Dead Village Page 14

  The large figure hissed even louder than before, as it stared at the empty prescription bottles scattered across the bedroom floor.

  Greta didn’t even feel the creature put its hands on her head and violently twist, breaking her neck instantly.

  Now she had committed no sin. Something else had taken her life. Now her soul could rest in peace.

  The large hooded figure moved away from the urine soaked bed and wailed.

  Next door, old Mrs Dempsey jumped up from her seat and blessed herself.

  “Mother of God,” she whispered as the high pitched wailing from next door filled the room.

  She moved back, away from the wall, but she could hear the commotion, as in Greta’s house picture frames cracked, shattering glass down to the floor. A table lamp shook violently and all around the house the light bulbs started to pop one by one, as downstairs, the unused television exploded into a thousand pieces, tearing through the furniture and ripping the wallpaper to shreds.

  Knives and forks burst from drawers and slammed into the ceiling, as plates crashed from the cupboards. Outside the roar of thunder drowned out any noise coming from inside the house.

  Small dust clouds swirled around the rooms and hallway, buzzing like a thousand bees. They tore picture frames from the walls, smashing the glass and obliterating the smiling faces forever from their pose.

  An old framed photograph, taken of them during happier times together, a long time ago, exploded into fragments.

  Carpet that had been nailed down so many years ago moved like a wave down the stairway, as it tore through the nails like butter.

  The dust clouds collided into each other, before dissipating down to the worn out floor below.

  Then there was silence.

  Even the oncoming thunderstorm had somehow become silent, and the heavy, once powerful winds were now just a light breeze.

  No one noticed as the creature moved across the roof of the house and hovered toward the forest, back where it had come from.

  It moved slowly at first, as though fighting with some unexplainable bond that held it there at the house. Then it moved faster, much faster.

  The other large hooded figure with the little bears head waited, just behind the first batch of trees, and soon the two creatures moved off together, in a single file, deeper, toward the heart of the dark forest. Nothing stirred, as they quickly dissolved into the darkness.

  Greta lay silent and still, on the bed, a smile etched on her cold dead face.

  Next door, old Mrs Dempsey almost fell into her chair, mouth open.

  * * * * *

  Somewhere in the distant realms of space, the four horsemen stood side by side, moving slowly across the heavens, until one horse, the sickly pale horse, reared, turned away, and rode off.

  Death was on the move.

  Across in the heart of the forest, the little bears head twisted into a grimace, a grimace of the purist evil.

  It had waited a long time for this, and it would have its revenge.

  Now it could wait some more. Wait for the horseman of death to come.

  “Stazivore, he comes,” Mr Cliff shouted across the forest. “He comes.”

  CHAPTER 14

  Samuel Blake was having some real problems. He had been kicked out of the small terrace house he shared with his drunken girlfriend, Mariah Connelly, and the only possessions he had were his camera and the clothes on his back.

  He had been a freelance journalist in England for fifteen years before he met Mariah, and he had covered some interesting stories in that time. That though, was before he moved to Ireland, and that was before he started overindulging in drink and drugs. Now things had dried up for him, and now he was almost penniless.

  He still had a few minor connections though, and one of these people had informed him about the rumours of the so called beast of the forest. His contact had heard about a demon killer lurking in the forest of Cappawhite. The army and police were involved in a search of the forest, and it seemed legit, his source had told him.

  Now he would somehow sneak passed them and go into the forest, armed with his camera. He had been offered some real money over the last couple of years for his equipment, but he had refused to part with it. This had caused a few major rows with his girlfriend, because the seven hundred euros he had been offered for it would have kept them up in drink for some time to come, she felt. Even though it was only a fraction of what the unit was actually worth.

  Sam had argued that if he could get back to what he did best, things would work out for them. Why, if he could manage to get a picture of this creature, then he would be set up, maybe for life. Who knows how much someone would pay for a few snaps of something evil like that, he thought. Mariah wouldn’t listen though, and simply asked him to leave, and not in any polite manner. Her cruelty and coldness toward him was a new, even for her.

  Now he would prove her wrong. He was aware of the dangers involved, but without money and a roof over his head, things would only get worse for him. In any event, he was sure he could catch the creature on camera, (if one existed that is), and from way off in the distance with his powerful Minolta 28-70 zoom lens. He would take no chances pussy-footing around either, trying to take multi-shots at different angles. Click click, and straight out of there, he thought.

  His source had also told him of the location of where the demon was supposed to have been seen, so that would be the area he would check out first. He had found it easy to enter the forest unseen, by climbing over a small wall behind the old ruined abbey. He felt apprehension at the thought of it, but he worked to clear it from his mind. If only he had a drink, he felt. That would make things a lot easier for him.

  He had walked for about thirty minutes when he spotted some people in the distance, through the trees. He hid down and snapped a few shots toward their direction. At first he couldn’t tell if they were military or civilian.

  The question remained though, why were they here?

  Was there really a demon creature? The figures came closer, and immediately he could see they were policemen. He would have loved to have taken some clear shots of them, but he knew he would have been seen, or they would have heard the whirring of the camera motor. Maybe he would be shot. No, he just couldn’t take the chance.

