Filled by both horror and adrenaline, I rushed past Ryan, darting towards Jamie yelling at him to stop.
But it was already too late.
I watched as his body tightened, unnaturally snapping into place as he stared directly into the woods.
Racing by Gary, who silently watched in utter confusion. Keeping my eyes diverted from the trees, and whatever horror stared out from them. I frantically approached Jamie in an attempt to grab him, and pull him away.
The whispers were returning with each step closer. All sounding more ravenous, and desperate than before. A horrible choir of a thousand miserable voices, the overwhelming sounds of despair and anguish ringing in my ears.
I came close to turning around and running, but Jamie was just fingertips away! I reached out, latching onto his wrist. Digging my heels into the ground, and pulling with all my strength, Jamie barely moved.
He felt cold, and rigid. Like a statue wearing a thin coat of flesh.
The whispers began bleeding agony into my head as they suddenly spoke in a horrible twisted voice….a voice I recognised.
“HiiiTtterrrSSss GiiiiTttterrSsss”
“Hiiittterrrsss Giiiitttterrrrrs”
“Hittersss Gittersss”
It was Gary. This abomination was mimicking Gary’s voice.
It chanted the words over and over again. Getting faster, and louder, until the words felt like they were being scraped into my mind.
“HittersGitters HittersGitters
HitterGitterHitterGitter
HITTER!!! GITTER!!!”
Jamie began convulsing. His body violently shaking. This was it. This was my last chance to help him.
Keeping my eyes on the ground, and away from whatever was in those trees, I circled round to Jamie’s front, in a final effort to push him away.
“What the hell are they doing!?” Gary said dumbstruck.
“I dont fucking know, but we need to help them and…..wait, what the fuck is that!?” I heard Ryan say in confused horror.
Glancing towards them, I saw Gary and Ryan still further up the road. Both struck still in fear as they stared in the direction of whatever had just emerged from the woods edge. I knew then, that monstrosity was right behind me.
Jamie suddenly began pushing against me, as he tried to make his way towards the trees. Towards that thing.
I couldn’t do this any longer.
The whispers were still screaming madness into me. That thing looming just behind me, and now my friend Jamie, was actively trying to enter the woods. I couldn’t do this. I had to give up on him.
With my hands still pushing against his chest. I looked up at him once more before I left him to his fate.
His face was emotionless, and drained of colour. His eyes were a pale blue. Cold, and empty. They looked dead, like he was already gone.
But something seemed to move in that lifeless stare. In his eyes I could see the light of a blue flickering flame.
It dawned on me, that in his eyes was the reflection of what he was seeing. A blue flickering flame dancing in an old lantern. This burning blue flame was what had him entranced. Now that I could see it, it had me too.
Instantly an agonising pain shot through me as my muscles tightened, snapping my body upright, and locking me in place.
Trapped in sheer terror, I stood face to face with my friend, my back still turned to the woods. I waited in painful anticipation for the cold dead grasp of whatever stalked us from within the trees to reach out and drag us to hell.
But something had changed.
Jamie had stopped walking. He had stopped trying to get into the woods. The blue flame had also disappeared from his eyes. Had I interfered with his line of sight? Had my new standing position obstructed Jamie’s view of that blue flame?
For a split second a look of confusion crossed over Jamie’s face, like he had no idea where he was, or how he got here. Then the realisation hit him. His face twisting to that of pure terror.
It was then I heard a low inhuman growl, then the rustling of branches behind me. Suddenly I felt something wrap around my arm, and violently pull me off my feet. A roaring voice echoed in my ear as I was dragged away.
It was a familiar voice, but I had never heard it like this before.
“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU IDIOT’S PLAYING AT!?”
The old gruff voice echoed through my cranium. In comparison to the whispers, it sounded like the voice of an angel. Albeit an angel that reeked of cheap whisky and cigarettes.
After being pulled away from the woods fast enough to give me whiplash, I staggered forward, crashing to the ground. As I lifted my head up, an old wrinkled greying face stared back at me. Panting heavily, they proceeded to deliver a sloppy wet lick square on my face.
“Buster?” I groaned.
“Yeah, Buster,” barked my neighbour, Mr Carson. “You lot were lucky he needed a piss!” he said as he was guiding Jamie away from the edge of the woods.
After the unsolicited face lick, Buster plodded over to his masters side. Both now standing side by side with matching greying beards. The old man, and his old dog equivalent.
