《The Night it Was Released》 1: Bloody Knuckles Collin closed the front door with the delicacy of an experienced parent. He smiled as he looked at his wife, Kristy. Kristy sat as a silhouette in the sunset on the edge of the porch with her feet dipped in the water. She looked back and returned a smile that made Collin¡¯s heart melt. Collin hooked a thumb toward the closed door, ¡°She''s fast asleep.¡± ¡°How was story time?¡± Kristy patted the porch next to her. ¡°Same as usual,¡± Collin shook his head and let out a mild groan as he sat. He was too young to feel this old. Responsibility had a way of speeding up the clock faster than any miracle cream could ever hope to cure. ¡°I''ve read that same book to her at least two hundred times at this point. I swear I could say it by heart. A little variety would be nice.¡± Kristy laugh in a light way that meant she felt his pain. The laugh cut off and was replaced by a small frown as she caught sight of Collin¡¯s knuckles. ¡°How was work?¡± Kristy said in that way that meant she already knew. Collin cursed inwardly. There was no way he was getting out of this conversation. ¡°Can we just sit here and not talk about that?¡± Kristy gave Collin a level stare, ¡°That bad?¡± Collin hung his head and nodded, ¡°Yeah.. That bad.¡± ¡°Are you suspended?¡± Colling shook his head, ¡°Worse.¡± ¡°No, you got fired again?" Kristy said in a hushed voice, eyes drifting toward their daughter''s room, "For a stupid fight? They usually give you a warning first. What are we going to do?" Collin understood that Kristy wasn''t worried about the two of them, but she was worried for their daughter. When it was just the two of them, they had always found a way to scrape by, but that wouldn''t cut it anymore. They needed to give their daughter a good life. Being jobless and behind on the mortgage was a terrible start. "I don''t know," Collin rubbed his face and loosened his tie. Kristy sighed, ¡°I¡¯d knock some sense into you if I thought it would do any good.¡±Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°You can still take a swing if it¡¯ll make you feel better,¡± Collin joked. Kristy punched him in the arm hard. ¡°Ouch!¡± Kristy laughed that summery laugh. ¡°Feeling better?¡± Collin said. ¡°A little, but you¡¯re not off the hook that easy.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dream of it,¡± Collin joked before taking a serious tone, "I''ll figure something out, Kris. I promise." Kristy leaned into Collin, grabbed his hand, and gave it a squeeze ¡°You will." Collin squeezed Kristy''s hand back, gentle as a loving breeze. She was his everything. He didn¡¯t deserve someone so good and pure. Kristy lifted Collin¡¯s hand and inspected his bloodied knuckles, "So, was it a customer or a Coworker this time?" She didn¡¯t have to ask for more details than the state of his hands to know why he got canned. Collin winced, "My boss.¡± ¡°Ohh, that explains them jumping straight past the warning and firing you,¡± Krtisty frowned at Collin. ¡°Don''t worry,¡± Collin reassured her. ¡°He got a couple of good shots at me so he''s not gonna try to take it to court or he¡¯d be in a bigger load of trouble. A couple of the boys at the yard promised they¡¯d back me, if he tried something. They didn¡¯t like the way he was talking about you either." Kristy¡¯s wig was slightly tilted and a pang of guilt stabbed at Collin, he chose not to mention it, but she caught him staring before he could look away. ¡°Let¡¯s hope,¡± Kristy said, reaching to straighten her wig. A flash of insecurity played across her face. It made Collin''s heart ache. ¡°You don¡¯t have to defend me, you know. It¡¯s normal for people to gossip.¡± Collin¡¯s heart nearly tore in two at the look on his wife¡¯s face. How could he call himself a man if he was incapable of keeping a look like that from coming around? Collin¡¯s blood started to boil. He clenched his fists, thinking about what his boss had said about Kristy, ¡°He said the reason why we¡¯re always broke is cause of you being a jobless gambler. I set him straight by breaking his nose. Plain and simple.¡± ¡°You know, words can be an effective tool.¡± Kristy said in a half-hearted reprimand. She never approved of Collin¡¯s fighting, but he could tell a part of her was happy that he had defended her. ¡°You could have told him about me, you know. I wouldn¡¯t have been upset.