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este es el final

He woke up on a cold rock in a dark place with no feeling at all. The young man slowly sat upright and began to search around for anything familiar. As he stumbled through the darkness he would bump into large slabs of meat hanging from above him, kept fresh by the cool temperature of his surroundings. Carefully he made his way out of the darkness and he found himself in a long tunnel or passageway. The occasional torch on the wall would give off just enough light to give him direction. A small stream of liquid trickling past him made him believe he was heading uphill.

Finally he came to a window in the walkway where he would briefly peer into a classroom full of kids, he felt uncomfortable so he kept on walking. A while later he found another window and he was able to see a small room where people were standing looking sad as a man at a podium was reading from a book and speaking from his heart to theirs. He again felt out of place and kept moving on. The next window was accompanied by a doorway, looking through the window he noticed an oddly familiar setting and smelled a fresh aroma. He opened the door and walked into the green fields where the leaves were blowing in the wind and birds called out his name in their own way of speaking. As he came upon a pond he bent down to put his hand in the clear water because he wanted to feel what it was like to be one with himself. In the water he saw not his reflection but that of a young girl in a flowery dress. The young man spun around to see her standing just behind him. She reached out to him and gave him a handmade card just for him with a message and a smile.

He smiled back at her but as he did so he felt himself being sucked back into the dark corridor and all he could do was wave at her from the window. She waved back and he would move on, glancing at his little card which bore writing he didn't not immediately understand. The next window he came across he looked out over that winding road on Mystery Mountain he and cousin used to take to get from their town to the big city. This time he clearly saw the landscape had been altered by some event. The next doorway lead to the high desert and the young man felt as though he had been here before. He walked out into the desert and took in the view only someone in his position could appreciate. The desert went on in every direction as far as the eye could see. There was not a cloud in the sky and he thought he could hear voices.

The young man made it back into the doorway and this time when he crossed back over he was standing on top of a mountain, Mystery Mountain to be exact. Nighttime had taken over the sky and he found himself alone atop the mountain and wondering what he was supposed to do next. He looked at the card the little girl had given him, and on it there were pictures with strange writing and funny shaped crayon colored people holding hands with normal stick figured people. He gazed off through the trees where he saw some lights, which of course he would walk towards. Once he made it into the treeline and through the pathway he came to a clearing where he could see a strange object sitting there humming and waiting just for him. The young man was a bit apprehensive about going any further into the unknown, but when he turned around to see where he had came from he felt like where he stood was the only place he would exist.

The strange object was probably as big as anything like it he had ever seen. He sensed movement from inside this object, and finally a doorway would open and out of this object came some faceless people who beckoned him to join them. He looked at the card the little girl had given him once more and he figured by now this was some sort of invitation to wherever they came from. He slowly took a few steps towards the object and the faceless people who warmly beckoned him. Suddenly fear took ahold of him once again as he heard some strange sounds coming from behind. He'd heard those noises before somewhere and he figured it might not end well. As he turned around he was halfway expecting to see something that would hurt him. Instead he saw the large indian man emerge from the trees who had apparently followed him up the mountain.

The indian man spoke wise and to the point "go ahead, your spirit is clean." He made a few chants and spoke blessings to the earth and the heavens above. "Go on" he whispered to the young man "they are waiting for you..be free." The young man turned back towards the faceless people where his cousin would emerge from the strange object, and followed by cousin was the beautiful girl from down the street. She rushed towards him and he met her halfway with a long and loving embrace. He promised her he would never let her go again, she figured that was fine by her. They were joined in their embrace by cousin, who didn't say much other than "welcome home".

The three of them together again at last, free from their burdens and in perfect health and spirit. The faceless people patiently ushered them into the object so they could finish their journey. They paused briefly to take a final look at the place they once called "home", the young man and his cousin both nodded to the indian man. He smiled back at them and the girl thanked him and told him "we've never been this happy before." The three of them boarded the object with the faceless people and became travelers themselves. Their journey was almost complete...

The indian man watched the object take off the top of the mountain and thought about the beautiful girl's words as he followed the light moving across the night sky towards the heavens until it was out of sight. Another happy ending, he thought to himself. He could not keep from smiling, knowing what he knew about their destination and the beauty that lies on the other side. He walked back down the mountain at his own pace, singing to himself in his native tongue about happy endings as he sipped on homemade serum from a flask. He would make his way down the mountain as he had done many times before, through bear country without ever being in any danger from the creatures of the night. He paused briefly towards the bottom of the mountain by a curvy road. There were two small crosses sitting down the embankment by some charred grass and a badly damaged tree. He sprinkled some of his "medicine" on the ground by the crash site and he said a prayer to the spirits, then he walked softly back into the woods.

the end

la paz sea con vosotros
 
I've killed people for more, but in your case i will make an exception...

i told the punk bastard as my knife was pressed firmly across his throat, i started to dig in slowly and pull away so he would squirm longer while he bled out, for my enjoyment. Then i awoke drenched in sweat all alone in my bed, just like the night before and the one before that.

