The Rat Collector: A Dystopian Thriller (Age of End Book 1) (9 page)

Roger grabbed his bag and dragged his feet out the door. His face was drenched with tears. How would he explain
this
to his parents?

TWENTY

WITH FIVE YEARS of hunting experience, and plenty of time to experiment, the boys learned much about their powers. They drained mostly deer. It was popular at the shop, and they were common throughout the woods. They had developed unexpected benefits from draining. They could go for long periods without food or water. They needed less sleep and always woke up refreshed. Their cuts and wounds healed quickly, and they never got sick. Their physical strength was at peak form. They took full advantage of these benefits, but they kept their powers hidden, frightened of how others would react.

They also noticed a drop in efficiency. The drains were less potent. The energy from each drain had a lesser effect, as their bodies adapted. To counter this, the boys started to drain more frequently.

It was the night of Vince’s birthday party, and on Mrs. Vigo request, Saul took Vince to go hunting, to distract him from her plans. They were both familiar with these woods now. Every path. Every clearing. Every landmark. It was all committed to memory. They knew exactly where to find deer, how to track them, and the best ways to wound them without killing them.

They stood over the body of a freshly drained deer. As they cut the meat with their knives, Vince looked over at Saul and saw intense thought in his expression. “What are you thinking about?”

“What?” he replied, a little startled by the question.

“Something important is on your mind,” he said as he began loading chunks of meat into an empty bag. “I can tell. It’s been on your mind for a while.”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

“Nothing, huh?” He adjusted the bag, pulling it towards him. A branch grabbed the side and tore open a large hole. “Damn it. I ripped the bag.” He examined the hole and then continued loading in meat. “I know something’s on your mind.”

“You’re not going to like it. Are you sure you want to know?”

“Positive.”

“Okay…” Saul took a deep breath. “I want to drain a human.”

Silence…

“You can’t be serious,” Vince said, shocked that his friend could consider such a thing.

“I am completely serious. Think about it. Draining is getting weaker, right? But humans live longer than rabbits and deer. I’m sure you’ve sensed the energy coming from the people around us. I have too. It feels so much stronger. Imagine the feeling of draining something that strong. I miss that rush that we used to get.”

“But these are people you’re talking about. It’s not for food. It’s not for survival. You want to kill for pleasure. You don’t see anything wrong with that?”

“You know what I see? Sooner or later these animals won’t be enough. If we truly want to live forever, we need to upgrade.” He looked at the deer carcass. “If you ask me, there are plenty of human scum out there. People that deserve to die more than this deer.”

“If animals aren’t enough, what makes you think humans will be. If you start draining people, eventually the same thing will happen.” He shook his head. “No. There is no way we can drain a human. If we really want to live longer, we need to drain less. No more draining for pleasure. Only use our powers when we need to. Take a break.”

“Take a break?” Saul said. “You want us to stop draining? I didn’t expect you to take my side, but this…this is ridiculous. I don’t want to take a break.”

“You don’t want to live for as long as possible?”

“I want to enjoy this gift we have.” His voice had grown louder.

“What about living forever?” Vince asked. “Isn’t that why we’re doing this? I know that’s why I am. I don’t enjoy killing these animals. And now you’re talking about killing people? There’s no way we could get away with that. They would catch us. We can’t let this get out of hand.”

“Maybe it’s time for people to know what we can do.” He was yelling now. “We can’t hide forever. We don’t know how they’ll respond. Maybe they’ll support us.”

Saul had a good point. They could never hide it forever. At some point, their friends and family would know. It was inevitable. Perhaps it
was
time to show other people. They would have to plan it carefully. If they did not handle it properly, things could go very bad. Draining a human being was not the proper way to show off their powers. “Saul,” Vince said, staring directly into his eyes. “You have to promise me you will never drain a person…ever.”

Saul’s jaw tensed up and his breaths shortened. Hot blood rushed from his racing pulse into his trembling face. His frustration built until could not contain it. “Stop telling me what to do!” he screamed, throwing his bag to the ground and stormed off.

