Let's Not Meet: A True Horror Podcast - 8x23: Hatchet Man - Let's Not Meet

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Starting point is 00:00:34 If you go to Let'sNotMeatpodcast.com forward slash tour, or just follow the links in the show notes. You can get your hands on some tickets for both shows, the first of which we'll be at the Neptune Theater in Seattle, Washington on August 25th, followed by a second show at the Polaris Hall in Portland, Oregon on August 26th. Additionally, if you're from the area, you plan to attend one of these shows and you have a story that you'd like to share. By all means, send it to the story submission inbox at Let's Not Meet Stories at gmail.com and we'll see about getting it on the lineup for the live show.

Starting point is 00:01:07 And remember, this podcast contains adult language and content. Listener discretion is advised. Enjoy the show. Episode 23 of Let's Not Meet a True Horror Podcast. When I was a teenager, unaware of all of the horrors that this world had to offer. I liked to go online and chat with people on this forum like program where you could talk to everyone on the server or chat with people in a private chat room. I made friends online and really enjoyed my very social and cheerful life, which was a complete 180 from my offline life. I was angry at the world for letting me live a life in constant physical, verbal, and psychological terror in my home, and I found a way

Starting point is 00:02:32 to escape reality for a few hours and go online with my group of chosen family. One day after being very active in the chatroom for several weeks or months, I received a private message from someone. I've seen you in the chatroom for a while, and I like how you bring such a positive and happy vibe to everyone. I just wanted to say hi, smiling face. We began chatting together regularly, Talking about daily mundane things, just lighthearted stuff. As time went on, I began to look forward to booning up the old family computer

Starting point is 00:03:12 and seeing his name pop up on my screen. We'll call him David. David and I would chat about what he was doing. He was older than me. I was 15 years old and he was in his mid-twenties. He and his girlfriend were moving to my town, and I, of course, said that this was great, because then we could finally meet up in person, and maybe have a double date, as I had recently gotten my first boyfriend. A few weeks later, we meet up at a local burger joint, and to my surprise, my boyfriend goes straight

Starting point is 00:03:45 over to him and hugs him. They apparently knew each other growing up, but they hadn't kept in touch as cell phones were a rarity back then, and they both moved far from the town that they grew up in. We all have a good time, then we're invited over to their apartment for coffee a few days later. I was happy to have reunited two old friends and stopped my chats with David and instead had my boyfriend chat with him on his computer as I didn't want to offend my boyfriend. As time goes on, I get this eerie feeling whenever I'm walking home from my boyfriend's place alone. I shrug it off as just me being paranoid because of the darkness

Starting point is 00:04:33 of the late autumn evening. I try to walk a bit faster. When I get home, I take off my jacket and grab my phone out of my pocket. Three new text messages. It says on my pale green, mo-mul-screen. Damn it, I always forget to turn on the damn sound. What did I forget at my boyfriend's place this time? I think to myself as I unlocked the phone. The texts were from a number that I didn't recognize,

Starting point is 00:05:03 so I figured it had to be someone who typed the wrong number. They typed, I see you, do you want me to fuck you? You're walking off really fast, be careful not to trip. And finally, I know where you live, do you want me to come inside? I freeze up completely. I feel my heart and my throat as my tenitis, whores in my skull. I run to check the doors and windows, I draw all of the curtains shut and lock myself in the bathroom. My parents were out of town for the weekend and I had the house to myself. I call my boyfriend frantically to tell him what happened, and that I want him to come over

Starting point is 00:05:51 right away. I'd be wildered by his response, he begins laughing maniacally, and I hear another person laughing alongside him. Those fuckers were behind the text messages. David got the idea to quote unquote prank me when he just happened to come visit my boyfriend just after I had left. I told them to never do that again. I then went to bed. I didn't feel comfortable hanging out with David anymore, and I would see him sporadically now and then, but I kept my distance, as I didn't approve of his so-called humor.

Starting point is 00:06:27 My boyfriend and I were on and off again before breaking up when I turned 18, as he turned out to be an abusive asshole who had several girlfriends, all at the same time. I stopped all communication with my ex and would later meet a very sweet man named Paul when I was 19. He was the polar opposite of my ex, and would often hug me and comfort me as I learned what a healthy relationship with zero abuse was actually like. My life felt normal for the first time. Paul encouraged me to stay at his house, and he'd notice me catching a glimpse of a normal family and blossoming in their loving home.

