The Meat Shop Fridge

My family ran the local butcher shop for generations, stretching all the way back to when my great great Grandpa Jim opened it up when he was 19. It was a favorite for the community, providing everyone with all types of amazing meat. The store ran very well for a long time until it reached my Grandpa. He and my Grandma ran it for many years, but out of nowhere, Grandma disappeared. They were both mentally unstable but capable of running a store. People were saying she fell into the meat grinder, some say she was killed by Grandpa, but I find it all false and believe she just died naturally. They lost some customers due to the rumors but the store still persisted. Nowadays, Grandpa doesn’t really talk, so recently, my dad and I have been running the front of the store. One day, Grandpa was out sick so he made me and my dad run the entire store. That day we were getting a lot of orders and my dad needed me working in the back. I’ve been in the back so it was an exciting day for me.

“Hey bud, we need a restock on all meats: pig, cow, turkey, chicken, you know, the basics,” my dad yelled at me from the other end of the counter.

“Yessir, are they in the meat fridge in the back?”

“Yup, just grab ten slabs from the hangers then give them to me.”

“Cool, on it,” I said, excited.

I rushed from the counter and banged through the back doors, revealing the meat fridge. I grabbed the door and slowly opened it, releasing its seal and letting fog billow out. Stepping into the fridge, I felt the immediate temperature change. I shivered, continuing walking to the back and picking off the pieces of meat my dad wanted. 

“Turkey check, chicken check, duck check, pig, cow check, alright that should be it,” I said to myself.

After I grabbed everything, I walked around the fridge, exploring the place. I found products I had never even heard of before.

“Street cat meat? Eugh.” I gagged just hearing the name of it.

I continued to look around, starting to venture toward the back where it gets really cold. I noticed some hair in the very, very far back. It was gray, long, and hung from behind another piece of meat. Terrified but curious, I walked over to see what it was. Scared, I lifted up the meat covering the majority of the piece, revealing a raccoon.

“Oh god, what the hell, why does Grandpa have a raccoon hanging back here, eww.” I turned around and began to walk back when I sensed movement from the corner of the fridge. I looked over and saw a piece of meat slowly swaying back and forth. Taking a few steps toward it, I began to smell a stench which made me gag profusely. I lifted a few pieces of meat up when I saw it: a human leg. Horrified, I searched around it and found even more body parts.

“Another leg, another arm, oh gosh, could this be Grandma?” I said, uneasy.

After more searching, I found it: my grandma’s head. I ran out of the fridge and right to the counter where my dad was standing, still as a statue. 

“Dad!” I said out of breath. “It’s horrible, the rumors are tru—” My dad covered my mouth with his hand and lowered his voice.

“Son, don’t speak of this secret. No one can know.”