May 16, 2026

Summer Horror Stories: 4 Scary Tales of Werewolves, Backwoods Monsters, Haunted Roads, and Cryptid Nightmares

Summer Horror Stories: 4 Scary Tales of Werewolves, Backwoods Monsters, Haunted Roads, and Cryptid Nightmares
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Summer horror, cryptid terror, werewolf attacks, haunted roads, monster museums, and vacation nightmares collide in this wild Weekly Spooky compilation of four creepy horror stories. If you love scary summer stories, creature features, roadside supernatural horror, swamp monsters, and blood-soaked beach nightmares, this episode is built for maximum chills.

Tonight’s lineup starts in a museum of oddities where a harmless internship becomes a grotesque transformation nightmare. From there, a summer camp prank spirals into swamp horror, mad science, and mutated creatures in the dark. Then the road turns deadly with a phantom passenger story that feels like pure late-night highway dread. And finally, a beach trip becomes a full-on werewolf war as Bella Taibon uncovers a savage family secret under the full moon.

• I Worked in a Museum of Oddities Until the Oddest Thing Happened to Me — by Michael Kelso
An unpaid summer internship at a cryptid museum turns monstrous when a mysterious creature bite changes everything. This one mixes body horror, creature-feature chaos, and a mean little twist on small attraction roadside weirdness.
• Summer Slaycation — by David O’Hanlon
What begins as a juvenile camp prank in the Cypress Maze erupts into swamp terror, deranged experiments, and plant-animal abominations in a crumbling bayou house. Fast, nasty, funny, and packed with backwoods creature mayhem.
• I Used to Drive a Delivery Truck, Until the Incident — by Michael Kelso
A delivery driver starts getting written up for carrying a passenger he cannot see—until the camera proves something impossible is riding shotgun. Quiet, eerie, and deeply effective haunted-road horror.
• Bella’s Holiday — by Rob Fields
A summer beach trip to Shore City turns deadly when Bella and Einny discover a brutal werewolf conspiracy hiding inside a family reunion. Equal parts supernatural action, vampire-werewolf conflict, and savage vacation horror.

From dead-end routes and cryptid exhibits to swamp laboratories and moonlit beach bloodshed, this collection is all about summer going rotten in the most entertaining way possible. Pack sunscreen if you want, but you may get more use out of silver, headlights, and a very fast exit.

🎧 LISTEN NOW and subscribe for spine-tingling horror stories every week!

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📬 Contact Us / Submit Your Horror Story!


🎵 Music by Ray Mattis 👉 Check out Ray’s incredible work here !
👨‍💼 Executive Producers: Rob Fields, Bobbletopia.com
🎥 Produced by: Daniel Wilder
🌐 Explore more terrifying tales at: WeeklySpooky.com
WEBVTT

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Well, hello, my spookies, tonight summer is taking a turn

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for the vicious. Not the postcard version, not the harmless

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kind with sunshine and lemonade and lazy drives. I mean

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the kind of summer where the museum exhibits bite back,

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where the swamp keeps secrets in the roots, where lonely

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roads pick up passengers that were never there to begin with,

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and where a beach vacation can end with fangs, claws

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and family drama under a full moon. These are the

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nights when bad ideas feel a little too exciting, the

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air stays warm a little too late, and every place

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that looked fun in the daylight starts showing its teeth

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after dark. So come on in, shake the sand out

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of your shoes, keep your hands off the cursed souvenirs,

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and make sure you're subscribed on your favorite podcast app,

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because every single Wednesday there's a brand new terror tale

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right here on Weekly Spooky. But now let's get out

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those beach towels and lay out for some fun. I

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worked in a museum of oddities until the oddest thing

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happened to me by Michael Kelso. I never wanted this

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to happen I didn't want to be standing here, staring

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horrified at the blood dripping from my hands as people

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screamed and ran away. It was all my boss's fault.

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He made this happened. He had plenty of chances to

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make things right, but there was money to be made,

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and the love of money is the root of all evil.

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You know those people who strive for excellence, who work

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hard to get the grades because they're destined for better things,

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They're bound to leave the small town they grew up in,

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get out there and set the world on fire. I

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wanted to be one of those people. I studied like

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my life depended on it for my entire school career.

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But when it came down to the wire, I missed

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being valedictorian by two measly points. I didn't get the

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scholarships or the accolades. I didn't get anything. The only

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thing I got was an invitation to do a summer

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internship at the local museum. It was an unpaid internship,

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but I thought it would look good on an application,

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so I took the job. When I first started working here,

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I was terrified, especially walking in the door for the

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first time and getting the stair down from an eight

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foot tall bigfoot statue with arms outstretched and fangs showing

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in a frozen roar. After I realized what it was

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and restarted my heart, I was greeted by the owner,

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mister Applebottom. He was a small, thin man with round

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glasses and a receding hairline. He looked like a stiff

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breeze would carry him away to the land of Oz.

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He took me on a tour of the museum, showing

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me all of the attractions, Most of them were cryptids.

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There were drawn and paintings hanging next to blurry photos

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of just about any cryptid you can think of. The

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more popular ones had full sized wax models. All these

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creatures captured my imagination, but not in a good way.

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There was also a theater with around twenty seats and

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a video playing non stop about sightings of various cryptids.

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Once he finished the tour, he showed me how to

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run the cash register and then showed me the janitor's closet.

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My jobs were to take care of customers during open

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hours and take care of cleanup during closed hours. After

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he had shown me everything, he turned the sign from

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closed to open and told me good luck. As he

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went upstairs to his office. I stood there frozen, staring

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at the cash register like it was going to bite

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my fingers off if I touched it. So my big

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internship turned out to be a janitor slash ticket collector job.

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I was worried I would get overwhelmed by the rush

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of customers and have no clue what to do. Fortunately

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for me, I didn't have a single customer all day.

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It turned out the museum had been opened for a

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few years and people had already seen everything there was

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to see. Repeat customers weren't exactly the museum's forte I

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stood there waiting for over an hour. I soon became

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bored and walked through the gift shop, acquainting myself with

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the bric a brac we sold that lasted around fifteen minutes.

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To keep myself from falling asleep, I made the mistake

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of going to the theater and watching the videos of

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cryptid sightings, as if the wax figures weren't enough. Now,

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I had it in my mind that these things were

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not only real, but could show up at my doorstep

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anytime they felt like it. At the end of the day,

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mister Applebottom came down and asked how many customers we'd had.

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His face fell when I told him none. He turned

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the sign from open to closed and told me to

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do the floors. I stared at the floors. But you

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and I are the only ones who walked through here today,

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I said, Is this the way you're going to talk

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to your supervisor? No, sir, it just doesn't make sense

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to me. Call it a practice run, He said, I

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want to see how you do. I sighed and went

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to the cleaning closet. I vacuumed all the floors, cleaned

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the TVs, wiped down the counters, and washed the windows.

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The lights were turned down to night levels, making shadows

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dance as I did my chores. As I worked my

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way through the museum, I swore I could feel eyes

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on me, and they weren't mister Applebottoms. The statues of

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the creatures were so lifelike I didn't dare look up

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at them for fear they'd grabbed me and dragged me

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off to their layer. I regretted ever taking this internship.

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It's only for the summer, and it can help you

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get a better job. That's what I told myself. I

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just wish I would have quit after that first day,

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maybe I wouldn't have. When I was done, he mumbled

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that I had done satis factorily and told me to

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be here bright and early tomorrow. The next day was

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exactly the same as the first, except I knew what

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to expect. I brought a book to read so I

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wouldn't be bored. Of course, it disappeared when the boss

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was around, I got the feeling he was a if

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you can lean, you can clean kind of person. After

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a few weeks with barely more than a handful of customers,

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I wondered how he was even able to pay the

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electric bill. It was no wonder. This was an unpaid internship.

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I'd taken to cleaning in the afternoon so I could

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be done as soon as he closed up. It was

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also something to do. Boredom in a hall of monsters

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can do terrible things to your imagination. One day, the

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Boss came down from his office very excited. He told

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me he had found a new exhibit and it was

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being shipped in today. It was funny and very encouraging

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to see him so excited, like a kid waiting at

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the mailbox for a toy or a comic book to arrive.

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When the delivery man showed up with the package, the

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boss nearly knocked him over with the door. After he

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accepted delivery, he stood there staring at the shoe box

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sized package in awe. What is it? I said, looking eagerly.

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He was so focused on it that he whipped around

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and nearly lost his balance. He composed himself and smiled sheepishly.

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That was a close one, he said. Then he straightened.

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You shall have to wait until I have the display

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set up. I frowned as he carried the box up

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the stairs to his office like some trophy. I shook

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my head and continued cleaning. An hour later, a frantic

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mister Applebottom raced down the stairs and flew over to me.

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I'd never seen him run so fast, I cringed, not

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knowing if he was going to stop in time or

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plow me over. Fortunately, he stopped just in time. Where

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is it? He said, breathlessly. Where is what? I said?

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He looked at me for a long moment. He tried

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to compose himself and regain control of his breathing. Have

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you seen anything out of the ordinary, he asked, with

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a forced calmness. No, I've just been cleaning and you

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haven't seen anything unusual, no, sir. His eyes scanned the room,

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with special focus on the floor. He searched the room,

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then went into the theater, finally coming back to me.

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Looking defeated. He turned and walked slowly away, shoulders slumped.

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Is there anything I can do to help you, sir?

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I called after him. He just waved me off and

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kept walking. I took the vacuum back to the cleaning

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closet and got out the carpet scrubber. I needed to

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tackle a stain where some kid had spilled soda. I

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filled the upper tank with soap and water. Then, when

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after the stain, I found it interesting that, no matter

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how clean the carpet looked, the water in the collecting

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tank always looked like chocolate milk. When I was done,

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after two run throughs, I examined the stain and it

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was much better, but not perfect. This carpet cleaner did

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a good job, but never seemed to get it one

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hundred percent clean. I returned the cleaner to the closet

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and pulled the tank of dirty water out to empty it.

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As I dumped it out, something jumped out of it

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and bit me. I screamed, and dropped the tank, recoiling

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against the wall. Whatever kind of bug it was took

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off into the museum. I looked at my bleeding hand,

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then gathered my courage and followed it. I grabbed a

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broom off the closet wall and held it out in

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front of me like a sword. I scanned around the

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floor of the room but didn't see anything. There weren't

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even tracks to follow as I passed each exhibit, holding

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my breath for fear of this thing jumping out at me.

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Checking around wax figures of monsters did not help my

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general anxiety. One by one, I checked each exhibit, paying

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close attention to the floor around it and behind it,

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but I came up short. As I started back through

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for a second search, mister Applebottom rounded the corner and

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scared me nearly half to death. I swung my broom,

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only to realize just in time who it was. What's

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going on, he said, holding up his arm to defend

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against a woman brandishing a broom. I'm sorry, sir, I said,

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I heard noises and thought there was an intruder. Oh,

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he said, composing himself, glad to see you defending the

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interests of the museum. Yes, sir, how did you injure yourself,

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miss Primrose? He said, looking at my bloody hand. I

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stared at it for a moment. Should I tell him

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something bit me and ran away? Should I let him

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know there's something dangerous roaming around? Or will he blame

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me for not finding it? Would he fire me? God

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knows if anything happened to a guest because of me.

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I must have cut it in my haste to grab

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the broom, I lied, Oh well, best tend to that,

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He said, I don't want you bleeding on the floors. Yes, sir,

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carry on. Then he said, I'm leaving for the night.

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You'll lock up on your way out, won't you, of course, sir.

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With that, he turned on his heels and headed for

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the front door. I watched him go, then turned back

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to the now empty building. All that was here was

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me and the little monster that had bitten me. Panned

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around the room, feeling more alone than I had in

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a long time. I slowly made my way back to

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the cleaning closet, holding my broom tightly. When I got there,

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I leaned my broom against the wall next to the

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first aid box hanging on the wall. As I got

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a bandage out and covered my wound. My eyes kept

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darting to the door. When I was done, I picked

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up the broom and carried it to the edge of

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the doorway. I scanned the empty room, searching for my attacker.

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The deserted floor mocked me like it was a field

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of land mines waiting for me to step on one.

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I wished I had some sort of sci fi goggles

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that could scan for life forms like in the movies,

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but I was on my own. I took deep breath

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and started for the door, holding my broom to defend myself.

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At first, I walked toward the door, eyes darting all around,

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but as it came closer, I stepped more quickly. It

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didn't help that I had to pass one monster after another.

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By the time I got to the door, I was

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at a full run. I slammed into it in a

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00:16:28.360 --> 00:16:31.480
full panic, pulling the keys out of my pocket and

217
00:16:31.639 --> 00:16:36.120
dropping them like in every horror movie ever. Sweat poured

218
00:16:36.159 --> 00:16:39.159
off my forehead, making the keys slip out of my

219
00:16:39.320 --> 00:16:43.799
hand a second time. Finally, I got the keys in

220
00:16:43.879 --> 00:16:47.519
the lock and opened the door, only to whip around

221
00:16:47.879 --> 00:16:52.279
and try to slam it shut, but it refused to close.

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It was as if the building was saying, oh, no,

223
00:16:56.519 --> 00:16:58.759
you don't, you get back in here and deal with

224
00:16:58.799 --> 00:17:03.720
this thing. I slammed the door over and over, but

225
00:17:03.840 --> 00:17:08.240
it refused to shut. I looked around in a sheer panic.

226
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When I saw a piece of wood sticking out of

227
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the door, I bent down and picked it up. It

228
00:17:18.240 --> 00:17:22.160
was the broom. I threw it back inside and slammed

229
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the door shut, locking it and breathing hard as I

230
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leaned against it, trying to compose myself. The longer I

231
00:17:30.759 --> 00:17:35.039
leaned against the door, the more my breathing slowed. The

232
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more my breathing slowed, the more my mind told me

233
00:17:38.720 --> 00:17:43.640
how foolish I had been. It was just a bug,

234
00:17:44.160 --> 00:17:48.960
I thought, nothing to get excited about. I wanted to

235
00:17:49.000 --> 00:17:52.279
tell my mind that it was full of belogney. I

236
00:17:52.400 --> 00:17:57.079
wanted to believe it was just a bug. But something

237
00:17:57.440 --> 00:18:03.279
wouldn't let me. Some small, niggling feeling wouldn't allow me

238
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to simply dismiss it. I went home and tried my

239
00:18:07.720 --> 00:18:11.519
best to forget about the events of the day. I

240
00:18:11.599 --> 00:18:15.640
made myself a microwave dinner meat loaf with mashed potatoes

241
00:18:15.680 --> 00:18:20.319
and corn, then laid in bed, laughing my head off

242
00:18:20.400 --> 00:18:25.359
to whose line is it anyway? Until I fell asleep,

243
00:18:26.839 --> 00:18:32.039
there were ants crawling all over me, no, not over me,

244
00:18:33.319 --> 00:18:38.799
through me. I could feel them under my skin. I

245
00:18:38.839 --> 00:18:42.359
looked down at my arm and saw them moving around,

246
00:18:43.480 --> 00:18:47.440
hundreds of them, like there were highways full of ants

247
00:18:47.559 --> 00:18:52.960
moving up and down beneath my skin. I scratched until

248
00:18:52.960 --> 00:18:56.240
I dug the skin open, trying to yank the ants

249
00:18:56.279 --> 00:19:01.119
out of my body, one at a time. On and

250
00:19:01.200 --> 00:19:04.279
pulled it out of my arm. I looked at it,

251
00:19:04.759 --> 00:19:09.279
and to my surprise, it looked like a miniature version

252
00:19:09.400 --> 00:19:14.319
of that thing that bit me. I tried to squash it,

253
00:19:15.039 --> 00:19:18.880
but it didn't seem to FaZe the creature. It got

254
00:19:18.920 --> 00:19:23.240
tired of me trying and bit me again. I threw

255
00:19:23.279 --> 00:19:27.759
it to the floor and stomped on it. It looked

256
00:19:27.799 --> 00:19:34.039
at me and then just skittered away unharmed. The rest

257
00:19:34.079 --> 00:19:38.440
of me felt like I was being slowly devoured. Pain

258
00:19:38.680 --> 00:19:41.680
shot from every inch of my body. As these creatures

259
00:19:41.920 --> 00:19:47.000
dug deeper into me, reaching my bloodstream, it carried them

260
00:19:47.039 --> 00:19:53.079
all through me, causing even more havoc. I desperately tore

261
00:19:53.160 --> 00:19:58.599
at my skin, scratching, digging, tearing with my nails, anything

262
00:19:58.640 --> 00:20:02.720
to get these little monsters out of me. I didn't

263
00:20:02.759 --> 00:20:06.599
care about the blood running down my arms and seeping

264
00:20:06.680 --> 00:20:10.359
into my bed sheets. I just wanted to be rid

265
00:20:10.440 --> 00:20:16.000
of this torture. They were relentless. I could feel every

266
00:20:16.119 --> 00:20:21.240
molecule they invaded. The pain was beyond description. I was

267
00:20:21.319 --> 00:20:27.279
about to go completely insane if I didn't. I sat

268
00:20:27.319 --> 00:20:32.440
bolt upright in bed and screamed. I felt my arms,

269
00:20:32.839 --> 00:20:37.240
my legs, my face, searching for the tiny invaders that

270
00:20:37.319 --> 00:20:42.680
had destroyed my body, but they weren't there. I looked

271
00:20:42.680 --> 00:20:46.880
down at my arms, relieved to not see tiny creatures

272
00:20:47.000 --> 00:20:51.039
roaming under my skin and blood where I had torn

273
00:20:51.079 --> 00:20:56.000
the skin away trying to dig them out. However, I

274
00:20:56.119 --> 00:21:02.359
did see something disturbing. I had a rash. It ran

275
00:21:02.559 --> 00:21:06.519
all the way up my arms and disappeared under my sleeves.

276
00:21:07.319 --> 00:21:11.160
I threw off my sweaty sheets and ran to the bathroom.

277
00:21:11.920 --> 00:21:17.400
I turned on the light and wished I hadn't. The

278
00:21:17.480 --> 00:21:21.359
person who greeted me in the mirror was a stranger.

279
00:21:22.359 --> 00:21:26.359
Red blotches ran all up and down my body, even

280
00:21:26.400 --> 00:21:30.920
my face was covered in them. Had I scratched myself

281
00:21:30.920 --> 00:21:35.880
in my sleep? I examined the blotches more closely. They

282
00:21:35.920 --> 00:21:41.240
didn't appear to be scratch marks. In fact, they weren't itchy.

283
00:21:42.240 --> 00:21:46.839
That in itself seemed odd. Not that I wasn't grateful

284
00:21:46.920 --> 00:21:50.400
that whatever this rash was that covered most of my

285
00:21:50.519 --> 00:21:57.240
body didn't itch. It was just unique. I'd never heard

286
00:21:57.279 --> 00:22:00.680
of a rash that didn't itch, at least a little bit.

287
00:22:01.880 --> 00:22:06.680
As if on cue, I started scratching. As soon as

288
00:22:06.680 --> 00:22:11.440
I scratched the first spot, everywhere else began to itch.

289
00:22:11.599 --> 00:22:15.319
At the same time. I watched in the mirror as

290
00:22:15.359 --> 00:22:20.480
my nails tried to reach everywhere at once and failed miserably.

291
00:22:21.279 --> 00:22:24.759
I had to do something quickly before I scratched myself

292
00:22:24.799 --> 00:22:28.440
apart like in my dream. I ran a hot shower

293
00:22:28.519 --> 00:22:32.960
and jumped in clothes and all I stripped in the shower,

294
00:22:33.119 --> 00:22:39.039
revealing even more red splotches. The water seemed to have

295
00:22:39.119 --> 00:22:43.400
a soothing effect on the itching, and soon I wasn't

296
00:22:43.440 --> 00:22:47.240
scratching at all. I plugged the tub and ran water,

297
00:22:48.000 --> 00:22:52.839
settling in for a bath. Relief washed over me. As

298
00:22:52.880 --> 00:22:56.680
the water covered my skin, I was left with the

299
00:22:57.279 --> 00:23:02.799
obvious question, what the hell the hell is this? As

300
00:23:02.839 --> 00:23:05.880
I looked around, I noticed the spot where I'd been

301
00:23:05.920 --> 00:23:11.240
bitten was swollen. I examined it carefully. I'd never seen

302
00:23:11.279 --> 00:23:16.480
a reaction like this before. Was this like a bee allergy?

303
00:23:17.400 --> 00:23:21.880
Was my throat about to swell shut? I swallowed just

304
00:23:21.960 --> 00:23:25.240
to be sure I still could. It went off without

305
00:23:25.240 --> 00:23:29.559
a hitch. It didn't even hurt. So what was going

306
00:23:29.599 --> 00:23:32.920
on with the rest of me? I needed to figure

307
00:23:32.960 --> 00:23:37.759
this out, but a hospital was the last resort. So

308
00:23:37.960 --> 00:23:43.440
called medical professionals had proven themselves to be untrustworthy as

309
00:23:43.480 --> 00:23:47.160
of late, I would probably end up being dissected in

310
00:23:47.240 --> 00:23:51.759
the name of medical science. I got out of the tub,

311
00:23:52.200 --> 00:23:56.519
dried off, and put on a bathrobe. Next, I camped

312
00:23:56.559 --> 00:24:00.279
out in front of my computer, searching for anything even

313
00:24:00.400 --> 00:24:05.240
remotely like this. Several hours later, I was startled awake

314
00:24:05.880 --> 00:24:09.880
by my alarm clock. I got up, turned it off,

315
00:24:10.519 --> 00:24:14.119
then went to the bathroom to check my rash status.

