Author: Jay Cedar

Maybe I should peak in and say hello? Nah, I remember the last time I stopped by to say hi. Don’t want a repeat of that scene. It was an icy, gray, and windy morning. I wanted to borrow the car for a doughnut and coffee run. Dad was away on business, so I had to ask my kooky Mom for the keys. Keep in mind, it had been three days since she’d been discharged from the mental institution she’s been in and out of my entire life. I lightly knocked on her door.

“I’m not going back David. Not gonna tell you again!” Mom said.

“Dad left yesterday, Mom. It’s your son. Can I borrow the car? The fridge is empty, and me and Jamie are starving for some breakfast,” I said.

“Come in son,” Mom said. 

I opened the door to a room in chaotic disarray. Drawers from the dresser lay on the floor like land mines. Robes, socks, and underwear scattered across the discolored lemon yellow carpet. The blackout curtains drawn, with the flashing light from the television, the only source of light in the bedroom. Mom was tucked in her eggshell comforter on the wide king size bed. She was wearing her thick framed glasses, gray nighty, and her dirty blonde hair was immensely disheveled. 

“Sit down son,” Mom said. I pivoted, facing the chair. The seat was covered by layers of towels, jeans, and blouses. I tossed handfuls of articles of clothing onto the ground, and took a seat. 

“Have I told you how you were born?” Mom asked. I shook my head anxiously.

“Surprisingly, you haven’t shared that gem with me yet. Is there a stork involved, or a satanic cult? I sarcastically responded. Mom laid stone faced, and unmoved by my attempt at humor.

“You get your sense of humor from your father. I was six months pregnant with you.Your father was away, based in Berlin. He was waiting on a transfer back to the States for your birth. I was alone. Your grandparents were long gone and buried. The people I thought were my friends were actually party acquaintances at best. Once I got pregnant nobody returned my calls. The people I was closest with were the taxi drivers who drove me to the doctors and back. One morning I woke up, feeling something was terribly wrong. You were trying to tell me something while you were in my belly. Listening to my maternal instinct, I caught a cab to the hospital for a check up. The driver, Miles, walked me over to the pediatric side of the hospital, bless his heart. After the screening, the doctor alerted me the umbilical cord was wrapped around your small, tiny neck. You were slowly being strangled to death in my womb, he informed me, I needed to have an immediate c-section to save your life,” Mom explained. She slid her blanket down her waistline and lifted the nighty up to her lower abdomen, revealing a sizable, crescent shaped scar. 

My eyes rapidly shot to the wall in disgust. My corneas burned with the sight of unpleasantry.

“Mom! Please cover yourself up! Don’t want to see that. What are you thinking?” I exclaimed.

She pulled the covers up to her neck. Gritted her teeth with contempt. With a sinister glare, which could kill a small child. 

“Your father doesn’t want to see it either. I sacrificed my body for you, and what do I get in return? A husband who won’t touch me and an ungrateful bastard. Fuck off out of my room, I should have had an abortion. I hear the scars are barely visible,” Mom said.

The Nurse let loose his iron tight grasp over me and took a step back. “Oh, sorry, didn’t know about that. Did they fix you up right?” He asked. I reached behind me to rub my wounded back.

“Yeah, they did me up alright. I can barely feel it anymore. I don’t know if it’s how they treated and covered up the burns or if it’s the oxycontin they hooked me up with, but I feel great!” I explained. His goofy demeanor dissipated the moment I mentioned oxycontin.

“Be careful with those, just take them as prescribed. This whole town is hooked on that damn oxycontin,” the Nurse said. I groaned and rolled my eyes at the notion of hearing a blatant anti drug message.

“Yes mom, whatever you say mom,” I said sarcastically. I chuckled at his expense. The Nurse’s dismay became self evident as his face went devoid of all amusement at my attempt of humor.

“I’m serious. You should walk down main street and take a good look around. It’s like the plague hit. I don’t know if this town will ever fully recover. I’ve attended more funerals than weddings this year. I’m sorry, didn’t mean to bring up death with you. Sometimes I get a little too carried away. You did what you had to do. I had to take a life as well in the war, it was either him or me. I chose him, just like you chose the fate of that dirtbag,” The Nurse explained. The Nurse’s words brought me back to the old decrepit log cabin by the lake… 

“Are you alright? Maybe you rushed going back to school a little too prematurely. It took me about a half a year to get back into the world, after I got back from the war. You could work out a deal with your teachers, where they give you a packet of classwork to do at home. Todd did the home school program with his teachers when he was bedridden with mono,” The Nurse offered as a suggestion.

Shook my head disagreeably at the thought of staying home with my Mother. Hours upon hours of soap operas and game shows, and the sound of her naggy shrill voice ordering me around all day. All things considered about my home-life, I’ll take the path of less time spent in that madhouse.

