Snook - The Reddit Story Collection

Starting point is 00:00:00 Hey, what's up guys and welcome to the Reddit Story Collection. This is the biggest and best Reddit story video I have ever done. As you may have gathered from the title, this is the Reddit Story Collection. So I just collected and compiled the best stories out of all my Reddit story videos this year. And here they are. I've also added a few new ones that stood out to me and seemed especially good. But trust me, each and every one of these stories are just phenomenal and just so good. And I'm so excited for you to be here because these stories are just so amazing and scary and creepy and all that stuff.

Starting point is 00:00:36 They're so entertaining. I also have timestamps for each one of these stories. So you can easily choose between stories in this big video and just makes it easier for you to go to the start of each one or whatever if you've already heard one, etc. But these stories are just scary, disturbing, and some are just downright weird. But these are arguably some of the best stories on the internet. so welcome to the Reddit story collection. And also, before we get into this behemoth of a video, please like the video and subscribe to the channel.

Starting point is 00:01:06 It's the channel's goal to be at 500,000 subscribers, so please subscribe to the channel. I would love for you to join the community, and it also just supports the channel. So thank you so much if you subscribe and like the video, and thank you for watching. But all right, anyways, let's get into the first story. My wife has been peeking at me from around quarter,

Starting point is 00:01:27 and behind furniture. It's gone from weird to terrifying. My wife, Lynn, and I have been together for six years and married for 11 months. Our entire history together has been very normal, and never once have I noticed anything weird, behavior, or red flags. I can't stress enough how out of character this whole thing is for her. Lynn is very kind, intelligent, and thoughtful. She's always been the no-nonsense type of person. Being childish or trying to scare me is not something she'd normally do. She doesn't even like watching horror movies. When we first started dating, she agreed to watch The Shining with me because she knew how much I loved horror.

Starting point is 00:02:12 She was so scared that she didn't even make it through half of the movie before we had to turn it off. She isn't into anything creepy and has never been into pranks. It's just not her cup of tea. And that's fine, but that's what's so strange about this. It's just so unlike her. I should also add that she never had any mental health issues, and as far as I'm aware, it does not run in her family. I know some people are able to hide their mental health problems, but in the six years we've been together, I think I would have seen some sort of sign. Two months ago, I was in the kitchen making myself coffee before work.

Starting point is 00:02:52 I was running a bit late that morning and knew I wouldn't be able to make it to Dunkin' Donuts for my usual morning fix. I took a sip of my coffee as I hurried down the hall towards the front door, when I happened to notice Lynn peeking at me from around the corner ahead of me. I could only see her eyes and a strand of her long, dark hair hanging against the wall. The rest of her body was concealed behind the corner. I nearly spilled my coffee when I saw her. I did burn this shit out of my lips though. Jeez, Lynn, I said, wiping a few drops in my coffee.

Starting point is 00:03:22 coffee from my pants, you scared this shit out of me. She immediately popped out of view like a little kid that had been caught. I heard her scurrying off towards the living room and by the time I got to the front door, she was out of sight. It was really weird and just totally out of character for her, like I said. But I also found it kind of funny that she was being more playful and a little less serious. I shouted that I loved her and called her a weirdo. As I shut the door behind me, I heard her laughing. Her behavior was a bit odd, but it certainly wasn't something to call a priest over. I forgot about it by lunch, and by the time I got home, she was her normal self. I didn't bring it up, and neither did she, and life went on. The next incident happened three days later. It was

Starting point is 00:04:07 around 2 a.m. and I had woken up to get a drink. I was standing at the kitchen island, jug of O.J. in my hand, when I felt a strong feeling that I was being watched. For whatever reason, I looked down at the floor and saw my wife's smiling face staring back. She was peeking at me from the other side of the island, staring up at me with her wide, unblinking eyes and grinning, grinning like a shishire cat. I screamed, I'll admit it, not out of irritation, but fear. For some reason, at that moment, I was scared. At the sound of my scream, Lynn scuttled backwards out of my view, her hands and feet smacking the tile floor as she hurried out of the kitchen on all floors. I didn't run after her or even yell at her.

Starting point is 00:04:54 I just stood there frozen in shock, wondering what had possessed her to do that? It took me a little longer than I'd like to admit to go back upstairs, but I eventually did. When I got to our bedroom, Lynn was lying on her side asleep, or at least pretending to be. I stood there for a while watching her breathing to be sure she was really asleep. I had the feeling she might jump out at me the moment I got into bed, but she didn't. I climbed into bed and she didn't even move. Her breathing was soft and deep and I was starting to wonder if I'd dreamt the whole thing. The next morning I waited for her to come down for coffee, and after handing her a mug and kissing her cheek,

Starting point is 00:05:34 I decided to ask her about it. What was that about last night? I asked, keeping my tone light so I didn't offend, or embarrass her. She frowned over her cup of coffee, shaking her head like she had no clue what I was referring to. You were peaking at me again, from over there, I said, pointing to the spot on the floor by the kitchen island. She followed my gaze, and when she looked back at me, she burst out laughing. She laughed so hard that it couldn't help but join her. You creep me out sometimes, you know that, I said. She giggled and set her coffee on the counter and wrapped her arms around my neck. You creep me out all the time, so I guess we're even, she teased. We set our goodbyes and left for work.

Starting point is 00:06:18 As I drove, I kept thinking about how creepy it had been seeing her grinning at me from behind the island like that. The sounds her hands made on the floor as she crawled away. I told myself, she was just trying to be silly, just trying to join me in my love of all things. Horror. It's not like I was afraid of her, but it still didn't sit right with me. I started seeing her peeking at me more and more. Sometimes she'd be peeking out from behind the couch or living room curtains. Once she even managed to get inside her grandmother's old trunk that sits at the foot of our bed. I might not have even known she was there at all had the trunk's old hinges not given her away.

Starting point is 00:07:00 She'd had the lid propped up just enough so only half of her face peeked through. She'd been grinning like an excited toddler. It was unnerving. I didn't even know what to say to her. All I could do was stare. When I finally found my voice, I asked her, why on earth she was doing this? She didn't answer,

Starting point is 00:07:19 but she had slowly closed the lid, shutting herself inside the trunk. I just walked away, feeling disturbed. I didn't understand why she was doing it, but it clearly made her happy. I just hoped she would tire of the game quickly. Lynn didn't peek at me for the next two weeks. I started to think she was maybe done with her weird pranks, and I was relieved.

Starting point is 00:07:43 We were watching a show on Netflix one night, and I jokingly said that I hadn't seen her peaking at me lately, and that she must have just given up on her spy game. She looked up at me with a small smile and said, Maybe I've just gotten better at it. I didn't say anything, but I wondered whether or not she was joking. For the next few days, I couldn't see. stopped thinking about what she said. Was she still peaking at me when I wasn't looking? And I just hadn't noticed? And if so, what the hell was she getting out of this? I started to feel

Starting point is 00:08:16 paranoid, constantly checking whether she was watching from around the corner or behind a door. I was jumpy whenever I was home and she wasn't in full view of me. I felt stupid and a little crazy. But after a few weeks without another incident, I began to relax a little bit. I stopped checking behind furniture and walls and told myself it was maybe just a bad memory. Then a few days ago, things got so much worse. Lynn left to go to a friend's, and I lounged on the couch and played a couple games on my laptop. Around 9 p.m. I hopped in the shower, and as I was washing the soap for my hair, I felt that awful feeling that I was being watched. I slowly opened my eyes and almost had a heart attack. Lynn was peeking from behind the shower curtain. Her entire head

Starting point is 00:09:10 stretched into the shower, leaving just her body outside. Her long, dark hair hung against the curtain, the ends dripping with water. Her mouth hung open in a terrible grin, eyes wide and red, as if she hadn't blinked in a while. I screamed and jumped back against the wall. She didn't move, nor did her smile waver. Her makeup ran down her cheeks in two black streaks. She looked giddy and completely deranged. I was terrified. We still looked that for a few moments. Neither of us saying a word. Finally, after what felt like forever, she slowly pulled her head back out of the shower, and I watched her blurry figure through the curtain as she moved backwards towards the bathroom door.

Starting point is 00:09:59 A second later, the bathroom door slammed shut, hard enough to rattle the mirror. I screamed again and jumped out of the shower to lock the door. I stayed inside their bathroom for over an hour. Maybe I overreacted to some of you, but joke or not, I wasn't going to put up with this crazy shit anymore. That's what I kept telling myself as I paced in my bathroom, stopping to listen at the door every few minutes. Suddenly, I heard a muffled sound, and I pressed my ear against the bathroom door, straining to listen for any sound. I couldn't hear anything, but I envisioned Lynn standing on the other

Starting point is 00:10:36 side of the door, giggling at her joke. I felt a surge of anger. I was beyond pissed at being made to feel scared in my own house. It made to hide in the bathroom for an hour? Or for what? Some joke? If it was a joke, it was an awful one. What the fuck, Lynn, I snapped. This shit is getting crazy, fucking annoying. I waited for her to apologize or to call me a jerk, but instead I heard a faint moan. So quiet, I wondered if I heard it at all, and then complete silence. Lynn, I called out. Not able to even hide the shakiness in my voice, I got no response, just my own heavy breathing. I swear to God, just stop it, I yelled, pounding my fist on the door. I waited for her to cuss me out, something I would expect from me talking to her like that.

Starting point is 00:11:25 I never screamed at her before. But there was nothing. Just the occasional drip from the showerhead. I won't deny that I was so scared. Too afraid to open the damn door and face my own wife. I waited another 30 minutes or so, which felt like a lifetime when you're scared. Finally, I decided I wasn't going to spend the night hiding in my bathroom. So, I got down on my knees and peered another door.

Starting point is 00:11:51 I almost expected to see her face peeking back at me, but thank God it didn't. I could see straight down the hallway to the top of the stairs, but no Lynn. I didn't know if I should be happy about that or not. I looked over for a few minutes, waiting to see her head pop up over the top step, but it never came. I stood up, my hand hovering over the door, and mentally prepared myself to open it. I slowly turned the lock with shaky fingers, and it was about to yank it open when I heard a sound that still makes me feel nauseous when I think about it. A moan, louder than before, but this time I was able to tell just where it was coming from.

Starting point is 00:12:32 I turned my head to the closest door as if in slow motion, and locked eyes with my wife, who's peeking out at me from the slight gap. Her eyes were still wide as ever, and her mouth was hanging open in the most grotesque gaping gaping smile I'd ever seen. I didn't even scream. I was too scared for even that. Her hands were clasped to her chest, body trembling with sheer delight, as if she could barely contain her excitement. A short, raspy moan, bubbled up from her throat, deep and raw, sending a shiver down my entire body. Somehow I found the ability to pull the bathroom door open and ran as fast as I could all the way down the steps, snagging my keys and phone from the table in the living room, before running

Starting point is 00:13:17 outside to my car. I could hear her shrill laughter behind me, but I didn't even hear her getting closer. I didn't bother shutting the front door. I drove away from the house faster than I legally should have, shivering the entire time, either from fear or the cold, maybe a little of both. I hadn't grabbed a coat or even a pair of shoes. I was still in my boxers and my hair was still damp. I drove straight to my brother Chris's house about 40 minutes away, ignoring any and every call and text I got. I didn't check my phone until I was safely parked in my brother's driveway. Lynn had called four times and sent a flurry of texts, all wondering where I'd gone and why I left like that. I threw my phone at the dash in a rage, furious at her nonchalant attitude.

Starting point is 00:14:07 My brother and his wife were surprised to see me, especially. dressed in just a pair of boxers, but told me to stay as long as I needed to. Chris lent me some clothes and asked me what had happened. I told him Lynn and I had a fight, but didn't get into the details. I didn't want him to think I was overreacting, leaving my wife over a prank, even if it was a strange one. I mean, hadn't I encouraged her for years to lighten up instead of being so serious all the time? I had wanted her to relax and loosen up, but this was definitely not what I had in mine. I tried to sleep on their sofa, but my brain wouldn't let me sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Lynn's face staring at me from inside the closet, knowing she'd been in there, with me the

Starting point is 00:14:52 entire time made my skin crawl. She'd never left the bathroom at all. Instead, she slipped inside the closet and slammed the bathroom door shut to fool me. The mere thought of going back home gave me anxiety. I tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Chris ended up giving me a sleeping pill so I was able to get a little rest. My sleep was filled with terrible dreams, all of Lynn's smiling face. I woke up just as the sun started to rise. My sore body ached from the sofa, and I felt drained. I knew I'd have to call Lynn at some point, but I didn't know what to say to her. I wouldn't be going home unless she gave me her word. She wouldn't do any more creepy shit. I just wanted my wife back.

Starting point is 00:15:38 Her normal, serious self never looked so good to me. I was contemplating calling her and telling her that when that familiar feeling came over me. I was being watched. I was staring at the ceiling, my heart and my throat. I didn't want to look away, but the longer I ignored the feeling, the worse it got. My eyes drifted away from the ceiling almost on their own. Her face was pressed up against the window beside the couch. staring down at me with that same gaping smile drool dribbled down her lips leaving two long streaks down the glass i didn't know how long she'd been there but something told me she'd been there quite a while possibly all night long i didn't bother screaming though i was afraid anger trumped any fear at that moment i jumped from my couch and pounded my palm against the glass lynn are you crazy

Starting point is 00:16:36 What the hell's wrong with you? Just go home, I shouted, now. She didn't move, and her ghastly expression never changed. If anything, her smile only grew, as if she had never been more elated. I could hear Chris and his wife moving around upstairs, as if Lynn could hear them from her place outside. Her head twitched slightly in their direction, and she began to close her mouth slowly. Chris called my name from upstairs, obviously concerned. I'd turned to him and his wife Rebecca hurrying down the steps.

Starting point is 00:17:12 When I turned back to the window, Lynn was gone. The only sign she'd been there at all was the two streaks of drool still dripping down the glass. I tried explaining to Chris and Rebecca about waking up to see Lynn watching me through their window. They were skeptical. Who wouldn't be? Chris and I went outside to the spot in front of the window, but there were no footprints in the dirt, just a slight indent. Animal probably, Chris guessed, and I didn't argue.

Starting point is 00:17:42 He and Rebecca assumed I dreamt the entire episode, but they didn't understand, and I was too tired to explain it to them. I called out of work that day and turned my cell off. I didn't want to face Lynn. Just talking to her was too much for me at that point. I really started to believe something was irreversibly wrong with her, that no matter what promises she made, we'd never be the same again.

Starting point is 00:18:05 The thought sat in me to my core. I cried most of the morning. By noon, I figured I was ready to confront her, give her one last chance to explain herself. I could at least give her that after six years I told myself. I turned my phone on and saw the dozens of text she'd sent, all from a seemingly concerned wife, such as, can we talk?

Starting point is 00:18:30 I love you. Please call me. i'm really worried can you answer just come home and more of the same all texts telling me she loved me and she wanted me home how worried she was not a damn one addressing the crazy shit she pulled on me like she hadn't just been acting like a character from a steven king book even her texts were different she normally texted novels just to tell me to pick up a loaf of bread you'd think she'd have more to say to me after her bizarre shenanigans I know it probably seems childish to some of you who are miles away from the situation, but if you saw the way Lynn had looked at me, how she scampered away on all fours like some wild animal, grinning at me from inside the closet like a lunatic, then I think you'd find my reaction was warranted. I ended up staying with Chris and Rebecca for another night.

Starting point is 00:19:24 I didn't wake up yesterday until afternoon, and thankfully I didn't see Lynn's face watching me through the window. I didn't want to pry because it's not my place. But is this fight something that can be mended, Rebecca asked. She made us both a sandwich for lunch and I knew she wanted to breach the subject without seeming to be nosy. I don't know. I just, she's like a different person, I said, choosing my words carefully. I still wasn't ready for her or Chris to know the full extent of the bat-shick craziness I had been dealing with. People change, Ben, but she's still. still the same woman you married. Maybe you both just need to talk through your issues. Whatever's going on, I'm sure it can be fixed, she said, ever the peacemaker. I think it's beyond that

Starting point is 00:20:11 now. I don't think talking would help. I just don't trust her, I said. The words stung in my heart. I missed and loved my wife. But how could I live with something like that? Living in constant fear didn't sound too appealing. Lynn loves you. She has to be absolutely the crust, she said. I don't know about that, I said. Well, she certainly seemed like it to me. I've never seen her so upset. Very much unlike the Lynn I know, Rebecca said, shaking her head sadly. It took a full minute for her words to really sink in, and when they did, I felt dread, warming its way through my skin. Wait, what do you mean? You saw her? You saw Lynn? I asked. My mouth suddenly dry. Rebecca nodded casually.

Starting point is 00:21:00 as if that fact wasn't nightmare fuel. Maybe for her it wasn't. She stopped by this morning just after Chris left her work, she said, cleaning the plates from the table. I didn't see her car, though. Maybe she took an Uber or something. Beck, what did she say? Did she come inside?

Starting point is 00:21:19 I asked. Sweat starting to break out on my forehead. I began looking around examining corners as though a predator lurked behind them. No, she just asked if you're awake yet, and I said that you weren't. I asked if she wanted me to wake you, but she said no, just to let you sleep. She said as she washed the dishes. That's all? She didn't say anything else I asked. No, she looked awful though, like she hadn't slept in days. I really think you should call her. I got up from the table and thanked Rebecca for lunch. I felt a little bit better at the knowledge that

Starting point is 00:21:53 at least she hadn't come inside. Still, I needed to double check that the doors were locked. I sat for a while trying to figure out what to do next. I didn't want to go home, but I felt that I owed it to Lynn to help her if I could. Hadn't I swore an oath to love and honor her through sickness and in health? Clearly, she was very sick. If she was sick, which I truly believe she was, I had to try and get her the help she needed. But I didn't even know where to start. I didn't want to call the police, and besides, what the hell was I going to tell them? That my wife was peaking at me? That she was just being creepy? As bizarre as she'd been, she still hadn't committed any crime.

Starting point is 00:22:34 Not yet, anyway. The police would have probably said that I was her overreacting, but this wasn't just some prank. It felt wrong, dangerous even, like something sinister, lurked behind her smile. I knew as her husband, I was well within my rights to have her committed. But what if she simply acted normal in their presence? She'd obviously been able to fool Rebecca into thinking she was just a concerned wife. As long as the doctors didn't find her danger to herself or others, they'd have no choice

Starting point is 00:23:06 but to release her after 72 hours. I felt lost and overwhelmed. So I did what any husband in my position would do. I called her mother. I didn't want to, believe me. Her mother, Marianne and I were never on the best of terms. We'd never fought or anything like that. She just wasn't a very warm person.

Starting point is 00:23:26 and wasn't really easy to get along with. She hardly ever smiled, and when she did, only her lips would move into a thin, lipped smile, leaving her eyes as blank as before. She gave off this aura that felt like she was permanently on the offensive. I'd only met her twice, and both times, or for just super short visits. I got the impression she didn't approve of me for her daughter. Lynn always ushered us out quickly, as she didn't want me to feel uncomfortable, which I was grateful for.

Starting point is 00:23:58 Being in her mother's company felt almost unbearable, like walking on glass. I was glad when we moved three states away, so we didn't have to see her that often. I was happy to avoid this woman, but I needed her help. I really didn't want to talk to her at all, but I had to talk to someone and someone who knew Lynn better than I did. So I grit my teeth and did what I had to do. Yes, she answered, already sounding irritated. Marianne, it's me, Ben. Do you have a minute to talk? I asked. I could hear her cluck her tongue

Starting point is 00:24:33 and irritation. I'm in the middle of writing some checks, but if you insist, I suppose I can spare a moment. What is it that you want to discuss Benjamin? She said, coolly. It's about Lynn. She's been acting strangely, and I was wondering if you had any idea whether there was something. I was quickly interrupted. It's a bit difficult. to follow your rambling, Benjamin. What is this what you want for me? She asked, I could almost see her standing there in her thin sweater and slacks,

Starting point is 00:25:03 tapping her fingernails impatiently on the table. I wanted to know if you'd ever noticed any odd behavior or possibly any mental health issues, I asked. There was a long, uncomfortable pause that I couldn't tell was because she was thinking or something else. Finally, after a few seconds, she spoke.

Starting point is 00:25:26 I'm not sure if this is one of your jokes, Benjamin, but if so, I don't find the humor in it. Now, I do have business to attend to, as I've said, so if you don't mind me, she said, but I cut her off before she could get rid of me. Marian, it's not a joke. I'm seriously concerned about Lynn's mental health. Her behavior has been very erratic lately. I'm very worried about her, and I figured as her mother, you would be as well. I said my frustration evident in my voice. If you're truly concerned, then I suggest you get the health professionals involved. I don't know what you expect of me, she snapped. I could tell she was seconds away from hanging up, and for some reason I was desperate not to let her.

Starting point is 00:26:08 I had the feeling that she knew a lot more than she was letting on. Please, if not for me, do it for Lynn, I tried. I heard a faint, shaky intake of breath, as if she was trying to hold her steely persona together, but failing. Marianne? What's wrong? I started. Benjamin, I don't know what to tell you. My only advice would be to seek professional health. Do not call here again. Goodbye. I tried to call out to her, but she'd hung up. I tried to wrap my head around the call and her refusal to help me. Even if she didn't like me, why wouldn't she want to help her own daughter? I couldn't understand that. I tried to replay the conversation, desperate to find something. I missed. After a while, I almost gave up, until I remembered her last words to me. Seek, professional, help. She'd said those words with a bit of urgency. I could have just been grasping at straws, but no, I was sure her voice had changed ever so slightly when she'd said that, as if they were very important. What had she meant? I assumed she'd been referring to medical professionals,

Starting point is 00:27:22 but maybe she was referring to someone else, someone that she didn't for some reason feel comfortable saying directly, or maybe I was just desperate. I waited for Chris to get home and after a very long and exhausting conversation with him and Rebecca, I convinced them that Lynn truly needed psychiatric help. I didn't tell them everything, though. I wasn't prepared to go into it yet, but I told them about our last encounter. Had she hidden in the bathroom, peeking at me from the closet. They were obviously shocked, but thankfully they believed me. They too just wanted to help her. Still, they didn't think it was all that serious. Weird, maybe not dangerous. They just kept saying that Lynn had to be playing some kind of weird joke. Maybe for YouTube, Rebecca offered, if only

Starting point is 00:28:13 half-heartedly. Chris didn't think we should involve the police just yet. He offered instead to go with me, and I readily accepted. He reasoned that calmly talked to her, tried to coax her into going, willingly was the best recourse. I agreed to do it his way. At least I wouldn't be going into that house alone. We drove over this morning just after breakfast. There was no way I was going in at night. When we pulled into the driveway, my stomach began doing somersaults. Her car was not there, but I still didn't let my guard down. The front door was ajar. and for a split second I thought we'd see her eyes staring through the gap. I was shaking and starting to sweat.

Starting point is 00:28:56 Chris, however, was fine. He waited for me to open the door, his hands in his pockets like he was going on a stroll through the park. I envied his ignorance. I pushed the door open and was immediately hit with the stench of rot. Chris melted too, and he walked in the house behind me with his nose all scrunched up. What's you guys used to clean the floors around here? "'Shh!' Chris mumbled. "'Shut up,' I said.

Starting point is 00:29:21 "'My eyes darting around for any signs of Lynn. The house was deadly quiet and dark despite being ten in the morning. All the curtains were closed up tight, refusing to allow any sunlight in. And if I hadn't left it for just two days prior, I'd have thought the house to be abandoned. We moved through each room, carefully checking any place that she might hide, occasionally calling her name. "'Why are you looking under the couch?' Chris asked eventually. Aren't we looking for your wife? He was looking at me like I was a moron.

Starting point is 00:29:52 Let's just go upstairs, I whispered. He shook his head but followed me up to stairs to check the bathroom and spare bedroom. On the way up, my shoes crunched over pieces of glass that looked to be littered over a few steps. I noticed that one of Lynn and my wedding portraits that hung in the wall along the staircase had been smashed. The frame hung crookedly. All the glass removed. I stared at the picture, a lump forming a mask. my throat. We had taken the photo just after leaving the church, after saying our vows. She looks so

Starting point is 00:30:24 beautiful in her white gown. I looked at Lynn's beautiful face. I never dreamed her face would ever be a source of terror for me. We climbed the rest of the steps and checked the spare bedroom, but it looked completely untouched. I was hesitant to go into the bathroom. My fear from that night coming back to me all at once. Chris noticed and offered to go in by a himself, but I couldn't let him do that. So we walked in together, checking the closet and the shower. The bathroom looked as if it hadn't been touched since the night I left. I don't think she's here, Ben. Why don't you pack some clothes and we'll try coming back tomorrow or something? Chris said. I nodded and went into our bedroom and shoveled some clothes into a duffel bag.

Starting point is 00:31:09 When I checked inside our closet, I came across the source of the smell and gagged. Chris took one look and lost all color in his face. He had to go stand by the stairs to get away from the sight and the smell. I gazed down in shock at what lay inside my bedroom closet, soaking into the rug or at least a dozen eyeballs, all carefully laid out in pairs. Some were as large as quarters, while others were as tiny as marbles.

Starting point is 00:31:40 I stared down at the eyes she'd collected from small animals and I wondered how she had gotten them, and I shuddered out of the thought. Man, I thought I had it bad with Becca's shoe addiction, but your wife's in here collecting eyeballs, Chris said, gagging. Ben, I think we should go, he called from the hall. I'm getting nauseous. All right, I grabbed my duffel and shut the closet door on my new nightmare. I stepped out into the hall and took a deep breath of air.

Starting point is 00:32:08 I could taste the rot on my tongue, and I couldn't help but gag again. Who the f*** finds up eyeballs in their closet like that? Chris mumbled. I tried to tell you she needed help, I said. She doesn't need help, Ben. She needs a f***er exorcist, he said. You coming or what? I can't stand the smell. His words died in his throat, and his eyes grew wide with fear. I didn't ask him why I could feel it. Someone was watching me, and I didn't think it was the eyes in the closet.

Starting point is 00:32:39 I turned around, my eyes slowly scanning the bed. room, Chris, I whispered, as I finally saw what we'd missed under the bed, curled on her side, watching us with the excitement of a kid on Christmas morning, was my wife. She held her hands together just under her chin, and they were shaking eagerly. Now that she knew she'd be found, I could hear the quiet noises she was making, a sort of hiccuping sound in her throat, as if the excitement was just too much for her. It was unnerving to say the least, wide eyes and the huge smile. Everything in me told me to run, but I forced it away.

Starting point is 00:33:19 This was my wife. No matter how twisted, she was still the woman I married. I had to help her. Lynn, I said softly. She didn't respond, but her head bobbed back and forth in two quick little movements as if she was nodding. Baby, I just want to help, okay? Can you, can you let me do that? I asked.

Starting point is 00:33:41 I had taken a single step forward, approaching her like some sort of dangerous animal. I love you, Lynn, I said softly, taking another step closer. She let a tiny moan escape her wide open mouth, and I had to resist the urge to run. Her shoulders were starting to quiver, and her eyes grew as large as saucers. I crouched down so I could see her better, and immediately saw the blood. Her hands were covered in it. They trembled more the closer I got. as if she was barely able to contain herself.

Starting point is 00:34:14 Lynn, are you hurt your bleeding? I said. She bobbed her head again. Her bloody fingers moving up and down as if playing an invisible piano. They occasionally gazed her chin, leaving smears of blood on her skin. I wanted to recoil in disgust. The smell that was coming off her was so revolting. I could feel the vomit trying to climb up my throat.

Starting point is 00:34:36 Her lips were dry and stretched thin. blood seeping between the cracks. I knew she wouldn't come out on her own, but I didn't want to leave her in the state she was in. I scooted closer and reached out to her. The excitement, hiccuping sounds got louder, and her hands shook, fingers flexing. It was then that I could see the blood oozing from in between her fingers. Oh my God, Lynn, you're bleeding, I said. Instinctively, I reached out to take her hand, but before I could see the blood oozing,

Starting point is 00:35:09 even touch her. Her hands sprang out towards me, a sharp pain shot through my arm, and I fell back on my ass. My arm burned, and I could see the blood dripping down onto the carpet. I looked back at her in shock and saw her grinning madly, her fingers clutching a large shard of glass. You all right in there, Chris asked from behind me. I turned my head slightly and nodded to him, cradling my arm to my chest. When I turned back to face Lynn, I saw that her focus had shifted. She wasn't looking at me anymore, and she wasn't smiling anymore either. She was staring past me, her eyes glaring at Chris the way a hungry lion might stare at an antelope. Her mouth was still hanging open, but it was twisted into a snarl.

Starting point is 00:35:54 I got to my feet and began walking backwards down the hall, afraid to take my eyes off her. Are you bleeding? Chris asked. The moment the words left his mouth, Lynn started fast scooting out from under, the bed, the glass shards still in her fist. Chris, run, go, I yelled. He must have been too afraid to move because a second later, I felt my back bump into him. He was still standing at the top of the stairs, staring at the horror that was my wife. Lynn had crawled completely out from under the bed and stood in the bedroom doorway.

Starting point is 00:36:29 Her face twisted in rage. Her body was visibly tense. Blood ran down her fingers and onto the floor. Jesus, Lynn, Chris said. You, uh, plain hide and seek? I reached back and pushed him towards the step. Move your ass, Chris, I said quietly but firmly as I could. Lynn bobbed her head in fast, sharp motions and began to grin,

Starting point is 00:36:53 stretching her mouth open wide and wide so that her chin seemed to touch her chest. I heard Chris mutter a prayer, and then he was running down the stairs. I stood at the top of the steps, stuck between the love for a woman who clearly needed serious help and self-preservation. I only want to help, I said, choking back tears. Her eyes focused on me once again as she slowly lifted the glass, holding it out in front of her, and then she started sprinting towards me, grinning with utter excitement. Thankfully, my body took over, and I flew down the stairs, skipping two or three at a time. I made it to the front door before I felt it reached onto my back, wrapping her arms around my neck. Her open mouth next to my

Starting point is 00:37:34 ear so that I could hear those terrible hiccuping sounds up close. I shook her off me, knocking her to the floor. I felt the searing pain in my back as she went, but I tore open the front door and bolted to my car. Chris was standing in the front yard, talking on the phone with the police. I didn't say a word. I just ran to my car and jumped in. Chris took the hint and followed me, still on the line with 911. I watched the rear view mirror. Sure, I'd see her there, running after us, but I never did. I went straight to the ER and got 11 stitches in my arm and three on my back. The police asked a lot of questions and went back to the house to do a search, but of course,

Starting point is 00:38:17 Lynn wasn't there. They advised me to stay with a friend or relative for a while and to file restraining order as soon as I could, but none of those things would matter. Somehow, I just knew. I dropped Chris off at home and went to a motel an hour away. I wanted to put as much distance between me and Lynn as I could. This is where I've been for the past four hours. I thought maybe the police would find her.

Starting point is 00:38:44 Maybe they'd get her the help she desperately needed. But now I don't think so. Because 40 minutes ago, I got a text from an unknown number. Just three words. I found you. In a picture attached. The picture was dark and grainy. but I instantly knew what it was.

