It comes back to me every time I hear the wind and rain. It was a Tuesday, and I didn’t have work that day. The morning and afternoon were normal. I still remember when the first drops of rain hit my window. I was in my living room, tying at my laptop, enjoying a steaming mug of cocoa. It started slow but soon turned into a full downpour, with heavy winds that blew with gusty fury. I stopped typing and gazed out of my window, enjoying the ambiance of the rain and the view of the dense forest. I always did enjoy being alone. Life was less complicated when I was alone with my thoughts. I began to zone out, still staring out of my window when I first heard it.
It was a shrill but quick bawling sound. I snapped out of my trance and ran to the other side of my living room. All sides of my home are covered in dense forest, except the driveway and clearing I had as a backyard. Both sides of my living room faced into the yard, so I had a clear view of anything in my yard or the surrounding woodline. There it was. The source of the sound. It was a deer, what looked to be a small fawn. It was slumped halfway in my backyard and half in the woods. It took me a moment to process, but then I noticed there was blood flowing from it. I cringed back in shock at the gruesome sight. Although it was gruesome, after the shock had registered I knew I had to go and move it deeper into the woods. The enticing offer of a free meal would surely attract predators into my yard. So, I went to my bedroom and gathered a raincoat and boots. I put them on and went to leave, but doubled back to retrieve one of my rifles from my gun case. I’m not much of a hunter, but I always kept a gun. I had a basic knowledge of shooting and gun safety, and I knew of the dangers and predators of the forest.
Geared and armed, I stepped out of my backyard and into the rain and receding daylight. As I drew closer to the carcass of the deer, I knew something was wrong. Horror overtook me as I saw the deer’s wounds. This couldn’t have been a human or any predator I had ever seen. My head began to spin and I felt dizzy. The lower half of the deer was marked with the clean, almost perfect cut, The skin was peeled back and the stomach was sliced with an almost surgical cut, from the neck down to the lower stomach. I knew at this moment this couldn’t have been a human or any predator. Then I heard the sound that still resonates in my nightmares.
It was a scream. It was the most inhuman and unanimalistic scream I’ve ever heard. It was shrill but guttural and had had a tone of menace. Then the growls came. They were low and intense. My whole body began to shake and my flight or flight instincts kicked in. I turned and ran back into my house. Still shaking and feeling my heart beat faster than it ever had and ever has since I ran through my house locking every door and window and drawing every blind and curtain.
I took my gun and ran into my room, locking and barricading the door. My room had only one window, and I drew the curtains after double-checking the window was locked. I sat in the corner of my room, as far from the door as I could, still holding my rifle with shaking hands. I hastily pulled out my phone and dialed 911. The phone was picked up, and I began to rush and tell the operator what was happening, but the phone cut out. The storm had knocked out my power. I knew this was the end. I knew this thing was going to get inside my home, into my room and I knew it was going to kill me. I couldn’t call anyone, I was going to die here alone in my room. Seconds of no sounds except the rain that felt like hours passed and I sat in terrified silence. Then a thud echoed out. It was pounding on my walls. That thing was trying to get in. The pounding moved along the walls of my room, before reaching my window. It started to knock slowly, then began knocking faster until it became a pound. I knew I was in the room, trapped. It was toying with me. I heard the glass of my window crack. It paused then one more pound broke the window. I screamed as glass shards flew into my room. Rain began to flow into the window and the thing screeched again. It sounded like a laugh. It was laughing at me. I stood, aimed my rifle, and fired into the darkness outside. The world seemed to slow as the bullet hit its target. The thing screamed and stumbled back, and I got my first and only look at It. It was only a silhouette, but I saw it was thin, had long lanky arms, and was the biggest creature I’ve ever seen.
Even though I saw no eyes, I knew it was staring at me. I felt pure evil and I heard its screeching laugh one more time as I snapped and began screaming. I didn’t stop until my throat was raw. Then everything went black and I lost consciousness. That was the last thing I remember before I woke up in a hospital. My throat still throbbed. Moments later a doctor entered and saw I was awake. He told me the police had found me unconscious in my room. He said I wasn’t severely injured, and asked me what had happened that night. I began to tell him but knew I would sound crazy. I told him a predatory animal tried to attack me, and later that day I was released. Since then I haven’t been the same. I immediately moved out of that house and into a large city. It may cost more, but the bustling of all the people comforts me. Still, even though it has been years now, the sound of rain and blowing wind bring a shiver up my spine, knowing that that thing is still out there, somewhere in the dark, uncharted woods.