In the Grips of Fear, Beware - Part 3

By Nikki_Lynn

     Wayne inhaled the fresh scent of salty sea air, and he looked out across the ocean. The air was warm with a steady, but gentle breeze blowing in from the water. He closed his eyes, raising his face to the sun, and let the rays warm his skin. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt so relaxed, so at peace. His moment of bliss was interupted by and urgent voice.
     "Wayne!" the voice called, jarring him from his thoughts. Wayne turned and saw Babs running down the beach, toward him. The memory of the previous day's events came flooding back to him as he realized where he was.
     "Babs!" he replied, as she reached him, "We're dreaming, aren't we?"
     "Yeah," said Babs, "We are. Any sign of Wax?"
     "No. I didn't even realize this was a dream until I saw you."
     "He's bound to be around here somewhere," said Babs. Right on cue, Wax's laughter filled the air. He was walking down the beach, headed toward them. Wayne glared at his brother, who strolled casually up to Babs, ignoring Wayne, and circled her, as if sizing her up.
     "Well, hello there," he said smiling wickedly, "So nice to see you again, my dear."
     He took her hand and kissed it. Babs jerked her hand back and slapped him across the face.
     "Oh, you *are* a fiesty one," he chuckled, rubbing his cheek.
     "Leave her alone Wax," Wayne growled, and unnatural amount of malice in his voice. He grabbed Wax's shoulder and spun him around so that they were face to face.
     "And you, dear brother," Wax hissed, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "Always a pleasure."
     "What are you up to, Wax?" Wayne asked, looking straight into Wax's eyes.
     "Oh my... now that's a familiar phrase," Wax crooned, "Now who was the last person to ask me that? Oh yes... I remember... It was you little friend Nikki_Lynn. I must say, she kept me quite entertained with those snakes. Such wonderful screams..."
     Wax grinned arrogantly as a look of pain and anger flashed in Wayne's eyes.
     "But since there's really nothing you can do to stop me, I think I *will* tell you what I'm up to, after all," Wax teased, running a finger along the edge of Wayne's jaw. Wayne stood his ground, his features hard-set, determined not to let Wax get to him. Behind Wax, Babs stood watching the scene, preparing to take in every word that Wax uttered from this point on.
     "You see," Wax continued, "I'm stealing souls. It's as simple as that. I've amassed quite a collection. Virtually the entire Brady Bunch... Mon, Jessie, Linz, Nikki_Lynn, and most of the other who frequent that little message board of their's. In fact, the only Brady Bunchers left are this lovely young lady standing behind me, and the two whom I'm sure are guarding you while you sleep."
     Wax laughed as Wayne surpressed the urge to attack his brother, to force him to stop, to give back the souls he had taken. He didn't want to believe it was really possible to actually steal someone's soul, but looking Wax, he knew that for once, his brother wasn't lying.
     "Why?" Wayne asked through clenched teeth.
     "Why?" Wax echoed, "Why?! I live my entire life in *your* shadow, and you have the nerve to ask me why?!"
     He circled Wayne, trying to intimidate him.
     "I'll tell you why," he hissed, "I want to watch you suffer. I want you to know that these innocent young ladies will suffer because of *you*. I want you to see that there nothing you can do to help them... I want you to wish that you had never been born!"
     Babs took an involuntary step away from the two men as Wax became more and more irrate. This was not good. Wax suddenly became calm, smiling at Wayne.
     "But now, I think I'll get on with business," he said in that sickly sweet, tormenting voice, turning to Babs, "It will go much easier on you if you just come with me without a fight."
     "No! Leave her alone!" yelled Wayne, stepping between Wax and Babs, "I'll go. You can do whatever you want to me. Just let the Brady Bunch go."
     Wax grinned, apparently thinking over Wayne's offer.
     "No... I don't think so," he said, "I'm enjoying watching you blame yourself for all this... and believe me, it *is* all your fault. Coming my dear?"
     Babs glared at him, "Forget it. If you want me, you'll have to catch me first."
     She turned suddenly and took off running down the beach, Wayne at her side. Wax began to laugh again as the wind picked up speed, turning from a summer breeze to a gale, and the sky above them darkened to an ominous gray. Wayne took a moment to look back at Wax. He was still standing where they had left him, his arms folded over his chest, grinning smugly as the two of them ran. Wayne started to look back at Babs, but his attention was suddenly drawn to the open ocean. He stopped dead in his tracks, and Babs, realizing that Wayne was no longer beside her, also halted a moment later. Both looked with mortal terror out at the whitecaps that pounded the shore, and beyond that, the massive wall of watter rising from the surface, growing larger as it moved closer to the land. Tidal wave.
     "Oh shit!" screamed Babs, as the mammoth wave reached the shoreline and began to arc over their heads, falling toward them as if in slow motion...

