Chapter 2

Vacant Silent Hill

She woke up screaming afraid she was still in the dream. Kayla awoke with a start in the kitchen, realizing some coffee had spilled on her, which must've been the cause of the hair pulling. She sat up and just looked around wondering to see if her world wasn't actually a dream, but it wasn't. Everything looked the same as it was a few hours ago, except for the coffee. Silent Hill, her mind always became focused on those words. Her heart agreed to go there with her. It may take hours to get there, but she needed to go somewhere to forget about this whole mess, or she would be overrun by her emotions.

She cleaned the coffee off the table with some paper towels and threw them away in the garbage. As she was about to turn around, she noticed from the corner of her eye something moving in the garbage. She looked and saw nothing but the dark shadow deep in the garbage bag. Her mind told her to look more closely but the other half was disgusted. She decided to follow her mind and reached into the garbage. When she felt she had reached the bottom, she felt nothing as if there was no bottom of the garbage. Confused, Kayla reached in more and she extended her arm as far as it could go but she didn't reach the bottom. "What the…" she muttered to herself feeling deep sadness inside which made her clench the garbage can and throw it half way across the kitchen. It banged loudly but Kayla felt a little better letting out all her anger and might only over garbage.

She relaxed and feeling strong over herself, she walked into the bathroom with huge pride and scrubbed her face full of warm water. It felt so good feeling comfortable again as each drop of water made her feel fifty percent better. Nothing's going on; I'm just seeing weird things because of the murder. After she wiped her face with a towel, she turned off the water and oddly enough, she felt like going to the bathroom. The toilet looked like the toilets that have two armrests on each side and a hole in the middle. She stared at it for seconds, then minutes, but why?

The feeling of isolation was a new disease coming to her. The hole in the toilet sort of felt like she wanted to be there, or she wanted to be at the surface of the toilet water. But the problem was there was no water in it.

She pushed herself to leave the bathroom but the toilet was now stuck in her mind. She chuckled to herself wondering why the hell she would be scared over a goddamn toilet. Was her real old self ever going to come back to her?

She left the bathroom and decided enough was enough. She would return back to Silent Hill to forget everything and she could start a new life there like she did five years ago. Grabbing her car keys never felt so better and getting into her car was the best thing that could happen right then; revved up the car, back out of the garage and sped away from the house of horrors.

She ignored the sight-seeing and kept her eyes only on the everlasting road. She would ride on the road forever, but somewhere she prayed, hoped it would end. She let go of the wheel and put on some tunes from the radio. A song called "I Want Love" was playing. It resembled a song from the classic rock category, and she enjoyed every time the chorus rose to the singer screaming "I need a miracle and not someone's charity…"

Kayla turned up the volume even louder until the whole car was vibrating because of the noise. She didn't care about anything anymore, except you couldn't live without music.

Only a few hours and she would be at Silent Hill. The old town was separated from other places and the closest town was an hour away. She raised the speed of the car, wanting to get there already because of the memories following her from behind. Dan was smiling as she taped him with a video camera on one of his birthdays…she kissed him on the sand of the beach so hard they were both sinking…a party at Kayla's house was about karaoke, music, movies, popcorn…her mother kissed her on the forehead before she went upstairs after she heard the bad news…Dan kissed her before he died…The last flashback she wished had happened and she hid the tears. That was all behind her now, time to start another life, being happy…at Silent Hill!

She checked her map again and realized the only way to the town was through the forest by taking a dirt road a few miles away. She refolded the map and led the car a few miles up the vacant roads and there was the dirt road, but it seemed that the dirt road was too small and she would have to walk. She didn't care, as long as she got to her home.

She parked her car on the side of the street and she planned when she got to Silent Hill to find out the real road that led into town. It had been years since she visited there so her memories of a road were all a blur. She stepped out of the car and was overwhelmed by the lukewarm temperature, while where she came from it was freezing cold. She closed the car door and noticed the mild fog around her and the forest ahead.

