The chill of the morning had Carl up trying to bring the fire back with two new logs he placed on the few simmering coals left in the fireplace. Beth poured water into a pan to heat for coffee. No electricity, no sign of life outside—it had her un-nerved, her stomach churning inside, her hands cold as ice, her mind wandering. This would be a day of discovery, she hoped.
Everything inside remained the same except the power. Outside was another issue of some supernatural or paranormal thing they knew nothing about. But, in just a short time, they would venture out to the other side of that door to a world unfamiliar to them. Would they, could they, find the answers?
With hopefully all they needed crammed in a small backpack to ride on Carl’s back, they were prepared to go. Recalling Carl’s encounter with sharp stabbing thorns, Beth brought to the collection a small emergency kit to include bandages and other first-aid items.
“How long do you expect we’ll be out there?” she asked. “Are you planning on this little investigative trip taking all day?”
“Most likely we will be back here by dark, but I do want to go as far as we can, and I hope we find someone who will be able to tell us what is going on here.” He pushed the backpack over to the end of the table then made a few steps to the hook where his jacket hung. “Let’s get going.” He put his jacket on, slipped on gloves and, with boots on, he was ready. Beth looked like a dressed-up Eskimo, with her hooded parka under a thick leather jacket. Carl picked up the heavy backpack to harness it to his back and tightened the straps. “What did we do, pack the kitchen sink?”
Nothing could hold them back now.
Beth’s boots came up to her knees. When she looked down at them, she wondered if they were thick enough to ward of a possible encounter with a snake or some creature wanting a bite of her. A city girl like her couldn’t be too sure about tromping around in what lay outside in an overgrown world, the likes of which she’d never had to deal with before. Her greatest wish was to run into a person or persons from the park who could not only inform them, but guide them out of there. She no longer cared about the cottage. She just wanted out of what appeared to be some kind of fluke of time—a subject she had read in science fiction books.
Carl made sure they left plenty of water and dry food for the cat. With his hand on the knob, he motioned for his vigilant wife to follow him.
The brisk morning air hit them in the face full-force as they stepped out into the fresh morning air. Heavy dew had settled on all the foliage with a thick covering. Colorful leaves floated down from the tall trees like little glider planes making their landing. The sound of a few cardinals chirping, looking for breakfast, echoed from the limbs. It seemed peaceful somehow, almost calming. The cool fresh breeze swept around them, piercing their faces and blowing through their hair as they slowly walked away from their little get-away home.
They made their way past a row of trees, pushing through overgrown brush and high growth of all kinds of weeds, bushes, and grass. Carl led the way, with Beth holding close behind. Neither of them spoke, just kept trudging along with a watchful eye on everything around them. The morning sun shed brightness on the frost that sparkled like shimmering ground diamonds.
With several yards behind them, Beth tapped Carl’s back. “Do you think we’ll find something soon? This thick growth means nothing has been here for a while. How on earth could this be?”
He stopped and turned to address her. “I don’t know, but this is almost ridiculous. There were roads here, buildings, telephone poles. You know…all the comforts of modern life. Where on earth did it all go? I can’t figure this out.” He turned back and started forward again. “Let’s go a little more. I saw some clearing yesterday. I think it’s up a little ways from here.” He glanced back at her. “Stay close to me.” But she was already pinned so close, if he took one step back he would knock her down.
As though on schedule, what seemed to be the same hawk he’d seen yesterday flew overhead, then dove for whatever it spotted. They both stood still as they waited for it to take off again. Loud squawking came from the other side of the bushes ahead, and then the large bird took to the air with some small creature in its talons. Beth shivered. Carl could feel her as she was tightly pushed up against his back. “Take it easy; it’s only nature, after all. They have to eat too.”
“I know, but I don’t want to watch it being carted off that way. It seems so cruel.”
“Come on; I think the clearing is just ahead.”
The area looked like it had been the bed of an animal, long since departed. The weeds mingled with the high grass lay flat on the ground. A large boulder sat low to the earth, nature’s table for them to use. Carl hurried to it and took the backpack off to set it there. The sun beat down upon the stone, warming it with its rays, a perfect place to settle for a quick rest. He pulled the zipper down on the side of the pack, reached in for a bottle of the water. “Here ya go.” With an extended hand he offered it to Beth. She took it from him, twisted off the top and took a long drink. He waited patiently for her to hand it back so he could quench his own thirst.
She looked up at the sky. The sun, almost overhead, marked the approaching noon hour. It felt good to sit on the sprawled out rock and soak in the heat from the bright ball of fire in the sky. The peace of the forest closed around them while the sound of the wild hummed through the trees. An occasional bird chirping on a nearby branch of one of the tall evergreens broke the eerie stillness of what once was a public park.
