Black Box 86ed (13 page)

“Why in the hell would he do that?”

“It doesn't mean anything he was just being friendly.”

“O bull shit Roger.”

“I'm telling you the truth alright. He's got an apartment in one of these high rises and if we get there we’ll be safe until things settle down out here.”

“So let me get this straight, when I’m off making extra deliveries so you can pay that god dam pi to look for your kids. Y
ou’re off gallivanting around getting codes to some guy’s back door?”

“O Jesus Christ it's not like I asked for it. We were talkin and he just offered it to me.
Ain't my fault.

“Hey, Hey
!” Grace yells

“What
?” They scowl in reply.

Pointing down the street her hand shaking, “Look.”

We all turn looking about four
blocks down a sea of men sprinting straight at us.

“Hide
! We need to get up a level.” Roger yells.

We quickly turn to the stairs sprinting up two flights. Reaching the third level I sprint to the edge hiding behind the wall to the street and a pillar. I peek out as they run by. One man yelling over a bullhorn
.

“This is it! First Chicago then the country!” A chorus of cheers fills the air.

“Holy hell” Roger gasps.
“
This is pretty dam real. They are going to overtake Chicago.”

“We need out today
!” Over exclaims.

“Ok wise guy which way should we go? We could head back to Union Station where all hell is breaking loose, or we could just go to where these fellas came from. Or hell we could try to get through the south side but if you ask me were are safer going back to Union Station than dealing with all the thugs that probably have full reign over their turf.”

“Well we have to do something is just a matter of time till we are found by the wrong people.” Over retorts

“We need to stick with the plan like it or lump it, we have no other options.”

“Wait and see that’s your idea escaping Chicago?”

“Unless you’ve had some big fucking epiphany on how to get us out of here then yes, yes it is. We can see the whole dam skyline from his place.”

“How in the hell do you know that?”

“I’m just fucking guessing Over,
now is not the time. I
t’s the only idea we have; we’ll sit and wait it out.
I doubt it can get much worse than what it's about to be.”

A piercing squeal flies overhead and down into the street below about fifteen men are blown into the air as screams of surprise and pain are cried out.

“Positions,
” one man screams over a loud speaker as the crowd splinters, men running into different buildings while others continue down the street. We look down the block to see another stream of men similar in size to the one below us.

“Jesus Christ lets hurry up and get to that apartment.” Roger orders.

CHAPTER…

Explosions and near constant gunfire echo in a throng off the buildings. Roger running at a dead sprint we try our best to keep up. Looking to Grace her face plastered with fear. I try to think of some encouraging statement but my fight or flight reflex apparently makes me incapable of any real thoughts.

Sprinting through alleys and a few parking garages we finally make it the six blocks to the man mistress’s place. A crazy tall skyscraper nearing the edge of downtown. Roger making it first to the doors they refuse to budge to his flailing attempts to rip them open.

“What now?” Over screams his voice cracking into falsetto.

“Break the fucking window!” Roger yells in reply running to a parked car he flings the door open.

Over at a dead sprint puts his shoulder into the glass, bouncing off grabbing his neck. “Fucking security Glass,
” he bellows.

“I’ll put the car in neutral and roll it in!” Roger screams. I run to the side getting ready to push. Roger grabbing the gear shift like a mad man he tries to force it from park to neutral, snapping it off in the process. A long and winding fuck streams out of the car.

“The trunk!
Open the trunk” I yell to him. He hits the button, the trunk lid pops open. I throw the contents one by one onto the ground. A blanket, emergency kit, soccer and
basketballs, finally getting to the good stuff.
I toss a baseball bat to Over and the car jack to Roger, they sprint to the door as I find a golf club. Our melee weapons doing nothing but bouncing straight off. Get out of the way Over screams as he backs up putting his entire weight into one blow in the center of the glass. The bat immediately bouncing into Rogers’s unsuspecting face. He crumples to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

“Ooo, I’m a sonovabitch,” Over cries
and runs to his side as I continue my assault on the door. “He’s fu
cking knocked out!”
He yells
, the words feel more meant for himself then me and Grace.

Wait… Where the hell is Grace? I whip around and she’s nowhere to be seen. “Where is she?” I yell to Over.

“What? I don’t know, keep at the door Rogers coming back.”

Turning back putting my full weight behind the club towards the center of where the glass has spider webbed.
Closing
my eyes seconds before impact, but I somehow miss. M
y club taking a full swing through the doorframe. Falling from lack of impact I self curb stomp my front teeth on the concrete. A discrete taste of copper entering my mouth.

“God you almost hit me!” Grace cries. I look up to her holding the door for us.

“W
here were you?”

“I went through the parking garage they didn’t lock the door there.”

“Jesus” I exhale standing to help Roger to his feet, we all shuffle into the lobby.

“Wha, w
ha... wha happened?” Roger asks lackidazily.

“You got knocked out.” Over tells him.

“What are you talking about?” He slurs, “where am I
?”

“Jesus” Over exhales shaking him. “Roger snap out of it!”

Slowly coming to he starts to stand on his own power holding his hand to his forehead. “God my head it killing me.”

“Ya I bet, but where do we go now?” I ask.

We stand silently staring at Roger. The
gunfire
and explosions muffled but still loud in the lobby. He takes a few heavy breaths sp
itting a bit with each huff. “53.”

“What? Room 5
3 I don’t think there is such a thing.”

“No Floor.”

“You’ve got to be joking.” Grace says.

“No it’s room 5
373.”

