Burn The Witch

I dreamt of the witch again.

Her fingers scratching at my window on the second floor. The old wrinkly hag had only a few teeth but was not ashamed to show them. Brown rotted and always smiling. I could never see her eyes but I didn’t need to, to know they were fixed on me. The dreams always make me wake in a sweat, today was no different. I lived alone on the edge of a small town. My friends from the city always joked about how I was in the middle of nowhere but it was a 5 minute drive to town. It was true that it could seem like the middle of nowhere, my closest neighbours were half a kilometre away and the trees hid the house like it was not even there. Sometimes it was hard to remember I wasn’t actually in the middle of nowhere. The woods behind my house were thick and extended into what you could truly call the wilderness. There were bears, fishers, porcupines, deer and the occasional wolf in those woods. I never went into them at night. The thick trees and brush made it easy to get turned around. I went though my morning routine and went to start breakfast for the couple staying at my bed and breakfast. One of the perks to living out here is that the tourists love the nature. Back when I first started running this place I was doing incredibly well. it was a popular enough spot that I had built a guesthouse foHonestly you could just walk around but people like to stand on the bridge and throw bread to the ducks if they were out.r myself when I felt like having some alone time. I never used it much but it was nice to have, between the guesthouse and house was a man-made pond with a nice little bridge spanning over it.  I had a pretty big property and did all the maintenance myself. I went down to the kitchen quietly so as not to wake the guests up early. My cat appeared at my feet and started meowing to let me know she demanded to be fed before the guests. I scooped out some cat food and opened a can of wet cat food and mixed half of it with the dry. that should keep him satisfied for now. I had barely put on a pot of coffee before the couple had started to wake up, you could hear the floor boards creaking as they got up and out of bed. It was only a quarter after six I hope I didn’t wake them. by the time the coffee was done brewing they were on their way downstairs.

“Good morning.” i said cheerfully to them. “I hope i didn’t wake you, and hopefully neither did this little guy.” I bent over and patted the cat on his head.

“morning, no you didn’t wake us, we actually had a pretty terrible sleep last night.” Mark, the boyfriend told me.

I raised my eyebrows with concern ” i hope the bed was not uncomfortable or anything, if so let me know and ill get that squared away for you two.”

“no, no that wasn’t it, we both had the same terrible dream of some old crone climbing in through the window.” he told me amiably enough.

I stopped dead in my tracks, noticeably so. “Are you okay? did you have the same dream too?” mark inquired. I didn’t want to tell him the truth, i couldn’t let word get out that my BnB was haunted by an old crone or something like that.

“no sorry, i was just thinking that i wouldn’t be able to sleep either if I had a dream like that.” I quickly spit out trying not to sound worried or let the nervousness take hold of my voice. I had slept right through it though, I always did, it never kept me from sleeping. What the fuck could that mean? I thought to myself

“Well there are no old crones here now, just you and your lovely girlfriend” i said once again trying not to let my voice quiver

Lexi just smiled and sat down with a big yawn at the table. “So what do you have for us on our last breakfast?” she asked in a bubbly voice.

Poor choice of words i thought to myself.

“So glad you asked!” i said with enough pep in my voice I could have been a cheerleader.
“This delicious dark roast come to us from the Veracruz region in southern Mexico, one of my favourites to be honest, quite the delicious hint of nuttiness.” i told her rehearsing the label on the coffee package.

“mmmmm sounds like my kind of coffee.” she inhaled a deep lung of that coffee scent as she spoke.

“for your actual meal i thought id make something a little less fancy and a little more likely to satisfy even the most discerning of sweet tooth, nutella stuffed rolled french toast, with some eggs, hash browns and of course fruit so we all feel a little better abut ourselves for all the nutella I’m sure well eat” I told them with a grin. This was the breakfast I always made for a guests last breakfast, in a few hours I would be all alone in this house again, no bookings scheduled for another two weeks. There were the occasional drop ins, but you couldn’t rely on that. I made the food, they ate it. After they showered and changed into their day clothes they packed there bags and left. I love tourists because no matter what they always have to leave sometime.