With full excitement, she counted to three and after three, sprinted into the forest dodging the branches and anything that got into her way. Jumping over logs and almost getting hit into a tree because the fog was growing thicker as long as she proceeded. The forest was like a forest full of skeleton trees that made the atmosphere around her feel sort of spooky but she though to herself everything would be fine after she got to Home!

She could find another Dan and another-Mom! Damn, she better find a phone at Home to contact her to tell her where she was. Her mom was very watchful over her and always wanted to make sure she was alright that she probably drive straight over the forest and secure the area. But anyway, another Dan! She pretended he was waiting for her as soon as she reached the end of the forest. She would kiss him and would give him a bear hug. Even if he was dead, she prayed.

The forest seemed endless and every time she stopped, aches would return to the bottom of her feet burning. She had been in the forest for about five minutes and she still had a long way to go, she thought. At one point, she stopped and checked her map again and her area looked very small for a forest but her feeling told her it was Hell. She sighed a-calm-down sigh and continued running, her hopes all betted on Dan.

Her encouragement was making her more and more nervous of returning to the town. Forget about Dan, Mom, and stay with the lost memories forever. She couldn't explain why the town was so important to her, but she had a feeling it was the only way which was what brought her here. She went there to find happiness, not to mourn. Her brain said yes and her heart said no. Either way, turning back or keep going were both the wrong choices.

She decided to jog slowly so she could organize her thoughts and without thinking, ran into a tree which bruised her knee and she collapsed onto the dead leaves on the muddy ground. Disgusted, she quickly gained her balance to stand up and see what she had hit. But it wasn't a tree.

It was Dan with his six foot height and his broad body right in front of her. He was dressed in a casual green jacket with a white undershirt and blue jeans. His expression didn't tell that he was neither glad nor happy to see her. His blue eyes just looked into her blue eyes, informing each other they both loved each other. Kayla, in deep surprise gave him a bear hug. He almost tried to push her away and she refused. He tried again and she lost grasp of him. "What, I thought you were dead and you're not glad to see me!" she shouted so it echoed throughout the forest.

"That's not true…" he said "…I just, it's not time yet, I have to leave-Just take this and keep it." He flashed a pistol from behind his coat and he drew it out and handed it to Kayla so the gun's mouth was facing Dan's.

"What-Why are you doing-What's going on?" she lowered her voice while her eyes burst out drops and drops of tears.

"It's not time. The god won't let me tell you, they want you to suffer, I don't know why, just remember, I'll be watching over you ok? I love you so much!" and Dan gave her a bear hug. "By the way, I am dead" and he disappeared out of thin air.

Was it just her, or did she actually hear a guitar being played softly as she reached the end of the forest and to the road leading straight to Silent Hill less than a half mile away? She had played guitar once before but never advanced.

It was probably what she wanted to hear, with the nightmare and all. The guitar was sort of relaxing but although it seemed insane to hear one in this situation, it was still relaxing. She didn't realize she had crossed the border into Silent Hill as she hummed to the tune on the guitar. Thinking of a piano playing let the sounds of a piano come to her ears. All the beats of both instruments were steady but enjoyable.

The music continued making Kayla forget she was even walking and having Dan's pistol clutched in her hand. It made her think of Dan…but it was all right. You're at Silent Hill! Live the good times again!

Suddenly, all the music stopped and there was nothing. Snapping out of the trance, she looked around. The fog was as nothing as she'd ever seen before. It was too thick to be normal. It resembled the fog from the nightmare a few hours ago. But why was there fog in Silent Hill? Could it be-?

The burst of flames burst her out of her thoughts and into a huge scare. She turned around and saw several downed power lines in a puddle of water covering the whole entrance to the town. What the? She scurried over to the lines while keeping a safe distance and noticed more than some power lines. Before she could fully identify that there was a human body lying under the lines through her brain, the body screamed in pain as electricity covered his whole body until he would die.

