Darts Betting Guide: How to Bet on Darts - MansionBet Blog

It was nearly midnight when I first saw her. There was only one 24 hour grocery store in my small hometown and she looked as out of place as anyone could possibly be. Rather than wearing the old faded denims that all the townspeople seemed to prefer she was dressed in a white, pressed blouse and an obviously expensive black, pencil skirt that reached to just above her knees. She stood out like a sore thumb. Unlike most of the working class farmers in our area she didn't dress plainly nor did she look old before her time. Her smooth, creamy white skin and long blonde hair revealed a pampered lifestyle that none of the townsfolk here could possibly afford. She also had wide, innocent green eyes that seemed oblivious to the harsh realities of this world. And I...well I was instantly smitten.
We had both arrived at the mom and pop shop at the exact same time. Myself, I had come for some late night microwave pizza and a few beers. And she, well I could only wonder as to what had brought such a beautiful and sophisticated young woman to this small place and at such a late hour. I froze in my steps when I noticed her. She swept by me with a shy smile and continued into the small establishment. I shook my head in an effort to clear my thoughts and followed her through the dimly lit entrance of the store. I made my quickly to the frozen food aisle to grab my pizza and then moved on to the wider beer and liquor section of the market. I was pleasantly surprised to find the same woman also standing there, seemingly debating over two brands of red wine. She looked up at me as I approached and gave me another quick smile as she hastily returned one bottle to the shelf and turned to walk purposely toward the checkout line. I hurriedly picked up a twelve pack of my favorite brand of imported lager and followed after her.
Due to the late hour, there was only one checkout lane open and I impatiently took note of the other shoppers standing in line. There was an old woman whom I instantly recognized as Dorothy Woodsworth at the front. She watched with an eagle's eye as the checker rang up her meager items, her fist tightly clenched over what looked to be stack of painstakingly clipped coupons. Behind her was a rather disheveled and dirty looking man in his late 30's. I didn't recognize him but with his numerous piercings, tattoos and the strong stench of alcohol and body odor, I was instantly on guard. The town had so few residents and even fewer tourists that I found it very odd to come across two strangers in the same night, especially at the same location.
He must be a drifter, I decided, and a rather suspicious looking one at that. Even more disconcerting then the man's appearance was the suspicious items that he was purchasing. I saw a box cutter, zip ties, garbage bags and large amounts of duct tape crowded into his small shopping basket. I somehow doubted that a man like this was starting some late night home improvement project. I instantly felt myself reacting as any young, hot blooded male would. I puffed out my chest, flexed my muscles and met his dark eyes in a "You don't scare me" kind of way. Behind the drifter but in front of myself stood...her, the beautiful young woman that I had been ogling this entire trip. Much to my dismay, the dirty man's gaze also seemed to focus on the young woman. His tongue kept darting out to wet his dry, chapped lips as his eye's raked up and down her body in a clearly lustful way. I felt my protective instincts roar to life as I watched her uncomfortable gaze dart quickly from old Mrs. Woodsworth to the strange man and back again as though seeking a safe place to land. I wracked my brain for some form of conversation that would distract the girl from the man's inappropriate scrutiny and put her more at ease.
"H-hi there, buying some wine, huh?" The words just fell out of my mouth and I visibly winced as I stated the painfully obvious in a choked voice. The unkempt man snorted and gave me an amused and knowing look. "I mean..."
"Yes, I am having a late dinner with a friend." She calmly said with a relieved smile. Her voice was as soft and alluring as the rest of her and I instantly felt my body start to relax. I couldn't help but hope that there was more than just gratitude behind that smile.
"Oh, dinner that sounds nice." I replied awkwardly "must going on a date then, huh?" She opened her mouth as if to reply to my question but after a moment she shut it again and turned her eyes toward the cashier without answering me. Too shy and embarrassed to press her further, I also turned my attention solely to the cashier and attempted to pretend that no one else existed. The young man, whom I vaguely recognized as the grandson of the owners -Timmy or Jimmy I think was his name- made quick, competent work of everyone's purchases and before I knew it I was all paid up and walking towards the store exit. The same mysterious woman walking only a short distance in front of me. Once I reached the parking lot I watched as she quickly walked to a car a few spaces away, placed the wine in her trunk and unlocked her car doors. I was already at my truck, as I was parked closer to the store than her and was about to climb into the driver's seat when something came over me, a last ditch attempt to catch the girl of my dreams, I suppose. "Hey." I called out to her. "My name is Sam and I...don't mean to bother you. But, I would really like to know your name...and well do you have a boyfriend or anything?"
The girl paused in her motion to open her door and raised one perfectly groomed eyebrow in answer to my question. Damn, that had sounded awkward and far too needy to be anything even approaching casual. But then I had always been somewhat awkward around the ladies. "I mean well, do you?" She smiled briefly, revealing a cute little dimple in her left cheek and I felt my heart melt even more.
"I am Mina. And no, I don't have...anyone like that. But please just trust me when I say that you don't want to get involved with me. I am...too much trouble." With that she flicked back her long hair with a careless movement of her pale, perfectly manicured fingers and slid into the front seat of her luxury car. Following suit I plopped down into the driver's side of my beat up pickup and sighed. "Wow, smooth," I sarcastically taunted myself, "I can't imagine why she didn't just fall into your lap after such a brilliant line like that." Punching my steering wheel in several frustrated movements I gloomily watched her car back up and head towards the exit of the parking lot. It was then that I noticed the top of a head peeking out of her rear window, barely visible in the backseat of her car.
"Wait. What the..." I trailed off and quickly backed out of my parking space to follow her car towards the exit. It was only when I was directly behind her that I realized I recognized whose head I had seen peering at me from her rear windshield. The long, greasy hair together with the reflection of the store's lights glinting off his many piercings finally clued me into who this was. Somehow, the same dirty man who was in line before us had slipped into the back of her car without her notice! He quickly ducked back down below eye level until I could no longer see him. Meanwhile, she had switched on her turn signal indicating that she was going to turn left out of the parking lot. Even though my home was in the opposite direction I too flipped on my left turn signal and prepared to follow her. I was concerned for her safety, given the rough appearance of the man and the fact that he was obviously hiding out in her car. I knew he must have bad intentions, there was just no other explanation. I fought the urge to simply blare my horn at her, knowing that the man was quite possibly armed and able to cause her fatal injury if he knew that he had been discovered.
Instead I followed closely behind her as she slowly made her way through the streets of downtown and then turned off to a smaller, less brightly lit road. I considered then rejected several strategies that might get her out of her car without alerting the menacing stow away in her backseat. Several nerve wracking minutes passed as she navigated through town before finally turning into an all night gas station and my heart leapt. Thank God, this was my chance! I quickly turned in behind her and stopped at the pump adjacent to hers. At this time of night I could see no other patrons and only one scrawny teenage boy who seemed to be manning the register from inside the small building. There was really no one else in sight. I could see no sign of the man in her back seat and concluded that he must have flattened himself onto the floor of her car. I climbed out of my front seat and pretended to start gassing up my already full tank. I tried to appear nonchalant as I knew I had to be smart about this. If I just ran over to her screaming as my first instincts demanded then I would likely just frighten her back into her car then be back at square one.
She got out of her vehicle and looked at me somewhat suspiciously as she began pumping her gas. I opened and closed my mouth several times, my mind racing to come up with a plan to get her away from her car."You know this place has great coffee." I began, "Could I buy you a quick cup?" She made an exasperated sound in the back of her throat before replying. "Boy, you just don't give up, do you?" Attempting a casual smile I said "I just really think we should get to know each other, that's all. Just give me ten minutes, one cup of coffee and if you're still not interested you can go on your way and I promise to never bother you again." Please, please let this work my mind chanted over and over again."I really can't," she finally said. "Look you seem like a nice guy but I am just not interested. Sorry."
"Damn." I hadn't meant to say that out loud and once it came out it sounded rather angry. I watched helplessly as she took a frightened step back and looked down at the gas nozzle that I had just been holding, not even bothering to put it into my tank as it was already full. "You followed me here, didn't you?" she asked accusingly. "Listen man, I have tried to be nice but if you don't back off right now I am going to call the cops, do you understand?" She angrily finished pumping her gas and slammed the nozzle back into position at the pump. She had every right to be upset and I knew that I was probably scaring the hell out of the poor girl. I just didn't know what else to do. I was not the kind of man who could just leave a helpless woman to the wicked plans of a deranged man. I returned the nozzle to it's compartment as I briefly considered calling the police myself.
We only had one sheriff, who always left the station promptly at six every evening. That left only a single, young deputy whom the whole town knew to be drunk far more often than not. I couldn't help but think it would be the wrong move to involve him. If this guy was armed and got spooked he could kill her long before we got close enough to stop him. This situation required far more delicacy then an inebriated and inexperienced cop would be capable of. But then what should I do? She was just about to climb back in her car when I desperately called out, "Wait Mina, don't go. You...your tire is flat! Come see." She made a movement as if she was about to get back out to check but then she merely shot me a fearful look over her shoulder and started her engine.
I quickly jumped back into my pickup and fired up the engine. When she turned out of the parking lot I hesitated a few moments before turning behind her. I followed slowly at what I hoped was a discreet distance and tried to plan my next move. I was cursing myself for not thinking of writing her a note and slipping it discreetly to her somehow. If only I had thought of that sooner! She made several turns which led her out of the downtown area and eventually turned down what appeared to be a long dirt road. I had thought I knew every inch of this city but I soon found myself in unfamiliar territory. I followed about 200 yards behind her and the tall stalks of corn on either side of the narrow road caused eerie shadows to dance on my windshield. My heart and mind seemed to be in a competitive sprint and I knew that the finish line lay somewhere at the end of this rural road.
There was no other option, I would just keep my distance until she reached her destination and then once she stopped I would intervene when the man made his move. I was too far away to see into her vehicle now but would still catch the occasional glimpse of what looked like the top silhouette of a head through her back window. I took a mental inventory of everything I had in my truck that could aid me. I had a cellphone with a flashlight and thankfully also had an old shotgun that my dad had lent me for a hunting trip several weeks prior. I hated hunting, I was not a violent man and couldn't understand the thrill my friends seemed to get from taking down a defenseless animal. But there wasn't much to do in my hometown and hunting had always been my buddies favorite pastime. I was actually very thankful for that now. After driving through the darkness for what seemed an interminable amount of time I suddenly realized that I could no longer see the back light's of Mina's car. I slowed my speed down to a crawl and scanned the area up ahead and to the sides. Thinking that the man might have decided to force Mina to drive into to corn fields I watched the road closely for any fresh tire tracks, but I saw nothing.
After traversing the road for another couple of minutes I pulled my truck over, removed the shot gun from the rack behind my seat and cautiously climbed out. The sounds of night creatures and crickets was nearly deafening way out here and the still, hot air began to coat every inch of my skin with slick sweat. I could see nothing around me and was just about to give up to my crushing defeat to save Mina when I heard a loud, shrill cry. I quickly turned in the direction of the scream and it was only then that I noticed what looked to be a huge old barn roughly 300 yards behind me."How the hell did I miss that?" I cursed myself as I jumped back into my truck, tossing the shotgun into the passenger seat and somehow managing to only take out a few of the towering stalks of corn in my haste to get turned back around on the road. No longer concerned about stealth I roared down the road as dirt and bits of rock hammered at my truck. Realizing that the situation had escalated far beyond my control I quickly whipped out my cell phone and dialed the emergency police number. It rang eleven times and I was near to hanging up when a sleepy male voice finally came on the line.
"Emmergacy. Whas-tss yer locatioon?" Came the familiar slurred voice of the deputy. Damn, why couldn't he have been sober, just this once? As quickly as I could I relayed the night's events, trying to speak in a clear, concise voice so that even a drunk hillbilly could comprehend the urgency of the situation."This had better not be a prank." The deputy said after I had finished my explanation. Suddenly sounding far more sober, with only a tiny hint of the slur still evident in his voice, I felt my hopes rise slightly. "We've had a string of people go missing this week and so far there have been zero real leads. If what you're saying is true than this girl could be in very real danger."
"It's definitely not a prank," I quickly assured him. "My name is Sam Larsen and I don't know the exact address but I am in a large cornfield roughly eight miles west of the Hilliard's farm. There's a huge barn or something in the center and that's where I believe the woman is being held. I heard a scream a few minute's ago but nothing else since and I need to go in-" I was abruptly cut off by several fast beeping noises on the line. Looking down at my phone I realized that the phone was no longer getting a signal. In such a rural area cellphone's here were notoriously unreliable. I tried calling back but it quickly became obvious that I had no service.
"Damnitt!" I yelled and threw the phone onto the seat in frustration. I was on my own now, there was no time to try to move to a place with a better signal. The poor woman might already be dead at this point and I needed to act NOW. I switched off my headlights and slowed the truck down to a slow crawl as I approached the old barn. I could see Mina's expensive black car parked carelessly in front of the decrepit old building, both of it's doors left wide open. Beyond that there was no other sign of life. Quickly scooping up the shotgun and re-pocketing my cellphone I opened the driver's side door and stealthily slid out of my truck. I was hyper sensitive to the slightest noise as I cautiously made my way towards the structure. Peeking into the nearest, grime smudged window I could vaguely make out two people. One was seated in a chair and seemed to be struggling against some type of restraints. The other stood a few feet away and it looked as though they held something large and threatening with both their hands. Both figures seemed to be arguing based on their hand movements and the muffled shouts I could barely hear through the thick walls. I walked around the entirety of the structure until I came to a large hole where the wood had disintegrated just enough so that I could crawl through without alerting them of my presence. Once inside, their voices were much clearer to me.
"Please just let me go, I will give you whatever you want and...and I won't tell anyone what happened here, I swear!" It sickened me to hear this sweet young woman begging for her life and I felt a white hot rage begin to well within me, replacing my earlier fear. It was almost completely dark inside, the only light seemed to come from a small candle or lantern towards the front of the building where the voices originated. I could see several long shadows cast onto the floor and walls of barn. Two of them clearly belonged to Mina and the drifter but there were also at least half a dozen large shadows that seemed to hang down from the ceiling. They were raised several feet of the ground and seemed to sway gently back and forth. I assumed that they were simply large farm tools and paid them little heed beyond the thought that I could potentially use one of them as a weapon. There was a thick, putrid odor that seemed to permeate the air and I had to choke back bile as it rose in my throat. Creeping closer I crawled my way around the moldy bales of hay and fallen beams, trying desperately to be swift but silent.