I reached for the restroom and pounded through the handle-less swinging door. Ari from Algebra class stood washing his hands in the sink, with a startled expression. “Woah! You scared the shit out of me. I thought you were the toilet police, the way you rammed through the door like that. How are you holding up after everything that happened to you and Jamie?” Ari asked. 

I turned around, facing the towel dispenser, grabbing a bundle from the bin. “I’m doing alright. Just trying to move past it, however it’s hard to, when everyone is asking about it. I hope people will move on to the next thing sooner rather than later,” I explained. Ari stuttered on a few incoherent words, like he was choking on his tongue.

“I totally understand. I won’t bring it up ever again. I swear on my mother,” Ari said as he raised his right hand.  

“Come on Andy, don’t pretend like you aren’t drinking up all the fame, like a milkshake,” Danny said, breaking out of the bathroom stall wearing a shit-eating grin. His conclave, squinty eyes revealed his sinister nature, as he crept up close. “Last week you were a no-name loser on the verge of flunking out of school. You get kidnapped and you’re all of a sudden the talk of the town. I know who you really are. Don’t expect me to kiss your ass like all the rest,” Danny demanded. Danny’s words pierced through my skin like a dagger. I stood there frozen still like a scarecrow. If he could only see Wrath behind my glassy eyes, he wouldn’t open that fat mouth of his. “I don’t like the way you’re looking at me. If you have something to say to me, say it! Don’t give me that stupid look. Oh are you going to shoot me you sick son of a bitch? Only way you would win against me is if you used a gun,” Danny said, standing six inches away from my face as he delivered his menacing monologue. 

If I was still that vulnerable snowflake a few days ago, I’d be intimidated by his aggressive bravado. The man I am today meets a rat like Danny with a shovel. I hocked a loogie in Danny’s face. I had been accumulating saliva since he began speaking. Afterward, I erupted in a maniacal belly laugh, as he attempted to wipe the thick liquid from his face.

In an instant, the rescue workers carrying Jamie on a stretcher, cut through the choppy terrain of the wilderness. My heartbeat pounded exponentially, more expediently, with every foot Jamie came closer to the helicopter. The anticipation of knowing my sister’s fate was intertwined with my own destiny, was excruciatingly damaging to Wrath’s ego. Wrath was leaning on Jamie’s demise when he gave her the shot. He wasn’t thinking the medical aids would get to the cabin as soon as they did. He feeds on determining the fates of his hosts and himself. Jamie is a major obstacle in Wrath’s end game. It makes sense since she always gets the last word in. 

I studied Jamie’s status as she came within 20 feet of my purview. She was wearing an oxygen mask over her pale blue face and no voluntary movement was visible. The stretcher moved wildly against the bumpy terrain and violent gusts of wind were manifested from the thrashing propellers. 

The whole episode felt like it was happening in slow motion. The rescue workers reached the helicopter with Jamie, followed by the two policemen closely behind. They slid Jamie onboard next to me. Her eyes were closed shut and her skin was as pale as the moon. Office Sal attempted to board, however the rescue worker put his hand on the officer’s chest. The rescue worker then leaned closely to yell into his ear and Sal backed away from the aircraft slowly. 

Officer Sal locked eyes with me, and pointed at himself, then back at me. His message was loud and clear, this wasn’t the last time I would be seeing Officer Sal. The rescue worker turned toward the pilot. He pointed up at the sky and the pilot gave him a nod. We suddenly became airborne in a matter of seconds. The two officers became smaller and smaller as we pulled up into the heavens.

I motioned to the rescue worker, pointing at the burn on my back. He picked up his flashlight and flicked it a few times. I understood the gesture to mean to take off my shirt, so I removed the blood-drenched shirt. I looked down at Jamie and her eyes were wide open. An icy blue stare of blistering hatred locked on me. A sinister smile slid across my face.

“The alibi I concocted for your brother includes you alive, but that could change. If you don’t play along, I’ll put a round in that big mouth of yours. It’s not my will to blow you away, but I will improvise if I have to. I’m good at that. It’s my estimation that the police have heard the gunshot and they will be here in about five to ten minutes. We have to act fast and get our alibi straight before they come through that door. Take a seat,” Wrath said.

Wrath took the gun out of Jamie’s throat. He grabbed Ted’s blood soaked shirt, and threw him off the chair. Wrath waved the gun over to the chair, signaling Jamie to sit. Her trembling body slowly responded to Wrath’s demand. Wrath picked up the second chair and faced it toward Jamie. He took a seat to stare at his reflection showing in the whites of her eyes.

