WEBVTT
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Hello, my Spookyes, it's your host and narrator Enrique Kuto,
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here yet again with a little bit more of the
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best of two thousand and twenty four. Weekly Spooky is
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heading into its sixth year right now, and we've had
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many great stories worth revisiting. But last year was especially
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vast in our new authors and new stories that brought
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chills to our bones. So tonight I bring you four
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of the finest examples of horror from twenty twenty four
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here at Weekly Spooky, from four authors that you may
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have heard of or maybe are new to you. Either way,
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it's worth your time, So kick back, relax, and let's
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begin Terror on your radio Dial by Bruce Haney. Josh
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had always wanted to see a ghost. He was obsessed
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with the idea of seeing something otherworldly. At only twelve
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years old, he consumed all the supernatural related media he
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could find, which wasn't much in nineteen ninety two. He
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had all his brother's old comic books. Most of them
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were superhero comics, but there were a few issues of
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Things Beyond This World that he cherished and read over
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and over again. Josh was also a frequent visitor to
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the Horror section of Boring Encore video. Yes, Josh lived
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in a small town known as Boring, Oregon, which he
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found boring, so the idea of ghosts and other worldly
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things was an escape for him. Josh tried to search
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the historical archives of the local newspaper for stories, but
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found little, and it was more time consuming than a
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kid his age could handle. But he did know of
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the Getter House. All kids knew about that house. It
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wasn't much to behold. It didn't have fancy architecture, no
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gargoyles or iron rod fencing, but the house did show
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its age. The weathered wood of the three story house
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had many layers of peeling paint and numerous layers of
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shingles on its time worn roof. A house like that
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always had its legends. The main one was of an
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amateur electrical engineer who lived in the house in the
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nineteen forties and was obsessed with the power of radio
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and was using his modified Ham radio equipment to try
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to reach the other side. Josh did find one mention
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of this man in the papers when he had looked.
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In nineteen forty nine, the Boring Herald had a small
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blurb that read Boring man is insane. Carl Getter of
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Boring was arrested today after several alleged attacks on neighbors
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and his family. He was committed to the asylum and
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will be taken there late this evening or early tomorrow.
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Josh had been making plans to visit the house, but
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before he got his nerve up, a family moved in.
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Luckily for Josh, they had a kid his age, named Mike.
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Josh was quick to make friends with him. Once the
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friendship was established, he suggested a sleepover. Mike would agree,
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but always wanted to have it at Josh's house. After
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the third time of having it at his house, Josh
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insisted they have it at Mike's. Dude, we will have
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way better snack choices at your house. Mike argued, yeah,
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but my parents are always hovering and probably wouldn't approve
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of us staying up late to watch horror movies. Josh
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argued back, and then remembered something Mike had told him,
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so he added, Plus, you're the one that bragged you
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have your own television. Josh argued, yeah, but it's just
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my parents' old nineteen inch set and the colors bleed.
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Mike explained, your own television in your room beats a
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front room television with hovering parents any day, Josh replied.
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Fine.
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Mike said that night was perfect for the sleepover because
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late night host Madame Goulette was showing two back to
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back ghost flicks on Channel five. Josh, of course, loved
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horror movies that involved ghosts. Mike was more of a
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monster kid. One of the reasons that Mike might not
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have cared for ghosts was because his house was haunted
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and Mike had seen a spirit. When Josh first became
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friendly with Mike, he asked him if he had seen
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any ghosts there. That's baby stuff. I don't believe in ghosts,
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Mike had said, and then laughed, But Josh thought Mike
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might have been hiding something behind that laughter. Later, as
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the two became closer, Mike revealed that he had seen
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something spooky in the house. I only saw something once.
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It was late at night, and it was when we
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first arrived with all our stuff after the long drive
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from our old house. We were supposed to get here
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in the afternoon and get stuff unloaded, but my dad
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get us lost taking one of his shortcuts. We were
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all tired, but we had to unload some stuff into
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the house, at least the bedding. I had made a
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couple of trips, and then while my parents were setting
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up a makeshift area for us to sleep, I went
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back out to the moving van to grab my radio
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to see if there were any cool stations in this burb.
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As you know, that was a waste of time. I
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checked AM and FM. But while I was messing with
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the antenna of the radio trying to find stations, I
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looked up to the window of the room, the one
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that's mine now, and I saw a man and he
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stared back at me. I stared for a moment, and
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then he smiled. Then from my radio, I heard him
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say welcome home. Mike finished. Then Josh asked that was
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all he got to say. Because I was so freaked out,
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I dropped my radio. Mike explained, So what did you do,
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Josh asked, I ran to my parents. They thought I
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was crazy, but they searched the house anyways, but found nothing.
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Mike said, did you ever try to reach him again?
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Josh asked, My radio hasn't worked since it still plays
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cassettes all right, but the radio part's broken. Mike explained.
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For the sleepover. Because of Mike's story, Josh brought his
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own radio. He also brought a book called True Facts
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about Ghosts. The book was more or less a parody
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of those books for kids, like Dinosaur Facts or Bird Facts,
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the kind with very few words and many full page
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color photos. Josh knew it was a bit tongue in cheek,
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but thought that it had some truth to it. Before
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Josh arrived at My Mike's house, he decided that he
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wouldn't talk about ghosts right away. He would wait until
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the first movie of the night, so sometime during thirteen Ghosts.
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Since it was a sleepover situation, they didn't have to
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eat dinner with Mike's folks. They got frozen pizza and
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generic root beer, which they took up to Mike's room
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to eat. Mike's room was a typical eighties boys room,
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socks on the floor, magazine cutouts of rock bands on
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his walls. His only full sized poster was of a
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hot rod car. Josh had been hoping to feel spooky
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vibes as soon as they entered his room, since it
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was where the ghost had been, but everything seemed normal.
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Josh waited all night as they ate pizza and played
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video games. Finally, Madam Goulette's Dark Theater started. She introduced
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thirteen Ghosts by telling them how the director had a
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gimmick for when it had played in the theaters. The
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gimmick was a pair of glasses that you put on
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so that you could see the ghosts. Josh decided that
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this was his cue. Maybe that's not too far off,
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Josh said. Mike finished chewing his pizza and then slurped
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some rut beer. What Mike asked, Maybe you need a
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device to see or interact with ghosts, like you and
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your radio. With the radio you heard him speak, Josh finished, Dude,
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ghosts aren't real. I was just tired and it was
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a new place. Come on, Mike said, are you scared
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to talk about it because we're in the room where
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you saw him, Josh asked, just shut up about it.
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Mike replied, and then looked around the room, half expecting
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to see the figure again. Josh knew that Mike was afraid,
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so it was kind of mean of him to then say,
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did you know a guy that lived here was found
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insane and taken to an asylum. Mike's first response was
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to punch Josh in the show and then replied with dude,
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I said, shut up. The boys found the second movie boring.
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It was called The Terror. It had a couple of
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big names in the cast, but had little else going
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for it. Since they were both bored, Josh opened his
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backpack and brought out his radio and the Ghost Book.
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Mike laughed, Come on, what's with that kid's book, he asked.
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It's the only book that the school library had on ghosts,
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so give me a break, Josh explained. You are not
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going to let this ghost thing go, are you, Mike said,
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as he took the book from him and started looking
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through it. There are many kinds of ghosts. There are
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vengeful ghosts, residual ghosts, poultergeists, and there are ghosts that
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are not ghosts at all, like demons that are pretending
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to be ghosts. Mike read aloud and then laughed. This
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book is a joke, Mike said. While Mike looked through
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the book, Josh turned on the radio and slowly scrolled
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from the band's left side to the right, scanning and
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listening for other worldly voices. Mike looked up at Josh
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with a raised eyebrow, but said nothing at this time
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of night. The sounds that came from it were mostly
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talk radio and old timey music that Josh assumed was
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either Beethoven or Mozart, since that was all he knew
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of as far as classical music, it wasn't. While he
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searched the band, he heard Chopin and Tchaikowsky, but he
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heard no ghosts. Ghosts have been known to affect electromagnetic waves.
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Mike read aloud. What does that mean, Josh asked, I
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don't know, but maybe it has something to do with
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how ghosts can manipulate radio waves. Mike said, unsure of himself.
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Don't go away, weekly spooky, We'll be right back.
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Did you know the insane man was a ham? Josh asked,
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A ham?
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Yeah?
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Yeah, an amateur radio dude. Josh said, why do they
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call them a ham? Mike asked, I don't know. They
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operate ham radios, but why they call the radio ham?
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I don't know. I didn't check out a book on
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ham radios, Josh said, annoyed that he didn't know. Mike
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felt bad that his guest was getting upset, so, against
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his better judgment, he decided that he would help him
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and show some interest. Did you check AM? Mike asked, no,
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just FM. Josh replied, I think I was on AM
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when I heard him, Mike said. Josh started to scan
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through the airwaves on AM, and then Mike tried to
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talk to the ghost. Hello, Hello, ghost. Mike said, no
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response from the radio. It's not going to work. Did
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you really see a ghost, Josh asked. Try adjusting the antenna.
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I was messing with it at the time. I was
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pointing it towards my room. I think that's north. Try north,
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Mike said. Josh followed his directions. After a few seconds,
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the static got a little louder. Josh adjusted the antenna
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while he turned the tuner left and right under the
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normal static, he could hear a buzz that seemed to
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get louder as he moved to the right. Once the
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buzz was at its peak, he turned the volume up
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a little more and moved the antenna around. Then the
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buzzing stopped. Mike and Josh froze and listened intently. Mike
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felt goosebumps forming on his arms. Josh thought about adjusting
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the antenna a little bit more or turning the tuner
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back to the left bit, but neither moved, and eventually,
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clear as day, they heard, Hello, boys, the ghost spoke.
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The voice came from the radio, but the boys looked
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around for the man. So far he hadn't appeared. Who
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are you, Josh asked, I am mister Gitter. Mister Gitter replied,
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what do you want? Mike asked, you reached out to me.
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Mister Gitter replied, and then laughed to himself. As he laughed,
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mister Getter started to fade into existence near the window.
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The two boys watched, and suddenly they no longer had
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any more questions to ask. Mister Geitter was nicely dressed
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in pressed slacks and a sweater with only one blemish.
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Right where his heart should be, there was a large
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hole that had blood dripping from it every second or so,
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like his heart was still pump ever so slightly. The
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two boys watched as the blood stained the sweater further.
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Mister Gitter noticed their fascination. Oh this old thing, mister
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Getter said, while poking his finger through the hole in
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his chest. Sometimes the cost of intellectual intrigue is hi.
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Mister Getter continued and laughed loudly, revealing teeth that were
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still white but looked larger than normal. As his gums
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had receded, revealing the roots of his teeth. Josh thought
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to himself, how do those teeth even stay in? Mister
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Getter floated towards the two boys.
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Are you ready to come to the other.
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Side, mister Gitter asked. Mike was terrified and snatched the
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radio away. Get out of my room, Mike yelled, and
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then turned the dial as quickly as he could. Mister
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Gitter disappeared as soon as the channel was switched.
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It will continue to rain for the next four days.
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Sunday might possibly have a break, so plan on getting
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all those outside chores done then.
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But a female voice said on the radio before Mike
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turned it off. Both of the boys were relieved. Let's
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never do that again. Josh said yeah, Mike agreed, but
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they were young and their wills were not great. Before
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the night was through, they had made a plan to
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contact him one more time so that they could record
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his voice on Josh's radio, something to impress the other
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kids with at school on Monday morning, neither of the
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00:15:36.799 --> 00:15:40.000
boys had a fresh cassette, but Josh knew the trick
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00:15:40.039 --> 00:15:42.360
where you put tape over a hole in the side
241
00:15:42.759 --> 00:15:45.159
so that the player would think it was a blank tape.
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It took Mike a while to decide which of his
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00:15:47.840 --> 00:15:52.360
tapes he would sacrifice. He decided on Bruce Springsteen's Born
244
00:15:52.399 --> 00:15:56.519
in the USA Side A. It wasn't one of his favorites.
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He did side A over side B because B had
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00:16:00.480 --> 00:16:04.039
Glory Days on it, which he liked. By the time
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00:16:04.080 --> 00:16:06.879
the second movie had ended, they were ready. They might
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00:16:06.919 --> 00:16:09.240
have tried to waste more time to build up their nerve,
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00:16:09.360 --> 00:16:12.279
but all the television stations had gone off the air
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00:16:12.320 --> 00:16:15.919
for the night. With nothing else to do, they decided
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00:16:15.960 --> 00:16:19.039
it was time to reach back out to mister Getter.
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Mike handed the tape to Josh, who wasted no time
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00:16:23.000 --> 00:16:26.879
putting it in and hitting the record button. Then he
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00:16:26.960 --> 00:16:30.879
turned the tuner to find mister Getter again. It took
255
00:16:31.000 --> 00:16:33.279
him a few minutes, but he never looked at the
256
00:16:33.320 --> 00:16:35.960
dial when he had tuned him in the first time.
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00:16:36.639 --> 00:16:39.240
Hello again, boys, mister.
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00:16:39.080 --> 00:16:42.399
Geter's voice said out of the speakers. Before he could
259
00:16:42.440 --> 00:16:45.759
speak again, Josh pulled out his ghost book to ask
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00:16:45.840 --> 00:16:50.440
mister Gitter some questions. Uh are you a vengeful spirit?
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00:16:51.120 --> 00:16:52.039
A poltergeist?
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00:16:52.600 --> 00:16:52.720
Uh?
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00:16:52.960 --> 00:16:54.200
What kind of ghost are you?
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Josh asked, what type of ghost am?
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00:16:58.320 --> 00:17:01.960
I asked, while chuckling to himself.
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00:17:02.320 --> 00:17:06.279
I wouldn't call myself a ghost. I have merely switched
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00:17:06.319 --> 00:17:11.279
from one plane to another, a greater plane of existence.
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Come with me and see you'll understand shortly and all
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00:17:16.160 --> 00:17:18.920
your questions will be answered.
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00:17:19.079 --> 00:17:22.799
Mister Getter said as he approached the two boys. This
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00:17:23.039 --> 00:17:26.920
was the moment they panicked about last time. This time
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00:17:27.640 --> 00:17:31.680
they remained brave. Josh looked at the radio dial, just
273
00:17:31.720 --> 00:17:36.319
in case they did panic. One one seven zero, AM,
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00:17:36.920 --> 00:17:40.920
We will not go with you, Josh said firmly. Yeah,
275
00:17:41.519 --> 00:17:46.920
Mike said, sounding less confident. You have no choice, mister
276
00:17:47.000 --> 00:17:52.480
Gitter informed them. The two boys exchanged worried glances. Bail,
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00:17:52.920 --> 00:17:58.039
Josh asked, Mike, bail. Mike yelled. They were chickening out again.
278
00:17:58.480 --> 00:18:01.079
Josh grabbed the dial and went to turn it, but
279
00:18:01.160 --> 00:18:04.440
it wouldn't move. He was a smart boy, though, He
280
00:18:04.519 --> 00:18:07.559
pressed the power button instead, but there was no luck
281
00:18:07.599 --> 00:18:13.559
there either. It wouldn't Budge Geitter was getting stronger. Josh
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00:18:13.640 --> 00:18:16.839
dropped the radio, but that act did not stop mister Getter.
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00:18:17.559 --> 00:18:21.319
Mister Gitter in fact got brighter, becoming nearly as flesh
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00:18:21.359 --> 00:18:24.000
and blood. As they were. The hole in his chest
285
00:18:24.039 --> 00:18:27.039
even started pumping blood out faster, while the lights in
286
00:18:27.079 --> 00:18:32.359
the house began to flicker. In response, the boys ran downstairs.
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00:18:33.039 --> 00:18:36.200
Mike's parents had already gone to bed, so they didn't
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00:18:36.240 --> 00:18:39.480
notice the lights were flickering. His parents did wake up
289
00:18:39.559 --> 00:18:43.680
moments later when they heard the downstairs radio turn on.
290
00:18:44.720 --> 00:18:47.480
The sound of various stations could be heard as it
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00:18:47.519 --> 00:18:50.319
tuned itself to one, one, seven zero.
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00:18:50.839 --> 00:18:53.880
Come on, boys, everyone is waiting.
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00:18:54.039 --> 00:18:57.200
Mister Getter's voice said, coming out of the downstairs radio
294
00:18:57.519 --> 00:19:01.519
at full volume. At that point, mister Gidter was powerful
295
00:19:01.599 --> 00:19:04.720
enough that it didn't matter where the antenna was pointed.
296
00:19:05.319 --> 00:19:08.599
The next sound the boys heard as mister Gidter went
297
00:19:08.640 --> 00:19:11.720
to grab them was the door of Mike's parents' bedroom opening,
298
00:19:13.000 --> 00:19:16.039
but it was too late. Mister Gidter was able to
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00:19:16.079 --> 00:19:18.000
reach the two boys and grab them in a big
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00:19:18.039 --> 00:19:22.359
bear hug while laughing. The volume of his laughter lowered
301
00:19:22.599 --> 00:19:26.000
as all three of them began fading out of our world.
302
00:19:27.279 --> 00:19:30.039
Mike's dad entered the living room one second too late.
303
00:19:31.279 --> 00:19:35.440
They were gone. A moment later, all six light bulbs
304
00:19:35.440 --> 00:19:39.799
above his head in the aging chandelier exploded and he
305
00:19:39.839 --> 00:19:42.759
could have sworn he heard a faint voice coming from
306
00:19:42.839 --> 00:19:45.839
the radio that laughed while it said.
307
00:19:46.599 --> 00:19:48.400
End of broadcast.
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00:19:48.920 --> 00:19:52.160
Mike's parents moved away from Boring a few months later
309
00:19:52.240 --> 00:19:56.559
because Josh's parents blamed them for the disappearance and seeing
310
00:19:56.559 --> 00:19:59.599
them around town at the Boring country store was hard
311
00:19:59.640 --> 00:20:03.000
for them to to deal with while managing their own mourning,
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00:20:04.039 --> 00:20:06.960
Mike's parents couldn't deal with packing up their son's room,
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00:20:07.559 --> 00:20:11.039
so they hired movers who prepared all of Mike's things
314
00:20:11.440 --> 00:20:15.240
to be donated. One mover even took the tape from
315
00:20:15.240 --> 00:20:18.599
the radio and put it back in its case. He
316
00:20:18.680 --> 00:20:22.400
thought about taking the tape, who would know, but the
317
00:20:22.440 --> 00:20:25.799
mover was more of a new wave guy. Anyway, He
318
00:20:25.880 --> 00:20:30.960
did empty the kid's piggybank before packing it. The recording
319
00:20:31.519 --> 00:20:35.160
was eventually found by accident. A guy bought a bunch
320
00:20:35.240 --> 00:20:37.920
of cheap cassettes from the thrift store for a road trip.
321
00:20:38.599 --> 00:20:42.599
He was shocked when instead of hearing Bruce Springsteen, he
322
00:20:42.599 --> 00:20:48.079
heard weird audio of a creepy man talking to some kids.
323
00:20:49.480 --> 00:20:52.279
He thought it was interesting enough that he called into
324
00:20:52.279 --> 00:20:56.839
an AM talk show about conspiracies and the supernatural. The
325
00:20:56.920 --> 00:21:01.200
host was curious and had airtime to kill, so he
326
00:21:01.319 --> 00:21:06.200
agreed to air the tape. So then, once again, mister
327
00:21:06.279 --> 00:21:08.880
Gitter's voice came across the airwaves.
328
00:21:09.720 --> 00:21:11.519
Hello again boys.
329
00:21:12.319 --> 00:21:16.880
After this airing, rumors of young kids disappearing after playing
330
00:21:16.880 --> 00:21:21.279
with their radios trying to hear mister Gitter started to spread.
331
00:21:22.200 --> 00:21:26.759
But those are just playground urban legends, aren't they.
332
00:21:32.319 --> 00:21:34.799
Did you hear that? Better check the locks on your
333
00:21:34.839 --> 00:21:38.559
doors weekly, spooky, We'll be right back.
