What I’m about to tell you is one of many tragic events that have unfolded throughout my life. I know now they are connected. There are many details I have forgotten or even blocked out over time but after it wraps up you’ll at least have a good understanding. As I think of the words I’m about to type out it fills my mouth with a terrible taste. Knowing that everything I had witnessed could be condensed down to nothing but a bunch of words. Anyway, I’m ready to dive into this and I hope this finds the right people. Also, I want to apologize cause I know my writing and details are far from the best. Like I said it’s been years but I hope I’m able to write it out well enough to help me not forget what had happened and also in memory of Owen. So here we go…..
My family used to go camping all the time when me and my brother, Owen, were growing up. I can recall countless days of gathering sticks to build a “fort” and playing hide and seek. You see for the fact that me and Owen were brothers we actually got along more often than not. He was born three years after me so there wasn’t too much of an age gap between us which led us to liking a majority of the same things.
Mom and Dad always tried to keep us outside for hours on in. They would always tell us that nothing is more valuable than the time spent with each other. Owen and I would always look at each other with a disgusted look on our faces before running off to catch more bugs for our collection.
On this particular week, we went out to the campgrounds that were no more than 5 miles from our house. Mom said she didn’t understand the point but Dad insisted it would still be just as fun. We were told to pack enough clothes to last us for two nights and that we’d stop by the grocery store on the way to pick up the food we would need while we were there. Owen was 5 at the time and had decided to sneak his stuffed Superman doll, disregarding the fact that Mom and Dad specifically said not to bring any toys.
We both walked out the back door to find Dad loading up the carrier that sat on the top of his 2004 Toyota Sequoia. We chuckled as we watched him struggle to get it on for a good 5 minutes. It didn’t help that the carrier was very oddly shaped, Owen always said it looked like a giant bean.
Mom had come out shortly after with Lady, our Boston terrier, on a leash. We all loved going on trips but having Lady with us made the trips even more enjoyable. Especially for Owen, he and Lady had a relationship that me and my parents could ever understand. They would do everything together and spend hours finding sticks or even just running in circles.
By the time we all loaded up into the car, it took us about 7 minutes to make it to the campground. On the way, Mom joked with Dad asking to stop at a bathroom, and he gave her a side eye followed by a small chuckle. Once we got to the campground Dad had pulled up to a building that looked like it was on the brink of caving in. The large faded sign once read,” SHELLYHORNE STATE PARK”. Owen and I had laughed at the fact that because of the faded paint now made it say,” HELL HORNE S PARK”. Mom and Dad had asked what was so funny but we kept quiet through our laughing.
We pulled into a small spot that was further back than any of the other ones. There was a small wooden post with a broken plastic sign that faintly had the number twenty-two on it. Dad immediately started getting tents put up as Mom was working on some sandwiches for us to eat. Owen, Lady, and I had started wandering the woods around us. We liked to play a game where we threw a stick as far as we could get it and while Lady went to fetch the stick we would find hiding spots.
Owen started by throwing a small stick that went about 20 feet away from us. As Lady ran in the direction of the stick, we ran the opposite way. We found a huge log lying in a small opening and we decided to duck behind it. We could hear Lady’s footsteps crunching down on the leaves, and she was heading straight for us. We both tried to hold our laughter back by putting our hands over our mouths, but as soon as Lady came around the log while also tripping we just couldn’t contain it anymore. Our laughs filled those woods and I was sure the whole campground could hear them.
After a few more times of Owen throwing the stick and Lady finding us seconds later, we decided I should try to see if I could get the stick further to buy us more time. I found a good medium-sized stick and looked down to see Lady wagging her tail just waiting to take off. I chucked the stick and it went flying and she ran faster than I’d ever seen before.
I looked back to see Owen already running to a torn-down shack that was barely kept up. I followed behind him and looked back to see no trace of Lady. I proudly knew I had bought us some time with that throw. We walked through the missing door of the shed and we ducked down beside an old table. Owen had pointed out the piles of trash lying around and we also noticed an old sleeping bag that was used religiously by the looks of it. Owen tried asking me if someone lived here but I just told him to stay quiet or Lady will find us. We sat there for ten minutes waiting but we never heard or saw any signs of Lady.
