Hope in the Hearth

by Jacob Raya

  Rebecca shortly woke up after I did and asked me what was going on.

  “Matt, what happened!”

  “Rebecca! Honey, I think our neighbors were just killed by that same creature we encountered last night!”

  “What do you mean they were killed?”

  “Officer Miller told me that they had received a call from the house next door to us, and our neighbors said that their two children were dead with their eyes, ears, and noses missing. Just like that dead homeless guy!”

  “Oh my! You mean-”

  “Yes, they're dead. And, Miller also told me that shortly after, they told the officers they heard painful screams coming from the background, and finally from Michelle, who made the phone call, and then the phone disconnected.”

  “Holy shit, Matt! Are they going to search the house right now? I mean, the sun is barely out right now, but it’s enough to scare that creature away!”

  “Yeah, they are, and I’m going in there with them. Don’t worry…”

  “Well, I would say no, but I’m sure you would be safe, and I trust that you would keep your promise of coming back to me!”

  “Don’t worry, I always do!”

  I got my gun ready, and so did the other officers. The SWAT team was even prepared for action, as they had all their guns loaded and a battering ram ready to break down the door. We first approached the house slowly, and they broke the door down in the blink of an eye.

  The first sight we got of the house made us wish we could easily pinch our way out of this nightmare. We were all disgusted and couldn’t even bear to search the rest of the house.

  At the entrance close to the furniture in the living room was their dead dog. The dog was missing its ears and was torn in half with blood splattered all over the carpet and walls.

  We began to slowly move into the kitchen and bathroom on the first floor but found nothing, just a few blood spots here and there. A few officers offered to stay down on the first floor, while myself and many other officers offered to search the second floor. To my utter shock, the body count was only adding up, and my heart felt like it was going to stop.

  We came across the corpse of the father, Ben, on the stairs with both of his arms and legs missing. We continued up to the second floor and searched the bathroom and the bedrooms. We shortly encountered the corpses of the couple’s dead children.

  They were both in their beds with their faces torn off and scratch marks all over their bodies, along with deep scratches covering the walls in the bedroom. There was blood all over their bed sheets and all over the walls, making for a gruesome and scary scene.

  We entered the last room on the second floor, which was the master bedroom. I still can’t believe that these were my neighbors for the past seven years, and they're now all dead! I was in utter shock and disbelief by the whole situation and could hardly grasp it, even with the proof right in front of me.

  They had been killed without hesitation, and here I am standing over their corpses. What grief we will all be put through. I thought I was having a nightmare, but it was coming true every second and every minute! I shuddered to myself, swallowing back bile that made me want to vomit, and carried on, trying to be strong.

  As we entered the master bedroom, we encountered more blood on the carpet and walls. The most horrific of all these deaths was Michelle's. Her head was so close to falling off but did not, and her left arm was missing. Her right leg was also partially missing, and most disturbing, her chest was cut open with both of her breasts gone. The phone was right next to her with blood all over it.

  At that point, I couldn’t stand to be in there anymore and rushed out of the house to let the officials do the rest of what now sounds like a terrible job. I didn’t want to tell Rebecca, but felt that I needed to so that way she knew how our neighbors had died, and we could take into account how to find this creature and what its motives were, and hopefully, what its possible weaknesses were. I was hoping the information would help us defeat this monster and prevent more thoughtless deaths.

  “Honey.”

  “Yes, I’m listening. I’m ready to hear the hell that is to be brought to me.”

  I sighed with a bit of relief, and went on to tell her.

  “Rebecca, none of them survived. This creature is even sick enough to kill children for its own needs.”

  She had no response and just stared at me with a blank look on her face, laced with confusion and infinite sadness. I could tell she was irritated because the police could not capture this creature in time to save our neighbors, and she was confused as to why this creature was going on a killing spree. I was thinking the same thing, as well as wondering if there was more than one creature out there at this point in time.

  “Their dog was also killed with its body torn in half. Ben and Michelle are both dead. Both of them are missing a couple of limbs and died in the most painful way I could even imagine.”

  Still, she had no response, just had that same old blank, listless stare.

  “I think we're going to have to go someplace safer, Rebecca.”

  “Yeah, sure thing, Matt. This place is too dangerous with this thing crawling all around us. I mean, it’s a no-brainer! We have to either figure out what its weakness is, if it even has one. And, where the hell it came from and why it’s killing innocent people off like flies!”

  “We must try to figure out something unless we get some help from the government. I bet they would know a thing or two about this!”

  “I don't want anyone else to die or get hurt by this creature. But I’m not too confident about how we can stop it. I don’t know what to do anymore!”

  She started to sob, and I had to comfort her and tell her that everything was going to be all right.

  “Don't worry, honey! We’ll get through this. We're strong. Trust me on this one.”

  “I will. I want us as well as our family and friends to be safe.”

  “I do too, and they will all be safe, and so will the both of us.

