BLOODBURG Read online

  When Kevin finally opened his eyes to find Allie sitting there beside him, his face lit up. “Am I in Heaven?” he asked sarcastically, a wild grin spreading across his face.

  “You’re so bad,” Allie laughed, but the mention of Heaven was too much for her in that moment, and she began to cry.

  “Allie? What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “It’s…it’s my sister,” she admitted, barely able to breathe. “She…” Allie trailed off, unable to speak. The full realization suddenly came crashing down on her.

  “I’m here,” Kevin offered sincerely. “Whatever it is, I’m here for you, I promise.”

  “She died.”

  “Oh my God!” Kevin leaned over to comfort Allie, grimacing through the pain. “What happened?”

  Allie leaned forward into Kevin’s shoulder, still unable to speak, as she began to cry harder.

  “Don’t worry, I got you. You can talk about it whenever you’re ready to, okay?” Kevin offered, fighting through the burning pain in his side before reluctantly letting out a loud, painful cough.

  “Oh! I’m so sorry, Kevin,” she apologized as she leaned back, gently letting him fall back onto the bed. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

  “I’m fine,” he lied. “Just tell me what I can do.”

  “Be patient with me…please. I know we didn’t get off to a great start, but I really want to see where this goes between us. I have a lot to deal with right now, and I didn’t want you to think any of it was because of you.”

  “You don’t have to worry,” he offered. “Take your time. I promise I’ll still be here when you’re ready.”

  “You’re so sweet,” she said, wiping the tears away. “Thank you, Kevin.”

  “Well, it’s not like I could actually leave right now, anyway. It’ll give me something to do,” he said jokingly, trying to lighten her mood.

  “You’re such an ass.” Allie smiled as she reached for his hand. “Listen…I’m just going to put something out there.” Allie paused for a moment.

  Kevin nodded. “Sure, go for it.”

  “Earlier today, my apartment building caught fire. It basically destroyed everything I own.”

  “Holy shit! You poor thing!” Kevin placed his other hand over hers, squeezing gently. His expression was frozen in shock that Allie had tragically lost her sister and her home all in one day, yet here she was with him.

  Allie forced a smile to keep the discussion moving forward before the horrors of the day overwhelmed her again. “I’m going to be staying at a hotel for the next few weeks, and I was thinking maybe you might want to come stay for a while…with me…so I can take care of you. I mean, you don’t have to if you don’t want to—”

  “Of course!” Kevin jumped in. “I’d be happy to.”

  “Really?” Allie let out a joyful sigh. “Okay…and don’t worry, I’ll pay for everything.”

  “Allie—” Kevin tried to argue, but she cut him off.

  “Please just let me do this. It would make me feel a lot more in control with everything that’s happened. It’s one less thing to worry about, you know?”

  “Fine, but I get to pay for the next one. Deal?” Kevin asked playfully before pulling her closer.

  “Deal,” Allie said, breaking a smile as she leaned in and kissed him gently.

  ***

  Over the next few days, Allie went back and forth between the hospital and the hotel so many times that she’d lost count. When Kevin was finally released, she took him back to her room and tucked him into bed, insisting that he continue to rest and recover. She wanted to stay with him and block out the rest of the world, but there was still one more thing to deal with—The Park Crystal.

  It was hard for Allie to take the first step into the basement. She worried there might be some trace of what happened to Patience, and seeing something like a bone or even a small pile of dust might wash away every ounce of courage she’d built up to tackle this unavoidable obstacle. As she slowly took one step after another down the basement stairs, Allie forced herself to move forward until her feet finally touched the concrete floor.

  Allie looked around the basement in astonishment. It was as if nothing had ever happened. Joseph had removed all traces of that terrible day, and a part of Allie felt worse, knowing that in the blink of an eye, Patience was erased. She felt relieved, devastated, and overwhelmed all at once as she gave into her emotions and sat on the basement floor, letting herself cry.

  She knew there was no way she could run the store on her own, let alone work in the very place her sister had lost her life. She packed up everything that remained in the basement and hauled it all upstairs to be added to the going-out-of-business-sale stock in the main area of the store.

  As the sale went on, several of Patience’s friends and patrons asked Allie about her sister, but all Allie could do was lie and say Patience had made a spur of the moment decision to leave Bloodburg to get away from the big city environment. Some of the patrons continued to press the issue, so Allie just told them that she’d be happy to pass along their messages when she saw Patience again, and left it at that.

