McKenna

Early one morning, as the sun began to rise, I traversed the halls of the estate my uncle had left me. Heading to the study where I planned on budgeting the books. I sat in my cushioned desk chair, looking out the French doors as I drank my coffee.

I was deep in thought, wondering if the overrun tea garden could be saved. I decided to rescue and trim back the overgrown lilac, forsythia, and roses, but the invasive honeysuckle and trumpet vine would have to go. I’d also replace the out-of-date statuary with new statues in elegant modern poses. I was beginning to debate how many benches I would purchase and where to have them installed when I glanced toward the white wooden gate hidden behind the rose trellis and saw the young girl.

Wearing a dark frock with a white pinafore, she held her doll close. In her dark, immaculate dress, she looked out of place in the wild, brightly colored garden. Moving her head left then right, she appeared to be looking for something.

After taking one last sip from my cup, I set the tepid bitter brew down. Shaking my head, I stood up and walked towards the doors. She looked so familiar to me. I racked my brain trying to recall where I had seen her before. It had to be somewhere in town, being the only thing I could surmise since the nearest house was abandoned, and I was miles from nowhere. So she had to be lost.

I opened the doors and stepped onto the terrace. I raised my arm at the girl in a wave and hollered hello to her. I knew she heard me, for she looked right at me and smiled. Turning around, she began walking towards the gate.

Not wanting the child to get further lost or even hurt, I hurried across the garden to follow after her, hoping to catch up with her. When I reached the gated area, she was already on the other side, halfway down the hill, and turned around, looking at me like she wanted me to follow. The gate was still locked, so I had to unlock it to exit the garden and continue after her. I was so intent on going after the girl that I didn’t notice the locked gate. Happy that I was still trailing behind her, she turned again and began skipping towards the woods.

We must have continued in this way for well over an hour. She would stop to make sure I was following, then skip away. She took us down an overgrown path in disuse. I tripped over many roots and climbed across several fallen trees, never catching up with her. I wondered how she could move swiftly through the overgrowth while barely leaving a trail.

Tripping on a grapevine, I fell, landing on a fallen tree and scraping my nose on the rough bark. As I pushed myself to my feet, I dislodged the vine and could see some letters carved into the trunk under my hand. Curious, I moved the vine out of the way so I could see better. Underneath was etched by a childish hand, McKenna💘 Pete. My name, but who was McKenna? I started to get a headache, and with a sense of deja vu, I seemed to recall a childish hand holding a penknife, engraving the names into a standing tree. Which was crazy because I knew this was the first time I’d seen this notching.

I shook my head to clear it and looked back up at the little girl. At first, I couldn’t see her where I thought she would be, but then I saw her further along the overgrown trail. She was at a fork in the path, and a wooden post was beside her. As soon as she saw I was up and heading along the trail towards her, she headed down the right-hand branch.

Hurrying, I rushed to catch up with her, pausing long enough at the sign to read what was written on it.

⬅️To Minahuk Township

➡️To Deitman’s Estate (Danger: Guard Dogs on Premises. No Trespassing)

A prickling sensation of recognition went up my spine. Like a dream, I seemed to remember this sign. Shivering, I went after the girl. I had to stop her from getting hurt.

I quickened my pace but didn’t see the young girl again until I emerged from the woods onto what had to be Deitman’s old rundown orchard. She was already two-thirds across and almost to the half-dead rose garden by the house. Seeing the broken-down dwelling, I froze in fearful recognition. The dilapidated building had been haunting my nightmares for the last thirty-five years.

I could no longer see the girl, so I rushed across the remaining overrun grounds to the corner of the house. As I turned past the corner, I stepped on something white and heard a cracking sound. Bending down to pick it up, I saw it was the porcelain doll she had been carrying. Looking around, I tried to find the young child, but could see her nowhere.

I heard my name being softly called from an area beside what remained of the arbor. Curious, I walked in that direction, looking for the girl as I went. The closer I drew to the shaded alcove, the higher my trepidation grew. Walking slower, my breathing hitching gasps, I suddenly felt such an evil foreboding. Twisting the doll, I froze, ready to turn and run at the least provocation.

