Chapter Four: Legends and History

“It’s all just stories we heard as children, there’s no truth behind them and they change as time goes.” Judy started as they stood a little bit closer to a table. Lorraine asked her the kind of stories they had, and Judy took a quick glance at her friends, throwing them a grin, before turning serious again. “It’s all very creepy, if you ask me.” She waved her hand in the air, mocking the story she was about to tell, “There’s nothing definite, but they say back in the 1800s Secret Valley wasn’t really a town. When people first came here, they were attacked by creatures”

“Creatures?” Lorraine interjected her question with furrowed eyebrows.

Judy gave a snort, “I told you it’s absolutely ridiculous”

“Humor me” Lorraine retorted with a fake smile.

“I’m not sure exactly, but I think it went something along the lines of those creatures were killing the humans one by one. I think it was some sort of exploration troops from Jamestown.” Judy rolled her eyes, “I think that’s what the nurse meant when she talked about the dark days. But just so you know, Ms. Johnson is a little bit bonkers.”

Lorraine took the information, but it didn’t sound like it made sense. She wouldn't say it was impossible, but most of the legends and stories were inspired by a more logical story. There was always an explanation. However, people tend to avoid what they can’t explain. Fear is what can inspire such unworldly stories. She recalled a quote she had read a year ago, “Superstition is the religion of feeble minds”.

Judy, bored with the conversation, said, “Let’s join them already.” She gave a whine, looking like a child for a second, then winked at Lorraine, “You know, I think Jake is just going to love you. He told me he thinks you’re hot.” Lorraine chuckled awkwardly and joined the others with Judy taking a seat beside her. She saw Aiden standing at the entrance of the cafeteria with his hands crossed over his chest and a scowl on his face. Her eyes met his, then he turned away hurriedly and left. Lorraine tried to give no mind to the behavior, but she couldn't understand what he had against her.

A lot of introductions happened when Lorraine joined them. She got to know Jake Standford and Mike Norman, both were in the football team, and she hated stereotyping people, but she couldn’t help but think they were typical jokes. Mike and Judy, apparently, went way back. They did seem like they have been friends for a very long time. “So, Crow-girl”, Jake started jokingly, “Got any boyfriends?” he wiggled his eyebrows playfully at her.

Lorraine only chuckled, despite being taken aback by the nickname, “I don’t, no.” She shook her head, then raised an eyebrow and in a sarcastic way she continued giving him a playful wink, “But, you don’t stand a chance.” The others Oh-ed at her reply loudly.

Jake put a hand over his chest, feigning hurt, “You wound me”. The remainder of lunch was spent laughing and joking, and Lorraine found herself forgetting all about what happened; it was just a normal lunch for a normal teenager. It kind of reminded her of her school back in New York. She didn’t have friends, where they would gossip and share secrets and help each other. However, she was not a loner. She prided herself in being good with people, even if she sometimes preferred to be alone.

It was a feeling that has always haunted her; a feeling of not belonging. No matter who she was with or where she was, she always felt like the odd-one out. That made connecting with people quite difficult for her.

➽───────────────❥

Aiden was with Bates in room 404A. He had been pacing back and forth with gritted teeth and clenched fists. “It was too early, how come he knew she was already here? It hasn’t even been a couple of days”. He paused his pacing turning to Bates, who was relaxed on his chair, “And why the hell would he start with such a strange attack? I mean… he seemed like he’s trying to expose us to the world. This is against all the rules, Bates”

Bates let out a sigh, and got up off his chair, “Cedric doesn’t care about the rules anymore. He’s a man on a mission and he will not rest until he’s done”. He stood in front of Aiden and let out a breath, “for all we know, he could be the reason she moved to the town”
“You mean…?” Aiden started his question, but he didn’t and couldn’t finish it. They both knew what it would mean. Cedric already knew the whereabouts of Lorraine long before she showed up in Secret Valley. Bates only nodded his head, and they both shared a grave look.