It's not that i typically like taking drugs, but it's hard to argue with dreams like this.

Sometimes i sweat blood which is also cool.

I went into work today and decided i was going to throw one of my coworkers out of the second floor window. Instead i went into my boss' office and told him/her i needed to "talk." I had a confession; im addicted to Internet porn on company time involving....well she/he cut me off before i could finish with some random excuse about "a meeting" or something. I don't think the boss believed me.

You want to know what this is really about? (i would ask them). *Sigh* "okay go ahead, what is it?" I confessed to sniffing glue & highlighters every time i went into the supply cabinet. The boss laughed and said "everyone here is doing that....whats the big deal?!?" So im really pissed at this point...so i tell Mr./Mrs. manager "The problem here is, i stick the highlighters up my arse before i sniff them, wanna SEE?" and shove a yellow one up in her/his face. They didn't appreciate it very much and screamed *GTFO* (of my office).

So im back at my desk, when the tightness in my chest and difficulty breathing began. I reached for my bottle of pills and wondered if i should fake another heart attack or maybe i wouldn't have to act this time. My coworker, the annoying old whore that talks nonstop about everything and thinks she is so damn funny, took notice and offered to pray for me. This is the same woman that i wanted to throw out the window earlier. She also has the ring tone on her cell phone set way too loud, and it only rings while she is away from her desk. I did throw her phone out the window btw and pretended like i knew nothing about it.

So one day this annoying coworker offered to go to the fast food place and get me a breakfast burrito. It made me think, how random is a breakfast burrito? It's kind of like religion...we just took something like a tortilla, eggs, bacon or sausage, and cheese and did our own thing with it. Like we are the eggs and Jesus is our bacon or sausage, with God being the big cheese and salsa is our mortal sin, but we gotta have the salsa. Sure they keep it in separate packages, but they always offer you salsa with your breakfast burrito. What would life be without it?

Speaking of, what about the fish taco? Religion could be like the fish taco. Totally random, doesn't make sense at all, in fact it kind of stinks. But we eat it up anyway. It's like, "well, this kind of stinks and it's totally bullshit and made up, but what the hell i ll take some".

So back to my panic attacks, anxiety, stress, whatever. Sometimes just having the bottle of pills nearby is enough. Not having to take them is nice. Taking them, however, is even better. Especially if i chase them down with whiskey. Taking one's knife collection to work and showing it off is pretty cool too. Oh yeah, back to that annoying old coworker offering to pray for me. She had the audacity to reach over for the pill bottle on my desk and with granny eyes staring up and down the label she asked me what they were for. I growled back at her "get your fucking hands off of my fish taco ... or i will kill you in this life and the next". She's left me alone ever since.

Amen.
 
when the power fails

"Will that be all sir?" she asked, to which he agreed and then she instructed him to "please pull ahead to the window and i will have your total." She spoke with a bouncy voice typical of someone her age. He ordered his breakfast and pulled his little car ahead to the window to pay as she instructed. It was a gloomy day out with the promise of a blizzard to come. He better get his food home while he still could...and watch it all unfold from the safety of his bedroom or office window.

She thought he was smoking hot, when he pulled up to the drive thru window and smiled at her behind dark eyes and a couple days worth of stubble. He thought she was rather cute, in a part time college student with open eyes eager to see the world kind of way. He loved this college town he called home, she was tired of it and ready to get out into the world and see all that she could before making up her mind.

She smiled back at him and took his money, telling him it would be "just a minute for his order". He looked away, sadly, as the window closed and she disappeared into the kitchen to make his order. Off in the distance he saw a road crew spraying sand on the expressway to help give cars traction while another vehicle would pass by and lay down salt pellets to try and melt the ice. They were pre-treating the road for what was destined to come. Moisture on his windshield did not freeze because he had the defroster set on high.

She handed him his change and asked him if he would like "butter and syrup" with his breakfast? He continued to stare off into space. She eventually handed him a bag full of food and thanked him for visiting her restaurant, wishing him a pleasant day. Not wanting to lose this connection, he did not pull away from the drive thru window with his food.

She returned to the window with her smile and asked him "oh...did i forget something? Your silverware, straw, and napkins should all be in the bag". He just stared at her for a bit...then he held up a little piece of paper with some writing on it and read from it like a broken script "can i have some ketchup, butter, mustard, mayonnaise, relish, and syrup....please?"

