Together We Lie

“Don’t worry about that snivelling sack of shit. Hopefully, he’s even closer to Death escorting him to the fiery pits of Hell, but only if we are quick.” I nodded towards the heart with my chin, the gun still raised at the doctor. “I need you to unhook all that stuff and give me the heart.”

“What-what are you going to do with it?” he asked, his voice a higher pitch than I’d have thought it to be by looking at him. He appeared older than Dr. Zare, with a heavy grey beard covering his quivering chin and thick round glasses magnifying his small eyes to unimaginable proportions; they almost looked comical.

“That’s not your concern, but it will not be used for Nissaney’s surgery. That’s all you need to know.”

“The organ will only be viable for six hours at best once I’ve removed the life support,” he stated, gesturing to the equipment connected to the various tubes and wires. I walked closer to the glass, watching the lub-dub, lub-dub of the heart, mesmerised for a moment by something so few would ever witness in their life.

“I know,” I whispered. It was an unfortunate waste, but as soon as it was out of its sterile environment, the chances of it being useful were slim. I grabbed a pair of latex gloves from a box sitting beside a computer and tugged them on. Raising an eyebrow at Dr. Anderson, he got moving quickly, and with haste, he unplugged, unscrewed, and turned off different machines.

The incubating chamber opened with a hiss, and the trembling doctor reached carefully inside, removed the heart from a glass shelf, and passed it over. Holding the warm organ in my gloved hand, my lips parted in a quiet gasp, surprised by how light this life-giving thing was. I looked around the room, seeing a brown paper bag sitting on top of the desk. Turning the bag upside down, a sandwich and banana fell out — clearly, Dr. Anderson’s lunch — and I dropped the heart in their place. I took off my gloves and put them in with it.

“Why don’t our hospitals have equipment like this?” I asked, folding the top of the bag over a few times, sealing the contents.

“Are you joking?” Dr. Anderson asked with a humourless laugh. “The cost of all of this is something no hospital can afford.”

I clenched my teeth. Of course, dirty money can buy the best of everything – scotch, cars, and, clearly medical equipment.

“Make sure you get it to Carlin Valley Hospital when this is done,” I ordered as I walked towards the door to leave. “Oh,” I paused for a moment and lifted the rifle strap over my head, passing it to the doctor after switching the safety off, “you’ll need this more than me.”

“I can’t – I can’t shoot… kill anyone,” he stuttered, looking at the weapon now in his hands, his huge eyes blinking rapidly. He looked over the top of my shoulder, to the pair of legs sprawled out on the floor.

“It’s either you or them, doc,” I said simply, giving him a tight-lipped smile. “Two of Nissaney’s men are down the hall with everyone else. Save your staff.” I stuck my head out into the corridor, checking up and down before turning back to the doctor. “It’s easy. Don’t think; just point and shoot.”

I jogged towards the steel grey doors of the elevator, giving the doctor a finger wave as I stepped into the lift and leant against the handrail of the back wall, smirking at the two guards still passed out on the floor. The soft bump of the doors closing jumped me into action. I placed the paper bag on the ground and toed off my trainers while pulling the green scrubs top over my head, dropping it to the floor.

Shucking the pants off next, I let them pool at my feet, leaving me in black yoga pants and a white vest top. Turning to the large mirror in the steel box, I raised my finger to my eyes and pinched at the plastic-like film, instantly turning them from green to my natural baby blues. I rolled the lenses between my fingers as I pulled off the green surgical cap, along with my red hair, dropping the wig and balled up coloured silicon on the pile of discarded clothes.

The elevator doors opened with a ping to the bright lobby of the office block, and I sashayed out of the building with bare feet, giving the security camera above the revolving glass doors a wink. It was a superfluous move, considering the feed had been jammed, but one I enjoyed.

Walking out into the sunshine, I breathed in the fresh, antiseptic-free air. Alex was leaning against the building, one foot on the wall, smoking his vape with a small duffle bag at his feet. His aviator glasses rested on his nose and his perfectly mussed-up brown hair made him look like some model posing for a photo in worn jeans and a white tee covered by his leather jacket.

“You hungry?” I asked, taking my jacket from his outreached hand. He scrunched his nose, pushing his glasses to the top of his head.

“Seriously? You’re hungry now?” He eyed me like I was mad as I dropped to the ground, setting the brown paper bag beside me with a squelch. “You’ve just stolen a human heart, held it in your hands, essentially played God for ten minutes… and you’re hungry?”

Leaving Alex to moan about my twisted eating habits, I peered into the duffle to find it full of different weaponry and my shoes. I pulled out my favourite black heeled boots, ignoring the backup Alex so clearly thought I’d need for this job, then shoved my feet in one at a time and pulled up the zips.

I smiled up at my oldest friend. “Well, I’m starving. I fancy chicken and a milkshake for dinner. You want?” I asked, pushing off the concrete and walking down the pavement. I stopped when I didn’t hear footsteps behind me, then turned round to look at Alex, who was staring, motionless.

“Uh, Stevie?” he questioned, pointing to the ground. From the front of the office to where I stood was a trail of blood. I looked at the bottom of the bag saturated in red, noticing it was leaking from the bottom.

“Oops,” I said, shrugging, going to the trashcan and dropping it in the bin. “There. You ready?” I clapped my hands together and continued off down the road.