His eyes smoldered with hatred as the vision faded and reality took hold of him again. At that moment, the intense anger he was feeling coursing through him was overwhelming. His head felt like it was about to explode and his vision became blurry, darkening rapidly like a thundercloud. In a matter of seconds, he lost consciousness.
Chapter 12
When the girls awoke the next day it was nearly noon. Stumbling out of Katie’s room toward the kitchen to get something to eat, they passed Mr. Johnson, who was sitting on the couch in the living room. He adjusted the newspaper he was reading as they passed by. “Good morning, girls.”
“Morning, Dad.”
“Good morning, Mr. Johnson.”
Smiling, he returned his attention to the newspaper. When they entered the kitchen, the smell of spaghetti flooded their nostrils. Stomachs growling in unison, the girls burst into laughter.
"Good morning. What’s so funny?” Mrs. Johnson asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Morning, Mom,” Katie replied, attempting to stifle her laughs with a hand over her mouth.
“Good morning, Mrs. Johnson. Our stomachs growled at the same time,” Julie managed.
Going to the cupboard, Katie got a couple of bowls out then went to the pantry and grabbed a box of corn flakes. Bringing her bounty back to the kitchen table, she set them down. Mrs. Johnson met them with spoons and a carton of milk. “Will you be staying for dinner tonight, Julie?”
“I don’t think so. I should probably get going after I eat,” she remarked, glancing at the clock on the wall.
“You are welcome to stay if you change your mind.”
“Thank you.” Julie smiled through a mouthful of corn flakes.
After finishing her cereal, Julie rose and pushed in her chair. Tapping Katie on the shoulder, she stated, “I’m going to go get my things together.”
“Okay. I’ll gather our dishes and clean this stuff up. I'll be right behind ya.”
“Did the two of you have fun yesterday?” Mrs. Johnson asked, turning to face her daughter as she stirred the spaghetti sauce on the stove.
Placing the breakfast bowls in the sink, Katie returned to the table to put away the milk and cereal. “We had lots of fun,” she replied, glancing over her shoulder. She attempted a smile, but it quickly faded as she recalled their trip home last night.
“What’s wrong, sweetie?”
“Our ride back from the drive-in last night was a little more eventful than I would have liked.”
“Why? What happened?” Mrs. Johnson asked, her features contorted in concern.
“We almost got into an accident just down the road. It was a foggy, and Julie thought she saw someone standing in the road, so she swerved a little to avoid hitting the person," Katie lied, not wanting her mom to know it was her who had nearly caused the accident. "I think it was just the way the fog was drifting across the road, because I turned to look behind us and didn’t see anyone."
Mrs. Johnson let out a shaky breath through her pursed lips. “At least both of you are okay.”
With her backpack in one hand and her overnight bag in the other, Julie strolled into the room. “What’s wrong?” One eyebrow rose nervously as she saw the look on their faces.
“Nothing," Katie replied. "I was just telling my mom about what happened last night on the way back from the drive-in.”
“That was a little freaky wasn’t it?”
Brushing off the question as if she hadn't heard it, Katie glanced at her mom. “I’m gonna walk Julie out to her car. I’ll be right back.”
“Okay, sweetie.”
In silence, the girls went outside to the car. Julie got in, tossed her bags on the backseat, and started the engine. Rolling down the window, she waved as she shifted the vehicle into reverse. “See ya tomorrow at school.”
As Julie backed onto the road and started to pull away, Katie smiled and waved. Once the car was out of sight, she turned and went back into the house. Poking her head into the kitchen, she saw her dad conversing quietly with her mom. The newspaper he had been reading earlier was now lying on the kitchen table, folded neatly.
Not wanting to interrupt their conversation, Katie sat down on the couch in the living room and grabbed the remote, flipping on the television. The noon news was just coming on, and she decided to wait until after the weather report to change the channel.
“A gruesome display was found in a park this morning. Lisa Myers is on the scene with the report.”
