“Open your eyes, Gabriel.”
Gabriel obeyed. Victor Calaca’s bony face was pulled back in an open-mouthed grin, but something about it looked different. The room had also changed in a way that Gabriel couldn’t quite put his finger on. It seemed real again, and reality felt more tangible to him than it had in over five years. He was less shaky on his feet, not needing to place quite as much weight on the walker. The colors of the world were astonishingly brighter, like those of a child’s crayon set. The smells were more vivid, and the odors of saline, antiseptic, and bleach stung his nose. The air in his lungs felt cleaner.
Victor laughed heartily and placed his hand on Gabriel’s shoulder. His palm was warm. “Welcome to your real world, Gabriel. Now, do what must be done. I believe in you.”
Then, Victor disappeared out of thin air, as if he’d never existed.
“Victor!”
No answer.
“Victor, where are…?”
The walls creaked. Tiny tremors traveled across the floor like little tap-dancing spiders. The room began rumbling again, and the earthquake that Gabriel had experienced in his mind returned full force. Jagged cracks split open across the ceiling.
“Victor!”
The cracks widened, vomiting chalky dust and debris onto the beds and furniture. The room rocked like a small boat on a tidal wave. The cracks spread farther.
After another few seconds, the rumbling ceased instantaneously, as if someone had shut off the power. Dust hung in the air, making Gabriel cough harshly. When the fit passed, he looked up at the ceiling and saw a thick grey substance squeezing between the cracks. The stuff had the consistency of Silly Putty, and it was a part of something bigger.
Just as he thought that, the rest of the ceiling broke away, and a gelatinous, blob-like thing crashed to the floor like an anvil. Miniature aftershocks vibrated through the walls.
Someone knocked on the door. “Hey, Mr. Schist? Are you awake? Did you close this door?”
Gabriel wasn’t ready for their questions. He didn’t have any explanations that wouldn’t sound insane. They would drug him again.
“Listen,” the man continued, “we heard a loud noise in there, and I swear, if you’re trying to break out again…”
Damn, damn, damn! Gabriel looked around, trying to find the escape that Victor had promised. The nurses would get inside in no time. They’d catch him. They’d monitor him. They’d drug him.
The doorknob jiggled, but the door didn’t move. “Gabriel! What did you do to this door?”
Okay, that bought him some time. He turned back to the Silly-Putty thing. The creature stretched an elongated, plesiosaur-like neck high into the air, revealing an enormous, faceless head and two wriggling antennas.
Michael slid forward, breaking through the wall of dust with the triumphant aura of a war hero pounding his chest. The slug’s enormous pneumostome pulsed.
As the leader of the slugs approached him, Gabriel beamed. “Michael!”
“That’s right, man.” Michael laughed. “Now, let’s blow this joint!”
Chapter 47:
Family
The unknown person pounding on the door was getting angrier by the second. “Hey, Schist! Open this damn door! It’s stuck!”
Gabriel stood awestruck as the dust settled on the linoleum floor. He stepped toward Michael. “Blow this joint? You mean now? The two of us?”
“Yeah, you heard me.” Michael trumpeted. “Pack your bags, ya old goof. And hey, while you’re at it, throw on that ultra-slick trench coat and fedora of yours, too. Chop, chop.”
The knocking was getting more aggressive. Gabriel stumbled over to his closet. He put on his old fedora and threw on his trench coat. Remarkably, when he checked his coat pocket, the poison was still in there, wrapped up in the same plastic bag, along with his notes, an empty plastic vial, and a long syringe filled with the Schist vaccine. He’d forgotten that he’d packed that, and he didn’t remember why. Digging through his backpack at a frantic pace, he removed the two photos of Melanie and Yvonne, tucked them into the plastic bag, and then tossed his backpack to the rear of the closet. Everything else in there was pointless memorabilia, but the photos he wanted on him at all times.
The banging became increasingly violent, sounding as though someone was throwing his entire body against the door. “We’re coming in there, Schist!”
The door rattled. “Open the door, Gabe! Everything’s gonna be A-okay!”
A-okay? Yeah, right. Okay after another dose of ABH, perhaps?
“Hurry up!” Michael cried. “Our mutual friend can’t hold that door closed forever, you know.”
“Mutual… who? What?”
“You know who I’m talking about. Let’s go, man.”
The repeated battering was taking its toll. The door was creaking with each slam.
Bang!
Bang!
“Where are we going?” Gabriel asked.
“You know exactly where we’re going, man! The Sky Amoeba is waiting for us out on the ocean. So make up your mind. You comin’ with? Or are you gonna sit here and sulk?”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Yes, I know, but—” Gabriel threw his hands in the air. “How do we do this? I can barely walk anymore, the windows are barred, and I sure as hell can’t fit through one of those cracks on the ceiling.”
“Then stop wasting time, and climb aboard!”
“Aboard what?”
“Me!” Michael slid his tubular form across the floor with the panache of a figure skater, leaving a trail of slime behind him. He arched his neck down and presented his back to Gabriel. Gabriel stared at him in disbelief. Oh, no way.
“You heard me, buddy ol’ pal,” Michael said. “Jump on my back and hold onto my antennas. Here, I got it. Just pretend I’m your old motorcycle. Do it!”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Gabriel heard a sharp crack as the doorframe splintered. The top of the door was loosened but the bottom held tight. Fingers peeked out from between the upper portion of the door and the jamb. The nurses shouted like murderous banshees.
Gabriel clambered onto Michael’s back. He awkwardly rested one leg on each side, straddling the oversized slug like a mechanical bull. He sank a few inches into the grey flesh, creating a surprisingly secure pouch. He wrapped his hands around Michael’s antennas, trying to pretend that they were handlebars. As he leaned forward, the powerful muscles inside Michael’s body stirred into action. Michael’s pneumostome blasted hot air, and Gabriel’s heart pounded in his chest.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Hold on, I just realized something!” Gabriel shouted. “Michael, this is a terrible idea, slugs are the slowest creatures on earth. Yes, I know that you’re a giant slug, and you’re a bit faster than the others, but—”
Michael threw his head back, his entire body shaking with laughter. “C’mon, man! Didn’t the little guys tell you our big secret? Slugs don’t have to move slow.”
