Chapter 18: A Bid For Freedom
Sylvia Bannister entered the St Widnes Institute building. She kept telling herself to remain calm so as not to stand out from the crowd. She saw a map of the building in the foyer and calmly examined it. She noted the position of the psychiatric unit and the nurses quarters.
“May I help you?” a female voice addressed her from the reception desk in the foyer.
“No, I’m perfectly alright,” Sylvia responded without looking. At the same time she started to move in the direction of the nurses quarters.
Upon opening the door to the nurses quarters she noticed two occupants. One was a male in his early thirties and the other appeared to be a slightly younger female, short in stature with her blond hair tied back. The man had dark hair with flecks of grey, of slim build and about six foot tall. They appeared to be engrossed in conversation.
“Are you the new girl?” the man asked as he lifted his head up.
“Yes, I am, but I know what I’m doing so don’t let me interrupt you.”
“You don’t look a day over seventeen,” the male responded but Sylvia ignored him and moved into the adjoining changing rooms. She found a uniform that almost fitted her and she put it on her. Ignoring the two other nurses she walked out the doorway and headed for the psychiatric unit.
In this particular unit of the hospital there were several rooms but only one that was manned by a guard. Sylvia made the assumption that this was where Elliot’s Father was located.
She walked up to the guard and addressed him. He was very tall and strongly built. He had his arms folded and was looking straight ahead with his back to the door.
“Doctor Bochon has requested that I take Mr Tomkins out for some exercise in the garden. Would you mind opening the door”
“This isn’t part of his normal routine. The last time I spoke to Doctor Bochon he didn’t want to allow Mr Tomkins to leave the room at any time. He’s being executed tomorrow I hear. This sounds very strange.” The guard appeared to be examining her up and down with his eyes, looking out for the slightest indication of nervousness or weakness.
“Well if you want you can take it up with Doctor Bochon himself. He’s going into a meeting but I’m sure he’ll be delighted to hear from you,” Sylvia responded while trying to remain calm on the outside.
“Oh well, I guess it can’t hurt the poor lad. I feel sorry for him, even if he is an alien of some kind.”
The security guard opened the door, much to Sylvia’s relief.
Sylvia was afraid that Jake would recognise her instantly and so she put her finger to her lips. It mattered little. Jake was drugged so badly that he didn’t know what day of the week it was. He was also wearing a strait jacket.
She helped him to his feet. “Come on Mr Tomkins let me help you.” She said as she did so. The adolescent then placed her hand onto his back and encouraged him to move forward. Each step seemed to take an eternity. The young teenager was conscious that Doctor Bochon or an experienced nurse might notice her. The longer the process took, the greater the danger. Eventually they made it out of the room, albeit at a slow pace. Sylvia tried not to look around but hoped desperately that no one would notice.
Once they rounded the corner, where the guard could no longer see them, Sylvia spotted a Janitors office. As discreetly as she could Sylvia brought Jake into the office and started to remove his strait jacket.
Once she had it removed, she started to fit Mr Tomkins into a janitors overalls. Mr Tomkins was so heavily drugged that it felt like she was dressing a baby. Before she was finished the door opened. A young man of about 25 years old stood there. He was taller than average, well-groomed and well dressed. He didn’t look like a janitor. The young man seemed surprised at first.
Sylvia could hear a voice asking the young man, “Is there somebody in there?”
After what seemed like a long pause, the young man, said “no, there’s not,” and turned off the light.
Sylvia breathed a sigh of relief. After Jake was fully clothed, Sylvia paused for a few moments in the hope that there would be nobody outside. Up until now Jake had been largely silent and had done everything that was asked of him.
“What are you doing Sylvia?” Jake asked, slowly as he slurred his words. “You could get into trouble.”
“Don’t ask me what I am doing. If I think about it, I might start to panic,” Sylvia insisted.
“Save yourself. I’m a lost cause,” the patient mumbled.
Jake had always seemed like a very nice man to Sylvia. Now she was convinced of it. She had wondered up until this point as to whether she was taking an unnecessary risk but now she was determined to follow through with the task she had set herself. She was going to do whatever it took to get set Jake free.
