Free Candy: Part 6
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The morning itself was bleak. An early fog had yet to lift, and it caressed the cemetery with a grim yet gentle touch. Emma stood in somber silence as a man spoke a eulogy to those who had gathered near.
Emma closed her eyes and tried to hold back tears with no success. The casket had been lowered, and the crowd slowly dispersed. Cassie's mother, Kate, stopped near Emma and they embraced in sorrow.
"I'm so sorry. I..I just wish..." Emma stuttered. She wanted to tell Kate that it should have been her. She should have died that day. Kate seemed to hear the words Emma couldn't say.
"Don't you blame yourself." Kate said with a rasp and a quiver.
"Cassie was so happy with you. That's all I ever wanted her to be. Don't let this moment take you down. That's what Cassie would say. You know it. I know it. Please, stay in touch. For me. For her." Kate said, sniffing her nose hard and embracing Emma once more. Emma squeezed back.
As Kate left, Emma saw two men standing in the distance under a tree. They were staring at her, their eyes piercing across the graveyard. The shorter one lit a cigarette and gestured his head towards Emma. As Kate’s words swirled in her head, echoing in Cassie's voice, Emma found herself calm. Calm, yet angry.
She was tired of the fear that had filled her days. The fear that had lingered from the loss of her parents was now amplified by the events at the diner. It had always been in her, an internal anchor that pulled at her insides every day.
No more.
No more fear. No more wondering why. Emma walked to the tree where the men stood, her hands clenched into fists. The two men saw her approach, and shifted around as if bracing for impact. Emma got close to them, stopped and folded her arms.
"Who the hell are you? Why are you watching me?" Emma spat.
The two men exchanged a glance between each other. The short one chuckled to himself while the tall man adjusted his coat and then spoke with a deep voice.
"Emma Derkins. We have been trying to reach you for a few days."
"Yeah, I know. Why?" Emma asked sharply. The man put up his hands in a defensive manner.
"Listen, I'm sorry for your loss. Let me start again. I am Agent Redding, this is Agent Kessel." Redding said with a smile.
"You cops?" Emma interjected. Redding shook his head.
"Not quite. Listen, we’re here to help." Redding said, trying to be polite.
"Help? How can you help? You’ll probably just say I'm crazy. That's what they said when I got to the hospital. I'm sure that's what they told you. So listen, you can fuck off, alright? I don't need you bothering me." Emma snapped. She whirled around and began to storm away but Kessel called out to her, "There wasn't a driver, was there?" This stopped Emma in her tracks. She stood as still as the gravestones that dotted her surroundings.
"You're not crazy. We know all about this piece of shit van." Kessel said. Emma slowly began to turn back around.
"Yeah, there is no driver." Kessel said as he put out his cigarette. Emma had eased her way back towards them, her face twisted with shock and anger.
"What is it then?" Emma asked quietly.
"A van possessed." Kessel snickered at his own pun. Emma lunged at him and grabbed him by the coat.
"Are you fucking with me right now?" Emma said through clenched teeth. Kessel worked her hands off of his coat. Redding edged between them, trying to be a buffer.
"Not at all. We've been tracking this thing across five states. Lost the scent about a year ago. And now we're here." Kessel gave Emma a dirty look as he straightened out the wrinkles in his coat. Redding then jumped in.
"We want what you want. To catch it. Destroy it." Redding said. Emma now looked confused, shaking her head and looking down to her feet.
Then the screams began.
Emma's head snapped up and she swung around on her heels. Kessel and Redding reacted to the sound as well, as all three stepped out from under the tree.
Far across the cemetery, a white van was snaking around on the grass, smashing gravestones as it drove. The van drove in controlled chaos, its wheels tearing at the sacred ground below sending chunks of mud flying behind it.
As it trampled over old graves, it headed straight towards another funeral happening within the cemetery.
"Oh God no." Emma whispered as she covered her mouth.
"Oh this is fucked." Kessel said with disgust.
The van caught air as it barreled towards the panicked crowd of mourners trying to escape. The engine roared something demonic as its front grill met with flesh.
The van disappeared behind a wave of fleeing people, a black tide of terrified humans rushed along the cemetery field. Bodies began to pop up into the air behind the front of the crowded escape, some accompanied by a red mist that glistened in the lifting fog. The van finally crested the front of the crowd, the last ones in front crushed underneath its viscous path.
The van drove in the direction of Emma. Kessel tried to pull her back, but Emma broke free and ran at the oncoming nightmare.
"Why me?! Why?!" She shouted. The van slowed as it approached. Emma had become steadfast, her fists clenched as she fought off Redding and Kessel and they tried to wrangle her away from the van.
"Come on then! Come on! Are you a fucking coward?" Emma shrieked as she shook free and continued towards the van. The van turned slowly, exposing its graffiti. The mud and grass on the side seemed to burn away around the word "Candy".
Emma mouthed the word, and the Candy's engine revved once more. Candy spun donuts over the graves, sending a torrent of heavy mud at Emma. It hit her hard, knocking her back as it splattered over her face.
Candy sped off, breaking through the fencing around the cemetery and down the nearby road. Redding and Kessel got to Emma and helped her up. Emma was a mess, her body covered head to toe in graveyard mud. Her eyes were stoic as she wiped her face. She looked at Redding, and then to Kessel.
"I want it dead." Emma spoke with a harsh whisper.
"So do we." Kessel said.
"What do you need me to do?" Emma asked. The two men exchanged a fiercely serious look, then beckoned Emma to follow them.
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