30 Days
Day 11 part 2
"She just sits there, looking off into space not saying anything." Lance said as Steve watched the screen in the security room. He took a sip of his coffee.
"Tell Stein he needs to sew himself some taste buds. This coffee is weaker than shit." Steve said.
"Stein's coffee making abilities aside, " Lance said, "I have the latest black blood count numbers, and let me tell ya brother it ain't good."
"How bad, Pre-Kishen or Full?" Steve asked.
"This black blood is resistant to any sort of agent we use on it. Stein says there may be no cure for it." Lance said and sipped his coffee. He scrunched his face in displeasure.
"I told ya that shit was bad, I should make the damn coffee." Steve said.
"Let's focus on Maka here." Lance said.
"I agree with you one-hundred percent. Now what about upping the dosage on the black blood-cleansing agents, have we tried that?" Steve said.
"Stein says it could be possible but has no concrete proof that it won't damage her red blood cells. This is quite a quandary we have ourselves in Steve."
"I'll have a talk with Kami about it. She has been doing extensive research on Black Blood since 2008. If anyone would know it would be her." Steve said and drained his coffee in one drink. He tossed the cup in the trash.
Maka heard the voice in her head, the one keeping her bound to darkness. It whispered to her like a best friend, wanting to share a secret.
"You know what you must do." The voice said. Maka nodded and reached under the mattress for the knife. Getting up she walked toward down the hall looking for her target.
"No response, are you sure?" Kami said as she and Steve walked down the hall.
"That's Stein's figure not mine. I came to you to see what other options there were, besides the cleansers." Steve said.
"I don't know of any other options save for a complete changeover." Kami said.
"Like what Keith Richards does every month?" Steve said.
"I have it on good authority that Mr. Richards does not get his blood changed like a Chevrolet gets its oil done every 3,000 miles. Still it is a similar process if that's what you're thinking." She said.
"I don't think a complete replacement will do anything but kill her. I just wish we knew what was going on in there." Steve said. It was then he heard the nervous titter of a young girl. Maka raced toward Steve. She slashed at him, tearing open his blue silk shirt at the sleeve. Steve spun and knocked the knife out of her hand with a swift kick he then climbed on top of her pinning her to the floor.
"I need some help here!" He shouted. He then saw the black spider like spot on the back of her head. Maka fidgeted under his grasp. Steve grabbed the spot just as Stein and Spirit arrived to back him up. The spot made a "squee" sound as he freed it from her neck. It had eight legs and two fangs.
"Stop," Maka screamed, "Stop, make it stop! You're hurting me, stop!"
"Maka, it's okay, do you know where you are?" Steve asked.
"You're hurting me you furry pervert!" Maka shouted.
"She thinks I'm Free. take her to the infirmary, If she gives you any more trouble, shoot her up with some tranquilizers," Steve said Maka stopped moving and began to close her eyes. "Or not, either way she's pretty screwed up." Spirit picked up his daughter and walked to the infirmary. Steve held the bug up to Stein.
"You have any idea what this is?" Steve said.
"Give me some time and I will." Stein said.
"Make it snappy. Tell the guards to send Takinawa into the meeting room, I want to talk to him and see what he knows. Make sure he's secure, I'm talking shackles and handcuffs if we have them." Steve said and went down the hall.
Shinji Takinawa sat across from Steve in the meeting room on the opposite side.
"I hope you know why you're here." Steve said.
"Why is any of us here, that is an eternal mystery to man." Shinji said.
"That's not a mystery I contemplate when the power goes out." Steve said. Shinji laughed.
"I am sure you think of many things, deep things Mr. Shroyer. Quid pro Quo, I ask you a question you ask me a question. I like doing it that way." The ninja said.
"I don't have the time, nor am I in the mood for the Hannibal Lecter bullshit. Bottom line: Who are you working for, names and addresses now?" Steve said.
"I am sure Mr. D'éclair and Mr. Ford would be glad to help you with that. Quid Pro Quo Mr. Shroyer?" Shinji continued
"Knock it off, or I can send your ass to solitary confinement in a real shithole of a cell here." Steve said.
"You told him that didn't you? Whenever he started rambling on about his favorite book you'd tell him to knock it off Tell me, how do you think dear Old Matt felt when those boys beat him to death?" Shinji said coldly.
"That's enough." Steve said.
"They not only beat your poor brother, those brutish savages stuck things inside him things that didn't belong, things not of human or animal origin. You think that he screamed like a little girl when they took that Bacardi bottle and stuck it in his," Shinji said Steve cut him off.
"You shut your god damn mouth right now or I will fucking end you." He shouted.
