I am on my way now with a determination that has gone beyond restraint, a determination to confront the life-sucking vampire who sucks the life out of his victims and feeds on the melody of their death. A monster fascinated by a symphony that can only be played once . I do not have even the bare minimum of planning, but I will improvise.
When I arrived, Ramez met me with a raised eyebrow and said:
- "Isn't our appointment tomorrow?"
I said:
- "Why? Should I go back?"
He said:
- "No .. no, please."
In the blink of an eye I was in bed ready.
Ramez started preparing everything .. Ramez wants to comment, but he keeps quiet. He still doesn't know why I changed my mind and came, he's also worried that I might change my mind and leave.
Everything went as planned; I got my dose, blacked out, and then woke up in that bed again.
I ran down the stairs until I reached the basement door that I had once broken, which had been replaced with a new one. I tried to pull it, but it was locked. I searched everywhere until I found what I was looking for. The sledgehammer was in its usual place, so I raised it and started screaming, smashing it hysterically, not caring about the sound. The wooden pieces flew amidst my screams and the screams of the women downstairs who had no idea what was happening exactly. I smashed it angrily as if I was smashing cancer, as if I was smashing all those doors that had been closed in my face, urging me to pass through here. When I had completed my task, I rushed down to find the mother hugging Sama in panic, a lost look on her face. Something had changed, Maryam was not there, and from the signs of terror that dominated the scene, and from her lost looks that were on the verge of hysteria, I knew what had happened to the third of them. Maryam, who seemed the most composed of them, was now a secondary character in my story, swallowed by death. I screamed with all my might, and they screamed back, thinking I was him. I grabbed the hammer and ran back upstairs, looking for the scoundrel. With all the hatred I carried, I would surely make an example of his murder that would never have occurred to the most sadistic minds. I pushed open the door of the room upstairs, turned on the lights, and found what remained of Baher's body lying on the floor.
My stomach got the better of me and I ducked into the corner to throw up. I coughed violently, then pulled myself together. I glanced at the torture table and saw the car keys that once belonged to a boy who thought he was a hero. His cell phone was sitting next to it . I dropped the hammer and grabbed the phone. What now?
I searched through my clothes to find the card the officer at the police station had given me, and then an idea came to me. I dialed the number, praying that he would respond, and he did.
"Adel Pasha, I'm Adam, the one who reported the kidnapping, if you remember . I want you to know that I'm at the place now with the rest of them, and there's a body lying next to me. I'll send you the location . Don't delay, or the blood of those who remain will be on your neck."
Then I hung up without waiting for a reply.
When I turned around, I found another Adam standing in front of me, holding a pickaxe. Then he said:
- "Are you looking for me?"
Then he hit my head with the tool, and I didn't see anything after that.
*****
Adel looked at his phone in surprise, then put it aside and said to Ramez:
" This is the same person who came last night."
Ramez, who was sitting comfortably in front of him, said:
- "You mean that fan? What does he want?"
Adel replied, saying:
- "I don't know."
He was distracted for a moment, then stopped to put on his coat, putting his weapon in his sock and saying:
" I think I'll go take a look."
Ramiz said:
" Do you believe him?"
Adel looked at him after he finished, then said:
" His tone of voice sounded very credible, so I'd check anyway."
Ramez said as he was also getting ready:
- "Wait then, I'll come with you. Would you call for troops to accompany us?"
Adel answered him after thinking for a few seconds, saying:
" No, we'll go alone, and let's pray that this is all just a joke, and if not, we'll call for backup later. Let's go."
*****
I opened my eyes to see my hands tied to a wooden bench and my image sitting in front of me. The doppelganger had settled in front of me and was examining my face, as if I were looking in a mirror, but my image had become rebellious and had become an independent being.
I almost fell back into the darkness again, when he slapped me with his hand, and I woke up again, then he said:
- "Who are you? And how do you look so much like me?"
I was silent and did not respond, panting, so he continued, asking:
" How come you suddenly disappear whenever I lay my hands on you? Why don't you disappear now?"
He turned his back, then said:
" Are you going to answer or what? Or is your plan to kill me out of boredom?"
