The Incubus
by
Len du Randt
Copyright © 2012 by Len du Randt
SmashWords Edition.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without the written permission of the author. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.
Only purchase authentic works.
Cover design by MX Design (www.mxdesignsa.com)
The Incubus is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
“Do not forget to entertain strangers, for in doing so people have entertained angels without knowing it.”
- Hebrews 13:2, NIV
Chapter 1
The wheat flowed in the wind, like millions of swaying dancers performing a ballet. Justin shifted his gaze from the road to the horizon of sprinkled gold. He stared at it dreamily for a moment before stealing a glance at his sleeping wife.
‘You did it, Becky,’ Justin said softly. He loved watching her sleep; seeing her without a care in the world while the sun gently gnawed at her shoulder. ‘You made this possible.’
Rebecca wriggled her nose and shifted her weight in the seat. She tugged at the seatbelt and moistened her lips before slumbering off again.
Justin sighed. There weren’t many women like her. When he lost his job five months earlier, Rebecca stood firmly by his side. When he didn’t know how they were going to survive each month on her salary alone, she not only managed to save up enough money for their immediate needs, but also enough for their first year anniversary weekend away at a resort.
‘I don’t know how I’m going to make our first anniversary special to you,’ he told her after they had finished working out their budget. ‘The plan was to take you away somewhere far and exotic. Now I’ll be lucky if I can treat you to a movie.’
Rebecca laughed and lovingly took Justin’s hands. ‘We don’t need money to make it special,’ she said and kissed him softly. ‘We just need each other. Nothing more. Nothing less.’
Rebecca was his rock; a pillar of strength during the times that everything around him seemed to crumble and fall. He couldn’t imagine life without her. The road ahead was clear for as far as the eye could see, so Justin stepped down on the gas pedal slightly and the car accelerated. The wheat fields zipped past. He stole another glance at Rebecca and cupped his free hand over hers. ‘I love you, Becky,’ he said softly.
‘I love you too,’ she said with her eyes still closed and yawned. Slowly—like a butterfly breaking free from a cocoon—she opened her eyes and Justin could only stare in awe at the grace with which she woke.
‘Hey sleeping beauty,’ he said. ‘How was your—?’
‘Justin, look out!’
For a moment time stood still. The expression of fear on her face would forever be seared into his memory. Adrenaline flushed through his legs and Justin instinctively slammed on the brakes. It was only then that that he saw the figure standing in the middle of the road. The wheels locked and the car swerved into the opposite lane. Had another car or truck passed at that exact moment, the collision would have killed them both instantly. Justin jerked at the wheel to try and keep the car from veering off the shoulder of the road. The car over-steered and he had to pull the steering hard. After what felt like an eternity, the car finally came to a standstill.
‘Are you all right?’ Justin asked Rebecca. His tongue felt like cork and his voice was a coarse, quivering croak.
Rebecca nodded, but it was a reflex move. She had no idea whether she was all right or not. She bordered on shock. The numbness of her mind was the only thing keeping her from crying.
Justin fumbled with his seatbelt. His hands were still shaking from the adrenaline, but he finally managed to unclip it and flung the door open. A burst of afternoon heat blasted him as he clambered from the air conditioned car and slowly walked to the back of the vehicle on what felt like rubber legs. He leaned against the trunk for stability and scanned his eyes across the road. There was no trace of anyone.
Where did he go?
‘Is he okay?’ a badly shaken up Rebecca asked as she joined her husband’s side.
‘He...he’s gone.’
Rebecca looked around. ‘Gone?’
Justin didn’t answer. He walked across the road and peered over the shoulder to see if anyone was lying at the bottom of the ditch. He looked up and down the road. No cars in either direction. No people either. There was only the golden wheat, the high pitched screams of the cicadas, and the distinct smell of burnt rubber.
‘Did you find anything?’ Rebecca asked as he made his way back.
Justin shook his head.
‘Where could he have gone?’
‘I don’t know...’ Justin said and made a final quick scan of the area. ‘You also saw someone in the road, right? That’s why you screamed?’
Rebecca nodded.
A cold shiver ran down his spine. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but something made him feel uncomfortable. He sensed that Rebecca felt it too. ‘Come,’ he said. ‘Let’s get out of here.’ The two of them got back into the car and Justin managed to start it on the second try. He took one last look in the rear-view mirror as he stepped down on the gas pedal.
* - - - *
It was Rebecca who broke the awkward silence. ‘What just happened?’
‘I don’t know,’ Justin said. He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel and although his eyes were locked on the road, Rebecca could tell that his mind was somewhere else; reeling in the void of thoughts. Justin adjusted the rear-view mirror and took another look as if expecting to see someone standing in the middle of the road.
‘Are you sure we didn’t hit him?’ Rebecca asked. She placed her hand lightly on Justin’s knee, hoping that the gesture would be enough to calm the nervous bounce in his leg.
‘Did you feel us hitting anyone?’ Justin asked, unable to suppress the curt snap in his voice.
‘But what if he’s hurt?’
