The Old Barn

I tore through the thicket, barely registering the young saplings and bramble shrubs that scraped mercilessly at my bare arms and legs. Every tree looked the same. I could see no markers indicating that I was even headed in the right direction, but I couldn’t stop. The taunts and jeers of the others gave me speed as I tried desperately not to panic. With every frantic pump of my legs, my heart beat faster. Its cadence became so loud, it finally drowned out the voices trailing from behind.

Da dum.

Da dum.

Da dum.

My head throbbed with the rhythm. I couldn’t think. If I could just find something familiar…

Green leaves.

Dark, fallen trees.

Rocks.

It was all just woods and more woods. Nothing stood out. Until, finally it did. There, beckoning from among the briars and overgrown thicket was a color foreign to this country landscape--bright, neon pink. Aubrey's berry bucket. Still right where she had dropped it when I dragged her with us to the old barn.

“But I don’t want to go, Ben! I want to pick blackberries.”

“We can pick blackberries on our way back. I promise.”

Aubrey’s eyes were fixed on the bushes and she rocked slightly while agitatedly wringing the bucket handle she was holding. “Blackberries, Ben. I want blackberries. Mom said to pick blackberries. Mom said, Ben. Blackberries. Not barn.”

I flashed a quick glance at the neighbor boys that had joined my sister and me only moments before. The three barefooted brothers had been watching the exchange between the two of us and were now sniggering and elbowing each other in the ribs. They were making fun of Aubrey, and me too probably.

My cheeks burned. Having just moved into our house, I was desperate to make new friends, and Aubrey was going to mess it up like she always did. This thought made me angrier than normal. I was tired of being the neighborhood pariah, and it looked like that even in the country I would not be able to escape this fate.

Pulling Aubrey roughly by the arm, I pressed my mouth to her ear.“Why do you always act like this? You are such an embarrassment. You are coming with me to that barn and that’s final.”

Despite being two years older than me, Aubrey whimpered like a child at my gruffness, and her tall, slender frame tugged at my grasp to be released. Like usual, she was blissfully unaware of the judgemental stares being directed at both of us.

“Hey, man, what’s wrong with your sister? She retarded or something?” the older of the three boys questioned sarcastically from a few feet away.

“Let’s just go, man. She won’t be a problem,” I deflected.

The older boy looked at his brothers and shrugged with a grin. “Your call, kid. Follow us.”

Kid? Uh, demoted before I was even included. This was Aubrey’s fault. She always ruined everything. In retaliation, I squeezed her arm more than a little too hard and I yanked her forward as we followed the young boys I was desperate to make friends with.

I hadn’t even noticed that Aubrey had dropped her bucket. How could I have been so callous? And now… And now Aubrey was in trouble. Those kids had not wanted to be my friends. They had wanted trouble. They were trouble. I should have heeded my father’s warnings. Hadn’t he said that he knew their old man? That the apple didn’t fall far from the tree? I should have listened. Now Aubrey was in danger.

Aubrey was in danger.

The unwelcome thought gave me a second wind. I now had my bearings thanks to Aubrey’s bucket. I would get dad. He would know what to do. He would take care of those boys. They would regret they ever messed with us. Everything was going to be okay.

Everything was going to be okay.

But Ben didn’t really believe it. The image of the old rope hanging from the rafters of the weathered barn beckoned menacingly in his mind. Aubrey had been so scared. And he had left her there…

“Boys, get the rope!” Cal, the oldest Gillis brother ordered his siblings. “We are going to have some fun with the retard.”

“Hey! I told you not to call her that!” I warned. “What are you going to do with that rope? I thought you said there was supposed to be a ghost out here.”

“Not yet,” Cal said as he took the rope offered to him by his youngest brother as he walked to where Aubrey and I stood.

“Funny,” I replied with a fabricated lightness.

"Yes, this will definitely be fun,” Cal drawled as his eyes slowly surveyed the length of Aubrey’s body.

“Okay, whatever, this is lame. We are leaving,” I said, trying to keep the nervousness from my voice.

My eyes darted between the three boys. Cal moved slowly. Sinisterly. He had lured people here before. Not people. Girls. My presence was a minor inconvenience. But Cal seemed unconcerned, and why wouldn’t he be? The odds were three-to-one in his favor.

“Boys, I don’t think our new friends really mean that. I mean, we were just about to have a little fun. We all want to have a little fun, right?”

“Come on, Cal. We don’t have to do this today. Let’s just let these losers go back to their berry picking,” the youngest brother, Sam, said, his eyes meeting mine with equal nervousness.

“Hmmm…maybe you want to go berry picking, Sam. Is that it? You want to get some butt berries with your little fag friend?”

“Shut up, Cal. I was just saying…”

“You was just sayin’” the older brother mocked. “Here, you take the rope. Tie the girl down.”

We were cornered. There was no way I could take all three, but if Aubrey and I could make it through the little one, then we had a shot. I grabbed her hand and squeezed, hoping she understood. I squeezed again, and bolted toward Sam, pulling Aubrey with me as I did.

It was no use. Cal and the middle brother overwhelmed me even as I bowled over Sam. Barely at the barn opening, I was tackled to the ground. The assault forced me to release Aubrey’s hand, possibly spraining it in the process. And for several minutes, I was pinned to the ground, barely able to breathe as the fists of all three brothers pummeled my body. Luckily, I was wiry, which eventually allowed me to wriggle free.

Distance, I thought. I just need distance.

“Don’t let him get away boys!” Cal yelled to his brothers.

Cal’s voice forced me to look behind.

In his hands, he held the old rope that had lured me to the barn. I had been so curious. Now, it was clear that the rope was not part of an old ghost story. It was intended for me. I looked for Aubrey, hoping she had taken the commotion of my brawl as an opportunity to escape.

