Small Town Dead End

Chapter Four

Eric slammed himself against the door a third time and almost fell to the floor when it gave way and flew open. He stumbled but kept his footing. The dark eyes of Helena and Mayor Williams clung to his thoughts, consuming him to the point he felt like he could see them directly in front of him. No matter how hard he tried to focus his mind elsewhere, he couldn't shake the eyes. It was as if they bored directly into his soul.

The mayor's office was dark and quiet. Light from the receptionist office gently spilled in, creating eerie shadows across the room. He wasn't sure what he was looking for but he had resolved to find something, anything, to help figure out what was going on. He flipped the light switch beside the door and instantly illuminated the office. Knowing he had limited time, he closed the door, locked it, and walked to the desk sitting in the center of the room.

Behind the mayor's desk was a fairly detailed map of New Bound. Lines intersected in what looked like squares and rectangles as small words identified them as streets, neighborhoods, and county lines. The framed map looked to be fairly old, as not all of the current streets seemed to be there. The rest of the office seemed pretty plain. Off-white walls, a drop-ceiling with plaster tiles embedded into aluminum framework and a small window at one end of the room were the distinguishing features. Had it not been for the fancy, hand-woven rug bearing the New Bound seal lying directly in front of the desk, Eric could have easily mistaken the room for any other city official's office. It felt very plain for a mayor's office. Sure, there was a name on the door, a nameplate on the desk, and various pictures around the room, but he imagined a mayor having a lavish office. It was nothing like he imagined. As he stood by the desk, looking around, Eric still saw those black, soulless eyes staring at him. He wanted to stab them from his mind's eye.

He shook the feeling of being watched and tried hard to focus on the task at hand. Limited time, Eric he told himself. Hurry. He ran to the opposite side of the desk and began pulling at drawers. They were locked. The antique, yet simple desk had three drawers on each side with a long, slender drawer in the middle. Each one had a keyhole and each one was locked. After checking each one, he began looking for keys. He checked the various bowls and pen cups scattered about the desk, each one coming up with typical desk-related items. No keys anywhere. He lifted the large calendar on the desk, searching underneath, yet came up empty-handed. When he sat the calendar back down, he moved the computer's mouse and caused the machine to wake up from its digitized sleep. The screen flashed white and then came into focus. There, on the monitor was a picture of Mayor Williams and Helena Pence.

Eric gasped and, realizing he made a loud noise, quickly covered his mouth. He stared at the screen and saw his landlord, a woman he always considered evil, standing beside of the mayor- a man he always felt was respectable. It was confusing, yet, after seeing their eyes, it somehow made sense. He slid into the mayor's chair and grabbed the mouse. He began clicking in folders on the computer's desktop, looking for any sign of what could be going on. After random clicks into folders containing various plans, construction bids, and permits, Eric clicked into a folder simply labeled Re-Bound. A folder opened, but before he could click on any of the contents, a dialogue window popped up requesting a password. He tried a few random words like: mayor and city, but nothing worked. Then, he somehow focused on Helena Price staring at him from the desktop photo, and typed in Helena.

The popup box went away and Eric stared at a folder full of files with odd labels. ElderG, City Plans, Afterwards, and other cryptic names were in the folder. He clicked on Afterwards and waited as a word processor opened, revealing a memo. The memo was to a group of people, all politicians, councilmen, and board leaders of the town. It had been emailed to them all not even an hour ago.

Distinguished members of this new era-

It has come to my attention that there has been resistance to all of the changes lately. Even I took some coercing when it came to acceptance. However, I’m now on board, as is my office. Now, we just need to bring in a few other departments and we’ll be set to move forward with the next phase of implementation.

Also, don’t forget that any resistance will be met with force. We will soon begin moving non-believers to areas where they will be assimilated or eliminated.

Hail, G, Our new light!

E.D. Williams, Mayor, New Bound

Eric shivered at some of the verbiage in the memo. It was frightening. He had never heard of a memo using words like assimilated and eliminated, especially in a document sent out by a mayor. His arms broke out in gooseflesh and a chill crept up his spine. What is going on he asked himself as he stared at the memo in disbelief. He looked at the names on the list again and realized that it was definitely a who's who of people controlling New Bound. The only one on the list who wasn't was Helena Price. Eric's stomach dropped as he saw her name. What does she have to do with this?

Quickly, Eric closed the document, exited the folder, and tried to straighten the desk back up to its original appearance. He walked to the door, turned the light off, and locked the door on his way out. As he stepped into the receptionist’s area, he heard muffled voices. Through the smoky glass of the doorway, he saw shadowy figures approaching. Knowing he had nowhere to go, he looked around for a place to hide. He had limited options, but across the room was a small, slender door in the corner with a plaque reading SUPPLIES. He ran to the door, hoping it would be unlocked. He reached the door and saw the shadows in the hallway growing larger. Luckily, the door was unlocked. He opened it and saw a very small closet with stacks of paper boxes from the floor to ceiling. There was a shelf about halfway up on one side filled with smaller boxes of staples, pens, and various other office supplies. Eric slid into the closet and closed the door behind him.

He left the door slightly cracked, holding onto the doorknob to keep it from swinging open, and took a deep breath. No sooner than he got situated, the receptionist door opened. Instantly he heard voices.

“…to be sure… loose ends…” a male said. His voice was deep, yet soft. Eric thought it sounded like Mayor Williams, but he wasn’t entirely sure. Between focusing to control his breathing, holding the door slightly cracked, and trying not to make a sound- Eric was struggling.

