Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
The warehouse was a little south of the city, past the Ambassador Bridge and near the old Wayne Fort. From the main road that sat at the top of a hill I could see a set of buildings and a fence surrounding them. Beyond them was a field of wild grass followed by the river. I turned down the narrow road leading to the set of buildings, to the security gate at the bottom. I told the guard at his station who I was and which warehouse was mine.
“But I left my key,” I said, truthfully. The set of keys that had been given to me I had left in a safety storage box by Uncle Wes’ request, back at Harper Pointe. But I hoped they kept a spare.
“Drive straight down to the little shed at the center of the fork there.” The guard pointed past the gate and the road that split off in opposite directions to encircle the buildings.
I did as told, parking next to the little shed. Inside, I found a wall of lockboxes hanging, the numbers to each warehouse written above them. I found the number to mine, the box secured to a small chain so they couldn’t be taken.
I didn’t have the combination. But, thankfully, Dad was not good with passwords. My brother and I always knew how to get onto his computer at home along with his tablets and phones because the passwords were nearly always the same. We teased him all the time about safety, but he would blow it off saying he hated having to remember.
I tried the first one he used the most but it didn’t work. So I tried all of our birthdays next as he used those sometimes too. My brother’s was the one of choice as the box clicked open.
I took the key and leaped back into my car. By now, the sunlight was nearly gone as I weaved around the large, mostly dark and worn-out buildings. When I found mine, I stopped and parked just in front of the door.
It was just as I remembered that night long ago, only there had been a fresh dusting of snow on the ground where now there were the dead leaves of fall. The light by the street was out, leaving only my headlights to wash over the door and front side with bright light.
Keeping my car lights on so I could see, I went to the door and put in the key. I didn’t have a weapon in case of squatters so I only hoped there were none for me to encounter. I thought back again to the girl, her wide eyes sunken into her face. My hand trembled as I turned the key and pushed.
The door screeched open, making me flinch. I stepped back, staring into the dark, where my headlights only reached so far. In the shadows, I thought I caught movement, something skittering away. Heart pounding, I reached around the door and turned on the light. It flickered to life, and I peered in, seeing nothing, hearing nothing.
“Hello?” I called, hoping that would stir anyone that might be inside to leave out some back window. I waited to hear anything. When I didn’t, I moved inside.
Nothing had changed. There were rows of metal shelves that created almost a labyrinth around the first half, filled with old equipment and boxes. When I turned a corner I almost leapt out of my skin at a dummy skeleton hanging out by one wall. I found an old flashlight of the heavier variety and, though it no longer worked, I carried it, gripping it tightly in one hand in case I had to swing it at someone. When I got to the back, the space opened up more. There was a large MRI machine sitting to one side and a set of monitors, a set of tables and chairs stacked to another side, a few cabinets, and a gurney with a few straps missing. Past one lone shelf I saw the small, unfinished bathroom, why they had one at all here was weird enough to me. I went farther back to the end and came to an office and flipped on the light.
A desk shoved to one side and rows of filing cabinets and boxes greeted me. And in one lone corner, there was a large safe.
I set the flashlight on the desk and looked around. I was willing to bet every cabinet was filled. Even from where I stood, I could see files piled into boxes that bulged at their sides.
I took my time with the file cabinets at first, taking a seat at the desk and going through each file. I found records of drugs they were testing like Uncle Wes had mentioned. I found the tests they did on the rabbits, those that were successful and those that failed. Some had pictures showing the different physical side effects. Rabbits with eyes bulging nearly out of their sockets, or their stomachs so enlarged that they were stuck on their sides. The images made me feel sick and I hated that we did the tests at all. I wanted to call Uncle Wes back and yell at him but instead I held myself back for now.
As time went on, the more irritated I became. Nothing was organized as it should be, nor named.
When I had gotten through three of the cabinets and two boxes, I was starting to lose steam. Groaning, I kicked the last box back on the bottom shelf. As I straightened, I looked around again now at the desk filled with papers I had pulled that gave me a crumb of information. I rubbed the bridge of my nose, a headache starting to form.
