THE MEETING

Part 

1

Thursday 8:09 am

Blood poured down in front of the men as they watched with horror from the other side of their computer screens. Only moments before, they had heard nothing- then a shot- one that exploded into madness, blood, guts, and mania. 

It was an ordinary Thursday morning when Marcus logged onto his TEAMS meeting. He saw Joe, Hammond, Arnie, and Richard, the CEO. He smiled at everyone. All the men were located in various parts of the country. These meetings were the only way that they ever got a chance to meet and discuss strategies and their lives. All of them had been remote since COVID-19. The company they worked for, Spear Enterprises, had gone remote once they realized how much money they were saving. 

“Good morning, all,” Richard said.

“Hey everyone, good morning,” said Arnie.

“Got my coffee, you?” Hammond said.

“My guts are going to spill today,” Joe laughed hysterically as he waved his hand big and exaggeratedly.

“I don’t drink coffee rots your guts!” Richard was saying.

Joe muttered something, but no one understood.

“What was that, Joe?”

Joe grinned in an overly happy way. The others ignored it.

It was another manager’s meeting, Marcus groaned inwardly. He had to present a new program and update his finance agent team on their progress. The usual conversation was about start dates and how to implement elements they had previously discussed.

“I have a bunch of clients that are using the new information to their liking. I think we should stop the pilot and go full force,” he said thoughtfully.

Richard was earnest, sharing his alpha male ideals with everyone in his path. He talked about goals and thanked everyone for their hard work but reminded them that there was still much to do with the latest projects his company had laughed over four years ago. 

Marcus took down some notations as Hammond began presenting some mappings of his team’s progress in marketing using AI.

There was a heated debate when Richard noticed Hammond debunking some information Richard had provided about the progress that needed to be made. 

Joe stood up, looked at the others, and suddenly began to take off his shirt. Bearing his naked chest, he showed off a giant tattoo of a strange symbol. It resembled a cross inside a goat’s head. 

Richard sent a private message to Marcus because he had been very close to Joe now that they were partners on an upcoming marketing project. 

What is he doing? Is he off medication?

No idea, sir, Marcus responded privately.

The rest were still arguing with Richard and Hammond. Only Richard had begun to forget it, as he was sure the others were noticing Joe.  

Arnie, always the peacemaker, joked, “Hey, put your swords down.” No one laughed.

Marcus sat watching, waiting for the debate to end so he could mention his own progression with his art department for the latest products.  He and Joe were leading a commercial. When he went to present, he asked Joe if he could share the data they had come up with the night before.

Joe started to share his screen, and it was a magpie cartoon. 

Without any warning, Joe began to giggle to himself. He made strange faces but remained muted. 

No one said anything. Richard laughed, trying to make light of the situation. He guessed Joe had pulled an all-nighter. Joe was now wearing a  T-shirt that said SMILE.

Perhaps Joe was tired and didn’t realize he had forgotten to turn his camera off when changing.

“Someone has had too much caffeine.” Richard joked.

Marcus presented another suggestion for a marketing idea he had brainstormed with Joe. He asked if Joe could discuss what they had discussed the night before. Joe’s screen went black, and there was no sound.

Everyone got very quiet before Joe’s screen suddenly popped back on.

“There you are, mate,” Marcus said, smiling as Joe had a chart before him. 

Joe began to talk again but appeared to be muted. Hammond looked annoyed.

“Perhaps another day, old boy,” he was saying.

Joe made an overly exaggerated frowny face.

The rest of the men chuckled and debated the issues at hand.

Joe’s screen went black again, but he was no longer muted. Before his computer screen came back on, Joe let out a screeching sound like no other.

Joe held up a pistol and shot himself in the head. 

Brains, blood, and tissue clouded the camera on his laptop, creating a hard visual for the rest. Blood was running down the camera lens as all the men remained silent.

No one moved. No one could, as the men were all too shocked. Hammond thought it was like being in a video game, trying to adjust his screen to see if he was actually looking at blood. 