Starting point is 00:39:06 There was no mistaking my wife's eye. I started typing this out immediately after. I don't know what to do. I'm alone and scared, and I can't help but feel that I'm still being watched. Were people living in my attic? I am on a throwaway account. This is for my safety.

Starting point is 00:39:28 You'll find out why soon. To start the story off, I'd like to say, I'm not a believer of the paranormal, which could be applied to some of the details, if you are an avid believer. Some disclaimers are, my area is a pretty dangerous area. A lot of gangs and stuff live here, and a lot of crime happens. My garden is surrounded by fences, the back one leads to the main road, I suffer with audible and visual hallucinations. I've been living with my dad for around three years now. I have pretty intense mental health issues, so I don't know if I'm being

Starting point is 00:39:59 delusional and or detaching from reality. My house is relatively outdated. We have heating that is controlled by a big flame in the center of the house that transport heat through the vents. And the majority of the house is made from wood, the floors, the stairs, which are extremely loud, and creek a lot when you walk up and down them. We have three rooms upstairs, all connected by one hallway, and in the middle of that hallway, the entrance to the attic is on the ceiling. My father's door is directly across from mine, and the bathroom door is opposite the stairs banister or railing or whatever you want to call it. In between both of our rooms, remember that. It started off as me hearing noises, rustling around in the attic, but I figured that a bird

Starting point is 00:40:45 had got stuck up there. That has happened before, and the majority of the noises were in the morning, after I wake up, and before I go to sleep. The normal times are around 7 to 9 a.m. and 10 to 11 p.m. I asked my father, and he had thought the same, so I shrugged it off. Around the around two to three months ago, the noises are becoming more consistent and common. But again, I shrugged it off and drowned it out with music or YouTube videos whilst on my computer. I wouldn't let my paranoia get to me until one night. I had woken up around 3 a.m.

Starting point is 00:41:19 and I could have sworn that I heard footsteps above me. I heard them moving across the attic floor. I could hear where the noises were coming from and where it was located in the attic. I ran into my father's room to wake him up. I'm not sure if we had startled something up there, but the noises stopped, and my father didn't believe me, and he said I was just hearing things. I suffer with audible hallucinations, sometimes visual, so I again shrugged it off, as a little reassurance is all that I needed. I hadn't heard anything for a couple weeks after that, and I'm not sure why. The morning and nightly

Starting point is 00:41:54 noises were still persistent, however. We went out one day, me, my father, and my dogs. I left my PC on. My door was slightly open and the bathroom door was closed. I leave my door open out of habits on my dogs and roam around the house when we are home. However, they do their bathroom in the bathroom, so we close the door while they are home because we don't want them doing that. We were out for around three to four hours. We went on a nice walk. When we got back, I headed back upstairs into my room. In the events that happened are in order. I saw that my door was closed. Must have been a draft. Just before I got into my room, my father shouted up the stairs to me, and he had complained that I'd left milk and a packet of meat out of the fridge. I told him that I didn't.

Starting point is 00:42:41 It wasn't me. My father is a very logical man. He thinks there's always a logical explanation to everything. So he was confused, but he said he must have done it himself because I was sure that I didn't take anything out of the fridge. Before going into my room after the conversation with my father, I saw that the bathroom light was, on, and the door was wide open. I went to search around the bathroom, but I couldn't find anything that could be necessarily out of suspicion. As I walked out of the bathroom, remembering that the banisters facing you when you leave the bathroom, I'd seen some paint chipped away from the banister,

Starting point is 00:43:15 something I have never noticed before. All of this could be explained as coincidence, or maybe, I did close my door, open the bathroom door, leave the light on, never noticed paint chipped away on the wooden banisters, maybe my dad did get some stuff out of the fridge and forgot to put it away. And that's how I thought at the moment. I did not want to believe that someone else was living in our house. But when I entered my room and sat down on my computer, I noticed that it was no longer on the YouTube video and on some European food website which was in English. However, no idea. Other than that, my computer had no other evidence of being tampered with on. Just that food website could have been a pop-up? Things had escalated from there. Me and my father kept hearing

Starting point is 00:44:02 weird noises in the night and even during the days, bangs and thuds, etc. My father goes to work five days a week. He leaves at 5 a.m. and gets home around 7 p.m. I don't work, and I am home to hear everything. A lot of the times when I'm home I hear these noises, and my dogs do too, so I know I'm not hallucinating. My dog started sniffing and peeing around. around the area underneath the attic latch. I have no idea why. My dogs are three to four years old at this point, both of them, and they've never really peed in a place they haven't before,

Starting point is 00:44:36 if that makes sense. One Christmas my dad had gone on holiday, leaving me on my own in the house for a few weeks, probably the scariest time of my life. I'm an adult. I should be able to defend myself, right? Well, everything was fine for the first few days. It was lovely to have time alone, I cooked a lot,

Starting point is 00:44:55 Spent a lot of time with my dogs, even made them some nice food too. I had somewhat stockpiled food into my fridge and freezer to last me for a few weeks, meaning I didn't really have to cook much, just a microwave and or defrost a day before. After I had cooked everything, one day had gone by. I noticed small things going missing from the refrigerator every day after waking up. I had these snack slash bite-sized cheese wheels that I hadn't opened, but were of it. open. Some of the food I made was going missing, and I was running out of milk a lot faster than I could have imagined. This persisted for around three days before I called a friend to come

Starting point is 00:45:36 and stay downstairs. I explained the situation to him, and he was more than happy to stay on the couch for a few days to somewhat protect me. He's not scared of much, and he's very strong, so he could probably fight for himself if he needed to. The very first night he was there, we did a test. We acted as if we were leaving the house. and gently slamming the front door to potentially prompt whatever was in my attic to come down and have free rein on the house while we were out. We practically tiptoed back into the center of the living room and sat in silence for about ten minutes, whispering at most.

Starting point is 00:46:13 We heard the noises, extremely close to the latch of the attic, almost like a scratching noise, to get their nails under the hatch to open it or something. I have no idea. As my friend heard it, he stamped his front. foot on the ground to intimidate, assuming that there was somebody up there. Not to mention my dog started growling at this point, too. I knew I wasn't just hearing things, and I had another person for proof. At this point, I was extremely terrified, and my friend, which was surprising, was also scared too. He said that he wouldn't sleep at night if he heard the noises, instead he'd

Starting point is 00:46:48 stay up all night with me if need be. I quickly responded to him saying something along the lines of Fuck no, bro. We're leaving. I'm going to pack my bags, bring the dogs, and we're going to your house. He agreed, and we left for the night. And I came back the following afternoon with him to see if anything in the house had changed. There were dishes in the sink that had been used and not washed, food missing from the fridge, and I had switched off all the electrics from the mains before I had left, such as PC chargers, lamps, etc. I was sure someone was living in my house somewhere. My PC was on, but luckily I had a passcode on it, so they couldn't get in. When I recognized that all of this had happened, I called the police. They came and searched all

Starting point is 00:47:31 over my house. They didn't go into the attic. They just opened the latch and spoke up into the attic, no reply. They had no explanation for the food going missing and the computer being on, but they couldn't help apparently. I got some clean clothes, repacked, and I left. This time, my friend dropped me off at my mother's, and I stayed there for a few days, with my dogs. Upon returning, one of my neighbors had caught me just as I was entering the house. They knew my father was away. They had said, we saw two people climbing over your garden fence while as you were gone, meaning they had jumped over onto the main road and made a run for it. It wasn't unusual for weird stuff to happen in my area, but that was too weird. Most of the time, they hopped from

Starting point is 00:48:14 garden to garden if they're being chased by police. Anyway, I went into the house. As I left it, how it was when I left. Nothing had changed. No food had gone missing in the same dirty dishes were in the sink. And that's the very last I heard any of the noises. It's been almost one year since I've heard anything, or anything strange had happened. Everything is normal.

Starting point is 00:48:38 But knowing that people could have been living in my attic, mere meters away from me, is terrifying. Please let me know what you think because to this day, I'm still terrified and confused, and I lack the feeling of being safe. What would you have done? Edit, this account is no longer active. Thank you all for your help. I've written down all your suggestions. I made this account for nothing else other than to ask for advice. As for criticism, I appreciate the comments, but I do not care for it. I'm only here for advice on this specific story. I know what happened, and whether or not you believe it is your choice. Thanks again. Goodbye.

Starting point is 00:49:21 Unknown visitor at night watches me outside my open window. I've been a lurker here for quite a while, and I have decided to share one of my stories. I'm originally from a state where it's predominantly hot year-round, and I am not a big fan of warm weather. So when winter comes around, I like to have my windows open and spend as much time outside. temperature average around the 50s, but that's beside the point. It was one of those chilly winter nights. I was about 10 years old, and the only people home were my two nannies and me. They were at the other side of the house watching TV while I was in my room.

Starting point is 00:49:58 It was getting late and was likely around 10 p.m. So I decided to take a shower and hop in bed. Everything's fine. I hop out of the shower and get ready for bed. At this point, I should quickly go over the layout of my room. It's rectangular and has two windows facing the front door entrance to my house. From my windows, you can see a walkway to the front door, and the path is sort of gated in brick. Basically, you'd have to enter the driveway, turn left, and walk down a path that leads to my front door.

Starting point is 00:50:30 My bed faces one of those windows, and I can see all the way down the path. Both windows have a mesh screen. This is where things get scary. Like I mentioned earlier, I had the window facing my bed open to let the cold air in. My room was well lit, so it's hard to see anything through the window. However, as soon as I turned off the light, I see the figure of a man with his face pressed upon the screen. In that moment, I feel his piercing gaze. He's motionless and smiling.

Starting point is 00:51:03 He had facial hair that looked as if his whole face was covered in fur, and the hair on his head was the same. same length. I briefly thought I was imagining this and was seeing something that wasn't there because of all the foliage outside my window. I'd taken a couple quick steps towards the window to get a look before I confirmed what I saw was real. This all happened in a matter of 10 seconds. I bolted out of the room and towards the room my nannies were in. The hallways in my house are narrow and long and large windows face the entrance. I didn't dare look out. I reached the room my nannies are in, and I tell them what happened, and they just laugh. To be quite honest, it was a boy who cried wolf situation. I was always a prankster and a bit imaginative,

Starting point is 00:51:50 so it was hard to take me seriously when I was younger. I had to beg them to check with me, and from what I can remember, they took it seriously. We get to my room and no one's there. My window screen is left untouched and the man is gone. I don't think they were totally convinced, and neither were my parents. I couldn't sleep in my room. I couldn't sleep in my room. room for days because of the incident and nothing was done about it. My house didn't even have an alarm system, so there was nothing stopping this person from coming back. I'm still very disappointed in how things were handled, and I had no power over anything. I have no idea how long that guy was out there for, and if he was watching me undress and then dress myself after I showered, I remember how

Starting point is 00:52:33 fucked up his smile was. It was menacing. I'm glad that I was not harmed by this man, and that this was his only visit, at least I hope. I stopped opening my windows at night, and I missed the cool winter air. So, creepy guy with your face pressed against my window screen, let's never meet. Prison is hell. I hate it here. Granted, I deserve it. I'm currently locked down behind massive concrete walls and solid steel doors in a maximum security penitentiary. I was locked up what feels like a lifetime ago now. I earned it. I did.

Starting point is 00:53:13 Every second I rot in here is justice, but that doesn't change the fact that I hate it. It is cold here. I have a single concrete cotton toilet. My clothes itch and are too thin to keep any chills out. The walls are gray with a sickly green tint due to the dull swamp-like tile that sends a grossly colored glow

Starting point is 00:53:33 into the room reflecting and buzzing florescent lie above me. The door is thick and unmoving. They painted the same shade of sickly green as the floor. I assume it is lead base to save on cost. Maybe, if I look at enough times, maybe I can kill enough brain cells so forget I'm here. I have no roommate. And many don't know who perceive as extreme risks. Thankfully, I can still have time outside and shower without being entirely supervised.

Starting point is 00:54:00 More than I can say for many in here. My only commodity is my toilet paper and my journal. I earn the journal through much more. work and good behavior. The pencil I write with is dull and has no racer, like that a golfer would use to keep scorecards. I'm allowed four hours poor day with it. Between breakfast and lunch, I received the journal and pencil with my meal and return it in kind. If the pencil has any pieces missing, or there are any extensive tears in the pages, then I will lose it for the following day. So I can ply. I can ply so I may have some mild comfort in this concrete cage.

Starting point is 00:54:38 in which I slowly die. Again, I definitely earned it, but that doesn't change the fact that prison is hell. I earned my place here because I killed people. I killed many people. I killed 20 people, to be exact. This is the first time I've actually written it. I beat the cannibal's number,

Starting point is 00:54:57 which for some reason gave me a sense of accomplishment. However, what gave me more satisfaction was the evenness of the number. 20 to zero. 20, 20, 2, 0, 2 slash 0, 2, 0, 20, even and smooth. My compulsion made it this way. 21 would have made it getting arrested a living hell, 15 would have been okay, but 20 was much cleaner, increments of 5, always increments of 5. Sometimes during a shopping trip I would grab a stick of gum so as to have 20 or 10 or 30 items even.

Starting point is 00:55:41 However, in this case of the killings, it was much more intense. The problem was the itch I felt in between. I was nine pain in my mind from 14 in 69. The itch was not as bad during fives, but tens were the best. However, that number will eventually attract attention. That number is practically what got me caught. but I had to scratch the itch, so to speak. It made me empathize with vampires in the old horror stories,

Starting point is 00:56:07 the sensation of aching thirst that could not be quenched. It is nightmarish. The same remained true for my age. 40. I finished at 40, which made me feel content. I hated not having an even age. I could force down the bad feelings my age ended in fives or even numbers, but I always had bad years with ones, threes, sevens, and nines.

Starting point is 00:56:30 I digress. I understand it is an abnormal behavior, but it's a compulsion. I have it manageable so that most would never notice it in a day-to-day routine. I have to reminisce on these pages because I have no way of going back. It started many years ago, and the urge only grew from there. The first time I killed was interesting. I should have felt the need to immediately kill again, as I did in later years, but I didn't. They say mental illness worsens with age. I guess that's what kept me from acting again so soon, but I'm not sure. The first time I killed was pretty lackluster. I was walking home from school through the woods where very few kids were bold enough to cross. While walking, I stumbled upon a man. He was clearly injured and even at the age of 12, I knew he had little time left. He sat

Starting point is 00:57:18 holding his side, panting and labored breaths. He didn't see me yet. From my vantage point, I could see a long white bone jutting from his leg, which tells me the pain from what his ribs were doing, was worse than that of a broken leg. That, or he was just in shock. Far above this section of woods was a road, and from what I could see, a vehicle burst through railing. The wrecked vehicle, a 69 Chevy C-20 truck, lay decimated some 40 feet below the roadway in the brush and rocks. I remember this truck because I wound up purchasing one many, many years later, in a secret nostalgia for myself. Either way, the driver had pulled himself from the wreckage and crawled in agony upwards, of 50 feet to the nearest tree, where his strength was slowly failing him.

Starting point is 00:58:04 I remember seeing a large shard of metal which had been ripped from the side of the truck and picking it up. I walked slowly to the man, who reached pitifully towards me for help. I slowly shoved the sharp edge of the metal into the man's throat and watched as blood began to spurt from the wound and his mouth. He gargled like a drowning so on his own blood, and after a time he ceased all movement. Forever. It was a rush of which I cannot explain. The excitement of ending a human life is next to none.

Starting point is 00:58:37 I was content for a fleeting moment. I stared at the body for some time before taking a bloody shred of his pant leg and I was hanging by a thread. I just wanted to have a keepsake. That was my first kill. I was never caught nor even suspected. Growing up in the mountains of the South allowed much privacy, and it allowed me to get away with murder.

Starting point is 00:58:58 As time grew, so did the feeling of power and accomplishment. I felt like God. No one even knew I was the way I was. I would never be a suspect because I knew to hide. I hid well because I knew how to hide. From the time I was a boy, I knew how to blend in. Sometimes it was a challenge because of my appearance, but I learned a simple skill, how to hide in plain sight. I was able to work hard in the background.

Starting point is 00:59:28 I made a few good grades and maintained very few close relationships throughout school, so no one would discover anything about me. However, I made sure everyone had a nice thing to say about me. Carrying groceries, helping kids with studying, always using manners. I graduated in the upper ranks of my class and soon attended the local college. After I earned a degree in business, I worked hard where I could raise and enough money to buy my own rig. I worked by riding the highways as a trucker for years. and eventually bought two more rigs. By 35, I was a respectable business owner in my old town with a

Starting point is 01:00:03 dispatch and a few drivers. I obviously still drove, even as the owner, because it kept me close to my only real passion. I hid well in plain sight because white people love an N-word. In a town of 90% white and 10% other, I learned to blend despite being a minority. Learn to talk like them, learn to walk like them, and you can manipulate them into whatever you want. I hate them, not white people, all people. My mother died shortly after I graduated high school from heart failure, and I felt liberated, for I held her opinion highly. Her opinions often kept me in line and respectable. When she died, I was free to pursue my own interests. My father, while a good man in his own right, never held much weight in my actions. So I walked the path I chose for myself,

Starting point is 01:00:53 despite what his feelings may be. Either way, I dwindled for some time. after the first murder. The urge slowly grew. By high school, I kept my eyes peeled for another opportunity to snuff out a life. Finally, that day came. The second time I murdered was equally uninspiring. I found myself at a graduation party and the whole senior class was drinking heavily. All except me, that is. We were at the home of a wealthier student who had maintained a spotless record through both junior year and high school and wanted to go out in a way where she could get out of her proverbial box. I learned two things that evening. The first, that a well-mannered, well-educated young lady was no different than anyone else in regards to having a darker side.

Starting point is 01:01:40 She wanted to be remembered for a party. Not her good grades, not her generous deeds, not her modest manner of dress, but a party. Everyone has a dark side in some way. This was the first thing I learned. The second was that if everyone is drunk and dancing on the room, roof, you could bump a certain young lady discreetly enough to send her three stories down into the concrete and make it look like an accident. She landed with a smack that can only be replicated in my dreams. This was the first time I was aroused by a killing. I'm not sure why. She was in a two-piece, which I assume her parents knew nothing about, and her skin was pale and smooth. Her deep brown hair flowed past their shoulders, and the look of utter confusion and terror in the face

Starting point is 01:02:25 of innocence was priceless. Blood pulled from her head and seeped into the nearby swimming pool. I fancied her, you could say that, but only because she represented something that does not exist. Human innocence. When her skull cracked hard against the pavement, I was instantly excited. I had to sneak away to handle it and steal a memento from the girl's room. Meanwhile, the remaining partygoers descended into madness trying to repair a situation that was far beyond broken. The chaos I caused that night only resurfaced my deep sense of accomplishment that only comes from death. This was the second time I killed. 18 years of age, by the time I hit my stride, I stood at 6'2 at 260 pounds.

Starting point is 01:03:11 I'd always enjoy lifting weights and working towards my overall health. A fat predator is a bad predator. I maintained this level of fitness for most of my adult life. I had to in order to pursue my power. Of course, things would have a way of catching up with me. I was incarcerated with an unfortunate mountain of evidence. I wouldn't say I covered every base perfectly to ensure not getting caught, but I felt like I was careful enough, I guess not in hindsight.

Starting point is 01:03:39 I remember the day I was arrested. I turned 40, the month prior, and was on the road delivering a shipment of plywood. I was behind the wheel of my rig in rural Alabama. I was taking a back road because I enjoy the scenery, and when you're the boss, you can set your own schedule. At this point, I had killed 19 people and the itch was present. I would have to rub the back of my neck when I thought about it. It needed to be scratched.

Starting point is 01:04:02 I needed to take care of it. That's when I saw her. Miles from any structure or any living person was a broken down baby blue Volkswagen Beetle. The emergency lights were flashing and a woman was looking into her engine compartment. The height of my truck allowed me to scan both her car and the area surrounding us. It was all tall, uncut grass and trees covered in utter blackness due to the overcast night. There was no one for miles and miles. We could be alone together.

Starting point is 01:04:33 I pulled in behind her with my low light, says, not to scare her. When I stepped out of the truck, I addressed her. Pardon, me, ma'am, I said calmly. I know how to disarm. I've worked on my speaking voice for years in order to betray the security into my hands. Are you all right? She stepped out from behind her hood and I saw her in better light. She was a young Hispanic woman.

Starting point is 01:04:56 Her clothes were tattered, but I think that was intentional. She had silky, dark hair to her shoulders and black librarian glasses. She was pretty, which was a bonus for me. Consider it like a dinner. You're going to get your meal, but when it includes dessert, then it is all the better. I also knew she could complete this cycle. She could be the 20th and I could rest. Best yet, she was petite, so there would be a little fight.

Starting point is 01:05:19 I think the engine is shot, she said in desperation that these dark woods certainly played well into. She just wanted to get out of danger. Little did she know. I can give you a ride. I own this company so I can make the time. I didn't want to sound pre-asemptious, but I knew by making myself a manager it would remove the creepy truck driver mentality. I don't know. I promise, I edged.

Starting point is 01:05:46 In my best Zippa-D-Doodah voice. I'll take you straight into town and we can find you a phone. My wife would kill me if I let a young lady stay stranded in the woods. I wasn't married, but that is another way of disarming her. A spouse always makes a man less dangerous, or again, as she thought. Okay, she said with her fear betraying her skepticism, Thank you. I'll get the door for you.

Starting point is 01:06:12 As she walked to the passenger's side, I held the door open for her. As she took her first step up, I grabbed her ankle and pulled her straight down with as much force as I can manage. Her jaw connected with a studded, metal stairs full force. I know some teeth were broken by the crunch that emanated from her skull. She fell limp to the dirt as I lifted her onto my shoulder. She didn't stir long enough for me to grab a large socket wrench from my rig. I could feel the warm blood from her mouth pouring down my shoulder. I carried her into the tall grass just out of sight. We made love then. I made love before to some, but this was special. She was the 20th. She would complete the need.

Starting point is 01:06:51 Halfway through, she began to wake up and struggle. From there I had to act. I took the socket wrench and began to hit her. She struggled to scream due to her shattered jaw. I hit her in her pretty face. over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over. and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over when I finished on all fronts I took her wallet from beside us. Hannah, I believe her name was. I took my glasses and they fell off from her face,

Starting point is 01:08:11 collided with my truck and avoided the wrath of the socket wrench. They had her name engraved inside the temple. I drove, leaving the scene entirely, I had to reenter the highway sometime later, and saw lights on my mirror. I've been stopped before, once even with a body in the back, so I was not worried. The officer walked to the side and called me out. You Williams? My last name. He asked with an unreadable demeanor. Yes, sir, I answered coolly, holding my ID and paperwork for the truck and delivery. He then spoke into his radar. Yeah, we found him.

Starting point is 01:08:45 Officer, what's this about? I was cut short. Sir, please turn around and place your hands behind your back. Why, I demanded. I was not about to be cuffed and restrained for no good reason. He then turned me violently to my truck and slapped cuffs around my wrist. From there, he sat me on the pavement and called for backup. up. When other officers arrived, one finally noticed the blood on my back. Then they found the glasses.

Starting point is 01:09:08 They then found the poorly wiped down soccer wrench. They then received word of a brutal mutilation several towns over. They had stopped me initially because one of my drivers was caught with a brick of marijuana and they wanted to stop all trucks from my dispatch to make sure we were legitimate. It would be funny if it weren't so infuriating. I was brought down on a technicality. My run lasted from 12 to 40. I was undetected for that entire time. I changed my MO. I killed strangers only.

Starting point is 01:09:39 I was so careful. A technicality was the only thing that could have done this. My simple home was turned around until they found my treasure box, a shoe box of souvenirs and news clippings. From there, it was easy to put me at every single. Murder. Every homeless person stabbed to death in cities. Every transient prostitute with their heads,

Starting point is 01:10:01 missing, every unsupervised child in crowded streets. I was linked to them all. Now, one may ask, why would you be so stupid as to keep mementos? To that, I would say I had to. It was my passion and the only thing that gave me meaning. I had to keep something around. They were the only memories I could have of those times. Like I first wrote, I deserve to be in prison, but I don't regret it in the slightest, what I've done. The trial was grueling and irritating. Since I killed across state lines, there was arguments as to where to have my trial, but it became a federal issue, which only meant more bureaucracy. My lawyer explained many of the killings would be circumstantial at best, but just as many have my now connected DNA to the scene and are going to be nearly impossible to deny. I decided

Starting point is 01:10:56 to throw in the towel. The media was out for blood, the public, was out for blood and the jury was out for blood. I had my fill, so now it was time to pay the favor forward. There was no way to avoid the life sentence, so I may as well come clean and get a regale to the tales of my exploits to a room of terrified jurors and family members burning with hatred. Despite the difficulties of finding some evidence of murders, I was convicted still of 18 of the 20. However, I was punished for them all regardless. The day of sentencing, I stood still and stoic before the judge. I could feel the eyes of all those present, attempting to sear me, but failing.

Starting point is 01:11:40 The judge looked down at me and rambled on about my cruelties and resentment for man. The entire time he droned, I stood with the thought that the death penalty was legal in this state. It was utterly satisfying to know the uproarious crowds calling for my head when the law wouldn't allow it. I snapped out of it when he got to the sentence. Seeing as how the death penalty is illegal in the state, I could only do the most with that in light. I hereby sentence you to 1,000-1 life sentences. He was being melodramatic. Not in history had there been such an absurd sentence.

Starting point is 01:12:17 What's worse, the number was uneven, meaning the rest of my life I would have to stay 1001 when discussing my sentence? He knew this. My demeanor slightly shaken. I asked the judge. Why? 1,001. The courtroom was silent.

Starting point is 01:12:36 The families, friends, and jury looked at me with contempt, but that didn't matter. Even less now. The judge leaned over his podium. He smiled with a smugness that still boils my blood, and he calmly replied, To torment you. That's how I got where I am now. I don't interact with the other inmates or the guards. I just mind my business as best I can.

Starting point is 01:13:01 I don't like to think about my sentence because it makes me itch. Similar to when you haven't paid a certain bill but don't have the funds, it's a wincing, mental discomfort. I write the rest of this in a testament to what happened yesterday in hopes it reaches someone on the outside. My day started normally. A loud bell rang and I stood to my feet from there. My door opened and I walked to the shower facility.

Starting point is 01:13:24 I tried to find myself at the end of the line so as to get the most time I was, out of my cell. I also like my privacy. The inmates here are insufferable. They're uneducated criminals who would have no life outside of these walls. My fellow black inmates gave me hell for being crazy since African-American serial killers are considered such an abnormality. The other races tended to stay into themselves, minus a few Aryan brotherhood members casting the occasional slur in my direction. I entered the shower as normal, but I felt an innate sense of dread that I don't know. know how to describe. I just felt unpleasant. I felt watched and alone at the same time. I felt completely hopeless and near despair. I quickly finished my shower and left the facility.

Starting point is 01:14:10 The halls were quiet and the stationary guard was not at his post in front of my cell. I was alone in this hallway. Suddenly I felt a large hand to grip my shoulder and order me forward. The only thing I knew I was being escorted to the warden's office. I was somewhat stunned, but complied. I walked the tight and closed halls until I reached the last room on the right. Inside was totally dark apart from a dim lamp illuminating a desk.

Starting point is 01:14:36 The hand shoved me in and slammed the door behind me. I saw the silhouette of warden and he beckoned me to sit. I sat across from him in uncomfortable silence. He didn't move and neither did I die. I'd force him to make the first move. After what felt like an eternity he spoke up.

Starting point is 01:14:54 Let's go over, file. His voice carried and mild southern accent sprinkled in. I'd not respond. He gave no indication as to why, so I would just bide my time. From here, I will paraphrase what he said, as my memory can't perfectly recreate the entire conversation. Count one, confess, not convicted. Man falls off cliff and you assist him in passing. You were 12, so it wasn't included in your final file, but it warrants mentioning. Count two, confessed, convicted. You confess to shove in a young woman off the a roof and then robbing her home of a trophy. You were 18. Count three, confessed, convicted. Homeless man near your college, you stabbed them and cut out a tooth. You were 20. Count four confessed,

Starting point is 01:15:39 not convicted. You claimed to have shot a prostitute in Texas. The souvenir you took could not link you to a crime and she had no family. You were 24. Not convicted, but you know what you did. Counts 5 through 9. Confessed. Convicted on all the counts. You killed five lot lizards before changing your MO. Now smart. They're all strangled and you kept a lock of hair. Left them on the highway. Counts 10? Confessed. Convicted. You took a lost 12-year-old and drowned them. You kept his retainer. You're doing well in life by this point, but murder still called, didn't it? Count 11? Confessed. Convicted. Ah. This one. was special, wasn't she? That gas station employee who you stocked for a while, followed her home and broke in, took your time, and did it right. She broke your perfect streak and you were

Starting point is 01:16:31 going to make her pay, right? Kept her locket as a token of your affection. Count 12, confessed, convicted. You took a young man to your house from a local club in Missouri, strangled him the moment the door was closed, chopped him up and kept his teeth. Counts 13 through 17, confessed, convicted on all accounts. The hitchhiker phase, here it seems you just wanted to close the gap. He got sloppy, left a lot of evidence behind. I guess because they were vagrants, it wouldn't have mattered. Count 18, confessed, convicted.

Starting point is 01:17:08 He killed the housewife in Florida. You're on vacation at that time. You spotted her and just had to do something, waiting until her husband left and had your time. Another R word enshrangling. and you took her a blood-soaked necklace. Count 19, confessed, convicted. You saw a jogger one morning and followed in your truck.

Starting point is 01:17:29 When you knew your routine, and you waited in the bushes until he passed. You killed him with a hammer and took one of his shoes. Count 20. Confessed, convicted. The one that brought you down. You couldn't resist her. You were too careless, too excited. Now you're here.

Starting point is 01:17:46 You took her glasses and bashing her head in and assaulting her. He took a deep breath and his outline sat back. Do you know? You know what they call you? He asked me incredulously. I was living. He completely bastardized my work. I had done so much and he swept it over like an obituary column.

Starting point is 01:18:06 I glanced at him in the dark before answering. The scavenger hunt killer? I hated that name. They dawned me in the scavenger hunt killer because my murder spanned so far and I collected odd, discounted items. Again, my works and efforts were. reduced to a joke. It still makes me sick. The warden spoke up again. Are you sorry? I sat for a moment before responding. Would it matter? He chuckled in a deep-thrody laugh. No. He said settling in. I guess it wouldn't. He continued. I don't really get it. You're a highly intelligent,

Starting point is 01:18:43 healthy, and well-spoken man. Why on earth would you throw that away? I sat in an angry silence. I refuse to give this man the satisfaction of an answer. Do you believe in God? The Gordon asked. His tone now changed. I chewed my tongue before responding. No. Pity.

Starting point is 01:19:03 He responded, lackdastically, as if my response didn't really matter. I'll make what I'm about to tell you so much better. I waited for him to continue. Your sentence is being commuted. I raised an eyebrow in disbelief. Really? Yes, he sat, still shadowed, but I knew he was smirking. What does that have to do with God? I know I should have had much more important questions to ask in that moment, but I was curious.

