Legend Of The Apocalypse

Chapter 9: Keeping Up The Bargain

Matt and the others searched high and low with no sign of their missing dog. "Wait a second..." Inez said. She walked closer to notice a straight line in the dirt, not like it was drawn using a stick, but as if somebody dragged a limp, dead body though it. "Inez. Its just a line, it doesn't mean anything." Matt scoffed. Inez put her hand over his mouth and examined closer. "Something tells me Snickerdoodle may have gone down this path. I just know it." She stated. "Look, we understand you're worried about Snickerdoodle, but I highly doubt she'd venture deep into the woods." Joseph responded looking deeper into the path from a distance. "Yknow...Maybe Inez is right..." Slider said. "We need to trust her on this one, guys." The others agreed and followed their friend down the dark and scary path.

Back at the restaurant, Mariel was heading to the dining room to get an idea of what it would be like while working. She then noticed two giant iron doors, they were left somewhat ajar with a giant lock keeping them together. But before she could examine any further, the man entered. "I see you're in uniform." The man said, Mariel nodded her head in response. "Allow me to go over a few ground rules. You are to serve customers until I tell you when your shift is over, I don't care if you're on the verge of passing out or if you've drank at least 5 cups of coffee. And as for the room we're standing by here, this room is only for me and my son to enter, are we clear?" He explained. "Y-Yes, Sir. We're clear." Mariel agreed nervously. "Alright. And by the way, my name is Andrew. You don't need to call me 'Sir' anymore." Andrew said before leaving the room. 

Meanwhile, Inez and her friends were strolling down the path. But they'd need to find shelter soon as it was growing dark fast. "Does anyone happen to have a flashlight on hand perhaps?" Jackie questioned. Inez then froze, realizing she should have brought one, before a bright light turned on. "We can use my phone, don't worry." Slider said as he handed his phone to Inez, thus continuing their journey. Hours passed until they stumbled upon a sign that said "Welcome To Baxberry Thicket" in bold letters that looked to have been carved into the sign. "Well maybe we'll be able to find shelter somewhere around here?" Inez said. "Oh what's the use!" Matt exclaimed before he collapsed onto the dirt ground. "We've been walking for 5 whole hours, we'll never find Mariel or Snickerdoodle!" The others rolled their eyes before suddenly hearing a noise in the distance. 

"Hello?" Inez called, the sound grew closer and closer, it sounded like an animal was running towards them. She kept calling out to what seemed like no one, but was then tackled to the ground. "INEZ!" Slider shouted running towards his friend. Before he could reach out an arm, he heard Inez laughing. "Hehe ok settle down," she chuckled picking herself up from the muddy ground. "Well...At least we found one of them!" Slider sighed in relief and noticed that Snickerdoodle was at long last present. "But...How?" Matt questioned. "How did Snickerdoodle find her way here? All the way from Stonerood I might add." Slider and Inez shared a confused glance...Matt was right! How DID Snickerdoodle manage to go all the way from Stonerood to Baxberry Thicket? "Wait a second...What's this?" Slider asked looking at what looked to be a red collar on Snickerdoodle's neck. On the collar was a silver tag that read "PROPERTY OF CRYPTIC INDUSTRIES." Joseph raised an eyebrow, taking notice of the tag. "Cryptic Industries?" he questioned. "Doesn't ring a bell to me!" Slider added. Matt stayed silent for a few seconds, before something dawned on him. "Wait....I saw some boxes in that basement that were labeled Cryptic Industries!" Joseph and Slider gasped as for once, Matt was actually useful to their mission. "Matt! Do you have any pictures?" Inez frantically asked, grabbing Matt's arms with her muddy hands. "I didn't think to do that. But I could check my phone anyway!" Matt replied pulling out his phone. Before he could get to his home screen, thunder began to rumble. "Looks like we'll need to find some sort of shelter." Jackie pointed out as it started to rain heavily.... 

Back in the restaurant, customers began piling in. Mariel did her best with her job as a waitress, grabbing order after order and giving them to the cooks. Micah would run into her from time to time, keeping an eye on her by orders of his father. By the time Mariel got back from handing over at least 5 orders, she noticed her friends entering the establishment. "Oh my God..." she whispered to herself. Matt and the others sat themselves down at a booth right in the corner. "This place sure is fancy..." Jackie said. "A little TOO fancy I might add." Inez replied. Before she could continue her sentence, Mariel walked up. "Welcome to The Crystal Inn. How may I hel- GUYS?!" Mariel gasped. The others were relieved to see their friend, but also confused to see her in a maid dress. "Uhhh why are you dressed like that?" Joseph asked nervously. Mariel sighed heavily "I'll tell you later. Now order something like a normal customer." she said bluntly, trying not to snap. 

In the backroom, Andrew was holding his child hostage. "That girl is doing a little...TOO good." Andrew snarled, peeking through the door. "Dad. We agreed that if she took on this shift for tonight, we'd let her go. We need to hold up our end of the bargain!" Micah retorted. "Yes. That's true, but we can't have her find out about our secret." Andrew said turning to Micah. "Did you....Tell her anything?" He asked getting in Micah's face. "N-No, Sir. Not at all." Micah stuttered... "Good...." Andrew responded, "now I'd suggest you keep your mouth shut...If you know what's good for you." He than walked out of the backroom. Micah waited for his father to leave before he took a bunch of photos of his surroundings. Luckily, closing time would be in a few minutes. 

"Alright, cat-girl. You'll need to wrap it up with these guys. We're closing in 5 minutes." Andrew said. "Yes, Andrew. They're just finishing up." Mariel responded. Matt stopped eating his food for a second, just as he was about to speak, Andrew interrupted. "Right...Well get these guys a set of boxes on their way out. You're free to go tomorrow morning." He commanded. Mariel nodded her head and went to the kitchen. Joseph watched before turning back to the group. "That Andrew seems a little...Off...don't you think?" He questioned. "I don't see anything wrong with him." Matt replied, talking with his mouth full of hamburger. Before Joseph could respond, he took notice of Micah cleaning tables. "I think I know where to get an answer." He whispered. 

Mariel walked over to Micah, "Your...Dad said I get to go home tomorrow. Is there anything else I can do here?" She asked kindly. "Nah. You're fine. I'll escort you to my room shortly. In the meantime, just sit down somewhere. I'll have the chefs make you something off the menu!" Micah offered, before Mariel could reply, a shout came from a few feet away! "HEY! YOU! GET OVER HERE AND CLEAN THIS UP!"