This is Halloween

by James A. Moore

  “Eww,” CeeCee said. “What is that smell?”

  Raley sniffed the air and coughed. The smell was like rotten fish and the sewage treatment plant with some week old roadkill added. It was all Raley could do not to gag.

  “Look,” Josh said, pointing towards the woods on their right.

  Raley looked where the younger boy was pointing. Eyes again. But this time there were three sets.

  “Those are just deer,” CeeCee said without conviction.

  “I’ve been deer hunting,” said Paul. “Those aren’t deer.”

  “There are more of them,” Todd said, pointing to the opposite side of the road where two more glowing sets of eyes regarded them from the woods.

  And then they were running. There had been no command or signal. Just a silent understanding that they needed to run and right now. CeeCee gathered the skirt of her witch costume and took off. Josh was right beside her, his red cape flapping behind him. Todd ripped off his burlap bag mask and tossed it away and Paul was very glad that he had decided earlier not to wear the oversize clown shoes his father had suggested.

  And Raley? Raley was a gym class washout. Always the last in every race. Always complaining he was tired or that his legs hurt. Not tonight. Not in the dark on the old dirt road. No, tonight Raley was the king of speed, outdistancing the other children as he ran full out.

  Far ahead, through the dense web of tree limbs, Raley saw flickering yellow light. That had to be Whit Gramling's cabin. The electric company hadn't run lines out this far yet and so folks like Gramling still had to use fires and lamps. All they had to do was reach the house.

  “Look out!” Josh yelled. His voice was high pitched and held a tremor.

  Raley glanced back to the road ahead. There was a break in the trees and something was crouching in the irregular patch of moonlit road. Raley didn't get a good look. He didn't want a good look. Whatever it was, it was pale and vaguely man-shaped but there was something wrong with the way its limbs sprawled as it crouched there like some bloated spider.

  “This way!” Raley yelled as he left the road and ran into the trees, trying to cut through the woods to the cabin. The other four followed, too afraid to do anything else. There was enough ambient light that the children could keep from slamming into the dark forms of trees but they tripped on underbrush and slender limbs slapped and scratched them as they ran. Raley fell and scrambled to his feet and stumbled on. He couldn't stop thinking about all those horror movies he had seen where someone tried to run from the monsters but fell and sprained an ankle. If he fell would the others leave him? If any of them fell would he leave them?

  Raley heard a high-pitched shriek and then he could hear Todd Wellman screaming, “They got me! Oh God don't leave me! Don't let them take me!”

  Raley froze. He couldn't see Todd clearly but he could see that the boy was struggling and that something was holding him. Two pale eyes glowed in the darkness behind Todd. There was nothing Raley could do. Todd was a goner and the rest of them were soon to follow.

  Then Raley heard a solid, meaty impact and one of the pale eyes vanished. Another impact and the thing that held Todd grunted.

  “You got his eye, CeeCee!” Josh Larkin shouted. “Throw another rock!”

  “Last one!” CeeCee called and Raley could just make out her slender arm whipping toward the dark form. She was always the best baseball pitcher of all of them. The rock went wide, but the thing jerked aside, expecting a third hit. In that moment, Paul Griffin dodged in, and grabbing Todd's arm, he pulled the boy free and then the two of them were staggering Raley's way.

  “Go! Go!” CeeCee shouted.

  Raley turned to run but he felt something take hold of the back of his shirt. He spun, striking out at whatever held him and looked square into one of the pair of glowing eyes. A hot, horrible stench washed over him as the thing breathed in his face and Raley screamed.

  He was still screaming when the shotgun boomed and there was a bright flash of light. Raley never forgot what he saw in that moment of illumination. It would haunt him for the rest of his life. All around him were twisted, malformed figures. Some clad in rags, some naked. Some almost human and some hideous clumps of flesh that somehow lived and moved.

