The Vendeleer Brothers Book 3: Nightmare on Holly

“Remind me again why we moved here?” Ian lamented, feeling like he was going to die in the Missouri humidity as he and his brother moved boxes into their new apartment.

“Well, you’re the one who kept complaining that we were unemployed.” Roderick panted.

“But I assumed we’d at least be staying in California…”

The two brothers took a moment to catch their breaths as soon as they were back in air conditioning.

“Why do we have so much stuff?” Roderick gasped, sprawling across the floor.

“I have no idea…”

At that moment, there was a knock on the door. When Ian answered it, he fought the urge to immediately frown.

Jordyn Hastings stood there with her eyebrows raised.

“I never thought I’d see the day when ian Vendeleer was in shorts and a t-shirt. I was beginning to believe you only owned button up shirts and sweaters.”

Ian rolled his eyes.

“I’m not a maniac you know. It’s like-a bajillion degrees outside right now.”

“Oh come on-it’s not even ninety.”

Ian frowned deeply and then opened the door for her to come in.

“Hey Jordyn…” Roderick breathed, not caring to get up off the floor.

“Looks like you’re getting all moved in.” she smirked, nudging a box with her foot. “Now are you ready to come with me to help Joey? She’s probably got ten times as many boxes as you guys.”

Ian raised a brow and plopped down in a chair.

“Does it look like we’re ready?”

Jordyn took a moment to look around at the mountains of boxes haphazardly put all around the apartment.

“Yep. Let’s go.”

Ian groaned, knowing that there was no way he was going to talk the stubborn detective out of it.

“Let me get my wallet…” he mumbled, getting up. Roderick smiled.

“Well, have fun, cause I have to go meet up with that guy about the truck in about five minutes.”

“I know.” Ian further grumbled, snatching up the keys. “I’ll meet you over there Jordyn. I’ve got to drop Roderick off. He’s getting a truck.”

“Sounds good!” Jordyn said cheerfully, seemingly put in a good mood from getting her way so easily. Ian cast his younger brother a dirty look, and then the two of them made their way out to the car.

They were on a nice little street lined with full green trees, something that the two brothers were not used to. As soon as they were in the car, Ian blasted the A/C, only to have hot air blow out for a second.

“AGH! Turn it off!!” Roderick lamented, covering his face.

“It’ll get cool in a second!”

The two of them leaned away from the vents until it finally cooled down and they could relax. Ian thought he was in the clear until he burned himself on the metal of the seatbelt.

“Remind me why we chose to live in this hot, sticky place infested with bugs again please.” Ian grumbled.

“Because you secretly love Jordyn and followed her across the country?” Roderick grinned.

Ian immediately gagged, causing his younger brother to laugh.

“Don’t even joke about that. I think I would rather be boiled alive in a vat of acid.”

Roderick snickered and then looked out the window at the city of Spectreville. Despite the name, it seemed cheery and normal enough. It was a good change of pace from the creepiness of Serenity Hill or the loud business of LA. Not to mention that Roderick was also more than excited to be living in the same city as Brian again. He was already scheming-wondering what pranks the two of them could pull on Ian this time…

“Ok. I’ll see you later.” Ian told him, pulling up to a used car lot. Roderick nodded, and then jumped out.

He walked along the old rusted cars until he came up to an old rusty orange chevy pickup. He ran his hand over the hood in awe.

“Looking at the Chevy 3100?” a gravelly voice behind him asked.

“Yeah. I saw it online. It’s $2,000, right?”

“Yup. But it needs a helluva lot of work. Can you drive a stick shift?”

Roderick pulled out his wallet, and then handed the guy cash.

“I’ll take it!”

So about thirty minutes later, Roderick was finally sitting behind the wheel of his newly purchased car. It needed a jumpstart, and when it finally started, Roderick could feel the whole thing rattling. He clenched his teeth together so he wouldn’t bite his tongue off, and then gave a thumbs up to the guy as he drove away.

The guy had told him it needed to be taken straight to the shop, and had given him an address of apparently the best place in town. The truck currently rode like it was an old person about to keel over any second, but Roderick didn’t mind. Even with no A/C, transmission issues, and a plethora of other problems, he still couldn’t believe his luck.

He had just bought a 1950 Chevy 3100!

Of course, he hadn’t shown the picture to Ian yet.

