The Hobgoblin of the Redwoods (5 page)

My heart raced.

Where did it go, I wondered, searching the forest in every direction. Would it come back? Maybe it would sneak up behind us and smack us with its big paw, knocking us both out cold. Then it could eat us alive. I was thinking all of this. What did I tell my sister?

“You scared it away, Sara,” I said. “I knew that big mouth of yours would come in handy some day.” I tried to laugh, but I'm sure it wasn't my best effort.

“Did you see how big it was?” Sara asked, raising her hands into the air. “It was bigger than both of us.”

“I thought Danielle said they sleep during the day,” I said, skeptically.

She shrugged, her eyes shifting about the forest searching for the big, black beast.

We both tried to forget about the bear, content that Sara's loud voice had sent it off into the next county.

Walking along for a while longer, we both seemed to need another rest, so we sat down at the base of a Redwood that had been knocked down by wind, its roots standing at least three times as high as me. There was an area down below that looked almost like a shelter, with plush grass and moss covering the ground. As we sat down upon it, it felt like a sofa.

“It's getting dark, Ben. How long have we been out here?”

I didn't have a watch so I wasn't sure. But she was right. Even with the fog and overcast skies, I could tell the sun must have been getting lower.

“I'm hungry,” she said.

I could agree with her on that. I pulled out a few granola bars and two bottles of water. We ate them fast, and I was glad I had taken them along.

When we were done, my sister looked around our little fort. “Will we have to stay here tonight?” she asked.

I hadn't ruled that out, but I hoped we had gotten close enough to the road to see Danielle's truck pass by on her way back from the woods. No such luck.

“Are you cold?” I asked her.

She shook her head.

Her thick sweater would keep her warm, I thought. I was wearing a San Francisco 49ers windbreaker over a T-shirt. I wasn't sure that would be enough. Especially if it started to rain.

I should have kept my big mouth shut. Just then the first sprinkles started to fall. Because of the roots above us, the raindrops weren't hitting us. But would they stop a downpour?

Sara leaned closer to me, and I put my arm around her.

My dad always told me never to fall asleep in a situation like this. You might never wake up, he had said. But I must have dozed for a moment.

A noise startled me.

It was a scratching sound. Maybe a mouse?

No, this was bigger than a mouse. It could be the bear, I thought.

My eyes tried to see something, anything from above. But I could see nothing moving there.

Would a bear actually eat us?

My heart raced out of control now.

Did I really believe in boogie men and ghosts and goblins...or even hobgoblins?

In the darkness, in the thick forest, it's hard to tell your mind these things don't exist.

There was the noise again.

Closer.

I held my breath, not wanting the sound to reach whatever was there. Something was there, hunting us.

Snap! A dead twig.

Very close.

Almost upon us.

Something was up above us on the root. I shook Sara and whispered into her ear, “There's somethin' up there.”

Darkness was almost complete now, so it wasn't as if we could see much of anything. I could barely see Sara sitting next to me. I didn't think it was actually night; I think the clouds were so thick that the sun couldn't poke through all the fog and thick trees.

It wasn't raining anymore. That was one good thing.

“Maybe it's that bear,” Sara said loudly.

“Shhh.”

“Why? Danielle said to talk loud to scare the bears away. She should know. And it worked before.”

“What if it's not a bear?”

She squeezed my arm really hard. She was stronger than she looked.

Suddenly I saw a flicker of light from above. It looked like a small flame bouncing about the tree limbs.

Then a little object peered over the top of the ridge. First there was what looked like a furry head, followed by a pair of beady eyes that sparkled in the light.

I couldn't stop myself from shaking, and I'm sure Sara could feel it because her nails were digging into my arm.

My heart pounded uncontrollably, as if it was trying to come up through my throat.

Next came the most hideous nose you could imagine. It was long and skinny and came to a point. That disgusting nose was followed closely by a narrow chin with a tuft of fur at the end of that. And pointed ears.

Sara screamed what we were both thinking.

