Infestation: A Small Town Nightmare (3 page)

"Where are you going?" Amy
asked.

"To see this girl's relatives. I must
speak with someone close to her."

Amy stared with uncertainty. It was
completely out of character for her mother to inject herself into
outside matters even though privy to information that most people
didn't have. Amy stood up after her. "You always said that you
wouldn't put yourself out there because of what people might think,
Mom. Are you sure you want to go to these people and tell them
things they may not understand?" Amy's concern was
obvious.

Marie looked at her lovingly.
"Sweetheart, when I finally worked up the nerve to submit that book
for publication, I had already put myself out there. I don't too
much care what anyone thinks anymore; I'm done being a slave to
other people's opinions.

"That a Mom!" Amy smiled, proudly
giving Marie a gentle nudge at the arm. "Okay, I'm coming with
you."

The expression on Marie's face
revealed what she was thinking.

"I was also 'put out there' when you
wrote your book, remember?" Amy noted. "The difference between us,
Mom, is that I never cared what anyone thought of you. Nothing they
could ever say or think can cause me to look at you any differently
than I do now. You're the most wonderful person I know and I'm so
proud to be your daughter."

Marie pulled her close. "I feel the
same way about you, sweetheart. Let's get dressed!"

The neighborhood was lined off with
cars on both sides on the narrow road. Marie moved through slowly
as a number of children were playing in the streets.

"There's the house!" Amy
pointed.

"How do you know?" Marie
asked.

"I doubt that all those people
standing around in the yard with such gloomy faces are there for a
party."

"Check the address again."

Amy looked at the blue post-it in her
lap. She had scribbled down the Drakes' address from the phone
book. "Yup, this is it." She confirmed.

Marie carefully pulled to the side of
the white, picket fence. "The dock where she drowned is only about
a mile from here," she said. "She could've easily walked the
distance."

"She didn’t though."

"I know."

Marie approached a woman in the front
yard; Amy closely behind her. The woman could easily pass for an
old-timer, yet Marie sensed that she wasn't a day past forty. She,
herself, had beaten her out by a couple of years.

"Excuse me. Can you tell me if Annie
Drake lives here?" Marie asked.

The woman returned a suspicious eye.
"Who's asking?" She glared at Amy, then back at Marie.

"My name is Marie Adams. This is my
daughter, Amy. We just came by to offer our condolences to Mrs.
Drake."

"She's inside the house." She pointed
with her chin. "Go right in there."

"Thank you," Marie said before heading
to the front door with Amy.

Despite the steel door being widely
ajar, Marie knocked lightly. Two women and a much older man were
sitting in the living area. It was evident that the women had been
crying. One was holding a white, crinkly handkerchief.

"Hello, we're sorry for the
intrusion…" Marie started, "…but I was hoping to speak with Annie
Drake."

"Can I help you?" One of the ladies
responded, slowly rising from her chair. She was in her sixties,
thin—rather frail-looking.

"My name is Marie Adams and this is my
daughter, Amy. We heard the news about Raven and came to offer our
sympathy."

"Marie Adams?" The other woman
interjected. "You're that writer, aren't you? You wrote that book
called…I can't remember the name, but they had a big advertisement
on the radio and TV about it lately.

"Yes. I'm afraid that's me," Marie
answered.

"I heard your book deals with some
rather touchy issues. Don't know if I'm down with some of that
stuff."

"Dorcas! How rude?!" Annie exclaimed.
"Don't worry about her, Mrs. Adams," she gestured with a hand. "You
and your daughter, please have a seat. So nice of you to come all
the way here just to offer your condolences."

"Thank you, ma'am. We felt
that it was the least we could do." Marie glanced over at Amy who
was sitting down. The look on her face bore a subtle nudge that
screamed,
Get to the bloody point of the
visit!

"Um…Mrs. Drake, I was wondering if I
could speak with you privately for a minute… if you don't mind,"
Marie added.