He stood up and pulled out a sharp blade and began to wave it threateningly in front of me, saying:
- "A clone, or was my mother's womb carrying a third and we didn't know?! Damn it ! I thought that one stupid brother was enough, and now fate is giving me another. I didn't believe him that time when he told me that he had caught someone similar to us, but it seems that he was right. "
Is he his brother? Does he have a twin brother like me?! That thought came to my mind, so I did not comment. Then he continued, saying:
" That idiot brought his girl after half the planet saw him. Can you believe it? If I hadn't dealt with it and had to kidnap an entire family, I'd be gone by now. Yes, he's shitting himself and I'm panting after him to clean up his shit. But wait. You're a genius, man; you gave me an idea. Why don't we get rid of him too? What do you say? Kill my brother, so what? By killing you, I'll have practiced killing my double. Right?!"
I told him:
- "What are you waiting for? Go ahead and do it."
He looked at me in surprise, then said:
" This is a first; you are the first person to sit in this seat and utter this phrase . Anyway, it seems that you are indeed similar to me in many ways except one. Do you know what it is?"
Then he brought the blade down on my handcuffs and cut them off, freeing me.
I was amazed at what he did. He got up and started unbuttoning his shirt, revealing a bare chest, before he put the blade on my wrist. He then lifted his shirt off me and turned it away while holding my hand that held the knife, pointing it at his stomach. He then looked into my eyes and said:
- "Come on, finish what you came for."
What? Well. I wasn't expecting that.
I looked into his steady eyes, then at the shining blade in my hand.
Now's your chance . Come on Adam, come on, drive the blade into his heart, come on, finish it all.
I looked at his body , his muscles that seemed familiar to me, and his healthy skin that tempted me to tear it open.
My hand trembled, I had never killed anyone before, but doesn't everything have a beginning?
Here's your chance, Adam. Why are you hesitating now, you coward?
I looked into his eyes, which had a hint of schadenfreude creeping into them, and into his mouth, which had begun to smile.
What the hell? He's a murderer. Are you a coward now? Do you feel sorry for him, Adam?
My being imagines me thrusting the blade into his heart, but my hand is limp.
As for him, he calmly picked up his shirt to put it on, then added, saying:
"Yes, it looks easy, but it's not. Is it? "
My hand fell from me in weakness, to be crowned with disappointment. I found myself a dwarf standing before a giant, surrendering to him like an ant that does not care if he steps on it with the toe of his shoe. Here he began to give his lecture entitled: "How do you become a butcher ?! "
" You see, my mysterious friend, how I seem to be a genius at extrapolating from the one in front of me? I was once a coward like you, even that first time I killed. His name was Abdul Tawab, he was a valuable mule who worked with me in the potato refrigerator, and when he used to taunt me about my father, I would cowardly ignore the insult, looking at the ground like a mangy dog, allowing him to insult me and make an example of me day after day, but as you know, pressure generates an explosion, and although he did not utter slander, I do not know anything about you, but my father was a vile drunkard who beat us, my mother and my brother, until our screams became a distinctive sign of the neighborhood, identifying those who had lost their way, but I wanted to put an end to this humiliation. So, on a rainy day that I remember well, I sneaked into the storeroom, and I was not yet sure how I was going to do it until I arrived, and he was Inside one of the refrigerators, as if fate had taken pity, as if fate had also had enough and decided to spit him out. I extended my trembling hand after making an effort to make it submit to my will, then I closed the refrigerator on him, and ran away without looking back. In the morning, when they opened the refrigerator, they found his body frozen in the corner, and everyone whispered among themselves: " It's fate and destiny . "
This is strange, for man came to earth punished and sad, and when he is about to leave this life he is sad too. Isn't this a paradox worth contemplating?
That night I was so sleepless that I couldn't sleep. I was saying to myself: " What have I done? Who is this cruel, cold-hearted person that I have become? " But the next morning I got out of bed and I was certain of one thing, that this person was me since I was born, but I didn't realize it yet.
Here he suddenly let out a muffled scream, looking at the blade that was about to be pierced in his stomach, had he not grabbed my hand halfway, he looked at me in astonishment, he could not comprehend that I had done it, so I said to him:
"I am that person too, but you haven't realized it yet."
I tried to push his hand to plunge the rest of the blade into his chest, despite his hand holding my wrist, but he fought hard to push my hand to the other side, he tried to move his torso away from the blade, but I clung to his neck with my other hand. He looked at the tip of the blade stained with his blood, his saliva dripping in anguish, both his hands holding mine as I pushed with all my strength to complete the task.
