 A few months ago, my neighborhood began having a rodent problem, aside from the usual raccoons that would get into some of the trash cans left out on curbs or by garages. People began to notice an increase in rats. Thankfully, not many made it into the actual homes, but the damage to exteriors, pipes, and wiring was beginning to get out of hand. After various angry phone calls from residents on my street, myself included, we finally had someone come out and do some sort of inspection. Hannah Tillman was the one who met with him in person and later relayed the information to the rest of us. She'd taken the day off and admitted that she felt insulted at first because the man who showed up seemed uninterested in what she tried to tell him. Once he saw those garden pipes, the Redger's family has in their garden are all chewed up. Well, he started realizing we weren't just making this up. He looked at the outside of almost every house up and down the street, but don't worry, he didn't go into any yards that have locks on their fences or anything. She told us that evening, a group of us congregated in her yard, curious to know what was going to be done about our sudden infestation. So what's going to happen now? Damien Sutherland asked. Well, Hannah began, but was cut off by a gruff voice from the porch next door. Go home already. Nobody needs to be out gossiping this much. The old woman's voice interrupted. We all turned to look at the angry elderly woman standing at the edge of her porch. She had one hand firmly gripped on a cane and her other palm placed flat against one of the pillars on either side of the steps. Her jaw was set and she glared at the group. Mrs. Harris, we're just discussing the rat problem. Did you have anything specific you wanted us to share with the people coming to take care of it? Is there any damage to your property that needs to be addressed? A younger woman spoke up. She was my next door neighbor, a woman in her mid twenties named Caroline Murphy. She'd moved in about a year ago when her father, who owned the home, got sick and needed to be taken care of. He didn't last long, unfortunately, but she inherited the home and decided to stay at least for a while. Although none of us knew her very well, she was always kind. And best of all, she was quiet and respectful. The only rats around here that are a problem are the lot of you. Interrupting an old woman slumber. Go home. She exclaimed in a huff. As she began to slowly turn around, likely hindered by her old age, she added, I pivoted my head a bit and shared a side-eye look with my partner Lucy. We both knew that this would be a running joke between us later, possibly even shared with the other residents as well. When I was younger, I never bought into the idea that there actually were older people out there who yelled get off my lawn or were just crotchety for no apparent reason. That was until I met Mrs. Harris. She was the epitome of a bitter elderly cliche. She'd lived here since before anyone else could remember, being a fixture even when Damien was growing up one street over. Sometimes a few of us tried to guess her age, but we never landed on anything solid. She was timeless and not in that well-made classic-looking jewelry kind of way. She was also one of the meanest people I'd ever met. Being an issue with anyone and anything. If you walked too close to her gate, while even still on the sidewalk, her scratchy and shrill voice would ring out from the porch or one of her windows. If your kids were playing too loudly for her liking, she would yell at you if you were near enough and if not, or if you tried to ignore her. She would call your home and yell at you. Neighborhood get-togethers had to always take place at least three houses away from hers and across the street, or she'd call the cops for her peace being disturbed. As grating and annoying as she could be, though, the residents as a whole tolerated her with a shrug and quietly shared jokes later. We would imitate her voice with whatever recent rant or angry fray she'd been heard saying and make light of it. After all, she was just a bitter old woman and really didn't do any harm. She was easier to just live with it, then try to confront her or get her to change her ways or hell, even just talk to her. After her front door slam shut, Hannah took a deep breath and let it out in exasperation. As I was saying, some sort of environmental control team or something is going to be sent out next week to deal with the situation. It's been requested that we compile a list of specific areas where the damage has been more severe so they can try to track the rats to the nest. We talked for a few more minutes, making plans to leave gates unlocked and seeing who might be available to be at home when the team was there to help them out with directions or information if they needed it. Then we all returned to our own homes. That night, though, almost as if they knew what we'd been discussing and what was going to happen, the rats struck. I was awoken by Lucy shaking me and whispering in my ear, Charlie, wake up. Her voice was urgent as it pulled me from my sleep. She raised her voice a bit and it hit my ear like a loud drum beat. Charlie. What? I asked groggily. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. When I could open them enough to focus on anything, I saw her standing beside the bed, cell phone up to her ear. She pointed to the window and I followed her direction. There was a faint, unusual glow from outside. As my still mostly asleep mind tried to process what was happening, I heard Lucy on the phone with someone. There was a single word that caught my attention, fire. When I heard this, I jumped up and quickly approached the window, looking out. From here, I could see the back of Caroline's house was a blaze. It wasn't a huge inferno or anything, but it was still a house on fire. I rushed to pull some clothes on and darted out the front door, almost running face first into it in my haste. I left Lucy trailing behind me at a slower pace. On the phone with who I now assumed were emergency services. My main focus, though, was making sure Caroline got out of the house. Once I saw her already standing on the sidewalk, staring forlornly at her home and the glow that could be seen peeking over the roof, almost like a sunrise or sunset. I let out a breath of relief. You okay? I asked her jogging over to stand beside her. She nodded without looking at me. Lucy joined us a few seconds later, and we stood there in shock until the firefighters arrived. We were ushered away from the scene as they went to work. Lucy offered to make us all some tea and Caroline joined us on our porch, awaiting news as to how bad the damage was. A little later that night, when Lucy and I were going to bed, I heard a strange melody wafting in from the open window. What is that? I asked aloud, mostly to myself, hmm, Lucy made a noise from beside me. She was already almost entirely wrapped up in sleep. Instead of waking her up more, I quietly got out of bed and walked over to the window to take a look. Our bedroom window looks out over our backyard, and subsequently some of the neighbors' backyards on either side of us. I looked to the left and saw nothing, then looked to the right, to Caroline's yard. She was walking around slowly, holding something to her face. As I watched her meander through her grass, I realized she was playing the music with some sort of flute. The song was slow, and I found it familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. It made me think of a meadow filled with swaying grass dotted with flowers, warm