《REDACTED》
The Stitched-Mouth Man
A low hum. The voice bounced throughout the space, despite the sound of metal screeching against a hard surface. Like it was sharpened. Footsteps shuffled and a bucket was picked up. Water splashed in the bucket and hurled towards the person in the chair.
He coughed violently. His senses slowly returned to him. He gagged. The smell in the room was putrid. His blurred vision cleared up¡
¡and before him was a masked person so close to his face.
¡°GAH!!¡±
He threw himself back but was immobilized by the binds on his wrists and legs to the chair. He fiddled with them, trying to yank his arms and legs but the bonds were tight. He turned to the masked person who was standing motionless. The sewn mouth and a cross for their left eye creeped him out.
¡°W, w, what do you want?! I didn¡¯t do anything to you!¡± He cried.
That person, or whatever it was, remained silent. Their breaths were heavy, muffled by the mask but he can almost feel the glare behind it. They move towards the table. The scraping of metal on wood startled him. He watched. That was the only thing he could do as the masked person picked up a saw.
His blood ran cold when they trail their fingers on the blade.
His breath hitched when they turned to him.
His heart thumped at each step they took towards him.
¡°H, h, hey, hey, get away from me¡!¡±
He squirmed, flailed, kicked and grunted as he tried to get the ropes off his wrists.
It only tightened the more he struggled.
He caught his breath in his throat when the masked person leaned into him. Their foot was on the chair between his legs.
He could almost see them grin¡
¡°Don¡¯t fight.¡±
Their strong hand pushed his head aside, revealing his neck to the person as they lowered the saw blade on his flesh.
He screamed. Screamed as the sudden sharp pain went through him. He choked and gurgled as blood flowed out of his mouth. His neck sprayed out blood onto him and the masked person. The cracks of his neck echoed in the room as he was sawn.
They lift his dismembered head. Blood dropped, more like flowing to the ground. The body went limp on the chair. Now anyone would gag at the sight or smell, but not this masked person. Of course, they wouldn¡¯t.
They place the head on a table.
Among other heads that they¡¯ve accumulated.
Displayed like a trophy.
Under the mask, they smiled.
Then the door behind them creaked open¡
¡°...w-what are you doing¡?¡±
¡°Noooooooo!¡±
Dice rattled on the table as it was tossed on the table. The twenty-sided dice slowly rolled and stopped on the number ¡®1¡¯.
Jane melted in her chair and slowly slid down. The dice had spoken. She had no choice¡
¡°Well, you made the loudest sound possible and the guards saw you,¡± Callum spoke before gesturing, ¡°Roll initiative, Jane.¡±
She groaned as she adjusted herself to sit properly and grabbed the dice. She pursed her lips while shaking her fist.
¡°It was a perfect setup too¡¡± She muttered.
¡°Too bad your role sucks.¡±
Jane grumbled and tossed the dice while Callum grinned.
Amy sits on an armchair reading quietly near the bookshelves in the corner of the club room. It had been a routine; Amy would wait in the Werewolves & Witches Club room after school for her older sister Jane, who is a member of the club. It baffled her that Jane would want to join something as, what people affectionately call it, nerdy as Werewolves & Witches, but she didn¡¯t complain. The club members were friendly, constantly updated their reading materials and their club room was air-conditioned.
¡°Holy shit I survived!!¡± Jane exclaimed and sagged on the chair. Other players at the table laughed and Callum patted her back. He was Jane¡¯s best friend and the club president for Werewolves & Witches. He was also the one that welcomed Amy even though she wasn¡¯t registered for it.
The bell of Woodsbury High echoed and Callum clapped his hands. ¡°That¡¯s it for today¡¯s session!¡± He announced. All the players, especially Jane, groaned. He grinned as he continued, ¡°Don¡¯t forget to update your character sheet. All of you levelled up and some of you¡ ahem, picked up some stuff too.¡±
Jane did just that while the rest packed up and dismissed themselves. Then she packed up her stuff; maps, sheets, minis and dice into her case. Amy was already by her side by the time she finished packing. Jane looked up with a smile, ¡°Got everything?¡± she asked. Amy nodded.
The brunette stood and swung her briefcase over her shoulder but not before calling out, ¡°Good game, Callum! See ya!¡±
Callum waved as the two girls left the club room.
