Stalking Evil Part I

Returning Home

         Oh, hello there young feller.  I thought that was you.  I was in Eddie's Hardware across the street when I said to myself, Lord, that must be Buddy and Bettie Perkins son, Ricky.  Oh, my apologies, it is Richard now.  Understood my friend.  Boy, it has been a long time.  The last time I saw you, was about thirty years ago.  You were a toddler back then.  Now look at you.  All grown up and looking exceptionally good.  Very nice suit.  I trust the law practice is thriving as it should?  Excellent!!! 

         Hell of a day isn't it?  I prefer the warmer weather, myself.  I have lived in Jackson my whole life and I wouldn't want to live anywhere else, but the winters just about do me in.  Comes up on all of us so quickly too.  I mean one day in late November, you get lucky with a beautiful sixty degree day.  You grab your clubs and head out to Cook Creek Country Club for a round of golf.  Your last of the season, no doubt.  Then a huge Nor'easter slams the coast the next day.  The temps drop way down, the wind howls, and all us old folk head indoors to bitch and moan about the cold temperatures and our arthritis.  There is one point every winter when the snow drifts block up the windows.  Me and the misses are inside with the heat on full blast.  The wife and I are usually engrossed in the latest novels of our liking.  Then she will turn to me and say that she has had it with this cold weather.  She proclaims that this will be our last winter here in Jackson.  She says we will find a nice place in St. Pete or maybe go west to Mesa.  We could never go through with it.  And it isn't for financial reasons.  I worked for the fire department for 35 years.  I am retired now and have a nice nest egg to provide for me and the misses. I made some good investments along the way to boot.  There is something about Jackson that keeps most of us here year after year.  Maybe it is the New England hospitality.  Maybe it is something in the water.  I haven't figured it out yet.  If you figure it out before me, please let me know. 

         Your back in town for your fathers services, I presume?  I am very sorry for your loss.  Buddy was a hell of a man.  We served together in Vietnam.  I knew him very well.  That is what happens to soldiers,  They become very close and care for each other like brothers.  He saved my neck more than once in the jungle.  I saved his ass a few times as well.  We both greased some Gooks along the way.  Thank God we both made it out of that Hell hold alive.  So many young men left in body bags.  It is a shame.  That whole war made no sense, I mean what the hell were we doing there in the first place?  That is one of the big problems with this country.  We need to focus on this country and to Hell with everyone else.  I say we are through being babysitters to the rest of the world.  What do you think?  Have I hit the nail on the head?

         What was that?  Oh yes, things haven't changed much since you left for college twenty years ago.  Come, sit down on this bench.  I want to tell you something.  Here, I have a thermos filled to the brim with the best coffee in town.  That's right, Martina’s Coffee Shack is still here.  Next to Martina's is Eddie's Hardware.  It is nice to see him doing well after all these years.  There was a time when Eddie thought Home Depot would put him out of business, but he is still here and doesn't appear to be going belly up just yet.

         Oh look there, walking north on Ipswich Street.  Mrs. Andrews.  What a big ball of hate she is.  Nope, she hasn't changed one bit.  Look at her, same angry walk.  Same angry scowl on that leathery sun drenched face.  Boy, someone is going to have a nice set of luggage when she kicks it.  Old saddlebags!!!  You would think that the richest bitch in Jackson would be happy.  I guess for some reason, the glass is always half empty with her  I think the old bag should count her blessings and thank the good Lord that she is above ground instead of six feet under pushing up daisies.  I guess some people can never happy.  It is a real shame. 

         Look there goes Paul Sullivan heading into the Mitch Cat Tavern.  Paul goes in at the same time every day for two weeks now.  You can set your watch to it I tell you.  He orders the same thing every day too.  Budweiser’s and an endless bowl of cashews.  His wife, Sharon, filed for divorce and gave him the boot.  He was laid off from his job at the telephone company a month ago.  They tried to hash it out, for a week or so, but I guess this was the last straw for Sharon.  Not sure how long the unemployment checks will keep coming for Paul.  Lots of businesses are cutting back now.  Been that way for the last few years.  I hope it rebounds soon.  So many good people are in it up to their necks.  Now Paul is crashing at his cousin Fred's house for now.  I am sure Fred will join Paul when he finishes his shift at the Bela Mia.  Bela Mia's has the best eggplant parmesan on the north shore. 

         You see that SUV with the pretty girl behind the wheel?  That is Lucy Figurido.  Luce is the Jackson chief fire investigator.  She is the first female in the state to hold that position.  She is great at her job and she has earned that position through blood, sweat, and tears.  Above all this, she had a fiery determination to be the best.  Yes, she is very easy on the eyes as well.  She is single in case you were wondering.  She looks just fine in that SUV.  Red is her color, that is for sure. Right behind her in that unmarked squad car is detective Sean O'Connor.  Talk about a driven individual.  When Sean was ten years old, his father and older sister were murdered.  Let me tell you something sonny, you couldn't stomach the grizzly crime scene photos.  What an awful mess.  Sad, very, very sad.  They never found the perpetrator.  At that moment, Sean knew he wanted to be a cop to avenge his father and sister's murder.  To this day, he hasn't caught his man, but it isn't for lack of trying.  He promised his mother at the funeral that he would find out who was responsible for this heinous crime.

         Look there!  There is a very special young man.  The one there coming out of Louie's Smokehouse.  That right there is Robert Clayton.  They say he has special powers.  What those powers are specifically?  Well, I don't know for sure, but I believe he is special.  Not everyone in this town believes as I do.  Most school days are hard for the little tiger.  Hard to go through life when you are shunned.  I feel he will be just fine in the end.  His mom does a good job with him.  She has had a tough go of it the past few years.  Tough raising a kid by yourself.

         What happened to Pine Hills Prison?  That is a great question.  I bet you saw that on your ride in.  Some big developer from Boston thought it would be a great idea to convert all that land into condos.  The Green's look great but so far they only have half the units filled.  I think it is because there was a lot of horrific evil that happened  up on that hill  a long time ago.  Some say Pine Hills Prison is haunted.  Some of the residence of this newly developed abode say at night they have seen the ghosts of former inmates prowling the woods around the back end units. Some say that is a bunch of codswallop.  I agree with  first group.

         Things around here have been just fine the past few years, but I have a bad feeling that is all about to change for the worst.  Haven't been able to sleep much the past couple nights.  I think these good times they are a changing.  Something is definitely in the air, and I don't like the retched smell of it.  Call me crazy, but my gut tells me there is trouble on the horizon.  The shit storm of all shit storms is coming my friend.  Make the Nor’easter's we get in the winter time look like a cool Florida breeze.  In a word?  Evil.  Mark my words, Richard, we are all in very real trouble.