My Demonic Ghost #3: Hunters and Creators (3 page)

Chapter Three:

I avoided catching the late train from that point on, and for the next month I didn’t bump into the crazy lady again. Whenever I did miss my train, I always caught the bus home, or if I was really desperate I hailed a taxi. It was only a ten dollar fare from my university to my house. But tonight I had forgotten to withdraw cash and it was sitting on 9:15. My last class went over time again, leaving me little to no choice of catching the train or the bus. I immediately ruled out the train option, the woman’s crackling laughter a constant alarm in my head every time I thought about it. So I raced to the bus stop, unfortunately just in time to see my bus taking off. I stumbled to a stop, inwardly cursing before checking my watch again. The next one wasn’t scheduled for another forty-five minutes. Who could be bothered waiting alone on a bench by the side of a road for forty-five minutes? The temperature was warmer than usual with no indication of rain.
Hell, I’ll just walk it. It’ll probably take me less time to walk it than if I waited around anyway.
 

              Adjusting my backpack over my shoulders so it sat comfortably in the middle of my back, I readied myself to take off. It was a quiet walk home, everybody already sheltered away into their homes for dinner and evening television. Nearly twenty minutes into my walk I had just started to cross through our local park entering the final stretch home and started to get a sickening feeling. It was darker than I had thought and the lights seemed to only sink further into shadows the further I continued. Nerves crawled under my skin, whispering horrible thoughts in my head that I couldn’t shake out. I quickened my pace.

              Not too far ahead, a group emerged from beyond the trees. My heart pounded harder till it suddenly stopped, jumping into my throat. They were rowdy, all men and roughly my age, but concealed behind bulky clothes and dark denim. I was just wearing slacks, the normal attire for a day at university. At least I wasn’t restricted if I wanted to run, or perhaps needed to run.
Oh god! Are they going to harass me?
My paranoia spiked once I came into their view and walked on the same footpath leading me in their direction. This park was designed as a bike track, so there were branches and routes splintering in different directions depending on how far you wanted to ride. At this point there were no alternative routes. Just straight ahead. They hushed as they noticed me and I quickly snapped my gaze down to my feet.

Their footsteps got closer, the gravel under their shoes crunched with every stride. I held my breath till we passed each other. My shoulders instinctively slumped in relief - all that worrying for nothing, when one their voices suddenly called out to me.

              “Hey, where are you walking to?”

I slowed only enough to answer over my shoulder. Maybe he was just being friendly, maybe it’s only me who’s thinking terrible thoughts. “Home.”

They stopped. All four of them. They just stood there watching. I quickly turned back around. This was a bad idea. This was a very bad idea. I shoved my hand into my pocket to fish out my phone.

“It’s not far,” I quickly added.
Maybe they won’t try anything if they think I’m nearly home.

“Why are you in such a rush?” Their footsteps started up again from behind me, heading in my direction.
Oh God! Oh no! This is it. They’re gonna chase me
. I quickened my pace, my mouth parched and my heart as heavy as a stone. 

I didn’t answer them. I started to run. I didn’t even look back to see if they chased me, I just put my head down and bolted.
Please don’t let this be like in my dreams, don’t let my legs fail me. Don’t let them be faster. Don’t let me trip and fall. Why didn’t I catch the bus? Why is no one here to help me? What a stupid idea, travelling alone in the dark!
  I kept going, even when I checked over my shoulder seeing nothing but a stretch of empty grass behind me.
Oh thank God! Thank God!
My hand on my heart, I was trying to swallow the sickening feeling that pressed up my throat. As I turned back I collided with another person stepping out from around the corner. Rebounding, my shoulders crashed into his, spun me around and I hit the pavement hard on my tailbone. The man stumbled backwards, more shocked than hurt.

