Dark Creations: Hell on Earth (Part 5) (24 page)

“It was nothing,” he said but she knew he wasn’t telling the truth.  She’d felt his grip on her arm tighten.  “Let’s hurry back,” he added.

They began walking faster.  A breeze did not blow, but the woods around them stirred again as if it had.  She picked up her pace, suddenly eager to get inside, far from the menacing shadows and their phantom movements.  The sound of twigs snapping far behind them caused them to pick up their pace.  They ran.  As they neared the rear bumper of Jack’s Jeep, Melissa turned and glanced over her shoulder.  She froze and gasped then covered her mouth with both hands to stifle the scream that tried to escape.

Sinister feline eyes, a pack of them, stared out from the pitch-black void, their amber hue and almond shape reminiscent of a murderous creature named Eugene who’d hunted her and Gabriel. 

“Yoshi,” she tried to speak but her voice was little more than a choked whisper.  “Yoshi,” she tried again.

He turned to her and all she could do was point with her mouth agape.  He followed her finger and cried out, “Holy shit! 
Run
!”

Melissa did not waste a moments’ time.  She ran harder and faster than she ever had before toward the barn. 

“Get Jack!” Yoshi screamed to the first person he saw.  “There are yellow eyes out there!  Dozens of yellow eyes!”

“Oh shit!” the man screamed and dashed off toward the trailer.

In the distance, she saw Jack rushing toward them.

“What?  What is it?” he asked frantically.

“The monsters,” Melissa gasped.  “They’re here!  The monsters are here, Jack!”

Jacks mouth pressed to a hard line and his forehead creased deeply.  “Let’s go boys!” he shouted and an alarm began to wail.  Floodlights activated and the mangy farm was bathed in light so bright it looked as though the sun had risen and was high overhead.  “This is not a drill!” Jack hollered authoritatively.

Men, who’d looked like little more than slovenly crackpots, poured from their trailers and the farmhouse, armed and alert and organized.  “We’re under attack,” one said as he passed.  “Take cover.”

Melissa looked at Yoshi.  “Is this it?” she asked feebly.  “Is this how we’re going to die?”

Every part of her trembled uncontrollably.  She looked in the distance, down the driveway, and saw that a herd of beasts was approaching slowly, stealthily.  They stalked closer, deliberately, as though they had all the time in the world.

Yoshi pulled her
elbow and turned her face to him.  “No.  This is not how it ends,” he said firmly.  “It ends with weddings and houses and babies, not this,” he said and she noticed that his eyes were glassy. 

Had Yoshi not been holding on
to her, Melissa would have collapsed to the ground.  Fear and panic joined forces, determined to bring her to her knees.  But she did not fall.  She raged against it, and followed Yoshi on unsteady legs to the barn.  With each step she took, she begged every merciful deity she could think of to spare Gabriel, her friends, herself.

Chapter 21

Amber’s stomach plummeted to her feet in fright and disbelief as she stood face to face with Cerberus, a Hunter from Zogg’s pack.  Gabriel stood at her side and had not flinched, a fact that shocked her almost as much as seeing the behemoth beast crowding the doorway.  A rush of thoughts flooded her mind.  Chief among them were questions.  What the hell was Cerberus doing there?  Had the Hunters found the twins already?  Did he recognize Gabriel and make the association that she had flipped and was now working against Lord Terzini? 

Too many uncertainties swarmed in her brain, buzzing and whirring as frantically as bees in a hive.  Unable to pull her eyes from him as doing so would suggest weakness, she could not scan beyond Cerberus to see if others lingered, to see if they’d fed.  She was left to gather clues from his appearance only.  Cerberus’s mane had not been stained bright red, yet.  He had not eaten recently.  Hope still existed.  She set her jaw and glowered at him, knowing fully that she needed to guard her fear and feign confidence.  Her back had slickened with sweat at the sight of him and rivulets now trickled between her shoulder blades.  If she did not gain control of herself, her uniform would be saturated in no time, and of less protective value.  The only shield she had was her uniform.  She knew he would smell the dread seeping from her pores if it did not cover her.  She breathed from her belly and straightened her posture authoritatively, determined to radiate coolness and control.