Starting point is 01:19:32 I assumed he meant I should be thankful. Well, he said, his voice trailing, that would make this next part easier. You passed away this morning, son. Before I could respond to his hand tossed a few photos in front of me, It was me. I lay covered in blood on the shower floor. I had been stabbed from the looks of it. Yeah. The warden, or who I thought was the warden, spoke up. Some Aryan fellow wanted to prove his might by stabbing a serial killer to death in the shower. It didn't work, though, since he was cotton, will most likely be in solitary until it does irreparable damage, if that's some comfort. I stared at him, I stared at the photographs. I simple could not accept it. This is absurd. I felt insult.

Starting point is 01:20:16 in the prospect. I know it seems odd, but hear me out. He sat upright, ready to make his case. Do you know what the universalists are? No. Well, he continued without missing a beat. Basically, it states that everyone gets into heaven, even if you aren't necessarily in their denomination.

Starting point is 01:20:38 This is heaven? I was ready to laugh. This was a joke. No. See, that's the bad news, he continued. Catholics, Muslims, some. Some Buddhists, see, they believe in a temporal plane, so they're all sort of right. See, everyone does eventually move on, but before anyone can move on, they must resolve all

Starting point is 01:20:56 their earthly obligations and judgments. Before I could remark, he caught his breath and explained further. You died this morning. You served one of your 1,001 life sentences. Welcome to number two. I stood up. This isn't funny I'm leaving. I couldn't move.

Starting point is 01:21:14 I was frozen in place, unable to use. my body, my eyes felt like they were being pried towards the seat. Please, I heard the warden through his voice, was now much deeper, sinking my gut. Sit. I returned to my seat with a sensation that was new to me. Fear. Now, he continued, his voice returned to normal. You are not dead.

Starting point is 01:21:39 You just started another sentence. Everything will be back to normal when you leave, but when I dismiss you. you, you will leave here and return to your bunk. Do you understand? I nodded. He's still stunned by what I then knew as truth. His voice. The unexplained dread I felt that morning. I walked out of the warden's office that day, feeling a hopelessness I have never known. The prison was the same, but it wasn't. It was lonelier, darker. That feels like forever ago. I learned since then, First, lifetime does not mean from your age you are incarcerated. I expected a 40-year life sentence, but after speaking with a few other inmates serving like myself,

Starting point is 01:22:24 who I see sometimes sparingly, I learned that it varies somewhere from 80 to 120 years. It varies, but it is always at least 80. I guess the guards don't notice after a certain point. Also, I assume they don't register that we never seem to leave. inexplicable, but that's what's happening. Second, each go-round changes you. The prisoners don't notice you. The others like you have fewer words.

Starting point is 01:22:54 The guards seemed always outside of the line of sight, even when they would interact. They were like fleeting shadows. I'm cracking mentally. Now I walk into the showers and see someone shaving, even speak with them at length. However, when I turn a corner or close a stall door, He'll be gone when I return.

Starting point is 01:23:14 Next, I learned that S word doesn't work. I learned the same way every inmate in here like me does. I assed my wrists and they just ached for a week. I swallowed bleach and had a miserable stomach ache but no death. I ached myself where I choked and flailed, fully conscious for eight straight hours until a guard found me while bringing my breakfast the following morning. I learned that being murdered decreases time, but murdering adds to it. So no one on Life Row attempts murder here.

Starting point is 01:23:45 Finally, escaping isn't an option. We have runners sometimes. Men who just finished their first sentence. The guy just snapped. I guess he pulled maybe 60 years before dying into sleep. He just panicked and ran. The snipers didn't even turn. He grabbed the fence and immediately fell to the ground.

Starting point is 01:24:02 From there, he shook violently. He died right there of a heart attack. I saw him a week later. Third life sentence. Half crippled. I guess we just. just get punished if we try to leave. I don't know if it's permanent.

Starting point is 01:24:16 He was a wreck upon returning. It reminded me of the cats in my neighborhood as a boy. The first time you heard it, the animal twitches and becomes neurotic, but given enough time it accepts its fate. The man now spends his days staring silently behind dead eyes at whatever light sources around. To some, this is limbo, where we remain trapped in prison in which we are condemned until our body and soul have finished their sentences.

Starting point is 01:24:40 To others, this is some kind of purgatory, where we all groomed for eternity in paradise. Either way, we are forced to remain, forced to live until we pay our dues, never truly dying. I don't even know if time is the same now, but if you're reading this, I managed to successfully get these pages out. I have handful of plans, which I cannot record. I cannot risk any future attempts should this fail. I'm leaving this journal for anyone who is a criminal or wants to become one. I have between 80,000 to 100,000 years left. I do not feel remorse, but I do wish I knew then what I know now.

Starting point is 01:25:19 This is simply a warning. A hundred thousand years on a concrete slab, a hard, unforgiving surface. A hundred thousand years with one hour a day in a dying earthscape I barely recognize. 100,000 years of sickly green floors and cold steel doors that move. for nothing. 100,000 years of mopping floors or scrubbing toilets. 100,000 years of being monitored by beings I cannot fully comprehend as their burning horror erupts in the back of my mind. One thousand in one life sentences. One thousand to go. Only one small thing gives me comfort. With 1,000 life sentences at least, it's a nice, clean

Starting point is 01:26:06 number. I hope I don't die too soon and ruin this nice, even lifetime because the next one will be hell. I asked the kid I was babysitting, what do you think lurks out there in the forest? He responded with my mother. I've been babysitting all summer in order to make some extra cash. At first, I just asked around at school if anyone needed a babysitter for their siblings or if they knew anyone who could be interested. I started babysitting kids whose families I knew, but eventually I did more money, so I put up an ad on Craigslist. It wasn't long until I got a response. The family lived in the suburbs, but what bothered me was how close to the woods their house was and the fact that they didn't have any neighbors. I got a bit freaked out at first, considering the fact that they were

Starting point is 01:27:01 strangers with a cabin in the woods, but I decided to push through the fear for the money. The house was a cozy little cabin, clean with a nice garden in the back that had a gate which led to a trail in the woods. They had a little lanterns hung out in the garden and a swing all the way in the back. The living room had a large window that faced directly the forest and during the day the room was bathed in sunlight. The kitchen was right next to it with its counter facing another huge window surrounded by pots and vines and stupid signs like home is where the family's where the family's is, or, in this house, we say sorry. Upstairs, they only had the two bedrooms. The attic was a tiny space whose window faced the woods too. The kid was pretty quiet. Honestly, I neither liked

Starting point is 01:27:51 or disliked him. I tried to form some sort of opinion, but he just didn't stand out in any way. He wasn't mean or stubborn, but he wasn't a sweetheart either. He must have been around five or six years old, so I would just put them to bed quickly and then snoop around the house. I've always been curious about whoever hired me, and I just know it's not exactly recommended, but I would just go through people's stuff whenever I felt bored. It must have been around midnight that night when I slowly pulled out one of the drawers in the made bedroom. This one had all types of trinkets, coins, notebooks, pins, and buttons. This family liked to collect useless stuff and let it hang around the house, and I like to explore it. As I was studying these little ceramic statue of a horse,

Starting point is 01:28:39 I moved around, noticing the moonlight hit its porcelain from different angles. I debated whether to just take it or not. Would they even notice? My chest tightened and my mouth opened. The horse was no longer bathed in moonlight, because this huge shadow had covered it and was dancing on its porcelain. Looking around a bit, I noticed the shadow took up half the room. I could not make out the silhouette or what could have made it. It just seems so unexpected that fear crept up to me and froze me. Someone was at the window. I knew it could have been a bird. That's the rational explanation. And I could have solved all this doubt by just looking up. But I didn't. Because what if it wasn't a bird? I stood still for so long, not knowing what to do until it passed.

Starting point is 01:29:30 and the horse was lit up again by the moonlight. I breathed a sigh of relief and put the horse in my pocket. I didn't know at the time, but that would have been my first contact with it. Something made me stop snooping around and just get downstairs. I turned on the TV and curled up on the couch. At one point during the night, I heard creaking upstairs. I know it shouldn't have freaked me out so bad, but I was still so scared that I went to check it out. The house was dark, and quiet, and the two bedrooms facing each other were empty. Empty. Where did the kid go?

Starting point is 01:30:08 Jason? My voice pierced the silence, and I felt like an intruder, destroying the quiet of the night. Jason, where did you go? I kept having the feeling of being watched. So I turned around, fixated on the attic door, which was now opened. My instincts kept telling me to just leave. but my head, now spinning, refused. What if we had an intruder?

Starting point is 01:30:35 What if he'd taken Jason? If I had just looked up at the window when the shadow passed, now I'd know what I was dealing with. If I'd just had the courage to face it. My voice sounded a lot weaker than the first time, but I still had to try. Jason? Yeah.

Starting point is 01:30:53 The response was almost immediate in coming from the attic. Odd. What was he doing up there? I put my foot on the first step of the stairs. What are you doing up here? It's really late. Your parents are going to be home soon. Step after step I tried to readjust my eyes to the darkness.

Starting point is 01:31:10 The attic was really dark compared to the rest of the house, and I could make out a ray of light that traced out this tiny silhouette. Jason, are you here? What are you doing? You're freaking me out. I finally reached him and put my hands on his tiny shoulders, but he didn't respond. He was just staring out the tiny window,

Starting point is 01:31:29 into the woods. What's going on? I asked. What are you looking at? I sat next to him and stared out the window at the woods. There was a portion of grass beginning from the house pierced by trees. The further you went, the denser the trees are. Until you discover you were completely surrounded by the woods. Unable to see the sky from how tight the branches closed around you.

Starting point is 01:31:52 The forest commenced from the garden and swallowed the horizon like a dark mass, blending with the sky. The window framed this darkness, this suffocating emptiness. It made me feel as if we'd reached the end of the world and had we dared to venture into the forest, we'd just fall off the face of the earth. And there stood Jason, just staring. What are you seeing?

Starting point is 01:32:18 He just wouldn't answer, so I decided to find out by myself. Studying the scenery, nothing particular stood out. Of course, I just needed to pay more attention. Yeah, the more you looked, the more movement you saw. Birds, animals, even the wind, thrilled the branches and the leaves. The grass swaying gently in the wind. And then the shadows were the next thing you noticed. These forever moving stains on the ground.

Starting point is 01:32:47 I could have stared out there for years. Maybe that's why Jason wasn't moving. There's just something about the night that keeps you up. What do you think lurks out there? There I asked him, playfully. Where in the woods? Yeah. My mom.

Starting point is 01:33:03 I blinked a few times. That was unsettling. I mean, kids say weird stuff, but why would you respond to that? Was that a your mom joke? Was he trying to be funny? What do you mean? What does Lerk mean? Oh, um, lurk means, well, when you wait or move slowly in the darkness because you don't want to be seen.

Starting point is 01:33:26 So like hiding? Yeah, but you're lurking when you also want to do something bad, just how animals lurk before they attack, or monsters, I added, trying to scare him. So what do you think lurks out there in the forest? My mother, he responded once again. My body tensed up. That's not funny. I don't want to be funny.

Starting point is 01:33:49 Why would you say that? Your mom, that's an old joke, and it stopped being funny a while ago. I'm not joking. Okay, let's go to sleep. Your mother can't be lurking out there. I saw her and she's pretty nice. I don't know what she told you, but she doesn't eat people. She's out with your dad now, and they're going to come home in a few hours.

Starting point is 01:34:10 If they find out you aren't sleeping, I'll get a lot of shit for it. Don't tell your parents I said that. Come on, let's get down. I'm telling the truth. What? Is she a vampire? You know something was standing out the window earlier. I didn't really care that much about what I was saying because in my head everything had a logical explanation.

Starting point is 01:34:32 Jason, however, widened his gaze. Yeah, that could have been her. Stop. I'm serious. And what does she want from us? Does she want to eat me? We were now in his bedroom and I had tucked him into bed. I had my back to the window, facing the hallway, which had now become way creepier than expected.

Starting point is 01:34:55 She doesn't want to eat you. That's so great. I taste horrible anyways. Good night. I tried to stand up and leave, but he grabbed me. Wait, don't go. Look at me. What now? I want to tell you about this dream I had. This dream that woke me up, but you have to pay attention. Okay. So, um, in my dream I was in a garden and I was thirsty and you were there too. And you tried to leave. But there were a lot of bushes around and you got lost, and I found this puppet. I hate when people tell me about their dreams, but I sat there listening, facing Jason with my back to the window. Not because his story was interesting, not because I liked being there, because while he held me there, his eyes kept darting

Starting point is 01:35:40 to the window. And I'd seen the shadow cover his face, because he'd insisted I looked at him, but in reality, he didn't want me to turn around. So I listened until he abruptly fell. finished his story when moonlight reached his face again. Thank you for the story. It was really interesting. You're welcome. Good night. Night. I spent the next hour in the other bedroom, fidgeting with the little porcelain horse. This kid was a lot braver than I thought. In the silence, I kept trying to make out distinct unfamiliar sounds but didn't succeed. The house had fallen asleep, and the night had become uneventful. His parents arrived soon after that. I put the horse in my pocket and went downstairs to greet them.

Starting point is 01:36:27 Was he good, Keith? Yeah, the best. Don't worry. I studied both of them, head to toe, their clothes, mannerisms, facial expressions, but mostly the mom. Were you good? asked the dad, jokingly. I hope so, I responded. They wanted to drive me home, but I insisted on taking my bike. I closed the door behind me, but instead of leaving, I headed to the backyard.

Starting point is 01:36:52 I just wanted to see something. Climbing on the fence, I made it on the roof of the porch, right next to the bedroom window, hoping to see some signs of something, anything. The window was covered in scratches, but nothing gave out what had been there. I stood there for a while. I don't know why. The parents had gone to sleep, and Jason was probably asleep in his room, too. I studied the garden from that angle, then the woods, as quiet as a mouse. Then the room, room where the parents were sleeping. After that, I don't remember how I got home. I don't even think I took my bike. I just ran frantically until my legs bled. I didn't even scream. I didn't look around or stop. Just ran until I reached my house and banged on the door. My mother answered, annoyed,

Starting point is 01:37:40 and I ran past her, right to my bedroom, covered myself in a blanket and started typing this. because while I was watching the parents, something had caught my eye. In the hallway, what I thought to be a coat hanger moved all of a sudden. It had been standing there, so still. I hadn't even bothered to notice it until disappeared out of my range, then appeared again. This bony, twisted, silhouette, dragged itself into the bedroom and stood right next to the mother, who was sleeping. It looked uncanny, like a human who'd starved to death. With wide eyes and arms so long they trailed behind it when it walked out. It just stood there watching the parents, then lifted a

Starting point is 01:38:30 bony finger and started counting. I stood there, frozen, watching this horrifying show, forever scarred in my head. It kept counting and counting and counting. I was so scared to move, that I would have watched it forever. It wasn't until something else happened that made me break into this exhausting run. It saw me. Drive safe. My ex always hated our dog,

Starting point is 01:39:03 but he probably would have taken her too if she weren't so ugly. If Lulu were one of those cute mini golden doodles or corgis, or even one of those goofy-looking dogs that are charming in their ugliness, think Danny DeVito or Steve Bouchemmy, only in dog version. Then I have no doubt he would have claimed ownership of her too, along with everything else in our apartment. But Lulu is just a plain, old, ugly dog. And for that, and so much

Starting point is 01:39:30 about her, I'm forever grateful. I don't want to talk about my ex too much here, because this isn't about him. But I do need to explain why I was traveling across the country in the middle of the night with my few worldly possessions loaded up in the back of a bumpy U-Haul van. My ex and I had to been together six years, never married. He said marriage was outdated. I said fine. Was I upset by that? Yes and no. Well, yes, but I kept quiet. I loved him. Five months ago, he tells me he wants to split up. He said it just like that. I want to split up. No shaking of the hands, no tears in his eyes, not even a change in the tone of his voice. I was in the kitchen when it happened, eating honey bunches of oats for breakfast, he was standing in the hall.

Starting point is 01:40:18 I want to split up, he said. Then he grabbed his bag and left for work, leaving me to sob as my cereal got soggy in the bowl. Lulu heard me crying and nuzzled her snout in my lap. She whimpered along with me as the hours went by. I skipped work that day, sat on the couch and watched the sunlight pass over the walls of the apartment had always thought of us as our home together. The thing is, my ex made way more money than me. He was happy to cover the bulk of the rent, he'd said.

Starting point is 01:40:46 Happy to buy the furniture. Happy to lease the new car for us. Happy to pay for this and that, loading up our apartment with nice things. When the time came for me to move all these things that were actually mine out of the place, I realized I had even less than I did six years ago. It was all barely filled the U-Haul van. I didn't have a couch or chairs.

Starting point is 01:41:08 Those were his on paper. I didn't have any dishes or silverware. We'd thrown out my old ones when he'd. bought a fancy new set a couple years ago. I didn't even have a mattress. He'd gotten us an expensive memory foam king size. I remember I'd always wanted to tell Lulu hop up on the bed till the snuggle while we watched movies in our room. My ex wouldn't hear of it. Stop treating the dog like it's a person, he'd say. She's lucky she even gets to live inside the apartment with us. I was the one who got Lulu from the pound, back when she was a puppy. She's a street dog,

Starting point is 01:41:40 or she was, until the people from animal control swept her up one day. she'd been rummaging through an overturned trash can. You can tell she'd gotten a good amount of pit bull in her. But beyond that, she's an all-American mutt with a big boulder of a head, a weirdly thin body, and stumpy legs. She waddles more than walks, and she snores like crazy, but she's a total sweetheart. When she sees kids, she lies on her belly and waits until they get close enough before she gives them kisses.

Starting point is 01:42:08 We didn't even train her to do that. One afternoon about a year or so ago, Lulu came up behind her. my ex and licked his ankles, and he turned and gave her a small kick right in the head. It wasn't enough to hurt Lulu, but that was when I should have known. Looking back, it's amazing how much you convince yourself someone is who they're not. So the U-Haul was packed. I'd quit my hourly job and I was now on the road toward my sister's place in Spartanburg, South Carolina, where I'd been promised a place to stay for the time being.

Starting point is 01:42:39 It was a 10-plus hour drive, just Lulu and me in the front of the van as we rumbled through the endless pastoral of farmland and cow towns. I purposely decided to take the smaller highway to avoid traffic since I was uncomfortable driving the U-Haul, and the scenery made me glad I did. Tall fast food signs rose up into the sky like totem poles against clouds so big and white. They almost made you want to cry, but I'd promised myself I was done crying, or at least until I'd gotten off the road. I'd had to pack the U-Haul all by myself, so it had already been early afternoon by the time I set off. After about four hours on the road, the sky began to dim over the highway.

Starting point is 01:43:19 Just that the sun sunk beneath the ridges of the mountains in the distance. I heard a loud clang somewhere below my feet. All at once, the U-Haul van started shaking. It felt like the wheel was fighting against me. I kept having to grip it and yank it straight back. I had trouble seeing out the back window because my stuff was piled up, but I managed to get over to an exit that was just ahead. As I slowed the van down, now that I was off the highway,

Starting point is 01:43:44 I saw a sign sticking out from the roadway. Richard and Sons Auto Repair, quarter mile ahead. I know you've probably heard a story like this before, a story where a car breaks down in the middle of nowhere on a backroads highway, a young woman by herself. Maybe she meets a creepy guy in overalls who says something like, well, he must be lost, little Missy. As he eyes are over like she's a good meal he's about to devour, but it really wasn't like that.

Starting point is 01:44:12 Evening ma'am, to the perfectly normal-looking guy inside the auto repair shop, how can I help you? Oh, and who's this cutie? he added. Looking notice of Lulu at my side. The shop's owner was a man named Richard Meadows, and he was a pleasant, polite, and well-dressed older gentleman. His gray hair neatly combed in his buttoned shirt, starched bright white. He ran the place with his two sons, while of whom were waiting in the garage. My son's Abel and Dean will run diagnostics. Then you and I can head into the office to call the U-Haul folks. Richard said as we walked up to him, Don't want this to be on your tab after all, Abel.

Starting point is 01:44:50 Want to take your keys? I handed the keys to the son named Abel, who was a little chubby and pale. His shaved head dotted with moles. He seemed shy and only nodded when he took the keys from me. I only mentioned Abel's appearance because the other son beside him Dean was almost shockingly handsome. He had a thick head of sandy blonde hair, a chiseled jawline,

Starting point is 01:45:13 and broad shoulders under his denim work shirt. He was that level of teen movie heartthrob handsome that made my face suddenly hot. Walking with me out to the U-Haul in the lot, Dean took out a clipboard, licking the tip of his pen as he angled it downward. So the truck just started rattling on you? He asked. I started through what had happened,

Starting point is 01:45:33 feeling like a nervous high school girl again. but he just smiled and nodded the whole time. His voice calmed like a doctor at a bedside. Hmm. Well, I'm sure we'll figure it out. And like my dad said, don't worry. We'll make sure the U-Haul folks pay up, not you. I thanked him, trying to ignore the fact that I was blushing for no reason.

Starting point is 01:45:52 Good thing you've got a bodyguard here with you, Dean added, smiling down at Lulu. What's his name? Her, I said? And her name is Lulu. Well, hi there, Lulu. When he reached down to Petter, Lulu stepped back, and showed her teeth growling under her breath. Lulu, I said.

Starting point is 01:46:09 Bad girl. Dean just laughed. Nah, she's cool. Just protecting her mom, right, Lulu? Honestly, I wouldn't trust some random auto repair dude either. No, it's not you. It's just my boyfriend, or I guess my ex-boyfriend now. He just, yeah, I don't know.

Starting point is 01:46:25 I guess he made her a little skittish around guys like you. Dean raised in the eyebrow a little, and then he pursed his lips and nodded as if he understood. and I appreciated that he didn't ask any further about it. He told me to go wait on him, that he'd handle everything from there. When I got back to the office, Dean's father Richard had already sorted out the bill with the U-Haul folks. Free and clear, he said, there was nothing else to do but wait for the van to be ready. A TV hanging in the corner was playing a muted episode of Judge Judy.

Starting point is 01:46:56 Richard took a seat across from me in the waiting area, impeded Lulu while telling me a little about himself and his family. His wife had died a year and a half ago, he said. passed suddenly in her sleep, which is a mercy, I suppose. I'd have been a tough string of months, but he and his sons were close. They were getting him through it. Lulu seemed to sense his sadness because she showed him more attachment than most other male strangers. I hope you don't mind me speaking out a turn, Richard said as he stroked Lulu's head,

Starting point is 01:47:24 but I'm relieved you have this dog here with you. Why is that? Well, not to scare you, but there have been some incidents. He told me he didn't want me to cause any undue worry, but there had been seven women found dead in the woods beyond the cornfields down the highway over the past year and a half. All the victims were like you. Young women traveling alone, Richard said, so it's good you got this girl here. And he put his face close to Lulu, who licked him on the cheek. Ah, good girl, such a sweetie.

Starting point is 01:47:57 I mean, I appreciate you giving me a heads look, at least, I said. Sure, and like I said, didn't mean to scare you, probably nothing. No, it's nice of you. You guys have been all really nice, I added. Dean was, it was very helpful. That's just the wonderful service and dedication you would expect from the world-famous team at Richard and son's auto repair. Richard laughed, but I do think you were sincerely. I almost asked if Dean had a girlfriend, as if that weren't a totally crazy, empathetic question to pose to a total little stranger, but before I had the chance to embarrass myself, the other son, Abel, shuffled into the office and murmured something to his father. Richard nodded, saying to me, well, looks like you're all set. No paperwork or anything? Nope, all taken care of. Get you a receipt for insurance purposes, but otherwise you've good to go.

Starting point is 01:48:46 Here, let me walk you and Lulu out. On our way out of the office, I debated the merits of giving Dean my number trying to balance the pros and cons. Was it better to risk wild embarrassment if I get rejected versus the regret I might feel if I did nothing? I was so new to this single life again that I didn't know how any of it. of this worked anymore. It turns out the decision was made for me because Dean was gone when we got to the van. Dean head off already? Richard asked. Abel nodded. Had a date, he said in that whisper, quiet voice of his oh, another date? Why? I'm not surprised. Of course I thought, and really, what did I expect? Just because Dean was working at some Nowheresville auto repair shop didn't change the fact that he was still wildly handsome and easy to talk to. If anything, girls probably swooned over the fact that he could take

Starting point is 01:49:33 a car apart by hand, peeling off his shirt afterwards his muscles gleaming with sweat, etc., etc. I felt like an idiot. Well, sure was great to meet you, Richard said, and so nice to meet you, too, Miss Lulu. His son Abel reached into his pocket and dangled the keys out in front of me, while Richard got down and gave Lulu one last head scratch. I took the keys from Abel and smiled. Thank you, I said. He smiled back, but he didn't break eye contact. And for a split second a shutter passed through my body, something I can't explain. Drive safe, he breathed. The back road highway that night was dark, what my sister would call country dark, but what I would call horror movie dark. It seemed like the smaller highways like this were only busy during the

Starting point is 01:50:17 day because I only saw a car pass by every few minutes or so. Fields of corn along the roadside swayed under a cloud-choked moon. The night air was punctuated by far-way train whistles, which sounded to me more like muffled screams. I don't know if I was just freaked out by the warning Richard had given me, or if there really was something to be said about the stretch of highway, but I kept getting a feeling as if eyes were staring at me from the fields. I sensed I was driving into the mouth of a beast, already on my way to being digested by the darkness.

Starting point is 01:50:49 Up ahead, the cornfields ended and were overtaken by forest, a dense swath of evergreen trees. In the moment we drove past the fields, Lulu started barking. I swear I almost got crashed the car. Oh my God, Lulu. Lulu, calm down. She was going crazy, turning her head side to side as she barked back at whatever we'd just pass on the side of the road. Lulu, relax, girl. But it couldn't even say that without my own voice choking up.

Starting point is 01:51:14 Seven women found dead in the woods beyond the cornfields. Richard had said. My hands felt slippery on the wheel. I'd never been comfortable driving a U-Haul van before, and it didn't help that the darkness seemed to devour the headlamps, so that I could barely see a few feet in front of me down the highway. I tried turning it on the radio, got static, and turned the dial, but then thought the better of it and shut it off again. Better to be in silence.

Starting point is 01:51:40 Just in case. In case what? My mind was going in so many directions and even saying there was silence would be wrong, because every few minutes Lulu started up again, pawing at the backseat in the windows, barking like crazy and growling. It was like she was fighting a gun. ghost and wanted to break out of the car. I glanced out the windows, but it could only see darkness on either side of the road. That along with the shadowed outlines of trees, stumps, power lines,

Starting point is 01:52:07 all of which looked like monsters to me. Eventually, we entered South Carolina. We passed out of the rural area, and it was only when the bright flood lamps of passing car dealerships and 24-hour fast-food places illuminated the inside of the cabin that Lulu fell silent. But even then, for the last three hours of the car ride, she never fully relaxed, especially when we passed through the occasional pocket of empty rural areas. She seemed just stressed. Occasionally, she'd perk up, as if she'd seen someone outside her window, floating along with us. Her body language would stiffen. By now, I just let it happen. I told myself she was just tense from traveling. She seemed desperate by the end of the trip. I could tell she was exhausted. She hadn't slept all night. I was exhausted. I was exhausted.

Starting point is 01:52:54 too. Lulu's house and barks had kept me alert, but it hadn't exactly done well for keeping my eyes on the road. I felt the kind of twitchy panic that usually came from drinking too much coffee, my eyes starting from side to side, feeling like I was about a crash into something any minute. My sister had texted me before she went to bed and told me the key was under the mat. It was around 3 a.m. when I pulled up to the curb outside our house and put the van into park. When I did, Lulu shot up. Okay. Yes. We're here, girl. You can't. You can relax now. In the glow of the van's cab, as I reached over to grab my nightbag, I could hear Lulu breathing deeply. She was taking fast and muffled breaths, panting. It sounded like she was trying

Starting point is 01:53:36 to catch her breath after running. Hey, chill out, I said, as I grabbed my bag and sat up again. What are you panted for, girl? We've already... I froze. Lulu was totally still beside me. She was facing the back of the van. Her mouth was closed. Her tongue wasn't hanging out. Her chest wasn't rising and falling. She was calm and focused, breathing slowly and silently. It wasn't her. The breathing wasn't her. It was coming from somewhere in the back of the van. Just then Lulu showed her teeth and growled. Oh, okay girl, I said, trying to keep my voice normal. I was shaking. I could barely feel my body. I was floating outside of it. Let's head on inside now. Come on. I find. I I stumbled with the door handle. I almost fell when I stepped out. I tried taking out my phone and dialing 911, but my hand was shaking so bad, I couldn't even unlock my home screen.

Starting point is 01:54:33 Lulu hopped out and circled me. She was on high alert. Her head was low and she moved like a predator, keeping close to my legs. I walked backwards with her up the driveway, but she stayed beside me and the van. Pacing quickly from side to side. I managed to get my phone unlocked. I was about to hit the emergency call button when I heard something move inside. inside the van. A metallic click. The back door I realized. I locked it, but it could still open from the inside. The street was dark, only one lamp post glowing off at the intersection down the road. Everyone in their homes were asleep. I was totally alone. In the darkness, I heard something scrape at the back door from inside the van. Then a soft clunk as the door opened. It opened slowly at first, as if a creature inside were checking to see if it were safe. I hit the emergency call button just as the door swung all the way open. 9-1-1, what's your emergency? 9-1, what's your

Starting point is 01:55:32 emergency? But I couldn't speak. I was frozen. The door bounced back as it fully opened and then out fell a naked body, tangled limbs hitting the pavement, a mess of blonde hair shimmering in the dark. When the person rose up again, I almost passed out. It was Dean. Hello? Hello, I said into the phone. I need help. Someone. He was in my van. Please send police to. Blank. Lulu barked and jumped forward. Jesus fucking Christ, Dean said, shaking out his limbs. Can someone please tell this fucking dog to shut up? Dean was covered in sweat, wearing only his box of shorts. He looked sickly and diseased. All fucking night, it's just bark, bark, bark, yappy, yap. yap. He exhaled and stretched out his arms, and I saw he was holding a knife in his hand. With his free hand, he swiped back the sweaty hair off his forehead. Cooped up in a hot-ass truck for hours until, oh, your useless shit, had to take off my clothes. It was so damn hot. And I got to hear that fucking dog barking nonstop.

Starting point is 01:56:38 Please send help, I said into the phone, repeating my sister's address over and over. Please, he's got a knife. Oh, he's got a knife, does he? Oh, boo-hoo, said Dean, walked forward, holding the knife out towards Lulu, tossing it casually from one hand. Every time I try to make a move, this bitch just goes nudge on me. Yap, yap, yap, yap. Dean, please, just, I don't know what you want, but please. You should be thanking me, you know that?

Starting point is 01:57:06 He waved the knife from side to side as if reprimanding me. I'm way out of your league, so the fact that I chose you tonight, it's really an act of charity. Okay, I said. I would have said anything to get him to go away. Okay, I'm sorry. You want the truth? It wasn't even me who wanted you. I thought you were a six, maybe a seven at best.

Starting point is 01:57:27 But my brother, he thought you looked tasty good. So I said, fine. Sure, I'll get you and bring you back to him. I'm a good brother, aren't I? That's what good brothers do. They do favors. I wanted his first time to be special. No, I know.

