Broken, underground

“Yeah, yeah, I know mate the end is nigh, we’re all doomed. Foxes in the hen house. Just move on.”

The imposing train guard towered over the meek, stinking man hugging his sign in a fevered desperation. The guards bald head was crinkled with a barely contained rage. He often told me was all just for show, especially when I would ask him about taking things too far. People were unlikely to cause trouble for such an aggressive man of his size but when it happened it was hard to tell were the act ended.

“Alright Mick,” I said. “Let me talk to him, will you?

I put my hand on his shoulder; sweat had soaked through his thin polyester shirt and had clung to his back. I quickly withdrew as he whirled round his teeth gnashing.

“Don’t play the bleeding heart. He’s been harassing some girl in the next carriage. I know what I’m doing, you’re paired with me remember. You learn from me.”

His diving eagle tattoo just above his right ear looked to be engorged with blood. Blue veins protruded and his lips were so tight they disappeared.

“I’m not,” I insisted. “Maybe I could speak to him, let you take five.”

The train carriage atmosphere had sharpened, usually a Saturday night shift was bubbling, people looking to get home after a night of blowing off steam. I had dreaded this shift when I had first taken the job but in truth, I had received more drunken hugs than abuse. I had been a guard on the underground for about a month now and was still on probation. I had been paired with Mick, who’s colossal size and volatile mood had me constantly on edge.

Where I was seeing typical raucous banter between drunks, he would see a fight which he had to inject himself into. Often bullying his way into crowds before threating and forcefully ejecting them at the next stop. Usually leaving bruises.

My head went light, his tiny dark eyes bored into me, then he stepped aside and made a gesture toward the cowering man. I sat down opposite him as Mick stamped down the carriage, the merry drunks jumped out of his path.

“Hello sir,” I leaned forward, swallowed hard and retreated as the man’s pungent scent hit my nose. Body odour and the tang of stale urine, not uncommon on the trains but clung to this guy for dear life.

“We have a report you’d been harassing a passenger?”

“Listen fool, that girl is going to her death. Monsters are in these tunnels, vipers, they tear the soul. It’s what they desire, the flesh is just flesh.”

My brow creased, there was nothing in the employee handbook about passengers making bizarre claims, and I didn’t appreciate being called fool, maybe I should have let Mick sort him out.

“Listen man, it’s either you deal with me, or I get him back.” I said wagging my thumb down the carriage.

“She thinks it’s right. She thinks she’s too broken for them to take more from her but she’s wrong.”

The tramp started to weep into his heavily soiled jacket, racking sobs that caused a few iPhone cameras to be pointed his way.

“Do you have anywhere to go, or somebody I might call for you?” I tried only provoking further anguished moans.

“I need to stop her. Promise me you’ll stop her from going down there.” He stared at me through bloodshot eyes, sniffing hard to stem his flowing nose. I was caught without anything to say. Although it was approaching midnight, I was thinking I could contact a shelter when he got out of his seat, rattling on the door to the next carriage.

“Sir get away.” I told him, summoning all my sternness.

He got it open and was halfway through when I grabbed hold of the back of his jacket, he spun and violently shoved me. I hit the floor hard on my back. Gin fumes swamped my nose and mouth as the dirty man fell on top of me. Grabbing hold of my head between grimy hands. Audible gasps went up as I tried to wrestle free.

“Don’t let her leave the platform. Don’t let…”

As I struggled to suck in air, the pressure was suddenly lifted from my chest, from above florescent light hit my eyes. I pushed myself up to see Mick curled over the man raining down punch after punch, dull meaty thuds and whimpering almost drowned out by the hiss and screech of train wheels. I scrambled to my feet, wrapping my arms around Mick’s bicep, he drew back and caught me in the ribs. Doubling over I fell on my bottom, again struggling for breath.

“Told you, didn’t I? No point talking with this scum. Best thing for ‘em a good hiding. Go around scaring little girls then you wanna give ‘em the nice guy act. You’re wet behind the fuckin’ ears lad.” Mick shouted between heavy pants.

