"She's dead!"     "Knock it off!" Hank shouted. "She can't be dead."     'I'm serious,'� Randall said nervously, getting off of Gina and pulling up his pants. 'I swear she's dead.'�     Gina laid in the moonlight, on her back and in front of an old grey headstone. Her shirt was ripped open to reveal thecreamy skin of her breasts and abdomen, and her jeans and panties were at her ankles. They had her legs spread and bent at the knees like a frog in water so the boys could have easy access.     Hank stepped up to them wearing a sleeveless white T-shirt and smoking a cigarette. 'Bull shit. She's just knocked out, we didn't kill her.'�     Randall shook his head and their friend Deke moved in to see what was going on. 'I don't know,'� Randall said, 'That cut's pretty bad.'�     Gina was not dead, although the blood pouring from a deep and jagged gash in the right side of her forehead seemed to indicate otherwise. Her eyes were open and she could see the three boys hovering over her, Hank with his blonde crew cut and football-toned body, the scrawny greaser Randall who kept running his hand through his stringy black hair and darting his rat eyes back and forth, and Deke, as dumb as he was fat, with a strange clueless look on his face. She felt hands on her, shaking her, trying to rouse her.     "No! Get away! Don't touch me!" she cried, but only in her head, they couldn't hear her. Soon, she didn't feel the hands on her, she didn't feel anything, except for the blood that flowed from her head. She felt it leak out onto the ground and seep slowly into the soil, down, deep down to the grave beneath her.    "Who's that girl?" Brandon asked as he sipped a cappuccino.     "I can't believe you drink that stuff," Kara said, flipping her red hair back and forth as she shook her head.     "It does a body good," Brandon quipped, never taking his eyes off the petite, dark haired girl leaning against the counter of Andy's Place, Mayville's old-fashioned ice cream and malt shop. "And I repeat, who's that girl?"     "Do I care?" Kara asked with a roll of her eyes, but she turned around in their booth anyway to see who it was. "I don'trecognize her, she must be from out of town."     "But she's got a Mayville varsity jacket on," Brandon persisted, obviously intrigued.     "Yeah, like from the fifties. She probably bought it at Goodwill." Kara was a little hurt. "If you're so interested, why don't you go talk to her?"  Kara had been friends with Brandon throughout their three years of high school, and secretly had a major crush on the handsome eighteen-year-old. She'd have given anything to see his turquoise eyes look at her the way they were staring at the girl by the counter now.     "Well," Brandon said with a charming smile, showing off thekind of perfect teeth only money can buy, "I think I will go talk to her."     He slid from the booth and strode confidently up to the counter. He hopped onto the barstool next to the girl and spun around to face her.       "Excuse me," Brandon began, "My friend and I were wondering where you got that jacket. It's cool, very retro."     She turned and looked at Brandon, a sweet smile spreading across her face. She had a turned up nose and full lips, with shiny, night black hair cut in layers that framed her round face nicely. Her skin seemed almost too youthful and vibrant, sharply contrasting the knowing gaze from her eyes.     "A guy gave it to me a long time ago." Brandon noticed the name 'HANK'� embroidered over the year '63'�.  She looked Brandon up and down. "My name's ... umm ... Lisa, what's yours?"     "Brandon." Somehow, he knew he couldn't con this girl like he did most, and suddenly felt unsure of himself.  "How about an ice cream?"     "I'd love one," she answered with a smile.    Gina was trying to drift off to sleep when the annoying voice began calling her.     "Leave me alone," she begged, "I just want to sleep." But the voice persisted. Actually, it wasn't quite a voice at all, but more like images, an awakening, alien thoughts invading her consciousness, urging her to act, a river of moving pictures, random emotions, aromas, sounds, words, music, a vivid cacophony of human experience. They began to coalesce into singular experiences. She saw an unfamiliar woman being beaten and then sexually assaulted by a handsome man. She felt her skin being sliced open, her eyes poked with needles, a pleasuring touch brought her to orgasm. She tasted blood, lots of blood. She saw Hank and his friends hovering over her with worried faces. She smelled burning flesh. Her brain seemed to swell as it tried to comprehend it all, and just as it started to hurt and she was about to