Diary of Jerry Stasiak.

You ever have one of those days?

Everything that could have gone wrong, has proceeded to do so.

First off, as soon as I tried to turn on the light - The bulb burst. I mean literally. Ka-boom. Took ages picking up the shards of glass - made me late as all hell.

Got chewed out by that asshole Wormwood for turning up late. Lucky he's not the type to dock my pay.

He's just the type to make me work after hours. For free.

So I'm on the late shift. Great. Can't understand why a hardware store needs to be open 24 hours a day. The type who do need a power drill or a sledgehammer at 2am are usually the type of people I go out of my way to avoid.

Did get some customers though. and by some, I mean two.

First was a young woman, at about 10 o'clock. Pretty thing too. Just needed some batteries. I'm the type of guy to "Seize the moment", if you see what I mean. So i asked her what she needed to power so late in the evening. She gave me this blank stare, like I'd said something offensive (Would have loved to though, always seems to work for the assholes on T.V.).

"Fuck off, Creep."

Creep?! When was the last time you heard anyone use "Creep"? Grade schoolers use "Creep"!

I'd have said "Fuck off, Dickweed".

Bitch.

So a lot later on, about 1 or 2, I can't remember - He walks in.

Big guy. Fucking huge, built like a tank. Not to a stupid degree, like a superhero, but big enough for it to be noticable. He comes in and looks over all of the aisles.

"Great", I think, "He's a junkie". Wormwood always says they come in late, looking at all the shiney things. Some even try and hold up the place. That's why we had to get "Ol' Armbreaker". Which I was reaching for at that moment in time.

Guy come up to the counter about 10 minutes later. I'm ready, fucker.

He puts a crowbar on the top, along with a length of rope and a jack.

"Relax" He says.

Thinking back, my subtle "Hand behind the back" wasn't a great move.

"Just got into town, need some stuff."

"Car trouble?" I ask.

"You could say that."

He drops some cash on the counter. In a dimebag. All notes.

"Take enough to cover the sale. And a little for yourself."

Huh... Even for the people you see out at this time of night. This is just odd.

I did as he said. But had the sense to run it under a blacklight.

Watermarks. It's real.

"Sorry." I say, laughing, "You can never be sure."

He laughs too. A real bassy grumble. If he weren't smiling I'd be pissing myself in fear.

"No worries. I'd do the same in your position."

"So you're new in Spottsfield?"

"Yeah."

"Where are you staying?"

"The old Firegrand Estate."

Ah. It all makes sense now. This guy isn't a junkie, he's a lunatic. The Firegrand place is haunted, everyone in town knows it. Rodney Firegrand was a psycho, as was his wife, Lucinda. Courts proved it after... The incident. He was a "Predator", liked to get people on the grounds and hunt them down. Black guys. This was before Dr. King or any kind of civil rights movement. Lucinda was a different type of monster, a real praying mantis, if you get what I mean.

Eventually, the people had enough of them. In records, they just disappeared. I can guess what happened though.

"What's up there?" I asked. I mean, anyone who wants to go there has to have a reason.

"No idea." He says back.

Well, that conversation ended quickly. Jeez.

Anyway, he picks up his stuff, putting it into a bag.

"Be seeing ya." He said, walking for the door.

"Look, just a piece of advice. People don't go up there for a reason."

"I know. I know all about the history. I just want to see it for myself."

This guy was a fruit loop.

But, in the universe there's always gonna be someone more of a fruit loop than you are.

Maybe that's why I asked to go with him. Makes me the bigger nut, I suppose.

So, I'm writing this just before I go up to the gate. 9pm on the dot he told me.

I dunno why I wanted to go up there. I tried going up there on a dare once, as a kid. Scared the bejesus out of me.

Whatever Lou has, it's contagious.