Other students were leaving their club rooms so the hallways were cramped from so many of them rushing to get home. Amy moved closer to Jane who, at the same time, wrapped her arm around her waist. They squeezed themselves through the crowd until they managed to get out of the building.
As soon as they were out in the courtyard¡
¡°Look out!!¡±
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The sisters failed to see a coming basketball and hit Amy¡¯s arm when she instinctively raised her arms. She yelped and collapsed to her knees. Jane dropped her case and knelt beside her. Concern painted on her face and she didn¡¯t bother the coming footsteps towards them as she took Amy¡¯s arm.
¡°O-oh shit, Jane, I¡¯m so sorry!¡± Lucas stammered. His heart thumped harder when he saw the bruise on Amy¡¯s arm. Jane either didn¡¯t hear him or ignored him as she fussed over her little sister.
¡°Does it hurt?¡± Jane asked softly. Amy shook her head. Lucas was torn between helping or just letting Jane do her work. Clearly, she knew better what to do in this situation than him.
The brunette looked up at him. For a split second, he saw the faintest of glare from her eyes. Then, as quick as it came, the glare softened and she smiled politely.
¡°It¡¯s not your fault. You tried to warn us but we didn¡¯t see.¡±
Lucas wasn¡¯t good at reading people¡¯s emotions, but from Jane¡¯s tone, he knew enough that the brunette wasn¡¯t fuming at him. He sighed shakily.
¡°A-anything I can help? I can¨C...¡±
¡°Ewww, look at her skin!¡±
Amy froze. She quickly pulled her sleeve down to cover her bruised arm. Her face flushed red and tears formed at the corners of her eyes as the voices of those girls continued.
¡°Poor little Amy got bruised again!¡±
¡°Why don¡¯t you help her, Charlotte?¡±
¡°Ewww, I¡¯m not gonna touch her! I¡¯ll get rabies!¡±
Amy wasn¡¯t the confrontational type. She didn¡¯t like to argue even if to defend herself. So she covered her ears so she wouldn''t hear them. Her body wouldn¡¯t move and her voice stuck in her throat. Meanwhile, the girls continued to throw insults, but it was short-lived when a dark-haired girl jumped out of the bushes they were passing by and startled them.
¡°I¡¯ll give you fucking rabies if you won¡¯t shut up!!¡±
It happened so fast in that short span of time. Jane was glaring daggers at the girls while holding Amy but immediately changed to shock when the dark-haired girl jumped. Lucas had to pause from picking up the basketball as he watched as well. The dark-haired girl huffed and then turned towards them and approached.
She gently held Amy¡¯s shoulder, startled the pink-haired girl but her eyes softened.
¡°S-Skye¡?¡± Amy muttered.
¡°I chased those mean girls away, Amy!¡± Skye exclaimed proudly. Jane loosened her hold around her younger sister. A smile stretched on her lips.
¡°Thanks, Skye. I¡¯m so glad you¡¯re Amy¡¯s friend,¡± Jane said. Skye sheepishly grinned as she scratched her head. Her cheeks flushed red from the compliment. She then snapped back to hold Amy¡¯s hand, gently pulling her back to her feet. Amy¡¯s knees were shaking but the pink-haired girl mustered a grateful smile.
¡°Let¡¯s go to my house! My mom¡¯s making chicken noodle soup,¡± Skye said.
Amy glanced at Jane who gave her a nod. Amy immediately lit up and let herself be dragged by Skye. Jane watches them leave the school courtyard until she can¡¯t see them. She sighed softly.
¡°S-sorry that your sister had to go through that, Jane¡¡± Lucas spoke up after a long silence.
The brunette sighed.
¡°She didn¡¯t deserve all that¡¡± She muttered as she picked up her case. Lucas watched her leave as well.
Beware, beware,
The Stitched-Mouth Man
Coming to take the bad teens away
Beware, beware,
Annoying little shits,
You do some sin,
Beg on your chin.
Beg you will live.
Maybe the Stitched-Mouth Man,
Would give you a lift.
¡°What a shitty song,¡± Charlotte commented.
¡°Well you have to admit it has some sort of catchy rhyme to it,¡± Dana chimed in.