The girl suddenly stepped out from behind the arbor, smiling maliciously at me and holding her doll close. Freaked out, I jumped and looked down at the doll in my hand, confused how both could be clutching the same doll.

Don’t you know me, Pete? The girl said without opening her mouth. The words somehow popped right into my head.

With her words, an electric bolt ruptured through my head, causing me to see a flash of blinding light before everything went dark in my head, and my memories were opened up. Sinking to my knees, I lost control of my bowels, but the floodgates of remembrance had been opened up, and I didn’t even notice.

Excitedly, I finish my breakfast and tell Uncle Jim I’ll see him later as I run out the door. McKenna and I are supposed to meet up and play pirates in the woods today, and I didn’t want to be late. My uncle hollers after me not to be late for supper as I head to the front door.

Once in the woods, I wait for McKenna by our tree. Out of boredom, I carved our names into the trunk with a heart in between our names. She’s the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen, and I’d decided she was the girl I would grow up to marry.

A couple of hours had passed, but McKenna still hadn’t shown up, so I walked towards her grandparents’ place, where she always spent her summers. I slapped the signpost as I walked past it and took off running. Quickly, I ran through the orchard and skidded to a stop as I entered the garden. I could see why McKenna blew off our day, and I wasn’t sure what to think about it.

The girl I loved was walking with a taller boy toward a car. I watched as she hugged this strange boy, and then I saw red as she kissed him on his cheek. When he kissed her cheek back, I was boiling mad.

Angry, I stormed off to the arbor, where I found McKenna’s doll, Lourdes, sitting on a bench. Picking up the doll, I bashed its face in and then ripped it apart. Throwing it to the ground, I stomped on it until the porcelain was crushed and the dress was ratty and soiled. Still seething, I looked for something else to destroy,

Just then, McKenna walked into the alcove and saw what I had done to her doll. With fat tears, she asked me why I had destroyed Lourdes. I'd never seen McKenna so upset before.

Not wanting to answer her and not caring to look at McKenna, I tried to walk past her, shoving her out of my way. She grabbed my arm, and I swung my arm at her, knocking her down. As she landed, I kicked McKenna in her face out of anger.

With blood pouring from her nose, McKenna stood up. Balling her fists up, she flew at me, attempting to punch me. I stepped out of the way, tripping her. My anger was boiling, and I wasn’t thinking. I grabbed a board that had come loose from the arbor. I advanced on McKenna. I swung the board at her, striking her on the head and knocking her backwards into the rose thicket.

I stood still for what seemed like hours, but, in reality, it was only a few minutes, and McKenna never moved. Suddenly, no longer angry, and freaking out. I dropped the board. Taking off, I ran back to my uncle's place.

I waited for someone to ask me about McKenna, but no one ever did. A week later, my parents showed up to take me home. The next year and each year thereafter, I started going to summer camps instead of going to my uncle's for the summer months.

Coming too, I was laying on the ground convulsing. I could feel foam building up at my lips and another knot forming on my head where I banged it thrashing around. Fearfully, I got to my feet. I was shaken to my core by what I had just remembered. Looking at McKenna, I couldn’t fathom how she could be the same age and look the same as she did all those years ago. Still feeling shaky, I began backing away from her. For every step back I took, McKenna advanced one step towards me. I turned and fled. I ran back across the orchard. I could hear her in my head laughing as I passed the signpost. Looking over my shoulder, I saw her right behind me, reaching for me with her small, pale hand.

With a sudden burst of speed, I leaped ahead another foot. And stumbled over my own two feet. I crashed to the forest floor, tumbling in the process. As I regained my footing, my foot slipped in some noxious growth. I felt a cold hand touch my shoulder and cringed. Shrieking, I tried again to gain footing, only to be shoved from behind. Falling face-first into the same fallen tree as my carvings, a force grabbed my head, adding more momentum to my fall, and slammed my head into the trunk.

Now, I roam these woods as I watch my house torn down to make way for a new mall to be put in. I've not seen McKenna since the day she avenged herself, and it appears I've been cursed to walk this forest till the end of time.