Vince was speechless. He sat alone, looking down at the bloody carcass.

TWENTY-ONE

AFTER LOSING HIS book, getting yelled at in class, and being completely humiliated in front of everyone, Roger was dreading going home. But where else could he go? He had no friends. Nowhere to go to stall. And he wanted to tell his parents first anyway, before Ms. Martin could get in touch with them. Of course, nothing could excuse his hurtful words to Saul, but it was not completely his fault. Saul had provoked him. His mind raced as the thought of confronting his parents set in. What would he tell them?

When he got home, he was completely exhausted. He entered the front door and checked the house. “I’m home!” There was no answer. He struggled up the stairs and collapsed on his bed.

*****

When he woke up, the sky was already dark. He had slept through the entire afternoon. He rubbed his eyes and stretched as he yawned. The sound of clattering dishes came from downstairs. His parents were home. Ms. Martin had surely spoken to them by now.

He snuck down the stairs, as quiet as possible. When he reached the bottom, he tiptoed around the corner and into the dining room. His father sat patiently at the dinner table as his mother prepared the food. There was no sign of anger. No disappointment. Maybe she had not yet spoken to Ms. Martin. She held a large carving knife and fork, which she used to slice the juicy ham.

Slice and dice
.

She looked up and saw Roger, peeking around the corner. “You’re finally awake,” she said. She sounded more cheerful than usual. “I was worried you would sleep through dinner. Come, sit down before the food gets cold.” Roger approached the table with caution. Did they know about the incident? It was hard to tell. He watched his mother as she cut the succulent ham.

When she finished, she took her seat and placed the knife on the table, near Roger. “So sweetie, how was your day at school?”

Roger stared at his food to avoid eye contact. “Just like any other day.”

“Nothing unusual happened?”

“No,” Roger said, shaking his head.

“Ms. Martin came by this afternoon. She seems to think differently.”

They knew. He needed to explain his side of the story. “Saul started it.”

“You told him you were glad his father is dead?”

“I told you. He started it. He said—”

“I don’t care what he said or did to you. What you said is completely unacceptable.”

Slice
.

“You don’t understand. Saul has been picking on me ever since we moved here.”

“I don’t care. You never say that to someone who has lost a loved one. There is no excuse. As punishment, I’m afraid I will have to take your books. All of them. No more reading those ridiculous stories of yours.”

Slice and dice
.

“What?” Roger yelled. His books were everything. They calmed him down. Helped him relax. Reading made his miserable, lonely life at least a little bearable. He would never let her take them. “You can’t do that!”

“Oh yes, I can. From now on, you will come straight home from school. You will study quietly in your room until dinner’s ready. No reading. No horseplay.”

Slice and dice, she’s not so nice
.

“Maybe that’s a bit much, honey,” his father said.

“It is a perfectly reasonable punishment. We raised him better than this.”

Roger jumped to his feet. “This isn’t fair. You haven’t even heard the whole story.”

She rose to her feet as well. “You insulted a boy in a completely inappropriate manner.” She started to walk towards him. “You were in the wrong. If you can’t understand that, then clearly you need to think about it some more. Go to your room.”

Slice and dice, I hate my life
.

“I’m not going anywhere!” he screamed as she approached. “I’m staying right here!”

She grabbed his wrist. “I am your mother. You will listen to me!”
Slice
. She tugged his arm, but he tugged back. His defiance infuriated her.
Dice
. His father rose from his seat as well, to break up the scuffle, but he found himself caught in it instead. Roger’s face burned bright red as he struggled to break free.
Slice and dice
. He screamed with anger. Tears poured from his eyes.
Slice and dice
. He thrashed his limbs back and forth.
Slice and dice
.

And then he saw the knife.

Slice and dice,
She’s not so nice,
So grab that knife,
And end her life…

Roger’s fingers were tightly clenched around the handle of the carving knife. Fresh blood trickled from the blade’s tip. He dropped the knife and pressed his hands to his face, but realized he was rubbing blood into his skin. He lowered his hands and saw two bodies. His mother at his feet. His father hunched over the table. They were both dead.

