BEWARE THE MOON
By FAH3
FoUr:
The dawning of a new day was supposed to bring one a sense of fresh new beginnings. Instead, it brought John nothing but confusion. Physically, he felt amazing. He hadn't felt this good since he was a child which was even more confusing to him. In the first years as a rookie police officer, he had been pursuing a thief when he jumped over a curb while running down the street. While his right foot had made it, his left foot struck the curb and caused him to fall face first to the ground. In moments, his ankle had swollen to double, if not triple, its size. A visit to the doctor had revealed he had dislocated it which the doctor was able to snap it back into place. John had stayed off of the ankle for as long as he could, but it never truly healed right. He suspected that he had probably fractured it as well. Off and on ever since then, his ankle would ache from too frequent use. However, his ankle felt perfectly fine. Even on his best day, it would still bother him. Now there was no pain, no aches, no anything. It was as if he had never injured it. Even his shoulder now felt perfectly fine.
After his talk with the sheriff, he started to question his memory. He worried how much of what he remembered was real and what all was the invention of his fever plagued imagination. To keep himself occupied, he explored the property and helped out where he could. When it came to the horses and a few other animals, they all began to run away as soon as he came close to them. The only ones that didn't run away from him were the dogs. A part of him also longed to go into town to see what it had to offer, but he was still hesitant He didn't want to answer questions about the attack, more so when it came to the family of the others that had died. Surprisingly, the attacks seemed to have died down. No one had really heard or seen anything since the other night.
To occupy himself, John continued to read several of the novels that Slim had to offer. Every time he sat down, he always had Rufus to keep him company. He was engrossed in yet another book with Rufus' head in his lap. He would read while at the same time absent mindedly stroking the dog's head. Some time had passed after John had sat down when he heard footsteps entering the study. He finally looked up from his novel when he heard someone clearing their throat. Mim stood just inside the doorway in front of him while wearing a simple blouse and a pair of denim pants with her hair tied back in a simple pony tail.
"I was going to help a few of the hands work in the garden. Do you want to tag along?" she asked him.
"No, thank you. I think I'll stick with the book for now." John answered.
"How long has he been there?" Mim asked.
"Who?"
"Rufus."
John looked down and saw Rufus had laid his head in his lap again. John raised an eye brow at this. He wasn't really aware he had been petting the dog. Also, the dog had made it abundantly clear that he didn't care for John in the slightest since the animal had gone out of its way to growl at him or ignore him since he had first arrived to the ranch. Very curious indeed.
"I'm not really sure. Isn't that funny?" John said as he stopped petting the dog. Rufus responded with a slight growl and pushed his head under John's hand again, indicating that John wasn't supposed to stop. "Okay, you big brute." John said and resumed stroking the dog's head.
"Which book are you reading, if I might ask?"
"Journey to the Center of the Earth. Have you read it?" John asked.
"It was fun, but science really isn't for me."
"I forgot. You love a good mystery. I'm still surprised you haven't formed a group of fellow readers of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle."
"Don't tease." She said with a small laugh as she noticed that something was off about John as he started to read again. "Where are your glasses?"
"Do what?" John asked her.
"You're reading glasses. Where are they?"
"Aren't I wearing them?"
"No. You're not." Mim said.
John felt his face and noticed that nothing rode the bridge of his nose or behind his ears. Even the top of his head was free and clear. He patted the front of his shirt and soon felt his glasses were folded in his shirt pocket. He removed them and looked at them for a moment. He had needed glasses to read ever since he was thirteen years old. While everything at a distance was clear, anything close to him was a blur and hard to make out. Yet the printing on the book was as clear as day. John unfolded the glasses and looked through the lenses and was surprised that everything through the lenses was now a blur. He moved the glasses away from his face before glancing at the book again.
"I'll be damned." He said with astonishment.
"You've almost read half that book and you haven't used your glasses once?" Miriam asked him.
"It certainly looks that way." John said as he placed the glasses and the book on the side table before putting his feet on the ground. As he thought back to the other novels he had read in the past few days, he realized that he hadn't worn his glasses when he had read them too.
"John, are you feeling okay?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe I need to go for a walk outside for a bit." John said as he walked past a confused Miriam, out the door, and went out onto the ranch.
John looked around himself as he began to think and wonder. What was happening to him? He had needed those glasses for years and now his eyes were fine? More than fine, everything he saw was almost perfect. As he stood on the porch, he noticed something else. Sounds. He was hearing everything around him, but in perfect clarity. His hearing had all been fine, but now he could hear everything that was far away from him. He closed his eyes and tried to see if he could filter out everything that was bombarding his ears.
"What's eating you?" he heard one of the hands asked.
"Something that Mim's friend said the other day. He said he could smell the Wild Turkey on me from a mile away. I had a drop of it in my coffee that morning. That's all."
"What a load of bull."
"What do you mean?"
"Fritz, you don't drink coffee. You're just sore you got caught drinking so early in the morning."
