Christian mounted the plain blue one, Crystal hopped onto the blue one with a black stripe and taped handlebars, but Michael just stood there.
“Where’s yours at?” Crystal asked.
“Cornfield. Somehow it got there.”
“You think she did it?” Christian, who now looked even more nervous than before, asked him.
“Probably.”
“And that doesn’t bother you? I mean, she might have ridden it.”
“Not if it helps me kill her.”
Crystal gasped. “Kill?”
“That’s the only way,” he said seriously, before taking off running down the road.
“Speaking of kill, shouldn’t we bring weapons?” asked Crystal. “I mean, if she could take Brandon on…”
Michael smacked himself in the forehead. “Right, right. Um, I got a bat and there’s a hammer in the garage. I’ll see what I can find.”
He ran off into the house, leaving his bike. Christian hopped off to follow him, and did not answer when she called. A few minutes later, he returned with an envelope and headed to the mailbox at the end of the driveway.
“What was that?” asked Michael as they both returned to the bikes.
“Sent the detective a letter, with the card we got in it. He’ll come after us, I’d say. Two days behind us. Like backup.”
Michael nodded. “Great idea. I got two hammers, a bat, and part of a broken shovel. And I have my pocket knife.”
“Not much,” said Christian.
“I know it’s not.” Michael hopped onto his bike and sped off. He called, “But I have my fists.”
“He’s crazy,” Christian commented to his sister, shaking his head.
“I know,” she said, staring after Michael. “I love it.” She took off pedaling quickly, catching up to him.
“What’s wrong with those two,” Christian mumbled, trying to go as fast.
Not long after, they arrived at the cornfield, where the police had clearly left their mark, with strewn crime-scene tape and deep ruts, but there were no cops then. Surprisingly, they had left the bike alone, possibly from intervention by Detective Smith. Whatever the case, Michael picked it up from the muck, ignoring all the grime and slime clinging to it, and began riding with the others, his heaving chest slowing down to a calm breathing after a few minutes.
They rode along in silence for most of the day, appearing to passersby as nothing more than just kids on a ride. Staying on the right side, far enough over that cars could pass easily, they made their way without incident. Dozens of vehicles zoomed by in both directions and on both sides of the highway, but as midday progressed into afternoon, the amount slowly dissipated to where only a few sets of headlights could be seen at one time.
While the sun began to climb down from the sky, the cars increased for a time, and one police car pulled over to question them. The officer looked skeptical, but eventually believed that they were just three kids riding back home. He told them to hurry along, and so they did, glad to be free of his scrutinous gaze.
“You just about wet yourself back there,” Crystal laughed, peering to the side at Christian.
“Did not,” he grumbled.
“What’s with the sour face, man?” Michael asked.
“Hungry.”
“We can stop and eat,” Crystal suggested. “I didn’t have lunch, and it’s getting close to dinnertime.”
“None of us did,” Christian said.
“How far is the forest?” Michael asked, gazing ahead but not seeing anything next to the road.
“Not far,” he answered. “But I want dinner.”
“Let’s get to the forest, first,” Michael said. “Get in the trees, get settled, and then we’ll eat. I’m hungry too.”
Getting to the trees and getting settled took longer than any of them imagined. When they had that conversation, it was around six o’clock, although towards the end of June six o’clock begins to look like three, and the sun remains lofty in the sky for more hours, crafting longer days and introducing shorter nights. Soon after that talk, they passed over the Hardy town limits, and were off in foreign lands for the first time without being in a car or with an adult. Christian thought of this as a much bigger deal than the other two, but nonetheless it was a milestone in their journey. Now, more than ever, they felt a sense of destiny, pulling them forward, towards a place where dangers lurked and secrets crawled.
When trees appeared in the distance, it was nearly seven in the evening. Sunshine was beginning to darken, and the air grew steadily cooler, although it was not yet cold. Crystal pulled out a jacket from the overstuffed backpack, stopping for a minute to throw her arms into it, before pedalling along faster to catch up with the boys.
Two hours later, when everything had turned gray and the air had a slight sting to it, they finally turned off of the road. Bumping down the small ditch and back up again, they arrived at the forest.
Branches tall overhead hung towards the road, giving them a sense of claustrophobia. The spindly, wooden arms reached out, with short, harsh nails at the tips, begging to scratch their clothes and rip into their flesh. Large, stocky trunks of the trees dotted the landscape, with a few feet between each one. Underbrush and fallen leaves were laid on the ground by wind and storms, crying out to the trampling feet, wishing they could reach up and snag any passersby. A dark shadow seemed to hang over this place, from the deepest depths to the road, where it spread out over hundreds of feet.
“I remember seeing this now,” Michael remarked. “Never put much thought into it. Small world.”
“Gives me the chills,” Crystal said, shivering simultaneously.
“Yeah,” Christian agreed. “It’s not a nice place.”
“Can’t we turn back?” Crystal asked, despite knowing it was to no use. “Maybe she’ll give us another ch-”
“No,” Michael cut in. “I’ve waited long enough. We go now.”
