by James Rasile
“God? What’s god have anything to do with it?”
“Faith in destroying them witches. I have faith in god” she spoke with confidence. “God? God’s dead, died same time them witches came and feasted upon our lands.” This shook the woman; she was now growing uneasy of Jasper. “But the Bible says - ” Jasper was quick to cut her off, “The Bible can say whatever it wants to, once you come face to face with a witch…” once again he was getting heated. He stopped himself from continuing and cooled down. He gave the woman an assuring look, his eyes locked in on hers. She sipped her tea. “How about you?” He asked, “You ever kill a witch?” She shook her head, “Can’t say that I have, but I’d certainly like to.” The cowboy chuckled, “I bet you would.”
“Would love to burn them bitches at the stake for what they done to my boy.” Now the woman was growing angry. “What they done? Now, tell me lil miss, what have they done?” His demeanor was changing. Jasper no longer came across as calm and caring, he was cold. “I heard stories.” The woman spoke into her mug as she continued to sip her tea, it must have gone down the wrong pipe because she coughed a little. “And what do you know about killing a witch?” Jasper took a large swig of his whiskey. “I know you can burn ‘em, hang ‘em.” Jasper noticed her tea was almost all gone. Once again, the woman began coughing, her throat was growing coarser. “More tea?” The cowboy smiled as he asked. “No.” She barely got the word out between coughs. “You sure?” He egged her on, she nodded, “I am sure, very much so. Can you help me?”
“No.” Jasper stared at the woman dead in her eyes, never losing contact. “I can only help myself.” The woman’s cough grew worse and worse. “You see, you can’t burn a witch and you can’t hang a witch. If you want a witch dead, you gotta get them to drink holy water.” The woman’s eyes lit up. She was feeling her throat swell up, her body was steaming. Behind the cowboy laid the jar of sugar, and a jar of water. She focused on the jar of water and read the label holy water. Steam began to run off of her shoulders. Jasper smiled; he had an inkling this woman was not who she claimed to be. He knew almost all the residents of Terryville, and this stranger was no one he had ever come to meet.
The witch struggled. She tried to crawl towards Jasper. She was too weak, the holy water had been activated, her life was slowly coming to an end. Jasper stood erect “Another thing I don’t like about witches is their hubris. See, once you’ve looked into the eyes of one witch you’ve looked into the eyes of a thousand. When you’re dead, and you will be dead, I’m gonna head into them woods and kill every last one of y’all. Then I’m gonna find my boy.” He took a sip of his whiskey and watched as the witch in front of him became paralyzed and fell face first on the table, dead. Jasper waited a moment before walking over to the witch, good thing he did too, because with one last gasp of energy the witch rose from the table and shouted down to Jasper, “You will never find your boy!” She pointed directly at him, “His soul has been consumed by a thousand witches, feasted upon for fun and pleasure!” And with that last gasp her body dropped densely onto the table. Jasper picked up his shot gun and walked over to her. He leaned in and whispered into her ear, “Get out of my house.”
Jasper, wearing his plaid jacket, green vest, and a sharp new black cowboy hat, carried the corpse to his yard. He lit some matches and tossed them on top of the witch’s’ body. He watched the body burn as Father Michael pulled up in his old pick-up truck. He walked over to Jasper and watched the witch melt away. “They started early this year.”
“Every year, earlier and earlier.” Jasper said as he sipped his whiskey. “You ready to rid this town of their kind.” The Father asked. Jasper grabbed his shotgun and flung it over his shoulder, “Ready as I’ll ever fucking be, Father.”
Jasper and Father Michael hopped into the truck and drove off towards the eastern woods.
beWERE
It was three days until the Devil’s eye.
The moon was almost at its fullest as the clouds began to hover around yet never fully covering it from sight. Thirteen-year-old Evan Fletcher looked out his bedroom window at the night sky, then to his clock. Three minutes until midnight. He rushed over to his dresser, pulled open the top drawer and tossed some underwear and socks on the floor. He reached in the far back and pulled out an old diary. He blew the dust off and opened the book.
