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| "The Storyteller" by; Scot A. Westlake |
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~Winged Message~
The warm summer air floated the piece of parchment from his sleeping hand. It flew
and fluttered like a butterfly, above the tall, fawn brown grass. Heartfelt words of Love released from his soul that simply
had to be born onto paper. For his eyes only, yet now floating through the air, as if carried by Angels of Love, to fall at
her feet. She stopped, as if drawn by this ballet, watching the parchment dancing towards her in the air.... falling finally
at her feet, as if fate had dropped it there.
"Oh, come to me, my beauty fair, on your Angels wings through blessed air, for these eyes
can see no earthly thing to compare." The paper fluttering in her hands as if alive, as she reads these words, as if in an
effort to keep its writers words secret from her. And there the words left off saying so much, yet so much left unwritten.
"This is for me," she thought. She felt such magic in the paper in her hands, a warmth that spread
from her hands and into her whole being. She let the paper take wind from her hands, thinking, "Fly to the one who wrote these
words - show me, lead me to him!"
The paper turns and tosses in the wind. Higher and higher it flies, at its highest point blocking
the sun from her eyes. Then it begins to fall and circle down the field, like a hawk in search of prey. As though being led
by an invisible golden cord, she follows. Wildflowers have covered her white dress with their pollen and fragrance, her hair
aglow like golden honey in the sunlight. As she passes through the flowers, pollen lifts into the air, dancing in the sunlight,
as if in celebration of her passing, swirling behind her like a long, golden bridal train.
Sleeping, nearly as if in a trance, lay the poet. Lost in reverie of his last waking moment, watching
her. A large smile spread across his broad tanned face, as he dreamt of her finding him out, and coming to him. Now, once
again, the paper dances and flutters like a feather, just above the tall grass. Then suddenly, the earth and everything in
it seems to freeze... the paper suspended in the air motionless. Finally, it drops behind the curtain of grass and flowers.
Seeing this, she starts to run towards where the magic note has fallen. Breathless with anticipation and excitement, her heart
beating faster with every step...the golden pollen clinging to her form under her dress, revealing her nakedness underneath.
Having fallen asleep with the sun in his face, the sudden shadow awakens him. Sensing someone
is over him, he sits upright, shielding the sunlight with his hand from his eyes. It is She! She! Standing right astride of
him. But only in black silhouette can he see her. Her hair framed by the sun, looking like it was painted in firelight, spilling
down over her shoulders like a golden waterfall. He wonders for a moment if he has died in this field, and that she is an
Angel, come to collect him and take him to Heaven.
His poem to her had fallen, face down on his chest, and he quickly reached for it and hid it under
his shirt.
"Was that for me?" she asked, already knowing the answer.
"Was what for you?" he answered back with a slight quiver in his voice.
"That which you just hid next to your heart!" she said with a beautiful smile, hidden from him by the
sunlight.
"I know not of what you speak" he managed, in only more than a whisper.
"Your words evade the question, but your eyes betray them," she said as she started to turn from
him. Without thinking, his hand reached up to hers and he held her fast in her place.
"How can you know what is written here?" he asked in amazement.
"The wind brought your words to me, then after my reading of them, brought them back to
you and laid them on your breast!" she revealed.
"How could this be so?" he asked in disbelief.
"Oh, come to me my beauty fair, on your Angel's wings through blessed air..." she whispered.
He held her hand even more tightly now, to feel if she was real. The sun shone through her white dress showing her beautiful
woman's form beneath.
"Be you of this world, or by Heaven sent?" Now on one knee, he takes her hand in both of
his. Then in an instant she has pulled away, and is running through the open field, away and away, golden clouds of yellow,
trailing behind her.
"Wait!" he called after her, now up on his feet.
"Then chase this apparition, and find the answer you seek, for can an Angel be caught by human
hands?" she called to him. She laughed excitedly, and ran from him with greater speed than before. He burst forth, unaware
of his legs carrying him onward in the chase.
"If this be a dream, let me never awake from it!" he thought, as his legs felt as if on fire now.
She looked behind her as she ran, checking his progress towards her, laughing and hair tossing
in the wind of her run. Slowing, just enough to let him get tantalizingly close. Then, all at once, his hands upon her shoulders,
taking her softly to the waiting bed of flowers, tumbling in the haze of yellow sunlit pollen cloud above them. They rolled
in this altar of their Love spread beneath them. Playing, then suddenly stopping with him on top of her, they gazed into each
other's eyes. Volumes of words passing between them but without a word spoken. All understood in the language of the eyes.
He takes his hand, as though caressing fragile crystal, and strokes the sides of her facecareful not
to have her vanish back to Heaven from his human touch.
"Are you real?" escapes his heart; unaware of his own whispered words. Gently, she puts her hand on
the back of his neck and pulls him towards her. Her parted lips the Gates of Ecstasy, the world around them dimming in each
others aspect, finally disappearing completely when their lips met. They poured into each other as mighty rivers merging,
souls swirling in their breath, intermingling.
"I have dreamed of this moment", she hoarsely whispered, her rapidly beating heart pressed next
to his, his throat pressed against her cheek "how could this be?" she moans.
"You know, my love, that I've seen you watching me, these sunlit days" the poet says, as
he moves his face away to look deeply into her soul, "Yes, I've been watching youan Angel picking flowers, as you make them
bloom."
He falls onto her lips again, lost in the way she kisses in return. Her soft moans
playing on the flute of his heart. This song of Love heard only by he, sung only for him. All the sounds of nature around
them becoming a symphony of thrumming joy. Melting into each other as the earth spins beneath them.
