FARSIGHT
By: Slang of Euphoric Rush
Author’s
Note: Welcome back,
Michael Berg, to yet another thrilling edition of Farsight.
This chapter may be the most unique to date, and it is certainly the most
shocking. That being said, it does lack in TB / DL material, but I assure you,
Michael Berg, that I will more than compensate for it in the coming chapters.
Thank you in advance for your understanding and I hope you enjoy this chapter
more so as an addition to the story. Anyways, this chapter is a major turning
point in the story, and it marks the beginning of a new creative direction in
the plot. I have planned this since the beginning and I intend to stick with my
original ideas. However, it is my belief that some of you, Michael Berg, will
disagree with my decisions. I accept this and I thank you for investing care
into my story. If in the future you have any problems, concerns, questions,
comments or anything else on your mind which you would wish to contact me
about, you may do so at [email protected]. I will always reply as I appreciate
your opinions Michael Berg. Recently, I even decided to include a suggestion in
one of my future works. Anyways, I hope that you enjoy this chapter. Until
then, or when, that is whenever when happens to be then again, live well
Michael Berg.
I know it's hard to keep an open heart
When even friends seem out to harm you
But if you could heal a broken heart
Wouldn't time be out to charm you
-Axl Rose
Chapter
Seven: November Rain
The
Little sunlight could pass through the blanketed atmosphere, and
the light that filtered through was not enough to thoroughly illuminate the
living room of the
The three of them rested peacefully with no disturbing factors to displace their slumber. Whether it was the wicked wind or the dimly lit room, something had kept them sleeping late into the morning. Then like a siren calling through the fog, a sharp ringing pierced the air and carved through the sandman’s silence. Simultaneously roused by the alarm, at first only Josh recognized the noise, and reaching into the pocket of his jeans which lay beside him, he retrieved his cell phone and answered it. Jake and Robbie looked at Josh groggily as the conversation ensued.
“Hello?” Josh questioned into the phone, which was ignorant as the only person that ever called him on that line was Louis.
Josh listened to the other voice for a short time before continuing: “Yeah, he’s here with me now.” a short pause, “Um, sure man. We’ll be there in like an hour I guess. Yeah, see ya then.”
Josh closed the phone and looked at the pair, who were awaiting an explanation of the discussion.
“Louis,” Josh unnecessarily clarified, “He needs us to go down there right away. It sounded pretty important.”
“Why’s he want us now?” Jake asked bitterly, “Its Saturday. We never work Saturdays.”
“Actually, he seemed more interested in you in particular.” Josh replied with a hint of contempt in his voice before adding “I’m gonna go shower.”
Robbie immediately went back to sleep, leaving the other boy alone in consciousness to think. Jake wasn’t sure whether his cousin’s poorly concealed emotions were a result of the rude awakening or some other work-related matter. Working for Louis was originally supposed to bring the cousins together, or at least that’s what Jake reasoned. There had been some initial tension accompanying the awkwardness which would obviously surround such circumstances. There was still no passion or deep desire in Jake’s heart for diapers. He certainly didn’t hate them or even find them weird any more he just wore them at work and that was it. Things had become even more strenuous when Jake had become the most ‘popular’ poser for Louis’ site. The pictures of him were viewed and downloaded almost twice as much as everybody else that modeled. Louis said it was because he was a natural, and though it was unlikely, Jake partially suspected some career jealousy from Josh. The others hadn’t cared, but he and his cousin were still struggling to get along smoothly for whatever reason. His birthday was the first time they had hung out in a long time, and fortunately it had gone fairly smoothly. Jake hoped that their relationship would improve with time, but it had already been a month-and-a-half since his recruitment and things were looking the same.
Josh returned from the shower and Jake followed his example and went to bathe. He was quick about it, not wanting to keep Louis waiting for long. After all, his employer had been quite good to him. The job had kept a large sum of change in Jake’s pocket, so much, in fact, that he was having a hard time finding a beneficial way to spend it. Louis was a great guy, he thought to himself, and if he needed a favour like coming in on the weekend then that was fine. The cool water was sufficient enough to fully awaken Jake and he was soon finished. When he returned to the living room he discovered that Robbie was now up and at it and Josh was cleaning up, a gesture seldom offered by a fourteen-year-old but a kind one nonetheless.
“Happy birthday man.” Robbie greeted him gleefully.
“Yeah,” Josh added jokingly, “Way to live to thirteen.”
“Thanks guys.” Jake returned.
Robbie was next to leave for the shower and Josh started a conversation promptly.
“So, how’s it feel?” Josh questioned him in regards to his new age.
“Just like twelve.” Jake replied with an unsure shrug. He was still getting used to the title of teenager.
There was a short pause before Josh proceeded, and the gap made Jake uneasy.
“Listen.” Josh continued tentatively.
“I already was.” Jake responded smartly, masking his nervousness with attempted humour.
“No, seriously man,” Josh went on, “This isn’t like Louis, to call us in on the weekend. I think something’s up.
