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Crazy
Location: right behind you...
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life has been fucking weird so i've slacked.
started again though and here's the latest.
All his proffesionlism just kind of sunk down. Think of what he’s been through, Cliffy boy. He’s under a lot of stress; besides their friendship seems to have possibly blossomed.
“Mike, how long have you been working?”
“Over a year. . ?”
“Today.”
“Twelve hours.”
“Why so long, Mike? We try to keep them working not much longer than eight hours for her sake.” Cliff was calmer now than ever.
“Because I was there when it happened.”
“Another reason for someone else to be on the case, Mike.”
“I can’t deal with this bullshit, Cliff! Don’t look so shocked! You look like a fish out of water.”
“Mike, wat-“
“No, you be quiet this time. Fucking bully. I am here because I care. I care! You have a problem with that?”
“Not that you care for her.” Cliff wanted to laugh his ass off but knew Mike was being truly sincere. “You are human. Eventually we all fall. Even us bullshitting tough guy bullies. We can’t go without rest and food and I sure as fuck can’t take the time out to baby sit you.”
“I have ate well, thanks. Sleep is another story.”
“She’s sleeping. She’s fine. I’m here. Go sleep.”
“Are you sure? My job is to tend.”
“Mike, you’ve proven yourself, okay? I trust you and if she needs something you’ll know immediately. Sleep, dude.” Cliff was probably more surprised at himself than Mike was. The bastard nurse had spoken to him so rudely. Nobody has spoken to him like that since. . . ever!
“Okay I’m gone.” With that, he was into the bedroom. Cheyenne’s. What the fuck? Odd. Very odd.
When he was young, Cliff had patience. He knew how to kill time in his head or by reading a book. Cheyenne required patience and a steady mind.
Cheyenne. Beautiful Cheyenne. Cliff always figured people would get creeped out if they heard him say it in that way. People were normally ignorant at best, yet he wanted to keep a little interaction with regular folk.
The bond between the two is stronger than about anything else. Cliff was a natural caregiver and he and Cheyenne were rare in the first place. They rarely fought and if one was sad the other made it their official duty to perk up the other. To put it simply, they were best friends.
Now Cliff felt helpless and more than a little disengaged. He feared if she ever found out about some of the things he had done she would disown him. So he kind of stayed away since hiring the nurses. She had begged him to try to obtain his own life; alone, or with a family.
Family, indeed. Thought Cliff wearily. I have too much hate to have a family and my temper is far too short.
He had pursued a few girls and like everyone else he had his ups and downs with them. In the end all but two were freaked out by his bond with Cheyenne.
And for this reason he was single. Well, that wasn’t quite true or fair. His undying loyalty to Cheyenne certainly did not help, but in all honesty it his lifestyle that kept people at bay. How did you tell someone that you do everything and nothing, ignore laws, help people who need it and kill people who need to cease?
You couldn’t tell anyone.
He had thought about quiting his vigilante lifestyle and had tried on a couple of occasions to stop. Every time he try to go by ways of the fucked up American laws he’d see things that made him cringe every step of the way. He had a talent of sighting wrong doings and he saw them constantly. It ate him up.
Crooked cops, pimps, drug smugglers, it was all in plain sight and Cliff could not close his eyes to it.
He had only once closed his eyes and the consequences were severe. He could not, would not close his eyes again. Not even for his sister.
Realizing he had dosed off angered him. You couldn’t do such foolish things when tending to the sick.
Cheyenne was watching him curiously. She was one of the very few of his inner circle who knew what he did.
“Shouldn’t you be fighting crime, Batman?” she asked with a grin.
“Not today, sister. How do you feel?”
“I’ve felt better, Cliff. I have also felt much worse. The only real problem is my face aches badly.”
Cliff nodded. If she were not fucked up she’d hurt all over. He’d hate for her to be in pain but god he wished she were well.
“So, don’t wig out on me when you see my button.”
Fucking Morphine! He thought in a rage, but kept quiet.
