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May-23-2010 09:30

Every second that is wasted on the battlefield in a war, is every second that a wounded soldier is bleeding to death. Every chance a medic got to save a life, they got killed. As I sit in a bar and reminisce about the days in the war, I realized just how much my life changed.

I watched in horror as people died. I held people as they died in my arms. I came home from the war. And no one, not one person, knew the horrors that me and my fellow brothers in arms saw. No one even thanked us for serving our country when we came home. So here I sit, inside this bar with my flask in my hand drowning myself with pure alcohol flashing back to the war.

I start to feel the alcohol taking affect as it runs through my body. Someone comes in and sits down next to me. It is a scum bag of the streets; a scam artist who steels what little money the poor and those in poverty have and keeps it for himself.

"How 'bout it?" He says as he sits down next to me. I merely stare at him and look away. He orders a drink. Gin. He orders shot after shot as I gulp the whiskey from my flask.

"You might want to slow down there, chief." The bartender says.

"Oh shut up!" I snap. I can't even remember his name or the name of the bar I'm in. I then look over at the dirt-bag next to me. How neatly dressed he is. With his crisp hat and pressed suit. I compare myself to him and realize I am dressed no different and smile to myself. But as I sit and stare at him, something in me changes. I become angry. A little voice in my head starts to talk in a dark, deep whisper.

"Do it," it says to me.

"No," I say to it. "I can't do it."

"Yes, you can," it says to me, "you know you want to. He's scum. He won't be missed."

An argument starts in my mind. My pure thoughts fighting that little voice. The small whisper wins.

Something in me snaps and I crack my neck with the turn of my head.

"Hey buddy, you okay?" the scum bag asks.

"I'm fine," I snap.

May-30-2010 20:26

The group made their way to the car and was just about to get in when off to the right there came the sound of heavy footfalls.

Turning, a pair of red eyes was all Riza saw before a shot rang out and they were plunged into complete darkness. The tinkling of glass falling on the pavement was the only sound. Within seconds guns had been drawn, and trained on the mystery figure. “Drop it!” Riza screams.

A distorted, dark, demented voice screamed something, but Riza couldn’t hear it through the pounding in her ears. Stupid alcohol. But Molly seemed to. A look of shock registered on her face for a split second before it disappeared. Then, anger. The chase and the speculation. But the mystery man was nowhere to be found.

***
“What happened back there?” Riza asked as she drove. “And where are we going?”

Molly repeated back the address of the safe house. “I’ll explain, just step on it.”

Riza grinned and pushed the gas. The car shot through the dark streets, narrowly missing other cars multiple times. Screams and angry shouts could be heard echoing through the night. Grace’s fingernails dug into the backseat, her face pale with terror.

Molly recapped what had happened on the roof, smirking with some degree of satisfaction at the memory. “And did you enjoy your drinks?” she asked nonchalantly.

“Yes, and I got more than drinks.” Riza pulled a neat little silver switchblade out of her pocket. “Men never suspect anything when your hands are roaming all over them. Isn’t it so sharp-looking?” she said, admiring it. Grace shrieked as Riza very nearly drove into a pole, her eyes not focused on the road.

May-30-2010 20:27

Soon they pulled up slowly to the address. The street was unnaturally quiet. The grocery store had closed for the night. It must have been around 4:30 in the morning.

Riza parked the car a couple blocks over, just to be safe. It wasn’t too hard to locate the entrance to the apartment above and find Marc’s room. Riza put her head to the door and listened for sounds of movement. But there was only silence.

“If that really was him we saw before,” Grace ventured, “He’s probably not back yet. We should come back another ti-“

She was hushed by the look of irritation in Riza’s eyes. “We’re gonna wait for him inside. We just have to open this door. I could break it down, but we want to be inconspicuous.”

Molly pulled a pin from her hair and jammed it into the lock of the door. In mere seconds it swung open. She gave a little sound of approval. They made their way inside and relocked it. They chose hiding spots close to the door; it was clear that Marc would bolt if confronted.

After what seemed like hours of crouching in the darkness, but in reality was only about twenty minutes, footsteps started approaching, accompanied by a low grumbling. As the steps came closer, Grace began to whimper. Riza slapped her hand across Grace’s mouth.

The door rattled as the key was inserted. A yellowish beam of light made its way across the room as the door opened more and more. Those red eyes became visible again. It was clear he was the one who had shot at them before, and hadn’t calmed down.

Molly and Riza traded glances. “Now!” The two of them jumped up while Grace remained on the floor. Riza went behind Marc and dropkicked him to the floor simultaneously as Molly jammed her elbow up against his windpipe, holding the barrel of her pistol to his temple.