Sighing, I moved over to the safe and eyed the combination pad. I tried Dad’s usual passwords, gripping the handle and pulling down, but nothing happened. The door didn’t budge. I hit the top of it before leaning my forehead against it.
The one time.
But if Dad put this much effort in a password to keep people out, then there definitely had to be something hidden inside.
I pulled away from the safe and looked around again. There had to be something, maybe he wrote it down somewhere.
I checked the cabinets again, then moved to the desk. I spied underneath a few drawers and pulled out each one. Pens, notepads, coins. Then I pulled out the last. Inside was a small metal box.
I took it out and set it on the desk. It used a key lock but I could already tell the set of keys I had were too big to fit.
Determined, I marched out of the office and rifled around the metal shelves, letting items crash onto the floor until I found a toolbox. I took a hammer and a screwdriver and returned to the office.
Several minutes later the box was open and mangled beyond repair, the top half bent and nearly off the hinges. But I got what was inside. Not a combination like I hoped but a key tied to a plastic tab.
Confused, I turned the tab in my hands. It read: Elevator.
Elevator?
What the hell?
A slow drip of anxiety ate at my gut as I gripped the key in my hand. I left the office again and looked around the warehouse.
I never saw an elevator, but then I wasn’t exactly looking that hard the last time I was here. I peered around at the outer metal walls, then stopped on the gurney that was settled against one side. I got closer and stared at the wall. Something seemed off, there was a gap, though nothing more than a sliver. I wrenched the gurney aside and saw what hid behind it. A handle.
I pulled it and the wall slid back an inch. From beyond, I saw the metal gate that served as the elevator door.
Why would Dad have this here? To bring in more supplies? Except the warehouse was only one level.
Or I had thought it was.
Putting the key in the pocket of my jacket, I gripped the handle with both hands and pulled hard. The wall screeched open as it slid back. For a moment I stood there staring at the gate until I finally pulled that back too.
I took out my phone, activating my flashlight from the screen, and aimed the light around the small enclosed space.
Rust creeped along the edges of the walls and dust and dirt gathered on the ground. I pressed my foot against the floor to see how sturdy it was. When the elevator didn’t budge, I stepped in and found the panel to one side. No floors were indicated, just two buttons, one for up and another for down.
I placed the elevator key in the lock indicated above the button pad. As I turned it, the elevator came to life, the light flickering on above, an eerie orange glow. Below, there was a soft hum as the ground vibrated at my feet.
I hesitated to press the down button, knowing whatever I found couldn’t be undone. Then I told myself I was just being dramatic and there would be nothing more than what I found in the rest of the warehouse. I jammed my finger against the button, and it turned on.
The elevator hummed louder as it crept down into the earth. Even as I told myself it was fine, my anxiety spiked, unease swirling in my stomach. As the elevator settled to a halt, I reached again, this time with trembling fingers, and shoved the gate aside and then the outer door.
Beyond was pitch black, a hulking darkness that felt cold and alive. The scent of earth and something dead hit me, nearly making me choke. I should have gone back up then but now the anxiety turned to a panic in which I needed to see. See why this place felt so wrong. I lurched out and drew my light over to the first inner wall, looking for a switch by the door. That looming dark felt like it was going to crash back in any second and something within would drag me away. Wildly, I searched as the fear hit me and I found the switch by a wall a little farther in. I flipped it and let my eyes adjust as the bright light flickered to life.
I turned and found a hallway with a few doors on either side. Definitely not a storage space like above. Terrified, I opened every door. One was a boiler room, another a storage closet, then a bathroom. It was clear they used this space like they did the rooms at the company. I got down to the end and the scent of bleach filled my senses along with the strong odor of death. I looked for a wall light again, and when I flicked it on, cold sweat dripped down my spine at the sight.
Cages. So many cages.
