"Every Last One"

(CAUTION: this one is very dark for children. ~P.E.)

Gun grasped tightly in hand, Dustin moved cautiously down the dark hallway. His heart was racing a million miles an hour as he inched forward, trying to breathe more quietly. As he turned corner after corner, the darkness seemed to get deeper and he tried to remember the words from the mysterious phone call, “After you enter, you have 3 turns to your left, 4 to the right, 3 more to the left, and 5 to the right. They will be in the second doorway on your left.”

Trying to stay calm, he mentally counted, “3 turns to the left, 4 to the right, one, two, three to the left, and one two, three, four--” Suddenly he heard a quiet humming noise ahead and stopped abruptly. It was voices – men’s voices. Peering intently ahead, he tried to pierce the gloom, and realized that around the next corner was a shaft of light. He crept on, and as he turned the corner, saw the light was coming from underneath a closed door. Dustin knelt down and put his ear to the crack between the bottom of the door and the floor.

As he listened, he realized that the men inside the room were talking about exactly what he wanted to hear. He strained to catch their words.

The first voice to speak was a deep, rough voice – a voice hardened by hate and pain. “What do you plan to do with all of them, Pete?”

“Exactly what I’d planned from the first,” replied a second voice. This voice was much smoother than the first, but its very smoothness and calmness while it spoke the cruel words made Dustin’s blood run cold. “After I’ve finished my scientific research and experiments, I’ll merely dispose of them all.”

“Every last one? Even the little girls?” asked the rough voice.

“Every last one.”

Suddenly, to his extreme horror, Dustin realized by the noises inside that the men were scooting chairs back from a table and standing up. He glanced around furtively, trying to find the best way of escape. Their footsteps were coming closer. He heard the door handle turn, and resolutely stepped back and raised his .357. The door opened and the last man he expected to see walked out of the room.”

Copyright 2012 by Lisa D.