The Devil's Daughter by Clifford Beck - HTML preview

Chapter 39

The sun rose with the morning fog as it rolling down from the mountains, filling the valleys of the Carpathians. The air was still, and life had not yet shown itself from its many burrows and nesting places. It seemed that the very early morning was far less frightening than the remainder of the day as most of the village, still tucked into the warmth of their beds, lay adrift in the comfort of a misty world, far beyond mortal reach.

Nelu was always up just before the morning sun, leaving his wife and daughter to continue their slumber. As he drank his coffee, he quietly walked to Alina's room. Her door was always left open, making it easier for her parents to check on her. And as Nelu leaned against the door frame, he stared at Alina's sleeping face. It had been barely four months since taking her in, and in spite of the short time she had been with them, Nelu and Anca had come to love her as though she had been born from their union. As he continued watching her, his mind became overrun with the looks and comments made by a great many of the village's people. He used to think of them as family but they had become divided by harsh words, snap judgments, and fear. Now, he had come to wonder if he could trust them, in the event of a crisis. Certainly, the coming exodus would qualify, and everyone would have to work together. However, there had been a few issues of courage as some preferred to disappear into their homes, rather than pursue something that screamed like a woman giving birth.

With every passing minute, the morning sun continued pouring towards the cold mountains, illuminating the trees and warming the village’s many rooftops. As the house began to fill with light, Nelu heard a stirring coming from their bedroom, and shortly, Anca walked out, her eyes filled with sleep. Walking through the house, she stepped up to the doorway of Alina's room and seeing Nelu's concerned expression, put a comforting hand on his back. “It's going to be alright,” she said. He put an arm around her shoulder, as they continued looking at their daughter with worried eyes. But as Anca settled her head into Nelu's shoulder, both were startled by a sudden scream. They looked at each other with fearful expressions, as Anca inquired about its odd tone. "That's not the creature, is it?

Turning away, Nelu grabbed his rifle and started towards the door.

“No,” he replied. “It doesn't come out during the day.” Anca glanced at Alina, as Nelu hurried out the door.

Running outside, Nelu heard another ear-shattering scream, followed by hysterical crying, and following it, was brought to something the entire village would grieve over. There, at the edge of the tree-line, on her knees, was Sabina, crying for help. Gavril, consumed with grief and guilt had, sometime before dawn, walked to the back of their house, thrown a rope over a tree limb and hung himself. Before he had been discovered, his body hung motionless in the cool, predawn air, without the slightest breeze to sway his remains. Putting down his rifle, Nelu ran up to her and easing her aside, pulled out his knife, and cut Gavril's body down. Now, lowering him to the ground, he urged Sabina to retrieve the village doctor. But, in her hysterical state, he felt forced into physically helping her up and more aggressively prompting her, without being cruel.

Getting to her feet, Sabina clumsily ran through the village, frantically looking for the doctor. As she searched, Nelu tried to revive Gavril, shaking and shouting, while loosening his clothing. Yet, Gavril had been dead far too long to be saved, and it didn't take long for Nelu to realize that he was beyond help. Nelu looked down at Gavril's face and couldn't help noticing its ghastly expression. His skin was a pale yellowish-white. His mouth drawn into a broad open smile and his eyes open as the muscles his face drooped with gravity. Having cut the rope from around his neck, Nelu also saw the bruising it had left behind. But as he sat back, hopeless of Gavril's recovery, he noticed something far more disturbing. Just behind where Gavril's body had been dangling, only moments ago, was a patch of ground covered with moist yellowish material, and crawling only a few feet, he carefully inspected it, finding a small scattering of thin bone shards as well. Seeing this, Nelu came to the conclusion that this was likely the only remains of the infant, stolen away merely hours ago. This was what was left of Gavril and Sabina's new baby.

