Among You

by Jack Wallen

  “How do you know about that?”

  “I was there.”

  “I didn’t see you.”

  “You wouldn’t have recognized me outside of school.”

  Instinct brought me to my feet. “I really need to be going back to class, Ms. Middleton.”

  “Scott,” her voice stopped me from turning to the door. “You need to exercise caution. There are certain things…”

  “You’ve said it already, remember? There are some things you aren’t meant to know. Please, can the cryptic. If you have something to say, just be honest with me.”

  Ms. Middleton slid the book to me and looked, not at me, but into me. I could feel her eyes digging through the shell of my flesh and into my core.

  “I want you to read this book, Scott. Every word. Before you do, I want you to understand one simple thing – you were right, every word is true. This is not some fantastical PR stunt or silly piece of fiction; this is real. The people in this book are real.”

  I went to pick up the book and Ms. Middleton touched her hand down onto mine, nearly sending me back into and through puberty.

  “Scott, the majority of the people in this book are still alive and live in Tyler’s End.”

  I managed to wrestle my hand from Ms. Middleton’s and then backed up and into the door.

  “You’ve placed yourself into the heart of something more profound than anything you’ve ever known. If you truly want to be a part of this world, do so with caution.”

  “T-thank you, Ms. Middleton. M-may I go now?”

  She nodded. I sucked in a deep breath, turned, and slipped through the door. The second I was outside of her office, I released the stale air in my lungs and raced into the empty hall. The book was in my hand and Ms. Middleton’s words in my ear.

  The people in this book are real.

  How could that be? According to the first dated entry, the book was published over one hundred years ago. I was willing to suspend disbelief for a lot of things – a necessary quality for any good horror fan. This, however, stretched my limits.

  Even still…something in the tone of Ms. Middleton’s voice had me hesitant to toss aside her warnings. Crazy things have been known to happen on this great big ball of Earth. If people could believe the planet was less than six thousand years old, why couldn’t I believe a town filled with centennials was next to us? It certainly did make life more interesting.

  I clutched the book tight and ran off for class. Nothing could drag me down at this point. Halfway back to class, I realized the desire to sit through another round of soul-sucking trigonometry made me want to punch a nun. So, instead of continuing on, I took a detour to the one stairwell no one ever checked. Part of the old wing of the building, the southeast stairs were the spot to be if cutting class or making out was your thing. Somehow it was the one secret the whole of the student body managed to keep.

  When I reached the stairs, all was quiet. I lucked out and was the only student in sight. By the time my feet hit the midway point, I had the book open and was reading before my butt hit marble.

  I flipped past the pages I’d already read and started a new chapter.

  Chapter 11

  We finally arrived in the States. In all of my life, I never thought I’d be so fortunate as to bring an entire community of people to freedom from the tyranny and dread of our homeland. Although we cannot live among the humans in our normal fashion, the challenge of secreting our kind from damning eyes should not prove too great.

  The name, Tyler’s End, has been chosen out of respect to Marsha Mayskill’s infant who didn’t survive the long journey. His body was wracked with infection and disease. Our doctors did everything they could to save the poor boy’s life, but it simply wasn’t meant to be.

  This decision was mine and mine alone. Should anyone be dissatisfied with the name, I will happily entertain their concerns.

  In happier news, I have procured a mask maker who will, with a bit of help from our dark elementist, craft the perfect solution to provide us safe passage on the streets of this country. Though I would love, more than anything, to allow my darling daughter to walk about the neighboring cities as she would her home, I know that would only spread hatred and fear. To that end, the ‘Kind (as we have grown fond of referring to ourselves) will hide behind liars’ masks when among the human race.

  My life had just become infinitely more complicated. As if the life of a teen wasn’t already complex enough, I now found myself head over heels for a ‘girl’ that was over one hundred years old and had to wear a mask just to mingle with the human race.