316
00:24:14.839 --> 00:24:18.960
It was still there. In fact, it seemed to be

317
00:24:19.039 --> 00:24:23.279
getting worse. I decided that work was the last place

318
00:24:23.319 --> 00:24:27.720
I wanted to be while dealing with this what's wrong

319
00:24:27.759 --> 00:24:32.119
with your face? I could hear children saying over and over,

320
00:24:33.039 --> 00:24:36.279
having to patiently admit that I don't have a single

321
00:24:36.400 --> 00:24:41.759
clue repeatedly during the course of a day held no appeal.

322
00:24:43.160 --> 00:24:46.920
I called the boss and told him I wasn't feeling well.

323
00:24:47.680 --> 00:24:51.279
I could hear him practically go into convulsions at the

324
00:24:51.359 --> 00:24:55.759
thought of me calling off. How bad is it really?

325
00:24:56.119 --> 00:24:59.599
He said, can't you come in and just take it easy?

326
00:25:00.680 --> 00:25:04.680
I don't think so. I don't allow you to call off,

327
00:25:05.079 --> 00:25:09.440
he said, trying to assert himself. Well, I won't be

328
00:25:09.559 --> 00:25:14.480
there today with or without your permission. I could almost

329
00:25:14.519 --> 00:25:18.519
hear his little head boiling like a cartoon tea kettle

330
00:25:18.960 --> 00:25:24.039
about to blow. If you call off, you're fired, he said,

331
00:25:24.720 --> 00:25:29.880
thinking he had delivered the killing blow. Ok, and that

332
00:25:30.039 --> 00:25:34.759
will solve your problem of having no assistant. How he

333
00:25:34.880 --> 00:25:39.319
sputtered and chuffed and made sounds I couldn't even identify.

334
00:25:40.079 --> 00:25:42.160
I was about to ask if he was having a

335
00:25:42.200 --> 00:25:47.400
stroke when he suddenly regained control. We have the school

336
00:25:47.480 --> 00:25:51.240
children's tour to day, he said. How will I do

337
00:25:51.359 --> 00:25:55.319
tours and run the counter at the same time. Damn it,

338
00:25:55.920 --> 00:26:01.880
I forgot about the tour, I sighed deeply. Okay, I'll

339
00:26:01.880 --> 00:26:08.400
be in, I said, under two conditions, name em First,

340
00:26:09.519 --> 00:26:13.200
I don't do the tour, I said, I'll run the

341
00:26:13.279 --> 00:26:19.559
concessions and ticket sales, but deals off, I said, okay, okay,

342
00:26:19.720 --> 00:26:25.400
I'll do the tours, he said, sounding quite exasperated. What's

343
00:26:25.440 --> 00:26:31.880
your other demand? No questions about my medical condition, he hesitated,

344
00:26:32.920 --> 00:26:36.759
or I could hang up right now. No, no, he

345
00:26:36.839 --> 00:26:42.559
said quickly, then cleared his throat. I agree to your terms. Great,

346
00:26:43.119 --> 00:26:48.720
I said, sarcastically. I was hoping he'd refuse. I sighed heavily.

347
00:26:50.079 --> 00:26:55.200
I'll be in He hung up the phone, presumably before

348
00:26:55.279 --> 00:26:59.559
I could change my mind. An hour later, I unlocked

349
00:26:59.559 --> 00:27:04.400
the door and walked in. We're not open yet, mister

350
00:27:04.480 --> 00:27:07.759
Applebottom said, I don't know how you got in here,

351
00:27:07.799 --> 00:27:12.079
but you'll have to leave until regular business hours. That's

352
00:27:12.079 --> 00:27:15.119
fine with me, I said, I didn't want to be

353
00:27:15.200 --> 00:27:19.799
here anyway. He paused and took a closer look at me.

354
00:27:20.599 --> 00:27:24.279
To be fair, there wasn't much to look at. I

355
00:27:24.400 --> 00:27:27.039
was wearing a long sleeved shirt, even though it was

356
00:27:27.079 --> 00:27:30.680
supposed to be in the eighties today. I had gloves on,

357
00:27:30.799 --> 00:27:34.319
as well as sunglasses and a hat. I looked like

358
00:27:34.400 --> 00:27:39.440
a movie star trying to be incognito. Oh my goodness,

359
00:27:39.519 --> 00:27:44.119
miss Primrose, is it you under all that new condition?

360
00:27:44.640 --> 00:27:48.000
Don't mention the outfit. He put his hands up in

361
00:27:48.079 --> 00:27:52.400
playful surrender. So if I may ask, when did all

362
00:27:52.440 --> 00:27:58.599
this start? I sighed. Yesterday I was cleaning and this

363
00:27:59.519 --> 00:28:04.160
bug bit me. You say, a bug bit you? I nodded,

364
00:28:05.079 --> 00:28:09.519
and it caused all this. I'm fairly sure. I know

365
00:28:09.640 --> 00:28:16.039
I didn't eat any shellfish yesterday. Could you describe this bug?

366
00:28:17.000 --> 00:28:21.720
He said slowly. It was small. It kinda reminded me

367
00:28:21.799 --> 00:28:27.160
of a scorpion, but different. Honestly, it happened so fast

368
00:28:27.319 --> 00:28:30.559
I didn't get a good look at it. He stared

369
00:28:30.599 --> 00:28:38.200
off into space. I'll be back, he said, his eyes glazed. Okay,

370
00:28:38.559 --> 00:28:42.079
I'll start getting ready for the morning. You do that,

371
00:28:43.039 --> 00:28:48.079
he said, without looking back. I watched him go. He

372
00:28:48.200 --> 00:28:53.640
reminded me of a zombie, just slow and listless. I

373
00:28:53.680 --> 00:28:57.519
shook it off and started preparing for the day. The

374
00:28:57.599 --> 00:29:00.960
tour went smoothly, and the day was less eventful than

375
00:29:01.000 --> 00:29:04.640
I imagined it would be. I only had three kids

376
00:29:04.680 --> 00:29:08.240
stare at me the whole day. I said boo to

377
00:29:08.359 --> 00:29:11.039
two of them when their parents were looking the other way.

378
00:29:12.000 --> 00:29:17.240
They jumped and ran off. Mister Applebottom kept checking on me.

379
00:29:18.000 --> 00:29:22.240
It seemed nice at first, but I started to wonder

380
00:29:22.319 --> 00:29:26.559
if there was more to it. He kept stealing glances

381
00:29:26.599 --> 00:29:30.920
at me. It was getting a little creepy. I wanted

382
00:29:30.960 --> 00:29:34.119
to ask him what was wrong. All through the day,

383
00:29:34.279 --> 00:29:39.119
workmen came in carrying all kinds of construction equipment and

384
00:29:39.599 --> 00:29:45.319
pieces of metal. What's going on, I asked, mister Applebottom.

385
00:29:45.640 --> 00:29:50.160
They're setting up our new exhibit, he said, excitedly. I

386
00:29:50.240 --> 00:29:54.400
didn't know we were getting a new exhibit. It's very exciting,

387
00:29:54.799 --> 00:29:58.720
he said. Let me show you. I followed him to

388
00:29:58.799 --> 00:30:02.119
a large storage rom that had been cleared out, where

389
00:30:02.160 --> 00:30:08.680
a solid metal cage had been constructed. That's impressive, I said,

390
00:30:08.720 --> 00:30:14.359
admiring the gleaming metal. When will the creature arrive soon?

391
00:30:15.000 --> 00:30:18.599
It should be here within the next day or two.

392
00:30:18.680 --> 00:30:23.279
And it's live, not a statue. Our first live exhibit,

393
00:30:23.880 --> 00:30:27.440
he said, so excited he was dancing on his tiptoes.

394
00:30:28.200 --> 00:30:31.559
Would you like to see the inside? I shrugged and

395
00:30:31.640 --> 00:30:34.720
followed him around to the back of the cage. He

396
00:30:34.839 --> 00:30:39.000
stepped inside and I followed. It seemed like the animal

397
00:30:39.039 --> 00:30:44.119
would be comfortable. There were pillows disguised as rocks all around.

398
00:30:44.799 --> 00:30:47.480
In the corner was a nest that was a mattress

399
00:30:47.559 --> 00:30:51.720
disguised as a slab of stone. I sat on it

400
00:30:51.799 --> 00:30:55.839
and chuckled at how soft it was. Just then I

401
00:30:55.920 --> 00:31:00.839
heard the cage door slam shut. I jumped up and

402
00:31:01.000 --> 00:31:06.559
ran to it. Mister Applebottom was standing on the other side.

403
00:31:06.920 --> 00:31:11.200
Very funny, I said, you've caged me. Now what are

404
00:31:11.240 --> 00:31:16.720
you gonna do with me? Wait? He said, then walked away.

405
00:31:18.279 --> 00:31:22.359
I banged on the cage. This isn't funny, I yelled,

406
00:31:22.680 --> 00:31:25.960
let me out of here. I banged and carried on

407
00:31:26.240 --> 00:31:30.559
for a little while, then slowly walked a lap around

408
00:31:30.599 --> 00:31:35.680
the inside perimeter of the cage. There was what looked

409
00:31:35.759 --> 00:31:40.480
like a freshwater stream fed by a spring. I took

410
00:31:40.519 --> 00:31:44.079
a closer look and found the PVC pipe that was

411
00:31:44.200 --> 00:31:48.680
hidden from visitor's eyes. It fed into a plastic pool

412
00:31:48.720 --> 00:31:53.319
that was decorated to look like rock. They definitely went

413
00:31:53.440 --> 00:31:57.519
all out to create the illusion of wilderness. After a

414
00:31:57.519 --> 00:32:01.000
few laps around, with some more cage being thrown in

415
00:32:01.039 --> 00:32:04.400
for good measure, I sat on the slab rock bed

416
00:32:04.880 --> 00:32:09.079
and wondered what had possessed mister Applebottom to pull such

417
00:32:09.119 --> 00:32:12.640
a cruel joke. I'd been a good employee, or at

418
00:32:12.720 --> 00:32:17.279
least I thought I was, what if it's not a joke?

419
00:32:17.960 --> 00:32:24.799
My mind said, what if it's some sadistic torment? But why?

420
00:32:25.279 --> 00:32:29.960
I thought? Mister Applebottom is a kind man and a

421
00:32:30.000 --> 00:32:34.599
respected business owner as far as you know, what does

422
00:32:34.640 --> 00:32:38.880
that mean? You have no idea what he's like in private?

423
00:32:39.599 --> 00:32:44.000
Maybe he's some weirdo whack job satist that gets off

424
00:32:44.079 --> 00:32:48.400
by locking people up and pretending their animals. That's a

425
00:32:48.400 --> 00:32:51.839
bit of a stretch, don't you think. Are you sitting

426
00:32:51.880 --> 00:32:58.079
in a cage? Yes? But did he put you there? Well? Yes?

427
00:32:58.319 --> 00:33:02.680
But have you been a bad girl? Stop that. I'm

428
00:33:02.680 --> 00:33:06.720
sure it's nothing like that. He just just what, just

429
00:33:06.799 --> 00:33:09.000
went crazy and locked me in a cage? How the

430
00:33:09.039 --> 00:33:12.799
hell should I know? You ever watched those crime shows

431
00:33:12.799 --> 00:33:16.359
on TV where the perpetrator was always the quiet sort

432
00:33:16.720 --> 00:33:19.960
No one would ever suspect of killing his neighbors and

433
00:33:20.160 --> 00:33:22.759
grinding up their bones to bacon to cakes that he

434
00:33:23.119 --> 00:33:28.160
donated to bake sales. That's sick. That's what missus Jones

435
00:33:28.200 --> 00:33:31.279
said when he invited her over and turned her into

436
00:33:31.359 --> 00:33:34.839
a bunt cake. You're just making this up to scare me,

437
00:33:35.720 --> 00:33:39.039
if that's what you want to believe. I'm tired. I'm

438
00:33:39.079 --> 00:33:42.079
gonna lay down on this nice, soft rock and go

439
00:33:42.160 --> 00:33:47.440
to sleep pleasant dreams. I sighed and laid down on

440
00:33:47.519 --> 00:33:52.839
the surprisingly comfortable fake rock, trying to imagine when and

441
00:33:53.039 --> 00:33:58.640
why mister Applebottom had gone crazy. I pulled out my

442
00:33:58.759 --> 00:34:02.680
phone and stared at it. I didn't want to call

443
00:34:02.720 --> 00:34:05.680
the police and raise a fuss, only to find out

444
00:34:05.720 --> 00:34:10.239
it was really just a joke. I started typing what

445
00:34:10.320 --> 00:34:13.760
had happened to this point? Maybe I could send it

446
00:34:13.760 --> 00:34:17.159
to myself and have a good laugh about it. When

447
00:34:17.239 --> 00:34:23.079
things got cleared up, I woke up feeling stiff and sore.

448
00:34:24.079 --> 00:34:27.119
I guess laying on something that isn't my own bed

449
00:34:27.320 --> 00:34:33.039
had its consequences, no matter how comfortable it was. For

450
00:34:33.119 --> 00:34:36.800
the first time, I realized a design flaw in the

451
00:34:36.840 --> 00:34:41.400
cage set up. I didn't see a bathroom. I did

452
00:34:41.440 --> 00:34:48.639
a full lap around, searching and found something disturbing. There

453
00:34:48.800 --> 00:34:52.400
was a small door in the corner, and a tray

454
00:34:52.440 --> 00:34:57.440
of food had been set inside. Right beside it was

455
00:34:57.480 --> 00:35:02.239
a bucket. Oh, I I don't think, so I did

456
00:35:02.280 --> 00:35:05.519
another lap to make sure there was nothing I had missed.

457
00:35:06.400 --> 00:35:11.800
There wasn't. I started to feel uncomfortable. Not only did

458
00:35:11.800 --> 00:35:16.320
I have to pee, but this entire scenario was getting

459
00:35:16.360 --> 00:35:20.320
out of hand. The joke was over. I'd had enough.

460
00:35:21.159 --> 00:35:23.519
I got my phone and held it to my face

461
00:35:23.599 --> 00:35:28.760
to unlock it, but it wouldn't unlock. I tried again,

462
00:35:28.920 --> 00:35:33.239
but it refused. I went to type in my password,

463
00:35:33.280 --> 00:35:39.239
but was distracted when I saw my thumb. The rash

464
00:35:39.360 --> 00:35:44.960
was gone, but in its place were layers of something

465
00:35:45.000 --> 00:35:51.639
that looked like scales. I stared at it with morbid fascination.

466
00:35:52.719 --> 00:35:57.519
I flexed it and moved it around, then pulled my

467
00:35:57.679 --> 00:36:02.239
sleeve up. To my horror, the rash on my arm

468
00:36:02.360 --> 00:36:07.320
had been replaced with scales as well. I panicked, pulling

469
00:36:07.400 --> 00:36:11.880
up my pant legs to find even more scales. I

470
00:36:11.960 --> 00:36:15.559
tried to pull off my shirt, but it kept getting caught.

471
00:36:16.480 --> 00:36:20.360
I pulled harder and harder until the shirt began to rip.

472
00:36:21.360 --> 00:36:25.440
I was determined at this point and continued ripping until

473
00:36:25.480 --> 00:36:29.880
the shirt finally came off. I stared down at a

474
00:36:29.880 --> 00:36:34.280
belly full of scales, just below my braw that was

475
00:36:34.360 --> 00:36:41.519
also hiding scales. I screamed, terrified of this demonic possession

476
00:36:41.559 --> 00:36:46.800
that had overtaken my body, But even my scream was unfamiliar.

477
00:36:47.880 --> 00:36:52.000
My voice had changed it was deeper and had a

478
00:36:52.079 --> 00:36:58.519
different quality to it. No, I cried out, but my

479
00:36:58.760 --> 00:37:05.559
voice only roared. It can't be I said, but only

480
00:37:05.679 --> 00:37:11.679
guttural growls emerged from me. I unlocked my phone with

481
00:37:11.760 --> 00:37:16.639
the password and called nine one one, nine one one.

482
00:37:16.719 --> 00:37:22.159
What's your emergency? The operator said, help me. I'm being

483
00:37:22.199 --> 00:37:26.320
held hostage in a cage inside the museum. I said,

484
00:37:27.239 --> 00:37:30.760
I'm sorry. Could you turn down the TV? All I

485
00:37:30.800 --> 00:37:36.239
could hear was animal sounds. I'm not watching TV. This

486
00:37:36.320 --> 00:37:41.119
is me talking. Can you please send help. If this

487
00:37:41.360 --> 00:37:45.639
is a prank call, you could get criminal charges. It's

488
00:37:45.760 --> 00:37:51.159
not a prank call, I roared, last chance, either talk

489
00:37:51.239 --> 00:37:55.880
to me or I'm hanging up. But I'm trying to talk.

490
00:37:57.039 --> 00:38:05.039
The line went dead to you. I stared at the phone.

491
00:38:05.199 --> 00:38:07.559
How can I get a message out if I can't talk?

492
00:38:08.800 --> 00:38:12.159
I looked through the options on the phone when it

493
00:38:12.239 --> 00:38:17.559
hit me text to speech, of course. I called the

494
00:38:17.599 --> 00:38:23.679
police again, then started typing like mad, Hello, I'm the

495
00:38:23.679 --> 00:38:27.880
one who just called. I typed, hearing the electronic voice

496
00:38:28.199 --> 00:38:31.599
say the words for me, the one who had the

497
00:38:31.639 --> 00:38:35.360
TV up too loud. I wanted to say it wasn't

498
00:38:35.400 --> 00:38:39.000
the TV, that it was my voice that somehow won't work,

499
00:38:39.719 --> 00:38:42.400
but I figured that would be the quickest way for

500
00:38:42.480 --> 00:38:47.840
her to hang up again. Yes, that was me. What's

501
00:38:47.880 --> 00:38:52.719
your emergency. I am trapped in the museum. My employer

502
00:38:52.880 --> 00:38:57.000
locked me in a cage. Are you in any danger?

503
00:38:57.880 --> 00:39:02.719
I looked around the cage, not at the moment. Are

504
00:39:02.760 --> 00:39:09.119
you injured? I looked at the scales on my arm. No, okay,

505
00:39:09.639 --> 00:39:14.079
we'll have someone there shortly. You hold on, okay. I

506
00:39:14.159 --> 00:39:19.960
nodded my acknowledgment, not realizing she couldn't hear it. Yes,

507
00:39:20.360 --> 00:39:24.639
I will hang on until you arrive, the mechanical voice said.

508
00:39:25.519 --> 00:39:30.320
The line disconnected. I did a fist pump in celebration.

509
00:39:31.360 --> 00:39:35.360
I started pacing. I was so excited to be rescued.

510
00:39:36.599 --> 00:39:40.719
The next ten minutes were the longest of my life.

511
00:39:40.960 --> 00:39:45.679
Finally I heard voices. They were coming toward me. The

512
00:39:45.760 --> 00:39:50.960
door opened and in walked mister Applebottom with an officer.

513
00:39:51.920 --> 00:39:57.679
Help me, I screamed, he's holding me hostage. The officer

514
00:39:57.800 --> 00:40:02.199
stepped up to the cage and then turned to mister Applebottom.

515
00:40:03.440 --> 00:40:08.039
I smiled in anticipation of seeing him led away in cuffs.

516
00:40:09.559 --> 00:40:12.880
I see what you mean, the officer said to him.

517
00:40:13.920 --> 00:40:17.840
It really doesn't like you very much at all. Well,

518
00:40:18.360 --> 00:40:22.280
we only just got it in yesterday, he said. She

519
00:40:22.400 --> 00:40:27.760
needs a little time to adjust to things. She, the

520
00:40:27.840 --> 00:40:33.000
officer said, looking at me, Oh, yeah, I guess it

521
00:40:33.119 --> 00:40:37.840
is a she. I covered my breasts, not even thinking

522
00:40:37.920 --> 00:40:42.119
about the fact that they were covered with scales. He laughed,

523
00:40:43.480 --> 00:40:48.880
I see she understands perfectly. Well, yes, sometimes a little

524
00:40:49.119 --> 00:40:51.880
too well. I'm going to have to keep a close

525
00:40:51.920 --> 00:40:55.519
eye on her to make sure she stays where she belongs.

526
00:40:56.440 --> 00:40:59.679
So my question is, how did she manage to get

527
00:40:59.679 --> 00:41:04.199
a punt and call us in the first place. I

528
00:41:04.239 --> 00:41:08.159
had an assistant who wasn't very careful and let's just

529
00:41:08.360 --> 00:41:11.880
say she won't get too close to the cage again,

530
00:41:13.119 --> 00:41:15.880
got a hold of her. Eh, you could say that

531
00:41:17.199 --> 00:41:20.480
you gonna try to get that phone back, would you?

532
00:41:21.679 --> 00:41:25.360
He looked me up and down. I pleaded one last

533
00:41:25.400 --> 00:41:30.159
time for him to save me. It only came out

534
00:41:30.320 --> 00:41:34.119
as a growl. Nope, I think I'd leave it right

535
00:41:34.159 --> 00:41:37.320
where it is. The battery is sure to die soon

536
00:41:37.480 --> 00:41:40.840
unless you charge it up. For what are the odds

537
00:41:40.840 --> 00:41:45.599
of that happening? He looked me in the eye zero,

538
00:41:46.559 --> 00:41:50.920
he said, that's what I thought you have a nice

539
00:41:51.039 --> 00:41:54.440
night now, and we'll just block that number for the moment.

