Malevolent (39 page)
Authors: David Searls
Yeah, a scuffed leather suitcase that—
“Hey,” he said in the next moment. “That’s mine!”
Something squealed as more fat, long-tailed bodies rolled across his feet. Doyle tried to back up, but he’d run out of space. He could feel hot breath huffing down his neck, and smelled the strong scent of rancid meat.
“What the hell?” he snapped, anger momentarily overruling fear.
He moved in to snatch the suitcase—
his
luggage—but Purcell swatted it off the table. It fell heavily and someone scooped it up and made it disappear in the crowd.
Something about the feeble streetlight out front made Purcell’s eyes shine white-hot.
“How did you…?”
Doyle’s anger had already started to turn to leaden dread as he considered what it meant that Purcell had his things. First, that they’d broken into his room at The Sundown, and had obviously packed his bag. Where was Carl during all this? Had they hurt him?
He could hear the sound of a zipper unzipping, and then the slender-haired girl said, “Check this out.”
She’d opened his suitcase and now held up a pair of his wildly patterned undershorts, drawing hoots of laughter.
Catching quick peeks at the street, Doyle could see a few cars cruising by without slowing to investigate the sidewalk mob. Maybe even speeding up.
“So now you’re all packed up with nowhere to go,” said Purcell, still seated.
“You broke into my place.”
“Not me,” said Purcell. “Friend of mine, this afternoon. And he didn’t break in. He used a key. Left the place looking as neat and tidy as he found it.”
Doyle’s fury got him moving. He wheeled and headed straight for the nearest body, determined to steamroll through it if he had to. But he didn’t. The crowd unexpectedly parted. That’s all they wanted to do, just tease him. Freak him out, scare the scary black man away.
Their plan had worked to perfection. He wouldn't even go through the motions of filing a police report. Let them keep his underwear and toothbrush and ragged suitcase. Small price to pay. He’d be out of there by morning. Carl could tag along if he wanted. Or stay. That was fine, too.
It took a few seconds for Doyle to realize he was leading a crowd. He heard Penney giggling behind him and a few others muttering, but they kept their distance. Kept it until they drew even with a parking lot fronting a florist shop with three customers chatting away on the other side of an inviting expanse of warmly lit display glass.
As they closed in, Doyle threw his elbow back and connected with Jason Penney’s throat. He enjoyed the hell out of hearing the townie gagging and puking, but everything went very bad very quickly after that.
As they fell on him, Doyle’s first thought was that this was going to be the worst beating of his life. But that was interrupted by other thoughts, much darker ones, when the first set of teeth nestled deep into his groin.
Malevolent
David Searls
It feeds on your fear!
It watches. Listens. Learns. It feeds on your deepest fears, your basest instincts and darkest suspicions.
As its grip tightens on neighbors, friends and lovers, it’s up to Tim Brentwood and Griffin Solloway – two clueless slackers who can barely take care of themselves – to confront the nameless terror. As its shadow spreads over the Cleveland neighborhood, Tim wonders whether he can even trust his new friend. Or is there a darker side to Griffin?
The two can only be sure of one thing as their nemesis draws ever closer. Whatever it is, it’s
malevolent
.
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This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
11821 Mason Montgomery Road Suite 4B
Cincinnati OH 45249
Malevolent
Copyright © 2012 by David Searls
ISBN: 978-1-60928-914-0
Edited by Don D’Auria
Cover by Scott Carpenter
All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
First
Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
electronic publication: July 2012
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