"Okay...just a second dear" she said and rolled her eyes as she turned around to grab the assorted condiments. Her coworker, the older and more experienced career fast food lady leaned over and whispered with wink of her eye "i think he has a crush on you, maybe he's trying to ask you out but he's not sure how...either he's really shy or he's taken away by your beauty." She smiled and handed the bag full of condiments out the window to him, surprised to find that he had already begun to eat his breakfast in his little car, right there in the drive thru lane.

That's a bit odd, she thought to herself. "Sir, um, you do realize we have a dining room if you like...." she said pointing towards the front of the restaurant...."I'm pretty sure its a lot warmer in there...." He looked at her as he put syrup and butter on his hotcakes and ketchup on his hash browns, but said nothing. Trying to keep conversation with him, she continued on "that's a lot of food you have there....you must be pretty hungry."

He locked eyes with her again while he swallowed chunks of bacon "its not all for me. I have Jesus in a coma back at the house....and when he wakes up i think he will be hungry. I want him to have your finest breakfast platter so he can feed all of the world, and make miracles with hotcakes, eggs, sausage, and juice. If Jesus can't do it, then who can? Surely not you or I, or the man who's name is spelled out on the big neon sign over your restaurant, nor the people who's name bears this town, or that guy on tv who wants to give everyone a job"

She was speechless, along with her coworker who was carefully taking in the entire situation. A car had pulled up behind him and began to honk impatiently. The freezing rain came down harder as the temperatures began to drop, creating a dangerous situation out on the roadways. Ice began to form on the bare tree limbs and on the overhead power lines in the neighborhoods of this town. "We can't stop this. Can we?" he asked them while the car behind him honked again. The two of them shook their heads from inside the comfortable drive thru window, while the other glass windows began to fog up in the kitchen because the little window had been open for some time. "Very well then" he said, as he paused to light a cigarette and blow smoke towards the window. "Sometimes blood will fill the skies and rain down on us without warning, but flowers will still grow anew in the spring" he said with a smile as he put the little car in gear and slowly coasted away from the restaurant. On the back of his car the window had faded writing on it that read JUST MARRIED as he drove off into the uncertainty this day would bring them all.
 
"You're late" the older, more experienced career fast food lady and coworker to young Jenny said as poor Jenny came rushing into the kitchen trying to find her apron and hat. "I know...im sorry...stayed up all night last night studying for a test and i forgot to set my alarm" Jenny replied, exhausted. "It's okay hon, im just giving you a hard time" her coworker said with a smile....."it seems as though you have a visitor" she tipped her head towards the dining room where he sat alone at a table eating his breakfast platter while he waited on them to finish the rest of his large order.

"How long has he been there?" Jenny asked her coworker, who looked like she knew the answer but did not respond. She didn't know whether she was afraid of him or if she was attracted to him, probably both if she was being honest with herself. One thing was for sure, she picked a bad day to show up late for work, now she wouldn't be able to work the drive thru which had been her comfort zone. Instead the manager told her to work the front register and also clean the dining room when she had a chance.

She was busy wiping down the condiment table when she heard the familiar voice from behind her, "excuse me, can you tell me where the restroom is please?" She turned around slowly and pointed past him with a smile "it's right behind you" she answered him. "Oh, i must have walked by and.." he looked closely at her name tag and then slowly turned toward the restroom and mumbled to her "thank you Jenny" as he walked away.

The cook brought a large order up to the counter and asked Jenny if she would take the order out to the gentleman over at the corner table. Great, she thought to herself, and proceeded to carry the large box of meals over to him. "Why thank you Jenny, that is a lovely name by the way...Jenny...it just has a sort of ring to it.....not like a telephone but more like the wind blowing through the fields". She smiled and thanked him and asked him if there was anything else that he needed. He stared at her and then looked away, then down at the table for a few moments, keeping her in suspense. "Okay then, have a nice day sir" she said with a smile as she turned away to go back towards the counter. "Wait.." he called out "please take this" he said handing her a little card. It was blank on both sides, she turned it over to make sure. "What is this?" she asked him somewhat confused. "Oh fuck! I must have given you a blank one....i am truly sorry...Jenny." He stared deep into her eyes and did not look away this time. He pulled a pen out of his coat and wrote the name "Eli" on another card and handed it to her, then he sat back down in his seat. She didn't know what to make of this, was he some type of freak or just very shy and somewhat insecure?

So she made her way to his table and sat down, cautiously, "so...Eli...i see you are once again either very hungry...or...you are going to go home and feed your Jesus in a coma?" He looked at her in a pleasant way but said nothing for a few moments, but eventually he would agree that "yeah, it's something like that". "Well Jesus or not, you do eat a lot for one person, how do you stay in such good shape?" she tried to make conversation. He looked thoughtful and replied "i exercise regularly, pray often, and speaking of regular...i shit three times a day...sometimes four" he beamed.