There were no live rabbits this time though. Just corpses. Bones with matted fur, skulls with the jaws opened like they were screaming. I put a hand over my mouth, mostly to compose myself and not gag. The cages were set back against the wall. Through another doorway, I saw a small lab and I went through, gazing around at the empty tables and counters. Beyond was another room, an exam room of some sort, along with a medical-grade chair and several lights fixed above. I walked by this into another passageway that led to a door at the end. I pulled it open and stepped through before halting and peering around in horror.
No. No this couldn’t be.
I scrambled for the switch at the door and threw it on, then whirled around, drawing in everything around me. A soft whimper tickled the back of my throat as I took another step into what had been a classroom.
There was a white board and several small desks. No posters on the walls, no windows. Most of the desks had been pushed back to the walls, leaving only two in the center facing a teacher’s desk and the white board.
My throat tightened as I stared at the desks. As if being pulled by some invisible hand, I swiftly rushed past them to the door at the back. I threw it open and found a small kitchen. Beyond that was a long room with twelve narrow doors, six on each side.
Feeling numb enough already, I went to one on my left and opened it.
There was a twin bed and a little sink to one corner. Nothing more. White walls were bare, no windows to see, only a small light at the top. I opened each door and they were all the same. It wasn’t until my second passing that I noticed the little vents above the doors.
I didn’t dare step foot in the rooms. Subconsciously I drew up my phone as if by instinct to call the police. Only to realize I had no service down here.
I needed to get out. I felt the walls closing in on me. I peered one last time inside one room and saw marker drawings on the walls. Little stick animals.
I took several steps back then I turned and ran.
My breaths came in long gasps as I rushed by the kitchen, then the classroom. I flew past the exam room and the lab and didn’t even glance at the cages as I nearly hit one wall to sprint down the hall to the elevator. I flung the gate closed and pressed the up button several times until the fucking thing finally went up.
When I got to the top, I stumbled out of the elevator, bent forward, and dry-heaved.
The odor mixed with the awful realization hit my gut like a sledgehammer.
There was no denying what I saw now. What I desperately didn’t want to believe.
I slowly straightened, taking a deep breath. I trembled a little as I turned back and took the key out of the elevator before closing it up, even shoving the gurney back in front of it. I went to the office and back to the safe. I picked up the hammer and gripped it tight, ready to swing.
Then I let it fall. No use letting my emotions get the better of me.
I needed to find the combination. But that would have to be for another night. I felt drained, like I’d aged thirty years. I also wanted to cry, scream, tear the place apart, maybe even burn it down. But I needed whatever was in that safe and I wasn’t in the right mind to sit there and try to unlock it the rest of the night. I needed to process everything else first.
Calmly, I slipped the elevator key in my pocket, then shut off the lights. I didn’t want to ever come back here, but knew I would have to. I thought again about calling the police, then decided not to at my own risk. If they came, they would take everything as evidence, and I wanted in that safe first.
If there were records of Emery inside, then I would have my truth. I’d have my answers.
Swiftly, I made my way out of the warehouse, shutting off the light by the door. The outside was pitch dark, and I fumbled to lock the door. Making sure it was shut tight, I placed the warehouse key with the elevator key in my pocket, not wanting anyone to set foot inside except me.
Gravel crunched behind me. Nerves already frayed, I jumped, whirling around. I saw no one in the dark but, more than ever, I felt like I was being watched.
Skin crawling, I quickly moved to my car and got in, locking the doors. I put in my key and tried to start it…only it didn’t.
It took me a solid few seconds to not jump to conclusions that someone had messed with my car and to realize I had stupidly left the lights on which caused the battery to die.
Fuck.
I got out and went to the trunk, rifling around for the jumper cables.
“Hey there,” a voice said behind me.
I hit my head on the truck top, cursing as a beam of light hit my face. I stared at the shadow in the dark until they aimed their light away.
“Sorry, you okay?”
It was the security guard from the front. I tried not to let my sigh of relief be too loud.
