by Evan Bond
Now, she found herself in the clearing where Tara had found the knife. It almost seemed poetic, being back where everything had started for her and her daughter. But there was no time to think about it. Instead, she found a fallen tree on the outskirts of the clearing and ducked behind it. It was impossible to tell in the darkness if she was completely concealed or not. The ultimate test would soon be upon her.
Less than thirty seconds later, the small group entered the clearing and walked slowly. Sasha could hear their feet crunch on the ground but did not dare peek over the log. It was nearly impossible to tell which direction they were headed. They seemed to be headed in every direction simultaneously.
"This is ridiculous." One of the female voices said. Before Sasha could rejoice about someone coming to their senses, she said, "She could be anywhere out here. How are we supposed to find her?"
"We don't have to find her, necessarily. If she's in here we might scare her out and directly into another patrol. Either way, she's going to get caught."
"Good point."
Sasha realized they were right. She couldn't just sit in this hiding spot the rest of the night. It would be too risky. Not to mention, her daughter was out there without her. Sheriff Harrison might have been with her but Tara needed her mother. A question now lingered in her mind, though. What if she did get moving and ran into another mob? What would she do? How would she defend herself? She had no weapons. She couldn't fight. What was she to do? A mob of four men would easily overpower her. Perhaps they would even outrun her. It began to make her wonder if running was pointless. Was she only delaying the inevitable? Maybe she was doomed to be caught by these insane people no matter what.
No, she couldn't believe that. She refused. There was a way out of this, there had to be. She had been through too much to let it all end in this ass backwards town full of paranoid lunatics. She had overpowered her abusive husband. If she could make it through that, she would survive this. However, the thought did not bring her comfort. Desperately, she tried to convince herself she would walk away from this but something deep inside her said this was how it all ended.
The little voice in her head which only pointed out the misery in life was back. It was a hard thing to fight under normal circumstances but now it was nearly impossible. Experts always talked about the flight or fight response in the human brain but they never seemed to mention how it worked in those who suffered from depression. Somehow, she had a feeling it affected her brain negatively.
The group continued through the clearing until Sasha could no longer hear their footfalls. Giving it two more minutes, counting each second out, she finally stood up from her hiding place. Her next move had to be into town. Without her cell phone, there was no calling for help. Her best bet would be to find an empty home, break-in, and use their phone. Of course, she didn't have Harrison's cell phone number but she hoped calling the police would do the trick. It was her only hope of getting her daughter back and getting the hell out of here.
Chapter Seventeen
Harrison drove around aimlessly looking for Sasha. His town no longer resembled home, rather, it seemed to depict a scene straight out of an apocalyptic movie. He spotted smoke billowing up towards the heavens in the distance and feared the worst. An eerie quiet had draped over the town and Harrison didn't like it. It felt too much like a benevolent calm before a violent storm.
Tara sat in the back of his truck kicking her legs impatiently. Harrison knew she wanted to be with her mom again. Desperately, he wanted to give that to her. Originally, he had planned to drive Tara straight out of town and come back for Sasha but his gut told him to find her first. There was no telling what the people of Carlisle might do when they caught her. The smoke in the distance made him wonder if they had already caught her. Images of Sasha tied to a pole on top a burning mound flashed through his mind and he couldn’t control himself. He had to know it wasn’t her. It seemed crazy to believe his town would resort to burning her alive like some sort of twisted witch trial but he had to be certain.
"Tara, honey, I need you to do me a favor, OK?"
"OK."
"I need you to sink down as low as you can in your seat. Think you can do that for me?"
"Yeah."
Tara sunk down in her seat giving Harrison a strange look. She couldn’t understand Harrison was trying to protect her and he knew that. The less she knew about the situation the better. Tara becoming hysterical would not do either of them any favors. It was a miracle she wasn’t already there, considering the torment she had already faced. Harrison found himself on edge. He couldn't imagine what was going through the young girl’s mind.
Turning the truck around, Harrison decided to head towards the smoke. He hoped he would get lucky and stumble upon her wandering about. All he wanted was to reunite mother and daughter and get out of this town. Hell, he would probably never be coming back either.
No one in their right mind would come back after such a horrible display of violence and mistrust. The hysterical outbreak had damaged the peaceful community beyond repair. No matter the outcome of the night, Carlisle would never be like it once was. If Sasha would have him, he would like to move away with her and Tara. He'd grown rather fond of her. After all, she seemed like a strong woman. She had to be. Weathering this kind of storm and not falling to her knees in terror. Even Harrison was having a hard time keeping his composure.
Rounding the final corner in his truck, Harrison caught a glimpse of a horrific sight. Where Sasha’s home once stood now had been reduced to a mere pile of embers glowing radiantly in the night. Loose articles of clothing were sprawled out across the lawn covering something thin and body shaped. Harrison’s blood went ice cold. For the first time since before being deployed, Harrison prayed to God. Please don’t let it be Sasha, he begged. Please, God, don’t let it be her.
Before he could put the truck in park and check the body, an angry mob of citizens came bursting around the corner. They surrounded the truck and blocked his only route of escape. They banged on the glass and screamed at Harrison. A flurry of heads and hands burst through the open passenger side window. Harrison cursed, wishing he could get his hands on the asshole who had busted the window.
