A/N: Another 'R' rated chapter. You've been warned. ( Refer to new notes heading Chapter 1. )
Chapter 26
I know Miles, but it is the first time I have heard his name. He was the one life I spared in my bloody rampage three years ago.
Of course now, seeing him glowering at me, laughing at my helplessness while my mother lies dying on a hospital bed, I wish I hadn't. Some people never learn from their mistakes.
His was getting involved with my family.
" What, now you're going to pretend you don't remember that one snowy Iowan night? " Miles scratches his throat, and I think maybe I will strangle him, " You killed my brother that night. You made me beg for my life. Well, now I will enjoy watching you beg for your mother's." His lip curls into a sadistic grin, " You know what they say about payback."
I pretend to be deep in thought, " Your brother…my memory fails me, was he the tough guy I skewered with a lamppost, or the imbecile who jumped me with a combat knife? " To anyone else, I would have apologized. I am not proud of that one night I lost control, and I haven't lost control since. But Miles is really rubbing me the wrong way, and I have no doubt that if I get free tonight, I will spill more human blood.
I have pressed the right buttons.
Furious, Miles turns on Dr. Otson. " I say we kill her now! Kill her and make him watch! "
Dr. Otson shakes his head, smarter than he looks, " Mrs. Wesker stays alive for the time being, my quick-tempered friend. We kill her, and Alan'll never give us what we want." He turns to me, beady eyes brimming with anticipation. " And what we want is…your blood." He shoves a pudgy hand into his labcoat pocket and pulls out a syringe, " You following, Mr. Wesker? "
I glare fiercely into the eyes of the quack Dr., causing him to blink.
He is afraid of me. He is worried what might happen to him should I escape.
Miles, on the other hand, is confident in the delusion that I will never escape.
Perhaps the obese doctor isn't so dumb after all. Not when compared to his weasely assistant, anyway.
" Yeah! " Miles pipes up, " You give us your blood and…wait a minute," He turns back to Dr. Otson, " why don't we just kill him and take his blood? "
Dr. Otson shakes his head, tsk-tsking. " Easy there, Killer. Wesker's son is worth far more to us alive. Besides, we made need him as bait to trap his father."
Miles frowns, truly upset that he can't just murder me and be done with it, " What about drugging him? "
Dr. Otson grows annoyed, " We don't know what, if any, effect that would have on him. Might not do a thing, or it might react violently with his virus. Blackmail is so much more practical in this case, my eager assistant."
" Fine, fine." Miles mutters miserably.
Dr. Otson points a thick finger in the direction of the filing cabinet. " I believe you know what to do."
With a curt nod, the ex-UBCS member heads for the filing cabinet in the corner of the room.
" Such a pity," Dr. Otson sighs, examining the helpless form of my mother almost regretfully, " She is such a beautiful specimen."
" And you're a fat pig! " I growl. It is not much of an exaggeration. That man looks as if he has been living on donuts and pizza for the last thirty years. The only time he probably ever jogs is when the ice-cream truck is pulling out.
And I dislike hearing my mother referred to as a 'specimen'.
Dr, Otson faces me with an intense frown. " It would be wise to watch what you say with your mother's life on the line."
The scent of gunpowder hits me like a wave, and even before Miles finishes pulling it out of the cabinet I know he has a gun.
Chuckling evilly, he takes it over to the stretcher where my mother is still out cold.
I watch with horror as he presses the cold metal into her throat, finger hovering millimeters over the trigger.
" He does tend to get trigger-happy." Dr. Otson laughs, approaching my cage until only the laser bars and mere inches separate us.
I wonder how funny he'd feel with no arms.
" No, really now," He straightens, attaining a more serious posture, " Give us your blood, and I guarantee you no further harm will come to your mother." He holds the syringe carefully between the sizzling bars of the cage, totally unaware that it would be a simple matter for me to grab the syringe and yank him into the deadly bars too quickly for him to react should I feel so inclined.
