Chapter Thirteen

The Phonie Call

The highways seem endless, the roads stretch just out of my grasp. The evening falls slowly, my head is still aching, even though the flower pot incident happened two days ago now. I try to fall asleep again, but somehow, sleeping’s not easy when you’re surrounded by lunatics. Just as I’m contemplating hi-jacking the hearse, I hear a phone vibrate under my seat. I look around at everyone, but Rippir still drools over Mark, the poor guy, Blaze still tries to help Mark, and Fabian still mumbles to himself in the seat next to mine, miserable as always. Is that how people see me? Our expressions match up perfectly. He reeks of cheep beer, and I remember them picking up his drunken a*s from the parking lot. But, I swear I've seen his face before, heard the name before, or maybe the thick accent?

                They’re all distracted, and I don’t have time for this. I think of some way to reach for the cell phone under the seat, but I can’t think of anything. I look at my shoes, and they’re tied up, so that’s out. Unless I can untie one. I try to look for something to hook the loop onto, but there’s nothing. Fine. I’ll untie it real quick when I bend over. Just as I bend over, I’m ripped away from my mission when a violently loud song starts blaring over the speakers.

                ‘Rippir turn this s**t off!’ Blaze shouts over the music, if you can even call it that, but her voice is drowned out by the noise. Is this Blood on the Dance Floor?

                Kill me.

I reach for the phone while everyone’s distracted. I see three missed calls and thirty-eight missed texts. I quickly flick the screen back off, and much to my relief, no one has noticed. I shove it into the pocket that I sloppily sewed onto the inside of my sweater. I check to make sure the outline of the phone isn’t noticeable, and it is, but only if you’re looking closely. I casually sit back, my heart racing. I can’t believe I pulled that off. Anxiety gnaws at my insides, and I’m frantically thinking of excuses to leave, so I can call the cops. Maybe this will be the end to this nightmare.

If there’s a god, please, please, get me out of this mess. I wish I’d just gone to the hospital. I wish I’d given mom a hug, and told her that I love her. God knows she doesn’t hear it enough. I pull my feet up onto the seat, and curl into a ball. The hearse gets hot, and I hear Blaze yell. I look up, and see Blaze staring down Rippir. The tensions thick enough to cut, and her stare is mean enough to kill.

The music lowers, but doesn’t turn off.

‘There’s a small town coming up real soon. About twenty more minutes,’ Mark announces, ‘Should we stop?’

‘Yes!’ I call, not thinking. I try to make it seem less suspicious. ‘I hate all this traveling, you know?’ I’m only making things worse. ‘Plus if I have to spend one more minuet in this f*****g dumbass car, I’m gonna kill someone.’

Fabian shoots me a look. I look away. What’s wrong with that kid? His eyes are red, and menacing.

‘Good, I could go for a break too,’ Mark says. The rest of the drive is filled with the usual fuckery between everyone, but I strike up a conversation with Fabian, who still sits beside me, mumbling something under his breath.

‘Do you know where we’re going?’ I ask, ‘why am I here?’

‘Sorry to disappoint, but you here because we need money,’ He hisses, ‘and we’re all here because the fallen angels are looking for us.’ He looks back towards the front of the hearse, where Rippir whispers something in Mark’s ear.

‘Fallen angels?’ I repeat.

‘Yes, all of us are half demons, except Mark over there.’ He gestures half a*s towards the driver. Rippir whips his head around and glares, with pure death in his purple eyes.

‘Don’t you touch my Marky, or I’ll skin you alive and wear your flesh as a-’

‘Calm down, Rippir,’ Blaze starts, I turn my attention back to Fabian. Chills run down my spine. For some reason, I have no doubt in the world that he’s serious.

‘Bite me, f****r,’ he retorts. I stare out the window, hoping that I can melt out of this hearse. But I can’t. The sky’s faded to a deep cerulean, and stars begin to envelope the sky. I soon get lost in my head space. I reach for the phone, and it’s there. The comfort that I get just from touching it feels overwhelming, yet foreign after everything that’s happened these past two days. I want so badly to be back in Toronto. I want to go home. This is bullshit.

But I have the cell phone. I’ll be able to get help soon, and talk to Derek again.

 

The car eventually slows to a stop outside of a motel. The flowers have all long died, and the sign looks like it just barely survived a drive by shooting. I sigh, and get out of the car. The others get whatever they still had after the last motel burned down, and I head into the room on the first floor. I get the cardkey off of Mark, and head up by myself. The place is vacant as f**k, and the room is dusty and cold when I get in there. I go for the heater, but it’s loud enough to put Rippir’s outfits to shame. I walk to the opposite side of the building, and stand by the door for a few seconds.

I grab the phone from inside my sweater, and dial 911. I tell them what’s happened, where I am, about the people, and that they’re driving a hearse. I tell them that they claim to be demons, and that they’re f*****g crazy. They tell me that they’ll be there soon, and just to hang tight. I then immediately phone my mother. Derek answers, and I hear screaming in the background. My mother is wailing like someone just died. Oh f**k. Is he dead?

‘Derek,’ I say, ‘are you there?’

‘Coral, holy s**t,’ he sighs, but is still panicked. ‘Where the f**k are you, are you okay?’

‘I’m fine, for now. I just called the cops. I’ll be back soon. I just wanted to talk to you one last time in case I don’t make it back.’ Tears roll down my face at the idea of me not making it back. ‘I love you,’ I say. I hear someone walking down the hall towards me. He says something, but I don’t hear him. I've taken the phone away from my face, and hung up. And with one quick thumb movement, I’m alone again. I check the battery, which is floating around ten percent. I flick it off, and drop it back into my pocket. I see Acheron Rippir walk around the corner. He’s alone, and looking around. He grins his shy scene kid smile when he sees me.

‘Cori,’ he says happily, ‘it’s very rude to steal the only cardkey and run off,’ his eyes drift down to my breasts, and my gut twists. He walks towards me. I fish the card out of my jean pocket, and hand it to him, but he doesn’t take it, he just keeps slowly walking towards me. I back up.

‘Take the card,’ I say, but I’m scared, and my voice doesn’t work too well. I bump into the wall, and he reaches his hand down my sweater, pulling out the phone. I shove him away. He looks at me, and laughs a childish laugh.

‘Whose job was it to confiscate your things?’ he grabs the cardkey and walks away, still laughing, ‘you can’t have this.’ I want to puke.

After two hour of sitting on the floor, I decide to head back to the motel room.