A deer lifts his head just above the wind blown grass. Like yellowed tan waves upon the
ocean, the tops of the grass reveal the invisible wind, giving it form. The deer stands regarding the Lovers, as if transfixed
by the sight of something so beautiful and natural. Knowing there is no danger in the hearts of those he watches. Indeed,
a thousand animal eyes, all entranced by the magic before them, emanating from this human Love. Understanding the animal in
humans for the first time, and waiting for what was to come next. Smelling the scent of the two Lovers wafting through the
field. Music heard in the wind, not yet composed by musicians yet to be born.
Still daylight, even the stars came out to watch, showing themselves in the azure blue sky
painted above them. With every kiss they fall deeper and deeper, yet higher and higher. He takes her face in his hands and
kisses her gently on the corners of her lips.
The sun, setting the edge of the field aflame, as the stars grew brighter in the coming of nightfall.
Time passes as if never conceived by the mind of man. The moon strains over the treetops at the far side of the field to have
its turn at watching.
Time, nature, earth, and sky move around them unnoticed and unfelt. Slowly they peel away all that hides
their nakedness and their clothes scatter in the wind. Caressing each other now as they kiss each other's souls. Her skin
beneath his hands as smooth as a cloud against the sky.
Every inch of them covered with the other's skin, no air between them now. Bathing in each
other's essences. He was inside her now as the sunlit sky swirled and mixed its bright sunset hues above them. She feels parts
of herself never touched before. The source of her passion is becoming a river that now overflows its banks. She lets her
head roll back in her abandon and opens her eyes to their rooftop of colors. Her eyes reflecting the sunset as a tear of happiness
slips from the corner of her eye.
"Do I hurt you?" He asked. Suddenly stopping his hand from stroking her hair.
"If this is pain," came her urgent whispered reply, "may it last forever and ever!" words barely carrying
upon her escaping breath.
He gently kissed the tear away from her cheek, tasting it with his soul. They were mixed
now forever, as mingled drops of rain. A magic spark ignited within them both. This moment, this place, this world, this field.
The earth stopped in its orbit for that split second. The sun, frozen in the sky above the mountains distant silhouette. They
laid there motionless, watching the day give itself to the night. Tiny pinpricks of light against purple blue canvas. Changing
into brilliant diamonds set in black velvet, as they went softly missing like the birds into the secret night.
~The Test~
It's the scent of the dew drying on the grass that wakens them in the morning, still lying
in each other's arms. The first bird of the morning sings out a single beautiful note. Then the rest of the world awakens,
and the air becomes alive with sounds, their soft moans becoming part of the symphony around them. Their eyes open into each
other's gaze, his eyes dark as a well, and her eyes as blue as the dawn's cloudless palette. The energy born between them
the magic night before, still swirling around them, as if waiting for them to awake.
He starts to speak, but she puts her lips to his to hush the question she knew he would ask.
"I am born anew this morning, and you will give me my name. What has gone before, another
life, a different person." The wind plays with the leaves across the field showing it's soft face.
"Then your name will be Morning Star, Censuray, as it hangs above your head even now, like a jewel
in your hair."
"And your name shall be Venico. for it means touch the sky.and you are the firmament in
which I exist. I live by the air you exhale"
Venico pulls her to him, smelling her hair and softly kisses her neck. The fine hair of her neck
brushing his cheek like Angel feathers. Drunk with the scent of her. Marking her indelibly into his being. The birds around
them now in full concert, unaware of their hidden presence. Deer all around them in the field waking now, beginning to stand
on morning legs, sniffing at the air, they burst into flight out of the field and into the woods, sudden as a sunlit thunderbolt.
The birds go quiet. Now all is quiet, as a midnight pool. Venico jumps to his feet, his
head just above the curtain of grass. Scanning the edges of the field all around with intently focused eyes. Movement. Censuray
begins to stand, but he puts his hand on her shoulders and whispers, "Stay, get down." A large black crow sweeps across the
field like a wind born stain.
There, just beyond a small rise in the field, stands a bear. Tasting the air with his tongue,
his immense head flicking back and forth, searching the invisible trail of their scent.
Venico drops back down to Censuray and tells her "lay down here," with no sound from his lips.
He takes his knife from his side and begins to cut large clumps of the tall grass. He covers her completely in it. She is
invisible now.
"Stay there and don't move, no matter what you hear," he whispers. "When you hear a wolf howl go to
meet me where the rivers become one." Venico disappears upwind into the grass as if swallowed up by it. He pushes through
the grass without a sound or trace of movement like fog chased by sunlit wind.
Far enough away now Venico rises swiftly to his full height, standing tall against the grass
now. He swings his knife blade in the sun and instantly draws the giant bear's attention. It's teeth drawn back in a snarl;
it issues a low growl as long and low as distant thunder. It drops to its forepaws like tree trunks to the ground, hair on
its back bristling.
Venico stands like a stone about to crack in the heat of the sun. Blood racing through rock. His
hand closed so hard around the shaft of his knife like they were melded together forever. His muscles quivering with pain
to burst in any direction instantly.
Then it happens. They explode towards each other in fury, the grass parting in front
of them as if not wanting to be hurt in the battle. A hawk watching from high above, motionless on a column of air, a sentinel
in the sky, keeping its eyes upon Censuray.
Suddenly, without any sign, the bear breaks off in her direction, like he can see through the
grass and earth, moving like a rolling boulder towards her. Venico breaks just as quickly, and puts himself between them,
every muscle in his body burning, waiting hours to each second. The bear stands up on his hind legs again and roars so loudly,
even the trees shake.
