PASSENGERS

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. It was plain to see even from across the lake. This far away from the city, nestled in the valley meant there was no light pollution. This was one of the best places around to see the stars. Our family had been coming to this side of the lake for generations to look up at the night sky. My girlfriend, Sarah, had been begging me to bring her up for weeks. That night was my first trip up in a long while.

Our lakehouse had a classic wraparound porch with rocking chairs, couches, and what always seemed like a limitless supply of firewood. When I was a kid, we had big parties here—lots of family reunions and holiday gatherings. We didn’t come back much after what happened with Grandpa Dean. I didn’t understand why as a kid, but I do now.

I sat on a padded wicker couch a few feet from Sarah, finishing up on the phone with my son, Ethan. “That’s great news. I’m really proud of you. Are you excited about next weekend? Sorry, buddy, the corn maze isn’t open yet, but we can see the goats. Tell Mommy I’ll be there by 4:30, okay? I love you to the moon and back, kiddo. Good night.”

Sarah took a break from the telescope and plopped down next to me. “Everything okay?”

We hadn’t been together long, but she had become adept at reading my moods. “Yeah. We’re sorting out some post-divorce awkwardness. Ethan is dealing with the alternating weekends and the evolving environment the best he can, but I hear the pain and disappointment in his voice.”

“And it breaks your heart,” she said.

“And, yeah. It breaks my heart. This was not the life I wanted for him.” I took a big gulp of my wine and set the glass on the table beside me. “I sometimes wonder if he’d be better off without me in his life.”

Sarah’s eyes met mine. “Don’t say that. I know things are hard now. Complicated. You’re living a life that feels like it’s not your own, not the one you planned for. Trust me, babe, it will get better. Hang in there.” She leaned in and gave me a comforting kiss.

“Thanks for that. And, I’m sorry to lay that on you. I know what you’re gonna say, ‘live in the moment,’ right?” I pulled her in and squeezed her tightly.

She smiled. “A moment is all we get, babe. Carpe diem, man.” She took a gulp from her own glass of wine. “I’m so glad you finally brought me up here. It’s so quiet. The sky is so clear. So peaceful.”

“Apparently, we’re not alone.” I pointed to a window of the Stoddard cabin across the lake. “I’m thinking squatters.”

Her eyes followed my extended arm toward the tiny flickering light, leaning in as if the extra few inches would be the difference between clarity and completely missing the view. “Got to be hikers, right? How else can you get to that cabin?”

“From the lake,” I offered.

“Well, yeah, but why would you do that?”

I shook my head. “What do you mean, why?”

“All this natural beauty, fresh, clean air, and water. I don’t see the allure of a dilapidated, abandoned cabin in the woods. Literally nightmare fuel right out of a scary campfire story.” Sarah pulled her crocheted porch blanket tight around her shoulders.

“I think we should go check it out, and that’s how we’ll get there.” I pointed to the small rowboat tied to our dock.

She made that face she does when she’s about to diplomatically disagree. “I was looking forward to a quiet, romantic weekend of stargazing, boot knocking, and French toast eating. Reliving a Scooby-Doo Mystery was extremely low on my list.”

“Did you just say boot knocking?”

She buried her head in the blanket and laughed. “Derrick,” she whined, “don’t tease me. I want this trip to be about us. It’s six months tomorrow, and I know it’s not like an anniversary, but this is a really good start for us.”

“I agree, and for the record, I too am looking forward to knocking boots.” I flashed her a reassuring smile and threw my arm around her. “And just think how revved up we’ll be when we get back.”

“You’re not letting this go, are you?” She sat up straight, shrugging off my arm.

“It could be a fire hazard. I have LED camping lights in the shed to lend them. I just wanna go over and let whoever it is know I don’t care if they squat, but that cabin is a tinderbox, and a forest fire on that side of the lake would be near impossible to get under control.” I made puppy-dog eyes at her. “Think of all the poor displaced elk and roasted bunnies.” I cringed a bit at how manipulative that sounded aloud.

“Damn you. You know how I feel about bunnies. Okay, we can go, but no ghosthunter stuff, right? Just dealing with the candles and coming right back, promise?”

“I promise.”

***

The rowboat ride across was refreshing in the cool autumn air under a full moon that glistened off the peaks of oar-borne ripples. I grabbed the bag of LED lights, tied off on the old dock behind the Stoddard cabin, and helped Sarah up.

“Watch your step on this thing. Some of the planks are rotten.” I shone my flashlight to highlight a few of the bad spots.