cry out, it all stopped. And she knew exactly what she had to do. ******************** Brandon and Lisa walked along Mayville's one and only downtown street, casually window shopping at the many unique stores that lined the road. They enjoyed the warm October sun that briefly held off the cold that crept up on autumn days and snatched hold of them the instant the sun dipped below the horizon. Brandon scooped the last spoonful of melted chocolate chip ice cream they'd shared after leaving Andy's place. His spoonscraped sickly against the Styrofoam cup. Lisa crinkled up her face. "God, I hate that sound," shesaid and giggled. "Sorry," Brandon told her, genuinely embarrassed. It seemed all his usual charm and confidence had deserted him the moment he had met this girl. He zipped his leather coat all the way up to his chin to ward off the chill. "So, where are you from?" Lisa bit her lip. "Well, I was from here a long time ago,but I moved away. Now I only come back to visit about once a year." "To see family?" Lisa looked thoughtfully at the sky. "Yeah, my sister." "She lives here in Mayville? Where?" "Uh, out in Hegley Field," she replied quickly. "By the cemetery?" Lisa stopped walking and gaped into one of the store windows they were walking by. "Oh, I love that doll! My mother bought me a brand new one when I was a kid." "Brand new? This is an antique shop! That looks thirty years old." Lisa was still transfixed by the doll. "This must be an older one," she said absently. After a moment she shook her head and took Brandon's arm. "But, that was a long time ago, I'd rather concentrate on the present. I've got to go home for a few hours, my sister is cooking a nice family dinner or something, but I'd like to see you again later tonight. Is that alright?" She smiled innocently at him. How can I say no? Brandon thought to himself. "Sure, whenand where?" "Hmmm, I don't know if my family would like the idea of me going out so late, so I'll just tell them I'm going for a walk. How about we meet in the cemetery around eleven?" Brandon just nodded. Suddenly, they were standing very close. "Okay, I'll see you tonight then," Lisa almost whispered asshe placed a delicate kiss on his lips. With that she turned and skipped away, disappearing around a corner. Brandon stood mesmerized for a brief moment before he came around and tried to follow her. She was gone. ********************** Hank's hands trembled, sweaty on the steering wheel. He wanted to run, to get the hell out of there, but he also wanted to be smart and right now he wasn't too sure what the smart thing to do was. Damn, why did the girl have to die?! All he wanted was some fun for him and the boys, and now this. He ran a hand nervously through his short hair. He had to get out of here, but he couldn't just leave her there. He wanted to run like Randall and Deke, who'd jumped into Deke's pick-up and split, expecting Hank to follow but he'd stayed behind trying to decide what to do. No one would believe it was an accident. He couldn't leave her there, he had to do something with Gina's body, dispose of it somehow. That would buy him some time to think. Hank stepped out of his Buick. The October cold forced him to pull his varsity jacket tighter around him. He'd parked just outside the cemetery gates and as he approached them now, they looked like the gates of Hell. "Don't let your mind play tricks on you," Hank told himself. "Concentrate on what you've got to do and do it." He checked his watch. It was just before midnight. No one would be around at this time. He could move the body into the woods and bury it under leaves and brush. No one would find Gina for a couple of days, giving him plenty of time to formulate a story. Decision made, Hank forged on. He ignored the creak of the gates, the swirling wind that swept leaves all around him, the ominous gray headstones, the moonlight that painted everything a pale deathly color. As he walked, he thought he heard something. It sounded like a crunch of leaves, a footstep. He ignored it and pressedon towards the spot where Gina had fallen. "Hank, over here!" Hank jerked around so suddenly he nearly threw his back out. Gina was there standing next to a huge, wizened oak that staked claim at the center of the graveyard. She looked amazingly well for someone who was dead just a few minutes ago. The cut on her head was cleaned and looked practically healed already. "What the hell?" Hank said softly and took a couple of steps back. "I guess my fall wasn't as bad as it seemed." She took on an innocent look. "I'm sorry I scared you guys so much." "This can't be happening," Hank told himself. She was dead, they'd all been sure of that. Gina sensed Hank's disbelief. "It's okay, really. I wasjust unconscious for a few minutes." Hank shook his head. He knew she wasn't dead, that stupidass Randall. "Come here, there's something I want to show you," Gina said and quickly disappeared behind the huge oak. Hank hesitated, but chose to follow her.