Ten Open Graves: A Collection of Supernatural Horror

by David Wood

  Kyle scrambled to his knees and took a moment to catch his breath. He had time for one inhale before the miner regained his feet and came at him again, a strange light shining in his black eyes and his mouth slavering. Moving on instinct, Kyle leaned backward, drew his legs back, and kicked outward as hard as he could. The miner took most of the kick in his face and chest, and he stumbled backward several steps. Kyle got to his hands and knees, intent on finishing the fight – even if it meant bashing the man's head into the rocky floor – but he only moved a foot before the fight was finished for him.

  Moving out of the shadows like a wild animal, a young man came at the miner from behind, wrapped him up in a bear hug, and threw him down with a roar. The miner hit so hard he bounced, but the young man wasn't through. As soon as the miner was down, the kid grabbed his head and smashed it onto the ground. The miner made a pained noise. The kid then jumped on his chest and pounded his fists into the miner's face like they were pistons in an engine well past the red line. He probably would have kept the beating going until the miner's head was bloody pulp, but after a few seconds a smaller boy left the shadows and ran to him.

  “Stop, Brett!” the little kid said, tears streaming down his grimy face. “Stop it! You'll kill him!”

  Brett ignored him and delivered another blow. “Why shouldn't I? He said he was going to kill us!” His eyes were hard as they looked down at the miner beneath him, but when he turned to look at the small boy next to him, they softened, and his fists uncurled to rest on his legs. His knuckles were raw and bloody.

  “But you're not him.” The boy laid a hand on the older kid's arm. “And I don't want you to be.”

  Kyle was impressed. From the mouths of babes, he wondered to himself. The fight now over, he waddled over to the downed miner and reached down to feel for a pulse. The miner's skin was incredibly cold, and the coal dust made him feel like he was a statue, but a vein still pumped beneath his fingers. The miner was down, but alive. How long he'd stay out, though, was anyone's guess.

  “Kyle, is that you?” a voice asked from the shadows.

  Relief flooded through his body when he heard his sister, and he turned to see her pick up the miner's flashlight and duck-walk to him. He grabbed her as soon as she was in hugging range, tears falling from both their eyes.

  “What in the fuck is going on?” she asked as they parted.

  “I don't know,” he replied, wishing like hell he had something more to tell her. “There's...something going on, something strange, but right now what we need to worry about is getting out of here. Who all is here with you?”

  Four new faces came into the light. Three were female, one male. They looked frightened to death.

  “That's Brett and his little brother Alex.” She pointed at the young man who'd finished off the miner. She then turned to the others and gestured for them to huddle in. “This is Shelly, her friend Hanna, and there's Tamara and her brother Finn. We're all in high school together. Well, except for Alex. He's in elementary school.”

  “He's still a smart kid,” Kyle replied, giving the young boy's hair a tousle and feeling old while doing it. “Okay, we need to get out of here now. Taylor, give me the flashlight and I'll lead the way out. The rest of you, grab hands and stick close. Ready?”

  Seven scared and dirty faces nodded at him in the garish glare of the flashlight. He hoped he looked more confident. Once he had his sister's hand and saw that the rest of them were doing the same, he turned and walked to the exit, wondering when this nightmare would end.

  Dark clouds hovered over the mountain like a wool blanket, sending down small spatters of rain in intermittent fits, but even that seemed like a burst of cheer compared to the oppressive darkness of the coal mine as Kyle and the kids came through the old vent opening. Shelly and Hanna dropped to their knees and wept, and their friends gathered around them, holding each other and glad to be in the light, muted as it was.

  When Maya wasn’t there to greet them Kyle looked at where he'd left Dean tied up. Dean wasn't there, but broken bits of leather sat on the grass in his place. Kyle’s stomach twisted into a dozen small knots.

  “Who's that?” Taylor asked, standing next to him and pointing to the right.

