At the Edge of the Forest Read online

  “Please,” she stammers, with tears in her eyes, “you can't make me...”

  “Keep looking,” I tell her. “I open the hatch. What happens next?”

  “I -” Gasping, she tries again to get her hands free, but I pull her closer. “You can't do that to her,” she whispers, staring into my eyes. “It won't work, the creature won't accept it. You know that already, deep in your heart, but you don't have any other ideas, do you? What deal did you strike with this... thing?”

  “What about the store?” I ask.

  “What store?”

  “You don't see anything about a store?” I wait for her to answer. “Think, woman,” I continue. “I'm in a store now, and there's gunfire, and that stupid Rita girl is there and she's holding a rifle and there's some serious shit going down. Tell me what you see.”

  “No,” she replies, “you're in the forest -”

  “I'm in the store,” I say firmly. “What happens next?”

  She opens her mouth to reply, before closing her eyes. “Someone's shooting people. There are bodies on the floor, people are running, but you're walking calmly. I can't see everything, it's almost as if matters are in flux all around you, constantly changing, but you know where you're going. You walk straight to the aisle where...” Her eyes flick open again. “Rita,” she continues. “Why's she there again? Why does she keep showing up?”

  “You see my problem, huh?” I continue. “She's got a gun on her lap. She's sobbing, but she's got a gun. Is she the shooter?”

  “I want you to leave,” she stammers, pulling one hand free before I grip the other twice as hard. “The reading is over. You can have your money back, but -”

  “Who is she?” I ask, holding her firmly. “Why does she show up in every possible future that I see? It's like something is tying us together!”

  “Please -”

  “Tell me!” Grabbing her by the collar, I drag her toward me and then shove her to the ground, before getting to my feet and standing over her. “All I know is that she's some kid who works at that BarraBuy store, and that every possible future I see involves her in some way. I don't think she has a clue about this, not yet anyway, because I've seen her in the flesh and she clearly didn't recognize me but -”

  Letting out a gasp of frustration, I head to the door before stopping and turning back to the old bitch as she stumbles to her feet.

  “I feel like I'm getting hemmed in,” I tell her. “I should be able to choose my own future, but instead there's this little runt of a teenage girl who just gets in the way, no matter which route I try to take. How does that work? Are we somehow linked to each other? Is it coincidence? I swear to God, I feel like I'm losing my mind!”

  “Please,” she replies, “just leave...”

  “Do you know what's out there in that forest?” I ask.

  She stares at me with a shocked expression.

  “You live on the edge,” I continue, “just like the rest of us. Come on, if you fancy yourself as some kind of psychic, you must have noticed what's going on around here. Haven't you ever looked into the forest and felt something staring back out at you?”

  “I don't dare look,” she whimpers, as tears flow down her face. “Not for long, anyway. I can't leave, I need to stay close or I lose my ability to see things, but I don't dare go between the trees.”

  “Because you know it's out there.”

  “Because...” She wipes some of the tears away. “You've spoken to her, haven't you? Do you know her name?”

  I shake my head. “Not her name, no. I've seen her face, though, and that was enough to make me feel sick to my core. I just...” Pausing for a moment, I find myself briefly remembering the first time I saw that hideous visage, with all those...

  I swallow hard.

  Dammit.

  Unable to help myself, I lean forward and take a series of deep breaths, trying to steady myself so that I don't vomit. Forcing the memory of that face from my mind, I turn to see the shocked old hag sitting opposite.

  “Alice,” she says finally.

  “The creature in the forest?” I reply skeptically. “Her name is Alice?”

  “I don't know if she still uses it,” the woman replies, “but once, a long time ago... Yes, her name was Alice, and she was just a little girl. A good girl, a normal girl, not this... thing that she seems to have become.”

  “And what is that, exactly?” I ask. “She doesn't look much like a nice little girl anymore.”

  “I daren't go and see,” she whispers, as tears roll down her cheeks. “I can't imagine what her face is like now.”

