The Light
It was a cold winter morning when Sara woke from her slumber; her alarm clock had not yet graced the morning with its annoying bleep and it read 4:45am. Almost like a zombie, Sara went about her morning routine oblivious to the event the day had to hold. At 5:30am she left her apartment to make the long journey to work that she did every day since her car had been in for work. As the manager of an accountancy firm, she always had to be there before everyone else so she could open up the offices.
Still on her journey to work, a collision had occurred in the subway resulting in Sara running a little late for work. She had to walk 7 blocks to the stop where she would usually exit the subway. As she made her way through the lonely streets she wondered if she was on the right path in life, the crossing said go, she stepped onto the road to cross to the other side, meanwhile an escaped mental patient was still on the loose and as far as the local police department knew, he had stolen a BMW. They had no idea what mind-frame he was in and whether he was still in the city, Lieutenant Daweson has just returned from an emergency press conference with the local media about the mental patient.
"Lieutenant, Lieutenant, Please wait we have information on the mental patient" His secretary yelled as she chased him down the long corridor to his office. Daweson stopped and turned towards the toddler-like young woman chasing him, " What is it Tanya? " he barked. Once she had caught her breath she explained what had just happened," Lieutenant, the patient has been involved in a crash up on Brookstone boulevard, he’s hit a young woman at a pedestrian crossing" Tanya handed Daweson the papers in hand. Skimming though them Daweson said "ok, Tanya I’m on my way down there". After arriving at the scene, Daweson was horrified when he saw the young woman laid out the ground and a paramedic giving her CPR, He also spotted another body further down the street that had a sheet placed over the head. He ran over to Sara who was lying on the ground with the medic giving her CPR. “Sara! Sara! Please don’t go, I never got the chance to say sorry" whimpered the lieutenant as he crouched over his ex-lover.
Sara saw herself laid on the ground, blood forming a puddle before her feet and Daweson crouched besides her sobbing. There was a door to the side of her with a white shining light all around it, She felt drawn to the door but before she reach the handle, the door opened. Before her stood her mother who had passed away when Sara was 14 "Mum, oh my gosh... Mum!" she gasped as she realized she had died on the road. "Sara sweetie, it’s not time yet. Not for you to be with the rest of us. I’m here to send you back, You have a life growing inside of you, It’s not time for my daughter or granddaughter to pass over" Sara’s mother told her quietly. Suddenly Sara felt herself being sucked back into the life-less body lying on the ground.
"Sara! Thank heavens you’re still alive" Daweson sobbed as he looked into the eyes of a really confused Sara. Not having much energy she grabbed his hand and placed it on her lower tummy. "Our daughter" she whispered as she fell back unconscious. A few days later Sara woke to Daweson's head beside hers, she realized she was in a private hospital ward. She glanced down to see something in his hand. The drips pulled on her arm as she reached to get the thing in Daweson's hand, she held it closer to her face and she realized it was a scan photo of her and Daweson's daughter, perfectly healthy, perfectly alive. Sara released a sigh of relief and sobbed as she cuddled up to the man she loved.
The Halloween Slaughter
The local reporters hovered around the scene like flies to horse muck, gasping as camera's snapped the horror of that unfolded in front of them. People gathered and the crowd grew larger, gasping and hysterical chattering filled the atmosphere with uncertainty and fear. As I managed to fight my way to the front of the crowd I saw the terror in the faces of the village people that had witnessed the event. The local police made way for the crime scene photographer to capture the evidence. People always get a little crazy around Halloween but this was too crazy to be true, three murders in three days. The police issued a village curfew and had coppers patrolling the streets all day and night but somehow the killer had managed to once again do his dirty work and spread fear throughout us all. Later the next day the young couple of Lacey Brunsburg were taken back to their home after having to identify there little girl in the morgue, for the rest of the day the people of the village brought cards and flowers with their condolences, although they feared that if they were seen with the Brunsburg's, the killer may strike again and this time it may be their children to be killed and laid out for the village to see.
