Don't Look Back

Chapter 2

I crossed into Ohio at 6:45 PM, the sun was just beginning to set and things felt different. Not the good kind of different either. I felt it right when I went over the interstate into Englewood. It was certain coldness, a barren feeling. It was a dark feeling I had felt before, Ohio was crawling with demons. I practically tasted the sulfur when I rolled down my window at the Starbucks drive thru, even my coffee tasted a little off. I decided to ignore it until I found a place to settle down. I drove through Columbus and looped around to Toledo, the area I was most familiar with. I drove around until I found a decent hotel. I grabbed my bag and threw my empty coffee in the trash outside the building. I stepped inside and was greeted by an overly cheery, middle aged woman. She had chemical blonde hair and a rather noticeable fake tan.
"Hello, what can I do for you today?" She asked, her voice cascading up and down in the way automated voicemails sound.
"I'd like a room please." I said, grinning half heartedly at her. She nodded and quickly grabbed a key from the rack behind her. She punched in a few numbers and asked for my name.
"Sylvia Beladiere, b-e-l-a-d-i-e-r-e." I said, her eyes widened at my last name.
"Oh my, what a regal name you have!" She proclaimed, her hands clasping together. I laughed and shook my head. "Yeah, if you knew my family you'd think otherwise." I said, remembering there was no family left for her to meet, there was just me. So I guess it was more of a lonely name than a fancy one. She smiled at me and handed me the key. I took it and walked off, not bothering to return her smile. I just wanted to be alone. I mean, driving isn't exactly lonely. When you drive for as long as I had, you begin to wish you could dislocate yourself from your own brain as if it was your shoulder. You can try to turn the radio up louder, but your mind will just find other ways to torture you. You start fidgeting and having spasms, you start smelling things that remind you of the thing you're trying to forget. At least here I could have a drink, relax. I found my room and slid the key in, opening it with unexpected difficulty. Inside looked clean, cleaner than the last motel I was in. I set my bag down on the small kitchen table and went over to the fridge to see if anyone had left anything in it, to my luck I found a half drunk bottle of whiskey. I grabbed it and set it on the table, not bothering to search for a cup. I plopped down on the rickety 70's style green pleather upholstered chair and unscrewed the bottle of whiskey. I zipped open my bag and pulled out my laptop, taking a swig from the bottle. It tasted like evergreen musk and old books, and was surprisingly refreshing. I turned on my laptop and started searching away for the latest murders and deaths in the area, trying to get a sense of what was going on here. I still could not shake that all too familiar cold feeling I had. I took out my dad's pistol and loaded it just in case, putting it to the side. There had been four deaths in the same week in small suburbs surrounding Toledo, all of them had been killed in similar ways, parts of their bodies torn out, organs missing, supposed animal attack. Two of them had the same kinds of lacerations to the neck, three deep horizontal gashes. It seemed like a demon, definitely not a werewolf since none of the hearts were missing, just things like intestines and livers. Sulfur was found on all the of windowsills of each crime scene, and money had been stolen from each one too. Definitely a demon. I found a map online of Toledo and surrounding areas, and marked out where the murders had occurred. Each one was in a 20 mile radius of the other in a trapezoid-like pattern, the town names all starting with the same letter, D. I made a list of all the next possible targets and took another swig of whiskey. I closed my laptop and rubbed my eyes, something smelled funny. Kind of like dirty socks, kind of like wet dog. I smelled the inside of my jacket and noticed it was me. Time to take a shower. I got up and walked to the tiny bathroom with an even tinier shower, stripped off my clothes, and got in. The water was warm and smelled like iron and eggs. I finished up quick and wrapped myself in a towel. I went out into the kitchen to get some fresh clothes. I was searching for a clean pair of underwear when I heard it, the sound of a window unlatching. I grabbed my dad's gun and ran behind the fridge, my heart beating out of my chest. Couldn't they at least give me time to change? I heard the front doorknob jiggle, and subtle whispers coming from behind it. Then, I heard the sound of the window above the kitchen sink breaking, and two pairs of heavy feet slam on the linoleum.
"Sylvia, sylvia. Come out, come out, wherever you are." A horse, deep voice chimed. I held my breath and darted my torso out from behind the fridge, firing a quick shot into one of the demon's chests. He yelled and keeled over the table, blood dripping out of his mouth.
"Hey now Syl, you could've at least put some clothes on." The other demon cooed, a mischievous smile creeping onto his face.
"I would've if you bastards would let me." I snarled back, the demon put his hands up in defense.
"Aw, why you gotta use such naughty words? You little slut." He said evilly as he lunged at me with his blade, I darted back but it got me in the ribs. I doubled over in agony, a rushing fire spreading through my side. I looked up at him towering over me.
"What're you gonna do, Syl? Whine about it?" He chuckled.
"Think again, bub." I said under my breath, lifting myself vertical again and jamming the butt of my pistol into his temple. He groaned and stumbled backwards, giving me the opportunity to shoot him square in the head. He fell to to the ground with a heavy thud. I stumbled back over to the table and grabbed the bottle of whiskey, downing a large gulp. I felt myself sway, and my legs gave way. My head smashed into the fridge, the bottle of whiskey shattering on the cold tile, cutting my arm and slicing my towel. I could feel the blood from the wound on my side dripping onto the floor and down my leg, my towel barely covering me. I leaned my head against the fridge, my vision becoming blurry and my hearing becoming foggy and drowned out. I heard the sound of a door breaking down, and two male voices yelling before I passed out.