“The Hobgoblin!”

The distorted head spoke. “Come up out of that hole,” came a deep voice. I thought it sounded like my dad when I had done something wrong. But, where my dad never hurt me with his strength, I wasn't so sure about this...whatever it was.

We both stayed put, unable to move.

“Come on up here,” came the voice again. “I don't bite.” Then came a serious laughter that sent a shiver through my body.

I had two choices. I could stay down there with my sister, and maybe have the beast come in after us. Or, I could bring my sister up there and hope to escape. Neither of them sounded like much fun to me.

“Who are you?” I asked. “How did you find us?”

He gave a little laugh. “You two make more noise than a squealing pig. You've disturbed my forest. Now come on up out of that hole before you freeze to death.”

As he said that last part about freezing, I felt a chill come through me. And my sister was already shaking from either the cold or that thing. Her teeth chattered like mad.

I was reluctant, but what other choice did I have? I took Sara by the hand and helped her up out of the temporary shelter.

When we got to the top, the...man was a ways away, perched on top of a tree stump, the burning stick stuck in the ground next to him.

My sister immediately scooted behind me. I couldn't blame her. I was expecting to see some huge Bigfoot-like creature looming over us. Instead, there stooped on that stump was a little man about my own size with the head of an adult. He was wearing only shorts, and his body was hairy as a chimp. Well, almost.

My sister peered around me and said, “Are you a Hobgoblin?”

The little man laughed loudly. “Are you serious? That's cruel, little girl. I've been called a lot of names, but nobody has ever accused me of being one of those creatures.” He shook his head and then kept it cocked to one side.

I wasn't sure what to do next. My dad always said you can talk your way out of most situations. So I tried that.

“We're a little turned around out here,” I said. “Could you help us find the road?”

“More like lost,” he mumbled. “Which road would that be? There are a lot of roads.”

“The one that goes to the Redwoods and all the way to Oregon.”

“Ya got any money, kid?”

That was the last thing I expected him to say. I felt my pockets and shook my head no.

“Just kiddin' there, Ben”

“How'd you know my name?”

“I told ya, Kid. You two make more noise than a raccoon in a trash can.”

He jumped down off the stump, grabbed his fire stick, and started to waddle off. Then he stopped and looked over his shoulder. “Come on. I'd like to have you two for dinner.” He laughed again.

I didn't know what to do. I was responsible for getting my little sister into this situation, and now I had to do something to get us out. I knew we could freeze if we stayed in the woods. I took my sister's hand and followed the man.

We had not traveled far when all of us heard a howl off in the distance that echoed through the forest.

Sara stopped and tugged at my hand. “What was that?”

“That's just a coyote, Sara,” the little man said.

So, he knew her name also.

“What's your name?” I said loudly. “You know ours,” I reasoned.

The old man narrowed his eyes down that skinny nose and wrinkled his forehead. “Does it matter?”

“Well, it would be nice to call you something,” I said.

“I have been called many things,” he said. “Most of them were cruel and unjust. Your little sister called me a Hobgoblin. That wasn't very nice.”

I had to think fast now. “She's sorry, but we heard a story last night about the Hobgoblin of the Redwoods. And....”

“And you naturally assumed that I was it.”

He turned and walked off, mumbling something I couldn't hear. But I did hear, at that very moment, another howl in the woods.

We followed him along for a while until I could see a light off in the distance. As we got closer, I could tell that it was a campfire.

The ground was trampled down to dirt in a large area around the fire. But the most interesting feature was one of the largest Redwoods I had seen so far, with huge roots extending outward in a V toward the fire. In the middle of the V was a large skin of some sort that hung all the way to the ground.

The Hobgoblin stopped at the fire, added some wood, and then checked a chunk of meat that was extended by a stick over the top, cooking slowly.

“Come close to the fire to get warm,” the Hobgoblin said.