  “So what's she got to do with the other girl?” I wait for her to reply, but she seems locked in her memories. “Somehow Rita's linked to all of this,” I continue. “She's linked to me.” Taking a seat again, I hold my hands out toward her. “Please,” I add, still trying to get my breath back, “I need to know what to do. Whatever course of action I choose, I seem to always end up at that store with that stupid girl. Why is she so fucking important?”

  “I want you to leave,” the woman says firmly.

  “I don't give a damn what you want!” I sneer. “This girl is haunting me! Ever since I woke up from that coma, she's been plaguing my thoughts, it's almost as if...” Pausing, I realize that there can no longer be any doubt. “I'm seeing glimpses of the future. Or possible futures, anyway. But then why is she there? Why does she always seem to -”

  “Kill her,” a voice whispers suddenly.

  Freezing for a moment, I already know that the voice came from the forest.

  “The woman sitting in front of you,” the voice continues. “I want you to kill her.”

  “Why?” I whisper. “You've never reached out to me like this before.”

  “I've never needed you to perform such a specific task for me before,” the voice replies. “Kill her.”

  “I can't help you,” the woman says, getting to her feet. She's trying to sound tough, but there's fear in her eyes. “I want you to leave my home and never come back!”

  “There's a knife on the counter,” the voice continues. “You noticed it when you came in, but you thought nothing of it. Use it to kill her. Don't worry about the rest, I'll take care of it.”

  “But...” Pausing, I realize that I have no choice. I stand slowly, and the woman immediately heads to the door and pulls it open.

  “I want you out of here right now,” she says firmly. “I can't help you. I'm sorry, I just can't. I don't really see the future, it's just a trick, I just try to make a little money here and there, but it's all made up.”

  “Is that right?” I reply, making my way past the counter. I hesitate for a moment, my hand twitching as I consider picking up the knife, but then I slowly walk over to join the woman at the door. “I think you're lying,” I tell her. “I think you know that something is happening in the forest, and I think maybe in some ways you even understand what it is.”

  “I assure you -”

  “Tell me,” I continue, with a hint of desperation. “Please, just tell me what it wants.”

  “Kill her,” the voice hisses.

  “I don't know anything,” the woman says, with tears in her eyes. “Please, I'm asking you to leave and I would appreciate it if you'd not come back. Ever.”

  “You know,” I reply, “maybe you're right. Maybe I should go, but first...”

  “Kill her!”

  Grabbing the old woman's collar, I ignore her screams as I drag her back over to the counter. I grab the knife and plunge it down into her chest, stabbing her repeatedly until she's just a lifeless lump of meat and bone. For a moment, it's as if I'm not even in control of my own actions, as if the voice from the forest is filling me with power. As I let the old woman's body slip down onto the floor, I take a seat and try to get my breath back, but in truth I can feel myself getting increasingly tired. For a moment, I actually start to wonder if I could just lean back and die right here, but I know I still have work to complete.

  I
have to change the terms of the deal.

  II

  As soon as I've got the woman's corpse out of her trailer, I start dragging her around the side and then through the long grass that leads to the edge of the forest. My body is aching, every nerve-ending screaming at me to rest, but I'm too desperate to stop now. Finally, as I reach the first trees, I lose my footing slightly and drop down, letting out a gasp of pain as I realize that I'm too weak to drag the bitch all the way to the shack right now.

  “Leave her,” the voice whispers in my ear.

  “Wait,” I stammer, barely able to get any words out at all. “You wanted her. I'm bringing her to you. It's part of the deal.”

  “The deal is over.”

  Taking more deep breaths, it takes me a moment to realize what she just said. “What do you mean?” I ask. “I just killed this dumb old cow for you.”

  “You were gone for two years,” the voice continues, drifting toward me through the forest. “I think that counts as abandonment of our terms.”

  “I didn't exactly have a choice!”

  “Nevertheless, our arrangement is terminated.”

