Sheep's Clothing by Gary Lewis (dark books to read TXT) 📗

abruptly stopped. Absolute quiet settled in the woods around them. Then the sound came again, this time louder and slower. It was approaching along the gravel road just beyond where his hands gripped the steep earthen slope above his head. Terry could feel his arms physically shaking as he tried holding his breath in the humid night air. Long, skinny legs elegantly paced across the road.

"Deer," Blane whispered with the same relief he also felt.

Terry gripped the gravel above as he grabbed Blane with his other hand. He bent his knee, preparing to climb to the top where the young doe grazed on the muddy rocks.

A loud smack hit the deer's hip. It ran into a stumble against the downed trees. Terry held still, holding his gasp of air tight in his lungs. In a dark blur, a hairy creature leapt beside the disoriented deer and chased it down beside Sam's truck. It gripped at the doe's kicking hind leg and jerked the animal back into a swipe that tumbled it onto its side. Blood red gashes sprayed out across the truck as it squirmed in the monster's grasp, attempting to twist into a roll back on its feet. Terry's eyes grew wide as they adjusted to the darkness. The creature stood on two legs, holding the frantically screaming animal in its clawed hand. A long snout angled down toward its prey baring bright teeth below furious, yellow eyes.

The monster let go and rose into a high stance, stretching its arms wide with claws spread open to let out a rumbling roar. The sound scared the deer back into a tumble as it fumbled to escape, spilling blood into the surrounding puddles. The beast rapidly slashed at the deer's torso with wide left and right swipes. Terry watched silently as tiny wet drops hit his face and the spatter of blood spewed to paint the windows of the truck they came in on.

The deer finally hopped back up, red with mortal damage. The beast yanked its arm back, pulling feet of intestines from the animal's belly, dragging it backwards. With open jaws, it rammed its face into the back of the deer's neck. Violently shaking and twisting the now quiet sack of hide covered meat, the snarling beast swung it side to side in a ferocious fit of rage. The flailing body slammed repeatedly into the truck just beside it. After a few seconds the ground was drenched red, scattered with pieces of hide and guts that were torn and slung out from the now lifeless body. The deer’s carcass hung limp from the standing creature’s hate filled jaws that clamped down with a menacing growl.

A final slam against the truck set off the alarm. Lights flashed as the horn blasted continuously. Terry could see clearly the form of what stood less than thirty feet from where they hid in the bushes. It’s a werewolf!

His sounds now covered by the noisy alarm, Terry tugged downward at Blane's shirt and the two began to slide slowly down the mud-soaked hill. He knew that they had to hurry and gain some distance before the alarm stopped.

Chapter 7

The moon drifted slowly across the midnight sky with a red glow that painted the clouds with blood. In the mountainous forests of Pine Bluff, several groups of friends found themselves stranded, determined to find their way back together while something terrible sought to pick them apart.

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Jake found himself still wandering further up the soggy mountain road, alone in the darkness that seemed to hang just behind his back. A form became visible ahead as it crept closer in his direction before pausing for a moment. He held still, breathing as slowly as possible while he waited.

It lurked closer from less than half a football field's distance away. Point of no return. If I don't run now... Jake waited as the form became more solid, walking faster toward him. It's now or never. 

"Sarah?" a voice shouted.

"Hey!" Jake said in a hushed shout. "Tony?"

The quiet form wandered closer.

"Tony! Is that you?" Jake repeated louder.

"No. It's me," the now closer voice that certainly wasn't Tony's said. "David."

Jake jogged in his direction.

"It's Jake. Vance's friend from practice.” Jake tried to shout softly as he got closer to David. “Have you seen Tony?"

"What?" David asked in casual volume as they could finally see one another. "You and Tony came up here?"

"No. I came with Vance."

"Alright. I'm confused," David said, swinging his arms to his sides. "What's going on?"

Jake was just glad to finally be around another human being. Anyone was just fine at this point.

"I was at the Sunset Diner when the storm blew in," Jake began. "I saw Tony head out to look for you here, so I told Vance." He slung his arm behind, down the muddy dirt road in the direction from which he came. "We checked at Sarah's and Janice's on the way here and nobody was home at Sarah's place, so we came here," Jake said. "Is Sarah with you?"

"Yeah," David said and then paused. "Well, no. We kind of got split up." David turned his head behind and beside before returning it to look at Jake. "Is Jan alright?"

"I guess," Jake said with a shrug. "She was home." Jake cocked his head in confusion. What's that got to do with anything? 

Jake looked around the area. "So where did you and Sarah get-" Loud creaking pops cut his words short from the large trees on the hill beside them.

"Careful. Those things have been falling like bowling pins," David said. "It's a real death trap."

"Tell me about it. You should've heard whatever was behind me earlier," Jake said, scratching his head. "It's been a hell of a night."

"Really?" David asked in a higher pitch. "What did it sound like?" The worry was evident in David’s uneasy voice.

As Jake started to explain the sounds that followed him earlier, a faint, high pitched whine was barely audible through the gully below. "Wait. You hear that?" Jake said.

"Screams," David said with a higher tone.

"Definitely,” Jake