‘What if who is hurt?’ Justin asked. ‘We’ve been driving for twenty minutes now. Even if we did go back to check I doubt that we’d find the exact same spot. It could have been a mirage or something. It could have been anything, damnit!’
Who are you? Rebecca wondered. She had never seen her husband act this way before, and an old familiar fear crept over her. All those questions of doubt instilled into her mind by well-meaning family and friends before the wedding: Aren’t you a bit young to get married? Shouldn’t you two get to know one another a bit better before you decide to spend the rest of your lives with each other? Aren’t you a bit too young to get married? What if you woke up one morning and suddenly realized that you didn’t love him anymore?
‘I...I’m sorry, hun,’ Justin said and gave her hand a light squeeze. ‘I’m just as freaked out as you are, that’s all.’
It was another half an hour before they reached the resort where they were going to spend their anniversary weekend. By the time Justin parked the car in front of the reception building, he was convinced that what he and Rebecca had seen was nothing more than an optical illusion. That’s it
, he thought. It was a mirage; a reflection of a mill or a bird or something. Inside his gut, however, lingered a gnawing sense of doubt.
Justin opened the door and the two of them were greeted with a soft ding! as they entered the reception area.
The receptionist looked up and smiled. ‘Welcome to Sunny Hill Spa,’ she greeted them as they approached her. ‘You are...?’
Justin was caught off-guard by her beauty. Her hair was soft and her skin silky smooth. He especially liked the little upward tilt of her small nose and the way her lips naturally curled upward to form what he believed to be the perfect mouth. No ring on her finger. Rebecca poked an elbow into his side and he was jerked back to reality. ‘Oh...’ Justin said and cleared his throat. He was aware of his heart beating faster and a weak feeling in his knees. ‘Justin and Rebecca Greene.’
The receptionist scanned the register.
‘As in the colour,’ he added. ‘But with an e at the end.’
The receptionist chuckled politely and tapped her finger on their surname. ‘Greene,’ she said. ‘You’re in cabin twenty one. Please fill out the register while I get your keys.’
Justin moved the register over to Rebecca. She shrugged, took a pen, and started filling out the form. Vehicle registration number. Contact numbers. Next of kin. Justin caught himself staring at the receptionist as she walked to the back wall where all the keys hung. She was slightly shorter than him. He continued to stare even after she had taken the keys off the hook and was heading back. Only when she made eye contact did he become self-aware enough to tear his gaze from her. For a moment he wondered why he was so infatuated with this women where until now, he only had eyes for Rebecca.
‘Here you go,’ the receptionist said and held out the keys towards Justin. He intentionally brushed his finger against hers as he took the keys from her.
‘Thank you,’ Rebecca said and slid the register back to its original spot. ‘Did the payment go through?’
‘Everything’s fine,’ the receptionist confirmed. ‘Enjoy your stay, and if there’s anything you need, please don’t hesitate to ask.’
‘We won’t,’ Justin said. ‘Thank you.’
Gravel crunched underneath their feet as the two of them made their way back to the car. Just before getting in, Justin stretched out his arms and filled his lungs with as much air as he possibly could. The air didn’t smell this fresh in Kelwick.
‘I think I’m going to enjoy this weekend,’ Justin said as he got back into the car. A minute later they were driving off in search of their cabin.
* - - - *
‘Fifteen, seventeen, nineteen,’ Justin counted the odd numbered cabins on the left. If his calculations were correct, theirs would be the next one. It was.
‘This is really nice,’ he said as he parked the car next to their cabin. Justin got out and surveyed the huge trees around them. ‘This is very nice.’
‘Happy anniversary, Sweetie,’ Rebecca said and kissed him on the cheek. He took her in his arms and held her tightly before kissing her passionately for the first time since they left home. ‘Thank you for arranging this, love,’ he said. ‘I really needed it.’
‘You and me both,’ she said and held him even tighter. For a moment they didn’t have a care in the world. There weren’t unpaid bills to worry about; no job-hunting for Justin; no concern about next month’s groceries or where the money would come from. It was just the two of them, surrounded by nature, as they stood embraced in each other’s arms.
‘Right, let’s get our things inside,’ Justin said. ‘I want to go explore this place with you.’
She kissed him once more and sighed. ‘Okay,’ she said. ‘You can start unloading our things while I open the door and windows.’
Justin heaved two heavy suitcases from the trunk of the car. He then carried them to the only bedroom in the cabin. ‘This is nice,’ he said as he swung the suitcases onto the hard bed. ‘It’s not home, but it’s definitely nice.’
‘There’s a shower,’ Rebecca said with a naughty grin as she entered the tiny bedroom. ‘Wanna take one?’
Justin laughed. ‘Later,’ he said. ‘Let’s go explore first.’
* - - - *
Justin was amazed at how much a person could do at the resort. There were both cool and heated pools, Jacuzzis, a super tube, pool tables, a putt-putt course, and a go-cart track. The go-carts, much to Justin’s disappointment, were closed for maintenance the entire weekend.
‘What would you like to do first?’ Rebecca asked.