“You killed my brother and now you try to kill me, huh?!?” she screamed at him in fury, tears starting to rim her eyes. “Deny it, I dare you!”

May-30-2010 20:29

Marc lunged forward, roaring in anger and throwing punches in the semidarkness. “Marc. Get. Down. Now!” Riza said forcefully. A sudden pain in his arm made him freeze and fall back.

***
It felt wet, and there was a familiar smell in the air. Marc groaned as he tried to get up off the floor, but he couldn’t. Looking over, he saw that Riza’s new switchblade had found a nice new home in his shoulder blade. “Bitch,” he growled.

SMACK! The taste of iron followed the feel of cold metal hitting his face. “Be nice now,” Molly said in a mock sickly sweet voice.

He spit blood at her.

“Well. I tried,” Molly said, wiping the blood off her face. Her eyes flashed and she suddenly jammed her knee down hard on his windpipe. The force of Molly’s knee was cutting off air from his body. Slowly, slowly, Marc lost consciousness.

May-30-2010 20:43

I leave through the back alleys. It's a long walk to my safehouse. As I try to calm down, I can't help but think of my friend's body falling in front of me. I can't stop thinking about it. The horrific sight of blood gushing from the posterior part of his entire body; smashed from the force of falling to the ground.

I get to my safehouse and open my bedroom door. It is now extremely late. Early morning at the latest.

I take a deep breath as I try to calm down to get some sleep. I open the door and I hear someone scream, "NOW!" Someone grabs me from behind and another hits me in the throat. I cough and fall limp to the ground. A gun is placed at my head.

"You killed my brother!" She screams, "And now you try to kill me, huh?!"

I try to fight back. I try to say. "Molly!" I try to say, "you have to help me! This isn't me! I can't control it!" But that doesn't come out. Something different does. It says, "If you're going to hold that gun against my head, THEN PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS, AND PULL THE DAMN TRIGGER!!!" I can't control my actions when I lunged for her.

"Marc! Get down now!" Another woman screams, and I feel the sharp pain of something being jammed into my arm. I feel the blood rushing down to my fingertips and drip onto the floor. "Bitch" I growl to the one who stabbed me.

WHACK! Something hits me in the face and I fall over. "Be nice, now" the one with the gun says, as she pistol whips me in the face. The anger becomes worse. As I make another move, perhaps a move to kill, her knee comes down to my throat.

I can't breathe. My breathing becomes difficult and heavy. It hurt to inhale. My throat feels as though it is collapsing and I am having a slow and painful death. Slowly my body's reaction to the lack of air, causes me to fall unconscious and everything is swallowed up in darkness.

May-30-2010 20:56

"Ugh, I do not get paid enough to do this." Molly said grimly, climbing off of Marc and dusting herself off. "Do we have a rope or something to make sure this bastard doesn't start swinging again? Don't worry, I stopped one of his fists with my stomach."

She winced, moving delicately as she went to find something to tie him up with. The adrenaline was mostly wearing off, and she noticed a dull throbbing high on her left arm. Curious, she looked down at her arm, examining the rip in her sleeve, the blood gushing down the fabric, making it stiff and unyielding. She had been clipped with one of Marcs bullet.

She studied it for a few seconds more.

"Huh." she nodded, then turned around and kicked Marc square in the gut.

"You...stupid...crazy...bastard...this...was...a.new....suit that....cost...an...entire...paycheck!" she grunted, kicking him with each word. Then, smoothing her hair, she sighed and tossed down a length of rope she had found in his bedroom closet.

"Don't ask me why he had this in there." she sniffed haughtily. " I don't know what devious purposes its been used for."

Presently, they had fixed the unconscious man to a chair, then Molly leaned down in front of him, studying his features that looked peaceful, as if he were sleeping.

"Hey you." she slapped him. "Wake up a**hole. Hey."

She slapped him a couple more times, and he stirred with a groan. They paused, watching his eyes open, and then Molly smacked him again for good measure.

"I don't like you anymore." she informed him politely, then straightened up. The three women stood around him.

"You better start explaining."

May-31-2010 08:42

Marc awoke to the feeling of being slapped. When he opened his eyes, he realized that he really was being slapped awake.

"Hey you," Molly said slapping his face. "Wake up a**hole. Hey." Marc opened his eyes to find the palm of her right hand flying at his face. When she smacked him it stung slightly for a moment, or so. "I don't like you anymore. You better start explaining."

Puzzled, Marc looked around. Grace, Riza, and Molly were standing all around him. "Start explaining? How about you start explaining what you're doing in my f**king room!" Marc yelled back. SMACK! Molly slapped him across the face. "My apologies," Marc said quietly as he straightened him self back up.