Starting point is 00:07:10 One day, we were watching TV together in his room, when my phone rings. It's an unknown number, so I asked Paul if he would answer it. He does. He said there's no one on the other end. The caller hangs up. "'Must have had a wrong number, I guess,' he said. "'I get that gut feeling that something is wrong, and I ask him to drive me home for the night. Maybe someone in the family tried to call me, but hung up when they heard

Starting point is 00:07:38 a male's voice. He takes me home and tells me to let him know if I hear something and offers to pick me up again later. I go inside and I ask my parents if they may be cold me and if anything was up. They hadn't and they hadn't heard of anything being wrong. I go to my room and shrug it off as a silly paranoid moment. Then the phone rings again. Unknown number.

Starting point is 00:08:06 This time my curiosity takes over and I answer it. It's David. He's mumbling incoherent words, but I hear one of them very clearly." He said, Suicide. I immediately tell him to stay where he is. He mumbles some more words which I can't quite understand, and then I hear a street name. They call this Kinex and I have no way to call him back.

Starting point is 00:08:31 I call 911 and I give them the street name, his full name, and ask them to please try and find him. I call back to ask for an update and they say that they found his address, and they found him with several empty pill bottles, but it would later become clear that his blood work showed no signs of ingested pills. It appeared to be some kind of sick show to get me there, and maybe feel empathy for him. Whatever this plan was, I was absolutely fucking done. I wanted nothing to do with that sick fuck. Years go by. I hear nothing from him. I don't see him around. I wish that that was the end of the story though.

Starting point is 00:09:14 I'm at a party with some friends when someone I don't know approaches me and says Pretend like we know each other and just follow me. In my drunken naive state, I oblige her and pretend to have a conversation with her. She pulls me into the bathroom and locks the door. She takes my hand and says, there's a man who's been staring at you ever since you got here. And seeing as he didn't come over to talk to you,

Starting point is 00:09:42 I'll assume he was trying to not be noticed by you. At that moment I felt like someone had increased the gravity right where I was standing. I felt sick to my stomach. It's David, it can't be anyone, but David. I asked her to bring me my things and my friend from a previous room and come back to the bathroom to make a very specific knock so that I know that it's them. After what feels like hours, I see the door knob slowly turning.

Starting point is 00:10:13 I think fuck I locked the door immediately when that woman left. I stare at the door knob with intensity. I hear this beautiful intricate tapping of knuckles on the door, and I rush over, and nearly took the door off its hinges, as I sprinted with the woman and my friend, rushing through my plan as we flee to the front door, where the mountain of shoes belonging to all of the guests lay spread out, like toys flung across a room in a daycare at closing. The woman will stall him. My friend will make sure that the door is blocked so I can get a good head start to the nearest

Starting point is 00:10:52 cab and all sprint off and thank them while escaping that creep. I decided not to let his lurking control my life anymore. After several encounters where I had been minding my own business in the store, talking to people out and about, watching a play or attending a public event, and having that disgusting excuse for a human, walking around me in a circle trying to get my attention or catch a glimpse of eye contact with me, after looking through my window at night and seeing his cigarette light up in the pitch-black darkness in my yard, after spreading disgusting rumors about me, so I will finally give him what he wants, which is attention.

Starting point is 00:11:33 I've had one final piece of information which has changed everything from me. A year ago, my best friend, who knew all about my stalker and had noticed him when we were in public events, died tragically from an illness. The wake was held in two large buildings across from each other, as he was loved and known by so many people. Who did I see looking miserable and being comforted by my unknowing friends? David. But at the time, my best friend didn't know David. Recently there was an event I really wanted to attend because all of my friends were going

Starting point is 00:12:17 and my best friend tried to convince me to go, but I told him I couldn't because I knew for a fact that David would be there, as it was David and his friends that had a show during this event. I was told that my best friend confronted David at that event and told him to leave me the fuck alone, or he would personally ensure he'd never be able to walk again. So David in this specific case, let's not meet one last time. grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to

Starting point is 00:13:21 grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to grow to and save time and money with your online washcode. Find your nearest location at zipscarwash.com. Then drive and shine today. When I was 17, my good friend Celeste and I decided to pick up a job working at a haunted house for the month of October. Both of us were into theater at the time and it sounded like an adventure.

Starting point is 00:13:43 Although my story starts here, the truly terrifying events happened closer to home, so I won't linger over the details except the ones that are important. We would arrive four hours before getting into costumes and makeup. One by one, we stood in lines so that our exposed skin could be airbrushed corpse white. Then, using black, the makeup artist would go back and paint on dark circles, sunken cheeks, and swollen veins. For two teenage girls, it was an exciting and thrilling experience. I remember spending what seemed like an eternity trying to put in the white contacts that were required to be worn. My hazel eyes would become red, itchy, and even streamed tears while I tried.

