Chapter 17: Reunion
Mark saw the road sign ahead and signaled, "We're almost there." They turned off onto a quiet road. Thom relaxed into his seat. He was trying to stay calm and not get over worked about what was happening. His mind was rushing with thoughts. Tons of tiny explosions were going off in his head as he made connections and realizations.
Mark rolled down his window and felt the cool air blow through his hair. He studied the roadsides as they drove. Mark watched the dark autumn leaves sway and fall from the shadowed trees. He felt the moist air now cold from the rain. Mark thought about his wife Grace and their daughter Anna.
He smiled to himself as he looked at his watch. It was already 9:45. Where had the time gone? Mark took a deep breath and exhaled through his nose. He thought about Grace. She was probably asleep by now, quietly snoring in her rocking chair next to Anna's crib, a children's book still open in her lap, a warm bottle of milk resting next to Anna's slumbering form.
Mark looked over to Thom who was stewing in his seat. Still brooding about Myers Mark thought. And why shouldn't he be? In one night all hell had broken loose in this town...again. Mark's face changed, as his thoughts grew dark. How many people had died two years ago? How many families had he had to speak with, telling them their beloved son or daughter had been murdered by the town's bloody mascot.
Mark's hands tightened around the steering wheel as he smoldered. This was his town. He's spent the last decade or so protecting it. He grew up here. Haddonfield used to be such a nice little town. As a child, Mark used to complain about how there was never enough action in town. Well, he'd had his fair share tonight.
Sheriff Grayson turned right at a stop sign and looked ahead, "We're here." Thom looked ahead and saw the building out in the darkness, past the fog, "Smith's Grove."
Jesse had convinced her parents to let her go over to Dan's house once more. They were obviously hesitant because of what happened earlier that night. Her parents agreed to drive her themselves, to the Doyle residence.
She stepped out of the car as her mother rolled down the front passenger window, "Jess...don't be long ok?" Jess looked over her shoulder and saw the menacing house now bathed in the red and blue lights emanating from the police cars. She shivered as she looked at the web of yellow police tape surrounding the yard.
Jesse looked back to her mom and forced a smile, "I wont mom. I just have to let Dan know that I'm here for him." Jesse's dad looked up from the steering wheel and said, "Couldn't you have just called him hun?" Jesse shook her head, "No, I need to see him. I need to be with him right now. We've been through so much tonight...together. I can't leave him alone just yet."
Her mother sighed but looked to Jesse's dad, "It'll be ok dear. Just let her go." Her father thought a moment and said sternly, "Ten minutes. I mean it Jesse, be back out here in ten minutes." Jesse could tell how worried her parents were so she quietly nodded and turned to walk away.
Her mother called out once more, "Jesse?" Jesse looked back, her mother had pleading eyes "I love you." Jesse's eyes were bleak, she felt tears coming but forced them back. She would not cry in front of her parents. She took a deep breath and said, "I love you to mom. Ten minutes. I promise." She turned and walked up over the curb and onto the Doyle's yard. Her parent's car sat idling quietly, exhaust slowly pouring out of their car.
Jesse walked over the cold grass and heard it break under her sneakers. The air was cold and damp from the rain. She could see her breath. She looked up into the black sky and sighed. A light fog had emerged from the storm and cast an eerie haze around the neighborhood. Jesse walked up to the Doyle's front door, a large white door with a window at the top. She stood at the doorway a moment, working up the courage, and then she slowly knocked.
The loud clang broke the stillness of the night. She waited impatiently growing more and more anxious until a figure appeared through the window. The door unlocked and opened to reveal the tired form of Kara. Jesse could see the poor woman's frailties in all their plain glory. Her hair slightly messed and pulled into a ponytail. Her glasses hid the saddened eyes of a broken mother. Jesse felt an instant jolt of sympathy and immediately stepped forward and embraced Kara tightly.
Kara was taken aback by this sudden jester of kindness and reluctantly placed an arm around Jesse's back. Jesse spoke innocently, like a little girl, "Kara, I'm so sorry for what's happened to your family tonight, to all of us. If there's anything I can do..." Kara smiled warmly as she released the young woman from their embrace, "I know, thank you Jesse. I think Dan is the one who you could help the most. Do you want to come in?" Jesse bowed her head down politely and entered the shattered home.
Kara stepped aside and looked away in shame as she closed the door. Jesse stared at the living room, what was left of it. The once elegant coffee table now shattered to pieces. The television and entertainment center were now in splintered fragments of their former selves. Jesse looked down and saw the red stains in the floor. She quickly looked back up and tried to forget the sight. Kara walked forward, "Sorry about the mess..."
Jesse looked at the staircase and said, "Is Dan upstairs?" Kara walked over to the couch as she spoke, "Yeah, he was pretty upset about it all, especially Stephen." Jesse turned and looked at the older woman, "How is he? Stephen I mean. Have you heard anything yet?" Kara looked down at her shaky hands and sighed, "No, nothing yet. They must still be in surgery or something. Our phone's not working right now anyways but the police said they'd inform us as soon as they heard anything.
Jesse looked into the kitchen where several officers were writing notes down and speaking in walkie-talkies, "When are they leaving?" Kara turned and looked at the cops, "I don't know, probably not until Thom and the others come back." Jesse started up the stairs and Kara stood up and slowly motioned, "H-he might be sleeping." Jesse looked at her and nodded, "Are you alright?" Kara was obviously not but she smiled and nodded, "Yeah, I will be as soon as Thom and Stephen get back safe and sound."
Jesse turned her attention back to the staircase. She started walking up them. She saw the blood on the walls a she stepped further up into the second floor of the house. She kept her eyes straight ahead to avoid the sight of the blood. She gasped to herself as she saw the attic ladder and wall covered in blood. She looked down at the ground and closed her eyes tightly as she reached the top of the stairs. Jesse quickly turned and crept under the yellow tape blocking off the hallway. She reached Dan's door and knocked, "Dan? It's Jesse, can I come in?"
The wooden door slowly creaked open. No light escaped the room. Jesse slowly leaned forward so try and see into it better, "Dan?" She stepped into the dark room. Jesse grew stiff as she looked around. All of Dan's posters had been torn off his walls. His bed sheets were strewn about the floor; Jesse grew worried and spoke again, "Dan?" She looked at the corner of the bedroom, near his closet and saw Dan sitting on the ground with his hands wrapped around his knees.
Jesse felt a deep numbing pain in her heart as she saw her love cradling his broken form. She walked over to him and knelt down. She put her hands on Dan's face. His skin was cold and clammy. Jesse brushed his damp bangs away from his hidden face. She drew his face close to hers with her fingers. Dan looked at her, not at her but...through her. Jesse spoke, "Babe, it's ok. I'm here, you're not alone ok?" Dan didn't speak, he just stared right through her, past her body, through the wall and past the house. He looked straight into the darkness bleeding from his soul.
Daniel Strode was nearly gone and Jesse tried with all her might to pull him back to reality. "I'm going to turn on the light ok?" Jesse slowly backed up and turned around. She walked over to the light switch. Dan slowly rose to his feet. A blank emotionless face stared at Jessica Taylor as she fumbled with the light switch. Her back turned away from the growing evil behind her. Dan breathed heavily. Jesse flicked the switch on and off a few more times then sighed and gave up. She turned and was surprised by the tall shape staring at her, "Oh! Dan...are you ok?" Dan stood staring at her and breathing. He didn't make a sound.
Jesse shivered, something about her boyfriend was making her very uneasy, "Look, if you don't want to talk to me it's ok...I'll just leave." She waited for an answer but only got the sound of shallow breathing. Jesse felt a tiny flicker of panic shoot through her body. She suddenly wanted to get out of this room, out of this house. I um...think I'm gonna go Dan. Call me in the morning." She backed up and bumped into the wall and jumped. She slowly slid over to the door and stepped back into the hallway. Jesse looked at her boyfriend and slowly closed the door. She turned around and fell against the door. She took a few breaths and then walked back over to the stairs rather hastily.
