The Camera 7 - Final Episode

Sam was dead. He was sure of it...with a heavy heart and eyes blurry with tears, AJ exited the hospital. He didn't want to be there when they had to tell Sharon. He couldn't face them. How would he be able to look his sister in the eye and offer sincere condolences? HE was the one that started it all, HE activated the accursed camera...HE should have been the one on the hospital bed, hanging on to life by the most slender of threads.

There were bikes right outside the hospital gates...he walked past them, ambling aimlessly along the road. AJ had no idea of where he was going...all he wanted to do was to walk and clear his thoughts. Images of Sam came unbidden to his mind. Wave after wave of agonising sorrow washed over him. Nothing was ever going to be the same again. No more Sam and Simon - the terrific duo. People were staring at him...he realised how he must appear to them... dishevelled, unkempt and apparently clueless. Well, let them stare, what did he care anyway? It was the end, Sam was gone, he would be following the same road shortly. AJ shuddered at the thought of being trapped in the camera with Lauren. Was Sam already there? Silently screaming this very moment...a prisoner of a crazed demonic entity...a vengeful, spiteful spirit.

His mind was made up. He wanted to know how he was going to die...he HAD to look at his picture in the camera. It was time to go home.

"Okada!" 

The bloody thing was lying on his bed. Had he put it there earlier? He supposed he must have. These days, it was difficult differentiating between reality and fantasy. With not a little trepidation, AJ picked up the camera. He popped open the memory card slot and pulled out the memory card. He had a card reader, viewing the contents on his laptop SHOULD reveal it's dark secrets, he thought.

He was disappointed. It was blank. This was puzzling. The camera had activated itself earlier in the morning and snapped him, so there was supposed to be something showing there. 

Maybe it was all over, maybe SHE was satiated...maybe all she wanted was Sam all along and she was at rest now. He refreshed the device and STILL nothing showed.

For the first time since he discovered the horrid truth about Lauren's camera, AJ dared to hope. Excitedly, he fixed the memory card back into the camera and walked outside with it. The first person he saw was Mama Azeez. She was speaking with the Landlord. "Ah, just the person I wanted to see." The landlord beamed enthusively. "I was just telling Mama Azeez that the rent as from next month will be up by five percent. Things are a bit hard now I know, but I have to keep the property maintained." 

From a far corner in the compound, he heard a neighbour grumbling openly about the increment. 

"Oga landlord, good afternoon sah!" 

"Thank you, my boy. That's a nice looking camera you have there." 

AJ smiled at the landlord and raised the camera up. "Let me take a few shots of you sir" 

Smiling like a simpleton, Baba Salako (the landlord) posed for a couple of pictures. AJ looked in the visor. Nothing was showing there. Good. It was broken, the curse had been lifted. He practically skipped back to his room, troubles momentarily forgotten. There WAS a bright light at the end of this tunnel afterall. 

BOOOOM!

What was that sound? AJ rushed out of his room to investigate...Mama Azeez was standing at the same spot she was a couple of minutes ago. Her eyes were almost bulging out of their sockets, mouth open. She seemed to be in shock. WHAT was THAT she was looking at? It seemed to be a lump of some pinkish stuff...He looked closer and knew what it was in an instant. It was a brain...or at least part of one. AJ slumped...mercifully unconscious before he hit the ground.

They were pouring water on him to revive him. He could see their dirty feet as they moved around him. He could recognise Mama Azeez from her dirty toe nails and...OH LORD! The drying blood and grey matter on her ankle. He turned over and retched. Big mistake. He was staring at Baba Salako or what remained of him. It was easy to see what had happened. The derrick holding the big metal overhead tank had collapsed. The tank filled with water had crushed Baba Salako, killing him instantly. 

Kind hands lifted him gently and carried him to his room.

They shut the door behind them and left. AJ turned his head towards the wall to cry. Lauren was lying beside him. She was smiling, yellowing teeth filed to dagger points grinned at him. 

"How do you like my latest masterpiece? I did it just for YOUUUUUUU Andrewwwww. I have something special planned for you. Don't you go dying on me...YET!" 

AJ was too tired to scream. He had seen too much in the past days to be horrified. He took deep, even breaths. 

She was floating a few inches off the bed now.

"Look Andrew, no balloons....heh! Ayuck! Heh! Heh! I'll float with you today Andy...may I call you Andy? I'm sure you won't mind...i'll see you at 7. Wear something nice, won't YOUUUUUU? Don't be late for your funeral...we'll float and we'll scream. Actually, YOU will SCREAMMMM! I scream, you scream, we ALL SCREAM FOR ICE CREAMMM!!"

She was gone again. AJ looked at the wall clock. It just struck 3. He had 4 hours left to live.

He spent part of the time crying. Part of the time cursing himself. Most of the time he thought of Sam. He remembered the little tyke at his finest hour...and then at his lowest, dying alone on a lonely hospital bed. He thought about Sam's last words...then it hit him. All of a sudden, he KNEW. 

