Christine 2 – Part 3
The night came without warning.
Not quietly, not gently, but as if someone had switched the entire world off. The road in the countryside was empty. Too empty. The asphalt gleamed with moisture, even though it hadn’t rained.
Jari stood beside the car for a moment and listened.
No wind.
No insects.
No distant traffic.
Only that same low feeling in his chest. Something that wasn’t fear, but memory — even though he remembered nothing.
Christine stood in front of him. The red surface looked intact. Too intact. Not a single scratch showed what had happened. What should have happened.
”This can’t be real,” Jari said out loud.
The radio clicked on by itself.
At first, there was only static. Then a voice. Not news. Not music. Not any familiar station.
”Did you really think it was over?”
Jari’s hand froze in midair.
He didn’t touch anything.
Christine started.
The engine didn’t roar. It breathed. Calmly. Patiently. As if it had been waiting for this moment.
Jari knew one thing for certain now:
Going back to the countryside wasn’t the end.
It was an invitation.
And Christine hadn’t come to take him back.
It had come to take him forward.
—
Jari drove back toward the countryside.
The road was the same, but it felt shorter than before, as if Christine knew the way without directions. A barn emerged from the darkness, a black shape standing alone in the middle of the fields. No lights. Everything looked abandoned.
Christine stopped on its own in front of the barn.
The engine shut off.
”I’ll just take a look,” Jari muttered, more to himself than to the car.
He opened the door and stepped out.
That was when people emerged from the shadows. One… two… ten. A large group. They didn’t say a word.
The first blow hit Christine.
Metal thudded.
Another strike followed immediately.
They kicked and smashed the car without mercy. Fists, boots, and objects slammed into the metal until Christine was nothing but twisted steel and shattered glass. The sound echoed off the barn walls and disappeared into the dark fields.
At the same time, a few blows struck Jari as well.
One punch to the ribs.
Another to the head.
”Hey! Stop!” Jari shouted, but the only answer was laughter.
He staggered and finally collapsed to the ground. He tried to get up, but his strength was gone. His vision blurred. He heard mocking laughter and someone’s voice from the darkness.
Then footsteps.
Running.
Silence.
Jari lay on the ground for a long time without moving.
When he finally woke up, the night was still there. His head pounded, his mouth tasted of blood. Slowly, he turned his head and saw the car.
Christine stood there in front of him.
Or what was left of it.
—
Jari lay there a moment longer before forcing himself to move. Every breath hurt, but his legs carried him. He stood up slowly and looked back one last time.
The wreck remained in front of the barn.
No sound.
No lights.
Jari turned and started walking.
The journey to his father’s place felt longer than ever. The darkness pressed in, his head buzzed. He staggered, stopped now and then, but kept going.
When the door finally opened, his father looked at him and froze.
”What happened to you?” his father asked.
Jari leaned against the wall and took a breath.
”They beat me up… and completely destroyed the car.”
—
Jari stayed at his father’s place for a couple of days.
He rested, ate little, and slept badly. The bruises changed color, the pounding in his head eased, and his thoughts slowly became clearer.
When he felt better, Jari returned to the countryside.
Christine was still there. Or what was left of it. Twisted metal, shattered glass, dents everywhere.
”It’s over,” Jari muttered.
Then the door slammed straight.
The car began to repair itself completely. Metal snapped and groaned, dents vanished, and the glass was whole again. Moments later, Christine stood before him as if brand new.
”Wow… you’re back in shape,” Jari shouted.
He opened the door and sat behind the wheel.
”Let’s drive to my dad’s place.”
—
”Look, Dad… the car is fine again,” Jari said.
His father stared at the car for a long time, walking around it, touching the hood.
”How is that even possible?” his father asked.
”I don’t know,” Jari said. ”But it is.”
His father sighed.
”Looks like you’re heading home, then.”
Jari nodded and drove off.
—
Jari made it home.
Evening was already falling when his eyes burst into flames.
No pain.
No scream.
Only emptiness.
He went straight to Christine and sat behind the wheel. The door closed by itself. The engine started — and the car burst into flames.
Christine drove toward one of the men who had helped destroy the car.
The man was in his garage when Christine pulled into the yard. The accelerator slammed to the floor, and the car drove straight into the garage.
Impact.
Fire.
The entire place went up in flames.
Christine reversed, turned, and drove away. The fire faded as the car moved on, as if it had never been real.
—
In the morning, Jari woke up in his own bed.
The room was quiet.
Sunlight streamed through the window.
Everything looked normal.
He remembered nothing of what had happened.