by J P Barnett
Macy had ridden to the game with friends and was probably out there somewhere in the crowd, maybe blowing kisses to Wes. Shandi tried to remember what it was like to be young and in love.
“Shandi! Sit by us!”
The voice came from Dub Higgins, still in his deputy’s uniform. Sitting beside him was a short, beautiful woman with long dark hair and chocolatey eyes. Unlike Shandi’s pale, freckled skin, Marie seemed to sport a smooth, permanent tan.
Shandi really didn’t want to sit with the Higgins family, so she quickly looked around for some other seat—for some other person she could use as an excuse. She needed someone who would play along. Her eyes searched the crowd before finally landing on her mark—Steve and Cory.
“You know, I would love to,” said Shandi. “but I promised Steve I’d sit with him and Cory. Raincheck?”
“Of course, dear,” Marie said, with a faint accent.
Shandi bounded up the stairs towards Steve. As she approached, she realized that he and Cory were sitting with someone else, an old schoolmate named Deirdre Valentine. Despite Deirdre having moved back to Rose Valley years ago, the two of them had strangely never run into each other. Certainly, the good doctor heretofore lacked the time to attend a Rose Valley football game.
Though still very much Deirdre, she looked underweight and extremely tired, and all of Shandi’s instincts told her that something more pressing than football now drained Deirdre’s energy.
Shandi muttered so only they could hear. “Play along.”
Steve immediately smiled. Cory stood up and hugged her. Deirdre looked confused.
“Thanks for coming. It’s so great to see you!” Cory oversold it, talking a bit too loudly.
“Hey, Shandi,” Steve said, playing it much cooler. “Have a seat. You remember Dee, right?”
Steve called her Dee, but Shandi had only ever called her Deirdre. Deirdre held out her hand and Shandi shook it. In high school, Deirdre had always managed to steal away Jake’s attention. But that had been years ago. Shandi felt silly for her lingering jealousy.
“Hey, Deirdre,” Shandi said, coolly. “Good to see you.”
“Likewise. I’ve been back for years now, and I realized what a shame it is that I don’t get out and spend time with old friends. It seemed like a football game was a great way to remedy that.” Deirdre’s initial grin grew into a wide, friendly smile.
No matter how the years had treated her, Deirdre still possessed Aphrodite-level beauty. It wasn’t fair that she also got an Einstein-level brain.
“I didn’t realize you and Steve were so close,” Shandi said, trying to bait out why Deirdre had chosen to reunite with this particular set of friends. Shandi didn’t remember Steve and Deirdre running in the same circles. Some of Deirdre’s closer friends had, in fact, never left. Had she fallen out with them? Why not sit with one of them?
Deirdre responded, “Well, you know time changes our perspective on things. I had hoped Jake would be here, but Steve says he stayed behind.”
Of course, Jake stayed behind. He hadn’t been to a football game since he’d been back, and if Deirdre were really any kind of friend, she’d know that. What angle was she playing here? Shandi decided she didn’t care—or rather, didn’t want to care.
Rather than fixate on the reappearance of Deirdre Valentine, Shandi chose to sink herself into her job. She took a seat beside Cory, fished out her notepad and took in the crowd, jotting down colorful notes that she could use for her coverage.
After a moment, she heard Steve say, “You should come over for dinner tomorrow. Jake will be there.”
Shandi looked up, excited at the chance to see Jake. Yet Steve’s eyes weren’t addressing her. They were on Deirdre.
Steve continued, “Might be good for you guys to see each other outside the clinic.”
Deirdre nodded and smiled. “That sounds awesome! I’d love to!”
To Shandi, that reply sounded exaggerated. Forced, even. But it was probably her own petty high school hangovers talking.
Cory chimed in. “Good idea. Now we don’t have to worry about Jake being awkward all night.”
Shandi chuckled. “Yeah. He can awkwardly fawn over Deirdre instead.”
The group fell quiet. Deirdre looked at Steve. Steve looked at Cory. Deirdre broke the unease with an uncharacteristic and forced waifish giggle. Shandi took refuge in her notepad.
