I found Cecily and we’re safe-ish. I’m still trying to grasp exactly what happened though I’ve accepted that I might ever fully understand any of it. My friends, I found Jack. But he wasn’t what I thought he would be and I’m afraid to say, I misunderstood my cards. Jack wasn’t our salvation.
He wasn’t even a person.
Jack was a place. The place on the jar I’d found in the store, specifically, and I found it while I drove aimlessly around Oceanview.
It’s not a very big place, my new home, but nestled on the very outskirts of it was an ancient farmhouse. To reach this farmhouse, you had to take a long, winding dirt driveway. To find this driveway, you had to be either familiar with where it met the main road or extremely lucky. In my case it was the later, especially when I narrowly avoided hitting the large dog that darted across the road in front of my car.
I slammed my breaks to avoid running him over and came to a stop smack dab in front of the driveway. The access point was so cluttered with overgrown weeds it’s any wonder I even saw it then. The dog stopped when it was a few feet down the driveway and turned to look at me. I was ready to drive away, thinking nothing more of it other than it being a terribly close call, when I found myself turning down the driveway.
*Something* was controlling me, and it wasn’t me.
I tried to pump the breaks but my foot stayed stuck to the accelerator. My car bounced gently down the dirt driveway with the dog leading the way and me stuck in my own body.
Panicking seemed as natural as breathing to me by now, though I still wasn’t okay with it. I couldn’t release the steering wheel despite my best efforts. The only thing I could do was talk and so I did. I pleaded with whatever had hold of me to let me go, that I was sorry for whatever offense I’d caused. It didn’t work. I stopped trying once we passed a sign that said, “Jumpin’ Jacks is straight ahead!”.
Eventually, I reached the end of the driveway and the start of my nightmare. The dog disappeared into the open door of an ancient farmhouse as my car came to a stop and shut off. I finally was able to let go of the steering wheel but now that I could, it was the last thing I wanted. I tried to start my car but it wouldn’t turn over. I stared at the dark entryway of the house, knowing that I had to go in but it took me several minutes to steel myself.
I tried to think if there was anything in my car I could use as a weapon. It didn’t take me long to realize that a stale tin of mints and a pack of travel-sized tissue wasn’t going to be of any use. For good measure, I tried my car one last time. The radio turned on and played a song that sent chills down my back. It was about a house that was haunted, if you’re curious.
With that less than promising sign, I slowly got out of my car and started for the house.
You think I’m mad. Perhaps crazy. Why go into the house when I could just start walking back home?
Cecily.
I knew she was inside. My cards told me she was in need of help and it seemed to me, at that moment, that I was the only help she’d get.
Inside, things were neat and orderly. It looked lived in, even if there wasn’t anyone immediately visible. I began to doubt myself and turned to leave when movement caught the corner of my eye. I turned toward it and saw Jane heading down a hallway. I chased her in a blind moment of stupidity. She disappeared around a corner mere seconds before I reached it. Upon turning it, I encountered the dog I’d nearly hit standing between me and a closed door. The dog looked larger and angrier and its eyes were a violent red.
I stopped in my tracks and a thousand things flashed through my mind. Everything I’d ever heard about what to do when faced with a dangerous dog. Among them: Never turn your back, never run and don’t make eye contact. Making myself look away from the biggest threat was hard. My whole body reacted oddly. I flushed hot and then cold and started to tremble. In my peripheral, I could just see the dog. He bared down and growled low at me. I held my breath.
Then the dog began to change. I thought it was another trick of my eyes, the way I’d been seeing people in ways they couldn’t possibly be. Slowly the dog began to morph into a human. It was grotesque and there was a great deal of crunching and popping but at the end of it all, a naked man stood between me and the door.
“You don’t belong here.” He growled.
Why do evil people have to growl?!
I kept my eyes averted even if he didn’t seem the bashful type. “I’m looking for my friend. Her name is Cecily.”
From behind him, I heard a muffled scream.
“Leave here before it’s too late,” He cautioned.
There was a loud bang from within the room. I jumped. He did not.
Quite suddenly, I was moving toward him. Once more, I wasn’t in control of my body. I think the juxtaposition between my terrified expression and the fact that I was advancing quite readily on him threw him. He looked confused for only a moment but then lunged at me.
Friends, dear friends, I’m not entirely sure how it came to be that I bested this beast but I did. I caught him by his throat as he threw himself toward me. He weighed nothing and I threw him back toward the door. He crashed through it and landed with a pained grunt.
I saw Cecily laying on the floor, tied to a chair. She had a gag in her mouth and when she saw me she screamed.
The manbeast lunged for me again, only instead of catching him I used the force of his own attack to launch him over my hip and back into the hall. He slid several feet upon landing and didn’t immediately move which gave me the time I needed to get to Cecily. Her eyes were wide and panicked and when I got the gag out of her mouth she said, “Chel?”
She looked at me as though she didn’t recognize me, and I suppose she had good reason. I didn’t feel like me at that particular moment.
She cried out a warning and I turned in time to see the manbeast morph back into a dog as he launched himself at me. I was terrified. I wanted to run but my body still refused to obey my mind.
I took the full brunt of the charge and crumpled to the ground. He growled furiously, bitting and snapping at my face and arms as he tried to get to my throat. The pain was immense. There was madness in his eyes and I was sure I was dead. I couldn’t fathom a way out of this situation, not against a creature like this.
Cecily, forever my savior, uttered strange words and in the next instant the dog flew off of me and collided with the wall. He immediately morphed back into a naked man but lay unmoving where he fell.
I was bleeding and shaken, but pleased to discover that my urge to get to my feet saw me doing just that. Once more, I was in control of myself. I rushed to Cecily and fumbled at the knots. She spoke urgently, uttering a single word that saw the knots loosening of their own accord. Then, looking at me, asked, “Chel, are you there?”
“Let’s just go,” I said, not wanting to think of the implications of her question or the way she looked at me.
“You’re bleeding.”
“I’ll be fine. Let’s just go.”
We did just that. As quickly as we could. When we got to my car and drove away without anything stopping us. Once we got back to Oceanview proper, however, we were lost. We couldn’t go to my house or Cecily’s, and her shop was out of the question. Anywhere it seemed we might be able to go also seemed to be a place where Roj might find us.
Cecily said we should just drive and figure things out from there. So I did, and we drove for a good hour before finding a place to stop for gas. We’re at a roadside hotel for the time being and while I still don’t feel particularly safe, at least I’m with Cecily. She set up protections for us and said they’ll hold for the time being, but that we need to get additional supplies in the morning.
I’ll update when I can, dear friends, and hope that tomorrow brings the answers Cecily doesn’t quite seem willing to give me tonight.