It Walks among us

It was supposed to be the house of our dreams. The two-story house, nestled on top of the hill with vast forests on either side. For some, this remote set-up would scream isolation, but for my family, it gave us the peace and solitude we had always yearned for. A way to get back to our roots and embrace all that mattered. Little did we know, that this haven we had searched for would become a nightmare that we weren't sure we would be able to escape. It was a new start for us. My father died a few years ago and my mom just could not handle the constant reminders that surrounded us day after day.

A year ago she met Mike. It was by accident and things moved rather quickly for them. Don't get me wrong, I was glad she was smiling again I just hated that Mike was the reason for this. Once things got serious and they decided to move their two families together, we ended up in the middle of nowhere, in a place where we could start again. A new beginning to this new chapter, as mom put it. As the oldest, and more reserved of the 5 children, I was given the massive bedroom up the stairs and above the garage. It was away from the others and had a patio that faced the south-side of the house. I had plans to paint the walls a deep, dark red to compliment the matching bedspread, but for that moment in time, I was just happy to be away from the rest of the mess that was my family. As I was unpacking my belongings, I found a picture of my dad. I could not help but feel the anger in my heart against life. It was not fair that he was gone and here I was in the middle of nowhere with this new man.

As I was having these thoughts I was distracted by the sound of a thud. Thinking this was a bird hitting the window, I made my way onto the patio only to be surprised by the small pebble I found. Now, don't get me wrong, it was a nice pebble, but to be up on the patio, come on now. I quickly ran to the top of the stairs and yelled at my newly acquired stepbrother to knock it off or so help him, death would soon be upon him. After delivering the death threats that only an older sister could, I made my way back towards the patio to close the door. Little did I know then, just how drastically wrong I was.

Everything for the first few weeks was as normal as one would expect. We walked down the long driveway to catch the school bus and come home again. I kept to myself, not wanting to be with the rest of the family more than I had to. At fifteen, I did not want to be around a bunch of preteens and younger. Sometime after those first few weeks, the atmosphere changed around the house. Whenever one walked towards the woods, you could not help but notice the sense of eyes on you. It was as if the forest came alive. No matter where you went among the trees, there were always eyes that would land on you. It was not until my stepbrother Hardy brought it up, that I realized it was not just me who had been experiencing this, but the others felt it as well. As we started talking, we all got a sense that there was something not right in those woods, Laura, the youngest of us all at eight said that she saw the boogeyman peering in at her every other night. When she brought it up to mom and Mike, they just laughed at her stories and told her no more scary TV for her. Hardy and I exchanged a look. Hardy, being a year younger than me at fourteen, did not believe Laura any more than I did. Sure, she saw something, but the boogeyman, there was no such thing. Vowing to look after the littles, Hardy and I went to talk to our parents about the weird feelings we had all been having. As expected both mom and Mike laughed at us and told us it was just all the changes that we had been experiencing since the move that made us on edge. Seeing as they would not believe us, we dropped it and went outside. It was still early out with just an hour until supper, so they called after us to not go too far. With the curiosity stemming through me to see what was peering in at my sister, Hardy and I made our way to Laura's bedroom, which was on the west side of the building. Once we got to the window that led into her bedroom, we quickly realized the problem that was facing us. 'Crap Liz,' Hardy started,' That window has to be at least eight feet off of the ground, so it is not like Dave or Arch, would be able to reach it to scare her, even if they were working together.' ‘Hardy, I don't think they would be working together. For one, they are all asleep when Laura said the boogeyman comes to her, and secondly, they would need a ladder. They also are not that smart to be able to pull this off without telling one of us, and if what Laura said is true, it has been happening to her since we moved in here. I just can't see them being able to do this to her for weeks and not growing bored of it already.' 'I have to agree with you Liz, so if not those two demon spawns, what? I pondered his question as I searched. It was weird for me to talk to anyone about this. I was the girl who had no friends, and I liked it that way. But Hardy was like me. A loner who was not thrilled to find himself in a big family overnight. By giving each other space, we were becoming friends, and after the last few years I’d had, it was nice to not be alone. To have a friend. After looking around the area, my eyes settled on a tree. ' Look over there, there is a fairly impressive tree not too far from her window, what if she was mistaken about the creature and it is just an owl?' I mean, she is young so it is possible it isn't a close as she thinks it is, and because we are straight out in the middle of nowhere when we are used to street lights, the darkness may be showing her tricks.' Slowly nodding his head, he turned to walk back to the front of the house. Joining him, I could not help but wonder if my explanation came to me so fast because I wanted it to be true, or, if I was scared it wasn’t. 'If what you say is true, that means Dad and Val are correct and she is just letting her mind wander, and while that may be all the explanation for this instance, what about the forest itself? You cannot deny the creep factor there."

