I finally made it back to Dallas, my neighborhood, my home. I was walking just off the shoulder of the road, in the shadows where people driving by couldn't see me or the blood-stained rags that were left of my clothes. I'd been walking for what seemed like an eternity, cowering in the trees during the daylight, afraid of letting cars see me, sleeping in the shadows of the trees I stayed cloaked behind. The sun came up as I lurked in the woods, trying to make my way back home. Then it would fall, but I was too focused on the gnawing hunger in my guts to be aware of the concept of time. It started to blur together after a while, and I went numb as the hours passed. I felt… alien to myself. I didn't feel… like me anymore; not after what I did to those men in the woods.
I wasn't sure of the time, but the moon had been hovering over me for hours. It was another night of walking in a fugue state from the monotony of the simplicity of staying hidden in the dark woods as I traveled. It had to be around two or three in the morning. I was so close. It had been hell to get this far. The hunger had returned… and it was fighting me every step of the way. It took everything I had to keep on my path. I was terrified of what I'd do next if I let myself turn from my current path. I had to stay strong… but it was so hard. I needed it.
I was still covered in blood. Some of it was my own, but most of it was from the men in the truck. I had tried to clean most of it off in a shallow creek I passed through, but some still hid in the cracks and creases of my arms and face. Plus, I was tired. I had no energy to care, only enough energy to fight off the other force living inside me. Every second was a struggle.
The three men who had tried to kill me were gone from the world, never to hurt another poor soul again. Just thinking about them pissed me off and stirred something inside. I could feel whatever lived inside of me coming back. My body tightened, and I went rigid, stumbling to my knees. I breathed long, slow breaths as I tried to gain control of whatever was happening. I focused on clearing my mind as I inhaled and exhaled. It wasn't working so well, but fortunately, I saw something that took my mind off the rage.
There it was, through the sparse trees on the road, and a short expanse of grass. It was our house. Then, the contracting of my muscles slowed to a stop, and the burning that had just begun surfacing in my hands and face dissipated.
I stood up slowly, making sure I was myself. It was good… I was in control for the moment. I started walking again, never taking my eyes off the house down the road. It kept me calm. The closer I got, and the more I could see, the more comforted I felt. My whole family was there. All of their cars and trucks were parked in my front yard, along with my own truck. I knew that whatever was happening to me would be okay if I could just make it inside. I had to make it to Vicky. I came into the yard, feeling the natural grass in between my toes as I walked up to the large window. The lights were on, and there was movement, which normally would have surprised me at this hour.
My sisters, Sarah and Sydney, were sitting with Vicky in the living room. All of them had red eyes from extended crying. Vicky started pacing; her blonde hair was tied up in a mess, and her mascara was running around her puffy, red eyes. I saw an empty box of tissues on the coffee table. She had been crying all day. She looked exhausted as she walked frantically, probably waiting for a sign of hope that I was alive. She probably waited by the phone all day for a phone call, waiting to hear my voice.
Mom and Dad just sat at the dining room table, exhausted from the worry. Seth was right there, stone-faced with no emotion. He was in a different world from everyone else. He was starting to accept that he'd lost his brother, his twin. It was like he lost half of himself. He couldn't talk to anyone else about it because if he said the words out loud, it would make it real. He was just kind of frozen.
Even my friend Ben was there. He sat on a stool at the bar of our kitchen. He just watched Vick as she paced, unable to say or do anything to give her real comfort. He was just there, making sure she was okay, making sure that she was taken care of until I was found. He was a good friend.
I loved my wife. Ever since I met Vicky, I knew she was special. I needed her now, and I hoped she could help me with whatever was happening. Ben was my non-twin best friend, he had been since middle school, and I knew he would stick by my side no matter what I had become. They all would. They were just beyond the wall of glass, waiting for me, for news that I was okay.
I was going in. I needed to feel Vicky in my arms, to feel her kiss on my lips. I needed to hug my brother and tell him I was okay.
