Andy Deane

by The Sticks (epub)

  I was being paranoid and irrational and I knew it. Alicia had better taste than that. At least I hoped she did. I thought of George's bleeding head, and in all my misery a smile found its way to the corners of my mouth.

  Eventually I drifted to sleep, joining Bronson in a better place.

  The phone woke me up a little over an hour later. The caller ID read: Alicia, and for a moment I thought I might have a chance to explain myself and set things right.

  "Hello?"

  A hesitant male voice on the other end informed me it wasn't Alicia calling at all. And the reason was far worse than me being a fuck-up.

  Alicia was missing.

  CHAPTER 3

  Apparently Alicia had gotten drunk, told a few people she was going for a walk around the block to clear her head, and never returned. Some of the partygoers went looking for her in the rain, but it didn't sound like there had been much steam behind the effort. No one even noticed she was gone until the party came to an end and there was an extra coat on the bed. Lisp dug around in the pockets for a clue to the owner's identification and found Alicia's cell phone.

  No one had the slightest idea as to where she'd ended up. One drunken asshole claimed to have seen Alicia outside on the porch smoking a cigarette before she headed out, but I happened to know Alicia didn't smoke.

  I got the rundown from Lisp. After he found Alicia's cell phone he called me (the honorable number one in her auto-dial menu) to see if maybe she'd made it to my place. I told him after what had happened my house would be the last place she'd end up. From his tone it was pretty obvious he didn't give a damn anyway, probably just wanted her coat out of his place so he could be done with the whole missing girl saga.

  "Do you want to come by and get thith coat or what?"

  "Yeah, I can come by and get it if you don't hear from her in the next little bit. I just hope she's okay. You sure that nobody heard her say anything about where she might be heading off to so late at night?"

  "I jutht heard thee was taking a walk. Thatth all I know. Now, you can come by anytime to pick up thith coat, jutht let me know and I'll leave it on the porch for you."

  The asshole didn't even want to hand me the jacket face to face. He was pissing me off.

  "Oh, and Alitha left her car parked down the thtreet, and if it thits there for more than a day the homeowner's athothiathon will have it towed out of here."

  That one made me want to put my foot in his ass. Instead of screaming at him and telling his ass off, I just hung up the phone. I had more important things to deal with.

  I began by awakening anyone and everyone Alicia and I both knew that lived within fifty miles. Not one was happy to hear from me. Then again, getting anyone to care about a missing drunk girl at four AM isn't exactly easy. Even Kelly, Alicia's younger sister who had moved to Virginia with her, hung up on me before I could get the whole story out. Kelly was always cold stares and short words when it came to me, and she never understood what Alicia had seen in me. She felt Alicia was dating below her social class, and treated me like something that had stuck to her shoe in a public restroom. I called her back fifteen minutes later, and you can imagine how far that got me on her good side.

  "Kelly, will you please just listen to me? Alicia's missing. Her coat, cell phone, and her car are still over there in Walnut Hill, and no one's heard a word from her since she disappeared."

  "Brian, I'll take a wild guess and say you pissed her off. Am I right?"

  "Well, there was a situation at the party and?"

  "And nothing. Hopefully she's through with you and is out taking a walk to clear her mind and figure out what in the hell she was doing with you in the first place. Don't call me back. Ever."

  "I just want to make sure she's okay and then you'll never hear from me again. I promise."

  "Face it, you must've fucked up big this time, and now you're freaking out because Alicia's moving on. Get over it."

  I slammed the phone down. It felt so good I slammed it down five or six more times, cracking the plastic up toward the ear end.

  I collapsed onto my bed and stared at the ceiling for as long as I could, running everything through my mind and trying to think clearly before finally deciding to get up, get dressed and start looking for her. I figured I probably wouldn't get far, but it beat the shit out of lying there worrying. And besides, at that point I wanted nothing more than to apologize to her and start over.

