Butcher In The Cabin E-Book

A.E. Stanfill

• Herausgeber: Next Chapter
• Kategorie: Abenteuer, Thriller, Horror
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

There are some that go to summer camp for a few months of fun. To hang out with friends and possibly make new ones.

For others, summer camp can be pure hell. Just ask Sam and his friends. Bullied all summer, hated by the counselors. But that’s not all they have to worry about.

There is something in the woods that is stalking anyone who enters. Seeking revenge, blood and death.

And it will not be satisfied until everyone in the camp will be a trophy on its wall.

This book contains graphic violence and is not suitable for readers under the age of 18.

Leseprobe

BUTCHER IN THE CABIN

A.E. STANFILL

CONTENTS

1. How It All Begins

2. Let the Fun Begin

3. Detour

4. Into the Unknown

5. A Frightening Surprise

6. Return of the Bullies

7. The Truth Is Finally Told

8. Some Never Learn

9. Death Of A Bully

10. Albert Strikes Again

11. All Hell Breaks Loose

12. The End Of Everything Is Near

13. The Nightmare Ends

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About the Author

Copyright (C) 2021 A.E. Stanfill

Layout design and Copyright (C) 2022 by Next Chapter

Published 2022 by Next Chapter

Edited by India Hammond

Cover art by CoverMint

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the author’s permission.

1

HOW IT ALL BEGINS

It was a very warm evening just like always in the Deep South, though something was different. On this day, a man was held up in his one bedroom apartment writing in a journal, not even knowing what had possessed him to do so.

However, his is a very strange story indeed; he was arrested at the age of sixteen for supposedly murdering six adults and over thirty young kids and teens, and no matter how much he told his side of the story, no one would believe him—not the cops, nor the parents of the kids that died.

What was really sad was that not even his own parents believed him. What was also weird was that a few of his friends that he had made over the years that he went camping with had survived. Now why in the world would a teen killer let anyone survive even if they were friends? It didn’t make any sense whatsoever.

What was even weirder was when his so-called friends were questioned, they claimed they couldn’t remember a damn thing at all, and that sure didn’t make any sense now, did it? But it didn’t matter, they had found a suspect, and all they wanted was for someone to take the fall and who better than a sixteen-year-old kid covered in blood and in shock.

They cleaned him up and kept him in the hospital for a few days before putting him in juvenile hall and then trying him for the murders. However, Sam was lucky; at his hearing, he was found not guilty because of insufficient evidence. Even though they couldn’t put him in prison, the judge made a call to have him put in an asylum for the criminally insane until he was deemed fit for society.

He never had a problem talking to people that wanted to know what happened at the campgrounds, but everyone he spoke to would leave and never come back to talk with him again. Asked why, they replied, “The details he gives are just too gruesome and unbelievable.”

What really happened out there in the woods that year? Only Sam knows the real truth. But what’s the point? Nobody ever listened to him or believed him.

Sam seemed intent on writing about his awful past and started his trip down memory lane. It began like this.

I was just your normal teenager, who had just turned sixteen at the time, lost in my own little world—or maybe I wasn’t normal at all. Teens my age had girlfriends and also had their permit to drive, but that just wasn’t me. I didn’t have a girlfriend, and I didn’t know how to drive either.

I wasn’t athletic, and I didn’t play sports; however, I did take karate and that kept me in decent shape, plus I liked to walk. That week I was on top of the world; school was out for the summer, and that meant no more homework and no more dealing with the rest of the ignorant teens either. I remember how the next day started for me. It wasn’t near as good as the last.

The day started off normal, I had my breakfast, and I was ready to read my comic book. And that’s exactly what I did. I was lost in my own little world, exactly what I had been waiting for. While sitting on the couch reading my comic book, I could hear my mom and dad talking in the kitchen, but I paid them no mind.

Then I heard those two words that I thought I would never hear again: summer camp. That snapped me out of that world. Shit! I thought to myself. Another year of summer camp. Really? I mean, come on, I’m too old for that shit now.

Summer camp sure as hell had never been fun for me; every year it was always the same. I got picked on and beat up on by the bullies; they were a year older than me and had always been bigger than me. I just downright hated it. On top of that, there was no TV, you couldn’t even use your cell phone, and if caught with one, they took it away from you. All I would usually end up with were my comic books, which was fine with me when I got a chance to read them, but nine times out of ten some asshole stole them from me, and the counselors could care less. They were either too busy having sex or too busy picking on the nerds, which usually included me.