The older couple a few tables over looked up from their biscuits and coffee with raised eyebrows at his choice of comment but he did not seem to notice. Jenny was about to excuse herself so she could go back to work when he reached into his coat and pulled out another card and wrote something on it, and handed it to her. "Please take this" he said "this has my phone number and address on it, i am a youth pastor to girls about your age...we have fellowship on wednesday nights at my house out overlooking the lake...it's plenty big enough for everyone. Won't you please consider joining us Jenny?" She smiled and considered the invitation while he gathered up his food and prepared to leave. "Goodbye Jenny...don't forget us" he said with a warm smile as he left the restaurant with his food.

She stared at the card and though about it as she pretended to wipe down the table. He was a very intriguing guy, probably rich, very handsome, and he had a certain way about him that she secretly found adorable. As she continued to wipe the table she noticed a few spots of ketchup down on the floor...or was it blood...and next to that she saw a few more of those gray business cards like Eli had given her. She decided to pick them up and noticed these actually had print on them...one was for the local District Attorney for the city they lived in, another one was for a detective for their local police department, and then there was one for a counselor at the nearby hospital...
 
Brandon had known Jenny since the two of them were kids, they had always gone to school together and their families always lived nearby one another. While they had always been close, nothing romantic had ever developed between them, even though Brandon had secretly longed for it. But he valued her friendship and trust so much more than that, so he had often taken the role similar to a protective older brother as well as a friend, even though he and Jenny were the same age. Jenny just preferred her guys a little bit older....Brandon was the typical boy next door who was always polite to older ladies and he loved his mom, he played sports when he could and he didn't do drugs or anything like that. He sure knew some kids that did the bad stuff, but none of it was for him. One of these days Brandon would finish college, like Jenny, and he was going to make his mark on the world.

Brandon and Jenny both started work at the little restaurant around the same time while both were still in high school. Often times they would share rides to work since he had a truck and Jenny did not have a car at the time. He would take her home after work and make sure she was inside safe and sound before he would drive away. Her father took note of that and always appreciated what a good boy he was. Brandon was somewhat suspicious of Eli the first time he saw Eli come inside the restaurant and order all of that food. He couldn't figure out what it was about Eli that made him suspicious, but it probably had a lot to do with the effect Eli had on Jenny. He'd always heard those people that lived out over the lake were very wealthy, most of them were well known locally, but not Eli. Eli was a mysterious figure with a cloud of intrigue that followed him wherever he went. He didn't dress overly nice or drive any fancy cars or anything like that, he kept as low a profile around town as anyone else, which Brandon found peculiar.

Jenny had talked about going out to Eli's house some night for fellowship with other girls, Brandon insisted he accompany her but Jenny would tell him that it was "just for girls." Of course this make him even more curious about the mysterious Eli and the secrecy of these fellowship meetings out in the country by the lake. One night after work, Brandon had enough of his curiosity and he decided to take the long way home. He would drive around the lake and see if he could fine out where Eli lived, maybe take a peek around his house, surely there was no harm in that he would tell himself.

The road to Eli's house was farther away than he though, it was getting late and Brandon was starting to get tired. The road through the country was curvy and lined by large trees which formed a canopy overhead. Finally he came to a clearing where he saw the big old 3 story colonial style home sitting way off the road up on the hill. The home was as majestic as it was spooky. Brandon drove a bit further where he found a side gravel road that he could pull off and maybe he would be able to get out and get a better look. Eli's property, which was massive, was surrounded by a wrought iron fence with brick and stone posts and the long driveway had a big wrought iron gate with the biblical reference "Revelation 13:1-5" painstakingly formed in the black iron design across it.

Brandon carefully exited the truck and stared out at the big house sitting up on the hillside. "So this is the place where Jesus sleeps" he whispered to himself, laughing a bit to try and cover his fear. He figured he would be able to walk along the gravel road around by the big lake if he wanted to get a better look...
 
Getting real good now.

For those playing along at home, Rev13:1-5 is as follows:

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times]Re 13:1 ¶ And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman,Times]2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman,Times]3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman,Times]4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman,Times]5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.[/FONT]
 
"Behold a pale horse" Eli whispered, staring at the ceiling as his lips began to form a smile. He was laying down comfortably in his doctor's office, for his monthly appointment with the good Doctor Fields, the counselor with whom he had visited for a several months. The doctor took some notes on his pad, removed his glasses and sat back in his chair while addressing his subject, "what does that mean to you, Eli, the pale horse?"

