Chapter 3
"Wait, what? Can you say that again?", Clyde asked curiously as he was eating a cheeseburger in the cafeteria.
"I need your help Clyde", Lincoln replied, looking directly into his eyes.
"I got that part, but with what exactly? I really hope that I misheard the last part..."
Lincoln sighed.
"No, you didn't. Lucy has been leaving the house at midnight and I want to find out what she has been doing all this time. I'm sure that you have heard of the last events that have been happening in the cemeteries around our city."
"Yes, I have heard about it. Both of my dads have been very anxious about it, and are fearful for me, even though I've been going to school and nowhere else in these past few weeks. However, I don't think that Lucy has to do anything with it. Sure, she's always been weird and fascinated by the macabre and gothic stuff, but I think that you're overreacting now", Clyde elaborated as he finished his meal and wiped his mouth with the hand tissue.
"Hopefully you're right Clyde, hopefully, but there is this sense of dread inside of me, you know? It's enough that we have problems with Lynn and her erratic behaviour, we don't need Lucy to follow in her steps. Please man, I'm begging you as a friend, as a bro, come with me this midnight, let's follow Lucy and see what's this all about. I know that you see my sisters as your sisters so you can see this as helping your own sister", Lincoln asked in a near whisper, using the puppy eyes technique that he adapted from his older sister Lynn.
"Okay let's say I agree on this. What are we gonna use as an alibi? There is no way in hell that your or my parents would let us go outside at night under these special circumstances. Have you thought about that at all?"
Lincoln smirked and scratched his cheek.
"Don't worry that's easiest part. Just ask your dads that you will come with me to my house after school. Tell them that we have a hard exam coming soon and that we need to study together. Surely they will accept that."
"Hmm", Clyde pondered,"that does sound believable. I'll just say that I'm spending the night at your house and that way we can go to school together tomorrow."
"That's perfect, just don't forget to bring a flashlight, we're definitely gonna need that!"
It was time for P.E. or Physical Education, or as Lynn liked to call it 'Heaven on Earth'. For nearly everyone else, it was an exhausting forty-five minutes of rigorous physical activity and sport, but for Lynn that was her way of relaxation from other, boring subjects. Since she was too strong and rough for the girls in her class, she was forced to play with the boys-at their general dislike. Playing sports with a girl would be a plus, but neither of the boys in her class found her attractive, in the romantic way at least. The eighteen-year-old girl was of bellow average height, she didn't weigh much but her body was of tight and firm build with clearly defined muscles on her arms, legs, stomach and back, which was the result of her training various sports, and her personal training with her little brother Lincoln (much to his chagrin.)
Today's sport subject was basketball, one of Lynn's favourite sports. Even though height played a large factor in basketball, that didn't prove any problem at all for the tomboy girl. She was bellow six-feet tall, and men of that height would have trouble dunking and fighting for the rebound-but not Lynn. On the opposite, this was the thrill of it all for her. With her incredible athleticism and leaping ability, Lynn was able to effortlessly dunk the ball on players taller and bigger than her, get the rebound, play hard defense, it didn't matter against who. This intensity and hustle both shocked and impressed her high school coaches.
"I can't wait for the weekend! No exams next week and I can spend the entire weekend playing ball with my brother and cousins!", one of Lynn's schoolmates cheerfully exclaimed as they were getting changed in the girls' locker room.
"Lucky you! Since I am alone with no brothers or sisters, I have to shoot the ball on my own", another one sighed.
"Lynn has it the easiest, she has two full basketball teams made of her siblings and one still remains as the referee! Ah-ha!", one of the girls lightly slapped Lynn on her right shoulder.
"Yeah, you're totally right", Lynn joined in the laugh, but that laugh was only on the outside.
Inside she wanted to cry. None of her sisters wanted to play with her, and since she was in punishment and couldn't leave her house except for school she couldn't go the playground to play basketball. The only one who remained was…
Lincoln, her cowardly and wimpy brother. To be fair, he did play with her when they were younger but as they got older, he stopped playing with her. Lynn always wondered what the reason was.
Was she too rough with him? No way, she could never intentionally hurt her little bro, as much as this was a training for her, this was also a training lesson for him. It made him stronger in both ways, physically and mentally.
Then why did he turn out like this, so vulnerable, like he was some little girl that needed protection. He was supposed to protect his sisters yet it seemed that it was the other way around, his sisters were taking care of him.
That's it, exactly like that, Lynn thought to herself. That's what Lincoln needed, some more training, Lynn grinned as she packed her things and went to the next class in school.
