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Chapter 2

I didn't exactly mean to judge Micah on purpose, it's just that his appearance, attitude, and what the old woman claimed about him made me afraid. The entire car ride to Angela's bed and breakfast was silent, and I spent it smushed up against the side of the car, as far away from Micah as I could get. He didn't seem to notice; he simply sat looking straight ahead with his hands clasped in his lap. I had no clue how I would sleep in the same house as this kid - he had definently changed.

I practically leapt from the car as soon Angela put it in park. I grabbed my things from the passenger seat with the same efficiency and put it over my shoulder. Angela flashed me a quizzical look that said "Where's the fire?" as she got out, but I simply shook my head. As Micah was exiting the car and the the reporter's car was pulling in, Angela put her arm around me and began walking to the house.

"Lily, I promise that you have nothing to worry about. If I even suspected that what Mrs. Burke said about Micah and the other children was true, I would have never volunteered to take him in. I swear, he wouldn't harm a fly. Besides, it's not like he's a total stranger; you two were best friends when you were kids, for Pete's sake!" she whispered assuringly as we stepped on to the porch.

"I'm sorry, something about him just seems a little... off," I said as she unlocked the door.

Once everyone had gotten settled in, Angela prepared dinner. I learned that the man's name was John, his son's name was Danny, and John desperately needed a good story for his job, which is why he was here. I also learned that he was a huge flirt. He chatted and giggled with Angela the whole time while the children at the table remained silent. Danny and I watched our relatives with disgust as they talked, but Micah just starred at the table, poking at his hardly-touched food with his fork.

As Angela and John finished one more laugh, she stood and began to collect everyone's plates as she announced that she was going to wash dishes. "I'll help," John eagerly offered, following her into the kitchen.

Micah, Danny, and I sat in silence for a few moments, and I Micah did something that surprised me - he rose his eyes to look at me. He sat across from me studied my face for a few moments, his eyes trailing to the part of my torso that showed above the table. Normally, in a situation like this, I would've used the "take a picture" line, but I was honestly afraid to offend him, so I awkwardly crossed my arms in front of my chest and looked away.

"So... Lily, I wanted to apologyse for my dad, you know, being all creepy with your aunt and stuff," Danny said.

"Nah, it's fine," I said, smiling suddenly. "Hey, is that a Brooklyn accent?"

"Yeah, that's where I'm from," he smiled.

Suddenly, Angela came into the room, drying a plate. "Well, I don't want you kids sitting in the house being bored. Why don't you guys go outside and play or something?" she offered, retreating back into the kitchen.

"No offense, but I'd rather not," Micah said, standing abruptly and going upstairs.

Danny and I watched him with curious eyes, and we exchanged glances. "Well, I guess we can't really blame him, with everything that's happened with his parents and stuff," I shrugged once Micah had left. Danny nodded in agreement.

We decided that we didn't really want to "play outside", and that we were both pretty tired from traveling, so we both just went to our rooms. Although, as it got darker outside, I remembered something that I used to do as a child. There was a cornfield right behind the house, and at night the moon shines directly above it - it's completely beautiful. Micah and I would run through the cornfield as it was illuminated by the moon, and it really felt magical. I peered out of my window at the field, which was blanketed by a dim light that was the moon - I guessed that it was full, and that made me all the more excited to go.

It was kind if late, so I didn't want to bother waking up Angela to tell her where I was going. Besides, I'd only be gone for a few minutes.

I opened and closed the front door as quietly as I could, and I was thankful that it wasn't one of those doors that squeaked. As I started walking to the field, I crossed my arms and clutched at my hoodie; I wasn't scared, I had just forgotten how cold it gets there at night, that's all.

I smiled as I entered the rows of corn, having flashbacks of myself as a child. Even though Micah wasn't with me, I still tried to enjoy myself. I ventured deeper into the field, closing my eyes every now and then to take it all in. Looking at it directly, the moon did seem to be full and it gleamed on my hair, shining proudly. I had definently missed this.

Without warning, whispers cut into my thoughts.

I focused on listening for what direction they were coming from, and upon looking to my left, I saw a yellow light - the kind that a fire gives off. I instantly assumed that the field had caught fire, but I reminded myself that it would look much different; flames would be rising above the stalks. This fire appeared to be coming from several different torches.