Yeah, I’m considered a nerd because of my love for comic books—which in my eyes makes the counselors a complete and utter joke! Believe me, I paid for being who I am, so did many of the other kids throughout the years. If you were a jock, you were loved by the counselors and could get away with anything. If you were a nerd, you were guaranteed a long and harsh summer.

So I asked myself, Why would my parents do this to me? What have I done wrong? I couldn’t come up with any answers. I knew if this happened it was going to ruin my summer yet again for another year of my life. But what was I supposed to do?

I decided to calmly wait and listen in on some more of my parents’ conversation before doing anything else. So I just sat on the couch and listened to them talk about me. I was shocked when I heard everything. My mom thought it would be a good idea for me to go one more time, while my dad made it sound like it would be the last time they could get rid of me for another summer. I know they wanted to be alone and all, but why did I have to go through hell so they could achieve it? I started to get upset, so on that day I decided, since I was close to being a man, I would tell my parents how I felt.

“Mom, Dad,” I said with a very stern voice, “I don’t want to go back to that place,” I said to them with a hint of anger in my voice. “It sucks and I refuse to go, you can’t make me.” I kept on running my mouth without thinking. “I’m a man now. I can do what I want.”

If only I had used my head, what came next would have been avoided if I had done so. Before I knew it, I felt my dad’s hand land flush on my cheek as he slapped the taste right out of my mouth. It hurt like hell. It had been a while since the last time my dad hit me. I was upset and my face hurt like hell. I was still in shock that my dad had slapped me; I was just telling my parents how I felt.

Yes, I could have handled things differently, but I was young and rambunctious. It happens, right? Still, I don’t feel like I deserved it, but whatever. And I sure as hell didn’t deserve what happened next either, because they both started screaming at me. First, it was my mom.

“What in the hell is your problem?” she asked loudly, “You know what? After that stunt, you’re going whether you like it or not!” I knew not to say another word, I wasn’t about to get slapped again. I could tell by the look on my mom’s face that she wasn’t done with me yet. “Your father busts his ass to send you to summer camp so you can get out there and have some fun! And on top of that, it’s not cheap; these things cost money. It keeps you out of trouble, young man! If it wasn’t for summer camp, your lazy ass would be at home all day with your nose in those damn comic books all summer long.”

Before my mom could get another word in, my dad interrupted her, “Son, we just want what’s best for you, that’s all. If that means you have to get out of the house and go to summer camp, then so be it.” He was being calm about it at first. I could tell he felt bad about slapping me, but I didn’t care. At that moment, I wanted to win the argument.

“Dad. I’m an adult now, don’t I get a say in this?”

He was still trying his best to be calm with me as he said, “No buts this time, son, it’s been decided. And no, you don’t have a say in this, you may be a teenager now, but you’re still a child, and you will do what you’re told. No ifs or buts about it, young man. Are we clear?”

I looked at my dad with an angry look on my face. To me, it wasn’t fair, I deserved a summer to myself, and that’s why I kept fighting against them both.

“Dad, it’s not fair. You know how much I hate that place. Yet you still send me there, and on top of that, you and Mom both find excuses to send me back there every year. Think about how I feel for once.” I wasn’t backing down, but in the end, it didn’t do me a bit of good.

My dad was starting to get upset with me. Man did his face begin to get red. That’s when I decided it was time to ease up a bit, but I knew I was too late. He turned away from me and did his best to calm himself down. It wasn’t good; I could see his facial expression changing. He was really pissed off, and it didn’t take long for him to show it either.

“Our word is final, young man,” he said angrily to me. But he didn’t stop there, and believe me, it was far from over. Dad was letting me know he was the boss of the house. “You’re going whether you like it or not, and that is that. Don’t say another word, young man, or you’ll be in serious trouble.”

I looked at my dad and gave him the biggest “go to hell” look that you could give anyone. I was upset, fighting back my tears because everyone knows men don’t cry. Feeling my anger boiling over inside of me, I yelled at the top of my lungs at my dad and mom, “I hate you both!” I tried and tried to fight back my tears with all my might, but I finally broke down.