“I promised Elliot that I would get you out of here so you better do exactly as I say.”
“Alright,” he said obediently.
“Follow about twelve yards behind me. Walk calmly and stay calm.”
They then left the Janitors office and calmly headed for the exit. Sylvia was sweating nervously for fear that someone would stop her. She passed by numerous nurses and doctors and ignored all of them in the hope that they would leave her alone.
Once again she reached the main foyer. She could see the same woman who had addressed her earlier. “Are you alright?” the woman asked her.
“I’m perfectly ok,” the teenager responded. “I’m just going out for a breath of fresh air.” She knew that she had to appear a little rude, in order to be left alone. The other woman appeared to be slightly insulted and retreated back behind the reception desk.
On her way out the door she passed by a security guard. He took no notice of her. She didn’t glance around to see where Jake was. She prayed that he was only a few yards behind her. With each individual she passed by, her heart seemed to beat faster. The final obstacle was two ambulance operatives who left their ambulance and were returning to the hospital. She hoped and prayed that they didn’t recognise the patient in janitors clothing.
Once outside Sylvia made her way to the hospital car park. She had taken her Mother’s car without permission and parked it without a parking permit. Thankfully it wasn’t clamped. Once she reached it, she turned her head around to see if Jake was behind her. Her heart lifted when he saw him ever so slowly emerge from around the corner.
Jake didn’t speak much once they both got into the car and drove out of the hospital grounds. The drugs he was made to take were evidently having an effect. Sylvia was still nervous. She was wary that she might be spotted by a police car or be noticed by someone who knew her. Her driving skills were also imperfect and if she collided with another car, she could find herself in trouble. Eventually she reached the street where the Tomkins family house was located.
“Jake,” she addressed him, “I’m stopping here because you need a change of clothes. If we’re lucky, you have five minutes to go in there and get out before the Reapers come looking for you. You cannot trust Charlotte. She reported Jake to the Reapers. You cannot trust her. Go in there, get your clothes and any money or food you can put your hands on and be back here in five minutes. Do you understand?”
“Charlotte wouldn’t do anything like that,” Jake responded as if everything Sylvia had said was erased from his memory.
“Jake. You cannot trust her,” Sylvia responded in a slightly irate manner. “If you don’t want to listen to me you will end up dead. They will execute you. Think of Elliot. He wants to see you. I risked getting caught to get you out. If you’re not back in five minutes I will kill you myself. Do not trust her. Go in and get out as quick as you can. Understand? If you don’t want to leave her behind, bring her with you. Don’t allow her to stall you. Time is important.”
“Yes,” Jake said reluctantly, “I understand.”
Elliot’s father climbed out of the car and slowly made his way to the front door. Sylvia found it frustrating that he didn’t do this more hastily. Once he was inside Sylvia stared impatiently at the clock in her car. She reversed the car back about twenty yards so as not to be so conspicuous. Four minutes passed by and the young teenager became a little impatient. There was no sign of Jake to emerge from the house. She looked around her nervously, checking for any sign of Reapers, police or men in white coats.
The clock in the car was just about to go to eight minutes when Sylvia noticed a van in her rear view mirror approaching at speed. Jake had still not emerged from the house. She had a decision to make. Sylvia started the car and drove off at a relaxed pace, so as not to draw unwanted attention to herself. The adolescent didn’t want to outrun the vehicle behind her bearing in mind her limited driving experience. The van stopped outside the Tomkins residence. Occasionally she checked her rear view mirror to see if they were about to follow her.
The young teenager felt bad about leaving Elliot’s father behind but if he was to remain as naïve as he had been up to this point he was never going to survive. There were always going to be times where a ruthless streak was called for. Jake didn’t seem to be capable of making tough decisions. Being a decent guy sometimes had its drawbacks.
Thankfully, there was no sign of the van pursuing her. When she eventually rounded a corner about a kilometre further down the road, she breathed a sigh of relief.
From now on she was a fugitive. The hospital cameras would detect her helping Jake to escape. Soon they would know what car she was driving and where she lived. There was no going back now.
