Beyond the window

It was pitch black, as I looked out the window of my holiday cabin. I was excited to get away from the city smog and the hustle and bustle of the agitated city folk as they rushed here and there trying to reach their destination. The traffic was horrid as I left my office and headed toward the mountains. “ Everyone is in a rush,“ I thought to myself as I finally pulled off the main highway and headed up the long stretch of dusty road that led to the peaceful mountain retreat.

I sipped my hot,chocolate as I looked out at absolutely nothing beyond my cabin window. Then I saw a light. At first I thought it could be a firefly, butt they usually are in clusters; at least I thought so. I took another sip and turned from the window.

No TV, no neighbours, not even inside plumbing; only my cell phone with its’ charger, and that is only for emergencies, I thought to myself as I sat down in the old, overstuffed arm chair and opened my book to the last chapter I had been reading, several days ago. In the background I could hear the coo-coo clock ticking softly and it wasn’t long before I had began to doze off.

I jolted awake to the sound of something dragging across the window. Dropping my book as I jumped up I stood glaring at the window with my heart thumping in my head and my breath catching in my throat. Then I thought to myself that it could have been a dream; there is no one up hear but me! The tourist season hasn’t started yet; I was lucky to be here a month sooner beause my buddy owns this camp sight and he knew how desperately I needed a break.

Walking slowly toward the window I reached over an shut off the hanging lamp, making the entire room black as pitch. I saw nothing I heard nothing. the light I thought I saw probably was a reflection from the hanging lamp. Pulling the curtains tightly closed I also thought I should have brought Ruffus, our old lab; she is too old for protection but she could bark and scare away any wild animals; I could have brought my wife she too would bark. I laughed at my lame joke, it was her idea I take this break because I was getting far too stressed and upsetting the household. I pushed on the door to make sure it was shut tightly and put on the lock, just to be safe.

I had been asleep for at last two hours when I heard crashing and banging outside the window. My first instinct was to cover my head and wait till the nightmare ended, but if this was really happening l wanted to be ready to run to my car and get the hell out of here.

pulling my pants on I stumbled to the window and cracked the curtain a wee bit to peer outside. There was nothing there; at least nothing that I could see, I began to think this trip was not a good idea after all.

The moonlight was lighting the area around my cabin but I saw nothing unusual. I knew sleep would not come after this so I sat in the overstuffed chair and waited for dawn.

I did fall asleep for when I awoke the sun was blaring through the crack in the curtain that I had opened during the night. All was peaceful and serene. I decided the night before was all imagination.

Opening the curtains and the window I inhaled the fragrant aroma of the wild; This is what I needed; peace, tranquillity and rest. Just outside my window was a picnic table that invitingly called me. With coffee and toast in my hands I went out into the morning sunlight to sit at the table and enjoy my surroundings. As I placed both cup and toast on the table I noticed the huge footprints under the window with the garden soil tramped down and the early spring flowers bent and broken. I then saw the smear of mud on the window pane . Suddenly, I began to tremble like the night before.

I decided that perhaps a mountain rest is not what I needed and went over to my car to unlock it so I could put my belongings back into it, but found it had been vandalized, probably by they same thing that was outside my window. The door and front panel was badly dented in with the window on the drivers’ side smashed. Inside the upholstery had been torn, my jacket that I left in there was ripped to pieces and worst but not least was my cel phone; It was in three pieces and it looked like it had tooth markes on it. Not caring about my back pack in the cabin I climbed into my recked Mazda and inserted the key. Nothing happened. Again I tried to turn the engin over but nothing happened. Panic overcame me when I realized I was stranded here.

Sitting behind the steering wheel with the deathly silence of the forest surrounding me and the pounding of my heart beating in my head I realized I was a prisoner to an unidentifiable beast; Not knowing what I was going to do or even what I was able to do, beat in my brain like a hammer. I had to make a plan; had to protect myself until I could get my car working again, though I was not a mechanical handy man.

the three pieces of my phone were the front and back sides of the phone. The third piece was the phone itself. I discovered the tooth marks were on the upper side of the case leaving me to believe the main computer parts could still be working.

Looking around I realized I was completely alone with no indication of the beast around. I climbed out of the Mazda and quickly entered into the cabin and bolted the door. After a bit of working on the phone I got the parts back together and I tried to turn it on; there was life in the phone and that it needed to be charged; the charger was nowhere to be seen. Thinking it must have been left in the car I went to the window and checked that all was safe and I unbolted the door and quickly ran to the car and pulled open the passenger side door, and found the charger was not in the car.

I began searching around the perimeter of the car and found the cable to the phone then further away toward the old out house I saw something gray and believed it was the charger. I didn’t feel too comfortable moving too far away form the car and I had the feeling I was being watched. Quickly grabbing the charger I ran to the cabin and again locked myself in. Once the phone was on the charger I had only to wait.

The silence was deafening as I waited for my phone to charge. There was magazines but I had no interest in looking at them. My book was still laying on the floor from when it fell last night. The ticking of the coo coo clock became loud and annoying as it constantly tick, tick, ticked. I couldn’t sit and I couldn’t stand. I paced back and forth from the window to the charger; stopping each time to look into the foreboding forest and imagining something or someone was watching me. I saw a deer and its’ fawn slowly meandering across the outer park area and I believed there could be nothing dangerous there or the deer would not be calmly eating and resting, I therefore felt somewhat safe.

Time was ticking by and the sun was slowly reaching the high part of the sky and still, my phone was not charging. Perhaps I should try my car again; maybe I did not turn the key all the way. I had to try it before the sun went down and I had to get out of here before dark.

My car was usless. Over and over I turned the key but nothing happened. Looking under the hood was nothing but that; a look under the hood because I had no idea what I was looking for. I knew I had gas because I filled up before I left the city. Back in the cabin I once more checked the phone but there was no power.

I realized I had not eaten since I left the city and I knew I had to keep my energy up in case I couldn’t get out of here before dark. I wasn’t going to cook anything in case the aroma of food enticed the creature or whatever it was, back again. I made a bologna sandwich and a glass of water. Fearing to make coffee.

The shadows began to darken as the sun set behind the tall forest trees spreading darkness across the camp ground. Night birds began to share their voices on the soft evening wind and the mystery of the night began to fall.

I knew I should have tried to make it out to the main highway while it was daylight but I thought I would get either my car or my phone working; now I was stranded here one more night and hopefully it would be a quiet and calm night. I closed the curtains and bolted the door and began to wait out the night.

It happened all too quickly. the scraping on the window and the banging on the door; the grunting and growling. On and on it went.

The tears ran down my face as I cowered on the floor in the tiny cabin kitchen. My heart was beating at a dangerously high rate of speed and I shook until I wet myself, and still the pounding and grunting around the cabin was heard. Frantically I scribbled a letter to my wife, telling her how much I loved her and that I never appreciated her like I should have. I told each son how much I loved them and I wished I could have been there these past two nights instead of selfishly expecting a free time from life’s stress. Then it happened. The door smashed open and in entered two huge human like creatures. I began to scream and cry! I threw pots and pans at them but they kept coming at me. I crawled under the table but they easily lifted it up and tossed against the wall; then they grabbed me.

At that last second before the darkness came I remembered I had not put my car in park and that’s why the car did not start.