With tears in my eyes, I stormed off to my room not saying a word to my parents as I went. I slammed the door behind me. I didn’t say another word to my parents the rest of the night, and my parents never came to my room to apologize or try to console me. I didn’t have any brothers or sisters. I was the only child, so I didn’t have to worry about anyone else trying to bother me either.

I laid in my bed, staring up at the ceiling thinking about the day after tomorrow; that was really the only thing on my mind. Yeah, I felt bad about the argument I had with my parents that night. At that moment though, I didn’t care; all I knew is that I felt like they had betrayed me again.

After a while, I knew it wasn’t going to do me any good to be angry or to fight with my parents. I had officially given up and accepted my fate. I now realized I had to figure out what I was going to do for fun on my last day of freedom before I had to go back to that damn place. That’s when it hit me. The next day, I was going to wake up early, eat some breakfast, grab my favorite comic book that I had been reading, and go to my favorite hiding spot.

My thoughts went from thinking about the next day to thinking about summer camp. The more I thought about it, the more I started to feel uneasy about it all. I just had a very bad feeling about camp that year, it was like a warning coming deep from inside my soul—it scared me. I had a million things running through my head at the moment; however, my eyes were starting to get heavy.

Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep. That night, I had one of the most horrible nightmares you could ever imagine. Something was chasing me. I couldn’t exactly see what it was; all I knew was that it was after me. It wasn’t long before I realized that I was running around in circles. For no reason, I decided to stop and look around, but there wasn’t anything there.

Then nothing but silence. I stood there in the darkness all alone and waited for whatever was after me to jump out and show itself. I couldn’t take it anymore, so I yelled out into the darkness, “Hello! Is anyone out there? If so, please stop. It’s not funny anymore.” Then it began; screams started coming from all around me. It wasn’t just normal screams either, it was some of the most blood-curdling screams you could ever imagine, I was paralyzed with fear.

I could also see something in the dark; all of a sudden it leaped out at me. At first I couldn’t make out what it was; however, I could hear a creepy laughter, as whatever this thing was it had a hold of me. I screamed out into the darkness, fighting against whatever had me; then I heard a faint voice. I really couldn’t make out what it was saying, and I was honestly too scared to pay attention. But I do remember the constant laughing. Before I knew it, I woke up screaming bloody murder.

It was horrible, and I had a cold sweat all over my body. I jumped out of my bed and started looking around my room as if I was looking for what had me in my nightmare. I guess I was making sure that I was really safe in my own room; it didn’t take me long to decide that it was time for me to jump back in my bed and hide under my covers. Yeah, it was childish of me.

After the nightmare, I barely got any sleep the rest of that night. For me, it was definitely a sign of things to come. It wasn’t long before the sun started coming up. Little rays of light shone through my curtains. I lay in bed still partially under my covers; to be honest, I didn’t want to get out of my bed because I knew this would be my last day of freedom.

But at last, it was time for me to get up and get myself ready because I could hear faint sounds of footsteps and the sound of dishes clanging together, which let me know that my mom was up and more than likely cooking breakfast for my dad before he went to work and for me also. I was sure that they were both still mad at me, so yeah, I was somewhat scared to make my way downstairs.

Before long I didn’t have a choice, as my dad yelled for me, “Sam! It’s time to get out of bed and eat! You have a long day ahead of you!”

Damn, I thought to myself. I really didn’t want to get yelled at again, so I did the smart thing. “Okay, Dad!” I answered back nicely. I got out of bed and got myself dressed. “I’m on my way down now, Dad!” I ran downstairs and stopped right at the kitchen entrance as I had an idea. I was going to try and pout my way out of this whole summer camp thing. I slowly walked into the kitchen with my head held low and a sad look on my face. Nobody could resist my sad face.

Or so I had thought. Clearly it didn’t work, because my mom and dad completely ignored me. Oh well, I thought to myself. It’s not like I could do anything about it. So I took a seat at the table after trying to suck up by giving my mom and dad a kiss on the cheek. That too had failed. I gave up and started eating the food that was on the table in front of me, at least the breakfast was good.

I even tried to talk to my mom and dad, but they kept on ignoring me and talked to each other as they ate like I wasn’t even there. All I could do was sit there and listen in on what they were talking about. My mom looked over at me, “How do you like your breakfast?” she asked.

“It’s really good, Mom, like always.”

We pretty much just sat there eating and talking. I still didn’t say a whole lot though. I tried to think of things to say, but my mind had gone blank. Afterward, I helped clear the table, then I started my chores without so much as a word.