¡± Collin shook his head and raised his fists, inspecting them. ¡°I know you don¡¯t want word getting around about the chemo. That means I don¡¯t either. Besides, words wouldn¡¯t have done the trick on that pile of waste. I used the right tools for the job.¡± ¡°Those tools are most definitely not right for keeping a job.¡± Collin opened and closed his hands, ¡°I just wish people would mind their own damn business.¡± Kristy wrapped her arms around Collin¡¯s midsection. ¡°You¡¯re just a stubborn, brute. You need to learn how to ignore people who aren¡¯t worth our time.¡± Collin nodded, laying an arm over her. ¡°That would be nice. One of these days, I¡¯ll figure out how to be smarter.¡± The two of them sat there on the front porch long after the sun had set. Tomorrow, they could worry about money, but tonight, they had each other. That was all they had ever needed to make it to the next day. Desperate The tick of the clock on the wall cut through the otherwise overwhelming silence. In some ways the clock enhanced the silence as a constant ticking reminder. Collin sat in the waiting room with six other desperate individuals that were dressed frustratingly better than he was. His comrades. These men and women understood the struggle, but for that same reason, none of them spoke to one another. Instead, they all gave each other the respect of silence. Like them all, Collin prepared himself for what was to come. They would call him in and he¡¯d plaster a smile on his face, ready to kiss as much hindquarters as was necessary to get his next low brow gig. ¡°Collin.¡± The secretary called. Collin stood with all the gratitude in the world that he was first and plastered on a hopeful smile. ¡°That¡¯s me.¡± The secretary nodded and scratched something off on the clipboard she was holding. ¡°Miss Brandish will see you now. Room 207.¡± Collin followed the echoes of the hall to the last door on the left. An unassuming door that wasn¡¯t even thick enough to muffle the clicking of a pen coming from the other side. Collin wiped the sweat from his hands on the backside of his slacks, turned the polished doorknob and stepped inside. ¡°Collin, it¡¯s good to see you again,¡± Miss Brandish said, standing up from her desk and smiling. She motioned to the chair on the other side of her desk. ¡°Please sit. How is the family?¡± Collin nodded politely back to Miss Brandish and sat down, worried about the way she was acting. She was usually more intimidating than kind. Something told Collin to brace himself for the worst. ¡°There isn¡¯t anything left for me, is there?¡± Miss Brandish looked away and winced. She sat down and leaned her elbows on the desk with her fingers interlaced. ¡°Straight to business as usual I see. I¡¯ll cut to the chase too, then. I¡¯ve got nothing for you.¡± ¡°Nothing at all?¡± Collin gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. ¡°Look, Collin, with your criminal background, you were lucky to get the last job. That was your last real chance. There¡¯s nothing left for you that I can professionally recommend.¡± Collin ran his fingers through his hair and thought about his wife and daughter. He couldn¡¯t pick up and start over again. This was his fault, not theirs. His wife and daughter deserved a stable life. Collin would do anything to make that happen. ¡°What about the ones that you can¡¯t professionally recommend?¡±Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Miss Brandish raised an eyebrow at Collin, ¡°Like I said, it¡¯s not something that I feel right about bringing up.¡± Collin sighed, ¡°At this point, it doesn¡¯t have to feel right as long as it puts bread on the table.¡± ¡°Even so, this may be something you come to regret.¡± ¡°Look, I¡¯m desperate.¡± Collin met her eyes and held her gaze until he was sure she knew he was being sincere. ¡°As long as it¡¯s not illegal or life threatening, I¡¯m willing to do anything to feed my family. Hell, at this point, I might even be talked into lower standards than that.¡± ¡°Not illegal and not life threatening pretty much strikes out the entire list of non-recommendable jobs.¡± Miss Brandish pursed her lips, ¡°Except for one.¡± Collin sat up straighter and scooted forward at the mention of a chance. ¡°Name it, I¡¯m there.