“No other boats. See, I was right. Must be hikers.” Sarah zipped up her hoodie a bit more. “Is it me, or is it colder on this side?”

“Yeah, I think you’re right. The mountains suck up the warm air and leave it cooler on this side.” I shrugged, not confident in my scientific assessment.

“Did you just make that up?”

“No, actually, my grandfather told me that when I was little. I never fact-checked him, though.” I thought about Grandpa Dean for a moment. “He was an interesting old coot.”

“Was?”

“Yeah, he passed when I was little, like eight or nine.” We stepped off the dock and headed up the trail toward the cabin. “Not to sound morose, but it was up here, actually.”

“At the lake?”

“Yeah, well, it was complicated, really.”

“Uh, should I be worried?”

I chuckled a bit. “No, no. He was showing signs of early dementia. My grandmother died before I was born, and we think the loneliness affected him. He was up here with his home care nurse and we think he may have wandered off into the woods.”

“Oh, babe, that’s awful. Did his nurse find him?”

“Nope. There was a lot of speculation about what happened, especially since she disappeared, too. She may have gone looking for him and gotten lost, too. No one ever saw either of them again. They even dragged the lake, thinking they had drowned. Never found anything. It was a lot easier to get lost up here in the 80s.”

“I’m so sorry. That must have been very traumatic for you at that age. Were you two close?” Sarah hooked my arm and pulled herself into me.

“Kinda, yeah. I used to spend summers up here with him. At the lakehouse, I mean,” I pointed to the cabin ahead. “Not this dump.”

"I understand what it’s like, losing loved ones. I’m dealing with that myself, right now.” She hung her head and kicked at the rocks on the path.

“I didn’t realize. I’m sorry. I thought this was a good weekend to come up, but we can head back to town tonight.”

“Don’t worry. Everyone deals with death in their own way. I’m exactly where I need to be.” She squeezed me tightly.

“Here at this fire-hazard of a spooky cabin in the woods?” I tried to lighten the mood.

She was quiet for longer than I expected. “Here, with you, babe.”

I thought for a moment about my ex-wife and how she used to say the same sort of things to me. But Sarah is different. I have to remind myself of that. Six months now, I should know better than comparing her to Jen. If we didn’t have a son together, I’m sure I wouldn’t give her another thought. At least, I don’t think I would. Jen was the past, and Sarah was my future.

We reached the back porch and climbed the rickety stairs. The candle we had come to extinguish was shining through an upstairs window. I was confused by how much brighter it was now that we were at the cabin.

“Should we knock? We should knock, right?” Sarah sounded unsure. The quaver in her voice told me she was scared.

I put my arm around her and held her close. “You really have watched one too many slasher flicks, huh? It’s gonna be all right, relax.” I called out, “if there are any serial killers in there, I bought you a peace offering!”

Sarah ducked out of my embrace and swatted at me. “Seriously?”

I gave her a sheepish grin. “Trust me, no one’s gonna get you while I’m here.”

The rusty handle on the back door took a twist and I gave it a shove. Spider webs clung to the frame. The floorboards had become so warped over time that the door barely opened enough to squeeze through. Wooden, termite-eaten debris dropped into my hair and down the back of my sweatshirt. “Watch yourself coming through. The wood’s rotten here.”

Musty, dank odors swirled around the room. Draft-blown dust swirled in my flashlight’s thick beam. The ceiling creaked as footsteps echoed in the empty space. More dust fell, and I shielded my eyes. “They’re upstairs, whoever it is.”

Sarah nodded and followed me toward the stairs. “Do you think these are safe?”

“I probably wouldn’t try and carry a piano up them, but someone’s gone up already.”

Candlelight danced at the top of the stairs, casting long sinister shadows. A low hum vibrated the cobweb-covered banister as we climbed. Sounds of rushing air grew louder as I approached and I wondered what squatters could be doing up here to make that sort of ruckus.

“Hello? I don’t want to startle anyone. I saw the light from across the way. I brought you LED lamps. The candle’s not safe.” I took one last step and turned to check on Sarah. The light reflected off the back of her eyes like a cat’s might. She flashed an odd smile and pushed me further.

A wall at the top of the stairs partially blocked a loft area. I looked to the window first but saw no candle. I felt Sarah’s hands on my back, prompting me past the wall and into the room. I felt dizzy almost instantly, and all I could do was stand, mesmerized by the light. A glowing, golden, flickering orb spun in at chest height in the center of the room, like a star in space, only a million times smaller. Air in the room rushed toward the orb, sucked inside. The hum grew louder. I felt it in my bones. An uneasy mix of horror, confusion, and calmness washed over me.

