by A.R. Wise
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The End Begins
March 12th, 2012
“Everyone,” said Stephen as he stood beside the van to greet the group. “This is Aubrey.”
The petite, young girl smiled at waved. She was even shorter than Rachel, and had dyed blonde hair that was tied up in ponytails on either side of her head. She had studs in both cheeks that sat perfectly within her dimples when she smiled. There were colorful tattoos that adorned her chest and arms, and she was wearing a frilled, black skirt that revealed nearly the full length of her pale legs.
“Aubrey’s from this area, and she’s going to tell us about some of the things she’s seen out in Widowsfield.”
“Are you coming with us?” asked Paul.
She held up a green bag that Alma assumed was packed with clothes. “Yep.”
“Do we have the room?” asked Paul.
“Well, I thought Alma could ride with you,” said Stephen. “And if she wants to be in the van, Aubrey said she’d be willing to ride on the bike with you.”
“No, that’s okay,” said Alma. “I’m fine riding with Paul.” There was no way she was going to let a cute little thing like Aubrey ride on Paul’s bike.
Paul must’ve sensed Alma’s thoughts because he snickered as he put his arm around her shoulder. “We’ll be fine on the bike. Good to meet you, Aubrey.”
“One other thing,” said Stephen before Alma and Paul walked off to where Paul’s motorcycle was parked. “Aubrey says the town is fenced up. It got bought by Cada E.I.B., so we might run into some security out there. We’ve got a plan if we do.”
Rachel came out of the hotel and walked past everyone. She went straight to Jacker’s van, which was parked in the roundabout outside of the hotel’s entrance, and got in. Her anger was apparent to everyone, but only Stephen seemed to know what was wrong. Alma thought about trying to talk to her new friend, but decided to wait until later to speak with her.
“Everyone ready?” asked Stephen. He seemed apologetic for his wife’s behavior, if not a little embarrassed.
“We’ll be right behind you,” said Paul as he headed for his motorcycle.
Once they were far enough away to avoid being heard, Alma turned to Paul and asked, “What was that about?”
He shrugged and then spit off to the side. “Hell if I know. Rachel looked pissed. They must’ve gotten in a fight or something.”
“I’ll have to try and talk to her later.”
“Or you could leave it be and let them sort out their own problems,” said Paul as he took Alma’s helmet off the handle of the bike and offered it to her.
She sneered as she took the helmet from him. “Don’t be an asshole.”
“Sorry,” he said as he put on his own helmet. “I just don’t think we know them well enough to get mixed up in their marriage.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.”
“Like always,” said Paul and he moved away as Alma tried to punch him on the arm. “So, are you ready for this? No turning back after today. You sure you want to go through with it?”
“For the hundredth time, yes.”
“All right, I just wanted to make sure.”
Alma looked back at the van as Paul got on the bike. “What do you think of the new girl?”
“I don’t know. Haven’t said more than a few words to her. Why?”
“Do you think she’s cute?” asked Alma.
Paul paused and hung his head low, fully aware of the trap Alma was setting for him. “I don’t know what you want me to say. I only have eyes for you, sweetie.” He looked at her and gave a goofy, toothy grin.
“I bet she has something to do with why Rachel’s so pissed off.”
“Oh yeah?” asked Paul, disinterested. “Well, I bet neither of us know the facts and shouldn’t speculate. That’s what I bet.”
Alma rolled her eyes and sighed as she got on the bike behind him. “Wow, did you have a special cup of dickhead-coffee this morning or something?”
“It did taste a little funny. Did you backwash into it?” asked Paul before he started the bike, muffling any response from Alma. She just slapped him on the back as he chuckled.
Widowsfield wasn’t far from Branson, but the trip felt like it took longer than it should have. The winding roads that cut through the Ozarks slowed their progress, but provided scenery that kept Alma’s mind off what they were headed out to do. Every time she thought about the cabin, her heartbeat quickened and her palms started to sweat.
“I’m coming for you, Ben.” Her whisper was lost in the noise of the road.
They passed a sign that had once read, ‘Widowsfield 10 Miles’ but had been riddled with buckshot. Each hole was rimmed with rust and the sign’s post had been bent backward, as if someone had run into it, perhaps in an attempt to further erase the town from history.
After the sign, the road descended. It was a precipitous decline, and one she remembered from her childhood. This hill always caused her stomach to lurch, which had become a sensation that she learned to despise. She even avoided carnival rides in fear of causing the same sensation and that it would remind her of Widowsfield.
The woods lay beyond, and Alma recalled the fog that had enveloped them sixteen years ago. She thought about her father as he screamed at her to be quiet. And she thought of the creatures in the woods, whose shapes were but shadows in the mist, running along side their car as they tried to escape.
Fear choked her and she felt her body start to shake. She struggled for breath and had to close her eyes as Paul drove down the hill and into the woods that preceded the border of Widowsfield. She tried to concentrate on the hum of the motor and the whistling wind, but her mind seemed determined to think of the creatures in the woods. Those hulking ghosts haunted her, crawling through the trees and reaching out toward the car as if trying to pull her out and into the mist with them.
Then she focused on the only thing that could quiet her fearful mind.
314.
She thought only of the number, and imagined it written in black ink on her arm. Her fear subsided as the number drew her in. Chaos Magick taught that symbols could be used as a focal point to assist in a person’s ability to shut out the world around them. For Alma, it was a journey along a razor’s edge. There was something wicked hidden in that number, and she wasn’t certain she wanted to know what it was.
She tried to come up with a different symbol that she could focus on, and the first thing that came to mind was the teddy bear keychain that Paul had bought for her. She could feel it in her coat pocket, pressed into her abdomen as she held onto Paul. For some reason, the thought of losing him occurred to her, and she held onto him tighter.