A strange hush suddenly fell over the crowd. Faint screams and sharp gasps echoed across the stadium. Then a loud crash as a bench flew into the bleachers. Frantic murmurs and screams filled the air again as people scurried in different directions, pushing, yelling.
Chaos erupted. Shandi stood up, but her height prevented her from being able to see past the people in front of her. She jockeyed for a better view before putting her hand on Cory’s shoulder and stepping up on the bleachers. There was something going on down on the field.
Shandi glanced frantically down to the track around the football field and saw ... something.
Saw it.
Here before her stood the monster that Bernard conjured in his stories. The weird creature that slaughtered their livestock. The mysterious man-thing that had caused Wes to crash his car. Shandi scrambled for her camera, brought it up to her face and, after minor fiddling, flipped it to video mode.
From what she could see, the creature looked much as Macy and Wes had described. It looked like a humanoid male of enormous bulk. Its long hair obscured most of its face and it was smeared in dirt. Its movement seemed foreign, though; hunched over like a gorilla, but never using its shorter front arms for support.
Shandi’s breath sped up as she forced herself to remain calm enough to get it all on film. If she were closer, she might have felt a stronger urge to run, but from this distance she felt safe. She would need all the details later, and she couldn’t afford to give in to the fear that threatened to take over. Macy had guessed it was about seven feet tall, but Shandi’s mind put it closer to six-foot-three or four, at most.
It hadn’t thrown anything else into the bleachers, but it waded through the equipment on the field like it were walking through a field of wheat, ripping shoulderpads in half, and shoving benches out of its way. It seemed aimless, with no intent or purpose other than destruction. It picked up a five-gallon cooler and smashed it between its hands as if it were an egg. Gatorade exploded in all directions.
The display of strength jolted Shandi back into the present, needling her to take stock of the things that mattered. She needed to find Macy. Shame rushed through Shandi’s blood—why hadn’t she connected with her daughter earlier? Any person with good sense would run from the stadium, but Macy had the common sense of a teenager.
Shandi shoved the Nikon into Steve’s hands. “Whatever you do, don’t stop filming. Ok?”
Steve nodded. His eyes were wide and his face white. Deirdre had run. Cory stood next to Steve, seemingly frozen in fear. Maybe Steve wouldn’t keep the film rolling, but Shandi had a more urgent task now. She sprinted forward, pushing through the crowd and shoving the people who had stayed out of the way. Most seemed mesmerized, unable to move or react. Shandi hoped that they wouldn’t regret it.
When she reached the bottom of the bleachers, frantically searching for any sign of Macy, Shandi glanced back to the beast as it turned towards Dub, who slowly crept out onto the black spongy track, his gun raised towards the creature. A gun wouldn’t be enough. Shandi feared this might be the last time she saw Dub Higgins alive.
Chapter 12
The screams of the crowd faded into the background. Dub’s chest tightened with fear, but he’d signed up for this when he put on the uniform. It’s what the badge meant, and he had to protect Rose Valley from this hairy agent of chaos. Having Cam at his side would not have gone unappreciated, though.
“Stop! Put your hands up or I’ll shoot!”
He had never fired his weapon at a person before, but then, this sinewy creature barely qualified as a person.
The football team retreated across the field, trying to put as much distance between them and the beast as possible. The cheerleaders tripped over themselves as they crowded into the stands. There were still too many people in the bleachers, standing like zombies, even though he was distracting the beast. They were paralyzed.
Or they were idiots.
The crowd had quietened a little now, but murmurs could still be heard, as some tried to verbalize what they were witnessing. At least everyone on the field had been smart enough to give him room, but now he felt vulnerable and alone, facing off one-on-one against a force that he couldn’t possibly hope to stop.
Marie’s voice pierced through the crowd noise. The fear in her screams broke his heart. He wanted to go to her, hug her, assure her that he would be fine, but this would not end easily. The standoff had begun.
“Stand down,” he shouted again. “Now!”
The beast paused briefly, and slowly turned towards him. Its eyes followed him, full of hunger and rage. Instantly Dub regretted the attention. Suddenly even his gun felt powerless.