"Hardy, I know, but I don’t know what to tell you. I know we aren’t imaging things, but I don’t know. Maybe it is a pack of zombies roaming the woods looking for brains, maybe the trees come alive, I don’t know man.’ As I came up with wild scenarios, I saw the smile come to Hardy’s lips. “Or maybe our woods are full of crazy hobo’s with blood lust in their veins.” I scream out as I lunge for him.

At about 3 that night I was woken out of a deep sleep. Laying still, I tried to focus on what woke me. There, I heard it again. It was a different noise. I had never heard that noise before. Like a woman wailing, but louder followed by deep woot like sound. The noise seemed to be far away, and yet I could hear it. Not wanting to be the only one to hear this, and ignoring the goosebumps I reached for my phone and quickly called Hardy.

“Hello,” I heard him answer groggily. “Hardy, go to your window and see if you can hear what I hear.” I waited in the silence for Hardy to speak. "Liz ….." He began only to be cut off as the wooting noise started up again. " What in the hell is that" he whispered into the mouthpiece of his phone. " I don't know, but I needed someone else to hear it too, it is louder up here, almost hauntingly lonely in the depth of it, and honestly, I am a little afraid to move in case whatever it is, comes for me. I know it is stupid, but I don't know how else to describe it." I whispered back, afraid that if I spoke to loud, I would once again wake up and this would have been a far, gone nightmare, even though I knew it to be my current reality.

“Hold up Liz, did you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

“I swear it is like a tapping coming through the walls.” Like if someone was going to test for a weak spot” “OH, OH SHIT LIZ! GET DOWN HERE! IT IS COMING FROM LAURA’S ROOM”

He had barely finished this when the blood-curdling sound of my younger sister tore through the house. I dropped my phone and went tearing down the stairs before I could even think. By the time we got to her room, I only had a chance to see a big shape lurch away from the window as my mom and Mike made it into the room.

“Baby, it is okay, momma is her’ My mom crooned to Laura, “It was just a nightmare."

"No, momma it wasn't.' The boogeyman tried to get in here at me. It wants to get me momma. Don't let it take me, Momma, please don't let it get me."

As my sister broke down into tears, Mike turned and saw all of us standing in the room.

"Alright guys, let's give Laura and Val a chance to calm down. We can have hot chocolate to calm the nerves, and then back to bed." As he ushered the twin spawns away to the kitchen, I caught the eye of Hardy.

"It wasn’t just a nightmare was it, Liz?” He stated. Before I could answer him, Mike called us to join them in the kitchen.

“Come up to my room after Har, and I will explain everything. I had no idea what was going on, but Laura was right and whatever that was, it is not an owl. After what felt like an eternity, but was not really any longer than an hour and a half, the quiet once again returned to the house. Not trusting the lull of the silence, I impatiently waited for my partner in crime to join me in my lair of wisdom. Finally, I heard the third step creak and I knew in a few moments we would be able to discuss what I saw outside of Laura’s window. Opening the door and walking in, he squinted away from the light on my desk.

“Okay, so what the hell is going on, and don’t try to convince me it was an owl, because owl’s hoot the do not go woot or whatever that was” he began.

“I know. Look Har, I have no idea what I saw, but when I got to the room and looked out that window I saw something, something big. Like it took up the entire window, and when it saw me, it just disappeared into the trees. Har, what can be big enough to take up an entire window, and smart enough to vanish when other people come around? ”

“Not to mention the weird calls and tapping on the walls.”

“Hardy, was the tapping coming from Laura’s side of the house?” I asked him, unsure if I wanted to know the answer.

“That's just it, Liz, it started on my side and then in an instant, it was over there. Like what moves that fast?"