“The story goes as follows. Ted firebombed the ambulance you two were riding in. You two miraculously escaped with your lives, only to be kidnapped by gunpoint. He proceeds to take you and Andy over to the cabin, where he pumps you both with drugs. Ted plans to sell you both into the sex trade. Before he goes through with his plan, Andy takes his gun and shoots him,” Wrath explained. 

“Andy, if you’re in there, please come out! You don’t need this demon to do your dirty work. I’m sorry I told you that you were helpless. You’re not. You and I can deal with this together. Cast the demon out, he needs to go back to hell where he belongs!” Jamie pleadingly expressed as she looked into the beast’s eyes.

“My first instinct was to fight you, but for what? I’ve been trying to do the right thing my entire life, and it’s gotten me nowhere. My sister is wrong about almost everything, but she’s dead right about me being nothing without her. I want to be something. I want my sister to need me. I want my enemies to fear me. It’s now clear to me, you are the missing piece. May I be your immaculate vessel, to carry out our will upon the earth?” I asked.

“I only have your best interest in mind. Say my name from thy mortal lips and we’ll be one body and mind,” Wrath pleaded. Cloaked in darkness, I took my last breath as a mortal soul. 

“Wrath,” I whispered. Wrath’s wings broke the sound barrier, as the darkness all around me turned into light, and a potent sense of euphoria washed over me. It’s time to live for the first time. We opened the door and found my dear sister right outside with a deeply concerned look on her face.   

“Who were you talking to? I know who you were talking to, I don’t know why I asked. You were talking to the demon right? You’re really freaking me out, you shouldn’t do that. Demons just want to trick you, they don’t care about you. I thought you knew about Satan’s plan by now. All of those years in church wasted,” Jamie said.

We put our hand on her shoulder. “His name is Wrath. He has come to clean up your mess, so we can dine in civilization again and not with this disgusting insect, trapped in this rundown shack. Let us do the thinking this time,” I explained.

All the color drained from my sister’s face, replaced with a clammy white resemblance.

“Now I have to kill you two,” the Gunman said. The man with the gun busted out in laughter. “I’m just yanking your chain. I heard you scream while I was fishing. I thought you were in trouble, that’s a relief,” the Gunman said. He unscrewed the flashlight from his pistol, put his pistol in his pants and shuffled the flashlight from his left hand to his right. “I guess you two can stay. Wait, you two were in a car accident? Are you two hurt? The Gunman asked. I spit some blood onto the wooden floor.

“Sorry, that’s my bad. In my defense, I thought you were killing your sister,” the Gunman explained remorsefully. My sister scoffed and folded her arms in irritation.

“We were fine before you showed up and beat up my brother! You can’t just come into a situation without knowing what’s happening, and punching the first person you see,” Jamie said. The Gunman shrugged. He pointed his flashlight upwards under his chin, revealing the contours of his face.

“I’m American, sweetheart. That’s who we are. You broke into my place, without thinking about the consequences. You did wrong, I did wrong, let’s let bygones be bygones and call it truce?” The Gunman suggested. Jamie’s mouth flew open awestruck.

This isn’t your… okay let’s just put this behind us. I’m Jamie and that’s Andy,” Jamie said. I waved at him with a fake grin. He extended his hand downwards toward me. I reached up and grasped his hand, he pulled me with an iron grip.

“Ted. Are you hungry? Today was a good day by the lake. You guys like fish?” Ted asked. 

“No, but we are starving and could eat a family of possums raw right now. We’d appreciate it very much,” Jamie said.

“Stop being paranoid. I know you had one of the worst days of your life today. This is definitely the worst day of my life. I’m on edge, you’re on edge, let’s just take a breath,”Jamie said.

“I thought that’s what we are doing. Stay here, I’m going to close and lock the door. Maybe that will get me to breathe easier,” I said. 

“Good idea. We should’ve done that to begin with,” she said. I slowly rose to my feet and pointed my flashlight in front of me.

“Remember, if you see a big rat, don’t scream,” I said.

“I see you and don’t scream. I think that’s a good sign,“she responded.

“You’re hilarious. I think San Quentin has open mic nights. You’re gonna kill,” I snickered. 

“Asshole!” She yelled back.

I turned the flashlight back to the dusty abandoned cabin in front of me. Every step I took through the hallway made a crackling sound on the antique wood floor. Framed maps, photos of endangered species, and John Muir filled the hallway walls. Black mold and spider webs spread throughout the nooks and crannies of the interior. The door, propelled by the strong winds, opened and shut violently. A heavy gust of wind blew debris through the hallway, hitting my eyes. My eyeballs immediately revolted with stinging pain. In complete blindness, I rubbed my ocular cavities trying to rid them of the debris. I suddenly remembered my Dad telling me if I rubbed my orbs after something irritated them, I might make the damage worse. He told me to hold my eyes open instead and wait till the substance leaves my peepers. Peepers, that’s what the old generation called eyes.

