A New Life for Jordan CH 46

A New Life for Jordan

By: Rob Warr

Chapter 46

🎃 Halloween🎃

The days passed, and the air grew cooler day by day as Autumn moved in to replace summer. The leaves, now a golden, orange, or red as the green gave way to the season, it gave the boys a new background for their everyday lives, as they looked forward to the Holiday season, the first of which was Halloween.

"I can't believe mom, dad, and Mark and Mack left us here all alone on Halloween night," Jordy said, "not that I mind, but it's just weird, if you ask me."

"I guess that party at Nate's house for all the adults must be a pretty big event," Lee offered, "but I will kinda miss not trick-or-treating this year. I figured this was gonna be my last year anyway, but I guess last year was actually my last year," he added with a chuckle.

"I like the candy, but I can do without the walking, especially in Salina, the houses are so far apart you really earn your candy," Seth groaned, "besides, we have a ton of candy here already, thanks to our folks," he added, picking up a handful of miniature candy bars and letting them run through his fingers as if they were diamonds or gold coins.

"I wanted to go with Carl and Tony," Jerry said, "but you know what? I'm kinda glad I didn't. It's been a while since us four got together for a night of fun."

"OH, and what exactly are you planning for us?" Jordy teased.

"No plans," Jerry said blushing, "but you know? if it happens, it happens," he added grinning.

"But seriously, yeah, we'll have some fun, later, for sure," Seth said, "but right now, let's get the horror flick marathon started," he added as he grabbed the stack of DVDs on the coffee table.

They were at Seth and Jerry's cabin, pizza heating up in the oven, a fridge full of soda, tons of candy and other snacks, and hours and hours of unchaperoned time on their hands. It was just after 5pm, but already it was dark out, thanks to the clouds overhead, which had been hanging around all day. There was rain in the forecast, but so far it had remained dry, yet the air felt wet and heavy, and the wind blew icy cold.

"Texas Chainsaw Manicure, I mean massacre," Seth laughed, "or Chucky Cheese, I mean, Chucky, or..how about Friday the 13th, or Nightmare on Elm Street?"

"I don't care," Jordy said, heading to the kitchen to check on the pizza, "you guys pick, they're all the same plot. Stupid people never know when to run away," he chuckled.

After a couple minutes, Seth came in to help Jordy, and soon they had the pizza on the coffee table ready for the hungry teens to consume. To save time, all four boys had huge 64 ounce insulated cups with lids, full to the brim with soda, hopefully enough to last through at least the first movie.

As they ate, they watched Freddy Kruger slash some innocent teens without batting an eye.

"He's too cute to die, but he's so stupid," Jordy noted, "I would have been out of there before Freddy could sling his first finger at me."

"Sure, Jordo, sure," Seth laughed, "it's almost too lame the way this stuff happens. I wonder if anyone has ever really had to confront any evil like that. Because, you know? if they did, and they died, they'd never be able to tell anyone, and so...if there was someone like Freddy or Jason, then they could just go on killing people and no one would ever know who did it."

"Shut up," Jerry said looking a little frightened, "they're not real. Some guy just dreamed them up to make money."

"Hmm," I dunno," Lee said, trying to sound serious, "serial killers are real, and who knows, maybe some of them are like Freddy or Jason, or even...Chucky."

"Now you're just being dumb," Jerry huffed, "Chucky is a doll," he laughed.

"Like that one behind you!?" Lee said, his eyes filled with terror.

Jerry yelped and turned quickly, but of course there was nothing there. The laughter that erupted made Jerry blush at first, then with a big grin he shook his head and joined in.

"You got me. Damn, I gotta admit, when I was little, movies like this used to scare the crap out of me. Sometimes I'd have nightmares even if I just saw the previews to a scary movie. Candy Man was the worst one of all. I had a friend who pulled me into a bathroom one time, turned off the light and started chanting: "Candy Man, Candy Man"...but before he got to three I was out of there and halfway home."

Jordy could sympathize, but it was still funny. Seth chuckled, but didn't shame Jerry for his childhood fears, after all: everyone had some kind of phobia, his being: snakes.

"You know what?" Lee said finishing off his last piece of pizza, "this is lame. We should do something, go somewhere, maybe walk the campground and see if there is anything going on."

Jordy looked at Lee like he'd gone mad, but Seth jumped on his idea with both feet.

"Yeah, we really should, we can watch this shit later. We can walk down to the far end and see if anyone is partying or anything."

"There's hardly anyone even here," Jordy noted, "only those two couples who stay here till Spring on the RV pads. Dad said it's the slowest he's seen it since we got here."

"The cabins are full though, right?"

"Yeah, but some of the folks are probably in town eating, or whatever."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Come on, we don't have to stay out too long, just long enough to walk off our pizza and check things out. After all, it's Halloween night, who knows what freaky stuff is going on in the woods?" he said in a menacing voice.

"Are you trying to get me to stay here...alone?" Jerry chuckled, "if there are freaky things in the woods, I don't wanna see em."

"I'm teasing, but wouldn't it be cool if we saw a witch flying across the sky...or a skeleton dancing over the lake?" he laughed.

"Very funny," Jordy said, "well...I guess I'm game if you guys are. Jerry, you wanna go, or stay here...all alone?" Jordy said in a spooky voice, causing everyone to laugh.

"I'm not stayin' here alone, that's for sure. If you guys go, I'm going too."

"Okay, well...let's put our shoes back on and grab our coats. If I'd known I was gonna go for a stroll, I'd have brought my gloves and hat," Jordy said frowning.

"I have an extra stocking cap," Seth offered, "how about you, Jerry, do you have an extra?"

"Yeah, come on Lee, I'll grab it for you."

The boys met back in the living room, the DVD on pause as they went out the door. The cold air hit them immediately, cutting right to the bone as the boys shivered and pulled their collars up tight around their necks.

"Brr, you and your bright ideas," Jordy groused.

"Hey, it was my idea," Lee reminded him, "don't be such a wuss. The walk will warm you up, bro."

"If we die out here, it's your fault then," Jordy laughed.

The night was dark, and even the street lamps placed along the main road did little to light up their surrounding. It was almost as if the night was absorbing most of the light, only allowing a dull grayish beam to penetrate the darkness.

"You know, I don't know if it's just cause it's Halloween or what, but damn, it sure looks spooky out here," Seth said after a few minutes.

It was just about then that the fog moved in, coming up off the lake and reaching them so quickly it was almost as if it was chasing them. Of course, it was the wind that had moved the fog so quickly, and with it came frigid fingers of cold, the air cooled even further by the lake.

"That's creepy," Jordy noted, "I've only seen fog here one other time, and it wasn't this thick."

"Weird weather conditions, that's all," Lee said, though he too was surprised a little by the sudden fog.

"We should go back," Jerry said, trying to be the voice of reason.

"No way, we're almost halfway there."

The cabins were in the opposite direction, cabin 7, Jerry and Seth's home, being the last cabin on that side of the road. No one had thought to look toward the other cabins as they started out, but if they had they would have seen that all of them, including The Kellys', were dark.

"I think I see a light ahead," Seth said just as something dark darted from the sky, then zoomed past them, heading back the way they had just come.

"What the hell was that?" Jordy said, grabbing Seth and holding on for dear life.

"A bat...maybe," Seth conjectured, "or...a demon from hell," he added with a chuckle.

"It was probably just a bird. We probably scared it and it just wanted to get away in case we were a danger..." Lee suggested.

"I thought birds slept in the trees, way up high," Jerry said looking around nervously.

"They do, I guess we woke the little fella up," Seth said, trying to convince himself as much as the others.

"We should definitely go back..." Jerry started."

"No, we've come this far, let's go on," Seth suggested, "I like spooky stuff like this, who's with me."

"It is kinda fun," Lee agreed, then seeing the look of uncertainty on Jerry and Jordy's face he laid a hand on their shoulders and smiled, "think about it, you'll have something to tell your kids when you're all grown up."

"Yeah, if we live through it," Jerry mumbled, and the others laughed.

"I guess we are being silly. We've roamed these roads a hundred times, day and night, and I never felt the least bit scared or worried. It's just cause it's Halloween night, that's all," Jordy admitted.

Jerry sighed, "I hope so."

They'd reached the first RV pad then, where an older couple named Johnson had parked a huge Winnebago motor home, complete with a fold out dining room. A canopy covered the area just outside the door, and beneath it was a BBQ grill, folding chairs and a table, as well as a few odds and ends.

There was one light on that the boys could see at the front of the RV, though it wasn't very bright. The only sound the boys could hear was a whooshing sound, probably the fan on the heater, and of course the howling wind that seemed to have picked up in velocity as well as gotten colder.