Jamie now free from whatever ensnared him, suddenly clutched at his head, and began muttering to himself. He staggered a few steps, then broke into a sprint away from the woods, and into town running faster than I’d ever seen him move before. Mr Carson glanced towards him, then towards Gary and Ryan.
“You two! Make sure that one gets home alright” giving his head a quick tilt in Jamie’s direction. “Then get your own asses home, you hear me??”
His usual pleasant old man persona had completely washed away. Now he was the absolute embodiment of authority.
“Y-yes sir,” Ryan stuttered as they both started chasing after Jamie.
Watching my friends scampering away at Mr Carsons commands I realised, he might be an old boy, but he’s a grizzly old boy.
“AND DONT TRY ANYTHING SMART! I KNOW YOUR PARENTS, AND I KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE!” he shouted after them.
He took a deep breath, and exhaled, dropping his shoulders as his puffed up chest deflated.
“Well?” He says, turning to me, eyebrow cocked. “Care to enlighten me as to what was going on here?”
My mind started to race as all the events that transpired flooded back. It was all a haze, and it happened so quick. Would he even believe me?
Walking over to me, and letting out a big sigh, Mr Carson helped me back on to my feet, and patted me on the shoulder.”Come on, let’s get you an old Buster home.”We had been walking in silence for a good few minutes. I didn’t notice at first, but Mr Carson had been staying close to my side. Staying directly between me and the woods. Was he trying to block my view, or was it me he was hiding from them I wondered?
“Did your parents never mention them woods to you? Maybe even warn you not to go near them?”
“Yeah…they said not to go into them in case I get lost, or hurt myself….or maybe both” I said rubbing my arm.
“That so?” he said, lightly nodding his head. “Can’t argue with them there, that’s pretty sound advice” He paused for a moment, clearly thinking his next words over. I saw him glancing to woods for a quick second, studying it. He sighs, then took a few steps away from me, reached into his pocket pulling out a pack of cigarettes, placing one between his lips. Side eyeing me as he was about to light it. “Its a filthy habit! Dont let me catch you doing it!
“I shot him a look of judgment, to which he responded by rolling his eyes at me, then finished lighting his cigarette.
“Look son, those woods are bad. Real bad, and you need to keep well away from them.”
He took a long pause after that statement, staring directly at me with an unbreaking intensity. I bit my tongue and waited for him to continue, despite that sentence sparking a hundred questions, I knew he wasn’t finished yet.
“Did you know this town is roughly only half the size it was supposed to be?”
I simply shook my head and said “no.” as I was far more interested in where he was going with this.
“Yep. Back when my old Pa was still in his heyday, we moved here. Me, my Pa, Ma and my brother Stanley.” He frowned a little, rubbing his brow before talking another draw on his cigarette. He held it deep, then exhaled.
“When we moved here they said the construction on the town was finished, and was ready for families to come take up residency. Seemed nice too. Good strong houses. A school. Shops. A few parks. Everything a kid my age would want.”
“They told yous it was finished? But you sai-“
“It was a pack of lies!” Mr Carson sharply interrupted, locking his steely blue eyes on mine.
“It wasn’t finished! They just told us all what we wanted to hear, and sold us on a damn lie! The town was only halfway done, and was supposed to go further north! But see this road? This road marks the last bit of normal land before they hit these dammed woods!”
I had never seen Mr Carson like this before. Up until tonight he was always just my pleasant old neighbour. Old Mr Carson, with his old dog sidekick. Now it seems there’s more to this old man, this town, and those woods than I could have imagined.
He must have noticed the shock on my face, as he scrunched his eyes shut, dampening the burning intensity of his stare. He followed up with a deep sigh, taking an even deeper draw from his cigarette. And exhaled.
Just like that, Mr Carsons had bolstered his composure.
“Sorry son. I didn’t mean to lose my cool there. You see, those woods have something wrong in them, and…”
He froze for a moment, breaking eye contact with me. I could see him debating with himself on whether to continue.
He pressed his lips tightly together, with a small nod. Turning back to meet my stare, he continued.
“And…well. I lost my younger brother to that cursed lot of sticks.”
I just looked at him not knowing what to say, and waited for him to continue.
“Yup, it was a long time ago now. He would have been about your age, when we lost him…give or take a year.
He gave his head a little shake, then looked back down to me.
“See, our folks had warned us about the woods. Apparently not long after we moved here, word got out there were some sort of rumours from the guys who had been working here, specifically the guys who were supposed to be chopping these trees down. Strange things that didn’t make sense, and couldn’t be explained.
