439. Tales from the Forest

everything, I get sick from smells, perfume that's too strong, candles that are too strong

“and I am very sensitive to strong odors, especially bad ones and that includes my darling cat”

Clara's litter box, so I'll do anything I can to keep the litter smells at a zero, and since I started feeding her smalls, her poop has been healthier, smaller, and a lot less smelly, and that's because smalls is fresh, human-grade cat food that is made from high-quality meat, not cheap fillers. You see meat is easy for Clara to digest, for all cats to digest, which means her little body absorbs more nutrients and healthier poops come out. In contrast,

the stuff I used to feed my cat was made with grains and artificial ingredients that were hard on her little body, and her poop her nasty poop was proof of that, don't tell her I said that, though, okay. And smalls isn't just good for digestion, 88% of cat parents say that after feeding their cat smalls, their cat is softer and shinier and has more energy to play and overall just

“seems healthier, because it's really good for cats. If you want to invest in your cat's health,”

smalls is giving you 60% off your first order, plus free shipping, and free treats for a life.

When you go to smalls.com/scare, if your cat doesn't like it, smalls will refund 100% of your order, but trust me, your cat is going to love the taste of smalls, and you'll love that your house no longer smells like a litter box all the time, that's 60% off plus free shipping and free treats for a life. When you go to smalls.com/scare Hello, and welcome to "Scare You to Sleep". I'm your host Shelby Novak, and I'm here to read you,

a couple of bedtime stories. Tonight's episode has a bit of a theme. I hope you're not out camping

right now because we're about to hear some very scary tales set in the woods. Our first story of the

evening comes to us from author Forest Delirac. This is TreeLine. It all happened last night. I left them in the woods just for the afternoon. They had been acting completely entitled, meeting me for everything spoiled rotten those kids were. My wife tried to talk some sense into me, rattling on about how the woods weren't safe. Of course they weren't safe. I thought that's a whole point. Let the little wretched fend for themselves or a few hours and see how much

they respect and appreciate their parents' hard work for them. It's always been for them.

Every dance second of our lives since they were born. I gave them a hatchet, some clothing and a bag, told them they needed to learn how things work around here. I wasn't bad for doing that. Kids need to learn somehow. I just, I just was a little angry at the

“time. That's all. But I was doing my job as their father. I remember their eyes then.”

My son's welling up with tears and my daughters staring daggers at me. She kept looking at her mother. Like she'd dared to do anything with me standing between them. Go pass the tree line. Don't come back till sunset. I said to them, pointing to the forest. I said, maybe catch something and eat it. Try to make your father proud for once. I knew that was unlikely. They'll come back starving, whining and eat whatever their mother and I make for them with zero complaint I thought.

inside. She sat at the window in the kitchen facing the woods, not talking to me the whole damn day.

“I told her, I told her, if they don't come back, they don't deserve to come back.”

Or something like that. When the sun started going down, and there was no sign of them. I knew we should have gone out looking for them. But I was stubborn. I thought they'd show up any minute. Then the sun went down. We both went to stand outside, watching the tree line for the two of them. The fireflies came up for the last few minutes of light, and I swear a few times,

I thought I could hear the sound of them shuffling around past the trees. I mind expecting to see either of them at the same moment, but I didn't. Eventually after 30 minutes of my wife and I just standing there, staring into the trees. I started to wonder if I was even hearing anything or just imagining it. The fireflies disappeared one by one, and then we were in almost complete pitch, black,

except for the moon glow. We couldn't hear anything anymore,

not even the wind. So when my wife finally spoke it, made me almost jump out of my skin.

She said, "Look, I can see them," and pointed into the darkness.

“I strained my eyes to see, but only saw barely discernible trees. I asked her where are they coming?”

Her smile, and her excited demeanor made me think they were. She didn't answer me. She just shouted for them and waved. I kept looking hard for any movement. I still didn't hear anything.

