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So listener

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2:17

Baker's Gap,

2:20

Tennessee. 1989.

2:29

The woods that laid either side a

2:31

big gap road were just as

2:33

dark and ominous as he feared.

2:35

Bryce Adams sighed and shook his

2:37

head as he and his girlfriend

2:39

Crystal hiked up the hill from

2:41

the turn off the main road

2:43

where they'd stashed her uncle's workman.

2:45

Bryce had been here for three

2:47

whole semesters and still wasn't

2:50

used to what his parents

2:52

in Nashville called the country

2:54

life. He flunked out

2:56

of Vanderbilt, after a boring

2:58

year spent working in the

3:00

mailroom of his daddy's law

3:02

office, found himself attending a

3:04

small four-year school in Tipton. It

3:06

was the ass in to nowhere,

3:08

but hell. The weed was good,

3:10

and he found a group of

3:12

fellow weirdos who were obsessed with

3:14

Lord of the Rings and Black

3:16

Sabbath as he was. Once he

3:18

met Crystal, who was East Tennessee,

3:20

born and bred, the situation came

3:22

down right tolerable. The

3:25

woods, however, had never been a

3:28

place that Bryce Adams felt truly

3:30

comfortable. I mean, sure, he liked

3:32

to get high and put on

3:34

a cloak and go out in

3:37

the trees and imagine he was

3:39

a hobby from time to time.

3:41

Their D&D group had even gone

3:43

on an overnight camping trip where

3:45

they'd gotten dressed up and rolled

3:48

dice around a fire. That had been

3:50

a blast. But this was different.

3:52

This wasn't role-playing. and they

3:55

definitely weren't pretending to be

3:57

druids or rangers. When Crystal

3:59

introduced... their small circle of

4:01

friends to her uncle Scotty, who

4:03

she said practiced real magic like

4:06

allister Crowley shit. Things had

4:08

changed. His roommates Franklin and

4:10

Drew dedicated donors like himself

4:12

had read just about everything there

4:15

was to read on Crowley and

4:17

the Golden Dawn and all the

4:19

freaky things they got up to. Being

4:21

red-blooded. Mostly straight boys from the South.

4:24

They were more than down for trading

4:26

rolling dice to rolling around a campfire

4:28

with witchy local girls in the name

4:30

of the little sex magic. It was

4:32

kind of weird to think that his

4:34

girlfriend's uncle was the one organizing these

4:37

parties, but he tried not to think

4:39

about that too much. Scotty

4:41

was pretty cool for an old

4:43

dude, I suppose. He kept them

4:45

supplied with weed and twice a

4:47

week they gathered to his place

4:49

out in Cany Holler to learn

4:51

about a cult masters like Crowley

4:54

and Kenneth Grant, as well as

4:56

some hillbilly shit their family had

4:58

believed in for generations. According

5:00

to Scotty, there was power to

5:02

be had, and all the trappings

5:04

that came with it. Money, sex, a

5:07

life of luxury and leisure. Bryce

5:09

would take any help he could get to

5:11

obtain the latter. While his family came from

5:13

old Nashville money, he'd always been sort of

5:16

the black sheep of the family. At

5:18

least he comparison to his brothers, one

5:20

of whom had become a lawyer, while

5:22

the other was currently in med school

5:24

at Vandy. Given Bryce's grades and

5:26

a few unfortunate encounters with law

5:28

enforcement, he imagined he might have,

5:30

maybe a couple years for his

5:32

daddy cut him off entirely. Now

5:35

as the year war on the fireside

5:38

sexy times and trune driven spirit

5:40

quests had seen a significant decline

5:42

Crystal told him to be patient

5:44

that her uncle needed them to

5:46

do other things now to open

5:48

the path to their glorious future

5:51

Lately, however those other things seemed

5:53

to mainly consist of doing weird

5:55

shit to scare the locals Scotty

5:57

had him roam around the gap in a

5:59

weird of goth makeup and their

6:01

middle-earth inspired garb to freak the

6:03

mundane as he put it. In

6:06

Scotty's words, the purpose of these

6:08

shenanigans was to create a sense

6:10

of unease and those sitting their

6:13

ways and let them see the

6:15

dark future that lurks around the

6:17

corner give them a glimpse of

6:19

what shall be after their kind

6:22

has passed on from this world.