Carl took a granola bar from the pack, broke it in half to share the chocolate-flavored morsel with his tired wife and frightened companion. “We need the energy. I don’t know where this path is taking us. We could be out here for a while.” He drank from the bottle again. “At least until we find someone—that is, someone who knows what’s going on.” He stood. “Come on, let’s go.” He took her by the hand and pulled her upright. The backpack took him a few seconds to mount on his back again before heading forward into the overgrowth of the endless forest.
The same hawk, or maybe another one like it, circled overhead making sounds that echoed through the trees scaring off the other birds from the limbs where they perched. So many took off from one area that a swishing noise could be heard as the flock took to flight. Beth looked up as she crouched down with her hand up, like she wanted to cover her head from them even though they were far above her. Carl looked back at her and chuckled.
It appeared they were getting nowhere, although the mountains looked closer, so they were progressing toward what they thought should be the place where the offices of the park would be. The sound of a stream caught their attention. Even the smell of fresh flowing water filled the air. “We’re coming close to the area I saw yesterday,” he told her and spiked up his pace to a trot he knew she could keep up with. Beth had no trouble staying close to him, even though it meant a faster step.
Suddenly they both froze in their tracks. Carl held his hand back to stop his wife from going any further as he watched a long black snake slither across the open path in front of them. The sound of the movement had them both at bay. The sight of the fast-moving reptile paralyzed them in their tracks, and then a wild rabbit jumped out from a nearby bush. Beth had her heart leap up in her throat. Her right hand pressed hard against her mouth preventing her from screaming out while the other hand held fast to Carl’s jacket.
Once the frightful creature had passed, Carl took Beth’s hand to lead her to the river. The clearing held the brightness of the shining sun, while only a few white clouds filled a part of the pale blue sky to be reflected in the ripples of the river water. Rocks and boulders lined the banks with trees scattered behind them and continued to climb up the sides of the mountains. Pine trees reaching high above the earth, along with many dogwoods, filled the back drop of the wonderful scene laid out before them. The unfamiliar landscape made them a little edgy. Neither of them had ever been in a wilderness environment before.
“Look here. There’s a clearing by the water. It looks like something has been dragged into the river from here. A canoe maybe. Look at the narrow scraping. Either a canoe or some wide log.”
Her eyes went in the direction he pointed. “Yes, it does appear like something was dragged into the water. I’m not sure about a canoe. Did we ever have canoe boating up here?”
“Not that I know of, but I suppose it’s possible. They have everything else.”
“Yeah…but canoes? With all that rushing water, I don’t see how.” She went closer. Her open hand spread over her eyes to shade them from the sun while she looked across the river. “Is there a place on the other side like this? You know where this so-called canoe would go?”
“No, I don’t see any, at least not from here. If it’s a canoe, they may have put it in the water to ride it downriver somewhere.” He pointed to the right of them, the way the river flowed. His eyes grew wide. Beth put a hand on his jacket and held tight. The sound of drums in the near distance had them concerned. He took her hand and pulled her down to the ground. Both of them sat on their heels, looking out from the bush in front of them, shocked by what they were hearing. “Drums…like Indian drums… Could it be?” Carl whispered.
Beth shook her head. “What the heck?” She crouched down even further. “This is scaring the crap out of me,” she said softly. “I wanna go back to the cottage—right now. I have a really bad feeling about this.” She started to stand, but he pulled her back. “Stop, Carl.” She tugged at his hand to pull it away from her and then stood. “If you want to wander around out here in this freaky place, that’s up to you; I’m going back.”
As she pulled away from him, she started back the way they came. He grabbed her arm. “Okay, we can go back, but we have to find someone out here who can help us.”
“Yeah, you can go right ahead. I’m staying inside. This whole thing can’t last much longer.” She tugged at her jacket collar to pull it up closer to her face. “I’ll never understand any of this, but I have to believe it’s some kind of fluke that will end soon.”
She moved forward, pushing the deteriorating fall growth out of her way with her hands while kicking at the branches in her way. Carl followed right behind her trying to keep up with her as they moved quickly along the same path they came from.
“You talk like this is some kind of dream, Beth. Let me tell you, this is no frigging dream—it’s for real.” With her some feet ahead of him, he had to shout a little so she would hear him.
Once they came to the clearing with the large boulders, he stopped her. “Let’s take it easy—sit down, have a drink of water.”
Her heart raced, her hands took on a sweat, but she sat as he took the backpack down and opened it. It was suddenly very quiet. Only one little bird in the tree near them sang a fall melody that echoed out among the thick forest. The orange-colored leaves from the tree branches let loose and took flight to the earth below, while the heat of the sun warmed the chill of the cool fall day. The smell of the season in the air along with the strong odor of something burning circled around them. It reminded Beth of her father’s friend’s farm where they would go in the fall and help burn leaves out in the fields. But this wasn’t the farm, and it sure wasn’t the park any more either.
After a short pause in their journey back to the cottage, they were on their way again.
In her hurry, Beth stumbled on a vine growing along the path. Down she went, face first, with her hand out to brace the fall. Pain shot up from her wrist to her shoulder. Carl rushed to rescue her as she tried to push herself to her knees. She let out an agonizing groan when he helped her to her feet.
