Novels2Search
Crest Of the Unicorn
Chapter 1 Red Hot Moon

Chapter 1 Red Hot Moon

There was once a city on the edge of a forest, Red Oak it was called. This city had a problem. For the past few years, children have been disappearing. There was one man who knew why, his name was Bolat O’Brien, he was hiking around the forest in the early morning in the mist. He quite liked hiking but today it was not the way he was deep in the forest with little supplies but with a full, full-sized hiking backpack. He was three miles up the trail and 2 miles off the trail in the woods. This was a little more dangerous than what he was used to but there was little more room to bury the body in his garden anymore. The four-year-old in his backpack was not his latest victim, experiment, guest that’s the word. But he had outlived his usefulness and had to go. He already had another guest to entertain. The young Thomas was tasty even though he could not barbecue him as he normally did for his ‘guests’. It made it easier to break down the bodies for fertilizer for his garden, one of the few things he truly cared about. It was truly a massive garden that covered every inch of his yard. And under that garden were the cooked remains of so many children that had been his ‘Guests.’ Thomas had been his ‘guest’ for the last four months. His soul was gone a week ago and the best-tasting parts had been eaten he just didn’t have any more time or energy to deal with Thomas anymore. So he had to go. So out in the forest was his new resting spot, not that there was any soul anymore to be put to rest. Out here it was not likely for anyone to find the body. He was so close to proving his hypothesis. He felt so powerful. He just needed the help of his new guest so out with the old.

The grove deep in the forest was perfect, he didn’t have to disturb too many roots. It would be hard enough to dig the hole with the small inconspicuous shovel that he had. It was a good five hours digging the hole, he wanted the full 6 feet under, he didn’t want a bear to show up and dig out all of his work. He was so deep in his focus that he didn’t hear the hikers who were there to take pictures of wildlife. They were used to walking silently and unnoticed. Alex Anderson and Lisa Taylor were deep in the woods hoping to get some good pictures for the nature magazine competition. They had heard to grunting of the man and were curious, why was he digging such a big hole? They nodded at each other and were taking pictures as they thought it maybe was a poacher setting a pit trap. They knew that poachers had guns and were very dangerous so they stayed out of sight. They had to stop gasping in horror when the man put on some gloves and started to pull out the body parts of a young child, Parts! The first part was an almost untouched leg, the little foot of a young child, the dark hue of the child's skin stood out in the mist. A foot that probably was played with by their mother, this little piggy went to market. That thought overcame Lisa, then the torso was pulled from the hiking pack. It was missing chunks, the chest she could see the ribs poking through what was left of the muscle and skin. She remembered that they needed to take pictures of this if they were to help the police to put this monster away. There were tears in both their eyes. Alex was having a hard time not sobbing, Imagining with horror if this had happened to his own kid, the poor child must have died in pain. Why was the body so mutilated? One by one the body parts came out and were put in the hole like it was nothing, the last thing to come out was the head, Alex hated that he got a perfect shot of the man kissing the mouth of the child’s severed head. There was light picking through the mists and the shot was eerily and beautiful and made him want to vomit. The joy on the man's face and the slack of the child's face. There was no blood but the meaty slaps as the parts of the child hit each other as they fell into the hole. The head was tossed in the hole with no afterthought.

Lisa had never liked horror movies, they stayed with her for days haunting her nightmares and this was so much worse. She wanted to scream, it was bubbling in her throat, making it hard to breathe, if she had not learned to keep calm Photographing large predator animals she would have no chill. She felt the bile in her throat keep seeping up. She worked hard to keep her hands steady. She needs to get a good clear picture of his face. She was sweating, if he could do that to a small child what could he do to her? You hear about psychopaths every once in a while in the news but she never thought she would encounter one herself. Even though she was just far enough for her Zoom to pick up his face. Inching closer to him had been one of the most unnerving things she'd ever done. She was more careful than she was when she approached a bear.

The man had laid down all of the pieces of the child and was starting to bury them. If it wasn't so horrible it would be comedic with his laughably small shovel the type of shovel that was used to dig little holes to relieve yourself in the woods. The man was huffing and puffing He seemed more and more affected by the labor than disposing the body. Over the time it took him to fully bury the body, they had seen about six animals come and go. Each time they held their breath hoping that the animals would not give away their positions. They're Blood turning icy cold. There was no room for Alex to move and he desperately needed to pee. The feeling in his bladder was painful but he waited. He had nothing for a weapon and he knew that Lisa didn’t have any ether.