AJ had been standing close to the water. He was at the beach. This was the place he chose for the meeting. Something Sam said to him had given him hope...HE hoped he wasn't wrong.

Right on time, the 'sweet mother' song came on...in the air, all around him. AJ looked frantically around for Lauren, then he saw her. She was tearing a hole literally in the air and was appearing. This WAS her true form...it was horrible. Shaggy hair framed a face that was putrefying and stale. In place of her eyes were sockets with maggots oozing from them. Her hands were several tentacles with little suction cups attached to them. 

"ANDREWWWW!!" She/It reached out for him.

AJ raised the camera and shouted..."Go back to hell you foul beast!" Then he took HER picture.

The scream was deafening. The smell was even worse. The camera made a sound like several chickens clucking crazily and leapt out of his hands. Lauren was being sucked into the camera! She screamed shrilly, beating at it, but it was useless. Inch by agonising inch, IT/SHE was pulled into it. AJ realised she existed in two dimensions - in the camera as a vengeful sprite and in this plane as an undead abomination. No two things could occupy the same exact space. Bringing them together would destroy her for good. With one last despairing shriek, she was gone.

AJ picked up the now inert camera and threw it far into the water. His job was done. It was finally over.

A few kilometres away, a young boy called Sam opened his eyes on a hospital bed. He asked for his mother. The doctors who had been battling to keep him alive called it a miracle. Though he didn't realise it, today was his 4th birthday. He looked up at them and smiled. He was already an incredibly handsome boy at his young age.

THE END

.......................................................................

"Mummy! Mummy! Look what I found!" 

Little Sally had been playing on the beach with her recently widowed mother. She was 'hunting for shells'

"What's that in your hands honey? Oh. Its a camera. It looks old. It must be spoilt. Throw it away."

Noticing the sad look on Sally's face, her mother relented. "Okay, keep it then. You can put it in my small bag."

Safe and dry inside the bag, a little red light on the camera blinked once...twice...three times, like an obscene wink.

Marcel (2013)

The Camera 6

AJ woke up disoriented. His vision was blurry...where was he? He tried to get up and could not...his hands were strapped down and he was on some sort of bed. A figure loomed over him. "Oh you're awake now? Mr...eh...whatever your name is. What were you doing in a restricted area and why were you screaming? It took 3 of my strongest male nurses to subdue you. I'm afraid we had to sedate you." AJ raised his head up and managed to croak "water....please...water." 

The man who spoke to him earlier introduced himself as the director of the facility. AJ knew he had to be tactful...this was a mental institution and the last thing he needed was for any of the so called 'professionals' to think he needed a spell here. He spun a story about being an investigative reporter and explained his screaming was due to a phone call he received a few seconds earlier. 

A severely sceptical doctor reluctantly loosened his straps and told him he was free to go as soon as it was morning. "Morning???" AJ asked. "Yes, it's almost 1am, you've been out for several hours...the sedatives were in effect." With one last look at him, the doctor left the room. He sat up and surveyed his surroundings. The room was clean but spartan. He had always hated hospitals, the smell...the people...everything. The pungent odor of ammonia mixed with the sweet, cloying smell of disinfectant wafted into his nostrils. Christ! He was going to be sick...he needed some air. AJ got up unsteadily and walked to the door. Something made him look back at the bed. There, lying on the bed, naked was Lauren. She was smiling at him, if what she had on her face could be called a smile. It was more like a grimace. Her face had a deathly white pallor and he could see deed cuts on her wrists. She held them out towards him..."come, drink...taste my blood...it's sweet...ohhh, sweeeeeeeeet...." He clapped his hands quickly over his mouth, choking the bubbling scream before it could be born. "A Jayyyyyyyyy! Don't you want to join us? Come and lie widddd meeee...we're all friends here...don't you want a lollipop? Sam will be joining us sooooonnnn!!!" AJ shook his head wildly. This couldn't be real...she wasn't real...no, he was dreaming. Lauren stood up and spread her arms. He could see faint reddish crescents all over her body...bite marks. Her head lolled back and now there was a wide gash across her throat as if it had been cut with a crude knife. From the gaping hole came gurgling sounds. He couldn't help it...he bent over and vomited violently. When he looked up, she was gone. His legs were unsteady and he was about to collapse with fright. The sound of the door opening almost gave him a coronary. It was a nurse. "Are you alright sir? I heard some noises...oh! You threw up on the floor...foolish man! Who is your maid that will clean it up? Can't you see where the toilet is?" AJ mumbled an apology, relieved someone else was in the room. Grumbling all through the time it took to clean it up, the nurse mopped the floor. He was sad to see her go. He looked at his watch, it was almost 2am. Good. It would be daylight soon, the only time he felt some degree of safety these days. He wasn't going to sleep...no sir! What if, SHE should come back when he was sleeping? This was a mistake, he should never have come here. Her ghost obviously hung around her husband Jide.

He opened his eyes. It was morning. Despite his best efforts, he supposed he must have fallen asleep at some point. It was time to go. Sam was still in a coma, Lauren was busier and he wasn't any closer to ending this business. 