None of the men stood up to grab their phones and dial 9-1-1. Each one of them felt utterly powerless at the morbid scene. How would they begin to fix what had transpired? What had happened exactly? Had Joe really shot himself on camera for everyone to see?

Marcus was the first to scream.

“What the fuck? What the fuck is going on?” 

“Hammond picked up his phone finally, shaking off the shock.”

9-1-1 was called, and a brief and panicked call was made.

Richard was not sure if this was a joke or if this was an actual event. His body shook as he had not been around this sort of thing since the war.  Richard turned off his computer and then made his own calls. He spoke secretly, and something happened that none of the others would hear about. Not now, but soon, it would be revealed that his other plan, plan B, would happen. With the mess this would turn out to be, his team would be out of work once the press got a hold of this story. 

There was one problem. Marcus had been recording the entire meeting. There was no evidence. 

“Fuck!” Richard began to pace back and forth, trying to understand the madness he had just witnessed.

Marcus sat still while talking to the operator. Finally, after some time, someone was at the other end of the meeting to help his friend Joe. Joe, who had been acceptable only moments before. Joe, whom he had spoken to for hours the night before about calculations and artistic integrity. Joe, whose brains were now all over the camera lens and on the walls behind where his chair in his small office sat alive and well only a few moments before.

It seemed like hours as Marcus kept his eyes on what little of Joe’s office he could still see, given the blood. What sort of movie was this he was watching? It could not be real.

The police came to visit him also. Luckily, Joe was only one hour away from Marcus, so the police in their areas could meet in the middle via phone to discuss their findings and quickly- hopefully solve this mess. Why had Joe shot himself?

It was never explained. The police were given the green light to close the case as a suicide within hours. Joe had been depressed, they assumed, by the mess his apartment had been in when they found him. Only a severely depressed person lived with heaps of trash everywhere. Some dishes had not been washed and piled up in the sink.

Fast food boxes from over a year ago were found in the refrigerator, and a large pile of unopened mail lay on the countertops. However, the landlord confirmed that Joe was never late on the rent, given his living conditions. If the landlord had seen it, he may have threatened eviction.

The mess in the office only added to the disturbing mess. Strangely, if not out of place, Joe’s office was immaculate. It did not have the same amount of trash; no trash or out-of-place paper was on Joe’s desk. There wasn’t even a speck of dust on his shelves, where he kept photographs of the ocean and one of him and his dad.

No one had an idea why any of that might be strange. Maybe Joe was afraid he would be seen for what he was if anyone saw his office in disarray. Perhaps it was because, out of all things, he prided himself on his good work. Joe was exceptional at his job. He was a brilliant artist in advertising. He was also fast with his turnaround time, which kept his colleagues and his boss, Richard, very happy. It was no secret what a tremendous loss Joe was to the company.

His funeral was scattered among family, acquaintances, and friends. Marcus went to the funeral. He had met up with Richard and Arnie, who both flew in from out of town. Marcus was the only one who lived close enough to drive.

The family was there but scarce. Joe had an older brother with two teenage daughters and a sister who was there long enough to show her face and then was gone. There was food and drinks afterward, and Marcus decided to stay to get some refreshments before his road trip.

Richard and Arnie drove back to their hotel, mainly discussing work the entire time they were at the funeral. Marcus thought it was rude to discuss work at their colleagues’ funeral. What could be done now, though, he surmised?

Perplexing as it was, there was still something that ate at Marcus.  He had talked to Joe only hours before he shot himself, and he was fine. How does someone go from being perfectly fine, even planning a trip abroad to meet up with friends- to dead?

Marcus was sitting at a table away from the other attendees, eating a ham sandwich, when another man came and sat down. 

“Is this seat taken?”

Marcus shook his head.

“How did you know our deceased?” the man asked.

“He was a colleague. A good guy, Joe.” Marcus said, thinking of Joe now with sadness in his voice.

