Brad and Ashleigh slipped away from the Halloween party undetected. He retrieved his backpack from its hiding place in the Student Union Rose Garden. Stripping off their costumes, they exchanged them for street clothes and a pint of purloined vodka. After returning the bag to its thorny sanctuary, they began the fifteen-minute walk to the edge of Henshaw forest.
Caladine Prep students were forbidden from leaving campus after curfew without permission.
“We don’t need no stinking permission!” Brad laughed at his fractured impression of the classic movie line. He offered her a swig of vodka, and they celebrated their clever escape with a kiss. Bathed in moonlight, they wended their way down the lane leading to the access road adjacent to the forest. No passing cars disturbed the quiet. Paradise was a short walk away.
Brad nearly stumbled when Ashleigh laughed and pushed him against a tree at the entrance to the forest. “We made it! It’s going to be so hot when we do it on Satan’s Rock at midnight.” As she nuzzled his neck and licked his earlobe, he sighed happily intending to let her bask in the wonders of his body’s response. His hormones had other plans.
“Why wait?” he hissed reaching for her belt buckle. His smirk dissolved as she deftly wriggled away.
“Stick with the plan,” she said. “If I’m giving up my virginity, it’s going to be epic. I just wanted to be sure you’re up to the task.”
“Oh. I’m up for it.” He pressed her hand against his crotch and she blushed. “Let’s get moving. Enough teasing, Ash. Let’s find that damned rock!”
As they ventured deeper into the woods, grotesquely twisted trees resembled malevolent creatures. The thick moist air smelled of rotting leaves and decay. A gentle chilling wind wafted through the trees as random leaves tumbled to the ground. Brad preened like a peacock as Ashleigh shuddered and grabbed his arm. The forest was doing half the work for him. Scared chicks can’t get enough of big strong protectors, and he was going to enjoy every minute of playing the macho hero.
Soon, a canopy of thick foliage blocked the moon’s glow. Brad turned on his phone’s flashlight.
Dried leaves crinkled beneath their feet. An owl hooted from an unseen tree branch. Sounds of tiny animal feet scampering through the woods unnerved them. The beam of light from Brad’s phone captured an opossum chewing on a fallen apple. “It’s okay. The little guy’s more afraid of us.” Brad said as the harmless creature fell to the ground and played dead.
“Oh my gosh, did we scare it to death?” Ashleigh squeaked.
He wrapped his arms protectively around her waist sliding his hand under her shirt. “Nah, it’s fine. It’ll run off as soon as we get far enough away.”
“Are you sure?”
“Satan’s Rock! There it is!” Brad gestured toward a large oddly shaped black rock jutting up out of the ground. With the opossum now forgotten, they circled the igneous mass examining its contours. Brad’s camera flashed in unison with Ashleigh’s as they took selfies. “Here.” He said pointing to a smooth indentation on its surface. “This is the perfect spot.” He kissed her and guided her in place. His hands fumbled impatiently with the buttons of her shirt and her zipper. He pulled off his t-shirt and stepped out of his jeans. “Get ready for me to rock your world.”
Brad shrugged sheepishly as she groaned at his cheesy pun, then he pointed to her phone. “Hold it up so we can make a video, or no one will believe us.” He smiled and nuzzled her neck.
“Just a moment,” a voice called out from above them.
Ashleigh screamed while reaching frantically for her discarded clothing. Brad cursed as his erection quickly disappeared.
“Dude, seriously? What the heck? Can’t a guy get some on Halloween? Have a little respect for the bro code, will ya?” he shouted. Brad reached for his boxers and hurriedly pulled on his jeans. He looked up and gasped at the monstrous creature with horns and a tail standing atop Satan’s Rock. Then he laughed. “Great costume! Do you dress up like the devil and do this every year? It’s kind of funny, but not cool. My girl and I have been planning this night for weeks, and…”
Brad stopped mid-sentence and struggled to control his bladder after the creature mimicked his laugh and leapt to the ground. His eyes grew wide as the figure rose to its full height of seven, maybe eight feet. Its skin glistened changing from a golden bronze to fiery red, then greenish black. Red eyes glowed as if flames were dancing across the pupils. Its feet resembled cloven hooves. Long graceful fingers ended in sharp bird-like talons. The barbed tail swung playfully toward Ashleigh.
“Are we being punked?” Brad tried to disguise the tremble in his voice.
“Are we being punked?” The creature repeated. It laughed and ogled Ashleigh’s trembling figure. “She’ll do nicely.” It glanced dismissively at Brad. “I don’t feel like trifling with you at the moment, so you may go, but heed my warning. You must return to my rock each Halloween with a woman of equal beauty for my pleasure. If you do not, I will unleash the hounds of Hell to devour you and everyone you love.”
“Brad! Don’t leave me.” Ashleigh pleaded. “Brad! Don’t leave me.” It mocked.
He backed away slowly. “Sorry Ash. There’s nothing I can do.”
The creature struck Brad’s chest three times in rapid succession, then pushed Ashleigh against the rock covering her with its body. Ashleigh screamed as the flames licked at her flesh and the two melded with Satan’s Rock. The ashes of her burning clothing swirled through the air carried away by an icy wind.
Brad ran through the forest trying to escape the sounds of Ashleigh’s screams and the creature’s sated moans. Once he was safely back at his dorm, he collapsed and fell into a fitful sleep.
When he awakened, he was naked. Three rows of six claw marks were burned across his chest, 666.