And that's just what I would do, if not for the fact that Miles would kill Mom.
I take hold of the syringe, checking my killer urge, and draw it slowly into my cage.
Mom stirs a bit on her bed, and Miles watches her intently, ready to pull the trigger at the faintest provocation. She looks so tired and drained…it wrenches my heart to see her like this. She never did anything to deserve this kind of torture.
This is for you, Mom. I think as I prick the needle into my wrist and watch the tube fill up with my special ichor.
" Uh-oh, we have problems. " Miles's sudden remark startles me, " Alexia! "
" Believe me, I get out of here, and I'll make Alexia look like your best friend." I sneer, following the direction of Miles's nervous eyes.
There on the view screen, nosing around a laundry room, is Alexis, not Alexia. Though I have to admit that Alexis does in fact bear a strong resemblance to her mother, it is not strong enough for them to be mistaken for identical twins. In addition to the widow's peak on Alexis's forehead, there are some other very noticeable differences between the two. Alexis's features are laid out a bit differently, and she doesn't have quite as harsh a look about her. Plus she's a lot younger. No way I'd ever confuse the two.
" She's getting closer! " Miles sound petrified.
Dr. Otson studies the image nervously. " That's the room just next door! "
I resist the urge to laugh out loud. They want to think it's Alexia, let 'em think it's Alexia.
The mad doctor rushes to the screens, and now his head is blocking my view. " She's coming in! "
At that very instant, the door behind my laser cage creaks open and a bewildered Alexis steps into the room.
" Alexia! " I holler, winking at Alexis in hopes that she will understand.
Miles has a gun, but he may feel far less inclined to use it if he thinks he's dealing with the girl from his nightmares.
Yet I am still very worried for Alexis's safety. I can see now that she is carrying no firearm, and it's very possible that Miles could kill her. Her very survival may depend on her acting skills. I silently pray for her.
For a split second, Alexis is shocked and completely silent as she takes in her new surroundings.
" M…Miss Alexia, p…please don't k…k…kill me." Fortunatley, Miles is not only bloodthirsty, he is downright stupid if he thinks such a plea would work on Alexia.
In his fright, he pulls the trigger.
Mom! He killed my mother! I watch with horror as Mom takes her last painful breath, the bullet embedding itself deep into her chest in a spray of red.
At that moment, it is as if time stops. A wild fury rages within me. I want him dead!
I prepare to lunge, then leap back, hissing in rage at the red lasers that imprison me. I want out!
" The Weskers are mine! I should flay you groveling worms alive! " Alexis sneers, assuming the role of her evil mother and doing her best to ignore me and not show her true reaction to Mom being shot.
Clever girl.
She prances past my laser cage and right for them, with the air of a true queen.
Dr. Otson looks like he's about to have a heart-attack. " Alexia, we've…" He stops mid-sentence. Out of the corner of his eye, he has caught sight of the true Alexia in another room with Alfred. She's throwing fire at a zombie, thus leaving no doubt to her true identity.
Uh-oh. That can't be good!
Luckily, Alexis notices too.
" Hey…you're not Alexia! "
" Good guess." Alexis dives for Miles's gun.
" Get the remote out of his pocket! " I yell, " Then you can free me! " I seriously want to hurt these people. I get out of here, I will murder them.
And for once, I will not feel a twinge of remorse. They killed my mother, they deserve to be cut open and thrown in a hog-pit! I can't ever remember hating anyone this much.
Of course, my last remark made Miles fight all the harder. He doesn't want me to get free. A well-justified fear, because he is the one I want to kill the most.
Alexis is in Miles's grip now, wrestling him for the gun.
'Bam!' Another shot goes off, barely missing an enraged Dr. Otson.
Darnit.
He flings himself into the fight, attempting to tackle Alexis football-style. But she dodges at just the right moment, and the overweight man nails Miles instead.
