Paranormal Anthology With a TWIST (11 page)

Charlie watched Lenora and Jakob from the grove of trees that lay
adjacent to the fairgrounds. He wished he could hear what they were saying, but
it was too far away, and he didn’t want to risk being seen.

So, as they moved in between the booths and activities, Charlie
followed them with his eyes. What he saw left him both relieved and
reassured—Lenora was obviously not having a good time. The casual
observer wouldn’t notice it, but Charlie had really come to know Lenora’s
little nonverbal cues.

Charlie remained in the shadows, away from the people and crowds,
so as not to draw attention. He was very cautious; however, there was one scary
moment when he thought he might have been seen.

Jakob and Lenora had just started dancing. Charlie saw Jakob’s
hand move down Lenora’s back—far down her back—during the slow
number, and he was immediately outraged. “I’ll kill him,” he murmured under his
breath.

As soon as the words came out, he saw Jakob lift his head and look
in his direction. Charlie hugged the tree to his left closely, deep in shadow,
and felt certain that Jakob couldn’t see him. It was much too dark and much too
far.

Jakob smiled broadly in Charlie’s direction and the hair on
Charlie’s neck stood up. He watched Jakob lower his face to Lenora’s neck as
they danced.

It was agony to watch and do nothing. The hours passed slowly.

 
“I think it’s
probably time for us to leave,” Jakob announced.

Lenora tried not to appear as excited as she felt. “Oh, yes, I
suppose it is getting late. Mother gets worried…”

“Of course she does,” Jakob replied.

They started walking toward Jakob’s car. Lenora felt as if a
weight were lifting off her chest. She would soon be free from this prison
without bars!

When they reached Jakob’s car, they went to the passenger side and
he opened the door for Lenora. Just as she was about to get in, he pushed it
shut and smiled at her.

“I’ve changed my mind. I don’t think I’m taking you home yet.”

“What?” Lenora asked. She had
never
been spoken to this way.

“You heard me, you uppity girl. Who do you think you are? Who do
you think you’re talking to?” He grabbed her upper arm and smiled when Lenora
grimaced in pain and fear. Then he shoved her backwards into the door of the
car.

Lenora began to walk away, but Jakob grabbed her again. She
struggled and he slapped her, hard, across the face.

“Stay where you are.”

Charlie had been relieved when Jakob and Lenora walked to Jakob’s
car. He assumed the night would end quickly and that he and Lenora could
continue on as they were before.

When he saw Jakob hit Lenora, Charlie was instantly filled with
white-hot anger, and he thought he might explode. There was a baseball-sized
stone at his feet and he picked it up and started off at a trot across the
field-turned-parking lot.

Lenora screamed, “Help!”

Jakob backhanded Lenora this time and she was flung immediately to
the ground with the force. Her nose and lip were bleeding. When Jakob saw the
blood, he dropped to one knee in front of her. She cowered and shrank back but
the car tire was blocking all retreat. Jakob reached out his hand and extended
his pointer finger. He scooped up some of her blood with his fingertip and
slowly stuck his finger into his mouth, just like a child stealing icing from a
birthday cake.

He grinned at her, greedily eyeballing the remaining blood on her
face, and opened his mouth revealing a sinister set of teeth. Two teeth were
sharper and longer than the others. Mother didn’t allow Lenora to see movies,
but she had heard snippets of conversation from the kids at school about a
movie named Dracula. She knew right away that Jakob was like Bela
Lugosi—a vampire.

Then she looked up and saw that Charlie was standing right behind
Jakob.

Jakob saw Lenora’s eyes focus above him. In this heightened
state-of-being, all of his senses were sharper. He could see the reflection of
Charlie in Lenora’s eyes. He could hear Charlie’s heart beating, pushing the
blood through his body. Jakob whipped his head quickly around, baring his
teeth, hissing loudly like a black panther in the jungle, “Hehhh!”

