Inanimate

by Deryck Jason

  As if running out of life, each light powered down, one by one all around him. In a matter of moments, every light was out down here except the one above his head. If Tony could have seen a bird’s eye view of his surroundings, he would have thought he was under a spotlight. As all around him was being painted in darkness, Tony felt marked. He put down his book and his heart raced.

  “Sheriff?”

  Nothing but silence responded to him. He was about to call out again when he heard the laughter. A child-friendly giggle sent his heart into his throat. Since Tony had only seen Dog so far, he did not know what was laughing but he knew it was not going to be good.

  “Peek-a-boo I see you! Hahahaha! Peek-a-boo I see you! Hahahaha! Peek-a-boo I see you! Hahahaha!”

  Although the phrases were playful, there was something scratchy in the voice, something dangerous. The laugh was not that of a playful being, it was twisted, manic; Tony imagined this was how a mad person would laugh. Slowly, he approached the bars. As he squinted he could make out colorful clothing in the darkness. Sitting on the ground opposite him, the colorful chuckler had his back turned to Tony and was playing with something but there was no way for Tony to know what that was. Half-bathed in darkness, the intruder showed no interest in Tony; instead it sat, playing with whatever it had in its hands. Quietly, Tony pushed up on his tiptoes to peer over the shoulder of the figure sitting ahead. Only a hint of light illuminated the object in Basket’s hands but that was more than enough for Tony. His eyes widened in horror as he saw a severed head being used as a plaything and although he didn’t recognize Kyle, (Amanda’s boyfriend) he wasn’t any less terrified. Basket was playing peek-a-boo with it as if he were playing with a child. Suddenly Basket’s head turned around completely to face the terrified Tony.

  “Peek-a-boo! I see you!”

  The clown’s body swiveled round to match the angle of its head and it stood up. Aggressively it threw Kyle’s head at the bars and used the distraction to disappear into the darkness.

  Tony was white, he felt sick and confused. His breath quickened as he tried to call out for help. Before yelling, his eyes darted down to the head, rolling just outside the bars, made up to resemble a clown’s features.

  “Sheriff!”

  “Sheriff!”

  Tony cries were not manly, as his size may have suggested. There was fear in them, raw primal fear.

  “Sheriff can’t hear you down here. It’s just you and me now, and I promise I’ll put up a better fight than Andy.”

  The giggling, mocking voice could not evoke a reply in Tony. Instead it provoked more yelling, and this time it was more desperate.

  “Sheriff!”

  Panic stole his breath and, forcing him to pace in his cage, thinking of a way to save himself. Pulling back to the backpack he brought with him he pulled out a flashlight. Tony may have been a bully but he was very good at preparing himself for situations.

  The beam shining into the darkness was like a hot knife slicing through butter.

  “Looks like you won’t be needing this!”

  The maniacal voice accompanied the downing of the last light above Tony’s head.

  “Help!”

  Tony cried out but the sound only echoed in the dark basement, giving him the morbid impression the sound was unable to escape to reach helps ears. The light beam shakily moved from to side, searching for the creature. Something ran past giggling but Tony missed couldn’t focus the beam on it. And again, and again he missed it. Slowly he searched the room, knowing he was fairly safe behind the bars. While waving the beam in large swathes, he stopped when he came across a large pair of shoes just outside the bars. Trembling, he moved the beam upwards. The light dragged its way up the colorful figure, until it stopped at its face. Drooling teeth surrounded by make-up, lightly covering what looked like self-inflicted scars was too much for Tony. Tears streamed down his face but he could not look away at the leering clown. Basket stared right back at him, its eyes flickering like bar code scanners. The clowns head shook and his mouth opened wide. With a throaty shriek he lunged wildly at the bars, its eyes veiny with a lust for blood. Circular white teeth gnashed furiously as all his strength was being used to shake the cell to its core. Shaking its body furiously Basket yelled out at the cowering Tony.

