Lydia lays on the couch watching the tv. She aimlessly drifts through the channels until she reaches the news. The latest update of the seven o'clock news was about lockdown at a local lab. Many officers and ambulances were stationed outside the laboratory.
The entire building was cordoned off by caution tape and vehicles. Many officers were talking vehemently into their radios. The entire area looked confused and uncoordinated. Scientists were taken out on stretchers, some were visibly in pain and bleeding.
"Look at this," Lydia says, a little shaken by the vivid images of the photos of the victims.
The victims themselves were obviously hurt in a strange way, as if attacked by savage animals. They had bite marks on their bodies. some were dead, but ... some were not as lucky. Some had their entire stomachs ripped open, blood and gore seeping out.
Those who lived with the injuries were in an unimaginably intense pain. Some were obviously going to die from their grievous wounds. Others may live with intense care, but in the end it was very grim and gruesome.
Lydia watched horrified at the screen.
Charlie came up behind the couch and said softly, "That's enough for one night."
Lydia curled up a bit. "What could have possibly done that?" Lydia said, on the verge of crying. "They said they kept animals in there, and no one really knows what goes on in there, but how could animals wreak such havoc?" Lydia said her lip quivering.
Charlie stroked her hair. "Don't worry about it. They probably tested some large animals, like lions, and they had managed to get loose and turned on their captors.
I bet that the injuries aren't even as bad as they look," Charlie reasoned.
Charlie went around the edge and got on the couch with Lydia. Charlie took Lydia and held her. Charlie knew that Lydia has been through a lot and has a lot of pent up feeling, anything could set her off. Losing her mother in an accident ... It was hard on everyone who knew her.
She was always a loving, caring person. Even with a father that wasn't around often, and being in his company was enough to make one run away, Lydia's mother had made it all right.
Lydia's mother lost her life in an accident involving the same company that owned this lab just a month ago. She had apparently drank water that had been contaminated by unrefined medicine and had died when the overdose had run its course.
It was so sudden. We were just with her the day before her death, visiting her. She was just gone in one fateful accident. I'll be here for her. I won't let her down. "I won't let you down," Charlie whispers as he holds her tight.
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Thomas and Randy ride over to a new restaurant that had recently opened. The place had a reputation of having good food that wasn't too bad for one's health. Randy drove with his ball cap snug on his head and one hand on the wheel.
Thomas rode shotgun with one arm outside the car with a big grin on his face as the wind whipped alongside him.
"That was a great movie! My favorite character was the one with the silencer on the end of his gun. Every time he nailed one of the undead, he was all like, 'Die zombitch,'" Thomas says enthusiastically.
Randy chuckles and said, "You really thought it was that good? I don't think that was what you really enjoyed."
"What are you saying? It was a good movie," Thomas says, defending himself.
"You seemed to really get into talking with that Ashley girl," Randy adds.
Thomas splutters, "She is just really easy to talk to! I know her from class."
"Isn't she in your Latin class? You should ask her for some pointers," Randy recalls.
"I'm doing fine on my own in Latin, thank you very much," Thomas says hotly.
"Maybe you can learn what 'te amo' means," Randy teases.
"I know what it means. It means to love right?" Thomas says crossing his arms.
"You are a bad translator little brother. It is what you could say to Ashley. It means I love you. And she would know what it means, since she is a smart girl," Randy says with a little twinge of a smile.
Thomas shoots him a look. "If you weren't driving, I'd give you a solid punch," glares Thomas.
Randy smiles a little. "Why have you not asked her out yet? She is all you think about lately," Randy says, keeping a lookout on the road.
"Well she is too good and popular. I bet it would insult her if I asked her out. She is very pretty, and many people notice her. She could be with anyone she wanted," Thomas explains a little mournfully.
"Nobody is better than someone else. It's the mind that counts. You have a good mind, little brother. Use it. What is the worst that could happen? Nothing you can't handle, I assure you," Randy explains thoughtfully.
Thomas scratches his nose. "I guess you're right- Look out!" Thomas shouts.
A grown man shot out of the bushes straight in front of Randy's car. Randy slammed the brakes and wrenched the wheel to the left. The car narrowly missed the man in the street, but was now in the opposite lane. "God damn it!" swore Randy as he regained control of the car.
In the other lane, a large truck was barreling toward them on the highway.
Randy pressed the gas pedal as far into the floor as possible. Randy swung the steering wheel back to the right. The wheels squealed against the gravel as the car struggled for traction.
The truck came ever closer, even as the half-asleep driver groggily, but finally grasped the situation, and hit the brakes.
Randy's car catches traction and finally shoots back across the road, missing the truck by inches.
Thomas gripped his seat in an attempt to stop from bouncing around excessively.
The car flew off the road narrowly missing the trees lining the road. As the car crashed through the brush Randy slammed the brakes again to come to a complete stop. The stop was so sudden the car tipped forward slightly and bounced back to the hard ground.
Thoroughly shaken, and having a bad case of whiplash, neither brother spoke for a minute. Their hearts started to slow a little and began to thaw the shock from their minds. Thomas was the first to release his grip from the seat.
He held his head, that was throbbing quite a bit from whiplash, and joked, "That was one hell of a ride, wasn't it brother?"
Randy finally released his grip from the steering wheel and dropped his hands from it.
Randy breathes a sigh of relief. He is glad he has always forced his brother to put on his seatbelt, no matter how much Thomas did not want to be confined.
"Indeed it was," Randy replied after another long moment had passed.
"Where'd you learn to drive like that? Those were some cool moves to pull off," Thomas said grinning.
Randy gave a small smile and explained, "From watching the movies. Let's see what sort of shape the car is in. And give Ashley a call from your cell to tell her we're going to be late and that we have a story for them when we arrive."
"Will do," Thomas said as he pulled his new cell out of his pocket. It had a cool blue cover and it has been through some bad scrapes and come out just fine. Tough, resilient.
Just what Thomas wants to be.
Thomas dials Ashley to tell her what happened. Randy checks the car, and sees only a few scratches, dings, and scrapes. It ruined the new red paint job, but it was worth it to be living.
Randy finishes his check of the car at about the same time Thomas finishes hinting at what happened. It was gonna be a good dinner story tonight.
Thomas closes his phone and hears the rustle of the leaves in the woods. The woods were too dark to see into, Thomas could not peer into the thick, dense forest.
Randy perks up and says, "What are you looking for?"
Thomas, jostled from his trance, slips his phone into his pocket. "Thought I heard something out there," Thomas said still looking out into the forest, trying to get a glimpse of what had made the sound.
Then a guttural growl resounded from the dark woods. The brothers looked at each other, nodded and got in the car. "Better go." "Right."
The tires squealed once more as Randy backed up out of there, and rode back onto the road and continued to head to the restaurant.
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