334
00:21:41.359 --> 00:21:48.279
Catching a buzz by David O'Hanlon. This sucks, nine year
335
00:21:48.319 --> 00:21:51.880
old Grover Wright said, dumping out his tricker treating bag
336
00:21:51.920 --> 00:21:54.799
on the foot of his bed. Hawlloween should be a
337
00:21:54.839 --> 00:21:57.519
whole month. You can't get enough candy in just a
338
00:21:57.519 --> 00:22:01.960
few hours. Look at this. Mine's not any better, Will
339
00:22:02.039 --> 00:22:05.319
told him. His eleven year old brother emptied his own
340
00:22:05.359 --> 00:22:08.319
bag onto the pile. It was only the ninth of
341
00:22:08.359 --> 00:22:11.759
November and they were down to eleven rolls of Smarties,
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00:22:11.799 --> 00:22:16.000
three pumpkin shaped chocolate covered marshmallows, entirely too many peanut
343
00:22:16.039 --> 00:22:21.440
butter kisses, eighteen jawbreakers, two chocolate crosses with Bible verses
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00:22:21.480 --> 00:22:25.640
stapled to their wrappers, seven fun sized mister goodbars, a
345
00:22:25.680 --> 00:22:29.680
tube of pumpkin spiced chapstick, and a dozen coffin shaped
346
00:22:29.680 --> 00:22:33.119
boxes of candy sticks. There was no way they'd be
347
00:22:33.200 --> 00:22:36.160
able to stretch their lute until the Christmas candy. Hall
348
00:22:36.880 --> 00:22:40.039
Will tore open one of the marshmallow treats and stuffed
349
00:22:40.039 --> 00:22:43.839
it into his mouth. I think this is from last year,
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00:22:44.400 --> 00:22:47.599
he mumbled as he chewed. I'm not eating the stupid
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00:22:47.640 --> 00:22:50.400
orange and black things. No one even knows what they are.
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00:22:50.880 --> 00:22:56.680
Grover said, what are we going to do? Bucks? Will
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00:22:56.720 --> 00:22:59.480
held up a hand and swallowed the gooey candy with
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00:22:59.519 --> 00:23:03.799
a loud gulp. Bucks might have more clearance candy. I
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00:23:03.880 --> 00:23:06.599
still have ten dollars from helping mister Stax take down
356
00:23:06.599 --> 00:23:10.400
his decorations. Bucks is way on the other side of town,
357
00:23:10.839 --> 00:23:15.559
Grover said. Even Clarissa would notice us being gone that long.
358
00:23:16.480 --> 00:23:20.200
Clarissa Hart was the worst babysitter and cooler. Of course,
359
00:23:20.640 --> 00:23:23.960
not many people wanted the job. After the horrible murders
360
00:23:23.960 --> 00:23:27.519
a few years prior. They never found the killer's body.
361
00:23:27.720 --> 00:23:32.519
After all, most sitters were only available during daylight hours
362
00:23:33.119 --> 00:23:37.000
in fear the pig faced man would get them too.
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00:23:37.559 --> 00:23:40.200
The rights had to take what they could get and
364
00:23:40.240 --> 00:23:44.319
in the months surrounding the anniversary of the babysitter massacre,
365
00:23:45.200 --> 00:23:49.720
they could get Clarissa. Will did the mental math. If
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00:23:49.759 --> 00:23:51.680
he hustled, he could make it to the store in
367
00:23:51.759 --> 00:23:55.240
twenty minutes, tend to get the candy, then twenty to
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00:23:55.279 --> 00:23:59.039
make it back. There was a small possibility Grover could
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00:23:59.039 --> 00:24:03.440
manage to avoid Larissa entirely for an hour. Of course,
370
00:24:04.400 --> 00:24:10.359
if she found out, Will sighed, there's nothing more conniving, vengeful,
371
00:24:10.559 --> 00:24:14.799
and malicious than a high school senior. Their parents wouldn't
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00:24:14.799 --> 00:24:18.119
be home for three more days. Clarissa would confiscate the
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00:24:18.119 --> 00:24:21.960
goodies and have them catering to her every need until
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00:24:22.079 --> 00:24:26.640
she was relieved of duty. What's up, Losers, Clarissa said
375
00:24:26.680 --> 00:24:30.039
from the doorway. The babysitter strolled into the room without
376
00:24:30.079 --> 00:24:33.400
an answer or invitation. She snatched up a handful of
377
00:24:33.400 --> 00:24:38.599
the candy and shook it around like dice before dropping it. Definitely, Losers,
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00:24:39.079 --> 00:24:42.799
this is a terrible stash, she said. You can't eat
379
00:24:42.799 --> 00:24:48.119
this for dinner. What is for dinner, Grover asked, I'm
380
00:24:48.160 --> 00:24:53.359
the babysitter, not the cook. Clarissa shrugged. There's lean cuisine
381
00:24:53.359 --> 00:24:58.480
in the freezer. Pick one those are moms. Will informed her. Yeah, well,
382
00:24:58.720 --> 00:25:01.960
apparently she's not e them. Clarissa picked up one of
383
00:25:01.960 --> 00:25:07.480
the rolls of Smarties and smiled mischievously. Or you could
384
00:25:07.519 --> 00:25:13.599
have pizza, you'd get us pizza. Will shifted uncomfortably. What's
385
00:25:13.640 --> 00:25:17.000
the catch? Haven't you been on TikTok and like the
386
00:25:17.119 --> 00:25:22.400
last week? Clarissa sneered, come with me. The babysitter left
387
00:25:22.400 --> 00:25:26.440
the room with the candies. Grover and Will exchanged concerned looks,
388
00:25:26.960 --> 00:25:30.440
then followed her downstairs. There are few things in the
389
00:25:30.480 --> 00:25:34.640
world that aren't worth doing for pizza. Clarissa had already
390
00:25:34.680 --> 00:25:37.759
unrolled the candies and laid out several on the dining table.
391
00:25:38.440 --> 00:25:41.640
The boys gathered around while she ran for her clutch.
392
00:25:42.079 --> 00:25:46.640
She returned with two dollar bills, her vape, and her phone.
393
00:25:46.680 --> 00:25:51.720
Noticing their expressions, Clarissa explained it all. There's a new
394
00:25:51.799 --> 00:25:55.720
challenge going around. She said. You crush up the Smarties
395
00:25:55.759 --> 00:25:58.599
and make two lines of powder and then see who
396
00:25:58.640 --> 00:26:03.759
can snort theirs the fast. Pretty simple. That sounds dangerous,
397
00:26:04.000 --> 00:26:08.880
Will said, and stupid, which means you two are totally
398
00:26:08.960 --> 00:26:14.000
qualified to do it for my followers. Clarissa responded, it
399
00:26:14.039 --> 00:26:17.759
could go viral and you could be popular for a change. Plus,
400
00:26:18.559 --> 00:26:23.680
I'll get you pizza. Does it hurt? Grover asked, not
401
00:26:23.799 --> 00:26:26.680
if you do it right. Clarissa used her vape to
402
00:26:26.759 --> 00:26:30.160
crush the sweet tablets. You just have to smash up
403
00:26:30.200 --> 00:26:33.200
all the little pieces. My mother and her boyfriend do
404
00:26:33.279 --> 00:26:37.160
it with her xanax literally every night. A minute later,
405
00:26:37.319 --> 00:26:41.640
two sugary rails laid across the tabletop, and the brothers
406
00:26:41.720 --> 00:26:45.480
each held a rolled up dollar. Clarissa opened her camera
407
00:26:45.559 --> 00:26:49.880
to record them, but neither moved toward their starting line.
408
00:26:50.160 --> 00:26:54.759
This is like drugs, Grover said. Well, it's called a
409
00:26:54.839 --> 00:26:58.079
sugar high, isn't it. Clarissa waved for them to start.
410
00:26:59.039 --> 00:27:02.359
Drugs are bad. Grover told her, I don't want to
411
00:27:02.440 --> 00:27:07.319
do this. I'll get lava cakes with the pizza, Clarissa offered,
412
00:27:08.160 --> 00:27:14.440
and cheesybread. Will counteroffered, Jesus, I'm offering you TikTok stardom. Here,
413
00:27:15.000 --> 00:27:18.400
She pointed at the candy cocaine. That could be the
414
00:27:18.440 --> 00:27:22.960
start of your influencer careers right there. At least show
415
00:27:23.039 --> 00:27:25.640
us how to do it first, Will said, moving his
416
00:27:25.759 --> 00:27:30.599
hand to his back pocket. Oh my god. Fine, Clarissa
417
00:27:30.640 --> 00:27:33.160
snatched the dollar from him and leaned over the table.
418
00:27:33.960 --> 00:27:36.599
You just stick it up your nose, then put it
419
00:27:36.599 --> 00:27:40.359
to the line, cover the other nostril, and inhale. Watch
420
00:27:40.440 --> 00:27:45.079
closely because I'm not doing it twice. Oh, we're watching.
421
00:27:45.799 --> 00:27:49.359
Will sneakily pulled his phone out and swiped for the camera.
422
00:27:50.480 --> 00:27:54.440
Go ahead and show us how it's done. Clarissa snorted
423
00:27:54.440 --> 00:27:58.599
the line noisily. She started coughing, then squeezed her nose
424
00:27:58.640 --> 00:28:01.839
and shook her head. Her eyes watered as she turned around.
425
00:28:02.920 --> 00:28:07.160
It's not that bad, she lied, Will and Grover burst
426
00:28:07.160 --> 00:28:10.319
with laughter. She used her sweater to clear her vision.
427
00:28:10.759 --> 00:28:14.480
Her face contorted into a vicious scowl. When she saw
428
00:28:14.519 --> 00:28:19.720
the phone pointed at her. Delete that. She demanded, nothing
429
00:28:19.759 --> 00:28:23.559
too delete. Will told her we're live. You're right, it's
430
00:28:23.599 --> 00:28:26.640
getting a lot of reacts. Did you know your leggings
431
00:28:26.640 --> 00:28:30.480
are see through you? You little shit? Turn it off.
432
00:28:30.960 --> 00:28:34.519
Clarissa rubbed her sore nose. I mean it, Will write,
433
00:28:34.880 --> 00:28:38.039
turn that phone. Why are you looking at me like that?
434
00:28:38.799 --> 00:28:43.200
Will let the phone drop and pointed at Clarissa, you're bleeding.
435
00:28:44.359 --> 00:28:47.720
Clarissa pulled her hand away from her face and saw
436
00:28:47.799 --> 00:28:51.680
the crimson smear. She looked down at the drops staining
437
00:28:51.680 --> 00:28:55.000
her top, and ran out of the room, stripping the
438
00:28:55.079 --> 00:28:59.680
cashmere garment off as she did. So does this mean
439
00:28:59.720 --> 00:29:04.519
where not getting pizza? Grover shouted after her. The slamming
440
00:29:04.559 --> 00:29:12.480
of the bathroom door told him they weren't the smoke detectors.
441
00:29:12.519 --> 00:29:16.839
Screeching brought Clarissa out to investigate. She hadn't smelt the
442
00:29:16.920 --> 00:29:20.920
smoke with the cotton balls shoved up into her hemorrhaging nostrils.
443
00:29:21.480 --> 00:29:23.519
She fanned the air on the way to the kitchen,
444
00:29:23.519 --> 00:29:26.920
where Will was climbing onto the breakfast nook to deactivate
445
00:29:26.960 --> 00:29:31.799
the alarm. Black smoke billowed from the oven. Clarissa threw
446
00:29:31.839 --> 00:29:34.160
open the back door and then pulled up the window
447
00:29:34.240 --> 00:29:37.720
over the sink. What the fuck are you two doing?
448
00:29:38.359 --> 00:29:42.960
She dragged Grover away from the stove. Go open more windows,
449
00:29:43.519 --> 00:29:47.039
I felt that, Will admitted, after finally hitting the button
450
00:29:47.279 --> 00:29:50.640
to silence the alarm. You know, because you got blood
451
00:29:50.680 --> 00:29:54.720
on your sweater and everyone saw the video, so you
452
00:29:54.759 --> 00:29:58.680
thought Arson would make up for it. Clarissa found the
453
00:29:58.680 --> 00:30:02.599
oven mits and removed the from inside. The plastic handle
454
00:30:02.599 --> 00:30:05.960
had been reduced to long, melted strings that stretched from
455
00:30:05.960 --> 00:30:10.160
the pan to the glowing orange heating coil. The contents
456
00:30:10.200 --> 00:30:14.759
were an unidentifiable blackened mass that smelled something like chocolate,
457
00:30:15.079 --> 00:30:18.200
and an electrical fire. The sitter made her way to
458
00:30:18.240 --> 00:30:21.039
the back door and tossed the entire thing into the yard.
459
00:30:21.960 --> 00:30:24.799
We were trying to make a chocolate cake for you.
460
00:30:25.240 --> 00:30:30.640
Will explained that is was a skillet. You can't stick
461
00:30:30.720 --> 00:30:34.119
that in the oven. The instructions said to use a
462
00:30:34.160 --> 00:30:38.440
round pan. You two are cleaning the melted plastic out
463
00:30:38.480 --> 00:30:44.079
of the stove tomorrow. Clarissa snapped, her face softened. It
464
00:30:44.200 --> 00:30:49.000
was sweet, though completely idiotic, but sweet. We'll have to
465
00:30:49.079 --> 00:30:50.960
leave the windows up so the house can air out
466
00:30:50.960 --> 00:30:55.720
before your folks get home. What about flies, Grover said,
467
00:30:55.839 --> 00:30:59.519
fanning one away as he returned to the kitchen. Flies
468
00:30:59.519 --> 00:31:00.279
are harmless.
469
00:31:01.960 --> 00:31:05.839
You're not safe yet weakly spooky will be right back.
470
00:31:08.720 --> 00:31:12.920
Clarissa plucked a piece of bloody cotton from her nose. Uugh,
471
00:31:13.000 --> 00:31:17.440
it's just holding in the smoke smell. Clarissa, moved by
472
00:31:17.480 --> 00:31:20.759
the gesture and her own hunger, decided to order a
473
00:31:20.759 --> 00:31:23.599
pizza for them. They ate on the patio while the
474
00:31:23.680 --> 00:31:27.039
house continued to air out. She was starting to think
475
00:31:27.079 --> 00:31:31.200
the kids, despite being losers, like all kids are, weren't
476
00:31:31.200 --> 00:31:34.440
so bad. When she finally sent them to bed. After
477
00:31:34.519 --> 00:31:38.000
closing and locking all the doors and windows, she was
478
00:31:38.039 --> 00:31:41.359
pretty much done for the night herself. The smoke had
479
00:31:41.400 --> 00:31:44.559
aggravated the abrasions in her nose, making it sore again,
480
00:31:44.680 --> 00:31:49.480
but the bleeding seemed to have stopped. Clarissa felt stupid,
481
00:31:49.559 --> 00:31:52.400
falling for her own gag. She dug a pair of
482
00:31:52.480 --> 00:31:55.799
hydros from her purse that she'd lifted from her mom's stash.
483
00:31:56.480 --> 00:32:00.359
Tylanol probably would have sufficed, but the painkillers would make
484
00:32:00.400 --> 00:32:04.240
sure she could sleep. Despite the lingering stench of burnt plastic.
485
00:32:05.039 --> 00:32:09.680
The pills worked perfectly. She slept through the odor and
486
00:32:09.839 --> 00:32:14.920
through the large, strangely colored fly that landed on her lip.
487
00:32:19.839 --> 00:32:24.400
Clarissa dabbed her nose with folded toilet paper. The stupid
488
00:32:24.440 --> 00:32:28.720
Internet challenge was drawing a lot of flak. Apparently numerous
489
00:32:28.839 --> 00:32:33.880
kids trying it had experienced infections from micro abrasions caused
490
00:32:33.880 --> 00:32:37.599
by the crumbled Smarties. She didn't need to further embarrass
491
00:32:37.640 --> 00:32:41.359
herself by getting a staff infection in her nose. The
492
00:32:41.440 --> 00:32:44.720
mild ache of the scratches had grown more uncomfortable throughout
493
00:32:44.720 --> 00:32:47.920
the school day, but the bleeding hadn't started until the
494
00:32:48.000 --> 00:32:51.240
walk to the right home. She'd ran in the gas
495
00:32:51.240 --> 00:32:53.640
and grub and straight for the bathroom when she felt
496
00:32:53.640 --> 00:32:57.799
the tiny rivlet tickling her lip. Once she was sure
497
00:32:57.839 --> 00:33:01.079
it had finished, she double checked her top for stains.
498
00:33:01.799 --> 00:33:05.079
Content that she looked presentable enough, she went back out
499
00:33:05.079 --> 00:33:09.359
into the gas station and immediately groaned with disgust. Ross
500
00:33:09.400 --> 00:33:13.920
Garvey saw her too. They'd scheduled their third date before
501
00:33:13.920 --> 00:33:17.680
the emergency call that pulled the rights away. Clarissa had
502
00:33:17.720 --> 00:33:21.160
been relieved. Ross might have been a sexy football star,
503
00:33:21.599 --> 00:33:25.079
but he was also a brain dead degenerate. Worse yet,
504
00:33:25.480 --> 00:33:29.359
he'd accepted a scholarship to Texas A and m Clarissa
505
00:33:29.400 --> 00:33:34.119
Hart dating an aggie talk about social suicide. She waved
506
00:33:34.119 --> 00:33:36.400
politely and went to the cooler to get a drink.
507
00:33:37.000 --> 00:33:40.200
Ross came up behind her. His hand found her hip
508
00:33:40.279 --> 00:33:45.599
without invitation. Hey Clarissa, you haven't text back, he said,
509
00:33:46.599 --> 00:33:50.480
I've been working. Clarissa turned it's a week long gig.
