Transformation (37 page)

“Because she wanted to be my queen. She disgusts me. She has no mother boobs.”

There were only four crazies left. Sherm, Choco, Boswell, and Gordy.

They were facing off with five armed opponents. But they still behaved as if they had the upper hand.

“Choco…” Sherm started.

“Yes!” Choco was clipped, excited.

“Let me finish!” Sherm bellowed. Then softer. “Go find Nurse Dick.”

Choco started to walk away. Sherm bellowed after him.

“Run!”

Choco began to sprint.

§

Weed felt the woman move quickly, he didn’t feel any pain, but he could tell there was a long deep slice in his arm. He recoiled and she ran. Nurse Nancy didn’t want to tangle with the old goat anymore so she ran as hard and as fast as she could. And although she enjoyed his contact immensely, she would have to kill him as soon as she had the chance.

Weed had to stop the bleeding and he could barely see. He took off his shirt and wrapped his arm. He had to get a better binding on the thing. It was starting to sting and he could still feel blood running down his body from the grave wound.

§

On the third level Ana heard the footfalls and hooting of the crazy people running up the ramps. She had no idea what she should do so she waited for the sounds to recede. After their footfalls faded, she walked across the darkened third level to see what was going on. She was about to start running to the fourth level, but wasn’t sure if she should stay at her post or not.

She was startled by a hand on the top of her head. Her hair was pulled, jerking back her head and exposing her throat. Instinctively, she threw her hands up. But something passed across her neck and she knew instantly that someone had just tried to cut her throat.

She reached up, felt her own hot blood squirting between her fingers. For a moment she almost panicked and started to run but she stopped herself and simply lay down. It seemed the blade nicked the artery so she applied pressure and waited, hoping someone found her before she bled out.

Ana felt a rush of emotions: cold, fear, sadness, even anger. She felt herself getting very sleepy and had to fight to keep her hand over the wound. Blood continued to trickle out and down her neck to pool on the concrete below her head. She knew if she let go she would be dead in seconds.

Nurse Nancy kept running up the ramps to the top of the structure, following the others. She hated Choco, couldn’t stand Matilda or the Rabbits, but they were all her charges and she needed to protect them. She wanted to take advantage of the chaos so she could cripple the enemy and slay the old goat once and for all.

§

Weed lost a bit of blood as he released his shirt. He tore a strip and placed the first one down flat over the wound. He tore another strip, trying to work quickly. He used the next one and the next and so on to tie up his arm. He’d stopped the bleeding, mostly, and was on the move.
No fucking foreplay next time,
he thought,
verbal or otherwise. I’m killing that bitch and every one of those assholes with her.

Weed moved as quickly as he could up the ramps, but after his adventure with Ron and his grievous wound he was struggling. He hadn’t slept well in days and hadn’t eaten any real food. He made it to the third level and stopped to rest, although he hated himself for having to. He walked along and came across Ana’s body. He knelt by her head, the pool of blood underneath still expanding.

“Ah shit,” he whispered. “Poor thing.”

He just let the anger drive him. He was losing blood but he was full of rage and vengeance.
Damn little girl didn’t deserve that shit.
He even remembered her name. “Don’t you worry little Ana, I’m killing that bitch for you,” he whispered. His voice cracked. He was getting all pussy and stopped himself.
Weep later old fuck. Burn with hate now. After the killing, you can do the crying.

Weed stomped off into the darkness. Ana’s eyes fluttered and she opened them. She was getting very weak but managed to press he hand back over her slowly clotting wound. She bent her head, hoping to hold her hand in place as she started to pass out again.

§

Nurse Nancy wasn’t too surprised to see the old man coming up the ramp. He was soaked in blood and had murder in his eyes. She melted back into the shadows of a pillar before he saw her. A loud voice behind her startled, doubly so as she was on high alert due to the fact that she was being hunted by the vicious old man.

