Night in the haunted forest. Part 5

“What the hell?” whispered A.J.

“Shouldn’t we call the police?” asked Emi.

“I am going to check,” said Tim.

“No!” I grabbed his shoulder. “Do you remember the rules of the Appalachian Mountains? If you heard something, no, you didn’t; if you saw something, no, you didn’t. Don’t whistle, don’t look back, and walk away but don’t run.”

“Are we in the Appalachian Mountains now?” asked Tim with that “you’re a cuckoo” look on his face.

“No, we are not,” I replied. “But the Appalachian Mountains are the oldest mountains in the world. They existed when America and Europe were one continent. How do we know the rules don’t apply here too?”

Tim pointed to the forest. “Someone may be in trouble out there.”

“Then let’s call the police,” I said.

And then, we heard a girl’s voice, faint and pleading. “Tim, come Tim, help me!”

It was enough to send us running back to the cabin. We bolted the door and huddled inside.

“How did that girl know my name?” said Tim.

“It was not a girl,” whispered A.J. “It was a devil, and it has many names.” I had never seen him so pale. “Thank God my grandma gave me some witch thing to protect me from things like that.” He reached for his bag and took out a little bottle with something in it.

We shut all the windows, closed all the curtains, and turned on all the lights. It was already dark outside.

“What are we gonna do?” whispered Emi.

“We’re gonna spend the night here,” said A.J. “My grandma says we are safer inside.”

To be continued…