"Anything I want, huh?" I heard a man's deep, menacing voice say. "Well that's a mighty tempting offer and one I plan to take you up on. Of course, what I really want is you. I just want to have some fun, you know? There ain't much to do around these part's except hunt, and I believe I have already bagged my prize. Just as with any fine young doe, I will start by stringing you up, I will skin and gut you and then separate the...choice bits." The woman began to sob hysterically and I quickened my pace, only slowing when I was mere feet from the their location. I could see small tufts of smoke rising from an old fashioned oil lamp that was set on a work bench next to several sharp knives and what looked like ancient, dirty surgical instruments. The lantern gave off so little light in the cavernous old barn that I felt I was still sufficiently hidden from view. I quickly turned my attention to the woman who did indeed appear to be strapped tightly to an antique wooden chair. She was softly whimpering what sounded like a garbled prayer and her long hair was tangled around her tear streaked face.
Before I could pinpoint exactly where the male stood I felt several beads of sweat trickle down from my forehead into my eyes, stinging them and blurring my vision. I hurriedly swiped at one eye with my free hand before pressing it back down onto the ground. I was surprised when my hand landed in something wet and sticky and on reflex I recoiled and looked down. Even in the low light I could still make out the small pool of thick dark liquid. Oil? That was my first thought but after a quick sniff I realized that it was blood. I froze when another drop landed from above my head to join the growing puddle. Slowly, reluctantly I raised my head and nearly screamed in horror. A naked corpse, strung up by the feet, dangled only a few feet above me. It had once been a man, though he had been savagely mutilated beyond all recognition. Though he was clearly deceased, fresh blood still dripped from several gaping wounds. I felt bile rise in my throat once again and the urge to flee was so strong that it nearly overpowered me.
Only the thought of Mina, her beautiful body stripped of both flesh and dignity and strung up like an animal kept me from "noping" my way out of there right that second. You can do this, I told myself. You have the shotgun and you know how to defend yourself. Besides, the cops will be here any minute now. That is if they can find you. How can you be sure the deputy even heard your description of this place before the call was dropped...? No, don't think like that! The cops will come and if not you can always just shoot the guy! Just as I was wrapping up my internal pep talk two large black boots suddenly came stomping into my line of vision. My eyes darted up the entire length of the drifter, who suddenly seemed ten feet taller and twice as broad in my panicked state. He was holding a large machete and kept tightening then loosening his grip on it in a very unsettling away. It was clear that he was anxious to use it. He smiled broadly before saying "I thought I heard a rat scurrying around in the dark, looks like I was right. Such a determined little guy. Mina said it best I think, 'you just don't give up, do you?' Well you know what they say, no good deed goes unpunished."
"And you will be punished, that much I can promise you." That voice, it was...Mina? I watched in shock as she sauntered over to stand next to the huge brute. The same wide, eerie smile on her beautiful face. How had she gotten out of the chair? That was the only question my terrified brain could conjure at the moment. I clumsily struggled to my feet still gripping the shotgun in one hand though at the time I don't think I was even aware I still held it. Everything seemed to move in slow motion and my mind felt like an old computer that had been unceremoniously shut down and was now struggling to reboot. "My hero," Mina said in an ugly, mocking tone. "You came to save the poor damsel in distress from a cruel trap. I bet you never once thought that trap might have actually been set for you. Don't feel bad though, you're not the only one, they never see it coming. Men like you make this only too easy, almost takes the fun out of it all."
I could only stare blankly at both of them for several seconds as I felt my stomach swiftly drop and my comprehension slowly dawn. They were in this together, they planned this whole damn thing...and the disappearances the deputy mentioned...?
To be continued...

Okay, so, first off: I'm assuming that, in-universe, everything is being well cared for. Some of these animals would be basically impossible to keep alive otherwise. Put the same TARDIS effect as the buildings have on the aquariums, I suppose, and add... something or another to keep things from eating each other. I am not being serious with this. I understand it would be hard to put a lot of this together in a nice way without it just looking empty most of the time, or being hard to explore, if everything was in an appropriately sized tank. I do appreciate, both visually and in general, that things aren't just in little bowls. But I thought this would be fun to do.
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Freshwater fish:
We walk in, and we see this somewhat peanut-shaped tank. Mine has guppies, neon tetras, killifish, and 3 types of fancy goldfish. Now, IRL, you can't combine these- the first three are tropical species, which aren't compatible with the coldwater goldfish. But, given that they're present in the same waters in ACNH, these must be adapted to the same temperature. The goldfish and guppies are domesticated species- who released them here? Anyway, they should be okay together, assuming it's not one of the more aggressive killifish species. They could use a little more cover, maybe turn that cluster of tall plants on the left into something they could hide in. And the bottom is pretty, but goldfish should generally have a handful of soft substrate to play in. I'm just happy the goldfish aren't in a bowl. A little more room wouldn't go amiss, but this is pretty much fine.
Next, the koi pond. Mine has tadpoles, black bass, loach, perchlet, bluegill, koi, carp, crayfish, and snapping turtle. The pond is large enough for these animals and has a reasonable amount of cover, but the tadpoles are in danger from most of the others, the crayfish will likely nip at fins, and the snapping turtle WILL eat those small fish and bite the rest. Those three should probably be in their own, separate enclosures, but the pond does suit their needs otherwise. I'd be inclined to have a couple more carp, koi, and loaches apiece, those are shoaling animals.
Back wall tanks. First off, the bottom one. Mine only has a sturgeon. He definitely needs more space- I'm not entirely sure how much, but I'd start with 4 times what we can see. Should also have some place to hide. They're docile bottom-feeders, so can be safely combined with many fish. I'm curious to see what will go here next.
Middle tank has pale chub, yellow loach, dace, crucian carp, and freshwater goby. These should, again, have a hiding place, and at least half again more space sure wouldn't go amiss. I'd be worried about the yellow perch (big mouth) and the goby (ditto) trying to eat the chub. The goby might even eat the dace. I think this is where stringfish go? In which case, it definitely needs to be larger.
Top tank has cherry salmon, golden trout, and char. Double this size at least, I'd say, those are active fish. Again, somewhere to hide- even just a rock to shelter them from the water flow. They need somewhere to sleep. I suspect the trout would prefer to be in a shoal.
I don't have anything that goes in the huge tank on the right, yet. I hope it gets decorations in it when I do. I'd suspect it's large enough for whatever goes in there, though.
Open/Deepwater fish:
This big tank is beautiful. But, if it's actually that size, entirely too small. Mine has anchovies, horse mackerel, marlin, and tuna. The latter would eat the former, though the anchovies could breed to cover it if they're well-fed (this happens at Monterey Bay), and the horse mackerel should be in a group. This tank should probably be at least the size of this whole room to house the two very active open-water fish in it, let alone the things I know will be added later. I'm very amused that donating 1 anchovy results in a school of hundreds.
The deepwater tank holds fish that can't yet be brought to the surface alive, so none of them are in aquaria IRL. We're working on it! Anyway, mine has footballfish, barreleye, coelocanth, and oarfish. The barreleye and football should be perfectly fine, though the football might eat its smaller compatriot. The coelocanth isn't a very active animal, so it should be fine in a tank this size? The oarfish, I have no idea, but would be inclined to give it a much larger enclosure. Don't need to worry about cover for these guys, they wouldn't encounter it in nature- more need to worry about them running into the walls of the tank, since they wouldn't encounter many solid surfaces. Open-ocean fish are tricky to keep.
Bay Fish:
This cylindrical tank of sea butterflies is beautiful. No idea on care of these, but I don't see any problems right off.
The reef tank, I have surgeonfish, butterflyfish, and clownfish. This tank is appropriately sized, there's plenty of cover (though a few line-of-sight barriers might not go amiss), and the fish should be compatible. Eager to see what fills out the rest of the tank.
The huge tank is... a mixed bag. I have seahorse, red snapper, sea bass, olive flounder, dab, turkeyfish, knifejaw, and squid. The seahorses should NOT be combined with these, or anything else- seahorses are vulnerable to predation, bullying, and bacterial infections, they should be in their own tank. Pipefish are about the only appropriate tankmate, and some shrimp. The squid, these mostly aren't kept in aquaria- they dart when startled, crash into the walls, and die. Cuttlefish are sometimes kept, but always alone, so I'd think squid should also be kept alone. I'd be a little skeptical of keeping the turkeyfish with other things, what with the venomous spines, but I believe I've seen it done. Otherwise, the fish are of reasonable sizes and similar needs, though I wonder if some of them might do best in shoals.
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Insect display area, main:
This is beautiful. It's the ideal housing for butterflies- they need lots of space. I won't list all of what I have, it's too many things. I will note problems.
Giant waterbugs will kill and eat fish. I love the pond here, but the waterbugs should be in their own section. The praying mantis, tiger beetle, spider, and dragonfly pose a distinct threat to the other inhabitants, and, again, should go elsewhere. The wasps would actually get used to people very quickly, but may be a problem for some of the butterflies. The beetles would vanish and never be seen again, but would be happy doing it. Same for the bagworm. I wonder why there are no signs about being careful where you step.
Butterfly display circle:
A little crowded to look at. I'd prefer the water had more places to climb out, and I question how all these butterflies are getting fed- I don't see any feeders. The snail should maybe not be free to eat your plants and be trod on. The koi in the fountain had better be there on a temporary basis, and should have gravel and plants to interact with.
Other invert area:
The moth and pillbug are fine in that enclosure, except that the centipede will eat them. Split those up and we're fine. The orchid mantis is in a great enclosure. I don't know what goes in this next tank.
The tarantula is mostly well-housed, but should maybe have less space to climb. Tarantulas are dummies who will be badly hurt if they fall, so should generally be kept in lower enclosures. This does make for better viewing, though. The tank I'm sure will contain a scorpion looks fine for it so far.
Mole crickets and ants shouldn't be mixed, but the aboveground locust and the burrowing cricket should be fine. Blathers needs to seal this leak the ants are using. I bet this little chamber by a tree root is going to have a cicada nymph, and will be fine housing for one.
The flies in the lab should probably be housed in something a bit less... jar-y. The butterfly chrysalis set is okay, but a larger, soft-sided enclosure would be preferable. The fleas, well, those can't really be housed in an ideal manner, since "ideal" would be on someone.
And finally, the hermit/wharf roach enclosure. I"m not sure about combining these, in case they'd be a threat to each other while molting. A larger enclosure wouldn't have gone amiss, and I hope those are fake starfish. But this land/water setup is ideal for both, and has decent cover. I'd prefer the hermit had more than one place to hide.
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Overall, the bugs (due to needing less space) are mostly well-housed. Excluding predator issues. The fish are a mixed bag, but you can't beat the aesthetics of this. Except maybe with even bigger tanks with more fish to admire.

It was nearly midnight when I first saw her. There was only one 24 hour grocery store in my small hometown and she looked as out of place as anyone could possibly be. Rather than wearing the old faded denims that all the townspeople seemed to prefer she was dressed in a white, pressed blouse and an obviously expensive black, pencil skirt that reached to just above her knees. She stood out like a sore thumb. Unlike most of the working class farmers in our area she didn't dress plainly nor did she look old before her time. Her smooth, creamy white skin and long blonde hair revealed a pampered lifestyle that none of the townsfolk here could possibly afford. She also had wide, innocent green eyes that seemed oblivious to the harsh realities of this world. And I...well I was instantly smitten.
We had both arrived at the mom and pop shop at the exact same time. Myself, I had come for some late night microwave pizza and a few beers. And she, well I could only wonder as to what had brought such a beautiful and sophisticated young woman to this small place and at such a late hour. I froze in my steps when I noticed her. She swept by me with a shy smile and continued into the small establishment. I shook my head in an effort to clear my thoughts and followed her through the dimly lit entrance of the store. I made my quickly to the frozen food aisle to grab my pizza and then moved on to the wider beer and liquor section of the market. I was pleasantly surprised to find the same woman also standing there, seemingly debating over two brands of red wine. She looked up at me as I approached and gave me another quick smile as she hastily returned one bottle to the shelf and turned to walk purposely toward the checkout line. I hurriedly picked up a twelve pack of my favorite brand of imported lager and followed after her.
Due to the late hour, there was only one checkout lane open and I impatiently took note of the other shoppers standing in line. There was an old woman whom I instantly recognized as Dorothy Woodsworth at the front. She watched with an eagle's eye as the checker rang up her meager items, her fist tightly clenched over what looked to be stack of painstakingly clipped coupons. Behind her was a rather disheveled and dirty looking man in his late 30's. I didn't recognize him but with his numerous piercings, tattoos and the strong stench of alcohol and body odor, I was instantly on guard. The town had so few residents and even fewer tourists that I found it very odd to come across two strangers in the same night, especially at the same location.
He must be a drifter, I decided, and a rather suspicious looking one at that. Even more disconcerting then the man's appearance was the suspicious items that he was purchasing. I saw a box cutter, zip ties, garbage bags and large amounts of duct tape crowded into his small shopping basket. I somehow doubted that a man like this was starting some late night home improvement project. I instantly felt myself reacting as any young, hot blooded male would. I puffed out my chest, flexed my muscles and met his dark eyes in a "You don't scare me" kind of way. Behind the drifter but in front of myself stood...her, the beautiful young woman that I had been ogling this entire trip. Much to my dismay, the dirty man's gaze also seemed to focus on the young woman. His tongue kept darting out to wet his dry, chapped lips as his eye's raked up and down her body in a clearly lustful way. I felt my protective instincts roar to life as I watched her uncomfortable gaze dart quickly from old Mrs. Woodsworth to the strange man and back again as though seeking a safe place to land. I wracked my brain for some form of conversation that would distract the girl from the man's inappropriate scrutiny and put her more at ease.
"H-hi there, buying some wine, huh?" The words just fell out of my mouth and I visibly winced as I stated the painfully obvious in a choked voice. The unkempt man snorted and gave me an amused and knowing look. "I mean..."
"Yes, I am having a late dinner with a friend." She calmly said with a relieved smile. Her voice was as soft and alluring as the rest of her and I instantly felt my body start to relax. I couldn't help but hope that there was more than just gratitude behind that smile.
