The Reekers

Perhaps you've heard of the Reekers? No? Well here is a story of how they came to be.

This murderous family was once a quiet isolated couple, living in the woodlands in Baltimore with nobody to disturb them. It consisted of just two people; a mother and son, the rest of the family having died from the plague. They lived all alone in the woodlands, living off what nature gave them, a sheltered, secluded life of solitude and quiet.

The family had a slightly unnerving edge to them even before disaster came - not that the family would have seen it that way. The mother and son were in a relationship, they were, and aimed to keep it that way.

Not only because the sexual relationship they had kept the mother in good shape, but it also was one means of procreation - the mother, Julia, didn't ever want to go out into society and find a proper husband - she thought her son, Frank, was too handsome for any other man to be hers, and I'm afraid that Frank thought so too.

The family owned nothing more than their clothes, and went out hunting in the woods each day. Their house had no electricity, and a tiny amount of water. It was just a wooden shed, out in the deep woods. But they were content, I am sorry to say, with their incestuous relationship, and they lived their lives in a blissful unawareness of the outside world's somewhat frightening progress, both of them safe in their isolated cabin.

They were also naturists, and didn't eat anything more than mushrooms, berries and herbs, only making clothes out of plants that grew in the land. So even though many would consider their incestuous way unspeakably evil, the truth is the mother and son were happy for many years.

Until it all changed, back in 1899.

There was an awful lot of noise one day in the forest and loads of shouting issued through the trees, and the mother and son, alone in bed, clutched each other in fear of discovery. But in a long, eventful kiss, the couple calmed down again and lay there cradling each other's naked shoulders and thinking of the future.

The next day, the mother and son, Julia and Frank, both went out hunting as usual but found a railway track running through the woods not too far from their house, and they were slightly unnerved, but puzzled and curious all the same. It struck them as odd why anyone in "civilization" would want to build gigantic planks of wood by their safe abode.

That night, early evening to be precise, a train swept through the woods, majestically, with a load of banging and clanking. Julia was woken from her sweet dreams and she lit a candle and watched this awesome sight through her window.

There was a gigantic screech of gears, and she watched in terror as something seemed to flash over the tracks of the train. It looked in the dark to be like a black dog, but she wasn't sure.

A pale form came in the window behind her, and crept right up to her, but it was just Frank, who was shirtless, and put a comforting hand on her naked shoulder. She was pacified, and watched the horror unfold.

The train braked, swerved, and hurtled over the tracks, zig-zagging, much like a street in an earthquake. Within seconds, after a horrifying roar of twisted metal, there was an explosion and the train lurched off the path and caught fire.

Julia turned back to her son in fear, but Frank, overawed by her beauty, lunged in and kissed her.

The next day, when Julia and Frank went out hunting again, they came upon the smoking remains of the train - it was grotesque. Every where they went were horribly contorted human bodies, and this was much the first humans they had ever seen, and they were initially appalled, but then realized that this was because the humans were all deceased. But this didn't stop the gut feeling of their guts being wrenched.

Suddenly, a little way down from the bank, Frank gave a shout, and Julia ran down meaning to protect him but actually found him hunched over what was a lottery ticket. Never before in their lives had they seen so much money.

Now see the strange way fate favours the dispossessed. For any other family would, for not reporting the crash, have been arrested, jailed and sent to prison. But not these two. No. Society, for the first and last time, took pity on them, seeing they had nothing - and they granted them a place in society, gave them passports, gave them a house, gave them electricity - the lottery money was money well spent.

Julia and Frank soon rose to prominence, as Frank got enrolled in business school, and soon he became efficient in his ways, and became one of the top men in the United States of America; even founding one of the top firms in the area. Julia, she stayed at home, but she became a successful gold digger.

One day, however, Frank was in the town library, when he came upon an arcane section - full of impossible sorcery and ancient knowledge. With his beautiful and brave mother for company, they decided to try this out.

It was just for laughs, it was. But it was a simple ritual that they could practice, and, if it worked - well, it would give them everlasting life. Because, you see, Julia and Frank Reeker were afraid of death, more than anything, having lost their family to the plague, and decided to contact the divinity to become immortal.

It was a simple ritual they performed one night in the midst of Spring. They set about two candles in the woods and sat in the dark trees for hours. Finally, they got to kissing. It transpired to be successful in the outcome - for something did visit them. Some say it was Death himself. It granted them their wish of immortality, but also a price - they had to give him lives to replace theirs, to replace their lives that he wouldn't take. As long as these lives were given to the Reaper, they could be free to make endless romance as long as human life lasted.

They were encouraged by the norms of the day to attend social balls and outfitters, they still pursued their romantic incestuous relationship, but they had to keep it indiscreet. For, when they moved into a modern house complete with electricity, Julia had vowed no other man apart from her son would satisfy her, having known and loved him for so long, and I'm sorry that he agreed.

