“It’s her, but it can’t be,” Rhonda’s voice quivered as she put the cans back into the torn bag. “Look at her face.”
Carl turned to look at Velma, but what he saw caused a deathly chill to come over his body. “You’re right, but it can’t be her.”
“Are you two alright?” Gene watched the two of them whispering and staring at Velma like they’d seen a ghost.
“Yes, we’re fine. Go ahead and do your shopping while I help my wife clean up this mess,” Carl fought to compose himself as he placed the last can in the bag and stood up.
“Okay…” Gene turned to Velma, “What do you have planned for dinner?”
Velma smiled and rolled her eyes, “Nothing fancy, but I promise you won’t go to bed hungry.”
“Okay, I can live with that. Let’s get this done and get home. I don’t want to leave the kids there alone for too long.”
It didn’t take them long to gather everything they needed in the small store. Once they had their basket full, they walked back to the cash register.
“Did you find everything you needed?” Carl waited as Gene placed the items on the counter in front of him.
“Yes, we did. We’ll have to come back once we’ve settled into the house and stock up, though,” Velma smiled then placed a half gallon of milk on the counter with the other items and waited for Carl to finish.
“That will be $12.40,” Carl announced nervously as he put the milk in a paper bag and handed it to Gene.
Gene reached into his pocket and pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and handed it to Carl. He could not quite put his finger on things, but Carl and Rhonda seemed to be fixated on Velma. “Is there something wrong? You both seem upset.”
“No, nothing’s wrong. It’s just that your wife looks a lot like someone who used to live in the area,” Rhonda spoke, keeping her eyes transfixed on Velma.
“Oh, is that all? Hell, they say everyone has a double out there somewhere. I guess yours used to live here, Velma,” Gene teased as he gathered up the rest of the grocery bags and put the change in his pocket. “Well, we need to get back. Jeff should have a path cleared to the house by now.”
“Goodbye, it was nice to meet you,” Velma waved over her shoulder as she followed Gene out of the door.
“Oh, my God, she looks just like her!” Rhonda cried, once the door had closed, and they were alone. “Do you think they’re the ones who bought that place?”
Carl had heard the old Deming place was bought by a family from out of state, but he had hoped it was just a rumor.
“Mr. Mason said something about a path needed to be cleared to the house, so it has to be them. That house hasn’t been lived in for years.”
“Should we have warned them?” Rhonda nervously fidgeted with a bottle in the display on the end of the counter. “They really need to know what happened in that house.”
“It’s not our place, Rhonda.” Carl then turned to face her, “besides they would never believe us anyway. Hell, I don’t think I believe it myself.”
“But something in that house made her do all those horrible things, Carl. What if it happens again?” Tears formed in the corners of Rhonda’s eyes as the memories of that horrible time flowed back into her mind.
Carl had heard enough. “Stop it, that’s in the past! Those people bought the place, and we need to make them feel welcome here. It’s just a coincidence that Mrs. Mason looks like her, so I want you to promise me you won’t bring this up again, do you understand?”
Rhonda didn’t respond for several moments. “Fine, I won’t say anything to them!” But I will say a prayer that they stay safe, she thought to herself.
“Good. Well, I need to go put out the vegetables that were delivered earlier.” Carl glanced at her again then turned and walked toward the back room.
“I need to do a little straightening up out here,” Rhonda forced a smile as she reached for the broom.
Once Carl was out of the room Rhonda reached for the cross necklace she always wore around her neck. “Dear Lord, please watch over that family,” she silently prayed as she gently caressed the cross between her fingers.
Chapter 2
Time seemed to pass quickly for Jeff and his family. It had been two months since they had moved from California and their new home looked entirely different than it had when they first arrived. It had taken quite a bit of work, but the house was finally repaired and comfortable, and the rest of the farm was coming together also.
Gene had taken a job as a driver at the local feed store, so he was home every night. Velma and Lori were still unhappy to be there, but at least they were no longer complaining every second. Jeff, however, was in his element. He loved working with the animals, but most of all he enjoyed his hikes out into the woods behind their property. Their property bordered on the Mark Twain National Forest, so as far as Jeff was concerned, he had the world’s largest backyard. Every day he would hurry up with his morning chores then he would head off on another adventure in the wild woods. He was glad it was still summer vacation because he hated the idea of being locked up in a class all day, so this gave him more time to explore.
One day to Jeff’s surprise, Lori had asked to go with him to see what wondrous things were out in the woods. However, what he was to learn was that she really wanted to meet up with a boy she had met while in town. She knew Jeff could take her to the place they were to meet.
“Come on, you have to help me,” Lori begged as she followed Jeff out to the barn. “You know how to get around in the woods, so you have to help me get to the big rock by the bluff. You do know where it is, don’t you?”
Jeff pulled a stool up to the cow and placed a bucket beneath her, “What’s in it for me?” Jeff rubbed his hands together to warm them before reaching for the cow’s utters.
“What’s in it for you? Fine, what do you want?” Lori groaned as she watched Jeff milk the cow.
“Okay, I want you to do my chores for a week.”
Lori could not believe what he was saying. “Do your chores for a whole week? Are you nuts?”
Jeff smiled when she crossed her arms across her chest and jutted out her lower lip. Jeff knew he held the trump card, so he continued, “You heard me. I’ll take you to meet your boyfriend if you do all of my chores for a week. Take it or leave it.”
“All of them?” She looked at the cow while it lazily ate the hay piled in the trough.
“You heard me, all of them. You’ll need to milk the cow twice a day then feed her and the pigs, too. That’s my price, take it or leave it.” Jeff stood then picked up the bucket full of milk, meeting her gaze.
Lori knew that he had her right where he wanted her. She glared him, hoping he would change his demands, but she saw his resolve and knew he was serious. “Fine, I’ll do it, but you have to take me today after lunch…deal?”
Jeff smiled, “Deal. Just remember that the morning milk goes in the house to mom and the evening one is given to the pigs with the table scraps, okay?”
“Okay, I’ll do it!” A look of disgust clearly played on her face.
***
Lori had spent the rest of the morning helping her mother weed the garden while Jeff mowed the yard. Once they had finished their lunch, both announced that they were going for a walk.
“You two are going on a walk…together?” Velma carefully examined both of them not sure if she believed their story.
“Yes, we are. Jeff is going to show me the neat rock formation all the kids in town were talking about,” Lori pulled her hair up into a ponytail then graced her mother with an innocent smile.
“Rock; is it safe?” Velma looked at Jeff, not sure if she liked this idea.
“Yeah, Mom, it’s not far from here. I’ve been there several times, and everyone likes to go there to swim in the creek that runs by it,” Jeff said with an excited tone in his voice, but once he saw the look on his mother’s face, he realized he had said too much. ??
?Don’t worry, Mom, we’re not going to swim, I promise.”
Velma stood and glared at both of them, still not sure if she should believe their story and let them go.
“I promise and we won’t be late either. We’ll be back in time for me to help you with dinner,” Lori said, hoping this would ease her mother’s mind.
“Well, as long as you stay out of the water and are back here before your father gets home, I guess it will be alright.” Velma relented as she put the last of the lunch dishes into the sink.
“Thanks, Mom, we’ll see you later!” Lori cheered as they both rushed out the door.
***
It took nearly fifteen minutes to get to the creek that led to Jumper’s Rock as the local kids liked to call it. Lori had complained the entire way about the flying bugs and how hot it was. For the life of him, Jeff could not understand why she wanted to come out there to see a boy. She had never taken any interest in learning the area before, so why now?
As they came around a bend in the creek, Jeff noticed the figure of a teenage boy appear off in the distance, holding a 22 rifle under his arm.
“Hi, Jimmy!” Lori shouted as she waved to the boy, walking toward them.
“Hey, beautiful,” Jimmy Colton walked up to Lori, his slow drawl, causing her to giggle. He then motioned toward Jeff. “What’s he doing here?”
Jeff knew right away that he didn’t like this kid. “I brought her because she’d get lost in her own back yard.”
“I would NOT!” Lori protested as Jimmy chuckled. She then shot Jeff a look that let him know she was not pleased.
“I’m sure she would’ve done just fine. Lori isn’t only beautiful, but she’s smart too,” Jimmy winked at Lori, this causing her to blush and giggle more.
Jeff had heard enough, “You guys are gross. I’ll be over there, so I don’t have to watch you two.” He stuck his finger in his mouth to mock gagging, and then he walked over and sat on a cluster of rocks by the creek.
Jeff had been tossing rocks into the creek for nearly ten minutes while trying to ignore the two love birds when he noticed something strange on the hill across from where he was sitting.
“What the heck is that?” Jeff stood to get a better look.
“What are you staring at?” Lori pushed away from Jimmy who wasn’t pleased about Jeff being there in the first place.
“Who cares what he’s doing. Come back here, baby,” Jimmy tried to pull her back to him. “It’s probably just a raccoon or a squirrel.”
“It’s way too big, I think it’s a bear,” Jeff murmured as he walked closer to the creek’s edge to get a better look.
“Oh, no, you think it’s a bear. Can it get to us?” Lori exclaimed as she looked up at the strange dark form on the hill.
“Shit, no! Besides, if it tried to hurt you, I’d kill it,” Jimmy picked up his rifle and aimed it at the still figure on the hill looking down at them.
“Hell, the only thing you’ll do with that gun is piss it off,” Jeff laughed.
“Shut up, you little punk!” Jimmy hissed as he shoved Jeff to the ground.
“Knock it off, Jimmy! I’m going home, come on Jeff!” Lori turned and started to walk back toward their house.
“Ah, come on, Lori. Don’t be mad. I didn’t mean anything. Hey, I’ll walk back with you,” Jimmy hoped this would make up for upsetting her.
Jeff scrambled to his feet and looked back toward where he had seen the dark figure, and it was no longer there. “Where did it go?”
“It decided to leave because it didn’t want to mess with me,” Jimmy laughed then offered Lori, his hand. “Come on, I’ll make sure you get home safely.”
Jeff decided that whatever it was probably wasn’t coming back, so he hurried to get ahead of Lori and Jimmy so he wouldn’t have to watch them on the walk home.
They had walked about a quarter of a mile when Jeff noticed the same dark figure up on the bluff across from them, but this time, it was more visible. It surprised Jeff how now it didn’t look like a bear at all because it was sitting on its haunches with its arms bent on its knees. He strained to see it better and suddenly realized that it appeared more like another kid in a large furry jacket.
“What are you looking at?” Jimmy scoffed as he and Lori walked up to where Jeff was standing.
“Look, it’s back!” Lori cried out, pointing toward the strange creature. “What is it?”
“I don’t know, but it sure ain’t no bear,” Jeff responded as he shaded his eyes from the afternoon sun.
“Come on, it’s a bear! There are all sorts of them in these woods,” Jimmy sneered. He then took a couple of steps closer to the creek bed.
“There may be, but that’s no bear. Look how it’s sitting. Bear’s don’t sit like that,” Jeff stepped up beside Jimmy.
“Well, I say it’s a bear, and I’m gonna prove it to you. Watch this,” and with that statement, Jimmy lifted his rifle and aimed it at the creature.
“Don’t kill it, Jimmy! Come on, let’s go,” Lori demanded.
Jimmy never did like being told he was wrong about anything, so without warning, he took aim and fired.
Jeff could not believe what happened next. He knew a 22 rifle could never take down a bear, but he also had no desire to get in trouble for shooting at an animal without his father there. His father had taught Jeff about guns and gun safety since a young age. He had always told him how it was important to understand guns and to always respect them, as they were not a toy.
Jeff remembered the first time his dad had let him shoot a rifle and how he taught him that the rule of hunting is, “If you kill it, you better be ready to eat it.”
Jeff knew he didn’t want to eat whatever was up on that bluff. “Crap, what the hell are you doing?” Jeff shouted as he stepped away from Jimmy.
“Shut up, punk! I missed it, but I’ll get it this time.” Jimmy took aim again.
“Leave it alone, Jimmy! It’s not bothering us,” Lori cried out as she reached for Jimmy’s arm.
The shot rang out, but it went high in the trees. “Damn it, Lori! You made me miss it!” Jimmy snapped as he pushed her away. “I won’t miss this time.”
Jimmy took aim again and fired. This time, the creature howled so loudly that every bird in the trees took flight.
“I got it, I got it,” Jimmy shouted out with glee. “It won’t be watching us again.”
Jeff looked up at where the creature had been and saw that it was gone. “Come on, Lori. We need to get home, it’s getting late.”
“Are you going to walk with me?” Lori turned to face Jimmy, hoping he was no longer upset with her.
“No, I need to get home, too. I’ll see you later.” Still upset with her interference, Jimmy turned and walked the opposite direction without looking back.
“Boy, you sure can pick them, Lori. What an asshole,” Jeff teased, as he turned and headed toward their house.
Lori would never admit that Jeff was right about Jimmy because she still liked him in spite of what had happened. “No, he’s not. He can be really nice, and I like him.”
“You saw it, what do you think that thing was?” Jeff felt a shiver go down his spine.
“I don’t know, but I don’t think it was a bear either,” Lori confessed as she ducked under a branch.
“There’s no way it was a bear. Bears don’t sit like that thing did, and I watched it as it ran off.” Jeff tried to hide his concern, but he knew he was not successful. He turned toward Lori and said with a nervous tone in his voice, “Lori, it didn’t run away on all fours, it stood and ran off on two legs. Just like a human.”
Lori was at a loss of what to say. She wanted to tell him that he had imagined it, but she knew better. She could tell by the expression on Jeff’s face that he was scared, and that frightened her because not much ever scared him.
Neither one of them spoke the rest of the walk home. Jeff knew they had seen something unexplainable
on that bluff, and he hoped they would never see it again.
Chapter 3
Jeff was surprised when Lori was awake and ready to go out to the barn. “Damn, I never thought you would really do it,” he laughed as he followed her out of the door.
“A deal is a deal,” she yawned, reached for the handle on the barn door and then stepped inside with Jeff close behind. Lori walked over to the cow and stopped, and then she turned and looked at Jeff. “I don’t know what to do.”
Jeff could not help but laugh at the pitiful look on her face, “You really are helpless, aren’t you? The first thing you need to do is feed her because if you don’t, she won’t stand still for you.”
He took a leaf of hay from an open bale sitting in the corner next to the grain barrel. “Here you go girl.” Jeff put the hay in the trough, and then led the cow over to it and secured the lead rope to a wooden post.
Jeff set the stool down next to the cow and waited for Lori to sit. He then had to laugh at the horrified expression on her face when the cow decided to swat her with its tail.
“Yuck, there’s poo all over it! She cried out. “I don’t understand how you can do this twice a day, it’s horrible!”
“You enjoy the milk, don’t you?” Jeff teased.
It took several attempts, but Lori finally was able to fill the milk bucket. Jeff reached down and set the bucket and stool aside.
“Come on girl, let’s go outside and enjoy this nice day.” Jeff took the lead rope and led the cow toward the barn door.
Lori stood a moment, unsure if she was supposed to bring the bucket with the milk. Then once she realized Jeff wasn’t going to take it, she reached down and picked it up.
I can’t wait for this week to be over, she thought to herself while following him outside.
Jeff had put the cow into the fenced pasture area for the day when Lori finally caught up with him. “You look like a natural farm girl,” Jeff teased as she walked up to him.
“Shut up!” She held the bucket out for him to take.
“Oh no, that’s your job. You need to take it to Mom, remember?” he said in a firm voice.
Lori could feel the anger burning deep inside her, but she knew she had to abide by her deal, no matter how bad she hated it.