"Should we check on them?" Jordy wondered out loud.

"Yeah, they're nice people. They'd probably be happy to see us," Seth assured him.

"Okay, maybe they'll invite us in for some hot cocoa," Jordy joked.

"Or, blooood," Seth said in a corny vampire voice.

"Shut up," Jerry said frowning.

Seth didn't bother answering or defending his joke, instead he led the way to the door and knocked loud enough for anyone inside to hear. Seconds passed, then a minute, then two, and Seth knocked again. Still no answer.

"Huh, that's weird," Seth said, then before the others could react he darted off around the RV, then returned a couple minutes later, "their bug is gone."

"Huh?" Lee said, not understanding, but Jordy knew exactly what he was saying. The couple towed a VW Beetle around with them and used it for trips into town and such.

"Their VW Bug," Jordy explained, "they're probably in town having dinner or something."

"Oh, okay...cool."

"Who's that?" Seth said suddenly as a dark figure approached from behind them, their foot falls muffled by the fog and dampness, but still loud enough to alert Seth.

"Whaaa?" Jordy said, thinking at first that Seth was just playing another trick on them.

"Hello!" Seth called then, but it was quiet now, and the ghostly presence they'd all seen a moment before was gone.

"What the..." Seth said, the look of terror on his face obvious to the other boys.

"No, who the..." Jerry said, "let's head back, guys."

"Okay, but... he was umm, coming from that way," Jordy reminded them.

"Let's take the path by the lake then," Seth whispered.

"I dunno..." Jordy said, torn between the two equally scary choices.

"It's not that far. We can take the path by the shed when we reach the fork in the path," Seth whispered to the other three who were huddled close now.

"I wish we'd brought a damned flashlight," Jordy said sounding annoyed.

"I have one on my phone," Lee offered, "we all do."

"I left my phone back in the cabin," Jerry said frowning.

"Me too," Seth sighed in exasperation.

"I have mine," Jordy said pulling his phone out of his pocket, "I never leave home without it, mom and dad have drilled that into my head a million times."

"Cool, we have two flashlights then," Lee confirmed.

"Okay, stay by me, Jordy, and guide the way. Lee, you stick by Jer and make sure he doesn't run off," Seth teased.

"Huh, like that's gonna happen," Jerry said nervously.

"Watch your step," Seth warned, "watch out for fallen limbs and stuff, the wind has been playing heck with the trees lately."

As if on cue, they suddenly came to a rather large downed tree limb, the once colorful leaves now a dull drab grey, looking wilted and beaten, some of them so dry they made a crunching sound in the wind.

"Dang, how did Daddyo miss this one, it's huge," Seth said, more to himself than to the others, "be careful as you climb over it, it may not be stable. The smaller limbs are all that's supporting it now."

"Can't we just go around it?" Jordy wondered.

"It's water on one side and uneven ground on the other, are you feeling lucky, or maybe you plan on swimming back to my cabin?" Seth joked.

"Okay, Mr. Wise Guy, you go first and show us how it's done," Jordy said cuffing Seth gently.

"Shine the light near that big end, yeah there...wait, what was tha..." but suddenly something small and dark was running their way and the words died in Seth's mouth as he grabbed Jordy and jerked him back.

"What's going on..." Jerry cried, then seeing what the other two boys had, he let out a little squeak, "what the fuck is that?" he shouted, the F word just slipping out of his usual very civil mouth.

Seth burst into laughter then, bending over to put his hands on his knees as if he was winded, "its' a damn squirrel. What the heck are you doing up so late, Mr. Numbnuts, have you been out trick-or-treating?"

"Damn," I almost had a heart attack," Jordy said, managing a chuckle.

"Lee?" Jer said from behind them as he suddenly realized the light was gone, and along with it, Lee.

"Lee!" Jordy called out.

"Lee!" Seth shouted, but there was no reply, just the howling of the wind and the slapping of the water against the shore of the lake.

🦇 🦇 🦇 🦇 🦇 🦇

"Where could he be?" Jordy said, the strain clearly showing through as his voice cracked a little.

"I dunno, he was right there, and then he wasn't..." Jerry said in a shaky voice, "I looked away to see what you guys were talking about and when I looked back he was gone."

"We'll have to go back the way we came," Seth said then, "he obviously didn't cross the fallen tree limb since we were right here, so he had to go back that way."

"But why?" Jordy almost whined, "why would he leave us? Unless...unless someone grabbed him or something."

"Nah, if someone had grabbed him there would have been a scuffle, and Lee would have cried out. For whatever reason, Lee left us of his own free will," Seth reasoned.

"Unless..." Jerry said looking pale now, "unless it was something...like, like, a ghost or something."

Any other time Jordy would have laughed, but in light of what had just happened, he dared not do so for fear he might be angering whatever forces were at play here.

However, Seth had no problem mocking whatever forces were at work here. "I ain't afraid of no ghosts," Seth said softly, his mantra for the moment, then he repeated it, over and over, and soon Jerry and Jordy joined in.

"We ain't afraid of no ghosts," they finally said as one, then Seth held up his hand, and once again only the sound of the wind and the waves on the shore filled the night air.

They formed a tight triangle as they headed back, Seth on point with Jordy's phone in hand, the usually bright flashlight barely putting a dent in the fog as they cautiously moved along. They'd reached the RV pad now, but the Johnson's bug was still gone, and they knew there was no help to be found there.

The other RV site that was occupied was a good ways further down, and though they considered going there for help, in the end they decided they would lose too much precious time and decided to go back, hoping to either run into Lee, or find him back at the cabin.

"He's probably playing a trick on us," Jordy said under his breath, "and I am going to kill him for real if Freddy hasn't already."

Seth managed a chuckle, "I bet you're right. He seems like the type who'd do that."

"He is, trust me. Back in Chicago he was always pulling shit like this on me."

"What if...what if he's not just fooling around?" Jerry said meekly, "what if something really happened to him?" he added, sounding near tears.

"He's fine," Jordy said stubbornly, "I can feel it, but we still need to find him. Come on, no more wasting time."

The trip back to the cabin was without incident, even though they had feared they might meet the stranger on the path, or be dive-bombed by the dark creature from the sky. While cabin 7 glowed with light from almost every window, the boys now noticed that all of the other cabins, including Jordy's were dark.

"Holy shit, what the..." Seth said pointing, "it's like a blackout, except for our cabin."

"Well, could be the people inside are just...watching TV or something. Maybe they're watching horror flicks in the dark too," Jordy reasoned, "or like I said, some of them might be in town...or whatever."

"But, do you think your folks would leave no lights on at your place?"

"Well, no, but it's possible you can't see the light from here. Maybe it's the kitchen light, that would be on the backside."

"Whatever," Seth said sounding unconvinced, "let's go inside and see if Lee's there."

"Not only was there light inside cabin 7, but it seemed that every light was now on, despite there only being a few lights on when they'd left. And even though they'd put the horror flick on pause when they'd left, it was now playing again, Freddy's evil laugh causing all three boys to startle.

"What the..." Seth said, "I paused that..." he added, finally realizing it was movie and not Freddy himself that had almost scared the pee out of him, "and we didn't turn all these lights on, that's for sure..."

"So...Lee must've turned them on," Jerry said sounding hopeful, "and started the movie...but where is he?"

"Lee, Lee! You here bro?" Seth called then, his words so loud they almost hurt the other boys' ears.

"Lee! Lee!" Jordy called as well, and soon Jerry joined in, but there was no reply, and certainly no sign of him in the main room or dining room, which was also visible from where they stood.

"Let's fan out and look for him?" Seth suggested, and Jordy almost laughed.

"Are you crazy? If there is one thing I've learned from watching horror movies, it's don't split up."

"Yeah," Jerry agreed, "we should definitely stay together."

"Okay, okay, you two go check the bathroom and the bedrooms, and I'll check the loft. I ain't afraid to go off alone, besides, if I need help you can hear me scream from back there," he teased.

"Don't kid about that," Jordy said, "I am five seconds away from calling mom and dad..." he threatened.

"No, don't do that. If you do that they will never let us stay alone again," Seth warned, "there's a logical explanation for Lee's disappearance, we just haven't figured it out, yet."

"All right, come on, Jerry," Jordy said, "stick close, okay?"

"Any closer and he'd be up your butt," Seth chuckled.

"Shut up, or I know a certain boy who won't be getting near my butt, later."

"I'm coo, I'm coo," Seth said holding up his hands in surrender, "I'm going now..." he added as he slipped around the corner to the kitchen and the steep staircase beyond it, "so far, so good. Kitchen is clear..." he yelled to them.

"Okay, bathroom first," Jordy said, but as expected there was no one there, even though the overhead light and vanity lights burned brightly.

