The Beast Inside

by David Horrocks

  Still no answer. It was early evening and the autumn sun was only just beginning to set, lighting up the trees as if they were on fire. Sam stepped over fallen branches, footsteps rustling through the leaves that lined the forest floor. He had been walking for over an hour, with no sign of Alice at all, but he wouldn't give up. She was the only true friend he ever had and so he was determined to find her. He knew that he would stay out all night if he had to.

  The task should have been easy, as the trees were bare, allowing Sam to see further than was usually possible. Unfortunately, it wasn't improving the situation as much as he hoped.

  “Alice? Please, I want to help!”

  Sam turned on the spot, trying to look for some sort of sign. His voice echoed around him, with few leaves left to dampen the sound. Even if she did respond, how would he even know where her voice was coming from? It was then that he realised he didn't even even know exactly where he was either. Which direction did he just come from? Everything looked the same. There were no landmarks to follow this deep in the middle of nowhere. He had gotten himself well and truly lost, with no way to regain his bearings.

  Pushing through a row of bushes, Sam tripped up over a rock that was hidden just out of sight. Losing his balance, he stumbled forwards before falling straight down on to his hands and knees. He didn't feel any pain at first, only realising that he’d ripped through his new jeans once he was standing again. Blood was soaked up by denim, staining it red. It was just a scrape, but it really started to sting. He quickly dusted himself down, cringing in pain as he did so.

  Sam looked up at his surroundings, realising that there strangely wasn't a breeze any more and that the trees were no longer swaying. In fact the air tasted stale, as if it hasn't moved for a while and had stagnated through lack of stimulation. It felt unnatural, which seemed odd as just a moment before he had been surrounded by nature itself. No birds sang their songs there. No crickets were chirping. There wasn't even the buzz of activity from a single hornet. The place felt like the life had been ripped from its grasp by a sinister presence. If he felt like he was lost before, he most certainly was now.

  Just beyond a small ridge ahead of him lay a large tree stump in a somewhat small clearing. The ground around it was black like ash and completely barren. Whatever evil was affecting this place, the stump felt like its focal point. Even though the mere sight of it gave him goosebumps, Sam felt the need to approach. His mother had always called the draw that he felt to the unknown his 'adventurous streak’, and it was something that he found hard to ignore. That same lust for adventure almost always seemed to land him in trouble.

  As he got nearer, Sam could see the rot protruding from the centre of the stump, the top jagged and rough as if the tree was rotting from the inside and falling apart at its core. At its base, there was a hole in the dirt that descended down into nothingness. It was a large burrow of sorts, just wide enough for him to fit in and oddly outlined with smooth pebbles that looked like the ones that could be found at the creek just outside of town. Sam edged closer and closer to the hole, feeling the need to explore its vastness.

  As he stood at the precipice, just about to take his first step into the black, a familiar voice finally answered his call.

  “Sam, is that you? Wait! Stay away from it!”

  He turned to see where the voice was coming from, catching a glimpse of Alice’s golden locks mere seconds before she collided with him, knocking him away from the hole’s entrance as her arms wrapped tightly around his chest in an embrace. She was out of breath, as if she had been running for quite some time, skin warm and clammy from exertion.

  Sam hugged her back, happy that he wasn't alone anymore and that his friend was safe. Almost forgetting about the hole in the ground entirely, he held on for a few moments before she pulled away.

  “I was worried… Where have you been?” He said, staring into her crystal blue eyes.

  “Sam, we have to go. He's coming back!”

  Alice looked frightened, but Sam had no idea what she was talking about.

  “Who's coming back, Alice? Back from where?”

  “The impossibly tall man.” She replied, eyes peering past him as she looked at something beyond.

  Sam turned to follow her gaze, but there was nothing there to be seen. The clearing and the ridge just beyond it were empty of anything of note. He turned back to Alice, shaking his head slowly as he spoke.

  “I don't see anything. What are you talking about?”

  She didn't have time to explain, grabbing his sleeve and yanking hard as she started to run in the opposite direction, past the dead tree stump.

  “He’s already here. Run, Sam! Run!!!”

  Sam didn't argue this time, moving his legs at a speed to match hers. He was faster, but he didn't have a clue where they were going and so he let Alice lead.

  A heavy crash of something breaking somewhere close behind, showering the children with wooden splinters, caused Sam to believe that maybe they were being chased after all. He tried to get a glimpse of whatever was chasing them through the woods, but still couldn't see a thing, other than branches snapping as they were torn right off nearby tree limbs by some unseen force.

  Sam had always had a fear of being chased. By people or monsters, it didn't matter. It was the thought of not being fast enough and not being able to get away that terrified him. Somehow, being unable to see whatever was on your tail was decidedly worse. He just kept pushing. Kept on running. Kept the blood pumping through his veins and tried to regulate his breathing. Ultimately, Sam trusted that Alice would get them both to safety. He trusted her with his life.

  “We're almost there! Keep running!”

  Sam kept following Alice closely as she called back to him. He didn't know how far they had gone or how long they’d been running for, but he had hit the pain barrier a while back and didn't know how much longer he could keep it up. His legs were beginning to buckle under the strain and his lungs burned like wild fire. He was sure that once this was all over, his blisters were going to have blisters.

