The Cabin

 “Do you have enough food to last the week?” Mr. Archer asked Debbie as he stepped into the cabin.

Debbie nodded as she followed him inside, saying, “I stocked up before I came here.”

“What about firewood?” he asked, setting down the armful of logs he’d carried inside to the fireplace.

She pointed to the box near the fireplace and said, “That’s full, and there’s a large stack on the porch.”

He looked at the box and nodded.

Standing, he wiped the dirt off of his hands and said, “The water pump is in the backyard. The kerosene lamps are full and ready for when the sun goes down. Extra blankets are in the trunk at the foot of the bed.”

Debbie nodded and said, “Thank you.”

“Now, if anything happens, there’s a battery operated radio on the shelf,” he said, pointing at it on the shelf next to the fireplace. “Just turn it on, and talk into it. I’ll be here as soon as I can.”

She nodded and said, “Sounds good, but I don’t expect any need for that.”

He turned to look at her, a serious look on his face.

“Don’t underestimate what could happen,” he told her. “Always be aware of your surroundings.”

She nodded and said, “Will do.”

“Is there anything else you think you will need before I go?” he asked.

She shook her head and said, “I think I’m good, but I’ll call if anything happens.”

“Then, I’ll see you next week,” Mr. Archer said and headed for the door.

At the door, he paused and said, “Even though you’re in the middle of nowhere, be sure to lock the door at night, get everything you need from outside before nightfall, and be sure the lock the shutters. Stay inside once the sun goes down.”

She looked surprised at that and asked, “Why?”

Mr. Archer frowned and looked down at the ground.

“You never know what’s out in the woods behind the cabin is all,” he finally said. “Best to be safe than sorry.”

That being said, he turned around and left. Debbie shut the door after him, then turned around to lean against it and look around at her sanctuary for the next week.

She hoped being away from the world would help her overcome her writer’s block and get her next book out. Her editor had been bugging her for weeks now, but she’d barely gotten anything written. She hoped without the distractions of internet, electricity or phone service, it would help her focus on getting the story completed. First though, a cup of tea on the porch, so she could get her thoughts together.

Filling the kettle with water and setting it on the hook, she started a fire in the fireplace. As the water heated, she looked around the small cabin.

The main room held the living room and the kitchen. The bedroom was in the back of the cabin, and she was glad it had an inside bathroom, what with what Mr. Archer had said about not going outside after dark. She didn’t want to be running to an outhouse with a flashlight when the sun went down.

She heard the kettle whistling, so she went back into the living room to lift it from the hook. Setting it down on the hearth, she got her mug and strainer ready, then poured the boiling water into the mug.

Picking up the mug, she let the tea steep while she went out onto the full length porch and sat down on one of the rocking chairs.

She marveled at the peacefulness surrounding the cabin as she listened to the birds chirping in the trees and the insects buzzing. Noticing the temperature was dropping, and the sky was clouding over, she suspected it would snow that night. Just what she needed to help her focus on her writing.

Sipping her tea, she got lost in her thoughts about what she needed to do to finish her book.

Suddenly, a weird feeling brought her focus back to her surroundings. She realized everything had fallen silent, and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. A shiver went down her back, and she looked around. She saw nothing, but the feeling remained.

Slowly getting up, she went to the door of the cabin and paused, giving the area one last look. Nothing was there. 

Once inside, she locked the door behind her, then moved over to the window and looked out. Nothing stood out at her. She continued to stare out at the trees, then focused on a dark spot under a large tree at the edge of the yard.

She gasped when the dark spot ducked behind the tree.

“What was that?” she whispered, staring hard at the spot to see if she could tell what had been there.

The spot remained empty.

She shook her head and went to the kitchen to start dinner.

While she sat at the table eating her dinner, she realized she’d need to go outside to close the shutters. Looking out of the window, she saw the sun was almost down.

Standing up, she left her half-eaten plate and grabbed the flashlight, heading outside to close and lock the shutters before it was fully dark.

 She made her way to the back of the cabin and unhooked the shutters on the window to the bedroom, so she could close and lock them from inside. She had an eerie feeling as she worked and whirled around, turning her flashlight on and shining it into the trees behind her. 

 Nothing was there, but the feeling she was being watched remained. She hurried around the side of the cabin and closed the shutters there before going to the front.

She kept looking over her shoulder as she worked, but saw nothing moving. It was still eerily quiet in the clearing. A snowflake drifted down, and she smiled. Then she hurried inside to finish the job.

