Levi Rem in: A Sculptors Nightmare

Chapter 3: Tears

The dread burrowed in deep, its claws hooked in, like a new permanent fixture in Levi's psyche. He stared at the doorknob, reached out, trembled. A loud bang boomed through the basement, like thunder had struck. Levi jumped. It loosened the dread. He opened the door, still shirtless, still lost. So lost he didn't notice the bullet hole in the door. A few inches to the right and it would have hit flesh.

The man stood in front of Levi, gun raised to eye level. The wild look took over his eyes again. The man started pacing, he was belligerent, his hands shaky. He was talking so fast he was almost incoherent, like he was overdosing on caffeine. He talked like a ransom letter.

“You did this! You took her!” The man said. “He told me..radio…Mr. Rem.” Levi had a hard time hearing what he was saying.

Levi, at gunpoint with his hands to the ceiling again, tried calming the man. Speaking slowly with a soft voice, but it only made him angrier.

“My wife! You took her!” The man, yelling now. “What did you do to her?”

Levi pleaded, telling the man he didn't understand what he was saying. Again, only filling the man with more rage. He paced more, his steps echoed with heavy boots. He straightened his arm firmly, he almost made his mind up. “The guy on the radio! He, he said Mr. Rem took my wife! Three weeks ago she went missing! It was you, you son of a bitch!” He had made up his mind. His eyes watered, his finger squeezing the trigger. Fueled by vengeance and grief. Levi sprung forward, keeping low, he tried grabbing the gun, reaching out. Bang. Another thunderbolt. This one connecting. Ears ringing, Levi fell to the floor, blood pooling around him. A silence fell over the basement.

The man calmed down, stopped pacing. The rage soon replaced with a primal panic. The sight of blood, the loud ringing, sweaty palms. All of his senses a blaring alarm of guilt. He dropped the gun at his feet. He looked everywhere but down. He had never taken a person's life and even if this man had taken his wife, it didn't feel right. He felt disgusted all over. He ran for the door, going upstairs into the house. The door locking behind him. He was in such a rush, overtaken by raw emotions, he didn't notice Levi was still breathing.

Levi's heart flooded his system with so much adrenaline he couldn't quite feel the pain, he wasn't even sure he was hurt until he tried pushing himself up. Instead of his hands meeting cold wood it sunk into warm blood. He examined his body, the side of his rib under his left arm had a chunk of flesh missing. The bullet only grazed him but still doing noticeable damage. He listened to the heavy footsteps grow quieter before getting up.

He was hyper aware of the weight of his own body. He rushed over, wobbly, to the couch. Grabbing the first aid kit and going back to the bathroom. He cleaned up as quickly as he could, he thought of the man coming back to finish the job. It hurried his hands. The alcohol on his wound hurt worse than getting shot, a deep sting no amount of gritted teeth could fully bear. Wrapping more bandages around his body. The first aid kit mostly empty, but serving its purpose. He left it on the sink. It was a struggle to get his arms up to put his shirt back on.

Walking out the glint of chrome caught his eye. The revolver lay on the ground, the blood staging an invasion of the surrounding wood grains. Levi grabbed it. Tucked it in the backpack, along with the map on the table. He stood for a second, a thought lingered in the back of his head. The piece of marble the man showed him, it seemed important. Important to him. He needed it. It wasn't on the table or the couch. He couldn't remember what he did with it after seeing it. He searched the desk, pushing around papers and books and things. Couldn't find it. He started sweeping off things to the floor, bang. He jumped again before looking down. There it was. He picked it up and slid it into the backpack. He struggled to put the backpack on, too. The left side of his body, tender and weak. He finally managed it, going back out the way he came in. Free but not safe.