It took me longer to finish on that day than most, my mind was elsewhere. And I figured, what’s the point? Like I said before, it took me a while to finish my chores, and before I knew it, I was finally done. I decided to make my way to the living room and catch up on some reading before my journey into hell the next day. Just as I was about to take a seat on the couch, my dad told me to go outside because my mom and he had some things to do and discuss.

Bullshit, I thought to myself. As I turned around and proceeded to walk out the front door, I knew they just wanted me out of their way. Their excuse was that I needed to be outside more and get used to being more active because I would soon be outside more than usual. I wanted to yell and scream as I walked out on the porch, but all I could muster was a “Yes, sir.” And I quietly closed the door behind me.

The way I looked at things was, why start another argument? I was still angry though. This sucks; I’m sixteen years old, and I’m still being treated like a child, I thought to myself as I stomped down the porch steps and down the sidewalk. But then I remembered I had plans for today, I already had my comic book in hand, so I was ready to go.

What seemed to start off as another bad day started to look up just a bit, but for some reason, my anger boiled over inside of me. And I couldn’t seem to shake the feeling of rage. I started muttering obscenities to myself at first. Before I knew it, I was yelling at the top of my lungs, “How much longer do I have to take this shit?” I kicked at the sidewalk. I kept on walking with a pissed-off look on my face. Hoping that when I got to my favorite spot, I would have calmed down some.

Still a few blocks away from my destination, the sun was beating down on me. It was hot as hell that day, and I was sweating bullets, but all I could think about was going to that hellhole, and that spurred on my anger. Then out of nowhere, I heard a noise; it sounded like someone was following me. I stopped walking and quickly turned around. There wasn’t a single soul around, so I just chalked it up to my imagination and blamed the heat and my anger as well, and I kept walking on.

My thoughts then turned back to having to go to that wretched place the next day. I snickered as I thought to myself, Guess I could run away. Then I wouldn’t have to go. It wouldn’t do me any good at all though, my parents would just call the cops. And I knew they would find me, then my parents would kill me. Or I would just chicken out even if I tried; either way, I wasn’t willing to take the risk and find out.

I walked a little farther down the sidewalk and noticed a huge tree in the distance; I was finally there. I breathed a sigh of relief and made my way toward the tree. It was nice as I needed a break from the sun and the heat; I smiled as I sat under the tree.

It was definitely my favorite spot in the world to sit and read my comic books. The tree was an amazing one, it was big and beautiful, the leaves were full and green and hung over you as if trying to cradle you from the sun, and the grass was soft to the touch and nice to sit on; it felt good to sit down relax and forget about what was to come.

I leaned back against the tree and stretched my legs out to get as comfortable as I possibly could. I opened my comic book and started to read, but I found myself somewhat distracted by my own thoughts. I couldn’t help but think about the next day. Believe me when I say that I tried to forget and read, but I couldn’t; the only happy thought that came from it was the thought of seeing my friends again. Yes, I missed them, that part I couldn’t help.

I just hoped they would be there. I couldn’t get through it alone. And another happy thought was the fact that after this year, my parents could no longer force me to go back to that damn place. Before I knew it I could feel my eyes start to get heavy. I fought it the best I could, but with the cool breeze and my body tired from my restless night, my eyes started to close.

That was when I had my second nightmare. My dream started off decent at first, it was my friends and myself at camp, and we were actually having a good time. Then that dream turned into a horrible nightmare; one by one my friends started to disappear into a darkness that suddenly surrounded me. It wasn’t long before I found myself all alone. I ran around in the darkness frantically searching for my friends or any other sign of human life.

I realized that there wasn’t another soul around; the more I searched, the more I found myself engulfed in the darkness. All of a sudden, the hairs on my arm stood up straight and a cold chill slowly ran up my spine. The air around me became thick and ice-like. I found that it had gotten a lot harder to breathe. There was nothing but pure malice and hatred everywhere I turned, and I knew I wasn’t alone.

Out of the darkness came a creepy and sinister laugh that shook me to my core. I tried to scream out. Hell, I even tried to run, but I was paralyzed with fear and could not find the strength to do either. After a brief few seconds, the laughter ceased. Shadows in the distance could be seen along with sounds of footsteps. It was too dark to see exactly what was going on or what the shadows were. I myself was still too scared to even think about moving. Then it happened: the laughter was back, but it was different, somehow playful.