Starting point is 00:14:32 But the ending effect was well worth it. In the dark, the white contacts made our eyes look so devolition unearthly. They almost glowed. After that, we would comb back our long hair to look wild and unkempt. Both of us were assigned to the same type of character, a demon bride. So we wore these long, eerie, wedding dresses, with gauzy veils. Lastly, they had everyone put fake blood on their teeth, which apparently tasted foul. I was the only person who got out of it because I had

Starting point is 00:15:06 braces at the time. The ending result was so terrifying, people had a hard time looking straight at us, but that was our job, to scare the shit out of people, and we were good at it. Now we were working in an actual historical house, which meant no AC in the humid 90 degrees that it was that time of year. Hundreds of people would pass through each night, Celest and I crawled on the floor and hung from rafters, and chased people around the whole night, never slowing down. It was exhausting and extremely physically intense on our bodies. So by the time that we got off of work, which was never before 12 a.m., we were always sore bruised and starving.

Starting point is 00:15:51 On this particular night, we were driving back to my house and decided to grab some McDonald's. We were too tired to take off our makeup, so although our costumes were gone and we had sweated off most of the paint, we still looked like Tim Burton's wet dream. At that time Celeste had had a falling out with her parents and was living at my house with my sister and I. My father was gone most of the time for work, and this weekend he was on the other side

Starting point is 00:16:21 of town about an hour away, So it was just us girls. We decided to stop off at home to see if Kylie, my sister, was hungry and wanted to join us. We pulled up to the house and Celeste stayed inside the car while I ran to grab Kylie. We lived in a cul-de-sac just three houses down from a park. That night, someone had left a jack-o-lantern to guard the entrance of the park. It was lit within its crooked smile by a real candle that sputtered against the wind. Although that was normally the type of Halloween spirit I would appreciate, it felt less playful and more like an ominous omen tonight. As I left the car, a heavy, dark feeling settled over me.

Starting point is 00:17:05 I began to feel uneasy as though I were in danger. I found Kylie and asked her if she was hungry and she said no, but we should go on without her. But I had this gut feeling that I shouldn't leave her alone. So I took a deep breath and said, I know this is going to sound crazy, but I don't feel safe for you to be here alone by yourself. I just have this feeling that something bad is going to happen." I expected a laugh and roll her eyes. But to my surprise, she seemed genuinely scared.

Starting point is 00:17:37 I've been having the same feeling all night, she confessed, and I've been hearing a lot of weird noises, even something that sounded like a gunshot. This was all the confirmation I needed, and I pleaded with Kylie to come with us even though she wasn't hungry. She agreed, observing that I might be right about her not being safe there. So we all piled into the car and drove to the good old Golden Arches. We gave the drive-through attendant a good scare and a laugh when he saw us. We happily laughed, chatted, and munched on French fries the whole drive back. That unsettling feeling from before, forgotten.

Starting point is 00:18:18 When we finally returned home, it must have been well past 1am. When we had just opened the car doors and started to unpack our things, I suddenly got this prickle down my spine. I felt like all the hair on my body stood up at once, like a cat, when it startled. I don't know how I instinctively knew, but I was jerked up from what I was doing, and I looked straight ahead, just as someone was rounding the corner of the cul-de-sac. It was a young man riding a bicycle. He was thin, early 20s wearing a dark hoodie with a backpack.

Starting point is 00:18:58 Immediately that unsettling feeling from before rushed back, and I was once again feeling like I was in serious danger. My eyes stayed glued on him while the girls continued to chat completely oblivious around me. He was peddling the bike straight towards us at a steady rhythmic pace. As he passed under his street lamp, I saw something silver in his hand, just a glint of light. Before I could make out what it was, he saw me looking and quickly hit it behind his back.

Starting point is 00:19:31 Terror hit me like a punch in the chest and I knew immediately he intended to do us harm. Get in the car, I said. It wasn't a yell but a firm command. Get in the car now. a yell but a firm command. Get in the car now." The urgency in my voice sprung both of them into action. Celeste topped in the driver's seat and slammed the door. I was next climbing into the back seat, my window facing the road that the man was traveling on, but my sister had the large bag with our costumes on the ground in between her and the car door. She sat down and tried swinging the door shut, but the bag wedged itself in between, stopping it. Frantically, she began tugging on the bag, trying to pull it into the vehicle. I looked up at the man, seeing us panic, and start to get back into