¡± ¡°Listen to what it is before you make up your mind.¡± Miss Brandish held up a hand and gave Collin a pointed look. ¡°There¡¯s a scientist doing experiments and he needs volunteers.¡± ¡°What kind of volunteers?¡± Collin¡¯s eyebrows creased. ¡°The kind that doesn¡¯t wear a lab coat.¡± Miss Brandish let out a soft laugh to herself. ¡°To tell the truth, I don¡¯t know any real details. I was just told by my contact that this client is a biologist doing experiments and he needs volunteers who are desperate.¡± ¡°Why only desperate people?¡± Collin knew desperate people worked harder, but that didn¡¯t make them the perfect soldier. Miss Brandish shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m curious too, but I¡¯ve already told you everything I know other than the application process. Are you still interested in applying?¡± A biologist looking for desperate volunteers. There were only a handful of conclusions Collin could imagine about what this job would entail, but as long as it didn¡¯t leave him permanently scarred and he was able support his family, he really didn¡¯t care. Collin only hesitated for a moment. ¡°I¡¯m in. Where do I sign?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t.¡± Miss Brandish cleared her throat and pulled out a syringe, a glass vial, and a slip of paper with three blank lines. ¡°I know it¡¯s strange, but this is the application. Fill out your direct deposit information and address, then put a sample of your blood into the vial. You will receive your first payment after I mail this in. A deposit of five thousand dollars will appear in your account a week from now for just applying.¡± ¡°Five thousand?!¡± Collin¡¯s eyes bulged. That could get him caught up and pay his mortgage for several months. That was a life changing amount of money. ¡°And I don¡¯t even have to talk to anyone?¡± Miss Brandish nodded, ¡°That¡¯s correct. Beyond that, I don¡¯t know what happens. I have gotten zero feedback from anyone who has applied, but I assume that is due to some kind of non-disclosure agreement if you move forward. Also, If anyone asks who referred you, don¡¯t tell them it was me, let them know it was a man named ¡®Frank Sycota¡¯. If anyone asks, I will deny any and all involvement. As far as I¡¯m concerned, I turned you away today without helping you at all.¡± Collin shrugged and filled out the paper, then picked up the syringe. He hesitated only a moment before reminding himself that this blood sample was worth Five thousand dollars. He shrugged and pricked his forearm with the syringe and filled the vial. No going back now. Bedtime Two weeks had passed since Collin got the deposit of five thousand dollars. He had almost cried when he saw his bank account well out of the negative for the first time in a long time. After a slight hesitation, Collin told his wife, Kristy, the whole story except for leaving out miss Brandish¡¯s involvement. Collin informed Kristy that ¡®Frank Sycota¡¯ was a pseudonym, but insisted he wouldn¡¯t reveal the real person so Kristy wouldn¡¯t have to lie. ¡°Daddy?¡± Jenny, Collin¡¯s daughter, interrupted his train of thought. She peeked out from under the covers. ¡°Why did you stop? The best part is coming up.¡± ¡°Sorry honey.¡± Collin sat there beside Jenny''s bed with her favorite book in his hands. He always read it to her before she went to sleep. He hadn¡¯t even realized that he¡¯d spaced out mid-sentance. He found his place in the story and began to read again. ¡°Before there was no chance of going back, the beast stopped attacking the town and listened to the one person who saw him as more than a monster. It realized there was someone who loved him and that was far more special than being a monster. The monster was so happy when it realized this, that it turned into a human and lived happily ever after.¡± ¡°How did the monster become a human?¡± Jenny asked. ¡°Well¡­¡± Collin had to think for a second. Jenny never asked that question before. ¡°Love is a powerful thing, sweety. Some people say it can conquer anything.¡± ¡°I love you, Daddy.¡± ¡°I love you too, Sweety.¡± Jenny threw back the covers and inspected herself wearing a very serious expression. Collin laughed. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°I was waiting to see if I turned into a human.