“Les, les! Over here!” Dana said and waved over to me. Her purple tank already had more grass stains than actual color. “Looky what I found!”
I smiled as she ran down the hill. I never knew how my nice, or any kid really, had so much energy.
My eyes glazed over the clearing in the trees where Dana was running towards. Ash Wilds Park held many such places for campers, RVs, tents, and the link. But I hadn’t seen this one on the trek up. I started walking to Dana, but found myself nearly tripping down the hill.
The sun’s rays lit up the area ten-fold. I squinted. As my eyes adjusted to the light, the scene became clearer. A circle of golden horns dotted the circumference of the clearing. They were long, gangly, and golden. Alpenhorns, if memory served. Serpent-like branches held them in place. In contrast to the horns, they gave off a dark glow.
Dana’s dark face had a pale outline around her small fro. She tried to jump and reach the mouthpiece. After she had failed a few times, she turned to look at me.
“Help me up!”
A slithering shadow danced behind her. I dashed over to her, swiped her up, and ran. In the car, I caught my breath.
“Va-gone” the contact name read. My finger hovered over the call button. I held my breath and pressed it. Voicemail.
“Vaughn…I need your help.”