To the Edge and Back

To the Edge and Back: Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The next morning, seven riders on horseback are seen riding toward the farm. Alex, Dylan, and Julie are at the front of the group. The four others are close behind.

I see two girls, twins, they both have chestnut brown hair and tan skin. They're riding beside each other. They are both dressed in the same outfit of dark brown tee-shirts and jogging pants.

The rider behind them has stark white hair and an incredibly pale complexion. He seems to be staring into the distance and not paying attention to anything but the wind. He looks at me for a second and then quickly looks away.

The last rider in the line is a lanky guy with dark brown hair and gray stormy eyes. He has a panicky look in his eyes. His horse is carrying a variety of weapons on the saddle.

Tony moves one of the buses out of the way to allow them through. Taylor escorts them to the barn so that they can put their horses with the others. I walk back inside the house. I climb up the stairs and go to my tiny room.

It was originally a storage room but I easily turned it into a livable area. It only has a tiny mattress with a few spare blankets thrown on top of it. There's no bed frame. What very little clothes I have are in a pile in the corner. I sit down on my bed to think about what I should do with Dereck. An idea comes to my mind. A very dark idea.

I head down to the garage where Jonny and Zach are working on making the bus armored. I head past them to grab a toolbox off the shelf. I sneak over to the basement entrance. I head down the creaky steps to the cold concrete floor. Dereck is sitting in the corner, asleep.

"Wake up!" I yell as I hit him in the side of the head with the toolbox. He awakes, angry and confused. "What the hell was that for?" He asks. He shudders when he sees that it's me. "What do you want from me!" He screams. "Revenge," I calmly reply, "I'm going to kill you, but not today. No, today, you suffer." He looks terrified when he sees me holding the toolbox in my hands. "What are you gonna do to me?" He asks with a horrified look on his face. "No spoilers," I say with a smirk on my face.

I pull a cordless drill from the toolbox. I carefully select the sharpest tip I find for the drill. I grab a dirty sweat rag from the box and stuff it into Dereck's mouth. I don't want anyone to hear his cries of anguish.

I press the button on the drill to make it spin. I slowly lower down to Dereck's wound were I shot him with an arrow. He tries to struggle but I hold him still. The drill tears into his flesh. His muffled screams aren't heard.

After a few minutes of this, I become bored. I pull the drill ou of his hand slowly to enhance his pain. I leave the gag in Dereck's mouth. I put the drill back into the toolbox. I turn and walk back up the steps. When I reach the top, Keaton is waiting for me.

"How's it going, Nathan?" He asks. "Good," I reply with a confused look. "What were you doing in the basement?" He demands. "Why do you care what I do?" I ask him. Keaton angrily responds, "Because there's a man down there that I know you want to kill! I'm done with you and everything you've done since we've had to live like this!"

He brings his fist to my face before I can react. I fall to the ground but quickly recover. I kick Keaton in his knee with all my strength. He goes down to a kneel. I throw an elbow into his jaw. I get on top of him and begin to deliver blow after blow to his face. His foot kicks me in the back and I fall off of him.

Tony sees us fighting and runs over. He pulls me away from his son. "What the hell are you two doing!" I yell In reply, "Your son attacked me!" Keaton slowly starts to rise to his feet. "He's insane!" He says, pointing at me, "He has these claws that he built so that he can kill easier! He wants to kill Dereck and I'm pretty sure he was just torturing him!"

"Is this true?" Tony asks. By this time, everyone had gathered around us. "He's lying," I lie. I can tell that no one believes me. Except Zach. "I believe him," Zach says to the crowd, "I know Nathan and he would never torture someone because they threatened him." The crowd of people start to believe Zach's words.

They disperse and go back to what they were doing. Keaton glares at me as he walks away. Only Zach stays.

"Thank you," I say to him. "No problem," he replies. I can tell that he didn't actually believe what I had said. We walk away from each. I have an evil look in my eyes. I could feel a black spot beginning to form on my heart. Is this what evil felt like?