Eli did not answer immediately, as was his usual way, he laid still with eyes shut tight as if receiving some telepathic message from a far off place. Finally he came into focus, abruptly, and his eyes opened slightly as the words rolled from his tongue "it means, simply, be aware of everyone and everything. The people want desperately....they want to believe in something...someone who will make it all well and good once again. Their search will result more often in failure than not. But one day....one day along comes a dreamer who will magically turn the world right side up again...(laughs) or so it would seem. He will be their chosen one. But little do the people know, the one really has other ideas, and the people will pay for their misjudgement."

Doctor Fields frowned a bit, "Eli, who do you think this person, the person you call the one, who do you think this person is?" Eli smiled again and sat upright on the couch to face the doctor with a thousand mile glare "oh doctor, i think you know who the one is, you are far to intellectual of a man not to at least have an idea...." he stood up and walked over to the window and looked out into the mid afternoon haze, his hands pressed against the glass, "the fog appears to have thickened." Slowly he turned around towards the doctor and noticed him writing on his pad. He walked back over to the doctors desk and opened his candy jar and began to snack on chocolate candy. "So Doc, what is it that you are writing about me?" Doctor Fields continued to write on his pad until he had finished his thoughts. Then he closed the book for a final time as he faced his subject, "Eli, as much as it pains me to say this, i believe we are done here. I do not think i can help you any longer. I would, however, be happy to refer you to one of my colleagues if you wish."


Back at the restaurant uncertainty had set in among the workers, especially Jenny, as Brandon had failed to show up for work for a second day. He had not called in sick and no one had heard from him since he closed a few nights ago. Jenny had not seen him at class or heard from him which was unusual, and when she phoned his parents the day before they had not seen him either. Jenny was working the drive thru window when her manager came to her and asked if she had a few moments she could talk to someone. It was one of the Sheriff's Deputies who was there in the lobby asking for her by name.

The deputy had spoken to Brandon's parents and they told him that Jenny was one of his best friends and the restaurant was one of the last places he had been seen. Jenny and the deputy went to a booth over in the corner to sit down and talk for a few minutes, she brought him some coffee and they both sat down. "Jenny, i wanted to tell you about your friend Brandon," he said with noticable concern in his voice, "we have found Brandon's truck...it is badly damaged...we think it ran off of the cliff over on Ridge line road. The truck was beat up pretty bad and burned, it probably rolled down the side of the hill." She sat there facing the deputy, speechless and in shock, wanting very badly to cry but not really knowing what to do. The deputy took a sip from his coffee and continued "we did not find any trace of Brandon, we are not even sure if he was behind the wheel of the truck when it went over. At this point we are treating this as....a missing persons...and we will continue to search for him." She stared down at the table as tears welled up in her eyes, she wasn't sure if she was relieved that he wasn't killed in the crash, or if she was even more scared because she didn't know what had happened to him. "Jenny, if you know what he was doing out there....please tell us. Anything would be helpful" the deputy gave her his card and then put his hand on her shoulder to try and comfort her. He excused himself and exited the restaurant out into the thickening fog...
 
Jenny ran as fast as she could through the field, her vision obscured by the dense fog that had blanket the entire country side. Occasionally she would stop running to try and catch her breath until she heard it getting closer behind her, then she would take off in full sprint once again. She could hear it's breathing louder than its pounding footsteps. It was breathing heavy, perhaps strained even, but it still gave chase to her. She continued to run until she basically ran straight into someone whom she did not recognize at first. The collision knocked her down on the ground, and the person she ran into carefully helped her back up on her feet. It was her good friend Brandon. "Oh my god, it is you!" she cried out and gave him a big hug, "are you okay?" she asked him during the embrace. "Shhh!" he cautioned her as they both listened to see if whatever it was that had been chasing her was still coming. Finally he whispered into her ear "you must go away and never come back here, this place is very bad." But Jenny did not understand, so she persisted "why? How can it be a bad place if you are here?" He continued to hold onto her tightly but his voice grew more serious "Jenny please understand, you must go NOW. And you must NEVER return here... EVER!"

Jenny woke up in a cold sweat and looked around her bedroom with frightened eyes. Whatever was chasing her was left in her dream, along with Brandon, who was also nowhere to be found. Slowly she crawled out of bed and began to look around her room till she found her cell phone. Again she checked to see if there were any messages from Brandon. Again she found there was none, so she set the phone down on the dresser top and walked over to her bedroom window which was partially opened. She was still a bit sweaty as she looked out into the dense fog, which was so thick she could barely see the outline of her neighbors house.



Two patrol cars from the Sheriff's Department carefully made their way around the lake road with their emergency lights flashing. They meandered around the curvy country tree lined road until they approached a clearing where Eli's house sat way back on the hill. They entered open gates and drove up the long driveway which came to a circle in font of the huge colonial home. As the Sheriff and his Deputy approached the front entrance, Eli himself appeared at the door and welcomed the men into his home "Sheriff, Deputy good morning and please come inside. May i offer you gentlemen some coffee or tea?" he asked them. He poured them both a cup of coffee and invited them into the parlor to sit down. "Sure is an awful nice place you got here Mister Eli" the Deputy commented as he glanced at the artwork on the high ceilings above him. "Why thank you Deputy" Eli replied "this home has been in my family since....forever" he said with a smile.

