The White Widow

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. Almost like it knew it would have company that night; the flame burned unnaturally still and bright against the wind that leaked through the ill-fitted windowpanes. None of the ordinary sounds from the lush woods reached the small clearing, as though nothing that lived, dared to go near the ring of barren trees surrounding the tiny structure.

Two miles south, lights rounded a bend as a small battered old car came barreling down a dark country road. Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled ominously causing the two young women to look at each other with unease. Erin drove, her short teal hair pulled out of her face and stunning blue-gray eyes studied the winding road as she slowed the car to make the right-angle turns. Audrey, her wife of seven years, gripped her hand as her large brown doe eyes darted back and forth, worry clouded those chocolate brown eyes.

Rain began to pour all at once then, coming down at a violent angle making it difficult to see. Lightning lit up the sky illuminating the dark and looming trees and thunder boomed loud enough to rattle both women’s bones.

“Maybe we should just head back?” Audrey said in a wavering voice.

“Don’t worry so much love, this is the first time we’ve been gone for more than a few hours since the twins were born. My parents are with them, they’re fine. Enjoy it while we can.” Erin replied squeezing her hand before letting go to check the GPS mounted to the dashboard.

Audrey screamed; startling Erin who instinctively jerked the wheel to avoid whatever had spooked Audrey. The car hydroplaned fishtailing as Erin overcorrected the slide. Lightning flashed again in agonizing slowness illuminating everything as the car hurtled off the road and into a tree just off the bend. Thunder did little to drown out the crunch of metal on wood and the WHOOSH as the airbags burst forth; Erin felt pain blossom across her nose and eyes as the impact almost broke her nose. Both women were silent for a moment waiting for the initial shock to wear off and the ringing in their ears to stop.

“What the hell happened?” Erin demanded as she fumbled for the light, trying to keep the angry edge out of the voice as she surveyed Audrey for serious injuries. Besides a small bleeding cut on her temple Audrey looked fine, but her eyes were watery as sheer terror distorted her delicate features.

“There was a woman….in the road, she looked… wrong….” She stammered covering her face with her hands before dissolving into sobs.

“It’s ok, we’re ok…” Erin said gripping her shoulder and assessing the water that was slowly streaming into the cracks in the windshield. She had always been the more grounded one, levelheaded in the face of bad situations, Audrey on the other hand was prone to hysterics and anxiety.

Audrey pulled out the first aid kit from the glove compartment and went to work cleaning up the blood that had streamed down her face and applied a liberal amount of liquid bandage to the minuscule scratch. Erin checked her nose in the mirror and wiped away the little blood that had seeped from her nostril, not broken, probably bruised but at least it wasn’t broken.

Erin sighed, turning to look out the window and squinting to assess their surroundings, the rain still pounded on the car, but it seemed a little less intense now. Lightning speared the sky and Erin caught sight of a smokestack billowing against the barrage of rain.

“Look! There’s smoke! That means there’s a house or a cabin close by! Maybe it’s by the one we’re renting for tonight or at the very least someone who can help us.”

Audrey looked up her arms wrapped around her chest against the cold that now seeped into the car. “I have a bad feeling about this.”

“Don’t be silly we can’t stay here, and both our phones are dead.”

Audrey didn’t respond just looked worriedly out the cracked window at the rain and darkness. Erin took the lack of protest as an acceptance and grabbed their hiking bags trying in the cramped space to pull out their waterproof jackets and pants. Silently they pulled on their hiking gear before sealing up their bags and venturing out into the storm that whipped and raged, pushing them due north to the cabin as it waited patiently for them.

*****

Soaked, cold, and exhausted Erin and Audrey trudged through the mud and trees until they came up short when Audrey gasped and spun as a small structure loomed ahead of them.

“What?” Erin shouted over the storm.

Audrey looked close to tears again as she frantically scanned the trees, “You didn’t hear that?”

“Hear what Audrey?!” Erin yelled exasperated.

“Someone giggling…” she spun again.

“No, and I guarantee you didn’t either! I can barely hear you! Come on there’s a building up ahead!”

She grabbed Audrey’s hand and all but dragged her to what she could make out as a small, dilapidated cabin. Through the gale, they could see the crumbling chimney that was barely puffing smoke now. One grimy window was illuminated by a solitary candle.

Erin pounded on the door afraid that the occupants wouldn’t hear them over the thunder that crashed like symbols overhead. No answer, she struck again to no avail, she jumped off the rickety porch to investigate the window. There was no one that she could see. She ran, head lowered back to her shivering wife before trying the door, the knob turned, and the door swung open to reveal a dim and dingy interior.