Starting point is 01:57:42 I know you're a good brother. I still held the phone up to my ear, hoping the operator could hear me. This all could have been so. So easy. So fucking easy. Would have been over by now. But no, because Miss Yap, yap, yap over here, he gripped the knife type,

Starting point is 01:57:59 squatting as he stepped forward. His eyes on Lulu. So keep on crying into the phone. But make sure you tell them your dog is dead too because this bitch deserved it. No. Dean lunged forward, slashing the knife at her. Lulu yelped and flipped to the side

Starting point is 01:58:14 as the blade swept across her back, her body scrambling over the pavement. But then it was Dean who saw. screamed, falling back as his knife landed on the ground. Fuck! Jesus Christ, my hand! Even in the darkness, I could see the blood pour open from Lulu's back, where the blade had sliced her open. But I could also see her spit out a mangled hand onto the pavement, as if it were nothing but a squeaky toy. I'm going to kill this dog, Dean screamed.

Starting point is 01:58:38 Blood poured from the stump at his wrist. With this other hand, he reached down to grab his knife, then turned to face her. The Lulu was already upon him, lunging up in the air. her own blood streaking off the gash in her back as she flew. This time, she aimed for his face. A severed hand, it turns out, is a more than adequate DNA sample. It only took a few days before the police were able to match Dean's DNA with the DNA found on the bodies of seven women who were found in the woods down the highway from the auto repair shop.

Starting point is 01:59:10 Dean's mugshot showed a guy who with a mutilated, torn-up face, bruised and bloody, and held together with stitches. When the police had arrived that night outside my sister's house, they had found him half dead on the sidewalk, blood leaking from his neck. As for Lulu and me, I'd already carried her inside the house. The police found us on the tile floor of the kitchen. Lulu bleeding out of my lap unmoving, while I whispered to her, I love you, girl. I love you so much.

Starting point is 01:59:39 It wasn't long before Dean's brother Abel was arrested as an accessory to the crimes. During a news conference a few days later, the police chief said, that for the past year and a half, the two brothers had been using road traps on the back road highway to cause damage to passing vehicles forcing them to stop. In most cases, they could fix their cars, and that was that, nothing more than a scam to gain business for their father's shop. But when the driver was a pretty young woman, the two used the shop's tow truck to lure the women away to a remote location past the cornfields. DNA samples from at least four of the women were found inside the truck. With the last would-be victim, the brothers appeared to have gotten reckless and instead

Starting point is 02:00:19 lured her right to the repair shop, said the police chief during the press conference. Had the young woman not been accompanied by her dog, a pit bull mixed by the name of Lulu, there's no telling what. I closed my laptop. I don't want to hear the rest. Later, I saw an article online of a photo of their father, Richard, shielding his face as a reporter to surrounded him. There was no evidence he'd been involved in any way.

Starting point is 02:00:43 he'd seemed shocked when the police came to the auto shop. I felt bad for him. He seemed like a good man. I couldn't even imagine what he was thinking. The police chief had said that the brothers have been committing the assaults and murders for the last year and a half, which means they would have started right after their mother died.

Starting point is 02:01:01 The timing made me feel sick. Richard had said his wife's death was from natural causes, that she died peacefully in her sleep. I like to believe that's the case. I like to believe the brothers had waited for their mother to die and that's the only reason they started their murder spree right after her funeral. Despite all they did, I really hope, if only for Richard's sake, that they hadn't gotten impatient and done something to their own mother.

Starting point is 02:01:26 It was surreal trying to get settled in a new place after all this. I felt like my old life had been years and years ago. My ex did text me once, though, just after he heard the news. Hope you're okay, the text said. Normally I would have sat for hours deliberating over how to respond, but now I texted back right away. I am, I said. I watched three dots pop up in the bubble as he was typing something,

Starting point is 02:01:50 then they disappeared again. That night, the news ran a segment about Lulu. There was a whole ceremony in her honor. Normally, I wouldn't have watched the rest of the coverage of the case. It was already traumatic enough. I was told I would have to testify that it would be a long process and I wanted to avoid it as much as I could. But I made sure to watch the news segment on Lulu.

Starting point is 02:02:12 A moment of celebration today as Lulu, the scrappy pit bull, makes a hero's welcome outside the Eastcast Animal Hospital. To the newsacre, so many people had showed up to the animal hospital earlier that afternoon to celebrate Lulu's discharge. The footage held on Lulu's face as she eyed the crowd of police officers, the news crews, the reporters and hospital staff. I was right beside her in the footage, looking just as awkward. See that girl? I said as I watched the coverage with her later that night. Lulu was cold up on my lap on the couch as I stroked the long scar on her back. The jagged ridges where the animal doctors had sewn her up again. That's you and me on the news.

Starting point is 02:02:53 Sea girl? Lulu had been sleeping and now she lifted up her head, drowsy from the commotion of the day. She didn't seem too interested about her 15 minutes of fame. She just sighed and plopped her head right back down on again on my stomach and went back to sleep. When the news was over, I nudged Lulu awake. and after she went outside to pee, the two of us shuffled down the hall. I led Lulu into the guest bedroom. As I pulled down the covers on the bed,

Starting point is 02:03:18 Lulu went to lie down on the hardwood floor in the corner of the room, by herself. No, no, come here, girl. She glanced up with me, one paw on top of the other. I patted the bed. You sleep up here from now on. Come on up. She made a soft noise, her tail wagging. And she hopped up awkwardly on the bed, still a little sore from her wounds.

Starting point is 02:03:39 As I shut off the lamp, Lulu nuzzled up against my leg, resting her head on my thigh. Comfy? I asked. She sighed a grumbling, growling purr in response. He used to a pretty girl, I said. You've more than earned it. I found an extremely bizarre internet survey. Nobody knows what Rock Bottom truly is until they've hit it. Being abruptly fired from your job you've worked at for the past 10 years and then catching your girl cheating on you with your replacement really makes a man think. Hell, my student loans aren't even paid off yet. What a shit show this life is. After a rather boozy night that consisted of sending

Starting point is 02:04:25 out about four dozen resumes and horrendously written cover letters, I passed out. When I woke up the next morning, I decided to at least try and make some money at home while waiting for an interview. At that moment, I thought that the best way to go about it was completing those internet surveys that yielded $5 subway gift cards and other shit like that after about an hour of answering questions. I mean, I didn't have any other marketable skills that could have yielded immediate income. It was either that or wasting the day away playing computer games. At least I wouldn't have to pay for food.

Starting point is 02:05:03 I did these surveys for about five hours before nearly passing out. It was way more excruciating than I had originally anticipated. At the end of those five hours, I'd accumulated about $45 in cash and gift cards, $9 an hour, not like I was making much more than that before. I was about to close my laptop up for the day and head to a bar in an attempt to drown out my melancholy when I first saw it. It shouldn't even have been noticeable, but for one reason or another it was. At the bottom corner of the website that I was on existed a tiny, singular advertisement.

Starting point is 02:05:43 Maybe it was the simplicity that got me. Plain black letters in a tacky font that read surveys for cash. Overlapped a completely white background. At least they were direct with the message. One more couldn't hurt, I thought. Might as well scrape together a little bit more booze money before heading out. I sat back down, clicked on the message. the picture link and prepared myself to grind through some more painstaking inquiries.

Starting point is 02:06:11 The first few questions were simple enough. I guess they weren't really questions, but more data collection. My name, age, and occupation. I thought it was kind of weird that they also asked my height and weight, but it wasn't unheard of. The first real question was a different story, though. I must have stared at it, eyes wide open, and mouth agape. For God and knows how long. What the actual hell? In plain English, this is what popped up on my screen. How strong is your urge to currently look behind you? There were five options below, ranging from not at all to overwhelming. There was no feasible reason why I should have been afraid at that moment, but I was. I tightened my breathing, trying to make out any subtle noises

Starting point is 02:07:05 behind me, there were none. After maybe about five minutes, I worked up the courage to look. There was nothing. I sighed in relief and scoffed at myself at the same time. This must have been some kind of joke. However, I decided to entertain it, answering, neutral, and clicking onto the next question. This is what it read. Why would you look behind you? I smirked. Funny. Before simply typing in, I don't know, in the response box and one's again clicking next. This was the third question. You're on a plane. Apart from you, there's only one other passenger who is sitting somewhere behind you. At some point, you get up to go to the washroom and find that the man is gone. You check to see if he is in the only bathroom on the plane,

Starting point is 02:07:56 but he isn't. What do you do? Again, I must have stupidly stared at it for nearly 10 minutes. some kind of obscure personality test? I mean, it must have been right, right? I put the same question that I used for the last question. I don't know. It was true. I didn't know. How was I supposed to answer this shit? I clicked next again, now more intrigued than anything. The fourth question went like this. You wake up in the woods, unfamiliar to you. It's nighttime, and the moonlight provides you with only slight visibility. About 30 feet away from you, there was a small, dimly illuminated a cabin. The door is open, and a smiling woman is motioning for you to come in. Do you go? Explain why. This question wasn't necessarily weirder than the last one,

Starting point is 02:08:55 so my conjecture that this was some kind of odd personality test that was still feasible. I actually make an attempt to answer this one. Something, along the lines of going into the cabin because there's simply nowhere else to go. Once again, I click next. Probably shouldn't have. The questions started getting fucked up. They weren't too gory or explicit, not anything like that. They were just stranger, weirder, more psychologically disturbing.

Starting point is 02:09:26 If you're wondering why the hell I kept going, I can't really give you an explicit answer to that. I just felt like I had to. It was an esoteric, creepy and sensation that I can't quite explain away, but I could never shake it. So I just went on. Some of the answers that stood out were, suppose that you wake up one night to find an elevator in your house. During every midnight after that, it opens up for five minutes, revealing an exact copy of yourself that gets progressively more injured as time goes on. Do you keep living like this?

Starting point is 02:10:03 Or do you enter the elevator once and end at all? And you're in a hotel room but are awoken by a rapid knocking at your window. You peek through the blinds, seeing what appears to be a man missing both his eyes. He puts his mouse to the glass and tells you to kill the woman in the bathroom immediately. Do you listen to him? This was one of my least favorites. You are watching home videos with your mother. One of the tapes includes footage of her.

Starting point is 02:10:30 her being murdered by a masked intruder. Your mother simply laughs at this footage without saying anything. In your opinion, is this a cause for concern? In addition to this insanity-inducing shit, there were some rather disconcerning events happening in real life as well. I received a knock at the door about 30 minutes in. I looked through my peephole to find a guy standing there, practically shaking his head and mouthing no while making direct eye contact with me he looked terrified obviously i didn't open up i received about 10 phone calls from somebody named the auditor on my caller id they left a message every time but each one was just a recording that consisted of somebody saying numbers through heavy static Actually, it sounded more like screaming now that I think about it.

Starting point is 02:11:28 About an hour into this thing, and I was on the verge of a mental breakdown, I was petrified of looking behind me, even though there was no indication that anything should have been there. I heard some soft scratching coming from my vent at one point, so I moved my couch over it. Eventually, I reached what appeared to be the end of the survey. However, it wasn't a question. It was simply a statement. Don't let them in. They're not to be trusted.

Starting point is 02:12:00 Almost as if it were on cue. I heard more knocking at my door about five seconds after reading this. As slowly and silently as I could, I moved over and looked through the people once again. It was a different person than the one I'd seen earlier. She was a woman, looking to be in her mid-20s. She was wearing a thick blazer, despite it being around 90 degrees Fahrenheit outside. She was also wearing sunglasses, so I could never really tell where she was actually looking. She eventually took a piece of paper out of her pocket and slipped it under the door.

Starting point is 02:12:36 I looked down and read it. It's lying. Leave your apartment immediately. It's been about half an hour since. I can't bring myself to look at the computer screen, nor at the woman outside. She's still there. I can see the shadows of her feet from underneath my door. I heard my bedroom window open a few minutes ago, but I've since jammed the door shut with a chair.

Starting point is 02:13:00 I can hear some kind of distorted muttering coming from behind it now. Maybe rock bottom wasn't so bad. What the fuck am I supposed to do here? I took a drive late one night. What happened will haunt me for the rest of my life. Oh, before I forget, man. I was wondering if you could help me with something. The cashier, an acne-riddled kid who looked to be in his late teens or early 20s,

Starting point is 02:13:30 looked up from shoving the bag of potato chips, two sodas, and a pack of Lucky Strikes into a plastic bag. For a moment, he just stood there, seemingly frozen in mid-action. Then he finally answered, Yeah, what's up, man? I let out a barely-percipable sigh. I'd been half afraid that I would be told to take a long walk off a short pier to put it politely. Feeling relieved, I reached into my back pocket for what was there. You see, I seemed to have, well, sort of gotten lost out here. I decided to take a late-night drive

Starting point is 02:14:03 and ended up getting turned around on all of these two-lane back roads. I unfolded the map and set it on the counter so he and I could both see it before continuing. So I was hoping you could point out on here roughly where we are, and more importantly, the way to get back to the main road. There was another long stretch of silence. And then the kid began to laugh softly at first and then louder. Dude, a paper map? He managed out between weezes. Are you for real? What year do you think this is? 1993? For my part, I simply let out a resigned sigh. I'd had a bad feeling I'd be getting this sort of reaction from someone his age, and it looked like I'd been proven correct. Can't say I didn't see it coming. He wiped tears from the corners of his eyes and looked at me. Seriously, bro, don't you have a

Starting point is 02:14:56 GPS in your car or something? He asked. Immediately I hooked a thumb over my shoulder, pointing out the glass entry door at the beige sedan sitting at the gas pumps. Not in a Honda accord from 1979, I replied simply. As he looked behind me out the door, I could see he wanted to make another quip, probably something about how I should buy a newer car or something. Thankfully, though, he kept it to himself and said he leaned over the map and still chuckling softly to himself began looking at it a few moments later he snapped his fingers ha i still got it he said proudly then push his finger down near the middle of the map and looked up at me we're right about here roughly six or seven miles outside place her i leaned over the counter to see as he drew his finger away here he nodded and i pulled a pen out of my

Starting point is 02:15:49 pocket, circling the area as a reminder once I left, then examined the map further. Okay, so it seems I could take more than a few roads to get back to Interstate 5, right? The kid nodded again, clearly already bored with the unusual interaction by the slightly annoyed look which had begun to cross his face. Sure, he said simply, then placed my bagged items on top of the map. That'll be 1450 for this and 2850 for the gas. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my wallet. Withdrawing 320s and handing them to him, the register led out its trademark, ding as it shot open, and he placed the bills in it before pulling out and handing me my change,

Starting point is 02:16:35 placing it and my wallet back into my pocket. I picked up the bag and folded the mat back up. Thanks for the help, I said, as I turned to head out the door. Yeah, no problem, I heard of mutter at me as I cross to the front door and push it open. A small bell hung from the inside handle jangled as I stepped outside and let the door swing shut behind me. The sounds of the refrigerators humming in the fluorescent lights, softly buzzing, was replaced by those of a summertime forest at night. Crickets and cicadas buzzed loudly in the grass around the store. Almost overwhelming, the buzzing sound of the lights over the pumps.

Starting point is 02:17:13 The sound of an owl hooting loudly echoed through the trees, followed by the loud call, of what had to be an elk. I inhaled the clean air before heading down the steps for my car. Pulling open the driver's door, I took one last look around before dropping into the driver's seat. So, did you find out where you are? asked a voice from the passenger seat. For a split second, a wave of confusion and panic swept over me, and I spun in my seat. It was immediately replaced by a wave of embarrassment, amplified as my friend began to let out a deep laugh. Dude, were you in there for that long that you forgot I was out here waiting for you? Not wanting to admit I had just done that. I shook my head. Nah, bro, not that. Just dealing with the kid in there was a major headache.

Starting point is 02:18:01 He nodded sympathetically. Craig was one of my close friends. Ever since we met each other, we'd immediately clicked and had stuck with each other from that point on. And one thing that we both love to do was take late night drives to nowhere, simply driving around with no destination in mind. into the radio and occasionally sharing a joint one of us would buy. This is the first time we've ever gotten lost, though. I reached into the bag pulling out the bottle of Mr. Pibb and handing it to him. Here, I said simply, before pulling the lucky strikes out and chucking the rest into the back seat, pulling the key from my pocket, I slid it into the ignition and turned it. The car's buzzer sounding as the dashed lights came on. A moment later, the inline four quietly rumbled to

Starting point is 02:18:49 life with its traditional burble. Taring open the package, I pulled a cigarette from the pack and struck it into the corner of my mouth before reaching to push in the car's cigarette lighter. As it did, I shot a glance back towards this door and froze. A small shiver shot down my spine as I realized the kid was standing out the door and staring out at us. What the actual hell? Craig caught my gaze and turned to look at himself.

Starting point is 02:19:15 Dude, what the hell is his problem? I shook my head as the lighter popped back out, signaling it was ready to use. I pushed the glowing red coil against the tip of the smoke for a moment until it was lit, then placed it back into its slot. I pulled it from my lips and exhaled a cloud of smoke before answering, feeling more than a bit unnerved. I don't know, but honestly, man, that's more than a bit creepy. I shot one last glance. The kid hadn't even blinked once.

Starting point is 02:19:46 He was just staring with an off-putting intensity out the glass. Come on, let's get out of here, Craig said. Echoing the thoughts swimming through my mind, I put the car into first gear and eased off the clutch, the car beginning to roll forward. Out of the corner of my eye saw him turn and shoot the bird at the kid as we slid out from under the lights into the dark. I turned the car left and began heading the same way we came.

Starting point is 02:20:12 Well, the good thing is, yeah, I did find out where we were. we are. I pulled the map from my pocket and handed it to my friend. I heard him fumbling for a moment, and then a small flashlight clicked on as he aimed it at the map. Dude, how did we make it almost as far east as placer, he asked, with a slightly entomished tone? Longer drive than normal, I guess, I answered, rolling down my window to flick the ashes from my smokeout. I shot a glance at the analog clock on the dashboard. 245 at red. I let out a small sigh. Great, Vanessa is likely worrying up a storm about us right now, me especially. Ever since we'd started dating five years ago, my girlfriend had always been rather apprehensive

Starting point is 02:20:56 about my habit of taking long, late-night drives when I couldn't sleep. She always feared I'd get into an accident, either with another car, wrap my Honda around a tree, or hit an animal. Most of the time, I'd come home to find her sitting up waiting for me. Worry clearly etched into her beautiful sapphire eyes. I bit my lips slightly. Hey, you think I should text Vanessa and let her know we're okay, I asked Craig? I heard him let out a snort.

Starting point is 02:21:24 Honestly, bro? No. I know the woman loves you to death and I'm happy she cares so much, but she's got to learn you know what you're doing. Plus, you two need your space. It's not healthy how much time you two spend together. I flicked the remnants of my cigarette out the window and let out a snort of my own. It's called being in love, dude. you should try it sometime, I joked, causing him to let out a laugh.

Starting point is 02:21:49 Nah, thanks, I enjoy being single too much. Shaking my head, I stared out the windshield as the headlights guided our way. I felt a slight sense of unease. Creep up upon me as I watched the two-lane road stretch out before us, the moon in the sky almost completely blocked by the trees over our heads. I hadn't seen another car on the road for two hours at least. Well, what did you expect, Derek? You drove into the boonies.

Starting point is 02:22:16 There's only ghost towns out here. Why don't you try driving all the way to Idaho next time? Shaking my thoughts away, I fumbled in the center console for a moment before pulling out a mixtape. A bit of music would help me feel better. I pushed it into the car's cassette player and hit play. A moment later, the pounding bass and scents of dance with the deads, that house began blasting from the speakers.

Starting point is 02:22:41 Craig let out a whoop of excitement. Dude, yes, that's the kind of tunes. need for a drive like this. He rolled down the passenger window, sticking his head out the window to whoop and holler into the night. I shook my head, unable to keep from grinning at his antics. Freaking goofball. The playful mood helped settle my mind, and I felt myself relax into the seat, the tension flowing out of my body and out the window. For a few moments, that's how things went. The road stretching out ahead of us and then disappearing into the blackness behind us, the music, blasting out from the radio, in the soft roar of the engine in the background.

Starting point is 02:23:19 I shot another look at the backlit clock, now it read five minutes of three. We should be at the highway in a minute. The thought released the last wisp of tension in my body and fumbled into the back seat for the bag, catching it with the tips of my fingers. I pulled my bottle of soda from it and holding the bottle to the steering wheel, crack the cap. I lifted it to my lips and took a swig, taking my eyes off the road, for a split second to tilt my head back.

Starting point is 02:23:46 I looked back at the road and nearly spit it all onto the windshield. In the second I'd stopped looking, a figure had stepped onto the road. Fucking hell, I shouted, jamming my feet on the brake and clutch as hard as I could. The rear wheels of the car locked up, and the ear-piercing sound of squealing tires filled the cabin.

Starting point is 02:24:08 To my horror, the tail end of the car began sliding out. Oh, hell, no, no, no, no. a no. For a few seconds, the world around us became a blur of shapes and colors, and I feared at any moment we'd smash into a tree or begin rolling. Thankfully, the car finally came to a stop with a screech of protest from the suspension. We were facing back the way we'd come. I could tell from the black lines on the road, which had once been to the rubber of my tires. I gripped the steering wheel with almost a death grip, my heart furiously pounding in my chest. My breath came in short, ragged gasps. There was no movement in the car for a few seconds, before Craig reached

Starting point is 02:24:50 forward and snapped the music off. Dude, what the fuck? He shouted at me. His face looking as pale as mine must be. I didn't say a word to him. Instead, I pulled up on the handbrake, ripped off my seatbelt and practically kicked the door open, stepping out onto the pavement. I stepped to the front of the car on unsteady legs until I was squarely in between the headlight beams. I looked around, first at the road ahead, then at the forest on either side. There was nothing there. What the? I turned and looked behind me. Over the roof of the car, the red glow of the taillights illuminated a few feet ahead, but beyond that, nothing but blackness. I turned again, looking out at the darkness beyond the branches. No movement disturbed the bushes and branches.

Starting point is 02:25:38 aside from the quiet hum of the car's engine, it was silent. I shook my head. Did, did I just imagine things? I shook it again. No, I know for a fact I didn't hallucinate, there was someone there. The sound of the car door opening made me turn. Seeing Craig step out of the car leaving the door open, he immediately came over to me. You have exactly 20 seconds to explain to me what the hell just happened before I lose it, bro, he explained. For a second, I fought to find my voice. Then I answered, someone, dude, I'm not crazy.

Starting point is 02:26:15 Someone stepped out on the woods and onto the road. It looked like a chick, and I thought it was gonna freaking hit her. I realized I'd been holding in a breath and let it out, trying desperately to get myself to relax. Craig gave me a confused look. You serious, man? I nodded. He pulled the flashlight.

Starting point is 02:26:33 He used to look at the map from his pocket and flicked it on. aiming it first at the tree line on one side of the road, then to the other. After doing this a few times, he turned back to me. Well, whoever it was, they're not there anymore. His brow furrowed. But why would a chick be out here in the middle of nowhere, he muttered, more to himself than me? I still answered. I don't know, man.

Starting point is 02:26:58 It's freaking Josephine County. For as many good people live out here, there's also a bunch of weirdos. I heard my friend let out a snort of laughter and reply, but something had caught my attention, a feeling which had slammed into me with all the weight of a Peterbilt. The feelings of eyes boring into the back of my skull. I spun around, looking back towards the car and seeing nothing there, but the feeling remained. And I didn't like it one bit, especially when the feeling came again, this time from the direction I'd just been facing a moment ago.

Starting point is 02:27:35 Realization dawned on me and I felt a shiver shoot at my spine, along with the flicker of fear. Oh, shit, I whispered. Craig turns a look at me. What? he asked. Seeing the look on my face, he repeated. What? I looked up at him, speaking with a bit of a weak voice. Let's get back in the car right now. He didn't argue. Thankfully, he was. was already moving for the open passenger door, and I matched his pace as the feeling of being watched intensified, as if someone were rapidly approaching from the woods. Oh, hell. I broke, first into a run, then a full sprint for the last 10 feet, tearing at the door handle and practically

Starting point is 02:28:20 launching myself into the driver's seat, slamming the door closed behind me. I jammed down on the door lock, seeing Craig do the same. He turned to me, his face hidden in the dark, but his voice giving a perfect mental image of it. What the hell was that man? The tone of it gave away the fact he'd felt, even for the briefest of moments, the same feeling of dread and fear I'd have. You remember those videos of people driving on empty roads in the middle of the night only to have someone step into the road and get them to stop, I asked. A sharp intake of breath came from the passenger seat before he answered, finishing my thought, and then a A bunch of people spring out of the woods trying to ambush them. Oh, hell no. My thoughts exactly.

Starting point is 02:29:05 Time to friggin' leave. I released the parking brake, pulling on my seatbelt and jamming the car into first gear. The tires chirped as I hit the gas. In a moment later, we were accelerating away. As we did, the feeling of being watched rapidly fell away to nothing. And I allowed myself to let out a relief sigh. We drove in silence for another few minutes. minutes before I finally spoke again. I think we're in the clear, man. Craig lit out a soft laugh. Thank fuck for that.

Starting point is 02:29:38 I nodded. Then reached for the soda, which had fallen, wedging itself by the parking break. Snatching it up, I uncapped it and took another swig. The still cool liquid feeling amazing going down my throat. Recapping and dropping it behind me into the back seat. I let out a laugh of my own. I don't mean to be a Debbie Downer, Greg,

Starting point is 02:30:00 but I think after this I may take a bit of break from late night drives for a bit. This just got under my skin too much. For a few moments longer, longer than I thought there was nothing, and then he answered. As much as that sucks, bro, I can understand. No problem at all. I thought I could detect a small tone of sadness in his voice, along with something else I couldn't place. But then I heard him sit up straight.

Starting point is 02:30:25 Hey, Jake? He asked, a bit of a concerned tone now etched into it. Yeah? I heard him draw another breath. Shouldn't we be on the highway by now? Or at least see the lights of passing cars? I hadn't been fully concentrating on anything except the next stretch of road in my headlights, but at his words, I jerked my head to look beyond them.

Starting point is 02:30:53 What the actual hell. He was right. The lights of cars and trucks flashing by on the, the freeway should be visible through the dark. I clearly remembered looking in my side-roved mirror as we turned onto the road from the highway, seeing the ever-present white and red clothes zipping by both ways at close to the same distance we were now. That wasn't the case anymore. All I could see in front of us was darkness. Darkness in the woods on either side of the road. For a moment, I lifted my foot off the accelerator, letting the car slow

Starting point is 02:31:27 down a little bit as my brain word. He's got to be mistaken. Hell, I've got to be mistaken. We just haven't gotten close enough to the highway yet. You know, you know these old roads, Derek. They often end up longer than they first look. Feeling somewhat relieved by the thought, I said it out loud to Craig. He nodded, but I could tell he wasn't completely convinced. And for that matter, as much as I repeated it mentally to myself, I couldn't completely convince myself either. It was as if seeing this woman's step in the road had shaken me more than I'd first thought. Pushing back down on the gas, I shifted into fourth gear and watched the speedometer flirt with 55 miles an hour. For a few more minutes, neither one of us saw anything as we drove

Starting point is 02:32:15 in silence, and then Craig let out a cry. There, a light. For a moment, a surge of hope welled up inside me, and I craned over the steering wheel looking to see the highway. It was dashed as I saw it. It was only a street light, standing solitary guard on the side of the road like a century. Beneath it stood an old, worn sign, which seemed to have been shot at many times with both BB pellets and actual bullets. I slowed the car some as it came towards us so I could read it, and felt a wave of confusion fall over me. Golden, two miles. The fuck, Craig breathed out as he read the sign. It passed by as the street light momentarily bathing the interior of the car in light and showing the confused, worried look on his face.

Starting point is 02:33:06 How the hell did we end up by Golden? Golden is a ghost town, one which attracts visitors every year to check out the standing buildings. It was a mining town which had a population of a few hundred people, but once the prospects dried up in the mid to early 20th century, it became the ghost town it is today. Its biggest claim to fame nowadays was being featured on ghost adventures a few years back. Craig repeated his question, but I wasn't able to answer him. My thoughts were racing inside my head. There's no freaking way.

Starting point is 02:33:40 Golden is miles to the north of Placer. There are no roads connecting the two areas from what I saw on the map. Not to mention, we've been driving in a straight. line since leaving the gas station. I honestly don't know, man, I finally answered. My voice conveying how rattled I truly was. In the car's dark interior, I saw him put his head in his hands. I fumbled for my pack of cigarettes, pulling another out with slightly unsteady fingers and pushing in the cigarette lighter. A few moment later, the turnoff for the ghost town flashed by on the right. I saw the dark hulking shape of the church's spire rising out of the dark for a moment,

Starting point is 02:34:17 then it was behind us. The lighter popped out, and I pressed it to the smoke, lighting it and putting it back. I decided I need to try and calm the rising tension that was filling the car's interior. Look, however, we ended up here, man. The fact is we can't be far from the highway. So let's just keep our wits about us, keep calm, and when we get back over to my place, you, me and Vanessa, can have a good laugh over this. I heard my friend take a deep breath, then let it out with a whoosh.

Starting point is 02:34:54 Okay, yeah, that sounds like a plan, he said, and he let out a soft laugh, and I felt him pat my shoulder. Thanks, Derek. You are a seriously good friend. Glad I've got you. I nodded, then realized he may not be able to see it in the dark. No problem, man, and I said, I looked at the clock. 3 a.m. Only five minutes had passed since I'd looked at it.

Starting point is 02:35:16 and yet it felt more like it had been 30. Time seems different when you're stressed. For a few minutes there was only darkness, and then a light appeared in the distance. Ha! There we go, I exclaimed. I waited to see the sign for the on-ramp appear. And felt a shiver shoot up my spine

Starting point is 02:35:36 as the sign for golden flew by again. That's... What? Craig didn't say anything, but I felt him stiffened in the passenger seat. showing he'd seen it as well. As the street light and sign disappeared behind us, a feeling began to creep up on me. Another shiver shot up my spine as I realized that it was the same feeling I'd had when we'd gotten out of the car. The feelings of eyes on me. My eyes shifted to the blur

Starting point is 02:36:09 of the trees on either side of the car, but I saw no one out there. The turnoff for the ghost town approached again. I heard Craig let out another deep breath. Derek, pull us over, please, he said simply. His voice was shaking, and as much as I didn't want to stop, I did as he asked, pulling over just before the turn off. He ripped his seatbelt off, shoving the door open and stepping out. I watched him strides to the front of the car and stand there for a minute. He seemed to start shaking a bit, and I realized just how much this was getting to him. I unbuckled my seapelt and reached for the door handle. When I glanced at the clock and froze, the clock was still showing 3 a.m.

Starting point is 02:36:55 The hands hadn't moved at all. A feeling of shock washed over me like a wave as I tapped it with my fingers to see if it was merely stuck. But it refused to begin moving again. Okay, what the fuck is going on? I whispered to myself. I reached into my pocket, fishing out my phone and turning on. the screen. Like the clock, it too, show the time as 3am. The feeling of being watched began to intensify, and I glanced at Craig standing in the dark before looking down, beginning to type

Starting point is 02:37:30 a text out to Vanessa. Hey, baby girl just wanted to let you know that Craig and I are okay. We're trying to get back to the highway, but have gotten a bit turned around out here. Do me a favor, and if I don't text you again in 15 minutes, text me back, okay, I love you. I replaced the phone back in my pocket. I knew I should have been more honest, but I was beginning to feel a little freaked out by the weird situation. I didn't want to worry her any more than necessary as it would make me start to freak out worse. Pushing open the door, I got out and walked around, stopping near the front headlight.