Venico screams out a war whoop, a death chant.
"I shall stand here to die for her," he thinks. Now with a single blow from its giant forepaw,
the bear paints four deep cuts in crimson across Venico's chest, knocking the blade from his hand, but Venico stands his ground,
unflinching.
Censuray stands up screaming at the bear, her fists clenched in fury and terror. Thirty feet away
the bear falls upon Venico, knocking him to the ground with tremendous force. The great bear's forepaws on his shoulders,
pinning him to the ground like a rag doll, his hot breath staining the cool morning air like fog, chuffing the air at Venico's
neck. Snarling and growling. The breath knocked out of him and nearly senseless, Venico hears the bear's low growls turn into
words
"Tell herrrr to run from hererrr, or I will take herrrr life!"
His eyes wide with wonder, Venico can say nothing.
"This can't be real", he thinks to himself, "I must be dying." With low and deep growling
comes the bear's voice again.
"Tellll Herrrrrr!!!" Suddenly, off in the distance Venico could hear someone screaming, becoming
louder, and louder. It was himself.
"CensurayRUN! Where the rivers become one! RUN!"
"Betterrrrr" comes the low growl again, the smell of carrion on its fowl drooling breath.
Venico can feel warm blood running from the cuts on his chest, down his sides. The great weight
of the bear upon him, his ribs like old dry sticks ready to snap Venico passes out.
Want more? This book comes Complete
with the entire text and ALL 19 original paintings and prints!! There's a painting or print above every chapter and they
can ALL be printed dircetly from the CD Rom book made for your Home PC! Plus, they come personally signed by Black Horse himself
to You! These are in very limited supply as the books themselves will soon be out in paperback. The Cd version of "The Storyteller"
sells in galleries for as much as $69.00 but can be yours for only $39.99!!!
Just make out a check or money order to:
Scot A. Westlake
Care of: "Black Horse Arts"
Scot A. Westlake
1339 Southgate Dr.
Villa Rica, Ga. 30180
| "Feathers And Threads" by: Scot A. Westlake |
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"Feathers And Threads"
"Autumn"
by Scot A. Westlake 10/22/00
It is the time of crisp cool air
Tress aflame and soon to sleep
The harvest
When the land and sky yawn together
and ready themselves for slumber
Winters numbing sleep
Winter nights warm and cuddle sweet repose
The time of flying souls and falling leaves
Of storage and thickening the nest
When young summered minds dream of snowflakes
Pumpkins and leaf piles musty and damp
Season of holidays and giving faces
Visitors and laughter
Snow muffled mornings
Bird tracks left in the snow
Spooky things in windows
bed sheets in the trees showing the winds face
"For The Children"
By Scot A. Westlake 6/4/94
For a thousand generations
children saw the birds that'd fly.
They'd run and tell their parents,
"Someday I too will ride the sky!"
But their parent being wiser would laugh and simply say,
"There are some things impossible,"
Or "That will be the day!"
But don't believe it when you hear that,
And here's the reason why.
The Wright Brothers heard the very same,
Yet gave man wings to fly!
They'll tell you this, and they'll tell you that,
They'll tell you what they know.
But after years of dreams gone cold,
they can get buried deep in snow.
There's magic in each breath we take,
each step upon the ground.
But as we grow from childhood,
it can be harder to be found.
You see there are some people
who've been mistreated for so long,
they've forgotten all life's magic.
To believe such things seems wrong.
But when you show all that you are,
you radiate your strength.
But remember those who don't believe,
for they'll go to any length.
To make themselves feel bigger
by trying to make you feel so small.
But their words are raindrops to the ocean,
and mean nothing after all.
Some will tell you, you must be like them,
or else you're just not "cool".
But to don another's way of life for status,
is wisdom for a fool.
One person can change the world,
and no hardship need attend.
For one kind word to a starving ear,
builds hope that has no end.
Look for happiness from within,
for it can not be found without.
No car, no boat or plaything can bring it forth,
and of that, there is no doubt.
Judge not a man by how he looks,
but from that which grows inside.
As your body's just a vehicle,
to enjoy life's joyous ride.
If I should die before my time,
by this poem I want you to feel new.
These are my thoughts and who I was,
and one day these words will ring true.
Your Dad was just a dreamer -
he could not give you many "things".
But I will lay in peace my children,
as I always tried to give you wings.
"Unseen Sky"
by Scot A. Westlake 12/31/95
Sunset deep and shining so bright
Can no one else behold this sight?
Yet cars just honk and pass me by -
why does this fool ponder the sky?
But it holds me fast -
these heaven sent hues.
What care I
if others see it too?
For some are born
to see the light -
while some with eyes
have lost their sight.
But, oh! What a wonderful world
it might be!
If for one magic moment
those unsighted could see ...
To feel such a promise
Each sunset writes in the skies.
And to see such a thing
with their heart, not their eye
to stop for a moment
and let life go by
and learn for themselves
why fools ponder the sky.
"Conquistador"
by Scot A. Westlake 8/31/96
I wonder who it was who came this way,
their footprints deep in the sand?
For we are the first to plant our flag here -
from across the ocean we came to claim this land.
Then deep from the woods came an owl's call,
from behind came two caws from a crow
The conquistadors stood silent, as the forest grew quiet,
and the forest shadows seemed to grow.
Then from out of the darkness and into the sun,
stood proud and naked great warriors, one by one.
The warriors had heard of these men once before -
for they had enslaved and murdered when their longboats came ashore.
With their swords of polished iron and helmets of brass,
they gleamed in the sunlight like Gods from their ancient past.
