I had started running with the Marauders when I was thirteen. I know, the name makes us sound like D&D nerds trying to come up with the name for a street gang, and maybe in some ways that wasn’t too far from the truth. The four of us: Diego, Jamie, Freddy, and me, we were giant nerds, and if I’m being honest, roleplaying games in Diego’s mom’s basement was part of what brought us together in the first place and made us a group instead of four disparate kids who were bored, lonely and wanted to have fun and excitement in their lives.
By the time we jokingly started calling ourselves the Marauders, we were all fourteen or fifteen—that restless age where you have more energy and curiosity than you have ways of expending or satisfying either. We started to look for fresh hobbies and thrills, new things to explore. And, over the course of one long summer of rambling around the more distant and desolate regions of our town, we found ourselves going places we technically shouldn’t have.
I say technically because we weren’t hurting anything. We weren’t bad kids, and none of us had the urge to break or steal stuff. We were urban explorers, if you want to call our town urban, and were technically trespassers, sure. But we never ran into real danger or trouble beyond a cop stopping us a couple of times and making us head home.
By college, things were starting to change. Diego and me were both at State, while Jamie and Freddy had stayed at the local junior college. None of us minded that much—they came up most weekends, and by the second month of our freshman year we were exploring parts of a true city on a regular basis. We did get into few scrapes then. Freddy got bit by a dog, and I got stuck between two pipes in an old hospital’s utilities tunnel for over three hours while Diego went to go get something to break me free—yes, I know I said we don’t ever break anything, but there are exceptions to every rule.
Except those exceptions started becoming more regular as time went on. A few new people would come and go at times—most of them tourists, but a couple of Jamie’s friends kept coming back, and it didn’t take long to figure out it was going to be a problem. They were reckless, making too much noise and doing stuff that…well, I always suspected it was trying to impress Jamie, the only girl in the group, but whatever their reasons, I could see the problems coming.
Then one day, the bigger, dumber of the two…I think his name was Cory…fell onto a piece of rusty metal and had to be carried from the lawnmower plant we were checking out. We got him to the hospital and he made it, but his parents made enough of a stink that we got questioned by the cops and the school administration put me and Diego on academic probation. After that, we still went exploring, but only the four of us, and only when all four of us could go.
We made plans to continue after college, but as happens with so many things, life has gotten in the way. The few times we’ve gotten back together it was to eat dinner and catch up or maybe go camping for a weekend. Diego and Jamie still talked about checking out some dark corner of decaying city, but the suggestion was always met with enthusiastic but vague approval that quickly petered into laughter or changing the subject. Because the truth was I was outgrowing the need to skulk around in some shattered ruin pretending I was invading some monster’s lair. I think we all were to some extent, but that wasn’t the thing that scared us so much as it being a symptom of the thing we were really afraid of.
That we were also outgrowing each other.
We never said it out loud, of course. But I could already see the years stretching out ahead. Diego and Jamie might stay together long enough to actually get married, and all of us would get more and more preoccupied with our work, our own families, and new sets of friends that fit our new, grown-up lives. It was sad and a little creepy, like a bug or snake molting and leaving its old self behind, but I could see it happening already. The visits would become phone calls and then texts and emails until finally we realized we hadn’t actually talked to each other in a few months or even years. I was actually thinking about that the day Jamie called me, and when I heard her voice, I felt a surge of joy, my mind already banishing the idea that we would all drift so far apart. Then I heard what she was saying.
“Jamie? What? Say that again.” She was emotional, maybe crying even, and I hadn’t been paying enough attention the first time. Maybe I heard her wrong.
“Diego. He’s gone. He’s…missing.”
I frowned as I gripped the phone harder. “Gone how? Where did he go missing at?”
Her voice sounded thin and watery through the phone. “He went exploring two nights ago. By himself. I…I know it’s a bad idea. I told him that. Told him to put it off until the next time we were all together. That we’d really go, you know?”
I felt my mouth going dry. “Where did he go? Somewhere in town?”
“N-no. Not this time. He goes on all these message boards. Some for infiltrations, some just…weird shit, I don’t know. He heard about this abandoned sanitarium upstate. Like in the middle of nowhere. Said he’d read about it a couple of different places, and at first he didn’t think it was even real. But then he saw a posting where someone had been up there back in like the 80 or 90s maybe. He showed me a couple of pictures and…I mean it looked cool. All creepy and abandoned. But not safe. Part of it was burned down, and…”
“Jamie, honey, what happened? Did he make it up there?”
“Yeah, he did, or I’m pretty sure he did. He called when he was parking, and he thought it was a couple of miles up the road. I…he sounded nervous, Mac. Like actually nervous, and you know how he is. Nothing ever scares him.”