"Start talking, Marc." Molly said.

"What are you talking about."
"You killed my brother. Marc, did you try to shoot me last night?"
"Molly, you are getting ridiculous by accusing me of killing him. I told you before, I did not kill him. I'm even trying to find the killer."
SMACK! Molly slapped him again.
"LIE!" she screamed.
"I watched you come out of the alley behind that bar! I heard the gunshots! I saw Dr. Falcone!" Molly yelled at him. Then she slapped him again.

Marc eyed Riza who stood nearest to the door, twirling a knife in her fingers. "Don't look at me," Riza said. Silence filled the room. Marc looked down at himself. He noticed the rope tied around him. At the time he saw the rope, a sharp pain spiked through his shoulder from the knife wound last night.

"I have no idea what you are talking about." Marc said again.

"My, god, Marc. You are a compulsive liar!" Molly screamed. She ripped out her pistol and pressed it against his head. "Start TALKING!" Tears welled up in her eyes.

"Allow me to explain to you, Marc, what I've noticed." Grace said stepping up.

"For the last three days, I have watched and listened to you. You have changed. Something is inside of you making you snap. You've killed one person already-"

"Grace, that is completely absurd." Marc said. "I-"

May-31-2010 08:52

"Let me finish," Grace said. "Marc, do you remember anything?"

Marc thought for a second. In truth, no he didn't. "I remember seeing the body of my friend Vinny Gambini fall from the sky. I remember drinking two days ago. And well, frankly, I remember waking up here."

Molly shook her head in disbelief.

"Marc...you've completely snapped." Grace said. "We have someone here who may be able to help."

A tall, brawny man stepped out of shadows wearing a charcoal gray suit. His hair was slicked back. "Allow me to explain, Marc. Last night your friends here," the man said pointing to the girls, "contacted me. They told me what has happened to you. I can explain in terms that you would understand."

"What's that supposed to mean? That I'm an idiot?" Marc snapped.

"No..but using medical terms, I highly doubt you would know what I'm talking about. So I'll tell you in English.

May-31-2010 09:08

"Marc...you killed her brother. Grace, told me about these small episodes. When you saw that body of Mr. Gambini, you blacked out. You lost your temper, in other words. You can't remember because you let it take control." Brain said. "Marc you have been hearing a small deep, dark whisper. Haven't you?"

"I don't-"

"Think Marc!" Flannigan snapped. "Think! You lose your temper and you let something else take control. Have you heard that whisper?!"

Marc felt every ounce of life drain from him. As he thought about it, he could vaguely remember the small voice, telling him to kill.

"Marc, you killed her brother. And you tried to kill them last night." Flannigan said. "I can help, and it won't interfere with your work as a private detective. I deal with this stuff a lot Marc." Flannigan continued.

But silence filled the room.

May-31-2010 09:19

"You killed her brother. And you tried to kill them last night."

Those words echoed through Marc's head as he tried to figure out what to do next. "Oh my god.." Marc whispered to himself.

Silence filled the room.

Molly opened her mouth to speak but hesitated.

"Someone please untie me." Marc said. No one moved.

"Someone untie me, now." Marc said again. Again, no one moved.

"NOW!" Marc yelled. Molly looked over at Riza and nodded. Riza opened her mouth to object but stopped. With a swipe of her knife, she cut the rope.

Marc stood up and walked out of the room with those words spoken from the doctor. He walked out side, still covered in his own blood as well as dried blood from Gambini's body.

Marc sat down on the sidewalk. And for the first time in months, Marc broke down and cried.

May-31-2010 10:26

It was a tense moment as they watched him go. Molly ran a hand through her hair, every nerve she possessed on edge. Yet she still turned to the man at their side.

"Thank you very much, Dr...is it Dr.? Thank you, Mr. Flannigan." She sighed, and was surprised when he took her hand, clasping it warmly, comfortingly in his for a moment. Somewhere there was a clock, resolutely ticking away.

Tick, tick, tick.

The sound had never been more apparent to the woman, wherever she went.

"I wish...I wish I could help him, that I could understand. But my brother. The only tie to my old life, to the family I had. Dead, because of him. For no reason. No reason at all. I don't know if I can forgive. I'll never forget, that's for certain."

Abruptly furious, she took her hand from Brians and dashed away the tears that had collected.

"Honestly, I'm tired of crying this much." she said crossly. "You'll have to take it from here, my friends. There is someone at my apartment I've agreed to meet, and I've kept him waiting long enough."

And saying so, she exited the door and walked away into the night, not sparing a glance at the sunken form on the sidewalk.