Scarred Smile

Chapter 11

Henry raised an eyebrow at the woman, not sure if he heard what she said right. "Excuse me, ma'am, would you mind repeating that?"

"She said monsters," Polly said, gently putting a hand on the woman's shoulder. The woman's eyes went wide at this, and she was shaking a bit, unsure of what to do. Polly would normally hesitate before doing what she did next in front of someone like this. But seeing the fear in the woman's eyes, as if the monsters she had seen were staring her down from somewhere close at this very moment, Polly had almost no problem taking her mask off.

The woman in front of her shook harder as her eyes gazed upon the scar that rested on Polly's face.

Polly smiled warmly at the woman, "What's your name?"

"Uh, um," The older woman looked between Polly and Henry. For a second, she felt as if she was about to have a heart attack, but her eyes went to the shoulder Polly had her hand on. She noticed how gently her touch was.

She was shaking slightly less when she looked at Polly again. This time her whole face and not just the scar. The look in her eyes, and her smile, both were so comforting. She felt her fear and nerves begin to fade away as if they were never there in the first place.

"G-Gianna," She finally said.

"It's very nice to meet you, Gianna," Polly said warmly. "My name is Polly. If you can, do you think you can tell me about the monsters that you saw that attacked your husband?"

"W-Well," Gianna began shakily. The fear was starting to come back a bit as she remembered the monsters she saw, and how horrible they were. "They were big...and had pumpkin heads."

"Pumpkin heads?" Henry took out a notepad and started writing that down.

Gianna nodded quickly. "Yes! Pumpkin heads! I couldn't believe what I was seeing... it can't be possible, right? I-I'm surprised you haven't called me crazy already."

"Not crazy at all, Gianna," Polly said. "You're not the first person I've heard of who's seen a monster."

"And you have your husband, who obviously also saw them, right?" Henry questioned. "How is he?"

"He's at the hospital," Gianna said. "They're doing everything they can, but I'm really worried..."

"He's in good hands," Polly smiled at Gianna. "I'm so sorry to hear about what happened to him."

"What about the girl?" Gianna asked softly.

"The girl?" Polly asked. "There was a girl there too?"

Gianna nodded. "The monsters were taking her when me and my husband saw them. He tried to help but that's when they bit his arm off..."

"I better get this back to the station," Henry said, putting the notepad away. He looked at Gianna. "Are you sure you're okay walking alone?"

Gianna looked around nervously. It seemed she was trying to make sure for certain that there were no monsters around. "I-I don't know?"

"Well, how about I give you a ride?" Henry offered. "If monsters are lurking around it'll be much safer."

"I suppose you're right, officer," Gianna nodded her head. "Thank you.'

"It's no problem," Henry smiled. "I just wish we knew where those monsters went and, more importantly, where they're coming from."

"That's what I plan on finding out," Polly said. She put her mask back on. "Stay safe, Gianna."

Polly started to walk off.

"Wait!" Henry called out, running after her. "Are you sure you should be doing this by yourself."