AJ tried to think about all the scary movies he saw as a child. Most of the time, the stars of the movies usually got rid of ghosts by burning their bones and reading some sort of mumbo jumbo over their graves. Bah. That was nonsense. 

There was a lot of traffic on the road so it was late morning before he reached his room. The stupid camera sat on the table like it had every right in the world to be there. The lens looked at him like an evil eye and as he moved about, it seemed like the 'eye' tracked his every step. "Gotta keep it together Andrew Junior, you're losing your mind" he said aloud to himself. 

After he showered, he hurriedly dressed up...he HAD to get to the hospital to check on Sam. Hello? Where was the camera? It wasn't on the table anymore. Where was it? He looked everywhere but couldn't see it. He bent down to pick up his shoes from under the bed when...FLASH! The camera was under the bed! It just took his picture! No, that was crazy, cameras didn't walk from tables to under beds and they certainly didn't operate themselves. He reached for it and pulled it out. He dropped it immediately. It was hot! He didn't want to look in the visor...didn't want to see what would be there...

His phone was ringing..."that should be sharon" he said aloud. AJ quickly picked the call..."Hello?" The voice on the other end sounded like Mercy Johnson...or at least how she would sound when she just woke up. "A Jayyyyy, don't you like my picture? Look at eeeeeeeeeet! I did it specially for youuuuuuuuu...don't you want to play with meeee? It's fun in here, we're all in the camera...let's play together...you, me and SAMMMM! We can play and eat HIMMMM!" He ended the call rapidly. He was going insane. Yes, that was it. He WAS going to die too, that was sure...but he was damn well going to make sure she wouldn't get her claws into Sam.

AJ looked up and did something he hadn't done in a long while...he prayed. And prayed. When he was done, tears were streaming down his face.

As he walked down his street, he looked at people walking about...smiling...oblivious. He envied them. None of them had a killer camera, hungry for fresh blood. He envied them and then he hated them in equal measure. He wondered if today would be his last day. "Look out!" The sharp scream jolted him back to reality and he jumped back just in time. Lost in his reverie, he had strayed into the road. A big bus just missed him by whiskers. He breathed out loudly, awash with relief. AJ turned to curse the bus driver but stopped. The glass at the back was very dusty, but written clearly were the words 'next time' it looked as though someone traced out the letters in the dusty glass. He shuddered. He had very nearly bought the farm there.

Sam was exactly as he had seen him last. Motionless and hooked up to several strange machines. "They are for monitoring his vitals" someone said beside him. It was a nurse. He didn't hear the door open when she came in. He looked back, the door was still shut. "Is he going to be okay?" said AJ. "Of course he's going to be okay, we ALL are going to be okayyyyyyy" He looked closely at HER now, there was ketchup on her uniform...no, that wasn't ketchup...it was...BLOOD! "IN THE NAME OF JESUS!" She vanished, right in front of him. AJ was about to rush outside and shout for help when a weak voice stopped him. "Uncle AJ..." It was Sam. He quickly rushed to Sam's side. "Sam! You're awake! Ohh thank God!" Sam was tapping his hand frantically. "Camera...take picture...lady..." His eyes closed again. Now there was a different sound from the monitors hooked up to Sam. Urgent this time. He was flatlining. NURSE! DOCTOR!!! I NEED A DOCTOR QUICKLY!!!!

Within seconds, the room was filled with people. They quickly ushered him away, not before he saw the flat line on the monitor and heard the despairing cry of the doctor. "We're losing him! Give me the syringe....!!!!"

Watch out for the final part of this gripping tale by @marcelloz007

ff @crabiet

The Camera 5

AJ paced worriedly around the waiting room of the hospital. His sister was sobbing quietly in a corner, her husband Jim's arms around her. Simon, not fully grasping the severity of what was going on, busied himself with staring at the nurses as they walked by. All he knew was that Sam was 'sick' and was in a room somewhere with doctors. Well, they had been sick before...mummy or the doctor usually gave them medicine and it was okay. 

The sound of the door in front of them opening made them all look up. The doctor came out, a grim look on his face.

"Oh God! Don't tell me! Where is my Sam?! Tell me he's okay!" cried Sharon. Her husband gently hugged her and looked at the doctor. "How is my son? Is he okay now? Is he awake?" The doctor softened the look he had on. "I'm afraid I have both good news and bad news. The good news is that your son is breathing again..." Sharon jumped up and shouted "Thank God!"...."bad news is that although he's stable, he appears to be in some sort of coma. We don't know exactly why right now, but I want to assure you we'll do our best to make sure we find out the reason. These things are touch and go at best...he could wake up in an hour or a week...or a month. Like I said, he'll get our best care...NURSE! QUICKLY!!" Sharon had fainted

AJ stood outside the hospital, confused. He had told Jim and Sharon about the camera after she got a hold of herself. Of course they had pooh poohed the whole thing. Cameras didn't harm or kill people. No amount of theories he put forth could convince them otherwise. He had gone to see Sam in the hospital room. There, hooked to several strange machines, the boy looked pale and fragile. His brow was furled as though he was pondering something. He had wanted to reach over and smoothen the wrinkles off Sam's forehead but stopped himself. He didn't know if he would be doing more harm than good. He didn't know what to do, but he knew he HAD to do something...