  The shotgun went off again and the pale creatures began to flee, howling in rage and frustration. Apparently some of them had been hit by whatever load the shooter was using because they limped and lurched after the others. The next moment the shooter turned on a big flashlight and Raley could see him.

  He was a tall, rangy looking old man in blue overalls and a snap brim hat. He slipped the shotgun under one arm and stepped over to Raley and helped the boy to his feet. Raley didn't remember falling down, but he would always remember the strength in that huge calloused hand.

  “Up you go, son,” the man said. His voice was deep and held the sort of deep Southern twang that Raley's grandfather had spoken with when he was still alive. “I don't think they'll be back, but you never know. It is Halloween. Let's get you kids inside.”

  “Are you Mr. Gramling?” Paul said.

  “I'm Whit Gramling. Don't much like being called mister, but I guess you folks are a bit young to be on a first name basis with a codger like me. Now come on. Can everybody walk?”

  All of them could. Gramling played the flashlight on the ground ahead so they could see where they were going. They followed him to the big front porch of the cabin. There were a couple of rocking chairs and several straight-backed wooden chairs on the porch. It occurred to Raley that he was about to enter Whit Gramling's house and he stopped on the porch's bottom step.

  Gramling looked down at him and Raley saw that the old man was smiling. Gramling said, “Marsha! Come out here and show yourself so these kids know I ain't going to eat them!”

  The front door swung inward and a tall woman with short gray hair looked out through the screen door. “I made him give up eating children, kids. Gave him a belly ache.”

  Raley smiled in spite of himself. The woman seemed to radiate warmth. Gramling opened the door and the five youngsters filed in. Raley could smell apple pie baking somewhere close.

  “You're just in time for pie,” Marsha Gramling said. “I'm afraid we don't have any candy.”

  “Go see about it, please, dear,” Gramling said. “I want to talk to these youngsters for a minute.” Marsha smiled and went through a door that presumably led to the kitchen. When she was out of earshot, Gramling leaned over and said, “Not a word about what you saw. We'll have some pie and then I'll drive you back to town.”

  “But Mr. Gramling,” CeeCee began.

  Gramling held up a finger. “My wife doesn't need to know what almost happened out there. I don't know what those things were doing so far from their usual stomping grounds, but we'll discuss it later.”

  And so they had pie and they didn't talk about pale monsters with glowing eyes. When they were done, Whit Gramling told his wife that he was going to get the kids back to town before their parents got worried. Marsha bid them all farewell and made them promise to come back and visit in the daytime.

  Once they were outside, Gramling led the group down to his gently used green Ford. When they were away from the house he said. “It'll be a tight fit for us all in the cab, but it's a bench seat and Superman there can sit in the floorboard if he has too. Don't think anyone better ride in the bed, given what happened.”

  Raley, who had gotten back a little of his confidence, said, “What were those things, Mr. Gramling?”

  Gramling said, “Here's all I'm going to say on the subject, son. There are old things in these hills and in the shadows of the mountains. Things best left alone. So from now on, when your elders tell you not to go into the woods on All Hallows’ Eve, you listen.”

  “Yes sir,” said Paul Griffin. The others made noises of assent, but Raley still wanted to ask questions. Gramling wasn't any more forthcoming though on the ride back to town and the group lapsed into a thoughtful silence.

  Gr
amling stopped the truck once the lights of downtown were visible. The party in the square still seemed to be going strong. The kids got out of the truck. Josh turned to Gramling who was leaning out of the open window and said, “Thanks for saving us, sir.”

  “Yes, thanks,” echoed CeeCee.

  Gramling smiled. “I saw the way you were winging those stones at those devils, CeeCee, and the way Paul and Josh here stood up for Todd. You didn't need much saving. I want all of you to come back and visit me. You too, Raley. It will make the wife happy and make me happy. But come in the daytime, okay?”

  “Okay!” said Josh.

  “There's just one more thing. I didn't tell you much about those things you saw because it's best if you leave them alone. Go on with your lives and just leave them be. But, and this is important, as you grow up, people are going to try and convince you that there are no such things as monsters. When they do, you just smile and nod. But inside, you know better. Now you get on home.”

