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A LURKER AMONG THE DEAD
THE CALLAHAN FILES #1
KEVIN HURTACK
Gunsmoke & Ghouls Press
©2015 All rights reserved
Cover Design by Kevin Hurtack.
This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents and dialogue are created by the writer's
imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons,
living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 2
Sean Callahan shoveled a forkful of huevos rancheros into his mouth just as his office
door swung open. He groaned like a grizzly bear awoken too soon from its winter slumber and
shot a glance across the room. Joseph Washington, a lean black man with a boyish appearance,
despite his patchy beard, stood in the doorway. Before he could shut the door a stiff breeze blew
into the Spartan log cabin, blowing dust in from Main Street along with the stench of fresh horse
manure. The rumble of buckboard wagons and the murmur of conversations could be heard from
the neighboring streets.
"This better be important," Sean said between mouthfuls of fried egg and toasted corn
tortillas, "for you to be disturbing my breakfast, Deputy."
"Sorry, Sheriff," Joseph said, removing his weathered Bowler hat and shutting the door.
"But this can’t wait."
"I'll determine what can and can't."
"If you say so."
Sean raked his calloused fingers through his thinning black hair. "Go on then, I thought
you said this couldn't wait..."
Joseph sat down in the wooden chair on the other side of Sean's cluttered desk. "Well, I
was out on patrol this morning and when I rode by the cemetery ole Rufus was madder than a
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 3
scalded cat. I asked him what the matter was, and he says somebody snatched two corpses out of
their graves last night."
Sean scratched his salt-and-pepper beard. "Did you bother to check them yourself?"
"I wanted to get a look-see, but that fool wouldn't show me nothing!" Joseph said,
pounding his fist on the desk. "Told me it weren't no job for a boy like me."
"Mind your temper, Deputy."
Joseph grunted.
Sean leaned back in his chair, which groaned beneath his brawny build. "Anyone else
know about this?"
"I doubt it, nobody goes out there less they got dead folk and Rufus only heads into town
a few times a year."
"Good, the last thing we need is Mayor Little or that busy body Ms. Tilly over at the
Silvervalle Gazette getting in our way."
"I thought you was sweet on her, especially after she wrote about you whooping them
Confederate bushwhackers up in the mountains a few years back." Joseph batted his eyelashes
and pressed his hands to his heart. "Hero of the Colorado territory is what she called you, ain't
it?"
Sean's pale blue eyes narrowed. "Come on, we got work to do."
Joseph smirked and buttoned up his threadbare frock coat. "I'll get the horses."
Sean brushed the crumbs from his grey bib shirt before grabbing his fringed buckskin
coat and grey slouch hat from the wall hooks behind his desk. "Be quick about it, I prefer to talk
to him before he has his first bottle of whiskey."
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 4
***
Rufus' dilapidated log cabin sat in the middle of the rock-strewn field that served as the
town of Silvervalle's cemetery. Among the pear cactus and yucca that grew outside his home
were an assortment of dirt-covered shovels and pick axes.
The door rattled on its rusty hinges when Sean knocked on it. "Rufus? This is Sheriff
Callahan, I'd like to have a word with you."
A scuffling of feet and the clinking of empty bottles came from the other side.
Sean gritted his teeth. "I don't have all day..."
The door swung open and a scrawny middle aged man leaned against it. He wore a pair
of long johns that had once but white, but the accumulation of sweat and dust had turned them a
dingy brown. He scratched at his head of greasy black hair like a flea-bitten hound while fixing
Sean with a glassy stare. "Morning, Sheriff. Suppose you here about last night?"
"That's right, my deputy told me you saw someone out there?"
Rufus rubbed his leathery face. "Yup, I was woke up by a commotion, and when I
stepped outside I seen a man out there with a lantern and shovel doing some digging."
"Did you know him?" Sean said.
"Nah, didn't recognize him. Was a tall fella in a long coat, maybe bearskin? Had a big old
beard, too."
"Was you drunk last night?" Joseph said.
Rufus hacked up a mouthful of phlegm and spit on the ground. "Of course I was! What
else there to do?"
Sean nodded. "So what did you do after you saw this man?"
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 5
"I went back inside to get my rifle, but when I came out the fella was gone. I headed
down there and found the empty graves. Didn't see nothing more, so I went on back to bed. Saw
your deputy this morning and told him what happened."
"Maybe this stranger was worried that coyotes was going to dig up their kin," Joseph
said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Some folks say you don’t dig deep enough for a proper
grave."
Rufus scowled. "Now look here, boy, I ain't no slack-jawed fool that don't know how to
dig. I bury them real deep! It ain't easy, I tell ya, what with this here rocky ground. If I was back
in Georgia I'd have me some boys like you doing the digging for me."
Joseph glared at him.
The urge to smack some sense into Rufus flooded Sean's mind, but it wouldn't do any
good. The grave digger was born a redneck and remained one despite being so far from his
beloved Dixie. Besides, if Sean tried to knock some sense into him, Rufus would scurry like a
beaten dog to Mayor Little. The last thing Sean wanted to deal with was a brow beating from that
blowhard of a politician. "Watch your tongue, Rufus. He's my deputy and I won't have you
disrespecting him."
Rufus shot a heated glance at Joseph. "The same goes for your boy, too. Ain't gonna
listen to no uppity-".
Sean grabbed a handful of Rufus' long johns and pulled him close. "Where are the
graves?"
"On … on the far end … near the tree line," Rufus said, pointing with a trembling hand to
the west. "They sit by some juniper."
Sean let him go. "Who was buried there?"
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 6
"I ain't got the foggiest notion. As long as I get my money is all that matters. I leave all
that book keeping to Doc."
"If you remember anything else or see this stranger again, let me know," Sean said.
"If he comes round again, I'll show you where I buried him," Rufus said, shutting the
door.
***
"You think he did it during some drunken spell?" Joseph said as they headed into the
cemetery. "Maybe he wanted jewelry off the dead?"
"No," Sean said, walking past several rows of sun-bleached grave markers. "He would
have done that before burying them. Besides, once he gets a bellyful of whiskey he can barely
walk, let alone dig."
Joseph nodded.
"And if he was guilty why would he bring us out here?" Sean said.
"Okay, you got a point, but if it ain't him then who done this?" Joseph said. "And why?"
"I aim to find out, that's why they made me sheriff," Sean said.
Joseph gave him a sideways glance. "You sure? I figured the only reason they picked you
was because the last one got himself killed."
