Free MELT: A Psychological Thriller by Shane M Brown Page A

I think it is a bag.'
    ‘Let’s open it,’ said Glen.
    Carl braced the leathery disk under his boot. He cut away the edge, leaving the drawstring intact. With a series of icy cracking sounds, he pried open the bag.
    Megan knelt for a better view of the mess inside.
    'Are those grasshoppers?' pointed Glen.
    'And grubs,' pointed Chrissie. 'And a lizard. Look, its tail has black stripes.'
    Carl pried something free.
    He held it up to the light.
    'It's a needle,' said Megan, taking a picture. 'A bone needle.'
    Carl compared the bone needle to the tendon drawstring. 'Probably what the owner used to sew this scrotum bag.'
    'It's really a giant ballbag then?' asked Glen.
    Carl nodded. 'We've found a ten thousand year old lunchbox.'
    'Maybe not that old,' reasoned Megan. 'People still eat grasshoppers and lizards today.'
    'Not from nutsack lunchboxes, they don’t,' said Alex. 'It could be from the Stone Age for all we know.’
    Carl studied the ice. 'You were right, Alex. We just needed to dig to find food.'
    Megan wasn't hungry enough to eat anything wrapped for ten thousand years in a scrotum.
    Alex agreed. 'I'm not eating ballbag surprise.'
     'It's better than starving,' said Chrissie.
    I’ll never be that hungry , hoped Megan.
    ‘Better put it under some ice,’ said Carl. ‘Just in case.’
     
     
    #
     
     
    His story was incredible.
    Megan recorded everything Alex remembered about his abduction.
    She saved the audio file with the recordings from Carl and Alex.
    Everyone’s abduction was so different. There’s no pattern I can see. I need more information.
    Chrissie just swore at Megan like a brooding teenager when Megan asked for her story.
    Megan asked Alex, 'So Chrissie didn't mention her abduction at all?'
    'Not a single word.’
    Megan blew into her hands and glanced toward Ericsson. Along with his brains, his story lay smeared under a ton of stone.
    'She's mumbling again,' whispered Alex.
    Victoria walked past.
    'She can’t last much longer without water,' said Megan.
    ‘She won’t take anything from the ice,’ said Alex.
    Alex pulled the Sprite bottle from under his shirt. 'Better fill this up again.'
    Megan took the bottle. 'If she doesn't drink she'll pass out and freeze to death. She knows that.'
    Alex shrugged. 'Maybe she wants that. I don't understand her at all.'
    Victoria confused Megan too. She was helpful one moment, then spitting like a cobra the next. Right now she looked exhausted. Every dozen steps she rested with her hand on the wall.
    She must be badly dehydrated.
    ‘I’m going to check on her.’
    Megan began following at a discreet distance.
    Victoria stopped to rest again. This time she rested much longer.
    Is she going to fall?
    Glen joined Megan.
    'What’s she doing?' he asked.
    'I don’t know. What's the time?'
    ‘Where’s your watch?’
    ‘I don’t have one.’
    Glen tapped his nerdy-looking watch. 'This is a Casio W800. It has a ten year battery life. If I die, it’s all yours.'
    'That's not funny in here.'
    'Sorry,' said Glen, lifting his watch for Megan to read.
    2:52 pm
    Megan spotted her deodorant bottle near the wall. How did this get here?
    'DON'T TOUCH THAT!'
    Megan jerked back like a rattlesnake had lunged for her fingers.
    Victoria had shrieked like a banshee.
    'Jesus, Victoria!' Megan exclaimed, lifting her hands defensively. 'You frightened me. Calm down.'
    'What are you yelling for?' demanded Glen.
    'Don't you dare touch that.’ Victoria shoved her index finger in Megan's face. ‘That could save our lives.'
    Megan backed away.
    She’s lost it.
    'Why shouldn't I touch it?' Megan asked gently.
    Victoria glared back. 'Well, it didn't just grow legs and walk here, did it, you silly, patronizing little girl? I put it there!
    Glen and Megan swapped glances. What the hell?
    Victoria wasn't exhausted at all. She sounded more alert and motivated than any of them.
    Carl and Chrissie approached from the other direction.
    'You're dehydrated,’ said Carl.
    Victoria pinched