The Night Terror: When Day Ends, the Terror Begins

By Timothy J. McSwain

A park ranger haunted by his past must come to grips with the present. His marriage is crumbling, and his obsession with a previous tragedy engulfs his thoughts. A group of college students decide to go camping together for the first time, but their curiosity propels them into a situation where they find themselves running for their lives. Some travelers stop to relax and have a few drinks but find more than they bargained for. Is the history about Devils Canyon Lake true? Is there a ghost haunting the forest? Does a creature ascend from the lake to pull hapless victims into its depths? Lives are held in the balance as something terrorizes those who decide to visit. Will anyone live to tell what happened?

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: May 17, 2012
• ISBN: 9781449747510

Timothy J. McSwain

Timothy J. McSwain has a colorful history that includes work as a missionary in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, volunteering time to help cultivate the minds of children and teens, and utilizing his talents by way of acting and writing. In addition to working as a manager of volunteers at a local hospital, Timothy manages his own business, Stratosphere Networking, which connects people talented in the arts of music, writing, and public speaking with customers. Timothy also writes a daily blog, the Stratoblog, that is located at his business website, stratospherenetworking.com. Having spent time in different parts of the world, he has gained a perspective on human life that helps him craft stories on the struggles of living out one's purpose in a chaotic world. This combined with a fascination of the outdoors and nature blend into his imagination. Timothy and his wife, Julie, are raising two children and reside in southern Illinois.

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Copyright © 2012 by Timothy J. McSwain.

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ISBN: 978-1-4497-4752-7 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4497-4750-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4497-4751-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2012906329

WestBow Press rev. date: 05/15/2012

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Epilogue

Oasis

For my parents, wife and children

It is due to your support that this book has become a reality.

Surely something sinister lurks . . .

Strange sounds whisper in the breeze.

From the corners of my eyes I see movement even though I am enveloped by absolute darkness . . .

Chapter 1

Friday, 11:53 pm

Gripped by intense fear, Aaron could barely breathe. Ducking behind a tree, he remained as still as possible, trying to keep his heart from racing as he breathed shallow breaths while attempting not to be heard. Cold sweat streamed down his forehead, dripping from the tip of his nose, covering his lips with the taste of salt. Holding his knees tightly, he tried to steady himself as he crouched, cold and motionless.

A wind whistled through the trees causing Aaron to cringe; it reminded him that something destructive lurked in the darkness. To calm himself, he tried making sense of the events that had taken place. Time had become indefinable. The terror and adrenaline soaring through his body created an energized agony. What is that thing? he pondered. He had seen many strange oddities in his life, but nothing compared to this. His mind kept replaying the image of dead bodies drained of their blood by this vampire-like beast. He steadied his breathing, trying to calm himself. I must keep my senses. Andy is out there somewhere and I can’t let this thing kill him, thought Aaron. He knew his son must be scared to death and he was determined to find him, no matter the cost.

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted. He could hear something whispering his name but knew no living person was near him. He could barely see something rustling in the bushes a few feet away. A loud shriek broke through the darkness, overpowering the whistle of wind. Aaron could see two eyes eerily glowing, appearing as bright red orbs enveloped in a sea of darkness. Heart pounding, body soaked with sweat, he moved as fast as he could. The creature was moving much quicker and Aaron soon felt its breath on the back of his neck. In an instant, the creature dug its claws into Aaron’s shoulder. Feeling his flesh tearing as he plunged to the ground, he screamed, knowing no one was there to hear it. Managing to turn on his back, he realized he had made a big mistake: those eyes were peering directly at him, piercing his soul. Aaron felt vexed, doomed and panic stricken as he attempted to force the creature off of him, to no avail. As he flailed, he felt one last jolt of pain before unconsciousness set in.

11:58 pm

Her flowing dark hair glimmered in the light of the full moon as she sped down the road near Devil’s Canyon Lake in her red Mercedes roadster. Marcia Foster, a local attorney, had recently left a party. She felt a kick from the alcohol in her system but was confident she knew her limit and felt completely comfortable driving. She loved the feel of the wind blowing through her hair and the exhilaration that speeding down the road gave her. For a moment she took her eyes off the road, looked at the sky above and inhaled the brisk night air. Turning her attention back to the road, she noticed something or someone in front of her car. Marcia was driving fast, too fast, and the alcohol had impaired her senses. Marcia jerked the wheel hard to the right, sending the car into a skid, spinning out of control. The car collided with the tree and careened into a ditch. The overturned Mercedes landed just below the road near the entrance to Devil’s Canyon Lake. As it impacted ground, Marcia saw a bright flash of light. For a moment she could feel the blood oozing from her head, but it was only for a moment, then the world became dark and cold.

Saturday 12:02 am

Aaron opened his eyes. His was still dizzy and his mind fuzzy. He began to process where he was. He still remembered the creature and felt extreme pain in his back and head. He squinted his eyes, trying to see something. Still on his back, he focused on what he assumed was a branch above him. The odd thing was that it seemed to be spinning in a circle. As his eyes began to adjust and his mind started to clear, he realized it was his ceiling fan. He knew he was in his bedroom but couldn’t understand why he was lying on the floor. Although his experience seemed real, he rationalized that it was merely a dream—no, a nightmare. There was still a sharp pain in his shoulder, as if the creature’s claws were imbedded in his flesh. He looked around and felt his shoulder. His lamp was on the floor and shattered into hundreds of pieces, apparently from him knocking it over when he fell out of bed. There were shards of ceramic embedded in his back deep enough to cause bleeding. He slowly stood up and stumbled to the bathroom to care for his wounds.

