This story follows on from my submission in the 2006 Halloween Story Contest - 'Halloween - The Taker'.
I received some requests for a sequel and presumed that meant a story based on the exploits of the group that was only mentioned in passing - The Nightmare Squad. In essence this is a group whose task it is to track and dispose of creatures whose actions and/or unspeakable brutalities defy both all normal human logic, and the usual police procedures.
This is the third in this series and readers will find the story more understandable and therefore, hopefully more satisfying if they read 'Halloween - The Taker' and 'Part 2 - DevilWoman' first - but, as this story is mostly 'self-contained' that's not absolutely necessary.
Unlike the first two, this story is not, strictly speaking 'Erotic Horror' but is rather a change of pace for the squad - however, as with the others, I trust you will enjoy!
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Part 3 - THE FOUR-POSTER
The members of the squad had each made the most of their free time since their last assignment - with the Succubus - in their own individual ways. Carl had been successful in finding a woman who suited his particular tastes and had made the very most of her. Josie and Ross had been equally sexually energetic, in their case, together. And from the various sounds and comments coming from around the meeting room, most of the others had enjoyed equally satisfyingly exciting days off.
'Morning people!' their captain said as he entered the room. 'I trust you're all in good shape; not too many strained backs, or any other thing.' he added with a knowingly throaty chuckle. 'First off I have to tell you that things are pretty quiet right now. I don't know if it's because of our two recent successes but the horrors seem to be giving us a bit of a miss - which none of us going to complain about. But because of that, apart from what I'm going to deal with next, most of you will be spending a few days doing some refresher training.'
He ignored the half-hearted groans that greeted his announcement, nobody, including himself, relished just doing training. But there were always new gadgets and gizmos being developed, and if the squad didn't maintain its high level of preparedness, when another horror did come on to their patch, if their skills weren't honed to perfection, they could very easily get themselves into very nasty trouble.
'Now, for a few of you, I've got something really weird - and as the thing that we've been asked to investigate doesn't seem to pose any actual physical harm to anybody - something that will probably turn out to be not very exciting. But it's political, and so we can't just ignore it.'
The word 'political' sent a shudder round the room, they all knew how politics could get in the way of the day-to-day life of friends who worked in other departments. But, because the Nightmare Squad was known to so very few, even in relatively high places of government, it had always prided itself in being able to stay well out of that sort of rat-race.
'As I doubt many of you noticed at the time, our beloved mayor's nephew got married a few months ago, to our even more beloved Senator's daughter.' the captain continued. 'One of the many fine gifts the happy couple received was some property, a rambling old early nineteenth century place, up on the hill outside of town. Apparently the idea was that the newly-weds should refurbish the place; fix the plumbing, the electricals, etc., then convert it into some sort of reception-convention centre. Though why anyone would want to go way out there I'll never know.' he added disparagingly. 'All that is pretty common knowledge, the next stuff isn't, so as usual, it stays right here in this room.' he said warningly.
'It seems that when they got back from their honeymoon they still hadn't used up all their energy and enthusiasm for each other - and thought it would be a good idea, before all the renovations got started, to 'christen' - as they called it, in other words, to have sex in - each room in the house. Apparently they were doing pretty well -' he had to say more loudly in order to break-through the bawdy comments that had sprung up from here and there. - 'they'd worked their around the entire ground floor and had started on the seven or eight bedrooms the place comes with. And by the way, that number excludes the rooms that were for the staff.' he added.
'I should explain that for some reason best known to them, until then they hadn't ever actually slept in what had originally been the master bedroom. Anyway, it seems that as it had been the main bedroom they went to a bit of extra trouble; made their first night in it a bit more romantic by taking some candles and wine up with them, that sort of thing - and only some little time later actually got down to the business of starting to properly 'christen' it.'
He ignored the lascivious questions that several people promptly asked, as to precisely how, and struggled on. 'No, I didn't ask exactly what they were doing, nor how they were doing it but from what the wife said I gather her husband was, at least at that time, on top - and certainly he had his back to the room. She said they hadn't been doing whatever it was for very long before she saw it, saw them.' he added. 'Two people, a man and a woman, standing there, watching them.'
For the first time since he started the captain knew he finally had everyone's undivided attention - this sort of thing
was
their home ground. 'Of course her first thought was that someone had broken in - so she screamed, and as she did so, they simply vanished. Then, having interrupted her husband at an apparently critical moment, she had to try to explain why she'd done what she had; cut his climax short, and, as if that wasn't bad enough, nearly deafened him with her shriek.
At first of course he just thought she'd been seeing things - maybe even started to fall asleep on him. Anyway that was the end of their love-making for that night, but, and I'll give them credit for this, they tried again the next night. But that time, because they were in a different position, he saw them too!'
That time there were a number of sensible questions from the group; had the house any sort of history, in clothes from what period of history were the 'people' dressed, how did they seem - angry or sad?
'I can't answer any of that stuff people, the couple were scared witless by what they'd seen - and, I might add, haven't been back to that room since. So that's where we come in. In this case we're taking on what we never usually do, but with the Mayor and the Senator involved, this time we will - we're doing a private consultation. Don't worry, it's all being properly accounted and paid for!' he said before continuing. 'So I want half a dozen volunteers for this job; but there will be provisos.' he added as just about every arm in the room shot up. 'But before I tell you about the limitations I'll tell you what my basic thoughts are. In answer to a question someone asked a moment ago - no, the house has no known history of visitations. Our love-birds had been in the house for more than two weeks before they appeared - and they only appeared in just that one room, the room that had previously been the master bedroom. And, they only appeared once the couple had started having sex in that room.
So, for the moment let's assume that it was the sex-act itself that triggered the appearance - though I'm not really sure what that might tell us.' he admitted. 'If so, we obviously need people who are prepared to have sex there, plus of course some of our systems monitors and back-up. But, in case something doesn't go right - or if our primary couple simply runs out of steam - I'll need the rest of the team ready to take over from them, I mean in bed.' he added unnecessarily.
'So, these are the provisos. First; it'll be three couples, for a maximum of one week. Second; the couples must already be sexually active, as a couple.' He grinned as he looked around the room, and said. 'Knowing you people as well as I think I do that condition probably still lets nearly all of you in, at least it would have at some time or another.'
Having given time for the resulting crude wisecracks to die down, he continued. 'I'll ask each of those of you who are in some sort of relationship with another squad member to let me have both names later today, then tomorrow I'll let you know which ones I have selected. Oh, and there's a third thing; as the 'people' the couple have seen were a man and a woman, only couples whose primary sex-life is heterosexual need apply.'
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The captain was as good as his word and by mid-morning the following day the three chosen couples, plus food, drink and a fair bit of electronic equipment, were heading in their separate vehicles for the address of the old house.
Even though he was still new to the squad Josie was thrilled to find that she and Ross had been two of those picked, along with Kelly and John, and Brad and Susie. Of the other four she had, in the previous year or so had a brief fling with three and at one time had a thought about trying her luck with the fourth. But nothing had come of that so although they had worked together, Susie remained a bit more of a personal mystery to her.
As they would be operating in only a semi-official capacity on this job they had chosen not to wear uniforms. Josie knew that one of her best features - her legs - would undoubtedly look far better in skirts than in pants, and as she wanted the day to start in much the same mood that she and Ross had experienced in their days off together, she had started out in a short, pleated and slightly flared skirt. So, as he drove off and headed for the freeway Ross was, out of the corner of his eye, being treated to the stimulating sight of a short but nonetheless tempting view of the flesh above her knees.
'I wonder if the ghosts, if that's what they are, only appear at night.' he suddenly said.