BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

Chapter 1

Concerning Storms and a Rose

6 months later:

   Once upon a time there lived a wealthy family whose last name was Taylor. There was Craig, his wise and gentle wife Jennifer, a small daughter named Molly and a son just about to come of age at 18 years old named Justin.

   The Taylors were rich merchants, owners and proprietors of slaughterhouses and butcher shops that sold regular and fine meats. They sold regular cuts of beef, chicken, turkey, pork, ground hamburger that was ground right in front of you, (that's how fresh it was) and packaged it healthily.

   As well they sold smoked meat, all types of sausages and bratwursts. They sold tongue and livers and other innards, if you were into that sort of thing. They sold pepperoni and many other meats wholesale to many pizza joints and subway sandwich type restaurants. Anyway, all this and more, made the Taylors very rich, as I have said. It also made them spoiled.

   Craig Taylor became a hard, unfeeling man.  In fact he was already hard and unfeeling but being rich made it ten times worse. He was also elitist, rude, and greedy. He underpaid his employees, demanded too much and made them work long hours and double shifts. He drove them on like slaves and if anyone complained they were fired on the spot. However, since Taylor Meats was so massive in many areas, people were applying and getting hired in their place all the time. Eventually though, the people working for Craig Taylor learned to keep their heads down and their mouths shut.

Jennifer was wise and gentle and kinder than her husband but where the company was concerned she had very little power. And because she wanted to keep on the gravy train and enjoy the nice things, not to mention she had two children out of the deal, she was wise enough to keep quiet and out of the way when her husband was abusive. (Which continued at home.) However, she managed to remodel the home with improvements that were so gradual and subtle that Craig didn't realize a whole separate wing had been built that was only accessible by a secret passage. And when things became too loud or when any of them had a fight and it looked like violence was imminent, she would give the children a code word and Justin would spirit Molly away to the secret panel, through the short, dark passage and through the door into the other wing where they could live comfortably for many weeks at a time. And after Jennifer had led Craig a merry goose chase through the house, she would sneak back to the correct room and join her children, leaving Craig to rant and rave all by himself. He never caught on.

   Molly was a typical little girl, living a little tense in the abusive environment, but thanks to the separate wing, was otherwise a normal girl, albeit a little spoiled. She grew to love the finer things in life and grew a bit selfish and used to getting her way. But otherwise, she was a good girl.

And then there was Justin. Justin was different. He was the only one in the family who refused to let the wealth of their success affect him. He was kind and soft-spoken, gentle and empathetic. He was selfless and took advantage of their wealth as it was offered to him but otherwise refused to be spoiled or ask for anything overt. If he did ask for anything, it was pencils or paints or other art supplies as he was artistically gifted. He often gave to charity or simply people he met who he believed to be truly in need.

   Justin had his mother's looks and he was beautiful. He grew up straight and tall but of medium frame. His face was perfectly and delicately formed. His lips were rosy pink, his wide eyes were blue, with thick blond lashes and blond hair that looked like straw that had been spun into gold.

   About a month before Justin's 18th birthday, his parents found one of his sketchbooks and grew concerned. The entire sketchbook was filled to capacity with men. Muscular men, Men with caricatured chests, naked men, with large, caricatured penises. There were more realistic nudes. Tall, blond, dark and lean. Rough and tough and strong and mean. They were all there.

   When his parents confronted Justin, he was very upset with them for invading his privacy but realized the cat was out of the bag. He revealed that he was indeed a lover of the male form and sexuality. He was homosexual.

   Justin's parents did not take it well. Jennifer blamed herself. She wondered if there was anything she should have done, maybe been stricter, forbid him to watch certain TV show or.... something. She also mourned a little that Justin was never going to have children and missed the grandchildren that she thought she had coming. However, Justin, as gentle as ever, eventually explained to her that there was nothing for her to have done, there was nothing that HE could do. What was, was. He was gay. As for children...well it depended on who he partnered with. Gay couples surrogated and adopted all the time. He advised her to be patient and so she was comforted.

Craig was another matter all together. He ranted and raved and screamed. He wondered where his "normal" son had gone. He was disowned, disinherited and kicked out. However, since he was only 17, Jennifer intervened and the kick out date was set for his 18th birthday. Happy Birthday Justin!

   In the meantime, Jennifer suggested it might be better for everybody if Justin spent as much time as possible in the separate wing. Regretfully, Justin agreed. Regretful that it was HE who had to be sent into exile, not because he was gay.

However, a few weeks later, Craig was visiting a slaughterhouse. As he was walking across one of the many catwalks, he "tripped" and a railing "came loose" and with a horrible scream, Craig fell onto the killing floor. Among the many things that happened to him, Craig was dropped into a giant industrial meat grinder where he was horribly and gruesomely killed.

   Fortunately, before his carcass could be processed into Spam cans, the slaughterhouse was brought to a halt and the unnatural meat gathered up. It was properly disposed of.

