Four Corners Dark: Horror Stories (5 page)

“Maybe we better add a few rocks to hold the old bat down,” said Terry.

“Better watch your tongue,” Abby said.

“Sorry, I meant hold the old raven down,” Terry said. “No disrespect.”

They returned to their truck, Frank Reynolds was locking the glass doors of his shop.

“You folks still out?” Frank asked.

“Yeah,” Terry replied as he opened the door to the Cherokee. “Past our bedtime, we’re heading home.” Terry smiled half expecting a smack from Abby.

“Well, watch the roads at night here,” Frank said. “They’re as twisty as they are dark, and if you drive off one you’ll be going down for a while.”

Frank picked up a brown leather briefcase and started down the sidewalk in front of the store. “Night,” Frank said.

“Goodnight Mr. Reynolds,” Abby said warmly.

During the drive back home the sun danced off shimmering trees and the forest rolled like an endless carpet into the mountain range.

“Watch out,” Abby screamed.

Terry slammed on the brakes and swerved around a large black bird in the middle of the road.

“Damn,” Terry said.

“Remember what Mr. Reynolds said. We have to be careful around these roads,” said Abby.

“From now on the birds better be careful,” Terry grumbled.

“Let’s stop at Joseph’s house to invite him for dinner tomorrow night,” Abby said. Joseph had mentioned he didn’t have or want a phone.

“Sure.”

Terry looked for the turn off to Joseph’s place. He had told them it was marked by a stump with a dream catcher hung above it.

“There it is,” Abby said. “Ahead on the left.”

Terry turned the Jeep onto a narrow rutted drive and the vehicle rocked violently from side to side. The sun was setting behind the trees and the forest was growing dark. After two miles of rocking along the dirt road they spotted Joseph’s cabin. Dozens of farm implements, tools, and pans hung from the front of the cabin and a single rocking chair sat on the weathered porch.

“No wonder he walks to our place,” Terry said. “This road will cost you a set of tires each trip.”

They got out of the Jeep and walked to the cabin. The rusted metal roof was covered with vines and the front door was constructed from sticks bound together with rope. The Jeeps lights flickered off leaving them in complete darkness.

“Abby wait here,” Terry said groping his way off the porch.

He walked to the dark shape of the truck then opened the rear hatch and found a flashlight.

“Flashlight’s dead,” Terry called to Abby.

“I thought you changed the batteries before the trip.”

“I did,” Terry replied. “I also replaced the Jeep’s battery. Look what good that did.”

He dug into his front pocket and pulled out his cell phone which was also dead.

“Abby, try your phone,” Terry said.

She rummaged through her bag. “No good. I left my phone at the lodge. But hey, grab the bag in the back seat. I bought some candles at the hardware store,” she said. “There are matches in there as well.”

Terry lit two large candles and walked back onto the porch. The vanilla scent of the candles was out of place with the mossy smell of the forest. He knocked on the log door.

“I don’t think he’s home,” Terry said. “The place is completely dark.”

“Where could he be on foot at this hour?” Abby said.

“Wait here a minute,” Terry said as he walked towards the back of the cabin.

He approached a pond and the black water shimmered in the candle light. There was no sign of Joseph but he saw something slide off the end of the dock. He looked down into the water and saw Abby under the surface with her hands outstretched and a scream frozen on her face.

“Abby,” Terry yelled and plunged into the cold water.

He hit the muddy bottom and searched the murky water.

“Abby,” Terry yelled.

“Terry,” Abby shouted in the distance.

“Where are you?” He yelled.

He was up to his neck in water with the candle floating next to him.

“I’m over here,” Abby said emerging from the front of the cabin.

“What happened?” she asked, alarmed at the sight of him climbing out of the water.

“I thought I saw something in the water, I thought I saw you.”

CHAPTER FIVE

T
he couple walked the road from Joseph’s cabin to the lodge, stopping briefly at the Jeep to grab a blanket and the remaining candles. An hour later they arrived at the lodge.

“We better get you in front of a warm fire,” Abby said.

Terry nodded and tried to stop shaking. He had removed his clothes and beaten them against a tree to dry them but they were still damp. The blanket wrapped around him was soaked and did little to stop his shivering. They walked in the front door of the lodge and found a fire roaring in the fireplace.

“What the hell!” Terry said. “Is someone here?”

Other than the crackling fire there was silence.

“Joseph, are you here?” Terry called out.

No response. Terry grabbed a fireplace poker and wielded it in front of him.

“I need to check the house. You better stay close,” he said.

“Okay,” Abby whispered.

“Abby? Do you still have that Mace?” Terry asked.

“Yes,” she whispered opening her hand. She was already holding the spray.

They walked through the lodge and searched room by room for an intruder. The lodge was large and sprawling with close to thirty rooms in all. Terry opened the door to the pool room, the last place to be searched. The room was filled with Native American artifacts contrasted by a large ornate billiard table in the center of the room. Behind a cherry bar was a mirrored wall with a section open.

“Abby wait here,” Terry said as he crossed the room towards the opening.

“Not a chance,” she replied staying close behind.

He examined the opening in the mirror which led to a room behind it. A breeze blew out his candle when he stepped through the doorway.

“Damn,” he said. “Hand me that oil lamp behind you.”

Abby turned to find a lamp with an ornate base engraved with a ring of crows.

“Here,” she said.

He lit the lamp and walked behind the mirror door. Abby followed a few feet behind. The room was lined with bows, rifles, and an old musket.

“Looks like a museum in here,” Terry said.

