Next Up

23

The inside of the barn was dark and dingy. Large cracks in the thin rotted walls were the only ways light could travel inside. Dust and debris hung in the putrid-smelling air.

Kiari stood on the upper deck of the barn, looking down at the floor. Forty villagers—a mix of adults and kids—were bound, gagged, and had bags over their heads or rope tied around their heads, blocking their eyes. It was mostly quiet at that moment, spare the occasional whimper and the shifting of bodies as they sat in rows.

One of Kiari's hired help walked forward. He had been leaning against the wall for a while, observing the miserable crowd. Wearing a white t-shirt with an empty gun sling across his chest, he was no older than eighteen. A few others who were watching followed suit.

They casually walked through the crowd, examining everyone they passed. Each chose one person, dragging them up to their feet and walking them in front of everyone.

"You ready to tell us where it is?" The teen asked, removing the woman's blindfold and gag. She didn't respond, keeping her eyes forward, avoiding his gaze. The other prisoners were asked a similar question, each not getting a response.

One took out a claw hammer from his back pocket, brandishing it in front of one of the prisoner's faces. "You know how this's gonna end!"

Above them, one of the grunts spoke to Kiari, "I see you up here every day. You must really like watching this stuff."

Kiari gave him a sideways glance before centering his vision back on the events below. After several seconds of silence, he spoke, "I'm not watching this because I want to; I'm watching this because I should."

Several hours later. Kiari stood over Addilynn. Reaching down and grabbing her bony hand, 'So frail,' he thought. He was scared to squeeze it; it felt like it would break under the slightest pressure. He grabbed a nearby chair, wheeled it next to the bed, and sat in it.

The nurse spoke, "She is still stable from the medicine and sap we are feeding her. We've noticed that if we feed her too much, her body temperature heats up, so she can only eat about once every six hours." She pushed her falling glasses up the bridge of her nose, "Not to worry you, but we aren't in a good place right now. She may be able to stay like this for a while, but God only knows what being in this state for this long is doing to her—mentally, I mean. But the sooner she gets what she needs, the better."

"Well, don't worry," Kiari said to Addilynn, "Tomorrow at this time, I will be able to see you smile again."

Outside the room, Marlin and Geier stood by, waiting.

"We may have to do something drastic."

Geier looked up at Marlin, confused, "What do you mean?"

"I've known Kiari for quite some time. If those kids are still around after we kill the other two, well, Kiari doesn't have it in him. He seems to have lost his taste for this stuff."

Geier swallowed, his eyes focusing on Marlin's, "Yea, I get you," he muttered.

"Splendid. I thought you would take a bit more convincing, but I guess you've finally grown up," he smirked, looking down at Geier, "I've always liked you. So easy to understand."

Zoe gave one last quick glance out of the dusty window; the dusk sky was a purple haze. A large plume of smoke billowed from a distant building. She closed the blinds and walked back into the house's living room.

She stopped to admire a framed picture on top of a hallway cabinet. A younger version of the girl they saved earlier, Cahya, a younger Jashin, and what looked like their parents sat smiling in front of the house they were all in.