6:24

Privately, Bryce thought it was

6:26

horseshid. But it wouldn't do to

6:28

voice that opinion to Crystal who

6:30

clearly idolized the man. Local news

6:32

reports were full of far-fetched stories

6:34

about animal sacrifice and devil worship

6:37

and their group was partly to

6:39

blame for that. Scotty had a

6:41

habit of sending them out on their

6:43

excursions into the woods with buckets of

6:45

Kentucky fried chicken for the evening meal,

6:47

after which they'd have a great old

6:49

time chucking those bones into the fire

6:52

and getting up to the devil's business

6:54

with their lady friends. A

6:56

few imaginative park rangers who discovered fire

6:58

pits full of black and bones in

7:01

the state forests had run to the

7:03

local media with tales of Satanist stalking

7:05

the woods east Tennessee and that's all

7:07

it took to get the rumor mill

7:09

churning. It wasn't like they were hurting

7:11

anybody, Rice told himself. It was just

7:13

a little harmless fun to stir up

7:15

the energy for the rituals Scotty had

7:18

promised to teach them when the time

7:20

was right. Scotty

7:22

had started inviting them out

7:24

to an old barn on

7:26

Peter's branch, where there were

7:28

older people in attendance. Folks

7:31

cut from a different cloth

7:33

than Bryce and his college

7:36

buddies. These were not the

7:38

philosophy majors and trust-fund babies

7:41

that Crystal had recruited into

7:43

the fold as spooky wind-a-dressing,

7:46

but rather the teeth and

7:48

claws of a cult. Though

7:51

no one would ever use

7:53

that word The men were

7:55

hard Most of them look

7:58

like they'd spit time in

8:00

jail with her craggy faces, haunted eyes

8:02

and weathered skin covered in the faded

8:04

news print of old stick and poke

8:06

tattoos. He saw

8:08

how they sneered at him and the other

8:10

boys in their makeup and costumes when they

8:12

came by the barn after a night on

8:14

the town, as Scotty liked to call their

8:16

little escapades. The

8:19

women were different. They

8:22

reigned from timid little shadows who looked at

8:24

Scotty like he was Jesus Christ himself

8:26

to the marlboro -throated vicar queens who would

8:28

just as soon spill your guts with a

8:31

switchblade as look at you. Christ's

8:34

friends learned quickly that the younger women

8:36

in the group were off limits to

8:38

them, that they risked

8:40

the wrath of those vicious mother hens

8:42

by even starting a conversation with one

8:44

of the girls near their age. Scotty

8:49

seemed different at the barn

8:51

gatherings too, less

8:53

like Crystal's cool uncle and more like

8:55

some sort of preacher, motivational speaker. He'd

8:57

go on and on about how the

8:59

world had wronged people like them and

9:01

how there was a way to tear

9:04

it down and those who had built

9:06

empires on their backs and he'd ramble

9:08

for hours about folks that were long

9:10

dead and how close they'd come back

9:12

then. The world was

9:14

ripe for the picking and the door

9:16

was open but the faithful had lost their

9:18

nerve at the last minute and those

9:20

with the real power, oh the secret power

9:22

they had to take back had swooped

9:24

in and slammed the door shut in their

9:26

faces. Scotty

9:28

had asked for their solemn pledge to never

9:30

let that happen again and Bryson, everybody

9:32

else in that old barn had been so

9:35

fired up by the tall man's passionate

9:37

die drive, they'd sworn that oath without question.

9:42

After that, Bryson

9:45

and his friends weren't invited back to

9:47

the barn meetings. Instead,

9:49

they met with Scotty at his

9:52

trailer in Caney Holler where he

9:54

told him what happened out of the barn was

9:56

no longer their concern. He

9:58

had a special purpose. in

10:00

mind for them. And each of them had

10:02

a role to play. And they hadn't

10:05

even questioned it. The atmosphere

10:07

over at the bar and ventured

10:09

a little too close to church

10:12

services for their taste

10:14

anyway. Franklin had also

10:16

privately shared his suspicion with

10:18

Bryce that Scotty was running

10:21

a heavier dope out there

10:23

and didn't want Crystal

10:25

getting into anything harder than

10:27

weed. So they

10:29

progressed from weirding people out in

10:31

the parking lot of the pigly

10:34

wiggly to knock it on doors,

10:36

asking creepy questions. They didn't quite

10:38

understand the point of those, but

10:40

they followed the script and acted

10:42

the part per Scotty's direction. Next

10:44

he had him sneaking around abandoned

10:46

houses digging up dirt from their

10:48

yards. They almost got shot at

10:50

a time or two, and while

10:52

it had been scary as hell, oh, it

10:54

had also been a rush. Every

10:56

time they completed one of

10:58

Scotty's assignments, Bryce could feel

11:00

things changing, could feel himself

11:02

changing. He wouldn't have dared

11:04

to do half the things

11:06

he'd done at the urging

11:08

of Scotty Blankenship before he

11:10

come to Johnson County, but

11:12

now, oh, he felt bold

11:14

and strong. At times, he felt like

11:17

he could do anything, and why

11:19

not? No one was stopping them.