With no escape, Harrison reached for the only countermeasure he could. His pistol. Someone came climbing through the open window and reached towards the back seat. His fingers grazed Tara's knee. Tara pressed her hands against her ears and cried.
Like a hungry zombie begging for flesh, the man clawed and scraped at the back seat. Several others tried to pile in as well. No one heard Harrison's one and only warning over the roar of the crowd. So, Harrison pressed the gun against the intruder's temple. When it did nothing to slow him down, Harrison did the only thing he could do.
A small splatter of bloodshot from the open window, covering the faces of some now petrified onlookers. Everyone stopped moving and stared at Harrison. Harrison did not stare back. Nothing but survival for himself and the girl now mattered.
He grabbed the little girl by the wrist and yanked her from her seat. In one clean motion, they exited the truck. Harrison kept the pistol trained on the crowd, sweeping it from side to side. As they moved forward, everyone stepped back.
"Everyone stay back or I'll shoot again. I've had it with you psychotic freaks. Look at yourselves. There are bodies piling up in this town and every one of them is on your hands." He swung the pistol over the crowd as he spoke. Several ducked or shimmied to stay out of its path. He could see the fear in their faces and he liked it.
"I have seen some terrible things in my life but nothing as awful as this. You've all become monsters."
As expected, his words seemed to have little effect on the crowd. There was no going back now. Fear had won the day. There was only one goal for Harrison, now. Find Sasha. Nothing was going to get in his way. If he had to shoot every last citizen of Carlisle, he would.
“Who’s under the sheet?” He motioned towards the body with his gun. No one s
poke up. “Please don’t make me ask again.” Still, no one spoke up. Harrison, naturally, feared the worst. The idea of checking under the sheet burned in his mind like a wildfire but he knew he couldn’t. Taking his eyes from the mob for even a moment could be a fatal mistake. He had to hope beyond hope it wasn’t Sasha.
“I’m going to take this little girl and get back in my truck. Anyone moves and I will shoot, understand?” There were a few mumbles and coughs but no one spoke.
Harrison pushed Tara towards the truck, making sure to keep himself between her and the crowd. If they rushed him, he would be able to push her out of harm's way. They moved towards the truck like an inchworm hiding from prey. All at once, as if the crowd shared a collective thought, everyone began to move. Sheriff Harrison was able to fire off one round before he was swept up in a sea of people. He gripped Tara’s hand as tight as he could but it was useless. They ripped the two of them apart and began to cheer.
Harrison was kicked, slapped, and punched as they dragged him towards the body still under the sheet. He could only assume they would kill him and bury the body next to Sasha. He was tossed through the air and landed with a hard thud next to the covered figure. Without hesitation, he peeled back the sheet and felt only an awful mix of emotion. Elation that Sasha was still alive but disgust that another citizen had been murdered. Who had done it this time? Had it been the same killer? Or did the mob collectively murder this woman?
“What have you done?” He asked the crowd. “You murderers decapitated an innocent woman. How could you? What did she have to do with any of this.”
Finally, a voice broke the silence.
“Oh no, Sheriff, it wasn’t us who killed her. It was that black magic practicing whore you sold your soul to. She killed her and strung the body up for us all to see.” Carol Leighter stepped from the crowd and stared down at Harrison. She gave him a crooked smile and Harrison had to control the urge to knock all of her teeth out. If nothing else, the thought made him almost chuckle.
“Well, Carol, you’ve come a long way from gossip columns in the local paper.”
“Me? You think I did any of this? I’m just a concerned citizen along with the rest of Carlisle. We deserve to be protected. We counted on the sheriff but he went and slept with the enemy.”
“Sasha is not your enemy. She’s just a woman looking to start a new life.”
“And why is she starting that new life? Ever ask yourself that? She’s a murderer, black magic or not. She brought death to this town and we have no choice but to stop it. The law is no longer protecting us.”
“Jesus Christ, Carol, you’ve always been a pain in the ass but I always thought you were a sensible woman. I can’t believe you would join this bandwagon of lunacy.” Harrison spit a glob of blood into the dirt and a little splashed onto Carol’s shoe. She ignored the gesture.
“The only lunacy here is the sheriff not doing his job.” She knelt on her haunches and sunk low enough to whisper in his ear. “Is Sasha a witch? Probably not. Superstitious bullshit, most likely. But people are dying and it’s clear who is behind it all.”
“That’s not how the legal system works, Carol. We have something called due process. Ever heard of it?”
Now Carol stood. “We also have the right to stand our ground, when necessary. And tonight,” She paused for what Harrison could only assume was dramatic effect. “It’s necessary. The killing won’t stop until that woman is dead. You had your chance, Sheriff. Now, it’s our turn.”
With that, Carol turned and melted back into the crowd. Harrison desperately searched for her, hoping he could talk some sense into the mad woman but it was hopeless. She was nowhere to be found and the crowd had become riled up again. Now, Harrison looked for Tara. The sea of faces made it near impossible to pick out her small frame and young features but eventually, he did. She was unharmed but far from okay.