"My room is next," Jerry said, swallowing hard to keep his stomach in place.

Fortunately, the door to Jerry's bedroom was open and with the overhead light on, and the bedside lamp, the room was brightly lit. No shadows lurked in the almost glaring light, and a quick check of all the usual hiding places, under the bed, the closet, etc, turned up nothing, and no one.

"My dads' room," Jerry said holding his breath. He was there or nowhere, unless of course, Seth found him in the loft, but a quick search of Mack and Mark's room produced no clues as to Lee's whereabouts either.

"You guys okay?" Seth said from the end of the hallway, "nothin' in the loft."

"We're okay, nothing here either," Jordy said stepping out into the hall, Jerry hot on his heels.

"Damn, where's that kid gone off to?" Seth said, "I bet he's somewhere laughing his ass off right now."

"If this is a damn trick, I'm gonna disown him," Jordy said with no real commitment. He'd just be happy to find Lee was okay, and would probably be able to laugh about the whole thing if it turned out to be a prank.

"Now what?" Jerry said biting his lip.

"Well, we can either wait here for him to get tired of the prank, or...go back out and look for him," Seth said leading the two back into the living room. Then picking up his drink cup, Seth took a gulp of the still cold and bubbly soda and belched, "'scuse me," he said grinning.

Jordy hadn't realized that he too was thirsty till he saw Seth take a drink, now he and Jerry both were sipping from their cups of soda.

"I say we go back out and look around," Jordy said at last, "Jerry, if you don't want to go you can stay here and lock all the doors and stay by your phone."

"No way!" Jerry said, a look of terror on his face, "I'm not staying here...all alone."

"Okay, then it's settled. But this time we go prepared, Seth, grab the flashlights."

"Good idea," Seth said heading toward the kitchen, where he pulled out a drawer and grabbed a four D-cell battery flashlight, and a smaller version of it that was almost as bright.

"I have one in the loft too," Seth said, "wait here, I'll be right back, that way we'll all have a light."

"Hurry," Jordy said, watching Seth scamper up the stairs as quickly as the squirrel they'd seen earlier on the fallen tree.

"Where will we look?" Jerry asked meekly.

"I dunno, by the lake maybe, down by the bridge. If he's really tricking us though, he's probably close by."

"I can't believe he'd stay out there all by himself just to trick us," Jerry reasoned, "no way would I do anything like that."

"Me either, but I guess Lee is a lot braver than I thought...if that's what he's doing."

"Back," Seth said taking the last two steps as one, then gliding to a halt next to Jordy.

"As ready as I'll ever be," Jordy sighed, "lead the way."

"Sure, you want the monster to get me first," Seth teased, but neither Jordy or Jerry had a comeback for that one.

The fog seemed to have lifted a bit, at least here, away from the lake, and though still cold, the wind wasn't as biting as before. Overhead, the sky was still overcast, allowing no moonlight or starlight to seep through, and the boys were glad for their flashlights.

Seth and Jerry had also grabbed their phones, now all three boys were equipped with a life line as well as a flashlight. Passing the first cabin, the boys strained to see if any light filtered in from the window on this side, but the only light was that reflected from their flashlights, giving the cabin an eerie look.

"Maybe there's a line down," Seth said, then realizing his cabin had power, he realized how silly that sounded. However, neither Jordy or Jerry bothered to contradict him.

At the end of the road was Jordy's cabin and the office, and just like the other cabins, it was completely dark.

Seth looked at Jordy who just shrugged, "I have my key, we could go inside..."

"Not till we find Lee..." Seth said, and Jordy nodded.

"Guys, what if...what if there is some kind of...evil force here that only comes out on Halloween?" Jerry said, his teeth almost chattering, but not from the cold, rather from fear.

"That's...silly," Seth said quickly, but that didn't stop the goosebumps from forming all over his arms and legs.

"Let's check the trail down by the bridge," there's a light pole down there now. Dad had one installed for safety reasons," Jordy explained, though Jerry and Seth already knew of the light's existence.

"Okay, we can make a loop down there, then follow the trail down by the lake and boat dock if we don't find him by then."

The boys moved quietly and slowly down the path, the leaves scattered at their feet occasionally stirred by the wind as if they were a living creature. All three boys had goosebumps and their breathing and heartbeat were rapid, making them feel a little light headed.

The fog seemed to have abated for the most part, though some still hovered in the lower areas, and when they reached it, the pedestrian bridge. Stopping for a moment to stare out at the lake and below at the fog, the boys listened for any signs of life, but again only the howling of the wind, the stirring of the leaves, and the slap, slap, slap of the lake water against the shore were the only sounds they heard.

"Lee! Lee!" Seth shouted then, cupping his hands to make his voice carry further.

The shrill sound of Seth's voice send a chill up the other two boys' spines, and Jordy was tempted to tell him to stop, as if he were afraid someone other than Lee might hear him and know their location.

"What was that?" Jerry said, suddenly grabbing hold of Jordy's arm, "listen, I heard something over there," he said pointing a finger toward the woods on the other side of the bridge.

"What? Probably a squirrel or something," Seth said, hoping he was right, but feeling the need to investigate anyway.

"Come on," it was Jordy who spoke then, his need to find his brother overpowering his fear of the unknown.

"Yeah," Seth said, "stay close," he said, but if the other two had been any closer they'd have been in his skin.

"Lee!" Jordy shouted in a voice just loud enough to carry, but not so loud as to be alarming.

"Lee, Lee!" Jerry joined in, and soon all three boys were calling his name.

Seth suddenly put out his hands and stopped the other two, then put his finger to his mouth to quiet them, "Shhh, listen..."

They did, listen, and above the sounds of the night, the wind, the leaves, the constant slap, slap, slap of the waves against the shore, they heard something else: a low moan that caused their hackles to rise and their goosebumps to get goosebumps.

"What the heck is that?" Jordy whispered.

Jordy had never been this scared, and his first impulse was to run away as fast as his feet would carry him. However, his sense of loyalty and concern for his lost brother soon overpowered that need to flee, and he steeled himself for whatever lay ahead.

"It sounds like someone is hurt," Jerry whispered, his grip on Seth and Jordy's arms so tight it was almost painful.

"Maybe a wounded animal," Seth suggested, "or...a mountain lion. They sort of growl and moan, but as far as I know there has never been any mountain lions spotted near here."

"Maybe it escaped from that zoo over in Locust Grove..." Jerry suggested.

"The petting zoo?" Seth chuckled despite the situation, "I think they only have tame animals there."

"Should we...go closer?" Jordy wondered, hoping Seth would say no.

"I guess we should, but first, let's see if we can find a weapon. I wish I had brought the hunting knife dad bought me for my birthday when I was ten..."

"Lot of good it does us now," Jordy groused, "maybe we can find a tree limb or something, small enough to hold on to, but big enough to bash a head in," he added, almost laughing, almost.

"If it's a ghost, it won't matter," Jerry reminded them, "we need a cross or something."

Seth did laugh this time, and the other two boys grinned when he reminded Jerry that crosses were to ward off vampires.

"I found something," Seth said digging in a pile of leaves, "it's a piece of rebar, probably left over from when they built the bridge, or put in the light pole. It's kinda rusty, but solid."

"Good," Jordy said as he picked up a tree branch about two inches in diameter and three feet long, then hefted it in his hand, "this feels pretty solid, at least it's not rotted or full of termites. It must've fallen recently."

"I got this," Jerry said presenting a medium sized rock in his hands, "I'll bash the thing's head in with it," he growled.

"Whoa, calm down tiger," Seth chuckled, "we just want to protect ourselves, not go on a killing spree. Besides, it might be Lee out there moaning."

As if on cue, the moaning began again, this time a little closer, and the boys stood still and listened for a moment, then Seth motioned them to be quiet and to follow him.

Cautiously they crept along the path, but the moaning seemed to be coming from the woods rather than the path ahead. Most of the trees still held a fair amount of autumn tinged leaves, and of course the evergreens were always full and beautiful, providing a natural cover for anyone, or anything lurking in the woods.

"Over there," Seth whispered so softly only Jerry and Jordy could possibly hear him.

Jordy nodded, and Jerry followed their lead, the rock in his hand seeming to gain weight the longer he held it.

Suddenly, a dark form emerged from the bushes and ran straight at them, emitting a howling, moaning sound so loud it almost hurt their ears. The boys dived to one side, Jerry landing on Jordy as Seth fell to the other side, the piece of steel rebar dropping to the ground to be buried in the wet soggy leaves.

By the time the boys had recovered enough to follow the progress of whoever, or whatever had ran past them, the dark figure was on the bridge, headed back toward camp, running at what looked like top speed.

