The 5000 Fingers of Bob, pt XI
'"Leave that can and keep movin'!' Jack screamed at us. I turned to look back at Jack as I started walkin' and his face was all beaded up with sweat, eyes bugged out like he had seen somethin' churnin' in the shadows behind him. Ed and I picked up on the look in his eyes like and we started movin' like one body, almost runnin'. We squeezed closer together, crowdin' around the lamp.
"Two more lights streaked past us. I closed my eyes, momentarily blinded by how bright they were. I could have steered us all off a cliff anyhow as fast as we were goin'. It was like the dark ate up the light once it got past arm's reach.
"'Jack, what was that?' Ed asked in a panic. I knew better than to ask because I knew that was a question nobody could have answered.
"'It was just light, now move your asses!' Jack shouted.
"I could swear we ran farther than that house should have had basement. It felt like five minutes by the time we set down.
"'Howie, make a nice big puddle right over there,' Jack said, gesturin' with his head and settin' his two cans down. He took the mop from Ed and as I poured, he spread it out. 'Make sure you splash it up on these wood beams too.'
"Ed held the lamp, givin' us light and bein' the lookout while I poured and Jack mopped. There was old furniture covered in sheets and Jack told me to soak all those down as we worked.
"We came to the can Ed dropped and I pitched the can I had and started with that one. A breeze started kickin' up from behind us and for no reason I can fathom, I turned and lost my lunch. As quick as the nausea hit me it was gone, but I looked away from it because it almost looked like worms wriggling around in clotted up blood.
'"Somebody's comin'!' Ed said in a harsh whisper. We all froze on the spot, listenin' and sure enough, Glenn's voice started echoin' a ways off.
"'Call it off! There's somebody upstairs!' he shouted, wavin' his arms as he raced toward us. Just then one of those balls of light came racin' back from where ever they went to and spun Glenn around, hoverin' just in front of him, twenty feet ahead of us. We all stood there, watchin', waitin' for it to do somethin'.
"'It can't be real,' Ed said so low he had to be talkin' to himself. 'What is that?'
"Glenn grunted like somebody'd punched him hard in the belly and I ran up next to him. I looked down and saw a dark hand holdin' a knife, out of thin air, workin' at his innards like it was shakin' hands with his guts. And he just stood there. Stood there like a deer in headlights.
"I drew my gun, meaning to shoot at the light but it rushed me as I raised my gun. It hit me and I felt like I was under water, but everthing around me had slowed down.
"Glenn was blurry, but still rooted to that spot, a surprised 'O' on his face. I turned to Jack and Ed and everthing turned to black spots for a moment, but then there they were, blurry too, still staring at the back of Glenn's head. There was somebody just in front of Glenn. At first I thought he was frozen too and then I saw his arm directed at Glenn's middle. He was all in shadow, but I saw this thing in his hand glowin' red through Glenn. It was that knife! I pointed my gun at him and shot and there was this explosion like I was shootin' thunder and then all these sounds just started goin' off and I realized it was Ed and Jack screamin' behind me. Whatever had happened to me had passed. I looked by Glenn again and the man was gone.
