Eden's Ore - Secrets

  Chapter Ten

  The motel room was clean. Gabriel still had the blanket wrapped around him as he wandered around the humble single room.  As he stuck his head through the bathroom door, he sighed. “There’s not even a shower in here.”

  Adin promptly leaned over his shoulder and stared inside the room. “Look on the wall, the four switches.”

  “That’s a shower?” Gabriel felt stupid. “Did you make that as well?”

  “No, smartass.” Adin slapped him on the back. “That’s pretty much a standard shower – you’re just a country bumpkin.”

  “Whatever.” At least he could have a hot shower.

  “Look, it’s only for a night or two at the most. I need to head into work and-”

  Gabriel cut Adin off. “You’re going back to work?”

  “Yeah, I have to keep up the charade. Besides, it’ll give me a chance to dig around in some of the files to  see what I can find out about ore users.   Perhaps I can find someone we can trust to help us.” Adin nodded. “You’ll be fine.”

  “Yeah.” Gabriel couldn’t help but feel nervous.

  “I brought you some food, so you don’t need to leave the room. Just keep the door locked and I’ll swing by tomorrow after work. We’ll find something better in a couple of days. By then, I can get what I need from work and take some leave. From there, we can find a way to get that thing out of you.”

  “If it doesn’t kill me before then.” Gabriel’s eyes caught Adin's. “Or anyone else.”

  “Hey, that was the ore – not you. Just keep calm.” Adin walked up and half-hugged him. “Hang out. If something happens you know the way to my place, right?”

  Gabriel nodded. It was only about ten blocks away.

  “Good. The key card will be hidden where I showed you in the parking garage. It’ll get you inside to my apartment.” Adin took a deep breath. “It’s just a backup plan – I doubt anyone will bother you. No one even knows you’re here.”  

  “Get going.” Gabriel just wanted to have a shower and forget the current situation.

  “Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow.” Adin waved and walked out the door.

  Gabriel watched as his blurry silhouette disappeared behind the fogged window at the front of the room. As soon as Adin vanished, Gabriel rushed over to the door and double checked the locks. Uneasy, he snatched up the chair beside the small table. He tilted it back under the doorknob, like in the movies. The rickety chair didn’t look like it would help much, but he still felt better having it there.

  Gabriel grabbed the bag Adin had packed for him and unzipped it, dumping its contents all over the ugly comforter on the bed. A pile of clothes fell out: T-shirts, socks, shorts and a pair of jeans. It was good enough for now. Along with the clothes, a dozen small food packages tumbled out. He recognized them as something Nate had made him try once. It was flash-frozen food where  a tab on the side of the package released and chemically cooked the food inside. They tasted like plastic, as he recalled, but were better than nothing. He shook his head and grabbed a T-shirt and jeans, then headed towards the bathroom, dumping the big blanket on the floor.

  He chuckled at his reflection in the mirror as he shut the bathroom door. He looked like a homeless person. Which, he was.  He stripped out of his blood-stained clothing and tossed it into the trash, then turned and faced the mirror again, and took his first close look at the ore. My God. Light rippled out from the crystal in waves beneath his skin, each pulse trying to reach further than the last. His calloused thumb outlined the crystal, his skin perfectly sealed around the edges. It pulsed softly with each beat of his heart. Despite the danger, it somehow seemed to belong there. How was that even possible?

  Pushing the thought from his mind, he turned to the four buttons on the wall. It couldn't be that hard. As he stepped up to them, he heard a click on the floor. A drain appeared. He pushed the button at the top. It flashed green, then a cylindrical panel rotated out of the wall. It smoothly arced around him, meeting the other wall and locking into place. Gentle, warm water rained down from overhead, and the temperature increased rapidly. The small space filled with a warm mist scented with a hint of eucalyptus. He touched the other buttons, turning up the heat of the water just a bit more.

  Not bad. He breathed in deeply with his eyes closed.

  His mind drifted back to the sight of his mother’s limp hand splattered with blood. Mom. He leaned against the cool wall of the shower. Tears blended with the hot water as he sighed heavily. His heart still ached from the loss. He didn’t want to think about it, but the image seemed to haunt his mind. The intense heat in his chest returned, and the sound of sizzling filled the stall. He opened his eyes and stared down at the shard. Water droplets evaporated as they touched the brightly glowing crystal. He needed to calm down. He took several slow breaths. The heat disappeared, and soon the water ran  easily across the crystal's surface. He stood there and watched the drain. Bits of wood and dried blood swirled around it before they were sucked down. What was going to happen to him? Nothing felt real. It was like a bad dream.

  “Mom! Go back!” Gabriel screamed over the howling wind.

  He screamed again and again at her, but she refused to leave the bottom of the stairs. She just held on to the broken outer wall of the house, stretching her hand out towards him. He slid down the stairs. The metal edge of each riser dug into his skin. The pain didn’t matter. He had to get to her. One step after another, he dragged himself faster and faster towards her but she stayed just out of reach. No matter how fast he pushed, her stretched-out hand was always just out of his grasp. The steps between them seemed to multiply  like an escalator, keeping him away from her. He tried to stand against the wind, but invisible weights kept him pinned to the painful metal edges of the stairs.

  “Just go! Get back to the shelter!” he pleaded as his strength faded.

  The house swayed back and forth under the wind. He continued to descend the endless staircase towards her. Sections of the roof landed around him like pieces of shattered glass, exploding into splinters of wood and rusty nails. He covered his face as shrapnel pierced his body. The walls broke apart and were carried away by the whirling wind. A black wall rose up behind her. It climbed higher and higher, casting its shadow over her. She didn’t notice anything; she just kept trying to reach for him. The wall that would crush her fell slowly towards her.

  “NO!” He screamed and felt his chest break open.

  He shot up in bed, barely able to catch his breath. Sweat and tears ran down his face. Pain stabbed his chest.  He’d fallen asleep in his clothes, the TV still on. The remote control lay beside him on the bed and he clicked it off before peeling off his sticky shirt. An eerie glow filled the room as he stood there in only his jeans – the crystal illuminated the dark. A strange burnt smell lingered in the room. He lifted the sweat-soaked shirt up in front of him, and his jaw dropped. The shirt had a hole burned through it. The crystal. His upper body tingled as sweat evaporated from him. Lowering his chin, he stared into the source of the light. The crystal pulsed with the loud, hard beat of his heart. Waves of light rippled outwards, through his veins. He grabbed a new T-shirt from the pile of clothes on the small table.  What if he had another dream? What if the bed caught fire? He shook his head. He wasn’t going to burn the place down. At least, he hoped not. He pulled the shirt on and looked at the digital clock. 3:38am.

  Maybe some more TV would help. As he crawled across the bed to find the remote, a rustle of feet echoed from just outside his room.