Dream State

Prologue It was a crowded summer night in Savannah, GA, with the tourists and locals spilling onto the sidewalks from the famous Riverwalk's many restaurants. People come to Savannah every year for a spooky ghost hunt and shopping. People roamed in and out of the clubs laughing and talking without a clue that evil lurked so close. Cabs zipped by Norman without care. Norman knew things were different because he would get his dues today. He had walked into the crappy thrift shop at the end of the street and he was drawn toward a bookcase that held dusty dated leather-bound books. A few had no title and others were in different languages with missing pages. That’s when Norman had thumbed through a book and saw a spell that he needed to exact his revenge. Norman threw a ratty ten-dollar bill on the counter and ran out before anyone tried to stop him. He would get his. He had passed an older man dressed in a black ratty old top hat and tails driving a carriage yelling out his offers for rides for young lovers for only twenty bucks. Which made it easier for Norman to blend into the background because no one could see his pain. The clueless people ignored the fat man with his long greasy black hair, waddling down the darkened street with his hands stuffed in his tight jeans. Something made Norman stop and scan the crowd. The wind blew as Norman watched the leaves and dirt swirling around in the air. Growling in disgust, he almost dropped the book he had bought at the end of the river walk. Norman made it to his rundown apartment building. He took his time climbing the broken stairs leading to his crappy apartment. He heard the crying baby down the hallway, and he knew the crackhead next door to him was home. Jack stumbled out of his apartment and headed to rehab. He was clean for about six months, holding down a job as an Uber driver. He found a woman; the rest was history. The baby came nine months later, causing the yelling matches to start. Jack made his way back to the streets to make money, but he didn’t get too far because it went up his nose or in his veins. Norman had enough one night, and he beat on the door for them to be quiet. When the door cracked open, the smell of a dirty diaper smacked Norman in the face, which caused him to gag. He could still remember the urge to puke. He wasn’t surprised when the woman with dried tears on her face told him to f**k-off and slammed the door. The asshole of a homeowner had Norman’s power cut off to force him out. So, since his power had been cut off a week ago, he was making do with the fireplace, and since his mom always told him any i***t could cook a hot dog on a stick, that is what he did. On the front door was an eviction sticker. “Really?” He thought. That would not stop him, not by a long shot. Norman flipped a small switchblade out of his coat pocket. Making a long slice of the note that was meant to keep him out. “ Does that dumbass think that would work?” muttered Norman. Norman jammed his key in the door, wiggled it up and down and kicked the door jamb with his muddy boots. His one-room apartment was dark and cold. His ratty mattress sat on the bare floor, and it held a pile of his old clothes that hadn’t seen a washer in months. It was because that heartless b***h took everything when she left him. She had found herself another stallion, and his name was Jeff. Norman thought of the night he came home to find nothing left in the apartment.