Call of the Dark (Dark Paranormal Steamy Monster Encounter) (2 page)

     Natasha sighed.  “So then, everything is booked and finalized?  Tickets, hotel, car?”

     Matt lifted his head out of the crook of her neck and propped himself to one side on the desk to face her.  “I think so.  Jessica is wrapping things up for you.  She is making the last of the phone calls and online arrangements today.  You can go and see if she’s done.  I think you will be leaving next Thursday.”

     “Great.  I just wish the company was better,” Natasha huffed.

     “Stop whining.  Get over it already.  You’re both professional adults.”  Matt gave her a stare of vague parental-type disapproval.

     “Well, one of us is anyway.  Want me to bring you back anything?  Local booze?  Ceramic mug of Vlad?”

     “How about a decent bottle of plum brandy.  A great cover story.  And this hot ass back in one piece,” Matt said with a smile and a sharp slap to her exposed rear.   

҉  ҉  ҉

     Natasha grunted as she slumped in her seat.  After a delay in boarding, she finally could sit down and hopefully relax for the lengthy flight she had to look forward to.  She arrived at the airport with time to spare. However, Tom was nowhere to be found in the departure lounge.  Ten minutes before queuing, she spied a familiar pudgy looking figure approach her.  He looked even more disheveled than usual.  He rubbed his eyes and apologized while mixed feelings went through Natasha’s mind .  It wouldn’t have been much of an article without a photographer, or his equipment.  Although, on the plus side, if he did miss his flight she would have had a peaceful ride down and a day in Romania to herself.

     Natasha watched as Tom stuffed his duffle bag in the overhead bin and sat down.  He smoothed back the unruly wavy brown hair from his face and straightened the battered hipster T-shirt over his gut as he sat down.  She noticed the pale, tired look on his face and a food stain on his five o clock shadow.  Even for Tom, it looked like he had seen better days.

     “Cutting it pretty close.  Matt would have been pissed if you missed the flight.  Did you not set an alarm?” Natasha asked as he settled in for the flight.

     Tom replied, “Sorry about that.  No, the traffic getting here was a nightmare.  There was a bad pile up on the way here.  I had to sprint to the gate.”

     “Well, it’s good that you made it just under the wire.  He wants this to be the cover for the next issue,” she stated cordially.

     “I got the run down on the spots he wants us to visit.  I have some ideas for some terrific shots.  Don’t worry, it will be killer,” Tom said confidently.

     Tom lost the confidant air in his last statement and shifted in his seat.  He buckled in and scanned the plane nervously.  “You know, I’m not such a fan of flying.  Take offs and landings are the worst.  Oh, and turbulence.  I’ve never been a fan of roller coasters.  You could help me out though.”

     Natasha observed that he did seem to be a bit on edge.  She replied, “Ok, options on a plane are a bit limited, but how can I make things better for you?”

     Tom pointed his head towards the washroom.  “After the seat belt sign is turned off, you wanna induct me into the mile high club? I heard the membership has tons of advantages.”

     Natasha gave him a dirty look.  Already it begins, she thought.  “I don’t think so.  There’s barely even enough room for you in there to sit down.  Due to combined mass versus physical space, it just isn’t remotely possible.”

     “Standing is a possibility.”

     “Ugghh.  Couldn’t you have picked up a jelly filled love doughnut in an airport kiosk to molest?  Include me out.”

     “I wish I had the time.  Damn traffic,” Tom joked.

     “You know, if the internet of things ever became self –aware, it would be less like Terminator and more like a creepy version of you.  Some pathetic entity filling its mind with porn, cat memes, and random trolly comments while leering at you and watching every move you make in its perverted presence,” Natasha said acerbically.

     Tom laughed.  “Wow.  I had no idea you felt that way about me. I would be honored to be the template to the future.” 

     They both went quiet as the plane began its trek down the runway for take-off.  Natasha slyly slipped a look at Tom and snarked to herself as he girded himself for take-off.  His anxious face told her that he wasn’t kidding about his fear of flying.  She, however, enjoyed the sensation of speed when lift off took place.  As the plane tilted up into the air, she observed him crossing himself before his fists gripped the armrest and his mouth set itself in a tense line.  Unwrapping her earphones, she plugged them in and turned on the in-flight entertainment system.  Hopefully Tom would get the hint and leave her alone for the rest of the flight. As the flight went on, she noticed while stealing the odd glance at Tom that he was starting to look more and more unwell.  His pale face began taking on a greyish color, and he was starting to squirm in his seat more.