John opened his eyes and looked where he heard the voices had been coming from. His confusion grew when he saw that Fritz and the other hand were in the barn; and that was at least thirty feet away if not more. Something was going on with him and it made him nervous. No, not nervous. It terrified him.
"John? John, are you okay?" Miriam asked as she came outside.
"I'm not sure anymore, Mim." John said as he sat down on the porch. "Something is happening to me."
"Are you feeling sick?"
"No. Sick is the last thing I feel. I – I don't know how to explain what's going on with me."
"Can you try?"
"Mim," he started as he looked at Mim. How was he going to explain all of this to her? "Mim, do you think it's possible for something to be passed on?"
"I don't understand."
"Nothing. It's crazy the more I think about it."
"You know you can talk to me about anything, right?"
"I know, Mim. I just wish I knew where to start." John said.
John sighed and stood to his feet, feeling frustrated. As he did so, he suddenly felt light headed and had to grasp onto the porch railing for support. For a moment, it felt as if he lost all control of his body and that gravity itself was trying to pull him to the ground.
"Jonathan?"
"I think – I think I need to lay down." John said quickly.
Miriam had to help John to bed once more. Despite her petite frame, she was able to help him climb up the stairs and into his room. If he kept having spells like this, she would be developing muscles strong enough to pull the horse drawn wagon herself. As soon as he sat down on the mattress, he collapsed onto the bed and started acting similar to the way he had when he was suffering from his infected wounds. She removed his shoes and helped him lay completely in bed as small beads of sweat began to form across his face.
"What's happening to me?" he asked her.
"Hopefully you're not getting sick again." She said as she used the sleeve of her shirt to pat his forehead dry. "Just try and relax. The next thing you know, it'll be time to eat. I'm sure Vee will have way too much to eat for us again. Maybe steak this time."
"Or pork chops." John said with his mouth almost drooling at the thought of it.
"Don't know if we've got that, but I'll see what she can do." Miriam said.
"Mim?"
"Yes, John?"
"I'm sorry I've been a bother. It's like I'm cursed to be nothing but a burden to you."
"You're never a burden to me." Mim said with a soft smile as she squeezed his hand. "You just get some rest. I'll check on you in a bit." She said as she stood and left the room.
Shortly before he dosed off, John thought he saw someone else in the room with him. His vision was blurred and unfocused, but someone was there. Before he fell asleep, he could hear them speak.
"I was hoping I was wrong about you."
Night had fallen and the moon had risen to its full height. The air had cooled and spread throughout the land as many creatures that called the forest home and had spent the day hidden were now coming out. Not only was it time for those that lived off of what the land provided, but it was also the time for the predators to feed. Now, both predator and prey could sense that something had changed. There was another predator in the woods. There was something stronger in the woods among them. Another beast that didn't discriminate between what it would consider prey. They could hear it at that moment and smell it as it moved. It was hunting.
The beast was running through the woods while its heart hammered inside its chest. It could feel the cool dirt in between its claws and crisp grass brushing against its feet as it ran through the trees and brush. It explored its new terrain and took in each and every sound and every scent around it. It felt at one with its surroundings. It felt at home; where it belonged. As it stopped and looked at the night sky above, it felt an emptiness deep inside of its body. It was hungry and it needed to feed. It breathed the air again, more deeply than before as it took in every scent that it could find. There were so many scents that it was almost overwhelming for it. It smelled the air several more times when it noticed one scent that was strongest. It turned its head to where the scent came from as the wind blew. It was close. It could hear it moving. Quickly, it began to move toward its source.
The elk was drinking from a small puddle of water, satisfying its thirst as it paid no attention to it surroundings. It hadn't heard anything, or seen anything that it would interpret as a threat. As far as it knew, there wasn't anything dangerous anywhere near it. As it continued to drink, it heard the sounds of leaves crunching not too far from where it was. It quickly lifted its head and began to look at its surroundings. It's ears twitched as they tried to listen for the noise again as it moved its head from left to right in quick movements. Every hair all over its body was on edge as it searched. It couldn't see anything, it couldn't hear anything. It would appear that it was alone, but instinct told the elk otherwise. A breeze began to blow and barley moved the long and outstretched branches that loomed above it, but it was enough. As the elk took in another deep breath, it smelt something. Something large was out there. It was something dangerous, feral, and deadly. As soon as the aroma hit filled its nostrils, every nerve and fiber of its body screamed one thing. Run!
The elk bolted at full speed from where it had been. A destination was of no concern, it just knew that it had to run in order to survive. It's heart was thundering hard as it pumped its blood fast throughout its body while every muscle within all of its legs tightened and let loose like a slingshot, giving it the speed it need to evade whatever it had smelled. It ran through the grass and brush and dodged every tree and obstacle like a seasoned Olympic runner. It leapt over small mounds of dirt and fallen trees and missed others by mere fractions of an inch. Is paid no attention to distance or where it was headed, it just needed to run and keep running. After to what felt like an eternity in its mind, it finally had to stop to rest. Its heart felt as if it would explode at any moment and it needed to catch its breath while it turned and searched. No movement, so sounds, and no smell. There was nothing to suggest that the creature it had smelled earlier. It looked like it was alone and it had evaded it.