The three murders were all in connected in ways with each other, each body missing the head and being replaced with a jack 'o' lantern and pinned to grave stones with little hollowed out jack 'o' lanterns each with a black candle burning brightly surrounding the body like a shrine. The killed had earned his name, The Halloween Slaughterer. That night a chill dominated the air surrounding us and the night brought upon us the terror of what may come. As a volunteer I had to have a police officer patrol the streets with me although I was more than capable to defend myself. As well slowly walked street to street, the chill in the air grew colder like ice on a window pane, that’s when I spotted the little light bobbing through the grave yard. It's just the church caretaker I thought to myself as we carried on walking through the street and into the darkness that unfolded around us.
"TOM... WAKE UP... IT’S HAPPENED AGAIN" Cheryl shouted as she burst into our bedroom. As we got to the scene the guilt swept through me like a tidal wave, I should have followed that bobbing light, I should have done something. Another murder had been committed and at the rear of the church a fresh grave had been dug, little jack 'o' lanterns surrounding it. Tears rand down the faces of the villagers and the chill returned to the air. "Who is it this time" I barked at the chief constable. "Can’t be certain who it is although the killer has changed their pattern, the body is of an older woman, possibly late seventies. Poor bugger must have frozen to death before he lopped of her head" he replied. I forced my way through the crowd and there I saw it, a wooden stake coming upright out of the grave, with the elder woman tied naked to it. Although the head had been replaced with a large jack 'o' lantern there was no blood around the womb. Written upon the woman’s tummy in blood writing were the words... 'You saw me but will any ne see you'. My heart leapt into my mouth and panic consumed me. The message was aimed at me and it was the killer I saw. The constable grabbed my arm to steady me as I started to sway, "You ok tom?" he asked. "That message is aimed at me, it’s aimed at me... oh god he going to kill me" I grumbled hysterically.
The rest of the afternoon seemed to go by so slowly and I must have explained what I saw to about twenty different officers. It was reassuring that there would be an officer stopping at our home tonight so hopefully I should make it through the night. I always hated Halloween but if the killer was going to make a grand scene, Halloween night would be perfect. "Cheryl, what have you gave him... he’s out cold" one of the officers asked me as they carried Tom upstairs to our bedroom. "Oh... just an herbal recipe to make you sleep... it’s been in my family years... dates back as far as the Salam which trials" I chirped as I followed them. After showing the officers to where they would be sleeping I settled down for the night although an uneasy feeling settled within me.
As I rubbed my eyes the bright numbers on the digital alarm clock displayed 4:45am, I turned to snuggle into my husband but found an empty bed. Wandering down the hallway I thought to myself ' he’s probably in the kitchen seeing as he’s not in the bathroom'. The panic lay upon me like a suffocating blanket as I ran to the spare room, "Get up... GET THE FUCK UP AND FIND MY HUSBAND" I screamed at the police officer. Police filled the streets as we searched for Tom, we entered the grave yard quietly so not to spook anyone. The cold wet floor seemed to hit me hard as I felt to my knees, paralyzed in fear as I saw my husband’s body laid in an opened coffin in a grave, the snake tattoo gave it away and I knew I had lost my tom forever.
Nearly one year since the Halloween disaster had passed and now on a
ll hallows eve the villagers were scared that the killer may return tomorrow. I did not care, my whole world had been destroyed that night when I lost my husband, I thought he may as well come and finish the job as I have nothing left to live for. Like a rumble of thunder the bang from upstairs was deafening making me jump out of my skin, I reach for the shotgun as I headed to the stairwell. The house was silent as I made my way up the stairs and down the corridor; I had check every room apart from the master bedroom. The same chill filled the hair as I held out my hand to grasp the door knob, trembling with fear I grabbed and twisted. The door swung open. The smell was disgusting; I entered the room and flicked on the light. The heads of the little girls were laid upon the bed, rotting. Where was Tom's?