I swear it seemed like there were little children playing a game with me, or perhaps even picking on me. I remember feeling absolute terror run through my body as the shadows came closer and closer to me. The laughter got louder and louder, then all became silent. It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. That’s when I gained the courage to check my surroundings. I turned my head quickly in every direction. I took a sigh of relief thinking that it was finally over.

But I was just kidding myself, because at that moment I heard someone or something walking up behind me. I turned around quickly to confront whatever was behind me, but nothing was there! Right then I could feel something breathing on the back of my neck! I tried to turn to see what it was, but again I couldn’t move! It wasn’t like it was before where I was struck with fear, this time I had no control over my body. I couldn’t move a muscle no matter how hard I tried.

The worst part of my nightmare was about to happen. I actually started to see what was in front of me, and I wished I hadn’t. There were children in front of me poking their small bony fingers into my skin, making me bleed as they did so. That wasn’t even the worst part of it all. I think what got me the most was how these kids looked.

Their faces and bodies were burned and mangled, some were even missing their arms or hands. It was horrible. I couldn’t get away. The pain was unbearable as they jammed their fingers further and further into my skin. Then out of nowhere, this hideous face rushed at me, laughing that bloodcurdling laugh!

And that’s when I woke up, screaming as loud as I possibly could and sweating like no other. It was just like the night before. I wiped the sweat from my brow and calmed myself down. I leaned my head back against the tree and closed my eyes for a brief second; that’s when I heard a faint chuckle. I quickly rose up and opened my eyes; there was a boy standing over me.

I couldn’t make out what the boy looked like at first, that is, until my eyes adjusted. Just looking at him I could tell he was about my age, maybe even a year younger or so. His face was pale, or I guess you could say he was as white as a ghost. His eyes were black as coal, and they were sunken deep in his sockets. His lips were blood red, which I figured was very odd for his complexion.

He had on a dirty and ripped pair of jeans and an old, worn-out, and torn shirt. He seemed to be slightly taller than me, his build was that of someone that was malnourished; his skin was leathery, almost inhuman looking. His facial expression was very odd to me; it was hard to tell if he was crying or laughing. I jumped up, frightened from the sight of the boy, and I was now on my feet with my back to him.

I did a quick spin around to meet this stranger face-to-face. However, he was nowhere to be found. After gathering myself, I decided to have one more glance around the place; still, there wasn’t a soul around. So I shrugged and chalked it up to nothing more than a bad dream like last night. To my surprise, I happened to notice that I had stayed out too late.

If I didn’t get home soon, my ass would be in more trouble than it already was. Without even thinking about anything else, I grabbed my comic book and made a run for it back home. I ran and ran as fast as I could, but let’s face it, I knew I was a dead man. There was my home right in front of me. I didn’t stop or slow down. I bolted straight on in the front door, apologizing as I ran in the house like a madman. I was expecting to get yelled at for being late, but there wasn’t anyone in the living room. I then heard voices coming from the kitchen.

That’s when I decided I would try and pout my way out of trouble. So I slumped over and slowly walked into the kitchen, but instead of getting yelled at, I was completely ignored. No shouting, no yelling, no nothing. I walked further into the kitchen, and still, they treated me like I wasn’t even there. The hell with it, I thought to myself and just walked on to my room. I figured this would be the perfect chance to sneak away and not have to deal with my parents.

“Sam. You’re grounded. There won’t be any supper for you. Clean up and go to bed!” It was my dad.

“Shit.” And here I was thinking my mom and dad had completely ignored me; guess I was wrong. I answered the best way I knew how. “All right, Dad. Sorry about being late.”

My dad answered me back calmly, “It’s fine. You just need to get your rest. You have a very long day tomorrow, and it starts very early.” Well, at least on the bright side, I didn’t get yelled at. Don’t get me wrong, though, I still wasn’t a happy camper, but I also knew not to start a fight with my dad. I didn’t answer back. I went to the bathroom and cleaned myself up and got ready for bed.

As I lay in my bed, I could hear my parents talking. Usually, they were pretty quiet when I was trying to sleep, but this time they seemed like they didn’t care, and I was the topic of their conversation. They talked about the things they were going to do while I was gone. You could hear the excitement in their voices, to be honest, that pissed me off badly. I grabbed my covers and pulled them over my head. That way I couldn’t hear what they were saying about me anymore.