“So?” Jake said aggressively. He didn’t think Louis deserved such mistrust.
“So,” Josh said irritably, “Just be careful, I guess.”
Part of Jake wanted to argue. What could possibly do to harm them? But then again, his cousin was looking out for him, and he didn’t want to diminish any kind of momentum their friendship had gathered.
“Alright,” Jake complied, still unsure of what he was supposed to be weary of.
Robbie came back and they soon departed, deciding that they would stop for food along the way. Jake, feeling like he should tell Nicole first, crept into her room. She was lying in her bed, breathing deeply with her eyes shut. He didn’t want to disturb her, but she told him to stay.
“Where are you going kiddo?” She asked, surprising him with her wakefulness.
“Downtown for a couple of hours.” He told her as he moved in closer to speak to her.
“Oh, okay.” Nicole nodded sleepily, “Happy birthday, by the way.”
“Thanks,” he said as they embraced.
It wasn’t often that they hugged anymore, and perhaps that was the most proof Jake had that he was thirteen.
“Hey Jake,” she called right before he left, “Be careful, okay.”
“Alright.” He agreed and then departed.
Maybe it was because of the ‘moment’ they had just shared or because of Josh’s recent warning, but something inside of Jake told him that there was something amiss. The problem was that he had no idea what to look out for.
“Now I don’t have to worry about sleepovers anymore!” Shawn announced brightly, his forced smile being his most prominent feature. It gave the impression that the Goodnite he wore was not only bearable, but enjoyable as well. The effect was called advertisement.
“And cut! That’s a wrap.” The director called out as movement commenced around the set.
Shawn removed the grin from his face and walked away from
the bed. The director was immersed in a conversation with the camera man, and
Shawn surmised that he was free to go and get changed. The Goodnite
perfectly suited his thirteen-year-old figure, which was rather skinny and
short as puberty had yet to alter his body. Having no dressing room, he walked
towards the nearest bathroom where his clothes were. This was the glamour of
childhood acting. His step-mother, having failed to achieve her own dreams of
stardom, had been obsessed with molding Shawn into a
As he was about to enter the washroom, he was greeted by his older brother.
“Nice diaper.” Lou laughed at him.
“Go to hell.” Shawn retorted bitterly. “Why are you here anyways?”
“Deb couldn’t make it.” Louis explained their step-moms absence, “But she sends her regards.”
“What a bitch!” Shawn cursed loudly.
“Basically, yeah.” Louis agreed, “Now hurry up, I’d like to get out of here some time today.”
“Just hold on a sec, would ya?” Shawn insisted as he went into the washroom.
Standing alone in the diminutive room, Shawn’s imagination began to roam. He briefly considered wetting the Goodnite, but he quickly dismissed the thought. Instead, he pulled it down from his waist and tossed it into the trash can. Within the minute he was back outside, fully-clothed and ready to leave.
“Ready now?” Louis asked impatiently.
“I should go talk to the lady in charge first,” Shawn admitted.
“Whatever,” Lou said, “I’ll be in the car.”
“I’ll be right there.” Shawn called after his brother.
The woman to whom he referred was busy ordering some make-up lady around. Shawn stood idly by as he waited for them to finish their conversation. As he did so, he noticed a box of props and interesting clothing. Examining further, he saw a white cowboy hat on the top of the pile of clothes. Picking it up, it was obvious that it was a relic, almost an antique even. Either that or it had seen its fair share of rough days. Shawn almost had a sense of pity for it. It was probably a beautiful hat at one point, but now time had worn it into the kind of thing that one would find discarded in a box of unwanted items. He placed the cowboy hat on his head carefully. It was a little bit too big, but he was instantly enamored with it.
“Uh, what are you doing in that terrible thing?” The woman in charge asked, apparently ready to address him.
“I don’t know, it’s kind of cool.” Shawn replied absent-mindedly.
“Fine, it’s yours.” She offered, “Now as for your actual payment, we’ll mail it to you before next week. So I guess you’re finished here.”
Shawn looked up at her Botox-infected face. He couldn’t recall her name, but she looked like the kind of woman who would go by a title which masked her age and sounded independent. Everything this living Barbie doll said was melodramatic and rushed, and Shawn disliked her.
“Alright then,” he said, “Thanks.”
He walked away from her. What a stupid woman. A stupid woman for a stupid job set up by his stupid step mother. He silently vowed to never take a job involving diapers again.
Jake, Josh and Robbie walked into town; the latter lacked a bike or any other wheeled form of transportation. The three of them had decided to eat there breakfast at a small bakery that was on the route they were taking. Initially, Robbie had argued that it was lunch, but Josh corrected him stating that the first meal you ate after you woke up was breakfast as you were breaking your fast. This and other irrelevant topics helped to dismiss the tension which may have otherwise occupied their thoughts.
