Adrian stared numbly at Evelynn’s body as a nurse brought in a plastic body bag. The heavy black plastic resembled a maw of unfathomable depths, waiting to devour those who entered. She placed the bag next to her on the bed and motioned for another nurse to help her with the body. Gently, they lifted Evelynn and place the bag beneath her still form. The bag swallowed her, the zipper slowly being raised, before finally closing, sealing her off from the outside world with the sense of finality found in death.
The on goings in front of him felt distant. Sounds were muted, as if he were under water. He could vaguely hear the conversations between the nurses and the doctor, but he was unable to make out what they were saying.
Before he knew it, he was sitting in the chair, two nurses in front of him with concerned looks on their faces. He blinked, having no recollection of how he got there. He sank into the cushions, a blank look on his face.
“I think he’s going into shock,” said one of the nurses. Her long brown hair was tied in a ponytail and her gaze was full of worry.
“I’m not surprised, he just watched the little girl die in front of him,” replied the second nurse. Looking up towards her, Adrian found that here eyes were a stunning shade of green that went beautifully with her short blonde hair. He knew not why he fixated on that detail, but it was enough to bring him back to the present.
“Sir, can you hear ? Are you alright?”
Adrian blinked. It took his addled brain a mont to process that they were talking to him. Eventually, he said “I think so, I’m sorry about that.”
Sounds began to return in full. Shoes scuffed along in the hallway outside and the sound of wheels rolling on linoleum could be heard. At first, he thought it to be another nurse bearing a trolley. Looking past the two nurses in front of him, he instead saw a gurney being wheeled into the room by two nurses.
The gurney had a set of shiny grey bars on either side and a single, long, navy cushion throughout the center. The uninviting cushion was entirely flat and did not look comfortable.
The nurses grabbed the bag Evelynn’s body was in by the four sh-like handles that could be found at the head and foot of the bag. Hoisting her off her bed, they had no trouble transferring her lightweight fra to the cushion on the gurney.
Placing her body in the center, the gurney extended several feet on either end of the bag. There was no need to guess the age of they body, as only children had bags that small.
As quickly as they entered, the two nurses left, bringing Evelynn along with them.
“Where are they bringing her?” Adrian asked.
“To the morgue. It’s where they’ll store the body until the funeral is held,” replied the nurse with the green eyes.
“How long will they keep her there for?”
“Usually only three days. You’ll have to plan her funeral rather quickly.”
“How am I supposed to get the body for burial? I don’t know where Matt and Annie’s bodies are,” Adrian realized.
“Who are Matt and Annie?”
“They’re her parents. All three of them were in a car accident yesterday. The parents died on scene, and well, their daughter just did as well.”
The nurse with the ponytail gasped. “That’s terrible! What a thing to have happen. And to an entire family too,” she trailed off.
“You’ll have to check in with the morgue. There’s a good chance that their bodies are stored at the sa morgue as their daughter’s.”
***
The next day found Adrian bright-eyed and bushy tailed. He had hardly slept, his thoughts grim and dark. The morning light was held at bay by the thick brown curtains on his bedroom window. He left them closed as he got out of bed, having no desire for anything that might lighten his mood.
“Ugh,” he mumbled in a raspy voice, “I don’t want to get up yet.”
Taking a whiff of himself, he realized that he needed a shower. He reluctantly got out of bed and made his way over to the golden towel rack he had next to the dresser in front of his door, going around his clothes from yesterday that he had left lying haphazardly on the floor. Sohow, one of his socks had made it across the room next to his closet. He bent down and picked it up before throwing near the rest of his clothes. He would clean up later.
His room wasn’t large by any stretch of the imagination. His faux-wood desk was a pale-yellow colour with no drawers to store objects. Really, it was nothing more than a small table that he had managed to fit in his room. It was littered with textbooks and glasses centered around an old laptop sitting in the middle. An empty plate was precariously perched on one of the stacks of textbooks.
Retrieving his towel, Adrian turned to the door on his left and made his way to the bathroom, conveniently located to the imdiate right of the door. The bathroom had a white tiling in the shape of small hexagons and the backsplash from the ground to his chest was mint green. Rather than paint the rest of the walls a neutral white, they were the sa hideous shade of green the backsplash was. Completing the green thed bathroom was a dark green shower curtain. Luckily the toilet was white. Adrian didn’t know if he could handle a green one.
One hot shower later and he looked presentable. He hadn’t bothered shaving and was sporting a five o’ clock shadow that reflected his haggard mood. He wolfed down a quick piece of toast and checked the ti. He had forty minutes before his appointnt, and it would take at least a half hour to get there.
