With St. Patrick’s Day coming up I’m reminded of what horrors happened last year and how I might have had a chance to change the outcome.
After Highschool I focused on getting a steady job. Since I worked so often, I didn’t see my old friends as much as we liked. Soon we only started going out once or twice a year. I was invited out to a new bar. At first, I refused because I couldn’t afford the night out drinking. Then they offered fifty bucks for me to be the designated driver instead. I’m not ashamed to say how much I needed cash, so I accepted the offer.
I also didn’t have anything better to do but watch over three drunk friends for the night and get them home safely. I knew I was doing them a favor. A taxi or an Uber would cost almost triple the amount for that night. When they piled into my car with dirty shoes and greasy fast-food bags, I considered charging them a cleaning fee. I doubted I would ever get those grease stains out of the backseat.
“Where are we headed?” I asked as I passed my phone over to Mike.
We’ve known each other since we were pre-teens. Growing up he was a popular sports kid, and I was a nerdy bookworm. If he hadn’t been friends with me, I doubted I would have been accepted in the cool crowd while in school.
“It’s a new place that just opened called Liquid Gold. It’s nearby.” He explained and put the address into my phone.
At least the new bar was only a five-minute drive. With gas prices as high as they were, the fifty they offered would barely cover a full tank of gas. The other guys in the back seat might as well be strangers. I’ve seen them in photos Mike posted but never met them in person. They introduced themselves when they got into the car, but I was already annoyed by the risk of them dripping burger condiments to pay attention. Five minutes of listening to them saying how they were ‘totally going to score’ was torture.
The building we stopped inside didn’t appear to be a bar. It had once been a bookstore with some signs left behind in the empty window. There wasn’t anyone else around which was odd for a bar on St Patrick’s Day. I considered Mike had the wrong address, but he assured me we had arrived at the right place. He opened the unlocked door to show a narrow staircase bathed in a sickly green light. Thumping music got louder the closer we got to a white door with peeled paint.
Mike opened it to show a packed hidden bar below the abandoned bookstore. I looked around a little shocked at how this place appeared far larger than the building it was under. Before I could think too much about that, Mike darted off. I shouted after him to remind him when we were going to leave. The other two followed him and I’d hoped I would remember what they looked like at the end of the night. I should have grabbed their phone numbers just in case.
Since I wasn’t drinking, I found a somewhat quiet booth at the back of the bar. A crowd had formed on the small dance floor and by the bar. The place had been decorated in green and gold. Golden glitter littered the floor and most of the tabletops. That stuff would be everywhere on me by the end of the night. I decided to get in line to get water or something simple.
The crowd by the bar moved fairly quickly. Almost everyone had a bottle with a green drink in their hand. A sign said how cheap the drink was, so it explained why it was selling so fast. The bartender had a bottle ready to serve me. I almost felt bad asking for a soda instead. He gave me a side eye and got what I requested. It almost looked like he was a bit angry I wasn’t drinking. I quickly left the bar to find my quiet booth again only to find someone else there.
A woman looked up at me and smiled.
“Did I take your spot?” She asked.
She was short. Her feet almost didn’t touch the ground. But she didn’t appear younger because of her height. When she smiled slight wrinkles appeared at the corners of her eyes. She wore a button-down white shirt that was having issues staying closed. I found myself staring and forced my eyes away which made her smile again.
“I can find somewhere else.” I said but she shook her head.
“Come and keep me company.” She replied with a small pat on the table.
I sat down feeling nervous with her green eyes looking over me.
“Not drinking tonight?” She questioned.
“No. I’m the designated driver.” I answered as I found a coaster for my glass.
“I didn’t know that was a thing anymore. A lot of people hire those ride services.”
“My friend got drunk and forgot his phone in an Uber once. The driver used his phone and spent like nearly a thousand dollars because Mike was dumb enough to have all his payment details saved on and unlocked phone.”
At least if Mike left his phone in my car, I would be good enough to return it. After I collected my driver’s fee of course.
“And you’re a good enough friend to give it back after you only spent a hundred from his account.” She teased.
I laughed with her and didn’t deny her accusations. She introduced herself as Felicia. I gave her my name feeling a bit proud of myself for keeping a conversation going with someone who wasn’t forced to talk with me because we were trapped in the same workplace. Sadly, Mike interrupted our short interaction. He had a bottle of the green drink in his hand and his face was flushed. I’ve never seen him get so drunk so fast.
“You gotta try this man. It’s crazy good.” He demanded and shoved the bottle closer to me.
I pushed it away determined to earn my fifty-dollar bribe.
“You’re paying me to drive you guys home safe.” I pointed out.
“We can call a cab. I got cash on me. Come one, try some.” He pressed in a way that creeped me out.
Normally Mike wasn’t the one handing out free beers. He only called me when he needed something. This was strange even if he was a bit drunk. I felt someone sit next to me as Felicia slid around the booth to get cuddled up. My heart almost stopped by her being so close.
“I respect sober drivers. This poor man is giving up a fun night as a favor to you. Maybe I’ll make it up to him later on.” She suggested.
Her playful tone almost sounded serious. Mike took the hint and found someone else in the crowd to harass.
“You’re my hero.” I half-joked to her.
She winked as she reached up to fix her hair. It was a flaming shade of red curls she tightly tied back. I found myself wondering what she looked like with her hair down. To be honest, I think most girls look better with their hair loose.
“How about you hang out with me for a while as a thank you? I’ll be bored without anyone to talk to.” Felicia admitted.
