Peril in the Park: A Hemisphere Story (A Hemisphere Story: Book 1)

by G Oldman

  Instead he said, "Oh was everything OK with your walk home?"

  The three looked at each other before Peter answer for them, "Yeah. It was fine. The park is spooky at night. I wish we would have brought flashlights but next time we will be better prepared."

  "I haven't seen you since I left for work this morning. My first call today, a dog attacked a woman in that park last night. A big dog bit both of her legs."

  The kids exchanged a wide eyed look. Peter rubbed his teeth with his tongue while trying to think of what to say next.

  Edmund who never wanted to endure a silence unless asleep, piped in, "Hey Dad. Do you believe in angels?"

  Daniel frowned and slowly said, "Yes, what brings that up?"

  The kids said nothing so Daniel went on, "They are referenced in scripture repeatedly and must be scary to see. Every time they appear, they have to tell folks, 'Don't be afraid.'"

  "Nothing," said Peter quickly to change the subject. They needed to get their stories straight before Dad caught on to what happened. "Hey, don't you need to go to work?"

  Daniel sighed, "Yeah. Working third shift three nights a week at that big box store is a pain in the neck. It never is a convenient time. Young lady, you and I need to talk about Fairy when I get back."

  "Dad, his name was Gary."

  "Right, that's what I said." He gave her a wink, "You three be good. There is food in the kitchen if you are still hungry."

  They watched their Dad leave the house and get in his car. The store was on the outskirts of town and is technically in a different county. But it still had a Hemisphere address. It was the only place open twenty four hours for fifty miles around the town.

  Peter looked at his siblings, "Are we going to tell Dad what happened?"

  "Maybe," yawned Edmund. "But not until I get some sleep. I'm worn out."

  The others agreed and trudged up to their rooms.

  Edmund stopped at the top of the stairs and turned to face his siblings, "You know what I want to do tomorrow after school? Try out one of those plaques."

  Susan and Peter just smiled.

  Chapter 7: Time Clocks, Boxes and Bears

  Daniel got to work before the start of his shift. He went to the back to clock in. The first person he saw in the break room was the assistant manager, Elwood McKinnley. He was leaning up against the time card machine.

  "Hello Elwood. What do you have for me today?"

  "I was waiting on you. We got a truck coming in that needs to unload in the warehouse. It should be here any minute."

  "Great. I will head back and wait on him."

  Elwood looked worried. "Um, look. Just don't open the back door until you hear them honk, OK?"

  This caught Daniel off guard. "OK, why?"

  Elwood looked to his right and left to make sure no one was listening to them. They were the only people in the break room so it was a bit ridiculous.

  "Look, I know you are a cop but you are new in town. There are some strange things that can happen here in Hemisphere. One time a bear ran into the warehouse area when someone left the door open. I don't want to deal with that again."

  "Yeah, sure Elwood. I'll wait till they honk."

  Daniel made his way to the warehouse after clocking in. The back room was tall and lined with rows of shelving units. There was enough space for a small forklift to drive between the isles. He walked through and noticed that there was no one else there. He reached the loading bay. There was the loser that he expected to find there.

  "Hey, Daren. What are you doing?" asked a smirking Daniel.

  Daren jumped. He had an 'oh shit' look on his face when Daniel startled him out of whatever day dream he was having. The kid dropped his cigarette, and it fell down his shirt. He popped up from the top of the bale he was slacking on and grabbed at the front of his uniform.

  "Ah, crap. Dang that hurts."

  Daniel chuckled, "Well you just ruined Elwood's zero accident record."

  "Hilarious. What brings you back here to my domain?"

  "We are getting a shipment in today."

  Daren's face dropped. "Oh, man. I try to take off on those days. Elwood's such a prick. He did this on purpose, dude."

  "What do you mean? It's just a truck with stuff for the store on it. What is the big deal?"

  "Oh yeah, you are still new here. You don't remember what happened at the store five years ago. Damn, that was messed up."