Starting point is 00:20:19 the car. He began to pedal faster. When I first saw him, he had been about 200 feet away. Now he was only about 20 from Kylie's open door. "'Leave it,' I yelled at her. Just leave it,' hoping that she would just push the bag out and close the door. Who cares if it was stolen? I just wanted her safe. But she kept tugging on the strap, and the man got closer and closer. At the very last second, and I mean the last second, she

Starting point is 00:20:53 tugged the bag free, and the force of it closed the door behind her. What happened next was a surreal moment for all of us. The man pulled a hatchet from behind his back and began swinging it in the air above his head. When all froze in our seats, the fear was so palpable, we choked on it. Kylie purposely averted her eyes and Celeste put her hand on the gear shift. But I wasn't going to take my eyes off of him, even for a second. I locked gaze with him, so he knew that I was ready for whatever shit he was going to pull. And I'll never forget those eyes. They were wild, mad, and hungry.

Starting point is 00:21:34 I had never seen another human being look at me like that before. It was this pure unhinged desire to do harm. Suddenly, I realized that he had been riding around late at night with the intention of coming across someone just like us. Unsuspecting people that he could put the hatchet to good use on, despite my extreme discomfort, I kept my eye contact with him as he passed by the car. Only glass and a foot of air stood between us. A whole time he was swinging his hatchet playfully around. Then, when he finally passed by, instead of continuing onward, he made a U-turn back towards us.

Starting point is 00:22:15 This shocked us out of our frozen state, Kylie and I screamed at Celeste to drive. Shaking Celeste fumbled to get the car out of park. For one sickly second she seemed so hysterical that she couldn't drive. Shaking, Celeste fumbled to get the car out of park. For one sickly second, she seemed so hysterical that she couldn't drive. Then she reached deep down for courage and floored it. The tires spun and screeched on the road as we sped off. The man tried to follow us first, still waving his weapon threateningly around, but he couldn't match the speed of our car obviously. Frantically, I called 911 and tried to explain what had just happened. The woman on the other end didn't seem to believe me.

Starting point is 00:22:51 Perhaps three teenage girls calling about a hatchet-wielding man just weeks before Halloween seemed too far-fetched for her. But still, you'd think the pure terror in my voice would be convincing enough. Unfortunately in the middle of explaining the call was disconnected. well. You'd think the pure terror in my voice would be convincing enough. Unfortunately, in the middle of explaining the call was disconnected. None of us had ever called 911 before, and we went back and forth on if we should call again. With the lack of sympathy we had gotten, we decided to call two of our closest guy friends Kyle and Tony. Thank goodness they were awake, and they agreed to meet us at this well lit parking lot of a

Starting point is 00:23:25 Walmart. When we saw them, we ran to hug them, ecstatic with relief. They called the police again for us, who, as it turns out, never sent anyone to answer our first call. They also claimed to have no record of it. The lack of support from the 911 operator and the policeman was the scariest part of all of this for me. The one life-flying you have in a situation like that is the police. And if they don't believe you, then what? Eventually, the police finally came and took our statement.

Starting point is 00:24:03 They promised to patrol the area and the neighborhood and contact us to help identify him if any suspects were found. They never were. Our friend's Kyle and Tony walked around the perimeter of our house to make sure that he was gone. Then they stood outside with baseball bats while we went inside to grab clothes in an overnight bag. There was no way we were inside to grab clothes and an overnight bag. There was no way we were going to stay at that house alone that night.

Starting point is 00:24:29 Later on, we were all talking about the man and agreed. He must have been on some sort of drugs from the way that he was acting. Celeste suggested that he probably saw us in our costumes and thought we were some kind of monsters, like for real. Therefore, he was just trying to protect himself, but I disagree. That didn't explain why he was out that late at night, with a hatchet. And why did he chase our car instead of running from it? And most of all, I'll never forget when I saw in those eyes.

Starting point is 00:24:59 There wasn't any fear, only this malicious, calculated intent. So to the man with the hatchet that chased us that October night, let's never meet again. You know it, your wife knows it, your friends know it. Yep, there's no getting away from the fact that there's an outdoor kitchen shaped hole in your life, and it's time to put things right. Thankfully, bull outdoor products are ready, with everything you need to create a world-class outdoor cooking space. Bull outdoor kitchens and accessories add value to your property, an extra fun to your world. If you're gonna do it, do it right. Turn a bull loosen your backyard. bullbbq.com

Starting point is 00:25:55 I live in South Africa where crime seems to get worse by the minute, and not even the cops can be trusted. This story also involves cops. This incident happened to me and my best friend Red when we were 15. For some background, my parents would let me look after the house every three to six months for the weekend, while they would go on this small getaway. This was partly possible because our neighborhood was a close knit community, and on top of that, my godfather's house was nearby. RJ, his brother that was released from prison two years prior, was staying with his brother's family. Since they were just two houses down from us, we would call them if anything sketchy went down, or we could just go to their house. Almost every weekend, Red and I started our Saturday mornings off by skateboarding around the neighborhood, going to KFC, renting scary movies at the video store, and going to my

