Chapter 1
Although her windshield wipers were on high, she could barely see the road in front of her. The thunderstorm, beating against the glass, was totally unrelenting.
But so was her willpower.
She had driven all night to get there; almost wrecking twice. She hadn't been there for almost fifteen years and even wondered if she would remember the directions, but there are some things you never forget. Once she arrived, she pulled the shovel from the back of her car, walked over to where her memory told her that she had been buried, and started digging.
Nothing could deter her, not even the tears that kept blurring her vision. Occasionally, when it reached a point where she couldn't see, she would have to pause just long enough to wipe them away, but then she would continue digging.
Because of the rain, her job was taking longer than usual…for every two shovels full of dirt that she removed, the water would wash one back down.
This only made her resolve that much stronger.
"I know she's here." She kept saying.
It was like a mantra in her head; forcing her to keep digging even though the hole was deeper than the one in her dreams.
Finally, the shovel struck something, and she realized that her efforts were not in vain, not that she ever doubted they would be.
She threw the shovel to the side and began digging with her hands, gradually revealing a small box.
Opening the lid, she reached inside.
The alarm clock started screaming, and he grudgingly reached over and shut it off. He was tempted to hit snooze, but knew his wife wouldn't like it if it went off again.
He laid there a few minutes before resigning himself to another work day.
"Damn." He thought as he threw the sheets aside. "Another Monday."
He rolled over and looked at his wife, who, if her expression were any indication, was thinking the same thing.
From the kitchen, he could smell the coffee that the automatic timer had started making about ten minutes ago.
"What do you want for breakfast?" His wife asked as he stumbled to the bathroom to wash up and brush his teeth.
"Cereal will be fine." He told her. He was really in the mood for eggs and bacon, but he knew how much she hated cooking on Mondays.
He heard her go to the kitchen.
He grabbed the uniform that he had set out before going to bed and began to put it on when she called him.
"I'll be out in a minute." He yelled.
"No." She called back, and he could hear the worry in her voice. "Get out here, NOW."
He had only gotten his trousers on, so he fastened them up as he went to see what the problem was.
She was pointing out the window over the sink.
"What is it?" He asked, walking up to her.
When he looked where she was pointing, he saw someone sitting in his back yard.
"What the Hell?" He asked to no one in particular and grabbed the baseball bat that they kept by each door…he was gone a lot, and his wife had wanted them "Just in case."
As he approached the person, bat at the ready, he noticed the shovel lying nearby, then realized that there was an awful lot of dirt lying around.
As he got closer, he noticed the hole that had been dug.
"Great." He thought. "One more thing for the landlord to charge us for."
What he had assumed to be a male turned out to be a female, sitting in the mud, rocking back and forth, and talking to herself as she clutched something.
"Miss?" He asked. "Are you OK?"
She seemed to be saying something like. "It's OK…they can't hurt you now." Over and over again.
He tightened his grip on the bat and circled around in front of her.
When he saw what she was holding, his eyes went wide.
"Susie! Call 911." He yelled.
He looked back at the skull in the woman's hands.
He wasn't a Doctor…but it sure looked human.