Sample of Primal fear
Comme promis, voici un extrait traduit de Peur primale :
Seven o’clock in the afternoon, the dinner can begin.
On the menu: turkey escalope, green peas and potatoes. Afterwards, Jacques went to his office to continue the story he was writing.
It was about an old woman who had lost everything she possessed because of a fraudulent affair and who does all she can to win justice and reparation. He connected his computer, opened “Word” and started typing his notes. He was concentrated on his work, not paying attention to the crying kids who were playing out there under his windows. He tapped away on the keyboard before getting tired after three hours. He began to make a nosedive and finally fell asleep.
He was gone for a very strange trip on some island with the sole company of the sharks. He lived on exotic fruits. At night, a mist filled all the lands around. He started to feel dozy and slept on the warm sand.
He was sleeping peacefully when he heard a noise coming from the woods behind him and woke up with a start. He searched for where the noise came from, looking worried when he saw three pretty young women coming out of the grove and wearing only a piece of cloth covering their private parts. Then Jacques slowly felt relaxed and he even surprised himself by smiling. These beauties got nearer and sat around him. Two of them were carrying leaves from a banana tree and were beating them to make some air; as for the third one, she started to rub his feet. Jacques was happy and relaxed and at the same time, a little ashamed.
Everything was perfect for him when he could not help noticing a change in his three visitors as time passed. One of them smiled but it was not the same kind and warm smile as before. Jacques could feel it within his heart and soul; something bad and not very reassuring. By looking closer, he even noticed one or two decayed teeth as black as ebony. Another was nothing but skin and bone and her limbs were covered with scabs. Jacques felt gastric reflux burning his throat. He was about to vomit but he did not know why, something was preventing him from it. The joy he experienced when he had seen these three ladies in their birthday suits turned into a real disgust. He now wished to be away. One of the woman came nearer and try to kiss him but her breath smelt like a corpse in decomposition. The putrid odour coming out of her mouth was unbearable and Jacques was struggling to not breathe the emanation. Nevertheless, they were too strong and the poor guy could not fight back any longer. At this moment, Jacques wished he could run away but the fear was rooting him to the spot and he could not move. The woman approached slowly, very slowly, her lips and kissed him and it was as if all the rubbish in the world had penetrated his very soul.
Jacques finally fainted. When he came round he was tied up to a pole on a land full of dead bodies. He was strongly bound to this pole by ropes and could not free himself. The crows were flying around and croaking to his eardrums. One by one they slowly swooped down on Jacques, ate on his flesh. He felt, little by little, an intolerable pain. His vision blurred but he had time to see what was going to happen (he saw another man attached to another pole… dead) and he felt petrified.
Jacques started sweating and screamed with all his might; a scream that ripped up the calm of that desolated land. A big raven stood before him and fed on his eyes. He felt a powerful pain and the darkness fell upon his now motionless body.
Jacques woke up, covered in sweat and a little shiver down his spine. He began to feel cold and rubbed himself to get warm while looking around him, he was in his room. He was relieved. He went to the bathroom, turned on the tap and splashed his face with water. Then he looked into the mirror and what he saw froze him with terror. Before him stood a decaying body. Jacques almost puked up his innards. He fell from his bed; his eyes were stinging.
Enjoy!
