Cavers: A Vampire Tale

by R.G. Richards

Sheriff Monroe, John Henry and Mike Chambers made it to the moss-covered shed the Sheriff told them about. They each carried a semi-automatic weapon and looked forward to the moment they would take their rifles off their shoulders and fire at the target that had been evading them all this time. They mourned for poor Paul, believing him to be crushed by the concrete that filled the tunnel. They made themselves feel better by inviting Paul’s second cousin Dale Portwood, whom they saw as they were leaving town, to join them in the woods.

  “I don’t see anything,” said John Henry.

  “Where is this mysterious opening you have been talking about, Sheriff?” Mike Chambers asked.

  They all looked around the tiny shed in frustration. They began to think the Sheriff was wasting their time, when he started tapping the rocks next to the small shed. “I tell you it is here. The last time I was out here I saw something that was not quite right, kind of out of place if you know what I mean?” He continued tapping the rock surface.

  The others spread out and began tapping. Dale Portwood was the nearest man to the shed and tapped along the wall of the shed by the rock face. A hollow noise echoed back. “Hey, fellas, listen to this.” He tapped again. “What do you think?”

  “It sounds like it is hollow.”

  “Yeah! Like the tunnel we found in the Johnsons’ basement. I tell you, that’s it, we have to find the entrance to this tunnel.”

  “Do you have your toolbox on your truck?” Mike said to John Henry.

  “Yeah! I should have thought of that. I will be right back. Come with me, Dale, I can use your help with the tools.”

  The two men left for the truck, leaving Mike and Sheriff Monroe to stay behind and start to pry off some of the wood on the back of the shed.

  There was a radio in the truck, and John Henry used this to contact the men digging at the Johnsons’ to inform them of their discovery and location. Mayor Benaford was with the men and he told John Henry they had opened a tunnel opposite the Johnsons’ house and a crew of men would meet them inside whatever underground structure they found. He told them that he and the doctor and another crew would travel by Jeep to their location and join them. John asked them to bring more explosives and weapons when they came. Then he and Dale got what they needed and began their journey back to the others.

  The men returned with a wheelbarrow being pushed by John and with a sledgehammer and rope being carried by Dale. “If we get through, we are going to need this in case there is a big drop,” said Dale. The men were wearing jackets similar to bulletproof jackets used by policemen that contained a row of pockets on each side that carried everything they would need from ammunition to explosive charges and timers. They took off their jackets and laid them on the ground and gathered around the wheelbarrow to make their selections.

  Mike chose a pickax, the Sheriff took the crowbar, John Henry had another pickax, and Dale kept the sledgehammer he carried. Three of them began tearing down the shed while Dale went to work on the rock face where it sounded hollow. In no time they reduced the shed to little more than timber – but still the entrance evaded them. With each swing of Dale’s hammer he heard an echo and knew something was there.

  From above there was a rustling in the trees. Dale glanced up; just the wind. Determined not to stop until he hit pay dirt, he swung and swung and never got tired, revenge fueling his steady hammering. Yet despite the hammer thrower’s rage, the entrance remained hidden.

  “Hold on, Dale, I will be right back,” said John Henry. He scuttled to his truck, then returned shortly after. “Move out of the way. This is what we need to get in there.” John Henry worked for the oil company and he did the demolition work for them as they laid new pipe. He came back from his truck with a bag that contained C4, triggers, and wiring.

  “Now we are talking,” said Mike Chambers. He helped his friend attach the charges to the side of the hollow rock face.

  All behind a tree, John yelled, “Fire in the hole!” He flipped the switch and they covered their ears. The charges went off and rocks flew every which way. When the smoke cleared they were standing in front of a tunnel.

  “Son of a gun,” said Mike.

  John Henry jumped around. “I told you! I told you! I told you all!”

  The Sheriff acted as if he were surprised. “Well, I will be damned! I knew something was there but not this. My God, John Henry, you and the Mayor weren’t foolin’, were you?”

  “No, Sheriff, we weren’t. That is the proof that we need to clean this town of all the unsavory elements that have been lurking around doing their unsavory activities in our backyard. Can you imagine? They have been right here all along, scheming and plotting behind our backs. Let’s go get everybody and hunt them down like the dogs they are.”

  “Wait, wait, wait there a second, John,” said Monroe. “I give you credit for what you found here but we don’t know what is in there. That could be a shaft from an old mining operation. I say we check it out before getting the whole town involved, all right?”

  “Fine, Sheriff, let’s get down there. I got the rope right here if we need it,” said Dale.

  “All right. Mike, you want to take the lead on this one?” Sheriff Monroe said to the man standing by the opening.

  Mike Chambers wiped the sweat off his face and went and picked up his jacket and rifle. He checked his weapon and then nodded in agreement. “All right, let’s go.”

  Each of the men gave their weapons a check, then followed Mike Chambers into the tunnel. Although there was spaced out overhead lighting, unsettled smoke made it hard to see.

  Sheriff Monroe did not have his opportunity to shoot the men: this time, John Henry insisted on being last in formation. Now, how would he be rid of them and seal the tunnel’s entrance? Plotting, he waited tentatively for an opportunity.

  He didn’t have to wait long: John Henry whispered to them, “Wait, I got to get something from my truck. Stay here while I go get it.”

  “What is it?” Mike said with impatience.

  “I got a bag with flashlights, C4, and other stuff we may need when we get to the other side of this tunnel. It will only take a minute.”

  “We have got all that stuff in our vests, but go ahead, hurry!” Mike said reluctantly.

  When John Henry had left, Sheriff Monroe turned to Mike. “We can go ahead and wait for him at the other end. We will probably need the C4 then. Let’s get there and take a look; it shouldn’t be too much farther ahead.”

  “All right,” said Mike, anxious to get to the end. He led on with his flashlight. Sheriff Monroe followed him, smiling in the dark, hand on his gun.