Down These Mean Streets by Larry Correia & Kacey Ezell

Author:Larry Correia & Kacey Ezell [Correia, Larry & Ezell, Kacey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Science Fiction, Collections & Anthologies, Fantasy, Crime & Mystery
ISBN: 9781625799449
Google: TcPSEAAAQBAJ
Publisher: Baen Books
Published: 2024-01-02T05:00:00+00:00

DOWNTOWN

Before long, I was walking between the Presbyterian hospital and the semi-infamous Crossroads Motel. You’ve probably seen that hotel in a show or movie, as it’s the quintessential seedy motel where trysts and drug deals happen. It’s a case of reality imitating art imitating reality. I’m certain the place survives entirely on commissions from use in movies and TV shows.

From there, I followed the underpass below I-25. On the far side, I spotted the Hotel Parq Central, one of Albuquerque’s well-known haunted locations. Naturally, it was a psychiatric facility in the recent past.

The combination of a screaming woman and a crying baby drew my attention to a struggle on the sidewalk in front of the hotel. It looked to be a bag lady struggling against a large man.

Though self-preservation told me not to, I ran to see if I could help. As I closed in, I recognized the old woman as the very same woman to whom I’d given the burrito. Her attacker, however, was not a large man. Coal-black skin stretched along skinny limbs and a hunched back—the crybaby monster from before. My shroom trip had reengaged.

I told myself I was seeing things and it was some homeless man who was angry this woman was at his corner. Whatever the situation, he was actively trying to hurt her. Kill her, by the look of it. He had long, sinewy fingers around her neck and was shaking her violently.

I searched for a weapon and, finding none, drew upon the two years of karate I’d taken as a kid after Karate Kid had come out. Moving up next to him, I turned, raised my knee, and gave him the best sidekick I could muster. The kick struck true, knocking him over and forcing him to release his grip on the woman.

Pain shot through my groin as I pulled a muscle. I lost my balance and fell onto the woman. When we collected ourselves, I came face-to-face with the attacker and raised a fist. A white, faceless oval stared at me. That was the closest I’ve ever been to the old adage that if you stare into the abyss, it stares back.

I hesitated, wondering whether I could punch it. Would that white void suck my arm in? A shudder ran through my soul at that thought and I stared back, frozen with indecision. Kicking it again was a no go. My groin was in tremendous pain, and I was barely standing.

Whack!

The woman had taken advantage of the moment to slam a metal baseball bat into its midsection. It screeched, rolled over backwards, and skittered sideways into a shadow.

She grabbed my hand and pointed to the hotel.

“Up there! Come with me!”

I looked up at the hotel and saw someone watching us through one of the upper windows. If they’d seen the whole exchange, I could only imagine what they were thinking. The face disappeared, though I didn’t see them move. The burrito was truly fucking with me. Had any of the encounters been real?

I pinched myself and it hurt.

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