An Average Day at Laminax

Chapter 11

Nearly two hours had passed since we left Raton, and I was not lying down in my seat anymore. Instead I was looking out of the window at the landscape while Emilio said the names of the towns that we were driving through ("We are driving past Santa Fe!") while he turned up the radio when a song from his favourite bands came on ("Ooh, a Pearl Jam song! Found out about these guys about ten years ago.") and turned it down when something he didn't like came on ("Oh, this song is overrated.") Eventually he stopped talking and thigs were silent. Overtime, he visibly became increasingly tired, rubbing his eyes and not even bothering to stifle his yawns anymore. At one point, he closed his eyes completely and snapped his eyes open a second afterwards. "Hey, Emilio. Don't you think that is time to stop now? You seem pretty tired." I asked him, looking at his half-closed eyes. "Huh? Wha... well, I don't know if we can stop. You said that nobody else should be able to see you, I don't wanna risk it. I'll drive to my house." He mumbled. "That seems like a bad idea. You said you have a wife and son; they'll both surely be at home." I spoke. "Not my wife. She's temporarily working night shift. She's a... nurse at the University of New Mexico Hospital, so for now, I look after our son. But since I left for Fort Collins, I hired a babysitter to look after him. The babysitter texted me while I was inside the Mexican restaurant, saying that he put Marco to bed and that he'll stay in the house until I arrived. When I arrive at my house, you stay in the car. Once the babysitter leaves, I'll get you out of the car." I thought for a moment. "It's a good plan, but I think it's just safer to stop at a motel." I finally said.

Emilio nodded. After about ten minutes of driving, Emilio went off the road and pulled into a motels parking lot. I was once again waiting in the car, while Emilio went to the reception room and lied about how many people would be staying in the room. Emilio came into the car again and went into a vacant parking spot in front of one of the rooms. He got out and walked towards a blue door with the number 14 on the front of it. He opened the door and held it open, indicating for me to go inside. I slipped out of the car and went into the room.

It was dark and cold. The carpet underneath me felt wet. I looked around some more. To the side of the room was a small kitchen. The fridge inside of the kitchen had the logo of General Electric attached to it (people often joked that General Electric was Laminax's archenemy, due to its equivalent manner to Laminax.) In front of me was a two-person bed, and to the left of it was a door. To the right of me was a small couch and an even smaller TV that was hastily placed on a wooden table, its many cables running across the carpet and into an outlet of the back wall. I heard the door close behind me, and Emilio said "Welcome, to the Arco De Plata motel, which roughly translates to the Silver Bow motel. Wow... no wonder it's so cheap to stay here."

In his arms was the packet of cat food and the silver bowl. He was holding onto my bucket with his fingers. He placed them all on the kitchen bench, and he made his way across the room and turned on the TV. It was set on the news channel, and the last thing I was expecting to see on the TV was a picture of me on it. "Oliver Henry Davidson, a Senior Researcher for the electric utility company, Laminax Corporation has been reported missing for five days. Davidson was last seen in Denver after attending a conference, raising concerns among his colleagues and authorities. The police, in collaboration with Laminax forces, have launched an extensive search operation, spanning across multiple states, with the search reaching as far as Raton, New Mexico. Local law enforcement authorities, along with Laminax security forces, have been working tirelessly to locate Davidson. The joint efforts of these teams have led them to expand the search beyond Denver, reaching neighbouring states in the hope of finding any leads or information about his whereabouts. Authorities are urging anyone who may have noticed any suspicious activity or has any information regarding Oliver Henry Davidson's disappearance to come forward. Both emergency services and Laminax have set up hotlines to receive any tips or sightings related to the case. Officials strongly advise individuals to dial 911 and also contact Laminax if they have any relevant information. He is described as a Caucasian male, 5,11 with dark brown hair, blue eyes, and with a small amount of moustache hair. The community has also rallied together to support the ongoing search efforts. Flyers with Davidson's picture and information have been distributed throughout Denver and surrounding areas, urging citizens to remain vigilant and report any possible sightings. Authorities are urging the public to remain vigilant and report any information that may assist in locating Oliver Henry Davidson. Every piece of information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, could prove crucial in finding him. Back to you, Victor." Emilio slowly turned to me. "They're looking for you? Laminax?" "Well, yeah. Of course they'll be looking for me. They don't want anyone to find out about the existence of the Gootraxians. If they do find me, they'll kill me. I don't know what they'll do with you when they find out you've been harbouring a criminal. Well, not a criminal, but you get what I mean." I said slowly.