I started to think about how I got so lucky that night. Yes, I would need to wrangle three drunks back home but until then a girl way out of my league was giving me the time of day. The only problem was I had no idea what to talk about. That was the issue with working so much. All my stories were years old, or about a workplace no one outside of it would care about.
“Do you want to hear about how a kid stole my Pokémon card collection when I was ten and we uncovered a huge underground card black market?” I asked and oddly enough she nodded.
The best part about meeting new people is telling them years’ worth of stories all your friends are tired of. It was nice to have someone to hang out with. Mike came back a few more times trying to get me to join the party, but Felicia helped send him on his way. Even one of the bartenders dropped by the table insisting on the special drink for the night. He and Felicia had a silent staring match that made me think she knew the workers here.
After looking around I realized there were a lot of redheads in the crowd that night. Oddly enough, none of them were drinking the green beers that appeared to be passed out for free at this point.
“It’s almost midnight, do you want to get out of here?” Felicia offered taking my attention back to her and away from the crowd.
At first, I didn’t register what she said. It didn’t feel like that much time had passed. Then the implication of what she offered hit me. I started running through ideas of accepting and making sure the group I brought found their own way home. When I realized they were too far gone and needed my help I let out a huge sigh.
“Can we take a rain check on that?” I reluctantly asked.
She smiled in a way that made me think I’d lost my chance. Some hope came back when she asked for my phone to put her number into my contacts.
“Call me if you’re interested after what you see.”
I was confused by what she meant. I watched her slide out from the booth and stand facing the dance floor. When the clock rolled over to midnight, the music was cut off. The crowd was as confused as I felt. The flashing lights stopped as the normal lights were turned on. It was far too early for the bar to close. They hadn’t even had last call yet.
A murmur came from the room. Then, a soft song started. The bartenders started to sing and were joined by a few others in the crowd. I noticed anyone who hadn’t been drinking aside from myself started singing. It was a language I didn’t understand. The words felt ancient and almost as if I shouldn’t be hearing them. As the song grew louder a fear I didn’t understand settled in my stomach.
The ones singing start to clap twice, then stomp their feet. A few of the drunk people in the crowd headed towards the door to find it locked. Felicia also sang along, her expression showed utter excitement. My stomach tightened and I wasn’t able to watch her play along with whatever ritual that had started.
All hope that this was just some weird St. Patrick’s Day tradition was crushed when the screaming started. People started to double over or collapse clutching their stomachs. The excited stomping and terrifying words mingle with their cries of pain.
I stood up but froze when I saw bodies starting to contort in pain. With one final burst, the song finished with a wave pulsing through the room. Some people started to empty their stomachs, but instead of the green beer they consumed a golden liquid poured onto the floor. For some strange reason, it appeared the gold started to spread wherever it touched.
No, the gold was definitely spreading. It started from their fingertips and then crept down their entire bodies. Within seconds they became stuck in place, and their entire bodies transformed into a precious metal. But they weren’t dead. Even though they couldn’t move, they were still able to muster some raspy cries from stuck throats.
Then, the massacre started. The bartenders fell on the nearest golden person, and their hands suddenly transformed into claws. They ripped open the hard outside to cause golden, yet soft organs to spill out. They started to greedily shove the mess into their mouths eating like animals.
Golden flesh was torn open as those creatures who at first appeared human tore into their prey. I fell backward into the booth, so frightened my brain shut down.
“This… can’t be real.” I heard myself say. “There are too many people.”
Monsters weren’t real. They couldn’t be. People would know about them. How would it even be possible to keep such a massive thing a secret?
Felicia turned hearing my voice. She looked like she was dealing with a child who was trying to solve a hard math problem. When she smiled her teeth appeared sharp and inhuman. She raised her hand and used a pointed nail to slice open her finger. Dark green blood dripped out onto the table pooling on the rough wood.
“Money is power. With power, you can do anything like making this many people disappear. And we can create money.” She explained.
She spoke a few words in that ancient language. The table where her blood touched transformed into gold. The coaster I had used half transformed from only being partly soaked. But the glass remained the same. For some odd reason, it appeared there were some restrictions on what the blood could turn.
All of this death and they were going to get away with it.
“Looks like you got lucky tonight but not in the way you expected. If you’re free next year, call me.” Felicia said as she leaned in close.
The sight of her glowing green eyes and pointed teeth got my legs moving. I started running before I realized what I was doing. The golden blood on the floor caused me to slip as I raced towards the door. But no one stopped me from leaving. Even as I rushed up the narrow staircase, I still could hear the wet chewing sounds echoing in my ears.
I got sick the moment I went outside. Wasting no time, I got inside my car to leave. My chest hurt knowing I could do nothing for Mike or anyone else that night. When I calmed down enough, I drove around until I found one of the very rare payphones still intact. I left an anonymous call to the police saying someone had been killed at a bar called Liquid Gold. If what Felicia said was true, then that call did nothing. Still, I needed to try.
I expected someone to report Mike missing. No such fuss was made about him. His family said he decided to disappear on his own and not to go looking for him. No matter how hard I look, I can’t find any mention of the bar or mass disappearances around this time of year.
I tried to think this was some sort of false memory. That I got drugged that night but what I found disproved that. Felicia had slipped the half-golden coaster into my pocket when I was too scared to pay attention. Her number is also still in my phone.
What I saw has haunted me every day since it happened. I can’t change the past. I just hope that telling my story may make at least one person reconsider their plans. You can still drink this weekend, but I think it’s safer to do it at home.