THREE YEARS AGO
Kristoff Aarle was a man in his late eighties with grey hair… what was left of his hair was grey, anyway. The top of his head was mostly bald. Daily you would see him wearing a knitted sweater vest, a white dress shirt underneath, and of course khakis with a pair of wingtip dress shoes. It was mid-October and he was taking his ten-year-old grandson out for a walk. Kristoff’s daughter, Evan’s father, lived next door to Kristoff, this was something he loved. He spent as much time with Evan as possible. The two were connected in more ways than his daughter would know. A great weight would be bestowed on his grandson. His thirteenth year would be a big one. But that was in the future, Kristoff preferred to live in the now.
They walked through the creek, and chased toads. They swung on the swings, competing to see who could get higher. Kristoff lost to his grandson on purpose. They laid on the grass and pointed out odd shaped clouds. It was just a normal day, but one they could never forget. On their way home from the walk Kristoff collapsed on the sidewalk. Evan in a fit of panic grabbed his grandfather’s cell phone and dialed 9-1-1.
That night Evan, with his mother and father sat in the hospital room. His grandfather had suffered a heart attack. Using his last bit of energy, Kristoff asked his daughter and son-in-law to get him a snack from the vending machine. He was not hungry but he needed to speak with his grandson alone. He waved at Evan, “Come closer. I don’t have much energy.” Evan was terrified at the thought of losing his grandfather. The boy slid his chair closer to the hospital bed. Kristoff reached to the night table and put his hand on a book. “Do you see this book, Evan?” Evan nodded, “This is yours now. This is the most important book you will ever read.” Evan reached for it, but Kristoff would not allow Evan to touch it. “You will not read this book. You will not open this book. You will keep it secret; you will keep it safe.” Even looked deep into his grandfather’s eyes, “For how long?” The child asked. Kristoff raised three fingers. “Three years. For three years, and only during the devil’s eye.” Kristoff coughed into his hand. “What’s the devil’s eye?” The child innocently asked. “On the twenty-ninth day, of the tenth month, of the eleventh hour, with only minutes to spare until the thirtieth day, the moon will shine its brightest, yet not be full. This is the devil’s eye.” Kristoff once again coughed into his hand. “Evan, you will come to learn, even at your young age, that this world is filled with much more than the likes of us. Creatures live among us. During the devil’s eye that is when you will open this book. Do not be afraid, do not be a coward. After tonight you will be the last living male of house Aarles, even if you are a Fletcher the Aarles bloodline flows within you. You are the last hope. Three years. Devil’s Eye. Open this book. All will be revealed.” Evan gripped his grandfather’s hand, “And Evan you must promise me to never tell your mother. Never. Only the men of house Aarles can open this book. The world is a cursed place, and it is our duty to protect mankind from the curse. Yet, the curse can never be broken by any means.” Evan wondered why, but before he could ask his grandfather closed his eyes one final time and drifted away to the afterlife. Evan cried out for his grandfather, he held him in his arms. He called for help. His mother and father entered, they dropped coffee, chips and chocolates all over the floor. Evan’s father raced out to get a nurse. The doctors, the nurses, the entire hospital staff did what they could to resuscitate Kristoff, but it was too late. Kristoff was gone.
NOW
Evan flipped open the diary. He read it cover to cover. When he was done, he took a step back and sat on his bed. He was in disbelief. His grandfather had kept so much from him. Evan slid his closet door open a
nd riffled through his belongings before finding the flashlight he so desperately needed. When he was six years old, they had lived on a farm. His father had given him a black light flashlight to help hunt for tomato worms at night. He could never know what he would end up needing such a flashlight for.
Being so late at night Evan tipped toed down the stairs. He couldn’t wake his parents, there was no alibi he could conjure up that would convince them to let him leave the house. But he needed to leave, the fate of the world depended on it. Maybe not the world, but the township definitely. He unlocked the front door and gently closed it behind him. Once he got past his front porch onto the suburban street, he took a sigh of relief.
