Chapter 10 - Where is Puerco

Chapter 10 �" Where is Puerco

Over the next few days he had concentrated his mind on fixing up his new bike.  When he wasn’t completing work for Trevor or sleeping he was working on the bike.  Not even taking a real break to eat, the motor becoming his dining partner. 

Initially the image of the Beggars toes haunted him throughout the day.  The ends of cables, hoses, and nuts and bolts all looked like the horrific toes he saw that day strung up there.  Nether the less he spent his time working on the bike.  Gradually the image faded from his mind

He had hung the poster of the bike on the wall above the actual motorbike with tape like it was a pinup girl.  On the image the red paintwork still gleamed and sparkled even though the paper was well worn and faded.  The slogan read “the red ripper.”  Initially the poster bore no resemblance to the heap of rusty tubes and mechanics below it but now it was starting to look more presentable. 

The frame and gas tank were ready for the red paint Trevor had given to him.  The colour was called “absolute red,” he chuckled when reading it, ‘you can’t get much more red than that.’  He gently moved the spray can through the air sweeping slowly and delicately across the frame.  All sound blanked out apart from the hiss of the can.  He covered every millimetre of the frame in the bright red pain.  Just like the picture hanging embarrassingly above the wreck.

He just finished the last pass when something broke through his concentration.  Many sounds had passed by without grabbing his attention but this one did.  Many engines had passed by without his notice but this one pulled his head around.  That was the unmistakeable sound of the one that belonged to Carlos and it was getting closer by the second.

Time seemed to have disappeared as he worked unceasingly on the bike.  He looked up at the small window in the corner and it had turned from bright blue to black.  It was dark already but he was nowhere near finishing putting the bike together.  Carlos’s bike screeched up outside the door so Scott walked over and opened it to see why he was there.

‘Get on,’ shouted Carlos ‘you need to help me, it’s Puerco.’

‘What do you mean,’ said Scott, ‘Where is he?’

‘You don’t understand, we have to get him out of there now, it might be too late’

‘What do you mean too late, where is he?’ said Scott

‘We don’t have time for this just come now, I need your help now’ said Carlos

‘I can’t just go, I’ve got to lock up’ said Scott.  He rushed in and grabbed the keys from the desk and proceed to slam the door and place the security bar across the front of the door.

‘Hurry up’ shouted Carlos revving the engine impatiently.

‘I’m coming Ok,’ Said Scott securing the final lock, ‘you better explain what’s going on.’

‘Just shut the f**k up and get on the back.’ Shouted Carlos 

Scott grunted, ‘OK whatever,’ and jumped on.

Scott grabbed on as Carlos propelled the bike forward at breakneck speed through the night streets.

‘What is going on?’ said Scott

‘He’s in the f*****g church’ said Carlos.

‘what…’

Suddenly Carlos jerked the bike hard to the left.  ‘Get the f**k out the way,’ he shouted at a man he almost killed.

‘What’s wrong with that?’ said Scott

‘You don’t understand, none of you understand,’ said Carlos. 

‘None of you f*****g listen to me.’

‘What do you mean,’ asked Scott.

The bike Jerked right this time avoiding an old woman shuffling across the road.  Scott turned to see her fall to the ground spilling her box of junk round her.

‘Carlos, slow down,’ said Scott.

The entered the main square and accelerated down the road to the church.  Carlos hit the brakes and skidded the bike a sudden halt in front of the double doors.  They both got off the bike and Scott followed Carlos running in through the always open doors.

Scott couldn’t help but look up at the exposed wood beams that supported the huge roof.  There was no other building like this in the town with such a high ceiling.  There were a series of wooden benches all facing the other end of the building where a lectern stood above them all.  Unlike the other buildings somehow these walls were still white and pure untouched by the sand and dust. 

Nothing had worn them away and there were no gaps to the outside world.

He heard a clanging to the left.  He hadn’t noticed but Carlos had disappeared.  He followed the sound to see Carlos prising the lock of a door.  Scott walked over to see him twisting a piece of metal in the padlock.  Before he could ask why the lock fell to the ground and the door was open.

The odour of stale sweat rushed out as Carlos rushed in.  Scott followed with a cringe.  There was a series of rudimentary bunk beds placed tightly together each sprouting a startled face as the room filled with light.  Carlos hurried around in between each once shaking and waking the various sleeping vagrants and other assorted urchins.

‘Puerco, Puerco,’ said Carlos, ‘are you here? he’s not here, f**k’

Maybe he didn’t come here,’ said Scott, ‘maybe he went home.’

‘No!’ Carlos rushed passed Scott back into the main hall.

Padre Barnes was standing right there in front of them

‘Bless you my sons, said the priest and took time to study the face of Carlos.  ‘Have I seen you before my child?’

Carlos without a word laid punch right in the old priests face knocking him to the ground.  He let out a squeal like someone who had never felt a fist and curled in a ball strike him.

Scott eyes widened in shock, ‘What the f**k are you doing man, you can’t punch a priest, what the f**k.  We’re in a church.’

