Shadow of the skin walker – By Tibious Frog Jones

Billy opens the journal. Not to the first page, but to a random page, about a quarter of the way through the book. He is actually glad to be sitting here in his easy chair. The journal had been on his mind throughout the entire day. In fact, he had thought of little else. Now that he’s sitting here with the old leather bound journal, he feels the tension ease a bit.

The date on the page he selected, is January 17th, 1962. Billy sees the writing okay, but he has to concentrate. The neat carefully placed hand writing was in an old script. Something called cursive writing. It seems Tibious Frog Jones was an expert, because the entire page is filled with the neat and concise writing. As was the next page. Billy turns the page. The next one, and the one after, are also covered in the handwriting. The page after those has a new date and entry.

Billy raises his eyebrows at the title of that entry. Surely not, he thinks. However, he quickly turns back to the skin walker page. This has piqued his interest. Had the crazy old owner of the building he was currently in charge of renovating, been on to something? There was only one way to find out. Billy settles into his easy chair, and takes a sip of coffee. Then he begins reading.

In The Dark

From the journal of Tibious Frog Jones dated January 17, 1962:

Just had the daylights scared out of me. I can’t believe what happened. My hands are shaking as I write this. Furthermore, I’m writing it down, because otherwise, no one would believe me. I literally came straight back into my apartment and sat down here. I’m resisting the urge to lock myself in my bedroom, and hide under the covers of my bed. I haven’t felt like this since I was a child.

I knew there was something a little off with the tenant in apartment 607. Knew it when I let ’em sign the lease. But a year’s rent up front is rare. A building owner can make plans with that kind of dough. So I put my reservations aside and what do I get for it? The shit scared out of me. That’s what I got. And I know what I saw. I’m not crazy. The guy closed his eyes vertically.

I passed him at the elevator. It was odd to see him standing there so late. Actually, he was skulking a bit. Kind of quickly adjusting himself. It’s dark in the lobby next to the elevators. I couldn’t really tell. I stopped to ask him if everything was okay. He seemed surprised, and a little confused. Then he blinked. Vertically. It was so wrong I nearly screamed. And there was this ember like glow in the eyes. And his pupils were vertical. I know I didn’t imagine it. But something told me to act like nothing happened. I could feel fear growing in me like a bad dream.

The Skin Walker

The crazy thing is I knew something was off. I didn’t write this down when it first happened. In fact, I didn’t think too much of it, truth be told. Furthermore, it was in the laundry room about a week ago. It always smells a little funny in there. But the shadow made no sense at all. I’m getting ahead of myself.

First there was the shadow. It happened when I walked into the laundry. I must have surprised Henry, the guy in 607. I came into the laundry, and just before I said hello, the guy’s shadow on the floor was wrong. It’s hard to find the words to describe it. His shadow was wrong. It was misshaped and too wide. However, it changed in the blink of an eye. And here’s the thing, he never moved. Stood rock still, yet his shadow changed.

Then, the smell came. Like damp earth after rain. Likewise, it was mixed with a metallic scent. Like old coins. And it had a lingering, musky odor of wet fur left in the dark too long. This was not the smell of soap suds and bleach. However, as quickly as the shadow changed, so did that rancid smell. I knew something was off, but I tried not to draw any attention to my observations. Something told me to keep it to myself. It was a primal fear. Something born of instinct between predator and prey.

Tibious Frog Jones

Billy closes the journal. The entire entry was riveting. Whatever this Tibious Frog Jones was otherwise, he was clearly eccentric. Furthermore, he certainly wrote a good tale. Billy wishes he could read the next entry. It is dated for the first of February. But he needs to get ready for bed. He wonders if the tale of the skin walker continues. But not if it’s a real story.

He’s pretty sure the old guy must have been batshit crazy. All that business about the shadow. And then that rotten smell. The crazy old guy had one hell of an imagination. Billy is certain of this until the following week, when he meets his own skin walker.

Previous Story of Tibious Frog Jones

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