Laura drug her husbands limp body out of the home through the jagged hole, screaming almost incoherently at her neighbors Paramedics arrived moments after and attended to the four of them, sedating Lauren in the process; she was trying to block their access to her husband. To Sally’s relief, and surprise, the firemen jumped to action and extinguished the flames as fast as they could. The people’s faces finally started to show fear when they saw others acting on what was happening, it sank in the kind of coldness they had been showing. It was the first time Sally saw any sign of normalcy in the reactions of the people she had once known.
The spell the fires had cast over the town seemed to have been broken after the near death of the Gaines family. When a small fire was lit in each of the baseball field’s trashcans, a passerby put them out and there were no whispers of excitement the next day. The state police who had come in to help investigate started packing after three months with no activity. Officially the investigation was left open and reports stated that it was likely someone who was not local and who had moved on from the town after almost causing the loss of a life.
Sally felt comfortable in her decision to leave her mom in the town, she had received a job offer in California that would let her work with teens again. As she stacked her bags in the car, an explosion knocked her down on her knees. She didn’t have time to react and cover her face. Shards of glass embedded themselves in her clothing and cheeks; a piece of wood, broken free from the house in the blast, struck her leg. She didn’t want to look but she could feel the hard object stuck in her calf.
“MOM!” She screamed as loud as she could over and over again, “MOM!” A man was holding her down, mouthing at her not to move. Her body relaxed when she recognized it was Allen, the police chief. She remembered her mom had been at the store getting some things before her trip. As soon as the fear subsided the pain in her leg took its place. It wasn’t until then she realized she was surrounded by help; paramedics were running towards her and the firefighters were putting out the blaze behind her. She let her eyes close.
Sally came to in a hospital bed, unsure of how she got there. Numbness filled her entire body, she thought for a moment that she may have lost her leg but she realized she could feel the weight of the cast when she tried to move it. Her arms were tethered and she couldn’t speak because of the breathing tube in her mouth. Mind racing she tried to figure out why she was restrained, tried to call for help around the intrusion in her throat. A nurse came in, slipped a needle into her IV line and the world started to go blank again.
She was unsure of how much time had passed since the explosion; her days went by in fuzzy periods of consciousness where people seemed to flow freely in and out of her room. Usually her mother would be there, looking concerned and staring directly at the bed. She noticed more about her surroundings every time she came to, not only was she tied down but there were police at the entrance to her room. As soon as consciousness returned and she started to make sense of what was going on someone would give her another shot into her IV, taking her away from reality again.
The first thing she felt when the medicines wore off was the rash from the straps on her wrist. The breathing tube was replaced with a smaller line but her hands were still tied and the police were at the door. For the first time she realized there was a button in her hand and she pressed it frantically. Within seconds a nurse had appeared beside her and gently started removing the tubes. As soon as Sally could she started trying to speak but her throat was dry and cracking. The nurse just pandered to her about trying not to talk while she ripped the pieces of tape free.
“Police?” She finally gasped, trying to ask why there were police surrounding her. The nurse patted her on the shoulder with an “It’ll be alright” and left her there with her hands still tied down.
It seemed like forever before her mother and an officer walked in the room, though it was likely only minutes. The officer offered her some water through a straw and just stared at her in silence. “Why did you arrest me?” her voice was still thin and hoarse. The office looked taken aback and then let go a small sigh that resembled a laugh. “Those police are here to watch out for you, not to keep you here.” He almost chuckled as though it was appropriate. “But my hands!” Sally croaked while twisting her arms in the restraints.
Genni placed her hands on her daughter’s shoulders to try and calm her a bit, “Honey, those are so you didn’t rip out your tube or IV’s. They’ll take them off as soon as they know they can keep you awake”. There was uncomfortable silence again until Sally broke it “Why do you have to protect me? I’m not the only one who was hurt” No one offered any answers until one of the deputies at the door intervened; he came in and removed the restraints on her arms. “Allen, it was Allen who set the fires. You weren’t supposed to be home when the bomb went off. He was so racked with guilt that he shot himself that night when he got home. All we have was a letter but they think someone else might have helped him. We’re watching out for you just in case” The deputy spoke about it calmly; he wasn’t from here and didn’t have the emotional ties everyone else had. No one could explain why Allen had set the fires and his letter didn’t offer any clues, but Sally slept better that night than she had since she returned home to Love’s Falls.
The morning seemed to come too soon and she understood why when she tried to move. Her arms were again restrained but this time much tighter. She couldn’t speak but her mouth was shut with tape and she could tell her IV’s were all gone. The hospital was mostly deserted by the living and awake. The deputy from earlier was standing over her bed, muttering incoherently. “They were all paying attention to me before you came here. You told them to start ignoring me and they did. You gave them back their humanity when I worked so hard to take it away. That wasn’t fair of you.” She noticed her legs were wet and she smelled the gasoline just as he threw the lit match at her feet. Surprisingly the match went out when it hit her and he laughed. “It’s water honey! It’s not your turn yet, you get to watch the show with me.” As soon as he finished his sentence the building under her rumbled and the alarms went off. Fire engulfed the hallways from all sides as people ran to find an escape. Sally tried to free herself unsuccessfully as the flames crept closer to her room. The deputy held her restrained hand tightly and she tried unsuccessfully to free it from his grasp. “At least we get to go out together” he whispered as her bed set ablaze.
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“Love’s Falls” is the first part in a collection of short stories and novelettes by horror author Rebecca Carter. The stories will focus on the human monster and be presented individually, then made available as a collection titled “Sunlit Nightmares”. Information on this and other projects is available at rebeccacarterbooks.com
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