The bakery, which was hippie-owned, primarily offered all natural products with only select few items from their menu containing a decent amount of sugar. The three boys, as with all their age managed to find these quickly and ordered them. It may have been full mouths that kept their speech to a minimum or it may have been the lack of passable ways to talk about nothing at all. Within the depths of their sub consciousness, both cousins wanted to talk. Just discuss whatever issues still bothered them like they had the night Jake had discovered Josh’s work place, but something prevented them and they were paralyzed by awkwardness. As it were, they were somewhat relieved when they finished their meal (whether it was actually breakfast or lunch was not further discussed) and departed.
They proceeded down the bust street without a word, continuing the quiet held in the bakery. A short while later Josh sped up his pace. The other two followed suite without question. But they became suspicious when he took an abrupt left turn down an unfamiliar road.
“What are ya doing?” Jake questioned in shock, “You’re going the wrong way.”
“Just hold on a second, would ya?” Josh almost snapped as he again began to speed up.
There was something in his voice that scared Jake. It wasn’t like his cousin to respond likewise, but there was also something amiss in his words. They moved further down and then cut across the street down yet another foreign avenue.
“Josh, what’s going on man?” Jake asked irritably. His patience was wearing thin and he asked the question despite the warning inside of him.
“We’re being followed.” Josh responded bitterly. “This guy tailing us was in the bakery and he’s been after us ever since. Don’t look!” He added sharply as Robbie was about to turn his head to confirm this.
“What are we gonna do?” Jake worried aloud.
“Well this road pretty much goes straight to the warehouses,” he began, “so we’re just gonna hurry up and get down there. Until then, just be cool.”
The three of them walked onwards, doing their best to remain calm, an astoundingly challenging task. They dared not look back, for the reasons of not wanting to alert their stalker of their awareness and because they did not want to see how close he was behind him. The second of these became a terrifying problem when a reflection in a shop window revealed that he follower was less than a few meters away. The street was deserted for quite some distance except for an approaching truck that was coming from the distance, but there were no immediate methods of finding assistance. Josh quickly lead the group into the next alley they passed, and they were dismayed to discover that they were facing a dead end in the form of a towering barbed wire fence only a short way into the alley. Turning around, they saw the mysterious man stop at the entrance. A wide brimmed hat coupled with long, dark hair masked most of his visage, and none of his skin was exposed. He whispered something into a headpiece and began to reach into the pocket of the long trench coat he wore. The roaring call of a diesel engine was audible and soon a large, blue truck pulled up behind the assailant, who turned just in time to see a cowboy hat appear above the far side of the vehicle. Shawn walked around, staring intently at the man.
“What are you doing here?” The stalker interrogated him, “I can deal with them. You’ll just give away our position.”
“You have no idea.” Shawn said as he pulled a handgun from his belt and shot the stalker in the head, splattering blood on the side of the alley wall. Shawn stared blankly at the horribly disfigured corpse only momentarily before facing the boys and saying: “Get in the truck. Now!”
Josh was the only one to move, the other two stood paralyzed by the event they had just witnessed.
“Josh, grab your damn cousin!” Shawn commanded as he tossed Robbie over his shoulder and carried him to the truck without struggle from the latter.
“Come on man.” Josh pleaded with Jake, “Let’s go before something else happens.”
Jake complied silently and walked towards the vehicle, but he could not divert his eyes from the mutilated body. Josh opened the door to find the back seats of the truck partially full, the occupants being AJ and Dustin.
“What the fuck is going on?” Josh demanded an answer as he forced Jake into the back before taking a place in the front beside Robbie who sat next to the driver’s seat.
“We need to get the hell out of town!” Shawn answered as he began to drive for the highway.
The doorbell roused Shawn into getting off the couch and away from the television. The oppressive heat had left him in the cool sanctuary of his home, but the sun’s cruel grasp still managed to suck the energy from is body. It took him a lot of will power to make his way to the door. For a family so rich one would think that they would have a butler. But they did not, so Shawn begrudgingly moseyed towards the door. Impatiently, the door bell rang a second time just as he opened the door. Standing before him was a postman who looked to be irritated. Beside him was a large cardboard box.
“Hey.” Shawn greeted him.
“Are you Shawn Morgan?” The postman asked grumpily.
“Sure am.” He replied.
“Please sign here.” The postman requested as he thrust a piece of paper into Shawn’s unsuspecting hands.
Staring up at the delivery man, Shawn asked: “Don’t I have to be eighteen or twenty-one or something?”
“Apparently not.” The man responded, obviously still upset.
“Okay then.” Shawn said as he wrote his signature on the appropriate line. “What am I getting?”
“I’m not sure.” The postman answered before collecting the paper and leaving.
Shawn stood still in a state of confusion for a moment. He wasn’t sure why anybody would send him anything, let alone something as large as the crate that was in front of him. With difficulty Shawn managed to squeeze the box through the doorway. Once inside the foyer he became aware of a letter attached to it. Tearing it open, he quickly read its contents. It was from the people from the Goodnites commercial as a token of their appreciation. Well that and a cheque which he pocketed.