And go they did. Into the forest, they tramped over the underbrush, trying their hardest to ignore the rough thorns surrounding them and the wicked tree branches swinging down from above. Nature was out to get them, for sure; something evil lurked in these trees, closer than was comfortable.
Sitting down after a while of walking, they formed a triangle of sorts and feasted on bags of chips and and some of the nuts. Owls began to hoot overhead, and a slight wind peeked around the trees, assaulting them with its vicious array of chills and shivers. Darkness seemed to loom directly overhead, just a few feet above, holding a knife and ready to plunge it. Every little insect was a sinister presence, causing their breath to come out in shallow, rough segments, their stomachs squirming around like buckets of worms.
“Wish you had that spam now?” Michael asked Christian as they all three set up the blankets and pillows.
“I’d rather starve.”
“I wouldn’t,” Crystal said. “I’d love some actual food, even nasty kinds.”
“You’re the one that bought all the snacks,” Christian snapped. “If the diet displeases you, there is nobody else to blame.”
“Don’t use big words like that,” she mocked. “It’s not school.”
“Without me,” he objected, “we’d be moping at the house.”
“No, because the letter said-”
“Yeah, but if I hadn’t-”
“Well, if I hadn’t gotten-”
“Nobody cares whether-”
Michael finally interjected, “Ladies, ladies; let’s not kill each other yet. Still got a day or two to go, at least.”
“At least?” Christian exclaimed. “We’ll get lost!”
“Thought you were the boy scout?” Crystal replied snarkily.
“Guys, we’ll be fine,” Michael assured them. Yawning, he added, “Let’s just sleep.”
They both obliged, and soon they were settled down in the blankets, trying desperately to ignore the gnawing bugs and the thick fog of danger.
“There’s not animals out here,” Crystal asked
, “are there?”
“No; course not,” Christian said. “Perfectly safe.”
He leant over to face Michael, who said, “That’s good.”
Christian shook his head solemnly. “I was lying,” he whispered. “There’s all sorts of dangerous animals out here.”
Michael’s heart sunk, while the trees above him cackled nastily and the insects began to dance with joy at his fear. “Oh.”
24. Chased
“Michael, Michael.”
He was stirred awake by the pleading of someone else, and being shaken roughly did nothing to bring back the peaceful rest. It had been such a good dream, although now it fled from his mind, as if sensing the danger that was to come. What was the dream? It had been so... so…
“Michael!”
Fluttering his eyelids open and staring up, he came into eye contact with Crystal. Immediately, he recognized the voice had been hers, and it instantly intrigued him as to what she needed. What was so important that she had to wake him in the middle of the night? If it was a question, Christian was not even three feet away.
Maybe she wants to profess her undying love for me, he thought with a smirk, before slapping himself mentally. No, stupid. She’s scared. See her face? Scared.
“What is it?” he asked worriedly. That annoying voice in his head had been right; her eyes were terrified, and she shook with a ferocity only caused by something so nerve-wracking, it made her wake him now.
“Noises,” she breathed, gasping in frantic rhythm. Her finger was pointed towards the dark forest, where any number of horrible dangers could be hiding. “There.”
“Where’s Christian?” he asked, still half-asleep and struggling to understand the situation. Probably just an owl that, like, quacks or something.
“Over here,” he heard Christian answer. “Got some flashlights. Here.”
A small flashlight the size of his hand landed on his gut, a feeling that opened his eyes more fully and made him let out an involuntary groan. Sitting up, his back ached furiously and one shoulder throbbed, while the other was completely numb.
“Why do I need this?” he grumbled.
“The dark,” Christian answered.
“Why? Just sleep. No reason to get up.”
Crystal said with a slight tremor in her voice, “There’s noises out there. Dangerous animals or something.”
“Nah,” Michael said, rolling back to try and sleep. “Just an owl.”
“Owls don’t howl,” Crystal reprimanded him, kicking him in the side.
“Ow!” he exclaimed, slowly getting to his feet. “Okay, I’m up.”
Christian pointed over to the darkness, which grew on the trees like moss and expanded all throughout the forest ahead of them. “Came from there,” he said. “Sounds like animals.”
“And? There’s lots of animals.”
“No, there isn’t, Michael. Christian said so.”
“Um…” Christian lowered his head and when Crystal asked him what was wrong just shrugged his shoulders. “Well, I might have-”
“Lied,” Michael interrupted. “He lied so you wouldn’t be scared.”
“Christian!” she hollered. “You lied to me?”
“Let’s go,” Christian remarked very hurriedly, heading off into the darkness with only a flashlight for company. Crystal ran up to scold and argue with him, but Michael stopped her.
“In the morning. Not now.”
She nodded reluctantly, and they both clicked on their flashlights, heading off with Christian into the trees.
“It’s spooky out here,” Crystal muttered.
Indeed, there was a fog hanging about the place, not literal, but even more real. Everyone could hear their heart beating faster, feel the breath struggling to escape, taste the tension surrounding them. An owl hooted somewhere above them, its cry echoing before fading into oblivion. A howl sounded in the distance, pounding the sense of danger forcefully into their minds. Their very blood seemed to burn inside, shying away from the night all around them.
