by Henson, Lynn
“What the hell is going on?” Kyle asked, coming awake.
Blake looked towards the doorway and made out three figures. He heard a groan from behind him and glanced back at Kyle. Bright light blinded him as Kyle turned his flashlight on in his face and then directed it past him. Blake turned back towards the doorway and saw Carrey next to an annoyed looking Kim, palm on her chest.
Kyle grunted as he switched off his flashlight and resumed his previous position.
“You scared the shit out of me,” Kim hissed as she stepped passed Carrey and stood over Blake.
“Well, I heard a noise. So I got up to see what it was,” he explained.
“Just us,” Carrey said, already disinterested. He walked over to the bed Blake had prepared and kicked off his shoes.
“Uh... I called that one,” he told him.
Carrey gazed longingly at the bed and then walked over to where his brother was laid out. Kyle rolled over onto his side away from the edge of the bed and Carrey flopped appreciatively into the space and put his forearm over his eyes.
Bree poked her head into the room and looked around. “Kim?” she asked, clearly hoping whatever was going on wasn’t complicated or required her attention.
Kim sighed and gave him a hard look before heading out of the room. “Everything’s cool Bree. Let’s get some rest.”
Bree and Kim left, leaving Blake to pick himself off the floor. He got his feet under him and walked back to the doorway, disoriented. He took a look out into the hallway but didn’t see anything odd and returned to his bed. He saw his invitingly peeled open bed and once again looked forward to catching forty winks. He still managed to slowly insert himself between the sheets and pull the blankets around him, savoring the cool feeling. He fell asleep immediately.
thirty-five
Blake came awake all at once. He had this horrible feeling that he was being watched and he stared at the doorway, somehow sensing that whatever it was, was in that direction. He watched, trying to listen. The silence was overwhelming, and the room was completely still. After what felt like ten minutes, his heart had stopped racing but he still looked distrustfully at the doorway. He spared a glance at the other bed. The twins were still sleeping. They were in exactly the same positions they were in when they got in the bed. He returned his attention to the doorway then after a moment, got up and walked carefully towards it. He took a breath, girding himself and peeked around the corner. The hallway was just as he remembered it, with nothing out of the ordinary. It was freezing he realized. Probably because I’m running around in my boxer shorts. He returned to the bed and shoved himself into the covers. He closed his eyes but he still felt like he was being watched. He couldn’t contain himself and he quickly popped his eyes open, but the room remained as it had been. He resigned himself to getting back to sleep. But he continued to lay there, uncomfortable. He was completely awake and even worse, he still felt an oppressive presence. Blake must’ve lay there for a half hour before he sat up, accepting that sleep was beyond him. He rubbed his eyes and yawned, glancing over at the sleeping brothers, envious. He looked over at the doorway and it seemed darker than normal. The darkness moved suddenly to the right and the doorway returned to normal.
Blake felt a chill run right through his body and continued to stare at the doorway. His mind raced trying to make sense of what he saw. Trick of the light? One of the other people moving around? He got up quickly then, grabbing his flashlight and peered out into the hallway. All seemed as it should be. He walked around the hallway trying to see if maybe one of the others was awake. A quick peek into the other occupied rooms revealed that everyone was asleep. Still feeling uncomfortable, he walked down the hallway, determined to find an explanation. He’d made it halfway down the hall when he heard the sound of a lock being manipulated. He froze, another chill going through him. He looked to his right and found he was next to room 211. He gripped the doorknob and turned it slowly. The door pushed open amicably. He opened it another few inches and shined his light into the room. It looked like the other rooms which was pretty much as he’d expected. He moved in and the door quietly closed behind him. He shined his light into the bathroom while trying to keep as much distance between himself and the doorway as possible. The bathroom was devoid of shifting shadows that weren’t of his own making. He moved deeper into the cheap hotel room and cast his light about.
“I died...” he heard whispered into his ear.
Blake lost his shit. He whirled around, frantically trying to put distance between himself and the voice while trying to direct his light at it. His breath came out visibly as puffs of cold air. When nothing was revealed by the light, he started moving the light around to try to find the origin of the voice. His heart felt like it was in his throat as it beat rapidly, his terror rising. He continued his mad search for whoever had spoken to him, his light going wildly around the room when it reflected off of the tv and he saw a figure reflected in it.
He shrieked then and the flashlight fell from his hand and clattered to the floor. The light from the flashlight dimmed and he gaped at it in horror, praying it wouldn’t go out. It dimmed even more for a couple seconds and then the beam came back up to its normal strength. His teeth chattered as he crouched down, picked it up and shined it back at the TV. It was just me goddammit. Jumping at my own fucking reflection. He felt his self-control reasserting itself and he stood up, watching his reflection do the same. He even managed to wave at his reflection which was returned simultaneously. He felt the beginnings of a smile, when his flashlight went out, plunging him into darkness.
“Stay with me...” he heard in front of him.