  “Come on out, I just want to play!”

  “Fuck off!”

  Tony yelled desperately but it made no difference, Basket continued shaking crazily. Under continuous strain, the old bars started to wiggle in the concrete, pushing Tony to more desperate action.

  “I just want to have some fun with you!”

  Basket was too busy laughing to hear Tony’s reply.

  “Oh, you want to have fun do you?”

  Desperately, the caged bully mustered up whatever scraps of confidence he had in him. Pulling a pistol from his belt he aimed it straight at the clown.

  “Uh-oh” came Basket’s deliberately comical response as he dropped to the ground, narrowly missing Tony’s slug. While holding the flashlight in his other hand, Tony fired round after round at the clown who jumped back and forward, flipping and somersaulting over the bullets, dodging each one until the clip was empty. After a few clicks, Basket stopped in the beam of Tony’s shaky flashlight.

  “That was a terrible idea.”

  Baskets voice sounded more human this time. Its face melted into an expression of pure hatred. Now, snarling more than laughing, Basket pounced onto the bars and started shaking again. In his haste, Tony dropped the clip onto the dark floor. He fumbled to find it desperately as he was running out of time. Basket’s strength was obvious when one of the old bars came right out the ground with a lump of concrete still attached. But he did not relent; he continued his assault on the steel, about to wrench off another one.

  Basket pulled and pulled at the steel as Tony desperately tried to put the clip into the gun. The task would have been easier for Tony had he not been shaking so much. The clown managed to pull one bar aside just as Tony loaded the clip. Grinning, Tony aimed the gun, square at Basket’s head.

  “Laugh at this!”

  Tony did not have time to savor his quip as Basket had almost squeezed through the bars. Tony pulled the trigger.

  Click. Click click click. Tony had reloaded the gun with the wrong clip.

  “Fuck!”

  Basket had almost squeezed through the bars when the first shot hit him. The clown didn’t notice a second flashlight aimed at him and neither did Tony. Oates had shot him from against the far wall and now Murdoch was taking aim too. The Sheriff’s party were not far away when they heard the shots. Quickly, they had moved along the corridor to investigate. Another four bullets hit, knocking Basket off the bars to the floor. The clown scuttled off into the dark at the back of the cell area as the deafening noise resounded in the small basement.

  Oates and Murdoch kept their guns trained on the darkness.

  “Tony?” Oates called.

  “Yeah?”

  “You alright in there?”

  “You mean apart from shitting myself? Yeah I’m peachy!”

  Oates took that as a yes and moved round towards the light switch. He ordered Matthew to hit the switch as he and Murdoch kept their guns at the ready. Matthew obliged then moved back towards the corridor for safety. Oates knew the way the lights turned on. They were wired in an odd way that meant the furthest light turned on first. They all lit up one by one; moving uniformly closer to the switch. Like a train speeding out of a tunnel, Basket ran out of the darkness and whipped Kyle’s head at Oates, striking the old man off balance and knocking him off his feet. Still running, Basket grabbed the head while dodging bullets from Tony and Murdoch and whipped it at the detective this time, delivering the same effect. Tony continued firing, hitting nothing as Basket grabbed the head by the hair and continued his escape, with only one last obstacle to get through. Matthew had the gun fixed on the clown but didn’t fire. He was too frightened to even pull the trigger.

  “Sh
oot it!”

  Tony yelled but it did nothing. Basket simply pounced on Matthew, taking the coward straight to the ground. The clown bared its teeth and prepared to bite when a shot from Oates discouraged it. Basket bounded and bounced down the corridor, dodging bullets as he disappeared out of sight.

  Oates threw his keys to Murdoch to get Tony out of the cell.

  “So I can assume they found a way in?”

  Oates’ question was rhetorical and everybody knew it. Straight away he got on the radio.

  “Lynch, Jacobs, this is Oates. Be advised, the dolls have found a way in. Repeat. We are no longer secure.”