I went about the usual steps after  guest left. Clean their room, bathroom, wash the sheets and pillowcases and open the window wide to let the room air out. i walked to the window thy said the…what did they call her again? Crone, that….fit. I checked the lock on the window to make sure it was still locked…and it wasn’t. My heart started to beat like a fucking drum in my chest.
“OK hold on a sec, we’ve been through this before.” i whispered to myself, I ran outside and went right for the area beneath the window…and there it was. The end of a fat joint. they must have got scared I would smell it because they pitched it halfway through. lucky me.

i finished the joint as I rode the lawnmower. it wasn’t bad stuff, by the time I was done with the lawn I had a good high going on. I decided today I would trim the bushes and tree line, I always loved giving the yard a hard contour. makes everything look so tidy. I heard the flies before I saw what they were buzzing around I walked up with my shears in hand and the smell hit me like a brick wall. Some unlucky skunk got ripped apart. living in the country made you used to these kinds of sights. the skunk had its stomach ripped open and…not much else done to it. Some predator didn’t like the taste of skunk meat I guess. I went back to the shed on the side of the guesthouse and grabbed a shovel and attached the trailer to the mower. there was a small path in the corner of the property I used to get firewood, or to drag dead animals off the lawn to get them out of sight and scent of guests. these days it seemed like I had to bring more animals back there than ever before. the animals must be breeding like crazy and killing each other off this year, or maybe one of them got a taste for blood and cant get enough. Sometimes my mind went to dark weird places when I smoked pot. I shrugged it off and went about getting the dead animal off my property.

by the time the sun went down i had finished all my weekly lawn maintenance. I decided to go into town and have a beer at O’hannigans. one of the few bars that was not a family restaurant by day. despite it being a small town i didn’t really know anyone, that was a lie, I knew everyone but I just didn’t like most of them enough to bother knowing anything about them. I got to a nice glow before I called it a night, something about draft beer always made it feel like it hits you harder or faster or something. this part of town was about a brisk hour long walk to my house. so I decided to hoof it, I had a few beers and shouldn’t drive. it was a ten minute walk to the main road through town and another half hour to my road. the last 25 minutes of walking were down my road, no lamp posts, no cars. Just a dark dirt road barely wide enough for two cars and tall trees and thick brush on either side. I’ve made this walk a hundred times before but I always got freaked out when its time to walk down my road. I sped my pace up to make sure this was over s soon as possible. The dream from last night still felt fresh in my mind, and with the help of a few beers i couldn’t help but wonder if she was out there. right now, watching, following. As if on cue I heard, or least thought I heard her, walking slowly, stalking me. her feet effortlessly finding their next step through the brush without giving away the fact she was there. every few seconds you could hear a twig snapping or some leaves rustling and you could just tell she was smiling. I was staring at the trees as I walked down the road, trying to catch a glimpse of some shadow moving almost out of sight. The sound of someone coughing startled me enough I tripped over my own feet. it came from behind me so it couldn’t have been her. the thought calmed me as I turned my head to see where it came from. oh I  must have been to focused I almost walked past my own home, standing in the driveway beside his car was a cop having a cigarette.

he must have heard the sound of me falling because his head turned towards the darkness i was in. I only saw his silhouette from a weak motion activated light mounted by the garage door. I scrambled up and called out to him.

“didn’t expect to see anyone in my driveway when i got home officer, you gave me a scare.” I barely slurred out.

“You been drinking tonight Mr. Lear?” he barked back instantly.

“sure have, that’s why i walked instead of driving.”

“Well i cant blame you for walking home if that’s the case. I trust you didn’t get into any trouble on the way back?” he asked coolly

My mind went right to the old hag, the crone. “What do you mean by trouble?” i nervously choked out.

“Seems to be some awful beasts in these woods, do you know anything about a beast in the area?” he stared me down as i walked up the driveway.

“What…do you mean?” Did he have the dreams too?

“Do the names Mark and Lexi LeCoure mean anything to you.” he asked with a noticeable edge to his voice.

I broke into a cold sweat, my guests that left earlier, why was he asking about them, what happened to them? “They left just before noon, around 11:40 this morning if i remember. They were my guests, are they okay?” I enquired.

“and what did you do for the rest of the day, where did you go?”