They slipped inside, Audrey gripping the back of Erin’s jacket her entire frame shaking as she whimpered about not going inside. Erin surveyed the room, it was tiny, and a small kitchenette sat in the northwest corner looking dirty and unused. A single recliner covered in a heavy hand-woven blanket thrown over the low back dominated the area before the hearth and a small bed lay covered with more woven blankets. There were two doors, inspection revealed one was a grimy bathroom that reeked of urine and mold, and the other door was a tiny closet stuffed full of more of the strange woven blankets.

“It could be worse,” Erin said surveying the dying embers in the hearth before stoking them and adding wood from a nearby pile to it coaxing it back to a healthy crackling fire that chased away the last of the chill that leaked into the cabin.

“We should go. This doesn’t feel right.” Audrey said staying huddled by the door.

“Don’t be silly it’s a little run-down but it’ll be fine for a few hours while we rest and charge the phones so we can call when this storm lets down a bit.”

“We shouldn’t be here… it feels weird. Where is the owner?”

“No idea maybe they went for a hike and camped for the night because of the storm.”

“Why would they leave open flames burning while they’re out?” Audrey pressed eyeing the loan candle.

“Maybe it’s a wilderness checkpoint and a ranger lit it in case someone got lost during the storm.”

Audrey looked pleadingly at her lovely wife, beseeching with her eyes, begging to trudge back to the car and wait for help.

“Love, it’ll be fine, this is probably just a dilapidated old cabin used as an emergency checkpoint for lost hikers,” Erin said rubbing Audrey’s arms and taking her bag from her to pull out the small lantern they had packed.

A chill enveloped Audrey as she slid her rucksack off, and she peeled off the soaked rain jacket. Erin had already changed into soft dry clothes and was searching for an outlet. She swore when she found none and hurried back to her bag rifling through searching for a power bank.

“No, no, no…don’t tell me I forgot it.” she muttered as she dug before pulling out a battery pack and saying, “Phew! I knew I put it in here!”

Audrey timidly pulled at the mountain of blankets on the bed to check if they were clean enough for them to sleep on. Besides being a bit dusty and mildewy they looked alright; they could sleep on top in their sleeping bags to fight the damp chill that seeped from the walls of that very wrong place.

Erin, having plugged their phones in, worked to unfurl their sleeping bag and pull out the snacks they had packed. Audrey’s heart warmed as she beheld the woman that was constantly her rock.

Erin looked up to see Audrey looking at her with a small smile finally cracking her solemn face, Erin grinned back.

“I know it’s not the romantic cabin with a giant bed and jacuzzi tub like we had planned…but at least it’s just us and we can make the best of this.” Erin said walking over and wrapping her arms around her wife before she kissed her soundly relishing the soft smell of lavender that still clung to her.

Audrey smiled more openly now and kissed her back, pushing the negative thoughts from her mind. Erin walked slowly around the room while Audrey worked on peeling off her wet, muddy clothes. Once she was finally dressed in fresh warm clothing some of her shakings ceased, looking up she saw Erin replacing a tiny box on the cobweb-infested mantle.

Erin went to her bag once again and rifled through to pull out two protein bars for each of them before cramming onto the too-small bed; there was barely enough room for them both as they snuggled into their sleeping bags atop the heap of blankets.

Within seconds it seemed, Erin was fast asleep snoring softly as Audrey stared at the lightning that spiderwebbed across the sky. At some point, she drifted off and was awoken by a strange skittering sound that came from the kitchen.

Audrey’s head snapped up, there in the small recliner was a head covered in matted greasy dark hair that glinted in the low light. Audrey yelped scrambling to get free of her sleeping bag, Erin jolted awake with a shout.

“What?! What?!” she yelled surveying the empty room and looking worriedly at Audrey who was flushed and damp with sweat.

“I swear to you I saw someone sitting in that chair!” Audrey cried running her hands through her hair.

“You were having a nightmare! It must have leaked into your waking mind when something woke you up. It happens all the time to Caleb, remember?”

Audrey tried to calm her shaking and even out her breathing as she nodded absently.

“Come on, the storm is letting up and we’ll be up with the sun to deal with getting home.”

Audrey nodded hunkering down in the clammy warmth of the sleeping bag. Erin slid her arm over her and hugged her tight before she was asleep again. Unease ebbed away into exhaustion and Audrey slipped into a fitful sleep, plagued with nightmares of a disfigured crone watching her, getting steadily closer to her with each nightmare.

Paralyzed, Audrey could see the figure in the flickering light of the still-burning candle. A woman, her monstrously tall, skeletal body shrouded by a filthy white gown. Her long dark hair was matted and sticky with blood. But it was her face that was truly horrifying, her jaw hung slack at an odd angle as blood and drool dribbled out. Her eyes were a dull brown as they stared with malice at Audrey and Erin.