We did as he said. Sara was far too quiet. That wasn't like her at all. She must have been afraid. And, on appearances alone, the little man looked frightening, although he wasn't a tall figure like I imagined Bigfoot would be, if there was such a creature.

It was then that I saw the line hanging between two trees, and on that line, stretched out like the Indians used to, were skins from various animals. From there I glanced at the fire and the meat cooking. There was no denying what I saw.

It was the rabbit we had chased.

The next time I heard the howl it seemed closer. The Hobgoblin ignored the eerie sound, and so did my sister, Sara.

By now the little old man, or whatever he was, had picked the meat from the stick and started ripping away at it with his sharp, skinny teeth.

“You should eat some of this,” the Hobgoblin said.

I couldn't think of eating the rabbit, and Sara seemed to just stand there unsure of what to do. I think she was in shock.

“What's that?” I asked loudly, pointing toward the tall Redwood and the huge skin in front of it.

The Hobgoblin waddled over to the tree and pulled the skin aside, revealing an entrance. He took a big bite of rabbit and then said, “Come take a look.”

I started to move, but Sara grabbed my arm. “Don't,” she said. “He'll eat you.”

The Hobgoblin laughed and a chunk of meat flew from his mouth. “You've been listening to stories in town.” He laughed and his voice echoed into the night.

I moved toward the entrance. I stepped within a few feet of the creature. He smelled like a wet dog that had just rolled on a dead animal.

The light from the fire let me see inside. The tree had been hallowed out, and there was a bed of moss, covered by stacks of skins. Was that bear? Also inside was a small stool made from a little stump. That's all I could see without going inside. And I wasn't about to do that.

Suddenly, there was another howl. This time it seemed less...eerie.

I spoke even louder now. “You're pretty lucky,” I said, emphasizing the last word.

“You were lucky I came along,” the Hobgoblin said.

“I've always been lucky,” I said loudly, almost shouting the last word.

The Hobgoblin twisted his little finger in his left ear, just like the old man had done the night before at Danielle's house when we screamed at him at the doorway.

“Jeees. Look at these ears, kid. Does it look like I'm hard of hearing?” His ears were way out of proportion to his head, so that thought had not crossed my mind.

Just then I saw a flash of movement off to my left, out into the woods a short distance. Unfortunately, the Hobgoblin saw it as well. He quickly ran to his hut and disappeared inside. A few seconds later he came out with a long stick in his hand, with a tip made of some sort of stone, like the cavemen must have used.

“Stay close to the fire,” he said to us.

I grabbed my sister's hand and held it tight. “I think we have a friend,” I whispered to Sara.

“I'm scared,” she whispered back. “I don't want to get eaten.”

“Don't worry,” I said, smiling to her. “Luck is on our side.”

There was another flash of fur at the edge of the fire's glow. The Hobgoblin swiveled about with his spear pointing out.

“You won't get my meal, you little devil,” the Hobgoblin said.

Was he talking about the rabbit? Or me and my sister?

Finally, the animal that had been howling crept forward toward us, its body low to the ground, but the hair on its back sticking straight up, making it look almost twice as big.

Now I was uncertain in the dim light. It could have been a wild beast.

It moved even closer.

All I could see was its sharp teeth growling.

It was the eyes that had thrown me off for a while. That and the tail. I could see no tail. It must have been tucked between its back legs.

But now I could see that it was Lucky, my aunt's wolf-dog. Somehow it had found us.

The Hobgoblin waddled to the side poking his spear at Lucky. “Go on,” he yelled. “Get!”

Lucky growled, its long teeth showing. It moved closer to the Hobgoblin, who poked his spear outward.

“Come on,” I said to Sara, pulling her along with me. We made it a few steps away from the camp, when I felt a hand grab my shoulder, the nails digging through my jacket and into my skin.

“Where are you off to?” the Hobgoblin asked, his voice more sinister than ever.

But having taken his eyes off Lucky, the dog made its move. It rushed forward, catching the Hobgoblin in the chest and knocking it to the ground, breaking his grip on me in the process.