"IT"

Frankie Berry Wise

“Tell me a story of long, long ago, Long, long ago. Tell me a story,” the children would beg as they gathered on crisp summer evenings, around old lady Martha, who sat, day after day, in her rocking chair on the front porch. The children’s favorite story is the one she told about the monster “IT’,” that roamed the dark woods, carrying a green light lantern, late at night.

“Tell me the story of “IT’.” “Tell me the story of “IT’”, they would plead over and over again, until she would say: “I’ll tell you,” in a voice no more than a whisper, “but you may not sleep tonight.” The children were quiet as a church mouse while they waited to hear the tale of “IT’”. Miss Martha stared out into space for minutes, before she began to speak.

“The woods were thick, smoggy, and dark at night. The children, one by one, who lived near the woods in the neighborhood, were beginning to disappear, never to be seen again. As if it were yesterday, I can remember when my baby sister, Mary Beth, was taken by “IT,” during the wee hours of the morning.” Miss Martha paused as if she were reliving the event. “I wonder do my sister, mother, and father’s spirits walk the woods with “IT”?” Miss Martha continued, “I’m ninety-five years old but I can remember the night of hearing my mother’s screams,” “John! John! Mary Beth is gone! Mary Beth is gone! “IT” must have called her name and she left while we were sleeping.” My father, awakened by my mother’s screams, grabbed his rifle and jumped from his chair, where he was keeping watch but had fallen asleep. When he realized what had happened, he and mother began to wail at the thought of never seeing their baby girl again. Out of her mind with grief and anger, Mother grabbed the rifle from my father’s hands and before he could stop her, she fled out the door unto the darkness.”

“Come back into the house! Where are you going?” My father cried out as he ran to the door.

“I’m going to find my baby and kill that monster!” Before she disappeared into the woods.

“Bring me the rifle and I’ll go! My father pleaded. “You stay here with the children!” “But Mother continued to run into the dark forest.”

“I shouldn’t have fallen asleep,” Father said sadly. I’m the one who should protect my family. I’m going after her, Martha. Stay inside, lock the door and take care of your brothers, until we return.” He looked at me with fear in his eyes, “if I don’t, when daylight comes, you take Jimmy and Adam to Miss Elsa’s house. She is a kind woman who always wanted children. Tell her what happened and she will take you in. Do you understand?”

“Yes, father,” I said, “I understand. He left the house screaming my mother’s name.” “Shug! Shug! Shug! I’m coming to find you and Mary Beth,” “but he nor they ever returned, so my brothers and I went to live with Miss Elsa, until we became old enough to seek out our own futures. My brothers died years ago. I’m the only one left.”

“The other parents reported their missing children to the authorities but were laughed at when they related that it was a monster with a green light that took their children. The laughter continued when they added that the monster could be seen walking the woods late at night, calling a child by his or her name to come into the forest.

With no assistance from the authorities and to safeguard their children, parents began to keep them locked behind closed doors, but they could not keep the monster from taking them away until one night the woods lit up for four nights like a Christmas tree decorated with blinking beautiful green lights. After that fourth night, the lights were not seen again, and never was another child taken by the monster that lived in the forest.”