Torment

by R. S. Broadhead

  “You okay?” Savannah said. I didn’t hear her steps, but somehow I knew it wouldn’t be long till she was out here checking on me. She came up beside me, staring up at the sky. “The river is so not my thing. There are so many germs in this water from all the barges that go up and down it. Not to mention all those drunk river-rats who come down here partying every weekend. No telling what they put in it.” Her nostrils flared, causing a few small wrinkles between her eyes.

  “What are we gonna do?” I asked in a small voice. I dug my toes into the sand and kicked it off.

  She locked her arm around mine, like two preschoolers skipping around the track together. Only our touch wasn’t to have fun, our touch was an indication we both felt the same thing. Scared. “I don’t know,” she finally said. After a pause she continued, “But whatever it is, we’ll do it together. I know you’ve been going through some things, but it’s time you stop turning your back on everyone. We need each other now more than ever.”

  “Sometimes it’s just easier to deal with stuff on my own.” That was a lie. I knew it the moment I said the words out loud. I had done nothing but make things worse. I was angry all the time, and it was making me hate myself. Why couldn’t I just rewind to before this started? Go back to gawking over guys at the Fulton trailer. Why did I ever think this was going to be such a cool idea?

  “I know I’m not Reese. No one can be her, but I’d like to try to be there when you need someone to talk to,” she said, interrupting the regretful decisions I’d made.

  I managed a smile despite the muscles in the corners of my mouth hating me for it. “I’d like that.” I cast a glance behind us at the old jeep sitting under the yellow light. “Do you think that thing runs?”

  She looked back. “Not sure. We can ask Raven. Why? You planning on doing some major road rage and running some folks off the road?”

  “Well, you know, I thought about it.” She laughed. “Nah, I just wanted to clear my head. I think I know a way, and I want you to come with me.” Her eyes widened. “Without Lance,” I continued.

  “You got it.” We walked up to the house. It was built of wood that had started to darken with age. A screened porch ran across the front, small holes in the mesh. The door opened with a loud creak as we entered into the kitchen from the side. Dull yellow linoleum covered the floor. There was a small counter coming out from one wall with a few cabinets going around the bottom. It looked to be work in progress, or a work forgotten about. It smelled of lilacs mixed with cinnamon. I half expected it to smell like an older person’s house.

  Raven emerged from a back hall, carrying some blankets and pillows. Everyone else was seated in the living room, looking uncomfortable. “Here you go,” she said handing them out to each person. “Someone can share the bedroom since there’s only one. Everyone else will have to sleep in here.”

  I cleared my throat, making her turn in my direction. “Umm, I was wondering if the jeep worked.”

  She puckered her lips and looked away as if thinking. “I think it does, if the battery isn’t dead. It’s been awhile since my parents were here.” She went over to a small table beside the door and opened a canister. “Here’s the key. Try it, that’s all I know to tell you.” I nodded and headed out the door. The first try was no success, but it was trying to fire up, so I knew it wasn’t completely dead. After the third attempt, it sputtered to life, and I let out an excited yell and pounded on the roof with my good hand.

  Lance and Savannah came out, and she kissed him on the cheek before climbing into the passenger side. “It’s different being on this side with you driving.”

  “Maybe I can get us outta here,” I said. I threw it in reverse and backed up. Something banged against the back. “What was that?” I asked, my voice high.

  She turned to look behind us. “You hit a barrel.” After a few times of pulling up and reversing, we were on our way out. There was hardly a road, more like an oversized trail. I hit a pothole hard, making something start rattling under the hood. “They should really think about getting their road fixed.”

  “For real.” We came out on the highway a few minutes later. I turned toward town. Something rustled under the jeep. “Are we dragging somethin’?”

  She rolled down her window and stuck her head out. “Sounds like it. How far are you going?” she asked, pulling her head back in. Her hair was tousled around worse than what it was when we got off the boat.

  “Just right up here,” I said as downtown approached.

  “Should be fine until we stop then.” My destination came into view. A bright neon sign blinked Tattoo as I pulled into one of the parking spots running in front of the building. “Oh, no,” she started, staring at the business beside us. “What are you thinking?”