But they were no Gods for when they were done,
they had murdered a village for tears of the sun.
Now the warriors stood ready to die on this day,
to cast these invaders forever away.
Their warhoops broke the silence as the battle began,
and arrows and lead fell amongst them like rain.
The sound of thundersticks the air never heard
past into legend of the spoken word.
For all the invaders laid face down in the sand,
so their souls could not come back to ravish the land.
All of their rainments were hung in the trees -
their helmets, swords, and muskets for all invaders to see.
And their tall ships did sail away to be seen nevermore
'til two hundred years later on another distant shore.
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| "The Lake" by: Scot A. Westlake |
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"The Lake"
By Scot A. Westlake (Black Horse) 8/1/00
CopyrightÓ
2000
"The Old Stranger"
Saturday May 2nd
The room got so quiet you could hear everyone breathing. When just before you could
hardly hear yourself think, with all the typical laughing and boisterous talk. George had been regaling everyone with one
of his football stories again, and everyone was giving him a hard time, as usual.
"That was
the longest touchdown in Merin county and...." Thats when the old man walked in and just sat down across from the pool table.
He moved slowly, anciently, and sat down, not even looking up once at the other people in the bar. You could hear his
joints popping as he sat down with a long sigh. Everyone in the bar just stood frozen and silent, watching the old man
make his way to a chair at the table off in the corner.
Brenda finally walked over to
him and said: "You look like you've had a hard day, old timer. What can I get you?"
"Water...just
water," he said with a crackling voice that sounded like old paper.
"Are you gonna play pool, or just
stand there with your mouth open catching flies!? Ben finally asked George. Its your break, you zombie!"
"Why dont you see if the old guy wants one of your life insurance policies, Ben?" Ray said, with a big stupid smirk
on his face.
"Just shut up and get us a couple more beers over here, Ray. George said
as he bent over the pool table, preparing to break the balls. This game is double or nothing, you know." George
said, as he drew back his cue stick.
"Yeah, yeah just shoot the damned thing," Ben said impatiently.
But, George miscued and the cue ball flew right over the table and smacked the old stranger right on his forehead. Hard.
The old man just sat there for a second, then slumped over, fell out of the chair, and hit the floor like a sack of potatoes.
He didnt move at all. Ray was already in mid-air, jumping over the bar with a wet bar towel. "Good move, George!" he
yelled as he raced to the old man's side.
"Jesus, Mister, Im sorry!" George said pleadingly.
But just as the words were leaving his lips, the old man managed four words in the death rattle of his last breath.
"Langley...the lake.........time!"
Charlie Youngblood saw the sheriff drive up the gravel road, even before he turned onto his rutted old
dirt driveway. He lit out for the woods like his ass was on fire. "Im not going through this shit again!" he muttered
under his breath, as he jumped over fallen trees, and ran through the tangled underbrush. He let the sheriff see him running
to the edge of the lake and stood there as the sheriff called out:
"Im not after you Charlie, I just need
to ask you a couple of questions. Wait Charlie...Hey Charlie wa.." But it was too late. Charlie was gone.
It was like he just vanished into thin air. "What the Fu..." He said as he blinked in disbelief. "I dont even
have my gun, Charlie!" he screamed out as he ran after him. "Im not even in uniform...Im off duty!!" But Charlie
was as gone as yesterday! The sheriff saw Charlies tracks lead right to the edge of the lake and stop. There were
no other tracks leading away towards the woods. He looked out over the lake but there wasnt even a ripple. The
surface of the lake was a mirror revealing only the darkening sky and the eerie yellow glow of an approaching thunderstorm.
He cupped his hands to his mouth and screamed out, "Hey Charlie...I just want to ask you about two kids that came up
here yesterday morning. Theyre missing!"
Then from out of nowhere, yet everywhere Charlies voice
echoed; "I know why youre up here sheriff, and you aint never gonna find it. I got it hid where Satan himself cant find
it!" The sheriff looked all around but couldnt tell where Charlies voice was coming from.
"If I came all the way up here for that, dont you think Id be in uniform, and have my gun with me?"
Once again Charlies voice came from all around; "Iffen you dont get yourself back down this mountain but quick, youll find
out a lot more then you want to know." Then the woods were once again as quiet as a tomb.
"Charlie,
your pissing me off...Come on Charlie..." But the sheriff words just seemed to stop two feet from his mouth and be swallowed
by the thick silence. The swirling thunderstorm clouds over the valley cast the strangest color through the woods.
Shadows moved all around like they were hiding from the yellow brown glow from above. The
sheriff became disoriented and sick to his stomach. He fell to his knees and retched behind an old oak tree.
He crawled the few feet to the water's edge and dipped his cupped hands in to wash his face. His mouth opened in amazement
as water filled his hands but the water was completely still - not even a ripple from his hands dipping into it! He
splashed the water onto his face and fell back screaming with his hands rubbing his face. It was then, that everything
went black around the corners of his vision, until he passed out.
"It was an accident! George pleaded. I dont even know the guy...an accident. You all saw!"
They all stood over him like stone statues, while Brenda reached for the phone behind the bar.
"I gotta call the sheriff!" she said as she dialed the phone.
"Dont hurry, Brenda. This poor
guy aint going nowhere. Hes dead as Lincoln!" Ben said, his voice cracking a little.
"Oh this
is just great! Ray said, hed gone back behind the bar. Old geezer comes in my bar just to croak! This will really
help business! Cant those ambulance guys jump-start his heart or something?!"
