Skulls (4 page)

It didn’t matter though…they hadn’t stopped. Just like the last four hadn’t stopped. She was beginning to think none of them would.

The darkness settled around her once more and Katie sobbed. Her tears were invisible amidst the downpour. Her voice was but a whisper against the power of the storm. Miles from town, she knew her tears weren’t going to help her, so she hunkered down and got to walking.

Egged on by her classmates, Katie had come out on the highway on a dare. The least adventurous of them, to put it mildly, she had been convinced she could earn their respect by hitchhiking back into town. It had seemed a simple enough thing to do, but she hadn’t thought to check the weather before she was dragged from her home in just a T-shirt and slacks. She wondered if her classmates had.

Dropped off with little more than a giggled wish of luck, she stared up at the roiling clouds as they drove away. Her head had been filled with dreams of success. She would ride into town in the passenger seat of a stranger’s vehicle and win the respect of her fellow students.

Now, in the middle of the storm, the flickering tongues of lightning mocked her dreams. Katie stumbled cold and wet up the road. The storm kept all but the most dedicated drivers off the mountain.

Misery beat down on her like the rain, her clenched teeth chattering despite her best efforts. Her ears burned at the tips. Every jarring step of her numb feet rattled her jaw.

In spite of it all, she didn’t stop. One step followed another as she moved past mile marker two, the reflective sign post disappearing into the darkness behind her. She’d show them she could make it, even if it took walking all the way home. She’d show them.

A tiny fire of determination fluttered in her heart. She put her head down and trudged on, almost missing the sound of the approaching vehicle. A flicker of light drew her head up. Once more her heart danced in her chest at seeing headlights creeping up the hill.

This time she wouldn’t let the car pass. She edged out onto the road and made ready, screaming and shouting, jumping about as it came close. The headlights washing over her and she heard the crunch of asphalt as the brakes were applied. Katie quickly stepped off the road as the car moved past, tires grappling with the wet road. It came to a stop about twenty feet beyond where she stood, but it had stopped. Katie held in a happy squeal.

Trembling with both cold and excitement, she ran toward the car. The passenger door swung open as she approached. She could see her triumph now. There would be warmth first, and then the grudging adoration of her classmates who awaited her at the end of a short ride. A smile plastered across her dripping face, she slid into the car. She slammed the door shut and turned to thank her savior.

The thick, black barrel of a pistol was her welcome.

Her smile fell from her lips as the door locks clicked home beside her“Don’t scream,” a muffled voice told her. Dark eyes stared at her through a black ski mask.

All the strength went out of her limbs and Katie sunk into the seat. Her eyes were locked on the gun. The car shuddered to life and circled back the way it had come. Katie whimpered softly, unable to even beg.

The ride was a blur. Only the swaying of the gun barrel was impressed upon her memory. At last, the car came to a stop, the headlights illuminating only trees. Then there was nothing as the driver shut the lights off.

The masked man opened his door and reached for her. His gloved hand encircled her wrist. Still she couldn’t scream.

Slow, the barrel of the gun never wavering, the man led her from the car. He pulled her across the seat and out the driver’s side door.

Once more the rain fell upon her, its icy touch warm compared to his. He shut the car door and her world was plunged into inky blackness as the tiny interior light was snuffed out. She trembled without control as terror seized her in the darkness. His gruff voice demanded her attention. There was no compassion in his words.

He dragged her through the cold night as though she weighed nothing. Katie screamed, but only on the inside. Her courage had fled before the huge man and his gun. It grew more distant with every step they took into the blackness of the woods.

She heard a gentle squeak as a door was pulled open before her, the shadows darker where it stood. Suddenly the rain was gone. Her nose was filled with the dry scent of hay as she gasped to draw a breath.

She was dragged along and the shifting rustle beneath her feet turned into the muffled crunch of a plastic tarp. When they finally came to a stop, she was pushed against the cold solidity of a wall behind her. The hand at her wrist pulled away. It was at her throat an instant later. It held her tight, thick fingers sinking into her soft flesh. Something cold and hard was clasped about her ankle. It pulled her leg tight against the wall.

