The Missing

OCTOBER

It's been 16 days since the first construction worker went missing. At first, everyone thought it was because of the working conditions on the site, and it was the usual dispute between employees and employers. But in the last few days, more workers have gone missing, and the frequency has escalated. People are asking questions.

I watch from my bedroom window as they clear away the trees for the new housing estate. My Mum and I have been living here since I was born; my Dad left when I was little. Mum said he just disappeared one day, "like a rat abandoning a sinking ship". I was just a baby. That was over 14 years ago. Some people in the town say it is odd that he left the way he did without saying a word to anyone.

I always love looking out at the woodland from my window. I will be sad when the forest is gone.

There are lots of police cars. Cops are searching, and they even have a couple of police dogs. I messaged my friends, and they are coming over to watch with me. I hope they hurry up, or they may miss all the excitement.

This time of year, I can see quite far into the woods, the leaves are almost all gone, but the snow has not arrived yet. There's a brisk wind. Everyone looks cold as they hunch in their coats. It seems dark despite it only being two in the afternoon. Clouds have fully blanketed the sky. I look up and see that it looks like rain. I snigger as I think about all those people getting wet. Serves them right, taking over my woods.

I listen as my Mum lets my friends in, and they climb the stairs to my room.

"Hi." I greet them both.

"Hi," they say in sync. I have been friends with Janine and Mary since the first day of school. We spent every summer in our woods, discovering the beautiful things that live there. Now we have to watch as they are slowly being destroyed. As we peer from my window, we search the dark trees for a glimpse of the creature. He must be there. I haven't seen him for days, and I am getting concerned.

"Perhaps he has gone underground," Mary suggests.

"I didn't think he would be afraid of them," I answered.

"There's so many, though," Janine observed, "what if he gets caught? They might hurt him!"

"I don't know ...perhaps we should try to help him." I wondered. Mary and Janine looked at me, considering the options.

After a long pause, Janine finally said, "I think we should just wait and watch."

Rain began to fall, making things uncomfortable for the police. As dusk began, the search was called off, and slowly, the police search teams departed.

It was suppertime, so Mum invited my friends to stay. After we ate, we returned to my room. There was still no sign of him. What if he had been discovered? What if he had been scared away and moved to a new forest?

As darkness settled in, I sighed, "We will need to take a look and see for ourselves." The others agreed, and we prepared to go look for him.

Sneaking out of the house is not tricky as Mum always falls asleep in front of a loud television. The back door leads straight to the woodland, and it only took a few moments to reach the edge. The rain had subsided.

As we entered the tree line, there was a rustling as the trees quivered. We made our way deeper in, the trees whispered, making us smile as we listened to them. We sat quietly at the base of the most remarkable tree right in the centre of the forest and waited.

The creature surfaced from between the gnarly roots and smiled at us. It stood only a couple of feet tall and had large ears, bent legs, and a potbelly. It was the colour of the tree bark, and if you didn't know he was there, you might not see him. I took out a piece of cheese and laid it on the ground. The creature picked it up and chewed ravenously on it. It made a grunting noise. I thought it was endearing, but as I looked over at Mary, her brow was furrowed, and she seemed grossed out by him. I wondered why she was acting strange, as we had seen him many times before.

"He seems different." She said.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Like he is ...I dunno....possessed," she said.

"I don't think so," Janine said, laughing at the idea. "Maybe he is just sad that they are bulldozing his home."

Mary shrugged. "You're right. He's so cute!" She leaned over and touched the creature. It giggled but made a sound like it was a little congested, then snorted. We all laughed. The trees swayed, even though there was no breeze. I looked up. They had surrounded us and created a canopy as the rain had started.

"Hey, I didn't know it had started to rain," I said. The others looked up and were amazed by how the trees had created this protection for us.

"Wow," one of them said, but I was too in awe to see who it was.

"We have to go now. My Mum will be wondering where I am. "Janine said.

"Bye, Tree Goblin," She said, and we all waved as we left the Goblin there. He nodded knowingly and then disappeared beneath the ground.

Janine and Mary headed home as I snuck into the back door of the house. I could hear Mum talking to someone. As I crept forward, I could see the reflection of the local Vicar in the glass door of our china cabinet.