sunshine, and a gentle breeze. It was beautiful, and I was impressed. I let myself get lost in the tune until I noticed something moving along the ground near her. I focused my gaze as best I could against the darkness, and made out an increasing number of small shapes creeping in the grass towards her. Right as I began to panic and thought about calling down to her, she twirled in a circle, not wavering in her flute playing, and began walking through her back gate and into the trees. The creatures scurried after her, falling into a sort of line as she led them away. I blinked several times, and once I could no longer hear the music, I shook my head and returned to the safety of blankets and pillows I had to just be dreaming. It took a couple days, but we found out that the rats had chewed through an electrical cord and ultimately caused the fire. Thankfully, it was caught quickly, and the damage wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been. Most of her house was okay, but her kitchen would have to be completely torn up and redone. The next few days, we barely saw Caroline at all. She stayed in her home, opting to have the kitchen sealed off while it was worked on so she could remain there. Honestly, I didn't think much of her chosen solitude until Lucy pointed out that there were new additions to Caroline's front porch. They're interesting, don't you think? Lucy said, looking at the three fresh adornments as we walked past Caroline's house. What are they? I asked her. She shrugged. They look kind of like wind chimes, maybe. Right then, the front door opened and Caroline emerged, holding another one of her decorations. She saw us and waved before reaching up to hang it. What are those care? Lucy called to her. Trying to walk up the walkway instead of continuing to our home. Oh, they're wind chimes. The young woman said. That's what I thought. They aren't metal, though. Lucy replied. No, no, these are made from men. She paused for a second as she seemed to try to think of the right word. Organic material. I followed Lucy to the porch and looked at the items with her. They definitely appeared to be wind chimes of some sort. But the pipes that usually were made from metal cylinders were small and colored. When I say small, I actually mean tiny. It was like they were made for fairies or something. I couldn't place what the material was, but I noticed on some of them that there were intricate designs carved into them, loops and spirals, leaves and vines and even some geometric style patterns. They weren't brightly colored or painted, but looked to be softly stained with something. Each of the four sets had a different color scheme, subtle and not tacky. Wow. Was all I could say. Caroline beamed. Their hand crafted, too. She said. Really? Even all these little designs? Lucy asked, admiring a set that was done in tones of blues and purples. Yep, it takes a very steady hand and some time, but I wanted to give them something more unique. Caroline answered. You made these. I asked. Caroline nodded and smiled. Oh, my, that's incredible care. Lucy told her. How do you make them? At this, Caroline's smile faltered for just a split second, almost imperceptibly, then returned with a slowness to it. I'm afraid it's an artist's secret. If you'll excuse me, though, I have dinner waiting inside. Talk again soon. She said in a cheery voice and waved as she strode into her home. Lucy looked at me with a slightly confused or concerned expression. I held my hand out to her and shrugged. Maybe this is how she's coping with everything. I said, leading Lucy away from the porch and over to our own home. She made a noise and spared one last look at Caroline's chimes before giving her own shrug. When the environmental team showed up at the end of the week, Hannah was again the one who handled meeting them and letting them know what information she'd gathered from all of us. She told us later that day about the visit and that all of the damage to the property had been inspected. She informed us that they didn't find much in the way of rats themselves but thought they'd found where the nest was located. They did whatever it is they do to handle such a situation and expected it to be resolved soon as there were signs of the rat population seeming to dwindle already. They suggested that the rats could have started migrating to another area in search of more bountiful scurrying grounds. But as far as they could be sure, there just weren't that many rats expected to be remaining. We all took the good news to heart and looked forward to a rat free street. We even began planning some sort of rat be gone potluck to take place one weekend soon. Within a couple of weeks, flyers began appearing on poles and slipped into mailboxes. Pets were going missing. Our street was affected but it seemed to be more the surrounding streets that were undergoing this sudden and strange influx of runaway cats and dog disappearances. When Paul Garland's pet Chihuahua vanished from the end of the street, I noticed that Caroline gifted him one of her unique wind chimes. It was a little larger than her first ones as her recent ones had begun to vary in size and it was dyed to match the little white and brown friend he'd lost. It was sweet, I thought. She did the same for the freedmen's when their fluffy white cat never came home from his evening romp. It was when I was driving around the neighborhood myself the day before yesterday, looking for our sheba that had darted off, I realized that Caroline's interesting chime creations adorned several homes in the immediate area. I didn't know all of these people but I recognized a few of the houses to be families that had missing pets had she really been spending so much time customizing sets of wind chimes for each of these families. It was an extremely thoughtful thing to do but she must have been working around the clock. I gave up my search after a couple of hours and returned home feeling a bit defeated. I decided to give one more pass around the backyard to see if there were any holes I missed that our mischievous Gary could have dug and slipped through. As I walked the perimeter, I absentmindedly squeezed one of his toys in my hand. It was his favorite, a soft but sturdy duck plush with a squeaker inside that honestly drove me nuts. At that moment though, all I wanted was for him to jump up, grab the toy from me and go hide in a corner and squeak it until I couldn't stand the sound anymore. A soft bark met my ears and I perked up looking around. I wasn't sure where it had come from, but it definitely sounded like my Gary buddy. I made the toy squeak again and listened hard. The bark was muffled, but it was definitely there. Coming from the direction of Caroline's backyard, I stood on my toes and tried to peer over the fence wondering if he had somehow snuck back there. I couldn't see anything, but I heard a whimper and another bark, this one more frustrated than before. Without thinking, I rushed back through the gate that separated the front of the house and the backyard and ran over to Caroline's backyard. Part of her fence had been damaged from the fire and still remained a charred heap. I hopped over the pile of wood and squeak the toy again, hoping for another sound to tell me if I was on the right track. As expected, there were more dog noises. A couple of barks followed by a few whimpers. Continuing this method, I followed the sounds to the large shed that Caroline had at the back of her yard. As I neared it, I heard scratching against the door from inside. I grabbed the handle and yanked it open to have Gary leap out. He winded me as he