  Patience’s friends weren’t the only ones who tried to find out what was going on. Joseph continued to send apologetic bouquets of flowers to the store, but Allie kept refusing them until he finally got the hint that she wanted nothing to do with him.

  By the end of the week, The Park Crystal closed its doors for the last time, and Allie began to move on from Patience’s death, or so she thought. When she got back to the hotel room, she sat down on the edge of the bed, suddenly realizing she had no idea what she was going to do next. Everything she was—her parents, her sister, her job, even Joseph—had now become only a memory.

  “You okay, Allie?” Kevin asked. He’d been laying in the bed, watching television, but he shut it off the moment he noticed her disheartened expression and moved down to the edge of the bed to sit beside her.

  “Yeah, I guess,” she admitted. “I just feel a little lost, that’s all.”

  “What do you mean?” He softly rubbed her shoulder.

  “Everything that made me who I am is gone. It’s like a switch was flipped, and suddenly everything is completely new and different.”

  “I can understand that.”

  “You can?”

  “Sure,” he replied, grasping her hand. “When my father was diagnosed, it was like my life stopped in a heartbeat, and I was forced to follow a path I had no idea how to handle. I gave up my career, my friends, everything…to find a way to help my father. But now, that donor…what was his name? Oh, yeah. Mr. Beckemeyer!”

  Allie cringed at hearing Joseph’s name again.

  “Well…he gave my family that trust fund to help take care of my father’s medical bills and healthcare for life, and now I’m kind of sitting here in the same boat as you.”

  “That’s true.” Allie smiled. “And your family still hasn’t contacted you yet?”

  “Nope.” Kevin sighed heavily. “I left them my number for here a few days ago, but they still haven’t called.”

  “That’s really shitty, you know that?”

  “I know. It’s just how they are.”

  “I’m glad you’re not like that.”

  “Me, too.” Kevin laughed. “But I know my father is being cared for, and that’s all that really matters to me. Besides, this gives me a chance to find a better job in the city.”

  “Do you really want to stay in Bloodburg?”

  “Sure, why not?” Kevin smiled at her. “This way, I get to be around you all the time.”

  Allie felt her face blush slightly. “Well, to be honest, this mediocre hotel is about the best this city has to offer.” She laughed.

  Kevin let out a small chuckle. “So, what are you saying?”

  “I really don’t know. I’ve got plenty of money left over from the store. Maybe we could just travel the country for a while; see what’s out there, you kn
ow? Just you and me. What do you think?”

  “Might be fun,” Kevin admitted. “But I’d feel weird relying on you for money.”

  “Well, don’t,” Allie snapped in a slightly angrier tone than she had intended. “All this money I have should be spent on happier things…my sister would’ve wanted it that way. That’s how she lived. Even if she was broke, she was still happy, and that’s what we deserve to be after all we’ve been through, don’t you think?”

  “As long as it makes you happy, I’m in.”

  “Good!” Allie cheered, giving Kevin a quick kiss. “How about we get up tomorrow morning and hit the road…see where the wind takes us?”

  “Wow!” Kevin laughed. “Just like that, huh?”

  “Too soon?”

  “No, not at all. Let’s do it.”

  It was the first time Allie had felt happy since Patience had died, but as with most things in her life as of late, the momentary bliss was quickly squashed by a loud knock at the door and a voice she thought she’d never hear again.

  “Allie?” Joseph called from the other side of the door. “I just need a minute of your time. That’s all I ask.”

  “Who is that?” Kevin asked nervously.

  “Just someone I used to work for,” she said, sighing heavily. “I know he’s not going to leave me alone until I talk to him. I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay. Let him in,” Kevin said, puffing out his chest. “If he gets out of line, I’ll take care of it.”

  Allie laughed. “Don’t worry, I can handle him myself,” she said as she walked over to the door and reluctantly opened it.

  “May I come in?” Joseph asked meekly, holding a new fedora in his hands.

  Allie stared, silent and cold for several moments before waving him in.

  “This is nice,” Joseph commented, adjusting his purple-tinted glasses as he walked through the door.

  “What do you want, Joseph?” Allie snapped.

  “I came to say how sorry I am…for everything.”

  “Is that it?”

  “No,” Joseph said. “I’ve also come to say goodbye. I’m leaving Bloodburg.”

  “Oh,” Allie said sadly, not expecting to feel so disappointed that he was truly leaving her life for good. In some way, his continued pursuit to contact her had made her feel as if she wasn’t fully closed off from her old life, whether she wanted to admit it to herself or not. “Where are you going? If…if you don’t mind me asking?”