“What do you want, dog?” she narrowed her eyes at him and spoke with impatience.  “Why are you staring at us?”

Her words were curt, her tone unyielding.  Outwardly, she was sure she exuded calm confidence, exactly what he needed to see.  Inside, however, was another story entirely.  Her mind screamed for her to shoot him where he stood, that he would strike at any second, but she had to remain unflappable, unmoved by his intimidating presence.  She also did not want to draw attention to herself, and her company.  It was a challenge, especially since Cerberus had furrowed his brow and looked to be contemplating his next move.  He had dropped down on all fours, an encouraging sign, but only slightly.  He still shifted agitatedly on his formidable paws, trying to look around her, into the house. 

“Move along, dog,” she ordered him.  “We have no need for you here.”

Cerberus hesitated briefly and she swore he looked both insulted and skeptical simultaneously.

“That’s an order!” she barked and hoped her annoyance would be enough to convince him and send him on his way.  But it was not.  He took a tentative step backward then paused and refocused his attention from Amber to Gabriel.  His eyes moved back and forth between them as if he were considering the scene before him. 

“Go!” she said, but he did not move right away.  Instead, his eyes rested on Gabriel and a flicker of recognition flashed across his fiendish features.  A low growl rumbled deep in his throat and she became increasingly convinced that he’d identified Gabriel.  She hadn’t thought the Hunters had the same exposure to Gabriel, the person Lord Terzini viewed as the ultimate enemy.  She’d assumed they’d been largely uneducated, trained only to clean the messes members made with violence.  She had been wrong. 

Her hand rose to the weapon holstered at her hip.  Her fingertips lightly grazed the cool metal as she deliberated drawing it on him and firing.  She wanted nothing more than to shoot the beast between his eyes, end his miserable and murderous existence on the planet.  But he’d likely reach her and attack before she squeezed the trigger.  She would die before having the satisfaction of taking
him out.  Her only chance rested with Gabriel.  He was armed.  He could kill Cerberus then Kyle and the children would live, her death would save them.  Still, a small part of her wanted to live to see Cerberus, and all the Hunters, destroyed.

An anxious twitch of Cerberus’s face sent a jolt of unease through her core and distracted her from her own aggressive imaginings.  Outside the tinkling of metal tubes sounded musically as treetops rustled, both in the distance. 
Wind chimes and stirring treetops means wind,
Amber thought.  Dread crept up the length of her spine before racing over her skin.  Within seconds, Cerberus’s blond mane roused and a breeze blew pale wisps across his eyes.  He closed them briefly, as if savoring the scent of the wind, before opening them wide.

A thick band of saliva gathered at the corner of his mouth and dribbled to his chest
, and his demeanor became all too familiar.  He could smell a meal.  Gabriel glanced at her while Cerberus’s eyes lingered in the direction of the shed.  He questioned her with his gaze.  She looked down to her gun then his.  He nodded almost imperceptibly in understanding.  Cerberus began to edge away from them slowly.  Small ripples quivered along his flanks as if the urge to feed was too overwhelming for him to bear.  Amber only hoped she’d be faster than he was should he decide to spring to the backyard.  Her hand trembled, hovering over her gun.  Gabriel mimicked her actions only his hand did not appear to shake as hers did. 

Cerberus snapped his head toward them unexpectedly before tearing off toward the shed.  Amber quickly drew her weapon and fired at him.  Gabriel did as well.  Only both of them were too late.  The beast had disappeared. 

“Where the fuck did it go?” Kyle asked from behind them.  His aggravation and confusion was clear.  She spun to face him but did not waste a moment answering him.

“This is on you,” Gabriel charged and jabbed a finger at Kyle before he took off after Cerberus.

Amber would have liked to console Kyle, but did not have the luxury of time.  The Hunter still roamed, had probably reached the twins already.  She turned from him and dashed out the back door after Gabriel.