looked at his toy, desperately wanting it. I picked him up and held it while he mouthed at it. Goodness, buddy. How did you get in? I stopped mid-question as I looked up to see Caroline walking toward me from the front of the house. Charlie? She asked, her tone sounding a bit nervous. Sorry, Caroline. This little guy somehow got himself stuck in your shed. I've been looking for him all afternoon and I was worried he was going to be like one of those other animals that haven't turned up. I explained quickly. Oh, I wonder how he got stuck in there. Maybe he snuck in without me knowing somehow when I was working earlier and got shut in. She said, there was something about her voice. It sounded odd and it made me a bit nervous. I looked back into the shed and saw jars full of some colored liquids, paintbrushes, carving tools, desk lamps, and some other items that I didn't take the time to mentally inventory. Is this where you work? I asked her, taking a step away from the shed. She nodded, her eyes fixed on Gary. He'd gone quiet and calm, holding onto his toy in his mouth with his head down, hanging over my arm. He's such a beautiful dog. Caroline said, enclose the gap between us, reaching out to touch Gary. When I looked at her, her eyes were completely white as if rolled into the back of her head. I froze, but Gary then sprang to wiggling life and it was difficult to keep a hold of him. She pulled her hand back in surprise. When I looked at her again, her eyes were normal and I couldn't be sure if I'd really seen anything or if my mind was playing some sort of creepy trick on me. I think he's probably pretty hungry and thirsty by now, I better get him home. I told her, with a quick forced smile as I walked away, doing my best to not let the writhing dog loose. I hurried into the house and set him down, then locked the door behind me. You found him, Lucy exclaimed. Yeah, I answered, breathing hard a couple times. He was in Caroline's shed. Huh, wonder how he got in there? He said, she knelt on the floor and he bound into her open arms. They stayed there, Lucy giving him a plethora of belly rubs and ear scratches as I made sure he had a fresh bowl of water and food. As I stood at the sink, filling the water dish, I glanced out of the window and saw Caroline standing in the doorway to her shed. I couldn't see her face as she stared into it, but I watched as she turned around and looked at our house, anger on her face. Huh, I know this is going to sound insane. I started setting the water bowl down. Lucy followed Gary into the kitchen and sat on a stool at the island. Tell me, she said, I leaned against the island opposite her and spoke. What if Caroline has something to do with the pets going missing? She seemed put off by me finding Gary and it was in her shed too. Thinking about it, she's been kind of strange lately and I think everyone she's gifted those wind chimes to has a missing animal. And think about the rats, they started disappearing before those people even showed up. Are you just jumping to conclusions because you were worried about Gary or are you actually concerned about this? She asked me. She never told me I was crazy or that my ideas or thoughts were outrageous. Instead, she tried to help me logic my way through my more out there musings and anxiety. And I loved her for that. I guess I could be, but I'm not entirely sure right now. The timing just seems odd. Animals go missing and suddenly she's making these organic wind chimes. It just strikes me as unusual, at least. I told her. She nodded, taking in my words. All right, here's what we can do. We have no proof that she's linked. Gary could have easily gotten over there, I'm sure. So that isn't a good basis for accusing her of anything. The wind chimes could have been a hobby she's had for a long time that just recently was sparked anew, especially given the loss of her father and part of her house. She could be giving some out is a kind gesture and each one she custom makes based on a lost pet gives her a specific reason to keep making them. So how about we keep an eye out for now and make sure that Gary is never alone outside? Even if he needs to go out at night, one of us will walk around the yard with him. If she had nothing to do with his adventure today, that means that there could still be a hole somewhere or away he got out himself. Sound like a plan? Yes, thank you. I leaned over the island more and she met me with a kiss. That night, as we got ready to go to bed, I offered to take Gary out once more. I walked around with him in the backyard, watching him sniff around for a spot. As we neared the side fence that separated our yard from Caroline's, my ears began picking up some sort of noise. I walked to the back corner of my fence following the sound and pressed my ear against the fence, aiming to try and get a better listen through the tiny space between wood planks. I heard things being moved around in a harsh, almost whispering noise. It took me a moment to realize it was Caroline's voice. She sounded angry and maybe even a little fearful. They took it from me. They took it and now I have no material tonight. She ranted. Gary trotted up to me and distracted me while I shushed him. He sat down by my feet and looked up at me curiously. I smiled at him and then put my ear to the fence again. She was still speaking, but I wasn't able to make out what she was saying, as whatever she was moving around was too noisy. A moment later, I heard the door to the shed slam shut and something with what sounded like wheels being moved across the grass. I'll have to find another. She grumbled to herself as she passed the fence where I stood. I held my breath until the sounds from her side faded and disappeared altogether. What the hell was that? I asked Gary. His response came in the form of him bounding across the yard back to the house. I sighed, feeling uneasy, but followed. I had no idea what she was talking about, but I decided if another animal went missing, I would start poking around her place to try and get some answers, if not confront her directly. The more I thought about it on the short walk to the house, the more I considered that those wind chimes could be made of bone. Specifically, bones from the missing animals. She had made tiny ones when it was just the rats, and as pets went missing, the sizes had changed and not been uniform anymore. I tried to push the thought from my mind, but it wouldn't let go of the hold it had on me. I felt my eyes well up at wondering if I hadn't found Gary. Would we have been the next home to be gifted one of those chimes sets? This time died in colors to match his fur, made possibly from his own bones. I shook my head as I opened the door and let Gary inside, then followed him. I needed proof before I jumped to any conclusions. I could just still be emotional for missing him during the day. I would worry about it the next day. Right now, I just needed to rest, recharge and clear my mind so I didn't get too crazy. There could easily be some sort of explanation for everything. When I woke up yesterday morning, I did feel refreshed, calmer and not like my anxiety was ruling my thoughts. In short, I felt I could handle the situation and simply talk to Caroline after work to get some answers and make sure she was doing okay. She'd been through some difficult moments in the past year and could just be depressed and trying to cope with everything. The only way she knew how. I was feeling compassionate and determined instead of nervous. That was until I was driving home from work and turned onto our street. There were police cars parked along the