The image on the television transitioned to a live camera shot. Crime scene tape circled the area around a building in the background. Immediately, Katie realized what park they were broadcasting from ... the very one that she and Julie had visited yesterday.
“The skeletal remains of a female were found this morning by a jogger passing by the building behind me. According to police, the bones were displayed in a gruesome manner near the entrance. They are unsure at this time if the grisly display is related to the recent string of abductions from the area. The only thing they are telling us right now is that the corpse appears to have been picked clean by an animal, making it more difficult to establish a positive identification.”
“Thank you, Lisa.” The image returned to the news studio. No longer interested in the weather, Katie turned the television off and tossed the remote aside, suddenly feeling sick to her stomach.
Chapter 13
When George became conscious of his surroundings again, he found himself sitting in a pool of blood on the concrete floor in front of Tina, her severed head resting in his lap, her glazed eyes staring up at him in horror. The remainder of her body was still bound in the dangling chains before him. In some places, large chunks of flesh were missing. It wasn't until he observed the bite marks ravaging her skin that George noticed the coppery taste in his mouth.
Rising to his feet, he crossed the room to where Amber’s head was displayed on the concrete floor and placed Tina’s next to it. He paused to arrange her hair as it had been while she was alive, then picked up the hose and turned it on, stretching it out to reach the other side of the chamber.
Meticulously, he sprayed down the headless corpse, rinsing the coagulated blood into the drain embedded in the concrete. Apparently, he had blacked out longer than he realized. Some of the blood had soaked into the cement, creating a reddish-brown stain. Briefly, he considered trying to scrub the stains out, but decided there was no point to the endeavor. The only way anyone else would see the soaked-in blood would be if he were ever caught. It didn’t matter if his victims saw.
Satisfied that his mess was cleaned up sufficiently, he put the hose away and headed for the exit. As the door swung open he paused, realization stopping him in his tracks. The door hadn't been locked; anger had obviously fueled his work, and he knew he couldn't afford to make too many slipups. The last thing he needed was a careless mistake, allowing a prisoner to escape, or someone accidentally stumbling into his lair.
Stepping into the storage room between the sound buffering doors, he grabbed a large roll of contractor’s plastic. Returning to the torture chamber, he rolled out an eight-foot section of it and cut across the plastic using the utility knife he had in his pocket.
Methodically, he walked from chain to chain, unlocking the padlocks from each. The body began to slump grotesquely as the limbs were released from their bindings, giving the contorted corpse the appearance of a demented marionette. When the final restraint was disengaged, the headless body fell to the floor with a dull, wet thud. After rolling the carcass onto the awaiting plastic, George wrapped it tightly, as if it were some kind of sick Christmas present.
Once he finished, he stripped off his clothes, bent down to grab his keys from his pants pocket, and kicked the pile of soiled garments next to the fireplace. I'll take care of them later. Right now, I need a shower. This time, he made certain that both doors were locked behind him before heading upstairs to clean up.
Chapter 14
Katie absently picked at her food.
Normally, she would be wolfing it down so fast that her parents would tell her to slow down and taste it. She loved spaghetti, but after seeing the report on the noon news her stomach had been doing flip-flops all day. Her mom was the first to notice her apparent lack of appetite.
“What’s wrong, sweetie? You’ve barely touched your spaghetti.”
“My stomach’s upset, and I’m not really hungry,” Katie replied, twirling her fork distractedly in the noodles.
“You aren't coming down with the flu or something, are you?”
“No ... I've been really queasy since I watched the news earlier,” Katie confessed.
“Did they show something gross?” Matt inquired with a grin, picking on her even though he knew she wasn't squeamish. Most girls were, but not his sister.
Mrs. Johnson's brows furrowed in disapproval. “Why do you always have to pick on your sister like that?”
“Sorry, Mom,” he apologized, suddenly feeling like a kid. Though he didn't enjoy being scolded, Matt knew better than to disrespect his elders.
