Free The Scene by R. M. Gilmore Page A

remained cold and heartless. Her breathing was a perfect soft rhythm.
    Cyrus exhaled heavily, looked to the floor, and turned to walk toward the chair just to the right of me. I sat like a child in the middle of the floor. My best friend sitting calmly to my left, the most gorgeous man I had ever seen in person to my right. He was bleeding all over his stark white carpet. The bright red spots created a morbid contrast with the white of the carpet. He sat with a flop, obviously not feeling shipshape. He closed his eyes and sat for a moment; Tatum waited patiently for him to collect himself.
                  “When you signed in to Embrace, Baloo asked for your I.D., you signed a waiver.” 
    Baloo? Like the fucking bear? What an ass.
    He continued . “You signed a legal binding document that states you are aware you are entering a private club, you are a willing participant over the age of twenty-one and agree to partake in the experience. Including, but not limited to, the consumption of hallucinogenic and mind altering substances. Everything you experienced last night was heightened and exaggerated by the drugs they gave you.  All of the theatrics and magic tricks were just part of the show. Every night at dusk the doors open and invite in hundreds of willing participants eager to party with the 'vampires'. They are drawn to the scene. The beauty and danger lures them in like innocent little moths to a white hot flame. They leave with the same question you both have now. What was real? The answer is no. Nothing was true. I'm sorry, truly. I thought it would be perfect for you to experience and be a part of a show that most will never enjoy.  Please forgive me.” He wasn’t looking at Tatum as he answered her question. He was staring directly at me, apologizing.
                  Tatum took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and let it out slowly through her mouth. She was still a perfect statue of composure. I on the other hand was fuming with anger. I was no longer the innocent child sitting curled up on the floor. I instantly spun around on my butt and turned my body to face the bastard.
                  “What the fuck kind of game is this? What? You go out every night and wrangle up some poor girls to drag into this crazy underground world of drugs and death? Did it ever occur to you that we might get pretty pissed off? Maybe, if you would have said at some point, 'Oh hey, by the way, I'm going to drug you guys and have my way with you, just so you know', we probably still would have gone. But no, instead, you have to pussyfoot around and take advantage of my desperate need to solve this insane mystery. Where do you get off?” I was so pissed I could feel the anger like a hot poker on my tongue.
                  “I am sorry, Dylan. Really, I understand why you are angry, and I do not blame you. The experience is never the same if the participant is aware. I just thought you would get a better understanding of our world if you saw it firsthand. But, really, it is just a magic show enhanced by natural plant extracts.” His voice was nearly pleading at that point.
                  “Plant extracts? Don't get me wrong I enjoy the occasional head trip as much as the next guy, but what I experienced last night was not your usual herbal enhancement. What did we take?” The trip I went on last night was like no plant high I had ever been on in my life.
                  “I am not sure. All I know is it is a legal non-addictive substance derived from plants,” he said, regaining a better sense of himself as the blood stopped pouring from his face.
                  “You allowed us to take something you don't even know what it is? You took it too, right?” I asked. Still fairly pissed I had been duped. One of my many pet peeves.
                  “Yes. I had never been part of the audience before. I wanted to do it with you. I