He was speaking quietly and gently, "They say that there was a settlement here over 200 years ago, and one day the people just vanished. No one knows why. The houses were abandoned like they were going about their daily business, and they evaporated. There were tables set for meals and fires that had been left to burn out. It was a mining village. There is a rich untapped seam of tin underneath the town. About 100 years ago, a miner moved here and started to work in the area again. He lived as a hermit and wouldn't allow anyone near this whole area, but when he died of old age, others came and started to build, and eventually, Penburbury was born. When they went to bulldoze the old hermit's house, they found drawings of these weird tree-like creatures and little men. His imagination was wild! A few pictures that were dark and scary, like real evil demons in a nightmare coming from the forest. He wrote many times on paper pieces - 'do not enter the forest' and no one knows why. I think the poor man was suffering from mental illness."

"I don't understand why there are so many people disappearing! I'm so scared for Emily and her friends - they go into the woods all the time." Mum's voice was shaking.

Father John reached forward and took her hand, "I'm sure there is nothing to be concerned with. It's just an old wives' tale. There are scary legends everywhere. We just happen to have an enchanted forest!" he assured her.

She laughed as she felt the reassurance wash over her, "You're right, Father!"

"Well, I must be leaving. I will see you soon." Father John stood. I crept away and climbed the stairs to my room.

The following day, the sun shone through my window and woke me. It was Sunday, so there had been no construction noise to wake me. In fact, it was eerily quiet, and I enjoyed the silence for a while.

I had three unread messages on my phone, all from Janine. They read, "I have got to see you, remember the guy I was talking to online, he wants to meet me..what do I do?"

The other messages just said, "Hello?" and then a more forceful, "HELLO!???"

"Come over now; we will figure something out." I sent,

After a brief pause, she replied," Too late .. I'm meeting him NOW!!!"

I replied, "okay...be careful and message me if you need me to come. Where are you?"

No reply. I guess the boy had already arrived. I looked out the window at the woodland and felt an urge to go in there. I decided I would dress, eat and go out for a walk and see our Woodland Goblin.

As I walked into the woods, I felt like I was walking into my home and smiled. As I reached the big tree, I spotted Mary already here, talking to the Goblin. I joined them and passed him today's breakfast, toast and jam. He sniffed it, huffed, and devoured it. The tree slowly shifted, creating a seat for me, and we sat in silence for a while, listening to the song of the forest.

A panting sound grew steadily closer, and Janine burst into the clearing. She looked terrified, and her shirt was torn.

"What the hell?" I shouted

She was breathless as she spoke, "The....guy...I met...he wasn't a 15-year-old boy....he ...he was old..like ancient...like 30 something, and he attacked me..and I screamed, he got real mad and started ripping my shirt and tried to ....." she decided not to finish the sentence, but we knew what she was saying.

Anger filled me inside, a wave of rage like no other. The trees stopped their sweet song, and there was an audible gasp in the air. Janine cried hysterically like she was finally able to allow her feelings to spill out.

A voice whispered, "Hide."

I thought I heard the voice, and it looked like the others had too as they stopped what they were doing and looked up. "Hide!" it spoke louder, more unmistakable, and with more urgency. A large tree nearby spread it's roots and created a small opening.

I did not feel afraid. I thought I should and wondered why I was not. We all ran over and crawled inside the opening. It closed enough to secrete us without obscuring our view completely.

We heard the sound of the panting man come closer, and as he came into our view, he looked like he was out of breath and ready to collapse. He sat next to the tree. The Goblin was there, but to the man, he was invisible.

"Bitch!" he shouted. Janine gasped. I placed my hand over her mouth.

The man heard her and turned his head towards us. Janine cried, and I could not hold her as he inched towards us.

"I see you, you bitch, come here. I want you now," he said menacingly. "All that stuff you said to me online ...you led me on, and now you gotta pay."

Janine screamed, and he lurched forward, grabbing her arm and pulling her from the branches that had protected us. I held onto her as tight as I could, but she slipped from my grasp, and he yanked her out from the tree vines. He cupped her breast and said, "You are mine." and started to kiss her hard. She struggled. I pulled myself out from the tree branch and bound forward, Mary came out too, and we both careered towards him. He was not expecting us and was visibly shocked as we grabbed Janine and pulled her from his clutches.