  “I’m thinking it’s time I get a little ink therapy. It’s the best.” I turned the car off and gave her a wink. “Maybe I can talk you into getting one too.”

  Her face instantly paled as her lips moved but nothing came out. “I don’t know about that,” she finally said, choking slightly. “My stomach is already doing flips thinking about you getting one.” She grabbed at her midsection. “I might have to take a shit in here.”

  Something started to smell a second later. “Awww, sick! You couldn’t wait until we were outta the car before you did that?” I covered my nose and slung the door open, gulping the clean air, trying to cleanse the smell of diarrhea fart from my nose.

  “You liked it,” she said as I rounded the back of the jeep and cut her a dirty look. I leaned down and snatched the limb we were dragging out. “Seriously, maybe you should reconsider. I heard people get junk all the time from dirty needles some tattoo artists use. You could get the rot,” she warned.

  I rolled my eyes and held open the door for her. “I’ll take my chances. I heard this place was supposed to be good.” She darted to the couch and sat on the very edge of the cushion. I strolled around the room, looking at all the pieces displayed in the frames.

  “What up, ladies? Looking to get some ink tonight?” a girl said. Her purple and blond hair was pulled back, with a few strands hanging loose around her face. “I’m Sammie.”

  “Ummm, I don’t think so, Sammie,” Savannah said from the couch. Her voice came out in a tiny squeak.

  Nothing seemed to jump out at me as I searched the different art. I didn’t want anything generic that just anyone on the street could get. “She’s being a baby about this,” I said before the familiar rancid odor hit my nose again. I covered my nose and mouth, trying not to laugh.

  “Damn. You guys smell that? Sewage has got to be backing up or somethin’,” Sammie said.

  “I don’t smell anything,” Savannah said, standing up and doing a small wave behind her. She flipped through the displays also in an attempt not to look suspicious. It was too late. The entire area had already been crop-dusted.

  “I can’t see how. That smell would gag a dead person.” Savannah’s back stiffened, but she didn’t turn around. Sammie grabbed some air freshener from behind the counter and sprayed.

  “I wouldn’t do that if I was you,” I said.

  The hissing sound of the nozzle stopped. “Why?” she asked, taking a seat.

  I turned toward her. “It confuses the brain.” She pulled back, the planes of her face lined with confusion. “Think about when you’re at someone’s house and they just took a big steamy ass dump. You walk in behind them, unknowing the bomb you’re setting yourself up to endure. They’ve loaded this perfume smelling junk all in there. Your first reaction is ‘Awww, that smells so good.’ Then bam, hidden under all that fruity smelling goodness is shit particles that you just inhaled and now that’s all you can smell.”

  She puckered her lips. “I never thought about it like that. You might be a genius.”

  I turned back to my task. “I know. It’s a curse.”

  “So what kind of piece you looking to get?” she asked. “I wouldn’t waste my time with that bullshit on the walls unless you want some
thing hundreds of other people already have.

  I threw my hands up in the air like she read my thoughts and totally just confirmed my worries. “Here’s the thing. We’ve lost a few of our friends … they died.” She nodded, letting me take my time explaining. “I want somethin’ to symbolize them.”

  “I got the perfect thing for you,” she said, jumping up. She motioned me to follow her as she walked to the back. She rustled through some sketches, replacing the papers she held when she couldn’t find what she was looking for. She glanced around. “I know it’s around here somewhere.” She looked back to her computer and reached for a folder behind it. “Knew it was back here somewhere.” She flipped through the folder and pulled out a drawing of a small symbol. The thick, bold lines made a circle at the top with a curved line coming down from the side. Connecting to the circle, below it was an upside down triangle with a curved lined coming out from the opposite side going up. “It’s the Akan symbol for death,” she said.

  I took the paper from her and stared at it. “It’s perfect. Since I’m trying to get the girl out front to do it with me, I didn’t want anything too big. I think this will go nicely on the inside of my wrist.”

  She nodded. “I’ll start drawing it up for you. See what you can do to talk her into it.”

  I walked back to the front. Savannah was seated on her tiny bit of cushion again with her hands locked in her lap. “You gonna do this with me?”

