"The Rabbit's Foot"

“The Rabbit’s Foot”

By Cody Williams & Joe Price

 

1.

Mike Andrews Jr. stared sat alone in the empty chapel of the funeral home staring deep into the casket holing his father. Mike Sr. didn’t die of natural causes. Mike Jr. was striped of a father. He was murdered. But why? And by who? That was the real mystery. Whatever the reason was must have been pretty damn important.

            All his father left behind for him was a note he left on the desk of his study the day he died. As far as he knew, the note was still in there on the desk. Mike hadn’t really had the stomach to sat foot in there since the traumatizing events. He stood from the front pew and walked down the aisle to the big white double doors at the back of the sanctuary. He turned back to the casket once more.

            “I’ll find the sick b*****d that did this to you Dad! I promise!” Mike said. He then walked out of the sanctuary and out of the church all together. This is when he began the long painful walk home. His mother left him behind. He was just too Goddamn emotional to deal with her right now.

            Their relationship wasn’t in the right place at the moment. His mother became more devastated that anyone would have known. He came home from a couple of days ago only to find his mom laying on the hard wood floor with her face down passed out drunk. It would be the next morning before she came to and informed him of what had happened.

            He continued walking down the dark abandoned road while he finished putting on his long black leather trench coat as the neon moon light the sky and his walkway.

 

2.

            As the sound of the roaring river bleed through the trees, he continued walking down the neglected road only to be surrounded the foggy forest.  The wind blew hard and felt colder than ice.  The wind blew hard as if   there were a tornado nearby.  The fog had a classic ghost like appetence.  The rain was cold enough to feel the piercing stab of a needle.  It was cold enough to where the snot coming out of his nose could turn into ice sickles.  Even some of the plants were frozen.  As he kept walking down the supper creepy road, he heard footsteps that were too loud for him to make.  He stopped and tuned around only to find the fog that was so strong he couldn’t see his own two feet.  As the footsteps got louder a black ghost like figure formed.  Considering the fact that he couldn’t see his feet he knew what ever it was had to be close.  He started backing away slowly.

            “Hey!  Who’s there?”  He shouted with a troubled tone.  He felt as though the stranger was so close he could feel the breath on his person.  “I said who’s there!  He showed once more.

            “It’s ok! I knew your dad! I knew a lot of things about your dad.” Mike looks at him with a confused expression.

            “What do you mean?” mike asked now intrigued.

            “I know who murdered your dad.  I know why your dad was murdered.  We are the only two who can stop it.” The man said.

            “What do you mean we are the only ones who can stop it, the dark deed is finished?” Mike told the strange man. The man looked down at the ground, shook his head, and then looked back at Mike.

            “Do you really think it’s going to stop here? He’s going to come after you guys one by one until he gets what he wants.” The man asked.

            “What do you mean? What does he want?”

            “He wants the rabbit’s foot.”

            “You mean this whole thing is over a rabbit’s foot, why not kill someone for his or her human foot?” he said in a sarcastic way.

            “I know he left instructions in what to do with it, you need to go check.” He said as he turned around and disappeared into the foggy forest. Despite the temperature swirls of sweat rolled down his face.

            Mike turned his focus back to the mission at hand, returning home. He quickly walked down the road that seemed to grow longer and longer into the darkness. He finally reached his home. It was a small red brick house. He walked up the concrete steps to the front door. He walked opened the door, walked inside, and shut it behind him.

 

3.

            Mike took off his trench coat and hung it on the coat rack that was sitting beside the door.

            “Mom! I’m home!” He shouted out hoping for some sort of noise from his mother. Nothing. He walked further into the living room only to notice his mom passed out on the couch. He walked over next to her and took the bottle of Jack Daniels that she was snuggling with away from her and placed it down on the floor.

            Mike bent over and rolled her on her side and stood back up. He walked back into the hallway and stared down to the end of it at the door of his late father’s office. He slowly walked down the hallway towards the office. When he finally reached the end he placed his hand on the doorknob and turned it. The door swung open and Mike walked inside. The overwhelming smell of musk slapped Mike in the face like the frightening smell of medicine in a doctor’s office. He slowly walked over to the desk of his late father and looked down at the big blue note that lay upon it with the big word JUNIOR written in a red magic marker.

