Twilight Healer
by
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Drusilla nudged her harshly, and now Leslie’s shoulder burned like white iron. The agony went through her body. Shattered bone chips grated her hip and jaw. Sweat trickled down her face in spite of the chilling wind slapping her cheek. "When people commit crimes, our officials chain them some place where the birds and people like me can get to them." Drusilla ambled toward the cave’s rocky opening. "That girl you heard was caught dipping into the butcher’s money box. Stealing is a capital offense." The bone fragments shifted in Leslie’s hip. She bit back a scream. "Where I live, murder is a capital crime." "If I spare you, you’ll sing to your officials and complicate things for me. Besides, I love torturing for sport." Drusilla smiled again, a crooked, malignant grin. "I’ll enjoy watching the bats tear your flesh." "Drusilla." Leslie yawned. Grayness was setting in until dirt got into her nostrils. She sneezed heartily, jarring her broken bones. The ten-thousand kilowatts of agony that followed jolted her back to reality. She tried telling herself that death offered reunion with her mother, but she kept thinking about her father. Who would cook his mechanically soft meals? Certainly not Warren. He hated cooking. After spitting more blood, she gasped for breath. "I’ll die before you bats found me. Please leave me alone so I can make my peace with God." "Better make your peace with Hades. He’ll damn your soul to Tartarus. Listen," Drusilla said. "You’ll hear the condemned beg for his mercy." Listening hard, Leslie made out a cacophony of cries sounding like people caught in a burning building. Stooping low, Drusilla stepped inside the cave. Her feet made horrible crunching noises. The stench of carrion caused Leslie’s stomach to churn. Bile rose in her throat, and she swallowed hard to keep from vomiting. To her right, a young woman lay tethered to a rock, writhing against her ties. Her screams had faded, replaced by barely audible whimpers. Dirt and mud coated her face, skeletal limbs, and torn clothes. Something gleamed in the moonlight, only a few feet from the beaten woman. A human skeleton, fully gutted, lay propped against the rocky wall, suspended by chains around its wrists and ankles. Even in the darkness, Leslie saw tufts of pink flesh and gristle clinging to its ribs. Flies were forming dark clouds over the body. She opened her mouth to scream, but her cracked, roughened voice afforded only faint, crowing noises.
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About the Book
Scene: a teaching hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Time: 1995 The cast of characters includes Leslie Taite, a timid, bullied respiratory therapist; Alex Wallach, her friend and protector; Kenworthy Mason, Alex's arch-enemy and a killer who leaves a trail of bodies; and his lover, Drusilla Corbi, who wants Leslie dead. Sounds like one for the police? Not quite, Drusilla, Alex, and Kenworthy are vampires who escaped from Adria, an alternate world ruled by fire and the underworld god Hades. Bats serve as Hades's messengers. They spy on Kenworthy, Drusilla, Alex, and every other vampire because Hades plots the destruction of all vampires. But Leslie only knows that corpses are turning up in Philadelphia's alleys and wooded areas. She struggles with a learning impediment that causes her to make serious mistakes on her job; and later, she suffers from amnesia after a car accident. Despite the news reports, she refuses to acknowledge the existence of vampires until Drusilla kidnaps and tortures her. Alex comes to her rescue, but Leslie is forced to choose either his world or death. In TWILIGHT HEALER, Barbara Custer brings her medical background to the printed page, blending it with supernatural horror. It will keep readers up late... and have them think twice before walking through the woods after dark.
About the Author
Barbara works full-time as a respiratory therapist. Her job provides grist for horror and science-fiction stories, including TWILIGHT HEALER. Many of her short stories have appeared in small press and literary magazines, including "Vampire’s Crypt: The Ultimate Unknown" and "Fading Shadows, Inc." (under different magazines). Barbara lives in Pennsylvania with her husband Michael.