“Oh! Sorry, I didn’t see you.” My backpack popped open, spewing up my books, keys and wallet. I was just sitting on the edge of the park now where the greenery met up with the suburban road, under the only street light that illuminated the entrance. Instead of helping me up, the man grabbed my ankle and pulled my leg towards him. His hands were rough like the surface of a brick. The sudden move surprised me so much I didn’t struggle until he climbed on top and held me down against the concrete. The waft of body odour and drugs wafted up from his clothes. Tensing, I brought my legs to my chest, trying to kick him off of me. He was heavy as he drove his knee downward and pressed his kneecap into the dip of my stomach, the pressure hurting me enough that I jerked underneath him.

“No! No, stop! Get off! Get off me!” A switch flicked on and I started to thrash, kick, and twist my body left and right - anything to break his hold. I tried to claw at his face, but his hands pinned my wrists above my head.  

              “Shut your dirty mouth.” His voice slithered into my ear. His breath was hot and stunk of infection. With his other hand he pressed something cold against my throat, forcing my chin upward. I froze as the tip of his knife pricked my neck. My thoughts were awash with unbelieving fear till something caused him to stop. An odd pressure squeezed between the space left between my body and his. Suddenly the thing kicked upwards, blasting the man off me with such power he lost his grip and was thrown two meters down the path. An icy chill rolled down my body, gently touching my skin before it lifted into the air. I scrambled backwards. The man groaned as he sat up, his glazed stare flickering between me and whatever thing attacked him, till he suddenly went rigid. His eyes shot open, his mouth popped into a gaping gasp and he shivered so violently his entire body shook. There was a slight shimmer of something in the space above him, something I couldn’t see except for a faint outline flickering within the shadows.

The man begged for mercy until he clutched at his heart and wheezed. The colour in his drunken pink cheeks was sucked out of him faster than I could comprehend, like a vacuum had switched to high and drained the life right out of him. Then he tipped over lifelessly. I didn’t stay. I didn’t dare. I snatched at my bag and ran. I ran the whole way home. Once I hit my familiar street I let my bottled cries go. Reaching my door, my hands fumbled with the keys, unable to control my breathing or the frantic beating of my heart. Tom from next door must have heard me, how could he not, and he peeked his head out from around the door.

“Rachael? Rachael what happened?” He rushed to me and took me into his arms. I couldn’t control myself, I just wailed. 

***

Once I was inside I slowly started to calm down. When I told Tom about what happened at the park, I made sure to leave out the detail about the supernatural interference. The voices chanting “Virgin Mary” were already singing in my head. I wanted to bury that part of me, not bring it back up. Tom called the police and once they arrived I told them what happened, again skipping the supernatural element. Being cops, I doubted they would believe me anyway. They only counted hard facts. They already had too many cases lately where people tried to blame ghostly entities for their crimes; they weren’t about to hear it from me as well. They asked me how I got away. I told them he collapsed and I escaped.

Not much later, Kate came home to find a police car parked in front of the house. Tom waved her into his place as she walked up the footpath, concern lining her round face. They stood in the back corner of the lounge conversing in whispers and looking at me as if I was the risen dead. After the commotion died down, all I wanted to do was curl up in my bed with my light on. Kate asked if I wanted to speak about it, but I grimly shook my head no. Nothing had happened and I was so thankful I walked away unharmed. The ‘what if’ question that circled my head was the thing that had my eyes open the entire night.

I skipped classes the next day and Kate offered to stay home with me. We ended up watching animated movies to help ease my mind. By noon I had finally calmed enough that I was ready to talk.

“That’s terrifying,” Kate whispered and touched her lips.

I explained everything to her, starting with missing my bus, running from the group of boys, the man climbing on top of me, and finally whimpering home with my tail between my legs. “I’m just happy it’s over.”

“I hope they caught the psycho.”  She rubbed at her arms, glancing fearfully at the front door.

“We’ll be okay,” I whispered faintly, “he can’t harm us.”

“How do you know that?”

“He died before anything could happen, from a heart attack I think. I watched it happen. It was…” I quickly paused and squeezed my lips.

              “It was what? What aren’t you telling me?”

“Please don’t make a huge deal about this okay, but the man didn’t just have a heart attack. Something picked him up off me and threw him down the pathway. Literally, there was enough space between him and the ground I could ride a bike through it. I had never seen anything act that aggressive before.”

