The cabin in the woods

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window.

I could see it clearly from a mile away. I was in my grandparent's house at the base of the hill.

During the day, I used to gather around with other cousins and explore the forest, looking for berries and mushrooms.

But at night, no one was allowed to go on the hill. So all the villagers avoid that path at night. Instead, everyone was crossing the hill early in the morning so they wouldn't get caught by the darkness in the middle of the forest.

That night there were no stars in the sky, and even the moon was shy behind the clouds. Nevertheless, I could see clearly a pale light over the hill's shoulders. I asked my grandfather:

"-Can you see that light, grandpa?. I think the forest ranger is on the hill tonight, looking for wood thieves.

-There is no ranger there, he said. He died disappeared ten years ago, and no one could find him. Also, I cannot see any light."

As always, my grandfather was trying to scare me. He always had a scary story for the evenings. And all of them involved some kind of danger, and all the endings were the same: that we should never leave the house at night.

I don't know what has gotten into me. I felt attracted like a moth to the lamp light. I had that strange and foolish courage of a teenager. I needed to see what was out there.

My grandfather fell asleep early, like always. I could hear his snores from the other room. I woke up my cousin Daniel and his sister, Anne-Marie.

-Can you see that light up there, on the hill?

-Yes, I see it, said Daniel.

-I see it getting brighter, added Anne-Marie.

My cousin Daniel was older, and Anne was the same age as me. So what did we have in common? We liked to keep grandpa busy, who always had to look for us around the village. But what kept us moving together was our endless curiosity. We had to see. We had to try. Nothing was too terrifying for us.

I couldn't believe that my cousins could see that light, but my grandpa didn't. So I thought it was just old age. Or maybe he lied to me because he knew I would be tempted to go out and check it.

We picked up some old flashlights and lit them up on the way. We left the house after midnight, so no one would see us sneaking out.

-I wonder what is out there. Maybe there are kids like us playing there. The caban is abandoned, and no one wants to live there anyway. Daniel seemed to know more than I about the place. He was older than us, and he managed to find out more from the people living in the village.

-I think we should go back before grandpa wakes up, said Anne-Marie.

-Shut up and keep moving. Grandpa wakes up at 4 in the morning to feed the animals. We will be back by then.

I said that with so much confidence, but I didn't realise that it had taken us almost an hour to climb the hill. And at night, the path seemed to be so much longer.

As we approached the cabin, we saw the light getting smaller. It was a red candle burning in front of a small window. The door was wide open, but we couldn't see anyone inside or around.

-What do we do? I feel like someone is watching us, said Anne-Marie.

-Could be just the other kids, messing around and playing, said, Daniel.

But I could see on his face that he was frightened as well. It was too late to go back now. We were just 10 feet outside the cabin.

-Let's go inside and shut the door. At least we are safe inside until the sun comes out. Grandpa will find us.

It was my first good idea that day. I doubted myself and thought it was better to stay at home, in our warm and cosy little house, next to our grandfather.

We held our hands tight and went inside slowly.

We could feel the smell of something burning, but it wasn't the candle. Instead, it was like someone playing with matches. We closed the door behind us and locked it with the inside metal bar.

The cabin was empty. Just a large wooden table, three chairs, and that candle burning in the window. We each grabbed a chair and sat there in complete silence. We tried to speak to each other, but no one managed to talk. It was like we lost our voices. Or it was just fear?

Maybe we were just afraid that someone would hear us if we broke the silence, and something terrible would happen.

We were watching the red candle, which seemed never to end. It had been burning for a while now, and it was almost halfway through. I checked my old watch. It was nearly 3 am.

-One more hour and the sun will show up, said Daniel.

He barely finished his sentence, and we heard footsteps outside. We all froze. We couldn't talk or move. The candle started to flicker like it was bothered by a breeze. But there was no air coming inside the cabin.

At that moment, we realise we need to stay strong, and we need to stay together. So we grabbed our hands and sat behind the door. No matter which was outside, we needed to keep that door shut.

We hear three knocks on the door.

-Let me in, children, said a calm and soft voice, just behind our backs.

-I think it is grandpa, said Anne-Marie.

-Shut up. This is not grandpa, said, Daniel.

-Let me in, my children. It is me, your grandaddy.

The voice sounded so familiar. But it couldn't be our grandfather, right? He was sleeping in our house, an hour away from walking down the hill.

My older cousin was holding our hands so tight that it hurt us.

-Keep your eyes closed, he said. And do not let go. We stay together, and we hold this door, no matter what.

The light in the cabin was fading as the candle was almost done. We heard just footsteps around us and on the roof. It was like that man was walking around and on top of the cabin at the same time.

My hands were sweating, and my heart was beating faster and faster than ever. I felt like we were closed in an oven. The cabin was heating up, and a strong smell of burned matches filled our nostrils.

The red candle flickered for one last time, and the first ray of sun entered the room. We could hear the roosters singing down the valley. It was a good sign.

In our village, all the stories ended with the rooster singing in the morning. When you hear the rooster, that means the evil is gone, and everyone is safe.

-Open your eyes. Let's go home.

Daniel lifted us by our hands, and we no longer felt any fear. We were just tired. We just wanted to go home to our grandpa. He slowly opened the door and walked a few steps. We were safe. Daniel tried to look around but couldn't see anything, not even footsteps on the ground.

-Let's go home, and let's not tell grandpa about this, ok?

Anne-Marie and I nodded in agreement as we walked away from the cabin.

I looked back and saw some strange marks on the cabin and the wooden floor. It was like someone tried to burn it. It has some odd dark prints mixed with ash.

When I looked closer, I saw hoof marks, just like the ones of a goat. But these were made of ash and cinder, deep inside the wooden floor and on the cabin.

I think my cousin Daniel also saw them, but he didn't say a word.

We promised that we don't talk about this, and we said nothing to our grandfather.

We went straight inside the house. We closed the door behind us, breathing heavily. Then, as we looked at each other, we heard three knocks again.

-Let me in, children.

...