Starting point is 00:26:55 godfather's house to have a swim with my other best female friend, all before heading home to spend the rest of the night playing video games. While at my godfather's house, RJ, who was 45 at the time, was watching us while we were all having a swim while he smoked weed. He was giving me this strange vibe I had never actually liked him due to his habits and his rough exterior. So when he started talking to me and asking me all sorts of questions, like what time will we be going home, what time do we usually go to bed, etc. I thought, what does any of this have to do with you? In turn, Red asked RJ about his tattoos. RJ

Starting point is 00:27:41 then proceeded to talk about how many people he had stabbed in prison to get his title. To be honest, I can't remember what it was. After swimming for a bit, eating hot dogs and red, purring over my other friend and her bathing suit, RJ asked if he could drop us off at the mall for a movie. Red and I declined as we already rented some movies and we were going to watch them at my place. Back at the house, Red and I took a quick dip in the pool before heading inside to shower and getting ready to play video games and watch movies until the sun came up. Due to the crime rate, we were always prepared with baseball bats or knives or something to protect ourselves.

Starting point is 00:28:26 Then as two teenage boys, having a knife or a bat with you was kind of a normal thing. There were a lot of dogs in our neighborhood that would always bark at just about anything, and if you had dogs, you would get to know the pitch change in their bark. On this night, exactly that happened. The clock hit around 1am. My two German shepherds went crazy. First, the aggressive barking started. Red and I turned the TV off so that we could be in the dark to see outside. This was something that my dad taught me at a young age. Looking at the front window I saw two men standing in front of the house, and my two dogs trying to rip them apart from behind the gate.

Starting point is 00:29:13 Suddenly one of the dogs went running to the back. This was not a good sign. Red and I grabbed some kitchen knives and a baseball bat, then crawled to my room, as fear began to take hold. Looking out the window from my bedroom, onto the backyard, we saw another guy being attacked by my other dog. By now we were completely shitting ourselves, I called my godfather's house and RJ answered.

Starting point is 00:29:42 I honestly can't remember what I said, but he told us to hide, and that he would get the cops there as soon as possible. Red and I stood by the door, armed with our knives and baseball bat, ready to fight anyone that got inside the house to the death. Then there was a knock at the front door. Red and I looked at each other, not knowing what the hell was happening. When suddenly RJ said, it's me, open up. As I opened the door, RJ and three other men barged into the house pointing guns at us. I still remember RJ looking at me and saying, just be quiet and do as I tell you, you won't

Starting point is 00:30:27 get hurt. He told us to lie down on the floor and shut up as they cleaned the house out, packing everything into my dad's car. While the other three guys were waiting for RJ in the car, he told me, I'm going to leave now. You'll never see me again. If you tell anyone, I'll come back and I will kill you." RJ then turned to walk out the door, just as red jumped up and smacked him in the back of the neck with the baseball bat knocking him out. The car then sped off and we ran back to my godfather's house to call the cops. My godfather went to my house and tied up his brother at gunpoint then waited for the cops to arrive.

Starting point is 00:31:09 We never heard anything from him again, and I don't know if he's in jail or not, but wherever you are, RJ, let's never meet again. My good friend Katie and I went on a camping trip several years ago, as a way to briefly escape the stress of Los Angeles life. We had no idea what was in store for us when we drove up to that small northern California town, and I didn't know much about it before the trip. Our original plan to hike seven miles to a campsite failed due to a recent fire in the area totally obliterating the trail. So with absolutely no cell phone reception, we made do with an

Starting point is 00:32:08 old printed Ranger map. We picked a campground that was next to a lake and then set off. The map took us on this very winding, very rocky, very remote road into truly the middle of nowhere. It was an hour of basically off-roading before we reached the intended campground. It was very isolated, surrounded by a dense forest, with no evidence of other campers having been in the area recently. It would have to do, so we made camp, ate dinner, and played cards until it started getting dark. That's when things got strange. When I say that it got dark, I mean pitch black.

Starting point is 00:32:52 No stars, no moon might. Just a thick black void of nothingness all around us. There was absolutely no sound, no crickets, no fog, no wind, nothing. Very unusual for being so close to a body of water. It was 10 pm when we got to our tents. There was something unsettling about this place. I was on high alert in this sensory deprived environment, listening hard for any sound. It just didn't feel right. At 1130 I told Katie, there's no way I'm going to be able to sleep. I just can't calm down. As soon as I said those words, a bright, strobing light lit up the blackness.