road and officers speaking to a few of the residents. In Miss Harris' driveway sat an ambulance with the paramedics standing outside, talking to some of the cops. I pulled up to my own home and Lucy greeted me outside. What happened? I asked and gestured to the scene on the street. She shrugged and shook her head. After changing into some more comfortable clothes, I sat with her on the front porch as we watched everything. After about half an hour, an officer approached our house and began to ask us questions about Mrs. Harris the last time we might have seen her. Did she have any relatives that came over that we knew of and so on? She really keeps to herself and doesn't like people. Lucy said, did something happen to her? I asked. The officer sighed and closed the notebook he'd been jotting things in before looking at us directly and answering. When the weekly nurse came to check in on her today, he found some signs of a possible injury or a fall. Mrs. Harris was nowhere in the house around the property. There is a concern that she got hurt and confused and wandered off somewhere. So far, we aren't aware of any nearby relatives or friends that she might have gone to so along with searching the area, we're trying to find any leads to a familiar place someone in her possible condition might go to. After a few more minutes of conversation about Mrs. Harris and anything we might be able to remember, she might have mentioned at some point. He gave us a card and thanked us for our time. The search continued into the night and with no sign of Mrs. Harris anywhere. Many people in the neighborhood pitched in and searched the surrounding woods for a few hours, despite her being mean to everyone. The following morning, this morning, some of us reconvened outside Mrs. Harris's house and began planning on where to look. I'd originally planned to help out for an hour before work and then come back and help more if it was needed after. I did help this morning, even after what I saw. I didn't want to alarm anyone else after all. But I don't think I'll be helping the search anymore. At this point, I honestly don't know what to do. I'm not sure if I should go to the police with my concerns and possibly insane thoughts if I should alert the rest of the neighbors or try to handle it myself. I'm scared, though. I'm scared that if I try to do anything, it won't end well for me with a potential escalation that I noticed. On Mrs. Harris's porch this morning was a set of bone-colored wind chimes carved with rushed patterns and symbols, larger than any of the other sets Caroline had made so far. I did end up mentioning to the police about the strange appearance of the chimes on every porch that had a missing pet, and then Mrs. Harris's porch. They didn't seem to put much stock in how strange I found it. I was sure to not make myself sound too insane when conveying my concern. They didn't test the material, but an officer did speak with Caroline. I noticed the police cruiser parking outside of her house, so naturally I positioned myself at a window where I could see her front door and porch. I watched as the officer knocked on her door and Caroline answered. It was the first time I'd actually seen her in at least two days. I'd heard her working in her shed, but I'd never caught her going between the house and her workspace. She hovered in the threshold of her front door as the two of them talked briefly. I couldn't see her face directly, but I could tell from her profile that she was smiling. I saw her laugh heartily and then gesture for the officer to come inside. My heart pounded as they entered the house and the door shut behind them. There was no way she turned him into another wind chime. Was there? It was too risky, I thought, trying to comfort myself. After about two minutes, I moved around the interior of my own home, searching each window for a glimpse of some sort of sign of Caroline in the cop. Not having any luck downstairs, I rushed up the stairs, almost slipping and face-planning as I went. I knew the small balcony off of the bedroom would be the best option, so I quickly and as quietly as possible, open the door and stepped outside. I searched her house with my eyes and finally saw movement in her backyard around the shed. The officer was stepping out of her makeshift workshop and handing some papers back to her. She took them with a shrug and smile as she shut the door behind her. It was difficult to hear exactly what they were saying, but I heard her tell him that she wished she could be of more help and that if he wanted, he could go around the house instead of through it. He looked like he thanked her and wished her a good day. As he turned to walk through the gate, separating her backyard from the front of the house, she paused and looked directly at me as if she somehow already knew that I was there. The kind smile she'd had for the police officer turned venomous in an instant. And when we locked eyes, I saw the same eerie all white looking back at me. My stomach dropped and I stepped backward into my bedroom, nearly slamming the door as I went. That night, I heard the flute again. Because of my nerves, I was already having trouble sleeping. I tossed and turned, plagued by flashes of terrifying images involving Caroline covered in blood, giggling as she slaughtered Mrs. Harris. I didn't notice the music itself at first. Lucy was asleep beside me, but sudden movement from her side of the bed caused me to roll over. She had sat up and began to hum a tune of some sort. I softly asked her what was wrong, and when I received no answer, I reached for my phone and turned on the flashlight, shining it on her carefully so as not to shine it directly in her face. I saw that her eyes were still closed. Her body started swaying from left to right in time with the song she was humming. It was a song I'd never heard before. I was about to touch her, the only surefire way to wake her. When I realized she was humming along with an outside source, I got out of bed and listened. The melody was coming from outside, so I went over to the open window and looked around. In the dark, it was difficult to see clearly, but I could make out Caroline's form in her backyard, playing the flute again. It wasn't the same as before. This time the music she was making was a bit slower and more melancholy. It didn't conjure up thoughts of a peaceful meadow or sunshine. It actually didn't make me think of anything, except that it sounded extremely creepy when combined with my wife's humming coming from the bed behind me. That was only intensified when I heard Gary adding in his own howls to match the song. The three of them were creating this unsettling chorus that stirred up some sort of inherent terror from deep within me. It just felt wrong. The song was just wrong. Without any explanation, I felt like this was a melody that wasn't meant to be played. Honestly, I had no idea how to react to this. Without a word and kind of feeling dazed, I slid the window shut and went downstairs to try and quiet Gary. When I reached the living room, I found him curled up on his bed. His head lifted to the ceiling as a howl tapered off. Hey, buddy, can we, uh, not do that? I asked him as I leaned down to scratch his head. He looked at me and grunted the way he normally does when he's been woken up. He stretched his entire body and rolled onto his back, turning his head away from me. I muttered and, okay, then, as I turned on my heel and headed back up the stairs to the bedroom, Lucy had stopped swaying now that the music was almost inaudible. I did my best to gently lay her back down on the bed, and she