  "Wait, a minute. What happened? Elwood mentioned something about a bear."

  Daren shook the cigarette out of his shirt and crushed it out on the ground. He looked around to make sure they were alone.

  "Hey, this isn't that goofy story Elwood tried to pass off saying a bear ran in when they left the doors open." Daren rubbed sweat off of his forehead. He looked more serious than Daniel had ever seen him. He swallowed hard before continuing.

  "Look dude, we aren't supposed to talk about it, OK? I mean the company made us sign stuff and everything. But I tell you this, it was no damn bear. Oh, it was big and hairy but having four arms kinda rules out bears if you get my meaning. It tore into the warehouse and killed the new kid. Ripped him in half. I ran like my life depended on it. The old manager kept a shotgun in the office. He came out and put three loads of buck shot into it and it didn't stop. He picked him up and threw him against one of the shelving racks. Busted the dude's back. They locked down the back room and waited for it to leave. It freaking ate the kid. I mean literally, it ate him. The kid didn't have any family. He drifted into town and got a job here. We became friends, and we shared a few...."

  Daren looked up and realized he was talking to a police officer who was moonlighting at the store.

  "... cigarettes. That is all I know."

  Daniel gave him his best knowing look, "Sure. I'm not going to arrest you on hearsay on what may have happened five years ago. Smoke nothing recreational on the job or where I can see it, and we won't have any problems."

  "Uh, thanks?"

  "When does the truck normally get here?"

  Daren looked at his cheap Casio watch. "Dude, any time now."

  Daniel went to the side door and looked through its window. His throat went dry. He opened and closed his mouth several times before he could speak.

  "Uh, Daren, you said four arms, right?"

  "Yeah, man. Four arms."

  "How many eyes?"

  "What?"

  "How many eyes did it have?"

  "I don't know. Two I guess."

  "Oh, that's good. Cause the bear that isn't a bear I am looking at has six."

  "What!" exclaimed Daren.

  "Take a look."

  When Daren looked through the window, there it was raiding the dumpster. All four arms, two legs and six eyes of it. The trash was full of expired meat thrown out by the day shift.

  "Daren, go tell Elwood about this. He has to notify the truck. They can't come back here with that thing in the way."

  Daren didn't have to be told twice. His footsteps receded into the distance.

  Daniel's hand went to the small of his back where he kept his pistol. This wasn't the nine millimeter that was the police issue here. It was an old Colt Series Seventy model nineteen eleven. He had it loaded with ball ammo in the belief you stop things better with two holes in it rather than one. Plus ball was way cheaper than hollow point rounds. He was on a budget. The bad guys would just have to put up with being shot by cheap ammunition.

  In a smooth motion he drew the pistol and chambered a round. He held the Colt in a high ready position up against his chest and watched the animal or whatever it was.

  Running footsteps sounded behind him.

  Elwood said in a panic, "It's back?"

  "I guess so."

  "Hey, what are you doing with a gun? Store policy prohibits having a firearm at work."

  Turning away from the window, Daniel raised an eyebrow at the store manager. With slight disdain in his voice he said, "I'm a police officer. I can carry when I am off duty anywhere
I like. Is there a way to get up to the roof from the inside?"

  Elwood looked at him as if he were nuts. The pistol was suddenly forgotten. "Yeah, over there is a ladder on the wall that runs up to an access hatch on the roof. Why?"

  "If I can get an angle on it from the roof, I might scare it off before the truck gets here and those truckers get hurt."

  "Oh. That seems sensible. Sure."

  Daniel pointed to the shotgun in Elwood's hands, "What is that loaded with?"

  "Um, bullets."

  Daniel cocked his head and stared at the man. "What type of shells are in it? Bird shot, buck shot or slugs?"

  Daniel realized he was talking rather harshly to the man who was his boss here. He needed to tone down his irritation as he needed this job. Daniel took a deep breath before he yelled at him.

  Elwood was flustered. "I don't know. They are the ones that were in it."

