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As Mom pulled into the driveway, Tadd raced to untie me. “You didn’t run away, and I didn’t tie you up and hit you. Understand?”
“Deal,” I mumbled.
I had to come up with a plan to sneak out of the house that night. Dawn’s life depended on it. I just hoped it wouldn’t be too late. What if they start the crossover of his demon friends before I arrive?
I kept my deal with Tadd, and Mom wasn’t any the wiser.
She started pulling ingredients from the cupboards to cook dinner, and I walked into the kitchen to help her. Tadd went to his room, got ready for his date, yelled goodbye to us, and tore out of the house. Mom made extra servings of spaghetti that night so she could take a meal over to Dawn’s family. She shook the last bit of salt onto the browning meat and turned to me. “Ret, get more salt out of the cupboard, will you?”
I brought the container of Morton salt to her. There were only a few granules left. “Looks like we’re out.”
“Out? We can’t be out. I just bought some last week. I need salt to season the meat!” She turned and called out, “Scott! Go across the street to the Crawfords’ and borrow some salt.”
He rolled his eyes dramatically and sauntered outside.
There was no salt left in the house because I’d used it all concocting a mixture of extremely salty water and filled up two of our water guns with it. I’d filled five sandwich bags full of the rest of the salt. They were my weapons for the night, and I hoped they worked.
When my dad came home, he told us that Sheriff Packard and the FBI had searched the Crooked House. “Half the town was at Lester’s house, causing an uproar,” my dad told us as he sat down at the dinner table. “I went over there earlier, and the Williamses were demanding to be let into that house and search for their daughter. Things got so out of hand it turned a bit physical.”
“Physical?” My mom’s eyes widened.
“Just some pushing and shoving.” My dad began scooping noodles onto his plate from the bowl in the center of the table. Shaking his head, he said, “Someone pushed Lester down, and that’s when Sheriff Packard showed up with his deputies.”
“Do people really think Mr. Beaumont and Lester took Dawn?” She glanced at me as if to check if I was okay, knowing Dawn was my friend. “I don’t know Lester, but I still can’t believe Mr. Beaumont would do such a thing.”
“It’s always the last ones you’d suspect who turn out psycho.”
Scott kept silent, looking at his plate and twirling spaghetti on his fork. Jeff finally walked into the kitchen and grabbed a plate.
“Did they find her?” I asked my dad.
He stopped chewing his food and looked at me. He shook his head solemnly. “No. I’m afraid not.”
After dinner, I climbed our back fence to check on the police activity at Lester’s house. Through the binoculars, I saw the FBI and CSI units, along with uniformed officers. A man I assumed was Beaumont’s lawyer stood next to Beaumont, talking to the police. The last cop car left just before dark. From what I could see, they left empty-handed and disappointed.
No Dawn in sight. I watched as long as I could, hoping to catch them as they snuck her into the house after everyone was gone, but I saw no strange activity.
I knew they’d kept Andrea in that house. Why couldn’t they find any evidence of her being there?
I’d seen enough police shows to know they always found a hair, footprints, or fingerprints, maybe even a piece of clothing. But nothing? How could that be?
The spirit inside Beaumont was from another world—a parallel universe or hell, or both. He did have powers to bring a spirit from his world into a dead body and give it life. Perhaps he had the power to make evidence disappear too.
“Ret!” My mom summoned from the back window. “Time to come in.”
“Is everyone going to bed?” I asked my mom when I walked inside.
“Not yet. We’re staying up to watch the news and Johnny Carson. You can stay up with us if you want.”
I was anxious for everyone to get to bed so I could make my escape. Sheriff Packard hadn’t called me back, and that bothered me. “I just think it’s late, we’ve had a big day, and we should all get to bed.”
Mom chuckled. “Big day? You can go to bed if you like. I need to wind down first.”
Waiting for the world to fall asleep was painful. Minutes dragged on like dripping molasses. Come on!
Finally, Johnny Carson was over, credits rolled, and my mom and dad got into a long discussion about the guests on the show. I couldn’t remember the last time my mom and dad had talked decently to each other and for twenty minutes. Boy, did they find the wrong time to get along.
Fortunately, Tadd and Jeff were both gone for the night, so all I had to deal with were Mom, Dad, and Scott, who would all go to bed at the same time.
The discussion finally wound down, and then Scott said, “Mom, can you look at this sliver in my hand? I can’t get it out.”
“For hell’s sakes, Scott, can’t it wait for the morning?” Did I just say that out loud?
My mom snapped her head to me, eyes wide and lips pursed. “Ret! What has gotten into you? You need to go to bed.”
“I think we all do, don’t we?”
“After we get this sliver out of Scott’s hand, we will. But you will go to bed now.”
I sighed, rolled my eyes, and meandered to my room.
***
IT WAS ONE O’CLOCK in the morning before I was relatively certain everyone was asleep. As stealthily as a cat, I snuck out of my house. Avoiding every creaky spot in the floor, I put my weapons in a satchel, hung it over my shoulder, and made my escape.
