“I know Betty, there are creatures out there to fear. Sometimes it’s better to walk away. I understand if you and your family move on, but I am going to try to find out what’s gone on here. If I can, I will bring an end to it.”
“Colt, are you telling me to get my family out of here?”
“It could come to that Betty, but let’s see how it goes for a while. I will be doing more research today. I’m eager to meet Mr. Potter.” Betty went about her daily routine. Harris had the boys in the garden, just trying to find something to keep himself occupied. He was getting on Betty’s nerves being around the house. She loved him but he could get underfoot at times. Colt pulled up some history of the town. There was just not much about Sunset, Kentucky. He looked into the Adderley history and did not find much. Then, he got a call on his cell. It was Shawna. “Hello,”
“Colt, this is Shawna. I only have a minute or two. Colt, don’t come back to Triple Deuces, okay. Please stay away.”
“Shawna, are you okay?”
"No, I’m not, Potter is coming back this evening."
“Okay, listen can you call me when you get off work?”
“No, I better not, I have to go, bye.” Shawna got off the phone. Colt got up and headed for the door.
“Betty, where is Harrison?
“He is in the garden with the boys. Why? Something wrong?”
"No, I just want to see if he could take a ride with me to do some research."
“Okay, you take care of him, Colt.”
"Will do Betty, will do." Colt was stepping out the door when Sarah came into the room.
“Talk to Miss Toppings Colt, she can help.” Colt kept going but he would look for this Miss Toppings. He walked to the garden.
“Harris, let’s take a ride.”
"Okay, my truck or your Lincoln?"
“Let’s go in your truck, I want to go over to Potter’s. We need to talk.” They got in Harris’s truck and drove over to Potter’s.
"Drive out to the barn." I was over here earlier. I went to the edge of the field. I killed something out there."
“What was it?”
“I think it was a shifter, a Shapeshifter. They can mimic any human or animal, living or dead. It tried to grab me and pull me down in the hollow out there. I shot it twice, and it fell over in the brush.”
“Why did you go out there alone?”
“Harris, from the moment I got here, and we came over here, it’s been nagging me. An urge to go out there. I want you to look around here. I did not see the crates you talked about.”
“They are gone, looks like all of them are gone.”
“I found out a few minutes ago that Potter will be back this evening. Harris, don't tell him why I am here. Let’s see how he acts.”
"Okay, I want to go in there see how much he took out of the barn."
"Let's stay out of there, for now. When I was out at the edge, I got a flash about that barn. I think the bartender at Triple Deuces murdered three men and threw their bodies down the shaft in the barn. Do you know him?”
“I never been in there, Colt. I have never seen him.”
"I had coffee in there this morning. I talked to a waitress, a girl named Shawna. She told me that Potter owns almost everything in this town. She rents from him. Everybody does, I think. Harris, did you realize that he owned this town?"
“No, Colt, I did not ask. He has been a friend to me, and he was just as shaken up by what we found as I was.”
"Well, he was not too shaky to get those crates loaded and slip out of town. I will figure him out."
“So, now what?”
“I have pulled up Toppings. According to this map, they are on the other side of Potter’s place. Let’s go talk to Miss toppings.”
The Dark Woods
Harris and Colt followed an online map that Colt found to try to find the Toppings farm. They had to go around Potter’s place. They followed the map, but found themselves driving up a deep, dark hollow. They were on what they thought was the driveway for two miles, had met no other cars and had not seen anyone else. “Colt, are you sure this is right.?” Harris asked.
“This is right Harris, it’s not that much further. I want to talk to you about something. It's about Sarah. I have not mentioned to you that Sarah, Harris, Sarah has psychic ability. When Betty called me, when she mentioned Sarah, I had a flash in my mind. Sarah's face and the zip code where you live. She and I can communicate without speaking to each other. We have only spoken silently to each other a few times, but it's time for you to know. When I was coming to get you this morning. Sarah said to me, Miss Toppings can help. She spoke to me this morning, but she does not always speak out loud to me.”
