ALL IN THE HEAD 1

SILENT SCREAMS

Is a scream really a scream when there is no one around to hear it?

Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

It is two in the afternoon of a cool Christmas Eve during the last festive season of the twentieth century and Tamara Darcy is out walking in what definitely appears to be her own private winter wonderland. Her shopping is done, kids are being looked after, food prep for the next couple of days or so is as well ahead of the game as it can be, so with a few moments to herself Tamara is having herself a walk in the local forest like snow filled park and there is no one to be see along any line of sight she could set her eyes upon.

Yeah, the land is covered in a layer of white and it is indeed Christmas Eve and there is not another soul in sight. Surely, she can't be the only one out here. There must be others as well prepared as she is. There must be others with the inkling to take a brief trip out here. Maybe there aren't, a lack of footprints suggests such, their loss, for many a seasonal picture postcard could be created right here in Tamara Darcy's current surroundings.

It is a wondrous sight and more than a bit chilly to say the least. Tamara is dressed well though hell, it sure is pretty. The peace and quiet is not so bad either.

With all that Tamara knows of this moment she is unaware of watching eyes, capturing her every movement. The only footsteps in the snow she can see indeed are her own so what reason would she have to think that she is being watched? She has already dismissed the thoughts that there could be others out here or anywhere close.

It is so peaceful out here there aren't even any signs of animal life. Deer, squirrels, foxes, and other creatures are known to call this place their home but by the looks of things they have all vacated the premises or are busy with Christmas time celebrations of their own.

The sky is bright, and Tamara can't help herself but turn the odd three sixty or two and enjoy the beauty that is all around, for she is not ready just yet to make her way home or to anywhere else for that matter. Choice however, the choice to stay or go may not be hers to call.

This is her moment, it is not too cold, snow barely covers the ground so it definitely is not all so deep, surely life will go on for a moment or two without her ... but then on completion of a particular three sixty turn she notices something on the ground not all so far away from her. Not being sure what exactly it is she sees Tamara begins to move closer to what it is that has caught her eye.

A small blotch of red on that blanket of white is what has caught her eye, with further smaller blotches of red trailing off and upward along a slight incline, is that blood? Is someone or something hurt? There still are no footprints to indicate the presence of others. Anyhow, Tamara travels up that slight incline about thirty feet where that trail of red ends at a tree. Still the only footprints around are hers. If something is bleeding, then where is it?

Then the moment of becoming suddenly startled arrives. As Tamara traces her own footsteps to ensure there aren't any other footsteps to be seen she sees ... him. That moment of being startled makes her take a step backwards and gasp. She calms a little and stays alert. The man she sees is not moving so if there is a threat in this moment then it appears not to be immediate.

This man, he is just standing there, looking in Tamara's direction and at that she can't be sure if he is looking at her or looking past her. His is not dressed well enough to be spending much time out in this weather and he also looks to be a couple of years or so older than what Tamara herself happens to be, she is twenty-five.

'Excuse me ... sir ... but are you alright?' she asks. 'That isn't your blood on the ground, is it?'

There is no response. The guy just continues to stare. What does one do in a moment like this? He is alive and not frozen or so he spears. Tamara looks to her left then looks to her right and as before there is no one around to be seen apart from this particular stranger. Where did he come from? Are there others near-by?

There still appears to be no immediate threat so Tamara slowly begins to move back down that slight incline and towards that stranger.

'Sir ... if you are hurt, I can help you ...'

Still there is no response. If he isn't hurt physically then maybe there is something else wrong, something else that may need attention? Tamara feels the need to find out for if this man does require aid, then she may be the only one in a position to provide it or find the aid necessary, so she edges her way forwards and still he does not move.

'Sir ... can you tell me your name? ... I won't harm you ... I promise.'

She could leave the park, if there is really something wrong with this guy then surly someone else will come near soon. It is Christmas Eve though, maybe no one else will come near on this day and this guy definitely isn't dressed to keep warm long enough to survive any length of time, he could freeze before someone reaches him so going off for help and leaving him be till help comes may not work.

Tamara could take this stranger by the wrist and lead him out of the park; this would be a start, right? Cautiously she moves closer to him than what she is comfortable with. She slowly reaches for a wrist and flinches a couple of times, almost expecting something to happen, some kind of sudden movement or the likes. As soon as she has a grasp on one of the stranger's wrists, he turns his head to hers.

His far away gaze leaves him for he is directly looking her in the eye. Before Tamara can react, the stranger grabs her by both of her wrists. She attempts to jerk herself away, but his grip is strong. Fairly soon she begins to scream then shouts at him to let go, he doesn't.

Her screams become louder, more intense but no one is coming. He is strong, so is she but he is stronger. Who hears her screams when no one else is around?

On New Year's Day of a new millennium a body is found by a tree in that very park. Tamara Darcy is dead, killed. She has become the first known victim of a murderer who becomes known as The Festive Killer, a murderer also nicknamed The New Year's Killer.

Tamara Darcy's screams were never heard. That man, the silent man in the park, had he been screaming too? How long has his screams gone unheard? The man she had come across is on a missing person's list having been on such a list three days before her entry into this park.

Why it took so long for her body to be found? She had not told anyone of where she had been going for one, and the cold disrupts a proper estimation of her time of death. She may have been dead only a day or two or she may have been dead for all eight days.

Approximately two in the afternoon of a Christmas Eve twelve years later, Tamara's fifteen-year-old daughter, having gathered whatever information she could, traces her mother's final steps ...