I looked at the crumpled heap on the carriage floor, he had tried to crawl under the seat to hide from Mick, he now lay unmoving.

“Get rid of him when we hit central,” He looked at the wide-eyed passengers. “What are you all staring at? Fuck off home.”

Mick left me there clutching my ribs, the pain so sharp even breathing hurt. I got up and waived to the still stunned passengers.

“It’s ok please go back to what you were doing.”

I kneeled and rested a hand on the beaten passenger’s shoulder, feeling his body tense up.

“It’s ok he’s gone. Are you alright?”

Feeling a dampness on my bended knee I looked down to see he’d wet himself. A dark yellow streaking across the carriage floor.

The train emptied at central. I waited until the platform was empty and helped the beaten man off the train. At the platform exit were two guards I didn’t recognise one male the other female, wordless they took him off me. When he refused to let go of my jacket, the male grabbed his hand and squeezed until he relented.

“Wait on the platform for fifteen minutes. Then clock out and go straight home. Don’t leave any earlier.” The female guard said. I watched them drag him toward the maintenance elevator. Feeling guilty at the treatment he had received and relieved he was no longer my responsibility. I looked at my watch, 12:05.

“Is he going to be ok?”

I let out a yelp and spun around, stood to the left of me was an attractive girl of about my age. She had a pitch-dark gothic makeup and clothes in stark contrast to her pale white skin.

“Yeah, my colleagues are taking care of him. Are you the one he was harassing?”

She nodded, folding her arms as a blast of cold air swept through the platform.

“Will you be alright getting home?”

This time she didn’t answer, I reached my hand out to catch her attention then thought better of it.

“Are you sure you’re, ok?” I asked.

“I thought going alone would make me less afraid. Don’t know why I thought that.” She said.

“Well, you don’t have to. I could call you a taxi if you’d like, are you local?”

Again, she gave me no answer, she was a million miles away staring into the tunnel’s impenetrable blackness. We stood there in silence for a few moments; I felt her hand slip into mine and squeeze. I didn’t know what to do so I squeezed back.

“He kept rambling about you being broken and to not leave the platform.”

I laughed, wanting her to know I thought what he said as absurd. She let my hand go and I immediately regretted saying anything. She had been looking for some comfort and I had ruined it. She strayed away from the exit and toward the platforms edge. My heart leapt, for a second, I thought she meant to jump onto the tracks but instead she sat on the edge, letting her heavy black boots dangle down. From behind me I heard footsteps echo off the tile.

“Did they tell you to wait?”

Mick voice echoed the same way his footsteps had. I nodded and he took a cigarette out of his top pocket. His knuckles were a violent red.

“Your first lunatic, hey?” He laughed “Not the first time I’ve seen him, seems to like the young girls too much.”

“Did you have to hit him like that?”

Normally striving to avoid conflict I was surprised by the words escaping my mouth. Mick wasn’t, he took the cigarette out of his mouth and let out a hoot.

“I’ll let him strangle you next time then. You know everyone wouldn’t think you’re an arrogant prick if you were more grateful. How about, cheers Mick for pullin’ him off me turns out having a chit chat with him didn’t do shit.”

“Cheers,” I said.

“Let’s head back up top.”

I nodded to the young girl still sat on the platforms edge. Mick looked over and then back to me, shaking his head. I walked toward her when I heard Mick call from behind me.

“Leave it Tim. She’s staying down here.”

I had no idea why Mick wanted me to just abandon a passenger alone down here. I squatted down beside her.

“If you don’t want to go home that’s fine. But you can’t stay down here overnight.”

She looked up at me with something between determination and defeat. I could see she had something she wanted to say in her eyes. Instead, she looked toward the tunnel.

“I need to be here, get another job, far away.” She said almost dreamily, “You’re a good person.”

“You’re not broken!” I said, louder and angrier than I intended. “He was just some rambling drunk.”

