Many people have had questions. So, now is your chance. Send me your questions or leave tham in the comments section and I will answer them right here on October 6. Here is your chance...
Kirsten winced
against the cramps that threatened to irreparably twist her insides. It was bad
enough that the pangs of hunger racked her body, but to compound it with her
period was almost like some sort of cruel joke. She could feel the wet stickiness
of her discharge in the cleft between her legs as well as on her inner thighs.
The Big Man
hadn’t been anywhere to be seen for the past day. Of course, she could still
hear him on occasions slamming and clattering around downstairs. The very
thought of him only made her twist into an even tighter knot. She’d fallen for
his trick, foolishly thinking that perhaps he’d come to develop a soft spot for
her. She had once again performed that disgusting act with her mouth that he
promised would result in him providing her with a big bowl of steaming, hot
soup.
The lie was bad
enough; but to sit there beside her on the bed and slurp each spoonful had been
especially cruel. She’d vowed that the next time that thing entered her mouth, it wouldn’t make it back out. Then she’d eat in front of him. Kirsten couldn’t help but giggle at
the thought.
Eventually she
got herself back under control. Those couple of minutes had actually been a
blessed relief. For that brief period of time, she hadn’t felt the painful
cramping…the repul-siveness of lying in her own bodily discharges.
Then she smelled
it. The ever present odor of rot and death clung to everything. When she
thought about it, it almost disgusted her that she’d become accustomed to the
smell. Only, this was different. It was the stink of those monsters, but somehow
worse. The new intensity of it initially had her thinking that they had finally
breached the gate. Death had finally won entry to the Malloy Estate.
No, Kirsten reasoned. She would hear them
much louder if they were inside. And while she could in fact hear their terrible
noises, they remained distant. They were still outside the gate. Then what in the hell was that smell?
Kirsten raised
her head and looked around. No, she was convinced that those things were still
outside the gate. She tried to force it out before it took firm root, but
failed.
The Big Man.
Somehow, he’d
gotten himself bitten. That was why he hadn’t been upstairs in the last day.
Perhaps it had happened on the night of the storm. He’d gone outside that
night, she remembered. And there’d been the screaming. That had to be it.
Now she would
have no choice but to wait. Perhaps he hadn’t figured out how to walk up the
stairs. Or maybe he just hadn’t gotten around to it. After all, the
Monster-people weren’t very smart. That would mean…she would lay here and
starve, or…
Strange noises
came from downstairs. Kirsten held her breath, afraid that even the slightest
sound would bring attention to her.
Then she heard
the sounds of footsteps on the stairs. The Big Man was coming. In that moment
Kirsten realized that she wasn’t afraid. While this was certainly not a fate
she would have chosen, it meant that this was finally over. What helped was the
simple fact that she’d outlasted her tormentor. Somehow, that brought her
peace.
Kirsten tried to
relax. Even though she’d come to accept her fate, that did not mean that she
looked forward to it. But, she
promised herself, there would be no
screaming…no crying. The Big Man had forced the last tears from her that he
would ever get. He—
Heavy footsteps
approached her door. Kirsten decided to accept her fate with eyes open. Taking
a deep breath, she tilted her head up. An enormous shadow filled the doorframe.
He had arrived. She braced herself and continued to make that inner-promise
that she wouldn’t scream. She was ready to die.
Only…he kept on
just standing there. Why wasn’t he coming in? Why wasn’t he attacking her? Why
wouldn’t he just eat her and get it over with?
Finally he took
another step into the room. Something wasn’t right. Or better yet, wrong. He
didn’t look like one of the Monster-people. He looked the same as always,
except maybe a little sleepy. No, he wasn’t one of them. He was pretty much the same as always. Well, then what was that terrible smell? she wondered.
The Big Man
walked over to the bed and stared at her. Kirsten had long sense gotten over
her shyness, but something about the way he was looking at her made her just a
bit nervous. Then, The Big Man did something very strange; he leaned down and
pinched the skin on her arm, breast, and thigh. Not hard, not enough to cause
even a little bit of pain. And he licked his lips the whole time. Afterwards,
he simply walked out of the room. He hadn’t said a word. She stared up at the
ceiling and drifted off to sleep trying to figure out exactly what was going
on.