Turning on the light, he stared into the bathroom mirror. The bright light caused his head to ache even more. As the mirror began to come into focus, he realized he even looked battered. Although his face was black and blue, he was not totally surprised; this was not the first time Aaron had dealt with night terrors. In fact, he had been dealing with the sleep disorder on and off for almost three years. What bothered him most was the intensity of this particular nightmare. He had self-inflicted wounds before, but these were more severe. As he stood staring into the mirror, the sharp pain in his back reminded him of why he had rushed to the bathroom in the first place. Grabbing his first aid kit, he retrieved his antiseptic, gauze and tape. Removing the shards of ceramic from his back proved to be the most difficult part of the process. He considered going to the ER and having a doctor tend to his wound. That would mean explaining how he injured himself; however, he felt that it seemed weak to go a doctor for something so trivial. Turning his back to the mirror and twisting, he was able to remove some of the larger shards by hand although it was the ones near his mid-back that proved to be impossible to dislodge.

Realizing he might have awakened Andy, Aaron rushed to his son’s room to check on him. Andy had the gift of sleeping through a train wreck, so Aaron was not totally surprised to find him sound asleep in his room. He took a moment to stare at his 13-year old son sleeping peacefully. It was good to see Andy so serene, considering how tormented his life had been over the past few years… .

Chapter 2

Andy’s mother, Susan, was a beautiful woman, loving wife and mother, who cared deeply for her family. Aaron and Andy loved her very much. Her life had come to a sudden and tragic end when she was beaten and murdered; Andy was only 10 years old at the time. According to the police statement Aaron shot Susan’s murderer, but Aaron knew differently; the assailant had actually been shot by Andy. It was self defense, but this tragic night had changed Andy. He would never talk about it; he couldn’t, he had been mute ever since.

Aaron went back to the bathroom and tried removing the ceramic from his back one last time. He was able to get most of the shards out then took an Ace bandage and wrapped it around his torso as best as he could. He figured he could have it looked at in the morning when he went to work. He began to wonder if his wife would be coming home soon. Aaron had recently remarried but was already experiencing marital strife. His wife had a tendency of staying out late with friends. On an occasional weekend, she would not come home until the next day. Aaron began to think this would be one of those nights. He hardly ever saw her and wondered how long their marriage would last. In addition to not spending much time with Aaron, she had a very demanding job.The stresses of her job were wearing down her patience and only fragmented their communication more. Aaron became depressed and decided to try to go back to sleep to escape the pain of reality; he just hoped that he would not dream of the monster again.

12:18 am

After 10 minutes of lying awake, Aaron knew he could not go back to sleep. He kept thinking about his failed life, and whenever he closed his eyes he saw a vivid image of that beast and the trail of blood in its wake. He was tormented and could not escape the despair of emotional separation from those he loved. He found himself completely unable to slow his heartbeat. He had a sense of urgency to get out of the house; feeling as though there was something he had to do. He had no idea why, but he felt a strong desire to go to the campground. He remembered his nightmare; the monster had been at the campground at Devil’s Canyon Lake. Maybe that was why he wanted to go or maybe he actually was sensing something wrong. He hoped going would ease his mind. The idea of checking things out, calming his fears and proving to himself that it was in fact a dream offered him hope of attaining some solace. Escaping his torment seemed to be the only way he would find peace for the upcoming day.

Aaron proceeded to the bathroom to prepare for his journey. He took a cold shower; something about the sensation of cold water on his spine made him feel alive. To some degree he liked pain, it energized him and renewed his strength.

12:30 am

While he showered and dressed Aaron debated whether or not to take Andy with him. The way he saw it, he had four options: first, he could wake Andy and let him know he was leaving; second, he could leave him a note; third, he could leave and hope he would be back before Andy woke up; or lastly, he could take Andy with him.

He felt a strong sense that something was wrong but kept telling himself it was all in his imagination. This would be so much easier if his wife, Marcia, was home. Aaron called her cell phone but instead of ringing, it went directly to voice-mail.

Ah, her phone is off, thought Aaron. He decided she was sleeping at her friend, Alexis', house; it would not be the first time. He decided not to call Brenda in the middle of the night; it would just escalate things. Instead, he wrote a note for Marcia in case she returned while he was away.

Aaron decided to wake Andy instead of leaving him alone. Andy was a gentle young boy with a small frame, sandy brown hair and his mother’s deep blue eyes. He had a face that glowed with innocence. Although he was every bit of 13, Aaron still saw a five year old boy.

Andy rubbed his eyes and spoke to his dad in sign language. What is wrong, Dad, he signed.

Aaron audibly replied to Andy, I just feel that something is wrong at one of the campgrounds, and I am going to check it out.

He could see fear in Andy’s eyes as if he too were replaying a bad dream. With a look of determination, Andy nodded and signed, I will get dressed and come with you. Andy climbed from bed, changed clothes and met his father downstairs. They clambered into Aaron’s truck and headed for the campground. The time was 12:44 a.m.

Chapter 3

Aaron Elijah Foster had led an exciting life. He had spent almost a decade as a good, highly decorated homicide detective in Chicago. During his years on the force, he had saved eight lives and helped solve twenty-seven murders. He was highly respected, but all that changed when Susan was brutally murdered. He and Susan had been married for almost 12 years. In fact, the murder happened just a week before their 12th anniversary. After she died, Aaron lost his desire to work or to live. He could not bring himself to investigate more murders, knowing each one would be torment, causing him to relive Susan’s death.

The night of Susan’s murder, Aaron had heard the call go out over the scanner and rushed home. He was off duty and already travelling home with groceries. He was only a block away when he heard the call so he was the first on scene. When he walked into the house, he saw the bloody body of his wife on the kitchen floor and the body of the assailant a few feet away. The assailant’s