“But what did he say? Like did he say specifically what was wrong?”
“Um…he said the trees were weird. Saw a lot of moss or silk or something in them. And he thought he heard something, but he didn’t tell me what. I asked him to come home, but he said he had to find it first. Just find it and take a few pics and he’d be home before I knew it. B-but he never came home. I can’t track his phone, and he doesn’t answer.”
“Have you called the cops?”
“No, not yet. Diego’s job…it’s a Fed job, yeah? I don’t want to call and tell the police he’s up there trespassing if it’s all a big mistake or mix-up. Get him in trouble for nothing. I waited all day yesterday, but when he still hadn’t come back today, I decided I needed to either call 911 or call you and Freddy.”
“I mean I’m glad you called, but…”
“Freddy is only an hour away, and when he gets here, we’re heading up to try to find him. If you want to come, just meet us in the area, it’ll be faster than you driving down here first. If not, well, I understand that too. I just thought I…I just have to find him.”
“I know. I…shit. Yeah. Just send me the directions. I’ll start heading that way now.”
It took four hours to get down to the spot Jamie had texted me. My hope had been they would just wait for me to start looking, but when I called to say I was thirty minutes out I could tell they were already on the move. She was saying something about a police car when I lost the call.
I drove past what looked like the spot, going on down the road to where I saw a car parked at the edge of the trees. Based on the bumper stickers, I guessed it was Freddy’s. Turning around to park beside it, two thoughts struck me. First was that I hadn’t even known he’d gotten a new car. Second was that I still hadn’t seen any sign of the car Diego would have left behind.
I tried texting Jamie (R U in there?)—I was rusty at marauding, but I still knew better than to call while they were up there trespassing. I just hoped she had her phone on silent, if she got the text at all. After waiting a couple of minutes I let out a sigh and got out, walking back up the road toward the gate I’d seen. As I went, I looked up at the trees. They were massive, with a sense of age and permanence that was both impressive and intimidating, but they didn’t seem that strange. And studying them in the fading afternoon light, I saw no signs of moss or webs or whatever.
My pulse quickened as I drew near to the gate. It was a huge wrought-iron gate hung between twin brick posts that were at least ten feet tall. With chipped mortar and specks of rust on the ornate swirls of black metal, it did have the air of age if not abandonment, and the metal sign attached to the brick was so green with corrosion it was hard to read until I got right up on it. Heart pounding, I read out the words, my voice sounding strange and distant in my own ears.
“Welcome to Greenheart Home. We hope you enjoy your stay.”
Brick walls trailed away in both directions from the gate, and I had a moment of new dread at the thought of finding a way over it. Glancing back at the gate, I decided to try it, assuming it was either locked or rusted shut. Instead, it swung open with a slight squeak, and holding my breath, I crept through, closing it behind me before stepping off the path that led up the hill to a hulking set of buildings set among stands of trees. I walked carefully through the denser trees and bushes that ran alongside the road winding up to what looked like a massive manor house, my eyes darting between the path in front of me and the vast grounds further ahead.
Everything was deathly silent. There were no signs of people, but there were no animals noises either—a rustle of a squirrel or a chirping bird’s warning as I passed by underneath. It was strange. I thought I remembered hearing ambient noises when I got out of my car, but here? I didn’t even feel a breeze any more. More importantly, I didn’t see any sign of my friends.
Digging out my phone, I decided to try another text, this time to Freddy.
Where R U at? I’m inside at first building.
I stepped up to the corner of the building and crouched down. Even with no sign of anyone and standing in a growing pool of shadow, I still felt exposed. I was getting too old for this. We’d make a good effort to find Diego ourselves, but if we couldn’t, then it was time to call the cops, job or no job. I was about to put my phone away again when it dinged in my hand. Shit! I fumbled to put it on silent and then glanced around before looking at the message with growing confusion.
Who is this?
Freddy, it’s Mac. Wtf? Where are you?
A pause, and then. Thank God, man! I told her it couldn’t be you. We’re in the first big building now. Second floor, I think.
I reread the message before replying. Told her who couldn’t be me? What the hell? It was as I hit send that I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. A patrol car was silently gliding up the driveway, going past me without stopping…no, it did stop now, the front doors creaking as they both opened simultaneously and two large figures stepped out. They were dressed like policemen, though I didn’t see any particular city name on the side of the car, and their uniforms were dark and non-descript aside from two brightly shining silver badges. But all of this faded into the background as I noticed something far stranger about them.
They were twins.
