Chapter 10 - The Goat’s Trail

Abby and Melvin ran back through the woods, breathless.

They didn’t stop until they reached Mr. Han’s house.

They knocked hard.

He opened the door, a trowel in his hands.

“Kids? What happened?”

Abby caught her breath. “We saw something. In town. A goat.”

“A goat?” Mr. Han repeated.

Quickly, Melvin said, “Yes—and it had a knife stuck in its ribs. But it wasn’t bleeding. It just… stared at us. Its eyes were black.”

Mr. Han was surprised. “Black eyes,” he repeated.

Abby said, “Mr. Han… it wasn’t normal. It made laughing sounds and ran back into the woods. We followed it, but it vanished. Like it was never there.”

Mr. Han looked past them, into the dark trees.

For a long moment, he said nothing.

Then, quietly:

“You did the right thing coming to me. Now get in.”

He set the trowel on the table and reached for his coat.

“If there’s a creature wandering these woods with those eyes and a knife stabbed into its chest, we need to know what’s happening right now.”

Abby and Melvin exchanged a look.

“Will you help us?” Melvin asked.

Mr. Han nodded once.

“I’ll help. But if what you saw is true,” he muttered, “then we shouldn’t waste time. Injured animals don’t vanish without a trace. Something is leading it—or hiding it.”

He picked up a flashlight and an old hunting rifle, then turned back to them.

“We must be careful. If the goat truly carried those eyes, then it’s not an animal anymore. It’s a sign.”

“A sign of what?” Melvin whispered.

Mr. Han didn’t answer right away. He just opened his door and motioned for them to follow.

“Show me where it went.”

The three of them started walking together into the woods—

toward the place where the goat had disappeared.