Then this idea came to my mind. All I had to do was stay up for the rest of the night. It was a stupid idea, I know, but at that time it seemed perfect to me. In my mind, I was going to show them who was the boss, but that plan soon fell to pieces as my eyes began to shut and sleep took my body over. I swear, though, before I fell asleep, I heard a faint voice that said, “See you soon.” It was followed by a chuckle. Then off to sleep I went.

That night I got a good night's sleep. I didn’t have a nightmare, and I can say that I really needed that. Before I knew it, the night was over, and the rays of daylight made their way through my curtains. I could also hear faint sounds of footsteps moving around downstairs, which let me know my parents were also awake. If I had to take a guess, I would say my mom was making breakfast, and my dad was more than likely getting my bag packed up and ready to go. As for myself, I did my best to stay under my covers, that didn’t last either.

It wasn’t long before my mom yelled out to me, “Sam. Wake up. It’s time to eat and get ready to go now.” And of course, as bad as I felt, I got myself out of bed, got dressed, and proceeded to make my way downstairs and into the kitchen. My mom acted like she was in a huge hurry; she had everyone’s spot set at the table and hurried me down onto my chair. My dad also rushed into the room and took his place at the table; then my mom took her seat too.

I took one last chance to try and beg them not to make me go.

“Mom? Dad?”

They stopped eating for a brief second to look up at me and ask, “What?”

I knew this wasn’t going to end well, but I had to at least try. “Please, don’t make me go. I have—”

Before I could say another word, I was cut off by my dad, “You’re going. End of. Now eat your food. We have to leave here in a minute or two.”

Again, I just lowered my head and started eating, there wasn’t a point in saying another word. Before I knew it, my mom and dad had finished their food, and I had barely taken a bite. What came next was unexpected. My parents pretty much rushed me out the door—hell, I didn’t even get to finish my food. It wasn’t like we were late or anything like that, but that didn’t stop them from pushing me out the door and into our SUV.

“Is his bag in the back?” my mom asked my dad.

“Yes, dear. He’s all ready to go,” my dad responded.

“Hey! What about me? Why are we in such a hurry?”

Of course, they ignored me. Again they talked among themselves and left me out of the conversation. Off we went toward the meeting place so my happy ass could be sent off to summer camp, or hell, however you want to look at it.

I couldn’t help but think about the place I was going. I just couldn’t shake this bad feeling. I knew something bad was going to happen. And then my mind shifted, I started thinking about the nightmares I had been having; they had been intense and scary. I wondered about the boy I had seen standing over me yesterday. Was he real? Or just part of my nightmares? And why me? Why was this happening to me? I have never had nightmares in my life until now. I didn’t have a whole lot of time to think about everything as I was already there. I could see three buses in line waiting to take me to my destination.

The vehicle stopped, and my dad looked at me and said, “We’re here, son, grab your bag like a man, and walk over to the buses.”

“Yes, sir,” I said as I reached over and grabbed my bag. My parents got out of the vehicle to bid me farewell. I put my arms around my mom and gave her a hug, then I turned toward my dad and did the same to him. I also told them both that I loved them. You could see the surprised look on their faces. I was even surprised. I, for some reason, felt that would be the last time I would see them again.

“Have fun, and we will see you in a few months, dear,” my mom said to me.

I stood there and didn’t say a word back. I watched as they both got back in the vehicle and drove off. I so badly wanted to run after them, but I didn’t. I did as my dad said, I turned around and made my way to the buses. I had a lot of bad feelings as I walked closer, but those feelings went away when I heard an all too familiar voice.

“Hey, dumbass!” I turned around to see Tommy walking my way.

“Hey, Tommy.” I was happy to see at least one of my friends there.

“Glad to see a familiar face,” he said.

“Yeah, I know the feeling, Tommy.” We both paused for a second and then busted out laughing. We started talking again after we caught our breath.

“Hey, Tommy. Have you seen any of the other guys around yet?”

“Nope, just got here myself. You?”

“Same here,” I replied.

Now let me tell you a little bit about Tommy because I’m sure you’re curious. First and foremost, he’s a hardass, and what I mean by that is that he’s been through a lot of shit and had to earn his status as a jock. He’s athletic and on the smart side and actually the first black friend I’ve ever had.

