Phil Raman groaned and rolled over in his bed. His sheets were soaked and his blanket had been tossed on the floor. Though, he’d tried to sleep since he got home he couldn’t. He just simply couldn’t relax. He knew he wouldn’t be able to relax until the mask was his.
Frustrated, he pounded his fists on the bed, got up, and started to pace.
“What’s wrong with me.” He asked the empty room in frustration. “Why do I feel so angry and why can’t I get the mask out of my head?”
Because you are chosen. The voice in his head said. The mask saw something deep inside of you, a hidden fire. Things you were more than likely unaware of. The mask found these things desirable and brought them to the surface. As for the hunger you feel, that too was there. The mask simply enhanced it was well.
“So, this is all the mask’s doing?” Phil said, feeling both frustrated and intrigued at the same time.
Relax, my friend. The voice in his head said, soothingly. Soon the mask will be yours.
“You relax.” Phil said aloud. “I need the mask now. I can’t stand to be without it.”
Unfortunately, there is nothing to be done about that. The voice said, sympathetically. Events must run their course.
“It might help if you gave me a clue about what this is all about.”
I wish I could, but such information is on a need to know basis, The voice told him, and at the moment your enlightenment is not a priority.
“So let me get this straight,” Phil said, “I’m supposed to sit here and listen to a disembodied voice, which could be a simple manifestation of mental instability, and yet this voice does not even have to provide me with the minimal comfort of any explanations?”
That’s essentially correct. The voice told him.
“Then maybe you’ll want to explain this,” Phil said angrily, “why shouldn’t I just say fuck this and go to the sheriff’s office and get the mask now?”
Because such actions would have grave repercussions. The voice said over calmly. It appears it’s time for you to learn a valuable lesson.
At that moment Phil felt an incredible pain jolt his chest. It felt like someone had hit him in the chest with a sledgehammer. He started to hyperventilate. He knew at any moment his heart would burst from the stress.
“Please!!!” He croaked. “I won’t do a thing until you tell me!”
Oh, I know you won’t, the voice said menacingly, because if you do the pain you just felt will be a mere pin prick in comparison to the exquisite agony I can put you through.
“Fine damnit!” he said. “I just wish you knew how I feel.”
Oh, but I do, my boy, the voice sounded distant, I know the hunger that comes from the need for power. At one time I was so close to having everything I ever wanted, eternal youth, wealth, women… everything. But in a moment of weakness I lost it all.
Phil could almost feel for the voice in his head, but he was still reeling from the voice’s ‘lesson’.
But, enough of all this wallowing. The voice said. There’s work to be done.
“What work?” Phil seemed overly excited at the prospect. This was mostly because he figured anything that the voice deemed as work would most inevitably bring them closer to their goal, the mask. And, if there was anyway to speed things up, he was more than willing to help.
If we’re to know when the time’s right we must observe the flow of events. The voice told him. Therefore, my young friend, we have places to go and people to watch....
Micki came in the living room and found Ryan sitting on the couch watching television.
“Is there any coffee?” she asked, yawning. Ryan had let her sleep in; it was well past noon.
Ryan looked up at her, surprised. “I can’t believe it, Micki.” He said. “You were right.” He gestured at the television.
Micki looked over at the television. On the screen she saw shots of sheriff deputies and paramedics moving body bags.“…The sheriff’s department has closed off Camp Crystal Lake and is currently going over the crime scene as we speak.” The voice over said. Then a shot of a white haired and mustached sheriff came on screen. Micki recognized him as Sheriff Lloyd Landis. ”I assure the people of Cunningham County that the perpetrator of this heinous crime was killed while attempting to assault two more victims.” the sheriff said, “Thankfully, both of the young people involved are alive and well.”
“What about the story we’ve heard that these killings had something to do with Jason Voorhees?” came a voice from off camera.
Landis looked annoyed. “I don’t know who’s been telling you such things, but there’s nothing connecting these murders to Jason Voorhees.”
“What about the hockey mask, Sheriff?” came another off camera voice. “I heard they got it this time.”