  Kyle followed her finger until he saw a body lying on the ground. The sight of a red blouse and shock of dark, curly hair brought equal amounts of relief and fear charging up his throat. He ran over, hoping against hope that she wasn't hurt. It wasn't until he was a few feet away that he saw she was laying on something. When he reached her side, he saw what it was – an unconscious Dean. The hunting rifle was on the ground a few feet away.

  “Maya!” He knelt down next to her. He took her shoulders and pulled her into a sitting position, but her head lolled to the side and her eyes were closed. He looked her over, checking for blood or wounds and finding none, then felt her neck for a pulse. It was slow, but it was there. He checked her skull, looking for a bump or gash showing that she'd hit her head, but he didn't find one. Her skin felt cool to the touch and had turned an ashy color.

  Taylor hunkered down next to him. “Do you know her?”

  He nodded, but he didn't know how true that was. He'd met her only a day ago, so could he really know her? Probably not, but he understood that in that time he'd learned a good deal about who she was, she'd taught him more than he ever wanted to know about his home town, and he'd had the best sex of his life. A lot had happened in that short span of time, and he wasn't ready for it to be over.

  “Yeah, her name's Maya. I met her yesterday. She's here doing some research. I left her here with Dean while I went in looking for you. He... He was tied up. This shouldn't... I don't know what happened.”

  Taylor leaned over and took a long look at Dean. “He looks like shit, Kyle. Look at his skin. It's all split and gray, with this...pus-looking crap seeping out. He doesn't look human.”

  “That's part of what she’s here investigating. I mean, not him specifically, but that there's something weird going on, and Dean looks to be part of it.”

  “And she's out?” Taylor asked, turning and looking the woman up and down. “She's hot. Much too damn pretty to be sticking her neck out around here.”

  Kyle scooped his arms under Maya and lifted her as gently as he could. As soon as she was away from Dean's body, it was like a switch was thrown in her body. He felt her begin to warm, and her skin returned to its natural creamy brown color. She didn't open her eyes or awaken, but it was a positive step nonetheless. Dean, on the other hand, moaned and started to twitch.

  “Shit, he's waking up,” Taylor said.

  Kyle snarled as he looked down at the prone man. “No, he's not.” With a savagery he didn't know he was capable of, Kyle hauled off and kicked Dean hard on the side of the head. Dean didn't make a sound as his head snapped to the right and he went still. His chest still rose and fell as he breathed, but he was knocked out. If the kids hadn't been around, he knew he would have gone even further.

  “Let's go,” he said, hugging Maya's body close and walking back to the trail that led to his Jeep.

  Taylor called for her friends, then jogged to his side. “Go? Go where? We've got to find out what's going on. I think... I think dad is the one who brought me out here.”

  “We're not doing anything,” he told her, his arms beginning to ache. “Right now the best thing you and your friends can do is hide out and sit tight. I'll be the one trying to figure this thing out.”

  “And where are we supposed to do that?”

  Kyle looked over at his little sister, then hitched his head up the mountain. Understanding dawned in her eyes seconds later.

  Interlude- Blood and Water

  With every foot the water lowered, the closer the sleeping God came to awakening. His heart beat in titanic pulses that grew closer and closer, and the water churned with the thrashing of his body as it stretched and unfurled. Ash watched from on high, anxious to see his Lord revealed in all his glory.

  As exhilarating a
s the god's waking body was to watch, it paled next to the wonder of his waking mind. The psychic ether was vibrating from the power of the ancient being, quivering as dreams fell slowly away, revealing memories, desires, and hunger. Ash felt as though he lived in two worlds at once, one foot in a coal mine and the other on an ancient plain as his god strode across the world like a force of terrible nature. He knew that soon both those worlds would be one and the same, and that when it happened he would be standing next to the throne of a new Kingdom, his sole desire to serve the will of his Lord. Soon dreams would become reality, and reality would become a nightmare. His fangs dripped blood in anticipation. Nothing could stop what was coming.

  The sound of huffing and puffing brought his mind back to the mine. As the ragged breathing grew closer, his annoyance grew with it. Heavy feet slapped at the ground, first one set, and then two more. Within seconds it nearly drowned out the sound of pumps.