********************** "Bitch!" Richard Patterson yelled. "That's the last straw!" He slapped his wife, Elizabeth, hard across the face and shoved her down onto the sprawling bed that occupied most of their hotel suite. "All you ever wanted was to be known as Mrs. Patterson!" he yelled as he roughly tore at Elizabeth's evening gown. "Then every time we're in front of my colleagues you insist on making a fool out of me!" Richard fumbled with the waistband of his tuxedo pants until they fell to the floor. "I didn't-" Elizabeth started but was quickly silenced by another slap which jerked her head violently to the left and covered her face with the tight curls of her auburn hair. "You've said enough tonight!" Richard screamed as he slammed into her as if to emphasize the fact. He placed both hands around her neck and choked. She struggled, clutching and Kennedy - 11scratching at him as she watched the excitement in his smooth face. He did this as much to satisfy his own depraved sexual desire as to teach her a lesson. Soon Elizabeth slackened and lay still, succumbing to his 'greater will' as Richard always called it. It was fifteen minutes later, after he collapsed in a breathless heap on top of her, after he tried to rouse her with the usual tender kisses and I love you's, that he realized this time she was dead.********************** "So did you ever find out who the mysterious 'Hank' was?"Kara asked as she and Brandon entered the Mayville Emporium. Itsmelled dusty and old inside, which seemed appropriate for anantique shop. "No, I guess not," Brandon said with a shrug. "I don'treally care. How much for the doll in the window?" he asked thesmallish old man who had appeared behind the cluttered counter. "Two-fifty, no more, no less," the old man said from beneath a thick white mustache. "Whatever, I'll take it," Brandon shrugged and tossed theman his parents' Visa. "Ring it up." Kara laughed loudly, her brown eyes screaming with contempt. "You are unbelievable! Two hundred and fifty bucks on a girl you don't even know!" She shook her head emphatically. "You're a fool for a pretty face, Brandon." He turned to her and smiled mischievously. He knew Kara liked him and he loved playing games with her. "First of all it's not my money. Second, there's something different about this girl. There's more to her than most high school girls. It's like she looks at me and knows what I'm thinking." "Well, I know what you're thinking," Kara snarled as the old man slid Brandon the credit card slip, "You want to get in her pants." "You are so jealous, Kara!" "And you're so conceited!" Brandon stuck the doll under his arm and the credit card into the back pocket of his khakis. "You always say that just because I'm the only child of rich parents who spoil me rotten and let me do whatever I want." As they stepped outside into the sunlight, Kara slipped on a pair of sunglasses and said to Brandon, "No, I say that because you're a jerk." She turned her back defiantly and marched down the street in knee high boots fully exposed by the mini skirt she wore. Brandon watched her legs as she walked and laughed at her. "I know you don't mean that, but don't worry, I'll let you make it up to me." Kara wasn't sure why, but she doubted that would ever happen.********************** "I wanted to show you these," Gina said and pulled open hershirt. Hank's jaw dropped wide open. "I was only playing hard to get with you guys. I was actually looking forward to some more fun," Gina said with a wicked grin. Hank tried to shake a few thoughts out of his head. Too many things were happening way too fast for him to catch up.Slowly he cleared his brain enough to concentrate on one thing.Gina was standing in front of him, alive and well, offeringherself to him, that much he was sure of. She must've been unconscious, not dead, they were just mistaken. They were probably looking in the wrong spot for her pulse anyway. Gina suddenly dropped to her knees, unbuttoned Hank's jeansand started going down on him. All other thoughts left his head as he concentrated on the smoothness of her tongue and lips.After a few seconds, she stopped, and with a giggle, ran off. Hank chased Gina for a few yards until she let him catch her. They tumbled to the ground and quickly began to engage in Hank's favorite act. As he grunted on top of