by Carver Pike
“Fellas,” he said.
None of them answered. Haylay rolled his eyes and waited for time to pass.
It had to have been an hour since he first entered the cell. If anything, it had been longer; there’s no way it had been less. He already felt like he was going to pull his nonexistent hair out. He’d been in much smaller rooms, like the bathroom he lived in on the dark side, but he’d been free to come and go as he pleased. And he didn’t have these dirty scoundrels eyeballing his boobs.
He considered saying something to them, but even though he knew he was pretty tough, he didn’t know if he could take on five guys with no weapon. He leaned back, still standing, and closed his eyes.
“Vision…” Haylay heard. At least that’s what it sounded like. The one word seemed to float on the breeze, right past his ear. However, there wasn’t much of a breeze. He looked all around and saw that the other guys in the room hadn’t moved. Their eyes were still focused on his tits.
He closed his eyes again, shaking off the strange feeling he had in his gut, hoping it was just that, a strange feeling, ‘cause he wasn’t about to squat down over that toilet in a room full of disgusting horn balls.
“Vision…the jewel…Vision…”
This time Haylay’s eyes jerked open. He was sure it wasn’t his imagination.
“Y’all hear that?” he asked, the first time he’d spoken to his cellmates.
“Hear what?” a little Latino guy with a strange mustache asked.
“You don’t hear the voice?”
All the men suddenly looked downward, seeming to lose interest in Haylay’s tits once he started sounding insane.
“The jewel…Vision…” the voice whispered again.
Haylay’s eyes opened wide. This was some freaky shit. He didn’t like it. “Leave me alone,” he said softly.
The men were watching him again, but when he looked directly at them, they lowered their gazes.
“The jewel…”
“I ain’t got the motherfuckin’ jewel!” he yelled.
“The jewel…”
“They took it! I ain’t got the fuckin’ thang!”
A warm sensation on Haylay’s leg caused him to look down at his pants. There he saw something glowing in his pocket.
“No fuckin’ way,” he said.
He reached into his pocket and pulled the fabric aside just a little so that he could actually see the blue glow of the jewel in his pocket.
“How the hell?”
The hairy man who’d been sitting on the toilet earlier was looking at him again. He was tired of getting eye fucked by these Neanderthals.
“Motherfucker! You better keep your dirty ass eyes off my lovely ass breasts. Fuckin’ creep!”
The man looked at him innocently, and Haylay realized he probably wasn’t some bad ass, but more than likely some husband who’d been arrested for public drunkenness. It was probably the same for all these guys. Haylay had killed many people in his life and suddenly he remembered he wasn’t in his world and he wasn’t in any kind of large maximum-security prison. He was in some small-town jail. He could easily be the boss of this place, the leader of this ragtag group of weanies.
“Y’all gay?” he asked.
“No,” the little Latino guy said. He was quick to squash that rumor. “I no gay, man. I like womens.”
“None a y’all gay?” Haylay asked again.
Each man shook his head no.
“‘Cause I’m a man. And the next motherfucker who looks at my tits is fuckin’ gay! Y’all understand that? If you want this…” He ran his hands from his breasts down to his thighs. “If you want some a this…you fuckin’ gay!”
That ended the problem with the eyes on his tits. Hell, after that he’d probably have to pay for a little bit of attention. They wanted nothing to do with him. He looked into his pocket once more and admired the blue jewel. He looked over at the mirror and knew what he needed to do. He turned to the cell bars behind him.
“Officer!” he yelled. “Officer, please. I’d like to make my phone call now.”
He knew Heather’s phone number. He wasn’t sure how exactly, probably mixed memories again, like the Hollis memories he’d experienced earlier.
“Officer!” he called out again. “My phone call?”
It took a few minutes, and a few more pleas, but finally the officer who’d escorted him to the cell in the first place showed up to take him for his phone call.
It was early in the morning, just a couple of hours after dawn, and Haylay was worried she wouldn’t answer the phone. He’d decided on his course of action and would follow through, whether or not he got the chance to talk to her, but he truly hoped he’d have the opportunity to set her mind at ease.
He looked over at the officer who was busy chatting with one of his buddies. He’d been afraid the officer would stay too close to him, preventing him from telling her what he needed to say. Everything was perfect. If she would just pick up the damned phone…
“Hello?” her groggy voice came on the line.
“Heather?” he asked.
“Hollis?” she replied.
“Haylay,” he reminded her.
“I’m sorry, you just sound so much like him. I thought maybe he, I don’t know, maybe he was able to make a phone call.”
“From the other side of the mirror? Not likely, baby.”
“Did you do it?” she asked.
“Umm, about that. Don’t talk about that. Listen, I’m in jail.”
She gasped.