First order was finding out who OWNED the camera, who 'Lauren' was. The Landlord of the house didn't live close by and in any case, the man hadn't been receptive when he first asked about the previous occupant(s) of his place. He would have to find out from another source...and AJ knew who he was going to ask.

'General' alongside Mama Azeez were the oldest tenants in the compound. Maybe they would know something.

He bought a bottle of Chelsea dry gin to give the 'general' that would loosen his tongue, he thought.

He was right. After a few swigs from the bottle, 'General' was smiling like a cat that had just eaten a fat bird. "Of course I remember them, my boy. Sad story really. Young couple like that, always smiling. What was his name again? Ah, yes! Jide. He had a beautiful wife...Linda or Lauretta or something..." AJ cut in.."Lauren?" The general brightened perceptibly "yes! Lauren. They had a little boy too, he died, sadly...Sad story really. Poor woman couldn't take it...I heard she killed herself." 

Here, the 'General' stopped long enough to swallow an obscene amount of the gin. "So what happened to Jide, the husband?" AJ asked. "Oh, they took him away...the man lost his mind. I've heard he's at St Nicholas...you know, the place where all the crazies are...but why are you interested in all these macabre events? Come, drink with me, be merry. This drink reminds me of 1865...when Mungo Park discovered Ikpoba River and Mary Slessor killed some twins in Calabar. I was captain of 4th Scorpion squadron and we were..." AJ closed the door quietly behind him.

In a couple of hours, he was at St Nicholas. He already knew he wasn't going to be allowed to speak to the so called 'Jide' but this was Nigeria...a few minutes and Five hundred naira later, he was standing outside Jide's room.

He didn't know what to expect, but his mind hadn't prepared him for this. He thought crazy people looked...well, crazy. Jide was a neat, tidy man, perhaps an inch or so below six feet. Being indoors most of the time had given him this gray look, but his eyes seemed intelligent. Instinctively, AJ knew that he could trust this man...tell him the truth about the camera and everything. 

It took him about 15 minutes to relate his story. Jide listened to him attentively, only interrupting once to ask him about Mama Azeez.

When he finished, Jide looked up, sad smile on his face. "Young man, I am sorry that all this is happening to you, but wait, listen to me, while I tell you my story."

"My name is Jide Afolabi. As you know, Lauren was my wife. We had just started out in life when we moved into the place you're staying now. I was a sales rep for a Media outfit and my wife was a photographer. Yes, that was her camera. We didn't have Joshua, our son until after 4 years of marriage and as you would expect, Lauren and I doted on the little angel. We didn't have much, but we were happy. We thought we had it all, life was good...but disaster struck. Joshua got ill and we spent all our resources on him. The doctors tried all they could but I'm sorry to say, we lost him. That was the beginning of our woes. Lauren refused to believe he was dead. She would pray and fast for weeks, asking God to raise him like Lazarus. When that didn't work, she became a Muslim, praying to Allah 5 times a day. I let her do all these things, thinking it was her way of dealing with grief. How I wish I paid more attention to her then...the evil one was lurking. I cannot say how or when it began, but Lauren eventually started to dabble with the occult. I would see strange books and items in our bed, surrounding a picture of Joshua showing in the camera's visor. She finally confessed to me that she was going to resurrect Josh with them. This was too much for me, I was worried she was going mad...I didn't know she was already too far gone by then. The next day, as she was taking her bath, I took all the things, the potions, the books, the charms...I burnt them. I smashed the camera against a wall and threw the pieces away. When she came out, she immediately knew what I had done." Jide paused and took in a deep breath. "I thought she was going to shout. She just looked at me and spoke softly.." he stopped speaking again. AJ waited. "She said, and these are her exact words" AJ leaned forwards "you think you can keep me from him? He is alive in that camera...I am going to get the camera back. He speaks to me...he tells me we are going to be together in the camera, the three of us. Now I see you don't want to be with us, but it is okay. I will GO TO HIMMMM!!!!" 

Jide was crying softly now..."I just laughed at her 'foolishness' trying to convince her that Joshua was in a better place now. When that didn't work, I went out, as I was already late for work. That was the last time I saw her alive. She took her life that day. Of course I see her now and then, that's why they all think I'm crazy...my son, you don't know the kind of peril you're in...I wish I could help you. My wife...some part of her that's evil and twisted is in that camera. I found that out when I tried to take pictures with it. Do you know how many people have died horribly because of that camera? I tried to get rid of it, but it kept coming back. I'm sorry, you're on your own boyo..."

This wasn't what AJ was expecting to hear...he wasn't any closer to finding a solution to the problem. He was about to thank Jide for his time when the soft sounds of Prince Nico Mbarga's 'sweet mother' rent the air...