"Oh, dinner that sounds nice." I replied awkwardly "must going on a date then, huh?" She opened her mouth as if to reply to my question but after a moment she shut it again and turned her eyes toward the cashier without answering me. Too shy and embarrassed to press her further, I also turned my attention solely to the cashier and attempted to pretend that no one else existed. The young man, whom I vaguely recognized as the grandson of the owners -Timmy or Jimmy I think was his name- made quick, competent work of everyone's purchases and before I knew it I was all paid up and walking towards the store exit. The same mysterious woman walking only a short distance in front of me. Once I reached the parking lot I watched as she quickly walked to a car a few spaces away, placed the wine in her trunk and unlocked her car doors. I was already at my truck, as I was parked closer to the store than her and was about to climb into the driver's seat when something came over me, a last ditch attempt to catch the girl of my dreams, I suppose. "Hey." I called out to her. "My name is Sam and I...don't mean to bother you. But, I would really like to know your name...and well do you have a boyfriend or anything?"
The girl paused in her motion to open her door and raised one perfectly groomed eyebrow in answer to my question. Damn, that had sounded awkward and far too needy to be anything even approaching casual. But then I had always been somewhat awkward around the ladies. "I mean well, do you?" She smiled briefly, revealing a cute little dimple in her left cheek and I felt my heart melt even more.
"I am Mina. And no, I don't have...anyone like that. But please just trust me when I say that you don't want to get involved with me. I am...too much trouble." With that she flicked back her long hair with a careless movement of her pale, perfectly manicured fingers and slid into the front seat of her luxury car. Following suit I plopped down into the driver's side of my beat up pickup and sighed. "Wow, smooth," I sarcastically taunted myself, "I can't imagine why she didn't just fall into your lap after such a brilliant line like that." Punching my steering wheel in several frustrated movements I gloomily watched her car back up and head towards the exit of the parking lot. It was then that I noticed the top of a head peeking out of her rear window, barely visible in the backseat of her car.
"Wait. What the..." I trailed off and quickly backed out of my parking space to follow her car towards the exit. It was only when I was directly behind her that I realized I recognized whose head I had seen peering at me from her rear windshield. The long, greasy hair together with the reflection of the store's lights glinting off his many piercings finally clued me into who this was. Somehow, the same dirty man who was in line before us had slipped into the back of her car without her notice! He quickly ducked back down below eye level until I could no longer see him. Meanwhile, she had switched on her turn signal indicating that she was going to turn left out of the parking lot. Even though my home was in the opposite direction I too flipped on my left turn signal and prepared to follow her. I was concerned for her safety, given the rough appearance of the man and the fact that he was obviously hiding out in her car. I knew he must have bad intentions, there was just no other explanation. I fought the urge to simply blare my horn at her, knowing that the man was quite possibly armed and able to cause her fatal injury if he knew that he had been discovered.
Instead I followed closely behind her as she slowly made her way through the streets of downtown and then turned off to a smaller, less brightly lit road. I considered then rejected several strategies that might get her out of her car without alerting the menacing stow away in her backseat. Several nerve wracking minutes passed as she navigated through town before finally turning into an all night gas station and my heart leapt. Thank God, this was my chance! I quickly turned in behind her and stopped at the pump adjacent to hers. At this time of night I could see no other patrons and only one scrawny teenage boy who seemed to be manning the register from inside the small building. There was really no one else in sight. I could see no sign of the man in her back seat and concluded that he must have flattened himself onto the floor of her car. I climbed out of my front seat and pretended to start gassing up my already full tank. I tried to appear nonchalant as I knew I had to be smart about this. If I just ran over to her screaming as my first instincts demanded then I would likely just frighten her back into her car then be back at square one.
She got out of her vehicle and looked at me somewhat suspiciously as she began pumping her gas. I opened and closed my mouth several times, my mind racing to come up with a plan to get her away from her car."You know this place has great coffee." I began, "Could I buy you a quick cup?" She made an exasperated sound in the back of her throat before replying. "Boy, you just don't give up, do you?" Attempting a casual smile I said "I just really think we should get to know each other, that's all. Just give me ten minutes, one cup of coffee and if you're still not interested you can go on your way and I promise to never bother you again." Please, please let this work my mind chanted over and over again."I really can't," she finally said. "Look you seem like a nice guy but I am just not interested. Sorry."
"Damn." I hadn't meant to say that out loud and once it came out it sounded rather angry. I watched helplessly as she took a frightened step back and looked down at the gas nozzle that I had just been holding, not even bothering to put it into my tank as it was already full. "You followed me here, didn't you?" she asked accusingly. "Listen man, I have tried to be nice but if you don't back off right now I am going to call the cops, do you understand?" She angrily finished pumping her gas and slammed the nozzle back into position at the pump. She had every right to be upset and I knew that I was probably scaring the hell out of the poor girl. I just didn't know what else to do. I was not the kind of man who could just leave a helpless woman to the wicked plans of a deranged man. I returned the nozzle to it's compartment as I briefly considered calling the police myself.
We only had one sheriff, who always left the station promptly at six every evening. That left only a single, young deputy whom the whole town knew to be drunk far more often than not. I couldn't help but think it would be the wrong move to involve him. If this guy was armed and got spooked he could kill her long before we got close enough to stop him. This situation required far more delicacy then an inebriated and inexperienced cop would be capable of. But then what should I do? She was just about to climb back in her car when I desperately called out, "Wait Mina, don't go. You...your tire is flat! Come see." She made a movement as if she was about to get back out to check but then she merely shot me a fearful look over her shoulder and started her engine.
I quickly jumped back into my pickup and fired up the engine. When she turned out of the parking lot I hesitated a few moments before turning behind her. I followed slowly at what I hoped was a discreet distance and tried to plan my next move. I was cursing myself for not thinking of writing her a note and slipping it discreetly to her somehow. If only I had thought of that sooner! She made several turns which led her out of the downtown area and eventually turned down what appeared to be a long dirt road. I had thought I knew every inch of this city but I soon found myself in unfamiliar territory. I followed about 200 yards behind her and the tall stalks of corn on either side of the narrow road caused eerie shadows to dance on my windshield. My heart and mind seemed to be in a competitive sprint and I knew that the finish line lay somewhere at the end of this rural road.
There was no other option, I would just keep my distance until she reached her destination and then once she stopped I would intervene when the man made his move. I was too far away to see into her vehicle now but would still catch the occasional glimpse of what looked like the top silhouette of a head through her back window. I took a mental inventory of everything I had in my truck that could aid me. I had a cellphone with a flashlight and thankfully also had an old shotgun that my dad had lent me for a hunting trip several weeks prior. I hated hunting, I was not a violent man and couldn't understand the thrill my friends seemed to get from taking down a defenseless animal. But there wasn't much to do in my hometown and hunting had always been my buddies favorite pastime. I was actually very thankful for that now. After driving through the darkness for what seemed an interminable amount of time I suddenly realized that I could no longer see the back light's of Mina's car. I slowed my speed down to a crawl and scanned the area up ahead and to the sides. Thinking that the man might have decided to force Mina to drive into to corn fields I watched the road closely for any fresh tire tracks, but I saw nothing.
After traversing the road for another couple of minutes I pulled my truck over, removed the shot gun from the rack behind my seat and cautiously climbed out. The sounds of night creatures and crickets was nearly deafening way out here and the still, hot air began to coat every inch of my skin with slick sweat. I could see nothing around me and was just about to give up to my crushing defeat to save Mina when I heard a loud, shrill cry. I quickly turned in the direction of the scream and it was only then that I noticed what looked to be a huge old barn roughly 300 yards behind me."How the hell did I miss that?" I cursed myself as I jumped back into my truck, tossing the shotgun into the passenger seat and somehow managing to only take out a few of the towering stalks of corn in my haste to get turned back around on the road. No longer concerned about stealth I roared down the road as dirt and bits of rock hammered at my truck. Realizing that the situation had escalated far beyond my control I quickly whipped out my cell phone and dialed the emergency police number. It rang eleven times and I was near to hanging up when a sleepy male voice finally came on the line.
"Emmergacy. Whas-tss yer locatioon?" Came the familiar slurred voice of the deputy. Damn, why couldn't he have been sober, just this once? As quickly as I could I relayed the night's events, trying to speak in a clear, concise voice so that even a drunk hillbilly could comprehend the urgency of the situation."This had better not be a prank." The deputy said after I had finished my explanation. Suddenly sounding far more sober, with only a tiny hint of the slur still evident in his voice, I felt my hopes rise slightly. "We've had a string of people go missing this week and so far there have been zero real leads. If what you're saying is true than this girl could be in very real danger."
"It's definitely not a prank," I quickly assured him. "My name is Sam Larsen and I don't know the exact address but I am in a large cornfield roughly eight miles west of the Hilliard's farm. There's a huge barn or something in the center and that's where I believe the woman is being held. I heard a scream a few minute's ago but nothing else since and I need to go in-" I was abruptly cut off by several fast beeping noises on the line. Looking down at my phone I realized that the phone was no longer getting a signal. In such a rural area cellphone's here were notoriously unreliable. I tried calling back but it quickly became obvious that I had no service.
"Damnitt!" I yelled and threw the phone onto the seat in frustration. I was on my own now, there was no time to try to move to a place with a better signal. The poor woman might already be dead at this point and I needed to act NOW. I switched off my headlights and slowed the truck down to a slow crawl as I approached the old barn. I could see Mina's expensive black car parked carelessly in front of the decrepit old building, both of it's doors left wide open. Beyond that there was no other sign of life. Quickly scooping up the shotgun and re-pocketing my cellphone I opened the driver's side door and stealthily slid out of my truck. I was hyper sensitive to the slightest noise as I cautiously made my way towards the structure. Peeking into the nearest, grime smudged window I could vaguely make out two people. One was seated in a chair and seemed to be struggling against some type of restraints. The other stood a few feet away and it looked as though they held something large and threatening with both their hands. Both figures seemed to be arguing based on their hand movements and the muffled shouts I could barely hear through the thick walls. I walked around the entirety of the structure until I came to a large hole where the wood had disintegrated just enough so that I could crawl through without alerting them of my presence. Once inside, their voices were much clearer to me.
"Please just let me go, I will give you whatever you want and...and I won't tell anyone what happened here, I swear!" It sickened me to hear this sweet young woman begging for her life and I felt a white hot rage begin to well within me, replacing my earlier fear. It was almost completely dark inside, the only light seemed to come from a small candle or lantern towards the front of the building where the voices originated. I could see several long shadows cast onto the floor and walls of barn. Two of them clearly belonged to Mina and the drifter but there were also at least half a dozen large shadows that seemed to hang down from the ceiling. They were raised several feet of the ground and seemed to sway gently back and forth. I assumed that they were simply large farm tools and paid them little heed beyond the thought that I could potentially use one of them as a weapon. There was a thick, putrid odor that seemed to permeate the air and I had to choke back bile as it rose in my throat. Creeping closer I crawled my way around the moldy bales of hay and fallen beams, trying desperately to be swift but silent.
"Anything I want, huh?" I heard a man's deep, menacing voice say. "Well that's a mighty tempting offer and one I plan to take you up on. Of course, what I really want is you. I just want to have some fun, you know? There ain't much to do around these part's except hunt, and I believe I have already bagged my prize. Just as with any fine young doe, I will start by stringing you up, I will skin and gut you and then separate the...choice bits." The woman began to sob hysterically and I quickened my pace, only slowing when I was mere feet from the their location. I could see small tufts of smoke rising from an old fashioned oil lamp that was set on a work bench next to several sharp knives and what looked like ancient, dirty surgical instruments. The lantern gave off so little light in the cavernous old barn that I felt I was still sufficiently hidden from view. I quickly turned my attention to the woman who did indeed appear to be strapped tightly to an antique wooden chair. She was softly whimpering what sounded like a garbled prayer and her long hair was tangled around her tear streaked face.
Before I could pinpoint exactly where the male stood I felt several beads of sweat trickle down from my forehead into my eyes, stinging them and blurring my vision. I hurriedly swiped at one eye with my free hand before pressing it back down onto the ground. I was surprised when my hand landed in something wet and sticky and on reflex I recoiled and looked down. Even in the low light I could still make out the small pool of thick dark liquid. Oil? That was my first thought but after a quick sniff I realized that it was blood. I froze when another drop landed from above my head to join the growing puddle. Slowly, reluctantly I raised my head and nearly screamed in horror. A naked corpse, strung up by the feet, dangled only a few feet above me. It had once been a man, though he had been savagely mutilated beyond all recognition. Though he was clearly deceased, fresh blood still dripped from several gaping wounds. I felt bile rise in my throat once again and the urge to flee was so strong that it nearly overpowered me.
Only the thought of Mina, her beautiful body stripped of both flesh and dignity and strung up like an animal kept me from "noping" my way out of there right that second. You can do this, I told myself. You have the shotgun and you know how to defend yourself. Besides, the cops will be here any minute now. That is if they can find you. How can you be sure the deputy even heard your description of this place before the call was dropped...? No, don't think like that! The cops will come and if not you can always just shoot the guy! Just as I was wrapping up my internal pep talk two large black boots suddenly came stomping into my line of vision. My eyes darted up the entire length of the drifter, who suddenly seemed ten feet taller and twice as broad in my panicked state. He was holding a large machete and kept tightening then loosening his grip on it in a very unsettling away. It was clear that he was anxious to use it. He smiled broadly before saying "I thought I heard a rat scurrying around in the dark, looks like I was right. Such a determined little guy. Mina said it best I think, 'you just don't give up, do you?' Well you know what they say, no good deed goes unpunished."
"And you will be punished, that much I can promise you." That voice, it was...Mina? I watched in shock as she sauntered over to stand next to the huge brute. The same wide, eerie smile on her beautiful face. How had she gotten out of the chair? That was the only question my terrified brain could conjure at the moment. I clumsily struggled to my feet still gripping the shotgun in one hand though at the time I don't think I was even aware I still held it. Everything seemed to move in slow motion and my mind felt like an old computer that had been unceremoniously shut down and was now struggling to reboot. "My hero," Mina said in an ugly, mocking tone. "You came to save the poor damsel in distress from a cruel trap. I bet you never once thought that trap might have actually been set for you. Don't feel bad though, you're not the only one, they never see it coming. Men like you make this only too easy, almost takes the fun out of it all."
I could only stare blankly at both of them for several seconds as I felt my stomach swiftly drop and my comprehension slowly dawn. They were in this together, they planned this whole damn thing...and the disappearances the deputy mentioned...?