Sean smirked. "So did the last deputy."
***
The empty graves sat beside one another in the far corner of the cemetery near the edge
of the woods. Other than a pair of junipers that grew a few yards behind the burial site, the
corner was desolate. The next closest plot was over a dozen yards away. A brooding sense of
isolation and despair saturated the air and seeped in to Sean's mind. Were these people placed out
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 7
here to be forgotten? Didn't anyone care about them? Scraggly weeds grew up around the pair of
warped wooden crosses that marked each grave, but someone had set a small bouquet of fresh
lupine and columbine flowers at each one.
One cross had the name 'Ruby Kane' carved into it and 'Jack Kane' was scratched into the
other. Piles of dirt were stacked beside each grave along with bits of the pine coffins.
Sean knelt down between the graves. "I remember investigating a rash of crimes similar
to this one."
"When you was a special agent for the Union?" Joseph said, kneeling down beside a pile
of dirt.
Sean shook his head. "No, before Mr. Lincoln's War, when I was a detective back East in
Buffalo."
"What happen?"
"Turned out that the body snatcher was selling the corpses to a doctor."
Joseph's bushy eyebrows shot up. "What he want with them?"
Sean grimaced. "Some universities use them for dissection in their anatomy classes.
Corpses are hard to come by legally, so most resort to body snatchers."
"Dissection, what's that?"
"Trust me, you don't want to know."
"All this grave robbing ain't right." Joseph fiddled with the wood cross he wore around
his neck. "The dead should be resting until Judgement Day."
"Whoever did this is probably more concerned with pay day." Sean peered over his
shoulder at the dense growth of ponderosa pine and groves of golden aspen. "These graves are
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 8
the furthest ones from Rufus' cabin and the woods provide good cover for someone to hide out
until dark. They could've used the woods as an escape route, too."
"You think Doc Schwartz is like the one in Buffalo?"
"Not likely since he doesn't teach anatomy, but we should go see if anyone has offered to
sell him corpses, just in case."
Joseph peered at the pile of dirt beside him. "There's boot prints here. Awful big ones and
some little ones. That big fella Rufus told us about must've had a helper."
Sean brushed his hands off on his canvas pants. "Makes sense-"
The snapping of twigs cut off his words.
Both men drew their revolvers and turned toward the noise. A figure scurried behind the
junipers a few yards behind the graves.
Sean cocked his single-action Remington. "You have two choices, come out of there with
your hands up or come out as a corpse."
A scrawny boy stepped out with his hands raised over his head. A layer of dirt covered
his tattered clothes and his dark hair was a matted mess.
Sean lowered his gun. "You know how lucky you are? What're you doing out here?"
The boy chewed on his lower lip and stared at the graves. "My … my... ma... and
brother."
Sean's heart sank. "I'm sorry son, you shouldn't be out here-"
"You're gonna catch 'em, ain't you Sheriff?"
"I aim to-"
"I can help you Sheriff! Just wish I'd stopped him before."
"Who did this, son?" Sean asked.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 9
The boy lowered his hands. "A hairy old man with a big white beard and taller than
anybody I done seen. Wore a big old bearskin coat."
"You have an eye for detail," Sean said.
The boy grinned.
Joseph peered at the boy. "What was you doing out here last night? Ain't you got no other
kin?"
"Nope," the boy said, hanging his head. "My brother Jack was working up at the
Bluebird mine. Ma worked as a cook and I did odd jobs around camp. But after Jack done died in
a cave-in and Ma passed away from cholera a few months later, I been on my own for nearly a
year. I came down here a few weeks ago and been working odd jobs. Been camping down by
the creek. I was just about to hit the hay last night when I spied a lantern shining up here. When
I got over here I seen him!"
"Do you remember anything else about this man?" Sean said.
"Well, he didn't speak English, at least he didn't when he was hollering and chasing me
with his big ole Bowie knife."
"Spanish?" Joseph said.
"Nah, I know some but he wasn't talking it."
"What did you do when he came after you?" Sean said.
"He almost cut my head clean off, but I was too quick for him," the boy said. "I run into
the woods and hid real good. He gave up searching for me after a spell and took off."
"Which way did he go?" Sean said.
"That a way," the boy said, pointing to the snow white peaks of the El Dorado range
looming in the west.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 10
"By himself?"
"Yep, he had himself a brown horse with white patches on its rump and an old mule he
hauled the bodies with."
"Ever seen him before?" Joseph said.
The boy shook his head.
Sean tossed a silver dollar to him. "What's your name, son?"
"Lucas Kane." He caught it with one hand and grinned. "Thanks, Sheriff!"
"Take that money and get yourself a room and a hot bath at the Regal Hotel," Sean said.
"Winter's fast approaching, you'll catch your death if you camp out here much longer."
"I'm okay. Jack taught me all there is to know about living off the land, and how to
protect myself," Lucas said, drawing a Starr revolver from his back pocket.
"That's a mighty fine gun," Joseph said. "You sure you can handle it?"
Lucas held his head high. "I can plug a rabbit at twenty yards."
Joseph chuckled. "Twenty? I bet you never fired-"
Sean stepped between them. "You want this man to face justice, right?"
Lucas locked eyes with him. "Just shoot 'em dead, Sheriff!"
"I'm not the executioner."
Lucas scowled.
"You may not like it, but I believe in upholding the law and that means following the
rules," Sean said, putting a firm hand on the boy's shoulder. "Otherwise we'd have folks shooting
each other over every disagreement and chaos in the streets. I will not allow that to happen while
I'm sheriff, understand?"
Lucas stared at the ground. "Yes... sir."
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 11
"We'll catch this body snatcher and bring him to justice. In the meantime I want you in
town where I can find you because we'll need your testimony in a court of law," Sean said,
taking his hand off the boy's shoulder. "Otherwise, he could get off and you don't want that, do
you?"
"No, no I don't!"
Sean nodded. "Good, then if we have any more questions for you we'll find you at the
Regal hotel, right?"
"Yes... sir." Lucas said.
***
As they rode back to Silvervalle, Joseph gave Sean a sideways glance. "You really
believed that kid?"
"His description is similar to what Rufus told us, a tall man with a beard and maybe a
bearskin coat," Sean said. "And he gave us an idea where this body snatcher ran off to."
"The boy could be working with him, maybe putting us on the wrong path."
