The Madam Of Suburbia Chapter 33

Chapter 33 – Truth And Tunnels

Once again, I find myself watching the sun rise with a million fucking questions that have no answer. The one thing that is driving my mind into constant fucking overdrive is why didn't Blue and Madam kill me when they had the chance. The fact I'm sitting here under a covered porch in the backwoods still breathing makes absolutely no fucking sense. I watched Madam kill Donnie for pure fucking entertainment, and she let me escape. I know she won't get her hands dirty, but Blue is the confusing part. Blue is the type that would probably shoot a relative for taking the last roll at Christmas dinner.

As I'm about to light another smoke, I feel something warm tap against my shoulder, causing me to almost jump out of my chair, only for it to break as I try to regain my composure. I land on the deck hard, and end up almost putting my foot through the window. I look up, and see Maddie there in a flannel robe holding two cups of coffee.

"Seems you already had enough coffee," states Maddie while trying to hand me a mug.

"Son of a bitch!" I say as I stand up. "Don't sneak up on me."

"You know, they say smoking is bad for you," she retorts as she sits down on the porch swing at the rear of the porch. "Also, you owe me a new chair."

"Good morning to you as well," I say as I take the mug, and sit down in another chair closer to the swing.

"Have another smoke, so we can go in. There's a lot of information we need to cover," she says.

"What kind of information?"

"The truth," she remarks. "You've been handed more bullshit than a fertilizer factory."

"What do you mean by bullshit?"

"Again, have another smoke, and meet me inside," she replies as she heads in.

As the door closes, I light up another cigarette, and puff on it as I find myself even more confused. I thought what I've been told was the fucking truth, but it seems I've been handed lies. As I puff away at my cig, I begin to wonder if even Amber has been completely fucking honest with me since we made our peace. I don't like this feeling of being a fucking pawn on some demented chess board between Madam and Amber. If I'm nothing more than a worthless soul for the DEA to fuck with, I rather have Riese end my life. I honestly want this bullshit to end one fucking way or another.

I finish my cigarette, and head back in. I walk into the dining room, and see four file boxes stacked to the table, and a file in front of a chair across from Maddie. I sit down, and glance at the file while noticing Amber's name on it.

"Let's get the first few questions out of the way. Yes, that's Amber's personal file, and no, her and her dad aren't involved with Madam or any cartel," Maddie states. "If she is, it's Area-51 type classification. Speaking of which, they're both in a very secure location."

"What about you?" I ask as I push the file back. I don't want to learn everything about Amber through her damn work file. If I truly feel the way I do about her, going to do it the old-fashioned way.

Maddie tosses me another file and says, "Enjoy."

I look down, and see she handed me her personal file, and her full banking records. The fact she is handing me all that to read proves she's not here to jerk me around. I toss them back and reply, "Since you haven't killed me yet, I'm going to trust you. So, when does the truth start?"

"Sure you want to go down this rabbit hole?"

"Yes."

For the rest of the day, she begins to lay out everything about Madam, The DEA, Blue, and everyone else that might be involved. I sit there taking notes on a pad because a lot of this I never knew. The one truth that I was filled in on is there is a link to Madam and that phone company. They still don't know the exact link, but their bookkeeping is fishy at times. The one thing I didn't know is Madam has a lot of possible ties to DC, which explains why every time I turn around, some government asshole is trying to fucking kill me.

The one thing Maddie can't figure out is why am I such an important piece in this fucked up puzzle. I was literally in the lion's den, but they let me escape. I don't know much about the internal workings because I was only told what I was needed to know. I was a simple weed dealer until that first encounter with Madam, but for someone reason, I keep escaping death like some higher power wants me alive. We spend the rest of the night trying to figure out the reason why I'm still breathing, but come up empty handed.

Around midnight, we stop going over everything, and decide it's time to head to bed. As I being heading towards my room, we hear a vehicle stop in front of the truck. Before we can do anything else, Maddie grabs my shoulder, and yanks me to the floor as a hail of bullets burst through the walls.

"Follow me," she yells over the sound of machine guns.

We crawl back into the dining room as she takes out a lighter, and lights the file boxes on fire.  I watch as she taps part of the floor causing it to slide revealing a secret compartment below the floor. We both dive into the secret compartment below the floor. The area barely fits both of us, but the steel walls should keep us safe. I reach up, and tap the door close as we end up almost snuggling because of how cramp it is in here.

"Tap the wall above your head," she whispers.

I knock the wall above me as the machine guns are still tearing up the house as the smoke slowly drifting into the room. The wall above me slides open, revealing a tunnel. She crawls over me to enter the tunnel. Once there's room for me, I crawl into the tunnel as the door closes behind me. We crawl a good 20 minutes in the dark tunnel until we hit another door. She taps it, and we crawl into a larger room with two bunks, and shelves with food and water. Also, I notice a landline phone on the shelves.

"We're safe here. We'll go back in the morning," she states.

"Hopefully they're gone by then," I reply. "If not, we have no way to defend ourselves."

