HIVEMIND

I’m awake. Who am I? What is this place? Looks like an alleyway with no light. Well there’s a little light at the end of the alley, to my left, but to my right I don’t see anything, maybe a wall, a person. He was sleeping. Probably a homeless man. These aren’t my clothes. Where are my clothes? Wait. I know a name. B-B-B something. Something with a B. No. Yes. B. O. Joe, John, James. Who am I? The street was muddy and my legs were stiff. Did I run alot? No. I fought. My eye was black, I could feel it. I could also feel a gun in my hand. I dropped it. I heard cars running back and forth through my ears, behind the wall?. Probably. The coat that was placed on my body was ragged now, and scrapped, but it wasn’t like this before. It was clean, and new. Wait. I went to a store. I grabbed the edge of that wall: it was wet and dirty. The end of the alley was now toe to toe with me. It was bright. The sun was bright.

Where am I? What are these clothes? They aren’t mine. Wait. Maybe they are, I just don’t know. I could be unsure, I knew, I didn’t recognize them but they fit me, so they were mine. The streets were empty, well of people for that matter, well walking people, people in cars were plentiful, well that I could hear, I didn’t see any. No. There was a man walking. He looked like he was wet and was staring at me. He was old. I walked again. My legs were sore. Was I fighting? Hit. Hit by something. Car. No. Yes. But then I fought. No. Well I could have fought after he hit me. I’d be mad, I think. If someone hit me with their car. I saw a car right outside the alley. Yes they hit me with a car. There were lots of people with cars. These aren’t my clothes, well i didn’t buy them. Wait. I was told to buy them, asked to buy them? For what? Wait. I walked. I walked. I walked. I saw the store where my shoes, my pants and my buttoned shirt were acquired. I took a look inside through the window displaying a fancy new suit. Better than mine. Mine was not clean. I knew the woman who was at the cashier. I was sure of this. She had nice tan skin with a nose ring that was purple and the nails on her were jagged, like she had been nervous and chewed them. I did that alot. I think I did, or maybe that’s just what people do when they’re nervous. I didn’t own any of my thoughts. I stole them from the regular human, who didn’t need much in life, like this cashier. The bells chimed and I looked up at the top of the door, my ears and eyes connected to where the sound was coming from. I knew. This sound I recognized, but it could be from my stolen thoughts. Could it, it sounds so familiar like I just had walked in the store an hour ago. The store was well kept and CDs were at my left near my feet in a little container that read: CDs: I knew this too. I listened to this, I picked up a CD that was in the bucket. It was a song by J- j- james? It looked like James on the cover of it. It was scratched off the CD, I knew this name and the name of the person who sang the song on the CD. I put the CD down and looked at myself at this little mirror on the shelf above the container of CDs. I didn’t recognize myself. Well I had nothing to go off to recognize. I didn’t know what I looked like. The stolen thoughts didn’t tell me what to look like. This was the first new memory to me, what I looked like. I could remember this face, looked a little odd, well compared to that lady at the register. She saw me. She could tell I was thinking about her, my stolen thoughts had been shared with her about my new memory. “Did you ever do it?” Her voice I recognized. “Do what?” I was confused. “Funny.” She said as she shrugged off the conversation as it had no meaning. And I saw it this way too. It could have meaning. But what’s the meaning of the conversation if I myself don’t know what the conversation is.

There was a man who took a job in Seattle, and this man was an interesting man. He had a problem. He couldn’t see the details of what his job really wanted. I took it upon myself to find these details, and memorize them. Take them to heart. Now the job was for and only for one person. This person had to be smart and cautious. The man was smart and was cautious but he couldn’t cut himself out of his own picture to go outside the photo and find the strength to set himself aside. I knew this. How I knew this, well I like to go seek for things to do. He wanted out, and he begged. He knew he couldn’t do it, he told me about it, that’s how I knew he couldn’t do it. Me and him usually dont talk to each other, tell each other what we want to do. But this was an exception and I took it. He needed to stop talking to himself. I need to do something.