Garrett finally found what he’d been searching for all day. He knew
that, at some point, he’d seen a butane torch. Only, for the life of him, he
couldn’t recall where. Now that he had it, he placed it on the counter next to
the big meat cleaver.
Walking out to the front porch, he heard and saw them. Nope, he
thought, they ain’t goin’ no
place. Another rainstorm had rolled through and done nothing more than add
to the stink already rolling off that mob. He’d be forced to keep to the rear
of the house if it got much worse. Right now, the only good thing about them
things smelling so bad was that it killed his appetite.
Yesterday had been the last of any form of food that existed in this
house. Sure, he still had four cases of beer, a fifth of vodka and a pint of
Southern Comfort, but as far as food went… there was absolutely nothing.
Last night, he’d made the decision to eat The Toy. In some ways it was
a shame. He’d miss many of the things he did to her, but there were no other
options. He’d walked the top of the fence in a few places and decided that, if
it came down to it, he could haul one of those things over the wall. If he tied
it up good and put something in its mouth…of course he’d have to give it a good
scrubbing first.
Garrett figured that if he did it right, he could still keep The Toy
alive for a while. That was why he needed the torch. He considered the
possibility of feeding The Toy some of herself. That might actually be
entertaining.
Well, there was no sense putting this off any longer. He returned to
the kitchen and grabbed the cleaver, the butane torch, and a large, wooden
cutting board. He also snatched a length of nylon line that was about as big
around as a pencil. It would be plenty strong.
He headed up the stairs trying to ignore the stench rolling in from
outside. Was it his imagination or were they getting louder? Shaking off the
disconcerted feelings trying to deepen their hold, he continued up the staircase.
When he reached the open doorway, he paused. Should he make one more trip
around the property? Perhaps there was an area he missed where he might slip
over the wall and make a supply run. No, he told himself—only it was
mama’s voice he heard—ain’t no way out of this now.
Shaking off the unpleasantness that accompanied hearing his mama’s
voice again, Garrett’s face went cold and he entered the room. The Toy was
stretched out on the bed. That in itself was nothing new, but he realized that
he could see every single one of its ribs. There would be very little meat to
be had here.
It slept, head turned to one side, the long hair was matting up again
and looked like a nest of knots and snarls. Perhaps, after he’d had his dinner,
he would give it a good cleaning. It liked having its hair washed and brushed.
Going to the bed, he set the butane torch, the cleaver, and the
cutting board on the nightstand. It stirred a little, but didn’t wake. Good, he thought, that will make this easier. He pulled the piece of nylon line from
his pocket and picked a spot just above the left elbow. He slid it under the
arm and The Toy began to stir. Folding one end of the line under the other, he
gripped them each and pulled tight.
The Toy cried out, its eyes opening in alarm and pain as the nylon bit
into its flesh. It began crying out, asking questions. Garrett ignored
everything and pulled the eight-inch dowel from his back pocket. He laid it
right above where the line was cinched securely, wrapped the ends over once
more and pulled tight again. The Toy was awake now and no longer making any
sounds other than the forced breathing that hissed between clenched teeth. He
began to twist the dowel, tightening the line. He could actually see the lower
half of the arm losing its normal color turning to a shade of light blue that
reminded him of those creatures outside. He quickly shook that thought away and
wrenched the dowel another quarter turn.
He held it in place with one hand and fumbled in his shirt pocket for
the lighter. The Toy’s eyes widened when he reached over and fumbled with the
knob on the torch. He heard as well as smelled the gas as it hissed from the
nozzle. With a flick of his thumb on the wheel, the flame danced on the wick of
the lighter. He passed it in front of the nozzle and was rewarded with a
popping sound and a small blue flame.
