Project I.R.I.S.

Chapter Two: Back In My Old Cabin

Trudging through the ankle-deep snow along the long stretch of dark road, Jack felt his heart begin to race. This felt frighteningly like his nightmare. The familiar crunch of snow under his sneakers caused his breath to hitch. Every bellowing whistle of the wind through the trees seemed amplified and, in a way, sounded like a ghosts' exhaling of breath. Hugging his jacket around himself with one hand, he cursed his active imagination and picked up his pace. He forced himself to keep his flashlight aimed on the road ahead, but his eyes won't stop scanning the beams edges for any trace of movement. The cold dampness of the snow was seeping into the cloth of his sneakers. Chilling his toes as if he'd submerged them in dry ice. When combined with the thick snowflakes that blew against his tight blue jeans, he found himself briskly walking a bit faster just to keep his legs warm. Letting out a trembling exhale, he watched his warm breath puff out in the light of the flashlight. Had this been the right idea? Should he have stayed in the car?

Was the cabin really this far away? It seemed closer in daylight that recalled. Pausing briefly, he pulled his jacket hood up over his head to keep the wind off his ears. While he instantly felt better, he hated how it restricted his hearing to the rattling and rubbing of fabric. Leaving all other sounds in the background more distant and a bit muffled. Beginning his walk again, he struggled to tell if the soft deep beat was his own heart beating in his ears or something banging far into the depths of the dark forest. With every beat slow and steady like heavy dropping footsteps, his heartrate sped up. What was that sound? Where was it coming from? Was it all in his head? His ears strained to listen, but he felt a little claustrophobic in his hood as the muffled distant sounds plagued him. As the beats drew closer and louder, he stopped and yanked his hood off to listen better. In an instant, everything fell into eerie silence. The wind no longer whistled through the trees, but the thick snowflakes kept raining down around him.

Using the flashlight, he panned around the woods, but saw nothing. The trees were still and the darkness between them empty. Taking a deep breath, he shook his head and took a single step, when off to his right, branches began to creak and snap like knuckles cracking. Quickly aiming his flashlight in the direction of the sounds, he called out nervously. "Hello? If you're out there show yourself!" He waited for a response. Squinting into the dark for any sign of movement. Nothing. Lowering his flashlight, he mumbled to himself sternly. "Get ahold of yourself, Jack. You're fine..." Pressing on, he added aloud to distract himself. "Just get to the cabin. Get a fire started. Then call the increase company with the landline in the morning. Simple." Heading down the road a bit more, he once again slowed to a stop as his flashlight beam glinted off a large chain link fence that spanned the road. Shining the beam along both sides, he saw it expand far off into the darkness on either side.

Returning the beam to the sliding chain link gate before him, he read another large sign aloud. "No Trespassing without authorization. This is a restricted area. A contamination zone." Scoffing at the sign, he blurted out angrily. "Since when?! My mother didn't say anything about this. You fuckin' liars!" Approaching the gate, he tugged on the wrapped chain with a heavy padlock that prevented him from entering. Refusing to give up though, he backed up to observe the gate as he grumbled out. "Whatever you're doing on family's land assholes. You better have damn good lawyers." Removing his phone, he took a quick picture, then shrugged off his backpack. The fence was wired with three lines of razor wire, and some laid out above the sliding gate. However, there was a narrow gap between the sliding gate and razor wire that he knew he could fit through with his slender frame. Throwing his backpack over the fence easily, he put the flashlight between his teeth and backed up a good distance. Kicking off into a run toward the gate, he jumped just before he reached it. Managing to snatch the top of the icy cold gate, he quickly wedged himself along the bar and slid through the narrow gap.