Emilio's face slowly morphed into a look that can be described as a mix of horror and shock. "Oh my God. What have I done... I have to make sure they never find you. What if they have security cameras? Oh, they do have security cameras! I saw them outside the receptionists office, oh, dios mío, what do I do?" He spoke. He continued to worriedly speak in Spanish as I watched him pace up and down the room. "Alright, stop! Here's what we are gonna do. We are going to sleep here tonight, as promised. Set up an alarm on your phone so you can wake up at 5:30 in the morning. You'll go the receptionists office and check out. Since it'll still be dark, nobody will see me get in the car, and we'll get the chance to leave before sunrise. Does that sound good?" I asked. Emilio stopped pacing and turned to me. "Alright. That's a... good idea. Great idea, actually." Emilio then opened the door that was next to the bed and went inside. He then screamed and came running out. "There's a mouse in the bathroom! This motel just keeps on getting worse..." He said, shaken. Suddenly, something came rushing out of the bathroom. Emilio let out a small scream and clambered onto the bed. "Seriously?" I said in a judgemental tone. Emilio shrugged and went further into the bed. I turned to see the mouse on the floor, running around in circles, making small, squeaking noises.

Something then snapped inside of me. Like an instinct. I slowly went on all fours. "What the hell are you doing?!" Emilio yelled. I ignored his yells as I slowly went towards the mouse. I could feel my tail twitch. I grabbed the mouse with my teeth and began to shake my head around wildly. I could hear the mouse squeal with terror, but I didn't care. I shook even harder, and with one strong bite into its body, the mouse stopped moving. I dropped it onto the floor, and I slowly began to realise about what I had just done. "Oliver...? You okay?" I could hear Emilio say as he slowly climbed off the bed. I whimpered a little. "Am I okay? I just killed that mouse. I couldn't control myself. I am slowly giving in to these... instincts that no human would do. But I'm not a human anymore, am I? I'm a cat. A cat with this... humanoid body...  I don't think that I'll be able to see my family again. Hell, they don't know if I'm dead or not. I am being hunted down for. I don't know what Laminax will do with me once they catch me. If I get killed... they'll incinerate my dead body, or something along those lines. If I'm captured instead... they'll keep me alive, but they'll put me in a laboratory far away, like in Alaska or South America, and wait for a month or two and announce that I am dead. There'll be a funeral, my landlord will pack up all of my things and rent the house to another person. My dad and brother, they'll mourn for a while... but then they'll move on. If either option happens to me... I'll be forgotten in time, another guy that went missing in the Colorado wilderness. Oliver, who? I'd be forgotten. What's the point of doing all this? What's the point of hiding, Emilio? We are just delaying the inevitable. I can't keep living like this, constantly on the run, constantly in fear until the day of my death... or capture. I miss my family, I miss my old life. But I can never go back to it... what's it mean, to hide?"

Emilio went silent. "Well, Oliver. I don't know what to tell you. I just... I'm tired. I want to go to bed, alright?" He spoke. "Fine." I replied, as I watched him disappear into the bathroom and close the door. Next thing I heard was the sound of running water. I was on my own. I got up and walked towards the kitchen bench, looking at the packet of cat food. I got out my claws and slashed across the top of it. I opened the bag and poured it into the bowl. I put the bowl to my face and began to eat it. I felt more animal than human doing this, but at least I was eating food after hours of not eating anything. After I finished, I took off my messenger bag and leant it against one of the chairs. I then laid down on the cold floor, curling myself as tight as possible to conserve heat, my tail covering my eyes. My fur was keeping me nice and warm, but at one point, I could hear Emilio say, "What is he doing on the floor?" and then he proceeded to take one of the blankets from his bed and placed it over me, making it more hot than it needed to be for me. Eventually, I fell asleep.