Getting into the car he had left parked on the side of the street in front of his apartnt, Adrian sped off toward the funeral parlour. With nary a minute to spare, he rushed out and made his way inside. Dark brown rugs with cream-coloured floral patterns lay on the floor, directing him straight towards the receptionist that was in front of him.
“Hello,” he said politely. He looked at the receptionist, unsure of what to make of the dark-skinned man sitting in a flamboyant purple suit and tie behind the counter. He hadn’t ever seen a purple suit before.
“What can I help you with?” the man piped up from behind the desk.
“I’m supposed to et with the funeral director today. He might have ntioned – my na is Adrian Blackwood.”
“Ah, yes, he did happen to ntion you yesterday. Please take a seat and he’ll be right with you,” the man said, gesturing towards the waiting area.
Adrian sat down in one of the non-descript white plastic chairs and waited. He seed to be doing that a lot these days, he thought to himself. Five minutes later, a man in a black suit appeared. What was left of his hair was shock white and he stood slightly hunched over.
“You must be Mr. Blackwood. Please, co with back to my office,” said the man, motioning for Adrian to follow. Without pause, he turned around and started towards the narrow arch he had appeared from. Turning to the right, Adrian was greeted by a short hallway that ended in a single wooden door, which the man was already beginning to open.
Entering the office, the man went around his mahogany desk and sat on the other side. The wood went well alongside the red wall of the room. A large window was behind the desk, the curtains drawn. In the distance was a pond with willow trees dotted around it.
“In preparation for our eting, I looked up your family plot,” the director started. “and there is so spare room for the deceased. You ntioned needing two plots, for a husband and wife if I recall correctly.”
“Make that three plots” Adrian choked. “Their daughter just passed away from her injuries.”
A mont of silence passed as the director digested the news. “I’m sorry for your loss,” he said finally. “I happen to have a few plots that have several vacancies next to each other so that the family can be buried together, if you wish. Would you like to co visit them? They might not be next to your parents, as they only had a total of four plots, but they should be nearby.”
“That would be great,” Adrian replied, his voice thick with emotion. His eyes had begun to water, and he was doing all he could to hold back his tears. It was hard admitting to himself that they were truly gone and seeing the rows of tombstones through the window really drove ho that he was planning a funeral.
The director got up from his chair. “In that case, follow around back so we can go take a look,” he said. Adrian exited the room before him and waited for the man to close the door before following him.
“Are there any plots left available near the willows that would hold three people?” Adrian asked as they walked. “My parents were buried under them, and I’d like it if the rest of my family was as well.”
“There are a few spots that match that description,” the director said pensively. “Although most remaining spots in that area are for single burials, there should be one about seventy feet away from them. It won’t be near the water like your parents however.”
“Could we see that one first then, if it’s not too much trouble?”
“Of course.
The pair made their way over a small red bridge, crossing the brook towards the small grove of willows. The river could be seen crossing from the right, before being swallowed by the trees. Arriving at the plot showed that there were four available spots next to each other. Adrian selected the first three, feeling that they were a perfect fit.
They decided to hold a closed casket funeral, as they both felt no one should have to view the gored remains of the deceased. After scheduling the funeral and thanking the director, Adrian found himself once again outside the funeral ho waiting for a taxi. The yellow car pulled to a stop in front of him and Adrian directed him to go to Annie and Evelynn’s house.
Half an hour later, he arrived at small, white, rectangular house with a flat roof. There was a garden on the front lawn that had thinned out considerably with the colder weather, a once beautiful array of lilacs and daisies A small hedge outlined the path leading arching the driveway to the front door. Following it, Adrian took out his keys and put the spare into the slot. Unlocking the door, he let himself in.
He was imdiately greeted to a small front entrance. A mirror on the left-hand side of a cream-colour wall, to the right of the wooden closet. A line of racks was pinned at eye level to the right-hand wall for coats and sweaters. He took his shoes off so as not to drag in the water from the damp ground outside and placed his coat on the rack.
He walked through the living room and into the kitchen. The cabinets were white, and the counter was made of black granite, with flecks of white. The vivid contrast made the wooden dining table stand out amongst the décor. He made his way past the island counter top and reached for the small bowl next to the coffee pot. From it, he fished out a set of car keys.
He briefly did a tour of the house to make sure everything was in order, before locking the front and back doors. Standing on the doormat outside, Adrian fished out the keys for Annie’s second car that was sitting in the driveway. It was a white hatchback with a large purple sticker on the back of the driver’s side mirror. It had been placed there by Evelynn a week ago, and Annie hadn’t taken it off yet.