Starting point is 00:33:44 My heart stopped. It was like someone was flashing a strobe light lit up the blackness. My heart stopped. It was like someone was flashing a strobe light right outside of our tents. After a moment of shock, Katie whispered, It's the campfire. It must have sparked back to life. Sparked back to life, being a huge understatement. This thing went from dead out to roaring as if someone had thrown an accelerant on it. It had been three hours since we put it out, and again there was no wind.

Starting point is 00:34:13 We were both experienced campers. We knew how to put a fire out thoroughly. This made no sense. Maybe we weren't the only people at that campsite after all. sense. Maybe we weren't the only people at that campsite after all. No thank you, time to go. Thoroughly freaked out, I started ripping down the tents and throwing them into the car. Katie once again doused the campfire. Despite my hurry to leave, I glanced over into the black forest and I saw a little pin of light shining. I alerted Katie, and we both looked over to see what became very clearly two bright shining eyes looking right back at us about 15 feet away. No doubt the eye shine of some animal.

Starting point is 00:34:58 In fact, this was the only animal life that we had seen since arriving. It clearly wasn't scared of us at all, despite having the car headlights on bright, and making a ton of noise on our friends to get out of there. We ran to the car and locked the doors. Now we just had to make it back to town in the pitch blackness, down this sketchy, rough road. God forbid we pop a tire on a rock and get stranded in the dark. Going slowly and carefully, we make it about a quarter of the way back when suddenly we see car headlights in the distance. Headlights coming towards us. Who would be driving on this

Starting point is 00:35:39 dangerous road at 1230 at night? We suddenly realized how stupid we had been on our way to the campsite. We had stopped several times to go out and explore potential trailheads. Any lurking on-looker would have seen two young girls heading no doubt for the only campsite at the dead end of this rural road. 12.30 a.m. seemed like just the time someone with some terrible intentions might think that we would be asleep and vulnerable. We held our breath as we were forced to pull over on this narrow road to let them pass, but they didn't pass. The oncoming car just stopped, blocking the road completely. They repeatedly flashed their headlights at us. We waited. They flashed again. We waited again.

Starting point is 00:36:38 Finally the car started slowly crawling forward until it was exactly parallel to our car. It started slowly crawling forward until it was exactly parallel to our car. Then it stopped. In the car was a man staring fiercely at us from the old beater, probably a Honda Accord. It had its back passenger window busted out and was replaced with duct tape. He glared at us with these dark eyes for what felt like an eternity just staring, getting a good look at us. Before he finally continued to slowly crawl away disappearing into the night, having said nothing.

Starting point is 00:37:19 After he passed, we continued on our way and spent the rest of our trip at this cute and safe family campsite. There is still no doubt in my mind that had he come across us sleeping at the campsite, we would have been in serious danger. Looking back now, I'm grateful for the spooky flaring up of the campfire and the mysterious animal eyes in the dark, because those are the things that actually scared us enough to get in the car and get the fuck out of there just in time to avoid that more than likely murderer headed directly for our campsite. Perhaps it was the intervention of the round valleyirits, rumored to haunt the area. I kinda like to think so, but either way, creepy campsite lurker, let's never meet. Don't let the summer heat bake in, road-grime any longer, hand to your nearby Zips Car Wash

Starting point is 00:38:33 to clean up and cool off. And listen to this, now when you buy your next car wash online at zipscarwash.com, you pay even less. That's right, we save you money off our amazing washes. Plus you also get to skip the line and use our Express Lane service when you're ready to shine skip the line and save time and money with your online wash code Find your nearest location at zipscarwash.com then drive and shine today I've been listening to the podcast for a while and decided that it was time to share my story This happened

Starting point is 00:39:05 in 2015 when I was 27. I'm a female, and at that time I was living with my best friend. We live in South Africa. We had a wonderful two-bedroom duplex in a complex that didn't have fenced off gardens, so it was all open planned. The buildings were built on the side of a hill so that they were half on the ground floor and raised in the front. This meant my room and the front door were on the ground floor as you walked in. The kitchen had an open-plan dining room that led into a raised balcony and Casey's room on that side with the bathroom in the middle of the two bedrooms. Our loft was upstairs, which also led out to another balcony that had the most amazing

Starting point is 00:39:52 view of this hilly area that we lived in. We were in the middle of the complex with people in front of us and behind us, but we only had one neighbor directly next to us. At the same time, I was very into fitness, and anything went from running at 6 a.m. to boxing three times a week and even spending my Saturday horse riding with Casey. We were living our best lives. We would do boxing together in the evenings during the week, so we would finish around 7.30pm, and we would head home to do our usual meal prep and tea talks.