"Shut up Ray,
you asshole!" Brenda said as she was waiting for the Sheriff to answer the phone.
"Sheriff Langleys
Office, Deputy Lawrence speaking."
"Hey Parker, this is Brenda Dobson up at Rays Bar. We got a man
here who just dropped dead in the bar."
"Was he eating Rays chili, Bren!?"
"Im not kidding,
Parkerwheres Sheriff Langley?"
"He went up to the lake to talk to Charlie about those missing kids.
Left me here in charge. Im kinda worried 'cause that was about eight hours ago. I caint raise him on the radio
either! Have y'all seen him?"
"Parker if Id seen him, would I be calling you!? Get yourself,
and Doc Sherman here pronto!" Then Brenda slammed the receiver down on the phone, muttering something under her breath.
Ben looked up from the dead man and said; "Im not sure what killed this old fella, but it
sure as hell wasnt your break shot, George! Looks like hes been dying of something for years." It was seeing
the ring on the stranger's finger that stopped Ben frozen like a deer in headlights. It made Ben take a long look into
the man's old and wrinkled face, and all at once Ben was taking off the man's left shoe.
"What
the hell are you doing, Ben?! Ray called out from behind the bar. He was staying behind the bar as if it would
protect him from getting too close to death.
Are you gonna steal a dead man's shoes? Cause
I dont think hes your size"
"Shut up, Ray, and get your ass over here!" Ben snapped. Ray
came out from around the bar with a bottle firmly grasped in his hands, as if ready to protect himself from some unseen threat.
"Wha.. What do you wa..want me to do?"
"Just calm down and come over here. Theres
something I want you to look at. Ben demanded. Now everyone in the bar had formed a circle around the old man.
Ben bent back down and took off the dead mans sock as well. The blood instantly drained from Bens face, and he froze
like a picture. Oh my God" issued from Bens mouth in a mere whisper. Ben realized he couldnt move.
He couldnt remember how. Ray stood craning his neck to see over Brenda, and Bobby Myers who had just walked in.
"Dont tell methe old geezer died of corns and bunions!" Ray laughed.
"Shut
the fuck up Ray!" Brenda said as she looked back at Ray with disgust. "What is it, BenBen, whats wrong?"
"Its Jon...John.......John Langley." Ben keened.
"What the hell are you saying,
Ben!? Are you completely nuts!? George asked waving his hands.
"Oh...Its him all right!
Look at his toes. Remember he shot two off when he was hunting, a few years back?"
"This guy's
at least eighty or ninety years old, Ben. The Sheriff wasnt even thirty five, till last month."
Brenda spoke up, "What about that ring, George? Have you ever seen one like that - except on John Langleys hand?"
"Are you honestly gonna stand there and tell me that this old man is John Langley, and that he somehow
managed to age forty years in eight hours!!?" Ray said, as he backed up a little.
"Lets get
his shirt off and check for any wounds." George said.
"Look, I say just leave him where he is till
the Sheriff gets here." Ray protested.
"You just dont get it, do you Ray? This is the
Sheriff!" George said.
"Oh, Sweet Jesus! Brenda suddenly screamed. It really is
John...I...I guess I didnt really want to believe it!"
"What are you talking about, Brenda?"
George looked up and asked.
"That scar underneath his left breast....Hes had th...that scar since
he was twelve! When he fell out of Mr. Simpsons oak tree!"
"Look closely at the rest of his chest
and arms. No aging! Its only his hands and face that have aged!" George said in a grave whisper. One look
at that and Brenda dropped like a stone to the floor spilling a whole tray of ice tea glasses.
"Jesus Christ,
George! Everybodys falling out around here. Get him out of here! Now!" Ray shouted.
"Nobodys
moving him till the deputy gets here, and Doc Sherman, George shot angrily back at Ray. Somebody help Brenda up!"
"What could have happened to him, George?" Ben asked, his drink quivering in his hand.
"I only
wish I knew. George said. Damnedest thing Ive ever seen!"
"You were a medic in Nam, werent you
George?" Bobby Myers finally found his voice and asked.
"Yeah, what about that George?"
Ben quickly chimed in.
"Look you guys, I was a medic, not Marcus Welby. Besides I think this cant
be explained by anything natural."
Ray decided hed seen enough and was backing out the door with the
bottle still firmly held like a weapon. "You get him outta here as quick as you can!" Right then the Deputys car
turned into the bar's parking lot, spinning gravel as it fishtailed forward. Doc Sherman holding on the dashboard with
both hands, screaming;
"Slow Down, Parker, that dead man aint going nowhere! Great God Almighty, Parker!"
The squad car came to a stop in a cloud of dust, and Deputy Lawrence jumped out yelling; "Y'all seen Sheriff Langley?"
There were people starting to gather around, so Ben told the Deputy to keep everyone outside.
"Dr.
Sherman, we need you in herenow!" Ben called, motioning with his arm. The Deputy wanted to see what was going
on in there, and not stand outside on guard duty! "All youyou all go home. Theres nothing to see here!" he said
as if he knew all the details.
George poked his head out the door and said; "Parker, Ben
said for you to bring a stretcher and a blanket, and leave them here by the door."
Charlie Youngblood had lived up in the hills around "Stewartsville" for thirty years before the
town council had voted to flood the valley and make the lake. For years now, Charlie had been making his own way back in the
woods. He had to move his still twice in all those years. Once when the surveyors came through and got too close
for comfort, and the other time when Sheriff Langley, with a couple of Deputies in tow, came up to find him and his still.
