After Dark
“Damn it, Olivia… it’s 4 p.m., we were supposed to leave 3 hours ago,” I said angrily, holding the phone to my ear and packing the last suitcase into the car.
“I know, there’s nothing I can do about it. I had to stop by the office for two hours to help the girls with a few things because there are a lot of clients, and my boss keeps piling more work on me. I can’t say no, you know we need the money,” she said in a raised voice, then added after a moment.
“I’m finishing up now. I’ll be home in 30 minutes at the latest. Pack the car, I’ll get back and we can go.”
I hung up. It wasn’t the first time her boss had made her come into work, even on her day off.
She worked at an insurance company and they always had problems finding employees.
Olivia agreed to it, and even though it irritated me, I kept quiet because she was the one mainly supporting us. She made really good money.
I’m a graphic designer, I pick up jobs that are becoming fewer and fewer every year, while I fight competition and the rise of artificial intelligence by offering rates that sometimes translate into less than minimum wage.
This trip was our dream honeymoon, delayed over and over again. We got married over a month ago, but because of work, we had already postponed the trip several times.
We agreed that we just wanted to go somewhere where we could get away from people and technology and focus only on each other and resting.
So I found us a cabin in the woods near the town of Pineville, Kentucky. It was beautiful, nothing around it but forest, silence, and peace, and if we needed anything, we had about 2 miles to town where there were local shops.
Forty minutes passed, and Olivia still wasn’t there.
I dialed her number again. “Are you on your way back? Damn it, that’s like a 4-hour drive, we’re going to arrive at night,” I said, losing the last bit of my patience.
“Yes, Liam. I’m just leaving the office. I’ll be there in 15 minutes. Did you call the owner to let her know we’ll be this late?” she asked, clearly irritated.
I hesitated, but after a moment I answered, “Of course I called. Everything is arranged.”
“Good. Let’s not argue. I’ll be home soon. I love you,” she said and hung up.
A chill ran down my back. In all the stress and chaos, I had forgotten to call Mrs. Sofia.
In theory, we were supposed to be there in 20 minutes to pick up the keys. How was I supposed to tell her that we were only just leaving?
I started pacing around the living room in panic. “You can do this, Liam. She’s just an old lady. Worst case, she yells at you,” I said to myself, trying to build myself up. “She won’t cancel the reservation. The cabin is already paid for,” I continued.
Alright, I’m calling.
“Good afternoon, Mrs. Sofia,” I said a little too enthusiastically.
After a moment of silence, the old woman’s voice came through the phone. “Hello. Are you already here?”
“You see, there’s a situation. My wife got held up at work, we’re only just leaving,” I said uncertainly.
“Sir, you told me you had a 4-hour drive. It will be after 10 by the time you get here. Why are you calling me only now? I’ll already be asleep. I don’t leave the house after dark,” the old woman said dryly, irritated, and I felt my hands start to sweat.
“I’m very sorry, ma’am. With all the stress and confusion, I forgot to call earlier. We’ll try to get there as quickly as possible.”
A long silence followed, and I sat there on edge.
Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. “Hello, Mrs. Sofia? Are you there?”
“I’m here. Come tomorrow morning,” the old woman answered firmly.
“Please, have mercy. It’s our honeymoon. We only have one week off, every hour matters,” I said in a pleading tone.
After another pause, she spoke. “It would be better for you if you came in the morning, but if that’s what you want, I’ll leave the key on the porch. Take it, and when you’re done, leave it in the same place.”
“Thank you so much, you’re really saving me…” I stopped mid-sentence, realizing the old woman had hung up.
I sighed with relief. I knew the cabin owner would be angry, but I didn’t expect her to take offense to that extent.
Older people are naturally punctual, and apparently that really got under her skin.
The doorbell rang, and I nearly jumped, suddenly pulled out of my thoughts.
Olivia had arrived, finally.
On my way to the door, I thought how good it was that I had managed to handle it before she got back.
If she found out I hadn’t done it earlier, I would have listened the whole drive to her going on about how I rushed her, how I didn’t take care of such an important thing, how I lied to her, and who knows what else.
“So? Are we going?” I asked, opening the door.
Olivia looked at me with a wide smile and answered playfully, “I still have to pee.” She seemed very excited.
