Whispers in the Field

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Near White Hall, Texas

 1978

Bonnie Alvarez spent her day playing baseball in the never-ending heat with her four brothers as her mother worked in the garden. Her father would be home from the farm later and summer days meant baseball until sunset with no cares.

The Alvarez family lived four miles outside of White Hall along a dirt road in a two-story house surrounded by cornfields. Luckily the home had a massive backyard with plenty of playing room for Bonnie and her siblings.

In their make-place outfield Bonnie was ready to catch the next ball her eldest brother, Edward, would hit towards her. She punched her left hand into her glove with anticipation. Although she had just turned nine, Bonnie was perfectly able to compete with her four elder brothers in every sport.

Julian threw a curve-ball towards Edward who contacted the baseball hitting it far and high to his left into the corn. Bonnie sprinted knowing that catching this one was out of the question. Edward had already sprinted past the first base by the time she reached the cornfield.

She ran through the verdant field over the mounds searching for the now disappeared baseball.

"Where are you," she whispered.

Bonnie walked further into the field and decided to walk in the direction of row. After several minutes of walking she decided to give up on the lost ball and was sure that her brothers would get another ball to continue their game.

"I can't find the ball!"

Her yell was met with silence.

Why aren't they replying.

"Hello dumbs! I can't find the ball!"

They probably went inside the house to get some lemonade and another ball, she thought as she kept walking.

After several minutes Bonnie began to feel a slight anxiety. She never wandered too far into the corn and she always made sure she remembered the way back. Maybe the house is to the right. She began to lightly jog feeling somewhat fearful and foolish.

Her stride started to widen trying to find the open field behind her home. She felt as if the corn was looking down at her, a lost little girl.

"Edward Help! Please!"

Run. Faster.

"Julian! Howie!"

Bonnie was now sprinting through the corn. The tall green stalks moved in the wind with the leaves rustling as her sprint came to a stop.

She was terrified at the sounds she heard around her. Not just the wind or corn; Bonnie heard whispering. Her brothers were trying to frighten her, she thought as she sat down beginning to crying.

"Please stop, Edward," she sobbed.

Suddenly the winds dissipated, and Bonnie looked around trying to see her brothers. She wiped the tears off her cheeks and decided to walk in a different direction. Her dread was worse with the stillness of the cornfield and she almost felt hopeless at finding her way home.

She stopped once again at the soft whisper of woman's voice. Her heart was rapidly beating. she wanted to scream but she was unsure of the consequences of such an action. In her stillness Bonnie realized that multiple people were whispering around her and out of fear she screamed as loud as her lungs would allow and took off in sprint.

Around her the form of the cornstalks were just blurs. She could feel her lungs bursting with fire and tried to run even quicker than the pace she held.

Run. Just Run.

Bonnie tasted earth and realized she had tripped over a mound. She got up quickly feeling blood run down her left knee, but she did not continue her sprint. She tripped into an open triangular space within the cornfield. She took off her baseball glove and set it down behind.

Every stalk within this space and been mashed down and in the center of the opening was a tall mast with three separate fires burning around it. Her instincts told her not to investigate but her curiosity was stronger, so Bonnie walked towards the mast.

As she approached the mast, she noticed the ground surrounding it was a violent red and she began to feel dizzy. The whispers we gone, and Bonnie was silently praying that the people who talked were gone.

Mesmerized and frightened, Bonnie stopped in front of the mast.

"What is this place?"

She looked at the fires and gasped noticing that they were encircled by various animal and human skulls. Bonnie felt sick and vomited on the ground. Tears began to fill her eyes again and quickly she scanned the opening.

Crying, Bonnie sprinted once again and tried with all her might to keep her breathing as quite as possible. She ran and ran and soon the sky began to turn colors as sunset slowly encroached. Her legs and lungs were past exhaustion and she noticed the bleeding from her left knee had stopped.

Keep running. You're almost home.

Her legs took her into another opening and this time that opening was the dirt road on which her family's house was. Smiling she wiped away her tears once more and walked in the direction of her home.

"Bonnie! Where are you?"

"Over hear on the road," She screamed.

"I got lost in the cornfield! And I don't know where the baseball or my glove are"

Her house was within view and she saw her mother sprinting towards her.

"Don't you ever do that again! What if would have gotten lost for good?"

"I'm sorry, I never will ever again, I promise."

"Are you okay, mija? You're a mess and look at your knee! What happened?"

"I got lost. Mommy... I heard people in the field."

"People? They didn't hurt you, did they?"

"No, but..."

Bonnie was afraid to inform her mother of the events she went through and felt like no one would believe her. She was never going to step foot into the cornfield again and decided to keep quite of the opening with the mast and fires.

"I'm sorry, mom. I won't do that ever again." 

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