It was starting to get late, and to make matters worse, the moisture in the air formed a thin layer of fog on the ground. Finding it a bit strange for this time of year, I figured anything was possible and let the thought slip away. I was certain the best thing we could do was to get out of here. It meant I would have to put my curiosity on the back burner so to speak, at least for the night anyway. Tapping the side of my leg, Rambo took a few steps towards, me stopping at my feet.
“Lets go home boy.” I began walking knowing he would follow.
Noticing the fog, as it thickened further up the road, my eyes found their way down to Rambo. He was taking small cautious strides. They were just enough to keep him at my side.
“You okay boy?”
Lifting his head so his snout faced me, I noticed his eyes weren’t the same anymore. They held a sorrow deep inside. Looking his frightened face, I think we both had the same feeling that with all the strange things going on one of us might not make it out of here alive.
“What the fuck is going on around here?” I shouted.
In the short time we were walking, the murkiness made its way to the top of Rambo’s neck. If it wasn’t for his head being slightly past my knees I don’t think I would have been able to see him at all. It was all I could do to imagine what he was feeling having to be down there just barely able to see.
“Whoa, hold up a sec boy.”
As we stopped, I found that the motion of our legs stirred up the fog. It left a little opening behind us then closed up like we were never there. My eyes found Rambo in enough time to watch as the last of our paths disappeared and the fog completely engulfed his body.
“I know boy, this isn’t normal.” I bent down to give him what little comfort I could offer.
Rambo looked as though he was a lost child who couldn’t find his parents. I could tell he wasn’t sure what to do next. It was the first time I had ever seen him like this. His sudden display of anxiety left me puzzled. He had always been a fun, loving, and carefree dog. Nevertheless, we had to keep pushing forward. I mean we weren’t going to get home standing there looking at the awkwardness of the fog and how fast it was rising like a bunch of morons now were we?
“Come on boy, we need to keep moving.”
I gave him a gentle rub then stood up and began walking again. We were almost at the old covered bridge when a loud, bone-chilling cry broke the tranquility of the night. Stopping instantly, Rambo’s ears shot up and his head jerked to the side. We listened until everything went back to a dead quiet.
Although the noise had stopped, and we were close to home, the sound ate at my curiosity. I looked at Rambo.
“Hey boy, wanna go see what the noise was?”
I waited patiently for a moment as he glanced at me with his tongue hanging out his mouth. I was kind of hoping he would some how magically be able to speak, and tell me, “Hell no.”
“Yeah, I do too.” A half grin covered my lips.
I knew we didn’t have time to stop, but I just couldn’t resist the urge. I had to check it out. My friends didn’t give me the name curious George for nothing. Leading the way to the edge of the woods my stomach tied itself into a tight knot. Standing at the frontline of the tress, I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly pushing the last of my doubts away.
I looked to my side for Rambo. He wasn’t there. Turning around I became aware he had stopped just behind me, and wasn’t going to follow me in. Reaching down grabbing his collar, I was going to make sure he went with me. He wasn’t budging.
“Come on boy.” I said giving him a little tug.
Rambo tried turning in the other direction, he wasn’t going to make it easy on me.
“Please Bo, don’t make me do this alone.”
Nope, he still wasn’t giving in. Stubborn mutt. Pulling at each other, eventually loosing, Rambo stood and allowed me to drag him in with me. I began walking comfortably with him by my side deep into the woods.
Faint howls could be heard from somewhere off in the distance. I knew they hadn’t come from a coyote, but I chalked it up to being one. Rambo whined and slowed at the sounds drifting around the woods. I slowed my pace to match his. I wanted to make sure he was staying by my side, and wasn’t going to take off in the other direction leaving me here alone.
“Its okay Bo, don’t worry, nothing is going to happen.” I knew I to convince him as much as I did myself.
We walked for what seemed to be an hour in a wide zigzag pattern listening to the sound of the growls, as they grew deeper and louder. The change in their volume told us we were close. I began to wonder if looking for this thing was the right decision. I took in a deep breath trying to settle my nerves.
A foul stench filled the air. It was a rancid odor carrying the smell of rotten flesh. It reminded me of leftover meat that was forgotten in a slaughterhouse on a hot summer day, but mixed with the thick damp musty smell of an old moldy basement. Even the smell wasn’t going to stop me from finding out what made the noise. And I wanted to satisfy my curiosity.
I decided to push on, I needed to know what had happened. Pushing the foul odor from my senses, continuing forward my foot landed on a stick, breaking it. A loud cracking noise echoed through the trees. The echo was followed by a ferocious growl, and sounds of footsteps from something big running behind us.
Unable to see what it was, I figured it must have just been my nerves playing tricks on me. Shrugging it off, Rambo let out a loud bark and bolted off ahead of me. It wasn’t my imagination, I knew he was after the sound of the footsteps.
“Rambo, get back here!”
Running through the thick cover I tried to keep up with him, but found myself watching as he slowly left my sight. I could still hear random barks from him and sounded a good distance from where I was. A few seconds after his last bark the silence was broken by the sound of a nerve-racking whimper.
“Rambo!”
There wasn’t a sound. Receiving no indication, of whether he was all right or not, I shouted into the night again.
“Rambo, come on boy.” My voice trembled with fear.
I knew that thing was out here with us and had possibly found him. Pushing myself to run faster through the murkiness, my foot became wedged between some roots from a tree hidden beneath the leaves.
A loud thud filled the air and I received a sharp burning sensation in the side of my face. My body had slammed against the cold soggy dirt forcing the air from my lungs. Warm liquid trickled from the corner of my lip as my eyesight clouded over with blackness.
