Tainted Heart

"It's cold out here," Rachel whined, settling onto the long ago fallen thick tree trunk. She pulled the jacket tighter around herself while her four friends displayed various degrees of annoyance, as it wasn't the first (and most likely wouldn't be the last) time she whined before they retired to bed. Face seemingly frozen into a frown, she looked toward Kimberly, who sat across from them on the stool she carried from the cabin. "Can't you tell this horror story inside? Preferably near the fireplace?"

Pushing long blonde hair behind her shoulders, Kimberly rolled her eyes. "If you bitch any more you're going to morph into a dog."

Mouth falling open, Rachel stared at her while someone chuckled. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me." A flashlight in her hand, Kimberly slapped it against her knee. "Rach, just relax and drink the cocoa Abbie made. Soon you'll be so engrossed in this story that you won't pay the chilly temperature any mind."

Although she appeared doubtful, Rachel accepted a just poured mug of cocoa without further grumbling. She even kept her mouth shut when she noticed that both Alyssa and Bianca's mugs had more marshmallows than hers. Once everyone had their hot beverages and a jumbo cookie, Kimberly asked if they were ready. Receiving four nods, she grinned while switching the flashlight on.

As it was just after eight in the evening, they were mostly surrounded in darkness, so the illumination on her face was that much spookier. "Listen up ladies," she started in a slightly lower voice. "I'm not going to share fiction or a tale based on true facts, but a one-hundred percent honest to goodness real story about a girl hell bent on destruction.

"Joanna Simmons was twenty-four years of age back in 1961. An introvert, she kept to herself and lived by herself in this very town. Actually, during the drive to this campground we passed the street where Joanna resided. Anyway, there were these two robbers who deemed her the perfect target and on October 31st--yes, this very day, Halloween, well after innocent children returned home with bags of candy, they rang Joanna's doorbell.

"Probably thinking they were late trick or treaters, she shortly arrived at the door with a bowl of candy. The moment she opened it, they rushed into her home, candy flying everywhere as Joanna attempted to run away. However, they were much bigger and much stronger. Each taking her by the upper arm, they threw her to the floor, one punching her in the face until she passed out.

"Despite November being just a couple hours away, it was rather warm so they removed black ski masks as they searched her home for valuables. Neither noticed that she had awoken and was watching them until she was nearly upright. Knocking her out again, they decided that they had to kill her since she could surely identify them.

"No one knows until this very day why, but the men chose to go above and beyond with their murderous plan. A butcher knife grabbed from her kitchen, they carried the limp young woman into her bathroom and placed her in the tub. There they--well, one of them--plunged the knife into her chest over and over again until finally reaching a bloody gloved hand into her chest cavity and pulling out a severely shredded heart, which he threw in the toilet without flushing. Grabbing their loot, they left, neither realizing that the next door neighbor saw their faces. Two days later they were arrested for thievery and murder. Soon after the beginning of the following year they were convicted and thrown behind bars.

"However, that didn't mean Joanna could rest in peace. No," Kimberly shook her head, the flashlight waving in front of her face while four sets of eyes were riveted, "she craved revenge. Nothing else quite so heinous occurred in this town again until Halloween of 1962 when Joanna returned thirsty for someone's heart!

"She chose her victim at random. As she was a ghost, it wasn't necessary to break into the innocent man's home. She merely waited there, pouncing when he arrived. Much stronger as a spirit, she dragged him into the bathroom, tossed him in the tub, and used a butcher knife from his kitchen to slice through his torso like he was a piece a meat. Her hand in his chest, she gripped his heart and tore it out with the ease one could use plucking an apple from a tree. Some say he remained alive until the moment his heart was dislodged.