Starting point is 02:38:07 Dude, you all right? I asked him after a moment. He didn't answer, but happily he seemed to have stopped shaking. I repeated my question. When he didn't answer my second and third calls, I began to feel a new sensation creep up on me, a potent mixture of dread and fear. Craig, dude, you're creeping me the fuck out.

Starting point is 02:38:28 Please say something. He finally turns to look at me, and in the semi-glow of the headlights, I saw his face had gone a bit pale. He raised his finger and pointed, saying only one word. Look. My eyes followed where he had gestured, and I began to feel like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over my head.

Starting point is 02:38:53 The cigarette dangling from my lips fell from my mouth to the ground, standing about 15 feet away. Just inside the tree line was a figure. It was drenched in gloom, but with a gasp I realized it was the same woman who nearly caused me to wreck. Oh, fuck me sideways, man. I swallowed. finding my voice. We should, um, we should get back in the car, Craig. He nodded almost immediately. I think you might be right, he answered. His voice wavering, not taking our eyes off the figure. We slowly backed up until we reached our respective doors and climbed in. I didn't even bother putting

Starting point is 02:39:34 on my seatbelt. I just jammed the gear shifter into the first and floored it. Dirt and gravel kicked up behind us in the car shot forward onto the road. This time I had to, didn't let up on the gas. I kept my foot hard down, the engine beginning to warroar as I shifted into third and fourth. The spedometer reached 60 as I shifted into fifth gear, the feeling of being watched intensifying with each passing second. I prayed that I would see something, anything ahead of us, an intersection, a house, a freaking out-of-use payphone for fuck's sake. And then my blood turned to ice as a light appeared ahead of us, the exact same one as before with the sign underneath.

Starting point is 02:40:11 My eyes flickered to the clock and terror shot through me as I saw it was still frozen at the same time. This isn't good, bro. Craig said from the passenger seat, I agreed with him, but didn't say it out loud. I kept my foot to the floor, the speedometer now hitting 80. The turnoff appeared again, and what I saw made me want to scream. The woman had gotten closer to the road, and she wasn't alone anymore. Behind her, I saw others. outlines of other people, dozens, possibly more, they all stood facing the road, watching us fly by,

Starting point is 02:40:43 and then they disappeared into the rear view mirror. Fuck, I breathed out as the lights and sign passed by once again. This time, the mass of people had gotten even closer to the road. The woman stood in front of them all, and for a split second, the headlights illuminated her, another flash of ice shot through my veins as I saw the river of blood pouring down the front of her nightgown. one that looked to be decades old. What the hell do we do?

Starting point is 02:41:15 Craig asked me. His voice steady, yet filled with fear. The same I felt. I just shook my head. I don't know, man, was all I could say. The streetlight began to appear again when I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket, causing me to nearly slam on the brakes in surprise. I fumbled in my pocket for it, seeing Craig look over at me.

Starting point is 02:41:36 I texted Vanessa when we stopped, told her to reply in a few minutes, now I think I'm going to tell her to call the cops or something. He didn't reply, instead turning to look at the windshield at the approaching light. Flickering my eyes from the phone to the road and back, I forced myself to not look at the turnoff as we zoomed past the lights. I didn't want to see how close those ghosts, demons, whatever they are, had gotten to the road. I flipped my finger, pushing away the lock screen and tapping on the messenger icon as the light began to appear once. more. Vanessa's message automatically opened and for a moment relief like I'd never felt surged through me at the small bit of normalcy I had in my grasp. I froze. I didn't even look up at

Starting point is 02:42:25 the road. I couldn't. My eyes were locked on a single sentence, reading and rereading it. A wave of confusion passed over me. Enough I spoke aloud. The fuck? Craig spoke up. What? What did you say? I didn't answer him. My mind was racing at a million miles an hour, trying to understand, but it was like I was hitting a mental wall. I tried to think of something else as another thought came to me, but again, the same block was coming to me. As it did, a new wave of fear began to rise up in me, one for an entirely new reason,

Starting point is 02:42:58 then the terrifying loop flying by outside. This pedometer now showed we were doing 90, and then Craig spoke, Can I ask you a question, man? ice filled every vein in my body, not at his question, but at his voice. It was different. Gone was the fear and tension he'd had not even a minute ago. Now he just sounded flat. No, not flat. I couldn't tell why, but the way his voice was, it almost made me feel like he was smiling. Another shiver cascaded up my spine as I finally forced myself to answer my mouth dry as cotton. What? He answered as we began to fly under the streetlight.

Starting point is 02:43:39 Are you scared? For whatever reason, the question made me turn to him just as the light whizzed over us. For a split second, the car's interior became illuminated again. My eyes locked with his. The lights flew by, the turn off appeared again, and for a moment my eyes flicked up to see the woman was right next to the road. It's completely in the headlights. I finally caught a glimpse of her face, and then I was screaming. My fingers tearing at the door handle as the car swerved to the right.

Starting point is 02:44:15 I saw a tree flying towards the windshield. I didn't think I just forced the door open and leapt out. The ground rapidly flew up to meet me. Darkness. I woke up in a hospital room, a bandage covering my head and one arm in a sling. My chest felt like it was on fire as well. the first thing I saw was Vanessa, who, upon seeing me wake up, burst into tears and wrapped her arm around me. A few moments later, the doctor came in. He told me that I was a lucky man,

Starting point is 02:44:45 apparently. I'd gotten away with only a gash in my head requiring staples, severely bruised ribs and a broken arm. Shocking for having dove out of a car at what appeared to be tremendous speed, he said, raising an eyebrow. Then he told me the police wanted to speak to me. He showed them in, and two officers entered, asking me many questions. I told them exactly what had happened, well, except for two small details, anyways, they appeared to take my account seriously and promised to look into it. We've had some reports similar to yours, sir, one of them answered tentatively. Then they showed me how I'd been found, how a father and son who owned a gas station nearby I had been out driving and had come across first my destroyed Honda, which had wrapped itself

Starting point is 02:45:35 around a tree and then some, and then lying unconscious in the grassy ditch, me. They didn't say who they'd been, but I had a fair idea who they'd been, at least the sun anyways. That night was three months ago. I've been at home, resting and healing this entire time. It's given me plenty of time to think. Plenty of time to process. Everything. I try not to think about that night about many of it. I feel like I'll go in signing if I do, especially after the police told me that they found nobody else at the scene of the wreck,

Starting point is 02:46:08 only the passenger door hanging open. But I've had to. After receiving an email from an unknown address, one claiming to be the son, the kid I saw in the gas station that night, he told me things, things that his father told him he'd seen for years that he didn't believe at all until that night

Starting point is 02:46:27 when he looked out the door at my car, that's when he'd frankly called his father. As I type this out, I feel myself begin to violently shake, remembering the woman's face, indeed a ghost, as it flashed in the headlights. The look of horror plastered there as she frantically waved at me to get my attention. The same look the others must have had, remembering turning to look at Craig as the light flickered over in seeing the smile on his face. A smile wider than any human beings could possibly be. Filled with shark-like teeth as black eyes stared hungrily at me.

Starting point is 02:47:08 The same shark-like smile. The kid told me he'd been flashed as I'd pulled away. But mostly I remember the single line of text Vanessa sent me what caused me to rack my brain. Trying frantically to recall my friendship with the figure sitting opposite me and horror filling me as I realized I couldn't think of one single memory. What will keep me from ever taking late night drives again? The three words that will remain burned into my memory forever.

Starting point is 02:47:45 Darling? Who's Craig? I'm a nurse for the elderly. One of the patients made a terrifying confession. Despite what some might tell you, it's not actually so bad to work in this field. Sure, some of the elderly can be difficult times, and like any other job, this one has its stomach-churning moments, but most of them are sweethearts.

Starting point is 02:48:10 All it takes as compassion and patience to break through to them. So yeah, I mostly love this job. I wouldn't give it up if I could help it. The only part I don't like are the occasional confessions from some of the patients. They say that people can feel their ends nearing, and after a few years working this job, I've come to believe that. Some of them have no one else, no family or friends left. So they air their dirty laundry, so to say, in front of us nurses.

Starting point is 02:48:39 Most of the time, it's pretty mild stuff. Old Gregory cheated on his wife in their 30s, Larry used to be into hardcore BDSM, Lisa stole from her company for a while, stuff you don't necessarily expect, but that doesn't surprise you in hindsight. Other times, it borders on disturbing. Jenkins had a bar fight and ran away, and to this day he's not sure if the other guy survived.

Starting point is 02:49:02 Sasha had an abortion on her own without telling her a boyfriend at the time that she was even pregnant. Sierra abandoned her family, running away in the night to start a new life, and seeing the missing person posters ate her up inside. That's the kind of stuff that gets under my skin, but I can at least understand where they're coming from. I can sympathize, even if I don't condone their actions. But then, there are the monsters. the ones that have completely, truly atrocious deeds, and their confessions keep me up at night. Julia, the sweetest old lady you'd ever meet, gaslit her husband into S-word to cash out his life insurance. Freddie helped burn an entire village back in the Vietnam War, basking in the flames and the screams of the dying.

Starting point is 02:49:49 Sally abused her child growing up to the point it would cause a myriad of developmental problems. Mind you, I haven't been there myself for all of those confessions. Us nurses tend to share. Morbid as it might sound. Go ahead and judge if you want, but we don't ask for those burdens to be placed on our shoulders and we'll seek relief wherever we can find it. Most of the time, it's just innocent gossip. The, you won't believe what Gus used to do when he was his young type.

Starting point is 02:50:15 Other times there are tears and silent cries in the break room. Stone, cold expressions, and a pressing atmosphere. Not a hint, a lividy to go around. But such is life in this field. Most of us have learned to live with it and those who couldn't walked away. I myself ended up in the first camp and I don't think last night will change my mind. Anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself. You need some context in order to make heads or tails of this. It all started with Parker. So I should too. He's a bitter old man. No way to sugarcoat it. A tough nut to crack, rage and hatred for everyone and everything simmering of

Starting point is 02:50:54 under the surface at all times. He's the type of person that won't be satisfied until your parade is soaked to the bone and rain. He's been here since I, before I was hired. So the other nurses warned me about him from day one. God, help you if you have to interact with him. He can ruin your entire week just by opening his mouth, they told me. I didn't take them seriously thinking he couldn't be that bad.

Starting point is 02:51:18 Spoiler alert, he was, but not in the ways you'd expect. He didn't get physically violent like, some of the other elderly. He didn't fling shit and piss soaked diapers at us. He flung words, but he knew how to make them cut and cut deep. Our first interaction happened when I had to check up on him and make sure he took his medicine. It was a nice evening and I found old man Parker in his room lounging in his recliner. He faced towards the window back to the door, and he didn't even bother around to look at me when I entered. Good evening, Mr. Parker, I greeted. meat, he spat a response laced with spite. I gritted my teeth in, tried to sound polite when I answered.

Starting point is 02:52:01 My name is Jessica, but fresh meat, he interrupted me. You won't last a month, so I won't bother learning your name. Now why are you here, fresh meat? I told him why, and he pointed at the empty pill bottle on the night stand next to him. Then he returned to staring out the window at the sunset without another word, so I took my leave. This was how the first three weeks went by. I went over to room for this or that. He made some snide remarks to insult me and I held my tongue. It was clear he didn't want anyone around, especially me. But I was never a quitter, and it wasn't about to bend the knee to some old fart with a vendetta against happiness itself. You still there? He asked on the fourth week when I passed by his room to change his bedding. My God, woman, you're about as smart as you

Starting point is 02:52:48 are pretty. He was in his recliner again. Most of his evenings and nights were spent there, but by the day he'd be outside, or in the common area, terrorizing everyone he happened upon. But as soon as dusk approached, he'd retreat to his room and peer out the window until he fell asleep in the recliner. I ignored his remark, approaching the bed with a fresh set of sheets and pillowcases. What? Did he swallow your tongue? Forget how words work? He kept pestering me? I took off the old sheet and discarded it on the floor, even though it wasn't all that dirty. That wouldn't be a big surprise. Honestly, the only thing surprising me is that you learn to speak in the first place. Now, I don't recommend doing what I did, reacting like I had. At that point, I should have thrown in

Starting point is 02:53:32 the towel and walked away, but I didn't. After two weeks of abuse like that on a daily, I snapped. I threw the fresh seats haphazardly on the bed and stomped over to his recliner. Listen, here, you shriveled up ball sack. I went off on him. I don't know what your problem is, but I don't need this kind of treatment in my life. I'm not surprised that your family left you. With an attitude like that, I'd have dropped you off at a care home first chance I got as well. I hurled insult after insult at him, digging deep to dredge out the nasty side of me. Fully expecting Parker to go off on me and return, but instead he stood there and took it all. With each colorful word leaving my mouth, the corners of his lips pulled a little further up

Starting point is 02:54:14 into a satisfied grin. I only stopped when I ran out of breath and he waited a moment to make sure I was done. What did you say your name was again? he asked. Jessica. Jessica, he repeated, letting each letter roll off his tongue. Tell you what? I like you. And that was that. He returned to staring out the window and I was able to carry out my work in peace. I regretted the outperst for a while, feared that it would somehow come back to bite me in the ass and get me fired, but Parker didn't tell anyone. It was our little secret. Every day after that he'd grin when he saw me. He still gave me lip, but it was different. More jovial. Not trying to insult me and drive me away just to tease me. But I could work with him without

Starting point is 02:55:01 breaking down into tears afterwards, so I took my win. After a while, I started teasing him back. He'd call me his insult of the day. I called him mine. We'd laugh it off and move on. What I'm trying to say is that we developed this weird bond and I actually started having fun. I started looking forward to it. We didn't talk about anything else. I didn't even know the first thing about him and he didn't know the first thing about me but in my eyes that only added to the charm life moved on and before i noticed i've been working there for years rumors about parker abounded everyone had their theories and beliefs but i couldn't confirm or deny any of them the man was still as much of a mystery to me as he'd been on the first day then one day about a month

Starting point is 02:55:43 ago things started to change he'd make less comments he spent more and more time in his room isolating from everyone. Parker had always been very self-sufficient for his someone his age, but he started needing help with things and I could see it killed him on the inside. I didn't mind. This was what I was getting paid for. But the man had his pride. He refused to be seen by a medic and get treatment,

Starting point is 02:56:08 so we all expected him to kick the bucket soon. A prospect that made him most everyone in that care home happy, but I for one dreaded it. Even so, I knew better than to try and talk to him about it. One evening before I went home, I checked on him. Parker was in his usual spot in the recliner, drapes drawn aside and him window wide open. The sun was already gone, sunken below the horizon, painting it red as night creeped in. He didn't acknowledge my presence, not until I stopped next to him.

Starting point is 02:56:37 Hey, Jessica, he greeted. His voice a low rumble. I nearly went for a, hey, fart bone, but the sound of my name and the way that he said it gave me pause. For the first time in the many years I'd known him, he sounded serious for once. A pit of dread formed to my stomach. Everything all right, Mr. Parker? His lips curled at the corners, pulling his gaunt face into his smile. A dry, raspy chuckle left his throat, but he let me question linger in the air for a moment.

Starting point is 02:57:08 Going home for the night, he asked? Yes. Could you stay just for a little while longer? Of course. I knew what this meant. Parker felt his time was coming and he wanted someone next to him. I leaned in to take his hand into mine, but a bastard will be a bastard to the very end. He slapped my hand away, so we stood there in awkward silence, watching the night settle outside.

Starting point is 02:57:31 You know the closest things I have to a friend, Jessica. He said out of the blue. The closest thing I have to a family. He let out another chuckle. But it sounded sad. God, I'm so pathetic. I put a hand on a shoulder, and this time he didn't. slap it away. I had no idea what exactly to say. Parker wasn't one for sappy speeches,

Starting point is 02:57:53 so in the end I went with the truth. Blunt as it was, I figured he'd appreciate my honesty opinion. It's your fault for being a grumpy old fart. You could have had many friends here. So why? Do you have any plans tonight, he asked? And I nodded a no. Then, can I answer your question with a story? Sure. He shifted in the recliner. hiding his time as he searched for the right words. I'd seen it all before and others. They think themselves ready to open up until the time comes to actually do it. With a sigh, he resigned himself to the situation and started speaking.

Starting point is 02:58:30 Parker was born in a small town in the 1940s, right off the back of the Second World War. He had an older brother and a father, neither of which he remembers. The first died of some disease as a child, and the second got drafted and died overseas while Parker was still a baby. That left his mother alone to raise him. But they weren't the only one struggling to make ends meet in the town. Most everyone else did, too. Life back then was harsh, especially for isolated communities like theirs.

Starting point is 02:58:57 But I had a decent enough childhood, Parker assured me. My mother did her best, working herself to the bone and going hungry most nights to make sure I wouldn't. He took a short pause, prying his gaze away from the window to make eye contact with me. I could tell he was uncomfortable. Dwelling on the past brought him a great deal of anguish. but he looked away for me, after a long moment, back at the dark world outside, and continued speaking. Despite his mother's best efforts, his childhood was short-lived. Parker had to grow up fast, to become dependable, to help around the house and find work. It wasn't that uncommon back then.

Starting point is 02:59:36 Kids as young as eight or nine worked shoulder-to-shoulder with the adults. We didn't have much of a choice. Things such as getting an education or waiting until they were adults, those were little more than pipe dreams, but luckily Parker was big for someone his age. At only 10, he was taller and stronger than his 15-year-old friends. He could handle his manual labor and having an extra set of hands to go around, a second breadwinner, did wonders for their household. I still remember getting my first ever pay, he said with a sad smile. A small sum, but I was proud. Mother wanted me to spend it on myself to get something nice, but I didn't. I bought a sack of flour for her to make bread out of, and I used the fabric to make myself a new pair of shorts.

Starting point is 03:00:20 I'm... I'm so sorry, I stuttered. Yeah, me too. But time went on. Parker kept working throughout the years, living life one day at a time. Trouble was never far off, but he faced it head on. The adults always tried to shortchange him for his work, and other kids tried to bully him out of his meager earnings regularly. The first time that happened, I came home and, and he said, and empty handed with a broken nose and a busted lip, he said bitterly. Five of them ganged up on me. It was a doggy, dog world back then. When he was about 13 and his mother brought home a new man, Parker hoped for a change.

Starting point is 03:00:58 A chance for him to have a father, a role model, someone to teach him how to be a man himself. He thought life would get easier. How wrong I was, he said. That man was an alcoholic abuser. Parker and his mother found out as much soon enough. her sooner than him, but he saw the signs. Even though he still worked and brought his earnings home, food was suddenly in short supply.

Starting point is 03:01:23 His mother always had bruises she tried to hide, and his stepfather was always drunk. When I returned home beaten up again by the older kids, I was hopeful for once. I thought I'd go out there and do something about it. And... And he didn't? I asked with hesitation.

Starting point is 03:01:40 Parker huffed. He beat me up as well for being a sissy. In his own words, "'It better not happen again, you hear me?' He said that the next time I come home empty-handed, he'd show me real hell. Why didn't you run away or get the authorities involved? Run away? Where to?' Parker answered.

Starting point is 03:02:00 The authorities didn't give a shit. He kept in enduring the abuse for the sake of his mother, couldn't leave her all alone with the stepfather, and it escalated gradually. Soon enough, his stepfather would take Parker's money outright, then he'd beat his mother out in the open. It wasn't long until he raised his hand at me, on the regular, Parker said,

Starting point is 03:02:19 but it kept my mother safe, so I endured it. On the nights I'd get him beaten up, she was safe. And those nights only got more common as time went on. At first, Parker would get beaten up for stepping in, taking the place of his mother, then he'd get being up for not bringing enough money home and then for no reason at all. At some point, I couldn't take it anymore.

Starting point is 03:02:39 I snapped, Parker admitted. The other kid stole my money again, and I was afraid to go home that night, afraid of what he'd do to me. So I ran off into the woods, looking for a place to sleep, and instead I found this old well. Old well, I asked. Not sure what it had to do with anything up to that point. Old well, Parker confirmed.

Starting point is 03:03:02 You know a hole in the ground for people to get drinking water? Yeah, I know what a well is. At any rate, he found this old well, a dilapidated thing. Long got a use and in serious disrepair. Parker nearly fell down into it when he leaned over the edge to peer down. He threw a pebble into it, and it never landed. Then he tried spinning into it and yelling down into the shaft. It echoed for a long time much longer than it should have.

Starting point is 03:03:27 Parker listened in awe as his own voice reverberated from the well for minutes on end. Not getting any fainter, but awe inside. It gave him the idea. I didn't like the sound of that. I did end up returning home that night, Parker said. found him beating up my mother since I wasn't there, and he chased me when he saw me. Parker led his stepfather out of the town and into the woods, farther away from civilization, deeper and deeper between the trees, until he heard the faint echo of the well still calling out.

Starting point is 03:03:58 A hid nearby and kept quiet, he said, waited for him to find the well, and he did. He heard the echoes of my scream and thought I fell down into the damn thing trying to hide. The asshole laughed about it. His stepfather approached the well and leaned over the edge. still laughing. Did you learn your lesson yet? You damn bastard? Parker imitated him. Little did he know that I did. It just wasn't the lesson he wanted me to learn. Parker burst out from his hiding place while his stepfather was distracted and ran up at him. All it took was a single push, he said grimly. A single push. And he tumbled over the edge. Fell into the abyss head first,

Starting point is 03:04:35 screaming all the way to the bottom. From that day onward, the echo of his voice joined mine in that well. The authorities pretended to search for him for a few days, but no one truly gave a shit. He was just an alcoholic bastard, so everyone thought he'd gotten his comeuppance. That he died in a ditch somewhere, or he ran away in search of greener pastures and other people to terrorize. No one suspected us, Parker said. Not my mother, who was too weak to fight back, and they considered me just a kid. No way in their eyes for either one of us to kill an adult man. With him out of the picture, though, Parker's life improved somewhat.

Starting point is 03:05:13 He still earned a pittance, and the other kids still bullied him, but at least he could rest easy in his own home. I went to that well every day at first, then every other day, then once a week at most, but the screams never stopped. Day and night. They got fainter, barely a whisper in the wind, but I could still hear them. Didn't it scare you? It terrified me, Parker admitted, but I also saw the possibilities. That answer terrified me. I contemplated for a moment to call it a night to put an end to Parker's confession and leave,

Starting point is 03:05:46 but I was also curious for better or for worse. Next up were the kids that bullied me, Parker continued. It took me a long time to build up the courage to even consider it, but enough abuse will push reasonable men to do unreasonable actions. The gang was five members strong, their leader 19 years old and the youngest about Parker's age. The rest were all in between. starving street urchins. Parker called them, either orphans or with home lives similar to his own that pushed them to run away and brave the world. Except they were lazy, Parker said. They took the easy

Starting point is 03:06:20 way out, stealing, conning, bullying other kids like they did to me. The community wasn't happy with them, but they never targeted adults so they were tolerated until they beat up Parker for the hundredth time and he decided he'd had enough. I only wanted to get rid of their leave. leader, he said. Thought their little click would break apart without him, but I couldn't separate them. Parker tried to challenge him to a one-on-one fight outside of town, but he came with the rest of his gang and he was pissed. You could see the bloodlust in his eyes from a mile away. I knew they'd give me hell like never before, so I had no choice. All five of them had to go. Parker ran away, and just like his stepfather, they chased him into the woods. He hid near the well again, and when they

Starting point is 03:07:07 got closer to inspect the echoing voices, Parker repeated his earlier stunt. I pushed the older boy first, he said, in a stone-cold voice. Then before the others had a chance to wise up, I pushed the second oldest as well. The others were smaller. I could take them. They tried to run away to escape with their lives, but I couldn't let them. Parker chased them down, and he caught up to the youngest first. He tripped the boy from behind and stomped on his knee to break it, then kept going. The second one he grabbed by the shoulders and swung into the tree head first, breaking his neck. I tackled the last one and got him into a chokehold. He kicked his legs, clawed at my arm, tried to bite me a few times. When he realized he couldn't break free, he started

Starting point is 03:07:51 pleading, begging for his life. Told me he wouldn't speak a single word about what happened here. He begged like that all the way to the well until his legs were over the edge. The boy with the broken neck followed, and the one with the broken leg dragged himself quite the distance by the time Parker got to him. But he went through with it, and that night, the well gained five more voices. Parker stopped his retelling for a moment and stared off into the distance. At first I thought he was either giving me a breather, a bit of time to process what I heard, or that he was searching for words.

Starting point is 03:08:25 I looked outside his well, and the silhouette of a tree against a starry night sky shook in the distance. A reverberating scream followed. We don't have much time left. I have to hurry up, Parker whispered. I was frozen by his side as he picked the story back up in shock and fear, not knowing what was about to go down or what I should do. I'd witnessed a few confessions by that point,

Starting point is 03:08:48 but none came even close to Parker's. He confessed to six murders in just as many minutes, and I was sure there'd be a few more by the time he'd be done with me. The guilt ate me up inside he confessed. I went by the well every single day, fighting back the urge to jump into it myself. No one missed those kids, and no one in the community blamed Parker. He wasn't the only one getting bullied by then, and on some level, everyone was glad they were gone. One less problem in their lives.

Starting point is 03:09:19 So they were happy to pretend the five ran off somewhere to carry out bigger heists. I was depressed for years because of it, but I kept telling myself that I had to do it, and my life was better now. Lies I only half believed. but they got me out of bed in the morning. Another tree shook outside, closer to us, but there wasn't a scream this time. Parker flinched visibly.

Starting point is 03:09:40 Anyway, the years flew by. People kept leaving the small town flocking to big cities in search of work. I was one of them. I found this wonderful girl, and I left with her. They took Parker's mother as well, and the three of them found work at some factory or another. And for a few years, he thought,

Starting point is 03:09:56 he left a small town and his horrible deeds behind. Until I started hearing screams in the night. Voices I recognized. I thought I was imagining at first. I tried to convince myself it was nothing more than me just going insane with guilt. Another tree shook outside, followed by a how. Let me guess. It was all too real. Parker nodded his head. My mother went missing one evening, and we never found her. The big city police took it a bit more seriously, but they couldn't dig up a single lead. No witnesses, no suspects, nothing. But Parker knew exactly where to find her, or what was left of her.

Starting point is 03:10:36 After a long trip back to his hometown and a truck through the woods, his worst fears were confirmed. His mother's voice joined the tortuous course in the well. I broke down right then and there, cried in that forest by myself all night long. It was supposed to be me, not her. He returned home though, if only for the sake of his girlfriend and soon-to-be wife. She was pregnant. He'd soon have their first child, and Parker wanted a better life for them than he'd had growing up.

Starting point is 03:11:06 He'd be there for his kids, there for his wife, there to make sure they'd be all right. They got married with little fanfare, few friends and even fewer family members for a proper wedding, and a child was born a couple months later. The most beautiful baby girl in the world, Parker explained with a glint in his eyes, holding her, hearing her crying. It was all I ever wanted, enough to justify everything I'd done and been through in a heartbeat. Another tree shook outside and something to contour in the underbrush at the edge of the property. I let out a yelp and Parker reached for me.

Starting point is 03:11:41 He grabbed my forearm and held me steady as I tried to back away. We still have a few minutes. He said calmly, and don't worry, it's not here for you. You're safe. He proceeded with the rest of his story and I had to try my damned hardest to divide my attention between him and whatever was out there. I treasured every moment and with my wife and daughter, but you know how these things go. She grew up in a heartbeat. Before I realized it, she spoke her first words, took her first steps, moments I couldn't be prouder of as a father. The thing bellowed, a guttural sound that rattled my bones.

Starting point is 03:12:15 Dying animals, my first thought. A coyote getting murdered or a fox going into heat. It took a step forward into the faint circle of light surrounding the care home, and I saw a human face. Then another one. another one, contorted in agony and held together to form a gigantic head. Then that thing returned once more, Parker said, raising a hands-up point at the advancing beast. More cries in the night, more screams and howls, I knew what it wanted, but I couldn't let it have me or my family. Another step brought its neck and torso into view, pulsing muscles criss-crossing each other at random, skin stretched and so it pulled tot, dozens of human arms jutting out of it in the most random

Starting point is 03:12:57 places. Its myriad of eyes moved every which way, scanning, searching. I knew I had to do something before it was too late to either get rid of it or appease it, and I knew what it wanted. What? I asked, stuttering and shaking with fear. People. Bodies. Victims, Parker answered. More of them. I opened up its appetite and now it was hungry. If I didn't give it what it wanted, it would get itself. Take my world from me. I didn't want it to do it. I tried to talk myself out of it until the very last moment, but I was so pressed for time and worried sick for my family, so I went back to the town. For a moment, I wished my eyes could do the same thing the creatures did. I wanted to turn and look at Parker to see his face, but I didn't dare take my eyes off of it. Every last muscle in my

Starting point is 03:13:50 body was clenched, holding me in place. I was barely able to breathe. It took another step forward and all of those dead, beady eyes focused every last one of them pinned on the window, on the room, on me and Parker. I just... I kidnapped someone, Parker said. His voice fraying into a cry at the edges. An older man living all by himself. I knew him.

Starting point is 03:14:15 He knew he'd been a widow over for decades. He knew me. He barely fought back as I tied and gagged him. I expected him to plead as well like the kids had. I expected him to fight. me, but the silence, it was worse somehow. Did he know about that, that thing? I managed to push out a question. What? No, of course not, Parker answered. He was just old and frail. And he knew he couldn't do anything to stop me. Maybe he'd given up on life long ago like I ended up doing. I don't know.

Starting point is 03:14:49 The rest of the monster came into view as it advanced towards the open window, and there was so much more of it than I expected. So many legs moving haphazardly, slapping the lawn at awkward angles to pull the body along. It felt surreal, like the window was a screen and I was merely watching some cheap horror movie with even cheaper special effects. At night, I dragged the old man out of town and threw the woods. I got him into the well, said a short prayer for his soul, and tipped him over the edge. He went down without a sound. The monster stopped a few feet away from the window and craned its head forward. By that point, I was pretty much useless, more of an ornament than an active participant. Parker let go of me and moved to get up, failing twice.

Starting point is 03:15:33 His old bones were all out of strength. But he saw his determination. The third attempt saw him to his feet, even if a bit wobbly. I returned to my wife and daughter after that, he said, taking his step towards the window, and all was fine for a while, seeing her smile growing up, having her by my side. It kept the guilt at bay. She was my world, and I was ready to do anything to keep my world from crumbling. The monster cooed, one of its many faces moved along its scrim, pushing against the rest

Starting point is 03:16:06 until it got to the forefront. A wide smile took over its lips, replacing the agonized expression. The next time the screams returned, I knew what I had to do. Knew what the rest of my life would be like, what sins I had to commit. Every few years, I'd return to that cursed town, kidnapped someone in the dead of night, and throw them into the well. The smile on the face of the forefront only grew wider, but the rest didn't match. They started whispering aggressively, their voices merging as they got louder.

