‘Well,’ the older man said, ‘Ted and Claudia should have been back by now. They’ll probably be fucking around with the two girls anyway, so let them have their fun. Besides, there’ll be plenty to go around. After first helping we can go and fetch David, make sure he gets something too.’
‘He can have the scraps,’ Tim said. ‘I eat properly this time, Da, you promised.’
Craig noticed the man and woman give each other a look. The man’s brows knitted into a frown. ‘Look, son,’ he said, ‘you can’t have too much.’
‘But you said,’ Tim shouted suddenly, like an indignant child.
‘We need you how you are, Tim. You know that,’ the mother said.
‘You’ll still get to eat,’ the man added. ‘But we can’t give you too much. We can’t have you going through any kind of change. We need you how you are.’
‘I’m sick of this,’ Tim yelled, throwing his hands up in the air. ‘It’s always next time, always another excuse. I’m sick of it, sick of being the runt. I want what I’m owed.’
‘In time,’ the mother said. ‘But we can’t feed if we don’t have people to feed on.’
‘Exactly,’ the father agreed. ‘It’s not like any of us can get people back here, looking like we do. We don’t blend in. You still do. We need that.’
‘But then I’ll never have enough. I’ll never get stronger.’
‘You will, I promise. But the more you have, the more you crave, and after you have too much, you change. There’s no going back from that. We need to keep you at a certain level. Need to make sure we keep things in balance.’
‘You’re lying,’ Tim shouted. Henry chuckled, seemingly amused. ‘Fuck you, fatty,’ Tim said.
‘Runt,’ Henry replied, still laughing.
‘Please, Timothy,’ the mother said. ‘We’ll figure this out, I promise. But right now, we need you to do what’s right for the family.’
‘I’m part of this family, too,’ Tim said, ‘and nothing we do is ever right by me.’
The older man stepped forward and swung his arm, cracking Tim on the side of the face with the back of his hand, knocking Tim backwards a few steps.
‘Enough,’ the man yelled and struck his son again. ‘This is how it has to be. You are part of this family and you will do as you’re fucking told.’
‘But—’
‘But nothing,’ the man said. His mouth then formed into a sneer. ‘If you won’t listen to us, there is another option, you know.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘If you think you have it so bad, I can take you down there. We can go see Grandpa. See what he thinks of all this. What do you say?’
The suggestion sounded exactly like a threat, and after the man said it, Craig saw Tim’s face turn white.
‘No,’ he said, quickly. ‘No, not that.’
‘You sure?’ the man asked, rubbing a hand through his beard. ‘That would sure resolve things, don’t you think?’
‘I’m sure,’ Tim said. ‘It’s just frustrating, Da, that’s all. But I know what I gotta do, for the good of the family. I do. And I won’t let you down.’
The older man looked at Tim, considering his plea. He finally nodded, pleased with the answer. ‘Good,’ he said. ‘Now let that be the end of it.’ He grabbed his son and pulled him into an embrace.
‘I’m sorry,’ Tim said, his voice muffled by his father’s shoulder.
‘That’s okay,’ the man said, stroking Tim’s hair. ‘Just remember, we’re a family, so we gotta do what’s right for each other. Always put the family first, that’s the most important thing.’
‘I will.’
‘Good boy,’ the man said and released Tim. The bearded man then walked over to Craig and looked down at him. Then he noticed the wound on Craig’s shoulder, and his face screwed up in confusion. ‘What the fuck is this?’ He looked up to Henry, who took a step back, hanging his head like a scolded dog. ‘What did you do?’
‘I got a little hungry,’ the giant said.
‘A little hungry? You took a chunk clean out of him.’
‘He’s on the table,’ Henry said, ‘so nothing’s getting wasted.’
‘Did you hear what I just said to your brother? About putting the family first and making sacrifices? Here I am trying to keep things in order, and you can’t keep your damn stomach under control for a little while longer. Damn it, Henry.’
‘I’m sorry, Da,’ Henry said.