  There is nothing more to be worried about. All of us are going to find out where this creature even came from and why it chose to come to our home. We must warn as many people as we can, and most importantly, the family and friends we both most dearly care about!”

  “I’ll start with my parents.”

  Shortly after our discussion, I got a call from my mother. She was worried sick about me and asked if I was going to move somewhere else really fast; like, now.

  “Matt, I heard about that poor family.”

  “Wait! What family? My neighbors were all butchered like cattle!”

  “Oh my, Matt! But, there was another family on the news that were all slaughtered here in Sacramento!”

  My eyes felt like they were getting heavier, and I felt like falling face-first to the ground and just letting it take me. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

  “You have to move fast, because I don’t want to see you on the news like I saw that family this morning.”

  “Don’t worry, Mom! Rebecca and I are going to get ready to pack our things and book the next flight to Sacramento.”

  “Okay, son. Please be careful, and whatever is out there, make sure you keep your distance and think smart!”

  “I know Mom. I love you!”

  “Love you too!”

  I told Rebecca that we need to start to pack up and get ready for the next flight back to where I grew up, in Sacramento, California.

  “Rebecca, my mother suggested that both of us travel to Sacramento to be safe there. She’s worried sick about me!”

  “I know, Matt, so are my mother and father! We’ll start to pack our things when the officers leave and tell us it’s okay to go back to our house.”

  “It might not be safe enough, but as you said, with the sun out, we should be pretty safe.”

  “Yes, we all should be.”

  Sadly, I don’t think everyone in town got the whole message. As soon as we started to pack up, shortly after the police l
eft, I got a call from Officer Miller.

  “Matt?”

  “Yes, Officer Miller, what is it?”

  “You will never believe-”

  “Believe what? What happened?”

  “A massacre, that’s what the hell happened!”

  “What the hell happened, Miller?”

  “We got a couple more calls similar to the one we got last night from your neighbors. All the calls seem to be one of the parents telling us that their children were found mutilated in their bedrooms with their closet doors open. There was blood all over the place, and if there were any family pets, whether they were small like rodents or big like dogs or cats, they were also found dead. Sometimes torn into pieces with their body parts all over the living rooms.”

  “Why do you say living rooms? It happened in more than one house?”

  “Yes, it did. It happened in a whole neighborhood. Oh shit!”

  “What? Miller, speak the hell up!”

  “The chief told me at least over half the homes have been raided, and all of the families, kids, pets, everyone…they’re all dead! But we’re positive it must have happened last night!”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because our team of experts speculates that the corpses have been dead for at least two hours, and the mothers and fathers were found dead also. They were all killed in similar ways as your neighbors were!”

  “And where are you now?”

  “I’m on my way to one of the houses where the corpses were found! By the way, all the calls ended with the same screams heard in the background, with the final scream coming from the caller, and the call ending with more screams heard in the background along with the phone disconnecting!”

  “Dammit! This creature is going on a killing spree and taking a death toll bigger than this state has ever seen! We have to stop it by all means or figure out how to kill it before night falls!”

  “Yeah, that’s what I'm up to right now.”

  “Okay, be sure that you have backup with you!”

  “I’m the only one here.”

  “Wait! You are?”

  “Yes. I'm going to check the house. I’m pretty sure the creature has fled with the sun being out. My backup will be here in a couple of minutes; nothing can happen to me.”

  “Wait! So did you get a calculation of how many total were dead?”

  “Yes, a total of 230 people. 100 children and 130 adults.”

  “Holy shit!”

  “Matt, I’m going to go in the house. Wish me the best of luck!”

  “Dammit Miller, wait for backup! What would the chief say?”

  “I’m pretty sure he doesn’t give a damn about me!”

  “Sure he does. I mean, you have-”

  “Hold on!”

  “What?”

  “I have to go, Matt!”

  “Wait, Miller? Miller?”

  Miller hung up his phone. I was wondering why he was there alone in the first place, but I’m assuming he was supposed to have the day off but was called in as well as every officer in the city was, because this was labeled as an emergency and was urgent.

  I tried calling him. Then again. And again and again. There was no answer, only silence to be heard, but it made me feel that there was a death sentence for me soon.

  I must have called him over 10 times, but still, there was no answer, and at this point, I started to get worried if this creature killed Miller or something terrible happened to him. I put my phone down and resumed packing, and two minutes later, I got a call. It was from the chief.

  “Matt…?”

  “Yes, Chief? I’m listening!”

  “I have horrible news!”

  “What the hell is it?”

  “Miller has been killed!”

  “You’ve got to be kidding me! Dammit! What the hell? You guys were supposed to be there for him!”

  “We did, but when we arrived, we found him with his body ripped open and his face torn up! He must have been killed by that same creature that’s been stalking this town!”

  “He told me he was called to go check out the house!”

  “He was, but was told to wait but didn’t want to and would rather put a bullet in the creature’s head himself…hello? Hello? Matt? Matt?”

