NOTE:

This is sample portion ONLY. To request this manuscript, click here.

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Woman’s Best Friend

by

Jason R. Peters

One

Naomi woke to the sound of Jessie barking.

She could barely identify the golden retriever’s silhouette against the window. For a confused moment, Naomi thought that Mark must be coming home, but that couldn’t be right. Mark was in Chicago, and Naomi had the car anyway. Besides, Jessie would have greeted Mark at the front door, on the east side of the house. The bedroom window faced south.

Naomi squinted at the clock:

4:30 AM.

“Jessie, hush,” Naomi whispered, settling back down to sleep. Jessie barked on, ignoring her.

Finally Naomi stood and walked to the window, unable to sleep, but also curious what had spooked the normally passive dog.

The windows were floor to ceiling, covered only with curtains so fine they were translucent. In a remote house in rural southern Indiana, privacy was not an issue. Naomi could feel the October chill pressing through the glass. Shivering, she hugged herself.

“What is it, girl?” she asked, peering out into the countryside. She wondered if perhaps Jessie had spotted a coyote, or something more sinister.

Lifeless trees stared back at her in the moonlight. Nothing stirred.

Naomi reached down to comfort the animal. “Come on back to bed, girl,” she urged.

Jessie finally stopped barking, and instead emitted a low growl, fur on end, lips curled. It was a vicious sound, one Naomi would sooner have associated with a Doberman or Rottweiler. It sounded out of place coming from this gentle creature.

Naomi scanned the countryside again, but there was nothing.

“Jessie, it’s alright,” she comforted. Finally distracted, Jessie glanced up at Naomi, her expression unreadable. After a moment, Jessie returned to growling at the window, but more quietly than before.

Naomi climbed back into bed, perplexed.

Two

Jessie woke Naomi again the following night, barking away at the window as before. Naomi checked the time:

4:24 AM.

“Jessie, for god’s sake, calm down. There’s nothing there!” she said, hoping it was true.

Jessie ignored her.

This time Naomi yelled. “Jessie! Quiet!”

Jessie looked up from the window, startled, and regarded Naomi with an injured expression, as if to ask, What did I do? She whined briefly, and then turned back to the window, growling once more.

What in the world is her problem? Naomi thought, annoyed. Whatever had spooked the dog wasn’t going away, nor was Jessie giving up.

With a deep sigh, Naomi shoved her feet into thick slippers and from the closet retrieved a fur robe to wear over her thin nightgown.

“Come on, Jessie,” she said, eyes heavy as she moved from the bedroom to the stairwell landing. Again the retriever turned from the window, this time her eyes shining. After a moment’s hesitation, she bounded after Naomi and followed her downstairs.

Jessie demonstrated typical eagerness when Naomi grabbed her leash from its hook near the back door. It was a relief to see her acting normal. Naomi paused to consider wearing some real socks and shoes, but she told herself she’d only be outside for a moment. Besides, Jessie was already prancing in little circles, eager for a walk. Naomi took a breath and plunged outside.

The cold was vicious. It bit at any portion of skin unprotected by the robe. Each breath hung in the air like a tiny ghost. Trees hung in the moonlight like twisted giants, their seeming imperviousness to the cold belied by their empty branches. Jessie alone was unfazed, and began tugging Naomi to walk her usual route.

“Let’s go,” Naomi told her companion miserably.

They walked the customary path for several minutes, Jessie stopping occasionally to do her canine duty to the vegetation. Naomi began to wonder if all Jessie had wanted was a walk at an inopportune time of morning, and was resolved not to spoil her further.

Abruptly, Jessie froze, looking away to the southwest. Spooked, Naomi watched as the retriever’s hackles rose. She had never done this before on a walk. Even when some wild animal lurked nearby, or they had unwittingly wandered close to their neighbors, Jessie had always contented herself with the usual barking, almost cheerful in its territoriality.

Naomi glanced back at the house, some 50 yards behind them and just visible through the trees. Using the master bedroom as a point of reference, she mentally triangulated the source of Jessie’s concern and imagined she could picture it in her mind’s eye: A clearing where she sometimes liked to sit and read in the spring. Maybe the very spot she’d asked Mark to build a gazebo.

Suddenly it occurred to Naomi how foolish it was to be out here this time of the morning. Coyotes had a real presence, and possibly even larger animals. Although she tried to tell herself she was being silly, Naomi’s mind was suddenly filled with images of other predators less likely to live in Midwest. Amid the frozen woods in the loneliest hours of the night, these fears were harder to dismiss.