I felt myself being hoisted by my arm, I tried to wrench free but Mick ignored the resistance. He pushed me ahead of him toward the surface elevator, I stumbled still looking back at the girl who was watching me leave. Mick hit the button and the doors slid open, he pulled me in. I stood tense waiting for the right moment. They made a small rattle before they began to shut, when the doors where a metre apart I sprang, slipping out sideways.

“Tim!” He screeched just as the doors closed shut.

I figured I had about five minutes before he got back. I ran to the platform, scanning its full length. She was gone. In her place stood a single lit candle, its wax was pitch black. I looked to the only place she could be, down the tunnel. No wink of light or sound of footsteps.

“Hello?” I shouted, getting nothing back but a shallow echo. I walked to the platform’s end all the while looking for signs of life. My mind began to race, what did the candle mean? Suicide? Somehow, I didn’t think so, looking back to the service elevator, Mick would have reached the top by now. I had three minutes, probably less.

I dropped down onto the tracks, I knew if I kept away from the third line out, I wouldn’t be electrocuted. I slid my phone from my pocket and turned on its light, the tiny flash barely pierced the darkness a foot in front of me. I kept it low to avoid tripping and walked.

With more than enough space alongside the track I picked up the pace, keeping my ears open. It was hard to believe she’d made it down without any light source, even with my phones light I came close to twisting my ankle more than once. I was about to round the bend when I heard pounding footsteps behind me. I shut off the light as Mick ran the length of the platform looking for me. When he spotted the candle he came to a grinding halt, cursing and flapping his huge arms. Then he squinted into the darkness.

“Tim, mate you don’t know what you’re getting into!” He shouted. The tunnels echo made the sound seem to come from all around. “She’s a pretty little thing I know but you’ll get nothing trying to save her.”

I couldn’t decide whether he could see me or if he was just shouting in the hope I would abandon her. I turned, walking on the balls of my feet, each crunch of gravel causing my jaw to clench. I had rounded the bend, the platform now out of sight when I heard a hard thump followed by footsteps. I picked up the pace knowing Mick was hot on my heels, his boots kicking up gravel. Far ahead in the tunnel’s bowels a constellation of flickering lights held back the darkness on either side of the tracks. It should have been a relief to see some light, instead I was filled with dread. Some primal instinct told me to turn around and face Mick’s wrath rather than tumble further down this rabbit hole, when I saw her outline.

She was lighting the last few candles. When she finished, she took her place standing in the centre of the tracks facing away from me. I ran full pelt up to her, slipping I pushed my hands out, raking them against the ground.

“Hey!” I shouted.

She turned and let out a small scream. Just to the side of me I heard the rails come alive with electricity.

“You have to move now!” I bellowed. She shook her head and thrust her hands out in a stay back motion. I stopped and put up my own hands.

“You don’t have to do this. You’re not broken, ok? No more broken than anyone else. Just step off the track.”

Her fatalistic smile was heartbreaking. From further down the tunnel came the grating squeal of a train. I inched closer.

“Leave me, Tim.” She said.

Blossoming from round the corner the trains blinding pale lights blasted away every spec of darkness. It sent a surge of wind ahead of it snuffing out all but a few candles. The ground shook underneath me.

“Move!” I screamed.

She lifted her foot ever so slightly then froze. The train swept straight through sending up a blinding shower of sparks. I threw myself back against the cold wall as it thundered past. I gaped at where the young woman had been standing, no sign of her ever being there. But the train had not hit her. A second before impact something tore from out the darkness and snatched her from the tracks. Lifting her as if she was a rag doll.

The train rounded the bend taking the light with it. I closed my eyes trying to replay what I’d just witnessed, only getting the image of her small smile. Heavy boots scraped against stone behind me.

“You stupid bastard,” he said, his voice soaked in scorn. “Did you think she’d jump into your arms? She went willingly.”

I turned, saw nothing, but felt his rage like a blast furnace. All I could think was how did she know my name?