“I know you disapprove but it works.”
“There are other drugs, Cheyenne. But it is short term. Mike will not let you use it long, I think.” He stated dryly.
If Cheyenne understood what he indicated she didn’t let on.
“Besides he has some medication.” Cliff said.
She giggled. Giggled! “Not a one of us are innocent, “Z”.”
He just shook his head instead of commenting. This was one round he knew he’d lose.
“Our secret is always safe, Cliff.” She said seriously.
“Of course. I trust you. Now, do you have any idea why what happened did?”
“No, I don’t. I just remember a powerful slam in the back of the vehicle, then some men beat me.” Her voice didn’t shake. Close, but no trembling. “It happened fast and Mike… did he mention they broke three ribs? They were not playing around. They had a dire reason, but what reason is unknown.”
“I’ll find out.”
“Yes. That is why I am afraid.”
Cliff did not answer.
“You should not pursue this, I think. It was a message, sure, but they didn’t kill us. If they intended it to be that bad, they would had simply killed us. Messengers do not leave clues or return addresses. Let’s drop it.”
“Uh. Sure. No problem. I’ll just wait until they murder you!”
“Don’t be an idiot.”
“It had to be something to do with the work I do, it is obvious. And I can’t stop the work. Imagining only one person being used by thugs with no help or retribution is something I cannot let go. If I do not pursue, or worse quit, then more people than you two will suffer. You know this. Not to mention what they will do next if they think me bullied.”
“I understand. I need sleep, brother.”
“Slee-“ he went to tell her ‘sleep well’, but she was already out.
He couldn’t sleep and was a little too ill to go outside. If he went out he would even be suspicious of a squirrel right now; so he did something amazing. He cleaned the house.
He vacummed the whole house, mopped the tiled kitchen, dusted all the shelves and cabinets and figurines and such, he did the dishes. He almost did the luandrey when he came across some speedos. He just shook his head and moved on.
Cliff was one exceptionally bored fellow.
He noticed a computer and turned it on.
Wil had created a small program simply called Speak for the two to communicate; like AIM. Cliff was surprised he remembered the correct URL, but remember he did, and in a few seconds flat Wil got a message.
“What’s up, z? How’s your sister?” Wil asked.
“She’s much better than I feared. Only concerns is that there is absolutely no doubt whatsoever that this action was taken to cause my lifestyle to be cramped.”
“We can’t let that happen.”
“Indeed. Do a search for thugs for hire. This was a merc job. It will either make it impossible to trace or easy.”
Cliff heard Wil typing like a nut. Fast, the boy was.
“The guerilla look promising. Probably who we’re looking at for the guys who did the deed. They appear to have a small bio on every member and they have forty seven members. Their criminal records are reported also, as well their type of ‘training’.”
Wil continued. “This is so wonderful and fucking creepy at the same time. They have code, of course, for what they do or do not do.”
“For instance, Jesus here is gardener. He has pictures of it, look here”, Wil sent Cliff the URL and continued talking. “Pretty nice and healthy, eh?”
“Fertilizer.” Cliff said softly.
“Yes. And it isn’t pig shit, either. See, he has his own little produce bit too. He sells veggies and does ‘odd jobs’ for a living. Hey, Z, how do you think he bought that watch?”
“Right. A ten to twelve thousand dollars is no gear for a humble gardener and odd jobsman. So, you bet he does have pigs, just not for feces, yes?”
“Right on, Z. I know this sounds like Hannible, but seriously, the fucker is a body disposer and since he works out of Mexico he is pretty close to harmless. I’m sure the dude is a great guy if you know him in a civilian way. Its just his work.”
“Do not pity these fucks.”
“I don’t ‘pity’ them. But I do feel for them. My personal thought, Z. Take it or fucking leave it.”
“Fair enough.”
“Anyhow. I’ll dig around. See you on here in 24, okay?”
“Most likely. Thanks Wil.”
“Send her my thoughts.”
Cliff logged off, laid down, and slept.