Katie whimpered as her other leg was restrained in the same way. Then her arms were, too, the clasps set above her head. Katie was forced onto her toes to keep the cold metal from biting into her wrists. A steel collar replaced the hand at her throat. It wedged the back of her head uncomfortably against the wooden wall. She could hear the wet pitter of the rain just beyond it, feeling its gentle vibrations as it struck the wall.

Tears spilled down her cheeks. The man’s breath huffed near her ear, the loose fibers of the mask tickling her cheek. She trembled. Her arms and legs shook despite the restraints. For a long moment he stood silent beside her. His face pressed against hers and her neck was warmed by his breath.

Then he was gone.

Quiet shuffles marked his passage across the room before he went silent. Self-preservation replaced her lost courage. Katie struggled frantic against the restraints, the delicate flesh of her wrists and ankles scraped raw by the unyielding steel of the shackles.

Her mind in chaos, her thoughts swirled with hopelessness. She cringed at a sudden noise in the dark. Unexpectedly, a blinding light illuminated the room. Against its harsh glare, she could see nothing but shadows beyond it.

Then he was there once more. The black mask still in place, his eyes were little more than dark dots in a figure eight of white.

Her blurry gaze drifted down to see he wore a leather apron, stained with dark blotches. Images of the local butcher sprang to mind unbidden. Below him, a black plastic sheet covered the floor and ran beneath her. Her heart galloped in her chest as he raised the axe in his hand. Terror spurred her imagination to terrible depths.

At last she found her voice—a horrified shriek burst from her throat like a shattered glass symphony. The masked man leaned in and covered her mouth with no sense of urgency. Her scream was muffled against his rough palm. He held the axe before her and waved it back and forth, a sharpened serpent poised to strike.

The hypnotic shimmer of the blade under the lights silenced her. Her eyes tracked the sharpened edge. The masked man lowered his hand, raising a finger to his hidden lips. He then lifted her chin, her eyes meeting his. Even in the harsh glare of the lights, Katie could see the terrible darkness that whirled inside their depths.

Then without another word, he drew back and sank the axe into her chest.

Chapter Six

Jacob screamed and stumbled back. His legs went out from beneath him. The skull fell from his hands and tumbled to the soft earth. Its empty eyes stared at the wall. Wisps of willowy smoke drifted from its sockets.

Jacob’s throat grated as he tried to draw a breath. His chest constricted against his lungs and seemed to squeeze the air from him. Images of the axe were burned upon his retinas. Its silvery arc shone clear as it cleaved through the air. Shimmers of light reflected across Katie’s horrified face. The meaty
thunk
of the blade crashing through her ribcage reverberated in his head. The crunch of snapping bone infested him with shivers.

Though the air was once again warm against his skin, Jacob felt a chill. It wormed inside him, a funeral cold. Sharp pains radiated out from his heart as though it had burst. He looked at his hands and marveled at how pale they looked. They were milk white against the background of brown earth.

He felt his stomach roil. Bitter acid and bile churned inside, threatening to spew forth. He clambered to his feet. His legs strained to support him. He felt weak, like the tenuous sense of waking from a dream, caught between worlds.

He forced his legs to walk to the ladder and wrapped his arms around its solid beams for support. His breath caught in his lungs, sounding raspy in his throat. Desperate, he looked at the diffused light above and made his way toward it. Rung by rung, he climbed. His legs shook with every step, each a conquest of its own.

Sweat ran down his forehead and seared his eyes. He crested the last rung and pulled himself free of the bunker. He lay in the dirt a moment. The tension in his chest eased by tiny degrees until at last, he could draw a decent breath. Cold sweat prickled his skin in the warm air and the hard ground was uncomfortable against his ribs. Finally, he pulled himself to his feet.