“i did my weekly yard work chores and then went to O’hannigans for some drinks…and here I am. why?”
“did any of you neighbours see you doing this yard work?”
“no, i don’t believe so, the neighbours are all far away and I only mowed the front lawn, the rest I do outback.”
“My, that’s interesting Mr Lear, i got here about an hour ago and since you were not home I decided to look around the property a bit. the only thing that drew my attention to the backyard was how unkempt and messy it looked. You’re telling me you spent all day doing yard work back there? I just don’t believe you.”
I couldn’t believe what i was hearing right now. I was proud of how the yard looked before I left.
“Also, i noticed a small path in the corner of the yard, I took a short trip back there, led me right to a pile of bones. now what’s all that about I wonder.”
The cop tensed up, maybe expecting me to make a run for it, i was too shocked to move.
“You tell me right now, what the fuck is that all about.” he spat as he spoke.
“I swear to god i can explain the bones back there, bu i don’t know if you’ll believe me.”
“Go ahead and try.”

“So you know these woods I’m sure, lotta critters back there. For some reason my yard happens to be a dumping ground for the bodies after predators get hold of them.”

“Bull-fucking-shit.” the cop went for his gun.

Before he could reach the gun, we both froze, we both heard it, the sound of an animal dying in my backyard. that kind of death rattle where you know, when you get back there you wont find it dying, you’ll only see a dead animal. The cop gave me a doubtful look but then ran for the back, i was right behind him. we ran around the back and made it halfway across the lawn when we saw the figure on the bridge, a small huddled mass. The light above the small bridge shone directly on the corpse of my cat.

“Oh god, that’s my pet!” i ran over and stopped in the middle of the bridge and dropped to my knees, there was no blood, but the eyes had bulged out. his neck was a twisted mess, something turned his head in a complete circle without ripping the skin. I felt a hand on my shoulder.
“I’m sorry i didn’t believe you and I’m sorry about the cat, I stayed here a few years ago with my wife and I remember that cat. We were both out front when we heard it.” He said almost as if talking to himself, reciting a story he just learned.

“I believe you about the bones, but we need to go inside and have a chat about those guests of yours.” he said his voice back to sounding stern.

“Sure…ill answer any questions you’ve got, i need a drink first though. That cats been with me for a long time man, I never even let it go outside for this reason!” I ended my sentence with a shout. It didn’t matter though, he got out, and he got killed.

“I know this sucks, but trust me we have more important things to talk about.” he started towards the house, he turned around to make sure i was following. and his eyes grew wide as he stared about a foot over my head and 100 feet behind it.

i turned my head slowly knowing what I would see, it would be her, it would be the crone. She was watching, she was jealous I got distracted by the cop instead of thinking of her. fearing her. I looked to the woods behind me and saw…nothing. I turned back to the cop and he kept standing there, wide eyed, but with four thin but painful looking cuts on his face, when did that happen?

I was about to ask him if he was alright when he blurted out.
“The couple were found  few hours from here, their vehicle on the side of the road, and their bodies were dragged into the wood and limbs ripped from the body and arranged in some…patter.” he said as fast as he could.

“What are you talking about?” they were dead? did they think i did it?

“I…had to come question you, but i know you didn’t do it.” the cop turned to walk away.

“What happened to your face” i called out in a panic

“Cut myself shaving this morning.” he called back. seconds later i heard his car door close, and the car turned on, he sped out of my driveway and down my road. Leaving me alone with my dead cat. Twigs and branches snapped all around me on the edge of the woods. The brush had grown out over the lawn. I looked around me and saw her nowhere. I felt her though, I felt her hot breath on the back of my neck I felt her sour breath all around me. This can’t be real. It just cant!

Something in the bushes moved.

“Leave me alone!” i screamed at the dark twitching bushes.  I took a step towards it fists clenched and whatever it was took a step back, the rustling receding a little bit. Was she afraid of me? Was that even her? I was tired of the dreams, I was tired of being afraid, I was tired of the crone being on my mind all day. Things are escalating, and I’m going to end it before I am too afraid to move.