“Shaking his head again, and clearing his throat before taking two quick drags from the last remaining tip of his cigarette.
“Well, Stanley and me weren’t exactly the most obedient of kids, and didn’t pay too much attention to all that. In fact Stanley had been scouting along the edge of the woods, and had found a tree next to a slope. Perfect for a rope swing he said”
Mr Carsons voice now choking up, and his eyes faintly glistening. Buster hobbled over to his masters leg, and leaned in, as if to comfort him. Mr Carson felt his faithful hounds impact, and looked down with a smile. Placing a hand on his companions head.
“He said he wanted to show me the spot. The perfect spot for the swing he said. So the next day I agreed to follow him. I don’t know why but I started to feel off about the whole thing, and when we got close to the spot, I felt….unnerved. Like something awful was here. Stanley didn’t seem to notice. Didn’t seem to care. I tried talking him out of it, but he wouldn’t listen.”
Mr Carson running on autopilot, went to take another drag of the cigarette that had long burned out. Shaking his head, and flicking it to the ground.
Buster seemed displeased by his littering, but given the circumstances, he was quickly forgiven.
“I can still remember him trying to talk me into going with him….almost did as well. Your younger brother calling you out as a chicken is pretty strong bait”
Now pulling out another cigarette, he places it in his mouth, closes his eyes as he lights it and inhales deeply, keeping his eyes tightly shut.
At first I thought he was taking a moment to remember, but after a closer study of his face, I notice the extra furrows on his brow. The moisture built up at the corners of his eyes. He wasn’t remembering. How can you remember something you can never forget. This was regret he was toiling with.
Suddenly Mr Carson cleared his throat, snapping me out of my observation.
“Anyway, the point being, those woods ain’t safe. Not for you. Not for your friends. Hell not even for grown ups! You hear me?”
Feeling falsely accused, I took a moment, and tried to compose myself before replying.
“But we weren’t trying to go into the woods, we were just walking home!”
“Oh yeah? Sure looked like yous were heading that way to me?”
I felt flush of unjust guilt flood through me, like I had somehow been caught red handed for a crime I hadn’t even committed.
“I was trying to get away from there! Jamie had kicked the stupid ball into the woods, and I was trying to stop him going in to get it!”
Mr Carson stared intently at me.
“Why were you trying to get away? Did you see something?” he asked, with unblinking eyes.
I looked at the ground, stalling, not sure if I even wanted to talk about what I saw.
Suddenly a small rustling in the trees breaks the silence.
Mr Carson quickly glances over his shoulder.
“Come on, let’s keep walking”
I nod in agreement, and match his stride.
After all his talk, I had more questions than I had answers. But one in particular was bothering me.
“Umm…Mr Carson?”“Hmm? What’s up, son?” He looks down to me, still keeping his pace.”You, um…you said you lost your brother…what happened?”
“Nothing good, Michael…. nothing good” He said now keeping his focus on the path ahead.
“Anyway, you don’t have to worry about any of that, cause you’re gonna be a good kid, and keep you and your friends well away from those woods now, ain’t ya?” He turns to me, and gives me an affirmative little head nod, which I respond to with a nod of my own.
“There you are! Your mother’s been worried sick”
I look up the street to see my dad standing hands on hips, watching impatiently.
“Here we go” I sighed.
“Well I’m glad to see you were on your way home at least! Thought I was gonna have to come looking for you, and catch you up to no good!” my dad says relieved before his eyes drift to Mr Carson.
“Your Michael up to no good? Ha! More chance of me doing a backflip” Mr Carson reached down and ruffled my head. This is the old man I’m used to.
“Nah, the only mischief maker tonight was old Buster here chasing that darn cat again! I was lucky your boy was there to catch up with him, and get the old mutt under control”
I looked to buster, and I swear I caught that old dog rolling its eyes at the accusation.
“Right you” dad said to me “Get your butt inside so your mother can quit worrying. Tell her I’m just outside talking to Mr C, now scoot”
I turned round and gave Buster a quick head pat, then looked to Mr Carson to say bye.
He gave me a smile, and a nod, but I could tell from his eyes we were going our separate ways tonight with a lot left unsaid. I had no choice but to turn around, and go home.
After having calmed my stressed out mother, I spent the rest of that night laying in bed thinking of what I had seen. What we had actually been through. And what else Mr Carson knew.