“Colt, what are we up against? Is this a fight we can win, or is it far beyond anything we can handle?”
“Harris, I have flashes, and I see parts of the past that have nothing to do with you. I have not been here long enough to have answers for you. I can tell you that Potter’s barn, and that tiny town, has a bloody past. If I were in his presence, I could tell you more about him. I feel like this Toppings woman can tell me more of the history of Potter’s place and fill in the blank spaces left by Forsyth’s letter.”
“Is the Adderley place haunted? Is there a monster in that hollow?”
"I need to get close to the Adderley place, but I can tell you for sure Potter's place, and that barn have stains. And yes there is something in those woods. The more history I can find out, the better. Harris, I intend to go to the old Adderley place, and I intend to go down in the hollow. I, at this point, believe that your friend Potter, is a treasure hunter, and he bought that old place looking for hidden silver. I don’t know his intent. That's what I hope to learn. There is nothing wrong with searching for treasure, but if he knows he is putting you and your family in danger, then he is no friend."
They continued up the dark hollow, still no sign of a house and had yet to meet a single car.
“Colt, what could Sarah have to do with any of this? She’s a baby. That creature you killed tried to lure Tommy and Dana to go fishing with it. Is something after my boys?”
“I think it’s after any human it can devour. I sense its old and dark presence. The shifter may have been serving it. The shifter may have been after your boys and Sarah for different reasons. Harris, there may be more of the shifters.” Finally, they came to an opening and a huge green field. They saw a sign, “The Toppings Farm.” The house was beautiful, the lawn perfect Rose gardens, fountains, a fence surrounding the house and not a twig of grass out of place. Several tables set on the porch, with beautiful bouquets of flowers. They both thought it must take a crew of men to keep this place like this. They had not seen a single person. “Harris, let me do most of the talking, okay.”
“Sure, it feels strange here, ask your questions and let’s get out of here.”
“I will make it as fast as possible. Fill your mind with thoughts of Sarah and your family and how much you love them. Don't be afraid.” Colt stepped up the steps and across the front porch and knocked on the door. No one answered. He knocked a little louder. A tall, shapely blonde woman came to the door. She opened it,
"Can I help you, boys?"
Colt said “Yes, I was looking for miss Toppings.”
“I’m Miss Toppings handsome, what brings you to this place?” She was beautiful and looked to be maybe 40. Colt was expecting a woman 75 years old.
“I am looking for a Miss Annette Toppings.”
“You found her. Have a seat at one of the tables, and I am going to get some tea. I make the most wonderful tea you must have some.”
“She is beautiful.” Said Harris.
“Yes, I know,”
“Okay boys have a glass of my tea.” She poured them a glass of tea, then she sat down at the table between them. “My, oh my, two big, strong, handsome men came to see me, sip my tea.”
“Miss Toppings, I have some questions about some land that borders yours. It used to be the A
dderley place.”
“Please call me Annie, what about the Adderley place?”
“Well, a friend of ours, Mr. Potter, owns it now, and he found a letter in his barn. I wondered, could you help us understand it?” Asked Colt.
“You have never met Fred Potter handsome, and I am not interested in letters. I will tell you what I know about that place. What happens next, is up to you. The Adderley place, included Potter’s place, at one time, 3200 acres. People warned them about those dark woods. They ignored everyone and mined silver. When they hit their first vein, they had only been mining for a few weeks. That was in 1946. They started another shaft, which is under Potter’s barn. They hit there within a few weeks.
Jared Forsythe was their engineer. He was no engineer he was a fool. Bryce Adderley got it in his head to connect the shafts with a tunnel. He spent 10 years, and most of their fortune, digging and shoring up a tunnel. They knew nothing about what they were doing. They were arrogant, not thankful, for their good fortune. It was 1957 when the tunnel caved in, the entire side gave way. A massive underground cavern of water instantly gushed into the tunnel. Many miners died under the wall and debris, many others drowned. The water that filled the tunnel brought something with it. It was something ravenous. It devoured every man it could. My brother was one of five miners that got out of that tunnel.”
