Under a Fallen Sun: Chapter 3
Early Chapters Series
Author’s note: Welcome to another installment of my Early Chapters Series. This is where I post chapters included in the Amazon free sample for each of my novels. First on deck is Under a Fallen Sun — my science fiction thriller I first released through Samak Press in 2019. I’ll share the first four chapters of this companion prequel novel to the Alien People Chronicles from November through December.
Throughout December, Samak Press is raising money to help homeless animals find new homes. Click to learn how you can help with this cause.
Chapter 3
It didn’t seem fair. Todd wondered what he did to deserve this curse.
Their original plans did not include making a pit stop after leaving Amarillo. Caroline noticed the road sign almost by accident. She decided it would be fun to take a detour and grab a bite to eat for lunch. Todd smiled when he thought back to her enthusiastic suggestion. His wife never passed up a chance to try out some local cuisine. The more off the map it was located, the more her curiosity drove her to take a “taste-cation” as she termed it.
Caroline’s food blog even carried that same word she coined in the title. She relished going on her taste-cations. Each blog post contained almost as many photos as actual words. She always spent a few minutes before each meal at a new restaurant snapping photos from different angles — making sure the lighting was exactly right — so her blog readers could see the true color and texture of each menu item she ordered.
“I hope you plan to take as many photos of our kids one day.”
Todd’s words from the last taste-cation they took together popped up into his mind as clearly as though he said them only seconds ago.
So did Caroline’s reaction. She simultaneously pinched her green eyes and crimson lips shut and gave him a broad smirk.
“That depends on if their behavior rates five stars or not,” Caroline said, after her lovely face bounced back to its normal sunny demeanor. Todd thought her usual smile could light up an entire room with the irresistible happiness it conveyed. “If they’re being little monsters, I might have to settle for fewer photos and a lower rating.”
Monsters.
Todd shuddered. The happy scene vanished faster than a Texas torrent in the summer. Glass tables. Cushioned chairs. Warm sunshine just outside the beige canopy shading a medium-sized patio. Like it or not, that cozy outdoor cafe had morphed back into an aging boarded-up house illuminated by every light he could scrounge up.
Monster seemed like such an innocent word not so long ago. If only he knew at the time what would have happened to him and Caroline, he would never have agreed to take a new job in Albuquerque. Certainly, at the very least, he wouldn’t have made a hasty decision to pack everything they owned into their SUV and drive from Humble to New Mexico — just to save a few bucks on shipping their belongings out to their new place.
Todd closed his eyes tight, frowned, and pressed his right fist against the hardwood floor. He finally relaxed his hand and latched onto the edge of the countertop to pull himself to his feet. Todd glanced sideways at a door, only a short distance from the refrigerator. It lay open a crack. A simple crack that exposed a swath of darkness hiding behind a wooden rectangle adorned with faded off-white paint.
Did he have to venture into the basement again? Todd silently cursed the fact he already knew the answer before asking that question. No other choice remained. His circumstances robbed him of a better option. He had to face that thing again —whatever the hell it was.
Todd threw open the door. A distinct thud from the knob striking sheet rock greeted his ears. Light from the kitchen splashed on the darkened stairs. He hesitated at the top of those stairs and turned back to the kitchen. Todd scanned the countertop and spotted a UV flashlight. He snatched it up and started down the stairs again.
A lone wooden chair sat near the middle of a cramped living room. The flashlight beam bounced off assorted boxes and plastic bins lining the walls. No lids on any box or bin. Each one overflowed with random goods. Some still sealed in their original packaging. Todd selected this house for that reason alone. He combed an entire block until he found the right place. It did him no good to hole up somewhere where without enough supplies to survive while putting his escape plans into action. No such problem existed along those lines in this particular spot. The former owner of the house stored enough water, food, clothing, tools, and other necessities to meet Todd’s needs. It gave him some leverage for dealing with monsters infesting this town stuck smack dab in the middle of nowhere.
The chair was turned away from him. It faced a boarded-up basement window embedded in the east wall. Shadows shrouded the chair. An outline of an individual stood out against the darkness. Todd approached the chair from behind and held his flashlight at eye level.
Creaking wood and clanking metal signaled to Todd his return to the basement did not go unnoticed. A low growl greeted his footsteps when he reached the chair. A vigorous rattle of chains followed. Clanking metal reverberated through the small room.
“You cannot keep me locked down here forever,” Each word dripped venom as a hoarse voice spit them at Todd. “The others will come for me soon. Then I will be free to put an end to your miserable existence.”
Todd shook his head and shifted the flashlight beam down to the floor in front of his prisoner.
“Your threats mean nothing to me. Which one of us is in chains? And which one of us is free to come and go as they please?”
“Circumstances can change without warning.”
A deep frown overtook Todd’s lips.
“You and your kind have seen to it, haven’t you?”
He dragged the flashlight beam upward. It washed a distinct blue hue over the chair’s occupant. The beam revealed a naked arm. It bore pale skin that grew paler under the blue light. Todd centered his flashlight directly on the whitened forearm.