As he walked down the street, he turned the flashlight on, a pair of large green ghostly eyes were staring back at him. Evan, not used to seeing eyes without a face, fell to the ground. He shut the flashlight off. You see, that diary was more than just a diary. More than just a book. It was more of an instruction manual. Not for a device, or piece of furniture. It was for defeating the evil of this world. Ghosts live amongst us, but for the most part they’re not our enemy. It’s the werewolves. The werewolves that hunt and feast on human flesh. And tonight, during the devil’s eye is the first of their three-day hunt for the year. As he learned in the book the devil’s eye, the gateway for the demons occurs once every three years. The first night of the devil’s eye is the beginning. The wolves have not yet taken their forms. But shinning a black light on them will reveal their true identity. By the time the moon is full on the third night they will take their form, and the feasting will begin.
Evan walked into a twenty-four-hour greasy spoon diner. The overnight waiter was a rotund fellow, his hair was black and frizzed, and is uniform was one size too small. As he was drying a coffee mug, he watched Evan enter and frantically looked around the diner. “Can I get ya something kid?” The waiter asked as he scratched his butt. Evan didn’t respond. “Kid, ain’t it past yer bedtime? Why don’t you go on home?” Evan continued to ignore the overweight employee as he scouted the diner’s patrons. None struck him as “Werewolf-like,” whatever that looked like. The fact was the only person to catch his eye was the waiter. Evan reached into his pocket and pulled out the black light. He walked up to the counter and turned the black light on right into the employee’s face. “Hey! What’re you doing, kid?” he angrily asked, his form remaining the same. Evan was still new to this and raced out of the diner.
He walked along the streets shining his light at unsuspecting night crawlers. As the night went on Evan grew more and more tired. His first night of the devil’s eye and he was coming up empty. Not only that, he was extremely tired and he didn’t know how long it would take him to walk home. So, he decided to cut his losses and call it a night.
That night Evan laid in his bed reading the diary. “The curse lives far beyond the sea, the curse occurs in years of three. The curse will not bend until the Luna’s life ends.” He was confused by the words in the book and closed it for the night.
The next day was the final day of school before Hallowe’en. The classrooms were decorated in playful horror. Fake blood and limbs hung from doorways. Jack-o-lanterns greeted every child as they entered their classroom. And of course, each child came dressed as their favourite, ghost, goblin or super hero. Evan arrived at school dressed as a mad scientist and even with all the chaotic frenzy of Hallowe’en surrounding him, he couldn’t help but continuously fall asleep at his desk. His best friend, and on this day a warlock, Colton flicked a piece of paper at his head. He woke up. “Dude, you’re sleeping. Teachers gonna get you in trouble.”
“Yeah, dingus.” His crush Allison, dressed as a vampire, laughed back. “Thanks.” Evan grabbed his notebook and pen then pretended to take notes. “What’re you so tired for anyway?” Allison asked, Evan didn’t reply. “C’mon man why are you so tired?” Evan remained silent, “Evan, man, what’s going on.” Colton continued to egg his friend on. “Are your parents divorcing?” Allison asked. Evan shot her a dirty look “What? No!” He did his best not to raise his voice. “Dude!” Colton grumbled. “If I tell you…I can’t tell you.” Evan wanted to tell his friends all about the diary and the werewolves, but he could not. “Tell us.” Allison said firmly and directly. “Fine,” Evan was only thirteen, he couldn’t resist! “I was up until three in the morning, OK!” Allison and Colton looked at each other in disbelief. “You’re a bad liar, Evan.” Allison said rolling her eyes. “Terrible” Colton added. “I’m not lying I was up until three. If you don’t believe me fine, but it’s the truth.” Allison once again looked at Colton, then back to Evan, “OK, sure. But, why?”
“Yeah, why?” Colton leaned in closer to Evan, Evan rolled his eyes at his friend. “I can’t tell you here. It’s not safe. Come over after school. I’ll tell you everything.”
And they did. The three of them, dressed in full Hallowe’en attire went to Evan’s after school. Evan’s mother asked if they would be staying for dinner, Evan answered “yes” for them. He closed his bedroom door behind him and slid a chair under the doorknob. He asked his friends to sit on the floor in front of his bed as he grabbed his diary. “This was my grandfathers. And his fathers before him. It gets passed down from male Aarles to male Aarles.” Allison was offended, “Why only the males?” Evan opened the diary, “I don’t know. Something about us being cursed or something.”
