Read Awakening: Dead Forever Book 1 for Free Online Page A

oven on a stick.
    I’m lying on a plush armless sofa, a sort of padded bench. The soft fabric is cool and soothing, I could rest here awhile. The spacious room is dimly lit, walls covered by dark paneling trimmed by lighter molding high above. Beyond the border, the ceiling curves inward, painted so black its height is difficult to estimate. An abyss, leading up rather than down. An unsettling sight, to imagine it was the floor instead.
    As I gaze upward, Jared leans into my view. “Everything working in that pea brain of yours?”
    “No thanks to you, asshole. What am I doing here?”
    “I brought you in, that’s all. You could have come along quietly, you know. There wasn’t any need for all that ruckus.”
    When I sit up, a door opens and a Bob enters the room. “We thank you for your assistance with the subject. We shall take over now.”
    “I did my part,” Jared says. “When’s the Association planning to keep their end of the bargain?”
    “We shall not discuss our arrangement in the presence of the subject.”
    “He nearly killed me!”
    Nice to know I’ve caused grief for Jared. He’s a damn bastard in my book. The jerk deserves a few lifetimes of grief.
    Bob says, “There shall be little delay, I assure you.”
    “I want no delays,” Jared says. “We’ve all suffered enough.”
    “Excuse me,” I interrupt. “Might I have a say in this? I’d like to go now, if you don’t mind. I’m tired, I’m hungry, and I need a bath.”
    Jared whirls on me. “I’ve had it with you and all your clowning around. Always a smart-ass remark.” He sandwiches his skull in both hands. “I’m sick and tired of hearing your voice. Shut up, shut up, shut up! ”
    I have annoyed him. Good.
    “Ease your mind of the subject,” Bob says. “We shall discuss the terms of our agreement when all is in order.”
    “Fine,” Jared says. “Just make it soon.” He goes to the door and Bob follows. On the way out, Jared glances back one last time, his exasperation replaced by a slimy grin, and that slippery, casual tone. “Do as you’re told, Carl, and talk to the nice folks. You’re in good hands, trust me.” He snickers and slaps the door shut.
    I hope to never see that bastard again, but then, I wouldn’t mind under different circumstances, like when I have the upper hand. I’ll torture him, then I’ll kill him. Twice. Ten. A thousand times.
    * * *
    Alone, there is time to gather my thoughts. It’s no stretch to imagine these people intend to hurt me further. I need to compose a plan of escape. I require information. I must study the surroundings for a weakness.
    My first instinct is to check the door. I wiggle the handle. What was I thinking? They wouldn’t go to all that trouble just to let me walk right out.
    I’ve been given a change of clothes, plain white trousers and a button shirt. Bland. Someone even cleaned me up a bit, but nothing to help my greasy hair and beard. I check my arm and expect to find a gory mess, but no, someone has changed the cluster of grimy rags to a proper bandage, taped up nice and clean.
    Daylight streams in through a window across the room. No, I’m not crashing through this one. I’m curious as to what’s outside, and windows are good for that, too. Past the glass, the street is five or six floors down, confirming the window as a lousy escape. The sky is the usual gray, no evidence of sun other than a dim glow behind the clouds. I’d guess it’s late afternoon, nearly evening, but I couldn’t say what day it is. There’s no telling how long I was unconscious.
    On the sidewalk below, people move along going about their business, but the scene is creepy. They wear matching suits, black coats and white shirts, thin black ties, and they carry slim briefcases. They look like a colony of ants, scattering all directions without colliding as they serve a higher purpose, like the queen ant or something. The sight of businessmen scurrying about downtown should come as no