That was when something large and heavy tackled it to the ground. The grasp it had on it was strong and tight and it could feel pain from a freshly broken leg surge like pure heat. It began to scream as it became afraid. It could feel claws digging past its fur and into its flesh as it screamed even louder. It was forced upright so quickly that its head felt like it were spinning. Louder it screamed, pleading for any help to come to its aid. That's when it felt sharp teeth sink into the back of its neck and bite down hard against its spine. The elk's screams for help became shrieks of unadulterated fear and pain. The beast that bit it was jerking its head violently from side to side as it tried to tear its flesh off of its body. It could feel the jaws that were biting harder and harder crushing the bones of its neck while warm blood was flowing down its neck. Shrieks echoed off of the trees and into the night air as it felt the claws move from its body to its neck. In one swift pull, a sickening snap echoed and the shrieks abruptly stopped. The Elk fell limp and lifeless in the predator's grasp and offered no more resistance as it finally began to tear a large chunk of flesh from the warm body and began to eat. The hunt was at an end.
Too bright. Why was it that whenever the sun rose that it was always too bright? John groaned as the rays of the morning's dawn hit him directly in the eyes. In annoyed frustration, he raised his hand to block the light and turned his head away. He could have almost sworn that Mim had closed the shutters after she helped him into bed. Or did she? He couldn't remember anymore. He just wanted to sleep. He turned over to get more comfortable and let his raise hand flop downward into the soft feel of . . . water? John opened his eyes to find that his hand was indeed in water. As his eyes focused and he forced himself to sit up, he was surprised to find that he was laying on the ground by a small brook. He looked at himself and saw that his clothes were covered in mud and dirt along with looked to be pieces of grass and other various leaves. As he stood, he found that his legs felt exhausted. It felt like he had been running a small marathon as he felt each muscle protest as he balanced himself.
As John walked to the brook, he saw his reflection in the water and gasped. It looked like part of his face and his hair was caked in what looked to be dried blood. He looked down at his hands and saw that they were covered in dirt, but couldn't tell if any of it was blood as well. How did he get here? More importantly, what in the hell had happened to him last night? His breathing was starting to quicken as he began to worry. He licked his chapped lips and forced himself to take a deep breath as he tried to think. As he did, he heard the sound of horses in the distance. John looked in the direction he thought the sounds were coming from but saw nothing but woods. As he looked at all the trees and foliage, he heard the noises again. It was the sounds of horses all right, and they were running. That might mean people and hopefully some answers. Kneeling down and cupping the water from the brook in his hands, John quickly splashed the cold water in his face in an effort to not only help wake him up but also clean himself up as well. After a few more splashes, he began to make his way in the direction of the noises.
"Hold her steady, Fritz! She's got one hell of a temper on her." Slim said as Fritz struggled to stay in the saddle of a mare they were trying to break. So far, the horse had been a real problem for them and had thrown off two riders so far. One managed to roll out of the way in time for the others to grab the horse by the reigns and try to calm her. The other had almost broken their arm and had barley been pulled out of the way of the horse's hoofs when it began kicking like an angry mule. Both riders claimed that the horse was a hopeless cause, but Fritz had handled worse and wasn't about to give up. It also looked like his stubbornness was about to pay off.
Fritz had spent a great deal of time trying to get the horse used to a rider with his thighs being rubbed raw to prove it. After constant bucking, kicking, and neighing and doing its damnedest to throw the old cowboy off; it was finally calming down. It was panting and now going into a small walk before stopping. Fritz was starting to laugh a little and stroked the horse's neck and reassuring it that everything was fine. He began to ride it like a normal horse when Fritz noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He thought he saw a man staggering our of the woods to his left and making his way to the fence. As soon as he did, the horse snorted and caught wind of the man. It immediately began to neigh again and began to buck like mad. This time, it wasn't because it was trying to throw Fritz. It was afraid of whoever was coming. Fritz held on tight to the reigns as the mare panicked as it bucked. As it rose to its hind legs for a third time, Fritz felt himself slide out of the saddle and soon felt his back slam into the dirt of the hard ground beneath. Fritz coughed several times as he tried to get to his feet as fast as he could. The hands had rushed into the fence and grasped the reigns as they tried to calm the animal and pull it away. Fritz spit in the dirt and was seeing red as he turned to face whoever it was that had just ruined hours worth of work.
"Damn it to hell! Who do you think you are; you dumb shit! Do you think scaring a horse like that is – John?" Fritz asked as he finally got a decent look at the staggering man. When he saw the state he was in, he quickly climbed over the fence and rushed to his side to check on him. "What in the world happened to you?"
"I wish I knew." John said. "I think I was bleeding." John said as he looked at the blood that was still caked on him.
"Fritz, is everything all right?" Slim called out.