obliged. But the humming continued. I sighed and returned to the window just in time to see Caroline walking through her back gate. There were no creatures following her this time, but I didn't notice something else. The light in her work shed was on. At first, I was ready to dismiss this as her forgetting to turn it off or leaving it on for some specific reason. But as I was about to turn and get back into bed, movement caught my attention. The door to the shed was pushed open, and I saw a figure moving around. They stayed in the confines of the structure, so I wasn't able to make out any details, but there was definitely someone moving around in there. After a while of being glued to the spot, I felt my legs starting to ache from being still for so long. I bent my knees and moved my feet around one at a time to loosen them. Then I leaned down to rub my left calf and knee. When I stood back up, I saw the figure emerging from the shed. Finally, I whispered to myself and narrowed my eyes to try and see who it was. An arm emerged first, outstretched, and holding a wind chime. It was hard to keep my eyes trained on a person. My eyes kept feeling like they were losing focus and the edges of everything in my field of view blurred. I blinked a couple of times and squinted. Slowly, the person stepped out of the shed, but their figure was obscured by whatever was happening to my sight. I shook my head and blinked some more, holding my eyes closed for a few seconds, thinking that maybe they were just dry. I opened my eyes and looked down again, willing my body and mind to make out the form. What are you doing? Lucy's voice woke me. Before my eyes even opened, I groaned at the pounding in my head. I was on my back and tried to roll over and reach for my pillow, but felt nothing of the sort. My body was sore and stiff. I opened my eyes to discover that I was on the floor next to the bed. Lucy leaned over my side of the bed, looking down at me. Huh? I managed to mutter. Did you fall out of bed or something? She asked. I began, but trailed off, trying to remember the night before. I sat up quickly at the memory of everything I'd seen. The sudden movement only served to make my head swim and my brain feel like it was sloshing around in my skull. Are you okay? Lucy's voice was groggy, but concerned. I shrugged and then shook my head briefly as I gripped the edge of the bed for support to lift myself off the floor. I sat down on the edge of the bed and bent over. My elbows on my knees and rested my head in my hands. I don't feel good. Was all I could say. She rubbed my back and told me to sit tight while she got me some water. I couldn't even bring myself to nod. It felt almost like a hangover, except I'd never experienced the feeling of my brains being mush. The headache and nausea, sure. But never the jelly adjacent sensation I was feeling now. When she returned and sat next to me, I took the glass in both hands and sip the cold liquid carefully. I think you should stay home and take it easy today. She suggested. Her suggestion was more of a firm recommendation than a gentle offer. I nodded and laid back down. She took the glass from my hand and placed it on the table before kissing my forehead and bidding me get some rest. The rest of the day passed in a blur of sleeping, pain, and some TV watching in the evening. By the time Lucy was ready to turn in for the night, I'd spent a few hours awake, had dinner, and was feeling a little better. The brain jelly feeling had subsided after the first few hours of added sleep. I still had a headache, but some ibuprofen helped relieve the pressure and pounding quite a bit. Because of the extra rest I'd gotten that day, I wasn't ready to go back to sleep just yet. So I kissed Lucy goodnight and stayed up to watch some more mindless sitcoms. I ended up falling asleep for a short time while I was stretched out on the couch. Gary snuggled up to my stomach. It was a muffled howl that woke me up. I jumped to my feet, startling him completely awake if he hadn't been before and eliciting a glare from his sleepy dog face. His ears perked up after a second and he lifted his head to sniff the air. The sliding door to our back patio was open, leaving just the screen door locked and I could hear the music from the flute again. Gary huffed and snorted once before hopping off of the couch and patting over to the door. He sat down and stared in the direction of Caroline's yard, a low growl coming from his throat. I followed him and closed the door, cutting off the sound. His attention immediately turned to something behind us and he darted back towards the stairs. He was up the entire flight of stairs before I could even put a foot on the first one. As I made my way up, I could hear him whining softly. Once I could see him, I understood why he was so upset. The flute music wafted in lightly from an open window somewhere and Lucy stood in the hall, a couple of feet from the top of the stairs. She was swaying and humming again. I approached her, trying to talk to her calmly and asked her what was wrong. She didn't respond. Gary nudged her leg with his head but still there was nothing from her. Lucy, let's get back to bed, yeah? I said as I gently tried to touch her in order to turn her away and guide her back to our room. She paused her humming and made an unintelligible noise. Honey, you need to get back to sleep. I continued my attempt to guide her. No, she said firmly in an uncharacteristically raspy voice. I was taken aback for a moment at this and froze. Her previously closed eyes shot open, revealing the same rolled back white appearance I'd seen on Caroline twice before. She shoved me forcefully away from her. As I tried to find my footing, I ended up tripping backwards over Gary who yelped slightly and then ran. I caught myself just before I tumbled down the stairs. It took a moment for me to regain my bearings. And once I write it myself, I saw that Lucy was no longer standing there. I heard the door to her office slam shut and I rushed after her. She'd locked me out. Lucy, honey, open the door. Please open the door. I pleaded instead of waiting for too long after I heard things being knocked around inside. I bolted downstairs and grabbed the set of interior keys we kept in a drawer. I returned and unlocked the door as quickly as I could to find the room disheveled. Things were knocked off of her desk. Books were on the floor, pens were everywhere, but Lucy wasn't there. The window was wide open with a screen pushed out of it. I looked outside, but I saw no sign of her anywhere. All I could hear was that flute being played. I left the office and went to the bedroom to try and see where Caroline was. By the time I stepped out out of the balcony, though, the melody was distant and I saw no movement in the darkness. The light in the shed was on and the door was open, but it didn't seem as if there was any movement inside. I ran down the stairs, slipped some shoes on and grabbed Gary's leash. He was sitting by the back door again, still growling. I tried to hook the leash to his collar, but he whimpered and stepped away from me. I didn't have time to deal with convincing him, so I dropped the leash on the floor as I ran out of the front door. I called Lucy's name as I searched around the house and then made my way to Caroline's backyard. There was no sign of Caroline or Lucy or anyone. I bristly walked to the shed and found it empty of life as well. I stepped inside for just a moment, but when I turned around to leave, I felt shoved from behind. I fell to the ground, narrowly missing a nose first collision with a grass. I felt a