Break The Ice (8 page)

“Sunjin,” I say, interrupting him. “He said more are here.”

“More of what?” Kaitlyn says.

Behind Kaitlyn, someone approaches from across the street. It’s a little girl, no older than ten. She skips straight towards the wreckage, laughing and singing to herself. It’s only when she finishes crossing the street that it’s obvious she’s not coming to us, but hurrying away from something else.

“Wait right here,” I say.

“Not this again,” Ted says.

The girl stops skipping. She spins around and stares at the building behind her. It’s a multilevel apartment complex.

Four stories rise up in front of me. I can’t find any sign of life inside the building until my gaze reaches the fourth floor. In the top window, all the way to the right, I catch a glimpse of movement. Blocking the sun with my hand, I watch the window. Somebody is inside, slamming a lamp against the glass. When it shatters, they throw the lamp through and scream.

At this point, the girl jumps up and down. She claps her hands and sings louder. “The itsy, bitsy spider went up the water spout. The people tried to stop me, so I blew their building up.” She claps again and throws her hands up. “Boom!”

The explosion sends me backwards onto the sidewalk. I scurry to my feet and run back to Kaitlyn. Her and Ted were knocked down with me. “Let’s go,” I shout over the sound of the apartment imploding. I yank them both to their feet.

We run past the little girl and away from the falling building. It’s taller than the ones around it. The top falls onto a deli next door, breaking through the roof and crushing it.

“Don’t you want to play?” the girl yells.

I glance over my shoulder. She’s chasing us, waving a small stick. Her eyes shine bright, twisted on a face that should look innocent. The stick ignites and she laughs some more.

“Faster,” I say, pushing Kaitlyn and Ted in front of me. “Keep running and don’t look back.” I stop moving and face the girl. “How many people were in that building?” Why did I ask that? I don’t want to know the answer.

“Lots and lots and lots!” she says.

“Are there more of you here?”

“You ask too many questions. Let’s play instead.” She jumps forward, brandishing her weapon. It’s only a stick, but I haven’t forgotten the force behind the other one’s throw.

“Put it down and walk away,” I say. The demand isn’t threatening enough, but what else can I add? Or else?

“Or else what?” she says.

Am I threatening a little girl or a Sunjin? “Or else you won’t get to play ever again,” I say.

She pouts. “But I wanna!”

“Then you’ll have to give me your stick.”

“Okay,” she says. A slight twitch in her upper lip gives away her plan. She takes two steps forward, head down and solemn. At the last second, she lurches forward, trying to spear me.

Instincts kick in, and I reach out to stop her. I grab for her wrist but my fingers wrap around the base of the stick instead. While it’s still lit. I jerk my hand back, ripping the stick from her hand. It falls to my feet, the flames doused and bark charred. I’m waiting for the intense burning pain, but nothing comes.

“Hey, that’s mine.”

She reaches for me, but I step to the side and place my free hand on top of her head. What was it that Tinwel chanted? “Sin mople nee shil.” Nothing happens. Close, but not right. I’m not sure why I’m trying. I’m not one of them. “Sik mo ple ni shil,” I say again, still feeling foolish.

A pressure builds up in the space between my palm and the Sunjin girl’s hair. It doesn’t hurt, but I don’t like it. The intensity increases until an unknown force lifts my hand from her skull. I have to push back against it, every muscle in my arm shaking.

“No! Please mister, don’t do it!” she says. Tears well up in her eyes.

It takes only a single flash of the crumbling building behind her to remind me that she’s no girl. “Sik mo ple ni shil,” I say once more. The power between us explodes, sending me spiraling backwards. I spin three times before landing on my side. My eyes register the last brief moment of the flashing blue light and the little Sunjin disappears. Bone crunching and all.

My phone vibrates through my jeans against the pavement underneath me. It makes a low grumbling noise and startles me. I hope it’s Kaitlyn telling me she and Ted are safe. Rolling over, I push off the ground and onto my knees. I have to massage my eyes before they’ll open. How long have they been closed? It felt like seconds, but I can’t tell.

I dig for the phone.

Mel:
How’s the date going, big guy?

How did she get this number? Before I can respond, a tear drops down onto my cheek. I wipe it away, but it’s no tear. Blood? Gently, I dab my forehead. A sharp pain courses through me. I use the end of my shirt and pat the cut dry. There’s less blood than I expected.

The phone buzzes with a new text.

Kaitlyn:
go two streets and turn left. small motel, don’t miss it. hurry

No time to respond to Mel.

I’m on my feet, walking down the street before my brain registers the action. I need to find Kaitlyn before another building goes down, or worse–the building she’s in. I pass the first street and can’t help but look down it. Several shops are on fire and a few have collapsed into the street.

“Don’t think about it. Keep going,” I tell myself.

Exhaustion hits me at the corner of the second street. I’m not sure why. I ran for thirty seconds. I rub the palm of my hand. It’s still numb from attacking the Sunjin. However I managed to do it, sending her away took more energy than I had in me.

