Rabbit Hole on Mars - Day 23 (Nov 23) 672 words

Chapter 23

“Hello, NASA. This is your buddy, Don. Wishing you a great day on Mars. Anybody have any plans for today?”

Don set his Nintendo Switch, a mobile gaming device, on his desk. He took a screw driver and opened the plastic housing which protects the silicone components inside.

“Feeling a little boxed in? Ha, get it? Boxed...,” silence from the other side of the connection, “Okay. We've got seven days to go yet.”

Don took a solder gun and began to modify the wiring of the Switch. He added a few chips of his own and some extra USB connections.

“We're going to hit some bumps in the road until your end comes, but I promise it will make your final moments on Mars that much more special.”

Samantha stood in the frozen food isle, staring at which ice cream she would get. Did she feel like mint or not? Caramel is never a bad choice, but her eyes landed on butter pecan on the bottom of the shelf. She opened the freezer door, knelt down and reached and far into the back for the last container.

Suddenly she felt some pressure put on the door which increase enough that she was stuck. Someone was closing it on her shoulder, pinning her arm on the door.

“Hi Sam,” Jason said as he applied more pressure to the door.

“Jason, what the hell are you doing? It hurts, stop it.”

“Sam, I'm concerned your spending a little too much time with Don. You know he's not right in the head.”

“You're the one with the screw loose.”

“When I get to Mars, I'm going to break him. I'm going to break everything I can get my hands on there.”

Sam's free hand undid the safety cap on a the whip cream container in her basket.

Jason kept up the threats, “When I'm done, I'll start breaking things here on Earth, like your boyfriend. If you keep sticking around him, I'm going to have to break you too.”

“I'm gonna break your balls you fucking psycho,” Sam said as she lifted the can and sprayed whip cream in Jason's face. He stumbled back and went around the end cap of the isle.

Sam took a moment to regroup her thoughts, she quickly walked after him to find an empty isle. No one. Jason was gone.

“So anyways, when you enter the labyrinth, there's no talking,” Don said, “From the moment you enter to the time you leave. Enjoy the silence. Enjoy your inner peace. I'm sorry I won't be there in the NASA facility with you all to feel the energy in the room. That sense of finality. I'm giving you your freedom back. More importantly, I'm giving taxpayer's a break from funding second-rate space crafts and rovers. No one has anything to say?”

Brian had his middle finger up in the air, pointing it at the speaker.

Sam went to the police station to file a police report. She told the officer at the desk she had just be assaulted by Jason.

The officer asked, “This person wants to hurt only you or is there anyone else?”

“Um, my boyfriend too,” Samantha said as she realized what was happening.

“Okay, and what's your boyfriend's name?”

“Don.”

“Don what?”

“Um, this is really only about me. I'm just doing this for my own safety if you don't mind.”

“Sure, here's the paperwork. Just fill out this top half.”

“Thank you,” Sam said in a nervous voice. Her hand shook as she started writing. She wanted to ensure her own safety, but not possibly incriminate Don at the same time. She wrote down vague explanations, enough for the police to know who to look for if anything fatal happened to herself.

Samantha phoned Don.

“What's up Sam? How was the run to the grocery store?”

“Don,...Jason was there.”

“What?!”