The beast emitted a low growl. It moved towards him, as Dub shouted and warned and cussed, trying desperately to persuade it to disengage. His finger tensed on the trigger. He was the last line of defense between this... thing... this man? It had to be a man, right? Dammit. Where the hell was Cam? Dub needed backup.
He dropped one hand from his gun and glanced over the crowd. There was no way Cam would have run in a situation like this. Perhaps he hadn’t brought his sidearm. Though police frequently ignored the rule, the school purported to be a gun-free zone.
As he turned back to the beast, he realized that his focus had drifted for too long. The beast rushed towards him faster than he could react and latched on the hand holding the gun, sending a blinding pain up his arm. The metal of the gun dug deep into the palm of his hand, as it crushed into his skin. He gazed down his arm, trying to stay on his feet, his eyes transitioning from his wrist to the huge monstrous hand wrapped around his own. He struggled to break free, flexing his arm and bending his elbow, but that just led to more pain. There would be no escaping this grip.
The pain coursed through his arm and down his legs and he had no choice but slump to the ground. His shoulder wrenched as it struggled to support his weight. The beast squeezed harder. Dub’s fingers cracked as blood started seeping out of the beast’s fist, causing Dub’s vision to blur. He fought to stay conscious, trying to fight the feelings of hopelessness.
Marie’s screams jolted him back. He stared at the beast and tried to gain his footing; to push through the pain and get back on his feet. He needed to save Rose Valley. He needed to save Marie. He thought of the adoption papers they would submit soon. Of the baby that Marie had wanted for so long. He would not deny her that. The beast could go to hell.
He stood again, which caused the beast to double down on its grip, and Dub to scream in pain. He reeled back his good hand and punched the beast as hard as he could, but it stood firm. He imagined pain in his left hand now but couldn’t feel it through the agony of his mangled right hand. Though it had gained him no ground, Dub reared back and punched again, but the creature’s face barely moved from the blow.
A shot rang out. Then another. And another. The beast blinked, as if in surprise, and let go of Dub’s hand. Had Cam not scored any hits? Dub tried to stay standing but fell to his knees, using his good hand to support his weight. His gun dropped to the ground, crushed and useless. He tried to ignore the gushing blood.
Two more shots flew wildly past their target. Cam took a step towards the beast with every shot, each one causing the beast to retreat even as they appeared to miss. Cam passed Dub now and drove the creature back to the other end of the field, though the creature hadn’t weakened.
Dub felt warm hands embrace him. He could smell Marie’s perfume. He fell back into her arms and she struggled to keep him upright. He outweighed her by at least a hundred pounds, and he knew that her slight frame wouldn’t be able to support his weight. His strength sapped away, though, and he allowed himself to melt into her, struggling to keep his eyes open. He didn’t want to lose sight of the beast.
Almost impossibly through the crowd, Dub heard Macy Donner: “No, daddy! Run!”
Cam’s gun clicked in vain. If anyone else had a gun, none of them were brave enough to brandish it now, leaving Cam alone without a weapon. Cam holstered his and backed slowly towards Dub, unwilling to turn his back on the beast. He looked down for Dub’s gun, grunted and kicked at it. The action caused Dub to really look at the mangled remains of his hand. It didn’t resemble a hand at all anymore, only a bloody mass of meat and bones.
The beast growled again and sprinted toward Cam. The speed of its bounding gait exceeded that of any person.
Dub looked in Macy’s direction. Shandi held her tight, her face buried in her chest. Good.
Cam saw the beast coming in time to pull his gun back up. There were no more bullets, but he turned the gun around in his hand to use it as a club. Under the stadium lights, tensed for a fight, Cam looked heroic and powerful.
Yet it was obvious Cam stood no chance.
When it seemed Cam would be imminently ripped limb from limb, the creature stopped only a few feet from him, and stopped impossibly quickly, with little to no inertia. Cam stepped back.
The beast glanced skyward. If it were a dog, Dub would have said that it smelled something it didn’t like. It let out a blood-curdling scream that echoed through the stadium, then ran off in the opposite direction. The beast kept running until it disappeared from view.