  Couldn't help but wonder if I'd ever get that chance.

  I threw on some dusty black jeans and a long-sleeved shirt with a faded-red Iron Maiden logo on the front. Then came my old black converse basketball shoes and a hooded jacket I'd gotten at an army-navy surplus shop some ten years back. The jacket was a hideous shade of faded green but fit me better than anything else I owned. Alicia had never liked my choices in clothing. My casual attire had intrigued her at first, because it was so different from the suits she was used to dating, but after a while she saw me for the slacker I was, and didn't much care for it.

  I stepped outside beneath a slate grey sky. The rain had stopped and the smell of damp pavement reminded me of the basement of the house I'd grown up in. There was a slight breeze blowing, and with it came a rush of nostalgia like I hadn't felt in ages. As years came back to me in waves, one phase of my life followed by another, my attention and thoughts were immediately swept away, replaced by another happiness, another pain. It all led to this moment. Every victory, every defeat. All of it added up to Alicia being gone.

  I stepped past my piece of shit '86 Mustang as I headed toward the road. I really shouldn't call it a Mustang, because a Mustang should always have something better than a four-cylinder engine under the hood. And a real Mustang doesn't sit there coughing for five minutes after you turn it off. It had a flat tire I was going to replace when my check came in later that week, but for the time being I'd be tracking Alicia on foot.

  I set off down the road past the dirty Confederate flag on Hank's front porch, toward the house where I'd left Alicia and her circle of friends, who I was sure were all happily asleep by then. When I got close to Myrtle's place I ran until it was out of sight.

  A short while later I reached the spot where Montrose becomes empty highway lined with trees. Now and then I'd call Alicia's name into the woods, feeling more and more foolish each time. Nothing answered but the wind.

  The woods went on for about four miles, and was the only thing separating my neighborhood and the one where the party had taken place. It amazed me how there could be such a small stretch of road between two places so different. Where I was living, people still had personality, and you never knew what to expect out of a neighbor before you met them. And having someone move in next door? That was kind of like the lottery; you hoped for someone friendly and down to earth, but now and then you'd roll snake-eyes and have to deal with a guy with multiple personalities and severe anger issues for five or ten years. There was no pressure to conform, and the people I lived around were just who they were, for better or worse.

  Lisp's neighborhood greeted you with a brick archway that read "Walnut Ridge, a Family Place," and was built to hold cloned assholes. They have a homeowners association that controls most anything you'd care to do to your house and yard, so every property ends up looking exactly the same. I never understood why your neighbors would give a shit what color your drapes are.

  The rain stopped and the world turned real quiet. Even the wind died down. I stopped for a moment and listened, my eyes tracing the dark tree line, all black and shadow in the dim morning. I had an intense feeling of being watched, and felt the hair on my arms and neck stand at attention. Discomfort turned suddenly to fear like I'd never known.

  I had to fight an urge to run, but wasn't even sure what I was frightened of. I stood as still as I could and listened.

  Something moved in the woods.

  Branches snapped. Leaves crunched. It sounded a ways off, but it was getting closer, and in a hurry. I wanted to get the hell out of
there, but instead I squared my stance in an attempt to appear as tough as I thought I was. Maybe it was just a deer cutting a path through the trees. A really big deer.

  Then I heard a rumbling down the road, and as the source of the noise drew closer I turned to see that it was just a car. An ordinary, everyday maroon Volvo station wagon. The car slowed as it got closer to me, and I could see a familiar face behind the wheel: Jessica, the girl with the giant rack who had fallen into the bookcase and become the catalyst for my troubles the night before.

  She pulled up beside me and leaned across the seat to open the passenger door. I jumped into the car, slammed the door shut behind me and muttered something idiotic like "Cold out there." Lucky for me, she let my panicky entrance slide without asking any questions, but her sheepish smile let me know I'd looked like a jackass.