  I hung up the phone, finished packing, and told Rebecca that we needed to leave immediately.

  “Rebecca?”

  “Yes?”

  “We need to leave now! We're not safe here!”

  “I know that, but did something else happen?”

  “Yes! Officer Miller told me that there were 230 more people found dead in their homes, and they were all killed in similar ways as our neighbors were. And, Officer Miller is dead, too!”

  “What? Officer Miller!? Oh my God, babe!”

  “I know! We need to leave now! It’s not safe here!”

  “Okay, I’ll be right behind you.”

  We headed out and took Ellie with us, and loaded up the car. I drove frantically to the airport to book a flight to Sacramento. At this point, I had no clue how to stop these things and whether or not we’d survive the rest of the week.

  We waited for a solid three hours until we were able to get boarded. Our flight didn’t leave until five hours after we arrived at the airport. We got to the airport at about 3:00 in the afternoon, and didn’t go until about 6:30.

  The ride was okay, with a hint of worries coming from Rebecca and myself. We arrived in Sacramento, and as soon as possible, we drove to where our parents were still living. Mine were only 20 minutes from the Sacramento airport, and Rebecca’s were near Stockton.

  Since we were closer to my house, we first traveled to my childhood home. When we arrived, shockingly, all the cars were in the driveway in pristine condition with no damage, but when I knocked on the door, there was no answer, even after waiting for over 15 minutes.

  We ended up leaving and headed to Rebecca’s home instead. I called both my mom and dad to see if they left their cars there and were out of town because of the emergency or something.

  There was no answer from either of my parents, and this started to worry me even more. It felt like hours until we arrived at Rebecca’s home, and soon enough, a worst-case scenario was waiting for Rebecca. When we came, there were police cars up and down the block with the doors and windows of the house being broken into.

  Rebecca wanted to barge into the house that was blocked by caution tape and police officers guarding the scene.

  “Excuse me miss, you’re not allowed to enter.”

  “This house is where my parents live! This is where I grew up!”

  “I understand that. What is your name?”

  “Rebecca! Rebecca Michaels! This is my parents' house, and as I said before, where I grew up! So please get the hell out of my way!”

  “I understand that Rebecca, but your parents are not here at the moment.”

  “Then where the hell did they go? They couldn’t just have vanished into thin air, now could they?”

  “We don’t know what happened. All we know is that your parents are safe, because they left a note saying that they have gone to a safe house since the first killing in this neighborhood, which happened a couple of nights ago.”

  “I sure hope that you’re right and not lying to me!”

  “I promise you they are safe, Rebecca. You can even try calling them if you wish.”

  “I will later, but thank you for looking out for them and the others in the neighborhood.”

  “I hate to put it to you like this, Rebecca, but most of the people in this neighborhood are all deceased!”

  “I don’t have time for this shit! I already had enough people that I know die today!”

  “I’m sorry to hear that, but we’re trying our best to put an end to this!”

  “Well, try harder, dammit!”

  After all that commotion, I finally got a call from my mother.

  “Hello?”

  “Matt? Matt? Are you there?” />
  “Yes Mom, otherwise I wouldn’t have answered!”

  “I don’t need smart-ass comments from you right now, your cousins…”

  She was sobbing in pain, and I began to feel the same pain and realize that they were possibly in trouble, or even worse, dead.

  “Your cousins... they’re missing, Matt!”

  “What? Are you kidding me, Mom?”

  “How could that happen? They might be dead! Like, how the hell would they be killed that fast if they were executed? I have like, over 20 cousins!”

  “I got a call from the police, and both your father and I went to the station, as the dispatcher told us that it was urgent and we needed to be at the station immediately!”

  “So, what did the police say!?”

  “Once we arrived, the dispatcher told us that we got a call from my sister that all of your cousins from my side were all missing!”

  “How did this happen!? Like, how did Aunt Clarissa even find out about this?”

  “She said that when she arrived at your cousin Joe’s house, all of them were torn to pieces or missing limbs and it was just outrageously horrific!”

  “How did they all die though, and were they all in the same house?”

  “Your cousin Joe hosted a late-night party for his wife from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. They must have all been killed the same night, otherwise there would have been a few survivors in the morning!”

  “Wait! Why do you say that?”

  We started to notice that the killings around the neighborhood were all discovered in the morning, and the officials said that they were killed possibly the night before. Meaning before the sun was able to even to rise!

  “It seems that whatever is killing these innocent people and my cousins must be killing them at night!”

  “That sounds about right son, but now I have to get going. We're getting ready to go to a safe zone.”

  “Really? We need to get to one fast as well! Perhaps the same one you're going to?”

  “What about Rebecca’s parents and family?”

  “I don’t fully know what has happened. It seems that her parents have left their house to find the place you guys are searching for, but are perfectly safe.”

  “Okay, go with her. We will be safe, I promise. Now I have to go. I love you. I’ll see you soon!”