  The sun had long set and the moon had taken its place amongst the stars. The air around them had grown cold, but they barely felt it. Alice continued to drag Sam through seemingly endless woods, with boundless energy pushing her forwards. Somewhere ahead of them, a bright light shimmered into view. She jerked his arm towards it, high tailing it for the source.

  Sam turned his head one final time to see what was going on, and that's when he saw it. A giant of a man, almost as tall as the trees themselves, dark and featureless with long spindly arms that were reaching out towards them. An elongated hand tried to snap at his ankles, mere inches from grabbing on.

  The impossibly tall man was almost upon them and escape seemed futile, but as soon as the children were within his grasp, his boney fingers struck an invisible barrier. The sudden shock stopped the creature in his tracks, putting him in his place and preventing any further pursuit.

  In shock himself, Sam looked back towards the light, as an ear piercing roar rang out and damn near burst his eardrums. He clasped his free hand over his ear in a failed attempt at protecting it, but the gaps between his fingers did nothing to muffle the bellowing sound.

  The pair didn't stop running until they had reached the light in the darkness. It was near blinding once they were close enough to feel the warmth of its glow. Stopping to catch their breath, Sam realised the full extent of how much his body hurt. He had never run so fast or so far.

  Once their eyes had adjusted, the children could see that they were no longer in the forest, but were stood by its boundaries next to a street light on the very same road where they lived.

  “I saw it.” Sam gasped, struggling to fill his lungs with fresh air. “The impossibly tall man. He was real!”

  He wasn't sure if it was Alice's imagination coming to life or whether she could just see things that he couldn't, but either way he had actually seen the creature himself for the first time. Maybe it was because he w
as actually starting to believe and certain creatures could only been seen by those who believed in them. A child's mind is a powerful thing.

  “See? I told you. He lives under the tree stump in the Deadwood.” She explained, leaning against the lamp post for support.

  Sam looked down the road towards his house “We… Should tell our parents. They must be worried.”

  Alice shrugged her shoulders. “We can try, but they won't believe us.”

  Standing up straight, but still breathing deeply, she took Sam's hand and started to walk him back home.

  “Thanks, Sam.”

  “For what?”

  She smiled warmly at him, eyes studying the features of his face as she did so.

  “Thank you for coming to find me.”

  He squeezed her hand, letting her know that he was still with her even now.

  “You're my best friend, Alice. I'll always come and find you.”

  They made their way home, walking at a slow and steady pace. The front porch lights of both houses were on, shining like beacons in the night. Whatever time it was, they both knew that they were going to be in trouble for being out too late.

  **********

  Crack.

  Alice’s eyes popped open. She wasn't sure what had woken her from her slumber as she lay on her back, staring wide eyed at the ceiling of her bedroom.

  Crack.

  That sound again, coming from over near the window. She bolted up straight in the dark, pulling her sheets up over her night dress before holding them tightly just beneath her chin in order to protect herself. Was it the impossibly tall man coming to collect her? No. She hadn't seen him for years.

  Crack.

  Something hit the glass of the bedroom window, causing her to gasp.

  Alice sat there, waiting to see shapes move through the curtains, but nothing happened. Soon curiosity got the better of her and so she let go of the sheets, sliding out from underneath. Her legs hung off the side of the bed, bare feet touching the lush carpet that lined the floor of her room. As Alice made her way tentatively towards the window, an object struck it again.

  Crack.

  Firmly grabbing the fabric of the curtains, Alice swiftly pulled them back. She was ready for anything, but the space beyond was devoid of monsters, creatures or any other sign of life. Her eyes followed the treeline down to the street before looking down at the front yard. Someone was standing on the path with a small stone in hand, ready to launch it up towards her.

  “Sam.” She muttered in disbelief.

  It was the middle of the night and for some reason he had been throwing stones at her window in order to get her attention. His plan had succeeded.

  Alice moved her fingers to place them at the bottom of the window pane, wedging them between the frame and window itself before pulling upwards to open it all the way. She poked her head out into the cool night air, calling to her friend while trying to stay as quiet as possible in order to not wake her parents.

  “Sam, what are you doing out there?”

  Tossing the rock in his hand to one side, Sam beckoned for Alice to come down to him.

  “Get dressed, I have something to show you. Come quick.”

  The pair were stood in the middle of a wide open field, bending down as they took a closer look at a set of footprints in the mud. Sam was adamant that they belonged to a wolf, a big wolf at that. He claimed that he had been researching animal prints in the school library.

  “It was right here, I swear. ”

  He pointed to a large, bovine shaped indentation in the mud nearby. It was about the size of a calf. Not a full sized cow and definitely not a bull.

  “The mutilated body. It was here.”

  Alice looked around. She could see hoof prints too, but they ended suddenly, without a trace.

  “I know, Sam, but where did it go? What were you even doing out here?”

  He winked at her, smirking as he did so.

  “I couldn't sleep, so I followed your example and found this. A mystery, right?”