My eyes finally adjusted enough to see them. Two little pale spots where their faces were

between the trees. I couldn't help but chuckle at the fact that they came back unscathed. I turned to my wife and smiled about to brag about how I was right in all that. But she slowly put her hand down and frowned. Why aren't they coming? She asked. I stopped laughing and looked back and sure enough. Their little faces and the distance hadn't gotten any closer. I felt a prickle in my fingertips and felt my anger coming back up.

"Do they think they're being clever?" I said to her. She called out to them again. She took a step forward and then I started marching ahead, ready to grab them by their ears and drag them back for scaring us like that. As I got closer, the anger in my chest drained away. Suddenly, and my body stopped self-removing without me thinking, I still couldn't see them very. Well, just the latter spots their faces against the blackness of the night, but I stopped.

I tried to tell them to get over here. But my throat closed before I could even finish the first word.

My body knew something. I didn't. I heard my wife called me asking what was wrong, but I didn't even turn to look at her. I was just watching them standing there like that. I tried as hard as I could to see them and could barely make out their faces. They were moving slightly, but not walking towards us or anything. They were shattering or twitching like a squirrel's tail. I heard my wife say my name nervously, but I didn't answer her. I would have, but I couldn't

“must interrupt the willpower. I probably should have because then a voice. I think my daughter said,”

"Please help us!" That she started running towards the tree line, catching up to me,

"When you're about to throw up, I shouted at her to wait, but in a late finding my voice again,

“I moved, running up to catch her." She then stopped, too.”

About halfway to the tree line, from where I did before. I grabbed her shoulder and looked at her face, and her face was like all the blood had drained out from it. She was staring at our kids,

so I looked back at them as well. Then I knew why she had stopped. We could finally

make out our kids' faces. They were, they didn't look like our kids at all. The skin was all pulled back, like to the back of their heads. Their cheeks stretched, like they were pinned to their ears, teeth exposed completely. Like some sick, disfigured smile. Their eyes were dark,

“like they weren't there at all or something, and they were twitching. Something fierce,”

heads jolting slightly at different angles, like a spider moving. My wife covered her mouth with both her hands, let out a scream, like sob, the distance between us and the house, then felt incredibly far. Their necks looked like wrong fabric twisted up. I could see a glint of something to the side of one of them. My axe. We hurt the voice again. Mommy, we hurt. Can you help us? Neither of their mouths moved, or their jaws didn't open, at least their

teeth were clamped down on each other hard, and the voice, this time it sounded clear, but

“tight, like trying to talk with your tongue in the back of your throat, or twisted up in your mouth.”

She was crying now. My wife. Tears just rolled down her cheeks while she hyperventilated. Then we hurt shuffling from the things in front of us. From the corner of my eye, I saw them start to move towards us, and adrenaline jolted through me, like lightning. I grabbed my wife's hand, and bolted back towards our house. I felt like we were running a mile. My heart was beating in my throat, and my nose burned, but I could hear scabbering footsteps behind us, so we kept running.

My wife was just sobbing, muttering, "No, my baby is with every, and any exhale."

We finally made it back to the house. I flung the door near off its hinges and through us inside,

turning and slamming the door shut as fast as I could manage. I felt the door hit something hard as I shut it, but I didn't stop as I barricaded the damn thing with a chair. My wife was in considerable. Just sobbing mess on the floor, while I grabbed a blade from the kitchen. I started closing every window and curtain. I could, and when I shut the kitchen window, I saw one of their fucking faces standing right outside in the dark.

Its forehead was bleeding, likely from the damn door, and it's face. It was just stretched and wrinkled skin, pulled taught in some places, while folding over itself in others, splattered blood. It had no eyes. Just hollow black sockets, and its teeth were cracked, and on full display, its hairline was so far back on its scalp that it looked like chunks were missing. I can't say with full confidence, but if I were to guess, this thing was once my son.

