Authors: T. L Mitchell
My father’s silver Jaguar was first in view. It really wasn’t until my eyes fell upon a silver sportier car beside his daunting one, a big red bow on the hood, that my mouth fell open.
“Martin bought this a few weeks ago. It appeared he and my father planned on a shopping trip for cars. It’s your graduation present. He said something about he was tired of you driving around that tatty old Mustang.” That tatty old Mustang was my favorite. My father knew how I felt about the extravagance of money. All I ever wanted was a normal life with a normal career, something with purpose. Not necessarily to be the best plastic surgeon, but do something meaningful to help people or save lives. I wanted to find my purpose in this life. The smooth paint cooled my fingertips. Well, it was a nice looking car. Besides being a sports car, it was a convertible sports car, much to my satisfaction.
“What is it?” I opened the door and claimed the driver’s seat.
“It’s a Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder. He knew that you would be upset if he bought you what
he
wanted.” I could tell by the way she stressed the word he, my father probably had a more expensive car in mind. “He knew you loved sporty cars, so he kind of compromised with himself. Do you like it?”
“Yes.” My eyes dropped and so did my heart. Dad always spoiled me when he shouldn’t.
“Hey, it’s late. Let’s get some rest. We have plenty of time to talk tomorrow.” Casey knew that I was weakening. She knew my box would unravel soon enough, exploding like a volcano. So away we went upstairs.
Nestled in my bed, I closed my eyes closed while waiting for sleep to follow. I heard only hear the silence when my body drifted deeper into the slumber of the night. Quietly I drifted until no more sounds were heard.
TWO
My breaths came in quick gasps while my body trembled violently. My eyes opened, but still in the world of my dream, I couldn’t yet focus. My heart pounded so loudly it was deafening. Slowly, Casey’s face came into focus. Her horror filled wide eyes added to my current fear, especially since I couldn’t hear a word coming from her moving mouth. Her hands gripped my arms, shaking me until my senses came back in line with reality. Her voice came in and out of the deafness. “Jew… J… Jewels!” The voice matched the moving lips.
“What… ”
“Jewels!” she shrieked.
My ears stung, feeling the impact of the high shrill in her voice. I swear, Casey’s voice had the same effect as fingernails running down a chalkboard. “Shush!” I commanded.
“You were screaming!”
“I had a bad dream. A horrible nightmare.”
“Your screams, you scared me half to death!” she shot out with the same excitement filled voice. “What happened?”
My breathing slowed to normal, allowing my mind to comprehend all the nightmarish images from my dream. Inhaling a deep breath, I sat up in the bed and positioned myself against the head board. I locked my fingers around my knees, pulling them closer to my chest. Reluctantly, my eyes lifted to Casey’s eager eyes.
It didn’t matter if my eyes closed or not, the nightmarish monsters stood out clearly. The dream was more than just a dream. I blinked again. “
It was so real.”
I whispered.
“The fog,” I began. “It settled into a fine mist upon a little country road. The smell of the fresh country air lingered about me. I walked slowly down the one lane dirt road, smelling the beautiful flowers along the way. The noise of rustling leaves came from the dark and dreary forest to my right. To my left, a beautiful meadow came into view, with its abundance of pink blossoms and clover grass. A wooden fence separated the meadow from the road. On the hill, I saw an old tree; it looked like a maple tree. A gentle breeze blew, causing the rope that hung from the tree to swing.
“In the distance, a dark shadow of a man stood. Still too far ahead of me, I couldn’t determine who he was. My eyes couldn’t focus on the person in front of me. Suddenly, a branch cracked, making me turn toward the forest where a man appeared from out of the woods.
“
I’m sorry. Did I frighten you?’
the man asked. ‘
It was truly not my intention.’
The mysterious man had a mysterious and dark appearance, looking into his eyes was like looking into the heart of death. His German accent caught my attention, although he spoke clear English, it was difficult to understand him.
“‘
May I walk with you?’
he asked.”
Casey’s lips pressed together, preparing for the rest of the horrifying story. She looked nervous as I continued with the dream.