The Sheriff took a sip of coffee and paused for a moment, as if searching for the right words, before he would state the purpose of their visit. "Mister Eli, we both want to thank you for seeing us on such short notice. We need to ask you some questions about Dr. Samuel Fields, we understand that you are one of his patients?" "Indeed I am" Eli answered. "Can you tell us when was the last time you saw Dr. Fields?" the deputy asked. Eli sipped his coffee and stared into his cup while he thought about the question, then he looked into the eyes of the deputy and answered him slowly "i believe it was two days ago, one o'clock in the afternoon if I'm not mistaken." The Sheriff clearly wanted back in on the questioning "did he seem alright to you? was there anything strange about him during that particular session?"

Eli sat back in his chair and looked at the two men for a moment without answering. He seemed to have forgotten the question and he had obviously left both of them in suspense. "Gentlemen, might i ask what is your reason for this questioning?" he asked. The Sheriff and Deputy exchanged glances, Sheriff cleared his throat "Eli, i am sorry to be the one to have to tell you this, but you had a noon appointment with Dr. Fields which was over by around 1 PM. Dr. Fields had lunch from 1-2 PM, and his next appointment was at 3PM. His three o'clock appointment found him dead in his office...possibly from a heart attack....we have reason to believe that you were the last person to have seen the good doctor alive." Eli stared at both men in shock for a few moments. "Well isn't that something. Now that you mention it, he was acting a bit strange, the poor fellow. He indicated to me that he did not wish to continue our sessions any longer, which i found a bit peculiar" Eli stared down at the floor "just goes to show, gentlemen, you never know when that day is gonna come for you. We should all be prepared."

The sheriff and deputy both stood up to their feet and placed their coffee cups down on the table. They thanked Eli for his time and were sure to ask him to call if he could think of anything else. As they walked towards the door, the deputy turned back to Eli "it's funny though, his receptionist said the he didn't even like chocolate." The Sheriff glared at the deputy while Eli was curious "excuse me Deputy, what was that?" The deputy fiddled with his hat before putting it back on his head, "oh nothing really, it just that apparently he died of a heart attack while eating chocolate candy, which was a gift from you...wasn't it?" Eli was speechless as he opened the front door for the two men to leave. They bid him goodbye as they walked down the steps towards the circle drive in front of the house. The Sheriff mumbled something to the Deputy about the fog, which was the worst they had seen in 40 years. Eli watched both cars pull out of his driveway and watched them drive off of his property, without saying a word.




Jenny was still distraught over the dream she had about Brandon. Even after her shower she still felt very tense as she paced around the room in her bathrobe. She did not have school or work today, so her mind would not be occupied and she would worry about Brandon every waking moment. Again she checked her cell phone and again there were no messages. She considered going to her family's church and talking with the preacher. Even though it had been some time since she had attended church with her family. Then she noticed the gray business card on her dresser next to her phone, it was the one Eli had given her with his phone number and address on it. He had given it to her one day in the restaurant. He had told her he was a youth pastor, after all, perhaps she would give him a call and ask for his support in this time of need...
 
Hailey, who was Jenny's replacement at the restaurant, was leaving town on her way back to see her parents for spring break. It was a beautiful day out with clear blue skies and temperatures in the middle 60's. Hailey had not seen her parents since Christmas break, even though they only lived 70 miles away. She had been busy with school and also her part time job, which she took to replace Jenny who had quit rather abruptly a couple of weeks before spring break. No one at the restaurant had seen or heard from Jenny after that day she came and turned in her key.

Hailey was looking forward to sleeping in her old bed back at mom and dads house, she was also looking forward to eating mom's homemade chicken dumplings and apple pie. She really missed her parents while she was away for school and she treasured the little time she did get to visit them. They would sit on the front porch swing and talk about stuff, listen to the birds and the breeze, and she would play with her old dog Bo until late in the evening.

As she daydreamed over the two lane highway that curved through the trees, Hailey suddenly realized that she must have missed her turn off at State Highway 9 and there was no immediate place to turn around. Soon enough she came upon an old town nestled at the foot of some small hills in the farm valley. She drove through the streets cautiously as she noticed all the town people stared at her as if they knew she was an outsider. Most of them were dressed in clothes of a different era, and most of the people she saw behaved as such too.

