The Darkness Within

Chapter One: The Mists

The mists had never been this thick before. Emma had grown up in this valley, and she was used to the fog that rolled in during the early evening, but tonight was different. It was as if the mist was alive, pulsing and breathing, covering their home in an evil cloak of darkness.

Mom, she called, Mom come in here.

Emma heard heavy footsteps approach her room.

What is it honey? It’s late, you should be sleeping.

Emma knelt on her bed and pulled the curtain away from her window. Look mom, the mists have covered our whole house and valley. I can’t see anything out there.

Hush honey, her mother said and pushed her gently back down in her bed. It’s time to go to sleep, don’t stare at the dark. You know how your imagination can get away from you.

The girl crawled under her soft pink blanket. Mom, I'm scared.

Her mother sat down on the bed beside her, and stroked her hair softly. Now baby don't be scared. There's nothing outside. There's nothing scary out there. Just the mists, and they are usually gone in the morning. She began to hum softly under her breath. Everything will be okay Emma. Get some rest now.

The girl’s eyes felt heavy, and she fought to keep them open. She could tell her mother didn’t believe her about something not being right. She began to doubt herself. Maybe she was imagining it, maybe there wasn’t a darkness out there that she felt.

She didn't want to fall asleep because she was afraid what would happen if she wasn’t around to guard against whatever was in the mists.

THE SUN SHONE BRIGHTLY through her curtains. Slowly she opened her eyes. The fear from last night flooded back to her. She was alive, nothing scary had happened. Maybe her mom had been right and it had all been her imagination.

Excited that the morning was here, and she had been wrong about being afraid. She bounced out of her bed.

Mom! She called. Mom it’s morning!

The girl ran out of her room and into the living room, which was where her mother slept. They had a small house, and it only had one bedroom, which was Emma’s.

Mom, where are you? She called looking around.  The tiny living room was empty. The couch, which her mother used as a bed, was unmade. Emma raced into the tiny kitchen, her mother was not there either. In fact the dishes that her mom would wash faithfully every night, were still piled in the sink.

Emma searched every room in their small house perplexed. Her mother usually didn't leave their house unless she told Emma. The valley they lived in was not a safe place even in the day.

The girl walked to the front door, unlocked it, and slowly peered outside. Squinting from the glare of the bright sun, she looked out past the porch. Her mother was not anywhere in view.

Their small house was surrounded by a grassy valley and on the other side of that was a thick forest. She tried to look past the valley down into the thick woods that surrounded their property, but even in the daylight it was dark and full of shadows. A heavy sinking feeling hit her. The darkness she had felt from the mists last night, it had been real. She hadn’t imagined it.

Tears brimmed in her eyes. Her mother was gone. She could feel it in her soul. The darkness she had felt in the mists had somehow taken her mother while Emma had been asleep.

MOM! She screamed in rage and sadness. MOM, please come home!

She listened, hoping against the sadness she felt in her heart, that her mother would respond. But all she heard were the birds chirping and the bugs clicking.

Emma turned back into the house and closed the front door. Standing in the tiny living room, she started examining the area. Trying to find a clue as to what happened to her mom.

Her eyes lingered on the carpet in the center of the room. It was a busy design with reds, yellows, and blues, so she hadn’t noticed right away, but there appeared to be fresh stains.

Walking over to the carpet she knelt down and examined the rug. She touched the stains, they were damp and when she lifted her fingers up to look at it more closely, it appeared to be red sticky blood. Was it blood? Was it her mother’s?

A whimper escaped from her mouth. She moaned softly and began to rock herself.

After crying for a few minutes, she took some deep breaths. Emma needed to do something. She couldn’t just stay here. It wasn’t safe.

She should get help. She could find help and organize a search party to help find her mom.

The only place to get help would be in town, Birch Lake. Birch Lake was at least six miles away.

The girl really didn’t have a choice. They had no neighbors and her mother had lost her cellphone. With no car, or a license, she would have to walk to town, or risk staying at her house and hoping help would come. She didn’t like the option of staying alone when her mother could be out there injured and needing help.

She would have to be brave and walk the six miles alone to Birch Lake.

She stood up and headed to her room. She quickly got dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt, dried her tears, and put her long brown hair in two french braids. Her heart was aching and she just wanted to crumple on her bed and cry her heart out, but that wouldn’t help find her mother.

Glancing around the room for a weapon, she spotted her old slingshot she had used as a kid. It wasn’t much of a weapon but it would have to do.

HER FEET ACHED.

It felt like she had been walking for hours. She had no idea how long she had been traveling, but she knew the sun was going to set soon. She was getting worried. Emma hadn’t seen anything she recognized, and she was far too young to spend the night out in the woods alone. She was sixteen, and a country girl, but she still depended on her mother for a lot of things.

This was the longest she had ever been alone, and she was scared. Trying not to think too much about being afraid, or her mother, she concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other. Just keep going.

Her throat was dry and her stomach rumbled. She wished she had planned ahead and brought food and water with her. Just keep going, she told herself.

Hey there! A deep booming voice called.

Startled, Emma stopped. She looked up to see a tall shaggy haired man, approach her. He looked