The bag I gave them was clenched tight in its shuddering hand, covered, and blood, and dirt. I had no clue where the other fucker went. But I shut the curtains, and kneeled next to my wife on the floor, gripping that blade for dear life of the entire night.

We couldn't hear anything. And when the son finally came back up at dawn,

around our entire house. I opened the door and looked all around the outside of the house.

“After not seeing any sign that those things were still there. I told my wife to stay inside.”

And came here as fast as I could to ask for help. But, shit. I forgot to check the tree line before I left. One bit of trivia you may not know about me is house sensitive, my noses. I can smell everything. I get sick from smells. Perfume that's too strong. Candles that are too strong. And I am very sensitive to strong odors, especially bad ones. And that includes my darling cat Clara's litter box.

So I'll do anything I can to keep the litter smells at a zero. And since I started feeding her

smells, her poop has been healthier, smaller, and a lot less smelly. And that's because smells is fresh, human-grade cat food that is made from high-quality meat, not cheap fillers. You see meat is easy for Clara to digest. For all cats to digest, which means her little body absorbs more nutrients and healthier poops come out. In contrast, the stuff I used to feed my cat was made with grains and artificial ingredients that were hard on her little body. And her poop her nasty poop was proof of

that. Don't tell her I said that though, okay. And small isn't just good for digestion. 88% of cat parents say that after feeding their cat smalls, their cat is softer and shinier and has more energy to play and overall just seems healthier because it's really good for cats.

“If you want to invest in your cat's health, smalls is giving you 60% off your first order,”

plus free shipping, and free treats for a life when you go to smalls.com/scare. If your cat doesn't like it, smalls will refund 100% of your order, but trust me, your cat is going to love the taste of smalls. And you'll love that your house no longer smells like a litter box all the time. That's 60% off plus free shipping and free treats for a life when you go to smalls.com/scare.

And our second story of the night is by Jay Dashain. This is the abandoned.

Arthur William Beckston's eyes stayed closed as a pair of firm but gentle hands worked their magic over his whole body from top to bottom. The hands wandered. Their fingers stimulating every muscle group, squeezing and then pulling until he felt limber and relaxed. He breathed deeply, stretching the muscles of his chest and filling his lungs with air. The odor he took in threatened to utens him back up, somewhere close by, something was burning.

The back of his throat tickled and his eyes began to water, prompting them to flutter open, all around Beckston. Birch trees stood tall, reaching their limbs into the blue sky above. Birds flitted from branch to branch. He knew this place. He would often take walks

“here to clear his head. It had always had a calming effect on his nerves, but what was he doing here now?”

He pulled himself into a sitting position and realized he had been lying on the ground. Odd, he sat out loud to himself. How had he come to be lying on the ground in this particular place? Certainly it was near enough to his home that he could simply walk over any time he wished. That was normal, but this was not. Something about this whole scene seemed very strange. A rustling in the underbrush nearby drew his attention. Beckston's heart

leapt into his throat as he scrambled to his feet. As soon as he got there, a figure stepped out of the shadows. Beckston nearly bombeted at the site. Before him was what appeared to be a creature

before him. Milky eyes peered out at him with two slots for nostrils immediately below them.

“Thin lips were a little more than the border around a gaping black hole of a mouth.”

The creature hissed and merged forward with a stumble. Beckston turned and ran, bounding through the forest, his feet pounded over dirt and rocks, destroying any shred of green that had dared to grow in his path all the while. The creature kept pace behind him. A voice cried out behind him in a horse, unplaceable rasp.

