66. Danger

Allen awoke, heart seizing in terror. He’d been having horrible dreams, dreams of painted faces screaming in the trees, dreams of a long fall down a deep, dark tunnel. But, when he opened his eyes, he felt more like himself than he had in weeks.

He was soaked in vile-smelling sweat, as though his body was oozing out built-up toxic sludge. With a surge of bile in throat, he remembered his “friend” from the woods, and realized that his mother was right. And that she was in danger.

67. Get Away From My Mom

Allen ran into the hallway. In the doorway to his mom’s bedroom, he saw a massive, ghostly figure lifting his mom off the ground, her feet dangling. The dark figure gazed into his mother’s eyes, locking her in an embrace.

“Mom! Get away from my mom!” Allen said. He charged, pushing his mom out of the ghost’s embrace. He looked at it, locking his eyes onto its glowing orbs. It stared back. It was like a nightmare but real.

68. A Reverie

Two figures, dressed in old clothes. One was a man who looked a little like Allen. The other was a beautiful, redheaded woman. The two embraced, and the woman walked away. Her face was white, expression unhappy.

The scene changed, and Allen saw the woman standing at the lip of a well—a well the rabbit-dog had shown him in the forest—and felt her step into the blackness. But something caught her before she landed.

69. Warm And Dark

Something warm and dark and friendly, something that made friends with the forest, soaked itself into the roots of the trees, turned the animals into its pets. It was so loving and comforting, the presence that cradled Kate Batts as she fell.

Allen wanted to join it, wanted to fall too. He knew it would catch him. He stepped onto the lip of the well. Two white eyes glowed back at him from the blackness. But, before he could jump into its arms, his world went up in flames.

70. What To Do

When Betsy hit the ground, she was briefly unconscious, the impact disorienting her. As her vision cleared, she was met with a horrifying sight. The figure had her son in its sinister grip, his body suspended above the floor, his face contorted in terror. Betsy’s heart seized with paralyzing terror; this was her son, and without him, she had nothing.

Drawing upon every ounce of strength and determination, Betsy shakily got to her feet. The creature seemed momentarily distracted, its strange noises resonating through the room. Betsy knew she had to act quickly, to save her son from the clutches of this malevolent force.

71. A Mistake

She thundered down the wooden steps to the basement, taking them two at a time. She threw open the tool chest she’d brought from home, a gift from her brother “just in case.” Betsy grabbed a can of lighter fluid and a box of matches.

The figure had made a mistake. She’d shown her where she came from, and, as a result, Betsy knew one thing about her. She didn’t like the light. And so Betsy planned on to doing exactly what she didn’t like.