‘I don’t want to hear it,’ the man said, holding up a hand. ‘You shouldn’t have done it, so that means you don’t get to eat until Ted and Claudia bring back the next course.’
‘What?’ Henry asked, incredulous. ‘That ain’t fair.’ His already high-pitched voice went up a few octaves.
‘Oh come on now, honey,’ the mother said. ‘You can’t do that to him, it’s just cruel.’
‘I can,’ the man said, defiantly. ‘Tim has had to eat scraps all these years and this fat fuck can wait a little longer for his supper.’
‘Don’t call me that,’ Henry said in a whiny voice.
‘Benjamin,’ the woman said, seemingly appalled. ‘How can you say that to him? That’s horrible.’
‘Don’t take his side, woman,’ the man said. ‘He’s like this because he always gets his own way and doesn’t know any control.’
‘That isn’t true,’ she argued.
‘Then what about David? This big idiot left one of our own all busted up and out in the open.’
‘Oh,’ she said, ‘David will be fine. He’s been through worse.’
‘That’s not the point. These people,’ he pointed to Craig, ‘found him. If it weren’t for Tim, everything could have gone to hell.’
‘You’re being dramatic,’ the woman said, having none of it. Craig always assumed parents weren’t supposed to play favourites, but that clearly didn’t apply to this woman.
‘You’re doing it again, Adela. Letting him off the hook.’
‘Well someone needs to cut him a little slack,’ she spat back. ‘You have him chained up in the basement every chance you get, for the littlest things. All he has to do is breathe wrong and you throw him down there. It isn’t healthy for a boy.’
Craig’s mind was swimming. The whole scene was farcical.
He’d seen his fair share of family disputes, but even the most fucked up ones on national television didn’t compare to this. They were talking about what could be considered normal family issues; how to raise and discipline a child, but all of it was borne from the act of... eating people. They were murderers, psychopaths, and cannibals, and here they were bickering about how best to raise a child.
A child that was bigger than any human Craig had ever seen.
If he hadn’t been in so much agony, the whole thing would have been funny.
‘It’s what he needs,’ the man said.
‘Do I really have to wait?’ the hulk asked, looking at his mother with puppy dog eyes.
She walked over and gently rubbed his massive arm. ‘Of course you don’t, sweetie. Daddy was just upset that you started a little early.’
‘Damn it, Adela,’ the man yelled.
Overruled, Craig thought.
‘Just promise you’ll try and control yourself in the future,’ she said to him.
‘I will, I swear,’ Henry said, now smiling.
‘Why the hell do I bother?’ the father said. ‘Fucking waste of time.’
‘It’s sorted now,’ the mother said. ‘So stop going on about it.’
‘He’ll never learn if you keep babying him. Look at him, Adela, he ain’t no fucking child. Hell, he ain’t even the youngest any more. You don’t treat Timothy that way.’
‘Timothy knows I love him,’ the woman said, still looking up at Henry, still stroking his arm. Craig looked over to Tim, who was scowling. Clearly he wasn’t as assured of his mother’s love as she thought he was.
The father let out a sigh and shook his head. ‘Fine,’ he said, ‘but he can put himself t
o use. Henry, go and get the stuff.’
Before obeying the command, the giant looked to his mother first, who smiled and nodded. He then walked over to the corner of the room, to the old wooden crate Craig had noticed earlier. He flipped open the lid and pulled something out. When the monster stood, Craig saw that whatever he was holding was wrapped up in a dirtied bundle of cloth. Henry slammed down the lid of the crate and made his way back over, handing the bundle to his father.
The father then set the bundle down on the small table to the side of Craig and unravelled it.
Craig began to squirm when he saw the glistening, metallic objects reveal themselves. Large knives, cleavers, hammers, and other carving equipment were laid out. There was even a small hand axe, and something Craig had seen on medical programs for prying open rib cages.
The father plucked up a large cleaver and smiled down at Craig.
‘So,’ he said, licking his lips, ‘who wants a leg?’
Chapter 25
The woman carrying Ashley was struggling.