“Good night, asshole,” Charlie said. He had time to register the
abnormally long teeth and pale skin as he brought the stone down on Jakob’s
head. Jakob dropped to the ground.

“Let’s get out of here.” He grabbed her hand and hauled her to her
feet. She was shaken, but then again, so was he. “We have to move quickly.”

They ran to the other end of the field and jumped into his car.
She had wondered what it would be like, to drive alone with Charlie to
somewhere dark, but this was
not
what
she had imagined.

Charlie started his car and stomped on the gas pedal. As they
passed by Jakob’s car, he noticed that Jakob’s body was no longer on the
ground.

“Charlie, watch out!” Lenora screamed. Jakob was standing in the
middle of the exit in front of them. Charlie swerved, but couldn’t react fast
enough. The right front fender landed a direct hit to Jakob’s body and there
was a fluttering of clothes and body as he vanished off to the right of the
vehicle.

Charlie’s old Buick kicked up a spray of gravel when he hit the
main road. He pushed it as fast as it would go—all the way to Lenora’s
house.

 
“Oh, Mother! You
won’t believe what happened! Jakob Schmidt tried to attack me! Luckily, Charlie
was there to help, or who knows what that…that…animal would have done!”

Charlie and Lenora stood in the doorway of Mother’s chamber,
flushed, out of breath from the events of the preceding minutes. They had raced
to her house, making it in miraculous time.

Lenora’s mother looked at them from her normal spot beneath her
blankets. “Did anyone see you with Charlie?”

“Well, no…” Lenora replied, confused.

There was suddenly a movement so quick that it was almost
indiscernible. Lenora’s mother was no longer in bed. She was now standing
directly behind Charlie.

It happened with such speed, and was so completely foreign to
Lenora, that the only reaction she mustered was a widening of the eyes as she
lifted a hand to her mouth involuntarily.

Lenora’s mother reached out with a long, pale hand and grasped
Charlie’s neck. Lenora watched as her mother’s fingers sank into Charlie’s
flesh, squeezing with an animal-like ferocity. Charlie’s eyes immediately
became large, white-and-brown, full moons of surprise. The surprise rapidly
turned into pain a moment later.

With a strength and fury that didn’t seem possible, Lenora watched
helplessly—in shock really—as her mother took Charlie by his neck
and flung him sideways into the mantle. His head connected solidly with a
sickening, meaty
thud
, and blood
sprayed across the off-white marble with violent force.

The heavy, iron clock that rested there didn’t so much as tremble
with the force. Ironically, it began chiming, signaling Charlie’s end as it had
signaled the end of so many morning conversations with Mother.

Bong…Bong…Bong…

Charlie’s body dropped limply to the floor and tears sprang into
Lenora’s eyes as she stumbled backward away from her mother.

Bong…Bong…Bong…

“Fool!”
her mother hissed
at her.
“Do you see what you’ve done?”

Bong…Bong…Bong…

A low moan escaped from between Lenora’s trembling lips. Her
mother was standing in front of her, teeth revealed. It was impossible not to
notice her mother’s incisors. They were long…sharp…extending beyond her other
teeth.

Bong…Bong…Bong.

The silence that followed the clock striking twelve o’clock was
short-lived. Josef burst through the doorway behind Lenora and bellowed,
“Master!”

“Leave this room!” Lenora’s mother commanded. Josef retreated
without a word. Lenora watched as her mother thrust an outstretched hand at the
doorway; the door closed with a loud
bang!

“Sweet Lenora, I wanted you to make the right decision on your own
about this. Now, I’m afraid there’s no choice in the matter.” She walked
briskly over to where Charlie lay prostrate on the floor, knelt down at his
side, and pulled the collar back from his neck. She gave Lenora a piercing look
and slowly lowered her face to within an inch of Charlie’s carotid artery
without taking her eyes from Lenora’s. She opened her mouth
slowly—exposing those wicked fangs again—and then in one slow,
exquisite movement, she pushed her fangs into Charlie’s neck.