Elliot Tomkins was growing impatient. He wanted to know if Jake was ok. He also hoped and prayed that Sylvia did not get into any difficulty. It was probably too much to ask that he would see both of them soon. Part of him wanted to leave the forest and go find out for himself. Sylvia was now five minutes later than expected. The frustration was getting to him. Sometimes he would stand up and kick the air in frustration or throw twigs or stones into the bushes. On other occasions he would sit down and try and relax himself. The more time that passed the more frequently he would change between these two types of behaviour. What else could he do other than wait?
It was then that Elliot heard the sound of footsteps. It must be her, he thought to himself. Instead of hiding, curiosity got the better of him. He peered in between the trees to see who it was. His heart sank.
Derren Blanchflower, and Leiv Erdinger approached him. They both had smiles on their faces.
“So this is where you’ve been hiding, Tomkins,” Derren mocked him.
“Yeah,” Leiv added, “its not exactly the Ritz is it. Plenty of ventilation though.”
“We’re going to inform the authorities of your whereabouts. I bet that they’d be very interested but first we’re going to have a little fun,” Derren sadistically stated.
Elliot didn’t say anything. He was too afraid. He wanted to run but knew he would be caught. Besides his only hope was that Sylvia would help him somehow. He hoped and prayed that she would emerge from the bushes any second now. His only chance was to stay right where he was.
“What’s the matter Tomkins?” the powerfully built adolescent asked as he moved closer. “Cat got your tongue?”
Once again Elliot did not respond.
“You look hungry,” Derren said, pushing against him. “You look like you haven’t eaten in a week. I’ve got something for you.”
Derren stooped down and picked up a clump of grass mixed with some twigs with his left hand.
“Here eat this,” he said pushing the handful of foliage up to the victim’s mouth. Elliot tried to close his mouth as tightly as he could but Derren tried to force it open with his right hand.
The weaker adolescent felt humiliated. He wished he was somewhere else right now. Anywhere but here.
No sooner had the thought entered his head than a familiar voice appeared.
“Leave him alone, Derren Blanchfart,” Sylvia’s voice called out.
Derren had his back turned to Sylvia.
“Or what?” he said out loud. “We’re not in school anymore. Now you play by my rules. I’m not afraid to hit a girl when nobody’s looking now am I. Especially when that girl is changeling scum, like Tomkins here.” Derren turned around to see that Sylvia was holding what looked like a gun. His ego was severely ruptured.
“Ok, Ok, don’t shoot,” he said, raising his hands.
“Sylvia things are bad enough, without you killing these guys,” Elliot pleaded. As much as Elliot disliked Derren, he was afraid that Sylvia was taking things a step too far. He was nervous that she might do something she would regret.
“They’re pathetic human beings. What difference would it make? If the authorities get hold of us they’re going to execute us anyway.”
Derren dropped to his knees and held his hands together. “Please don’t kill me,” he said with tears in his eyes.
Sylvia didn’t flinch. “I brought some rope,” She said, tossing it in Elliot’s direction. “Go on and tie them up.”
Elliot proceeded to tie both of his tormentors to the base of a large tree. Derren continued to plead for mercy before changing tack once more.
“I bet that gun isn’t even loaded,” he said aloud.
“Do you want me to test it out?” Sylvia replied before instructing Elliot to gather up their belongings.
“I will come after you, the both of you,” the oversized teenager declared. “I will hunt you down and when I do, I will make yours a slow and painful death. Mark my words.”
“This makes it all the more tempting to kill you now, Blanchfart while I have the chance,” she said as she pointed the gun at his face. “Are you ready?” Sylvia asked Elliot.
“Yes I’m ready, but don’t do it. He’s not worth it.”
Sylvia pulled the trigger. Derren shut his eyes and hoped for the best. To his humiliation, he found himself being sprayed with water from the mouth of a water pistol. Sylvia and Elliot could not help but smile. Derren’s humiliation was complete.
Sylvia turned and picked up her rucksack. Derren became more and more enraged. Suddenly he started to change form, into a beast that was even larger and stronger looking with green and yellow skin. It looked like the creature formally known as Derren would break free of his bonds in a matter of seconds.
“Run,” Elliot shouted, and he and Sylvia started to move as fast as they could.