It seemed to take forever, yet only minutes had passed before Sabina returned with the doctor and with them, arrived a handful of sympathetic onlookers. By this time, most of those who had heard the gunshot just hours ago were wakened again by Sabina's panicked screams. They came out, still dressed in their nightclothes, and seeing Gavril's body sent those of weaker fortitude into tears. Now, with Sabina standing close by, the doctor knelt down and examined what was now a lifeless shell. He recognized death at a glance, but continued in his thoroughness, trying to give Sabina some small bit of hope for her deceased husband's survival. He looked up at Nelu and slightly shook his head.

“He should be buried,” he whispered. “Sooner, rather than later.”

In spite of the doctor's intention to keep his words nearly silent, Sabina was close enough to hear every word and fell to the ground, shrieking in the pain of losing both her husband and child within the space of only a few hours.

As the rest of the village began to wake, Nelu began the grim task of digging a shallow grave, roughly three feet deep. He made quick work of it, yet he knew that Gavril's last resting place would not be deep enough to keep his remains from nightly scavengers or the creature, still in their midst. There were, however, some who had slept through the chaos of the previous night and now, stood shocked as another of their neighbors was slowly lowered into the cold earth.

Within a short time after the burial, news of both deaths swept through the village, peaking everyone's fears and forcing some to wonder if they or their children might be next. Now, it was hastily decided that the entire village would meet in the church. It would be far easier than going from house to house, and the establishment of order could begin by addressing everyone at once. As the congregation hall filled, the elders also entered, having been notified first and sitting in front of the crowd, they called for quiet. Ileana paused a moment to collect her thoughts, not knowing exactly what words to use, but also wanting to avoid a panicked exodus from the village. “I'm sure all of you know what has happened to our village,” she began. “Having no means to fight the creature that has been attacking us, it has been decided that we will leave – that we will abandon our home.” The congregational hall suddenly erupted in a cacophony of emotion, as everyone tried to process what had never been considered. One woman spoke up while clutching her child. “Where will we go? The woods are crawling with wolves!”

“After we are organized,” Ileana replied. “We will make our way to Targu Mures. From there, we will find some workable land.”

The loud murmur resumed as the hall filled with anxiety. Now, a middle-aged man voiced his own concerns.

“What about the creature? We would be safer in our homes, wouldn't we?”

Ileana called on Nelu to help calm their fears. “The creature only comes out at night, so if we leave first thing tomorrow morning, we should be safe.”

“What if you're wrong?!” another shouted. “How many of us will die trying to leave?!”

Fear had transformed itself into anger, as the voice of protest rose from the crowd. Again, Nelu stepped in. “Everyone, please,” he began. “If there is anyone here who doesn't want to leave, then they don't have to. No one will be forced to go.”

The hall fell silent as people began to consider their options. But in the end, there was only a small handful of people who would stay and likely die. For most, the choice was clear, while a few saw walking away as giving up. However, they too would also leave.

Nelu, as well as the elders held the belief that everyone, despite the shock they felt, would see the logic in escaping the danger that had been haunting the village. But, they also understood the bond one can share with the land, with home. So, it was agreed that those who wanted to leave would join the caravan to Targu Mures while choosing to stay would risk their lives, as well as the lives of their families. Nelu, trying not to give away his suspicions, deeply believed that those remaining would likely be dead within the week but he honored their decisions, nonetheless.

Stepping back, Nelu glanced at Ileana with a silent request that she continue, being the elder who was most respected by the village.

“We will begin organizing today,” she said. “At first light, we will leave. But we must be calm and orderly. We cannot afford to panic. And take only what you can carry.”

A frightened voice rose from within the crowd. “Why can't we leave now?”

Ileana had already anticipated this question and was prepared with an answer.

"We need to take our time getting organized, and it's going to be a very long walk – for everyone. So the earlier we leave, the more time we'll have.”

Everyone seemed to be satisfied with her answer and seeing the congregational hall, once again, fall silent, she dismissed them with one last set of instructions. “Take your time. Make sure your children are close by and be sure to get a good night's sleep. We have a long journey ahead of us.”