"Oh, my God, I almost had a heart attack," Jerry said, his breathing labored and his heart beating nearly out of his chest.

"What was that?" Jordy gasped as he managed to stand.

"Dunno, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't Lee," Seth said, offering Jerry a hand up as he rose.

"He...it, was heading back toward camp. Do we dare follow it?" Jordy wondered.

"We can't stay out here, that's for sure," Seth said, "we'd be safer in our cabin, but there's still the question of: where is Lee?"

"We should just call my folks and get it over with," Jordy said whipping out his phone.

"No, wait!" Seth said putting his hand over Jordy's to block access to his phone, "let's keep looking. If we don't find him by the lake, we can call, but I have a feeling he's nearby."

Seth looked for the piece of rebar he'd dropped, but even with the flashlight he was unable to recover his weapon. Jordy and Jerry didn't even bother to try to find their weapons, instead they just followed Seth closely as he headed back toward the path that led across the bridge.

It was definitely colder now, and the wind had picked up a bit as well. The clouds, which had been blocking out the night sky now parted, allowing the moon to peek through, an almost ominous orb that seemed to be watching the boys' every step.

"You know, this is gonna be one Halloween I will never forget," Jordy said almost in a whisper.

"Yeah, but in a way...it's kinda fun," Seth said, admitting what all three boys had been thinking off and on since the night began.

"Yeah, sort of like getting electrocuted would be," Jordy giggled nervously.

"I get what you mean," Jerry said quietly, "it's kinda scary, like being in a fun house or something, and if Lee wasn't missing, it wouldn't be all that bad."

"Yeah, I can't quit thinking that Lee is part of all this though," Jordy said looking thoughtful, "I wonder..."

"What?" Seth coaxed him.

"Nothing, let's go back to my cabin first, Lee has a key too, he could have gone there."

"Good thinking, I can't believe I didn't think of that before," Seth said, slapping his hand against his forehead, like in the V8 commercials.

"If he is, we can just stay there," Jerry said hopefully.

"Yeah, and after we kick his ass till he can't sit down, we'll make him our personal slave forever," Seth teased.

"No, if he's part of this, we have to be good sports about it," Jordy said seriously, "Think about it: it's not like one of us wouldn't do the same thing if we had the chance. Playing tricks on your friends is...well, very cool...as long as it doesn't get too far out of hand."

"Like this one?" Jerry mumbled.

"Well, so far it's just been a game of chase. Now that I'm not scared out of my wits, and ready to pee my pants, I think that thing running toward us earlier might have been lee dressed up or something. He was about the right height, and I'm pretty sure Lee could scream like that if he needed to."

"I dunno," Seth said, "I suppose it could've been, but how did he get dressed up and get across the bridge before us, and...what about the lights, and the dark shadowy figure back on the trail...?"

"Okay, okay, so I don't have all the answers, but I'm just saying, it could've been Lee, and not some creature from hell," Jordy said, almost grinning, almost.

"Look!" Jerry said as they approached Jordy's cabin, "the lights are on now."

"That means someone has been there," Seth said excitedly.

"Duh," Jordy laughed, but it wasn't a mean laugh, more of a nervous one, "but was it Lee, or the creature from the lake?"

"Ha ha, good one, Jordo," Seth laughed, "I've lived here a while, and if there was a creature from the lake, he and I would have been good friends by now."

Jordy and Jerry laughed nervously, "No doubt, and with his help you might have pulled off something like this," Jordy teased.

"Nah, I wouldn't have gone to this much trouble, but whoever is behind this...whatever it is, is going all out."

"Come on, let's see if whoever turned the lights on is still in there."

"Guys..." Jerry said pointing to the other cabins now, "the lights are back on down there too."

"Hmm, maybe they're on a separate circuit or something..." Seth mused, "I've never really thought about it before..."

They were at the cabin now, and though Jordy had his key out, the door was obviously unlocked since it was slightly ajar. Cautiously, Jordy pushed the door open wider, a slice of orange-yellow light spilling out onto the porch as he did so. The heat from inside flowed out as well, a reminder of just how cold it was outside, and despite any fears they may have had about who or what was inside, they quickly entered the cabin and closed the door behind them.

"Hello!" Jordy called out in what his mom liked to call his, 'inside voice'.

"Lee!" Seth added, his voice a bit louder.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are..." Jerry sang nervously.

Nothing.

"Let's check out the kitchen first," Jordy suggested, leading the way this time, since this was after all his home, and he knew every square inch of it and could have navigated it blindfolded.

As expected the kitchen was vacant, as was the dining room, and a quick search of the screened in back porch came up empty as well.

"Come on, let's check out the rest of the cabin, but I'm guessing we're not gonna find anyone," Jordy predicted, a prediction that would prove to be true.

"So, now what?" Seth said plopping down on the couch once they'd returned to the living room.

"Now we call mom and dad?" Jordy suggested.

"No, not yet," surprisingly it was Jerry who protested the idea of getting the adults involved.

"Seth is right, if we call them now, we'll never live this down and they'll hire babysitters from now on before they leave us alone. We're not little kids, we can figure this out. Anyway, we're pretty sure it's a prank, so I don't think we're in danger..."

"Wow, drop you pants," Seth teased, "I want to see those balls you just grew."

For some reason both Jerry and Jordy thought that was about the funniest thing they'd ever heard, and suddenly they were practically rolling on the floor with laughter. Seth just smiled at first, glad they appreciated his wit, then he too began to laugh.

"Better...to...laugh...than...cry," he managed to say between guffaws.

The laughter dried up rather quickly though as the boys realized they were running out of time and needed to make a decision, and soon.

"Hey, I just had a brilliant idea," Seth said lighting up, "we been running around like chickens with our heads cut off, but what if we grabbed the four-wheelers and did our looking on them."

"Seth, I could kiss you," Jordy said excitedly, "oh what the hell, come here, I will kiss you. That's a great idea. We can all three take a 4-wheeler and no one, I mean no one can outrun us on those things."

"I dunno," Jerry said, his bravura having faded a bit, "couldn't I just ride with one of you guys,"

"Actually, that's probably a better idea," Jordy said, "no need to use all three when two will do. And... if we find Lee we'll still have room for him too."

"Okay, let's go, but first...I gotta piss like a racehorse," Seth moaned.

After all three boys took a turn at the toilet, they zipped up their jackets, grabbed the keys to the ATVs and headed toward the newly constructed, much larger shed that held the ATVs and other equipment needed to maintain the campground. This shed was much closer to Jordy's cabin and the office, and they were there within a couple minutes.

The roll-up door could be opened by punching in a code on a pin pad, which was housed in a weatherproof box, and both Seth and Jordy knew the code. Jordy, however, did the honors this time, and as the door slowly went up they waited till it was about four feet from the ground then ducked under it and went inside.

The ATVs were gassed up and ready, as always, and their helmets were hanging on a rack nearby. There were leather driving gloves as well, and each boy slipped on a pair after fastening their helmets in place.

Jordy started his engine first, followed by Seth, then Jerry climbed on behind him, not because he didn't trust Jordy, but because he was standing on that side of the garage and nearer to Seth.

"Seth!" Jordy called out over the roar of the engines, "lead the way, go down by the RVs first, okay?"

Seth nodded and revved his engine before engaging the clutch and roaring out of the garage. However, he stopped at the paved road that led through the camp while he waited for Jordy to punch in the code and close the roll-up door.

Jordy rolled up behind Seth then and gave him a thumbs up, and they were off. Though the road was scattered with leaves here and there, it was dry for the most part, and the all terrain tires of the ATVs gripped it firmly as they sped toward the far end of the campground.

The wind was at their backs this time, but it still felt colder now riding than it had been walking. Fortunately, it didn't take long to reach their destination, though it looked as if nothing had changed in their absence. The old couple's VW Beetle was still gone, and there was no one stirring at this end of the camp, but there was still one more RV that they hadn't bothered with earlier.

From his position beside Jordy, Seth leaned over and yelled to his boyfriend, "Let's try the other RV, I think the folks are named Ford, or something like that."

Jordy nodded, "Lead the way!" he shouted back.

And just like that they were off again, the sound of their engines filling up the night air like something tangible.

What would have taken them ten minutes on foot was easily covered in two, as they reached the far end of the RV section where the second long term RV was parked. There were lights on in the front part of the RV which they found encouraging, but they were surprised when no one came out to see what the noise was.

Shutting off their engines, they removed their helmets and were headed toward the door when it flew open, banging against the side of the RV, then flopping back and forth slowly in the wind. They waited for someone, anyone, to appear, but when no one did, Seth took a step forward and stared up into the huge vehicle.

