Read Online The Junkie Quatrain by Peter Clines - Free Book Online Page B

had been Sarah’s and trapped Big Jay’s under the pile. ‘Sorry,’ he whispered.
    From down the street came the moans and senseless grumbles of waking junkies. One somewhere, a woman by the sound of it, let out a mournful howl. They always woke up hungry.
    ‘So much for the element of surprise,’ muttered Chit.
    Barney slapped Jay in the arm and pointed at the bikes. The big man tossed the two fallen ones aside and hauled his upright. The noise of shifting bicycles almost hid the low thuds and stomps of feet coming down Sycamore.
    The outsiders kicked off and rolled through the drive-through. Barney gestured right three times with quiet chops in the air. They pumped their pedals and moved out fast. The sound of feet faded away.
    They fell into formation and headed down Wilshire. There was a faint downhill slope just past LaBrea that let them build up a bit of speed. Monica and Barney were in the lead. Chit was centered behind them with Charlie and Big Jay flanking her. Charlie put on a burst of speed to rush past a clump of sleeping junkies, then settled back to hang almost in her blind spot. Chit glanced over her other shoulder to check on Jay. It was a bit of a balancing act with the bulky pack.
    The street was empty on that side.
    She raised her voice as much as she dared. The junkies were shifting and waking up. ‘Where’s Jay?’
    The quartet of bikes slowed. Charlie looked behind them, then dropped back to zigzag across the road. Barney and Monica managed the same awkward look around their packs. Aside from a few clumps of junkies stretching themselves awake, the road was empty as far back as they could see. There was no sign of the big outsider.
    ‘Damn it,’ muttered Barney. ‘Move.’
    ‘He might just be—’
    ‘He’s not,’ said their leader. ‘We all know it. Let’s put some distance between us and whatever took him.’
    The four of them bent over their handlebars and the bikes skimmed down Wilshire.
     
    * * *
     
    They’d been going for almost an hour when Monica saw it. They’d passed the museums and were well into Beverly Hills when something in the other direction flitted through the corner of her eye. It was just a quick shadow. She turned and looked but the only thing on the cross street were a few clumps of junkies. They were reeling, as if something had whipped by too quickly for them to react.
    Barney saw her turn her head. ‘What?’
    ‘There’s something a block or so up,’ she said. ‘I think it’s following us. Running parallel.’
    ‘D’you get a good look at it?’
    She shook her head. ‘Dark and fast. That’s about it.’
    Charlie pulled up. He let go of the handlebars and jerked one thumb to the north. ‘You guys saw it, too?’
    ‘I did,’ said Monica. ‘He didn’t.’
    Barney nodded at Charlie. ‘What’d you see?’
    Charlie shrugged. ‘Dark. Hunched over. Might’ve been a big junkie, the way some of ‘em kind of bend over like that.’
    Barney thought about it. ‘Could it’ve been somebody on a bike?’
    The round-faced man shrugged again. ‘Maybe. I just got a really quick glimpse.’ He eased back on the pedals and drifted back into position.
    ‘Might be Jay,’ said Monica.
    ‘Yeah,’ said Barney. ‘He’s probably just playing a great joke on us.’
    ‘Better than thinking it’s a junkie on a bicycle.’
    Barney shook his head. She could hear the whisk of his beard on his chest even over the quiet chittering of the bike chains. ‘It’s not Jay,’ said Barney. ‘I think someone’s hunting us.’
    ‘What d’you mean?’
    ‘I’ve put a couple things togeth—LOOK OUT!’
    The junkie lunged. Monica had drifted too close to the cars on the side of the road, and Barney had seen the twitching figure moments before she did. Threads of saliva streamed from the gaunt man’s mouth as he knocked her off the bike.
    Monica landed on the pack and threw her arm up. She wedged her forearm under the junkie’s chin so the only way it could grab her