Part 2: https://www.reddit.com/nosleep/comments/gvc4bc/no_good_deed_part_2/

It was nearly midnight when I first saw her. There was only one 24 hour grocery store in my small hometown and she looked as out of place as anyone could possibly be. Rather than wearing the old faded denims that all the townspeople seemed to prefer she was dressed in a white, pressed blouse and an obviously expensive black, pencil skirt that reached to just above her knees. She stood out like a sore thumb. Unlike most of the working class farmers in our area she didn't dress plainly nor did she look old before her time. Her smooth, creamy white skin and long blonde hair revealed a pampered lifestyle that none of the townsfolk here could possibly afford. She also had wide, innocent green eyes that seemed oblivious to the harsh realities of this world. And I...well I was instantly smitten.
We had both arrived at the mom and pop shop at the exact same time. Myself, I had come for some late night microwave pizza and a few beers. And she, well I could only wonder as to what had brought such a beautiful and sophisticated young woman to this small place and at such a late hour. I froze in my steps when I noticed her. She swept by me with a shy smile and continued into the small establishment. I shook my head in an effort to clear my thoughts and followed her through the dimly lit entrance of the store. I made my quickly to the frozen food aisle to grab my pizza and then moved on to the wider beer and liquor section of the market. I was pleasantly surprised to find the same woman also standing there, seemingly debating over two brands of red wine. She looked up at me as I approached and gave me another quick smile as she hastily returned one bottle to the shelf and turned to walk purposely toward the checkout line. I hurriedly picked up a twelve pack of my favorite brand of imported lager and followed after her.
Due to the late hour, there was only one checkout lane open and I impatiently took note of the other shoppers standing in line. There was an old woman whom I instantly recognized as Dorothy Woodsworth at the front. She watched with an eagle's eye as the checker rang up her meager items, her fist tightly clenched over what looked to be stack of painstakingly clipped coupons. Behind her was a rather disheveled and dirty looking man in his late 30's. I didn't recognize him but with his numerous piercings, tattoos and the strong stench of alcohol and body odor, I was instantly on guard. The town had so few residents and even fewer tourists that I found it very odd to come across two strangers in the same night, especially at the same location.
He must be a drifter, I decided, and a rather suspicious looking one at that. Even more disconcerting then the man's appearance was the suspicious items that he was purchasing. I saw a box cutter, zip ties, garbage bags and large amounts of duct tape crowded into his small shopping basket. I somehow doubted that a man like this was starting some late night home improvement project. I instantly felt myself reacting as any young, hot blooded male would. I puffed out my chest, flexed my muscles and met his dark eyes in a "You don't scare me" kind of way. Behind the drifter but in front of myself stood...her, the beautiful young woman that I had been ogling this entire trip. Much to my dismay, the dirty man's gaze also seemed to focus on the young woman. His tongue kept darting out to wet his dry, chapped lips as his eye's raked up and down her body in a clearly lustful way. I felt my protective instincts roar to life as I watched her uncomfortable gaze dart quickly from old Mrs. Woodsworth to the strange man and back again as though seeking a safe place to land. I wracked my brain for some form of conversation that would distract the girl from the man's inappropriate scrutiny and put her more at ease.
"H-hi there, buying some wine, huh?" The words just fell out of my mouth and I visibly winced as I stated the painfully obvious in a choked voice. The unkempt man snorted and gave me an amused and knowing look. "I mean..."
"Yes, I am having a late dinner with a friend." She calmly said with a relieved smile. Her voice was as soft and alluring as the rest of her and I instantly felt my body start to relax. I couldn't help but hope that there was more than just gratitude behind that smile.
"Oh, dinner that sounds nice." I replied awkwardly "must going on a date then, huh?" She opened her mouth as if to reply to my question but after a moment she shut it again and turned her eyes toward the cashier without answering me. Too shy and embarrassed to press her further, I also turned my attention solely to the cashier and attempted to pretend that no one else existed. The young man, whom I vaguely recognized as the grandson of the owners -Timmy or Jimmy I think was his name- made quick, competent work of everyone's purchases and before I knew it I was all paid up and walking towards the store exit. The same mysterious woman walking only a short distance in front of me. Once I reached the parking lot I watched as she quickly walked to a car a few spaces away, placed the wine in her trunk and unlocked her car doors. I was already at my truck, as I was parked closer to the store than her and was about to climb into the driver's seat when something came over me, a last ditch attempt to catch the girl of my dreams, I suppose. "Hey." I called out to her. "My name is Sam and I...don't mean to bother you. But, I would really like to know your name...and well do you have a boyfriend or anything?"
The girl paused in her motion to open her door and raised one perfectly groomed eyebrow in answer to my question. Damn, that had sounded awkward and far too needy to be anything even approaching casual. But then I had always been somewhat awkward around the ladies. "I mean well, do you?" She smiled briefly, revealing a cute little dimple in her left cheek and I felt my heart melt even more.
"I am Mina. And no, I don't have...anyone like that. But please just trust me when I say that you don't want to get involved with me. I am...too much trouble." With that she flicked back her long hair with a careless movement of her pale, perfectly manicured fingers and slid into the front seat of her luxury car. Following suit I plopped down into the driver's side of my beat up pickup and sighed. "Wow, smooth," I sarcastically taunted myself, "I can't imagine why she didn't just fall into your lap after such a brilliant line like that." Punching my steering wheel in several frustrated movements I gloomily watched her car back up and head towards the exit of the parking lot. It was then that I noticed the top of a head peeking out of her rear window, barely visible in the backseat of her car.
"Wait. What the..." I trailed off and quickly backed out of my parking space to follow her car towards the exit. It was only when I was directly behind her that I realized I recognized whose head I had seen peering at me from her rear windshield. The long, greasy hair together with the reflection of the store's lights glinting off his many piercings finally clued me into who this was. Somehow, the same dirty man who was in line before us had slipped into the back of her car without her notice! He quickly ducked back down below eye level until I could no longer see him. Meanwhile, she had switched on her turn signal indicating that she was going to turn left out of the parking lot. Even though my home was in the opposite direction I too flipped on my left turn signal and prepared to follow her. I was concerned for her safety, given the rough appearance of the man and the fact that he was obviously hiding out in her car. I knew he must have bad intentions, there was just no other explanation. I fought the urge to simply blare my horn at her, knowing that the man was quite possibly armed and able to cause her fatal injury if he knew that he had been discovered.
Instead I followed closely behind her as she slowly made her way through the streets of downtown and then turned off to a smaller, less brightly lit road. I considered then rejected several strategies that might get her out of her car without alerting the menacing stow away in her backseat. Several nerve wracking minutes passed as she navigated through town before finally turning into an all night gas station and my heart leapt. Thank God, this was my chance! I quickly turned in behind her and stopped at the pump adjacent to hers. At this time of night I could see no other patrons and only one scrawny teenage boy who seemed to be manning the register from inside the small building. There was really no one else in sight. I could see no sign of the man in her back seat and concluded that he must have flattened himself onto the floor of her car. I climbed out of my front seat and pretended to start gassing up my already full tank. I tried to appear nonchalant as I knew I had to be smart about this. If I just ran over to her screaming as my first instincts demanded then I would likely just frighten her back into her car then be back at square one.
She got out of her vehicle and looked at me somewhat suspiciously as she began pumping her gas. I opened and closed my mouth several times, my mind racing to come up with a plan to get her away from her car."You know this place has great coffee." I began, "Could I buy you a quick cup?" She made an exasperated sound in the back of her throat before replying. "Boy, you just don't give up, do you?" Attempting a casual smile I said "I just really think we should get to know each other, that's all. Just give me ten minutes, one cup of coffee and if you're still not interested you can go on your way and I promise to never bother you again." Please, please let this work my mind chanted over and over again."I really can't," she finally said. "Look you seem like a nice guy but I am just not interested. Sorry."
"Damn." I hadn't meant to say that out loud and once it came out it sounded rather angry. I watched helplessly as she took a frightened step back and looked down at the gas nozzle that I had just been holding, not even bothering to put it into my tank as it was already full. "You followed me here, didn't you?" she asked accusingly. "Listen man, I have tried to be nice but if you don't back off right now I am going to call the cops, do you understand?" She angrily finished pumping her gas and slammed the nozzle back into position at the pump. She had every right to be upset and I knew that I was probably scaring the hell out of the poor girl. I just didn't know what else to do. I was not the kind of man who could just leave a helpless woman to the wicked plans of a deranged man. I returned the nozzle to it's compartment as I briefly considered calling the police myself.
We only had one sheriff, who always left the station promptly at six every evening. That left only a single, young deputy whom the whole town knew to be drunk far more often than not. I couldn't help but think it would be the wrong move to involve him. If this guy was armed and got spooked he could kill her long before we got close enough to stop him. This situation required far more delicacy then an inebriated and inexperienced cop would be capable of. But then what should I do? She was just about to climb back in her car when I desperately called out, "Wait Mina, don't go. You...your tire is flat! Come see." She made a movement as if she was about to get back out to check but then she merely shot me a fearful look over her shoulder and started her engine.
I quickly jumped back into my pickup and fired up the engine. When she turned out of the parking lot I hesitated a few moments before turning behind her. I followed slowly at what I hoped was a discreet distance and tried to plan my next move. I was cursing myself for not thinking of writing her a note and slipping it discreetly to her somehow. If only I had thought of that sooner! She made several turns which led her out of the downtown area and eventually turned down what appeared to be a long dirt road. I had thought I knew every inch of this city but I soon found myself in unfamiliar territory. I followed about 200 yards behind her and the tall stalks of corn on either side of the narrow road caused eerie shadows to dance on my windshield. My heart and mind seemed to be in a competitive sprint and I knew that the finish line lay somewhere at the end of this rural road.
There was no other option, I would just keep my distance until she reached her destination and then once she stopped I would intervene when the man made his move. I was too far away to see into her vehicle now but would still catch the occasional glimpse of what looked like the top silhouette of a head through her back window. I took a mental inventory of everything I had in my truck that could aid me. I had a cellphone with a flashlight and thankfully also had an old shotgun that my dad had lent me for a hunting trip several weeks prior. I hated hunting, I was not a violent man and couldn't understand the thrill my friends seemed to get from taking down a defenseless animal. But there wasn't much to do in my hometown and hunting had always been my buddies favorite pastime. I was actually very thankful for that now. After driving through the darkness for what seemed an interminable amount of time I suddenly realized that I could no longer see the back light's of Mina's car. I slowed my speed down to a crawl and scanned the area up ahead and to the sides. Thinking that the man might have decided to force Mina to drive into to corn fields I watched the road closely for any fresh tire tracks, but I saw nothing.
After traversing the road for another couple of minutes I pulled my truck over, removed the shot gun from the rack behind my seat and cautiously climbed out. The sounds of night creatures and crickets was nearly deafening way out here and the still, hot air began to coat every inch of my skin with slick sweat. I could see nothing around me and was just about to give up to my crushing defeat to save Mina when I heard a loud, shrill cry. I quickly turned in the direction of the scream and it was only then that I noticed what looked to be a huge old barn roughly 300 yards behind me."How the hell did I miss that?" I cursed myself as I jumped back into my truck, tossing the shotgun into the passenger seat and somehow managing to only take out a few of the towering stalks of corn in my haste to get turned back around on the road. No longer concerned about stealth I roared down the road as dirt and bits of rock hammered at my truck. Realizing that the situation had escalated far beyond my control I quickly whipped out my cell phone and dialed the emergency police number. It rang eleven times and I was near to hanging up when a sleepy male voice finally came on the line.
"Emmergacy. Whas-tss yer locatioon?" Came the familiar slurred voice of the deputy. Damn, why couldn't he have been sober, just this once? As quickly as I could I relayed the night's events, trying to speak in a clear, concise voice so that even a drunk hillbilly could comprehend the urgency of the situation."This had better not be a prank." The deputy said after I had finished my explanation. Suddenly sounding far more sober, with only a tiny hint of the slur still evident in his voice, I felt my hopes rise slightly. "We've had a string of people go missing this week and so far there have been zero real leads. If what you're saying is true than this girl could be in very real danger."
"It's definitely not a prank," I quickly assured him. "My name is Sam Larsen and I don't know the exact address but I am in a large cornfield roughly eight miles west of the Hilliard's farm. There's a huge barn or something in the center and that's where I believe the woman is being held. I heard a scream a few minute's ago but nothing else since and I need to go in-" I was abruptly cut off by several fast beeping noises on the line. Looking down at my phone I realized that the phone was no longer getting a signal. In such a rural area cellphone's here were notoriously unreliable. I tried calling back but it quickly became obvious that I had no service.
"Damnitt!" I yelled and threw the phone onto the seat in frustration. I was on my own now, there was no time to try to move to a place with a better signal. The poor woman might already be dead at this point and I needed to act NOW. I switched off my headlights and slowed the truck down to a slow crawl as I approached the old barn. I could see Mina's expensive black car parked carelessly in front of the decrepit old building, both of it's doors left wide open. Beyond that there was no other sign of life. Quickly scooping up the shotgun and re-pocketing my cellphone I opened the driver's side door and stealthily slid out of my truck. I was hyper sensitive to the slightest noise as I cautiously made my way towards the structure. Peeking into the nearest, grime smudged window I could vaguely make out two people. One was seated in a chair and seemed to be struggling against some type of restraints. The other stood a few feet away and it looked as though they held something large and threatening with both their hands. Both figures seemed to be arguing based on their hand movements and the muffled shouts I could barely hear through the thick walls. I walked around the entirety of the structure until I came to a large hole where the wood had disintegrated just enough so that I could crawl through without alerting them of my presence. Once inside, their voices were much clearer to me.
"Please just let me go, I will give you whatever you want and...and I won't tell anyone what happened here, I swear!" It sickened me to hear this sweet young woman begging for her life and I felt a white hot rage begin to well within me, replacing my earlier fear. It was almost completely dark inside, the only light seemed to come from a small candle or lantern towards the front of the building where the voices originated. I could see several long shadows cast onto the floor and walls of barn. Two of them clearly belonged to Mina and the drifter but there were also at least half a dozen large shadows that seemed to hang down from the ceiling. They were raised several feet of the ground and seemed to sway gently back and forth. I assumed that they were simply large farm tools and paid them little heed beyond the thought that I could potentially use one of them as a weapon. There was a thick, putrid odor that seemed to permeate the air and I had to choke back bile as it rose in my throat. Creeping closer I crawled my way around the moldy bales of hay and fallen beams, trying desperately to be swift but silent.