   The funeral was a somber but cheap affair. Anything that had been Craig had been ground up into unrecognizable human hamburger so it was an empty casket funeral. The service was short and otherwise inexpensive as the arrangements dictated since Craig was a tightwad.

With Justin disinherited, the company passed to the next of kin, being Jennifer. The rest of the assets were divided equally between Jennifer and Molly. Of course, Molly's share went into a trust fund until she was 21. Justin was unconcerned. He had big dreams to travel the world and live by his wits and his art.

   However, with Craig out of the picture, all this changed. Jennifer rescinded the kick-out order and put Justin into her will, and therefore reinstated him back into the family. The secret passage was demolished and the other wing became just that...another part of the house. Things became a lot more peaceful around the house.

   As for Taylor Meats, without Craig's abuse and oppressive influence, the slaughterhouses and shops became much less oppressive places to work. Workers were no longer required to run double shifts. Jennifer raised everyone's salary to a fair amount and put in a day care at all the facilities. The workers were less stressed, happier and as a result, productivity went up. And over the next month, profits went up by 30%.

A few months went by in this fashion. And of course it is at about this point where our story truly begins.

   About 3 months after Craig's death, and 9 months after Brian's supernatural encounter, Jennifer was humming a little tune as she stirred some spaghetti sauce she was making when the phone rang. A short conversation ensued and when it was over, her heart was troubled. However, she gathered her children together and put on a brave face for their sake.

"My dear children," she said, "That was a worker at the New York Port Authority. There was an incident with one of the boats that had a large shipment of ours on board."

   "What is it, Mom? Is anything wrong?" asked Justin.

   "I don't know yet," Jennifer hedged, "But it's a big deal. I've been asked to come as CEO and supervise and survey the situation. I have to leave in the morning, the sooner the better. Justin, you are almost of age. Can I trust you to watch over Molly for a couple of days?"

   "Of course, Mom."

   "Molly, this is important now. Can I trust you to mind your brother, get home before dark, and behave? Or do I need to call a babysitter?"

   "EEEWWWW! No! I can look after myself even without Justin!" Molly bragged, puffing out her little chest. The grown-ups suppressed a smile at her bravado, for even though she was responsible in many ways, she was still a small child and in need of taking care of in many ways.

"I know you are squirt. But we'll work together and if you're home on time tomorrow, I'll make your favourite, jumbalaya!"

   "Oh Boy! That sounds great!" said Molly.

And if you two promise to be good, I'll bring you both a present home. What would you like?"

   "Oh boy! A present! Oh, Mom, could you get me a pink silk dress! I'd love that!"

"Of course sweetheart! And Justin, what about you?"

   "Oh Mom, I don't want anything! I have all the art supplies I need right now and right now I'm just glad to be living at home! Why don't you make my present a present for you!? Buy yourself a rose and consider it from me. That would make me very happy."

   "Oh thank you, Justin! I will cherish it!" his mother exclaimed hugging him, "OK, I should pack and get to bed as I need to get going very early."

This plan was put into action at once and Justin took over the stirring of the sauce. In no time, she was packed and ready to go. After a hurried dinner she went to bed.

Jennifer awoke early and was out of the house and on her way by dawn's light. She drove all that day but reached New York by late evening. She found a nice hotel and settled in for the night.

The next morning she drove down to the New York Harbour and to the right port. It was worse that she had been led to believe...than she had wanted to believe, which is why she had not gone into detail with her children.

   A terrible accident had happened. As the cargo ship carrying their shipment among others, textiles, ore, and even an antique car, had pulled out of the slip, it had collided with another ship coming in too fast. Both ships' hulls were damaged, filled with water and sank. The ships were still there, tops visible but the holds had been filled with water and all the cargo, especially the meats and textiles were ruined. As far as Taylor Meats was concerned, it was a complete loss.

   Well, one little ship was not going to ruin them! But, she had to admit; things were going to have to change for a while. This was going to set them back and they were going to take a loss that was going to last for at least 6 months. But at least they were not ruined.

Jennifer started home with a heavy heart. Affecting them more immediately, there would be no money for presents. There was no money for dresses, silk or not and there was not even anything extra to buy the rose that Justin wanted her to have and even secretly, probably wanted to enjoy for himself.

   Jennifer drove out of the city and started home. She hoped to make it home faster than the trip to New York, as she would not be able to afford the nice lodgings she had the night before.

   However, she had no such luck. About halfway back, deep within a long stretch of farmland wilderness, it began to rain.  The wind picked up and it turned into a real storm. The black clouds overhead darkened everything like night. All this slowed her down and then it was as dark as night, because it was night.

She had to slow down even further and moreover use her headlights just to see a few feet in front of her and had the wipers on maximum and still it was almost as if she didn't have them on at all.

She was still in the middle of nowhere. She had no idea where the next town might be. All she knew was that she was driving through West Virginia, when all of a sudden, to her right, she could dimly make out a huge gothic mansion. She leaned forward and peered through the industrious wipers at this spectacle and wished that that was her destination.

