Hell Hound

Stephanie glanced up at the hulking, three-story elderly mansion. It seemed to glare at her with contempt as its dark taupe paint peeled from massive doorways and broken gutters. The porch was not inviting guests anytime soon as Stephanie’s forest green eyes roamed over two missing floorboards before an off-white screen door that hung precariously upon rusted hinges. The place screamed at her inner need for sanctity as her thin ruddy lips formed into a smile.

“It is perfect, Steve.” Stephanie cascaded to where her husband stood with a frown, revealing how he really felt about the hoodwinked place.

“What do you think, dear?” his dark roving eyes showed disgust at the overgrown brown bushes sitting near the porch.

“I think the house is perfect.” She carved a path between the owner and her husband. She did not take note of the other woman’s nose writhing in pain at the scent of her perfume. It hung in the air like smoke.

“Are you a stay-at-home wife?” the owner stepped away to avoid the close proximity of the rancid smell. Steve grinned at her insistence of keeping a safe distance from his wife.

Stephanie’s waist-length, jet-black hair tangled on a nail jutting from a railing board. Steve hurried to unsnarl her silky smooth tresses from its captivity. Once freed, she acknowledged the woman with her usual response. “I have a witches coven not far from here, and this is the ideal place to hold our gatherings. I am a sword-wielding witch who requires,” she hesitated before continuing, “Solitude and lots of room to perform my rituals.”

The landowner pushed her words aside and handed them the lease, which they signed immediately before even entering the home. Stephanie added a heart to the end of her name then lifted the keys from her hand. The woman then jumped at the sound of a distant howl.

“Thank you, Mrs. Wolf, we will take it from here,” Steve gleamed when she exited the porch with swiftness. She hurried to her Mercedes and was screeching from the property as if a fire were about to erupt.

“This house is going to be our new home for eternity. I can just feel it, Steve.” Stephanie is swept off her feet as he unlocked the front door and entered their new future together.

Stephanie unpacked the last of their items and flopped onto her black, vinyl couch where she had a flawless view of their tarnished backyard with its knee-high weeds. These had overgrown every inch of the yard as a high-pitched motor roared to life. Steve held in his hand a weed whacker that chopped down every dried plant in sight.

Curiosity drew Stephanie to the large French doors that opened up to a substantial wrap-around porch. The dark paint had shed long ago due to exposure. She walked barefoot along the creaking floor and leaned her elbows over the railing to gain a better view of her patch of heaven. Steve was making light work of the tasseled weeds as small rocky intrusions were cropping up everywhere the eye could see.

“Hey,” she called to her husband. He did not hear her when a small pebble flashed past her head and smashed into the small pane of glass in the French door. “Stop,” she suddenly gained a louder tone.

The engine halted, and Steve asked, “What is it, Stephanie?”

Her long, thin finger pointed at the shattered glass. Her crimson nail established what could have happened to her delicate, pale face. “This is what occurred. It’s broken. How are we going to fix this,” her anger billowing up slowly as he laid down the machine and loped up the wooden steps where she stood with a hand on her hip.

“I found some glass pieces in the small garage; maybe one might fit into the hole.” He calmed his wife’s rattled nerves and jogged across the porch where he leaped down two steps at a time toward the old steel structure resting on the side of the house. “I found one,” he hollered.

Stephanie attempted a fake smile when her husband came to her with it. “I will have to pick out the hardened putty before I can replace the glass.” He looked up at the ominous rain clouds that were rolling in.

“I will finish weed whacking if you replace that before it begins to pour on our heads.” She headed inside to slip on some shoes then walked at a high rate of speed toward the weed whacker. It spurred to life when she started it. She then gallantly rotated it from side to side over the dried grass.

After half hour had gone by, she killed the motor and felt a large raindrop slap her face. After examining each stone, Stephanie realized that they were grave markers and began reading each engraved name. When a somber howl was heard in the distance, she flipped her head up and listened intently.