“Okay, I have no idea what to do, but we can’t tell Mike and Mom because they won’t believe us. Hardy, do we still have that old ladder in the garage?”

"I think so, why? What are you planning and why do I think I am going to help you but hate myself while I am doing it?"

"Here is my plan, I am going to go up on that ladder to see just how tall this thing is. I want to look for a clue, and then, once we have something, we go to Mike and mom. I don't know what we are dealing with, but that thing, whatever it is, wants Laura, and I'm not going to let that happen. I already lost Dad, I can't lose her as well."

"Okay, but, we need to get the others on our side. We also need to make the twins stay as close to the house as possible. At least until we have answers."

Suddenly the third step squeaked. Not knowing who else was still up, I opened the door to look down the stairs, only to be met by the sight of Laura looking back at me. Running down to pick her up, I brought her back to my room where Hardy was waiting.

"Hi pipsqueak, what are you doing out of bed?" I asked her gently.

"Can I sleep up here with you Lizzie?" "Please, I don't want the boogeyman to get me."

“Of course, sweetie, you just sleep right here and Hardy and I will guard you okay. I promise Laura, no one will get you while we are here. Right, Hardy?"

"Yep," he replied with a reassuring smile, "if anyone tries anything I will karate chop them in the neck like this."

Laura giggled as Hardy went around karate chopping the air. By the time he was done, we all fell into a heap of giggles as Laura slowly faded to sleep. Not knowing what else to do, we both settled down for a nap of our own, while I sent up a quick prayer asking for protection. I didn't know how I would protect them, but somehow, I would. Once we woke up, we went downstairs for breakfast, because it was Saturday, I was hoping Mike and mom would have family plans away from the house. Normally, I would be forced to go, but I was going to say I had female problems so that I could stay home. I knew this would work on Mike, but I was worried about if it would work on my mom. She was always a little harder to convince, but, I was hoping my acting chops would be up for the challenge. When I entered the kitchen, Hardy noticed me and gave me a wink. Knowing that was our agreed-upon signal, I got ready to work my magic.

“Arrggghhhh! I growled when I entered the kitchen. “Mom, I need the heating pad, where is it?”

Mike looked my way and quickly offered me the seat closest to the doorway. "Here Lizzie sit down, you look terrible" he offered as I gladly took the offered seat. Now normally, I hated being called Lizzie by anyone other than Laura, but I let it slide as I figured I needed him on my side.

“Thanks, Mike" I muttered. He wasn't a bad guy, he just wasn't my dad.

"Mom, what are we doing today?" I asked hoping to sound still in the imaginable pain that I was trying to fake.

“We are going to go into town and swing by the movie theater. See what shows are playing. Take a walk among the mall and stop in and See Rhonda and Lance.” I inwardly grumbled. Of course, they picked things I would like to do the very day I had to pretend to be sick and stay home. Oh well, no hope for it.

“Mom, I think I am going to stay here, I feel like garbage and I just want to go back to my room.”

"Really hun?" My mother began, "But Mike planned this outing especially for you."

"Yes Mom, but mother nature decided to kick me in the uterus so if it is okay with you, I'll just go lay down in Satan's waterfall" I started. Now, I hated that I had to do this, but I did not know what else to do. If I oversold it, she would want to stay and care for me, but if I undersold it, she would make me come. So, with no other option, I decided to be the bitch that they all knew and tolerated.

“Besides, we all know he only wants to please me to make you happy. It is not like I have anything in common with him.” I hated seeing the look of pain that was visible in Mike’s eyes, but I did not know what else to do, I needed them gone so I could protect my sister.

“Elizabeth!” Mom started. Before she could give me the lecture that I knew would come, Mike stood up.

“Val, he began, “it is okay. If she doesn’t want to go, she can stay here. We can reschedule. Besides, if she isn’t ready to bond with me, I get it. She misses her dad and she needs to adjust. She has been here alone before, she has a cell phone and we aren’t that far away. You need to cut the apron strings so that she feels a little independent.”

I have to admit I felt like a complete ass by the time he was done his lecture to my mom, but I was also grateful. Peeking at my mom I could see she wasn't happy, but she was nodding to him and I knew I had won. Making a mental note to be nice to Mike later on, I turned back towards the hot tea that my mom had placed before me.

" Dad and Val," I heard Hardy begin, " I can stay home with Liz. I don't feel like going to town anyway, so it isn't like I will miss much".

While mom and Mike exchanged a look, I held my breath. This plan counted so much on Hardy being here so I didn’t have to be alone, I wasn’t even aware I was holding my breath until Mike nodded.

"Okay you two, I have no idea what is going on, but you can both stay. The same rules apply as we would have during the weekday. No friends over, no going into the woods, and no burning down the house. Understood?"

"Understood," we said in unison. Giving my mom a quick kiss on the cheek, I turned to go back to my room, while I waited for them to leave. A few hours later I found myself standing outside the weather-worn shed. It took the family longer to leave than we would have liked, yet we still had enough of the mid-afternoon sun to investigate and then get to our places by the time the family got back.

“Hurry up Hardy," I mutter while I try to not stomp my foot in irritation. I have no idea what is keeping him, but I do not like standing outside by myself. There was a heaviness in the air and a feeling of vulnerability that had me on edge. It is because of this feeling within me and around me that almost caused me to scream when a hand suddenly descended upon my shoulder. Quick as you please I whipped around, just to see my dick of a stepbrother smirking at me.

“You asshole” I bellowed. “You just took at least five years off of my life.”

Hardy just smiled at me. “Okay, smarty pants, let's get the ladder."

He grabbed my arm as I moved to walk around him into the shed.

“Liz, wait a minute before we grab the ladder and mess anything up, I think we should walk around the house and see if we see anything. I mean if this was a bear or another kind of animal that it might have left some sign and if it did, we can show the parents and get the right people out to help, right?"

I nodded. As much as it irked me that he had thought of it and I didn’t, I can’t deny that he had a good plan. What we needed was cold hard proof, and the only way to do that would be to walk the same path to see if this animal left any trails.

“So, where should we start.?” I asked Hardy, “Outside of Laura’s room, or where you first heard the noise and then make our way over there?”

" Liz, I think we need to start from where we first heard the noise and move backward towards Laura's room. Follow in its footsteps if you will."

“That makes sense, but Hardy, how fast did this thing move? I mean from where you first heard the tap to Laura's scream, it all happened under a minute. I mean we don't have the biggest house in the world, but for something to move from the east to the house to the west, that quickly, I am concerned. Especially because those screams that woke me was so far away but what if it wasn't? What if whatever this is can throw its voice to lure people out?"

Hardy looked at me and I could see the concern touch his deep brown eyes. He just grabbed my hand and we kept walking. Neither of us had answers to the questions that screamed for answers .

"Okay," Hardy spoke breaking the silence, " this would be about where I heard the tapping start. I mean besides it being way up there, there isn't much, wow."

He stopped talking suddenly. Looking to see what had caught his attention, I found my mouth slowly drop open. Above our heads, right where he would have heard the first tapping sound is what appeared to be a hand-print.

“Umm Hardy, how in the hell”

“There isn’t a window there” We both started talking at the same time.

“Still want to go with that owl theory?” Hardy asked me.

Giving him my best stink eye, I slowly brought the camera from my phone up to take a picture.

“Hardy, do me a favor and stand under it. I want to be able to show them how far up there it is." Hardy did as I asked and once the picture was taken, we continue on our slow even-paced journey towards Laura's window. By this time an unsettling quiet had penetrated the day. When we made it to Laura's room, which took us an average of 2 minutes at a faster pace, there was nothing there. We did notice that the grass was stomped down. As this was not a high traffic area, we were unsure what to make of it.

“Well Liz, should we get the ladder?” Hardy asked me as a strong wave of apprehension moved within me.

"No, not yet, but Hardy, we need to go inside, now,"

I whispered this to him, and yet my body was screaming that we needed to go, and go now. Silently nodding in agreement, we had barely made it to the front door when we heard a loud growl coming from the side of the house we were just on. Not wanting to be caught with whatever that was we pushed into the house and bolted the doors.

“Don't even ask me what that was" I started as Hardy opened his mouth.

" I don't know and I don't even know how we can find out." As I struggled to get my voice under control, Hardy came and hugged me.

"Hey, we got this sis," He said. It was the first time he had ever called me sis. "Let's gather the laptops and go and watch some movies in the family room as we try and discover what we are dealing with."

A short time later Hardy and I found ourselves in the living room watching Netflix and doing research. We wanted to try and find out what animal was known for tapping on the walls.

“Hey Hardy, you having any luck.?” I asked hoping that he was having more luck then I was.

“Well, unless it was a messed up woodpecker, no." He replied to me. "There is one theory we might want to look into."

“What are you thinking Hardy?”

“Well, there are these videos on YouTube,” he began, “and they umm, kind of talk about cryptid’s existence and how they might not be such urban legends after all.”

“Cryptids? Hardy, I don't know what cryptids are? Is it a bird, a man, a freaking snake? Eww, please tell me we aren't dealing with a nasty snake/bird hybrid that will divebomb us and then eat us?"

Hardy was giving me a look. It was a simple look really but it delivered the message of disgust at my gender and fascination regarding how my brain works.

" No, whatever that nasty thing is that is crawling around your imagination, that is not what a cryptid is. Think Moth man, the Jersey Devil, and the Kraken . Those are cryptids Liz, and according to a lot of people, they are real. Look at this, there are even reports of people hearing noises like we have and they live in this county."

“But Hardy, they don’t exist. I mean science even says they don’t.”

"No Liz, science says they have never been found but they can't rule out that something they can't always logically explain is happening. I'm not saying this is what we are dealing with, but maybe let's listen to a few stories and see what these people have to say before we call them crazy right off the bat? What do we have to lose except for maybe an hour or so?"

“OK, fine, but only one or two, and then we get back to real researching, okay? "

That is how we found ourselves sitting on the couch with the laptop on the table in front of us listening to these stories. I have to admit, the first video or two was just to amuse Hardy. After all, I certainly didn't believe in any of this nonsense. I am educated and not some backwoods Barbie. Logic and cold hard facts were what I followed. Exactly how dad raised me. But the more stories we heard, the more I started to wonder. Everyone sounded so sure of their experiences. What if there was some truth to these stories?

“Well Liz, what are you thinking?” Hardy asked me. I was so thankful in that moment that he didn’t look at me while I took a moment to ponder my answer.

“Hardy, I genuinely don't know what to think. I mean logically, I have no reason to believe in monsters, but these people, they experienced something real to them, what that was, I don't know. They keep mentioning hearing these things whoops and growls. Do we have any recordings of those that we can listen to? At least to listen and see if it even sounds similar to what we heard outside?"

Obediently, Hardy started playing the requested sound recordings. While there were similarities to be heard between the sound we heard outside and the recordings it was not quite right. Not one to give up easily, Hardy kept playing more recordings as I found my way to the kitchen for a snack. Hardy soon followed as the recordings continued to play throughout the house. I helped myself to some leftover lasagna as Hardy grabbed a bag of chips. We soon found ourselves sitting at the table discussing the day's events.

“So, what do you think was with the banging on the side of the house? If monsters exist, wouldn't they want to keep their presence a secret? Why even bother letting us know it was there?" I asked Hardy. I knew he wouldn't have the answers, but if we were going to discuss what happened with Laura last night, we needed to keep an open mind.

“There are a few people who think they do that to test the strength of a building. I think they do it to feel close to the people. They are creatures of the forest so the timber in the house may call to them as music does to us. A familiar feeling in an ever-changing landscape."

“Huh, yeah I guess that would make sense. But out of all of us, why would it show interest in Laura and not the twins?”

“Well, perhaps because there are two of them? When other people talk about their experiences and these things being attracted to children, they always tend to approach the lone child. Perhaps they are capable of….”

Hardy’s explanation was cut off by a loud growl coming from the family room.

“Hardy, can you please turn off the recordings? I can’t concentrate and listen to that at the same time.” As Hardy went to turn off the recordings I took my dish to the sink. I was thinking over some of the explanations that Hardy had given me when I heard that growl again. Wondering why it was taking Hardy so long to turn off the recordings, I was on my way to the family room when I heard Hardy call for me.

“Liz, Elizabeth, I need you to come here for a minute," I noted the slight tremor in his voice, so I walked faster. I know sooner entered the family room when the loudest scream I have ever heard echoed throughout the room.

