Chapter 5   House of Claws

House of Claws

Jake's footsteps pounded the leaf litter path, cutting through the twilight hush of Ridgewood Woods. Beside him, Ethan's breath came in sharp, echoing gulps.

Ahead, Liam lurched forward, then skidded to a halt.

"What is it?" Ethan called, weaving between ferns to catch up.

Liam's wide eyes tracked something just beyond a fallen log.

A pinkish blur flashed into view, an old farm pig, half its bristles gone, snorting in panic. It stared at Liam for a heartbeat, then lunged, squealing.

Watch out!

Liam yelped, stumbling backward as the pig charged, tusks bared. He pivoted on one foot and sprinted off the path into thicker brush, the trot shifting into a full tilt run.

Jake and Ethan exchanged a look and broke into a chase.

"Why is a pig in the woods?" Jake panted, scrambling over a mossy stump, were else will it be? He said mocking

Ethan's heart thumped. I don't know. Help him!

Reaching Liam, they found him panting, arms spread as though to block the pig's path. But the animal veered around him, eyes locked ahead.

He's not after me, Liam gasped. Something's chasing him.

Behind them, branches snapped. The forest fell dead silent, magnifying the pig's frantic hoof, beats as it bolted deeper into the trees.

He is running for his life, Jake said, confusion and adrenaline mixing in his voice.

Ethan frowned. We can't just leave him. He bolted after the pig again, branches whipping his face. Jake and Liam followed, breath ragged, senses on high alert.

Suddenly, the woods opened into a clearing. Pale moonlight spilled across the ground. At the edge stood an abandoned two story house windows gaping like empty eye sockets, paint peeled to bare wood, a sagging porch that looked half alive in the dim light.

The pig scurried past Liam, darting beneath the porch rafters. Its squeals faded into the darkness. Liam slowed, chest heaving.

"What is that place?" Jake asked, skidding to his side.

Ethan's pulse kicked up. I have never seen this on any map. He eyed the broken windows and sheltered crawl space. Looks centuries old.

Liam pressed trembling fingers to his lips.

Wait, I think I remember something from the book. He rifled through his backpack and pulled out the wildlife reference.

He flipped to a passage underlined in red, "Ridgewood's founding family built a hunting lodge later abandoned after an unexplained mass disappearance.

Rumor says the owner studied occult canid lore' and conducted strange experiments.

Jake's jaw dropped. "So this was their lodge? Man, even in danger you are still reading that thing."

Liam traced the words. Part of it. The rest was torn down long ago, except this.

A soft wind stirred the leaves around them, as though the house exhaled. Ethan swallowed. "We should go in," he said, steel threading his voice.

Jake paused, then shrugged. "We came this far."

Liam looked from Ethan to Jake, torn. "I...don't like this."

Ethan reached out and squeezed his shoulder. Stick together. Or you can stay here and watch for the pig just in case.

They stepped onto the porch. Each board creaked underfoot. The pig darted across the threshold and vanished into shadow.

Liam screamed and followed. Jake flicked on his flashlight; its beam carved a narrow path into the darkness. Inside, the air was cold and stale like a crypt sealed for decades.

I was ready for this adventure, Jake muttered.

The three moved in single file down a hallway lined with cracked plaster and warped floorboards.

Jake's light picked out shapes on the wallsfaint scratches that coalesced into long, claw like gashes. They climbed doors, beams, and ceiling boards-gouged deep enough to expose raw wood.

Those aren't human, Jake murmured.

Liam's flashlight trembled. "Canid claws...but too large." He knelt and pointed to a shard of something black and curved, about the size of a child's finger bone. "Look."

Ethan knelt beside him. "That...is a claw." He lifted the broken piece gingerly. It felt impossibly heavy and cold like a shard of night.

"Put it down!" Jake hissed, grabbing Ethan's wrist.

But Liam's fingers closed around the claw. "Just a second..."

A low, distant growl rolled through the house: a rumble so deep it made the floorboards shiver. A squeal erupted behind them, then cut off abruptly, as if snuffed out.

"We need to go," Jake said, voice hollow.

The growl swelled into a roar that shook the rafters. Dust rained down, and Jake's flashlight wobbled.

"Liam!" Ethan grabbed his arm.

Books and papers rustled in Liam's backpack as he fumbled for something-anything-to defend them.

Outside, the final window cracked high above, as though struck by an unseen fist. A dark silhouette filled the pane broad shoulders, pointed ears, glowing eyes pressed to the glass. The head tilted, sniffing the air.

"Run!" Ethan screamed.

They bolted through the front door as the creature pounded on walls behind them.

Ethan burst into the clearing. Jake and Liam were right behind him. The pig ghosted past, disappearing into the trees. Beyond the porch, shadows seemed alive, watching their flight.

Branches whipped at their faces as they tore back along the trail. Ethan's heart pounded in his ears, matching their sprint. Jake glanced back once flashlight slicing through the gloom.

"Keep moving!" Ethan barked, grabbing Liam's arm.

They didn't stop until the service road lights came into view familiar, safe. They spilled onto gravel, chests heaving under streetlamps.

"Did you see it?" Ethan gasped. Half man, half wolf...it was huge."

Liam stared at the broken claw in Jake's hand. "We can't leave this out there. It's proof."

Ethan's gaze drifted back to the forest's dark mouth. The creature's howl echoed across the pines hollow and haunting.

He looked at his friends Liam clutching the claw, face pale but determined, Jake's hand twitching by the camera bag and himself, heart no longer his own.

"We need help," Ethan said, voice low. "Detective Ransom needs to see this."

Jake swallowed and nodded. Ethan. Fast.

They turned away from the forest. The lodge stood silent behind them, windows empty, porch still. But deep inside, a single fresh scratch trailed down a boardblack, as though the creature watched their retreat.

In the hush that followed, Ethan felt a pull, ancient and weighty a story clawed into wood and bone. Ridgewood Woods was far from done with them.