"Dark brown hair, brown eyes, light skin… he has a rose tattoo on his stomach, next to his belly button," the police officer gave the woman a small smile, not bothering to write down the information she was giving him. "Aren't you supposed to be writing this down or something? Do your fucking job!"
"Miss, if you would calm down, please."
"Maybe I could calm down if the last time I saw him he wasn't being carried away through the sky by a giant fucking bat from Hell!"
"Ma'am, you've been through a traumatic experience, you're confused."
Trish pressed her hands to her face and let out a muffled sound of frustration. It's been a day and a half since that thing flew off with her brother and no matter how hard she tried no one would take her seriously and the cops thought she had suffered a mental break, but she knew what she saw. Darry was out there, somewhere, with that creature. Hopefully, still alive. Though, if he was he wouldn't be for long if the police don't take this seriously and find him. She let her hands drop, gripping the edge of the hospital bed she was seated on. Her injuries were minor, so she was being released today once her paperwork was completed, meaning she could start searching for Darry herself.
"I'm not confused," she gritted out, letting out a shaky breath as tears gathered in her brown eyes. "Just-- Get out.
"But, Miss Jenner--"
"Out! Now!"
The officer gave a quick nod, rushing out of the room and shutting the door behind him. Trish sighed, hanging her head and trying to think of a plan to find her brother.
Not even a minute later Jezelle came through the door, a police officer hot on her trail.
"Ma'am, you can't be in here--"
"She's fine," Trish interrupted, giving him a look that left no room for argument. Especially with all that time she'd spent trying to convince them to search for that creature that took her brother, she really wasn't in the mood to get into another disagreement.
He looked like he wanted to say something, but eventually sighed and said, "Make it quick," closing the door on his way out. As soon as the door clicked shut Jezelle was in front of Trish, worrying over her injuries.
"I'm fine, I'm fine. Don't worry; it's just a few scrapes and bruises, nothing serious."
The older woman calmed considerably, patting the back of Trish's hand before taking a seat in one of the chairs left for guests. She smoothed out the wrinkles in her blouse, folding her hands in her lap. It was silent for a few minutes until Jezelle spoke up.
"My vision hasn't changed."
"What?" Trish asked, confused, her eyebrows drawing into a frown. It took Jezelle a moment to answer, mouth opening and closing a few times before she was able to speak.
"I can still… I can still hear him screaming in the dark."
"Is-Is that good? That must mean he's still alive and the vision hasn't happened yet… right?" The older woman sighed, linking her fingers together in her lap. "Jezelle--"
"I don't know! This has never happened before! It's supposed to eat what it needs and it usually accomplishes its task without problem. But, you and Darry put up quite a fight; more of a fight than anyone else has, no one's ever escaped. You even managed to injure it. And since your brother saw its House of Pain it should have taken his eyes by now. This doesn't make any sense."
Trish rubbed a hand across her face, wincing when she accidentally brushed over a cut. "What do we do?" She asked quietly, staring at the hospital floor. "How do we find them? And if we do, how do we get him back? Is it even possible to kill that thing? Like you said, Darry saw its… lair, it won't stop until it has him."
After a moment's hesitation, Jezelle spoke. "I may know someone who can help you track it down."
XxXxXxX
The car door slams shut, Trish following after Jezelle as the older woman led the way up to a house that sat on a farm, surrounded by a cornfield. A young man walked out the front door as they approached, letting the screen door swing back and hit the door frame loudly. He stood on the edge of the porch, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his dirty jeans; his grungy white tank top was slightly damp with sweat and he had on old boots that were caked in dried mud.
"Somethin' I can help you ladies with?"
"We're looking for Jack Taggart. Is he here?" Trish asked, putting one hand over her squinted eyes to try to keep the sun from blinding her.
"Junior or Senior?" He asked.
"Senior," Jezelle spoke up.
The young man took a moment to think, hesitation evident in his movements before he relented and turned back toward the house. He opened the screen door and poked his head in. "Pa! Ya got some visitors!" He hollered, followed by a muffled yell of confirmation, and then turned to gesture to a couple of old wooden chairs that were sitting on the porch. The two women made their way up the few steps and set down in the offered furniture, a creak accompanying their weight, but the wood held strong.
Trish and Jezelle shared a few looks and hushed words as they awaited the oldest Taggart's appearance. Not much time had passed until they could hear heavy footsteps leading to the door, a man looking a bit older than her father stepping out onto the porch. He leaned back on the banister in front of the two females, flashing them an easy smile and introducing himself. A tan hand reached out to shake their hands, the two introducing themselves as well.
"Well," he grunted out. "Now that introductions are out of the way let's get down to business. What brings you ladies out here?"
"Uh--" Trish clears her throat, looking at Jezelle for help in explaining the situation.
"Mr. Taggart, I overheard your discussion with a few of the officers the other day and I told her there was a possibility that you could help. We'd like you to tell us what you saw if that's alright."
At the mention of his meeting with the local police department, his face darkened and his smile fell. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
"You'd be surprised, sir," Trish said, giving him a pleading face, a determined look in her eyes. He looked between them and sighed, walking to the only other chair and sinking down with a tired grunt.
