Other Fan Fiction / Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ The Memory Machine ❯ Home is Broken ( Chapter 6 )

 

Chapter 6-Home is Broken

 

Laura walked home observing the paper, wondering what Clayton had meant when he had said that the G-Men were in town. Weren't G-Men government agents that handled serious felonies? If so, then why were they here handling such a small issue of a “Memory Machine?”

Laura was so deep in thought that she failed to notice how dark it was outside, or that the light from a nearby street was leaking onto her.

As she closed in on her apartment, Laura noticed a G-Men van leaving the front of the apartment. As it went farther down the street, dark terror filled Laura. Sprinting, she entered the building and practically flew to her apartment. Reaching the door, she found it ajar. Walking into the room, she felt socked at the scene before her; the living room was torn and mangled, and blood was splattered on the floor and what was left of the couch. A snubnose .35 gun lay on the ground, the barrel out and empty. It was Freeman's sole defense weapon.

Freeman's computer where he had spent many days typing The Legacy of Harford was broken and had bullet casings hanging out of the screen. The chair was ripped apart and had two pieces in separate sides of the room. The television where Laura and Freeman had enjoyed weeknights together was smashed, as if someone had thrown it against a wall. Laura saw a trail of blood leading to their room.

Laura felt her hemaphobia acting up, but did her best to keep it down and under control. Running into the room, she looked in to not only see the same scene as the living room, but Freeman in there as well. He was lying on the bed, gunshots visible in his chest. He was moaning in pain, and his blood was seeping into the blanket.

Laura tried not to shriek. She ran up to him to verify that it was him. It was indeed. Laura felt tears running down her cheeks. “Freeman,” she said.

“Laura,” Freeman wheezed. He looked happy to see her. “It's good to see ya.”

“What happened?” Laura asked. “What happened to you?”

“G-Men came…looking for you…” Freeman replied. “Wanted you for…jolting. Refused to tell…them. They knew…that I jolted…tried to arrest me, but I…resisted…they tried…to kill…me.”

Laura felt a ping of shame—they had come for her, and now Freeman was going to die, because he had wanted to protect her. She didn't even feel her hemaphobia.

“Laura,” Freeman said, “Run…leave, and…and don't let them…find you…they're on a manhunt…for jolters…don't trust anyone. Please…Just…run…” Freeman then stopped breathing. His eyes went pale and blank, and his body went limp.

Laura simply sat there for a minute, and then stood erect. Leaving the room, she waited until she was in the hallway, and then started wailing. She had known Freeman since they were little; he had at first taken the place, of her brother when he had died; then, later on, he stole her heart. Now, he was dead, and nothing could change that.

Then, Laura remembered Clayton.

Pulling her cell phone out of her purse, she dialed his number. When he picked up, she said, “Hello, Clayton...I need your help…They came…I'm on 23rd…'kay, bye.” She then hung up and made her way to the street to wait for him.

* * * * * * * * * * *

As Laura waited for Clayton to arrive, a flurry of thoughts ran through her head. She thought that she was beginning to understand the government's methods. The reason the “Memory Machine” being outlawed and considered a felony was not because it could kill you, but because it was an abomination against the human mind. It gave humans control that we shouldn't have had. It gave us the ability to play mad scientist with our own minds, when in truth that was Mother Nature's job.

That was why anyone who used a “Memory Machine” was considered scum. Because they were cowards who wanted power over the most dominant feature of the human body; the human mind.

As she thought this, Clayton pulled up beside her and opened the door. “Hop in,” he said. “We have a long way to go before the G-Men can no longer chase us.”

Nodding, Laura said, “Right,” and jumped in. It would be a long trip.