Final Termination

By Jennifer Sleeman

An airplane crash leads to a town of human-stalking feral cats.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Jan 31, 2024
• ISBN: 9798350940602

Book preview

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ISBN:9798350940602

Table of 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

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 1

The single engine charter plane sat just shy of the hold short line on the runway. The pilot-in-command and co-pilot hastily went through the run-up checklist. Outside, the winds howled around the plane as the plane rocked back-and-forth with each gust.

Test, test, test, Ted, the co-pilot, said into his headset microphone. Can you hear me?

Peter, the pilot, shook his head no. The radios were out. The couple in back had their headsets on, but couldn’t hear what the pilots were saying either. When Peter shook his head no, the couple looked at each other with a worried expression. Peter turned around in his seat and smiled at the couple. He make an ok sign with his fingers and the couple visibly relaxed. Peter scribbled a note in his notebook and passed it over to Ted. They needed to watch their facial expressions. Ted read the note, nodded, and handed the notebook back to Peter. It would be a tough flight without the radios, but radios weren’t officially required.

The wind is over 15 knots, Ted said looking at Peter. Peter could just barely hear Ted over the sound of the engine. The Cessna 172’s manual said takeoffs in 15 knot winds were not recommended.

Peter nodded. I have flown in winds higher than this.

Ted shrugged. Peter had more flight hours. He must know what he’s doing. Both knew the stakes involved. Sometimes staying on the ground was worse.

Chapter 2

Deerfield was a small town that once boasted a bustling mining community. A series of accidents caused the coal mine to be abandoned. Over the years the settling of the mine’s wooden infrastructure began to weaken. Insurance companies charged extra to cover the homeowner’s risk from mine subsidence. As the mine infrastructure deteriorated, parts of the mine would fall into the open spaces. Whatever was resting on top of that area of the mine would often become consumed by a sinkhole. This was the fate of Deerfield, from which all were trying to escape.

Over the years Deerfield grew into a tourist destination. The old buildings from the 1860’s were restored into quaint shops, restaurants and hotels. The mine was declared a historical area and tours were available. Experiencing the mine by headlamp and lantern was one of the favorites. Most people were stunned by the extreme darkness when all light was extinguished. You couldn’t even see your hand held out in front of you. In the 24-hour neon cities, the absence of light was a controlled delight sought readily by the tourists.

Bob and Patty, the couple in the back of the Cessna, had their fill of the excitement. They wanted to leave Deerfield and never return. Leaving couldn’t happen fast enough.

Bob and Patty were enjoying an ice cream in the old fashioned town when it started. The ice cream parlor started to tremble. Then all was quiet. Erie quiet. All conversation in the ice cream parlor stopped. No one knew what to say. No one had a thought about what to speculate. As if in slow motion, the ice cream scoops from everyone’s cones toppled to the floor. All the patrons seemed to have Parkinson’s Disease. The building resumed trembling with enthusiasm. Plaster fell off the wall in a large chunk and broke on the wooden floor sending up a puff of dust. Cones were dropped to the floor as patrons scrambled to exit the building.

On the street, the patrons gazed up at the old building with a fascinated horror. The roof of the building folded into the second floor. Bricks were coughed from the exterior onto the street in front of the onlookers. The onlookers took a step back. Glass from the windows shattered and rained into the street. For a moment, the white curtains in the second story windows waved out the windows as if in surrender. The second story fell into the first story as wood splintered and popped from the stress. Then, the entire building lurched into the ground. The patrons ran to the edge of the sinkhole and looked down. What remained was a deep vertical shaft with a scattering of broken timbers from either the ice cream building or the forgotten mine underneath.

Bob and Patty fled to their hotel to collect their belongings.

Chapter 3

Bob and Patty burst into the hotel lobby, panting. Everyone in the hotel appeared to be blissfully ignorant of the hell experienced