Chapter 4
Sleepwalker
Jack felt better the rest of the day. He almost had forgotten his nightmare last night. He finally got home around one o'clock after covering Marvin's shift. Tired as he was, Jack sat on his bed, took off his shoes and laid on his bed. Moments later, he dozed off.
At that moment, two teens, one a male blond and female of the same color hair, snuck into someone's back patio across the street. The girl giggled as the young man led her through the small flower garden.
"Hold on wait," the young woman said, "Do you think this is a good idea?"
The teen boy looked at her as they stopped briefly and answered, "Yeah sure. No one's around, every one's asleep."
The girl gave him an unsure smirk and the teen led her to a cushioned lounge chair. They both hugged and kissed for a minute until the girl heard a rustling noise and she broke their embrace.
"What was that?" she said looking around.
The boy looked too, but he replied, "It was nothing, probably the wind. Now come here." They kissed again as the teen closed his eyes. For a moment he too heard something, but this time he thought he heard footsteps. He opened his eyes and to his horror he saw a tall man with his eyes closed. Even though it was too dark to see, he only saw a silhouette of the man. The boy gasped in shock and screamed. The girl turned his her head to meet the shadow of the man and screamed too.
"How sweet," the man said darkly, "fresh meat."
He chuckle as he whipped out his hand and the teens saw that it had long sharp nails at the end of it. They thought he was some sort of queer, but before they made their conclusion, the man slashed her backside and she screamed franticly, then stabbed her and her cries stopped instantly. The boy cried too in shock, as the dark man sliced his face and neck. Blood spewed everywhere from both victims as the dark man chuckled some more then laughed like mad man. The back patio light suddenly went on and the man disappeared in the dark night, which he came from. The door opened and an old man came out dressed in his robes. He wondered what was going on out there then he saw two bodies lying on his favorite lounge chair.
"Holy," the man sputtered.
An hour later, the police arrived after the man had called them. Sergeant Bill Weller, a man in his thirties, was first to arrive at the scene. Five years in homicide and Bill had never seen such a mess. After his interview with resident Mr. Jacobs, he called his partner Detective Bell.
"Give Mr. Harper a call, he may saw something," Bell told him.
Jack again woke from his nightmare and again he saw that the claw was back on his hand. He was still shock to see it again.
'What on Earth is this thing?' He pondered, 'Why does it haunt me still?'
Suddenly the phone rang and Jack jumped to the sound of it. He started to pick it up like it was routine, but then realized that he was still wearing the glove. He immediately took it off and tossed it somewhere on the floor.
He picked up the phone and answered, "H-Hello?"
"Mr. Harper?" the voice said.
"Y-Yes?" Jack replied.
"I'm sorry to wake you at this hour." Jack looked at the time, it was one o'clock the voice continued, "My name Sergeant Weller you know my partner, Detective Bell. He told me that you've informed about the Oakley's murder last night and..."
"I told him that I didn't see anyone!" Jack interrupted.
"I know, he told me, but there has been another murder Mr. Harper," Weller informed him as Jack's face went to another shock, "Mr. Harper? You there?"
"Uh yeah," he replied. 'More murders!' he thought.
"Two teen-aged kids have been killed. Their bodies have been discover in the back patio just down the street from where you live. We are calling to see if you seen anything suspicious in the last half hour?"
"Uh, no I've been asleep," Jack, replied.
"Ok thank you very much Mr. Harper," Weller said as he hung up.
Jack hung up the phone and hung his head in grief. He couldn't understand why this was happening to him. ' That tares it,' he thought as he looked at the claws laying on the floor, 'I'm going to something that I should have done in the first place.'
He got out of his bed, grabbed the claws and made his way into the kitchen. There, he washed the blood in the sink as he did last night and looked around for an old lock box that he had. He finally found it in his hallway closet and put the gloves in it, then locked it. He then sighed in relief as he placed it back in the closet. 'No wait,' Jack wondered, 'I have a better idea.' He went in his room opened another closet and knelt down uncovering some clothes and beneath it was a safe. He smiled at him self as he opened it and placed it in with some important paper work. Jack then closed and locked it. 'Tomorrow I'll return it where I got it from,' he thought, 'then it will be over.'