            Mike grabbed the note, unfolded it, and began reading it. The note read:

 

Dear Junior,

 

If you’re reading this that must mean that they got me. I knew it was only a matter of time. I don’t have a lot of time to explain, but I need you to do me a favor…fast. People are going to be coming after you and your mother. They are after something very dangerous that I recently discovered in the back yard. It was something that was past down generations and has been protected by the men in our family for years. It was buried in the back yard by your late grandpa. It was the rabbit’s foot.

 

You may wonder, “What is so special about a rabbit’s foot?” It isn’t an average rabbit’s foot. It’s special. It is powerful. The rabbit’s foot is hidden in the addict. You must find it and protect it. The men that are after it are quite evil and will stop at nothing to retrieve it. They are the Lowlanders. You must not let them get it. You MUST protect it with your life, much like I did. Be safe and always remember, I love you.

 

            Mike put the letter back down on the desk and wiped the tears from his eyes. He still didn’t have all the answers. He didn’t know who the Lowlanders are or why they want the foot. He picked the letter back up and walked out of the office.

 

4.

            Mike walked down the hallway and out the back door to the back porch. As he walked outside he noticed the man once more and quickly shoved the note in his pocket. He walked off of the porch and over to the tree where the man was standing.

            “Hey kid”. He whispered. “Did you find out where the rabbit’s foot is?"

            “Not exactly.” He said.

            “What do you mean not exactly.” The man said.

            “Well, it’s in the backyard somewhere. “Good, when you find it give me a call.” The man handed him a card:

George Stab

547-3917

Magic extraordinaire

            As George walked away, Mike walked over to the shed opened the door and walked inside. He spotted the shovel leaning against the wall. He grabbed the shovel and walked outside of the shed forgetting to close the door and planted the shovel into the ground and began to dig.

 

5.

            Mike dug for several moments before he finally hit something. He laid the shovel down and got down on his hands and knees and began dusting it off. It was a rectangular shaped brown metal box with a black handle on the top. He grabbed it by the handle and pulled it out of the ground. Mike blew the dirt off of the top and pushed open the silver colored latch up and pulled the box open.

            Shooting out of the box was a blinding gold ray. It was the rabbit’s foot. It was both a yellow and blue colored charm. And it was something special. He knew that. But why was it so special? That is what he yarned for. He reached back into his pocket pulling out the big blue not his father left him along with George’s card. He reached into the opposite pocket pulling out a cell phone. Mike flipped his cell phone open and began dialing the number. It rang for a moment before George finally answered.

            “Did you find it?” George asked him eagerly.

            “Yes. But what is so special about it? What is so special about this damn rabbits foot?” Mike asked him. The line went dead. “Hello?” He asked. No answer. He closed the cell phone and shoved it back into his pocket. He closed the box and carried it over to the back porch. He sat down on the middle step and waited for George to arrive.

 

6.

            After about ten minutes of waiting, George finally arrived. He appeared out of the woods that was surrounding the house and walked over to the back porch where Mike was sitting.

            “Hey kid, do you have it?” George asked. Mike nodded and revealed the box to him. George’s mouth began to water. Mike flipped up silver latch and began to open the box.

            “Stop! Don’t give it to him!” A man shouted. It was his father. He appeared out of nowhere and Mike Jr. quickly slammed the box shut, latched it back, and held it close against his chest.

            “Dad?” Mike Jr. said surprised.

            “That’s right Mikey!” Mike Sr. replied. He turned his attention to George. “He doesn’t know who you are does he? He doesn’t know what you did!” Mike Sr. said and he then looked over to his son. “This is the man you were looking for Mikey! This is the man who killed me.” Mike Sr. confirmed. Mike’s eyes began to tear up and he picked himself up to his feet and backed away further on the porch.

            “No! Mike don’t listen to him!” George said.

            “You thought you could trick him didn’t you? You thought he would give you the rabbit’s foot!” Mike shouted. The two men began to argue before a gunshot was fired. A bullet pierced the chest of George Stab and he fell to the ground dead. Mike Jr. dropped the gun onto the wooden porch and walked closer to his Dad.

            “I don’t get it Dad! What was so special about the rabbit’s foot? Why did it cost you your life?” Mike Jr. asked him.

            “It’s not an ordinary rabbit’s foot. It has…abilities.” Mike Sr. explained.

            “What kind of qualities?” Jr. asked him.

            “Let’s just say it is something very powerful that an evil over lord is interested in. She will stop at nothing to retrieve it. That’s why you must keep it safe! You can’t let anyone have it! Do you understand?” Sr. asked as appearance began to fade in and out.