Darkness had slowly enveloped Royal Woods in its entirety, and night had arrived. The Loud family was done with their dinner and everyone went along with their own business, everyone except Lincoln.
Their original plan was too risky, so they separated and Clyde went to his own home. Lincoln called him several times but to no avail. He didn't even read his messages.
Come on Clyde, I'm counting on you, I can't do this alone…
Or maybe he can? It's not like Lincoln was scared or anything, he was just going to take a little nature walk...alone...in the dark…
Lincoln glanced outside from his window and his eyes opened wide in shock. This night was especially dark and gloomy, not that it needed to be more than it already is, especially in the month of October. Even the full moon was barely noticeable as it was hidden behind a dense layer of clouds. That's most likely the reason for an unusual dark night, Lincoln concluded.
After a few more minutes of thinking about the meaning of life and death, Lincoln's phone finally ringed.
"Jesus Christ Clyde, do you know how much I have waited for your call?! I called you hundred times and you di-", Lincoln answered his phone and started arguing but his best friend cut him in mid-sentence:
"Sorry man, my parents were talking to me for hours about safety in these dark days and nights, blah blah, nonsense. Anyway, they did actually gave me permission for a sleepover, I'll be there in a few minutes. See ya!", Clyde answered in a hurry and ended the conversation.
Lincoln had many questions but none of those mattered now, his main partner was finally gonna come and they could start their 'operation of following Lincoln's emo sister into the darkness'. Yes, that was a good name.
Just as Lincoln left his room and leapt like a bunny downstairs in happiness, he nearly clashed with Lisa in the hallway.
"Calm down there older brother, you nearly caused me physical and mental injuries", Lisa cried as she took a step back.
"Sorry Lis', but Clyde is coming over and we have a lot to do!", Lincoln winced at his little sister.
"What mischief are you planning now Lincoln?", Lisa narrowed her glass-enhanced eyes at her older brother.
Oh shit…
"Nothing at all, you know, I'm just happy that me and my best friend are gonna spend some awesome time together, that's all...", Lincoln blurted out, his right leg nervously shaking.
If Lisa finds out what I'm doing, I'm screwed. Then again, she can probably find it out on her own by using some lie detector or a torture instrument...let's hope it doesn't come to that…
"I don't find it strange that you want to spend time with your best friend, human beings occasionally do that, but the timing worries me. Clyde hasn't come for a sleepover in a year or two, and now suddenly he comes...suspicious if you ask me..."
Lincoln gulped, praying to every deity he knows of for Lisa not to push any further into this subject…
"But then again it's probably some harmless prank so, I don't really care. Just try not to hurt yourselves", Lisa shrugged her shoulders and retreated back into her room.
Lincoln pinched his own right cheek.
He couldn't believe what had just happened. Did somebody kidnap Lisa and replace her with someone else? Was this Lisa's clone? It was highly unusual for Lisa to drop something that required thinking or solving a problem or a mystery but it looks like luck truly did exist and that it was on Lincoln's side, just this once.
A ringing on the house's bell snapped Lincoln out of confusion, and he raced to the front door and opened it.
"Yo what's up my man", Clyde greeted his best friend as he entered the house with a backpack on his shoulder.
"Hello Clyde, what are you doing here so late?", Lynn Sr. asked as he and Rita got up from the sofa.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you that Clyde would be coming for a sleepover, we have this extremely hard exam next week so we're gonna help each other to study", Lincoln quickly replied, before Clyde even got the chance to open his mouth.
"Is that so? Then, why didn't you say earlier? I would've prepared some cookies or an apple pie for you two!", Rita smiled.
You would make it for a guest but not for me, really?
Don't be so ungrateful Lincoln, she's your mother!
Shut up, nobody asked you anything.
"It doesn't matter Mr. and Mrs. Loud, thanks you for your hospitality. Now Linc, let's go to your room so we can start, we have a lot of work to do", Clyde grinned as he patted Lincoln on the shoulder.
"See you two, have a good night!", Lincoln waved goodbye to his parents as the two friends hurried to Lincoln's room.
"Took you long enough asshole! Do you know how long I have waited?! I even thought that you wouldn't come at all!", Lincoln whispered in an angry voice.
"Screw you dude, you don't have crazy parents like I do!", Clyde snapped back.
"They can't be crazier than my parents, believe me...", Lincoln chuckled.
"Who cares about that, let's talk about the serious stuff, our mission. When does it commence?"
Clyde lowered his backpack on the floor as he and Lincoln sat on the bed.
