Can’t See The Ford From The Trees
1949 Ford
He knew what the problem was of course. The power steering was going due to a fast flowing leek. The rack and pinion was shot and the fluid was coming out pretty quickly at times. Usually he would just stop and pop the engine hood, take the top off of the fluid nozzle and fill it up. He always kept a spare bottle with him but he had just now run out.
Andor
John knew this area. It was still basically forest but some developer finally convinced the state to sell him quite a bit of acreage out past the institution. The plan was to build a series of tract like homes on the land closer in towards the hospital, and then as they built further out start putting up an exclusive community of expensive “spec” homes. A buyer , the rationale went, would be attracted by the exceptional value in the amount and quality of home one would get for the reasonable price of the homes. It would be true too because of the inexpensive pricing the state was willing to offer the developers all due to the close in proximity to Andor State Rehabilitation Institution an alternative name for “The Mental Hospital”.
Well, John Klonipor, decided that he was going to make his way through the forest, out across the open field, and get to Andor for some help. There was no where else to go and as the sun was setting it would soon be dark. John didn’t relish the idea of being stuck out in the woods by the hospital in the dark.
“What was that”, he thought to himself. It was starting already. The jumpiness one gets when they are in a creepy situation and every sound or movement is some imaginary serial killer or something.
John looked back and he could still see the Ford about a half mile away now on the road. He kept walking. Another snapping sound off to his right. “Gotta pick up the pace”, he thought. Looked back, barely seeing the car but mostly trees now.
John looked at the hospital with a new determination spurred on by high voltage shots of adrenaline. He neared the end of the forest and almost made it to the beginning of the clearing leading across an open field. Andros loomed larger in front of him. He noticed that there were bars on all of the windows on this side of the building. Huh. Hadn’t seen that before. This must be the backside of the institution. John heard that there was a section of the hospital that was for the “criminally insane”, madmen really.
Hey, hey! A noise and something brushing up against him. John tried to take the next step that would put him in the field but his foot wouldn’t move. He looked back towards the car and was amazed at how clearly he could see his 1997 Ford Taurus, the one with 130,000 miles on it. He was able to focus sharply on it as though it were only 50 ‘ away but he could no longer see the trees, the forest. It was all kind of blackened out around him.
Tried to take the step again and now felt an icy cold skeleton like grip around his ankles-both ankles. Looked down, looked back. Now he could see no Ford Taurus, only trees, only the dark forest. John turned back to Andros and found himself standing just 10′ in front of the building. All of the barred windows were filled with faces, maniacal faces, bared teeth, smiles bearing the sickening menace of sick and distorted minds. Minds that had passed beyond the edge of reasoning and were now ruled with distorted, choppy thoughts worn with madness, filled with with an evil intent. John tried to get his bearings and he was shocked to see the forest was up close to him, almost in his face and there was no way he could hope to even see the car. The icy grip had mad it’s was from his ankles to his thighs and now about his chest. He heard a high keening sound coming from the barred rooms-cells. He was getting nauseous, thoughts were cloudy. The bars in front of him were melting away and the faces of madmen were coming at him from necks stretched all out of proportion, he opened his mouth to scream and…….. John woke up, in his 1997 Ford Taurus with 130,000 miles, on the old dusty road on this hot summer day where he had fallen asleep.
Madness
When Synapses Go Bad 