¡± Jenny said. ¡°Nope,¡± Collin teased, ¡°You¡¯re still a sugar monster.¡± ¡°I am not! I ate my broccoli tonight, and sugar monsters hate broccoli!¡± ¡°Knock, knock,¡± Kristy said, entering the room. ¡°Mommy?¡± Jenny¡¯s face turned serious, ¡°Why are you awake? Are you feeling better?¡± Kristy smiled lovingly at Jenny, ¡°I feel great right now, Sweet-Pea, I promise I¡¯ll go to bed soon. Collin, someone just dropped off a letter for you.¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°A letter? At night?¡± Collin looked at the envelope in Kristies hand, ¡°What did it say?¡± ¡°Grown-up stuff,¡± Kristy said, ¡°I¡¯ll read to Jenny if you want to step out to read it.¡± Collin grunted in compliance as he ruffled Jenny¡¯s hair and wished her goodnight. ¡°Say goodnight to the bugs too,¡± Jenny said pointing at her netted cages full of different bugs she had collected. ¡°Goodnight bugs,¡± Chuck said as he stood up, traded a kiss for the letter in Kristy¡¯s hand and ducked outside to read it on the porch. The letter was much shorter than Collin had expected: ¡°You have been selected for the next step in our program. If you choose to move forward, you will be paid in weekly installments of $10,000.00. To confirm your interest, wait alone in the parking lot of the Perk diner at 11PM this Friday.¡± Collin read the letter a few times. What would he have to do for ten thousand a week? They had his blood sample, so would they be after his organs next? He decided it didn¡¯t matter what he needed to give up as long as it brought his family a better life in the end. In for a penny, in for a pound, Collin thought. Kristy opened and closed closed the front door quietly. ¡°That was quick,¡± Collin said. ¡°You did all the hard work,¡± Kristy sat next to Collin and snatched the letter out of his hand. ¡°Can you believe this? What kind of psycho sent this?¡± ¡°A rich one,¡± Collin said. Kristy shuddered ¡°A rich psycho is scarier than a poor one.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want me to do it, do you?¡± Kristy raised an eyebrow at Collin, ¡°Are you actually considering showing up in that dark parking lot alone?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a lot of money, Kris.¡± Collin said. He knew he would have to do some convincing, but this was an opportunity that wouldn¡¯t come again. ¡°It really is, but I would rather have a living husband than have a paid mortgage.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be careful,¡± Collin reassured her, ¡°At the first sign of danger, I¡¯ll start running.¡± ¡°Collin, this letter IS the first sign of danger.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have you on speed dial.¡± Kristy sighed, ¡°You know, part of making decisions together, is not making up your mind before you even talk to me.¡± ¡°Did I ever tell you how beautiful you look?¡± Collin deflected. ¡°Shut up,¡± Kristy said. She wasn¡¯t happy, but was coming around. ¡°You know, if I have you fight a vampire in that parking lot, that¡¯d be a great story later on.¡± ¡°At least that fight wouldn¡¯t get you fired.¡± Collin chuckled, ¡°Unless the Vampire ends up being the rich psycho.¡± ¡°Damnit, Collin,¡± Kristy said with a sudden sincerity, ¡°Please promise you¡¯ll be safe.¡± ¡°I promise, Kris,¡± Collin said as he wrapped Kristy in a bear hug, ¡°I ain¡¯t done with you and jenny yet.¡± ¡°I hate you sometimes,¡± Kristy said. Collin chortled, ¡°I love you too.¡± Black-bagged Collin kicked himself for not bringing a flashlight. He didn¡¯t realize how dark the Perk diner parking lot actually got at night. Luckily he didn¡¯t have to wait long before it got creepier. Car headlights flashed on and swallowed Collin like a spotlight. Visibility went from terrible to zero. There was the sound of a car door closing, then a voice called out, ¡°Collin?¡± ¡°That would be me,¡± Collin replied. He couldn¡¯t see the man, but he sounded older than forty. ¡°You can call me, Nameless. I am to escort you to my employer.¡± ¡°Not a great pickup line, there buddy. I¡¯d start less aggressive if you¡¯re looking for a good time.¡± ¡°Uh, no thank you,¡± Nameless said. Stick confirmed to be waaaay up there. ¡°Apologies for the extensive measures, my employer is meticulous about his privacy.