Blake felt pain like he’d run into a wall. You did run into a wall, you idiot. He fumbled around and found the wall and while keeping his hands on it, he got to his feet. He kept contact with it and followed it until he ran out of wall and moved blindly forward until his arms came into contact with the opposite side of the doorway. Realizing he was getting closer to the exit, he turned ninety degrees and stumbled towards where he thought the way out was. He found the door and pressed his body against it, relief washing over him in a wave. He flailed around and found the doorknob and turned it. He pulled and the door wouldn’t open. The relief he’d felt was gone in an instant and panic came rushing back. He felt around the doorknob trying to find the locks and managed to find a latch. He turned it and tried the door again. It still didn’t budge. His panic level rose and he returned the latch he found to the previous position and tried again. The door still didn’t move. He pushed and pulled, but the door might as well have been part of the wall. Light suddenly illuminated him and he turned around and saw his dropped flashlight on the floor behind him. He ran back into the room and grabbed the flashlight and ran back to the door. He confirmed that it was unlocked, gave the doorknob another turn and pulled and still it refused to open. He felt despair then, tears start welling up in his eyes. He turned and slumped to the floor, the door at his back. He pointed the light towards the room, not knowing what else to do. He saw it then. A dark shadow peeked out at him from the bathroom. He watched it in shock, his flashlight pointed in its general direction, but it just seemed to absorb light. It slid back into the bathroom and he felt like he was on the verge of losing his mind. He stood, faced the door, turned the knob and pulled for all he was worth. The door opened with no resistance, but because of the desperate force which with he pulled, he hit himself with it and fell to the ground, stunned. The door started to slowly close and he frantically crawled forward to try to get through it. He made it halfway out when he felt a hand grab his ankle. He whimpered and tried to continue out of the room, but the grip on his leg was like iron.
“No...” he heard from behind him.
He grabbed the side of the doorway and pulled for all he was worth. He flopped out of the room and dragged himself away from the doorway, putting his back to the opposite wall and looked at the room. His flashlight rolled in front of him, the head of it describing a half
arc and stopped, illuminating his bare foot. It was red around the ankle. He looked up and the door quietly shut itself, the latch clicking in place. He scrambled to his feet, grabbed his flashlight and hauled ass back to his own room. He closed the door and inserted himself into the safety of his bed, pulling his sheets up over his head. He stayed like that for a long time until exhaustion set in and he fell asleep without realizing it.
thirty-six
Someone was shaking him.
“Hey! Blake! Wake up!”
He opened his eyes, and everything was white. Sheets still covered his head. He struggled to extract himself from them.
Hands pushed down on him and he stopped struggling. He felt a tugging behind his shoulder and the sheets came free. The blonde girl stood over him looking rested and fresh.
“Come on, you’re going to miss breakfast,” she told him with a hint of reproach in her voice.
“Ok, ok, thanks,” he replied as he sat up.
She smiled at him and sat down on the now vacated bed that the brothers had slept on. She crossed her legs, laced both hands together and wrapped them around her knee.
“You don’t have to wait for me you know,” Blake told her.
“Well, we’re not supposed to be moving around alone, you know? It’s for safety,” she told him as she bobbed her crossed leg forward and back.
“What’s your name anyway? I never got to a chance to ask.”
“Tiffany Fenix,” she smiled.
“Nice to finally properly meet you,” he sighed as he pulled the sheets completely off himself and got out of bed. Seeing his state of relative undress, she politely looked up at the ceiling and twirled her hair. “I wanted to thank you. For rescuing me. I don’t know what came over me that night.”
“You’re welcome,” he grinned, “I just wish I could’ve helped more people.”
He put his clothes back on and headed into the bathroom to look in the mirror. He ran his hands through his bedhead trying to get it back into order and then came out to face Tiffany, presenting himself to her.
“Looking good,” she confirmed. “We’re going to leave after we eat, so pack your stuff up.” she further informed him.
“Ok,” he replied and stuffed his possessions into his backpack. He zipped it up and shouldered it. Then he nodded at her again to show his readiness.
She got to her feet and walked past him, gripping his hand and pulling him with her as she headed out the door.
They headed down the hallway and downstairs. The atmosphere still felt heavy, but being in contact with Tiffany made it bearable. His comrades had occupied a large booth in the center of the dining room that was far enough away from corpses. Everyone had a plate of what looked like diced tomatoes with a side of shredded white meat, maybe tuna or chicken. Lisa came out of the kitchen with a large metal mixing bowl full of kernels of corn. Kim trailed after with her hands full of silverware. Blake and Tiffany slid into one end of the booth as Lisa placed the corn down in the center of the table and Kim handed the silverware to Bree who kept a fork, passing the rest to her right. Kim sat and looked brightly at the rest of the table.
“Dig in!” she prompted everyone.
Gao grimaced at the fare but started spearing bits of tomatoes into his mouth. Doris had gotten a hold of the bowl of corn and scooped some onto his plate then on to her own before offering it to Tiffany. Blake ate his own plate of food methodically, starting with the tomatoes, then the tuna, and finishing up with the corn.
Tiffany watched him curiously as he ate. He noted that she’d already polished off her own breakfast. He swallowed his mouthful and asked, “Want more?”