“
Yes. Do you know who the man is up ahead?’
I pointed to the figure still in the road.
“
I am terribly sorry; I don’t believe I do. I can’t see that far ahead.’
I looked into the stranger’s face, contemplating the fact he might be able to read my mind.
“‘
Many years ago, as legend has it, a young man was traveling down this road and the devil appeared to him from the woods. The young man inquired as to the devil’s intentions. The devil wished
to make a bargain with the young man. The young man had just lost his young bride. She was found hanging in that tree over there.’
He pointed a finger toward the tree where the rope was dangling.
‘She was hanged for being a witch.’
He continued. ‘
A powerful woman who was married to one of the local townsmen despised the girl. She claimed the girl was a witch and put a spell
on her husband to make him lust after her. She became so jealous with rage; she called a town meeting and declared the young woman a witch. The townspeople were enraged. A few followers gathered
together, took the girl that night, and hanged her in that tree. They then burned her body. The young man, now blinded with grief over the loss of his new bride, in his heart sought revenge. He made
a pact with the devil so that he might avenge his wife’s death. In doing so, his own soul was cursed for eternity, as well as his bloodline, to walk upon the face of the earth as not only a man, but also a
beast. Taking the curse upon himself, he murdered all that took his bride from him.’’
”
I inhaled a deep breath and continued the dream. “My eyes returned to the stranger ahead, moving closer I realized it was my father. I bolted into a run toward him, flinging my arms around his neck. He caught me, returned the embrace and then took a step back from me. The expression on his face told me that something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. I tried to search his eyes for the answer, but only saw the shimmer of moonlight as if reflected into his eyes. Chills ran up my back, fear gripped my heart and I took a step backwards.
“Suddenly, the day turned into night, and the moon was above us. My father had a look of fear on his face. He opened his mouth and carefully spoke one word.
‘Lycan.’
“Goosebumps covered my arms, warning me of the fear I saw in my father’s eyes. The hair on the back of my neck prickled on its ends when I heard the heavy breathing behind me. I glanced over my shoulder. Standing behind me, no more than a few feet, was a monster, a demon of some sort. Something in your wildest dreams you would never have imagined existed. Its eyes glistened when it blinked at me. I tried to scream, but my throat locked up dry and tight. The only thing I could think about was to run. As I ran, I heard something burst from the bushes behind me. It was another one of these creatures. I glanced over my shoulder to see its head turning to me. I tripped and fell. The one leaped at the other that was chasing me. I scrambled to my feet and ran.”
I stopped and closed my eyes again. The image of the angry eyes of the first wolf remained clearly in my mind. I opened my eyes, holding my breath as I noticed Casey’s wide eyes and the color drained from her face.
“What does this mean?” I whispered.
“I … ” She tried to find her words. “I’m not sure? A werewolf?” Casey shook her head. “You don’t even like scary movies.”
“My dad?” I trailed off into another thought.
The expression on her face changed. One of the same remorse I saw on Charlotte’s face last night. “Julie,” she began, “I know this is hard for you. I know how close you were to your dad. How close we all were to him.” she paused again trying to find the right words. “His funeral is going to be tomorrow. My parents have arranged a wake tonight. You know how our fathers do things. All flamboyant.” She rolled her eyes and waved her hands in the air. “But if… ”
The box I had tightly closed tried to open. I drew a slow breath, pressing firmly down on the box full of emotions. There was no delicate way of saying my father was gone.
“Casey,” I tried to make my voice as calm and assuring as I could. “I’m okay. I will make it through this. I just need to stay… ” How could I explain this part of my little box to her? I looked down at my hands and closed them together. Her hand reached over and touched mine.
“I understand. You need not say anything more,” she smiled. “It will be okay. I will be there. You know my family is your family.”
“I know.” A genuine smile of appreciation crossed my lips. She was truly more of a sister than a best friend. “I love you.”
“I love you, too. We all do,” she said. “I need to run home and pick up more clothes. Do you want to go with me?”
Just the thought of being alone for a while would be a perfect break. “No, go ahead. It will be a good time for me to collect my thoughts. You know, preparation.”