We talked for a while before another familiar voice interrupted the conversation. “Hey, look who it is, Sam and Tommy. What’s up, losers?” We couldn’t help but to start cracking up, because we knew exactly who it was.

“How’s it going, Chubs?” Tommy yelled out first.

“Chubs, my friend. What’s happening?” I shouted. We walked up to him and both gave him a high five.

“It’s going good, guys,” he smiled. “Nice to see you guys here as well. Who knows, maybe this year we can take on the bullies,” he laughed. It was nice to have almost the whole gang here, still there was one of us that was missing. But still, seeing friendly faces put my mixed emotions at ease, yet curiosity had gained the upper hand in me.

“Has anyone seen John Boy?” I asked. Tommy and Chubs just looked at me and gave a faint smile. “What’s wrong, guys?” I could tell something wasn't right.

“Let’s talk about it later.” Tommy replied.

“Yeah, I agree with Tommy.” Chubs then lowered his head looking down at the ground. He gave a fake laugh before looking back up at me and saying, “Looks like we will be the three amigos this time around.” Just like Chubs to make a remark like that, always the jokester.

Ah, Chubs, one friend I will always remember. His real name is Billy McNown; he was a heavyset young man and always the camp clown. He played more pranks on more people than I could count, trouble always seemed to find that kid. I swear he pissed off the bullies just for the hell of it whenever he needed a good laugh.

That would probably explain why Tommy, John Boy, and myself became really good friends with him. We all had two things that brought us together as friends: our hatred for summer camp and the camp bullies. And “Chubs” just seemed like a good nickname for Billy, and it stuck with him through all the years at camp.

As for John Boy, he was my very first friend that I made so many years ago. He was like me: shy and not very social, he had a love for comic books like I had. The funny thing is, we started off hating each other at first, but later on we had earned each others respect and trust at the end of our first year of camp.

Tommy? Well, he became mine and John Boy’s good friend the second year of camp, and then Chubs, and so on and so forth. Looks like John Boy wouldn’t be around that year though, and I had a feeling either Tommy or Chubs knew why. Perhaps they both knew something and didn’t want to say. I just had a feeling both of them were hiding something, and I was going to find out, it was just a matter of time.

Me being me, of course, I had to ask, “Hey, guys, do you know something about John Boy that you’re not telling me?” Tommy and Chubs both gave me that “shut the hell up” look. Right then and there, I knew I had better not push my luck with them on this subject. I backed off and started talking about something else. I look back on that now and wished I hadn’t backed off at all; things might have ended differently if I had pushed them into telling me everything at the time.

But you can’t change the past, can you? We talked for what seemed to be hours about how our winters went and about school and how we were all dreading the bus ride to camp. Hell, we even talked about how hot some of the women counselors were. Before we knew it, the parking lot had filled up with all the other teens and kids that were also heading for camp.

“Well, well, well. If it isn’t the geek squad.” Followed by laughter. Then we heard another voice, “Hey, guys. Looks like we get another year with the crybabies.” Then more laughter ensued afterward.

“Who said that?” Tommy yelled, while Chubs and myself looked around in the crowd of kids to find out who was saying that to us.

“Up here, dweebs.” We heard banging noises coming from one of the buses, and that got our attention. “Looking for someone, nerds?”

There, preparing for our demise, right in front of us on the bus hanging out the windows, were the bullies. To the left was Jimmy—we didn’t know his last name, but he preferred to be called Spike because it sounded cool.

To the right was big Tony Parks, and in the center, like always, was Johnny Goodman, the leader himself of the bullies. All were star football players, all were big-time assholes. Every teen and kid in camp wanted to hang out with them, which, in turn, made all of them Johnny’s pawns.

2

LET THE FUN BEGIN

Everyone wanted to be like Johnny, and he loved the attention and having control over them. Tommy was pissed off, and he shouted, “Why don’t the three of you get off that bus and say that to my face.” Johnny just started laughing at him. “Something funny?” Tommy asked, with a hint of anger in his voice.

“Yeah, we’re looking right at it,” Spike yelled out, laughing as he did so.

That’s when I opened my mouth. “Like you have room to talk.” That’s when Spike came running off the bus with a wild look in his eyes.

Chubs was scared and pulled at Tommy’s arm, “What in the hell are you guys doing?”

Tommy pulled his arm angrily away from Chubs and said, “I’m tired of this shit. It’s time we do something about it.” Tommy looked back at us both. “You guys got my back or what?”

