All Hallow's Dead, page 13
He’d just taken a tentative step in that direction when the Civic’s door came all the way open and a tall, lanky man in a black trench coat stepped out of the car. The man’s gloved left hand was empty, but his right hand was initially hidden from sight by the open door. There was a frozen moment during which Jimmy studied the man’s face and tried to decide if he knew him. He’d discerned a very faint note of familiarity. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the man’s identify came to him, and in a flash he understood everything. He’d been wrong and the young deputy’s intuition had been right on the money, after all.
“You better take out your gun, son.”
The deputy glanced at Jimmy, confusion etched in his features. “What? Why?”
A breeze ruffled the slender man’s tall shock of jet-black hair as he came away from the Civic and raised a crossbow. Jimmy’s eyes widened when he saw the weapon and he immediately started backing away with his hands upraised. The deputy’s head swiveled back toward the man with the crossbow. He gasped and reached for his sidearm, but it was too late.
Elliot Parker squeezed the crossbow’s trigger, firing a bolt that struck the deputy in the side of his neck. The young man made a spluttering sound and staggered sideways, falling against the cruiser. He tugged at the bolt in his neck, which only caused more blood to jet from the wound. Elliot calmly removed another bolt from a mini-quiver attached to the underside of the weapon, fitted the bolt in the stock, and aimed again at the deputy. This second bolt went through the side of the deputy’s head, killing him instantly.
By then Jimmy had already taken several backward steps. Now he turned and started running, seeking cover in the trees lining the clearing. He instinctively knew he wouldn’t have time to dig out his keys, unlock his door, and get inside the trailer. This was his only chance. But it was no real chance at all. He was too big and too slow. The next bolt Elliot fired hit him in the back of the knee and he screamed in agony as he went crashing to the ground.
Jimmy clawed at the scraggly ground and mewled like a baby as he waited for the man he and his friends had wronged so badly long ago to reach him and administer the kill shot. As he would soon find out, however, Elliot had other things in mind for his former tormentors than a quick, merciful death.
19.
Five days until Halloween
Willow Springs, TN
After spending several intensely uncomfortable hours unable to move and alone in the dark, Chuck lapsed into a tenuous and troubled state of unconsciousness, from which he would periodically emerge for a few moments at a time. These brief periods of wakefulness were tinged with a groggy confusion about his situation, as well as an overriding desire to again retreat from reality. Even in the midst of that confusion, some part of him remained aware that the bad dreams he was having were preferable to what awaited him in the waking world.
He was finally stirred back to full consciousness when a loud, metallic ratcheting sound intruded on his sleep. His eyes fluttered open and he turned his head toward the sound. A large rectangular hole had appeared in the wall off to his right. Bright sunlight filled the space. Even behind the slanted eyes of the jack-o’-lantern, Chuck had to squint his eyes against it. A mud-splattered Honda Civic drove through the opening and into the large, open space. As the Civic moved past the other vehicles and subsequently slowed to a stop close to where Chuck sat, his eyes adjusted to the brightness.
He felt a fresh stab of guilt and grief when he saw Fawn’s nude body on the floor at his feet, the blood-covered bolt still protruding between the eyes of the pumpkin over her head. Looking away, he saw again the other bodies he’d noted before, more clearly defined now in the sunlight. He saw enough to confirm within a reasonable degree of certainty his previous guess about the killer enlisting the help of homeless men to move the other vehicles. They certainly had the typical look of long-time vagrants, with their rumpled and threadbare clothing and scraggly beards. Both had died after having their throats cut. Their bodies rested in wide pools of coagulating blood. The sunlight also definitively confirmed the presence of his Honda Odyssey and Fawn’s Lexus.
Chuck’s gaze came back to the Civic when its engine stopped running and the driver’s side door popped open. In a moment, the madman behind all this blood and death emerged. Though still clad in the black trench coat, he wasn’t currently wearing the ski mask. One look at him was enough to finally and definitively confirm his identity for Chuck. He was taller now and his pale, hollow-cheeked face was more severe-looking than he remembered, but there was no question this was Elliot Parker.