“Heather? Listen to me now…”
“You did it!”
“No, calm down, suga. I didn’t do it. It’s kind of funny actually. I didn’t do it at all. They was a couple a snivelin’ pussies, actually.”
“So you did find them?”
“I found them. And I almost did it. Turns out they robbed your daddy’s church. That’s why they beat up your brother. He threatened to turn them in when he found out about it. So they beat his ass for that, plus ‘cause he’s a fuckin’ whimp, but anyway…”
“But you didn’t do it?”
“For fuck’s sake, girl, no. I didn’t do it! Listen, I have to go back to my side of the mirror, but I’m in jail right now. I think I can go back from here, but I won’t have the chance to say goodbye. So this is me, doing that.”
“You’re leaving?”
“I have to. Listen, I got arrested for speeding and for runnin’ my big ass mouth with the police officer. So I’m in jail. When I go back, your brother is gonna be here, in this place. And he’s gonna be one confused motherfucker. You’re going to need to get your father to help him get out of here, unfortunately. Then, you’re going to need to explain to him everything I told you. He needs to know that he’s not crazy. ‘Cause he’s gonna think he’s lost his damned mind.”
“I understand.”
“And promise me something, baby girl.”
“Yes?”
“Promise me you won’t ever cross through that damned mirror. Promise me you ain’t ever gonna get mad enough to want to kill somebody. If you find yourself getting angry, just get the fuck outta the bathroom. Get away from any mirrors, any lakes with reflections and shit, get away from all that shit. Just go lie down in a bed with no mirrored ceilings. You understand? Let your anger pass. Don’t ever say the words, “I can’t take it anymore.” Never. Nowhere, never. Understand?”
“Geez. Yes. I get it.”
“Okay, baby girl, they’re gonna kick me off this phone soon. You take care of yourself.”
“Haylay, wait. Don’t forget, you’re a good person. You make your own decisions. Don’t let any preconceived idea of what you’re supposed to be make those decisions for you. You’re God’s child, no matter what side of the mirror you’re on. You got that?”
Chills covered his body, and goose bumps rose on his arms. He’d never been told that he was one of God’s children. He didn’t know why, and he didn’t feel them coming on, but tears suddenly ran from hi
s eyes. It was like a huge weight had been lifted off his chest. Somehow he knew she was right. Even with all of the bad shit he’d done, he was still capable of doing good. He’d proven that. And he would continue to prove it. He was God’s child.
“Thank you, Heather. You’ll never know how much your words have touched me.”
He wiped at his tears, shook off the chills, and put back on his tough exterior.
“Now, baby girl, I gotta get the fuck outta here before it’s too late. Miss Haylay got shit to do. Take care of yourself. And take care of your girly older brother.”
He hung up the phone and let his head rest against the receiver for a moment. This had been one hell of a trip so far, but he wouldn’t change it for the world.
Back at the cell, Haylay was tossed in quite roughly, and he shot the officer a pissed off look.
“The fuck’s wrong with you?” he said. “I ain’t no damned ragdoll. I’m a human bein’, baby.”
“I’ll try to remember that the next time I see you outside of a cage,” the officer responded as he walked away.
“Did he just…oh hell, naw. Did he just call me a animal?”
The men sitting down looked up at him, but then quickly snapped their attention back down to the floor.
“Ha, I’s just kiddin.’ Y’all ain’t gay. You can look at me. Breasts is breasts, right?”
The men seemed to agree as they raised their heads and looked at him.
“Bullshit, y’all are fuckin’ gay,” he added and laughed.
Haylay made his way to the stall, refusing to waste any more time. He’d said what he needed to say to Heather, and he was ready to go home. He checked one last time to make sure the jewel was still in his pocket, and then he leaned in close to the mirror. He was nervous. The last time he’d done this, he had no control over the matter. It just happened. This time, the control was all his.
He looked once over his shoulder to see if any of the guys were watching, but it seemed they’d all stayed glued to their positions against the wall. He checked to see if any guards were out in the hallway or if any other eyes were able to see, but it seemed no one was watching.
For a moment, he imagined what it would be like on this side when Hollis crashed onto the floor. He’d probably be saying all kinds of crazy shit. The men on the other side would swear he’d been wearing different clothes and they’d definitely notice his tits had disappeared. It would be hysterical.
Unfortunately, Haylay would be long gone, probably in a fuckin’ forest again, with crazed animals hot on his trail. He thought once more about the possibility that Hollis might not even be alive. If he was dead, Haylay’s forehead was about to smack into the solid mirror.
“Okay, let’s do this,” he said to himself. “I…I can’t take it anymore.”
He reached out and touched the mirror, but it was still solid.
“I can’t take it anymore,” he repeated.