¡°Whoever came up with it has a shitty taste then,¡± Charlotte said. ¡°Why are we talking about it, anyway?¡±
¡°W-well¡¡± Naomi stammered, ¡°Do you think¡ the Stitched-Mouth Man will come after us? W-we picked on Amy earlier¡¡±
¡°Oh grow up, Naomi!¡± Charlotte exclaimed. She was pretty loud so everyone in the cafe glanced at them, ¡°It¡¯s just a stupid myth! There¡¯s no such thing as Stitched-Mouth Man. Besides, those kinds of things go after kids if it¡¯s real anyway. They won¡¯t go after teenagers!¡±
¡°B-but Carson¨C...¡±
¡°He¡¯s. Not. Real.¡±
Naomi fell silent while Charlotte rolled her eyes and sipped on her soda. She noticed Dana shifting in her seat, glancing back and forth from¡ something then to the table. She groaned and placed the cup she was holding on the table.
¡°What is it, Dana?¡± She hissed.
Dana didn¡¯t respond. She kept glancing back and forth and Naomi looked towards what her friend was seeing. She froze. This irked Charlotte more.
¡°What?¡± Charlotte growled, growing frustrated and afraid of their behavior. Without warning, both Dana and Naomi gathered their things and fled from the cafe. They just booked it. Charlotte groaned but then she paused. Her eyes focused outside the cafe.
A person with a stitched mouth and a cross on one eye was standing outside.
Charlotte watched a customer walk out of the cafe. When she turned to look at the person again¡
There was no one.
Her blood ran cold.
She scrambled for her purse and keys and scurried out of the cafe.
It was night. Darkness already crept over the town. The lights from the lamp posts were dim. ¡°They really need to do something about the lights,¡± she grumbled under her breath.
The bus stop wasn¡¯t that far but the dim streets made it look like that. She had to squint her eyes to see it. No signs of Naomi and Dana waiting for her there. She grumbled again and started walking towards the bus stop.
Charlotte had walked this street many days, many nights. With her friends and by herself, and never once she felt the looming dread over her. Cold wind began to blow and she swore she heard whispers along with it. She brushed it off, thinking that it was her own feelings and fears that were playing with her. She quickened her footsteps towards the bus stop¨C...
Thud, thud, thud¡
Heavy footsteps followed the rhythm of her steps. She halted and turned around. Half of her expected someone familiar would be behind her.
There was no one.
Her heart thumped as she turned forward and began to run.
Thud Thud Thud Thud Thud!
The heavy footsteps got louder.
Charlotte panted. She was sprinting. She and whoever it was were in sync. The bus stop was in view now and Charlotte scrambled for her phone in her pocket, tapping on Naomi and Dana¡¯s contact numbers and calling for them.
Neither of them answered.
¡°Come on! Pick up!¡±
Both calls entered their voicemails and Charlotte was already shedding tears. The footsteps were getting close now. Almost directly behind her.
But then finally, finally, she reached the bus stop.
She looked behind her.
No one.
Shivers ran down her spine.
She called Naomi and Dana again.
¡°You reached little ol¡¯ Naomi! Leave a message and I¡¯ll call you back!¡±
¡°Heeeyyy, I¡¯m a little busy but if you say please, maybe I¡¯ll answer you~!¡±
¡°Come on! Pick up!¡±
She tried a couple of times and every try ended in voicemails.
Thud, thud, thud¡
The same heavy footsteps were drawing closer.
She looked up.
The Stitched-Mouth Man was marching towards her.
Closer¡
Closer.
Closer.
Her voice stuck in her throat. She can¡¯t even scream.
She broke into a sprint.
Charlotte never ran so fast in her life. Not even in tracks, where she often avoids running.
He was real.
The Stitched-Mouth Man was real.
She tried to type ¡®9-1-1¡¯ but she tripped and typed ¡®9-1-2¡¯ instead. The footsteps behind her were approaching. She could almost feel the man breathing down her neck.
Charlotte skidded into an alley. Her back was against the wall and she collapsed on the ground. With shaky fingers, she typed in ¡®9-1-1¡¯ again. Tears were falling and her breaths shallowed as she attempted to calm herself down while waiting for the beeps to change.
¡°911, what¡¯s your emergency?¡±
Relief washed over her.
¡°H-help me¡ Someone¡¯s following me!¡± She whispered. She tucked her legs to her chest. She didn¡¯t care if her voice was trembling when she spoke. She just needs the police to come to save her.
