Stubbs And Horrord (1) ***Editorial Note: This story is based on true events to a point. Characters are based on real people and the author did his best to capture each one's true personality. *** Book 1: Andrea. Prologue Comanche was a small town, with a mixed population of rednecks and "meskins", which totaled roughly four thousand people. The town was secluded in a small valley, and secrets were very rare. Very little could happen without everyone knowing. As with most towns, there were very plain demographics, but the wealthy had no real problem with the less fortunate. The economy was based on several antique shops, diaries, farms, and fertilizer plants. The school district was split into three schools, just like many towns, and football was life for everyone. If you didn't play, you found some way to be involved, and those who didn't were just forgotten. Andrea didn't associate herself with the game for many reasons, namely the fact she wasn't a sight to see and she couldn't play in the marching band. She knew people that played, and people that didn't. Friday nights were filled with light from the stadium, unless the team was out of town, and there was always a party afterwards. The town's four cops knew about every one, but really didn't care. The minors had money, and that kept the economy of a nearby town, Proctor, flowing. Proctor was a town built on alcohol. With only 200 people, one would expect very few buildings, but somehow 9 liquor stores thrived. Beyond the racial demographics of the community, Comanche was divided into two other groups, the young and the elderly. The C, as it was known as by the young, had a very large retirement community on the west and north sides of town, and a 'ghetto' on the south and east sides. The newer generations grew up hating the town, but then got old and came back to spend their final days. 1 Andrea had always liked Lloyd, but couldn't get the courage to hardly even talk to him. A few months before he graduated, he began to date her best friend, Lindsay, which instilled a deep jealousy in her. She began to hate the way that he always seemed to pull Lindsay away from her, and loathed the way he looked at her. When he graduated, she knew the relationship was doomed, because he had enlisted in the Army, and was due to leave for a long time three days after graduation. Lindsay had promised him that she would stay loyal to him forever, and would wait for him to come back, but found the temptation from Paton too strong. They shared a bed the night after Lloyd shipped. Andrea, finding this to be extremely funny, told Lloyd’s best friend, Stewie, and when Lloyd called a week later, Stewie told him about it. He was hurt, but not crushed completely. He had suspected something would happen, but he thought it would be at least three days later. He moved on, but was sent away from basic due to a knee accident that he had received a few years prior. In his wait to be discharged, he found a new love, which continued to grow when he got home. Ailee had multiple stress fractures in her leg and foot, and was going home as well, and they became really close. Andrea, of course, was denied this information. She continued to see Lloyd as an open target. (Ailee broke up with Lloyd a month later for some stupid reason, but they never forgot each other.) Andrea was tired, as she usually was during second period. She normally paid more attentions, however, but today she let her mind wander. She had known Nick for six years, and knew he was right. It was pointless to keep arguing, but she had far too much pride to just give in on something so trivial. She wasn't the prettiest girl, by far. People often compared her to a wild boar that was missing its tusks. Nick was the only person who never talked her down at all. This is why she had wanted to be more than just friends. He of course, said no, that it was better as they were, friends with benefits. Benefits? In six years she hasn't seen a single benefit that she could enjoy. Sure, she always had a shoulder to cry on when people called her a troll, and he defended her when her boyfriend spread nasty rumors about her, but that wasn't the benefits she WANTED. "I'll cave tonight." She told herself as the bell rang. "I will cave tonight." She called him at exactly 6:30 just as she had for so long, and was ready to step away from her pride and apologize, but the tone in his voice made her forget. "I hope you're not calling to ask again." He answered flatly. "I really don't want to hear it." "What is you're problem? What have I EVER done to you?" She screamed into the phone. "All I have ever done for you is cared!" She slammed the phone down on the receiver, laid down, and ended the longest Thursday of her life. The next morning seemed to drag by like an old man on his way to a shuffleboard tourney. During fourth period, she was called to the office. Her mother was there and signed her out and they left. Her mother was unusually quiet. Her voice trembled when she did speak, and their house was the other way. "Where are you taking me?" "You'll see." They drove in silence out of the small town and kept going. Andrea only knew one thing in this direction, the hospital. "What happened?" She asked, her voice beginning to break already. "Nick was in an accident last night. He's on life support now." Andrea thought she was joking, until they walked into the ICU. Then there he was, lying on a hospital bed, tubes and wires running in and out of him. She picked up the report on the stand by the bed. Patient Name: Nicholas Mayes Date: 08-21-9 Disc. Of Injury: ATV accident at aprox. 