Ignoring her brother's comment, Katie rose from her chair. “I think I’m gonna lay down for a while.”
“I hope you feel better. I’ll save a plate for you ... in case you get hungry later.”
“Thanks, Mom.” Quietly pushing her chair back in, she headed toward her bedroom. Without even turning on her light or changing, Katie collapsed onto her bed. Staring vacantly at the ceiling, she tried to clear her mind. Even though the news hadn’t actually shown the body, her imagination was running wild and creating the scene for her.
An hour later, Mrs. Johnson knocked lightly on Katie's door to check on her, but she had already drifted into an uneasy slumber. Even in her sleep her imagination was in overdrive. It was more than an hour later before the sandman dragged her deep enough to allow her mind to finally go blank.
Chapter 15
When she sat up in her bed, awakened by a screeching sound, Katie felt like she was dreaming. Unnerved by the disconnected feeling, she stood up in the darkness, a slim beam of moonlight coming in through the window. Turning to look at her bed, almost expecting to see her body lying on the mattress, she was disappointed to see only her crumpled bed sheets.
Carefully crossing her room, she went to the window and looked out into the barely lit darkness. The fog was thick tonight and she couldn’t see a thing. Unaware that she was even doing it, she opened the window and climbed out into the cool, late spring air. The noise pierced the fog in front of her, causing goose bumps to rise on her arms.
In spite of her uneasiness, she slowly walked through the fog toward the sound, her bare feet moving steadily forward through the dew-laden grass as if they had minds of their own. With each step she took, her surroundings grew brighter. A small building began to take shape in the mist. Glancing upward, she realized that the light source had not been the moon as she had thought at first, but a floodlight on the shed she was approaching. The screeching noise repeated, this time sounding incredibly close. Preparing to run back to the house, her eyes flitted nervously from one object to the next. Just as she was about to turn around, Katie caught movement from the corner of her eye. "Shit! I'm freaking out over tree branches scraping against the shed," she mumbled aloud, laughing softly and trying to shake her jumpiness. A gentle breeze moved the limbs against the metal exterior of the building again, emitting a softer squeak as the wood rubbed on it.
It was obvious to her now. The wind must have been blowing harder when she first heard the sound, but as she turned to go back to the house Katie couldn’t help feeling like someone was watching her. Against her better judgment, she glanced over her shoulder toward the shed and froze in terror. The glowing silhouette of a woman was standing in the mist, beckoning her to approach. Although she didn't feel her feet moving, Katie noticed she was slowly getting closer to the figure. Confused and terrified, she glanced down and saw that her feet were indeed moving. It felt as if she were floating through the air—with no control over her body—drawn toward the ghostly presence like a mosquito to a bug zapper.
As Katie drew closer to the figure, it turned and moved further into the woods behind the shed, as if it were leading her somewhere. No matter what Katie did, she remained the same distance from the glowing form as they wove between the trees. Soon, she realized that she had no idea where she was. Why didn't I just stay in bed instead of traipsing around in the dark with who knows what? Even though Katie didn't understand why she was doing what she was, she couldn't shake the feeling that the ghostly figure was familiar in some way.
A dim light began to appear ahead of them, and after continuing on for a few minutes the glowing entity suddenly stopped. Turning toward Katie, it raised a finger to its ghostly lips, instructing her to be quiet. Moments later, the silence was broken by what sounded like a car door closing. Unexpectedly, the distant light disappeared. Simultaneously, the ghostly shape in front of Katie vanished, leaving her in complete darkness.
Chapter 16
Carrying the plastic wrapped body on his shoulder, George climbed the hidden staircase. He stopped to slide the bookcase out of his way, entered the main part of the house, and finally continued to the back door. Stepping outside, he placed the decapitated corpse into his van, checking to ensure that he had all of his supplies ready before heading back indoors.