This man took everything away from me. He looked and just took away what I had. For what reason? There was no benefit from what he did. He wanted me out of the picture. He wanted me gone. He murdered my wife, my child. He murdered my whole reason for living. He kidnapped my mind, my person. He is an evil person. No. He is evil. He took the evil away from me and poured it out on my family. My family. My family. His family. No,no,no,no,no. It wasn’t his. It wasn’t his to take but he took and took everything I had. How could you not see him? He had every evidence of evil on him. You could look at the evil of the world and trace it back to him.

The man was weak. He couldn’t even care for his family. He tried and tried every day to provide, but he couldn’t just reach outside of the box to help his family. I mean what kind of person is this? Not a caring person. If he wanted to be the man he is supposed to be he would be me entirely. But he and I are very much alike, other than… Soon he will be like me completely, well….. He won’t be anything.

“Yes, the shoes, the coat, the shirt, that’s it.” “85.32” I handed her the hundred I found in my breast pocket of the old coat I had on. “Keep it.” I walked out the door and the chimes filled my head again. I needed a place to change from my old clothes. They were not mine anymore. They fit but were not mine. I knew who’s they were now. Mine.

I found myself looking at the siren wailing cars lined up at the alley I had emerged from. I walked the opposite way. My eyes wandered around looking for something I might recognize. I continued walking, not finding a single thing in my mind about this place. I found a small motel at the edge of the town. I checked in with the last hundred dollar bill in my breast pocket. I opened the door to my room and shut it behind me as I threw my new clothes onto the single bed. I began to dress myself with the new clothes. I took the clothes that were not mine, but were mine? I don’t quite know. I looked into the bathroom mirror to see a new man. A sliver of thought passed through my mind. Why I was here…. who I was… my name is Boone Bridget. My name was Boone Bridget. Though it wasn’t who I was, I took it.

Three hours later he was gone. He let me take him. He was done. He was tired. He wasn’t completely done though. We wanted to stay a little bit. I had the power to choose this. I could wipe him completely. I could. He gave me the option. He says i’m evil for doing what i did but he gave me it. He hung a bag over my head and I took it. He could have kept it. He had control. I didn’t. He was a lost man. Didn’t know what he truly wanted. I do believe in justice. I do believe he should not be punished. I’m not going to be punished.

I am gone. But I will come back. He does not know. He thinks I’m tired. I am tired. But I will stand up against what he has done. I’ve been weak, I’ll admit. It was my fault I let him go. But it is not my fault for what I did. No one sees it this way, how could they? I fear for him. He does not know. He does not know. I talk to him frequently, telling him what he wants to hear. He does not know. I tell him I’m tired. Though this is the truth, I will replenish and be thriving again. He does not know this. I am judgement. I will not fail. I will not fail. How will I start? I need help. He will not know what I do.

Wake up. Wake up. You have to start. Today is the day. It will happen. I will not fail. I will not fail. Should I be worried about what he’s capable of? No. I will not fail.

John G. Hudson woke up this morning with a bad headache. He was tired from the night before. He had taken a case from a woman about her son. Something about a kidnapping or vanishing, he really did not remember. He did know he had to go through her rambling again. He was not pleased with this. His wife had not been awake yet, and John liked this. The silence. It was still dark outside as it was four in the morning. He pulled the sheets of himself and sat on the side of his queen sized bed. He was wealthy. He was wealthy in the sense he had a nice two bedroom, two bathroom house, and he had a lovely wife. Other than this he was not that money wealthy. Tom’s headache eased as he stood staring at the tiled wall of his small shower. He likes to listen to the strands of water fall off his head and onto the floor. The noise made him calm and clear headed. It reminded him of something. This is something he was not too sure of. The noise stopped and he dried off his body. He brushed his teeth and shaved. He liked being clean shaved. It made him look youthful. He was nearing those ages where he wanted to look as young as possible. Not that he was not young. He was. He was passing thirty. He wanted to still look twenty. But not too young to where he did not look professional. He was professional. He wanted to look neat. So he did. John dressed himself in a nice blue shirt. He put on nice paints. He put on a nice tan coat. He put on his hat. It was six by now and his wife had woken up. She would usually wake up right before he left and tell him to be safe. She felt as if this was a good luck charm to keep him safe. Not this time. She was too tired. Woke up too late. John was gone.

