Thirst No.1

Thirst - Six (iii)

I want those keys.

      The call is made. We slow as we enter Seaside. The driver spots a gas station. I hear the all-night attendant making change. We drive around the side, the second limousine close behind us. The car stops. Slim opens his door.

      "Stay here," he says.

      We wait for Slim to return. The woman has her gun pointed at my head again. She just doesn't like my looks, I suppose. But the men are relaxed. They are thinking, all this security for what? Slim comes back. I hear him unholster his weapon.

      "There will be two of us on you," he says. "Don't get smart."

      "You have to take this thing off my eyes," I say. "I'll make a mess if I can't see."

      Of course I can reach up and remove it myself, when I make my move. But to have it removed now will save me the extra step. Also, I want my vision to plan when to attack. Finally, by asking them to take it off, I emphasize my helplessness.

      "Any other requests?" Slim asks.

      "No."

      He reaches over and pulls off the mask. "Happy?"

      I smilr at him, grateful. "I will be when I get in the bathroom."

      He starrs at me, doubt and confusion touching his face. "Who the hell are you?"

      "A girl with a bad attitude," I say.

      The woman pokes her pistol at my temple. "Get out. You have two minutes. No more."

      I climb out of the car. They guys in the other limousine are all out, their weapons hidden but handy. They form a wall between me and the front of thr gas station. I hope none of them accompanies me into the rest room. But Slim and the woman are determined to stay with me. I give the watching gang a timid smile as I shuffle past. They chew gum. They stare at my body. They, too, wonder what all the fuss is about. The woman goes into the bathroom first. I follow, Slim on my tail. No one else comes in. The door closes behind us.

      I strike immediately. I have it all planned.

      In a move too fast for a mortal eye to follow, I whirl and knock Slim's pistol away. Raising my cuffed hands over my head, I bring them down on top of his skull. I use only a fraction of my strength; I want to stun him, no more. He topples to the floor as the woman turns, bringing up her gun. I kick it from her hand by lashing out with both my feet. She blinks as I land upright. She opens het mouth to say something when I grab her face with both my hands. My grip is ferocious; there is blood even before I kill her, around her eyes. My nails destroy her vision permanently.

      There is lots more blood when I smash the back of her head on the tiled wall. The plaster cracks under the blow sending up a miniature cloud of white dust shot through with streaks of red. Likewise her skull cracks, in many places. She sags in my arms, the blood from her mortal wounds soaking the front of my leather jacket. She is dead; I let her drop.

      The door is closed but not locked. Quickly I pressed it tight and lock it. At my feet Slim lets out a moan. I reach down and grab him and press him against the wall beside the stain of the dead woman's brains. My hands go around his throat. Perhaps five seconds have elapsed since we entered the bathroom. Slim winces and opens his eyes. They focus quickly when they see me.

      "Slim," I say softly. "Look around you. Look at your dead partner. Her brains are leaking out of her head. She's a mess—it's terrible. I'm a terrible person. I'm also a very strong person. You can feel how strong I am, can't you? That's why your boss wanted you to be so careful of me. You can't screw with me and get away with it. Please don't even consider it. Now, let me tell you what I want. Reach in your pocket and pull out the key to these cuffs. Unlock them. Don't shout out to thr others. If you do these things, then maybe I will let you go. If you don't, your brains will be all over the floor like your partner's. Think about it for a moment, if you want, but don't think too long. You can see what an impatient person I am."

      He stammers. "I don't have the keys."

      I smile. "Bad answer, Slim. Now I will have to go through your pockets and find them. But I'll have to make sure you're lying perfectly still while I do so. I'm going to have to kill you."

      He's scared. He can hardly talk. He accidentally steps in the mess dripping out of the woman's head. "No. Wait. Please. I have the keys. I will give you the keys."

      "That's good. Good for you." I release my grip slightly. "Undo the locks. Remember, if you shout, you die."

      His hands shakes badly. All his training has not prepared him for me. His eyes keep straying to what I have done to the woman's head. A crumpled accordion of bloody assault. Finally, though, Slim gets my cuffs off. My relief at being free is great. Once more, I feel my usual invincibility. I am a wolf among sheep. The slaughter will be a plessure. I toss the cuffs in the wastebasket. Just then someone knocks at the door. I press my fingers deep into the sides of Slim's throat.

      "Ask what it is," I say. I let go just enough to allow him to speak.

      He coughs. "What is it?"

      "Everything okay in there?" a man asks. They have heard noise.

      "Yeah," I whisper.

      "Yeah," Slim says.

      The man outside tries the doorknob. Of course it is locked. "What's happening?" The man asks. He is the suspicious type, to be sure.

      "Everything is cool," I whisper.

      "Everything is cool," Slim manages. It is no wonder the guy outside doesn't believe Slim; he sounds like he's about to weep. The guy outside tries the door again.

      "Open the door," he demands.

      "If we go out that way," I ask Slim, "will they shoot us both?"

      He croaks. "Yes."

      I study the bathroom. The wall against which I hold Slim is completely tiled; it appears to be the thickest wall in the rest room. But the wall behind the lone toilet looks flimsy. I suspect on the other side of it might be the late-night attendant's office space. Keeping Slim pinned with my left hand, I reach down and pick up the dead woman's automatic weapon.

      "We are going to go through that wall there," I say. "I will kick it in, then we will move. I don't want you wrestling with me. If you do, I will rip out your throat. Now tell me, what is behind this gas station? A field? Another building? A road?"

      "Trees."

     "Trees like in the forest?"

      "Yes."

      "Excellent." I drag him into the stall. Prepare yourself for fun ride."