Beckston was determined to keep going. He sucked in gulps of air, still steeped in that horrible

burning smell. It seemed to be hanging all about him, sitting on his shoulders like a persistent

“cloud no matter how fast he ran. The trees began to thin, revealing a pond in the distance,”

the sight of the water choked with lily pads and dead leaves was welcome somehow. As if Beckston could parlay it into some tool of salvation, before he could figure out however, his foot struck an immovable rock on the forest floor. He pitched forward his legs came out from under him, his eyes closed tightly, and his arms jutted out to keep him from falling

face first into the water. When he opened his eyes at last, he wished he hadn't. Staring back at

him from the water was a face, a reflection, and yet the face was not his own. It was hideous. His skin was dark gray, rough, and apparently crumbling as if he too were made entirely of ash. He brought his hands up to look at them, really seeing them for the first time since waking. They were the same lifeless color. Beckston began to shake. A scream of anguish rattled inside his chest and finally forced its way out and into thin air, it echoed through the trees as a far off

crow caught and took quite the pursuing footfalls galloped to a stop somewhere behind Beckston.

“He didn't bother to look. What horror could the creature hold for him now?”

He was one of them. "I tried to tell you." The creature said. Its voice was bathed in compassion. Beckston would have thought it, impossible of feeling, based on how it looked. What are we? Beckston asked softly. A quiver started up from his very core and moved outward. "We are the abandoned." The creature said. Abandoned. Beckston leaned into the confusion.

It was a better feeling than horror or despair. "What do you mean?" "We have been abandoned here. You and I." said the creature. "Why?" "In my case." The creature said. "I requested it. You may well have done the same." Beckston was silent. Requested. The word played over in his mind of memory stirred.

He was taken back to a warm Sunday morning. Spoons and cups clinked together. A sweet familiar voice churped in his ear. "Cremation is a lot cheaper," Hannah had said. "And besides, you get to be scattered in your favorite places." Beckston laughed as he poured himself and his daughter fresh cups of coffee. "I don't care what you

do with me," he said. "When I'm dead, I'm dead." Man aside, "I know, Dad. I just really hope you'll give this some thought." So I'm not scrambling, you know? "When the time comes."

and a scattering along his favorite hiking trail. The very same place where he'd regained his consciousness.

“But those hands, those unseen fingers what were they doing? The only explanation that came to mind,”

children, and sickened him. They hadn't been relaxing him or caring for him. They weren't the loving hands of God accepting him into the afterlife for any eternal rest. No. They were putting him back together. Why? He asked softly, barely able to contain his horror. Why? What? The creature asked.

Why have we been? "Animated." Beckston nodded. "I do not know.

The creature said. Beckston was sure he heard a hint of despair in the answer. "What do we do now?" he asked. "We wait." The creature said.

“And then the creature was silent. A light breeze rose up as if filling the vacuum left by sound.”

There was a scent on it. One that cut through the smell of burning and ash. The scent was sweet, salty, delicious. Beckston could have sworn a stomach rumbled, though he had no idea how that was possible. He turned and squinted at a pair of shapes moving just beyond the trees. He could hear them now. Two young men and lively conversation. Their backs were loaded down by packs apparently heavy with supplies. "I hope we have everything we need," said one. "Relax," said the other.

"I'm a little concerned to be honest," said the first. "You never know it could be out here. I've

heard of people just straight up disappearing in these woods." The conversation continued in muffled tones. "Well," Beckston prompted the creature once more for an answer to his previous question. The creature took a moment to answer, even without looking at it. Beckston could feel its mood change. His own, followed suit. At last the creature spoke. Thanks for listening, and thank you to both of my authors tonight. I truly enjoyed both of these

“stories and was so happy that they fit so well together. At least I think they did. I find the woods”

very scary place, and I hope you did as well this evening. If you'd like more of this show, you can join the Patreon page, patreon.com/Garyysleep for some bonus episodes or add free episodes if you're interested in less interruptions for your scary-to-sleep episodes. And again, bonus episodes if you have a story you like featured or considered to be featured on the show. There are no guarantees, but you can send it to [email protected].