11:21

People, people were scared of them,

11:23

and they were firing that. Just

11:25

like Scotty had promised. So here they

11:28

were. About to take on the most

11:30

dangerous and illegal mission Crystal's uncle

11:32

had ever tasked him with. And

11:34

Bryce was close to shit in

11:36

his paints. When Scotty had sent

11:38

him to watch the funeral home, he

11:41

hadn't thought much of it. He figured

11:43

it was just another way to fuck

11:45

with the Normies. And when Scotty told

11:47

him to dress down, jeans and t-shirts

11:50

only, he'd been surprised, but not

11:52

really concerned. When Crystal

11:54

had produced a Manila envelope containing

11:56

photos of two men a woman

11:58

and their license plates. Well, he

12:01

started to get nervous. The

12:03

pictures of the folks they were sent

12:05

to watch had been Xerox from

12:07

old newspaper articles. In one

12:09

an older woman with short

12:11

gray hairs smiled out from

12:13

a staff photo attached to

12:15

a brief item announcing her

12:17

retirement from the local school

12:19

system. In the next clip,

12:21

in the men, one middle-aged

12:23

and the other, clearly in

12:26

Papal territory, held up two

12:28

massive muskeys. The text documented

12:30

their record catches in a

12:32

father-son fishing tournament at

12:35

Douglas Reservoir. There weren't any

12:37

images of the younger man

12:39

exiting the funeral home with

12:42

them, who seemed unremarkable. With

12:44

perhaps the exception of his

12:46

expensive-looking black suit. Bryce

12:50

and his girlfriend watched from the

12:52

front seat of a brown work

12:54

van Scotty had provided them as

12:56

the foursome prepared to leave The two men

12:59

from the photo in a pickup truck

13:01

and the retired teacher and young man

13:03

in her car Crystal began fiddling

13:05

with the CB radio which she told

13:07

him they would use to let the

13:09

folks back at the bar and on

13:12

Peters branch know that their targets were

13:14

on the move That's just how she

13:16

put like they were in a James

13:19

Bond movie or something which had only

13:21

increased Bryce's anxiety. Still, he put the

13:23

man in gear and followed the two

13:25

vehicles out to Big Gap Road at

13:28

a careful distance. The instructions

13:30

issued over the CB

13:32

necks came directly from

13:34

Scotty himself. Breaker, this is

13:37

about peep. Good Shepherd, you

13:39

got your ears on. There

13:41

was a moment silent. before

13:43

Scotty Blanken Chip's voice slithered

13:46

out of the speaker mounted

13:48

by the kick panel. Well,

13:50

clear, bowbeat. What's your 20?

13:52

Over. We're on our way

13:54

to the church picnic, good

13:57

shepherd. Y'all need anything? Over.

14:00

We're all good on our end, Bo

14:02

Peep. Got the rest of the

14:04

flug and all the picnic supplies

14:06

in order. Now, I heard there

14:08

might be a wreck out that

14:10

way. Did you see anybody needing

14:12

help? You do the Christian thing

14:14

and offer them a ride, why

14:16

don't you? Sun's going down. Nobody

14:18

needs to get hurt, finding their

14:20

way home in the dark now,

14:22

do they? Over. Heard that good,

14:24

Shepherd, we'll do. See y'all soon,

14:27

over and out. Bryce swallowed hard.

14:29

and took a steadying breath as

14:31

he drove. He was thankful they were

14:33

only expected to act as backup for

14:35

this particular task. Their job was to slip

14:37

onto the north end of the property,

14:40

pitch a tent, and start a campfire,

14:42

so they looked like nothing more than

14:44

a couple of college kids camping out.

14:46

The spot Scotty had directed them to

14:48

was far enough out in the woods

14:50

surrounding the house that they could plead

14:53

ignorance to trespassing if discovered and move

14:55

on. The others would knock on

14:57

the door of the tall house on the hill.

14:59

But instead of asking questions,

15:01

their assignment was to bring

15:03

the man designated as their new

15:05

hope. Back to Scotty's place to hear

15:07

his particular brand of the good news.

