18 years ago

First chapter...

18 years ago…

I glanced at the clock when I finished cleaning up from my last customer, who had got a band of flames around his upper right arm. It was eleven, time to close up. Everyone else had already gone home. I grabbed my purse and leather jacket and headed toward the door. When I got to the door I saw a man coming toward the shop.

“I need a tattoo.” His rough voice said as he stopped in front of me. His face was obscured by a low hat and he wasn’t wearing his jacket, instead it was bundled around something in his arms. I knew something was wrong and looked down the dark street for someone to help. S**t, no one was out; I didn’t even see any lights on in the apartments across from my shop. I smiled at the stranger trying to act normal and not show him my fear, “Sorry I was just closing up, but you’re welcome to come in tomorrow at eight when we open.” I closed the door and turned to lock it. I felt a strong hand grab my jaw and turn me around to look at the stranger. “I don’t think you understand.” He said as he tipped his hat back to expose his face. His eyes were black right up to the edges, like the center opened and ate up the color. His lips were pulled back to show sharp, elongated eye teeth. I sucked in a breath to scream, but its hand was at my throat in a flash to cut it off. It pushed me through the door that I didn’t even hear open, “I need a tattoo.” It was almost hissing the words. I tried to nod, but its grip was too strong and my lungs were burning in need for air. It let go of my throat, seeing the struggled bob of my head. “Good,” it growled. I dropped to the ground as air filled my mouth, throat, and lungs soothing that burning. The creature turned around and flipped the dead bolt on the door. It took a folded piece of paper from its pocket. “I need this put on a neck with a special ink. Can you do it?” I noticed he said a neck not my neck, but I glanced down at piece of paper anyways.

The paper has been folded and unfolded many times causing a large crease down the middle of the design, but it was still easily visible.  In the upper right hand corner of the design was a small dot. In the bottom right corner of the dot two thick, lines were intersecting. The lines were only a few centimeters long and each ended with a small, straight tail. On the inside of the cross thing was a thick circle with a gap in the right side. In the gap was another small dot. It was a simple design, but I knew it was more than a design, some type of tribal symbol maybe. I turned to the man and kept my voice steady, “It’s doable.” The creature just grunted in reply and tossed me a vial. I caught it and turned the cool vial over in my fingers. It was a small vial made of glass and inside was a thick, black liquid that I’ve never seen before. I looked up at the creature in question. “I told you I need a tattoo on a neck with a certain ink. That’s the ink and here’s the neck.” It turned around and put the coat bundle on the counter. I glanced at the door wondering if I could make it, but it was too far away. I clenched my fists in frustration, feeling my nails dig into my palms. I turned back to the bundle. The creature peeled back the coat and exposed a baby.

The baby must have been born recently, for it was still sticky and covered in blood. The umbilical cord was crudely severed. The baby wasn’t moving except for taking soft breaths in her sleep. Beneath her slime the baby was a beautiful olive color with a little flush of pink in her face. She had a beautiful head of thick, midnight black hair. This man, no this creature wants me to brand a newborn with some strange ink?! I don’t think so, I could severely damage her! I could cripple her forever! I looked the thing straight in his black eyes, “Are you crazy? That’s way too much pain for a newborn. You probably killed her mother and father. I would never brand a baby for you, you sick son of a-“The baby woke and started crying; no it was more of a screeching. The creature turned to the girl, distracted. Now was my chance, I dropped the vial and paper and sprinted toward the door. The creature didn’t even turn around. I slammed into the door. The creature turned and its dark eyes glaring at me with irritation, but it didn’t move. “Get back here,” he snarled in a whisper. I turned back to the door and I undid the lock with shaking fingers. The creature still didn’t move, but said in a low voice, “Of all the tattoo artists in this damned city; you have to be immune.”  

I slammed open the door and started running down the street fumbling in my purse looking for my stupid cell. I felt the rectangular shape of my cell and grabbed it. I glanced behind me; still no creature. I kept running as I dropped my purse to the pavement. I glanced down at the blue phone and started fumbling for 9-1-1. Before I could even get in the stupid nine a familiar, horrible grip was on my neck and stopped my running, lifting me in the air. It roughly grabbed my phone and tossed it into the bushes. I started kicking and squirming. I kicked it in the groin, it didn’t even blink. What was this thing? “You’re making this harder than it has to be and now I need to make sure you don’t do it again,” the thing spat through its teeth in my ear. It turned back to the shop which was pretty far away. I guess when you’re running for your life you can really cover some ground. The creature was still dangling me from my neck and I stopped squirming. It was useless, I closed my eyes in defeat, but then I felt a puff of air against my face and the creature shoved me to the ground. I opened my eyes in surprise. Holy s**t! We were back in the shop. How the hell did it do that? I looked up at the creature in horror, what was he? I saw it bring its foot up and then down on my right leg. I heard the sickening snap and the grinding of my bones before pain shot up my leg and through my body. I screamed in pain and grid my teeth together. I saw something like joy or pleasure flash through its eyes. I felt hot tears going down my cheeks. Some for my pain and some for knowing that there was no more hope. That I was going to die. That the baby girl was going to die. And that it was going to get away with it. He grabbed the symbol and vial off the floor and handed them to me once more. Surprisingly the vial didn’t break when I dropped it before; it didn’t even have a crack in it.

After what seemed like hours the creature bent over me and lifted me off the ground, without so much as a grunt to my 140 pounds. As it set me down in the black, leather tattoo chair its arm bumped into my injured leg. I choked back a scream, not wanting to give it the satisfaction of seeing my pain, again. It turned around for the baby girl, who had stopped crying. It set the baby down in front of me and I saw her eyes for the first time. Blue. Blue as the oceans off a travel brochure. She was staring up at me with wide innocent eyes. My staring was interrupted when the creature spoke, “Do it now without anymore interruptions and I’ll let you live.” I glanced up at it and took a deep breath to steady my voice. “Go in that cabinet over there and hand me…” So for the next hour I worked on the back of the newborns neck with extreme caution. The only sound was the buzzing of the needle; the newborn didn’t cry or move. When I finished the creature wrapped the baby back up in his jacket and turned toward me. I wasn’t surprised he lied.

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The next morning, on the steps of the Summit Medical Clinic was the bodies of two women. One was a petit woman who was recently pregnant; with long, black hair and whose forest green eyes were clouded from the long period of time she’s been dead. Along her stomach was a horizontal gash made from a hunting knife with her baby missing. A form of an extremely cruel c-section that resulted in her death of blood loss. The woman was identified as Rain Redwood, who her mother reported missing a year ago. The other was a woman with short brown hair and covered with tattoos. Her right leg was severely broken in several places and her throat was ripped out. She was identified as Susann Hays, a tattoo artist who owned the shop a town over, Eternal Images.

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Sister Caroline walked out of Stonebridge Orphanage at ten fifteen already late for mass. She tripped over something in the doorway. Sister Caroline picked herself up and dusted off her robes and hands. She glanced back to see what see tripped over. In the doorway was an old, black coat. She walked back toward the jacket to get a closer look. She opened up the black cloth and peeked inside. She sighed, another baby. This one was recently born, with a full head of dark, black hair and amazing blue eyes. She picked up the baby girl and noticed a strange rash spreading around her neck. She gently turned the baby over; on the back of her neck was a strange tattoo.

Author's Note

Ignore grammer please

Reviews

[Elizabeth Thief]

Wow, this is great!!!
The story had my attention from the first line!! I like the action and suspense already in just the first chapter--I can't wait for the rest!!