Beware the Darkness

By Russ Carey

For decades the old house stood deserted. Many urban legends have surrounded the creepy two story house.
"Some say it's haunted," said the Gooz, one of the five, as they stood looking up at the eerie old house. Ric Iron, Tryston Smyte, Mykal Lee, Darik Blaze and the Gooz, once, the best of friends with dreams of rock and roll, but when they entered that house, they opened a door, and let an evil loose.
Can the faith of one send the evil back from whence it came or has the evil been unleashed?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Aug 12, 2013
• ISBN: 9781483662800

Russ Carey

Russ Carey, a Christian writer, songwriter, musician and father of three. Beware The Darkness is his first book, inspired by his own life and ambitions. He has recorded two albums with the Christian rock band RAVISH and continues to write record and play music. He is a student of the scriptures and an ordained minister. Currently resides in the state of Oregon.

Book preview

Prologue

On a dark foggy night, all was at peace in the warm two-story house. It was a nice neighborhood one where you could leave your doors unlocked at night and everyone knew everyone. It was a beautiful house in a great neighborhood; the only draw back was that the house faced the backside of the local cemetery.

Upstairs in the master suite a young man and his wife were fast asleep. It was a night like any other night. The couple had only been married a few years and had a new baby in the house. Life seemed perfect. They both began to move around restlessly, as an unknown presence moved like a shadow towards the nursery. The young man flinched in his sleep and began to groan as if in pain. He curled up in a fetal position as though he were passing a kidney stone. Sweat dripped from his brow and he wrestled off his covers.

This shadow had the look of death. It appeared to have black hair that was like a shadow but only the right side of its head. On the left side there was none. The being was devoid of color, what appeared as skin was pale, gray and lifeless. The being was devoid of gender, it wore no clothing its being was wrapped in mystery. Dark shadows were its clothing darkness was its home. It had but one feeling; hatred, one goal; destruction, evil, pure evil. It smiled suspiciously, though only for a moment, at the babe below, though it had eyes that could see the eyes were like the dead and no life was in them, only darkness.

The smile faded, and was replaced with a snarl. A snarl that would only be known by someone who knew what hatred was. This evil entity hated this child. What was its reason? The child was innocent.

No, moaned the woman, as she began to toss and turn, no, no. Suddenly, and without any warning, the babe began to gasp for air. The child’s eyes opened. It could not breathe.

The woman suddenly awoke. A dreadful look of concern was written upon her face, as she scurried down the hall towards the nursery. A blood-curdling scream awoke the young man. He quickly arose and hurried toward the cries. Entering the now lit room he saw his wife frantic with tears as she held the limp pale child in her arms.

Decades had passed for the two story old house which had been vacant, run down, and deserted for some time. Rumor and mystery had surrounded the house all the years. Speculation that the house was haunted and many urban legends had been passed down from teen to pre-teen that have developed about the house over the years. The rumors have made it hard to sell, and the price had been dropped to nothing. The last owners abandoned the house wanting nothing from it. Many articles were left as is.

Chapter One

Time to Rock

An androgynous looking male with long hair sat in a cubicle in front of a computer screen. He had on a head set and was apparently waiting for a phone call. He didn’t look particularly happy with his job. He had his coffee and doodled on paper in between calls.

Thank you for calling customer service, he said, My name is Ric, how may I be of service?

He ended the call thanking them and immediately returned to his doodling. A message popped up on his computer screen, informing him that he had been monitored for quality assurance and that he was to proceed back to where those that did quality control would critique his calls. He was feeling rather annoyed by this. After the holidays and most employees were laid off he felt like he was monitored all the time. Though he could see why calls were sometimes monitored, he felt that it was excessive and this was really beginning to make him have doubts about his job.

He took the walk of shame as it had become known and he went back and they corrected him on such trivial things as saying yeah instead of yes or can I instead of may I and for not trying to sell something to the customer and for not saying please and thank you all the time. He dressed like a rocker, but was working in a call center, and though he really liked the flexibility with his job, it was obvious that his dreams were elsewhere.