"Anything I want, huh?" I heard a man's deep, menacing voice say. "Well that's a mighty tempting offer and one I plan to take you up on. Of course, what I really want is you. I just want to have some fun, you know? There ain't much to do around these part's except hunt, and I believe I have already bagged my prize. Just as with any fine young doe, I will start by stringing you up, I will skin and gut you and then separate the...choice bits." The woman began to sob hysterically and I quickened my pace, only slowing when I was mere feet from the their location. I could see small tufts of smoke rising from an old fashioned oil lamp that was set on a work bench next to several sharp knives and what looked like ancient, dirty surgical instruments. The lantern gave off so little light in the cavernous old barn that I felt I was still sufficiently hidden from view. I quickly turned my attention to the woman who did indeed appear to be strapped tightly to an antique wooden chair. She was softly whimpering what sounded like a garbled prayer and her long hair was tangled around her tear streaked face.
Before I could pinpoint exactly where the male stood I felt several beads of sweat trickle down from my forehead into my eyes, stinging them and blurring my vision. I hurriedly swiped at one eye with my free hand before pressing it back down onto the ground. I was surprised when my hand landed in something wet and sticky and on reflex I recoiled and looked down. Even in the low light I could still make out the small pool of thick dark liquid. Oil? That was my first thought but after a quick sniff I realized that it was blood. I froze when another drop landed from above my head to join the growing puddle. Slowly, reluctantly I raised my head and nearly screamed in horror. A naked corpse, strung up by the feet, dangled only a few feet above me. It had once been a man, though he had been savagely mutilated beyond all recognition. Though he was clearly deceased, fresh blood still dripped from several gaping wounds. I felt bile rise in my throat once again and the urge to flee was so strong that it nearly overpowered me.
Only the thought of Mina, her beautiful body stripped of both flesh and dignity and strung up like an animal kept me from "noping" my way out of there right that second. You can do this, I told myself. You have the shotgun and you know how to defend yourself. Besides, the cops will be here any minute now. That is if they can find you. How can you be sure the deputy even heard your description of this place before the call was dropped...? No, don't think like that! The cops will come and if not you can always just shoot the guy! Just as I was wrapping up my internal pep talk two large black boots suddenly came stomping into my line of vision. My eyes darted up the entire length of the drifter, who suddenly seemed ten feet taller and twice as broad in my panicked state. He was holding a large machete and kept tightening then loosening his grip on it in a very unsettling away. It was clear that he was anxious to use it. He smiled broadly before saying "I thought I heard a rat scurrying around in the dark, looks like I was right. Such a determined little guy. Mina said it best I think, 'you just don't give up, do you?' Well you know what they say, no good deed goes unpunished."
"And you will be punished, that much I can promise you." That voice, it was...Mina? I watched in shock as she sauntered over to stand next to the huge brute. The same wide, eerie smile on her beautiful face. How had she gotten out of the chair? That was the only question my terrified brain could conjure at the moment. I clumsily struggled to my feet still gripping the shotgun in one hand though at the time I don't think I was even aware I still held it. Everything seemed to move in slow motion and my mind felt like an old computer that had been unceremoniously shut down and was now struggling to reboot. "My hero," Mina said in an ugly, mocking tone. "You came to save the poor damsel in distress from a cruel trap. I bet you never once thought that trap might have actually been set for you. Don't feel bad though, you're not the only one, they never see it coming. Men like you make this only too easy, almost takes the fun out of it all."
I could only stare blankly at both of them for several seconds as I felt my stomach swiftly drop and my comprehension slowly dawn. They were in this together, they planned this whole damn thing...and the disappearances the deputy mentioned...?
To be continued...

It was nearly midnight when I first saw her. There was only one 24 hour grocery store in my small hometown and she looked as out of place as anyone could possibly be. Rather than wearing the old faded denims that all the townspeople seemed to prefer she was dressed in a white, pressed blouse and an obviously expensive black, pencil skirt that reached to just above her knees. She stood out like a sore thumb. Unlike most of the working class farmers in our area she didn't dress plainly nor did she look old before her time. Her smooth, creamy white skin and long blonde hair revealed a pampered lifestyle that none of the townsfolk here could possibly afford. She also had wide, innocent green eyes that seemed oblivious to the harsh realities of this world. And I...well I was instantly smitten.
We had both arrived at the mom and pop shop at the exact same time. Myself, I had come for some late night microwave pizza and a few beers. And she, well I could only wonder as to what had brought such a beautiful and sophisticated young woman to this small place and at such a late hour. I froze in my steps when I noticed her. She swept by me with a shy smile and continued into the small establishment. I shook my head in an effort to clear my thoughts and followed her through the dimly lit entrance of the store. I made my quickly to the frozen food aisle to grab my pizza and then moved on to the wider beer and liquor section of the market. I was pleasantly surprised to find the same woman also standing there, seemingly debating over two brands of red wine. She looked up at me as I approached and gave me another quick smile as she hastily returned one bottle to the shelf and turned to walk purposely toward the checkout line. I hurriedly picked up a twelve pack of my favorite brand of imported lager and followed after her.
Due to the late hour, there was only one checkout lane open and I impatiently took note of the other shoppers standing in line. There was an old woman whom I instantly recognized as Dorothy Woodsworth at the front. She watched with an eagle's eye as the checker rang up her meager items, her fist tightly clenched over what looked to be stack of painstakingly clipped coupons. Behind her was a rather disheveled and dirty looking man in his late 30's. I didn't recognize him but with his numerous piercings, tattoos and the strong stench of alcohol and body odor, I was instantly on guard. The town had so few residents and even fewer tourists that I found it very odd to come across two strangers in the same night, especially at the same location.
He must be a drifter, I decided, and a rather suspicious looking one at that. Even more disconcerting then the man's appearance was the suspicious items that he was purchasing. I saw a box cutter, zip ties, garbage bags and large amounts of duct tape crowded into his small shopping basket. I somehow doubted that a man like this was starting some late night home improvement project. I instantly felt myself reacting as any young, hot blooded male would. I puffed out my chest, flexed my muscles and met his dark eyes in a "You don't scare me" kind of way. Behind the drifter but in front of myself stood...her, the beautiful young woman that I had been ogling this entire trip. Much to my dismay, the dirty man's gaze also seemed to focus on the young woman. His tongue kept darting out to wet his dry, chapped lips as his eye's raked up and down her body in a clearly lustful way. I felt my protective instincts roar to life as I watched her uncomfortable gaze dart quickly from old Mrs. Woodsworth to the strange man and back again as though seeking a safe place to land. I wracked my brain for some form of conversation that would distract the girl from the man's inappropriate scrutiny and put her more at ease.
"H-hi there, buying some wine, huh?" The words just fell out of my mouth and I visibly winced as I stated the painfully obvious in a choked voice. The unkempt man snorted and gave me an amused and knowing look. "I mean..."
"Yes, I am having a late dinner with a friend." She calmly said with a relieved smile. Her voice was as soft and alluring as the rest of her and I instantly felt my body start to relax. I couldn't help but hope that there was more than just gratitude behind that smile.
"Oh, dinner that sounds nice." I replied awkwardly "must going on a date then, huh?" She opened her mouth as if to reply to my question but after a moment she shut it again and turned her eyes toward the cashier without answering me. Too shy and embarrassed to press her further, I also turned my attention solely to the cashier and attempted to pretend that no one else existed. The young man, whom I vaguely recognized as the grandson of the owners -Timmy or Jimmy I think was his name- made quick, competent work of everyone's purchases and before I knew it I was all paid up and walking towards the store exit. The same mysterious woman walking only a short distance in front of me. Once I reached the parking lot I watched as she quickly walked to a car a few spaces away, placed the wine in her trunk and unlocked her car doors. I was already at my truck, as I was parked closer to the store than her and was about to climb into the driver's seat when something came over me, a last ditch attempt to catch the girl of my dreams, I suppose. "Hey." I called out to her. "My name is Sam and I...don't mean to bother you. But, I would really like to know your name...and well do you have a boyfriend or anything?"
The girl paused in her motion to open her door and raised one perfectly groomed eyebrow in answer to my question. Damn, that had sounded awkward and far too needy to be anything even approaching casual. But then I had always been somewhat awkward around the ladies. "I mean well, do you?" She smiled briefly, revealing a cute little dimple in her left cheek and I felt my heart melt even more.
"I am Mina. And no, I don't have...anyone like that. But please just trust me when I say that you don't want to get involved with me. I am...too much trouble." With that she flicked back her long hair with a careless movement of her pale, perfectly manicured fingers and slid into the front seat of her luxury car. Following suit I plopped down into the driver's side of my beat up pickup and sighed. "Wow, smooth," I sarcastically taunted myself, "I can't imagine why she didn't just fall into your lap after such a brilliant line like that." Punching my steering wheel in several frustrated movements I gloomily watched her car back up and head towards the exit of the parking lot. It was then that I noticed the top of a head peeking out of her rear window, barely visible in the backseat of her car.
"Wait. What the..." I trailed off and quickly backed out of my parking space to follow her car towards the exit. It was only when I was directly behind her that I realized I recognized whose head I had seen peering at me from her rear windshield. The long, greasy hair together with the reflection of the store's lights glinting off his many piercings finally clued me into who this was. Somehow, the same dirty man who was in line before us had slipped into the back of her car without her notice! He quickly ducked back down below eye level until I could no longer see him. Meanwhile, she had switched on her turn signal indicating that she was going to turn left out of the parking lot. Even though my home was in the opposite direction I too flipped on my left turn signal and prepared to follow her. I was concerned for her safety, given the rough appearance of the man and the fact that he was obviously hiding out in her car. I knew he must have bad intentions, there was just no other explanation. I fought the urge to simply blare my horn at her, knowing that the man was quite possibly armed and able to cause her fatal injury if he knew that he had been discovered.
Instead I followed closely behind her as she slowly made her way through the streets of downtown and then turned off to a smaller, less brightly lit road. I considered then rejected several strategies that might get her out of her car without alerting the menacing stow away in her backseat. Several nerve wracking minutes passed as she navigated through town before finally turning into an all night gas station and my heart leapt. Thank God, this was my chance! I quickly turned in behind her and stopped at the pump adjacent to hers. At this time of night I could see no other patrons and only one scrawny teenage boy who seemed to be manning the register from inside the small building. There was really no one else in sight. I could see no sign of the man in her back seat and concluded that he must have flattened himself onto the floor of her car. I climbed out of my front seat and pretended to start gassing up my already full tank. I tried to appear nonchalant as I knew I had to be smart about this. If I just ran over to her screaming as my first instincts demanded then I would likely just frighten her back into her car then be back at square one.
She got out of her vehicle and looked at me somewhat suspiciously as she began pumping her gas. I opened and closed my mouth several times, my mind racing to come up with a plan to get her away from her car."You know this place has great coffee." I began, "Could I buy you a quick cup?" She made an exasperated sound in the back of her throat before replying. "Boy, you just don't give up, do you?" Attempting a casual smile I said "I just really think we should get to know each other, that's all. Just give me ten minutes, one cup of coffee and if you're still not interested you can go on your way and I promise to never bother you again." Please, please let this work my mind chanted over and over again."I really can't," she finally said. "Look you seem like a nice guy but I am just not interested. Sorry."
"Damn." I hadn't meant to say that out loud and once it came out it sounded rather angry. I watched helplessly as she took a frightened step back and looked down at the gas nozzle that I had just been holding, not even bothering to put it into my tank as it was already full. "You followed me here, didn't you?" she asked accusingly. "Listen man, I have tried to be nice but if you don't back off right now I am going to call the cops, do you understand?" She angrily finished pumping her gas and slammed the nozzle back into position at the pump. She had every right to be upset and I knew that I was probably scaring the hell out of the poor girl. I just didn't know what else to do. I was not the kind of man who could just leave a helpless woman to the wicked plans of a deranged man. I returned the nozzle to it's compartment as I briefly considered calling the police myself.
We only had one sheriff, who always left the station promptly at six every evening. That left only a single, young deputy whom the whole town knew to be drunk far more often than not. I couldn't help but think it would be the wrong move to involve him. If this guy was armed and got spooked he could kill her long before we got close enough to stop him. This situation required far more delicacy then an inebriated and inexperienced cop would be capable of. But then what should I do? She was just about to climb back in her car when I desperately called out, "Wait Mina, don't go. You...your tire is flat! Come see." She made a movement as if she was about to get back out to check but then she merely shot me a fearful look over her shoulder and started her engine.
I quickly jumped back into my pickup and fired up the engine. When she turned out of the parking lot I hesitated a few moments before turning behind her. I followed slowly at what I hoped was a discreet distance and tried to plan my next move. I was cursing myself for not thinking of writing her a note and slipping it discreetly to her somehow. If only I had thought of that sooner! She made several turns which led her out of the downtown area and eventually turned down what appeared to be a long dirt road. I had thought I knew every inch of this city but I soon found myself in unfamiliar territory. I followed about 200 yards behind her and the tall stalks of corn on either side of the narrow road caused eerie shadows to dance on my windshield. My heart and mind seemed to be in a competitive sprint and I knew that the finish line lay somewhere at the end of this rural road.
There was no other option, I would just keep my distance until she reached her destination and then once she stopped I would intervene when the man made his move. I was too far away to see into her vehicle now but would still catch the occasional glimpse of what looked like the top silhouette of a head through her back window. I took a mental inventory of everything I had in my truck that could aid me. I had a cellphone with a flashlight and thankfully also had an old shotgun that my dad had lent me for a hunting trip several weeks prior. I hated hunting, I was not a violent man and couldn't understand the thrill my friends seemed to get from taking down a defenseless animal. But there wasn't much to do in my hometown and hunting had always been my buddies favorite pastime. I was actually very thankful for that now. After driving through the darkness for what seemed an interminable amount of time I suddenly realized that I could no longer see the back light's of Mina's car. I slowed my speed down to a crawl and scanned the area up ahead and to the sides. Thinking that the man might have decided to force Mina to drive into to corn fields I watched the road closely for any fresh tire tracks, but I saw nothing.
