Time's Speed Limit
Chapter Two
My travel agent called me at home (a beautiful Manhattan Penthouse, thank you very much) to tell me there were no direct flights to Silent Hill. In fact, the closest International Airport was about 250 miles away.
How…quaint.
Toluca Lake might literally be in the middle of nowhere. Isn't that…sweet. I was about to give up on the idea of even going, but even I won't cross Howard Croft. He was a man who liked getting his way, in business, sex, and ideas. It was his idea for me to get away, and people who displeased him had a funny way of hitting rock bottom fast.
I dismissed my personal assistant who had packed my necessities, and decided to add a few of my own. I might be fairly young, but I'm not naïve, and I know how to fire a gun. I was not going to go travelling about the country by car without my cell phone and my .22 semi-automatic. I'd never actually had to use it, but there's no way this City Girl would ever let anyone violate me…without a response that went BANG, at least.
My take on guns and self-defense went like this: if some overly violent and small-penised man wants to try and rape me and kill me, and doesn't care, then why should I think twice about splattering his loins all over the street?
So I finished packing, ate dinner, and went to bed.
And had a very interesting dream…Howard had me on the trapeze again, upside down, touching me, and the blood rushing to my head was quite pleasant.
A mirror. I was looking into a mirror. I looked really hot upside down—long black hair hanging, almost touching the floor with my back fully arched. But Howard, he was odd, more odd than usual. His very slight body was covered in what appeared to be a butcher's apron, and the cat o'nine tails in his right hand was covered in blood. He was beating me with it, the ends turning into sharp teeth which bit me, making me writhe and thrust against it, as if I was trying to take all of it inside of me.
And then I began to bleed. No, not bleed, exactly…more like my entire body was being covered by a black oil, but spongier, more pliable. It moved about my body in thick tendrils, covering my skin, my hair, and my face.
'Howard, stop. Something's happening.' I tried to say, but no sound came from my mouth. 'How….'
Then, I couldn't breathe. The room began to fade to black. The last thing I could hear was Croft murmuring something, almost inaudible…a phrase of some sort. "Come forth, come back, Ain Soph! Ain Soph!"
I woke suddenly, gasping for air.
What the hell was that?
I suddenly felt the need to leave for Silent Hill in the morning, and leave this mad city behind. Maybe I would never come back. If I liked Toluca Lake, I figured, I could just move the Estate there or build a new place. I fell asleep again, tentatively, then relaxed after a while, and forgot about the dream until much later.
I woke up the next morning at nine, feeling sluggish, as if I'd been doing a lot of drinking the night before. My head was throbbing. I reached over to the endtable to grab my aspirin. Instead my hand touched a slip of paper. I picked it up, squinting to examine it through my bleary eyes.
The note read:
D-
Have a great time at Toluca Lake. I simply had to write you to tell you that I, in fact, went there myself once, about three years ago, shortly after my son died. It was a truly blessed experience that I'll never forget.
If I had the time, I would go with you. Call me if you need anything.
Fondly,
H. C.
Howard? Howard Croft? What in the hell? I crumpled the note and forgot all about the aspirin, and through my thudding skull, I grabbed the phone.
"Hello."
"Howard, it's Delia."
"Well, hello Delia, what do you need?"
"Cut the bullshi…" I trailed off…what the hell was I going to say to Croft about this? "Howard, please, I'm sorry. I just have a bad headache. How did you get in my house?"
He laughed pleasantly. "I still have your key from last summer, remember, D?"
My face got hot. "Oh. Yeah. Anyway, Howard, thanks for the offer. I might just take you up on it." I started to feel a little more in control of myself (though not much).
"Perhaps you will. I'll be around, D." Good. He wasn't pissed off by me this time…he was still calling me D.
"It's really odd that you've been to Silent Hill, and I just happened to hit right on it with that magic little dart, Howard. Did you set this up, baby?" I tried to make my voice coy. He breathed slight laughter.
"No, no. I might be powerful, my Delia, but I doubt I'm that powerful."
Something in his voice again…sounded like he was smiling that weird smile. I reached over, grabbed the aspirin, and dry-swallowed four of them.
"Well, thanks, Howard. I guess I'll talk to you later."
"Enjoy, D. I'll think of you often." Click.
I got up, went to the bathroom and got into my shower. I let the jets spray down on me, and turned up the heat. I felt the need to be sterilized for no apparent reason.
