Outcasts

by Craig MacLachlan

  Her phone buzzed again.

  K. Least someone’s having fun. THX for the invite, NOT. Need to find Morgan. Bye.

  She wanted to explain but decided it would be better to stop by in person on her way home.

  She sent her mom another text and even a voicemail. Skylar was starting to worry. She wanted to ask Dad if he knew anything, but that would have to wait until the next round of ax-cutting. He was competing against a gnarled old man and two teenagers from her school. Down on the river, the log-balancing was about to begin. She would have to do her best to photograph both events.

  A camouflage-wearing man held his hand up and blew a whistle, the sound ringing in her ears. A cheer from the audience mixed with the sound of axes striking wood. Through the camera lens, Skylar photographed the action.

  “Woohoo, go, Dad!” she yelled, as he took the lead.

  The older man caught up as the teen boy tried to take the lead, but the girl used shorter strokes and edged them both out.

  “Come on, Dad!”

  The crowd roared as the girl’s surprising skill with an ax won her the competition. The boy came in second, and Dad and the old geezer tied for third, though they were arguing over the finish.

  Skylar shifted her view to the river where the log-balancing was about to begin. A commotion along the shoreline diverted her attention. She zoomed the camera on a group of people pointing at something she couldn’t quite see.

  Walking toward the river, she tried to get a glimpse of what had grabbed everyone’s attention. Pushing through the crowd, Skylar found an opening, then stopped in her tracks. Her heart throbbed and she blinked, in disbelief.

  There was no mistaking the girl who sprung onto one of the floating logs with ease and grace.

  Still wearing the brown burlap sack, Morgan moved her feet like a pro. A man joined her, and though he tried a series of moves to get her to lose her footing before the competition even began, it didn’t affect Morgan.

  Forgetting everything else, Skylar jogged closer.

  Morgan waved to Skylar as she began dancing on the log.

  “Stop moving, or I’ll toss you off!” her competitor roared.

  Morgan shrugged and stood still.

  “On your mark, get set . . . go!”

  “This won’t take long,” the man chuckled.

  Skylar fought the urge to push Morgan off the log herself, drag her into the woods and demand answers. Instead, she snapped photos as Morgan teased her competitor. Feigning a near fall, she sprang back up and danced, her feet light. Clearly bored, like a cat playing with its victim before the kill, Morgan’s final move tossed him into the water. The crowd went wild.

  Even Skylar clapped before remembering her anger.

  “The winner is . . . the girl in the sack!” The crowd erupted. “You will face the winner of the next round for the championship!”

  In one moment, Morgan the popularity I worked so hard for, Skyler thought, sickened.

  As Morgan reached the shore, they locked eyes, and Skylar motioned her over.

  Onlookers crowded Morgan, and she stopped to demonstrating her techniques on the sand, leaving Skylar waiting on the shore. Frustrated, Skylar skimmed the photos, knowing she would have to wait.

  Running across the picture she’d taken the night of the altercation at the window, she zoomed in. She could now see that one of the figures was Trevor, but the other remained a mystery, and the more she zoomed in, the more the photo blurred. She’d need to download it onto her computer to get any closer.

  A few photos later, she came across the photo of the tree with the mysterious symbol. Before she could magnify it, a voice purred behind her.

  “What do we have here?”

  Samantha’s voice, shallow and cold, sliced the air as she blocked Skylar while three others surrounded them.

  “Leave me alone.”

  “How adorable. She thinks she’s tough shit, giving me orders.” The others laughed as Samantha moved closer.

  “She’s so cute with her little camera,” scowled one of the girls.

  “And her little boots!”

  “All dressed up as if she means something to someone.” The girls laughed as Samantha kicked, spraying sand on Skylar’s legs

  “She’s so cute, she’s the cutest ugly I’ve ever seen.”

  While the other girls kicked sand, Samantha scooped some into her hands and poured it over Skylar’s head.

  Skylar couldn’t move.

  Sand rained down her shirt. Someone pulled her shorts and underwear down as Samantha scooped mud from the lake.