He examined the box, wondering what it held. Then, remembering that it was in fact his, tore it open. After digging through a wall of Styrofoam pieces he unveiled its contents: approximately ten packs of Goodnites. Shock overcame him and he stumbled backwards. Perhaps a melodramatic reaction, but he was surprised nonetheless. Why would they send him all these diapers? It wasn’t like he had any use for them. Shawn sat there and pondered until his thoughts were interrupted until his step mother, Deborah, walked in through the front door.
“Hello!” She called jovially, but upon seeing the disastrous mess of cardboard and Styrofoam spread across the room changed her tone, “What the heck happened in here?”
“The people from the commercial thought they should send me some Goodnites.” Shawn said bitterly.
“Ha! Really?” Deborah laughed, “I suppose that makes sense, considering I had to tell them that you wet the bed to get you that job.”
“You did what?” Shawn asked, raising his voice angrily. Not that he was surprised. It was not unlike Deborah to do such a thing.
“You’re overreacting Shawn,” she said, “You’ll never see these people again.”
“But still…” He trailed off.
“So, are you going to try them on?” Deborah asked jokingly.
“You wish.” Shawn answered her.
“I think you’d be so cute.” She went on, “Oh well. Now clean this mess up before your father gets home.”
Shawn hated her so much. She acted like she owned the place, when really she was just his dad’s flavor of the week. The old man needed to revitalize himself so he found youth in fast cars and young women. He may have been upset by this but he didn’t have any kind of relationship with the man. Instead, there was just a bleak disliking of the pretentious woman he was to call ‘mom’. His eyes once again fell on the diapers. They, like Deborah, were stupid. Shawn knew that he would be better off without them.
Robbie was trembling slightly and Jake continued to stare out the window into nothingness as the truck sped out the city. Shawn was as pale as a ghost but showed no other signs that he had just killed a man. There was only a brief silence before Josh turned to Shawn and began.
“You mind telling us what the hell is going on?” Josh questioned angrily.
“Okay, first of all, calm the fuck down.” Shawn ordered, “We have to keep cool or this whole thing is going to blow up in our faces.”
“What thing?” Josh asked in a tone that was only moderately calmer. “What did that guy want back there in the alleyway?”
Shawn was about to reply before stopping suddenly with a glazed-over look in his eyes. He was apparently recalling what he had just done. This only lasted for a few seconds and he soon responded.
“Louis.” He said as though the word stung like a poison. “I don’t know how they found him or he found them but it happened.”
“What happened?” Josh persisted impatiently.
“The fucking Farsight Initiative man!” Shawn was almost yelling now. “They found out about the site and they said they wanted Jake.”
“What do you mean wanted?” Josh asked, a bit of fear hidden in his remark.
“Like they wanted to take him away or something.” Shawn went on.
“Take him where?” Josh questioned him further.
“How the fuck am I supposed to know?” Shawn returned furiously, “This Farsight group isn’t even supposed to be around anymore! They just showed up this morning saying that they wanted Jake! Louis was so happy to have his big heroes there that he agreed straight up. I had the sense to go lookin’ for ya! And I happened to pick up AJ and Dustin well I was at it.”
“Why do they want me?” Jake wondered aloud.
“I’ve got no clue man, but they want you pretty badly.” Shawn told him, “They had like ten guys all armed looking around the city.”
“Well let’s just call the cops.” Josh said as he pulled out his cell.
Almost immediately Shawn plucked it from his hands and cast it out the open window. It smashed into hundreds of pieces on the unforgiving highway.
“Think about it man, who gave you that phone?” Shawn said to Josh, “They’re probably tracking all the calls coming from it.”
“How the hell would they do that?” Josh asked in disbelief.
“The Farsight Initiative was, or is supposedly some of the most brilliant people on the planet working together. They obviously want Jake pretty badly, so I think that they’re going to do whatever they can to get him. So no phone calls, no talking to anybody, no nothing.”
“Where are we going anyway?” AJ asked.
“Up to a hunting cabin in
There was a long period of silence after that, each of the boys stunned by the uncanny situation. Jake could deduce no reason as to why this Farsight Initiative wanted him. A few months ago he hadn’t even known that the group existed and other than one conversation about them he had not even considered the group. Why was he so important to them? And why had Louis betrayed them? He had always seemed so trustworthy and Jake was having a hard time accepting the fact that he had been sold out by his former employer. In a struggle to clear his crowded mind, Jake subconsciously focused on the mental image of the body. The strange man’s disfigured corpse lying brutally twister in a pool of his own blood. Had there been a face left, it would most likely have showcased a look of anguish, but as it were the slaughtered body only revealed a morbid shock which was imprinted in Jake’s mind’s eye. The image haunted him and the suffocating stress that encompassed his consciousness subdued him into an almost instantaneous rest; having been through so much, his body more or less ‘shut down’.
