Into the Beyond Books 1-3

Josie didn’t wait around to see what would happen to the strange boy. Anyone who would run headlong into the woods after being told there was a bear nearby wasn’t right in the head. At some point bravery was more aptly called stupidity.

He must be deranged… she mused.

She sprinted back past the line of girls’ cabins, quickly passing her own cabin. She wasn’t about to let anyone else tell her where to hide. She didn’t trust the blood-splattered white boy.

What was he even doing over here?

Boys had no business on the girls’ side of camp. He was too young to be a counselor.

A kernel of doubt crept into her mind.

Could Rebecca have been right?

Before disappearing, Rebecca had been convinced all the oddities in the woods were just the boys pranking them… before she disappeared.

Josie’s self-preservation instinct overcame her skepticism. Most people couldn’t see danger until it poked them in the eye. Josie knew the terrifying truth. The dark depths of the universe held monsters far worse than those depicted at the edges of ancient maps. Today, she could feel the malicious energy exuding from the forest.

Josie looked back again when she reached the last cabin in the line. The trees stood silent—no breeze to rustle their branches. There was no sign of Rebecca, the boy, or anything else. Josie didn’t know what she’d seen, but she certainly knew what she felt. The fine hairs on the backs of her arms were all still standing up tall. There was an electric charge lingering in the air above. It fell upon the campground like a static snowfall, every stray current reminding Josie to be mindful.

She spotted Matt Greene skulking around the counselors’ offices. Chances were Steph had already told him who stole his belt knife. Josie made a beeline towards a group of girls in the distance that were setting up easels in preparation for an art class. She wanted to stay in a public place around as many people as possible while also avoiding Matt.

She grabbed an easel and set of art supplies and sat quietly in the back of the pack facing the distant woods. Worry for Rebecca outweighed everything else on her mind. She considered going to the counselors for help despite her likely expulsion from the camp, especially as morning dipped into afternoon, but she knew from past experience that merely talking seriously about supernatural occurrences was the fastest way to end up locked up in a mental institute. She would need proof before anyone would listen to a word of her story.

She dipped her brush mindlessly in a mixture of greens and browns she’d lined up on her palette.

“What is that?” asked the counselor leading the activity. She was standing over Josie’s shoulder.

Josie glanced back, not realizing at first that the woman was asking about the painting.

“That’s super creepy,” she said.

Josie looked back over at her easel. A rough painting of the forest included the tall figure she’d seen that morning. Her imagination had filled in more detail than her eyes had been capable of observing.

“Oh,” said Josie. “I’m sorry.” She didn’t know what else to say.

The counselor’s face remained pinched up with distaste as she moved on to the next camper.

As soon as the counselor looked away Josie ran the thickest brush she had through a dollop of black paint and blotted out the eerie figure, slender limbs and all. The gesture did nothing to alleviate the feeling that the forest was still watching her.

In the distance, a normal-sized figure emerged from the treeline. The baby blue of the boy’s hoodie gave him away. He moved with purpose in his steps, making a beeline for Josie’s cabin. He went inside for a moment before popping back out again with a frustrated look on his face. The cabin was probably empty this time of day.

How did he know which one was mine?

The boy must have been watching her prior to their run-in. If she hadn’t felt sketched out by him before, she certainly did now. He stood outside the cabin’s entrance scanning his eyes across the campground until they landed on the art class. He started moving in her direction.

Shoot.

She hadn’t been as clever as she thought. If she stayed put he would find her quickly, but if she ran now, she would have a little bit of a lead. She dropped her brush and put all of her pent-up anxiety to good use, sprinting out of the art class and away from the boy. She didn’t look back, instead simply assuming that the boy was hot on her trail.

Her mind raced to come up with somewhere to hide, but the open grassy fields of the campground didn’t supply any cover. She had no idea where she was going to go until her frantic gaze fell across Channie, sitting by herself at the end of the kayak dock. She looked to be zoning out, taking in the scenic view.

If there was a day for unsupervised water sports, it was today. Josie changed her direction, sprinting downhill towards the water’s edge. The Puget Sound shimmered in the sunlight as the breezy afternoon winds stirred up the gray sea water into a choppy slosh that was less-than optimal for kayaking.

She hit the head of the dock at full speed, her feet slapping hard against the slightly uneven wooden planks. Channie looked up at the sound, a concerned expression already nestled upon her brow. Josie didn’t stop running until she reached her. Channie’s attention shifted behind Josie.

Josie glanced back for the first time since she began her sprint. The boy was indeed chasing after her, and he had closed in on her lead vastly.

“Kayak,” Josie gasped, out of breath.

Channie was already on her feet. The girls quickly lifted a two-person kayak from one of the stands on the side of the dock and plopped it down on the water. Josie grabbed a pair of paddles from a large bucket, and then shoved the whole container holding the rest of them over the side of the dock. The girls stepped gingerly into the kayak, nearly flipping it over in their haste.

The slap of the boy’s feet sounded on the dock as they pushed off. The boy came to a stop at the end of the dock, leaning against his own thighs as he panted for air.

Josie and Channie paddled vigorously, putting as much distance as they could between themselves and the strangely determined boy.

Josie is rightly being cautious about the boy, but she isn’t seeing the whole picture yet. It is good to see Channie’s thread entangling with Josie’s though! Neither one of them has any inkling of the importance of their friendship yet. A beautiful tapestry. It’s funny how easily both of their lives could have gone any number of seemingly infinite different ways, and yet here they both are. Remember, only one path escapes ultimate disaster, and it’s going to take a whole lot of pieces falling into place to get there.

Keep vigilant,

-Mr. Gray