540
00:41:55.159 --> 00:41:57.440
Let us know if you get it back or if

541
00:41:57.480 --> 00:42:02.760
it dies. I surely will you have a good trip back, officer,

542
00:42:03.400 --> 00:42:07.559
he said. Once he was gone and the door was locked,

543
00:42:08.159 --> 00:42:12.519
mister Applebottom came back and stood just out of reach

544
00:42:13.119 --> 00:42:18.039
beside the cage. He held out his hand. I reached

545
00:42:18.079 --> 00:42:22.760
for it, but he pulled it back. No, give me

546
00:42:22.840 --> 00:42:27.840
the phone, he said. I shook my head. Give it

547
00:42:27.880 --> 00:42:33.400
to me. I stepped back and shook my head. All right,

548
00:42:33.760 --> 00:42:38.880
keep it, he said. It'll be useless soon. Anyways. I

549
00:42:39.000 --> 00:42:44.119
started typing and hit the play button. What happened to me?

550
00:42:45.079 --> 00:42:50.000
The mechanical voice said, through my phone, you have been

551
00:42:50.079 --> 00:42:57.639
transformed into another species. I typed, No, shit, Sherlock, how

552
00:42:57.760 --> 00:43:01.840
and why? I had ordered a creature that I had

553
00:43:01.880 --> 00:43:07.000
hoped would be the star attraction of the museum. However,

554
00:43:07.360 --> 00:43:10.639
when it arrived, I realized that it was too small

555
00:43:11.159 --> 00:43:15.800
to be a main attraction. That plus, it doesn't look

556
00:43:15.880 --> 00:43:21.360
that distinctive. It could easily be mistaken for a scorpion.

557
00:43:22.320 --> 00:43:26.280
As I was transferring it to its new cage, it

558
00:43:26.519 --> 00:43:33.480
escaped and found me. Yes, I was quite unaware that

559
00:43:33.559 --> 00:43:39.679
a bite would cause such a transformation. However, here you

560
00:43:39.760 --> 00:43:44.360
are my new star attraction. I don't want to be

561
00:43:45.719 --> 00:43:50.840
I do apologize for the inconvenience, but the transformation is

562
00:43:51.159 --> 00:43:58.440
quite irreversible. Inconvenience, I typed, then picked up a real

563
00:43:58.519 --> 00:44:03.199
boulder and threw it at the cage. He ducked and

564
00:44:03.400 --> 00:44:07.199
covered his head as it hit the bars and shattered

565
00:44:07.679 --> 00:44:12.280
into a million pieces. He squealed in pain as the

566
00:44:12.360 --> 00:44:16.559
small rocks hit him like a shotgun blast. He ran

567
00:44:16.639 --> 00:44:21.880
to the door and stood behind it, peeking his head inside.

568
00:44:22.880 --> 00:44:27.480
MAKE sure you get plenty of rest, he said. Tomorrow

569
00:44:28.440 --> 00:44:32.239
is your grand reveal. I need to get the word out,

570
00:44:32.880 --> 00:44:38.199
and I need to hire a new assistant. PA, my

571
00:44:38.360 --> 00:44:42.000
phone began to say, but the sound was overwhelmed by

572
00:44:42.039 --> 00:44:46.800
me throwing another boulder at the bars. He dove out

573
00:44:46.840 --> 00:44:51.079
the door and slammed it shut just before the rocks

574
00:44:51.519 --> 00:44:56.320
hit him. I collapsed to my knees under the sheer

575
00:44:56.360 --> 00:45:00.639
weight of my life having been taken from me. My

576
00:45:00.800 --> 00:45:05.079
eyes burned. I wasn't sure if this was some new

577
00:45:05.239 --> 00:45:11.760
aspect of my transformation or just my tears. I looked

578
00:45:11.840 --> 00:45:17.719
down at my mutilated, monstrous hands. My phone was still

579
00:45:17.760 --> 00:45:21.400
in one of them. I reached back to hurl it

580
00:45:21.440 --> 00:45:26.800
at the bars as well. When I noticed my cell reception.

581
00:45:28.239 --> 00:45:34.440
I had four bars, I still had internet, my battery

582
00:45:34.639 --> 00:45:40.480
was still half full. I began desperately typing my story.

583
00:45:41.559 --> 00:45:45.320
When I was done, I found a website that dealt

584
00:45:45.320 --> 00:45:52.280
with cryptids and unexplained phenomena. If you're reading this, please

585
00:45:52.480 --> 00:45:57.159
help me. I'm at the Museum of Oddities in Frost Creek.

586
00:45:58.519 --> 00:46:08.960
I'll keep posting until my phone dies. Mister Applebottom was

587
00:46:09.119 --> 00:46:13.639
true to his word. People flocked in to day, walking

588
00:46:13.760 --> 00:46:19.559
past my cage and staring. I considered throwing rocks at them.

589
00:46:20.159 --> 00:46:24.079
Maybe a few injuries would make them go away, but

590
00:46:24.239 --> 00:46:28.039
then I saw all the little kids and thought better

591
00:46:28.079 --> 00:46:31.840
of it. I decided to take a different path to

592
00:46:31.960 --> 00:46:35.960
show my protest. I laid on my fake rock with

593
00:46:36.000 --> 00:46:41.119
my back to the people and refused to move. It

594
00:46:41.199 --> 00:46:44.400
didn't take long for the complaints to bring him back

595
00:46:44.440 --> 00:46:49.119
to my cage. What are you doing, he said through

596
00:46:49.280 --> 00:46:57.599
gritted teeth. I typed on my phone. Nothing, absolutely nothing wrong.

597
00:46:58.119 --> 00:47:02.880
You're embarrassing me, he hissed, grabbing the bars for effect.

598
00:47:03.800 --> 00:47:06.480
Now get up and give them a sh I moved

599
00:47:06.519 --> 00:47:09.559
like a flash, my hand grabbed his and held him

600
00:47:09.599 --> 00:47:13.719
like a vice. I pulled him close. He was smashed

601
00:47:13.760 --> 00:47:19.000
against the bars. Please don't. I grabbed the top of

602
00:47:19.039 --> 00:47:23.280
his head and turned it around in a full circle,

603
00:47:24.159 --> 00:47:29.800
enjoying the satisfying cracks of his vertebrae snapping. I pulled

604
00:47:29.880 --> 00:47:36.119
up and his head came off, showering me in blood.

605
00:47:37.079 --> 00:47:39.840
I stared into his face with a look of shock,

606
00:47:40.239 --> 00:47:44.639
permanently frozen on it. The people in the room began

607
00:47:44.719 --> 00:47:48.800
to scream and run away. I stared at the dead

608
00:47:48.880 --> 00:47:52.800
body that was only upright because I was holding it.

609
00:47:53.599 --> 00:47:56.440
I looked back and forth between the head in one

610
00:47:56.480 --> 00:48:00.840
hand and the body in the other, dropped them both

611
00:48:01.360 --> 00:48:06.280
and stared in horror. As they hit the floor. Blood

612
00:48:06.320 --> 00:48:10.719
poured out onto the ground. I watched with morbid fascination

613
00:48:11.519 --> 00:48:15.760
as a bug skittered over and began darting its tongue out,

614
00:48:16.639 --> 00:48:22.079
licking up the blood. As I watched, I saw that

615
00:48:22.199 --> 00:48:26.719
it was the same bug that had infected me and

616
00:48:26.800 --> 00:48:32.199
turned me into this horrible monster. I reached out through

617
00:48:32.239 --> 00:48:36.559
the bars towards it. It paused and looked up at me.

618
00:48:38.239 --> 00:48:42.159
I could almost see it make the connection between us

619
00:48:42.760 --> 00:48:46.599
that it had been responsible for me, that we shared

620
00:48:46.639 --> 00:48:51.800
a kind of kinship, a bond that could be barely fathomed.

621
00:48:52.920 --> 00:48:57.760
It reached an appendage out towards me as well. I

622
00:48:57.880 --> 00:49:02.639
smashed my hand, splattering blood everywhere and crushing the thing

623
00:49:02.760 --> 00:49:07.320
that had destroyed my life. I withdrew my hand and

624
00:49:07.480 --> 00:49:11.400
stared at the flattened creature laying in the blood of

625
00:49:11.480 --> 00:49:18.000
my boss, the two entities most responsible for this hideous transformation.

626
00:49:19.079 --> 00:49:22.920
I trudged over to my fake rock and plopped on it.

627
00:49:24.039 --> 00:49:28.239
I opened my phone, saw the battery indicator was flashing,

628
00:49:29.159 --> 00:49:36.119
and made this last entry. I will escape this cage.

629
00:49:36.159 --> 00:49:40.360
I will find where the creature came from. I will

630
00:49:40.840 --> 00:49:44.960
find a way to change back to my human form,

631
00:49:46.119 --> 00:50:05.159
and I pity anyone who stands in my way. Summer

632
00:50:05.320 --> 00:50:14.119
slay Cation by David O'Hanlon. The plan is simple, Henry

633
00:50:14.159 --> 00:50:17.000
Stout said, around the butt of his cigarette. We take

634
00:50:17.039 --> 00:50:20.039
the canoes across the lake and into the Cypress Maze,

635
00:50:20.119 --> 00:50:22.360
and then it's just a short hike to the mini

636
00:50:22.400 --> 00:50:27.039
Winyan bunk houses. What if we get lost, Lance Calavera

637
00:50:27.159 --> 00:50:30.679
snatched the smoke from Henry's mouth. It's called the maze

638
00:50:30.719 --> 00:50:34.119
for a reason. Henry scratched at the patch of bristly

639
00:50:34.199 --> 00:50:38.039
hair he called his beard. I've done the maze three times.

640
00:50:38.159 --> 00:50:41.079
I can get us through. Henry was on his fourth

641
00:50:41.079 --> 00:50:44.800
stay at the Living Grace rehabilitation camp for youth offenders.

642
00:50:45.199 --> 00:50:48.599
The thirteen week camp was developed by Pastor Frank Oppendecker

643
00:50:48.800 --> 00:50:51.119
to put kids on the straight and narrow through Christ.

644
00:50:51.639 --> 00:50:54.679
If that didn't work, the former Marine Corp drill instructor

645
00:50:54.719 --> 00:50:57.840
had more inventive ways to grind the little pukes into

646
00:50:57.920 --> 00:51:02.039
productive members of society. The Cypress Maze was the final

647
00:51:02.079 --> 00:51:04.800
test for all the teens that entered the program. If

648
00:51:04.840 --> 00:51:08.599
they failed, they completed their sentences in a juvenile detention center.

649
00:51:09.000 --> 00:51:13.920
It was a one time deal. Normally, Father Oh, as

650
00:51:13.960 --> 00:51:17.119
the delinquents called him, took a special interest in Henry

651
00:51:17.320 --> 00:51:20.559
and brought him back every time he reoffended. He saw

652
00:51:20.599 --> 00:51:24.320
Henry as the camp's one and only failure. Henry saw

653
00:51:24.360 --> 00:51:27.800
the camp as a grueling but welcomed reprieve from his home,

654
00:51:28.239 --> 00:51:33.719
a dilapidated trailer park outside of Russellville called the Green Mile. Yeah,

655
00:51:33.920 --> 00:51:37.679
you've done the maze, Lance said, but not at night?

656
00:51:38.880 --> 00:51:41.519
Then stay here. Henry threw his hands in the air.

657
00:51:41.920 --> 00:51:44.719
Maybe Father Oh, will let you polish the pews for

658
00:51:44.800 --> 00:51:47.480
morning service. The rest of us are going to the

659
00:51:47.519 --> 00:51:52.199
mini Winnions, and then we'll see Ted Vang cut both

660
00:51:52.239 --> 00:51:56.360
his hands to his chest as if cradling breasts. Seriously.

661
00:51:56.440 --> 00:52:00.039
Ted Dexter Brown shook his head with those glass this

662
00:52:00.519 --> 00:52:03.920
you can see them from here. Too many trees in

663
00:52:03.960 --> 00:52:07.039
the way. Ted adjusted his glasses over his plump cheeks.

664
00:52:07.920 --> 00:52:11.679
Ted's right, Henry smirked. The Senior House is responsible for

665
00:52:11.719 --> 00:52:14.880
bed checks and lock down, so they hit the showers last.

666
00:52:15.440 --> 00:52:18.280
That's when we'll strike. We throw the bombs through the

667
00:52:18.320 --> 00:52:22.199
windows and they'll all come out running. Dexter held up

668
00:52:22.199 --> 00:52:25.159
the polaroid camera, and I'll get the photos to make

669
00:52:25.199 --> 00:52:27.320
sure we all get a good look and don't miss

670
00:52:27.320 --> 00:52:31.920
out on anything. What about the counselors, Jimmy O'Reilly, always

671
00:52:32.000 --> 00:52:35.679
the pragmatist, asked, they're going to come running. Two These

672
00:52:35.679 --> 00:52:39.639
babies aren't exactly subtle. Jimmy tossed one of the devices

673
00:52:39.679 --> 00:52:42.679
between his hands. It wasn't much bigger than a thermos

674
00:52:42.960 --> 00:52:45.719
with a main body of paper machet over chicken wire

675
00:52:45.800 --> 00:52:49.599
with four thinner cardboard tubes attached to the sides. A

676
00:52:49.639 --> 00:52:52.320
waterproof fuse snaked from the top of all four and

677
00:52:52.400 --> 00:52:54.840
came together in a braid with that of the main device.

678
00:52:55.320 --> 00:52:58.280
The entire package was wrapped in black electrical tape for

679
00:52:58.360 --> 00:53:03.039
easy concealment on the moonless night. Jimmy's unsettling interest in

680
00:53:03.159 --> 00:53:06.760
things that went boom were what landed him in the camp.

681
00:53:07.480 --> 00:53:11.079
Spas will take care of that, Henry reassured them. Marco

682
00:53:11.280 --> 00:53:14.320
Spaz Reynolds tugged at the ends of his shaggy mane

683
00:53:14.599 --> 00:53:18.639
and rocked in place, giggling, Yeah, yeah, I got something

684
00:53:18.639 --> 00:53:21.880
to keep those pesky counselors out of our business. Father

685
00:53:22.079 --> 00:53:26.199
Oh handpicked all the campers. He wanted to challenge himself

686
00:53:26.239 --> 00:53:29.280
as much as the youth's. Whether it be Henry's seeming

687
00:53:29.320 --> 00:53:34.400
inability to rehabilitate Ted's obesity, Dexter's unwillingness to apply his

688
00:53:34.559 --> 00:53:39.440
genius IQ, Jimmy's authority issues, or Lance's temper, each of

689
00:53:39.480 --> 00:53:42.400
the sixteens offered him a chance to prove his faith.

690
00:53:43.000 --> 00:53:46.480
Spaz was no different. He grew up in a Satanic

691
00:53:46.519 --> 00:53:50.920
cult that were currently all facing charges of kidnapping and cannibalism.

692
00:53:51.159 --> 00:53:53.519
There was no evidence that Spaz had been involved in

693
00:53:53.559 --> 00:53:56.519
the Colt's crimes, but it didn't matter. He was still

694
00:53:56.519 --> 00:54:00.119
a devout, devil worshiper. The raised flesh of a pentagram

695
00:54:00.239 --> 00:54:03.400
branded on his forehead made spas a poster child for

696
00:54:03.440 --> 00:54:09.079
the program if Father Oh could reform him. Okay, Lance said,

697
00:54:09.280 --> 00:54:12.320
let's stop talking about it and get moving. He grabbed

698
00:54:12.320 --> 00:54:17.000
one of Jimmy's devices. No one gets hurt, right, maybe

699
00:54:17.000 --> 00:54:21.400
their feelings, Jimmy shrugged. It's all smoke and sparks and

700
00:54:21.440 --> 00:54:24.079
some little pops, just enough to make them think there's

701
00:54:24.079 --> 00:54:27.559
a fire. The six boys made their way to the

702
00:54:27.599 --> 00:54:30.360
door of the cabin, and Dexter poked his head out first.

703
00:54:31.079 --> 00:54:34.440
The pastor's cabin was dark in the distance, opposite the

704
00:54:34.480 --> 00:54:39.159
oppressive structures of the obstacle course. Dexter nodded the all clear,

705
00:54:39.400 --> 00:54:42.519
and they eased through the screen door, one after the other,

706
00:54:42.960 --> 00:54:46.400
careful not to let the rusted spring slam it shut.

707
00:54:47.280 --> 00:54:51.000
The rubber band of Ted's slingshot twanged softly, followed by

708
00:54:51.039 --> 00:54:55.199
the unavoidable pop of a light bulb shattering. Jimmy stretched

709
00:54:55.239 --> 00:54:57.400
his neck to watch over the bush for Father Oh's

710
00:54:57.480 --> 00:55:01.000
lamp to come on. When it didn't, he tapped Head's shoulder.

711
00:55:01.360 --> 00:55:04.559
The portly Mongolian fired another stone. At the second light.

712
00:55:04.599 --> 00:55:08.159
Positioned over the rack of canoes, shards tinkled off the

713
00:55:08.159 --> 00:55:11.920
fiberglass bodies of the little boats. The boys sprinted across

714
00:55:11.960 --> 00:55:14.639
the open lot and quickly loosed three of the canoes.

715
00:55:15.119 --> 00:55:17.760
They carried them overhead, just like the pastor made them

716
00:55:17.760 --> 00:55:20.920
on their morning marches. The boats hit water, and the

717
00:55:20.960 --> 00:55:25.239
teens paddled gently into the lake. On the other side

718
00:55:25.239 --> 00:55:28.440
of the lake, the lovely ladies of the Mini Winnion

719
00:55:28.559 --> 00:55:32.559
Girls Retreat would be working diligently to finish their nightly duties.

720
00:55:33.119 --> 00:55:36.320
Then they would head to the showers. Their bare flesh

721
00:55:36.400 --> 00:55:40.519
was a siren song sang between the horrid cries of frogs, crickets,

722
00:55:40.559 --> 00:55:44.039
and cicadas. The six boys increased their rowing without saying

723
00:55:44.079 --> 00:55:46.800
a word. They were at the mercy of their loins,

724
00:55:46.800 --> 00:55:49.760
which spurred them faster into the low fog that shrouded

725
00:55:49.760 --> 00:55:54.519
the mouth of the cypress. Maize Spaz held the narrow

726
00:55:54.599 --> 00:55:57.199
trunk of a smaller cypress to keep the canoe still

727
00:55:57.440 --> 00:56:01.320
as Jimmy urinated over the aft. Henry and Ted shared

728
00:56:01.320 --> 00:56:05.159
the lead boat and panned their flashlights around wildly. Lance

729
00:56:05.159 --> 00:56:08.400
and Dexter rode past them and deeper into the maze.

730
00:56:08.639 --> 00:56:12.159
Glad you know the way, Henry, Lance said, This is

731
00:56:12.199 --> 00:56:15.039
the right way. Henry responded, I marked the trees the

732
00:56:15.119 --> 00:56:17.840
last time I went through the stupid thing. We already

733
00:56:17.840 --> 00:56:19.920
made it to the second marker, which means the third

734
00:56:19.920 --> 00:56:23.639
should be right here. That's the half way point. You've

735
00:56:23.639 --> 00:56:26.760
been looking for the mark for twenty minutes. Dexter reminded him.

736
00:56:27.199 --> 00:56:29.199
The girls will already be dried off by the time

737
00:56:29.199 --> 00:56:33.119
we get there. They'll still be naked, though, Ted reassured

738
00:56:33.119 --> 00:56:36.400
them all. A sudden splash broke up their debate and

739
00:56:36.519 --> 00:56:39.599
was immediately followed by a profane cry and another dynamic

740
00:56:39.760 --> 00:56:42.320
entrance into the marsh. The fourteens turned their lights in

741
00:56:42.360 --> 00:56:44.599
the direction of the commotion. The red bottom of the

742
00:56:44.639 --> 00:56:47.079
canoe was facing up and rocking in the turbulence. The

743
00:56:47.199 --> 00:56:49.440
lights danced over the surface of the water and converged

744
00:56:49.480 --> 00:56:51.840
on the face down body that drifted away from the

745
00:56:51.840 --> 00:56:55.639
boat lazily. Oh damn, Dexter went to work with his

746
00:56:55.679 --> 00:56:59.519
oar rowing them backwards. Hold on, Jimmy, we're coming. The

747
00:56:59.559 --> 00:57:02.360
canoe have come down on him. When it flipped, Lance

748
00:57:02.440 --> 00:57:06.480
rode harder and panned his head mounted light wildly. Where's

749
00:57:06.480 --> 00:57:10.079
Spaz Get him out of the water. Henry twisted in

750
00:57:10.119 --> 00:57:13.679
his seat. There's gaiters out there. Why are we out

751
00:57:13.719 --> 00:57:16.360
here in the dark? If there's gaiters, Ted gripped his

752
00:57:16.400 --> 00:57:18.760
oar like a spear and gazed at the black void

753
00:57:18.840 --> 00:57:22.840
around them. They hunt at night, Lots of things hunt

754
00:57:22.880 --> 00:57:26.360
at night. The bank of halogen lights illuminated the teens

755
00:57:26.440 --> 00:57:29.559
and everything in a sixty foot path. Dexter pulled Jimmy's

756
00:57:29.599 --> 00:57:32.519
unconscious body across the canoe behind the glare of the bulbs.

757
00:57:32.679 --> 00:57:36.119
A silhouette stalked across the deck of a camouflaged airboat.