Well, perhaps it was tiredness, perhaps it was fate, or perhaps her subconscious had a play in it but for whatever reason, a few moments after passing the mansion, the car slipped on a wet patch, skidded to the shoulder where she lost control even further. She twisted the wheel sharply, desperately trying to keep control but the more she fought to keep it, the more she lost it. The car swerved and skidded, twisted and spun and did a few other scary things before falling into the ditch by the side of the road at a 45 degree angle.

Jennifer just sat there for a few moments. She'd had her seat belt on and the airbag had deployed so she was uninjured but extremely scared and shook up. The car seemed relatively undamaged except for the front, which was probably crunched up pretty bad. Even the windshield was undamaged. She took a few deep breaths and took stock of the situation.

   She was a woman, alone on a lonely stretch of highway. She was stranded. Her car was stuck. She checked her cell phone. Great! No bars! And there was no shelter except her car....and that house.

   Jennifer took a deep breath and made a decision. She turned off the engine and lights, gathered up her wallet, her useless cell phone and other particulars in her bag and zipped it tightly up. She kept tight hold of her keys. She opened the door and then locked it. She clambered out and slammed the door, locking the car. Holding onto the car, she clambered out of the ditch but her feet and shoes were muddied almost instantly. She was drenched as well, within a few seconds.

She hurried but it still seemed like forever before she reached the back of the car. She opened the trunk and was thankful along with some emergency food and water, a flashlight, and a spare tire she thought to store emergency rain gear for her and the kids. She took out a red rain slicker and hurriedly put it on. Ahhh, that was better! She still felt the pelting rain but at least the cold was gone. She then exchanged her ruined shoes for a pair of gumboots, grabbed a bag with some granola bars, chocolate, and a few bottles of water, and the flashlight, pocketed her keys and slammed the trunk. She was ready to go.

The raingear made it a bit easier to walk but she still wished she were out of the storm. As she walked, she picked at the buttons of the slicker but the wind pulled them out of her icy fingers. For a few moments, before she could do it up securely, the cruel wind blew the coat back, making it seem as if it were a red cape and hood rather than a coat.

But at last she did it and as soaked as she was, she got no wetter. The gumboots squished satisfactorily in the mud of the shoulder of the road while keeping her feet dry. (Well, less wet anyway.) She turned her steps toward the gothic mansion she had just passed.

That she thought she had just passed. Good grief! Had it been a couple of seconds or a couple of minutes since she had passed the driveway? It seemed miles back and it took her at least a couple of hours to get there. The wind buffeted her and the cold was cruel. The rain ran off her in streams and she retreated as far back into her red hood as possible, which kept the rain out of her eyes (mostly) but gave her tunnel vision.

The night was as black as pitch. The flashlight lit up a few feet in front of her and sliced through the raindrops, making them look like falling diamonds. The wind blew harder if that were possible.

   Lightning slashed across the sky. The resulting BOOOOMMMM!!!!...was deafening. She slogged on.

   And then lightning flashed and thunder crashed right overhead. It was terrifying, and awesome and beautiful all at the same time. It flashed and crashed again and again. It lit everything up like day and Jennifer could see that she was there.

   The driveway was wet gravel and led to the house and the lightning lit everything up in stark detail. The house was even scarier than she could have imagined. It was huge and black with sharp corners and gables and towers and chimneys and gargoyles as drainspouts. Of course, all of them were gushing water.

   Jennifer stood there for a few seconds in fear and trembling. She did not want to go up to that house, especially to rely on it as a source of help. But there was nowhere else.

As she stood there, there was another fearsome display of lightning and several forks stabbed down quite close. A bolt of lightning struck a nearby tree knocking it over and setting the trunk on fire. However, the gushing rain put it out quite quickly. The smell of ozone and other acrid chemicals filled Jennifer's nostrils.

   That was enough to get her moving though. She ran/jogged her way down the rest of the driveway and reached the front door at last. They were huge double doors, flanked by flower bushes. There was a huge golden door knocker carved in the shape of a lion's head. It was the scariest thing she had ever seen. It was amazingly detailed, frozen in a ferocious snarling roar. The fangs were so long and sharp you could cut yourself if you touched them.

Fortunately, she didn't, she just took hold of the knocker and pounded hard. The banging was deep and loud and echoed over and over through the house and then faded away.

   There was no response.

She knocked again. Again the knocking reverberated and faded. Again there was no response.

Jennifer took a deep breath and banged one more time, harder than ever.

   "Please!" she yelled, "Please! My car crashed! I'm alone! I'm scared! There's nowhere else! For the love of God, if there's anybody there...please help me! Please open up! It's an emergency!" And she banged away hard for about a minute.

   At last, she gave up. She listened to the echoes pound away inside the house, softer and softer and then vanish away altogether. She cried a few tears and got ready to go all that long, cold, dark, wet way back to the car.