Until a voice came to us calling from below, so I laughed loudly, then I said:
"It's the police, you're done for, you b*tch."
He hit my head hard against his forehead, my grip loosened, and then he hit the knife and it flew away.
I rushed to pick her up, and he fell on top of me, holding my arm.
A battle broke out between me and him, as we both raced to see who could reach the blade first. His hand clutched my head to prevent me from reaching the blade, then my nails dug into his neck to make him back away from picking it up.
Then I turned to face him, then put my foot in to push him away, and his body flew, hitting a wooden wheel on the other side and falling to the ground.
I finally picked up the blade, and stood up to find him also holding a gun in his hand.
Damn. That must be one hell of a gun.
I shouted,
- "Up here."
The shot rang out.
****
A moment ago:
Cautiously, Adel and Ramez sneaked inside the villa's fence.
In the garden yard, they found an open jeep. They checked it but found no one inside.
Adel found the car cover uncovered, so he said to Ramez:
"Look, the tool bag is gone."
Here they heard a commotion upstairs, so Ramez grabbed his weapon and signaled to Adel to be careful, then with quick steps, they began to sneak inside.
They both were disgusted by the smell, and in front of the basement door, Adel motioned for Ramez to cover his back.
Adel came down first and saw what he saw, then Ramez followed him. The mother ran towards the door, so the officer motioned for her to be quiet. He asked her in a whisper:
- "Is he upstairs?"
She said, "Yes."
"Don't worry, madam," he said, "it's all over."
Then they heard someone shouting:
" Up here." Then a gunshot rang out.
The mother screamed, so Adel firmly told her to be quiet, then they walked up the stairs, their pistols leading them towards the source of the sound until they reached the entrance to the room to find the look-alike waiting in the corridor with his weapon hidden behind his back, so Adel shouted, saying:
- "Adam, what's going on?"
And with a quick wit he said, panting:
" Inside, sir. Hurry up."
When Adel entered the room, he found Adam again, but he was kneeling with blood pouring from his foot. Then he shouted warningly at Adel:
- "no".
Before Adel could turn around, and before he even realized what was happening, the bullet lodged in the back of his head.
In the blink of an eye, the look-alike turned to Ramez, who was standing in the corridor, and his reaction did not help him. The look-alike fired three bullets at him, which settled directly in his chest, but the one that hit his heart was the reason he fell to the ground like a stone.
The lookalike knelt down, then stuck his ear to Ramez's mouth as if he was inhaling the throes of death until the latter calmed down. The lookalike screamed angrily as if someone had just deprived him of his favorite meal.
When he got up, he decided to take revenge on that copy that broke into his lair to destroy everything, cursing his curiosity that prevented him from killing him when he had the chance, but he preferred to shoot him in the foot. When he entered the room again, he found Adam standing over Adel's body, with a gun in his hand, pointing it at him , and Adel's holster empty of the weapon, so the doppelganger pulled himself out of the stillness, throwing himself outside the room while shooting randomly.
Adam threw himself on the ground, covering his head and avoiding the death shots until they stopped, before he heard the sound of feet outside rushing down. He stood up, gritting his teeth, enduring the pain of his foot as he dragged it outside, and cautiously, he began to descend the stairs leading to the basement.
Did the bastard run away or what?
Before he reached the basement door, he was surprised by his mother coming out of the door to block his way. She was not running as she should have done, but she was stiff, crying silently with a trembling mouth and her eyes looking to the side in terror at who was hiding behind the basement door. Then she turned her head towards Adam, thinking to herself: " If this is the butcher, then who is this in front of me? "
Then Adam heard the voice coming from inside the basement:
"Look carefully at what your hands have done."
Then the place was lit up by a gunshot, this gunshot lodged in the mother's head and she fell to the ground.
Then Adam screamed, and began to melt away, leaving this dimension, leaving chaos behind.
***
When I regained consciousness, the place was filled with noise. The room was crowded with many people. Ramez was sitting in one of the corners with one of the policemen, and the others were talking about the evidence, while someone was carrying a heavy notebook to record everything around us.
My eyelids were slowly regaining function when I suddenly turned over to empty my stomach.