  “Sir, we got a serious problem,” Gus said as he approached the chamber entrance. When he came to a stop, he bent over and breathed deeply.

  Ash grit his sharp teeth. “I seriously doubt that. Our Lord rises. What problem could there be?”

  “It's my boy. He...uh, he's been here.”

  Ash's black eyes widened, but after a moment he shrugged his bony shoulders. “So what? There's nothing he can do to stop what’s coming.”

  “Beggin' yer pardon, sir, but he got the kids out.”

  Ash’s bat-like nostrils face flared and his thin gray lips peeled back into a snarl as he whirled around. “He did what?”

  Gus sucked in air and staggered back a moment, his own dark eyes as large as dinner plates. “I don't know how he knew they were here or how to find them, but he managed to sneak in through the old vent shaft and find his way to the room where the kids were locked up.”

  “And nobody stopped him?” Ash's shoulders bunched as frustration boiled his blood. In the grand scheme of things it wasn't a real problem – they would gather a new first meal for their god – but the thought that some punk asshole was able to enter his mountain and leave with his tribute was galling. The muscles across his upper back bulged, and the skin covering them split.

  Gus shook his head and stepped to one side, revealing Dean Cotton and Sam Krauss. Dean had been tasked with watching over the old vent entrance, and Sam's job had been to deal with the kids. If what Gus said was true, then they both had failed. The bruises and cuts across their bodies proved it.

  “Sam, come here and tell me what happened,” Ash ordered, his lips moving but his teeth locked together.

  Sam looked like he wanted to do anything but get closer, but after a moment of hesitation he stepped into the chamber, wringing his hands. “Sir, it wasn't my fault, I—”

  Ash stepped forward in a rush and tore Sam's head off. Brackish blood sprayed into the air, coating the stone walls. A few drops of it landed in the water below, and the water churned as ropes of flesh lashed through the blood and drew it down. Ash brought the bleeding stump to his body, and while holding onto the head with one hand, he sank his fangs into the torn neck and drank his fill. He let the body fall to the ground, then he plucked the sightless eyes out and tossed them in his gore-covered mouth. They popped like ripe grapes when his teeth closed on them.

  Gus and Dean stared down at Sam's dead body. Gus was still, his eyes taking in the scene like a man standing in fascination before a work of art, but Dean shivered and looked away before Sam's heart could pump out the last of his blood.

  “What about you, Dean?” Ash asked, his black tongue licking blood from his thin lips. “Was what happened not your fault either?”

  Dean flinched at the sound of his name, but he shook his head and managed to stand still. “I shoulda shot 'em, yes sir, as soon as I saw 'em. If one of 'em hadn’t had old blood runnin' through 'em, I woulda done just that.”

  “Old blood?” Ash asked, his anger momentary pushed aside by wonder.

  Dean nodded quickly, the gray skin of his neck waggling in the dark. “Yes sir. The nigger woman. I could smell it on her like perfume. I thought she'd make a special tribute, so I was gonna bring 'em to you at gunpoint, but I was… I was overcome by the rapture of our waking Lord before I could do it.”

  “I understand,” Ash replied, the words entering the air just as he lashed out with his claws and decapitated the miner in one fluid motion. Dean's black eyes blinked as his head and body tumbled in different directions. “That don't mean I forgive.”

  Taking an ever so slight step backward, Gus glanced at the bloody ground, then said, “I'm gonna kill that boy of mine, rest assured, sir. Kill him slow and painful for what he done.”

  Ash considered Gus's words, then shook his head. “No, I need you here to monitor the pumps. They're work's nearly done, but nearly ain't the same as finished. We have others out there who can take care of this. Now go and do your job.”

  “What about the...Dean and Sam?” Gus couldn't help but glance at the bodies of his friends as he spoke, but they were fleeting glances at best.

  “Leave ‘em. I'm hungry.”

  Gus gulped, nodded, and walked away as quickly as he could without it being a flat-out run.