   She was just about to take a step when there was the biggest display yet. Lightning flashed across the sky, back and forth and back again. White forks stabbed down from the sky, a few of them to the left and to the right of her in the mansion's large front lawn. The night was lit up like day.  The resulting crashes of thunder were like the apocalypse and absolutely deafening. Roar after roar after roar thundered down and then echoed and re-echoed away.

   All throughout, Jennifer pressed herself against the mansion's door in wide eyed terror, knowing she'd never see anything like this again. Part of her was glad but part of her was  like: WOW! She'd never seen or see anything like this again! WOW! The rest of her was just glad she had made it to almost shelter and was not out there in the open.

In sheer terror, she turned back to the house and banged on the lion knocker like a woman possessed. "Please! If there is anyone home, PLEASE!! You cannot leave me out here in this! I am alone! I am helpless and desperate! PLEASE HELP MEEE!" She gave the knocker one last crash before giving up.

The rain gushed down. There was a moment of relative silence. And then...there was an answering loud sudden crash...a deep BAM!!!...like a rifle shot in the dark. Jennifer jumped and started in fear. Then she realized it was the deadbolt being opened. And then there was nothing.

   She gave a few cautious knocks on the knocker. Then she tried the door. It opened inward. Cautiously she stepped inside.

   "Hello! Hello!? The door unlocked! I'm the one who's been knocking! My name's Jennifer Taylor! My car broke down! Hello! I'm coming in now!"

   And she did and then shut the door behind she and re-locked it. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Now that she was out of the rain she was feeling a little better but she still felt a little scared. The front hall was deep and dark. There was a wide staircase curving up and to the left.

   "Uh...hello!!? Is anybody there! Someone must be at home! The door unlocked. My name's Jennifer! The storm's terrible! Just terrible! My car crashed! I don't suppose you could help me!" There was no answer. The house remained deep and dark.

   "I-I can pay you! Just not right now! But I can pay whatever you wish for some help! Or just use your phone! Is anybody there?"

   A light went on.

   It turned out there was a hall to the right of the stairs that led deeper into the house. About 2 doors down and to the right there was a room. The light in this room went on. Otherwise there was silence. No one spoke or came to greet her.

   When the light came on, Jennifer could see a coat-rack near the stairs. She pulled off her boots and carried them over and hung up her slicker as well. Then she walked down the hall to the lighted room.

   "Hello!? Hello!? Is anyone there? I'm so glad to meet..."

But there was no-one there.

Inside the room was a long dining room table and at the end of the room was a fireplace. At the end of the table and nearest to the fireplace a single place setting was laid out. There was silverware laid on a white linen napkin and a white dinner plate full of food. There was a tall glass of milk and a goblet of wine.

   Jennifer took one look at her soaked bag of granola and chocolate and water that she still clasped in one hand in a death grip and ran her way down that table in joy. She couldn't believe it. She just couldn't believe it. And the smells that were coming off it made her stomach growl in earnest.

Jen sat down in the chair, which was plush and soft and enjoyed the fireplace that was warm but not roaring hot and began to eat the dinner that someone had laid out for her. There was slices of roast chicken breast, a baked potato with sour cream and chives, and roasted vegetables, green beans and carrots. There was a small dish with a roll on it on the left and another small dish with pumpkin pie with a dollop of whipped cream on the right. The goblet had red wine in it. Jen took a sip and admired it in shock. The goblet appeared to be pure gold and encrusted with a row of alternating rubies and diamonds all the way around.

   Jennifer ate and drank to her heart's content. She ate every bit of the potato with sour cream and chives, all the vegetables, most of the chicken, and ate the pumpkin pie as well.

   At last she was full. She wiped her mouth daintily with the white napkin, laid the silver silverware on top of the plate and turned the chair toward the fire. She sat there, nursing the wine a bit, digesting and feeling drowsy and warm although a bit careworn and sticky from her rain watered out clothes.

   A light in the hall turned on.

   Jennifer put down the goblet and got up. Dinner was over. Someone must be watching. She wondered if there were cameras. Yes, that must be it.

   "Uhhh...hello!? Are you there? Are you watching? Are there cameras? Look, if there's someone there, you can come out. It's just me! Thank you for dinner! I don't mean to trespass! If you want, I could just use a phone and be on my - Oh my word!" she yelled, startled out of her wits.

All through her monologue, Jennifer had picked up her bag of supplies and made her way toward the hall light. As soon as stepped into the hall the dining room light went out, plunging the room into darkness behind her. That was what startled her. After the dining room light went out, the front hall near the stairs lit up. Jennifer slowly went that way and reached the front of the house again.

The hall light and the front hall went out. A light at the top of the stairs went on.

Jennifer was sufficiently creeped out now but she was beginning to get the idea. She climbed the stairs. At the top, was a hall to the left and a hall to the right. The halls stretched out a long way down and at the end of each hall she could see the hall branch off into a T fork.