Jide's already pale colour became even lighter and sickly. He looked helplessly at AJ. "She's here. That was her favourite song" he whispered.

AJ looked up to what Jide's eyes were staring at. There, floating above, hands held aloft by multi-colored balloons was a woman in a bloodied, tattered nightgown. No, this was a dream...he would not believe it...would not scream...should not scream...

And then it/she spoke.

And he screamed. And screamed.

To be continued.

ff @crabietThe 

The Camera 4

AJ pushed his fist to his mouth, strangling out the scream that was about to erupt. He stared at the camera with bulging eyes, unconsciously clutching his pillow to his midriff. What was it doing there on his table? He HAD smashed it into a million bits and scattered the pieces outside. He got up slowly and walked towards the table. It looked like the camera alright, he prodded it with his index finger and it rolled over. Sure enough, the name was under it. This was unexpected. This was a real life horror flick taking place and apparently he was the 'star' of the show. He had thought it was gone permanently from his life. A cold, sick feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. This was really happening...to him...his phone was ringing.
He picked the call absently as he could not take his eyes off the camera. It looked like a coiled snake...deadly, menacing, ready to strike... " -on mid-term break, so I'm bringing them over to your place for them to stay. I'll pick them after work." The voice of his sister came over the phone. "Wait! No! Don't bring them today! I'm sick! I've gone out! I'm busy today!" She had already ended the call. This was ill news indeed. He didn't want the boys to be at his place, not with that...thing here. What if, God forbid they should fall under its curse too? This was no place for kids at the moment. There was no doubt about it, the camera was totally evil. It didn't just predict a bad event that was going to happen, NO, he was sure the camera MADE them happen. All you had to do was take a picture with it. A laugh escaped him...He, AJ the sceptic, believing in the superstitious...but hadn't he witnessed it's work first hand? He had front row seats to the damn thing even. The camera needed to be hidden. But where? Time was running out and his room wasn't exactly a stadium. Space was at a premium...there had to be somewhere he could hide it for a while until he figured out a way to get rid of it permanently. He hurriedly put the camera in a small bag and pushed it under his bed. It was time to bathe and get ready. They would be arriving any minute now. He had just stepped out of the shower when he heard a loud knock at his door. The kids were here. That was usually how his sister knocked. Loudly. Opening the door, he was greeted with a chorus of "Uncle AJ! Good morning!" as his nephews turned themselves to mini-missiles, launching themselves at him. Laughing gaily, he caught them and tousled their hair, his problems temporarily forgotten. Taking his sister aside, he told her quietly of the death of the Ice cream vendor, carefully omitting the details and the role (supposedly) played by the camera.
Since their mid-term holiday was for 3 days, they were going to be with him (during the day) for the duration. Big sis had to work.
"Who wants to learn how to play chess?" Four small hands shot up simultaneously. His sister, seeing a great chance to slip out unnoticed, exited his room smoothly.
AJ brought out his battered and dusty chess board. He hadn't played in a while and for the next hour or so, busied himself, teaching the boys how to play the game. They soon got bored of it and he let them use the chess pieces to play their own game.
There was no danger here, the camera was safely under the bed...the boys were busy playing so he took the time to go outside to wash a few clothes.
It was mid-afternoon before they got tired of playing and looked up wistfully at him. He knew that look and what it signified. "Uncle AJ we want ice cream please." It was Sam that spoke. He was always the one suggesting things. Though younger than Simon, he was the bolder of the two and often set the tone of whatever they did. He thought quickly. There was another ice cream stand a few streets away. Their ice cream wasn't as good as the one the kids usually had, but it was passably close to it in quality. If he hurried, he could be there and back in a few minutes. Yes, he'd do that. The boys couldn't know that their friend was no more. "Boys, i'll be back just now, play your game a bit and i'll be here with the ice cream in no time at all." Taking care to lock the door behind him, AJ went out.
"Thank you uncle" Simon said, after finishing his treat. Sam's face was almost in his own cup. He mumbled something that sounded like 'thank you' and regretfully put the empty cup down. The rest of the day passed without any incident of note and soon the loud knock was heard again. "I hope you boys were good little men and didn't bother your Uncle too much?" Sam, jumping up and down said "yes mummy, we was very good!" He skipped around her and went towards her car. "Were" she called after him. "The word is 'were' and not 'was'" but he was already out of earshot. "They were well behaved dear sister and I loved having them here." AJ waved them goodbye at the car, after promising them even more ice cream treats for the next day. It was still early evening, he had been home all day and was feeling cooped up so AJ decided to take a little walk. Mama Azeez was outside, frying akara. God, did the woman not own a decent blouse? This one was threadbare and had suspicious looking stains all over it. He imagined the organisms that would be thriving there and shuddered. He joined some dirty children using an orange as a ball and played a few minutes with them before he continued his walk. He had meant to be out for about 30 minutes but ended up staying longer than he planned. It was already getting dark when AJ started back for home. He hadn't walked up to 5 minutes before a loud car horn behind him made him turn. It was his sister. Simon was in the front seat, his head bent. "What is the matter? I hope no problem?" His sister (Sharon) prodded Simon and said "go on, talk to your uncle" but the poor lad remained silent. Sharon took matters into her own hands. "Don't mind him o! I saw the kids playing with something at home and when I asked them what it was they kept quiet. I moved over to where they were playing and saw Simon hiding this behind him." She reached over to the back seat and pulled out...Oh sweet Mary and Jesus...no, it couldn't be...she brought out THE camera and handed it over to him. His legs felt like rubber and he almost collapsed on the street. "Why did you take it? When? How? Why? WHY?" He didn't realise he was shaking Simon through the window until his sister spoke. "Andrew Junior! Stop that! It's just a camera and in any case, it isn't broken. They're just kids, I'm sure the boy is sorry." AJ hurriedly apologised and rubbed Simon's head gently. His nephew looked up with his innocent face and big, beautiful eyes, smiling. "I'm sorry Uncle AJ, we won't play with your camera again...don't be angry with us, I only took a few pictures of Sam with it..." AJ yanked open the back door with a ferocity that shocked his sister. "Quick! To your house this instant! Where is Sam?" Sharon looked at him as if he were mad. "What's come over you? What is this? Please stop it! You're scaring the boy." AJ's insistent pleas for them to go back home made her turn the car around, back to her home. "Sister, please i'll explain later, but right now, just trust me and let's get to your place first."
They were less than 5 minutes away from home when her phone started ringing. She ignored the call as she was driving, but then her other phone began to ring. Only her husband and AJ had that number. It had to be Jim, her husband. She parked by the roadside and took the call. It lasted only a few seconds, but her face was ashen when the call ended. "What is it?" AJ asked fearfully. He already knew, though he prayed he was wrong. "Oh my baby, oh my baby" she sobbed. "That was Jim on the phone. He found Sam lying still on the floor not breathing..."