510
00:33:50.519 --> 00:33:53.440
I'll give you a call when it's done, or I
511
00:33:53.480 --> 00:33:57.559
could just come by. Ross suggested we can make that
512
00:33:57.680 --> 00:34:01.200
our date. A little Netflix and a lot of chill51300:34:02.200 --> 00:34:07.559
quarterbacks score, Clarissa said, pushing past him. You're just a lineman,51400:34:08.639 --> 00:34:11.679
but you're the one doing all the blocking. Ross groaned.51500:34:12.280 --> 00:34:15.760
I told you I'm working. Clarissa grabbed a couple of51600:34:15.800 --> 00:34:19.320
bags of chips and headed for the checkout. I'm already51700:34:19.400 --> 00:34:23.559
late enough. Clarissa made her way to the checkout. The51800:34:23.679 --> 00:34:26.400
crack of the fly swatter on the chipped counter made51900:34:26.400 --> 00:34:30.199
her jump. Hughby Gilbert shook his head at the phlegm52000:34:30.239 --> 00:34:34.079
colored spatter. The next person in line gagged at the sight.52100:34:34.880 --> 00:34:37.360
Huby didn't bother wiping up the mess as he rang52200:34:37.440 --> 00:34:42.639
up the customer's items. Damn strange little critters, the attendant said,52300:34:42.719 --> 00:34:47.639
gesturing toward the prismatic bits of exoskeleton smashed into the carnage.52400:34:48.800 --> 00:34:51.519
Being downwind of the dump, they're all over my place,52500:34:52.559 --> 00:34:57.079
I can imagine, the customer muttered, he eyed the pulped insect.52600:34:58.119 --> 00:35:01.760
Gotta be this back and forth weather. Gotta be something52700:35:01.840 --> 00:35:07.039
I reckon, Hughbi replied. Clarissa hadn't thought about it, but52800:35:07.119 --> 00:35:10.440
it did seem there were more flies than usual. The52900:35:10.519 --> 00:35:13.519
house had been full of them when she awoke. Maybe53000:35:13.559 --> 00:35:16.719
it was the weather. Summer kept trying to fight its53100:35:16.760 --> 00:35:20.400
way back from its seasonal grave. Despite being the beginning53200:35:20.440 --> 00:35:23.480
of November, the River Valley had been sitting pleasantly in53300:35:23.519 --> 00:35:26.880
the seventies for a week. A cold snap was coming,53400:35:26.960 --> 00:35:30.960
but not before hitting near record highs that afternoon. The53500:35:31.039 --> 00:35:34.880
train of thought was derailed by Ross, turning her forcibly.53600:35:36.280 --> 00:35:40.000
We're third and ten here, Babe, Ros said, it's time53700:35:40.039 --> 00:35:43.000
to take it to the end zone. Not gonna happen,53800:35:43.760 --> 00:35:47.360
Sure it will. Ross leaned in and kissed her. She53900:35:47.480 --> 00:35:52.159
gave him an ineffectual shove, but he recoiled nonetheless. Ross54000:35:52.199 --> 00:35:54.760
slapped a hand to his mouth in response to the54100:35:54.880 --> 00:35:59.000
sting in his lip. When he removed the appendage, Clarissa54200:35:59.079 --> 00:36:02.679
saw the blood. She dropped the chips and soda to54300:36:02.719 --> 00:36:05.480
cover her nose and ran out of the station before54400:36:05.480 --> 00:36:09.679
anyone could see she was bleeding again. Clarissa made it54500:36:09.760 --> 00:36:12.920
halfway down the block before she took a tentative glance54600:36:12.960 --> 00:36:15.920
at her hands, only there was no blood on them54700:36:15.920 --> 00:36:20.199
this time. She slowed to a brisk walk and dabbed54800:36:20.199 --> 00:36:25.079
her lip nothing. When Clarissa arrived at the right home,54900:36:25.440 --> 00:36:28.360
the boys had set the table, knowing they had some55000:36:28.480 --> 00:36:31.599
lead time on their sitter. They ran to Buck's Wild55100:36:31.679 --> 00:36:35.239
discount outlet for a huge bag of mixed Carson bars55200:36:35.280 --> 00:36:38.360
and Jack O'Lantern shaped brownies that had been on clearance,55300:36:38.840 --> 00:36:41.280
all of which were arranged on plates in front of55400:36:41.320 --> 00:36:44.199
the chairs, with a piping hot lean cuisine in the55500:36:44.239 --> 00:36:48.440
middle of each and an overflowing popcorn bucket as the centerpiece.55600:36:49.159 --> 00:36:52.719
Grover was pouring juice in and around the glasses when55700:36:52.800 --> 00:36:57.000
Clarissa walked in. We wanted to make dinner, Will said,55800:36:57.559 --> 00:36:59.800
we picked things we couldn't burn down the house with55900:37:00.679 --> 00:37:04.280
good call. Clarissa put her stuff down and joined them56000:37:04.280 --> 00:37:09.119
at the table. I want the lasagna deal. Grover swapped56100:37:09.119 --> 00:37:11.679
the plates so that he got the spaghetti and quickly56200:37:11.719 --> 00:37:15.159
spat on it. Which one do you want? Will? His56300:37:15.280 --> 00:37:18.679
brother glared at him. He didn't want the chicken florentine,56400:37:18.920 --> 00:37:22.440
but he definitely wasn't going for the spit getty. They56500:37:22.480 --> 00:37:26.039
all took their seats and started eating. Clarissa sniffed a56600:37:26.079 --> 00:37:29.559
few times. She could hardly smell any of the food,56700:37:30.079 --> 00:37:34.920
leaving her taste buds grossly disappointed by the first bite. Sorry,56800:37:35.440 --> 00:37:38.880
she mumbled, then sputtered her lips and repeated it louder.56900:37:39.360 --> 00:37:41.679
I'm sorry. I shouldn't have tried to get y'all to57000:37:41.719 --> 00:37:45.239
do a dumbass challenge. A lot of kids are getting hurt.57100:37:45.719 --> 00:37:48.039
The laugh wouldn't have been worth it if that had happened.57200:37:48.920 --> 00:37:51.840
Some of the kids in my class tried it. Will shrugged.57300:37:52.400 --> 00:37:56.280
Guess they got nosebleeds too, since they weren't in class.57400:37:56.960 --> 00:38:01.159
Told you drugs are bad, Grover said, you were right,57500:38:01.760 --> 00:38:06.159
Clarissa assured him. Clarissa looked down at her lasagna and57600:38:06.239 --> 00:38:10.239
prodded the cheese in the stringy folds. Something wriggled out57700:38:10.280 --> 00:38:13.960
of sight. She leaned her face in for a closer look.57800:38:14.920 --> 00:38:18.360
A tiny white grub a little larger than a grain57900:38:18.440 --> 00:38:22.559
of rice, plopped into the sauce. It twitched and squirmed58000:38:22.559 --> 00:38:25.760
in the hot fluid. She saw the first one tunneling58100:38:25.800 --> 00:38:30.480
between the noodles. Grover screamed, falling backwards out of his chair.58200:38:31.000 --> 00:38:35.199
Will jumped upright, knocking his own seat over. Clarissa looked58300:38:35.199 --> 00:38:38.519
at both of them. Their faces were stark and quivering58400:38:38.559 --> 00:38:42.000
with panic. She looked at the lasagna once more, and58500:38:42.079 --> 00:38:46.079
another maggot dripped into the low calorie meal. Her nose58600:38:46.159 --> 00:38:50.199
began to twitch. It ached worse than before. She brought58700:38:50.199 --> 00:38:53.800
a hand up to it. Pinpricks stung her fingers, and58800:38:53.920 --> 00:38:57.360
she whipped her hand away. The hooked fangs of the58900:38:57.440 --> 00:39:00.960
maggots were buried deep into the pads of her fingertips.59000:39:01.719 --> 00:39:06.719
The little worms danced as they chewed the flesh. Clarissa59100:39:06.840 --> 00:39:10.719
drew in a breath to scream, but choked. She stumbled59200:39:10.760 --> 00:39:13.599
away from the table in a hacking fit that dislodged59300:39:13.639 --> 00:39:16.559
a number of the feisty grubs on the laminate flooring.59400:39:17.199 --> 00:39:21.800
Her nose gushed blood. Maggots clung to her nostrils, fighting59500:39:21.840 --> 00:39:27.440
eviction from their moist, dark home. Clarissa's skin writhed a59600:39:27.480 --> 00:39:31.760
tear duck ruptured, trickling blood down her cheek. The maggots59700:39:31.800 --> 00:39:35.880
poked their heads out inquisitively, and then ducked back inside59800:39:35.920 --> 00:39:45.559
the girl's face. Clarissa collapsed to the floor unconscious. Ross59900:39:45.599 --> 00:39:48.400
banged his head to the music and shut the water off.60000:39:49.199 --> 00:39:52.360
He roughly toweled his hair before stepping out of the shower,60100:39:52.960 --> 00:39:56.320
leaving a puddle on the tile. Mark Garvey was an60200:39:56.400 --> 00:40:00.239
excellent provider for his family, but his paternal abilit He60300:40:00.280 --> 00:40:05.000
stretched no further than cash transfers and check signing. Building60400:40:05.079 --> 00:40:07.920
the apartment over the garage, for Ross had allowed him60500:40:07.960 --> 00:40:10.920
to say I love you, son without having to actually60600:40:10.960 --> 00:40:15.599
spend any time with his offspring. Ross didn't give a damn.60700:40:16.079 --> 00:40:18.519
A father is just a low bar to surpass on60800:40:18.559 --> 00:40:22.079
your way to manhood. As far as he was concerned,60900:40:22.400 --> 00:40:25.599
he had. Ross saw the apartment as his dad's way61000:40:25.639 --> 00:40:30.519
of acknowledging his son's superiority. Ross used the towel to61100:40:30.559 --> 00:40:33.840
clear steam from the mirror. If Clarissa wanted to be61200:40:33.880 --> 00:40:38.440
an uptight cockts, that was fine by him. Two fives61300:40:38.559 --> 00:40:41.800
was a ten, and Clarissa's best friends Trina and Miley61400:40:42.159 --> 00:40:45.360
were certainly fives. Neither of them was going to get61500:40:45.360 --> 00:40:48.480
a first stringer on their own, so when he made61600:40:48.519 --> 00:40:52.199
the offer, they jumped at it. A threesome with ugly61700:40:52.320 --> 00:40:56.199
chicks was still a threesome. Ross dried himself off with61800:40:56.320 --> 00:40:59.519
half assed effort, tossing the towel into the hamper with61900:40:59.599 --> 00:41:02.480
the rest of the week's laundry. If his mom was62000:41:02.519 --> 00:41:04.400
going to wash it, she could at least come and62100:41:04.480 --> 00:41:06.599
get it instead of waiting for him to bring it62200:41:06.639 --> 00:41:10.760
to the laundry room. He ignored the impending inconvenience of62300:41:10.880 --> 00:41:13.880
lugging the clothes down the stairs that he walked down62400:41:13.920 --> 00:41:16.840
every day, and focused on getting ready for his date62500:41:18.360 --> 00:41:22.159
fuck me. He leaned close to the mirror to examine62600:41:22.199 --> 00:41:25.199
the boil on his lip. It looked like a pimple62700:41:25.239 --> 00:41:29.159
at first, but then he saw the inflamed red edges.62800:41:29.840 --> 00:41:34.800
Ross banged a fist on the counter. He grabbed his phone. Hey, Siri,62900:41:35.400 --> 00:41:39.320
what does herpes look like? He knew raw dogging Jackie63000:41:39.400 --> 00:41:42.519
Banks had been a bad idea, but he thought buying63100:41:42.559 --> 00:41:44.760
the Plan B would be the last he heard of it.63200:41:45.440 --> 00:41:49.280
Obviously not, he realized as he prodded the sore.63300:41:50.800 --> 00:41:55.679
U, sh it was only the wind. You are safe, weekly, spooky,63400:41:55.760 --> 00:41:56.800
We'll be right back.63500:41:59.239 --> 00:42:02.039
Siri gave him a list of links for more information.63600:42:02.840 --> 00:42:06.559
Reading was never his strong suit, so he decided on63700:42:06.639 --> 00:42:10.800
a more realistic approach. He'd steal some concealer from his63800:42:10.840 --> 00:42:14.599
mom's makeup kit and forget about it. He poked at63900:42:14.639 --> 00:42:19.920
it once more and it poked back. Ross flinched. He64000:42:20.000 --> 00:42:22.639
put his fingers on his lip and felt the wound64100:42:22.719 --> 00:42:26.519
pulsing against the tips. He brought his face as close64200:42:26.559 --> 00:42:28.760
to the mirror as he could. In the center of64300:42:28.800 --> 00:42:34.679
the boil was a tiny white head. Shit, this is64400:42:34.800 --> 00:42:38.800
going to suck. He prepared himself to try and pop it.64500:42:39.639 --> 00:42:44.039
The head bulged but didn't rupture. Blood spurted in tiny64600:42:44.119 --> 00:42:48.679
drops against the glass. Ross smashed harder. The pain grew64700:42:48.760 --> 00:42:53.440
more intense. The boil finally broke open. The maggot dangled64800:42:53.440 --> 00:42:58.599
from the edge, squirming wildly. Ross stumbled away, shrieking. His64900:42:58.719 --> 00:43:01.960
feet slipped in the puddle beneath him, and then flew65000:43:02.000 --> 00:43:05.599
into the air. His head cracked open on the edge65100:43:05.599 --> 00:43:10.079
of the tub, oozing its contents onto the tile. The65200:43:10.119 --> 00:43:13.320
maggots wiggled from the puff filled wound and made for65300:43:13.400 --> 00:43:17.559
the green pastures of his nostril. Trina and Miley would65400:43:17.599 --> 00:43:21.760
be pissed, but not surprised that Ross stood them up.65500:43:22.440 --> 00:43:26.280
His father wouldn't bother coming by, neither would his friends.65600:43:26.960 --> 00:43:30.119
No one would know he was missing until his mother65700:43:30.239 --> 00:43:35.800
came to collect the laundry on Monday. By then, the65800:43:35.880 --> 00:43:45.480
maggot would be no more. The aerosol can sputtered, with65900:43:45.559 --> 00:43:48.719
the last of its contents coming out in a pathetic spittle.66000:43:49.599 --> 00:43:52.960
Hube went to trash the depleted bug spray. It was66100:43:53.000 --> 00:43:56.400
the second can he'd used in three days. The house66200:43:56.480 --> 00:44:01.159
flies zigged and zagged through his kitchen, bounced off his forehead,66300:44:01.199 --> 00:44:05.679
no doubt intoxicated by the discount insecticide, he swung the66400:44:05.760 --> 00:44:08.440
can like a billy club, knocking one of the pests66500:44:08.480 --> 00:44:11.960
from the air. It's going all the way for the fences,66600:44:12.599 --> 00:44:16.639
hub chuckled, about the only way this shit is killing anything.66700:44:17.440 --> 00:44:20.440
Hub stepped on the pedal and the trash can lid66800:44:20.480 --> 00:44:24.280
flipped up. A buzzing, black cloud of insects swarmed from66900:44:24.320 --> 00:44:29.280
the darkened sanctuary of rot and filth. Hub backpedaled, swinging67000:44:29.320 --> 00:44:32.199
the can wildly but still batting a few. As the67100:44:32.280 --> 00:44:36.239
kitchen filled with flies, he watched a pair of the big,67200:44:36.320 --> 00:44:39.760
brightly colored ones darting in and out of the pestilent cloud.67300:44:40.559 --> 00:44:43.039
Huby made it from the kitchen and slammed the door.67400:44:43.800 --> 00:44:46.119
He grabbed the quilt from the back of the sofa67500:44:46.360 --> 00:44:48.800
and stuffed it into the crack at the floor to67600:44:48.920 --> 00:44:54.760
keep the bastards inside. Lord have mercy, he muttered. The67700:44:54.880 --> 00:44:57.760
drone of the flies could be heard through the farmhouse's67800:44:57.840 --> 00:45:01.119
thick wood door. Hube stared down at the quilt and67900:45:01.159 --> 00:45:04.760
felt a tinge of guilt. His late wife, Clara had68000:45:04.760 --> 00:45:08.000
made it herself. She'd been so proud that he hadn't68100:45:08.039 --> 00:45:10.679
bothered telling her it was the ugliest damn thing he'd68200:45:10.719 --> 00:45:14.480
ever seen. Clara would have kept him in line. He68300:45:14.519 --> 00:45:17.480
should have taken the trash out two days before. There68400:45:17.519 --> 00:45:21.039
were several dirty plates sitting in the sink. He'd practically68500:45:21.039 --> 00:45:24.800
set the table for the damitable pests. Huby started for68600:45:24.840 --> 00:45:27.599
the front door. He kept a pump sprayer of good68700:45:27.639 --> 00:45:30.760
poison in his garage. It was meant for outdoor use,68800:45:30.800 --> 00:45:33.519
but Huby didn't figure it would matter at his age.68900:45:34.199 --> 00:45:37.719
Huby's hand stopped short of the knob. The buzzing wasn't69000:45:37.719 --> 00:45:40.639
as loud as that of the infested kitchen, but it69100:45:40.719 --> 00:45:44.000
was loud none the less. He eased the door open69200:45:44.039 --> 00:45:46.719
and found them clinging to the screen beyond in such69300:45:46.840 --> 00:45:50.039
numbers that had obscured his view of the pasture beyond.69400:45:50.639 --> 00:45:54.840
A cool breeze carried the moist, grotesque stench of the dump.69500:45:55.519 --> 00:45:58.960
He'd inherited his childhood home and the expanse of land69600:45:59.000 --> 00:46:02.199
when his parents passed away. That had been a bad69700:46:02.280 --> 00:46:05.159
time for him. He'd been nipples deep in debt, so69800:46:05.320 --> 00:46:08.360
crippling that he'd sold the adjacent parcel to the county69900:46:08.800 --> 00:46:13.239
without asking any questions. Perhaps if he had and waited70000:46:13.280 --> 00:46:16.440
out other offers, he wouldn't live next to the new dump.70100:46:17.079 --> 00:46:20.320
Hube squinted through the swarm, and in the dying light70200:46:20.360 --> 00:46:23.679
of day, he could have sworn someone was walking through70300:46:23.679 --> 00:46:27.519
the pasture. Normally he'd run them off, but he wasn't70400:46:27.519 --> 00:46:31.000
about to risk letting more flies in. He shut the70500:46:31.000 --> 00:46:34.639
front door with a sigh. What was one more trespasser?70600:46:34.679 --> 00:46:37.639
He thought the cold front was supposed to roll in70700:46:37.719 --> 00:46:41.280
over the next two days, so worst case scenario, he'd70800:46:41.280 --> 00:46:44.480
have his kitchen back in forty eight hours. He wasn't70900:46:44.559 --> 00:46:47.920
much of a cook anyhow. Hughbe cast a final glance71000:46:47.960 --> 00:46:51.599
at the quilt and headed for bed. He made it71100:46:51.639 --> 00:46:53.880
to the top of the stairs and opened the bedroom door.71200:46:54.519 --> 00:46:58.280
Flies buzzed around the plastic tray of microwave meal he'd71300:46:58.320 --> 00:47:01.400
had before work and carelessly left on the bedside table.71400:47:02.440 --> 00:47:04.920
He followed one of the pretty ones as it flied71500:47:05.000 --> 00:47:09.719
on to the other nightstand, Clara's nightstand, and crawled across71600:47:09.760 --> 00:47:14.840
the tattered bible she kept there. Hube's stomach soured. Every71700:47:14.960 --> 00:47:18.119
night they each read a chapter aloud for the forty71800:47:18.159 --> 00:47:21.840
three years they'd been married. He watched the shimmering body71900:47:21.920 --> 00:47:25.960
convulse as the fly vomited on the embossed title. Hub72000:47:26.199 --> 00:47:28.800
backed out of the room and shut the door, thinking72100:47:28.840 --> 00:47:32.000
of a name he'd read on those worn pages, and72200:47:32.119 --> 00:47:36.360
of a strange man walking across his property. He sauntered72300:47:36.360 --> 00:47:38.800
to the bathroom and stuffed towels along the bottom of72400:47:38.840 --> 00:47:41.840
the door before stepping over the steep side of the72500:47:41.920 --> 00:47:45.599
cast iron tub. He sank to the bottom for a long,72600:47:46.280 --> 00:47:49.800
uncomfortable night as he pulled a towel over himself for72700:47:49.840 --> 00:47:54.039
a blanket. Hube would take the bathroom, The rest of72800:47:54.079 --> 00:47:58.119
the house, and maybe the entire town now belonged to them,72900:47:59.239 --> 00:48:10.400
belonged to be Yelzebub, the Lord of the flies. Clarissa73000:48:10.480 --> 00:48:14.199
sat in the wheelchair, probing the gauze with her finger tips.73100:48:14.559 --> 00:48:17.840