“So you weren’t one of his other friends.” the man said.

“No, just coworkers.”

“Hmm.” said the man, putting a piece of cheese in his mouth and slowly eating it.

“How did you know Joe? Were you college buddies?”

“No.  Unfortunately, I missed out on getting to know Joe better. Did he ever mention a guy who goes by Tanner?

Marcus looked at the man, completely clueless. “No, never. Was it a friend?”

“Well, that is what I was going to ask Joe before his untimely demise.”

“Are you a detective or something?” Marcus asked.

“Let’s just say I am a special agent who works for a three-letter agency.”

“Oh, yeah, Joe never mentioned anyone named Tanner.”

“Well, thank you for your help,” said the man. Then he got up and left the funeral, leaving Marcus alone again. 

Marcus thought it was odd but tried not to question it too much. He drove home, and a strange thought occurred to him as he did. The man never gave him his name. He was glad he was home when he pulled into the parking lot of his condominium. 

Marcus entered his front door, shocked to find it in complete disarray. Everything had been moved, and drawers had been gone through. He had been a victim of a break-in; it was obvious.

He walked around slowly, wondering if the intruder was still there, dialing 9-1-1.

He saw him while on the phone with 9-1-1. A man in his home office crouched down in the corner. He slowly stood as he realized Marcus could see him.

He heard the man’s voice.

“Hang up, or your brains will be all over the walls.”

Marcus heard the operator on the other end asking for his address as he hung up.

“I don’t have any cash, and all my valuables are my TV, laptop, and an air fryer that cost me two grand. 

“I’m here for you. Tell me what you know about Joe.”

Marcus was having a déjà vu moment. He had just been asked about Joe at Joe’s funeral.

“He was a colleague, nothing more. I never even so much as hung out at his house.” Marcus’ voice was trembling now.

“Tell me who the man you talked to at Joe’s funeral is?”

“I don’t know his name. He told me he was looking into something about Joe. I don’t know what he wanted. I told him the same thing I’m telling you: I DON’T KNOW ANYTHING!”

“Shhh, don’t yell. Tell me you were the last person to talk to Joe the night before he died. What was going on with him? He was supposed to call my team at midnight promptly. He never called. When my team checked in on him, he was talking to you. Can you tell me what you fucking know?” the man’s voice got sinister.

“We were up late preparing for a presentation. Joe never mentioned having to call anyone.”

“That wasn’t your friend then. They already came for him. Now I’ll need a replacement. You will have to do it.”

“What?” Marcus felt something struck him, like a bullet, but it wasn’t a bullet. Instead, it was a dart, and he felt his body falling slowly to the ground. 

Marcus woke up in what he could only guess was a laboratory. He was secured to a table by metal bands. He was thirsty, but the room was dark except for a red light coming in from the other room. 

He saw a figure then strolling towards him. It was the same person from earlier.

“Stop moving.”

“Let me go! I told you I don’t know anything!”

The man walked closer to Marcus as he lay unable to move. His fear only increased when he saw the man take off his hood. His face resembled something undead but still not quite dead.  The man moved closer to Marcus, and in his hand was a device with a light at the end of it. Marcus was now screaming.

“PLEASE GOD NO! Whatever you plan to do, please, I beg of you don’t!”

The man stood over Marcus, and then the lights came on. 

Behind the man was another person, not disfigured like the creep in the hood, but he, too, was wearing a disguise of sorts. He had an overly exaggerated doctor’s mask on. Marcus could only see his eyes. 

“Tell us what you know about Joe.” said the other man’s voice.

“I swear to God I don’t know! Why don’t you ask someone else? Someone who was actually God Damn friends with Joe!”

The person in the mask looked at the man with the disfigured face.

“He’s telling the truth.”

“Please let me go.” Marcus was near tears, afraid this would be his last day.

