Cornfield

The Tower

'Ah fuck no!' Isaiah cried.

The scarecrow man waved his arms and a murder of crows flew from behind a house. They circled around the man like a twisting tornado going round and round. They cawed and cooed into the night air. Their cries echoed around us. I could hear the noise vibrate against the house. The scarecrow man extended his right hand and the crows started flying towards us, more specifically Isaiah.

Isaiah started running towards the neighborhood, as crows flew around his head and pecked at him. They pecked at his hair, clothes, and arms. Isaiah swatted at them, but more crows came. They whirled around him like a black hurricane. He stopped running as he kept wildly slapping. Crows were flying away with pieces of hair, cloth, and skin. I could see the grimace in Isaiah's face. Wounds were oozing blood and had pieces of muscle poking out. Several gaping holes were appearing on his arms and chest.

I covered my mouth and backed up into the front door.

Isaiah's clothes were shredded and hung off of him. He fell to the ground on his knees. He screamed out. I could see him clenching his jaw, as he slapped the birds away from him. They were becoming more relentless. They started boring a hole in his stomach. Isaiah screamed out in pain and pounded the ground.

"HELP ME!" he screamed.

The crows continued to make a meal out of his body. They had eaten deep enough that I could see the bone in his right arm from his shoulder to his elbow. He looked over at Danny and me. He collapsed to the ground on his side. He crawled on the ground, slowly propelling himself towards us.

"PLEASE...help me..."

That was the last time I heard Isaiah's voice, as he stopped moving and went limp.

The crows were still pecking at his body. One of the crows grabbed a hold of his intestine and pulled it out his body. Another pulled out his liver. More and more organs were being pulled out of his body, until I could see the pink muscle behind it.

I felt my stomach lurch.

'Go inside,' Danny commanded.

'No,' I mumbled. 'He's still here.'

The scarecrow man flicked his right arm. The crows went back up into the air. They flew around him in circles once again. The scarecrow man slowly walked over to Isaiah, using his scythe as a cane. He stood over Isaiah's body before slamming his scythe down into it. Blood spurted out, highlighting against the green of the grass. He looked up at Danny and me. I could see a smile in his eyes, but not on his face. It was then that I realized his face was actually a mask.

It felt like a cold snake slithered its way down my spine. I didn't know how to breathe anymore, as I watched the scarecrow man turn and drag Isaiah's body like he dragged his limp foot across the ground. The crows followed, as they flew in waves or caught a ride on Isaiah's dead corpse. The man walked away towards the field.

I was frozen in the spot I was standing in. I could see Danny saying something to me, but I couldn't hear him. All I heard were Isaiah's screams and the bird's coos. They were so loud.

Eventually, Danny grabbed my wrist and pulled me inside. He closed the door behind him and leaned against it. He let go of my wrist.

It took me a moment to realize where I was and what was going on. Isaiah's corpse was the only thing on my mind, as I slowly walked towards the stairs and sat down. My heart pounded in my chest. Air was fighting to stay inside my lungs. I forced myself to breathe more deeply, as I scratched at my arms.

Kaitlyn, Macey, Caiden, Natalie, and Roxanne walked over to us from the kitchen.

'Where's Isaiah?' Macey asked.

I didn't look up.

Danny hesitated. 'He's...he's gone.

I paid attention to the rise and fall of my chest. I kept reminding myself to keep it together, but my mind wandered. That killer with the scythe. That killer in the cornfield.

'Cornfield,' I whispered.

'What?' Kaitlyn asked.

'That killer they mentioned this morning on the radio, Cornfield. It's him. He's the one after us.'

Natalie hugged Caiden closer to her. She snuggled her face into his chest.

'What do we do now?' Macey asked.

I looked up at Kaitlyn.

Kaitlyn sighed.

'We need a minute to collect our heads,' Danny said.

'Maybe we should go to Kaitlyn's room and see if we can call now,' Roxanne suggested.

There were no objections, so Danny, Natalie, Caiden, and Macey walked upstairs. I stayed on the stairs looking at the floor.

'Scarlett,' Kaitlyn said.

I took a breath in and then let one out.

'Scarlett,' Kaitlyn repeated.

I looked at her.

'Are you okay?'

'No, I'm not.' I sighed. 'But I'll be fine. I just gotta get out of my head.'

Kaitlyn stepped towards me and placed a hand on my cheek. 'Babe...'

I moved away from her hand. 'Don't worry about me. I'll be okay.' I stood up and held out my hand. 'Let's get up to the others.'

Kaitlyn glanced at me before she took my hand and laced her fingers through mine.

We walked upstairs. Everything was dark. I could still see the things that were in front of me and around me, but that didn't stop my head from imagining the shadows hiding within the darkness. We walked into Kaitlyn's room.

The walls of her room were a light purple and the carpet was a deep purple. Kaitlyn's bed was up ahead against the wall in the corner. Beside it was a white bookshelf. Along the right wall was a white desk with a matching chair in front. More bookshelves were against the wall on the opposite wall of the bed.

Natalie and Caiden were sitting on Kaitlyn's bed. Caiden had his arm wrapped tightly around Natalie, as she buried her face into his chest. Macey was sitting in the chair from Kaitlyn's desk. Danny was leaning against the desk looking off at the wall ahead of him. Roxanne was sitting on the floor near Natalie.