"It's John! Get him in the house and send someone to get the doc!"
"You don't remember anything?" the doctor asked as he checked John's eye movement and pupil response. John was wearing a fresh set of clothes and had a bath and looked much better than he had that morning. That still didn't ease the concern on all of their faces as the doctor continued his examination. Tim, Fritz, and Miriam all stood behind the doctor with concerned filling every inch of their face. John sat in front of a cold fire place with Rufus laying beside him on the floor of the study while Dr. Norton did his best to tolerate the unwanted audience.
"No, I don't. I felt light headed yesterday and went to bed early. The next thing I know, I'm in the woods and covered in blood." John said.
"Is there anything wrong?" Miriam asked as she kept rolling part of the green dress she wore in between her fingers. She couldn't help but be nervous about this newest situation with her best friend. It seemed like things kept going from bad to worse for him ever since he came here.
"Nothing physically; except for a few scalp lacerations I found."
"Scalp lacerations?" Jonathan asked.
"Slim, do you usually lock the doors during the night?" Norton asked.
"Not really. There isn't a point to since we're so far from town. What has that got to do with anything?"
"From what John's told me and what I'm seeing, I think he might have walked in his sleep."
"But I've never slept walk before." Jonathan said.
"John, you've recently gone through a very traumatic experience. Despite your physical recovery, the mental aspect of it can take quite a bit longer to heal. I imagine the psychological scars will manifest themselves in different ways." The doctor said as he began to put his instruments back not his bag. "From the looks of it, you slept walked in the middle of the night, wondered out into the woods, and probably fell and scratched your scalp quite a bit."
"What about all that blood he was covered in?" Fritz asked.
"The scalp lacerations explain that too. You couldn't imagine how much the scalp bleeds when it's cut." Doctor Norton said as he stood. "Other than that, you seem to be physically fine."
"Is there anything we can do to stop him from wondering around in the middle of the night?" Tim asked.
"Lock your doors or you can tie him to the bed. Other than that, I'm really not sure. I'm a doctor of the body and not the mind."
"Thanks for coming by, Doc. Sorry for all the trouble." Tim said.
"No trouble at all. Things have been slow in town as of late." The doctor said as he shook everyone's hand.
"I've been meaning to ask, how's Father Lawrence doing?" John asked.
"He's back to himself. You can't even tell he had a rash except for a few scars."
"Scars?" Miriam asked.
"He scratched at the rash spots too much and ended up scabbing his skin pretty good. He scratched himself deep enough to leave a few scars as a reminder to look where you squat."
"I swear that man is jinxed." Fritz said.
"You're not the only one that thinks so." Tim said as they left study.
"Sleep walk? Me?" John asked himself as he stood.
As he popped a few of his joints, he looked down when he heard Rufus begin to whine. He saw that the dog was now sitting, but he was looking to John's left and wagging his tail at a very fast pace. It was almost as if the dog was excited.
"Is everything all right, Rufus?" John asked.
"He's just glad to see me again. But as for you? You wish it was just sleep walking." A voice said in the direction the dog was looking.
The voice sounded very young and very feminine. John could almost swear that he had heard the voice before. John looked up for a moment and screamed at what stood next to him. It was the animated living body of a very pale and very mutilated corpse as it leaned over to pet the dog. John tried to back away and immediately fell over backwards as the heel of his foot caught the edge of the thick carpet and forced him to loose his balance. John hit the floor hard with a loud thud and quickly raised himself onto his elbows and looked in the direction he had seen the corpse. Instead, all he saw was Rufus looking at him with its head tilted to one side. John quickly looked about the study in fear that the corpse he saw was lurking in a corner and about to strike while the dog wondered if John was trying to play a game with him. While John questioned his sanity, he saw Miriam re-enter the room with Fritz behind her.
"John?" Miriam asked.
"You okay, city slicker?" Fritz asked.
"I – um, I tripped over the rug. Did you see anyone else in here?" John asked while he stood himself up from the floor and brushed himself off.
"Just Rufus. Why?" Mim asked him.
"Nothing. I think I'm going to go to my room for a bit."
"Don't you want anything eat? Maybe coffee?" Fritz asked.
"Bizarrely enough, no. I actually still feel pretty full. Thanks for asking." John said and quickly walked up the stairs.
"What's gotten into him?" Miriam asked aloud.
"I don't think I want to know." Fritz said.
"Okay, just calm down." John said as he entered his room and closed the door behind him. "Just breathe. There's got to be a perfectly sane reason for what happened back there." John said as he could still clearly see the image of that corpse in his mind. He could have sworn that it was real.
"There's a reason all right. You're just not going to like it." The feminine voice from earlier said behind him. John looked up to the mirror in his room and gasped while his eye lids opened wider than he ever thought was possible. The corpse was in his room and directly behind him!