     “Hey Tom, are you all right? Is the long flight getting to you?” she asked.  She was getting a little worried for him, despite his previously raunchy attitude.

     “I’ll live.  I’m not feeling so hot though.  I’m feeling a bit nauseous,” Tom admitted.

     “Is it the plane?   Something you ate maybe?” she inquired.

     “No, I don’t think it’s the plane.  My roommate just got over the flu.  Maybe it’s my turn now,” he stated.

     Great, Natasha thought.  “Try to get some sleep.  We’ll be pretty busy for the next few days getting this article together.  I’d rather not do this alone,” she told him.

     Tom nodded and closed his eyes to try to get some sleep for the rest of the way.  He twisted and coughed intermittently while Natasha put away her earphones and tried to get some sleep as well.  Hours later, she woke up while the pilot announced they were on the descent.  A sleepy glimpse of Tom revealed that he was starting to shows signs of a severe man-cold.  He looked more worn out and haggard than this morning when he rushed to the airport.  Inwardly, Natasha steeled herself.  He didn’t look like he was in any shape do much of anything.  It was possible that she would have to do most of the heavy leg work of this assignment alone.

     “Hey Tom, how are you doing over there?” she asked.

     “Still hanging on,” he said, “But I don’t feel so good.”

     “Still feeling nauseous?” she replied.

     “Yeah, I feel like I still need to hurl.”  At the word hurl, Tom choked a little and started to turn grey again.

     “Bring the in-flight emergency bag.  Just in case.  We don’t want to add a cleaning bill to the car rental.”

     “Good call,” Tom said as he reached in the seat in front of him to grab it.

     After they disembarked the plane, Natasha waited for their luggage and equipment while Tom slumped in a corner.  They walked over to the car rental office to pick up their reserved vehicle.  As Natasha made all the arrangements, Tom sat down in a lump on the chair, curled over his lap with his head in his hands, with the barf bag gripped in his hand.   Finally grabbing the keys, Natasha patted Tom on the shoulder. 

     “Ok, time to go,” she told him.

     Tom lifted his head and croaked a response.  “OK,” he said as he slowly and painfully lifted himself up to slouching.

     “I guess you can’t drive.  But can you navigate for me?” she asked doubtfully.  His bleary eyed face didn’t exactly inspire confidence.

     “I’ll try,” he said, unsure of himself.

     The pair managed to get to the small hotel with Tom as a guide.  After a few curses, dry heaves and wrong turns, they made it to the obscure building where they would be staying for the week.  It was small and quaint, but most importantly, clean.  They agreed to retire in their rooms for a few hours before getting up and heading for the first destination. 

     “Let’s see how you are in a few hours.  You try and sleep it off.  I can take the first assignment. That location is close to the hotel and easy to get to.  If I take the camera equipment, I can do that one by myself easily. And if we need to reshoot, we can do that at the end before we leave.  Is that a deal?”

     “Yup, sounds good.  After sitting up for so long it will be nice to lie down.  I’ll recover faster that way,” replied Tom.

     “All right then.  Catch you later,” she said as she left the room and closed the door for him.  He was really sick.  Otherwise he would have made some lame crack about her joining him in bed.  What luck, she thought to herself as she went to her car for her first stop. 

҉  ҉  ҉

   After ten minutes of driving in the countryside, she arrived at her destination. It was a small cemetery, decorated with colorful painted tombstone crosses.  It looked more like a collection of wooden folk art than a place to bury people.  She set up the camera equipment and took some pictures, capturing some of the more elaborate panels.  Satisfied that she had done her best to represent the scene in her collection of photos, she went back to the small hotel to see how her co-worker was doing.  Hopefully he was well enough to take on their next assignment before the end of the day.

     She entered his room and scanned the room for him.  Not in bed, she walked over the tiny washroom.  Natasha found him hung over the toilet bowl. 

     “Hey trooper, still hanging in there?” she asked.

     “Yeah, Nat, thanks for asking.  How did the first shoot go for you on your own?”  Any lurkers we have to crop out?”

