“She’s dead,” says The Officer. He closes her eyes with a gentle respect.
The Officer rests his forehead against the wall, “These are no ordinary homicides. I’m thinking they need an extraordinary Police Force to handle em,” he says, inhaling and exhaling the way humans do when they feel pressure. “Right now, I need twenty minutes shut eye,” he says, with an exhausted drawl.
Casey whispers, “Rest In Peace.” shock shoots through her words. I take her hand and lead her away from the carcass. I want to protect her from the ugly side of life and death.
Toby races round the basement searching desperately for Jenna – she’s a gone girl – for sure.
My ears are finely tuned to the sound of death; I hear the fizz and pop of Associate Bradbury’s decay. Her putrefying smell invades my nostrils – exciting and repulsing me in equal measure.
The Association
We are pleased to inform you that A1 Responsive Jess is alive and well. Two of our Associates arrived at her family home this morning in the guise of school welfare officers. Her parents informed them that she would remain ‘grounded’ in their care until the situation at Arlington High is resolved.
We also know that her parents have withheld her cell phone; which explains her lack of contact.
We now intend to take control of this situation by focusing all our efforts on quashing any further calamity caused by The Dark Side's H-Offensive. This will begin with the return of Kirk and co to their respective homes.
We now hand you back to Kirk.
……
The sound of sleeping surrounds me. The urge to close their eyes and rest overcame my friends; they huddle in fetal positions on the cold concrete floor. I watch as their chests rise and fall to the rhythm of replenishing slumber.
They sleep safe and sound in the knowledge that I will wake them if Associate Bradbury’s carcass begins to reanimate.
......
I’ve watched them sleep for quite some time now.
Worry flutters in and out of my partial soul.
And the delicious smell of a rotting carcass remains tantalizingly close.
Hunger tickles me – my cruel cycle begins again – tormenting me with lust and self-hatred.
……
Toby’s eyes flicker and open; his legs unfurl and stretch out, arms move upwards. An awakening yawn pulls his mouth wide.
When the seeping stench hits him he jumps to his feet, “Jeez!!” He clamps his nose and notices my twitching.
He whispers his words through a protective hand, “Do you think she’s gone past the reanimation stage? She smells bad! I Don’t think I can get any closer to check her appearance.” His question is loaded with hope: The Dark Side will not reanimate a carcass after a certain stage of decomposition.
I approach the carcass and look closely. The air within the basement is quite cool, which has slowed the decomposition process a little. She is not yet at stage one, wherein the organisms in the digestive tract emit acids and gases, which create the delicious – sorry, I mean disgusting odour. She’s not been dead long enough for these odors to reach human nostrils; I believe The Dark Side is accelerating these smells, to confuse and play with my friends.