She slapped her hand to her mouth. “It’s them isn’t it?”

                 “What?”

“The spirits! They must’ve saved you.”

                “And why would they want to save me?” I shook my head trying to force a laugh, but couldn’t.

   “I don’t know. Didn’t you say you’ve had dreams before, about something with green eyes?”

                “That thing is a demon; it wants me dead it doesn’t want to save me.”

                 “Well, if there’s a demon watching you, then there’s the possibility of an angel watching over you too,” she comforted and I shrugged at the idea.

Maybe she was right. Maybe the only thing stopping the green-eyed monster was, in fact, an angel watching over me. That was a comforting thought. But right now I was at that point where I didn’t want to speak about it anymore. I just wanted to forget it ever happened and continue on with my life. From now on though, I would rather risk the old woman on the train than walking through that park again.

Chapter Four:

The month of June unfolded in waves of heat. Kate didn’t beg for the place in Whitehaven anymore, having settled with camping out in the van she and Tom were taking down. It was roughly ten in the morning on a Saturday when she came knocking at my door, holding her cell phone open in her palm. I had just woken up and was making my bed.

                “Morning, hey you still interested in coming to lunch with us today?”

   “Michelle’s thing? Yeah I’ll come. Did you want me to bring anything?”

   “Nope, I have it all covered. Just bring your pretty self.”

It was Michelle’s birthday, one of Kate’s old high school friends and someone who I had met only a few times. She was a nice enough girl, pale skin to match auburn red hair. Strangely enough, not a single freckle on her though. Since the incident I had been reluctant to go back outside, and it sure didn’t help when I finally got the courage to tell my parents about the attack. They almost had me packing my bags and heading home. I was their only child and could understand their concern, but hiding me away wasn’t the answer. And with that mentality I went back to living my life.

It was just a casual thing that Michelle was planning, but even so thirty plus people rocked up to her place. Among them was someone from my previous school, Stephanie Miles, a girl I was friendly with but wouldn’t exactly call her a close friend. Apparently, she and Paul had hooked up after high school graduation, both of them now attending A.C. University together. They were two of the people who didn’t call me Virgin Mary; behind my back. They waved me over, obviously happy to see a familiar face among a room full of strangers.

“Hey guys, long time no see.” I greeted them with a hug and kiss on the cheek. Paul had put on a bit of weight since high school, which didn’t look bad on him it merely puffed out his cheeks and broadened his frame. Stephanie looked exactly the same, with her hair pinned to the side and plaited into a braid. They did that couple thing where they would exchange brief looks or a small smile before speaking.

                “How do you know Michelle?” Stephanie asked.

                I motioned over to my shoulder to where Kate mingled. “Kate’s my roommate. She and Michelle were friends in high school. How about you guys?”

                 “Well, Paul,” they exchanged looks again as Stephanie placed her hand on his chest, “is best friends with Michelle’s boyfriend. I’m just the tag along.”  

                “Talking about best friends” Paul leaned forward enthusiastically, “Guess who I heard was coming back to town?”

   I racked my brain for a name, any possible name I’d heard who Paul may be referring to, but couldn’t. Unable to wait, Paul blurted out, “James Rendell.” My eyes flicked up at the same time my heart squeezed. James Rendell. I hadn’t seen him for nearly three years. Suddenly my nerves flooded my mouth and my skin started to tingle, almost as if I could feel eyes on me from across the room. In all honesty, I hadn’t gotten over him. Even though I thought I had, my heart sped up and my mind reeled with emotions and memories at hearing his name. I felt sick with anxiety.

                “Oh… is he?” My face went taut despite my attempt at acting relaxed. “Did you hear when?”

                “He’s going to the festival down in Whitehaven.” Stephanie chimed in.

   Inwardly, I growled,
there’s that name again… Whitehaven
. “Oh, is he going to see that supernatural stuff?”

   “There’s a carnival that they hold every year too, it’s rumoured to be really impressive with fireworks and live bands. It’s better than anything around here at least.”

