“Absolutely, Larry…”
“Eight AM too early for you?”
“Not at all…”
“Good. Come on by the shop at eight tomorrow morning. I can give you the two-cent tour and get you oriented and then we can get your apprenticeship going. Sound good?”
“Sounds great, Larry…see you then…”
After Josh hung up, he was hoping he was not walking into something more than he had assumed the position might be. It was true that blood and gore did not faze him, nor was he averse to hard work. There was just something in Larry’s voice that seemed a bit off. Josh could not exactly put his finger on it, but perhaps he as just imagining it, as he just shook his head and ignored it, thrilled that he had secured a job for the summer.
“Kylie! Great news!” Josh exclaimed as he came back to the main room of the apartment where she was still putting away a few last-minute purchases from the grocery store. “I got the apprenticeship!”
“Wow! That was fast! Congratulations, Josh!”
“Yeah…what a relief. Our meager savings was not going to last forever.”
“Pay decent?”
“More than I would have ever been offered at a fast food restaurant, and it will be a great practical addendum to my classwork…”
“When do you start?”
“First thing tomorrow.”
“This is fantastic, Josh…it gives me a real incentive to hit the streets again. I think I will make the second round tomorrow downtown. Maybe we can both snag something right here without me having to commute back and forth to the resort. In the meantime, I think we should celebrate…can we afford a night out back at the café?”
“With what I will be earning at the butcher shop, absolutely. Let’s walk down before it gets dark and we can take another look around to see if there might be something perfect for you here in town that we missed before.”
He hugged Kylie tight and kissed her hard.
“Sounds good, Josh…think we have time to christen our new linens before heading out?”
“I am sure we can squeeze that in…”
………..
As Josh and Kylie lay in bed together, she was reveling in the atmosphere. Josh was her first real serious boyfriend and she had never felt happier. She had dated a few boys in high school, but they had been short-lived and the feeling she had now with Josh was like nothing she had ever experienced. She rested her head on his chest and listened to his steady and regular heartbeat as her head rose and fell with each of his breaths. She realized they were still very young and that this summer was just a first for them both, but deep in her heart, she was feeling that Josh was the one she had been waiting for all her life. A soft breeze rustled the leaves of the high branches of the trees just outside the bedroom window as the sun began to make its descent to the west. The rays were filtering in through the foliage and dancing off the far wall, as a mild curtain of dust motes floated and swam along in their path.
Josh ran his fingertips along the length of Kylie’s back and his touch made her shiver with delight. She automatically snuggled in closer to his frame and kissed him on the chest and neck.
“Can I ask you something, Kylie?”
“Sure…” she whispered back.
“Did you ever get a weird vibe from just the sound of someone’s voice? You know…someone you had not met yet?”
“Not really…what are you talking about?”
“Larry Evans…”
“The butcher?”
“Yeah…I am not even sure how to put it into words without it sounding odd, but there was something that just felt a tad off about his voice on the phone when I talked to him earlier. He was nice enough, it was just odd.”
“Off? How so?”
“Like I said…it is hard to describe. It was like it was it was too ‘echo-y’ or distorted or something.”
“Maybe his phone is just not that great.”
“Yeah, I guess that could be it, but it was not like it was a phone issue. How do I put this…besides the static on the line, which granted could have been his phone, it was like he was far away or in a tunnel of some sort.”
“Sounds like crappy phone connection to me…”
“Maybe, maybe…but it was also just an eerie and kind of spooky quality in his manner.”
“Like how?
“Um…not exactly like an altered voice, like you see in the movies when a kidnapper calls in with a ransom demand, you know, but sort of not quite right. I know this is not making sense.”
“Yeah…not really. Look, Josh, he’s a loner butcher in southwest rural Virginia. The shop looks like it is just barely hanging on from all appearances. Not to be nasty, and I am thankful he is offering you a job, but you’re lucky the guy can put ten words together at all.”
Josh laughed.
“You’re right. I am probably making something out of nothing. Let’s go out.”
“In just a minute…I’m not quite done with you yet. Josh lay back as Kylie eased on top of him and he never gave his odd impression of Larry Evans another thought that night.
Josh’s First Day…
Yellow Sulfur, Virginia
May 16, 2005, 7 AM
The next morning, Kylie waved to Josh as he set off for his apprenticeship at the butcher shop. Their night out had been quiet, but enjoyable and they had made it an early one since Josh had to be up and at work early. The café, they discovered, was most likely adequate for breakfast and lunch, but dinner was definitely not their forte. To Kylie, this was just as well as it would not be a temptation to forgo fixing dinner at home for a meal out in town. She was glad Josh had found something, but she was still feeling a bit uneasy at her unemployment status. They could probably easily get by on what Josh was to be making, but every little bit would help, and she wanted to do her share. After he had left, Kylie checked her phone messages and email, but so far nothing had come back from all the applications she had put in at the Yellow Sulfur Resort.