Kayla couldn't watch the gruesome entertainment and was already running as fast as she could towards Silent Hill. When she thought she was just about away from the accident? She slowed down trembling in fear. More fear struck her when the explosion way behind her felt so close and the splatter of blood onto the back of her body. She screamed and hit the ground covering her head crying out fearful tears. She put her hand to her heart. It was beating faster than ever and her fear was way over the limit, she felt she was going to have a nervous breakdown right there on the ground. She couldn't keep her breathing steady and her body was twitching. Just then, from the corner of her eye, she saw a ripped folded piece of paper on the ground.

She had nothing else to think about so she reached and grabbed the paper. She unfolded it and found out it was a letter probably never mailed because of the scratched out marks and unfinished sentences:

Dear Mom, Please mom help me now ------ Silent Hill----come please---thought it was paradise but it's now----I'm dying each and every day as I see the ------- lurking in the darkness ----- please----found a guy yesterday with a knife and staples in his back------in his face!-----god mom HELP----get this letter quickly please. Can't fight for myself---too frightened to go on. I'm afraid going to die any time no

Now she knew what she was going to have to sacrifice in order to survive this nightmare. The letter was telling about familiar fears of dying and suffering. Kayla's. She didn't want to but she knew she would have to be acquiescing about her situation before she got herself killed like this girl. One way or the other, she had to get used to this atmosphere. If Silent Hill isn't Paradise anymore. But why?

She decided to keep the letter and put it in her pocket, hoping it would come in handy anytime she gave up on herself. She made herself stop crying and felt angered at what she knew may be ahead of her. But no matter what it was, there was no time for tears. She held the pistol one more in both hands and proceeded into the dark realms of Silent Hill.

The fog reminded her of her dream before and it felt so coincidental to be in the same situation. Now, the fog was not a distraction to her anymore. The fog made the invisible sky feel like late afternoon although in real time it was almost midnight. But that wasn't a distraction either. Except the distraction that she was overwhelmed with confidence and, if she could put it into words, ready.

As she reached the bridge she could see under it Vachess Street, it was sort of like an alley that at one point came to a dead end, she remembered. I must be close now! She was when she saw the road finally curve a little, of which the road she officially knew as Nathan Avenue, eastern side of South Vale, Silent Hill. Every street was to her left because to the right further up was Toluca Lake and Rosewater Park and grass.

The noise was quite calm to what she was imagining. She told herself to stop thinking negatively anymore but every time she decreased, her images were still always wrong. As she turned on Lindsey Street, there was nothing in sight except for the stores and buildings on each side of the street. As she continued walking, there was no sign of life.

Making sure this was all true, she walked over to one store called For Sale for Free, or was the store being sold? She crept closer and saw the handgun bullets taped to the front entrance with a note hanging from them: For Free. She quickly grabbed them and placed them in her pocket cautiously, pondering if this was all a game or something. No, this is for real, so shut up!

The scenery was never going to change, she thought. All the dullness and isolation would never change. She kept thinking of that as she walked slower every step, feeling fear was right around the corner.

The fear rose inside her. She had a gut feeling something was going to happen. When it did, she screamed for a second but then laughed; the noise of a loud teddy bear voice. After the laugh, she sighed and tucked the gun in her pants. It was nothing---

The sounds of breaking glass increasing from behind her and a long roar of a dog. She sprinted as fast as she could not knowing what was happening, but when she saw the stores glass breaking and aiming for her, she knew the only way out was to run. She luckily was very close to the intersection of Lindsey and Katz Street. When she saw a marked X on Katz Street she seized her chance and dug her left foot into the ground and dived out of Lindsey Street…

…She was in pitch black darkness and saw Dan in a dream. They were at the beach holding hands, walking along the seashore with the seagulls. It was morning, Dan and she had just made out in the sand and they both felt refreshed. Kayla held Dan closely to her and Dan looked as if he was moving away from her.

"What's wrong?" said Kayla sympathetically as Dan let go of her hand and turned his back on her. "Tell me, please."