* * * * *
     "Oh shit!"
     Everyone in the room jumped at the sudden outburst. The two sleepers had been silent, motionless until now.
     "Wake them up!" screamed Holly, desparatly trying to rouse her sister.
* * * * *
     "Babs!" Wayne yelled over the roar of the wind and the incoming tidal wave. He ran toward her as the wave crashed down over top of them both, and Wayne was suddenly immersed in darkness. He couldn't tell which way was up as he was spun and tossed this way and that by the raging currents. The salt water stung his eyes, and the cold temperature of the water numbed his skin. He had lost track of Babs long ago, and the image of her terrified face floated before his eyes as he tried to fight against the forces that continued to batter him beneath the waves. His oxygen-starved lungs ached to take in a breath of air, and he felt himself growing dizzy. He suddenly discovered that his body refused to respond to him, and colors swam behind his eyelids, the roar of the surf above him growing faint, giving way to an inccesant hum that filled his ears and his mind, and beyond the hum, a whisper... "Only two left, brother..."
* * * * *
     "Holly!" Greg cried, "Wayne's not breathing!"
     Holly was reluctant to leave her sister, but Mel quickly took her place and motioned Holly toward Wayne. A quick check revealed a strong pulse but, as Greg had said, no breathing. She carefully tilted Wayne's head back, and parted his lips, lowering her own lips to his, gently forcing the air into his lungs. She leaned her ear close to his mouth, listening for any signs of breathing, and, finding none, again pressed her mouth over his, knowing he wouldn't last much longer without oxygen. Much to her relief, this time Wayne coughed, spitting out a mouthful of seawater, and drawing in several long breaths before fianlly opening his eyes.
     "Babs," he gasped, coughing again. Holly looked over at Mel, suddenly remembering her sister. Mel shook her head. Babs remained unconcious.
     "No!" Holly screamed, then turning to Wayne, "How could you let him get her?!"
     Wayne didn't say anything at first. He just closed his eye. A tear trickled down the side of his face.
     "I'm sorry," he whispered, "I'm sorry..."
     "Holly!" Mel cried, shocked by Holly's vehemance, "How can you say something like that? Wax is the bad guy here, remember?"
     Holly, had regreted the harshness of her words the instant she said them, her throat tightening with guilt when she saw how deeply they had stung. She started to reply, but was interupted by Wayne.
     "No, she's right," he said, sitting up in bed, "I should have tried harder. Maybe there was something I could have done differently. Maybe..."
     "Whoa, easy," said Greg, "Don't go beating yourself up over this. Just tell us what happened."
     Wayne swallowed the lump in his throat and recounted what had happened down to the most minute detail... Wax gloating about his plan... Bab's refusal to go quietly... and finally, the massive wave that had separated them from each other... All the while he was unable to even bring himself to look at Holly.
     "I'm sorry Holly," Wayne said, hanging his head, "I tried, but..."
     His voice trailed off. Holly sat down on the edge of the bed and cradled Wayne's head against her shoulder.
     "No... I'm sorry... I didn't mean what I said... I was just upset. It wasn't your fault, so stop thinking that," she reassured him. The rest of the group looked on for a few moments, not entirely sure what else to say.
     "We have to help them," Wayne said suddenly, with renewed determination, "There has to be some way to stop Wax."
     "He's stealing our souls," said Mel, "God, this sounds like a damn Wes Craven movie."
     "If he's *stealing* them,... doesn't that mean he has to *put* them somewhere?" asked Brad. Colin stared at Brad for a second.
     "My God..." said Colin, fiegning shock, "I think he may be onto something."
     Ryan yawned, and nodded in agreement.
     "God, you guys must be exhausted," said Mel, "I know *I* am. Look, there's no reason you four can't sleep. Wax hasn't even tried to enter your dreams... He hasn't even *mentioned* you. Why don't you all get some rest."
     "Are you sure?" asked Ryan.
     "Yeah, you four sleep," said Wayne, standing up, "There's no sense in having you guys too tired to do *anything*."
     "You can have mine and Babs' room," said Holly, leading them out the door. Mel and Wayne remained. Wayne looked down at Babs and absently stroked the back of his hand along her cheek.
     "I wish I could've stopped Wax... He's got the entire Brady Bunch now, except for you and Holly," he said. He looked up at Mel, "What are we going to do?"
     "I have no idea," said Mel. Wayne sighed and after a few minutes of silence, gently lifted Babs off of the bed, moving her to the othrer bed where Nikki_Lynn lay. Mel gave his a questioning look.
     "I don't know..." said Wayne, "She just looked so lonely over there by herself... I thought maybe Babs could keep her company... Silly, huh?"
     Mel patted Wayne's arm, "We'll think of someway to help them."
     Holly slipped silently through the door.