15:10

If anybody made a break for

15:12

it through the woods behind the house,

15:14

while they'd run right into a nice,

15:16

normal-looking pair of campers, the kind of

15:18

folks who'd be happy to give somebody

15:21

running for their lives a ride back

15:23

to town. They'd get

15:25

in the van and then they'd

15:28

be off to the barn on

15:30

Peter's branch all the same Bryce

15:32

had just finished laying in

15:34

the wood for the campfire

15:36

when he got the feeling They

15:38

were being watched Dark was

15:40

coming on fast and the

15:43

woods around him were rapidly

15:45

disappearing behind a curtain

15:47

of encroaching gloom as

15:49

the setting sun withdrew

15:51

its golden light He

15:54

shook his head as if to clear it and

15:56

peered into the deepening shadows. He was

15:58

just being parable. He knew he

16:00

shouldn't have smoked before coming up

16:03

here. He needed to get this

16:05

fire going for it was too

16:07

dark to see what he was doing.

16:09

Well, there was a gas can back

16:11

in the van. Wasn't the safest way

16:13

to lot of campfire, but he was in

16:15

a hurry. He had turned the head

16:18

back down the hill to fetch

16:20

it when the unmistakable sound of

16:22

a shotgun being racked stopped

16:24

him in his tracks. You'll stop

16:26

right there, Gunfiller. You got

16:28

about him. Five seconds

16:30

to tell me what

16:33

you're doing on the

16:35

walker's land. So, uh,

16:37

talk fast. Cast

17:11

your eyes through the

17:13

winding road. Keep your

17:15

foot on. Company?

18:05

What do you mean we're expecting

18:07

company? Archie Stallard went

18:09

to the front winter and peered down

18:11

into the driveway. I don't see nobody

18:13

coming down the drive and there ain't

18:16

nobody pulled up out there. Miss Bell, Miss

18:18

Marcy always said the words around the

18:20

Walker House are some of the strongest

18:22

there are. That nobody mean and harm

18:24

could even come onto the property without

18:27

y'all being able to stop them. If

18:29

trouble does come, they should keep a

18:31

safe, right? Belle shook her head.

18:33

Wards have to be fed and

18:36

charged regularly, and I just moved

18:38

in here last year. This place

18:40

sat unoccupied for almost five

18:42

years. Ellie couldn't bear to

18:44

come to the house for a long

18:46

time, so she wasn't keeping up with

18:48

them and will. To be honest,

18:51

Wards were always Marcy's specialty.

18:53

And in any case, nobody is

18:55

needed the kind of protection this

18:58

place used to offer in a long

19:00

time, so we just kind of let

19:02

them go. Are y'all talking about

19:04

some kind of security system? Like

19:06

y'all got trip wires and alarms

19:08

out there on the property or

19:11

something. Sort of arch. There's not a lot

19:13

of time to explain. The wards I can

19:15

keep up with just let me know if

19:17

someone's arrived or if there's something big like

19:19

a bear passing through. We've not had to

19:21

deal with the sort of things we had

19:24

to back then in a long time. So

19:26

if any arch's weirdos come knocking, I guess

19:28

we'll just have to meet them at the

19:30

door and ask them what they want. Archie

19:33

Stallard turned from the window with a

19:35

slightly sour look on his face. Oh,

19:37

y'all are talking about that kind of

19:40

thing. Miss Bell, you mean to tell

19:42

me you're wrapped up in all this

19:44

strange and dangerous stuff too? This stuff,

19:46

as you call it, Archie Stallard, is

19:49

in my blood. Marcy and Ellie Walker

19:51

are my aunts. My whole life has

19:53

been wrapped up in things that are

19:55

strange and dangerous in some way or

19:58

another. before

20:00

Archie could respond. The distinct

20:02

sound of a shotgun blast

20:05

rang out from the woods

20:07

behind the house. All three

20:09

of them started and stared

20:11

toward the backyard. Cowboys scound

20:14

and closed his eyes. As

20:16

if he were listening to something

20:18

that neither Miss Bell nor Archie

20:20

could hear. Kid? Are you okay?

20:22

But cowboy had risen to his

20:24

feet and was pulling his coat

20:27

on. Y'all'll stay here and lock

20:29

the doors. I'm gonna see what's

20:31

going on. You're gonna run toward

20:33

gunfire, kid? I know you think

20:36

you can't die in hell, maybe

20:38

you can't, but that's just stupid.

