The Curse of Willow Creek

Willow Creek, Oregon, is an obscure mountain town. The houses here are made of wood, and the streetlights cast shadows. The town is so small that it can't be found on Google Maps. Yet every year on Halloween night, a mysterious event takes place in this town.

People say that every ten years, a child goes missing on the night of October 31st. The police find nothing, the CCTV shows nothing, and the next morning, an old wooden doll is found on the steps of the town's only church — with a strange smile painted on its face in red.

This year, 2025, it's that time of year again. The people of Willow Creek have long stopped celebrating Halloween. They just turn off the lights behind closed doors, so that no one will know that anyone is inside.

The one exception was Annie George. She is a single mother from an immigrant family, and her seven-year-old son, Jack, is new to the town. Annie didn't believe these stories. She thought these superstitions blinded people. So this Halloween, she decided to throw a little costume party with her son.

Jack was wearing a little ghost costume that day — two holes for eyes under the white cloth, and pure joy on his face. In the afternoon, mother and son went out to trick-or-treat. But the street was empty. No doors were open, no lights were shining anywhere. The air was heavy, as if something was about to fall.

Still, Jack said, “Mom, let’s go to the church?”

Annie was a little surprised, but agreed. The church was the oldest building in the city — built in 1887. It was said that this was where the “invisible child” was first seen. When she reached the church, Annie suddenly felt something — a cold, damp, chest-tightening feeling.

She said, “Jack, don’t go any further.”

But Jack had already opened the gate and entered.

“Jack!”

Silence inside. Only a red light that burned twenty-four hours a day burned softly.

“Jack, come out now!”

But there was no answer.

Suddenly the back door opened by itself. Annie rushed in. Jack was standing in the middle of the church hall — the wooden doll in his hand. Annie ran over and pulled her son. “Where did you get that?”

Jack said, “He asked me to play, Mom. He was alone.”

“Who is he?”

The boy pointed to a dark corner next to the chorus stall.

Annie turned her head and couldn’t see anything. But the air suddenly became heavy, a shadow slowly moving on the floor. Annie picked up her son and ran for the door. But the doors were closed.

A teenage voice could be heard crying from behind.

“Where is my mother... Where is my mother...?”

A bone-chilling scream spread around the church. Then all is quiet.

The next morning, the townspeople find the wooden doll at the church door — nothing else.

Annie and Jack are nowhere to be found. Only a child's white clothes have been found by the side of a small creek south of town. Carved into the stone is the inscription — "Then we are alone again."

After that night, no one new comes to Willow Creek. Those who remained have also left town.

But even today, every ten years, on Halloween night, a child's whispering voice floats through the air —

"Mommy, where are you?"