Heron promised.
Stemmy nodded, the tiny motion an exercise of
will. "… more …"
"What? What more?"
Stemmy's eyes locked onto Heron as he summed
up the very last of his reserves. "I don't want to be like that.
You'll see to it."
"Like that? Like what, Stemmy?"
He cocked his head to the left. "Like her ."
Heron looked over toward the little girl's
room but she was no longer inside. She was right next to him, her
eyes and nose focused on his living flesh. Her mouth opened and her
rotting teeth gleamed in the half light. Heron let out a cry and
toppled back and out of the chair. Somewhere an alarm was
blaring.
He came to with a start, finding himself on
the floor with the turned over chair next to him. There was no
alarm blaring in his ear but there was something, a long steady
whine. His heart was beating a mad rhythm in his chest and he had
to look at the girl's room just to be sure. If she'd been in her
regular position, he'd never have been able to see her from where
he was. But she'd moved. She was now pressed up against the glass,
looking directly at him. Her nose wasn't twitching anymore, as if
she no longer needed to smell him to know that he was food.
Getting to his feet, he looked for the source
of the whine. Stemmy still lay in his bed, his IV stand next to him
and the monitor showing his flat line on the other side. There was
the source of the whine. Johan Stemmy had passed.
Heron had moments to make his decision. He
didn't have any idea how long it would take for Stemmy to pass from
death into undeath but he knew that his monitor would alert
Naughton and Luco. With the decision making power that had made him
an effective police officer, he hit the button that broke the seals
on the door and pushed his way into the room. Stemmy looked
peaceful in death. There was still some sweat glistening in his
hair and on his brow. Heron drew his gun, feeling silly aiming at a
corpse. But he didn't hesitate. Whether subconsciously or in
reality, he had made Stemmy a promise. He would never become one of
those things.
The gunshot was loud in the closed space.
Stemmy's head jerked to the side and his body twitched once as the
bullet entered his brain, protecting him from the fate that had so
terrified him in his last moments. The echo had not left the
chamber when it was joined by an exasperated gasp from Denise
Luco.
Naughton came in behind her, much more calm,
as if he'd known all along that this would happen.
"Damn you! I needed to observe a subject
turning."
"He's not a subject," Heron said with far
less venom than he felt.
There was a moment of silence, but not for
Stemmy. Everyone just breathed, Heron and Luco each trying to stare
down the other. Under the circumstances, Luco never stood a
chance.
"You'd better put that thing in a
stronger cage," Heron said, jerking a thumb toward the other room.
"And put a guard on it."
Naughton didn't say anything at first, seeing
just how unnerved Heron was. "You'll go talk to Eileen?" he finally
asked.
Calming down at the very relevant question,
Heron nodded. Neither Naughton nor Luco even mentioned the results
of his blood test. He supposed it really had been just a
formality.
"Go home after that."
Heron picked up his phone from the
nightstand, spared a glance for Luco, and left the room.
***
IT had taken Stemmy a long time to die
and Heron, much to his own shame, had slept through most of it. The
memory of those last moments still pulled at him. He could see
Stemmy, clear as day, his body pressed up against the glass as he
dictated his final wishes. And then there was the girl…the monster . She was right there and then she wasn't. Heron knew
it was dream, the whole of it. Stemmy couldn't have picked up his
IV and gotten back into bed so quickly. Not in his condition. And
the thing . It would never have just gone back into its cage.
So it was a dream. All of it. But it felt like a
Stemmy nodded, the tiny motion an exercise of
will. "… more …"
"What? What more?"
Stemmy's eyes locked onto Heron as he summed
up the very last of his reserves. "I don't want to be like that.
You'll see to it."
"Like that? Like what, Stemmy?"
He cocked his head to the left. "Like her ."
Heron looked over toward the little girl's
room but she was no longer inside. She was right next to him, her
eyes and nose focused on his living flesh. Her mouth opened and her
rotting teeth gleamed in the half light. Heron let out a cry and
toppled back and out of the chair. Somewhere an alarm was
blaring.
He came to with a start, finding himself on
the floor with the turned over chair next to him. There was no
alarm blaring in his ear but there was something, a long steady
whine. His heart was beating a mad rhythm in his chest and he had
to look at the girl's room just to be sure. If she'd been in her
regular position, he'd never have been able to see her from where
he was. But she'd moved. She was now pressed up against the glass,
looking directly at him. Her nose wasn't twitching anymore, as if
she no longer needed to smell him to know that he was food.
Getting to his feet, he looked for the source
of the whine. Stemmy still lay in his bed, his IV stand next to him
and the monitor showing his flat line on the other side. There was
the source of the whine. Johan Stemmy had passed.
Heron had moments to make his decision. He
didn't have any idea how long it would take for Stemmy to pass from
death into undeath but he knew that his monitor would alert
Naughton and Luco. With the decision making power that had made him
an effective police officer, he hit the button that broke the seals
on the door and pushed his way into the room. Stemmy looked
peaceful in death. There was still some sweat glistening in his
hair and on his brow. Heron drew his gun, feeling silly aiming at a
corpse. But he didn't hesitate. Whether subconsciously or in
reality, he had made Stemmy a promise. He would never become one of
those things.
The gunshot was loud in the closed space.
Stemmy's head jerked to the side and his body twitched once as the
bullet entered his brain, protecting him from the fate that had so
terrified him in his last moments. The echo had not left the
chamber when it was joined by an exasperated gasp from Denise
Luco.
Naughton came in behind her, much more calm,
as if he'd known all along that this would happen.
"Damn you! I needed to observe a subject
turning."
"He's not a subject," Heron said with far
less venom than he felt.
There was a moment of silence, but not for
Stemmy. Everyone just breathed, Heron and Luco each trying to stare
down the other. Under the circumstances, Luco never stood a
chance.
"You'd better put that thing in a
stronger cage," Heron said, jerking a thumb toward the other room.
"And put a guard on it."
Naughton didn't say anything at first, seeing
just how unnerved Heron was. "You'll go talk to Eileen?" he finally
asked.
Calming down at the very relevant question,
Heron nodded. Neither Naughton nor Luco even mentioned the results
of his blood test. He supposed it really had been just a
formality.
"Go home after that."
Heron picked up his phone from the
nightstand, spared a glance for Luco, and left the room.
***
IT had taken Stemmy a long time to die
and Heron, much to his own shame, had slept through most of it. The
memory of those last moments still pulled at him. He could see
Stemmy, clear as day, his body pressed up against the glass as he
dictated his final wishes. And then there was the girl…the monster . She was right there and then she wasn't. Heron knew
it was dream, the whole of it. Stemmy couldn't have picked up his
IV and gotten back into bed so quickly. Not in his condition. And
the thing . It would never have just gone back into its cage.
So it was a dream. All of it. But it felt like a
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