He flipped the lid shut on the lighter and dropped it back in his
pocket. He picked up the cutting board and slid it under The Toy’s arm. There
was a moment of confusion on its face, then, like the rising sun, the slow
dawning of comprehension.
As Garrett picked up the cleaver, he was almost disappointed, but he’d
come to expect defiance from The Toy. He didn’t know why now should be any
different. It pressed its lips together and glared. For just a second, the
ferocity of that look gave him pause. When he raised the cleaver, he was able
to feel just the slightest tinge of satisfaction. The Toy’s eyes widened.
Fear.
It’d been a while since he’d been able to savor such a wonderful
feeling. The Toy had been many things; afraid was not among them. He brought
the heavy blade down with all his might. There was a crack of bone…then an
ear-piercing shriek of pain. It took two more whacks to separate the lower arm.
By then, The Toy had lost consciousness.
Even with his preparation, there was quite a bit of blood. He set the
severed piece of limb on the cutting board and placed it all on the floor.
Then, grabbing the butane torch, he went to work on the bloody stump.
The smell of burning meat actually made his mouth start to water as he
cauterized the hideous wound. When he was done, he undid the makeshift
tourniquet. He could see a jaggedness in the pieces of bone that jutted from
the wound. Perhaps next time he would use a saw. It might take a little longer,
but it would definitely be cleaner.
He took a moment, deciding what to do next. Should he go to the
kitchen and see just how this tasted, or should he clean up The Toy. He decided
on the latter. It would be important to keep it clean now. He didn’t want
infection setting in and ruining his source of food. Besides, his meal wasn’t
going anywhere.
***
Kirsten fought against consciousness. The first time she’d come to,
she’d though it’d all been one terribly vivid nightmare. Then, the pain
revealed itself. She’d immediately sicked up on herself. Of course, it was
little more than throat burning bile since it’d been a few days since she’d had
anything to eat.
Like it or not, she was awake. The first thing she realized was that
her body had been wiped down again. The little bit of throw up that she’d
managed was cleaned away. Also, her blackened stump had been wrapped up in what
looked like one of her dad’s tee-shirts.
As soon as she gave thought to it, the pain seemed to amplify as if
there was a knob turned up on the sensation. She tried to hold it back, but,
seeing as she was alone and The Big Man wouldn’t have the satisfaction of
seeing her do it, Kirsten allowed herself to cry.
At first it was just a hint of something she dismissed while she let
tears of grief, pain, and frustration roll down her cheeks. But slowly, it
became more pronounced. Her mouth began to water. When realization hit, she
recoiled in horror. That delicious smell was her!
The Big Man was somewhere downstairs cooking pieces of her! This brought a
fresh wave of tears because, try as she might, she couldn’t stop her mouth from
filling with saliva. Her hunger was more powerful than her feelings of
revulsion.
She moved a bit and felt something. Her head snapped over so fast she
heard and felt the tendons in her neck pop. The left arm—what was left of
it—slipped almost free of its restraint! Without having a wrist, The Big
Man hadn’t really paid attention to how he tied her up!
Kirsten felt something that was so foreign, it took her a few minutes
to realize exactly what it was: Hope. It might’ve cost her half of her arm, but
at last there was a renewed sense of faith in her ability to escape. She knew
The Big Man well enough to know that he would drink himself into oblivion again
sometime soon. Maybe not today…but soon.
All she had to do was be still and careful so as not to pull that arm
loose until she heard those wall shaking snores. So many possibilities raced
through her mind. Most of the early ones involved her sneaking in to The Big
Man’s bedroom and beating his head in or chopping him up. However, Kirsten was
no dummy. She questioned her strength physically to succeed at such a task. It
would’ve been difficult with two hands, much less one.
No,
Kirsten thought once her mind settled down, this
was the chance to escape! She knew this area better than him, of that she
was certain. She would use this opportunity to get away. Once she made it over
the wall, he would have no idea which way she would run.