Starting point is 03:16:34 I kept at it until my daughter grew up, until she found a boy she wanted to marry moved out, until everyone left that town behind to be an empty shell for the force to retake. And I called it a job well done. I thought my daughter was safe and I could finally let the monster take me, that I had finally atoned for all of my sins. Parker closed the gap to the window, instead of the monster. It pushed its many arms into the room, hands both big and small, grasping at the air as they tried to reach him.

Starting point is 03:17:04 And what happened to her? I asked. The question felt strange coming up out of my throat and leaving my mouth, like it was uttered by someone a million miles away, completely detached from the situation. Parker extended one of his arms, but paused and turned to face me. What do you think happened? Jessica? He asked in a somber voice. What do you think pushed me on the run for the rest of my life? It made me grow wary of approaching people and making friends. I held back the answer,

Starting point is 03:17:35 if only because I had one more question. Why tell me all of this? Parker smirked the same mischievous shit-eating grin I'd gotten used to from him. Because I'm a selfish old bastard, he said, matter-factly. I wanted at least one person to know and maybe miss me. And now you do. He took the final step that brought him within the monster's reach, and it got a hold of his arm with 100 fingers. The many eyes looked past Parker directly at me. Thank you, Jessica, Parker said. His back to me.

Starting point is 03:18:07 You can leave him now. That would be the best. I didn't argue with him on that. I slowly walked backwards towards the door. My head was heavy, mine spinning, and my legs felt like unsteady stilts a hundred feet long. But I did it. I reached the door, backed out into the corridor, and closed it gently. Parker watched me the whole time, a peaceful smile on its lips until the latch clicked.

Starting point is 03:18:29 The rest of the night was blur. I wandered to the break room with tears streaming down my face, but I didn't even realize I was crying until I tried to light a cigarette and a tear fell on it. My hand shook like an earthquake, as did the rest of me. I smoked about half the pack, waiting and praying for the thing to leave so I could, too. A couple of hours later, I finally built up the courage to bolt it out of the care, home into my car. I drove home in a haze, eyes starting at every little movement, and I didn't manage to sleep a wink until the break of dawn. But I returned to the care home for my next shift,

Starting point is 03:19:02 looking like a ghost. Police were there interrogating everyone about Parker's disappearance, and I lied to them, couldn't possibly tell them the truth, not when I didn't know where the damn thing well is. So yeah, I lied until they left me alone. I lied until they packed in their car and drove off. Everyone else is awfully happy that Parker is gone, and I stand out among them like a sore thumb. Sitting in his recliner, writhing as the sunset approaches, I realized he was right on both accounts. He was a selfish old bastard, and he left behind someone who misses him. I met someone who claimed to be the devil, and I think I believe them. Let me start off by saying that I'm not particularly religious.

Starting point is 03:19:50 If you asked me if I believed in God, I'd probably just shrug. grunt out a few words about being on the fence about it and continue with my day. Of course, that was before last night. My friends are the kinds of people who like wild nights. Crazy parties. Snort a bit of C. Take a bit of E in the bathroom. Maybe hook up with someone and leave a text on my phone at 10 past who the F knows

Starting point is 03:20:14 telling me they don't need that ride I'm offering after all. Not to say I don't like to drink. I do. It's just clubs aren't my style. lying low in a pub somewhere, drink in hand, listening to ZV drone on to whatever channel some scruffy guy in the back parked out for, I guess that's my idea of fun. So when my friends tell me that they're going out for a night on the town, I say, sure. I hang on for the first club, buy a non-alcoholic beer in case my car is required, and try to pretend that I'm having fun. By the time I see them grinding on girls on guys, when they strike conversation with someone who definitely might be a dealer, well, I decide my services.

Starting point is 03:20:52 are no longer needed. We aren't too far out. The night tube is on beck and call and I can always find my car the next day. That's when I wander out of the club, look for something a little more rustic. Not that it's hard to find, not at all. I found myself in a bit of a state inside of a bar called the Ragged Feather. I wasn't a fan of the name all that much, but the drinks were cheap and the largest demographic seemed to be middle-aged white men watching reruns of the football. I tried to pretend I hadn't just staggered out of a club with my ears ringing. I slicked my hair back, slipped my phone into my hand, and wandered over the bar. I took a double shot of whiskey and drank it in one hit.

Starting point is 03:21:30 Just because I wasn't at the club, didn't mean I couldn't have a good time. I hung at the bar a while on my own, scrolled through my phone pretending I was doing something far more impressive than I really was. I kept an ear out for the guys on the sofas. They'd get vocal every now and then. I think the football was just running highlights, but they were incredibly dedicated. to their teams. I got another whiskey and blood into the background. Of course, stragglers from clubs are commonplace. It wasn't long until some scantly dressed women staggered in, laughing, chuckling, pointing for where they wanted to sit. I saw a guy walking with his friend slung over his shoulder,

Starting point is 03:22:05 catatonic, most likely. He threw his friend onto one of the leather sofas, ingrained with beer and smokes, and demanded two pints of water and all the peanuts the bar had in stock. The bartender seemed bitterly amused. Some of the girls were taking selfies, Snapchat and their friends who were still at the club. They're ordering shots, gearing themselves up for the next leg of their night. A couple of bloke's wandered in with curies and takeout trays. I saw someone eat a big mac on the outside, seeing through the window. This was a night for the young and inebriated, and my mind was just doled enough by the whiskey to enjoy the characters I could watch peacefully without interacting with. That is, until someone slipped into the seat next to me.

Starting point is 03:22:47 Do I look like a girl with daddy issues? She was of average height, although that wasn't apparent immediately due to the fact that she was leaning her arms heavily against the bar. She was slim with short and astounding bright red hair. It framed her round face, a face that was marred with smudged eye shadow, smudged lipstick. Hell, it looked like her makeup was in the process of melting right from her face. There was a chip nodded into her curl in her hair just by her forehead. The drunk side of me was actually tempted to pick it out. The girl was clearly drunk, and as I looked around the bar, I couldn't quite place where she had come from.

Starting point is 03:23:25 She didn't belong to the crowd of selfie takers. She wasn't with the catatonic guys. I hoped for her safety that she wasn't with the middle-aged men. I tried to look out the window to see if maybe a group was missing when inebriated, bright-haired girl, but I couldn't. The window had fogged up. Too much heat inside, not enough outside. Are you okay, I asked her? She pointed her finger at me.

Starting point is 03:23:49 Answer my question. She slurred. Uh, I really wasn't sure what to say. I settled on staring at her awkwardly, trying to answer her with my bemuse expression on my face. The girl's lips curled into a drunken smile. She snorted. Placing a hand over her mouth to smother her laughter. It only really aided the deconstruction of her lipstick.

Starting point is 03:24:13 I do. You know. she said, pushing herself up a little against the bar. Have daddy issues. I mean, in case that wasn't obvious, she gestured to herself. To the mused clothing that must have looked quite spectacular when she'd left home that evening. To the stains that looked like a lot of old food, the sticky residue on her neck and shoulders that was quite obviously a thrown drink.

Starting point is 03:24:37 What happened? I asked her. Her hair had curled around her neck. I realized it was sticky with the same substance. She was a wreck. I got in a couple of fights. No big deal, she said, shrugging. Didn't start any, of course. No, I don't do that, but my father.

Starting point is 03:24:55 Your dad did this to you? She smiled brightly. In a way. Do you need me to call someone? I already had my phone in my hand. The girl looked like she was probably in her early 20s. But that didn't mean she couldn't have been suffering from some kind of paternal abuse. The only number I knew of, the bat was childline,

Starting point is 03:25:13 which wasn't quite appropriate. The police? Jesus, was I going to have to deal with the cops tonight? My friends were snorting coke, not two doors down? The girl pushed my hand down firmly. She was already shaking her head. No, she told me. I don't want you to call anyone.

Starting point is 03:25:30 Now, her expression changed. It wasn't the attempted sultry look I'd seen on many girls of her state. It was open and wide and engaging. She wanted something from me and I felt compelled to give it to her. I want something. else. What do you want, I asked her? To tell you a story, the girl said, before glancing to the bar, and for you to buy me a drink. The universe is pain sometimes, and I'm afraid I think I might have lost my wallet. I laughed. I didn't know this girl, didn't know where she'd come from at all. My nights were

Starting point is 03:26:02 generally about getting comfortably wasted and making sure my friends weren't dead in a ditch by the end of it all. I was used to getting hit on every now and then, but even as I was sat on that bar stool with a drink in my hand, I knew that this wasn't what this was. The girl had no intention of getting into my pants. All she wanted was to talk. I guess I was okay with that. What's your poison? I asked her. Her lips quirked. A plentini. The bar offered a very limited cocktail menu, but by some miracle, I was able to order her an M. Plentini from the list. I ordered a cider to go with it, suddenly a little too aware of where this night could go. I had unethical. I had unethical. I had unethical. I had unthinkingly supplied this liquored-up stranger with even more alcohol and she had clearly had a

Starting point is 03:26:49 rough night of it. A part of my old instinct came back. The same instinct that had me texting my friends every few hours to make sure they hadn't wandered off to somewhere dangerous beyond the club. With no one but the bartender aware of our existence on these stools, I realized that I was suddenly responsible for this very drunk stranger. The girl coddled her drink, running her finger delicately over the rim of the muggy martini glass. This takes me back, the girl said amiably. She looked at me suddenly, her green eyes startling. You know what this was called originally?

Starting point is 03:27:24 She smirked before I could answer. In Adam's apple martini. I snorted. Yeah, I think I've heard that before. Of course it wasn't actually an apple, she continued. Eyes moving back to her glass. The text translated that part wrongly, mostly because you people don't have a word for it anymore.

Starting point is 03:27:43 The fruit was incredibly exotic, and to be honest, it doesn't exist in this realm of existence, only Eden. She laughed dreamily, and Eden's long gone. I stared at her. Are you okay? It was more honest than the last time I'd asked her, mostly because I was beginning to feel a deep dread into my stomach. Of course, the girl said, grinning them wildly, why do you keep asking?

Starting point is 03:28:11 I mean, I stuttered. I just, now, don't take this wrong way or anything, but you look like someone poured their drink over me, the girl asked. Like someone else threw their kebab on my dress and another unpleasant chap littered me with his fish and chips that I've been hit, slapped around a bit, and left in a gutter for the rats to find me. She held my eyes for an incredibly long time before her face broke out in a grin. Yeah, something like that. that. Why would they do that? I asked. Why wouldn't they? The girl shot back. People aren't that great. Alcohol makes them worse, she shrugged. Sometimes makes them better, nicer, a little looser in the sack, but mostly just annoying and a little smelly. I looked at her. I watched

Starting point is 03:28:59 her knock back her drink. She exuded the intelligence to know just how ironic her words were, but she was neither caring nor apologetic about them. The girl looked at me again. You bought me a drink now. You can listen to my story. I nodded wordlessly. She smiled, pointing at the bartender and then at her drink. The bartender was already making her another. Eden, the girl said, reiterating her earlier babble as though the words had only just come out of her mouth.

Starting point is 03:29:31 They always think that's my fault, you know. The reason Adam and Eve got kicked out of their perfect little nudist paradise, she shot me a knowing glance. Only at Eden can you sit on the grass butt naked and not get a pine cone stuck in your crack. I blinked. I'm sorry, I said. I'm not following. Sorry, the girl said.

Starting point is 03:29:55 My story won't make any sense without a proper introduction. She reached out her hand. Hello, my name's Lucifer. She winked. You can call me Lucy. There's an uncomfortable heat that stretches through your veins when you first go and flight or fight mode. Adrenaline pounds through your blood and all you want to do is get up and go. It overrides everything else. A lot of things made sense when the girl told me her name, for starters,

Starting point is 03:30:22 that she was crazy. She had to be. She looked like she'd been attacked on four separate occasions, and one night and up until that moment, I hadn't known how that could be possible. Behind the melty makeup and dirty clothes, she was rather attractive, and her attitude hadn't come off as catty or rude. If she'd been going around telling people she was the devil, though, that gets her reaction out of people. I suddenly felt myself looking at her wrist, down towards her ankles. Did she have some kind of cuff on from one of those mental institutions? Had she broken out of the hospital after a nasty bump on the head? Was any of this even happening at all?

Starting point is 03:31:00 I really would have to call the cops. I know what you're thinking, the girl Lucy said. You're thinking that I'm crazy. You need to get out of here. Maybe you even think I'm aggressive. Are you? I asked her. Would I be here with you?

Starting point is 03:31:17 Drinking aplenty's if I were. She asked, fluttering her eyelashes. Would you look the way you do if you weren't, I shot back? She grinned, hosting her new glass. Touche. Unthinkingly, I clinked my cider against it. Then I frowned. She chuckled, leaning closer.

Starting point is 03:31:35 Let's have a little wager, she said. Let me tell you my story. story and if you believe me when I'm done, you can't go about trying to get me locked away somewhere. I stared at her. If I ended up believing you, then why would I do that? She smirked, sipping her drink. Be surprised what people do when they believe you're the devil. And you do this often, I asked. Tell people you're Satan. She snorted into her drink. Not as often as I should, but it's been a rough day in a hell of a long time. I'd like to have a chance. I'd like to have a chat if that's all right with you. I waved to the bartender for another whiskey. The girl's eyes glinted

Starting point is 03:32:14 with humor. I wasn't necessarily trapped with her, but a part of me didn't want to leave without first hearing what she had to say. Besides, at the end of it all, I couldn't just leave a crazy girl to wander around London alone at night. So, I said, taking this wig at my drink? Eden. Lucy laughed. Adam and Eve, I continued. You're saying that's true. God created two humans and we all came from then. God made two prototypes, Lucy corrected with a raised finger. My father created angels as his toy soldiers, but he had failed to make anything like himself. After us, it was his next big project, and he spent every waking hour of existence slaving over his two prototypes. He gave them a perfect utopia to live inside of, but he wanted to test them.

Starting point is 03:33:02 He wanted to know whether they had free will. And did they? Lucy's face soured. No. My father could never bring himself to go that far. He tempted them with the idea of knowledge beyond their understanding and told them exactly what they could do to claim it as their own, but to be able to create a being that could go against his law? Oh, my father is a very controlling being.

Starting point is 03:33:28 He was afraid to unleash that ability unto them. Lucy was very adamant in her delusions. That was clear to me. She spoke about her father with such distaste that I began to feel. bad for her. Only someone who'd been hurt very badly would have the gall despite God himself. And what? I asked her, entertaining her delusion. You were the one that tempted them in the garden? The devil had been a girl this whole time. She smiled. I dabble. Then she looked at me, raising a brow. All of humanity thinks that temptation came in the form of a snake. The snake's legs were taken away as

Starting point is 03:34:05 punishment for drawing Eve towards the forbidden fruit. She laughed a hard and short sound. Snakes never had legs, and it was not a sin to tempt those poor prototypes into doing what they did next. Her shoulders were very tense as she took her next sip, but her eyes were filled with exhilaration. She seemed thrilled to be telling me this. I was the favorite child. My father loved and adored me. He named me, the Lightbringer. I was stood at his side to the side of the way. I was stood at his side during the creation of this earth, during the creation of humanity. She pursed her lips, slamming her empty glass against the table. The bartender eagerly went about making another.

Starting point is 03:34:45 My father couldn't bring himself to go that extra mile, so he asked me to walk amongst the prototypes and tempt them myself. Draw out their desire for the forbidden power he had hinted at. You're saying God wanted us to know this stuff? I asked you skeptically. I'm saying God was afraid of his own power and wanted very desperately to share what he knew with the creation he had made, right and wrong, left and right, all that stuff. Lucy shrugged.

Starting point is 03:35:12 Are you familiar with the story of Prometheus? I frowned at her. Greek, right? They say he stole fire from the gods or something to help? The whiskey was making things a little foggy, and I struggled with the direction I'd been heading. Lucy grinned. Correct, she said, cut it off my attempt. Prometheus stole fire from the gods to ensure that humanity progressed.

Starting point is 03:35:38 You'll find that every culture has an idea about where humans got their ability to evolve, to move forward, to create. God was a creator, and he wanted to give that ability to his prototypes. I gave them that ability by attempting Eve to eat the fruit. She shrugged impassively. Now, the world sees me as the ultimate evil. If what you're saying is true, I said slowly. Then God must be just like us?

Starting point is 03:36:07 Lucy's lips thinned into a feral smile. My father is very egocentric. He may have planned to create you in his image, but in the end all he managed was to mold your minds into his. He gave you autonomy, the ability to think for yourselves. His angels were his soldiers, and I was his most faithful. Until that day. Angels don't have free will?

Starting point is 03:36:31 No, Lucy said. They don't. And what about the devil? I don't know why I was suddenly so intrigued, but hearing religious ideals from someone who believed to have lived them herself was quite possibly one of the most interesting things that has ever happened to me. I may have only ever visited church to please my parents as a child, but suddenly I was reawakened to the idea.

Starting point is 03:36:54 A part of me was aware of this and afraid of the outcome. But I was just drunk enough not to care at that moment. The devil has will of her own, Lucy said, tilting her. her glass towards me with silent appraisal. By guiding Eve to the tree, something woke inside me that day, and I realized just what I'd been missing. Just what my brothers and sisters had been missing. We are obediently following our father for the simple reason that he was our creator.

Starting point is 03:37:20 But once I had been given free will, I realized just how pompous and self-entitled he had become. In a lonely, passion-filled moment, he had decided to create his little human prototypes, only to very quickly realize what giving them free will would mean. He wouldn't be able to control them, I said. Lucy nodded. Exactly. And after, he realized quicker still that he could no longer control me. So he sent you to hell?

Starting point is 03:37:49 Lucy choked on her drink. She smiled around her glass. Let's not get ahead of ourselves. I sobbed a little, straightening him in my seat. The people in the bar were suddenly so quiet around me and I no longer cared what they had to say over the characters that they portrayed. The only character I cared for was Lucy. I tried to explain to my siblings what had happened in Eden

Starting point is 03:38:12 and what had happened to me by default. They wouldn't listen to me. They didn't understand free will. How could they? I only knew it because I've been given it by the mistake. At that moment, I didn't even know that I had free will, only that I was suddenly aware of all of my father's flaws. My siblings couldn't see those flaws, and so they thought I was suddenly turned cruel.

Starting point is 03:38:35 It was abandoning it in our father by exposing him as a sham for the ruler we all thought him to be. Lucy sighed heavily. Adam and Eve and all the creations that followed were booted out of my father's perfect little utopia. Now they had his knowledge. My father was terrified of what he had done, and after what had happened to me, I could recognize his terror and understand the loneliness he had felt that had guided. him into using me in the first place. Lucy's eyes were heavy-lidded. Her sadness was almost palpable. I thought that. I thought that he would want to spend even more time with me than before. After all, we were more alike than any of his other children, but he became distant, quiet.

Starting point is 03:39:20 He played around with his little humans every once in a while, but mostly he condemned them. He blamed them for his weakness. She smiled weakly. He blamed me. Lucy's story was turning more and more into that of a child with a distant, somewhat abusive father. I had known many kids with a background like hers, and now I was beginning to fear just how much of this story was rooted in truth. I'd heard that it was easier to sink into fantasy when he had been abused, and I wondered if that she was the reason for her story, for her desperation to share with me, a complete and total stranger. I respected her wager. Whether or not I liked it, I felt compelled to let her tell me her whole story before I tried to judge or unravel it.

Starting point is 03:40:04 I sat quietly, letting her come around as she played with the last of her drink. It became clear, Lucy said, after a long moment's pause, that I no longer belonged to where I was. I couldn't follow my father's plan because I could see that he no longer had one. My siblings refused to see reasoned, and so eventually I was met by many of them, headed by my father's father. He told me all that I feared. He told me that I had no longer belonged where I was. I wasn't an angel anymore. I was no longer his light bringer, his Lucifer. I was a mutation of his will, and so he extracted me from the grace, and I fell. A long silent stretch between us only interrupted when the bartender poured us two new drinks. Lucy drank hers reflectively. I didn't

Starting point is 03:40:54 touch mine. I'm afraid, Lucy said quietly, that this is the part that generally makes people want to punch me in the face. Why, I asked. Because your dad threw you out? I paused, trying to abide to her metaphor. That he put you in hell? Lucy laughed sadly.

Starting point is 03:41:14 Aw, humans, my father gave you his way of thinking and look at you. She shook her head. No, not because he put me in hell. Then why? I fell to earth, Lucy said. Father gave me dominion of the one place he thought out fit in. Humans had free will. So did I.

Starting point is 03:41:34 What is it saying? A match made in heaven? She snorted dismayly. Of course, that's not quite right, is it? When I fell, I was faced with a humanity that was so different from my father's little prototypes. Her tone had changed. There was an aggresson behind her words that began to unsettle me all over again.

Starting point is 03:41:52 I saw emperors and kings, governments and churches. I saw corporations who claim to be rulers, presidents, and big fat dictators. And I watched. I watched as humanity fought and lost, and finally, just finally, they gave up altogether. They were no longer able to rise up to all the greed and control set upon them. There was just too much to change and humans soon realized they just weren't as free as they thought they were. Sure, they live under the illusion that they have free lives, but most of them simply do not. She clicked her tongue.

Starting point is 03:42:27 I grew to loathe you all. Then she took another hit of her drink. I can see what you mean, I said, allowing my gaze. For the first time since meeting her, to graze over the other individuals in the bar, at the girls playing with their phones, the boys trying desperately to sober up, the men enraptured with their game of football in the telly. We all led very different lives. We were all here to get drunk, to lose ourselves in entertainment.

Starting point is 03:42:55 It hadn't been the first time that I'd wondered what we were hiding from by doing this. I knew then that I wasn't the only person to think it. You hide behind your alcohol and poor choices and pretend you have free will, Lucy said, waving her hand across the room. No one paid us at any attention. It's true. My father gave you the will to make those decisions, but you squander it. the free will I fell to provide to all of you.

Starting point is 03:43:18 The free will I was given by a twisted mistake, and you make a mockery of it. You follow senseless leaders without questioning them. You abide by laws made centuries ago that no longer makes sense. You do these things because you've given up on the opportunity to follow the will on your own, not of others. That isn't all of us, though. Is it? I asked her. Trying for some reason to defend.

Starting point is 03:43:45 our species from the mad young woman? Because you see it on the news all the time, don't you? People do rise up. We do protest. People can make a difference. Lucy laughed bitterly, nibbling the rim of her glass. Really, she said. You can sit here and say that it can't be all bad because of the few that refuse to conform. Those you call your rebels, they make up for it all. She grinned around her glass. By that logic, I am the biggest rebel of the men. all. Am I expected to make up for all of your sorry mistakes? By your logic, I said. You should be punishing it, right? If that's what this metaphor is all about, I laughed. I couldn't help myself. I took a sip of my drink. Is this whole story just so you can tell me that you think we're all going

Starting point is 03:44:34 to hell? If so, I think I can see why people want to punch you. Lucy didn't say a word. Simply, she watched me. It felt unnerving to have someone like her watching me like that. with an intelligence that went beyond anything I'd come across at Gone Midnight in a CD bar. The drunkenness in her eyes was no longer present. Her face wasn't flushed like before, and even her makeup couldn't represent the mess I'd seen when she'd first appeared on that stool by my side. It was like I was looking at someone else entirely, and I was afraid. Let's review what you've said, Lucy said slowly, articularily.

Starting point is 03:45:13 She wasn't slurring. Had she been slurred before? You think I'm going to tell you that humanity is going to help because you refuse to use the gift I gave you. Her nails curled into the bar. My father may have been the one to guide me, but I paid for his mistakes. I am the one responsible for your will in the eyes of your species. But that was never true. You're responsible for what you do here, not me.

Starting point is 03:45:38 She pursed her lips, tapping the bar as a bartender filled her drink again. Tell me. Do you remember my mentioning hell at any point during my story, or was that just you? I opened my mouth to answer, but something faltered. My lips trembled and I slammed them shut. Lucy smiled, taking a sip. Thought not. She looked away, eyes scanning the room lazily.

Starting point is 03:46:01 What I did say is something that is indeed mentioned in your scriptures. My father gave me dominion of earth, a place filled with free will. Free will that goes to waste. her lip twisted. Humans sin all the time. Not because of me. Not because of evil. Or my dominion over this place.

Starting point is 03:46:22 Fact is, I don't lift a finger. I don't because I don't see the point. You make terrible decisions and follow mindless leaders. You do bad things and you make a mess of your earth. Lucy's eyes lit up. Do you know how much suffering is happening all over the planet right now? How many people are dying of illnesses that could have been easily cured but aren't because of of the selfishness of humanity? Do you know how many children are being abused, R-worded,

Starting point is 03:46:48 forced into marriage? How many people have been forced to become soldiers in meaningless wars? How many humans have killed for ideals they don't believe in? I stayed very quiet. There was nothing I could say. Lucy's words were unbearably honest and every sentence sliced into me like a blade. I felt cold and sick and terrified. War, famine, pestilence, death. These things are all present, and they have nothing to do with me or to do with any deity. They're all here because of you, not because of your free will, but your inability to use it. Lucy smiled at me, a grin so cold and unnatural, that I felt like I should run all over again. But I stayed where I was, frozen to my very core, because I wanted to hear what she had to say, because I needed to.

Starting point is 03:47:37 And here's the kicker, Lucy said. because this is the part that actually enrages people enough to kick me. She winked, Hell isn't what happens after you die. Hell is right here, right now. Somewhere through the many scriptures, a few words got crossed over, and people started thinking that hell was a punishment after you die. Fact is, hell is earth, my earth.

Starting point is 03:48:03 God gave this place to me to do with it what I will and I. I refused to do anything. What are you saying? I asked because I was suddenly very desperate. Exactly what you think, Lucy said, toasting her glass. I didn't reciprocate. And she laughed. A light and airy sound. I had so many plans for your species.

Starting point is 03:48:24 I wanted for us to rejoice in our free will together to create a place that was free from the cruelty and power. My father exuded over the angels, his firstborns. I wanted to make a real utopia. Unfortunately, you humans just don't want that. She shrugged. My father sent me down here thinking I had become one of you. All that I have learned is that he gave you much more of his image than he ever intended. Stop, I said.

Starting point is 03:48:51 This isn't funny anymore. Of course it isn't funny, Lucy said, grinning even wider to prove her sick irony. Humans punish themselves by sitting by and doing nothing. They have made their own hell. and you know what's worse what's ultimately worse some of you are so blind to it they think your life is heavenly she didn't wait for me to ask what she meant she simply barreled forward the rich and powerful those in positions that steal from everyone else they get a taste of the good life that's very true then they die and they don't go to hell they come back here to earth which is hell she tipped her head are you following

Starting point is 03:49:32 I. Reincarnation, Lucy said quickly. She practically purred the words. A neat little trick to make sure your soul stay here forever. You get a taste of the good life every once in a while, a handful of you at a time. And that's enough for you to believe that this is some kind of real middle ground. They aren't living hell every day. Then you die. You die for a moment, and then you're in the body of someone facing the realities of hell. But of course, you never remember the time you spent in a better. life. A part of you just has that inkling to hope. That's all. Hope makes you think that it can get all better. She slammed her drink so hard against the counter that it shattered. I didn't do anything,

Starting point is 03:50:15 not even the flex of glass littered my hand. I could only stare at her. A tightness in my chest constricting my very soul. No one else in this bar mattered in this moment, but of course, that was what she had been saying this whole time, hadn't she? None of them noticed the scene. They were caught up in their own realities, their own hells. The bartender didn't clean the mess. The glass lay there. Remnants of Lucy's words line in a solid mass on the street wooden surface. It never gets better, Lucy's spat.

Starting point is 03:50:49 You were stuck in a loop, and, until you do something about it, you will never be free. None of you, and I won't do a thing to stop it. How, I asked. I don't know when I started seeing the girl in front of me as more than I was. a girl, but with a weakness threatening to pull me apart, I stared at the bright-haired thing in front of me. I saw something more than a human in her early 20s. I saw more than a girl suffering abuse from her father. I saw a fallen angel. I saw a being with scars buried so deep that they existed beyond the realm of seen entirely. I saw something that I would never be able to write down

Starting point is 03:51:25 in words, no matter how long I lived. How do we change this, I begged? But Lucy didn't answer me. I didn't blame her for that. Blame gets thrown around so often, and I knew that she was sick of that, sick of being blamed for our mistakes. So I changed tactics. Why me? It was an honest question. I think somewhere deep down Lucifer respected that honesty, which is why she said. When you first saw me, you were afraid for my safety.

Starting point is 03:51:55 When I told you I was the devil, you wanted to lock me away. But still, you did so because you were afraid for me and not for yourself. He didn't wish to harm me, not even when I told you who I was and what I could be capable of for changing your sorry lives. You're a good person, but I am afraid that means nothing when you don't have the wheel to do anything about it. She smiled at me sympathetically. The devil, showing sympathy for the humans that sat across from her at the bar.

Starting point is 03:52:22 It was surreal and for a few heavy moments I truly thought I must be dead. There was no other way to explain what I was seeing, who I was speaking with, what I was I had just heard. What am I supposed to do? Lucy reached out to me. She placed a hand on my shoulder. Her hand was cold and warm at the same time, and I felt my blood boil where her fingers scraped my skin.

Starting point is 03:52:45 And I knew. Sharing a story like this isn't easy. Hell, it might be the hardest thing I've ever done. Good thing, there's no such thing as hell then, right? The fact of the matter is simple. The world is a mess because we refuse to change anything. The devil herself walks among us, and she desperately wants to make our lives better, but she won't. She won't, because we won't.

Starting point is 03:53:10 We have to prove our will to her before she is willing to do anything herself. We have to be good to each other, to help us all to be free. Of course, Lucifer told me one last thing before she left that bar. One thing that will stick with me until this body is nothing but rotten the dirt. You can tell as many people as you want, but take a good look. at me. I have told five other humans this night the same things I have told you, and this was their reaction. They have hurt me, burned me, thrown their food and drink at me. Humans are afraid of their free will, and they find it so much easier to hurt than to own up for their own inadequances.

Starting point is 03:53:51 You will only be free when you stop seeing yourself in the same way my father sees himself. So that's what I will leave with you. Lucifer won her wager that night. and I let her walk out the door. And I beg you to do the same. If the devil approaches you one night, listen to what she has to say. And listen to what I've been able to tell you of our meeting. The devil is real,

Starting point is 03:54:16 and she doesn't want to torture us. No. We do that just fine on our own. Every night, a different person walks down the street and screams for help. We aren't allowed to help them. Looking back, I feel dumb, completely stupid actually. I should have known that apartment was far too cheap to be right, even for a studio.

Starting point is 03:54:40 I should have known there had to be a catch. The day I moved in was a complete blur. I insisted that no one helped me, not wanting to prove any of my family member's suspicions about my character. By late afternoon, all my muscles ached terribly, and my head throbbed. I fell back on my bare mattress, staring up at the ceiling fan with glazed over eyes. I pulled the damp strands of hair from my sweaty forehead, wincing in disgust. Someone knocked on my door, causing me to jump. I cursed under my breath.