weight on top of me and hands roughly grabbed the sides of my head. I'm not ashamed to admit, I flailed like a fish out of water. On my stomach, I didn't have much leverage and there were knees pinning down my arms. Not only was it physically difficult to get myself out of this position, but mentally as well. My head was turned to the side and one of the hands holding my head inched its way to my mouth. Fingers prodded and pulled apart my lips. I struggled to keep my mouth closed, but failed. The fingers felt slimy and tasted how wet dirt and warm smell as they entered, hooking into my cheek. The other hand still held my head in place against the ground. After holding me there for a moment, the fingers inside my mouth began exploring my teeth, slowly feeling around each one. My vision began to blur and darken and I knew I could pass out soon. I'd already been out of sorts that day and this was just adding to that. I went limp for a few seconds, mustering up all of my strength. With one last effort, I attempted to shove the person off of me. Again, I was defeated effortlessly. My head was pressed harder into the ground and I felt that I couldn't hold on any longer. My world went black. I woke up once again, hours later. It might sound stupid, but I was getting annoyed at waking up. I'd slept more than normal and it felt like every few hours I was re-emerging from the land of nightmares. This time, I found myself still on the ground in Caroline's backyard. The sun was up, but not very high in the sky yet. I got to my feet and stumbled out of the yard into my own front door. I had to call the police. As I left Caroline's property, I saw several police cruisers already lining my street. There wasn't one in my house, but there were at least four of them at other ones. I looked at the scene a bit dazed. I felt faint still and I had to sit down for a moment before I could find out what was going on and let them know that my wife was missing and that I'd been attacked. I neared my own porch steps, planning on sitting on them to rest. When I noticed it, my porch now sported its very own handcrafted organic wind chime. I'm not entirely sure how long I sat there on my porch steps, feeling numb and broken physically and mentally. There was an officer accompanied by one of my neighbors, Romero Tillman, Hannah's husband. The officer asked me a few questions and I ended up relaying the previous night's events to the uncomfortable looking cop. I was sure to downplay the strange parts so I didn't sound crazy. Romero sat down beside me and when the officer was satisfied with the information I'd given, he explained to me what was going on. His wife, along with Lucy and four others on the street had gone missing overnight. Romero had woken up to find the front door wide open and a wind chime similar to the one on my own porch hanging just above his porch steps. Two of the others had woken up to find their partners leaving the house in the middle of the night in a sort of days or trance-like state. When they tried to prevent this from happening, they were shoved aside as I'd been. By the time they were able to rush outside to follow their partners, there was no sign of them. So Hannah, Coral, Morgan, Peter, Michelle and Lucy all vanished in the middle of the night to who knows where. No one seems to have any idea where or why. He concluded, shaking his head. I wouldn't quite say that. I said in a low voice. Romero looked at me with an eyebrow raised. Do you know something? He asked. I nodded slightly, looking around the street. I might, but I don't wanna talk about it out in the open. And if you wanna know, you're gonna have to open your mind quite a bit. It's gonna sound insane. We agreed to meet back at my house once the police had finished their questioning. I went inside and took a shower before making a full pot of coffee. When Romero returned an hour later, he had Samantha, Isaac, Carter and Luke in tow. These were the partners of those that had gone missing. I explained what I knew, what had happened to me and confirmed that each of them had a wind chime appear somewhere on their porch. I expected disbelief and to be called crazy. But surprisingly, nothing of the sort happened. Each of them took turns explaining the strange behavior their partner had been exhibiting for a day or two prior to last night. Carter even explained the wide-eyed look that Peter had when he tried to stop him from leaving. We talked over multiple pots of coffee and several hours, comparing notes, considering theories and attempting to make plans. In the end, we agreed on one place to start, Caroline. It wasn't like in the movies where the group of ragtag heroes stomps into battle with determination. We more or less walked at a slow pace, making our way to Caroline's front door. We were unsure of what would happen and even wanting our partners back wasn't enough to make the fear of what could happen go away. What do you want? Caroline asked angrily when she opened the door. I want my wife back. I said, my own bravery surprised me and I could feel rage starting to boil inside. I hoped it would continue so that I had the backbone to handle whatever happened. The rest of our little group voiced their own version of the sentence and Caroline stood there staring at us for a moment. When her eyes landed on the bump on my forehead and scratches around my mouth, her demeanor completely changed. Where she'd seemed hard and tough before, she crumpled. And I mean she physically crumpled. She fell to her knees, her head buried in her hands and she began to sob. I didn't know what to do. I looked at Romero and the others with a shrug. They returned my look with confusion. I crouched down and hesitantly touched her shoulder. Her head lifted and she shifted to a seated position. I didn't know this was gonna happen. I don't know how to stop her. I don't even know what she is. I just wanted the rats to go away. We all stayed where we were while Caroline continued to sob for a few minutes. I didn't know what I should do. Here was this dark forest that we thought stole our loved ones openly balling instead of fighting back. Can you tell us what happened? Romero asked as her cries began to lessen. She nodded and glanced over her shoulder, a look of fear evident on her face. Why don't we go to my place? I offered. She looked me in the eye and nodded again fervently. Samantha stepped forward and helped her to her feet. Back in my living room again, we sat around and listened to Caroline's explanation. After the fire, I was upset and angry that the rat issue was out of control. I didn't want to wait any longer or have anyone else get hurt because of them. I was taking a walk, trying to calm down. When I heard someone call to me from the front of a house, I was walking past. At first, I thought Mrs. Harris was gonna yell at me for being too close to her home. And I was getting ready to yell back at her and tell her what just a horrible old woman she is. Instead, she was nice and asked me if I wanted to get rid of the pest. When I told her yes, she led me into her house and made me tea. We talked for a bit and at first, I didn't believe her. She told me that she had a special flute that would entice any and all pests to follow it. I would just have to play it and lead them into the woods. It was a humane and quick way to get rid of the problem. She kept using that word though, pests, not rats or rodents or animals. She told me that she was too old to do it herself and she offered for me to take the flute and lead them away. I thought she was full of it but I was also so raw and ready to try anything. If it didn't