Board Thread:Writer's Workshop/@comment-25158530-20140709193805

It was the middle of November, in the small, isolated town of New Burnside. The first snow of the year had come and gone, and residents were expecting more to come soon. New Burnside was nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, and was the last easy stop for many truckers before they had to navigate the most difficult part of the roads through the mountains. Usually the townsfolk at this time of year were getting ready for the towns annual fair and Thanksgiving, and was a happy place. This year however, the town was in a state of alertness. Several farmers had reported that cows had been found mutilated in the fields, with their stomachs and throats torn open. They blamed coyotes for the attacks, but many wondered how coyotes could cause such methodical killing or be so aggressive. Also, a tragedy had befallen one of New Burnsides most well-known families. Police had found the family, a husband, wife, and three children, brutally murdered in their home, with their stomachs and throats ripped open. The family’s fourth child, the eldest daughter, was missing from the carnage. A perplexing problem was there was no sign of forced entry, and had that been the only thing the police would have suspected the daughter as the killer. However, a blood stain was found leading to a small locked window in the house, one that was not from the other bodies. The police were baffled by this. If they assumed the blood was from the daughter, then the killer would had to drag her to the window, pull the daughter through, and then close and lock the window from the outside.

“Police are continuing to investigate this gruesome crime as we speak. Hopefully with some luck, this family will be put to rest, and their killer brought to justice. Back to you Tom” Sophia watched the TV change back to a news reporter in the studio. She had been just as shocked by the murders as everyone else. She had known the family, had been good friends with their daughters and even briefly dated their eldest son back in high school. Which was not that long ago, she reminded herself. Graduation was only four years ago, right when she got her modeling contract. She tried not to think about that, as it made her think of Kyle. Bitterness and loathing welled up inside her. “Don’t think about that” she told herself. She was back home and determined to put her life back together. She looked across the dinner table and smiled at the company she had. She was with her mother and father, as well as her four older brothers. They were having what they refer to as night breakfast, dinner with breakfast food. On the table before her she saw biscuits and gravy, bacon, fried eggs, hash browns, sausage, various fruits, toast, and decaffeinated coffee. Everyone was just ready to begin eating. “Turn down the TV will you dear” her mother said to her father. He complied and sat down for dinner. “Let’s say prayer” he said, and everyone bowed their heads. “Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen”. Yes, Sophia thought, deliver us from evil, as her mind wandered to recent events in the town. They then had a wonderful meal, filled with lively talk. Sophia was so happy to be with her family again, after four years of addiction, eating disorders, and misery in the modeling world. She listened to her father talk about recent court cases he presides over, her mother’s work at the hospital, how the cat loves the new garden they planted, how the new library looks, about her second eldest brothers new girlfriend, and various other family talk. “Hey mother, could you pass the biscuits?”   As her mother was handing her the biscuits, the TV turned to static and the lights started to flicker rapidly. A horrible smell permeated the air, a smell of rotting flesh and blood. The cat started to hiss and growl in a corner. Her father got up and closed an open window in the nearby kitchen. “There”, he said, “that smells like a decaying animal, hopefully that will keep the stench out”. Sophia thought she saw something brush against the window right after her father turned his back, like a hand, but remembered there was a tree nearby. The sound of rain on the roof started up, as well as distant thunder. “They say it is going to rain all night” her mother stated. “It will be good for our new garden, as we have not had much rain”. The rotting smell disappeared, but the power went out completely. They were not worried though, and brought out candles and flashlights to finish their meal with. After they had cleaned up, Sophia went over to the cat, who was named Moose, and picked him up. “Poor Moose, he’s trembling. The storm must be scaring him real bad.” Strange cat, she thought. He had never acted like this before in any other storm. It must be his age, as he is very old. Moose looked up at her, his eyes full and desperate. He meowed once, and then buried his face in her shirt. As the power was out and they had just finished a big meal, the family decided to retire to bed. In one hand Sophia held the terrified cat and the other held a candle. She went to her room and set the candle on the nightstand. She then got into bed and proceeded to pet the cat, to calm him down. He started to relax and curled up next to her on the bed. She then blew out the candle and tried to go to sleep.

                 However sleep did not come easy to Sophia. After about two hours of lying there the cat rose from his sleeping position and stared out of the window in the bedroom. Soon his fur rose up and he issued a low growl. Sophia looked at him sleepily and wondered what his problem was. Moose then hopped off of the bed and bolted out of the room. She then looked outside, trying to see what had upset him. In the dark night she saw some sort of movement outside, but it was low to the ground. She assumed it must be a small animal like a raccoon or something similar. She then lied down and thought of her plans for life. She defiantly wanted to go to college now that her modeling career was over. The only question was what to do. She was not particularly drawn to anything. She also thought about her longtime boyfriend from high school, Jeff. Maybe I will go and see him, she thought. I wonder what he has been doing these last four years. As she turned to lay on her left side to go to sleep, she came upon a horrible sight. On the other side of the bedroom window was a creature staring right at her. It was tall, human-like, but skeletal, with dark yellow skin. Two piercing yellow eyes shone in the darkness, filled with both malice and hunger. It looked like it was decomposing, with its left cheek and lips completely missing, showing sharp white fangs. Its nose looked like it rotten off and had several gashed in its body, with bone showing in some places. It took one of its hands, with its long fingers and pointed nails, and slid them down the glass as it uttered a low guttural growl. Sophia was too terrified to move, with her hands shaking uncontrollably and her breath coming in gasps. It then dematerialized into a thick mist, and poured itself through the window, piling itself at the foot of her bed. Inside the mist those two eyes, hateful and desirous, reappeared and stared at Sophia. Too shocked to do anything, she watched as the mist reformed into that thing, who then took a step toward the door. The monster closed the door and locked it gracefully, as if it had done it before. Mind numbingly terrified, Sophia let out a scream and reached for the crucifix beside her bed. She fell out of bed, covers and all, just as the thing took a step towards her. She held out the crucifix, and the monster held up a hand to its face, releasing a snarl of hatred. It then gave her a look, a cruel, amused look, and unlocked the door and moved into the hallway. Sophia was catatonic with terror, praying fervently. She heard the splintering of her parents’ bedroom door, heard her mother’s screams, her father’s shouts, a lamp breaking, the crack of bones, her brothers running, their screams of pain, the heavy thud of bodies being dropped, and then silence.  