The New Flesh

Alena wrapped the jacket tightly around her shoulders and kept her head bent against the relentless cold drizzle. Tears tinged with blood dripped down from Alena's battered face and stained the front of her white vinyl windbreaker. Alena did not care to reach up and wipe away these soiled tears from her eyes, she just kept trudging down the darkened country road with one thing consuming her thoughts, revenge.

Alena kept her steady pace until she reached her doorstep. She slowly opened the door so not to disturb her sleeping Grandmother on the couch. Grammy always slept on the couch during her date nights. She did not like Jason, her boyfriend. Grammy warned her multiple times that she saw hostility hiding in his eyes. Alena always laughed it off with a kiss to Grammy's cheek.

"Jason is the most gentle creature on this planet, he would never hurt a fly!" Alena would assure Grammy.

Grammy would always grumble in response and take her usual post on the couch.

That night when Alena attempted to slip by Grammy unnoticed, but the old lady reached out and grabbed Alena's arm as she passed.

Grammy sat up and turned on the lamp beside the couch. "Look at me, LeLe!" Grammy ordered.

Alena slowly turned her damaged face and saw Grammy turn sheet white.

"My LeLe, he did this to you?" Grammy reached up to Alena's cheek and Alena flinched.

"He hurt you! I told you this boy was no good, I saw the devil in his eyes!"

"Grammy, he was angry with me. I flirted with another boy and he saw me, it is my fault," Alena tried to explain but her words ended in a pathetic whimper. Alena gathered her thoughts and recanted the horrible evening.

"Jason saw me talking with the other boy and he touched my hand. Jason became so angry and I followed him to his car so we could talk. Jason started the car and we drove to Old Dixie's Crossing so he could cool off. Well the more we drove the angrier he became and we started shouting at each other. He pulled to the side of the road and slapped me hard across the cheek. I tried to fight back Grammy, but he is so big!" Alena bowed her head and wept.

Grammy pulled Alena next to her and wrapped her arms around the small, trembling teenager. Alena let her head fall against Grammy's warm bosom and let her hand open to reveal what she was holding. Nestled in the center of her palm was a bloody ring with a small shred of tissue hanging from the clasp.

"LeLe, what is this?" Grammy asked.

"It is Jason's nipple ring. I ripped it from his chest as he pushed me out of the moving car."

"Oh LeLe, this is very good! I am going to show you what to do."

Alena gave her Grammy a puzzled look and dropped the bloody ring into her grandmother's outstretched hand. Grammy recited a few unrecognizable words and blew onto the ring. She then gingerly removed the small piece of flesh from the ring and handed it to Alena.

"Swallow it."

"What? Grammy, I will throw up!"

"Swallow it, LeLe. You must do what I tell you to make the magic work."

Alena got a glass of water and the flesh easily slid down her throat.

"Now go to bed, LeLe. I cannot explain any further, but the magic will reveal itself to you in the next couple days."

The next morning Jason's sister had called Alena in hysterics. Jason had been in an car accident and died instantly when his car skidded off the road and hit a massive Oak tree.

Alena hung up the phone numb with emotion, not with sorrow but anger. Anger that she did not have time to exact her revenge.

That weekend was Jason's funeral and Alena and her Grandmother attended the burial out of respect for his family. Night came quickly and Alena fell into a deep sleep as Herbie, her hamster, ran frantically in his exercise wheel.

Late in the night Alena woke with a start as a loud crash erupted from the front porch. Alena jumped to her feet and ran to the front room to check on Grammy.

Grammy was already awake and opening the dead bolt on the front door.

"Grammy, who is here?" Alena asked.

Grammy flung open the door and turned to Alena with a wide smile crumpling her face.

Alena gasped as the broken and filthy body of Jason lurched through the front door. His head flopped unnaturally onto his right shoulder and his right leg was bent to a distorted angle. Alena could still see his eyes roll furiously in their sockets, they held complete comprehension and terror.

"Grammy!" Alena screamed. "What is this?"

"Shh," Grammy whispered. "Don't be afraid, he is yours! His soul is forever trapped within this lifeless and broken body. He will feel the pain of his death until the last vestige of his bone and flesh dissipate from this Earth. Get the ax, LeLe."

Alena and Grammy quartered up Jason's embalmed body and wrapped the wriggling pieces into plastic and tucked them into the freezer chest, all but one piece.

"This special piece is for you to deal with right now, Alena."

Alena barely made it to her room, she could feel it twitching in her palm and she almost threw it in disgust. When Alena closed her bedroom door her gaze found Herbie's cage. She opened the cage and threw the wrinkled male reproductive organ inside and watched it undulate through the wood shavings like an obese earthworm. Herbie squealed at the bald intruder but cautiously approached it. He sniffed his new companion with his quivering little nose and then began to nibble...

"Alena's Piece"
Copyright: © 2010 Stacy Bolli
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Stacy Bolli is a married mom of three beautiful children and hails from the state of Florida. She is just beginning her writing career and has had three published works in SNM Horror Magazine. She will also have upcoming stories featured in the House of Horror E-zine, Bonded By Blood II: A Romance In Red, and Full Moon anthology. She can be reached at stacybolli@yahoo.com, www.myspace.com/stacybolli , and Facebook.