“Follow me,” the adolescent girl urged him.
They ran through trees and bushes, over uneven ground. All the while they could hear the beast behind them, roaring and lumbering in their direction. Elliot was never more scared at any point in his life. He even wondered if he should have eaten the mouthful of foliage.
Elliot was neither fit nor strong, and the lack of food and lack of a proper rest was taking its toll on him. He didn’t know if his legs could keep him upright much longer. After running as fast as they could for several minutes, they entered a clearing and Elliot could see a car in the distance. The creature behind him though was gaining on him. Sylvia was almost at the car when the inevitable happened. Elliot fell. He felt like his heart might explode with a mixture of fear and exhaustion. He braced himself for the inevitable. The creature towered over him, making a screeching noise.
Suddenly a gunshot rang out, wounding the creature on the arm. The beast hesitated, looked around and saw three men with shotguns approaching. It turned and ran back into the forest.
Elliot took a while to catch his breath back. As he recovered, the three hunters approached him. All three of them wore different versions of chequered shirts and braces. They all appeared to be in their sixties.
“Are you alright son?” a white haired man with a beard asked. He stood no taller than Elliot with a pear shaped figure. He appeared to be genuine and refreshingly to Elliot he didn’t seem to view the teenager as a freak or an outlaw.
“Yeah, I’m ok,” the adolescent declared, picking himself up from the ground.
“What was that? I’ve never seen anything like it?” the same man asked.
“It could have been a changeling?” Elliot suggested.
“I never even thought one of those things existed,” a second man wearing a peak cap declared as he moved a step closer. He was four inches taller than the white bearded man with a very thin frame for a man of his age. As the conversation started he held a gun under his arm and at the same time attempted to place a cigar in his mouth and light it.
The third armed man had thinning red hair and didn’t seem inclined to speak. He was also smaller than average and his shoes had seen better days.
Sylvia had put her rucksack in the car and now re-joined Elliot and the group of men who had saved them.
“Are you alright?” the man with the white beard asked her.
Sylvia was also a little shaken. “I’m alright,” she responded. “Thanks so much for your help but we better get going.”
The white bearded man was clearly disappointed by Sylvia’s desire to depart. He clearly was fascinated by the creature he had just shot and wanted to find out more.
“Are you in some kind of trouble?” the man in the peak cap asked.
Sylvia did not like being asked so many questions. Answers would only lead to more questions. “I’m sorry but we better get going.”
Both Elliot and Sylvia started to move away. The gunmen remained in their positions and talked quietly amongst themselves.
As Elliot got closer to the car he noticed how small it was and how old it was.
“Tell me you didn’t pay more than five dollars for that heap of junk,” he said without giving the matter much thought.
“This heap of junk is going to get us to safety. I couldn’t drive my dad’s car or they’d catch us for sure. You can walk instead if you like. If you’re going to be moaning the whole time it would suit me better. Or perhaps I could tie you to the rear bumper and give you some roller skates.”
Sylvia wasn’t smiling openly, but Elliot hoped that she wasn’t deadly serious.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be so abrupt. I’ll take what I can get.”
The car had its fair share of rust. The doors looked like they might fall off and the suspension appeared to be non-existent. There was also a musty smell in the vehicle that wasn’t pleasant.
“I hope it’s insured.” Elliot said aloud
“Insured? We’re on the run from Reapers and you’re worried about insurance? This vehicle wouldn’t pass a roadworthiness test for sure. I bought it from Micks Garage. He was going to get it crushed. It’s probably uninsurable. As long as it gets us out of this country and to safety I won’t care.”
Elliot told himself that he was going to have to work on his tactfulness. He didn’t want to keep putting his foot in it, every second minute or he wouldn’t last the journey.
Elliot and Sylvia sat into the car. He brushed the dust off the seat beforehand. It didn’t even have airbags and the dashboard looked like it might fall apart at any moment. The lack of a working air conditioning mechanism was a source for frustration in Elliot. The adolescent went to open the window to get rid of the musty smell but the window wouldn’t open. He then tried to turn on the radio but the tuner knob came off in his hand.