"Possibly, but did you see that heartache in his eye? You can lie about facts," Sean shook
his head, "but you can't fake that."
Joseph raised a bushy eyebrow. "You getting soft on me?"
"No, but I know what it's like to be alone. I had nobody to look after me when I was his
age," Sean said. "Now come on, let's go talk to Dr. Schwartz before he gets up to his elbows in
patients."
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 12
***
Main Street consisted of a dusty lane with clapboard shops with facades and a boardwalk
on both sides. Braying burros led by grimy miners meandered to the Wormwood Saloon while
homesteaders unloaded their fall harvests outside of Mr. Anderson's general store.
Dr. Schwartz ran his medical practice out of an adobe house that sat at the far end of the
street. Despite his annual ritual of white washing it, the perpetual dust and mud kept it a drab
gray for most of the year.
"Why don't you go talk to Mabel while I have a word with Dr. Schwartz," Sean said,
hitching his horse to the post outside the adobe house.
Joseph pulled his coat collar up as a frigid wind swept down the street. "Why? Only
thing that old maid be guilty of is talking too much."
"That's the thing, between her and Ms. Tilly, Mabel is one of the biggest gossips in town.
Any time someone new comes to town they know all about them before the sun sets."
"Why you so sure a newcomer done it?"
"It doesn't make any sense that anyone that's lived here for years would do this to their
neighbor's kin. A stranger, he wouldn't have those same feelings," Sean said.
"I reckon you right," Joseph said, heading toward the backyard. "I'll go catch her before
she get too busy helping Doc."
***
Sean leaned back in the overstuffed leather chair and glanced around the office. The
adobe walls were covered with various degrees Dr. Schwartz had earned over the years, mostly
in Boston and Philadelphia. Alongside them were photographs of stodgy men in Paris and
London as well as the jungles of Africa. It was easy recognize Dr. Schwartz in each of them. The
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 13
elderly doctor towered over the other people and had a perpetually dour expression on his long
face, as if he had just swallowed a mouthful of spoiled milk.
"Ordinarily, I would wonder why it is so imperative for you to infringe upon my
practice," Dr. Schwartz said, marching into the office. "But it just so happens that I wish to speak
with you as well."
Sean leaned forward in his chair. "About the body snatcher?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"Someone stole two corpses last night."
Dr. Schwartz grimaced and shook his head. "Then I suspect that my concern may be
related."
"What is it?" Sean said.
"I was working rather late last night when I heard a commotion in the backyard," Dr.
Schwartz said, unbuttoning his black sack suit coat before taking a seat at his ornate desk. "At
first I dismissed it as Mabel coming home, but when it persisted I looked out the window and
spotted a behemoth of a man attempting to break into the morgue. I sent my dogs after him, but
he managed to escape. I assumed it was a miner that had spent his share on too much whiskey
and did not deem it worthy of rousing you or your deputy last night."
"Did you get a good look at him?" Sean said. He knew it had to be the same man. What
were the odds that two giants with ghoulish natures were in town?
"My lantern shone a bit of light on him when I stepped outside with my dogs. He
appeared to be wearing a long fur coat and he had a long beard. I could not see much else."
"That sounds like stranger seen at the cemetery."
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 14
Dr. Schwartz raked his thin fingers through his bushy white hair. "I daresay that is rather
peculiar. I was aware of grave robbing being common place back East, but I never imagined it
would occur here in Silvervalle."
Sean got up and looked out the window. The backyard was a rocky patch of dirt fenced in
on all sides. In the middle was a squat stone building with a chimney that served as the morgue.
A dozen yards behind it sat Mabel's log cabin and an outhouse. Joseph stood in front of the
cabin and alternated between knocking on the door and peering through the front window. "What
do you know about Ruby and Jack Kane?"
"I assume it was their graves the body snatcher violated?"
Sean nodded while keeping his eyes on Joseph who had turned his attention to the
morgue.
"Mrs. Kane succumbed from cholera about a year ago," Dr. Schwartz said, rubbing his
pointed chin. "Her eldest son, Jack perished in a cave-in a few months before her."
"Do they have any other kin?" Sean said.
"Mrs. Kane was a widow and she never spoke of her past. The only family remaining
that I know of would be her youngest son, Lucas. But he is just a boy, he could not be the
responsible party."
"Have you talked to Mabel about last night?" Sean said.
"I went to inquire with her last night, but no one was home. I assumed she was still at
Ms. Tilly's home for their weekly sewing circle. I was planning on speaking to her this morning,
but I have not seen her yet."
"That's odd, isn't it? She normally opens the office up and starts bringing in patients
before you get here, right?"
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 15
"You are correct, but she is prone to staying up to ungodly hours whenever she goes to
Ms.Tilly's home," Dr. Schwartz said with a shrug. "I assumed she had merely overslept which
isn't out of the ordinary on such an occasion."
Sean watched Joseph pick something out of the dirt in front of the morgue's door. "Unless
you have anything else, I'm going to join my deputy out back. If you see Mabel let her know I
want to have a word with her."
"Very well," Dr. Schwartz said, turning his attention to a neatly stacked pile of papers on
his desk. "I wish you luck in catching this man and resolving this ungodly crime."
***
"Sheriff!" Joseph said, kneeling in front of the morgue.
Sean walked over to him. "What is it?"
"This door looks like it's been beaten like a mule."
"Dr. Schwartz told me he saw someone trying to break in last night, and his description
was similar to what we've heard before."
Joseph grimaced. "This a sick man we dealing with, Sheriff."
"That's the truth and the sooner we find him, the better for everyone in Silvervalle," Sean
said. "Did you find anything else?"
"Just this here," Joseph said, handing him a scrap of paper. "Found it in the dirt by the
door. Looks like a bill of sales from Anderson's and it's got yesterday's date."
Sean glanced at the paper. "For a calico dress and a sack suit? The wind-"
A blood curdling scream cut him off.
Dr. Schwartz stood in front of the outhouse next to Mabel's cabin.
Sean rushed over to him. "What's wrong?"
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 16
All the color had drained from the doctor's face and his hand trembled when he pointed at
the outhouse. "In ... Inside."
Joseph led the doctor over to a stump several yards away. "Just sit on down, we'll handle
this."
Dr. Schwartz buried his face in his hands.
