It Lives In The Woods

Chapter Seven

"Later Andy, thanks for the ride!" Bee called, waving to him as she began walking towards the doors. "Hey Bee," she paused, looking over her shoulder to where Andy's car stalled, "you know I'll always be there for you, right? My first friend, my best friend." Bee grinned, feeling a weight of sorts lift from her chest. "Yeah, me too. See you later King Andy." She teased, running up the concrete library steps, and through the new shining double doors.

The new public library was odd, modern, and it did not smell of old books. To Bee it felt more like a computer lab rather than a world of books. "Can I help you find something?" Bee jumped in surprise, a small older woman appearing at her side with a helpful smile. Bee stepped away slightly, laughing nervously. "Uh yeah actually, I know this is going to sound well, immature, but I was wondering if you have any stories or articles about the woods?" The librarian's eyes dimmed slightly as she sighed, "You're right, it does sound immature, it's usually these superstitious kids coming in, telling these wild stories about seeing some monster in the woods at night." Bee swallowed roughly, forcing a smile, "I'm actually a reporter for a magazine in New York, I'm here on a lead." Bee hadn't originally planned to tell a bold faced lie, but then again, she also had not expected the help to be this, well, difficult. The lady brightened up a small bit, "You wait right here, I'll bring a cart over."

***

By the time the women arrived to the library they found Bee bent over a cart of thick, smelly old books and worn out newspapers that were yellow with time. "Bee? What is all this?" Lily asked, looking at the cart with apprehensive eyes. Bee looked back with a wicked grin, a gleam of hope deep in her blue eyes. "It's research mouse, something we've never done before. Good ole fashioned research. There have been legends about beasts in the woods for centuries, recorded throughout the decades. I figured we could look through all of these, see if we can find anything useful." The girls paused in thought, Stacy was the first to step forwards, reaching out and picking up a heavy book, "I guess this could be productive, it wouldn't hurt to try right?" She said, slowly offering Ava a book, like an olive branch between two enemy warriors. Ava hesitated, red contacts boring into Stacy's brown eyes, a silent, tense moment passed between the four of them, before Ava reached out and took it, mending the bridge between the two, at last.

Hours passed, and night fell, though they didn't get as much information as they wanted, their hard work eventually reaped rewards, "Listen to this," Ava prompted, her feet propped up on one of the wooden tables, "the town was founded in 1865 by a group of roaming protestants and their head pastor, Priest Johnathan Hoffman and his son Pierce. It was believed that Pierce went behind his father's back and started his own occult following in order to make Crescent Point a successful logging town amongst the growing industrial movement. The cult worked in peace for years, only reportedly slaying animals in the woods until his father's death in 1879, when Pierce took over as the official leader of Crescent Point. His daughter Persephone crossed the lake to settle Silver Springs, and the occult grew. It was around this time that travellers started to report seeing a figure in the woods with glowing blue eyes, watching them far into the night, calling to them, and travellers who passed through the town started to disappear. Were these disappearances due to the strange occult ties Pierce Hoffman and his followers held, or the figure in the woods? There was no conclusive evidence, so these disappearances remain some of America's oldest cold cases." The others gathered around Ava like a fabled storyteller, eyes twinkling with interest. "The occult? Like the devil?" Lily asked, frowning in thought. "That's what it said." Bee sighed, nibbling her lower lip in concentration. "Well it's not a definite answer, but at least it gives us some idea of where Blue came from, maybe Hoffman and his creepy followers summoned him?" Stacy shrugged, leaning back in her chair. "It's possible, anythings possible at this point. Should we keep going?"Bee nodded, "We need more." Another hour passed before Lily let out a scared squeak, "I-I found something, something bad." Ava leaned over, rubbing Lily's skinny back in comfort. "It's okay mouse, just tell us." Lily held up a yellowing newspaper clip, taking a deep breath before reading. "Today residents of the small town Crescent Point awoke to a horrifying shock. Law officials have reported finding over thirteen bodies in the Crescent Point woods, all organized in a circle, each with their throats slit. Ages of the victims range from as old as fiftyseven to as young as twelve. Residents were horrified to discover each victim held ties to the original families that settled here in the 1800's, officials have ruled these crimes as suicides." The atmosphere in the library grew grave as the women all looked at each other, terrified looks dawning on their different faces. "When was that?" Bee asked quietly. "Uh, this newspaper was published May 16th, 1968, almost fifty two years ago." Bee stood up, pacing nervously, "We've seen all the newspaper clippings since then, I bet you the only reported occurence since then was Norah's death, which means something must've happened right after the mass suicide in the woods to make Blue stop, maybe rest, if that's even possible." Bee raised her nails to her mouth, nibbling on her nails, her feet racing as she paced, creating an anxious atmosphere for the others. "Maybe someone figured out a way to stop him?" Stacy volunteered, twirling pieces of her blonde hair aimlessly between her slim fingers. "But who? Would they still even be alive, Blue was gone for almost forty years before Norah and I met him that day at the ice palace." Bee stopped, her breath coming out in puffs of air before her face, lights flickering overhead. "G-Guys I-'' Lily began, shaking in her seat as the air around them grew colder and colder. "Blue?" Ava whispered, red eyes widening in fear as she looked around.

The four girls jumped and screamed in terror when the double doors slammed open. "Tanner?!" Bee cried, holding her chest in panic as the lights dimmed back on and the temperature returned to normal. Tanner stood in the doorway awkwardly, smiling nervously at the four women who looked scared out of their minds. "Hey, sorry if I scared you guys. Andy told me where you all were, I was wondering if any of you needed a break?" He asked, smiling sweetly. Ava's hand shot up, "God yes please." Tanner nodded, "Alright, what did you need?"

"Coffee please."
"Me too, with two extra shots of espresso, I'm going to go take a quick walk, facetime my son." Stacy said, standing up and stretching with a groan. "Mouse?" Lily looked up from the table, "How does Pizza sound huh mouse? What about you bumblebee?" Bee nodded, grabbing her coat and wallet. Lily shook her head, "No thanks, I think i'm actually going to head back to the hotel, I'm exhausted." Tanner nodded, reaching out and hugging Lily's small body tightly. "Drive safe. Ready Bee?" Bee nodded, waving goodbye at Ava who stretched out over a few chairs, a nap in mind. "Alright let's go, cheese or pepperoni?" Bee grinned, rubbing the stress from her eyes. "I was actually thinking about barbecue."