John spun around to come face to face with the moving dead body and was about to scream until it placed its very cold and clammy hand over his mouth. John began to whimper as he saw the dead face of a young woman with two slash marks starting from the right side of her forehead and going down diagonally to the lower right side of her jaw. Her brown hair was matted in dirt and tied into a messy pony tail while her brown eyes were slightly dull and glassy. She leaned in closer when she brought her right index finger to her lips.
"Sshh." She said and looked behind her at the closed door before facing John again. "Some of them are already wondering if you're loosing your mind. The last thing either of us need is for them to have you dragged off to an insane asylum." The corpse said as she slowly lifted her decaying hand away.
"I think I am loosing my mind." John whimpered.
"I wish it were that simple." The corpse said as she rolled her eyes. "I know I look like a mess, but you don't recognize me; do you?" she asked him.
John tried to take a moment to look at the corpse as while trying to force himself to calm down and keep control over his bladder. She was wearing a button down shirt and denim pants, very similar to the ones the rest wore on the ranch. There were several bite marks along her throat and several deep slash marks covering her arm and torso. With one slash beneath her throat, he could see the exposed bone of her collar bone. With one massive bite mark in her throat, he could see the bloody meat of torn muscle and severed aorta. The features of her face were soft, but very familiar once you looked past all the wounds. What stood out the most were her puppy dog brown eyes. They were the same color and very similar to Tim's eyes. It took a moment or two more before he finally realized that he indeed knew who this corpse was.
"Jocelyn?" Jonathan asked.
"So you do remember." She said.
"No, this isn't real. You're dead! I saw them bury you!" John said to her.
"You're half right, John. They did bury my body."
"So I'm talking to a ghost? I really am crazy." John said as he walked to the side of the bed and sat down while burying his head in his hands.
"Technically, I'm not a ghost. I'm undead, John." She said, causing John to look up at her through his fingers.
"You sure as hell don't look like a vampire." He mumbled.
"Not that kind of undead." Joss groaned in frustration. "John, I need to tell you this. There's no way to put this gently, but; the creature that attacked you and killed me was a werewolf."
John slowly lowered his hands and kept his eyes fixed on the moving dead girl. Joss began to fidget a little as John remained silent before he finally sat up straight.
"Bullshit."
"John,"
"Bull – shit!"
"John, I'm serious! You were attacked by a lycanthrope and now it's passed its curse onto you. You're already starting to change. If you don't do something quick, you're going to kill someone."
"No. I've had enough of this." John said as he stood and headed for his door.
"John!"
"No! I'm not going to listen to a fictitious talking worm feast!" John said as he opened the door and stormed out while slamming the door behind him.
"Damn." Joss said to herself.
John didn't know where he was walking, he just knew that he had to find something to keep himself occupied. He found himself walking up the stairs to the third floor and began to look around him. He saw one door that wasn't too far from where he stood that was slightly cracked opened. As he looked, he could see Mim walking past on the other sighed and breathed a sigh of relief. He approached the door and gave it a brisk knock before entering.
"Hello, John. How are you feeling?"
"That's a loaded question." He said with a small nervous chuckle.
"I suppose it is. It seems like things aren't going easy for you lately, are they?"
"No kidding. I'm starting to wonder if I was better off staying in the city." John said and saw a pile of clothe on her bed. "What are you doing?"
"Just folding a few clothes. Would you like to help?"
"Sure." John said as he stood on the other side of the bed and began folding a few various towels and rags. "Mim?"
"Yes?"
"Does everyone think that – that I'm going crazy?"
Mim quickly looked up at John for a moment with her mouth slightly open before closing and quickly looking back down at the laundry. "I don't think so."
"Damn." John whispered as he folded a towel and placed it in the stack with the others. "Mim, I know I've been acting strange lately."
"John, ever since the attack you've been different. There's not just your dizzy spells, its other little things. Sometimes, I'm having a hard time believing its still you."
"I know. I'm sorry, but it's – hard to explain."
"Can you try? At least with me?" Mim asked him with pleading eyes. The way she looked at him, with her lips almost pouting, she looked similar to that of a sad puppy. Heaven help anyone that was able to master that look.
"Mim, I'm afraid of leaving this place right now. I know I go outside, but it's open and I can see everything. If I get near any of the trees, I start to become nervous. Every little sound I hear makes me paranoid that something is following me, or about to attack. Every time I close my eyes, I can still hear all those men screaming. Then I – I see them,"
John stopped as he looked down and saw that his hands were shaking. He blinked his eyes hard several times in an effort to make the images go away. He put the rag down when he felt Mim warp her arms around him in a hug which he gladly returned. Each breath he took was quivering as he did his best try and calm himself. He had thought that he was gaining a better control of his emotions, but he was apparently wrong given how he was acting now. It took a moment for him to finally calm down and break the embrace he had with Mim before placing a faux smile on his face.
"Some police officer I am." He said bitterly. "I never really imagined that it would be like this, you know? The aftermath of going through something like that? I kept hearing stories from older officers and veterans of the army all the time. Like an idiot, I kept telling myself that I could handle it. Then it really happens, and you realize that you truly don't know anything."