Elliot ignored Chuck’s muffled curse as he opened the Civic’s back door, reached inside, and, with several loud grunts of exertion, hauled out the large form of someone else with a familiar face. At first Chuck thought Jimmy Martin was as dead as Fawn and the bums, but the soft gurgling sound he made when his large butt hit the concrete floor told him otherwise. He was alive, but apparently unconscious, probably subdued by chloroform or some sedative. This guess was based on the slender metal bolt sticking out of his leg. The man should have screamed in pain when that leg hit the floor, jostling the bolt, but he remained silent.
Taking hold of Jimmy’s thick wrists, Elliot grunted in exertion again as he dragged the big man over to the wire cage formerly occupied by Fawn. Getting him inside the cage took an even more concentrated effort, causing the muscles in Elliot’s long neck to stand out as he struggled to push Jimmy through the opening at the front of the cage. He almost didn’t fit. Finally, though, he managed to get it done and again secured the cage with the padlock.
Once this was done, Elliot heaved a breath and stalked back over to the Civic, the heels of his boots clomping in the usual echoing way in the big room. He leaned through the still open driver’s side door and a moment later the loud metallic ratcheting sound that had signaled his return recommenced. As the big rollup door began to descend, the trunk of the Civic popped open. Elliot then reemerged from the Civic and moved out of sight behind Chuck for a moment. The dim overhead light Chuck remembered from before reappeared as the rollup door finished closing.
Elliot’s footsteps sounded again as he moved back into view and approached the rear of the Civic. After lifting the trunk lid and reaching inside, he hauled out another body. The effort required wasn’t as strenuous because this other person was nowhere near as hefty as Jimmy. Unlike Jimmy, however, he was definitely dead. The bolts sticking out of his head confirmed this pretty much right away. This was bad enough, but even more shocking was the sight of the dead man’s uniform.
Chuck didn’t recognize the dead lawman, but he knew that uniform. Sheriff Bob Lee and the deputies he’d talked to yesterday had all worn one just like it. Seeing this sent the already profound despair gripping Chuck spiraling down to new depths. He’d already known he was dealing with a deeply disturbed individual, but this development represented a new, previously unimagined level of unhinged. Now that one of their own had gone missing, the law would turn up the heat in an unprecedented way. Elliot had to know that, yet he’d killed this man and taken his corpse anyway.
This told Chuck two things about whatever this psycho had in mind. One, it was something he knew would play out over a short period of time. Whatever he was hoping to accomplish would be over and done with by the time the law could track him down. More chillingly, he had no concerns regarding his own mortality, thus why he was being so brazen. He’d probably planned this whole thing knowing full well he was unlikely to come out of it alive.
The implications regarding what this meant for Chuck made him sick with terror. He started shaking uncontrollably as Elliot dragged the dead deputy closer and deposited the body on the floor next to Fawn. Elliot then stood up straight and arched his back, twisting it to work out some kinks, sighing and groaning as he did it. He sounded tired. Chuck had to wonder how much sleep the man had gotten since starting all this madness with Lloyd’s murder the other day. Probably not much. Running all over the place killing and abducting people didn’t leave a lot of time for rest, after all.
After glancing Chuck’s way, Elliot reached into his trench coat and took out a black folding knife with a long, thick handle. The blade that appeared when he opened it was a big one, a thick and nasty-looking length of steel with a serrated edge. Elliot nudged Fawn’s body with the toe of his boot, evidently hoping to flop her over flat on her back. But rigor mortis had set in. She was too stiff.
Elliot glanced at Chuck. “You’re not ready for her yet, anyway.”
Chuck found this statement confusing on multiple levels, but terror again displaced confusion as Elliot approached him and raised the knife. He squealed behind the gag in his mouth and started shaking harder than ever, certain that Elliot had decided to finish him off now. Instead, he plucked at the front of Chuck’s shirt, pulling the fabric away from his chest. He then pushed the blade through the fabric and began to saw away at it. After tossing aside the shredded remnants of the shirt, he removed the pumpkin from Chuck’s head and set it on the floor.