He put the key in the ignition to start the car then fastened his seatbelt. Looking back in the rear-view mirror, he spotted a woman walking her dog. He let her pass and then backed out of the driveway and made his way ho.
He parked the car on the street in front of his apartnt building and walked up to the second floor. He entered and took off his coat then grabbed his laptop. He needed sothing to take his mind off of the situation and a movie while laying in bed would hopefully do just that.
***
It was past eleven now. Adrian hadn’t been hungry and decided to watch three movies to occupy his thoughts. The less he could think about the upcoming funeral, the better. He had fallen into a fugue and couldn’t rember any details on the last half of the movie he had just finished watching. Rising out of bed, he walked around his discarded clothes that littered the floor of his room and went towards the front entrance to get his phone and headphones off of his desk on his way out.
He put on his coat and shoes and stepped out into the late-night air. It was damp outside and slled of fresh rain. The world was silent, heavy earthen tones perating the air alongside the sll of wet wood.
He put his headphones on and selected a song. He started his walk as he faded into the gentle, low notes of his music and sank into the heart-lurching lyrics. The next song was one he and Evelynn listened to together frequently.
“Sowhere, over the rainbow,” he started singing softly. He turned onto the upcoming street and didn’t notice that it wasn’t as well lit as the main road he had just been on. Finishing the song, he paid no attention to the van trailing behind him, ever so slowly.
The van had no lights on and was black. Two n were seated inside, watching Adrian intently. They were both dressed in black pants and a black jacket. Their clothing was otherwise non-descript, blending into the shadows cast by the moonlight.
As the car passed by, Adrian felt the hair on his arms raise. Catching the van in the corner of his eye, he swiveled his head towards it just as the passenger door open. The large man sitting in the seat lunged out of the car and made for Adrian.
Belatedly, Adrian tried to dodge, but ultimately wasn’t fast enough. Rather than tackle him like Adrian was expecting, the man reached out a black-clothed arm and grabbed him by the shoulder. He pulled Adrian over and punched him the gut with his remaining hand.
Adrian felt a rush go through him as his muscles seized. He collapsed into a boneless heap on the ground, falling to his knees and then onto his side. The side of his head scraped against the pavent, and he began bleeding.
A chuckle ca from above him. “The bugger never even saw it coming. I love it when they make it easy.” Adrian turned his eyes towards the man who just spoke. In the hand that had punched him, the man brandished a taser. Noticing Adrian’s scorn-filled gaze, the man grinned and pushed a button on the taser, causing it to spark at the tip.
“Would you hurry up and put the body in the car,” said a second voice in hushed tones. “We’re supposed to make this quick.”
“Cut so slack, there’s nobody here.”
“You don’t know that, now put him in the car. The client is waiting. We have a deadline to et.”
Grumbling profanities that Adrian couldn’t quite make out, the first man slid open the side door to the van. Scooping Adrian up, he roughly placed him on his back in the gutted back of the van. All the seats had been removed, leaving a flat, empty space large enough to accommodate Adrian’s paralyzed form.
Attached to the wall of the van where the trunk was a small canister. Attached to it was a clear plastic hose that ended in a face mask.
Jumping in the back with Adrian, the man closed the door and tased Adrian once more.
“For good asure,” the man said, as Adrian seized up once again.
Reaching behind Adrian’s head, the man grabbed the face mask and brought it to Adrian’s lips. With his free hand, he turned the nozzle on the canister. A faint hissing sound reached Adrian’s ears, letting him know that his next breath would be the mystery gas.
Ten seconds passed as Adrian tried to fight the inevitable. He took slow breaths, trying in vain to get his muscles to move again. If he could only just use his arms, he could tear the damn thing off.
“Hey, I’m not trying to rush you or anything this ti, but are you sure he should keep breathing in that stuff for so long?”
“Shut up, moron. Does he look unconscious?” the large man rebuked. Turning around now, he got a good look at Adrian’s eyes fluttering wildly as de desperately tried to stay awake.
“Creepy. Whatever you do, make sure he’s able to wake back up.”
“I’m a doctor, I went to d school. I know what I’m doing.”
“No, you’re not. You washed out after your second year and now you collect organs for a living. Hardly qualified.”
“Two tis, that only happened two tis!” he protested. The news alard Adrian, even through his addled state. He had stopped struggling and lay sedated on the floor. Adrian strained his ears but only heard muted sounds as the world around him faded into nothingness.
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