Silent Monsters

Chapter 5: Silent Monsters

     Chapter 5: Silent Monsters

  Several hours later, Emily stepped tentatively out onto the stage floor, large pale green eyes staring into the darkness cautiously.  "Mistress Reinna?"  She called meekly, almost afraid to get her attention.  Her ribs had fully healed, but blood still stained her pale blue dress as a reminder.  Silence was all that greeted her and Emily took a few more steps, her shiny white shoes tapping softly on the wooden floor.  "Mistress Reinna?" 

     Suddenly, there was a soft hiss and Reinna was behind her, one arm wrapped around Emily's tiny waist firmly, the other combing through her hair with a gentleness that was unlike her.  "It's alright, my love....do not be so frightened.  I am no longer angry with you.  But you must not upset me so, child.  It hurts me to have to punish you."  She whispered seductively into her ear, the tip of her tongue lashing out to play along the edge of her earlobe.

     Reinna moved with a feline grace so that she slid in front of Emily, her arm still around her waist as she pulled Emily in and nipped playfully at the nape of her neck.  "I have a surprise for you.  You'll be getting two new dollies tonight, my love.  But first, you'll have to help me retrieve them."  Emily gasped in delight, momentarily forgetting her fear as her eyes lit up at the prospect.  "New dollies?!" She squealed excitedly, clapping her hands. 

     She frowned suddenly as a thought crossed her mind.  "But I don't think I have enough pretty dresses for them, Mistress Reinna!  Will we be getting new dresses too?"  Reinna's voice showed her annoyance and she tightened her grip around Emily's waist.  "We'll get the goddamned dresses later...but for now, I need your help."  She abruptly let go of Emily, causing her to stumble backwards and land on her rear.  Emily instinctively curled up and cast her gaze downward.  Impatient with the girl, Reinna kicked a booted foot at her back.  "What are you waiting for?!  Go and change your dress so that we can go!"

     Emily whimpered and scurried away, racing up the stairs to her bedroom.  As quickly as she could, she tore off her dress and tossed it to the side where it landed on the corpse of a woman.  Emily shuffled through her things hastily and finally found a clean dress.  "HURRY UP!"  Reinna roared from below and trembling, Emily slid into the clean dress and ran out of the room, almost stumbling as she came down the stairs.  As Emily approached, Reinna grabbed a fistful of her hair and began to drag her along the aisles.  "It took you f*****g long enough."  She muttered angrily. 

     Reinna was moving so quickly down the aisles that Emily kept tripping over her own feet as she tried to keep up.  "PICK UP YOUR GOD DAMNED FEET!" Reinna screamed and with one strong swing of her arm, hurled Emily forward to land on her knees.  Emily, knowing what would come next, hurried unto her feet and moved forward so that she was at the same pace as Reinna.  Reinna hardly even glanced at her as they moved through the darkness so quickly that they were barely more than just a blur.  They moved through the trees alongside the road until they came to a section of road and finally, Reinna stopped, grabbing hold of Emily's arm roughly.  "Stay here with me....it's almost time..."

     Kat's parents were driving down the road in her father's car, coming back from dinner at an Italian restaurant.  Kat's father was in the driver's seat and Kat's mom was beside him, her eyes staring out the window, eyebrows knitted in deep thought.  Her lips were set in a distracted frown as she finally glanced over at her husband.  "Frank, I'm worried about Kat.  The other night with the cops....the story her and River told was just crazy.  And now Morgan's mother is saying that Morgan never returned home that night.  I really hope Kat isn't on anything..." 

     Frank glanced over at his wife as if she had just grown a third eye.  His eyebrow arched and he shook his head.  "Are you serious Linda?  Kat may be a lot of things, but a drug head isn't one of them.  If she's honest enough with us that she tells us when she goes out drinking, do you really think she'd keep something like that from us?"  Linda nodded distractedly but looked all together unconvinced.  "I know...but still- FRANK LOOK OUT!" Linda screamed.

     A couple of moments before the car reached them, Reinna suddenly hurled Emily out into the street, causing her to land in a heap on the road.  She heard a scream and watched with satisfaction as the car suddenly veered to the left, trying to avoid hitting Emily with their car.  The car swerved dangerously before diving off the side of the road and flipping violently down the steep slope towards the trees.  The headlights of the car darted around sporadically as it flipped before a loud crash was heard in the night air, the car making an impact with a tree.  Reinna could hear a soft hiss coming from the car as smoke began to rise and she walked across the road towards the wreckage, not even bothering to glance at Emily who was standing bewildered and frightened in the middle of the road. 

