Crow's Nest Cabin

Tales of the Southern Wood

Crow's Nest Cabin

The Southern Wood was a dark place. Every town and city that came near its borders had evil tales of things that occurred there, and no town sat closer than the town of Steven's Switch. It was in this particular town in the spring of 1977 that one such tale was born, the Legend of Crow's Nest Cabin. To understand this legend we have to go back a ways.

Just a few years after the civil war, a log cabin was found out in the Southern Woods. It appeared that the cabin had been abandoned though no one could tell why. It was well built with a stone foundation and a sturdy frame. There was no record of anyone ever living in the cabin, or of anyone who even owned the land it was rooted to. The forest was protected wilderness, so no one could move in to the thing unless they could show proof of ownership. Needless to say, no one ever showed up. It eventually became just another landmark within the woods.

By the 1950's, the cabin had developed a reputation of sorts. It was now known as Cross' Cabin. The local rumor mill had churned up a doozey of a tale. As the story went, the cabin was built by Samuel Bedford Cross, a Confederate soldier that had survived the war. Apparently when he got home he found another man's boots by his front door. Cross found the owner of those boots in his bed with his wife. He didn't cotton to that too well, so he shot them both dead. Cross went to trial and after being found guilty of murder he was hung out in front of the court house.

Of course all that was pure hogwash. As I said, no one knew who owned the place, and no person by the name of Samuel Cross ever lived in Steven's Switch either. Though there was a man named Bedford Cross who hoboed through town around the time this silly fiction started. No, as I said the true fable of the cabin started in 1977.

Spring was beautiful that year. Temperatures were cool and precipitation was down. It was perfect Sunday school weather. Every kid in town stayed outside from dawn to sunset. Until that unfortunate Sunday in April, that's when everything changed. That was the day they found the body of fourteen year old Josephus Mosely hanging by a noose on the porch of that old cabin. He had been found by two local children who happened upon him while playing in the woods that day.

Beau and Sissy Overton had been out searching the woods for morel mushrooms, or "brainy shrooms" as Sissy called them. Beau was a couple of years younger than Josephus, and three years older than his younger sister Sissy. When they came upon Josephus they were both overcome with fear and disgust. The woods had a bad infestation of crows and they had apparently been pecking at him for a few hours before he was found. It wasn't a pleasant sight. In fact, Sissy was so upset she took straight off into the woods as fast as lightning. She ended up sliding down a rocky incline and busted her lip, cheek, and knee real bad. Her brother had to carry her home and then their parents phoned up the local police. A few years later Beau ended up in therapy, and a few years after that Sissy ended up being committed. She never truly recovered from what she saw that day.

The police cut Josephus' body down, and took it to the local hospital for autopsy though the crows had probably destroyed any evidence that could have been found. After a short investigation, the incident was ruled a suicide. Josephus Mosely's parents reported that their son had been troubled, and his teachers at school confirmed the Mosely's statement. That should have been the end of it.

After that day, the crows in the area seemed to nest near the cabin, and in early autumn, four hikers were attacked by a swarm of crows when they had gotten too close. Within a year there had been two more attacks, but then people learned to stay clear of the damned place. It was soon renamed Crow's Nest Cabin by the local rumor mill, and it came complete with its own spooky campfire story. As it went, the place was cursed by a witch and anyone who tried to sleep the whole night there would go insane. They would hang themselves in the morning and the crows would feast on their flesh.

For a few years seniors at the local high school tried to turn it into a dare. Anyone who spent the whole night at Crow's Nest Cabin, and lived to tell the tale would become a town legend. No one ever tried it though. Even then people could sense that what was out there in that cabin was no joke.

One could be forgiven for thinking that was the end of the tale. After all, things went quiet for a spell, ten years to be exact. They might have stayed quiet for longer than that, but for the actions of one Agnes Bell. Fate is like a living thing you see. It breathes, it sleeps, and it wakes up in a bad mood.

*****

Agnes Bell had called in the complaint. The road up to Conservation Lake ran right by her house, and the only reason to go up that road was to get to the lake. Conservation Lake was Steven Switch's own make out point. Almost every Friday and Saturday night the police department would get a call from old Agnes to let them know that there were some kids headed up that way. Deputy Jacob Turner, Jake to his friends, was sent out to break up the young lovebirds.