"Hello, anyone home?" Seth called out, "It's Seth, my dad works here. We um...we were looking for our friend...Lee, he's disappeared..." he said trailing off, realizing how silly he might sound to anyone inside.

"Should we go in? Maybe they're hurt or need help," Jordy gulped.

Without answering, Seth moved closer, leaning in the doorway and peeking to the left into the heart of the RV. It was only dimly lit, but as far as he could tell no one was inside.

"I don't see anyone..." Seth said, they must've gone into town too and forgot to lock the door," he said closing the door with a loud bang that caused all three boys to jump.

"Geeze, you mean, we're the only people in this whole camp?" Jerry said looking around.

"Well, there must be folks in the cabins..." Jordy offered.

"Come on," Seth said, "let's circle back and go to the bridge again and check out that end of the camp. Then, if we don't find anything we can head along the trail by the lake. Of course we can't go all the way through because of that big tree across the path, but there's room to turn around..."

"K," Jordy nodded. Anything is better than just sitting here, exposed like this, he thought with a shiver. Besides, they had to find Lee, and soon, or he was going to have to call his folks, and that was one conversation he'd rather not have tonight.

They zoomed off, this time a little faster. The air was clear now, with no hint of fog, and the moon offered it's light, adding to that from the strategically placed light poles with their mercury-vapor lamps. It only took a few minutes to reach the bridge, but here the slowed since the bridge was rather narrow. The lone light pole at the end of the camp seemed brighter now, casting an almost comforting glow over the path and the turnaround, but the woods beyond it were still shrouded in darkness.

"Wait," Jordy said holding up a hand as he climbed off his ATV. Then walking over to a patch of bare ground he stared down at something that had caught his eye.

"What is it?" Seth said, approaching with Jerry right behind him.

"A footprint, maybe..." Jordy said, staring down at the slight indentation in the soft moist earth.

"Holy crap, it is," Seth said, "and it's not a monster foot, it's a regular old athletic shoe. Maybe Lee left it."

"Wait, where were we when the thing charged us earlier?" Jordy said standing.

"Over here, I think," Seth said, moving a few feet forward, then stopping to gaze down at the ground. The piece of rebar he hadn't been able to recover earlier was now clearly visible, some of the leaves having been blown from around it, and Seth stooped to pick it up, "Yeah, here, here's the rebar I dropped. I must've been about right here," he said duplicating his position as accurately as possible.

"Then whoever ran past us ran through this patch of dirt and left the footprint."

"Lee?" Jerry asked then.

"Probably, that shit, he's behind all of this, I just know it," Jordy scowled.

"He's a fast little fucker," Seth chuckled, "but I bet he can't outrun the ATVs. Come on, let's find that little weenie and tie his ass up and bring him in."

They zoomed off again, barely slowing as they crossed the bridge, but this time they took the turnoff onto the path that ran by the lake. It was not as wide as the other paths in the camp, but it was paved and there were no pot holes or other obstructions to slow them down. As they passed the new boat dock, they noted that it was dark except for a couple of security lights, and obviously no one was around this time of night. The old boat house was next, but other than a light on the side of the structure it was dark there as well.

Seth slowed down after they passed the boat house, and Jordy became more cautious so as not to rear-end the two ahead of him. The path curved to the right now, and trees grew on either side of the path here, making it appear as if the boys were riding through a dark tunnel. Seth slowed even more now, barely coasting as they neared the area where the tree blocked the road, and when it appeared ahead he rolled to a stop, his brake light alerting Jordy to brake as well.

"Nothing," Seth sighed, but suddenly, on the other side of the fallen tree he saw movement and practically jumped off his 4-wheeler so he could get a better look at who or what had caught his attention.

"What is it?" Jordy asked as he and Jerry joined Seth.

"I saw something...there...by that tree where the path curves. Do you see it?"

"I can't...no, wait...yeah, I see...someone, or something. Do you think it's Lee?" Jordy said hopefully.

"Maybe, damn tree," Seth swore, "if it wasn't for this damned tree we could easily catch him."

"We'll have to go back and come in the other way..." Jordy reasoned.

"Yeah, and while we do that, he'll climb over the tree and be on this side..."

"I never thought of that..." Jordy admitted.

"So, the only way to corner him is to split up. I know, I know, we shouldn't split up, but you can keep Jerry with you, and I'll drive around and herd him this way. I can drive faster than you, and no one is gonna mess with me when I'm flying along at 50 mph."

"I guess, but be careful," Jordy said, leaning in to give Seth a kiss on the lips, "I don't want to wind up losing two boys I love."

"I promise. Jerry, stay here with Jordy and hang tight, "If that's Lee, he's about to find out he's met his match," Seth chuckled.

With one final look at the two and a thumbs up, he was off, flying down the path now that he knew the way was clear.

Meanwhile, Jordy and Seth stood leaning on the fallen tree, peering into the darkness beyond, but they could see nothing. For all they knew, Lee, or whoever could be lurking in the shadows, or they could have fled as soon as they'd been detected.

They soon heard the roar of Seth's ATV as he neared the spot on the other side of the path, then it seemed to slow down even as it grew nearer. Ahead, they could finally see the single headlamp of the ATV and hear the engine's purr as he slowly crept along, Seth no doubt searching the surrounding woods for some sign of Lee.

Suddenly, Jordy's phone alerted him to a text message and he almost peed himself before realizing what it was, and pulling his phone out of his pocket. It was from Seth.

Huck Finn: don't see anyone, you?

Jordy almost laughed, every time he saw Seth's witty screen name for himself he thought about the first time he'd described him as being like that character from Tom Sawyer.

Jordo: can't see a thing except your headlight...lol.

Huck Finn: oh...lol. Gonna use the flashlight and look around

Jordo: be careful

Huck Finn: gotcha

Suddenly, the headlight on the ATV went out, and for a moment Jordy panicked, but when the powerful beam of the flashlight replaced it, he relaxed. He could see the beam sweeping the woods on either side of the trail, then coming closer as Seth made his way toward the fallen tree.

Then suddenly, he heard a shrill cry and heard a commotion as a dark figure sprang from the bushes and ran away, surprising Seth who nearly dropped his flashlight as he cried out.

"Shit! What the hell. Lee, if that's you I'm gonna kick your ass when I catch up to you," Seth yelled, and with that he was on the ATV and zooming away down the trail, his red tail light disappearing into the gloomy darkness.

"Come on, Jerry, let's head over there too. Seth has him cornered so he can't come back this way."

Jordy wasn't quite as daring as Seth, but he managed to maintain a good speed, and within five minutes he was turning onto the lake trail from the opposite end. He could hear Seth's ATV off in the distance, guessing he was probably near the man-made beach, which was located at that end of the campground. Then suddenly he heard Seth's ATV slow down, and minutes later the engine died.

The only sounds now were the howling of the wind, the slap, slap, slap of the waves against the shore, and his own ATV, which seemed to be louder now that Seth's ATV was silent.

What happened?" Jerry called into Jordy's ear.

"I dunno, maybe he found him," Jordy said, hoping for the best.

"There, I see the ATV," Jerry said pointing. Although the ATV was silent now the headlight still shone brightly, casting a narrow beam of light onto the beach and just reaching the edge of the lake.

"What the..." Jordy said as they got closer.

Seth was standing beside his ATV, his helmet in hand, staring out at the beach and the lake as if he was hypnotized. However, once Jordy pulled up beside him, Seth swung around, and without uttering a word, he pointed to where he had been looking.

"Someone built a fire," Jerry said, stating the obvious, and that someone, along with two other someones were standing on the lakeside of the beach, their faces obscured by the fire.

"There are three of them," Jordy said, more to himself than to the other two boys.

"They've just been standing there the whole time," Seth said, "the one I was chasing ran down there, then I saw there were two more."

"Hey, notice anything odd about them?" Jordy said in a moment of clarity.

Seth laughed, "Yeah, everything. What do you mean?"

"Two of them are tall and the other one is about our size, like two adults and one teenager."

"Yeah, or two big monsters and one small one," Jerry laughed nervously.

"Monsters don't exist," Jordy assured him, even though he knew there were many definitions for monsters, who often appeared to be as human as he did. Like the ones who shot up schools and killed little kids.

"I say we walk down there and see what's up with them," Seth said keeping his eyes on the dark figures the whole time.

"What are they wearing?" Jerry said, squinting in the darkness to make out how they were dressed.

"Dunno, looks like all black, but it's hard to tell from here. The one I was chasing was definitely in black, and I didn't see any skin at all, not even his face. Like maybe it was painted black too."

"What if they're criminals or something? Maybe I should call mom and dad..." Jordy said, keeping an eye on the three strangers as well.