758
00:57:36.559 --> 00:57:39.480
The form of some strange malevolence moved behind him and

759
00:57:39.519 --> 00:57:43.679
slipped over the side, disappearing into the water. Ted stood quickly,

760
00:57:43.719 --> 00:57:46.639
swinging the paddle over his shoulder like a club. Who

761
00:57:46.679 --> 00:57:50.000
are you? Ted took a step back, rocking the boat hard.

762
00:57:50.519 --> 00:57:53.639
Henry leaned forward to the other side to steady them.

763
00:57:53.880 --> 00:57:56.400
Get out of here. Mister, our counselor's out here with us.

764
00:57:57.280 --> 00:58:01.760
The good pastor is sound asleep. The shadowy figure said,

765
00:58:02.400 --> 00:58:06.480
don't struggle too much. I don't want you hurting yourself.

766
00:58:07.280 --> 00:58:10.519
Something broke the surface beside Lance and Dexter. A pair

767
00:58:10.559 --> 00:58:14.199
of malforned green brown appendages reached up and twisted in

768
00:58:14.280 --> 00:58:18.920
Jimmy's clothing. His body slipped back into the marsh. Dexter

769
00:58:19.000 --> 00:58:21.320
and Lance grabbed his legs and struggled to pull him

770
00:58:21.360 --> 00:58:23.880
back in the tug of war intensified with the heavy

771
00:58:23.960 --> 00:58:27.719
rocking of the canoe. Jimmy's legs were completely submerged, then

772
00:58:28.039 --> 00:58:32.119
up to his rib cage. Suddenly the boys were airborne.

773
00:58:32.239 --> 00:58:34.840
They popped their heads above the filthy water, coughing and

774
00:58:34.880 --> 00:58:38.039
rubbing their eyes clear. Jimmy bobbed beside them. They reached

775
00:58:38.039 --> 00:58:42.159
for him in unison. They screamed that way too, when

776
00:58:42.199 --> 00:58:45.440
the bisected body of their bunkmate tipped over and sank

777
00:58:45.800 --> 00:58:49.880
into the abyss. Dexter watched in horror as Ted and

778
00:58:49.920 --> 00:58:52.760
Henry were knocked into the marsh. A net sailed from

779
00:58:52.800 --> 00:58:55.960
the airboat over them, and something beneath the surface gathered it,

780
00:58:56.320 --> 00:58:58.840
dragging it back to the man hiding behind the lights.

781
00:58:59.400 --> 00:59:02.639
Lance disab appeared with a quick splash. Dexter swam as

782
00:59:02.679 --> 00:59:04.440
hard as he could. He didn't care if he was

783
00:59:04.440 --> 00:59:07.239
swimming toward camp or the Mississippi, just so long as

784
00:59:07.239 --> 00:59:10.480
he was swimming anywhere that wasn't a cypress maze. Something

785
00:59:10.519 --> 00:59:13.599
snagged his shirt. He felt the barbs dragging through his flesh,

786
00:59:13.800 --> 00:59:18.599
but forced himself onward. Then he was under water, and

787
00:59:18.639 --> 00:59:24.679
he wasn't alone. The house sat on a tiny island

788
00:59:24.719 --> 00:59:27.079
in the back of the bayou, away from prying eyes.

789
00:59:27.639 --> 00:59:31.079
Sawgrass obscured the boundaries where land met swamp, and the

790
00:59:31.119 --> 00:59:34.960
tiny dock at which the airboat rocked sedately. The ramshackle

791
00:59:35.000 --> 00:59:37.719
three story was built shortly after the Civil War and

792
00:59:37.800 --> 00:59:41.239
abandoned for almost as long. Portions of the roof sagged,

793
00:59:41.320 --> 00:59:44.480
and others had collapsed long before and were patched with tarps.

794
00:59:44.960 --> 00:59:47.239
Glass was long gone from the windows, and the breeze

795
00:59:47.239 --> 00:59:50.880
whistled across the edges of the century old shards that remained.

796
00:59:51.760 --> 00:59:55.119
Two rusted water tanks had been converted to hold gasoline

797
00:59:55.159 --> 00:59:58.119
for the generators, and three windmills provided the rest of

798
00:59:58.119 --> 01:00:03.079
his electricity. The owner stretched his aching limbs. The isolated

799
01:00:03.119 --> 01:00:05.800
home was the perfect location for the laboratory and the

800
01:00:05.840 --> 01:00:09.400
clandestine aims of his research. It was not so easy

801
01:00:09.440 --> 01:00:13.039
on his ailing body, however, He wrung his arthritic hands

802
01:00:13.039 --> 01:00:15.400
and worked the blue nitrial gloves over them with a

803
01:00:15.440 --> 01:00:18.559
pair of sharp snaps. He checked his reflection in a

804
01:00:18.599 --> 01:00:22.199
grimy mirror. Its surface shook with the constant rumbling of

805
01:00:22.239 --> 01:00:26.000
the generators. He'd forgotten surgical masks on his last trek

806
01:00:26.000 --> 01:00:28.880
into town, not that it would matter once the procedure

807
01:00:28.960 --> 01:00:32.119
was complete. He adjusted the paper cap over the few

808
01:00:32.159 --> 01:00:36.119
remaining patches of vomit, yellow hair, and the unfortunate results

809
01:00:36.199 --> 01:00:41.320
of the last treatment. He would succeed soon. It was

810
01:00:41.360 --> 01:00:43.599
a shame the one boy was torn in half, but

811
01:00:44.159 --> 01:00:47.880
science came with losses. No one cared how many monkeys

812
01:00:47.920 --> 01:00:51.679
got vivisected in the name of medical advancement. Teenage boys

813
01:00:51.679 --> 01:00:55.239
were just as abundant and equally expendable. One of them

814
01:00:55.320 --> 01:00:59.039
was advancing at an exponential rate already. The previous summer's

815
01:00:59.079 --> 01:01:01.800
campers were failure, but they did get him closer to

816
01:01:01.840 --> 01:01:04.920
his goals, and he was certain that this was his year.

817
01:01:05.639 --> 01:01:08.159
He wiggled a tooth in its socket with his tongue.

818
01:01:08.480 --> 01:01:11.559
It clacked off the floorboards next to his feet. If

819
01:01:11.559 --> 01:01:14.599
he didn't succeed this year, there wouldn't be enough left

820
01:01:14.599 --> 01:01:18.079
of him for another harvest. He patted up the stairs,

821
01:01:18.079 --> 01:01:21.559
feeling each step rattling his fragile bones. The boy in

822
01:01:21.599 --> 01:01:25.719
the suspension tube was showing amazing cellular response, the other

823
01:01:25.840 --> 01:01:29.000
had not been so compatible. The doctor watched two of

824
01:01:29.039 --> 01:01:32.079
his previous failures, dragging the corpse to the window to

825
01:01:32.119 --> 01:01:34.800
push it over the sill. A splash let him know

826
01:01:34.920 --> 01:01:38.079
they'd made their shot. The two creatures slapped each other's

827
01:01:38.159 --> 01:01:43.079
backs wildly and screeched with excitement. Baboons were so easily pleased,

828
01:01:43.360 --> 01:01:47.440
even ones that weren't entirely monkey anymore. The three remaining

829
01:01:47.480 --> 01:01:50.440
teens awaited their first rounds of injections on the reclined

830
01:01:50.440 --> 01:01:55.159
gurneys that served as surgical tables. The chubby Asian boy

831
01:01:55.239 --> 01:01:57.960
was sobbing, while the other two observed the room quietly.

832
01:01:58.599 --> 01:02:01.840
The doctor found their calm unsettling and busied himself with

833
01:02:01.920 --> 01:02:05.760
turning up the isotope saturation of the suspension tube. The

834
01:02:05.840 --> 01:02:09.280
disfigured team floated in the irradiated solution, beneath the glow

835
01:02:09.320 --> 01:02:12.320
of ultra violet lamps that shimmered between the lily pads

836
01:02:12.320 --> 01:02:15.119
floating at the top of the tube. The doctor tapped

837
01:02:15.119 --> 01:02:19.400
the glass until the boy's eyes opened. You are a

838
01:02:19.519 --> 01:02:24.480
marvelous creature, the doctor said. His two servants bounded closer

839
01:02:24.480 --> 01:02:27.760
to him, leaves pressed through their green gray hairs, with

840
01:02:27.840 --> 01:02:31.480
coiling vines dangling from their aged faces like unkempt beards.

841
01:02:32.159 --> 01:02:36.320
They were his first successes and his only companions. The

842
01:02:36.400 --> 01:02:40.639
doctor patted their heads. Go feed your siblings. They may

843
01:02:40.679 --> 01:02:44.679
not be necessary after tonight. He leaned in and kissed

844
01:02:44.719 --> 01:02:49.039
the suspension tube. We may finally have what we need.

845
01:02:50.639 --> 01:02:54.760
Frank Oppendecker dragged the inflatable boat onto the island's shore.

846
01:02:55.199 --> 01:02:57.920
His boys were missing, and there were two places they

847
01:02:57.960 --> 01:03:01.280
could go with no disturbances at the mini Winyan camp

848
01:03:01.559 --> 01:03:03.559
That only left the creepy house in the middle of

849
01:03:03.599 --> 01:03:06.920
the swamp. Something splashed behind him, and he cocked the

850
01:03:06.920 --> 01:03:10.079
shotguns slide to remind the mysterious owner to stay away.

851
01:03:10.840 --> 01:03:14.599
It did. Father Oh crept through the house, thankful for

852
01:03:14.639 --> 01:03:17.480
the drone of the Generator's masking his creaking ascent to

853
01:03:17.519 --> 01:03:20.679
the second floor. He pressed the walnut stock of his

854
01:03:20.719 --> 01:03:23.960
weapon tight into his shoulder and swiveled around the doorway

855
01:03:24.000 --> 01:03:27.280
into the lab. Three of his campers were strapped down.

856
01:03:27.639 --> 01:03:30.000
Another man stood with the back of a filthy lab

857
01:03:30.039 --> 01:03:33.280
coat turned toward Father Oh. He inched into the room,

858
01:03:33.400 --> 01:03:36.920
scanning the abundance of shadows left by the inadequate illumination

859
01:03:37.400 --> 01:03:41.599
of the strands of Christmas lights overhead. Lance's face stretched

860
01:03:41.599 --> 01:03:43.840
into a smile as he saw the pastor coming in

861
01:03:43.920 --> 01:03:46.840
to save them. He quickly wiped the look away before

862
01:03:46.880 --> 01:03:50.800
the doctor could see it. Where are the others, Father

863
01:03:50.880 --> 01:03:56.320
Row asked. The doctor turned slowly. Warped earth and tendrils

864
01:03:56.360 --> 01:03:59.519
stretched from corrupted flesh and wiggled in the air. Beneath

865
01:03:59.519 --> 01:04:01.960
the lab coat. It was nothing but liver spots and

866
01:04:02.039 --> 01:04:05.239
deep purple veins, broken up by the abominations of the

867
01:04:05.320 --> 01:04:10.119
doctor's self experimentation. Tiny leaves sprang where normal men grew hair,

868
01:04:10.280 --> 01:04:14.719
and bright red flowers opened to sniff the air. You

869
01:04:14.880 --> 01:04:18.800
never come to visit any more, Francis. The doctor ambled

870
01:04:18.800 --> 01:04:23.239
closer to Father Roh with his arms outstretched. I mean it, Dad,

871
01:04:23.480 --> 01:04:26.440
you can't take all of them. Frank lowered his weapon.

872
01:04:27.239 --> 01:04:29.920
I thought your experiments were running a muck again. I

873
01:04:29.920 --> 01:04:32.039
should have known it was your gluttonous zeal for this

874
01:04:32.159 --> 01:04:37.639
blasphemous perversion. Dad Dexter tried to sit up, but the

875
01:04:37.639 --> 01:04:40.039
straps binding him to the table just turned it into

876
01:04:40.079 --> 01:04:45.719
an awkward twitch. Father, Oh what's he talking about? The

877
01:04:45.760 --> 01:04:49.239
pastor ignored him. The doctor pinched the embroidered pocket of

878
01:04:49.239 --> 01:04:51.599
his coat and wiggled it in the direction of Dexter.

879
01:04:52.519 --> 01:04:57.239
Doctor Werner Oppendecker. I'm sorry. I should have introduced myself sooner.

880
01:04:57.920 --> 01:05:01.199
Werner turned to his son. Does it make life easier?

881
01:05:01.519 --> 01:05:05.480
Francis going through it blindly accepting magic instead of reaching

882
01:05:05.480 --> 01:05:09.400
for obtainable knowledge in the realms of science. Save me

883
01:05:09.480 --> 01:05:13.679
the Thanksgiving disappointment debate? Dad cut them loose. He jerked

884
01:05:13.679 --> 01:05:16.880
a thumb toward the suspension tube. You can keep that one,

885
01:05:17.039 --> 01:05:19.559
but these three are going with me. Where are the

886
01:05:19.599 --> 01:05:23.760
other two dead? I'm afraid, and you're not taking my subjects.

887
01:05:24.000 --> 01:05:26.800
I'm too close this time, Francis. I've destroyed my cancers,

888
01:05:26.920 --> 01:05:30.079
though with unfortunate side effects. These hooligans that you brought

889
01:05:30.119 --> 01:05:32.199
me will take the procedure to a level that will

890
01:05:32.280 --> 01:05:37.639
end all human suffering. Human lance grunted. Humans don't grow

891
01:05:37.679 --> 01:05:40.239
lilies on their skin, you nut job. You're not human

892
01:05:41.239 --> 01:05:44.719
and our ancestors were not apes. Warner turned and the

893
01:05:44.719 --> 01:05:49.039
woody tendrils reached out to caress Lance's face. They were more,

894
01:05:49.280 --> 01:05:52.039
and so shall we be. I am no longer just

895
01:05:52.079 --> 01:05:56.920
a man. Warner twisted away, letting the appendages scratch Lance's cheeks.

896
01:05:57.000 --> 01:05:59.519
As he made his way to the tube, he slapped

897
01:05:59.519 --> 01:06:03.679
the glass. Evolution is an undeniable reality, and I have

898
01:06:03.840 --> 01:06:06.719
harnessed it. Human and plant will come together to create

899
01:06:06.719 --> 01:06:09.199
a human that never ages and is immune to all

900
01:06:09.239 --> 01:06:13.599
of our horrible diseases. Meetin veggies, all in one dish.

901
01:06:14.000 --> 01:06:17.800
Dexter said, sounds pretty crazy to me, don't you think so? Ted?

902
01:06:18.719 --> 01:06:23.039
Ted cried louder in response, I think he agrees. Lance said,

903
01:06:23.639 --> 01:06:26.800
I'm not screwing around dad. Father Roh raised the shotgun

904
01:06:26.840 --> 01:06:29.280
to his hip. I'm taking the boy's back with me.

905
01:06:30.119 --> 01:06:32.920
I knew you'd say that. Werner smiled as best he

906
01:06:32.960 --> 01:06:36.000
could with so few teeth remaining. You should have paid

907
01:06:36.039 --> 01:06:41.320
more attention in school's son plants communicate with pheromones. The

908
01:06:41.360 --> 01:06:43.800
floor collapsed under him, and the shotgun boomed as he

909
01:06:43.840 --> 01:06:46.440
fell through, the shrieks of the two baboons mingled with

910
01:06:46.519 --> 01:06:49.280
Father Roh's screams until they were the only sound remaining.

911
01:06:49.719 --> 01:06:52.719
Lance stared at the mad scientist clutching the tight cluster

912
01:06:52.800 --> 01:06:55.480
of buckshot holes in his abdomen. Before he toppled over.

913
01:06:55.840 --> 01:06:58.880
Werner's face splashed into the pool of water streaming from

914
01:06:58.920 --> 01:07:02.079
the holes in the bloodsp laddered suspension to the glass.

915
01:07:02.119 --> 01:07:05.320
Spiderwebbed around them. Fissures raced along the surface until the

916
01:07:05.320 --> 01:07:07.280
weight of the fluid tore the pieces away in a

917
01:07:07.280 --> 01:07:11.519
fantastic crash of falling glass and rushing water. He struggled

918
01:07:11.519 --> 01:07:13.119
to get a hand free of the straps while the

919
01:07:13.119 --> 01:07:17.920
mad scientists screamed at the disaster. Success. Lance quickly undid

920
01:07:17.960 --> 01:07:20.559
the buckles across his torso and proceeded to free Dexter.

921
01:07:21.079 --> 01:07:23.960
They worked in tandem to release Ted, who immediately curled

922
01:07:23.960 --> 01:07:28.199
into a fetal position. Want to wake up now, he cried.

923
01:07:28.480 --> 01:07:30.440
I'm sorry, I tried to look at the girls. I

924
01:07:30.559 --> 01:07:33.039
just want to wake up. We don't have time for this.

925
01:07:33.480 --> 01:07:36.159
Lance slapped Ted's cheek, with no result aside from a

926
01:07:36.239 --> 01:07:39.679
raised handprint. Come on, Ted, we have to run now,

927
01:07:40.360 --> 01:07:43.320
better idea. Dexter kicked the brakes on the gurney's wheels.

928
01:07:43.920 --> 01:07:46.400
That works, now, let's get out of here. They pushed

929
01:07:46.440 --> 01:07:49.039
Ted toward the doorway as fast as the rusted, squealing

930
01:07:49.039 --> 01:07:52.159
wheels would roll. One of the plant monkeys sprang through

931
01:07:52.159 --> 01:07:54.559
the hole in the floor and blocked their path. Its

932
01:07:54.639 --> 01:07:58.599
mossy covered lips peeled away from piercing fangs. Lance slid

933
01:07:58.639 --> 01:08:00.960
like he was stealing home, basing kicked it back into

934
01:08:00.960 --> 01:08:04.039
the hole. The creature's terrified shriek was replaced with Lance's

935
01:08:04.119 --> 01:08:07.119
own as gnarled, root like fangs dug into his leg.

936
01:08:07.800 --> 01:08:11.719
The second beast emerged from broken floorboards. Tiny buds bloomed

937
01:08:11.719 --> 01:08:15.119
among its stiff hairs, revealing snapping floral mouths full of

938
01:08:15.119 --> 01:08:18.960
adhesive fusia fingers. Even the plant based parts of the

939
01:08:19.000 --> 01:08:22.239
monstrosity hungered for flesh. It launched itself out of the

940
01:08:22.239 --> 01:08:25.039
hole and straddled him. The creature tried to pulp Lance's

941
01:08:25.079 --> 01:08:27.960
skull and narrowly missed. Dexter seized it by the thick

942
01:08:27.960 --> 01:08:29.840
coat of its back, only to be attacked by the

943
01:08:29.880 --> 01:08:32.840
miniature mouths hiding there. The plants tore into his hands

944
01:08:32.840 --> 01:08:35.560
and held him tight, while the baboon's jaws snapped inches

945
01:08:35.560 --> 01:08:40.159
from Lance's throat. A horrible chaotic orchestra of howls, shrieks,

946
01:08:40.159 --> 01:08:44.640
and unintelligible shouting played below their battle. I'm sorry, guys,

947
01:08:44.920 --> 01:08:47.319
Ted Vang rolled from his stretcher and darted for the window.

948
01:08:47.720 --> 01:08:51.239
I just wanted to see boobs. The towering green form

949
01:08:51.319 --> 01:08:54.960
lumbered across his path. Twisting vines of inching long thorns

950
01:08:55.000 --> 01:08:58.960
hung like living dreadlocks around its verdant face. Scales of

951
01:08:59.000 --> 01:09:02.119
barks sprouted along the angular jaw, and in the center

952
01:09:02.159 --> 01:09:06.439
of the thing's forehead was the raised lines of a pentagram.

953
01:09:06.760 --> 01:09:10.479
Ted held his arms up defensively. Spaz is that you,

954
01:09:11.079 --> 01:09:17.319
it's Ted. We're friends, right, Bud, right, Spaz hissed, before

955
01:09:17.359 --> 01:09:21.479
his new hair ensnared the portly camper. Spaz's chest opened

956
01:09:21.640 --> 01:09:24.199
with a sticky slurp, and he jerked Ted into the

957
01:09:24.279 --> 01:09:28.119
maw head first. Spaz snapped around to the remaining campers

958
01:09:28.119 --> 01:09:31.159
as they fought with the baboon. He stomped toward the fray.

959
01:09:32.119 --> 01:09:34.800
Things just got worse. Dexter slammed a knee into the

960
01:09:34.800 --> 01:09:37.840
monkey's tailbone and tore a hand free. Lance held the

961
01:09:37.880 --> 01:09:40.960
creature's jaws apart, with his face caught between them. Not

962
01:09:41.079 --> 01:09:44.640
from down here, they haven't kill this stupid thing. Spaz

963
01:09:44.680 --> 01:09:47.359
is foot connected with Dexter and sent him in the abomination,

964
01:09:47.479 --> 01:09:51.000
thudding into the wall. Shit. Lance stared up at Spaz.

965
01:09:51.560 --> 01:09:54.840
Things just got worse. Lance rolled away as the thorns

966
01:09:54.920 --> 01:09:57.239
scoured the floor in a vain effort to seize him.

967
01:09:57.479 --> 01:10:00.119
He pulled the gurney between him and Spas. Ted. His

968
01:10:00.199 --> 01:10:03.439
legs kicked soundlessly as his head and torso dissolved inside

969
01:10:03.479 --> 01:10:08.319
Spaz's new form. The man Plant's lips contorted in malevolent joy.