The shadows in the room were getting darker. That meant night was
coming. Of course she didn’t expect to get lucky this soon, but also knew it
was a case of the-sooner-the-better. The longer things went, the greater the
chance he might discover his error. There was also the possibility that he
might come back for seconds. She couldn’t have that.
Kirsten lay still, trying to ignore the gurgles of her empty stomach
and the delicious smells causing her mouth to water. Instead, she focused on
that blooming flower of optimism growing inside her. All the persistence would
finally pay off. No matter what had happened up to this point…she would win.
Kirsten Malloy would defeat The Big Man.
As the room slowly darkened, leaving nothing but the hint of some sort
of light downstairs casting its faint glow in her open doorway, Kirsten let
herself smile.
Garrett looked at the empty bottle of Southern Comfort like it had
betrayed him. He tossed it aside and picked out another beer from the tub of
cold water. He took a long drink and felt the gurgle in his stomach. Garrett
felt the belch rise and contemplated how he couldn’t avoid the inevitable
outcome. He let go loudly.
There it was again. That
taste. It hadn’t been terrible when he ate. In fact, he’d been able to
convince himself he was eating something else entirely. Then he’d had the
images fly through his head. His mother. Kimmy Vanderwall. His first Toy. Each
one eaten by those things.
The more full he got, the less appealing his meal became.
He’d fallen asleep shortly after his dinner. The nightmares came fast
and vivid. The Toy’s face appeared amongst the sea of dead faces alongside his
mother and Kimmy Vanderwall. And there were others he recognized like Ennis;
the man who’d done all those things to him so long ago. He awoke in a sweat and
decided to drink the taste out of his mouth.
It hadn’t worked.
To make it worse, the wind was blowing in from the street. It carried
the sound and the smell. He was
fairly certain it was that combination that had triggered his nightmares. The
darkness seemed to gain weight, pressing on him from all sides.
Unable to stand it anymore, Garrett grabbed the poker from the rack
beside the fireplace and stormed out into the darkness. He stalked up the
driveway, ignoring the chill. Reaching the gate, he lashed out, jabbing and
poking with savage ferocity. Every so often his attack would drive the iron tip
into one of those emotionless faces. The body would slowly drop to the ground
in some cases. In others, they were pressed so close that it stayed pressed
between the bars and the gigantic horde behind them.
Exhausted, he finally tossed the poker to the ground. The sounds of
the undead were loud enough to drown out his scream of anger and frustration.
He returned to the house, stopping in the entry to consider exactly what he
wanted to do. He decided on the beer, but he would go upstairs soon enough…and
The Toy would pay for his being trapped here.
He grabbed the bucket of cold water with the remaining eight cans of
the case bobbling in it. Garrett refused to look at the counter as he passed
through the kitchen on his way out to the back yard. He would not look at those
long, slender bones.
Once outside, he began on the beer. He could still hear them. His
hands fished around inside the bucket. Empty. Looking around, he saw cans
scattered about his feet. He didn’t remember drinking them all, yet here they
were. He considered his choices. He had one more case left, or the bottle of
Vodka. He decided on the bottle.
Returning inside, Garrett grabbed it and stood in the empty pantry. He
took long pulls every so often. The images in his mind seemed to grow more and
more clear as he drank. Lifting the bottle to his lips, he almost wept when
nothing happened. The bottle was empty.
Anger came in a flood, and Garrett threw the bottle across the dark
kitchen. He heard it explode in a shower of glass shards; some of the pieces
flickering in the minute amount of moonlight coming through the windows.
Like a human landslide, he started through the house. Slow at first,
but gathering momentum. He left a path of overturned furniture in his path;
smashing or tossing aside anything that was unfortunate enough to get in his
way. The stairs proved to be his most difficult obstacle. He made his way up,
each slip or stumble adding to his anger.
He reached the doorway. The candles had long since burned out, but he
could see the small, naked form outlined on the bed. He fumbled with his belt
and kicked off his shoes. Allowing his pants to fall to the floor, he toppled
trying to pull out his legs. With growing anger, he tugged and yanked until
they finally came off. Casting them aside, he rose and approached. In shock,
Garrett took note of the most recent betrayal. His body wasn’t responding.