Kara was sitting in the living room quietly thinking. Two policemen walked past her and went into the kitchen. She didn't look up as they went by, all she did was close her eyes and run her hands through her red hair. She thought about Dan and how odd it had been when she was talking to him. He seemed normal enough but something had just been...off Kara had gotten a very cold feeling when she was near her son and she couldn't explain why. What she did know though, was that the feeling was getting stronger as the night continued.
Kara heard footsteps and looked up at the staircase. She watched in surprise as Jesse came hurriedly down the steps. Kara stood up and walked over to Jesse who looked flustered and uneasy. The girl looked as if she'd seen a ghost. Kara reached for Jesse's shoulder but the girl flinched. Kara frowned and inquired, "Are you all right Jesse? Did you talk to Dan?" Jesse quickly looked up into Kara's eyes and said, "Yeah uh, he's fine. Just tired which I guess I sorta am too. I uh, my parents are waiting so I really have to go now Mrs. Doyle." Jesse was rambling and Kara could tell she was shaken up.
Jesse walked over to the front door and fumbled with the doorknob. Kara looked down at the girls hands curiously as she struggled to open the door. Jesse was becoming agitated with the difficult door handle and Kara leaned forward to help. She slowly unlocked the latch and the door opened. Jesse quickly stepped outside and gave Kara a quick wave, "I uh, I'll come visit tomorrow ok? Ok, bye and goodnight." Jesse turned and started walking towards her parent's car. Kara stood in the doorway watching in confusion as the young blonde girl picked up pace. She glanced back at Kara then quickly got into the back seat of the car.
Jesse sat down in the back seat and closed the door; she was slightly shaking and trying to calm down. Her mother looked back at her, "Jesse? Are you ok? What happened in there?" Jesse looked out the window and saw Kara standing in the doorway.
The first few drops of a new storm began painting the streets as Jesse stared out of the glazed car window. She saw the expression on Mrs. Doyle's pale face. Jesse weakly reached up and placed a hand on the window. Kara lifted a saddened arm and half waved as the car drove away.
The rain increased as Kara pulled back and stepped back into her wrecked home. She stared out into the neighborhood. The quiet homes of happy families taunted her. Kara frowned as she looked out into this 'safe' suburban farce. A lot of good this happy visage had done for her and her family. She and Thom had a few rough patches over the years but in the end, he saved her life and her sons. She loved him for that and she had to fight to maintain the happy family for her children.
Kara hadn't had a pleasant upbringing. Her father had been a miserable drunk as far back as she could remember. He was a cruel and bitter man who took his own misfortunes out on her and her mother and brother. Kara had grown up learning the might of his fist and the savagery of his lust. Many nights Kara had blocked out, nights of unwelcome bedtime visits from her father.
Kara and her brother Tim had grown accustomed to seeing the bruises on their mother, her excuses became routine. Apparently Debra Strode was a very clumsy woman for she was known to walk into doors at least three or four times a week, so she claimed.
Kara and her brother had begun to distance themselves from what was really happening to their mother. Tim would just ignore the bruises and pretend everything was fine. Kara found it harder to disregard, as she would often find herself with the same unexplainable bruises from being 'clumsy'.
Clumsy, that's what the family learned to call it when someone displeased their father. By the time Kara was seventeen she had had enough. She packed her suitcase and left town for more than five years. She said goodbye to her brother and mother and left one stormy night while her father was passed out in his recliner with a bottle of liquor in one hand, and a bloody fist in the other.
Kara tried to convince her mother to come with her but Debra just smiled sweetly trying to hide the tears as she held the tissues over her broken nose. Tim had just run to his room and turned the volume on his stereo as high as he could bear, which at the time was fairly high.
Some might say that Kara had just given up, others might say she ran out on her family, but most who know her well enough know the best word to describe her departure would be 'escape'. Kara escaped and all was good in her knew home in Chicago. She had started a job as a waitress and even found a boyfriend.
It wasn't until one cold winter day in December when Kara sat in the bathroom nursing a bloody nose did she realize her mistake. Kara had fallen in love with a man who seemed to be the kindest, gentlest person in the world. Sure he had a few drinks on occasion but it wasn't serious.
Kara was so confident in their relationship that she suggested they move in together. It took some convincing but she won in the end and soon she was packing boxes once more in her little one room apartment and moving in to a glamorous little penthouse with a fireplace and a view of the city, and she was moving in with the love of her life.
Despite the fact that Jeff was drinking more, Kara was happy with her life, mostly. Sure, her boyfriend had a bit of a temper but it only surfaced when he'd had one too many drinks. Kara knew Jeff loved her; he only got upset with her when she was stupid. She found herself, however, becoming more and more stupid because Jeff seemed to be getting more upset more often.
It was late December when Kara realized just how bad things really were. She had escaped her father yes. She had left that violent life behind and entered a better one. So how is it that things could go so terribly wrong? That's just what Kara was asking herself as she sat in the bathroom of her and Jeff's glamorous penthouse with a fireplace and view of the city.
Kara's boyfriend liked to romance her but lately he had become crude in his attempts at amore. Kara would bite her lip in disgust when she thought about the nights he would come home from work drunk. The nights where he would grab her by the arm and turn her onto her stomach tear her night skirt and undo his belt. Kara would close her eyes and block out the memories.
She would message her temples to keep them from exploding from the endless nights of her biting into her pillow and silently screaming as Jeff; the love of her life; would force himself inside her and tear her apart until he was finished. Kara had pushed these thoughts out of her head, but they had come rushing back to her as she sat in the bathroom, staring at the little piece of plastic up on the sink above her.
Kara had sat up and slowly looked at the results of the biggest test she'd ever have to take. There was no way for her to cheat; no make up work that could nullify this test's results. Kara had sat in silence for the longest thirty seconds ever. She watched with unbearable anticipation as the color slowly formed. Light did not hit her eyes with any mercy as her brain processed the color she was seeing.
Kara had processed the information over and over in her mind. 'Blue?' Kara would shake her head, not it's just a malfunction. It can't be blue. But it was blue. The little .5 X .5 inch square of color had dealt a blow to Kara that knocked her of her feet. As she slowly regained her balance she caught sight of herself in the mirror. She turned to her side and lifted her arms, she place them onto her stomach. Kara looked at her reflection as the sound of Jeff's snoring echoed in their glamorous penthouse. Kara was pregnant.
Kara never did tell Jeff about their child, she felt he didn't need to know. What would he do? Tell her to abort the pregnancy, she couldn't do that no matter what the circumstances of it's existence. Kara ended her relationship with Jeff but not before he rearranged her face one more time. It was at that moment as she ran out of her glamorous penthouse and into the elevator with Jeff yelling back at her, "You ungrateful Slut!" that she realized this was what her own mother never had the spine to do.
Kara refused to let a child grow up in that kind of environment. She would not have her son or daughter sit in his or her bedroom and have to turn the stereo volume up to it's max so he or she could block out the sound of one parent beating the other. So, Kara moved back into her little one room apartment and had her child alone and safe.
That was seventeen years ago. Kara stared out into the cold neighborhood as the rain increased. Kara remembered how innocent Dan had looked when she first held him, "I love you Daniel Timothy Strode." She had said to him, "I promise I'll never let anything bad happen to you." Kara made that promise the day her son was born. She tried raising him on her own, teaching him the ways of life while still learning them herself.
Eventually though, the burden of the two became too much and Kara realized she needed help. She hadn't spoken a word to her family in seven years save for the occasional letter to Tim. One day in early June of 95' she worked up the courage to call her mother. Debra was so happy to hear from her only daughter, but not enough to speak in a regular tone. Her husband was sleeping you see, and Debra didn't dare wake him by speaking with her daughter in an impolitely loud manner.
Kara let it slip. The words just broke from her grasp and her hands clasped around her mouth too little too late. "What's that dear? A Son?" Debra asked nervously. Kara tried in her mind to take it back ' I have a son' why she had let the words escape her, she never did know. There had been a moment of silence over the line as the too women processed the information. Eventually Debra broke the awkward stillness by saying, "Well, am I ever going to get to meet my grandson?" Kara remembered her promise to her son and was hesitant to allow Daniel to be exposed to the naked truth about his family.