To be continued

By @marcelloz007

Ff @crabiet for more thrilling update on my blog

The Camera 3

AJ was confused. This was not the same picture he had taken in the morning...this was...something else entirely. What did it all mean? He had looked at the photo preview on the tiny screen of the camera in the morning, Aminu had been smiling there and THAT truck was several metres away at that point. He looked at the camera again, suddenly afraid and wary...the scenes from the night before came to his mind. Forcing himself to snap out of the mood he was getting into, he absently waved down a taxi and got in.
"Oga, oya come down. We don reach!" The annoying nasal twang of the driver's voice woke him up. He had been dozing at the back of the cab. AJ looked up with sleepy eyes and saw that they had indeed gotten to his junction. He paid the driver and turned round to see a lot of people gathered on his street. He could recognise some of them. Mama Azeez, the neighbourhood gossip was there, her ample 'chest' straining against a blouse that was once black but now looked like a washed out grey fabric. 'General' too was outside, marching up and down with his bushy moustache and clean-shaven balding head. He was a retired army private who delighted in telling anyone that cared to hear about how he defeated Hitler and Saddam Hussein all by himself. AJ moved closer to the crowd forming a loose circle around something on the floor. Carefully pushing his way through the throng, he got to the front and looked down. What he saw made him cringe and shudder involuntarily. Aminu was lying on the floor, limbs twisted in an unnatural position with his head split open...brain matter splattered all over. The corpse looked obscene on the floor...like a grotesque mannequin that had been smeared with garish rust-brown paint. "W-what happened? Why, who, WHAT HAPPENED!" he screamed. "It was a truck o! One big red truck that came out of nowhere and hit him as he stood by the road a few minutes ago." Mama Azeez volunteered. She continued talking but AJ had stopped listening. His head was reeling, trying to piece it all together. He thought about bringing out the picture to show people and didn't know he spoke aloud. "I saw a red truck this mornin-" then stopped when he saw people looking funnily at him. AJ decided not to say anything and moved away from the front. A solitary tear rolled down his right cheek. Aminu was his friend...he didn't deserve this, nobody did. What was going on really? What was with the camera? He put his hand to feel it through the fabric of his bag and quickly removed it. It was hot! Something about the abrupt way he removed his hand made General to look sharply at him. He would have to be careful not to give anything away. The last thing he needed was for any other person to discover the existence of the damning photo. His shock at seeing the picture of the truck about to hit Aminu had made him forget to look at the other 2 pictures he took with THE camera earlier on in the morning. He thought about his nephews, how they were going to be sad when their friend Aminu was no more. No more lollies, ice cream scoops or friendly smiles whenever they came over again. With all that was happening, his house should be the last place for the boys anyway. General finally noticed his leaking eyes and stopped looking suspiciously at AJ. His face softened and he spoke "I'm sorry my boy, I know you people were friends. It is God's will. The Lord giveth and taketh...who are we to question the time and manner we lose our loved ones?" AJ couldn't help it. He put his hands over his face and sobbed like a baby. Glances of sympathy came his way, people reaching out to comfort him. He gently waved them away and wiped his streaming face. The police had arrived. They were going to take away the body. It was with a heavy heart that AJ trudged towards his house (room).
Once inside, he brought out the envelope, willing the pictures inside to be normal. No such luck. The first one on top was the photo he had seen in the studio...the next showed Aminu under the front tires of the truck, blood already leaking out of it. In the last one, Aminu was exactly as he had been when AJ saw him lying broken and bloody on the street. His hands were shaking like thin reeds and he reached for his phone. After the call, AJ sat down heavily on his bed, stunned. The girl at the studio said she didn't see anything wrong with the pictures...that they all showed a man smiling for the camera. He had asked her if she saw a truck and she answered in the negative. This was serious...he was the only person that saw the truck. There was one last test for him to carry out. With his heart in his mouth, he took the last picture outside to show Mama Azeez. The fat woman took one look at it and said "Ehya, see how he dey smile for here. Kai! God go punish the truck driver o!" AJ had his answer...he WAS the only person that could see what was REALLY in the photo. Him and maybe his nephew...things were going from bad to worse. Inside his room, he looked at the camera again, mortally afraid of the thing...wishing he had never set his eyes on it. This was an evil camera...the embodiment of corruption and decay...he had to get rid of it! With a sudden cry, AJ picked up the camera and smashed it against the wall. It shattered into several pieces. Not satisfied, he used a hammer to break up the larger pieces and threw them as far away from his room as possible. There. It was done. The events of the day robbed him of any form of appetite and he went to bed early. It was a troubled sleep. He tossed and turned all night and woke up around 6:30am. The morning rays were coming through a gap in his curtain...falling on the table. AJ got up to close the tiny space, eyes not fully opened...then they opened up. Wide. Wider than they had ever opened in his entire life. There, lying on the table, looking as though nothing had happened to it, was THE camera...