     Descending the slope, Reinna jumped and landed with cat-like reflexes on top of the wrecked car, not even making a sound.  She eyed the humans inside and her lips curved into a wicked grin.  "This will do just nicely...." She murmured and tilted her head up, her eyes finding Emily, who was curiously peeking over the side of the slope.  "Emily dear...come and help Mistress Reinna with these dollies..." She purred, then leaned in and began ripping the driver's side door off.  When it was completely off its hinges, she tossed it to the ground before leaning in to get a better look at Kat's parents within.  She could hear a low moan coming from Frank, whose eyes tried to flutter open, but Linda was knocked out completely.  Both of them were still alive.  This was good...she wanted them alive while she tortured them. 

     She reached out and drove her fingers within Frank's shoulder, puncturing his skin so that her fingers were dug deep within the meat of his shoulder and he let out an agonizing scream.  "Hush now; you wouldn't want me to feed you your wife's intestines, now would you?"  She purred into his ear before yanking him forward out of the car.  She turned towards Emily, holding the man's form out towards her.  "Here...take this one and I'll carry the other one." 

     Emily nodded and took hold of the man, one arm under his shoulders, the other under his knees as she carried him like a baby doll.  "It's ok, dolly!  I'm going to take you home and dress you up and we can play together!"  She squealed excitedly, hopping up and down, causing Frank to grunt in pain as he was shaken.  Fearful of the consequences, he remained silent as Reinna took hold of Linda and hauled her out of the car.  She tossed the woman over her shoulder like a rag doll and began the trek up the steep slope, motioning for Emily to follow.  "Come dear...we have work to do.  We have a nice little present to make for Kat..."

     *                                                           *                                                           *

     Kat drew in a deep breath as her eyes gazed up at the theatre, apprehensive about what she was about to do.  Would it really work?  She sure as hell hoped so.  She drew in a deep drag of her cigarette, letting herself enjoy the slight hint of sweetness to the taste of her cigarette.  She'd always thought that the Camel No. 9's had almost a gram cracker scent to it when you first opened them up.  She let herself be distracted by other thoughts for a few moments as she finished her cigarette.

     Tonight, she was decked out, makeup and all.  Her long legs were wrapped in black vinyl thigh-high boots with bright red laces and 6-inch heels.  Underneath, were a pair of tight low hip-hugging black vinyl pants and a belt made with a string of bullet shells she had designed was slung lopsided loosely around her hips.  Her waist and stomach were cinched with a sleeveless black vinyl corset with the exception of one lone strap that started from the right side of her right breast.  It crossed over her chest to slope over her left shoulder and descend down her back, crossing back to stop just under her right shoulder blade. 

     On her left arm, she had a sleeve of black vinyl straps that were wrapped from her upper arm down to the middle of her forearm, each one crisscrossing each other, but ultimately coming to tie on the outside of her arm. Her hair she wore loose for once, long and full down to her waist in soft waves.  Her eyes were lined with black eyeliner and eye shadow in careful, clean strokes.  The eyeliner extended to the outside of her eyes to come to an extended point and above and below the eyeliner her eyelids were dusted with a light bit of pink powder so that the color and the eyeliner accented the brilliant blue of her eyes.

     Kat drew in a breath and opened her eyes.  She knew she had to get moving before Reinna decided to take someone else, though in all honesty, Reinna probably already knew she was here.  Kat didn't want to take that risk, though.  She moved forward and made her way slowly into the theatre.  It was deathly silent and the theatre was pitch black, all the lights having been turned off.  She frowned softly, narrowing her eyes in the darkness. 

     She didn't like this at all and the pit of her stomach had begun to knot tightly.  What was going on?  Why were all the lights out?  She moved silently, her hands blindly grasping for the seats to help guide her down the aisle.  "Reinna?"  She called out into the darkness, her boots clicking softly on the floor as she moved forward.  Nothing but silence greeted her.  Kat hoped that she wasn't too late.  Was Reinna out now, hunting for her next kill?  Kat tried to force the images away that her imagination threatened to stir.

     Kat decided to try a different tactic.  "Mistress Reinna?  I'm done.  I'm giving in.  I'm here to give myself to you."  She called out.  That seemed to work.  There was a soft hiss and she could feel the air stir around her from Reinna's movement, though she still didn't see the woman herself.  "Ahh...so you've finally come to your senses, my pet?  You've finally come to me?"  She purred, seduction dripping from her words.  Kat stopped in her tracks, her eyes blindly staring into the darkness.  "Yes...I don't want to lose any more of my friends."  Kat listened and for a few moments, there was silence. 