Jacob Turner was thirty four years old. He stood at six feet and four inches tall, and he had a thick barrel chest. To look at him in his plain clothes you would have thought he was a lumberjack by trade. His appearance was very intimidating, but he was one of the kindest men you could meet. He also had a flawless track record on the police force.

Jake had already passed Agnes' home, and was heading into the woods on his way to the lake when he saw something peculiar. There was a light coming from one of the windows of Crow's Nest Cabin. No one went up there. The crows around here were meaner than hell, and everyone knew it. Jake pulled his car in close to the cabin and saw that indeed there was a light on inside the place. It couldn't be the teens, Jake thought to himself as he scanned the place, because their car isn't here. It would have to be an out-of-towner. No locals would go anywhere near this place. Maybe some hiking tourists lost their way and decided to hold up here till morning. Still, he would need to check and make sure everything was okay.

Jake stepped out of his cruiser and rushed up to the porch before he stopped and looked around the property with his flashlight. He thought the porch would offer more protection if those winged devils decided to swoop. He heard a crow cawing in the distance, but otherwise there was silence. Once he felt safe that he didn't have to watch his back anymore, he turned his attention back to the cabin.

He looked through one of the front windows and immediately saw the source of the light. There was an old ornate oil lamp sitting in the center of an old wooden table just inside the main room. He could not see anyone else inside; however, so whoever lit the lamp was still a mystery. An unattended oil lamp in an old wooden cabin definitely counted as a fire hazard though, so Jake knocked on the front door. He listened for a reply or movement, but after a minute of hearing neither Jake opened the front door.

"Hello. Is anyone here," Jake shouted.

"I'm a police officer. My name is Deputy Turner. If there is anyone here, I would like you to step out and identify yourself please."

Jake waited quietly for another moment and he was about to speak again when he heard something shuffle towards the back of the cabin. Jake shined the flashlight back in the direction of the sound, but didn't see anything. He unfastened his gun but left it holstered.

"Step out where I can see you," Jake ordered.

Then Jake suddenly heard a voice say, "help." The voice sounded strange almost as if the word "help" was croaked out. Maybe someone was hurt, Jake thought. He started walking to the back of the cabin where the voice had come from. He darted the flashlight about the area searching for whoever it was. His light fell upon an old wooden cabinet that had one of its two large doors cracked open just slightly. The cabinet was also located right where Jake would have guessed the voice had come from.

"Is there anyone in there," Jake asked as he slowly approached, but there was silence. He took another few steps closer until he was in reaching distance of the handle on the cabinet door. The door suddenly creaked as if something inside had just gently touched it. Jake felt himself getting hot, and realized he was a bit spooked. He let his left hand rest on the handle of his gun and took the safety off. He then took a deep breath and tried to calm down.

It was never good to be spooked whilst brandishing a firearm. That's how officers ended up with bad stories. They still made fun of Haywood for shooting Mr. Nesbitt's rooster. It took fifteen minutes to calm Nesbitt down and then Haywood had to buy the dead rooster out of pocket. Haywood's wife about had a heart attack when she came home and found that thing shoved in her freezer. Haywood never was very bright. To this day whenever Haywood is about to do something his partner shouts out, "don't cock it up Haywood!"

Jake took another second and then reached out for the handle. His index and middle fingers wrapped about the wooden handle, Jake counted to three in his head, and then he swung the door open shining the flashlight inside. At first he didn't see anything, but then his flashlight reached the top shelf of the cabinet where a crow sat perched. It turned to him and tilted its head before cawing out the word "help" in the same croaking tone he heard before. Then it flew at Jake's head. Jake ducked but the bird still managed to scratch his cheek as it flew across the room and out the cabin door into the night.

Jake felt his cheek and his fingertips came back red with blood. "What the fuck," Jake said as he stammered back to his feet. "Now I know how Haywood's wife felt when she opened that freezer," Jake said to himself. He wiped his cheek and then headed out the front door back onto the cabin porch. His eyes traveled up to the sky as he stepped off the porch. His gaze was directed by a strange sound, and it was met by an even stranger sight. He saw what looked like hundreds of crows circling like a whirlwind in the sky above him. They cawed and screeched creating a noise that could only be described as hellish.