            “Not really. What overload? Who are the Lowlanders?” Jr. asked. Mike Sr. reached out placed his now see through hands on his son’s shoulders.

            “Look, I don’t have time to explain, but you will find out soon enough. Just promise me!” Sr. said.

            “I…I promise!” Mikey said. His dad disappeared into the air. Mike placed the metal box under his arm and walked back into his house. He is now the protector. The protector of the rabbit’s foot.

Copyright 2013 by Cody Williams and Joe Price

Courtesy of The Enchanted Press

A division of TTP Entertainment

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Author's Note

Cody Williams: This is my first collaboration. Please leave comments and tell us what you guys think. And thanks for reading.

Joe Price: I'm relatively new to this site! If you like this, please go and check out some of my other stuff.

Reviews

[Angel]

Oh, I want more information!
Is this rabbit's foot anything like the Monkey's Paw? Probably not.
Who is George, and who are the Lowlanders?
And who is the evil overlord, and why does she want this rabbit's foot?
It's an intriguing tale, but it needs filling out with details...

[Cody Williams]

There will be at least one sequel to it. The Lowlanders are featured more in 'The Lost Empire'. That series goes tells more about them.

[Coyote Poetry]

A very good tale. There was a similar story. The monkey paw that gave you three wishes. I like the way you made the rabbit foot have value. I wanted to know more. Will you add more chapters? I like the set-up of the story and I like the open ending. Thank you for sharing the excellent story.
Coyote

[Cody Williams]

Thanks for reading Coyote! There will be at least one sequel...maybe a few more. I have to talk to Joe and see when we can get together and put it out there. I have a few projects to do on my own before another collaboration, but maybe sometime this spring.

-CW

[icelandicblue]

This was well written. You've got a tight chapter here and it leaves the reader wanting more and that is what good writing does...it makes the writer beg for the next page.

[Cody Williams]

Thanks for reading! There will be a sequel but it probably won't be posted until the spring. I have a few solo projects to be working on before another collaboration. But we both agreed that the story is not quite over. Stay tuned!

-CW

[Nia Hope]

I liked it a lot and I really hope this somehow plays into the Lost Empire!

[Cody Williams]

There are a few links to the Lost Empire in this just like a few of my other stories such as "The Happy Place". This was a collaboration with Joe Price and I thew in some of the Lost Empire references kind of under the radar and waited to see if he said anything about them...he didn't :)

Thanks for reading!

-CW

[Dayran]

A well woven story that pounds on the excitement with the unexpected. A tale of life and death in which the dead resurrect in connection with an old epoch and tale of the fun loving rabbit and the act of progeny to ensure life's survival. Makes me wonder sometimes about your inspiration for these stories. Nice write.

[Cody Williams]

Thanks for reading Dayran!

-CW

[Jackson H. Harley]

Awesome story, great plot and excellent detail :p I love the fact that such an unimportant sounding object can have such an important and complex role, and I like the suspense of the ending, it opens the idea of a sequel. I especially liked the mystery behind the 'lowlanders' :p great read :D

[Cody Williams]

Thanks for reading Jackson! The Lowlanders are a concept I addressed in a few of my other stories (the main focus is my epic fantasy series 'The Lost Empire'). This was a collaborative story between myself and Joe Price and I kind of threw the Lowlanders in there under the radar hoping he wouldn't say anything...he didn't.

As for Mike, his story is not over. I wrote the last couple of sections and was sure to leave room for a cliffhanger. There will defiantly be a sequel but I don't know for sure when. We'll get to it eventually.

Thanks again :)

-CW

[Jackson H. Harley]

I see :p and I look forward to it :) you're welcome :p

[Lyn Anderson]

I like it. There are several minor corrections that a good proofread will catch - if you want I can email them to you or you can look over it yourself. The first few opening paragraphs in particular.

[Cody Williams]

Sure that would be great KL! Thanks for reading!

-CW

[FlatLineBeauty]

Making an ominous surrounding around something so innocent. Love it. xo Winter

[Cody Williams]

Thanks Winter!

-CW

[FlatLineBeauty]

Anytime :)

[Lora King]

I thought this was a good one too, I loved the plot... Excellent work..... :-)

[Cody Williams]

Thank you Lora!

-CW

[Lora King]

Np... I like your work, flow's well, and easy to keep interested in and doesn't lose train of thought... You are great at what your doing.... :-)

[Michael Stevens]

I'll never look at rabbit's feet quite the same; an excellent story, this!

[Cody Williams]

Thanks for reading Michael!

-CW