Suddenly Hailey slammed on the brakes as an old man dragging a rickety wagon full of plants and seeds came out of nowhere in the road in front of her. Her car made slight contact with the wagon, knocking it and the contents over into the road. She immediately jumped out of her car to help the old man as he stood up and brushed himself off. "Oh my god! Are you okay?" she asked the old man as she offered him a hand, but he jerked away from her not wanting her help. Then the old man looked at his wagon that had flipped over with all of his plants and seed and then he looked back at Hailey with a scorn on his face. "Sir, please let me help you with this" she said as she tried to set the wagon back upright. "NO! DON'T TOUCH THAT!" the old man yelled at her and he stepped in between her and the wagon, pointing his finger at her as his eyes narrowed "You go away from here, YOU SINNER, you HARLOT....WHORE!!" the old man yelled at her. Mothers standing around the street covered their children's ears, while some even covered their children's eyes. Hailey jumped back into her car, upset, and backed up and drove off in the direction in which she had came from.

Eli had noticed the commotion from the window of the diner where he sat drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. He would get up and leave some money on the table and walk outside to try and assess the situation as other locals had also came out from their shops for a look. "Your the devil's child, the bride of SATAN!" the old man exclaimed as Hailey drove away, shaking his fist. Eli walked up behind the old man and put his hand on the old man's shoulder, asking him if he needed any help. The old man turned around and his demeanor quickly changed once he recognized Eli. "Oh no Mister Eli, I'll be just fine, i just have to pick up my things and ill be on my way now" the old man said as he hurried to gather up his wagon and the contents.

"You know" Eli said as he stared down at the ground "you ought not to talk to a young lady that way. I suspect she was just passing through, now you've gone and scared her off for good. Would be a shame if she carried a bad opinion of your kind, now wouldn't it?" Eli looked at the old man who seemed a bit ashamed as he continued to try and fix his wagon. "I'm sorry Mister Eli. Its just...last night something attacked the cattle again...up the way there" the old man said, pointing up the hill, "they also got some chickens too. Coulda been a big cat of some kind, though nobody's ever seen anything that big out here." The old man paused and looked at the mess on the ground, and resumed to pick up some more of the plants, "don't know what kind of animal could do all that damage....its a total slaughter"

"Perhaps it was hungry" Eli said to the old man with a broad smile, "as they say, an eye for an eye..."
 
As she was trying to make her way back to State Highway 9, Hailey began to hear a strange noise coming from her car and it seemed like it handled funny. Unsure of what to do, she pulled off the side of the road into some grass near some mailboxes and a long gravel driveway that disappeared up the hill. Still a bit shaken from her experience in the little town back up the road, she looked around cautiously before she got out to inspect her car. Then she noticed that her passenger side front tire was almost flat. She sat down on the ground, her head in her hands, unsure of what she would do. Things really weren't going her way today, first she had missed the highway turnoff, then the incident in the small town, and now this. She'd never changed a tire before but she wasn't going to let that keep her stranded on the side of the road today. She desperately began to search the trunk of her car for the spare tire, wrench, jack, and instructions on exactly how to perform this task. Then she noticed an old farm truck coming up the road that appeared to be slowing down. She was frightened at first, but as it pulled off of the road and in behind her she was happy and somewhat surprised to see a familiar face. "Well hello there miss, is there something wrong with your car" Eli asked her as he opened the door to the old farm truck and stood up on the floorboard looking over the hood at her. She smiled at him and acknowledged that she had a flat tire. Eli, being the gentleman that he was, immediately jumped down from the old truck and insisted that he help her fix the tire. He'd done this a hundred times before and one more wouldn't hurt, he would tell her with a warm smile.


Jenny felt like she was being watched as she walked through the field on this beautiful spring day. She looked behind her but saw nothing, so she kept on walking. The wind would occasionally blow the tall weeds and overgrown brush and it felt good in the sunlight. She liked the warmth of the sun and the smell of the fields, which to her was the smell of freedom, wandering as far as her legs would take her. Gone were the pressures of work, school, deadlines, and decisions. Those were all other peoples problems now. She wandered over towards the creek she had become quite fond of. It flowed into a large pond and then back out into a little windy reek once again. Then she saw him standing there, at the base of the pond, completely naked and covered in blood. "Brandon..." she called out to the young naked guy who was trying to rinse the blood off of his body with the pond water.


The old man walked out of his front door at dusk with a shotgun and a rusty lantern, he was heading out towards his pasture nestled in between the hills. He was determined not to let his cattle and livestock get slaughtered again by whatever it was that had paid them a deadly visit the night before. And a few nights before that. He had plenty of extra ammo on his person and plenty of time to spare. They had gotten him twice, but this time was his. He walked the long trail back to the barn where he would hide and watch in silence. He was alert for quite a while, as he remained brave and vigilant, he began to reflect on his life and all of the work he had done at the farm.