Suddenly, as a group, they dived towards Jacob Turner. One after another they smashed against his face. He felt them twitching and clawing their way into his mouth, but as soon as they made it past his lips they seemed to turn to smoke. Jake felt like he was choking and dying of a heart attack at the same time. When the last one filled his mouth, Jake fell to the ground.

For a few moments the night was completely quiet. Jake was lying on his back utterly still. Then his fingers started to push their way through the leaves on the ground as he pulled himself into a sitting position. He sat like that for several more minutes. He was breathing heavily and blood was dripping from his scratched lips as he stood up. When his eyes opened they were bloodshot and they looked infected. He wiped his nose absentmindedly as black liquid started pouring from it. It stopped a couple of seconds later and Jake smiled. Jake looked around the woods seeming to take in the scenery, and then headed towards the cruiser.

"Time to visit some old friends," Jake said with a half cocked grin as he got into his car and drove off towards town.

*****

Sissy woke from a dead sleep. It had been such a bad dream. The images were already starting to fade from her mind, but she could still see the whirling vortex of shadow. Her eyes darted around the room to find comfort, but all they found at this time of night was darkness. There was only a small amount of light coming in through the window. Its source was a street light out by the road around a hundred yards away. She recognized her room though, and that did bring her comfort. This was her cocoon, her refuge.

When they had first brought her here to the East Tennessee Hospital for the Insane, or Lakeshore as they preferred to call it, Sissy really had experienced a mental break from reality. After several months of treatment; however, she had pulled herself back together. She soon realized that she would be discharged back into the world, and decided to have a relapse. Here she was safe. It might have been a horrible place to live, but it was less awful than what was out there in the world.

Sissy tucked herself back under her covers. She pulled them close to her neck and made sure that her feet were tucked into the blankets as well. Sissy's eyes drifted back to the window, but then she shut them tight. She tried to go back to sleep and said a little prayer under her breath that the bad dreams would not be there waiting for her.

*****

Beau Overton sat on his couch. The television was on across from him but he wasn't watching it. He had been staring at the carpet for the last ten minutes thinking of nothing in particular. Between the joint he had finished and the five shots of whiskey he had imbibed, his mind wasn't really on the clock at the moment. That's just how Beau preferred his mind to be.

When it was alert and sober his brain would go to bad places. It would consider picking up the knife on the coffee table in front of him and pulling the blade down his arms. It would consider the peace he would feel once he bled out. It would do anything not to know what it knew. He decided long ago that his mind was best kept numb to the world.

That strategy hadn't helped him very much in his life. The true rub of addiction is that you run from your pain but you create more pain as you run. It doesn't take long before you feel like you are trying to outrun an avalanche that is gaining strength by the second. He would have turned to let the weight of his pain bury him years ago if not for Sissy.

After all this time he still needed to be here to protect her. He was her older brother, and that was his duty. He also loved her dearly. It was the love of a sibling, yes, but it was also the love that two soldiers share when they make it out of war together. They had survived hell side by side and that was a bond that could not be broken.

So, he would dull his pain. He would stay one step ahead of it just in case she emerged from her asylum. He would do this because one day she might need him again, and he would not let her down. He left the knife on the table, he left his life on pause, and he poured himself another shot of whiskey.

There was loud knock on his front door, four hard thumps. No one he knew would knock like that. It was a "cop knock" which was a big taboo within his social circle.

"Who is it?" Beau yelled without moving from the couch.

"This is Deputy Turner of the Steven's Switch Police Department. Could you please open up? I just have a few questions for you."

Beau leapt to his feet and quickly scanned the room. He just had to make sure that nothing was in plain sight. If something was in plain sight, they would have probable cause and they wouldn't need a warrant. He saw his second joint on the coffee table. He grabbed it and tossed it in a drawer along with a pipe he had out. He scanned the room again, and when he was sure that all illegal substances and paraphernalia had been stashed away he made his way to the door.

