Crimson Rivers

16) What Needed to be Done

She opened her eyes.

She did her best to ignore her hunger and pried herself off the floor, grazing the wet bark of the tree.

Rain pummeled the ground, passing through the leaves of the trees surrounding her. Looking up, she found a large dark spiral unraveling above her, swallowing the rain clouds. The air appeared like static, shivering. She trembled against the cold, heading back to the gas-station, remembering Martha's whispered words. As she walked, she glanced around, waiting for The Beast to strike, upend his wrath upon her.

Sadie entered inside, retching at the thick smell of blood. She hurried over to Martha, discovering the puddle of dried blood underneath, and her open eyes, glazed over, staring up at nothing. With a heavy heart, Sadie gently closed her forever screaming eyes and glanced at the gash in her leg, still oozing trickles of blood.

On the other side of the building, Jerry laid, the hilt of her knife still sticking out from his back. She shuddered at the memory of him on top of her, his eyes like that of a wolf. She couldn't fathom that she left Charlie to that same fate. She left his body alone, and pulled the knife out, straining, fighting against her lack of energy. She thought of rolling him over, but couldn't bear to see his face again. She knew she murdered him, shutting his eyes wouldn't do anything to change that.

Sadie flicked the knife clean of some of the blood, tucked it closed and slipped it under her sleeve. Before leaving, she grabbed what food was left on the counter. She thought of eating it but knew that the people back at the motel needed it much more than she did. She stepped out and began the long walk back to the motel.

She made it a block before she had to stop, sit down on the floor and compose herself. The ground shook underneath her, and the air carried a distant unearthly howl. The spiral continued to unwind in the sky, taking more and more clouds with it. She got to her feet, catching sight of the bulky mass of fur racing towards her in the distance. The thing growled, catching her off balance as she stumbled forward, desperately trying to run.

The wind whistled past her ears. Her legs quivered, begging for her to stop. The freezing wind incessentantly blew, chilling her skin. The Beast chased after her, shaking the earth with each step. Her feet ached, as she ran on the concrete, chased by something straight out of a nightmare. She peeked behind, staring at the thing's shaggy black fur which peeled off of it in sheets. It opened its mouth, revealing row after row of razor-sharp teeth dripping with black ooze. The front half of it glowed in an unholy red light, produced by the eyes protruding from every inch of its flesh.

It seemed to taunt her, staying just behind, lagging so she could feel like she had any chance of escaping. At one point, she tried to sit, but a tentacle shot out from the monster, swiping at her, forcing her back to her feet. A rush of adrenaline carried her forward. When she felt herself drifting from exhaustion, The Beast swiped at her to get her up, groggy but moving. The dead bodies lining the road whizzed past her, appearing in a blur of rot and decay, clinging to her as she passed.

After what felt like an eternity of running, Sadie made it back to the motel, The Beast followed closely behind, his hot breath warming her cold skin. She collapsed and slammed her head against the floor. Warm blood trickled down.

"Sadie?" Fran's voice came out from one of the rooms, a distant rasp.

"I'm here... I made it..." She cried.

"But you're too late, just like always." The Beast said.

Sadie lifted her head and saw Fran crawl out from her room, leaving behind a smear of blood on the concrete as she dragged the top-half of her body out. Her legs were gone, crudely taken off at the base of her thighs, leaving a throbbing red mass of flesh behind.