  She blinked a few times like I had lost my mind asking her that. “I don’t think so.”

  I grabbed her hand. Time to lay on the best friend charm. “Come on. It’s really small. You can put it on the inside of your wrist like me.” She nibbled at her lower lip. “It isn’t as bad as you think it’s gonna be. I promise.”

  “Okay,” she said, her voice shaking.

  “She’s gonna do it,” I yelled.

  “Sweet. Just tell her not to fart in my chair. I know it was her who did that.” Savannah’s face turned pink. Soon, I was leaned back in the chair with the hum of the gun singing to me. My body relaxed as it sliced through my flesh injecting the ink. Savannah sat next to me, eyeing Sammie’s hand as she worked. The doorbell chimed, making her pause.

  “Sammie, I got your money for that piece you did on me,” a gruff voice said. A tall creature stood in the doorway of the tattoo room. It had an oversized head compared to its smaller framed body. A large nose covered most of his face, with eyes on the sides of his head. Four spikes ran along the top of his skull and down the back. My body tensed as I stared. I held my breath, waiting to see if it would attack us. Savannah made a small noise beside me. He eyed us for a moment and stepped forward with a handful of cash. Sammie took it from him and put it in her pocket. “Busy night tonight, huh?”

  “Not as crazy as it’s been,” she answered before starting back on my piece.

  He laughed. “At least you’re getting a break. I’ll be back in next week to finish this up on my back.” She mumbled something and he left, leaving us in shock.

  “Did you not see a big ass weird looking creature standing there?” I asked in disbelief.

  “Yeah. So?” she asked, never stopping her work. “I tattoo all sorts of different looking things. They don’t faze me.”

  I sat back in the chair while my heart regained a regular beat. “Wow. I didn’t think I’d ever see that.”

  “You sound as shocked as this other girl who came in here a while back. She was chasing something through here. She looked like she was about to shit her pants when I told her that.”

  My head shot up, causing her to stop. “What did she look like?”

  “Little shorter than you. Long blond hair, blue eyes, I think. She was pretty.”

  “When was that?”

  “Probably over a year ago. It was raining the day she came in. Looked like she was hurt. I told her the thing she was looking for ran out the back. I think there must have been a little gang of them hiding out in one of those abandoned buildings. I’d see some of them come and go when I was out there taking a smoke break. One day I saw this skinny ass girl with brown hair skirt up the side like a damn monkey. Funniest shit I ever saw.” I was sure the girls she saw were Reese and Raven. It had to be the building they found Dermetheus meeting in.

  “After we’re done, can you show me which building it is?”

  She looked up at me without surprise. “Sure thing.” When she finished the piece looked absolutely amazing. Savannah was hilarious to watch squirm around in the chair. Sammie had to keep stopping to tell her to stay still. I paced the floor, impatiently waiting for her to be done. Finally after many tears, and several cuss words, Savannah was finished.

  “I’m glad I let you talk me into this. It looks good,” she said admiring it in the mirror. She twisted her wrist in different directions, posing a few ways like she was in a photo shoot. “Why are we going back to this room?” she asked in a low voice when Sammie went to grab us change from the registrar. “You don’t seriously think they’re still there, do you?”

  “No, but I’m hoping we can find some type of clue to what they’re up to.”

  Sammie came back around the corner and counted out the money for me. “Ready to go back there?” I asked.

  “Let’s go.” She led the way back near her computer area and pushed open a door leading outside. The ally was empty. She walked up ahead of us a few feet and stopped, looking up. “That’s it up there. Some were hanging out down here by the door one night. I thought I was gonna have to kick their ass.”

  “Why?” I asked. I really liked this girl. In a lot of ways she reminded me of myself. What would the world do if there were two of us? There would never be a dull moment, that’s for sure.

  “Because one of them told me to get back inside before I got hurt. Pssshhh. You know what? I didn’t move. I stood right there and just gave them the look. The one that dares someone to try you. You know what I’m talking about?” Savannah giggled behind us. She knew what I did. I knew the look so well I practically practiced it in my sleep. Nightmares second-guessed themselves when they thought about interrupting my sleep. Did I know the look? I invented the look. “I haven’t seen any of them here in a while, so I think you’re good to go up if you want. I’ll stay down here and keep an eye out just in case.”