The man with the mask stood for a long moment. The device with the light was only an everyday run-of-the-mill medical syringe- it had lit up from light reflecting on it. Nothing strange except the man’s disfigured face. It looked as though he had been burned alive. The laboratory was very clean, and he was sure he had to be in an actual hospital. 

Finally, Marcus took a deep breath and relaxed a little. “Why are you looking for Joe or anyone that he knew? What did he do?”

The disfigured man and the Doctor looked at each other.

“You really have no idea, do you?” asked the Doctor.

“No fucking idea.”

“Joe was trying to get us access to some information. Only, he killed himself before that was possible. Well, one version of Joe.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“Look, we will let you go. But first, you have to help us. Someone is trying to kill us.”

“Why would someone want to kill you?” Marcus asked.

“Not someone exactly, but something.”

“I really don’t know what the fuck you people are talking about.”

“There was a book. It was only available on the black market. So – my friend here and I found a guy who sold it. When we met him at his apartment, his face was melted into his stove.”

“It is a significant book. People have died trying to get it to us.”

“What is so special about it?”

“It is a hundred-year-old Grimore. We believe something in it can help my friend here with his situation.”

“What happened to you? Were you burnt in a fire?”

“No,” said the man.

“What was it? A chemical burn? What can a spell book do to help that?”

“It was a curse. Someone out there wanted to hurt me. These people threatened me after deciding they didn’t like something I said on the internet. I joked that if the son of a bitch didn’t like my comment, come find me. Guy wrote back saying that was a promise. I woke up two days later like this. I searched online for someone who could help me. I was trying to find someone who knew about these things. Only the guy found out we were trying to enlist help. Your friend- Joe- was very good at hacking. I guess he’d done it on the side for years to pay his way through school.”

“I had no idea. What could hacking do?”

“We wanted to find the guy that had done this. Find his real name.”

“Oh, I see.”

“He goes by an alias,” said the Doctor.

“Is it by chance, Tanner?”

“How did you know that?”

“A man came to see me at Joe’s funeral. He said he was trying to find a guy named Tanner.”

“Holy shit,” said the disfigured man.

“What?” Marcus asked.

“That was Tanner. What did he look like?” the Doctor asked.

“Not till you untie me and let me go!”

The Doctor released Marcus and then took him into an office. Marcus looked around and didn’t see anything unusual. He still had his guard up but was no longer afraid of these two. 

Marcus sat in a chair facing the Doctor. 

“Reese, can you get Marcus some water? ” the Doctor turned to Marcus. “Unless you would rather something stronger.”

“Whiskey?”

The Doctor nodded, and Reese, who Marcus had learned, was the name of the man who had kidnapped him.

“Do you have any idea what happened to my friend Joe?” 

“Yes, it was a possession spell.”

“That is crazy, but why do I feel you are telling the truth?”

“You are not out of danger, Marcus. Tanner knows who you are and what you look like. He may even have an inkling of where you and your family live.”

“So let me understand this.” Marcus was talking as Reese handed him the whiskey. He took a giant swig of it, handed the glass back to Reese, and asked for more.

“You wanted a book to stop Tanner, but he intervened and now has the book?”

“Yes,” said the Doctor.

“You need me to help you, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Can I think about it?”

“No time. You must do this or face the same fate as Joe.”

Marcus’ head was spinning. 

None of this made any sense to him, yet it made perfect sense.

The Doctor finally removed his mask to reveal he was a man in his late forties. He was good-looking, with gray hairs cradling his face. His eyes looked worn.

“Reese is my son-in-law. I am trying to save him for my daughter. I’m Doctor John Leads. This is not conventional. But I’m trying to save my family now. Tanner knows who we all are. I have grandchildren, for fuck sake. You are someone that Tanner might trust enough. He didn’t kill you when you met him.”

“He said he was with a three-letter agency. What if this guy is in the FBI or something. How would you even get to him?”

“The same way he gets to us. Magic spells, potions, and other grim teachings from the dark arts.”

