"Hey, Judas, I just got a weird phone call."He could feel something shaking his shoulder.
"It was from some guy who called himself Father Richard McCarthy. I think he was crazy."Another shake. He groaned.
"Come on Judas, get up. I'm bored, it's like, ten in the morning.""Oh my fucking God, Jules, go away," the face of the older brother buried itself into a pillow as a loud groan left his mouth. He could almost feel Jules roll his eyes as he scoffed, standing up from the bed.
"Fine. Asshole. I'm going to Lanore and Jason's place," thumping around the small apartment they shared, it was obvious that Jules was angry, and Judas really could care less at that moment. All he wanted was more sleep, and sleep he was going to get. He wouldn't get up until two hours later, when the clock struck twelve.
When Judas finally did get up, he wandered around an empty apartment. It wouldn't take him long to get ready, being sure to lock up before he left. Fishing a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, one was in his mouth and lit before he even left the apartment building. A low whistle caught his attention as he left, Judas looked around until his eyes landed on a familiar face.
"Eeyy Rodrigo!" The man was hispanic, shorter than Judas, but larger still. His hair was held back by a bandana, and his hazel eyes stared at the white man, watching his every move.
"Sup holmes," the two came close, grasping each other's hands, and brought it in for a quick hug. "Got a job I need help with," the two began to walk, Judas following without any question. This man leading him along was one of the only men he had learned to trust in this cold world.
A bat was given to him as they stepped up to Rodrigo's car. A bat that would be used only if the people they were going to speak with didn't comply. It was a simple enough job, really. They were in gang territory, after all, and if the businesses wanted to be left alone, they would have to pay a nice fee. An old tactic, one that Judas was surprised was still employed. The duo wouldn't even make it to the first business.
By the time Judas had woken up, the chaos had already begun to spread around the city, unbeknownst to him.
The pair walked through the city, talking amongst themselves, slowly noticing the mass of people that were wandering the city. Panicked and carrying suitcases, they shouted and screamed.
"The fuck is going on?" Judas wondered aloud. Rodrigo shrugged, before motioning for Judas to follow him, and the two made their way down an alley. The blonde haired man couldn't help a shiver that ran down his spine when he saw the scene.
A woman sat on the ground, a man's head in her lap as she cried. Her hands were stained with crimson red. Not far from where the two were, was another body, the hilt of a knife sticking out from it's skull. Judas paused, but Rodrigo hurried to their side, bending down to check the woman.
"I...I just..." The woman was finding it hard to speak. She looked up at them, Judas now joining the scene. There was so much blood, most of it coming from the man's neck. "I-I called an ambulance but...but they said...they said there's too many reports...T-that they...they might not make it...I-I can't carry him..."
"What even happened?" Rodrigo was taking point. This was his area, these were his people. He wasn't going to turn a blind eye. Judas, on the other hand, moved to the body. His stomach churned, and he couldn't even make it all the way to the corpse before he had to turn away and cover his mouth.
"That man...That..." The woman's eyes darted to the dead man. "He jumped my husband, b-bit into his neck...Tore it..." She couldn't finish her sentence. They all heard the final breaths of the man in her lap, a soft groan, before a stillness came over him. "No...No Victor, no, no!" The woman shook the man. "Please. Please oh God please no," it was only a matter of seconds before the man's eyes opened again, a groan coming from him. "Oh!" The woman pulled back, a grin spreading across her face, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks.
A white hand raised towards the woman, sliding up her cheek, moving to her hair. The strands were clutched and yanked, the woman crying out as her head was brought down to the man’s.
Rodrigo jumped back as blood erupted from the woman’s face. Expletives were shouted, Judas was called for, and the smaller man was jumping on top of the duo that sat on the ground, trying to pull them apart. There was a mass of screaming and confusion, Victor moving from his wife to Rodrigo, sinking his teeth into the man’s arm. Judas stepped over, taking action by slamming the baseball bat into the man’s head, over and over until Victor slumped.
Blood pooled from around the bodies. The woman wasn’t moving, Rodrigo had a hole in his arm from where the man bit him, and Victor was slumped over with a bashed open skull. Judas breathed heavily as he looked them over, jerked up when his partner fell hard against the wall, holding his arm.
“Fucking hell is this shit?” Judas opened his mouth, moving to Rodrigo, but the man shook his head.
“Go get help. Mitch or Jack or someone. I’ll be...I’ll be fine,” he was obviously not fine. Clicking his tongue in his mouth, Judas straightened, before he took a few steps back from the group. A simple nod given to his companion, and the man was heading towards the opposite end they came from. Stepping over the dead body on the ground, he paused a moment, before grabbing the switchblade buried into the man’s skull. None of them were going to be needing this now, were they?
With one last look towards Rodrigo, Judas made his way down the street, disappearing into the throngs of people that were fleeing from the West. Heart hammering in his chest, he took a breath to steady himself, his mind drifting far away from helping Rodrigo by finding Mitch or Jack. His mind strayed to his brother, the first thought being that he had to find him. Something was going on. Something was making people flee and be scared. That man
attacked his wife, drew blood.
Heading towards Saint’s street, Judas kept his head down, his goal clear in his mind.
