"You know, I've always been attracted to a certain kind of woman. Pretty, tall, thin, and no mater how nice they seem at first, they always turn into some kind of ball buster. Well, there's another kind, worse, that doesn't want your body. They want your soul, Dad. At first, I thought they just got off thinkin' they owned your body, but no, they go right for the soul and then they do own you. Yeah, you think I'm crazy. Well, I did too. For awhile.
"I've been married four or five times. Can't decide whether to count that last one or not. Just me. I have to marry 'em first. I can't have sex with a woman unless it's legal and in the eyes of the Lord. I do have morals, you know.
"Every one of them pretty, tall and thin, and every one of them a ball buster. In fact, it seems like each one was worse than the one before her. The first one, Tess, she was just mean. I don't know why I didn't see it sooner. But after two years of "Jessie, if you don't take the garbage out, if you don't get off your ass and paint the house".you get the picture. So I up and left her. And she was bitchin' up a storm while I packed my things. I never do remember her smilin'.
"The second one, Jenny, came along a few months later. She seemed so sweet. Always a big smile on her face and she was warm. Not just her body, I mean the warm just seemed to come outta her, like water comin' down a fall, soft and slow. But as soon as we were married, everything changed. The smile was gone. The warm was gone. Now she felt like ice movin' down a fast river, cold and hateful. It was with Jenny that the idea first came to me. She didn't want to just boss me around. She didn't just want a slave. She wanted my soul too. Yeah, I can see it all so clear now. It's like I could feel that ice she gave off and it would snake it's way around my heart, that's where the soul is, you know, and I could feel it squeezin' and squeezin' til my chest was like to bust. So I got outta there real quick. She scared me bad.
"When I left Jenny, I vowed I would never marry another one. That lasted for about six months. I mean a man has needs, you know. And I never did cater to those women of the flesh. A man needs more than fast lovin'. A man needs a companion; says so in the good book.
"I was workin' at a gas station at the time and that's when I met Linda. What a looker! And dressed so fine. Nothin' tight fittin', not like she was advertisin', but you could see she had a nice body on her all the same. We got to talkin' and the next thing you know, I was married again. Never even had time to get to know her. Part of me wanted her for the need, but another part wanted her for an experiment. I needed to see if all women were like Jenny. I needed to know if Linda wanted my soul too.
"Things went well for 'bout a year. Linda didn't smile as much as she used to and she wasn't as nice, but she was still one helluva lot better than the first two. Then it happened. Linda saw me talkin' to another woman. Wasn't anything serious. I was just talkin'. Out in plain view of everyone. We weren't touchin' and we were completely dressed. Linda started screamin' at me. She never let me outta her sight after that. Got so I could feel her behind me every time I was outside. The only time I felt safe was right after I went around a corner. Then I knew I had me a few seconds of breathin' time. From there, Linda went to ice too. She looked at me and then right through me. And I could feel the cold ice grip my soul, chokin' all the life outta it.
"I took as long as I could. I even tried to talk to her about it, but she always denied it. Never could get a woman to give me a straight answer. I prayed to the Lord every day for an answer. "What should I do, Lord? I'm tired of runnin' all the time." And the Lord, He gave me an answer. He showed me a dream. First, He showed me how Linda would wrap that ice around my soul until there was nothin' left of it. Then I'd be dead inside and I would belong to Satan. I was scared bad. But the Lord relaxed me in my sleep. He showed me how to whip Satan. He showed me that soul eaters are still flesh and blood, like the rest of us. And then can die too. And he showed me that if I put a silver cross on their foreheads, I could see them like they really were, not in a made-up human body. Silver would kill a soul eater.
"I woke up in a sweat. I looked over at Linda. She was asleep, but that ice was comin' outta her all the same. And at that moment, I knew the Lord was right. So I got outta bed real quiet and found a cross. I hoped it was silver. I laid it slowly on Linda's forehead. I didn't know what to expect. But right away, Linda's whole body started to hiss and steam came off her like a swamp in springtime. Like the heat of the cross was mixin' with the ice in her heart. Her body changed right away into somethin' dark and evil lookin'. I was so scared I didn't look too close. All I really remember is that terrible look of hate on her face. Some time later, I kinda lost track of time there, her body was gone. Nothin' was left behind but my silver cross and a shape in the bed where the soul eater had lain.
"So, now I knew for sure. I knew about the soul eaters. It worried me that the soul eaters were for real. What was I gonna do 'bout them? Who in Lord's name would believe me? I didn't know what to do. So I did what I always do when things get tough; I ran. I hitched a ride aboard a train and kept goin' til I was several states away. I thought maybe I'd leave the soul eaters behind me.
"Well, you'd better believe I left women alone for a time after that. I made it about six months and I started to use my right hand for a lover. Wasn't very good, but it got rid of the need. Just wasn't moral, though. So, sure enough, after 'bout a year, I found me another woman. Billie was her name. I married the first three without even really knowin' 'em. I vowed not to do the same thing with Billie, but the flesh was weak. I just couldn't wait. And, damn, if Billie wasn't as nice as pie. Sweetest little girl you could ever hope to find.
"But the thought of Billie maybe bein' a soul eater just wouldn't leave me. I had to try. So, one night, Billie was asleep and she looked so warm and so soft, I wanted to take her right there. But I had to know. I put my cross on her forehead. And the change began. Steam came off and I swear I could smell a swamp in the early summertime. Her face changed to some black thing with long sharp teeth. Her eyes opened and stayed starin' at me the whole time until she just faded away. If I close my eyes now, I can still see those eyes lookin' at me.
"Well, I ran outta that house as fast as my feet would carry me. I just wanted to keep on runnin' til I dropped. But somethin' came over me this time. I was still scared, bad scared, but the time had come to tell somebody. Someone must know what to do. So I went to a diner and got me a cup of coffee. I drank cup after cup and the heat and bitterness of it cleared my head. And finally I thought I'd go see a head doctor. I figured he could tell me if I was crazy or if there really were soul eaters out there.
"Next day, bright and early, I went to a phone and looked in the directory. Lotsa names. This head doctor stuff must be big business. You know I steered clear of all the woman names. I found me a man, name of John Llewellyn. Funny soundin' name. I called and he told me he had a cancellation and could get me in right away.
"I told him everything. I got to give him credit. I would have called the police after a coupla minutes. At the end, he excused himself for a minute. Said he'd be right back. When Dr. Llewellyn came back in, he looked funny somehow. He sat down real close to me and smiled this funny smile. He told me how glad he was I came to him. And why was it I thought soul eaters were only women? And then he opened his mouth and I could feel the ice come off him.
Last Updated January 7, 2007
All original material © Mike Dubrick 1980-2007. All rights reserved.