Debra had become desperate and in a moment of selfishness, the only she ever had and one that her husband would always hate her for, she asked, "Why don't you come and stay with us dear, your father's changed. Really, he's a better man now, he took over Morgan's realty company and we just moved into a wonderful house. There's plenty of room dear."
Kara, in a flash of false hope that everything could be better, agreed, "Well, mom...Danny and I have been on our own for awhile now. I guess...he does want to meet his grandparents and uncle. I guess..." Kara had still been unsure but her naïve mother insisted, "Of course dear! We'd love to have you back, it's been so long." With those words, Debra Strode had started a chain reaction that would eventually seal her very grave, but she didn't know. All she had wanted was to bring some semblance of togetherness to her distanced family. Kara broke and agreed to return to her old family, the one she'd spent years trying to forget.
Kara felt her eyes getting misty and closed the front door, ending her walk down memory lane. She turned around and saw a policeman speaking on his radio. She walked up to him and tapped his shoulder. He finished his conversation and said, "Yes Mrs. Doyle, what is it?"
Kara bit her lip as she struggled to ask the question. The words formed eventually and she spoke, "Have you heard anything from Thom and Sheriff Grayson? What about Stephen and Lindsay, did they reach the hospital, are they safe? Please, I have to know!" Kara had put her hands on the officer's shoulder and he could tell she was at the end of her rope. He took a step back and cleared his throat, "I'm sorry ma'am but we haven't heard anything from the hospital yet, they probably are taking longer to get there because of the weather. As for your husband and the sheriff, I just spoke to him and he said they just arrived at the sanitarium."
Kara frowned, why had Thom insisted on going back to that wretched place. Neither Kara nor Thom would set foot on the property of Smith's Grove, not even to lead policemen to the supposed cult lair they had been taken to nearly a decade ago. Without any corroborating evidence, it was Thom and Kara's word against the word of an esteemed and prestigious medical facility, which adamantly denied any alleged illegal activity or questionable occult conduct. Kara felt the growing disgust inside her at the though of that smarmy bastard Wynn. How he'd manipulated this town to suite his own twisted goals and how he'd used Lindsay to continue his insane obsession with controlling Myers.
Kara thanked the officer and walked over to the kitchen to get a glass of water. She was stopped by a policeman who said, "I'm sorry Mrs. Doyle but you can't come in here. CSU is still collecting evidence and well, it's not really pretty in there. The cop looked over his shoulder and saw several policemen gathering various body fragments from the kitchen door. There was blood and brain matter from Officer Starks' head that had painted the doors exterior. The CSU agents were meticulously collecting specimens and placing them in little plastic bags.
The bodies of Kara's beloved cats had been removed but their presence was not forgotten. Glass was still being cleaned up from the window Jonesy had been thrown through. Kara looked up at the policeman in front of her and said in a quiet desperate voice, "May I please have a glass of water?" The officer nodded and said, "Why don't you go sit down ma'am, I'll bring you something to drink." Kara nodded and turned around numbly.
She seemed to float back to the couch, as if she wasn't really there. In some ways, Kara wasn't there; she was up in the sky floating around. As a child she had learned from the many times her father was 'loving' her, how to distance herself from her body and surroundings. Kara plopped down on to the couch and waited patiently.
Dan was standing in front of the mirror above his dresser. He was looking at the unfamiliar reflection which stared blankly back at him. No emotion, no conscious, nothing but a blank pale shape. Dan felt as if he were trapped in a giant cave that was his body. His soul, his existence was being pulled further and further into the darkness growing inside of him. He looked through two openings in this prison, windows to the outside world and saw the true form of evil looking back at him.
Daniel spoke in a low monotone voice, "What are you doing?" he thought about Jesse, had she just been here? He couldn't remember. Most of the night's events were becoming a blur. The only thing Dan could keep focused on were those black eyes in the reflection. Dan forced himself to step back and with a force of ungodly will, he turned his head away from the mirror.
Thom and Mark pulled into a large empty parking lot behind the Smith's Grove facility. Mark took a deep breath and stepped out of the car. It had been almost a decade since he'd last step foot on this evil property. Mark got out of the squad car and took his radio out, "Boys, Doyle and I just arrived at Smith's Grove. I'll keep you posted. I'll call if I need back up."
Mark glanced across the parking lot and folded his arms, "Well I'll be damned." Thom looked up and saw what Mark was staring at. A large black helicopter was sitting on a launch pad at the other end of the parking lot. It was the same helicopter that had only an hour or so earlier intruded on Thom's home. Thom glared and cracked his knuckles, "Wynn."
Mark walked around the squad car and popped the trunk. He pulled out a rifle. Thom's eyes widened. Mark smiled, "Just in case." Mark looked back at the helicopter and said, "I think we're gonna need back up after all."
Lindsay was sitting on the cold cement floor of Michael's cell, trying to come to some sane resolution to all this madness. "His son...his son..." Lindsay was quietly saying that to herself over and over. She looked up to the blood shrine and her stomach tightened as she reread the names of the slain Myers family members. "It all started with Judith..."
Lindsay screamed in frustration and in a brief moment of rage began thrashing away from the rope holding her to the wall. She tugged and pulled and screamed as she struggled to regain freedom. Eventually she tired though and settled back to her original position. Her long black hair fell over her eyes as she began thinking again. She searched the deepest recesses of her mind for a solution. She began remembering that fateful night back in 1978 that had changed her life forever.
Haddonfield, Illinois October 31st 1978
Dr. Loomis was walking from house to house searching for some red flag of Michael's presence when he heard them. Little Tommy Doyle and Lindsay Wallace came running out of the Doyle residence, screaming like banshees. Loomis didn't need to look any further; he started running towards the house prepared to fight the boogieman.
Lindsay and Tommy however continued to run. They ran down the street and into Lindsay's house, as it was the nearest safe place to be. Or so they thought. Tommy banged on the door shouting, "Let us in please!" Lindsay wiped the tears from her eyes and tapped Tommy's shoulder, "Tommy! My parents aren't home either remember? But look, the door's unlocked." Lindsay turned the handle and sure enough, the tall white door creaked open.
Lindsay stepped in but Tommy stayed behind. Lindsay stopped and looked at the little boy, "What's the matter?" she asked. Tommy looked down at his feet and shuffled a bit before saying, "I, I saw him walking outside of here earlier...maybe we shouldn't go in." Tommy looked at Lindsay who stopped and thought a moment. The little girl shook her head, "No, the monster man is dead. Laurie killed him. We need to call for help."
Tommy argued, "But the Mackenzie's! Laurie said to go there!" Lindsay put an arm on Tommy and said, "They're not even home. My mom and Dad went to a party with them tonight. C'mon Tommy, it's my house. We'll be safe." Tommy looked behind Lindsay at the dark house behind her. He crossed his arms and stepped past her, "Fine, but you'd better let me go in first." Lindsay stepped aside and the little boy stepped into the house. Lindsay followed and shut the door.
The house was dark and only the sound of the clock ticking away the night could be heard. Lindsay walked into the living room and looked around. Tommy walked up behind her and bumped into her. Lindsay screamed and jumped. She whirled around and saw Tommy, "Don't scare me like that anymore!" Tommy smirked and said, "Sorry. Do you have a flashlight or something?" Lindsay thought a moment then started walking towards the kitchen. She walked into the dark kitchen and opened the pantry. Tommy walked in after her and saw her rummaging through the pantry. She pulled back with two flashlights and handed one to Tommy. Tommy took it and turned it on, shining it in Lindsay's face. Lindsay squinted, "Stop it..." she whined.
Tommy shined the flashlight on the phone sitting on the counter behind Lindsay, "I'll call the police." The little boy stepped past Lindsay and reached for the phone. Lindsay whispered, "I have to potty." Tommy rolled his eyes, "So go then!" Lindsay glared at Tommy and turned her head in a huff. She walked out of the kitchen and headed for the stairwell. Tommy started dialing. As he waited he set his flashlight down. The light hit the glass doors that let out to the backyard. Tommy failed to notice the broken glass on the door for if he had his instincts would have been to go grab Lindsay and get out of the house. Instead, he simply waited on the phone while Lindsay went to the bathroom.