Soon, wisps of smoke climbed toward the ceiling. Pale pigment grew red where light met skin. A low wheezing groan greeted Todd’s ears. The metallic clank of the chains returned, soon joined by chair legs thumping against the floor.
“It doesn’t have to be like this.” Todd squeezed the flashlight handle harder as if this action could somehow focus the beam like a laser. “You can end it right now by telling me exactly what I want to hear.”
A painful groan mingled with another low growl escaped the prisoner’s lips. No words followed. Skin directly under the UV light began to blister and peel. Then, finally, his captive couldn’t hold back any longer. Groans and growls turned into an ear-piercing scream.
Todd immediately pressed his right palm against his right ear. Then he tilted his head downward and mashed his left ear against his shoulder. This kept him from dropping the flashlight on the ground. Todd let the screams linger for a few seconds longer until he saw tears leaking out from his prisoner’s black oval eyes. This persuaded him to swing the flashlight away and let the beam fall off to the side.
“You’re one tough nut to crack.”
Tough nut or not, Todd had no intention of admitting defeat. This wasn’t his first time dealing with an adversary who wasn’t forthcoming with critical information.
His thoughts drifted back to that cramped cell in Kandahar. Todd could feel dust and sweat mingling on his face as though he still baked in the desert heat on a typical Afghanistan afternoon.
A prisoner lay before him on a narrow horizontal table. One set of thick ropes bound his arms to the tabletop. Another set stretched tight across his legs and held them in place. A black cloth covered the prisoner’s entire face.
Todd nodded to another man dressed in fatigues and a bulletproof vest who stood on the other side. He grabbed a small bucket and approached the table. The other man tilted the bucket over the black cloth until a steady trickle of water splashed over the lip.
At once, the prisoner thrashed at the ropes holding him down. Todd silently counted off 60 seconds before finally waving off the other man. Upon getting the signal, he pulled the bucket away and backed up a few steps from the table again.
Todd leaned forward and ripped away the now damp cloth. Widened eyes and clenched teeth greeted him.
“Please, as Allah as my witness, I do not know anything.”
The prisoner’s words exuded as much pain and fright as his face showed. Todd pressed his eyelids together for a moment and frowned. He opened them again and let out a deep sigh.
“Why do you insist on lying to us? We saw you transporting at least one suspected bomber to the market. Closed circuit cameras don’t lie.”
“I am a simple taxi driver. Please.”
“No, you aren’t. You’re a murderer.”
“I have shed no blood from another man.”
Todd pounded his fist on the table. It struck the wood close enough to the prisoner’s cheek to make him flinch.
“You’re a lying son of a bitch! Who are you trying to protect?”
Images flashed in his mind.
An explosion. Flames engulfing the lead vehicle in their convoy. Screams and smoke choking the air at an equal rate.
They sent two good soldiers back home to be buried after that attack. Two others were discharged from their company with a single leg left. Todd ended up being one of the lucky ones.
“Answer me,” he demanded. “Answer me!”
A jolt raced through Todd.
He blinked.
That cramped cell in Kandahar faded back into the background of his subconscious. A darkened basement greeted his eyes again. Heavy breaths escaped from his mouth and his nose.
His current prisoner lifted his head and thrust out his chin in a defiant fashion. A thin smile crawled over his equally thin lips.
“I will tell you nothing.”
Todd answered it with a shout and struck the butt-end of the flashlight handle against his adversary’s head. Both black ovals disappeared behind a pair of pale eyelids and the head slumped downward until chin met chest. Todd flipped the flashlight back to its normal position.
“If you won’t talk, then you’ve lost the right to stay awake.”
He grasped the chains circling the prisoner’s chest and tested them to see if they remained tight against both chair and prisoner.
Todd figured his prisoner would be out cold for a while, but he didn’t want to risk an escape. This one could not find its way back to the others at any cost.
Todd started back up the stairs. At once, a spasm shot through his right leg. His leg locked up on the stair and he stumbled forward. Todd planted his right hand on the stair in front of him to keep from falling on his knees.
He clenched his jaw and grunted. Todd turned around and sat on the stair under him. He yanked up his right pant leg. Bony knobs appeared again — in the same place as before.
Todd swung the UV light onto the bony growths below the long scab. Smoke wafted up from his leg as the beam did what it was supposed to do. He bit into his lower lip to suppress screams and grimaced while squeezing his eyes shut. When the pain finally lessened, Todd opened them again.
His wound still looked awful, but no trace of bony growth remained. Each one melted and gathered into a small puddle of cloudy fluid on the stair below his feet.
This offered only a stopgap solution. Time did not favor Todd. He couldn’t prevent his body from undergoing a terrifying metamorphosis indefinitely. Todd had seen enough to understand what became of the others in this town.
Something needed to be done. Soon.
Enjoying the story so far? Under a Fallen Sun is available in hardcover, paperback or eBook formats at booksellers worldwide. You can also check out the audiobook on Audible or Apple.
Missed the first two chapters? Catch up here:
