Haunted Red Oak

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

It was built by a man named Dave Scopple in the mid-1800s.

Well, he didn’t build it, and that fact dug his grave.

Anyway, after his abrupt death, the children were given the home. His wife would have inherited the cabin and land but disappeared years earlier. Some say she ran away took nothing with her but the fear of that house.

“Wait, Scopple? What kind of name is that, Liv.”

“Tez, just listen! Your beer breath travels far.” I readjusted myself under the red blanket, scooting closer to the flames in the middle of us. The heat was touching my face, and that firewood smell held all four of us close.

The dark red wood of the cabin creaked and moaned when the moon was awake. The grass was now tall and turning yellow. It whispered back during the day but filled with cries at night. Dave’s kids were grown but refused to care for it, so the cabin was passed down to Aunt Bell.

She arrived just as the sky fell into a deep sleep, and the night took its place. She knew what this place was, and how Scopple treated folks here.

The heavy door squealed as it opened, revealing furniture bathed in dust and the smell of…burning…flesh.

I paused, staring intently at each of them, hoping they were filled with horror or at least curiosity.

The hair on her arms desperately wanted to jump free of her ivory skin. She heard voices that were loud now and full of anger that rattled the cherry walls. It was the spirits of slaves, trapped here in and around this cabin.

Suddenly, Aunt B’s breath was cut short. The grip on her candle was tight, but the flame’s life was coming to an end. Voices more fearful and raging swept around her. She called for help, but no house was near, no human in sight, and nothing but the yellow grass as a witness.

More members of the Scopple family had tried to occupy the cabin, but each one would disappear. The only survivor over the span of 20 years was a boy, Edward. All he ever said about it was;

The big trees would sing to me when I was outside. And the stairs cried all night.

Scopple’s family name had perished inside the cabin, and the town knew it was cursed. They called it the haunted red oak house, harbored by the agony of enslaved people.

Years passed, and the grass turned brown, trees grew taller around it, covering most of the outside. The wood chipped down as the months grew longer, and the earth’s tears grazed the roof.

One day, two friends found the abandoned cabin after going too deep into the woods, searching for their friend Joey.

Her shoulders were sinking as she said, He been gone too long, Rog. And nobody even cares…” Roger stopped walking, stared at Jordan, and replied, But we do, and If the police won’t do nothing, we got to. C’mon, gotta mark them branches to keep track. They kept going. It had been four days since Joey was gone. They weren’t taken seriously by authorities, so they started their own search. After covering the small town in two days, they started in the woods behind Joey’s house. This was Jordan’s idea, based on a gut feeling. She said something told her to look there, so they were.

I saw Lina shaking her head, gripping her hoodie strings. She was getting spooked already. I broke eye contact with them to make the atmosphere more intense. I stared straight ahead, eyes locked to the woods we were in.

After a half-hour of walking and shoving branches, Roger reached his hand up and his neck out. His eyes were wide, revealing the whiteness of them.

Woah, you see that? He asked first, but he knew she saw it too.

I think we came too far. I don’t be coming this far out here. Jordan always played it safe. She didn’t want to be caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Of course, Roger was curious and wanted to see more of it. We gotta check it out, J. There’s no one here. We’ll find the way back to the trail, I promise. Two seconds.” Jordan rolled her eyes, but it didn’t matter because Roger wouldn’t listen anyway. He was the kind of person who would do whatever came to mind first, acting fast.

Before continuing, I glanced at Keon because I was describing him. He must have caught it. He responded with a personal smirk but kept listening.

…before she could give a response, he was cutting through the dead grass.

Just look around. I wanna get back. Something don’t feel right.

Jordan was nervous, and the energy around them darkened. She stood back a fair distance, far enough to run and close enough to see Roger. Don’t really see much, just old, Roger called out after shaking the doorknob thick with dust.

Jordan glanced to take note of the surroundings. She noticed the trees were dark, veins of root strong and reaching out. The leaves hung low and carried only patches of green.

Jordan…

The sound of a woman’s voice danced in her ears. She could feel her presence, but nothing more than grass and trees were showing. Jordan turned around slowly as the wind shoved through the woods.

My friends had moved closer towards the fire, fear at the brim of their eyes. I started breathing heavily, shuffling my feet, and preparing to stand.

Then, Jordan yelled, Let’s go…this ain’t safe. Someone is here with us.

But her words came out too late, Roger had already reached the side of the cabin.

I was standing now, staring inside the flames, watching them burn the wood.

He peered through the dirty window when suddenly…he fell back, terror on his face and bloody mud stuck in his fingernails now!

I paused, looking back at the darkness of the woods.

A candle grew a flame inside the abandoned cabin. Someone was holding the light, but no face was there, only an old brown hand. Ashed, dry, and dripping with blood.

Roger got up without hesitation and ran towards Jordan. Her back was to him, and her chin was raised up.

“What was she looking at?” Tez asked, sincerely wanting to know.

There, in the trees, they saw the ghosts crying out. They no longer had eyes but black holes instead. Covered in blood and screaming so powerfully, Roger cupped his ears. No! Leave her alone!

Jordan’s eyes were black holes, in a trancelike state with the spirits. She was no longer Jordan.

Then, she turned her face toward Roger, and guess what she said?

–

I let a long pause sit in the air, making straight-face eye contact with each of them.

“Freee meee!” I got close to Lina’s face as I yelled this, making her jump with her left hand on her chest.

“Damn, Liv! That was intense!” Tez and Keon laughed at how easily she gets scared, teasing her because of it.

“Come on, guys, I know you were freaked too. It’s okay to admit it.” I smiled at them, but it fell fast when I heard something move behind us.

“Brooo, stop playing with me. Y'all get someone to come out here and really scare us?” Keon was a big baby, deep down. But now was not the time to assess this.

I sat back down and said, “No…It’s the fear inside of us that brings the woods to life.”

We spent the rest of the night in our tent, flashlights on at all times. And yes, we lit some extra candles.