The top of the stair light went off and the left hand hall lit up. Jen went down that hall.

   All along this hall were many doors. She passed down the hall about halfway when the light went out. The entire house and hall was plunged into darkness and silence. Jen let out a little scream. She was more than a little scared. She couldn't go forward. She knew she wasn't to go back. Her heart was in her throat.

And then two doors down under the door to the right, a light went on. Jen could see the light come on under the crack at the bottom of the door.

There was nothing for it. Jen felt her way down the rest of the hall. She took hold of the doorknob. She twisted the knob and sort of...pushed the door open quickly, pushing it open ahead of her.

Phew!!! Jen was charmed. Inside was a very nice guest bedroom.

   Jennifer went inside and shut the door against the dark hall. There was a single bed with clean, white bedding and a nice green coverlet. The bed had a shining, brass, curved headboard and footboard. There was an easy chair over by the window that was a matching green. To the right was a small wardrobe and a writing desk. To the left was a door that led to a small bathroom with a toilet, sink and shower stall. There were windows directly across from you as you walked in. They opened outward but right now they were fast shut against the storm. Rain pelted against them and ran down in rivulets obscuring everything outside. More lightning and thunder flashed and crashed but inside this cozy room, Jennifer felt warm and safe at last.

She crossed over and shut the heavy curtains over the windows, creating an even cosier atmosphere. She checked the wardrobe and was delighted to find a long, white nightgown and a nightcap.

   Carefully, she checked the walls or anything that could be hiding a camera. There was nothing. Well, perhaps they were only in the common areas. She stripped, hung her clothes carefully over the footboard, and put on the nightgown. It felt great to be out of the soaked and then flash dried clothes at last and the nightgown felt great against her skin, clean, and soft and strangely enough, almost warm as if it had been fresh out of the drier or freshly ironed. But that was impossible. She was unexpected and moreover she had seen nobody.

She sat down in the green chair to think. There must be somebody. The door had unlocked. Lights turned on and off. And that dinner...somebody had made that exquisite dinner. But for the life of her she couldn't figure it out.

Her eyes began to flicker and the bed began to look more and more attractive by the second. Finally, she gave it up and just decided not to kick a gift horse in the mouth. She got up and went to the door.

   Carefully she opened the door. The silence in the hall was as deep as the darkness. It was scary as hell.

   "Hello!" she called. Hello....hello....her voice echoed.

"I just wanted to say thank you!" Say thank you...thank you....you...

   "And good night!" night...night.....

   She felt a little foolish but after all somebody had to be doing this...right? Better to be safe than sorry. She closed the door again against the dark hall and discovered a push button lock on the door. She knew there was probably no reason to do this but she pushed it anyway. It made her feel more secure and that dark hall out there gave her the willies.

   She turned down the bed, turned off the light and climbed aboard. Within a few minutes of her head hitting the pillow, she was fast asleep.

Next Morning:

   By the next day, the storm had passed and was like a bad dream. It was bright and sunny and a crack of this sunlight streamed through the curtains of Jennifer's room.

   Jennifer awoke slowly, in stages, having had lovely dreams. Then she came awake more quickly and sat up in bed as she remembered where she was. She looked about herself frowning. Something had changed. But she couldn't put her finger on it. Everything was immaculate, perfectly in order.

   She got up and went to use the facilities. She washed her hands and then came back into the room. Suddenly, everything seemed stifling rather than cosy. She opened the curtains and opened the windows outward.

   It was a beautiful day. The sun was bright and warm. Jennifer was looking down into a beautiful courtyard, a decorated garden. It was very beautiful.

   She took a few deep breaths of cool, morning air and then closed the windows again.

It was then she turned and realized what the difference was. Her clothes were gone from the footboard. However, the wardrobe door was half open.

   Jennifer went to check. Sure enough, her clothes were inside all hung up and neat as a pin. They had been laundered and ironed.

   Someone had been in her room. Someone had been there...while she slept! In growing trepidation, she slowly approached the door to the hall. She eyes widened and she gasped in shock.

The lock button was still pressed in.

   She twisted the knob and the button obediently popped out and the door pulled open. She checked.

   The door had no keyhole.

Quickly, she slammed the door again and locked it. Her fear mounted. Someone had gotten in her room while it was locked and seemingly without opening the door!

Jennifer got dressed, and replaced everything. She put the nightgown back in the wardrobe. She turned and pulled the sheets up as neatly as she could. She grabbed her bag of emergency belongings and her bag and gave a final double check. As she did, she happened to see inside the wardrobe. She gave a short scream.

   The nightgown was gone.

   Sure now, that something supernatural was happening, Jennifer spun and fled that s

small and now somehow oppressive room.

The hallway was still dark but not oppressively so. Jennifer made her way back to the stairs, and then downstairs The downstairs was filled with natural light now and it made her feel a little better but she still wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.