Inwardly Naomi cursed herself for coming outside, just like some actress in a cheap horror movie, walking directly towards the danger.

“Let’s go inside,” she whispered to Jessie. The retriever didn’t budge until Naomi tugged insistently on her leash.

On the way back, Jessie suddenly seemed as eager to be inside as Naomi, trotting ahead without detour. Light breezes whispered things behind them. Naomi felt the hair on the back of her neck rise, trying not to imagine she was being stalked. She steadfastly refused the urge to glance over her shoulder.

Once inside, filled with warmth and relief, Naomi’s fears of the outdoors seemed silly and unfounded. But Jessie was no less glad to be inside, preceding Naomi up the stairs and curling up to sleep in her usual spot.

Jessie shook her head at the canine’s resilience as she climbed into bed. For a moment, she listened to the faint rustle of the wind beyond the window. In moments, she was asleep.

Three

The third night, Jessie was not barking. Naomi awoke, unsure what had roused her, and saw the retriever posted at the window once more, hackles up but silent. Naomi glanced at the clock:

4:19 AM.

Sleep found her once more.

Four

On the way back from the airport, Naomi was so pleased to have Mark home that she forgot all about Jessie’s erratic behavior. His various musings about his trip, colleagues, and business ventures occupied her attention most of the evening.

It was only after they’d gone to bed, Naomi glad to feel the warmth of her husband beside her again, that she remembered the odd displays from the past three nights.

“Mark?”

“Mmhuh?” He was already half asleep.

“Jessie’s been acting strange.”

He turned on an elbow to look at her. “Strange how?” he asked.

Naomi tried to explain Jessie’s recent defensiveness regarding some threat from the clearing.

Mark was dismissive. “So she’s barking at things. Dogs bark.” Jessie looked up at them as if understanding she was being discussed.

“Not like this,” Naomi insisted. “She seems almost mean about it. That’s not like her.” Jessie laid her head on her paws, demonstrating her usually passive demeanor.

“Maybe nothing’s just really upset her before now,” Mark suggested. Naomi was unconvinced. Seeing her expression, Mark added, “Well, we can have a look that direction tomorrow. See if anything is out of the ordinary.”

“Thanks,” she said, feeling foolish but relieved. If something was amiss, they’d find it.

From her spot on the floor, Jessie delivered a contented sigh.

For the first time in three days, Naomi did not wake until morning.

Five

They found the clearing with ease, though it was harder to spot from a distance in winter when the bare trees created more gaps than they did the rest of the year.

Mark wandered here and there, inspecting the ground diligently for animal tracks or any other clues. Naomi couldn’t help but wonder what a corporate paper-pusher in quality assurance could possibly know about wilderness tracking. She refused to criticize him, though, or let him see her amused grin at his sudden outdoorsmanship.

Jessie, unleashed for this excursion, happily explored the surrounding area. She seemed as contented and normal as any other dog on the planet.

“I don’t see anything out of the ordinary,” he concluded.

“Me neither,” she shrugged. Her fears from the other night seemed largely unfounded in the light of day.

“Maybe whatever it was, she already scared it off,” Mark suggested.

“Maybe,” Naomi agreed helplessly. Jessie trotted over to be scratched behind the ears, panting with a blissful canine grin.

Six

Mark was home for eight days before his next trip. During that time, Naomi woke three more times in the twilight morning hours. Each time, she made out Jessie’s silhouette against the window in the darkness, watchful but quiet. The first two times, Jessie imagined she could hear a low growl, but she wasn’t sure.

The third time, she glanced at the clock.

4:15 AM.

She decided to wake Mark.

“Honey, look,” she whispered.

“Wha?”

“Look at the window. Look at Jessie.”

Mark sat up, regarding the tableau with a sleepy expression. Jessie did not look away from the window for even an instant.

“She’s just curious,” he said dismissively. He sank back into the bed.

“Maybe,” Naomi whispered, unconvinced. But she was unwilling to argue.

Seven

With Mark gone again, the house seemed somehow intimidating in its emptiness. Although she missed her husband, being alone had never really bothered Naomi, and she wasn’t sure why it suddenly did. During the daytime, Jessie was as amiable a companion as could be desired.

That night, Naomi was startled awake by barking. She glanced at the clock.