  “Cool. We shouldn’t be too long,” I said.

  I motioned Savannah to follow as I flipped on my phone’s flashlight app. Attentively, we climbed the steps. One was busted through. It was old. My guess was something with too much weight stood its fat ass on it too long. There was a black substance covering the surface, had to be blood. At the top, the door was ajar. Inside was dark. I pushed it completely open, letting the light from my phone flood the room. Just what I expected. Empty. Everything that was once here is gone, only leaving the dust behind.

  “Sucks they cleaned everything out,” Savannah said from the doorway. “But then again, I wouldn’t expect anything other from them. They’re smart.”

  “Hmmm. Not as smart as you think. They didn’t take everything,” I said. I leaned down for a closer look as something bright reflected against the light. It was small, jammed between the floor and the baseboard. It was easily something that would have been overlooked while moving things out of here. Cautiously, I removed it and held it up for a closer look. It was something electrical. Dax would have to decide if this could be useful to us. I put it in the pocket of my jeans.

  “Check this out.” I shined the light toward Savannah. “The entire room is clean except this little thing of dirt. Maybe we should take it and analyze it. It might can tell us where they were taking stuff if this came off someone’s feet.”

  “Agreed. Anything is better than nothing.” I ran back down the steps to the ally. “Sammie?”

  “Yeah,” she answered, stepping away from the wall she was propped against.

  “Can you get me one of your latex gloves and one of those little baggies you use to put body jewelry in?” I asked. She nodded and disappe
ared into the shop. A few moments later she reappeared and handed me the items. I skirted back upstairs as I pulled the glove over my hand. I gathered as much of the dirt as I could, even though there wasn’t a lot to begin with, and placed it in the plastic bag. “We need to get back and see what we can do with this.”

  “Lance is probably worried sick over us. We’ve been gone for a few hours.”

  “Well let’s go. We got some work to do on finding these dicks. I need some redemption.”

  Chapter Nine

  Shayla

  “Where have y’all been? I was worried sick,” Lance said as the engine shut off. He was already at Savannah’s door, wearing a concerned dad expression. Without saying a word Savannah flipped over her wrist. His eyes widened, taking her hand to pull it closer to his face. “Did it hurt?” He traced the lines with the tip of his finger as if memorizing every turn the ink took.

  “Nah. It wasn’t bad,” she said. I stared at the back of her head with disbelief. Obviously, she had already forgotten squirming and crying like a bitch in the chair, not to mention the horrid odor she extinguished from her asshole. I didn’t say a word. I let her carry on like she was miss big dick in front of her man. Hell, he didn’t need to know. I absently patted my front pocket to make sure the things we found in the room were still there, and hopped out of the jeep, leaving the two of them outside. The screen door slammed behind me causing everyone to jump. They were already laid across the tiny living room, covering both couches and most of the floor between the two.

  “Get up,” I commanded. Someone groaned. “I know it’s late, but we found something,” I continued trying to spark their sleepy brains. I flipped the switch beside the refrigerator, flooding the room with light. Everyone sat up, some rubbing their eyes, trying to adjust. I walked over and shoved Raven’s feet to the side so I could sit on the couch. The door slammed behind me, letting me know everyone was here now. “We’ve been through some hard shit tonight,” I started. It was weird, me having to be the one giving a pep talk to boost everyone’s moral and getting them back on track, but it had to be done. “We lost someone that meant a lot to us. Fuzz brought us into all of this because he believed in each and everyone of us.” It hurt to say his name again. I could feel my emotions crashing into each other inside. “He was more than a trainer. He was a friend who put up with a lot from us, me especially.” Savannah sat on the arm of the couch behind me and put a hand on my shoulder. Despite the depressing emotional blanket that seemed to be covering the room, people smiled, as if remembering something that made my words true. “He wouldn’t want us to stop. We might not be as strong without some of the others we’ve lost, but we’re still strong. We can do this if we just stick together. It’s time we stop running and watching. We need to take this fight to them.”