There was no definition beneath, not like there should have73200:48:17.920 --> 00:48:21.559
been a shadow passed overhead, allowing her to see her73300:48:21.559 --> 00:48:25.599
reflection in the hospital window. The rest of the eggs73400:48:25.599 --> 00:48:28.639
had hatched on the ride to the emergency room. Any73500:48:28.719 --> 00:48:32.239
infection she'd gotten from the candy snorting challenge had been73600:48:32.280 --> 00:48:35.760
disposed of in short order by the hundreds of starving73700:48:35.840 --> 00:48:41.800
larvae birthing in her sinus cavities. However, they'd taken plenty73800:48:41.840 --> 00:48:45.719
of good tissue along with it. She looked at her reflection,73900:48:45.960 --> 00:48:49.280
wondering how much of her nose was still there. It74000:48:49.320 --> 00:48:53.559
didn't feel like any beneath the thick dressing. She'd always74100:48:53.639 --> 00:48:56.760
had a small nose, a cute little button that everyone74200:48:56.920 --> 00:49:00.760
envied her for, especially her mother. It was going to74300:49:00.800 --> 00:49:05.800
be much much smaller now. She moved her touch to74400:49:05.880 --> 00:49:09.559
the eye patch next, the doctors saved the organ itself,74500:49:09.599 --> 00:49:13.400
since the maggots had been too preoccupied eating her eyelid.74600:49:14.039 --> 00:49:17.039
She looked down at the emergency entrance as another ambulance74700:49:17.079 --> 00:49:21.000
pulled up. The plummeting temperature was forcing the flies away,74800:49:21.519 --> 00:49:24.639
back to wherever flies went when it became too cold.74900:49:25.199 --> 00:49:27.920
She was afraid some would find their ways into homes,75000:49:28.320 --> 00:49:30.440
but the nurse told her not to worry about it.75100:49:31.079 --> 00:49:33.119
There was a new challenge, and all the kids were75200:49:33.119 --> 00:49:37.119
busy hurting themselves that way. She wondered if pictures of75300:49:37.159 --> 00:49:41.079
her maggot riddled face would go viral as quickly. Maybe75400:49:41.079 --> 00:49:44.559
if enough people saw that they'd think twice before listening75500:49:44.559 --> 00:49:48.039
to some kid on the internet. The paramedics unloaded a75600:49:48.079 --> 00:49:51.559
gurney from the back of the ambulance. Clarissa couldn't tell75700:49:51.639 --> 00:49:54.480
much about the kid, except that she had a vacuum75800:49:54.480 --> 00:49:57.840
hose stuck to her lips. She glanced at her reflection75900:49:58.000 --> 00:50:00.840
once more. I hope it it turns out better for76000:50:00.920 --> 00:50:04.519
you than it did for me, kid, she whispered. The76100:50:04.559 --> 00:50:08.440
cloud passed by and her reflection vanished. She watched the76200:50:08.480 --> 00:50:12.000
paramedics wheel the girl inside and noticed the darkened figure76300:50:12.119 --> 00:50:15.639
standing on the other side of the ambulance. She hadn't76400:50:15.639 --> 00:50:20.079
seen him approach. He stood there, watching the girl and76500:50:20.159 --> 00:50:25.920
then looking up looking at Clarissa. She squinted her uncovered eye,76600:50:25.960 --> 00:50:30.400
trying to make out his face, but couldn't. A tap76700:50:30.440 --> 00:50:32.719
on the glass drew her attention to the corner of76800:50:32.760 --> 00:50:37.039
the window. One of the big shiny flies budded against76900:50:37.119 --> 00:50:41.280
the glass. Its mouth parts dragged the surface, leaving a77000:50:41.280 --> 00:50:45.519
phosphorescent slime trail as it looked for a way inside.77100:50:45.679 --> 00:50:49.639
The cold fall breeze battered its membranous wings until it77200:50:49.679 --> 00:50:54.519
turned into a gust and tore one off entirely. Hope77300:50:54.559 --> 00:50:57.679
you fucking die slow, She muttered.77400:50:58.599 --> 00:51:02.840
More scarce to come weekly, spooky, We'll be right back.77500:51:06.159 --> 00:51:08.840
She cast one last look to the man in black,77600:51:09.440 --> 00:51:13.119
but he gone exactly as he came. She rolled her77700:51:13.199 --> 00:51:17.119
chair backwards and turned it to leave the room. Her77800:51:17.159 --> 00:51:19.960
phone sat on the table beside her with a dead battery.77900:51:20.880 --> 00:51:23.920
She was done with phones. She had spent over half78000:51:23.960 --> 00:51:26.159
her life with one in front of her face, and78100:51:26.239 --> 00:51:28.280
now she had half a face for the rest of78200:51:28.280 --> 00:51:32.159
her life because of it. Yes, she was done with78300:51:32.280 --> 00:51:42.199
phones and candy. Kara Garvey knocked on the apartment door again,78400:51:42.880 --> 00:51:47.360
but her son didn't answer, typical. She worked the spare78500:51:47.480 --> 00:51:50.679
key into the lock and stepped inside to discover Ross78600:51:50.719 --> 00:51:54.440
had become an even bigger slob over the weekend. The78700:51:54.440 --> 00:51:57.639
blankets hung off his unfolded futon and missed a sea78800:51:57.679 --> 00:52:02.599
of dorido crumbs. Empty monster cans occupied almost every surface,78900:52:03.079 --> 00:52:07.880
along with protein shaker cups and their curdled contents. His79000:52:07.960 --> 00:52:11.000
god awful music blasted from the bathroom, where the worst79100:52:11.039 --> 00:52:15.639
of all the conflicting odors seemed to emanate from. Kara huffed,79200:52:16.639 --> 00:52:18.840
just because you don't pay the electric bill doesn't mean79300:52:18.840 --> 00:52:21.800
it's free, she complained. On her way to turn off79400:52:21.840 --> 00:52:26.719
the stereo. She pushed open the door and screamed. The79500:52:26.760 --> 00:52:30.360
startled insects buzzed away from the buffet, leaving their larval79600:52:30.480 --> 00:52:34.599
offspring to to bride. The wounds. Bits of meat clung79700:52:34.679 --> 00:52:40.360
to bare bones, pupas incubated the necrotic organs. Kara stumbled away,79800:52:40.400 --> 00:52:44.119
but the swarm engulfed her. She swatted and batted at79900:52:44.159 --> 00:52:47.039
them wildly. She made it to the door and tumbled80000:52:47.079 --> 00:52:50.800
down the stairs along the side of the garage. Most80100:52:50.800 --> 00:52:54.119
of the insects retreated back into the apartment, but she80200:52:54.320 --> 00:52:58.079
watched a shiny one, like a flying oil slick, dart80300:52:58.119 --> 00:53:02.599
away in search of a new den. Kara rolled over,80400:53:02.760 --> 00:53:07.000
crying out as broken bones grated across themselves. A man80500:53:07.159 --> 00:53:10.400
stood at the end of the driveway. Kara stretched a80600:53:10.440 --> 00:53:17.440
hand out for him. Help me, she whimpered. He stood there, unmoving.80700:53:18.280 --> 00:53:21.559
He seemed out of focus and didn't say a word.80800:53:22.840 --> 00:53:29.239
Kara blinked away tears. His form remained distorted. Please help me,80900:53:30.119 --> 00:53:34.039
she said louder. The wail of a siren drew her81000:53:34.079 --> 00:53:38.480
attention to the ambulance streaking down Derby Street. They'd heard81100:53:38.519 --> 00:53:41.960
a lot of those over the last week. An outbreak81200:53:41.960 --> 00:53:45.719
of my asses had overcome the town's livestock, but several81300:53:45.800 --> 00:53:48.880
pets and a few people had been fly struck as well.81400:53:49.840 --> 00:53:52.639
The best theory anyone could come up with was that81500:53:52.760 --> 00:53:57.639
the new dump harbored a hybrid species of botfly. Kara81600:53:57.719 --> 00:54:00.000
looked back to the man in black as the ambulance81700:54:00.079 --> 00:54:04.400
and screamed past them. His body exploded into a swirling81800:54:04.519 --> 00:54:09.239
column of black flies. Millions of them, huddled together for warmth,81900:54:09.559 --> 00:54:12.760
rose up in a great black cloud, and blotted out82000:54:12.760 --> 00:54:17.280
the light as they passed over her in search of food.82100:54:18.360 --> 00:54:21.920
It wouldn't take them long. In a town like Kohler,82200:54:22.800 --> 00:54:33.920
there were plenty of dead things. The Last Vacation by82300:54:33.960 --> 00:54:42.119
Mike Ashkewy, February first, two thy twenty four. I wanted82400:54:42.119 --> 00:54:45.480
a car for my eighteenth birthday. Instead, I got a82500:54:45.519 --> 00:54:50.559
really expensive journal and pen. My mom said she wanted82600:54:50.559 --> 00:54:53.880
me to remember the best days of my life and82700:54:54.000 --> 00:54:57.199
told me to write them down so I wouldn't lose82800:54:57.239 --> 00:55:00.400
them on the web or to a server outage. So82900:55:01.519 --> 00:55:05.719
this is my attempt at doing just that. Maybe she'll83000:55:05.760 --> 00:55:09.800
be right, maybe she won't, But it'll kill some time83100:55:09.880 --> 00:55:15.400
on our family vacation I didn't ask for. Most kids83200:55:15.440 --> 00:55:18.760
would be thrilled for fun in the sun, but I83300:55:18.920 --> 00:55:23.159
burn easily, I don't wear revealing outfits outside of a hoodie,83400:55:23.800 --> 00:55:28.119
and I don't like people much. My stepmom Jill told83500:55:28.159 --> 00:55:31.159
me that she met my dad Peter on an ancient83600:55:31.199 --> 00:55:36.239
website called live journal, back when dinosaurs roamed the Internet.83700:55:37.039 --> 00:55:40.960
Both really value the written word, but didn't always agree83800:55:41.000 --> 00:55:45.360
with the format or forum. So for the next twelve days,83900:55:45.559 --> 00:55:48.920
I'm stuck here with my stupid step brother Roger and84000:55:49.000 --> 00:55:53.639
my parents in a tropical paradise, trapped on a boat84100:55:53.719 --> 00:55:57.480
filled with escapees from the Old Folks Home and boomers84200:55:57.519 --> 00:56:03.519
looking for new places to have sex. Gross. Look, I'm84300:56:03.559 --> 00:56:06.559
not stupid. I know I should be thrilled for this84400:56:06.920 --> 00:56:11.239
family vacation, but I can read between the lines. Jill84500:56:11.320 --> 00:56:15.000
and Peter are going to get a divorce. Honestly, I'd84600:56:15.039 --> 00:56:18.159
be surprised if they made it to the summer. Roger84700:56:18.159 --> 00:56:21.559
and I both heard the fighting over Christmas time, holly84800:56:21.719 --> 00:56:27.079
jolly yelling, screaming and sobbing, followed by lots of nights84900:56:27.119 --> 00:56:30.880
watching Dad sleep on the couch and crying himself to sleep.85000:56:31.760 --> 00:56:34.280
I hadn't heard him cry like that since my mom died,85100:56:34.800 --> 00:56:39.639
my real mom. What happened between them, I don't know,85200:56:39.960 --> 00:56:43.960
and I don't really care. This is some desperate attempt85300:56:44.039 --> 00:56:47.079
to show that we're still fine, that we can still85400:56:47.119 --> 00:56:50.079
be a family. But I know when the clock is85500:56:50.119 --> 00:56:53.360
about to run out. It's not like Jill sucks either85600:56:53.719 --> 00:56:57.880
or my dad is perfect. Sometimes things just don't work out.85700:56:58.800 --> 00:57:03.920
Sometimes I'm handling it fine, I can deal, but Roger85800:57:04.039 --> 00:57:07.559
is taking it hard. Sure he's sixteen in pretty tough85900:57:07.559 --> 00:57:11.639
in a lot of ways, but he's hurting. He'll be okay, though,86000:57:12.079 --> 00:57:14.760
Even if me and Dad leave. He'll get a football86100:57:14.800 --> 00:57:19.559
scholarship and be into girls, beer bongs and concussions. He'll86200:57:19.559 --> 00:57:23.360
be okay. I'm off to college in the fall, and86300:57:23.440 --> 00:57:26.320
then I can finally leave Cincinnati in the rear view86400:57:26.599 --> 00:57:31.440
and start my life any place that isn't Ohio. Ronda86500:57:31.559 --> 00:57:35.760
Canavan has bigger ambitions than managing a Starbucks until I'm86600:57:35.800 --> 00:57:40.840
dead or working at Walmart till I'm wearing depens. Maybe86700:57:40.840 --> 00:57:44.280
these are the best days of my life right. Sometimes86800:57:44.320 --> 00:57:47.920
I even believe that I'm so tired from driving down86900:57:47.960 --> 00:57:51.800
I seventy five to Fort Lauderdale, listening to shitty political87000:57:51.880 --> 00:57:55.760
radio and Taylor Swift SAPs my will to live. My87100:57:55.880 --> 00:57:59.320
parents told me radio wasn't only shit, but I have87200:57:59.360 --> 00:58:02.760
a hard time leaving that time to settle into the87300:58:02.760 --> 00:58:05.679
hotel room for the night. Tomorrow we board the cruise87400:58:05.719 --> 00:58:09.320
ship and start our whirlwind tour of places I never87500:58:09.360 --> 00:58:13.360
had any intention of visiting anyway. Of course, the fucking87600:58:13.440 --> 00:58:17.760
Wi Fi doesn't even work in this place. February second,87700:58:18.239 --> 00:58:22.559
twenty twenty four, spent most of the day boarding this87800:58:22.760 --> 00:58:27.280
giant cruise ship, the Vanguard of the seas. It's like87900:58:27.360 --> 00:58:31.320
being on an aircraft carrier. The ship is absolutely huge88000:58:31.320 --> 00:58:35.039
and just full of people and stuff to do. There88100:58:35.079 --> 00:58:39.239
are tons of options for food, entertainment, pools, and even88200:58:39.280 --> 00:58:43.159
casinos and amusement park. Shit. Saw so many types of88300:58:43.159 --> 00:58:47.559
different people, not just people collecting Social Security either, and88400:58:47.679 --> 00:58:51.039
quite a few kids close to rogers in my age,88500:58:51.119 --> 00:58:54.679
a collection of America and likely the world, just all88600:58:54.719 --> 00:58:58.199
intermixing and expecting to have a good time and spend88700:58:58.280 --> 00:59:01.440
a buttload of cash while doing it. I don't want88800:59:01.440 --> 00:59:04.079
to imagine how much my parents paid for this trip,88900:59:04.639 --> 00:59:06.639
but I hope it didn't come out of my college fund.89000:59:07.480 --> 00:59:09.599
Makes me glad. I've saved up a bunch of money89100:59:09.599 --> 00:59:13.480
from working at Starbucks and doing other kids homework at school.89200:59:14.800 --> 00:59:18.239
Girls got a pay her bills, and I have expensive hobbies,89300:59:18.920 --> 00:59:23.800
nerdy hobbies. Okay, one expensive hobby, but it's how I89400:59:23.880 --> 00:59:27.199
met my friends Trey Owen and Jenna. We all played89500:59:27.239 --> 00:59:30.960
Dungeons and Dragons together Wednesday nights after work. I float89600:59:31.000 --> 00:59:35.119
the bill for the books maps and the little game Chochkeys.89700:59:35.679 --> 00:59:38.599
Roger always comes in and starts quoting Game of Thrones89800:59:38.639 --> 00:59:41.039
at us. Though we all had a laugh when I89900:59:41.119 --> 00:59:43.960
kicked him in the balls last year and called myself Kalisa,90000:59:44.280 --> 00:59:47.960
breaker of balls. It's okay. He got back at me90100:59:48.119 --> 00:59:50.159
when he snapped my bra so hard it bent a90200:59:50.199 --> 00:59:52.880
clasp and left a nasty welt on my back for90300:59:52.920 --> 00:59:57.360
a week. After we all had family dinner, I started90400:59:57.400 --> 01:00:00.480
wandering around the upper deck of the ship. Jill and90501:00:00.559 --> 01:00:02.719
Dad went off to do some couple stuff, I think,90601:00:02.800 --> 01:00:07.719
and Roger is off doing Roger things. My guess is90701:00:07.920 --> 01:00:14.119
likely trying cheesy pickup lines on girls, trying and failing badly.90801:00:15.159 --> 01:00:17.480
It's pretty out here and sure as hell beats the90901:00:17.599 --> 01:00:22.199
urban decay of America's least memorable city. I don't hate it,91001:00:22.239 --> 01:00:26.280
but it's so painfully boring and dull. I just don't91101:00:26.280 --> 01:00:29.280
want to end up like my parents, working jobs they hate,91201:00:29.280 --> 01:00:31.400
in a city they hate, and in a marriage that91301:00:31.519 --> 01:00:36.079
is falling apart. I planted myself in a deck chair91401:00:36.079 --> 01:00:39.599
and just watched the stars tonight. Typically you get light91501:00:39.639 --> 01:00:42.199
pollution from the city and you don't see a lot91601:00:42.239 --> 01:00:45.320
except the moon. If I had a boyfriend, or hell,91701:00:45.719 --> 01:00:50.960
even a girlfriend, this would be romantic, but nope, just me,91801:00:51.440 --> 01:00:56.079
my oversized hoodie, a little book, and my pen. It's91901:00:56.119 --> 01:00:59.840
weird though, tonight. The sky is all sorts of odd colors,92001:00:59.840 --> 01:01:02.400
and I don't think it's the Aurora or anything like that.92101:01:03.440 --> 01:01:05.880
I know the news before we left had mentioned something92201:01:05.920 --> 01:01:10.480
about some space stuff happening this week. I wasn't really listening,92301:01:10.519 --> 01:01:14.320
but it does look cool at least, swirling greens and purples,92401:01:14.599 --> 01:01:20.679
all sorts of different colors. But they feel wrong somehow.92501:01:21.400 --> 01:01:23.800
Some of the stuff that relies on cell signals and92601:01:23.880 --> 01:01:27.920
Wi Fi is being affected too. Can't maintain a stable connection,92701:01:28.039 --> 01:01:31.320
and so I can maybe see my social media for92801:01:31.400 --> 01:01:36.119
all of like five seconds I suppose it's better that way.92901:01:37.000 --> 01:01:39.840
I'm supposed to be out here enjoying the ocean, the surf,93001:01:40.239 --> 01:01:44.440
and the skies, whatever the nautical version of touching grasses,93101:01:45.599 --> 01:01:47.960
I don't need to be connected twenty four seven. And93201:01:48.039 --> 01:01:50.800
maybe I'll enjoy myself a little bit more if I93301:01:50.840 --> 01:01:55.360
forget there is a world beyond the ocean. Tomorrow will93401:01:55.400 --> 01:02:00.519
be good. Maybe tomorrow I'll go do some family stuff93501:02:00.800 --> 01:02:03.440
and try to actually have a good time. I mean,93601:02:04.000 --> 01:02:06.599
how often does one get whisked off to a tropical93701:02:06.599 --> 01:02:09.360
paradise free of charge?93801:02:10.159 --> 01:02:14.639
If you're not afraid, then you're already dead. Weekly spooky,93901:02:14.719 --> 01:02:15.639
We'll be right back.94001:02:17.119 --> 01:02:22.199
February third, twenty twenty four. I actually had a pretty94101:02:22.239 --> 01:02:24.920
great day today. We all went down to the pool94201:02:24.960 --> 01:02:28.800
and managed some laughter and it didn't seem awkward or forced.94301:02:29.320 --> 01:02:31.480
I haven't seen my dad smile like that in a94401:02:31.519 --> 01:02:35.119
long time, probably when Jill surprised him on his birthday94501:02:35.199 --> 01:02:38.199
last year. She got him a sweet new laptop and94601:02:38.320 --> 01:02:41.440
drawing tablet for him to do his artwork on. Dad94701:02:41.519 --> 01:02:44.440
is an artist, or at least he thinks he is.94801:02:44.880 --> 01:02:48.639
He loves to draw and doodle, even occasionally manages to94901:02:48.679 --> 01:02:53.320
sell some art to local companies. Nothing profitable, but he95001:02:53.360 --> 01:02:55.840
loves it. Jill is the one who brings in the95101:02:55.880 --> 01:03:00.360
real money. She's an electrical engineer at the university. And95201:03:00.360 --> 01:03:03.840
I went off and started poking around the ship. Basically,95301:03:03.920 --> 01:03:07.239
he wanted to see how big this floating palace actually is.95401:03:08.039 --> 01:03:11.280