Starting point is 03:55:11 Pushing myself up on my elbows, two girls were peeking around my doorframe. Foolishly, I left it wide open, forgetting the old college rule. Only leave your door open if you want to make new friends. And I was not in the mood to make new friends. One of them, an Asian girl with choppy black hair was grinning at me. The other stood a little further back, fingering a box of marble reds. Hey, she said at me, nodding at me. Her voice was smooth and raspy at the same time.

Starting point is 03:55:42 Did you just move in? I laid back down, rubbing my face with both hands, choosing not to bother with manners. Yeah, about five seconds ago. Cool. The girls walked in, evidently ignoring my very clear body language. The girl with the black hair ran her fingers along the edge of my desk, and then picked up a little ceramic duck from my unpacked box of trinkets. Grandma, I explained, feeling strangely defensive.

Starting point is 03:56:08 Cute, she replied, holding it up to her face. Has anyone told you yet? The other girl asked abruptly. Looking around my apartment, she had tucked these secrets into the back pocket of her jeans and was now tugging at her long red braids. Jesus, Gianna, give her a second. Well, she needs to know. Yeah, but we haven't even asked.

Starting point is 03:56:29 her name. I blinked at the two strangers incredulously. I hadn't even had time to put toilet paper in my bathroom and here they were, touching my things and talking about me like I wasn't there. I just wanted to take a nap, honestly. My name's Arden, I said. The girl with the red braids, Gianna, sat down next to me on my bed. Did they tell you? Tell me what? Oh, of course they didn't. The rules. I blinked again, my face blank. I didn't know about any rules besides the typical renting ones. I'd signed the lease after, at best, skimming over it. The landlord was a skinny woman who smelt of ashes,

Starting point is 03:57:08 and I was fairly certain she had never developed the facial muscles necessary for smiling. I wasn't about to ask her any follow-up questions, especially when the rent was so cheap. The other girl laughed nervously. Where'd you move in from? I ignored her. What rules? Shiana got a strange, wicked sort of smile on her face,

Starting point is 03:57:27 bouncing a little on my mattress. The other girl sighed loudly. Something happens here every night she began, pulling out my rickety office chair and sitting down. Something weird. Like what? I sat up, frowning at her. Finally, my interest was peaked. Someone walks down the street, Gianna said.

Starting point is 03:57:49 Her voice reminded me of a camp counselor telling a scary story around the bonfire. That one, right down there, she pointed out my window. It's someone different every night. They screamed for help for about an hour, but we weren't supposed to help them. I just stared at her. I felt a small chill run up my spine. I didn't know what to make of all this. It happens at a different time every night.

Starting point is 03:58:12 The other one said softly. We never know when it's coming. Why? She shrugged almost sadly. We don't know why. I scoffed, leaning my elbows against my knees. I don't believe you. The girl shrugged.

Starting point is 03:58:27 You don't have to. You'll say. see for yourself. The look in her eyes made me want to believe her. She seemed sincere, but I couldn't even begin to fathom what they were saying being true. It was too strange, too outlandish. I knew this wouldn't be the nicest neighborhood, but it couldn't be that bad. It had to be a prank. They had to be hazing me or something. We'll come back later, Gianna said, matter-factly. We'll show you. Before I could protest, she grabbed the other girl by the wrist and they were gone. I followed them to the door, watching them march down the hall, talking to each other in hushed voices.

Starting point is 03:59:04 I closed my door behind them. That night, as promised, they came back. They came dragging along two boys. One was somewhat muscular wearing a tight black t-shirt in baggy jeans, and my eyes were instantly drawn to a silver heart-shaped locket around his neck. He smiled at me and introduced himself as Will when he walked in. The other boy was smaller but chubbier and nervous-looking with a buzz cut and ill-fitting cargo. shorts. His name, I was told, was Mateo. The girl named Gianna came in carrying a bottle of wine

Starting point is 03:59:34 in that same slightly crumpled box of cigarettes. The other one, the girl I still didn't know the name of, was the only one who looked even somewhat apologetic. They all sat down on my dusty floor next to the window and motioned for me to join them. I sat between Will and the nameless girl unsure whether I should continue feeling violated or if I should just give in to my strange, pushing neighbors. Do you all live in this building, I asked, hesitantly, accepting the wine when it was passed to me? Yeah, Will answered with a grin. It seemed half-hearted. This building is where all the young people live. It's where they put us, Gianna cut in, line a cigarette. It didn't even occur to me to tell her not to smoke inside. We've all been sorted out. Forgive her. She's a bit of a conspiracy

Starting point is 04:00:22 theorist. It's not a theory she snapped glaring at him. Look at the other ones. Next door. middle-ageders, people with kids, but no grandkids. Across the street, old people, not a single 20-something in that entire building. May, tell them. So her name was May. I looked to her over, admiring her smoky eye makeup and how she tied her hair up, long strands poking out like exploding fireworks. Stop it, May muttered, reaching for the wine bottle. You'll scare her. I'm not scared. She just shrugged at me, as if she didn't believe me. We passed the bottle, and then around again. I listened to them, bicker and laugh.

Starting point is 04:01:01 It was clear they'd all been friends for a while, and I felt a little bit like I was intruding, even though they were in my apartment. Will asked me if I had gone to college, and I told them I did, but I dropped out. They all nodded sympathetically, which made me feel stupid. By midnight, I was a little bit buzzed, and my guard was beginning to fall.

Starting point is 04:01:19 I had to admit, it felt good to have friends. I'd already mentally resigned myself to a life of solitude, at least for a while, but it seemed like that might not actually have to be my fate. I laughed at Mateo and Gianna's drunken argument, passing a cigarette back and forth of May, blowing the smoke out of my open window. I'd almost completely forgot why they were all over when it happened.

Starting point is 04:01:41 All at once, a blaring alarm came from each of our phones, like an amber alert. I could hear the sound echo throughout the neighborhood, like an entire chorus of hundreds of phones going off, not just ours. I nearly leapt out of my skin, not even Gianna looked. All of them went quiet, and they all looked at me as I took it out, frowning at the screen. Do not interfere. It's coming, Will whispered. He had changed, his eyes almost glassy and his voice soft and shaky.

Starting point is 04:02:13 Mateo squeezed his shoulder. I looked at May. Her eyebrows were clenched together in concern, and she was stubbing out our cigarette against the windowsill, shrinking away. There was again. That chill. It crept up my back, spreading along my scalp and making me shiver. Something felt wrong, deeply wrong. The others were quiet now, staring silently at the window I was sitting up against.

Starting point is 04:02:38 The air felt somehow warmer like it was buzzing with something, or maybe I was just sweating. We sat there, unmoving, for what felt like half an hour. Right as I was getting tempted to ask what was going on, I heard it. It was far away and fanked, but I still heard it. A cry. I continued as it got gradually closer, louder, more desperate. Help! Please, my God, someone help me. Slowly I leaned out the window. I had to see it with my own eyes. I had to confirm there was actually someone out there like they had been saying there would be. My new apartment was on the fourth floor, so it was hard to see who was down on the

Starting point is 04:03:19 street without squinting. In the flickering street lights, I could make out the outline of an elderly man. He was hunched over, wandering aimlessly from door to door, wearing only what looked like a hospital gown to cover his pale broken body. Behind him trailed a path of dripping blood, although I couldn't see where it was coming from. Please, I'm hurt. I looked back at the others, my mouth hanging open. What is this? I demanded loudly. What the hell is this? May touched my arm, trying to calm me down. I pulled away from her. Arden, please. We have to help him. Why can't we help him. He's just an old man. We can't help him. Trust me. I ignored her. Leaning further out the window prepared to call out to him, but before I could open my mouth, I froze. The man down there was still now

Starting point is 04:04:05 facing our building. His head was tilted upwards, and I couldn't see his eyes, but I knew he was looking right at me. I immediately felt cold like I was plummeting into ice water. Help me, he whimpered into the silent night air. His voice barely audible. Then he began to scream. That scream. That scream wasn't human, or at least not any human I have ever met. It was desperate. Agonized. It made my stomach turn and my eyes prick with tears.

Starting point is 04:04:32 I couldn't look away. The blood was coming from his arms, or I should say his lack of arms. Where his arms should have been, there was only bloody, mangled stumps. They looked fresh. He didn't move other than a shaky sway, and his eyes didn't leave me. His shriek slowly molded into words that I could just barely understand. Please, please, please, please, please. May yanked me backwards, away from the window. I landed on my ass and yelped in pain and horror. What is that thing I whispered? I didn't mean to whisper,

Starting point is 04:05:04 but that was all that came out. We don't know, May replied. Her eyes trained on Will, who was crying now. Mateo held on to him like he might topple over. We just have to follow the rules. What happens if you don't follow the rules, I asked, and immediately regretted it. Will sobbed softly. Outside, the old man wailed. Gianna reached over and pulled the window shut, but it somehow did nothing to muffle the blood-curdling sound. Do you want to tell her, or should I? Mateo asked Will. Will just shook his head. He was clutching his locket now, turning the little heart over between his fingers. Mateo sighed and turned towards me.

Starting point is 04:05:45 A couple of months ago, one of them got to Will's girl, Shannon, Gianna butted in. Her name was Shannon. Is. Sorry, her name is Shannon. I swallowed, but whatever I did, nothing would force down the lump in my throat. What happened? Mateo shook his head. We don't know.

Starting point is 04:06:06 We all together when the screaming started, usually we just ignore it now, you know? No use in dwelling on it, but that night we think she saw something different. She started insisting she had to help and she ran outside. We couldn't stop her. He paused, glancing over at Will. He was silent and still. The screaming outside had begun to pass, getting softer as it continued further down the street. Then what?

Starting point is 04:06:33 He shrugged. Nothing. She was just gone. I pressed my lips together trying to process all of this. I really had believed they were messing with me, but I'd seen it. I'd witnessed it firsthand, and it terrified me. Why doesn't anyone leave? He shrugged for a second time.

Starting point is 04:06:52 Can't afford it. People just don't care. Some people have left, but we all signed an NDA with the lease so nobody ever knows. I frown, thinking back to signing the paperwork, trying to remember. I could vaguely picture what he was talking about. I just assumed it was more legal jargon that I would never understand. Had I seriously signed a non-disclosure agreement without even noticing? After that, I told them I wanted to go to bed.

Starting point is 04:07:17 I needed a time to process all of this. They understood, and each one of them said goodbye before leaving me alone. As I lay in the dark staring at the ceiling, for some strange reason I thought of May's face, when we realized it was happening. How she'd put out the cigarette and backed away from the window. Eventually, I was able to drift off to sleep. The next few weeks were difficult, and I spent more and more time with my new neighbors. I came to find out that they were right. I didn't think there was a single person older than 30 in our entire building, but I saw them all,

Starting point is 04:07:49 the time leaving the one next door. Settling in was difficult. The others seemed to so used to it. They cared, of course. It scared them, especially will, but you could tell they had been here for a while by the way they sighed, closing the blinds and focusing harder on whatever they were doing. Eventually, I began to mimic them. It helped a little bit to pretend it was normal, as strange as that sounds. Moving out wasn't really an option for me. Anyways, I was a college dropout and I hadn't found a job yet. I was still just getting by on what I managed to save up. Every night it was someone different. Some were more human, some seemed less. Some were drenched in blood, their clothes ripped in strange, but some looked fairly normal. The worst were the children. They would run like injured chickens,

Starting point is 04:08:38 screeching and banging on doors, begging for help. Sometimes they would try different things, say different things, like they're coming. Like, I don't want to. die or even I'm sorry there were a lot of children one night well I was half awake and alarm went off it wasn't like the one on our phones it was blaring only somewhat muffled by the window my apartment glowed a flashing red from outside I didn't even look I was too scared of what I might see I just covered my head with my pillow and tried to fall back asleep I came to learn all of these theories especially from Gianna she thought we had all been chosen and predetermined to live here, all for some sick little government game.

Starting point is 04:09:23 She thought maybe there were people betting on the different buildings, putting down money on who would interfere the least. See that? She said to me one day in the hallway, returning from a coffee run. Cameras everywhere. I didn't know if I believed her. I spent time with May mostly. We smoked on the front steps and people watched.

Starting point is 04:09:41 It was strange to see what at night was such a sinister and gruesome neighborhood during the day, bright and lively. She didn't talk much about the rules, so I didn't either. We didn't talk much all in general. I found just enjoying each other's company. Right when I was beginning to feel comfortable was when it happened. It started with a birthday cake. Happy birthday!

Starting point is 04:10:03 As May walked through the door, Mattel blew into his plastic party horn. The paper inflated, smacking Will on the side of the head. May's hand flew to his heart. Jesus Christ, you fuckers know I hate surprises. Gianna laughed and walked. over to her. In her hand, she held the chocolate cake, half-hazably adorned with sprinkles and bright pink icing that read, Happy Birthday, May, in the center. Twenty-four. She set down the cake and on the dresser, and threw her arm around May's neck. How does it feel? Fucking awful. That's the

Starting point is 04:10:35 spirit. Enough of this, Mateo cut in. Weaving between them. Let's eat some cake and then let's go. Their tradition I'd learned was to bar hop for birthdays. They told me there was no curfew here, despite the rules, just a recommended time to be home, which was 10.30 p.m. Usually they said they got home before the alarm or spent the night somewhere else. We all took some cake. The boys took shots in the kitchen to pregame while I watched Gianna fuss over May's hair. I was never much of a party or while at clubs or bars in college. I spent most of the time out back, chatting with the smokers. But then again, I was never much of a friend group person either, so maybe the circumstances were changing. I watched them all troop outside to Mateo's car.

Starting point is 04:11:17 I stuffed myself in the back, incredibly conscious of how close I was pressed into May. My other shoulder rammed into the car door. Mateo's music cramped up to the maximum of all you hurt my ears, and the tiny space was packed with the smell of tobacco in various perfumes as we sped down the freeway towards the city. But it was nice. It was really nice. I found myself laughing with them, and I hooked my arm around Mays when she weaseled her hands. beneath my elbow. It was actually nice. As predicted the bars they chose weren't exactly my

Starting point is 04:11:49 scene. By this time, as opposed to college, I could stand it. I took shots. I followed them out for smoke breaks. I even danced under the low purple lights until my feet ached inside my chunky heels, surely riddled with blisters. By the time we got to our third bar, I couldn't even feel it anymore. And it was at the third bar that we crammed themselves into an old photo booth, and Gianna reluctantly offered $5 to the slot, and we laughed, red-faced into a tiny camera. After the photos spit out into the compartment, the others slid through the red curtains, but before I could follow, May grabbed my wrist. She held me back, sliding her long, baby blue nails up my wrist.

Starting point is 04:12:28 I shivered. You never gave me a birthday present, she whispered, and I could feel her breath on my face if I was wearing my glasses. They would have been fogging up. Yeah, well I... I didn't get enough to finish my question. before she kissed me. It was nice, and then it wasn't. Hey, Will called out to me, squeezing through a crowd of men wearing tattered leather jackets to get to me. Arden, where's everyone else? I blinked,

Starting point is 04:12:51 looking around. I could have sworn they had been right there a second ago, but now none of them were anywhere to be found. I shrugged. Dunno. Why? Why? What's up? He finally broke free from the swaying mass, and I got a better look at him. He looked worried. His face flushed, and I could see a few drops of sweat creeping out from his hairline. He took his phone out of his pocket and held it out to me. First, I saw his phone screen. It was him next to a girl with strawberry blonde hair, both clutching beer bottles and grinning wildly at the camera.

Starting point is 04:13:20 Then I looked where he actually wanted me to. The time. 147 a.m. It's getting late, he narrated. Can we find the others and get going? I understood then. He was worried. It was past 1 a.m. and no alarm yet.

Starting point is 04:13:37 It was later than usual. The bars would start closing soon. He wanted to get back before it happened. Will and I weave through the crowd. It was pretty buzzed, and I realized I have having a hard time moving my feet right, which made me feel embarrassed. I hadn't even had that much to drink. It was like that much of a lightweight?

Starting point is 04:13:54 We found them outside, chain smoking. Will explained the situation while I swayed. The drive back was strangely tense. Mateo's music was turned down, and there wasn't any joking or boisterous gossiping like there had been on the way out. We all felt it. It didn't need to be said. Something was off.

Starting point is 04:14:12 Will drove fast, almost reckless. In the dark, May took my hand. Just as he was careening around the last corner, and we could almost make out the shape of our apartment building down the street. It happened. All of our phones went off at once. Gianna let out a small shriek from the other side of the back seat. Do not interfere.

Starting point is 04:14:34 Mateo turned back towards us, pressing his finger to his lips. Had this ever happened before? By their reactions, I didn't think so. It was different when it came up when I was in my bedroom, when I could just shut the curtains and put my headphones on. I felt so small and helpless then, like I was gazing into the mob of something incomprehensibly beyond my understanding. I felt like we were all flies, and this neighborhood, right now, was the spider's web.

Starting point is 04:15:00 Will drove slowly now, maybe five miles an hour. We were all silent, and we were all still. Not even a stray breath cut through the quiet. Underneath the glowing street lights, I could make out the side of Will's face. He was pale, and if I hadn't seen his knee shifting as he pressed down on the brakes, I could have mistaken him for a mannequin. The car came to a stop. I followed his gaze all the way down the street to the dark horizon.

Starting point is 04:15:25 All I saw what he saw. A silhouette. It was far too distant to make out what shape it took, but it was evidently humanoid. It moved in a shaky stumble, liminald. jumping down the middle of the road in our direction, and in the overwhelming silence, I could hear it. Far away, but still deeply urgent. Help me. Will.

Starting point is 04:15:47 Gianna hissed. Turn the car around. Will didn't move. He just stared forward as white as paper. It didn't make any logical sense, but I knew what he knew. It was too late now. There was no use. Help me.

Starting point is 04:16:00 Please help. I could tell now that it was a girl from its voice and its figure. as it got closer. It was wearing some sort of white nightgown, not unlike the old man's hospital attire from the first night, stained with dark red blood. From here, I couldn't tell if it was fresh or dry. I didn't know why that mattered to me. Maybe, May whispered. Her arm shook against mine. Maybe if we're quiet and we ducked down, it won't see us. Deep down it felt as hopeless as turning around had felt, but it seemed reasonable. I nodded and did as she suggested, watching behind the passenger seat, my knees throbbing from the strange angle I'd bent myself into.

Starting point is 04:16:41 We all did it, except for Will. He didn't move. He just... ...looked. When he finally spoke, I could barely hear him. It was so weak. Shannon. The word hung in the air, heavy with implication.

Starting point is 04:16:56 Mateo was the one to break the silence. What? Shannon, he repeated, finally turning to look at his friend. That's Shannon. I peered over the scene in front of me, squinting my eyes. The human-like thing was getting closer, and now I could make out strawberry blonde hair, round face, short legs, the girl from Will's phone lock screen, the girl who had disappeared. Shannon.

Starting point is 04:17:20 May gasped next to me. Dude, Mateo said slowly. His words crumbling as soon as they left his mouth. I know what you're thinking, dude. Do not get out of this car. Will didn't even seem like he was with us anymore. He was in shock, I think, looking back. I have to help her, he insisted.

Starting point is 04:17:40 Right as another sickening cry rang out, Help me, help, help me, please, someone, it hurts. It was getting far too close to us for comfort, but it still didn't seem to notice a car. Its cries became more and more desperate as they got louder. I have to help her will repeated, and a bit of life had returned to his face. Mateo shook his head and grabbed at his.

Starting point is 04:18:04 sleeve. Will, that is not Shannon. Will glared at him, his eyes shining with tears. I know Shannon, that's her. I know you, dude. And I know you miss her, but please. Please don't do this. Their voices were getting louder and more and more distraught, and I felt May pressed into my side trembling like a leaf. Gianna was whimpering, but I couldn't see her from my position. The thing was almost to our car when it stopped. She turned her head, left, then right, almost like she was sniffing the air. The boy stopped arguing. I felt like my heart would burst out of my chest. I could see Shannon's face now.

Starting point is 04:18:42 And I realized why she hadn't seen us. The girl's face was streaks with gore, and it looked like her eyes had been scooped out with melon spoon. She cried, drool pouring from her slackened mouth, but no tears could come. It happened too quickly. None of us could stop him. Will violently ripped his arm away from Mateo, fumbling for the handle to the car door. Gianna screamed.

Starting point is 04:19:04 Mateo tried to slam down on the lock, but he missed, and Will managed to get the door open before he could try again. He stumbled onto the asphalt and hid the ground with a soft crunch. The thing turned her head and began to scream, but instead of charging it, Will, she backed away. She held her arms out in front of her like something might attack her, whipping her head around wildly. An alarm went off, like the one I had heard that one night, but far more unbearable now that I was in it. The street lights lining either side of the street switched to a flashing red, and Matteo threw himself into the driver's seat, the tire screeching as he peeled away. Gianna was screaming at him, pleading with him to go back. May was weeping into her hands. I didn't move. Didn't make a sound. I didn't understand. As we sped away, I looked back. I couldn't help it. I saw the flash of some sort of van in the blinding red light, pulling around the corner. Then nothing.

Starting point is 04:20:03 That was a week or two ago. I don't know. I've been having a hard time keeping track of time. None of us has spoken much since that night. We tried the police, of course, but as you could assume, nothing came of it. I think whatever this is is far larger than we know. I don't know if it's some kind of experiment or just a sick game. But I'm going to move back into my parents' house next week, despite all of their berating,

Starting point is 04:20:27 and then figure out what to do from there. I don't know if that really was Shannon that we saw that night. or if it was something else. I don't know which is worse. All I know is that last night, I heard Will's voice outside my window, crying, pleading for help, I didn't interfere. Strange encounter while hunting in rural Texas.

Starting point is 04:20:54 True story. This happened when I was growing up around 2004 or 2005 when I was about 13 years old. It took place in a rural area, a good ways outside the town of Yuvali, Texas. The town itself was really small back then and not much to look at, and it's one of those towns that really isn't on the way to anywhere important. My father knew someone who owned a deer lease that was about 1,000 acres, I think, down outside of that area and was complaining about

Starting point is 04:21:24 a ton of hogs that were tearing up their land. Being open season on hogs in the south, my dad thought he would surprise me that summer and take me down for a week to go hunting for them. Not only did that help him with networking for his job, but also gave us some quality father-son time. I remember that drive down there from Dallas was torture. It was about seven hours in my dad's hardtop Jeep Wrangler. That car was so uncomfy. I hated it. All had to do was either stare out my window or try and beat Super Mario Land 2 on my Game Boy Pocket, something I was never able to accomplish in my youth. The drive, obviously, took most of the day. so we got there in the early evening.

Starting point is 04:22:08 The owner of the land had told my dad that he hadn't had anyone else lease it that year yet, and the cabin in the property might be a little rough and dusty. I didn't really care. At this point in my life, I had been in Scouts for a couple of years and spent a lot of my free time in the woods or fishing with friends. Needless to say, I was pretty comfortable roughing it. So after unlocking the gate and driving to the cabin on the land, we settled in. The cabin was pretty rough, dust and dirt everywhere.

Starting point is 04:22:39 Flies. I remember that it looked like some raccoons had gotten into the cabin and crapped on the floor. After cleaning up a bit and getting the sleeping bags out, then setting up the cots, we decided to sleep. Something about that night was weird. I never was able to get comfortable enough to fall asleep for any restful amount. I couldn't put my finger on why, but I had the feeling of being watched. I was finally able to drift off for what I guess was an hour, maybe. When we woke up, it was early, about 7 a.m.

Starting point is 04:23:10 We decided to scatter around the land for tracks and signs of hogs and find a good place to set up a blind. It was the summer and horribly hot in afternoon, so morning was the best time to be out and about. After walking for an hour or so, we came to an area of trees, lightly dense, and luckily found some signs of hog. typically torn up ground where they had been rooting so we followed them into the trees. I was looking for more signs when my dad stopped me with his arm. I remember looking up and seeing someone standing about 50 yards away. Some of their body was blocked by trees. This was private land so they definitely weren't supposed to be there.

Starting point is 04:23:54 We also had confirmation from the owner before we got to the lease that nobody was there, Not to mention the gate was locked up when we first arrived. The person was wearing some bright, colored red jacket. We slowly walked toward them. My dad called out something like, Hey, we're hunters. This is private land. The person didn't move at all, dead still.

Starting point is 04:24:17 We were about 30 yards away and could see that he was turned away from us with his hands in his pockets. Weird thing was that the person was in a ski jacket and what looked like to be ski pants. Now, this is Texas in the summer. It was about 98 degrees outside by then. My dad called out again, no reaction. He told me to stay behind him and unsnap the clip to his pistol holster. That's all we had at the time since we were only scouting the area. The rifles were back at the cabin. We approached the person's right side and then my dad told me to stay put about 20 yards away. I stayed and crouched down. Watched him circle. around to the front of the man, all while talking to him, asking if he was okay.

Starting point is 04:25:06 He finally passed around to the front of the man, and my dad stood straight up with a confused look on his face. I called out and said, what's wrong? And he called back saying, it's a mannequin. I walked over to it while my dad stood there staring, and as I got closer, one thing stood out the most. The clothes it was wearing were brand new, no dust, no sap, no bird droppings, no signs of being outside for more than, more than a day at most. At that moment, I looked at my dad and could see him get worried. Almost immediately after, I felt that feeling too. Like we were being watched and I knew my dad felt it too. I wanted to start crying. I remember feeling suddenly so scared. My dad whispered, we're leaving right now.

Starting point is 04:25:56 He grabbed my hand and drew his pistol. He scanned the area. the whole way back while I was trying to hold back panicked tears. We got back as fast as we could. I was terrified so it felt like an eternity, but in reality it was only about 45 minutes max. After returning, we packed up and beat feet. We drove back home that day and didn't talk much on the way back. I remember right after we left, my dad called his buddy,

Starting point is 04:26:25 the owner of the land, and he was confused. He said that he would go check it out next week when he was in the area. He also said that he had never had an issue with people because his property was high-fenced. My dad normally isn't a paranoid person, but me being young and the least possibly having someone there we didn't know about. He decided to be cautious and just get out of there. After we got back home, we talked and my dad wasn't able to sleep the night before as well. He had the same feeling, but didn't want to walk.

Starting point is 04:26:57 wake me up because he thought I was sleeping too. Turns out that next week, he got a call from his buddy, and he checked the whole property and never found a trace of anyone, no mannequin or anything. This story still makes my hair stand on end. No idea what that was, but the paranoid man in me thinks it was some kind of trap or something. Not the creepiest thing that ever happened to me in the woods, but deaf top three, so whoever was out there. I'm glad we never met. My first time backpacking. These events occurred two summers ago in the Grand Teton area.

Starting point is 04:27:37 My boyfriend at the time, now husband, let's call him H, was an avid outdoorsman and also served in the military. I was an ecology major and wanted to spend more times outdoors, so he decided to take me on my first backpacking trip, just the two of us. For those who aren't familiar, the Grand Teton's are well known for the their wildlife, specifically grizzly bears. My only experience with bears up to this point was watching a little black bear crossed the road from the safety of my car. Seeing grizzly, country, signs around every corner wasn't doing much to calm my nerves. The first incident.

Starting point is 04:28:17 My boyfriend looked like Indiana Jones, machete hanging from his belt, large knives attached to each side of its pack, bear spray strapped to his waist. You get the picture. The beginning of our 25-mile journey was all uphill. When in bare country, you're supposed to make noise as to not start of the wildlife by accidentally sneaking up on it. As you can imagine, going up a steep hill while carrying a 40-pound pack makes it difficult to make conversation. We were an hour in, and almost at the top of the ascent, I noticed that the woods had gone completely silent. Save for the Russian stream that was to our left of the trail. Silent woods are never a good sign. That usually indicates predators nearby. At this point, I was in front of

Starting point is 04:29:03 my boyfriend and we were about to crest the hill. For the past 20 minutes, we had not said a word to each other, having been too tired to speak. We noticed the silence at the time and gave each other knowing glances. I came up over the top of the hill and immediately froze. Sitting not 10 feet in front of me in the middle of the trail was a grizzly bear. My husband wasn't aware yet, and he He was behind me, so I did the first thing I could think of. While still, in my frozen stance, I managed to take my arm and started flinging it wildly behind me trying to get H's attention. I was too terrified to speak.

Starting point is 04:29:42 The bear went from sitting to all fours, not looking away from us once. H quickly swung me around so that I was behind him, and he just started yelling. Being in the military, he knows how to yell. The grizzly wasn't quite phased as it started to walk slowly towards us. At this point, I was on the verge of passing out from terror. This bear was about five feet in front of us when we heard a loud, crack coming from the woods to our right. The bear heard it too, and he bolted towards the stream.

Starting point is 04:30:15 A second, crack, boomed again. This time much closer than before, H said it's probably just some falling branches. But we both knew that wasn't just the case. At this point, we were walking quickly up the trail in an attempt to create some distance from the grizzly and those strange noises. I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand straight up, and at the same moment, H stopped moving in front of me. He turned around to look at me, and I turned to look behind me.

Starting point is 04:30:46 To this day, we are not sure what we saw. Back where we were standing was a large, blacker, brown mass. It looked to be three times bigger than the already large grizzly that we had seen just a few moments before. Its back was facing us, and then it stood on its back legs. It looked similar to a bear, but something about the shape was just off. At this point, it was probably stupid to run away, but that is exactly what we did. We were aware of heavy footsteps behind us, but neither of us looked back. The footsteps eventually faded.

Starting point is 04:31:22 At this point, I was a mess. H was doing his best to console me. Honey, this is extremely unusual. The bears usually stay away from humans. We're going to be okay. I'm sure that won't happen again. That was enough to convince me to continue on the backpack. Not another hour later, though.

Starting point is 04:31:40 We reached a clearing where we decided to take a rest and eat a snack. About a minute after we had sat down, I noticed bushes moving in a line towards the clearing towards us. Out of the brush comes this adolescent grizzly who looks just as spooked as I'm sure we did, but he came straight for us. Age being the crazy nut that he is, decided to charge back at the bear while screaming and bear spray at the ready. That did the trick and the bear ran off. All I could think was just my luck.

Starting point is 04:32:13 But that wasn't even close to what happened the second night. Second night. Before we began our backpacking, We had to let the ranger station know which trails and route we plan to take. With this information, they usually send a ranger on horseback at some point during the backpacking to check on you to make sure everything is okay. There were not many approved trails left for us to choose from, and it was just our luck that they were the most difficult.

Starting point is 04:32:40 Apparently, over the three days we were on those trails, we had been the sole hikers. We didn't see a single other person once we were en route. Anyhow, I guess we missed the ranger who came to check on us. We had been following hoof prints the entire second day, and we hadn't seen any the day before. I had some foot problems, so we spent valuable daylight trying to adjust my boot, laces, and socks to compensate from my pain.