  Still, a flood of relief ran through me. I was glad I wasn't standing out on that road anymore, forced to face whatever those dark woods were concealing.

  "What are you doing in the middle of the road at four in the morning?" Jessica asked.

  "Rough night."

  "Me too." Another smile crossed her full lips. Her mascara had created big circles around her eyes, like a sexy raccoon. Her messy, dark brown hair stood up off her head as if it had started to form a Mohawk but then thought better of it. I ran a hand through my own disheveled hair, and until she asked me where I needed to go I'd nearly forgotten about Alicia.

  "I'm out looking for my girlfriend," I explained. "She disappeared after that scene at the party and no one can get a hold of her."

  "You two didn't seem like you were getting along so well when you made your grand exit."

  "Yeah, but I have to make sure she's okay, even if she hates me at this point."

  "She'll probably show up on her own in a day or two. And you really look like you could use some sleep."

  "Tried that sleeping thing already and got bored counting ceiling tiles. I figured I might as well be out here doing something constructive. Right now my car's back at my place with a flat tire and no spare. It's as good as a hunk of rock with a built in cassette deck."

  "Well, I'm not sure how constructive this is, you walking ten miles of highway at dawn, but I'll bet you'd get a lot more ground covered with four wheels under you."

  "You offering?"

  She smiled again. "Where do we start?"

  "You don't have to do this, Jessica."

  "I know, but if I leave you out here in the middle of nowhere I won't be able to sleep either. Not after what happened at the party."

  I was hoping she'd say something like that.

  "What's your name?" she asked.

  "Brian. We were introduced at the party last night. You're Jessica."

  "Yeah, I remember meeting you. I was pretty drunk, but I haven't forgotten everything. You're the guy who got kicked out for having a big mouth."

  "In the flesh. I didn't mix too well there."

  "You're probably better off. That guy's parties are always pretty lame. Why do you think I drank so much?"

  I smiled at her and she laughed as we turned around and headed back toward Walnut Ridge.

  * * *

  We drove through the quaint little plastic neighborhood of Walnut Ridge, past rows of Barbie dollhouses with Astroturf lawns. Most of our hunting had been done in silence, and the few words that passed between us concerned making right or left turns, going straight or backtracking. My eyelids were growing heavier by the minute.

  It was a tough place to get acquainted with because everything looked the same. My understanding was that when someone made the decision to move into Walnut Ridge they were allowed to choose from four styles of homes with three paint options, essentially outlawing anything unique or personal.

  I hated to do it, but eventually I suggested we give up our search and get home. In all truth I figured Alicia was just fine, either home safe or shacking up with one of the guys from the party. Whatever she was up to, it involved avoiding me at all costs.

  "You want to stop and get some coffee before I get you home?" asked Jessica.

  "Yeah, I think that'd be a good idea. I could certainly use the company right now, at least until the sun comes up."

  "Cool. I don't think I could sleep now anyway."

  I was glad she made the offer. The last thing I wanted was to be alone with my guilt. And besides, Jessica was amazingly beautiful. I bet she hadn't heard the word no more than once or twice since puberty.

  We headed out of Walnut Ridge along the same road I'd been walking on an hour or so before. The pavement was still wet from the night's rain and the sun remained hidden behind a wall of ominous grey clouds. The only sound was the dull hum of the engine. As we approached the spot of highway where I'd heard noises in the woods, I peered into the dense line of trees, looking for whatever enormous animal might have been considering me for breakfast earlier on.

  I'd always been a Ford man, but I figured that night I had Volvo to thank for my salvation. I smiled at the thought and Jessica looked over at me with one of her own. Our eyes met and stayed locked for a moment, the universe moving around us in slow motion. I'd say that's just about when the world went to hell.

  Without warning, something enormous darted from the treeline heading toward the Volvo. Jessica screamed as it made a beeline for the front of the car. There must have been twenty yards or so between the road and the trees, but the damn thing made better time than a racehorse. It was bigger than a bull and quick as lightning. Jessica swerved to the left, but the thing was moving so fast, turning away from it caused her to hit it on the other side of the road.

