Cane Row Chapter One Teaser
We’re looking to publish our black horror novel by the end of the year with a screenplay also in development.
In honor of that plantation burning down in Louisiana, please enjoy an excerpt from our first chapter.
TLDR: Seeking a fresh start, Lincoln Charles moves his family to the isolated Cane Row, Louisiana, but his new job unearths the chilling possibility of a hidden mass grave. As the family faces increasing hostility from the unwelcoming town and disturbing secrets emerge, they must confront the dark history that may be buried beneath their feet.
Chapter 1: Welcome to Cane Row
Locals whispered the sugar cane in Cane Row clawed at the sky, taller than any in Louisiana, perhaps the world. At a monstrous fifteen feet, the stalks formed a suffocating green labyrinth, the narrow two-lane road the only vein in or out. These weren't mere plants; they were silent sentinels, their razor-sharp rustling leaves guarding the town's long-buried history, a history that clung to the shadows and refused to be forgotten.
A full-sized black SUV sailed through the sea of green. With dark-tinted windows, a layer of dust smeared the side of the vehicle like a racing stripe. The shiny black paint no longer had that glisten it once had in the heat of the interstate fast lane. Inside, a young family, Lincoln, Carly, Lincoln Jr., and James Charles, were exhausted from the final leg of their continental journey.
Lincoln Charles, a man of basketball player height, drove crammed into the seat, even with it pushed back. He wore khaki pants with a fresh linen shirt. He left a few buttons intentionally undone enough to let the AC hit his dark bare chest as he adjusted the vents to get to that sweet spot.
Carly Charles, his wife, was on the passenger side, leaning against the window with her bottle-blonde hair tied back. Her flawless, expressionless ivory face occasionally flashed from the light fighting its way through the thick cane. She watched the world blur together as she searched for any crumb of comfort, physical or mental; she wasn’t selfish.
Carly glanced at her phone as the music got patchy.“No service. Nothing.” The noticeable silence seemed to go on forever.
“We can try talking again if you want.”
“No, Lincoln. That’s the last thing I want.” A whirlwind of emotions engulfed her at the sight of his smile. The love couldn’t compare to the resentment, the sheer anger that she had been suppressing for the last three weeks. “I can NOT believe you are moving us to this hick-ass town.” She tossed the phone in the center cup holder and curled back up in defeat.
Lincoln tensed up and then pulled himself into a more proper posture. “Come on,” he half got out. He tried to clear the regret from his throat. “It’s not the end of the world. If anything, it’s going to be the beginning.”
“I don’t want to hear it. I can’t believe you,” Carly replied.
“I couldn’t pass this contract up. I had to get us out of there. You don’t last long after betraying your brothers. Who knows how they would have retaliated? I had to think about you and the kids.”
She jerked towards him. “It’s not all about money. We were just fine. We didn’t have to move 2000 miles. You destroyed MY career because you chose to destroy yours.”
“That’s not fair, and you know it.” He checked his mirrors, taking an extra peek at the children sleeping in the back. “You still have all the stuff to sell on the website. And we already figured out we could open a spa here.”
“Fair, Lincoln? Are you serious right now? There is no we! YOU figured it out,” she said sharply. “Two hundred clients aren’t leaving Baltimore with us. Everything I worked for. Poof.”
“Baby, I’m sorry,” Lincoln conceded.
She smiled and flipped her hand at him dismissively. “Just poof.”
“You can take as much time as you need. You always said you wish you had more time with the kids.”
“What the hell am I supposed to do in Louisiana, Lincoln?!”
“Woah. Please. I’m not yelling. We don’t want to wake them up.”
“Don’t fucking tell me to settle down like this is my fault! I’m sick of this. I told you it wasn’t the best time to take this damn job. I told you no. And here we are, you're up and moving us across the country. I honestly feel like I hate you at this point. God, please get me out of this car.”
Lincoln’s face was hot as he fought his instinctual response, the words knotted and shoved to his stomach. “You know I don’t want us to be like this, baby.” He reached softly for her leg. “I didn’t do this to hurt you; I did it for us.”
“Stop.” She recoiled, curling into a fetal position as far away from him as she could be against the window. “I don’t want to be touched right now, Lincoln.”
“Just wait until you walk into this house. The apartment was nothing compared to this. And the schools here are pretty good.”
“Stop trying to sell your bullshit, Lincoln. I’m tired of hearing it.”
Lincoln knew he was wrong, but for the right reasons. It wasn't much for what it was worth then, but he knew all the blame was his. A man can only roll the dice with his family once and only if it’s worth it; at least, that’s what he told himself.
“I know there’s an opportunity here for you. We didn’t see any other spas in the area.”
“Amazing. The only therapist in Hicktown.”
Carly’s half-smile fled as her jawline hardened, her white knuckles tucked away. There were occasional breaks in the cane every quarter mile or so that stretched back to large swathes of trees. The marmalade sun sank slowly into the horizon, blending the sky with a riot of bright hues.
They approached a patriotic billboard above a fancy welcome to Cane Row sign. The warm smile of Chief Deputy Cole Collins greeted them, as it did everyone coming in and out of town, as he staked a claim to be elected the next sheriff of Cane Row Parish.
“Is that your new boss?” Carly asked.