Beau opened the door and saw Deputy Turner standing just outside it. Jake was a good guy. Beau had run-ins with Jake in the past, and the guy had always been respectful and patient with him. Jake would do his duty though, so Beau had to watch what he said.

"How can I help you tonight Deputy?" Beau asked as he glanced at the cop. Something was wrong with the guy. He looked like he had a bad case of pink eye and his lips were all scratched up.

"Well I was attacked earlier tonight up at Conservation Lake. Don't worry. I know it wasn't you, but if I could come in, I would like to show you some pictures. I think I have seen this guy hang around with your group a couple of times, and I would like to see if you can identify him for me. Would that be alright Mr. Overton?" Jake said with a warm smile on his face.

"Um, yeah... Sure. Come in," Beau said as he stepped aside to invite the Deputy into his living room. Beau scratched his head while Jake came inside. Beau was trying to wake his fuzzy brain up. Jake walked over to the counter that separated the living room from the kitchenette, and then Beau shut the front door and joined him.

Jake's warm smile vanished. It was replaced with a menacing half grin that Beau thought looked familiar. Before Beau's brain could even register that he was in trouble, Jake had balled up his huge, meaty fist and knocked Beau out with one punch.

When Beau came to he was lying on his back on the floor with Jacob Turner straddling his waist and pinning down his arms. Beau struggled to wiggle free, but Jake was massive. No matter what he did he couldn't break free. Beau saw his knife on the floor just out of reach. How did it get on the floor? Maybe it was knocked off the table when I got punched out, Beau thought to himself.

"Just like old times isn't it Beau," Jake said. "You laying defenseless on the floor and me on top of you. I'd really like to play with you some more, but I'm running out of time. They'll be looking for the missing Deputy soon, and to be honest I've already tasted this fruit before. I'm here to take a bite out of the one that got away."

Beau's mind reeled. What was he talking about? Images of what happened when he was twelve came rushing into his head, but that wasn't possible. This was Jacob Turner sitting on top of him. He didn't know what had happened. Nobody did. They all believed the lie. It couldn't be... him. He was dead.

"Josephus," Beau whispered with confusion.

"Good to see you too Beau," Jake said with that same half cocked grin. "How about a kiss for old time's sake?"

Beau began to scream and cry at the same time. The noise was one of pure anguish. Jake lowered his lips to Beau's and Beau tried to twist and squirm away. Jake was too strong. Their lips touched and Jake's tongue entered beau's mouth. Beau tried to bite down but something forced his mouth wide open. His mouth and lungs filled with thick, foul tasting smoke. More and more seemed to push its way into him. Beau's eyes rolled into the back of his head and his body twitched. Then he blacked out again.

Beau came to. It seemed to be easier this time. He looked around the room and saw that Deputy Jake was just starting to rouse. Beau grabbed the knife from the floor where he had placed it, and then shoved the blade into the side of Jake's neck. Jake's eyes flew open in pain and confusion as Beau pulled the knife out. Beau stood over the scene as Jake's hands tried to keep the blood from flowing out of his wound. Jake squeezed so tight he was almost strangling himself, but it was too late. He felt cold and woozy as the puddle of blood on the floor around him continued to get bigger.

Jake looked into Beau's eyes and said, "Don't let him win Beau. You have to kill him. I'm so sorry Beau but you have to kill him again before he," but that was all Jake could say. He gasped for air two more times and then went still. A half cocked grin appeared on Beau's face as he slid the knife into his pocket. He stepped over the body of Deputy Jacob Turner and headed out the door.

"Sorry Jakey," Beau said as he slid into his car, "but this is the only face that she would completely trust." Then Beau started his car with the keys that were in his jean pocket and he pulled out onto the highway.

*****

Sissy woke from the sound of tapping on her window. She had only been back asleep for about an hour and the room was still very dark. Sissy pulled back the covers and then slid her feet into the slippers that she kept by the bed. Then she walked over to the widow to find out what kind of bird was pecking at her window this late at night. When she got there she didn't see a bird. She saw her brother with a scared look upon his face. She also noticed that he had a black eye.

"Sissy," Beau said through the window. "Sissy I need your help. I'm in trouble and I need you to help me. I wouldn't ask otherwise. We protect each other, right?"