970
01:10:09.319 --> 01:10:14.000
I've always enjoyed the taste of human it growled. Yeah, well,

971
01:10:14.319 --> 01:10:17.760
I've always hated vegetables. Lance grabbed Ted's leg and jumped

972
01:10:17.760 --> 01:10:20.560
down the hole. Spaz caught himself on the broken boards,

973
01:10:20.560 --> 01:10:23.039
and Lance dangled from the leg of his slowly digesting

974
01:10:23.079 --> 01:10:26.199
fellow camper. The first flour was a demolition site. The

975
01:10:26.199 --> 01:10:30.039
busted cages lined the walls. Malformed freaks ran amook, tearing

976
01:10:30.119 --> 01:10:33.359
apart the home and each other. Father, oh what was

977
01:10:33.439 --> 01:10:35.920
left of him, limped through the madness, freeing more of

978
01:10:35.960 --> 01:10:38.960
the doctor's failed experiments. Lance dropped the rest of the

979
01:10:38.960 --> 01:10:41.920
distance and picked himself up with a groan. Something that

980
01:10:42.079 --> 01:10:44.319
might have been a raccoon snarled at him, and he

981
01:10:44.399 --> 01:10:47.479
booted it across the room. Its mossy body bounced next

982
01:10:47.520 --> 01:10:51.199
to Father Roh's shotgun. Spaz came crashing down beside him,

983
01:10:51.239 --> 01:10:54.000
with Dexter on his back. The teen winked at Lance

984
01:10:54.119 --> 01:10:56.880
and then jumped off the writhing beast. Let's get out

985
01:10:56.880 --> 01:10:59.119
of here, Dexter said, as he ran for the door

986
01:10:59.560 --> 01:11:03.119
detour first. Lance dashed for the weapon and joined him

987
01:11:03.119 --> 01:11:05.600
on the front porch. They watched some of the creatures

988
01:11:05.640 --> 01:11:09.159
swim away from the tiny island. Others simply disappeared beneath

989
01:11:09.159 --> 01:11:13.079
the placid surface of the swamp. Lance twisted and saw

990
01:11:13.119 --> 01:11:16.399
the oblong, rust covered tanks next to the house. He

991
01:11:16.560 --> 01:11:19.760
raised the shotgun and fired it until it clicked on

992
01:11:19.840 --> 01:11:23.399
the empty chamber. Gasoline spurted from the wounds, but the

993
01:11:23.439 --> 01:11:28.159
tanks didn't explode. Dexter raised an eyebrow and shrugged. It's

994
01:11:28.199 --> 01:11:31.640
the thought that counts. It always works in the movies.

995
01:11:31.920 --> 01:11:35.319
Lance pointed at the airboat. Let's go. The two teens

996
01:11:35.399 --> 01:11:38.039
untied from the mooring and turned on the motor, watching

997
01:11:38.039 --> 01:11:40.960
the oversized fan spin without any sort of guard. The

998
01:11:41.039 --> 01:11:43.199
doctor cared as much for safety as he did for

999
01:11:43.279 --> 01:11:46.479
medical ethics, it seemed. Dexter laughed and held up a

1000
01:11:46.520 --> 01:11:51.479
plastic box with big block letters emergency signal kit. Lance

1001
01:11:51.520 --> 01:11:54.159
took the case and opened it quickly, finding the flare

1002
01:11:54.199 --> 01:11:57.000
gun inside. Drew an excited whoop from him. Bet it

1003
01:11:57.039 --> 01:11:59.920
blows up now, Dexter said. He moved them away from

1004
01:11:59.920 --> 01:12:02.439
the doc gently as he got the hang of the controls.

1005
01:12:02.880 --> 01:12:05.159
The boat rocked hard and the boy spun to see

1006
01:12:05.199 --> 01:12:08.279
Spaz climbing over the side to join them. Dexter jumped

1007
01:12:08.279 --> 01:12:10.399
from the controls and body checked him before he could

1008
01:12:10.399 --> 01:12:13.000
get his balance. The fan blades caught the vines and

1009
01:12:13.079 --> 01:12:17.159
diced them. Lance and Dexter exchanged glances. Dexter ducked under

1010
01:12:17.239 --> 01:12:20.039
Spaz's swinging fist and dropped to the deck behind him.

1011
01:12:20.439 --> 01:12:24.159
Let's toss this salad, Dexter shouted. Lance jumped over the

1012
01:12:24.159 --> 01:12:26.920
steering column and kicked Spas with both feet, sending him

1013
01:12:26.960 --> 01:12:29.920
careening over the prone Dexter and into the fan. Spaz's

1014
01:12:30.000 --> 01:12:33.319
mulch remains sprayed behind the boat as his body passed

1015
01:12:33.359 --> 01:12:38.119
through the oversized food processor with ease, Let's toss this salad.

1016
01:12:38.560 --> 01:12:41.239
That was the best you could come up with, Lance laughed.

1017
01:12:41.600 --> 01:12:44.640
Dexter scooped the flare gun and slapped it against Lance's palm,

1018
01:12:44.880 --> 01:12:48.800
shut up and burn the house down. Already gladly, Lance

1019
01:12:48.840 --> 01:12:52.000
sat up and fired at the tanks. They watched the

1020
01:12:52.039 --> 01:12:55.520
fire spread through the tall grass. It moved placidly until

1021
01:12:55.560 --> 01:12:58.279
it met the dried, ancient timber of the house. The

1022
01:12:58.319 --> 01:13:01.479
structure flared like a match had, spreading its light across

1023
01:13:01.520 --> 01:13:04.640
the black water. Somewhere in the swamp, a baboon cried

1024
01:13:04.680 --> 01:13:08.680
out as it watched its home burn. Think the girls

1025
01:13:08.680 --> 01:13:14.399
have taken a shower yet, Lance asked, Probably. Dexter turned

1026
01:13:14.439 --> 01:13:18.279
the steering wheel. Can't hurt to double check. The fuel

1027
01:13:18.319 --> 01:13:21.960
tanks exploded behind them, but they didn't bother. Looking back,

1028
01:13:22.560 --> 01:13:26.479
Dexter sped up, maneuvering through the bayou. The experiments were loose,

1029
01:13:26.680 --> 01:13:29.840
but at least the doctor wouldn't be making anymore. They

1030
01:13:29.840 --> 01:13:33.920
would tell the authorities what happened. Eventually, there were more

1031
01:13:33.960 --> 01:13:37.279
pressing matters to attend to. First, they smiled through the

1032
01:13:37.279 --> 01:13:40.520
blood and grime and aimed the boat toward the cypress.

1033
01:13:40.560 --> 01:13:52.640
Maze I used to drive a delivery truck until the

1034
01:13:52.760 --> 01:13:59.800
incident by Michael Kelso to Harry my oldest nephew on

1035
01:13:59.840 --> 01:14:03.399
the cusp of adulthood and looking for his first job.

1036
01:14:04.119 --> 01:14:06.520
I've been told you want to drive a truck and

1037
01:14:06.600 --> 01:14:09.079
are looking for me to give you a good recommendation

1038
01:14:09.800 --> 01:14:14.079
to my former employer. I'm sorry to say I will

1039
01:14:14.079 --> 01:14:18.000
not do that now. Before you get angry or hurt,

1040
01:14:18.720 --> 01:14:22.520
please listen to why and judge for yourself if you

1041
01:14:22.680 --> 01:14:27.560
really want to pursue this avenue. I used to drive

1042
01:14:27.600 --> 01:14:31.159
a delivery truck for a car parts company. It wasn't

1043
01:14:31.159 --> 01:14:34.039
a bad job. I spent a lot of time alone

1044
01:14:34.079 --> 01:14:39.000
with my thoughts while driving to various garages to deliver parts.

1045
01:14:39.640 --> 01:14:42.079
I also listened to a lot of audio books as

1046
01:14:42.079 --> 01:14:45.319
I drove. It was a wonderful way to pass the time.

1047
01:14:45.920 --> 01:14:48.319
I could get totally immersed in a book as I

1048
01:14:48.399 --> 01:14:53.239
was driving endlessly boring miles. I never considered myself to

1049
01:14:53.239 --> 01:14:56.560
be much of a troublemaker. I would go along to

1050
01:14:56.600 --> 01:15:00.479
get along, as they say. Working for just above minimum

1051
01:15:00.479 --> 01:15:03.119
wage while driving on icy roads to the middle of

1052
01:15:03.159 --> 01:15:06.960
nowhere garages was what I did all the time. I

1053
01:15:07.000 --> 01:15:11.399
didn't complain about it much, at least not to the boss.

1054
01:15:12.039 --> 01:15:14.000
But I did my job, and I thought I did

1055
01:15:14.000 --> 01:15:19.920
it well. Apparently not everyone agreed. One day I came

1056
01:15:19.960 --> 01:15:22.600
to work and was shown the new addition to my truck.

1057
01:15:23.439 --> 01:15:25.960
There was a small box that hung down under the

1058
01:15:26.000 --> 01:15:29.279
rearview mirror. I asked what it was, and they told

1059
01:15:29.319 --> 01:15:33.239
me it was a camera. What they didn't tell me

1060
01:15:33.439 --> 01:15:37.359
was it was actually two cameras, one facing out toward

1061
01:15:37.399 --> 01:15:42.880
the road and one facing in toward the driver. They

1062
01:15:42.920 --> 01:15:46.039
were being installed to make sure the drivers were doing

1063
01:15:46.079 --> 01:15:49.520
their jobs. Now, I had worked for the company for

1064
01:15:49.680 --> 01:15:53.239
years without a single ticket. I never had any complaints

1065
01:15:53.279 --> 01:15:55.720
from any of my customers, and I never put a

1066
01:15:55.760 --> 01:15:59.199
scratch on any of the trucks I drove, so naturally,

1067
01:15:59.279 --> 01:16:03.039
I took this care situation as a personal incitement on

1068
01:16:03.119 --> 01:16:08.359
my driving and on my moral character. I wasn't the

1069
01:16:08.399 --> 01:16:12.239
only one who wasn't happy about it, but the company's

1070
01:16:12.279 --> 01:16:16.760
stance was essentially get over it. This was back when

1071
01:16:16.840 --> 01:16:19.239
jobs were harder to come by, and the company said

1072
01:16:19.279 --> 01:16:22.520
if we didn't like it, we were welcome to get

1073
01:16:22.520 --> 01:16:25.479
the hell out. Those of us who needed to pay

1074
01:16:25.520 --> 01:16:28.920
bills and feed our families decided to keep working and

1075
01:16:29.039 --> 01:16:32.840
earning a paycheck. After a few months, we mostly forgot

1076
01:16:32.880 --> 01:16:35.279
the cameras were there and went back to doing what

1077
01:16:35.319 --> 01:16:40.079
we do. Keep our mouths shut and deliver parts like

1078
01:16:40.119 --> 01:16:43.279
we had a choice. The cameras weren't the end of

1079
01:16:43.319 --> 01:16:46.880
the world that we thought. There were a few write ups,

1080
01:16:46.920 --> 01:16:51.800
but they were stupid people doing stupid things. Me. I

1081
01:16:51.920 --> 01:16:55.239
followed the rules and didn't have any problems. I did

1082
01:16:55.239 --> 01:16:57.399
what I was supposed to and didn't do what I

1083
01:16:57.560 --> 01:17:02.199
wasn't supposed to. I know that's ae concept in today's world.

1084
01:17:03.079 --> 01:17:05.600
That changed the day the boss told me I was

1085
01:17:05.640 --> 01:17:10.119
being written up for having a passenger with me. He

1086
01:17:10.239 --> 01:17:13.520
recited the rule number in the handbook that clearly stated

1087
01:17:13.840 --> 01:17:17.239
that no passengers are to be in company vehicles unless

1088
01:17:17.279 --> 01:17:22.039
approved by a supervisor. I asked him what he was

1089
01:17:22.119 --> 01:17:26.479
talking about and told him I didn't have any passengers.

1090
01:17:27.159 --> 01:17:29.359
He told me that the main office had a video

1091
01:17:29.439 --> 01:17:32.960
of me carrying a passenger along with me. He even

1092
01:17:33.039 --> 01:17:37.000
quoted the date and time of the offense. I thought

1093
01:17:37.079 --> 01:17:40.319
back and racked my brain trying to remember if I

1094
01:17:40.319 --> 01:17:43.880
had stopped and picked someone up on that day, and

1095
01:17:43.920 --> 01:17:49.279
then I remembered I've never stopped and picked anyone up

1096
01:17:50.000 --> 01:17:54.399
because I know it's against the rules. I thought about

1097
01:17:54.439 --> 01:17:57.359
getting angry and raising a fuss. I thought about telling

1098
01:17:57.399 --> 01:18:00.319
them that this was precisely the kind of harassment I

1099
01:18:00.399 --> 01:18:05.880
expected what happen when these damn cameras were installed. Then

1100
01:18:06.560 --> 01:18:09.960
I remembered their stance of shut up and deal with it,

1101
01:18:10.159 --> 01:18:14.479
or we'll find someone else who will. That thought made

1102
01:18:14.520 --> 01:18:19.880
me calm down and let it slide. I chuckled. Someone

1103
01:18:19.960 --> 01:18:22.720
must have gotten videos and names mixed up. I thought,

1104
01:18:23.479 --> 01:18:27.039
no big deal, I know the truth. I shrugged it

1105
01:18:27.079 --> 01:18:29.199
off and threw the write up away. When I got it,

1106
01:18:29.760 --> 01:18:32.800
my boss told me it didn't really mean anything anyway.

1107
01:18:33.359 --> 01:18:37.520
Only major infractions were going to be disciplined. I wondered

1108
01:18:37.560 --> 01:18:39.960
why he'd even told me about it if it didn't

1109
01:18:40.000 --> 01:18:43.840
mean anything. Driving in traffic and on snow covered roads

1110
01:18:43.840 --> 01:18:47.239
in winter was stressful enough without worrying about the main

1111
01:18:47.319 --> 01:18:52.319
office saying I did something I didn't do. The following week,

1112
01:18:53.159 --> 01:18:57.479
I got another write up, once again, for having a passenger.

1113
01:18:58.199 --> 01:19:01.239
I told the boss I hadn't had had any passengers.

1114
01:19:01.720 --> 01:19:05.680
I told him I follow the rules and he knows it. Again,

1115
01:19:06.119 --> 01:19:08.960
he told me the main office had a video of

1116
01:19:09.000 --> 01:19:14.520
me driving with someone in the passenger seat. At this point,

1117
01:19:14.560 --> 01:19:17.680
I was starting to get upset. Being accused of something

1118
01:19:17.720 --> 01:19:20.079
I did was one thing, but being accused of what

1119
01:19:20.159 --> 01:19:22.960
I've never done and getting ridden up for it was

1120
01:19:23.079 --> 01:19:26.760
just too much. I asked the boss to see the video.

1121
01:19:27.720 --> 01:19:30.680
He pulled it up on the computer. I watched as

1122
01:19:30.720 --> 01:19:33.319
he worked through the controls, confident that I was going

1123
01:19:33.359 --> 01:19:35.960
to find the mistake or the name of the person

1124
01:19:36.000 --> 01:19:39.760
who actually had committed the infraction and clear my name.

1125
01:19:41.359 --> 01:19:44.880
But that didn't happen. He pulled up the video, and

1126
01:19:44.960 --> 01:19:48.720
sure enough, there I was driving along and in the

1127
01:19:48.760 --> 01:19:53.239
passenger seat was a large, middle aged man just staring

1128
01:19:53.279 --> 01:19:55.760
out the windshield like he was along for the ride.

1129
01:19:57.199 --> 01:20:00.199
My mind was having trouble comprehending what I was seeing.

1130
01:20:01.479 --> 01:20:04.399
When I pulled myself out of my shocked stupor, I

1131
01:20:04.439 --> 01:20:07.760
asked the boss what the date was when this happened.

1132
01:20:08.520 --> 01:20:11.359
He told me, and I racked my brain to come

1133
01:20:11.439 --> 01:20:14.359
up with an answer to this. I peered closer at

1134
01:20:14.359 --> 01:20:17.760
the screen to make sure I was the driver. There

1135
01:20:17.880 --> 01:20:20.640
was little doubt it was me. I was wearing the

1136
01:20:20.680 --> 01:20:23.520
gray sweatshirt I wear when I drive. I had one

1137
01:20:23.560 --> 01:20:25.840
hand on the wheel and the other leaning out the window,

1138
01:20:26.039 --> 01:20:29.279
just like I do when I'm bored. I was wearing

1139
01:20:29.319 --> 01:20:32.359
my ball cap with the logo of my favorite baseball team.

1140
01:20:32.640 --> 01:20:35.439
It was me. If only I could figure out who

1141
01:20:35.479 --> 01:20:38.560
this other person was and what was happening to me?

1142
01:20:39.439 --> 01:20:42.199
Was I forgetting things? Was I having blackouts and not

1143
01:20:42.359 --> 01:20:45.119
knowing it? How could this person be in my truck

1144
01:20:45.159 --> 01:20:48.800
without me knowing. It's not like he was some stowaway

1145
01:20:48.920 --> 01:20:52.119
hiding amongst the parts in the back. He was sitting

1146
01:20:52.199 --> 01:20:56.439
three feet away from me. That person wasn't there, I

1147
01:20:56.520 --> 01:21:00.640
told the boss. The camera says he was. The boss said,

1148
01:21:01.279 --> 01:21:02.760
I don't know what to tell you. I wish I

1149
01:21:02.760 --> 01:21:05.319
could believe you. You've been one of my best drivers,

1150
01:21:05.359 --> 01:21:08.439
but we're starting to get into repeat offenses. The company

1151
01:21:08.479 --> 01:21:12.119
is going to take action soon, take action against what

1152
01:21:12.800 --> 01:21:15.960
I said a little louder than I intended. There was

1153
01:21:16.039 --> 01:21:18.880
no one there. I don't know who has it out

1154
01:21:18.880 --> 01:21:22.119
for me, or who is playing this little photoshop trick

1155
01:21:22.159 --> 01:21:24.239
to get me in trouble. But I swear on a

1156
01:21:24.279 --> 01:21:29.039
stack of bibles that man was never in my truck.

1157
01:21:30.079 --> 01:21:32.800
I don't know what to tell you, he said. A

1158
01:21:32.840 --> 01:21:36.920
thought crossed my mind. Can you see where I pick

1159
01:21:36.960 --> 01:21:41.800
him up? I said? The boss eyed me. You said

1160
01:21:41.840 --> 01:21:44.000
I have him in my truck. I must have picked

1161
01:21:44.079 --> 01:21:48.039
him up. Somewhere. Can you tell me where? He looked

1162
01:21:48.039 --> 01:21:52.239
at the computer and began rewinding the video. The miles

1163
01:21:52.319 --> 01:21:56.560
rolled backwards and the man just sat there watching the windshield.

1164
01:21:57.680 --> 01:22:02.600
Then suddenly he disappeared. He stopped the video and ran

1165
01:22:02.640 --> 01:22:05.760
it forward at normal speed. I came to a stop

1166
01:22:05.840 --> 01:22:10.199
sign and the man jumped in pause it, I said,

1167
01:22:10.640 --> 01:22:13.960
where is that? He looked at the GPS information that

1168
01:22:14.039 --> 01:22:17.520
was embedded in the video, the corner of Hamilton and Wright.

1169
01:22:18.640 --> 01:22:22.880
What's there? I said? He looked at the map. Nothing.

1170
01:22:23.760 --> 01:22:26.520
I leaned over and saw the same thing. There was

1171
01:22:26.600 --> 01:22:29.000
nothing around there for at least a half a mile.

1172
01:22:30.119 --> 01:22:33.640
That's on my normal Thursday route, Isn't it looks like it?

1173
01:22:34.359 --> 01:22:37.880
I sat back in thought. He shot me a grim look.

1174
01:22:38.920 --> 01:22:41.840
You know this is out of my hands. I stared

1175
01:22:41.840 --> 01:22:44.600
at him, shocked that this falsehood was going to end

1176
01:22:44.680 --> 01:22:48.239
up costing me my job. You're my boss, I said,

1177
01:22:48.600 --> 01:22:51.239
How can it be out of your hands? The main

1178
01:22:51.319 --> 01:22:55.239
office wants to make an example out of me? He

1179
01:22:55.279 --> 01:22:59.920
nodded slowly. Should I be updating my resume? I said,

1180
01:23:01.199 --> 01:23:04.560
I would if I were you. I got up, hung

1181
01:23:04.600 --> 01:23:10.079
my head and turned to walk away, then paused, would

1182
01:23:10.119 --> 01:23:13.439
you do me a favor, I said. He looked at

1183
01:23:13.439 --> 01:23:17.960
me skeptically. Depends on what it is. Could you call

1184
01:23:18.039 --> 01:23:20.479
the main office and ask the person who monitors the

1185
01:23:20.479 --> 01:23:24.319
trucks to call me if this ever happens again. The

1186
01:23:24.399 --> 01:23:27.800
boss rubbed his chin as he thought, I guess that

1187
01:23:27.880 --> 01:23:31.560
could be doable. I nodded and started toward my truck

1188
01:23:31.640 --> 01:23:34.800
to load for my run. As I drove away from

1189
01:23:34.800 --> 01:23:37.960
the terminal, my eyes kept darting towards the passenger's seat,

1190
01:23:38.239 --> 01:23:41.239
as if I was somehow missing someone climbing into the

1191
01:23:41.279 --> 01:23:44.680
truck and sitting beside me. That was the way my

1192
01:23:44.920 --> 01:23:48.039
entire run went that day. I was so distracted I

1193
01:23:48.079 --> 01:23:51.079
nearly rear ended a car at a stop sign. I

1194
01:23:51.159 --> 01:23:54.239
looked over and the sign said I was at the

1195
01:23:54.279 --> 01:23:57.720
corner of Hamilton and Wright. I looked to see what

1196
01:23:57.880 --> 01:24:02.680
was there and didn't immediately see anything. I leaned forward

1197
01:24:02.720 --> 01:24:08.159
to see what was beside me and paused. There was

1198
01:24:08.199 --> 01:24:12.199
a small graveyard. It wasn't big enough to register on

1199
01:24:12.239 --> 01:24:18.079
the map. There were maybe thirty gravestones all together. It

1200
01:24:18.159 --> 01:24:22.159
didn't even have a fence around it. I was pulled

1201
01:24:22.159 --> 01:24:25.039
from my thoughts by the car behind me honking their horn.