"John, I can't imagine what you're going through." She said to him. "If you ever need to talk about this. Any part of it."
"I know, Mim." John said as he looked down.
Mim began to walk back to the other side of the bed. He began to look up when he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head and looked and saw that it was an overcoat draped across her dresser. He picked it up and looked at it. It looked familiar, but he couldn't recall from where he had seen it before.
"Is this your uncle's?" John asked.
"No, that's Joseph's."
"Mankey? What was he doing up here?"
"John, my affairs are my business. But it wasn't anything like that. He just wanted me to look over a few pages of a story he was working on."
"Okay." John said. "How's his story?"
"It needs a lot of work." Mim said with a sigh.
"I can't think of anyone to give him better pointers than you." John said with a smile and felt better as he saw Mim blush ever so slightly at his comment.
John was about to set the coat down when he thought he smelled something. It was faint but also familiar to him. He just couldn't place where he had encountered the strange smell before. He sniffed a few more times and followed the smell down to the coat that was in his hands. He held it close to his face and took a deep breathe to try and remember what this odor was.
"John, what are you doing?"
"There's a perfume on this." He said and handed it to Mim. She took the coat in her own hands and sniffed for herself before looking back at John.
"You're right. I can barley smell it, though."
"Do you have any perfumes like that?"
"No. Mine smell nothing like this."
"I know I've smelled that before." John said as he took another deep breathe. "It smells like Lavender and . . . gooseberries?" John asked.
"Gooseberries? The only person I know that wears that is,"
Mim stopped mid sentence as her face became crest fallen and her brow furrowed. She looked at John for a moment before she spun around and immediately left the room and marched down the stairs with the coat in hand. Worried, John began to follow.
"Mim? Mim, what are you going to do?" John asked her as he followed.
"Do you have your shoes on?"
"Yes."
"Then we're going to take a trip into town." She said as she marched outside and straight to the barn. There, the wagon had been hooked up to the harness that a chestnut brown horse was wearing along with a set of blinders. Fritz was making sure everything was tightened to a snug fit as Miriam came up to him in a very brisk walk while holding a coat in her hands.
"You didn't need to bring me a coat, Mim. It isn't that cold yet." Fritz said with a smirk.
"Are you heading into town?"
"Just about to. I need to get a few things for the ranch. Why do you ask?"
"I need a ride. May we tag along?"
"I don't see why not."
"Good. John, get in."
"Mim, what are we doing?" John asked.
"Now, John!" Mim said and glared at him before climbing into the wagon.
John felt a small shiver travel down his spine as he saw the glare and quickly climbed into the back of the wagon as Fritz took his place at the head. He grasped the reigns in his hands, made a clicking noise with his mouth, and flicked the reigns and causing the horse and wagon to move. As they traveled down the road, Miriam remained silent with her eyes glued to the road ahead. John tried to talk to her a few times, but stopped himself when Fritz glanced his way and slightly shook his head. Fritz, being older and supposedly wiser, knew better than to try and talk to a woman when she was angry. At that moment, it was more than obvious that Miriam was pissed off.
The drive into town took some time; even longer than it should have given the anger that seemed to be coming off of Mim like a rather large bonfire. As soon as the wagon stopped in front of the general store, Mim was out while John did his best to climb out without making himself looking like a fool. He failed miserably when as he tried to hop over the edge with the tip of his left foot catching the edge. His leap was altered as he quickly found himself landing in the dirt and on top of his left hand; groaning in pain as he now twisted his wrist. As he rolled over to get up, he saw Mim standing over him and rolling her eyes.
"I was coming around to help you out." She said in an annoyed tone of voice as she reached down and grasped John's right hand and helped him up.
"Felix, how long are you going to be here?"
"Depends. If we end up staying past sundown, Slim gave me enough money to get a room for the night."
"Good. John, follow me." Mim said as she began marching across the street, not even bothering to pay attention to the other riders or people that were walking past.
"Mim, where are we going?" John asked as he followed.
"Getting answers." Mim said and continued to walk. John did her best to follow until he did a double take to his left. For a moment, he could have sworn he saw an Elk in the middle of the road from the corner of his eye. As soon as he turned his head, nothing was there.
"JOHN!"
"Coming!"
Mim maneuvered away from the center of town and past a few of the simpler unnoticeable buildings that served as homes or simple rent houses until she came one that was a rather ramshackle place. There was nothing that made it stand out or even make it memorable in anyway. It was a bit of an eye sore than anything else. Truth be told, under normal circumstances, no one would bother giving it a second glance if they had happened to be passing by. Miriam walked directly to it, marched onto the front porch, and began pounding on the door with her fist. John quickly joined her and was about to speak but was quickly silenced when Miriam put her finger to her lips and pointed towards the door. John listened and could hear someone moving about. As he paod attention, he could hear voices. Two of them.
"Who is it?" a male voice called out. One that John immediately recognized.
"It's Miriam. I need to talk to you." Mim said and glanced at John.