Lindsay came out of the bathroom in the upstairs hallway of her house. This was the house she had been born in. Her parents had taken out a loan and were nearly finished paying it off. They had made plans to repaint the upstairs. Lindsay wanted to paint her room pink but her mom insisted it was too 'tacky'. Her mother and she had come up with a compromise. They would paint her room beige but buy the little girl a new pink bedspread. Lindsay had been satisfied with their compromise. If there was one thing little Lindsay Wallace was good at, it was getting what she wanted.
Lindsay walked down the hallway to her bedroom and peeked in. she saw her stuffed animals grinning back at her. She looked at her bed and those ugly purple sheets. Soon she would have her coveted pink bed spread and all in her world would be better. She could forget about the ordeal tonight and get on with her life.
Her mind kept going back to that horrible man that had attacked him. At first glance when he had walked up the stairs, she had been listening to Laurie tell her and Tommy what to do. She saw what she had thought to be a robot at the time. It was something about the way he moved that made the little girl think he wasn't a man. Then she saw his face and she knew he wasn't a man, he was a monster. Tommy had been right, there was a boogieman and he wore a white rubber mask.
Before tonight the only thing that really scared Lindsay was going into the basement alone. It made her claustrophobic and that basement smelled like rotten turnips. Other than that Lindsay loved monsters, and nothing scared her. She always tried to stay up late to watch monster movies with her parents. Tonight, Annie had tried to break the girls record by scaring her with a movie marathon. Annie didn't know whom she was messing with, Lindsay thought.
Lindsay knew Annie had ditched her tonight; it didn't take a genius to figure that out. Annie had wanted to spend Halloween night with her boyfriend. Lindsay didn't blame her though; she knew it was hard for Annie to find any free time anymore. Annie had been incredibly busy as of late. Between studying for her entrance exams and applying for scholarships, Annie had to maintain her position on the student council.
Annie had a reputation for being a leader and being the daughter of the sheriff didn't help that. As a Brackett, she was associated with her father and his high standards. She also had to keep her grades up so she could apply for valedictorian. On top of all that, Annie tried to maintain a social life and make some money on the side. Since she didn't have the time for a part time job, she settled for babysitting.
Annie was Lindsay's favorite babysitter though she'd never admit it. Annie was always taking Lindsay to the movies or the park or the mall. Deep down, Lindsay really looked up to Annie and thought of her more as a sister.
Lindsay turned and walked out of her room. She started heading back for the stairs when a flicker in the light caught her attention. Out of the corner of the little girl's eye, she saw the yellow light dancing in her parent's room. Slowly, she turned and started walking towards her parents' room. She curiously put her hand on the door handle and turned it.
Lindsay opened the door and her heart stopped momentarily. Her blood froze in her veins as her eyes widened. She walked forward numbly and stared at her parents' bed in awe. At first she thought Annie was sleeping which was odd since her eyes were open. The little girl shook Annie's cold body while the Jack-o-lantern on the nightstand next to the bed grinned at the little girl like a sadistic clown. The pumpkin's candlelight danced on Annie's blank face.
Lindsay spoke quietly, "Annie wake up, I was just kidding bout telling everyone you got locked in the washing room. Annie please..." Lindsay felt the tears coming on as she pleaded with the corpse. She looked down at Annie's neck; the angry cut in it was still glistening with freshly spilt blood. Lindsay clutched her flashlight tightly and brought her other hand up to her own neck.
Lindsay started backing up. She fell to her knees and continued shuffling back, right into the closet behind her. She started hyperventilating and was trying to control her breathing when she felt something wet drop onto her cheek. Lindsay froze; she didn't know what to do. The little girl whimpered. If she didn't look up, then nothing bad could happen. Lindsay didn't want to look up. She couldn't help it though; she slowly tilted her head back. The warm substance on her cheek pooled up and started oozing down the side of her face. Another drop splashed onto her cheek, just below her eye.
Lindsay Wallace felt her inner organs rearrange themselves to accommodate her stomach with had just sunk into the hollow regions of her body. A tiny whimper escaped the little girls lips as she stared up in horrific shock. Bob Simms, one of Annie and Laurie's friends as well as her other babysitter Lynda's boyfriend, was hanging from his feet right above her.
The little girl choked on an impending scream as the boy's body swayed over her head, his arms swung gently from side to side. The blood from the wound in his chest had coursed down his arms and was dripping from his fingertips. Lindsay sat there in the dark closet, her flashlight still in hand. As she slowly started to crawl out from under Bob's reach, his dead fingers brushed past her hair and through one of her braided ponytails. Lindsay started crying in disgust as she struggled to free her hair from the dead man's hand. She threw herself forward and landed on her stomach. Her flashlight slipped from her grasp and rolled away from her.
Lindsay looked up and saw Annie's hand hanging over the edge of the bed she was on. Lindsay brushed away the tears in her eyes and stood up. She looked down at the ground and started scanning the area for her missing flashlight. There was no sign of the flashlight in front of her so Lindsay slowly turned around still looked at the floor. She searched ahead and saw the flashlight sitting idly on the ground next to the back wall.
Lindsay's eyes followed the path of light emitting from the light. Her eyes stopped dead when she saw what the flashlight was shining on. Lindsay's throat expanded and her eyes grew wide. Glowing in the flashlights beam, stuffed in a cupboard was Annie's friend Lynda. Lindsay found her scream.
Tommy was on hold as the operator tried to patch him through to the police department. He stood in the kitchen listening to mock soothing elevator music as he tapped his fingers on the kitchen counter. He casually glanced to his left and the broken glass on the floor caught his attention. He was staring at the glass on the ground when a voice on the phone finally answered him. He was about to speak when he heard Lindsay's scream. Tommy immediately dropped the phone and ran out of the kitchen. He raced up the stairs and plowed into Lindsay's parents' room.
Tommy stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the ghastly sight. The three bodies were spread out like trophies. Tommy looked to his right and found Lindsay huddled in a corner crying. Tommy ran over to her, "Lindsay! It's ok." She stood up and ran into his arms. She cried while he patted her head, "It's ok, we have to get out of here." Tommy walked over to the bedroom window and turned pale as he moved past the bed and Annie's body. He gulped as he looked down at the body.
Tommy turned and looked out the window to see if anyone was around. He heard gunshots and jumped. Lindsay screamed and ran over to Tommy. They looked out the window and saw what was happening across the street. They saw a man, the boogieman, walking, no, stumbling out onto the balcony of Tommy's house. The gunshots continued until the man fell backwards of the balcony and landed with a dry thud on the lawn below. Tommy grabbed Lindsay by the hand and ran out of the room, leaving the slaughtered teens behind.
They quickly scampered down the stairs and ran out the front door. Tommy stopped and Lindsay ran right into him, "What is it?" Tommy pointed out, "Look." Lindsay looked past Tommy's arm, past the street and out into the front yard of Tommy's house where the man had fallen. He had fallen right? Lindsay hadn't imagined that had she? "He's gone." Lindsay quietly whispered.
"He's gone..." Lindsay spoke to herself as she sat tied down like an animal. Lindsay had seen true evil that rainy night twenty-six years ago. She had witnessed the atrocities he was capable, she had succumbed to the terror he instilled in those unfortunate enough to come across him. Michael Myers was evil incarnate, Lindsay knew this much. Tonight however, she discovered someone even more twisted than Myers. Wynn. The music started up again and Lindsay cried in disgust as the cheery little song started playing again. "When will this end?" Lindsay screamed out loud as the music played softly in the background, "God in heaven! When will this all end!" Her screams echoed in her cell and down the long corridor of dusty cells in the lower confines of the Smith's Grove Sanitarium sub basement complex.