“What have you found, darling?” Steve seemed to dance in her direction as the rain came down over their heads.

“Did you hear that?”

“It’s just coyotes crying.” He rubbed her back and inspected the ground she was previously staring at.

“They’re graves. We have a cemetery behind our house. Isn’t that great?” She shined with excitement at the prospect of having such a treasure out her back door.

Steve shook his head and responded with, “That is great.” He was visibly upset by this new turn of events.

“Come on, Steve, this is going to be great. We can play hide-and-seek out here without going to the cemetery down the road,” she encouraged as she stuffed the machine into the shed. Rain pummeled down upon them, drenching their clothing and hair.

“Let’s go inside. This rain is coming down harder than before.” He raced to the first step and fell through it. “Great, this is something else I have to fix.”

“We need to go inside before we become totally saturated, and me without my sword.” Stephanie expanded her leg reach as they entered through the French doors. Steve closed them and latched the lock tightly.

“That lonely howl sounded closer than before.” She rooted upon whether the animal was hurt or not.

“It is fine, Stephanie. Coyotes try to stay away from people at all costs. Are you hungry, dear?” he was in the kitchen stripping off his shirt when she raised a brow at him. “Not for me, of course, but for actual food.” He laughed when she made her way to him with love penetrating her eyes.

“Oh! I would love something quick.” She disappeared down the short hallway and into the bedroom. Stephanie was in search of a towel that she draped over her wet stringy hair. While there, she performed her rain ritual as her sword came down to the hardwood floor. Her eyes closed and she sat meditating to her god as Steve lightly knocked on the spare bedroom door.

“Dinner is ready.” She heard his soft footsteps leaving her to finish her ceremony. Stephanie ended with a prayer and stood, feeling quite dizzy. With her hand, she held onto the black painted dresser near the entrance door.

After shaking off the feeling, she exited the room to find Steve sitting at their small round dining table waiting for her. Another dizzy spell hit her and this time, she almost dropped to the floor.

“Are you okay? Let me help you.” He guided his wife to the table where she sat with a hot cup of tea and grilled tofu.

“It’s your favorite. I thought that after an exciting day you deserved to eat well.” He began stuffing his sandwich into his mouth as she nibbled on hers.

“You’re probably right. I have not eaten since this morning. Unpacking was such a chore, and I wanted to get it finished in a day.” Her hand gently grasped the breaded delight and squeezed it between her off red lips. “It is so good. As usual, husband,” she groaned.

“After this, we need to be off to bed. Tomorrow is another day. I do not want my beautiful wife to become overwhelmed by her first day here.” He lifted his cup and toasted to a magnificent piece of real estate.

Stephanie agreed that it was truly fantastic as another wave of nausea rolled through her. The sickness was chalked up to her hectic day. She scolded herself for not taking it easy. After all, they had the rest of their lives to enjoy their new home.

***

She woke before dawn and flitted through the house sorting through their belongings. In between, she cooked the morning meal. It was Sunday, and Stephanie wanted the day to be more relaxed as the rain ceded for the moment. She discovered other rooms upstairs and investigated each one with pleasure. This home held onto more space than was necessary as Stephanie began making plans for the unused space.

Outside, cries seeped through the walls of her home and these wailings sounded closer than ever before. She moved toward the window and examined the property in its entirety. No neighbors were around for miles so there would not be any dogs roaming through the area. When glowing eyes caught her attention a few yards from the home, she recoiled from their glare. She hurried downstairs to see if they had made their way to the porch, but they had disappeared like magic.

Stephanie noticed that the sun was peeking through the trees as a small whine sounded at the French doors. She flipped a pancake over in the pan and peeked around the corner to see a scrawny dog pawing at the back door. “Look at that,” Steve frightened her when he came around the corner of the kitchen.

“You scared me half to death, dear. Please do not do that ever again.” She laid a hand on her heart and threw her head back.

