Teddy stared down at the dying creature with dismay. Its maggoty arms wiggled about like a fish out of water. As if its mouth represented its lungs taking its last breath, the teeth came together one last time, leaving the hideous beast smiling even in death.
“Obos,” Greg breathed out, also looking down at the creature.
“What?”
When Greg looked back up at Teddy, what he saw wasn’t a killer. Wasn’t someone that could pull a knife on his own big sister. He saw a young man full of life, hope, fear and confusion. He saw innocence. With a face like that, there was no way Teddy really knew what was going on. He just couldn’t.
They locked eyes.
“Look, Teddy,” Greg said, his voice soft and low. “I’ve been running for my life all freaking night long. And half the stuff I’m about to tell you; I don’t care if you don’t believe me, because it’s true, and that’s all there is to it. Okay?”
Teddy nodded, grimacing. He grabbed at his bleeding leg. “Well, can we talk it over while sitting down?”
“Yeah, man.” Greg laughed, happy to see the policeman smiling. It made him feel a lot better about their potential to survive. He patted Teddy on the shoulder and smiled. “Sure thing, dude. Let’s go in the other room. I don’t know about you, but the kitchen smells like shit.”
They made their way out of the hurricane of devastation that was the kitchen. With the double doors swinging at their backs, Greg helped Teddy take a seat at one of the restaurant booths. They sat there in silence for a while, the front door to the restaurant still open, the remnants of Ms. Chan a heaping pile of sludge in the doorway.
“Is there any reason why you ain’t wearing any pants?” Teddy asked.
“Yeah, about that,” Greg laughed. “But first, let’s take a look at your leg.”
Teddy pulled up his pants leg, grabbed a stack of napkins from the table and dabbed the wound.
“Just grazed it,” Teddy said. “Tore the skin a little, but I’ll be fine.”
Greg had to admit, he was surprised at how calm Teddy was right now. Hell, he was even surprised at how calm even he was being. There was a dead man in the kitchen. A pile of a woman in the doorway. The restaurant smelled like it had been to hell and back and Teddy was shot, for crying out loud. And that was exactly what he did.
Greg admitted everything.
As calmly as he could, he told Teddy about everything from the crash up until right now. After all of that, he went back and explained more elaborately the dream vision he had in the clinic. He told Teddy about the fact that he had watched Teddy kill his own sister. And he was shocked at how well the young cop was taking everything. If Greg were in Teddy’s shoes, he would lock himself up for being a lunatic and throw away the key. Everything he was saying sounded hysterical and he knew it. He did have proof though. The creature on the floor in the kitchen was enough. What shocked him even more than all of that was how well Teddy took all of the allegations against his father and old man Doc Minders. As if he had already known something was up, he just sat back and occasionally nodding as Greg told his story.
“I thought my old man was gettin’ into some shit, but you can’t be serious.”
“What do you mean, you knew about all this?” Greg breathed.
“Well, no, nothin’ like this,” Teddy said, tearing his pants leg, then tying the loose fabric around his wound. “A lot’s changed around here, ever since my mom disappeared.”
“Yeah, your sister was telling me about your mom. She said your mom wasn’t the only person who has disappeared. But, your didn’t disappear, I thought.”
“Yeah, no one has actually disappeared. My mom died,” Teddy sighed. “I miss her a lot.”
“You know, Teddy, I have to admit that you are being a lot cooler about this than I expected.”
“Tell me about it. This is some crazy sci-fi shit,” Teddy chuckled. “And you said this book you found can tell us more about these creatures and this portal thing?”
“Yeah, but does that really matter at this point?” Greg questioned. “We’ve got what will kill ‘em. The salt. It’ll take ‘em down!”
The way Teddy just chuckled, asking about the book again made Greg cautious. He was being a bit too calm about it all. Greg was wondering if maybe Teddy wasn’t the right person to trust. Maybe he was just playing along to gain Greg’s trust. That would make sense. He was the one holding the dagger in the dream. Now, how calm he was being just starting giving Greg the creeps.