One night they were invited to a fundraiser, because Frank had raised so much success. They were getting along well, although people were suspicious of how often Frank caressed his mother's naked shoulders, how often he put his hand round her, and how often they had to go outside for a bit.

The old clothes they wore in the woods were long gone, Frank now wore a tuxedo, and Julia wore a gorgeous glittering black dress with a gold necklace of her own making. It was so luxurious, that it attracted the attention of one of the more scrupulous business leaders in the room.

He approached Julia. "My, madam, that's beautiful, that necklace-" he began.

"W- oh, thank you," Julia admitted, confused yet compliant. She wasn't one to look a gift in the mouth.

She began sweating; and shot a nervous smile over at her son who was with a group of entrepreneurs.

"May I - say, we make a deal -" the man smirked, whose name was Cal, "say we make a deal, if I - if I buy the necklace from you, and then I can make a fortune? I give you twenty percent off the proceeds, of course!" He laughed greedily.

Julia shook her head, clasping her necklace. "No thank you -" she ventured, and took another good look at her handsome son, who didn't seem to be noticing anything like his mother being in danger.

The man now reached out and touched her neck, scaring her almost to death. "Come on, my pretty, give us a deal -" he said.

"BACK - OFF!" Julia lunged at him but Cal sneered. "It doesn't matter if you don't want to or not - the choice is not yours! To tell you the truth, Julia, I love gold... and I love women... in fact, both of you are so beautiful together... I think I'll take you BOTH!" and he lunged in to violently kiss her, but Julia screeched and pulled him off.

Across the other side of the room, Frank, her son, saw what was happening, and he suddenly flew round, knocking glasses and guests flying, and yelled "STOP THAT, OI!" but Cal continued abusing his mother. So, Frank did the only thing he could. He marched up to Cal, and pounded his shoulder, but the man refused to see sense, and was now gouging at Julia's skin.

So, Frank did the only next thing he could think of. There was nothing to lose - he still kept, in his pocket, a short, sharp blade, a souvenir of the days in the woods with his beautiful mother. He had vowed to protect her and continue their relationship; so it was fitting he could use it now. Without really thinking, he grabbed Cal's hair, yanked his head back, and, in front of the whole shocked room, he viciously slit Cal's throat.

As the body tumbled to the floor, and blood began stealing out to stain Frank's overshined shoes, the guests were in shock. They all began backing away nervously from this insane monster among them.

Julia, although stunned, was pleased that her son had kept his word. "Thank you, son, I always knew I could rely on you, you're so handsome," she said before leaning in and stealing a kiss.

Before they knew it, they were surrounded.

The thing they had feared had come to pass. The citizens now knew of their sexual incestuous relationship, and I'm pained to say the citizens were not much better than the family even. They could not see reason, all they thought about was getting their own souls to Heaven, and these two damned souls to Hell. They wanted to do God's work in cleansing the land of all evil, and if a man lies with his mother, does not Deuteronomy say he shall be put to death?

The crowd marched determinedly forwards; their fists raised to lash out, but Frank, although he acted unaware, moved with speeds faster than any poisonous snake. Within minutes, the unarmed crowd was all lying in pools of their own blood, their multiple wounds pooling out blood.

Julia, relieved that he had protected her not only once, but twice, leaned in, smiling, to kiss and grope him, and now they kissed until they slept, and woke up, owning nothing but their flesh and each other.

They decided soon that society was not for them. Humans had presented them with gruesome gore since they met them - and now they were as abusive and violent as ever. So, that dawn, they prepared to leave. Frank took all his treasures with him - they would use these to barter along the way. Julia stole from the bodies all the treasures she could see - gold watches, diamond necklaces, dresses - even, anything to make their way in the rich and overly suspicious West.

And so they set off.

It was not long before they met a policeman. "You haven't been drinking, have you, sir? Madam?" Frank nodded at Julia, who smiled, closed her eyes, and sliced the policeman's throat and cheeks open with Frank's knife. Then they dragged his dead body into a deserted alleyway, and after plenty of luxurious kissing, they stole whatever possessions he had of value.

They cut a bloody path from state to state, slipping through each country like moonbeams slipping through each shadow where they could never be seen. From family to family, they would knock on each doors, posing as the homeless and desperate, and then would steal the treasures they could find, before Julia and Frank Reeker slit the throats of the home owners.

Their deal has been done to everlasting effect; for the deal took place in 1899, and the last encounters had been in 1998, in a town in Colorado.

But the Reeker family are always there, always nomadic, always surviving, always in love with each other.

And so with this thought I leave you to your own ends. Refuse to mingle with society if you want - but at other times, it is a rare gift.

But wait, who is that knocking at your door?