~TBC
**Author's Note: Hey, hope you guys all like the story still. I'm really excited about the next few chapters, a lot of action! We're nearing the end of this tale that is my vision for Halloween 9 but don't fret, I still have plans to go forward with my vision for Halloween 10! -Liz
Mark saw the road sign ahead and signaled, "We're almost there." They turned off onto a quiet road. Thom relaxed into his seat. He was trying to stay calm and not get over worked about what was happening. His mind was rushing with thoughts. Tons of tiny explosions were going off in his head as he made connections and realizations.
Mark rolled down his window and felt the cool air blow through his hair. He studied the roadsides as they drove. Mark watched the dark autumn leaves sway and fall from the shadowed trees. He felt the moist air now cold from the rain. Mark thought about his wife Grace and their daughter Anna.
He smiled to himself as he looked at his watch. It was already 9:45. Where had the time gone? Mark took a deep breath and exhaled through his nose. He thought about Grace. She was probably asleep by now, quietly snoring in her rocking chair next to Anna's crib, a children's book still open in her lap, a warm bottle of milk resting next to Anna's slumbering form.
Mark looked over to Thom who was stewing in his seat. Still brooding about Myers Mark thought. And why shouldn't he be? In one night all hell had broken loose in this town...again. Mark's face changed, as his thoughts grew dark. How many people had died two years ago? How many families had he had to speak with, telling them their beloved son or daughter had been murdered by the town's bloody mascot.
Mark's hands tightened around the steering wheel as he smoldered. This was his town. He's spent the last decade or so protecting it. He grew up here. Haddonfield used to be such a nice little town. As a child, Mark used to complain about how there was never enough action in town. Well, he'd had his fair share tonight.
Sheriff Grayson turned right at a stop sign and looked ahead, "We're here." Thom looked ahead and saw the building out in the darkness, past the fog, "Smith's Grove."
Jesse had convinced her parents to let her go over to Dan's house once more. They were obviously hesitant because of what happened earlier that night. Her parents agreed to drive her themselves, to the Doyle residence.
She stepped out of the car as her mother rolled down the front passenger window, "Jess...don't be long ok?" Jess looked over her shoulder and saw the menacing house now bathed in the red and blue lights emanating from the police cars. She shivered as she looked at the web of yellow police tape surrounding the yard.
Jesse looked back to her mom and forced a smile, "I wont mom. I just have to let Dan know that I'm here for him." Jesse's dad looked up from the steering wheel and said, "Couldn't you have just called him hun?" Jesse shook her head, "No, I need to see him. I need to be with him right now. We've been through so much tonight...together. I can't leave him alone just yet."
Her mother sighed but looked to Jesse's dad, "It'll be ok dear. Just let her go." Her father thought a moment and said sternly, "Ten minutes. I mean it Jesse, be back out here in ten minutes." Jesse could tell how worried her parents were so she quietly nodded and turned to walk away.
Her mother called out once more, "Jesse?" Jesse looked back, her mother had pleading eyes "I love you." Jesse's eyes were bleak, she felt tears coming but forced them back. She would not cry in front of her parents. She took a deep breath and said, "I love you to mom. Ten minutes. I promise." She turned and walked up over the curb and onto the Doyle's yard. Her parent's car sat idling quietly, exhaust slowly pouring out of their car.
Jesse walked over the cold grass and heard it break under her sneakers. The air was cold and damp from the rain. She could see her breath. She looked up into the black sky and sighed. A light fog had emerged from the storm and cast an eerie haze around the neighborhood. Jesse walked up to the Doyle's front door, a large white door with a window at the top. She stood at the doorway a moment, working up the courage, and then she slowly knocked.
The loud clang broke the stillness of the night. She waited impatiently growing more and more anxious until a figure appeared through the window. The door unlocked and opened to reveal the tired form of Kara. Jesse could see the poor woman's frailties in all their plain glory. Her hair slightly messed and pulled into a ponytail. Her glasses hid the saddened eyes of a broken mother. Jesse felt an instant jolt of sympathy and immediately stepped forward and embraced Kara tightly.
Kara was taken aback by this sudden jester of kindness and reluctantly placed an arm around Jesse's back. Jesse spoke innocently, like a little girl, "Kara, I'm so sorry for what's happened to your family tonight, to all of us. If there's anything I can do..." Kara smiled warmly as she released the young woman from their embrace, "I know, thank you Jesse. I think Dan is the one who you could help the most. Do you want to come in?" Jesse bowed her head down politely and entered the shattered home.
Kara stepped aside and looked away in shame as she closed the door. Jesse stared at the living room, what was left of it. The once elegant coffee table now shattered to pieces. The television and entertainment center were now in splintered fragments of their former selves. Jesse looked down and saw the red stains in the floor. She quickly looked back up and tried to forget the sight. Kara walked forward, "Sorry about the mess..."
Jesse looked at the staircase and said, "Is Dan upstairs?" Kara walked over to the couch as she spoke, "Yeah, he was pretty upset about it all, especially Stephen." Jesse turned and looked at the older woman, "How is he? Stephen I mean. Have you heard anything yet?" Kara looked down at her shaky hands and sighed, "No, nothing yet. They must still be in surgery or something. Our phone's not working right now anyways but the police said they'd inform us as soon as they heard anything.
Jesse looked into the kitchen where several officers were writing notes down and speaking in walkie-talkies, "When are they leaving?" Kara turned and looked at the cops, "I don't know, probably not until Thom and the others come back." Jesse started up the stairs and Kara stood up and slowly motioned, "H-he might be sleeping." Jesse looked at her and nodded, "Are you alright?" Kara was obviously not but she smiled and nodded, "Yeah, I will be as soon as Thom and Stephen get back safe and sound."
Jesse turned her attention back to the staircase. She started walking up them. She saw the blood on the walls a she stepped further up into the second floor of the house. She kept her eyes straight ahead to avoid the sight of the blood. She gasped to herself as she saw the attic ladder and wall covered in blood. She looked down at the ground and closed her eyes tightly as she reached the top of the stairs. Jesse quickly turned and crept under the yellow tape blocking off the hallway. She reached Dan's door and knocked, "Dan? It's Jesse, can I come in?"
The wooden door slowly creaked open. No light escaped the room. Jesse slowly leaned forward so try and see into it better, "Dan?" She stepped into the dark room. Jesse grew stiff as she looked around. All of Dan's posters had been torn off his walls. His bed sheets were strewn about the floor; Jesse grew worried and spoke again, "Dan?" She looked at the corner of the bedroom, near his closet and saw Dan sitting on the ground with his hands wrapped around his knees.
Jesse felt a deep numbing pain in her heart as she saw her love cradling his broken form. She walked over to him and knelt down. She put her hands on Dan's face. His skin was cold and clammy. Jesse brushed his damp bangs away from his hidden face. She drew his face close to hers with her fingers. Dan looked at her, not at her but...through her. Jesse spoke, "Babe, it's ok. I'm here, you're not alone ok?" Dan didn't speak, he just stared right through her, past her body, through the wall and past the house. He looked straight into the darkness bleeding from his soul.
Daniel Strode was nearly gone and Jesse tried with all her might to pull him back to reality. "I'm going to turn on the light ok?" Jesse slowly backed up and turned around. She walked over to the light switch. Dan slowly rose to his feet. A blank emotionless face stared at Jessica Taylor as she fumbled with the light switch. Her back turned away from the growing evil behind her. Dan breathed heavily. Jesse flicked the switch on and off a few more times then sighed and gave up. She turned and was surprised by the tall shape staring at her, "Oh! Dan...are you ok?" Dan stood staring at her and breathing. He didn't make a sound.
Jesse shivered, something about her boyfriend was making her very uneasy, "Look, if you don't want to talk to me it's ok...I'll just leave." She waited for an answer but only got the sound of shallow breathing. Jesse felt a tiny flicker of panic shoot through her body. She suddenly wanted to get out of this room, out of this house. I um...think I'm gonna go Dan. Call me in the morning." She backed up and bumped into the wall and jumped. She slowly slid over to the door and stepped back into the hallway. Jesse looked at her boyfriend and slowly closed the door. She turned around and fell against the door. She took a few breaths and then walked back over to the stairs rather hastily.
