Tape Recorder

My friend suggested I share this story because it was the scariest experience I had ever had.

I was a child living in a house surrounded by large stretches of forest. I was often trusted to stay home by myself while my mother visited relatives nearby, and I sometimes explored the woods behind the house. I usually stayed near a large rock formation where I could see the house through the trees.

One evening, while climbing the rocks, I heard a sound coming from deeper in the forest. It was faint crying that sounded like a child or infant crying continuously. I listened for several minutes, thinking I might be imagining it, but the sobbing continued without pauses or words. I decided that a child might have wandered into the woods and needed help, so I followed the sound.

The crying became increasingly metallic as I got closer. Eventually I reached a clearing I had never seen before. A large gray tape recorder was partly hidden in a bush, and the crying was coming from its speakers. I had gone into the forest expecting to find a real person, so discovering the recorder disturbed me.

As I reached toward it, I heard another sound outside the clearing. Steady footsteps were approaching. Then I saw a tall, shadowy figure moving toward me. I ran immediately. I did not look back or stop to find out whether the person was following. I focused only on reaching home, using familiar rocks and trees as landmarks.

Once I reached the rock formation, I knew the rest of the route. I ran into the house, locked the door, turned off the lights, and went to my bedroom. I closed the curtains and watched discreetly for anyone emerging from the forest. I saw nobody, but I stayed near the window for a long time, waiting for something to appear.

Nothing did. I went to bed and never told my mother what had happened. I was never able to enter those woods again.