Weakness sends its nose through my eyes to breathe, so I close my eyes tightly to make sure not to smother it. Then someone helps me up and begins examining my eyes with a small flashlight, asking:
- "Dr. Adam, are you okay?"
I answered him in a low voice, saying:
- "I want to go back."
One of them looked at the other with interest, then added:
" Dr. Adam, you were under the influence of an experimental drug that was supposed to be destroyed and disposed of. We are very sorry."
I shook my head, not understanding what empty talk they were talking about?! I haven't saved Sama yet, I have to complete my mission.
" No, I want to finish the treatment. We're not supposed to stop now."
No one paid attention to my words, but they supported me until I struggled to stand on my feet.
" Are you okay? We need to take you to the hospital now, just to make sure you're okay."
I looked at Ramez who had just been killed in front of my eyes moments ago. Poor guy! He didn't know yet that his time had come, so I went up to him and put my hand on his shoulder, and said to him:
- "Ramez, I'm sorry, you're going to die."
Here one of the dignified ones said:
" Mr. Adam, there is no need for these words; trust that the law will take its course."
The man standing next to me continued,
" Unfortunately, Dr. Adam, and contrary to what Dr. Ramez suggested to you, your condition has deteriorated for the worse; the tumor in your head has increased in size. This drug is a complete disaster, and what is left of it will now be destroyed."
I told him:
- "I want to go."
He leaned over to the man and said firmly:
- "No, we have to take you to the hospital."
I screamed:
- "No, I'll go alone."
Then I picked up a business card and put it in his pocket. He didn't understand, so I patted him on the shoulder, saying:
- "Tell me today, today. Don't be late . "
He said:
" Well, let him go, gentlemen."
Then he turned to me and said:
"Go home and get some rest, and I'll stop by today to get your statement."
I got dressed, then quietly went down the stairs, then stopped in front of that spot on the wall, that spot where a wooden door was supposed to be in the middle as in the other dimension.
How much our eyes deceive us! Certainly, not everything is as it seems, our minds still play with us every day. We live continuous shows of optical illusions every day without realizing it . Did you know that tree leaves are not green? No, it is not a metaphor, in fact, all these colors around us do not exist, they are a trick performed by our eyes with great skill. When light falls on an object and bounces back to our eyes, the wavelengths that bounce from this object to the eye make it appear that way. From here, questions explode: Is the green color, which I call "green", the color that you see? Perhaps the green that I see is different from the green that others see, but it is impossible to prove this fact; this is what we are used to seeing only, like those colors that the hummingbird sees and we do not see even though they surround us.
Do I make sense or am I still hallucinating from the effects of the drug?
Without warning, I picked up a metal chair and threw it against the wall, smashing it loudly, cursing our limitations, cursing our inability that deprives us of perception, of perception of those colors, of perception of the people who live around us on this earth in another dimension.
A magician who pulls a rabbit out of his hat doesn't pull it out of nothing; he needs a loose sleeve to pull it out of.
Everyone ran downstairs thinking I was having a fit of madness.
I paid no attention, but kept falling, falling, falling with a fury I did not think I possessed, until the abyss appeared behind the wall, and an old entrance to a cellar appeared that was hidden behind the stairs.
Ramez passed among the astonished eyes, sharing their astonishment. I looked at him, panting, then threw the chair away, as I had found the missing part of the puzzle, the loose sleeve, the rabbit hole that explains the trick.
Then I walked through them and patted him on the shoulder to say:
- "Goodbye, Ramez."
*****
I robbed the road with my car . I failed miserably. When I was supposed to save everyone, I was the reason they sped up the pace and met their death. The car made a loud squeak when it braked in front of the exhibition. I rushed inside to find Sama. Ihugged her in shock and said:
- "Thank God. You're here?"
She looked around in embarrassment, then said:
- "Adam, what are you doing?"
I interrupted her, saying:
- "Call your mother now? "
She said:
- "Mom ! Why?"
I answered firmly, saying:
- "Just call her."
She picked up the phone following me, and heard her mother's voice on the other end.
I sighed in relief as I said:
" She's still alive then."
She said:
" Yes, it seems so, and thank you for your sudden concern for my mother's health. Could you explain to me now what is happening?"
