Dawn came to Ferndale, evidenced by the slow intrusion of sunlight through Kimmie’s bedroom window. She lay on her bed, staring up at the fan on the ceiling, as she’d done for the last two and a half hours. Sleep had mostly evaded her, and it wasn’t hard to figure out why. She had a captive goblin sitting in a cave about twenty minutes away. A creature of legend, completely under her control. She could do whatever she wanted with it, ask it anything, torture it, determine whether it lived or died. Not that she could hurt or kill it. She was too squeamish for that.
But what to do with a freaking goblin? The question had consumed her thoughts from the moment she left the cave. She didn’t have to talk to it. She could do other things, like take pictures and post them on Creatures of the Nite. She could bring doctors and scientists over to study its physiology. She could get her own samples and become some kind of goblin expert.
Somehow, though, as the night turned into a cloudy, hazy morning, thoughts of science and fame faded away. She was procrastinating, and it wasn’t because she couldn’t bring herself to go back out there. No. The real problem was that she couldn’t get herself to hate it.
It killed her aunt and uncle. It spent half a year spying on her. After tonight, it would be gone. Justice would be served. Why wasn’t she thrilled?
Something in its demeanor had touched her. She’d started to think of it like one of those dogs bred for fighting. They could be sweet and lovable most of the time, but every so often something sets it off and it bites a kid and has to be put down. Had it killed Belle and Rob by accident? Could that kind of mutilation even be an accident? Part of her wondered if her aunt and uncle had provoked it or tried to hurt it to get it off their land.
She clenched her fists and pounded the mattress to keep from screaming. Every thought in her head led to a conclusion other than the obvious one, the one the goblin had already admitted to. “My fault,” it said. “All my fault.” It killed them, and it would face justice for that. Between now and then, she only wanted one thing from this goblin – the whole story. What happened that led to Belle and Rob’s deaths, and why did the goblin stick around after doing it?
Footsteps creaked on the floorboards outside her door. Wendy and Albert were up. Mariah and David would be up soon, too. It was time to face the day.
She climbed out of bed and into the bathroom, taking the fastest shower possible. She dressed, pulled her hair back into a ponytail, and walked to the kitchen, where she fed Tank and Bentley, and then laid out some fruit, bagels, muffins, and oatmeal for her boarders.
After making sure everyone had been properly fed, she excused herself to her room, claiming that she wasn’t feeling well. She waited until both couples set out for the day, then she grabbed her backpack and a journal from her desk and went into the kitchen. She found a plastic container, scooped some leftovers into it – she debated whether she should add a slice of pie to the bounty – and then threw it into her pack. She stowed a couple bottles of water in as well, and then set off out the backdoor.
It was time to face the goblin.
*
The cave entrance looked different in the daylight. The vibrant background colors of the forest stood out more in the bright sunlight, a sea of green, brown, and yellow that very nearly eclipsed the craggy hole carved out stone and dirt. Even a cluster of red and yellow flowers on either side caught her attention before the actual cave did.
Kimmie approached the entrance slowly, wondering if goblins factored in aesthetics when choosing their lair. If so, this one had done a bang-up job. The only things missing were unicorns grazing in the distance and fairies buzzing about in the air. She idly wondered if unicorns and fairies were also real. She made a mental note to ask Ollie when he got back.
She stepped awkwardly through the entrance, doing little to hide her approach. She wrinkled her nose at the stench, although it didn’t seem as pungent as last night. She found the goblin crouched behind the tree root, watching her carefully as she stepped in. The lantern was still on, though it lay on its side near the tattered mat the goblin used as a bed. It probably couldn’t resist playing with it. Good thing it worked, too, because meeting with this creature in the dark would have been especially awkward.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
“Don’t be scared,” she said, saying it more to herself than to the goblin. “I brought you food. Hopefully stuff you like.”
She slid off her backpack and took out the container. The goblin wrapped an arm around the root, as if hugging it for protection. She set the food on the ground and slid it across to the goblin’s feet. The goblin stared at her, cautious about touching anything else that might be poisoned.
“It’s okay. It’s just food. I promise.” A last meal, she thought. The least she could do.
It crawled over the root and grabbed the container, sniffing it. It opened the lid and peeked inside. An instant later it was devouring everything she’d brought.
She pulled out a water bottle. “I also brought water. I don’t know if you drink that sort of thing, but I figured I’d try.”
She rolled it to the goblin, who backed away.
“It’s water. Is that what you drink?”
The goblin slowly reached for the bottle. It picked it up and examined it, turning it over in its hand.
“You twist the top off,” she said, demonstrating with her own bottle. “Then drink like this.”
The goblin fumbled with the top for a moment before finally getting it off. At first it tried to suck the water out, but when that became too much effort, it simply leaned its head back and poured the water into its mouth. Kimmie smiled, despite herself. She sat down at the other end of the cave and took another drink. As she did, she noticed that the goblin’s leg was red and scraped up from the shackle. The shotgun wound was still there, but it had already clotted up.
“Does your leg still hurt?”
The goblin reached down and squeezed the muscle around the wound, then shook its head at her. She nodded, impressed that it had healed so quickly.
“Do you have a name?”
The goblin opened its mouth to speak, then looked at the ground with a soft sigh.
“Mine is Kimmie.” She said it again, enunciating the syllables. “What about you?”
The goblin pretended to be fascinated with the plastic bottle in its hands. Kimmie took the hint.
“That’s fine, you don’t have to tell me right now. I just wanted to make sure you had food and water. I know last night was a little scary. Ollie is a…” she rolled her eyes, “he’s a little rough around the edges. But he’s not a bad guy. Trust me. I’m a good judge of people.”
The goblin glanced up at her, then back at the bottle.
“He’s a hunter, so I’m sure he has to be a certain way with, you know, you. If he was like me, he wouldn’t be a good hunter. He’d own a goblin rescue shelter or something stupid like that.”
A quick laugh escaped her lips, and she realized that was the first time she’d laughed in a while. The goblin continued to sneak glances at her and then look away. She took a moment to study the cave. She hadn’t paid much attention last night, what with her being face-to-face with a goblin for only the second time in her life.
“Are you the only one here?”
The goblin didn’t answer. She stood up and took a closer look at the alcoves in the side wall, feeling the goblin tense from behind. One of them looked like it had been dug out by hand, or maybe chipped away with rocks. A small collection of toys and trinkets had been carefully arranged inside. A doll’s arm. A nearly square rock. A kid’s beach shovel and pail. A phone case. A discarded soda can. Various pieces of plastic. In the middle of it all was a metal camping dish, turned upside down. Sitting on the center of the dish was a Rubik’s cube. A solved Rubik’s cube.
“You did that?” she asked. The goblin looked away sheepishly. “I can’t even do that, and I’ve been to college.”
She walked over to the other alcove, finding a small pile of glittering rocks, along with some seashells. Some quarters, dimes, and nickels were mixed in, as well, probably ten or fifteen dollars’ worth.
“I see you’ve been making some trips to the beach.” She picked up a few of the seashells, admiring them. “You know, my house is kind of like this. I have boarders who stay with me every so often, as I’m sure you probably know. But in between, it’s just me and the dogs. The house belonged to my aunt and uncle for a long time, thirty-eight years, but after they died it passed down to me.” She ran a finger over some of the coins. “They didn’t have any kids, and they kinda raised me anyway. I try to keep it like I remember, with all the same pictures, and decorations, and furniture. I thought about packing everything up and redecorating from scratch, new curtains, new floors, new furniture. Same pictures. But then I decided that would be too weird. I grew up there, and I can’t imagine it looking any other way. Plus, it helps with the whole bed-and-breakfast décor thing I have going on. I get great reviews on Airbnb.” She smiled. “But I do have a little corner set aside in my room with my stuff. Awards and pictures and little things that mean something to me. Like you have here with your toys. They’re important to you?”
The goblin looked at her for a long time. It nodded.
“Do any of them have any special meaning?”
The goblin’s eyes drifted over to the ledge. It gave a half-hearted shrug.
“It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me. I just wanted to talk for a while. I can be a chatterbox sometimes, especially when I’m nervous. So, if it’s easier, I can keep talking for the both of us. Although,” she gave him a sidelong glance, “it would be easier if I knew your name. I mean, assuming you have one.”
The goblin’s mouth tightened into a line. It turned to the cave entrance and stared for a long moment, and Kimmie could see some important thought behind those expressive yellow eyes. Finally, it looked at her and pointed to its chest.
“Buka.”
Kimmie’s skin tingled.
“Buka? That’s your name?” The goblin nodded. She smiled back, feeling at ease for the first time today. “That’s a nice name.”