“Is your brother here?” asked Colt
“My brother has been missing since 1978. Robert bought the old Adderley place. He owned what Potter owns now. Robert had too much courage for his own good. Bobby was not a good man he ran with mobsters. They did not save him. He was no coward, he answered its call. He wanted to avenge all those lost miners, he wanted justice. If either of you thinks you’re a better man than Bobby, then use the old road. When Bryce Adderley built their house, they had to build an old road around the dark woods. You might find what you’re looking for blue eyes.
The beast still wallows there in a pit, waiting to devour any man or animal that answers its call. The only way to quiet its calling, is to kill it and lift the curse of the dark woods. If you love your family Harrison Blackstone, and precious little Sarah, take them away from here. Let the thrill seekers, treasure hunters and the monster slayers meet their destiny. The greed, hubris, and arrogance of men are waiting for you in the dark woods, Colt Justice.
Beautiful, shiny, white knight, so brave with all your silver, sometimes justice is swift my dear. And death is final. Bold prince perhaps this time it’s best to leave this matter be.” Annette got up and went inside. Harris and Colt got in Harris’s truck, neither of them looked back at the Toppings farm. They drove out of that hollow as quickly as they could. They never saw another car, or spoke to each other, until they got back to the main road.
“Well, I guess you got your answers Colt, but that was a strange place.” said Harris.
"Yes, it is my friend, the old road, the old road."
“Potter may be back when we get home.”
“Good, I want to meet him, I have many questions for him.”
The Old Road
Colt and Harris drove straight to Potter's place he was already home. They pulled up and parked. "Don't tell him I am here examining paranormal events," Colt said.
"Okay, I won't say anything." They got out, and Harris knocked on Fred's door. Fred came to the door.
"Hello Harrison, good to see you."
“Hello Fred, I was hoping you would be back. Is everything okay?”
“Oh, yes, everything is fine, who is your friend?”
"I'm Colt Justice, a pleasure to meet you."
“Well, you boys come on in, let’s have some coffee. I am glad you’re here Harris, we need to talk. I know you thought I ran out on you, but I had business that could not wait.” Colt and Harris stepped in the door and went over and sat down at Fred’s kitchen table. So far, Colt did not sense anything negative, or odd, about Fred. Fred set three cups down on the table and a pot of coffee. He poured them each a cup. “Harrison, I know that damn letter shook you up. Well, it shook me up too. If the letter was all there was, I would not worry, but I been down in that hollow, and you don't want to be there. I loaded up some of those old crates. I planned to have them auctioned off. We found stuff I would not have dreamed of, including a flamethrower and a cannon. The other stuff included a replacement hoist for that shaft, mining tools, and some dynamite. We are lucky you did not have that dozer on top of that.”
"Mr. Potter, was the letter the first time you heard of a silver mine on your property?"
“You can call me Fred, Colt. No, I heard stories as soon as I moved here. I had not been here long before I ventured down in that hollow. They all say it's cursed and there is something down there in a pit. The pit used to be a pond. They say it devours any man or beast that crosses its path.”
“Fred, I have psychic abilities. I am a paranormal investigator. I am here to help Harris and his family.”
Fred grinned, “Well, I’ve been trying to figure out how to tell Harris that I visited a psychic as well. I took some of the stuff out of one of the crates and found some pictures and belongings of the Adderley’s. This woman told me until someone kills that beast, the woods would always be dark. She said they were dark before it ever happened, and that evil took over that creature.”
“That sounds almost exactly like what Miss Toppings told us,” said Harris.
"Miss Toppings? Harris, I did not know she was still living. She has to be up in years."
“I am not sure she was living, Fred,” said Colt.