  Skylar’s fingernails bit into her palms. Her teeth ground together as she rocked on her heels. Her mind flashed with images of ripping an animal apart an animal, as it morphed into Samantha.

  “Oh, look, our little piggy is in shock. I sure hope this mud reminds of who you are, and that it’ll help you to reconsider Brad’s offer.” Samantha spit in her face, her voice taunting. “Just say yes. Your life would be so much better, swine.

  Skylar couldn’t hold back any longer. With arising growl, she tried to hold back the beast within. It wasn’t who she wanted to be, but she could no longer control it.

  As Samantha prepared to pour mud down the front of Skylar’s shirt, her hands went instead to her own face, mud smeared over her lips, nose, cheeks.

  Morgan stood beside her.

  “Do we’s have a problem here, girlies?” Morgan said as the others clamored around Samantha.

  “Who the hell are you?” Samantha shouted, wiping mud from her face, flinging brown specks onto Morgan.

  Unflinching, Morgan grinned in a way that made her a deadly adversary.

  Skylar knew that look from experience

  “One swine,” Samantha pointed, “protecting another.”

  “She looks like one too, Sammy,” said one of the others.

  Samantha slapped Skylar’s camera. Skylar stopped the camera’s movement and shuffled beside Morgan, ready to fight.

  “What sewer-infested rat hole did you crawl out of, bitch?” Samantha grabbing the burlap sack on Morgan’s back.

  “I wouldn’t . . .” Skylar warned.

  “Shut up!”

  Skylar turned to Morgan and mouthed okay.

  In an instant, Morgan snatched Samantha’s hand, clamping it between her yellow-stained teeth.

  Samantha screamed in agony. Blood dripped from her hand and as she tried to pull away, Morgan’s teeth tore her skin even more. As the others tried to dislodge Samantha’s hand, Morgan chomped down harder.

  Samantha’s cries were strangely soothing, like an animal making one last, desperate plea. Skylar felt a pull as if she and Morgan were sharing one experience, familiar, yet foreign. She wanted to help, but an inner voice told her she needed to wait her turn.

  It was the order of the pack.

  “Morgan,” Skylar said, waking from her trance.

  “Let go! Make her stop!” Samantha begged, tears streaming.

  Skylar petted Morgan’s head, defying her inner voice to not disrupt the pecking order by taking the lead.

  “Morgan,” she said calmly. “It’s okay.”

  Morgan slowly released Samantha’s bloody hand. The wound looked ugly.

  Samantha wrapped her hand in her shirt, holding it tightly, her expression a mixture of pain and anger—an expression Skylar couldn’t keep from reveled in.

  “This isn’t over, bitches! I hope you enjoy juvie! Or the psych ward!” Samantha screamed.

  The girls surrounded Samantha in a protective a shield and they ushered their injured friend away.

  Skylar shook the sand from her clothes and brushed off her body.

  “Why did she name us dogs?” Morgan asked, wiping Samantha’s blood from her chin.

  “I’ll explain later. We need to leave.”

  She grabbed Morgan’s arm and they made their way toward the parking lot.

  “That was funs, ya think?”

  “Where have you been? What are doing
here and why aren’t you wearing any clothes? Wait, never mind, we don’t have time for this.”

  They reached the sea of vehicles and Skylar pushed Morgan into the passenger seat.

  “Stay!” She demanded and slammed the door.

  Running back to the festival, there would be no time to take any more photographs.

  Because of Morgan, Skylar’s shot at being someone important was ruined. She expected to be fired. She tried to find her dad, but there were too many people.

  She spotted Samantha showing Brad her wound. As Brad examined her, she dialed a number on her phone. “I was viciously attacked by a girl . . .”

  Skylar needed to get back to Morgan before the police arrived. Passing the chainsaw sculptures, three miniature carvings sat on the large round stump.

  Skylar couldn’t believe her eyes, shaking her head in disbelief. Somebody did know about the three of them. If Morgan was part of the blood letters and animal meals, she wasn’t acting alone.

  Either the owner of the booth knew, or someone else had placed them here.