"Just a minute." The voice replied.
"He's not alone." John said to his friend.
"How can you,"
That was when the door opened to reveal Joseph Mankey with a pair of rather ruffled pants with the only thing keeping the up were the pair of twisted suspenders hanging from Joseph's shoulders. His shirt was wrinkled and unbuttoned and inside out, like he had put it on rather quickly. There was a thin sheet of sweat all over him and he seemed to be trying to catch his breath.
"Mim, this i-is rather unexpected. C-can I help you?"
"Remember this?" Miriam asked as she held up Joseph's coat.
"My coat? I've been looking for that. Where did you find it?"
"You left it at the house the other night. Can you tell me why it smells of gooseberries?" Miriam asked her.
"Gooseberries? Well," Joseph asked, trying to thing of a reply.
As he stood there in contemplation, they saw a walking stick behind the door suddenly fall. Miriam looked through the crack between the door and the door frame and saw something was moving behind the door. Someone was attempting to hide. Miriam's frown deepened as she and John entered the house and she quickly grasped the door and closed it; revealing that the hiding person was the school teacher, Sarah. She stood there in the nude with only a single bed sheet that she was using in an attempt to keep her self covered while a very panicked expression adorned her face. Her mouth repeatedly opened and closed in an attempt to say something, but no words were able to be formed. Miriam turned to look at Joseph that was at a loss for words himself.
"I ignored every rumor about you. I put my faith in you and offered you my heart, and this is how you repay me?" Miriam asked him.
"Mim, I don't know what to say." Joseph responded.
Miriam slapped him across his face as hard as she could with her right hand as she did her best not to cry. Joseph didn't bother looking back at Mim or cover the area she had just slapped. She slapped him in the same place again; harder than before and then once more. Her lower lip quivered as she turned away and threw Mankey's coat to Sarah as she glared at her.
"At least have the decency to cover yourself." Miriam said as she stormed out of the house with John following behind her.
"Mim," Joseph started, but John immediately turned and closed the gap between him and Joseph with the tips of their noses almost touching.
"DON'T!" John almost growled. "If you have any feelings for her in the slightest, just . . . don't!" John slowly stated with his voice lowering several octaves. The look of anger and hatred in his eyes and through his face was so obvious and grand that it caused Joseph to take a step backwards in fear. John glared at him for a moment more before turning and tried to catch up to Mim. "Mim, are you all right?"
"All right?" Mim asked as she spun and looked at John with disbelief. "I just found out that the man that was courting me has been cheating on me! That every rumor about him was true! No, I'm not all right. Mankey is nothing but a degenerate – disgusting," Mim said but couldn't think of the right word.
"A man whore." John said.
"Exactly!" Mim said as her lip quivered even more and tears fell from her eyes. "I'm not all right, John. I'm far from all right." She said as her voice cracked.
"I'm sorry, Mim. If you,"
"Don't, John. I just want to be left alone." She said and made her way to the waiting wagon. The pair made it to the wagon and were surprised to see Fritz standing beside it with it still empty. "I thought you needed to get a few things. Was the general store out?"
"No, and that's the problem. It'd take them too long to load everything. Take a look." Fritz said and pointed his thumb to the sky. The sun was so low that the sky was a collaboration of oranges, pinks, and shades of violet. It wouldn't be long until the stars and moon would be dominating the evening sky and too dark to find their way back to the ranch.
"I'm guessing Slim only gave you enough money for one room?" John asked Fritz.
"You'd be right. So, here." Fritz said and took the money from his pocket and placed it in Mim's hands. "Go to the hotel and get yourselves a good night's rest."
"What about you?" Mim asked him.
"Jennie owes me a favor. I don't think she'd mind me bunking with her for the night."
"Are you sure?" John asked him.
"A night with my gal over a night alone? Of course I'm sure. I'll see y'all in the morning. Oh, and John?" Fritz said and pulled John close. "Keep close to her. A lady with a broken heart needs as many friends as she can get. Even if it's just to sit there and do nothing." Fritz said.
"I know too well." John said, remembering the other times Mim's heart had been crushed beneath the heel of a cad.
Mim and John went straight to the hotel while Fritz took the wagon to the local corral and would then make a mad dash to the tavern as soon as he was done. John had been right and saw that it was only enough for a room with one bed. Seeing how they didn't want to spend the night in the corral with the horse and wagon, they decided that one bed was fine. It didn't take them long to get checked in and taken to their room. They gave each other the privacy needed to slip out of enough of their clothes for them to sleep comfortably and into the waiting bed. The flame in the lantern had been extinguished and both lay in bed with their back pointed towards each other. Both were breathing peacefully as they tried to make themselves go to sleep. John turned his head slightly to his friend and cleared his throat.
"Mim? You do know that I'm here if you need anything. Even if it's just to talk."
"I know, John. And thank you." Mim said.