Kara was sitting in the living room quietly thinking. Two policemen walked past her and went into the kitchen. She didn't look up as they went by, all she did was close her eyes and run her hands through her red hair. She thought about Dan and how odd it had been when she was talking to him. He seemed normal enough but something had just been...off Kara had gotten a very cold feeling when she was near her son and she couldn't explain why. What she did know though, was that the feeling was getting stronger as the night continued.
Kara heard footsteps and looked up at the staircase. She watched in surprise as Jesse came hurriedly down the steps. Kara stood up and walked over to Jesse who looked flustered and uneasy. The girl looked as if she'd seen a ghost. Kara reached for Jesse's shoulder but the girl flinched. Kara frowned and inquired, "Are you all right Jesse? Did you talk to Dan?" Jesse quickly looked up into Kara's eyes and said, "Yeah uh, he's fine. Just tired which I guess I sorta am too. I uh, my parents are waiting so I really have to go now Mrs. Doyle." Jesse was rambling and Kara could tell she was shaken up.
Jesse walked over to the front door and fumbled with the doorknob. Kara looked down at the girls hands curiously as she struggled to open the door. Jesse was becoming agitated with the difficult door handle and Kara leaned forward to help. She slowly unlocked the latch and the door opened. Jesse quickly stepped outside and gave Kara a quick wave, "I uh, I'll come visit tomorrow ok? Ok, bye and goodnight." Jesse turned and started walking towards her parent's car. Kara stood in the doorway watching in confusion as the young blonde girl picked up pace. She glanced back at Kara then quickly got into the back seat of the car.
Jesse sat down in the back seat and closed the door; she was slightly shaking and trying to calm down. Her mother looked back at her, "Jesse? Are you ok? What happened in there?" Jesse looked out the window and saw Kara standing in the doorway.
The first few drops of a new storm began painting the streets as Jesse stared out of the glazed car window. She saw the expression on Mrs. Doyle's pale face. Jesse weakly reached up and placed a hand on the window. Kara lifted a saddened arm and half waved as the car drove away.
The rain increased as Kara pulled back and stepped back into her wrecked home. She stared out into the neighborhood. The quiet homes of happy families taunted her. Kara frowned as she looked out into this 'safe' suburban farce. A lot of good this happy visage had done for her and her family. She and Thom had a few rough patches over the years but in the end, he saved her life and her sons. She loved him for that and she had to fight to maintain the happy family for her children.
Kara hadn't had a pleasant upbringing. Her father had been a miserable drunk as far back as she could remember. He was a cruel and bitter man who took his own misfortunes out on her and her mother and brother. Kara had grown up learning the might of his fist and the savagery of his lust. Many nights Kara had blocked out, nights of unwelcome bedtime visits from her father.
Kara and her brother Tim had grown accustomed to seeing the bruises on their mother, her excuses became routine. Apparently Debra Strode was a very clumsy woman for she was known to walk into doors at least three or four times a week, so she claimed.
Kara and her brother had begun to distance themselves from what was really happening to their mother. Tim would just ignore the bruises and pretend everything was fine. Kara found it harder to disregard, as she would often find herself with the same unexplainable bruises from being 'clumsy'.
Clumsy, that's what the family learned to call it when someone displeased their father. By the time Kara was seventeen she had had enough. She packed her suitcase and left town for more than five years. She said goodbye to her brother and mother and left one stormy night while her father was passed out in his recliner with a bottle of liquor in one hand, and a bloody fist in the other.
Kara tried to convince her mother to come with her but Debra just smiled sweetly trying to hide the tears as she held the tissues over her broken nose. Tim had just run to his room and turned the volume on his stereo as high as he could bear, which at the time was fairly high.
Some might say that Kara had just given up, others might say she ran out on her family, but most who know her well enough know the best word to describe her departure would be 'escape'. Kara escaped and all was good in her knew home in Chicago. She had started a job as a waitress and even found a boyfriend.
It wasn't until one cold winter day in December when Kara sat in the bathroom nursing a bloody nose did she realize her mistake. Kara had fallen in love with a man who seemed to be the kindest, gentlest person in the world. Sure he had a few drinks on occasion but it wasn't serious.
Kara was so confident in their relationship that she suggested they move in together. It took some convincing but she won in the end and soon she was packing boxes once more in her little one room apartment and moving in to a glamorous little penthouse with a fireplace and a view of the city, and she was moving in with the love of her life.
Despite the fact that Jeff was drinking more, Kara was happy with her life, mostly. Sure, her boyfriend had a bit of a temper but it only surfaced when he'd had one too many drinks. Kara knew Jeff loved her; he only got upset with her when she was stupid. She found herself, however, becoming more and more stupid because Jeff seemed to be getting more upset more often.
It was late December when Kara realized just how bad things really were. She had escaped her father yes. She had left that violent life behind and entered a better one. So how is it that things could go so terribly wrong? That's just what Kara was asking herself as she sat in the bathroom of her and Jeff's glamorous penthouse with a fireplace and view of the city.
Kara's boyfriend liked to romance her but lately he had become crude in his attempts at amore. Kara would bite her lip in disgust when she thought about the nights he would come home from work drunk. The nights where he would grab her by the arm and turn her onto her stomach tear her night skirt and undo his belt. Kara would close her eyes and block out the memories.
She would message her temples to keep them from exploding from the endless nights of her biting into her pillow and silently screaming as Jeff; the love of her life; would force himself inside her and tear her apart until he was finished. Kara had pushed these thoughts out of her head, but they had come rushing back to her as she sat in the bathroom, staring at the little piece of plastic up on the sink above her.
Kara had sat up and slowly looked at the results of the biggest test she'd ever have to take. There was no way for her to cheat; no make up work that could nullify this test's results. Kara had sat in silence for the longest thirty seconds ever. She watched with unbearable anticipation as the color slowly formed. Light did not hit her eyes with any mercy as her brain processed the color she was seeing.
Kara had processed the information over and over in her mind. 'Blue?' Kara would shake her head, not it's just a malfunction. It can't be blue. But it was blue. The little .5 X .5 inch square of color had dealt a blow to Kara that knocked her of her feet. As she slowly regained her balance she caught sight of herself in the mirror. She turned to her side and lifted her arms, she place them onto her stomach. Kara looked at her reflection as the sound of Jeff's snoring echoed in their glamorous penthouse. Kara was pregnant.
Kara never did tell Jeff about their child, she felt he didn't need to know. What would he do? Tell her to abort the pregnancy, she couldn't do that no matter what the circumstances of it's existence. Kara ended her relationship with Jeff but not before he rearranged her face one more time. It was at that moment as she ran out of her glamorous penthouse and into the elevator with Jeff yelling back at her, "You ungrateful Slut!" that she realized this was what her own mother never had the spine to do.
Kara refused to let a child grow up in that kind of environment. She would not have her son or daughter sit in his or her bedroom and have to turn the stereo volume up to it's max so he or she could block out the sound of one parent beating the other. So, Kara moved back into her little one room apartment and had her child alone and safe.
That was seventeen years ago. Kara stared out into the cold neighborhood as the rain increased. Kara remembered how innocent Dan had looked when she first held him, "I love you Daniel Timothy Strode." She had said to him, "I promise I'll never let anything bad happen to you." Kara made that promise the day her son was born. She tried raising him on her own, teaching him the ways of life while still learning them herself.
Eventually though, the burden of the two became too much and Kara realized she needed help. She hadn't spoken a word to her family in seven years save for the occasional letter to Tim. One day in early June of 95' she worked up the courage to call her mother. Debra was so happy to hear from her only daughter, but not enough to speak in a regular tone. Her husband was sleeping you see, and Debra didn't dare wake him by speaking with her daughter in an impolitely loud manner.
Kara let it slip. The words just broke from her grasp and her hands clasped around her mouth too little too late. "What's that dear? A Son?" Debra asked nervously. Kara tried in her mind to take it back ' I have a son' why she had let the words escape her, she never did know. There had been a moment of silence over the line as the too women processed the information. Eventually Debra broke the awkward stillness by saying, "Well, am I ever going to get to meet my grandson?" Kara remembered her promise to her son and was hesitant to allow Daniel to be exposed to the naked truth about his family.