“I’m okay,” I said after a moment. “I just—my car battery died. My fault, I left it on and…”
He aimed his light between me and the car. “That sucks. You got cables?”
I nodded as I lifted them out of the trunk. “Yup.”
“I’ll get the truck. Just go ahead and open the front and have it ready.”
He returned a minute later with his high-wheeled Dodge Ram, parking it next to mine. As he connected the cables from my car to his and we let his car run for a moment, I noticed him eyeing me.
“Are you sure you’re alright?” he asked. Then added, “Didn't run into any squatters, did you?”
I shook my head.
“We’ve gotten complaints from time to time, just wanted to make sure.”
“Nope. Just me.”
“Surprised.”
I turned my head toward him. “What do you mean?”
“Not my business or anything just, the rare times I see anyone come out here, it's usually…a couple or more guys. Haven't seen anyone in a while though. They making you do their dirty work now or something?”
Their dirty work.
No, definitely the fuck not.
“No, I was only checking on a few things,” I said, refusing to explain further.
He nodded, thankfully not prying any more.
A few minutes later, my car was running again, and I waved the guard off as I peeled out of the place, trying to put as much distance between me and the warehouse as I could. Once I was on the highway, I felt my anxiety rising again. I immediately dialed Jamie.
“Are you okay?” he asked as he picked up two rings later.
“I’m…not sure,” I said. Then, after a pause, I said honestly, “No, I’m not.”
There was a soft shifting on the other end. “Talk to me.” I could hear the concern in his voice.
“I don’t know where to start.”
“Are you driving?”
“Yes.”
“Where the heck are you going at this hour, Eve?”
I swallowed hard. Right now, I just didn’t want to be alone. “Your place?” I asked.
“I’ll see you soon then. Now talk.”
I leaned over the railing, staring at the backyard. The night was chilly but not enough to keep people from the outdoors where they mingled, talking heavily underneath low-lit lamps. To one side was a small garage and a hot tub that had been covered for the season. Along the garage and back gate, red lanterns dangled along the trees.
Red and in the shape of little smiling devils.
Music boomed behind me as did the laughter of people but even with the noise and the crowd, nothing could keep the loneliness from setting in. Nothing kept the thoughts at bay, though I wondered if a drink or two might chase them off for at least a little while. Maybe even a hit from the pipe I could smell. It was tempting. Really tempting.
But alcohol would hurt my still queasy stomach and I didn’t like how out of control I felt on anything else. Lena sometimes gave me funny looks and said I might miss out, but Jamie understood.
Lena’s loud laughter penetrated above the music.
After I got to his place and we talked till morning, Jamie convinced me to attend her party.
“Come and just hang, get your mind off things,” he said.
It worked for a little while. Later, though, the dark thoughts drew in, like a shadowy figure reaching just at the corner of my eye, becoming more and more visible.
I couldn’t tell Jamie everything. Not yet. For his own safety. I told him why I went to the city, what I worried I might find. I told him I discovered some evidence of some disturbing work in the warehouse that might lead to foul play but didn’t go into detail.
“There’s a safe in the office but I can’t get into it yet,” I told him as we sat in his living area with nothing but a few candles lit.
“You think it will have records of what they were doing?” he asked.
“I think so. Emery plays into this. What they did…”
Jamie took my hand. “You don’t know anything yet. You don’t know for sure.”
The image of the classroom and the little bedrooms flashed in my head. In some way, I felt I did but still I needed more. “That’s why I need to get into that safe.”
“Do you think Wes hid the passcode for it somewhere?”
I shrugged, shifting the blanket on my shoulders. The steam from my tea curled in the air, hypnotizing me. “Maybe. Or it could be in the storage unit. I’ll have to look.”
“So, what about your sessions with Emery?”
I glanced at him. “Still on. I see him Monday actually. I…I wish I could tell him but…”
“If you mention it, he’ll suspect—”
“I know.”
“I get you were going to do that anyway.”