Marcus grinned at them, not sure what he was hearing. It all sounded stupid, but Marcus suspected these two were right. He needed to find a way to help. If anything, to avenge poor Joe.  He wasn’t Joe’s best friend; he had only seen him in person a handful of times, but they had spent hours chatting and did get close. 

Marcus nodded in agreement to assist however he could. It was how he could help that was worrisome. He was nervous about what they would expect from him.

Dr. Leads wasted no time. He gave Marcus an address where a guy might know Tanner’s whereabouts. Since he had not hurt Marcus during his initial meeting. Dr. Leads figured that he either liked Marcus or believed he was unaware of what Joe was up to.

That did not mean he couldn’t find out now. Tanner always had a way of finding things out. 

Marcus got into his vehicle and had the address in his pocket, ready to assist them the following day. It was already after one. Marcus had not rested at all unless you count the few moments he was knocked out by a dart.

When Marcus got home, he didn’t even bother cleaning the mess Reese had made when he broke in. Instead, he went to bed. 

Marcus slept for what seemed like hours. When he woke, it was nearly eleven a.m. He got up, showered, dressed, and then made some coffee. Looking at his condo, he realized he needed to clean it when he got home. 

Marcus was about to leave when there was something tossed at his window.

Looking at his window, he saw something else hit the big bay window in his living room.

Marcus sat his coffee down and walked over to where the window was. There was blood all over his window.

Marcus was now freaking out.

When he crept outside, he noticed that it wasn’t just nothing hitting his front window. Blood was all over his grass, the garage, and the front door. Then something hit him in the face. It was bloody and slimy. He pulled the fleshy substance off his face and realized it was brain matter.

Marcus dropped it to the ground and backed up. Looking out towards the street, there was a man – a very tall man in a black suit wearing a brimmed hat and grinning at him. His face was pale like a ghost’s, and his eyes were black. The grin was sinister, and Marcus felt his blood turn cold as he looked into the man’s eyes. 

He noticed the man pointing at him. Marcus looked at him, trying to figure out what he was telling him. Then he saw a note on the ground. Marcus picked up the note and read it.

Fresh FROM JOE

STAY HOME

ENJOY THEM

Marcus ran back into the house, and the brains kept hitting the window until Marcus could take it no more.  He called Dr. Leads.

“I can’t do this!”

“What did they do?” he asked Marcus. “I told you this would not be easy.”

“Joe’s brains are all over my front door and windows.”

“You have met the Dream Weaver.” Dr. Leads said. “He will be gone, and so will the brains when you go outside. Go now and tell me if you still see the brains.”

Marcus walked outside and sauntered towards the sidewalk. 

The pale phantom was no longer there. The blood was gone.

He picked up his cell phone and spoke. “It’s all gone.”

“He is a trickster. Unfortunately, that means Tanner knows you are helping us.”

“Yes, Tanner does know.”

Marcus looked up from his phone. Standing before him was the man he had met at Joe’s funeral—Tanner.

“Hang up, Marcus, before I sever you from limb to limb without a saw.”

“Marcus? Marcus, don’t hang up!” Dr. Leads was screaming in a panic.

Marcus did as told, all the while feeling something gripping him around the neck and forcing him back into his condo.

Tanner smiled at Marcus. “Nice place you have here,” he said sarcastically, looking at the mess Reese had left.

“I was robbed.”

“Yes, I know. Reese and that stupid Doctor Leads.”

“They say you hurt Joe.”

“Hmm,” Tanner said.

“What?” Marcus asked, getting annoyed at all of this.

“I didn’t hurt him. He was playing a game, and he lost. So, since you are so intent on helping your dead friends and bosses. I think that is what I should call them since they hired Joe only to get him killed. If you win, I will gladly take the curse off Reese so he can return to his family. But I will not give them the Book of the Void.”

“Why not?”

