Authors: Unknown
“Good. Please climb aboard.”
“There’s something you should know,” Culann said.
“Why don’t you climb aboard so you can tell us?” she replied.
“It might be dangerous for you to be near me.”
“Are you threatening us, Mr. Riordan?”
“No, ma’am.”
“Get in the boat,” she said with such authority Culann found himself clambering aboard without consciously deciding to do so. Officer Williams pulled him up by the arm, and before Culann realized what was happening, he was face down on the boat bottom with his hands cuffed behind his back.
“Hey, Schuler,” Williams said. “Do you see that?”
“Jesus, what happened?”
“I count three.”
Culann still lie face down on the damp bottom. Williams yanked him up and
shoved him into one of the rear seats. The officer plunked a life jacket over Culann’s head and snapped it into place.
“What happened here, Mr. Riordan?” Officer Schuler asked.
“They’re all dead,” Culann said. “Not just them. The whole town. I’m the only one who survived.”
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“How did they die, Mr. Riordan?” Schuler asked.
“I don’t know. It’s got to be some kind of virus or maybe poison. That’s why I’m not sure it’s such a good idea for you to get too close to me.”
“Thanks for the advice, Mr. Riordan,” she said.
“I’m going to call this in,” Williams said. He pulled his walkie-talkie to his lips.
“Dispatch, this is one-oh-five.”
There was no response.
“Dispatch, this is one-oh-five. Do you copy?”
Still nothing.
“Whatever it is, it seems to affect communications devices,” Culann said.
“You’re saying that there’s a virus or poison that breaks our radios?” Schuler said with a raised eyebrow.
“I know it sounds crazy, but there’s something weird going on here.”
“We better take him in and then come back to investigate,” Williams said.
“But we can’t just leave these bodies here,” Schuler replied.
“Okay, let’s fish them out.”
“Stay seated, Mr. Riordan,” Schuler said. “If you move, we’ll have no choice but to use force.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Williams sat in the driver’s seat and pushed down the throttle to bring the boat closer to Alistair’s rowboat, which floated about ten feet away. The engine sputtered and then shut down. He twisted the key in the ignition, but nothing happened. He went back to inspect the motor.
“Don’t bother,” Culann said.
“Please keep quiet, Mr. Riordan,” Williams responded.
Culann pressed his lips together and settled into his seat. He tried to guess how long these two had to live. They were half a mile from the orb, yet it still had managed to knock out the radios and engine. Culann wondered if he was somehow carrying the orb’s powers with him, like an infection. He reasoned that he had to be immune since he’d been the first to touch it and was still alive, but he’d seen too many people die to have much confidence in his own chances of survival.
Williams fiddled with the engine for a few minutes while Schuler kept watch on Culann. Then Williams gave up, and the two switched roles. After a few more minutes of futility, Schuler plopped down in the shotgun seat and stared out across the ocean.
“We’re dead in the water,” she said.
“May I say something?” Culann asked.
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“You know, Mr. Riordan,” Williams said, “I’m really not interested in the child molester’s opinion. So why don’t you just sit there quietly while we wait for someone to find us?”
“With all due respect, sir, it would be better if no one finds us.”
Williams turned his head and spit into the water.
“Okay, Mr. Riordan,” Schuler said, swiveling around to face him. “Why is that?”
“Because anyone who finds us is going to die.”
“Because of the virus, right?” she replied with a wry smile.
“I don’t know what it is, but it seems to act like a virus. And I might be a carrier.”
“Don’t encourage him,” Williams said to Schuler. “I really don’t want to hear any more of his bullshit.”
“Sir, please just think about it for a second. Isn’t it an amazing coincidence that your radios and your engine would go out at the same time you found me? Not to mention the dead bodies.”
“There’s nothing coincidental about the dead bodies, you creep,” Williams
snapped. “There’s not a doubt in mind that you are responsible, and I’m going to make sure you fry for this. You understand?”
“Okay,” Culann responded. “Let’s say I did kill them. That I somehow convinced four people to get in two separate rowboats and row halfway out to sea. Then they all died at once. I’m unarmed, and there is no blood. How did I do it? It would have to be something biological, something you wouldn’t want innocent people exposed to.”