Don’t complain, he kept telling himself. He didn’t like getting on Sylvia’s bad side. It usually didn’t end well. In any case, it usually felt like he was on top of the world when he even saw a hint of a smile on her face.
Sylvia turned the key in the ignition and thankfully it managed to get going. Elliot was a little worried that Derren would reappear especially if the gunmen moved out of sight. He looked around him before the car moved away. Reassuringly he saw the three gunmen, still standing there, discussing what they had just witnessed.
“Who would have known that Derren was a changeling?” Elliot asked openly.
“Now that we know,” Sylvia responded, “it all fits. It must have been him in the boys bathroom.”
Elliot breathed a sigh of relief. He had wondered if there was some way he himself was a changeling but didn’t know about it. He also had wondered if Sylvia had a nagging doubt in her mind that she was not revealing to him. Now he felt a little bit more relaxed and reassured.
“Where are we headed anyway?” he asked.
“Mexico.”
“Yes but are we headed in the right direction? I thought we should be going to Hiltown first and then onto the Highway.”
“So?”
“Hiltown is back the opposite way.”
“First we’ll get out of sight, then we’ll worry about directions. Besides if people think we’re headed for Canada and we’re really going to Mexico that will throw them off our scent won’t it?” Sylvia responded as if patting herself on the back for her prodigious navigation skills.
“Good recovery,” Elliot replied, “Sometimes I wonder why Mexicans come to the US but Canadians mostly stay in Canada. I hope you’ve researched it fully.”
“Anywhere is better than here. If you have some bright ideas, feel free to suggest them. Once we have a set of wheels and money for food and fuel we should be alright.”
A set of wheels, Elliot thought to himself. This set of wheels might not make it to the next town, never mind half way across the country. “But where are we going to stay the night?”
“Relax. We’ll make it up as we go along. You really ought to take a chill pill. With my Dads money we can survive for at least two months.”
“How much did you take?”
“Enough.”
Elliot was worried by Sylvia’s response. It was a vague response and he preferred knowing exactly how much trouble he was in.
“If it’s not bad enough that we have the police, the reapers and an eight foot tall behemoth after us, now we’ll probably have half the criminal underworld on our tail too.”
“You forgot to throw in rednecks, vigilantes, the CIA, the DEA and the FBI. They’ll probably be after us too,” Sylvia responded as she quickly glanced over at Elliot in the passenger seat.
“O.k, o.k, I’ll try to be more relaxed and optimistic. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
Charlotte Tomkins stood at the bakery counter in the local supermarket. Elliot always did like the eclairs that were behind the glass cabinet, she thought to herself. The woman behind the counter approached her and asked what she would like to order. “I’ll have three..,” Charlotte said before stopping herself. How could she forget that she lived alone? How could she forget that her friends had disowned her? How could she forget that she had reverted back to her maiden name and put her house up for sale?
The answer was that she wanted to go back to the way things were. Loneliness was the least of her worries. She missed the sound of her son coming through the door after school. Even after all the problems they had encountered she missed her husband entering the kitchen after a days work and treating her with affection. How could she forget that those days were long gone and she had played her part in that?
Deep down Charlotte wished that she had not taken the easy option. She wished that they could have made a run for it and not kowtowed to the authorities. The Mother of one did everything that was asked of her by the crooked Doctors and corrupted Reapers and now she felt badly of it.
Charlotte knew now that because of her decisions things could not go back to the way things were. For the foreseeable future she would be ordering dinner for one and she may never meet a husband like Jake or a son like Elliot ever again.
Part of her felt ashamed of the fact that she turned her back on the only people in the world who truly cared about her and who always looked out for her.
“Sorry, lady. Can you give me an answer?” the woman behind the counter addressed her. “Did you say three?”
Charlotte snapped out of it. She was feeling sorry for herself again. Instead of answering the question she apologised and walked away from the counter.
Ten minutes later she passed by an electronics store. She could see a news programme on ten tv screens. Suddenly a familiar face appeared. It was Elliot. Elliot must be alive she said to herself. They hadn’t caught him. Maybe there was some remote hope that she would meet him again. Even if things would never go back to the way they were maybe she could at least make amends.