Then they began talking. I could hear everyone through the wall, even though they were speaking softly. My hearing seemed to almost expand, gaining more sensitivity and clarity as my awareness spread out subconsciously the moment I wanted to hear what they were saying.
"I don't know how long I can do this for," Vicky said. Her words were heavy, tired, and defeated.
"It's okay, Vick, we still don't know anything," Ben said, trying to lift her spirits.
How long had it really been?
"It's been over a week, and we haven't heard anything," she cried. "He disappeared right out of the backyard, no trace. How does that happen?" She was in a rage of anguish and confusion. "A lot of that blood was his, and I know his chance of surviving on his own after losing that much blood is only getting lower. I'm a nurse, I'm not an idiot."
"Vick," Ben tried to calm her.
She burst into tears and fell back onto the couch. My sister Sarah comforted her, trying to calm her down. Ben went to her side and put his arm around her for comfort. He didn't say anything, he just sat with her. She was torn up, and I could tell that Ben was too; he was just keeping it together for Vicky's sake. We had grown up together, basically the third brother in my family.
I don't know what started it, maybe it was the hug. I began to feel this rage of jealousy and hate crawl out towards Ben. I knew in my logical mind that he was just there for Vicky, but some dark part of me, this new part, took it as a threat. Then I started looking at Vicky and the rest of my family. They were crying over my death… all of them. Anger, frustration, and rage built up in me. It all came from the new place, and I couldn't stop it. I felt like they had already given up on me, brushing me off, and just accepting the loss. I kept thinking to myself that I knew in my right mind that this was untrue, but I couldn't shake these dark feelings that crept out of me.
I felt my body twitch, flex, and burn. I was changing back into whatever kind of creature I had become. I fell against the tree in our yard and braced myself as the transformation tried to take hold. My flesh burned and tightened as I felt my muscles contract to warp my form; my eyes pulsing in the night to make the world seem more alive. I looked back at the window to try and see Vicky's face and calm myself as I struggled. The only thing I noticed was my own horrific reflection. The eyes that gave me enhanced senses were also the sign of what I had become.
Everything stopped: the transformation, the anger, everything. I saw what I was turning into. Black, colorless eyes stared back at me. They were so black that the moonlight reflected off of them perfectly. They were like polished obsidian stones. The bones in my face had started to shift, making my portrait look less human and more… something else. I could see the fangs that had started to bulge from my mouth, and when I looked down at my hands, the long black talons had already begun to protrude. I stared at my reflection for a minute, utterly void of any emotion… except rage. I think I went numb for a little bit. I just stood there for a while as my mind was like a blank slate. I couldn't let myself feel anything, or I would completely lose it.
I saw myself for the monster I truly was. I thought back to the three men earlier, and as I killed them, I remember one strong feeling. I wanted to do it. I was turned into a killer, and right then, I wanted to kill the only people I had in my life. I wanted to bust through the wall in front of me and kill my own wife, my twin brother, my sisters, my parents, and my best friend.
What had I become?
I looked past my reflection at Vicky as she came back into view. I took one long look at my beautiful wife. I took in everything about her: her smile, face, the long blonde hair, her body, clothes, even her scent that I could smell from out in the yard with perfect clarity. I savored every aspect of her for a quick moment, training it all to memory.
Then, I made the choice that I had to make. I had to make sure Vicky was safe, safe from me. I had to make sure they were all safe. I knew that I couldn't control whatever was in me and had no clue what I was capable of doing to my very own loved ones. Now that I could see what I had become, I had to take myself away from them. I had to give them up. It was the only way I knew they would be safe from the monster inside me. What would be worse? Let them continue with the grief they were already living in, or come back as a monster, only to bring more pain and suffering to them all? Or worse. I couldn't trust myself to be around them, or anyone else I cared about. I kept picturing what I did to the three men, and doing it to my family, inside my own house.
So, I ran. I turned and bolted for the darkened woods. I don't know if I transitioned back to my normal self or continued the strange metamorphosis, but all I knew was that I had to keep running. I had to run as far away from Vicky, Seth, and my family as I could. For their sake.