"Even if you did, it'd be at least a half hour before they got here. Come on, we've got to take care of this ourselves," Seth said nudging Jordy.

"Okay, but if we die...it's your fault."

"Don't say that," Jerry said looking around to make sure there weren't any other surprises coming for them from somewhere else in the darkness.

"I'm kidding," Jordy mumbled, "I hope," he added in a whisper.

"Maybe we should ride the 4-wheelers over there. That way we could get away quickly if they try anything..." Jerry suggested.

"What do you think, Jordo?"

Jordy sighed, "No, let's walk over there. If they try anything we can run back and still get away before they catch us, I hope."

Seth laughed nervously, "You're a ray of sunshine, aren't you?"

"Guys, I think they're moving," Jerry said pointing at the three figures beyond the fire.

"Maybe they're gonna come to us," Seth suggested, then suddenly all hell broke loose as the three figures came running toward them, making that same shrill cry the lone figure had made down by the bridge.

"Holy shit, let's get out of here," Seth said abandoning his plan to greet the mysterious visitors on their own ground.

"Despite being terrified nearly out of their skin, the three somehow managed to get on the 4-wheelers, though neither Jordy or Seth had time to fasten their helmets. From behind him, Jerry managed to get Seth's fastened, and somehow Jordy managed to secure his as well, one-handed.

As they zoomed off toward the trail, Jerry looked back to see that the three dark figures were now nowhere in sight.

"What the? It's like they disappeared," Jerry said, nudging Seth, "they're gone."

Seth turned to see what Jerry meant, then applied the brakes to slow to a stop. Jordy, who was slightly in front of Seth, heard him brake and slowed down, then circled back to see what the problem was. Scared or not, he wasn't going to leave his two friends to die alone.

"What is it?" Jordy asked as he rode up to meet them, then seeing what they had seen, that no one was there, he added, "Oh, that's weird. Where did they go?"

"Beats me," Seth said staring at the beach, picking out the fire in the distance but seeing no signs of the mysterious strangers, "it's like they vanished."

"Or hid," Jerry suggested, "maybe in the woods..."

"Maybe, but why did they give up so easy?" Seth wondered.

"Cause no one could outrun us on the 4-wheelers," Jerry reasoned, "even monsters know that."

As cranked up as their emotions were, for some reason that sounded like the funniest thing they had ever heard, and all three boys broke out in laughter.

When the laughter at last subsided, Seth wiped his mouth of spittle and sighed, "well, we can either go find them, or...go back to the cabin and hunker down till our folks get back.

"No, I'm calling someone first," Jordy said stubbornly, "but not mom and dad, I'm calling Nate."

"Nate, but what can he do?" Jerry asked with confusion.

"I dunno, but we need to tell someone, and if our rents aren't an option, then that doesn't leave anyone else."

"K, that sounds reasonable," Seth agreed, "but he's out with Rusty and their brothers, trick-or-treating, remember?"

"I know, but I'm sure he will have his phone with him, he always does," Jordy said, grabbing his phone out of his pocket and hitting Nate's name in his contacts, "Hey, yeah...Happy Halloween to you too. Uh, can you talk? There is some weird shit going on here...at camp, and well..."

Jordy launched into an abbreviated version of what had been happening as Nate listened with a mixture of humor and disbelief.

"Is this a joke?" Nate finally said.

"No, I swear. I'm dead serious, here...talk to Seth," he said shoving the phone into Seth's hand.

After confirming Jordy's story, Seth tried his own appeal, "Look, we're not asking you to do anything, we just wanted someone to know what's going on, just in case. If they find our mangled bodies or something..."

"Damn it man, don't say that. I'd feel awful if something happened to you guys and I didn't do anything or tell someone."

"Don't tell anyone, not yet," Seth begged, "so far we're fine, it's Lee we're worried about, but we're almost 95% sure he's involved in this...this prank, or whatever it is."

"But you don't know that for sure," Nate reasoned, "what if he's hurt, or he's been kidnapped or something?"

"I'm pretty sure we just saw him a few minutes ago, and he wasn't alone, and he was chasing us."

"Oh, why do you think that?"

Seth explained about the sizes of the three phantom figures and Nate actually chuckled, "Sounds like someone went to a lot of trouble to prank you guys. Any idea who might be that cunning?"

"Yeah, I got my suspicions," Seth said, but didn't elaborate, "for now, I think we're gonna go back to the cabin and wait it out. If it's a prank, they'll get tired of sitting around waiting for us to come find them," he chuckled.

"Good idea, it will be safer there too, but keep in touch, okay?"

"Sure, here's Jordy," Seth said handing the phone back to his BF.

"Yeah, I'll text you if anything else happens, how's that?" Jordy said, hoping that wasn't necessary.

"Yeah, or call...just be careful," Nate said sincerely, "I love you guys."

"We love you too, later dude," Jordy said, then he ended the call, "Your place or mine?"

"Mine, all our goodies are there," Seth said, "besides, we never got to finish the movie..." he teased, and Jordy cuffed him hard on the shoulder.

"Don't even go there..." Jordy warned.

Rather than return the ATVs to the shed, they left them at the front door, ready to aid their escape should they be needed. The door was locked and the lights were still on from earlier, but the movie on the DVD had ended and was at the menu screen, asking what action was needed.

"Huh, it's over," Seth grunted as he ejected the DVD and returned it to it's case, "good old Freddy. I wonder what he'd make of this situation," he teased.

"Ugh, shut up, we'd all be slashed to pieces by now if it was Freddy," Jordy moaned.

After using the bathroom, the boys refreshed their drinks, then settled down in the living room to wait and discuss the present situations.

"You know what?" Seth said after a few minutes of debate, "I wouldn't be surprised if this was Daddyo and Mark's doing. The could be the two big zombies or whatever, and they must've talked Lee into going along with the whole thing."

"But what if it's not them?" Jerry said, still not convinced they weren't dealing with monsters.

"Then we're in shit up to our necks," Seth chuckled, "but there's got to be a way to find out for sure. Unless someone dropped them off, they have to have a vehicle parked somewhere. Mark's pickup is outside, but him and Daddyo supposedly drove to the party in Daddyo's truck. If they came back, they had to park somewhere...and I bet I know where..."

"What are you thinking?" Jordy asked from his spot beside him on the love seat. All he wanted was for this night to be over, and him and Seth snuggled up in bed, or having wild monkey sex.

"The construction site for the C-store. It's an easy walk, the truck would be out of sight, and they could come and go without us ever knowing."

"So, do you think they've left then?"

"No, not yet, they'll want to play this thing out to the end. So, what if we scouted around a bit, and if we find the truck, then we'll know."

"On the ATVs, right?" Jerry wondered.

"No, they'd hear those and know we are up to something. It's not that far a walk, we do it everyday to and from the bus stop. We should walk up there, and if I'm right, we'll know they're behind this and we can turn the tables on them."

"What do you mean, turn the tables on them?" Jordy asked, though he wasn't sure he really wanted to know.

"First, we find out if I'm right, then we make our plans..."

Jerry was reluctant to go along with the plan at first, but since the alternative was staying behind...alone, he quickly changed his mind. This time, however, the boys were better equipped for the task at hand, bundled up, with gloves, stocking caps, and flashlights. Seth had considered bringing his hunting knife, but since he was pretty sure this was Mack and Mark he was dealing with, he decided it was unnecessary.

Slipping out the back door, the boys paused in the shadow to look and listen, but no one seemed to be stirring at the moment. Quickly, they darted across the road, keeping to the tree line till they reached the now paved road that led up the hill to the bus stop and future home of the C-store.

The trip took no more than five minutes, and as they topped the hill they were disappointed to see no sign of Mack's truck, or any other vehicle.

"Someone could've dropped them off..." Jordy suggested.

"Yeah, wait, what's that over there?" Seth said excitedly, "behind that big tank?"

The big tank was one of the gasoline tanks that would eventually be buried in the ground to hold the fuel the C-store would sell. Leading the way, Seth laughed excitedly as he rounded the corner and discovered Mack's beat up old pickup parked in the shadows.

"I told you it was them," Seth giggled, "It's on now, we're gonna show those amateurs how it's done," Seth said raising his eyebrows comically, "Man, I wish I had a key to the pickup, I'd move it just to mess with him."

"So, it's just a prank," Jerry said with relief, "and Lee's okay, and we can just go back and wait for them to come and say...surprise, or whatever?"

"Yes, and no. Yes, Lee is safe, and part of this scheme was to scare us, but when they do come back, we're gonna have a little surprise for them. Oh boy, this is gonna be sooo good..."