A hand gripped his shoulder and pulled him to his feet. He was shoved violently forward and decided against trying to ask any questions. It would most likely result in more harm. His captors, most of whom he had once called friends, clearly wanted him to walk. So, he did.
They walked for what felt like an hour. Eventually, they came upon a building Harrison knew all too well. It had been the focal point of too many town meetings as of late. There seemed to be no logical reason to be at the town hall but there they were.
He was forced down to his knees and watched as Carol stepped inside the building. A few others followed her inside and they began opening windows. Harrison’s curiosity was close to getting the better of him but he kept his eyes fixated on Tara. She, too, was on her knees and tears rolled down her cheeks. If he hadn’t been certain the town would beat him to death, he would have held her in his arms and told her everything would be alright. The poor girl had been through enough.
"Why don't you let the kid go?" Harrison pleaded to no avail. The crowd merely stood there while Carol and her goons opened every door and window in the town hall. Then, Harrison heard the familiar whine of the microphone and realized exactly what they were doing.
A loud bang! reverberated in his ears as Carol tapped the microphone. It was working loud and clear. With the volume at max, half the town would be able to hear every word she said. Before he could ask what she was up to, Carol walked out of the town hall with a death grip on the microphone.
"We don't want to hurt the girl." She said. An anger boiled up inside of Harrison.
"We just want you to give yourself up. There needs to be some form of justice brought for the sake of our town. You brought death and violence here. Give yourself up so we may have our closure."
She stood still like she was waiting for a reply. When none came she furrowed her brow and pressed the microphone to her lips. "You have one hour to give yourself up. After that, we seek retribution with the girl."
The microphone fell from her hands and she quietly approached Harrison. "You can't do this. You can't hurt that little girl. She's done nothing to you."
"Oh please, Sheriff. It's not us hurting the girl. It's her mother, the witch. The decision is hers now. Whatever happens next is on her head."
Chapter Eighteen
Sasha had been near enough to hear Carol's demands. Naturally, her first thought was to give herself up and spare her daughter's life. If she gave herself up, she would be killed. She knew that. But she also knew they wouldn’t give up Tara, either. Giving herself up meant the death of her and her daughter.
She had to come up with a plan and she would most likely need Sheriff Harrison’s help. She was incredibly outnumbered and completely unprepared. How could she take on an entire town? It was impossible. Ending her husband's life had seemed impossible but this was, by far, worse. If only she and Harrison had not become separated, maybe none of this would have happened. Though, she knew she couldn't dwell on what ifs. The fact was, Tara was in danger and she needed to do something about it.
Unfortunately, the only plans which came to mind involved poison. She had spent countless hours learning about different types of poison and what they did to the body. She knew how long it would take for a particular poison to kill a person and how agonizing their death might be. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind she could poison again and get away clean. Hell, she thought she might be able to poison the whole town and walk away free. But it wouldn't do her any good. Unlike with Brent, she did not have the luxury of time.
Sasha decided she would move closer to the center of town and get a better look. The commotion was clearly coming from the town hall. The use of the speakers and microphone had given it away.
Moving between buildings, she crept silently towards her target. Once there, she saw a crowd of people gathered in front of the town hall. In front of the mob, on their knees, were Tara and Harrison. Sasha was filled with a pure rage as she thought about her sweet daughter being used as bait. It took every ounce of energy to hold herself back from marching into the crowd and clawing people’s eyes out.
There we
re too many of them and she knew she could never separate Tara from them. Not in the current position they stood. Her only hope would be a diversion. The thought of luring the mob away crossed her mind. Then, she would be able to dash out and grab Tara. However, there would be no way to get away. They couldn’t just run. Most likely they would be caught, assuming she wasn’t caught while she went for Tara.
A simple, but seemingly effective, plan circled in her mind. If she could get her hands on a car, she might be able to get Harrison and Tara out to safety. She would still need a diversion to draw as much of the group away as possible. Then, she would simply drive out, get Harrison and Tara in the car, then drive straight out of town and never look back. It seemed simple but she thought it would work. If only she knew where to get a car.
If she could find one, she figured she would place it in neutral and push it until she was close enough. However, that would mean she would need to find a car with the keys already inside. Or, at the very least, finding the car keys in someone's home and then getting it back to the community center all in less than an hour. Seemed impossible. Sasha wished life was more like the movies. Then she would be able to hotwire a car and her plan would go off without a hitch, saving her daughter and her newly formed lover. They'd drive off into the sunrise and the credits would roll, insinuating a happily ever after ending. Reality was hardly ever so forgiving.
The harsh reality was far more uncertain. If they did survive this night, Tara would need years of therapy. She might even develop depression like her dear old mother. And Sasha would do no better. She too would need therapy, more so than she already had. This traumatic event would only help to break down whatever progress she may have made with her condition.
Then there was the sad fact of Sheriff Harrison. Sure, the two of them had shared an intimate moment but that did not guarantee a relationship. They hardly knew anything about each other. For all they knew, their personalities might not be compatible at all. Most likely, the two of them had been brought together by happenstance in light of tragic events. Happy endings never came in real life. At least, not for Sasha.