A Life Internal - A Fable

Epilogue

Cole's flashlight beam danced through the empty hallways of the hospital. He had to admit, it was quite an ingenious place for the cocky fuck to hide. He would never had found it if the guy hadn't been so careless as to leave his car sitting right out in front of the place.

"Why the fuck do they put so many rooms in these damn places?" Cole asked to nobody in particular and silence answered him. He had began searching room by room what felt like hours ago and he had found no sign of the Blake guy.

As he went he came across a series of doors made of thick steel and locked from outside with deadbolts. After looking inside of one he realized that they were the isolation cells for mentally ill patients. Their padded walls ensured that they could not harm themselves.

He nearly passed up the rest of them entirely, surely he wouldn't be in a room locked from the outside, when he heard a sound that sounded a lot like heavy breathing coming from the last one in the row. Cautiously he approached it and opened the door, leading with the automatic handgun he carried in the hand opposite his flashlight. As the door opened he was surprised to find that the room was dimly lit; not only that, but it was also inhabited.

"Alright Blake, its been quite an experience for the both of us I'm sure...but its over now."

He said with a smirk. Here he had nearly been afraid that this guy would be waiting for him with a weapon or have trapped the place. But here the guy was just sitting in the corner of this cell by himself staring into space.

Blake did not respond at all, instead he continued to stare at the doorway where Cole stood. Cole felt his temper flare slightly, "Maybe you didn't hear me, fuckbag, its over, get on your damn feet and take me to where you stashed the money." Again, Blake did not move or respond at all. "My patience is running out. That was a lot of money you ran off with and I have absolutely no difficulties putting a bullet in your head right now and finding it myself in this God forsaken place if need be." That was an idle threat but he made it sound as convincing as he could, it had been far too difficult for him to track this guy down. That FBI act he had used back at the hotel when he had first caught up with him had not been easy to pull off, counterfeit badges cost a small fortune on their own these days, but be damned if some amateur like this was going to beat him to a job. He had cased that store for weeks, he knew everything about it: the employees, the owner, the safe...everything. And this little shit comes along and snatches the loot right out from underneath of him. He wouldn't kill him, yet, but he certainly would make his shortened life hell until he told him where the money was hidden.

"I'll count to five, Blake. You had better answer me by then...I'm not leaving here without that money," Cole's eyes narrowed at Blake and he leveled the gun on him. With these words, though, Blake finally reacted, his lips parted slightly as if to cough, but instead emitted the sound of a light chuckle. "Don't fuck with me Blake!" He fired a shot into the wall to William's side in anger. "Where's the money? Tell me NOW!" Blake began chuckling harder, the light chuckle evolved into hysterical full blown laughter. Cole wondered to himself now if this guy hadn't lost it.

The laughter came to an abrupt halt and Blake's gaze now fell on the hallway behind Cole, the look on his face was one of absolute terror. Cole followed the gaze with his gun, and standing behind him was a little girl looking up at him with a cute grin. In one hand she had a briefcase that he recognized as the one Blake had carried out of the store when he had fled. She had the money! He reached out for it without pausing to see her other hand until the scalpel it held was embedded into his outstretched forearm. He yelled in pain and dropped his gun in surprise. As it struck the ground the child quickly ran off into the darkness. Like hell, Cole thought, you won't get away from me. He gave chase, not even stopping to retrieve his gun in his anger. He followed the sound of her footsteps up a flight of steps and emerged into a ruined hallway, its walls browned and decayed. "Where are you, you little bitch...I'm gonna make you pay for that trick of yours"

Off in the distance he heard her giggle and her footsteps echoed, but in the empty building it was almost impossible to discern them from the echo they made. He whipped around with the flashlight, looking all around him frantically for her. It was then that he heard another sound. It sounded like...clicking? Something warm blew on the back of Cole's neck and he turned to see its source.

The End