The Boy in the Tunnel

by Gardner Linn

37.

--The blinking. You feel it? You can see this?

--I see it.

--I can see it. We’re in a place now. We’re in a safe place. We can talk. Have you ever talked like this?

--No.

--It’s been a while for me. We used to do it all the time. My brother and me. Didn’t need the blinking to do it. Just did it. We lived like this. In this state. Everybody thought we were on drugs. Most of the time we were. He was. I didn’t need it. There was this time, senior year, high school, we--

--I don’t—

--You don’t need to worry about the time. Time is different here. We can talk. It’s a safe place. Okay?

--Okay.

--The prom, is what I’m saying. I can’t even remember who I went with. We were talking the whole time, like this. Me and Xander. I lost my virginity that night. It’s like he was right there too. It’s not what you’re thinking. It wasn’t gross or weird. You want to know what this has to do with anything. I don’t know. We never talk anymore. Me and him.

--Do you know why we’re here?

--Avery’s grandpa started the company that makes the bulbs. Avery runs the Nine Dead Men. Avery Barlow. Have you heard of him?

--No.

--I’m one of them. You were supposed to be Abducted tonight. To join the club. But Dave was all fucked up, and Avery thought you knew why. He sent me in here to get some answers from you. But something weird is going on. I think he really wants me in here. He knows you don’t know anything, or if you did you would have told us already. Plus I think you know the Quartermaster. Chet?

--Chet’s one of the Nine Dead Men?

--You were supposed to be the new Quartermaster. Wintertree 79. That’s how it works.

--None of this is making any sense.

--You’ve heard of the Living Creatures?

--The girls.

--Yeah. What you’ve gotta understand is that this has all been going on a long time. At this point it’s pretty much just a game. But you’ve played Monopoly, right? It’s always the biggest asshole who wants to be the bank.

--What happened to your hand?

************

It was like the Black Line knew Charlie was going to be there. Like she called it ahead of time. And empty. Dick had never seen one empty before. But here it was.

The door opened, and Dick, Charlie and Kenya stepped aboard. They took the seats near the front Reserved for Disabled Passengers, and Dick stretched out, enjoying this minor rebellion.

“What happened to your face?” said Charlie.

“Got in a fight with the asshole in 79A. He was in the library, reading my Handbook.”

“Andrew?”

“Drew, yeah. Jesus freak or something. We were supposed to go to church tonight.” Dick fiddled with the Press Here to Stop strip. “Jesus, that feels like it was a month ago.”

“Do you know where Chet is?” Kenya blurted it out, unable to keep it in any longer. Library, Andrew, whatever—she didn’t care. There was just way too much nonsense going on tonight.

“That’s why I was looking for you. When I was in the library, somebody called. Said ‘The Quartermaster has a girlfriend.’ Figured out the Quartermaster was Chet, and that was you. You were in his Handbook.”

Kenya and Charlie both looked to the other, an unspoken question passing between them. This was something to be feared, or something that could be used. Which one, it wasn’t clear yet.

“Your roommate is the Quartermaster?” Charlie asked Dick.

“I guess so. I thought the Nine Dead Men weren’t real. Like all Keyzer Soze and shit.”

“Keyzer Soze was real. Did you not actually see the movie?”

“What? No, Keyzer Soze was just a story Kevin Spacey made up.”

“Kevin Spacey was Keyzer Soze.”

“No, I know Kevin Spacey was the guy behind everything, but ‘Keyzer Soze’ was just like a thing he made up. He didn’t actually kill all those guys in Turkey or whatever.”

Kenya couldn’t listen to this idiocy. She still had the Purple Pages. That guy on the phone, whoever he was, he obviously wasn’t Dick. But he knew where Chet was.

Kenya Pressed Here to Stop. The black bus moaned to a halt.

************

“What’s your name?”

“Renee!”

“Your name is not Renee,” Sarah said. Sarah knew Renee. Renee was neither blonde nor male. This guy wasn’t Renee.

“I’ll only talk to Renee,” said the blonde man. He held a jagged chunk of picture-frame glass in his hand like a dagger.

“You’re talking to me,” said Sarah. “Let’s keep that up.” Sarah took another step toward the blonde man, a small one, small enough that hopefully he wouldn’t notice she was moving until she was right up on him.

“I am not talking to you!” The blonde man ran his thumb along the edge of the shard of glass. His right forearm was covered in a tattoo—a tangle of leafy black vines wrapping around and branching out from a solid cubical form on the inside of his wrist.

“I like your tattoo,” said Sarah.

“Shut up.”

“Here, check this out.” Sarah took another step toward the man, removing the watch from her left wrist. She held up her bare wrist for the man to see. He leaned closer, intrigued—her wrist was circled with thirteen tiny purple guns.

“What does it mean?” asked the blonde man. His grip on the glass dagger loosened.

“It means you should end this,” said Sarah, reclasping her watch. “I can get Renee for you, but you have to end this.”

“Let me see it again,” said the blonde man. “I have to figure out what it means. It means something. I need to see it again.” He leaned closer to Sarah. The glass slipped from his hand.

**************

“Yo, dipshit. Wake up.” Drew flicked the lights on and off. “Guess who’s not as fucking retarded as you are?”

Drew grabbed Kirkland by the shoulders and hauled him to his feet. Kirkland tried to say something, but all he could produce was a muffled grunt.

“Yeah, I’m gonna leave that in for now.” Drew found a pair of scissors and cut the twine binding Kirkland’s feet. “I’m leaving the hands too.”

Drew pushed Kirkland out of the Craft Room and into the main hallway of the DUH offices. He turned off the light in the Craft Room and joined Kirkland in the hall. “We’re going up to 79,” he said, “and you’re going to get whatever it is you’re looking for, and then you’re going to tell me what the fuck is going on, and then that’s the last we’re ever going to see of each other. And if you behave, you’ll get to walk away under your own power.”

Kirkland grunted something from behind the gag.

“I’ll assume that was a ‘Yes,sir,’” said Drew. “Let’s go.”

A door opened behind them. Drew tried to hustle Kirkland back into the Craft Room, but there was no time. Ron Marston had already seen them.

“Peter Kirkland?” said Marston. “Is that you? What are you—“ Marston’s attention landed on Drew. “Are you a resident, young man? You know the Department offices are off-limits to everyone except staff.” Marston’s eyes shifted back to the trussed-up Kirkland, and he couldn’t suppress a smile. “Though maybe you’re a guest of Peter here. Is that it?”

Marston stepped forward and clapped a thick hand on Drew’s shoulder. “I’ve got some questions for you two.”

© 2006 Gardner Linn