"Certainly, you can, dear. Let's go on
the porch there where it's nice and cool." Marie started to follow
her when Annie looked back at Amy who had not gotten up to join
them. "Are you coming, young lady? It's really much cooler out
back."

Marie and Amy locked eyes for a
moment. "No, ma'am. I'll wait here." Amy smiled. Marie and Annie
walked out the back door.

"How old are you, dear?" The woman in
the living room asked Amy.

"Seventeen," Amy answered stoically.
From the uncool remark the stout woman with the large ears had made
to Marie, Amy sent a clear message of dislike by quickly retrieving
her cell from her pocket and getting busy.

Would you like a glass of punch or
something, Mrs. Adams?" Annie asked as they both sat at the round,
wooden table.

"No, thank you. I'm fine," Marie
replied.

"Dorcas! Offer the young lady
something to drink!" Annie shouted toward the door.

"I'm fine… really," Amy quickly
responded before Dorcas had the chance to ask.

"Please forgive my cousin for her
inhospitable remark inside there. She's always had a problem
controlling that big mouth of hers," Annie said.

"It's nothing... really," Marie
returned mildly. "My experiences as stated in the book are foreign
to many of those in the predominantly religious denomination of
this town. I expect that type of response to some degree. All of us
are ultimately entitled to our own beliefs and
opinions."

"I'd like to tell you that I've been
brought up in the church; been a believer all my life, and to be
honest with you, I've heard of some of the things you mentioned in
your book from other believers—not that many—mind you, but at least
a handful of 'em. Unlike a lot of people I know, I always keep an
open mind about such matters as I feel deep down in my heart that
there's a lot of things I don't know nor understand. How can a
person believe they have all the answers to the universe! Such
presumption!" Annie spoke passionately. "I've read your book and I
found it to be very interesting and inspiring."

"I appreciate your kind words, Mrs.
Drake," Marie replied. "I thought I should mention that Raven was
at my book signing the other day. When I saw her picture in the
papers this morning, I was shocked to learn of her
passing."

Annie nodded sadly. "Stay
right there. I want to show you something." She got up and
disappeared into the house, returning a minute later with a copy of
the royal-blue jacketed
Miles of The
Stone
in hand. She sat down next to Marie
and turned the front cover. "Read there to the bottom of your
signature."

Marie leaned in. "The first book I
read from cover to cover. Marie Adams changed my life," she read
softly.

Marie was struck with both shock and
sorrow. A mere stranger, so impacted by her book, had ended up dead
just days later. She slid her finger over Raven's scribbled
note.

"Thank you for giving my niece the
hope she had desperately sought all her life, Mrs. Adams." By then,
a tear had snuck down Annie's face and Marie was deeply moved by
this revelation. She got up slightly to position her chair directly
facing Annie. "Mrs. Drake, I know there's speculation that Raven
took her own life, but I felt compelled to tell you that I strongly
doubt that she did that.

Turning away for a moment, Annie
slowly closed the book, then gave Marie her full attention again.
"Mrs. Adams, Raven has been with me ever since she was four years
old. Before she came here, she suffered a lot of abuse and
rejection at such a tender age. Her mother, who was my sister, was
a drug addict and she couldn't be a good mother to the little girl
with that frame of mind she was in, so I took my niece
in—particularly since her father was not in the picture either. I
didn't want Raven ending up in the foster care system when I was
right here and could do what I could to help her. Unfortunately,
when she was just ten years old, her mother died from a drug
overdose. In essence… Raven didn't know a mother's love or a
father's love. I did my best to fill my sister's role over the
years, but I couldn't all the way." Annie paused for a moment and
tapped her eyes with the handkerchief she had balled up in her
hand. "Raven craved, more than anything, her mother's love. You
see? When she met a young man named Tommy, I almost immediately saw
the difference in her. She was so much happier and I was glad to
see that for a change. On top of that, she was an old soul—always
seeking knowledge and wisdom. You can say, that's how come she
ended up with your book. After reading it, she was so inspired that
she offered it to me to read. She started talking different: She
told me she knew her life was headed in the right direction from
that point; that she wanted to be a psychiatrist and work with some
of the children in the system. She said she was gonna get married
some day and have three kids. This was just a week ago. Raven saw a
marvelous future ahead, then the day before yesterday, her
boyfriend—out of the blue—broke up with her. She was devastated. I
can only imagine how she felt. She spoke about how they had all
these plans for a life together and she truly loved him with all
her heart. I said all of that to you, Mrs. Adams, to say this… I do
believe that my niece committed suicide. She had even attempted it
once before."