"I saw somethin'… a shadow. I thought it was a bird with the way it was circlin'. When I looked up the sun was too bright to get a clear look, but it sure as hell wasn't no bird. It was huge and its wings didn't have feathers, almost looked like bat wings. I looked away for a second and it'd disappeared. That's when I heard my son scream. I remember runnin' through the cornfield, not knowin' what was wrong but no scenario I thought up coulda prepared me for what I saw. A human-like creature had my son held up off the ground by his shirt, smellin' him. I tried to help but before I could reach 'em it growled and threw my boy aside. I knew it was the same thing that'd been circlin' our house 'cos of the wings. Before I could blink it was gone."
"What'd you do after it left?" Trish asked.
"I made sure my boy was alright and took care of him. The next day, though, I started workin' on somethin'. I wanted to be ready if that monster came back."
Trish seemed to be lost in thought so Jezelle took over.
"Could we see what you've been workin' on? If you don't mind," the older woman said, giving the man a gentle smile. She hoped whatever he's been working on could help them, she didn't know what she'd do if all this was for nothing. She knew that'd break Trish's heart and even then the blonde didn't seem like the type to give up. Especially if it meant leaving her brother to die a terrible death in the clutches of that horrifying creature.
With a nod Jack waved for them to follow him, leading them to the barn a little further down the property, Jack Taggart Jr. not far behind. Jack pulled open the large doors and stepped aside for Trish and Jezelle letting them see his homemade masterpiece. The two were silent as they stared at the creation, impressed the man was able to make something like this.
"Is that a…?"
"Homemade harpoon? You bet," Jack answered Trish's unfinished question. Looking at the thing brought a smile to his face, proud of the machine he'd been able to create in order to protect his children. He patted the side of it, giving a quiet chuckle at the awed expressions the women wore. "What exactly did you two need my help for?"
Jezelle shook her head, a somber expression taking over her face. "All the police officers are dead. The thing that you saw killed them all and took her brother. Trish tried getting the officers from the county over to help, but they obviously didn't believe her. We don't know who else could be of any assistance because no one else will believe us unless they saw the creature for themselves," she explained.
"I suppose it'll be a good test run for this baby," he said, giving his machine another pat and looking at his oldest son who was still just standing in the barn door opening. "Jacky, help me load her up."
XxXxXxX
The group had talked about what to do, agreeing that it'd take longer to scope out all the abandoned buildings in the area, but it'd be more dangerous splitting up. So, they all piled into Jack's truck, his homemade harpoon in the bed of it in case they happen to find the creature today. Jack Taggart Jr. stayed to watch Billy, both boys standing on the porch waving at their father as he drove away.
"So, where to first?" Jack asked, glancing over at Trish who was holding the list of abandoned buildings they'd acquired before turning his eyes back to the road.
"Hm, there's not a ton of unoccupied places, so that's good. It won't take too long to look through them. Let's start with the closest one," she replied. She read off the addresses, letting him assess which one was the closest since she didn't know any streets, only being here a few days, some of that time spent at the hospital.
They pulled up to a decent-sized building with the windows boarded up, Taggart shutting off the engine and turning to look at the two women, reaching his arm back to pop open the lid on his toolbox that was in the backseat. He fished around until he felt what he was looking for, pulling out a flashlight. He goes back in two more times, each time pulling out another flashlight.
"You keep three flashlights in here?" Trish asks, taking two of them and handing one to Jezelle.
"One for me, one for Jacky, and one for Billy. My boys help me with odd jobs so I keep one in here for both of 'em."
With that explanation, the three exit the truck, staring up at the place in trepidation. Jack walks up the steps and holds the door open, waiting until Trish and Jezelle walk in before he follows behind them, clicking on his flashlight before the door closes and blocks out the sun.
Jezelle and Trish flick theirs on, shining light on everything around them.
"Where should we start first?"
XxXxXxX
"For fuck sake, how many abandoned buildings does this town have!" Trish asked, dragging herself from the truck to let Jezelle out. Jezelle huffed out a light laugh as she scooted her way across the seat and out of the vehicle, though she shared Trish's sentiment. It was kind of ridiculous that a small town like this had so many empty lots.
"After this, there's only a few more. Let's hope yur brother is in this one so we can be done lookin'," Jack replied, turning the engine off and following the girls to the front door. The rusty hinges creaked when he pushed it open, allowing the light from their flashlights to filter in. Trish let the door fall shut behind her, a soft thud following it. A fluttering sound could be heard in one of the dark corners of the room. The three huddled up, keeping their backs facing each other in case it was the creature prowling about. Three identical rays of light flitted throughout the room, hoping to find the source of the noise. Something flying past them caused Trish and Jezelle to let out startled sounds, both of them searching the dark until their flashlights finally landed on something. Jezelle let out a sigh of relief while Trish gave an annoyed groan. A questioning noise fell from Jack, the older man turning his head to see what the girls had found. A tired laugh left his cracked lips, the man shaking his head in disbelief.
"Stupid fucking bird," Trish hissed.
"I don't know whether to be happy or disappointed that it wasn't that thing," Jack said, cracking a light smile before telling the girls to follow him. The trio wandered farther into the factory, staying eerily silent so they'd be aware of every little creak of the place, wanting to be prepared in case the thing showed up.
A loud roar echoed from deeper in the building, making Trish jump and drop her flashlight, the light flickering before it shuts off. She immediately drops down, hurriedly feeling around until her hand curls around it. She turns it off and on a few times before smacking it. The beam flickers to life again, slightly dimmed by the drop. "Darry?"
Jack turns to address them. "We search the place together. When we find it we'll lead it outside. Then, I'll harpoon the bastard."
Trish and Jezelle nod, the two trailing after the man and towards the continued animalistic sounds that bounced off the dilapidated walls.