The Stone of Blood by Tony Nalley Page A

lots of things that I didn’t know about in this world. I didn’t know for sure that the people we had seen were ‘ werewolves ’. But I did know that Colby had a history of trying to pull stuff over on me! And I wasn’t gonna have any foolin’ done on me while we were out by ourselves alone!
     
    “Okay, I found a place close to the gravel road where they can’t see us.” Colby whispered.
     
    My body held evidence of bruisin’ from head to toe! We had made a long and treacherous detour over rocky terrain, where sink holes and mud had found my every misstep.
     
    “ Wouldn’t it have been a better idea to have come by way of the gravel road? ” I thought out loud to myself.
     
    “They might have seen us.” Colby whispered in answer. “And we might be dead now!”
     
    “ We need only to stay alive until mornin’! ” I thought to myself. “ At first light we could go home and pretend like none of this had ever really happened. ”
     
    About a hundred yards further out, we reached the campsite. I carried our gear to where Colby stood, and I dropped the suitcase where it landed! My job was completed.
     
    I was the ‘ Transportation Specialist’ . He was the ‘ Army Corps of Engineers’ . It meant that my job was to carry stuff and his job was to put it together!
     
    By the moons light, Colby set up the tent. It was his dad’s tent, so if worst came to worst and he broke it, I wasn’t the one who was gonna get blamed for it! As he finished up, we gathered our things and crawled inside.
     
    For a moment, we forgot about the light. Like a blanket that keeps you safe from the monsters that hide in your closet, the vinyl tent kept us safe from the monsters that lurked in the darkness. Or so we thought.
     
    The bright orange walls illuminated as we turned on our flashlights, and laid there upon that floor basking in our accomplishments.
     
    After a short rest and a nice cold drink, I organized our items and checked em’ off my list: Cokes, Chips, Radio, Batteries, Walkie-Talkies, Pellet Guns, Magazines, Extra Flashlights, Blankets, Pillows, Fire Crackers and other miscellaneous stuff.
     
    All was found to be in order and as it should be, so I continued my work and divided our rations evenly between us. But as I grew ever more involved with my duties, I began to notice Colby’s silence. He just sat there quietly and listened. Listenin’ to what I didn’t know.
     
    “Are you alright?” I whispered.
     
    He did not respond.
     
    “Colby?” I repeated, whisperin’ louder this time.
     
    “Shhh!” He gestured to me and put a finger to his lips. “Did you hear that?” He whispered in answer.
     
    Rains would be comin’ soon. The grumblings of an oncomin’ storm brewed in the west while the sounds of thunder cracked above us.
     
    “I heard that!” I whispered back; my eyes as big around as saucers.
     
    “That’s not what I meant!” He whispered. “Shhh! Listen! There’s something out there!”
     
    I tried to listen as best I could, but the quieter I got the harder my heartbeat pounded until all I could hear was me!
     
    ‘
SNAP
!’
     
    I heard it that time! The sound of a twig breakin’ just outside of our tent!
     
    Outside the confines of our campsite, somethin’ walked amidst the darkness. The lonesome howl of distant wolves echoed throughout the stone quarry. Silence closed in around our camp, and our flashlights quickly went dark!
     
    “Shhh!” Colby whispered again as he reached for his pellet gun. “I think they’ve followed us! We’d better check it out!” He whispered.
     
    Cool winds washed over us as we crawled out into the murky darkness; an effervescent moon set low in an overcast sky. We stood together, surveyin’ the horizons; anticipatin’ attack at any moment. Adjustin’ to a lack of light we viewed the perimeter through a newly fallen mist.
     
    Suddenly! Someone turned on the light!
     
    “Well hello there!” Came a deep voice from out of nowhere