Sean opened the door and staggered back as a rancid stench rushed out. The corpse of an
elderly black woman in a bloodied and torn calico dress lay on the floor of the outhouse. Her
killer had cut out her eyes out leaving her with bloodied sockets that seemed to stare at the
bizarre scrawling on the walls. They were drawn in blood and consisted of peculiar angular
forms and wavering spirals. It appeared whoever drew them had done so in a frantic manner.
What would possess the killer to cover nearly every inch of the walls with them?
He knelt down beside the corpse. She had almost been decapitated by a viscous gash
across her throat and her chest seemed concaved. Sean pulled the torn remnants of her dress
aside. He sucked air through his clenched teeth at the sight. The killer had gutted her like a
freshly killed deer, taking the heart, liver, and spleen but leaving all the rest in a gory heap
between her legs.
Bile flooded the back of his throat, but he swallowed hard and covered her back up with
her bloodied dress. Why would the killer butcher her like an animal? There wasn't any sane
motive to it or the markings on the wall. "I'm sorry, Mabel, you didn't deserve to die like this. I
swear we'll catch this bastard for you."
Joseph gaped at the corpse and fiddled with the wooden cross he wore around his neck.
"Sweet Lord! Lucas say that body snatcher almost cut his head off, too."
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 17
Sean grabbed the corpse's left arm. "That's right. Unfortunately for Mabel, this wasn't a
very good hiding spot.
"What you doing?" Joseph said, his brow furrowing.
Sean ignored him and pried the corpse's fingers back to reveal a buckskin pouch with
intricate beadwork and a broken leather strap. Inside it was an ornate brass case that held a small
black and white photograph of an unusually tall man with as bushy white beard that nearly
reached his belt buckle and he wore an old bear skin coat. He stood beside an elderly woman in a
patched calico dress who wore her white hair in a bun and had her thin hands folded neatly in her
lap. A young man stood beside them. Despite his face full of pimples, he bore a striking
resemblance to the older man.
"What that?"
Sean tossed the photograph to Joseph. "Matches the description of our suspect. Mabel
must’ve torn it off her killer."
Joseph studied it for a moment. "We need somebody that knows his face."
Sean nodded.
"Why you think he kill Mabel in the shit house?"
"My guess is the body snatcher saw her come home last night, and didn't want to risk
being spotted. As to why he mutilated her, I don't know. It goes way beyond a normal killing."
"I ain't never seen nothin' like this before. It ain't natural, I tell you, this killer more devil
then man."
Sean examined the corpse's hand. "I don't know much about the devil, but I do how to
track down criminals."
Joseph grimaced. "What you find now?"
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 18
"Bits of skin under her fingernails. Looks like Mabel hit him at least once before she
died."
"Didn't do her no good."
Sean glanced up at him. "No, but it may be good for us. Whoever killed her is going to
have fresh scratches. If we find some on our suspect it’'ll add to the evidence against him."
Joseph tossed the photograph back to him. "And what about this writing? I ain't never
seen nothing like it."
Sean glanced at the wall. "It doesn't matter. He's stolen two corpses and now he's a
murderer. He's a threat to everyone in Silvervalle and all of Raven County. This is my town and
my county, I'm not going to stop hunting him until he's swinging from a noose."
Joseph nodded.
"Go on and take Schwartz inside," Sean said.
"Okay," Joseph said. "I'll fetch Rufus and Father Montes, too. Mabel deserves a proper
Christian burial."
Sean nodded. "In the mean time I'll go talk to Mr. Anderson about that receipt and the
man in the photograph."
***
"Sure I recognize him," Mr. Anderson said, looking up from the photograph, "That’s
Pierre DuBois and his family. I can give it back the next time he's down here."
Sean locked eyes with him. "What do you know about Pierre?"
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 19
"I've known him for almost thirty years. We started doing business back when the beaver
trade was booming back in the 1840’s. He's one of them French Canadians. A real mountain
man, and still one fine trapper and hunter."
"When's the last time you saw him?"
"Yesterday, actually. I had just closed up shop and was heading upstairs for dinner when
I heard someone banging on the front door," Mr. Anderson said. "I would've told anyone else to
come back in the morning, but I felt sorry for Pierre because I knew this would be his final trip
until next spring."
"What do you mean he won't be back until then?" Sean said.
"Well, he lives way up there in the mountains and only comes down a few times a year."
"What kind of business did you do with Pierre?" Sean said.
"He traded some furs for a calico dress and a sack suit," Mr. Anderson said with a shrug.
"Said they were gifts for his family."
Sean planted his palms on the counter and leaned forward. "Where's he live, exactly?"
"I've had no reason to go up there, but First Street turns into a trail once you leave town.
He lives in a meadow near a creek. He’s told me he’s got a nice log cabin with a barn for him
and his family. They work the land while he hunts and traps. No one goes up there but Pierre
since all the miners struck the mother lode further north. Besides folks say that area gets too
many avalanches once the snow falls. In fact I was surprised he came down considering the
mountains have been getting hit hard with snow the past couple weeks now."
"Much obliged for your help," Sean said, heading for the door.
"Uh ... Sheriff Callahan?" Mr. Anderson said, fidgeting with his starched collar.
"What?"
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 20
"Pierre's a friend of mine so I’m a bit concerned about all this. He isn't in any sort of
trouble, is he?"
Sean headed out the door. "I'd reconsider that friendship if I were you."
***
The El Dorado range rose from the ponderosa forest like the jaws of an antediluvian
beast. The snow-covered summits slashed the clouds and a bone-chilling wind swept down from
their lofty heights. It was an intimidating display by Mother Nature, but it wasn't about to stop
Sean from finding Pierre. Justice had to be served.
"You sure we got to go up there today?" Joseph said from behind him, his voice muffled
by the wool scarf wrapped around his neck and face.
Sean glanced over his shoulder at his shivering deputy. "We've spent enough time in
town. If we wait any longer he could be long gone."
"We should get a posse."
"No, that many men and horses would make too much noise," Sean said, nudging his
Buckskin gelding with his knees and riding down the trail into the snow-filled forest.
***
"See how the mule's tracks are deeper then the horse's? It was carrying a load, probably
the corpses," Sean said, studying the tracks in the snow. "Lucas was right about Pierre having a
horse and mule."
"Or it could be somebody else," Joseph said. "Miners always got at least one pack mule
with them."
"True, but Mr. Anderson said that they don't bother with this area anymore."
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 21
"How he know that? He don't leave his store except to go to church on Sunday when his
wife's home and to the brothel when she ain't."
"That may be so, but unless you know something else, this is our best lead," Sean said.