She walks over to the back wall, and taps it. I watch in amazement as a small arsenal appears as the wall slides open. I whistle as there's enough weapons in the wall to start a city wide battle. I count at least six AK-47's, a machine gun, ten shotguns, and a ton of ammo. 

"Get some rest. I'm going to call some friends in the morning so we can take the fight back to Madam," she says. "No one shoots up my house, and gets away with it."

"That works for me," I reply smiling as I lay down on one of the bunks. It's about damn time a government agent is ready to fucking take the battle to Madam. I'm tired of being shot at. This time. I'll be the one shooting at her. Either way, the streets of Curva are about to run red, and I'm more excited than a fucking kid in a candy store. Even if I died once we attack, it's beat waiting around doing jack-shit. Tomorrow, revenge will finally begin.

The Madam Of Suburbia Chapter 32

Chapter 32 – Karmic Money

I wake up to the sound of a heated argument between Blue and I fucking swear sounds like Damian. I open my eyes and find myself hanging inside The Vault over one of the steel tables I watch Butch cut open the college students like they were cows. I had a feeling returning back to Curva would be a bad fucking idea, and it seems it was a deadly mistake. However, my attention returns back to the debate when my name is mentioned. I try to see who's arguing, but I'm bound so tightly I can't even turn my neck, so I focus on listening.

"I told you I would deliver Ronnie to you. You didn't fucking need to send the goons to get him," Damian shouts.

"I wanted him here much sooner, and also wanted that bitch Maddie out of the picture," I hear Blue reply.

"I would have fucking handle it!"

"We are pressed for time."

"Boys, no need to fight," I hear Madam say. "The main thing is he's here in our grasps."

"Yes, Madam," they reply in almost perfect unison.

"Well, you know what to do, Damian. Blue and I have to attend to another urgent matter."

My entire body begins to sweat as I realize how fucked I am. Madam and Blue are in the same room, and I'm hanging here like a slab of beef ready for the slaughter.  I always knew I was tempting Karna coming back to Curva, and that fickle bitch is finally going to win. I also start to wonder what happened to Maddie. She was in the SUV when the attack started, but haven't seen her since. I am relieved she isn't hanging next to me, but part of me fears the worse. I quit worrying about Maddie as I see Damian enter the vault holding a pistol.

"You backstabbing piece of shit!" I shout at him.

"I had no choice," he says. "You wouldn't understand."

"No choice? What was your fucking price?"

"My family," he says.

"A big stack of Benjamins is not a fucking family."

"Fuck you, Ronnie," he says as he clicks off the safety from the pistol. "It was either you or my daughter."

"What about Maddie?" I ask. "Was she part of the deal?"

He walks over to me, and decks me in the jaw hard. I laugh as I begin to taste blood. He decks me again, and I spit my blood all over his face.

"Enjoy the fucking blood money, bastard," I state before spitting out more blood.

He lifts the pistol, and puts the barrel against my forehead. Before he can do anything else, a shotgun goes off as I watch as his right side of his skull explodes, sending brain, bone, and blood all over the floor and wall as his lifeless body slumps to the floor. I watch as Maddie walks in, holding the smoking shotgun.

She aims the barrel over my head before ordering, "Hold still."

She fires one more time, and I land on the table with a thud. She pulls out a knife, and cuts the rope that is wrapped around my head and hands. The instant I'm free, she barks, "Move!"

We run out of the warehouse, and hop into a blue sedan, the type a family would drive. I almost ask if this car will have enough horsepower to get out of here. When she steps on the gas, I stop wondering as I'm pulled back into the seat as it hits speed very quickly. I stay quiet as she drives us over the bridge out of the city, and back onto the mainland. As we drive down a road lined by marsh, I begin to wonder where we're going, but the look she is giving me tells me she's in no mood to discuss anything.

As the sun begins to set, we stop in front of a log cabin surrounded by mossy oaks that conceal the cabin from the road. She turns off the engine and says, "We'll be safe here. We'll talk in the morning."

We get out, and I help her cover the car in a camo tarp. We enter the cabin, and she quickly makes sure all the blinds are closed, the only light is the full moon slowly trickling in between the blinds.

She hands me a pair of night vision googles, and states, "Your room is the door to the left of you. Bathroom is the second door on the left wall in your room. Don't turn on any lights, so use the googles until the sun rises. Again, we'll talk after some rest. "

I nod my head as she disappears in another room to the right. I walk into my room, lay the googles on the nightstand next to the bed, and lay down. I lie there glad I'm still breathing, but my mind is a tempest of unanswered questions I wanted to ask tonight, but she wasn't in the mood to talk. Realizing that nothing will be discussed until the sun rise, I cover myself in an attempt to sleep. The last thing that passes through my head as I finally pass out is wondering if Amber is okay.