The fact was for years he had tried to form a rock band, he had saved his money and had all the equipment, drums, guitars, PA system, lights, everything, except no band. He was a decent singer; guitarist, bass guitarist and songwriter, but he couldn’t do it on his own. He had a room that had been added on to an older single wide mobile home that he had all his instruments in. All his lights had been sitting in crates for what seemed like a few years now. He was discouraged and with regret had decided that he had enough; he wasn’t going to try and play music again. He was offered to be the vocalist and rhythm guitarist for tribute band of a well known iconic 70’s-80’s theatrical rock band. Though the band was his favorite band and his music room was plastered with their iconic faces, he really didn’t want to be a carbon copy of something that had been done. Rather to take from his hero’s and make something new, he wanted to do originals, and he wanted to do his band. He thought about it as he checked out for the day and headed to his van, which also seemed like it was on its last legs. He was living paycheck to paycheck, the only times he had bought items for the band was when he received his income tax checks. During the fall and winter months he worked full time but in the spring he worked part time and in the summer was usually laid off, a couple times was laid off right after the holidays, and this season he’d gotten ill and missed a few days so now that Christmas was over and New Years was a few days away, he was in doubt of his employment status. He did have lots of equipment so this year’s income tax would most likely be getting his car road worthy. He got home and got on the computer checking his email and the social networks, hoping to find musicians to play. He saw a name he hadn’t seen in what seemed like forever and a day, Kati Lace; his high school girlfriend had left him a message. He was shocked to see her name. She wrote that she had been looking for him for quite sometime and wanted to reconnect.

He thought back when he, a long haired youth, walked hand in hand with her. They’re hands clenched together so tightly you’d think they had molded together. He stared at the message reading it over and over and finally deciding to reply. I never expected to hear from you, he wrote. He had thought of her from time to time and wondered about her. She was his first love after all. The memories seemed to come flooding back. She asked if he still played music and he began to think back, about the band he started back in high school with ambitions of being the next big thing. He remembered those days and he remembered his best friends Tryston Smyte, the Gooz and Darik Blaze. He smiled thinking about the old days. The three were once inseparable they liked the same music, same movies; they had everything in common, until Ric met Kati, whom he then spent almost all his time with. They had been waiting for the summer and planned on practicing all summer long. They were into the hard rock and metal scene. They had the look down, tight skinny jeans, black studded belts and wrist bands. They all had the long hair.

He remembered not being very confident about his voice, but for the most part he had a good voice, and they all agreed the best voice in the band. They all wore black and white, though Tryston often times wore blue jeans and a t-shirt with a Japanese rising sun on it, when they practiced. He also had a midnight blue Metallic strat-style guitar that he was particularly proud of. Ric was the only one that wore dress shirts; his favorite was grey with a white collar. Although he was as good looking as the preppy guys he never fell into that scene. He just didn’t fit in, it wasn’t his love for rock music that separated him from the pack, but it gave him his vision.

As he read the message from Kati, he could tell from her words that she was hoping for the flame to rekindle. The thought definitely crossed his mind. Though it had been a long time, he did remember how much he loved her, but he was there and she wasn’t. He turned off the computer and headed back to his studio room and he stepped in a soft spot on the floor. He knew his place was falling apart it was old and it leaked and was not worth repairing, sighing, he entered the room and picked up his guitar. As he strummed, he thought back to them jamming with all their girlfriends as their first audience.

He put down his guitar and headed off to bed. He couldn’t stop thinking about her and all the plans that they made. He remembered walking along the road behind the Arena in Glassbroke. How many times he had dreamed of playing there. He remembered the creepy old house on Cemetery lane, right across the street from the backside of the Glassbroke cemetery.

He remembered the first time she showed him the house. She was all into horror movies and scary things, like most teenage girls were. It was a late beautiful spring evening when they walked up to the house.

Is that it? he asked, looking up at the old house. It was creepy looking at night although with the lilacs in bloom it didn’t look too dreadful.

It’s haunted, she said, looking up at it, Let’s get a closer look.

He looked up to into a darkened window on the second floor, and felt as though something in the darkness were watching him. It was not a very good feeling; he felt a terror begin to grip him.

No, he replied, I think we should leave. She tried to pull him, but he held back. There was something wrong there and he knew it. She looked into his face, he was sweating and though it was spring, it wasn’t really hot.

Okay, she said, bewildered, we can look at it some other time. They held hands and talked about getting married. This had become a nightly routine. They spent most every evening together. She didn’t want anybody else. He was a bit taller than she, at 6'1 compared to her 5'3", but it didn’t matter. They were two peas in the same pod, and there was no room for anyone else, and even if anyone else were in there they wouldn’t have noticed, or so he thought.

Can you believe we’ve been together almost two years, said Kati, holding him tight.

Yeah, he replied, they stopped and kissed.

I love you Ric, she said, looking into his eyes, Ric was pleased, he looked at her, put his arm around her and held her tight. Life was good. They walked on, holding each other around the waist. They had finally got to her house and they kissed goodnight. It wasn’t a peck but a wonderful submergence of their love. Night babe, she said, she closed the door and watched him walk away. She started dancing around the room with a broom, and telling the broom all about her wonderful guy.