Marie was stunned by the disclosure.
Yet, what flashed before her in the kitchen that morning took
precedence in her mind. "Mrs. Drake, I understand your sentiments
and I'm very sorry that your niece had to endure so much difficulty
at such a young age, but I maintain that Raven did not kill
herself."

Annie peered at Marie. "What makes you
say that, Mrs. Adams? Why are you so adamant about it?"

"I don't want to sound… well… crazy or
anything, but this morning, after seeing Raven's picture in the
newspaper, a vision flashed before me. I saw Raven—it was obviously
the night she passed."

Annie didn't blink.

"Did she have a yellow
bicycle?"

"Yes, she did." Annie knew the color
of Raven's bicycle did not make the headlines.

"Well, I saw her heading for the
bicycle and before she got to it, she turned around as if in a
daze. Her eyes were colorless, pupils widely dilated and she
robotically walked toward that water and into it," Marie
explained.

"What are you saying, Mrs.
Adams?"

"I'm saying that something influenced
Raven to drown herself. She didn't do it off her own volition,"
Marie reluctantly continued.

There was a lull; Annie quietly
stared.

"I gather from what you said earlier,
Mrs. Drake that you believe in God. Am I correct?"

"Yes, I do," Annie replied
proudly.

Marie wasn't sure how to go on. "Do
you believe in evil—in the devil?"

Annie nodded. "We don't mention him
that much in our church, but I know he's real. Are you saying that
Raven was possessed by the devil?" Her eyes widened as the apparent
implication hit her.

"That's not what I'm saying," Marie
shook her head. "I don't believe she was possessed in the sense
that we know it, but I definitely think that her stepping overboard
was not something she would have done if she were in her right
mind. She was not in control."

"Well… if this is true and Raven
didn't willingly take her own life, how would we ever know for sure
and why would such a thing happen to her?" Annie delved, though up
on the fence about the whole thing.

Marie paused for a moment, giving what
she was about to say next serious forethought. She leaned in a
little closer. "Mrs. Drake, I have not shared this information that
I'm about to tell you with anyone outside of my home. I know that
this might sound a little weird to you…"

"Yes?" Annie waited
anxiously.

"Something just awful has landed in
this town—something purely evil. Raven was not the first of its
victims and unfortunately, I don't believe that she'll be the
last."

"Evil? In what sense?"

"It's demonic."

Annie looked away briefly and thought
earnestly about what she had just heard, then she looked back at
Marie. "If this is true, what can we possibly do?" She
asked.

"I'm not sure," Marie answered, not
feeling even slightly optimistic about the situation. "I guess only
time will tell."

"My goodness," Annie shook
her head slowly, "my pastor would never believe this if I told him.
Pastor Henry doesn't believe in these things, you see? Anything
supernatural… paranormal, he'll come up against in a heartbeat.
Mrs. Adams, I don't know you personally, but for some strange
reason… as crazy as I admit your story sounds… I believe you. After
Raven gave me your book to read, I did some reading up on you and I
found out some really interesting things: How you've helped certain
charities behind the scenes, especially those that focus on the
children and the elderly. I admire that. That's really nice." She
glanced over at
Miles of the
Stone
. "What stood out to me is that you
are a deeply spiritual woman—not as religious as some of these
folks around here claim to be and Lord knows many of them only talk
the talk. You've just had some highly unusual experiences that most
traditionalists, I guess you can call them, might have a little
trouble identifying with. Anyway, like I said… I believe
you."