We slowly got back on our feet and made our way back to where the stick was thrown. We walked in circles calling for Lady over and over. I noticed a very worried look on Owen’s face. He had loved that dog. We’d had her since he was a baby and they’ve been inseparable ever since. I told him that we should head back to our campsite and leave some food out. Surely that would bring her back to us.
Once we got to the campsite Owen immediately started filling Mom in on what had happened. She showed no signs of being worried and was sure Lady would be back before the trip was over. We all sat around the rundown picnic table, which was sure to give us some splinters, to eat the sandwiches that Mom had prepared. Down beside the table sat a tiny yellow bowl that read,” Lady”, which was filled with dog food and a couple of pieces of lunch meat that Owen had sat on it to entice Lady even more.
We spent another hour that day looking around for her but there was no luck. I could see that even our parents were starting to get more worried by the second. I couldn’t tell if it was due to the fact of Lady missing or if it was the thought of what it would do to Owen if she wasn’t found.
That night we got into our tents all missing Lady but knowing we needed rest to keep looking tomorrow. Our parents had their tent set up on one side of the campsite and ours set on the other side of the picnic table that was in the middle. I remember waking up countless times to Owen just sitting up holding a flashlight in one hand and his Superman in the other.
Eventually, I sat up and told him that she would come back to us. She was an adventurous dog and more than likely found a squirrel to chase while chasing the stick I threw. He just stared at me with eyes that were so red and puffy. Owen told me that if she didn’t come back it was my fault and that I didn’t have to throw the stick as far as I did. I sat in silence while pondering that thought. I understood he was upset and part of me felt that he was right. It’s crazy how a game we played countless times could lead to my brother feeling like I betrayed him in some way.
I started pulling gibberish out of my mouth in a way to comfort him. I told him that Lady was a good dog and that dogs have the best instincts when it comes to finding their way back home. Mid-sentence we heard rustling in the leaves right outside the tent. It was too dark outside to see any shadows making their way in but a smile grew across mine and Owen’s faces almost simultaneously. I looked behind me to where the noise was coming from and back to Owen. I told him in a way filled with confidence,” After all, they are man’s best friend”.
We both started moving fast to put on our shoes so we could go greet lady. The sound of the tent swaying back and forth, the rapid metallic sound of the zipper, and us falling out onto the grass beneath us should’ve been enough to wake up the whole campground. We lay on the ground for a good 30 seconds after just to ensure Mom and Dad weren’t gonna come stumbling out of their tent because of all the commotion. After no movement from them, we stood up and started to head in the direction of the rustling we heard. Owen had brought his dollar tree flashlight that could barely illuminate four feet ahead of us.
As we headed into the dark woods surrounding the campsite I looked back to see our tent a good thirty feet from us. We came to a stop after hearing more leaves crunching to our left. Owen softly called for Lady followed by a whistle. We stood for another minute but still nothing. I couldn’t understand why she wouldn’t just come up to us, it was dark outside but couldn’t she recognize the voice of the kid she’s grown so close to?
We had made it a couple of steps further when Owen had just stopped moving completely. He stood in front of me frozen with his flashlight fixated on something lying on the ground. I moved closer to the pile and was hit with an odor so foul I had to hold my nose to keep myself from throwing up. I grabbed a stick that was on the ground close by and used it to poke at the mysterious mass. As I moved it around I realized it was a stack of clothes. A torn grey shirt, a ripped pair of jeans, and a pair of boots sat covered in mud.
Owen stuttered from a couple of feet back,” W-w-what is I-it?”
I turned to him with a confused look not even getting the chance to answer before we heard the rustling again. This time it was a lot closer and from the sound of it we were being circled by what we thought was Lady at first but now I had worried it was something else. Owen tried his best to follow the rustling with his flashlight but was never able to fixate on the noise. Whatever was running around us was moving too fast for us to keep up with.
I looked at Owen and mouthed,” Follow my lead.” As I was getting ready to run the rustling stopped. I stood there froze not sure if I had a clear shot to run back to the campsite without running into whatever was causing the noise. Owen and I were standing there with our backs facing each other with a good two feet of space between us. After a minute or so we heard the rustling coming from my right.
Owen shined his flashlight in the direction as an object came flying towards us. We both moved forward to avoid getting hit and as I turned around I saw Owen shining his light on the ground that was in between us. I felt the hair on my neck stick straight up as I came to the realization of what was lying there. It was a stick.