Joseph pointed at some footprints that followed alongside the animals' tracks. "And what
about them? They look too small to be our body snatcher's."
"Maybe Pierre's boy waited down here for him and led the mule back up," Sean said.
"If his boy came down from the mountains to meet him then why don't I see no footprints
coming downhill?" Joseph asked. "I only see them headed up."
"That's a good question," Sean said, "but we won't get any answers sitting around here."
"Lead on then," Joseph said, flicking his horse’s reins.
***
The trek up the mountain proved to be an arduous journey. Although fall reigned in
Silvervalle, the mountains were firmly in the frigid grasp of winter. By the time they reached
the broad meadow icicles hung from their horses’ muzzles and the animals' breath billowed like
steam from a locomotive.
"What you doing?" Joseph said when Sean pulled on his reins.
"Don't you smell that wood smoke?" Sean said, pulling a brass field glass out of his coat
pocket.
"This air so thin and cold iit all I can do to breathe."
Sean peered through the field glass. An iced-over creek wound its way through the
snowy meadow which was marred by the horse and mule tracks. A handful of snow-covered
boulders, the size of houses, stood like sentries in the meadow. At first he dismissed the log
cabin on the far side of the meadow as one of the boulders, but the trickle of smoke from its
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 22
chimney betrayed its true nature. The pitched roof of a barn peeked over the cabin and the
braying of a mule cut through the frigid air.
Sean lowered the field glass and handed it to Joseph. "That has to be Pierre's homestead,
it matches what Mr. Anderson told me and those tracks we’ve been following head straight for
it."
Joseph peered through the field glass. "How we do this?"
"Make your way up to one of those boulders," Sean said, "and use it for protection while
you cover me as I ride up to Pierre's door."
Joseph handed the field glass back to him. "What if he gets the drop on you?"
Sean's pale blue eyes narrowed. "I'm counting on you to have better aim than him."
***
Sean rode through the knee-deep snow to the cabin door while staying alert for any signs
of an ambush. The two windows were shuttered to keep out the frigid air, but each one had a
narrow slit cut into them. The only purpose the slits served was to allow a man to shoot through
them. Was Pierre peering through one and lining him up dead to rights? If Sean rode into an
ambush there wouldn't be much cover other than a Douglas blue fir that stood a few yards in
front of the cabin.
As he drew closer to the cabin he unbuttoned his fringed buckskin coat to allow easier
access to his twin Remingtons holstered high on his hips. There wasn't any reason to go into the
cabin with guns drawn, but only a fool would be caught fumbling for his iron while another man
plugged him full of lead. He took one more look around before getting off his horse and walking
up to Pierre's cabin.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 23
Sean stood to the side of the door and knocked. "This is Sheriff Callahan, I want to
have a word with you, Pierre DuBois."
A ferocious barking erupted from inside the cabin. Sean's heart hammered and the
prickling sensation of fear crept down his spine as the door swung open. He sprinted for cover
behind the Douglas blue fir as a monstrous dog barreled outside.
The coal black dog stood outside the door with slobber dripping from its yellow teeth,
and a burly man towered behind it. Liver spots and grotesque moles littered the man's pallid face.
Adding to his ghastly appearance were the dark circles under his bloodshot eyes, which darted
about in a frenzied manner. His most telling features were his scraggly white beard that reached
his belt buckle and the fresh scratches on his forehead. Clutched in his bloodstained hands was a
double-barreled shotgun. When he stepped past the dog, the wind swept his ragged bear skin
coat aside and revealed the bloodied grip of a Bowie knife sheathed on his hip.
Sean ducked behind the tree. "This is Sheriff Callahan, call off your dog and drop your
weapons, Pierre. We’ve got you-"
A shotgun blast cut off his words. It hit the side of the tree sending bits of bark into the
air.
Joseph returned fire from behind a boulder a half dozen yards behind Sean. His shots
struck the door frame, missing Pierre by mere inches.
The dog barreled toward Sean like a runaway rail car.
The roar of the gunfire faded away as Sean's mind focused on the dog. His breathing and
heart slowed to a steady rhythm. Everything seemed to move in slow motion as he drew one of
his revolvers and leaned out from behind the tree. He steadied his aim as the dog leapt at him.
The bullet grazed its shoulder, but its momentum carried it forward into Sean.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 24
The collision drove Sean into the snow with dog atop him and his gun was knocked out
of his hand. Splotches floated in his vision and his head spun. Each breath sent barbs of blinding
pain through his chest. A bone numbing chill swept through him as the snow soaked his clothes.
The dog's snarl snapped Sean back to reality. It lunged for his throat. He flung his left
arm over his neck. Its teeth tore through his coat sleeve like a saw blade. The dog shook its head
side to side. Sean screamed as its teeth sunk into his flesh like bayonets.
A surge of adrenaline flooded Sean's mind. It numbed his body and sharpened his mind
to a razor's edge. He reached out with his free hand and gouged the dog's eyes.
It squealed and released his arm.
Sean drew his other Remington and squeezed the trigger. The dog's blood splattered the
snow as it fell.
Someone plowed through the snow behind him. Sean cocked his gun and turned around,
but a surge of relief washed over him when he saw Joseph running up to him.
Sean lowered his gun. "Is Pierre dead?"
"No, he went around the corner," Joseph said. "I think he's going for his horse."
"You go around that end and I'll take the other side," Sean said, pulling his other gun out
of the snow. "We'll try to cut him off."
"What about his wife and kid?"
"What about them? If they have a gun, shoot them," Sean said. "If they're unarmed and
get in your way, put a rifle butt in their face. Pierre's not getting away."
Joseph nodded before heading around the far end of the cabin.
Sean crept around the other side of the cabin while cradling his wounded arm against his
chest. The surge of adrenaline had faded and his arm throbbed with every heartbeat, but at least
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 25
the bleeding had slowed. The only good thing was that it wasn't his shooting arm. But now
wasn't the time to for wallow in misery. He had a duty to protect the people of Silvervalle from
Pierre, and a bit of blood and pain wasn't going to stop him.
The roar of gunfire filled the air as Sean inched toward the corner of the cabin, followed
by the guttural groans of two men. In between the cabin and barn, Pierre and Joseph exchanged
blows like two punch drunk boxers. Their guns lay at their feet in the snow, apparently empty.
Pierre had a longer reach than Joseph which he used to his advantage by keeping out of Joseph's
range while throwing several jabs that caught him squarely in the jaw.