  “If you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself.” Ash closed his eyes and reached out with his mind to find those who were eager and able to work his will. On his back, the tears in his skin widened into gashes as nubs of flesh broke through, pulsing and flexing. Dark blood dripped down his body to join that of the two dead men at his feet, turning the coal dust on the floor into a thick, warm mud.

  Chapter 17

  Kyle found two bags of beef jerky and a Snickers bar in a cabinet. In the pantry next to it were sealed canisters of flour, sugar, dried beans, rice, and spaghetti noodles, along with some trash bags and cleaning supplies. He grunted in frustration.

  “Hey, I found the water,” Brett said. “There's ten gallons here. That should suffice, right?”

  “Unless one of you decides to take a bath with it, yeah.” Kyle closed the pantry and turned to see the teenage boy standing in front of the cabinets next to the stove.

  Shelly and Hanna sat down on a blanket-covered couch, dust pluming into the air and the seat springs groaning as their weight dropped on it. They coughed and waved at their faces. The other kids settled on the floor by the fireplace and looked around blankly.

  “Are you sure this place is safe?” Shelly asked when the air was clear.

  “If by safe you mean no one knows you're here?” Kyle asked, looking around at the decoration free wooden walls and curtainless windows, “then yes. These old hunting cabins don't get much use out of season, and this one is far enough from town and the mine that no one is just going to happen by and see you're here. I wish I could take you all with me, but there just isn’t room, so it’s safer to keep you together here. All of you just sit tight, stay calm, and keep your heads down while I try to get help. No matter what, you guys won't be here more than tonight. The water Brett found will tide you over. Think you’ll be okay?”

  Half a dozen dirty, scared faces nodded at him.

  “Okay. Good. I'll be back as quick as I can. Remember what I said – calm and cool.”

  When he got another understanding nod, he gave them the most confident smile he could muster and walked to the door. As he turned the handle, Brett hustled over to stand next to him.

  “Hey, you sure you don't want me to go with you? I uh...I think I handled myself okay back in the mine. If things get hairy out there, you might need me.”

  Kyle couldn't help but think of Brett as a kid even though he was only seven years older than him, but kid or not he had a point. Kyle hadn't needed the help in subduing the miner in the cave, but Brett had jumped in without being asked, and because of that they had made it out in one piece. The kid had courage, and he had strength. Together that made him a potent ally. Unfortunately, it was because of those reasons that Kyle wanted Brett to stay right where he was.

  “You're probabl
y right, but look behind you. As much as I might need you, they need you even more, especially your brother. I can't be out there doing what I need to do if I'm worried about what's going on back here. I'm depending on you to take care of them. Are you up to that? Are you the man around here? Or do I need I ask your little brother?”

  Brett frowned. “Yeah, I'm the man.”

  “With the way you kicked the shit out of that guy in the mine, I don't doubt you one bit.” Kyle clapped Brett on the shoulder before opening the door and leaving the hunting cabin.

  The rented Jeep waited just outside under a strand of trees that didn’t quite keep the rain off it. Taylor sat in the back with Maya leaning against her, still unconscious.

  “We ready to roll?” Taylor asked through her rolled-down window.

  He nodded and went around to the driver's door. Once he was seated he started the engine and strapped himself in.

  “I'm surprised Brett didn't come with you. Figured his male ego would demand he come along.”

  “Hey,” Kyle said over his shoulder, “don't knock the male ego. It's what's keeping him in the cabin, watching out for your friends.”

  Taylor made a sound somewhere between a laugh and a cough. “They aren't my friends.”

  Kyle looked in the rearview mirror and saw Taylor staring down at the stranger next to her. Her dark hair was disheveled, her black eyeliner and lipstick was smeared across her face, and her Lady Gaga shirt was unrecognizable under the coal dust ground into it. Now, more than ever, she looked lost and alone. As though her life hadn't been hard enough already.

  “I guess not,” he told her, their eyes meeting in the mirror, “but right now they're sane and normal, both of which seem to be in short supply around this place.”