“…saw him leave…” a woman replied. Eric imagined her to be the woman he saw with the mayor as they left the elevator. He assumed she was his assistant or receptionist. Either way, she was young, attractive, and seemed to match the voice he could barely hear.

He struggled to hear as he heard another door open and close. He assumed whoever was in the room had gone into the mayor’s office. Regardless, he had to wait to make sure. He couldn’t just make a run for it, as he didn’t know who was standing in the room on the other side of the door. Eric felt his heartbeat in his neck and temples. His nerves were standing on end and he felt panicked. He wanted to run but knew it would be foolish. His only option was to wait.

“…my computer…” the male voice said in the distance. Eric could only make out the small portion, but could tell the man was angry. He knew it had to be the mayor.

“Where… he went?” the woman returned.

The man responded. Eric couldn't make out anything that was said until the very end. “…couldn't have gone far.”

At that moment, Eric knew they were on to him. He felt as if they knew he had been searching the office and possibly even the computer. Suddenly, a wave of fear washed over him. They would be looking for him. Little did they know he was twenty feet away from them, which made Eric want to scream. He knew he had to wait until it was safe to leave, but now, they would be looking for him. And on top of that, now with Helena Pence involved, he wouldn’t be safe at home. Eric closed his eyes and saw the mayor’s pitch-black, soulless eyes staring back.

Eric waited for what seemed like hours. Even after the light in the adjacent room had been turned out, Eric waited for what he felt was another hour. He didn't move and stayed in the same position, still holding the door, compacted around a stack of boxes. His body ached beyond belief. His arm and shoulder cramped, his legs were weak and felt like overstretched rubber bands, and he had to desperately use the bathroom. After debating with himself for nearly an hour, Eric decided to open the door and leave. He wasn't sure where he was going to go, but he was hungry and his body needed to recuperate from being stuck in a closet.

He opened the door, his nerves screaming with fear. As the door opened, he saw an empty and dark room. Across the receptionist area was the mayor's office. The light there was also off. He scanned the area once more and decided he was alone. Eric walked toward the door leading to the hallway, gently opened it, and peered outside through a small crack. No one was around. Knowing he had to take a chance and leave, Eric made his way down the hall and to the second floor foyer. He saw the elevators, but decided on a different approach. He opened the door to the stairwell and stepped inside.

Once inside, Eric collapsed against the wall and slid down, plopping his backside onto the floor. He took a deep breath and sighed. He was in pain, yet glad to be out of the closet. He rubbed the soreness from his legs and arms, stretched his back and neck, and lay on the concrete landing at the top of the staircase. He stretched the pain from his back and, after a few moments, sat up and checked the clock on his phone. It had been nearly four hours since he arrived at the courthouse. Now, he knew, he could leave the building while it was dark and have an easier time slipping from the area.

Eric carefully walked down the stairwell, taking each step as cautiously and silent as he possibly could. He didn't want to make a sound, especially since most stairwells tend to have an echo. He assumed it's the concrete flooring and cinder block walls. Regardless, the slightest noise could be magnified intensely and he didn't want to take a chance.

When he reached the bottom of the stairs, Eric peered through the slender, wire-mesh window in the door. He didn't see anyone in the lobby area of the courthouse, but it was dark and he didn't want to take any chances. He knew he was close to a side door; an exit that led into an alleyway, but didn't have the layout of the building memorized enough to go directly to it. He hadn't frequented the courthouse much, so his knowledge of where everything was located was minimal. He took a moment and waited, staring out the window, before slowly opening the large, metal door.

Eric slipped through the doorway and let it close as gently as possible before looking around for the side exit. He didn't see it, but knew the general direction. Walking to his left, down a small corridor off to the side of the lobby, Eric kept close to the wall as he looked for the door. He turned a corner and, there at the end of the hallway, was the red and white illuminated sign reading EXIT. He ventured down the hall, being as quiet as he possibly could. He was almost out and felt his excitement and nerves fighting against one another. Trying his best to remain calm and level-headed, Eric pushed the metal lever that ran the width of the door.

The cool, night air struck Eric's face as he stepped into the alleyway between the courthouse and the city office building next door. The door closed behind him and, for the first time in several hours, Eric felt as if he could think clearly. He needed to go somewhere and think about his next move. Clearly there was something going on in New Bound, something he needed to investigate further, but not everything made sense. He saw the mayor attacked, yet saw the man perfectly fine just hours ago. And how did his landlord, Helena Pence, fit into all of this? He had so many questions and not a single answer.

Eric felt it best to stay off of the main streets and stick to the alleyways as he made his way home. He decided he would scope out his apartment, see if anyone was around, and then get some things he needed. From there he would investigate things further, but at a distance. No more breaking into the mayor's office and dangerous stunts like that. Eric resolved to approach this whole situation like he did with Small Town Monsters. He would gather evidence and then decide the best approach for releasing it. No matter the outcome, he made up his mind that he wouldn't make any more stupid mistakes.

As he walked from the courthouse, he heard a noise behind him. It sounded like someone shuffled their feet as they walked. Quickly, Eric turned around and saw a figure standing at the end of the alley. He couldn't make out who it was, as the shadows covered them completely. He saw the outline of what appeared to be a man, but he had no idea who they were.

“Eric,” a familiar voice commanded, "stop where you are.”