Sean cocked his gun, but with Joseph standing in front of Pierre it was too risky to take a
shot.
Joseph rushed Pierre and tried to take his legs out from under him, but Pierre side stepped
out of the way. Joseph fell face first into the snow. Before he could recover, Pierre grabbed him
and wrapped him up in a bear hug from behind. Joseph's scream cut through the air as Pierre
tightened his hold on him.
Sean rushed toward them. He had to do something before Pierre broke Joseph's back. It
was still too much of a risk of hitting Joseph to fire a shot. Sean howled while raising his
revolver over his head like a hammer.
Pierre took his eyes off Joseph and glared at Sean. Joseph took advantage of the
distraction and slammed the back of his head into Pierre's face. He stumbled backward as blood
gushed out of his nose and his eyes glazed over. Joseph hammered Pierre in the face again.
Pierre stumbled backwards while losing his hold on Joseph.
Joseph collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. Sean sprinted passed him and cocked his
gun as Pierre got to his knees and drew his Bowie knife. He flung the blade at Sean just as the
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 26
shot went off. The knife wobbled over Sean's head like a wounded duck and landed by the
cabin’s back door. The bullet hit Pierre in his left shoulder, splattering his blood onto the
pristine snow. Pierre howled and clutched his wound.
Sean kept his gun aimed at Pierre while he crept toward him. "There's no use in fighting
anymore."
Joseph staggered over to them. "Just don't know when to quit, do you old man?"
Pierre sneered.
Sean kicked Pierre in the gut, dropping the big man to the ground. "Search him, and put
your shackles on him. If he tries anything I'll plug him in the head."
Pierre hissed through his clenched teeth while Joseph pulled his arms behind his back and
shackled him. "Ce qui?"
"Speak English," Sean said.
"Porquoi... why you do this? Why you come here and attack me? I do nothing, I am
honest man!"
"An honest man that tried to break my deputy in half," Sean said through his clenched
teeth, "and cut my head off just like you did to Mabel?"
"Non … I do not understand. What is it you think I do? I do not know this … this
Mabel."
"We have witnesses that saw you digging up some graves in Silvervalle and taking the
corpses. We also know you killed Mabel in the outhouse behind Dr. Schwartz's office."
"Non! Non! Je suis... I am no robber of graves!" Pierre said. "I no kill. I stay here with
my family-"
"Are they in the house?" Sean said.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 27
"Oui ... Yes, they are inside ... they mean you no harm. We were just about to have
dinner-"
A clattering came from the house.
Pierre's eyes bulged.
Joseph shot a sideways glance at the house. "We got more trouble, Sheriff."
Pierre howled. "Oui! They mean you... no harm … Si'l vous plaît... Sheriff!"
"Then tell them to come on out."
Pierre's face twisted with pain. "Sheriff... they are... no trouble."
Joseph stood on the other side of the prisoner. "I don't like this one bit."
"Neither do I," Sean said. "But we need to secure him better before we deal with whoever
is inside. Shackles won't keep him from wandering off."
"I bet I can find some rope in that barn of his."
Pierre glared at Joseph. "Keep your filthy hands away, nigg-"
Sean kicked him in his wounded shoulder. "Watch your tongue, or else you’ll lose it."
Pierre screamed.
"I bet I could find something to gag him with, too," Joseph said, glaring at Pierre.
"A mouthful of horse manure ought to do it," Sean said, heading to the cabin's backdoor.
***
A solitary candle sat in the middle of the room, but its meager light did little to penetrate
the darkness. Sean focused on every creak and groan that filled the air as he crept toward it.
Joseph followed alongside, his eyes straining to detect anything or anyone in the darkness.
A rancid stench filled the cold air. It was so intense that it made Sean's eyes water and
the back of his throat burn with every breath. It resurrected his memories of bloated corpses on
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 28
the battlefields of Bull Run and Antietam. The murky eyes of the dead staring at him. Their
uniforms too blood soaked to tell if they were blue or gray. Maggots writhing in festering flesh.
Men screaming for their mothers.
Sean swallowed hard and tightened his grip on his gun. He couldn't let the phantoms of
his past haunt him. He had to stay focused on the cabin. Sean took a few deep breaths to steady
his nerves.
Joseph stood beside Sean and gagged. "Sweet Jesus... what is that godawful stink?"
Sean crept forward and snatched the candle from the ground with his left hand, ignoring
the jolts of pain from his wounds. He held it overhead and its flickering light revealed the
corpses of a man and woman lying beside each other on the floor a few feet away. A dozen
burned out candles encircled the corpses and cryptic symbols had been carved into the
floorboards within the circle of candles. The symbols had the same bizarre geometry like the
ones in the outhouse where Mabel had been murdered.
The old woman's corpse had a leathery complexion and she stared at him with milky
eyes. Her withered lips were pulled back into a leering grin that sent a trickle of fear down
Sean's spine. Despite her horrid appearance, the most disturbing thing was that someone had
dressed her in a new blue calico dress.
The young man's corpse had a concaved head and his black tongue lolled out of his open
mouth. Just like the woman's corpse, someone had dressed him in new attire, a blue sack suit
hung from the corpse's withered remains.
Sean staggered back from the corpses. What ungodly madness had Pierre succumbed to?
He gulped some air and exhaled through his clenched teeth to calm his rattled nerves. Sean had
to control his fear; he refused to let it consume him.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 29
The sound of shattering glass filled the air. Sean turned around with his finger on the
trigger of his gun. Joseph stood behind him with wide eyes and trembling hands. At his feet were
the shattered remains of a jar along with a bloody heart, eyeballs, and incomprehendable gore.
Sean glared at his deputy. "What in the hell are you doing?"
"Sorry … Sheriff," Joseph said. "Why … why he got … these in a jar? Is … is they
Mabel? Lord … Jesus! What in-"
A rustling from the other side of the cabin cut him off.
Sean turned toward the sound with the candle raised in front of him in one hand and his
gun in the other. Muffled moaning and the rustle of fabric seeped out of the darkness, but the
flickering candle light didn't reveal the source of the noise.
As he inched his way across the cabin, the light washed over a boy who was hog-tied
and had a flour sack over his head.
Joseph's brow furrowed as he approached Sean. "Why Pierre tie up his boy?"
Sean knelt down and pulled off the sack to reveal Lucas Kane’s sweat covered face.