But old Charlie was just too wily to get himself caught. The folks in the town across the valley called him; "Vanishing
Charlie." But he could make just about the best "Shine" around. Nobody hardly ever saw him, or even knew what he looked
like. He got all his sour mashes and supplies down in Bixby, which for him was closer. There was a place deep
in the woods, halfway up the mountain, where a man could leave a twenty dollar bill in the hollow of an old stump, wait about
a half hour at the overlook, and when he came back thered be a gallon jug of what looked like water. There was never
a label on it but the men in town called it "Thunderbolt." Charlie was full blood Creek Indian. His Indian name is "Potan
Qoteela." Which means, "Sees through other eyes." He made it known that he was from the same tribe that used to
live in the valley. His Great, Great Grandfather was "TaChahechi," which meant, "Brings the Thunder." Or
at least thats what he claimed. An old medicine man, some of the old timers in town had heard of.
The town council decided to name the lake after the old medicine man.
Ray
liked to claim hed seen old Charlie deep in those woods a few summers ago. But he admitted he was drunk on his ass at
the time! "It was right at twilight and I was just sitting there on the overlook. Then I saw something move out
of the corner of my eye. So I turn real slow like, and there he wasVanishing Charlie! Like he was part of the
tree bark, he looked for all the world! I was looking right at him, like Im looking at you now, but I wasnt seeing himsee?
Then I turned my head away to make like I didnt see nothin' after all, but I kept looking out the corner of my eye.
Finally he went over to that old stump, looked inside, and when he stood back up he just kinda melted into the trees behind
him! Ive never seen anything like that in my life and I aint ashamed to tell you - it scared the hell out of me.
I went running back down that mountain like there was a landslide chasing me! I could swear I heard old Vanishing
Charlie laughing at me the whole way down that mountain. It was like his voice was all around me!" His story was
always the same, and he told it so many times, that everyone in town finally took it for the truth. There were other
people in town with similar stories involving "Vanishing Charlie." And in fact there were some in town who blamed him for
anything that went wrong in Merin County.
The town council had voted back in 1995 to flood the valley to make a 10-acre lake. The idea was
to attract tourists, and their money. Maybe a few new Subdivisions, with lakefront properties. But the whole thing
went bust after 2 years and a tremendous amount of wasted investments. The bulldozers that were supposed to take
out all the trees from the lake bottom kept getting mired down in the soft soil and had to be pulled out. So they decided
to leave the trees and just fill the lake after making an earthen damn. It took four months to fill the lake. The only
source for water was a spring that was not much more then a trickle. It came out from under a huge bolder that all the
townies called "Painted Rock." It had handprints painted high up the shear face and a painting of some kind of turtle
with yellow lines radiating from it. They were thirty feet up the rock and about four feet from the top until the lake
was filled. Now they were just a couple feet above the water line. They had been there for centuries.
"This is Deputy Lawrence from up in Stewartsville. I need to talk to the coroner.
No, it cant wait. Just tell him weve had a death here, and we need him to get to "Rays Bar" as quick as he can.
No Sarah, I'm not at liberty to say, right now. Just get him down here, now! What... Okay, I guess well bring
him out ourselves."
Dr. Sherman stood up with a sigh, wiping the sweat from his
forehead with his shirtsleeve. "What in the name of God happened here?" he asked.
"He looked like that when he came in here about an hour ago, Doc! We didnt pay him much mind cause none of us recognized
him! Ray blurted out.
"Not until George beamed him with a cue ball!
Ben quickly offered. Doc looked around at George who was still holding a cue-stick and then he dropped it when Doc said;
"Whats he talking about, George?"
"It was an accident, Doc! I swear.... I just miscued
the cue ball, and it went flying across the room.... and smacked John rights in the forehead. Did I k...ki..kill him,
Doc?"
"George....George, calm down! No, you didnt kill him, but Ill be damned if I know
what did! Where was he before he showed up here, Deputy?"
"He left this morning Doc, to
go up to the lake and ask Charlie about Bobbie Wells, and David Larson. Theyve been missing since they skipped school
yesterday morning, and some of their friends said they heard them talking about skipping to go swimming up at the lake.
I started getting a little worried around One Oclock and have been trying to raise him on the radio ever since."
"Then thats where we need to start looking for answers." Doc said. "Nobody needs to be traipsing around up there now
with this thunderstorm coming. Besides itll be dark in thirty minutes. We can get a fresh start tomorrow."
"You can count me to be there, y'all! John's about the best friend I have.... I mean had."
Ben said. Doctor Sherman covered the Sheriff's body and nodded to the Deputy.
"Dont
move him till the coroner gets here! And keep everyone else out of here! We dont know what were dealing with yet,"
Doc said, as he stood up.
"The coroners up in Burns County. Wont be back till Tuesday!"
the deputy said.
"Well, well have to take him up to the morgue ourselves then."
"Deputy Lawrence?"
"What is it, Bobby?" "Id like to go with y'all tomorrow, if its all right.
I know Bobbie and David really well and Id like to help, and theres no school tomorrow."
"Thats nice
of you, but..."
"I also know their favorite place down at the lake!" Bobby pleaded.
"Well, what do you think, Doc!?" The deputy looked up and asked.
"Sounds okay to me - if its all right
with your parents," Doc said, with a slight smile.
The sky outside had grown dark
with clouds and the wind had suddenly picked up. Tree limbs were scratching at the windows. "Were in for a blow
it looks like. Ray said. "Bobby, run over there and turn the open sign on the door around."
"Okay, Mr. Robinson." The sky was alive with lightning, but as yet there was no thunder or rain. Thats when the
power went off.
"Oh, for Christs sake... whats next?" Brenda whispered.
