Return of the Matka-Zem (The Sorain Chronicles) (8 page)

BOOK: Return of the Matka-Zem (The Sorain Chronicles)
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Jane mumbled a curse at the realization that Thane was the only one who could answer the many questions forming in her mind. The thought of the man brought his image clearly into her consciousness. The feeling that he was likely awake and not happy about her flight brought a small smile to her lips. For some reason, she took pleasure in his irritation.

"
Wait for me
," Thane's soothing baritone voice echoed in her brain as if he had just whispered in her ear. With a shake of her head, she pushed the image of the man out of her thoughts and wondered if she was going insane.

***

Sam woke with a start to find himself bound hands and feet. He was sitting on the bed with his back propped against the headboard. Helen lay beside him, naked, and hogtied. Her small mouth was gagged with a dirty dishcloth. Her eyes were wide in fright, darting from side to side until she saw him looking at her.

"
What's going on?" he whispered to her, but she only shook her head. The last thing he remembered was preparing for bed while his wife took her shower. He had no clue why someone would treat them so.

"
Ah, you're finally awake." A plump woman came into view. She wore a dirty chef outfit, and greying hair had been pulled back into an unkempt bun. Her crooked teeth showed yellow as she gave him an evil grin. "Where is Princess Valencia?" The bed dipped as she sat by his feet.

"
Who...?" Sam frowned in confusion "I don't know any princess." The woman lost her smile and gave him a backhanded slap. Blood pooled in his mouth as his head swam from the blow.

"
The red-haired girl!" spat the woman. She stood and slowly walked around the bed to his wife's side. "Tell me where she is!"

"
I don't know where she is." Sam was afraid. He'd had the feeling the young woman was running away from something, but he never imagined she was royalty and in serious trouble. "Liar!" The plump woman withdrew a small knife from her chef shirt and stabbed it into Helen's left breast. His wife twisted in agony, her scream muffled by the rag. The woman left the knife protruding from Helen's breast. "Tell me where she is."

"
Tell her go and I will tell you," Sam tried to bargain with the plump woman.

"
Tell me now!" The woman began to cut Helen's breast from her body. His wife's muffled screams echoed around the tiny bedroom. Blood flowed over her chest and soaked the bed beneath her.

"
For God's sake stop," cried Sam and, to his relief, the woman pulled the bloody blade from his wife. He helplessly watched as Helen collapsed with a sob. Her eyes remained closed from pain and terror. "Tell me," the woman ordered with an insane smile and the wide eyes of the deranged.

"
We dropped her off in Vancouver." Sam hated himself for giving the woman the information about the girl, but he had no choice.

"
Where was she heading?" The woman came around the bed to face him. The evil in her dark eyes frightened him more than the knife in her hand.

"
She was . . ." Sam stumbled over his words, "was heading to San Francisco."

"
Why?" The woman continued to stare at Sam with her insane glare.

"
I don't know." The crazed woman quickly stabbed the knife into his thigh. When the spurt of blood sprayed onto his face, he knew the woman had hit the femoral artery and he would bleed out in a matter of minutes. "I don't know! She never told us!" Sam yelled, hoping one of the other campers could hear his cry. "I told you all I know. Please let us go."

"
Oh, I'll release you, my dear," the woman said with such an incongruently sweet tone that Sam shuttered in fear. She walked back to Helen and removed the gag. "Sweet dreams." All was quiet when the woman left the bedroom. Sam swung his bound legs over the edge of the bed, his blood spurting with the rhythm of his heart. He had to get help before it was too late. A scratching sound in the front of the RV made him freeze. Sam's jaw dropped open in surprise at the approaching animals.

The terrified screams from the RV parked at the end of the campground awoke several of the campers. Many called the authorities about the horrible sounds that echoed around the campground. Only a few had the courage to investigate, but when they saw the blood covered creatures jump from the vehicle, they froze in shock. None dared to enter the motorhome. When the authorities questioned the frightened campers, they did not believe their stories and said they must have seen a bear or mountain lion, because dinosaurs were extinct.

Chapter 4

Although the bus made frequent stops along the way, Jane rarely left the vehicle. When it stopped at a small mountain town in Southern Oregon, a petite woman, no more than 5
' 4", boarded the bus. She was a pretty woman with long, straight, goldenrod hair, a pointy nose, pouting lips, and bright, sapphire-blue eyes that pierced through Jane as their eyes made contact. Although there were plenty of seats available, the woman plopped into the empty seat next to Jane and started to talk as if they were friends.

"
Hi, I'm Donna," the woman said, introducing herself in a friendly tone. She thrust her hand towards Jane. "Donna Gale. I'm heading to San Fran. How about you?"

"
I'm Jane." Reluctantly she fell into the conversation as she shook the petite woman's hand. "And I'm going there too."

"
You got family there?" Donna didn't give her time to respond. "I have lots." She added with a sour expression, "Although I don't like most of them."

"
No, my family lives elsewhere," said Jane. Thinking it was better to tell the truth than to lie, she continued, "I have some business there."