“Jesus, Hardy turn off the speakers, what are you doing having it play so loud?" I practically screamed at him as I brought my hands away from my ears.

“Liz, that wasn’t the computer” Hardy managed to get out between gritted teeth. I took a moment to look at him and noticed that he was standing in front of the computer and was looking very pale. I was reaching towards the light when Hardy gave me a slight no shake of his head. As I was approaching his side, another growl sounded through the late evening atmosphere.

“Where is that noise coming from?" I asked with a faint tremble in my voice. Hardy nodded towards the sliding patio doors and the blinds that were concealing our view from the outside world. With trepidation that I couldn't ignore I made my way slowly towards the pull string of the blinds. With a deep breath to steady my nerves and a prayer to God above, I pulled down on the string. I wasn't prepared for the sight that was before my unbelieving eyes. There, before the patio door was a wall of hair. As my startled eyes traveled upwards, I was met by the sharpest fangs I had ever seen. With lips pulled back in a snarl, our unexpected visitor glared straight into my startled eyes. The cold fear of being face to face with an apex predator settled within my heart. With a courage that I did not know I possessed, I forced my eyes upwards. This thing had a thick layer of reddish-brown hair that covered its entire body except for its face. A cone-shaped head rested upon shoulders, with no neck to be seen. A chest that was so wide it would put football players to shame. Before I could finish my observations, this thing lunged towards me. With a screech torn from my lips, I fell backward away from the door. No sooner had I regained my footing that Hardy was at my side pulling me out of the family room.

“Liz, we need to hide before that thing gets in here!” Hardy screeched in my ear. With the adrenaline coursing through our bodies I led Hardy to the stairs going to my room.

“Where are we going, Liz?" Hardy said, right as the sound of breaking glass reached our ears.

“My room, run. We need to get there and lock the door before it gets us.”

The door to my bedroom beckoned to us. We know sooner reached the door when the step behind us creaked. A quick look revealed to us that the creature was in fact in the house. With a speed born of desperation and survival, we reached my room. Quickly we started hauling my dresser in front of the door. With that done, we huddled against the wall, holding each other and waited for the moment that the beast would be upon us. Slowly, ever so slowly, we heard the door frame creak under its weight. Softly at first, and then with more urgency, the door frame started to crack with every movement that the beast made.

“Hardy, we need to go out on the balcony,” I urgently whispered. “The dresser is not going to hold it for long and if it gets in here, we are dead.”

“Outside isn’t any better Liz,” Hardy argued. “That is where the thing lives and we know from last night that it moves quick. If we go out on the balcony, we will be screwed.”

Hating that he was right, but not knowing what else to do to protect ourselves from the creature in the hallway, I motioned for him to follow me as we forced ourselves into the space between the desk and the wall. Not having anything else to do, we sat there and waited for the creature to get us. Sure that death was coming, it came as a surprise to us when we heard a car coming up the driveway. Not daring to breathe, we continued to sit on the floor of my room. A few moments later, we heard the front door open as our family came home from there days' adventure. A moment later, I heard my mother scream. It was as if that scream is what our mind needed to push out of the shock that had settled around us. Quickly we screamed out that we were up here and needed help. I felt like a little girl again who had just had a nightmare. I needed my mom's reassurance that it was safe for us to leave the room. We heard the sound of steps entering our space. A gasp indicated that they noticed the damage to the steps and the door. Soon there was a shove at the door as Mike tried to force his way into the room.

“Elizabeth, Hardy are you okay?” I heard the tremor in my mom’s voice. “Hold on baby, we’re coming.” As Mike pushed passed the dresser, they spotted us on the floor. At this point, Hardy and I both burst into tears. The adrenaline of the last hour left our bodies and it was just overwhelming to realize that we were safe. My mom just rocked us and told us everything would be okay. I am not sure how long we stayed like that, but soon enough we became aware of our siblings and Mike being around us. Mike finally broke the uneasy silence.