We discovered all sorts of neat stuff, even found out95501:03:11.320 --> 01:03:14.639
they actually have a security force to deal with pirates.95601:03:15.280 --> 01:03:17.199
We saw a couple of the guys dealing with a95701:03:17.239 --> 01:03:22.079
few unruly guests in a corridor. It looked like a95801:03:22.119 --> 01:03:25.119
hell of a fight too. We didn't hear any shooting,95901:03:25.199 --> 01:03:29.599
but Jesus there was blood, gore and discarded drinks everywhere.96001:03:30.159 --> 01:03:32.400
Couldn't tell what happened, but it looked like a few96101:03:32.440 --> 01:03:35.519
old guys got into it with a bunch of dude bros.96201:03:36.199 --> 01:03:37.960
I think one of the old guys bit one of96301:03:38.000 --> 01:03:41.320
the dudes and tore a chunk out of him. It's nasty,96401:03:41.480 --> 01:03:44.239
but if I'd gotten that on video, I could have96501:03:44.280 --> 01:03:48.320
posted it on YouTube or TikTok for Internet cloud. The96601:03:48.360 --> 01:03:51.159
Renna cops told us to fuck off, so we did96701:03:51.199 --> 01:03:54.679
and headed back above deck and back into the sun again.96801:03:55.320 --> 01:03:57.199
We spent the rest of the day at the pool96901:03:57.239 --> 01:03:59.920
and in the restaurant. People were talking about the end97001:04:00.360 --> 01:04:04.360
at dinner, and everyone was gossiping about it. I suppose97101:04:04.440 --> 01:04:07.480
in a weird way, this is like a self contained97201:04:07.559 --> 01:04:11.039
high school, and juicy gossip gets dished out along with97301:04:11.119 --> 01:04:14.360
the soup of the day. After everyone had dinner and97401:04:14.400 --> 01:04:17.159
went their separate ways for the night. I did the same.97501:04:18.280 --> 01:04:20.880
Roger found himself an arcade, and I think that's where97601:04:20.880 --> 01:04:24.239
he'll spend most of this trip. I don't know where97701:04:24.280 --> 01:04:26.639
my parents ended up, but if I had to guess,97801:04:27.199 --> 01:04:29.039
they weren't going to waste a good day and a97901:04:29.119 --> 01:04:32.480
room with no kids. I'd found a nice place at98001:04:32.480 --> 01:04:34.480
the back of the ship where it was kind of quiet,98101:04:34.760 --> 01:04:37.559
private and had a good vantage point of the ocean98201:04:37.599 --> 01:04:42.039
and the horizon. The sky was that same weird color98301:04:42.079 --> 01:04:46.159
again tonight. I also heard a lot of noise coming98401:04:46.199 --> 01:04:50.920
from far off too. It sounded like jets or something.98501:04:51.679 --> 01:04:53.800
I didn't think we were near any air bases or98601:04:53.800 --> 01:04:57.920
anything like that. Probably outspending the hard earned tax dollars98701:04:57.960 --> 01:05:02.079
to pad their budgets. Looking up at the wrong looking colors,98801:05:02.199 --> 01:05:06.599
I saw a lot of airplanes tonight. I'm even seeing98901:05:06.599 --> 01:05:09.880
what I think are lights from other boats nearby. It99001:05:09.960 --> 01:05:12.840
seems like the seas are crowded tonight and privacy is99101:05:12.880 --> 01:05:16.400
going to be hard to come by. Of course, the99201:05:16.440 --> 01:05:20.719
Internet is completely down tonight too. The web page gives99301:05:20.719 --> 01:05:23.119
me some sort of an error, and I can't even99401:05:23.119 --> 01:05:26.079
get a signal for more than a few seconds. I99501:05:26.079 --> 01:05:30.559
thought I saw something on social media about something happening99601:05:30.639 --> 01:05:34.079
back on land, but before I could read past the headline,99701:05:34.880 --> 01:05:41.320
the page crashed something about a crisis. When isn't there99801:05:41.400 --> 01:05:44.880
one of those? Right Tomorrow, I'll try sun tanning for99901:05:44.920 --> 01:05:49.159
the first time in my entire life. No crisis here100001:05:49.960 --> 01:06:00.000
except maybe sunburn. February fourth, twenty twenty four. This morning100101:06:00.320 --> 01:06:03.480
I awoke to Dad shaking me awake and telling me100201:06:03.559 --> 01:06:06.800
to get dressed. The crew had asked the passengers to100301:06:06.840 --> 01:06:10.559
stand by for an important announcement and that information would100401:06:10.559 --> 01:06:13.599
be coming in from the mainland. We were told to100501:06:13.679 --> 01:06:19.079
stay calm and reassured that everything was okay. Clearly something100601:06:19.159 --> 01:06:22.199
is fucked up when you hear that. We heard a100701:06:22.280 --> 01:06:25.000
knock at the cabin door and a tray of food100801:06:25.079 --> 01:06:27.840
was left for us. As we saw the crew moving100901:06:27.880 --> 01:06:30.800
from door to door and calmly leaving food and not101001:06:30.880 --> 01:06:33.639
saying a word to anyone who wasn't in a uniform.101101:06:34.760 --> 01:06:39.960
Then it hit me the crew weren't just service people.101201:06:41.159 --> 01:06:44.800
They were all armed somehow. Some of the crew were101301:06:44.880 --> 01:06:48.079
those security guys we saw earlier, and some were others101401:06:48.119 --> 01:06:53.840
who seemingly conscripted into whatever the fuck this was. The captain,101501:06:53.920 --> 01:06:58.880
who identified themselves as Captain Paul Kennedy, said there was101601:06:58.920 --> 01:07:02.760
an emergency situation developing on the mainland and we would101701:07:02.800 --> 01:07:06.719
be remaining at sea until ordered otherwise. The military had101801:07:06.719 --> 01:07:09.800
become involved and the Navy was ordering all vessels at101901:07:09.840 --> 01:07:14.800
sea to remain there until the situation had changed. Something102001:07:15.000 --> 01:07:22.280
was wrong. Then I heard it a gunshot. We all102101:07:22.320 --> 01:07:24.440
looked at each other and didn't know what to make102201:07:24.480 --> 01:07:31.960
of it. It couldn't be gunfire, could it. Then the screams,102301:07:32.920 --> 01:07:38.280
first one, then many too many. It went on for102401:07:38.400 --> 01:07:42.880
what seemed like forever. I'll never forget when it stopped either.102501:07:47.039 --> 01:07:51.519
Eleven fifty two am. Another voice came over the intercom,102601:07:52.400 --> 01:07:55.760
and it wasn't the captains this time it was an102701:07:55.800 --> 01:07:59.800
older lady and she identified herself as the ship's doctor,102801:08:00.679 --> 01:08:04.679
Doctor Chang. She said there was a sickness on board,102901:08:05.159 --> 01:08:08.000
and everyone would have to submit to examination by the103001:08:08.039 --> 01:08:13.119
medical staff and security. Any refusal would mean being locked103101:08:13.199 --> 01:08:17.640
up in the brig or removal from the ship by103201:08:17.680 --> 01:08:23.079
any means necessary. Why am I still writing. I guess103301:08:23.159 --> 01:08:26.479
it helps me to keep calm. I need to stay103401:08:26.520 --> 01:08:33.800
calm and clear headed. February fifth, two thy twenty five.103501:08:35.039 --> 01:08:39.640
It's bad. I don't know what it is, but it's bad.103601:08:40.960 --> 01:08:44.560
The doctors came in this morning and examined everyone and103701:08:44.640 --> 01:08:47.479
told us to move our stuff to a different, more103801:08:47.520 --> 01:08:51.039
secure area of the ship. We were told to bring103901:08:51.119 --> 01:08:54.680
only the essentials, and everything else would be provided for us.104001:08:55.399 --> 01:08:59.800
I grabbed this book, my pen, and the hoodie Dad104101:08:59.800 --> 01:09:03.920
had gotten me when we went to Washington in ninth grade.104201:09:03.960 --> 01:09:07.279
Everyone else packed what they figured was important, but it104301:09:07.319 --> 01:09:10.399
all seemed like it was grabbed out of panic or104401:09:10.960 --> 01:09:14.520
by instinct. They herded us all into one of the104501:09:14.560 --> 01:09:17.800
big ballrooms and set it up like a field hospital104601:09:18.159 --> 01:09:21.960
with cots and blankets. All the amenities and fun stuff104701:09:22.039 --> 01:09:24.800
was stripped out, and it was as bare bones and104801:09:24.880 --> 01:09:29.000
spartan as you could get. I did notice one thing, though.104901:09:29.800 --> 01:09:33.359
There were remarkably few people over the age of sixty here,105001:09:33.399 --> 01:09:38.640
with us. They're watching anyone who even sneezes like a hawk.105101:09:39.520 --> 01:09:42.720
Were also surrounded on all sides by people with guns105201:09:42.720 --> 01:09:48.800
and batons. We're not passengers anymore. We're being held here.105301:09:50.199 --> 01:09:55.520
We're prisoners. I overheard some people talking. I must be wrong.105401:09:55.840 --> 01:09:59.359
It sounded too crazy to be real. They were saying105501:09:59.439 --> 01:10:02.399
some kind of an incident had happened on the mainland105601:10:02.840 --> 01:10:05.840
and was causing people to go crazy and kill each105701:10:05.880 --> 01:10:13.159
other and eat each other like fucking zombies. There's no105801:10:13.319 --> 01:10:18.079
way this is happening. This is not real. This is105901:10:18.159 --> 01:10:22.279
real life, not Wednesday Night D and D and zombies106001:10:22.439 --> 01:10:27.960
don't goddamn exist. One person even started screaming about zombies,106101:10:28.399 --> 01:10:30.880
and the security guys beat on her with clubs and106201:10:30.880 --> 01:10:34.720
batons till she started crying and begged them to stop.106301:10:35.479 --> 01:10:37.600
She was dragged out of the room on a stretcher106401:10:38.319 --> 01:10:42.359
and I never saw her again. It has to be106501:10:42.399 --> 01:10:47.359
a biological weapon attack. Terrorists are like the Russians or106601:10:47.399 --> 01:10:51.720
the North Koreans, or bad drugs like bath salts or fentanyl.106701:10:52.720 --> 01:10:57.000
This isn't fucking happening to me. I'm supposed to be106801:10:57.079 --> 01:10:57.680
on vacation.106901:10:58.880 --> 01:11:04.039
If you thought that was just you wait weekly spooky,107001:11:04.239 --> 01:11:05.279
We'll be right back.107101:11:13.000 --> 01:11:19.479
February seventh, twenty twenty four. I can't sleep, and I'm107201:11:19.520 --> 01:11:25.000
not sure anyone else is either. Everybody's on edge. Jill107301:11:25.079 --> 01:11:29.279
hasn't slept in days, and frankly, she really looks sick.107401:11:29.920 --> 01:11:32.680
I'm scared she'll get taken away by the ship's doctors107501:11:32.760 --> 01:11:36.439
or the security goons. No one is taking any chances107601:11:36.479 --> 01:11:39.359
at this point. Dad is trying to be a tough107701:11:39.399 --> 01:11:43.239
guy to help her, but it's not working. He's not107801:11:43.319 --> 01:11:48.279
a strong man. He's an artist. Dad cries at lifetime movies.107901:11:49.199 --> 01:11:54.079
He just isn't equipped for this. Roger looks nervous and scared,108001:11:54.800 --> 01:11:58.079
like he has this panicked look in his eyes. I108101:11:58.119 --> 01:12:01.840
think he'll do something stupid for fuck's sake. Sit down108201:12:01.880 --> 01:12:05.920
and shut up, and please don't cause trouble. People are108301:12:05.960 --> 01:12:10.000
still talking and gossip is hot right now. Rumor is108401:12:10.079 --> 01:12:15.439
that if you die, you don't you come back. It108501:12:15.479 --> 01:12:19.520
doesn't even matter how you die, just that you come back.108601:12:20.760 --> 01:12:24.159
We've heard gunshots coming from below decks at all hours108701:12:24.199 --> 01:12:29.439
of the day and night since yesterday. One of the108801:12:29.479 --> 01:12:33.479
security guards left a handheld radio behind and I listened108901:12:33.479 --> 01:12:37.359
for as long as I could. I think I heard109001:12:37.439 --> 01:12:41.560
all I needed to hear. Though it's over. We've lost109101:12:41.600 --> 01:12:44.800
the engine room. The infection is spreading. We don't know109201:12:44.840 --> 01:12:48.279
how to stop it except for a bullet to the head.109301:12:49.319 --> 01:12:55.039
I don't want to die, not like that. February ninth,109401:12:55.439 --> 01:13:01.000
twenty twenty four. I finally saw it happen. One of109501:13:01.039 --> 01:13:03.279
the people beside me had a heart attack in the109601:13:03.279 --> 01:13:06.760
middle of the night. No one noticed until she tore109701:13:06.840 --> 01:13:09.520
the throat out of the person sleeping next to her.109801:13:10.520 --> 01:13:13.279
It all happened so fast, but it felt like time109901:13:13.399 --> 01:13:16.840
slowed down. All I could do was watch in horror.110001:13:17.960 --> 01:13:21.520
There was so much blood. The guards started shooting, but110101:13:21.600 --> 01:13:25.880
the person wouldn't die. It was so loud my ears110201:13:25.920 --> 01:13:29.960
were ringing. Everyone else was screaming and yelling, but they110301:13:30.000 --> 01:13:33.960
sounded far away. Finally, they shot the woman in the110401:13:34.000 --> 01:13:39.039
head and she went down, but the body still kept twitching.110501:13:39.920 --> 01:13:43.159
One of the guards leveled his weapon at the remaining passengers.110601:13:43.800 --> 01:13:46.119
He reeked of booze, and the look on his face110701:13:46.199 --> 01:13:50.439
was something I'll never forget. They enjoyed what they did.110801:13:51.479 --> 01:13:56.199
They enjoyed pulling that trigger. A trio of guards stepped110901:13:56.239 --> 01:13:59.239
forward in an aggressive manner towards the lot of us,111001:14:00.039 --> 01:14:03.319
and one of them spoke, don't think for a second111101:14:03.319 --> 01:14:06.119
that we will hesitate to do it again. You need111201:14:06.199 --> 01:14:10.079
us more than we need you. The smallest of the111301:14:10.119 --> 01:14:13.239
trio walked over to the person whose throat was ripped out,111401:14:14.039 --> 01:14:16.880
pulled out his pistol, and shot them in the head111501:14:17.399 --> 01:14:22.159
to punctuate the threat. We're not taking any chances. Now111601:14:22.199 --> 01:14:27.880
clean this shit up. They threw the bodies overboard burial111701:14:27.920 --> 01:14:32.720
at sea. Some kid followed them and started wailing as111801:14:32.720 --> 01:14:36.039
the bodies hit the water. I think it was their111901:14:36.079 --> 01:14:48.760
mom and dad. This is hell. I'm in hell. February twelfth,112001:14:48.800 --> 01:14:53.359
twenty twenty four. Please tell me this is a nightmare.112101:14:54.600 --> 01:14:59.680
Let me wake up. Security staff have started escorting female112201:14:59.720 --> 01:15:04.760
pass listeners to alternative accommodations. Last night we woke up112301:15:04.800 --> 01:15:09.520
to screaming again, but it wasn't another death. A man112401:15:09.640 --> 01:15:12.880
was shouting as his wife and daughter were being forcibly removed.112501:15:13.680 --> 01:15:15.680
One of the guards broke his nose with the butt112601:15:15.680 --> 01:15:18.880
of a shotgun, and the rest just laughed and shouted112701:15:18.920 --> 01:15:21.960
drunkenly for him to stay down. If he knew what112801:15:22.079 --> 01:15:25.960
was good for him. Someone has to know that I existed.112901:15:26.560 --> 01:15:28.880
If this keeps going as badly as it has been,113001:15:29.600 --> 01:15:33.079
I need to leave a record of what happened. Someone113101:15:33.199 --> 01:15:36.359
has to know that Ronda Canavan existed, that I was113201:15:36.399 --> 01:15:39.439
a person, that I had a brother, parents and they113301:15:39.520 --> 01:15:44.920
existed too. I had the best dog ever, Bugsy. I existed.113401:15:44.960 --> 01:15:49.039
I had a life. Please, if you find this diary,113501:15:49.159 --> 01:15:53.720
know that I tried and I lived. I just want113601:15:53.760 --> 01:16:00.920
to go home. February fifteenth, twenty twenty four. We've all113701:16:00.960 --> 01:16:05.039
been moved again. This time we're being isolated to two113801:16:05.159 --> 01:16:09.199
decks and they've shut down the elevators. We're locked into113901:16:09.239 --> 01:16:12.840
cabins and being given the absolute bare minimum for survival114001:16:13.359 --> 01:16:17.640
and nothing else. There are a lot fewer of us114101:16:17.720 --> 01:16:22.199
left now. The doctors in medical staff come by constantly114201:16:22.840 --> 01:16:26.760
and aren't taking any chances now. The rent to cops114301:16:26.760 --> 01:16:30.239
are also interrogating people about what skills they have and114401:16:30.359 --> 01:16:35.239
taking them to the higher decks for necessary work. Dad114501:16:35.279 --> 01:16:38.880
should be safe. Not much call for graphic design in114601:16:38.920 --> 01:16:42.680
the zombie apocalypse, but I'm not so sure about Jill.114701:16:43.800 --> 01:16:46.760
Jill is an engineer, and she'll want to help. She'll114801:16:46.800 --> 01:16:49.840
want to protect us and do the right thing. We114901:16:49.960 --> 01:16:53.279
haven't always seen eye to eye, but I know she's115001:16:53.319 --> 01:16:57.680
a good person at heart. I keep hearing strange mechanical115101:16:57.720 --> 01:17:01.960
noises coming from below decks. It doesn't sound good, and115201:17:02.000 --> 01:17:06.359
I can smell something burning, like oil and plastic. Hopefully115301:17:06.359 --> 01:17:09.920
they'll put her engineering skills to use. Maybe that means115401:17:09.920 --> 01:17:14.399
we stay alive or afloat or something. I don't want115501:17:14.399 --> 01:17:17.640
to think of the alternative, but I'm glad. I'm still115601:17:17.680 --> 01:17:24.680
in my shapeless hoodie in sweats. February seventeenth, twenty twenty four.115701:17:26.560 --> 01:17:31.000
They killed Roger. They came to take Jill for engineering115801:17:31.039 --> 01:17:35.720
work duty. They weren't asking either. It was the middle115901:17:35.760 --> 01:17:39.520
of the night when they came. It happened so quickly.116001:17:40.319 --> 01:17:43.680
The door was kicked down and flashlights flooded the room.116101:17:44.119 --> 01:17:47.079
Dad and I froze, but Roger tried to stop them.116201:17:47.520 --> 01:17:50.199
Before he could even take a swing at the three guards,116301:17:50.239 --> 01:17:53.640
they shot him in the head. Two of the bastards116401:17:53.680 --> 01:17:57.239
even laughed as he crumpled to the floor. The woman116501:17:57.279 --> 01:18:01.319
who shot him didn't laugh, though. Jill was hauled away116601:18:01.359 --> 01:18:06.479
screaming hysterically, covered in the contents of Roger's skull. That116701:18:06.960 --> 01:18:08.359
was the last time I saw Jill.116801:18:08.439 --> 01:18:08.800
Alive.116901:18:10.319 --> 01:18:12.159
The thing that will haunt me for the rest of117001:18:12.199 --> 01:18:15.880
my life was the terrified look in her eyes as117101:18:15.880 --> 01:18:19.159
they hauled her off her feet and into the corridor.117201:18:20.720 --> 01:18:23.159
We need to get off the boat or we're gonna117301:18:23.199 --> 01:18:28.039
die next or worse. Dad hasn't said a word since117401:18:28.039 --> 01:18:31.600
they took Jill. He has a defeated look, like he's117501:18:31.640 --> 01:18:38.920
a thousand miles away and he's not coming back. February nineteenth,117601:18:39.359 --> 01:18:44.159
twenty twenty four. I am not going to die here.117701:18:44.840 --> 01:18:48.920
I am going to escape. I don't know how, but117801:18:49.000 --> 01:18:52.640
I have an idea. I've seen plenty of movies and117901:18:52.720 --> 01:18:56.199