He nodded, the faintest hint of a smile touching the corners of his thin lips. “Yes. Now you’re ready for her.”
Chuck squealed again as hot tears rushed from his eyes and spilled over the straps of the gag pressing into his face.
Elliot knelt next to Fawn and flipped her over. Grotesque cracking sounds ensued as he worked to break through the rigor mortis and straighten her limbs so that she was lying flat on the floor. Once that was done, he rammed the big blade into her belly. He braced one hand between her breasts to hold her body still while with the other he sawed away at the hole he’d made in her abdomen, continuing to work at it until he’d cut away a large enough flap of bloody flesh to expose the contents of her abdominal cavity. Slick with blood and other slowly congealing bodily fluids, the knife slipped from his fingers and hit the floor with a clatter. He made no attempt to retrieve it, not initially, instead pushing his hands through the big opening in Fawn’s belly. His face twisted from exertion as he grabbed hold of something and began to pull it out of the body.
Bile surged into Chuck’s throat as the first length of intestine emerged from the hole. He was overcome with horror and helpless to choke back the sickness rising up inside him. His stomach heaved and a forcefully ejected tide of vomit followed the surge of hot bile into his throat. But the obstruction in his mouth meant it had no means of egress. His face turned red as he began to gag. Terror intermingled with repulsion as he realized he was on the verge of choking to death.
Elliot’s head swiveled his way as the gagging sounds intensified. Letting go of the drooping length of intestine, he got to his feet and hurried over to Chuck, disappearing behind him to undo the straps of the ball-gag, which were snapped shut at the back of his head. He got the snaps open within seconds and tore the gag away from Chuck’s head, dropping it on the floor. This did not immediately solve Chuck’s problem, because now the sodden, partially digested remains of his last meal were lodged in his throat, congested in the narrow passageway. A hand pressed against the back of his head, pushing it forward. The hand remained there as the base of a fist began to thump against his back. Some of the congested matter in his throat came loose and he gagged again as chunks of it spilled out of his mouth and dribbled down his chin before sliding down his bare torso. The fist continued to hammer away at his back and more chunks of vomit came loose, oozing out in the same way. Then his stomach heaved again and his mouth opened wide as he sprayed puke all over the floor in front of Fawn’s corpse.
Apparently satisfied that his prisoner was no longer about to choke to death, Elliot moved away from him and dragged Fawn’s body away from the pool of vomit. This struck Chuck as odd, given the grossness of what the man had been doing moments ago. You’d think a little puke wouldn’t bother him at this point. Chuck’s bottom lip trembled and drool laced with bile dribbled from the corners of his mouth as he watched Elliot drop to one knee next to Fawn and start rooting through her guts again. Loops of intestine coiled on the dusty floor as he continued to pull the viscera out through the hole.
Chuck spluttered and coughed to clear his throat. He spat on the floor and heaved a breath. “You sick fuck. Why are you doing that to her?”
Elliot glanced at him as he leaned over and reached with one of his long arms to retrieve the knife he’d dropped. “Don’t talk.”
Chuck grunted. “Fuck you.”
Elliot started sawing through the section of intestine connecting the coiled loops at his feet to Fawn’s body. “If you continue talking, I’ll have to hurt you.” He glanced at Chuck again. “I’m sure you believe there’s nothing worse I could do to you than I’ve already done. You’re very wrong about that. Keep your mouth shut or I’ll show you how wrong you are.”
Chuck ached to spew more insults at him. Verbal assault was the only weapon remaining to him, after all. But he’d seen enough to know a lot about the depths of depravity existing within Elliot Parker. He also clearly was not the type to make idle threats.
So Chuck kept his mouth shut, saying nothing even as Elliot gathered up the pile of droopy guts in his blood-soaked hands and got to his feet, turning to face him with a look of leering anticipation on his hollow-cheeked face, which looked cadaverous in the dim light. He already had a pretty good idea of what Elliot had in mind. His stomach roiled again at the thought of it and he again felt bile tickle the back of his throat. Fortunately, there was nothing solid left to eject as a dry heave forced his mouth open. Only more sour spittle emerged.