I had not noticed the long thin branch that had wrapped itself around his ankle until it yanked on his leg, and he flipped onto the ground face first. The fall had winded him, blood exploded from his nose. He grunted. Other branches slid along the forest floor, wrapping their tendrils around all his limbs. He looked at Janine. She was no longer crying. She was smiling. A calm had come across her face, and she looked like she was enjoying what she was witnessing. I looked over to Mary, and her face had the same calm smile. They both began to laugh as they watched the branches pulling him apart. They stretched him out into a spreadeagle; he was flipped over and now lay on his back, his limbs pulled further and further apart. He screamed. A panicked look came over his face.

My heart filled with glee, and I could not help but smile as I watched him squirm and fight to free himself, but the more he wriggled, the more the branches squeezed. His whole body was consumed beneath the branches. He stopped screaming. I could hear him struggle to breathe. I listened to the sound of his skin tearing slowly, and blood spilt to the ground. It gave me a thrill, and I had never felt this good before. Adrenaline coursed through me, and I felt powerful - happy. The man's body was still moving as I watched the vines rip each limb from him one by one.

'There's so much blood,' I thought. 'I want to know what it tastes like.'

The man had fallen silent, and I had not noticed he was dead as I fell to my knees, placed my index finger in the pool of blood, and tasted it. It tasted so good. It was the most exquisite thing I had ever tasted. Mary and Janine were kneeling with me, drinking the warm blood.

The man ripped into six pieces. The trees opened up their roots, making caves within the ground, and each piece drawn into a hole. A calm enveloped the forest, and I looked up at the sky, which had returned to its beautiful blue. My heart beat so fast I felt like I might have a heart attack, but I love it. I'm so alive right now!

*****

MONDAY

School sucks so much. I can't wait to get back to the forest. I know they resumed construction. I wonder if they will see the blood? I wonder if they will find the body? I lusted for more blood.

Janine sidled up beside me on one side and Mary on the other. They loop their arms into mine, and we walk side by side through the school hallway. The students coming in the opposite direction were staring at us and moved out the way.I can hear their minds chattering. I can listen to their thoughts.

The bully's voice behind me shouts, "Freaks!" His minions' snigger. It takes all my self-control to stop the anger from spilling out, and we carry on walking.

It seems an eternity before our school day ends, and as soon as the bell rings, we head straight for the woods. I saved my sandwich for the Goblin. He was very appreciative. The blood that had saturated the ground was gone.

As we sat in silence, we could hear the construction only a few hundred yards from us. It irritates me. The noise makes my skin crawl, I felt it like it was digging at my bones, and I rubbed my arms as though I was cold to try to relieve some of the aches. Mary and Janine seemed to be uncomfortable too.

"It's gotta stop!" Mary shouted abruptly.

"What's gotta stop?" I asked.

"The construction- we need to stop it."

"How do you propose we do that?"

"I dunno..... maybe...get them to come to the big tree and let nature take its course."

"I don't think it works like that."

"How does it work?" Mary asked in a stern voice. She was beginning to scare me. Her eyes had dark circles, and her face was pale- paler than I had ever seen her.

"Are you okay?" I asked her, concerned.

"Of course, I'm okay!" she snapped.

The sound of a twig snapping attracted our attention to the pathway to the clearing. The school bully had gathered what looked like a posse, and I had a sneaking suspicion they were looking for us. Their leader wore jeans, a leather jacket, and hair was slicked back with some kind of hair gel. He looked like he was from the 1950s, and I felt like I had just stepped into an Elvis movie. They look funny to me, and I had to fight the urge to laugh. It wasn't until today I noticed just how ridiculous they all seemed. I'm not that good at suppressing my smile, and he immediately pointed at me and shouted, "What the hell do you think you are smiling about? You are going to get your fucking ass kicked."

"I'm sorry," I apologised, but this just made it harder for me to conceal my grin. Mary grabbed my arm on my left and Janine on my right, and they both started to laugh. This was not like us. Usually, we would have run away. But today, I'm not afraid. Not even a little.

The leader thrusts forward and catches my jacket collar. I can feel my throat closing as he tightens his grip.

"Not so funny now...huh?" he scowls and throws me to the ground. My head hits a rock, and I feel dizzy, so I stay down. I watch as the horde climb across me and start to beat Janine and Mary. I feel punches as they strike down on me, and all I can think of doing it, holding my arms up to protect myself.

I hear them scream and shout obscenities, but I can also hear the trees weeping and rustling. In my mind, I call out to them for help and hear a whisper - 'Be patient.' I sense calm and wait.