“Are you all right?”
“No, I hurt my wrist—my arm. It really hurts.” She slapped at his hand holding her other arm. “Let me go—I just want to get out of this…whatever it is.” Tears burned her eyes.
“All right, take it easy. Just lean on me, and try not to be so upset. I know how nerve-racking this is, but we have to keep level heads.”
“I’m scared, tired, cold, and now hurt. What do you expect I should be like—a happy camper or something?”
“All right.” He let go of her. “Let’s get back to the cottage, and then I’ll have a look at that wrist. You probably sprained it when you fell.”
The sounds of the forest seemed to return in complete harmony of wind blowing softly through the trees, and the far-off noise of the flowing water of the river. The sky overhead remained its clear soft blue, with only a few foamy white clouds drifting slowly by. The worried twosome went on, making their way back. Carl took the lead, so Beth could grab hold of him if she had an encore. She had the injured hand tucked securely in her jacket, while she held the other one out just in case she stumbled again.
The way back held evidence of being trampled on before, so they knew they were on the right track. The one old oak tree they knew to be very close to the cottage was just a few feet ahead. It had a distinguished look with carved, unidentified symbols on its lower trunk, so large they could be seen from a distance. Carl remembered seeing them earlier. They were getting close.
“We should see our place by now,” Beth said as she looked past Carl’s shoulders.
“Yeah, I know, but I don’t see it yet. Maybe it’s a little further—a few yards more than we thought. With all this growth around, it’s hard to tell.”
They both stood still, looking ahead while a large hawk screeching overhead caught their attention. It circled over them as though to object to their presence. Carl grabbed her hand. “Come on.” He pulled her up alongside of him, and they hurried on.
As they passed the large old oak tree some many yards from it, they stood still. He left her side to search the area. He went on several yards from her, turned, and came back, shaking his head.
“This is where it should be.” His arms stretched out wide with his palms held upward. “Where is it?”
“Oh, Carl, are you sure we’re in the right place? This is my first time out in all this, but you should know—you made this trip before. Is this the right place, or did we miss it?” She looked around, turning her head in both directions.
“This is where it was, Beth—I know for sure. Look at those logs over there. They are the logs I put by the back door for our fire.” He pointed to a stack of wood just a few yards from them. “I’m sure this is it.” He shook his head and blinked hard. “This is crazy.”
Beth clamped her hands together like in prayer. “What are we going to do now?” She came closer to him. “We need to look around—over that way. It’s got to be here somewhere. It didn’t just disappear.” Her hands began to shake as she spoke, and she could feel the blood drain from her face.
“All right; you stay here while I have a look. Don’t move from this place.” He went off, leaving her standing there, hands held together and pressed up tightly to her chest.
With little opening among the wild growth, Carl almost disappeared, but Beth could hear the rustling of the bushes as she watched them part in his passage until she could not see or hear him anymore. Her eyes darted back and forth, expecting the worst. It seemed like an eternity waiting for him to return, but at last, she saw the movement of the brush again. He was coming back. She wanted to call out to him, but something held her back from doing so. Afraid there might be some other being out there who would hear her, she remained silent. But she could hear her heartbeat.
In great anticipation, she put her hand up to her mouth, stood straight up on her tiptoes to peer in the direction of the movement coming closer. In a soft voice, she whispered his name but then put her hand over her mouth. Why couldn’t she see his head? He stood six feet tall. Are those bushes that high? she asked herself as she looked on.
Suddenly, out from the bush walked a small doe, her head held high as she made her way out from the thick growth. Beth stood in an area with less foliage, cleared somewhat to allow the deer to wander in. Beth froze, not knowing what to do, she held back a scream. The sudden appearance of the deer had her heart thumping wildly and her breath coming fast. The doe looked up and saw her. First she stiffened and then ran off. Now Beth let out a cry: “Carl.”
Through the wild of the forest he came rushing to get to her. She could see his head with his bright orange cap, a welcome sight. She ran into his arms and he held her close. “Are you all right?”
“I saw this deer, and it frightened me,” she said, her head buried in his chest. He only smiled when he heard what the problem was. He raised her head to kiss her but still held her to comfort her. His lips gently pressed on hers, gave her some assurance they would be okay—he would be there for her.
“Did you find the cottage?” she asked as she pulled back from him.
“No, I didn’t find it. It’s not here—not anywhere here.” His brows came together in a worried manner. “I checked all over… It’s gone.”
“Carl, what now?”
“I don’t know, but we can’t go off the deep end. We’ll have to find someone, some place.” He took his cap off and ran his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know.”
She began to cry, but he took her by the arm and led her to a nearby rock to sit on. “Take it easy, Beth. We will find our way out of this—trust me. There has to be someone around this crazy place who can help us. We just need to find them.” He squeezed in next to her and put his arm around her shoulder. “All right. Let’s just sit here…give this some thought.”