An internal war raged inside me. There was a chance of bumping into James again; that was good enough reason to go to Whitehaven. We didn’t end it on bad terms, so there was always a tiny flicker of hope that refused to die. Even after the party ended and I went home with Kate, my mind was still stuck. I guess it was my curiosity more than anything that had me leaning towards going. I didn’t say anything to Kate about it of course, one whiff of me softening and she’d attack like a school of piranhas in a feeding frenzy.

***

While I mulled the idea over in my head, Kate went out again to buy some late night groceries for their trip down to Whitehaven. Tom had already packed the car for the three night trip with mostly beers and blankets. I was left alone again, but I wasn’t complaining. Having the house to myself was a small blessing. Though I really enjoyed Kate’s company, sometimes it was nice to walk the halls without someone watching over my shoulder.

I had just made myself a dish of microwaved pasta before tending to the rubbish and taking it to the curb outside. The sun was setting, its orange gleam layered underneath a pink and darkening blue. Popping the rubbish bin open, I shoved the garbage inside. After I slammed it shut, I almost squealed when someone stepped up to me. I couldn’t believe it at first, but her distinct clothes and wrinkled face gave her away immediately; and I froze until the homeless woman reached out her arm.

   “You there,” she said in a grunt. I turned on my heel and headed straight back to the door when she called out pleadingly, “Please, wait. Please!”

   My hand clenched around the doorknob, but I didn’t twist it open and I looked over my shoulder. “What do you want? Why are you following me?” The woman glanced around as if she expected to be shadowed. When she failed to speak, I turned back towards the door. “Please, just leave me alone okay?”

   Suddenly she shouted, “The green-eyed monster is following you.”

                I whipped my head back around.
What? No, that can’t be right.
“What did you just say?”

   The woman bowed her head respectfully before she repeated herself. “The green-eyed monster is following you.” Pulling the door open, I stepped back inside. Before I had the chance to slam it closed the woman shuffled forward, face full of remorse. “Please wait, I know. I know because a red-eyed monster haunts me.”

My breath shuddered out of me in tiny trembles.
How on earth does this woman know about the monster?
I ignored the inner voice that barked at me to just slam the door. Instead, I opened it wider and cocked my head out. “You have a red-eyed monster?”

                 “Yes. Yes. They are here with us, all the time. Everywhere we go. They destroy everything they touch.” She motioned around herself, indicating the ground as if the monsters were standing within her reach. I glanced around too, expecting to see the shimmer in the darkness I had seen back at the park. Gulping loudly, I lowered my voice.

                 “You speak with them?”

                 “Yes,” she answered softly.

                 I licked my lips again. “What do they want?”

                “They want… they want… a saviour.”

   I pulled my head back, not expecting that answer. “A saviour from what?”

                “From their punishment. They are going to destroy it, destroy the light and rise from the depths of the darkest shadows. Then the world will fall and its beauty will fade. To rip God from His throne and take it for themselves. To let the darkness rise.” She covered her mouth to stop her chuckling. “They search for your green-eyed monster to carry them. But he does not listen; he does not hear because he’s too busy watching you.”

                 “But why?” I moved forward eagerly. “What does it want with me?”

                The woman inhaled. “It thinks of killing you.” My teeth clenched to bite back my whimper. In a sudden change the old woman started clapping and cheering, “Killing you. Killing you. Killing you. Killing you.”  

I shuffled backwards. Her chanting now looping around my head, staining my memory. I clasped my hands to my ears; I didn’t want to hear anymore.

                “Just go away!” I demanded before I slammed the door. Throwing the lock, I closed the shutters, getting as far away from the front parlour as I possibly could. I could still hear her chanting as I raced up the stairs. I waited till I was certain that the woman had gone before I left the room. I looked down into our front yard from my bedroom window and the streets were bare. It felt like someone was slowly tightening a noose around my neck. I wasn’t a child anymore, so why did I still feel so scared all the time? It was the madness of this situation; I was letting some deranged woman scare me.
But how did she know about my dreams? About the green-eyed monster?
Why couldn’t things just return to how they were two weeks ago, when my biggest problem was finding coins for the laundry mat?
I wanted answers, but I wanted to hear them from someone who didn’t dig through the rubbish for food.