  In a calm tone, Daniel said, "Let me see it, please."

  Elwood handed the shotgun to Daniel. He holstered his pistol and racked the shotgun to eject a round. None came out. He checked the chamber and saw no shells.

  Handing the weapon back to the manager, "There are no shells in this shotgun. You are the proud owner of a club."

  A wide eyed Elwood accepted the shotgun. Daren held his fist up to his mouth to keep from laughing.

  Thinking quickly, Daniel started to plan. "Look, you can take items off the shelf for store use, right?"

  Elwood nodded his head. He looked like one of those bobble head dolls they give away at baseball games.

  "Go into sporting goods and get a box of 12 Gauge OO buck shot. Leave the shotgun with Daren so you don't upset the customers."

  "Yeah, good idea," said Elwood. He handed over the shotgun and fled.

  Daren just stared at Daniel in awe. They both returned to the window. The beast was still eating the spoiled meat.

  "I'm going to get on the roof. Watch that thing and yell out if it does something."

  "Um, OK. Like what?"

  Daniel didn't answer and ran off for the roof access. It took a bit to get past the security enclosure in place to prevent the unauthorized from climbing the ladder. But soon he was heading up to the top of the building.

  On the roof he ran to the edge of the building and looked down. The creature still fished spoiled meat from the garbage.

  Drawing his weapon, Daniel took slow and careful aim. A noise came from below him. He glanced down over the side and saw the door opening.

  "What the hell are they up to?"

  The shotgun's barrel poked through the doorway.

  His voice had a hushed tone of awe as he said, "They can't be that stupid. There just isn't any way."

  Boom! The shotgun barked and the bear creature flinched and turned its full attention to the doorway. To give Elwood and Daren some credit, they pulled the door closed with extreme alacrity. The monster charged them and slammed into it. The doorway held but it couldn't hold out for another hit like that.

  Daniel aimed. He fired three shots rapidly. The bear flinched as at least two rounds impacted. It looked up at Daniel and roared at him. Not wasting the opportunity, Daniel fired three more times. Each measured and aimed which netted him three more impacts.

  The troubling aspect was after taking a shotgun blast and at least four hits with a forty-five, the beast was still standing and looking mean. Only one of Daniel's shots seemed to have done any good as the pool of light from the nearby street lamp illuminated the creature's face. One of its six eyes lay in bloody ruins. At least the creature could be hurt.

  The bear creature roared again. Daniel fired the last shot in his magazine and hit the inside of the creature's mouth. This caused it to shake its head violently and back up a few steps. The beast looked as if it would roar again at Daniel but instead turned and ran off into the woods behind the store.

  Daniel changed magazines on his pistol and waited. He scanned the tree line looking for signs of the creature. He waited for what seemed like five minutes. Soon the sounds of a large truck rumbled in the distance, and the headlights shone around the corner as the semi truck had arrived.

  Daniel holstered his pistol and ran back downstairs.

  Chapter 8: Revelations

  They had the doors open and were emptying the truck very quickly. The driver made a comment about them being more motivated that usual today. Even Elwood was helping Daren and Daniel. No one mentioned the bear creature in front of the truckdriver.

  With the truck unloaded, the trucker had Elwood sign the paperwork, and left. The rolling delivery door was down and shut before the semi had moved ten feet.

  In the back of the room, the three men stood and looked at the door. It was bent in middle which left the top and bottom poking outside. One more hit and the monster would have been inside the warehouse.

  Elwood started to shake. Daren lit up a cigarette and Elwood took one from him instead of scolding him on it. Daniel was the first to break the silence.

  "That was interesting. What was that thing? I assume that's what broke in before?"

  Daren looked to Elwood and shrugged, "You tell him, boss."

  Taking out his cigarette he rubbed his face with his hands.

  "We don't know. They have been in these hills now for years. They hide during the day and come out at night. Hunters never see them in the light during deer season. They stay close to town but never go into Hemisphere. The original settlement was made by some Canadians back before the French and Indian War."