  Three wooden animals sat in a row. First was a chipmunk, secondly a grouse and third a fawn—their favorite feral meals. Looking closer, the first letter of their names had been etched onto each of them.

  After a quick glance around, with trembling hands, Skylar grabbed the carvings and ran.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Speeding through town, Skylar wanted to put as much distance between her and Logging Days as possible, the carvings safely hidden from Morgan in the trunk.

  She wasn’t sure where to hide Morgan. The cabin was out of the question, and her house wasn’t an option with Trevor next door. Not to mention her parents.

  “We found your escape hatch, Morgan. How long have you been able to get out?” Skylar cracked the windows to try and air out Morgan’s odor.

  “That took me a long time.”

  “You’ve been getting out and going . . . where?”

  “Yesterday was my first time,” Morgan answered.

  “I don’t believe you, because—”

  The missing key was in her palm. “I stole it and tossed you the rest.”

  Skeptical, Skylar took the key.

  “Why were you making a hole in the cabin?”

  “Thick,” Morgan replied, taking a deep breath.

  “Stuffy? In the cabin?”

  “Yes, and smelly!”

  Skylar had never considered how stale the air might be inside the cabin, not to mention the stench from the latrine.

  “I’m guessing that’s how the chipmunk got in?”

  “I hoped you eat.”

  Her stomach churned at the thought. If Morgan was being truthful, then she was innocent of most everything Skylar had blamed her for. Needing time to think, Skylar drove to her house. She’d have to risk stowing Morgan temporarily in her room.

  “Your new home?” Morgan asked.

  “Shh, my mom is here.” Quietly, they snuck upstairs to Skylar’s bedroom.

  “Wow.”

  “Shh! I’ll be back in a moment.”

  Skylar walked down the hall to her parent’s bedroom. It was dark, but there was enough light to see her mom lying in bed.

  “M-Mom?”

  Her mother coughed. “Skye, is that you?”

  “Are you okay?”

  “I’m sick. Your father dragged me all over creation telling me it was for our own good, and yours.” She laid a hand on her stomach in a spasm of coughs.

  “He told me. It was nice, thanks.”

  “I was so worried. Were you scared?”

  “Everything was great. No problems. I made a friend, Mom.”

  “That’s wonderful!”

  “She’s here. Can she stay over? I promise we’ll be quiet.” Without thinking, she’d blurted it out. Although Mom didn’t know it was Morgan she spoke of, Skylar had revealed someone was here, and that complicated things.

  “Okay,” her mom answered, closing her eyes.

  “I’ll check on you later and bring you some soup.” She kissed her mom on the head and closed the door.

  Morgan had disrobed. Her back to Skylar, she stood at the window, her gaze on Trevor’s house. Skylar quickly pulled down the blinds.

  “What else can cover my skins?”

  “You should have put the clothes on you have at the cabin. How did that deer get inside?” Skylar rummaged through her drawers and handed Morgan a handful of clothes.

  Skylar held back a chuckle as Morgan stood uncomfortably in the backward jeans.

  “They go the other way, Morgan.”

  “Hmm.” Morgan removed the jeans and put them on the right way, looking pleased. “I look hippy now right?”

  “Hip. And no, you look sweet and stylish.” Skylar wasn’t lying. She really did. “Now, take everything off.”

  Morgan’s stink contaminated the air.

  “Now I can be all naturals,” Morgan said, gleefully stripping down. “Haley’s fawn did it crawls up the wall into my home after I gone?”

  “It’s you and left. Funny Morgan, you know as well as I do that deer can’t climb or crawl like that.” Skylar wondered if Morgan was playing dumb or actually trying to make a joke. “You need a shower. Or a bath. Probably both.” She scrunched her face wishing she could turn off her ability to smell.

  “I made a funny.”

  Skylar opened the window. With a finger to her lips, which Morgan copied, they quietly made their way to the bathroom.

  Skylar realized this was likely the first real bathroom Morgan had been in since being abducted and she was prepared to spend some time showing her the ropes, but her friend started without her.