John stopped on his way to work at a small coffee shop on the corner of Naomi St. He usually stopped for coffee there nearly all the times he’s passed it. He liked the coffee shop. It was nice and comfortable. He set him to be calm and compliant. He liked coffee.

“We get it, the coffee shop.”

He uh, uh, continued to drive his way to work and he was suddenly stopped by a wounded cat that was hit by a car, probably from the previous night.

“He got to his job.”

He got to his job and he had picked up the case from the night before. : Child stolen from Hailey M. Fail: She was married but something happened. He looked at the case and-

“What happened?”

She told John that her previous husband had very bad “habits.” She did not go into any detail.

“What was the husband’s name?”

She did not say what the previous husband’s name was and there were no previous records of a different husband. The new husband was also missing. Likely took the kid and ran off.

James took the case and didn’t give it much thought as it was a normal case and probably just a common occurrence.

“John.”

John took the case and didn’t give it much thought as it was a normal case and probably just a common occurrence.

They’re dead. I’ve done it. I only have to deal with him and his friend now. They’ll be easy, they won’t see it coming. I’ve never been so happy in my life, I’ve never been happy, so..This is the first time I’ve ever been happy. He cannot do anything. I’ve done what I had to do. I had to give him one last chance to see what I’ve done so he can live in that sorrow forever in death.

Something has happened. He did it. I didn’t think he would. He said he would, and he doesn’t lie. I did know he would do it. I didn’t want to believe the truth. I thought I stopped him. I thought after everything he could be trusted but no. He just wants control. Maybe I will let him have his way….. No! He can’t, he has to be punished for what he’s done. I glanced down at the gun in the top drawer of the motel room I camped in trying to keep him away. Two bullets were missing. If I didn’t know where I was, he didn’t know where he was. He didn’t know how to get to them. How did I? Did I slip up? I grabbed the gun out the drawer and headed outside. Rain began to peck down on me as I closed the motel room door.

I stopped and took a look at the case again. Something had awoken inside of me, telling me to pay attention to this case especially. I looked through the papers. I didn’t see much again as this was just a normal case, I thought. Common occurrence. Dad takes the child because of divorce. Mom calls the cops. What struck my eye was how there was no record of a previous husband. She told me there was. Just then, one of my partners came up with coffee. I shrugged him off. I don’t like coffee. I returned back to the papers. She could be delusional and misspoke about this and was just nervous. I grabbed the case file and hopped into my car. 443 Naomi St, the file said. I started the car and headed down to the address. I drove close to my house and almost decided to see how my wife was doing, but I didn’t want to bother her. She usually woke up early, especially this morning to read her books. I drove past the street to my house. I continued driving to her house. I reached my destination. I looked back at the address to see if it was correct. It was. The sky had become gloomy and it looked like it would probably rain later in the day. I walked up the steps to a nice house and a very nice door. I knocked on that door. I waited a second and the door opened. “Mrs. Fail?” I said. “Please call me Hailey.” She replied. “Is it alright if I call you Mrs. Frail? I like to keep it professional.” “Yes you can but I’m Ms. Not Mrs.” she kindly told me. “ I understand.” I could see she was very nervous and pretty upset, but she kept her composure. “ I understand that your ex husband and son are missing, do you think your husband might have taken him?” She swallowed. “ He would never!” she snapped back. I interrupted, “Can I come in, it looks like it’s going to rain.” She opened the door widely but did not say anything.