The others could find no such comfort. Robbie remained in a near state of shock, shivering constantly. Josh was alert, his eyes darting around at the slightest movements. Having no idea what was going on, he remained on edge. Though he and Jake had not had the best of relationships as of late, he felt obliged to make sure that everything turned out alright. An almost brotherly feeling of protection swelled inside of Josh, and he silently vowed to make sure nothing happened to his younger cousin. As for the others, Dustin appeared to be overwhelmed by the situation and he remained silent, while AJ normally humorous nature was quelled by the dreary circumstances. As if to compliment their moods, Mother Nature finally let loose and the rain erupted from the dark clouds, covering the land in a torrential downpour. The calm was over and the storm had begun.
Shawn walked into downstairs into the comfortable coolness of his basement. The retreat was not only from the temperature but from the oppressive stress the world suffocated him with. An oasis for both the mental and physical states of the body, it included all the things a young teenager needed: a television, luxurious seating and of course the all-important computer. Shawn moved toward the latter, only to find that Lou was using it.
“What do you want?” Louis demanded aggressively.
“The computer.” Shawn responded flatly, but seeing as it was occupied he turned around and began to walk away.
“Hold on a second buddy.” Louis called after him in an almost mocking voice.
“What?” Shawn asked.
“Deb told me about the diapers.” He said with a smirk.
“Did she now?” Shawn questioned aloud. Of course she had.
“She sure did.” Louis laughed, “And I was thinking how cute widdle baby Shawny would look in his baby diapers!”
“Yeah, well you can forget about that ‘cause I ain’t wearing ‘em!” Shawn claimed loudly. He was becoming increasingly angry.
“I don’t think you’ll have to.” Louis said matter-of-factly, “Maybe we’ll just check out the internet for a picture of you in your diapers.”
The way that Louis said diaper was so obnoxious and pretentious that Shawn wanted to lean over and hit him, but he restrained himself. Instead, he stood still for some time, considering the possibility of his diapered pictures being on the internet. Such a thing could be potentially embarrassing. All the while Lou sat at the desk, typing away in search of his younger brother’s photo.
“Voila!” Louis exclaimed after a few minutes of exploration, “There you have it; it here meaning you. Huh, it looks like you’re on some kind of porn site or something.”
“What!” Shawn yelled in shock, “You can’t be serious!”
“Sorry bud, but it looks like that’s the case,” Said Louis, “Not only that, but you appear to be making somebody a lot of money.”
“How so?” The younger brother asked, infuriated.
“Well ya see, this guy seems to have changed your short little commercial clip into a series of pictures.” Louis explained, “It appears that he is selling said pictures online.”
“Ain’t that illegal?” Shawn inquired curiously.
“Oh, absolutely,” Louis told him, “But it would seem that this ‘Mr. Diaperrking’ here knows how to keep on the down-low.”
“Well with a name like that I can see why.” Shawn said sarcastically.
“Ya,” Louis chuckled, “But this seems so wrong.”
“You’re not the one with your pictures being sold to anybody who wants ‘em.” Shawn complained.
“Not that dummy!” Louis said as he attempted to slap his brother, “I mean it’s unfair that this guy is making all the profit for your work. That’s way too-“
“American.” Shawn finished for him.
“Exactly.” Louis stated. “We should do something about this.”
“Like what?” asked Shawn, “Sell ‘em ourselves?”
The look that Louis gave Shawn was a haunting gaze; one of both surprise and genuine amazement.
“You’re a genius!” Louis almost shouted.
“Joke man. That was totally a joke.” Shawn struggled to clarify but saw that it was most likely too late.
“Just think about it buddy,” Louis went on, “We could make some real cash here!”
“There is no way in hell you’re whoring me off over the internet so some perv can check me out!” Shawn said firmly.
“Come on-“ Louis began.
“No man. We’re not doing it.” Shawn decided and stormed out of the room.
“Well maybe you’re not doing it,” Louis said under his breath, “But I sure am.”
The long drive had lasted long into the night and it was so late it was almost early by the time the six travelers had arrived at the cabin. It was a secluded lodge that was on the coast of a diminutive lake. Age had worn the log sides into an even more so rustic retreat and the place looked like it had been ignored and unattended to for the past decade. A boathouse was on the lake was attached to the primary structure via a wooden walkway. The inside of the cabin was bigger than one might expect given the abysmal outward appearance. There was a main area consisting of a several couches and what might be called a dining room. Siding this was a wall of windows that overlooked the murky waters and parallel to this were three doors branching off; two leading to bedrooms and the other to a kitchen. An outhouse was approximately one hundred meters from the entrance. There was a slight menace, or perhaps mysterious air to the place; a feeling augmented by the unforgiving rain which brutally bombarded the building.
Shawn had decided that he would grab some food for them in the morning and they opted to just get some rest that night before making any further decisions on what they were going to do. Shawn had carried the sleeping Jake inside and laid him on the couch closest to the door.
“You guys should try and get some shut eye.” Shawn suggested as he walked towards one of the bedrooms. “I’m sleeping in here, there’s a bunk bed in the other room. The rest of ya can sleep on the sofas.”