After traversing the road for another couple of minutes I pulled my truck over, removed the shot gun from the rack behind my seat and cautiously climbed out. The sounds of night creatures and crickets was nearly deafening way out here and the still, hot air began to coat every inch of my skin with slick sweat. I could see nothing around me and was just about to give up to my crushing defeat to save Mina when I heard a loud, shrill cry. I quickly turned in the direction of the scream and it was only then that I noticed what looked to be a huge old barn roughly 300 yards behind me."How the hell did I miss that?" I cursed myself as I jumped back into my truck, tossing the shotgun into the passenger seat and somehow managing to only take out a few of the towering stalks of corn in my haste to get turned back around on the road. No longer concerned about stealth I roared down the road as dirt and bits of rock hammered at my truck. Realizing that the situation had escalated far beyond my control I quickly whipped out my cell phone and dialed the emergency police number. It rang eleven times and I was near to hanging up when a sleepy male voice finally came on the line.
"Emmergacy. Whas-tss yer locatioon?" Came the familiar slurred voice of the deputy. Damn, why couldn't he have been sober, just this once? As quickly as I could I relayed the night's events, trying to speak in a clear, concise voice so that even a drunk hillbilly could comprehend the urgency of the situation."This had better not be a prank." The deputy said after I had finished my explanation. Suddenly sounding far more sober, with only a tiny hint of the slur still evident in his voice, I felt my hopes rise slightly. "We've had a string of people go missing this week and so far there have been zero real leads. If what you're saying is true than this girl could be in very real danger."
"It's definitely not a prank," I quickly assured him. "My name is Sam Larsen and I don't know the exact address but I am in a large cornfield roughly eight miles west of the Hilliard's farm. There's a huge barn or something in the center and that's where I believe the woman is being held. I heard a scream a few minute's ago but nothing else since and I need to go in-" I was abruptly cut off by several fast beeping noises on the line. Looking down at my phone I realized that the phone was no longer getting a signal. In such a rural area cellphone's here were notoriously unreliable. I tried calling back but it quickly became obvious that I had no service.
"Damnitt!" I yelled and threw the phone onto the seat in frustration. I was on my own now, there was no time to try to move to a place with a better signal. The poor woman might already be dead at this point and I needed to act NOW. I switched off my headlights and slowed the truck down to a slow crawl as I approached the old barn. I could see Mina's expensive black car parked carelessly in front of the decrepit old building, both of it's doors left wide open. Beyond that there was no other sign of life. Quickly scooping up the shotgun and re-pocketing my cellphone I opened the driver's side door and stealthily slid out of my truck. I was hyper sensitive to the slightest noise as I cautiously made my way towards the structure. Peeking into the nearest, grime smudged window I could vaguely make out two people. One was seated in a chair and seemed to be struggling against some type of restraints. The other stood a few feet away and it looked as though they held something large and threatening with both their hands. Both figures seemed to be arguing based on their hand movements and the muffled shouts I could barely hear through the thick walls. I walked around the entirety of the structure until I came to a large hole where the wood had disintegrated just enough so that I could crawl through without alerting them of my presence. Once inside, their voices were much clearer to me.
"Please just let me go, I will give you whatever you want and...and I won't tell anyone what happened here, I swear!" It sickened me to hear this sweet young woman begging for her life and I felt a white hot rage begin to well within me, replacing my earlier fear. It was almost completely dark inside, the only light seemed to come from a small candle or lantern towards the front of the building where the voices originated. I could see several long shadows cast onto the floor and walls of barn. Two of them clearly belonged to Mina and the drifter but there were also at least half a dozen large shadows that seemed to hang down from the ceiling. They were raised several feet of the ground and seemed to sway gently back and forth. I assumed that they were simply large farm tools and paid them little heed beyond the thought that I could potentially use one of them as a weapon. There was a thick, putrid odor that seemed to permeate the air and I had to choke back bile as it rose in my throat. Creeping closer I crawled my way around the moldy bales of hay and fallen beams, trying desperately to be swift but silent.
"Anything I want, huh?" I heard a man's deep, menacing voice say. "Well that's a mighty tempting offer and one I plan to take you up on. Of course, what I really want is you. I just want to have some fun, you know? There ain't much to do around these part's except hunt, and I believe I have already bagged my prize. Just as with any fine young doe, I will start by stringing you up, I will skin and gut you and then separate the...choice bits." The woman began to sob hysterically and I quickened my pace, only slowing when I was mere feet from the their location. I could see small tufts of smoke rising from an old fashioned oil lamp that was set on a work bench next to several sharp knives and what looked like ancient, dirty surgical instruments. The lantern gave off so little light in the cavernous old barn that I felt I was still sufficiently hidden from view. I quickly turned my attention to the woman who did indeed appear to be strapped tightly to an antique wooden chair. She was softly whimpering what sounded like a garbled prayer and her long hair was tangled around her tear streaked face.
Before I could pinpoint exactly where the male stood I felt several beads of sweat trickle down from my forehead into my eyes, stinging them and blurring my vision. I hurriedly swiped at one eye with my free hand before pressing it back down onto the ground. I was surprised when my hand landed in something wet and sticky and on reflex I recoiled and looked down. Even in the low light I could still make out the small pool of thick dark liquid. Oil? That was my first thought but after a quick sniff I realized that it was blood. I froze when another drop landed from above my head to join the growing puddle. Slowly, reluctantly I raised my head and nearly screamed in horror. A naked corpse, strung up by the feet, dangled only a few feet above me. It had once been a man, though he had been savagely mutilated beyond all recognition. Though he was clearly deceased, fresh blood still dripped from several gaping wounds. I felt bile rise in my throat once again and the urge to flee was so strong that it nearly overpowered me.
Only the thought of Mina, her beautiful body stripped of both flesh and dignity and strung up like an animal kept me from "noping" my way out of there right that second. You can do this, I told myself. You have the shotgun and you know how to defend yourself. Besides, the cops will be here any minute now. That is if they can find you. How can you be sure the deputy even heard your description of this place before the call was dropped...? No, don't think like that! The cops will come and if not you can always just shoot the guy! Just as I was wrapping up my internal pep talk two large black boots suddenly came stomping into my line of vision. My eyes darted up the entire length of the drifter, who suddenly seemed ten feet taller and twice as broad in my panicked state. He was holding a large machete and kept tightening then loosening his grip on it in a very unsettling away. It was clear that he was anxious to use it. He smiled broadly before saying "I thought I heard a rat scurrying around in the dark, looks like I was right. Such a determined little guy. Mina said it best I think, 'you just don't give up, do you?' Well you know what they say, no good deed goes unpunished."
"And you will be punished, that much I can promise you." That voice, it was...Mina? I watched in shock as she sauntered over to stand next to the huge brute. The same wide, eerie smile on her beautiful face. How had she gotten out of the chair? That was the only question my terrified brain could conjure at the moment. I clumsily struggled to my feet still gripping the shotgun in one hand though at the time I don't think I was even aware I still held it. Everything seemed to move in slow motion and my mind felt like an old computer that had been unceremoniously shut down and was now struggling to reboot. "My hero," Mina said in an ugly, mocking tone. "You came to save the poor damsel in distress from a cruel trap. I bet you never once thought that trap might have actually been set for you. Don't feel bad though, you're not the only one, they never see it coming. Men like you make this only too easy, almost takes the fun out of it all."
I could only stare blankly at both of them for several seconds as I felt my stomach swiftly drop and my comprehension slowly dawn. They were in this together, they planned this whole damn thing...and the disappearances the deputy mentioned...?
To be continued...

It was nearly midnight when I first saw her. There was only one 24 hour grocery store in my small hometown and she looked as out of place as anyone could possibly be. Rather than wearing the old faded denims that all the townspeople seemed to prefer she was dressed in a white, pressed blouse and an obviously expensive black, pencil skirt that reached to just above her knees. She stood out like a sore thumb. Unlike most of the working class farmers in our area she didn't dress plainly nor did she look old before her time. Her smooth, creamy white skin and long blonde hair revealed a pampered lifestyle that none of the townsfolk here could possibly afford. She also had wide, innocent green eyes that seemed oblivious to the harsh realities of this world. And I...well I was instantly smitten.
We had both arrived at the mom and pop shop at the exact same time. Myself, I had come for some late night microwave pizza and a few beers. And she, well I could only wonder as to what had brought such a beautiful and sophisticated young woman to this small place and at such a late hour. I froze in my steps when I noticed her. She swept by me with a shy smile and continued into the small establishment. I shook my head in an effort to clear my thoughts and followed her through the dimly lit entrance of the store. I made my quickly to the frozen food aisle to grab my pizza and then moved on to the wider beer and liquor section of the market. I was pleasantly surprised to find the same woman also standing there, seemingly debating over two brands of red wine. She looked up at me as I approached and gave me another quick smile as she hastily returned one bottle to the shelf and turned to walk purposely toward the checkout line. I hurriedly picked up a twelve pack of my favorite brand of imported lager and followed after her.
Due to the late hour, there was only one checkout lane open and I impatiently took note of the other shoppers standing in line. There was an old woman whom I instantly recognized as Dorothy Woodsworth at the front. She watched with an eagle's eye as the checker rang up her meager items, her fist tightly clenched over what looked to be stack of painstakingly clipped coupons. Behind her was a rather disheveled and dirty looking man in his late 30's. I didn't recognize him but with his numerous piercings, tattoos and the strong stench of alcohol and body odor, I was instantly on guard. The town had so few residents and even fewer tourists that I found it very odd to come across two strangers in the same night, especially at the same location.
He must be a drifter, I decided, and a rather suspicious looking one at that. Even more disconcerting then the man's appearance was the suspicious items that he was purchasing. I saw a box cutter, zip ties, garbage bags and large amounts of duct tape crowded into his small shopping basket. I somehow doubted that a man like this was starting some late night home improvement project. I instantly felt myself reacting as any young, hot blooded male would. I puffed out my chest, flexed my muscles and met his dark eyes in a "You don't scare me" kind of way. Behind the drifter but in front of myself stood...her, the beautiful young woman that I had been ogling this entire trip. Much to my dismay, the dirty man's gaze also seemed to focus on the young woman. His tongue kept darting out to wet his dry, chapped lips as his eye's raked up and down her body in a clearly lustful way. I felt my protective instincts roar to life as I watched her uncomfortable gaze dart quickly from old Mrs. Woodsworth to the strange man and back again as though seeking a safe place to land. I wracked my brain for some form of conversation that would distract the girl from the man's inappropriate scrutiny and put her more at ease.
"H-hi there, buying some wine, huh?" The words just fell out of my mouth and I visibly winced as I stated the painfully obvious in a choked voice. The unkempt man snorted and gave me an amused and knowing look. "I mean..."
"Yes, I am having a late dinner with a friend." She calmly said with a relieved smile. Her voice was as soft and alluring as the rest of her and I instantly felt my body start to relax. I couldn't help but hope that there was more than just gratitude behind that smile.
"Oh, dinner that sounds nice." I replied awkwardly "must going on a date then, huh?" She opened her mouth as if to reply to my question but after a moment she shut it again and turned her eyes toward the cashier without answering me. Too shy and embarrassed to press her further, I also turned my attention solely to the cashier and attempted to pretend that no one else existed. The young man, whom I vaguely recognized as the grandson of the owners -Timmy or Jimmy I think was his name- made quick, competent work of everyone's purchases and before I knew it I was all paid up and walking towards the store exit. The same mysterious woman walking only a short distance in front of me. Once I reached the parking lot I watched as she quickly walked to a car a few spaces away, placed the wine in her trunk and unlocked her car doors. I was already at my truck, as I was parked closer to the store than her and was about to climb into the driver's seat when something came over me, a last ditch attempt to catch the girl of my dreams, I suppose. "Hey." I called out to her. "My name is Sam and I...don't mean to bother you. But, I would really like to know your name...and well do you have a boyfriend or anything?"
The girl paused in her motion to open her door and raised one perfectly groomed eyebrow in answer to my question. Damn, that had sounded awkward and far too needy to be anything even approaching casual. But then I had always been somewhat awkward around the ladies. "I mean well, do you?" She smiled briefly, revealing a cute little dimple in her left cheek and I felt my heart melt even more.
"I am Mina. And no, I don't have...anyone like that. But please just trust me when I say that you don't want to get involved with me. I am...too much trouble." With that she flicked back her long hair with a careless movement of her pale, perfectly manicured fingers and slid into the front seat of her luxury car. Following suit I plopped down into the driver's side of my beat up pickup and sighed. "Wow, smooth," I sarcastically taunted myself, "I can't imagine why she didn't just fall into your lap after such a brilliant line like that." Punching my steering wheel in several frustrated movements I gloomily watched her car back up and head towards the exit of the parking lot. It was then that I noticed the top of a head peeking out of her rear window, barely visible in the backseat of her car.
"Wait. What the..." I trailed off and quickly backed out of my parking space to follow her car towards the exit. It was only when I was directly behind her that I realized I recognized whose head I had seen peering at me from her rear windshield. The long, greasy hair together with the reflection of the store's lights glinting off his many piercings finally clued me into who this was. Somehow, the same dirty man who was in line before us had slipped into the back of her car without her notice! He quickly ducked back down below eye level until I could no longer see him. Meanwhile, she had switched on her turn signal indicating that she was going to turn left out of the parking lot. Even though my home was in the opposite direction I too flipped on my left turn signal and prepared to follow her. I was concerned for her safety, given the rough appearance of the man and the fact that he was obviously hiding out in her car. I knew he must have bad intentions, there was just no other explanation. I fought the urge to simply blare my horn at her, knowing that the man was quite possibly armed and able to cause her fatal injury if he knew that he had been discovered.
Instead I followed closely behind her as she slowly made her way through the streets of downtown and then turned off to a smaller, less brightly lit road. I considered then rejected several strategies that might get her out of her car without alerting the menacing stow away in her backseat. Several nerve wracking minutes passed as she navigated through town before finally turning into an all night gas station and my heart leapt. Thank God, this was my chance! I quickly turned in behind her and stopped at the pump adjacent to hers. At this time of night I could see no other patrons and only one scrawny teenage boy who seemed to be manning the register from inside the small building. There was really no one else in sight. I could see no sign of the man in her back seat and concluded that he must have flattened himself onto the floor of her car. I climbed out of my front seat and pretended to start gassing up my already full tank. I tried to appear nonchalant as I knew I had to be smart about this. If I just ran over to her screaming as my first instincts demanded then I would likely just frighten her back into her car then be back at square one.
