To Be Feared

02. || bodies

Lyra tried processing Ace's words. Her brain couldn't seem to shove the idea that two people died—were killed—so close to her home. The town was usually uneventful when it came to tragedies.

"And you are sure it's not a bear?" Lyra gulped.

Ace let out a sigh and shook his head. "When was the last time anyone saw a bear in the Valkrist Point woods? Plus, the surviving camper said that she saw a tall, skinny figure. I'm sure it wasn't human and was definitely something else."

"Something else?" Lyra interrupted.

"I'm not done."

"Are the police looking for the culprit?"

He shrugged. "That's the thing, Lyra. They don't know anything based off the witness' report. The police probably thought she was high off her ass so they're still investigating."

"Tall and skinny," Lyra retorted, arms crossed. "Those sound like human characteristics."

"Um, a giraffe?" Ace joked inappropriately.

Lyra returned a groan. "What else did the witness say?"

Ace stuffed his rocks in his hoodie's pocket and took out a folded piece of paper. Opening up the folds, the paper revealed a drawing of a messily sketched creature. It was impressively detailed though—a little too detailed. She cupped her hand over her mouth. Lyra guessed it was most likely the thing the witness saw. And just like the witness had claimed, the creature was tall and skinny. But its additional features that Ace had not mentioned were alarming. It had the anatomy of a human, but its back was so hunched, the spine seemed to almost rip through the skin. It had a short, thin tail along with slender arms and legs. The most disturbing part of it, which made Lyra's guts twist, was its head. The head, attached to its rather lengthy neck, was similar to a human head. It had long black hair framing its emotionless face with pupils that were absent in its white, distorted eyes.

Ace noticed Lyra's disgust and immediately folded the paper back up. "I told you I wasn't done. I sketched this after I read what the witness had claimed."

"I never want to see that again," she affirmed with her hands still cupping her mouth.

"But you're my partner in crime," Ace declared with a mischievous smile.

"Ace..."

"And my partner-in-crime should come with me to the woods."

Lyra swung her arms to her sides. "No. Absolutely not. Are you out of your mind? Two people were killed by someone or something and you want to play Sherlock and John?" She attempted to rationalize Ace out of investigating. "We could die. Listen, I know I'm half white but that does not mean I would want to go to a possible danger zone of supernatural beings like they do in the movies."

"Wait, so you believe me? You believe the witness?" His face lit up with surprise.

"That's not the point!" Lyra shouted in a hushed frustration.

"I think that's exactly the point."

"No," Lyra scoffed. "I'm not going."

Ace dipped his head. "Okay, well, I'm going. Guess I'll have to go alone. All by myself. Who knows? I might fall into a ditch and I'll have no one to help me. I have no one to guide me through the cold, dark night."

Lyra clenched her jaw. Was she going to allow herself to fall for his guilt trip? She knew it wasn't a good idea to let him explore on his own. He needed someone to rationalize every situation.