Читать книгу And Then There Is Love - Lori Buckman - Страница 1

I couldn’t run anymore. He, also, stopped and gasped for air, his narrow, concave chest heaving noisily. His voice, low and raspy, growled, ‘Wherever you go I’ll follow. You’ll never, never get rid of me.’

I backed up. ‘But why? What have I done now?’

‘You know and you’re glad of it. You disgust me.’

I was incredulous, ‘I disgust you?’

He reached out for me, his fingers long and gnarled, nails sharp and grimy. He hated me. But why? What had I done? I was sickened by him, sickened and terribly frightened. (What kind of a dream was this?) His mouth exuded a nauseous odor of the rotting flesh that was stuck between his sharp, yellow teeth. Despite my fear I leaned forward and squinted. Pus and black blood squeezed out of deep cracks in his wide, wrinkled lips. And just at that moment he burped up a greenish-brown, foul stench. I gagged and held my shaking hand over my nose and mouth. My large, empty stomach heaved and contracted.

The moonlight, previously hidden behind one black cloud, illuminated pustules, welts and scars on his thin, maggot-white body. I shivered in revulsion. He stood so close to me that if I just raised my hand I could touch him.

Just as I thought this, he touched me. His fingers caught on my thin dress and it fell to the moist earth. Oh God! I suddenly saw my fat, ugly body. I tried to cover my nakedness with my tiny hands, but they disappeared in the deep folds surrounding my stomach. He reached out to touch my body, his nail drawing a line from my breast to my maiden hair, and I exclaimed in revulsion, ‘Get away from me!’ for I knew that though I disgusted him he would, first, do to me what was absolutely abhorrent. And yes, he fell on me and pushed me to the ground. His cold and repulsive body wrapped itself around me like a python. The stench of him assailed my nostrils and the countless open sores dabbed thick pus on me. I was frantic to get away from him so, holding my breath, I opened my mouth and bit down on his puny biceps. He yelped and loosened his hold on me, enough so I could scramble up to run to the forest behind me, but my foot snagged a root and I fell on soft, musty soil. As I tried to stand the soil gave way and eager fingers from beneath clawed, grasped and pulled me under. With my remaining strength I pushed to the surface. Gasping for air, I screamed, for the thing - the horror – had crawled over to me. He sat back on his bony haunches, idly wiped away some pus that had oozed from his lips, crossed his wrinkled arms over his protruding ribs, and leaning forward, shouted something obscene, I’m sure. But the sucking and slapping sounds around me thankfully obscured his words.

Just as I took a large breath, the fingers pulled me back under. They dragged me down, down. I glanced up as the feeble moonlight began to fade and I could just make out his ugly face dipping beneath the ooze and mouthing ‘It’s not over!’

Just as I realized that I had to get some air or die, warmth engulfed me in its strong arms. It kissed every inch of me. I began to consider suffocating as long as this, this thing held me.

Just as I made the decision to drown, a gnarled hand grabbed my hair and pulled me back up, away from the warmth. I began to scream but I only inhaled mud. I began to die…