Casey’s lips turned into a smile and then she nodded her head. She understood the time I needed to deal with my loss. However, she and Charlotte would be there when I needed them. Shortly after, she was showered, dressed and out the door. She promised with a smile she would return in a few hours. Casey still had errands to run for her father.
I was grateful as it would give me more time. More time to adjust and see exactly how my little box was holding up. I watched her drive off in her little black sports car and waved behind her.
I paused, and then walked back into the house. Walking through the large open living room, I headed toward the patio. Unlocking the large glass door, I slid it open and walked through. The air was fresh, clean and crisp. I could smell the grass when I walked out onto the patio. Glancing around, I noticed the dew on the freshly cut lawn. I moved slowly with my hand gliding across the wood rail and walked down the steps until I reached the ground. Not missing anything in the back yard, everything was perfectly trimmed, manicured and landscaped. The summer flowers were all in bloom. The fullness of the green foliage surrounded the edge of the yard which sang with the hum of the bees already out for a taste of the nectar in the new blooms. As I looked around, I noticed what looked like an open trail at the end of the yard.
Slowly I walked toward it, moving a small tree limb from out my way. This was odd. My father could have added it after I went to college. I remember another trail in the front we all used to walk on in the summer to go to the river and fish. However, I never remembered this one. Following the trail, I took notice of the birds above as they sang. A woodpecker in the distance pounded out his breakfast. Shortly after, I heard a squirrel. I figured it must have been a mother squirrel barking a warning to her nearby young as I approached. Smiling to myself, I continued through the forest following the newfound adventure. Looking ahead, I saw a break in the forest. The closer I came to the edge the more uneasy I became. Standing at the edge of the forest, I stared out into a meadow. The meadow was exactly like the one in my dream. My breath caught in my throat while my heart drummed loudly. I took a deep breath, releasing it slowly, forcing myself to calm down.
My mind raced back to the dream. Did something happen here? Did this have something to do with my father’s death? I heard a twig crack and I froze. I held my breath and listened. My eyes darted to all corners of the meadow to see where the noise came from. Suddenly from the left of me I heard a short snort. My heart drummed loudly, but I didn’t move. I was afraid the horrid image of the monster wolf would appear. What if they were real and right here? I heard another snap. The urge was too strong not to look. I turned my head slightly to the left. Hearing the short snort again, my body remained in a frozen state. The foliage moved. I wanted to run, but I couldn’t. My eyes fixed on the foliage, watching as the thick brush parted and a large buck stepped into the meadow. The wind blew lightly and he turned his head my way. He stared at me and snorted again.
This time he darted across the meadow to the other side of the forest. I let loose the breath I held and breathed new air. Shaking my head, I realized this was just an overreaction to the dream. Still, I felt there was more to it. I decided to go back to the house and mull over it there.
Turning around I gasped. My heart slammed into my chest again. Before the day was over, I just knew I was going to have a heart attack.
“Hey!” Daniel walked toward me. “I thought I might find you here.”
“How did you know I was here?”
“Well, you left the door open on the patio in the back and I noticed footprints that led down this path,” he stated flatly. “I wanted to see if you were okay. You didn’t come back with Casey for breakfast. Mom sent over some muffins for you.”
“Blueberry?” I asked already knowing the answer. She was cooking breakfast and baking muffins.
“Of course.” He chuckled. Standing beside me, he looked out onto the meadow. “It is beautiful, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it is. I just don’t remember it being here.” I kept my eyes straight ahead of me. I was afraid to look at him, but I also couldn’t help from stealing a glance.
“This is where Martin would always come.” He gave a halfway smile, glancing at me from the corner of his eye.
“Really?”
His smile turned into more of a wicked grin that started from the corner of his mouth. With his face in full view, I wondered if he could tell my reaction to his beautiful eyes that my blood rose a few degrees.
“Yes, really.” He grinned and lowered his eyes to the ground.
My thoughts eluded me. Where was my safety net? He had never done this to me before. Who is this new dark and mysterious Daniel?