  “The southwest!” Joseph brightened. “I’ve never been out that way and I figured maybe it was time to see what Area 51 was all about.”

  “My cousin lives out there,” Kevin chimed in. “He says the alien culture is really just a thing to trick tourists out of their money.”

  “You must be Kevin,” Joseph said, offering his hand.

  Kevin shook Joseph’s hand happily. “Yeah, but how—”

  “I’ve seen you on television…after that whole robbery incident,” Joseph added. “You’re a bit of a hero.”

  “Well, I don’t know about that,” Kevin replied, flushing.

  “Oh, don’t be modest,” Joseph laughed, tilting his head slightly to one side. “My employer thinks very highly of you,” he said before noticing Allie glaring at him. “Of course, where are my manners? I’m Joseph Carlyle. I work for Mr. Beckemeyer,” he said, offering Allie an understanding look. He knew she was worried that there might be a chance that Kevin would start to uncover some of his hidden memories.

  “Wow!” Kevin gasped. “Allie? I didn’t know you worked for the same guy that helped my father?”

  Allie nodded. “Yeah…small world. So, what can we do for you, Mr. Carlyle?”

  “I’d like you to come back to work for me,” Joseph insisted. “And you, too, Kevin. I read somewhere that you’re quite the engineer. I could really use someone like that with my new project.”

  But before Allie could jump in and decline, Kevin asked, “What kind of project?”

  “I’ve been contracted to build a new facility for an experimental satellite defensive network for the government. The current satellite network has become obsolete, which has puts everyone in danger until a new one can be built,” Joseph replied, trying to hint to Allie about the lack of protection that Earth now had, ever since the Network had been destroyed by Byron.

  “Why now?” Allie grumbled. “And why…us?”

  “Because someone once told me I need to do something to help change the world, rather than just hide in it, and she was right. It’s time I give back to the people who need help the most. I can do what most people can’t, and it’s time to stop wasting my time and efforts on selfish endeavors. It’s only recently that I’ve begun to realize how lucky I was to have someone like that in my life.”

  “Well…actually…we can’t. We were about leave first thing in the morning,” Allie explained, hinting that she didn’t want to work for him after all. “Maybe Kevin and I can discuss our options while we’re gone and then let you know when we get back?”

  “That sounds wonderful! Where are you two going?” Joseph asked Kevin, completely ignoring Allie and trying to steer the conversation to his advantage, as usual.

  “We don’t really know yet,” Kevin admitted freely. “We’re just going to see where the wind takes us.”

  “Great minds think alike!” Joseph laughed. “Here’s an idea. Why don’t you two come with me? It’ll be my treat? There’s plenty of room.”

  “What do you mean…plenty of room?” Allie asked skeptically.

  “I’ve bought one of those RVs,” Joseph explained, slightly overexcited. “I’ve never actually driven one before, but I’m sure it’ll be just fine.”

  Kevin laughed. “I drove a school bus part-time while I went to college. You can’t just jump in one and drive around in it.”

  “Well, then; all the more reason for you two to come with me,” Joseph insisted happily. “You can teach me how to drive it as we go. What do you say?”

  “I’m not so sure that’s a great idea,” Allie declined.

  “Why not, Allie?” Kevin asked, confused. “It wouldn’t be too hard to teach him.”

  “Look,” Joseph spoke up, seeing Allie’s frustration. “Why don’t I go downstairs and let you two discuss it. If I don’t hear from you in fifteen minutes, I’ll drive away and never look back, okay?” He placed his fedora on his head as he left the hotel room, closing the door quietly on his way out.

  “What’s wrong, Allie? I thought you just said you wanted to pick up and go. This seems like a great opportunity to do just that.”

  “You don’t understand what it’s like working for Joseph,” Allie explained. “The things he gets into can be difficult…even dangerous.”

  “No more dangerous than stopping a bank robbery, right?” Kevin argued. “Besides, his boss has done so much for my family. I owe him—”

  “No!” Allie interrupted. “You don’t owe him anything…neither of us do!” Allie took a deep breath and grabbed Kevin’s hands, looking him straight in the eyes. “I agree that it’s an amazing opportunity to make a real difference in this world, but if we’re going to work for him, it’s because we want to, not because we have to, understand?”

  “Of course.” Kevin nodded. “We can always quit, right? So, it’s up to you. I’ll go wherever you go.” He smiled.

  “You may regret that one day.”

  “Probably, but not yet.”

  “Fine.” Allie gave Kevin a soft kiss before sighing. “Let’s go change the world.”

 

 

 
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