"Well, during these past two nights she would leave the house at around fifteen minutes before midnight, so roughly around that time we should also be prepared to leave. I'm concerned about how are we gonna get down to the ground without going through the front door...", Lincoln sighed.
"Don't worry about that bro, I have it covered", Clyde grinned as he reached for his backpack, opened it and pulling out a thick rope which was at least ten meters long.
"Where the hell did you get that?", Lincoln was astonished.
"Found it in my basement, looks fairly new. It's honestly amazing just how many things you can find in your attic or basement when you look deep enough."
"Clyde, you evil genius bastard, this is brilliant, now we just have to wait..."
"It's eight and thirty now, what are we gonna do until then?"
"Let's play some Mario Kart", Lincoln suggested as he reached for his two controllers.
"I'll be glad to kick your ass again", Clyde grinned as he went to start up the game.
Hours had passed and the time had finally came. Both Clyde and Lincoln were vigilantly watching outside the window for Lucy.
"There she is, right there!", Clyde said under his breath, pointing at a dark figure that moved away from their house and onto the streets.
Lincoln opened the window, then tightly wrapped the rope around his bed, which weighed a few hundred pounds.
That should hold us both.
There is still time to stop this Lincoln, don't bite something that you can't chew…
Fuck off already…
"I'll go first, I'm lighter", Clyde whispered as he put on skiing gloves and rappelled down to the ground.
"How did it feel?", Lincoln asked.
"Fucking amazing dude, come on, throw me my backpack."
"Catch!", Lincoln threw down the backpack and Clyde caught it easily.
Just as Lincoln was about to put on his gloves, he froze in his place.
Footsteps could be heard in the hallway. And they were getting louder and louder, until…
The door to his room opened and it was…
"What the hell are you doing you idiot?", Lynn furrowed her brow as she closed the door.
"L-l-l-lynn?! W-well you see, I...", Lincoln stuttered as he started to shake uncontrollably.
"What is this? What are you planning to do?", Lynn questioned as she inspected the rope and Lincoln.
"Lucy...she went...in the darkness...", Lincoln said with a monotone voice. It was all over now.
"I know that, I woke up to go the bathroom and then I found out that she wasn't in her bed or should I say coffin. Since her breathing is so silent, nearly non-existent, I never even realized that she was gone, God only knows how long she has been doing this...wait a minute, did you want to go after her, on your own?", Lynn raised her head. There was a slight hint of worry in her voice that made Lincoln snap out of his trance.
"Well, yeah, me and Clyde, he's already outside."
Lynn chuckled.
"I should have know that the two of you were up to something. Listen, I have a proposition for you. You will play basketball with me until I'm allowed to leave the house, in return I won't tell anyone about your expedition. Plus, I'll even accompany you two wimps so you don't get scared, how's that sound?", Lynn smiled as she punched Lincoln on his shoulder.
She wants what? To come with us? This keeps getting weirder and weirder…
The thought of getting beat up by her in basketball is a nightmare, but it's a sacrifice I'm willing to take for the sake of Lucy (and sating my own curiosity…)
"Okay, whatever, I accept, you can come, now let's just go, she's already way ahead of us", Lincoln answered as he rappelled down.
"What took you so long man?", Clyde was confused.
"Just you wait, the best part is yet to come...", Lincoln laughed to himself as Lynn followed the two boys down.
"Lynn?! What the fuck, we're busted!", Clyde yelped.
"Be silent fool! Yes and no, we don't have much time, she's with us, and frankly we need every help we can get", Lincoln explained, in a defeated voice.
"You heard him four eyes, let's go, stop wasting my time", Lynn smirked as the trio went into the darkness.
After a few minutes of walking into a random direction, the trio stopped for a moment.
Where were they even supposed to go? Royal Woods was a large city, and because of Lincoln and Lynn's bickering, they lost sight of Lucy. The fact that Lucy wore all black in this dark night wasn't helpful.
"I don't know about you, but I'm freezing over here, maybe we should have put something warmer on...", Clyde lamented as he blew into his cupped hands in an effort to warm them up.
Lincoln's eyes went wide open at the sudden realization: all three of them were in their pajamas, in an old October night. From all the hype and excitement, they forgot to wear actual clothes.
"You two are actually cold? God, you two are bigger pussies than I originally thought", Lynn chuckled, to the chagrin of both Lincoln and Clyde.
"Just because you are devoid of any human feelings, doesn't mean that the rest of us can't feel the cold", Clyde countered, surprising the sibling duo of his bravery.
"You little shit!", Lynn tightened her fist as she went to confront Clyde but he took a step back, as sweat overcame his face.