 Once she had the shutters latched and the windows locked, she went around the room, lighting the candles and lanterns she’d brought. They gave off a dim, cozy light. She sat in the chair by the fireplace with her notebook and pencil and went to work, jotting down ideas and thoughts.

She was deep in her writing when the sound of tapping on the windows behind her shook her out of her thoughts. 

 Tensing, she stilled. The tapping sounded again.

“What the hell is that?” she whispered, looking around the room.

She listened again and heard the tapping at the other window, causing her to jump and turn around to look at it. She couldn’t breathe, and her heart felt like it was trying to pound its way out of her chest.

 Getting out of the chair, she made her way across the room and stood in front of the window. The shutters were still closed tight, but she could see them moving as if something was on the other side.

 She stared at them, transfixed. The sound changed from a tapping to a scratching, as if something was running sharp claws over the shutters. 

 Gasping, she took a step backward. The scratching stopped. She heard movement out on the porch, then silence. 

 She relaxed, then tensed as she heard what sounded like a howl in the distance. 

 “What the hell was that?” she whispered to herself.

 Goosebumps sprung up on her arms, and she rubbed them vigorously. Going back to the fireplace, she put another log on the fire and sat down in the chair, staring into the flames.

 Her thoughts ran around her head. 

 “What’s going on around here?” she whispered, but couldn’t come up with an answer. 

 Finally, she felt safe enough to go into the bedroom to get some sleep.

 In the morning, she washed up and started the fire, so she could heat her breakfast. She opened the shutter slats on the windows so she could look out before unlatching them. 

 Peering out, she saw snow blanketed the area, and the yard looked untouched. She smiled at the sight, then unlatched the shutters and opened them to let the light in. Then she unlatched the bedroom shutters. 

 After her breakfast, she bundled up and opened the front door. She inhaled the crisp, clean air and looked at the yard. She could see a few animal tracks crossing the yard and smiled. It looked like it was going to be a lovely day.

 Going around the house to the back to secure the shutters, she stopped when she saw large footprints going from the trees to the bedroom window. 

 “What the hell?” she whispered and looked around. 

 She went over to look closer at the tracks and saw they had some snow cover on them, so they weren’t as fresh as she first thought. Straightening, she walked along the trail until it reached the trees. 

 Sunlight shone through the bare branches, and she could see the trail leading into the forest. She stood at the edge of the trees and looked around. All was quiet. 

 She took a few steps into the trees and followed the trail with her eyes. She could see it went over the small hill about fifty feet from the cabin. 

 Thankful for her hiking boots, she followed the trail and walked up the hill. At the top, she looked around and saw the trail led into the thicker part of the trees. 

 She turned and could see the cabin, but knew if she followed the trail any further, she would probably get lost and not be able to make it back to the cabin.

 Looking at the trail of footprints once more, she shook her head and turned around to go back the way she had come. She was almost to the clearing when she felt a prickle at the back of her neck.

 Her breath came faster, and she picked up her speed. When she reached the clearing, she turned around and looked into the trees, but she saw nothing. 

Shaking her head, she went around to the front of the cabin and went inside. She hung her coat up, then went into the bedroom to look out of the window at the trees behind the cabin. She saw nothing moving. 

 Frowning, she shook her head and went back into the living room to make a cup of tea before sitting in the chair with her notebook.

 The rest of the day went by without distractions, and she had the cabin locked down before sunset. She noticed the snow started to fall again and wondered if the sounds from the previous night would happen again.’

 As she was on the edge of sleep, a faint howl shook her awake. She listened, eyes wide, but she heard nothing more. 

 She finally fell into an uneasy sleep and woke late the next morning. 

 Sitting up, she stretched and rubbed her face. 

 “Let’s see if there are any strange footprints outside my window again this morning,” she said, getting up and going over to the window to unlatch the shutters.

 She gasped as she saw fresh footprints in the otherwise untouched snow. Looking around the clearing, she saw nothing again. The footprints followed the same path as before. 

 “What is out there?” she whispered as she drew her head back inside and shut the window.

 She ate her breakfast, then spent a few hours on her book before taking a break for lunch. 

 After lunch, she bundled up again and set out to follow the footprints. This time, she was determined to see where they went and brought along a handful of ribbons to tie on branches to mark her path. 

 She reached the treeline and took a deep breath before tying on the first ribbon and walking into the trees.

 She walked up the hill and tied another ribbon to a branch, then proceeded to walk down the hill. The land flattened out on the other side, making following the trail easier than she thought it would be. 

