasped the man’s wrist. The heat inside me built and my arm grew warm. A hint of blue light began to surface and I hunched over, resituating myself to obscure the views of the staff.

  A sudden sharp jolt of pain shot through me and I let go of the man with a yelp, bounding backwards, slamming into the front counter. The breath had been knocked out of me.

  I pulled my arm back. Sharp, riveting pain tore through me like molten lava coursing in my veins.

  “Come on!” Alice helped me to my feet. “We can’t be here if the police come,” she added in a hushed tone, pulling me toward the door. The man on the floor started to convulse, his body arching and writhing around as the other customers watched in terror.

  “What did you do?” the manager asked, frantically snagging the cuff of my jeans as I passed.

  “I didn’t do anything!” I yanked my leg away from her. “I was trying to help.” I caught another glimpse of the man’s face just before we bolted out the door. His color gone, he’d taken on a dead, robotic expression.

  The doors of Kareena’s car unlocked with a beep and we jumped in. Ambulance sirens wailed in the distance.

  What had I done?

  Chapter 27

  “That was some scary shit back there!” Kareena gripped the steering wheel and glanced at me in the rearview mirror. “What happened to you, Brian?”

  “I don’t know,” I replied, holding my aching arm. “I touched him, the fluorescence started to glow, and then a jolt of energy ripped through me. Like a charge or something. I don’t even know how to describe it. It happened so fast. Next thing I knew, I had my back against the counter and the wind knocked out of me.”

  “Well, that guy had some freaky shit swirling around inside him so no wonder. His infection was seriously screwed up. Like, the white light was being snuffed out by brown and black spots. Weirdest thing I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen some pretty weird shit, you know?” She glanced back at us.

  “Yeah.”

  “Had he been started?” Alice asked, leaning forward, grasping onto the back of the passenger seat.

  Kareena shook her head. “I don’t think so. He was too dark inside.”

  “They’re hiding so much information from us,” I said, massaging my forearm. “Damn Saviors. There was something very wrong with that guy.”

  Kareena pulled into the parking lot of a hotel and turned off the engine. We got out and walked behind the car.

  “Hey… um…” Kareena looked off at nothing, shifting her weight apprehensively. “Do you… Never mind.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a closed fist. “Here.” She held it out toward me. I lifted an open hand beneath hers and she dropped something papery into my palm.

  I thumbed through the bills. A hundred dollars—all twenties.

  “Just in case, you know?” She cracked a nervous smile. “In case we can’t get in touch for a bit. Or whatever.”

  “Thanks.” I closed my hand around the money and tucked it into my pocket. I’d been under the impression that money itself meant very little to her, but the act of giving it to us meant a lot to me.

  “Be careful, guys,” Kareena added beneath her breath.

  “You, too.”

  Alice and I headed up the outdoor stairwell to the third floor. We followed the brass number panels until we located the room Kareena had booked for us. A keycard reader perched above the door handle flashed with red light. I swiped our card down and a click sounded, the light changing to green. I pushed down the handle and opened the door.

  A short, narrow hallway lit with soft yellow light took us from the entrance past the bathroom, and then opened up to the main room with a small sofa, bed and television.

  “This feels weird,” Alice said, peering out the huge bay window at the very end of the room, watching Kareena’s red sports car peel out of the parking lot.

  She slid the blackout curtains closed and turned.

  “Yeah.” I locked the deadbolt and the chain lock above the door, then walked over to the bed and set my wallet and cell phone down on the end table. “It is kind of weird. I suppose it wouldn’t be if the circumstances weren’t so bad.”

  “I guess.” She shrugged. “People probably think we’re just dumb teenagers hiding out in a hotel.”

  “Well, we’re not.”

  “Do you know how to work this?” Alice squinted at the thermostat and rubbed her arms. “It’s cold in here.”

  “Yes.” I chuckled. “You flip this to heat or cool and use the arrow buttons to adjust the temperature.” I poked at them accordingly.

  “Oh. Okay.” She dropped her head down. “You must think I’m an idiot.”

  “No. I don’t.” I wrapped my arms around her waist and tugged her closer. “I would never think that about you.” I touched my thumb to her chin. Alice had a lot to learn, but she wasn’t an idiot.

  “Thanks.”

  My embrace loosened and she wriggled away. She plopped down onto the bed and fell back on one of the pillows.

  “I can’t believe we did this,” she groaned, staring blankly toward the ceiling. “I’m a horrible daughter.”

  I crawled up onto the other side of the bed and lay down beside her.

  “I can’t believe it either, but, we’ll be okay.” I reached for her hand. “Alice, you’re not a horrible daughter. We just…” The words had barely slipped off my tongue, and already her eyes began to glisten with tears.

  “I’m so stupid!” She yanked her hand away and rolled over, clutching her pillow tightly.