“I’m sorry. We have a visitor. I bet he is hungry.” He bent down to tease the dog through the door. It scratched frantically, trying to get in.

“Here, give him this pancake and some vegan sausage. I bet he’s a vegetarian and would love to have these.” She plopped everything onto a plate where Steve took it outside for the canine. They watched as he attacked the meal with glee.

“I bet the poor guy has not eaten in a while.” She sympathized with the animal’s hunger when her own cropped up.

“I will get that.” Steve wrapped an arm around his wife on his way to the frying pan where he poured batter into the greased pan.

“Thanks.” Stephanie sat down at the table as the same sick feeling rushed over her.

“Are you not feeling well again?”

“Not really. I feel as if I want to throw up.” She closed her green eyes and rested her head on the table.

“I wonder if you are…,” he hushed when she gave him an angry look.

“I highly doubt that I am pregnant. I’m on the pill, and we have not had sex in over a week.” She winced when she spoke those words.

“It might happen. You never know. I’m just saying,” he defended his words as his hand flipped the pancake over.

“I’ll check today. I certainly hope not. We are taking every precaution to avoid that from happening right now. I cannot be, Steve,” her voice wavered as tears dripped down her face.

“We will work it out together, Stephanie. I am here for you, and besides, I would love to have a boy someday, if now is not the right time then later will work too.” He wanted her to be happy. Stephanie was not buying it when the plate of food was set before her.

“Eat up so you can take your pee test.” He finished making his own food and sat near her. His tanned hand reached out to take hers where he firmly gripped it.

“Is our little friend still out there?” she asked as her fork stabbed the last of her vegan sausage where it went into her mouth.

“He is gone. I do not know where he went.” Steve slowly dipped his pancake in his syrup. Some of the sugary stuff started to fall down his lips. Stephanie’s stomach could not take anymore, and she ran off toward the bathroom to rid her body of breakfast.

After an hour had gone by, she returned with the pee stick, “I’m not pregnant.”

Steve took his wife into his arms and kissed her forehead. “That is okay, honey. We are going to get through this.”

“I might have the flu because I feel ill again, and my skin is so clammy.” She lowered her eyes, assuming the sick position upon the sofa with a blanket that she wrapped around her chilled body.

“You stay put, and I will care for you today.” Steve made his wife top priority the rest of the day.

When nightfall came, the same howls were back. Stephanie hunkered closer to her husband and together they watched an old western on the television. Glowing eyes watched from afar as Steve made valiant attempts to pretend they did not exist.

“I wish that we had curtains over those large windows.” She made a mental note to purchase dark ones to cover every inch of each window.

Each day afterward was the same. Stephanie did her sacred rituals each evening and every morning. On the seventh day after feeding the same stray dog, she decided to exit the house for the first time since they moved in. Her stomach felt fine when she glided over the back porch toward the stairs. Steve had repaired the broken step and when she lightly stepped onto the grass.

She inhaled slowly then released the breath quickly to allow the fresh air to enter. It inspired her to walk among the gravestones as another storm brewed overhead. This did not halt her progression of each stone she encountered. When she came across five fresh grave markers, she stopped and read their inscriptions. “Apparently, these five people passed away recently and were buried together,” she whispered.

Steve called to her from the back door with enthusiasm at seeing his wife up and about, “Glad to finally observe you moving around again.” He came down to join her in the tiny graveyard.

“Yes, I finally am able to get up with feeling ill. I must have had a touch of something.” Stephanie’s ashen face had thinned, and she had taken on a more skeletal appearance.

“You’ll gain more weight and will finally be able to head to the store and pick out curtains for our windows.” He held onto her cold hand as he sneezed.

“Are you okay?” she questioned whether he had allergies or was becoming ill.

“I’m fine. We worked in the warehouse all day, and the dust was measured in inches,” he snickered at the description.

“That sounds disgusting.” She faltered and had to grasp his arm before she fell to the ground. Steve pulled her frail body to him and lifted her into his arms.