Starting point is 00:40:32 At the time that we moved in, she had a cat, and I decided I would get a pet friend of my own. A sweet little Persian mix, her name is Bella, Bella and Austin, the other cat, became quick friends, and life was peachy. One night during the week we decided to do some home training together. We were ending with some crunches, and we were feeling pretty pumped. High energy music, sweat, and the usual grunting while working out. After that, we decided that it was time for dinner, and by the time that we were done, it was 9 p.m. Ready to bring the cats in and have a shower then turn in for the night. I called for the cats, sometimes they would play outside in the garden during the evenings, so I went

Starting point is 00:41:22 out the front door looking for them. I walked around the front and then to the side of the balcony. It was very dark there. There weren't any ground lights around the front. The only light was a sensor light in the front near my room. This was installed as we had very steep wooden stairs coming down the duplex, and navigating them during the day was tough never mind in the dark, so it was for safety. Anyway, back to rounding the front of my unit. As I walked around, I called for the cats, but they weren't anywhere to be seen. As I looked to my left under the balcony, there it was. I saw a dark figure, crouched down under the balcony.

Starting point is 00:42:12 It took my mind a moment to adjust to what I was seeing. Is that a figure crouched under the balcony? I thought to myself. Buck, it is! That's when my fighter flight kicked in. My mind was racing, my heart was pumping out of my chest. I looked down, foot ready to turn on heel, and I got the fuck out of there. But then, something in my mind said, fuck this, and I stopped. I decided that I was going to confront this person, so I shouted, hey, that didn't get a reaction. The figure just stayed still. Then I mustered up some more bravado and gave a deep, hey, what the fuck are you doing there? Instantly, this person stood up like AT&T Fiber presents a straightforward moment. Your wine? Thanks. I'll pretend I know what I'm doing before saying it's good. And I'll pretend I don't know you're pretending.

Starting point is 00:43:10 Are you a Gagillionaire? Yeah, I have AT&T Fiber. The straightforward pricing has inspired me to be more straightforward. Me too. Ugh, this wine. I'll fetch you a better one. Straight forward is better. No equipment fees, no data caps, no price increase at 12 months.

Starting point is 00:43:24 Live like a Gagillionaire with AT&T Fiber, limited availability and select areas, visit ATT.com slash Hypergig for details. He knew that the jig was up. It was a man. I was shitting myself. What was this guy going to do to me? Casey was inside, so I was on my own. But he stood up, and with a rushed voice said,

Starting point is 00:43:45 Hi, yeah, I'm sorry, I'm from the body corporate, and I see you guys don't have any lights here. So I'm going around to see where I need to install them. By now, I'm freaking out on the inside. My body is wanting to run away, and my mind is racing at a million miles per hour. I decide not to engage aggressively. My body is wanting to run away and my mind is racing at a million miles per hour. I decide not to engage aggressively. I just want to get the fuck out of there without any further incident. So I say, in a shaky voice, oh, okay, sure, no problem.

Starting point is 00:44:19 Even though I knew it was bullshit, who in their right mind would be doing a property check to install lights at 9 o'clock at night? We kind of exchanged an awkward farewell and he went on his way while I ran inside to Casey to tell her what had happened. We were clearly both very freaked out. We found the cats and locked up for the night. We drew all of the curtains and tried to brush the scene off. The next morning we decided to take a look at the scene. Casey's bedroom is right next to the balcony. Well, there we find a fucking makeshift ladder to her bedroom window.

Starting point is 00:45:00 We were in utter shock. We were pretty casual about having open curtains when changing because there were so many trees around us that we felt secluded. Little did we know, this creep had been watching Casey at night while she slept. I felt sick to my stomach. We immediately removed the ladder and went back inside. That same night we got home, feeling unsafe. We made sure to close the curtains and to bring the cats in and lock the doors. I barely slept, tossing and turning. Then at some point in the night, I rolled over and I saw the sensor light go on and then off. I heard a rustling of leaves. and then off. I heard a rustling of leaves. I knew somebody was walking around outside my bedroom.