He panicked. How did this happen? Anger had gotten the better of him. It had taken control of his body. But the anger was not towards his parents. Not even his mother. It was Saul. Saul was the reason his parents were dead.

He grabbed the blood crusted knife and marched out the front door. Tonight was Vince’s birthday party. That was where Saul would be.

TWENTY-TWO

SAUL WALKED BACK from the woods, over the hill toward Vince’s house. After his argument with Vince, the party was bound to be awkward. He was still upset, but Vince was his friend. He would place his frustrations aside for now, and celebrate his friend’s birthday.

He had not planned on telling Vince about his desires to drain a human, at least not yet. He never expected Vince to understand, but he took a chance. Even though Vince objected, he still planned on going through with it. He would still drain a human, just not tonight.

He arrived at the house. The windows were dark, and the only sound was the soft chirp of crickets. Was the house empty? Either that or everyone was really good at hiding. He opened the front door and walked through.

“Surprise!” Lanterns burst with light, filling the room with bright colors. A chorus of people began to sing but stopped when they saw Vince was not there.

“Where’s Vincent?” Mrs. Vigo asked.

“He insisted I go ahead without him. He’s just finishing up out there and didn’t want to keep me waiting. He should be here soon.”

“Good.” She turned around to face the guests. “False alarm. That was good practice, though. Everyone back to their positions.” The people dimmed the lanterns and shuffled back behind the furniture. “How long will he be?”

“I don’t know. He shouldn’t be too long. Maybe five, ten minutes.”

As the time passed, people began to disperse from their hiding to take advantage of the refreshments. Mrs. Vigo had completely outdone herself. The food was delicious, the drinks were refreshing, the decorations were outstanding, and the cake was beautiful. It was a double layer cake topped with buttercream frosting and chocolate sprinkles. She had drawn intricate flowers around the edge, and in the middle wrote,
Happy 17th Birthday Vincent!

The guests conversed in the dark while Mrs. Vigo peeked out the window. “Are you sure he’s coming, Saul?” She held a worried look on her face.

“He said he was. I don’t know what’s taking him so long.”

“Could you go back and check on him?”

Saul did not want to go back, especially after their argument, but he was getting worried, and Mrs. Vigo was starting to panic. “Alright, I’ll be—”

“Oh,” She interrupted. “I see someone. It must be him. Everyone hide.”

The guests returned to their spots behind the furniture. The room went silent as they waited in the dark for the guest of honor. They could hear the footsteps approach the front door. The knob slowly turned. The door creaked open. The shadowy figure stood in the doorway. All of the guests jumped out together, filling the room with light. “Surprise—“

Their festive welcome was cut short and replaced with frightened gasps. The figure was not Vince. It was Roger. He stood, knife in hand. A thick red was splotched across his chest. Sweat and tears ran down his face, mixing with the crusted blood on his cheeks.

Ms. Martin, who was among the party guests, stepped forward and carefully approached him. “Roger, what happened? Are you okay?”

Roger’s face was blank. “I killed my parents.” His voice was slow and steady. “I murdered them.”

She stepped closer, her hands raised in front. “Let’s stay calm, Roger. Okay? Could you please put down the knife? We don’t want to hurt anyone.”

“Saul,” he said. “Where is Saul?”

“You don’t need Saul right now.” She took another step. She could almost reach him. “I need you to put down that knife. Can you do that for me?”

“My parents are dead because of Saul. Where is he?”

Ms. Martin lunged at the knife, but Roger pulled away. As she stumbled, he swiped at her. The blade sliced through her arm and blood gushed from the wound. The others caught her before she could fall.

“Hey!” Saul called out, pushing himself through the crowd. “I’m right here. Leave her alone. She had nothing to do with your parents.”

“She had plenty to do with my parents. But I’m not here for her.” In an instant Roger was behind Saul, one arm wrapped tightly around his chest, the other holding the knife to his neck. “I’m here for you.”