Red Eyes - Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - The Deal

Michael puffs away on his cigarette as he watches lightning fill up the night sky from the deck of his condo. In less than a week, his job went from smooth as silk to a tempest of utter chaos. The FBI and The State Health Board are investigating the hospital after three mysterious deaths, and the director having a full nervous breakdown. He almost quit after watching Vlad almost kill Johannes with his bare hands. Now, as acting director (since no one else was willing to take the helm), it's his job to return the entire hospital back to normal. If  things keep getting worse, he'll end up alongside Vlad in Domes Metus if he's not careful.

To make matters worse, the new patient is finally arriving today despite all the incidents. The State's Attorney Office wants the patient diagnosed within a month to see if they can even stand trial. So, Michael now has to find a doctor willing to take on the case today since the most qualified one, Vlad, is now confined to a cell. Michael has read the unredacted parts of the case, and suspects that was what sent Vlad into a homicidal rage after his session with Dr. Anderson. Either way, he has to deal with the clusterfuck because Vlad finally snap instead of retiring like he insisted.

"God damnit, Vlad," Michael curses as he takes another drag of his cigarette.

"God be damned is right," says a shadowy voice say from behind him.

Michael whirls around peering into his dimly lit living room through the patio sliding doors. Between flashes of lightning, he sees nothing out of the ordinary. He sighs exhaustion is catching up to him. He finishes his cigarette, and  heads into the kitchen to grab a bottle of scotch from above the fridge along with a glass. He goes back to the living room, and slumps into his recliner. He pours himself a double, and pounds it down. He pours another, and slowly sips on it while watching approaching storrn. He mumbles to himself, "God damn you, Vlad. You should have retired."

"Oh, but he's right where we want him," says the shadowy voice again.

Michael flips on the lamp next to his recliner while crying out, "Who's there?"

"A friend who can help you get rid of Vlad for good," says the voice.

Michael feels a chill in the air as the room darkens. He looks around between each bolt of lightning, but the room is empty. He tries to pour himself another drink, but the bottle is gone from the table. He shivers as the room grows colder. He glances at the dining room table, and sees the bottle in the middle of the table. Behind the bottle, a pair of red eyes blinks as a glass appears. Michael watches as the bottle moves by itself, and fills the glass.

"It's been centuries since I've enjoyed a drink," says Red Eyes. "Please, join me," he offers as chair across from him slides out from under the table.

"Who are you?" Michael asks creeping towards the table as the rain begins pelting on the roof. Michael sees a man sitting there holding the glass. He looks at the glowing red eyes, and realizes the rumors are true. They were right as Michael stares at the man with red eyes sit at his table while drinking his whiskey. However, the man hasn't made him doing anything yet, but in the back of his mind, he fears this encounter will not end well.

"Someone that can help," replies Red Eyes before emptying his glass.

"Help me with what?"

"To return order to the hospital, and keep Vlad in that cell until his soul goes to Hell," explains Red Eyes.

"What's the catch?” Michael inquires as he sits across from Red Eyes. Vlad and Michael have never seen eye to eye. Vlad will bend rules to cure a patient, while Michael fought against it. Michael believed the rules were there for a reason. Also, Vlad is the reason Michael's marriage failed. It was Vlad that exposed Michael's antics outside of work, and Michael's wife caught him in that hotel room. The day Michael learned Vlad was getting a divorce because his wife cheated on him, he almost threw a party.

"I possess your body until I finish my mission," states Red Eyes. "That way, together, we can unleash my true nature.”

“What if I refuse?”

“You’ll end up dead,” sneers Red Eyes.

Michael pinches himself to make sure that he's not dreaming. The reason for all the deaths, and Vlad's current mental state is offering him a deal at his own dining room table. He tries to run, but he's too afraid to move. He's a dead man if he rejects the offer. However, he also thinks he might finally be respected by his employees even if it's through fear. Also, the thought of Vlad rotting away inside a plastic cell brings a smile to his face. He will have all the power to do whatever he wants, and Vlad can't stop them.

"I know how much Vlad despised you, and even mock you for doing your job," says Red Eyes. "Imagine the respect you'll get from him with us in control."

"That Russian bastard will have no choice," Michael says smirking. "So, do we have a deal?" asks Red Eyes.

"We do."

"Good. Now hold out your hand."

Michael holds out his hand, and winces as a cut appears across his palm. He watches the blood begin to boil. A hand reaches out from the darkness, and grips his. He watches as a dark shadow pours into the cut as his skin goes blue as the air gets even colder. His entire body shivers as his entire arm is blue and cold. He tries to scream from the pain, but his entire body is numb as the shadow keeps entering into his body through the cut. He watches as the red eyes are finally absorbed, causing the cut to vanish.

His body slowly stops shivering as sweat pours from every pore, dripping onto the floor. He feels pain in his chest as his shirt begins to smoke, burning a hole revealing his chest. He rips open his shirt, and sees a pentagram being burned into his flesh. He feels nauseous at the smell of his own flesh searing as Red Eyes takes over his body. As the pentagram continues to glow on his chest, Michael slips out of the chair, and lands on the floor

 "The deal is complete,” cackles Red Eyes.