In the subject line, please make it clear whether it's a fictional submission or a non-fiction submission or you can say true story for my true story episodes. I accept both. But please make it clear in the subject line so that it can be categorized correctly and doesn't get buried within my inbox. You can also follow the show on social media. There is an Instagram page at scary-to-sleep. I have a personal Instagram page you can follow as well at Shelby B. Novak. And there's a Facebook

group. There's a couple Facebook groups. I've had an influx of new Facebook group joiners. So welcome. Thank you. And if you'd like to join, it's scary-to-sleep on the Facebook group. Just please answer the questions. And there's also scare-you-to-eat, which is the spin-off group where everyone

on two other shows every week. And that is the bloody disgusting podcast every Wednesday.

You can find that on the official bloody disgusting YouTube channel. It's also available as audio wherever you get your podcasts. And you can find me on the Lady Killer's podcast. And that is out every Thursday. Maybe I'm actually not- I'm- I'm newer to that one. And I don't have to do with- I have nothing to do with releasing the episode. So I forgot about the schedule. But that one is also weekly. So much fun. It feels like a book club but for movies. And we talk about Lady

Killer's in movies. We just recorded one that I don't think will be out for a couple weeks. But we did

one for Deep Lucy. Man, I love that movie. I love that movie so much. So that one is available wherever

you get your podcasts. It's also available on YouTube. We just started a YouTube channel. So

“look for the Lady Killer's podcast. And I believe that is all. This weekend I will be at”

Monster Paloosa in Burbank. If an urnope, sorry. It's not in Burbank. It's in Pasadena. Sun of Monster Paloosa in Burbank. Sorry. I get them mixed up sometimes. But I will- I will be at Monster Paloosa in Pasadena this weekend. Helping my friends at the Antiquarium of Sinister Happening's Booth. So you can find me there. I will have some scary to sleep stickers there. I don't have any panels. Again, I'm just helping out some friends because I love to help. And I

love to be amongst the crowds. So I will- I don't have any panels but feel free to stop by again. It's the Antiquarium of Sinister Happening's Booth. So come say hi. Grab a sticker, chat for a while. They have merch that's going to be on sale. I actually got to go pick up their merch soon. So yeah, I am so excited to hang out at Monster Paloosa this weekend. And I- I think that's all

of my news for now, for now. There's a lot going on. There's always a lot going on in the background.

I've always got something something to cook in. I don't like putting all my eggs in one basket.

“So my eggs are just chaoticly strewn throughout the yard. Every day of my life is like Easter”

Sunday, not the crucifixion part, but the eggs part. They're just everywhere. They're just everywhere. For baking corner this week, I did a little bit of a cheat bake. If you will, one of my favorite, like if I want something I bake but I don't feel like putting in the effort for one, I've never found a brownie recipe that I like more than a box mix. I'm sorry. It's just the way my life has been. So what I do sometimes is I go get the gear a deli. Is it good,

gear a deli or good diva? Is it gear, it's gear a deli, right? The box brownie mix. That has, it's the turtle one where has walnuts and caramel, but I don't just do it like the box. I make the base brownie mix. But then I make, I take a brick of cream cheese, one egg, a quarter cup of sugar, and I measure my vanilla with my heart, but I do put in some vanilla. A blend that together or blend, you know, like mix it together until it's smooth. And then I doll up that on top and I swirl it

into the brownie mixture. And then I use the caramel packet that comes in that, the box, and I swirl that on top as well. And then you have some pretty easy half homemade cheese cake turtle brownies. Or you can, if I lot of people don't like nuts, get the one without the nuts. That just has the caramel on top. I think they make that as well. But I made some of those this week. I also built a new shelf, our cabinet thingy. You'll see behind me in new videos. Yeah,

and it's been a very busy week. Last week and I told you it was out of town. I got to see my brother in sister-in-law and my whole family. Very excited about that. I posted a couple pictures. I didn't take a lot of pictures, but I posted a couple pictures on my Instagram of my mom's

“retirement party. If you want to go be nosy, which I get, I am the nosiest person ever. So I understand.”

And I think that's all. I think fun. Yapping at you. And yeah, I'll go have a wonderful weekend. Go get some sleep. Sweet dreams. [BLANK_AUDIO]