Dan froze and tilted his head up to the sky and the tilted it down to the sand. Finally, he turned around. His body was all boney as if he hadn't eaten in weeks and she noticed his heart bumping out of his skin, a line of blood coming down his left nipple. "You broke my heart," he said…

…She woke up with a sprained ankle on the ground. It was pure dark now, the sky not the fog, except for the turned on pocket flashlight next to her. Feeling a little dizzy and the need to stretch, she grabbed the flashlight and put in her front shirt pocket leaving it on so she could see what was in front of her. When she stood up, she stretched her arms out and then rolled her head. She cleared her throat and felt prepared again.

What was that nightmare she dreamed of? It was so weird. I broke his heart. I only broke his heart, which was years ago, only when she first met him; infidelity. That was along time ago! Forget it!

Her mind was spinning, couldn't keep things straight, and couldn't remember where she was again. She had reason not to go on and she had no reason why she should go on which was the whole point. She was being dragged into this horrible place and she couldn't help herself. She just didn't want to remember her past but she couldn't resist…

She was charged with one count of attempted murder on Dan Clutz years ago. It was all a misunderstanding; Kayla didn't want to explain but she couldn't bear to testify in court in front of Dan. Her fear was he would kill her. But she was forced to and made up a story straight from her head the day the gavel was heard. There was lots of loquacious going on until it was finally Kayla's turn to the stand. She did the oath and the tension began inside her.

"So, just to be exact, you were at home at approximately 9:30pm on May 6th, am I correct?"

"Yeah…"

"And you were with your husband?"

"Yes, true…"

"...What were you guys doing that past hour?"

"Watching TV, drinking some beer, and walking outside."

"Walking…well after 9:30, a witness said she saw you and your husband leave home, as also confirmed by your husband's testimony-in your car."

"…That was way later, probably around ten."

"Kayla...is this exactly true, because some parts of your story do not resemble to the witnesses and your husband's testimony. Is that all you really can remember to be exact, or are you indeed lying."

"…I-I'm sorry, maybe I did lie at some parts, I just-it's hard to remember such a event, an event you wouldn't want to remember yourself."

"You, you wouldn't to remember the day your husband was found with his blood covered all over you when you too got home."

"He had gotten hurt when we went to the lake…tripped and fell down the cliff. He didn't anyone to know what had happened to him because of all the publicity so we tried to cover the whole story up. I was covered in blood only partly on my pants which were because I used my leg to help him up the cliff."

"So you helped up the cliff with one foot balancing both you. You would've fallen straight to the bottom again-"

"I just guessed we were lucky. Anyway, why do you lawyers have to be so… pertinacious?"

"No offense Kayla, but your side of the story doesn't sound realistic to me and the only reason is because just a few minutes ago, Dan Clutz had testified saying you pushed him off the cliff and you were covered in blood because of also hurting yourself. And he never said to keep it a secret. I'm sorry but I really don't understand. Why do you think he would really want to cover up the event, huh?"

…The verdict was not guilty only because of all the bribes she has to make to the jurors in order to not go to jail for the rest of her life. Of course, no one really understood why Dan still stayed with Kayla even after she was found not guilty. Both him and her both put that event behind them for years and covered it up to their relatives as saying they were on a vacation.

When they stepped out of the courtroom, Kayla's face looked half relieved, half scared. Then, without hesitation, Dan whispered in her ear "It's all over."

It felt as if the memory was coming back to haunt her which was the reason for the horror she was now facing. Or perhaps, Dan was haunting her. To finally expunge the memory didn't cure her symptoms and she knew she must go on with her quest. No more memories, she told herself, "They only make me feel guiltier about it."

Unexpectedly, the more tranquil she became, the faster the fog moved around her, the more doubt she felt. She continued along Katz Street without hesitation dragging her feet along so it made scratch noises along the road. What was she doing there? Why did she go there? Why didn't she just face the facts that Dan was dead, not suddenly heading to a town she rarely recognized anymore? There were no responses from the voices of the fog.