9:30 pm, 08-20-97. Handlebar insertion into central abdomen. Internal organ lacerations, internal bleeding, three shattered vertebrae. Status: CRITICAL Recovery Expected: None Dr. James T. Brown, PhD She dropped the page, and just snapped. She began crying and holding his hand yelling at him to get better. Her mother pulled her away and took her home. She didn't go out like she usually would on a Friday night, and turned her cell phone off. Two days later, Nick died. The life support wasn't enough to help him. Andrea did her best at the funeral to keep herself together. When the funeral was over, she was approached by a group of Nick's friends, who looked as distraught as she was. "This is your fault, you know that right?" The biggest one said. "Joey, that’s fucking stupid. I didn't make him wreck his 'wheeler." "Yeah you did. You pissed him off, and he drove like a maniac, all the way into the rocks. We asked him several times to calm down. 'No' he said, 'not tonight.' We tried to get him to just go home, but again with the no. You killed him, and you will pay." The group turned and quickly walked away as Andrea burst into tears again. Her best friend Allison helped her to the car and they went home. When they got there, Ally turned on Andrea's cell phone and found 6 messages. You killed him. You did it. This is all your fault. You will pay. You will pay. What the fuck is wrong with you? The number was unknown and the phone couldn't show it. Andrea knew who they were from. It was obvious to her. Joey had sent them. "We need to contact the cops." Ally said calmly. "These people could want to kill you." "NO! They are right! I KILLED him. It's all my fault! I should never have started that stupid fight! I deserve to die! Cops can't help that." "How can you say that? You loved him. You might be in danger, you need safety. Bookend isn't all that far from here. Please..." "I said NO! You don't really care! If you did you would believe me. They are fucking right. It's all my fault." "Nick was my friend too, and I know you didn't make him crash. Four-wheelers are dangerous; he knew it before he even bought one. I don't believe you." Ally was surprised. They had been friends since they were in diapers. Ally cared far more that Andrea's parents, and they both knew it. "Fine. Have it your way. Call me when you get over yourself." It was two weeks before Andrea began to be even slightly social, and another week after that before she called Ally again. She really cared for Ally, and that was her only true friend left. She couldn't afford to lose her, especially now. The text messages didn't stop either. They became more and more violent, describing ways she would feel the same pain that Nick felt. Andrea began to go paranoid. She began to see people outside of her window, and someone would get on the instant message service and threaten her. She widened her circle of friends, but namely stayed near Allison and Kendall. Kendall was three years younger than Andrea, but she offered a good friendship. She was there when Ally had to go to work or out of town for school, and would listen to her about the threats. Then, one morning, it all stopped. No phone calls, no SMS messages, no IM's, no one outside in the street. It was calm. A month passed quickly, with no word from the would be assassins. The attention began to fall away from Andrea, and she hated it. She had always loved to be the center of attention, at all times for any reason. Just as everything began to return to normal, she created a plan to keep her in the spotlight a while longer. 2 "OH MY GOD ALLY!!!!" Andrea screamed into the phone. "They just called me. They said they were going to come to town this weekend and kill me. I'm so scared; I don't know what to do..." "Calm down, we'll think of something. My parents are going out of town, so I'm throwing a party this weekend, only for the people in the crew. If anyone we don't know shows up, we'll know. Don't worry about it. You stay at my house this weekend, and we'll drink and have a great time." "Okay. What will we do if they show up?" "Greg, Stewie, Jackson, and Lloyd will be there, and they are big enough to handle a good number of people." "I hope so." The call ended on that note. She knew that her plan was working. Even if Joey and his friends had deceived to stop terrorizing her, she couldn't let the attention fade, EVER. She got on her computer and signed into her MSN messenger. She knew a guy that she had liked for a long time, away from Nick, that she would make her's one way or another. Lloyd had tolerated her for a long time, and hid the fact that he couldn't stand her very well. Too well, in fact, because she never caught on. Hey! What’s going on? She typed like she always did. Ailee's pissed at me, my business is booming, and I'm coming to town this weekend for Ally's party. He always seemed to say the wrong things, because it gave her hope in 'them'. That’s cool. What's going on with you? This is what she wanted him to say, and he walked right into the trap. Those guys are starting their threats again. They said they are going to come down this weekend and kill me. I'M SOOOO SCARED Don't worry so much. Ally says you're staying at her house this weekend, so you will be safe there. We will know everyone there, and if someone shows up that we don't know or want there, they will leave. Easy enough. I hope so. If they do show up, will you protect me? I'll protect the beer. There is no way that anything is going to go down to