Carlos laid in to him with 6 or 7 kicks to the ribs spitting and frothing at the mouth like a rabid dog.  Scott grabbed him finally dragging him away from the stricken old man.

‘Carlos, what is going on?’ asked the perplexed Scott

Carlos wouldn’t make eye contact with Scott averting his eyes away trying to disguise his tears.  Scott released him.

‘Have you gone crazy?  We should get out of here’ said Scott

‘It’s up there,’ said Carlos

‘What, what is?’ asked Scott

‘The room’ said Carlos pushing past Scott, ‘this way.’ 

Scott stunned by what he had just witnessed followed him in a daze.   They ran down the middle of the hall in between the wooden benches. Scott meandered after him looking around if there were any witnesses.

‘Tell me what the f**k is going on,’ he shouted in a whisper.

‘Just come on,’ said Carlos, ‘we have to get Puerco and get out of here.’  He rounded the Lectern.  ‘Its here,’ he said and opened the door to the priest’s room, ‘come on Scott.’

As Scott made it to the door Carlos was already inside drawing back a rug revealing a wooden trap-door.

‘Down here.  Pass me that,’ he said pointing at a long metal cross.

‘We have to get out of here, come on, let’s go, I don’t like this’ said Scott

Carlos exploded, ‘pass me the f*****g cross Scott.’

This struck Scott he immediately obliged grabbing the cross and slamming it into Carlos’ waiting hands.  He put the long piece of metal through the padlock and twist until in cracked open under the strain and immediately pulled the door open.   A strong smell of sterilising fluid rose from the depths below.

‘What is down there’ Scott’s confusion and anger beginning to boil

‘Puerco!’ shouted Carlos and proceeded down into the whole

‘Carlos’ shouted Scott and ran towards the hole finding only darkness below.  He could make out the outline of a step and placed a foot down.  ‘Carlos’ he asked the darkness and placing a foot on the next step he proceeded down the creaking stairs.  With each step the air got cooler and then ice cold.  A cold Scott had never experienced before, bumps appeared on his skin and he let out a slight shiver.  He rubbed his hand against his forearm feeling the hairs standing on end and finally wrapped himself with his arms.  Reaching the foot of the stairs he could only see the light from the room above.  With his voice falling to a whisper he said 

‘Carlos.’

‘Here’ came an audible beacon through the dark`

‘I can’t see anything.’ whispered Scott.

‘I know, look for a switch,’ said Carlos. 

Scott stretched out a hand and grabbed a shoulder.  He could make out Carlos fumbling around the wall looking for the light switch. Scott followed suit but on the opposite wall rubbing his hands against the smooth cold surface.  All questions could wait, escaping the darkness overrode everything.  Eventually his hand felt a protrusion in the wall, the switch.  He flicked it up and a low hum began to rise as a string of overhead lights flashed into action.

The walls were white and smooth and almost dazzled under the intense lights.  Scott stood in amazement at the room he had found himself in.  So cold, so clean, the only sand was that dragged in on their boots.  He looked at Carlos who was unmoved and began to walk forward.

‘Have you been here bef..,’ Scott was stopped dead in his speech as he looked to the back of the room.

Toes, he could see toes.  At the back of the room behind two stainless steel tables were several coffin size recesses each with a set of toes clearly visible.  Bodies were laying inside stainless steel trays but all he could see where their toes.  The image of the beggar flashed up in his mind, disgusting and disturbing toes.  The chill on his skin was now deep in his bones as he was presented with multiple corpses.  Every hour of the day he wanted to escape the cold but in this moment he would give his soul to be in the steaming hot town square.

Regaining some sibilance Scott asked ‘What is this place?’

Carlos began to pull out bed after bed from the recesses of the wall revealing different bodies at different stages of clean dismemberment.  Mainly slices around their abdomen and eyes.

‘Puerco!!!! You f*****g Idiot’

He lay there on the steel bed under a paper cover shivering and unaware of what was happening but still alive.

Carlos slapped him round the face, ‘Puerco!! Puerco!!’  His eyes moved and fixed on Carlos’. Carlos then pulled the paper sheet from Puerco’s bed revealing Puerco’s naked body.  ‘Good no cuts, nothing has been taken, apart from your dick hey Puerco.’  He managed to joke but almost choked at seeing his friend still alive.  ‘Help me with these straps’ he said gesturing for Scott to help.

Scott hurried over and both pulled the straps open and dragging Puerco’s diminutive figure upright.  ‘He’s been drugged we will have to carry him’ said Carlos.

‘Puerco? Amigo?’ said Scott adding a couple of slaps.

They picked a side and carried him back towards the stairs with his legs trailing on the ground.

‘May god have mercy on you souls!’ screeched the priest who was standing at the bottom of the stairs bloody nosed and clutching his ribs.

Reviews

[wordman]

i believe you have a great book here ! it`s interesting and believable

[Cyndy Robinson]

Very fast moving, high action well done!!!