20:40

That might not have had anything

20:42

to do with anything we've been

20:45

talking about. Could just be hunters,

20:47

or, I guess, poachers, if they're

20:49

on Miss Bell's land. Best thing

20:51

we can, as if to put

20:54

the lie to Archie suggestion. Unless

20:57

the deer had learned to shoot back,

20:59

it was not hunters. The young

21:01

man shook his head. I'm just going

21:03

to take a look around. I'll be

21:05

right back. With that, Cowboy Absher

21:07

bolted through the kitchen door, heading

21:10

toward the woods that bordered the

21:12

north side of the Walker property.

21:15

Although he had spent his time

21:17

in Baker's gap on the other

21:19

side of town or down by

21:21

the reservoir, Cowboy felt a comforting

21:24

sense of familiarity here. The

21:27

crunch of leaves underfoot, and the

21:29

rustle of small critters in the

21:31

underbrush had formed the chorus of

21:33

his childhood. He could smell the

21:35

crick that round its way down

21:37

the east side of the property,

21:39

and there was a purity and clarity

21:41

to the scent that took him back

21:43

to being a boy. Following his big

21:46

brother and his friends through

21:48

the woods to whatever adventure

21:50

awaited them. When the

21:52

trail broke at the edge of a small

21:54

clearing in the trees Cowboys feet came to

21:57

such a sudden stop that he almost stumbled

21:59

his thoughts of it adventure's pass colliding

22:01

with the present scene before

22:03

him. For a moment, he

22:05

had the disconcerting sense he had

22:08

stepped into a frame from one

22:10

of his old buddy Shane's adventure

22:13

comics. A man was stretched flat

22:15

on his belly on the ground

22:17

groaning in pain. A young woman,

22:20

pretty except for her bloody nose,

22:22

lay across from him, clearly unconscious

22:24

and snoring softly. Oddly enough,

22:27

however. It was the

22:29

third figure in the clearing that

22:31

it stopped him cold. The man

22:33

who stood over the two

22:35

sprawled bodies on the ground

22:37

was enormous. Cowboys adopted Daddy

22:40

Junebug Apsher, who was not

22:42

a small man himself, would

22:44

have classified this feller somewhere

22:46

between a horse and one

22:48

big son bitch. He was

22:50

at least six foot four

22:52

and thick as a tractor

22:54

tire. He sported a bushy

22:56

beard and wore a trucker

22:59

cap, emblazon with the words,

23:01

blevens, towing, and surface. In

23:03

his hands, he held

23:05

a double-barreled shotgun. Cowboy

23:07

thought that this were a

23:09

panel out of a comic

23:11

book. There'd be wavy lines

23:13

of smoke curling from the

23:15

twin barrels. His face instinctively

23:17

split into a grin as

23:20

recognition dawn, but no. It couldn't

23:22

be, could it? Mr. Mr. Blevins?

23:24

The man turned casually, though

23:27

he nevertheless kept the shotgun

23:29

leveled in cowboy's direction. That's

23:31

my name. Don't wear it out.

23:33

I wouldn't come any closer there,

23:35

son. We've had enough excitement

23:38

out here this evening. If you're

23:40

with these two, I suggest you

23:42

just have seat for you end

23:44

up in a similar situation. Cowboy

23:46

raised his hands and ventured another

23:49

step closer. He gazed up

23:51

at the big man

23:53

in confusion realizing his

23:55

mistake. No, of course it

23:57

wasn't. His Mr. Blev... would

24:00

be well over a hundred years

24:02

old and this man didn't appear

24:04

to be 35. His thick beard

24:06

was a deep russet red not

24:08

yet bearing even a hint of

24:10

silver. He was dressed in

24:12

camo hunting pants and combat boots

24:15

and an army surplus jacket

24:17

stretched over his muscular shoulders. I'm

24:19

sorry sir I mistook you for

24:22

somebody else. I'm not with

24:24

them. I'm a friend of Miss

24:26

Bell. The big man spat tobacco

24:28

juice out of the corner

24:31

of his mouth and narrowed his

24:33

eyes at Cowboy. Miss Bell, is she

24:35

okay? I know she was going to

24:37

Osbrens tonight for Mr.

24:39

Apsher's visitation. She's

24:42

fine. I... Well, you probably won't

24:44

believe this, but Floyd Apsher

24:46

was my brother. My name's

24:48

Caleb, but they call me

24:51

Cowboy Apsher. For a

24:53

moment, the man who said

24:55

his name was Blevins scowled

24:57

a cowboy. Son, I don't know

24:59

what kind of fool you take

25:02

me for, but ain't no way

25:04

Mr. Avesher could have a brother

25:06

that much younger than... Wait.