Soon after Detective Bell arrived in his car. The homicide team was already there, taking pictures and looking for clues. Bell's partner went over to brief him.
"Mr. Jacobs said, he heard screaming from his back yard, came out and saw two kids on the lounge chair slashed to death," the sergeant reported, "He also claimed that he heard laughing afterwards."
Bell looked at the victims witch were untouched and said, "Good god."
"You think it's the same guy who killed the Oakleys?" Weller wondered.
"If it is, then we got serial killer problem," Bell replied, "Got any clues, footprints, anything?"
"The forensic team is still working on it," Weller replied and mumbled, "Slow ass bastards. How about you? Got any leads?"
"Well I do have one suspect," he replied, "the only person who could be connected to these murders."
"You mean that guy Jack? I already talked to him and he said he was still asleep."
"No not Jack, Freddy Kruger's only heir, a woman by the name of Maggie Burroughs. She works at that shelter on 4th and Oak."
"You don't think she did it do you?"
Bell looked at his partner and replied, "Only one way to find out."
He took a last look at the bodies before the coroners placed them in their body bags and walked to his car. The sun barely shown through the thick clouds at it rose the next morning. Jack wanted to get an early start, so he opened the safe, took out the lock box and checked to see if it was still there. He sighed in relief to see it was still there. He closed the box and headed out to his old dodge. He turned the motor over, backed out of his drive way and headed for the shelter. He wanted to get there before anyone else arrived, but at 6:00 AM barley no one's around. He unlocked the door and slipped in. It felt strange to Jack. The shelter was quiet, empty, and odd. He'd never opened it before; Maggie usually gets here before he did. He quietly made his was down the vault, unlocking the cages along the way and came to the one that the claws came from in the first place. He took the raggedy gloves out and placed it in the other box. He then suddenly heard whispers. The same whispers he heard that night before.
"What are you doing? Take it. It's your destiny," it said.
"No, NO!" Jack cried, "Leave me alone!"
"It is too late," the whispers said, "What's the matter Jack? Can't handle it? You wanted it. It's yours."
"No," Jack repeated and ran back upstairs without locking the vault back up.
Without knowing it, he accidentally bumped into Maggie and they both fell down. When Jack saw her he didn't know what to do or say. He got up then helped Maggie to her feet.
"S-sorry Maggie," Jack said.
"Its alright Jack," She said as he and Jack picked up some of Maggie's files. "What are you doing here so early?"
"I-I had to check on something in the vault," Jack replied.
"Oh," she said, but before Maggie could say another word the front door buzzed. She turned her head then back to Jack handing him some folders. "Can you hold on to this while I'll get the door?"
"Ok," Jack replied.
Maggie walked over, unlocked it and opened the front door. Before her stood Detective Bell and Sergeant Weller. Jack's heart leapt wondering what they were doing here?
"Can I help you?" Maggie asked.
"Yes, I'm Detective Bell and this is Sergeant Weller. Are you Maggie Borroughs?" he asked.
"Yes," she replied, "Is there something wrong?"
"We just need to ask you a few questions," Bell said gesturing if they can go inside, "May we?"
Maggie showed them in and Bell recognized Jack, "You work here Mr. Harper?"
Jack nodded, "Y-yes."
"Jack's been with us for a few years," Maggie informed them, "Lets talk in my office."
She led them to her office as Jack tailed them. Once Maggie closed the door, Jack listened closely. He wondered if they were talking about him, he hoped for god sake they weren't.
The two officers sat down, as did Maggie. She wondered if they were going to talk a bout her dark past.
"Mrs. Borroughs," Bell started.
"Ms. Borroughs actually," Maggie interrupted.
"Yes, anyways we are investigating the murders that happened in the last two nights. Strangely enough it seems that the killer is copying a relative of yours," Bell explained.
