“Yes,” she huffed. “Just the women though.”
“Thereareonly women in your family. Sort of freaky.” I leaned in with a toothy smile that made her laugh. Ava had such nice laughs but I was ready to hear what other noises I could force out of her. Moans, groans, gasps, whimpers… screams.
We walked down the little street behind Brandon and Matthias, towards campsite three—closer to the front entrance.
“It’sallfreaky. I’m the only normal one,” Ava said. I let out a sudden bark of laughter that made her jump and look at me in shock. She eyed me strangely as I tried to calm my dying laugh.
“Sorry, sorry. You’re completely right. You’re the normal one. Completely unaffected by the draw your family has on strange things.” Ava was hilarious sometimes. I gave a wide smile and bumped our shoulders playfully.
“Screw you,” she grumbled without any real anger as we arrived at campsite three. Oh Ava, if you only gave me the chance I certainly would screw you. Roughly, passionately, and with just enough restraint that you wouldn’t go running away screaming.Hopefully.
“Welcome!” The ranger said. The campground manager was here too, eating a s'more in the messiest way possible. Pieces of melted chocolate slipped from her graham crackers and landed on her knee. She wiped at it, smearing it around into a sticky mess as she tongued the s’more’s insides while eyeballing me suggestively. I grimaced.
She was strapped up with a gun and kept eyeing the trees like a nervous habit. I looked around too, feeling as if I needed to make sure we were alone as well.
We all settled in. Ava bounced in her chair as she pushed a marshmallow on a stick and got to roasting. I reached out and gripped the edge of her chair, tugging it as close as possible. Brandon was a few feet to her right, slumped in his chair with his arms crossed. Matthias was on the other side of him, mopping his brow with his shirt while glancing at his phone with a frown.
The family we'd seen earlier didn’t show up and I realized we would be the only victims. By now the sun couldn’t be seen and the sky was starting to turn purple.
“Y’all know about the murders here?” The ranger asked, instantly dispersing my wandering thoughts.
“Here?” Ava asked, pointing down. He nodded, a sly smile curling up his face. She shot me a look and I shook my head and gave a huffed laugh. He was making things up.
“Every year at thisverycampground at least one person goes missing. Sometimes it can be as many as five,” the ranger said.
Brandon and Matthias sat up straighter, looking more interested now. My eyes slid to Ava, enjoying the warm golden glow of the fire on her skin. If we pressed our bodies together I bet I’d be able to feel the heat lingering.
She clutched my hand and lowered her marshmallow to nearly touch the red coals. I watched as it flared with a brief flash of flame before dying into an ashy husk. Was she worried? I didn’t want her to worry. She should feel safe. I was right here. I threaded our fingers and pulled her arm closer. Then I shot a nasty glare at the ranger who ignored me.
“Bullshit,” Brandon said.
“It’s true,” the campground manager spoke up, aggressively licking chocolate from her arm. “People go missing every year in the summer.” Her eyes slid to the forest again, scanning. She really seemed to be looking for something.
“Ever hear of the Mothman monster?” The ranger asked us. My body tightened in response to his words. Ava noticed and looked at me questioningly.
“Have you?” She asked.
“No,” I responded apathetically with a blank face. Everyone was looking at me so I decided to try again. “I haven’t,” I said with inflection and a small smile. I brought Ava’s hand up to my mouth and kissed the back. She sucked in a little breath and averted her eyes quickly in embarrassment. I hoped she looked just as embarrassed when I crawled between her legs and fucked her. I imagined pulling her hands from her face, not letting her hide just how embarrassed she was to have me inside her.
“He’s famous,” the ranger started. “A legend that came from these very woods. Matter of fact, not far down the road is Point Pleasant. Every year they hold a big festival all about Mothman.”
“That sounds cool,” Ava said, forcing a little smile.
“It’s to inform people about what's out there. The creature with glowing red eyes and wings twenty feet long,” the ranger said, throwing his arms out wide. I nearly barked out a laugh but Ava nervously slid her attention to the forest line. She squeezed the blood flow from my hand so I brushed my thumb in circles over her thumb.
“Some say he’s the devil. A furred man with taloned feet and the pits of hell burning in his eyes.” The ranger's dark eyes were wide. I could see the flames of our campfire reflected in them, emphasizing his point about the monster. At some point, he’d gone from easy going to serious. His eyes dug into us as if begging us to deny his claims.
“People have seen him?” Ava asked.
“Oh yes,” the ranger said, nodding. “Lots of people. Most literature likes to think this all started in the sixties but Mothman sightings have been going on since people existed in the area.” A monster story, how ironic. If only these humans knew what was sitting around the fire with them. A smile spread over my face.
“Mothman lives in these very woods, hidden closeby and waiting,” the ranger continued. “Hungry. Blood is always drenched around his mouth because he is always feeding. Always eating. Sometimes the animals of the woods aren’t enough. Sometimes he wants human flesh.”
My smile flipped into a frown. It was always the same with these stories. The monster was a human eating beast, practically a rabid animal. My eyes darted to Ava, she was looking at my frown with curiosity.
Brandon and Matthias were listening in while sharing a bag of gummy worms in neon colors. They looked mildly entertained.
“Every summer campers come to these woods. Every summer some go missing. Sure, we say they got lost in the woods or fell in the river but the bodies are never found. There is a cave somewhere out there,” he pointed into the shadowy woods. “A cave filled with bones. Bones of settlers and explorers from hundreds of years ago. And at the top, bones of campers freshly picked clean.” I rolled my eyes.