“Yeah,” AJ agreed as he too left for the bedroom, “I’ll see you guys in the morning.”
“You can sleep in the bed.” Dustin said to Robbie, who remained where he stood.
“What’s wrong?” Josh asked the paralyzed boy.
“I… I don’t have any of my Goodnites.” He mumbled.
Robbie’s parents may have not allowed him to wear protection for his bed-wetting, but with all of his friends there he wasn’t taking any chances. His accidents had become less frequent due to his body’s slow move into puberty, but his bed usually ended up being soaked a few times a month anyways. The added stress of his dilemma almost guaranteed that he would have some problems staying dry.
Josh suspected that it was the trauma of the murder still fresh in his head that bothered Robbie, as there was no reason why he should be disturbed by the fact that the other boys knew he needed diapers for his nightly incontinence.
“I think Shawn had some in his truck.” Dustin stated, “I’ll go check.”
Dustin exited the cabin leaving Robbie and Josh alone in the room, save for Jake who was in a deep sleep. Josh looked down at Robbie, who would not make eye contact. The latter stood there, shaking quietly and his skin was still a creamy white.
“Dude, are you okay?” Josh inquired of him.
Robbie’s gaze almost bore a hole through the floor his stare was so intense.
“That guy had so much blood.” Robbie whispered. “And Shawn just killed him. Just shot him in the head, right there. He didn’t even care.”
“Shawn saved us back there man.” Josh tried to comfort him. “That guy, whoever he was, probably deserved it.”
Finally looking up, Robbie’s teary eyes met Josh’s and he continued: “Deserved to die? What about his life? Like his wife and kids if he had any, what about them?”
Josh had no response to this and he was relieved when Dustin came back into the cabin, a package of diapers in-hand. Even though he had only been gone for a minute or two, he was soaked and he dripped all over the hardwood floor.
“No Goodnites man,” Dustin stated as he tossed the package to Robbie, “But there were some youth attends or something like that. Anyway, they still ‘pull-ups’ so I figured they’d work alright.”
“Whatever.” Robbie shrugged, “Thanks.”
Selecting the only unoccupied room, Robbie went into the kitchen
to get changed. Through the door he could faintly hear Josh and Dustin
discussing their situation. Robbie wasn’t sure what was going on anymore. The
day had started out just fine, and now he was nearly a day away from home and
on the run from some secretive organization. They had left
Returning to reality, Robbie stripped of his shorts and boxers before unfolding the diaper. Ordinarily, he liked to wear Goodnites to bed, that is, when he could get any diapers. It reminded him of the time with Anna in the mall. Robbie had worn this particular type of protection in the past, but only for photo shoots. Stepping into the leg holes, he allowed the pull-up to slide over his legs and settle around his waist. The comfort of the soft, white material pressing against his member would normally cause him some pleasure, but his mind was elsewhere just then. He bent down to pick up his discarded clothes, the diapers crinkling with his slightest twitch. Being much thicker than a Goodnite, the over-grown pull-up that Robbie wore gave him a more childish appearance and the sheer bulk made him waddle, if only slightly. One might have mistaken him for a giant toddler.
When he came back to the living area, Josh and Dustin had settled themselves on two of the remaining couches. Putting two and two together, Robbie walked into the bedroom with the bunk bed after saying goodnight to the boys. After shutting the door, he turned and surveyed the tiny room. AJ was situated on the bottom bunk, seemingly asleep, a misinterpretation on Robbie’s part, however, as the he soon found out.
“How’s it goin’ buddy?” AJ asked as Robbie ascended to the higher bed with some trouble because of the thick diaper he wore.
“I don’t know.” Robbie sighed.
“Yeah, something just feels… I dunno, wrong I guess,” AJ admitted wearily. Robbie didn’t say anything, so he continued, “And Shawn shooting that guy. That’s just messed up. Like, I’m not sure what’s going on, but I know it not all good, ya know?”
“Hmm.” Robbie grunted his understanding.
“Like, just think about it man!” AJ exclaimed, “How messed up is this? Some freakin’ group of crazies is trying to kidnap us! I don’t know man, I really got no clue what’s up. I guess the only thing to do is just wait for it to blow over.”
“And it’ll all be good?” Robbie asked sarcastically, but not in a negative sense.
“Yeah,” AJ chuckled at the slight change in mood, “It’ll all be good man.”
Shortly thereafter, the cabin fell silent. All the boys were asleep, and with winter on the way the forest too remained calm. The lack of any movement or noise, however, was too perfect. Like a china cabinet, it provoked disruption and destruction. This assured that the quiet was merely the breath before the plunge.