her, Hank put his hand down into something sticky. It was blood. He stopped grunting for a moment and looked around. He saw the blood on the headstone where Gina had hit her forehead when the boys threw her down earlier. Oh well, kind of kinky, Hank thought and returned to the task at hand. Gina rolled on top and eagerly watched Hank beneath her. She knew what was coming, couldn't wait in fact, and just as Hank's pleasure peaked it was there, up from the ground below, sharp tendrils pulling him into the soft earth, tearing, ripping, and devouring him so completely she climaxed more intensely than Hank ever could have made her. She woke a few minutes later, lying in the same spot Hankhad been a short time before. Her wounds were gone and she feltincredibly refreshed and vital, energized like never before.She jumped up and scanned her surroundings. No sign of Hankexcept his jacket tossed carelessly over a nearby headstone. She grabbed it and put it on. "A little big," she said,but the fit felt nice.********************** "Hi, I was afraid you might not show," Lisa said, giving Brandon a wide smile. "Wouldn't miss it for anything," he said and nervously bit his lower lip. "I brought you a gift," he said and pulled the doll from behind his back and held it out to her. Lisa's eyes lit up like sparklers in the early evening twilight, and for a moment she thought that maybe this one didn't deserve to die. She quickly put that thought out of her mind. Elizabeth had taught her they all deserved to die. "Thank you so much," she told him and hugged the doll tight. "Come here, I want to show you something," she said, playfully trotting into the cemetery. Brandon couldn't help but smile as he jogged after her. Everything about this girl turned him on. He'd never met anyone so mysterious. But, strangely, as he chased Lisa, he found himself thinking of Kara, thinking that maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all. Sure, he had feelings for Kara but he buried them. He knew she was the girl he was going to marry, but that would happen later. Now was his time to have fun, to enjoy his youth, sow some wild oats. He didn't want to settle down with one girl yet. He knew Kara would wait for him, but right now he couldn't wait for Lisa. "Hurry up!" Brandon heard her call. He jogged up a small rise where a sprawling oak stood at the center of the cemetery.He saw Lisa a few yards down the other side of the hill. Shestood amongst some headstones, smiling seductively with arms outstretched toward him. Brandon sprinted to her and they kissed and groped each other and suddenly he realized they were undressing and even more suddenly he felt the smoothness of her skin, the firmness of her breasts. He was on top of her and nothing had ever felt better. He leaned down and delicately kissed her cheek, whispering, "You're incredible." The sincerity in his voice brought the same doubts back toLisa's mind and she thought maybe she should let him go, tell him to run, but Elizabeth's voice erupted in her mind, "NO!" Lisa knew she was right. Brandon must die like Hank and Richard and all the others. They must pay for what they had done. Brandon was close but he didn't want it to end so quickly.He looked around for anything to occupy his thoughts. The headstone directly in front of him was the first thing he saw.Elizabeth Corrine Patterson1898 - 1925Forever Young Those were the last words he would ever read. Lisa rolledhim over, pinned him to he ground and then the pain began. Itstarted like wasp stings and progressed into razor cuts that never ended, splitting him from head toe. Then something liketentacles slapped at him, burned his flesh, dissolved it, and slowly pulled him into the earth. Brandon tried to scream butwas paralyzed, the only thing he could do was watch Lisa drift away from him as he was dragged down into the depths below. Gina felt the familiar sensation of Brandon's revitalizing force flowing into her body and she knew Elizabeth was feeding off of his soul at that very moment. She got dressed slowly, methodically, feeling the strength her soul sister gained with each second. She looked briefly at the doll Brandon had given her, smiled and for a split second felt bad about lying to him and leading him here, then threw it as far away as she could. She stared thoughtfully at Elizabeth's headstone. "Forever young, I've always liked that, sis." And Gina was feeling younger with every breath.THE END

Want to comment on this Short Stories? Sign up to Edit Red and you will be able to comment on Short Stories and get access to: Upload your own stories and poems, get readers and their feedback, promote your work...