“No. I spoke with Sheriff Franks.”
“That guy looks nice. He sure picked a good picture.”
She turned back to the window and tried to drift away. A hunched figure, seemingly bound to the cane, limbs working in a disturbing rhythm, watched them pass. Carly, preoccupied, almost missed it. Then, in the next break, a dark figure stood impossibly still, face obscured by a wide-brimmed hat, eyes locking into hers with unsettling intensity. A shiver ran through her – not of fear, but of violation, as if the gaze had reached inside. She whipped around, a frantic 'What was that?' dying in her throat. As she turned, she briefly saw a white SUV parked sideways with the doors open in the next clearing.
“You need to slow down,” she said, nudging Lincoln. “I think that was a cop.”
He smiled playfully. “We should be ok.”
The white SUV pulled onto the road. Red and blue lights flicked on as the engine rev grew louder behind them.
“Wow, I was only five over. There’s no shoulder. Where do they expect me to pull off?”
“Great, this is just what we need.”
“I’m pretty sure we’re in the Cane Row jurisdiction. Maybe they can give us some directions.”
“You didn’t even have your first day yet. Don’t go acting like their buddy.”
Lincoln put on his blinker as they drove a short distance, pulling off onto a dirt road that ran through the middle of the cane. It was getting dark, and they couldn’t see past the police headlights pulling into the opening behind them.
Two shadowy figures emerged from the car and approached the vehicle from each side. Lincoln rolled down the window and slowly stuck his hand out while opening the door. He could feel the stifling Louisiana heat immediately.
“Driver! Remain in the vehicle!” the cop nearest to him shouted.
Both cops paused for a moment as the din of cicadas grew.
Lincoln turned to Carly. “Just relax, ok?” He waved. “Hey now, fellas. What seems to be the problem?”
The cop approached the door holding his hip. Lincoln couldn’t make out much more with the premature flashlight aimed at his face.
“Stay in your vehicle until instructed otherwise. License and registration. How many occupants are in the vehicle?”
Lincoln handed over his license and registration. “Here, man. My wife and the two children in the back,” he said, trying to stay calm, but the tension was palpable in his voice.
He glanced at the ID. “I saw that out-of-state plate, and I thought y’all were lost, but now I know for certain.” He shot a depraved, playful look at his partner. “Go ahead and step out of the vehicle for me.”
The cop’s partner, a younger man with a matching uniform, moved to the driver’s side rear to assist.
“Easy now, guys,” he said with his palms facing the officers. “I don’t want any trouble,” he said as he slowly exited the SUV. “I think there’s a misunderstanding,” Lincoln said, trying to diffuse the situation. But the officers’ expression was stone.
The officer clicked off the flashlight and put it back in his belt while resting his right hand on his service weapon. “Turn around and put your hands on the vehicle for me, boy.”
Lincoln stood in the SUV doorway. “If you could just point me in the direction of the Cane Row sheriff’s department, I’m –”
The officer grabbed Lincoln by the shoulder and tried turning him around without warning. His partner helped as they shoved Lincoln into the SUV’s back door. Lincoln didn’t resist.
“I’m one of you, brother. I’m one of you.”
“He’s a cop!” Carly shouted from the car. “He’s trying to tell you he’s a cop.”
“Quiet! Both of you.” Collins' eyes flicked to the dashcam, a predatory smirk twisting his lips. 'So, there is something to hide in the car?'
With unnatural strength, Edwards slammed Lincoln against the SUV, the metal groaning under the impact. Lincoln's face hit the dirt, the taste of grit and fear filling his mouth as Edwards' knee dug into his spine. Collins, not content, delivered a sickening thud to Lincoln's ribs, a sound that made Carly gasp in the car.
“Mommy, what are they doing to Daddy?” Lincoln Jr. yelled.
“Put your hands behind your back now!” the lead cop barked.
Inside the SUV, Lincoln Jr., despite his fear, peered through the tinted window. He didn't see his father; he saw them. Two shadows contorted in the flashing lights, their movements jerky and inhuman. James, the baby, didn't cry from fear, but from an echoing whine that seemed to vibrate from the cane itself.
The pressure of the men, the mix of body odor and cologne on top of the adrenaline, made Lincoln feel like he was about to vomit. “I’m not resisting. I’m one of you, man. I’m an officer!”
As Lincoln yelled from the ground, the main cop kicked a mix of fine Louisiana dirt, the trademark gravel, clay, and pebbles into Lincoln’s face and open mouth. It was dusty enough to coat every wet part of his throat. Lincoln started to choke. Carly leaned toward the driver’s door, shouting.
“Stop! What are you doing!?”
“Get back in the vehicle, ma’am! Get him cuffed, Edwards. And keep an eye on both of them. Let me call this in,” the main cop said.
Edwards cuffed Lincoln and rolled him onto his side as he spat between gasps for air. When he got the faintest mouthful of the hot, watery air, Edwards flipped him back onto his stomach. The weight of Edwards’ knee was slipping from the middle of Lincoln’s back towards his neck.
Carly was now in the driver’s seat. “Why are you doing this to him? He’s a cop. We told you he’s a cop.”
Lincoln squirmed. “I can’t breathe, man. I can’t breathe.”
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