The Things We Bury - Part 1: In Anticipation of the End of the World [Completed]

Chapter 4: Me and My Bad Luck (Part 6 of 6)

 Emily went through the procedures one by one as planned: blood, tissue, saliva.  She took swabs from the ears, the nose, and one of its eyes.  Finally, she prepared to take a clipping from the lycanthrope's claws.  She seemed at a loss of how to approach the task.

With her first attempt, she tried to keep her distance and reached out as far as she could to snip one of the black razors.  The oversized clippers from the kit seemed completely insufficient to crack through the iron-strong keratin that formed LARS's nails.  Next, she used both hands, still trying to keep herself as far from the creature as possible.  Even watching her from behind, with her body draped in the thick hazmat suit, it was clear she was struggling, putting every bit of strength into it. 

She gave up and slumped backward, dropping from a squatting position to sit down on the floor.  Her hand moved reflexively to her forehead and thumped against her helmet.  The muffled noise echoed through the silent Observation Center.

Emily glanced at Tray, who was lying in the middle of the floor propped up on one elbow watching her in awe and terror.  Seeing no help there, she reluctantly moved towards the Subject.  She took hold of the paw.  It didn't look nearly as massive in her hands as it did the first night.  It almost looked delicate surrounded by the thick white glove.  She began to visibly shake as she positioned the front leg between her knees to brace it. 

The paw rested on the white fabric of her thigh.  The fur showed up in contrast against it, a dull ivory white with highlights of yellow, reminiscent of the color of urine.  The talons were splayed out in the air.  Two to three inches long, black with veins of charcoal, they gleamed with a metallic sheen.

Emily took up the clippers from the floor next to her for a fresh attempt.

R.J. looked on, unaware of his hand pressing against the glass or the fine mist his breath was leaving on it. 

He would have given anything to be in there, even though it saddened him to see that magnificent animal incapacitated.  One day, he thought.  One day, I'll get Wiley to change his mind.

Earlier, while they changed out of their yellow coveralls, R.J. had managed to convince Maxwell of the importance of getting the physical samples. 

"Fine."  Maxwell dumped the clothes and boots into the bin for decontamination.  "If it changes tonight, gas it.  You can send two people in."

"I'll do it myself."

"No way.  Don't let this go to your head, but you're far too valuable to be risking your life.  You're running this thing.  Send Gracie."

"Gracie!  It's bad enough I have to let her treat the girl."  She wasn't going near his lycanthrope.

Maxwell picked up the plastic vial containing the girl's RFID chip and stormed out.  "Well, send in some of the grunts then.  I have other problems to deal with." 

Through the OC speakers, there was crunching noise that sounded like ice on a frozen lake cracking in a spring thaw.

A small black chip arced through the air and bounced across the floor.

"Shit."  Emily's whisper filled the monitoring room with her frustration.

She scampered after it, letting the leg drop.  LARS coiled and flexed it in her sleep.

Emily hunted around for the tip of the nail.  Her hands swept the ground frantically.  Panting could be heard over the microphone.  Her rapid breathing subconsciously raised the pulse rates of everyone in the room.

Her fingers located the sample, and she plucked it up with triumph and bagged it.  She tossed everything back in the kit haphazardly and clambered for the door.  The sensor was activated and the door was beginning to open, by the time Tray started to pick himself off the ground.  The kid was slow to get to his feet but once he did, he ran to get into the portal with her like he was being chased.

R.J.'s eyes never left the animal.  If only Mila could be down here with him.  How many times had they hoped to be this close to such a miracle?  All those years together, tracking one legend after another.  Never coming across a single piece of evidence that the scientific community took seriously.  And now this— this beautiful, wonderful animal was alive and breathing just on the other side of the glass. 

A part of his mind wondered if the veil of secrecy were ever lifted, would it wipe away all the failures.  Erase all those disappointing expeditions.  Give absolution for the Gilchrist fiasco.  Bring Mila back home to him.

He was smart enough to know that the past would not be so easily overwritten and that Mila was gone for good.  

Their marriage, once so strong and steadfast, had eroded to nothing.  It was the slow dissolution that killed it like a penny being dissolved in an acid bath.  You can't put something like that back together.

R.J. took a moment to fantasize about what it would have been like if this lab was theirs.  If there was no government.  No Agent Wiley.  If by some impossible turn of events, they had come across LARS on their own and studied it openly. 

Mila would have loved her like a child. 

Aikman roused him from his daydream.  "Guess the rest of the night will be pretty quiet."  The tech leaned back in his chair clasping his hands behind his head.

R.J. glanced around the room.  The door had been opened for the hourly check-in.  It must be one o'clock.  The crowd that had shown up to watch the monster was shuffling out, leaving R.J. alone with Aikman and Gracie.

"Aren't you going to check out the samples?"  Aikman followed his gaze to the door.  Lockdown was still in effect.  LARS being unconscious didn't change that.  In a few minutes, they'd be sealed in again.

"It can wait until morning."  R.J. looked back towards the marvelous being in the enclosure.  "You two can go, if you want.  I'll stay and watch over her."  

I won't see her again for a month.

***

Author's Note:

Thanks for making it through another chapter with me. I am soooo anxious to start putting out number 5. Every time I get to the end of one of these, I'm always super excited about giving you the next one.  I just wish I had the time to crank them out faster.

Please tell me what you thought— good or bad.  And if you're enjoying it, please don't forget to vote.

Also, do yourself a favor and check out the accompanying song in the multimedia section. I absolutely love it and it provided the chapter title.

One last note: a little question: there sure are a lot of characters in this book.  How do you feel about that?  Would it help to keep track, if I filled out a cast listing?