Free Dead Spots by Rhiannon Frater Page A

standing.
    Mackenzie gasped in horror.
    Beyond Grant, the endlessly eating woman was in an even worse condition. Rolls of fat burst out from under her clothing and her face was smeared with food. The plates of food she had ordered were licked clean and scattered across the table, yet the woman was still eating. She tore great chunks of flesh out of her own chubby arm, hungrily devouring each bite. Blood splattered the table and pooled on the floor. No one else seemed to notice the woman cannibalizing herself. The customers continued to eat their meals while the jukebox played the first hit from Britney Spears.
    Grant followed her gaze. “Okay, we definitely need to go now.” Standing, he grabbed her arm. “C’mon, Mackenzie.”
    If not for him forcing her to her feet, she probably wouldn’t have been able to stand. Her knees felt weak, her stomach revolting against the food. In the booth behind the woman consuming her own arm, Tanner was laughing and chatting with his new girlfriend, oblivious of Mackenzie or the cannibal.
    â€œMackenzie, we need to go now!” Grant tugged on her arm.
    Bone and muscle glistened in the light. The woman continued to devour herself, sucking the flesh off her fingers.
    â€œI … I…” A scream was welling up from deep within Mackenzie.
    Tanner started laughing at something that was said to him, shaking his head with amusement. Raising his head, he gave a short wave in her direction. Mackenzie’s fingers twitched as she fought back the reflex to wave back.
    Candy stalked past toward Tanner’s table, ignoring the blood-soaked woman consuming her fingers. “Coming, darlin’.”
    â€œWe’re leaving now!”
    Grant dragged Mackenzie about, her feet tripping her. The anxiety attack bloomed again, distorting her senses and crippling her mind and body. It was difficult for Mackenzie to move her limbs properly as her vision tunneled and her heartbeat thundered in her ears. Stumbling, she clutched Grant’s arm with one hand, trying to keep herself upright.
    â€œHey, Mac!” Tanner’s voice called out.
    â€œDon’t turn around,” Grant urged as he pulled her to the entrance.
    â€œMac!” Tanner called out again. “Hey, Mac! Over here!”
    Unable to resist, Mackenzie stole a peek over her shoulder.
    Tanner lounged in his seat staring straight at her, grinning slightly. He exuded boyish charm and swagger even while sitting. Pointing with one hand, he said, “Aren’t you forgetting your baby?”
    Dark fingers of horror slid up through her body to grip her mind as Mackenzie’s eyes followed the line from the tip of Tanner’s finger to the old-fashioned baby carriage next to the table Mackenzie and Grant had just abandoned. It was baby blue with a curtain of gauzy tulle edged in white lace that extended from the hood to the edges of the bassinet.
    Mackenzie’s body betrayed her, taking one step toward the carriage.
    â€œDon’t,” Grant said sharply.
    The wheels were smeared with mud and clumps of dirt clung to the white lace. A small, dark shape beneath the misty material shifted.
    â€œMac, you probably really should take the baby. I already got my own on the way!” Tanner called out, grinning.
    Breath stuttering, hands shaking, stomach twisting, Mackenzie lurched in the direction of the carriage. The tiny figure beneath the tulle moved again. Contradictory, chaotic thoughts fought in her mind for dominance. Her arms ached to hold her baby. If she was enraptured by a delusion, then she could hold Joshua one last time, couldn’t she? But what if she drew back the fabric and found something twisted and grotesque?
    Grant spun her about. “Don’t let it get to you!”
    â€œI just want to hold him one last time!”
    â€œIt’s the dead spot!” Grant tugged her toward the entrance.
    â€œOh, ma’am?” It was the waitress behind the bar. She