  Jacobs looked at MacNamee and then to Anne.

  “Copy” he said into the radio.

  Lynch, on the roof with Brian leaned into his radio.

  “Copy that Sheriff” he said quietly.

  The roof was dark because it sat above the streetlights. Natural moonlight drifted down on top of them, giving the metal air conditioning units an eerie shine. Brian stayed beside the door as Lynch moved purposefully around the roof, searching for signs that a little girl was hiding here.

  The moonlight created shadows all over the room, giving Lynch more reason to be edgy; he was trying to be vigilant but visibility was low.

  “Jessica?”

  Lynch’s voice was quiet, but he knew the girl would hear it if she was up here. Brian ambled around the door area; he didn’t want to find anything. He merely wanted to keep himself alive.

  The air was still, the night quiet. Lynch systematically checked the inside of the air vents for signs of Jessica but so far he had found nothing. Betsy was watching him. Her dark apparel blended well with the shadows. Only her porcelain face would be visible but she kept herself firmly out of the moonlight. Brian started to get nervous alone so he moved a few feet forward spotting Lynch and instantly relaxing. The deputy thought for a moment, he knew there was only one place left to search as he had checked everywhere else.

  “The fire escape.”

  The old fire escape had a flat metal plateau half way down the building and Lynch figured that this was as good a place as any to hide. Unfortunately for him, Betsy also knew about this area. She had spotted it earlier on and suspected Lynch would check it at one point. As such, she had decided to hide in a spot very close to the ladder, which led to the level area. Lynch carefully moved round to the ladder, taking care to watch his step in the darkness. Lynch wished he had taken the flashlight off of Graham before he came up to the roof but there was no point going back now. He looked over his shoulder to make sure no-one was around; after all, he was now well aware that Betsy was not the only doll in the building. From the shadows Betsy watched, remaining still, knowing she would not be spotted in her corner.

  Cautiously, Lynch peered over the edge of the building but he could not get a good view of the plateau. He knew he had to check it thoroughly, he wanted to find Jessica so badly, and he loathed the fact that a child was caught up in all this. Moving closer to the edge, he propped one foot on a slight incline so he could see right down onto the steel area. This sacrificing of footing was all Betsy needed. Quickly, she ran from her hiding spot. Coursing through the night air she pushed him hard before he even had time to turn around. With a thud, Deputy Lynch’s head collided with the edge of the steel platform on his way to the tarmac below. Standing on the ledge, Betsy looked down at the crumpled heap of a person to confirm her kill before disappearing back into the shadows.

  CHAPTER 42

  A dull sound caused Brian to turn towards the car park.

  “Deputy Lynch?”

  Brian whispered harshly, hoping only Lynch would hear him. When no response came he decided he had better move away from his relative safety to investigate.

  “Lynch?”

  Brian repeated his call but still there was no response. As he moved round the roof he started to feel conscious that he was being watched, and not by Lynch. The night felt like it had a mind of its own.

  “Deputy Lynch!”

  Brian yelled this time and waited. His heart raced, his hands trembled as he tried to hold his gun tight. No one was answering; it was obvious Lynch was not here anymore. Terrified, he walked to the last place he saw the deputy. It was then he spotted the ladders. Logic told him that if Lynch was not on the roof then he had to have used the ladders to get down because he had been standing next to the only door. Brian scanned the area with his gun. He was shaking badly now. He knew Lynch would not have left him there alone. He had to look. He didn’t want to but he had to, he had to be sure of what he suspected after he heard the thud. Carefully, Brian backed up towards the ledge, reasoning that he had more chance of being attacked from the front rather than behind. Once his body pressed up against concrete he stopped, took a breath and turned his head to look for Lynch. Brian recoiled immediately. Lynch was not hidden; his corpse was right there on the parking lot tarmac for everyone to see. Brian swallowed hard and started to move towards the door. Sure, he was upset about Lynch but right now he had to focus on getting off the roof in one piece.