1202
01:24:25.560 --> 01:24:28.479
I pulled out and started down the road, lost in

1203
01:24:28.520 --> 01:24:31.960
the thoughts that were chasing each other around in my head.

1204
01:24:32.560 --> 01:24:37.920
A graveyard, I thought, there's no one I can see.

1205
01:24:38.239 --> 01:24:41.720
Could it be a I didn't want to finish the thought.

1206
01:24:42.399 --> 01:24:44.479
I was never into that kind of thing and never

1207
01:24:44.520 --> 01:24:47.720
really believed in it. When the phone rang, I nearly

1208
01:24:47.800 --> 01:24:53.039
jumped out of my skin. Hello, I said, this is Carl.

1209
01:24:53.119 --> 01:24:55.920
I monitor the cameras in the trucks. Look, I know

1210
01:24:56.039 --> 01:24:58.880
I nearly hit that car, but I'm just a little

1211
01:24:58.880 --> 01:25:03.680
distracted today. What. No, that's not why I'm calling. Okay,

1212
01:25:04.039 --> 01:25:07.399
you just bored and need to talk to someone. No,

1213
01:25:07.760 --> 01:25:09.760
your boss told me to call you when I saw

1214
01:25:09.800 --> 01:25:14.479
you with a passenger. Yeah, so, I said, looking over

1215
01:25:14.520 --> 01:25:18.159
at the empty space beside me, you have a passenger.

1216
01:25:19.279 --> 01:25:24.039
My entire body turned to Ice. Say that again, I said,

1217
01:25:24.760 --> 01:25:27.880
you have a passenger, he said. I stared at the

1218
01:25:27.880 --> 01:25:32.439
empty seat where I said. He's sitting in the passenger

1219
01:25:32.520 --> 01:25:37.760
seat right beside you, he said, sounding a little annoyed, Carl,

1220
01:25:38.199 --> 01:25:42.600
I said that can't be right. There's no one besides me.

1221
01:25:43.880 --> 01:25:47.079
That's not true, he said, his voice rising. I can

1222
01:25:47.119 --> 01:25:49.319
see him plain as day. He's wearing a red ball

1223
01:25:49.359 --> 01:25:53.159
cap overalls in a plaid shirt. I was staring at

1224
01:25:53.159 --> 01:25:56.239
the seat. When I looked back at the road, there

1225
01:25:56.279 --> 01:25:58.319
was a truck stopped right in front of me. I

1226
01:25:58.359 --> 01:26:00.720
stood on the brakes, hearing them scream I'm in protest,

1227
01:26:00.720 --> 01:26:03.319
but not slowing my truck enough. I knew I was

1228
01:26:03.359 --> 01:26:05.359
going to hit him. I swung the wheel over as

1229
01:26:05.399 --> 01:26:07.600
hard as I could, feeling the truck start to tip,

1230
01:26:07.800 --> 01:26:10.600
then swung back. As I slid to a stop at

1231
01:26:10.640 --> 01:26:13.880
the berm of the road, I looked at the truck

1232
01:26:13.960 --> 01:26:17.840
sitting beside me, breathing hard, not only from the accident

1233
01:26:17.880 --> 01:26:21.359
I just avoided, but also from the news Carl had

1234
01:26:21.399 --> 01:26:25.960
given me. Okay, Carl, I said, in a lower voice,

1235
01:26:26.000 --> 01:26:28.680
as if I didn't want my imaginary passenger to hear.

1236
01:26:30.199 --> 01:26:35.159
What is my so called passenger doing. He's just staring

1237
01:26:35.199 --> 01:26:40.720
straight ahead. I'm going to try something, I said, tell

1238
01:26:40.720 --> 01:26:44.359
me what he does next. I hesitated for a moment,

1239
01:26:45.199 --> 01:26:51.640
then reached my hand slowly across the passenger seat. I

1240
01:26:51.760 --> 01:26:55.279
waved it back and forth in the empty air. As

1241
01:26:55.319 --> 01:26:59.239
I did, my hand felt cold, as if I had

1242
01:26:59.359 --> 01:27:04.079
just stuck it into a freezer. Oh my god, Carl said,

1243
01:27:04.600 --> 01:27:10.880
what's happening your hands, It's passing right through him. It

1244
01:27:10.920 --> 01:27:15.159
feels cold. Wait a minute, Carl said, he's doing something.

1245
01:27:15.880 --> 01:27:20.359
What he's looking at your hand? I immediately pulled my

1246
01:27:20.439 --> 01:27:25.239
hand back. What's he doing now, he's looking straight at you.

1247
01:27:26.039 --> 01:27:30.199
I felt the blood drain out of my face. Holy shit,

1248
01:27:30.720 --> 01:27:33.640
Carl screamed, Get out of there, Get out now. I

1249
01:27:33.720 --> 01:27:36.439
fumbled with the door latch, somehow forgetting how to open

1250
01:27:36.439 --> 01:27:39.199
a door. When it opened, I tumbled out of the truck.

1251
01:27:39.439 --> 01:27:42.840
I looked back inside, still not seeing anything. Then I

1252
01:27:42.880 --> 01:27:46.399
put the phone back up to my ear. Now was

1253
01:27:46.439 --> 01:27:49.119
all I was able to get out before my world

1254
01:27:50.199 --> 01:27:55.279
went dark. I woke to a white room, beeping machines

1255
01:27:55.319 --> 01:27:58.600
and hoses stuck in my arm. I looked around the

1256
01:27:58.680 --> 01:28:01.239
room and saw a bouquet of flowers that were starting

1257
01:28:01.239 --> 01:28:04.119
to wilt. A nurse walked into the room with a

1258
01:28:04.159 --> 01:28:09.319
syringe in her hand. Where am I, I rasped, causing

1259
01:28:09.359 --> 01:28:15.600
her to jump. Oh my god, you scared me, She said, why,

1260
01:28:16.239 --> 01:28:22.479
because you've been in a coma for three weeks. What happened?

1261
01:28:23.439 --> 01:28:27.720
Don't you remember, she said? I slowly shook my head.

1262
01:28:28.439 --> 01:28:30.199
You pulled over on the side of the road and

1263
01:28:30.279 --> 01:28:33.720
jumped out of your truck right into traffic. She said,

1264
01:28:34.439 --> 01:28:37.000
you got hit by a car and sustained several life

1265
01:28:37.039 --> 01:28:42.560
threatening injuries. Am I okay, Now you really should talk

1266
01:28:42.600 --> 01:28:47.760
to the doctor about that, She said, please, I rasped,

1267
01:28:48.039 --> 01:28:52.319
grasping her hand. She looked around as if someone was listening,

1268
01:28:52.840 --> 01:28:56.279
then leaned close to my ear. As far as I know,

1269
01:28:57.119 --> 01:29:00.720
you should make a full recovery, she said, They just

1270
01:29:00.760 --> 01:29:06.039
aren't sure about your mental state. Why I heard you

1271
01:29:06.079 --> 01:29:09.199
were babbling on about seeing things when you first came in,

1272
01:29:10.399 --> 01:29:14.479
Like what things like a goat? How's the patient, an

1273
01:29:14.520 --> 01:29:18.640
authoritative voice said. The nurse straightened and backed away. He's

1274
01:29:18.680 --> 01:29:21.920
awake and seems to be progressing, the nurse said, straightening

1275
01:29:21.960 --> 01:29:26.439
her uniform. Good good. The doctor said, Let's see how

1276
01:29:26.479 --> 01:29:28.520
you do in a day or so. Maybe we can

1277
01:29:28.560 --> 01:29:30.520
have a little talk about when you first came in.

1278
01:29:31.159 --> 01:29:34.760
I nodded and tried to fake a smile. The following day,

1279
01:29:34.800 --> 01:29:38.159
I received an unexpected visitor. He was a small man,

1280
01:29:38.359 --> 01:29:40.960
not too far out of his teens by his appearance.

1281
01:29:41.560 --> 01:29:44.600
He knocked quietly at my door and started to turn

1282
01:29:44.640 --> 01:29:49.960
around and leave when I said, can I help you? Yeah? Uh,

1283
01:29:50.039 --> 01:29:54.520
maybe I don't know, he said. Okay, let's start with

1284
01:29:54.840 --> 01:29:59.439
who are you? Oh? Sorry, he said, stumbling forward a

1285
01:29:59.520 --> 01:30:02.039
nearly on top of me as he held out his hand.

1286
01:30:02.720 --> 01:30:08.520
I'm Carl. I shook it slowly. Carl, I repeated, Like

1287
01:30:09.039 --> 01:30:13.359
Carl from the company. He smiled, Like Carl who told

1288
01:30:13.399 --> 01:30:16.039
me to jump out into traffic and nearly killed me,

1289
01:30:16.760 --> 01:30:19.960
I said, tightening my grip. He winced and wormed his

1290
01:30:20.039 --> 01:30:25.359
way out of my grip. Yeah, about that, he said. Sorry,

1291
01:30:25.399 --> 01:30:30.039
by the way, but I wanted to explain, explain what

1292
01:30:30.479 --> 01:30:32.960
I said, sitting up so I might get another chance

1293
01:30:33.000 --> 01:30:38.560
at him. This, he said, holding up his phone. It's

1294
01:30:38.600 --> 01:30:42.800
a phone, I said, sarcastically. I've seen them before once

1295
01:30:42.920 --> 01:30:46.560
or twice, I'm sure, he said. But it's what's on

1296
01:30:46.680 --> 01:30:50.279
the phone that you need to see. Okay, what's on it?

1297
01:30:50.800 --> 01:30:53.079
He fiddled with the phone for a moment, almost dropping

1298
01:30:53.159 --> 01:30:56.640
it twice, then turned it toward me. What am I

1299
01:30:56.680 --> 01:31:00.239
looking at? I said, as the screen shook. Give it

1300
01:31:00.279 --> 01:31:04.000
a minute. The screen settled down and I saw it

1301
01:31:04.079 --> 01:31:07.479
was a recording of me in the truck. I was

1302
01:31:07.560 --> 01:31:10.319
mesmerized at the sight of the person sitting next to me.

1303
01:31:11.159 --> 01:31:14.199
I watched as I waved my hand back and forth

1304
01:31:14.239 --> 01:31:17.840
through his torso, I saw him look at my hand,

1305
01:31:19.000 --> 01:31:24.840
then look at me. His face suddenly changed. His smile

1306
01:31:25.119 --> 01:31:32.000
turned malevolent as it grew impossibly large. The grin extended

1307
01:31:32.039 --> 01:31:35.239
nearly to his ears, and his teeth grew three inches

1308
01:31:35.279 --> 01:31:37.800
to where he looked like a shark about to attack

1309
01:31:38.520 --> 01:31:42.079
his fingers. They grew into claws, and his eyes disappeared

1310
01:31:42.079 --> 01:31:46.680
into his head, turning as black as the abyss. I

1311
01:31:46.760 --> 01:31:48.960
saw him reach for me as I fumbled with the

1312
01:31:49.039 --> 01:31:51.960
door latch, and he swiped his claws at me. As

1313
01:31:51.960 --> 01:31:54.840
I fell out of the cab, he leered out the

1314
01:31:54.880 --> 01:31:57.800
driver's side window at me, but stayed in the truck

1315
01:31:58.600 --> 01:32:04.479
and slowly faded away. When Carl pulled the phone away,

1316
01:32:05.000 --> 01:32:08.359
sweat was pouring off my forehead. I looked him in

1317
01:32:08.399 --> 01:32:13.000
the eye and said I forgive you. He smiled and

1318
01:32:13.039 --> 01:32:18.319
said you're welcome. We sat in silence for a long moment.

1319
01:32:20.000 --> 01:32:22.600
What did the company have to say about that video?

1320
01:32:23.119 --> 01:32:26.960
I said it was deleted off the server the following day.

1321
01:32:27.520 --> 01:32:33.199
He said, so that's the only copy. Yep, he said,

1322
01:32:33.239 --> 01:32:37.359
holding up his phone. Do me a favor, Sure, what

1323
01:32:37.520 --> 01:32:42.359
is it? Delete it? Are you sure this is the

1324
01:32:42.439 --> 01:32:47.279
proof that you weren't lying. I'm sure. I don't ever

1325
01:32:47.520 --> 01:32:52.319
want to see that thing again. I quit driving a

1326
01:32:52.359 --> 01:32:56.159
truck for a living after that. I never again drove

1327
01:32:56.239 --> 01:32:59.720
past the corner of Hamilton and Wright. I'll go miles

1328
01:32:59.760 --> 01:33:03.039
out of my way just to avoid it, and I

1329
01:33:03.119 --> 01:33:16.399
suggest you do the same. Bella's Holiday by rob Fields.

1330
01:33:17.720 --> 01:33:21.079
And here we are, AINI and I just crossed into

1331
01:33:21.119 --> 01:33:25.560
the huge megalopolis known as Shore City. You know what,

1332
01:33:26.600 --> 01:33:29.239
I don't even think I remember the last time I

1333
01:33:29.359 --> 01:33:36.600
was here. Let's just say i'd never even heard of Strickfield. Yeah,

1334
01:33:36.680 --> 01:33:40.680
it's been that long ago. As far as the distance

1335
01:33:40.760 --> 01:33:45.439
between Strickfield and Shore City, it's at least five hundred miles.

1336
01:33:46.199 --> 01:33:49.399
I've been driving our rental car since we left Strickfield.

1337
01:33:49.960 --> 01:33:53.760
Aine's sitting next to me and giving me directions. After

1338
01:33:53.880 --> 01:33:58.479
several long hours and some stops, we finally pull into

1339
01:33:58.479 --> 01:34:02.319
the driveway of Grandma Donley's house. I get out of

1340
01:34:02.319 --> 01:34:05.479
the car and look at my surroundings. I can see

1341
01:34:05.520 --> 01:34:08.800
the beach as I look past Grandma Donnerley's. I can

1342
01:34:08.880 --> 01:34:11.680
even hear the sounds of people having a good time.

1343
01:34:12.479 --> 01:34:17.479
Ione comes up beside me, bells you okay, I sigh

1344
01:34:17.600 --> 01:34:20.840
and look up at the sky. Why do I do it?

1345
01:34:21.479 --> 01:34:23.720
Why do I let you talk me into doing shit?

1346
01:34:24.800 --> 01:34:27.960
I turned to facr First, I let you talk me

1347
01:34:28.000 --> 01:34:31.479
into staying in Strickfield. Next, you and I both end

1348
01:34:31.560 --> 01:34:34.800
up on the cheerleading squad at Strickfield High. And now

1349
01:34:34.840 --> 01:34:36.920
that school's out for the summer, I let you talk

1350
01:34:36.960 --> 01:34:39.000
me into coming all the way to Shore City for

1351
01:34:39.039 --> 01:34:43.159
a week of vacation. Of all things? What's wrong with

1352
01:34:43.199 --> 01:34:47.520
taking a vacation? Ininie asks, I grab iiny and shake

1353
01:34:47.560 --> 01:34:51.000
her a little, because neither of us can fucking drive

1354
01:34:51.039 --> 01:34:55.000
a car. I let her go. You're goddamn lucky, I

1355
01:34:55.079 --> 01:34:58.640
learned fast. We're really lucky. We never got pulled over,

1356
01:34:59.000 --> 01:35:03.159
and fuck all those speed limits. I sigh. The point

1357
01:35:03.279 --> 01:35:08.600
is I don't take vacations, Iini, I just don't. And

1358
01:35:08.680 --> 01:35:12.119
here you are, she reminds me in her mousey voice.

1359
01:35:13.239 --> 01:35:15.439
Why did I agree to drive us all the way

1360
01:35:15.479 --> 01:35:19.239
to Shore City? Three days ago, Aine's grandma calls her

1361
01:35:19.279 --> 01:35:21.960
out of the blue and wants to see her right away.

1362
01:35:22.039 --> 01:35:24.239
She asks her grandma if she can bring me along.

1363
01:35:25.159 --> 01:35:29.760
She agrees right away, and things fell into place from there.

1364
01:35:30.680 --> 01:35:34.119
Almost turned out neither of us ever learned how to

1365
01:35:34.199 --> 01:35:37.880
drive a car. AINI tried calling a taxi service, but

1366
01:35:37.960 --> 01:35:42.000
the trip would be quite costly, so AINI talked me

1367
01:35:42.039 --> 01:35:45.319
into driving a rental car. Let's just say I had

1368
01:35:45.399 --> 01:35:49.520
a few close calls. Believe it or not. It's really

1369
01:35:49.640 --> 01:35:52.640
quite easy when you get it down. It's just those

1370
01:35:52.720 --> 01:35:56.399
fucking speed limits that pissed me off. So I said

1371
01:35:56.520 --> 01:35:59.119
fuck it and got us here doing a full hundred.

1372
01:36:00.239 --> 01:36:02.439
Ainy and I got our bags out of the car,

1373
01:36:02.840 --> 01:36:07.000
and then the front door opens. Aileen, you finally made it.

1374
01:36:07.600 --> 01:36:10.880
Aileen is Ainy's real name. I call her Ainy because

1375
01:36:10.880 --> 01:36:13.760
her older brother Martin calls her Einstein on the count

1376
01:36:13.800 --> 01:36:17.720
of her big brain. I just shortened Einstein by calling

1377
01:36:17.720 --> 01:36:21.000
her Iini. She returns the favor by calling me Bell's

1378
01:36:21.479 --> 01:36:25.279
Ainy and her grandma hug it's nice to see you again, Grandma.

1379
01:36:26.039 --> 01:36:29.079
Grandma Donnerly is in her mid sixties and has a

1380
01:36:29.079 --> 01:36:33.199
thin frame with silver hair, and you must be Bella.

1381
01:36:33.359 --> 01:36:36.680
Aileen has told me so much about you. I was

1382
01:36:36.800 --> 01:36:39.399
just gonna shake hands with her, but she pulls me

1383
01:36:39.439 --> 01:36:42.600
in and hugs me when we finish. She just looks

1384
01:36:42.640 --> 01:36:45.840
at me. You are so cold. Do you need some

1385
01:36:46.000 --> 01:36:51.520
coffee or some hot chocolate? I smile a little. I'm fine, ma'am.

1386
01:36:52.039 --> 01:36:55.840
Grandma Donnerly invites both of us inside. She's got the

1387
01:36:55.880 --> 01:36:59.840
air conditioning running. She shows Iine to her room. As

1388
01:37:00.039 --> 01:37:03.279
he's getting settled in, Grandma Donnerly brings me to the basement.

1389
01:37:03.880 --> 01:37:06.640
I set you up down here. I hope you don't mind.

1390
01:37:07.199 --> 01:37:11.039
I'm not choosy, I reply. Turns out she prepared a

1391
01:37:11.079 --> 01:37:14.399
couch down here. It's nice and cool. There's even a

1392
01:37:14.399 --> 01:37:18.279
small shower cabinet for me. It's perfect. I tell her

1393
01:37:18.520 --> 01:37:22.520
and put my duffel down. She nods and heads back upstairs.

1394
01:37:23.479 --> 01:37:26.119
After I unpack, I come back upstairs to see the

1395
01:37:26.159 --> 01:37:29.399
donner leaves at the kitchen table. I'm entering the kitchen

1396
01:37:29.439 --> 01:37:35.159
when Grandma Donnerly gasps. She points right at me. No, Grandma,

1397
01:37:35.239 --> 01:37:38.840
what AINI asks? The old woman gets up, still pointing

1398
01:37:38.840 --> 01:37:45.079
at me. You you don't have a reflection. And I

1399
01:37:45.199 --> 01:37:49.239
had forgotten about checking for mirrors and avoiding them. This

1400
01:37:49.439 --> 01:37:53.039
is part of the reason why I don't go on vacations. Now.