My revenge-fueled dream felt so meaningless now in comparison to what I had discovered. If Emery was to be believed, he and his sister were ruined by someone involved in my father’s company. Yes, even by someone close, though it was hard to believe.
I wish I could believe it was someone else, and maybe it was, maybe another employee had gotten access to the warehouse. It didn’t have to be my father or uncle, or brother…
But then why else would Emery have a cause to go after them?
“Maybe because he found out it was their company?” Jamie theorized when I asked the question aloud. “It could be possible, Eve, it could have been some shithead manager going behind your dad’s back to perform fucked-up tests.”
I wanted to believe that.
Regardless, I couldn’t escape my thoughts. Couldn’t escape…him. My eyes drew over the courtyard, to the groups of people. Lena was popular at school even though she considered me and Jamie her close friends. I felt bad not keeping in touch.
“Hey, Eveeee.”
Lena grinned at me, her gem-black eyes shining with happiness as she put her arms around me. “Damn, you're smart to get out of there. I needed some air. Marcus smoked out the place… that idiot.” She flipped one of her dark green locks out of her face, making me catch the moth tattoo on her hand. She had a few on her other arm as well, beautiful ink on her warm brown skin. “You okay?”
I smiled. “Yeah, just getting air like you said.”
She came to lean on the rail beside me. “He didn’t make you come here, did he?”
“Who?”
“Jamie.”
I turned to face her. “No, I really wanted to come. I’m sorry I’ve been distant.”
Lena waved my comment off. “Nah, I get it, I really do. For once, I wish I could sit in a quiet place alone and just think for myself for once. But then once I get to thinking too much, I start freaking out or something. It’s weird. Being around people helps. Even dead ones. To each their own medicine.”
I gave her a funny look. Lena worked in the forensic science department, studying fresh donated bodies for autopsy. But I didn’t think they made good company. Then again Lena—like me and Jamie—had a weird twisted way of what captivated and entertained us. “You talk to your cadavers?” I said, somehow surprised.
She shrugged, taking a sip of her coke and vodka. “Mostly, I sing to them or dance with the music on but, listen, every once in a while, it’s nice to just let off on someone who can’t talk back, you know?”
I chuckled. “I can see it.”
“Seriously, though, Eve, I know you got a lot going on. School sucks the life out of all of us. But you, Jamie, and I haven’t hung out in forever. Actually, we both haven’t in forever. I get it. Just come say hi, okay? You’re welcome here any time.”
“I appreciate it,” I said. “I’ll try to get out here more.” And meant it.
“Good.” Someone called for Lena inside. She looked at me and rolled her eyes. “Marcus, probably.” She waved and turned back for the slide-in door behind us.
“I’ll be right in…” I turned to stare out into the night with a sigh. Anxiety was starting to eat at me again. I wanted to talk to someone but this time not to Jamie or Lena. A person I shouldn’t want to talk to.
Was I really anticipating that? Yes. Especially now. I wanted more answers.
And because you kind of like it.
My heart skipped a beat. Then the guilt creeped in.
Emery wasn’t the worst company when he was in a good mood. If I tried to pretend he didn’t slaughter my father in front of me or obliterate my brother, it was easier to admit he was easy and sometimes even fascinating to talk to.
Boy, that felt so wrong.
I closed my eyes, trying to take a deep breath, to loosen the tightness in my chest. Everything felt so…confusing with him. I used to know exactly how to feel. Now, I didn’t know. I was still angry. But now, I also felt pity. How could I not if what I found was true? That what happened to him was real?
I was angry. But not just at him. Now, it was also at whoever had broken him.
They were responsible too.
I opened my eyes and took one last look at the courtyard again, but when I went to step away, I froze.
Someone next to the open gate to the courtyard was watching. With a red skull for a face.
My heart stopped as I stared back at them, terrified.
The figure stood motionless as a pair of girls went to walk by, not noticing. I wanted to shout at them. A low whimper came out instead, then I jumped as the figure jumped out at them, making them scream.
