Forest of Shadows by Hunter Shea Page A

being ridiculous. 
    Then again, he did fall through the damn floor. The proof was in the overturned bucket and mop. There was no way he imagined that. 
    Judas watched Teddy bend over with a loud grunt and retrieve the mop. He straightened up then tilted his head to gaze at the ceiling. Even in the dark, he could see that the fitted logs above were as solid as they day there were installed. Judas considered pocketing his change and batteries, but decided he didn’t want anything that had been in the house. 
    “Looks fine to me.”
    “Looked the same to me the other day.”
    “Guess we have to go upstairs,” Teddy said matter-of-factly. 
    Judas paused and looked at the staircase ascending into pitch black. He grabbed Teddy’s shoulder and half whispered, “Forget it. Let’s just get out of here. You don’t have to ask your grandmother anything. I don’t give a shit anymore.”
    His friend moved forward, undaunted. 
    “You don’t have to come up, man,” he said. “Just tell me which room you were in when it happened.”
    Judas’s eyes were glued to the bucket. All of the dirty mop water had evaporated, leaving a filthy stain on the wood. “Last room down the hall.”
    Teddy nodded and started to climb the stairs. He was almost at the top when Judas decided it was better to be up there with a friend than alone downstairs. 
    When he got to the top, Teddy asked, pointing, “That it down there?”
    “You see any other rooms at the end of the hall?”
    He smiled. “Sarcasm. That’s good, dude. Much better than wetting your pants in fear. Let’s not make this a death row waltz.”
    Teddy strode down the hallway with purposeful strides, never slowing down to peer into the side rooms or reconsider his quest to see the dreaded room. Judas kept pace, strengthened by his friend’s confidence. When they entered the room, they couldn’t make out a thing because the lone window was boarded up. Teddy pulled out a penlight and swept the floor with its tiny ball of illumination. 
    “Whereabouts do you think you fell?”
    Judas followed the little ball of light until it swept past the center of the room. 
    “There. Stop.”
    “Hold this.” Teddy handed him the penlight and took two steps towards the lighted area. 
    “Here goes everything,” he said and cocked his arm back so he could strike the floor with the mop handle. Judas winced and the light danced as the handle struck solid wood with a loud thunk . 
    Teddy grunted, then proceeded to tap the floor again and again as he paced around the room. Judas followed his progress with the penlight. After he had covered every square inch, he propped the mop against the door frame and exited into the hallway shaking his head.
    “That floor is as hard as frozen moose shit.”
    “I can’t believe it.” Judas marched into the dark room. He walked back and forth, even jumped hard onto the spot he had mysteriously fallen through. Nothing happened. The sound of Teddy’s laughter echoed down the hall as he made for the stairs. 
    “I knew you had to be stoned,” he chuckled. 
    “It happened, dammit!” Judas shouted into the darkness. 
    A strong breeze gusted outside and whistled through a partially open window in one of the upstairs rooms. Judas suddenly realized he was alone in the inky blackness of a house that, despite their little test, had something very wrong with it. He sprinted into action and clambered down the steps. He cast a backwards glance, sure that something was just behind him, an inch away from grazing the back of his neck. Tiny needles of terror started a parade that originated at his lower back and danced up his spine. His breath was knocked out of him for the second time in the house when he walked smack into Teddy’s immobile figure in the front doorway. 
    “What the hell, man?” he said when he regained his footing. 
    Teddy motioned for him to come closer with one hand without turning his head or body. Something was happening outside