“Nurse Dick!” Choco screamed. “Sherm wants…”

Nurse Nancy spun and before he could finish his sentence her scalpel whispered in the dark. A glassy red rope appeared to spring from Choco’s neck. He whimpered and clutched his throat. Blood pumped thick and heavy between his stained fingers. He fell dead at her feet.

She was on the run again, planning to circle back around in the dark.

§

“You!” Weed yelled. He held his knife arm and blade pointed at Sherm. The biggest baddest motherfucker in the room was going to die first.

“Kill him!” Sherm bellowed.

Boswell and Gordy charged. It was an unarmed, disorganized rush.

Weed sneered at the two men. They were an inconvenience for him just now, a waste of his precious time. The first man was charging him with his head down, facing the floor. Weed held his empty hand up and caught the man on the top of the head. At the same time he stabbed him in the neck with the other and the man fell aside and yelled a time or two then fell silent. The other man that was lumbering towards him stopped in his tracks.

“Coward! Kill him!” Sherm yelled, but the men just stood there looking away, as if he didn’t hear him. He started to bounce up and down as if he had to pee and made a nervous whining noise.

Sherm charged Wendy and this galvanized the last rabbit to action.

But Weed had covered the short distance by this time and grabbed the man by the throat. This ripped at the horrible wound on his arm. He grimaced in pain and felt fresh blood flowing from the slash. But he wasn’t going to stop, or even slow down. He rammed his blade into the man’s belly all the way to the hilt. The man screamed and fell backwards but Weed went with him and straddled him on the ground. He used both hands and pulled up on his blade, ripping the bastard’s belly wide open. A stream of profanity gushed from his lips just as the man’s innards gushed from his body—hot and nasty.

Sherm was on the move. He was heading straight for Wendy. She held up her gun. He stopped dead in his tracks. He looked at his feet and frowned. He stood perfectly still. Wendy wanted to shoot him but his odd reaction made her feel as if she would be killing a child. She hesitated, looking at the top of the giant’s head, but seeing a little boy.

“Stop. Stop Everyone stop,” Ron was holding his hands up trying to stop a brutal war. “Stop.”

Weed stood, a wild eyed, blood soaked, madman. He looked around warily with teeth bared and breathing heavy. All fell silent for a moment. Before anyone could say a word another voice spoke up. Weed immediately recognized it. It was that damn bitch.

“Nobody move.” It was Nurse Nancy. She had her scalpel to Jeff’s throat. The young man looked scared.

Weed wanted to kill that bitch so bad he could barely stand still.

“Come on Sherman, we’re leaving.”

Sherm looked up from his feet, anger burning in his deep set eyes.

“No.” He fumed. “I want a mother.”

“I’ll be your mother.” Nurse Nancy didn’t want to be alone in the world. Sherm was the last familiar face she had.

“No I want her.” Sherm pointed at Wendy.

Wendy took the opportunity. “OK, I’ll be your mother.” She had assumed he wanted to make her a mother by impregnating her. He just wanted her to be his mother.

Sherm looked up at Wendy with a smile. “Really?”

“Yeah,” she said. “Come over here. I’ll be your mommy.” And that wasn’t the first time in her life she’d said that to a man.

“No!” Nurse Nancy yelled. “Sherm no!”

But Sherm ignored her. He walked over to Wendy with a goofy smile. She walked forward with her hand out to him. She put her gun down the back of her pants. She took his hand and smiled.

“Come on,” she said. It was just like taking a drunk to the backroom for a lap dance.

Sherm was elated. All he’d ever wanted was a mommy.

Jeff felt sweat trickling down every part of his body. It was an icy sweat that chilled him to the bone. A detached part of his mind noted how fast his heart was beating, how dry his mouth felt, and was amazed at just how much liquid was pouring from his body. But he didn’t need the physical symptoms to know he was scared shitless.