Tears streamed from his wide eyes as he gazed up at Sean.
"What … what he doing here?" Joseph asked, his eyes wide.
Lucas gasped for air. "I... come up here... looking for my kin."
Sean untied him. "How'd you know where Pierre lives?"
"I ... followed his tracks … up here."
Joseph's hands trembled and he frantically look around the dark room. "Sheriff … we got
to go…we ain't got no time for no questions. We gots to go…we gots to go now!"
"I need you to keep it together, deputy," Sean said.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 30
Lucas' eyes narrowed. "I was gonna kill him! I was gonna get my kin back! It ain't right
what he-"
Sean tossed the ropes aside. "You could've gotten yourself killed."
"I wish he would’ve done it when he caught me out back. He brought me in here and
showed me the corpses. He started doing some sorta chanting and weird dancing around the
corpses. He worked himself into a real frenzy, screaming at the top of his lungs and stomping
around my kin. Then he just got real quiet. He seemed sad and then he got all mad at me and tied
me up." Lucas said, rubbing his wrists. "Told me he was gonna make me his son, one way or the
other."
Joseph chewed on his lower lip. "Let's go, Sheriff … let's go!"
"What about his wife and boy?" Sean asked.
Lucas shrugged.
Sean headed for the back door. "Pierre better have the answers, or I'll be obliged to help
him recollect."
***
Pierre lay hogtied in the snow where Sean and Joseph had left him. A sheen of sweat
covered his ruddy face. He glared at Lucas when he stepped out of the house with Sean and
Joseph.
"Take a seat right here boy," Sean said, "and don't move until I say otherwise."
Lucas sat on a stump a few feet from the door. His eyes bored into Pierre like red hot
needles.
Sean marched over to Pierre with Joseph trailing behind him. "You son of a bitch!
What're you doing in there with those corpses? What're those candles and symbols for?"
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 31
"My-my family...is-is inside..." Pierre said through his clenched teeth.
"Don't you lie! They're not there!" Sean said, pulling the photograph from his pocket and
shoving it in Pierre's face. "This is your family!"
"They ... they ... are gone."
"You killed them, didn't you?"
Pierre shook his head. "Non...no!"
Sean grabbed a handful of Pierre's hair and jerked his head up. "Where … are … they?
"The ... avalanche!"
"What?"
"We go to town ... much weeks ago. An avalanche ... caught us," Pierre said. "I search for
them and dig for them and wander and pray for much days and nights. But ... I no find them.
They no come home to me! Then the Lord say to me 'Go to town. Make new family.' The Lord
show me ... nice place outside town. I find nice lady. Good boy also. I try...I try to make new
family ... but it no work."
Joseph's face twisted with disgust. "So, why you write that on the outhouse walls? Why'd
you kill poor old Mabel, gut her like a hog, and put in her innards in jars like that?"
Spittle sprayed from Pierre's lips. "The Lord ... The Lord demands blood to resurrect!"
"What you jawing about?" Joseph said. "We seen what you do in there, that ain't got
nothing to do with God."
Laughter trickled out of Pierre's mouth and quickly turned into a maddening howl that
defied explanation. It made Sean's head throb as if someone one were driving a railroad spike
between his eyes.
"Make him stop!" Lucas said, pressing his hands over his ears. "Make it … stop!"
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 32
Pierre stopped howling and glared at Lucas. "Brat! ... I should have gutted you too when
the ritual failed. Your organs pink and fresh would have worked more better than old woman!"
Lucas leapt to his feet and grabbed Pierre's Bowie knife that still lay where it had fallen
earlier.
Joseph tried to grab him as he darted by him. "Hold on, boy! What you doing?"
Sean tried to intercept him, but Lucas shoved him out of the way. Sean fell face first into
the deep snow. When Sean pulled himself up to his feet, Lucas had the knife pressed against
Pierre's throat.
Joseph stood a few feet behind Sean with his rifle aimed at the boy.
"Drop the knife, boy!" Joseph said, his body taunt and his eyes narrowed.
"He's gotta pay!" Lucas said, his hand trembling.
Sean stepped in between Joseph and Lucas. "There are enough corpses here already."
"You don't know what it's like, I lost my kin once and when he done took their bodies it
was like losing them all over again!"
"I do understand, Lucas," Sean said. "You and me are alike. I lost my mother when I was
about your age and I swore I'd kill the man responsible."
"Then you know why I gotta do this!"
"I understand why you want to, but I can't let you do that," Sean said, taking a couple
steps forward.
Lucas gritted his teeth. "He deserves it!"
"I hope you know what you doing, Sheriff," Joseph said, side stepping to get a clear view
of the boy.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 33
"Yeah, he does deserve to die," Sean said, while Pierre gaped at him. "But not by your
hands."
"Don't tell me killing him is gonna make me just as bad," Lucas said, "cause that's
hogwash and you know it!"
"Killing a man is easy, living with the consequences is the tough part," Sean said, taking
another step forward. "Folks have tried to justify killing each other since Cain and Able. None of
it makes it right."
Lucas' lower lip trembled. "But ... you done it ... done it plenty."
"Yeah, and it changed me forever. I lost a bit of my soul and my innocence the first time I
killed. I saw the dead man's face and heard his cries every time I slept and when I was awake I
saw his face on every stranger. So, trust me, if you kill him it'll hunt you like a dog until you go
mad or stop feeling altogether."
Joseph peered down the barrel of his rifle. "You best listen to him, boy. Pierre ain't worth
taking a bullet for."
Lucas lowered the blade. "But ... my ma and-"
Sean closed the distance between himself and Lucas. "She raised you better than this, I
reckon."
Tears trickled down Lucas' face. "I ... just wanted ... to make things ... right!"
Sean took the knife from him. "You helped us find him and bring him to justice, that
counts for something."
"Stupid brat! I ... I should've killed you in the cemetery!" Pierre said, his face flushed
scarlet.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 34
Sean's boot connected with Pierre's jaw with a sickening crack. His eyes rolled back and
he fell face first into the snow.
Joseph lowered his rifle. "So much for making him walk back to town."
"Toss him over his mule," Sean said. "Just make sure you tie him down good."
"Oh believe me, I will," Joseph said. "I ain’t chasing no more crazy white folks through
all this snow."