   She had grabbed her red slicker and was about to put it on when two things happened. First, she realized she was still stranded with her car in the ditch. At the same time, she smelled wonderful morning smells. Bacon-y smells.

Slowly, she replaced her slicker and made her way to the dining room. There was a setting for one, a plate of food ready. There was bacon and eggs and hash-browns and coffee and orange juice in another golden goblet. The food was still steaming, it was so hot.

Again, Jennifer wondered how whoever knew she would be down at this time to be ready for a hot breakfast....right now. And again, she just had to give it up.

She went and ate the breakfast and drank the coffee and OJ.  As she did, she found a folded piece of paper next to her plate. Jennifer had thought it was a napkin but there was another white linen napkin next to that. She unfolded the paper and read:

Outside the front door is something that will help you.

   That was all. But it was enough. Jennifer finished the nice breakfast, wiped her mouth daintily and again left everything in a neat state. Unsure of what to do, she also left her last $20 bill next to the plate and partially under the white linen napkin.

   "Ummm....Thank -you very much!" she called out. Of course there was just silence. "I've - I've left some money! Thank you very much for your hospitality."

   With that, she left the dining room, went to the front hall and put on the slicker and boots and prepared to leave. Looking back, there was nothing else she could have done. She wondered with all her might what was waiting outside but for the life of her, she never would have guessed, not in a million years.

   Cautiously, she opened the front door and her mouth dropped open and she gasped in astonishment.

   Outside waiting for her in the driveway was a horse. A huge, hairy, ugly beast of a horse with oversized, hairy feet. It was in fact, a Clydesdale horse. It was tan and very intimidating. It was saddled and bridled and there were huge stirrups.

The horse was attached to a wooden frame on wheels. And attached to the frame was a length of chain with a large, strong hook on the end of it.

There was a note pinned to the saddle. Jennifer went out of the house and carefully closed the door. She went over to the horse and petted it experimentally. It huffed a bit but otherwise did not move and was complacent. She took the note and read:

This horse is strong enough to pull your car to safety. Attach the hook to the back of the car and have the horse pull. After you have pulled the car to safety, unhook the horse, leave the frame by the side of the road and let him go. He will find his own way home. His name is Arjax. He follows the following commands. Do not return.

   The rest of the paper outlined the commands that the horse would follow.

   Jennifer was giddy with relief. Finally, this nightmare was nearly over.

   She checked the paper and said: "Arjax...Down!"

   Arjax immediately kneeled on his front legs. The saddle was now tilted but low enough for Jennifer to mount. She put one foot in a stirrup and did so.

   "Arjax...up!"

And Arjax stood and the ground dropped away to a dizzying height. However, Jennifer just closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. When she was ready, she said Arjax...Gee Up!"

Obediently the horse started down the driveway. The mansion looked even more fearsome in the daylight. The gargoyles were twisted, ugly and plentiful. The house seemed to be made entirely out of black stone.

Using the commands, Jennifer rode the horse and...whatever it was....back to her car. Thankfully the return trip was faster with the horse's help and more peaceful with the sunshine's help.

When they got to the car, Jennifer obeyed the note, attached the hook and chain to her back end, under her back bumper.      Then she referred again to the note and yelled: "Arjax, YAAAHHH! YAHHHH!" over and over.

   The huge horse began to pull. It strained and heaved its big muscles and at first nothing seemed to happen. Then slowly, the car began to move.

"Yes! Yes! That's it! That's it! YAHHH! YAHHHH! Keep pulling, Arjax! You're doing it!" Jennifer yelled in joy.

And so, Arjax kept pulling and pulling and inch by torturous inch the car kept moving until at last it was pulled out of the ditch and back onto an even keel onto the road. And through it all, the highway remained empty. No other cars came along to bother them. It was welcome and weird and surreal, all at the same time.

Jennifer gave the order to stop and Arjax did. He stood and rested and heaved and sweated a bit. Jennifer went over and patted his huge and ugly nose.

   "Oh, Arjax! Thank you so much! You deserve a good rest. Come on now." Jennifer unhooked him from the car and led him by the reins over to the side of the road where she unhooked him from the frame.

   She ran back and checked her car. The front end would need some bodywork but otherwise was not too bad. She tried the engine. It started. She sighed in relief.

Letting it idle, she ran over and slapped Arjax in the butt two times, which was the signal for him to go. Arjax whinnied cheerfully, and trotted off down the road where he soon turned aside into a field. He took a well deserved and rather large dump. He walked a little ways away from it unconcernedly and began to graze on some particularly sweet clover.

Jennifer retrieved her keys from the pocket, took off the red slicker and put it back in the trunk but kept the boots on.(If you remember, her shoes were ruined) She figured she could always take off the boots and drive in her stocking feet if they became too cumbersome.

She tossed everything else in the car and did exactly that. But she decided not to obey the note and instead drove back to the house to see if she could meet and try to thank her mysterious benefactor. Besides, she was really curious about the food and lights and the other mysterious happenings that had gone on while she was a guest.