“It is nice to see you up, but please take it easy when I’m at work.” He insisted.

“Sure, I will try to stay down,” she lied but did not care. Her spirits were up, and nothing was going to stop her from meandering about.

The sound of rustling streamed to them from the overgrown land around them. Steve’s face showed fear when he hurried with his wife to the stairs. He climbed them with some issues but was at the back door where he set her down. They looked back, and standing in the long grass about twenty yards from the house, were three coyotes.

“What are they doing in broad daylight? They must be hungry,” he surmised as he shut the door behind him. “Don’t go out there tomorrow. I’ll call the landlady in the morning and ask if there is a problem with coyotes in the area.”

Stephanie dropped to the couch and watched the three creatures rummage through the short tufts of grass. One came to the spot where the five new graves were and sat down. It began to howl as if in pain. Prickles ran up and down her spine as she turned from the scene.

“There are new diggings out there, Steve, five to be exact,” she said, glancing up at him with hesitation. Fear began to play in her face when he started dinner.

“I’m sure that it is a family plot, and Mrs. Wolf lost a few members this year.” He stirred the noodles into the water and twisted to open the fridge.

“They all died on the same day, Steve.” Stephanie felt haunted by the landscape of the home. It clouded her previous judgment of the place, and she now wanted to leave.

Steve giggled, “Maybe we are jumping to conclusions too quickly. We need to calm down and accept that new graves are still being dug out there.” His eyes twinkled at her to encourage a smile that didn’t come.

“Yeah,” was all that she could muster as the thick blanket layered Stephanie up to her eyes.

That night, loud cries infiltrated Stephanie’s ears, and she couldn’t take it any longer. Her fear overtook her common sense, and she fled the bedroom with only a thin white nightgown on. She stumbled down the interior stairs and headed for the back door. Once there, she flung it open and screamed, “Leave this place alone. It is mine!”

The lonely beasts raised their heads to look back at her when she rushed down the stairs and headed into the graveyard. She searched for stones and sticks to chuck at them in the dim early morning light. It did no use. Many of them refused to run from her loud complaints. One brave animal challenged her yelps and growled back at her as Stephanie threw a small rock and nailed its pointed head. The cries that exited it mouth told everyone that there was a free meal when each coyote leaped onto the injured one, tearing it apart.

Stephanie looked on in horror when a large beast stepped from the tall grass and loped to the site of the carcass. It began to feast as its yellow blazing eyes dug into hers. Their radiance took on the appearance of glowing embers. She wanted to move but could not turn from the chaotic scene.

This enormous creature stopped eating and began to stalk her with its eyes switching from shimmering gold to a brilliant scarlet. Stephanie did not stick around to see what this brute wanted as she raced up the staircase with her long hair draping behind her. It seemed as if this horrid thing might catch her when she reached the French doors and pulled them open. Steve was standing there with his mouth open wide.

Stephanie immediately felt something tug her hair and pull her body to the wooden beams of the porch. Steve yelled for it to stop it snapping at her arms when Stephanie heard liquid gurgling from his mouth. Tiny paws clicked over the long veranda when other coyotes came to the smell of fresh blood spilled about. Her eyes closed and never opened again to see what occurred with her husband.

Mrs. Wolf tapped lightly upon the rickety front door and received no answer. She yanked out her key, twisted it in the lock and entered. Upon first sight of the bloody mess on the living room floor, she clicked her tongue against her teeth. It appeared as if she was disappointed by what took place on the back porch.

Quick steps took this woman to the remains of her tenants as she flipped her phone open and murmured incoherent words into it. Soon, a truck with six workers pulled up and began to case the place before dragging the deceased bodies to the cemetery. Blood smudges were left in their place as Mrs. Wolf swiveled from her spot on the porch and her eyes caught sight of the large beast in the distance. She said, “Don’t worry, hell hound, I will find more bodies for you.” With a wink, her eyes illuminated as she watched the men promptly clean the mess.