Fog glided at her feet, wetting her boots and winding like snakes between her ankles as she ran around the side of the house.  She glimpsed Gabriel.  Cerberus’s backside was in his sight.  He fired several shots, but missed.  She cursed silently and no longer saw the Hunter, but knew he was near.  She could almost feel the frenzied beat of his vicious heart.  She wanted to still it forever.  But first they needed to
get to Hailey and Jackie before Cerberus did.  And she hoped they were still safe in the shed.

Ahead, Gabriel looked over his shoulder at her and pointed to the shed.  She nodded and watched as he raced toward it.   She surveyed the area, clutching her gun and watching for yellow eyes glaring through the mist and darkness, but saw none.  But the absence of glowing eyes did not mean that they weren’t there.  The surrounding area felt far more watchful that it had when they’d arrived.  She forced herself to look away from the vigilant obscurity to Gabriel. 

Her stomach churned violently as he reached for the shed door and tore it open.  The space was dark and she did not see the twins right away.  She agonized it was empty, or worse, that deeper inside, the scene would be one of brutal carnage.  Relief washed over her when Gabriel stooped and wrapped his arms around a mound of curls.  She was about to go to them when from the corner of her eye she spied a crouched shape skulking across the grass, picking up speed. 

The swooshing sound of paws loping over damp grass alerted Amber to an ambush.  She dropped flat to the ground just in time to avoid having the nearly seven-foot beast slam into her as he dove headlong through the
air to tackle her.  The Hunter passed over her instead.  He landed with impossible grace and spun to face her.  She propped herself up on her elbows and squeezed off three rounds.  The bullets hit him in the torso, but he kept coming for her, undaunted by his wounds.  Her heart rattled frantically against her ribs as the hideous beast advanced.  She continued to shoot but to no avail.  The Hunter remained unfazed until the sound of more gunfire echoed in the night.  She immediately saw that he arched his back, grimacing in pain.  Gabriel had begun firing from just outside the shed and had shot him several times in his side.  The Hunter yelped, an agonizing cry, then twisted and faced Gabriel.  He pawed at the ground furiously turning his head from side to side.  Another breeze blew and ruffled his grandiose mane.  He sniffed the air hungrily before lunging at Gabriel.

He flew through the air with incredible speed and agility and landed atop Gabriel.  Amber scrambled to her feet and sprinted toward the shed, toward Gabriel.  There, she saw Cerberus with his front paws pinning Gabriel’s shoulders down and hovering with his jaw open about to bite down on his face.  Without delay, she fired four shots.  All four slammed against Cerberus’s head.  Two penetrated his left eye. 

Cerberus’s arms and legs gave way and he collapsed on Gabriel.  Blood ran in dark streams all around his body, pooling as life quickly escaped him.

“Get this thing off me!” Gabriel protested from beneath Cerberus
’ lifeless form. 

Amber rushed to his side and began tugging at the enormous creature.  She tested her muscles, pulling with all her might, but only moved him slightly.  She was about to run inside and get Kyle when he appeared beside her.  He did not say a word.  He looked to Hailey and Jackie and the relief on his face conveyed more than any words could.  Amber felt her heart swell.

“You okay?” Kyle asked Gabriel.

“Yeah, I think so, you know, for a guy with a three-hundred-pound monster on him,” Gabriel managed to quip.

Kyle smiled and began pushing while Amber pulled.  Together, they were able to maneuver Cerberus off of Gabriel.

“Dammit that was close,” Gabriel said and raked a hand through his hair. 

He walked deeper into the shed.  Amber assumed he needed a moment alone.  She guessed that coming dangerously close to being eaten by a creature that would have looked more appropriate guarding the gates of hell rather than roaming the streets of suburbia had earned him a couple of minutes to himself.

“That was close,
too
close,” Amber agreed.  “We have to get the hell out of Taft.”

“I know, but how?”  Kyle asked and glanced to his sisters again.  “I don’t think I can carry them,” he said in a hushed tone. 

“You won’t have to,” Gabriel’s voice sounded. 

“What?  What’re you talking about?” Kyle asked.

Amber heard optimism in Gabriel’s tone, not cautious optimism, but genuine optimism. 

“What’s going on Gabriel?” she asked and hoped against hope that he’d found a way for them to escape
Taft.