Maggie argued, "I don't know what you are talking about. I was an orphan. I had no other relatives."
"Not according to our records," Bell told her, "Do you have a father named Fredrick J. Kruger?"
"No, I never did," Maggie replied, feeling a bit nervous.
"Do you know the penalty for lying to an officer of the law Ms. Borroughs?" Weller asked.
"Yes I do," she replied, "But if you think I'm related to him then you are out of your mind."
"Well I'm sorry to say Ms. Bourrows we checked and you are," Bell reassured her.
Maggie knew that he was her father already, but she just stared at them blankly. She then sighed in grief.
"I knew him," she said defeatedly, "What do you want to know? You want to know if I did it?" She snickered at that thought, "My father was a sick bastard, but not me. A few years ago, a John Doe kid, from Springwood, appeared here one day. He brought something of my father's. At least I think it was my father's. It was an old garden glove with razor sharp knives attached to it. He killed two of my kids before killing himself with it. I still have the gloves down stairs in our vault. Would you like to see it?"
"Let's," Bell said as they all got up and headed for the door.
Jack backed away still holding the files. The three came out of the office as Maggie went over to Jack and acquiring her files back.
"Jack these gentlemen would like a tour of our vault," Maggie informed him, "Do you mind?"
"Uh, no," Jack replied and looked to Bell and Weller, "This way."
Bell and Weller followed Jack down a flight of steps as Maggie trailed behind after placing the files on Jen's desk. The cages were already opened as Maggie wondered why.
"I was in here before, you know straightening up," Jack explained as they entered the last cage.
"Its in that metal box Jack," She said as Jack picked it up, unlocked it and showed it to them.
"We have to bring this downtown to finger print it," Bell said.
"I don't think that would be necessary Detective," Maggie said, "No one had ever opened that box in four years since I placed it in."
"That's not entirely true," Jack said, "I sort of opened it this morning just to see what was inside. I'm sorry Ms. Borroughs."
"Its ok Jack", Maggie replied as she looked towards Bell, " As you can see no one can get in and find it."
"When I came in there were no false entry," Jack added, "Everything was locked up."
"Who else would know about this being here?" Bell asked.
"Well our former guard Mr. Marvin Hawks," Maggie replied, "We had to let him go yesterday."
"Do you know where we could find him?" Bell wondered.
"Yeah, we do keep records of our employees," Maggie informed, "Come on I'll get it for you."
Jack closed and locked the box as the two officers followed Maggie back upstairs to the reception desk. Jack sighed in relief as he closed and locked the cages. If the police had found his prints on the glove, who knows what they would've done to him, he would probably go to jail or worse. As much as he would of like to give it to them and turned him self in, no one would believe him why he would murder those people. He looked back towards the box in the cage, briefly closed his eyes and sighed. He then went back up stairs to join with the others.
"We'll be in touch Ms. Borroughs," Bell said as he and his partner left.
Maggie looked at Jack as he glanced back at her and said, "So, you really are Freddy Kruger's daughter huh?"
"You listened to our conversation?" Maggie wondered.
"I'm sorry, I just was worried about you," Jack replied.
"It's ok Jack, and yes, he was my father, but I didn't kill those people," Maggie explained.
"You don't think Marvin did it, do you?" Jack inquired.
"I don't know Jack, I really don't know," Maggie said, "But to be on the safe side, I need you to do one important thing for me. I need you to stay here all night to guard that glove. If it is Marvin, I want to know it."
"All night?" Jack wondered, "I don't think…"
"Jack please, I know what that glove can do. I need you," Maggie pleaded.
Jack didn't want to be here with that cursed glove especially with the kids here and Maggie, but what choice did he have? He wanted to tell Maggie about him and the glove, but he didn't want to hurt her, or ruin their friendship.
After a long pause think about it he replied, "Alright, I'll- I'll guard it."
Maggie smiled to him, "Thank you Jack. I really appreciate this."