“Four people?” Schuler asked.
“There’s one more, but she fell out of the boat.”
“Enough,” Williams shouted. “If you say another word, I’m tossing you over the side.”
“Lighten up, Williams,” Schuler said. “We’ve got an hour or two to kill before someone finds us. Just humor the guy.”
“I’m sorry, Schuler. I just don’t find mass-murdering child rapists all that funny.”
“Fine, but I’m going to talk to him. Like I said, we’re going to be here for a while.”
“Suit yourself,” Williams said, turning his back to Culann.
“So, Mr. Riordan,” Schuler said, “you think you’ve been exposed to something biological? Something that has also disabled our boat?”
“I know it sounds crazy, but you’ve got to believe me that there is something serious going on here. It’s not just these four people who are dead, it’s the whole town.”
Williams raised his binoculars to his eyes and stared across the water.
“Take a look at this.”
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Schuler turned away from Culann and peered through her binoculars. She rose slowly without taking her gaze from Pyrite’s shoreline.
“That’s definitely another body,” she said. “What’s with all the dogs?”
“This thing doesn’t seem to affect them,” Culann replied. “But it killed all of the other animals on the island.”
“All right, you crazy son of a bitch,” Williams said, whirling around, “what did you do to these people?”
“I didn’t do anything, at least not on purpose. I think it was the orb.”
“The orb?” Williams said with a snort. “This guy’s nuts.”
“You can believe that if you want to,” Culann said, “but you have to understand that it would be very dangerous to bring anyone near me.”
Schuler turned slowly back towards him.
“What about us?” she asked. “Are we in danger?”
Culann sighed and said, “You’ll probably be dead by morning.”
“Is that so?” Williams said, drawing his gun. “Then what’s to stop me from killing you right now?”
“Put it away, Williams. Maybe he’s full of shit. Maybe there’s a cure.”
“This sicko killed a whole town and now he says he’s poisoned us. I say it’s self-defense.”
“You don’t know that.”
“No, all I do know is that he raped a little girl.”
“It was consensual, and she was sixteen,” Culann said.
“My daughter is sixteen.”
Williams pointed his gun at Culann’s chest. Culann had lived his entire life without ever having a firearm pointed at him. He was now looking down a gun barrel for the second time in twenty-four hours. It did not seem to him to be the kind of experience a person could ever get used to.
“Knock it off,” Schuler said. “If we really are going to die, wouldn’t you rather meet your maker with a clean conscience?”
“God would forgive me for ridding the world of this pervert.”
“Maybe, but you’re a good cop, Williams, and you’re not going to stop being a good cop just because you’re about to die.”
“Oh, fuck off, Schuler,” Williams said, sliding the gun into his holster.
“Okay, Mr. Riordan,” Schuler said, “since we’re going to die, what do you
propose we do?”
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“I don’t know for certain that you’re going to die. I’m still alive, after all. Maybe you’ve got the same immunity I have. But I don’t think we should risk infecting anyone else, which is going to happen sooner or later if we stay out here. I think we should row back to Pyrite. We can quarantine ourselves there and maybe figure this thing out.”
“What do you think, Williams?”
“I think you should have let me shoot him.”
“Come on,” Schuler said, “there’s obviously something going on here. If he’s right, I don’t want anyone else’s life on my conscience. Let’s row to the island and wait this thing out.”
“Did you ever consider the possibility that this might be a trap?” he countered.
“We have a fugitive here, and you want to take his advice and go to some secluded island where his accomplices are lying in wait for us?”
“Yes, if the alternative means infecting innocent people with this virus.”
“I’m still going to shoot this pervert.”
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2
Rowing back to Pyrite took most of the afternoon. They didn’t want to leave Culann’s rowboat floating out in the middle of the channel to attract attention, so they tied it to the back of their vessel where they could tow it with minimal drag. They then needed to get Alistair’s boat. The police boat contained two long emergency oars they could use, but Culann presented a bit of a problem. If Williams and Schuler both rowed, they would have to turn their backs on Culann. Neither officer was willing to take this risk with a fugitive, even one whose hands were cuffed behind his back.