Then the face was no longer a red skull. Just a normal white mask, made red by the lanterns. The girls squealed as the man took off the mask. And they laughed.
I forgot it was getting close enough to Halloween. I could see a few other decorations hanging here and there too.
I tried to relax, but my body had other ideas. I went to return inside for a drink and flinched as I nearly ran into—
“Liam?” I said aloud. Shocked to see him. Then annoyed.
The tall blond stared at me with hard blue eyes. “Hey, Eve.”
My throat tightened. “What are you doing here?” I felt embarrassed at first to my cold greeting, then annoyed again that I should feel embarrassed.
He smirked and lifted his glass. “Lena mentioned I should stop by. Didn’t think I would see you though. She said you don’t usually make it.”
I tried not to crush the bottle in my hand. Lena, dammit, you could have warned me.
“Well, I was just leaving.” I went to try to get around him and he put out his hand.
“Wait, please, Eve.”
“Why?”
He drew a hand through his hair. I used to like seeing him do it. Now, I couldn’t care less. “I’m not going to apologize again. I know it won’t do any good. I just...wanted to know how you're doing? How’s school?”
I crossed my arms and pursed my lips. “Is this you genuinely caring or is this one of your secret interrogations? Cause I’d honestly be surprised if someone hired you to investigate me again. Wasted effort just like last time.”
He tilted his head, glaring at me. “You know I wouldn’t do that to you again. I didn’t feel good about it the last time.”
I snorted. “Yeah, right.”
“Besides, I don’t do that sort of work anymore.”
“Ah, the old professional stalker gig didn’t work out, huh?”
His lips curled in an annoyed smile. “It was part of the job, not me being a creep.”
“Mm, not convinced.”
“Alright, I’ll call it fair. But I don’t do the private detective thing anymore. I’m federal now.”
“Wow,” I said, leaning back against the rail. “And, how is that better exactly?”
He shrugged. “Less of the bullshit, I guess. Or maybe more. But the cases are better. Actually, go after the real bad guys, not just some cheater or company hacker.”
“Or a chick with an unsavory past who needed exposure.”
He leaned his arm against the rail beside me, swirling his drink. “I told you it wasn’t a news agency or journalist.”
“Yet you still refuse to tell me who. Shocker.”
“I told you I can’t,” he admitted. “Not for—”
“Legal reasons. I know.”
He nodded. “I just want to make sure you’re okay.” His eyes narrowed, a shadow passing over his expression. “I heard he’s here. The Harper Pointe Devil. On some island in a madhouse.”
I glared back at him, my pulse rising. Did he know what I was doing? Was the bastard trailing me again and lying straight to my face? “I don’t want to talk about that.”.
“I get it.” He looked around at the people laughing below us. “I’ve heard from a few heads at the office who know some of the state judges. They are re-looking into his case and considering a transfer.”
I tried to look as calm and uninterested as possible even though I felt anything but. “Transfer him…where?” I almost wanted to ask why but thought that would sound too suspicious.
He studied me. “Somewhere West. Oklahoma maybe.”
I tried to blink away any emotion even as my voice cracked. “They are sending him to prison?”
He drew closer. “I don’t know much, but it sounds like it, yeah. They don’t think he’s as ill as his lawyer claimed either. Think everything he does is deliberate, including acting out. That he can’t be helped. It’s messed up, I know. But it’s probably for the best. He might be out of here for good, if we're lucky.”
If we’re lucky.
If Emery went to an Oklahoma prison, he would be considered for capital punishment. The death penalty.
I didn’t know what to feel except for a strange sense of urgency.
“Thanks for telling me,” I said, almost indifferently. “If you don’t mind then, I’d like to call it a night.”
He looked at me like he wanted to say something but thought against it. “It was good to see you, Eve. I’ll be back home for a while, visiting Jamie too. Maybe I’ll see you around.”
Let’s hope not, I thought as I strolled past him without another word, returning inside to look for Jamie so I could tell him I had to leave.