The Last of the Living (17 page)

              Finally after a while Malcolm came back to check on her. "Are you ready to listen to reason yet?"

              Amy couldn't help but laugh.

              "What are you laughing at?" Malcolm asked.

              "You are talking about reason when you are a religious fanatic who has kidnapped me in hopes of using me as some type of breeding cow!"

              "Judge not lest ye be judged, the good book teaches us. You just haven't gotten to know me yet. I am sure that once you get to know me you will see that I am not such a bad guy. Anyone would do the exact same thing under the circumstances."

              "That's not true! I met another person before you and although he also talked about repopulating the human race he would never force me into it. He died saving me and at no time did he try to tie me up or force me into anything that I was against. He may have been a little paranoid, maybe not as much as you, but he still retained basic human decency in spite of that. So no, not everyone would behave exactly as you did."

              "Look, surely you must be lonely as well. I may not be perfect, but I might very well be the last man on earth. So I mean what real choice do you have?"

              "Have you ever heard the phrase not if you were the last man on Earth? Well, it applies here. I might be lonely but I would rather spend the rest of my life alone than spend it with someone who didn't respect me and didn't treat me like a human being."

              Malcolm shook his head. "I can see that you haven't learned your place yet. I suggest that you say a prayer to Jesus. As you can see I left you your cross."

              Amy looked down at her chest to see that the cross was indeed still there. "How's this for prayer, God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things that I can and get me the hell out of here!"

              Malcolm scowled. "You should not mock God like that, as he will be testing us shortly. The sun is going down and I suspect that soon the creatures will descend upon us."

              "All the more reason you should let me go so that I can help you defend this place if they do come."

              "I am afraid that I can't yet trust you. If I let you go you could end up being a threat to me and my family. Until I can be sure that you aren't going to try anything I can't let you go."

              "Well at least can I go to the damn bathroom?!" Amy shouted as she twisted and squirmed in her restraints. "I'm dying here. You haven't let me go all day."

              "I will get a cup and will hold it up to you and you can pee into that."

              "Oh no, you aren't touching me or going anywhere near me like that. Now if you don't want me to completely soak this bed you will untie me and let me go to the bathroom."

              Malcolm took out a handgun. "I will untie you, but if you try anything I will shoot, do you understand?"

              Amy nodded and Malcolm came over and untied her restraints, except for the one on her right hand. "You can untie that one now," said Malcolm as he pointed the gun at her, "and you can slowly proceed to the bathroom, but I am going to wait right outside. You have 5 minutes and must leave the door open a crack. You will follow my instructions exactly or you will be sorry. Do you understand?"

              "I understand," said Amy as she untied her last restraint and slowly walked to the door as Malcolm kept the gun trained on her the entire time. He led her down the hallway to the bathroom and put his foot in the door so that she couldn't close it all the way. "Do you think that maybe you can cover your ears?"

              "Why?"

              "I can't go if someone's listening outside!"

              "Run the sink water that is much as you are going to get. But don't run it too long, even though we have running water we only have so much."

              Amy began running the sink, sat down the toilet and went to the bathroom. As she continued sitting on the toilet she was looking around the bathroom to see if there was any possibility of escape. There was only one small window above the toilet that had bars around it, and it would be too small for her to fit through even if there weren't any bars on it.

              "Are you almost done in there?" Malcolm shouted as he knocked on the door.

              "Just washing my hands," said Amy as she saw a razor on the sink, which she picked up and held tightly in her hand to the point where it was beginning to cut her a little bit.

              "Come out very slowly," Malcolm said as he pushed the door open and kept the gun trained on her and led her back to the bedroom.

              "Here," Malcolm said as he tossed her a pair of handcuffs. "Handcuff yourself to the bed post."

              "How kinky." Amy stuck her tongue out. "Not going to tie me up yourself?"

              "Do you like being tied up? Obviously if I tried tying you up myself you might try something, like try to take my gun. So it's easier for you just handcuff yourself to the bed. I won't leave until I have checked to make sure you have done it correctly."

              Amy reluctantly picked up the handcuffs and discreetly and carefully dropped the razor on the floor, figuring it wouldn't be any use against metal handcuffs. She had been hoping to use it to cut through her restraints but now that plan was out. Slowly Amy put the handcuffs around the bed post and then locked herself in and pulled on it to show that she couldn't get free.

              "That good enough?!" she shouted.

              Malcolm carefully looked at the restraints and could see that she could not get free. "I guess that is good. I hope that in time we will learn to trust one another more and that this will be unnecessary. But right now I have to go because the Sun is setting and the creatures will most likely be here soon."

              "I thought that you were out of the way of the creatures out here in the countryside."

              "I suspect that they followed you here," he said as he closed the door and continued talking, "but don't worry; I will protect you as you are now human civilization's most valuable resource."

              "I'm a person, not a womb!" she shouted, but by then she had left. She struggled at her restraints only to realize that these handcuffs would not be easily removed, so much for that plan.

              Eventually Amy managed to fall asleep in spite of her situation because her space fatigue was once again setting in. A little while later though she woke up to see that standing in the room were Suzy and Timothy.

              "What are you kids doing in here?" she asked.