"Cut it out, both of you, we need to figure out where to look after Lucy. Every second that passes means that it's gonna be harder for us to find her", Lincoln intervened as he separated the two.
"Well Inspector Sherlock, that's your problem, why did you even try this if you didn't even know where you should be looking? And on top of all that, you dragged me into this mess!", Lynn chastised her younger brother as she put her hands on her hips. The scene was nearly comical.
"I dragged you?!", Lincoln gasped. There was no way that she had just said this.
"You blackmailed me into basically forcing me to take you with us in return for you remaining silent and...", but before Lincoln could continue his rant, Lynn put her hand on his mouth, a clear sign that he had talked too much.
"Okay, sorry idiot, you're right, we can't fight now, we need to find a way to track Lucy down."
"Should we ask some of the local houses? Maybe they've seen her?", Clyde suggested.
"Absolutely no way, this has to remain a secret, plus we're still in the neighbourhood, everyone will recognize us", Lincoln swiftly rejected the idea.
"Wait a second, what about that creepy school club that she attends?"
"What school club Lynn? Oh you mean the Morticians Club? What about them?", Lincoln leaned back in confusion.
"Use your head dumbass. They are a group of edgy emo kids who are fascinated with death and crap like that. These guys who are gathering at the graves were also reported as wearing mostly black clothes. Does this it ring any bells now?", Lynn explained as she tapped Lincoln's temple a few times with her index finger.
"Don't tell me that you think that they're responsible for that? They are like thirteen or so, younger than you or me, I don't believe it", Lincoln was sceptical.
"You really underestimate them Lincoln. I don't know about your experience with them, but I have seen everything from faking faintness to cutting and intentionally harming themselves. These guys are batshit crazy, don't let their young ages trick you. Lucy has tangled herself up in a dangerous group."
"So, the Morticians do it, all right. What now, where we should we find them, do they have some sort of a lair or something?", Clyde joined in.
"I don't know for sure but there were rumours that they were seen gathering under the bridge past the Ketcham Park. We could try and go there."
"That's a good ten minutes of walking but it is our best lead so far. All right, let's try there then", Lincoln said as he started to walk, followed by Lynn and Clyde.
"Are you sure that you and Clyde aren't gonna freeze to death until we arrive", Lynn smirked, teasing her little brother and his best friend. Both of them groaned in unison.
As they were heading towards the rumoured gathering place, their body heat was getting higher as the walking got them warmer and at least temporarily made them forget about the cold autumn air around them that sent shivers through their bodies.
Even though it was past midnight, not everyone was sleeping in the houses that they passed by. Some lights were still on, and they could only hope that nobody had noticed them as the three teenagers walking around in their pajamas in a cold and foggy night wasn't a usual sight.
What are we even supposed to see there, Lincoln thought to himself. What Lynn told him did worry him a bit, he knew Lucy, she wouldn't harm anyone, let alone herself. This was most likely just some harmless pranking going around, Lincoln assured himself. They were in that phase of puberty.
"Halt!", Lynn suddenly stopped as she raised her right fist, causing Lincoln and Clyde to bump into her as they were too caught up in their own thoughts.
"Lynn, what-", Lincoln was ready to argue but he understood why they stopped.
They were standing on the edge of the bridge just past Ketcham Park, where Lincoln would often go to play with Lily. His youngest sister absolutely adored that place.
The bridge didn't have a name, which was rather unusual as nearly every other bridge in Royal Woods had a name. Most people just called it the 'Ketcham Bridge' though, after the Park.
There were many legends that surrounded this particular bridge, many of them Lincoln had heard when his grandfather or as they called him, Pop-Pop, would come over and share them with the Loud kids. Of course, he would then get chastised by the Loud parents because they thought that such tales scared the kids. On the contrary though, they were intrigued and amused by them.
The one that struck Lincoln the most though, was about the 'Smiling Woman'.
The Smiling Woman lived in her small wooden house right next to the river and bellow the bridge. She lived somewhere around the second half of the nineteenth century, and was a maiden, meaning that she never married or had kids. Many suitors would come looking for her hand, but she rejected them all.
Many other women were jealous of her near-otherworldly beauty, which was further enhanced by her constant smile. Nobody ever recalled her having any other expression than a smile.
Since many kids would pass over the bridge on their way to school, she was often seen giving them candies or just waving and wishing them good luck.
Then one year, children started mysteriously disappearing after they left their homes for school. Despite a massive investigation which included the police, army and volunteers, twenty five children were missing. Deeply shaken by this horrible event, the Woman packed her things and left the Royal Woods forever.