“So what’s in the book?” Colton interrupted. “You promise not to laugh?” he asked his two best friends. “Yeah, sure.” Allison was the first to answer, Colton nodded and mumbled yes. Evan knelt down on the floor next to his friends and opened the book. He went through it with them. Demons, ghosts, werewolves. All of it. He explained what the devil’s eye was and its significance. He told them how it was up to him to rid the town of werewolves.
Both Allison and Colton were in disbelief. Evan wasn’t sure how he could convince them; he also wasn’t sure if he should. “It’s gonna be dark soon…” Colton said as he looked out the window. “Maybe you could show us then?” Colton turned to Allison to see if she’d agree, she did. Evan still was unsure if he should bring his friends into his newfound world. Allison put her arms around him, “You can’t be saving the world on your own, Ev.” Evan grabbed his black light “Alright, let’s go wolf hunting.”
It was a gorgeous pink sunset that evening. The moon was nearly full and filling the sky. It was larger than the teenagers had ever seen it. They waited in the living room until the last beam of sunlight faded away. Evan readied his black light as Allison had a thought, “Question, and I don’t mean to be a Debbie downer about this, but what do we do if we see a werewolf?” It was an excellent question. They rushed back to Evan’s room. He tore open the diary and flipped through pages. He searched and searched for an answer until he saw “Silver.”
“Silver? Where are we gonna get silver?” Colton had a bad feeling about this. “Yeah, my Mom only wears gold. She’s allergic to silver.” Evan stated. A lightbulb went off in Allison’s head, “My Nanny’s attic.” The two boys turned their attention to Allison, but mostly in confusion, “She keeps all her old jewelry up there. I’m sure she has silver.”
The teenagers left the house quietly, hoping Evan’s parents wouldn’t notice. They walked around town as the sun began to set. On the corner, waiting for the lights at the intersection to change they noticed a small crowd of five people. Evan had an idea, though he didn’t have any luck the previous night finding wolves, he was hoping on the second night his luck would change. He, still dressed as a mad scientist, flashed his black light on the crowd. At first, they were baffled, but when they saw the lad dressed for Hallowe’en each member of the crowd figured he was playing the part of a mad scientist.
All but one.
He was an older gentleman, stubble on his chin, his eyebrow hair was shooting in every which direction, and his clothes were tattered and worn. Evan flashed the light on him. His fangs were revealed, his ears pointy, his nails sharp. Ev
an quickly extinguished the light and walked along, looking back at the man for quite some time. Hoping, praying he would not follow. Allison and Colton had to rush to catch up with Evan. “What’s wrong? Slow down.” Allison called out. Evan did not. Allison and Colton ran towards Evan. “I saw one.” He looked up at the evening sky. The sun was almost down. “Where’s your Nanny’s place?” Allison didn’t waste any time before running off, “Follow me!” She called out to the boys.
They reached Allison’s Nanny’s house just as the sun finally set on the town. Allison took her friends to the backyard. She climbed up on the fence and leaped over to a window. “She’s Batman.” Colton was in awe. Allison reached for an eaves trough and climbed up on the roof. She looked down at her friends below and waved them up. The boys looked at each other, neither wanting to be the first to do it. Finally, Evan mustered enough courage to follow his crush. He was surprised, it was much easier than he expected. Colton followed close behind and before they knew it, they were sneaking into the attic through a small circular window just above the garage. Allison told the boys to keep quiet as the old wooden floors would creak and they didn’t want to wake her Nanny up.
They headed to the far side of the attic. Under a dusty blue blanket sat a brown wooden chest. Looked like one out of a pirate movie, Evan thought. The chest was unlocked. As Allison lifted the lid the silver shone brightly in their faces. There was enough silver jewelry in there to wipeout every werewolf on the planet. Or so the friends thought. “Great,” Colton said, “we’ve got the silver but how do we weaponize it?” It was a valid question. “Doesn’t your dad have a body shop?” Allison asked Colton, “Yeah?” He was confused what that had to do with anything. “And doesn’t your uncle go bow and crossbow hunting?” Allison added. “Yeah, but…” Colton stopped talking as he soon realized what the plan was. “I don’t know about this, guys.” Allison got up, “You don’t have to know about anything. Just know that either we take a couple bows from him, or the world goes to shit. Your call.” And with that Allison left. Colton looked over at Evan who just gave him a sly smile.