  “Happy thoughts, happy thoughts, happy thoughts.”

  Brian’s loud rambling was a desperate attempt to help him to focus. He moved quickly to the door, paying little attention to his surroundings. The noise of something moving down the air vents didn’t even shake him from his focus as he moved towards the door.

  “Happy thoughts, happy thoughts, happy thoughts.”

  Now he was through the door and moving down the stairs to the main room.

  “Happy thoughts, happy thoughts, happy…”

  Brian opened the door and what he saw killed the words in his mouth.

  Detective Graham was lying on his stomach, two small dummies were holding up his head by the ears and Dummy was repeatedly kicking him in his already brutalized face. One after another the kicks came, causing no pain to already dead detective. Brian froze against the wall, choking on his own breath. They hadn’t seen him, so it would have been dangerous to use his weapon. He was outnumbered. Quietly, he crab walked along the wall, trying not to look at the horrific sight in front of him. He was making good speed when he decided to look back at the three dummies. He froze once more as one of the smaller dummies was staring right at him. Strangely though, it was just watching him, it did not alert the others. Brian put this down to dumb luck and kept moving. Moving along still he was starting to feel like he would escape when out of the corner of his eye he saw Jessica sitting on the floor, drawing on a sheet of paper. In all the mayhem, Brian had forgotten all about her. Fear gripped hard, he was so close to escaping. Going to get Jessica would mean moving back towards the dummies and potential death. Closing his eyes, he started to move towards the exit again, but after a few feet he stopped. He couldn’t leave; he couldn’t live with himself if he left her to die. Cursing his compassionate side he pushed himself off the wall and grabbed Jessica firmly.

  Brian received a reaction he never expected from saving a child. Jessica screamed out loud, cutting through the air like a siren. Suddenly the dummies stopped moving, Graham’s face fell to the floor and Brian’s heart felt like it was about to stop. The only noise he could hear was an odd chewing sound coming from a few desks away. Brian turned to see Basket innocently munching on Kyle’s severed head as if it was a watermelon. Basket looked genuinely surprised to see Brian standing in front of him, holding Jessica. Ominously, the Dummies all turned to face Brian as Basket simply watched the standoff. Another shriek from Jessica was enough to send Brian running towards the exit with the little girl in tow. Brian never looked back; if he had he would have seen that nothing was chasing them. Dummy simply watched them go, and Basket just sniggered in between bites.

  The door to the main room burst open as Brian forced his way through

  “What the hell’s going on?”

  Brian didn’t answer Jacobs; he ran up to the others and dropped Jessica on the ground. Anne instinctively took the little girl into her clutch as Jacobs continued ques
tioning Brian.

  “Where are the others?”

  Brian’s eyes were too traumatized to release tears.

  “They’re dead.”

  “What?” MacNamee asked standing up.

  The words hit Jacobs hard. He had asked Graham to come along personally and now he was dead. Brian’s words of explanation could do little for his mood now.

  “The dolls got them both; they’ve all found a way in.”

  “We know, Oates told us as well” chimed MacNamee.

  “But how could they get in?” Anne asked “I mean surely we would have heard them.”

  A voice from behind startled them, proving how easy it was to sneak up on them.

  “We don’t know how they got in, but Brian’s right, they’re all here.” Oates’ voice boomed.

  “Damn right he’s right!” Tony interrupted “Fucking clown nearly killed me!”

  “No more than you deserve” mumbled Anne.

  “Where’s Deputy Lynch?”

  Oates’ question answered itself in evoking silence from those who already knew the answer. Just to clarify, Brian simply shook his head. Oates stood up straight.

  “Dorrian…”

  Oates spoke to himself quietly.

  “So what now?” Matthew asked gently.

  “We go after them.” Jacobs answered militantly; still coming to terms with Graham’s loss.