“I’m sorry I can not give out any details on this issue.” This started a cacophony of voices and questions yelled from off camera.
Then the picture changed to a female newscaster. “We will continue to bring you updates on this latest massacre at Camp…”
With that, Ryan hit a button on his remote and shut off the television. “Well, I guess that’s it for now.” Ryan said. “At least with the mask in the hands of the sheriff there won’t be any murders for the time being.”
“I’m not so sure.” Micki said. “Until we can get it in the vault back at Curious Goods that mask is still a danger.”
“Well, there’s nothing we can do for now.” Ryan said. “I doubt the sheriff’s gonna hand us the mask and send us on our way.”
“Then we’ll just have to find a way to get that mask, or figure a way to take the curse off of it.”
“Either way is a tough order.” Ryan admitted.
“Yeah,” Micki said, “but you and I’ve handled tough orders before.”
“But before we had Jack and we had some idea what we were dealing with.”
“I haven’t had Jack for the last ten years,” Micki reminded him, “but I’ve managed.”
“Ok, oh pillar of experience, what you suggest we do?” Ryan asked, with a touch of sarcasm.
Micki ignored him for a moment and thought. “I think we should go see the sheriff and make sure he has the mask. Then we need to get more information about Pamela and Jason Voorhees, preferably anything that could clue us into how Jason was brought back from the dead in the first place.”
Ryan laughed “And who do you suggest we ask?”
“I didn’t say it was going to be easy.” Micki said, annoyed.
“You got that right.” Ryan said. Then his eyes lit up. “But I do know the one person here in Crystal Lake that might give us some clues.”
“Who?” Micki asked. She had little doubt about Ryan’s statement; after all he had spent most of his second lifetime here in Crystal Lake.
“Let’s go see the sheriff.” He said. “Then we can go see a very old friend of mine.”
There was still a large crowd of reporters and camera people in front of the Cunningham County Sheriff Office building when Micki and Ryan drove up to it in his blue Ranger. Ryan had to park a couple blocks away because of all the news vans.
“God, don’t they give up.” Micki said as she got out of the truck.
“Welcome to the quiet little town of Crystal Lake.” Ryan said.
As they approached the crowd a woman toward the front pointed at them. From her excited movements Micki could tell she recognized Ryan.
“It’s Freeman…. Steven Freeman” the woman yelled. Then all hell broke loose.
Before Micki and Ryan knew what hit them the crowd of reporters came rushing at them and surrounded them. Some of the reporters pushed microphones in their faces. There were so many questions being yelled at them at the same time that they couldn’t understand them, even if they had wanted to try and answer any of them.
Finding Micki of less interest than Ryan the reporters started pushing her to the side. Micki fought them but found she was still being separated from Ryan. “Ryan!” she screamed, but the yelling people around her drowned her out.
Then she felt a strong hand clasp on her shoulder. She was roughly turned and found herself face to face with a burly deputy. “Come with me.” He told her, as he dragged her along with him out of the crowd.
As she was being pulled along she saw that other deputies were making their way towards Ryan. She wasn’t sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing.
After they cleared the crowd, Micki and her insistent escort headed into the Sheriff Office building. Inside, she found Sheriff Landis waiting in the lobby.
“That was a stupid stunt.” Landis said a few moments later when his deputies brought Ryan in.
“I heard you have the mask, Lloyd.” Ryan said, as the deputies standing to either side of him released him.
Sheriff Lloyd Landis looked at him like he was crazy. “You’re telling me you came down here and nearly got torn apart by those buzzards out there just to find out if I have some freak’s Halloween costume.”
“That mask is an intricate part of what’s happening here in Crystal Lake.” Micki said.
“Damnit, Lloyd, you know I can identify Jason’s mask.” Ryan said. “Hell, I saw it closer than I’d liked to.”
“What I know is there’s no way this mask can be Jason’s.” the sheriff said. “You, yourself, said it went with him when he was dragged underground.”
“I don’t know.” Ryan admitted. “Maybe somehow it resurfaced. I won’t know until you let me see it.”
“Unfortunately, Steven, I can’t do that.” The sheriff said firmly.