  “You’re not stupid, Alice. Believe me. You’re not.” I scooted closer and leaned over to kiss her shoulder.

  “Yes, I am. Mom is going to ground me forever.” She grumbled and buried her face into the pillow, letting out a hefty, muffled scream.

  “Alice?”

  “Leave me alone, Brian.”

  “What is it? Talk to me, please.” I ran my fingers through her hair and she batted my hand away.

  “Stop it. Just leave me alone, okay?” She huffed and rolled over to face the wall. “We shouldn’t even be here. We should be h
ome in our own, nice bed. Safe. Not scared.”

  “Alice?” I rested a hand on her shoulder and her nostrils flared.

  “Let me go to sleep, please,” she growled. “I’m tired.”

  “Fine.” I pulled back. “Go ahead.” I sat up and crossed my arms. “But don’t act like you’re the only one who got screwed here.”

  Alice reached down to grab the folded blanket from the base of the bed and pulled it over her body, just to her nose.

  I’d almost died today. Lost my job. Came within seconds of losing Alice to that nut job, David. And she had the nerve to suddenly shut me out as if she was the only one going through hell.

  I held my face in my hands and rested my eyes.

  I’d only done what I had thought was right. I’d never wanted to upset her. I only…

  My phone buzzed, jittering toward the edge of the nightstand.

  A text from Jane.

  JANE: Be careful. Wherever you are. Come home soon.

  JANE: Please…

  JANE: I’m not mad at you.

  I swiped the texts away and glanced at Alice curled up in her blanket—asleep already. Some days, it made me jealous how easily she could fall asleep.

  . . .

  A loud knock at the door jarred me awake.

  “Housekeeping!” a woman’s voice sounded from the hall.

  She knocked again, banging harder this time. The thumping noise made my head pulse.

  I leapt off the bed, carefully untangled a corner of the blanket from around my ankle and stumbled over to the door.

  “Hi.” I opened it a crack and smiled awkwardly at the short little maid looking up at me. “Can I… help you?”

  “I’m sorry. Did I wake you?” She cupped her hands together apologetically.

  “No. It’s fine. It’s just… my, uh…” I looked back toward the bed. “Never mind.” Alice remained asleep.

  “I’m terribly sorry, sir,” the woman apologized again. “I’ll just leave these with you and if you need anything, you can call the front desk from your phone. Just dial 1-1-1.”

  She handed me a stack of towels and toiletries.

  “Thank you.” I shuffled back inside and pushed the door closed with my hip.

  “Who was that?” Alice asked, her feet dangling over the side of the bed, her eyes only half open.

  “Housekeeping. I forgot to put the stupid sign on the outside of the door last night. I’m sorry she woke you up.”

  “It’s okay.” Alice stretched her arms high above her head and yawned. “Ugh. Everything hurts.” She rubbed the back of her neck.

  The bed wasn’t comfortable.

  “Well, it’s better than sleeping in an alleyway or—”

  “I’m just talking, okay?” She narrowed her eyes at me and I shut my mouth.

  She slid off the bed and dragged herself into the bathroom. The faucet squealed when she turned it on.

  “Do you want to get breakfast soon? We can grab something downstairs or—”

  Alice shut the bathroom door.

  “Or not,” I muttered, shaking my head. I flipped the TV on and hopped back onto the bed. My stomach grumbled.

  A basket of teabags and instant coffees sat on the table by the nightstand. In a fridge near Alice’s side of the bed were several bottled waters. I took out two and poured them into the coffee pot’s reservoir. Water dripped through the empty filter, sizzling and steaming inside the glass carafe.

  Nothing interesting on TV. Commercials. Soap operas. Talk shows. I located a news channel and stopped surfing. Maybe they’d mention something about the man from last night. I wondered if he’d made it… if the infection had killed him or…

  If I had killed him…

  A weather reporter came on. Sports were after that. I’d have to wait until the next hour to learn anything.

  I grabbed my phone off the nightstand.

  Twenty percent battery remaining.

  Damn.

  I didn’t have my charger. I’d have to conserve power until I could grab a new one. Assuming Jane didn’t shut off our service… or use it to track us.

  I sent Kareena a quick text to let her know what was up and then shut off my phone.

  We’d make do without it for now. The hotel room had one anyway.

  “Are you okay?” I called. Alice had been in the bathroom for quite a while.

  She didn’t reply.

  “Alice?” I meandered over to the bathroom and knocked gently, pressing my ear to the door.

  A faint moan. A heavy sniffle.

  How long had she been crying?

  “Can I come in?” I wrapped my fingers around the knob.

  She sniffed again. I twisted the handle.

  Alice sat on the edge of the bathtub, doubled over. Her face in her hands.