1401
01:37:53.119 --> 01:37:58.720
Ininee's grandma knows I'm a vampire. You're a believer, I say,

1402
01:38:00.039 --> 01:38:04.119
I've met your kind before. She replies, contempt in her voice,

1403
01:38:04.680 --> 01:38:09.880
I revoke my invitation. Grandma stop Any tells her Bells

1404
01:38:09.920 --> 01:38:14.439
isn't like other vampires. She's been my dearest friend for months,

1405
01:38:15.039 --> 01:38:18.359
she considers. Iine. Then she looks at me and makes

1406
01:38:18.399 --> 01:38:23.800
another realization. You walk in the daylight. I'm the only

1407
01:38:23.800 --> 01:38:27.920
one who can, I reply. When I killed a master vampire,

1408
01:38:28.000 --> 01:38:30.800
I was hurt too. His blood mixed with mine and

1409
01:38:30.840 --> 01:38:33.840
made me what I am. I'm not malevolent, and I

1410
01:38:33.880 --> 01:38:38.079
won't hurt you. And you're friends with my grandbaby, she

1411
01:38:38.239 --> 01:38:43.479
asks in amazement. Ainy's my only friend. I admit. She

1412
01:38:43.600 --> 01:38:46.520
talked me into coming here with her. If you don't

1413
01:38:46.520 --> 01:38:49.159
want me here, I'll leave. I won't stay where I'm

1414
01:38:49.159 --> 01:38:54.680
not welcome. Grandma Donnerly looks at her granddaughter. You said

1415
01:38:54.760 --> 01:38:59.159
she was staying with you and Martin, Ainy adds. Grandma

1416
01:38:59.279 --> 01:39:04.119
Donnerly shows contempt now as she looks at me. Aileen

1417
01:39:04.239 --> 01:39:10.960
told me you're Martin's girlfriend. Well, I wouldn't entirely say that,

1418
01:39:11.279 --> 01:39:14.880
I stammer. She raises her finger break up with him.

1419
01:39:15.239 --> 01:39:17.279
That boy has been nothing but trouble since he was

1420
01:39:17.319 --> 01:39:20.039
old enough to walk and talk. If you don't know now,

1421
01:39:20.199 --> 01:39:25.399
you'll know soon enough. I look at her solemnly. Is

1422
01:39:25.439 --> 01:39:28.720
there something you want to tell me? She takes my

1423
01:39:28.800 --> 01:39:32.119
hand in hers. You don't know Martin as well as

1424
01:39:32.159 --> 01:39:35.520
you think. He can never stay out of trouble. He

1425
01:39:35.560 --> 01:39:39.119
looks for any excuse to cause trouble. Kids at school

1426
01:39:39.159 --> 01:39:43.079
called him mean Martin, and with good reason. I won't

1427
01:39:43.119 --> 01:39:47.119
let him come here. He's not welcome. He'll never be welcome.

1428
01:39:47.840 --> 01:39:50.760
Break up with him. A leopard like him never changes

1429
01:39:50.800 --> 01:39:55.279
his spots. I listen to her heartbeat and know she's

1430
01:39:55.319 --> 01:39:58.880
telling the truth. I realize I'll have to watch Martin

1431
01:39:58.960 --> 01:40:03.319
closely when I returned to Strickfield. I'll have to talk

1432
01:40:03.359 --> 01:40:07.640
to Aine about this later. Grandma Donnerly lets go of

1433
01:40:07.680 --> 01:40:12.039
my hand. You may stay. I don't know how i'll

1434
01:40:12.039 --> 01:40:15.199
feed you though, I don't have any blood for you.

1435
01:40:15.960 --> 01:40:19.960
I actually I don't drink blood, I tell her, But

1436
01:40:20.239 --> 01:40:23.039
you can't feed me anyway. I'll eat you out of

1437
01:40:23.039 --> 01:40:26.439
house and home. Aine said, there's plenty of good buffets

1438
01:40:26.479 --> 01:40:30.079
I can eat at. I explain to Grandma Donnerly why

1439
01:40:30.159 --> 01:40:32.319
I don't drink blood and how I have to eat

1440
01:40:32.359 --> 01:40:35.079
lots of food to compensate for all the energy I

1441
01:40:35.199 --> 01:40:39.119
use just the same. Grandma Donnerly insists on feeding me,

1442
01:40:39.640 --> 01:40:41.880
even when I told her about how I devoured at

1443
01:40:41.960 --> 01:40:45.199
least twenty roast chickens for my first meal as a vampire.

1444
01:40:46.199 --> 01:40:50.079
I watched the Donnerlees talk some more. Grandma Donnerly tells

1445
01:40:50.119 --> 01:40:53.159
Iine that she should just leave Strickfield and come move

1446
01:40:53.199 --> 01:40:57.239
in with her, leave Martin behind. Or if you don't

1447
01:40:57.279 --> 01:40:59.840
want to live with me, you know you have other family.

1448
01:41:00.560 --> 01:41:02.920
You could even live with your three cousins. They have

1449
01:41:02.960 --> 01:41:05.439
a house in this neighborhood. I'm sure they'd enjoy having

1450
01:41:05.439 --> 01:41:08.000
you to live with them. The more I'm hearing the

1451
01:41:08.079 --> 01:41:12.640
old woman talk negatively about Martin, the more I'm really

1452
01:41:13.760 --> 01:41:22.279
wondering AINI and I are walking out onto the beach now.

1453
01:41:22.800 --> 01:41:25.640
Grandma Donnerly had to run some errands and said she'd

1454
01:41:25.640 --> 01:41:29.000
be back in a while. We're both wearing bikinis and

1455
01:41:29.079 --> 01:41:32.039
walking on the sand. Where do you want to set

1456
01:41:32.079 --> 01:41:39.119
up bells? Ani asks? I guess Anywhere's fine? I reply. Suddenly,

1457
01:41:39.960 --> 01:41:42.840
my vampire senses make me raise my hand and snatch

1458
01:41:42.920 --> 01:41:44.720
the volleyball that would have hit me in the back

1459
01:41:44.720 --> 01:41:47.439
of the head. Then I turn around to see three

1460
01:41:47.479 --> 01:41:52.760
girls heading our way. Yeah, that's our volleyball, bitch. The

1461
01:41:52.840 --> 01:41:56.640
busty blonde snaps, you can give it back now, A

1462
01:41:56.680 --> 01:42:01.680
busty brunette adds rudely. I raise an eyelid. Oh you

1463
01:42:01.760 --> 01:42:05.319
want this back? Huh? A dark skinned girl gets in

1464
01:42:05.399 --> 01:42:11.199
my face. You hard a hearing bitch. I smirk. You

1465
01:42:11.279 --> 01:42:16.800
want this ball back, well, go get it. Then I

1466
01:42:16.960 --> 01:42:19.600
toss the ball up and give it a nice little

1467
01:42:19.640 --> 01:42:23.760
love tap to send it flying way down the beach.

1468
01:42:25.000 --> 01:42:28.960
The bitches turn around and race after it, screaming obscenities

1469
01:42:29.000 --> 01:42:31.880
at me. As they're leaving. You just know those girls

1470
01:42:31.920 --> 01:42:36.119
are going to be back, Ainie tells me fuck them.

1471
01:42:36.800 --> 01:42:39.159
We walk again and find our spot to set up

1472
01:42:39.159 --> 01:42:42.880
our beach towels, and then it's not long before we

1473
01:42:43.000 --> 01:42:50.560
have another surprise. You any shrieks, no way, you're here

1474
01:42:50.600 --> 01:42:55.760
to a leen. The voice sounds familiar. I turned to

1475
01:42:55.800 --> 01:42:59.800
see how did you end up here? I asked Eddie Rick.

1476
01:43:00.600 --> 01:43:04.760
He's known as pee Wee in Strickfield athletics. Eddie gawks

1477
01:43:05.479 --> 01:43:09.520
bella tabon you two. You know, Anie and I are

1478
01:43:09.560 --> 01:43:13.039
joined at the hip I joke. Eddie laughs a little,

1479
01:43:13.319 --> 01:43:16.479
then he points in a direction. My buddy's parents have

1480
01:43:16.520 --> 01:43:19.159
a place here. They said he could use it whenever

1481
01:43:19.199 --> 01:43:21.840
he wanted, So we came over here and hit the

1482
01:43:21.840 --> 01:43:24.640
beach after school was out for the summer. Why'd you

1483
01:43:24.680 --> 01:43:28.159
two come here? Any explains that her grandma invited her

1484
01:43:28.199 --> 01:43:31.239
to come over, and she invited me to come with her.

1485
01:43:31.880 --> 01:43:35.239
Just then Eddie's friends approach him. They're all at least

1486
01:43:35.279 --> 01:43:38.520
a head taller than him. Guess he's nicknamed pee wee

1487
01:43:38.680 --> 01:43:42.079
for a reason. For a mortal. He's impressed me with

1488
01:43:42.159 --> 01:43:45.319
what a fast little fucker he is. The other boys

1489
01:43:45.359 --> 01:43:48.600
recognize us from the Strickfield High cheerleading squad and invite

1490
01:43:48.640 --> 01:43:52.000
us to play volleyball with them. So it's three jocks

1491
01:43:52.039 --> 01:43:55.600
and one cheerleader to a team. We play volleyball for

1492
01:43:55.680 --> 01:44:00.479
a while, then some storm clouds quickly gather. The winds

1493
01:44:00.520 --> 01:44:03.800
pick up, and it starts raining. Some people run to

1494
01:44:03.840 --> 01:44:07.159
take shelter, while others just stay on the beach, and

1495
01:44:07.199 --> 01:44:11.960
then the screaming starts. I turn and run in the

1496
01:44:12.000 --> 01:44:15.399
direction people are running away from the water. When I

1497
01:44:15.439 --> 01:44:17.960
get there, I see a body's washed up onto the sand.

1498
01:44:18.479 --> 01:44:21.399
I get on one knee and examine it. I'm already

1499
01:44:21.439 --> 01:44:24.279
seeing things here that tell me I've got work to

1500
01:44:24.319 --> 01:44:28.039
do here in Shore City. Through my vampire hearing, I

1501
01:44:28.079 --> 01:44:30.760
can hear Aini's little feet as she's almost on me.

1502
01:44:31.479 --> 01:44:36.479
Bell's what, oh, do you know what that is? This

1503
01:44:36.640 --> 01:44:40.239
is easily a werewolf attack. I point to the bite marks,

1504
01:44:40.920 --> 01:44:43.960
three of them for sure. And last night was the

1505
01:44:43.960 --> 01:44:48.000
first night of the full moon. Two more nights. I

1506
01:44:48.039 --> 01:44:53.239
need de deuces tonight and tomorrow night. Right. That means

1507
01:44:53.239 --> 01:44:55.000
we don't have much time to get to the bottom

1508
01:44:55.039 --> 01:44:59.439
of this. I point to the fangs. This person was

1509
01:44:59.479 --> 01:45:04.560
a vampire. Human fangs aren't normally this long. Some police

1510
01:45:04.600 --> 01:45:07.439
officers come along and rudely tell us to fuck off.

1511
01:45:07.960 --> 01:45:10.079
I watch them look at the body and laugh to

1512
01:45:10.119 --> 01:45:13.760
myself as they'll try and fail miserably to determine the

1513
01:45:13.760 --> 01:45:17.159
cause of death. They won't find the vampire teeth since

1514
01:45:17.199 --> 01:45:21.079
I snatched them up. Don't need mortals asking questions they

1515
01:45:21.079 --> 01:45:26.479
shouldn't be asking. What's on your mind? Bells II asks,

1516
01:45:27.319 --> 01:45:31.039
I'm thinking those werewolves will be back tonight, maybe a

1517
01:45:31.119 --> 01:45:33.800
nice walk on the beaches in order. Then I raise

1518
01:45:33.840 --> 01:45:36.920
my eyebrow to her a little. Did you happen to

1519
01:45:36.920 --> 01:45:41.039
bring the toys? Iini gives me a wicked smirk. I

1520
01:45:41.279 --> 01:45:44.920
always bring the toys, I Nei's been my partner in

1521
01:45:45.000 --> 01:45:48.520
crime for a while. Now. We do our day stuff.

1522
01:45:49.119 --> 01:45:52.880
At night, we go out looking for trouble. We often

1523
01:45:52.960 --> 01:45:57.680
find trouble and stop it. Then we return home. Iin,

1524
01:45:57.760 --> 01:46:04.039
he goes to bed. I fuck Martin, still remembering what

1525
01:46:04.119 --> 01:46:08.199
Grandma Donnerly told me, I may have to rethink that

1526
01:46:08.319 --> 01:46:13.760
last part, Iini, are there any problems between you and Martin?

1527
01:46:14.279 --> 01:46:19.199
I ask? Ainie just gives me a sad look. Grandma

1528
01:46:19.279 --> 01:46:23.640
talked to you, didn't she you were there. She told

1529
01:46:23.640 --> 01:46:27.439
me Martin is trouble. She didn't say what. She also

1530
01:46:27.479 --> 01:46:30.800
said Martin wasn't welcome at her house. She told me

1531
01:46:30.920 --> 01:46:35.239
to stop seeing him. Iini gets defensive. You and Martin

1532
01:46:35.399 --> 01:46:38.560
just have sex. You're not really in a relationship with him,

1533
01:46:38.920 --> 01:46:42.239
I groan. I was hoping to get something out of Iini,

1534
01:46:42.920 --> 01:46:45.399
but I can see she's not gonna tell me anything.

1535
01:46:45.960 --> 01:46:49.840
Her heartbeat tells me she's very angry. I can't tell

1536
01:46:49.880 --> 01:46:53.199
if I've upset her or if it's something she's keeping inside.

1537
01:46:54.359 --> 01:46:57.159
I won't use glam on her. If she wants to

1538
01:46:57.199 --> 01:47:05.039
tell me, then she'll tell me when she's ready. Night

1539
01:47:05.159 --> 01:47:08.359
comes iny and I put our bikinis back on and

1540
01:47:08.439 --> 01:47:11.319
head to the beach. It's so easy to get onto

1541
01:47:11.319 --> 01:47:15.840
the sand from Grandma Donnerley's backyard, Speaking of whom I

1542
01:47:15.880 --> 01:47:18.520
can't believe she prepared all that food just for me.

1543
01:47:19.640 --> 01:47:22.439
I did tell her I could eat. The least I

1544
01:47:22.479 --> 01:47:25.119
could do was help with the dishes, since she wouldn't

1545
01:47:25.159 --> 01:47:29.079
accept payment. There were some kids out here, though not

1546
01:47:29.239 --> 01:47:32.319
nearly as many as during the day. The full moon

1547
01:47:32.439 --> 01:47:35.560
is nice and bright. There's a gentle breeze, and the

1548
01:47:35.600 --> 01:47:38.680
water's a little wavy. As long as I see people

1549
01:47:38.720 --> 01:47:41.199
I've come in contact with, then I scratch them off

1550
01:47:41.239 --> 01:47:45.359
as suspects. Were Wolves can't change back and forth at will.

1551
01:47:45.840 --> 01:47:48.640
When it's a full moon, they change whether they want

1552
01:47:48.680 --> 01:47:53.399
to or not. The werewolves are already out and prowling.

1553
01:47:54.199 --> 01:47:56.960
I managed to get faint scents off the body from

1554
01:47:56.960 --> 01:48:01.439
this afternoon. Won't be much to go on, but it's

1555
01:48:01.479 --> 01:48:06.479
better than nothing. You think we'll find anything, bells Heinie asks,

1556
01:48:07.520 --> 01:48:13.279
I'm quite optimistic. I reply, Bella Eileen. Over here, a

1557
01:48:13.359 --> 01:48:16.960
voice calls out. We look to see Eddie Richter sitting

1558
01:48:16.960 --> 01:48:20.479
at a fire on the sand and walk over to him.

1559
01:48:21.000 --> 01:48:24.359
Just you out here tonight, I ask him. My buddies

1560
01:48:24.399 --> 01:48:28.159
went back to the house. Eddie replies, they forgot something.

1561
01:48:28.439 --> 01:48:32.159
Didn't say what. Have a seat. We sit with Eddie

1562
01:48:32.199 --> 01:48:35.279
and talk with him. You know, it's a shame you

1563
01:48:35.319 --> 01:48:39.000
too graduated. Eddie tells us, I kind of liked watching

1564
01:48:39.039 --> 01:48:43.159
you two on the squad. We'll be back. Heinie replies,

1565
01:48:43.920 --> 01:48:46.720
I missed too many days with being sick this school year,

1566
01:48:47.079 --> 01:48:50.880
and Bell's just didn't feel like coming to school. I

1567
01:48:51.000 --> 01:48:54.119
pick up, so I got a repeat senior year with Heine.

1568
01:48:54.800 --> 01:48:57.279
The truth is I had to care for her when

1569
01:48:57.279 --> 01:49:00.960
she was sick and Martin had to work. Eddie smirks

1570
01:49:01.279 --> 01:49:06.199
and shakes his head a little. The bad Schoolgirl a

1571
01:49:06.279 --> 01:49:10.640
name that pretty much every student calls me. To be honest,

1572
01:49:11.359 --> 01:49:14.560
I really like it bad as I want to be, honey,

1573
01:49:15.039 --> 01:49:20.119
I reply. He fully smiles. Now, no wonder, Principal van

1574
01:49:20.159 --> 01:49:24.680
Deste is always riding you. I fully smile back, only

1575
01:49:24.760 --> 01:49:27.880
for me to keep throwing him off. You ain't taming

1576
01:49:27.960 --> 01:49:31.680
this bitch. The three of us talk some more, and

1577
01:49:31.720 --> 01:49:35.000
then I catch whiffs of those faint smells I got earlier.

1578
01:49:35.880 --> 01:49:40.760
Now I'm hearing some screaming. I turn and see three

1579
01:49:40.840 --> 01:49:44.159
werewolves have hit the beach. I ne he grabs Eddie.

1580
01:49:44.319 --> 01:49:47.640
Come on, we gotta run. The two of them get away.

1581
01:49:48.079 --> 01:49:50.920
Then I run towards the werewolves, vamping out as I do.

1582
01:49:51.600 --> 01:49:57.760
I'm so looking forward to this. I fucking hate hate werewolves.

1583
01:49:58.520 --> 01:50:00.960
The werewolves howl at the floor moon and then come

1584
01:50:01.000 --> 01:50:03.640
at me. These beasts are gonna be strong, but I

1585
01:50:03.680 --> 01:50:06.239
can match power with them. I can beat the living

1586
01:50:06.319 --> 01:50:09.000
shit out of all of them. These fuckers keep trying

1587
01:50:09.039 --> 01:50:11.920
to bite me, but I just keep knocking their asses back.

1588
01:50:12.479 --> 01:50:16.640
I'm fucking loving this. Most importantly, I'm keeping their attention

1589
01:50:16.720 --> 01:50:19.840
on me while other mortals are getting away. In their

1590
01:50:19.920 --> 01:50:22.800
animal minds, all they want to do is tear me apart.

1591
01:50:23.159 --> 01:50:26.640
Unless they're seriously hurt, they know they're dying, or they

1592
01:50:26.680 --> 01:50:29.640
know sunrise is coming, They're gonna keep coming after me

1593
01:50:29.960 --> 01:50:33.840
as prey. Well, they did come right for me. That

1594
01:50:34.000 --> 01:50:36.960
means I met and pissed off somebody here in Shore City.

1595
01:50:37.600 --> 01:50:40.640
I'm already compiling a list of suspects I've come across.

1596
01:50:41.600 --> 01:50:44.159
Guess I'm gonna have some work to do tomorrow during

1597
01:50:44.199 --> 01:50:48.079
the daylight hours. Oh, I know what you're thinking. Why

1598
01:50:48.119 --> 01:50:51.880
the hell didn't I just kill those motherfuckers. Yes, they'd

1599
01:50:51.960 --> 01:50:55.600
turn back into their human forms immediately, but I wouldn't

1600
01:50:55.600 --> 01:50:58.600
get the whole story. So it looks like I'm gonna

1601
01:50:58.600 --> 01:51:01.119
have to do the next best thing. As my new

1602
01:51:01.159 --> 01:51:04.039
playmates come at me again, I strike with a little

1603
01:51:04.039 --> 01:51:08.079
more force and knock their asses out. Now comes the

1604
01:51:09.159 --> 01:51:13.479
not so fun part the waiting game. I guess I

1605
01:51:13.479 --> 01:51:15.640
can enjoy the view of the water and feel the

1606
01:51:15.720 --> 01:51:19.239
gentle breezes while I'm waiting time to use some of

1607
01:51:19.319 --> 01:51:22.920
Viny's toys. I pull out some special zip ties she

1608
01:51:23.039 --> 01:51:25.680
made in her Mad Scientists lab back at her house

1609
01:51:26.359 --> 01:51:30.359
in her basement. These particular zip ties are really high

1610
01:51:30.399 --> 01:51:34.159
tensile strength. You can't get these at your local hardware store.

1611
01:51:34.560 --> 01:51:37.119
They're strong enough to piss off these werewolves once I

1612
01:51:37.159 --> 01:51:41.520
apply them. Iini keeps improving on the formula, so I

1613
01:51:41.520 --> 01:51:44.760
imagine it's only gonna be a matter of time before

1614
01:51:44.800 --> 01:51:48.920
these things can secure even me or other master vampires.

1615
01:51:49.439 --> 01:51:52.800
As I'm about to secure the first werewolf, my senses

1616
01:51:52.880 --> 01:51:55.359
go critical. I don't have time to react as a

1617
01:51:55.359 --> 01:51:59.159
silver werewolf crashes into me and takes me down. Those

1618
01:51:59.199 --> 01:52:02.000
other three were e to take on, but this one

1619
01:52:02.520 --> 01:52:05.239
is an alpha. You don't see too many of these

1620
01:52:05.279 --> 01:52:08.239
around due to the fact that they don't last as

1621
01:52:08.279 --> 01:52:13.399
long as vampires. But here's one now pissed off as fuck.