My face filled with fear yet when I looked at Owen he had a smile on his face. He had thought that it was for sure Lady at this point but I had known there was no way possible that she would’ve been able to throw a stick, especially not that far. I quickly grabbed Owen’s hand and ran towards the campsite as fast as possible. I could only imagine that I was basically dragging him behind me on the ground with how fast I was moving. I could hear Owen calling out,” Stop! Lady is back there and she’s wanting to play!” I was so focused on getting back that I couldn’t even tell him that it wasn’t Lady.
Through his crying and screams of letting him go back, I could hear the rustling again. It started back faintly behind us but with every step I took it grew louder. Whatever this thing was it was gaining on us fast. The noise was coming from behind us and quickly shifted to our side. I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins as I sped up and made it to the campsite. I quickly threw Owen towards the tent and turned around hoping whatever was following us had turned the opposite way.
However, as I looked to the direction we ran from I noticed nothing in the dark except two small circles that seemed to be glowing. The circles had a yellow tint to them and appeared to just be hovering over the ground. I squinted trying to focus on them more and that’s when they disappeared for a second and then came right back. I realized then that I was staring into the eyes of the thing that was chasing us. I unintentionally let out a gasp and watched as the eyes turned away and disappeared into the night. All I could hear was rustling fading away followed by a noise I couldn’t even begin to comprehend. It sounded like barking but not quite like a dog. It was as if this thing was trying to imitate a dog.
I wondered that night if it was trying to lure us back into the woods with the barking. Owen was crying by the time I made my way over to him. He asked,” Why did you run away from Lady? She’s out there alone again cause you ran. Why did you run?” I couldn’t muster up the strength to tell him what I truly thought of the situation, worried that it would scare him. I led him back to the tent and said,” We both just need to get some sleep. We’ll have to spend the whole day looking for Lady.” Owen said nothing and laid down facing away from me. I could hear him sniffing and wiping tears from his cheeks for a good hour after we got back into the tent.
I lay there questioning everything that had happened and wondered if there was any chance that it was Lady chasing us and trying to play. Then the images of the stick being thrown at us and the eyes I saw that were a good 3 feet off the ground. I knew that it was impossible. Lady had never thrown a stick to us she would always bring it up to our feet and drop it off and she’s a small dog too, there’s no way her eyes could’ve been that far off the ground. The images kept playing in my head and as the adrenaline had died down I got to the point where I just couldn’t keep my eyes open.
I woke up to the sun shining brightly through the tent. My skin felt like I had been sleeping on a grill. I could feel a pool of sweat in my sleeping bag. I looked over to Owen to either wake him up or greet him if he had woken up before me. However, as I faced his side of the tent I realized he wasn’t there. I turned my gaze to the long zipper at the front of the tent and saw that it was all the way open.
At this point, I had figured he had woken up early and was bothering my parents. More than likely filling them in on the events that had unfolded last night. I was sure as soon as I walked out of the tent I would be greeted by my parents, ready to chew me out for not only going out and exploring the campgrounds at night but for also bringing Owen along with me. I jumped up and started throwing my clothes on, ready to go ahead and get it over with. My lungs filled with air and I big sigh was let out as I stepped out of our tent.
Dad was making pancakes and bacon on a griddle that sat over the campfire. Mom was sitting in the shade on her lawn chair, reading one of her books. Owen and I had opened one of her books before and I was disgusted at the words I was reading. Owen had tried convincing me to tell him what it said since he couldn’t read at the time. To sum it all up we just ended up calling her books “sex novels”. We both had always followed it up with laughter and sometimes disgust remembering that our mom was reading that kind of stuff. The more stories I remember of Owen the more I miss him. I never realized how close we actually were until I lost him. Sorry to get sidetracked. Writing this all down is just flooding me with emotions I had worked hard to bury. I’ll try to keep on topic from here on out.
I looked around in confusion noticing I didn’t see Owen anywhere around the campsite. Mom looked up from her “sex novel” and asked,” What’s wrong sweetie? Did you wake up with your back hurting too?” She chuckled as Dad rolled his eyes and continued to cook. “What time did Owen wake up and come outside?”, I questioned nervously hoping they had an answer. Dad looked over at me and said,” What are you talking about? I’ve been up since five this morning. Owen is still in the tent.”