Paul slowed the motorcycle and Alma dared to open her eyes.
Jacker pulled off the road ahead and parked on the gravel shoulder. They were out of the woods, and Widowsfield was ahead of them. There was a tall, wire fence that stretched up over the hills to the right, and down into the cover of woods off to the left. It appeared like there was a guard shack and a gate further up the road, but they were too far away for Alma to be certain. The road went on for another couple hundred yards before being cut off by the fence, and there was a second road that turned off the one they were on. It went off to the right, up over the hills and around Widowsfield.
Stephen got out of the van’s side door and came over to speak with Paul and Alma. Aubrey followed behind him and Jacker got out as well. Rachel stayed in the van.
“Aubrey was right,” said Stephen. “There’s a guard shack up there.”
Paul and Alma got off the bike and tried to look at the fence that blocked their way.
“You okay, Alma?” asked Stephen. “You’re as white as a ghost.”
Paul looked back at her and took off his sunglasses. “He’s right. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” said Alma. “I guess I was just a little cold or something.”
“Want to ride in the van for a bit?” asked Stephen.
“No, I’ll be fine.”
“So what’s the plan?” asked Paul. “How are we going to get in if they’ve got it all fenced up?”
“That’s where Aubrey comes in,” said Stephen.
“My friends and I used to sneak in all the time,” said Aubrey. “There’s a small dirt road on the north side of town that used to belong to a farmer. It goes through his field, and into the town. They’ve got a gate up there, but I’ve never seen a guard.”
“And we can get the van in through there?” asked Paul.
“No, not yet,” said Stephen. “We’re going to have to leave the van and your bike in the field for now. We’ll head into town on foot, and find the cabin that you used to stay at,” he said as he looked at Alma. “Then tonight, after dark, we’ll come back out and use a bolt cutter on the gate’s lock. We can probably get away with driving the van with the headlights off, but we might have to push your bike in. We can’t risk the noise.”
“I don’t know,” said Paul. “This seems kind of risky. Are you even going to be able to use any of the footage you get in there? If it’s private property, can’t they sue you for airing anything you record?”
“You sound like my wife,” said Stephen. His tone revealed at least part of why Rachel was acting angry. They must’ve been arguing this same issue last night. “It’ll be fine. Anything that we film in the cabin could’ve been filmed anywhere. No way they can prove we went in the town, as long as we don’t get caught.”
“I don’t know, man,” said Paul. “This seems like a bad idea.”
“I never thought of you as the law-abiding type,” said Stephen. “Aren’t you up for a little adventure?”
“I’m not in this for adventure,” said Paul. “I’m in it to help Alma.” He looked down at her and asked, “What do you want to do?”
Alma looked down the road at the fence, and then back at the woods that they’d passed through. It felt like she’d already taken her first step into this nightmare, and if she soldiered on then she could put an end to this part of her life. “We’re already here,” she said. “Might as well get it over with. I say we go in.”
It was clear that Paul didn’t agree, but he stood beside her and nodded. “Then it’s settled, we’re going in.”
Stephen clapped his hands once and looked delighted. “Let’s go!” He didn’t bother prolonging the conversation, fully aware that once the customer was sold it was time to shut up and take the money. He ushered Jacker and Aubrey back to the van and within a minute they were back on the road.
They headed north and Alma looked out at the fence that had been erected around the town. It looked like a prison, with razor wire looped around the top of the outer fence, and a second barrier behind it. The road curved closer to the fence and Alma saw movement from within the town. There was a white truck with a yellow light bar on top driving through Widowsfield. She assumed it was a security patrol, which didn’t help ease her tension about their plan.
Soon they passed where the fence turned, and entered another wooded area. Aubrey was leading Jacker as the van turned off onto a dirt road that went up a slight incline. Once they crested the hill there was a wide field beyond. It was once a farm, but had been overgrown with tall weeds, though no trees had made their way into the acreage.
Jacker drove along what had once been a road, but was now barely a dimple in the weeds, and the van struggled through the overgrowth. Paul stayed back near the hill and watched the van push through the field. Alma heard him curse, but couldn’t discern what he was saying over the hum of his engine. He motioned for her to get off the bike, and when she did he turned it, drove off the path, and then parked in the wooded area. He turned off the engine and got off.
“What’s wrong?” asked Alma.
“This isn’t a dirt bike,” he said as he took off his helmet. “I’m not risking riding through this shit.”
“So we’re walking then?” asked Alma.
“I guess so.” He hung his helmet by its strap over his handlebar. Alma did the same with hers and then took his hand as they started down the hill.
“Thanks for doing this,” said Alma.
“Like I told you, you’re my girl. I’m not about to let you come out here with these yahoos by yourself.”
They held hands as they walked through the field. Alma enjoyed her time alone with Paul, and they talked about their plans after this was all over. Alma was excited to return to school, and set up her new music room. Paul was going to try to get a job at a motorcycle shop on the south side where a friend of his worked. They discussed their relationship, and laughed about how things had gone wrong for them in the past. Alma chided Paul on the way his apartment used to be so messy, and he promised that he didn’t live like a sloppy college kid anymore.
Geese flew above them, away from Widowsfield and to the north. Alma watched them go, somewhat envious. Despite how happy she was to be with Paul, there was a creeping dread that heightened with each step. No matter how much she tried to ignore it, she knew she was walking back into the worst moment of her life. Despite her desire to leave this behind, here she was, walking right back into hell.
Like summer fades to fall, and winter gives way to spring, this was inevitable. Alma Harper was willingly walking back into Widowsfield.
Her respite had ended.
314
PART THREE : THE COIL’S END