The box of diapers sat in the corner of Shawn’s bedroom, staring at him relentlessly. Its unblinking stare was just daring him to once again open it up and perhaps even try on one of the diapers. It had been doing so since its arrival a week prior. Shawn wasn’t sure why he had kept the box. In fact, he had left it in the foyer when he had received it and it had been Deborah that had brought it to his bedroom. She was obsessed with having him wear a diaper, though he could not fathom her bizarre reasoning for such an absurd desire. It could have been a longing for a more maternal relationship with him, or just some abnormal lust. Either way, the box was in his room and it was beginning to disturb him.
Fortunately his musings of the box were interrupted by the abrupt entry of his older brother into his room.
“Try knocking.” Shawn said as he sat up off his bed.
Louis ignored him and began: “Okay, before you get mad know that I did this in the best interest of both of us.”
“I doubt that,” Shawn commented nervously, “But go on.”
“I know you too well not to have anticipated an angry response,” Louis said, “So here’s something to make you feel better about what I’m going to tell you.”
Louis reached into his pocket and pulled out a clip of twenty dollar bills. He thrust the large sum of money in Shawn’s hands and waited for a reaction. The younger boy stared at it in disbelief and proceeded to count the cash. A double check assured him that it was just over two-hundred dollars.
“You didn’t break something of mine, did you?” Shawn asked in astonishment.
“Not at all,” Louis assured him.
“Okay then, what’s with the money?”
“I’m about to tell you,” Louis continued, “And again, I can’t stress enough that what you hold is an enormously generous gift.” Shawn was silent so Louis proceeded, “You know how I said we could make a ton of cash from those pictures of you on the internet?”
“You didn’t! Tell me you didn’t!” Shawn pleaded.
“I kind of did.” Louis said sheepishly.
“How? Why?” Shawn stammered.
“Um, quite easily and again, please remember the money in your hand,” Louis responded quickly.
“But I told you not to!” Shawn whined childishly.
“But I did and now you’ve got a couple hundred bucks and you didn’t even have to do anything.” Louis stated.
“Except give up my self-esteem!” Shawn said angrily.
“Man you’re thick!” Louis insulted him, “Would you just think about it? Anybody who sees those pictures will probably be buying them, so they’ll be in no position to judge you, will they? And you got like two-hundred dollars for a few crappy pictures. How much do you think we could make if you actually posed?”
“What?” Shawn asked in shock.
“Well yeah, if you want more money we need more pictures.” Louis explained.
The last thing that Shawn wanted to do was pose in diapers for his older brother. But he couldn’t argue that this could become a serious source of income. His parents were rich, but that meant that things were bought for him. Shawn himself had never really had his own money to spend. The idea seemed more and more appealing.
“I dunno,” Shawn said, “Maybe once. But you can’t tell nobody!”
“My lips are sealed.” Louis assured him with a smile. “How about we do it tomorrow?”
“Um – “ Shawn started.
“Tomorrow’s good then.” Louis decided as he exited the room, “Thanks buddy.”
Shawn again set his eyes on the box of diapers. What had he gotten himself into? Wearing diapers, it was a concept which he was shooting down not five minutes before hand. Louis had that way with people, he could convince them to do whatever he wanted. Shawn attributed this to the aura of trust which surrounded him, but this was a mere illusion. As Louis had just proven, he was not to be trusted. But maybe he was overreacting. After all, it wasn’t like anybody was ever going to get hurt by taking pictures in diapers.
Jake awoke abruptly, not to the fault of a noise or other disturbance, but because something was wrong. He could feel it. Opening his eyes, he quickly became accustomed to the darkness and saw Shawn crouching by the entranceway, gun in hand. Dustin was sitting on the floor nearby.
“How long did you say he’s been gone?” Shawn asked quietly.
“I don’t know, like twenty minutes.” Dustin responded, the fear obvious in his voice.
“Okay, I want you to go to boat house and get the outboard ready to run. The keys are above the door.” Shawn ordered him before adding, “And be quiet.”
Dustin took off through the back door, moving swiftly through the night.
Jake redirected his attention to Shawn and asked: “What’s going on?”
“Josh went to the outhouse a while ago and he ain’t come back yet,” Shawn answered without flinching or taking his eyes of the door.
“So why don’t we go find him?” Jake inquired.
“Quiet man!” Shawn stifled him. “And we’re not going out there because they might be there.”
“They?” Jake questioned in surprise, “How could they have found us?”
“If I knew then we could have avoided this situation,” Shawn responded angrily.
A few minutes of painful silence ensued. Jake hated waiting. His ear was always anticipating a sound, a twig snapping or anything to indicate movement outside, but there was nothing. The rain had stopped, leaving a void where there may have normally been noise. Every inch of his being wanted to rush out of the cabin to make sure that Josh was okay, but he couldn’t. Jake tried to make up a reason why Josh might be late returning, but all of them were nonsensical and his imagination ran wild into unchartered and unwanted areas. Just when he felt like he was going to snap, a bright light shone through the entrance window, a booming voce accompanying it.
“Alright boys, it’s over. Come out of the cabin unarmed and nobody
has to get hurt,” The voice was commanding, and the speaker had an accent
indicating his native home was
“That don’t sound so good to me!’ Shawn returned, “But I got an idea, how about you fuck off and I don’t shoot you like I did your friend!”