Returning to his sanctuary, he checked the fire he had started earlier. Satisfied that it was sufficiently hot enough, he began placing the clothes that were piled next to it into the flames, watching intently as each piece burned. Once the last bloody garment was in the fireplace, he picked up the poker and stirred the embers, watching the last thread of cloth become a puff of smoke. Setting the iron implement down and closing the hearth doors, George went back upstairs to get his keys. He grinned wickedly as he thought about the little surprise he was going to leave for the police.
Chapter 17
Slowing his van slightly, George approached the lodge’s driveway. As he drew closer, he noticed the silhouette of a car sitting back a bit from the main road partially hidden. Angry, he sped past the entrance. It seemed the police were secretly staking out that spot to see if he would come back. Almost as quickly as it had come, his anger faded and he began to smile again. The park was a big place. They can’t watch the whole thing at once.
Traveling a quarter of a mile further down the road, he turned on to the street that bordered the eastern edge of the park. On one side of the pavement there were houses, and on the other the dark serenity of the woods. From his numerous visits in the past, he knew the jogging path was not far from where the tree line met the road.
Reducing his speed, George carefully selected a driveway to pull into. Cars were parked in the one he chose, but the house was dark so he assumed the occupants had gone to bed. As he pulled in behind a pickup truck and shut off his engine, George stepped out of his van and closed the door softly. When he saw there was no oncoming traffic in either direction, he crossed the pavement to scout out an appropriate place for his new display. It took roughly ten minutes for him to find a suitable spot that was fairly close to the lodge; a medium-sized tree he could put his arms around.
Before returning to his vehicle to retrieve the body, he crept silently toward the lodge to check on the car in its driveway. As he inched closer, George slipped into the underbrush to get a better look. The car was dark, but he could see the silhouettes of two people inside, illuminated by the cigarette that one of them was smoking. Satisfied that the pair of officers were not out patrolling the area, he carefully retraced his steps up the jogging path.
Returning to his van, he opened the side door as noiselessly as he could, gathering the plastic encased body and hefting it over his shoulder. Quickly, he strode across the street, carrying the body down the path to the tree he'd found. After dumping the corpse beside the trail, he headed back for his supplies.
When he returned a few minutes later, George dropped his bag beside the corpse and bent down to grab a pair
of latex gloves and some duct tape from it. As quietly as he could manage, he partially unwrapped the top portion of the body as well as exposing her feet and ankles. Allowing the arms to hang limply over his back, he hoisted the woman on to his shoulder. Forcing her buttocks against the bark, George held her legs tightly against the tree with one hand and encircled both limbs with tape, lashing them to the trunk. Loosely holding the woman's torso, he removed the remaining plastic. After hefting the corpse upward to stretch it out as tightly as possible, he hooked her broken arm around the foliage to keep the body from slipping, quickly grabbing her other arm as he stepped to the back side of tree.
Awkwardly, he held both of her hands in one of his as he tried to wield the tape with his other. After binding her wrists together, George raised her arms as high as he could reach. Releasing his grip, he allowed the weight of the body to sag slightly outward, holding the corpse in place. He bent down and cut the tape around her legs so he could reposition them. Quickly grabbing her ankles to prevent the body from falling, he pulled them behind the tree and lashed them together in the same manner he had used to secure her hands.
After wadding the plastic and stuffing it into his bag, he spent a few moments canvassing the surrounding area thoroughly, making sure he wasn't leaving behind any trace evidence. Satisfied, George stepped onto the path and turned to gaze upon the finished product. Everything looked perfect; a smile creased his features as he snatched up his bag and headed back to his van.
Chapter 18
Mrs. Johnson knocked on Katie’s bedroom door. It was almost time for the bus to pick her up for school and she hadn’t come out of her room yet. After waiting a moment and getting no response, she knocked again, this time eliciting a groggy reply. Opening the door so she could hear what her daughter was saying, her jaw came unhinged at the sight before her.
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