   The return trip up the driveway was even more intimidating that the last. The house seemed large and more horrible and complicated, the grounds and lawns were still fallow and yellow and there was no sign of life. Nothing. No car. No lights. No movement. But there must be someone! The lights...the food...her clothes...Arjax...the notes...even the note that warned her to not return...

She pulled up in front of the house and turned off the motor. Boots on. Up to the door.

And the door was deadbolt locked. There was no way she had locked it.

   She banged on the door with the golden lion. You would think that the knocker would have lost some of its scariness but nope! If anything, it was even more realistic and snarling in the daylight.

   "Hello!! If anyone's there, won't you answer me? Please! Hello!!?"

   Of course there was no answer.

   "Well, I know, I shouldn't really have come back but I just wanted to meet you! Whoever you are! Thank you again! It was a little scary but I had a great time and I'm very grateful! Thank you again! OK, goodbye then!"

   Jennifer turned to go and walked a little ways back to the car a little sadly. She felt bad that she could not thank her benefactor and felt even worse about leaving anybody in this desolate place.

   As she walked back to the car, her caught sight of the two flower bushes flanking the door like sentries. She did a double take. They weren't just flower bushes! They were rose bushes! And this wasn't really the time of year for it but somehow there were many flowers in bloom or halfway there.

As she looked at them a vivid picture of both her children arose in her imagination. They were sad and disappointed. She felt bad that she was going to have to disappoint both of them. Molly, because she was younger but especially Justin because he was sweet and sensitive and Craig had put him through such shit since they had found out he was gay. And because he was gay, Jennifer still felt that a bit of Justin would have enjoyed that rose for himself. Not that he was effeminate. He wasn't. At least...she thought so...maybe he was...really. Maybe he wanted to be...Maybe...

Jennifer gave herself a little shake. Oh God, this was all so confusing! She still didn't understand homosexuality very much at all but at least she was willing to learn. Not like...

"Stop it!" she admonished herself, "Rehashing it over and over isn't going to help!"

She looked over at the bushes again and saw how many roses there were. So many. And Justin had only asked for one. She couldn't buy Molly's dress or even a rose from a shop for a long time but now here...here was an opportunity to fulfill at least one of her children's requests.

Slowly, she walked back over to the door to the left hand bush. There were so many. And she would love to ask. She would. But whoever was here was determined not to make contact. So...maybe he wouldn't mind....just one. She hoped not.

And so, she reached out and took hold of a half opened rose and snapped the stem close to the stalk it was growing out of. And in so doing, she sealed all their fates forever.

   She sniffed the rose and it was so sweet...as sweet as...well, as a rose. She turned and walked slowly back to her car.

She was halfway there when the front doors were flung open. Both of them had to be solid oak but they were opened inward and tossed aside like they were nothing. The fearsome CRAASSHH!!...was like a bomb going off. A fearsome figure of a man strode out. His face was as dark as his clothes and he was dressed all in black.

   Jennifer screamed and quailed before him as he strode out quickly toward her, his hands reaching out for her. She expected them to go around her throat and squeeze, he was so angry but he just grabbed her arms and shook her into submission before letting her go again.

   "THIEF!! THIEF!! I SAW YOU! I SAW! HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU STEAL FROM ME!! You were warned never to return! And yet you did, just so you could steal from me! HOW DAAAAAAAAAARE YOU!!?" He huffed and puffed like a Brahma Bull, awaiting her answer.

   "NO! That's not true! I came back because I wanted to meet the one who helped me and thank him in person! I wanted to see..."

"OH I GET IT!!! YOU WANTED TO SEE!!! YOU WANTED TO LOOK UPON THE FREAK! YOU WANTED TO SEE THE BEAST! WELL, GO ON THEN, LOOK!!"

   "That's not...not what I..."

"I said LOOK!!" the Beast of a man yelled louder than Jennifer thought possible. And so, she looked up from where she had been guiltily studying her gumboots like they contained the secrets of the Dead Sea scrolls.

Black leather, knee high boots led into leather pants that could have spray painted onto huge, powerful thighs. A black leather shirt. Elbow high gauntlets that were like a second skin to his hands. A full leather trenchcoat. Then higher...to his face...

   Most fearsomely of all, he was wearing a customized, black, leather mask, executioner style that reached downward to cover ¾ of his face, past his nose and nearly all the way down to his jawline on each side. The mask was cut into a razor point on one side and covered the other side of his face fully. Under the razor point of the mask, Jennifer could see he was a burn victim. He wore a Muir cap over it all.

   He was huge, 6'2", wide and powerfully built with thin hips. His face was black as the mask with rage and his entire outfit screamed power and authority. Jennifer was frightened out of her wits.

"All right, I'm looking," she said, "Please, Sir! I AM grateful for all you've done! I did NOT return to steal from you, not really! I just saw the bushes and you had so many and all I wanted...all I needed was one so..."