They waited as the man placed moss over the grave, grabbed his hiking backpack, and held still and silent as the man started to walk away. They waited till he was just out of sight. They marked the grave with a flag and on the GPS then started to follow the man, if they could get the license plate that would help to find him again. Their mental map of the forest was quite extensive so they could predict just a little bit where he was going likely he was just going back to the hiking trail which would be easier and harder to follow him. As they could pretend to be hikers on the trail they did not wanna catch him alone Who knew what kind of weapons he would have? Luckily it was only hilly giving them some room to hide and not mountainous leaving them with trails that were being impossible to follow. The map on their phones was so useful, they were very bone ached. Holding so still and then careful hiking in the woods was hard then adding in the stress and horror on their very soul. They were more Tired than they ever have been emotionally and physically they still wanted to vomit but they were worried that it would cause attention. It was six hours of walking as there was very far in the forest before they had sight of the parking lot. The Zoom feature was an old and reliable friend and they were just able to get the license plate as the car drove at an unusually relaxed pace. Alex thought the man would screech off with his car getting away from his crime but he seemed calm like he was used to it. Lisa was horrified by the implications of that.

The second his car was out of the parking lot they pulled out their phones and called the police. The police were out in the forest not half an hour later and the two nature photographers headed back into the forest with the police to bring the poor child home.

Ring Ring.

Ring ring.

Terra had a long day at work yesterday, it was Saturday and she just wanted to sleep, she didn’t care that it was already noon. Sleep had been the only real comfort she had was in sleep, in her sleep, she still had her baby boy. Sometimes it was that he came home, sometimes it was that he never disappeared. Sometimes it was him disappearing that was the dream and she ‘woke up’ to him safe in her arms. Purdy had tried to help, but she was burying herself in work and boozes. More and bottles were piling up and Terra had no energy to pick up after her. She knew that if she drank with Purdy she may never pull herself out of the bottle again. She didn’t want to be awake. Her

Ring Ring

Ring Ring

Oh, that was right, the phone. She didn’t want to answer but she didn’t want it to fill up her voicemail either. It was annoying. This telemarketer was going to get it, she was not one to rise to anger easily but these last four months had left her hollow and there was a thin line of hope and an ocean of rage left in her. And she didn’t want to be awake.

Click

“How can I help you?” she said sarcastically. She didn’t even look at the caller ID. She was still half asleep and wanted to get back to that dream.

“Can I talk to Terra Pritchard?” the voice was soft and clear, It didn't seem like a telemarketer, they rarely did they know your name. Telemarketers usually talk faster to try and get to their point before you hang up on them. She was looking and her blue curtain so she sat in her bed. She didn't care that she didn't get the best reception in her room she wasn't going to move.

“Speaking. What do you want?” It was ruder than she normally was but she was beyond caring.

“This is the Red Oak Police Station, there has been a breakthrough on the missing person case involving your son.” the voice was calm and smooth, a woman’s voice she noticed now that she cared about the conversation. Her heart was beating through her chest and she could barely breathe. That thin sting of hope was pulled tight.

“Oh?” she said, she wanted to say more but nothing was coming out.

“We need you the Identify the body, we-----” That thin sting of hope snapped, her head was blank and she knew that words were coming out from the phone but she was breathing too heavily to hear her. Oh, she hoped she was still dreaming, that she would wake up in a cold sweat and her baby was still alive. She was gripping that broken string, all she could see were the ugly blue curtains, she was lost at sea. The blue haze that the curtains brought upon her room was not helping. A small hysterical part of her mind told her that she needed to change the curtains into something lively like yellow. She was halfway leaning to tear down the curtains when her name caught her attention “Ms Pritchard, Ms Pritchard, can you hear me? I need you the breath!”

“ah... ah…” she breathed “Yes, ah... I’m here” It was hard to breathe but her sanity was returning. She knew that ripping the curtains off the wall would not help here. “You said..” she gulped in the air and started again “You said that I need to identify the body, yes?” she said as she was looking around her room, hoping to find something to focus on. What was it? 5,4,3,2,1.

“Are you okay?” she was not.

“I’m fine now thank you” She was in fact lying through her teeth. “where is the.. the.. body? I mean where do I have to go?” she said.

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

The woman over the phone Gave her directions for 5th and K Ave. Along with the building number though her voice faded in the background even though she took she rushed to her bedside table to take notes.

She didn’t even remember the drive there, the sound of the GPS was unremembered. If you had asked her to Retrace her steps at gunpoint she would not be able to give you an answer. The parking lot was full and she ambled around it maybe five times before she found an opening but even that was foggy in her head. She ended up asking for directions twice to the lady at the front desk the second time to the security guard.