It felt very dull walking, what's the reason? The town was like a maze. Finally, she just collapsed onto the ground wanting to rest, fall asleep. She was ready to die, giving up on all her hopes and dreams. It was time. She slowly closed her eyes and sighed softly…

…the sounds of screams. Not ordinary screams, more mystical screams too hard to describe or be sincere. The sound of a car revving up on the road. The car speeds off while Kayla's in the backseat looking at the road behind her, the body of a human lying on it's back on the road, one of their trembling hands reaching out to her. She knew the person, a woman in her eighties, her other hand holding the walker she was using before. She felt grossed out and having a feeling like bursting into tears because of the torture she was seeing right before her eyes. She spun around to face the driver of the car she was in…but there wasn't any, unless you counted a corpse with its head through the windshield, blood dripping down the broken glass rapidly. Kayla kept her reactions inside and waited for something else to happen, only because something was so familiar about this! The car's surrounding was on the edge of a winding road leading up to the top of a cliff. "No!" no one shouted from the passenger seat and the wheel spun to the left which brought the car off the road and into the air, until it would reach it's death at the rocks at the bottom of the cliff. "Whyyoudoit," screamed the invisible passenger again. "You don't get everything for nothing all the time", replied another very dark and low voice "I…had to; please…believe me…ha-ha." Without notice, the car finally reached it's destination with gravity.

"…excuse me," she heard another voice and she opened her eyes. A man was kneeling down over her. "Oh! I hope I didn't bother you or woke you up but uh, I um…"

Kayla got a good look at the man before she told him it was ok. At least she felt comfortable that now someone was really with her. The man looked uneasy but his face looked curious. She got up from her fettle position and stood at least arm length from him.

"I'm sorry if I scared you," continued the man "but I'm in need of help. About a mile away, my car crashed in some bushes and it won't start up again."

Kayla looked at his body in a little disbelief. "The funny thing is I don't see any scratches or bruises on you."

"That's the odd thing but-excuse me, my name is Joseph James DaVinder, Joseph for short."

"Oh, Kayla" and she didn't give him her hand for the handshake he was going to do. "What are you doing near here? …You see, I feel—am lost. Are we still in Silent Hill?" Her surroundings were pure dark except for the flashlight that was still in her pocket, but the fog still appeared.

"I, uh guess so. I've only been walking for a few minutes before I found you. This place is giving me the creeps, and I feel lucky to finally have found someone. Sorry of my blabbing on—what's your name—I mean what are you doing in a town like this, sorry to ask?"

"There no need to be sorry," Kayla began "but I'm here because…I really don't know. I guess I snapped. My husband died a few days ago and here, in Silent Hill, was one of our memories. For some reason, I don't know why, but I just picked Silent Hill and just drove there because I felt I could be happy again, not to say I haven't noticed the new decorations."

"I know," said Joseph "I hate to ask, but do you have a cell phone or walkie-talkie, anything?"

"The same problem with me, I haven't got any. I've been looking for one ever since I came here."

"How long have you been here for!"

"I would guess only a few hours, but I don't think we're going to find any phones in this town. I just have that gut feeling that something's very wrong with this place…if you know what Silent Hill used to be like…"

"I do…no offense but the town never really appealed to me, except for Rosewater Park, Lakeview Hotel, Brookhaven Hospital, and the elementary school on Midwich Street, but that's it."

"Well it sounds like you actually did like the town—"NO, I HATED IT!" shouted Joseph before Kayla could finish her statement.

He quickly calmed down. "I'm sorry, but ok, yes. I did like the town, it was ok."

Kayla didn't want to know what he hated so she switched the subject "Um, I think we should go try finding a phone or something because I don't prefer to stay in one place. It's hard to explain."

"It's ok," smiled Joseph "its ok, I understand. Yeah, we should um start moving. I understand."

Both not completely feeling safe, they both started walking. "Oh, by the way," said Joseph "I'm sorry you…never mind."