Chapter 3 – This is the House, Come on in!
As the car came to a full stop in front of the house, my nails were nearly drawing blood from my palms, so tightly pressed in there. I felt this confusing mix of euphoria and panic – euphoria because that was the infamous house where my all-time favorite killers lived. And panic... well, for that same reason.
Some small, still sane part of my brain was telling me that it wasn't too late; that I could manage to escape from the old clown, run back to where I came, enter the portal and go back home, then sleep in my own fluffy pillow and pretend that this day had never happened. But there was no shutting up my internal giggling – I was happy like a teenage girl going to her fist concert of an idolized boy band. The only difference was, I wasn't about to meet the Backstreet Boys.
"This is it," he announced, "let me introduce you to my friends. They are like family to me."
We walked to the door. As he knocked, my head was spinning. The door soon was opened – first, just enough for a pair of green eyes (each with a pound of mascara) to peek outside, then wide open. "Hello, big tiger!" she greeted in a warm, sensual voice, wrapping her arms around his neck, sinuous like a cat. Then she looked at me. "Oooh, I see you brought a present for us!" Her luscious tone was... disturbing.
Laughing softly, Cutter introduced me. "This pretty girl is from out of town, and she told me she was looking for a place to stay the night. I told her, hey, you can't just pick a random hotel in a strange town, you never know the freaks you may find there! I know a place where you would be in good hands."
"You did well, Spaulding. Now, come on in, dear, say goodbye to the Captain." As she motioned for me to get in, I curtly waved to the man and she closed the door behind us.
"I am Laura" I said with a smile, offering my hand for her to shake. "Thank you for having me in your house, ma'am."
She woman touched the tip of my fingers into a light squeeze. "I am Mother Firefly. Make yourself at home, my sweet."
I deposited my backpack in the floor and took a place on the couch. Mother sat on a chair across me, crossing her legs and proudly displaying her purple platform heels. We openly studied each other in silence, exchanging pleasant smiles. Of course I wouldn't have stared at another woman like that, it was rude, but knowing that she was crazy and much of an exhibitionist, I knew she wouldn't mind.
Mother Firefly wasn't either a Karen Black or a Leslie Easterbrook look-alike, but the idea was there – a middle-age, long-haired blonde that could have been beautiful, if perhaps she had lead another kind of life. But her skin looked tired and uncared for; she seemed to be a member of the same dental plan as the old clown, although her teeth weren't nearly as bad; and her taste for fashion was quite questionable. As now, she was wearing some artificial-looking pink lipstick, almost matching the nail color. Her hand had been heavy on the eye makeup. Her dress was a minuscule and tight piece of purple shiny fabric, matching the shoes I mentioned earlier. She looked like a strip dancer gone old and demented, and she never abandoned her affected movements and her look-at-me-I-am-horny overall behavior.
A large head covered by a mask peeked from behind a nearby door. As far as I knew, he was the most harmless member of that family (all in the right perspective), so I spontaneously waved and exclaimed a "Hi!" for him. Mother looked over her shoulder. "Oh, my baby boy! Come over here and meet the pretty girl. Don't be shy!"
As he took his slow, heavy steps toward us, his body bent in that strange form similar to the one onscreen, I actually took some comfort from his presence. Who knows if I may need him? I thought. Because for all I knew about Tiny, he wasn't mean-spirited, just a retard of some sort, who did exactly what people told him to do – being that a murder or an act of random kindness. Chances were, I may find myself in need of some rescuing.
"It is nice to meet you, Tiny" I told him, and I meant it. "I know your name because Captain Spaulding told me; he said to watch out for the big boy of the family."
Mother laughed, delighted that someone was giving attention to her baby. "See my boy, she likes you!" And in a confidential tone: "Maybe if you warm up a bit for her, you'll get yourself a girlfriend!" She laughed some more, as if anticipating the wedding. "You should spend some time getting to know Tiny" she told me, as if he wasn't there. "He is a little bit shy, but he is-"
"Let me guess: a lady killer!" I interrupted with a big smile. "You just take one look at him, and you know it!"
That was the one intelligent thing I had done so far. Mothers. The best way to befriend them is to flatter their kids. And in my situation, I would need all the sympathy I could get.
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"Who's that, mama?"
We all looked where the girlish voice came from. Her tone was cautious and clearly unwelcoming – and so was her expression. She looked ready to attack me.
"Baby, this is Linda-"
"Laura", I corrected.
"- a guest your daddy brought here."
Baby's expression softened; she opened a big grin. "A guest!" she jumped childishly. "We can play games and have a lot of fun!"
I can only assume she initially thought I was trouble – a cop, social service or something. That family tended to keep strangers in places like the basement, or maybe cut into pieces in the fridge. But the living room couch? That was new, and it probably confused her.
Baby jumped next to me, kneeling and proceeding to play with my hair, rolling locks of it around her finger. I felt like a big Barbie doll.
And she certainly looked like one. Rob Zombie didn't exaggerate – the little bitch had been very beautiful, even more than Sherri. One may wonder if their alikeness had been a coincidence, or Mr. Zombie purposely dated girls with that look. Questions, questions...
"So where are you from?" she asked excitedly.
"Born and raised in California" I stated simply. She didn't need to know that I wasn't born yet in 1978.
"Noooo!" she exclaimed, fascinated. "Don't tell me you live close to Hollywood!"
"I do, it's not that far."
Baby giggled, finding that the most exciting thing. "Oh, shit! Close to all those movie actors!" she pushed me hard, but playfully. "Have you ever met any of them? Did they invite you over for dinner or something? Fuck girl, you could fill an application and become an actress yourself, what do you think?"
I stare at her pretty, demented face and smiled. Yes, I felt like saying, I met the actress who played you. She isn't crazy like you, though. No, normal people don't jump out of the blue and invite complete strangers over for dinner. And I have the feeling that that application wouldn't do much for my acting career. But of course I didn't say any of that; I just told her "I don't know anybody important, and I just want to be a teacher."
"Ah." Losing interest quickly, she jumped to her feet, restlessly moving around.
"Dinner time!" Mother announced, raising from her chair. "Baby, my angel, set the table for us, will ya?"
"Sure mama" and she was out of there.
"Dinner time is sooo important" Mother told me solemnly. "It's the time where the whole family gets together, when each member shares what happened in the day. It's quality time we spend with each other. If only Otis would join us more often!"
I nodded in agreement, as I saw a huge man with a shiny black mane entering the room. He was way past six feet tall – closest to seven, if I had to guess – and the proud owner of some serious muscles. God help anyone ever being in a fight with that one.
"Oh," I said "another family member for me to meet!"
"Of course, my sweet," she proceeded in her lazy tone "I hope you don't take it personally, but as I said, this is family time, and you are not from our family. So we'll talk to you later."
Blinking a few times, I tried to grasp the meaning of that. It didn't take too much blinking, though – I got my answer soon enough.
Mother told the giant: "Rufus honey, please show the lady her room. And be a gentleman."
Rufus walked towards me with decided steps and a neutral, unreadable look on his face. That is, what I could see from his face, since his hair was covering most of it, further assisted by a growing beard. I thought that I was going to break my neck just by looking up at the giant towering me. I said hi and smiled – but the smile didn't last.
I was caught completely unprepared when he turned his enormous right hand into a fist, then pulled his elbow behind looking me in the eye. Before I could say a word or even think to step back, that fist smashed against my face, putting me out instantaneously. I have only vague recollections of being grabbed, tossed against a powerful shoulder and carried away.