‘Let’s leave the swimming for tomorrow,’ he suggested. ‘Today we could just relax and unwind; maybe shoot some pool or something.’ Rebecca agreed, and after two hours of watching Justin lose on purpose, they headed back to their cabin for a light meal.
* - - - *
Justin turned for the fifth time. The wooden bed creaked under his weight. He lay still for a moment before sighing out loud and sitting up to fluff out his pillow. Once satisfied that he was as comfortable as he was going to get, he picked up his novel and continued from where he left off. The retired FBI agent was hot on the trail of the serial killer. The story was starting to pick up pace.
‘Hi Baby,’ Rebecca said from the door.
Justin sighed, dropped the bookmark between the pages and looked up. Rebecca stood in the door frame in a seductive pose, wearing silky smooth lingerie she bought specifically for the weekend. ‘Come here, you,’ Justin said and placed the book down on the table next to him. He opened his arms and in one graceful manoeuvre, she moved over the floor and onto the bed. She slid over to him and they embraced tightly as he planted his lips on hers. They kissed passionately, both losing themselves in the moment.
Justin tightened his embrace and then suddenly pulled her away and looked at the corner of the room.
‘What’s wrong?’ Rebecca asked and tried to see what he was looking at. She saw nothing out of the ordinary.
‘Nothing,’ Justin said and kissed her again. This time, the face of the lovely receptionist flashed through his mind. Justin flinched, but continued kissing his wife. Another image flashed though his mind; this time that of the figure standing in the middle of the road. Justin pulled back and stared at the corner of the room again. He couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching them.
‘Are you okay?’ Rebecca asked; worried that it might be something that she was doing wrong.
‘I’m...okay,’ Justin said. He sighed and then turned over to his side with his back against Rebecca. ‘I can’t do this,’ he said.
Rebecca wondered what caused her husband to lock up like that. He never turned his back on her before. ‘What’s wrong, Love?’ she asked and gently wrapped her arm around him.
‘Nothing,’ Justin said. ‘Just leave it, okay?’
Rebecca bit her lip. Her heart bounced around in her chest. She looked at her husband for a moment longer and then turned off the bedside lamp next to her. A few seconds later, Justin pressed the button next to him and the entire room went black.
* - - - *
‘Another hole in one?’ Justin asked, bewildered that his wife had such a keen sense of miniature golf. ‘That’s the third one in a row now.’
Rebecca did a little twirl with her putter. ‘Are you ready to give up yet?’
‘Never!’ Justin shouted in an over-dramatic voice. ‘You won’t take me alive!’
Her mouth twisted into a sly grin. ‘Then prepare to die.’
They whacked it out over the last few holes of the game, and finally, a humbled husband had to admit defeat to his wife. Through the jokes and laughter
something bothered Justin. He wondered how he would be able to apologize to his wife without bringing up the subject of the previous evening. He realized that talking to her about it was inevitable, and sooner or later, he would have to face the music.
‘What should we do now?’ she asked.
Justin looked around. Go-carts would have been great. Stupid maintenance. ‘I don’t know,’ he said. ‘Maybe we should go for a swim.’
Rebecca’s eyes lit up. ‘Heated pools?’
‘Sure,’ he said. ‘Why not?’
They followed the footpath hand-in-hand until they reached their cabin. It took them twenty minutes to get dressed and walk up another path until they reached the massive, heated swimming pools.
‘Gonna join me?’ Justin asked as they stood on the edge of the pool.
‘In a moment,’ she said. ‘I just want to sit down for a minute or two first. You go ahead, okay?’
‘Is everything all right?’ Justin asked. ‘Are you okay? You look a little pale, baby.’
Rebecca nodded faintly.
‘You really don’t look too good, Baby,’ he said and pressed his hand against her forehead. ‘You’re burning up.’
‘I’ll be fine,’ she said and smiled weakly at him. ‘I just need to sit down for a while.’
Justin frowned. ‘I don’t know,’ he said. ‘I think I should take you back to the cabin.’
‘No,’ she protested. ‘I’ll be fine in a minute. Really. Go, swim so long. I’ll be right with you.’
He ignored her and helped her to her feet. ‘Let’s get you into bed,’ he said and gently helped her down the path to their cabin.
‘I don’t want to ruin the weekend,’ Rebecca said as Justin tucked her into bed.
‘Nonsense,’ he said. ‘Just try and get some rest while I make you a nice cup of tea, okay?’ She nodded, but Justin doubted that she registered anything he said to her. He waited until her eyes were closed before he left the room to boil some water. When he returned with her tea, she was fast asleep. He placed the cup down next to her on the bedside table and picked up his novel. He then lay down next to her, and three turns and one pillow fluffing later continued with the story. Justin read for most of the afternoon before taking a half an hour nap after which he read some more.
‘Justin...?’ Rebecca said softly when she woke up.
‘Yes, baby?’
‘I...I have to prepare dinner...’
Justin put down the novel and walked around to her side of the bed. He touched her forehead and frowned. The fever showed no sign of breaking. ‘Stay in bed,’ he said. ‘I’ll get us something to eat from the restaurant. What would you like?’