  “But...” Staring down at the dead fortune-teller, I feel a rush of panic in my chest. “I just did this for you! You told me what you wanted, and I delivered!”

  “And I'm grateful, but the truth is... I have found your replacement.”

  “My what?” I stare at the forest for a moment. “This is a joke, isn't it?” I continue. “I've served you with absolute dedication for the past few years. Okay, sure, I was forced to take two years off, but that wasn't my fault! I was almost dead!”

  “I have another now,” the voice replies, “and I believe she will be more useful. Her dedication is stronger.”

  “Who?” I shout, stumbling to my feet. “Wait...” Pausing for a moment, I realize that maybe this is going to be easier than I'd thought. “You're just... letting me go?”

  “You left me alone for two years,” the voice whispers. “You're lucky I didn't take back my gift while you were in that hospital bed.”

  “But if -” Pausing for a moment, I suddenly realize that there's a hint of a threat in her words. “Take back your gift?” I ask cautiously. “You can't take it back, that wouldn't be...” Trying not to panic, I can't help feeling that maybe I need to take this opportunity to end the nightmare, but it has to be on my terms. “Okay,” I stammer, “you know what? If you have someone else, that's fine by me, I can totally understand your desire for a change. Let's just call it quits and -”

  Before I can finish, I hear a bumping sound nearby and I turn just in time to see that the dead fortune-teller's corpse is slowly rolling uphill into the forest. A moment after that, there's a loud grinding sound and I see that her trailer is slowly tipping onto its side. I watch in shock as some invisible force drags the trailer across the grass and into the forest, and I have to step aside to avoid being crushed as the pile of metal goes past.

  “Okay,” I continue, trying to stay calm, “you're taking her. That's great. I guess I'll just be on my way, then.” I wait for a reply, before stepping back and holding my hands up. “I'm exhausted anyway,” I add, forcing a smile. “I mean, look at me, I have a long way to go before I'm back to full fitness. This is probably for the best anyway, so let's just cut our ties. I've given you a lot, and I'm sure you're grateful, so let's be mature about this and go our separate ways. I'm just glad you're being so reasonable.”

  Again I wait for the voice to say something, but the only sound comes from the corpse as it continues to gently roll away.

  “Is that agreed, then?” I call out. “Are you going to respect the terms of the deal?”

  No reply.

  “Do I get to keep what you gave me?” I shout, starting to feel increasingly desperate as I watch the trailer and the dead woman being dragged further away, deeper into the forest. “Please, you have to let me keep my wife! She's the only thing I ever wanted in life, and you promised she'd be mine if I did what you asked! It's not fair if you undo that now!”

  I wait again, but finally I realize that the voice is never going to answer. Filled with a sense of panic, I turn and hurry back to my car. I have to get home and make sure everything's okay.

  ***

  “Honey?” I call out as I push the front door shut. “Alison? Ally, honey, are you here?”

  I wait, but the house seems strangely quiet and dark. Checking my watch, I see that it's almost 5pm, which means she should be home from work by now. Slipping out of my shoes, I take a step forward and stop again, and this time I realize I can hear the faintest sound coming from the kitchen.

  She's crying.

  “Alison?” I whisper, as tears start to gather in my eyes.”Sweetheart?”

  There's a part of me that wants to just turn and leave, to go and drown my sorrows in some cheap bar and then come back later and hope for the best. Instead, however, I make my way over to the doorway and look through to the kitchen, and I immediately spot Alison sitting at the breakfast bar, sobbing as she dabs at her eyes with tissues.

  “Hey,” I say, forcing a smile. “Are you... What's wrong? Did something happen?”

  I wait for her to reply, but when I step closer I see that tears are streaming from her eyes.

  “I was thinking we could go out,” I tell her, trying desperately to bring back a sense of normality. “It's been a while since we had dinner together, hasn't it? We should celebrate the fact that I'm on the road to recovery, so...”

  My voice trails off as I see that my words aren't working.

