Dedicated to Jacob Ballou
Part 4
Their dad leans back against the door, pushing it closed.
Bang… bang… bang…
The wood starts to splinter above his head. He looks at his family. “Get out! Climb out of the window.”
Their mom rushes Simon and Aaron over to the window. She throws back the curtains and tries to push it up. She unlocks it and tries again, her hands trembling. The window won’t budge.
“The window won’t open,” she says. Her voice shakes from fear. She grabs her two sons and pulls them close to her. She tucks her head down and closes her eyes.
Her husband rushes over and hugs his family. The door breaks with a thunderous crack. The mummy limps inside, grunting and groaning. His murky yellow eyes spots Simon.
The mummy reaches the family and grabs Simon, yanking him out of his mother’s hands.
“Simon!” She grabs his hand and pulls him back.
The mummy doesn’t let go. The dad grabs a book from off the bedside table and hits the mummy repeatedly.
The mummy chuckles and groans but doesn’t let Simon go.
Aaron watches, his heart pounding in his chest and ears. He looks around and spots a small pair of scissors. In the movie the hero had cut the wrappings of the mummy and unraveled the beast.
Running to his mom’s vanity, he takes the scissors she uses to trim her bangs once in a while and rushes back.
Simon is screaming, his mom is crying, his dad is yellling for the mummy to let his son go, and the mummy is grunting and moaning out of its jagged mouth. Aaron covers his ears for a minute, the noise being too much.
“That’s enough!” He shouts and lunges forward, taking his hands away from his ears. He grabs a part of the wrapping on the mummy’s let and cuts it.
Grabbing the piece, he stands up and runs backwards, watching as the mummy slowly unwraps. He stops and tugs hand over hand, pulling the musty wrappings free.
Seeing what his son is doing, his dad drops the book and joins him. The two pull and pull until the mummy let’s Simon go. The mummy lets out one last moan then collapses into a pile of sand and old bandages.
The tired family laughs and hugs each other close before climbing into the parents’ bed.
“We’ll clean up the mess in the morning.” Aaron’s mom yawns and lays her head down.
Aaron watches his family fall asleep and grins. They stopped a mummy.
Aaron closes his eyes, ready to sleep just before the sun peaks over the horizon.
Hoooooooowl…. hooooooooowl…. hooooooooooowl….
Aaron’s eyes pop open at the sounds of something howling in the distance. Is that a neighbor’s dog? Or could it be a werewolf?