Thinking about that house so long ago stirred up memories long forgotten. As he drifted off to sleep he saw himself standing in front of the eerie old house. Looking up at the darkened windows, it was dark and the wind was billowing all around. He heard scary sounds from within the creepy old house. Windows breaking, doors banging, howling winds through the rooms. Then he heard a horrid laughter, a familiar voice say, Do you remember!

He awoke sweating and pulling himself from his bed. The morning came, like it always did, but this day was different. All night all he could think about was that house, and that voice. He did remember but he didn’t want to.

Chapter Two

You’ve got it Right

He woke up to reality. The past was gone and it was time to punch the clock. Thank you for calling customer service, he had said answering the phone for the past few years. He had gotten so used to saying that, he could say it in his sleep. He was doodling, listening to the funny guy across the way from him. He had a goofy laugh which reminded him of the Gooz.

He remembered the first time he had met the Gooz. He didn’t talk much, but had an enormous appetite, which seemed weird because he was so thin and gangly. He remembered him setting up and beginning to play. He wasn’t the best bass player, but he did seem to know how to play well enough and bass players are always hard to find. Ric, Tryston and Darik huddled together, and returned smiling at him. He was in. He often walked with Ric and Kati who walked again hand in hand up the hill, laughing and giggling at each other the whole way. The Gooz would look at them oddly, he was there, but they didn’t really notice him.

When they practiced they jumped around and Ric would belt out the vocals to a song they were working on. It was their first song and they were hoping to have it on the radio by the end of summer. It was rough, but not too bad. Tryston was the guitarist guitarist, he knew some chords and what key to play in, but for the most part he wasn’t very good. In his heart he wanted to sing, though both he and Ric desired to be lead vocalist. He was not really a musician and he knew it. Tryston was not much of a singer either but he thought he was, but the position of vocalist had already been taken, so learning now was no longer an option. He knew how to follow along and could fake it well enough. He and Ric had been drifting farther apart because of Ric’s love for Kati; however Darik, the Gooz and Ric began to hit it off and The Gooz he was different, thinking back, he began to wonder about him. What was he doing now? Kati had found him on a social network; maybe he could find him, maybe he could talk him into moving here.

The Gooz was still in Glassbroke, he never left, the custodian at the shopping mall there. His boss was preacher man that called himself Pastor Ed; he had a church that seemed to be growing in Glassbroke, and the Gooz just a few months back started attending his church. Ed was a bit fat, mostly in his gut; his work shirt didn’t totally cover his pot belly. He hired him after he started attending his church.

Ed was the maintenance manager and was constantly on the phone upstairs or using his cell phone talking to someone about his church or with someone from his church. Ed heard the door to the maintenance room shut as the Gooz came in. He looked down from his office upstairs that was enclosed with a chain link fence. Come on up I’d like to talk with you, he said, as the Gooz entered through the double doors.

The Gooz really didn’t want to talk with Ed; for he knew what it was about. He had met a girl over the internet. She lived about 100 miles away and he had driven their on Friday night and had spent the weekend with her, so he hadn’t been in church yesterday. He kind of dragged his feet up the stairs and straight into Ed’s office, as if he were walking the green mile, he entered through a large chain linked gate, which Ed locked up with a paddle lock when he went home at night.

Missed you at church yesterday, said Ed as the Gooz entered, Have a seat.

Well, as you know, said the Gooz, I’ve been like totally talking to this woman for like a while dude and I like totally went to see her this past weekend. She like totally lives like 100 miles away dude.

So tell me about this woman you’ve been talking to, said Ed nosing into his business, You know you should bring her to church so we can meet her.

He was all but telling him he had to be at church. He greatly implied it without exactly saying those words, even though the Gooz had told him that she lived 100 miles away.

Oh, he said, I also wanted to tell you, I know that you’re paying your tithes and offerings because there is always a lump sum in the offering right after pay day, Well except for the past few weeks, which of course, he was referring to him not being in church. You should pay with a check, that way I can keep records and give you a receipt for tax purposes. That made the Gooz rather uncomfortable, he didn’t make enough that it would even make a difference. The Gooz wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed but he got the feeling that Ed just wanted to keep track of who was paying tithes to the church. He wasn’t a smoker anymore, but he still had his long hair, which Ed was harping on him about. Not actually telling him to cut it, but making things hard on him because of it. He had to wear a hat and have his hair completely tucked into the hat while he was at work, which wasn’t company policy and women didn’t have to do it, just the Gooz. He didn’t reply to him, but smiled reluctantly and headed back down to the maintenance room to start his shift.

