B-Movie Attack (5 page)

The phone was on the lamp stand inches from his bed. He couldn’t phone for the police when he really thought about it.
Am I going to tell them my movies are coming to life, that I brought them back?
 

What struck him the most right now was the reel they had loaded into the projector. He recognized it instantly. He only paid attention to the opening shot of a young man in his late teens hooked to I.V. tubes, a respirator and a dialysis machine. The title
Death Reject
flashed upon the screen in dripping blood red font lettering.
 

“This is my second film,” he said aloud. “My movie…”

The blonde turned to him and smiled. “We lived up to our end of the bargain. Now you get to sit back and watch.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“We don’t have to tell you why. You got what you wanted. Our deal has been honored.”

She flicked her fingers, the talons sprouting in and out like a cat’s. “Next time it’ll be
your
throat we cut open if you don’t shut your mouth and start appreciating what we've done for you.”

The vampires were sorting through the reels, stacking one pile of reels into one corner, and another on the opposite side of the room. They were picking and choosing, laughing, chatting and giddy as they debated over the best titles. Their eyes flashed from human to coal black to electric red. They were living demons. Flesh and blood menaces.
 

Ted couldn’t deny what his libido and selfish desires led him to do. He was helpless. What creatures from his films would cause many deaths—and this time, who would stop them? The entire town of Anderson Mills, Kansas, was killed except for Andy Ryerson, and even that poor kid was eventually slaughtered, he thought.
 

You would’ve sold some DVD rights, maybe attended the horror conventions and received a few honors. Big deal. It wasn’t worth it.

I didn’t think it would really happen again.

I didn’t believe it.

The blonde glared at him. “You wish you could take back your decision, Teddy?”

“I wasn’t thinking clearly. I thought I could stop you.”

“You wouldn’t want to kill us,” the strawberry red-haired woman said, cupping her breasts and issuing a slight moan. It was practiced. Deceiving. “Think about it, Teddy Bear. We need you. What if someone does find a way to stop us again? We need somebody to resurrect us. Think of the hype, the attention of two cities wiped clean off the map, the deaths inspired by your movies. You’ll be the master of horror. Notorious for terror!”

“Not in exchange for human lives. I never wanted to hurt anyone.”

“Well, it's going to happen and nothing’s going to change that. It’s not you doing the killing. Rest easy. Quit whining before we decide it’s not worth it to keep you around. There are people out there who’d help us in exchange for wild romps in the sack, and you know it’s true.”

Ted couldn’t argue. There were a dozen Joes and Johns in the apartment building that’d drop their pants at a moment’s notice for easy sex with hot women.
 

The women crowded around a set of reels and locked arms. “I think this is the next one.”

“We can’t just unleash the monsters on them.”

“Build it up a bit. The more afraid they are, the more fun it will be to watch them all die.”

“Yes, yes, prolong their suffering.”

“We also have to block the city from the military or outside intervention. We blocked them out of Anderson Mills, and it worked.”

“I can’t believe Andy Ryerson stopped us,” the blonde complained. “Well, that son-of-a-bitch is dead now.”

Ted doubted his sanity. His movie characters were strategizing an assault on Chicago. If he hadn’t dreamed up the characters and put them to film, none of this would be happening—and he never imagined in his wildest dreams they’d be living and talking in his apartment. He could hear the clicking of another projector and then another. They had three running in the apartment. He couldn't do anything to stop them while he was bound to the bed, so he kept quiet. The vampires being busy meant he had more time to think of a way to get out of his bonds and warn everybody what was coming their way.
 

Billy Carton stood beside his father’s bed with tears welling in his eyes. Wayne was in a body cast. His chest was wrapped heavily in bandages. His face was flat, like that of a baby deep in sleep. Billy waited for an explanation as to how this happened. Jessica, his girlfriend, held Billy’s hand to console him.
 

“Dr. Mangrove says he’ll be all right.”

“It’s safe to say it wasn’t a heart attack,” Billy said. “But my God, who did this to him? Did someone break into the building and try to rob someone’s lock box? What kind of a monster would do this?”

Billy dabbed at his father’s neck and cheeks with a warm wet cloth. “I always worried about an intruder. That place has items stored in it worthy of Fort Knox. It’s a rich dude's closet. Millions and millions of dollars’ worth of stuff is kept in those lock boxes.”

He turned from Wayne to look Jessica in the eye. Her blonde hair had been recently dyed, so the formerly dirty blonde was now bright blonde. She wore a navy blue skirt, flesh-colored stockings, and a V-neck Croft and Barrow top. She worked as a paralegal for the Crouch and Meadows legal team. They worked on-the-job injuries and unemployment cases. Jessica was saving money, planning to throw herself into law school to become a lawyer herself.

“I know you have to go, honey,” Billy said, checking his watch. “I don’t deserve you. Thank you for being here.”
 

“I can stay,” Jessica insisted. “Really.” She stroked his face. “And you look so pale. You're exhausted.”

The scene of the exploding man at the curb replayed on his mental screen: a burst of red, a human bomb, had detonated right in front of him. “I’ll talk to you about it later. It’ll probably be on the news.”

“What are you talking about?” She seized his arm. “Tell me what’s going on.”

“I witnessed a man blow himself up about two blocks east of here. He, he killed everyone around him. It was unreal.”

Jessica was at a loss for words. Finally she said, “We’ve got desperate people living in the world these days. You weren’t hurt, were you?”

He shook his head. “From my vantage point, a handful of people caught the debris. The police and ambulances swarmed the scene, and so did everybody in the general area. I couldn’t see anything, really. I don’t believe it even now. And it’s strange, I thought I recognized the guy who blew himself up. Maybe an old friend or a familiar face on the street, but I just can’t place the guy.”