“Powerful magic for pretenders isn’t really in my 10th house. Although ambition is very fruitful, so are good friendships. We could be friends, Marcus. You don’t want to hurt anyone; you are one of the few men I have met with genuine concern for others. That should not go unnoticed. Here is what I propose. If you can play my treasure hunt game and get everything on my list- just ten items I require to aid your new friend Reese by Midnight tomorrow, I will cure Reese. I promise to leave Dr. Leads and his family alone as well.”

“What about me? What will happen to me?”

“Probably nothing. Unless you die trying to get the items on my little scavenger hunt. I promise you it won’t be easy.”

“You want me to do this for Reese and to keep the Doctor safe. But you still haven’t told me what will happen to me if I do this for you?”

“Do you agree or not?” Tanner asked.

“Yes, I guess-“

Suddenly, Marcus found himself in a room with a baby. He had no idea how he had suddenly been in another house, another room; it was as if he had teleported here. It was dark, and the list was in Marcus’s hand. In his other hand was a dagger that was not in his hand before he arrived in the room with the child. The first item on the list said, “Get the heart by any means necessary.“

Marcus nearly barfed, looking at the baby. It was a newborn and sleeping peacefully. Surely, Tanner didn’t want him to cut the child’s heart out. That would be absolutely disgusting and would go against everything he believed in.  Suddenly, the baby woke up and saw Marcus standing over his crib. The child let out a scream and began to cry. 

Marcus knew the parents would come rushing in any second.  Without thinking, Marcus picked up the child and cradled it. 

“Shh Shh, it is okay; Uncle Marcus is here,” he said. 

He looked down suddenly and noticed a silver heart pendant under the child’s bed. It looked as if it had a small case with some crystals attached to it.

Suddenly, the door burst open, and a ghoulish figure with rotted teeth, fuzzy blue hair, and green skin came through, running at Marcus. Marcus quickly grabbed the silver pendant with crystals and backed away with the child. 

“Give it to me now!”

Marcus looked at the baby and couldn’t imagine giving this child to this grotesque thing. Marcus then remembered he had the dagger. Without thinking, he held up the dagger and stabbed the monstrous figure.

Within seconds, the figure was lying on the floor of the baby’s room, dead, with its tongue hanging out, swollen as if it had gone into anaphylactic shock.

A woman came running in at that exact moment.

“You saved him! Oh, my baby! You are a hero. I don’t care where you came from, but you saved my baby!”

Marcus grinned. “Um, you’re welcome, I guess. Sorry, I can’t stay,” he said, rushing out of the house with the first item on the scavenger list.

Almost immediately, he received a text.

“GOOD JOB, CLARENCE WILL COLLECT NOW.”

Looking up from the text, he saw that ghoulish phantom Dr. Leads called the Dream Weaver. 

Clarence held his white hand out, and Marcus handed the creature the pendant.

It grinned at Marcus, then vanished.

Marcus looked around, realizing he was standing in the middle of an intersection, trying to figure out where he was. Then he saw a sign that said ERIE PENNSYLVANIA. How the hell did he get from all the way across the country to Erie? 

It was at that exact moment that Marcus knew he was either fucked three ways sideways, or he was about to embark on the most incredible adventure of his life.

As he thought this, a semi-truck drove by, splashing Marcus with muddy water.

Marcus looked up at the truck as it drove past him. The driver honked his horn at him.

Marcus hurried out of the street. He realized he might not be in the best area when he reached a side street. There were rundown buildings, and he found himself on a dead-end street.

Marcus pulled out his phone.

Marcus texted Dr. Leads to let him know he was okay and not to worry. He had passed the first test.

Marcus sighed. He only had nine more tasks to go.

As soon as he thought it, he saw a bright light ahead. It looked like a floating ball in the sky. Marcus knew this wasn’t a coincidence. He reluctantly followed it. He had to help Reese and Dr. Leads even if it killed him. Ultimately, he might still be at the whims of Tanner and his magical gang of fiends.