They checked her ID and let her into the room. That is when the world came back into full color, the fog was gone. She could hear Everything; The buzz of electricity, the Rapid heart in her chest, A faucet that wasn't fully closed drip, drip, drip. She could smell death, Smelled slightly different than the dust she was used to being a veterinary assistant you have a fair amount of dogs that don't make it. It was cold in here, The flesh on her arm was up in goosebumps. She could feel that her shoes didn’t fit and they hurt her feet, she must have grabbed Purdy shoes instead of her own, they were half a size different.

And there was the table, there were many tables but only one had such a small body on it. The table and body had a cloth over it, but even looking at the cloth she could see there was something wrong. It was misshaped. She was slow and lethargic all day but in that moment, she snapped forward like a cobra and ripped the cloth off. Her screams of sorrow drowned out their gasps. The force of the moving cloth knocked the small head off of the table. Rolling to his mother's feet was the four-year-old Thomas, She fell to her knees and held her son for the first time in four months and for the very last time.

“You're home you're home they can't hurt you anymore I'm so sorry! My love you're home you're with me! I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! I wish I could have saved you I'm so sorry please please forgive me I wish I could have saved you, my baby, oh my baby, why?! Why did they hurt you so? - ” She went on but she couldn't barely understand what was coming out of her mouth anymore. She just held the cold head to her bosom. She wants to claw the eyes out of who did this to her son. Her tears dripped upon his face as she said sweet nothings to what was left of her boy.

“Ma’am we can’t have you touching the bodies, I understand that you are very upset but you need to put the head back on the table.” there was a tall Bulky man to her right he was bending his knees and his hands were on his thigh and he was trying to look at her with a sincere smile. “I know the last thing you wanna do is let go we need to confirm some questions and for health and safety we cannot be touching the bodies.” The man said calmly and with a voice that seemed softer than his face.

She stared at him with hollow eyes only for about 3 seconds before she sighed with tears still streaming down her face she got to her feet and put the head back on the table she tried not to look at the body that was on the table. But she couldn't help but notice that every part was separated; the legs from the torso, the hands from the arms, it would almost look like a doll that was pulled apart but it was worse than that. Parts were missing some down to the bone. She never wanted to see his bones. She was happy that she had not eaten, she didn’t want to throw up here.

She washed in the sink that was in the room, she couldn’t remember the name of, maybe it was the morgue. She didn’t care enough to be right or wrong or to ask. She was going to take Purdy up on that drink.

I was lost, the floor was swaying around me. I was in the kitchen. My thoughts would come and pop like bubbles. My nausea was great. I chugged a huge glass of water and immediately needed to vomit. I forgot that there was only so much room in my stomach, and I had been near capacity for many hours. The hours of drinking at Purdy’s place had been a relief. Pulling all the tension out of my bones. We watch crass movies that I haven’t seen in years, not wanting my son to accidentally watch something other than soft cartoons. I was fine till I looked at the bathroom mirror.

I look so much like my son.

I was breaking all over again, I didn’t want to live. I slammed open the medical cabinet; there was a lot of medication that where in there. I didn’t stop to read them, I just opened bottle after bottle, downing them like shots. The water was just a vessel to get the pills down. The cabinet was emptied the bottles were all on the floor. I was walking down the small hall to get to my bedroom when I fell. The pressure on my gut made me vomit again. I was laid down in my vomit waiting to die.

There was a brief moment where I felt bad for the cleaning lady that was to come tomorrow. I should be dead by then. I am happy, I will see my baby again.

She awoke with a hangover, her red hair messed up by sleeping on it with hairspray still in. Her mismatched eyes were bloodshot as they watered from the light of day. Her makeup was smeared on her face and pillow. She wanted more sleep but the turning in her gut would not allow it. Soon she was going to spill her guts, hopefully into the toilet, if she could make it that far. The bile in her mouth was a sign that she had vomited the night before but she could not remember when that had happened or where it happened.

She rose from the bed slowly to not to slush her insides too fiercely, hoping that slow and steady was the way to go. She was nearly blinded by her headache and was barely opening her right green eye and squinting her left blue eye tightly. She lurched with every step, sloshing the bitter bile inside, the taste of it on her breath.

She made it to the bathroom and once the smell of the toilet water hit her nose, the battle was over and she succumbed to her nausea. The torrent of vomit spilled from her; the smell just made her vomit again. It seemed like her lunch and dinner the night before were coming up. At least it felt that way. It burned on the way out as the Tequila and Bacardi made their exit. The tears in her eyes were hot and dripped into the toilet as well. The pain in her throat and her heart near unbearable. Soon she only had bile left, but her body heaved still as it wanted to vomit more. After her last spit in the bowl and a final flush, she turned her back to the toilet and sat on the bathroom floor. The floor felt cold and she was tempted to lay on it. The coolness called to her. It seemed like a good place to cry. She blew her nose with some toilet paper.