  The car came to a screaming halt just off the edge of the pavement and my neck went forward and jerked back in a single motion. The engine whined a little then gave up as steam rose from beneath the hood. Silence surrounded us. Jessica looked over at me and said, "Shit." I couldn't have said it any better. "What the hell was that?"

  "I have no goddamn idea, but it sure as hell wasn't a deer. And my mouth is racing to say bear, but we both know that's a heap of shit too."

  "Either way, I think my car's fucked. And my neck's not doing so great either."

  "Mine's hurting too. If that thing's still alive we'll sue."

  "Should we get out and see if it's dead?"

  Of course by "we" she meant "me."

  I silently cursed my father for beating chivalry into my head as I was growing up, but I couldn't let Jessica out of that car if it meant she'd be in danger. I was scared to death of getting out too, but women rarely think of that. You're a guy, go. I felt like a ten year old kid who just got triple dog dared to jump off the roof of the barn. You knew you were going to end up hurt, but if you hoped to have any cred whatsoever, you didn't have a choice in the matter. "OK, sit tight," I said through a hard swallow, flashing the most reassuring smile I could muster.

  I opened the door slowly, climbed out and tentatively walked around to the front of the car.

  The first thing I noticed was a whole lot of blood in the road.

  The hood of the car was spattered with its fair share of it too. There was no other trace of what we'd hit, which was a bit unnerving but preferable to having to deal with some mangled carcass.

  I let out a sigh of relief.

  A loud smash beside me sent me staggering around, off-balance and stunned.

  From nowhere the enormous beast we had run into leapt up from the driver's side of the car. It was up on its hind legs, pounding and clawing at the hood from the driver's side. It looked like the creature was injured and a bit dazed from the impact, stumbling as it tried to hold onto the car for balance.

  Screaming, Jessica began fumbling to release her seatbelt.

  The beast punched a clawed fist through the driver's side window, sending a shower of beaded glass into the car. Jessica frantically pulled a can of mace from her bag and sprayed the thing in the face as she let loose another one of her piercing screams. The thing backed off and grasped its face. Its hairy h
ands were adorned with sharp, ragged claws and long fingers that appeared to have an extra joint or two more than human hands. The beast let out a bloodcurdling roar, and as it arched its back and rose to its full height of perhaps nine feet, it resembled an enormous wolf. Its fur was pitch-black, and its snout extended about a foot from the rest of its head. Hair was sparse on its stomach and chest, and the skin there looked like aged leather. Saliva fell from the monster's open jaws and tears ran from its eyes. It growled again, baring teeth that looked sharp as razors with incisors longer than my fingers.

  I made it back to the passenger door just in time to pull Jessica from the car and onto the pavement. The creature tore open the driver's-side door just as she was free of the car, and lunged across the seats, missing her by inches.

  I yelled, "Run!" and Jessica was up and bolting toward the woods, another scream trailing behind her.

  The beast was in the car now, trying to get through to me. Through the terror and disbelief of what I was seeing, my mind told me that if the beast got out of the car we'd never be able to outrun it.

  The small cab of the Volvo was making movement difficult for a creature of such size, but it managed to thrust a clawed hand out and rip my shirt. I backed away as it continued swinging its enormous limbs back and forth, trying to get hold of me. I stepped back and kicked the car door hard against its outstretched arm, which only seemed to send the beast into more of a rage. The interior of the car was destroyed in seconds, but the creature couldn't manage to free itself from the door jam, so I kept kicking the door against its arm until I heard it snap like a dry twig. The beast let loose a howl of agony that was deafening, and after a few seconds it started backing out of the car. I was covered in gore and sweat and could see the creature's black fur was glossy from the blood it had already lost. It was all instinct and reflex from here on out. Live or die. Die or live.