The Cabin in the Woods
-Zaara Zareen
It was the day of my last exam. I rushed to the front gate and hopped onto our family car which was already waiting for me. We were off to my grandparents’ new farmhouse in Narayanganj for a much-needed break. Little did I know what was awaiting me there.
After a 1.5-hour road trip, the red farmhouse came into view. Green meadows surrounded the house and had specks of cows grazing here and there. As I walked through the door, I was pleasantly greeted with a tight warm hug from my grandparents. The house was filled with the familiar aroma of my grandmother’s freshly baked cookies. Curious as a cat, I decided to explore the new place. There was a huge window on the stairwell leading to the bedrooms upstairs. As I scanned the view outside, I caught a glimpse of a grey cabin shadowed over by trees. I later asked my grandparents about it at lunch and they said how it was a rundown old cabin and no one lived there. I decided to go inspect it before it got dark.
The cabin was a 15-minute walk from the farmhouse. Dead leaves rustled under my feet as I made my way to the front door of the cabin. The door had paint wilting away and a rusty doorknob. I tried knocking despite of knowing no one is going to answer. The door creaked loudly as I pushed it open. Almost instantly, I heard a noise. Thinking it might be rats scurrying around, I made my way into the living room the door opened to. The furniture was covered with white cloth making them look like ghastly figures. I went to the house and noticed a small kitchen and a bathroom. Everything was old and covered with dust as expected. I continued to hear more noise from the inside but could not tell where it came from. Just as I was about to leave, something strange caught my eye. There was a plate of leftover food on the coffee table in the living room.
My heart stopped.
There was someone in the house! That explained the noises I was hearing. I looked around for more signs. That is when I noticed a bulge on the carpet. I lifted it over to find a hidden door on the floor! After much struggle, just as I pulled open the door, something came rushing out toppling me over! I was scared out of my wits! When I finally got back on my feet, I realized that it was a girl in tattered clothes. Just as she tried making it to the front door, I blocked her way. I assured her that I’m not a threat. I got her seated on one of the sofas in hopes of calming her down. Soon she started opening up about what had happened. She explained how her car had broken down a week ago while she was making her to Dhaka. A man who was passing by offered to help, saying he had a spare tire in his house. When she followed him, he caught a hold of her and knocked her off with a chloroformed rag. She woke up to find herself in that hidden room below the cabin. He had been keeping her captive ever since, coming back to give her occasional meals and torture her.
Shocked and appalled, I took her back to the farmhouse before that monster returned. After getting her settled, we called the police to catch that man who was expected to return to the cabin very soon. We found out later found out the police were on the lookout for this man for a while now. He was mentally ill and would keep an eye for lost passersby to take into his captivity and kill after he was done with them.
It was unbelievable how exploring a supposed haunted house turned out to be the rescue of a girl from a psycho killer. The world can indeed be a scary place at times.