     Finally, Reinna stepped forward, her hands wrapping around Kat's small waist as she pulled her forward.  Reinna leaned in, the tip of her tongue tracing the side of Kat's neck.  Kat drew in a sharp breath and willed her hands to move slowly upwards until they found Reinna's neck.  Her fingertips stroked the length of Reinna's throat and found it surprisingly warm.  She leaned in closer to her, her lips hovering just a fraction of an inch away from Reinna's own. 

     "Is this what you wanted...?" She whispered huskily, shutting her eyes as she forced herself not to hurl all over Reinna's face.  She couldn't stand to be this close to her, but she had to do this for her plan to work.  Reinna purred contently against Kat's ear.  "Yesssss my pet....this is exactly what I wanted."  She paused for a moment as if thinking of something.  "I want you to sing for me now, my love....sing me a lullaby..." She said, her voice a purr before suddenly pulling away from her, leaving Kat in the darkness once more.

     Kat opened her eyes, looking for Reinna, but it was too dark to see where she had gone.  She drew in a deep breath and tried to think of what she would sing.  After a moment, she thought of a song: Silent Monsters.  It was almost funny how perfect it was for the occasion.  She drew in another breath to prepare herself and let it out slowly.  When she finally began to sing, her voice was so enticing that it was as if it were made of silk.  Years of taking theatre classes taught her how to project her voice and it filled the theatre with intensity.  For a moment, Kat forgot about everything, letting herself become enveloped in the passion of singing.  It helped to calm her, to give her the strength to do what needed to be done.

"Follow me down to the gates of Babylon

Follow me down the path of red

Follow me down to the home of havoc

Where Silent Monsters are fed

Paint the stars with red ribbons of passion

Break free the strings of man's ill fate

Drink merrily from the golden cup fashioned

From the skin of the beasts of hate

With jagged teeth

And a Martyr's grin

A monster with a smile

To eat your sin

Open the wound to rub it in

The blood that flows inside of us

Was never really kin.

Tell me now if you think you are saved

Tell me if you care

The winding sickness in your path

Was never really there

Forgive me for my sickness

Loathe me for my will

Hate me for the sick and blind

And for my Timeless ill."

     Her words were caught in her throat though as all the lights for the stage suddenly came on, revealing the horror below them.  From chains attached to the rafters above, her parents hung limply above the stage floor, large hooks embedded in various places on their bodies.  There was one hook for each of their shoulders, one for each of their wrists, and one for each of their legs.  Kat felt as if something were lodged in her throat, choking her as she crumbled to the floor.  Her eyes couldn't leave their faces.  Each one had their eyes sewn shut and their lips had been peeled back, permanently sewn to bare what was left of their broken, jagged teeth in a grotesque grin. 

     They were drenched in blood, streaks of it decorating their mutilated faces.  Suddenly, Reinna's laughter filled the building and it sounded deafening to Kat's ears.  Now she could see Reinna on the stage, chains in each of her hands as she began to jerk them this way and that.  The movement caused her parents' limbs to seemingly dance like puppets on the stage.  "Give them a song to dance to, my pet!"  Reinna said, giggling insanely as she continued to move the chains back and forth. 

     "No..." Kat whispered hoarsely and the word caught in her throat.  It was as if it wouldn't sink in yet.  For several moments Kat sat there, thinking that this must be some sort of vicious dream...some nightmare formulated by her mind because of what she had seen and been through.  But in the pit of her stomach, she knew....she knew that it was true.  As Kat stared at the macabre dance on stage, Reinna stopped yanking on the chains, her lips curving into a sadistic grin.  Suddenly, Reinna was towering over Kat, her fingers entwining tightly within her hair.  She yanked her down the aisle, dragging her along the floor as she made her way towards the stage. 

     When she reached the stairs, Kat's body limply thumped against each of them as Reinna dragged her along.  She stopped in front of the corpse of her mother and lifted Kat up with ease, shoving her face into her mother's own.  Up close, it was even more grotesque than she had thought and bile quickly rose up her throat, splashing against her mother's already mutilated face.  Reinna leaned in, her voice a purr as she spoke.  "Isn't your mother so beautiful, my lovely?  I think the stitches compliment her eyes..." She laughed again and dropped Kat unto the floor with a heavy thud so that the side of her face and her hair landed in the warm vomit.

     Kat lay there limply, staring aimlessly, though seeing nothing.  She couldn't think, couldn't feel...she didn't even know what was going on around her.  It was as if in defense, her mind had shut off to protect her from losing her sanity.  Laughter continued to fill the theatre as Reinna went back to jerking at the chains.  Finally, Kat let the lull of unconsciousness envelope her, pull her under so that she could see nothing, only the strangely comforting darkness around her.