Chapter 3 Bitter dreams

The night spiraled with an ominous presence as Sam struggled to enjoy his peaceful sleep. The young man opened his eyes to find himself in a graveyard closed with grey smog which scared him a lot.

"Hello?" He called for any sign of normalcy only to be accompanied by the overbearing volume of silence.

He flipped over his palm to find the same voodoo mark glowing with the same intensity as before.

"Why won't you leave me alone? Whoever you are, I don't want this stupid mark. You can take it. Just leave me alone." Sam screamed out of frustration.

"Samuel!" The mysterious voice called out to him as a dark shadow closed behind him.

"Why the hell did you bring me to a graveyard?" Sam asked as one air force uniform looked back at him. Sam was surprised when saw who it was.

"Dad?"

"Embrace the Voodon." His father said.

"Wait, why?"

"Embrace the Voodon." This was the only thing his father said before he disappeared, leaving Sam stuck in the cemetery alone.

"Dad? Dad." Sam called out but there was no response.

Sam's body vibrated out of his control as more of the strange smog covered the land. Simultaneously, a dark shadow zoomed across Sam, knocking him to the ground.

"What are you?" Sam shrieked.

He looked up to see the strange figure standing above him, wreaking a bee mask and a long people check.

"What the hell are you?" Sam asked again.

Without answering, the figure opened its mouth, tilting into it, and pulled out a gold pocket watch.

"That watch," Sam's eyes widened as the bizarre creative dangled the shining jewelry in his face.

"Find!" The creature said.

"I don't have that watch. The only person who'd have it would be...." Sam thought to himself as he remembered something.

"Find!" The creature repeated before lunging toward Sam to eat him wide but Sam avoided it and screamed in terror, making him find himself back in his bed in the dead of night.

"Sammie?" Shirley called out, running to his side.

"Shirley? I'm back!" Sam replied with his forehead covered in sweet as his employer wiped his forehead with a hand towel.

"Looks like you had a bad dream," Shirley said.

Sam looked into his palm as his Voodoo mark continued to glow with only him being able to see it.

"Something like that." He muttered.

Meanwhile, Sheriff McKnight wraps up his investigation along with his task force at the Chow Pow.

"Sir, we couldn't find any trace of bullets, knives, or any type of weapon that could have caused this." A young Biracial Woman with long braids tied back told him.

"Whatever this was, Officer Stone, it wasn't done with crude weapons. The witnesses said it had something involving bees." The sheriff said to the woman.

"Don't be absurd, Sheriff." A third voice intervened.

"Mayer DuBois I have this area closed off." Sheriff faced the third voice.

"My son was in the middle of whatever catastrophe happened in this restaurant. Not to mention how horrible this would be before business." Mayor replied the Sheriff.

"Sir, your son is safe with his grandmother. We have officers regularly patrolling his and the other mom's neighborhoods to keep them out of risks." Officer Stone said.

"And who are you?" Mayor asked.

"Officer Felicia stone, sir." The woman replied.

"Well, Miss. Stone, I believe the big boss should talk about who's patrolling what but if you'd like to help, I have a suit that needs to be picked up at the dry cleaner's." Mayor shunned Stone.

"Officer Stone stays here." The sheriff said.

"So be it." Mayor DuBois smirked. "I'm sure you're the proper 'man' for the job."

The Mayor walked away from the crime scene, being stared at by the sheriff's scowl.

"Who the hell voted for him?" The sheriff muttered before he began to apologize to Stone." Felicia, I'm sorry for..."

"Sheriff. Don't worry about it. It's fine." Stone dismissed it.

"No, it's not. No one who wears this badge should ever be treated as a second-class citizen." Sheriff stated.

"Sir, I'm a Biracial Woman in America. Even without my badge, I'm always treated like a third-class citizen." Felicia bit her lip and looked away from her boss, fighting hard to keep the tears in her eyes from spilling.

"If you ever need to talk about it." Sheriff offered.

"I'm fine, Sir, We should just focus on the case." Stone declined the offer.

"Sheriff McKnight!" A Caucasian man with blond hair, wearing a New Orleans police department jacket ran to where the Sheriff was standing with Officer Stone.

"What is it, Officer Crocker?" Sheriff asked.

"I think we found something should look at," Crocker said.

"Lead the way." The sheriff and Officer Stone followed Officer Crocker to the crime scene.

"We found this when clearing the area." Crocker pulled out a lighter and began to ignite it.

"You brought me here just to watch you kill your lungs?" Sheriff asked with disbelief.

"No, Sir. One of the forensic analysts dropped his cigarette that was barely lit and then, this happened." Officer Crocker tossed his lighter at the ground five forks from him. The flames touched the ground, changing the hue from orange to violet and filling the silhouette of a bugged insect.

"That looks like a bee" Officer Stone said.

"Not a bee. A hornet." Said the Sheriff.

The sheriff walked away, putting his phone in his pocket as he pulled out a bottle with one hand as pulled out pills with his other head. He poured three pills in his mouth and swallowed them as he felt his heart thumb rapidly.

"Sir, are you okay?" Officer Stone asked.

"I'm fine, I just have to call my nephew." The sheriff replied to her.

"Sir, your blood pressure might be skyrocketing by now if don't take a..." Stone was saying but cut off by Sheriff.

"I'm taking the damn pills!" The sheriff yelled, capturing the attention of others.

An uneasy silence passed as Sheriff felt the beating in his chest smolder.

"I apologize." He said pressing his palm on his chest and leaning on a cop car. "Everyone, go home. We'll pick this up in the morning."

"Sir, are you..." Stone tried to ask but was stopped again by Sheriff.

"That's an order, Officer."

"Yes, sir." The officers all went to their vehicles, ready to leave as Chris's phone rang.

"Hello?" He answered the call.

"Uncle Chris. I heard the troubling news." The person from the other end of the phone said.

"I hope you know who has that watch," Sheriff asked.

"I do." Sam paused before taking a gulp." I have to go to Amherst asylum."