read too many trashy novels. If they taught me anything,118001:18:56.479 --> 01:18:58.760
it's that maybe I can make a rope ladder and118101:18:58.800 --> 01:19:01.359
get on the upper deck of the ship. Maybe I118201:19:01.399 --> 01:19:04.479
can steal a lifeboat or something. We have tons of118301:19:04.520 --> 01:19:07.880
bed sheets and stuff that I can use. Somehow, I'll118401:19:07.920 --> 01:19:12.760
figure something out. I have to try. Dad still hasn't118501:19:12.760 --> 01:19:18.199
said a word. Jill hasn't come back, and I don't118601:19:18.239 --> 01:19:22.159
think she will either. I don't know what else to do,118701:19:22.239 --> 01:19:26.079
but I need to try and survive. Looking outside on118801:19:26.119 --> 01:19:29.680
the veranda and over the ocean, I can see lights118901:19:29.680 --> 01:19:33.319
on the horizon. It has to be other boats, right.119001:19:34.119 --> 01:19:39.000
There has to be other survivors besides us, right, could119101:19:39.000 --> 01:19:44.000
be the Navy or someone anyone. Any place is better119201:19:44.039 --> 01:19:44.479
than here.119301:19:45.800 --> 01:19:50.000
I like it Spooky weekly. Spooky will be right back.119401:19:52.000 --> 01:19:58.199
February twenty fourth, twenty twenty four. I've spent the last119501:19:58.239 --> 01:20:02.239
few days preparing my ISA escape plan. It's taken a119601:20:02.279 --> 01:20:05.560
few tries and prototypes, but I think I'll be ready119701:20:05.600 --> 01:20:09.680
to go tomorrow or the day after. Relatively sure it'll119801:20:09.680 --> 01:20:12.880
hold my weight, or at least I hope it will.119901:20:13.800 --> 01:20:16.319
I've saved up a few days worth of food and water.120001:20:17.560 --> 01:20:20.479
I literally don't have a plan beyond getting to the120101:20:20.479 --> 01:20:23.439
top of the ship and seeing what happens after that.120201:20:24.920 --> 01:20:29.119
Doctors came in this morning and examined me and Dad. Thankfully,120301:20:29.199 --> 01:20:33.359
they found nothing except noting that Dad looks malnourished and120401:20:33.399 --> 01:20:36.840
should eat if he knows what's good for him. Dad120501:20:36.880 --> 01:20:42.880
hasn't eaten or said a word. He's gone. I'm sorry, Dad,120601:20:43.720 --> 01:20:52.399
you may have given up, but I can't. February twenty sixth,120701:20:52.720 --> 01:20:56.960
twenty twenty four. One of those lights turned out to120801:20:56.960 --> 01:20:59.920
be a US Coast Guard ship, and they boarded us,120901:21:00.560 --> 01:21:04.319
so maybe this is my big break, but I have121001:21:04.359 --> 01:21:07.640
to wait till it's less busy. You can hear a121101:21:07.680 --> 01:21:11.239
lot of raised voices intense conversation coming from the deck,121201:21:11.920 --> 01:21:15.479
but no one has started shooting each other. That could121301:21:15.560 --> 01:21:18.840
change at any moment, though. Rumor is that the ship's121401:21:18.840 --> 01:21:22.640
stocks of booze are almost exhausted. I'm going to try121501:21:22.640 --> 01:21:25.640
and sneak aboard the Coast Guard ship and see if121601:21:25.680 --> 01:21:28.960
I can get out of here that way. I slept121701:21:28.960 --> 01:21:32.279
beside my dad, gave him a big hug this morning,121801:21:33.039 --> 01:21:37.079
but he wouldn't even look at me. He did speak, though,121901:21:38.439 --> 01:21:43.000
and it broke my heart into pieces. I'm sorry, Rohnda,122001:21:44.039 --> 01:21:47.920
I'm sorry for everything. If your stepmom and I hadn't122101:21:47.920 --> 01:21:49.960
been fighting, we wouldn't have come out here to fix122201:21:49.960 --> 01:21:55.560
our marriage. I'm so sorry. He just looked at his122301:21:55.600 --> 01:22:00.359
shoes and didn't say anything else to me. I know122401:22:00.479 --> 01:22:05.840
it's not his fault. Roger knew that. I'll even bet122501:22:05.880 --> 01:22:10.439
that jill Mom knew that it would get worked out.122601:22:12.119 --> 01:22:16.000
I don't blame him for any of this happening. I'm122701:22:16.039 --> 01:22:19.039
going to wait till dark, and then I'm going to122801:22:19.159 --> 01:22:26.199
use my rope ladder and try my best, Mom, Dad, Roger,122901:22:28.199 --> 01:22:32.000
I love you all. I kissed my dad on his123001:22:32.079 --> 01:22:35.079
forehead when he went to sleep, and for a brief123101:22:35.159 --> 01:22:40.720
second he smiled before a restless sleep took him back.123201:22:42.479 --> 01:22:46.119
I'm going to live for all of us. I have123301:22:46.199 --> 01:22:56.920
to at least try. March first, twenty twenty four, I123401:22:57.039 --> 01:23:00.960
made it. I successfully used my rope lad and climbed123501:23:00.960 --> 01:23:02.960
to the deck and made my way to the top123601:23:03.000 --> 01:23:06.560
of the ship. There were dozens of guards and coastguard123701:23:06.600 --> 01:23:10.479
people milling about, but no one saw me or cared123801:23:10.600 --> 01:23:14.319
enough to stop me, a little, half starved teenage girl,123901:23:14.720 --> 01:23:19.880
from escaping. I hid and waited and watched for hours124001:23:20.319 --> 01:23:23.920
until people let their guard down. I did get spotted124101:23:23.960 --> 01:23:27.039
by one of the crew, though she pointed her rifle124201:23:27.119 --> 01:23:31.000
at me. I thought I was dead and had failed124301:23:31.039 --> 01:23:36.239
after everything. She just looked at me with pity and said, kid,124401:23:37.079 --> 01:23:40.279
get the fuck out of here. I think she was124501:23:40.359 --> 01:23:45.399
the one who shot Roger. I couldn't be sure. Maybe124601:23:45.439 --> 01:23:47.720
this was her way of saying that she was sorry.124701:23:48.880 --> 01:23:51.760
I slid down a ladder connecting our two boats, and124801:23:51.840 --> 01:23:54.840
I hid as quickly as I could anywhere that would124901:23:54.840 --> 01:23:58.319
fit me. I had started to feel hungry and sick,125001:23:58.399 --> 01:24:01.560
so I had to make myself known after a few days.125101:24:02.479 --> 01:24:05.920
I'm thankful they didn't shoot me on site. I told125201:24:05.960 --> 01:24:09.520
them what happened to us on board. No one was surprised.125301:24:10.359 --> 01:24:12.720
They said it wasn't the first cruise ship they'd come125401:24:12.760 --> 01:24:18.520
across like ours, and some were even worse. The Navy125501:24:18.600 --> 01:24:21.239
and Coastguard were trying to help as many people as125601:24:21.239 --> 01:24:25.039
they could survive at sea, but it wasn't easy. The125701:24:25.119 --> 01:24:28.600
Coastguard told me that many cruise ships devolved into chaos125801:24:28.640 --> 01:24:33.079
within days of the incident occurring. Many were floating cities125901:24:33.119 --> 01:24:36.359
of the dead. Some were run by wannabe pirates or126001:24:36.359 --> 01:24:40.960
dictators as floating fortresses. What happened to the Vanguard of126101:24:41.000 --> 01:24:44.680
the seas I asked. They told me that it had126201:24:44.720 --> 01:24:47.720
been scuttled due to severe engine damage, and that it126301:24:47.720 --> 01:24:51.159
could have even been direct sabotage. A woman had sent126401:24:51.239 --> 01:24:54.479
out a distress call, and fortunately they were in range126501:24:54.479 --> 01:24:59.439
of the call to answer. Did mom do that? Did126601:24:59.479 --> 01:25:02.640
she give up? It's a fighting chance at rescue somehow.126701:25:03.880 --> 01:25:07.640
It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows, however, there weren't many126801:25:07.680 --> 01:25:10.760
survivors besides what was left of the crew and a126901:25:10.840 --> 01:25:15.000
handful of random passengers. Everyone had been transformed to a127001:25:15.039 --> 01:25:20.479
bigger Navy ship. They never did find my mom or dad.127101:25:21.039 --> 01:25:24.960
This will be my final entry in this journal. Mom127201:25:25.000 --> 01:25:27.239
and dad wanted me to remember the best days of127301:25:27.239 --> 01:25:32.119
my life, but this was far from that. Unfortunately, I'll127401:25:32.119 --> 01:25:36.520
always remember these days. At least I can take some127501:25:36.760 --> 01:25:40.199
comfort remembering that I was with my family when the127601:25:40.239 --> 01:25:45.960
apocalypse came. My name is Ronda Elizabeth Canavan, and this127701:25:46.199 --> 01:25:50.760
was my experience when the world ended. I existed. I127801:25:50.800 --> 01:25:54.279
had a life before this. I'll do my best to127901:25:54.319 --> 01:26:02.239
make a life after this. For Roger, for mom, for dad.128001:26:03.840 --> 01:26:05.239
What does my future look like.128101:26:06.800 --> 01:26:07.279
I don't know.128201:26:08.239 --> 01:26:11.800
But I tried, and for what it's worth, I'll continue128301:26:12.279 --> 01:26:18.720
to try. I used to be a doctor in an128401:26:18.720 --> 01:26:24.199
insane asylum. My patient destroyed my world. By Michael Kelso128501:26:26.159 --> 01:26:29.680
this story needs to be told. Those who have suffered128601:26:29.800 --> 01:26:33.439
must understand why it's not as simple as some have128701:26:33.479 --> 01:26:36.000
made it to be, which is why it needs to128801:26:36.039 --> 01:26:42.319
come from the person most responsible me. It began when128901:26:42.359 --> 01:26:46.680
I was least expecting it. But then, don't things always129001:26:46.680 --> 01:26:55.760
seem to happen that way? I'm telling you, Doc, people129101:26:55.960 --> 01:27:00.000
just don't understand, Frederick said, while rocking back and forth129201:27:00.199 --> 01:27:04.439
in the chair. What exactly don't they understand? I said,129301:27:04.840 --> 01:27:08.479
trying to look more relaxed than I felt. There's just129401:27:08.560 --> 01:27:13.840
something that takes over. You can't stop it. Impulse control.129501:27:14.760 --> 01:27:18.960
What's that mean, Frederick said, struggling against his straight jacket,129601:27:19.319 --> 01:27:22.800
trying to get comfortable. It means that when you want129701:27:22.840 --> 01:27:26.359
to do something, you try your hardest not to. It129801:27:26.479 --> 01:27:29.279
means you try to control or suppress the urge to129901:27:29.319 --> 01:27:33.960
do things you know are bad. Frederick's mouth alled open.130001:27:34.399 --> 01:27:38.039
He narrowed his eyes in confusion. Why would I want130101:27:38.039 --> 01:27:43.399
to do that? I suppressed the urge to sigh, because130201:27:44.239 --> 01:27:48.239
that's what people do, I said. They think about doing130301:27:48.279 --> 01:27:52.079
bad things, but then they control themselves and don't do130401:27:52.239 --> 01:27:56.439
them because those things are wrong and could hurt other people.130501:27:57.880 --> 01:28:03.319
Hurting people is wrong, he said, yes, Frederick, Hurting people130601:28:03.439 --> 01:28:06.479
is wrong. He shook his head as if he were130701:28:06.479 --> 01:28:09.079
trying to shake away a fly that was annoying him.130801:28:09.960 --> 01:28:13.279
Why Why is hurting people wrong?130901:28:14.119 --> 01:28:14.199
No?131001:28:15.199 --> 01:28:19.840
Why are you telling me this? I don't understand. You're131101:28:19.880 --> 01:28:23.199
saying I'm bad, he said, trying to raise from his chair.131201:28:23.680 --> 01:28:26.399
You're saying I didn't need to hurt those people that131301:28:26.600 --> 01:28:29.880
I'm a bad person. I got up from my chair131401:28:29.880 --> 01:28:33.760
and started backing toward the heavy metal door. I'm not bad,131501:28:34.199 --> 01:28:37.479
he yelled at me. You're bad. I knocked on the131601:28:37.520 --> 01:28:40.079
door and the orderly opened it. As Frederick got to131701:28:40.119 --> 01:28:43.199
his feet, I slipped through the door as it slammed131801:28:43.239 --> 01:28:48.399
shut from the impact of his body hitting into it. Bad, bad, bad,131901:28:48.920 --> 01:28:49.640
he screamed.132001:28:50.199 --> 01:28:50.399
Bad.132101:28:50.439 --> 01:28:52.520
Da da da da da da da da dah dud132201:28:53.000 --> 01:28:56.000
Spit flew from his mouth, landing on the small observation132301:28:56.159 --> 01:29:01.079
window with metal grates embedded in it. Okay, Doc, the132401:29:01.199 --> 01:29:05.760
orderly said, startling me, Yes, I'm fine, Thank you. I132501:29:05.840 --> 01:29:09.119
turned and walked down the white hallway, hoping the orderly132601:29:09.159 --> 01:29:12.800
wouldn't notice the quickness in my step. I ignored the132701:29:12.840 --> 01:29:16.439
sound of Frederick beating on the door. I ignored all132801:29:16.479 --> 01:29:19.920
the sounds I heard. I just wanted to get away.132901:29:21.159 --> 01:29:23.920
It was a long walk to my office through many133001:29:24.000 --> 01:29:27.279
security gates. At each one, the nurse buzzed me through133101:29:27.359 --> 01:29:30.199
and gave me an acknowledging look that used to be133201:29:30.279 --> 01:29:34.880
a smile. I suppose this place gets to everyone. Eventually,133301:29:35.920 --> 01:29:38.760
I finally reached my office, closed and locked the door133401:29:38.800 --> 01:29:43.079
behind me and collapsed into my chair. I breathed out133501:29:43.119 --> 01:29:47.119
a sigh of relief at reaching relative safety. I turned133601:29:47.119 --> 01:29:49.840
and looked out my window to the beautiful flowers blooming133701:29:49.880 --> 01:29:53.359
on the trees in the courtyard. I looked up at133801:29:53.399 --> 01:29:57.279
the tree stretching toward the sky. I remember when they133901:29:57.319 --> 01:30:01.920
planted those. I turned back to my center, my means134001:30:01.960 --> 01:30:05.279
of solace, the only thing that mattered in this cruel,134101:30:05.640 --> 01:30:08.960
unfair world. I picked up the picture of my lovely134201:30:09.039 --> 01:30:13.199
wife and smiled. She was the one who kept me134301:30:13.319 --> 01:30:16.640
sane all these years. She kept me seeing the best134401:30:16.680 --> 01:30:21.520
in people, or at least trying. Sometimes there was no134501:30:21.600 --> 01:30:27.000
good to see, especially in my patience. It takes a134601:30:27.039 --> 01:30:29.800
special kind of doctor to care for the mental needs134701:30:29.840 --> 01:30:32.800
of those who have done heinous things that are so134801:30:33.000 --> 01:30:36.479
bad they don't even bother sending them to prison. They134901:30:36.520 --> 01:30:39.800
send them to me. I'm like the dumpster for the135001:30:39.880 --> 01:30:43.279
dregs of society. Just drop them in the asylum and135101:30:43.359 --> 01:30:44.720
forget about them.135201:30:45.600 --> 01:30:49.239
Don't go away, weakly, Spooky will be right back.135301:30:51.880 --> 01:30:53.960
I kissed my wife and set her back on the135401:30:53.960 --> 01:30:58.000
bare desk, then turned on my computer and added notes135501:30:58.000 --> 01:31:02.399
from today's session. There was never a recommendation for release.135601:31:03.119 --> 01:31:05.760
Once patients came here, the only way they left was135701:31:06.520 --> 01:31:09.680
in a body bag. There was no curing them, only135801:31:09.720 --> 01:31:13.199
trying to make them docile until they left. Oh, and135901:31:13.960 --> 01:31:17.399
there were experiments. That was a large part of how136001:31:17.399 --> 01:31:21.000
we were funded. Companies would pay for certain tests to136101:31:21.039 --> 01:31:25.560
be done. Some might call it torture, but we called136201:31:25.600 --> 01:31:29.600
it research. I finished typing my notes and leaned back136301:31:29.640 --> 01:31:33.279
in my seat. The diplomas and degrees stared down from136401:31:33.319 --> 01:31:37.840
their perches on the bare walls, mocking me, demanding why136501:31:37.920 --> 01:31:42.039
I hadn't gotten a better job. As usual, I didn't136601:31:42.039 --> 01:31:47.000
have an answer. My office suddenly felt stuffy. I closed136701:31:47.039 --> 01:31:50.720
down my computer and left. Driving down the packed freeway,136801:31:50.760 --> 01:31:53.199
all I could think about was collapsing on the couch136901:31:53.760 --> 01:31:57.760
beside my lovely Elizabeth, not telling her about my day137001:31:57.880 --> 01:32:01.720
until she dragged it out of me. Then listening to137101:32:01.720 --> 01:32:04.039
her encouraged me to help those who have been left137201:32:04.039 --> 01:32:08.479
in my care because I'm the only hope they have.137301:32:09.800 --> 01:32:12.840
Traffic was bumper to bumper and not helping my overall137401:32:12.880 --> 01:32:16.600
opinion of humanity much, especially when a car that was137501:32:16.640 --> 01:32:20.399
swerving from lane to lane nearly sideswiped me. It kept137601:32:20.439 --> 01:32:23.399
going on in front of me, nearly hitting several other cars.137701:32:24.079 --> 01:32:27.159
The driver and passenger seemed to be having a disagreement137801:32:27.560 --> 01:32:30.079
about how to drive the car, and it looked like137901:32:30.119 --> 01:32:33.279
it was about to come to blows. Fortunately they were138001:32:33.319 --> 01:32:36.760
soon out of sight in someone else's problem. For the138101:32:36.760 --> 01:32:39.560
next few miles, I kept watching the side of the road,138201:32:39.600 --> 01:32:43.600
waiting to see the offending car sitting in a ditch. However,138301:32:44.039 --> 01:32:46.920
they surprised me. They must have turned off to go138401:32:47.079 --> 01:32:51.279
terrorize some neighborhood streets with their reckless driving. I hummed138501:32:51.279 --> 01:32:53.960
to myself, not wanting to have whatever Drek was on138601:32:54.000 --> 01:32:57.359
the radio forced on me. When I was nearly to138701:32:57.399 --> 01:33:02.319
my exit, my phone rang. Immediately recognized the number as Work.138801:33:03.079 --> 01:33:06.880
I contemplated answering it for a moment, then thought better138901:33:06.960 --> 01:33:09.680
of it. There had never been a time when Work139001:33:09.760 --> 01:33:12.680
called with good news, and I was in no mood139101:33:12.800 --> 01:33:16.199
for bad news. I hummed a little louder, trying to139201:33:16.279 --> 01:33:19.640
drown out the sound of the ring before it finally stopped.139301:33:20.359 --> 01:33:22.439
The closer I got to home, the less I thought139401:33:22.479 --> 01:33:26.720
about work, and the more I thought about Elizabeth. Until139501:33:26.760 --> 01:33:28.960
I turned off at my exit, I had nearly forgotten139601:33:29.000 --> 01:33:33.000
work altogether. Maybe I would take tomorrow off and go139701:33:33.079 --> 01:33:35.880
do something with my wife. We hadn't been out for139801:33:35.920 --> 01:33:38.319
a while. The weather had been lovely, and I know139901:33:38.439 --> 01:33:41.760
she would adore a walk down by the lake. My140001:33:41.880 --> 01:33:45.560
thoughts were interrupted when I turned down our driveway and140101:33:45.640 --> 01:33:48.920
saw a car in front of the house. It wasn't140201:33:49.000 --> 01:33:52.239
quite in the driveway, it was sitting at an angle140301:33:52.319 --> 01:33:55.680
halfway in the front yard. I parked my car and140401:33:55.800 --> 01:33:59.600
slowly got out. Something struck me about this car, but140501:33:59.640 --> 01:34:03.159
I hadn't figured out what. I approached the driver's side140601:34:03.199 --> 01:34:05.760