“It'll come to you,” Jessica said. “Things like that do in good time, but right now, you need to calm down and try to relax. You've had a long day.”

“You’re right, honey.” Billy smiled. “I have the day off. Go back to Crouch and Fall.”

“It’s Crouch and Meadows,” she groaned, playing into his favorite joke. “Are you certain?”

“I’ll be okay. I’ll see you at home later.”

Jessica kissed his cheek and hugged him close. “I love you, Billy. I’ll be thinking about you. I’m sorry you’ve had such a bad day. Tell me how Wayne’s doing later.”

“I will."

Jessica left the room, and Billy wondered how he was lucky enough to be dating Jessica. When he returned from the Nebraska Police Academy—his scholarship revoked after failing the physical standards test and basically quitting the program—his dad forced him to pay his own way through life. He checked local listings for apartments and decided to buddy-up to split the rent. His buddy turned out to be Jessica, someone he went to high school with but wasn’t friends with currently, and she was hesitant to allow him into the apartment. They agreed on a probation period and three months rent in advance. Their first kiss was over a plate of blueberry pancakes. He’d called one of her friends to find out what breakfast Jessica enjoyed. When Jessica found what lengths he went to to please her, she was impressed enough to pursue him back. He worked the system backward: live together first, and then date.
 

Dr. Mangrove, a six-foot-tall doctor, entered the room. He greeted Billy with hopeful words. “Are you family?”

“Yes, I’m Billy, Wayne's son.”

Dr. Mangrove scribbled words on his clipboard and eyed the chart hanging at the end of the bed. “I’ll shoot straight with you. He’s received a broken pelvis and three lacerations across the chest. He also shattered three ribs.”

Billy was in shock. “Do you know how it happened?”

“That’s a police matter. They don’t let me know anything unless they require my medical opinion. But don’t worry, Billy, he’ll recover fully. He might be out of work for a time.”

“I’ll figure it out. It’s good to hear he’ll make it. That's all that matters.”

Dr. Mangrove patted his back. “I can tell when family members care about each other and when they don’t. You’re a good kid. Your father will be out of it when he wakes. He’s on a pretty high dose of morphine, but he probably won’t wake for hours. Why don’t you go out and get lunch? Was that pretty lady leaving the room a moment ago family?”

“She’s my girlfriend.”

“Then you’ve reeled in a good one. She was here ten minutes after your father was wheeled into the room. She’s a keeper.” Dr. Mangrove headed for the door but then paused. “Go out and get some fresh air. Let us do the work. Everything's going to be okay.”

“Maybe I will.”

Billy checked the wall clock. It was ten-thirty. He stood by the door a moment and studied his father. He was enjoying a deep, drug-induced sleep.
 

His strange morning seemingly had come to a close.

Chapter Five

Detective Dwight Vickers from the Iowa State Police Department was on special assignment. His investigation hinged on the speculation surrounding Ted Fuller. Part of him believed the murders at Iowa State University, specifically outside of Denton Hall, were part of an elaborate publicity stunt concocted by Mr. Fuller himself, or by a band of cult followers. The perplexing aspect of the case was that all of the interviewed witnesses, unequivocally, claimed to have seen flying women resembling vampires or demons. The details ranged from flashing red eyes to branching wings, fanged teeth and claws. The images were directly from the movie that was showing, a few had claimed, as if they emerged from the screen. The wounds followed the descriptions in the film: many were lacerated, strangled, necks serrated and chewed through, or bones broken by inhuman strength. But he refused to believe in the fantastic. The eye-witness accounts were too numerous not to be true, though. The people did see flying creatures. They were humans in the guise of monsters. The coincidences were too strong to ignore. Ted Fuller, or somebody connected with him, was behind it.
 

Today, Detective Vickers was accompanied by Glenn Baker, a young officer with naturally pink cheeks and an overall inexperienced novice aura about him. Officer Baker was to serve as a city liaison. Today would be a long day of conducting interviews with Ted Fuller’s closest friends and co-workers at the
Chicago Sun-Times
. The first interview would've been Gary Pollard, but he was visiting a sick relative out of town. Before they could get a real start on the investigation, a call came over the radio.
 

Officer Baker responded. “This is 1405.”

“This may be of interest to Detective Vickers.” Detective Vickers recognized Chief Burne’s scratchy voice, caused by a lifetime of too many cigars, and shots of sour mash, and yelling at bumbling cops. “Go to the Claims and Lost Possessions Branch of Chicago. There’s a crime scene pertaining to his investigation, and I recommend scooting your asses right to it.”

Detective Vickers wanted to ask how it applied to his case, but then decided against it. He was in someone else’s jurisdiction. This wasn’t his show. He was lucky enough to receive a backstage pass and a city liaison. He was determined to connect Ted Fuller to the crimes. During the interview, Fuller was telling the truth, but under the surface, there was another truth he couldn’t drudge up from the man. Maybe Fuller was nervous, but it was more complicated than the jitters. Fuller knew something he didn’t. Once Vickers interviewed enough people in town, he could petition for a warrant and search Ted Fuller’s apartment. He was confident by the end of tomorrow the warrant would be written and he could put another successful investigation under his belt.

Officer Baker changed directions and headed east. “Can you tell me what this investigation is about? Everybody's so secretive down at the station.”

“I’m following up on over twenty murders that happened at Iowa State University.” The detective figured if he disclosed carefully chosen tidbits of the truth, the man wouldn’t ask him anything else later. “They’re in connection to a movie premiere.”

“Let me guess,” Baker joked. “A horror movie.”

“You got it, smart guy. The methods of death resembled what happened in the movie itself, though only ten minutes of the damn thing were shown before chaos broke out. People were butchered, drained of blood, necks were bitten through, you name it.”

“What was the movie about, zombies or vampires?”

“Vampires. Plain old vampires.”