Ultimate Thriller Box Set - Crouch Blake. Страница 38

Shotzen could no longer form words without lips, and an animal cry came from his throat. But his thoughts were focused.

And you shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall speak of them when you sit at home, and when you walk along the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up.

“Foooooools,” Bub spat. “Stupid religious foooooools.”

The light was dimming, things became blurry. Shotzen was in incredible pain. Yet he was happy. He knew even though he hadn't killed Bub, his life was not in vain. Bub wouldn't get out. Race would set off the explosives implanted in Bub's body. Shotzen hoped to live long enough to hear the boom.

“You won't die until I get the coooooode. I’ll keep resurrecting you, ooooover and ooooooover.”

You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be frontlets between your eyes.

Shotzen could no longer see. His own blood had pooled into his eye sockets.

Angry at the lack of response, Bub began to rip the rabbi in half.

You shall write them on your doorposts of your house and on your gates...

Shotzen finished the prayer. His very last thought was his love for his Lord.

Bub cast aside the body of the holy man. Then he shook the titanium gate and howled.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

“Where the hell is he?” Andy swore. He had the phone in his hand and had tried Race's room, the Octopus, the Mess Hall, the rec room, Helen's room, the library, and even the pool, all the while trying to remain in control while Shotzen screamed in the hallway.

“Use the intercom,” Sun told him.

“How? What goddamn button? Was it star something?”

“I forgot too, dammit!”

The floor shook and there was a tremendous clang. Sun and Andy exchanged glances and peeked out of Red 3 into the hall.

CLANG!

Bub had charged the gate and rammed it with his shoulder. His chest was soaked in blood, making the fine red hairs appear black. Behind him, Shotzen was lying on the floor in two large pieces, neither of which had any skin.

When Bub noticed Andy he smiled at him, stringy things sticking to his steak knife teeth.

“Aaaaaaaandy!”

“We are so out of here.” Andy grabbed Sun's arm and they ran down the Red Arm, away from the demon.

“Let me ooooout!” Bub shouted after them.

They rushed into the Octopus. No Race.

“Okay, what were Race and Helen doing?” Andy said, thinking out loud.

“Dancing. They were dancing.”

“Does this place have a disco?”

“No. But... the lounge! There's a stereo in the lounge.”

“What room?”

“Purple something.” Sun rubbed her forehead. “Um, the pool is 2, the bar is 6, library is 8. Dammit, I don’t know the lounge.”

“We’ll try them all.”

Andy picked up the nearest phone and dialed Purple 1. No answer. Then he tried Purple 4.

“Howdy, you're interrupting a rumba lesson.”

Thank God.

“Jesus! General, Bub is out. He's killed Rabbi Shotzen and gotten through the first gate.”

“I'll be right there.”

“He's coming,” Andy told Sun, hanging up the phone.

“What did he do to the Rabbi?” Sun asked. “The screams...”

Andy put his arms around her. He tried to shake the image of Rabbi Shotzen being peeled by Bub, but it refused to go away.

The Purple Door flew open, and Andy and Sun each jumped back.

“How did he get out?” Race demanded.

The General was in full dress uniform. Helen was in a sequined evening gown. She looked worried.

“Shotzen said Bub knew the code.”

“Sunshine, if you could wait with my wife. Andy...”

Race motioned for Andy to follow. Andy didn't want to. But Sun's eyes on him forced him to move. He trailed Race back into the Red Arm.

CLANG!

The gate was still holding. Bub rubbed his shoulder and squinted at the new arrival.

“Raaaaace. Let me oooooooout.”

Race approached slowly. Andy was even slower. He watched the General peer past Bub and down the hallway, which was charred black and drenched in gore.

It looked like a corridor of hell.

“Why did you kill Rabbi Shotzen?” Race asked.

“It was fuuuuuuun.”

“Blow this bastard up,” Andy told Race.

Bub leveled his eyes at Andy. “Open the doooooor, Andy. You want to fuck Suuuuuun? I’ll make her your whore if you let meeeeee ooooout.”

Andy had to clench hard to avoid wetting his pants.

“Here's the deal, Bub,” Race said. “You go back into your habitat, lock yourself in, and I won't destroy you.”

“Do you want power, Raaaaaace?” Bub hissed. “You can be a general in my army. I’ll make immoooooooortal.”

Race took another step forward, still beyond grabbing range. He took his eyes off of Bub to examine the gate.

“Hooooooow is Helen?” the demon cooed.

“She's fine.” Race looked hard at the demon. “Why?”

Bub grinned slyly.

Race’s voice was almost as scary as Bub’s. “What did you do to her?”

“Let me ooooooooout. There's still time to fiiiiiiiix it.”

“So help me, if anything happens to that woman...”

“She haaaaaaates you. She haaaaaaates you for bringing her heeeeeere. But I can fiiiiiiix that. Maaaaaaake her loooooove you again.”

“You're bluffing. You're trapped, and you're bluffing.”

Bub barked, his laughter echoing down the hall.

“We’ll seeeeeeeee.”

Race turned around and walked briskly back down the Red Arm, Andy in tow.

“Let me oooooooout!” Bub screeched.

CLANG! The ground shook as the demon rammed the gate again.

“What's going on, Race?” Andy asked. “Just detonate the bombs.”

“I need to talk to the President.”

“Then get his ass on the phone!”

They entered the Octopus, Race going to his wife. He held her face in his hands.

“Do you feel okay, dear? Anything wrong?”

“I feel fine, Regis.”

“Sun, can you check her out?”

Sun nodded, and sat Helen down at one of the far tables.

Andy got up close to Race and thrust out his chest. “Why don't we kill him?” he demanded.

“He can't get through that gate. It's holding.”

“What if—”

“I can only destroy Bub if he's a risk to any of the occupants of Samhain.”

“Bullshit,” Andy said. “We're expendable. The people involved in a top secret project are always expendable.”

Race jammed his finger into Andy's shoulder. “We are not expendable, understand? But I can't kill Bub unless he's a threat. Right now he's trapped. He cannot get out. And even if he does, we have back-ups.”

Andy said, “The bombs implanted in his body.”

“Yes. Plus we have something called Lockdown. See, above all the doors?”

Race pointed to every door in the Octopus. Above each of the frames was a large overhang with a slit in the bottom.

“More titanium gates, they completely seal off each arm and the Octopus. I just need to type in the code on the security screen, right here.”

“What's the code?” Andy asked.

“Lockdown. One word, all caps.”

“So what are you waiting for?”

“It can't be reset. Once we're in Lockdown, gates drop on all the arm entrances and in front of the exit at the end of the Yellow Arm. Plus three more titanium gates drop on the staircase leading to the outside. We'd be stuck here until someone cut us out, bar by bar, with a blowtorch. So that isn't necessary right now. You don't have to worry. We're safe.”

Andy shook his head. “I've had it,” he said. “I'm not a soldier. It's not my job to fight the devil. I know exactly what will happen. I saw Jurassic Park. Everything will go wrong. The systems will fail, Bub will get out, we'll all be dead by morning.”

“Calm down, son.”