  With that, Gramling pulled away. Raley watched the truck until all he could see were the taillights glowing like two red eyes in the darkness.

  Blood Tide

  I

  The Cliffside Walk in Black Stone Bay was one of the most popular attractions the town had to offer, but that was in the daytime, when the sun shone down on the jagged black teeth thrusting from the waves, and when a person could easily see where each foot was settling down.

  Currently, it was just after two in the morning, and while a lot of people might have been hassled by the police for being out on the long run of private property that late, the issue never came up with the owners, all of whom the police knew very well.

  Besides, neither of the men was making much noise aside from speaking softly.

  “You’re certain this is the property you want?” Albert Miles spoke with genuine regret. “I’ve grown very fond of the old place over the years.”

  Jason Soulis smiled and nodded his head. “Oh, yes, Albert. I am certain.” He cast his dark eyes over the waters of the bay and nodded again, slowly, as he drank in the fresh salt air. “It’s as perfect for me as any location I’ve seen could be, don’t you think?”

  Miles grinned, looking more like a stocky old trucker than a multi-millionaire. He would have probably been perfect cast as the stodgy old grandfather in almost any 1960s sitcom. He dressed in flannel and jeans, because that was his preference.

  Jason Soulis on the other hand, dressed in a gray pinstripe suit and wore a thick coat over it. The air was very cold as it came off the ocean.

  “Well, I suppose a deal is a deal. Still, I’m going to miss this spot.” He looked at the estate behind him and sighed. “Lots of fond memories.”

  “Well, of course you can visit, Albert.” He lifted one eyebrow and let his lips play at a hint of a smile. “There’s nothing to say you can’t come back and chew the fat with me from time to time.”

  Albert Miles looked at his longtime associate and chuckled. “You’re still planning to go through with everything, aren’t you?”

  The smile stayed on Soulis’ lips but left his eyes. “What on Earth would you know about that?”

  “Remarkably little, actually. What you do is only of minor concern to me, Jason. You know that.”

  “Let’s try to keep it that way. We have been friends for a long time and I value that.”

  “Relax, Jason.” Albert Miles pulled out his pipe and fumbled with a match for several second before he finally got it lit. Soulis watched, but otherwise made no moves. “Who warned you in Ohio?”

  “That’s very true.” The man nodded and eased up on the tension in his face. “You could have just left well enough alone and eliminated me if you wanted me gone.”

  Miles laughed openly. It was a friendly sound, a jovial noise and it helped relax Soulis even more. “Jason, my good man, I have no reason to want you hurt. What you seek from the world and what I seek have never been at odds.” He put his hand on Soulis’ shoulder, which, considering the man’s idiosyncrasies, would have left many people dead a few moments later. “We’re friends, Jason. I know that isn’t easy to accept. I’m in the same situation as you along those lines, but we are friends.”

  Soulis leaned against the narrow railing that separated the two of them from the cliffs below. At this particular juncture, the water was almost a hundred feet down and the jagged rocks that rose from the waves looked as deadly as they were. More than one person had been shredded against the black stones, torn apart by the pounding seas as it battered the coastline.

  “Forgive me, Albert. It’s not always easy to trust someone.”

  “Oh, hellfire, Jason, I wouldn’t trust me as far as I could throw that old house you just got from me.” He was still laughing, but it had muted down to a chuckle. “I’ve killed more friends than most people have.”

  “True enough.” Soulis smiled again. “I suspect we both have.”

  “Side effect of living, my friend.” He shrugged. “Live long enough and you make enemies more often than you make friends. I like to keep the few I have, whenever possible.”

  “True.” Soulis pursed his lips and nodded again, his eyes drawn to the waves that slammed themselves blindly against the rocks. He smiled when he noticed the motion of the waves and that they hid something below the surface.

  “I have another favor to ask of you, Albert.”