The lady behind him held something to his throat. He had no idea what it might be but knew it wasn’t good. He was racking his brain for something to do that wouldn’t get him killed but he drew a blank. He watched the whole scene with Sherm and Wendy unfold and felt the woman getting distracted, letting down her guard ever so slightly. He considered praying but thought that even if there was a God he would just piss him off. Only an asshole waits until they need something to pay someone a visit. No one likes a fair-weather friend.

He knew he didn’t have a gun, but what did he have in his pockets? He always carried around a bunch of stuff on his person; tools, gadgets, gizmos, thingamabobs, and doohickeys. He slowly put his hand in his coat pockets and the first thing he felt was the handle of the long heavy screwdriver he used to pry the roof hatch off the big box store. He slowly pulled it from his pocket.

He thought for a moment before he struck. The woman was holding him by the hair with her left hand, pulling his head back and onto her left shoulder to immobilize him. Her right hand held the cold object to the left side of his throat. He couldn’t move without getting his throat cut. She was pressed against the back of his body. He felt her breath on his neck. Her face was right next to his. He stabbed up and over his shoulder quick and hard.

Nurse Nancy stumbled backwards screaming. She pulled Jeff’s screwdriver from her left eye socket and let it clatter to the ground. She stopped, her hands cupped over the bleeding socket, and wept. Her scalpel tinged on the concrete as it fell from her hand. Jeff felt the blade slice into his throat but had no idea how grievous the wound was. He held it as he stumbled away from the woman. There was blood and it stung. He felt the flap of skin she raised, but he knew he was going to be OK. There seemed to be no arterial spurting of blood.

Sherm was oblivious to anything else as he followed Wendy. All eyes were on the giant man and the petite brunette as she led him away. The raucous with Jeff barely registered. Heads turned but Jeff was okay so they turned back. But Weed saw it all. He’d never taken his eyes off the prize.

Weed started over the moment the woman went down screaming. He watched the nerd kid strike, watched him wander slowly away oblivious. Maybe he’d never been in a fight with a crazy blade wielding bitch before, but he wasn’t out of the woods yet. The woman fell silent and by the time Weed got to where she’d been, she was gone.

Weed was ashamed of himself for he was backing away in fear. The woman had proven herself a formidable enemy. He almost didn’t see her bolt from the shadows. She didn’t see him either as she was rushing the kid.

Weed saw the kid eyeballing him as if he was the one who’d just tried to kill him. As a result the kid didn’t see the woman coming at him. She was moving fast, intent on paying him back for the screwdriver to the eye. Weed caught the glint of metal in the darkness and the thought of the scalpel wielded by the woman made his balls contract. He rushed the kid too, intent on intercepting the woman.

By the time Weed arrived, the woman was facing him. The kid was still eyeballing him and holding his booboo. Weed was done with polite conversation. Any iota of gentlemanly pretenses he had drained away with the last quart of blood he’d lost. He looked that blade-wielding nutcase in her eyes and as she tried to jab straight at him, he dropped on his ass and mule kicked the bitch right in the gut.
Betcha’ didn’t see that coming.
He was pleased with himself. He may have cheese grated a few layers of epidermis off his ass on the concrete, but it was worth it.

Nurse Nancy certainly did not expect the old man to drop and gut kick her.
What a dirty, cowardly, devious, cheap, shitty shot,
she thought. And if Weed could have read her mind, he would have agreed and thanked her for the compliment.

She bent forward over his feet, pain shot through her body as she was pushed backward and onto her ass, but she didn’t drop her blade. Weed was up and on her. She slashed wildly at his face. She zipped off a sizable chunk of his beard. She slashed his forehead, and blood ran down his face, but she was still blind in one eye and in serious pain.

Weed had his buck knife always at the ready. Nurse Nancy didn’t even realize she was stabbed the first two times, but the third one got her attention. She was on her back and the pain of the knife to the stomach was intense, almost overshadowing the pain in her skull. She knew her life was all but over and would end soon, but not soon enough. Even if by some miracle she survived, hers would be a thoroughly miserable existence.