“Yeah, but where are we gonna get a bunch a salt from?” Teddy asked, the excited young boy Greg knew coming back to the surface. “And what if that ain’t all we need for this Obos, guy?”
Greg grinned, doing his best to hide his suspicions. Teddy was being hard to read.
Whose team are you really on, Teddy?
Greg leaned back in his seat trying to get a better read on Teddy. His demeanor at moments was the Teddy that he knew, but just as fast, it was almost devilish. It was in his eyes and the way he swayed uncomfortably in his seat. Greg breathed deeply and slowly. Just sitting here with Teddy, having seen him kill Peggy Ann in his dream, was making him sick to his stomach. Had he not already thrown up everything in the kitchen, he would probably throw up now. He slowed his breathing to calm his nerves while listening to Teddy and watching him fidget in his seat. Then Greg thought about it.
Of course, he’s being fidgety. You freaking shot him in the leg, dude, Greg thought, laughing out loud.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing, man. Let’s go get that book and save your sister. I have a Bible verse I need to look at anyway.”
When Greg got up leading the way back toward the kitchen, he could feel Teddy limping close behind. He felt bad for shooting him, and had the gun not run out of bullets, he’d be dead. Greg was glad for that.
Then, in his peripheral, Greg saw Teddy stumble forward, tripping on his bad leg. Only he wasn’t tripping. He lashed forward with a blunt object. Having been struck hard on the head for the third time in the last two days, Greg watched as the floor under his feet rushed forward toward his face.
Chapter 15
When Greg regained consciousness, he found himself slouched in the backseat of Teddy’s patrol car. His hands were once again cuffed, this time to each other rather than a bed post. He looked up to see Teddy at the wheel and the car was in motion. They weren’t going fast and when Greg looked out the window, it appeared they were still on Main Street near the restaurant. His head ached, the lump on the back of his head was sore to the touch. He sat up, shifting in his seat. He saw Teddy looking back at him through the rearview mirror. Their gaze met between the glass security window that separated the front of the cruiser from the detainee. Greg had been a detainee a time or two before in his life. It came with the territory of true punk rock. But back then he’d been much younger. Wilder. He’d had the nearly two foot high green Mohawk to prove it then. Now in his early thirties, all he had was the receding hairline and the memories. As much as being in the back of the police car felt nostalgic, now wasn’t the time to relive former glory days. Teddy and the rest of this God forsaken town had lost their ever-loving minds.
“What the hell, Teddy?” Greg pounded his bound fists against the glass divider.
Teddy wasn’t having it. He took his eyes away from Greg in the rearview mirror and focused on the road, a harsh grimace misshaping his face.
“Where are you taking me?” Greg sank deep into the backseat, the cruiser idly rolled down the street. He took a deep breath and then sighed. Still, deep in his heart, he believed in Teddy. The Teddy he was growing close to. The outgoing, over the top, zealous young man with eager potential and not this cold-hearted man driven by some cult-like paranoia and disillusionment. It was the young officer’s dad; the Sheriff. He was doing this. Making Teddy this way. It was all over his face. Teddy didn’t want to be this way. Didn’t want to do these things.
Greg rethought his strategy on how to reach the real Tedd
y he knew was trapped inside. He tapped on the glass, and softened his voice.
“Teddy . . . Why are you doing this, man? This isn’t you. I know it isn’t you. You’re above all this. We can beat this thing together. Really, we can. Think of your family. Your sister.”
Silence was Greg’s only answer. Rolling up to a stop sign, Teddy’s foot on the brake, the patrol car eased to a stop at the four-way intersection. Greg could only hear his own steady breathing over the idling engine. He couldn’t help but wonder what was going through Teddy’s mind. Tension began to build between them, the thickness from Teddy’s silence growing ever more prevalent.
