By the time Travis Mullen’s truck was discovered on the roadside, the sun was already sinking behind the hills, casting long shadows across the empty highway. A passing motorist had reported it after noticing the driver’s door hanging open like a mouth left mid-scream. The engine was cold, the keys still in the ignition, and the only sign of life was the faint static hiss coming from a dashboard radio that had been left on.Constable Evelyn Hart arrived first.
She stood beside the truck, arms crossed tightly, her breath puffing white in the evening chill. The forest beyond the “NO TRESPASSING” sign looked darker than it should have, like it drank light instead of reflecting it. She had been a police officer long enough to trust her instincts, and every part of her screamed that this place was wrong.
Her partner, Constable Ian Delaney, stepped up beside her and frowned. “Let me guess,” he said. “Another idiot who thought he could make a spooky video.”
Evelyn didn’t answer immediately. She leaned down and examined the ground. There were footprints—fresh, scattered, uneven. One set heading into the forest.
Only one set.
No footprints leading back.
“That’s not good,” she murmured.
Delaney exhaled sharply. “We should call it in and wait for backup.”
Evelyn’s eyes stayed fixed on the trees. “If he’s hurt in there, we don’t have time.”
Delaney hesitated, then reached into his cruiser and pulled out a flashlight and a radio. “Alright. But we do this by the book.”
Evelyn almost laughed. The book didn’t cover places like this.
They stepped past the sign and into the woods.
Immediately, the air changed. It was colder, heavier, and carried a smell like damp ash. Evelyn felt it in her throat, like she was breathing through soot. The path ahead was narrow, choked with weeds and broken branches. The trees leaned inward, as if they were listening.
Delaney clicked his radio. “Dispatch, we’re entering the restricted campground area. Vehicle abandoned. No sign of the owner.”
Static crackled back. Then a voice: “Copy. Backup en route. Use caution.”
They continued.
Ten minutes in, Evelyn’s flashlight caught something lying in the dirt.
A camera bag.
She crouched and picked it up. It was torn open, the zipper ripped apart as if by claws. Inside were loose batteries, a cracked lens cap, and a phone with a shattered screen.
Delaney swallowed. “Looks like he got jumped.”
Evelyn’s gaze drifted to the trees. “Or he ran.”
Delaney looked uneasy now, his bravado thinning. “What kind of animal does that?”
Evelyn didn’t answer, because she didn’t want to say what she was thinking.
This wasn’t an animal.
They moved deeper, and the forest grew quieter. The usual night sounds didn’t exist here. No crickets. No owls. Nothing. The silence pressed against their ears until it felt like a physical thing.
Then they found the first sign that made Delaney stop cold.
A strip of yellow caution tape.
It hung from a tree branch, fluttering gently even though there was no wind.
Evelyn stepped closer and felt her stomach tighten.
The tape wasn’t old.
It was fresh.
It had been tied recently.
As if someone had marked the trail for them.
Delaney whispered, “That wasn’t here before. That’s ours.”
Evelyn’s voice came out low. “Someone wants us to follow.”
They continued, and soon the fog began to roll in. It crawled along the ground like living smoke, wrapping around their boots. Their flashlight beams struggled against it, turning the woods into a shifting maze of pale shapes.
Then Delaney stopped.
His flashlight beam had landed on something nailed to a tree.
A camera.
Travis’ camera.
It was hanging by its strap, swaying slowly, like it had been placed there on purpose.
Evelyn reached for it, and the screen flickered on.
A recording played.
At first it was just fog and darkness… then a shape stepped into view.
Tall.
Twisted.
Wearing something melted and black over its face.
The creature leaned into the camera, and even through the grainy screen, Evelyn could see the glow of its eyes.
Then the audio crackled.
A voice like burning wood spoke through the tiny speaker:
“Come… closer…”
Delaney stepped back, shaking his head. “No. No, no, no…”
Evelyn’s hand tightened around the camera.
Behind them, the fog thickened.
And something moved in it.
Not rushing.
Not hiding.
Just approaching, slow and certain.
A dragging sound echoed through the trees.
And Evelyn realized, with a sickening certainty, that they weren’t searching for Travis anymore.
They were being led.
Source: Some or all of the content was generated using an AI language model
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