“What’s taking you so long?” Jamie asked. My sister’s voice boomed through the echoey walls.

“Shhhh! I told you to keep your voice down. I got something in my eye, I’ll be right there,” I exclaimed. My vision slightly blurred as I turned my flashlight on. I pointed my lighted device toward the flimsy door. Partially blind, I clumsily made my way to the entrance. I put my hand on the fluttering door to stop it from moving, when suddenly I was struck in the rib cage. I collapsed to the floor from the blunt force. As I moaned in agony, a metallic clicking sound perked up my ears. I looked up into the barrel of a handgun with a flashlight rigged to the bottom. 

A cabin emerged through the thick, unkempt foliage. A log cabin of early nineteenth century architectural remnants, kissed by spray paint, a twenty-first century commodity, wrote the word “PIGS” in red on the side of the structure. “This used to be a charming little cabin. I went with Dad once about five years ago. They really let this place go. Hopefully the inside is better than the outside,” Jamie said disappointedly. 

We approached the doorstep of the battered antique. The windows were caked with mildew and grime, obscuring it’s transparency. “Okay how do we get in? Break through the window? I know those old guys don’t hear as well as we do, but I think they’ll hear glass breaking,” I said trying to think through the next steps. Jamie reached out, grabbed the door knob, twisted and pushed. The door slowly creeped open, revealing a dusty, dim and dank ambiance, which would repel even the most desperate of visitors.

“Cozy,” I said sarcastically. 

Jamie strutted in first. She began to flail, gag, and spit incessantly. “Gross! I just walked right into a spiderweb. Got it in my mouth! Disgusting!” Jamie exclaimed. I pulled my phone and pressed on the flashlight icon. “Right, we should see what we’re walking into. I’m such a ditz,” Jamie said rolling her eyes to herself. My flashlight revealed a cabin which has long been deserted. Large wooden desks were filled with dust and webs. Boxes were lying all over the floor, and webs were draped all over the room. 

“This looks like the ninth circle of hell. You really think we should hang out here? Chillin with rats and spiders, while we come up with an explanation as to why we survived the ambulance fire and fled from the scene of the accident?” I argued.

“Do you have a better idea? We can carve ourselves out a little place to rest somewhere. Let’s check out this room,” she replied.

My older sister, Jamie, greeted me as I came to consciousness. “I know this sucks, but you were out cold for a while. We need to know what the doctors say, so we can help you,” Jamie said. I studied the two paramedics sitting on the far side of the ambulance. Both men were studiously writing on documents attached to clipboards. The two civil servants seemed too preoccupied to be engaged with their patient’s conversation. “I stopped taking my meds okay? I thought I could make my mind right without the pills but I was wrong. I’ve embarrassed myself in front of the whole school. How many people saw me loaded into the ambulance?” I conjectured. Jamie’s pale cheeks blushed ruby red, as her lips pursed tightly. ‘The whole school was out there Andy. Don’t freak out about it. So what? The whole school saw you picked up by the medics. We have more important things to talk about. I know anxiety isn’t the only thing wrong Andy. I heard you the other night, begging and pleading in the kitchen. I was in the bathroom. Who were you talking to?” Jamie inquired. 

I felt my heart disintegrate into a million microscopic fragments into my hollow chest. I felt a lump the size of a grapefruit in my throat. “A demon is haunting me. I thought he was God at first, but he showed his true colors that night. He tells me to do things… horrible things. Don’t be scared.  I’ll never carry out the evil he has commanded me to do. I don’t know how to shake him. He keeps coming back,” I explained. 

Jamie’s body began to quake. The stretcher shook violently as she slowly slinked off. Her icy-blue glare of indignation pierced through my eyes, as she raised her manicured finger at me. “What sin have you fed, to surrender your temple to satan? What evil have you brought into our house?” Jamie pleaded. Jamie ferociously let loose a barrage of kicks against the side of the stretcher. “What the hell is going on? Calm down!” The Paramedic exclaimed. He waffled in his chair, then Jamie glanced at the paramedics and swung her head over to me. She had murder in her eyes, accompanied with a mischievious grin. She dove on top of me, sending the stretcher crashing to the floor. The Paramedic bellowed, as I heard the scattering of his large boots against the metal ground. 

“Trust me,” Jamie whispered. She reached into her leggings with both hands, pulled out two tasers, one in each hand. Jamie extended her arms and rested them on top of my shoulders. I turned my head and skewed my eyes to the ceiling. The two paramedics poked their heads over the capsized stretcher. Four electric tentacles flew through the air and attached itselves to the Paramedic’s lips, left cheek, and chin. A split second later, four black strings of lightning launched onto the other Paramedic’s sprawling forehead. The two medics started convulsing as the electric currents lit them up like a christmas tree.