Teddy reached over and lowered his window, then let his arm hang down over the edge. Greg was unable to feel the cool night air because of the security window. Still, he could sense that it was there and longed for the freedom it offered. He imagined the back door to the patrol car pulling open and Teddy telling him he was free to go. It was then that he would jump out and sling off the cuffs. Then he would only run. Run till he couldn’t run anymore. Run till he was back home tucked safely beneath his bedroom blanket back in Monroe. And just when he was questioning if it were even possible to run that far without stopping, Teddy spoke up, pulling Greg from his meager hopes.
“You don’t understand.” Teddy’s voice was far away, sounding regretful and muffled by the glass divider. “You’ll never understand.”
Greg strained to listen, but Teddy fell silent again.
“Well, I’m willing to try,” Greg said, hoping his sympathy would shine through. “You’ve just got to give me a chance, man.”
Teddy fell silent once more. Greg wasn’t sure what would happen next. He could only assume that they were on the way to the church or headed out to meet Teddy’s father where he would turn Greg in. Greg grimaced, his imagination getting the best of him. The idea of the Sheriff and those things having their way with him wasn’t something he was looking forward to at all.
“Please, Teddy, I’m your friend. It’s me, Greg Teeter, remember?” he said, using his rock status and some The Swindlers lyrics on a last limb of hope. “Punk goes deeper than music, man. You know that. I can see it in you, dude. We’ve got to stick together to beat this thing. Be above the system. Take down the man. Rebuild the dream. Come on.”
Greg waited silently for a while after that.
“You really think so?”
“Yes, of course.”
Truth was, Greg didn’t know what to think. Think that Teddy was a freaking cult leading lunatic, his dad the master mind, old man Doc the brains, or that Teddy really did have punk at heart. He didn’t know. He just wanted out of the damn car so that he could start running. Running as fast and as far as possible.
“I hate ‘im.” Teddy pounded a fist into the steering wheel like Greg had done some many times before.
“Who, Teddy? Who?” Greg asked, hopeful. Teddy was opening up. “Spit it out. You can trust me.”
“My dad. How could he have let it go this far? I just never would a thought it to go…” Teddy began to weep.
Greg sat and let the muffled cries finish the story. Greg grew anxious. The middle of a four-way street wasn’t the place to be having an emotional breakdown. Someone was going to see them at any moment. And knowing Greg’s luck, it would be the wrong person or persons. You know the ones. The ones with invaders from another realm riding on their backs like bridled horses. As Teddy’s cries began to settle, Greg scanned the street around them anticipating unwanted company at any moment. For now, Main Street was quiet and the darkness revealed no one.
“I went along with it for a long time,” Teddy sniffled and wiped his eyes. “I miss her too. But this; all of this is just too much.”
“Yeah?” Greg said, urging Teddy to continue, growing even more uncomfortable about their current location. He scanned the darkness again.
There was nothing. Only the closed and condemned shops of Main Street.
Then Teddy spilled it all out. As if a rushing flood that had been held back, the dam broke, gushing forth from his lips.
“I never expected it to go this far. I just didn’t. It was all Doc’s idea. If it weren’t for Dr. Minders, none of this would have ever happened. He’s the one that put my dad up to all this. At first, I didn’t think it could be done, but when they actually did it…actually opened up that portal, I guess I had my hopes.”
“Didn’t think what could happen, Teddy? The portal?”
“No, although opening that portal was what made me go along. It was always about my mother. It has always been about her.”
“How, Teddy? I don’t understand.”
“It all started when she passed away. That was when my dad started to change. Started becoming somethin’ else. He was mean, cold hearted and quick to anger after that. I figured it was a phase or somethin’ that he would grow out of it in time. Losing a loved one is hard. I know. It was hard on me and Peggy Ann. But my dad, he was the one who took it the hardest. When he didn’t start gettin’ any better, that was when he started seein’ old man Doc. All the house visits, the trips to the clinic, I thought they were helpin’im. I was wrong. Doc was filling my dad’s head with nonsense. Hell,” Teddy laughed, locking gazes with Greg in the rearview mirror, “I guess in time anyone can be talked into believin’ just about anything under the right circumstances.”
“Well, if he wasn’t helping your dad to cope with the loss, then what was he doing?”