I love my wife. I tell her everything. Except I don’t. The one thing that makes me who I am. I hate who I am. I can not tell her. I love my son. I don’t want to break him with this divorce. My wife leads me with no choice. She wants me to tell her. I can’t. She can’t raise my son. He will be like me. I have to take care of him. Am I putting him in danger? I’m putting him close to danger. I am on the offensive. I will protect him, he will have to learn what I’ve been hiding. It will be extremely difficult.. I turned off the light on my nightstand. My wife was fast asleep. I have been thinking for quite awhile. I will tell her about the divorce in the morning.

John talked to the woman and she told him about her ex husband and her son…. . .her son.

“Yes, what has become of this son?”

“ Stop!, let me die!”

“Continue!”

John and Ms. Fail talked for a while about the disappearance. She didn’t think that her ex husband would take away her son.

“ Oh but he did.”

John was then told about the description of the ex husband and the son. She told him the ex husband’s name.

“What was his name?”

“Stop this, go to hell!”

“Continue.”

John headed back to the station to give the description of the man to his partners. They would go out and see if anyone saw the description of the man. He sat back in his chair and waited for anyone to call. He waited for the man to be located, if he was out in public.

The rain pecked at my skin as I ran out into the woods. No one had seen me. Good. I didn’t take my car, I didn’t want anyway he to escape if he won. I had to be in an isolated place. The gun was loosely in my coat pocket. Concealed. I continue to run through the woods. I couldn’t do it in the woods. It was too populated with trails and hikers. Even when it was raining it was populated. I didn’t have much time before he came back. I ran fast to find anywhere I could. I came out of the woods and came into a little town. There was no one on the streets. There weren’t many houses, just a few stores. There was one person who saw me. He was sitting at a bus stop. There was no bus. I looked at him. He looked back at me and squinted. He saw me.

I waited and waited for a call to come in about a man. There was nothing else I could really do. It would probably be days before they located him and his son. Just then I got a call. There an operator told me that a woman had called about a gunshot at 443 Naomi St. I rushed to get my coat on and ran out the door. It had been raining now and I quickly got into my car. I sped down the road as well as two other policemen. We arrived and I quickly hopped out to see the front door, the one I had knocked on, had been busted wide open. We all walked in, me and the policemen. I saw blood coming from the steps. At the top of the stairs there lay a dead Ms. Fail.

She was a lovely woman. She is just too curious, always asking him about his past. He couldn’t let her know about it. That’s the one thing we agreed on. This was my final kill. Well not really. I had one more to do, a permanent solution. I had escaped through the back door and was on my way out. I stopped to look at multiple police cars rolling up on the driveway. I chuckled to myself. They wont catch up to me. I’ve done my work. One more to go and I’ll be free. I felt light headed. He returned.

“Make me stop. I don’t want to Continue.”

“Continue it, you have hid me away.”

John then went back to the police station. Waiting for the man to be spotted or caught. He was the main suspect. He waited and waited. About an hour or so later he received a call about a man walking out of the woods……..

“Are you getting upset?” “Continue!”

John had told the operator that if a call came in, he and he only wanted to know about the ex husband. He wanted to get the guy himself. John wanted to know to do it alone so maybe if he confessed he would kill him. John received the information about where this man was. He slowly got up and hopped into his car. It was still raining.

I walked away from the man’s line of view. He had seen me. I ran into the street and took a left. I didn’t know the town. This could be perfect. I could actually do it. I could get rid of him. For everyone’s sake I could get rid of him. I slowed down and walked. I didn’t have time to walk. He could be upon me any second. I knew I had to do it fast but I wanted to plan it out. I wanted no one to recognize me. I saw a little store. It had suits in the front. I could change out my clothes and I wouldn’t be noticed when time came. I walked in and the bells chimed and I looked up at the top of the door. I saw some Cds on the side when I walked in. I paused suddenly. James Madison was written on the Cd, a musical Artist. James. James. Oh James. Why have I let you do this? What you did to James, I can’t forgive. I quickly scratched off the name on the cd. I don’t want to see the name. I walked up to the cashier, she was tan and had a nose ring. She looked at me and saw the gun through my coat. I realized this and just told herI was going to end it. She gave no response and gave me a look as I was joking. I gave her the clothes that I quickly picked out and then changed in the dressing room. I left the previous clothes in the stall of the dressing room. I had little time. I ran out of the store and ran into an alley. I looked around and saw that it was perfect. I ran back out of the alley to see if I was alone. I was struck by something.