To be continued

 

The Camera 2

His fingers found the rechargeable lamp and hurriedly turned it on. Trembling hands pointed the piercing beam towards the door. He could see the top bolt undone and the bottom one start to move...then it stopped. With one last eerie hiss, the sounds stopped as abruptly as they had begun. AJ had never been this frightened in his life. With legs that felt like rubber, he moved slowly towards the door...ready to flee at the slightest sound. Nothing. He bolted the door and moved away from it, as though it were the plague. Who-no, WHAT was trying to get in moments earlier? Why did the picture appear to change when he held it? A million thoughts ran through his mind as he wondered if he was ever going to sleep again. The Photo was still lying on the floor, where he had thrown it. Gingerly, AJ picked it up. There was nothing wrong with it now, the door was as it should be...firmly locked. The camera! Where was it? There! It lay innocently on top of a pile of books. He took it up and studied it carefully. Nothing spectacular. It WAS an expensive camera, no doubt, but nothing out of the ordinary for a seasoned photographer like himself. He was about to put it down when something caught his eye. There were some scratches at the bottom...no, not scratches, there was some form of lettering there. Squinting to make out what was written, he spelled out the letters L-A-U-R-E-N. Who was Lauren? Was she the owner of the camera? Where was she? He had no idea if the previous occupant of his room was male or female, the landlord had evaded the question of who the former tenant was when he had asked. AJ was still mulling over all these questions running around his head when sleep mercifully took him. 

He didn't wake up until around 8am the next day. He was pleased find out that he slept fitfully. Now, surrounded by bright light, the events of last night seemed hazy, like a half-dream upon distant shores. "Bah!" he said aloud to himself. "It is probably nothing. My mind just played silly tricks on me, that's all." Humming happily, he showered and got ready to go out. He had a mini contract he was supposed to deliver on. A client had asked for pictures to be used in making a children's book. The pay was poor but he loved the job. AJ whistled a catchy tune as he locked his door. It was going to be a good day. Out on the street, he saw his 'friend' the Ice cream man. "When are you going to take my picture bros AJ?" This was a regular opening line in any of their conversations. Today, AJ was going to fulfil his wish. He took out his regular camera and made to snap off a few quick shots. It was out of juice. He could have sworn the battery was fully charged yesterday. No matter. Lauren's (he had decided she was the owner) camera was in his bag. Click! Click!! Click!!! AJ rattled off quick shots and looked at the images in the visor. It was as it should be. They showed Aminu (the ice cream vendor) smiling in front of his shop. A red truck was far in the background at the end of the street, loaded with granite. "Alright Aminu, i'll print these at the studio today and give them to you when I get back, okay?" Aminu nodded happily and went back to his wares. AJ flagged down a bike and went on his way. He wondered why his own normally reliable camera had an unexpected power loss. Maybe the inbuilt rechargeable batteries were bad. When he got down from the bike, he brought it out. Hello, what was this? It showed that the battery was at the 95% mark. So why did it show the 'battery drained' message earlier? He shrugged and went about his business for the day. Later on, AJ stopped by the studio he normally printed his pictures and gave both memory cards to the lady behind the counter. He had a crush on her. Well, on her boobs...but he supposed that didn't matter. In a few minutes, she was done and she handed him 2 envelopes containing both sets of pictures. AJ went through the day's work. They were nice...the client would be pleased. He opened the other envelope, the one with Aminu. This morning, Aminu had been smiling widely, his gap-toothed grin that the kids all loved illuminating his face...the opened mouth and rounded face making him look comical. Aminu's mouth was still open in the picture alright, but this time not in jest. His mouth was wide open, eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets. He seemed frozen in a silent scream...the red truck at the end of the street this morning now just a couple of feet behind him...bearing down like a runaway train...the red paint bearing an uncanny resemblance to blood...drying blood...

