The Lake Giants
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About this ebook
Growing up in such a small town, Lake Luna is a place full of natural wonders and strange happenings. It’s a place full of legends of the mysterious and the terrible, a place both attracted and reviled, but a place that many, including Skylar Green, call home.
Skylar Green is a girl who’s lived here all her life, who feels as connected to the natural wilderness and all its different legends. She feels like she knows it so well, but creepy things have been happening here in Lake Luna. Things that she can’t explain. Murders of a bizarre nature. Incidents that have a bizarre aura around them.
And, when Skylar decides to unravel the mystery, it leads her to a discovery that threatens everything she ever thought she knew about her beloved hometown...
Andre Clemons
Ever since I can remember, writing has been a part of me. Telling stories is what I do. I bounce around from genre to genre, from world to world, creating different adventures along the way. I am the author of three indie books (TAINTED LOVE, EBONY EYES, and MAN OF THE HOUSE) as well as the writer of the critically-acclaimed serial fiction series MOUSE ON THE MIC, BAILEY'S EYES, THE LAKE GIANTS, and its sequel series WELCOME TO LAKE LUNA. In addition to writing short stories, novellas, and scripts, I am currently working on serial fiction series WORLDWIDE WOMAN, THE COMING OF CORENTINE, and RISE OF THE NEW GALATIANS as well as a crime novel SPARKS & RAY.
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The Lake Giants - Andre Clemons
95
THE LAKE GIANTS
Andre Clemons
Distributed by Smashwords
Copyright 2018 Andre Clemons
Discover other titles by Andre Clemons:
TAINTED LOVE
EBONY EYES: A SHORT STORY COLLECTION
MAN OF THE HOUSE
1
Admit it, Kyle, you don’t even know where we are…
"I do too know where we are. It’s just a little further off."
That’s what you’ve been saying for the past few minutes.
In all honesty, they’d left the camping ground much longer than ten minutes. They were three middle school kids, part of a school camping excursion, taking place in the wilderness of Chestnut Rock. Chestnut Rock was more than just a park.
Its beautiful greenery, fresh air, crystal clear waters, interesting woodland creatures, and natural beauty made Chestnut Rock the perfect piece of paradise. It was the perfect place for a camping trip, an exploratory hike, a leisurely picnic, or just to take a moment to be enraptured by the wonders of nature.
In the quaint town of Lake Luna, North Carolina, Chestnut Rock was the top tourist destination and a haven to the locals. People came from all around for Chestnut Rock, to shop around for related merchandise, to take part in some of the locally grown food, for a calming boat ride in the lovely waters…and for the ghosts.
One couldn’t really mention Lake Luna without talking about its dark side. Spirits in the waters. Ghosts among the trees. Monsters that only came out at night. So many legends swirled about this town, some were cute (like the strawberry bear who attacks kids in their sleep with hugs and disrupts them into having fun in the middle of the night) but most people were interested in the horrific legends, the ones that kept people awake for all the wrong reasons (if they managed to awaken at all).
No one could deny that strange happenings occurred in Lake Luna. People died in mysterious ways. Some even disappeared without so much as a trace. These once healthy had suddenly fallen ill with bizarre symptoms. And, regardless of whatever it was, there were explanations for all of it.
People swore they saw things, heard things, experienced the purely unexplainable. Rotting, rampaging corpses seeking retribution, horrific human-animal hybrids that keep guard of their territories and murder those who do not respect it, lake nymphs who came upon the land, flying about to express mischief.
For locals, the reaction to these lurid legends was mixed. Some bought into it while others rolled their eyes and became frustrated with each new retelling or occurrence
. But then, when men were brutally mutilated in the middle of the night and young girls vanished from their homes, who could remain skeptical for long?
Who knows? Perhaps that shimmer in the moonlight was the presence of a lake spirit. Or that flutter among the treetops might have been a ghost. Either way, it was too enticing for folks to not want to come, for residents not to stop believing, for children to not be cautious. But for these three kids to have wandered off into the unknown, being cautious was the furthest thing from their minds.
Young Kyle Snyder was leading his two best friends, Allan and Lila. It was easy to coax them along. The trip had gotten a bit dull—only two days down, with two days to go—and it didn’t look like it’d get that much better. So much excitement in Chestnut Rock, and they didn’t want to spend it hunting for cool bugs, marshmallow roasting, and tame ghost stories.