I continued looking around hoping to see Owen walking coming around the trees from a restroom break. “ H-hhee wasn’t in there when I-i woke up.” Mom had made her way over to the tent not believing a word I said. After checking the tent she looked back at Dad and said,” He’s not in here. W-where did her go?” Dad looked in disbelief. He knew that nobody had walked out of the tent since he had been up.
“ Was the tent opened when you had gotten up?”, I asked Dad nervously. “ Y-yes it was but I figured y’all had gotten hot during the night and wanted some fresh air.” I could see fear in both of my parent’s eyes. My mom started frantically digging through the tent and then suddenly came to a halt. She walked out of the tent holding something in each hand. It was Owen’s shoes.
After three more days of staying there, Dad decided to take Mom and me home. Dad would continue to go out there for two weeks following Owen’s disappearance, mom would beg to go but Dad would just leave not giving her an option. I think Dad felt responsible since he had planned the trip. He thought it was his fault his youngest son had gone missing. Deep down I felt like it was my fault though. It was my fault Lady had run away and couldn’t find her way back. It was my fault that Dad was never home and always spending his free time at the campsite. It was my fault that Mom was locking herself in her room to cry and drink. It was my fault that Owen wasn’t home with us, running around with Lady or playing any of our silly games. It was my fault that Owen was possibly dead.
Six days after Owen had disappeared Dad was out walking the woods with one of the park rangers. I could barely hear the whole story as he explained it to Mom but I think I got the gist of it. They were walking around in the dark for about an hour and a half when Dad came across a pile of some fabric. Dad had said there was white cotton scattered everywhere along with mostly blue fabric. At first, they couldn’t make out what it was until the park ranger picked up a red and yellow,” S”. It was Owen’s Superman stuffed animal.
Dad told Mom as they were observing the remains of Superman that a rustling noise was heard in the distance. They followed the noise in hopes of finding Owen. From the way Dad was telling Mom he was sure that it was Owen out there and maybe they had scared him further into the woods. He talked about how he’d be going back out the next night to continue looking with the ranger and a couple of work buddies. I couldn’t see Mom’s expression on her face all I could hear was sniffling followed by another glass being poured.
I ran to my room so my parents wouldn’t know I was listening in on the conversation. As I was lying in bed I had hoped that Dad was right. That Owen was still out in those woods running around and that nothing bad had happened to him. Maybe he just refused to come back until Lady was found.
As the days continued I found myself with nothing to do. With Dad going from work to the campground every day and Mom never leaving her room, I was lost. I didn’t have Owen to keep me company. I sat at the kitchen table alone one morning eating my cereal. While eating I looked up to the sight of the mailman parked at the end of the driveway putting a stack of white papers in our mailbox. I quickly scarfed down the rest of my food and slid on my shoes.
The sun was beaming down on this day. As soon as I stepped outside I could feel my face and neck burning from the heat. In the driveway sat the Toyota Sequoia that had been parked since Dad brought us back from the trip. The empty space beside it usually was accompanied by Dad’s Ford F-150. I had wondered what time he would be getting home tonight and if he would have any more updates.
I ran to the mailbox waving goodbye to the mailman as he drove off to the next house. I opened the mailbox and grabbed a stack of papers big enough to write a dictionary. As I walked back up the driveway I was flipping through the mail trying to be nosey when a rancid smell hit me. I could feel my stomach clenching up as I gagged.
I scoured around while pinching my nose trying to find the source of the smell but I had no luck. I had wondered if it was possible something in the mail but searching them all proved to be a dead end. I went back inside, glad to get away from the smell, and slid the mail under my parent’s door. I knew that Mom would flip through it at some point and decide what was important.
I would continue this routine for the next couple of days while being bored. However, I noticed that with each passing day, the smell would get worse. I thoroughly searched inside the mailbox to ensure nothing had died inside, but there was nothing. There were no animals of any kind laid out on our lawn or driveway that could’ve caused the smell.
Fourteen days after Owen had disappeared, Dad had come in late while I was watching cartoons before bed. Mom had occasionally walked out to grab a bite to eat or more wine but she was still in the room at the time. Dad had stood in the corner of the living room just staring at me without me realizing. I looked over and saw how deep his eyes had sunk into his sockets. He looked terrible. How could he not after working for ten hours a day, searching for Owen anywhere from five to eight hours and sleeping for five just to wake up and do it all again.