Small motel. Small motel…where the hell is the small motel? I stumble down the street, holding myself up with parking meters and a few assorted mail boxes. Donut shop. A small café and then a Starbucks. Sunset Valley Motel.

It hurts to walk without any support, but I struggle across the small parking lot and through the front door. Dozens of people huddle together in the lobby. A few cower back when I burst through the front doors. Two men near the front jump to their feet and pull out weapons. One has a gun, the other a metal bat.

“No, don’t hurt him!”

The voice sounds like Kaitlyn, but I’m too disoriented to tell. My vision flickers in and out a few times before it goes black completely. Wind blows against my face before two hands dig into my armpits, stopping my fall.

“We were next to the Cone when it exploded, but I never saw what did it.”

“I saw. Some guy charged past me on Slovak Street and stormed inside. I didn’t think much about it, an angry customer or someone having a bad day. The place went up in flames before I made it a block.”

“Did you see what he looked like?”

“Yeah. He had blisters covering his face.”

“What about the fire in his eyes?” I say.

The entire room gets silent. Is it a room? Or am I outside? A slight breeze dulls my aching head. I force my eyelids open and the dim light is unwelcome. I focus on the people around me, dozens of eyes staring right at me. “Tiny flames right inside the pupil,” I add.

“I didn’t get that close,” the woman who had been telling her story says. She’s older than most around her and one of the few people sitting on a long, beige couch. “You say there was fire?”

“That’s what I saw,” I say.

“They’re demons,” a man says, hiding in the corner. “It’s judgment day and they’ve come to drag us to hell.”

A few people cry out.

“They’re not demons. They’re…” How many people am I supposed to warn about the Sunjin? Tinjo didn’t specify. “Trust me, they’re dangerous and murderous, but not demons.”

“Why should I trust you?” the man says.

Fear strangles his voice. If he doesn’t keep it contained, it’ll infect the others.

“Because he saved my life. Three times now.” Kaitlyn’s voice sooths my body. She steps past a group of grocery store workers to stand next to me. Her braid is thrown over her shoulder. Dirt clings to one side of her face. She must not notice. Or not care.

“Why would he do that?” he says.

She shrugs. “I don’t know. We’ve never met before today.”

Her lie calms the man down, and he sinks back into the crowd.

I turn my back on the others, leaning towards Kaitlyn ever so slightly and whisper, “I need to get back to the hospital.”

“Now’s not the time,” she says. “It’s dark out and who knows how many of them are out there.”

It’s dark? “How long was I out?”

“A while.”

I grab the phone from my pocket. Eight missed calls and half a dozen messages from Mel.

Mel:
You on your way back yet?

Mel:
The school called, asking if you were here. Need a doctor’s note tomorrow?

Mel:
Weird reports on the radio. You alright?

Mel:
Sam? Answer me.

Mel:
I’m not sure what you’re up to, but call me as soon as you can.

Mel:
help

The last message is time-stamped four hours ago. She asked for help. There’s no way I can stay.

“Do what you need to, but I’m leaving,” I say. I get to my feet without much trouble. My vision gets spotty but only for a second. We’re no longer in the lobby, so I walk to the only door in the room and turn around. Kaitlyn stares back at me. She’s biting her lip, thinking about something.

Don’t make me leave you here.

When she makes no sign to leave, I hurry through the door. She’ll be safe enough with Ted, and I’ll find her once I complete my end of the deal with Tinjo.

The hallway comes to a T at the end, and I don’t know which way to go. Both left and right look the same, except for the vending machine at the end of the left hallway. I close my eyes. If this decision seems hard, the path ahead will kill me.

“Go right.”

I whip around.

Ted comes up to me. He’s carrying a sack over his shoulder. “She’s on her way, don’t cry.” He passes by and turns down the right hall.

Kaitlyn closes the door behind her and jogs towards me.

“What are you doing?” I say.

“I can’t let you go alone,” she says. “Never have before, and I won’t start today.”

“Those are games. This isn’t. You could get hurt.”

She shrugs. “Guess you’ll have to keep me safe for real, huh?”

“Why isn’t my phone working?” I say.

“Don’t know. I tried sending a text to Kait, but she never got it,” Ted says. He pulls out his phone. The cover is an old Nintendo controller.

Kaitlyn rolls her eyes. “I have no service. Data shut itself down, too. One of those things must have taken out a tower.”

That wouldn’t surprise me. The destruction around us is massive. A majority of the buildings on either side of the road are in shambles. Concrete, bricks, and glass fill the street. A couple of hands stick out from beneath the rubble. Some feet here and there, and a face, staring at me without life in its eyes.

“This is awful,” Kaitlyn says.

“That’s an understatement,” I say. I can’t tear my eyes away from the man’s face poking out from the pile of dust and drywall and metal bars. A sliver of dried blood fell from beneath his hairline. One eyebrow missing and the other singed. The longer I stare, the more gruesome details I find.

Kaitlyn grabs my hand. “It’s not your fault. Come on. We’re almost to the car.”