It was raining still and my window wipers were put all the way up. I could barely see through it but I managed to swerve my way to the 911 calls location. It was a town out far from the station and it was not very populated. I saw a man sitting on a bus bench. It was the man who had called. I parked near the bench and got out. I hopped under the bus stop and sat down. “So you saw him?” I hastily said. “Yes he was coming out of those woods just over yonder.” He was old. “Are you sure you saw him, did it look like the description we set up?” He took a long pause and said, “ Well I’m pretty sure I saw him, he ran over there to the left of the street. He’s probably long gone by now though.” “Thanks.” I replied. I hopped back into my car and sat for a second. I really want to get this guy. I don’t know why. He might have not even done the crime. But he was running away and he was the main suspect. I turned my car back on.

“You’re almost done.” “Continue.”

John drove to where the old man had said the ex husband had been seen. He drove around the block a couple of times. He saw someone running. He sped up and drove on the left side to get a better view or something. He hit the ex husband…… he hit- …. He laid on the street broken. John quickly pulled out his gun and hopped out of the car. The ex husband stayed on the ground and……..

“I’m done, I will not go on. You’ve had your enjoyment. I am done.”

A man had hit me with his car and pulled a gun on me. I didn’t need this, I didn’t need to be arrested, I needed to be killed now. He yelled at me about what his name was and how he’s been looking for me and how he’s made me a special case to him. He told me about my dead wife and what I’ve done. He yelled at me, he wanted me to confess so then he could shoot me! I pulled the gun out of my new tan coat and moved swiftly to the right. My finger let go and a loud blast came from my fingertips. He dropped to the ground. His fingers had been too slow. I had the werent so he could kill me. He probably wouldn’t have killed me was the problem. I had to act. The guilt consumed me. I’ve never killed someone before. What have I done? I got up off the floor and fell back down. I tried to get up again. I did. I walked over to the car with blood spatter in the front seat. I dragged him out of his car and into the alley. I ached as I pulled the heavy load to the wall. I fell again on the ground. I crawled my way to wear what I had dropped. I crawled back into the alley. The time had come. I have to do what needs to be done. I nearly blacked out as my eyes slowly closed, but with the last strength in my body and with the last second he had given me, I raised the gun to my head.

I didn’t think he could actually do it. Kill a man. We are similar. I let him have his chance and let him actually think he was going to get rid of me. I have won control and now all I have left is to make him retell the entire story of the broken man, Boone Bridget. I’ll make him recite the entire thing for me as we lay on the dirty alley floor. I’ll make him remember what I’ve done to his family. I will make him remember one last time. I will make him suffer like the way he made me suffer all these years. I’ll do all of this right now before he is gone for good.

“You are done.” “ I will make you stop.” “I will do this because you have given this to me.” “You let me out, so I will cut it short.”

I slowly opened my eyes. The extermination was happening. I was light headed. My consciousness was fading away. My head was heavy and my eyes slowly closed again. He was in control. The story ended, it ended here. I was almost truly gone…. I knew I would win. It’s almost done. Boone will be gone. Boone Bridget was a broken man who was broken from the start. He told himself the truth of his fixing. He knew I’d win. He told himself the lies that disguised themselves as the truths. Well that might have been me sometimes but we get a lot of our thoughts mixed up. I tell him some things because he lets me. Used to let me. Though the lies I told him were strong, the strongest lies were the ones he told himself….. I am himself….. I tell him the lies that he tells himself.