I calmly walked back to the guest house, that’s where i kept the strong booze, and the shotgun. Living in a wooded area like this only made sense to own a rifle or shotgun. I had both a hunting rifle and a shotgun, but I knew i wouldn’t get the drop on her. wherever she is, whatever she’s planning, I am going to be walking right into it. I put the bottle to my lips and sucked it all in, I needed some courage and this was the fastest way I knew. I loaded the shot-gun, and brought a pocketful of shells with me,  wouldn’t need much. I’m sure this will be over very quickly. I paused for a second when I saw my cigarettes on the counter. I was trying to cut back and eventually quit but…if I was going to die tonight then what did it matter. maybe if I live to see the sun ill quit for real.

i took another swig from the bottle, grabbed a flashlight and lit my smoke. I had no idea how id find her, but I knew she would lead me right to her.

I went to the door, to step through the doorway and blunder into…god knew what. She was already there, i could feel her daring me to come out, to face her. My hand went for the knob but before I could turn it. her hand came through the door. she didn’t force it through or punch her way through the wood. he hand appeared to glide through, as if there was nothing there. I jolted back, pumping the shotgun. I blew a hole right through the god damn door, and somehow I blew a chunk out of my own hip. I fell to the ground screaming, blood spilling everywhere. She laughed silently, or was it in my head? slowly her entire body made its way through the door. her posture what that of a bird, her strides were long and slow, her arms held in front of her with her hands hanging limply. she was hunched over, almost like she was crouching. as slowly as she moved she came at me with a steady pace, a close-lipped smile hid the rotting teeth I knew were there.

I left a trail of blood as i crawled backwards refusing to look away, I screamed, I cried, I shouted for help, and I swore at her to the best of my abilities, the only answer I got was her smile. the closer she got the more her mouth started to part. her smile slowly widened with every step she took. I hurled the flashlight at her and it passed right over her harmlessly. She paused mid stride, with just the toes of one foot resting on the ground in front of her. she slowly brought her hand up to her face. and dragged one long disgusting finger nail across her left cheek. I felt a warmth start to spread on my cheek. i lifted my hand to my face and when I looked at my palm, it was wet with blood.

This had to be some sort of fever dream, some sort of fucking nightmare. None of this could be happening. She started moving again following my trail of blood. she was a good ten feet away from me and was creeping slowly. i still had my backpack on and whipped it out in front of me, I grabbed the alcohol and my smokes. if I was going to die, I was going to die drunk with a cigarette between my lips. Fuck this crone. This Witch, this fucking witch. I undid the lid of the bottle and opened my throat as the vodka poured down. I put the bottle down and got a smoke out as fast as I could, lit it then inhaled.

“Fuck you, you bitch.: i spit through my teeth, I smoked as fast as I could. i didn’t know when the next puff would be the last. it was like she slowed down, I felt the booze take hold, and I felt the blood loss too. everything started to spin. I was getting mad, I was trapped on the floor, what the hell did I do to deserve this! There was no way out, I whipped the rest of the vodka at her out of anger, it went flying into my liquor cabinet, glass shattered and more alcohol flowed to the ground. the wood floors were soaking in the booze, the puddle expanded to the nearby fireplace.

I bellowed with laughter, the witch paused but for only a second.

“You dumb fucking cunt. Do you even know what you’re doing? What’s your plan to scare me to death? You could have killed me a hundred times in the last five minutes, let alone these weeks or months I’ve been dreaming about you. You could have ended things whenever you wanted!” She had stopped completely now, head cocked sideways like a dog who wasn’t sure exactly what was happening.
“You arrogant, dim-witted bitch!” She was too busy listening to pay attention to my hands, i had ripped of a chunk of my shirt, tied it around the backpack and lit it on fire, it caught quickly enough. I kept laughing as i threw the bag by the booze, I laughed as it caught, as the flames spread towards my firewood I was in hysterics. This little guesthouse was  soon enveloped in flame.

She started laughing this terrible high-pitched kind of sound. the flames came from behind her and she just kept laughing. the flames were not near me yet, but i felt my skin start to burn, it was crackling and splitting. she stood amongst the flames and laughed louder and louder. my screams of agony, the roar of the fire, nothing was louder than her laughter. she stared at me and cackled as I burnt up before her eyes.