“At first, that’s what I thought they were doin’. My dad seemed to be gettin’ better. His temperament was still a little high, but it was gettin’ better. It really was. It wasn’t until my dad started turnin’ violent toward me and Peggy Ann that I felt like somethin’ was wrong. Probably about six months ago, I followed my old man to Doc’s clinic and managed to sneak in undetected.”
“What happened?” Greg asked, feeling the suspense build.
“They caught me. That’s what happened. That stupid house is so old, just like all the others, and the stupid floor boards groaned under my weight givin’ me away.” Teddy stared out his open window for a second, reached up to adjust his side mirror, and then continued. “But that’s just it. I didn’t get scolded like I thought I would. No, much worse. They brought me up to date on what the hell was goin’ on. Old man Doc Minders or Gil or whatever the hell most people call ’im, because he’s a doctor and whatnot, he’s into studyin’ new things. Chemicals. Plants. Effects of behavioral patterns on patients when induced with this and that. Some weird shit. Anyway, back in the early 80’s, before I was even born, he stumbled upon some type of folklore.”
“Obos,” Greg interrupted.
“Yes. Exactly,” Teddy confirmed. “Had I known Doc was all whacked out in the head, I would’ve kept my dad from ever seekin’ the man’s help.”
“But you had him help me just the other day.”
“That’s different. Broken bones and stuff are the man’s specialty. Not mental therapy. He messed my dad’s head up somethin’ bad. Filled it with a bunch of false hopes. Besides, what else was I supposed to do with you that night? You were pretty banged up, dude.”
“That’s true, but what about the medicine he gave me? From what I can tell, I shouldn’t have been taking it.”
“That’s true and I’m sorry about that. They felt like you were gonna be trouble, start snooping around. So they gave you pain meds three times stronger than the dosage you really needed. Doc thought it would keep you comatose until the ceremony was over. Keep you out of their way. When things started to get out of hand with you and you escaped the clinic, it was my job to find you and take you back.”
“Come on, I was in a punk band. My body is immune to that kind of crap. You know how many drugs I’ve done in my day?”
“No,” Teddy grinned, his sorrow subsiding. “I guess Doc didn’t account for that.”
“I guess not,” Greg laughed. “So there wasn’t anything in those pills that would kill me, was there?”
“Nah, I
don’t think so.”
Greg nodded, relief causing his shoulders to slacken. “Good, so what the hell is this ceremony crap and when was this portal thing opened?”
“That’s just it. I didn’t think it was real or that it could really happen. I was just going along with it in hopes that it would help my dad cope with everything. But when they actually did it, actually opened the portal, that was when everything changed. I was a believer. The same was true for Peggy Ann. We really were gonna get a chance to see my momma again. She was really gonna come back to us. Doc said if we opened this portal and let this Obos guy out, we could get my mom back. Doc could get his wife back, too. At first, a lot of the locals were scared and rebelled against the idea. But that ended quickly. Doc offered that everyone could see their loved ones return if they participated, so they did. Over time, the longer that portal has stayed open, the worse things got.”
“Like how?” Greg asked, already knowing the answer. He just wanted to hear it come from Teddy’s mouth. He felt like maybe the kid needed to let it out. “What happened?”
“People started goin’ missin’. Lots of people. The more I patrolled the more piles of pus and remains we started to find in the streets and alleys. Like the pile at the restaurant that you said is Ms. Chan.”
“And you didn’t tell anybody?”
“That’s just it. I did. My dad and the doctor couldn’t care less. They were so wrapped around the goal that they ignored all the warnin’ signs.”
“And your sister?” Greg asked, swallowing hard.
“She ignored me too, but for another reason entirely. She simply just didn’t believe me. She thought I was bein’ young and naive. I didn’t blame her. Hell, I didn’t want to believe it either. After that, more and more homeless people started to show up. It was like people were bein’ sucked into the town by the portal or somethin’. I don’t know. But that’s all I can think to explain it. Hell, you’re here. Then even those people who started showing up, they started disappearin’. You got sucked in too, you just don’t realize it.”
Hitchers Page 17