The darkness could hold many things in its eternal depths. Any person could be watching them, just outside the shine of the flashlight. A dangerous, menacing animal could be prowling to their immediate right, biding its time before leaping onto them and puncturing their skin. And to their left, a woman could stroll noiselessly in sync. They stopped in unison, and looked around at the darkness. She could stop, too, hidden completely by the dark. She could lean over, only a fraction away from their ear, and take in a breath, blowing it out onto the sensitive skin. Shivers ran through them as the night air chipped away at their resolve. She could step away into the forest, but never leave, always following them with the cloak of shadows draped around her, entirely concealing the malicious intentions.
“I’m scared,” Crystal whispered, breaking into the eery silence.
“It’s okay. It’s okay,” Michael repeated, trying to assure her and himself that any dangers would leave them unharmed,
He felt her lean into him, placing her head squarely in the crook of his shoulder. Wrapping an arm around her, they walked on into the forest, together but none the more secure. Trembling with terror, he could tell she was crying, and began to pat her gently, hoping to give any comfort he had to offer.
“Guys,” Christian called to them, “come here.”
They both slowly made their way to the light they could see, and the smell of reeking death grew stronger with every step they took. It was like a fungus born in the air, penetrating their nostrils and swelling up in their brains, until it took over every sense and ruled them. Pinching their noses tight, Michael and her slowly left their embrace reluctantly, but all thoughts were erased when they saw what Christian had discovered.
“What is that?” Michael asked while Crystal gasped in petrification.
“A deer.”
There, tied up to the tree, was the bloody carcass of an adult buck. One knife slash cut across its middle, where guts slowly drizzled out and insects wriggled their way deeper in the mess of gore and tendon. Its eyes had been cut out sloppily, leaving deep gashes around the sockets and blood running down the nose. It dripped off, methodically sprinkling the ground. Another long incision had been made running down its throat, nearly connecting with the first. Similar to the other one, this too had become a nest of flies and other ungodly insects that feasted all night on the blood-tossed, meat-seasoned guts.
Christian gagged when the smell hit him yet again, eventually losing his dinner to the grass underfoot. Crystal began to sob uncontrollably, looking for a shoulder to cry on, preferably Michael, who was absent. Walking up to the deer, he eyed the blood dripping off its nose seriously, and then turned around to face them.
“Blood’s fresh. She’s still close.”
A piercing scream came from somewhere deep in the woods, stabbing Michael straight in the heart. He struggled to breath, clutching at the air, his heart about to explode, before taking off in a sprint towards the vague direction it came from. Ignoring the cries and shrieks behind him, he kept running.
Lilly.
Needles whipped him furiously. Tree branches parted to make way for the madman. Michael ran furiously, wind screaming past his ears. That high-pitched cry of agony played over and over in his mind. Obsessively, it rang, until it hurt his ears and he tried to shut it out. Instead of obeying, it morphed into a half-cry and half of a name, mingled with that scream and forevermore inseparable.
Lilly.
“Michael!” he heard one of the twins calling from behind him, surprisingly distant. “Come back!”
Ignoring Crystal for the first time, he sprinted faster, legs snapping back and forth, arms plunging ahead. While he ran, his body began to form a beat, stepping and thrusting with his arm, then his shoulder swinging the arm back while his other leg stamped forward. Steadily gaining speed, he ran with more determination than ever before.
Again, that scream pierced his ears, sharper than any knife could. This time, it came from the far of
f distance to his left. Turning abruptly, he raced that way. By now, the cuts from the trees were leaking blood, and only being slashed deeper. His legs ached and stung, like needles stabbed into him every time he took a step forward. The forest was punishing him, trying to quench his desire. But no amount of leaves or branches could hold him back. Once more, that scream erupted.
Lilly.
“Why’s he going?” Christian panted to his sister, who was struggling to keep up. He, too, was not going to be able to run much longer. Michael had more running abilities than both of them combined, even though Crystal played volleyball.
“Don’t know,” she said, gasping for air as they stopped trampling through the trees. “Said blood’s fresh. Next thing, running.”
Doubled over on his knees, Christian heaved for a moment, before staring up at his sister. She saw an idea spring into his eyes, but it only brought more fear, as if there was not enough already.
“What if... what if she…”
“What if she what?” Crystal said impatiently.
“He said she’s... she’s still close. Did he... see her?”
“I don’t know. He looked up before he ran. Like he heard something.”
“I didn’t,” Christian said, shaking his head. “So question is... was he running to something... or from something?”
Far ahead of them, Michael took one last plunge into the trees, and found himself rolling down a small hill. Rocks stabbed at him and trees roots bruised his back, while the terrible forest in all of its awesomeness spun around him. Desperately, he clutched at the trees and tried to right himself, but ended up tumbling backwards, with his heels flying up and pulling his head with them.
Thrown painfully to the side by another tree trunk, he got to his feet momentarily, until another rock tripped him and he fell with a splash into a small river of sorts. The water rushed over his head while he landed on his knees in the riverbed, feeling all sorts of small pebbles digging into his legs. Water rushed over his cuts and bruises, sending jolts of pain and lightning through his body.
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