  I had to find out if what Ms. Middleton said was true. I’d spent most of my life wanting so desperately to believe in the fantastic. Now that I’m faced with a dream-built reality filled with monsters and century-old beings, I wasn’t so sure. I had to find the answers. That, of course, would require the help of my trusty sidekick and best friend of all time.

  eighteen | tyranny

  We’d already planned on returning to Tyler’s End, so it took no convincing Sally to drive me back.

  “You don’t think Middleton was playing you?” Sally questioned me.

  “At first, yes. But then, why would she go to all the trouble to build such an elaborate lie? She has nothing to gain by leading me on here. Besides, she knew about the party and me dancing with Babbette. Only two people outside of Tyler’s End knew about that – me and you. Neither of us would have had any reason to spill the beans to her.”

  Sally let my explanation sink in before she replied. “You don’t think Cody Sloan has anything to do with this?”

  I pondered Sally’s question. The very idea that Sloan had the intellect to pull off such a complex ruse was laughable. Cody’s idea of a prank was a swirly in an unflushed toilet.

  After Sally and I shared a few Cody Sloan horror stories, she finally asked, “So…what’s the plan?”

  “Back to spying,” I replied.

  “As in, we find Babbette and play ‘my little stalker’?”

  Sally knew me all too well.

  “All kidding aside, this could be dangerous,” I warned.

  “As in how?”

  “Honestly, I don’t know. There’s always Skorsdan. And from what I’ve heard and read, Gorman Gaultier could probably bite our heads off and suck the marrow from our bones without breaking a sweat.”

  Sally inhaled a nervous breath. “Are you saying…”

  “The only thing I’m saying is that we have to be careful. We’ll be trespassing and we don’t know how they would react if they caught us.”

  “But they won’t…right?” Sally asked.

  “That’s the plan.”

  “No, Scott, that is so not the right answer. You were supposed to say ‘Oh no, Sally, they won’t catch us.’”

  “Does it count if I say we’ll do everything we can to not let them catch us?”

  Sally shook her head.

  “Okay, then they won’t catch us. No way in Hell.”

  Famous last words.

  I didn’t share that last sentiment with Sally.

  The car crossed into the Tyler’s End and made its way to the Gaultier Mansion, just as an uncomfortable silence settled over us. To be safe, Sally parked the car a few blocks away; so we’d have to hoof it to the house. It wasn’t that her car was so recognizable – but since we were trespassing on multiple levels, better play it safe than sorry.

  The walk to the Gaultier House was chilly and quiet.

  “God, it’s beautiful here.” Sally looked up into the sky as she walked. “Is it just me, or do the stars seem more clear?”

  I looked up and verified Sally’s claim.

  “You’re right – it’s like Tyler’s End is closer to the sky.”

  “Maybe this place is a window to the heavens,” Sally whispered.

  We both laughed.

  “Poetry much?” I laughed.

  Sally punched me, this time…hard. “You should never mock beauty, Scotty Maskey.
”

  I leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.

  “I’d be mocking you…” my voice drifted off.

  “I love you too, Scott.”

  Sally took it all in stride – as she always had.

  The mansion loomed before us. Dark and daunting. For the briefest of seconds, I had the urge to turn tail and run. That wouldn’t happen; not now. We needed answers to questions no one had ever thought to ask and this was the only way we’d get them.

  “Are you sure about this, Scott?”

  “As sure I’ve ever been about anything.”

  “Even that one thing,” Sally asked.

  “Even that one thing,” I replied.

  We shared the inside joke; it should have brought a sense of lightness to the moment. It failed. There was no way around the fact that we were very near the gaping maw of Hell and about to be swallowed whole.

  “This way,” I whispered.

  Carefully, we wound our way to the back of the mansion, straight for the open cellar door I’d previously used. I pulled the unhinged door open and gestured for Sally to follow. Before the darkness consumed me, I pulled out a flashlight and lit it up.

  Sally stopped, mid-stride, and took in the cellar of the Gaultier House.

  “What is this place?” she asked.

  “I haven’t figured that out.”

