Down in Salem

Chapter 4

"What a strange man." Clara thought to herself. She felt so stupid for only just now realizing just how shifty and anxious the man was. Even too anxious for the events that had taken place. She had waited until all the kids had left the park for home before she herself went home. Even the bright sun couldn't cover how depressing this town had become. The same shops still closed, homes with curtains shut and the cars still sitting in the same spots as before the first paper.

Just like clockwork, Clara tuned into the nightly news for anything, any new information at all. Much to her dismay, there was still nothing. Maybe no news was good news, clearly it didn't mean it was all over. After the weather report, Clara took herself up to bed and fell into bed once again staring at the ceiling

***

The red glow of the clock grew brighter and brighter. It read 3:42am. The room was pitch black, all that could be heard was the soft breathing coming from the sleeping people. It was almost a pity that things has to turn out this way, they seemed to be a good and even happy family. At least that's what the pictures on the mantle say. Nothing but the smiling faces of the husband and wife on their wedding day. A beautiful beach vacation. The professional looking family photos of them and their two boys. Birthdays, holidays, road trips, all so so happy frozen in the frames forever. More extended family photos littered the walls. Holiday cards packed with love and wishes for a great new year taped to the doorway. Really such a shame. The breathing got louder the closer the closer the were approached. Yes, definitley such a shame. It's really too bad they can't share the glory with everyone, such selfishness. There were people out there that needed the warmpth of a family and love more than they did. They don't deserve it, they don't need it. They never expected their seemingly perfect live to come to such an abrupt ending. Boy were they going to be shown. Nobody needs such a perfect life, there are people who would kill to have even a fraction of what they do. It's such a shame they won't be around long enough to see the joy in the monster's eyes as a flash of silver hit.

***

Clara's eyes snapped open and she was sitting up in bed before her brain could even tell what was going on. She stretched, rubbed her eyes, and tried to shake the images from her mind. Everything just felt so real, like someone was really after her. Only she didn't have a husband or kids. She didn't have a family at all. Something in her gut just didn't feel right, almost as if she were being warned that this chaos isn't over. She pushed the thoughts out of her mind and got ready for her day.

The news was becoming a lot less "new"s and a lot more predictable. The only new about the news was the weather, and even that was going to change. They're calling for nothing but rain and thunderstorms for at least the next week. Time was felling more and more strage as it passed since the original story broke. The police still haven't even released any information. They never even put out the names of the victims, this was a close knit town and it's people couldn't even support each other and share their condolences to the families that had suffered loss. It just wasn't fair, everyone here knows how much the people love their community.

As per the relatively new usual, the cafe was just about dead (no pun intended) and workers were sent home early. If things kept going on like this for much longer, Clara feared she wouldn't be able to support herself anymore. She could always get a second job, a little extra money in her pocket obviously couldn't hurt. Lord knows there's no better paying jobs around here anymore. Things really didn't seem like they were going to turn around anytime soon.