Category : Stories

Sub Category : Horror

"You lazy whore!"Norman complains.
 He is in that drunken stance that threatens to get physical if Mary is not careful of what she says.
"I'm sorry, what can I do?"
"The guest will arrive soon! I will not have our neighbors talking about my lazy slut of a wife!" 
 Another hateful moment swallowed deep into the abyss of forgiveness Mary has to endure. She often struggles for reasons why she still cares about him. 
"Where's the princess?"Norman ask as he lays down his glass of straight scotch upon the table.
"She 17, she nobody's princess any more." 
 Mary continues to stare down at her shoes to avoid eye contact. Her eyes tell that she is not being submissive out of fear, but of weariness. So tired is she, often she would think how sweet it be if Norman's abuse would go a slight to far. She would be dead but she would be free…Then she thinks of April. 
 She was the princess of the household, their only child. As only children come, she was spoiled rotten by the age of eight. Pride and joy of her father's. Then the inevitable stage of teenage rebellion struck. Father and daughter became bitter enemies. So now when drunken Norman refers to his daughter as princess, it's meant as resentment. 
 Mary stood on the sidelines through the ordeal of raising their daughter and her drunken abusive father. She comforted April after the storm of her father's fury had cleared. She stroked Norman's ego to try to keep his tempers calm. However, as a neutral mother, she could never save her daughter. Only comfort her through the pain. 
The clock struck twelve.. 
 Mary often thought these annual midnight parties was quite odd for a neighborhood steppin soon into their golden years. Just as the last bell chimed, there came a knock at the door. Standing upon the family stoop is Mrs.Ruth Felgerme. Norman often refered to her as the neighborhood nose. Simply because she thought her nose belong into everything. When she is around, the rumor mill is on full steam.
"I hear the Brother Werners got caught with illegal gambling debts."
"If they are debts, wouldn't it be to late to be charge with the crime?" Mary questions Ruth and Ruth just snears, then makes her way inside. 
 Up along the path to the family's doorway comes the Brothers Werners. The good ole drinking pals when Norman is silly fun drunk Norman. These two often play as Norman's yes men of the neighborhood as well. Whatever goes down, goes through Brother Werners, and then too Norman. Where he makes a few choices from the easy chair he uses as a throne. This is the main reason the neighborhood shows up for the midnight party. Norman is their king and this night is there homage.
 And this night is for Norman to once again appreciate his favorite horror flicks with his constitutes. Norman, drunk, abusive behind close doors, friendly but firm to the people, had a love for cinematic horror. He spends guy nights researching the epitomy of voilence and gore ever to grace a screen. Then the annual neighborhood horror-a-thon, as Norman has dubbed April 15. The joke that it is national tax day. Norman takes the joke a little further by asking for money as homage. 
 So there came the Cartinos. A family of three, husband, wife and baby. They have always seem sweet. They just keep a low profile and only socialize with the neighborhood when they have to. 
 Then last, is the Elder Thane. He had been in this neighborhood when it was nothing but a few houses lost in the sea of forest. Elder Thane loves to reminisce of it's beauty. He also manages the teenagers of the neighborhood if they want a summer job landscaping neighbor's lawns. April worked for him on many occasions.
 Come to think of it..  She might still do from time to time. It had been hard for Mary to keep track of April anymore, and unless April is drowning in a bottle of scotch, her father wouldn't even think about her whereabouts. 
 All the guest arrive. They pay homage to Norman in the Easy-Throne and then find their own seating. Norman stands before his throne addressing his people. 
"Welcome neighbors, to the annual Norman Horror-a-Thon. Tonight, I have a special treat. The film that been banned out of superstitious reasons...  What I am saying folks is that this film was not banned for gore, or any reason that they could deem it smut. No..They banned it for the incredible fast spreading rumors about it turning people mad.The truth will come out tonight. Strap your sanity in tight and prepare for.... "The Luciferian Nightscape" 
Norman signals the older Werners to switch off the lights. The neighborhood, in that one room, has been cast in darkness. There is murmurs drifting in the pitch black. Then a flash, a lightning bolt lit up a church upon the screen. Darkness again...A scream peirces through the silences and noticibly causes the neighborhood to jump. A logo appears on the screen depicting an eyeball Mary thought had to be female. The name written under the bottom lip is the company name, Mother Death Corp. 