🦇 🦇 🦇 🦇 🦇 🦇

After making sure the boys were far enough away, the three mysterious figures had emerged from their hiding place, then gone back to put out the fire. Now, standing in the boathouse which they'd been using for their headquarters, the three laughed and patted each other on the back as they recounted their escapades so far.

"Do you think they've had enough?" Mark chuckled.

"No way, I want to make sure those three remember this night for a long time to come," Mack said with an evil grin, "you with us, Lee?"

"Yeah, I've always loved pranks, and Jordy is so easy to fool. I bet he nearly peed himself earlier," Lee said, fiddling with the drone Mark had piloted earlier to scare the boys as it swooped out of the sky toward them. Lee had almost laughed then, knowing exactly what it was, but he'd kept his cool and acted as frightened as the others.

"Okay, so...what's next then?" Mark asked, willing to go along with whatever his partners in crime decided.

"Well, that depends on where they are. I have a feeling they probably went back to the cabin. I don't hear the ATVs, and I'm pretty sure they aren't running around on foot."

"Okay, but first I need a drink," Mark said, pulling a soda from the cooler they'd stashed there earlier in the day.

"Me too," Lee said, helping himself to a soda as well."

"Okay, that will give them time to light somewhere so we can zoom in on them," Mack laughed, "boy, are they gonna be scared when three zombies come knocking on their door."

💀 💀 💀 💀 💀 💀

Back at the cabin, Seth was outlining his plan for Jordy and Jerry, who seemed unsure at first if they wanted to go that far. But the more they thought about it, the better it sounded. Even though they'd heard revenge was a dish best served cold, they decided to strike while the iron was hot.

It only took a few minutes to find the things they needed, and a few more to get ready. All three boys couldn't help but laugh when they thought about how the three would react when they broke in and found them, but Jordy was still having a tinge of uncertainty right up to the last minute.

"I hope they don't have a heart attack, or anything," Jordy said as Seth applied the last of his makeup, including the fake blood.

"Relax, Mack and Mark are old, but not that old, and we don't have to worry about Lee," Seth said with confidence, "but...look out Daddyo, old Huck Finn is gonna beat you at your own game.

💀 💀 💀 💀 💀 💀

"Do you hear anything?" Lee asked nervously, his voice a mere whisper.

"The TV, maybe," Mark whispered back, and I can see the flicker from the screen."

"They probably went right back to watching those horror movies they had picked out," Mack chuckled softly, "they should be good and ready for another scare."

"Do you think we've gone too far?" Mark said with a frown. Although he'd been all-in when Mack suggested the prank, after seeing how the boys reacted to what they'd done so far, he'd begun to have second thoughts about continuing.

"One last scare, then we all have a good laugh and wait for the Taylors to get here so we can start the real party. Okay, you guys ready, put your masks on. It's showtime," Mack said with a grin.

Mack was surprised to find he didn't need his key to open the front door, and as he pushed it open he cautiously looked inside to see where the boys might be at the moment. Then seeing no one, he stepped inside and motioned the other two inside.

The TV was indeed on, and screams filled the air as Freddy, or some other evil villain slashed some poor helpless teen to bits. The sound had been turned down, which for some reason was more disturbing than if the volume had been cranked up.

On the coffee table was the remains of their pizza, a few pieces of crust, and one cold, congealed piece that had the toppings picked off of it. Mark smiled, figuring that piece must of been Jerry's, for the boy had the habit of eating the topping and leaving the crust once he got comfortably full. For a moment he wanted to call a halt to all this, find Jerry and give him a hug, but he'd agreed to go along with this one last act, and he didn't want to let Mack down. He loved Mack almost as much as he loved Jerry, and was convinced this was just fun, and they'd all laugh about it later.

"Where are they?" Lee whispered, afraid to raise his voice.

"Mack shrugged, then pointed toward the hallway and motioned for them to follow him.

They checked the bathroom first and got quite a shock there. What appeared to be blood was smeared on the bath tub and the sink, as if someone had cut themselves and treated the wound, but failed to clean up after themselves.

Mark had a sinking feeling in his stomach and he wanted so badly to call out to the boys, but when Mack placed his finger to the lips of his mask signaling him to remain silent, he just nodded. Then following Mack out of the bathroom, Mark and Lee stayed close behind him as they checked out the bedrooms.

In Jerry's room, clothes had been tossed on the floor and a bookcase had been overturned, the contents scattered over the floor. Mark's stomach was now doing flip flops and it was all he could do not to scream.

Mack, however, kept a cool head and led the two to the master bedroom, where they found that everything seemed to be in order.

"Come on, let's try the loft," Mack whispered.

"What if...what if someone else came here...before us?" Lee stammered.

"I don't think so," Mack said, but he too felt a little anxious. The quicker they found the boys, the better, and maybe they wouldn't even bother with the final scare, "let's go. If they're here, they have to be in the kitchen or the loft."

Again, Mack led the way, down the hallway, into the living room, then took a sharp left, bringing them to the kitchen. As in the bathroom, their appeared to be blood on the sink, and also on the floor, leading right up to the steep stairs that led up to the loft.

Mack's heart sank now, the prank forgotten as he hurried to the stairs, only to find more blood, leading up the stairs and into the darkness above.

"Oh shit," Lee said, sounding near tears, "what happened to them?"

"Someone must've hurt themselves, that's all," Mack said, trying to reassure himself as much as Lee, "come on, they have to be up here..."

Mack's head poked up into the darkness then, and it took a few minutes for his eyes to adjust. However, when they did he could just barely make out three crumpled figures, two on the bed, and one on the floor beside them.

Scrambling to find the light switch he managed to flip it, illuminating the scene before him, just as Lee and Mark joined him. Blinking from the sudden glare of the overhead light, the three stood transfixed as they surveyed the scene.

On the bed, Jordy and Seth lay hugging one another, blood covering their faces and soaking into their clothes at various places. On the floor next to the bed, Jerry lay face down in a pool of blood which seemed to have come from his head.

"OH MY GOD!" Lee cried as he fell to his knees and began sobbing hysterically.

"Jordy, Seth," Mack said, ripping off his hideous mask and going to the bed. Then gently he laid his hand on Seth, surprised that his skin was still warm. A check of Jordy proved his skin too was warm, and suddenly relief flooded over him as he realized they weren't dead, perhaps only badly injured.

Meanwhile, Mark had turned Jerry over and was smoothing back his blood soaked hair, rocking him in his arms as he too felt the warmth of the boy almost overwhelm him. Wait, he thought, he's breathing, I can see the rise and fall of his chest, feel his small heart beating. My boy is alive.

Lee, on his knees, wept quietly at the top of the stairs, watching the scene unfold, expecting the surprise ending to happen any moment now.

Then suddenly three, apparently blood splattered and injured boys erupted all at once with, "Happy Halloween," followed by fits of laughter.

Lee began to laugh as well, for having been notified via text by Jordy, he had switched sides and was now part of the revenge prank the boys had planned.

"You shits," Mack said shaking Seth gently, then pulling him into his arms and hugging him tight. Then kissing his face, he pushed him back on the bed, grabbed Jordy and gave him the same treatment, "you scared ten years of life out of me."

"Serves you right, Daddyo," Seth giggled, "you nearly made me piss my pants. Remember what you always say, Daddyo, payback is hell, well...you got your payback."

"Jerry, Jerry..." Mark said tears streaming down his face, "if you ever do anything like this again, you'll be grounded till you're 18," he added, then covered the boys' face with kisses.

"Ugh, stop, stop," Jerry giggled, "Daaaaaddd, you're embarrassing me. I'm sorry we fooled ya, but you scared us first, so...we're even."

"Wait a minute," Mack said, noting that Lee didn't seem to be as relieved or as surprised as he and Mark, "were you in on this too?"

"Not till the end," Lee said grinning, "when I took that pee break, my phone alerted me to a text, and it was Jordy. They found the truck and figured out it was us, so...I knew we weren't gonna be able to fool them anymore, so...I decided to switch sides."

"So...just one question," Seth said, "what the hell was that thing that swooped down on us. Was that part of this, or just a damn bat or something?"

"Ha ha, it was my new drone," Lee said, "It's all black and practically silent when it flies."

"What about the fog?" Jordy said, feeling the need to have all the pieces in place.

"Just luck, shear luck," Mack chuckled, "that, and the clouds and the wind. It was like Mother Nature was on our side."

"So, was there really a party at the Taylors' house?" Jerry wondered, "or was that just an excuse for you guys to be gone?"

"No, there was no party. Jordy, your folks went out for dinner, and they're waiting for us to let them know the coast is clear. If you guys are up to it, we'll throw our own little party, right here. I love horror flicks," Mack chuckled.

"I'm not sure I ever want to see one again," Jerry moaned, and everyone laughed.