¡°Stay calm, miss. Tell me what happened.¡±
¡°S-someone¡ someone¡¯s following me¡ A-a man! H-he was wearing a mask w-with its mouth stitched and o-one eye has an X mark¡¡±
She peeked out of her hiding place. Her eyes rapidly scanned the empty streets.
No one.
She breathed out a sigh.
But as she leaned back in relief¡
A shadow loomed over her.
She froze.
The Stitched-Mouth Man was towering over her.
Not even a scream was heard from Charlotte.
Her phone lay forgotten on the ground as the 911 operator continued to call for her.
¡°Hello? Miss, are you still there?¡±
An Urban Legend
Police tapes closed an area in the woods. Pictures were taken before officers zip up the body bags. Cries turned to bawls when the body bags were brought out of the woods, trying to get close to them and reaching out.
Kylie took a deep breath on her cigarette and puffed out smoke. An officer approached her with a clipboard in hand.
¡°What do we have?¡± She asked.
¡°Three headless bodies. Females. Two of them have no skin while the third one had her nails ripped, legs and arms broken, teeth pulled out and her vagina was violated with both sharp and blunt objects¡¡±
She tried to keep a calm demeanour but her heart beat fast. This wasn¡¯t the first time she heard about these kinds of reports but it didn¡¯t help that it got worse and worse.
Four deaths were recorded in Woodsbury.
The first victim was Carson Doyle. His headless body was found half devoured by wolves months ago and until now, there was no news of his head. The autopsy suggested he was chopped off by a blunt blade from how jagged the cut on his neck was. Whoever killed him had wanted him to feel pain to the end.
The mayor kept the case hushed to avoid panic. He was afraid that people would leave Woodsbury and ruled it as an accident; the boy wandered into the woods and got attacked by a pack of wolves. However, ever since his death, a rumour surfaced between the townspeople.
¡°The Stitched-Mouth Man is back¡¡± A man whispered.
Kylie had heard of the Stitched-Mouth Man. An urban legend spread around when a mysterious man with a strange mask appeared to stalk at night. The mask he wore had a stitched mouth and one X mark on the left eye. He would appear randomly at night, stalking anyone he found interesting. But that ¡®anyone¡¯ wasn¡¯t just any stranger.
The victims were notoriously known for bullying and tormenting others.
The boy, Carson, was known to harass girls to the point of assaulting them if they ever reject his advances. If it were a murder - at least to Kylie - anyone of his victims had a motive to kill him. But the townspeople believed it was Carson¡¯s spirit cursed to become the Stitched-Mouth Man and get rid of anyone that harms others to atone for what he did.
Kylie never believed in urban legends and rumours. She knew these were murders.
Her only lead from these murders was that the victims were students of Woodsbury High.
Students dispersed to their classes. The morning assembly had been a memorial for the three girls that were murdered. Miss Vivienne, the school¡¯s headmistress, had assured them that the police were on the case but it didn¡¯t dispel the worry that a murderer was on the loose.
Skye scanned through the crowd. It wasn¡¯t hard to find Amy¡¯s pink hair among the common dark hairs around her but her blood immediately boiled when she found her surrounded by students.
¡°Out with it! I bet it was you who killed them!¡±
Amy flinched and trembled, ¡°I-I didn¡¯t-...¡±
¡°Anyone that talks to you either disappeared or dead! Who else but you that was behind it?!¡±
Not even a thought crossed Skye¡¯s mind other than charging towards them and shoving them away. She stood between the students and Amy. Her teeth bared like an angry dog.
¡°Why can¡¯t you just leave her alone?!¡± she yelled.
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¡°What the hell is wrong with you, Skye?!¡± One of the girls cried, brushing off her blouse where Skye had shoved her. ¡°Ever since you¡¯re friends with this freak, you changed!¡±
¡°You used to be fun, but now you¡¯re just a bore,¡± A boy said.
Skye was about to retort but then a tug on her shirt distracted her. She looked over her shoulder; Amy shook her head with a scowl across her face. She knew Skye would throw hands with those kids anytime but doing so would send her to detention or suspension.
With a huff, Skye turned, grabbed Amy¡¯s hand and left them. Not before listening to some more jabs. Skye didn¡¯t care what they said about her but her ears burned from the insults they threw at Amy.
