UNDER THE MOON
By Randy Romero
It was only a matter of
time before Lena said the the words Ray was dreading. “We’re lost.”
“We’re not lost,” Ray
Stokes told his wife. “We’re on an adventure.”
“What are you, five years
old?”
“I have the mind of one.”
She sighed, exasperated.
“I told you not to get off the highway.”
Twenty minutes had passed
since Ray lost the main road, opting for a more scenic route. It was his
decision to abandon the highway for a road he never traveled before, a decision
he now lived to regret. But he’d never admit defeat and give Lena the
satisfaction of saying, “I told you so.” It was one of her choice phrases.
If it was the scenic
route Ray had desired, that’s exactly what he got. The road was virtually
deserted, with the sporadic exception of a passing semi-truck traveling in the
opposite direction. They were from Nassau County and Ray wasn’t used to how
eerily quiet it was in certain areas of Suffolk. No traffic, no commotion, no
pedestrians, no crazy drivers blowing through stop signs or red lights.
There were no lights or
streetlamps lining the roads, but that didn’t matter on this particular
evening. The full moon gave Ray all the light he needed.
He rolled his window and
breathed in the fresh, untainted air; no pollutants. At home, their backyard
was so close to the Expressway that Ray practically choked on exhaust fumes
every time he went outside. His lungs had never breathed air so clean and
healthy. His air sacs felt like they were on vacation.
“Roll up your window,” Lena
said. Then she added, “Please.”
“Oh, come on, hon. Enjoy
the fresh air. It’s better than inhaling people’s exhaust fumes on the
highway.”
“It’s December and it’s
freezing out.”
“Fine,” he sighed and
rolled his window up. Lena cranked up the heat and fished through her purse for
her Samsung.
“I should call Zachary
and see how he’s doing,” Lena said.
“We never should have
left him with Elliot.”
“He was the only person
available on such short notice. And what’s wrong with Elliot?”
“I just don’t like the
idea of a gay babysitter looking after our son. What if he…you know, touches
Zach or something?”
“He’s gay, Ray. He’s not
a pedophile.”
“If he likes men, he
could like little boys, too.”
“By that logic, all
straight men could easily like little girls.”
Ray thought about her
argument for a moment, stymied, unable to retort. “All right, you got me
there,” he admitted. “At least Elliot’s not transgender.”
“I believe they prefer to
be called transsexuals now.”
“Is that what they’re
calling it nowadays?”
“You really need to join
the twenty-first century, Ray. In this day and age, gender isn’t relevant. It
isn’t even binary.”
She made a quick call to
the house, checked in on Zach, and spoke briefly with Elliot. “They’re making a
gingerbread house,” Lena said when she got off the phone.
Ray felt guilty about
leaving Zach with a babysitter on Christmas Eve. But Ray always went to visit
his dad on Christmas Eve. Shane Stokes’ condition was rapidly declining, and he
didn’t want Zach to see his grandfather in his sickly, emaciated state.
“I hope he isn’t mad at
us,” Ray said.
“Your father?”
“No, Zach.”
“We’re only going for a
few hours. We’ll be home in time for Santa to put the presents under the tree.”
“You mean I’ll put the presents
under the tree. I’m tired of that Santa guy getting all the credit.”
“We need to find a spot
to eat. I’m famished.”
“Famished,” he repeated.
“Yes, it’s a word.”
“Nobody says famished.”
“I say famished.”
“I’ll find us a place to
eat.”
“Yeah, as soon as you get
off this godforsaken road. I haven’t seen anything for miles. What made you get
off the highway in the first place?”
“I was bored,” he
shrugged. “I wanted to take the scenic route.”
“Well, you definitely got
your wish.”
Ray turned up the radio
to give himself a much needed reprieve from the conversation, and to drown out
the rattling of a bad catalytic converter. He went through every station until
he found one that wasn’t playing Christmas music.
Ray and Lena’s road had
been a rocky one. In fact, their relationship had been a road paved with
landmines. But they had evaded every bomb in their path and managed to keep
their relationship intact. Ray knew all too well what divorce does to a child.
He’d been through it before, and he wasn’t about to put Zach through the same.
And Lena seemed to concur. It was the only thing keeping their frayed marriage
from completely falling apart.
“That’s it, I’m using the
GPS on my phone,” Lena said, fed up.
The catalytic converter
rattled and pinged.
“Don’t bother,” Ray said
as he saw a sign welcoming them to the town of Hither Hills.
There was a sharp turn
after the sign, and as they came around the bend, it darted out from the tree
line. Ray panicked and popped the brakes to avoid hitting the deer. The car
skidded on the slick winter pavement, and they collided head-on with it.
The deer went flying and
the car came to a sudden stop. They both took deep breaths, waiting for their
hearts to beat normally again.
He turned the key in the
ignition. The engine coughed and sputtered.
“Sit tight. I’m going to
get out and see the damage.”
Ray popped the hood and
opened the driver side door. He got out and checked the front. The damage was
more than superficial. They would need a tow truck. No way he was going to get
it running without repairs.
“Poor thing,” Ray said,
looking at the deer sprawled out in the road. Given the size, he wasn’t
surprised at the damage. It was the biggest deer he’d ever seen up close.
He walked around to the
passenger side and Lena rolled her window down. “Better call a tow truck.
There’s no way this thing is going to start.”
“What about the deer?”
Lena asked.
“I don’t know,” Ray said.
“I think you have to call animal control and they come pick it up. I feel
terrible, but it’s the least of our concerns right now. I’ll call my dad and
Elliot and tell them both we’re going to be late tonight.”
Rough, serrated claws
scraped the pavement as it clambered to its feet.
Lena tried to scream.
Tried to find the words to warn her husband. She could hear them in her head.
But she had no voice to produce them.
It’s not a deer.
Ray saw the horror in her
eyes and was afraid to look. He turned slowly, revealing the bipedal creature
that towered over him.
Its body was a suit of
thick gray fur, its eyes as yellow as moonlight. Jagged, asymmetrical fangs
protruded from its thick, hairy, wet snout. The beast growled, taking Ray’s
breath away.
He couldn’t shout,
couldn’t talk, couldn’t find the air. He felt dizzy, faint. But he remained on
his feet long enough to feel it sink its teeth in.
His screams pierced the
night. It was aiming for its neck, but instead its fangs sank into his left
shoulder. It ripped and teared away, pulling flesh and muscle from the bone.
When it had its fill and its lust for blood was satiated, it disappeared into
the night, running back into the woods.
Ray could feel the change
almost instantly. Felt his body transforming under the moonlight. He begged and
pleaded with Lena to leave him behind before it was too late.
She slid into the
driver’s seat, grinded the key in the ignition, praying the car would start.
The engine groaned and sputtered.
“Come on,” she cried.
“Please, just start.” She turned the key again. Nothing.
She glared through the
windshield, watching as the transformation completed. Fur replaced flesh. A
thick, gray snout replaced his face. His yellow eyes glowed in the darkness.
In one last act of
desperation, she twisted the key again and the engine rumbled to life. She
floored it out of there, swerving to avoid the beast in the road that was once
her husband.
She looked back in the rearview mirror, watching him howl at the bright, piercing moon above.