4:03 AM.

“Jessie, shut up!” she yelled, annoyed. Why hadn’t Jessie displayed this behavior when Mark was home? Was she more frightened of reprimand with a male figure in the house? Or did she just think Naomi needed more protection when she was alone?

Whatever the reason, Jessie now shrank at Naomi’s admonishment, skulking back to her doggie bed with a hurt look and her tail tucked.

Naomi considered consoling her, but she was exhausted and fell back asleep instead.

Eight

The following night, Naomi awoke in silence. She glanced at the clock.

3:56 AM.

My body clock must equate Jessie’s disturbances with time to get up, she thought, irked. She closed her eyes again, but felt strangely awake. She sat up instead.

Jessie was still asleep, head on her paws and breathing deeply. But after a moment, Jessie perked up; first her ears, and then her head, looking directly at the southern window. Naomi watched as Jessie rose from her cushion prowled towards the window. It was astonishing for no other reason than Naomi had never seen her prowl before. In that moment, despite her light coloring and normally cheerful disposition, Jessie suddenly seemed more wolf than dog, dangerous and alert.

Jessie now stood transfixed at the window. She glanced once in Naomi’s direction, and seeing her mistress awake, refrained from barking and contended herself again with a low growl.

Despite the quiet, Naomi was now wide awake. Her fears from previous nights gave way instead to a mixture of curiosity and annoyance. Whatever was out there was costing her sleep, and needed to be stopped or chased off.

Naomi removed her nightgown and instead put on jeans and a sweater.

“Let’s go, Jessie,” she announced, and the retriever bounded happily behind her down the stairs. Naomi retrieved her heaviest coat and boots from the front closet and fastened Jessie’s leash.

Horror movies be damned, Naomi thought as she stepped outside. I’m not a damsel in distress.

Rather than taking Jessie on her usual walk, Naomi made straight for the clearing, striding noisily through the woods with unflinching resolve. Perhaps the creature spooking Jessie would be intimidated by the sound of a large human crashing onward through the forest. The cold was no less bitter than before, but this time Naomi was warmed by the glow of her self-determination.

As she got further from the house, though, her pace slowed, not from fear exactly, but an increasing sense of foreboding. Her skin began to tingle. Jessie walked directly beside her, neither scouting ahead nor stopping to pee. Whatever mission Naomi was on, Jessie considered herself an accomplice.

When the clearing came in view, Naomi halted, taken aback by what at first appeared to be a large plume of smoke rising from the clearing floor. Who had dared build a fire here on her property?

But the gray translucence wasn’t smoke.

For one thing, smoke would have continued to rise further into the air. This gray substance ended just above shoulder height. For another, smoke would have shifted here and there with the slightest breeze. This object stood solemnly still.

As soon as Naomi spotted it, she stepped quickly behind a tree, suddenly fearing her earlier rustlings might have been a mistake. Jessie leaned forward against the leash, eager to investigate, but Naomi held her back, trying to determine what it was she was seeing.

Gradually, like perceiving the shape of a cloud, an image began to form in Naomi’s mind as she regarded the translucent gray object. It separated once at the midpoint, and again at shoulder level. The round portion on top looked almost like…

Suddenly, with a thrill of fear that rattled her to the core, Naomi understood.

It was a person.

Naomi had approached it from behind. Without warning, the figure turned to face Naomi, and the shock she had already suffered paled in comparison to the terror which gripped her now.

It was her.

The figure itself was Naomi, as surely as if Naomi was staring at some bizarre gaseous sculpture of herself. Her hair was composed of wispy strands, trailing off into nothing, the same length as Naomi wore hers. The cheekbones, the set of the jaw were Naomi’s. Even the faint lines around the eyes, which Naomi so resented seeing in the mirror every morning, were discernable.

Naomi screamed. It was a reflexive primal shriek, and it pierced the forest with painful clarity. As soon as she realized she was doing it, she stopped it and swallowed hard instead, now fearful of what else might lurk in the dark and come in search of paralyzed prey.

She breathed heavily in the blanket silence that followed. Her ghostly double regarded her with an expression of unbearable sadness.

And a tingling sensation cascaded repeatedly up and down Naomi’s spine.

Jessie whined at the ghostly figure, uncertain how to react.

The ghostly woman raised a hand and beckoned them closer.

Naomi fled.

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NOTE:

This is sample portion ONLY. To request this manuscript, click here.