Chubs stood there afraid to even move, but I was ready for a fight. “Hell yeah, Tommy. We have your back.” I was tired of camp and the bullies and the nightmares. I was honestly on the edge of madness.

Tommy yelled out to us, “Here they come, guys—be ready.” Spike was running right at us. With Tony hot on his heels. Tommy and I stood our ground, ready for the fight of our lives. Chubs stood there shaking. I honestly thought he was going to shit himself, when right at the last second, Johnny jumped in front of them.

“Guys, this isn’t the time or the place,” Johnny hissed.

“What’s wrong, Johnny? Not going to let your boys come over here and get their asses kicked?” said Tommy.

Johnny looked at us and laughed. “You and the nerds versus us? Let me ask you. Who do you think will win? And furthermore, this isn’t the time or the place, but I will say this. There will be a time and a place, Tommy. You damn sure better be ready because we’re going to make you and your friends pay.” Johnny gave a cocky smile, then added, “However, Tommy. I’m willing to let things slide, for you only.” He continued on, “The nerds will still pay, just like they do every year.” Johnny reached out his hand. “What do you say, Tommy? Friends?”

I was actually waiting for Tommy to shake his hand. Tommy didn’t have to be friends with a bunch of nerds like us. What happened next truly surprised me. He stared down at Johnny’s hand and slapped it away. “I have my true friends right here. I’m not going to be one of your followers or pawns.”

Johnny lowered his hand and shook his head, “Tsk, tsk, tsk. What a waste, you chose nerds over us. You could have rolled with the big dogs, Tommy. Now you’re a dead man, just like the rest of these losers,” he pointed at each and every one of us as he spoke.

Tommy took a step forward and got right in Johnny’s face. “If you even touch my friends, not even your lap dogs will save you from the ass beating that I will give to you, friend”

Johnny lifted up his hands laughing at Tommy’s threat as he was stepping back. “Whatever you say, Tommy. Whatever you say.” He stared at all of us before winking, then looked over at his friends. “Back on the bus boys. We will settle this later. For now, patience.” Johnny turned and made his way back toward the bus.

Spike glared and then pointed at us, pounding his fist into his hand before turning and walking off. Tony had given us a look of complete hatred, you could see the fire in his eyes. He walked away slowly without saying a word to us. I also noticed he had put something back in his pocket that looked like a knife. I had somewhat of a bad feeling that we would find out later exactly what it was.

“Well, that almost ended badly,” muttered Chubs.

Tommy shook his fist in the air and yelled out, “Pricks!”

It took me a while to calm my nerves; all I could think about was picking something up. It wouldn’t have mattered to me at that point what I picked up. I wanted to walk up behind them and bash their skulls in. But I didn’t. I stood there and watched as they walked away like a bunch of cowards. I then turned my attention to the crowd that was behind us; there had to have been at least forty, maybe fifty, teens and young kids in all if I could wager a guess.

“Everyone, please leave your bags on the ground and get on the buses. We will take care of everything from here. Do not take your bags on the buses with you. There’s not enough room!” yelled one of the counselors.

I sighed and looked over at Tommy and Chubs. “Looks like it’s time to go, guys.”

“We better hurry so we can take the good seats this time around.” Tommy walked ahead toward one of the buses. I just nodded and followed behind him.

Poor Chubs just stood there like he was unsure of what to do next. I turned to him and said, “Hurry up Chubs! Unless you want to be left behind!” I waved him on and added, “I don’t think you want to be all alone out here in the middle of nowhere.” Chubs lowered his head and slowly followed behind us like a lost puppy dog. We ended up getting lucky enough to end up on the opposite bus as the bullies, and we also got lucky enough to finally get seats in the back of the bus as well.

For us, it didn’t get any better than that, first time for everything I guess. After we got ourselves seated, we looked around for Johnny and the goon squad, just to be on the safe side. Again, lucky for us, the coast was clear. We all took a big sigh of relief before we started talking and catching up on some things.

I was certain this was my chance to find out what they knew about John Boy; however, before I got a chance, out of nowhere, Chubs blurted out, “What in the hell was that all about, guys?” And that wasn’t all he rambled on about either. “You could have gotten us killed or hurt! What in the hell were you fucking thinking?” Chubs looked like he was about to puke or cry.