work, no harm done. If it did, then good. I agreed and she told me that she'd allow me to take the flute on one condition. I learned how to make wind chimes out of bones. I thought it was strange but she insisted that she used to make wind chimes out of bones from dead animals she'd found and that they look better than I thought. I agreed again and told her that if the flute worked I'd let her teach me whatever. Well, it worked. For some reason it didn't even dawn on me that I not only didn't know how to play a flute but I didn't know what to play to make the rats follow me. When I held the flute to my lips though, it was like something else took over my body and began playing through me. After that, the night was a complete blackout for me. I was standing in my backyard, barely starting to play the flute. The next I was lying on Mrs. Harris's couch the next day. She showed me how to make the wind chimes and at first I thought it was kind of neat. She gave me instructions on how to die the bones and carve them with strange symbols and designs. Whenever I asked her about the symbols, she'd just say they were there for luck and prosperity or something like that. I began having regular blackouts, especially at night and when I woke up with fur and blood on my clothes, I suspected that I had something to do with the missing animals. I noticed the wind chimes that would appear wherever there was an animal missing and I thought I was the one making them and putting them up, but I couldn't remember doing it. The only decorations I personally remember making are the ones that are at my own house. When Mrs. Harris went missing, I panicked and tried to take the flute into the woods to leave it somewhere. It felt wrong to just throw something like that away, but I didn't want it near me anymore. I walked and walked and finally just left it nestled in the branches of a tree I came upon. The tree itself was surrounded by tiny bones and I thought it was only right to leave it there. When I got home though, Mrs. Harris was there in my living room, except she looked younger. I realized she'd been starting to look young already just by small increments, so it wasn't very noticeable. At that point though, she looked about 20 years younger. She was angry with me for getting rid of the flute and when she started yelling at me, these things came out of the shadows behind her. I don't know what they were, but they brought a smell of something burning with them. There were two or three of them. It was hard to tell, they kept shifting shapes like they were liquid moving through the air. Some sort of dark, murky liquid, kind of like oil maybe. I was pinned down on my back and she got on top of me and started poking at my arms and face. Her fingers pressed hard into my skin and she seemed to be looking for something. When she stopped, she said that my bones were strong, but my spirit wasn't good enough I needed to help her get strong bones and spirits before I'd be released. But the way she said released made me feel like she wanted to kill me. She forced me up and I had to lead her into the woods to find the flute. It took a while to find where I'd left it, but once I did, she demanded that I play it. As soon as I started to, I blacked out again. It was just barely night when that happened and I didn't come to until almost noon the next day. My feet were bare and bruised and bloody. My hands were dirty and my entire body felt sore. I slept for a while longer trying to rest. Hours later, when I woke up, Mrs. Harris was back again. She didn't say anything but sat on the edge of my bed and held the flute out to me. I took it and began to play, afraid of what she might do or what she might bring. If I didn't, I remember crying as I took it and she led me to my backyard. The next thing I knew, I was standing in the woods, surrounded by the missing people. They were sitting on the ground, each of them, with their feet in holes. There was one hole for each foot and they were in the process of covering the holes with their feet inside up to the calves. I watched for a little while as they finished and then pushed themselves to stand. They looked like they were imitating trees or something with their feet rooted in the ground. I heard movement in the distance and realized that Mrs. Harris hadn't been there. Thinking it was her making the noise. I ran, I just took off. I ran as hard and fast as I could. I tripped several times but I kept making myself get up and run. When I got home, my entire body looked wrecked and I sat in the shower for a while, trying to wash off the dirt and blood. And then you showed up. She completed her tail with a shrug. After a few long silent moments, Isaac spoke up, can you take us back there? Less than two hours later, equipped with bags full of water, protein bars, and whatever makeshift weapons we could gather, the six of us followed Caroline into the woods. The way she moved gave away how much pain she was in. And Samantha asked at one point if she was okay to do this. Caroline insisted she was and I wondered if her own rage was fueling her. In the time we took to get prepared, she'd become hardened again. But this time in a determined way, she wanted to end this and it was easy to see that. If I were her, I would have been fuming and frightened but ready to do whatever it took to be done. We hiked through the trees for a long time, hours passed as Caroline tried to remember the way. The sun began to lower in the sky and I began to worry that we would either be too late or not be able to find them at all. As we stopped to rest for a moment, Caroline pulled something out of her backpack. It was the flute that I'd seen her play. You still have it. I asked her, she stared at it in her hand and nodded. I have an idea, she said quietly. We gathered around her as she raised the flute to her mouth, closed her eyes and began to play. It was slow, a soft melody, similar to the very first one I'd heard. The air around us felt like it stopped moving entirely. As the tune picked up in pace, I felt again the sense of being in a peaceful meadow. I think all six of us were enraptured in the music. We didn't move and it barely felt like I was breathing. Everything felt surreal and I didn't realize I'd closed my eyes until I opened them. What greeted me was new and wondrous. The trees seemed to sparkle. The browns of the trunks, a deeper shade, tinged with softly pulsing veins. The leaves were brighter and richer shades of green than I had ever seen. The ground beneath my feet felt softer, but still sturdy. The blades of grass swayed in time with a song, shimmering as if they were speckled with the tiniest bits of water. As I looked around in awe, I saw that Romero, Isaac, Samantha, Carter and Luke were doing the same. I knew that we were seeing the world in a new light somehow. When I looked back at Caroline, the musician, her skin was glowing gently with golden light. I wanted to reach out and touch her to see if she was as warm as the glow looked. But I resisted, feeling deep within myself that an action such as that would disrupt the entire scene. And I couldn't let that happen. Do you hear that? Luke asked, he was looking to our left and I strained my eyes and ears in that direction. Is that singing? Isaac asked, I think it is, Romero said. We all listened as the distant sound of voices joined the melody Caroline continued to play. There was a chorus growing from somewhere to our left, harmonizing with the flute. Let's go, Luke said, and began to walk in the direction of the sound. I looked at Caroline and she opened her eyes. She nodded without stopping the