Lesley and Jennifer had been married for thirty seven years, her sister Mavis had introduced them at a village function. Mavis was dating Lesley’s older brother at the time. From Lesley’s point of view it was love at first sight, he found her interesting, intelligent and breathtakingly beautiful. Her only flaw was her love of material possessions, money was everything to her and because Parker was so head over heels in love he was only to happy to provide it to the point where he was taking bribes to keep quiet about the killings in the village just to keep her in the life she was so accustomed to. If he didn’t she would have left him years ago. In the end the guilt got too much and he put an end to the problems the village was having. It meant him hurting a family member but he had no choice it was all too out of hand and something had to give. But no one ever knew that.
Now this creature was back, somehow, from the dead and it had killed his beloved wife. He sat staring at the blood stained Persian Rug and for the first time in as long as he could remember he began to cry.
He removed the gun from his holster, placed it in his mouth as the tears rolled down his face. He had no choice, there was no way out of it this time. His life was over without Jennifer.
Parker’s dead body fell to the floor, his blood joining that of his wife’s in a pool on the rug. His gun lay unused next to him, for it wasn’t a bullet from Parkers gun that killed him.
Mark sat back in his chair, amazed by what he had just read. The files he had brought home for the most part were useless, it was only when he found a battered old journal and some letters that some pieces began to fall into place. ‘What do you reckon then?’ Louise asked. He took sometime before replying. ‘We need to get over to Parker’s place and warn him, it’s all in these letters, its Parker’s brother that brought this thing to the village. That family have some serious issues and he can give us the answers and hopefully help us stop this thing before anyone else gets killed’.
Elaine pulled herself up, her leg was throbbing in pain but she didn’t care. By the time she got into the lounge she saw Terry backed into a corner, that evil creature had cornered him, a look of sheer panic and horror etched across his face. ‘Get out’ he screamed at her, ‘for god sake Elaine get the hell out of the house’. She just stood paralysed by fear, the creature looked from Terry to Elaine and back again as if weighing up which to go for first. Then in another heartbeat the animal lunged at Terry, its huge paw slashing across his petrified face. Blood and skin flew in every direction plastering the walls in a crimson red. Elaine screamed but still could not move, fear locked her feet, glued to the floor. Her head told her to do something, anything, but her body was having none of it. She watched the life drain out of the man she had loved for thirty years as the creature gorged itself on his frail body. His screams eventually stopped as Terry took his dying breath and the creature turned to Elaine. She gained her composure and ran for the back door, opening and closing it on the animal before it got to her. She staggered up her garden path, her leg was still bleeding heavily and she moved slowly, willing her legs to work. The creature had jumped back through the broken window, closed the distance between them and flawed her with its weight before she knew anything about it. She was dead in seconds.
As they reached Parkers house Mark had a funny feeling in the pit of his stomach, he knew something wasn’t right.
They approached the rear of the property, their hearts beating in their chests ten to the dozen. ‘I don’t like this’ Louise whispered, ‘it’s too quiet. And eerie’ she added almost as an afterthought. Mark just nodded his agreement, he didn’t get to reply because a howl pierced the peaceful night air. A shared look moved them both as they ran for the back door. They reached it and found it open just as two large black shapes crashed through the back fence.
The lounge in Parkers house was as elegant as anything Mark had ever seen but a familiar person standing over Parkers motionless body ended his marvelling.
‘Hello Mark, I’ve been expecting you’ came the emotionless cold voice of the Police Stations receptionist, Mavis Parker, the gun still in her hand. ‘You don’t seem surprised to see me’ she asked. ‘I’ve read the journal Mavis, seeing you here just helps me fill in the gaps’. She smiled a cold heartless smile as if she hadn’t a care in the world. ‘That journal tells you nothing’ she eventually replied. ‘It tells me your husband, Parkers brother, fucked about with some animals, turning them into killing machines’ he spat back ‘it’s his fault this has happened’.
‘SHUT UP’ she screamed, her eyes suddenly wide with rage, ‘you have no idea what you’re talking about, he meant no harm’. ‘Then why all this’ he pleaded, ‘what was the point to these mindless killings?’ She sighed, and for the first time took on a more human expression.