1622
01:52:14.079 --> 01:52:16.399
The two of us fight it out when the other

1623
01:52:16.439 --> 01:52:19.399
werewolves come too. The distraction is enough for the alpha

1624
01:52:19.439 --> 01:52:22.439
to hit me hard enough to daze me. I barely

1625
01:52:22.479 --> 01:52:24.840
feel the alpha getting on top of me before I

1626
01:52:24.920 --> 01:52:30.399
hear the gunshots. Oh yeah, I guess they understand gunshots also,

1627
01:52:30.760 --> 01:52:37.920
especially with the whole silver bullets thing. I wake up

1628
01:52:37.960 --> 01:52:42.119
and find myself down in Grandma Donnerly's basement. Aini's right

1629
01:52:42.159 --> 01:52:48.479
there with me, bells, you're finally awake. Yeah, she's quite

1630
01:52:48.479 --> 01:52:53.359
happy right now. Yeah, I got lucky. I reply, you

1631
01:52:53.439 --> 01:52:56.439
missed it. I tell her about the alpha werewolf that

1632
01:52:56.479 --> 01:53:00.800
showed up. So you're saying were wolves are like vampires.

1633
01:53:01.399 --> 01:53:04.439
The older they get, the more powerful they become. She

1634
01:53:04.560 --> 01:53:09.039
translates pretty much. Yeah, given the strength and speed of

1635
01:53:09.079 --> 01:53:12.079
the alpha and the silver coat, this one's been around

1636
01:53:12.119 --> 01:53:16.720
for a very long time. Then iiny's quick on something else.

1637
01:53:17.319 --> 01:53:20.840
We only have one more night, Bells tonight. I know

1638
01:53:21.399 --> 01:53:23.760
I may have my work cut out for me and

1639
01:53:24.119 --> 01:53:29.960
maybe not. You have suspects, She asks, Perhaps we gotta

1640
01:53:30.000 --> 01:53:32.920
be beach babes again today. Iine, you up for it.

1641
01:53:33.560 --> 01:53:36.640
Iny glares at me. I am not a beach babe.

1642
01:53:36.920 --> 01:53:40.880
Look at me, I'm a scrawny little thing. I smirk

1643
01:53:40.960 --> 01:53:43.840
and look my friend in the face. I think Eddie

1644
01:53:43.920 --> 01:53:49.760
Richter would disagree. He's definitely into you. Iinny gasps, Oh, no, Bells,

1645
01:53:49.800 --> 01:53:53.079
don't you dare. We argue about it for a little bit.

1646
01:53:53.840 --> 01:53:56.920
Then I compliment Iiny on her cute little face and

1647
01:53:57.000 --> 01:54:00.640
tell her that having bigger tits isn't always better. I mean,

1648
01:54:01.399 --> 01:54:05.000
I certainly don't have them myself. She finally lets her

1649
01:54:05.000 --> 01:54:07.079
guard down and agrees to come on the beach with

1650
01:54:07.159 --> 01:54:11.880
me one more time. After breakfast, we step onto the

1651
01:54:11.920 --> 01:54:15.560
sand again in our bikinis. See Aine, there are plenty

1652
01:54:15.600 --> 01:54:19.600
of guys checking you out. I say, no, they're checking

1653
01:54:19.640 --> 01:54:23.119
you out. Bells. She disagrees. I'm not the one with

1654
01:54:23.199 --> 01:54:27.640
the flowing, long blonde hair and sexy body. Watch and learn.

1655
01:54:28.239 --> 01:54:31.640
Throughout the day, Aine realizes that I'm not the only one.

1656
01:54:31.720 --> 01:54:34.399
People are checking out. When I ask her to get

1657
01:54:34.479 --> 01:54:37.600
lemonade for us at a stand, She's quickly surprised that

1658
01:54:38.159 --> 01:54:41.840
guys are hitting on her. Aine's got a thin frame,

1659
01:54:41.920 --> 01:54:45.199
but she's not a skeleton. She's also got that cute

1660
01:54:45.279 --> 01:54:49.479
face and great smile. And no, I definitely did not

1661
01:54:50.000 --> 01:54:54.920
glam these guys. Aine returns with the lemonade. You were right,

1662
01:54:55.000 --> 01:54:58.640
bells She sits down. But I just can't go out

1663
01:54:58.640 --> 01:55:02.720
with anybody. I just can't. I don't have a long

1664
01:55:02.840 --> 01:55:08.520
term future with anybody. I smile. Iini, you'll make someone

1665
01:55:08.560 --> 01:55:13.439
a perfect wife. She gets upset fast. You don't understand.

1666
01:55:13.680 --> 01:55:17.159
Maybe these other people can think long term. I can't.

1667
01:55:17.720 --> 01:55:21.079
I'm about to ask her why. When my senses flare up,

1668
01:55:21.680 --> 01:55:24.560
I easily lift my hand and snatch the volleyball that

1669
01:55:24.600 --> 01:55:28.039
was intended to hit me again. I stand up and

1670
01:55:28.119 --> 01:55:32.359
face those three bitches from yesterday. You know, you three

1671
01:55:32.439 --> 01:55:35.479
seem to have a difficult time keeping your fucking ball

1672
01:55:35.520 --> 01:55:40.479
to yourselves. Now I'm making calculations in my head. I'm

1673
01:55:40.520 --> 01:55:45.880
also picking up some familiar sense. Just then we're joined

1674
01:55:45.880 --> 01:55:49.199
by Eddie Richter and his friends. It doesn't take long

1675
01:55:49.279 --> 01:55:51.720
for the beach bitches and the strickfield jocks to get

1676
01:55:51.760 --> 01:55:54.399
into it, with Ainie and me caught in the middle,

1677
01:55:55.199 --> 01:55:57.800
and then it happens we end up in a full

1678
01:55:57.880 --> 01:56:02.520
scale volleyball Game's Eddie, his friends and me on one side.

1679
01:56:02.840 --> 01:56:05.640
The bitches demand to have Aine on their side and

1680
01:56:05.680 --> 01:56:08.840
get one more girl to come and join them. Believe

1681
01:56:08.960 --> 01:56:11.319
me when I say we don't end up playing a

1682
01:56:11.359 --> 01:56:15.399
friendly game of volleyball. The three bitches are clearly targeting

1683
01:56:15.399 --> 01:56:18.560
me and Eddie. It surprises me how they're talking so

1684
01:56:18.760 --> 01:56:21.760
nicely to Ainie like she's always been one of them.

1685
01:56:22.319 --> 01:56:26.119
In fact, they even tell her their names. But Ainie

1686
01:56:26.159 --> 01:56:28.319
and the other girl are the only ones who play

1687
01:56:28.319 --> 01:56:32.119
fair on their side. The bitches get really pissed off

1688
01:56:32.159 --> 01:56:34.239
when they try to put the ball over the net

1689
01:56:34.439 --> 01:56:38.359
and I'm right there to slam it down to the sand. Yeah,

1690
01:56:38.680 --> 01:56:43.119
I'm using my vampire strength, but fuck these bitches. I've

1691
01:56:43.119 --> 01:56:47.600
been watching these big breasties closely. In fact, I think

1692
01:56:47.640 --> 01:56:52.079
I've just broken this mystery wide open. I know what's

1693
01:56:52.159 --> 01:56:55.239
going on. Now. We win the game and Eddie and

1694
01:56:55.279 --> 01:56:58.760
his friends take off. The bitches quickly move and come

1695
01:56:58.800 --> 01:57:03.119
at me. You don't belong here, You fucking leech. Lilah,

1696
01:57:03.159 --> 01:57:06.479
the big breasted blonde, snaps in my face, this is

1697
01:57:06.600 --> 01:57:11.279
our turf. Go home, I smirk. You three can suck

1698
01:57:11.359 --> 01:57:14.920
my dick and I'll fucking piss where I please. I

1699
01:57:15.039 --> 01:57:18.359
lean in and look Lilah right in the face. Or

1700
01:57:18.399 --> 01:57:22.640
did you three already mark your territories? Ray Lean, the

1701
01:57:22.680 --> 01:57:28.840
big breasted brunette, glares at me. Now tonight, vampire. The

1702
01:57:28.960 --> 01:57:33.039
dark skinned girl Ember practically growls at me. Your dead

1703
01:57:33.199 --> 01:57:40.239
bloodsucker challenge accepted, I reply, coming, Iiny. The bitches are

1704
01:57:40.279 --> 01:57:43.199
reluctant to let Aini come with me, but she makes

1705
01:57:43.239 --> 01:57:46.479
that choice herself and comes to me. The two of

1706
01:57:46.560 --> 01:57:52.000
us leave bells. What's going on? Ainie asks when we're

1707
01:57:52.039 --> 01:57:56.439
far enough away, ray Len called you a vampire. Oh,

1708
01:57:56.600 --> 01:58:00.920
they know, and I know the problem is I know

1709
01:58:01.039 --> 01:58:05.439
everything now. I look at her with sadness. You're not

1710
01:58:05.479 --> 01:58:12.279
gonna like what I'm about to tell you. As soon

1711
01:58:12.319 --> 01:58:14.800
as we get in the house, Iiny points right at

1712
01:58:14.800 --> 01:58:18.359
Grandma Donnerly, What in the actual fuck have you been

1713
01:58:18.439 --> 01:58:21.399
keeping from me? I know Iini well enough to know

1714
01:58:21.520 --> 01:58:25.199
she's really pissed off when she starts dropping f bombs.

1715
01:58:25.920 --> 01:58:29.520
Then Grandma Donnerly gives me an accusing Look, what did

1716
01:58:29.560 --> 01:58:33.600
you tell her, vampire? I glare at her the truth

1717
01:58:34.399 --> 01:58:39.600
Iny tightens her little fists. Grandma Donnerly, I really thought

1718
01:58:39.640 --> 01:58:43.039
I could trust you. I really thought you cared. That's

1719
01:58:43.119 --> 01:58:45.159
why I kept in contact with you. That's why I

1720
01:58:45.279 --> 01:58:49.239
kept coming to see you, because I love you, Helene,

1721
01:58:49.800 --> 01:58:55.000
she replies, I just want you to leave that troublesome Martin. Seriously,

1722
01:58:55.239 --> 01:58:57.319
I don't know why you stay with him. I know

1723
01:58:57.359 --> 01:58:59.920
he's your brother and the last in your immediate family.

1724
01:59:01.399 --> 01:59:06.199
He's also the reason you're werewolves. Any screams, you want

1725
01:59:06.199 --> 01:59:09.600
to turn me into a werewolf? You want to turn

1726
01:59:09.600 --> 01:59:14.000
me into a killer. She calms down a little. Oh,

1727
01:59:14.039 --> 01:59:17.520
and I did meet Lilah, Raylen and Ember Bell's told

1728
01:59:17.560 --> 01:59:22.960
me they're my cousins and they're werewolves too. Grandma Donnerly

1729
01:59:23.039 --> 01:59:27.720
glares at me with hatred. Now I revoke my invitation, Bella,

1730
01:59:28.079 --> 01:59:32.720
you are no longer welcome in my house. I hate

1731
01:59:32.720 --> 01:59:35.840
to tell you, but all the vampire weaknesses you know

1732
01:59:36.039 --> 01:59:39.800
about won't work on me. Or did you forget that

1733
01:59:39.880 --> 01:59:42.960
I walk in the daylight and eat normal food. In

1734
01:59:43.000 --> 01:59:45.520
other words, I don't need an invite to enter a

1735
01:59:45.560 --> 01:59:51.359
person's house. Just then Lilah, Raylen, and Ember appear. Lilah

1736
01:59:51.399 --> 01:59:54.560
points at me, You've caused nothing but trouble ever since

1737
01:59:54.600 --> 01:59:58.119
you got here, vampire. It's no wonder that vampires and

1738
01:59:58.159 --> 02:00:02.119
werewolves are natural enemies. I quickly pull Iini behind me.

1739
02:00:03.640 --> 02:00:07.680
I'm not the one killing people here. In fact, I

1740
02:00:07.800 --> 02:00:11.079
save lives. I may be a master vampire, but I'm

1741
02:00:11.119 --> 02:00:14.359
still a tabon. It's still the family business to take

1742
02:00:14.399 --> 02:00:18.199
down threats against mortals. You killed people here, and I

1743
02:00:18.239 --> 02:00:23.279
can't let that slide. There are no good vampires. Ember

1744
02:00:23.399 --> 02:00:26.720
counters it's because of you that our kind can't flourish.

1745
02:00:28.039 --> 02:00:31.560
Then I realize it's dark. The full moon will be

1746
02:00:31.640 --> 02:00:36.119
evident soon. Just give me my grandbaby, and your death

1747
02:00:36.159 --> 02:00:40.960
will be swift. Grandma Donnerly tells me, no, I won't

1748
02:00:41.000 --> 02:00:44.000
do this. Iiny tells her, I won't become a killer.

1749
02:00:44.199 --> 02:00:50.720
I'll die first. Raylean gasps Aleen, you're our blood. You'd

1750
02:00:50.840 --> 02:00:56.119
choose this vampire filth over your own family. Iine tightens

1751
02:00:56.159 --> 02:01:01.479
her jaw bells is my family, and she doesn't kill

1752
02:01:01.479 --> 02:01:06.680
innocent people. I had to admit I never saw that coming. Wow,

1753
02:01:07.920 --> 02:01:11.279
I never knew any thoughts so highly of me. We've

1754
02:01:11.279 --> 02:01:16.079
been friends for several months, and I can't get choked

1755
02:01:16.119 --> 02:01:21.279
up right now. Grandma Donnerly tells her other granddaughters. I

1756
02:01:21.359 --> 02:01:25.199
want this vampire destroyed. I do not want Aileen harmed.

1757
02:01:25.720 --> 02:01:29.920
Maybe just a little scratch. Do you hear me? Yes,

1758
02:01:29.960 --> 02:01:34.279
Grandma Donnerly. The bitches say in unison, the full moon

1759
02:01:34.359 --> 02:01:37.199
is evident. When the four of them start changing into werewolves.

1760
02:01:37.680 --> 02:01:40.520
I turn quickly, snatch up Iiny, and get us the

1761
02:01:40.560 --> 02:01:43.079
fuck out of that house. I don't take us back

1762
02:01:43.079 --> 02:01:45.600
to the beach, since I can hear mortals there. No.

1763
02:01:46.439 --> 02:01:50.680
I need to keep this between me and them. Bells.

1764
02:01:51.319 --> 02:01:55.439
Don't let them turn me. Ainy cries over my fucking

1765
02:01:55.600 --> 02:01:59.279
dead body. I promise her. I can hear the werewolves

1766
02:01:59.319 --> 02:02:02.600
pursuing us. They have our sense. I have to stay

1767
02:02:02.640 --> 02:02:04.479
ahead of them until I can get us far away

1768
02:02:04.520 --> 02:02:08.039
from other mortals. I can leap far distances, and I

1769
02:02:08.079 --> 02:02:11.600
can even run very fast, faster than even Peewe Richter

1770
02:02:11.720 --> 02:02:14.920
on his best day, but a werewolf would still ultimately

1771
02:02:14.960 --> 02:02:18.439
catch up to me. Sucks to be me and not

1772
02:02:18.560 --> 02:02:20.920
able to fly. I manage to make it to some

1773
02:02:21.000 --> 02:02:23.920
open wilderness where we can fight. When I land, I

1774
02:02:24.000 --> 02:02:26.920
let go of iiny and get ready. Both werewolves and

1775
02:02:27.079 --> 02:02:30.319
vampires have night vision. I don't know how theirs works,

1776
02:02:30.359 --> 02:02:34.520
but for me, the darkness is still daylight. The four

1777
02:02:34.560 --> 02:02:38.479
werewolves are on me. Now. Grandma Donnerly herself's gotta face

1778
02:02:38.560 --> 02:02:41.560
me head on instead of going cheap like last time.

1779
02:02:41.920 --> 02:02:44.239
I can still knock her away, but she recovers a

1780
02:02:44.319 --> 02:02:48.319
lot faster than her granddaughters. Aine throws me her backpack

1781
02:02:48.680 --> 02:02:52.760
bells use the toys. I open it and pull out

1782
02:02:52.800 --> 02:02:55.760
the launchers that she made for when we face other vampires.

1783
02:02:56.319 --> 02:02:58.640
Ainye and I did make a little swamp in these

1784
02:02:58.680 --> 02:03:02.199
this afternoon. I quickly secure them to my forearms as

1785
02:03:02.239 --> 02:03:05.239
I'm running. When I have them on, I turn and

1786
02:03:05.279 --> 02:03:08.600
face the werewolves. Aini comes up beside me with her

1787
02:03:08.640 --> 02:03:11.800
own launchers. Like I said, this mousey girl is my

1788
02:03:11.880 --> 02:03:15.399
partner in crime. Ainie also has her night vision glasses on.

1789
02:03:15.920 --> 02:03:19.760
We both take aim and fire. Ember and Lilah both

1790
02:03:19.800 --> 02:03:22.800
fall when we sink silver steaks right through their hearts.

1791
02:03:23.359 --> 02:03:25.640
I turn and fire my other one at ray Lean

1792
02:03:25.800 --> 02:03:30.720
to kill her. Now that just leaves Grandma Donnerly. I

1793
02:03:30.800 --> 02:03:34.079
put AINI behind me and prepare to fighter, but Aini

1794
02:03:34.199 --> 02:03:38.800
moves in front of me. This is my fight, Bells,

1795
02:03:39.600 --> 02:03:42.600
I raise my hands in front of me and back off.

1796
02:03:43.399 --> 02:03:48.600
Aine aims her last silver steak. This really hurts Grandma.

1797
02:03:49.840 --> 02:03:52.960
I know you probably don't understand me right now. She

1798
02:03:53.119 --> 02:03:56.920
shakes her head a little. I can't be like you.

1799
02:03:58.000 --> 02:04:00.920
I know I'll die one day, but I'm not going

1800
02:04:00.960 --> 02:04:06.880
to be a killer. Just to live. Be at peace, Grandma.

1801
02:04:07.720 --> 02:04:11.680
I love you. As Grandma Donnerly turns to jump at me,

1802
02:04:12.039 --> 02:04:14.600
Iine leaps in front of me and puts her down.

1803
02:04:15.079 --> 02:04:19.279
The silver werewoll falls onto her side. After Iiny and

1804
02:04:19.319 --> 02:04:22.239
I get up, we see the werewolves are becoming human again.

1805
02:04:23.000 --> 02:04:26.640
Ainie and I work to make sure they never return

1806
02:04:26.720 --> 02:04:31.479
to life ever again. Aine and I are on our

1807
02:04:31.520 --> 02:04:36.000
way back to Strickfield. Iine's still very sad. Not that

1808
02:04:36.079 --> 02:04:39.319
I blame her. There are things I really want to

1809
02:04:39.399 --> 02:04:46.399
ask her. I'm sorry, Irony, I say about everything. Iini

1810
02:04:46.520 --> 02:04:51.159
takes my hand. I still choose you, Bells. At least

1811
02:04:51.199 --> 02:04:54.880
I always know where I stand with you. You're always honest

1812
02:04:54.880 --> 02:05:01.279
with me. Grandma Donnerly kept horrible secrets from me. Then

1813
02:05:01.319 --> 02:05:04.439
I have an opening. Honesty works both ways, you know.

1814
02:05:05.479 --> 02:05:10.560
She sighs. I want to tell you everything. It still

1815
02:05:10.640 --> 02:05:16.359
hurts me to think about it. Please not now, I

1816
02:05:16.399 --> 02:05:22.720
will tell you, Just not now. I squeeze Inny's hand.

1817
02:05:23.399 --> 02:05:27.960
You tell me when you're ready. Then iiny nods. I

1818
02:05:28.039 --> 02:05:32.439
know from now on I'm gonna be watching Martin more closely.

1819
02:05:33.560 --> 02:05:36.800
In the meantime, I'm driving one hundred miles per hour

1820
02:05:37.239 --> 02:05:46.560
back to Strickfield. Well, my spookeys, that was one hell

1821
02:05:46.760 --> 02:05:51.880
of a summer itinerary. A museum internship from hell, a

1822
02:05:52.000 --> 02:05:57.000
swamp trip with absolutely no upside, a delivery route that

1823
02:05:57.439 --> 02:06:01.399
should have come with hazard pay and to priest, and

1824
02:06:01.479 --> 02:06:04.800
a holiday at the beach where the family secrets came

1825
02:06:04.880 --> 02:06:10.880
with fur and silver. Honestly, after all that, staying home

1826
02:06:10.920 --> 02:06:14.960
and hiding from the sun feels like the well the

1827
02:06:15.039 --> 02:06:19.399
healthiest vacation plan on the board. That's what makes summer

1828
02:06:19.520 --> 02:06:24.239
horror such a blast. Everything is supposed to feel open,

1829
02:06:24.479 --> 02:06:29.840
alive and care free until the wrong trail, wrong road,

1830
02:06:30.039 --> 02:06:37.000
wrong job, or wrong invitation turns all that freedom into

1831
02:06:37.039 --> 02:06:40.359
a trap. So before you head off on your own

1832
02:06:40.479 --> 02:06:48.199
little getaway, maybe think twice about isolated lakes, strange museums,

1833
02:06:48.359 --> 02:06:53.520
overnight routes, and any cheerful grandmother who seems a bit

1834
02:06:54.239 --> 02:06:59.520
too invested in your future. And keep yourself subscribed to

1835
02:06:59.600 --> 02:07:04.159
this very podcast on your favorite app, because every Wednesday,

1836
02:07:04.199 --> 02:07:07.920
for the last seven years, the Weekly Spooky Feed has

1837
02:07:07.960 --> 02:07:13.680
another fresh nightmare waiting for you on Wednesday. Until next time,

1838
02:07:14.399 --> 02:07:18.359
bring the sunscreen, but also a crucifix.