Midnight Creek Tales

#4. The Duchess' Lost Portrait / Chapter 8

"Does somebody have a bloody match on them? I can't see a damned thing!" I said squinting my eyes.

"I think I've got a couple in my back pocket!" Radcliffe reached into his pouch and pulled out the matches. I could hear the match being struck against the matchbox, and immediately a flame erupted from the wood. I could now clearly see Brown, Radcliffe, and Terry all in front of me. But from the corner of my eye, I could pick out another figure in the distance behind them. "Look out!" I yelled stepping back.

"What's the trouble, Cole?"

"Someone's behind you..." I pointed towards the figure that stood behind them, and at that moment I heard a crashing sound thump against the mantle in an instant fright, and we jumped up. "Shit! What was that?" Terry said now turned around. We could hear ash and rubble fall down the chimney hitting against the firewood, and in another flash, a fire erupted out of nowhere!

The fire crackled with intensity and roared high up the chimney with a passionate burn. All of a sudden feet fell above the firewood and smashed against the embers. We ran towards the shoes hanging down from the mantle and tried to distinguish who - or what it was.

Immediately we heard running! I soon realized it was Terry making a mad dash for the exit!

The rest of us filled with curiosity began to dig deeper into what was transpiring. However, when Terry left, we didn't hear the door to the mansion open or close.

I could see from the burning fire black galoshes beginning to melt from the heat. "Guys I think this might be Starkey." I grabbed the fire poker, which stood against the wall and started to poke around the corpse trying to see if it was, in fact, him.

In an instant, his body fell from the chimney even more, and his corpse was exposed. As his body began to burn and barbecue from the fire that was flaming up the chimney, his head was partially visible.

His eyes were scooped out of their sockets; his mouth was wide open with his teeth ripped out of their gums as if he were screaming his lungs out. He hanged from his intestines, and his chest had been ripped inside out. My mouth was quivering in fear and astonishment... I began to tremble back, and as I looked towards Radcliffe and Brown, I worried that we'd be next...

"What are we supposed to do now? The police will get suspicious if they have to report another body!"

"Well, we certainly cannot leave Starkey's body in the house."

"I think it's best if we let him burn Cole, we'll dispose of his ashes in the morning." Radcliffe grabbed the fire poker I had dropped and put it back in its place. He walked towards the couch and took a seat.

"I think it's best to call the authorities," Brown said looking over his shoulder.

"We can't do that! You know what's going to happen to us if we call the police, we're going to be convicted and found guilty by a court!"

"We're all rich, maybe there's a bail we would need to pay," Brown said trying to bring up a hopeful possibility.

"I highly doubt that. Murder cases in the end always conclude with entering a penitentiary for the rest of your life, or ending up to the mercy of a noose!" Radcliffe said pushing up his glasses.

"Trust me chaps; the government can't do worse than this bitch! I'd rather pick Elaine's demise over being turned inside out any day!"

"Look men, we can beat this thing!"

"Cole have you gone mad too? This banshee is going to drive us all to our graves by sunrise! We might as well put a couple of bullets through our brains before the real suffering begins!"

"It's not like that Radcliffe! When Starkey left me down in the wine cellar, I was locked in, and I fended her off with these!" I pulled out the crucifixes.

"That's a load of poppycock, no way in bloody hell did these things actually work!" Radcliffe chided.

"It's true; I swear to you on my mother's grave! I am telling you, this is the only way of survival!"

"No act of God can stop this demon! And besides, even if we did battle against this creature, do you even think we'd be successful? God would never let us win! We murdered your fucking wife for Christ's sake! We are guilty men! And you expect us not to be punished?! As I stated before, if we end it now we won't have to end up like Starkey!"

"Radcliffe I think it's worth a try! What have we got to lose?"

"Our intestines."