Even though she seemed amazingly strong for her lithe build, she had been carrying Ashley for quite a distance now, and Ashley could hear her breathing begin to falter. Her steps, too, became wobbly and uneven.
And if she was weakening, did that reveal an opportunity to Ashley?
If it did, she knew she needed to act quickly, because the man carrying Kim was directly behind them and would see everything. As odds went, they were pretty slim, but Ashley would take slim over hopeless.
But, if by some fluke of circumstance she did manage to get free and have a chance at escape, one issue remained.
Kim.
The girl Ashley considered her best friend in life, someone she loved dearly, someone she thought loved her back. The girl who seemed only too eager to leave her behind.
As angry as she was, Ashley wasn’t oblivious to the fact, though, that both her and Kim had done exactly the same thing to Craig less than an hour ago.
It seemed this was a weekend for turning your back on a friend in need.
In some fucked up kind of way, though, perhaps Tim’s betrayal hurt Ashley less than what Kim had almost done. This was his plan all along, after all. He hadn’t turned on them; he was never one of them. Not really.
But with Kim it was different. Ashley couldn’t shake the look Kim had given after she had run by without helping.
It was almost apologetic.
Which, to Ashley, meant Kim had every intention of continuing on, leaving her behind as a distraction to make good her escape. That hurt more, and cut deeper, than anything Tim and his fucked up family could possibly do.
So, the question remained. If, by some small chance, an opportunity to escape presented itself, would she leave Kim behind? God knows she deserved it.
Ashley didn’t know the answer to that question, not yet, and decided it pointless debating it. If an opportunity did arise, she would deal with it then.
The woman carrying her began to stumble with almost every other step, and her breathing turned into a wheeze. She was obviously running out of steam.
‘You think we should untie their legs and make them walk for us?’ Ashley heard the brother call from behind. ‘Might be easier that way.’
He certainly didn’t sound as out of breath as his sister was. ‘No,’ she said defiantly. ‘I’m fine.’
The pause, and deep breath, between each word, indicated otherwise. Ashley had half an idea; to try and wriggle free, to make things as difficult as possible for the woman, maybe force her to drop Ashley. But then what? Her brother was still bringing up the rear, and Ashley was completely tied up. What could she possibly do other than flop around on the floor like a fish out of water?
The answer came a short while later, when the girl carrying her eventually gave way to exhaustion and stumbled to the floor. The impact was sudden, but Ashley’s fall was broken by the woman, who let out a grunt. She wiggled out from beneath Ashley, panting, and kicked out at her, catching her in the ribs.
‘Wanna trade?’ the brother said, walking over to them both, Kim still slung over his shoulder.
‘I said I’m fine,’ his sister said.
‘You ain’t,’ he replied. ‘And if we need to keep stopping, this is gonna take too long. You know what the family are like, especially Henry. By the time we get back there’ll be no good meat left.’
‘We still have these two,’ the sister said. ‘Plenty of good meat on them.’
‘True, but why give up any of it? Who knows when we’ll have a feast like this again. Food supply has been getting more scarce year on year.’
‘I know that. You think I don’t know that?’
‘Then let’s quit fucking about and get a move on. Here, take this one,’ he said.
‘No,’ the woman said, quickly getting to her feet. She moved too quickly, however, and wavered a little as she stood.
‘Will you stop being so damn stubborn?’
‘I got this,’ she yelled back.
‘Fine,’ her brother replied. ‘Then cut her feet loose and make her walk ahead. It’ll be quicker that way.’
‘And if she tries to escape?’
‘Make sure she doesn’t. Make sure she won’t even think about it. Tame the fucking mouse, sis, and be quick about it. I ain’t hanging around any longer.’
The man strode on past them and, as he did, Ashley locked eyes with Kim. Ashley scowled, letting her friend, or ex-friend, know exactly how she felt. Then her ribs exploded with pain as the sister, who stood above her, planted another kick into her, this one with the toe of her boot.