I felt something stick to my foot, I looked down to find this dog whose barking had always terrified me, affectionately rubbing against me as if we were friends. I leaned over to him and petted his fur. He was looking at the source of the sounds as if to say, " You have changed, Adam, and I can feel it." As if to say, "This is the Adam I always barked at you to be."
Sama told me:
"Adam, is everything okay? Are you okay?"
But I turned and left, answering her, saying:
- "Later, not now; there is no time."
I rushed outside to get back to my car. It was time to make a very important phone call. The doctor I had left my card with had contacted me to take my statement. So I dialed the number and waited for him to answer. Then I interrupted him:
" Shut up and listen carefully. Here's the thing: I'm a billionaire with an incurable disease. All that money means nothing to me, I don't have an heir anyway. I want one last favor, a simple one, and in return I'll give you everything that will make you look down on your poor, miserable life. Give me a number, and I won't care how many zeros you put in front of it. That's how much I'll give you for that simple favor."
He was silent for a long time, then said:
- "What is this service, Dr. Adam?"
I answered him saying:
"The property, I want what's left of the property."
Here he said:
" You mean NSTZ? He's already been executed. Unfortunately, Dr. Adam, your request came too late."
I hung up the phone.
Even though it was daylight, a dark veil began to creep over my eyes. I looked beside me, at Sama, my beloved painting in the middle of the frame . I let you down Sama, just like everyone else, I couldn't be the hero you wished for, it's all over now.
Here the phone rang again. It was him. I quickly answered:
- "What?".
He was silent for a moment, then said:
" Dr. Adam, I don't know if what I'm doing is right or wrong, but that's the way it is."
My heart is pounding as I anxiously await the rest of his words.
" It seems that today is your lucky day; you saved the last dose of the medicine at the last moment."
I put the phone to my mouth and shouted at the top of my lungs:
" No, it is your lucky day. Bring the drug to my office at once and do not delay . At once, please, do not delay."
Then I set off, my eyes coming back to life. Though the anxiety was chewing at me, I was exhaling it with determination to inhale hope.
On the way there was an exchange, a bag containing the last dose of the precious clear liquid, and in return, a check payable to the bearer with I can't remember how many zeros, which I signed. He looked at me in disbelief, suppressing the joy that barely appeared behind his eyes, and then we both went our separate ways.
When I entered the office, Adel was waiting for me.
I told him:
- "You ! Are you still alive?"
He said:
" What? Wasn't what you did to me enough? Do you want me to die too?"
I interrupted him, saying:
- "I'm short on time, what do you want?"
" What do I want?! Well, it's like this: at first, I thought I wanted your chair, but after thinking deeply, I find that I only want to destroy you as you once did to me. I want you to return to the position you deserve, miserable and destitute."
I looked at him smiling, and he continued, saying:
" Yes, Adam, we all know your origins that you wanted to hide from everyone. We know your lineage that was the reason for what you are in now and that makes you work day and night to deny that accusation against you and to make us believe that you deserve what you are."
I couldn't help but laugh at that moment, then I leaned over to him and said:
- "Okay, I agree."
Stupidity struck his features, and he said:
- "What do you agree on?"
I said:
" This chair I sit in, which has caused you obsession all your life, I will leave it to you with a satisfied soul, but that is if you do not die first, my friend."
Adel shouted, saying:
" You bastard, are you threatening to kill me?"
His fist came down on my face, and I felt a flash hit me before I was thrown to the ground.
Then he jumped on top of me and started to beat me up. As for me, I was laughing, and the more I laughed, the more angry he became and beat me up until his hands pulled me out from under his feet. There was a lot of noise and my office was crowded with employees who had come to watch the show. Oh my! I was still laughing. I don't know why, but I couldn't stop myself.
Adel shouted angrily:
" Let me kill him; the bastard is threatening to kill me, leave me alone."
The security men held him tight and asked me what they were doing to him. I told them:
" Throw him out."
Then I left them and went into the bathroom and closed the door behind me.
Inside, I sat staring at myself in the mirror, taking in these features that I had once loved. How had I come to hate them so much? This hair, these eyes, this ridiculous beard.
I quickly took out the syringe, then stuck it in my vein, letting the blue liquid flow through my veins, I felt it like snakes breeding at lightning speed inside me. I hit the tiles, and the last thing I saw was my face in the mirror.
As if I see him and threaten him.
I'm coming you bastard.
****