She shook her head and gestured at his plate. “You eat one thing at a time?”
He nodded, “Always have. Started in elementary school from eating in the cafeteria. I’d eat lunch in a particular order starting with the least exciting foods first and saving the best for last.”
She nodded, smiling. “So the corn came out on top?”
He shrugged, “None of these particularly won out over the other in terms of favorites, but the corn is sweet enough that it seemed the most desserty.”
“It’s a shame we can’t actually cook anything,” she lamented.
“That would be nice,” he admitted. “These tomatoes would go good over some spaghetti. Maybe even mix the corn in. Hell, the tuna might even work.”
“Worth a shot,” she nodded.
Gao spooned his tomatoes on to Doris’s plate.
Lisa watched him with a raised eyebrow. “That’s good for you. Lycopene and other stuff that’s healthy.”
“Blech,” he retorted, making a face to emphasize his point.
“I don’t exactly blame him,” Kyle remarked, spooning tuna into his mouth. “If this shit is going to go on for a while, we should find some portable cooking gear.”
“We could try hitting up a camping store or something,” Carrey said thoughtfully. “The way we’re eating now is a bit on the bachelor style of the culinary arts.”
“Not even that,” Kyle pointed out. “We don’t even have a microwave to heat up our canned crap.”
Blake finished off the last of his corn and then remembered something. “Hey, Lisa? Any tuna left?”
“Quite a bit, the pantry has a bunch of stuff. You want more?”
“Yeah, sort of,” he replied motioning Tiffany to get up so he could get out of the booth.
“Don’t go anywhere alone,” Kim reminded him.
“I’ll go with him. I’m done anyway,” Tiffany offered.
He headed off to the kitchen, Tiffany in tow. The tuna was easy enough to find, there was still a giant can of it that Lisa must have opened to serve to everyone. The can was the large size that only a restaurant would’ve bought. He scrounged around and found a saucer and scooped some of the tuna on to the dish.
Tiffany watched him the whole time. “What are you going to do with that?”
He looked at her silently as he picked up the saucer full of tuna. “Um... well, just keep this under your hat for now,” he said finally.
She looked at him uncertainly but nodded.
“Ok, but it’s going to be easier just to show you. Do you know where we parked?” he asked.
“Yeah, before we woke you up we loaded some of the food into the cars,” she answered.
“Lead the way then.”
She led him back out into the employee hallway and out to a loading dock where their small convoy of cars were parked. He went up to the SUV and tried the rear door. It was unlocked a little to his surprise and almost immediately, Bob hopped out and looked up at him and meowed. Then he ran over to a patch of dirt and did his business.
When he returned, Blake set the saucer down and Bob gave it a perfunctory sniff before he started eating with as much gusto as a cat would be capable of.
“That’s a cat,” Tiffany pointed out.
“Yeah,” he agreed, “I sort of picked him up when we were going through Vegas.”
“I like animals and all, but is this really a good time to be taking care of pets?” she asked him.
“Well... no,” he admitted. “But I couldn’t just leave him.”
“You’ve got a soft heart,” she observed.
“Yeah, I do. Not really a good characteristic to have given the situation though.”
“I’d disagree there,” she shrugged, “But what’s with all the secrecy?”
“Oh. Well, Carrey told me not to rescue it when it jumped on our car. I obviously didn’t listen to him and Bob’s been riding with us secretly ever since,” he confessed.
“You should just tell everyone you’re keeping, uh... Bob.”
“But like you pointed out, it’s not exactly a great idea given our circumstances. How am I supposed to justify keeping him?” he said, a little dejectedly.
“Well, that’s true, but you want to keep him right?”
He nodded at that.
“And we’ve got enough food to feed him. I’d think
as long as we have enough to go around, we can keep him,” she rationalized.
“Well, that’s true. If the situation becomes dire I guess worst case is that we just let him go forage for himself.”
“But you shouldn’t keep secrets, Blake. It’s kind of like we’re working together, you know? It’ll be ok.”
“Alright. You’ve convinced me,” he agreed.
“Why’d you name him Bob?” she asked, reaching a hand out to stroke the cat’s back.
“It’s on his collar, ‘Bobaloo’,” he said pointing at the cat’s neck.
Bob arched his back appreciatively and took a glance back at Tiffany as he opened his mouth to dislodge food from his teeth, then went back to finishing off his meal.
“Who names a cat Bobaloo?” she asked herself in wonder.
thirty-seven
“No way,” Carrey said adamantly.
“But we’ve got enough food for him. And it’s not like he’s in the way,” Blake argued.
“That situation might change,” Carrey reasoned.
“And when it does, it’s people first. We can let him go if we can’t take care of him anymore.” Blake further argued.
“Why even bother? He’s just going to be a drain on resources. Plus, have you ever smelled cat shit?”
“I have to agree with Carrey,” Bree said, “We don’t have a reason to keep him.”
“Why do people keep pets at all?” Kim asked. “Of course, they’re a drain on resources, but they give us love in return.”
“Oh please,” Gao said dismissively. “It’s a cat. It doesn’t love anyone but itself.”