                When I got downstairs, I found Kate’s laptop in its usual spot on the coffee table, set up in front of the couch. Lifting her screen, I clicked on the internet icon, opening her browser history in search of the Apocalypse website. Her search history was full of all these spiritual websites. It was hard to figure out which ones were the frauds. One thing they all had in common, though, was Whitehaven. All of them pointed to that one upcoming event. My fingertips drummed against the keyboard. Here I could kill two birds with one stone. If I went to Whitehaven, I could maybe find some answers about the demons and also have a chance at bumping into James. The Whitehaven carnival did sound tempting too. 

                “Okay,” I exhaled before digging my mobile out of my pocket. I dialled my home number and waited for an answer.

                 “Hello?”

                “Hey… mum?” I breathed into the phone as my mum’s shrill voice answered back.

   “Rachael? Hi honey, how is everything? It’s so nice to hear from you. How have you been? We haven’t heard from you since your incident in the park.”

   “I’m great, thanks, Mum. I’m sorry I haven’t called, you know how things can get.”

                “I know, but I would like to know that you’re okay at least. Just a simple text would be fine...”

   “Okay, I’ll try. Um, hey, mum, is dad there?”

   With a little disappointment in her voice, Mum said, “Oh. You’re after your father. Sure, I’ll just go get him…. GEORGE! GEORGE RACH IS ON THE PHONE.” I pulled the earpiece away at my mother’s shriek. They exchanged some mumbled words before the phone was passed onto my father.

“Rachael…” He spoke into the receiver in a gentle breath. I don’t know why it is, but hearing my father’s voice always seems to surprise me. I find myself relaxing a bit more, as if I didn’t expect him to be there but pleasantly surprised that he is.

“Hey dad.”

“Rachael, is everything alright?”

“Yes dad, why does something have to be wrong for me to call?” I laughed as he chuckled in reply.

“Fathers never stop worrying. What’s on your mind kiddo?” 

“Umm… it’s about the Whitehaven place…” I stood up and started to pace, “I was wondering if I could borrow it for the long weekend?”

“The Whitehaven place… but why?” 

“Well, the Whitehaven Carnival is happening this weekend and my friends and I wanted to go. All the hotels are booked up so we have no place to stay. We were going to just sleep in the car but I thought maybe I could use the house instead considering its vacant?”

I held my breath as dad considered it. “I dunno Rach…”

“It’s either that or we sleep in the car parked next to the road…” I persuaded him at the exact moment Kate got home and opened the front door. She stepped in with the plastic shopping bags around her wrists rustling, and then once noticing I was on the phone quickly quieted her movements. She smiled and raised her eyebrows questionably at me.

“Hey, who you talking to?” She whispered. I moved the mouthpiece away from my face and covered it with my hand.

“My dad. About the Whitehaven place.” I then put my finger to my lips to shush her before she started squealing joyfully. She dropped the bags by the entrance and scooted over towards me, trying to press her ear against the other side of my ear to eavesdrop.

“Well, you know how I feel about that place. But I guess you can use it…”

Kate then suddenly cheered, “Yay! Thank you Mr Hastings! Thank you.” I batted her away playfully as she bounced up onto her feet, already texting Tom the news.

“What? Who was that?” Dad appeared startled.

“Just Kate. Thanks dad, I’ll be around this week to pick up the keys.”

“Okay Rachael, just make sure you’re careful. And call me when you arrive. Don’t do anything stupid. And no drinking. And definitely no boys.”

“Now you’re sounding like mum.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll see you soon then, how about Thursday night for dinner? Call anytime.”

“Kay, thanks dad. I’ll see you then.” I hung up then went to help Kate with the groceries.

“What changed your mind?” She bounced on the tip of her toes with excitement.

“Well, I was thinking that a vacation from this place may be a good idea after all…” My betraying smile quickly pulled at my face, revealing my second agenda.

“And?” She pressured with a knock of her elbow.

I flashed my teeth in my grin, blushing already, “And… I heard James Rendell is going to be there.”