‘Listen here, bitch,’ the girl said, kneeling down close to Ashley. She pulled out a short, hooked blade. ‘I’m gonna untie your feet, and you’re gonna walk along like a good little doggie. Understand?’
Ashley didn’t answer, didn’t even look at her.
‘If you don’t,’ the woman started, but held off finishing as she brought the blade to Ashley’s cheek. She slowly pushed it into the skin, drawing blood. The pain was sharp and Ashley felt the warm trickle of blood run down her face.
‘That’s just the start,’ the woman said. She then quickly yanked the blade down, hard, completely opening up Ashley’s cheek. Ashley howled in pain as the knife easily sliced through the skin. She even felt the tip cut across her gum and scrape her molars as it went.
The woman laughed and stood back up. ‘Going to have a nice little scar there, little lady. I made sure to cut deep. Looks like I might have gone too deep, though. Fuck, I can see your jaw and teeth through the opening. Maybe I should have kept it going, whaddya think? Made the gash run into your mouth? That would have been a hell of a thing to show off.’
Ashley squirmed and groaned, feeling more blood spill down her face to the floor. It stung horribly. She saw the woman move, bending down to her feet and pulling at the bonds that tied them. She cut through the rope and Ashley’s legs came free.
Ashley felt an opportunity brewing, but she would have to take her chance at the right time. Right now, she was too disoriented from the pain that burned through her cheek.
‘Get up,’ the woman yelled and kicked her again. Ashley slowly complied and stood to her feet. ‘Good little mouse,’ the woman said and shoved Ashley forward. ‘Now, march.’
Again, Ashley complied, walking forward carefully. With her flashlight gone, she was unsure of her footing, even on the relatively level trail. Her face and cheek continued to burn like a line of fire running down her skin, and blood dropped in steady globules from her chin.
The man carrying Kim was farther up ahead, almost lost to the shadows. That was good, but the woman was pushing Ashley on quickly, which meant they would close the gap in short order. If Ashley was going to make an escape, then she needed to try it when she only had one of them to deal with.
And she would need to put the woman down somehow, at least semi-permanently, in order to get free. Ashley had already seen how quickly the girl could move through these woods, and
she would have no trouble catching Ashley if it turned into a straight foot race.
Half a plan developed in her mind, and through sheer desperation, Ashley acted on it as quickly as it had formed. She let an ankle roll beneath her, careful not to let her full weight drop, but trying to make the stumble look convincing, even letting out a small cry of pain as she began hopping forward. She bent double and pulled the supposed bad ankle up from the floor, cradling it with tied hands.
‘You fucking idiot,’ the girl said. ‘I ain’t carrying your fat arse anymore, so get a move on.’
Ashley took a step forward and pretended to stumble again, in pain, as if putting pressure on the ankle was unbearable. The girl pushed her again, and Ashley hobbled, then lowered herself to a crouching position and lifted the foot in question off the floor. She continued to moan, making things as convincing as possible.
‘My ankle,’ Ashley said. ‘I can’t... I can’t put weight on it.’
‘You’re going to have to,’ the woman said.
‘I can’t,’ Ashley replied, starting to cry.
Once again, the blade was at her throat. ‘If you don’t, I’ll just drain you right here, right now, and let you bleed out on the floor.’
Ashley decided to call her bluff, hoping that the woman had no intention of carrying through with her threat. The goal was to get Ashley back to the house, not kill her out here and let her meat go to waste.
She just hoped it wasn’t a goal they would easily give up on.
Ashley slowly fell backwards to her butt and kept her leg in the air to avoid putting any pressure on it. She knew she had to catch the woman somehow, in some way, and make her feel it.
The woman bent down close to Ashley, fire in her eyes, and held the blade out. ‘I’m not fucking joking,’ she said.
Ashley saw her chance.
As the woman leaned closer to issue more threats, Ashley pushed her raised foot forward, as hard as she could, driving her heel into the girl’s nose with every ounce of power she could muster. Ashley heard a crunch and the girl’s head snapped back. She dropped the blade and stumbled backwards a few steps.
The Extreme Horror Collection Page 12