" What happened here, guys? We were only gone for a few hours and it looks as if a bulldozer went through the house." Not knowing what he meant by that comment we allowed mom to lead us out of the safety of the room. I noticed the bottom step seemed crushed as if an impossible weight was pressed upon it. Not knowing why that would be, I just kept following mom. It wasn’t until we made it to the main part of the house that my eyes would land upon the destruction. The kitchen was destroyed. The table was flipped and the fridge was ripped away from the wall. It was also empty of any meat products and fruit. The glass of the oven was smashed to pieces and the tap was left on. The family room was in no better condition. The tv was smashed, the couch we had sat on earlier was ripped in half. Not to mention that the door it entered through was so mangled up on the side of the house that it would take an entire army of strong men to undo what was done. As we took in what was done to our house, we once again heard that guttural growl of the creature. Hearing the growl of the creature I turned to my mother.

"We need to go, mom," I said urgently. "We can't stay here when that thing gets back here, it will kill us. Please, let's go"

There was no mistaking the panic that was in my voice.

"Elizabeth" Mike began only to be cut off by Laura's scream. Knowing what was there, I looked once again at the monster that tore our home apart. It was massive. This creature had to be every inch of eight feet tall. There was no mistaking the blood lust in its eyes as it crouched down to enter our dream home once again.

"Val, take the kids and run to the car!" Mike screamed.

Grabbing Laura forcibly by the shoulders Mike shoved her out of harm's way. Without stopping to consider the danger to Mike, we ran to the kitchen, only to stop as fear once again settled over our hearts. For there at the front door peering through the window, was another one of those creatures. Swaying slightly left to right, it made steady eye contact with us. Too stunned to move, we stood there wondering just how many monsters lived around us.

“Hardy,” My mother whispered, “Do you remember where your dad keeps the gun?”

“Yes, I think so" he replied ever so softly.

“Okay, we are going to cause a distraction and I need you to run and load the rifle and hurry back. The code is 5-2-8-9. Now say it back to me.”

"Yes, 5-2-8-9." He repeated urgently.

"Okay, Laura and Elizabeth, when I say so, I need you to scream as you have never screamed before and keep on screaming. Twins, we need to grab what we can and make noise to help the girls. I am hoping to cause just enough of a ruckus that it doesn't notice that Hardy is gone. Hardy, when you get the gun loaded and down here, you need to take aim above this thing’s head and shoot. Do not hit it, we need to scare it so we can get out of here. Does everyone understand?"

“Yes.” We all replied at once.

“Okay Hardy get ready, 1, 2, 3, SCREAM”

With that, I opened my mouth and let out a scream that would wake the dead. I screamed for my dad, for the fear that was still holding me captive and for Mike. I didn't realize how much he loved us until he sacrificed himself so that we may live. My screaming was quickly joined by the twins hollering and banging around. The creature before us dropped out of sight when we began our noise. Not being able to see it but knowing it was still around, we continued screaming. Soon enough Hardy once again joined our little group of madness.

“Val here, I got it, where did it go?” he asked in a rush.

“Never mind that one, let's go help your dad." Mom screamed as she took the gun from Hardy and ran back towards the family room. Not wanting to be left behind, we followed.

“Dad, please, if you are listening, let Mike be okay." I prayed urgently as we busted through the doorway. My mom lifted the rifle to her shoulder and fired at the creature who was hunkered over the still form of Mike. At the shot of the rifle, the creature leaped to its feet, but not before my mom fired off another shot. The creature was fast, but my mother was angry. It was at this point that I noticed that Hardy had in his hands a little handgun. Being grateful to my brother, I let him position himself in front of the younger kids as I took the back. We still were not sure where that other one was, and I was not going to let it sneak up on us. If need be, I would scare it off by screaming again. I heard another shot and turned just in time to see the creature running away with a growl on its lips as my mom fired once again above its head. Without missing a beat my mom quickly handed Hardy the gun with the instructions to reload as she ran to Mike’s side.

“Mike, honey", My mom said, “Please be okay.”

Mike groaned as he struggled to sit up. “What the hell was that thing?” He grounded out between gasps of pain.

“We don’t know”

Hardy quickly replied. “Mom, we need to get out of here, we aren’t safe. This is the second time it has been back in a span of a few hours.”

“Val, they are right, if that thing gets in again, we are all dead. We need to leave right now and get into town.” As mom helped Mike to his feet, I noticed how his arm was at an odd angle. Before we could comment on this, Mike began talking in a rush.