music. We left her to slowly trail behind us, playing on, and we rushed through the woods in search of the voices. It didn't take long for us to find the source. In a small area, not even big enough to be called a clearing, there were our missing partners. They all looked tired, dirty and dazed. Their eyes were closed and they swayed with the music. In a circle amongst the trees, they were planted just how Caroline had described. Each leg buried in a hole in the dirt, up to their midcaves. In the center was an angry Mrs. Harris. She glared at us as we approached, each of us rushing to our respective loved ones. How dare you interrupt me? She bellowed. Her voice was deeper than normal, almost echoing with multiple tones. As she ran to Coral, Samantha purposefully barreled into the woman. I think she meant to knock her down, but Mrs. Harris, who now looked to be in her 40s, only staggered back a few steps. We each reached our significant others, but didn't know what to do next. Isaac started trying to dig around Morgan's feet. Romero was shaking Hannah and begging her to snap out of it. Samantha was hugging Coral and talking to her frantically. Luke was attempting to pull Michelle's legs out of the ground. Carter was grabbing Peter's hands and pleading with him to come along. And I was standing there in front of Lucy, facing Mrs. Harris. The woman's entire form seemed to darken and she whistled. The creatures or demons or whatever they were that Caroline had told us about began to materialize. Their shifting oily forms melting up from the ground around Mrs. Harris. They struck before I was able to yell out a warning. Samantha was the first to go down thrown against a tree. Her body fell to a heap at the base of the trunk. My eyes darted around, trying to figure out what I could do. Luke was the next to be attacked. A slithering appendage wrapped itself tightly around his neck. He tried to beat it with his fist, but it gripped him tighter. His face turned red and I could see he was struggling to breathe before it let go. And he was on his hands and knees, coughing and choking as he tried to catch his breath. I saw the mass of dark forms turned to go for Romero. And I yelled his name. He spun around and saw the shapes hurtling towards him. He was still no match for them. I didn't watch as he was incapacitated. Instead, I dropped to my knees and opened my backpack, searching for something that I could use as a weapon against these creatures. Isaac must have done the same thing, because when I looked back up, I saw him slashing at the darkness near him with an axe. It didn't do any good though. The axe slowed when it hit the murky forms, but it didn't stop completely. They didn't even seem phased by it. Carter gripped a sledgehammer in both hands. One of the creatures broke off and charged at him. I jumped in, leaving my backpack on the ground next to Lucy. First, I threw a handful of salt at the being headed for Carter, then pulled a lighter out of my pocket and aimed a can of hairspray. The air ignited as the large shifting form shrank and screeched from being hit with a salt. It seemed to turn its attention to me and my homemade flamethrower. I saw Carter lunge forward and swing it with a sledgehammer, but it had the same effect as Isaac's axe. A tentacle-like limb shot out from the back of the creature and struck Carter, knocking him to the dirt. It continued heading towards me, seemingly unfazed by the fire. I let go of the can and it dropped to the ground. I turned and grabbed the container of salt, opening the spout and swinging it around haphazardly, trying to make contact with a dark cloud thing. There was a slight sizzle and it recoiled. It didn't stop though. The salt seemed to hurt, sure, but it wasn't enough to halt anything. Another form joined the one now slowly approaching me. It almost seemed as if these things were calculating or thinking about what they wanted to do with me. Soft thuds sounded and I let my eyes dart around to see that all of our loved ones had fallen to the ground. Their feet were still planted, but each of them seemed to be knocked out or asleep now. In odd positions, the shapes stopped, possibly also surprised at this sudden change. What are you doing? Get him. Mrs. Harris shouted. Her eyes were wild and enraged. If this were a cartoon or anime, I was sure I would have seen steam bellowing from her ears. My own eyes widened as I saw what was coming though. In my periphery, I saw her shadowy minions begin to move again, but I was too invested in watching Caroline who appeared from the trees. The instant I saw the flute plunge into Mrs. Harris's neck, I realized the music had stopped. All around me, I not only heard, but felt a deep rumbling. It was like the trees themselves were growling, clutching my head. I fell to my knees, unable to keep standing if the pressure I felt in my skull. Once more, to no one's surprise, I passed out. When I awoke, there was no sign of Mrs. Harris or her demonic friends. Caroline was in the center of the circle now, blood spattered across her clothes. She lay there, and I was worried she was dead, but Samantha checked and announced she was still breathing. The rest of the night was spent fairly uneventfully. Everyone except Caroline came back to the land of the Coherent. We helped each other to our feet, our loved ones out of the holes on the ground and made our way back to our street. Romero and Carter took turns carrying Caroline as she remained passed out the entire way. I glanced around as we left, but I didn't see the flute anywhere. The next afternoon, everyone involved ended up back in our living room. We'd each contacted the police and conveyed the agreed upon story. Mrs. Harris had kidnapped our six partners and drug them. They couldn't remember anything. It wasn't a lie, either. They really couldn't remember anything during that time. We filled them in on what had actually happened and theorized that Mrs. Harris was preparing for some sort of ritual with them, but hadn't gotten to it just yet, thankfully. We talked well into the night and shared a ton of delivered pizza. Around midnight, we broke off into small groups then reconvened in Caroline's backyard. She had a large metal can that we all helped fill with every handcrafted organic wind chime we could find. Yes, that means that we snuck around the neighborhood and stole the accursed decorations off of porches. Once we'd piled them all into the trash can, Caroline added her woodworking tools and some gasoline. We each lit a match and dropped them in one by one. I don't know what happened to Mrs. Harris or the flute. It's kept me from sleeping through the night so far. None of us were willing to go back and look for either one, though. What I do know, however, is that not a single one of us will look at wind chimes the same again. And personally, I hope I never have to hear a single flute playing any song, whether it's a nice melody or not. Hey everyone, remember to like and subscribe if you enjoy the video. And a special thank you to the author, ordinary red fox for letting me narrate such a great story. Make sure to check out more of the author's work. There'll be a link in the description. If you'd like to support me further, there's a link to my Patreon in the description and merch should actually be available within the next few days. I'm just finishing up some t-shirt designs but everything looks awesome. I'll add a link to my merch store in the description within the next couple days. I hope you're having a great December. And remember, if you hear a strange flute playing in the middle of the night, shut your window.