The Man with the Briefcase

Folklore is a powerful thing. Cautionary tales that, at a glance seem unbelievable, but upon closer inspection the truth of the stories come out plain as day. Every culture has it’s folklore, from the well known stories of werewolves and vampires, to the lesser known superstitions of black dogs and wild huntsmen. All of them though  pose a question and answer simultaneously. Why shouldn’t you trust the unknown? Because it’ll kill you.

         And of all the stories in the world, my favorite one is the story of The Man with the Briefcase. Nobody can say who this man is, if it is in fact a man. Many have reported seeing a woman, similarly garbed in a black suit and red tie, holding a Briefcase and smiling. Gesturing for them to come over and chat. 

        As good sense would dictate, most people avoid the man. Walking on the other side of the street, or driving past in their car, mimicking the cautionary tales of hitchhikers on poorly lit roads. 

        While the identity of the Man is unknown, many names have been put forth. From small town heroes and villains all the way to the devil himself. None of it can be proven of course, and while nobody can agree on the age, race, or sex, of the man there is one thing they can all agree on, and that’s the contents of the Briefcase.

        What is in the Briefcase, you ask? The answer is simple. Contracts.

         Hundreds and hundreds of contracts. You see, those foolish enough to seek him out all do so with one purpose. To make a deal. He’ll offer you anything you want, money, power, fame, health, at a price.

        Like most things, the price depends on what you’re buying, but it’s certainly not money. And it’s definitely not worth it. Because as this story goes,when you deal with the devil, you’re liable to get more than you bargained for.

          From the outside looking in John Carlisle looked like an average man. He went to work every morning and came home and hugged his daughter every night. The girl’s mother wasn’t in the picture anymore, but that was no great loss, as she was hardly in the picture to begin with. John would cook dinner for him and his daughter, they would play games, watch TV, and anything she wanted.

         Something about this picture just wasnt quite right though, and no it’s not that she was spoiled beyond belief, which, if you believe the stories, she absolutely was. No, you see, Though John loved his daughter more than anything on earth, there was one problem, John’s daughter was dead.

         About a month prior, John was out for a walk with his little girl , when tragedy struck. The woman in her car was running a little late, and being a little reckless, but that’s ok she thought. She didn’t notice the little girl slip and fall off the curb and into the street.

         John was a wreck understandably. He shut himself off from the world in grief, he barely spoke, he barely ate. He went to work most days. Clearly the company wouldn’t run itself,  but even that became infrequent. We are left to assume that he didn’t tell anyone about what happened, although it’s hardly news that can be swept under the rug. 

         That’s when one of his more superstitious employees brought up the Man with the Briefcase.

“But you don’t want to go there.” He has said when John pushed him to elaborate,”Nothing good lies down that road” 

 Of course John didnt listen to that warning . While for most folklore represents an answer to our innate fear of the unknown, but to John it represented something else. Hope. Unfortunately more assumptions need to be made at this point, as there is really no information about John meeting The Man with the Breifcase, but if youll allow me Id like to embellish a little and give my own thoughts of how the interaction might have gone

John sees the man from a ways off.. He is standing in an alleyway. It’s unlit but John can see The Man clear as day. The Man smiles. He gestures for John to come meet him, and against every instinct he has, John obliges.

           John stares at the man, unsure of what to say. Fortunately for him he doesn’t need to say anything. 

          The man sets down the briefcase. 

“You want your daughter back” 

” Yes” John said eagerly

“Alright then, Let’s make a deal”, The man said ” What are you willing to give?”

” Anything”

” Anything? Are you willing to give your life or soul, in order for your daughter to live?”

John was a superstitious man. I believe he would have been cautious about giving up his soul.

John spoke carefully, ” I would like to live with my daughter again”

“And you shall” The man slides over the contract, 

John looks at the contract, he mulls it over unsure of what to do, but he decides to sign it. 

I like to imagine the ink was red, and when he looked at his he saw a gash across it.  While I did steal that from Harry Potter, many cultures have made a connection between magic and human blood. Signing a contract in blood is more than just putting your name down, you’re putting your very life on the page. And breaking a contract signed in blood is said to have dire consequences, and in some places it’s said to be impossible to break altogether.

I see it only fitting that this contract also be signed in blood.

“You have held up your end, and now I will hold up mine. Go home and your daughter will be waiting”  The man picks up his briefcase and leaves.

Johns employees report that John was in a significantly better mood on the day in question. John had been in a good mood for 3 months now, and nobody knew why his demeanor suddenly changed. 

His friends worried about him. 

“Certainly this is a sign of psychosis” they would say amongst themselves. “He’s likely turned to drugs” others would say, but nobody could prove a thing. His friends and family decided on a home visit from a psychiatrist. John of course refused, but they decided to surprise him anyway. 

      Upon entering his house they were greeted by a deathly smell, and I sight just as terrifying. John was hugging his daughter. Many fathers hug there children, but something about this sight but bile to the throats of onlookers. You see, John’s daughter was dead. 

      Police were called immediately and John was taken to a hospital for psychiatric care. Johns daughter was laid to rest once more, her grave found to be dug up and headstone destroyed. I’ll admit, this case is perfectly explainable. John goes crazy, digs up his daughters grave, and lives with the corpse for 3 months before being found out. It’s a sad story of losing a child, and losing your sanity. 

      There’s one more thing though. One hint at the workings of The Man with the Briefcase. When they found John hugging his daughter, some onlookers swear she was hugging him back.