She had not.

As I continued to distance myself from the barn and the brothers I had once hoped to befriend, my mind could not dispel the image of Aubrey huddled defenseless against one of the old barn stalls. Her fingers were stemming frantically as tears streamed down her sun-kissed face. Her mouth was half open, showing only clenched teeth, and beneath her, a stream of urine had formed an acrid puddle around her feet.

“I’m sorry, Aubrey” I whispered. “I’m going to get help.” And I ran, wiping my own tears as I raced to find my way back home.

Thank God for Aubrey’s bucket, I thought. I knew where I was now. Home was close. Help was close. Just beyond the ridge was our little wood-sided house with forest green trim. The house my dad had grown up in. The house that had promised a new beginning.

I crested the ridge and spotted my dad immediately. He was in the garden, tilling a new patch for the next round of corn he would plant. I forced my legs to run harder.

“Dad! Dad!” I yelled, desperate to reach him beyond the hum of the tiller. “Dad!” He could not hear me. “Dad!” I yelled again, straining my voice to be louder.

He looked up and shut down the tiller. “Ben,” he began as he walked from the garden patch, “What have I told you about…” my dad trailed off as recognition entered his voice. “Oh, my God! Ben. Ben, what happened?” he asked, grabbing my shoulders roughly.

I winced, feeling the fresh bruises from my earlier assault. A new wave of tears cascaded down my swollen cheeks. “Dad. Aubrey. Cal…” I could only choke out names, but somehow my dad knew. The fresh bruises I bore. My dirty, tattered clothing. These were the product of the Gillis boys, and our Aubrey was still in trouble.

My father released my shoulders slightly, but his voice was still stern. “Think, Ben. Where is Aubrey? Can you take me to her?”

I nodded in assent. “There is an old barn. It’s off the path. Aubrey likes to pick blackberries.” I stammered, barely eeking out intelligible words, let alone coherent sentences.

“Get on,” my dad directed toward the work ATV in the yard. He darted off inside the house and returned quickly with granddad’s old 20-gauge shotgun. I hadn’t given my father many details, so he was in dad mode. If Aubrey had faired half as bad as I had, then he was probably right to grab the gun. Still, the gun made me even more scared.

“I said get on,” my dad repeated firmly, and this time I obeyed without hesitation.

Together we set off to find Aubrey. Occasionally, I offered directions, but my dad seemed to know his way. It was like this entire scenario was familiar. As if he had experienced this before. His body was tense, and his face was set in focused determination. The entire trip back to the barn took only minutes.

How could I have gotten lost? What will they have done to her by the time we get there?

The thoughts came unbidden, and new tears fell from my raw eyes. It wasn't always easy being the younger brother to someone like Aubrey, but she was my sister. I was supposed to protect her, and I failed. My father knows I failed. And whatever we find, this will be all my fault…

The very thought seemed to summon the old barn onto our path. I did not hear anything though. The stillness in the woods was eerie. We are not too late. We are not too late. I repeated in my mind over and over, trying to will this truth into existence.

And there she was! It had to be her. As the ATV got closer to the barn, we could make out her slight silhouette. Aubrey was by herself outside the barn. She was picking dandelions and blowing the seeds in all directions. Now that we were closer, we could hear her soft laughter. The carefree sound was a sharp contrast to her soiled dress, which had been freshly torn at the shoulder.

“Ben! Dad!” she exclaimed delightedly as she saw us pull up.

“Aubrey, where are you hurt? Where are the boys who did this?” our dad asked softly, one arm holding his daughter and the other gripping his shotgun with white knuckles.

“They’re in the barn,” Aubrey answered calmly.

“What are they doing now?” my dad quietly asked, eyes surveying the barn.

“Oh, I don’t know. The lady said I had to go outside. I was glad to though. Those boys were mean. They tore my dress.”

“I see that sweety,” our dad responded to the ruined yellow sundress. “What lady helped you? It couldn’t have been those boys’ mom…” dad trailed off harboring knowledge he was unwilling to share.

Aubrey thought about this and shrugged. “She’s nice. She made the boys stop.”

“And you’re sure they are still here.”

“I think so…” she said blowing on another dandelion. “The lady told me to stay outside, so I did. I was a good girl, right dad?”

“Yes, Aubrey, you were a good girl,” my dad patted her shoulder reassuringly. “Is the lady still here?”

“Oh, yes, daddy. She’s right there. Don’t you see her daddy? She’s wearing white. Don’t you think she’s pretty daddy?”

My dad looked at me with concern. “I don’t see anyone. Are you sure you see someone?”

“Daddy, you’re funny. You can’t fool me. Aubrey knows the lady is there. Hi lady!” she said, waving toward the barn.

I looked over to the barn, but I didn’t see anyone either. The worry knot in my stomach intensified. “Dad, I don’t see…”

Dad cut me off, and the lines in his face deepened. “Ben, stay with your sister. I’m going to have a look.”

I wish I had listened.

I didn’t really want to go into the barn. I didn’t want to face my bullies. I didn’t want to see where Aubrey had been so scared she had peed herself. I didn’t want to see the accusation in my father’s eyes…

I followed all the same.

It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the dimness of the old barn, much as it had done earlier in the day when Aubrey and I had first arrived. However, the scene before me was nothing like I had seen earlier. Before me, hanging from the rafters, were three nooses, each pulled down by the weight of one of the Gillis boys. Their eyes had been scratched from their sockets. Mouth agape, I barely noticed the warm urine soiling the front of my brand-new Levi’s.

The old stories were true. The Woman in White claimed three more.