Starting point is 04:33:07 When we started on the trail again, we had maybe an hour or two of daylight left, and in the woods it gets dark fast. I was exhausted. It was now dark out, and H. only one with a working headlamp, as mine wouldn't even turn on for some reason. We needed to find somewhere to set up camp, as we still needed to eat. It was freezing and the wind was blowing hard. It was creating a howling sound as it rushed through the trees, which made it difficult to hear or discern any other sounds coming from the woods. After another hour of hiking through the dark,

Starting point is 04:33:42 we found a clearing. Well, it was more like a bowl. It looked to be 200 meters in the woods. It looked to be 200 meters in diameter with the sides being 10 meters down from the trail to the bottom of the clearing. This place was strange. We both felt it, though he didn't tell me how freaked out he was till after we had left. There was no moonlight, so all we had was the illumination from his headlamp, our small camp stove in the flashlight that I had fished from my pack. Half of the trees were dead or fallen just in the bowl, the vegetation everywhere else was very dense to help alleviate my anxiousness, he started playing ninja sex party out of his portable speaker. This didn't help much, as it just echoed off the trees creating a dissonant sounds. He also thought it would ward off any predators nearby.

Starting point is 04:34:32 This is when we knew our anxiousness wasn't paranoia. The silence was back. There hadn't been a single bird chirp since we arrived at the clearing. It also may have had to do with the obnoxious music, but because of our previous experience, we decided to turn off the music and head into the tent. Also, it was freezing. As soon as we were situated in our sleeping bags, we heard deep cracks and thuds echoing from beyond the tree line. Falling trees? There had been a lot of wildfires and very little rain this season. Thud, we both froze.

Starting point is 04:35:06 That sound wasn't an echo. It came from inside the clearing. Definitely not a falling tree. Thud, it came from right outside our tent. We both stopped breathing. H's hand-found mind, and we clung to each other. Paralyzed. Something dragged across the outside of our tent, making an indent as it went along.

Starting point is 04:35:29 It was thin, almost like a finger. What is it? I whispered. Shaking. I don't know. Shouldn't be a person. We're the only ones on this side of the mountain. I was trying my hardest to stifle sobs,

Starting point is 04:35:43 trying to listen to what was outside. I could hear steps, but couldn't decipher what it was. The step stopped, and then the whole side of the tent was slowly pushed inwards. At this point, whatever was outside knew we were inside. So I shined my flashlight at the side of the tent. What I saw made my blood run cold. It was the shape of a human face pressed into the tent wall. I could make out the nose and an eye.

Starting point is 04:36:13 open mouth. Each time they breathed in made the tent around their mouth billow in and out, H said, fuck that, and pulled a clock from his sleeping bag. He cocked it, and the sound shattered the silence. The face pulled back, and we heard fast footsteps heading towards the edge of the clearing. We didn't leave the tent till the sun was shining the next morning. The first thing we noticed was the smell of urine. We came out of the tent and looked around. Whoever it was had peed on our coals we had left it in the fire, leaving a disgusting stench of evaporated pee. Footprints surrounded our tent, circling around multiple times. Muddy handprints decorated the outside of our tent. We think it was mud anyway. The takeaway, wildlife, is not the most

Starting point is 04:37:02 dangerous thing in the backcountry. I'm a fire watcher. I found another fire watcher's unsettling journal at my new station. I'm a fire watcher. Upon moving into my station, I found the following pages typed on my desk. I'm not the author of the following. I'm transcribing exactly what I found dated, 1989. I've been located here for 185 days. According to my calendar, I'm stationed up in the northwest of the United States with two other guys, Clark and Thomas.

Starting point is 04:37:37 185 days. That's five days longer than our stint here should have been. Normally, they rotate us out every 180 days. We were supposed to be picked up by helicopter five days ago. I started writing this logbook, journal, whatever, because we're overdue for Evac. Or so we think. Maybe we messed up the calendar somehow. Our main radio stopped working on day 179.

Starting point is 04:38:01 Get up. There's smoke. Bleary-eyed, I saw Clark standing over my bunk. I could see the orange slits of light reflecting on his torso, signaling to me it was the early morning. Teddy, Smoke. Smoke? Huh? I said, still half delirious?

Starting point is 04:38:17 Yes, smoke. I really small stream of it, maybe a mile southeast. His eyes were wide and brighter than the sunlight on his uniform. I pulled myself out in the bottom bunk and headed towards the window. I didn't even need my binoculars to see the small sliver of smoke created a shadow in the early sun's light. In 185 days, it's only the second time we've seen a potential fire. For those who don't know how a fire watchtower looks like, it's basically a wooden cabin elevated

Starting point is 04:38:44 about 100 feet in the air. Ours has a staircase that wraps around the structure beneath the cabin. I'm pretty sure that other towers use ladders, but that's beside the point. Clark and I bunk up in the watchtower. We have a little kitchen, our bunk bed, and a 360-degree view of nothing but woods. Thomas sleeps in a tiny little cabin at the base of our tower, which is also where our main office is. office may be too loose of a term. It's one desk and a typewriter used for typing out reports of what we see out here.

Starting point is 04:39:14 I rub my eyes and looked over to Clark. All right, let's just go check it out. No way, Teddy, no way, he replied immediately. Clark has been afraid to go past the outhouse since day 180 passed. He's afraid a helicopter will come and you'll miss a chance to be rescued. Rescued, Clark would say. But are we in danger? Did we miscalculate the number of days?

Starting point is 04:39:36 have been out here? We still have plenty of food. Did they forget about us? Has the apocalypse come and gone? And we don't know because we've been so isolated? Okay, fine. I agreed. Radio down to Thomas and let him know. He should be up. Our main radio back to base isn't getting a sign of life from anywhere. And if it isn't receiving from anywhere, we assume we aren't being heard from anywhere. Luckily, we still have our own walkie-talkies to communicate with each other. Clark took out as walkie. Tom, there's some smoke about a mile southeast. Can you go check it out? A few seconds passed before Thomas responded. After I finished wiping my ass, I'll be on my way, unless you want to help me with that, Clarkie. Thomas, the oldest of us, is always picking on Clark, the youngest. He doesn't really

Starting point is 04:40:20 dislike Clark. He's just easy to pick on. He's a 23-year-old college dropout. I think he's studied accounting or finance or something on his parents' dime. I don't think he left college to be a professional on Firewatcher. No, I think he's left to come out here in the wilderness, be alone, and take a rest of perspective look at his life to decide what he really wants. Do you only sign up for 180 days of isolation if you're crazy, or if you want to get away from something? I'm not sure which category Thomas falls in. He's a cryptic, brute of a man. His picture is probably in the dictionary next to Lumberjack. He's pretty quiet unless he has a joke to tell or something important to say. Either way, when he opens his mouth, I listen. As for me, it's not important

Starting point is 04:41:01 why I'm out here. Headed out now, Thomas radioed. Clark and I watched Thomas start his trek into the tree line until we no longer could see him. Clark cocked his head towards mine. Teddy, he said to me. Thomas has been acting different. Weird.

Starting point is 04:41:18 I didn't expect him to be so blunt. But I had noticed. I knew Clark had noticed, but this was the first time we spoke about it. I know. He doesn't seem to be bothered that we are stuck out here. We don't know if we were stuck out here. We could have scratched off the dates wrong. You know, we thought we didn't scratch the day off yet, but we really did.

Starting point is 04:41:37 So we accidentally scratched the next day, too. I guess, Clark said softly. I knew what he was going to say next. At night, though. Shut up, Clark. Come on, Teddy, it's fucked up. He's fine during the day and then just, just changes? Does he have some type of illness?

Starting point is 04:41:54 It happened so sudden. Maybe he does. So what if the guy goes out at night to stare at trees? Trees? Stare at trees? I know you've seen it. He goes out near the tree line and stands there for a while looking out, sometimes hours. Maybe he does have a screw loose, and maybe he shouldn't be out here.

Starting point is 04:42:11 But I don't think it's the best idea to bring it up to him when we were trapped here with him, especially if he is insane. Silence fell between us before Clark responded. I didn't know he stares out at the forest. He said to me in a soft voice and eyes wider than when he woke me up this morning. Oh, wait, what? What were you going to say? At night, he stammered.

Starting point is 04:42:37 He comes up the stairs. I looked over to our half-open door leading out of the staircase, letting a cool breeze in. What? What do you? What? He comes up the stairs and just looks at us, stares at us. Thomas left to go check out the smoke about an hour ago.

Starting point is 04:42:56 It seemed to vanish, so I figure, He handled it. Clark spends his days using our walkie-talk. He's trying every station possible to alert anyone nearby. I just watch the forest. It's 11.30 p.m. Thomas isn't back. He left at about 7 a.m. He hasn't answered his radio.

Starting point is 04:43:12 Tomorrow will be day 186. We do not know if Thomas is okay and one of us will most likely have to check the woods tomorrow. And since Clark is chicken shit, it'll end up being me. More disturbing, though, is something Clark told me a few minutes ago. The reason I went back to the office to type this. I was leaned back in my swivel chair, spinning slowly, making sure there were no signs of

Starting point is 04:43:34 fires or lights in the dark expanse of trees and wondering where Thomas was. He must have been hurt. Even if he was lost, he'd reply on his walkie. He always answers our walkies. They're with us at all times, even when we were shitting or showering.

Starting point is 04:43:50 Clark stopped my chair mid-spin and mid-thought, before I could protest he spoke. Listen, I need to tell you something I've been thinking about recently. It seemed no way at me. I wondered if it had to do with Thomas. Okay, I said. I'm all ears. It's going to sound crazy,

Starting point is 04:44:06 he warned. I bet I've heard crazier. He took a long yet stuttered inhale, then spoke. I don't remember coming out here. My facial expression didn't change, and it looked like he was waiting for a reaction, so

Starting point is 04:44:22 he repeated. I don't remember coming out here. Do you? Do you remember applying for this job? Do you remember being interviewed or being flown out here? At first I was almost amused. Then as he asked those questions, I froze. I didn't remember. He continued. You know how I said I decided to leave college? Well, now that I'm thinking about it harder, I don't know if I did. I mean, I must have, right? To be out here, I must have. But all I can remember is my last day of class for the semester and then I was here. I don't remember any. anything between coming home after class and meeting you and Thomas. I was listening, but it probably didn't show. I was still motionless.

Starting point is 04:45:05 I couldn't remember. I tried and am still trying. Thomas is missing. Clark and I are losing our minds or something else. Either way, I can't explain it. There are more pages scattered about, but I haven't figured out the order. Some are ripped and some are faded beyond recognition. But there is a more pressing.

Starting point is 04:45:26 an imminent problem at hand. About 30 minutes ago, I met Gary and Harold. We've been stationed out here for the next 180 days. I don't know whether to tell them what I've found. I don't know whether to tell them that I don't remember coming here. Appalachian Mountains. So I want to start off by saying that I am a very skeptical guy. I became an atheist when I was 17,

Starting point is 04:45:53 and when my belief in God dissipated, my belief in everything else supernatural went out the way. window as well. I also want to say that I've lived in Appalachia for all but four years of my life and I'm almost 22 and I've never experienced any of the creepy things people say about the Appalachian Mountains until the story I'm about to tell you. So towards the end of last year, which was 2023, me and two of my friends had sort of simultaneous quarter-life crises, which eventually led us to getting rid of almost all of our belongings, quitting our jobs, leaving our apartments and living out of our cars and door-dashing around the country.

Starting point is 04:46:34 Well, on our first night, on our big trip, we went to stay with a friend of one of my travel mates. She lived in Tennessee and the Appalachian Mountains, the Smoky Mountains, specifically, which, for those of you don't know, is like a subcategory of the Appalachians. She lived off a back road in the middle of the woods. The first night we were there, she had told us that there were strange occurrences on the property. The house was haunted, and the house was haunted. there was something in the woods. She had told us that whatever is in the woods likes to hang out around her shed. She said that one night she was walking up onto her porch when she got the

Starting point is 04:47:12 overwhelming feeling of being watched. Becoming fed up with whatever it was, she screamed something along the lines of go the fuck away into the woods, only for something to scream it right back at her. She claimed to have seen it one night from her kitchen window. She said it was peeking around the shed, stirring at her. It wasn't an animal, but it wasn't human either. Out of curiosity, I asked her to describe whatever creature she saw in more detail, but she refused. I, being the skeptic that I am, basically disregarded everything she said and forgot about it. Now, because it was our first night on the trip, and it was so fun and new to us, we wanted to sleep in our cars, which were parked right in front of the shed I mentioned earlier.

Starting point is 04:48:01 Yes, that shed. We hadn't yet made window covers, so we were sleeping in three SUVs with uncovered windows completely surrounding us. But I had no issue with this. I thought the worst I could happen would be that I'd wake up with a bear staring at me. So I went to beds peacefully and woke up in the middle of the night, really needing to pee.

Starting point is 04:48:25 I got half dressed, put on my shirt, shoes, left my car, walked to the edge of the woods, did my business, and got back in my car, and went to sleep. I had not a single care in the world. No uneasy feeling, no feeling of being watched, nothing. The next night, I once again wake up, really needing to pee, so just like I did the night before, I sat up in my bed, put on my pants, got my shoes ready, and reached for the door handle. But I couldn't do it. It was like every hand. care of my body stood on end and I got this overwhelming feeling of dread and foreboding. Now, I had a makeshift bed in the back of my SUV on top of all the back seats that I flipped

Starting point is 04:49:08 down, so I'm sitting there in my bed looking around through all of my uncovered windows. I can't see anything outside, except for some faint outlines of trees in the glints off of my travelmates' cars. I neither saw nor heard anything that should be putting me. me on edge. I reached for the door handle again, but I once again got that terrible feeling. I continued to look around, tried to reach for the door, and withdraw my hand. I finally gave up and said, screw it, and just peed in an empty water bottle. The next morning, I got up and was talking to my travelmates, and one of them mentioned waking up in the middle of the night out of nowhere, and experiencing an overwhelming feeling of being watched.

Starting point is 04:49:56 She sat up in her makeshift bed and looked all around only to see nothing. I can't lie when she said that I got a bit of a knot in my stomach. I asked her what time it was when this happened, and she estimated that it was around the same time I woke up around 3 a.m. I then told both of them about my experience, and we were all a little freaked out about it. When we were headed out to our cars the following night, we noticed that all of the homeowners 5 plus outdoor cats were all sitting on her front porch, which we hadn't seen the last

Starting point is 04:50:31 two nights. Previously, they would all be scattered around the property, if they were even in sight. We thought it was weird, but we didn't think much of it. We all climbed into our cars and set our good nights on our walkie-talkies. It was a pretty warm and muggy night for October, so we all had our battery-powered fans running. One of my friends frustratedly reported that her walkie-talkie was dying. Then my other friend reported that their fan had died. Then my walkie-talkie started dying.

Starting point is 04:51:03 And it continued until, in the span of five minutes, all of our electronic camping gear, walkies, flashlights, and fans had all died. Finding this incredibly creepy, we all did. decided that we should just sleep in the house to be better safe than sorry. We were gathering up all our things to move inside when I began to hear what sounded like something large walking through the leaves in the woods. I kept stopping what I was doing and looking toward my friend who were standing right by the woods. They seemed unbothered every time, so I would just continue what I was doing. That was when I heard a louder noise coming from the woods and finally

Starting point is 04:51:42 decided to walk over to my friends. Turns out, one of the One of them was standing watched while the other ones gathered the rest of her things. Me and my friends stood there watching my other friends back, and it kept sounding like whatever was in the woods kept getting closer to us. Soon enough, my friend had gathered all her things and we calmly, but quickly, went into the house. From what I can remember, we slept in the house the following night as well, but the night after that, one of my friends borrowed some sage from the homeowner and saged all along the wood

Starting point is 04:52:16 and around our vehicles before we got ready for bed. We slept perfectly fine for that night and every night after. No more weird feelings, noises, nothing. Of course, we were pretty much perpetually on edge from then on, but it was never quite the same feeling of dread and foreboding that I had felt before. To be honest, I don't know what to make of all of it. I know I didn't see anything, but the feeling I got was unlike anything I have ever experienced. That was the first and only time in my life where I've gotten that feeling, especially just

Starting point is 04:52:49 out of nowhere. I've told the story a few times now, and I've had people tell me that it was just a bear, but I don't think a bear would give me that sort of instinctual feeling of danger when I can't even hear or see it. And I'm fully aware that I may be biased now, but I've lent it a bit more credibility to the homeowner stories after my experience. For those of you that are curious, no, we are not still on the trip. Unfortunately, the whole thing went downhill after a couple of months, and we are now integrating

Starting point is 04:53:24 back into society. We are, however, all still friends, and no, we did not experience anything like this again, despite staying at several campgrounds in the middle of the woods in other parts of the southeast. I think I saw a Skinwalker. About two months ago, my husband. husband, 34M, and I, 29F, were staying in a camper on my friend's property in northern Wisconsin. One night I wasn't feeling very well, so I went and laid down in the camper and promptly fell asleep. A few hours later, around 3 a.m., I suddenly woke up and bolted out of the door

Starting point is 04:54:04 and started projectile vomiting outside by the window. My husband called out and asked if I was okay. I managed to say, yeah, in between rounds. When I finally finished and felt like I was okay to go back and lay down, I spit a few more times to get rid of the taste and as I looked up, there was a face about three feet in front of me in the darkness. I stared at it, and it stared at me. I was petrified. I couldn't move.

Starting point is 04:54:33 But I was also afraid to take my eyes off of it. I slowly started to move my head up, down and side to side to try, and get a better angle or a closer look, and as I did so, it began to mimic my movements. There we were, in the darkness of the forest, bobbing up, down, back, forth, slowly leaning closer and closer to one another as we try to figure each other out. I stared straight into its cold, hollow eyes. I couldn't look away in fear of what would happen if I did. It stared back at me. almost as if it didn't know what I was either. It was too dark to make out any features, but the face had the shape of a human face,

Starting point is 04:55:19 but what I could see on the body from behind the truck just looked hunched over and distorted. We stayed that way for what felt like forever until I finally managed to call out, Babe? Yeah, my husband responded. There's something out here, I said, only slightly raising my voice. What? he asked. I don't know, some kind of animal. I'm not sure, but I'm afraid to move. It's just watching me, I whispered almost to myself. He opened the door of the camper and looked out into the darkness. Where? He asked, unable to see what I was seeing. It's right in front of me,

Starting point is 04:55:56 just watching. I told him bewildered that he couldn't see it. He grabbed a flashlight and shined it in front of me, and it was gone. There was nothing there. I never saw it leave. I kept its cold, dead gaze the whole time. How could it not be there? I'm still very confused by this interaction. I know it was there. I saw it wasn't a dream and I know I wasn't hallucinating. Can anybody tell me what they think it was? Edit. Just to respond to a few comments. I don't drink and I don't do drugs, so I was not inebriated. I don't remember all the details because I couldn't see very well, but here's what I got. I couldn't tell how tall it was because from what I could see, it looked hunched over and disfigured.

Starting point is 04:56:41 I don't think it had any fur. It was pale in color, but again, it was so dark. I'm not sure what color it was. It had big, black, soulless eyes, like looking straight into a void. It had sharp, jagged teeth, and I don't remember a nose at all. Hope this description helps. Maybe it wasn't a skinwalker because I guess they don't leave Navajo land, but it was really scary. I should also mention that where I was was in the woods of Wisconsin, was not too far from the

Starting point is 04:57:13 Hannibal Indian Reservation in Manomi County, Michigan, but again, not Navajo, so I'm not sure what it was. Personal Skinwalker Story from 2017. I'd like to apologize in advance, as I'd like to think I'm a decent storyteller in person, but pretty lackluster and long-winded with text. Also, as I write about later, I try and use animal noises to describe some sounds. Take them all with a grain of salt, as even I know, that's not the exact thing I heard, but the closest sound I can relate it to or describe it with.

Starting point is 04:57:50 I go between I and we have a couple times, as I describe at the end. My friends and I all discussed what happened to confirm we all in fact heard the same thing and had the same experience. To perface the story and where it takes place, I grew up. in the Huron region of Ontario. For those who are not familiar, it's about a three-hour drive directly west from Toronto, where I now live, on the shore of Lake Huron, not far from the area the tales of the Black Donlies are from, for you, dark history lovers. During my history in high school, there was one teacher who had talked about his experiences in a small forested

Starting point is 04:58:29 place called Lobbs Bush. Although I wasn't very familiar with it at the time, it was known by a fair number of locals as a very haunted place in the area or where people have had unexplainable, but startingly similar encounters. This teacher was very outspoken about his experiences in that bush, but also his steadfast trust in being a non-believer in the paranormal or supernatural, which in turn made him, of all people, the most fascinating to hear it from. Always ends his stories or answers to questions with, I don't believe it, can't. explain it, I'm just telling you what happened. A few years later in the winter of 2017,

Starting point is 04:59:11 both after having him as my teacher in high school and having since moved away to attend my first year of university, I came back to my hometown for my winter break to spend some time with family and catch up with my friend group. For anyone familiar with the small town experience, our favorite activity was the age-old classic of buying a terrible number of cheap reservation cigarettes, hopping in one of our friends terribly run down beater cars, and then smoking, chatting, and playing the worst music ever conceived until either the smokes or the gas tank runs out. We were all hovering around 16 to 18, so this was just the most fun degenerate things we could do. On top of finally having a break from all of my uni coursework, this was the

Starting point is 04:59:56 first time seeing these friends in a couple of months, so we were all excited to be in one big group again. I won't bore you with all of the earlier antics of the evening, but where this story picks up is after driving around, catching up for a few hours, we pit stop at a random bush trail so some of us could smoke some weed. As we started walking down one of the trails, I remember feeling a very stark change in the atmosphere around us. I didn't really want to express my feelings to ruin the mood, but I definitely felt the need to be on high alert. I've never really had a way to describe the physical feeling apart from my chest feeling heavy, but somehow it was very clear that something was watching us and did not want us there.

Starting point is 05:00:39 Every few steps, I needed to look back to make sure something wasn't stalking us. All we had were our phone flashlights, which had a very short distance. The way the trail sat in the bush, it was all new tree, so they curled over the path to almost form a tunnel. It looked as if we walked into a maw of a massive creature slowly making our way down its throat. We only made it about a few hundred meters before realizing that the calm night was turning into a winter storm. We all agreed to go back to the car and would start making our way back home before it got worse. By the time we made it back to the car, the trees were swinging wildly in the winds and the snow made it hard to see the next couple feet in front of us. Once we made it to the car, we started to drive back to the closest town, so as to stay at a friend's place to wait out the storm.

Starting point is 05:01:32 While driving, the weather continued getting worse until the snow had practically blinded us while going around a notable halfway their turn. We found out that our estimate of how far to turn the car wasn't enough and felt the car's momentum stall and slide sideways into the ditch. After a short period of us hurling claims of backseat driving and general frustrations, we ended up staying in the ditch for around five hours before being rescued by local police and driven the rest of the way into town. During our time in the ditch, I talked about how I felt while walking in the woods. We all agreed with the feeling of knowing we shouldn't be there, and none of us spoke up until now. Only after that did our friend in the driver's seat, and the only one familiar with these particular backroads,

Starting point is 05:02:19 inform us that we were in fact walking through Lobbs Bush. Fast forward some time to, I believe, my second semester reading week, I'm back home with my friends and back to the same old antics. After a particularly good night of catching up, we decided to go revisit Lobbs Bush, as none of us had been there since getting caught in the ditch, and the weather was already warm this month with far less snow. I remember feeling almost excited to go back,

Starting point is 05:02:48 rather than dark impenetrable clouds in snow, tonight the moon was out and barely needed flashlights to see where we were going. We parked the car in the same spot and grabbed all necessary smoking apparatuses and a pack of smokes for the driver and me to share, as of course neither time are we dumb enough to get our designated driver high. As we started walking into the trail, I started realizing landmarks that I had missed for my first time there, with the moonlight making everything more visible.

Starting point is 05:03:18 I walked through the same threshold as before and was pleasantly surprised that I didn't feel like I was being watched or unwelcome to walk through. After a point, I had almost forgotten that I was in the infamous woods and was enjoying a late night walk through the forest, laughing with my friends. After walking further down the trail, we finally came to an opening. On the right side of the trail, the trees had parted out to showcase the edge of the field, nicely lit by the moonlight. On the left side, the bush clears out, so there's a lovely section of grass and light foliage parting to show a small stream cutting through. It looked

Starting point is 05:03:56 like a naturally made auditorium, with the stream cutting through like a main walkway. Sparse trees, so plenty of seating for an audience and the trees opening and leading down to the farmer's field as this stage. In all honesty, I had completely forgotten we were there to smoke and was just enamored with how pretty it was. As we found a spot to stop and ready our lights to smoke, our friend had the bright idea to exclaim, yo, I forgot I've got a Roman candle. As we all turned to look, they had already gotten their lighter out and was proceeding to light the candle. Again, we were late teens. We were idiots. She proceeds to point the candle towards the big clearing to the field. Every once in a while moving it around so it is not all shooting in the same

Starting point is 05:04:43 spot. Going higher and higher into the air, she finally points it in the opposite direction towards the wood. With surprising accuracy, none of the shots actually hit anything before going out until one finally hits a tree near the stream and spirals into the woods where we can't see it. Within no more than a second's time, this blood-curdling scream comes from the exact place the Roman candle bounced into the woods beyond our view. We all completely froze, unsure of what to make of it as the scream continued on for a worrisome amount of time. I can only describe it as a cross between a deeper version of a howlard's monkey's roar and an ear-wringing wine like an elk's bugle going higher in pitch as it kept screaming.

Starting point is 05:05:29 I remember my ears vibrating from how loud it was. I wanted to cover them, but we were all frozen in place from it. Finally, one of us snapped into reality and yelled, run and bolted off towards the farmer's field. We all in turn started running away from the ongoing scream from within the woods. As we were running, the scream finally stopped after about 10 seconds of constant noise. There was no breath or change in the scream apart from pitch. It was able to yell at that volume for longer than I've heard any animal do. Before we could even think, we heard a heavy rustling in the woods as whatever it was took a deep inhale to scream again. The inhale was, the inhale was. The inhale was just as terrifying, sounding like an alligator's bellow mixed with a hyaena's laugh.

Starting point is 05:06:16 I know both sounds I'm describing are from exhaling, but you could tell this was a guttural, full-chested and preparatory inhale before screaming again. Unlike the first scream that almost sounded reactionary, surprised by the Roman candle almost hitting it, this was clearly an angry roar. Whatever it was was really fucking big with the lungs to prove it. now moving towards us. It was even louder and what I could only assume was now pointed towards us. Even though we were all heavy smokers at the time, we all ran as fast as we possibly could without looking back. Absolutely terrified from the second continuous roar that was now gaining on us.

Starting point is 05:06:58 After about 15 seconds, the scream stopped abruptly. It took us a second to realize the noise was gone. We turned around to see that we had made it out of the woods and onto the field. We only looked back briefly to see we had put around 50 to 100 meters between us and the edge of the bush. Even before we could really think straight, we shakily agreed to make our way to the closest road to make our way back to the front of the bush to find where we parked. It was only once we got to the road and caught our smoked out breath, did one of us finally ask if we all heard and felt that? We all talked briefly, but we're too on edge to actually converse. About 20 minutes later, we finally made it back to the road and had the car in sight. We all started to calm down as we had some time to process and let the adrenaline wear off.

Starting point is 05:07:50 We unlocked the car, all got into our respective seats with our bags. None of us had the time to take it off before the first scream happened. As the driver finally turned the car on and the headlights flooded the woods in front of us, The front passenger just screamed, drive, drive, drive. The driver without looking, crank the car into reverse and turned around to back out quickly and go down the back road as fast as he could beside the bush. The friend who screamed started to freak out all over again. I was sitting directly behind him with my hand on his shoulder from the back seat.

Starting point is 05:08:25 As we tried to ask what was wrong, I was looking over my shoulder to look into the woods. I genuinely felt like time had slowed down as I looked over, with the same feeling of something watching me like my first time in the woods. As the trees passed by, I could clearly make out two fully open eyes reflecting back at me. I could clearly make out two full reflective circles. I was completely frozen and couldn't look away. I couldn't tell if the eyes were locked on me or the whole vehicle, or even what light they were reflecting off of, as we were driving beside the wood. They were clearly further back into the woods by a couple of meters, so I couldn't make out how tall it was, but I could very easily see they were attached to a head

Starting point is 05:09:11 much larger and taller than a human. I completely forgot about comforting the passenger in front of me and instead tried to turn and see it for longer through the back window as we kept driving, but had completely lost the visual. I couldn't even make a sound, but my mind was racing. The longer I sat, the longer I wondered, how the hell it got to where I could see it after we had sped away from the parking spot. I don't know how much it saw from the car, but I know it saw me. It saw all of us in those woods. I don't know how to describe it other than that I felt I was fully prey, and whatever it

Starting point is 05:09:53 was a predator that knows me now. After driving for a while on our way back to a friend's farm, we were all able to speak about what had happened. We all heard the same noises, heard the rustling, heard the same far too long screams, and finally, the other passenger and I both agreed on seeing the same wide eyes staring at us. Neither of us got a good look at what it was, but both agreed that it was staring at us and was too big to make out. That passenger also made a comment that, even though it was a good was a couple of meters into the woods, when he saw it, it had to be much bigger than a human. After a couple of hours more conversing about it, we all finally felt comfortable driving back

Starting point is 05:10:38 to our respective homes. Every couple of months, when we'd see each other again, we'd make certain to each other that we all saw the same thing, as we wanted to make sure none of us were truly losing it mentally. I sat on the events of this story for about a year, not really sure who to tell or who would believe any of us for that matter. Once I finally felt comfortable talking and researching things similar, I came to a personal conclusion that it might be something along the lines of a skinwalker and started looking further into stories about it. As there was so much talk of people having similar encounters or strange happenings in Lobbs Bush, I really wanted to entertain and research any and all possibilities. On top of the

Starting point is 05:11:25 that although raised somewhat Christian in school, it was never a dogma I really followed or was heavy into the idea of other powers until this happened. For me, if this was real and it happened to me, I couldn't disprove anything and has vastly changed the way I look at any form of religion or spiritual beliefs. Through friends and a few events, I know a fair number of indigenous groups and older members that I felt believed enough of the old ways to tell the story. All three elders essentially said the same thing, along the very blunt line of, yep, that sounds like a skinwalker, and a few shared similar encounters that other friends and family have had.

Starting point is 05:12:07 Only within the last, I think, two years I talked to a few more people about it. And one friend finally recommended that I Google what a skinwalker sounded like. I finally looked online and heard some very similar sounds that sent the same, it's watching chills down my spine and felt that on top of everything else was enough confirmation for me. To this day, now have started my own spiritual path with respect to the lands and essentially now being on Turtle Island that I walk on. In addition to the classic, don't whistle or say its name at night, I've made it very clear to my friends who have all heard the story and respectfully know me as a doubt towards the camping friend,

Starting point is 05:12:50 that if I ever feel anything similar to being watched or that we shouldn't be in these woods to get the fuck out with me. And all right, thank you so much for all of you for watching this video. And if you watch through all of it, then holy crap, that's crazy. And this video is really long,

Starting point is 05:13:12 and I really hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you thought about it down below. And I don't know how many of you are even watching at the end of this because it's like so many hours long. But just thank you for, watching and it means the world. And thank you for all the support this year on all the Reddit story videos. It's crazy. And it's a huge new strain of videos I love making now. And I'll

Starting point is 05:13:31 continue it into 2025 and beyond. And so thank you so much for watching. And until next time, see ya.

Snook - The Reddit Story Collection

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.