Chapter 11 Dispose of the Corpses
Finished
Kiara twisted the man’s arms behind his back and pulled a roll of duct tape from her stash. She wound it around him several times until he was bound tight.
The heat was suffocating. By the time she finished, sweat had soaked through her shirt once again.
She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, then crouched in front of the man, studying the faint rise and fall of his chest.
Her space could hold living creatures. For animals, life inside was no different from life in the outside world. But for humans -well, that was another matter.
Any
y time she stayed in there too long, Kiara would feel dizzy, weak, and lightheaded.
That was why she’d never remained inside for long.
Now, with three little lab rats delivered to her doorstep, she had no intention of wasting the opportunity.
She frisked each man, removing every weapon they carried, then bound the three unconscious bodies and tossed them into her space.
When she checked her watch, it was 3:27 a.m.
She planned to dump them somewhere deserted once daylight came.
With daytime temperatures pushing past 160°F, anyone left under the sun would dry to jerky in less than 30 minutes. People had long since learned to sleep by day and be active by night–perfect conditions for disposing of bodies.
Kiara packed the scattered tools into her storage and glanced at her door.
These guys were professionals; the only sign of tampering was at the lock, but even then, it wasn’t something the average person could force open.
She’d been wondering when the electric security gate she’d installed would come in handy. Apparently, that moment had arrived.
Back in her room, she plugged it in and switched it to the lowest setting.
A faint hum of current filled the air.
From her storage, she pulled out a mountain hare and dropped it in the hallway.
Startled by the change in surroundings, it bolted straight for the electrified door.
A soft thump, then the hare collapsed, limbs rigid, foam at its mouth.
Kiara checked–he was still breathing.
Perfect Just enough to hurt, not kill.
Kiara was pleased.
Since there was no chance of getting back to sleep, she decided to finish cleaning up the hallway and then carried the electrocuted hare into the kitchen Tomorrow, she’d turn it into Cajun rabbit bites.
Her grandmother was from Oqrin, and although Kiara had grown up in Zloria, she’d been raised on a diet steeped in spicy
food.
Sometimes the swore the spice had seeped into her very hones
She stared at the hare on the counter, thoughts drifting.
Hugh and Yara were pure–born Zlorians–back in her last life, when they’d eaten her flesh, she wondered if the heat had
burned them from the inside out.
Shaking the thought away, she rubbed the bridge of her nose and picked up a knife, lining it against the unconscious hare.
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Chapter 11 Dispose of the Corpses
She tilted it one way, then the other, but still couldn’t bring herself to strike.
How exactly was she supposed to do this?
She’d killed people before, never rabbits.
Finished
Humans were easy; rabbits, not so much.
With a sigh, she pulled out her phone, found a butchering tutorial, and followed along.
The pelt came off in uneven patches, but rabbit fur was valuable–she planned to dry it and save it for a scarf when the deep freeze came.
She chopped the meat into chunks and soaked them in cold water spiked with whiskey to pull out the gamey smell.
By the time she finished, dawn had brokett
She checked the time, it was 6:52 am.
Kiara dried her hands with a paper towel, curiosity gnawing at her about the three men in her storage.
She forced herself to wait, showered, changed, and coated herself in sunscreen before grabbing her car keys.
Outside the neighborhood, the sunlight was brutil, stabbing her eyes. Even the sun visor didn’t help.
She slipped on her sunglasses and drove toward the outskirts..
Thanks to years of outdoor adventuring, she knew every inch of Zloria.
Finding a remote, abandoned spot was a walk in the park.
She pulled up at a deserted reservoir, set her sunhat in place, and stepped out
The moment she stepped out of the car, the heat wave slammed into her like a blast furnace.
Good thing she’d been conditioning herself for this–otherwise, she’d have passed out from the heat.
After scanning the area to ensure she was alone, Kiara opened the trunk. Using it as cover, she reached into her storage and dragged out Travis and his two companions, dumping them onto the ground.
Until now, Kiara had held back her curiosity, refusing to check on the trio. But once she dragged them out of her space and dropped them onto the ground, she finally saw them clearly.
Her eyes widened in shock.
Their hair was snow–white, their faces lined with deep wrinkles, as if someone had injected pure age into them. They looked. like old men now.
She didn’t know how old the other two were, but Travis hadn’t even reached 40.
And yet in less than six hours, they had aged this much.
What kind of space could do that?
And if she owned it–what would it do to her in the end?
She stood there in shock. Her heart pounded hard against her ribs.
A blessing in disguise or disaster in waiting?
Kiara couldn’t say. But for now, it seemed the benefits far outweighed the dangers,
Pulling her gaze away, she climbed back into her car and drove under the shade of a large tree to cool off.
It didn’t help. The heat still pressed down on her, heavy and suffocating
Three popsicles later, the restlessness inside her finally cased.
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Chapter 11 Dispose of the Corpses
Finished
She reclined her seat, closed her eyes, switched on the music, and let the air–conditioning run while she waited for time to
pass.
After ten minutes, she picked up her stethoscope, headed back to the men, and listened to their heartbeats.
Under the merciless sun, their skin had blistered and peeled: the parts touching the ground were charred dark.
Kiara turned her head aside and pressed the stethoscope to each chest in turn. Nothing. Once she was sure they were she untied the ropes, grabbed her stethoscope, and returned to the car.
gone.
She spent no more than half an hour at the reservoir before starting up the modified Hummer and driving away.
In her hurry to leave, she didn’t notice the figure standing in a watchtower barely 50 yards away. The man lowered his binoculars, frowning.
His radio crackled, and he lifted it to his ear, listening before replying, “Copy that.” Clipping it back to his belt, he adjusted his heat–resistant helmet, leapt down from the tower, and strode toward the three motionless bodies, boots crunching against the baked ground
Up close, the smell hit him–burnt flesh, sharp and acrid,
He crouched and pressed his fingers to the arteries in their necks.
Sure enough–they were dead.
The man frowned, his gaze turning thoughtful as he looked toward the direction Kiara had gone, his eyes darkening