His older brother was sure going to have a fit when he saw the condition of the truck for the price he paid. Ian had no taste in classic cars. Or cars in general.

Roderick slowly rattled down the street and finally pulled up to the mechanics shop, which didn’t look like anything exceptional, but he had learned to trust what locals had to say about things from the many cases he had solved.

However, when he walked into the office, he found it rather… empty. He stood there for a moment, ringing the bell occasionally, and then stuck his head into the shop.

“Hello?” he called out into an unnatural silence.

There was no answer.

Feeling a little unsettled, he decided to turn around and take his business elsewhere, when he almost ran into someone.

Roderick immediately felt paralyzed and taken off guard as he faced the prettiest girl he had ever seen. She had shoulder length blonde hair, was plump and short, and Roderick was at a loss for words.

“Hey! Has anyone helped you yet?” she asked, a bit out of breath like she had been running.

“Um…”

“Bobby!” she yelled, pushing past him and sticking her head into the shop. She turned and smiled apologetically at Roderick and started tying her hair up.

“Sorry about that… he’s probably watching Jurassic Park in the back again…”

Roderick blinked away in surprise, finally realizing that she was wearing a mechanic’s jumpsuit.

“Uh… yeah I have… a uh.. truck that… needs a lot… of uhm… work.” he said mousily, intrigued that this girl was a mechanic.

“Let me see what ya got.” she said, pushing past him again to go outside. Roderick followed her and then gestured to his truck.

“It’s a… uh..”

“A Chevy 3100?!?”

Roderick didn’t even get the words out when she screamed it for him.

“Goodness to gracious! How much did you pay for this beauty?” she asked, peering inside.

“Two thousand.”

“Mm-Mmmm. Well, let’s get her inside and see if I can find Bobby. I’ll guide you in.”

Roderick nodded, tasting a weird metallic sensation in his mouth. He chalked it up to simply nerves from talking to a pretty girl. He got in his new truck, trying to formulate some plan to get to know this girl. He suddenly wished Ian was with him. He somehow always knew what to say to girls. What had Ian taught him? He was having trouble remembering..

As he slowly drove the truck into the garage it was all he could think about. So when the garage door slammed shut with a bang behind him, he jumped in surprise and hit his head on the roof of the truck.

“Is it supposed to do that?” he asked, turning the truck of and immediately coming to full alert.

“Oh! Sorry-this darn thing is finicky sometimes…” she apologized, running over and yanking on the chain. It did nothing to open it.

“What in great daisies?! Is it jammed or somethin’?” she grunted, putting all of her weight on it.

Roderick suddenly got an uneasy feeling, but was unsure if it was just paranoia from his past experiences.

“You can go ahead and go back to the lobby. I’ll meet you out there in a sec.” she told him with another grunt.

Roderick simply nodded, and then made his way back to the lobby, cursing himself for not being able to say more to her.

However, when he tried the door to the lobby, he found that it wouldn’t open.

“Uh… Ma’am?” he called out hesitantly, trying to yank the door open.

“Oh shoot! Hold on-I’ll unlock it for ya.” she told him, running over and pulling her keys out. Roderick frowned when the key went in, but the door still wouldn’t open.

“What-in-the-.” the girl struggled.

This all seemed very familiar…

Roderick turned and picked up a large wrench.

“Stand back a second.” he told her, preparing to swing it at the large viewing window.

“What are you doing?!” she yelled as he hit the window as hard as he could.d The mechanic didn’t have to worry thought, for just as Roderick had expected, it bounced right off-just like that time in Pinnacle Gulch when he and Brian had been trapped in a grocery store.

“I knew it…” he murmured, holding his wrench up in defense and looking around the mechanic’s shop.

“Why… why didn’t the window…” the girl began, obviously confused.

They both froze when they heard something coming from one of the other rooms. The two of them exchanged glances, and then slowly approached the door to the backroom, which was standing slightly ajar.

“Bobby?” the girl called out hesitantly. Roderick felt a shiver roll up his spine when he saw a smeared trail of blood leading into the backroom. Roderick carefully swung open the door, preparing himself mentally for whatever he might find.

However, even with his experience with ghosts, spirits, and serial killers, nothing could have prepared him for what was behind the door.

For in the back room, with blood dripping from its jaws, was a large, living and breathing velociraptor.