 The trees got thicker as she went, and she glanced behind her to make sure she could see the trail markings behind her. 

 Walking for a few more minutes, she could see another hill in the distance, larger than the one behind the cabin. She could see the trail led to a dark spot at the bottom of the hill. 

 “What is that?” she whispered. “Is that some sort of cave?”

 The trail led to the small entrance of a cave. She took out her flashlight and shined it inside, but couldn’t see much.

 A twig snapped behind her, and the woods fell silent. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end. 

 Taking a deep breath, she slowly stood up and looked around. She saw nothing, but felt an ominous presence nearby. 

 She walked away from the cave entrance and looked for the ribbon marker. Finding it, she walked toward it and kept going. She heard movement to her left, but when she looked, she saw nothing. 

 Continuing to move away from the cave entrance, she picked up her pace. She heard what sounded like footsteps moving along with her. Stopping, she listened again, but the footsteps stopped. 

 She walked a little further, heard the noises again and stopped again, but heard nothing once more. 

 Swallowing, she continued to walk, keeping her attention to her surroundings. She was glad to reach the top of the hill and hurried down it, heading around the house to the porch. She noticed the daylight was fading and knew she had to close the shutters. 

 Heading toward the porch, she halted when she spotted a set of footprints leading to the front door. Footprints that looked exactly like what she’d been following. She looked around once more, but saw nothing out of the ordinary.

 She rushed up the porch and pushed the shutters closed before looking at the front door. She didn’t see anything strange, so she went inside to finish shutting the cabin for the night.

 Building up the fire and lighting all the candles and lamps, she nibbled at her dinner, while listening for any noise outside of the cabin. She heard nothing during dinner and while she cleaned up. 

 She was hesitant to go to bed, so she wrapped up in a blanket and curled up on the couch in front of the fire. She stared into the fire, listening for any sounds coming from outside. She was thankful she would be leaving the day after tomorrow.

 The next thing she knew, she woke up. The fire was out with only embers still burning. She tensed, trying to figure out what had woken her. She heard a scratching on the door, like a dog or a cat trying to get in. 

 Remaining still, she continued to listen, thankful the candles and lamps still burned, so she wasn’t in total darkness. She swore she could hear something snuffling at the door, as if it was trying to smell her.

 She didn’t realize she was holding her breath until she got dizzy. She let her breath out in a huff, then realized the snuffling had stopped. She froze again, waiting to see what would happen. No further sounds came from the door.

 After what seemed like an eternity, she rose from the couch and walked over to the window. She unlatched the window and lifted it as slowly as she could, so as not to make any sounds. All that stood between her and whatever was outside was the latched shutters. 

 Reaching out, she moved the bar to open the slats and peered out. At first, she didn’t see anything, but then a creature moved into her vision. It was on all fours and looked like an enormous wolf. 

 She gasped at the sight of it, clapping her hand over her mouth. The creature must have heard her since it whipped its head toward her, its yellow eyes focusing on the window. It reared up on two legs and took a step toward the cabin.

 Screaming, she closed the slats and slammed the window shut, backing away until the back of her legs hit the couch. She fell backward over the arm, landing on the couch, then squirmed away until her head hit the other arm. 

 Paralyzed with fear, she waited for the creature to make a sound, but heard nothing. She barely breathed as she waited, but all was still. 

 She waited and waited, but nothing happened. Finally, she woke again. 

Flinging herself off of the couch, she went once again to the window and opened it, peering through the slats once more. Nothing was out there, but she saw the now familiar footprints in the snow. 

 Shaking her head, she went into the bedroom and packed her things. She was leaving. 

 Once she had everything packed, she went to the radio and called for Mr. Archer. 

 “Mr. Archer? I’m leaving early,” she told him.

 “I’ll be there as soon as I can,” he said. 

 She waited with her bags in the living room until she heard his knock.

 “I saw the footprints,” he said when she opened the door. “I know why you’re leaving.”

 “You knew about this and didn’t tell me?” she asked, anger in her voice.

 He had the decency to look ashamed, then nodded and said, “I was hoping the winter would keep it away, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.”

 “What is it?” she asked, loading her bags into his truck.

 He shook his head and said, “No one really knows. It comes and goes. Hasn’t hurt anyone, but sure does scare them.”

 “You can say that again,” she said, getting into the passenger seat.

 She looked in the side mirror at the cabin as they drove away and wasn’t surprised to see an enormous figure standing on the hill behind the cabin, watching them leave.