She supposed a big place like that might take some time to respond, versus the smaller mom-and-pop businesses elsewhere in the area. Still, it was disappointing. She poured the last of the coffee from the pot into her mug and went downstairs to enjoy the morning and give some more thought to any other options that might be available to her for a job. Edna had taken off for a few days…something about seeing her sister up in Lexington, so she had the huge wrap around porch at the main house to herself. Edna had told them to feel free to make themselves at home while she was gone. The sun was already blazing away, and Kylie was grateful for the dense tree cover as she sat on the porch swing and sipped at the coffee.
Even with the shade of the tall trees, the heat of the day was still a bit oppressive. Even having grown up in this area, Kylie was still not quite used to the summers and she was really wondering what the depth of the summer might bring. In her mind, she thought back over all the places they had gone by the day before, searching her brain for some options she must not have considered previously. Nothing was coming to her immediately, so Kylie decided the only way to really exhaust them all was to get up and hit the streets again. She jogged back up to the apartment and threw a couple copies of her resume into a folder for her trip into town Just as she had recalled from the previous day, there were not a ton of opportunities to be had in town for work. But nevertheless, Kylie dropped in on a few that she thought were the most promising just to keep her face recognizable and to drop off a resume or two.
Just for kicks, she even walked way down the road to take another look at The Virginia Meat Emporium to see if Josh was at work. Oddly enough, though, the place still looked as dark and shuttered and unoccupied in the morning as it had yesterday afternoon. Even the note advertising the apprenticeship that had caught Josh’s eye was still posted exactly where it had been. Kylie thought all of this together was a bit weird. So much for their theory of the place doing the bulk of its retail business in the mornings. She was sure that if you had taken on a new apprentice, that surel
y you would be showing him the ropes at the shop. Curious…but then again, maybe Evans was showing him the inner workings of the business first at whatever location he had for his animals, etc. In any case, there was no sign of life at the shop and it looked as dingy and deserted as ever.
Feeling a bit disappointed at not being able to at least drop in to say hello to Josh at work, Kylie wandered back into town to drop by the café for an early afternoon beer. As she sat down, her phone pinged and she opened an email from the Yellow Sulfur Resort indicating that they would indeed be interested in talking to her as soon as possible for some openings they needed to fill for the summer. Kylie felt her spirits lift and immediately dialed up the number for a Phyllis Embery, the senior human resources associate there.
“Phyllis Embery, Yellow Sulfur Resort…how can I help you?”
“Hi, Ms. Embery…this is Kylie White…I was calling based on the email I just received from you.”
“Oh, Kylie! Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. I see you are in Yellow Sulfur for the summer and are looking for a job before you head back to Virginia Tech in the fall. Is that right?”
“Yes, ma’am…”
“Great! We have a number of things that I think you might be a good fit for. Could you drop by here…say tomorrow…so we can chat?”
“You bet!”
“How about between nine and ten tomorrow morning?”
“That would be perfect…I will see you then. And thanks…”
As Kylie hung up, she felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Getting something in town would have been ideal, but after a second tour through downtown, the prospects of that seemed poor. Also, she was sure a big resort would be offering a much better wage as well, which would give the two of them more opportunities to travel around a bit while they were here and not have to be so budget conscious about everything. Feeling much better, Kylie relaxed with her beer as she sat under the lone umbrella in front of the café and exhaled deeply in relief. With the anxiety of her employment situation apparently gone, Kylie thought a celebratory dinner at home for the two of them was in order…as well as a lot more. Nothing was certain yet, but Phyllis’ call from the resort made her feel it was just a matter of details and figuring out which opening they both thought would be the best fit. At this point, it all was unimportant to her…like Josh had said about the apprenticeship opportunity, it was just a summer gig…
Kylie finished her drink and headed home, thinking ahead in her mind about what to prepare for dinner as she walked. The day was still very warm as she approached the apartment, but a sudden shadow of dark clouds had made their way into the sky overhead and the sun was quickly blotted out as the distant rumble of thunder echoed ominously. With no further warning, sheets of rain began to fall and Kylie had to make a mad dash for cover onto Edna’s porch to avoid the deluge. Even so, she found herself doused as she turned to watch, pushing her wet hair back from her face and brushing off the water from her face and arms. The thunder came more frequently and with greater volume and soon the sky was as black as night as jagged streaks of lightning began to tear through the sky.
The afternoon was getting late, and Kylie knew she had to get moving if she wanted to have this dinner ready when Josh got home. Oh, hell…she said to herself…I’m already soaked…and with that Kylie took off for the steps that led to the apartment. The rain continued to pour down, but she managed to get inside before she was thoroughly drenched. Kylie changed out of her wet clothes as the storm continued to rage and began to gather all the ingredients she needed to start dinner. The late afternoon morphed into early evening, but Josh had yet to put in an appearance. Kylie had thought his first day might be a short one, but maybe, in reality, it was just the opposite…being the beginning of the internship, maybe there was a lot for Evans to show him.
As time went by, Kylie moved from annoyed and a bit pissed to concerned that Josh had not arrived. No calls or anything; even her calls to his cell went straight to voicemail. More hours passed, and her worry grew. This was not like Josh at all…Kylie paced the apartment, her imagination running wild. Every few minutes she tried calling, but the result was the same. Even calling the number from the slip of paper that Josh had used to jot down the contact number for Larry Evans from the posting on the shop went unanswered. Kylie was getting somewhat panicked at this point, just praying there had not been some accident at the butcher shop.