get cops involved and they find the Alcohol. I couldn't live with myself if anything happened to it. What about me? What about you? Are you going to protect me or not? I could die this weekend. She was getting pissed. The thought that he would worry more about alcohol than for her. What was he thinking? Was he trying to anger her, or was he serious? If someone does actually show, and I doubt they will, then yes, we will help you. Help? That doesn't exactly mean protect. Her control on the situation was slipping. We? Yeah, me, Stewie, Greg, and Jackson. I'm sure everyone else will help you too. We haven't had a good fight in a while. Yeah. She signed off. What the hell was wrong with him? Help. At least word was getting around fast. That was good. One more person to finish this scheme off with. Lloyd made it to town at 4:30 Friday afternoon. With plenty of time to blow until the party, he went to Stewie's. Kendall met him at the door in her usual fashion, and quickly began to repeat everything that she had been told. Lloyd really didn't want to hear it, but he was too nice of a guy to tell her to shut up. So he listened for twenty minutes, and then went to Stewie's room. "What’s up dude?" The usual. Some things never change. "What’s up? It's about time your fat ass got down here to see us. You haven't partied with us in a long time." "I know dude, but I've been busy. I can't exactly just come down here every weekend." "This is true. Kendall tell you about Andrea?" "Yeah, but I already knew it all. What do you think about it all?" "I don't know Lloyd. Truthfully, I think she's full of shit. I think she just wants the attention. And I think, actually I know that she wants your nuts." "That’s gross. I agree though, she is a drama queen. And she wants my nuts. I think that those guys really did threaten her after the funeral, but that stopped after a week or so. It just doesn't fit." "Exactly. But I don't think she has had any contact with them since the funeral itself. Stupid hoar just wants to be seen." "Hmph. That’s not a good thing. No one should HAVE to see her ugly face." "Let's just wait and see what happens at the party tonight. Then we will know if she is telling the truth or not." Stewie was always the one to be skeptical of others, but he was smart about who he told stuff to. Both he and Lloyd had a weird psychological connection and they could usually tell what the other was thinking, and they could both keep their mouth shut about anything. Stewie had been making plans to get out of Indian Hills for months, ever since graduation and Lloyd was the one who actually got out. Twice. He had joined the Army, and was discharged for a bad knee, stayed in the Hills for a while, and moved on to Lewisville. They spent the afternoon watching DVD’s of Family Guy. The party was big, but still only expected guests showed up. There was more alcohol than they really would need for a week or so, but it was going fast. Stewie had brought a special cooler full of hard liquor, and everyone was getting drunk fast. After a while, they began playing on the go-karts. The party moved around the property several times, even ending up on the roof once or twice. Andrea wasn't paranoid at all, and was having a good time on the little ATV's with the others. She didn't like the fact that the drivers were getting more attention than her, so she sent another text message. When it came back, she showed it to Ally. If you leave that party you are DEAD. Ally of course had a simple solution: don't leave. Word got around quickly though, and they all decided to see what the 'killers' were wanting to do, so they piled into Ally's lime green Explorer and headed into town. Andrea had to keep the illusion alive, so as they cruised the drag she sent another message. What are you doing in that bitch's car? This pumped the guys for a fight, fueled by the alcohol, because even if they didn't like Andrea that much, no one was going to call Ally a bitch and get away with it. "What do they drive?" Lloyd asked what they were all thinking. "I don't know. I think it's a little green car." Andrea answered after a moment of thought. "Well, we'll stop every fucking green car we see until we find the bastards." Lloyd once again spoke perfectly for the group. Andrea was filled with hope once again that Lloyd might really care about her, and she was too blind to see that he was to drunk to even stand up properly. They drove for half an hour and no one showed up, so they went back to the house and continued the festivities. The night finished uneventfully, the only action was Lloyd and Stewie hooking up with some really drunk chicks. A month passed with more and more anonymous messages coming in every day, and everyone's suspicions growing. The sender hadn't made any attempt to carry out his threats, and the spotlight fell away from the problem. "Here's my full theory," Lloyd said while sitting in Stewie's dinning room, "Andrea saw the considerable amount of regard she had right after Nick's death, and loved it. We both know she's uglier than a dog shitting razor blades, which is no pretty sight. No one ever really cared to see her, much less talk to her. Everyone was feeling sorry for her, so they made more contact than they wanted to. She was basking in the glory. There were guys at the funeral that told her she would pay, and they could have well sent the original text messages. But they gave up a long time ago. I believe that they are rather religious people that meant God will make her pay in the end. After a while, the concentration