Aside from a deep scratch along the side and a small dent, Mel’s car seems fine. There’s no sign of any Sunjin near the Orange Cone. No sign of anybody at all. Not as far as I can tell in the dim moonlight, at least.

I unlock the door for Kaitlyn and let her in the passenger side. She hits the automatic unlock, and Ted climbs in the back. Before I open my door, I look at the Orange Cone again. Twelve hours ago it marked the spot where my life might take a turn. And for a while, that held true. But now…I have no idea what’s going to happen.

“You okay?” she says as I click my seatbelt on.

“Yeah,” I lie. “Alright. I want to get to the hospital as fast as possible, but I can’t ignore that you guys live here. I can drop you off at your house if you want.”

“Didn’t you say something about needing our help?” Ted says.

“I can’t ask you to go with me after what happened tonight.”

“Why not?” Kaitlyn says.

“It’s too dangerous. And I could never ask you to abandon your family to help me chase down the Sunjin.” It sounds weird every time I say it aloud. Maybe I’m dreaming and the unusual feeling is me trying to wake up.

“You don’t have to worry about either of those things,” Ted says.

I don’t know what he means. “Where’s your house at? Show me your parents don’t care, and I’ll take you with me.”

“Arlington is a bit out of your way, bro,” he says.

I meet his stare through the rear-view mirror. My mouth opens but no words come out.

Reading my expressions, Ted nods. “Two years now.”

“I’m sorry,” I finally get out.

“I’d rather they were dead than be stuck in Kait’s position.”

“Ted,” she says, too harsh for her own voice.

“What…” I recall back to a message she sent last night. “Wasn’t your dad supposed to be around here?” I say.

She presses her fingers against her closed eyes. “It’s a long story,” she says.

I shift the car into reverse. “If none of the roads are blocked, we have a half hour.”

“Sounds like most teenagers dream to me,” Ted says.

I cut the wheel left at an intersection, ignoring the red light. There hasn’t been a car on the road since we left Lake Shore. “So you can go anywhere, do anything, and they don’t question it?”

Kaitlyn shrugs. “Something like that. And it’s no dream.”

“What about the freedom?” Ted says.

“It’s not freedom, it’s negligence.”

So both of her parents are more absent than my dad. Mom chose the opposite style of parenting. Loving, caring, there when I needed her. Sadness creeps up, but I swallow it back down. She’s going to be okay, as soon as I help Tinjo.

“I’m sorry,” I say. “That must suck.”

“I learned to take care of myself early on. I’m just grateful they kept paying the internet bill.” She grins and nudges my shoulder.

“Where’d you say they’re at now?”

“I don’t remember. Barbados, Bahamas, Philippines. I stopped keeping track months ago.”

“Why are you sticking around here instead of going with them?” Ted says, leaning between the two front seats.

“Who wants to go waste their time sitting around on a beach?” she says.

“I can think of a few people. I’m top of the list,” he says.

“It’d be no fun without any friends,” I say. The thought of me on the beach with friends makes me laugh. The last time I went, I read under an umbrella the whole time. I didn’t even wear a bathing suit.

“Exactly,” she says. “Let’s change the subject.”

“Good idea,” Ted says. “So, you have a girlfriend back home?”

My face gets hot. Good thing it’s dark and nobody can see. “No,” I say, trying to sound relaxed. “You interested?” It makes Kaitlyn laugh.

“I didn’t think you’d need these for yourself,” he says, tossing a package of Tampax onto my lap.

“I’m borrowing the car,” I say, mad that he’s trying so hard to embarrass me.

“How’s your mom doing?” Kaitlyn says, interrupting Ted right as he tries to talk again.

“I don’t know,” I say. “She looked better this morning, but I don’t know what’s going on. Her nurse kept calling me while I was passed out. I guess we’ll find out soon.”

I pull into the parking lot ten minutes after nine. The lights are still on inside the hospital and none of the buildings have been destroyed. We’re already better off than in Lake Shore. A few of the traffic lights even work, an improvement since this morning.

“Looks like they haven’t made it to your town yet,” Ted says. “Lucky bastard.”

I slam the car door and make sure I don’t lock Mel’s keys inside. She’s going to kill me when I get upstairs. “I’m sure it won’t be long,” I say. “They move quick from the looks of earlier.”

Inside the hospital, the whole atmosphere seems off. None of the receptionists or nurses are in the main lobby. At least three of each mulled around the waiting area every time I came in before. Ten steps through the door, I press the elevator up button. “When we find Tinjo, hopefully he’ll be able to explain what you guys need to help with.”

Neither of them responds, so I look over my shoulders. Kaitlyn and Ted are two steps inside the door and leaning against the wall. I run over. “What’s wrong?”

“Too…cold…” they both say.

It worked last time, so I cross my fingers and place a hand on Kaitlyn’s shoulder.

The shaking stops and she slumps against the wall, breathing hard. “Him too,” she says.

After I grab Ted’s shoulder, he rubs his nose, which turned bright red in the time it took me to walk to the elevators. His fingernails are blue. “Why does freezing air follow you?” he says.