  First, Morgan tried turning on the faucet by grabbing it and trying to twist it. She then hit it several times before Skylar stopped her and showed her the hot and cold knobs. Without hesitation and before Skylar could stop her friend, Morgan turned both knobs fully on causing water to spray out of the sink onto them.

  “Splashy!” Morgan said and repeatedly turned the water on and off with full force until Skylar grabbed her friend’s hands stopping her.

  “That’s enough splashy for now,” Skylar said and Morgan turned her attention to the toilet.

  Skylar watched curiously as Morgan attempted to figure out how the toilet worked. She played with the lids and Skylar had to catch them so they didn’t make a large sound and she quickly washed her hands in the sink. Morgan touched the toilet water, playing in it which disgusted Skylar even though the water was technically clean. Skylar pointed to the toilet handle and Morgan fumbled with it before pulling it downward causing the toilet to flush. Her friend watched the water swirl and her head moved with the motion and as the water depleted, Morgan stuck her head into the toilet in an apparent wondering of where the water was vanishing to. As the toilet began to refill, Skylar wanted to puke as the water rose and swallowed her friend’s head underneath. For several moments Skylar stared at Morgan waiting for her to pull her head out of the toilet. With no warning, her friend did just that and sent toilet water sailing through the air and onto Skylar.

  “Gross Morgan!” Skylar grabbed a towel and dried herself.

  “I washed my face and hairs.”

  “No you made it worse,” Skylar was revolted and almost broke out laughing but didn’t want to make Morgan feel bad.

  Since Morgan had never bathed in anything but a cold creek, Skylar didn’t’ want to scald her sensitive skin. Filling the tub with lukewarm water, she felt Morgan’s chin rest on her shoulder.

  “Get in.”

  “Is it safe?” Morgan poked the water.

  Skylar giggled. “Yes.”

  With apprehension, Morgan stepped into the water and shuffled her feet.

  “Is it hot?”

  “Hots.”

  Skylar readied herself for a howl or violent reaction but got none. She noticed Morgan’s skin slowly turn pink Handing Morgan a washcloth, she pointed to the soap and shampoo. Morgan eyed it with suspicion.

/>   “Just like at the creek, no different.” She pulled the shower curtain closed and sat on the toilet seat.

  “What’s that for?” Morgan moved the curtain back and forth.

  “In case my mom walks in,” she replied.

  “It was there. The one with no scent,” Morgan said, splashing water.

  “At the cabin?”

  “It’s why I never gone . . . went back.”

  “Did you see who it was?”

  “I didn’t see it.”

  Through the closed curtain, Skylar heard Morgan submerge under the water. The whole it with no scent thing bothered her. It was impossible. Everything had a scent.

  “Did you hear anything? At the cabin?”

  Morgan burst from the water, sending droplets onto the tile floor. “This water looks like the mud on that ugly girls’ face.”

  Morgan wasn’t joking. Skylar peeked through the curtain. The water looked disgusting. Draining the tub, Skylar turned on the shower.

  “It Tickles!” Morgan said, letting the water run down her back.

  While Morgan splashed in the shower, Skylar sent a quick text to Haley.

  Morgan is with me. Stay safe, and be careful. Hugs~S

  Haley texted back almost immediately.

  Yay! Ugheries-Game night with folks can’t get away. Safe? Careful? Why? Call me!

  Skylar answered, keeping it brief until they could really talk.

  Complicated. I will later tonight. Have to go.

  After Morgan-proofing her room the best she could, they sat on the bed. It was already nearly eight o’clock, and Trevor would be arriving any moment. Her dad still wasn’t back from the festival, which didn’t surprise her. Mom was still feeling ill and she’d eaten nothing other than chicken broth all afternoon.

  Skylar still needed to throw together some sort of dinner for Trevor, and the last thing she needed was an interruption from Morgan. Skylar looked around her room, wishing for something to tie Morgan down with.

  “Do you understand that you can’t come downstairs?”

  “Yes.”

  “I mean it, Morgan. I won’t be long.”

  “Are you in heat again?” Morgan lifted her eyebrows.