to have words with the person still sitting at the wheel.140701:34:06.920 --> 01:34:10.399
Excuse me, I said, staying a few steps back from140801:34:10.439 --> 01:34:15.840
the driver's door. He didn't hear me. Excuse me, I140901:34:15.960 --> 01:34:20.159
said a little louder. Still no answer. I tapped on141001:34:20.199 --> 01:34:24.920
the window, and he ignored me. I opened the door. Okay, look,141101:34:25.279 --> 01:34:28.199
I said, but it was I who would do the looking.141201:34:29.000 --> 01:34:31.720
The man fell out of the car, thudding on the grass.141301:34:31.800 --> 01:34:35.000
The inside of the car was covered in blood. I141401:34:35.079 --> 01:34:39.039
looked down and the man's throat had been cut. Oh141501:34:39.079 --> 01:34:43.119
my god, I said, jumping back. I watched to see141601:34:43.119 --> 01:34:45.239
if the man was breathing, but the way his neck141701:34:45.319 --> 01:34:48.479
was bent at an unnatural angle against my yard told141801:34:48.520 --> 01:34:52.119
me everything that I needed to know. I glanced through141901:34:52.159 --> 01:34:55.439
the car, but didn't see the passenger. It was then142001:34:55.520 --> 01:34:59.720
my eyes drifted to my front door. It was open.142101:35:01.359 --> 01:35:03.960
I stepped through the shrubs and up onto the porch,142201:35:04.119 --> 01:35:07.479
walking in a daze. The surrealness of the moment had142301:35:07.560 --> 01:35:10.359
yet to sink in. I was going inside to check142401:35:10.399 --> 01:35:13.439
on my wife and make sure everything was okay. It142501:35:13.479 --> 01:35:17.199
didn't strike me as anything more than that. Oh, she142601:35:17.399 --> 01:35:20.279
just left the door open. That's all My mind kept142701:35:20.279 --> 01:35:23.960
trying to tell me that. I wanted desperately to believe it,142801:35:24.479 --> 01:35:26.840
even though she had never been that careless during the142901:35:27.039 --> 01:35:31.079
entire time we'd been married. I had pushed aside all143001:35:31.199 --> 01:35:36.039
reason and common sense in favor of pure denial. Everything143101:35:36.119 --> 01:35:40.720
was going to be okay with Elizabeth. Everything was always okay.143201:35:41.239 --> 01:35:43.920
She could literally light up a room with her positivity.143301:35:44.560 --> 01:35:47.279
She was the best person I ever knew. I have143401:35:47.399 --> 01:35:49.880
no idea how I got so lucky as to know her,143501:35:50.399 --> 01:35:54.079
let alone be her husband. I floated in through my143601:35:54.119 --> 01:35:56.760
front door on my cloud of denial and looked for143701:35:56.840 --> 01:35:59.840
my wife. It didn't take me long to find her.143801:36:00.600 --> 01:36:02.680
There was one wall of the living room she was143901:36:02.760 --> 01:36:06.800
constantly redecorating. She always said it looked bare and empty,144001:36:06.880 --> 01:36:10.159
no matter what she did with it. She was hanging144101:36:10.199 --> 01:36:15.640
from that wall, naked, her beautiful body desecrated by slices144201:36:15.960 --> 01:36:20.880
and rips. Her throat had been slit and blood still144301:36:20.920 --> 01:36:24.600
poured from it. I ran to her, tried to take144401:36:24.640 --> 01:36:28.399
her down, screamed her name, and then it was my144501:36:28.560 --> 01:36:32.119
turn to scream. I looked down and saw a knife144601:36:32.119 --> 01:36:35.680
blade sticking out from my abdomen. It was part of144701:36:35.720 --> 01:36:39.239
the cutlery set I had gotten for Elizabeth three Christmases ago,144801:36:40.239 --> 01:36:43.399
I screamed as I slowly turned to face my attacker.144901:36:44.520 --> 01:36:49.439
What's up, Doc, Frederick said, wearing a maniacal grin. The145001:36:49.520 --> 01:36:52.720
shock had punched a hole in my reasoning. I saw145101:36:52.800 --> 01:36:55.119
him standing there, but I couldn't accept it any more145201:36:55.159 --> 01:36:57.680
than I could accept my beautiful wife strung up like145301:36:57.720 --> 01:37:01.920
a macab painting hanging on our living room wall. My145401:37:02.039 --> 01:37:05.000
eyes tried to focus on his face to make me145501:37:05.119 --> 01:37:09.680
recognize him as a threat. How's that impulse control working145601:37:09.800 --> 01:37:13.119
for you, doc? He ripped the knife out of my back.145701:37:13.800 --> 01:37:16.840
The pain along with his arrogance, woke me from my145801:37:16.960 --> 01:37:22.359
shock induced stupor. Now do you understand, he said, as145901:37:22.359 --> 01:37:26.680
he shoved the knife into my belly. I did understand.146001:37:27.439 --> 01:37:30.640
I understood at that moment that I was already as146101:37:30.720 --> 01:37:33.960
dead as my wife. I knew that this piece of146201:37:34.239 --> 01:37:38.479
human garbage had taken something beautiful from this world. I146301:37:38.600 --> 01:37:40.920
knew I had to do something about it before there146401:37:40.960 --> 01:37:44.479
was nothing I could do before my body succumbed to146501:37:44.520 --> 01:37:48.800
injuries and I was unable. I grabbed him by the throat.146601:37:49.439 --> 01:37:52.800
He tried to laugh, but my grip was fueled by desperation.146701:37:53.560 --> 01:37:58.359
He tried to free himself but couldn't. He began stabbing146801:37:58.399 --> 01:38:02.359
me over and over. Refused to release him. I carried146901:38:02.439 --> 01:38:04.840
him by his neck over to the kitchen counter and147001:38:04.920 --> 01:38:09.159
began bashing his head off the marble. I was rewarded147101:38:09.199 --> 01:38:12.239
with spots of his blood. I knew, at least I147201:38:12.279 --> 01:38:17.680
had made him bleed, and that made me smile. His147301:38:17.800 --> 01:38:22.680
eyes grew wide as my grin grew maniacal. I smashed him, repeatedly,147401:38:22.960 --> 01:38:26.319
crushing him against the sink, breaking the faucet and causing147501:38:26.359 --> 01:38:30.279
water to spray into the air. His eyelids fluttered as147601:38:30.279 --> 01:38:33.880
he lost his grip on the knife. He was nearly gone.147701:38:34.560 --> 01:38:36.800
I would take him with me, and that would be147801:38:36.880 --> 01:38:43.720
my parting gift to the world, removing something so evil. Suddenly,147901:38:43.800 --> 01:38:48.119
my body wouldn't obey commands. My grip loosened. I tried148001:38:48.159 --> 01:38:51.359
to tighten it, but I had lost all control. I148101:38:51.439 --> 01:38:53.600
looked down and I was standing in a pool of148201:38:53.640 --> 01:38:59.560
my own blood. His eyes fluttered open and he coughed no, no, no,148301:38:59.560 --> 01:39:03.039
no no oh. I thought, he can't live, he can't win.148401:39:03.399 --> 01:39:07.880
I had him. He stood as I sank to the floor.148501:39:09.119 --> 01:39:13.159
Looks like maybe you do understand, doc, he said, from148601:39:13.199 --> 01:39:16.760
what seemed like miles away. Too bad, you won't be148701:39:16.800 --> 01:39:19.840
around to discuss it. We could have a session and148801:39:19.880 --> 01:39:23.840
evaluate how it makes you feel. His foot came down148901:39:23.880 --> 01:39:28.640
on my spine. I felt a crack. He started kicking149001:39:28.680 --> 01:39:32.079
me in the side, repeatedly, splashing water and blood on me.149101:39:32.119 --> 01:39:35.880
As I felt my ribs crack. I fought with everything149201:39:35.920 --> 01:39:41.279
I had. My body didn't even twitch. No, I screamed,149301:39:41.680 --> 01:39:46.159
it can't end like this. I heard a sizzling sound149401:39:47.039 --> 01:39:55.880
and then there was darkness. I could feel movement. Wasn't149501:39:55.880 --> 01:40:03.359
I dead? Was this what? Happened after it was still dark. Hello,149601:40:04.039 --> 01:40:08.920
I tried to say, nothing, just the sensation of movement.149701:40:10.199 --> 01:40:13.600
Am I in a body bag? Am I on my149801:40:13.640 --> 01:40:17.319
way to the morgue or the grave? Please don't let149901:40:17.399 --> 01:40:18.000
me be buried?150001:40:18.000 --> 01:40:18.319
Alive?150101:40:19.479 --> 01:40:24.439
But I'm not alive, am I? I don't feel any pain.150201:40:25.199 --> 01:40:28.720
That's a good thing, but not a good sign. The150301:40:28.800 --> 01:40:33.000
last thing I remember was lots of pain. Suddenly there's150401:40:33.039 --> 01:40:36.479
a light and my movement stops. I look up from150501:40:36.479 --> 01:40:40.079
the floor of a house. I don't recognize where the150601:40:40.119 --> 01:40:42.119
hell am I?150701:40:42.159 --> 01:40:42.760
Did you hear that?150801:40:43.239 --> 01:40:43.479
Better?150901:40:43.560 --> 01:40:47.399
Check the locks on your doors. Weakly spooky, We'll be151001:40:47.560 --> 01:40:48.199
right back.151101:40:49.439 --> 01:40:52.640
I'm on the floor next to a wall, looking up151201:40:52.680 --> 01:40:56.800
at an electrical outlet. Nothing around me seems familiar. I151301:40:56.840 --> 01:41:01.680
try to stand, but it feels weird. It isn't difficult,151401:41:01.760 --> 01:41:04.720
and there's still no pain. It just carries an odd151501:41:04.760 --> 01:41:10.720
sensation with it, like my body is just relearning things,151601:41:10.840 --> 01:41:14.159
just like when I was a toddler. I teeter back151701:41:14.199 --> 01:41:18.199
and forth as I rise, but eventually I'm upright. My151801:41:18.319 --> 01:41:21.880
first few steps are tentative, but after that I gain151901:41:22.000 --> 01:41:26.600
confidence with each stride. Aside from the strange surroundings, there's152001:41:26.640 --> 01:41:31.560
a sensation like ants crawling all over me. I pass152101:41:31.640 --> 01:41:35.119
a bathroom and glance inside. The reflection in the mirror152201:41:35.239 --> 01:41:40.600
draws me back. I slowly approach it, seeing something unique152301:41:41.000 --> 01:41:45.520
and terrifying. It looks like someone drew an outline of152401:41:45.560 --> 01:41:49.680
a human form using a lightning bolt. The electricity shimmers152501:41:49.680 --> 01:41:52.359
and crackles as it races around the empty form of152601:41:52.399 --> 01:41:56.479
the being. I wonder if it will hurt me. Not152701:41:56.520 --> 01:41:58.439
sure if I want to test the limits of my152801:41:58.960 --> 01:42:03.600
newfound lack of pain. I hesitantly reach for this creature.152901:42:04.199 --> 01:42:07.840
It reaches for me at the same time. I'm mesmerized153001:42:07.880 --> 01:42:12.119
by this mutual curiosity. My hand is about to touch153101:42:12.119 --> 01:42:15.399
the electric pulse, shaped like its hand. I tremble with153201:42:15.439 --> 01:42:21.199
anticipation and fear as we touch. Surprisingly, I don't feel153301:42:21.239 --> 01:42:25.479
any pain. I don't feel anything except a hard surface.153401:42:26.479 --> 01:42:29.920
I move my hand back and forth. The creature does153501:42:29.960 --> 01:42:34.960
the same. I make quicker movements, and so does it. Finally,153601:42:35.000 --> 01:42:38.439
out of frustration, I reach back and strike at the creature.153701:42:39.399 --> 01:42:43.079
My hand strikes the hard surface and it splinters. There153801:42:43.119 --> 01:42:47.359
are now multiple creatures staring back at me. I step153901:42:47.439 --> 01:42:55.439
back and make a horrible realization. I am the creature154001:42:56.239 --> 01:42:59.920
one month later, and police have been unable to find154101:43:00.119 --> 01:43:03.000
any credible leads in the string of brutal killings that154201:43:03.079 --> 01:43:06.079
began shortly after the patient escape from the mental hospital154301:43:06.159 --> 01:43:10.079
last month. The handsome anchorman stated from behind his desk,154401:43:10.680 --> 01:43:13.000
they're asking people to call in if they know the154501:43:13.000 --> 01:43:17.359
whereabouts of Frederick Winston, now known as the Mangler. In154601:43:17.399 --> 01:43:20.039
other news, the Larsen Electric Company has issued a statement154701:43:20.199 --> 01:43:22.840
that the recent power surges are no cause for alarm.154801:43:23.279 --> 01:43:26.079
These surges seem to be random in people's homes and154901:43:26.159 --> 01:43:29.960
certain businesses. An LEC spokesman stated that there appears to155001:43:30.000 --> 01:43:32.760
be no pattern to the surges and that so far155101:43:32.920 --> 01:43:36.119
no one has reported them causing any harm. LEC is155201:43:36.159 --> 01:43:39.000
tracking down the problem and should have it under control soon.155301:43:39.600 --> 01:43:42.520
The anchorman shifted in his seat and turned to another155401:43:42.560 --> 01:43:46.000
camera and on a lighter note, With Halloween months away,155501:43:46.039 --> 01:43:48.840
it seems that reports of ghosts are on the rise,155601:43:49.279 --> 01:43:52.760
he said, wearing a half Grin several area, residents have155701:43:52.800 --> 01:43:56.199
reported what they call a ghostlike figure outlined in light155801:43:56.640 --> 01:44:00.199
visiting them. Reports vary as to the duration and location155901:44:00.279 --> 01:44:02.359
of the visits, but they do seem to have a156001:44:02.399 --> 01:44:06.359
few things in common. The visits are usually short. In fact,156101:44:06.680 --> 01:44:09.600
most people say that if they blink, the figure is gone.156201:44:10.159 --> 01:44:13.079
No one has reported the ghost doing any harm, and156301:44:13.199 --> 01:44:17.000
it seems like anyone within close proximity feels a tingling156401:44:17.039 --> 01:44:21.000
sensation and their hair standing on end. Maybe I should156501:44:21.039 --> 01:44:24.199
be visited by this ghost instead of my next hairdresser's appointment,156601:44:24.600 --> 01:44:27.920
the attractive woman anchor said, with a laugh. Schedule me156701:44:28.000 --> 01:44:31.800
a visit too, the male anchor said, smiling, And that's156801:44:31.840 --> 01:44:35.680
our news for the evening. Good night. Jimmy switched the channel.156901:44:36.319 --> 01:44:41.079
Gimme a break, he said, to the TV ghosts, who's playing?157001:44:41.119 --> 01:44:44.720
What this is some marketing scheme to sell Halloween crap,157101:44:44.800 --> 01:44:46.680
like that stunt they pulled a few years back with157201:44:46.760 --> 01:44:50.920
the clowns hanging around the schools to promote that stupid movie.157301:44:50.960 --> 01:44:53.479
He switched off the TV and rolled over in his bed.157401:44:54.239 --> 01:44:58.840
It wasn't long before his breathing slowed, but before sleep157501:44:58.880 --> 01:45:02.279
could take him, he noticed a glow in the hallway.157601:45:03.319 --> 01:45:05.880
He didn't remember leaving any lights on when he came157701:45:05.920 --> 01:45:09.840
to bed. Living alone had its advantages. If he heard157801:45:09.840 --> 01:45:13.119
someone in his apartment, he knew they weren't supposed to157901:45:13.159 --> 01:45:16.720
be there. He slowly reached over to the bed stand158001:45:17.319 --> 01:45:21.159
and pulled out his glock nine millimeter handgun, then held158101:45:21.159 --> 01:45:26.199
it close and listened. He watched as the glow moved.158201:45:26.800 --> 01:45:30.279
It seemed like someone was looking around, but for what.158301:45:31.399 --> 01:45:34.439
He didn't really have anything aside from his TV, phone158401:45:34.800 --> 01:45:38.000
and video games. If anyone wanted those, they would be158501:45:38.039 --> 01:45:41.039
in a world of hurt. He had been lucky to158601:45:41.079 --> 01:45:43.640
get this apartment. If he was honest with himself, it158701:45:43.720 --> 01:45:46.239
cost more than he could afford, but when he had158801:45:46.239 --> 01:45:49.039
the chance, he took it. It was too bad the158901:45:49.079 --> 01:45:52.000
opening came because the person who lived there before him159001:45:52.640 --> 01:45:56.119
was one of the Mangler's victims. That's probably why he159101:45:56.199 --> 01:45:58.439
was able to rent the place so quickly and get159201:45:58.479 --> 01:46:01.359
the price down to where he could afford it. Almost159301:46:02.279 --> 01:46:04.439
maybe the glow was one of the street people who159401:46:04.439 --> 01:46:06.439
were stupid enough to see if there was an empty159501:46:06.479 --> 01:46:10.399
apartment to claim. That wasn't gonna fly either. Jimmy had159601:46:10.439 --> 01:46:12.720
jumped on this apartment to get away from the dingy159701:46:12.800 --> 01:46:14.439
rat hole he used to live in on the other159801:46:14.520 --> 01:46:17.319
side of town, and there was no way he'd let159901:46:17.359 --> 01:46:19.640
some bum come in here and take what was his.160001:46:21.039 --> 01:46:24.640
The glow crept closer. He could feel the hairs on160101:46:24.680 --> 01:46:29.720
his arms raise. There was a sound too. It wasn't loud,160201:46:30.439 --> 01:46:36.079
almost felt more than heard, a soft crackle like electricity.160301:46:36.239 --> 01:46:39.840
When it sparked, the sensory input was almost too much160401:46:39.840 --> 01:46:42.239
for Jimmy to take. He pointed the gun in the160501:46:42.279 --> 01:46:45.319
direction of the glow and saw the barrel was shaking.160601:46:46.079 --> 01:46:48.800
His resolve that he could deal with anyone as long160701:46:48.800 --> 01:46:52.479
as he had his gun was beginning to fade. The160801:46:52.520 --> 01:46:56.239
glow became so bright that it finally took form. Jimmy's160901:46:56.279 --> 01:47:00.960
eyes widened. It was the form of a person, just161001:47:01.119 --> 01:47:04.520
like the news it said. It seemed to look around161101:47:04.560 --> 01:47:08.920
the room, then settle its gaze on the bed. Jimmy161201:47:08.960 --> 01:47:12.359
began to sweat as it approached and stared into his eyes.161301:47:13.479 --> 01:47:17.199
It was the oddest thing, staring into what should be eyes,161401:47:17.840 --> 01:47:21.800
but nothing was there. The flashes of many lightning bolts161501:47:21.840 --> 01:47:26.199
formed shapes that looked almost human, but it was just161601:47:26.239 --> 01:47:29.600
an outline. There was nothing inside what should be the body.161701:47:30.520 --> 01:47:33.279
He shoved the shaking gun out from under the blanket161801:47:33.560 --> 01:47:37.399
and pointed it at the glowing figure. The figure noted161901:47:37.399 --> 01:47:42.560
the presence of the gun, then continued to advance. Stop,162001:47:42.960 --> 01:47:47.640
Jimmy said, I'm warning you. The figure ignored the warning.162101:47:48.640 --> 01:47:51.880
Jimmy squeezed the trigger, setting off a deafening shot that162201:47:51.960 --> 01:47:54.680
went right through the face of the figure. It acted162301:47:54.720 --> 01:47:59.159
as though nothing had happened, continuing to advance. The ringing162401:47:59.199 --> 01:48:02.960
in Jimmy's ears made all sounds seem muffled. The figure162501:48:03.039 --> 01:48:09.640
stopped two inches from Jimmy's face. Mangler, it said, sounding162601:48:09.720 --> 01:48:12.720
less like a voice and more like a transmission over162701:48:12.760 --> 01:48:18.039
an old, staticky radio. I'm I'm not the Mangler, he said.162801:48:18.479 --> 01:48:20.800
The person who used to live here was killed by him.162901:48:21.720 --> 01:48:26.960
It seemed to ponder this for a moment. Find Mangler,163001:48:27.600 --> 01:48:31.800
it said, I I don't know where to find him.163101:48:32.359 --> 01:48:35.960
It moved an inch closer as the flashes of electricity163201:48:36.079 --> 01:48:42.760