Debra had become desperate and in a moment of selfishness, the only she ever had and one that her husband would always hate her for, she asked, "Why don't you come and stay with us dear, your father's changed. Really, he's a better man now, he took over Morgan's realty company and we just moved into a wonderful house. There's plenty of room dear."
Kara, in a flash of false hope that everything could be better, agreed, "Well, mom...Danny and I have been on our own for awhile now. I guess...he does want to meet his grandparents and uncle. I guess..." Kara had still been unsure but her naïve mother insisted, "Of course dear! We'd love to have you back, it's been so long." With those words, Debra Strode had started a chain reaction that would eventually seal her very grave, but she didn't know. All she had wanted was to bring some semblance of togetherness to her distanced family. Kara broke and agreed to return to her old family, the one she'd spent years trying to forget.
Kara felt her eyes getting misty and closed the front door, ending her walk down memory lane. She turned around and saw a policeman speaking on his radio. She walked up to him and tapped his shoulder. He finished his conversation and said, "Yes Mrs. Doyle, what is it?"
Kara bit her lip as she struggled to ask the question. The words formed eventually and she spoke, "Have you heard anything from Thom and Sheriff Grayson? What about Stephen and Lindsay, did they reach the hospital, are they safe? Please, I have to know!" Kara had put her hands on the officer's shoulder and he could tell she was at the end of her rope. He took a step back and cleared his throat, "I'm sorry ma'am but we haven't heard anything from the hospital yet, they probably are taking longer to get there because of the weather. As for your husband and the sheriff, I just spoke to him and he said they just arrived at the sanitarium."
Kara frowned, why had Thom insisted on going back to that wretched place. Neither Kara nor Thom would set foot on the property of Smith's Grove, not even to lead policemen to the supposed cult lair they had been taken to nearly a decade ago. Without any corroborating evidence, it was Thom and Kara's word against the word of an esteemed and prestigious medical facility, which adamantly denied any alleged illegal activity or questionable occult conduct. Kara felt the growing disgust inside her at the though of that smarmy bastard Wynn. How he'd manipulated this town to suite his own twisted goals and how he'd used Lindsay to continue his insane obsession with controlling Myers.
Kara thanked the officer and walked over to the kitchen to get a glass of water. She was stopped by a policeman who said, "I'm sorry Mrs. Doyle but you can't come in here. CSU is still collecting evidence and well, it's not really pretty in there. The cop looked over his shoulder and saw several policemen gathering various body fragments from the kitchen door. There was blood and brain matter from Officer Starks' head that had painted the doors exterior. The CSU agents were meticulously collecting specimens and placing them in little plastic bags.
The bodies of Kara's beloved cats had been removed but their presence was not forgotten. Glass was still being cleaned up from the window Jonesy had been thrown through. Kara looked up at the policeman in front of her and said in a quiet desperate voice, "May I please have a glass of water?" The officer nodded and said, "Why don't you go sit down ma'am, I'll bring you something to drink." Kara nodded and turned around numbly.
She seemed to float back to the couch, as if she wasn't really there. In some ways, Kara wasn't there; she was up in the sky floating around. As a child she had learned from the many times her father was 'loving' her, how to distance herself from her body and surroundings. Kara plopped down on to the couch and waited patiently.
Dan was standing in front of the mirror above his dresser. He was looking at the unfamiliar reflection which stared blankly back at him. No emotion, no conscious, nothing but a blank pale shape. Dan felt as if he were trapped in a giant cave that was his body. His soul, his existence was being pulled further and further into the darkness growing inside of him. He looked through two openings in this prison, windows to the outside world and saw the true form of evil looking back at him.
Daniel spoke in a low monotone voice, "What are you doing?" he thought about Jesse, had she just been here? He couldn't remember. Most of the night's events were becoming a blur. The only thing Dan could keep focused on were those black eyes in the reflection. Dan forced himself to step back and with a force of ungodly will, he turned his head away from the mirror.
Thom and Mark pulled into a large empty parking lot behind the Smith's Grove facility. Mark took a deep breath and stepped out of the car. It had been almost a decade since he'd last step foot on this evil property. Mark got out of the squad car and took his radio out, "Boys, Doyle and I just arrived at Smith's Grove. I'll keep you posted. I'll call if I need back up."
Mark glanced across the parking lot and folded his arms, "Well I'll be damned." Thom looked up and saw what Mark was staring at. A large black helicopter was sitting on a launch pad at the other end of the parking lot. It was the same helicopter that had only an hour or so earlier intruded on Thom's home. Thom glared and cracked his knuckles, "Wynn."
Mark walked around the squad car and popped the trunk. He pulled out a rifle. Thom's eyes widened. Mark smiled, "Just in case." Mark looked back at the helicopter and said, "I think we're gonna need back up after all."
Lindsay was sitting on the cold cement floor of Michael's cell, trying to come to some sane resolution to all this madness. "His son...his son..." Lindsay was quietly saying that to herself over and over. She looked up to the blood shrine and her stomach tightened as she reread the names of the slain Myers family members. "It all started with Judith..."
Lindsay screamed in frustration and in a brief moment of rage began thrashing away from the rope holding her to the wall. She tugged and pulled and screamed as she struggled to regain freedom. Eventually she tired though and settled back to her original position. Her long black hair fell over her eyes as she began thinking again. She searched the deepest recesses of her mind for a solution. She began remembering that fateful night back in 1978 that had changed her life forever.
Haddonfield, Illinois October 31st 1978
Dr. Loomis was walking from house to house searching for some red flag of Michael's presence when he heard them. Little Tommy Doyle and Lindsay Wallace came running out of the Doyle residence, screaming like banshees. Loomis didn't need to look any further; he started running towards the house prepared to fight the boogieman.
Lindsay and Tommy however continued to run. They ran down the street and into Lindsay's house, as it was the nearest safe place to be. Or so they thought. Tommy banged on the door shouting, "Let us in please!" Lindsay wiped the tears from her eyes and tapped Tommy's shoulder, "Tommy! My parents aren't home either remember? But look, the door's unlocked." Lindsay turned the handle and sure enough, the tall white door creaked open.
Lindsay stepped in but Tommy stayed behind. Lindsay stopped and looked at the little boy, "What's the matter?" she asked. Tommy looked down at his feet and shuffled a bit before saying, "I, I saw him walking outside of here earlier...maybe we shouldn't go in." Tommy looked at Lindsay who stopped and thought a moment. The little girl shook her head, "No, the monster man is dead. Laurie killed him. We need to call for help."
Tommy argued, "But the Mackenzie's! Laurie said to go there!" Lindsay put an arm on Tommy and said, "They're not even home. My mom and Dad went to a party with them tonight. C'mon Tommy, it's my house. We'll be safe." Tommy looked behind Lindsay at the dark house behind her. He crossed his arms and stepped past her, "Fine, but you'd better let me go in first." Lindsay stepped aside and the little boy stepped into the house. Lindsay followed and shut the door.
The house was dark and only the sound of the clock ticking away the night could be heard. Lindsay walked into the living room and looked around. Tommy walked up behind her and bumped into her. Lindsay screamed and jumped. She whirled around and saw Tommy, "Don't scare me like that anymore!" Tommy smirked and said, "Sorry. Do you have a flashlight or something?" Lindsay thought a moment then started walking towards the kitchen. She walked into the dark kitchen and opened the pantry. Tommy walked in after her and saw her rummaging through the pantry. She pulled back with two flashlights and handed one to Tommy. Tommy took it and turned it on, shining it in Lindsay's face. Lindsay squinted, "Stop it..." she whined.
Tommy shined the flashlight on the phone sitting on the counter behind Lindsay, "I'll call the police." The little boy stepped past Lindsay and reached for the phone. Lindsay whispered, "I have to potty." Tommy rolled his eyes, "So go then!" Lindsay glared at Tommy and turned her head in a huff. She walked out of the kitchen and headed for the stairwell. Tommy started dialing. As he waited he set his flashlight down. The light hit the glass doors that let out to the backyard. Tommy failed to notice the broken glass on the door for if he had his instincts would have been to go grab Lindsay and get out of the house. Instead, he simply waited on the phone while Lindsay went to the bathroom.