" So you stole it!" the man repeated pitilessly, "WHY!? I let you into my house, I fed you, I gave you lodging, sheltered you from the storm and asked for nothing in return! I even lent you my horse...my own horse...to help you with your car! And yet you returned and stole from me! For this you shall surely die!" He advanced on her and grabbed her by the front of her shirt until they were nose to nose. His other gauntleted hand slowly reached toward his mask...

"Die! No! No! Please no! Not over a single rose! Please, why!? You have so many!"

   "Every one of my roses are precious to me! Look around! My grounds are fallow and barren! These two bushes are the only thing of beauty I am allowed! And so I guard them jealously! And now you will die!"  He reached up closer for his mask.....

   "I didn't know! Please don't! I...I have a family! In fact, I took this rose for the sake of my son!" She closed her eyes and waited for the end to come.

   The Beast's hand stilled an inch away from his mask. "A son!? You have a son?"

   "Yes."

   "And why...would a son...care for a rose?" He released here suddenly and not gently.

   "Not for himself he doesn't. When I left home, I asked my kids what they wanted for a present! Justin only asked that I buy myself a rose! But there is no money. I'm a meat merchant. I'm CEO of Taylor's Meats! But I just found out a large shipment of our stock was sunk in the New York Harbour and was ruined. We will be very poor for the next six months. There will be no money for extras for a while. I saw your rose bushes and thought...at least I can honor Justin's request. And after how he was treated...it was the least I could do!"

   "What do you mean? HOW was he treated?"

   Jennifer explained how they just found out that Justin preferred men. She then went on to describe Craig's cruel and shameful treatment and that soon after he died. Of course, Justin was re-instated but Jen never stopped feeling guilty and ashamed at Craig's behaviour.

"Show me a picture of him!" the Beast demanded, "I assume you have little wallet sized pictures you carry around. I want to see him."

Jennifer fumbled around in her purse and extracted her wallet. It took a bit of effort as she was trembling so badly.

   The Beast looked at Justin's picture for a long time. Something in his face softened.

"One more try..."he murmured, "One last chance..."

"I'm sorry, what?" Jennifer asked.

   He ignored her. He tossed back her wallet.

   "All right...I have made a decision! I have decided to spare you! And stop feeling guilty! Guilt....regrets, apologies...they're bullshit! As it is, it seems like this Craig person got what he deserved. As for Justin, he's no longer your concern! His life must be forfeit for your own! In one week, he shall be standing where you are, or I shall hunt you down, Jennifer Taylor of Taylor Meats...and I will kill you all! You and both....your children!" he threatened in chilling, deadly serious voice. And Jen knew he was dead serious. And because of their fame, she knew he would hunt them down until he found them.

   "Oh, please no! Don't kill him! He's a good boy! Not for what I've done!"

"I don't want to kill him! I too, prefer men!" he explained.

   "No! NO! He'd still only be 17! He'll be three weeks shy of majority! And he's a virgin! Oh please don't do this thing!"

"Three weeks shy is good enough for me! And trust me, it is good enough for him! You know this to be true!

   Jennifer just stood there weeping in regret.

"Go! One week! Or I shall kill you all! Take your rose....and these..." he snapped his fingers and out of nowhere the two golden, jewelled goblets fell at her feet.

   "Sell them and use the money to get through your period of trial! Your...money is in your wallet. My wards have no use of mortal money! They were extremely amused. They thought it was some kind of toy!"

   "Your...wards!?" asked Jennifer.

The Beast ignored her. "I will expect Justin in a week! The nearest village is to your right as you leave. Go! And pray you never see my face, Jennifer Taylor!"

He turned on his heel and strode back inside the house. The doors slammed and locked with a fearsome noise. It echoed away and then there was nothing but silence.

   Jen sat sideways on the driver's seat of her car for a long while and wept bitter tears. She couldn't believe the conundrum she'd been placed in. It was medieval, like something out of ancient European fairy tale of arranged marriage. And it was do or die...over a rose!

Eventually though, her tears abated, and she knew she had to think practically.  She went over, still sniffling a bit and picked up the golden goblets and tossed them onto the front seat of the car. The Beast was right. Even if she had to sell it off diamond by diamond, the goblets would take care of them during the time of famine. There was no use leaving them there to rot on the ground.

Then she got into her car and got the hell out of that accursed place.

A little while down the road, she heard that terrible voice in her head: Pray you never see my face, Jennifer Taylor...

   Funny...she thought the expression was, pray you never see my face again.

Then she remembered thinking of how when she thought he was going to kill her, instead of doing it, instead of strangling her or even just twisting her neck sharply, he was reaching for his mask. It came to her memory and it would haunt her dreams for many nights to come. Closer and closer that gauntlet was coming to his blacked out face...

   And she realized: He was right. She never did actually see his face...

And she did. She fervently prayed that she never would.

TBC