Evan
👤 SpeakerAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
I stayed still until my muscles ached.
Wes did too.
The voice tried again, cycling through names like it was working a list.
It called Dale once, which made no sense unless it was testing sound.
It called Hey and Hello in different tones, like it was sampling the basics.
Then it did something that still bothers me more than any of the obvious scary stuff.
It made the exact sound of my tent zipper being pulled.
That sound is intimate if you've camped.
It's right by your face.
It means you're about to be exposed.
When I heard it, I jerked upright and my hand went to my knife on instinct.
Even though I'd never used a knife on anything bigger than a zip tie, the zipper on my tent didn't move.
The sound had come from outside a few feet away, and it was a perfect imitation, like someone had studied it.
Wes whispered, It's messing with you.
His voice was tight enough that it was almost a hiss.
We waited.
The voice stopped.
The night went silent again.
I don't know how long passed.
Ten minutes.