“You really had us run and go through all this to be at the top of a building in the middle of world war three?!” Grace cries out

Roger finally coming around fully. “We’ll be fine, no chance of randomly getting shot, and who in their right mind would blow up a sky scrapper?”
      
“You’re joking right, like that’s not a serious statement,” Grace asks
in disbelief.
      
“No.”

“Oh,
ok I don’t know about you guys but does a little thing called 9/11 ring any fucking bells?”

“These aren’t terrorist, they are Americans both sides are trying to protect the things here, just in different ways. Plus is just apartments it’s not like there is anything valuable to them or critical to either side ya know. Just another obscure
building
in the skyline.”

“I don’t believe this, they blew up our train!” Grace huffs.

The building starts to shake. The rumbling not subsiding as it did with the explosions.

“What the hell is that?” We look
out the front doors as ten FBI ice cream trucks go full speed pass the glass doors. Hiding just in time as they pass us. I look back out to see the twenty or so soldiers sprinting down the street, guns drawn yelling at each other in the confusion of the deafening gunfire.

“Well I’m calling the elevator if any of you want to come with you’re
more than welcome to.” Over says
,
bolting to the row of elevators on the south side of the building.

Hitting the button with a soft ding the doors immediately open.

“Let’s go” I tell Grace;
she hesitates then follows me to the door followed by Roger.

We ride up in silence

CHAPTER…

DING… The elevator door opens to a long hallway,
papers and clothes strewn down the entire length of it. The power flickers complete darkness enters and leaves in an instant. Disorienting, as if I’ve gotten lazy blinking.

Are you sure we are safe here?” Grace asks.

“Listen we are in a deserted building with tinted windows, as long as we are quite and don’t have any lights on in rooms with windows, we could probably spend the whole war up here.”
Roger retorts.

“It’s just, we are eighty floors up. That just does not sound like a good idea. Being eighty floors up in a war zone.” Grace says.
“Plus look at this place, seems like they all left in such a hurry that they just left all their stuff behind.”

“We will be fine,
” Roger replies. Grace looks longingly at me to take her side.

“I think we will be fine. We can see a lot of the area so we need to we can find out the best way out.”

Huffing in disapproval she turns to Roger. “Which one is it again?”

“The end of the hall next to the stairs.”

The entire building rumbles.

“Jesus what is that, grenades?” Over asks

“Don’t know only heard shit like this in the movies.” Roger replies.

The lights go out this time for a good two seconds. Grace
grabbing
my hand holding it surprisingly tight.

“Don’t worry we can take the stairs in the morning if the power goes out.”

Reaching the door Roger puts in the code swinging it open. The amazing Chicago skyline peers at us through the glass wall.
      

“Holy shit this is bigger than my house!” I exclaim.

Grace rushes in, “Jesus Christ
,” she yells, “there’s a tiger.”

“What?”

“They have a tiger rug, correction I have a tiger rug.”

I walk in turning the corner to see Grace petting the head of a tiger in the middle of the living room.

“We are so taking this,” she smiles. A loud crack flows through the building followed by a muted rumble.
The smile quickly fading from Grace’s face.

“Man that was really close,” Roger says behind me.

“It’s fine they aren’t going to shoot down an entire building,” I encourage walking over and
sitting down next to her.

“Ya Miss we don’t have anything to worry about now, just gona have to wait till the government sorts everything out down there.” Roger encourages.

“We shall call him Pumba from the lion king.” I interject trying to change the subject.

“That was the pig’s name you dork,” she says pushing me. “And you might be right it does feel like we are a lot farther from the fighting now.”

“Hey, Roger this guy have any beer?” I ask.

“O I’m sure I can find some.”

Grace rummages through her bag producing her black bowl.

“Ok I think we
deserve a fun night tonight.
I mean look we’re rich!” I exclaim.

She smiles “fine.”

CHAPTER…

Roger and Over come into the living room with a bottle of champaign bickering with each other.

“Picked the most expensive looking one I could find,” Over tells us.

“Aww no beer I guess it will have to do!” Grace smiles.

“Now can you two settle an argument?”
Roger asks.

“Of course.”

“Jesus Christ I swear its fine.” Over exhales

“Now just hold on a minute. This bottle is from the 1920s it can’t be drinkable. I
t’s just a souvenir, am I right?”

“Roger,
I swear champagne doesn’t go bad.”

“Now that’s malarkey almost a hundred years,
that bottle is filled with nothing but poison.”

“Let’s move the couches to the window I want to watch the sunset.” Grace orders interrupting what sounds like an old married couples fight.
      

“Fine, Roger Over you guys wanna help?” I ask as they nod and we move two couches that probably cost more than my house to the glass wall facing the skyline. I plop down on one
as Grace sits next to me.
Roger and Over tak
ing
the other.

“You guys bring glasses?”

“Yep here ya go,” Over hands us two full glasses of champagne.

“We are loading a bowl if you guys wanna take a hit.”
I tell them.

“Well sounds like a party!” Over hollers.

“Yeehaa!” Roger exclaims immediately after.

The sun is just starting to set we can just see it over the skyline, its red and oranges bouncing off the buildings.

“This is beautiful.” Grace says.

“It sure is,” Over agrees, “kinda crazy how all the horrible business down there is going on while we sit up here in luxury watching the sunset.”

“O don’t bring that up,
was just starting to forget about all that.” Roger whines.

“O sorry it’s just quite insane if you ask me.”

“You know what I just realized we’ve been together all day and I don’t know a thing
about you two.”
Roger says.