***
Sean stood beside the gallows and looked at the folks gathered on the rocky patch of
ground next to the clapboard courthouse. Normally, the lot was as vacant as a church on
Saturday night, but news had spread about Pierre's crimes and inevitable hanging. Family and
friends stood in small circles and their murmurs filled the crisp autumn air like the first rumble of
thunder. Most of them avoided looking at Pierre, and the few that did only shot fleeting glances,
as if they feared the very sight of him.
Only one person didn't falter. Lucas' eyes blazed like a wildfire as he stood in front of
the gallows. His lips were pressed into a thin line and he trembled, despite his wool frock coat.
Behind him stood Father Montes, a portly Mexican man with short-cropped black hair
and a bristly moustache. He clutched a leather bound Bible in one hand and his other was on
Lucas' shoulder. Father Montes mumbled into the boy's ear but the words seemed to have no
effect on him.
Pierre stood atop the gallows with the noose around his neck. He seemed fixated on
something off in the distance; as if he saw something no one else was privy to. Whether it was an
angel coming to carry Pierre to Heaven or a horde of demons to drag him to Hell, Sean didn't
care. Justice was about to be served, and that was all that mattered.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 35
The trap door swung open under Pierre's feet and he plummeted through it. His fall was
abruptly halted by the noose which snapped his neck like a piece of kindling. Women screamed
and men consoled them. The crowd scattered like a startled flock of crows.
Lucas' eyes bored into Pierre like needles. Despite Father Montes prodding, he refused to
step away from the gallows.
Sean walked over to them. "You okay, son?"
Lucas shrugged.
"I am sorry, but he no listen," Father Montes said, shaking his head. "This is a good boy,
but he is more stubborn than a burro."
"Why don't you let me have a word with him," Sean said patting the preacher on the
shoulder. "I promise I'll send him straight to you once we're done."
"I hope he listens to you, Sheriff," Father Montes said, heading toward his adobe church
that sat at the far end of the street.
Sean turned his attention to Lucas. "I told you he'd face justice, and that's what he got.
Your testimony earlier this week guaranteed that. Now you don't have to worry about him
anymore."
"It don't feel right," Lucas said, glancing at him. "It was too quick, he oughta suffer more.
His body oughta be left for the crows, but I reckon he'll get proper burial that no one will dig
up."
Sean frowned. "Look, I know you're hurting but you should let it go. This talk about
torture, it has no place among law abiding folks, and that's what I am and what you-"
"Then your laws are wrong! Mercy's not for the guilty."
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 36
Sean put a hand on Lucas' shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "That fire in your belly isn't
going to do you any good, understand me?"
"You sound just like Father Montes, he's always tellin' me to 'turn the other cheek' and
'forgive'."
"He's a wise man, you should listen to him. He's helped a lot of people like you heal."
Lucas brushed Sean's hand off his shoulder and marched over to the corpse. "You both
make it sound so easy."
"I never said it was," Sean said, walking up behind him.
"What about you, Sheriff?" Lucas turned and glared at him. "Have you forgiven the man
who killed your ma?"
"I..."
"Or do you go 'round tellin' other folks how to live their lives but don't do the same
yourself?"
Sean ground his teeth. The boy's words stung like a swarm of wasps. "I'm trying to do
you a favor, one I wish I had been given."
"So you're a lying coward preaching forgiveness and justice?" Lucas said, his brow
furrowed.
Sean grabbed the boy by his coat collar. "Look, boy! You're right I never forgave that
man that killed my ma. You know what that's gotten me? Endless nights in opium dens where I
smoked so much I couldn't remember my own name. I've nearly drunk myself into the grave, too.
All so I wouldn't feel any pain. So I wouldn't see my dead mother in my dreams. But it doesn't
last, the pain always comes back to me. The hatred I feel towards him returns every day. I've
never been able to get close to another person since she died. I've spurned women who loved me
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 37
with their whole hearts and driven away good friends. All because my heart is filled with
bitterness, even after I shot that son of a bitch that killed my mother. The only thing that keeps
me from putting my gun to my head is the idea that I can help make this world a little better by
being sheriff. That I can protect people from the evil in this world. That I can save people from
going through what I did."
Lucas gaped at him.
"But if you want to throw your life away over a sorry bastard like Pierre DuBois," Sean
said, shoving Lucas into the corpse, "then go right ahead. Let that hatred and sorrow build up in
you. Let your heart fester. Or take the opportunity Father Montes is giving you. He can give you
a real home and help you forgive. Ease your pain so you can experience the joys that life has to
offer. Or end up like me, haunted by death and hatred."
Lucas stared at Sean with wide eyes.
"Go on!"
Lucas sprinted down the dusty street. His feet carried him at a frantic pace right into
Father Montes, nearly knocking him over. Before the old preacher could react, Lucas buried his
face in Father Montes' chest. Sobs wracked Lucas's body as he clung to Father Montes. After a
few moments, they headed down the street to the church.
Once they slipped out of view, Sean pulled a brass flask out of his coat pocket. The
coolness of the metal and the weight of it felt comforting and familiar, like a handshake from an
old friend. He stared at it for a moment while an ache rose up from the depths of his soul. He
knew the whiskey would be a balm for his pain. It would help him forget the memories the boy's
words had stirred up. Memories of his mother's bullet riddled corpse lying in a pool of blood.
The sound of her whimpering as she drew her last breath.
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 38
Sean shook them away. He stared at the cork in the neck of the flask. The ache in his soul
intensified. It felt like white hot needles digging into his gut.
He clenched his teeth and pulled the cork from the neck. The aroma of the whiskey
drifted out and stirred something primal in him. He licked his lips in anticipation as he brought
the flask to his mouth. His hand trembled and his soul screamed for reprieve. He needed the
numbness the whiskey would provide, he couldn't go on without it.
But from the recesses of his mind he heard his mother's voice. Full of love and joy. The
blissful sound of her laughter, delicate as a spring shower. Her smiling face and the tenderness of
her embrace.
Sean threw the flask to the ground and watched the whiskey soak into the hard packed
dirt. "No more … no more."
Hurtack / A Lurker Among The Dead / 39
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kevin Hurtack graduated from Miskatonic University in Arkham, Massachusetts with a
bachelor's degree in antediluvian religion and mysticism. While investigating a so called 'lost'
chapter of the Necronomicon, he went missing. Recently, witnesses have claimed to have seen
him in the Rocky Mountain region in the company of creatures that are beyond comprehension.
If you enjoyed this short story and would like to stay up to date with news about his
future projects and learn more about him then please go to www.kevinhurtack.wordpress.com