To be continued...

By @Marcel 

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The Camera Episode 1

"Uncle AJ! Uncle AJ! Who is this woman at the door? I don't like her." Andrew (Andrew Junior or AJ to close family) bent down to see what his little nephew was pointing at. He was babysitting his nephews for the day as his sister and her husband were both going to be busy with work. AJ was an amateur photographer (or so he liked to think, his friends and family didn't think that was a job). "What's that little man?" he asked Sam, the younger of his 2 nephews. "Where is Simon?" Here, readers can rightly deduce that Simon would be the older of the kids. Sam was pointing at a corner of the picture he had just developed. It was a picture of his room. He moved into his new place (room) a week ago and was still chuffed about it. His old landlord had kicked him out of his former place, telling him the room was needed for something else. Being on a shoestring budget, it took him almost a month to find alternative arrangements. He found this place just when he was about to give up and move back in with his folks. He was the black sheep of the family. His father was constantly on his back, telling him to get a 'real' job and make something of himself. AJ had studied engineering mostly to please his parents...he hated the course. The price had been much less than he anticipated and he almost snapped off the agent's hand when he was told how much he would have to pay as rent. 

The camera too, was an unexpected bonus...he found it lying at the bottom of a dusty shelf in a corner of the room. Much to his surprise, it still worked, so he had amused himself by taking shots of the room, the kitchen and the bathroom. Sam's voice interrupted his reverie "I don't like this woman at the door uncle AJ, she's scary" Sam's finger was pointing at the back door of his room. The landlord had told him the door was always locked, that it was originally built as a sort of emergency exit or fire escape but the key had been missing for a few years. It was one of those old, heavy doors, built (in his reckoning) to withstand a minor earthquake. "What woman? It's just a door there lil' buddy" he said to Sam. "Come on, let's go outside and get your brother...who wants ice cream?" Simon's voice floated in through the window "me! I want ice cream!" Laughing, they all hurried to the end of his street, where an ice cream shop was nicely positioned. He didn't mind watching the kids for his sister, he was fond of both boys as they were of him...they thought the world of 'Uncle AJ' and his photographs always held a magical form of amusement for them. Of course, the regular ice cream treats weren't to be sneered at too, so it was perfect for the kids. In the evening, his sister came to pick them and after solemn handshakes, AJ promised to come and visit the next weekend. 

The pictures were lying on the bed and he picked them up to arrange them in the box he usually kept his 'work' when they were developed and dried. In his hurry, he almost missed it. Hullo, what was this? The handle of the back door seemed to be bent, as if someone was trying to open it from the outside...or was closing it. It was angled and HE could see it clearly in the picture. The back of the house, where the door opened to was covered with a thick, tangled mess of weeds. He didn't think anybody would be walking through THAT, let alone trying to open a door that was always locked. He looked up, the door was still firmly shut. In the fast approaching darkness, the door seemed bigger than it actually was. He looked at the picture again and he would later on swear that he saw the handle move even more, almost angling towards opening point. AJ flung the picture away and rushed to the door. The handle was static. HE was being silly he thought. When he picked up the picture again, the handle was as it should be, in the locked position. "Well, there you go, my mind is playing crazy tricks on me." Putting the box away, he sat down to read a book before he would turn in for the night. Instant darkness enveloped his room. "PHCN" he cursed. There was a rechargeable lantern at the side of his bed and he groped for it in the dark. There! What was that sound? It sounded like metal scraping against metal...they needed oiling. It seemed to be coming from the back door. He moved towards the door and he heard the sound again. The handle was turning! "Who's there!" he shouted. The handle stopped. Silence. Then a scratching sound and a low, blood curdling moan came from behind the door. The handle was turning again, this time faster. He looked up, the door was still bolted. Good. Let the handle 'turn' all it liked. Someone was probably playing a silly trick on him. He was going to open the front door stealthily to go around and catch the prankster in the act when the scraping sound started again. THAT was not the handle turning...that was something else! He was suddenly sick. He knew what that sound was now, hadn't he heard it several times growing up? The bolts to his dad's store had rusted and made those sounds whenever they were opened. The bolts of his door WERE moving. With an urgency born of primeval fear and unspeakable fright, he groped for the rechargeable lantern in the dark. He KNEW he had to put on the light. There WAS something out there trying to get in. Instinctively, he knew if it got in, IT was going to eat him, suck out all the marrow from his bones and discard the empty husk that was once human. He HAD to find the lantern. THUD! The first bolt was open. Now the lower one started to move...

Lovely short story by Marcel. Enjoy!