He didn’t really want to attend Ed’s church anymore, since he’d been working with him he’d discovered how much of a hypocrite that he was. Ed had taken things from storage, things he can use for the church, he created a lie by setting up bogus cameras around the malls campus that can be seen, but don’t actually work. His personal comments about people’s weight, just very non-Christian phrases the he used about people, and the simple fact that he uses people and cheats his employees out of time and money, unless they are on his nice list, then he goes to bat for them.

A couple hours had passed and the Gooz got a message over his walkie talkie that someone had called for him. He went back to the maintenance room where he could hear Ed upstairs talking on the phone. He picked up the phone and talked for a moment, hung up the extension and walked up the stairs to talk with Ed.

My mother is at the Dr.’s office and her Doctor has given her some medication and she can’t drive home. He informed him Is it okay if I go pick her up and take her home? I’ll be right back."

Ed, who was busy talking on the phone to either someone about his church or someone from his church, just nodded and motioned him to leave. The only time Ed seemed to be doing anything maintenance related was when someone above his status in the company were around and the Gooz seemed to be taking note of that fact. He quickly turned and was down the stairs and out the back double doors.

Ric was bored, his job was boring. The only thing allowed was looking at the products sold by this company, or looking at policies or the many job related quizzes that were not a job requirement, yet seemed to be mandatory. He answered the phone like he was a machine, simply to entertain his self. He would eventually be asked if he were a machine. He’d laugh and say no, he’s a real live person. He found it funny because everything was so scripted he was surprised they didn’t use machines and was always being dinged by quality assurance, that to bring monitoring to the level of big brother, for not practically reading a script. This time he’d gotten a disgruntled customer that was blaming him for everything that had ever happened with this company and all the other problems in their life. He was actually really good at calming down a customer, but this customer just wouldn’t calm down. I want to talk to your supervisor! shouted the angry customer, repeatedly.

Absolutely! he replied, gritting his teeth, One moment please! He put the customer on hold, took a deep breath and made them sit on hold for a couple minutes before he even looked for the extension for a supervisor. I don’t get paid enough for this crap! he said, hitting the supervisor extension. He explained to the supervisor what the problem was, apologized for having to potentially ruin their day as well, and successfully transferred the customer.

The Gooz arrived back at work about twenty minutes later and Ed was standing by the time clock holding his time card in his hand. You didn’t clock out when you left, said Ed, holding the time card in front of him.

I like didn’t know I had to, he replied, It was like totally only a few minutes dude.

That is stealing, said Ed, That makes you a thief. Upon hearing this he thought to himself, he must be kidding. Ed takes off all the time, uses the computer, the company phone and his cell phone on company time for church related business.

Whatever dude, he replied, in annoyance, thinking he was simply joking with all the times Ed had made fun of his own manager’s rules to the Gooz.

What did you say? he said, as if he were his father scolding him.

I said whatever dude, replied the Gooz, actually surprised he was serious. He didn’t look back as he was walking away from him.

Ed was now getting angry, very angry, You will not talk to me that way, he bellowed, in a very demeaning tone.

Whatever dude, he replied again as he walked out the door, down a long hallway passing the business offices and into the mall to do his job.

He was in the mall’s food court gathering up trays and garbage that people had left on the tables. Dale, an elderly, portly man he had talked with many times, was also a regular at the food court in the mall, came over to him and he was glad to see him.

Since when do you wear a hat? he asked, putting some change in the coffee machine."

Well, he replied, Ed is like totally making me wear this hat now. I have to have my hair like totally tucked in which really kind of like totally stinks dude. Funny thing is I thought he was like totally my friend. He doesn’t like make the female employees wear one. Like what’s up with that?

The man was having doubts about Ed himself and told the Gooz there was nothing wrong with trying out another church and he had thought that the Gooz was a pretty decent guy. He told him it wasn’t fair but that good things were on the horizon. The Gooz thanked him and headed outside with the bags of garbage so he could go to lunch. Ed came looking for him and had seen him talking with Dale.

Say, said Ed, in a pleasant tone, remember when I told you that we were thinking about selling the church van, Yeah, he replied, a bit interested.

Well I know you’re a musician, he said, and have been looking for a van. If you want we can take a ride and go look at it

Yeah that would be like totally great dude! he replied.

He noticed that Ed clocked himself back in from lunch before they headed out the back where his truck was parked. They drove to the church and there was the van parked behind it. They got out looked at the van. He wanted the van; it was an older van but looked like it was in decent shape and big enough to carry lights