The Beast of Fox Hill

One

We've always been told stories here in the rural town near Fox Hill. Stories of beasts roaming the darkness at night, beasts with the most deadly claws and horrid fangs. Tales tell that crossing paths with one of the beasts will lead you to one thing; death. 

There's a legend of one beast in particular that roams the forests near my town. This beast is the biggest of them all with horrible red glowing eyes and the most ferocious features of all the beasts of the forest. 

It is said that this beast is wolf like in nature, horrible long dark fur and claws sharper than a lions. According to legend, it's teeth are like knives that can crush bone and tear skin like butter. It's been deemed the Beast of Fox Hill. 

Do I believe any of these tales? No. I don't. 

I am twenty years old for Heaven's sake, why would I believe such fairy tales? In my opinion, the only beasts of the forests here are bears and maybe some raccoons. As for the wolf like Beast of Fox Hill, it is simply a legend to keep kids from staying out too late at night. 

Fox Hill is a hilly backwoods town next to mine. Only a few people live there as it is very dark and eerie due to the amount of trees that block the sun from even hitting the dirt roads. I don't even think hunters venture up there for fear of getting lost and swallowed up by the dense forests of Fox Hill. 

I live on the border of Fox Hill and Creekville, still in the rural area but close enough to the town I would never get lost despite the density of the surrounding forest. My house is a small single wide trailer. Everything is  much smaller than a normal house but for a single person I find it cozy and perfect for myself. 

I am an author and I found that the peacefulness of the forest areas allowed me to focus better when writing my horror novels, hence why I got as close to Fox Hill as I could get without being in the town's lines. 

I spend most of my time sitting in my office and pumping out stories or sitting on my small front porch with a cup of hot cocoa or tea in the breeze of autumn. Right now it is the middle of October and all the Upstate New York leaves have changed into their golds, reds and oranges. It truly is a sight to see this time of year. 

As I sit out on my front porch accompanied by a cup of hot chocolate, a flannel and some fuzzy slippers, I adored the sight before me. To my disappointment, I would have to abandon the porch soon as I had to go to the store for some staples for cooking. 

Being in a small town had one advantage I always loved; you could drive four wheelers to the store or anywhere else you needed to go around the area. 

My ATV was a 1990's Yamaha Big Bear which was passed down from my mom. It had been sitting at my grandmother's house which is in a similarly rural town and when she passed away, my mother gave it to me as she had nowhere to take it because of where she lives. My mother used to be very much like me, loving the calm rural areas and spending her time outside. 

My mother is one of my best friends. Since I was born it was only her and I, as I was the result of a one night stand. She lives three fourths of an hour away where I was raised in a two bedroom upstairs apartment. I moved out here to continue my career and have a better writing environment and thankfully our relationship has remained close despite the distance. 

I stood from my wooden rocking chair and stretched my arms out, pulling my hands slightly into my flannel's sleeves. Once I finished extending my arms and spine, I let out a sigh. I hated shopping day and I much preferred to stay hidden in my little trailer away from everyone else in the world. I grabbed my black helmet and walked off the porch, my favorite black leather boots clomping against the wood. 

I made my way over to the side of my trailer where I parked my four wheeler. I pulled the large dark green tarp off of it and folded it slightly and set it to the side. I checked the ATV for spider webs or any bugs that remained during this time of year.