“Shawn, right?” The voice asked, “Shawn Morgan, if I’m correct. What the hell do you think you’re doing Shawn? Do you want to play the hero? Let me tell you something: heroes end up getting killed for acting stupid when their friends are in trouble. Shawn, I’m telling you, you do not want to be a hero tonight. So why don’t you just send all your friends out and I’ll consider not putting a bullet in your thick skull.”
“Nah,” Shawn shouted back, “I always wanted to be a hero!”
“Don’t be stupid Shawn!” The voice warned, “If you don’t come out of there in three seconds, I will shoot young Josh here!”
Jake’s heart skipped a beat. His cousin was being held at gunpoint by some stranger not thirty feet away, and things weren’t sounding so great for him.
“The hell you will!” Shawn challenged the other man, “you need him, don’t ya?’
“One!” The voice commenced the countdown.
“Do something!” Jake pleaded with tears welling up in his eyes.
“Shut up!” Shawn barked at him.
“Two!” The voice continued.
“Fuck you!” Shawn screamed as Jake broke down crying.
“Three.” The voice said flatly as the sound of a gun shattered the serenity of the night.
Jake could no longer hold it together. He burst forward with an inhuman force compelling him onward. Running past Shawn, he crashed through the door, tears pouring down his face. The sight of Josh’s body lying face down in the dirt surrounded by blood was enough to stop him dead in his tracks. A giant of a man stood above his body, abnormally tall at no less than 6’5” and dressed in full camouflage and combat gear.
“Don’t shoot!” He ordered, “Lorenz, grab him!”
A figure appeared from the shadows and he grabbed Jake, dragging him a few feet into the woods. Jake made no attempt to struggle. His whole body had gone numb. Without any attempt to hold it in, he vomited on the forest floor in front of his feet. The man who held him, Lorenz, paid no attention to this and focused his energy on keeping Jake in place.
“What now Shawn?” The voice questioned bitterly, “Do I have to kill another one of them?”
Three more shots went off, this time from the cabin. They were directed towards the tall man that had shot Josh, but they all missed. The man stood unfazed by the attempt on his life. He made some hand gestures and two more men emerged from the woods, closing in on the door. Another noise erupted from the boat house; it was that of an engine. Almost instantaneously a louder gun sounded and the smaller building went up in flames, and explosion shattering the windows.
“Sedgewick, go find the body of whoever was in there!” The man commanded.
Seeing the boat house explode brought Jake back to reality. Regaining composure, he attempted to break free from Lorenz’ grasp and run to the Dustin’s aid. The explosion had been menacing and the building blazed furiously. Jake wasn’t sure how Dustin could have survived. He was probably dead. Once again he remembered Josh’s body, lying in front of the cabin, covered in blood. Jake refused to look but continued in his struggle to escape. However, his captor held a death grip, making almost any movement impossible.
“Give it up Shawn,” The man’s voice echoed through the darkness, “Just come out with your hands on your head and we won’t have to kill you and your friends.”
At the sound of a movement from inside the cabin, one of the approaching men moved forward and kicked the front door down. Another gunshot stung the air and the intruder recoiled, nursing his arm. Hs partner went to assist him, but Shawn erupted from the entrance, firing bullets in all directions. The wounded man found one of them inside his face and he crumpled to the ground. Shaking his head in disgust or perhaps pity, the man who appeared to be the leader lifted his gone and put a well-placed shot into Shawn’s neck, following it with another two to the chest. Shawn was dead before he landed. The white cowboy hat tumbled of his bloody head and disappeared into the night. Jake was violently sick again.
“Alright boys, find the rest of them and grab the bodies.” The man ordered, “Come on, let’s move! Wait, leave Morgan. Let his dad find him.”
After Jake finished vomiting, Lorenz carried him out into the clearing. The man regarded him momentarily.
“Get him in the van.” He said briskly before addressing another man who carried a body in his arms. “How is he Sedgewick?”
“He’ll live sir, but he’s got some bad burns. His shirt was on fire when I found him.” Sedgewick answered.
“It’s nothing they can’t fix.” The man stated casually, “They can fix all of it.”
Jake stared up at Dustin’s charred body. The skin on his back and on the left half of his face was mangled and almost unidentifiable. Blisters covered the scorched flesh and it emitted a foul aroma. He felt as though he would be sick again, but instead his head began to swirl. So much had gone wrong that day; his birthday. So many murders, it was terrible. The stalker, Shawn, and… he refused to think about his cousin. His now flowing tears were hidden by the reemerging rain, which immediately drenched the large crowd now gathered outside the cabin. Jake was being moved again, probably to the van they had mentioned. Sure enough, he soon saw a jet black van, barely visible through the rain. Like its destination, it was an enigma. Where he was being taken, he had no idea, and the extra mental stress was too much to bear. The dark interior of the van was the last thing Jake remembered before he passed out cold.