The chain-link fence was a bit noisy, but I couldn’t avoid it. I landed in the field, crossed the creek, and headed for the house. It stood alone in the dark, waiting for me with its one eye lit. Beaumont and Kilborn were waiting for me too; I could feel it.
Please let her be alive, I prayed. I couldn’t help but be reminded of Andrea. My guilt over not saving her weighed heavily on my soul. If they did to Dawn what I imagined they would do, I would be devastated.
The air was crisp, with a cool, quiet breeze. I crept to the side of the house, where a small window sat just above ground. It was the window to the basement. I wiped muck and film away from the glass with my sleeve, which didn’t clean it much, but enough to get a blurry vision of the interior.
I saw the sparkling pool. Its blue radiance illuminated the room, and my goal was single-minded: finding Dawn. I saw her legs. She sat farther to the right of my point of view, so all I could see was her bottom half. She wore jeans and white tennis shoes. I was positive it was her.
For what seemed like a century, I waited for movement. Then her foot shuffled, and she bent forward enough for me to see her red hair. She was blindfolded with a wide strip of burlap, and I couldn’t see her hands, which led me to believe they were tied behind her.
Relief coursed through me. She’s alive!
A rank smell reached my senses first, a stench of rotted flesh mixed with formaldehyde. Then I heard grunts and raspy, quick breaths, followed by the sound of saliva being sucked in and out of someone’s mouth, like a vacuum that didn’t have enough power to extract water. The thing approached me, shuffling the weeds behind me.
I reached into my satchel, withdrew one water pistol, and spun around. The thing grabbed me by the throat, lifted me off my feet, and slammed my back against the side of the house before I could defend myself. It was a large man with grotesque pasty-blue skin. Fat and bald like the Dee Burger clown, he had dark rings around his eyes, and black sludge dripped from his mouth. Blue veins webbed his face, neck, and arms. The stench of death hit my face like a truck. He cocked his head as he looked at me quizzically. His eyes were bloodshot, and he coughed, flinging black droplets onto my face. He choked as he breathed in air.
Gun in hand, I twisted my wrist, aimed it down at his face, and squeezed the trigger. The salt water hit his eyes and face. His eyelids fluttered, and he paused then squealed in pain as the salt took effect.
He released me. I dropped to the ground, bounced up to my feet, and ran for the back of the house. I pulled out the second gun and double-fisted both of them.
A lady in a flowered dress, only one foot in a high-heeled shoe, came around the corner. Mud and scrapes covered her arms, legs, and face, and her curly hair looked like a matted wig. She hobbled on uneven legs, gasped, and clawed at the side of the house with one hand to help her balance. At her side was a tall man. He was thin and elderly, with a balding scalp. His crisp dark suit was too small. It was probably the one he’d been buried in. His eyes were wide and confused, his fingernails long and dirty. He was busy looking at his surroundings before he focused on me. Then his face scrunched into snarling rage, and he growled.
I was reminded of the time I’d snuck into the family room while my older brothers and their friends were watching Night of the Living Dead. Even in black and white, the movie had been nightmarish. This was much worse. I was in it.
I turned and ran blindly into the fat man, who was still squealing. I bounced off his chest and fell to the ground, landing hard on my tailbone. Pain flared through it. The odd couple lurched for me and grabbed at my collar and hair. My heart raced, and I twisted around, guns in hand, and sprayed them with rounds of salt water. They pulled at me, snarling through gray teeth, and finally, the salt absorbed into their bodies enough to cause them pain. Tiny wisps of smoke wafted from the spots the water hit. They shrieked, released their hold on me, and clawed madly at their wounds like they had an itch that couldn’t be scratched.
The fat man dropped to the ground and crawled toward me. When he grabbed at my feet, I yelped and kicked his face several times before hopping to my feet.
I tore off in the opposite direction, careened around the front porch, and bolted in through the front door. The slanted floor of the Crooked House caught me off guard, and I nearly toppled. I ran for the kitchen, toward the basement door, in a last desperate effort to save Dawn.
Todd Harrison appeared in the kitchen doorway, wearing a devilish grin. I aimed both guns and fired. He jerked back from the burning liquid, and I heard the sizzle, but it wasn’t enough to keep him from wreaking his vengeance upon me.
With one sweep of his arm, he knocked the pistols out of my hands, and the other fist hammered against my left cheek. Airborne, I twisted completely and plopped to the floor.
“Ouch.” I heard Lester’s voice as he entered. “That’s gotta hurt.” He laughed. “Boy brought his water pistols?”
I rolled and looked up at them both. Todd frowned, one eye solid red from the fiery salt. The left side of his face was peppered with red dots from where he’d been shot with the rock salt the other night. He was not happy. Todd kicked my forehead, and the back of my head slammed against the floor. Then my world went dark.
***
I WOKE UP LYING NEXT to Dawn, hands tied behind me with duct tape. Dawn was still blindfolded, but they hadn’t bothered with me. I struggled to a sitting position and took in my surroundings as they came into focus. The basement was cold and damp, and the only light came from the magic pool and its blue aura.