We set off.
The drive from Cincinnati to Pineville is about 220 miles, which is roughly a 4-hour drive.
The route went by pretty quickly, we talked trash about Olivia’s boss, laughed, joked around. We were simply enjoying free time and the lack of pressure from responsibilities the next day.
“We should be there in 20 minutes. I can’t wait until we arrive, drink some wine, and get into bed,” I said, grinning from ear to ear.
After a moment, I added in a lower, playful voice, “you know… and I don’t mean sleeping.”
Olivia giggled and said, “Stop it, you idiot.”
“What? It’s our honeymoon after all,” I said, looking at her and tickling her around the ribs.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, concerned.
Olivia’s expression changed instantly, she went pale and her eyes widened.
“Liam, I think I saw something weird.”
I looked around. “What did you see? Where?”
“By the road. It looked like someone crouching. I think he was completely naked and emaciated,” she said in panic, pulling her hands between her knees.
I looked in the mirror. I saw nothing except forest and darkness.
“Calm down, you’re exhausted, you imagined it. We’re almost in Pineville, I’ll grab the keys quickly, and from there it’s only a few minutes to our cabin.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her turn toward me. “Liam… that thing was looking at me.”
I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her closer. “Maybe it was some homeless guy, or some sick animal. Don’t worry. You’re safe.”
She nodded and forced a smile, but her eyes were still terrified.
A moment later, we arrived at Mrs. Sofia’s house.
“Wait here a second, I’ll be right back,” I said, unbuckling my seatbelt.
I got out of the car and walked onto the property. The keys were lying on the porch with a cheap tourist keychain.
I took them and made a step toward the car.
Suddenly, from a doghouse I hadn’t noticed earlier, a medium-sized dog burst out with a roar and charged straight at me.
My heart jumped into my throat, I started running. I barely managed to slam the car door shut behind me before the beast reached me.
The dog pressed its front paws against the window, barking.
I threw the car into reverse and backed out. “Jesus, what was that? She could’ve warned me there’s a dog on the property,” I said, catching my breath.
It clearly improved Olivia’s mood, for the rest of the drive to the cabin she giggled quietly to herself.
“We’re here, beautiful spot,” I said, turning off the engine and opening the door.
Olivia got out right after me and added, “and poorly lit.”
We took the suitcases and headed toward the cabin.
“Yeah, there really isn’t much light here,” I muttered, struggling with the bunch of keys and trying to aim for the keyhole.
I managed it, we stepped inside, and the smell of pine wood greeted us.
The front door opened into a small hallway with a coat rack, on the right side there was a small kitchen with a counter and a few cabinets, and on the left side there was a large living room with a couch, a dining table, a fireplace, and stairs leading upstairs.
Everything was done in a typical wooden cabin style.
“I’m exhausted, we’ll unpack tomorrow. Can you turn on the heat? It’s cold in here,” Olivia said, taking off her jacket.
“Sure, there should be instructions on the counter,” I said, setting the suitcase against the wall.
I picked up a small notebook and started reading.
There were instructions for using the gas stove, turning on hot water, information about the breakers, and at the end instructions for heating the cabin.
I started reading out loud. “The cabin is heated only by the fireplace. In the woodshed behind the cabin there is enough wood for the length of your stay. It must be chopped into smaller pieces. The axe and chopping block are next to the woodshed.”
I quickly skimmed the rest and continued. “Heating the cabin takes 2 to 3 hours. Please do not leave the fire unattended.”
I froze.
“Good luck with that, Liam… tonight you’re sleeping downstairs so you can guard the fire,” Olivia said, irritated, dragging her suitcase upstairs.
Shocked, I pulled out my phone and opened the listing. “But how only by fireplace? It says here there’s electric heating too,” I said, annoyed.
I looked outside.
There was no lighting around the cabin at all.
How was I supposed to chop that damn wood in the dark? On top of that, it was 11 p.m., if I started the fire now, I wouldn’t be able to sleep until morning.
I changed into sweatpants, lay down on the dusty couch, and covered myself with an equally dusty blanket, I could feel it irritating my nose and eyes.
“Great, tomorrow I’m calling her and demanding a partial refund,” I said, closing my eyes.