              "Were you really in outer space?" Timothy asked.

              Amy nodded. "Indeed I was."

              "Did you see God when you were up there?" Timothy asked as he pointed to the ceiling.

              "Did I see God?" she asked.

              "Daddy said that God lives in outer space," said Suzy. "And when we die all of the good people go up into heaven with him and all of the sinners will be torn down to the fiery layers of hell within the Earth. Were you up there in heaven with God? Daddy said that God sent you from heaven to be our mother."

              Amy wasn't exactly sure how to respond. What type of crazy things had their father indoctrinated these children into believing? Having been alone with him for two years in this terrible world she couldn't even imagine how much that must have screwed them up. All things considered they seem to have retained more of their humanity than their father did. And if she was going to escape would it really be right for her to leave those children with a person like him?

              "Don't you want to be our mommy?" Timothy asked with a sad face.

              "It's complicated," said Amy.

              "What do you mean?" Suzy asked.

              "Does your father know that you're in here with me?" Amy asked.

              The two of them shook their heads. "He thinks that we are in bed," said Timothy. "He would be really mad if he knew we were in here with you."

              "Where is he right now?"

              "He is outside making sure all of the lights and other things that scare the monsters away are working," said Suzy.

              Suddenly Amy had an idea. It was a long shot, but it might just work. "Kids, your father is right. I was sent here by God to save you all. But I can't do that when I am chained up on the bed like this. You see I am actually an Angel, and if you want me to help you then you will have to help me to get out of these handcuffs."

              "Can't you just use your Angel powers to escape?" Suzy asked.

              Amy shook her head. "No, you see these are enchanted handcuffs to take my power away. Only if you let me out can I save you from the creatures."

              "Daddy said the creatures are demons," said Timothy.

              "And I am the Angel here to save all of you."

              "Daddy would be really mad if we let you go," said Timothy. "He would be really mad even just knowing that we came in here to see you."

              "Well if you don't help me out I will tell him that you came in here with me," said Amy. "Then you will be in twice as much trouble."

              "How would we get you out of here?" Suzy asked.

              "There must be a key around here somewhere. Check the drawers."

              "Daddy says that we aren't allowed in his drawers," said Timothy.

              "But your daddy would also want you to do what God says wouldn't he?" The children both nodded in response. "Well remember I was sent here directly from heaven up in space above, and if you didn't listen to me you would be going against God, and wouldn't that make your father extremely angry?"

              "She's right," said Suzy.

              Timothy nodded and began looking in the drawers. After a minute or two of looking he came out producing a key.

              "Good, now hurry up and unhook these handcuffs," said Amy as Timothy came over and put the key in the lock, causing the handcuffs to slide off. "That is very good Timothy, God would be very proud of you."

              Just as Amy was getting out of the handcuffs she heard footsteps approaching. "God dammit," she muttered.

              "Daddy says that you aren't supposed to take the Lord's name in vain like that," said Suzy.

              "Well I'm an angel, it's an exception," said Amy just as the door opened to reveal Malcolm standing there holding a gun. Amy thought quickly and grabbed Timothy around the neck and put her hands tightly around his throat. "Don't move or I will snap his neck."

              Suzy began crying and Malcolm pointed the gun directly at Amy's head. "You wouldn't do it," Malcolm said as he kept her gun trained closely on her. "A cute, delicate little thing like you isn’t incapable of that."

              "You don't know what I am capable of," said Amy as she held Timothy tightly. "I told you I was a black belt martial artist." That was actually a lie, she never got beyond greenbelt, but she could hold her own in a fight.

              "This is just God testing me," Malcolm said.

              "Daddy please listen to her, she's an Angel," said Timothy.

              Amy began to feel sick at what she was doing but she knew it was her only chance. "Now drop the gun or I will snap his neck." As Malcolm continued to hold the gun on both of them she said it more firmly. "Don't try anything, the slightest little wrong move and you could end up shooting him. Now put the gun down, God commands it."

              Malcolm slowly and gently put the gun down on the floor.

              "Now turn around and kneel down on your knees."

              Malcolm complied and Amy slowly walked over and picked up the gun and then let Timothy go. "Go over there with your sister," Amy instructed as she pointed the gun at Timothy, who went into the corner with Suzy.

              "Are you going to shoot us?" Timothy asked as he began crying, causing Suzy to begin crying even harder as the two of them embraced.

              "I don't want to hurt anyone," said Amy. "Malcolm get up now, very slowly and don't try anything."

              Malcolm slowly stood up and turned around while Amy was still training the gun on the three of them. "Please don't hurt us," Malcolm said as he began crying.

              "Now get on the bed and handcuff yourself to it," she said, and Malcolm did as she instructed.

              "What are you going to do to us?" Malcolm asked with tears streaming down his face.

              "I am not going to do anything to you, "Amy said as she picked up the keys to the handcuffs. "What I am going to do is that I am going to leave here and never return. I am going to get my things and get ready to leave and I will leave the key to the handcuffs in your mailbox. Once I have left the children can go to the mailbox and get the keys to unlock you. If you try anything before that or come out of the house until I give the signal I will shoot. If you try to pursue me I will shoot or use anything in my arsenal to stop you. Do you understand?"