Taking advantage of their awkward moment, Alexis grabs a coffee cup from off a counter nearby and busts Dr. Otson over the head with it.
It's enough to daze the doctor, but not quite knock him out.
Miles struggles from under his partner, and Alexis grabs his gun.
" Give it up, Blondie! " For a brief second, he releases one hand from his gun and brings it up into her jaw.
Alexis staggers back a bit, but does not relinquish her grip.
Frustrated, Miles swings the gun violently to one side in an attempt to shake her hold, and the trigger again goes off; this time piercing my mother's side!
I can't help but to cry out.
Two people are going to be seriously dead when I get out of here!
Neither Alexis nor Miles has time to see where the stray bullet hit.
" Alexis, look out! " I call, warning her that Dr. Otson is getting back up and into the game.
The mad doctor charges like a bull.
Acting quickly, Alexis finally surrenders the gun and grabs Miles by the arm, using ever ounce of her strength to swing him towards my cage.
" Ahhhhhh! " Miles screams in agony as the laser bar of my cage nips his left elbow, rendering it bloody and neatly sliced. He only barely pulls away before I would've grabbed him. The scent of his burning flesh fills the room, and blood spills into my cage, vaporizing where it touches the lasers.
While he is distracted, Alexis manages to take the gun and shoots him in the abdomen.
He crumples to the floor, writhing in pain, and Alexis's hand darts into his pocket, and emerges second later with the remote to my cage.
Oh goody!
" Who are you? " Miles gasps, backing into the wall directly in front of my cage, his fearful eyes now looking up to Alexis who has the gun pointed at him.
Alexis grins evilly, and for once it is not a phony expression. " Me? I'm an Ashford. Alexia's daughter." Her eyes shift to Dr. Otson, now backing away into his own little corner, hands raised.
" Please Miss, we never met to hurt anyone! " A lame attempt for an excuse if ever there was one.
" Yes you did." Alexis's tone is not friendly. Her eyes burn with a blue fire, and she narrows them on Miles.
Miles sighs. " I suppose you're going to kill us then? Please don't, I…"
Alexis does not allow him to finish. " I'm not going to kill you," She says rather calmly, casting an eye to my cage.
" Oh good…" He has spoken too soon.
" I'm pretty sure Alan there won't need my help."
" What?! "
Alexis tries a couple different buttons on the remote. My cage bars fade and then disappear altogether.
Miles stares at my like Death itself. " Oh sh…"
I lunge, grabbing Miles roughly by the head.
" Be quick." Alexis's saddened voice calls from somewhere behind me.
Miles knows he has met his Waterloo. " What she said." He pleads, clenching his eyes firmly shut, " I hope you burn in Hell! "
" Save me a room." I reply, twisting his head violently and effectually breaking every bone in his neck with a sickening snap. He deserved so much more. Too bad I didn't have to the time to hand him over to my dad for an out-and-out torture. He knows more about that stuff than I do.
Movement from the corner catches my eye. Dr.Otson fidgets near the cabinet, probably hoping to draw out some other weapon or device to trap us. Too bad he will not get the chance.
Yet I do not feel like getting my hands dirty this time. Without warning, I simply snatch the gun from Alexis's hand and fire a shot into his head. He drops like a sack of potatos, and I drop the smoking gun to the floor.
Mom. I approach her, her eyes closed and lying so lifelike she appears not to be dead, but merely sleeping. As if she could awaken at any moment.
I yank the wires from her now peaceful body and graze a hand against her still warm cheek, gently caressing it, as if it can offer some comfort in her soul's journey to the afterlife.
She's gone.
My mother is gone.
The same woman who used to tuck me in bed at nights, who used to sing to me and play with me. The woman who used to watch my school plays and stand up for me when no one else would. She loved me. She believed in me. And now she is dead.
A thin white blanket lies unceremoniously in a heap at the end of her bed. I cover her body with it until nothing but locks of her dark brown hair can be seen hanging over the sides of the stretcher. Something warm, wet, and salty trickles down my cheek.