The branches slowly tangle themselves within the mob in such a way that they do not notice it. The frenzy stops, and we watch as the branches pull each individual away from their accomplices. They tangle around their bodies and begin to rip them apart. I feel the warm splash of their blood across my face and lick my lips, tasting the sweet, warm, red liquid trickling into my mouth. It gives me energy and the adrenaline surge I felt before, but this time, even more satisfying than the last.

"YES!" I shout and hold out my arms as I receive the bounty of death. I watch with joy as the bodies are whisked away into open tunnels created by the roots. The trees grow and sway in a dance as the bodies are consumed.

I feel as though something was taking over my senses, and right now, I am not sure if I like it or hate it. I feel the tugging of the woodland, and it makes me happy, but seeing the blood mixed into the dirt was disconcerting. I realise I have blood on my clothes and panic.

"Don't worry about it," Janine assured me. I realised that none of us was acting normal, and a large part of me was okay with it.

The Goblin appears, and Mary sits down with him. Mary and Janine seemed quite at home here in the clearing among the blood. However, I feel an uneasy intuition I had not felt before, making me nervous.

"I'm going home," I said. Mary and Janine watched as I stood. "Okay," said Janine, almost like she did not even care.

"I'll see you tomorrow - yeah?" I asked.

Mary shrugged and looked at Janine, "Sure,"

**********

Neither Janine nor Mary have been in school, and it has been a week since the bully attack. Police are swarming the town, and it is in some kind of lockdown. I looked in our usual meeting spaces, including the clearing. But today I feel better because I found out that their parents are gone too, so I guess they have left town for a while. I don't understand why they won't call or text me.

Building work has also ceased, and as I look out at the woodland, I get a feeling of apprehension that has never been before.

The good news is that the contractor who was building the new estate has gone bankrupt and pulled the plug on the whole thing.

JANUARY

I had not entered the woods for many weeks and had no genuine desire to either. Christmas came and went, and I am missing my friends more than ever throughout the long winter days. There hasn't been a disappearance for weeks, and police presence has dwindled to the occasional detective.

Mum forbid me to enter the forest, and I am okay with that. Until today I felt no drawing to it, but the urge to go down there tugged at me. I looked out the window. It was a cold winters day, but dry, and the sun was peeking through the clouds. The trees piqued my interest, and I felt summoned.

Walking towards the forest felt odd today, but each foot seemed to have its own mind, and I was quickly transported to the clearing. The Goblin was there, smiling. I did not feel the vines wrap around my ankle until it tightened its grip and yanked me to the ground. I slid along the dirt and through the opening at the base of the tallest tree. It dragged me for some time until I reached a cave. It was lit by a red glow, and I could hear the trees talking. I could not decipher their whispers, but I felt they were trying to console me, and I did not feel threatened. As my eyes adjusted, I saw the bones which lined the walls and skulls that had been neatly placed on a type of alter. A man steps out from the shadows, and I feel like I should know him. He is smiling, and I don't feel threatened. He is pale, the pale that Janine had before she disappeared, and he was wearing old tattered clothing. He looked as though he had not bathed in years. His hair was long and matted.

"Hello, Emily. It's good to finally meet you."

That's a little freaky that he knows my name, and I feel the hair on my arms raise.

"Who are you?" I ask

He smiles and holds out his hand. "I am your father....welcome to my home. Janine and Mary told me all about you!"

I feel sick. I want to run, but I can't. I'm stuck here. My knees buckle, and I fall to the ground.

"I finally made it." the man says.

"Made it?" I question.

"I have been working for many years to find you- bring you here and show you what I have created."

"I don't understand," I say, looking at the skulls that seem to mock me.

"This is my empire. I have been building it....for you. Since the day you were born, I have created this place for you...for us...we can rule the world together just from this place." he explains.

My head is a fog. I look up at him. His face is filled with a maniacal smile, and it scares me.

"Join me...join us! We will be as one, and the world will be ours!" he shouts.

I hear the whispers, and they are chanting, "Join us...join us....join us...." I scramble to my feet, but my legs are like jelly, and I fall. The vines wrap around my wrists and ankles and slide me to the alter. They lay me gently on my back and hold me tightly, spreadeagled on the bench made from vines and bones. Out of the shadows, I see Janine and Mary. Their eyes are white, and the pupils are dilated; they are chanting and look as though they are in a trance. More people come out from the shadows, and I am surrounded. I recognise some of the people that have been missing for months and others I did not know. Some are very old and frail and look like they have been living underground for many years.