After another hour passed, Kylie decided it was time to take action. The rain was still coming in torrents and the lightning was mysteriously hanging on as well, now splitting the dark of the night. It was like no storm Kylie had ever experienced…it just seemed stalled over Yellow Sulfur. She tossed on her raincoat and grabbed a flashlight to head over to the shop to see what was up. The wind was blowing the sheets of rain nearly sideways as Kylie made the trek into town and then down the main drag toward The Virginia Meat Emporium. A few stores and side houses were dimly lit as she struggled along, but as she came closer to the butchery, the lights fell away and it grew dark as the upper small branches of the trees lashed back and forth in the wind.
A final few steps brought her to the front of the shop and to her amazement it was as dark and as closed up as it had always been ever since they had first come across the establishment. Kylie furrowed her brow as she shone the beam of her light across the front of the place and finally in through the front window. She had not looked closely before, but what she saw from her vantage point did not make any sense. The interior was dripping with cobwebs and thick layers of dust covered every available counter and shelf. Old wooden crates and cardboard boxes were stacked about haphazardly, giving Kylie the distinct impression of a business that had not been open in years. She knocked on the door and waited…no response.
“Josh…Mr. Evans?”
No answer. Kylie was now nearly frantic. She pounded on the door again with her fist and the old oaken panel eased off its latch and came open just a few inches as the old rusty hinges protested in kind. Kylie pushed it open enough so she could move into the opening. She panned her light around, but all she saw was a room that looked abandoned and long ignored. Kylie stepped further inside, pushing away some errant spider webs that had fallen to her face from the door frame, apparently dislodged when she had opened the door. Other than her own light, the place was pitch black. As Kylie moved further inside and out of the door opening, a sudden gust of wind from the storm blew the door shut with an unexpected bang that made her jump and gasp with shock.
Can Curiosity Actually Kill the Cat?
Yellow Sulfur, Virginia
May 16, 2005, 7 PM
Once Kylie recovered from the surprise, she let her light drift to a near wall where she spotted a light switch near another door that looked as if it led to a back room. She flipped it up and down a few times, but nothing happened. She had not really expected anything based on the state of the interior, but it was just a natural reaction to seeing it.
“Josh…Mr. Evans?”
Still no answer, just her own voice bouncing back from the walls. The creepy interior and mystery of it all was beginning to freak Kylie out a bit and she felt her pulse quicken in response. Just as she was about to give up and head home, not knowing what else to do, Kylie heard the faint, but distinct creaking of a floorboard on the floor above her. She directed her light to the left, from where she had heard the sound and spotted a narrow set of stairs that gave access to the upper level. Going against all common sense and logic, Kylie moved to the stairs and began to tentatively climb. The old steps creaked and groaned under her weight, as her heart pounded away. As she was about halfway up, she froze at the sound of a low, sinister-sounding chuckle and what seemed to her to be the dripping sound of some liquid just ahead.
In retrospect, Kylie could not have told anyone what in the world possessed her to continue her climb. All she could think of at the time was that her curiosity had gotten the better of her and that everything she had found so far mad
e absolutely no sense. The low, repetitive laughter continued as Kylie topped out on the upper level, and what she assumed was a simple leak in the roof from the storm dripped away as well. She turned to the right after letting her light scan over the hallway to both sides, the sounds drawing her along. The upper level was just as barren and disused as the lower floor, with the tall walls stained from place to place from what looked like water damage.
Kylie crept along, step by step, as the chuckling sound continued, neither getting louder nor decreasing in volume. The corridor was lined with a few doors, but all were closed. Kylie’s intent was now focused on the laughter and dripping, as she ignored all the other doors along the way. At the very end of the hallway, a battered and splintered door on the right was slightly ajar and this seemed to be the source of the noises. As she approached the room, the quick creaking sound on the wooden floor she had heard from downstairs picked up in frequency and then just stopped as Kylie reached the door. She touched the rotted wood with her fingertips and it swung open slowly, hanging by a single corroded hinge. As she walked in, she saw the floor was stained a deep red, but what caught her eye a second later was the fresh pool of red liquid on the toes of her shoes. She lifted her light and focused the beam across the room. Kylie was sure at that exact moment her heart had actually stopped as her light illuminated a chair on the other side of the room. She screamed loudly and dropped her flashlight, causing the device to shatter into many pieces.
With shaky hands, Kylie plucked her cell phone from her coat pocket and activated the flashlight function to make sure what she had seen was real. Unfortunately, it was…sitting semi-upright in the chair was Josh. His head was slumped to his chest and a huge butcher’s carving knife protruded from his neck, blood dripping regularly down his body and onto the floor, thus showing her the source of the red pool on the floor. Josh’s eyes were wide open, staring blankly ahead, his face frozen in a visage of terror and fear. Kylie was repulsed, but at the same time, she could not look away either. She was no doctor, nor had she ever had any semblance of medical training…hardly the sort of thing a medieval history major would need…but there was no doubt that Josh was dead.
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