     "The really *were* exhausted," she said, closing the door behind her, "I think Ryan was actually asleep before his head hit the pillow."
* * * * *
     "So... now it's just the three of us," said Mel, "Any ideas on how to kill a few hours 'til the rest of the guys wake up?"
     "How about a walk?" suggested Wayne, "I could use some fresh air."
     "And some fresh coffee," Holly added.
     "Sounds great," said Mel. They left Nikki_Lynn and Babs, locking the door behind them as they went out, and soon, the three os them were walking silently down the sidewalk. The day was hot, the heat almost oppressive as they walked. Finally, they stopped when they came across a small park that, although it had seen better days, still had several trees that cast long shadows across the ground. Mel and Wayne settled themselves into a patch of shade... Holly ran across the street, dodging traffic to get to a nearby Starbucks. Wayne and Mel could see her clearly through the windows of the building, drinking a steaming cup of coffee.
     "Hot coffee? In this heat?" said Mel, "She's nuts."
     Wayne leaned back against the tree, "At least she'll be awake for awhile." A small smile crossed his lips for the first time in hours.
     "Ya know," said Mel, "I've been thinking about what Brad said earlier... about Wax needing a place to put our souls..."
     "And?" Wayne prompted.
     "Well, dreams are all about symbolism a lot of time, right?" she continued, "So it stands to reason that wherever Wax is putting the souls, there's bound to be a symbolic representation somewhere in our dreams..."
     "What, you mean like a box or something?" Wayne asked.
     "Could be... I suppose it could be just about anything," Mel shrugged, "But if we could figure out what it is and somehow get it away from Wax..."
     "We could bring the others back!" Wayne cried.
     "Bring them back how?!" Holly asked excitedly as she hurried up to them, carrying a paper sack.
     "We'll explain on the way back to the hotel," said Mel, as she stood up, "What's in the bag?"
     "Lunch," Holly replied, "None of us have eaten since yesterday... But come on! Tell me what you're planning!"
     They half-walked, half-ran back to the hotel, explaining their idea to Holly as they went. As they explained, Holly came up with an idea of her own...
     "Holly, you can't be serious!" said Wayne.
     "It's the only way we'll be able to figure out where he's keeping the others," Holly replied.
     "Yeah, but intentionally letting Wax capture you, too?" Mel said, concern in her eyes.
     "I agree," said Wayne, "This is *not* a good idea. Not at all."
     "If this plan works, it won't be for long," said Holly, "All you have to do is watch what happens to me, then wake up and figure out a way to get us out. Besides, do either of you have a better idea?"
     Wayne and Mel couldn't argue with that. And Holly's idea *did* sound plausible.
     "Shouldn't we wait for the guys to wake up?" asked Mel.
     "Why? There's really nothing for them to do. Let them sleep," said Holly. They reached the hotel and reentered the room. Mel and Wayne finally conceeded, and they set to putting Holly's plan into action.
* * * * *
     The sound of gunfire suddenly filled the air. Holly looked around her, finding herself in a hole in the ground. A series of explosions cut through the early morning air, and a light drizzle of rain made her clothes damp and uncomfortable. All around her, Holly saw men in U.S. Army fatigues, some shooting over the edge of the foxhole, others shouting orders over the continuous noise.
     "Oh God," Holly gasped, realizing wher she was. She frantically searched the crowd of soldiers, looking for Wayne, finally spotting him several yards away.
     "Wayne!" she yelled , trying to get his attention, but between the gunfire and the explosions and the cries of wounded men, Wayne couldn't hear her. She gathered her courage, telling herself it was only a dream, and then ran as quickly as she could thorugh the warzone. Wayne was still a few yards away when suddenly, and iron grip encircled her ankle, sending her sprawling to the ground. She looked back, and there was Wax, a wicked smile on his face as he drew a gun from behind his back.
     "Don't worry, my dear," he cooed, "This won't hurt... much..."
     He cocked the gun, pressing it to her temple. Holly struggled, kicking and lashing out at her captor. She screamed, finally drawing Wayne's attention to her.
     "Wave bye-bye to my brother," said Wax, "You won't be seeing him agian any time soon."
     Wayne, seeing the gun poised to fire, ran toward Holly, desparate to help, but suddenly the earth in front of him erupted into a geyser of flying debris, shrapnel and rocks and dirt flying in all directions, knocking Wayne to the ground, the thunderous boom of the explosion echoing in his ears. Moments late, he sat up, dazed, but much to his surprise, uninjured, looking forward, searching for Holly. What he saw made his stomach turn.
     Wax stood over Holly's limp body, gun in hand, staring down at her. He looked up at his brother and raised the gun, taking aim. Wayne froze, seeing his brother with his finger on the trigger. He saw the flash of the barrel as the gun went off... heard Wax's sinister laughter... For a moment, Wayne thought he actually saw the bullet flying toward him...

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