25:09

Blevins' expression cleared as

25:11

understanding dawned in his

25:14

eyes. You wait just a minute.

25:16

You're him, ain't you? Huh. Well,

25:18

I'll be god-damned. I thought you'd

25:20

still be a kid if you

25:22

ever come back. What do you

25:24

mean? I'm him. No, never mind

25:26

that. Cowboy gestured at the

25:29

man's hat. You said your name

25:31

was Blevins? I'm guessing you're

25:33

kind of Melvin Blevins. He

25:35

was a big feller too.

25:38

The bearded man's face cracked

25:40

into a grin. Huh? I'm

25:42

Cody Blevins. Melvin was my

25:44

great papa. Never got to meet

25:47

him, though, died before I was born.

25:49

When I was little he took care

25:51

of me and a bunch of other

25:53

folks When I saw you standing there

25:55

with your shotgun for a minute, I

25:57

thought I'd seen a ghost. I swear

26:00

Just looking at you. You're Melvin

26:02

made over. Yep, so I've heard. My

26:04

papa and daddy raised me on papa

26:06

oblevins, the stories about hants and

26:08

ghosts and slick-talkin' men from the

26:10

company who ain't actually men at

26:13

all. Memo blevins collected a bunch

26:15

of them stories over the years

26:17

and passed them down. When I

26:19

was little, I thought they was just meant

26:21

to scare me enough to stay out of

26:23

the weeds and mind my mommy and daddy.

26:26

And I know better now. It ain't

26:28

quite like it was back in them

26:30

days, but I've seen enough out here

26:32

to know a lot of those stories

26:34

were likely true. Cody Blevins looked

26:36

the cowboy up and down, nodding

26:39

a little as if confirming his

26:41

previous statement regarding who cowboy was.

26:43

Even the one about the boy

26:46

who couldn't grow up or die. Looks

26:48

like you grew up a little though.

26:50

Yes, sir, I have. Your great-grandad he

26:52

had apart in that. He drove me

26:54

out to see the lady who helped

26:56

me with... with some of what was

26:59

wrong. Cody Blevins, whose nearest and

27:01

dearest just called him bear, grinned

27:03

even water. Huh, wait, my daddy

27:05

told you, almost brought down half

27:07

the mountain when something tried to

27:09

hurt you and have all Blevins.

27:11

Something like that. Cody, would you

27:13

mind putting that thing somewhere else?

27:15

Cody glanced down at the shotgun

27:17

as if he'd almost forgotten. Well,

27:19

then a bash grin, he lifted

27:22

the weapon in his hands, propping

27:24

the barrel over one shoulder. Oh.

27:26

Sorry about that. What's going on

27:28

out here? We heard shots and

27:30

Miss Bell said the wards told

27:32

her somebody was out this way.

27:34

I'm assuming you know what those are?

27:36

Cody Blevins nodded and fished around

27:38

under his shirt pulling out a

27:40

charm bag that he had pinned to

27:43

an old pair of dog tags. He

27:45

smiled and let the protective trinket fall

27:47

over his shirt. Huh, yeah, I know a little

27:49

bit. I live a little ways over by

27:51

the south into the creek. Our

27:53

families looked after the house and the

27:56

walkers for a long time. Miss Marcy

27:58

was like family does. Miss Ellie too. of

28:00

course, but Miss Marcy was like my

28:02

third memo. The place ain't the same

28:04

without her. And more ways than one,

28:06

those wards ain't much more than a

28:08

doorbell these days. As for what's going

28:11

on, I spotted these two sneaking on

28:13

to the property a little while ago

28:15

and decided to see what they were

28:17

up to. Been all kinds of strangers

28:19

out here playing dress-up lately.

28:21

Some of them are harmless, just

28:24

college kids, you know, and others. We've

28:26

been watching for a while on account

28:28

of who their people are. So

28:30

there are people like my family

28:32

and yours who know something about what's

28:34

going on out there in the dark,

28:37

and most folks don't, right? Yeah, boy

28:39

nodded and understanding. Then there's

28:41

people out there in the

28:43

dark doing the things they don't

28:45

want nobody noticing. Just like our

28:48

practice has been passed down

28:50

through the years. So of theirs. We

28:52

watch them. Make sure they don't

28:54

get up to anything might hurt

28:56

anybody. A girl over

28:58

there has been dabbling with

29:01

the dark since, well, since your

29:03

day old timer. I found their

29:05

van down by the road and

29:07

had a look inside. Rope, duct

29:09

tape, pillowcases, zip ties, all

29:11

inside a van with no

29:13

back winters. Because that's not

29:15

suspicious at all. Right. So

29:18

I watched. When I've seen

29:20

enough, I decided to ask

29:22

some questions. I've got to

29:24

drop on Pretty Boy Over There. The

29:26

man on the ground groaned again. And

29:28

his girlfriend snook up on me with

29:30

the 22 and got off a couple

29:32

shots before it jammed. Turns out she can't

29:34

hit the broadside of a barn, which is

29:37

lucky for me, because that's about my size.