"
Have you ever been to my fair city? What do you have to do there?" Donna's curiosity seemed boundless, and she spouted question after question before Jane could even answer the first one. "You're not one of those country people who never been to a city in their lives, are you?" asked Donna after she paused for breath.

It was both a curse and a blessing that Donna talked non-stop, for Jane could barely get a word in edgewise. She learned that the blonde woman was fifth generation San Franciscan and she loved her city beyond a doubt. The woman had gone to Oregon to visit friends but could not wait to feel the concrete under her feet again. Donna was quite the storyteller and Jane enjoyed the tales of her adventures. As she listened to the woman, she thought of her own recent adventures. She had dreamt for years about being free, being able to experience the world
—not running for her life from horrible monsters. She hated to admit it, but she actually missed the tranquility of the compound.

The remaining ten-hour bus trip sped by while the two girls conversed. With polite evasion, Jane was able to avoid Donna
's multitude of questions as the woman tried to pry into her life. It was nice to talk with another woman close to her age about nothing important. When the vehicle pulled into the San Francisco station, she gathered her pack and said goodbye to her traveling companion.

***

"Do you have a hotel room?" Donna followed Jane out of the bus terminal. For some reason she had been drawn to the tall, strange girl sitting at the back of the bus. There had been plenty of seats available, but when she spied the head of red hair, she made a beeline towards it. Maybe it was the sadness on Jane's flawless face or the way she stood out from the other passengers that made her sit next to the girl. At first, the tall girl needed coaxing to talk, but after some time she began to relax. Yet, there were underlying emotions that Donna could not quite place. For some irrational reason, she had to help the girl. Jane seemed to NEED her and Donna needed to be needed. Whatever the reason, her maternal instincts overruled her common sense.

"
I don't need a hotel," Jane replied when they stopped at the curb. "I'm going to do my business, then leave for San Diego as soon as possible."

"
My dear girl, it's Saturday evening. Nothing important is open and won't be until Monday morning." She took hold of the girl's arm and waved for a cab. "You're coming home with me." Normally, she would not have offered a stranger a place to stay at her apartment, but the girl seemed so innocent and out of touch with the world. Morally, she could not leave the tall girl alone in the city. It was plain to see that the red haired girl was country born, and with her looks, would be victimized within a matter of hours.

Besides, Donna
's curiosity was peeked to its highest point in years. She had been bored and depressed for a long time. Even the trip to visit friends had not cured her. However, the presence of the girl seemed to lift the darkness around her and give her a sense of purpose. Having the girl at her home for a night or two might be just be the thing she needed to get out of her funk.

***

"I am?" Jane asked when Donna shoved her into the waiting taxi. She was not sure staying with her newfound friend was a good idea. If one of those creatures hurt the talkative woman, she could never forgive herself. "Maybe I should stay somewhere else?"

"
Nonsense, you can't get a room around here for under $400 a night, unless it's a dump," Donna replied when she squeezed in next to her. Jane's friend leaned forwards to tell the driver the address then plopped back to enjoy the ride. "And you certainly don't want to sleep in those beds, if you get my drift."

"
Yes, I do." Jane had read enough to understand her meaning. As they traveled towards Donna's home, she peered out the window at the city and marveled at the height of the skyscrapers. Once again, she was surprised how humans lived in such unnatural conditions. Deep inside her subconscious, she realized that life on Earth was very different from her own world. Unlike Earth, her people lived in harmony, where all life forces are symbiotic with each other. She wondered why she had to leave her own world, if it was as peaceful as she recalled. Maybe something was wrong with the symbiotic relationship in some way. Moreover, what was her role in the possible conflict? Her thoughts returned once again to the man with the yellow eyes. Did she really hear his smooth voice in her mind? To her shock, she heard a faint, "
Yes.
"

"
Why the sad face?" Donna's question broke into her thoughts.

"
I was thinking of a sick friend," She really did not want to go into detail, but the look on Donna's face was too inquisitive for Jane to ignore the question. "He had an accident and is in a coma."

"
I'm sorry to hear that." Donna only hesitated for a moment before curiosity propelled her on. "What happened?"

"
He fell off a horse." She lied, not wanting to tell her the lie she told the hospital. That would only bring more questions from the woman. The thought of Thane falling off a horse brought a slight smile to her lips. She could not picture the Mlinzi falling off anything, much less getting hurt from the fall. Her heart flipped inside her chest as she pictured the man and realized that she liked him. Faint memories of her antagonizing Thane as a child tickled her mind, and she wondered if she was infatuated with the guard before she left her home world.

"
That's why I believe in keeping my feet firmly on concrete." Donna explained, trying to make light of the subject. "So, you're a country girl, huh? Is this your first time in the city?"

"
Yes." As part of her political training, the Keeper had taught her the simplest answer was always the best approach with an inquisitive mind like Donna's.

"
Great!" The blonde woman exclaimed, "We have tonight and all day Sunday for me to show you around my city."

"
Well, I am a little tired from the bus ride." She could imagine the Keeper's sour face at the thought of her roaming around the strange city. The smartest thing she could do was stay inside the apartment and wait until the bank opened for business.

"
Don't be ridiculous!" Donna punched her shoulder. "You can't come to San Francisco and not see anything. You have to visit the wharf, at least."