John wanted to say something else, but he felt too tired. His head started spinning again. If he hadn't been laying down, he was sure he would pass out. As he closed his eyes in an effort to fight the strange feeling, he soon found himself enveloped within sleep's sweet embrace.
"BUNCH OF PIMPS!" one shouted as he was forcefully ejected from the tavern while another calmly followed.
The one that bellowed was rather young and was dressed in a blue shirt and a pair of denim pants that looked like they hadn't been washed within a few days. The clothes were stained with various stains of dirt and grass while his young and smooth face was rather red in the cheeks and nose as he had trouble standing. He used the sleeve of his shirt to wipe away the remnants of Tennessee Whiskey had been polishing off for several hours as he began to stager away.
The other gentleman, rather older and wearing slightly cleaner but similar attire, shook his head as he watched the other continue to walk in a manner that looked like he would fall face first to the ground soon. He turned back toward the tavern and apologized for his companion's behavior and reluctantly began to follow him while muttering under his breath. It looked like he was all too familiar with the behavior and was rather sick and tired of it. Even more so that both looked so very similar that it was clear that the two were clearly brothers.
"I hope you realize you made yourself look like an idiot just now." The older brother said.
"It's not my fault they cheat!" the younger stuttered as he leaned against a post to keep himself straightened as he began to slouch forward.
"They didn't cheat."
"Like hell they didn't! I-I had a good hand. No, I had a great hand!"
"You didn't have shit, you drunken idiot."
"I had a flush!"
"You didn't have squat. Now I'm going to have to drag you back home and explain why dad is going to get billed for a bottle of Whiskey and that chair you broke."
"I didn't break anything. They - they broke the chair when someone bashed me over the head with it."
"It broke when you tripped over your own damn boots and fell on it. Now come on! Maybe we can get back before the sun comes up."
"No. No, I wanna poke."
"Like you're gonna be able to pop a stiffy in your state."
"I can to. I can to. I'll show you." The younger said as he tried to unbuckle his pants.
"Would you stop that?!" the older brother said and slapped his younger brother across the face. "Damn, your drunk. It wouldn't matter anyway. You gambled the last of our pay at that game of poker just now."
"Then we'll burrow the money from someone."
"That's rich. Who in their right mind would give money to you?"
"How about him?" the younger man asked and pointed. His friend looked to where the other was pointing and saw a figure making its way to the corral that was situated on the edge of town. "Come on. Come on, let's go ask him."
"No, we're leaving!"
"Just because you like being with a man more than a woman doesn't mean I've got to suffer." The young man said as he began to make his way to the man he had seen only moments before.
"If you weren't my brother, I'd leave you here." the older said and began to follow in a vain effort to try and stop his brother from making himself look like an idiot. Too late for that.
"Hey! Hey, you!" the younger, and very inebriated, brother asked as he quickly closed the gap between himself and the wandering stranger.
"Would you stop?" his older brother asked.
"Hey, you got some money? W-we need some money." The brother slurred as the stranger paused and began to turn.
"Both of you?" the stranger asked as he came face to face with the brothers.
Both immediately stopped in their tracks as they got a good look at the man's face. The hair on his head and face was thick with his side burns traveling down to his chin and grown out. His eye brows were as thick as the hair of his sideburns and were one of the most pronounced features on his face, along with his slightly darkened lips and the small pair of fangs that were in his mouth. But what startled them the most were his eyes. His eyes were a deep golden yellow that seemed to look at them like they were appetizers before a meal. As he waited for them to talk, each breath he took almost sounded like he was growling slightly.
"Y-yeah."
"Sorry to disturb you, sir. Come one, you dummy."
"C-can you lend us some money for a p-poke?"
"Would you shut up?!"
"Well gentlemen, I have about two-hundred dollars in my wallet. How much do you need? Fifty cents? Maybe Seventy-five?" he asked with a sly grin and a small chuckle.
The younger brother pulled a rather large knife from his belt and had it aimed at the man's face. His older brother's eyes widened with shock as he saw the weapon.
"What are you doing?!" the older brother demanded.
"How about you just give us the hole thing, asshole?"
Without any warning, the stranger lunged forward as a feral growl escaped his lips. He sounded like a feral, rabid dog as he grasped the younger brother's arm and twisted it easily as the bones in the fore arm snapped like twigs and the arm bent in a way and shape that was unnatural to the human anatomy. The younger brother screamed in pain as the stranger's free hand was forced under the young man's rib cage with his talon like nails punctured his sweaty shirt dug into his young flesh. Horrified at the sight of his brother being attacked and being lifted into the air like he weighed nothing at all, the older brother cried out in terror as he began to run away. Instead of running toward the town, he ran further down the road as his brothers screams increased in volume. The screams were becoming even more agonizing as he could hear the stranger roar and growled like a beast. He quickly covered his ears and focused on the road ahead of him as he ran faster than he thought he physically could. Despite the distance he put between him and the town, he could still hear his brother's screams echo in his ears. No matter what happened afterward, deep down in his gut and in his soul that those screams would haunt him for the rest of his days.