They abruptly stop chanting, and I can hear voices coming from above ground. Vines rustle and move quickly, and I hear the screams of those above as I know they are being ripped apart. Vines return to the cave carrying freshly killed body parts, blood still coursing through their veins and spewing red fluid. There is hysteria as the group rushes to grab pieces of the bodies, and they chew ravenously at the flesh, devouring it with gusto.

I feel nauseous and try to squirm out of my restraints, but the more I struggle, the tighter the vines grasp. I'm scared. For the first time, I feel afraid. I wonder why I do not feel the calm I felt before. What is wrong with me? I am supposed to be here, aren't I?

Once all the flesh has gone, the group turns their attention back to me. I know today I am going to die. I can't join them. I don't feel like I belong here, and I resist.

"Do not resist my child," my father says as he tries to calm me. I can feel my heartbeat so fast I am concerned it might jump right out of my chest.

I wonder why my Goblin has gone? I have not seen him for some time. The vines began to break through my skin, and I bleed from my ankles and wrists. The group is excited at the sight of the blood, and I let out a whimper. I try hard not to show my fear, but I can't hide it any longer. They see it, they smell it, and they are waiting to ravage my body. They know I do not belong with them, so all I am to them is food. My father pushes them from me.

"STOP!" he shouts.

He is angered by something, "Why are you not one of us?" he demands.

I shake my head, "I dunno."

He bares his teeth and smells me, "You are not one of us, and you must die. I am disappointed...your filthy mother baptised you! You are only good for a feed!"

The group cheers, and he slinks away as they grow closer. I see a fire in the roots, and I'm not sure if that is normal, but then some of the crowd scream and disperse—fire licks at the roots, and the trees wail.

I see Father John and my Mum holding burning torches. They are spraying holy water over the trees and people, and there is a commotion. The vines loosen their grip, and I am free. Mum hugs me and guides me out of the tunnel. Father John is close behind, keeping the group at bay while we escape.

The man appears out of the burning hole.

"Is that ....my Dad?" I ask my Mum.

"Yes...he was your Dad," she replies.

Father John and my Dad face one another. Father John throws some of the water on my Dad, and it makes him recoil. Father John grips his cross and recites a prayer aloud, and my Dad is unable to fight back. He looks weak and scared.

"Thou art in Heaven, Hallowed be thy name.....Thy Kingdom come...Thy WILL be done on Earth as it is in Heaven......"

My Dad grabs the cross and shrieks with laughter. "Your trinkets do not scare me!" he bellows.

He bends the cross in his hands. Father John is pushed to his knees.

Mum grabs me, and we run.

"Come back, you BITCH!" Dad shouts as he chases after us. Father Mike grabs him sprinkling the last of his holy water.

He flails as though the water is burning his face, the trees grip him by the ankles, and he is lifted into the air. Tendrils of the vines puncture his chest and pull out his black heart. It is over in seconds. The woods make a gleeful sound.

The ground shakes as we run towards the house. I can only think it must be an earthquake. A vast chasm opens up through woods, and we watch as the half build housing estate crumbles and falls into the dark hole. A vast gorge opens through the village. Vines creep from them, entering houses by smashing windows and snapping walls. The sound is deafening. Strong winds howl and hiss, making me unsteady.

We run to the car. I look back and see Father Mike running towards the chasm, shouting prayers.

As we reach our car, Mum shouts, "Stay here. I have to get the keys!".

It seems like an eternity before Mum comes back. The Goblin jumps up at me, smiling. I jump back and let out a shrill. A sense of security washes over me and let him snuggle under my coat.

Mum returns with a small bag of belongings. As I get in the car, I drape my sweater over the Goblin.

With a clear road ahead, neither of us look back as we leave the village.

************

I watch the television news footage of Penburbury as they film the aftermath of the disaster from a helicopter above. I try to look hard to see the abyss from which the vines came from. I feel the surge of pleasure as I see the trees, and my blood courses through me. The Goblin hands me a ring, and I put it on. I look in the mirror and see my pupils dilate. A powerful force surges inside me, and the call of the forest is loud and clear.

The young female reporter announces on the newscast, "Preliminary reports say that in the past one hundred years, 1200 residents of this small mining town have simply vanished. No one can seem to understand or speculate where they are, but it looks as though the ground just opened up and swallowed them. It looks like this could be a long time...before we get any answers.........."

The End