  Sally stepped in close to one of the steel cages and brushed her fingertip against the metal. When she turned to look at me, her eyes were dark with pupil, as if fear forced her vision to expand. “And this is?” she asked.

  “I don’t think we want to know,” I answered. “There’s something you’ll want to see. Come on.”

  I led Sally down the hall and into the room of masks. The second my light spilled over the nearest wall, I was sure she would bolt. Instead, she drew herself up until she was practically nose to nose with one of the lifeless faces.

  “What are they? And don’t say…”

  “Masks.”

  “You…” I could feel Sally roll her eyes. “They’re so life like. Oh my God, Scott,” Sally started. “They each have names. This is so bizarre.”

  Sally slid across the room, taking in every mask she could see in the dim light.

  “No way,” said Sally.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “If you’ve been in this room before, how did you miss this?” Sally turned, her finger pointing to one of the masks. I stepped in close to get a look.

  “Holy crap,” I whispered.

  The mask before me was that of Babbette Gaultier.

  “How is that…what does her face look… How?” My brain couldn’t seem to process what was before me. I reached up and ran my finger along the cheek and lips of the perfect rendering of Babbette. My heart raced, my breath grew shallow. My imagination lofted my lips to hers to enjoy the sweetest kiss ever shared.

  “Wow,” Sally nearly shouted. “Here’s Gorman Gaultier. His face is huge.”

  The proclamation yanked me from my dreamscape. As I un-tunneled my vision from Babbette, I noticed a spot-on Timely mask directly to the right. The likeness was haunting. I expected the thing to spout off some snarky comment and bounce away.

  “What are these things for, Scott?”

  “No idea; but we’re going to find out.”

  “Oh my God,” Sally gasped. “Scott, come here…now.”

  I stepped in next to Sally and raised the light to follow her hand. There was no mistaking what brought the sound of alarm from Sally’s mouth.

  “Ms. Middleton,” I whispered.

  There was absolutely no doubt we were looking up at the counselor’s face. A dark and strange puzzle was coming together, piece by piece, somewhere in the back of my mind. Middleton was at the party. She said I wouldn’t have recognized her.

  “There are some things you simply cannot know,” I whispered.

  “What?” Sally asked.

  “It was something Ms. Middleton said to me in her office. She was being intentionally cryptic.”

  We had to find Babbette. Every answer we sought would be found with her.

  “Come on, Sally.”

  Without question, Sally fell into step behind me. The muffled sound of our footfalls barely noticeable in the high-ceiling halls. We snaked through the spiderweb of tunnels until the entrance to the main room appeared. Ten yards away from the entrance, a voice echoed off the cold, marble walls of the grand room.

  “Skorsdan, where are we going?”

  I didn’t recognize the male voice. The name called out, however, was all too familiar.

  “Will you just shut up and follow me.” The second voice was clearly that of Skorsdan.

  Sally clamped down on my arm, hard enough to stop the flow of blood to my fingers. I remained frozen in my spot.

  “Skorsdan, stop.” The original voice insisted.

  “Who are you to make demands of me? You knew what you were getting into when you agreed to do this. So shut up and come with me, or be the coward you’ve always been and go back home.”

  “But what if Sir Gaultier catches us?”

  “He won’t. That overfed, blow-hard is busy snoring away the night. Nothing short of an explosion would wake him. Trust me…I’ve put that to test. He won’t awaken.”

  Silence.

  “Are you coming or not?”

  Silence.

  “Okay,” the original voice succumbed. “No one gets hurt, right?”

  The question sent a tsunami of ice through my spine. I didn’t like where this was going.

  “I can’t promise anything. Hopefully, she’ll opt to come along of her own accord. But one way or another…she’s coming.”

  I turned to Sally and whispered. “We’re following them.”

  Sally’s eyes nearly exploded out of their sockets. I leaned in and kissed her forehead. “I’ll keep you safe, I promise.”