Sissy looked about the window. She was on the ground floor but the windows were barred. She thought for a moment, and remembered an idea she had once years ago. She had no desire to escape, but she had come up with a plan once just to occupy her mind for awhile. Life in an institution could be very boring and it was often a good idea to play little games in your head to pass the time. There was a door in the kitchen that led outside and locked from the inside, and she had realized that you could slide through the serving area where they put out the food out.

She nodded to Beau and then headed out into the hallway. She wasn't considered a dangerous patient so she was on a low security floor. It didn't take her long to get to the kitchen, and her plan worked perfectly. She slid through the serving area into the kitchen. Then she unlocked the service entrance door and headed out into the yard.

She started looking around for Beau, but before she made it to her window where she had last seen him, someone grabbed her from behind. She felt a sting in her neck, and then things got really weird.

She suddenly felt warm all over, and super comfortable like sitting around a fireplace at Christmas time with your whole family. She felt a cozy sense of security as her mind floated into a dreamlike stupor. Sissy didn't even register when someone picked her up and carried her to a car. She didn't notice when they stuffed her into the back seat and shut the door. At some point while they headed down the road, she drifted off into a groggy dreamland.

Sissy felt cold and wet on her back. As she came to, she realized that she was lying on the ground in a forest. Someone had set her on a bed of wet leaves. She felt a little sick and light headed like she was coming down with the flu. She pushed herself up, and once she was standing she looked around to try to get her bearings.

That's when she saw Beau standing next to an ornate oil lamp and he was holding a knife in his right hand. The oil lamp was set on the ground at his feet and the way the light crept across his face made him look ghoulish and threatening. That half cocked grin he was making didn't help either.

Sissy crossed her arms and started rubbing on her sides to chase away the chill that was slithering over her. She took a step towards Beau wondering why he was holding a knife.

"Did you enjoy your journey Sissy?" Beau said with obvious glee in his voice. "On my way to come get you I stopped by Beau's dealer. The guy was shocked when he found out what I wanted. Apparently your brother had only ever bought weed from the guy, so when I asked for some heroin he seemed a bit suspicious. I had to pat him double which doesn't really matter. After all, it's not my money. I learned all about heroin from the mind of Jacob Turner, and I knew it would be the perfect concoction for tonight's reunion."

"What's wrong Beau?" Sissy said as she tilted her head and took another step towards her brother.

"It's just like I said Sissy," exclaimed Beau. "I need your help. You see a long time ago I started something, but I never got to... finish."

Beau rushed towards Sissy and tackled her back to the ground. He straddled her waist and pinned her arms above her head with one hand. This had happened before, Sissy thought to herself. Beau then reached up to Sissy's face with his other hand and stroked the scar on her cheek with his thumb.

"Do you remember when I gave you this little mark?" Beau asked.

Sissy's eyes flew wide open. Had he gone crazy? How could her brother do this to her? He of all people knew how horrible it was. How could he bring it back up? How could he throw it in her face like this? Tears began to pour from Sissy's eyes as she watched the person she trusted most in this world betray her.

"Let me tell you a story," Beau whispered in her ear. "Once upon a time there was a young man who wanted to have some fun. He was in his hideout in the woods when along came a brother and sister. The young man decided he wanted to play with them, so he invited them into his hideout for some amusement. Once they got inside and discovered what the game was, they tried to leave. That was very rude, so the young man had to punish them by slamming the little girl face first into a wall. Then he played with her brother for awhile. He really liked playing with the little boy, even though the little boy didn't seem to want to play. The young man was just about to finish when he realized that he wanted to play with the little girl too. He didn't think it was right that her brother have all the fun, so he threw the little boy into a closet. Then he turned his attention to the little girl, but the young man was tricked by the mean little boy. You see the closet apparently didn't lock like the young man thought it did, and the little boy had found some rope in there. While the poor young man was just starting to play with the little girl, the wicked little boy snuck up behind the young man and strangled him with the rope."

"Now pay attention because this is where it gets interesting." Beau roared. "The mean little boy then tied up the body and made it look like the young man killed himself. Then the brother and sister frolicked off into the woods leaving the young man to the fucking crows."

Beau was yelling and breathing heavy, but then he took a deep breath. After a few moments, he seemed to calm down a bit.