➽───────────────❥

Lorraine walked back to her home. She slipped out of the school and hoped to go unnoticed. She really liked Judy, the girl was extremely nice to her, but she wasn’t feeling like talking about boys, and Judy seemed adamant on making her date Jake. It was something about them being a good match.

When she went home, she found it empty, just as she had expected. Her mother had left her a note on the kitchen island telling her that her shift would end up pretty late. Suzan was a nurse; and really good at her job; Lorraine always found it strange how much Suzan enjoyed it. She decided to find out more about the small town; she was aware of her curious personality. Therefore, she decided that google would be her best friend for the day. She would try and find out as much as she possibly could about the small town, maybe later she would catch up on some of the things she had covered in school. Although it was only the first day, Lorraine had a GPA of 3.6 and she was planning to keep it that way.

She went to her room, threw her bag on the bed, and headed for a quick shower. After she was done, she sat on her bed with her legs crossed beneath her and her laptop in hand. When she first wrote the name of the town, the search came up with several articles that spoke of the town’s beauty and how charming it could be, others spoke of the people’s and shops, while others marveled on the woods and the valley and how they were must-see places. Then, of course, there were the real-estate articles. They spoke of the houses, the town, and the people to the sky.

She got sucked in them for a while, but finally decided to search the history of the town. There wasn’t much that could be considered out of the ordinary. Lorraine found one article to be quite intriguing as it spoke of the assumed first settlement in Secret Valley. After the death of Queen Elizabeth and the ruling of James I, England was strapped for funds. Therefore, the colonization of the new world was allowed, in search of gold, which was not really present in Virginia. After weeks of exploration the first long-term settlement was made, and Jamestown was founded in 1607. From which, more explorations were made into the lands.

Until they arrived at, what is now called, Secret Valley. There were several parties sent to the area, but they would never return to Jamestown. It raised great suspicions, and after they lost a total of 53 men, the exploration of that particular land came to an end.

*“So, it started much earlier than the 1800.”* Lorraine concluded with a contemplating look to her laptop.

She wasn’t sure what to make of that, but there were the questions of where the people disappeared to. There was no news of them; she wondered if perhaps the creatures that inhabited the valley were the ones that killed them. She shook her head at the notion and got off the bed, realizing that she had been sitting there for over two hours.

She went downstairs and as she was making herself a cup of tea; her eyes fell on her bandaged hands and her chin quivered as the urge to cry overcame her. She tried to hold it together, she didn’t want to be that one girl who would cry over everything. However, the tears burning her eyes found their way out and cascaded down her face. She sucked in a breath, willing herself to stop crying.

Even if she wouldn’t admit it to herself, keeping busy had always been the way to avoid her feelings. So, not doing anything brought back all those feelings she had been trying to avoid. *“Attacked by crows, could I be more unfortuante?”* She thought to herself.

➽───────────────❥

He wasn’t sure what he was doing there, skulking in the dark like some creep. However, he told himself that he would stand at a distance to watch her, make sure she was okay, and nothing happened to her. It wasn’t hard to see that she knew nothing of the things lurking in the dark. She was soft, small, and delicate. She was very delicate as he held her, and part of him felt like if he held her a little tight, she would break in his arms.

Aiden knew he should stay away. He knew that being part of her life would bring him unnecessary troubles. She wasn’t the reason he came to this town, and he shouldn't be distracted by her. Despite all the alarms going off in his brain, he was curious about her. He wanted to know her, and there was nothing that could stop him. Not even the endless warnings of Bates.

Aiden could see her through the small window in her kitchen. He still couldn’t believe how creepy he was being by sneaking into her back yard to watch her. However, he shook the thought out of his head, and watched as her body trembled in sobs. He saw her trying to keep her sobs quiet by putting a hand over her mouth. “We’re going to be okay”. He heard her say after sucking in a breath.
An idea formed in his head; one he didn’t expect to have. He walked away, a bit further than her house, then fished his cell out of his pocket, and dialed the number of the girl he thought he would never call. “Hey, Judy. Are you free?”