Marcus ran toward the light, and that was when he saw it. It settled in front of an old Motel. The sign in front said JETTS MOTEL. It was one of those motels that should be in a horror movie. Marcus knew he had till midnight the following day. Sleep was off the table, so why had Tanner’s scavenger hunt brought him here?

Marcus walked up to the front door and went inside the old motel. There was an old woman at the counter reading a magazine. She had a large mole on her chin that you couldn’t miss, and her clothes looked dirty. She appeared to be waiting for something, but what?

“You want by the hour?” she asked, not even looking up from her magazine. “If so, that will be 35. If you stay the night, it is seventy-five.”

“Um, I’m not sure-“

“He is with me, Sandy, ” said a woman suddenly emerging from one of the rooms.

“Fine, you still owe me from last week. Don’t forget.” the old woman said, still not taking her eyes off the magazine.

Marcus hesitantly went with the young woman. She was pretty but dressed very oddly—in a space alien costume.

“I’m Betty. You here for Tanner?”

“How did you know?”

“I brought you here, silly. Do you know why you are here?”

Marcus shook his head.

“I thought it was for your little scavenger hunt.”

“Oh, that,” Marcus said nervously.

Marcus looked around the room. The bed, lamps, and wallpaper were all pink. Pink flowers were on the wallpaper, and dark green vines went up the walls. It looked like something from fifty years ago.

“Don’t be so skittish. This one is easy. All Tanner wants you to do is give me a kiss. After you do, your next clue will come to you like magic.”

Marcus eyed her up for a second. Her face had glitter on her pink cheeks. Her hair was blue, and her outfit was some kind of silver body suit. Her lips were shiny and pink. She looked at Marcus with a sort of sexual desire. Marcus began to get nervous.

“Oh my gosh, let me do it!” Betty said impatiently.

Betty grabbed him by the cheeks and planted her lips on his.

Marcus froze up like when Jennifer Gillis kissed him in the seventh-grade closet.

Betty began to use her tongue and opened his mouth gently. Marcus found this sensation pleasurable. This may not be so bad. Betty caressed his cheeks, and a subtle moan came out of her mouth. Marcus swore her tongue tasted like cotton candy. He opened his eyes and then realized the entire room had changed. Betty was smoking something with green smoke coming out of it. She was giggling, and then the room began to change. The walls melted in front of Marcus. There was a lamp on the table by a bed with a pink bedspread that started to dance.

Marcus closed his eyes and then opened them again to what now appeared to be a green forest filled with pink flowers. It was as if the wallpaper had come to life. There was no music playing, and all the plants inside the wallpaper were dancing and making love with each other. Marcus fell onto the bed. He felt something touching his leg, and when he opened his eyes, he saw Betty smiling. He didn’t know what she was trying to do, but it felt amazing. He opened his eyes and looked up at the ceiling. Marcus could see words forming on the ceiling above him.

The word Slaughter House appeared to him. He found himself unable to think anymore. The sensations were taking hold. Marcus closed his eyes, feeling pleasure hitting every part of his body.

The next thing he knew, he was in Betty’s bed. The room was normal, and no words were on the ceiling.

He looked around the room.

“Darling, did you get your message?”

The voice that greeted him wasn’t the woman from the night before. He stood looking at the most hideous creature he’d ever seen. Her face was like that of a toad.

Marcus began to feel sick.

“It’s okay, honey. It happens to everyone. Here is a bottle of water. You went on a little trip last night. You kissed me and got a bit of venom so you could see the message I needed to give you. Tanner said to tell you that you have only sixteen more hours.”

“What?”

“Oh, no worries, honey. You were only trippin’ for fifteen minutes. It feels like days, though. Well, better get a move on.”

With that, Marcus ran out of the motel. When he left, he saw the motel disappear from view as if it were hiding itself.

Marcus shook his head. Above him, a full moon cowardly stood behind bleak clouds as Marcus sauntered into the night.