Silence filled the stadium. Cam remained tense. Adrenaline continued surging through Dub’s body, his consciousness pulsing in and out.
Before passing out, Dub saw Cam nod toward Macy. Dub recognized the sentiment, the defiance in Cam’s face. A father’s desire to show his baby that fear could not triumph in Rose Valley.
Yet fear was all Dub felt as darkness overcame him.
Chapter 13
A bright white box, infinitely long. Jake ran one direction then another but couldn’t find the end. He yelled into the void, heard his echo transform into a vicious growl. He sat in the middle of the white space. Then he heard a voice float by him, sweet and melodic at first, but then frantic and screaming. He couldn’t make out the words.
The ground under his feet began turning red, and though he jumped there was no getting away from it. The redness spread in every direction, stopping at the base of the walls.
He ran, fast as he could. Faster than he thought possible. The red turned to green and then to black. It got so dark, he couldn’t see anything anymore.
Then, out of nowhere, a sheep appeared before him, bleating in the emptiness. It eyed him.
Screaming erupted, from everywhere at once. People were crying in fear. Tons of them. He put his hands over his ears but it did nothing—as though the noise came from within him.
Then it stopped, and there was only silence. The sheep walked towards him, growing larger with every step until its eyes were level with his own. Its mouth opened, issuing strange noises. Rattling and banging. It wasn’t a noise an animal could make.
The noise continued as the sheep shut its mouth and turned to run away from him, shrinking back down to size. A deep hatred welled inside Jake and he gave chase. As fast as he ran, the sheep ran faster, bounding along. The clanging continued. Jake stopped. Everything faded back to white.
***
Jake’s head exploded with noise, and he awoke in a panic. He calmed his breathing, then lost focus as he realized he was sitting in bed wearing boxers, with no idea of how he’d gotten there.
The sheep’s muted bleating filled his bedroom. The beast hadn’t taken the bait. The sheep’s incessant noise served as only background now, though, surely not the cause of his panic. He remained quiet.
There was a light clicking noise. The sound of metal turning. A soft creak.
Someone entering the house.
Nothing
that even remotely resembled a weapon sat near his bed. He had put his baseball bat by the window, now too far away from him to be of any use. He stood and clenched his fists. He had only punched one person in his life, and that had been back in high school.
Footsteps. Loud ones. The intruder wore boots.
“Jake? Where the hell are you?”
Only Steve. Jake relaxed. “In here.”
Steve appeared at the door as Jake turned on the lamp next to his bed. Steve looked different than normal; shaken and scared.
“I was beatin’ on the door for five minutes!” Steve said, uncharacteristically frustrated.
“Sorry. I guess I was dead asleep. Are you okay?”
“No. I am not okay. That thing. That beast? It’s real. I saw it. The whole town saw it. It almost killed Dub Higgins.”
Jake went numb. “No, no, no. That can’t be right. Bernard says it doesn’t hurt people.”
“I don’t give a damn what Bernard says. That thing showed up at the football game and shattered Dub’s hand. He’ll be a gimp the rest of his life.”
Steve seemed mad, which Jake found disconcerting and alarming. He imagined the scenario from Steve’s point of view. Jake understood awe, fear, or excitement, but why anger?
“Did they catch it? Or kill it? Is it over?” Jake asked.
“Nah. The sheriff shot it. A bunch. It ran off. Fast. Everyone was so shocked, no one chased it. No one did anything except Dub and Cam. A bunch of goddamn cowards.”
Ah. Steve’s anger aimed squarely at himself. In a moment of action, Steve had failed to act.
“It’s probably better that more people didn’t engage it.”
Steve answered slowly. “Maybe. But it’s still out there. I thought you were crazy. I don’t know how to process this.”
They moved into the living area where Steve sat in the chair, staring out at the sheep he had placed there earlier. Jake recognized Steve’s agitation, but curiosity got the better of him. “What did it look like? What was it?”
“I dunno, man. Bigfoot?” Steve shook his head and stared at the floor. “Kind of like a dude, but not. It was too strong. Too big. Too fast. I just -