The boys showered, two at a time, changed into clean clothes, then at Mack's insistence they cleaned up the mess they'd made and straightened up Jerry's room.

A half hour later, the Kellys showed up, and after hearing in detail the events of the evening, Mr. Kelly laughed, but Mrs. Kelly, like most moms, had some reservations.

"Oh dear, why didn't you boys call us?"

"Well, we wanted to, mom, but we were afraid if we did, you'd never trust us alone again," Jordy explained.

"Hmm, since you didn't call us, I'm not sure we can ever trust you again," she said causing Jordy to squirm, "Next time, no matter what, you call us, okay. That's the responsible thing to do..."

There was cake and punch, and instead of scary Halloween movies the group watched Hocus Pocus and Halloween Town. However, they'd barely made it through the last movie till everyone was yawning and ready for bed.

The Taylors headed home after hugging the boys and shaking hands with Mack and Mark, who headed off to their bedroom, leaving the four boys to figure out their sleeping arrangement for the night.

"We'll make a nest in my floor," Seth said once they'd all had a turn in the bathroom, "I'm not letting any of you out of my sight the rest of the night."

"Oh, and what will we be doing in that nest on the floor?" Lee chuckled.

"Anything we want," Seth laughed, "anything we want."

👻 👻 👻 👻 👻 👻

Snuggled down in the covers on their pallet on the floor of the loft, the four boys reflected on the evenings events, comparing notes and filling in the gaps.

"So, the squirrel," Seth said suddenly, "you couldn't have planned that, was that just a lucky break?''

"Yeah, I knew about the tree, and I figured while you guys were trying to figure out how to cross there, I could sneak away, the rat with a tail just made it easier," Lee giggled.

"And that was you down by the bridge, right?" Jordy asked.

"Yeah, and I almost didn't make it down there before you guys did. I'll confess, even though Mark and Mack were close by, it was kind of scary running around out there. I guess the fog and the darkness kind of had me spooked as well. That's why I reacted like I did to the drone, and when Mack ran toward us."

"So that was Daddyo," Seth chuckled, "I didn't know he could run that fast."

"The fog helped him slip away while we were trying to figure out what to do," Lee said, "Originally the plan was for him to run toward us, then veer off into the woods, but this worked out even better."

"Wait, what about the other RV and the banging door?" Jerry said, trying to recall any other missing pieces from the puzzle.

"Another coincidence, "I guess the Fords didn't close the door tight and lock it. They were in town with the Johnsons having dinner."

"What about the peeps in the cabins?" Jordy wondered.

"Mack and Mark convinced the folks in the cabins to go along with the gag. They told them when to turn off the lights and when to turn them on by texting them. That way we were able to time it just right so you guys would see them dark, then lit up. As for your cabin, Seth, I came back and turned on all the lights and then started the DVD player, then left out the back door and headed to the bridge."

"How did you know we'd go to that end of the camp?" Jordy asked grinning.

"Well, let's just say that I know how you guys think, and I pretty much figured you would check everywhere in camp. If you hadn't come down there first, we had an alternate plan, but you played into our hands perfectly," Lee chuckled.

"One more question, then we can have some fun," Jordy said, "did Nate know, is that why he agreed not to tell anyone?"

Lee laughed, "Yeah, pretty much everyone knew, except you three guys, even Carl and Tony. At first they wanted to join in the fun, but we decided too many people involved would make it harder to pull off the prank."

"But in the end, we got my dads back ten times over," Seth laughed.

"Yeah, and I appreciate you telling me what you were planning. I'm not sure I could have handled seeing you guys like that otherwise," Lee said looking sad.

"Aww, sorry," Jordy said, "come over here and get some good lovin'," he said holding out his arms.

Lee's forlorn look was suddenly replaced by a happy smile as he scampered over to fall into Jordy's waiting arms.

"Well, it's been quite a night," Seth said, "Jerry, looks like Jordy and Lee will be busy for a while, so...how about you come over here and we cook something up," he chuckled.

"First, we all get naked," Jordy announced, "then it's anything goes. I'm sure Mack and Mark are too busy with their own fun to worry about any noises we might make."

"I'll grab the lube," Seth chuckled, "I'm in the mood for some azzz tonight. Who's with me?"

"Me."

"You know I'm always up for that," Jordy added to the two affirmatives.

"First though, some foreplay," Seth said as he pulled Jerry down into a 69.

Jordy watched them a moment before leaning forward and taking Lee into his arms then pressing his lips against his brother's lips. The kiss was sweet, yet passionate, and soon they were inspired to move on to other things.

Unlike Seth and Jerry, Jordy preferred to concentrate on Lee's body and bring him pleasure, letting his own need for release build while doing so. Lee lay back, relaxed and open to whatever Jordy had in mind, and when Jordy coaxed him onto his stomach he offered no resistance.

Jordy straddled him then and began massaging his shoulders and back, working his way down Lee's strong back and loosening his tight muscles in the process. It wasn't a sexual massage, though it was sensual in way, and Lee's penis responded accordingly. Beneath him his penis was pressed into the quilt, leaking just a little as he enjoyed his massage and waited for what might come next.

As Jordy worked his way down Lee's back he leaned down to place little kisses on the boy's shoulders and down his spine, before finally bringing his hands down to Lee's firm buttocks. He massaged the two perfect orbs, reveling in the soft smooth skin and the muscles beneath. Lee's butt was truly a thing of beauty, and Jordy's penis had responded from his touching, just as Lee's had from being touched.

Leaning down, Jordy began placing soft kisses on Lee's fine firm ass as Lee sighed contentedly.

"Mmm...I'll give you an hour to stop that," Lee mumbled in ecstasy.

Jordy chuckled, then reached down and pried Lee's cheeks apart and began running his tongue up and down his crack. With each pass his tongue swiped across Lee's tight boy hole, causing both boys to moan. Lee tasted wonderful, he always did, and Jordy just couldn't get enough of his flavor as he finally dived in tongue first, drilling as deeply as possible.

"Oh...oh...oh," Lee gasped, "that feels so good...but...know what would feel even better? Your dick," he said in a fog of heat.

"Soon," Jordy whispered as he came up for air, "I want you to be totally relaxed and ready."

"Seth," Jerry said coming up off his partner's dick for a moment, "want to do what they're doing?"

Seth chuckled, "Sure, top or bottom?"

"Umm, bottom, if that's okay," Jerry said meekly.

"Perfect, assume the position," Seth said slapping Jerry's cute rump.

"Oww, do that again," Jerry chuckled, and Seth was happy to oblige.

While Jerry and Seth were just getting warmed up, Jordy and Lee were ready to move on to the next stage of their lovemaking. Using his lubed up fingers, Jordy began loosening up Lee's hole and preparing him for the real thing. It didn't take long, for none of the boys were virgins, and though Lee preferred the top position most time, he loved bottoming for Jordy.

Seth had moved a bit faster with Jerry, skipping the massage and going straight to the rim job, then the loosening up phase. Because of that, by the time Jordy was easing into Lee's tight, slick hole, Seth was moving into position to slide into Jerry's boy hole as well.

The two lovers eyes met as they eased inside the boy below them and they smiled at one another. Even while sharing their bodies with another boy, the love between the two seemed to radiate, filling the room with light, and hope, and good will. Neither was the least bit jealous, and in fact felt that by sharing their love with other boys, it only made their love stronger.

Soon the air was filled with the sounds and scents of boys rutting, doing what only boys can do together, an act as old as time itself. The feeling of belonging, of sharing, of loving washed over the boys, and for a moment tears filled their eyes. They weren't tears of sadness however, but rather tears of joy and love.

As Seth and Jordy neared orgasm, almost in perfect sync, Jordy reached out his hand and Seth took it in his, and together they tumbled into the abyss of release.

Somehow they managed to lean in and share a kiss, even as the tidal wave of their orgasm echoed through every atom of their body. Then smiling they pulled back and turned their attention back to their partners.

"I love you, bro," Jordy whispered as he leaned down to kiss Lee's neck.

"I love you too," Lee whispered back.

"I love you, Jer," Seth said, his words as sincere as Jordy's had been, "bro."

"Yeah," Jerry sighed, "love you. I love all of you guys."

"It's been one hell of a Halloween guys," Jordy said, "but we sure ended it in fun."

"Oh, we're not done yet," Seth chuckled, "now it's Jerry and Lee's turn to get their jollies."

"Yeah," Jordy agreed, "the party ain't over till everyone gets their jollies..."

Happy Halloween 2023

10-18-2023

Many thanks to my buddy Michael in NY for his invaluable help with editing, story ideas, and pics. But most of all: for his friendship and support. LOVE YA Mikey.