arked and licked hungrily at Jimmy's face. Find him, Okay, okay,163301:48:42.880 --> 01:48:46.439
I'll find him, Jimmy said, feeling the heat from the electricity.163401:48:47.600 --> 01:48:50.880
The figure seemed to consider that for a moment, then163501:48:51.000 --> 01:48:55.119
backed away. It moved toward the bedroom wall. Then, like163601:48:55.239 --> 01:48:58.119
someone had turned on a vacuum, it was sucked into163701:48:58.159 --> 01:49:02.960
an electrical outlet and dis Jimmy laid back in bed,163801:49:03.279 --> 01:49:06.920
breathing hard. His eyes darted left and right all around163901:49:06.960 --> 01:49:10.000
the room, but the only evidence of the figure that164001:49:10.039 --> 01:49:14.079
had remained was the bullet hole in his bedroom wall.164101:49:15.600 --> 01:49:19.239
Don't go away, weekly, spooky, We'll be right back.164201:49:28.279 --> 01:49:32.640
The trips through the electrical conduits had become easier. There164301:49:32.640 --> 01:49:35.279
were still times when I came out someplace I didn't164401:49:35.279 --> 01:49:38.640
intend to, but I was usually able to recover quickly164501:49:39.000 --> 01:49:42.119
and get to where I wanted to go. But where164601:49:42.119 --> 01:49:45.079
did I want to go? At first? I wandered around,164701:49:45.399 --> 01:49:49.399
lost in this new form, I found myself trapped inside.164801:49:49.479 --> 01:49:51.800
It was only after I had overheard a news report164901:49:51.840 --> 01:49:55.680
about the serial killer they called the Mangler that I165001:49:55.760 --> 01:49:59.359
gained my purpose. Of course, Frederick was going to keep165101:49:59.399 --> 01:50:01.960
on killing. Of course, they weren't going to be able165201:50:02.000 --> 01:50:05.119
to catch him. He'd been inside, away from his victims before,165301:50:05.159 --> 01:50:08.039
and he didn't like it. Not being able to torture165401:50:08.039 --> 01:50:10.920
and kill innocence was like a normal person not being165501:50:10.960 --> 01:50:13.920
able to breathe. Not that I know much about being165601:50:14.000 --> 01:50:18.279
normal or breathing anymore. I suppose on some level I165701:50:18.319 --> 01:50:21.319
should thank him. I thought about it for a long time,165801:50:21.359 --> 01:50:23.399
and the only thing that makes any kind of sense165901:50:23.520 --> 01:50:26.880
is when we were fighting. Somehow the water and blood166001:50:26.880 --> 01:50:29.920
I was laying and got splashed into an electrical socket.166101:50:30.439 --> 01:50:33.359
Instead of killing me, it bonded with me, making me166201:50:33.439 --> 01:50:36.720
able to become the electrical current, to ride it like166301:50:36.800 --> 01:50:40.479
a wave to wherever I wanted. I became faster than166401:50:40.479 --> 01:50:44.319
any person ever was, and yet I wasn't a person anymore.166501:50:44.920 --> 01:50:47.800
I have no idea how I retained my consciousness, let166601:50:47.800 --> 01:50:52.359
alone my memory, but somehow I justify it by the166701:50:52.399 --> 01:50:57.159
old adage. I think therefore I am. My life has166801:50:57.199 --> 01:51:00.680
become an endless hunt for the person who destroyed me,166901:51:01.479 --> 01:51:04.800
the person I must destroy. I don't even know what167001:51:04.880 --> 01:51:07.800
I'll do when I find him, but I will find him.167101:51:08.479 --> 01:51:13.199
I will stop him. This time. I won't fail. I'll167201:51:13.319 --> 01:51:16.439
end him like I should have before. I owed it167301:51:16.479 --> 01:51:19.479
to the people he's tortured and killed since my failure.167401:51:20.079 --> 01:51:24.520
Most of all, I owe it to my wife. I167501:51:24.640 --> 01:51:27.319
know she wouldn't approve of my bloodlust. She would say167601:51:27.359 --> 01:51:31.399
there must be some other option. But if she would167701:51:31.399 --> 01:51:34.039
be able to see her own dead body hanging naked167801:51:34.079 --> 01:51:37.560
from our living room wall, I think she just might167901:51:37.680 --> 01:51:41.760
change her mind. My thoughts are interrupted as I arrive168001:51:41.840 --> 01:51:46.600
at my next destination another victim's house. I'm not sure168101:51:46.600 --> 01:51:49.479
what I'll find that the police haven't, but I have168201:51:49.560 --> 01:51:53.119
to try. Maybe I can pick up his scent somehow,168301:51:53.920 --> 01:51:57.159
a plan almost assuredly doomed to failure since I lost168401:51:57.159 --> 01:52:01.479
all sense of smell in the transformation. I'm surprised, though,168501:52:01.720 --> 01:52:05.279
that I can still see and hear. I suppose waves168601:52:05.279 --> 01:52:09.159
of light and sound somehow intersect with my electrical body168701:52:09.279 --> 01:52:13.039
and it senses them. I don't question it. I've learned168801:52:13.039 --> 01:52:15.800
to just go with it. On the plus side, I168901:52:15.800 --> 01:52:19.319
don't have to worry about eating, drinking, or using the bathroom.169001:52:19.920 --> 01:52:23.199
I guess there's an upside to everything. Elizabeth would be169101:52:23.239 --> 01:52:26.439
so proud of me. I arrived at the room where169201:52:26.479 --> 01:52:30.159
the victim was murdered. Looking around, there's still blood everywhere,169301:52:30.680 --> 01:52:34.920
along with evidence markers where they took pictures. The sheer169401:52:34.960 --> 01:52:38.239
amount of blood tells me he took his time. He169501:52:38.399 --> 01:52:41.680
desecrated this girl in her own room. Her parents must169601:52:41.680 --> 01:52:44.279
have been out, because there's no way they didn't hear169701:52:44.319 --> 01:52:48.840
the struggle. There were books on the floor, a chair overturned,169801:52:49.000 --> 01:52:53.439
and blood everywhere. The room was a disaster. It looked169901:52:53.439 --> 01:52:56.520
like she fought him I wish she would have succeeded170001:52:56.520 --> 01:53:01.279
where I had failed, But then I wish I hadn't170101:53:01.279 --> 01:53:06.840
failed and this girl was still alive. There's nothing I170201:53:06.880 --> 01:53:11.359
can do now except find him and end him. Finding170301:53:11.439 --> 01:53:14.079
him was proving more difficult than I thought. I had170401:53:14.159 --> 01:53:17.880
unlimited access to anywhere with electricity, but I couldn't use170501:53:17.920 --> 01:53:21.840
a computer or a GPS. I was limited to transportation170601:53:22.039 --> 01:53:26.079
only through electricity. Granted, that still made me the fastest170701:53:26.119 --> 01:53:30.319
being alive. I say being because I don't think I170801:53:30.479 --> 01:53:33.840
qualify as a human anymore. But I was limited to170901:53:33.920 --> 01:53:36.640
traveling to a place and then trying to find out171001:53:36.640 --> 01:53:39.800
where I was and if he was there. If he171101:53:39.880 --> 01:53:41.840
knew I was searching for him, all he would have171201:53:41.920 --> 01:53:44.359
to do is live the rest of his days in171301:53:44.399 --> 01:53:47.640
a cabin in the woods with no electricity, and I'd171401:53:47.640 --> 01:53:51.199
never be able to reach him. I believe two things171501:53:51.239 --> 01:53:55.520
worked in my favor with that theory. First, I don't171601:53:55.560 --> 01:53:58.840
think he's that smart, and second, I don't think he171701:53:58.960 --> 01:54:02.279
knows I'm looking for him. I believe that surviving our171801:54:02.319 --> 01:54:06.840
fight only further empowered him to kill. When someone feels invincible,171901:54:06.880 --> 01:54:10.359
they're bound to make a mistake. An officer walked into172001:54:10.399 --> 01:54:13.359
the room, and I ducked back into an outlet. I172101:54:13.479 --> 01:54:15.680
was able to hang on where I was and watch172201:54:15.720 --> 01:54:19.279
from the inside of the outlet without being transported somewhere else.172301:54:20.119 --> 01:54:23.119
The officer looked startled and stared at the empty air172401:54:23.199 --> 01:54:26.000
that I had just vacated. She looked like she was172501:54:26.079 --> 01:54:28.840
unsure if she trusted what her eyes had seen in172601:54:28.880 --> 01:54:32.720
the instant before I vanished. She slowly stepped over to172701:54:32.760 --> 01:54:35.680
the corner and bent down to peer into the outlet.172801:54:36.520 --> 01:54:38.720
For a moment, I wondered if she could see me172901:54:39.439 --> 01:54:44.000
and what exactly she would see, but then her radio squawked,173001:54:44.039 --> 01:54:47.039
calling her to another scene. When I heard the voice173101:54:47.039 --> 01:54:49.720
on the radio say the address and that they might173201:54:49.760 --> 01:54:54.159
have the killer cornered, I didn't waste any time. It173301:54:54.279 --> 01:54:57.399
was maybe fifteen seconds until I was across town at173401:54:57.399 --> 01:54:59.960
the address i'd heard. There was a lot of screen173501:55:00.359 --> 01:55:03.279
and crying going on. I came out of the outlet173601:55:03.279 --> 01:55:06.359
and saw blood on the floor beside a body that173701:55:06.560 --> 01:55:11.319
wasn't moving. There was a girl being beaten by a173801:55:11.359 --> 01:55:14.399
man with his back to me. He turned to take173901:55:14.399 --> 01:55:19.800
another swing, and I knew my search was over. My174001:55:19.920 --> 01:55:22.640
therapist used to tell me I needed to work on174101:55:22.760 --> 01:55:26.880
my impulse control, he said calmly as he slapped her.174201:55:27.479 --> 01:55:30.439
I think I'm doing pretty good. I've been here ten174301:55:30.479 --> 01:55:34.239
whole minutes, and you're still alive. I shot across the174401:55:34.319 --> 01:55:36.920
room and knocked him to the floor. He jumped back174501:55:36.960 --> 01:55:40.000
and looked around for what had hit him. What the hell?174601:55:40.880 --> 01:55:43.199
I saw the fear in his eyes when he saw me.174701:55:44.199 --> 01:55:47.520
I know Elizabeth would have been ashamed of me, but174801:55:47.640 --> 01:55:51.039
I was enjoying his anxiety. After all he had done174901:55:51.079 --> 01:55:53.560
to me and so many others. I drank it in175001:55:54.199 --> 01:55:58.239
like an elixir. He started edging toward the door. I175101:55:58.359 --> 01:56:01.000
was there in a heartbeat. His eye darted back and175201:56:01.079 --> 01:56:03.439
forth where I used to be and where I now stood.175301:56:04.079 --> 01:56:07.920
The panic in his eyes doubled. I wanted to make175401:56:08.000 --> 01:56:10.960
him suffer, but I didn't want to make the same175501:56:11.000 --> 01:56:14.600
mistake I'd made before and let him escape with his life.175601:56:15.279 --> 01:56:17.279
I lashed out with a bolt that used to be175701:56:17.399 --> 01:56:20.520
my arm. The energy slashed through his shirt and fried175801:56:20.560 --> 01:56:23.640
a hole in his shoulder. He screamed in pain and175901:56:23.680 --> 01:56:26.479
horror as he looked at the smoking hole in his skin.176001:56:27.079 --> 01:56:29.479
He tried to run, but in an instant I was there.176101:56:29.479 --> 01:56:32.279
In front of him, firing another bolt and searing the176201:56:32.359 --> 01:56:36.000
skin across his waist to his jeans. His screams of176301:56:36.079 --> 01:56:39.800
pain and rage were only matched by the feral desperation176401:56:40.520 --> 01:56:44.680
in his eyes. Not knowing what to do, he went176501:56:44.720 --> 01:56:48.920
with the familiar attack the innocent. He grabbed the girl176601:56:48.920 --> 01:56:51.720
who had been crawling away from the scene. He grabbed176701:56:51.720 --> 01:56:53.439
her again and held her in front of him like176801:56:53.479 --> 01:56:57.920
a human shield. What a waste of skin. I fired176901:56:57.960 --> 01:57:00.880
a bolt into a ceiling light beside me, which ricocheted177001:57:01.039 --> 01:57:04.319
and hit him full force in the leg, nearly severing it.177101:57:04.960 --> 01:57:07.119
He went down like a ton of bricks, trying to177201:57:07.159 --> 01:57:09.880
hold on to his hostage, but she was fighting to177301:57:09.920 --> 01:57:12.720
get away from him. She broke free, and he crumpled177401:57:12.720 --> 01:57:16.600
to the floor. What do you want, he screamed at me.177501:57:17.199 --> 01:57:19.840
With everything that is within me. I wanted to tell177601:57:19.880 --> 01:57:22.279
him who I was and what he had taken from me,177701:57:22.680 --> 01:57:25.479
and what I was about to take from him. But177801:57:25.600 --> 01:57:28.760
I didn't want to give him the satisfaction. I wanted177901:57:28.760 --> 01:57:31.640
to give him, only uncertainty and fear to cling to.178001:57:32.199 --> 01:57:35.520
I could feel the seconds ticking away. I knew I178101:57:35.560 --> 01:57:38.319
had to make the most of this opportunity, or he178201:57:38.319 --> 01:57:42.319
would get away again, and after this I might never178301:57:42.399 --> 01:57:46.279
find him. I unleashed every ounce of energy at him.178401:57:46.479 --> 01:57:49.239
I couldn't even see him. He was only a smoking178501:57:49.359 --> 01:57:54.800
pillar of frying skin. Just then the police burst through178601:57:54.840 --> 01:57:59.560
the door. Free The first officer started, Then the shock178701:57:59.600 --> 01:58:01.479
of what he was seeing stole the rest of the178801:58:01.520 --> 01:58:04.880
word from his mouth. He stood there, mouth agape. When178901:58:04.880 --> 01:58:08.520
the female officer stepped in behind him. She looked at me,179001:58:08.600 --> 01:58:11.159
and her wide eyes narrowed as she put two and179101:58:11.239 --> 01:58:15.880
two together and recognized me from the last crime scene.179201:58:16.000 --> 01:58:18.319
I had no reason to fear. I didn't know if179301:58:18.359 --> 01:58:21.399
I could even be harmed in my current state. But179401:58:21.479 --> 01:58:24.199
when you see that blue uniform burst through a door179501:58:24.279 --> 01:58:27.479
with a gun aimed at you, all rational thought takes179601:58:27.520 --> 01:58:31.960
a vacation. I dove for the outlet and was gone.179701:58:32.079 --> 01:58:34.920
I didn't even care where I was going. I knew179801:58:34.920 --> 01:58:38.720
I had done what I wanted to. The monster was destroyed.179901:58:40.319 --> 01:58:45.079
Something felt different. Was it pride at finishing my crusade?180001:58:45.840 --> 01:58:48.600
Was it shame knowing Elizabeth wouldn't have wanted me to180101:58:48.640 --> 01:58:51.840
do it? I don't know, but there was something else.180201:58:52.399 --> 01:58:54.960
It was like there was added weight to my existence.180301:58:55.640 --> 01:58:59.279
I guess you can have a conscience in whatever you'd180401:58:59.319 --> 01:59:02.479
call this exist distance. I appeared in the place that180501:59:02.600 --> 01:59:05.800
made the most sense. Ironically, it was my old home,180601:59:06.319 --> 01:59:11.720
the one where everything I loved died, including me. It180701:59:11.800 --> 01:59:16.880
was where I took on this unintended new existence. Is180801:59:16.920 --> 01:59:20.159
that why I felt this extra weight? Was it some180901:59:20.279 --> 01:59:23.359
cathartic after effect of my search for revenge that was181001:59:23.399 --> 01:59:27.680
finally over. I looked around the charred debris of what used.181101:59:27.479 --> 01:59:28.239
To be my home.181201:59:29.000 --> 01:59:31.239
In my mind's eye, I didn't see the burned out181301:59:31.279 --> 01:59:34.119
shell of what was left. I saw it as it181401:59:34.279 --> 01:59:38.520
was when we first moved in, when Elizabeth started decorating,181501:59:39.199 --> 01:59:42.520
when the interior was finally finished, and I turned to181601:59:42.560 --> 01:59:46.479
her and said for now, knowing she would decide to181701:59:46.560 --> 01:59:49.279
change everything at some time in the future when she181801:59:49.399 --> 01:59:53.640
was bored, just like all women seemed to do. I181901:59:53.720 --> 01:59:56.600
remember getting a paintbrush across the mouth for that comment.182001:59:57.279 --> 02:00:00.279
I smiled, remembering kissing her with my freshly pain pinted182102:00:00.399 --> 02:00:04.439
mouth and ending up in the bedroom. As I turned182202:00:04.439 --> 02:00:08.520
toward where I'd entered the house, my smile quickly faded.182302:00:09.319 --> 02:00:12.000
For some reason, I was still connected to the outlet182402:00:12.640 --> 02:00:16.640
that had never happened before. Another curiosity arose when I182502:00:16.720 --> 02:00:20.800
noticed the color of my electrical body was now tinged purple.182602:00:21.840 --> 02:00:25.359
It had always been blue before the tale of what182702:00:25.439 --> 02:00:27.399
had yet to come out of the outlet was red.182802:00:27.920 --> 02:00:29.840
As I pulled and it came the rest of the182902:00:29.880 --> 02:00:33.680
way out, it merged with me and turned purple. What183002:00:33.720 --> 02:00:37.600
the hell? I heard someone say. I whipped around, but183102:00:37.760 --> 02:00:41.479
no one was there. Where am I? The voice said?183202:00:42.319 --> 02:00:46.439
Who are you? I said to the air. There was183302:00:46.479 --> 02:00:52.600
a long silence. Doc, Doc, the voice said, As far183402:00:52.680 --> 02:00:55.199
as I knew, it wasn't possible for my spine to183502:00:55.239 --> 02:00:58.680
turn to ice, since I no longer had a spine,183602:00:58.800 --> 02:01:05.960
But the feeling seemed the same. Frederick, I said, what happened?183702:01:06.840 --> 02:01:10.600
He asked, This crazy electric thing attacked me? And now183802:01:10.920 --> 02:01:15.800
now wait a minute, how am I talking to you?183902:01:15.000 --> 02:01:20.880
You died months ago. My shock gave way to utter despair.184002:01:22.000 --> 02:01:32.039
My enemy was now part of me. I hope you184102:01:32.159 --> 02:01:35.279
enjoyed those four terror tales my spookies as much as184202:01:35.319 --> 02:01:38.000
I did revisiting them. Whether they were new to you184302:01:38.159 --> 02:01:41.439
or you heard them last year, Make sure you're subscribed184402:01:41.479 --> 02:01:44.239
on your favorite podcasting app because next week we go184502:01:44.279 --> 02:01:47.479
into Part four of the Spin the Bottle mini series184602:01:47.520 --> 02:01:50.880
and a few more best ofs and other surprises as184702:01:50.920 --> 02:01:54.279
I start to recover from the last three months of184802:01:54.399 --> 02:01:58.279
twenty twenty four heading into twenty twenty five. Also, we184902:01:58.359 --> 02:02:01.640
have something very special plan for Valentine's Day as well,185002:02:02.239 --> 02:02:05.319
So subscribe on your favorite podcasting app and leave us185102:02:05.359 --> 02:02:09.399
five stars on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. It really does185202:02:09.479 --> 02:02:11.880
make a difference, and if you want even more shows185302:02:11.920 --> 02:02:16.079
to enjoy, just head to Weeklyspooky dot Com slash join185402:02:16.439 --> 02:02:18.520
and for as little as one dollar a month, you185502:02:18.640 --> 02:02:22.000
get two shows every month, as well as almost five185602:02:22.199 --> 02:02:27.119
years of back catalog of exclusive stories and audiobooks just185702:02:27.199 --> 02:02:29.840
for you. I'll catch you next time.
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