     “I think it went ok. I had the place to myself mostly.  But I’ll be off to the second place soon.  The drive to the church is trickier.”

     “Good.  I was planning on taking some pics of the cemetery during magic hour later in the week when I improve.  But I don’t think I’m in any shape to drive you up to the church.  I’m still working out this new flu diet.  I’ve probably puked out some serious weight loss already.”  Tom smiled weakly and leaned his head back against the wall, still sitting on the floor.

     “Feel better soon.  I’m just going to grab something quick to eat before heading off.  I’ll be back before dark to check in on you.  But before I go, do you need anything?  Should I be taking you to the hospital maybe?”

     Tom shook his head.  “No, I’ll be ok.  My roommate had this for two days and then felt better.  I’m sure it’s just running its course through me now.  Just hope that you don’t get it.” 

     “I could take you to a clinic.  Maybe antibiotics would help you,” Natasha offered.

     “Don’t worry about me.  About the church.  You have to go get the key to open the front door.  Matt gave us the address to the lady’s house.  You can call me if you have any problems.  And be careful driving.  It’s one of those narrow mountain roads that many people would find intimidating to drive.  I’d still prefer those roads to a plane any day though.  At least with the car, you’re in control.”

     “It will be fine.  I’ll call you if I have any problems...”

     Tom interrupted her.  "You better go.  I have a sudden Call of Duty.  Better follow those orders or my ass will court martial me."

     Natasha gathered her things and went to the dining area to grab a quick lunch of sausage, bread and rice.  Then she drove to the house listed on Matt’s task sheet.  Walking up to the small house, she noted the ornate wood carvings on the door and took out her smaller camera to take some shots.  She knocked on the door.

     An older lady, in her sixties, answered the door.  She was dressed mostly in black, with a dark scarf covering her black hair.  Natasha tried to speak to her about the church.  It was obvious the lady did not understand English.  She took out a picture of the church and showed it to the lady in the house.  The old woman shook her head emphatically and waved her hands in front of the picture.  Natasha grew frustrated.  She didn’t want to waste the afternoon arguing with this lady just to get a key when the last few hours for taking prime photos were ticking by. She should have brought a lock picking kit with her, instead of a sick translator.  She called up Tom on her cell.  Maybe he would know what to say.  

     “Hey Tom, it’s Nat.  I need you to talk to this lady.  She doesn’t want to give me this key.  Do you think it’s open anyway?”

     She heard Tom faintly on the other end.  “Let me talk to her.  I’ll convince her.”

     Natasha handed the phone to the lady.  She talked into the cell, her voice raving a few times, with her free hand waving madly in the air.  Finally, after several minutes, her voice softened, and she calmed down.  Natasha saw the old lady nodding her head and a sense of relief washed over her.  Perhaps she would be able to finish this day by scratching two assignments of her list.  The woman looked at her, gave her back her phone and motioned that she was going upstairs.  Natasha waited for her to hobble up the stairs and come back.  In her wrinkled hand, she held a large iron key.

     Natasha grabbed the key and bowed to her smiling to thank the woman.  She had no idea how else to show her appreciation in a way that she would understand.  The woman waved her off briskly, shaking her head.  The old lady still did not seem pleased that she ended up giving her the key.  Natasha called Tom back to thank him.

     “Hi Tom, it’s me again.  Thanks again.  I finally have the key, all thanks to you.  What did you have to say to convince her to give up the goods?”

     “I texted Matt on my phone.  We ended up making some promises we will have to try to keep.”

     “Is Matt going to cut her a check or something?” Natasha asked.

     “We promised her many fine goats with udders flowing of rich milk,” Tom joked, “And you have to give the key back to her before dark tonight.  No exceptions.”

     “Yeah, yeah, I got the spiel.  Haunted church.  Now I really can’t wait to visit.”  Natasha couldn’t keep the excited sarcasm out of her voice. 

     “The lady said it was a bad time to go there.  Especially now.  Too near Walpurgis night,” Tom stated.

     “What the heck is that?”  With all her experience in haunted places, Natasha had never heard of such a thing.

     “It’s kind of like Halloween in April.  Bad things come out of the dark.  But you’re going to a church right?  What’s the worst that could happen?” Tom added this last statement with forced levity.