"You got any candles in here Ray?" The deputy asked.
"This is a bar, Parker, not a French Cafe!" Ray
called back.
"Alright, alright. Ive got a flashlight in the squad car. Ill be right back!"
The deputy waited for more lightning so he could see his way to the door. When he opened the door and went out, the
wind slammed the glass door so hard, the bottom panel cracked with a loud snap.
"Damn it to hell!"
Ray screamed out after him, "The countys gonna pay for that - not Me!"
After about five
or six minutes, the Deputy came back in. "Sorry about your door, Ray. The wind just blew it out of my hand!"
"What the hell took you so long anyway, Parker?" Ray asked. Parker was putting his hat back
on and muttering something under his breath. "Say Parker?"
"Its the damnedest thing!"
he said, still adjusting his hat. "I know I turned everything off, but the batterys dead. I mean stone dead!"
"Well, lets have the flashlight and" Ben started.
"Thats just it! Its dead too!
And I just put new batteries in it last week!"
"Woooooooo, its the boogie man!" Ray said, sarcastically.
"Shut up, Ray! Youre not helping anything!" Brenda said from a corner table. Right then,
there was this crashing sound outside in the street, and they all went to the windows. In the strobe light of the lightning
they all saw a metal trash can hurtling down the street. It looked like stop motion because of the lightning.
"I think maybe it would be wise to get away from these windows!" Parker said. "Everybody sit in the corner with
Brenda. Its no use trying to go anywhere right now. The power's out all over town." After just a few
minutes of sitting and waiting, there was this knocking sound.
"What the hell is that?" Ben said.
"Sounds like someone knocking!" Brenda answered.
"Its the tree limbs hitting the windows. It always
does that when we get a big blow." Ray told everyone.
Brenda screamed and was pointing
her finger towards the door. Everyone jumped. "Jesus, Brenda, you scared the hell out of me!" Ben yelled.
Brenda didnt move. She just kept pointing at the door. The lightning flashed again, and they could see a large
figure standing in the pouring rain, his hands down by his side. The door flew open and the wind just blew it into the
street, with the sound of glass shattering. The lightning flashed again and they could see the figure standing, now, a few
feet inside. Brenda screamed again only louder and longer. Ray was fumbling for his lighter. The darkened
figure moved closer and held up his right hand. Ray finally got his lighter lit and held it up. Everyone gasped,
as Vanishing Charlie stepped into the dim light.
"Spray Paint"
Friday May 1st
"Come on Bobbie, itll be fun. Schools almost out for the summer anyway so whos gonna care
if we skip. Besides, how are they even gonna find out?" David pleaded.
"Yeah, thats easy for you to say. Your dad isnt the PTA president! Anyway I already told you Im not going skinny
dipping with any boy. Not even you, David Larson!"
"We dont have to do that, Bobbie! I
really had something else planned too." David said with a smile that said mischief.
"I knew I never should have told you about Anne and I doing that." Bobbie said hiding her face, and her smile with her
hands.
"Yeah, I wish Id a seen that!" David grinned.
"David Larson, youre terrible. Bobbie said, and gave David a playful smack on the shoulder. "I dont think I should
be going anywhere with the likes of you. I have my reputation to keep you kn.."
"Thats the bus, Bobbie. Its now or never. Come on, Please! Itll be a blast!" David grabbed her hand,
and together they ran across the street into the woods, and out of sight. Into a wall of green, and disappearing.
Giggling voices trailing off in the thick woods. The bus growing ever louder, and its brakes grinding to a stop where
no one waited. For Bobbie and David it was the freest they ever felt, and the sound of the bus only sharpened it.
Their adventure had already started.
They were running as if their feet knew the way.
The very underbrush seemed to part, anticipating their passage. Down the hill behind Widow Stockards house, and across
a field of tall brown grass. The air smelled the sweetness of lifelong memories made. Everywhere, the grass tips
playfully showed the face of the wind.
"Are you sure you know where were going, Davie
Boy?" Bobbie laughed.
"Does your Dad fart on the couch?" David jumped away just fast enough,
to not get hit with Bobbies hat. "And dont call me Davie! My Mom calls me Davie!"
"Oh, but you liked the Boy part huh?"
"See that tree line on the other side of the field, Madame?
That will lead us through to an old Indian trail!"
"Should we be using that trail,
good sir?"
"Why not, my lady?"
"Were not
old Indians!"
"Har de har har! No, its really neat. You can sort of...I
dont knowfeel them still there!"
"Who?"
"The INDIANS, goofy!"
"Sounds more creepy than neat, if you ask me!"
"My Dad says theyre the ones who painted the rock. Hundreds of years ago!"
A dark
cloud passed overhead just as they disappeared back into the woods at the far side of the field. The crickets
went silent. The birds that had been flying across the field were all gone to secret places. The world had become
quiet as a heavy snow, and the breeze grew almost cold. David stopped dead in his tracks.
"What
was that?" David said.
"What, I dont hear anything!" Bobbie answered still walking.
"Wait Bobbie. Wait a second. Thats just it! Its dead quiet! I guess I didnt realize
all the noise there was before."
"What noise? What are you talking about David?"
"The birds, and crickets, you know, all the bugs and stuff."
"Maybe its fixing to rain or something.
Are you trying to scare me, David?"
"No, no, its just kinda weird how it got quiet all of a
sudden. Come on, thats the trail up there on the ridge. Itll take us all the way to the lake."
"There arent any snakes around, are there?"
"Hundreds of 'em! All poisonous!
And they get really hungry for eleventh grade girls this time of year!"