She got out of her vehicle and looked at me somewhat suspiciously as she began pumping her gas. I opened and closed my mouth several times, my mind racing to come up with a plan to get her away from her car."You know this place has great coffee." I began, "Could I buy you a quick cup?" She made an exasperated sound in the back of her throat before replying. "Boy, you just don't give up, do you?" Attempting a casual smile I said "I just really think we should get to know each other, that's all. Just give me ten minutes, one cup of coffee and if you're still not interested you can go on your way and I promise to never bother you again." Please, please let this work my mind chanted over and over again."I really can't," she finally said. "Look you seem like a nice guy but I am just not interested. Sorry."
"Damn." I hadn't meant to say that out loud and once it came out it sounded rather angry. I watched helplessly as she took a frightened step back and looked down at the gas nozzle that I had just been holding, not even bothering to put it into my tank as it was already full. "You followed me here, didn't you?" she asked accusingly. "Listen man, I have tried to be nice but if you don't back off right now I am going to call the cops, do you understand?" She angrily finished pumping her gas and slammed the nozzle back into position at the pump. She had every right to be upset and I knew that I was probably scaring the hell out of the poor girl. I just didn't know what else to do. I was not the kind of man who could just leave a helpless woman to the wicked plans of a deranged man. I returned the nozzle to it's compartment as I briefly considered calling the police myself.
We only had one sheriff, who always left the station promptly at six every evening. That left only a single, young deputy whom the whole town knew to be drunk far more often than not. I couldn't help but think it would be the wrong move to involve him. If this guy was armed and got spooked he could kill her long before we got close enough to stop him. This situation required far more delicacy then an inebriated and inexperienced cop would be capable of. But then what should I do? She was just about to climb back in her car when I desperately called out, "Wait Mina, don't go. You...your tire is flat! Come see." She made a movement as if she was about to get back out to check but then she merely shot me a fearful look over her shoulder and started her engine.
I quickly jumped back into my pickup and fired up the engine. When she turned out of the parking lot I hesitated a few moments before turning behind her. I followed slowly at what I hoped was a discreet distance and tried to plan my next move. I was cursing myself for not thinking of writing her a note and slipping it discreetly to her somehow. If only I had thought of that sooner! She made several turns which led her out of the downtown area and eventually turned down what appeared to be a long dirt road. I had thought I knew every inch of this city but I soon found myself in unfamiliar territory. I followed about 200 yards behind her and the tall stalks of corn on either side of the narrow road caused eerie shadows to dance on my windshield. My heart and mind seemed to be in a competitive sprint and I knew that the finish line lay somewhere at the end of this rural road.
There was no other option, I would just keep my distance until she reached her destination and then once she stopped I would intervene when the man made his move. I was too far away to see into her vehicle now but would still catch the occasional glimpse of what looked like the top silhouette of a head through her back window. I took a mental inventory of everything I had in my truck that could aid me. I had a cellphone with a flashlight and thankfully also had an old shotgun that my dad had lent me for a hunting trip several weeks prior. I hated hunting, I was not a violent man and couldn't understand the thrill my friends seemed to get from taking down a defenseless animal. But there wasn't much to do in my hometown and hunting had always been my buddies favorite pastime. I was actually very thankful for that now. After driving through the darkness for what seemed an interminable amount of time I suddenly realized that I could no longer see the back light's of Mina's car. I slowed my speed down to a crawl and scanned the area up ahead and to the sides. Thinking that the man might have decided to force Mina to drive into to corn fields I watched the road closely for any fresh tire tracks, but I saw nothing.
After traversing the road for another couple of minutes I pulled my truck over, removed the shot gun from the rack behind my seat and cautiously climbed out. The sounds of night creatures and crickets was nearly deafening way out here and the still, hot air began to coat every inch of my skin with slick sweat. I could see nothing around me and was just about to give up to my crushing defeat to save Mina when I heard a loud, shrill cry. I quickly turned in the direction of the scream and it was only then that I noticed what looked to be a huge old barn roughly 300 yards behind me."How the hell did I miss that?" I cursed myself as I jumped back into my truck, tossing the shotgun into the passenger seat and somehow managing to only take out a few of the towering stalks of corn in my haste to get turned back around on the road. No longer concerned about stealth I roared down the road as dirt and bits of rock hammered at my truck. Realizing that the situation had escalated far beyond my control I quickly whipped out my cell phone and dialed the emergency police number. It rang eleven times and I was near to hanging up when a sleepy male voice finally came on the line.
"Emmergacy. Whas-tss yer locatioon?" Came the familiar slurred voice of the deputy. Damn, why couldn't he have been sober, just this once? As quickly as I could I relayed the night's events, trying to speak in a clear, concise voice so that even a drunk hillbilly could comprehend the urgency of the situation."This had better not be a prank." The deputy said after I had finished my explanation. Suddenly sounding far more sober, with only a tiny hint of the slur still evident in his voice, I felt my hopes rise slightly. "We've had a string of people go missing this week and so far there have been zero real leads. If what you're saying is true than this girl could be in very real danger."
"It's definitely not a prank," I quickly assured him. "My name is Sam Larsen and I don't know the exact address but I am in a large cornfield roughly eight miles west of the Hilliard's farm. There's a huge barn or something in the center and that's where I believe the woman is being held. I heard a scream a few minute's ago but nothing else since and I need to go in-" I was abruptly cut off by several fast beeping noises on the line. Looking down at my phone I realized that the phone was no longer getting a signal. In such a rural area cellphone's here were notoriously unreliable. I tried calling back but it quickly became obvious that I had no service.
"Damnitt!" I yelled and threw the phone onto the seat in frustration. I was on my own now, there was no time to try to move to a place with a better signal. The poor woman might already be dead at this point and I needed to act NOW. I switched off my headlights and slowed the truck down to a slow crawl as I approached the old barn. I could see Mina's expensive black car parked carelessly in front of the decrepit old building, both of it's doors left wide open. Beyond that there was no other sign of life. Quickly scooping up the shotgun and re-pocketing my cellphone I opened the driver's side door and stealthily slid out of my truck. I was hyper sensitive to the slightest noise as I cautiously made my way towards the structure. Peeking into the nearest, grime smudged window I could vaguely make out two people. One was seated in a chair and seemed to be struggling against some type of restraints. The other stood a few feet away and it looked as though they held something large and threatening with both their hands. Both figures seemed to be arguing based on their hand movements and the muffled shouts I could barely hear through the thick walls. I walked around the entirety of the structure until I came to a large hole where the wood had disintegrated just enough so that I could crawl through without alerting them of my presence. Once inside, their voices were much clearer to me.
"Please just let me go, I will give you whatever you want and...and I won't tell anyone what happened here, I swear!" It sickened me to hear this sweet young woman begging for her life and I felt a white hot rage begin to well within me, replacing my earlier fear. It was almost completely dark inside, the only light seemed to come from a small candle or lantern towards the front of the building where the voices originated. I could see several long shadows cast onto the floor and walls of barn. Two of them clearly belonged to Mina and the drifter but there were also at least half a dozen large shadows that seemed to hang down from the ceiling. They were raised several feet of the ground and seemed to sway gently back and forth. I assumed that they were simply large farm tools and paid them little heed beyond the thought that I could potentially use one of them as a weapon. There was a thick, putrid odor that seemed to permeate the air and I had to choke back bile as it rose in my throat. Creeping closer I crawled my way around the moldy bales of hay and fallen beams, trying desperately to be swift but silent.
"Anything I want, huh?" I heard a man's deep, menacing voice say. "Well that's a mighty tempting offer and one I plan to take you up on. Of course, what I really want is you. I just want to have some fun, you know? There ain't much to do around these part's except hunt, and I believe I have already bagged my prize. Just as with any fine young doe, I will start by stringing you up, I will skin and gut you and then separate the...choice bits." The woman began to sob hysterically and I quickened my pace, only slowing when I was mere feet from the their location. I could see small tufts of smoke rising from an old fashioned oil lamp that was set on a work bench next to several sharp knives and what looked like ancient, dirty surgical instruments. The lantern gave off so little light in the cavernous old barn that I felt I was still sufficiently hidden from view. I quickly turned my attention to the woman who did indeed appear to be strapped tightly to an antique wooden chair. She was softly whimpering what sounded like a garbled prayer and her long hair was tangled around her tear streaked face.
Before I could pinpoint exactly where the male stood I felt several beads of sweat trickle down from my forehead into my eyes, stinging them and blurring my vision. I hurriedly swiped at one eye with my free hand before pressing it back down onto the ground. I was surprised when my hand landed in something wet and sticky and on reflex I recoiled and looked down. Even in the low light I could still make out the small pool of thick dark liquid. Oil? That was my first thought but after a quick sniff I realized that it was blood. I froze when another drop landed from above my head to join the growing puddle. Slowly, reluctantly I raised my head and nearly screamed in horror. A naked corpse, strung up by the feet, dangled only a few feet above me. It had once been a man, though he had been savagely mutilated beyond all recognition. Though he was clearly deceased, fresh blood still dripped from several gaping wounds. I felt bile rise in my throat once again and the urge to flee was so strong that it nearly overpowered me.
Only the thought of Mina, her beautiful body stripped of both flesh and dignity and strung up like an animal kept me from "noping" my way out of there right that second. You can do this, I told myself. You have the shotgun and you know how to defend yourself. Besides, the cops will be here any minute now. That is if they can find you. How can you be sure the deputy even heard your description of this place before the call was dropped...? No, don't think like that! The cops will come and if not you can always just shoot the guy! Just as I was wrapping up my internal pep talk two large black boots suddenly came stomping into my line of vision. My eyes darted up the entire length of the drifter, who suddenly seemed ten feet taller and twice as broad in my panicked state. He was holding a large machete and kept tightening then loosening his grip on it in a very unsettling away. It was clear that he was anxious to use it. He smiled broadly before saying "I thought I heard a rat scurrying around in the dark, looks like I was right. Such a determined little guy. Mina said it best I think, 'you just don't give up, do you?' Well you know what they say, no good deed goes unpunished."
"And you will be punished, that much I can promise you." That voice, it was...Mina? I watched in shock as she sauntered over to stand next to the huge brute. The same wide, eerie smile on her beautiful face. How had she gotten out of the chair? That was the only question my terrified brain could conjure at the moment. I clumsily struggled to my feet still gripping the shotgun in one hand though at the time I don't think I was even aware I still held it. Everything seemed to move in slow motion and my mind felt like an old computer that had been unceremoniously shut down and was now struggling to reboot. "My hero," Mina said in an ugly, mocking tone. "You came to save the poor damsel in distress from a cruel trap. I bet you never once thought that trap might have actually been set for you. Don't feel bad though, you're not the only one, they never see it coming. Men like you make this only too easy, almost takes the fun out of it all."
I could only stare blankly at both of them for several seconds as I felt my stomach swiftly drop and my comprehension slowly dawn. They were in this together, they planned this whole damn thing...and the disappearances the deputy mentioned...?
To be continued...

It was nearly midnight when I first saw her. There was only one 24 hour grocery store in my small hometown and she looked as out of place as anyone could possibly be. Rather than wearing the old faded denims that all the townspeople seemed to prefer she was dressed in a white, pressed blouse and an obviously expensive black, pencil skirt that reached to just above her knees. She stood out like a sore thumb. Unlike most of the working class farmers in our area she didn't dress plainly nor did she look old before her time. Her smooth, creamy white skin and long blonde hair revealed a pampered lifestyle that none of the townsfolk here could possibly afford. She also had wide, innocent green eyes that seemed oblivious to the harsh realities of this world. And I...well I was instantly smitten.
We had both arrived at the mom and pop shop at the exact same time. Myself, I had come for some late night microwave pizza and a few beers. And she, well I could only wonder as to what had brought such a beautiful and sophisticated young woman to this small place and at such a late hour. I froze in my steps when I noticed her. She swept by me with a shy smile and continued into the small establishment. I shook my head in an effort to clear my thoughts and followed her through the dimly lit entrance of the store. I made my quickly to the frozen food aisle to grab my pizza and then moved on to the wider beer and liquor section of the market. I was pleasantly surprised to find the same woman also standing there, seemingly debating over two brands of red wine. She looked up at me as I approached and gave me another quick smile as she hastily returned one bottle to the shelf and turned to walk purposely toward the checkout line. I hurriedly picked up a twelve pack of my favorite brand of imported lager and followed after her.
Due to the late hour, there was only one checkout lane open and I impatiently took note of the other shoppers standing in line. There was an old woman whom I instantly recognized as Dorothy Woodsworth at the front. She watched with an eagle's eye as the checker rang up her meager items, her fist tightly clenched over what looked to be stack of painstakingly clipped coupons. Behind her was a rather disheveled and dirty looking man in his late 30's. I didn't recognize him but with his numerous piercings, tattoos and the strong stench of alcohol and body odor, I was instantly on guard. The town had so few residents and even fewer tourists that I found it very odd to come across two strangers in the same night, especially at the same location.
He must be a drifter, I decided, and a rather suspicious looking one at that. Even more disconcerting then the man's appearance was the suspicious items that he was purchasing. I saw a box cutter, zip ties, garbage bags and large amounts of duct tape crowded into his small shopping basket. I somehow doubted that a man like this was starting some late night home improvement project. I instantly felt myself reacting as any young, hot blooded male would. I puffed out my chest, flexed my muscles and met his dark eyes in a "You don't scare me" kind of way. Behind the drifter but in front of myself stood...her, the beautiful young woman that I had been ogling this entire trip. Much to my dismay, the dirty man's gaze also seemed to focus on the young woman. His tongue kept darting out to wet his dry, chapped lips as his eye's raked up and down her body in a clearly lustful way. I felt my protective instincts roar to life as I watched her uncomfortable gaze dart quickly from old Mrs. Woodsworth to the strange man and back again as though seeking a safe place to land. I wracked my brain for some form of conversation that would distract the girl from the man's inappropriate scrutiny and put her more at ease.
"H-hi there, buying some wine, huh?" The words just fell out of my mouth and I visibly winced as I stated the painfully obvious in a choked voice. The unkempt man snorted and gave me an amused and knowing look. "I mean..."
"Yes, I am having a late dinner with a friend." She calmly said with a relieved smile. Her voice was as soft and alluring as the rest of her and I instantly felt my body start to relax. I couldn't help but hope that there was more than just gratitude behind that smile.