  A few minutes passed and they moved off, and he suddenly felt very alone.

  The sky was beginning to turn a dull and grey as the sun moved slowly down on the horizon. It would be dark soon, and Sam was already regretting coming out here. Earning money for a photograph was one thing, but losing your life for it was another. It would certainly be dark before he could leave the forest, he now realised. Suddenly the branches of a tree started to shake violently, even though there was no wind.

  “I’m getting out of here,” Sam muttered, as he quickly moved off. He had been walking for about ten minutes, when he knew he was lost.

  Rain started to touch down on his skin, lightly at first. All around him, pitter-pattering on the leaves, but becoming harder by the minute, until it was showering down. A flash of lightning and the place lit up.

  An old mine entrance loomed in the distance about fifty yards ahead, and he broke into a trot as he made his way toward it. At least it would provide some shelter.

  When he reached the mine entrance an old sign hung slanted from a rusted screw, and he had to turn his head sideways to read the faded writing. ‘Danger, Do not enter, mine unsafe,’ it read. It was clear that the mine was once blocked up, but the wood had mostly rotted and fell away, leaving the entrance open. Only two side pieces and a cross beam seemed to hold tight to the edges.

  On the ground lay a very large piece of wood that had some faded writing, and two broken and missing pieces at the top. The writing was religious, he believed.

  Sam stared for a minute, and then he knew. This was a large broken cross that lay on the ground. Now he was puzzled. Why would a holy cross be left here? Sam thought.

  Another large lightning bolt lit up
the sky again, and Sam became even more frightened and confused. The loudest roar of thunder he had ever heard crashed down from the heavens as the rain came down in a blinding torrent.

  He stepped inside the mine entrance and glared out. Slowly he sat down on a large piece of wood and removed his camera bag from his shoulder.

  He watched as the rain bounced up from the grass and mud outside and he scanned around in all directions. The last time he had witnessed rain like this was when he had been on an assignment to Palawan in the Philippines. He and two friends had been out on a fishing exercise on the South China Sea, when suddenly the heavens opened. He had never experienced such a downpour before. He remembered how the open boat had filled quickly with water, and they had to bail for their lives. The monsoon he had witnessed back then stayed with him. But this, this was on a par, and on that he had no doubts.

  * * * * *

  Without warning, the rain suddenly stopped and everything became silent again. Now he would get the hell out of here. If he kept going in one direction, he would come to the end of the forest, somewhere, he felt. He would follow the moon, he quickly decided. He could see it quite clearly as the clouds above dissipated, and darkness engulfed the forest. As he stood up, he adjusted his camera bag, then he heard something from inside the dark mine, a voice.

  He could feel his pulse rate increase rapidly. Who in Gods name, he thought, would be inside this mine in the dark?

  The sound repeated itself. He was unclear if it was a word he had heard, or maybe it was a growl. Maybe it was a mad dog, or maybe a bear, he thought.

  “Don’t be so stupid,” he whispered. “There are no fucking bears in Ireland.”

  He pulled the camera from the bag, and prepared it.

  He looked into the dark mine. From somewhere inside, he could hear something.

  A loud whooshing sort of sound came from somewhere deep, and he almost tripped as he staggered back, away from the entrance. The whooshing became louder and louder, until it almost sounded like a jet engine. When the figure burst passed him, he almost collapsed with fright, but he clicked the camera into action, without even seeing what he was aiming at.

  The large hooded creature soared high into the moonlit sky, its cape blowing in the wind behind it, but then it quickly turned and started back toward him.

  He didn’t even notice that he was praying out loud as the demon hovered toward him, or that he had dropped the camera.

  Sam turned rather clumsily, but hurried back inside the mine, stumbling and falling as he went. It was pitch dark but he kept going. The mine frightened him, but it was his only chance.

  Outside, the creature paused for a moment, head bowed, as though in prayer. Then it hissed loudly, before slowly re-entering the mine.

  It picked up the discarded camera and looked closely at it. It swung around and flung the camera far off into the distant trees, and moved back into the mine.

  Sam had reached a dead end, so he hunched down into a corner. Something moved to his left, and now he knew there was more than one.

  He was breathing in spasms now, and he could feel the familiar pains shoot down his arm. The doctors had told him how serious his heart condition was, but like always, he had ignored their advice and continued life as though he was the healthiest man on the planet.

  Now he was regretting the drinking, smoking, and late nights. He had left his heart spray medication at home, and he cursed inwardly. Ten to fifteen minutes had passed, he reckoned. They must have gone away, he thought, as he grunted with pain. He waited for another five minutes, and stood up, chest pounding, and removed his lighter from his pocket. He didn’t have the time to care that his arm was getting tighter and tighter.

  He would get out of there and run like he’d never run before if he got the chance.

  He would just have to gamble that his heart would hold out. He flicked the lighter and was surprised at how clearly the place lit up. Old wooden beams lined the edges and ceiling, and as he looked around he could see that this mine was deep.