Am I…crying? Haven't done that in a while. As in years.
If only I had gotten here sooner! If only I had killed Miles the first time we met! If only…too many 'if only's.
I hurt inside. But it is a pain like no other--a pain not even my virus can cure--which aches and aches.
I never even got to say goodbye! I never said anything to her since yesterday when she first radioed for help. I told her I was coming. I came too late.
I pass my mother's final resting place and stand to face the wall.
This isn't fair! She didn't deserve this!
My mind flashes again to Miles, and my anger flares up stronger than ever before.
Enrage--and wishing I had been more useful--I ram my fist into the wall as hard as I can. And that's pretty damn hard.
Chunks of wood and plaster explode under my knuckles, and my arm sinks through the gaping hole where my fist closes on air on the other side.
" Why did it have to be like this?! " I rage, halfway wishing Miles were still alive so I could make him deader, " Why?! "
A hand falls upon my shoulder.
I free my arm and spin around, ready to take the person's head off.
Alexis backs up a bit, startled. " I…I'm sorry, Alan. We did what we could. I think she would've appreciated our efforts."
I sigh, forcing myself to calm down. She's right. I was laser-caged, and if I had tried to escape, I wouldn't have been any use to Mom anyway in neatly-sliced strips.
There was nothing I could've done.
Alexis casts her eyes to my mom, then downward, silently grieving for me. But she couldn't possibly understand…she never knew my mother.
Then, " Is that yours? " She points to the forgotten vial of blood I dropped on the floor while I was preoccupied.
Without a word, or even a gesture to show I even heard her, I go over and pick it up.
" My blood…" I twist the tube in my hand, holding it up into the light and gazing intently into the red elixir. It looks perfectly normal. Looks can be deceiving. Within that red liquid somewhere lies a powerful virus, perhaps the only good virus ever to exist. " This was what they were after. It would be a bad idea leave this just lying around. Don't want somebody else picking it up."
With no other obvious solution in sight, I inject the blood back into my wrist where it belongs and drop the empty container to the floor. Heck, I'll heal quickly.
Now Alexis is at my side, wrapping her arms around me in a tight embrace, doing her best to comfort me.
I hug her back, taking extra care not to crush her. When she pulls away, I find myself wanting more.
" You looked like you needed a hug." She supplies with a sad smile, " Oh, and I don't know if I've said this before, but thanks for being there for me when Maggie died. That was when I needed a hug." She gestures to the late Miles and Dr. Otson, " At least we got the jerks who did this."
I nod, still trying to come to grips. " Yes. The weird thing was, I thought killing Miles would make me feel better, bring me some sense of justice."
" Did it? "
" Maybe a little," I admit, " but not nearly as much as I thought it would. It didn't stop the pain. I guess time is the only cure for that." I sigh, " I wish I had time to move her, or at least have a funeral or something…it just seems wrong to leave her here, but…" I trail off, eyes fixed on the still form of my mother.
Dad and Spade aren't going to like this.
Wait a minute…Spade! She's still in the library! They're probably worried about me, I'd better hurry back to them.
" My sister," I blurt suddenly, " I left her in the library! "
I rush to the main computer, kicking Dr. Otson's body aside like an old bag of nails in the process.
I really don't want to travel through the ventilation shafts again, especially with Alexis. Too uncomfortable. Besides, exiting is always much less graceful than entering.
I'm pretty good with computers, so it takes me all of ten seconds to draw up a map of the place. Thankfully, our current position is highlighted in green. Much to my relief, the library is only a few rooms away. Getting there should be a breeze.
I turn away, making a mental note of the doors we must pass through for the quickest route.
" Come on." I lead the way out the door, with one last backward glance at my mother.
" Goodbye Mom." I whisper over my shoulder, struggling to hold back the tears that threaten to overwhelm me, " I tried. I love you."