“Don’t be afraid, Derrick.” Sarah spoke from behind me.

“I don’t understand. What’s happening?” I wanted to run, tried to run, but I couldn’t. Pins and needles crept over my body as numbness set it. It was as if I had been put in a barrel, and had sand poured up to my neck. Somehow the pulsing sphere of light called to me. I wanted to be joined with it. I fought a losing battle to maintain control of my senses. Heat from the orb cooked me from the inside out like a microwave dinner.

Sarah stepped in front of me, her body offering some relief from the intensity of the orb. She became a silhouette in contrast, but her eyes continued to glow. I no longer had control of my own body. She posed me like a rag doll, in a t-pose, or like Christ on the cross. Burning tears rolled down my face as the invisible hot sand crawled and gnawed me like tiny, vicious ants.

Struggling to speak, I asked, “What is this?”

“Babe, this is sort of a good news, bad news situation. Which would you like first?” Her tone was calm, and her smile persisted, making the surreal scene much more frightening.

“I…I don’t want to play games. I just want to—”

“Good news it is.”

She turned and walked around the light until I couldn’t see her through the golden glow. Sarah had someone with her as she returned from the other side of the orb. Was this the hiker squatting here? Was I drugged, something in my wine? Why would Sarah do this to me? My mind raced, trying to recall if I had done anyone wrong. Someone that would take revenge in some sick way. No. Six months with Sarah and never even a fight. No unkind words. Nothing.

The man by Sarah’s side transitioned from a dark shadow through the edge of the glow and stood so I could see his face. “Grandpa Dean?”

“See, good news, babe. You finally have the answer to that mystery. Grandpa Dean, right here.”

My brain couldn’t make sense of this. My eyes grew blurry as more tears fell. “How? Where have you been for thirty years?”

“He’s been safe with me,” Sarah said. “Well, his body, anyway. After all, I am a nurse.”

If I had control of my body, I would have run. My feet disobeyed me, and my arms still hung out beside me. She stepped between him and me and looked into my eyes.

“Time for the bad news.” She reached up and tugged on Dean’s beard until his mouth hung agape. “Dean here has been a good host,” she looked into the light, “where we come from, we used to live forever. But now we need hosts. Humans work pretty well, though we need new ones every so often. The time between culling has grown shorter, I’m afraid. You used to last longer beyond the shimmer, but, like Ethan, we must adapt to changing environments.”

“Why even tell me this?” She had me trapped, defenseless. I am such a fool.

She cocked her head to one side as if the answer would be thoughtful. “I’m not a monster, babe. Well, maybe a little. I thought it might make things easier, given the circumstances.”

“Why Dean, why me?”

“Dean is host to my mate. I can’t think of a better replacement for him than his grandson, can you?”

I swallowed hard as the reality of my fate began to sink in. “Please, Sarah, no. Don’t do this. I really thought we had something special.”

“Oh, babe, we do have something special. Don’t worry. You’ll still be in there. You will just be more of a…passenger.”

The orb flashed brighter, the searing pain intensified, and I became utterly immobilized. She reached up and pulled open my mouth to match Grandpa Dean’s. A tendril of light streamed out from the orb and into Dean’s mouth. His entire face glowed from the inside out while his body writhed in pain.

“This is the moment, babe. Where we come from.” She looked into the light. “It’s time to truly live in the moment.”

This was the end. I could do nothing to stop it. I thought about Jen and Ethan. Would this have happened if I stayed with Jen? I never would have met this…

“Succubus, I believe, is what you’d call me. Don’t worry,” she said as the tendril reached out from Dean’s mouth to mine. “It will all make sense once the transfer is done.”

I thought about how Ethan would not get to see the goats next weekend or the corn maze after that. Or spend another holiday, birthday, or weekend with his father. I thought of this transfer from grandfather to grandson. I can only hope Ethan has no children succumb to this fate.

“You needn’t worry about Ethan’s children,” she said as if to reassure me, reading my mind as my world grew dim.

I felt a tiny bit of relief as I heard that. My body moved without my control. I took Sarah’s hand and walked into the light.

***

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. I told Julie I’d take her up here to look at the stars when we made it to six months. I haven’t been up here since before dad disappeared.

“I’m a bit concerned about that light across the lake,” I said.

Julie stepped back from the telescope and reached for my hand. “Ethan, babe, if you’re worried, we should go check it out.”