Cliff’s sleep was fairly disturbed, yet he felt better once awoke. He looked around the room he was in carefully, trying to get a feel of things without anyone being aware he woke up. He didn’t have anything to hide, and he didn’t mean to eavesdrop; he simply enjoyed stealth and practiced as much as possible.
His dreams of dogs and people fighting were fading away quickly and he got up and checked on Cheyenne.
To his surprise she was redressed and eating; Mike looked more patient than a five hundred year old cherry tree.
How long have I slept? He wonder. His intension was to sleep an hour or two while Cheyenne slept so it would be easier waiting on her. What he intended and what he got were two different things.
Without speaking Cheyenne stated: “seven” and grinned.
Wow. Seven hours of undisturbed sleep. Well, as undisturbed as his dreams would allow, anyhow.
“How are you feeling?”
“Pretty well, Cliff. Everything is working well and I seem to not be suffering many internal problems and my lungs are cleared. I feel fine.”
Mike gave me some details: blood preasure, no ever, bruising changing colors to show recovery, slight adema problems here and there but nothing major. Her lungs sounded quite fine.
“If I hadn’t been there I’d think nothing happened unless I saw the bruise.” Stated Mike.
“So now, we just need to figure out what the message is. It is way too clear and clean for anything short of a message”, Cliff said. Mike blinked, but said nothing. Cheyenne kind of frowned at him as if asking if he had lost his senses.
“When does the next nurse come?” Cliff asked.
Mike frowned and informed Cliff that the other nurses had quit. They said the reason for such was too obvious that something bad had happened and they doubted it was anything they needed in their lives.
“We plan to get married next year, Cliff.” Cheyenne said that so fast he’d thought someone had turned on an Alvin and the Chipmunk cartoon. Her face was very, very red and she looked out of breath.
Cliff blinked and sat, Mike looking like he truly, truly wished to be elsewhere. Married?
“Married?” asked Cliff.
“Married.” Agreed Cheyenne and Mike simataniously.
Cliff sat down, blinked more and said. “Mike, by God man if I thought you’d hurt her I’d fucking murdered you long ago; and not figuratively. You are good to her and she looks content. I want her happy.”
Both Mike and Cheyenne stared at him as if he grew horns. Not fear, simple, hard bewilderment.
“I want you happy, remember? Mike here is more than loyal it seems. I know he will tell me next that he isn’t even on the clock, which is why I’m taking this so well. And make no mistake that what I said about a message was a slip up.”
“You obviously are one shady guy, but you’re a good man, Cliff. I do not believe the US laws to be of much use to any moral and good citizens anyway.”
“Remember that horror of a dogfight gone wrong, Mike?”
Mike stared oddly and the look surprised. “That. . . was bad” stated Mike calmly.
“Yes it was bad. A friend and I did it. They have been corrupting and raping moral laws for years and using a living being as their tools. They had to be stopped and the police do not give a flying fuck if the dogs are hurt or not.” Cliff stated. No blinking eyes this time; nor smirk or anger. Fucking cold stone face.
“They had it coming to them and I hope more get wiped out of the gene pool”, Cheyenne said softly.
Mike was shocked but he nodded his head. “In my opinion, authorities have been informed. People have done a lot to stop such goings on. The people believe themselves powerless, yet they never take matters in their own hands.”
Cliff went to speak but Mike told him to give him a moment to continue.
“I am a man of healing, in a sense. I hate pain and wounds. I loathe innocent people like your sister here pay for other people’s ability to disregard all things lest themselves. Sometimes you have to almost advertise what could happen if you decide to go evil. What you did was amendable.”
“Thank you, Mike. I try to make differences. And I don’t get bored when I work.”
“Just don’t tell me anymore right now”, spoke Mike in a slightly serious tone.
Cheyenne cackled. She had not laughed that hard in years, unless Cliff was mistaken.
Grinning due to the sound of her laughter and Mike’s woeful innocence, Cliff assured Mike he didn’t intend to say more.
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