The reasonable part of me screamed "forget this, I'm going home," but the curious and stronger part of me wanted to know what it was. Yes, I know that I was copying every dumb person that wants to check out a freaky noise when they hear it, but you don't understand. This was a place where I felt safe, a place that I would venture to as a child, not a creepy, old house. It might not seem different, but somehow, it was. It's as if it wasn't just curiosity pulling me towards the scene, it was something else.

I snaked through the corn stalks as I tried not to ruffle or even touch the leaves. I approached the area slowly, and I realized that it was a clearing. The "whisper" that I heard was actually someone speaking - preaching, actually - and it was Micah. I hid behind a few rows of corn and watched him as he spoke to a whole group of children, saying something about how adults are evil and they should be wiped out; he was really into it, too. The fire reflected off his dark eyes, and I could have sworn I saw something aggressive in them - something I didn't want to be apart of.

He was a completely different person.

"Now, go home, and wait for a sign," Micah concluded just before the children began to rise. They doused the fire and torches, and the only light to be seen came from the moon once again.

What the heck was that?! I thought to myself. Are they some sort of cult or something? I was beyond freaked out at that point, and I was just about ready to run home. I stupidly became lost in my state of shock and began to stumble backwards, which caused me to loudly ruffle the corn stalks. I mentally punched myself for that.

The children stopped dead in their tracks and looked in my direction, eyeing the stalks curiously. That's when I saw what they held in their hands: axes, long knives, machetes... Every one of them was grasping a weapon.

Yep, it was time to leave.

Without even thinking, I sprinted in the opposite direction towards the house. I shouldn't have even been out here in the first place, I thought. I would have never been in this situation, I could've been sound asleep by now. Upon hearing multiple thuds behind me, I confirmed that the kids were, in fact, chasing me. I felt my adrenalin kick in as my legs moved fasted than they ever have, carrying me away from the noise until I couldn't hear in anymore. I wasn't going to make the classic mistake of thinking I had lost them, so I just kept running; faster, even.

After what seemed like forever, I finally exited the field and made a bee-line for the house. I shouldn't have cared about being loud coming into the house, but I did. For some extremely odd reason, I didn't want to tell anyone about what I had seen. I shut the door behind me, locking it softly, and I breathed shakily as I looked outside through the window.

Thankfully, all I saw were stalks of corn, and not children with knives.

I bounded up the stairs, skipping two steps at a time, and I made my way into my room, closing the door and locking it behind me. I paced the floor, reviewing what i had seen in my head, and asking myself odd questions: Did I really regret finding out about Micah and his cult, or whatever that was? Would I have been safer not knowing? I wasn't sure if I was glad that I found out this way, or if I had rather remained aloof to the situation. But there was another side to this, so what if Micah had a club? That doesn't mean that they necessarily kill people, right? I mean, sure they had weapons, but they could have carried those I case they came across someone crazy in the field at night.

The sound of the front door closing interrupted my thoughts. "Oh, my god... " I mumbled, throwing my shoes off and climbing in my bed, pretending to be asleep. I heard the stairs creaking as someone slowly accented them, step by step. My eyes were wide and my entire body shook with fear as I clutched at the covers. He creaking suddenly stopped, which is how I know that they had made it to the top of the steps. From the moonlight that streamed through my window, the shadows of two feet were cast from the other side of the door into my room. Whatever... the door is locked. What are they going to do, hack my door down? I thought.

My judgement was extremely off, as I had forgotten that skeleton keys were on all of the top ledges of the door frames. I heard the door knob rattle a little just before the lock snapped in the other direction.

I immediately shut my eyes, and I could feel my heart pounding out of my chest as I heard the knob twist and the door squeak open. I willed myself to stop shaking, and I made myself appear as untroubled as I possibly could, as if I were sleeping. My eyes opened just a crack so that I could see who it was. As the figure stepped into the room, I confirmed that it was just who I had expected: Micah.

He stood still for a moment, starring at me with cold eyes, but then he began walking towards my bed. He didn't have a weapon in his hands, and I guessed that was something to be relieved about, but I quickly reminded myself that his hands were weapons.

Something in this boy was evil; I saw it in the corn field.

He removed something from his pocket and placed it on my nightstand, and I felt his hand on my head. I was able to stop myself before I flinched, and I realized that he was stoking my hair.

"Sleep well, Lily," he nearly chuckled. He took back his hand and walked out of the room, closing the door softly behind him.

I waited a few painful minutes before sitting up and turning on the dim lamp. There, on my nightstand, was a single ear of corn.

I didn't sleep that night.