In the far corner, the stone floor had an opening with a ladder sticking out of it. Terry reached for one of the guns but thought better of it. A missed shot with stone walls could cause a ricochet. And worse, he hadn’t shot a gun in years.

“Abby can you wait here?” Terry asked.

She looked scared but nodded in agreement. He descended into the opening and reached the floor of a cavern, then walked to an elongated pool of water. He fell hard on the wet stone floor and smashed the lamp. In the dark a faint blue light emanated from the pool. Abby heard him fall then ran to the ladder where a cold hand slid up the back of her neck and grabbed her hair.

“No,” she yelled then sprayed the Mace into the empty room.

“Terry,” she yelled. “Where are you?”

“I’m coming up.”

As Terry groped his way to the base of the ladder, a mist descended on him and his eyes began to burn.

“Oh shit,” Terry said as he rubbed his burning eyes.

He stumbled in the dark towards the pool of water.

Abby called down to Terry. “Are you okay?” Her voice quivered with fright. “Answer me, please.”

“I’m fine,” he croaked from below, coughing from the suffocating spray. “Stay up there!”

He crawled towards the sound of the rushing water with his face burning and eyes sealed shut then felt the cool spray of the water and began splashing his face. The effects of the Mace vanished immediately. He stood, walked to the base of the ladder and climbed back up.

“What happened down there?” she asked.

“I found a cave and stream that glows.”

“Someone grabbed the back of my hair,” Abby said.

“What?”

“Yes. Someone grabbed me and when I turned around, they were gone.”

Terry picked up an old rotary phone hanging on the wall.

“The line’s dead,” he said. “We better get over to the sheriff’s office in the morning.”

They walked back through the lodge carrying candles for light, when they entered the great room it was dark. Terry examined the fireplace and found it cold with a fresh set of unburned logs in the grate.

“How is this possible?” he said. “We weren’t gone for long.”

“My watched stopped,” Abby said.

Terry checked his watch and both had stopped at 3:00 a.m. The grandfather clock in the great room was also silent.

“Terry, something’s not right about this place,” Abby said. “Didn’t your uncle say anything?”

“No, he never mentioned anything out of the ordinary,” Terry answered.

“We need to talk to Joseph and find out what is going on around here,” Terry said. “But for now, we’d better get some sleep.” He grabbed another poker from the fireplace.

CHAPTER SIX

T
erry was startled awake when someone pounded on the front door. He looked out the side window of the bedroom and saw the sun shining off the hood of his Jeep. He walked down the log staircase and left Abby asleep upstairs. The great room was awash in the amber glow of the sun. Opening the front door, he found Joseph.

“Joseph, I’m glad to see you.”

“Likewise,” Joseph said. “May I come in?”

“Please,” Terry said.

He followed Terry to the kitchen table and sat holding his hat on his lap.

“Terry, is Abby around?” Joseph asked. “I need to explain a few things to you both.”

“Sure Joseph. Let me go check to see if she is up yet,” Terry answered.

Terry walked into the great room and found Abby walking towards the kitchen.

“Good morning,” Abby said.

“Good morning Abby. Do you both have a few minutes? I need to explain a few things to you both,” Joseph said.

“Sure, we have questions for you,” Abby answered.

Joseph and Abby sat at the kitchen table while Terry made coffee.

“Sometimes a place is much more than it appears on the surface,” Joseph began. “Picture a lake, serene on the surface, with miles of caves underneath. The lake is beautiful, but also deadly. That is the way it is here. This lodge was built on a border between the living and the dead. Terry, your uncle understood this place and respected it, however something had changed in him recently and he lost site of the danger.”

“Joseph,” Terry said. “What exactly are you getting at?”

“I had hoped to have more time with you both, but changes are happening faster than I anticipated,” Joseph answered. “This place is a fulcrum, a balancing point. Your uncle became compelled to test the power and limits of this balance. You will see wondrous things here but be careful to treat them like you would a venomous snake and avoid them whenever possible.”

Joseph stood and walked around the great room and studied the multitude of artifacts hanging on the walls.

“Your uncle had a great deal of faith in you Terry,” Joseph said. “He entrusted all of this to you.” He gestured around the lodge. “He spent his life putting this place together and it meant a great deal to him. Well, I must be going. I have taken enough of your time.”

“Please Joseph,” Abby said, “join us for an early supper this evening. So we can talk some more.”

“As you wish,” Joseph said. “Thank you for the invitation.” He stood and left.

“What in the world was that about? Can you believe that guy?” Terry asked exasperated.

“Be nice. Local legends can be very ingrained. They were the way people explained the unexplainable,” Abby answered.

“Yeah, a hundred years ago,” Terry replied.

“I suspect there’s a natural phenomenon here that people label as supernatural,” Abby said. “I find it interesting.”

“Well, I am going into town to file a police report. Let’s see if the sheriff finds it interesting.”

“Good, let me give you a shopping list so you can stop at the store on the way back.” Abby said. “We need supplies for tonight.” She smiled and went to find a pad of paper.

CHAPTER SEVEN

T
erry climbed into the Jeep, turned the key and the engine started right away. He drove cautiously on the twisty road into town and slowed as he caught a glimpse of a boy emerging from the woods. The boy wore ripped overalls and looked to be seventeen or eighteen. Terry was shocked when he saw his face. The kid looked like Daniel Carver, a former student. He pulled the truck over and fought to catch his breath, he had suffered from asthma since he was a kid. He found his inhaler in the glove box and sucked in a deep breath.