Normally anger had him fully aroused. Not this time. He tugged at the flaccid
piece that dangled ineffectively between his legs. Nothing happened. He threw
himself on The Toy and tried to stuff his impotent organ inside.
Nothing!
Furious, he rose up on his knees and tugged the line tied to the right
arm and the headboard so hard that it snapped. He repeated his actions on the
line secured to the right leg and the bedpost. It also parted, causing him to
fall back. He heard The Toy cry out, Yes,
he thought, cry. But still
his body refused to respond.
He flipped The Toy onto its belly and grabbed its hips. Moving up
behind it, he again tried to arouse himself manually. He tried to push himself
into The Toy once more.
Nothing!
Garrett screamed his rage. He hit The Toy with one big fist in the
small of the back. It yelped, but his body would not give him even the slightest
twitch of arousal. His fists rained down with meaty thuds and even the
occasional pop of a bone; sometimes from his hands, sometimes from The Toy.
Exhausted, he stopped. At some point, his bladder had let go. The room
began to tilt and spin. In a daze, Garrett climbed off the bed. He stumbled
down the dark hallway to his room and collapsed. Fortunately, he was on his
stomach. His body convulsed twice as watery vomit sprayed from his mouth and
nose. Then, the deep snore mixed with a bubbling sound echoed in the room.
***
Kirsten sobbed. Her body hurt everywhere. It felt as if she’d been
placed in a giant vice and crushed. Each breath sent a new pain coursing
through her. She tasted blood in her mouth and was having a terrible time
getting enough air. Each inhale and exhale felt smaller, like her lungs were
shrinking.
She tried to roll over, and it took a second before she realized it.
Her right hand was free! The Big Man had left without securing her. So
was her right leg! That meant…
Kirsten pulled what remained of her left arm free of the bindings.
Only her left leg was still tied. She sat up and was hit with a bolt of pain so
severe that she blacked out.
When Kirsten came to, it took her a moment to comprehend what had
happened. Fear crept in. This was her
one chance. If she blew it because of the pain, she would…
What?
Kirsten thought. Live to regret it? Not
for long she wouldn’t. The Big Man was going to cut her up and eat her. No, she
had to do this and she had to do it now. She looked out her window. The
slightest glow of dawn was beginning to show in the sky.
Very slowly, she sat up. Her breathing sounded strange. It reminded
her of the pump in her dad’s fish tank in his office. Eventually, she was
sitting up. Her vision narrowed, and once more the pain threatened to
overwhelm. Kirsten gritted her teeth and fought through it. Wincing against the
agony, she untied the knot on her left ankle. Once that was done, she took care
of the ones on her right wrist with her teeth and the one on her right ankle.
She was free!
Kirsten struggled to her feet and made her way to her dresser. It
seemed to take an eternity, but at last, she was dressed. Now she would slip
out. She had an entire world to hide in. The Big Man would never find her
again.
Stepping into the hall, Kirsten heard them: The Monster-people. Why were they so loud? she wondered. Had
they slipped inside the gate somehow? She could also hear the snores of the Big
Man. Fairly confident that he would remain fast asleep—she could smell the
stink of alcohol on him from the hallway—Kirsten slipped into his room. Were
the Monster-people out in the back yard?
She looked out the window and her entire body seemed to go numb. She
went into the bathroom, and peeked out the window. Her mind struggled with what
she saw. There were so many.
Realization crashed down on Kirsten and she cried. Now she knew. She
knew why there had been no more meals. She knew why The Big Man had started in
on her. There would be no escape.
Kirsten thought long and hard until she came to a decision. Calmly,
she went to her dad’s office. She knew exactly where he kept the key for times when
power was out and an emergency arose. A few times, a voice in her mind tried to
talk her out of her plan.
No,
the voice would plead.
Yes,
Kirsten thought, it is the only way.