All the living dead, including Harrison, were with us, standing against the opposite wall, watching and waiting. The lady in the dress continued to struggle; she bent over and gagged on black sludge.
I felt something bulky next to me, against my thigh. I looked down and saw my satchel. I was perplexed why they’d leave me my bag, but I don’t think they knew it was a danger to them.
“Dawn?” I said. “It’s me.”
“Ret?” Dawn’s voice shook. Tears streaked from underneath her blindfold, and her lips were wet with them. Dirt mixed with sweat smeared her forehead and cheeks.
“What are you doing here?” Her voice rose in panic.
“I came to save you. Some rescue, huh?”
She frowned and shook her head. “You shouldn’t have. Nobody should. They’ll end up like them.”
She nodded to the living dead across the room. They continued to grunt, groan, and shuffle around awkwardly.
“The whole town is looking for you. So many people love you. My dad said the police came and searched this whole house. Why couldn’t they find you?”
“Beaumont did something so they couldn’t find me. I was right here the whole time. I heard them, they called out to me, and I called back. I screamed, I cried, but they couldn’t hear me. They were right here! Right in front of me! I kicked and yelled and rolled my body around!” She gulped. “Something is evil here. Can you feel it?”
My body tingled. I knew what she was talking about. It weighed the air like an electric charge. “Yes.”
“They dug up those bodies. Lester said they were the freshest ones he could find. I recognize Mrs. Jones from the grocery store.”
I looked at the lady in the flower dress again. Dawn was right—she worked one of the registers, but she’d quit months ago because of cancer. She must have passed away, and the bastards dug her up then stuffed the soul of one of their friends into her body.
“Beaumont is really mad at Lester,” Dawn whispered to me. “They had a big argument about the bodies and how they’re not fresh enough. I think that’s why they can’t talk or walk very well. He also said they hadn’t eaten in days.”
With a shiver, I thought about Lester’s threat to feed Dawn or me to them.
“When the police came, Lester blindfolded me and left me down here with these dead bodies, and Beaumont chanted some strange words. Like a spell or something. I think that’s why the police couldn’t see me or see them.”
“I’m sorry.” My head drooped.
“Me too.”
We took a break from speaking for a moment, and then she leaned her head to me and rested it on my shoulder. I snuggled my head back into her. It felt warm and good.
The basement door opened, and a sliver of light sliced the darkness. Beaumont and Lester marched down the stairs and halted in front of the living dead. Mrs. Jones was curled on the floor, coughing and gagging uncontrollably.
Beaumont bent down and softly ran a hand along her cheek. She looked up at him, eyes horrified, chest heaving rapidly.
“Chokanna,” he spoke in his tongue lovingly. “Mo seeka, vi cobiki soka Asson. Mi mo vana.”
Tears ran from her eyes. “Ki! Ki jee!” She choked words out passionately. “Ki ki jee!”
Beaumont closed his eyes, pursing his lips, and a tear ran from one eye. He kissed his fingers and placed them on her forehead. He turned and looked at Lester with disdain and hatred, then burned the same glare at me.
He stood up, crossed the room, and picked up a long-handled axe. Mrs. Jones’s body shuffled on her back, and the others stepped out of the way. Her chest pumped up and down faster.
“Mi mo vana, Chokanna!” Beaumont said his last words to her then buried the axe in her head with a sickening thuck.
I turned away, and Dawn shuddered at the sound.
“What was that?” Dawn asked me.
“You don’t want to know.”
Confused, the others looked down at the lady on the floor. The water in the pool shimmered, and rings spread as if a rock had dropped into the middle of it. Beaumont looked at the pool as his friend’s spirit raced home to the other world.
“You see now, Lester? Does it finally make sense to you?” He hammered his words into the shorter man. “I need fresh bodies. You gave me one plagued with sickness!”
“It’s all I could find,” he whined. “You don’t give me enough time.”
“We’re out of time!” Beaumont threw the axe, and it clattered next to us.
“I’m sorry!” Lester yelled sheepishly. He looked around the room then pointed at us. “We still have them!”
His gaze burning into us, Beaumont pointed at us and said, “We were going to use their souls for food. We need energy.” He stepped closer to us, looking us over. “They’ll have to do. I’m out of choices. One can be my Chokanna, and one can be the food.” He turned to Lester. “It better work this time.”
“It will for now. Until we find another one. A better one.”
“Shut up!” he snarled.
Sickness boiled in my stomach.
Beaumont crossed the room and tore off Dawn’s blindfold. Her eyes fluttered and squinted, adjusting to the light.
“You said it’d be just one of us,” I said. “Lester said if I came, I’d take her place and she could go.”
Beaumont shrugged. “Things change. I’ll still give you a choice, though. Do you want to be the food or the vessel? Either your soul will be torn to pieces and eaten, or it will be trapped in a dark void forever. You decide.”