  I took a step closer and knelt down in front of her, resting a hand on her knee. “Alice. Come on. We need to get something to eat.”

  “We shouldn’t have run away,” she said, congested. “Mom would have helped us.” She balled up a length of toilet paper and blotted her cheeks. “She would have.”

  “And she still can, but not like this. She can’t stop the Saviors from hurting us.”

  “What are we supposed to do now?” Her blue eyes glared at me with contempt. “Seriously, Brian. What now?” She tossed the wad of soggy paper into the garbage bin.

  “I don’t know yet, but you saw that guy last night! Something was wrong with him. What if those people at the diner think we had something to do with it? What then? We can’t go back home until…”

  Another knock at the door.

  I sighed and pushed myself up off the floor. “Give me a sec, Alice.” I marched out of the bathroom, impatiently unlocked the front door and jerked it open.

  “Yeah? What did you… No!” I gasped.

  A lump formed in my throat.

  I was staring down the barrel of a silver handgun.

  “How the hell did you find us?” My eyes met David’s. The putrid scent of cigarettes had my lips wrinkling.

  “I had a little help.” He shot a glance toward the sky and grinned, his yellowing teeth just showing.

  “Brian?” Alice crept out of the bathroom, screamed and moved back against the wall.

  “Stay back, Alice!” I lifted an arm slightly.

  David forced the door open with his free hand and shoved the muzzle of the gun against my forehead. Cold, hard metal against my temple. My knees trembled.

  “Do they want us dead that badly?” I backed up a step, unintentionally allowing David across the threshold in the process. “That you have to resort to shooting us?”

  Alice clambered to open the window in the back of the room, but it had been bolted shut.

  David chuckled, amused by her sorry attempt.

  “People are always flinging themselves out the damn things,” he said with a smirk. “Can’t be too careful nowadays.”

  “Don’t hurt her, please. I’m the one they want. I’m the one who’s been giving all the orders around here. Not her. Not Kareena.”

  “Aw, they don’t want me to kill you. In fact, they told me I wasn’t allowed to.” He lowered the gun away from my forehead and I took a breath.

  “Can you believe that shit?” He looked away for a split second. Too quickly for me to make a move. “But I don’t care what they say anymore. They can’t tell me what to do. They can’t boss me around. I only work for myself now.”

  Himself? But before he’d seemed so willing to do the Saviors’ bidding.

  “David, listen to what you’re saying.” I took another step back and he lifted the gun toward me again. Toward my chest. I shuddered.

  “I’m not going to let them turn everyone into freaks,” he growled. “I’m not going to let her infect anyone else.” He nodded toward Alice.

  “No!”

  I looked back. She had backed herself up against the wall in a panic. David aimed the
gun past me. At her. Her eyes shimmered with fear.

  “I was going to shoot your ass first because you’ve been a thorn in my side from the beginning,” he said, sneering. “But I think I’ll shoot your girlfriend instead. How does that sound? Not so tough when it’s not your own blood on the line, huh?”

  “You son-of-a-bitch! Leave her alone or I’ll—”

  “What?” He swung the gun toward me again. “Come at me? We all know how that ends. Besides, I’d like to see her squirm. After what she did to me.” He wiped the back of his hand across his mouth and furrowed his eyebrows. “It hurt like hell.”

  “She was only trying to protect me!” I sidestepped to block him from targeting Alice. “David, please. She never chose to be a part of this! We don’t deserve this.”

  “Yeah? Well I don’t deserve everything those Saviors did to me, either. They told me they were gonna leave Lucy out of this. That if I followed orders, she’d be safe from this shit they put in us.” Amber golden light sparked beneath his shirt.

  Lucy? Had they lied to him, too?

  “They lied to us all,” I said, raising my hands in surrender. “Put the gun away, and we can talk this over. No one needs to get hurt.”

  David sucked a breath in through his teeth.

  “When your other girl tried to blow my brains out with that pink venom of hers, I started seeing things. Everyone looked different.” He dragged a hand through his short, slick black hair. “All I could see were the different lights inside us all. The sight stayed with me for a while even after I’d been sent home. Long enough for me to see what they’d done to Lucy. Long enough to see that the bastards had already infected her!” He rammed the butt of the handgun into the wall, cracking the plaster.

  Alice yelped.

  “We’ve all been hurt.” I held out my empty, trembling hands. “If you give us a chance, we’ll explain everything to you. Maybe we can even help your… Lucy.”

  “I don’t want to be part of this anymore.” He lowered the gun to his side and stared at the floor. “Hell. I never wanted to be part of this to begin with. They just…”

  “Forced you to?”

  “Yeah.” He eased his head up. Tired, bloodshot eyes met mine for a moment and then he looked away. In that moment, I caught a brief glimpse of the truth. Of his weakness and uncertainty.