It all started with the old cars hidden in the woods. Once a beautiful piece of scenery had become something completely inverse. Trees grew up through some of the cars. When walking nearby the sounds coming from the woods could make the toughest men pick up there pace. Everyone knew behind the line of decrepit automobiles lie a house looking in comparably bad shape. The house had belonged to Cletus Smith. Cletus was an uneducated dirty mechanic that spent most of his time with a wrench in his hands. Cletus was usually either knee deep in grease. When he wasn’t he was either brewing or drinking homemade mash. Known to the common person as moonshine. It was known that two to three times a year Cletus would get extremely intoxicated and make his way into town. This was rare as Cletus tried to stay as far away from other people and society as possible. Social skills and communication were definitely drawbacks of his personality. A slim man in fairly good shape Cletus could have looked respectable if properly bathed, groomed, and sober. That wasn’t Cletus’s agenda however. Cletus had been born to a poor family in central Mississippi. His mother passed when he was about seven years old. Cletus’s father was also a mechanic with a passion for

Cars. They also shared the love of alcohol. The senior of the smith clan would drink heavily and physically, and mentally abuse Cletus on a regular basis. Classmates became just as abusive towards Cletus for having tattered clothing, and unkept hygiene. This constant abuse shaped Cletus into a bitter resentful creature. With what he had become over time calling him a man doesn’t seem appropriate. The brutality started passed on from Cletus being on the receiving end at both home, and school fairly quickly. Soon Cletus was constantly fighting at school. This caused him to be expelled. His father’s reaction was to beat Cletus almost unconscious. When Cletus regained composure after the assault, he realized he had been bound in a chain. The chain was tied on one side around a tree trunk. The other side wrapped around the axle of a 1967 mustang. Cletus’s father for being an abusive alcoholic had collected cars over the course of his life. They were his prized possessions. He would Keep them parked in line in front of his property like a hidden car show. The senior Smith valued drinking and cars more then anything including his children. Cletus realized he couldn’t go anywhere. The thick chains were strapped tightly around his ankles. He assumed his father was leaving him out here to perish. Three days passed with Cletus chained up outside. Other then a few small pieces of food and a small water bowl he had been left empty handed. Figuring this punishment would be never ending Cletus began plotting what he would do if he was ever freed. This lead to the creation of a true monster. Instead of the unavoidable demise Cletus had expected. About five days later one afternoon Cletus napping against tree had bound to was awaken by the sound of his chain rattling. His father was at the other end releasing him from his captivity. Cletus in both shock of being released and scorned as if possessed stood there staring at his father for a few moments. Mr smith made the remark” don’t just stand there looking stupid you have chores to do” as he headed back towards the small house. Cletus hearing this having just been freed snapped. While his father passing the last line of cars Cletus decided he had enough. Hitting his father in the back of the head with a tire iron laying in a nearby truck bed. Cletus continued the assault until the tire iron had bent. His father laid in a bloody pool at his feet. In a panic Cletus knew he must dispose of the body. Cletus then began digging a hole at the very back of the truck he found the tire iron. Once the evidence was disposed of he would move the truck back slightly to cover the grave. Considering that his father wasn’t overly liked by the locals there was little fear of anyone coming looking for the elder Smith. When Cletus had made his way into town to gather food and a few tools. The local hardware owner asked about his father. Cletus reported to him that his father had left almost a week prior to search out a rare vehicle. He told the man he hadn’t heard a word about him since and was doing what he could to keep up on the cars and property. Cletus then bought a bottle of rum, and headed back to his dilapidated home. Back home and halfway thru the bottle of rum Cletus heard something outside. The hardware store owner Mr Johnson was outside walking thru the line of cars towards the small home. Cletus in a drunken panic snuck out the back door. As Mr Johnson knocked on the door Cletus approached quietly from behind. Knowing he couldn’t take a chance of anyone else becoming suspicious of his crime. He hit Mr Johnson with the glass rum bottle. The glass and blood spilled everywhere. Cletus then stabbed Mr Johnson repeatedly with the broken bottle. The mixture of blood and rum filled both the stench in the air, and soaked the ground. Amazing how a small shack in the woods and a passion for cars held such atrocities. What started with old cars in the woods turned a young man into a brutal killer with a mind full of hatred.