  Daren looked confused, "Why did the French declare war on the Indians? That doesn't make sense. They are all the way in France. The Indians were all over here."

  Both Daniel and Elwood gave Daren a shut up look.

  "The French and Indian War happened before our Revolution, Daren. It was the French fighting the British with the Indians picking sides who they wanted to support. But that's beside the point. In the town archives, the priest was brought in to help. He described these beasts and what was done to drive them out. All he could do was force them out of Hemisphere. They found no way to kill them. They had no idea how many there were. We keep it under wraps or no one would move here. We see them here because we are outside of the city limits."

  "Any idea where they come from?"

  "Hell? At least that is what Father Paulo Lazard speculated. I haven't read the book. I only know what the rumors say and some are too outlandish to be real. It's in the archives at the town hall."

  "Let's pretend I believe that. How does a creature from Hell, end up here in Hemisphere? On vacation?"

  "Er, no. The rumors say there were three tribes of Indians that lived on this stretch of land prior to the arrival of the French. They were always at war. One had a powerful medicine man who wanted his people to win, permanently. He did something, whatever medicine men do, and opened a portal between here and Hell. Some creatures slipped out of the rift. The other Indians were so freaked out by what he did; they got allies and wiped out their entire tribe. Somewhere here, the opening still exists. In Hemisphere, strange things happen. We all think it is because of whatever the shaman did."

  They all sat still for a few moments. Then Elwood laughed.

  "You know, I have talked more about this stuff in the last ten minutes than I have in the rest of my life combined. No one talks about it. It's something about this town. Hemisphere draws you to it and you don't want to leave, even with the weird shit. It really is a good place to live."

  "Yeah, man. That is kinda how it is," chimed in Daren.

  With a pat on Daniel's arm, he said "Thanks man. You saved our lives. But please, don't bring this up again to anybody."

  With that Elwood walked away with the shotgun.

  "What do you think of your new town now?" said Daren as he exhaled a plume of smoke. In the pale light of the warehouse, the plume of smoke and shadows on his face cast a sinister tone to Daren that made Daniel uneasy.

  "I think it's going to be an interesting place."

&
nbsp; Both men got up to return to their work. Daniel moved the boxes to where they belonged and out on the shelves. Daren pulled out a joint and resumed dodging responsibility. Daniel left him alone.

  Chapter 9: Education

  Peter, Susan and Edmund talked about what they were going to do after school the next day over breakfast. Dad had come in late from work and wasn't up yet. He would be soon and they didn't want him to overhear.

  Peter started first, "I think we need to look up what that dog was in the library. There has to be something about it around somewhere here."

  "I think the only place you will find it is in the Monster Manual from that role playing game," offered Edmund.

  "You know, it wouldn't hurt to look at odd ball sources. Heck, they had to get the ideas somewhere. See if you can find one of those and check it out Edmund."

  Edmund looked at his sister as if she sprouted two heads. "Are you for real?"

  "Sure," she shrugged, "Why not. Look, it isn't going to be in the World Book Encyclopedia for crying out loud. This is weird and freaky. We would never have heard of such a thing back in Atlanta or anywhere else for that matter. I think we only will find info on it in odd places."

  "That makes sense I guess. There are some guys at school who play the game. I'll ask them if they have a manual."

  Peter nodded, "It's a start. We will see where we can go from there. Alright, we need to take off to get to school on time. Let's meet up at Big Ed's after class and talk about what we found."

  The day passed rather slowly. By the time they met up at Big Ed's it was approaching four o'clock.

  Once they all were at a table, they placed their order for french fries and shakes. Peter broke the ice.

  "Did anyone find anything? I struck out."

  Susan shook her head, "There is nothing in our library that fit the bill. And it isn't like we can ask the librarian about it."

  Edmund looked between his siblings, "Really? Two minutes. It took me two minutes to find Orthrus. Didn't you try Google? Come on guys, did you even look?"