  I swallowed a lump of guilt I hope she didn’t see. Truth was, I had no idea if I could protect her, because I had no idea what was going on. The only thing I did know was Skorsdan was involved; which meant anything was possible.

  My lungs devoured as much air as they could before I stepped a single foot onto the marble floor of the main room. The distant echoes of Skorsdan and his henchman drifted down from above. I led Sally to the stairwell and began the climb up. From behind, Sally’s shoe squeaked and brought us to an immediate halt. She started to reach down and take off her sneakers. I shook my head. There was no way to predict how quickly we’d need to exit. I didn’t want to be slowed down by a barefoot Sally.

  The voices faded.

  “We’re losing them, Sally.”

  Squeak be damned, we picked up the pace until Skorsdan’s damning whisper assaulted my ears.

  “I overheard her say she was staying in Timley’s.”

  A single sentence made clear Skorsdan’s plan. The she that he referred to was Babbette. That knowledge added fuel to my fire and kicked my pace up again.

  “Scott,” Sally called out. “Slow down.”

  I couldn’t. Not with the images my imagination looped in my conscience. Every worst-case scenario played out to a bitter, horrific conclusion. In the end, each scene wound up a blood bath with Babbette on the losing side.

  My feet hit the landing and I took off at a sprint. I could no longer hear Sally behind me, thanks to my speeding heart and gagging breath. The race-pace paid off. I managed to catch a glimpse of a dim light spilling through a closing door.

  I motioned for Sally to catch up. By the time my feet were planted in front of the door, she was standing beside me, gasping for breath.

  From behind the door, I heard a scuffle and voices.

  “What are you doing in here?” The voice of Babbette.

  Skorsdan replied, “I think you know why.”

  “No, I don’t. You need to leave, immediately.” Babbette spat.

  “If you’re not out of here in thirty seconds,” Timely chimed in.

  A muffled cry spilled from
behind the door, followed by a crash.

  “Get out, now, Skorsdan,” Babbette shouted.

  A scream was the last thing I heard before my hand had the door open and my feet had me face-to-face with my enemy. The room was dark; all I could make out were shadows. It was enough.

  Skorsdan released a maddening laughed. “Well, look what the garbage engineer forgot to pick up from the curb.”

  “What are you doing in here, Skorsdan?” I spat.

  “It can speak and it knows my name.”

  I stepped between Skorsdan and Babbette.

  “You don’t want to go there with me.” Skorsdan’s voice was a deep, throaty threat. “Or…maybe you do. Yes, you do, don’t you? That’s the very reason you arrived here – to play the hero. Scotty Human drops in from the heavens to save the poor helpless Babbette from the devilish Skorsdan. Was that your well thought-out plan?”

  Skorsdan’s hand shot out and grabbed me by the jacket. Strength poured from his arms as he lifted me from the ground without so much as a grunt.

  “I have no qualms tearing the flesh from your bones and devouring it at my breakfast table. I’m not like the other ‘Kind. I haven’t tucked my tail between my legs and promised to hide behind a mask and make nicey-nice with the human race. You make me sick. Your smell, your sight, your sound; every part of you makes every part of me sick. And now, you’re here getting in the way of something that has to be done.”

  A menacing glow filled the whites of Skorsdan’s eyes. “Whatever am I to do?”

  Before I could answer Skorsdan’s question, the room was bathed in perfect, white, light. Sun spots momentarily corrupted my vision. When sight finally returned to me, what I saw made me wish the light was still a solid sheet of black.

  Everyone in the room, save myself and Sally, were wearing their monstrous masks from the ball.

  As soon as Babbette’s eyes caught mine, she turned away and hid her face.

  Her face.

  The masks.

  The image in the puzzle was forming; Babbette removing her mask and hanging it on a peg in a room on the basement floor. I’d had it all wrong.

  “I can see the answers to so many questions, falling into place. It’s written all over your eyes, cheeks, and lips. What are these people, these creatures? Are they human? They can’t be. What then, are they?”