  Alice pondered, trying to piece the clues together.

  “I wonder where it went. I'm pretty sure wolves aren't strong enough to carry something that heavy.” She looked down at the wolf's giant footprints again. “Even one this big.”

  Turning to see where the tracks led, Sam decided to follow them. He was seemingly fearless, with the spark of adventure glistening in his eyes.

  “Come on! It went this way.”

  After tracking the footprints for some time, they ended up reaching one of the main side roads in town. All signs of the wolf trail vanished where the dirt ended and the pavement began. Sam just stood there looking confused.

  “Why would it come here? I thought wolves lived out in the woods, not in the middle of town.”

  “I'm not sure…”

  Alice’s eyes traced the wolf prints back to the muddy ground and then followed them back again. She was stunned by what she found.

  “Look there. Those are human footprints!”

  She was right. Where one set of footprints ended, another set began. The wolf tracks were replaced by muddy human shaped footsteps on the asphalt. Either a human had picked up the wolf that was carrying the calf, which was completely ridiculous, or the wolf had turned into a person. It was equally as strange a theory, but for some reason it seemed more plausible.

  Alice was ecstatic, grabbing Sam by the hands and swinging him around in a dance of excitement.

  “I've never seen a wolf man... Do you know what this means?!?”

  Sam continued to spin around with her, enjoying the moment.

  “A farmer is missing one of his cows?”

  Alice laughed.

  “No, silly. It means that werewolves exist!”

  **********

  Even though they never saw the impossibly tall man again and couldn't even find the rotten tree stump in the woods, Alice had turned Sam into a believer. She had given him the power to see the unseen. To look upon things that the average person could never even dream of. He would see shapes move in the corner of his eye, but he never got a good look at them, as they would disappear the second he looked in their direction. He didn't know if the creatures were the sprites that Alice had described or something different entirely. Something more sinister that lurked in the shadows and stalked him through the night.

  Ever since Sam's eyes had looked upon the impossibly tall man's face, he had a recurring dream in which he woke up on the floor, trapped within a six by six room without doors or windows. A wooden box in which he became trapped, night after night. His own private prison. Any damage he did to the walls, ceiling or floor was instantly repaired any time he blinked or closed his eyes. He repeatedly beat his fists against the wall, clawed at the woodwork until his fingers bled and curled up to weep in the corner.

  In the nightmares Sam felt so lost and alone. Sometimes he would rise from his bed in the morning, exhausted with cracked fingernails, bruised knuckles and eyes damp with tears. The lines between his imagination and reality had begun to blur, and he wasn't sure what was real anymore.

  As the years went on, Sam started to wonder if he was even meant to see the world as Alice did. Perhaps his mind wasn't meant to be opened to the supernatural at all. Maybe, just maybe, he was meant to live a normal life without witnessing any of the things that he had. It wasn't the rabbit hole he had leapt into, rather a bottomless pit in which he was quickly spiralling out of control.

  **********

  Alice left the woods alone, stepping onto the sidewalk by the road a couple of blocks away from her house. She wasn't sure why Sam didn't want to come along this time, but she respected his decision, even though she missed having him by her side. He'd been a little distant as of late, but constantly dodged any of her questions and inquiries as to why. She hoped it was a phase that would pass and wished that she could help him through it somehow.

  It was a humid evening in August of 2009 and Alice finally felt at home within the bound
aries of town, with the woodlands nearby acting as her escape from bullies and the troubles of everyday life.

  As she meandered down the edge of the street under the cold light of the moon, humming to herself as she went, Alice couldn't wait to tell her parents tales of the day's excursion. They never took her stories seriously, but she still liked to tell them anyway and her dad seemed to enjoy them too.

  Walking around the bend in the road, Alice could see red and blue alternating lights reflecting off windows in the row of houses, originating from somewhere near her driveway. From a distance it looked as though the county Sheriff was parked right outside of her house.

  Alice froze, unsure as what to think. Was she in trouble? Were her parents okay? Thoughts raced through her head at break neck speed and before she knew it her legs were propelling her forwards, headed for home.

  Once she was within a few feet of the drive, Alice came skidding to a halt. Something was definitely wrong... The family car had been replaced with the Sheriff's SUV, idling with its lights still flashing. The driver was stood on the front porch talking to Mrs Mitchell, Sam's mom. Making eye contact, Alice dared not approach. The woman's face was showing distress which caused Alice's heart to skip a beat. Where were her parents? And why was Sam's mom there instead? Alice's mom and dad were always waiting for her without fail, so why weren't they there now?

  Olivia Mitchell leaned over to talk to the Sheriff, speaking low as to not let Alice hear. The man nodded, taking a cigarette from a box in his shirt pocket before tipping his hat and walking back to his car to lean on the hood, lighting up.

  Olivia appeared to compose herself before slowly walking towards Alice, who was still standing on the pavement, like a rabbit caught in headlights. She stopped just shy of the girl, lowering herself down to look her directly in the eyes. Reaching out to take Alice's hand in hers, Olivia began to speak softly.

  “Alice, honey. Something happened to your parents. I'm afraid they won't be coming home.”