  He stared down into the darkness for a moment, before quickly turning. The creatures had gone, and he could see out from the entrance clearly now. He stumbled on, camera forgotten, and staggered outside. Then he ran. Sam soon found himself in a dense part of the forest, but he struggled on. The familiar numbing pain that ran down his arm had now travelled to his chest and he gasped for breath as he felt the familiar tightness. He leaned against a tree and cursed his luck. Sam was sure if he stayed still and calmed down it would pass.

  He greedily gulped in deep breaths, and tried not to think of what he had seen at the mine. He was much too hyped up though, and try as he might, the thought of it would not leave him. The monsters of Cappawhite forest were real, and he had witnessed this. He knew that without proof though, Mariah would never believe him, but he didn’t care anymore. He just wanted to live.

  He would just have to try and work it out with Mariah somehow.

  He could send someone for the camera, and then sell it if it wasn’t too badly damaged. For now though, he had more important issues at hand.

  He glanced around, but could see nothing. He was sure they were gone, but it was still some walking distance to the edge of the forest, and now the moon had disappeared behind a dark cloud. Again he was unsure as to which direction he should now go.

  The last thing he wanted was to move off and maybe walk into them somewhere, lurking in the darkness, waiting.

  As he was about to stand straight, something firm gripped the back of his coat and flung him through the air.

  He tore through branches, before roughly hitting the ground some twenty five feet below. His heart stopped, and as he died, he didn’t feel the creature lunge at him and rip his body apart.

  CHAPTER 15

  Dan had tried hard to find Griff, but Griff had been nowhere to be found. This he felt was a major blow to them. He would have to visit Ireland without him, but he truly had a faith in Thomas Lapahie. He couldn’t explain why, but somehow he believed the big Indian would not let him down.

  When they boarded the aircraft, Dan could see that Thomas was uneasy.

  “So you don’t like flying then, Thomas?” Dan asked as his large friend fiddled clumsily with his seat belt.

  Up until this point, Thomas had worn his hair tied in a pony tail. But he released the band and his thick jet black hair fell down across his shoulders.

  “Um, I will talk about it with you later,” Thomas replied.

  Thomas chanted and moved his hands in a funny way, and Dan felt embarrassed as some of the other passengers looked around. Then Thomas laughed loudly.

  “I have always wondered what it would be like to fly and be free like the eagle,” he added.

  “Oh, I see,” Dan replied. “Well, after a few hours of turbulence you may change your mind about that choice.”

  Dan couldn’t have been more wrong though. Thomas loved his first flight, and all that it entailed, and when the plane came in to land at Ireland, he seemed disappointed that the ride was over.

  As they collected their luggage and were about to leave the airport, a customs officer pulled Thomas to one side.

  “What’s in the long case sir?”

  “It is an old relic from my people,” Thomas answered.

  “Please open it sir,” the man ordered.

  “No! You cannot be allowed to touch it; it is sacred and has been sealed with good medicine.”

  “Well sir, I don’t care if it’s been sealed with emeralds and rubies. I’m asking you to please open the case.”

  Dan opened his wallet, revealing a one hundred dollar bill, and flashed it at the man, but forgetting he was no longer in the States.

  “Can’t we work this out officer?”

  “So you’re Americans are you?”

  Dan nodded and smiled. “Um, yeah, we are,” he answered, as he pulled out some other large Euro notes.

  “What do you intend doing with that money sir?” The officer asked.


  “Um, in America we normally can work this out, officer, you know?” Dan whispered.

  “Well you’re not in America now my boys, but you are in deep trouble.”

  The man lifted the radio to his mouth and was about to call someone, when Thomas gripped his arm firmly, and stared into his face.

  Dan stepped back. He had been caught trying to bribe an official, and he was sure that pretty soon their asses would be flying back to America, minus every cent they had. Maybe they would be arrested and placed in a cell.

  He moved forward to speak, to apologise, to do something to rectify the mess he had caused, but Thomas pushed him roughly away.

  Something wasn’t right here, Dan knew. The customs officer was standing unmoving, almost statue like.

  Why the man looks like a damn zombie, Dan thought.

  Suddenly another officer approached, and Thomas slowly released his grip.

  “Are you okay there Riley? You look sort of pale.”

  The man turned to his colleague, and Dan closed his eyes.

  “I’m fine Damien. I’m just welcoming these good people into our humble country.”

  Dan looked at Thomas, but the eye contact told him to be quiet, as the man turned to them, smiling.

  “Well now my friends, have a great visit,” the man said as he shook hands with them.

  “We will, thank you,” Dan stated, and quickly moved on out with Thomas and the bags in tow.

  “I’m not even going to ask what you did back there, or how you did it,” Dan said.

  Thomas smiled awkwardly, and pulled at Dan’s arm as they collected the vehicle.

  “We must move very quickly, because soon he will remember what happened,” Thomas stated.

  In five minutes they were almost speeding from the airport.

  “You hypnotised the guy back there, right?”

  “I thought you didn’t want to know.”

  “Yeah, I do,” Dan answered.

  “Magic!”