RING RING RING

She flinched at her phone ring tone. It was unexpected and didn’t help her headache one bit. She let the phone ring as she rinsed out her mouth with water from the sink and then mouthwash. The phone was still ringing by the time she made it back to her bed. She grabbed the phone from her bed and answered without looking at the called ID. It beeped with a low battery. She had forgotten to charge it last night.

Assuming she didn’t know the caller she answered, “Purdy Moon, how can I help you?” She tried for a chipper voice but it sounded groggy. Her customer service voice, she had inherited the gym from her mother. She never knew what the voice on the end of the line was. A customer? A friend? Business partner? Telemarketer? Ex Boyfriend with a new number, gross! Anyone not already in her phone deserved the customer service voice. Her voice was painful on her throat. Her head pounded hearing her own voice. She wished this phone call was over and it had just begun.

A soft voice said “Hello, Ms Moon, we were calling about Terra Pritchard. You’re her emergency contact. My name is Wilma Shield.”

That woke her up. Her best friend was in trouble. “What happened?” Purdy cried, her voice hurting her head. Her fists were tight. This was not a good thing first thing in the morning. She was with her last night, Terra has not been in a good place. She regretted trusting Terra's word that she would be fine.

“She was found unresponsive by a neighbor. Miss Pritchard is in critical condition and is unconscious. We contacted you as soon as she was stable.” Wilma said, not unkindly but with resignation, that this was not the first or last call of this nature that she was going to do today. It was her job as hard as that was.

“Critical condition? Is it that bad?” Purdy asked not fully believing what she had been told. She was hoping that she was wrong. A headache of a different kind was brewing. She wanted to vomit again but it was not the time. She walked into the kitchen and started to brew some coffee in hopes that it would help the nausea. (Was there anything still good to eat?) or (was there anything easy to make in the kitchen she needed something in her belly?) This seemed like a very tough day and she would need her strength. A bagel it was, there was nothing to put on the bagel, sigh. She had tried to keep pace with Terra. It had been shot for shot and beer for Beer. And she didn’t know what way round the poem went, should about in the clear. Beer before liquor all the sicker? Liquor before beer all in the clear? Or was it the other way around? But what she really learned was that You should never try and keep pace with a person who has a death wish.

“Yes, this is very serious. We are worried about brain damage. We are not sure but we are concerned that it was self-inflicted.” Wilma had a worried tone. It infuriated Purdy, she didn’t want to be mad but that didn’t stop her. That Terra would harm herself but with the reckless abandonment she saw last night, it was a big possibility. Terra had always been the calmer of the two. Seeing her out of control was discomfiting. She thought that she had calmed her down she stumbled home barely functioning. The sun laid bare the bad choices of yesterday.

“Why do you think it was self-inflicted?” Purdy was tight-lipped in anger. She did have an idea why her friend would hurt herself. But it was hard to think about such sad things so early in the morning.

“The amount of drugs and alcohol in her system was staggering. And People generally don’t take the whole bottle of pills when they were to be high.” Wilma sounded more callous this time. She wasn’t a mean person but she didn’t like the tone Purdy was using. “Do you know why she may have acted this way?” Wilma was back to a calm voice.

So she had to think about it, “Her son was found dead yesterday, my godson! so yeah I think I know why!” Purdy snapped at the lady. She felt immediately guilty, what was the phrase? Don’t shoot the messenger “I’m sorry, Wilma, was it? I’m just not feeling well and this is really bad news” she said more calmly. The lower voice was better for her head as well.

“Oh my, that is horrible! I’m so sorry for your loss” Wilma would have been lost for words if this wasn’t her job. This job you hear a lot of really sad stories and the people feel less real to her “We are going to need you to come in and sign some paperwork,” Purdy hated that the ‘sorry’ was so short. Just straight back to Business, not even giving her the chance to respond, not that any of her responses would have been truthful. Everyone knows that it is not fine when you have a tight lip well saying you are fine.

After she was given the address and the doctor's name, the call ended with Chipper sounding Wilma That she hated the sound of happiness in that Chipper voice. That was just another call to her. She has become numb to the pain of others.

She looked at her freshly brewed coffee. Her stomach rolled, she didn’t want to drink it. She sighed and chugged to the coffee with disgust. The heat was blinding and she liked it. She was a fan of the heat. She never really let her drinks cool down before drinking them.

It was time to start the day.

There was a fair amount to do today but it felt so empty with Thomas gone and Terra hanging on by a thread.

Previous Chapter
Next Chapter