 A scene of a white room, with red neon light bulbs as trim, comes onto the screen. For a good half an hour this goes on. Just a room, and a ugly one at that. Fifteen minutes in, Ruth had began speaking.
"My sister had told me a dark secret. She said she had known for a very long time. However, she kept it secret to protect the neighborhood she so loved. Her father had killed every child he ever produced."
"So you have different fathers?" Mary asked the more believable question first. Next was, Why was her sister not killed?
"No..We have the same father. I watched him kill all his children. The pain they all endured as he tortured us……them…to death." 
Mary wondred if Ruth had more then Norman had to drink tonight. 
 Finally, something happens in the movie. The door opens sounding like it belonged in an old black and white flick. Yet, the room looked modern and well maintained. In walked the most beautiful warthog that has ever been. It takes a seat at the table. Music of a deep almost pornographic funk began to play. The camera gives the warthog's immaculate face a closer perspective. The creature speaks and speaks in a civilized manor.
"Would you believe that I am not here?Would you believe you do not breathe air?All those you love, or pretend to love, fucking hate you!" 
This makes Norman cheer, therefore the neighborhood to cheer. The warthog continues..
"I hate you..Why not..I lived with you you're entire life. I watched you grow up spiteful and abusive towards the fairer sex. What's fair about being the whipping girl for your self hatred? You do not deserve existence. Give into him and his hate will see you through."
 Norman's heart felt like it jumped and then froze half way up his throat. Who is this thing talking to? Was this some kind of trick? And still the warthog goes on.
"You created life, took your joy of life, and when life got hard, you drank hard. The one female you treated with love and respect, you turned your back to forever shadowing her out of your mind. You ripped a poor baby girl's ego apart." 
Ruth began to speak up.                      "Oh, remember those times when April was twelve and working for Elder Thane. She sure spent alot of time with him. More so then any other kid on the block. I swear she could of bought you all a fancy steak dinner that month. Sure cruel thing what lust does to a child." 
 Say what you will of Norman. He has ignored many years with his family drowning in glass after glass of scotch. He also never been stupid and he picked up what Ruth meant. All reason left Norman as the beast of his drunken rage took control. He sat idly by, pawning his daughter off to that prehistoric pedophile. And there that monster sat on a stool across from him. Norman goes to lunge at him, but an unseen force pins him to the Eazy-Throne.
"You're daughter had been so sweet to me. Think of all those beers you ask her the money for. Her favors payed to get you drunk." Elder Thane says as he smiles at Norman. 
In April's voice.."Sure Daddy, this is the last time, only cause I love you. I know you're hurting." 
And then Elder Thane begins again in his own voice."Did it hurt you as much as it hurt her? Innocence lost does come at a cost with pain." 
 The Elder Thane's sinister smile feels like a drill into Norman's skull. Norman's mentality begins to rip as his mind screams, This is hell!..This is fucking hell!!
 Everyone fell silent as April walked into the room.
"Why did you hurt me?..Why?" 
 In Norman's hands appears an axe. The axe his father had kept and threaten his mother with on many occasions. It is a family heirloom.Ruth speaks..
"That unholy union is producing an offspring. Only one thing to do...Cut the baby out!" 
And a chant has begun.. "Cut the baby out!…Cut the baby out!"
 April breaks down in tears and yet stands firm before her father.
"This child is mine. It will be the only thing that loves me." 
 And the father, with no reason, no logic, just pure anger, hate, and hurt, swung the axe into his daughter's stomach. Again, and Again. Every swing broke another peice of Norman's sanity. He had to remove the cancer he caused. He was supposed to protect her. And instead he murdered her…     All there is left in the empty shell of Norman's mind is the lost echoes of the chanting ghost, again and again…Kill!… Kill!...