  “Alison,” I continue, “what -”

  “I'm sorry,” she blurts out suddenly, climbing off the stool and hurrying past me, “I can't do this.”

  “Wait!” Grabbing her by the shoulders, I pull her back and force her to turn to me. For a moment, I'm shocked to see the sheer volume of tears flowing from her bloodshot eyes. “What's wrong?” I ask, hoping against hope that my worst fears are unfounded. “Alison, talk to me.”

  “Don't you feel it?” she sobs, her bottom lip trembling.

  “Feel what?”

  “It suddenly hit me a couple of hours ago,” she continues. “It was like a veil had been lifted, allowing me to see everything, to remember everything.” She stares at me for a moment, and it's clear from the look in her eyes that something has changed in her heart. She's looking at me as if I'm some kind of stranger, or worse: it's almost as if she hates me. “When we first met...”

  “Let's not talk about that right now,” I reply.

  “I never fell in love with you,” she says firmly, before sniffing back more tears. “One day you were just this guy who used to come into the restaurant where I worked, and then suddenly the next day, like a switch had been flicked in my head, I was head over heels in love but... It's like something reached into my head and just decided that I should love you, and I've spent the past five years not questioning that at all. And then today...”

  I wait for her to reply, but her whole body is trembling with shock.

  “Today what?” I ask finally, even though I already know the answer.

  “Today it reached into my head again,” she whispers, “and flicked the switch back. I don't know what's happening to me, Brian, but I think I might be losing my mind.”

  “No,” I reply, feeling a cold, twisting sense of nausea in my chest, “you're not losing your mind, my darling...”

  “I am,” she stammers. “I must be! Look at me!” For a moment, there's pure panic in her eyes. “I'm going mad,” she sobs. “Something's wrong with me, maybe I have a brain tumor or -”

  “No!” I say firmly, holding her shoulders more tightly. “Listen to me, this is nothing to do with you, it's...” Staring at her for a moment, I realize there's no way I can ever explain what happened. “Do you remember when I used to come into that restaurant?” I ask. “I always made up some lame excuse, but the truth is, I fell in love with you from the very first moment I saw you working there. I used to pop in almos
t every day, just to see you, and I was always hoping that one day you'd notice me and that we'd start talking, but... I was never very good at that sort of thing, I always got tongue-tied around you. Plus you were dating that other guy, I don't even remember his name now but -”

  “Adam,” she says suddenly, with a hint of shock. “Oh God, Adam...”

  “Right,” I continue, “and he was this handsome -”

  “I loved him,” she whispers, as if the realization is too much to handle. “We were in love, we were going to get married, and then one day I just dumped him and started loving you instead.” She stares at me for a moment, and I can't help noticing a slowly-growing hint of disgust in her expression. “Why did I do that? Whatever possessed me to break up with a guy I loved and... It was so sudden!”

  “Yes,” I reply, feeling as if my heart is about to crack open, “it was.”

  “I must be a total bitch.”

  “No!”

  “I must be!” she hisses. “There's something wrong with me, I'm an awful human being, I'm -”

  “No!” I shout, angered by the idea that this beautiful, perfect woman might start to doubt herself. “You're the most wonderful human being I've ever met,” I tell her, “and any strange decisions you made five years ago were because of...”

  For a moment, I think back to that day when I first heard the voice reaching out to me from the forest. It asked me what I wanted, and I told it about the beautiful girl in the restaurant, and it told me I could have her, that she could be made to love me, if only I'd offer something in return. I knew it was wrong, but I was too weak and greedy to resist.

  “I'm a bitch,” Alison sobs, pulling away from me and placing her hands over her face as tears roll from her eyes. “Oh God, I feel like I'm cracking up!”

  “Honey -”

  “Don't call me that!” she screams, stepping back as if she's horrified by the sight of me. “I don't know what's happening, but I have to get out of here.”

  “Alison, wait -”

  I hurry after her as she runs to the hallway, but I stop when I see that she's grabbing her car keys from the hook.