He felt a strange sense of protectiveness he couldn’t quite understand as he saw his hand close the hatch before dragging the covering shrubs overtop. It was as though he was watching it through someone else’s eyes. The bunker hidden once more, Jacob slipped through the foliage and stumbled down the hill toward home.

He walked as though returning from the dead, stiff-legged and slow. Katie’s face flashed in his mind, over and over, the flickering reel of a home movie looped endlessly. He could see her eyes as the axe hit home, the startled realization she knew she was going to die. He felt her terror.

The images clung to him as though stuck in a spider web. He heard her scream inside his mind. Jacob had to stop several times to avoid running into trees that seemed to just appear before him. He walked with his arms splayed out ahead of him to keep from splitting his skull. His hands were scraped and bruised. Blood oozed from a dozen tiny cuts before he finally made it out of the woods.

At last, Jacob’s head seemed to settle. The images faded into the back of his mind. He glanced up at the sun, then across at the tangle of traffic along Sudderth Road. He had a nagging thought he’d forgotten something. Unable to remember, he kept on. He darted across the street at the first opportunity. As he reached the other side, his thoughts fell into place.

The yard. His father.

He bolted through the trees and raced for home. He swung around the corner, nearly falling, and ran until he saw his father’s truck idling in the driveway. Ann sat red-faced in the passenger seat, drumming her glittered fingernails on the dashboard.

His stomach hardened into a knot as his dad stepped through the gate that led from the backyard. His vicious glare locked on Jacob.

“What the hell did I tell you, boy?” He didn’t wait for Jacob to answer. “I told you to finish the yard before you went anywhere, didn’t I?”

Jacob nodded and then hung his head. He dragged his feet the rest of the way to the drive. The bitter scent of beer hit him as his father shouted, closing the distance. He reached out and grabbed Jacob by the throat, pulling him close.

“I don’t care what you think is more important, but you will damn well listen to me when I tell you to do something. Is that clear?” Flecks of spittle showered Jacob’s face.

“Yes sir,” Jacob answered with a gasp, the words forced out.

“Now get it done or I’ll drag your ass up outta bed when I get home and make you do it in the dark.” He thumbed back toward the house. “Clean up your mess in there too. I had to throw the damn milk away because you left it out this morning.”

Jacob started to protest when the truck horn honked, drawing his father’s attention. His rash words swallowed, he was grateful for the interruption.

“Hurry up, Mike, I’m already late,” his stepmother shouted from the window.

His dad growled, waving her off. “I don’t work my ass off all day so you can throw away my money by wasting food.” The horn honked again and he glared at Ann, before turning back to Jacob. “Get your shit done and don’t even think about going anywhere tonight.”

His dad pushed him to the ground and stormed to the truck. He slammed the door behind him and ground it into gear. His barking ire turned on Ann, he whiplashed the vehicle into the street. The tires screamed as he roared off.

Jacob massaged his throat and climbed to his feet. Feeling weak, his legs trembled beneath him. He made his way to the backyard. Though he didn’t feel up to finishing the yard, he knew better than to defy his father more than once. He set to work, the lawn mower the only thing keeping him on his feet.

* * * *

Half an hour after sunset, the yard was done. Jacob stacked the last of the black trash bags onto the mountain of its companions, which he’d set on the side of the house. He then stumbled inside. Jacob breathed easy as he entered the trailer. The remnants of Ann’s perfume had diffused to a flowery whisper that smelled almost pleasant. He was grateful for small favors.

That didn’t last long. He looked over at the kitchen and rolled his eyes. The half-full milk carton still sat on the counter, despite his father’s comments to the contrary. The bowl and mess were still there, too. Beyond that, the stove was littered with a jumble of dirty pots. Dark stains were cooked in lines onto the sides.

Jacob groaned and made his way through the rest of his chores. His knuckles reminded him of the tiny scrapes at every opportunity. After the mess on the dining room table was cleared, he scrubbed the baked-on slop from the pots and rescued the melted bowl from the microwave. It had sat there all day. He retired it, with full honors, to the garbage can. He resisted the urge to salute.