29:39

He tried to grab my shotgun, she tried

29:41

to jump on my back, so I threw

29:43

an elbow back and knocked her silly. The

29:45

brave man here tried to run, so I

29:47

dusted the ground at his feet a little.

29:49

Shot just grazed back at his leg.

29:51

Just birdshot. It's like hell I imagine,

29:53

I imagine, but he'll be all right.

29:56

I've bet our question to the

29:58

kid, but uh... showing up here

30:01

answers more than a few of

30:03

those. You may answer some for

30:05

you but not nearly enough for

30:07

me. Cody Blevins nodded, smiling grimly

30:10

as he strode over to the

30:12

young man laying prone on the

30:14

ground. He lowered the shotgun from

30:16

his shoulder, aiming down at

30:18

the kid as he nudged him

30:21

with one booted foot. Wake you,

30:23

wake you kiddo! It's time we

30:25

had a little chat. The kid

30:27

groaned. Blinking with apparent confusion as

30:30

he opened his eyes. One look down

30:32

the barrel of Cody's weapon swept

30:34

the cobwebs from his mind

30:36

as efficiently as any dust mob.

30:38

Injured leg notwithstanding, he started to

30:41

scrabble away doing a half-ass crab

30:43

walk backwards on his hands in

30:45

one foot and Cody tightened his

30:47

finger on the trigger in response.

30:49

Uh-uh-uh! You stay here right there,

30:52

son! Jesus fucking Christ, man! You!

30:54

You shot me! Oh, don't be

30:56

a baby! I just grazed you.

30:58

Stings like a son bitch, I

31:00

bet, but you'll be fine. What

31:03

are you gonna do? Kill me?

31:05

You can't just... No, of course

31:07

not. Cowboys sunk down on

31:09

his haunches by Cody's side,

31:11

bringing himself closer to the

31:13

boy's level and the kid

31:15

seemed to register his presence

31:17

for the first time. At

31:19

least, not as long as

31:21

you answer our questions, anyway.

31:24

The boys gaze wide with

31:26

panic bounced back and forth

31:28

between the two men like

31:30

a ping pong ball. He

31:33

licked his lips. Okay. What

31:35

do you want to know?

31:37

Well, let's just start with

31:40

who the hell you are.

31:42

What's your name, son? Bryce?

31:44

Bryce Adams! Cody nodded

31:46

toward the unconscious

31:48

girl laying nearby. What

31:51

about her? Crystal,

31:53

crystal blankenship. Okay,

31:55

Bryce. You mind telling me what

31:57

you two chuckle fucks are doing on

31:59

me? bell's land. We, we was

32:01

just camping. We didn't know

32:03

it was private land. We

32:06

thought this was national forest.

32:08

We, we, we. That's a

32:10

lie. Guy Boy's head had

32:12

dropped to one side as

32:14

he contemplated the boy, absorbing

32:16

the words, tasting their flavor

32:18

on the palate of his mind.

32:21

When Cody glanced down at

32:23

him, he saw that the young

32:25

man, the black suit's eyes had

32:27

gone a bit unfocused. But his

32:29

voice was steady and certain.

32:32

Oh yeah. He told the truth about

32:34

their names, but not their

32:36

purpose here. Cody turned back

32:38

to Bryce. All right, son, you

32:40

got to the count of three

32:42

to cut the bullshit and start

32:44

telling the truth. One, two. All

32:46

right, we knew. We knew whose

32:48

land it was. We were... Shit.

32:50

We were sitting here to bring

32:53

the old lady in... And... Rice

32:55

glanced nervously at cowboy.

32:57

Seeming almost more afraid of

32:59

him than the shotgun. And him,

33:02

back to Scotty. Who the hell,

33:04

Scotty? Crystal's uncle's Scotty-blaken

33:07

ship. He just wants to talk

33:09

to him, that's all. Nobody

33:11

means any harm, I swear.