"He wondered where you were, he loved you so much. You were his hero. 'Bro? Bro? Where are you?' he cried while the leaves fell on his battered corpse." Shinji said.
"Get this fucking son of a bitch out of this room before I commit homicide." Steve shouted. Guards walked in and picked Shinji up by his underarms. Shinji blew Steve a kiss as he was led away. Steve looked at his watch, it was almost one, and hours left until his day ended.
Kami knocked on Steve's office door to no response. When she turned the knob she saw Steve staring intently at a computer screen. Walking behind him she saw the headline.
"Local Fraternity Brothers Found Guilty." She placed her hand on Steve's shoulder making him jump.
"Sweet Jesus, don't do that!" Steve said.
"Sorry. What's this, some frat boy case from your alma mater?" Kami said.
"I was 25 at the time," Steve said. "Lance, Marco and I were working on our little project. That was 2002. My younger brother Matt had just started at Kent. He loved the Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice and decided to go as a vampire for Halloween. I said I'd go with him downtown but I got caught up in my work and forgot all about it. When I got back to the apartment there was a message from Campus PD. He was found in Centennial Field, beat up. His brain swelled in his skull so much that it pushed out into his spine. I later learned what happened." Steve said.
"What happened?" Kami said.
Steve continued. "He found himself near fraternity row and he happened to encounter some members of Sig Chi. He went to their house, hit on someone's girlfriend and one of the brothers kept him there until all the others had left. They took turns beating him up. One of them came up with the idea of using the Bacardi bottle as a toy and they, well let's say it wasn't pretty. By the time they had realized what they had done. They were too drunk to care and tossed his body in the grassy area near one of the dorms. One of the brothers who testified said he was crying for me to save him. "
"Oh god, I'm so sorry." Kami said.
"If I hadn't been such a workaholic I would have helped him. My parents and I rarely speak now. I moved from Kent to here to get away from it all. Takinawa knew about it though and he barely even knows me." He said.
"Look, why don't you go home. You've had a rough day and I think you need some time to think." Kami said.
"Thanks, if Stein finds something about that bug, have him call me." Steve said shutting his computer down and walking to the door. Kami gave him a peck on the lips.
"Did you just?" Steve said. Kami nodded.
"You need it." She said. Steve smiled and walked towards his car.
11:22 PM
"It's a spider, no doubt about that." Stein said.
"How did it get on Maka is the question?" Steve said adjusting the phone in his hand.
"Well we know it's what was giving her the black blood." Stein said.
"Is she still draining? Steve said.
"We've changed the pillow cases several times. I don't know how we could clean them up without having someone get contaminated." Stein said.
"My advice is to put a tube in the hole and give it somewhere to drain other than the bed." Steve said. It was just then he heard the apartment door open.
"I wonder what she's doing home this late?" Steve said to himself.
"Who?" Stein said.
"Crona, and Kid went on a date tonight. They went to see Black Swan." Steve said getting up from his chair.
"Kinda young for that movie aren't they?" Stein said.
"Kid is old enough for R rated movies. Can I call you back?" Steve said. Stein agreed and he hung up. Steve walked out of his study and went to the hallway.
"Crona?" He shouted. No response, he heard footsteps and then the thick sound of someone slamming themselves into a chair.
"Crona sweetie, you're home late. I thought you said you would be home by ten." Steve said walking into the living room. No answer, his recliner rocked gently.
"Crona, we have a big order coming in from Deadite Press tomorrow, you need to get some sleep." Steve said. He walked over to the chair. "Come on hon, time for bed." He looked in the chair, and gasped. There sitting in the blue recliner was his long dead brother. Blood oozed from his head like a waterfall. His grey skin pulsed with maggots underneath, his eyeballs were poking from outside their sockets.
"Hiya bro! You know I missed you while I was down there, alone. It's so cold and there's no books for me to read." Matt said his voice a gruff, gargled mess.
"No, you're not real!" Steve shouted.
"You just had to hang out with your gay otaku buddies, no time for matty no no. Well that's all over now. You're coming with me, trust me you'll have fun. Everybody is mad down there, madness is a way of life." Matt said.
"Go away! Leave me alone!" Steve shouted. Matt jumped off the chair and planted himself on the ceiling. He crawled liked a spider, across the length of the living room before stopping overhead where his brother was cowering. Opening his mouth, Black spiders fell down covering Steve. He could feel their legs tickle his skin. He screamed and gagged as they crawled in his mouth. He then opened his eyes and saw Crona standing over him.
"Dad? What's wrong?" Crona said.
"I don't know. I need to go to Shibusen. Maybe Lance and Jennifer's, and have some tests run. Steve said and slid his shoes on.
TBC