"Thats about as
funny as your report card!"
"Nah.... Its too early in the summer for them to be out yet.
Hey look, Bobbie - can you see the lake through those trees? Its all downhill from here!"
The strange chill had finally filtered into the woods, and they could see a thick mist rising off the lake. David had
the feeling they were being followed, or maybe someone watching them, but he didnt want to say anything to Bobbie. Hed
been here a dozen times but it never made him feel like this. There was something wrong. Real wrong. But he couldnt
put his finger on it. It seemed to get worse the closer they got to the lake. Deep and forbidding. Were gonna
get there and see some dead guy floating face up in the lake or somethinghe thought to himself. The clouds had pretty
much banished the sun completely, and the woods grew darker then ever. Bobbie kept plodding along like she was walking
through the mall. Or down the locker hall at school. "Maybe we should head back, Bobbie." It was out of
his mouth before he realized he said it out loud.
"Are you crazy? Im not walking this
far just to turn around and go back! Besides this was your idea remember?" Bobbie protested.
"It looks like it might rain." David said pointing up to the swirling gray black sky.
"Oh yeah, God forbid we get wet before we jump in the lake!" Bobbie teased.
"I thought you said you werent going to swim!" David said, with a new excitement in his voice.
"No, I said I wasnt going skinny dipping! There is a Big difference you know David!"
From high up in a tree on the other side of the valley, a pair of eyes followed
the young couple. Glaring eyes. It didnt move a muscle. Didnt even turn its head. Just followed with
its eyes. Eyes that reflected only the rising mist off the lake. Pupils darker then coal oil. Then,
they were gone as quiet as an owl's wing. Only to land in a tree further towards the lake. To watch from there.
"What you got in the knapsack, David?"
"I brought a feast for thee, me lady! I told you - I came prepared! Its my Boy Scout training. I have cheese,
bread, grapes, and I even ripped off the old man for some wine hell never miss!"
"Wine!
Are you crazy? Hey...how did you know for sure that we werent going to chicken out and catch the bus? How did
you know I wouldnt chicken out?"
"Which question do you want me to answer first? Or how
bout this; No, Im not, I knew I wouldnt, and I hoped you wouldnt!"
The air was growing cooler,
but they didnt seem to notice. There was no breeze now at all, and the mist off the lake was filling the woods.
It swirled around their feet as they walked. The cloud overhead completely banished the sun. All gone unnoticed.
The woods were still, quiet as the grave. Their progress towards the lake watched with spurious eyes.
Countless sacred fires from ancient times blackened the top of "Painted Rock". Nowadays, some of the few people who
came here would try to start campfires there, but never with any success. People joked about it in town, "Smokey
the Bear must have died on that rock!" Now the mist off the lake nearly obscured it from view.
"Look at Painted Rock, David! You can hardly see it!"
David lit a cigarette
he had produced from seemingly nowhere. "Yeah, Ive seen it. Its still there, huh?" Because the air was so
still, the smoke from David's cigarette just hung there around his head.
"No I mean look
at it, David! It looks really weird all shrouded like that." David looked up and right at that second, they both
gasped in unison as a dark figure stood up into view. They could just barely make out that it was a man. The cigarette
drooped and then fell out of Davids mouth. He bent down to pick it up, and when he stood back up the dark figure was
gone. "Oh, My God! Where did he go, David?"
"I dont know - I looked away for
a second. Come on, lets eat something."
"I didnt look away! He just disappeared!
He was there one second and then he wasnt! I want to get out of here David. That was TOO weird!"
"It was just the mist or something, Bobbie. Wait a second and youll see him come around on the other side."
"Im telling you he disappeared...I know what I saw!"
"People dont disappear, Bobbie.
Maybe he fell off the back or something. Lets go check it out. Thats where were going anyway!"
"No way!"
"Oh come on Bobbie, if he was some kind of murderer, he wouldnt
be waiting here! Nobody ever comes around here since The Mayor drowned."
"Oh, Thanks allot for reminding me, duffus. Thats another thing that freaks me out about this place, why
would Mayor Stewart come up here at midnight to drown himself? I meanwho commits suicide by drowning themselves?
I think he was murdered and so do my parents!"
"I saw somebody do it that
way in a movie once, I think."
"Thats just the movies, duh."
"Come on Bobbie, let's walk around to the rock. Its really neat from up there 'cause you can see the trees still in
the lake. They left them in for the fish."
"What fish?
You know as well as anybody what happens every time they try stocking the lake."
"Yeah, I came up here the day after, one time. Gaross! You could smell the dead fish all the way up to the Widow
Stockards house! They say theres not enough oxygen for them or something like that. Ive never seen even bugs in
the lake!"
They continued walking around the lake as the mist
deepened all around them. They couldnt even see their shoes now. They finally worked their way around to the rock
and David said; "Wait here a second and let me see if that guy is back there." Bonnie stayed put where she was but she
was feeling really apprehensive and didnt really know why. She could hear David's footfalls on the twigs and then they
stopped and there was total silence. "David......DAVID!! Then there was a horrible scream that seemed to come
from everywhere all at once. Echoing all over the valley around the lake. Bobbie heard another scream and then
realized it was herself.
This one will have you up all night, and,......you better leave a light burning! Just write
us an email at Blackhorsearts@yahoo.com
and let
us know if you are interested in reading this or any other of Black Horse's fine books and we'll get back to you very quickly
after that!
Once again, Thank you So Much for visiting our website and please be sure to sign the "Guestbook" on the home page at the
botton!
"Love,
Light, and Happiness to You!!!"
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