"But..." Beau uttered, "That was not the end. The young man seemed to fill the crows that ate him with his playful nature. He started to play with anyone who came too close to the cabin, but people soon stopped coming to the cabin. The young man was trapped in the crows and caged in the cabin. He couldn't play anymore and this made him very sad. Until one day he figured out how to escape. He realized he could enter the body of another person and take control. Once he realized this he knew he could have fun again, and the first thing he wanted to do was find the little boy and the little girl that he played with so long ago. He wanted to finish the game they started, but this time he wanted to play with the sister while wearing her brother."

A huge half cocked grin inched up the side of Beau's face as the realization of what was happening washed over Sissy. Her face contorted in terror and she began to wrench and jerk to try to escape his hold. He started laughing as his free hand grabbed the knife and started to run it up her inner thigh.

Sissy knew she couldn't break free. Beau was too strong. Sissy looked at her brother with eyes that begged for mercy. "Beau if you're in there," Sissy started, "please... I need your help. He's hurting me again and I can't stop him. I need you to stop him Beau." Sissy forced the words from her mouth. Her mouth kept trying to contort from the tears, the fear, and the screams, but she pushed the words out.

Beau's face softened. He suddenly stood up. His facial expressions and body language belied the battle that was raging beneath his skin. Then a moment of clarity spread across his demeanor. A single tear ran down his face and he smiled at his sister.

"Don't worry Sissy. I won't let him hurt you."

Then Beau shoved the knife into his own heart. Sissy wailed. The sound that issued from her lips would have caused the furies themselves to shed tears of sorrow. She rushed to his side and placed her hands on his cheeks. She kissed his forehead again and again trying to will life back into his body.

Beau looked at her with urgency. "When I die he's going to come out. You have to run. If he gets out, he'll come after you." Then Beau's body went still. Sissy tentatively stepped away. Part of her wanted to run, but she could not leave her brother. Then her body filled with rage. She saw Beau's ribcage start to undulate and swell.

Sissy's eyes went mad with hateful light. "You took everything from me. You took my innocence. You took my peace. You took any chance I ever had of a good night's sleep. But now you took my brother, and for that you're gonna burn!"

Sissy grabbed the oil lamp sitting at her feet, and smashed it over her brother's head. Within seconds, Beau's entire body was covered in flames. Then his mouth flew open and crows started to spew forth from his gaping jaws.

As each crow passed Beau's lips it was coated in flames. Soon a swarm of crows were circling out of Beau's mouth. Sissy looked up and beheld the most horribly beautiful sight she had ever seen. The crows formed a tornado of black feathers and flames. It looked like fire was falling from the sky like snow, but it was pieces of feather blazing like chucks of cinder. The screeching that the crows issued forth was the sound of nightmares and damned souls. Sissy had never seen anything more ghastly or more glorious. Then in a bursting flare the crows were gone. The night went silent, and as the last of the oil burned out the world returned to darkness.

*****

The next day three bodies were found. Deputy Jacob Turner was found stabbed to death in the apartment of Beau Overton. He had bloodshot eyes and strange scratches on his lips that the coroner could not explain. The body of Beau Overton was found in front of an old cabin in the Southern Woods in the center of a circle of ash. His body had been burned but cause of death was identified as a stab wound to the heart by the same knife that had killed Jake Turner.

Strangest of all, the body of Agnes Bell was found behind the cabin. The apparent cause of death was a heart attack. She had placed the call that had sent Jacob Turner out into the woods that night, and it was her oil lamp that had been smashed over the body of Beau Overton. None of it made any damn sense. Sissy Overton who had evidently escaped from Lakeshore that same night was never found. Though she was wanted for questioning in the events, there was no physical evidence to tie her to the crimes.

Eventually people moved on, and the Steven's Switch rumor mill had plenty of material to last them for a few years. In some stories, Agnes was a witch and in others it's Sissy practicing the "dark arts". In one, Deputy Turner turned maniac and started killing people, and there was another where Beau injected himself with some strange toad toxin trying to get high and went all Mr. Hyde instead. Pure hogwash, the lot of it. Funny how those idiots never even noticed the crows were gone.