“Pull into the parking lot,” Levi said. “Turn the car off. And the headlights, too. We can’t attract any attention.”
“Tell that to him.”
“I’ll handle Senft.”
He got out of the car and quietly shut the door behind him. Then he crouched down next to the crying man, put his hand on Adam’s shoulder, and whispered something in his ear. Maria rolled down her window, trying to hear the conversation.
“They changed the siding,” Adam said.
“I know,” Levi sighed, patting Adam’s shoulder. “But we have to be quiet. Okay?”
Shaking her head, Maria crossed the alley and parked the car. She yawned, realizing just how long it had been since she’d slept.
“Jesus…”
She was beginning to wonder if she’d ever have a good night’s sleep again. How could she, with all that she’d seen today?
Terry and Tom made their way along the winding trail, passing by the papier-mâché Bigfoot cave, the pterodactyl’s nest, the haunted out house, the guillotine, and a grove of trees with fake skulls dangling from their branches. The creek flowed silently as they crossed over the little footbridge spanning it. The forest was absolutely silent and their high-powered flashlight beams barely penetrated the darkness. The blackness was so dense that the lime outlines along the path were almost invisible.
“We should have changed the batteries in these things before we left,” Tom said. “I can’t see shit out here.”
“It’s not the flashlights,” Terry replied. “They’ve got fresh batteries.”
“Well, then why is it so fucking dark? This is like walking through tar.”
“I don’t know, Tom. Maybe because it’s nighttime.”
“You don’t have to holler at me, Terry. I was just asking.”
Terry sighed. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I’m just worried, is all. Didn’t mean to take it out on you.”
They cupped their hands to their mouths and hollered for Cecil, Russ and Tina. The echoes ceased abruptly, swallowed up by the gloom. When their cries went unanswered, they reluctantly continued on their way, reaching the maze house.
“Ain’t no way I’m going in there tonight,” Tom said. “I get lost in it during the daytime.”
“Me, too,” Terry admitted. “Let’s go around.”
They stepped off the trail and skirted the edge of the sprawling, ramshackle building. Twigs snapped and leaves rustled under their feet. Tree branches scraped slowly across the tin roof of the maze house, making them both cringe.
“Man, that’s a horrible sound,” Terry said. “Like nails on a chalkboard.”
Tom tugged on Terry’s arm.
“What’s up?” Terry asked.
“Just had a thought. What if they’re inside the maze? Maybe Cecil had some kind of spell, got disoriented and is stuck in there?”
“Shit. I hadn’t considered that.” Terry raised his head and called out. “Cecil? Russ? Tina? It’s Terry and Tom! You guys in there?”
Again, the darkness seemed to muffle his echoes. Then they heard a new sound.
“Noooooooo…”
“Jesus Christ!” Tom dropped his flashlight. It rolled away across the forest floor.
“That sounded like Tina,” Terry said. “But where is she? Tina! Tina, are you there? Sound off, hon!”
“Here…we’re over here…”
Tom retrieved his flashlight and made sure the lens wasn’t cracked. “Sounds like it’s far away.”
“It’s coming from that direction.” Terry shined his light into the woods. “Come on.”
Dispensing with caution, they charged deeper into the forest. Branches tugged at their clothing and whipped their faces. In the darkness, the foliage twisted into sinister, menacing shapes. Tree limbs became outstretched, grasping arms. Late-season ferns became claws thrusting up from the dirt. Roots became serpents. Terry’s flashlight beam glanced across a blurred, moving shape. White teeth flashed amidst the black.
“The fuck was that?”
“Just an animal,” Tom panted. “A coyote or a fox, probably.”
“I didn’t see any eyes,” Terry said. “The light should have reflected off its eyes.”
Pausing, he shined the beam around the area, but the creature was gone. The woods grew colder.
“Could be rabid,” Tom said.
Terry frowned. “Rabies makes their eyes nonreflective? What kind of bullshit is that, Tom?”
“It could. You don’t know. You weren’t a veterinarian last time I checked.”
“Terryyyyyy…Tommmmm…”
“We’re coming!” Terry shouted.
They started running again, following Tina’s frantic cries. The strange sound-dampening effect cleared. Her wails became clearer as they got closer. Several times, they heard branches snapping behind them, but neither man turned around. Instead, they just ran faster.
“It’s just a fox,” Tom repeated. “Probably as scared of us as we were of it.”
“If it is,” Terry gasped, “then it’s the first one we’ve had around here. That and the whip-poor-will.”
Pressing on, they smelled a faint hint of burned wood. Soon, the terrain sloped downward and the vegetation cleared. The towering, looming trees turned into splintered, broken stumps. In the darkness, they looked like broken stone pillars. The ground beneath their feet grew softer, like they were jogging on baby powder. Terry coughed, tasting ashes in the back of his throat. The darkness deepened, becoming almost palatable.
“Terry?”
“What?”
“You know where we are, don’t you?”
“Yeah.”
Tina’s voice rose out of the darkness, very close by. She sounded weak and tired. “Terry? Tom?”
“We’re here,” Terry yelled. “Where are you?”
“I’m here. Just a little farther. Please hurry.”
“Are you okay? Are Russ and Cecil with you?”
“Yes, we’re all here.”
“Hurry up,” Cecil called. He also sounded like he was in bad shape.
They shined their flashlights ahead of them, sweeping the darkness, but saw nothing. The beams did nothing to dispel the gloom. It was as if the night had become a solid wall, and the beams of light were bouncing off it.
“Terry,” Tom whispered, stepping closer, “I don’t like this. My butt is puckering.”
“I don’t like it either. Something’s not right here. I can’t see shit.”
“Then what the hell are we doing? Let’s get out of here.”
“Where are you?” Tina called.
“Coming,” Terry shouted. “Just give us a minute. It’s hard to see.”
“Yes.” This time it was Russ who spoke. “There is no light.”
“What do we do?” Tom asked.
“Fuck this.”
Terry turned off his useless flashlight and pulled out one of the road flares. He snapped and twisted the end, activating it. The flare burst to phosphorescent life, hissing and spitting sparks. Its tip glowed red. Still, the darkness held. He tossed the flare ahead of them. As it spiraled through the air, they caught glimpses of human figures. There were six of them. As the flare began its downward descent, something long and black whipped through the darkness and seized it. The obsidian tentacle coiled around the hissing flare and the red glow disappeared, snuffed out.
“Holy shit…” Terry started to back away.
“No light at all,” Russ called.
“What do we do?” Tom whimpered.
Terry spoke quickly and quietly, trying to keep the panic out of his voice.
“Go back to the exit. Call the cops, the paramedics, the goddamned National Guard. I don’t care who. Just get them down here, now.”
“But what about what you said before? The Ghost Walk—”