¡± ¡°Right then, next you¡¯re gonna black bag me?¡± Collin tried for another joke, but his eyes bulged when Nameless tossed him a black bag to slide over his head. ¡°I¡¯ve made sure that it¡¯s quite breathable.¡± Collin hesitated, looking at the bag in his hands. How far was he willing to go? He shrugged and slipped the bag over his head. He¡¯d go pretty far damn far. ¡°This way,¡± Nameless guided Collin with a surprisingly gentle hand into the car. ¡°Thanks, bud,¡± Collin said. The slam of the car door was the only reply. ¡°So, I¡¯m not looking to sell my body,¡± Collin prodded as he heard the slam of the driver door. No response from Nameless. After probably twenty minutes of driving in silence, Collin¡¯s head was gathering sweat beads from the bounce-back of his breath in the black bag. He¡¯d attempted a few more times to provoke a conversation out of Nameless, but there wasn¡¯t a single reply. There was a good chance the back seat was sound proofed since the world outside was nearly inaudible. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Collin sighed and kept tapping his feet, breathing into the darkness while waiting. And waiting. About an hour into the drive, the car stopped. Collin excitedly ripped the bag off his head and looked around the blacked out container he was in. They had gone so far as to black out the windows. What was the point of the bag on his head? An intercom buzzed on and Nameless spoke, ¡°Please kindly place the bag over your head again. We cannot progress until you do¡± ¡°You could talk this whole time!?¡± Collin complained, ¡°I¡¯m starting to think you don¡¯t like me, Nameless.¡± No response. Collin sighed, wiped his face and slipped the bag back on. The car door instantly clicked open. Nameless helped Collin out of the car and passed him off to a new person who sounded equally British and coincidentally introduced themselves as Nameless as well. Nameless number two escorted Collin to a new car and they started to drive again. By the third Nameless, Collin was rethinking his life choices. Six hours. SIX hours of driving and switching cars and Nameless and more driving. Collin was about to call the whole thing quits, but finally the car stopped and Nameless number seven spoke over the intercom. ¡°This is the final stop,¡± Nameless announced, ¡°I assure you that you will be allowed to remove the bag from your head in a few minutes.¡± ¡°Thank Christ, man. I was beginning to think the experiment had already started and it was an endurance competition.¡± Collin groaned. He needed a good stretch and a tall glass of water after that ride from hell. Nameless didn¡¯t reply, but the door opened a few seconds later. Nameless placed a gentle guiding hand on Collin¡¯s arm, ¡°Watch your step, sir.¡± Nameless led Collin into some kind of house or building and onto an elevator from What Collin could tell while still blinded. After stepping off the elevator, Nameless walked Collin a few steps, then spoke, ¡°Count to one hundred twenty and then you may remove the bag.¡± Collin gladly started counting. Two minutes was nothing after the exhausting hours of twiddling his thumbs. The elevator behind, him dinged at sixty seconds and he assumed Bruns was gone. Collin idly wondered how many Nameless there really were. It could have been as few as two of them just driving Collin back and forth to obfuscate the location of wherever he was now. At the end of the count, Collin ripped the bag off his head and tossed it to the ground. In front of him was a long table with a juicy steak on top of a bed of mashed potatoes and a contract with a pen. Collin blinked a few times to adjust his eyes to the light in the room. ¡°Hello Collin,¡± A high pitched voice spoke from across the table, ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you in person. My name is Merrin.¡± Collin hadn¡¯t noticed the other presence in the room until they spoke. He looked to the source of the voice, blinked a few times, rubbed his eyes then spoke up in confusion, ¡°Monkey?¡± ¡°Yes,'''' the monkey in a lab coat said. It was standing on the end of the table, holding a small clip-board, ¡°I¡¯m a capuchin monkey to be precise, but I respond better to Merrin than Monkey.¡± ¡°Uhh¡­ Sure,¡± Collin said, questioning what he had gotten himself into for entirely new reasons.