‘He was a genius, mad on science. Maybe a little eccentric, but a genius all the same. His mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease when he was young. He watched he slowly deteriorate to the point where she couldn’t even clean her own teeth anymore. One night she wondered out of the house. She wouldn’t have known where she was she didn’t even know her name. She got picked up by a group of drunks, she was raped and murdered. Victor was destroyed, as were the rest of the family, but he never got over it. He became obsessed by the illness, swore he was going to get it to. He spent years researching, adamant he would find a cure. By the time we were married he believed he had. But he needed to test it. He got the financial backing from a big American company and he was away. He tried it on cats, dogs, monkeys but all it did was kill them. He was close to losing his backing, he was desperate, the wolf was his last hope. And by God it worked.’ She smiled to herself, as if remembering a happier time. ‘He was so excited. The cure was an injection into the brain that re stimulated the cells preventing the onset of the disease’. She apused again and her face returned to the angrier look Mark was used to. ‘Then the bastard thing escaped’ she snarled, ‘killed a handful of people. The company covered it up, paid this arsehole’, she waved her gun at Parkers body, ‘shed loads to keep it quiet which he did just to keep that bitch in jewellery and furs. In the end the wolf was shot, the story was covered up and people began to forget. But not Victor. He couldn’t let it go. He said he was going to try again. He and Lesley had a huge row then Victor disappeared. Lesley said it was an accident, drown in the reservoir. His body was never found. It was a lie. Lesley killed him, his own brother. All to cover his own back, so no one would interrupt his perfect little life with his perfect little wife. This was his village and nothing was going to put a stop to that. I couldn’t prove it of course. I swore I’d get revenge, but he was a powerful man with the backing of a big family, I had to just shut up. Then a few months ago I was going through some of Victor’s things and I found two vials of the medication. This was my chance at revenge. So I bribed a young fool from the local zoo. It’s amazing what teenagers will do for a few quid. He fed two wolves the stuff. I never thought it would work, but it did. Anyway, they accidentally “escaped”’ she did quotation marks with her fingers. ‘I swore I’d bring that bastard down and his family and I have’ she smiled all too pleased with herself.
‘You’re crazy’ Louise screamed. ‘Don’t’ Mark whispered, ‘No Mark’ she continued ‘she’s fucking mental, your as deluded as that dead husband of yours, your whole family is stark raving mad’.
‘Oh shut up you stupid bitch’ Mavis retorted lifting her gun up and shooting Louise between the eyes. Blood and brain matter exploded against the wall. Mark gasped, bewildered as her limp body fell to the floor. Mavis dropped her hand casually as if it never happened.
‘WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?’ Mark screamed, tears streaming from his face, ‘WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?’
‘She shouldn’t have bad mouthed my Victor’ she snapped. Mark just stared at her in disbelief. ‘He killed my husband Mark, what was I supposed to do, he couldn’t get away with it’. Mark finally managed to compose himself. ‘He didn’t kill him’ he whispered. ‘What?’ she snapped. Mark repeated himself, a little louder, their eyes met. ‘He did’ she screamed waving the gun in his face, ‘he killed him and lied about it’.
‘I’ve read the journal Mavis and I’ve read the letters’. She looked confused. ‘You never got that far did you?’ he asked. She didn’t reply. ‘Mavis, Victor is alive, he’s in a psychiatric hospital. Parker had him sectioned to keep him quiet’.
She looked at him in disbelief. He threw the pile of letters at her. ‘Read them for yourself if you don’t believe me’. She would never have the chance. The lounge window smashed as a wolf crashed through onto Mavis. She screamed in agony as the animal mauled her body. She put up a fight and fired her gun, it howled in pain before collapsing on top of her dead. Mark ran over to where she lay in a pool of her own blood. She gasped for breath, her throat was all but gone. Blood gushed from the wound. ‘I’m sorry, so, so sorry’ she whispered before she died.
Mark gagged but before he could do anything else the second wolf entered the room. It stood in the corner assessing the carnage before its eyes locked on Mark’s and it lunged for him. He grabbed the gun from Mavis’ limp hand and fired a bullet into the wolf’s head. It fell to the floor in a heap and Mark watched the life leave its evil red eyes forever.
Chapter Fifteen
Six Weeks Later…
Mark was bored of unpacking and was happy to be down to the last box. Harry ran around his feet thinking it was all a game and all Mark could do was laugh.
He had to get out of the village. After answering the questions the police had for him he packed all his things and left. He read in the papers that several of the surviving Parker family had been arrested for their part in the cover up and the local papers had a field day exposing the whole ugly truth about the sleepy little village of Congleton. He also read that Jacob Lyle had killed himself following the guilt he felt, his suicide note stated he’d rather be with his wife in heaven then go to jail.
Mark was ready for a fresh start in a new town away from crazy villagers. He sat down in his recliner, Harry came running in from the kitchen with his lead in his mouth, his little tail wagging enthusiastically. ‘Ok, ok’ Mark sighed raising his eyebrows in mock disgust ‘but no going over any fields’.
THE END