“Chip, I don’t know about you, but there’s something sacred about a man’s home.” I could see the man who had gotten out of the passenger seat smiling across the hood at the driver, his head looking like a harshly carved block of malign stone. His double inclined his head in a slight nod.
“I know what you mean, Champ. There’s a certain sanctity that shouldn’t be invaded.” He turned and stared directly at me. “A man’s home is his castle, after all.”
Champ was already starting around the back of the car. “Yes, indeed. Home is where they always have to…”
I turned and ran, weaving between overgrown bushes and unruly trees as I headed to the far corner of the building. I could try to make a break for the woods surrounding the place, maybe climb the fence, but then what would happen to the others? Better I slip in, find them, and we all get out together. I had to be fast though. I could hear breaking branches behind me as the cops pushed through the wall of green to pursue me.
I finally reached the far end and turned to run along what I imagined was the back of the building. There might not be any doors or windows, much less any that were open, but…wait, there was an open window right there. I figured it was how Jamie and Freddy had gotten in, or maybe Diego, but regardless it was a means of escape, so long as I could get in before they made the corner.
Peering into the darkness of the window, I hesitated. I really had no idea what was in there. Rotten floors and mold, or something worse? Shaking my head, I forced myself to start climbing through. There wasn’t any time for hesitation. It was either run or get caught, and I still had enough of the old me left to know which option I preferred.
When I had cleared the window, I eased it down gently and crouched down, letting my eyes adjust to the interior murk of the place. It was a bedroom, and aside from the furniture looking dusty and the sheets and curtains looking faded and rotten from disuse, it didn’t actually look that bad. Better yet, the door out into the hall was open, and hanging from the knob was a small strand of dental floss.
We’d started using floss to mark places we went back in college. It was easy to get turned around in the dark, and when we had bigger groups we would split into smaller packs that could navigate different areas without overlapping too much. One would use regular white and the other green mint. This was white, and looked new. Maybe a message from Freddy or Jamie that I was on the right trail.
Stepping out into the hall, I tensed as I saw movement at the window I’d gone through. The twins were moving past, maybe out into the woods or maybe to a door because they knew exactly where I was. Either way, I needed to hurry and find the others before we were found.
The hallway was wide and long, but the murky light and thick air made every step feel more claustrophic and oppressive. This place wasn’t just old. We’d been in plenty of old places, and out of those, there had only been a couple that felt…wrong. Dangerous beyond stepping on a snake or getting tetanus. I felt the hairs begin standing up on my neck as my scalp began to tingle. This was one of those places.
I made it out to a large open area with hallways going off in several different directions. At first I wasn’t sure which way to go, but then I caught a glimpse of stairs at the far end of the hall to my right. I started in that direction and then hesitated. Something wasn’t right with this. I could see all the way down the hall, but it was like looking down a gun barrel—the hard edges of the hallway had been blurred away, as though something had built up in the corners, turning a rectangle into an oval.
Shaking my head, I started forward. What did it matter? I needed to find them, and he said they were upstairs. Whatever rot or nastiness was in this place, I’d just try to avoid touching it and get through to the stairs quickly.
Taking out my pocket flashlight, I started forward again, shining my light as I went. What was that? Branches? Dead vines, maybe? As I walked into the hallway proper, I couldn’t help but reach out and touch one of the thick, grey lines that swirled around the floor, ceiling and walls. My tongue grew fat in my mouth as I recognized the texture and saw the strand gleam in the glow of my light.
It was a web.
Shuddering, I yanked my hand back, my fingers stinging slightly where they’d touched the silk. I had the idea of it all falling on me, burning and sticking and wrapping me tighter and tighter until…but no, I’d made it to the stairs, and everything looked better here. Glancing behind me for some kind of stealthy movement, I forced myself to take a breath. It wasn’t a big deal. I was freaking out over nothing and yeah, I’ve never seen a web like that, but weird shit happens, right? I just needed to find them and get us out.
I crept up the stairs, wincing at every small creak as I went, my eyes and ears straining for any sign of my friends or anything that might be after us. The top of the stairs led to another long hallway, this one mercifully clear of anything other than a little dust. In fact, it actually looked cleaner and in better repair than the downstairs, with a series of closed doors that opened without complaint onto more bedrooms that were unremarkable except for how well-maintained they seemed. I was opening the door to the fifth room when I sucked in a breath.
This wasn’t a bedroom at all. It was an ultra-modern atrium that seemed like part of an entirely different building. Everything was clean and in order, with plastic and chrome and marble married with big computer screens and furniture that made the place look like the lobby of some trendy business. Except all of that was impossible. This was all too big, and why would it be here at all? Most of the lights were off, but there was no feeling of disuse here. Just the lonely disquiet of being alone in a place when it was closed and lifeless. I whispered for Jamie and Freddy, and then for Diego, but my words seemed to fall flat in the dead air. Shivering, I stepped back out and shut the door.