33:13

Nobody's gonna get hurt. Cody

33:15

Blevins laid the shotgun across

33:17

his shoulder and knelt down

33:19

by cowboy. Peering into the

33:22

young man's eyes, his expression

33:24

grim. He reached in the back

33:26

of his waistband and produced the

33:28

pistol which he held up for

33:30

Bryce's inspection. Tell me this son,

33:33

if nobody's supposed to get

33:35

hurt, what was your little girlfriend

33:37

here doing with this? Bryce looked

33:39

his lips nervously and swallowed the

33:41

lump that had suddenly formed in

33:43

his throat. I didn't know anything

33:46

about that. She did not tell me.

33:48

Cody glanced over at cowboy who

33:50

nodded inside. I'm willing to bet

33:52

there's a whole lot of things

33:54

she didn't tell you, Bryce. Turned

33:56

away from the kid. Cowboy turned

33:58

back to Cody. rose to his feet. We've

34:01

got to get back to the house and check

34:03

on Miss Bell. You go on ahead. I'll deal

34:05

with these two. Bring them up to the house.

34:07

We can figure out what the hell's going on

34:09

here. Cowboy nodded and took off down the

34:11

trail behind him. His feet pounding the brush

34:13

as he retraced his steps through the woods.

34:16

All thoughts of his friends and the Halcyon

34:18

days of youth spent in the woods behind

34:20

him. Now there was only the present and

34:22

the urgent need to get back to get

34:25

back to Archie and Miss Bell to ensure

34:27

that they were safe. He had no idea

34:29

what all this was about just yet.

34:31

He felt like he was trying to

34:34

put together a puzzle that was missing

34:36

half the pieces. But there would be

34:38

plenty of time to question Bryce Adams

34:40

and his girlfriend later. As he broke

34:43

the edge of the tree line and

34:45

the tree line and the tree line

34:47

and jogged into Bell's backyard, cowboy heard

34:50

the distant sound of tires crunching gravel.

34:52

It sounded like a car at the

34:54

end of the walker's long driveway. He

34:56

picked up his bell. Archie! Cowboys dressed

34:59

shoes skidded on the polished

35:01

floors as he sprinted into

35:03

the front room and he

35:05

had to catch himself on the

35:07

door frame. The front door hung open.

35:09

The night breezer and the curtains

35:12

that hung from the windows

35:14

to either side. Through it he could

35:16

see the distant red glow of tail

35:18

lights disappearing down the road.

35:20

Archie soured lay crumbled on

35:22

the hardwood nearby. The silver

35:25

hair at his temple

35:28

stained crimson with blood.

35:30

The room was otherwise

35:32

empty. Cowboy rushed to

35:34

his friend's side. Archie!

35:37

Archie! He pressed his

35:39

hand to the side

35:41

of Archie's neck and

35:43

felt the pulse there

35:45

pounding strong. Archie groaned

35:48

his eyes fluttering. They

35:50

took her kid! They

35:53

took Miss Bell. There

36:00

is a curse upon

36:03

my every waking breath

36:05

and I cannot escape

36:08

the darkness. Well, hey

36:10

there family. Looks like

36:12

we've gone and done

36:15

it again. Left y'all

36:17

hanging by your fingernails

36:20

on the edge of

36:22

that cliff. Can't stop,

36:25

won't stop. Y'all just gonna have to

36:27

come back and see what happens when

36:29

old Cowboy seeks to settle the score

36:31

with Scotty Blankenship and Mother Folks up

36:33

on Peter's Branch. We want to thank

36:36

y'all for all the kind words we've been

36:38

seeing all over the place regarding season

36:40

5. We appreciate that so many of

36:42

you have completed your social media ritual

36:45

following us on all the appropriate platforms

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as listed over at Old Gods of

36:49

appalachia.com where you can also find a

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link to the discord server and our

36:54

brand new subscription service. The Holler. There

36:56

are hours and hours of exclusive content

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and other goodies for those of you

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who cast your lot with us over

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in. The Holler. Head on over to

37:05

Old Gods of appalachian.com/The Holler for more

37:07

details. And this is your yes Melvin

37:10

too we thought about it but he

37:12

was older than Marcy reminder that old

37:14

guns of Appalachia is a production of

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deep nerd media distributed by Rusty Quill.

37:19

Our theme song is by Brother Land

37:21

and Blood and our outro music is

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by those poor bastards. Today's story was

37:26

written by Steve Shell and Cam

37:28

Collins and the voice of Cowboy Absure

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is Brandon Bentley. Talk to you

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