"
Why is the wharf so important to see?" She could not remember reading much about San Francisco, and had no clue what the woman was talking about.

"
Where have you been living, girl?" Donna asked with an irritated chuckle. "In some hippy commune?"

"
No." She gave an uneasy laugh at how close her new friend had hit the mark. When she did not explain farther, Donna puffed in frustration and punched her shoulder again.

"
Well, you're going sightseeing whether you like it or not." Donna's jaws were tight and her eyes were squinted in stubbornness. Jane could not get out of it.

Donna
's apartment was located above a local herb shop in China Town. It was a quaint studio apartment with hard wood floors and a sleeping loft accessible by ladder. The small kitchen was tucked away in a corner, and the tiny bathroom was so small that you had to step into the tub to close the door. The apartment was lit brightly, with the main window opening to a fire escape that substituted for a balcony. Although her bedroom suite at the compound was double the size, she felt more comfortable in the little apartment.

"
Well, it's not much, but its home." Donna dropped her duffle bag by the worn, yellow sofa. Her friend strolled over to the refrigerator and wrinkled her nose at its emptiness. "Let's get something to eat." Before she could form a refusal, Donna grasped her hand and hauled her out the door.

The streets were still crowded, with throngs of people mingling through the Chinese shops. Wet clothes hung from ropes strung between the buildings, dripping water on their heads. As she glanced around to admire the pagoda style buildings, Donna explained about their history.

"Outside of Asia, San Francisco has the largest Asian population in the world!" Donna proudly exclaimed as they walked down old Chinatown Lane. They stopped for dinner at one of the restaurants that offered Dim Sum, where carts of different appetizer-type concoctions came by their table. Although, Donna explained many of the dishes, Jane was not sure what to make of the exotic food. Some morsels she liked, but others she only had to sniff before quickly placing them back onto her plate. By the time they ate their meal and browsed the nearby shops, the two girls were both tired and called it a night.

At first, she refused Donna
's offer to take a bath, but her friend was insistent and tossed her a long sleep-shirt. It felt good to be under the hot water, as it poured over her dirty hair. She quickly scrubbed the matted mess before attacking the rest of her with a firm sponge. The heat relaxed her tired muscles and, although it felt wonderful, she felt guilty to use so much water. With great reluctance, she dried and donned the shirt that came just to mid-thigh. As she stepped out of the bathroom, she heard the news from the TV and saw that the sofa had been expanded into a bed.

"
Well, there you go." Donna said, patting the firm mattress, "I know it doesn't look like much, but it's comfortable."

"
Thank you for all your help, Donna," Jane replied as she strolled towards the bed. She glanced at the tiny television as she passed . . . then froze. She gasped in horror when she recognized Sam's and Helen's motorhome with its Nashville, Tennessee bumper sticker. She hurriedly squatted by the TV to turn up the volume. Gripping the sides of the tiny box Jane stared at the picture.

"
Breaking news from Vancouver, Canada, where an elderly couple was brutally murdered while they were camping in Golden Ears Park." The crime scene video feed played behind the female news correspondent. Jane gasped in horror when she saw the blood-stained windows in the back of the RV. "At first it was thought that the Tennessee couple was mauled by a pack of wild animals while they were sleeping. But what we just learned from some witnesses," the newswoman glanced at the RV before facing the camera again, "is that it appears the elderly couple were attacked by something described as being like dinosaurs." The female news reporter said all this in a professional voice, but it was plain to see by her stiff features she didn't believe the reports. She turned to face a middle-aged man to question him.

A loud buzzing deafened Jane and bile filled her mouth as an anguished moan escaped her trembling lips. Jane buried her face in her hands as huge sobs rose in her throat as she rocked in agony.

Donna hurriedly turned off the TV and wrapped her into her arms.

"
I killed them." Guilt racked Jane's body as she held back a sob and fought to control her tears. "Inga killed them because she was looking for me. It's me they were after." She grabbed Donna by her shirt and pulled the woman within inches of her face. "She will kill you too, Donna, for harboring me."

"
Nonsense, Jane," Donna's voice was an octave higher and she gave an unsteady laugh, appearing unnerved by Jane's hysterics. She pulled out of her grasp and went to the kitchen. She came back with a drink for both of them. When she returned, she said, "No one is after you, and I'm just a nobody, not worth the effort."

Donna sat on the floor next to her and handed her a full glass of brown liquid.
"Here, drink this and tell me all about it."

"
You won't believe it." Jane brought the glass to her lips. Without thinking, she took a huge gulp of the liquid and quickly lost her breath. Slamming her hand to her chest, she coughed on the fiery liquor.

"
Why don't you try me?" Jane saw Donna try to suppress a giggle while she patted her on the back. "I'll keep an open mind, I promise."

"
Jane is not my name. In fact, I really don't know my name." She peered into Donna's sapphire eyes to see her reaction.

"
I kind of figured that." Donna smiled kindly at her. "No one really has the name Jane Doe, silly girl. But never mind, keep going."

BOOK: Return of the Matka-Zem (The Sorain Chronicles)
12.91Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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