Audrey gasped and tried to move as the hideous creature leaned in running a blackened finger along her cheek stooping low and bringing that horrendous maw close. Too slowly, she broke free of the sleep paralysis writhing and screaming, as she tore her arms from the bag and shoved herself as far from the thing as she could. Her eyes flicked to Erin as she too screamed, seeing that thing that had lurked by the bed.

But when they both looked back there was nothing there. Without a word, they scrambled from the bed and shoved their belonging into the bags as fast as they could. Audrey grabbed the phone and put it at the top of her bag. Before desperately trying to fasten the complicated laces of her hiking boots and pulling on the jacket before they pelted out of the accursed cabin.

As they crossed the threshold the flames in the hearth roared as if angry at their departure and a horrendous screech could be heard erupting from the gloom of that dank place. They ran full tilt the entire two miles back to the car, neither dared to speak or slow even as Erin felt a stitch in her side.

They skidded to a halt as the tiny cabin seemed to loom out of the shadows over them, its faded red shutters flapped in the wind as if beckoning them back within the confines of its walls. That solitary candle blazing in the window.

“What is going on?!” Erin screamed panic setting in.

Audrey scanned the area a strange sort of calm descended over her as she searched for the woman in white. She found nothing and closed her eyes to remember exactly which direction they had come from when they had first walked up to this hellish place.

She snatched Erin’s hand and ran dragging the now sobbing Erin in her wake. They ran until their muscles seemed to scream in protest and then again, the two stopped short as they came face to face with the hideous cabin.

“NO! No, no, NO!” Erin screamed dropping to the ground and weeping openly. “Let us go! Please! We have kids.”

“You are mine now…” sang a high and keening voice that came from everywhere at once.

“We meant no disrespect! We just needed shelter from the storm!” Audrey called in a surprisingly strong voice, her eyes drifted to the oldest and most gnarled dead tree, there amongst its reaching limbs was the woman in white.

Again, Audrey grabbed Erin’s hand and yanked her into a run, they repeated this, dashing a few feet before stumbling back into the clearing of the cabin.

“You will never leave this place…” came the booming voice.

“Why are you doing this to us?!” Audrey yelled her eyes never wavering from those dull muddy eyes that watched her with hatred.

“You barged into my home. Stole what is mine. It’s only fair…” the creature cooed.

“We didn’t steal any-“Audrey’s words were cut short as she saw Erin blanch.

“The locket…” Erin whispered.

“MY LOCKET!”

“Locket?! What damned locket?” Audrey yelled as Erin began to sob and rifle through her bag yet again.

“I didn’t know! I thought it was an abandoned shack! I wanted to give it to you as a surprise gift!” Erin cried

“WHY?!”

“I know you love antiques and I thought it would be pretty with pictures of the boys.” Erin sobbed.

“GIVE IT BACK!” Audrey yelled over a peel of thunder.

Erin hurled the necklace into the mud, groveling for the apparition to let them go. With painful slowness the woman in white jerked and staggered to the locket as though her bones were warped and broken, she stooped unnaturally and clawed at the locket, fingering it lovingly.

At that moment Audrey saw a way out, she hauled Erin up by her hood and they pelted into the woods. Adrenaline pumping hard in their veins, they pelted through the trees as a ghostly cackle followed them too close for comfort. Despite the cold rain, Erin felt a hot breath on her neck pushing her to go faster.

“There!” Audrey called pointing just ahead. They could see the bright red bumper of their beat-up Pontiac. Both women stopped short as they took in the sight. The hood was warped and sprawled in the street. The metal twisted violently around the trunk, limbs pierced the windshield on the driver’s side.

“No, no, no,” Audrey cried heaving on the handle of the passenger door. It opened with a metallic scrape and what she found sent her hurtling to the ground heaving up what little remained in her stomach. Erin stared blankly, her head shaking back and forth, for she could not comprehend what she was seeing. There, in the car were she and Audrey, bloodied and battered their hands intertwined for one last time.

“I told you, you will never leave this place…” Came the high-pitched voice with a hateful tone.

They turned to see where the woman in white could be hiding and found they were once again in the clearing of the cabin.

“You should have listened to her when she told you this place was wrong…”

Audrey was still curled up on the ground her whole frame shaking as she pinched herself over and over, “This isn’t happening. This isn’t real. It’s another nightmare. I’ll wake up and this will all be over.”

But there was no way for it to end, what they had failed to see were the dark sigils and sacrifices that adorned the house, for this was the den of the White Widow, the spirit of a witch who had started collecting the souls of her lovers, as a hunter collects trophies from his kills, until one day her appetite grew and she would snare anything that dared cross her into her web of death and malice.

Now that they knew the truth, Audrey and Erin could see the others, hundreds if not thousands of other spirits, all crowding around the clearing with grave faces as they watched the women cry, clutching each other.

“Welcome, little things… We’re going to have so much fun together!” Sang the gleeful voice of the White Widow.