Steeling herself, Kirsten struggled her way down the stairs. Reaching
the front door, she cast one look up the stairs. She could still hear him
snore. Stepping outside, the cold air threatened to steal what little breath
she could take in. Kirsten walked the familiar path to the driveway.
She reached the gate and stared at the wall of horror that stared
back. She didn’t recognize any of the faces. All her friends…their families…gone.
The electronic mechanism that opened this gate was useless. However, at the
bottom was a lever. In case of an emergency, during a power failure, of course
there had to be a way to open the gate.
Fighting through the pain, Kirsten knelt. The Monster-people were
smashed in so tight that none of them could follow her; none of them could
reach down and grab her. She fumbled with the box. Kirsten was thankful that
The Big Man had shown no interest in her dad’s office. The key had been right
there in the top drawer where he always kept it. It slid into the lock and
turned. The box opened and she tugged at the lever. It barely budged. So many
of those things pressed against the gate.
Her frustration mounted, but she kept at it. Through the tears and the
pain she felt it budge. Then it popped free. Normally it took two men to pull
open each gate manually. Not this time. It literally flew open, slamming into
Kirsten and sending her tumbling backwards.
The pain was white hot and instant. Sheer force of will kept her from
losing consciousness. The horde had stumbled forward. Many of those in front
fell, and a huge tangled knot of the horrible creatures piled up in the
entrance. That was the only thing that saved Kirsten for the moment.
She made it to her feet as a dozen or so of the creatures began to
stagger her way. Kirsten clutched at her sides as she made for the house
bringing a tsunami of undead in her wake. They followed, arms outstretched,
mouths open; wailing, moaning, and crying out for her flesh.
Once she reached the halfway point on the stairs, the first one made
it through the doorway. Kirsten noticed that this one was a girl…almost the
same age. Like her, this one was missing the lower half of one arm. It was also
missing one eye and had ugly and jagged punctures in its body. Its head tilted
up to Kirsten and it made a strange mewling noise before it started towards the
stairs.
The Monster-people really struggled here. But in droves they came in
pursuit of the young girl just out of their reach. Kirsten saw many wander into
the house, but it didn’t matter. It looked like a hundred of them were slowly
making it up. It was like a ship slowly filling with water.
Eventually they were on the landing, the one-armed, one-eyed girl
leading the way. Kirsten could still hear the snores of The Big Man, but they
were being swallowed by the cries of the Monster-people.
She led them into the bedroom, only pausing briefly. She spat on the
still-sleeping form in her parents’ bed; then, she opened the door to the
balcony. The yard was a roiling sea of dead faces, heads bobbing as they all
came through the gate in front. There were too many for the house to hold and
they were overflowing around it now.
So many.
They came into the bedroom. The Monster-girl paused, glancing first at
Kirsten, then at the snoring mound that was The Big Man. It seemed to come to
the conclusion that more was better and headed for the bed. Some followed,
others locked onto Kirsten. She stepped out onto the balcony and made her way
to the rail.
A noise behind her made her pause. At first it was muffled. Then…it
became a scream. The scream held equal parts fear and hurt. Down below, the sea
of faces looked up. Kirsten slowly made it over the rail, fighting off the
pain. But the screams from inside seemed to help, almost acting like an anesthetic.
Closing her eyes and holding her arms out, Kirsten pushed away and reveled in
the few seconds where the wind rushed to her face.
I’m free!
I waited until today to comment because I didn't want to post something that would enable first-time readers to guess the ending.
ReplyDeleteI did this because the ending surprised me. I really thought Kirsten would get away. I wanted to see Garrett get bitch-slapped by the karma fairy. But I also wanted to see Kirsten survive.
This was one of my favorite interludes in the DEAD series. I like Juan Tight Like a Tigah, but the emotion and the raw nastiness of this one impressed me more. It takes a deft hand to write something like this without it being titillating or exploitative. You did a good job, Todd.
Thanks so much Catie. There was a real process that I had to go through to write the "Garrett" scenes. And if I wrote one, that was all I could do that day. It took the rest of the day to crawl out of that space.
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