Starting point is 00:45:57 I just lay still, frozen. I didn't know what to do. This fucking creep was back. I just lay there. I kept telling myself the doors were locked. We were safe inside. Eventually, the light stopped going on and off and I tried to get some sleep. The next day, I was so tired and on edge. I was dating a boxer at the time, and this made me feel like he might be able to help with the situation, being tough and knowing how to throw a punch, if need be. I asked if he could come stay the night with us to help out with the situation. He obliged, even though he had a fight the next night. I was relieved. That night we all hung out, and he locked up with me. I felt safe, but later that night, the same thing happened. My outside light went on. No fuck, he's here.

Starting point is 00:46:46 I woke up my boyfriend and we waited and listened. He then jumps up and yells out the window. We get up and he unlocks the doors to go outside and chase this guy down. But he got away this time. My boyfriend tries to calm me down, and we go back to bed. We didn't sleep much, but at least he still went on to win his fight the next day. Casey and I decided that it was time to get in touch with some people within the complex. She finds out that this guy is actually on the fucking body corporate. We were in shock. How can a fucking creep like this be on the body corporate? Even more so, he's married with a daughter.

Starting point is 00:47:31 Does his wife even know about the shit that he gets up to at night? Well, I found out from another girl in the complex that this is not the first time it happened. He regularly stalked girls who lived on their own and blamed the stalking on some maintenance that had to be done around their units. We took it up with one of the members and told them that they needed to do something about it otherwise we would be going to the police. She said that she would sort it out. And then one day it just stopped. We never saw or heard from this guy again. I have no idea if he ever got arrested, but I did hear he moved out of our complex. Wherever he landed up, I hope other girls aren't being stalked.

Starting point is 00:48:17 I hope his daughter is safe. So to that creepy, beeping tom, let's not meet again. Thanks for listening to this week's episode of Let's Not Meet a True Horror Podcast. If you're interested in helping fund our TV pilot based on the podcast, the NDGoGo is still active for a limited amount of time. Just have to head over to Let'sNotMeatTV.com and you can donate whatever you'd like. However, we do have some really great tears with some awesome perks for those of you that do want to donate a little more, you can get shout outs on the podcast, as well as on social media.

Starting point is 00:49:10 I'm also doing personalized thank you videos, we're also offering lifetime access to the Patreon, as well as producer and executive producer credits for the pilot. Now, we're quite a ways from our goal. I think we've only hit some more around 10 or 11 percent, but that pilot. Now we're quite a ways from our goal I think we've only hit or some more around 10 or 11 percent, but that doesn't mean we're not going to be able to film. We may just not be able to film an entire episode, it might just be a short whatever it is, even if it's coming out of our own pockets, you can be guaranteed we're going to produce some Let's Not Meet content for you for the small screen. I'm really excited about it and I appreciate

Starting point is 00:49:43 everyone that's donated so far. Again, if you have it in your heart to help us make this a reality, head over to Let'sNotMeTV.com to donate today and get access to some of those awesome perks. This week you have heard, Dear Stocker by Joan, The Hatchet Man by Ty, my ex-con convict neighbor and my friend by a listener that asked to remain anonymous. Camp site lurker by C. Dumley and finally creepy peeping Tom by a listener that asked to remain anonymous. All of the stories you've heard this week were narrated and produced with the permission of their respective authors. Let's not meet a true horror podcast is not associated with Reddit or any other message

Starting point is 00:50:24 boards online. As always if you have a story to share send it to let's not meet stories a true horror podcast is not associated with Reddit, or any other message boards online. As always, if you have a story to share, send it to let's not meet stories at Gmail.com. And don't forget to check out the new episodes of my other podcasts this week, Odd Trails, and the Old Time Radio Cast, wherever you get your podcasts, or at crypticcountypodcasts.com. And remember to stick around after the music here if you're a patron for that extended ad-free version of this week's episode. If you want to get access to that, you can head over to patreon.com forward slash let's not be podcast.

Starting point is 00:50:50 This podcast is not possible without our amazing patrons that have kept the show going this long. I truly appreciate every one of you from the bottom of my heart. I'll see you on next week for a brand new episode of Let's Not Meet. Stay safe. In 2017, I was fresh out of college and excited to make a difference in the world. AT&T Fiber presents A Straight Forward Moment. You're wine? Thanks. I'll pretend I know what I'm doing before saying it's good.

Starting point is 00:51:48 And I'll pretend I don't know you're pretending. Are you a Gagillionaire? Yeah, I have AT&T Fiber. The straightforward pricing has inspired me to be more straightforward. Me too. Ugh, this wine. I'll fetch you a better one. Straight forward is better.

Starting point is 00:52:02 No equipment fees, no data caps, no price increase at 12 months. Live like a Gagillionaire with AT&T Fiber. a better one.

Let's Not Meet: A True Horror Podcast - 8x23: Hatchet Man - Let's Not Meet

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