Lindsay came out of the bathroom in the upstairs hallway of her house. This was the house she had been born in. Her parents had taken out a loan and were nearly finished paying it off. They had made plans to repaint the upstairs. Lindsay wanted to paint her room pink but her mom insisted it was too 'tacky'. Her mother and she had come up with a compromise. They would paint her room beige but buy the little girl a new pink bedspread. Lindsay had been satisfied with their compromise. If there was one thing little Lindsay Wallace was good at, it was getting what she wanted.
Lindsay walked down the hallway to her bedroom and peeked in. she saw her stuffed animals grinning back at her. She looked at her bed and those ugly purple sheets. Soon she would have her coveted pink bed spread and all in her world would be better. She could forget about the ordeal tonight and get on with her life.
Her mind kept going back to that horrible man that had attacked him. At first glance when he had walked up the stairs, she had been listening to Laurie tell her and Tommy what to do. She saw what she had thought to be a robot at the time. It was something about the way he moved that made the little girl think he wasn't a man. Then she saw his face and she knew he wasn't a man, he was a monster. Tommy had been right, there was a boogieman and he wore a white rubber mask.
Before tonight the only thing that really scared Lindsay was going into the basement alone. It made her claustrophobic and that basement smelled like rotten turnips. Other than that Lindsay loved monsters, and nothing scared her. She always tried to stay up late to watch monster movies with her parents. Tonight, Annie had tried to break the girls record by scaring her with a movie marathon. Annie didn't know whom she was messing with, Lindsay thought.
Lindsay knew Annie had ditched her tonight; it didn't take a genius to figure that out. Annie had wanted to spend Halloween night with her boyfriend. Lindsay didn't blame her though; she knew it was hard for Annie to find any free time anymore. Annie had been incredibly busy as of late. Between studying for her entrance exams and applying for scholarships, Annie had to maintain her position on the student council.
Annie had a reputation for being a leader and being the daughter of the sheriff didn't help that. As a Brackett, she was associated with her father and his high standards. She also had to keep her grades up so she could apply for valedictorian. On top of all that, Annie tried to maintain a social life and make some money on the side. Since she didn't have the time for a part time job, she settled for babysitting.
Annie was Lindsay's favorite babysitter though she'd never admit it. Annie was always taking Lindsay to the movies or the park or the mall. Deep down, Lindsay really looked up to Annie and thought of her more as a sister.
Lindsay turned and walked out of her room. She started heading back for the stairs when a flicker in the light caught her attention. Out of the corner of the little girl's eye, she saw the yellow light dancing in her parent's room. Slowly, she turned and started walking towards her parents' room. She curiously put her hand on the door handle and turned it.
Lindsay opened the door and her heart stopped momentarily. Her blood froze in her veins as her eyes widened. She walked forward numbly and stared at her parents' bed in awe. At first she thought Annie was sleeping which was odd since her eyes were open. The little girl shook Annie's cold body while the Jack-o-lantern on the nightstand next to the bed grinned at the little girl like a sadistic clown. The pumpkin's candlelight danced on Annie's blank face.
Lindsay spoke quietly, "Annie wake up, I was just kidding bout telling everyone you got locked in the washing room. Annie please..." Lindsay felt the tears coming on as she pleaded with the corpse. She looked down at Annie's neck; the angry cut in it was still glistening with freshly spilt blood. Lindsay clutched her flashlight tightly and brought her other hand up to her own neck.
Lindsay started backing up. She fell to her knees and continued shuffling back, right into the closet behind her. She started hyperventilating and was trying to control her breathing when she felt something wet drop onto her cheek. Lindsay froze; she didn't know what to do. The little girl whimpered. If she didn't look up, then nothing bad could happen. Lindsay didn't want to look up. She couldn't help it though; she slowly tilted her head back. The warm substance on her cheek pooled up and started oozing down the side of her face. Another drop splashed onto her cheek, just below her eye.
Lindsay Wallace felt her inner organs rearrange themselves to accommodate her stomach with had just sunk into the hollow regions of her body. A tiny whimper escaped the little girls lips as she stared up in horrific shock. Bob Simms, one of Annie and Laurie's friends as well as her other babysitter Lynda's boyfriend, was hanging from his feet right above her.
The little girl choked on an impending scream as the boy's body swayed over her head, his arms swung gently from side to side. The blood from the wound in his chest had coursed down his arms and was dripping from his fingertips. Lindsay sat there in the dark closet, her flashlight still in hand. As she slowly started to crawl out from under Bob's reach, his dead fingers brushed past her hair and through one of her braided ponytails. Lindsay started crying in disgust as she struggled to free her hair from the dead man's hand. She threw herself forward and landed on her stomach. Her flashlight slipped from her grasp and rolled away from her.
Lindsay looked up and saw Annie's hand hanging over the edge of the bed she was on. Lindsay brushed away the tears in her eyes and stood up. She looked down at the ground and started scanning the area for her missing flashlight. There was no sign of the flashlight in front of her so Lindsay slowly turned around still looked at the floor. She searched ahead and saw the flashlight sitting idly on the ground next to the back wall.
Lindsay's eyes followed the path of light emitting from the light. Her eyes stopped dead when she saw what the flashlight was shining on. Lindsay's throat expanded and her eyes grew wide. Glowing in the flashlights beam, stuffed in a cupboard was Annie's friend Lynda. Lindsay found her scream.
Tommy was on hold as the operator tried to patch him through to the police department. He stood in the kitchen listening to mock soothing elevator music as he tapped his fingers on the kitchen counter. He casually glanced to his left and the broken glass on the floor caught his attention. He was staring at the glass on the ground when a voice on the phone finally answered him. He was about to speak when he heard Lindsay's scream. Tommy immediately dropped the phone and ran out of the kitchen. He raced up the stairs and plowed into Lindsay's parents' room.
Tommy stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the ghastly sight. The three bodies were spread out like trophies. Tommy looked to his right and found Lindsay huddled in a corner crying. Tommy ran over to her, "Lindsay! It's ok." She stood up and ran into his arms. She cried while he patted her head, "It's ok, we have to get out of here." Tommy walked over to the bedroom window and turned pale as he moved past the bed and Annie's body. He gulped as he looked down at the body.
Tommy turned and looked out the window to see if anyone was around. He heard gunshots and jumped. Lindsay screamed and ran over to Tommy. They looked out the window and saw what was happening across the street. They saw a man, the boogieman, walking, no, stumbling out onto the balcony of Tommy's house. The gunshots continued until the man fell backwards of the balcony and landed with a dry thud on the lawn below. Tommy grabbed Lindsay by the hand and ran out of the room, leaving the slaughtered teens behind.
They quickly scampered down the stairs and ran out the front door. Tommy stopped and Lindsay ran right into him, "What is it?" Tommy pointed out, "Look." Lindsay looked past Tommy's arm, past the street and out into the front yard of Tommy's house where the man had fallen. He had fallen right? Lindsay hadn't imagined that had she? "He's gone." Lindsay quietly whispered.
"He's gone..." Lindsay spoke to herself as she sat tied down like an animal. Lindsay had seen true evil that rainy night twenty-six years ago. She had witnessed the atrocities he was capable, she had succumbed to the terror he instilled in those unfortunate enough to come across him. Michael Myers was evil incarnate, Lindsay knew this much. Tonight however, she discovered someone even more twisted than Myers. Wynn. The music started up again and Lindsay cried in disgust as the cheery little song started playing again. "When will this end?" Lindsay screamed out loud as the music played softly in the background, "God in heaven! When will this all end!" Her screams echoed in her cell and down the long corridor of dusty cells in the lower confines of the Smith's Grove Sanitarium sub basement complex.
~TBC
**Author's Note: Hey, hope you guys all like the story still. I'm really excited about the next few chapters, a lot of action! We're nearing the end of this tale that is my vision for Halloween 9 but don't fret, I still have plans to go forward with my vision for Halloween 10! -Liz