The only other option, then, was to have Culann take one of the oars while one of the officers watched him. But giving Culann an oar, which could potentially be used as a weapon, was not something either officer felt very good about. Williams reluctantly released the handcuffs and then immediately reattached them with Culann’s hands bound in front of his body. The cuffs hadn’t been loose before, but Williams cinched them as tightly as possible, cutting the flow of blood to Culann’s hands.
“If he so much as farts, shoot him,” Williams said.
Culann and Williams clumsily rowed the large boat over to Alistair’s rowboat while Schuler kept her eyes on Culann and her hand on her weapon. As they pulled up alongside, Williams eased himself down onto the rowboat. He nearly capsized trying to pull LaTonya’s body aboard. He rested her in a bent-over seated position across from Alistair and Julia, and then tied a line to the bow of the rowboat and climbed back onto the police boat.
They resumed rowing, and the boat lurched towards the shore with the two
rowboats in its wake. Culann’s arms were tired from rowing out to sea the first time, and he struggled to keep up with Williams. In order to keep the boat from turning, Williams would periodically stop rowing to let Culann catch up. During these pauses, Williams would glare at Culann, who felt like a greenhorn all over again. It was slow going, but Culann was encouraged by the barking of the dogs of Pyrite, which grew in volume and intensity as the boat drew nearer to shore.
When they reached the pier, Williams grabbed Culann by the arm and yanked him over the side. Culann stumbled onto the planks, catching himself with his cuffed hands.
The gash in his hand throbbed. Williams jerked him to his feet and marched him to shore with Schuler trailing behind.
Schuler and Williams hunched over to inspect Margaret’s body. The dogs churned around them. Williams tried to push them away at first, but quickly gave up. The dogs seemed to Culann to have hopelessly contaminated the crime scene. The officers seemed to reach the same conclusion as they arose shaking their heads.
“How many more bodies are here?” Schuler asked.
“Thirty-two were dead this morning,” Culann replied, “and nine more died later in the day, including the three in the rowboat and Constance.”
Just saying her name caused an odd stirring in Culann’s stomach. It wasn’t grief and it wasn’t lust. It was more a simple appreciation for the grace and beauty that had 77
briefly been in his presence. He didn’t understand the feeling and figured he wouldn’t be in Alaska right now if he did.
“I don’t know,” Schuler said. “I’m starting to think he’s telling the truth.”
Williams chewed on his lip for a moment and then said, “You may be right, but he’s still a disgusting piece of human garbage.”
“I think we need to trust him, at least as far as this virus is concerned.”
Williams turned his back and started walking towards Alistair’s bar. Culann stayed as close as possible to Schuler in case Williams decided to pull his gun out again.
Schuler stood still and watched her partner stalk off. The pack of dogs swirled around the two of them; none followed after Williams.
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3
The three sat around the table in the bar. Alphonse rested his chin on Culann’s lap, but Culann didn’t pet him since he’d been warned about keeping his still-shackled hands in plain sight. Williams and Schuler each drank a beer from the rapidly warming cooler, which no longer received power from the conked-out generator. Culann eyed the beer bottles hungrily. He didn’t dare risk Williams’ ire by asking for one.
The officers had completed their sweep of the island and confirmed Culann’s casualty figures. As the number of dead bodies found increased, the level of conversation decreased. Williams hadn’t said a word in over thirty minutes.
Then he said, “We really are going to die.”
Schuler nodded. Culann doubted the two had much time left. He started thinking about what was going to happen after they were gone. He would be alone with thirty-nine dead bodies and innumerable dogs. His first order of business would be to do something with the bodies before the dogs started eating them.
“The bodies,” he said. “What should we do with them?”
“We’ll have to burn them,” Schuler said. “We can’t dig that many graves.”
“We can’t burn them,” Williams replied. “They’re evidence.”
“Evidence of what?” she asked. “Besides, anyone who comes around to dust for fingerprints is as dead as we are.”
“Well, if we’re dead anyway, the last thing I want to do is spend my final minutes dragging corpses around.”
“We can’t just leave them to rot in the sun.”