Richard Laymon: Fiends

He wanted to touch them.

Looking away quickly, he leaned forward to ease his tight, sick feeling.

But he was afraid she might get suspicious if he stopped talking. So he said, ‘You got family in Mawkeetaw?’

‘No.’

‘Friends?’

‘I’ve been there a few times for the fair,’ she said. Her voice was very quiet.

‘You from Gribsby?’

‘I never said that.’

‘You running away from home?’

‘Never mind.’

‘I’ve got me half a mind, girl, to turn this buggy around and take you back. I’ll bet Sheriff Diggins, he could find your folks in no time flat.’

‘Don’t you dare try it,’ she said. Her voice was a taut whisper. Homer looked at her. She met him with steady, narrowed eyes.

Her face looked as if it expected a punch, but wouldn’t budge an inch. ‘I’m not going back,’ she said. ‘Never. You just try taking me back and see what happens.’

‘Keep a civil tongue in your head, girl.’

‘I’m not going back.’

‘Maybe you are, and maybe you aren’t.’

‘What do you mean by that?’

His heart was suddenly pumping madly. What did he mean by that?

Lord, so confusing.

‘I shouldn’t have picked you up,’ he said. His voice had a dry, raspy sound that frightened him.

‘You didn’t have to,' Tina said.

‘Oh yes, I sure did. I had an obligation. A Christian obligation. It was my duty. I have to save you.’

‘Save me?’

‘That’s right.’

‘From what?’

‘Fiends. There’s all kinds of fiends in this world. Fiends just waiting to get their filthy hands on the sweet, young flesh of girls like you.’ He cleared his throat, but the scratchy sound wouldn’t go away. ‘Just couldn’t leave you there on the road. Fiends’d get you for sure.’

She looked at him.

She looked wary.

‘Now don’t fret, Tina. I won’t let them get you. I’ll protect you. I sure will.’ Reaching out, Homer ran his fingers through her hair. So soft. Soft and golden, like her skin.

When the hand grabbed her, Marty jumped and banged her head on the wall. Then she looked over her shoulder.

Willy grinned.

She kicked and tried to shut her legs, but his hand stayed between them, clutching her, hurting her. An arm wrapped around her hips. It pulled her off the television. When she started to scream, Willy flung her to the floor and dropped on top of her, crushing out the scream.

He rolled Marty onto her back.

She reached for his face, fingers hooked for clawing, but he grabbed her wrists. Pressing them to the carpet, he straddled her hips and sat on her.

Marty bucked and twisted, trying to throw him off. Then she saw his strange grin, so she stopped moving.

‘C’mon, horsy! Gideeyap!’ He bounced a couple of times.

Marty’s knee took him square in the back.

‘Naughty horsy!’ he bounced harder.

She shot her knee up again. This time, Willy shifted enough to keep it from landing solidly. Then he leaned forward until his face loomed directly over Marty. ‘Give Willy a kiss to make up,’ he said.

‘Go to hell.’

He bent lower and tried to kiss her mouth. She turned away. He pressed his mouth to her cheek and slobbered on her. ‘Aren’t you glad to see him again?’

‘Get off me!’ She felt the spittle roll toward her ear. ‘What do you want?’

‘You’ll see.’

‘Get off!’

‘I plan to.’

‘Bastard!’

‘I’ll let you up. But if you move, I’ll kill you.’

He climbed off Marty and stood up.

With his weight gone, her body felt strangely light. She tried to rub the pain out of her wrists, then scratched the backs of her hands. They were itchy and red, the carpet’s pattern imprinted in her skin.

As Willy walked toward the hall closet, Marty raised her head. Her blouse had come untucked in the struggle, but its buttons were still fastened. Her skirt was gathered above her waist, exposing her white panties.

She straightened the skirt as Willy came out of the closet.

He had a coil of rope in his hand.

Kneeling beside Marty, he tied a slip knot into one end of the rope.

‘Can I sit up now?’ she asked.

‘Be my guest.’

She sat up and asked, ‘What’s that for?’

‘Hanging you.’ He dropped the noose over her head. Reaching behind her, he lifted her hair from under the rope. His hand paused, caressing her neck. Marty felt goosebumps rise under his touch. She heard herself make a tiny, whimpering sound.

‘Scared?’

She tried to talk, but couldn’t.

Willy laughed. He slid the knot against the front of her throat, then backed away from her and tugged the line. Her head jerked.

‘Ow!’ she gasped.

‘Up.’

Marty slowly got to her feet.

Stall! Do something! Oh, God!

She straightened her blouse and skirt. She scratched her left shoulder as if she had an itch there. Willy watched.

‘Another minute,’ he said, ‘it won’t be itchy anymore.’

She shoved her fingers inside the noose and pulled it open.

Willy was too quick.

He tugged his end of the rope and the noose whipped shut, jerking at the back of Marty’s neck and flinging her headlong into his arms. He hugged her tightly against his body, gave her rump a painful squeeze with one hand, and said, ‘Nice ass.’

‘Fuck you.’

‘Let’s go over to the stairs,’ he said. Releasing the grip on her buttock, he stepped backward, paying out rope. Then, using the rope like a dog leash, he led her toward the stairway.

‘You won’t hang me,’ Marty said.

‘Don’t think so? Maybe you’d better hope I do, honey. Cause you know what? I’ve always known I’d come back and pay you a visit. I’ve had a lot of years to daydream about it and think about all the things I’ll do to you. It’s how I used to fall asleep at night in my cell. You were always the last thing on my mind at night. Every night. And I always fell asleep with a boner.’

At the foot of the stairs, he told Marty to stand still. Then he climbed up the stairway backward, paying out rope and keeping the line taut.

‘Willy, don’t,’ she said. ‘They’ll send you back to prison. You’ll spend the rest of your life there. Do you want that? The entire rest of your life?’

‘That’s if they catch me. But they won’t.’

‘Yes they will. If you… everyone will know you did it. They’ll catch you, all right.’

He reached the top of the stairs.

‘Willy? Don’t do this.’ She tried to sound brave, but it didn’t work well.

‘What’ll you give me?’ he asked.

A few strides along the upstairs hallway, and he would be standing directly above Marty.

‘Anything,’ she said. ‘Just don’t… don’t hang me. Please. Don’t kill me. I’ll do anything. Please.’

And then she started to cry.

‘I want out,’ Tina muttered, pressing herself against the passenger door. ‘Stop and let me out.’

‘As soon as we get to Mawkeetaw,’ Homer said. He patted her knee. She pulled it away. ‘Scare you? All that talk about fiends?’ He forced himself to laugh. His face felt very hot. ‘I reckon I oughta apologize, but I won’t. Know why? ’Cause I want you scared. Yes, I -do. You're a sweet child, and I want you scared. Graveyards, they’re full of fearless, sweet young girls.’

‘Oh, Christ.’

‘Watch your tongue, girl. Take not the name of the Lord thy God in vain.’

Her lower lip started shaking. Then she began to sob.

‘Aw, now, don’t cry. Nothing to cry about. I’ll take good care of you. I sure will. Nothing to fret over, long as you’re with Homer.’