Freak Territory

Chapter 2 - The Dispensary

Dirt and stones crunched beneath my boots — the only indicator that I was even moving. I barely allowed my breath to escape my lips, fearing They might climb down from the roofs and swallow me whole.

Single story houses rose on either side of me, crumbling from years of mistreatment. The peeling paint seemed to perfectly describe the broken society we were forced to participate in.

As I passed, hushed whispers echoed from the buildings followed by the closing of tattered curtains. The people here were scared and they had every right to be. The creatures that crawled these streets were those of nightmares. They stalked through dreams and haunted every waking moment. The Freaks were nightmares who called out in the night, tearing into every vulnerable aspect you may or may not have known about.

My mother had been lucky in a way, to have been killed so early on in the Freaks torturous reign. Her life ended with a clean cut through her neck.

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The Dispensary housed thousands of drugs, both legal and illegal, on two stories. The outside was fairly standard for the village — flat walls adorning peeling paint — with the exception of Dispensary freshly painted in large letters across the top of the only doorway.

A single step took me to the ornately designed door. It was so out of place in the bland design of everything else. The expertly shaped golden handle cooled my palm as I grasped it, gently pushing the door open with a click.

I was met with a deafening silence in the endless blackness that fell before me. I remained planted to the spot, aware that any movement could be answered with death.

A crackle broke the silence before a monotonous voice pierced my ears. "Grace. Grace McKinley." I became doused in white light, pouring from the roof in a single movement. My hand moved to shield my eyes — the only movement I dared to make. "Step forward," the faceless voice ordered. Legs trembling, I took a single step forward attempting not to let my limbs fall out from under me. The light snapped off, throwing me back to the darkness.

I waited, and I waited. My breath hitched in my throat, the only sound daring to break the silence now. The longer I stayed still the more my eyes played with me. The shadows danced, swirling and tumbling before me. Then the gradual metallic twang of a chain floated through the eerie air. They were preparing for me — showing me just how scary they could be.

"Everyone, welcome Grace McKinley." A tightening in my hands gave away my terror.

"Hi Grace!" dozens of childish voices rang out. My heart froze and my lungs failed me. I was their toy — nothing more than a fly trapped in their web.

"Hello," I answered softly. "I need my refill of NeurocydeX." At what I could only assume was the other end of the room, I heard the shuffle of feet and spilling of pills, each sound ringing out in the silence that seemed to engulf me. Sounds of shoes scuffling across the floor echoed around me causing my muscles to tense in preparation to flee.

"Take my hand, Grace." My arm wobbled before I fully outstretched my hand to the stranger in the dark. A scraping of calluses against my slender fingers indicated that there was someone just beyond my vision, and before I knew it the pills were in my hand and the people in the room made a quick get away.

The Dispensary door swung shut behind me, tapping me on the butt as if urging me to go faster. Above, the sky was a whirling torrent of various shades of gray with promises of a downpour later in the day. A chill swept up my spine in a smooth caress, driving me to tighten my jacket around myself.

"Grace?" A quick dart of my eyes confirmed my thoughts. William stood off to the left, barely hidden from view behind the remains of a brick wall. I rushed over to him, wary of my surroundings as my feet made too much noise, drawing too much unwanted attention.

"Will? What's up?" His dark eyes held no emotion just as they did when he was out drawing corpses. That's when I noticed the charcoal pencil hanging loosely between his fingers.

"Where's the body William?" His empty gaze rose to meet mine before he pointed a lengthy finger down the main path behind him.

"Bodies."