Mason

I remember watching their truck kick up dust as it went down the road, and once it disappeared behind a bend, the property got quiet in a way I wasn't used to.

I grew up around neighborhoods and traffic and people.

Even when I was home alone, there was always some sound nearby.

Out there, once the truck was gone it felt like the whole place was listening.

I know that sounds dramatic, but that was the first thing I noticed.

The air didn't feel empty.

It felt occupied by things I couldn't see.

The first night was fine.

I fed the dogs, Duke and Roscoe, both mutts with big heads and loud barks.

Duke was older, stiff in the back legs, and Roscoe was younger and nervous, always pacing from window to window.

They stayed close to me, which I liked.

I made frozen pizza, watched YouTube on my laptop, checked the chickens once before sunset, then locked everything up.

Around 10, the dogs started barking at something outside, but I didn't see anything through the windows.

The motion light didn't come on.

After a few minutes, they stopped.

The second day was quiet too.

I did my schoolwork, cleaned up a little, and took the dogs out before dark.

I noticed tracks by the chicken coop that looked like deer tracks.

That didn't seem unusual.

Carla had mentioned mule deer sometimes came through, especially if the water trough was full.