"Oh, dinner that sounds nice." I replied awkwardly "must going on a date then, huh?" She opened her mouth as if to reply to my question but after a moment she shut it again and turned her eyes toward the cashier without answering me. Too shy and embarrassed to press her further, I also turned my attention solely to the cashier and attempted to pretend that no one else existed. The young man, whom I vaguely recognized as the grandson of the owners -Timmy or Jimmy I think was his name- made quick, competent work of everyone's purchases and before I knew it I was all paid up and walking towards the store exit. The same mysterious woman walking only a short distance in front of me. Once I reached the parking lot I watched as she quickly walked to a car a few spaces away, placed the wine in her trunk and unlocked her car doors. I was already at my truck, as I was parked closer to the store than her and was about to climb into the driver's seat when something came over me, a last ditch attempt to catch the girl of my dreams, I suppose. "Hey." I called out to her. "My name is Sam and I...don't mean to bother you. But, I would really like to know your name...and well do you have a boyfriend or anything?"
The girl paused in her motion to open her door and raised one perfectly groomed eyebrow in answer to my question. Damn, that had sounded awkward and far too needy to be anything even approaching casual. But then I had always been somewhat awkward around the ladies. "I mean well, do you?" She smiled briefly, revealing a cute little dimple in her left cheek and I felt my heart melt even more.
"I am Mina. And no, I don't have...anyone like that. But please just trust me when I say that you don't want to get involved with me. I am...too much trouble." With that she flicked back her long hair with a careless movement of her pale, perfectly manicured fingers and slid into the front seat of her luxury car. Following suit I plopped down into the driver's side of my beat up pickup and sighed. "Wow, smooth," I sarcastically taunted myself, "I can't imagine why she didn't just fall into your lap after such a brilliant line like that." Punching my steering wheel in several frustrated movements I gloomily watched her car back up and head towards the exit of the parking lot. It was then that I noticed the top of a head peeking out of her rear window, barely visible in the backseat of her car.
"Wait. What the..." I trailed off and quickly backed out of my parking space to follow her car towards the exit. It was only when I was directly behind her that I realized I recognized whose head I had seen peering at me from her rear windshield. The long, greasy hair together with the reflection of the store's lights glinting off his many piercings finally clued me into who this was. Somehow, the same dirty man who was in line before us had slipped into the back of her car without her notice! He quickly ducked back down below eye level until I could no longer see him. Meanwhile, she had switched on her turn signal indicating that she was going to turn left out of the parking lot. Even though my home was in the opposite direction I too flipped on my left turn signal and prepared to follow her. I was concerned for her safety, given the rough appearance of the man and the fact that he was obviously hiding out in her car. I knew he must have bad intentions, there was just no other explanation. I fought the urge to simply blare my horn at her, knowing that the man was quite possibly armed and able to cause her fatal injury if he knew that he had been discovered.
Instead I followed closely behind her as she slowly made her way through the streets of downtown and then turned off to a smaller, less brightly lit road. I considered then rejected several strategies that might get her out of her car without alerting the menacing stow away in her backseat. Several nerve wracking minutes passed as she navigated through town before finally turning into an all night gas station and my heart leapt. Thank God, this was my chance! I quickly turned in behind her and stopped at the pump adjacent to hers. At this time of night I could see no other patrons and only one scrawny teenage boy who seemed to be manning the register from inside the small building. There was really no one else in sight. I could see no sign of the man in her back seat and concluded that he must have flattened himself onto the floor of her car. I climbed out of my front seat and pretended to start gassing up my already full tank. I tried to appear nonchalant as I knew I had to be smart about this. If I just ran over to her screaming as my first instincts demanded then I would likely just frighten her back into her car then be back at square one.
She got out of her vehicle and looked at me somewhat suspiciously as she began pumping her gas. I opened and closed my mouth several times, my mind racing to come up with a plan to get her away from her car."You know this place has great coffee." I began, "Could I buy you a quick cup?" She made an exasperated sound in the back of her throat before replying. "Boy, you just don't give up, do you?" Attempting a casual smile I said "I just really think we should get to know each other, that's all. Just give me ten minutes, one cup of coffee and if you're still not interested you can go on your way and I promise to never bother you again." Please, please let this work my mind chanted over and over again."I really can't," she finally said. "Look you seem like a nice guy but I am just not interested. Sorry."
"Damn." I hadn't meant to say that out loud and once it came out it sounded rather angry. I watched helplessly as she took a frightened step back and looked down at the gas nozzle that I had just been holding, not even bothering to put it into my tank as it was already full. "You followed me here, didn't you?" she asked accusingly. "Listen man, I have tried to be nice but if you don't back off right now I am going to call the cops, do you understand?" She angrily finished pumping her gas and slammed the nozzle back into position at the pump. She had every right to be upset and I knew that I was probably scaring the hell out of the poor girl. I just didn't know what else to do. I was not the kind of man who could just leave a helpless woman to the wicked plans of a deranged man. I returned the nozzle to it's compartment as I briefly considered calling the police myself.
We only had one sheriff, who always left the station promptly at six every evening. That left only a single, young deputy whom the whole town knew to be drunk far more often than not. I couldn't help but think it would be the wrong move to involve him. If this guy was armed and got spooked he could kill her long before we got close enough to stop him. This situation required far more delicacy then an inebriated and inexperienced cop would be capable of. But then what should I do? She was just about to climb back in her car when I desperately called out, "Wait Mina, don't go. You...your tire is flat! Come see." She made a movement as if she was about to get back out to check but then she merely shot me a fearful look over her shoulder and started her engine.
I quickly jumped back into my pickup and fired up the engine. When she turned out of the parking lot I hesitated a few moments before turning behind her. I followed slowly at what I hoped was a discreet distance and tried to plan my next move. I was cursing myself for not thinking of writing her a note and slipping it discreetly to her somehow. If only I had thought of that sooner! She made several turns which led her out of the downtown area and eventually turned down what appeared to be a long dirt road. I had thought I knew every inch of this city but I soon found myself in unfamiliar territory. I followed about 200 yards behind her and the tall stalks of corn on either side of the narrow road caused eerie shadows to dance on my windshield. My heart and mind seemed to be in a competitive sprint and I knew that the finish line lay somewhere at the end of this rural road.
There was no other option, I would just keep my distance until she reached her destination and then once she stopped I would intervene when the man made his move. I was too far away to see into her vehicle now but would still catch the occasional glimpse of what looked like the top silhouette of a head through her back window. I took a mental inventory of everything I had in my truck that could aid me. I had a cellphone with a flashlight and thankfully also had an old shotgun that my dad had lent me for a hunting trip several weeks prior. I hated hunting, I was not a violent man and couldn't understand the thrill my friends seemed to get from taking down a defenseless animal. But there wasn't much to do in my hometown and hunting had always been my buddies favorite pastime. I was actually very thankful for that now. After driving through the darkness for what seemed an interminable amount of time I suddenly realized that I could no longer see the back light's of Mina's car. I slowed my speed down to a crawl and scanned the area up ahead and to the sides. Thinking that the man might have decided to force Mina to drive into to corn fields I watched the road closely for any fresh tire tracks, but I saw nothing.
After traversing the road for another couple of minutes I pulled my truck over, removed the shot gun from the rack behind my seat and cautiously climbed out. The sounds of night creatures and crickets was nearly deafening way out here and the still, hot air began to coat every inch of my skin with slick sweat. I could see nothing around me and was just about to give up to my crushing defeat to save Mina when I heard a loud, shrill cry. I quickly turned in the direction of the scream and it was only then that I noticed what looked to be a huge old barn roughly 300 yards behind me."How the hell did I miss that?" I cursed myself as I jumped back into my truck, tossing the shotgun into the passenger seat and somehow managing to only take out a few of the towering stalks of corn in my haste to get turned back around on the road. No longer concerned about stealth I roared down the road as dirt and bits of rock hammered at my truck. Realizing that the situation had escalated far beyond my control I quickly whipped out my cell phone and dialed the emergency police number. It rang eleven times and I was near to hanging up when a sleepy male voice finally came on the line.
"Emmergacy. Whas-tss yer locatioon?" Came the familiar slurred voice of the deputy. Damn, why couldn't he have been sober, just this once? As quickly as I could I relayed the night's events, trying to speak in a clear, concise voice so that even a drunk hillbilly could comprehend the urgency of the situation."This had better not be a prank." The deputy said after I had finished my explanation. Suddenly sounding far more sober, with only a tiny hint of the slur still evident in his voice, I felt my hopes rise slightly. "We've had a string of people go missing this week and so far there have been zero real leads. If what you're saying is true than this girl could be in very real danger."
"It's definitely not a prank," I quickly assured him. "My name is Sam Larsen and I don't know the exact address but I am in a large cornfield roughly eight miles west of the Hilliard's farm. There's a huge barn or something in the center and that's where I believe the woman is being held. I heard a scream a few minute's ago but nothing else since and I need to go in-" I was abruptly cut off by several fast beeping noises on the line. Looking down at my phone I realized that the phone was no longer getting a signal. In such a rural area cellphone's here were notoriously unreliable. I tried calling back but it quickly became obvious that I had no service.
"Damnitt!" I yelled and threw the phone onto the seat in frustration. I was on my own now, there was no time to try to move to a place with a better signal. The poor woman might already be dead at this point and I needed to act NOW. I switched off my headlights and slowed the truck down to a slow crawl as I approached the old barn. I could see Mina's expensive black car parked carelessly in front of the decrepit old building, both of it's doors left wide open. Beyond that there was no other sign of life. Quickly scooping up the shotgun and re-pocketing my cellphone I opened the driver's side door and stealthily slid out of my truck. I was hyper sensitive to the slightest noise as I cautiously made my way towards the structure. Peeking into the nearest, grime smudged window I could vaguely make out two people. One was seated in a chair and seemed to be struggling against some type of restraints. The other stood a few feet away and it looked as though they held something large and threatening with both their hands. Both figures seemed to be arguing based on their hand movements and the muffled shouts I could barely hear through the thick walls. I walked around the entirety of the structure until I came to a large hole where the wood had disintegrated just enough so that I could crawl through without alerting them of my presence. Once inside, their voices were much clearer to me.
"Please just let me go, I will give you whatever you want and...and I won't tell anyone what happened here, I swear!" It sickened me to hear this sweet young woman begging for her life and I felt a white hot rage begin to well within me, replacing my earlier fear. It was almost completely dark inside, the only light seemed to come from a small candle or lantern towards the front of the building where the voices originated. I could see several long shadows cast onto the floor and walls of barn. Two of them clearly belonged to Mina and the drifter but there were also at least half a dozen large shadows that seemed to hang down from the ceiling. They were raised several feet of the ground and seemed to sway gently back and forth. I assumed that they were simply large farm tools and paid them little heed beyond the thought that I could potentially use one of them as a weapon. There was a thick, putrid odor that seemed to permeate the air and I had to choke back bile as it rose in my throat. Creeping closer I crawled my way around the moldy bales of hay and fallen beams, trying desperately to be swift but silent.
"Anything I want, huh?" I heard a man's deep, menacing voice say. "Well that's a mighty tempting offer and one I plan to take you up on. Of course, what I really want is you. I just want to have some fun, you know? There ain't much to do around these part's except hunt, and I believe I have already bagged my prize. Just as with any fine young doe, I will start by stringing you up, I will skin and gut you and then separate the...choice bits." The woman began to sob hysterically and I quickened my pace, only slowing when I was mere feet from the their location. I could see small tufts of smoke rising from an old fashioned oil lamp that was set on a work bench next to several sharp knives and what looked like ancient, dirty surgical instruments. The lantern gave off so little light in the cavernous old barn that I felt I was still sufficiently hidden from view. I quickly turned my attention to the woman who did indeed appear to be strapped tightly to an antique wooden chair. She was softly whimpering what sounded like a garbled prayer and her long hair was tangled around her tear streaked face.
Before I could pinpoint exactly where the male stood I felt several beads of sweat trickle down from my forehead into my eyes, stinging them and blurring my vision. I hurriedly swiped at one eye with my free hand before pressing it back down onto the ground. I was surprised when my hand landed in something wet and sticky and on reflex I recoiled and looked down. Even in the low light I could still make out the small pool of thick dark liquid. Oil? That was my first thought but after a quick sniff I realized that it was blood. I froze when another drop landed from above my head to join the growing puddle. Slowly, reluctantly I raised my head and nearly screamed in horror. A naked corpse, strung up by the feet, dangled only a few feet above me. It had once been a man, though he had been savagely mutilated beyond all recognition. Though he was clearly deceased, fresh blood still dripped from several gaping wounds. I felt bile rise in my throat once again and the urge to flee was so strong that it nearly overpowered me.
Only the thought of Mina, her beautiful body stripped of both flesh and dignity and strung up like an animal kept me from "noping" my way out of there right that second. You can do this, I told myself. You have the shotgun and you know how to defend yourself. Besides, the cops will be here any minute now. That is if they can find you. How can you be sure the deputy even heard your description of this place before the call was dropped...? No, don't think like that! The cops will come and if not you can always just shoot the guy! Just as I was wrapping up my internal pep talk two large black boots suddenly came stomping into my line of vision. My eyes darted up the entire length of the drifter, who suddenly seemed ten feet taller and twice as broad in my panicked state. He was holding a large machete and kept tightening then loosening his grip on it in a very unsettling away. It was clear that he was anxious to use it. He smiled broadly before saying "I thought I heard a rat scurrying around in the dark, looks like I was right. Such a determined little guy. Mina said it best I think, 'you just don't give up, do you?' Well you know what they say, no good deed goes unpunished."
"And you will be punished, that much I can promise you." That voice, it was...Mina? I watched in shock as she sauntered over to stand next to the huge brute. The same wide, eerie smile on her beautiful face. How had she gotten out of the chair? That was the only question my terrified brain could conjure at the moment. I clumsily struggled to my feet still gripping the shotgun in one hand though at the time I don't think I was even aware I still held it. Everything seemed to move in slow motion and my mind felt like an old computer that had been unceremoniously shut down and was now struggling to reboot. "My hero," Mina said in an ugly, mocking tone. "You came to save the poor damsel in distress from a cruel trap. I bet you never once thought that trap might have actually been set for you. Don't feel bad though, you're not the only one, they never see it coming. Men like you make this only too easy, almost takes the fun out of it all."
I could only stare blankly at both of them for several seconds as I felt my stomach swiftly drop and my comprehension slowly dawn. They were in this together, they planned this whole damn thing...and the disappearances the deputy mentioned...?
To be continued...