  “Just feeling frisky tonight, aren’t you?” Miles was in a good mood. He hadn’t made a single demand for payment on any new favors. Not yet, at least. But he might. Soulis knew the man that well.

  “I need a contact here in town. Preferably a young lady.”

  “There’s a college girl I know of.” Albert Miles stayed silent for a long time before he answered. They had always had that sort of conversation and the long stretch before he got a response didn’t offend Jason Soulis in the least. “She’s a rare beauty, and might have certain...talents you are looking for. But I’m also rather fond of her.”

  “You’ve sampled her talents then?” Soulis’ voice was lightly mocking.

  “What? Heavens, no. Not along those lines. I haven’t had sex in forever.” Albert Miles sounded offended.

  “My apologies, Albert. I forget myself.”

  “Not at all.” His friend leaned against the railing to his right and looked down at the waves as they pulled back with a whispered moan. “You never met my wife. You couldn’t possibly know how wonderful she was.”

  “It has been a long time, Albert. Don’t you still feel the need to be with a woman?”

  “Of course I do.” He chuckled and then puffed away at his pipe for a moment. “I just don’t listen to that need very often.”

  “I do. Mostly it’s force of habit.”

  “Then Maggie will be perfect for you. She is a wonderful girl.” He looked at Soulis and winked. “I also hear she is very imaginative and quite accommodating.”

  “Well, then I shall ask you for the proper way to contact her. I have a few needs that I must take care of before I can settle in properly.”

  “I already thought of that. You’ll find her picture and her current address in the upper right hand drawer of the desk in the den. You’ll also find the name of the man who will procure her for you.” Miles puffed away contentedly on his pipe for a moment and then winked. “Don’t you worry, Jason. We’ll get you situated in town.”

  “Where will you be going, Albert?”

  “I have several irons in the fireplace.” He shrugged. “There are things I need to take care of in Europe. I might go there for a while. I haven’t really decided yet.”

  “I think I like the feel of this place. I think I shall like it much more than I did Ohio.”

  “Well, really, what is there to do in Ohio, anyway?”

  “You might be surprised.” Jason leaned out over the edge of the railing and studied the waves as they crashed. There were secrets under those waves, and he knew he would be exploring them soon.

  Albert Miles reached into h
is pants pocket and pulled out a ring of keys. They tinkled together softly as he tossed them in the air and caught them several times. When he bored of the game he threw them toward Jason Soulis, who caught them effortlessly.

  “There you go, old man. All yours.”

  “Will you be staying the night?” He pocketed the keys.

  “What? No. No, we’re friends, Jason, but I don’t feel quite that foolish tonight.”

  Albert Miles chuckled to himself as he walked away. He did not look back and Jason Soulis did not watch him go.

  II

  Matt Casey was unaware that he was being watched. He probably wouldn’t have cared either way. He was running on a serious high and the only thing he much had a desire for currently was anything that could keep his high going.

  Of course, that required money, and Matt was running low. He had paid his tuition over at the Winslow Harper University earlier in the week and that had pretty much drained the coffers until his father sent his next allowance check. He’d paid, because he knew good and damned well that if he didn’t maintain good grades his parents would cut him off. He wasn't quite far gone enough to want to try living on the streets.

  But he was getting there.

  Beside him, his best buddy and roommate, Louis, was grinning ear to ear and looking at things that only he could see. From time to time he came back to the real world and asked what they were going to do next. If he asked again, Matt was pretty sure he’d have to cave his skull in. Lou was a bit of a downer when he started asking too many questions.

  “What are we gonna do next, Matt?” Yep. There it was, that need to snap his friend’s neck. He held it in check.

  “We’re gonna get more money, is what we’re gonna do.”

  “How? Dude, we’re all tapped out.”

  Matt closed his eyes and tried counting to ten. He made it to seven before he forgot what he was doing, but by then he’d grown calmer again.

  “Lou, old buddy, old pal, just shut the fuck up and let me think.”