The Skin Worshipper

by RB Schalin

Chapter 5

  Alex looks up at the sky. It’s getting dark and he and the kids are tired. They have walked for almost six hours straight, going as fast as they can through the dense forest. Only stopping for short breaks to drink water and have something to eat. The night is coming fast and he decides to stop here and make camp. He figures they have another four hour hike in the morning before they reach the road back to the center.

  They had talked a lot about what they had found during the day, and they are all scared. The consensus is that whoever built the cabin and placed the bleeding mannequins in it is not right in the head.

  "We stay here for the night," he says and drops his backpack on the ground.

  "Jesus, I’m tired," says Jenna and lies down, using her pack as a pillow.

  "Are you sure this is safe, I mean we don’t know if we are being followed?" asks Marlon.

  Maria looks at him with contempt, and says," for being a badass from the hood you sure sound like a pussy."

  "Fuck off, Maria."

  She chuckles and sits down where Jenna is lying. "How are you feeling chica?"

  "Like shit."

  "We’ll be all right."

  Jenna looks at her and says, "why? Because you say so?"

  "No, because I know so. I’ve been in worse situations and have always made it out."

  "Uh-huh."

  Alex takes a walk around the area, but can’t see or hear anything. He tries his phone again, but still no signal. He goes back and sits down among the group.

  Pepe takes a drink from his canteen and after putting it back in his backpack says, "shouldn’t we take turns being awake? Like a lookout?"

  "Not a bad idea," says Alex.

  He will stay awake until midnight then Pepe followed by Jordi, and Maria will take the last shift. Marlon and Jenna will hopefully be able to sleep all-night.

  "This is bullshit, why do I have to be awake and she can sleep?" asks Maria, pointing her thumb at the already sleeping Jenna.

  "Because you are you, and I trust you," says Alex with a grin.

  The group settles down and when it’s dark everyone except Alex is asleep.

  Kerry is hunched down behind a tree twenty yards away, his nose twitches and he breathes in the smell of sweat and deodorant. He caught up with the group after just an hour and followed them. Staying behind them and moving from one tree to the next on bare feet. He had stopped by an overturned tree where some water had collected during the last rain. Mixing soil from the ground with a little water he had used the mud to painted long strips along his body and face. When it dried it itched, but his mind puts the feeling away and he is now virtually invisible in the darkness.

  He moves a bit closer and watches the only grown up leaning against a tree, his eyes are open and looking into the darkness. Did he hear him? Doubtful, Kerry knows he is as silent as can be, there is no way the man had heard him. He moves to his right and circles the group.

  Alex thinks he heard something, like a twig breaking, but when he listens more intently he can’t hear a thing. Must have been a small animal, he thinks. He looks at his watch, still an hour left until it’s time to wake up Pepe. The kids are sleeping around him. Marlon snores a little and fidgets in his sleep.

  Kerry crawls up to the white girl on the ground. He is just behind her head lying on the ground. From here he can smell her and the dark skinned girl beside her. They smell different; he doesn’t like the smell coming off the white girl. From where he is he can see her skin is old beyond her years, her hair is damaged, and he decides she is useless. Slowly pulling one of the wooden spikes from his leg, he lets the sharp tip barely touch her skin where her right carotid artery is. He pricks the skin-deep enough to draw a drop of blood. The girl twitches, and then lies still. He listens, and hears how she exhales out, and then she is no more.

  Alex turns his head and looks over where Jenna is sleeping, she had just moved a little. He yawns and settles back against the tree to wait for midnight.

  Kerry moves backwards slowly, then turns around and crawls away. When he has crawled far enough he leans against a trunk and settles in for the night.

  "Rise and shine people, we have another few hours to walk, " says Alex stretching his body.

  "My body hurts like hell," says Marlon sitting up.

  Maria is drinking some water and eating a power bar, she has been awake for hours since Pepe woke her up.

  The night was quiet, she didn’t hear a thing, and now she can’t wait to get moving so they can get back to civilization, and away from this place.

  "Hey, Jenna, time to wake up," says Alex nudging her foot with his.

  She doesn’t move, just keeps on sleeping.

  "Jenna, C’mon get up, we have to go," says Alex bending down and shaking her.

  Jenna's head rolls in an unnatural manner and her mouth falls open, a spider crawls out.

  "What the fuck," says Jordi who is sitting next to her, putting on his shoes.

  Alex jumps back and looks down at the young girl. He bends down brushing away the spider that is walking up over her closed eyes towards her hair. He touches her cheek, it’s cool and dry. He feels for a pulse, nothing.

  "Is she dead?" asks Marlon standing next to him.

  Alex turns around and looks at them, and says, "yeah, she is."

  "How is that possible, she was fine last night, a bit tired sure, but she wasn’t sick," says Maria.

  "I have no idea, maybe her body was weaker than I thought because of the drug abuse, but the doctor said she would be fine. I don’t get it."

  They are silent for a while and then Pepe asks the obvious. "How do we take her with us?"

  Alex thinks for a while, walking around in a tight circle, the others watch him intensely. Then he stops and sighs, and looking at them he says, "we have to leave her here. We can cut markers in the trees from here on to the road, and that way I can come back with help and bring her back."

  "No man, we can’t just leave her here. There might be wild animals around, they could eat her," says Pepe.

  "I doubt a bear or a mountain lion will find her in less than eight hours that it will take me to come back with help. As soon as we are on the main road out of here I can call for an ambulance and police," he says.

  They are all quiet, and then Maria clears her throat and says, "let’s go."

  They grab their packs and Alex leads the way as the group continues through the trees.

  Kerry watches them from his hiding place and smiles. The man the other calls Alex has no idea where he is, there are at least eight hours walk to the main road, not four. He looks up at the sky and his nose twitches, rain he thinks. The sky is cloudy, and the wind is picking up a little, rustling the tree crowns. He smiles, he loves hunting in the rain.