“…take you in.”
Letting out a scream, I spun around to see Chip and Champ filling up the hallway behind me. I started to back up, my hands held up in front of me. “Listen, guys. This is all a misunderstanding. I’m just looking for my friends. We’re not here to steal or hurt anything. I just need to find my friends and leave, okay?” They both started to chuckle, hard eyes boring into me as they slowly walked forward, keeping pace with my retreat. “Guys, please? We just want to go home.”
They stopped at this, their expressions both brightening in a mirrored mockery of mirth before darkening again. “Home? Mac, you already are home.”
The twins lunged forward then, and as I twisted around, I broke into a full run away from them. I was fast, but they were faster, and they’d catch me before the hallway gave out. Taking a risk, I suddenly juked into a door, twisting the knob and flying through it before slamming it shut on their grinning faces. There was a brief hammering on the other side, and then nothing. Twisting the small lock below the knob, I turned around and stared into Hell.
It wasn’t a room, large or small. It was a cave. Somehow, on the second floor of this old building, I had walked into a cave of sorts. Walls of rough black stone curved away from me in every direction, shadows filling the voids like pools of ink speckled with mounds of grey and white. I already knew what they were I think, but I still had to go and look. Had to see for myself.
The first one was Diego, sallow and unconscious, but clearly alive. Not only alive, but strangely younger than I remembered him looking in years. The old man next to him wasn’t so lucky—a desiccated corpse that looked ready to crumble to powder. Both of them suspended in thick strands of web against a rocky wall. I could feel my mind edging toward some kind of abyss—a shutdown reserved for when things got too bad too fast. I couldn’t let that happen. If I did, I’d die…we might all die…in this place. Looking around for something to cut the webbing, I…
Jamie and Freddy were against the far wall. They looked as drained as Diego, but again, they were alive and looking like they’d been in high school. As I stepped closer, Freddy looked up, staring at me silently.
My phone buzzed in my pocket.
We found our way back. We’re all home again.
Freddy’s eyes shifted from mine to something deeper in the cave. Trembling, I shined my light back there and found another mound. My breath caught in my throat as I stepped back there. It…it didn’t make any sense. The face wrapped in the gray webbing was younger, but there was no denying it.
It was me.
I turned back to Freddy. “We…we’ve been here before, haven’t we?” After a moment, my phone buzzed.
Yeah. I remember it now. Senior year. Diego’s idea.
I thought I remembered it too, but I wasn’t sure. And how was any of this happening? “Why did we come back? Why would he come back?”
Buzz.
He didn’t. We didn’t.
I was shaking hard now, looking back to this other me, this twin. It was alive, I could see it breathing, but it couldn’t be me. And what was in its hand? What the fuck was glowing in its hand?
Buzz.
You know what it is. It’s your phone. He’s writing all of this down. That’s what they want. What they feed on. Stories. Our stories.
Tears in the corners of my eyes, I wanted to back away, but I couldn’t move. Even taking a single straining step was impossible, at least until I tried moving toward that other me. It opened its eyes and stared at me, a thin, pale tongue snaking out from between cracked lips. I felt an urge to lift my hand to its face and I fought it.
Buzz.
We never left. And now we’re back. To feed them stories. To feed us...well, it’s best to just let it happen.
Grimacing, I grabbed my arm, trying to force it back down to my side. “This is all insane. This isn’t real.”
I waited for a buzz, but there was none, and when I looked up, it was into my own hungry gaze. Gasping, I jerked my hand forward and snatched the phone out of the other’s webbed grasp. My fingers burned, but I ignored it. The screen was dirty but legible in the dark, and as I scrolled up and back down, I felt my bowels begin to loosen.
He had written all of this. Even this that you’re reading now, he had written it all.
My other arm free of encumbrance, it had drifted up to my twin’s face while I was distracted. I let out a howl when he started biting my fingers, but it was more surprise than pain. It did hurt, but only a little. I could feel cool and then cold washing over me like a kind of electricity, making me sad and excited at the same time. I was going home, wasn’t I? And maybe later I would go out again, to live another story to feed the things that lived here. To feed myself so I wasn’t so cold and alone and hungry in the dark.
The more the other me chewed, the faster he went, and it wasn’t long before I could feel myself being pulled into his mouth, twisted and warped to fit, fairly pouring into his mouth with such speed and force that I almost dropped the phone as I read these last few words and wrote one parting sentence of my own.
