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June 24, 2021 Hackett Woods Upstate New York, New York
SIX YEARS AGO, CASSIDY HACKETT WENT OUT INTO HACKETT WOODS. It was late at night and he ran into something he shouldn't have, and his father had to save his ass. But look what six years can do to you. He was out here again. His fear of the dark was still there, but sometimes it wasn't as bad as it used to be. Now it mostly just depended on the danger he faced, not how dark it was.
He tries to keep his steps light in case anything or anyone was out here, but it was hard to do that when it was raining. Dirt-filled puddles that soaked your socks and drowned your shoes. Shit-brown mud that stuck to your legs and made you feel gross. Wet grass that squelched under your boots and made you think you were stepping in animal shit.
He can see the silhouette of an object up ahead. As he gets closer, he realizes it was a cop car. He checks the license plate and instantly knew whose it was. It belongs to Travis. But the man wasn't even in the car. He was leaning against the driver's side door, looking at something. He seemed distracted.
Cassidy goes around the car until he's at the front. He stops a couple feet away from Travis. "What are you doing?"
"Jesus Christ, Cass!" Travis nearly jumps out of his skin, startling. He dramatically places a hand over his heart as he turns around. "You can't sneak up on me like that."
"Sorry," Cassidy apologizes. "I thought you were off for the night?"
Travis crosses his arms, standing up a bit straighter as he gives the boy a look. He always had this worn out look on his face nowadays. His face was thin, eyes tired, and lines sunken low into his skin.
"Who told you that?" he asks, an eyebrow raised in suspicion.
"Uncle Bobby." Cassidy's answer is immediate. "He told me 'fore he and Pappy went out with their hunting supplies, again. They did the same thing last month, and the month before that, and the month before that, and—"
"Okay, okay, I get it," Travis sighs, shaking his head. "Now be quiet."
"Okay," Cassidy replies in a whisper, peering over Travis' shoulder. There was a car stopped just a way's away. It looked like it was stuck in mud. "How long have you been out here? And how long has that car been there?"
"I've been out here for quite some time makin' sure nobody comes out to this part of the woods. Then that car crashed out here. Reckon the driver's under the influence. Could be wrong, but we'll see..."