He sat beside me on the couch and tilted his head as far back as it could possibly go. I nudged my bowl of goldfish into his side to see if he would want one. However he just looked down at the bowl, shook his head no, and threw his neck right back to where it was. I sat my bowl on the arm of the couch and looked up at my dad. “ Any luck out there today”? I said in a low tone. “ N-nah nothing yet. But you don’t worry about that. I’ll find Owen. I promise bud.” he said in a reassuring but drained voice.
I sat there quietly for a few minutes knowing that he couldn’t keep that promise. If there was no sign of Owen at this point then I didn’t see how it would be possible to find him. We continued to sit in silence as the sounds of cartoons filled the room. Not sure of what else to say I looked back up at him and said,” Hey Dad?”
“ Y-yeah what’s up?” he quickly responded.
“ There’s something outside that’s been stinking up the whole yard. I think it’s coming from the mailbox but I can’t find anything.” I said partially to start another conversation but also to see if he had noticed the smell too.
“ Oh yeah, I noticed it when I was coming inside. I’m sure it’s a skunk or a possum. The vultures usually clean them up in a day or two.” he replied in confidence.
I sat on this thought for a minute, thinking he was probably right. However, I had noticed the smell for almost six days at this point. “ I searched the whole yard a-and haven’t been able to find anything,” I said.
“ Alright tell you what. You go grab two flashlights from the closet and give me twenty minutes of shut-eye and we’ll go exploring to find it. Okay bud?” he said calmly.
I ran to get the flashlight ready. Part of me felt bad for getting my dad back outside searching for something that couldn’t be found. However, I had been so bored lately that I selfishly disregarded and other thoughts. After the twenty minutes had passed I nudged Dad to wake him up. I stood in front of him with a flashlight in each hand.
“ Alright let’s get this show on the road”, he said as he made his way to the front door.
As soon as we stepped off the front porch the smell had hit us both. We both simultaneously reached to cover our noses with one hand as we held the flashlights in the other. We wandered around the yard searching swaying our lights back and forth scouring the yard. I had started to make my way to the right side of the yard as Dad searched the left.
After a couple of false calls with some pine cones, I made my way back over to Dad. By the time my light landed on his back, he stood facing the Toyota Sequoia. “Did you find something, Dad?” I asked wondering why he was so still. As I got closer I realized he was looking at the side of the car. The pearly white paint was interrupted with a solid red line. I followed the red line up from the bottom of the car up to the carrier.
Dad quickly unbuckled the carrier and set it calmly on the ground. I could see his hands trembling as he prepared to unzip it. I’ll never forget the sound of the zipper coming undone. That moment seemed to last eternally. I fixated my flashlight on the odd-shaped carrier as the zipper was opened a fourth of the way. By the time it was halfway unzipped I could feel myself shaking in rhythm with my dad’s.
He slowly swung open the top of the carrier and we were both met with an ungodly sight. It was Owen. His body was lying in the case, twisted in ways I couldn’t even comprehend. His throat was sunken in and covered in blood. Tears began to fill my eyes as I tried to process what was in front of me. I could see my dad’s mouth moving as if he was screaming but there was no sound behind it. As I stared at my little brother I was flooded with memories of times I would never get back. At least before I didn’t know he was dead. At least before there was still a chance.
As grief and guilt consumed me I couldn’t help but notice a weird material laying between his broken legs. It was fur. It was Lady. Whoever or whatever had done this had killed them both and shoved them in the carrier. At this point, I noticed Dad had pulled out his phone and was calling the cops. As my Dad was doing what he needed to do in this situation, I just stood there frozen. Observing what was left. I had noticed something white sitting in Owen’s hand. I managed to grab it from between his broken fingers. It was a piece of paper. I sat there staring at it in complete confusion as I read it. “ Man’s Best Friend?”
I dropped to the ground, too weak to keep standing. The letter and flashlight went in separate directions as I made contact. In the background, I could see my Dad facing away while still on the phone. I continued to lay there as everything started to fade to black. I caught one last glimpse of Owen and could only muster up the strength to say,”I-I’m s-s-sorry”. As the darkness continued to grow I noticed one more detail about the carrier. The address tag. It had been ripped off.