Nobody ever suspected this, since everyone thought of the Woman as an angel on Earth so they just concluded that she was hit by this personally and couldn't handle living here. After a few months, the case was declared unsolved and remained cold. The grieving parents accepted that their kids were forever gone and missing. Until…
One night, as the deputy sheriff was scrolling through some files, he stumbled upon the Smiling Woman's information. Her birth date suggested that she should have been nearly two hundred years old now, which was way above the average human standard.
The deputy grow suspicious about this and ordered her old house to be searched.
The small door they found on the ground, inside the house, lead them to the basement and the basement lead them to an underground dungeon. Most of the officers nearly fainted from the terrible stench down as the sight mortified them all.
There were twenty five little bodies, bodies of children aged anywhere from eight to twelve, wrapped in bandages, looking like they were mummified. The process was crudely done, which produced the unbearable stench.
But the most disturbing thing, however, was a wide smile on their faces, from ear to ear, and their mouths sewn closed with a needle and black thread.
A nation-wide manhunt was organized for the Woman but no one was ever able to locate her. Many imposters were arrested but then released after lack of evidence.
There are many theories about what had happened here. The most common one was, that she was a witch or a demon in human form who drained the souls of children to extend her life. That would explain her youthful appearance, even though she was supposed to be middle aged but turned out to be nearly two centuries old.
The official case however just stated that she was the prime suspect for the mass murder and that the bounty of one million dollars still stood to this day…
"How should we approach this? There are many leaves down there, if they hear us as we step over them, we're busted", Clyde whispered as he tried to get a look down from the bridge.
"Follow me and don't make a sound", Lynn pointed to the other side of the bridge as the two boys followed her descend carefully down to the river, without stepping on a leaf and producing a crunching sound.
They settled behind a tree that was large enough to completely cover all three of them. With Lincoln and Clyde on the right and Lynn on the left side, they finally peaked behind the tree into the small space just bellow the bridge.
Four humanoid figures could be seen gathered around what seemed like a campfire. Upon closer inspection, Lincoln immediately recognized them.
Lucy, Haiku, Silas and Maggie, they all wore dark robes over their clothes.
"There's Lucy but when did Maggie join the Morticians Club?", Clyde whispered.
"Shush", Lynn silenced him.
"The sacrifice...take it out...", Haiku demanded. Lucy nodded and pulled a hairy, grey cat out of a brown linen sack.
"I...", Lucy gasped as her light blue eyes met with the cat's yellow eyes. The cat was purring in her hands and meowed a few times.
"The cat Lucy, now", Haiku asked in a threatening voice. However, Lucy remained still.
Haiku signalled to Silas and he grabbed the cat from Lucy's hands while hitting across her right cheek, the slapping noise echoing throughout the darkness.
"Fucker!", Lynn rasped through her teeth but Lincoln nudged her shoulder.
"Calm yourself."
Lucy straightened herself and barely managed to contain a flood of tears from overwhelming her face. Her right cheek was still red and aching from pain.
"Now, this is the sixth and most important offering, after this our ritual begins its final phase...", Haiku coldly stated as she grabbed a knife that was on the ground. Silas and Maggie held the cat on the ground while Lucy and the trio behind the three just blankly stared.
With a swift motion, Haiku trusted the knife deep into the cat's chest causing the animal to shriek and vibrate in pain but Silas and Maggie overpowered the cat.
Haiku then spread the chest hole with her bare hands and with the help of her knife managed to rip away the little heart of the now deceased creature. The body of the poor cat twitched a few times but then it remained still.
"Tomorrow, the main graveyard, at midnight. We have six hearts, the Lord will be pleased. In fact, He will finally join us in person and then we can begin the process...until then, disappear", Haiku commanded them as they quickly fled the scene with Haiku putting the heart in the sack and taking it with her while Silas threw the corpse of the cat into the river.
However, Lucy just stood there for a few moments until she shook her head and stumbled awkwardly uphill and went straight home.
Immediately as she left, Clyde vomited on the ground, barely managing to contain himself.
"What the fuck man, like are you kidding me!?", Lynn punched the tree.
"I'm gonna kill those two assholes, first they yell at my sister and then they hit her, I will break all of their bones, I will eat their hearts...", Lynn whispered in a threatening voice. The thought of that made Lincoln physically cringe.
"What...what now Lincoln...", Clyde asked as he was heavily breathing, still in shock.
Lincoln was just staring blankly at the river.
"Let's just go home for now..."