Elliot draped the loops of intestine around Chuck’s neck. Chuck whimpered at the vile feel of the slick viscera against his bare torso. The urge to scream and spew venom at his tormentor returned, but he remained thoroughly intimidated by Elliot’s threat.
Once he was satisfied with how he’d arranged the loops of intestine, Elliot returned to the violated corpse and knelt at its side again. He used the knife to widen the hole he’d created and then peeled back the big flap of flesh as far as he could, exposing more glistening organs. After groping around inside her for a few moments, he used his knife to cut something else loose.
He got to his feet and approached Chuck.
“Open your mouth.”
Chuck glanced at the chunk of dark red meat in Elliot’s left hand, then he looked him in the eye and said, “What?”
“What did I tell you about not talking? Open your mouth.” Elliot grinned. “It’s feeding time.”
Chuck shook his head.
“Come now, Everly. You haven’t eaten since last night. You must be famished.” He glanced at the red chunk of something in his hand, arching an eyebrow. “I believe this is a bit of kidney. I’ve yet to resort to cannibalism, but I imagine it’s very tasty in this raw, juicy form.”
Chuck kept his mouth shut and shook his head again.
Elliot’s mad grin faded, his eyes widening in anger as his thin lips peeled back from his crooked, yellow teeth. “Do as I say or I’ll cut off your balls and feed those to you instead.”
Chuck sniffled, his eyes filling with tears as he arrived at yet another moment of utter defeat. His jaw trembled as he forced his teeth to unclench. Once his mouth was open wide enough, Elliot pushed the raw chunk of whatever it was through the opening, clamped a hand under Chuck’s jaw to keep him from spitting it out, and ordered him to chew.
Chuck’s jaw worked until the little piece of Fawn was sufficiently masticated to slide down his gullet. When Elliot was satisfied that it had indeed been ingested, he let go of Chuck’s throat and moved away from him, again taking up a position over Fawn’s mutilated body. He was sure the madman meant to kneel at the body’s side again and cut loose another piece of meat, but it soon became clear he had something else in mind.
Elliot opened the fly of his jeans and took out his penis. In a moment, a strong stream of urine emerged as he began to piss all over the corpse. The stream was so strong Chuck suspected this was something Elliot had been planning all along. He’d been saving up for it, letting his bladder swell for hours beforehand like a guy preparing for a pre-employment pee test. Piss went into the opened abdominal cavity. More of it splashed against her breasts. Still more of it went through the holes carved in the face of the jack-o’-lantern. Chuck was shaking with rage long before Elliot finished emptying his bladder. All the things that had happened until now had been bad enough, but this extra level of insult was intolerable.
It was obvious the gesture was symbolic of his contempt for the life he had taken, a guess Elliot confirmed when he glanced Chuck’s way and said, “Bumped into this cunt while spying on you last month. There’s a GPS tracker on the underside of your Odyssey, by the way. I was lurking around outside that crappy motel where you and the whore always went to fuck. She came out of the room by herself that time. Usually you came out together, but not that time. Anyway, she looked around and saw me. There’s a vending machine in an alcove near that room and I was pretending to study the snack choices.” By now Elliot’s stream had slowed to a trickle. He gave his dick a final shake and stuffed it back in his pants. “Anyway, I looked at her and smiled, trying to seem normal. Like usual, I failed. Big time. She got this look on her face, a sort of disgusted cringe, like she’d never seen anything so revolting. So many women look at me like that. Like I’m beneath them. I’ve been working out how to put this one in her place ever since that night. This works for me.”
Chuck pushed out a breath and worked to keep his voice steady as he glared at Elliot and said, “I’m going to kill you for that.”
Elliot was smirking as he turned away from Fawn’s body. “Maybe you’ll get your chance yet, tough guy. I’ve got plans for you, you know. Big plans. But before we get to that, I’ve got a lot more killing to do. Eleven are dead. Twenty still need to die.”
