John O'Brien - Taken

“Hold them tight and get that chain on,” I yell as the same slam occurs at mine.

I’m holding the doors closed but they are slowly opening. I’ve given up on trying to loop the chain as all of my focus is on holding the door tight. It’s not enough. The doors are slowly creeping open. McCafferty is straining at the other door next to me. The linoleum floor isn’t giving us any traction and we are slowly sliding forward with the combined pull of the night runners outside. Their gray snarling faces are pressed close to the windows; mouths opening with strain and howls. Their stained teeth gnash as they sense victory and feeding time; their eyes alight with hunger.

I set my feet against the steel support pole between the doors and pull with all of my might. My arms, shoulders, and back strain with the effort. I see McCafferty slide a little more along the floor.

“Hook your feet like mine,” I shout and strain harder.

I don’t feel the door open any further but it isn’t closing either. It’s taking everything I have just to keep the status quo but I feel my strength and energy fading. My entire back and arms muscles are locked and my arms start to shake. McCafferty is holding her own as well but I see the beads of sweat form on her brow from the effort.

“I need help over here,” I yell knowing there isn’t any help to be given. I don’t know where Echo or the rest of Red Team are and Black Team is locked in a battle of their own.

Thank goodness there is only the small handle on the other side or this would have been over long ago. I see the night runner I am having a tug of war with directly in front of me. He is snarling with the effort. His eyes lock on mine. They are full of confidence and hunger and tell me he knows he will win this battle. They are eager. I see another reach down to the handle and begin pulling. I feel the door start to give more. My legs are locked and the strain is intense. It will end quickly with my body just giving out all of a sudden. Our attempt at rescue is for naught and brought even greater harm.

The night runner’s eyes open a touch wider. I see a set of hands close on the push handle next to my white-knuckled ones. I briefly glance to my side and see Robert leaning back; adding his effort to keep the door closed. The opening stops momentarily. In my peripheral, I see Gonzalez step in to aid McCafferty. We have reached a new status quo but the night runners are stronger. Although we have leverage on our side, it’s still only a matter of time.

The windows are full of faces of night runners trying to gain entry. Behind the initial front, other heads bob and move about trying to gain the doors. The press of the others behind is actually hindering the pull of the ones in front. If it weren’t for that, the door would have been whipped open and I would have been launched into the next county. That wouldn’t be such a bad thing considering the position we’re in , I think feeling my hands slipping. I don’t dare release to get a better grip. The howls and shrieks, scant inches away, are deafening.

Another set of hands settles on the push bar. I glance over to see someone I don’t recognize. Another joins with McCafferty. “Get the chains around the handles,” I yell through clenched teeth.

“We’re in and the back doors are sealed,” I hear Greg say in my earpiece. I can’t respond. Sure wish I had turned the VOX on.

The new set of hands leaves and I close my eyes focusing every ounce of my being and soul into the strain of holding the doors. I hear the rattle as links of chain are threaded through the handles.

“The doors are chained,” I faintly hear. My ears are roaring with the strain.

“Find the C-clamp,” is all I have the energy to say. My teeth are clamped tight and it feels like my head is going to rupture from the pressure. My fingers ache beyond any knowing. The muscles in my back feel like they are going to let go at any moment. I can already hear the ‘twang, twang” of them snapping.

“It’s done,” I hear.

The pressure on the door from outside releases and the door, only open a couple of inches, slams shut. The night runners have released the doors as if they know they are sealed. The noise outside rises as they howl and shriek in frustration. They begin hammering on the windows. Black Team has finished chaining their door as well. I can’t release my fingers as they are cramped on the door handle. Faces press against the windows as if they can force their way in. Their frustration is evident.

“Thanks,” I tell Robert and the others who showed up.

He and the others merely nod. The fact that night runners are this close is unnerving for all of us. I hope the doors hold or we’re going to get a much closer look. I’d rather that not happen.

I slowly pry my fingers from the door and am struck with the agony of unbending them. I straighten my back and know it will never be the same. My muscles are screaming. A wave of nausea passes through. The doors rattle back and forth as the night runners renew their efforts but the chains hold. I see several take off to the left. Oh shit! I forgot the pool door . It was my plan to seal the door there upon arrival but the effort here distracted me to the extent that I wasn’t able to get to them.

“Lynn, the pool,” I shout.

She is bent over with her hands on her knees catching her breath. She looks up at my call and glances outside to see night runners peel off in the background.

“Greg, if there is any chain left, start sealing the inner doors. If there isn’t any chain, use 550 cord,” I say into the radio. “Lynn, you and Black with me.”

“Lead on,” Lynn responds tiredly.

“Will do, Jack,” Greg replies.

“Gonzalez, McCafferty, Robert, help Echo with the doors,” I say pointing to them.

We turn and leave the snarling mass of night runners at the windows. The screams escalate as we turn toward the main gym doors. I have to admit it is very alarming to have so many night runners pounding on the windows and doors; their faces pressing against the glass. The doors rattle in their steel frames even harder. Time is not our friend right now and I hope the night runners haven’t entered the pool area as yet.

Entering the gym, I see Echo Team, with help from some of the others we’ve brought in, begin wrapping lengths of chain around the double doors leading into the gym proper. I head to the side entrance doors expecting a rush of bodies to blast the doors open. The doors open inward so there isn’t any way to seal them. We’ll have to seal the pool door itself. I look through the small window but only see the small band of light from the window, with my silhouette, against the far wall.

I cautiously open the door. The smell from the hall launches an immediate assault upon my senses. The muscles in my back, shoulders, and arms are tight from the previous strain. My hands are shaking a little on the door handle. My legs protest the first step into the hall. Nothing is moving down its length. The locker room doors open up to the side just ahead but only the occasional drip of water can be heard from within. The ringing in my ears has subsided but I can still sense more than hear the roar from the night runners so close just moments before.

Easing to the first locker room entrance, I crouch and listen. There is only faint sound of the pool lapping on the concrete sides. No slap of bare feet. No howling shrieks. Just the melancholy sound of empty rooms. Black Team enters the hall behind. I have Lynn post two team members in the hall covering the other locker room entrance and ease inside. Stepping quietly around the wooden benches bolted to the floor in the middle, I am startled by the sound of a door slamming.

The booming noise echoes in the air from the pool interior. Shrieks emanate from within. I rise and dash out into the pool proper knowing fully that night runners have just gained entrance. I knew the plan to rescue those held was going too well. No plan survives from first to last encounter. I had no idea the night runners would scale the fence and be upon us so quickly. The thunderous roaring of the claymores certainly gave them notice something was up but to react so quickly wasn’t something I was expecting.