“Boys, what I know is whoever goes around the Adderley’s old place, or down around those dark woods, you never hear from again. I am thinking of selling this place and moving to Florida. You interested Harrison?”
“Fred, I don’t have any money, except what work I have done for you.”
“I understand, I have holdings in this town, several rental properties. If you took those over, you would have an income. Colt, what do you think of all this?”
“I am not interested in buying land, but I do want to go down there and see what’s in that bottom.”
“I want to do the same but I worry for Harrison. You have a family Harris, and you need to protect them. I’ll let you have the house. We will tear that barn down and burn it. Don’t worry about saving the lumber. Take the dozer and push it up into a pile to burn.”
“Let me have your house? I am not sure I want to stay anywhere around here. Betty wants to leave and never look back.”
“The old road, miss Toppings said to use the old road. Where is it?”
"You go out to the edge of the fields and then you stay along the top of the hill. You will come to the woods in about a mile. Then you can see the old trail, we could take the dozer and drive it down that old trail. I have been in sight of the trail, but not on it. When you get there, Colt, you are less than half a mile from Adderley's old place.
“So, if we drive that dozer less than a mile, we will be at Adderley’s old place?”
“Less than half a mile, that’s after we reach the old road.”
"Miss Toppings said that you may find what you're looking for. Colt, I want to ask you a question. What if we took the dozer down there and blocked that road, or we destroyed that road? Then, we stay away from those woods and mind our own business, like Betty wants to do. Would that be so bad?"
“Harris, that would leave it down there to devour the next person who happened along.” Said Colt.
“Who is going to be down there? It’s not a city street?”
“It’s my property. When I bought it, I bought everything that’s down there. I am going to go down there and claim what’s mine.”
"Fred, you're looking for treasure, I hope you find it, but I am not part of this. I think it's time for me to get my family packed up and find a peaceful place to live." Harris said.
“I don't blame you. Harris, when you are ready, I will have what I owe you, and a bonus, ready. Get Mrs. Blackstone, the boys and Sar
ah to a safe place. I am going to give you $12,000 for the value of the wood in the barn. Don’t forget ole Fred, okay.”
“Potter, Harris is going home. Do you run that dozer? We can get down there before dark.”
“I can drive it down there, yes. Dark may not be the best time to be on that old road.”
“I need to go back to my car, drive back up here, then I am ready, if you are.”
“Colt, why tonight? Have dinner with us.” Fred’s cell phone beeped.
“Hello.”
“Mr. Potter, this is Shawna, please help me.”
“Shawna, honey, what can I do for you? “
He’s beating me, he won’t stop hitting me, I did not do anything.”
“Okay, honey, I am on my way!” Fred jumped up and went to his bedroom, grabbed his pistol, a 38. “Boys, I have trouble, one of my tenants, Shawna, has been living with the bartender up at Triple Deuces. He is a real piece of shit. I should have run him out of town. I don’t know how that man has lived to be 64 years and not gotten his head blown off. I have to get up there!”
“I’ll go with you Potter, I met Shawna. She served me coffee, and that bartender stared at me. I might be the reason he is beating her.”
"I could probably use you, he is not going to go down easy and may have a thug friend or two around. This could get rough, Colt."
“We will both go with you Fred and get that girl out of danger.” Said Harris.
“Okay, well, I won’t argue, I am just letting you know, it’s going to be a fight.” Harris and Colt jumped into Harris’ truck and Fred jumped into his. They followed Fred to the house Shawna was renting. She had managed to crawl outside. Rex Allen, 64 years old, over 300 pounds and a thug, stepped out the door and dragged Shawna back inside. Fred got out of his truck, walked up to the door, and knocked. Colt and Harris were both there behind him. “Get your ass out of here Potter,” Rex yelled.
“Rex, it’s time for you to go. Come on out here.”
“Come and get me, Fred.” Colt grabbed his 45. Harris grabbed his arm.
The Thing in the Pit Page 5