“Val Take the rifle and get in front of the kids. Hardy my boy, keep the handgun and stand between Liz and the Twins. Laura press tightly to Liz's other side as hard as you can. I am going to take the back. Boys," he said addressing the twins, " stay with everyone. Do not dawdle. When I give the all-clear, you run to the car, get in and lock the damn doors. Do not look behind you. Do you understand?"

At everyone's nod, Mike crept towards our exit. The metallic scent of fear was all around us. Everyone understood this would be our only chance at escape. If we failed, there would be no other chance. As a family, we needed to get to the car and as a family, we needed to get away. It was with a start that I realized that these last few moments cemented the truth into my heart. I loved all of these people around me and didn't want anyone to die. Especially not at the hands of those creatures. It was at that moment I felt a steel resolve fill my heart. No matter what it took, these things would not win. We were getting out of there together, if it was the last thing I did. Mike peered out the window and turned on the outside light.

Even though we did not see the monsters of the night, we knew they were there. You could smell that rotting odor. I imagine that is what premature death smells like. Wet dog, skunk, and a rotting animal carcass all rolled into one. With the light being on, we could see the car. It was only three hundred yards away from us, but at that moment it felt like it was as far from us as Jupiter. Mike turned his head to face us.

"Okay, I am going out first, as soon as I say it is clear, you guys dash for the car. Val and Hardy have the guns and are prepared to use it if needed. I will be right behind you. Don't look back and kids, I love you all. Make me proud."

He said, right before he opened the door. The first thing that caught my attention was the absolute stillness outside. There weren't crickets chirping or even the hoots of a lonely owl. It had that unnatural silence that usually follows a storm. Like the animals knew better than us what was lurking in the shadows and they were holding their collective breath to see how this would play out. With one last quick look behind us, we followed Mike out on the porch.

"Okay, now, run to the car." Mike hollered and before we could even think about it, we were dashing down the steps and to our awaiting salvation. With each moment we were out in the open, I felt for sure there would be a giant hand clamped down on my shoulder. Once I made it to the door, I quickly flung the back door open as I shoved Laura and the twins in. I went next with Hardy quickly following behind and locking the back door. Mom flew in the passenger side with Mike a few steps behind her. Mike's hand shook as he struggled to get the keys into the ignition. At last, he shoved them in and the car roared to life. We were safe. We were together and we were getting out of there. Before we had made it halfway down the drive, something was thrown at the car. As the window shattered, Mike hit the brakes. There, looking back at us through the broken windshield was the remains of a dead doe. Its lifeless eyes had such pain in them it shocked us into silence. It’s head was at an unnatural angle as if it was jerked clean around and it was missing its back end. The guts were there for all to see. Not knowing what else to do, Mike kept on driving. We all knew it wasn't safe to get out to dislodge the doe. We would head up to almost the turn off to the main road and remove it there. Right where there would be witnesses. Besides, we all knew what it meant with that last show of aggression. It was a warning to us that if we left the safety of the car, we would be next.

After that night, things changed. Yes, we were a family, but we never went back to that house to live. We rented a moving truck the next day and a couple of the local tough guys, went out and got all that they could. Anything that we couldn't fit in that trip stayed. If the locals had any questions about the destruction that they walked into, the kept it to themselves. Mom and Mike were able to find a buyer for the house and lands. I later heard them say they sold it at a loss, but they didn't care. We had each other. We moved to a different city. One with a giant metro area. We had enough with the wilds of the forest. We needed the safety that only a city could provide.

Mike never talked about what happened when he sent us out of that room. All he would say about it was that our screams provided him with the chance he needed to get out of that monster’s embrace. I guess we did more than scare the other one. We saved our dad in the process. Laura always sleeps with a night light now, and she always has the curtains closed. The twins are also more subdued than they ever were before. We lost more than our possessions that long-ago night, we lost our innocence as well.

Hardy and I are still as close as ever. He is, without a doubt, my best friend. Sometimes, we talk about what we went through, but never for long. It always brings nightmares and we are once again locked in that room knowing death awaits us once again. I have found myself listening to a Bigfoot story once in a while. Hardy refuses to listen with me. I laugh at the people who are so sure they are friendly giants. They aren't. They are the apex predator and you would be a fool to ever forget that. Monsters do exist. They are real and worse yet, they walk among us, lurking just within the shadows of the night.