The Scottsville Vampire Invasion

Chapter 19

Chapter 19 

A Scottsville Tribune exclusive website developing story: 

"MURDER AT A MOBILE HOME!!!" 

"Another child is lost and a mother dead as this town continues to reel from the unrelenting crime wave. Kim Park was found dead in her car at the Golden Acres trailer park early this morning. She was discovered by a patrolling police officer. Her death is under investigation as a homicide. The victim has a wound similar to the other recent victims. Her daughter, Christine, was missing from their home. The police department, led by Clark Tyler, launched a large search party for the young girl, but so far has been unsuccessful in finding her. 'The hunt for this girl is going to be a failure just like everything else in this investigation, and the Sheriff's tenure in office,' one resident said. 'He came out here banging on everyone's door and making a spectacle of himself. I doubt he cares if he finds that girl. He just wants to act important so he can get re-elected,' another citizen said. 

"Patience continues to wear thin among the residents of this town. Sheriff Tyler seemed like a competent officer when crime was low in this town, but since the increase, it is clear that he should be doing something else, perhaps coaching high school football, rather than protecting the citizens of Scottsville. The website will be updated throughout the day as this story develops."  

I lean back in my chair at my office desk. I stare at the fluorescent light that hangs over my desk and emits a persistent hum that sounds like a distant, broken blender. Once again Glenn knows way more then he should. I just told him who the victim was, and he has all the particulars of the investigation. I don't care what Josh says, this guy has to be our number one suspect. There's no way that a person with this much detail wouldn't be our guy. What I really need is to find out how much he knows about Sharpsburg. If I can show that Glenn knows what happened there, then I'll feel sure that he could be the person that unleashed all the mayhem in Scottsville. I have to get to the bottom of this and fast. Every second that goes by is time away from my family and gives the vampires more time to find more victims. 

I tap my finger on the desk while I think and feel the need to take the edge off. I reach into my pocket and grab my bag full of pills. I open it and take two out. As I go to put them in my mouth, I pause. Today is the day I said I would quit. I didn't know I would have this murder, so today is definitely not the day to follow through on that plan. . Also, my back does feel a little tight and I'm getting a headache. I go to put them in my mouth and stop myself. I said I was going to stop today so I'm going to. Lots of people quit drugs and it hasn't killed them. If they can do it, then so can I. I just need to be persistent.  

I put the bag back in my pocket. The newspaper is sitting on my desk still wrapped in plastic. I wonder what bullshit Glenn is weaving today. I pull the paper out of its container and flip to the front page. "FIRST SHARPSBURG NOW SCOTTSVILLE. A TALE OF TWO CITIES!!!" An Inside Exclusive Story of the Fall of One City and Unraveling of Another!!!" 

I almost fall out of my chair. I thought I would have to hunt down a tie from Glenn to Sharpsburg and he's delivered it right to me. I start to read the front page. "The town of Scottsville has seen a rise in homicides in the last several weeks. The citizens of the town are confused and afraid, but for many of them this isn't unprecedented. In fact, many people know that a town very close to Scottsville, Sharpsburg, had the same thing happen a few years ago and believe that their beloved home is going to end up an abandoned wasteland just like Sharpsburg. This story will provide in detail what happened to Sharpsburg and why many feel the same thing is happening here. 

This in-depth story will relate the fall of Sharpsburg through historical analysis and interviews with former citizens.  

"A few years ago, Sharpsburg was a thriving, quaint town lying in a valley in Central Pennsylvania. The town's economy was anchored by the nearby Scottsville hospital, two major manufacturing plants and Central University which is in a town north of Sharpsburg. In the early seventies, it became a destination for people who wanted to get out of the big city. In fact, the bed and breakfast, Betty's, became a destination for the stars when luminaries such as Hal Linden, who starred in the hit TV show Barney Miller, and Gavin McLeod, who played the captain of the Love Boat, vacationed there. Unfortunately, Betty's burned to the ground under mysterious circumstances in the summer of 1982.