fell away from her, and she was alone again. She had to find a way to get back in the middle of everything, so she began to send the messages to herself. It was too perfect. People began to care again; worried that someone would be killed. She became the center of a lot, and crawled farther up Ally's ass. You know she would sit at the cafe from three thirty to eleven every day until she got off. She would sit there and send more messages to herself and then show them to her after work. Did you notice that every time she plays with her phone she gets a message? That’s not just a coincidence. The bitch is crazy. Remember the party at Ally's? We knew everyone that was even on the property, but she swears that while she and Greg were riding in the Gator someone jumped on the back. She says that person was one of the guys that threatened her at the funeral home. It's bullshit. You don't drive 60 miles to sneak into a party and jump on a gator for ten seconds and leave. Fuck dude, someone is going to get hurt in this, and I'm afraid it might be Ally." "Did you just think of all that? Don't answer that, I've been thinking about it too. Something is wrong with her, and you're right on most of that. She's a drama queen from hell. There's no stopping her. What do you think will happen to Ally?" "I'm not sure right now, but I've researched this kind of thing several times. Most people like her end up on the news holding hostages at gunpoint or something just to get the attention. They rarely hurt the hostage, but it does happen. " 3 Andrea opened her eyes. Her room was unnaturally dark, except for one candle that was lit above her bed. The flame didn't produce enough light to see by, and when she tried to move to click on the lamp by her bed, she found she was tied down. She heard someone or something move toward her, but remained calm. "You killed him. You will pay." A voice whispered from the dark. She could feel a cool breeze on her stomach, which meant the window was open, and someone had moved her shirt up. She tried to reply, but found she had been gagged. "Nick blew off his friends too many times for you and this is how you repay him? Bitch. But its okay, all is forgiven in the eyes of God, right? Yes. And Nick has sent a gift for you. “She heard the person take another step toward her, then something dropped onto her bare stomach. It was hairy, and from what she could tell, was about the length of a cd. It was quickly followed by two more. They stayed still. Her mind raced to figure out what it was. Then it dawned on her. Nick wasn't your average person. He had never owned a dog or cat, lizard or fish. He found a large fascination with spiders, but not just the little ones you find in you're mother's garden. He preferred bigger ones. Tarantulas. Andrea felt one of the things move on her stomach, and the image of three giant spiders on her bare skin dawned on her. She began to lose control. She jerked at the binds that held her hands, and was surprised when one of them broke free. She began to swing her now free hand at the spiders. She managed to knock away two with no problem, but only upset the third. It bit her twice just above her navel before she batted it away. The bites began to itch, horribly. She began to scratch at them, and then she woke up. She slowly reached over and clicked on her lamp, and looked around. Her window was opened just slightly as usual, because the air-conditioned didn't cool her room. There were no candles, and she could see no signs of the spiders. She pulled the blankets back and looked at her stomach. It was red and swollen with claw-like scratch marks. Had the dream been so real that she really scratched herself? Perfect, she thought as she grabbed her cell phone and sent two messages. The first was to Ally: I WAS ATTACKED! And the second to her own phone: This is only the beginning. Ally made record time getting to Andrea's house, which was a usual 20 minute drive, but she had woken up, gotten dressed, grabbed a cup of coffee and made it there in 15. She saw the marks, and believed Andrea's story about a guy breaking in and scratching her. That evening, Ally told Lloyd and Stewie about it, and they sat quiet. It was believable, and could really happen. After she left, they talked about it. Lloyd was first to speak, and it was exactly what Stewie was thinking. "Why would they just scratch her? If they were right there, why not just kill her? That’s what they want to do right? It doesn't make any sense." "Good point, they had the --" Stewie was broken off by Lloyd's cell phone ringing. Lloyd didn't recognize the number, but he still answered it. "Hello? Who is this? Oh my god! Can I call you back in a minute? Okay, Cya." Lloyd refused to say goodbye to anyone. It was to final he said. "I've got to go dude. Cya." And he took off out the door, phone in hand, already calling the number back. Andrea noticed the sudden change in Lloyd in the days following the call. He was in a much better mood, and nothing really seemed to matter to him. He had cared when she showed him the scratches, right? The answer was too simple, get 'attacked' again. That night she drove her car off the road, through the ditch, and into a tree. She called Ally crying. "They came back! They ran me off the road. Help me Ally. My car is wrecked and I'm scared. What if they come back?" "I'm on my way. Need anything?" "Could you bring Lloyd and Stewie?" Andrea knew that was where Ally was. "I can bring Stewie, but Lloyd isn't here." "What?? Where is he?"
Copyright © 2006 Brandon Colcleasure |