“Why?” Ryan asked, amazed.
“Because officially you have no connection to this case.”
“What?” Ryan said, surprised.
“That’s total bullshit, Sheriff,” Micki said. “You know, Ry…Steven, is the closest thing you have to an expert on Jason Voorhees.”
Sheriff Landis looked at Micki like he’d just noticed her. “What I know, little lady, is that I’ve got four sets of murders and not one of those perpetrators had any connection to Jason Voorhees.”
“My god, is he dense or what?” She said, looking over at her cousin. Then she looked back at the sheriff. “They all have a connection to Jason, the mask.”
“Who the hell is this woman, Steven?” The sheriff asked, frustrated.
“Oh, you’ve never met my cousin Micki.” Ryan said, feigning ignorance.
“Figures.” Lloyd Landis said, shaking his head. “Now I got two of you to deal with.” Then the sheriff turned his attention back to Micki. “My dear lady, what we have here is a simple case of copycat murders.”
Micki’s eyes flared with anger. “For one thing don’t you dare address me in such a condescending way. I have a name. My name is Miss Micki Foster. And for another thing if you’re so sure these are copycat murders then kindly give me a motive!”
“Yeah, I can really see the family resemblance, Steven.” The sheriff said amused. “This ones got fire in her panties.”
Furious, Micki was about to respond to this, but the sheriff got in her face.
“The motive is standing outside that door, Miss Micki Foster. What we have is a bunch of losers who kept hearing the name Jason Voorhees in the press and wanted some of the notoriety for themselves.”
“What about Big Red.” Micki pointed out. “He and his family lived in a tar paper shack. They didn’t own a TV and, from what I could gather from my research, there’s a good chance all three were illiterate.”
“But, the family did own a radio and they hung out at Gabe’s brother’s fish and bait shop. Big Red could have overheard all kinds of crap about Jason Voorhees from tourists there. And, let me point out that there were rumors of abuse in that family, though none of it could be confirmed.” Lloyd Landis pointed out. “Miss Foster, don’t tell us our job. We’re not the country bumpkins you seem to think we are.”
“We never meant to infer you were, Lloyd.” Ryan said, trying to defuse the situation. “It’s just that Micki’s had some experience with situations similar to this.”
“And what kind of situation are we talking about, Steven? Ghosts? Curses?” the sheriff asked, with obvious disbelief.
“Actually, something very much akin.” Micki said.
“And you actually believe this, Steven?” the sheriff said, surprised.
“I trust Micki.” Ryan said.
“I’m sorry, Steven, but I don’t have the luxury of believing the amazing.” He gave Ryan a frustrated look. “I think you and your cousin have outlasted your stay.”
“Now wait a minute, Sheriff, we’re not leaving until we see that mask.” Micki said firmly.
“Would you rather I have two of my deputies put you out?” The Sheriff said. Then he called over his shoulder at the office. “Buck… John!”
Two deputies came out of the office area and stood behind the sheriff. One was one of the deputies that had escorted Ryan. The other was the brawny one that had dragged Micki out of the crowd of reporters.
Ryan put his hand on Micki’s shoulder and turned her toward him. He could see she had a determined look on her face. “Let’s go.” He said. Micki looked like she was going to argue, but gave her a hard look and she remained silent.
“I’d suggest you use the back way.” The sheriff said.
“Well, that went well.” Micki said as they headed back to the truck.
“I know, Micki.” Ryan said. “You just have to understand that Lloyd is in a difficult position here.”
“What I understand is your sheriff is either deluded or just avoiding the truth.” Micki said, disgusted. “Why is it that people always have to be so difficult?”
“That would make it too easy.” Ryan said, as they arrived at the truck.
“So you said something about knowing someone who might be able to help us?” Micki said, after Ryan unlocked her door and let her in.
“Oh, yeah, I know someone who knows all the dirty secrets in this town and makes one hell of a mean chocolate sundae.” He said with a smile.
As Ryan’s Ranger drove off, a beaten up looking green van backed out of the parking spot three spaces away from the spot Ryan’s truck just vacated. Then the van proceeded to follow.