The mirror remained solid.
“Motherfucker…”
Suddenly, the mirror began to liquefy, and there, standing on the other side, with what appeared to be the inside of a room behind him, was Hollis, looking scared, his face bloody and bruised. Haylay reached in, grabbed his reflection by the shoulders, and pulled him in close.
“Listen closely. I don’t have much time. Your sister will explain everything. Just keep your mouth shut when you get here. You’ll be in jail.”
He expected Hollis to say something, but he didn’t. He just stared at Haylay, a zoned out look on his face.
“You’re gonna be in jail, but it’s just a speeding…well maybe an assault charge too, but you’ll be out in no time. Your father is gonna be pissed at you. Just remember to trust your sister. She’ll explain. Sorry about all this.”
Haylay jumped through the mirror, and tossed Hollis across the threshold, doing his best to set him down on the other side as gently as possible.
Haylay rested on the hard wooden ground for a moment, then realized he was on the dangerous side of the mirror. This time if he got attacked, it probably wouldn’t be the harmless, pissed off nanny.
He was in a cabin. The only light shined in through the wooden slots at the window. The place was dirty and dust filled the air. It stunk like mildew. The cabin consisted of only one room, and he was in it. From where he stood, he saw a small kitchen-like area, a table, and a bed.
Holy shit, the bed. A man was lying on the bed.
He saw a tree branch that looked to have been carved into a spear lying on the floor near his feet, and picked it up. The tip of it was covered in blood. He held it out in front of him and crept closer to the bed.
“You little motherfucker,” Haylay said under his breath.
The man was also covered in blood. A closer look revealed that the man had been speared up through his chin. Haylay realized the man’s pants were pulled down and his dick was hanging out. More than likely he’d tried to force something on Hollis, and the boy had protected himself.
A sense of pride came over him as he realized the boy had finally manned up. Then he realized how close he’d come to being trapped on the other side of the mirror. He sat down in a chair and just stared at the dead man. He hoped Hollis wasn’t too damaged. Now he understood why the boy had looked so shaken up when Haylay was talking to him. He’d just killed his first man. Haylay looked around the room.
“Now where the hell am I, Hollis?”
Chapter 18 - It All Comes Thundering Down
Slither stood on the deck of the hovering ship and looked at the building in front of him and the disaster his big ugly friend had caused. The steel fortress now had all of its windows smashed out. Viking had disappeared into the building a few minutes back and hadn’t returned.
He felt like shouting, “Keep the disgusting brute,” but decided against it. If nothing else, Viking had proved to be a resourceful son of a bitch, and all Slither needed was for him to come waltzing out of the building unscathed and spitting fumes at Slither for not coming to his aid.
He’d almost launched himself through the window right behind Viking, but Changeling had convinced him it would be better to wait outside, in case the boys escaped.
Slither stood in the odd silence, smoke from the ship’s guns wafting through the air as the barrels cooled down. Changeling, the female version, stood with her hands on her hips, looking for their fallen brother.
“Is it strange that I’d actually miss him if he doesn’t come back?” she said.
“Itsss not ssstrange. The two of you have sssssome sssort of flirtatious connection, I think,” Slither said.
“Flirtatious my ass, that guy’s a dick,” the manly Changeling loudly declared.
“Keep your eyesss peeled for the babiessss,” Slither ordered.
Changeling nodded and stayed put as Slither made his way to the opposite end of the ship.
Slither checked the rooftops around them, knowing that they were parked right out in open air and vulnerable to a sneak attack. He was pretty sure all of their enemies were inside the building, but taking chances wasn’t something Slither liked to do.
Viking was the bull, always ready to charge forward, and Changeling just seemed to follow everyone else. Slither was the one with the leadership skills.
As he eyed the tops of the buildings around them, he noticed movement. At first he thought he might be imagining it, but then he saw a soldier roll out from behind an air vent and dash over to hide behind a metal electrical box. Then more movement, as he noticed sneaky figures in the shadows of several buildings.
The sun was rising and those shadows being used for concealment were quickly disappearing. Slither wondered how good these guys were. He considered pulling his sword, leaping onto one of the rooftops, and pulling a quick slice, dice, and run. He was sure he could take many of them on his own, but he had to remind himself of his reason for being there. He was there to grab the babies.
The sound of the lobby doors sliding open down below echoed off the buildings, lik
e the swoosh of a giant freezer door becoming unstuck and releasing. Slither looked down at the small boy exiting the building and was slightly confused. He’d been told his job was to seek out and take into his custody two infants. He’d never seen an infant, except a drawing he came across once in a journal he’d confiscated, but he was sure this boy was too large to be one. Still, he’d never seen a boy this size either. The size of this little one would have to be that of a child.