Out on the little gravel road near the small old town the deputy drove along in his patrol car looking for anything out of the ordinary. He usually didn't patrol out here that much, especially at night, but he wanted to make a sweep out this way due to recent complaints from the local farmers. He parked his car off of the road near some local farms and killed the engine, this would be a good time and place for him to take a short nap. He had gotten comfortable and dozed off when her heard a commotion coming from the direction of the old man's farm. What sounded like some gunshots was followed by someone yelling, and then there was more commotion, the likes of which he could not really describe, and then a lengthy rustling sound in the nearby woods followed by deathly silence. The deputy was actually scared. His night vision had adjusted somewhat but out here it was pitch black with the absence of street lights that he was used to back in the college town. The deputy grabbed his rifle and flashlight and exited the patrol car cautiously, walking in the direction of the commotion....
 
And so she woke up
Woke up from where she was
Lying still
Said I gotta do something
About where I'm going to

Step on a steam train
Step out of the driving rain, maybe
Run from the darkness in the night
Singing Ha, Ah La La La De Day
Ah La La La De Day
Ah La La De Day
 
By the time the deputy had reached the old man's farm, the place was deadly quiet to match the darkness all around. He continued up an old dirt trail towards the barn with caution. As he approached the barn he called out to the old man, shining his flashlight all around with his other hand on his rifle. The only thing he could hear was the rapid beating of his heart as he tried to steady himself to enter the old barn. He thought he heard something over in the woods, but he would tell himself it was only his imagination playing tricks on him. Once inside the barn, he found the old man sitting near the doorway with his shotgun and his lantern, staring at the ground which was littered with empty shotgun shells. The old man said nothing, nor did he make any eye contact with the deputy.

The deputy asked the old man if he was alright, what the commotion was all about. The old man continued to stare at the ground, his eyes wide and as black as coal, he would say abosolutely nothing. The deputy finally decided to take a look around the property, but first he would radio back in to HQ to let them know he was on a disturbance call. As he walked through the pasture he came upon a horrific sight. It was hard to see with his flashlight but it appeared as if the earth had been violated in some way, the grass looked burnt and the smell of sulphur was in the air. Then he would find evidence of blood and some more dead cattle, quite a few of them to be exact. He looked around in horror to discover that not only were the cattle dead, they had been mutilated and torn to pieces. He radioed back to HQ and requested that they "wake the sheriff".


Jenny woke up in bed to find several of the other girls watching over her. One of them was wiping her forehead with a warm damp cloth. She had no idea how long she was laying there or how she had gotten back to the guest cottage. All of the girls around her were dressed in long puritan dresses, like women of a different era, most of the girls were around the same age. Jenny looked down at her own dress and noticed there was blood on it. She was not sure if it was her own blood or that of someone else. It was enough to make her feel lightheaded and sick to her stomach. Emily, the girl who was tending to her with the cloth, suggested that she get changed out of the soiled clothes in time for dinner.

Outside of the girls' cottage and deep into the woods, he waited patiently for them. He watched and he waited. He knew this land well enough that he was willing to wait as long as necessary.



The Sheriff and Deputy had finished their preliminary investigation to the disturbance at the old man's farm. Now that they had daylight they were able to see a lot more of the bigger picture. All evidence suggested that something had came from the direction of the lake and destroyed what was left of the old man's cattle, did considerable damage to the land, and then whatever it was had retreated back towards the lake where the trail went cold. The old man had still not spoken about the incident to either the Sheriff or Deputy, which was not helping them at all. Sheriff knew that whatever had happened was bigger than he or the Deputy could handle. He had placed a call for help to the state police and also the game warden, all of which would be arriving sometime later on in the day.

The old man excused himself from the scene so that he could run into the little old town and get a bite to eat at the cafe. He went inside, still shaken, and ordered his "usual" and sat down at the table. As he waited he pulled a small bible out of his overall breast pocket and squinted as he read through the scriptures. He then pulled out a small notepad and began to make notes on it with a pencil. The waitress brought him his order of food and he devoured it and continued to read through the bible. His hands were still trembling with every bite of food. After he finished his meal, he continued to read and he would write down more notes into his notepad, oblivious to anyone and everyone who sat around him in the crowded little cafe. He scribbled onto his notepad until the lead on his pencil broke abruptly, at which point he stopped and stared off into the distance. His hands, still trembling reached into his overall pockets and fumbled around looking for something. His eyes were still large and black, he looked as if he still did not know what had happened in his life. All of his hard work was crumbling before his very eyes. It was all he could do to keep the farm that he worked night and day to maintain. And something was methodically taking him apart piece by piece, eating away at his very livelihood, and quite literally his life. At last he found what he was looking for in his overall pockets. He pulled the small revolver out and put it to his head, right there in the crowded cafe, and he pulled the trigger...
 
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