Seeking out real ghosts was much more entertaining.
Are you finally gonna tell us where we’re going?
Allan whined. We’ve been walking for—
Here.
Kyle stomped his feet down on the ground. This seems like a good spot.
They all sat down upon the grass. So what’s all this about?
Lila asked, brushing dirt off her shorts.
The pale moonlight barely distinguished their features in the darkness. Kyle cleared his throat. You know, around the campfire tonight, Miss Julie was talking about the history of Chestnut Rock and all that—
Yeah, what about it?
Allan piped up.
Well, it got me thinking…thinking about some of the other stories about this place…
Allan rolled his eyes. "Oh, no, man. Not another crazy legend. Dude, you are obsessed with this stuff! Give it a rest!"
Oh, come on,
Kyle pleaded. "This one you’re gonna really wanna hear…"
Which one is it?
Lila quipped. The startling story of the spooky squirrel spirit?
Or maybe—
Allan said, eyes widening, wiggling his fingers high up over his head. —or maybe it’s the notorious narrative of the naughty nightmare nymph?
Unfazed by what he considered to be their weak attempts at humor, Kyle’s face became one of brooding. His eyes narrowed and, when he spoke, it was in a low, deep voice. No, this is the legend of Annie Lee.
Lila & Allan grew silent. There was nothing they could say to that.
Can’t mock that, can ya?
Kyle responded, smirking. No, you don’t wanna mess with Annie Lee…
I-I-Is Annie Lee even real?
Lila stammered.
Of course. The town is full of stories about little Annie Lee. She was real…
And then he started to tell the story of little Annie Lee.
It was quite a story to tell and, when Kyle started telling it, he made sure to leave nothing out…
Annie Lee was a little girl who grew up in the most tumltuous of relations—her mother a lowly slave , and her father the son of William Farlington, one of the most prominent (and most vicious) slave owners in the Deep South. If Annie’s mother, Teemie, a field servant, would’ve had her way, Annie would never have been born. She couldn’t have wanted such a horrible life for a child. Why, Teemie was, in so many ways, practically a child herself.
But she had really no choice in the matter. The master’s son, just like her father, was a cruel man who forcefully took what he wanted. And he wanted her.
The girl grew up in rags, hidden in one of many shacks among the slaves. Despite such tragedy, she was a very bright, bubbly baby girl, playing about and laughing loud. She was the only spark in her mother’s life. Every night, Teemie would rock her in her arms outside, comforting her by singing softly the songs of our homeland.
She thought, constantly, in the back of her mind of escaping. She knew the risks, was more than aware of the harsh punishments practiced on those who tried (and failed) to flee. Things were only getting worse for her people, with apparently no end in sight.
Or…was there?
Teemie had heard about freedom for blacks up in the North, and some risking everything to bring as many as they could from the South. There had even been talk on the Farlington plantation amongst the slaves about fleeing up North. But for the mosts part it had mainly been just talk, the majority of them being crippled by fear, save for a select few.
Teemie had been unsure of the unknown. Too many variables. This was not the familiar land she had always known. This was foreign territory, especially in the wilderness. The wilderness frightened her. if she chose to venture out in that wilderness, who knew what type of terrors she could subject herself to?
Teemie had heard all types of terrible things—evil spirits roaming about, creatures that snatched your soul from beneath the dirt. Plus, she’d have to brave the harsh elements and learn how to survive out there. However, the alternatives were far from satisfying. More hard labor. More abuse at the hands of Master Farlington and, worse, his son. Teemie made her mind up. She couldn’t endure it any longer. This was no place for her or Annie. She would leave the plantation!
The night she left, it was a bit after half past midnight. She had snuck off into the wilderness, just her and her daughter. There were those few that wanted to escape but, in Teemie’s mind, they spent too much time overthinking matters, fretting about provisions and who would go along and how long it’d take them to wade through the waters.
Teemie didn’t have time for any of that. She just wanted to go.
She snuck out under the cover of night, dragging Annie off by the hand. Annie wasn’t upset so much as she was just confused. Where were they going? Why’d they have to leave? The fields were like home to her. She didn’t want to run away. She wanted to stay around and play.
Her mom tried to shush her and keep her going forward but she couldn’t help it. Annie was wired. The night didn’t scare her too much. The moonlight made everything glow in its beautiful light. They had gotten quite a