¡°You don¡¯t have to do that¡¡± Amy muttered.
¡°Hmph! They¡¯re jerks anyway! Besides, my mom likes you more than them!¡± Skye exclaimed proudly.
Amy fell silent, letting her best friend¡¯s words sink into her. She looked down, smiling to herself and squeezing her hand. It was the softest of squeezes but Skye¡¯s heart fluttered, almost felt like she would faint or burst. Her face flushed red but when she looked at Amy, she gave her the biggest grin she could muster.
¡°Come on! We¡¯ll be late for class!¡±
Amy just smiled.
Kylie parked outside Woodsbury High right after the school period was over.
She watched the younger students leaving together while the older ones stayed behind, smoking or playing basketball. She would take out a cigarette herself, but she didn¡¯t want the teachers to reprimand her for being a bad influence.
She leaned against her car, arms crossed and continued to observe the crowd of teenagers scattered in the courtyard. Her eyes scanned around for bullies; the only clue she has for the murders. It didn¡¯t take long for her to see a pink-haired girl being followed by two boys with a slingshot on one of them. She scowled and immediately marched towards them. Neither of the boys noticed the woman as they snickered and aimed for the girl¡¯s head.
A shot was fired but the pebble was caught right in Kylie¡¯s palm. The boys jumped at her sudden appearance and the pink-haired girl stopped to turn around, surprised to see them.
¡°I will personally report you to the principal for attempting to harm another student,¡± she growled and flicked the pebble to their feet, barely missing them. They jumped again when the pebble reflected off the ground and scurried away. She huffed and turned to the girl. Her brows raised at her hair colour.
¡°You¡¯re not from here, aren¡¯t you?¡± Kylie asked, only to receive a blank stare from the girl. The woman raised a brow and approached her. ¡°Are you alright-...¡±
The moment she reached her hand out, the girl pulled back with a gasp. She looked at Kylie¡¯s hand and then at her eyes. There was fear and caution in them.
¡°It¡¯s okay, I¡¯m not-...¡±
¡°Amy!¡±
The blonde woman looked up towards the source of the voice and saw a brunette boy, girl, or person, approaching them. The pink-haired girl, Amy, immediately lit up and turned to them with a smile.
¡°Jane!¡±
Kylie watched Jane. The briefcase in her grip caught her attention. She didn¡¯t see any backpack on Jane either which seemed odd for a high school student like her.
When Jane looked up, her gaze was sharp. It threw the officer off guard for a moment. That gaze¡ almost like a predator looking at their prey. Then, the gaze quickly turned silly; eyes grow wide and Jane froze like a statue for a good second.
¡°Hoh! Pretty lady!¡± She exclaimed.
Kylie had never seen someone slide on their knees other than on televisions and yet, here was a high school student sliding on her knees and opening the briefcase to reveal roses and a¡ metal dice. She raised her brow and peeked over the briefcase to Jane, who was grinning.
¡°Pretty lady like you should have something shiny to compliment your hair!¡±
¡°Cheesy,¡± she huffed, ¡°but sorry, I don¡¯t date kids.¡±
And just like that, Jane¡¯s grin dropped and Kylie could see her heart breaking into pieces on her face. She snorted at her reaction, slightly entertained by her shenanigan. Amy just face-palmed.
¡°How many pants you¡¯re going to ruin, sis¡?¡± Amy said.
¡°Hey, this is just my fifth one!¡± Jane exclaimed and brushed her knees which, to Amy¡¯s relief, weren¡¯t torn. The older girl turned to the woman, ¡°Never seen you before, ma¡¯am. Who¡¯re you?¡±
¡°Kylie Davis. Police officer. Came here because of the murders.¡±
Kylie watched their body language. They both perked up. It was almost common to see the townspeople have similar reactions. No one wanted to believe that there were murders going around, after all.
¡°S-so, is it true?¡± Amy muttered, ¡°T-the Stitched-Mouth Man is real¡?¡±
¡°It¡¯s only an urban legend, Amy! There¡¯s no such thing as Stitched-Mouth Man!¡± Jane quickly said.
The Stitched-Mouth Man again¡
¡°What can you tell me about that legend?¡± Kylie asked.
The siblings fell silent. They looked at each other and then back at the woman. Jane had a creepy smile stretched on her lips.
¡°Why, I¡¯m glad you asked¡¡±