Hidden among witches

Alessia

"Order up" booms through the bar overtop all the talking and laughing. I make my way back to the front dropping a drink order off at the bar and grabbing the food order from the window.

Snowmobile season is the biggest season around in this town, pays all the bills for the rest of the year. But it is non-stop rush, and there is truly never time to sit down, between the drinks and the food and the funny questions people ask it's never dull either.

The bar is cozy, with a spacious setup making is comfortable even when it's standing room only, like on band nights. With a mix of dining and gaming areas, like pool and a few gaming monitors as well as a couple Large TV's for sports nights it's well mapped to give off a relaxed and welcoming vibe.

The walls are adorned with framed photographs of old Hulbert from the founding days and taxidermy mounts, including moose antlers, and deer heads adding a rustic charm. At the back there are large windows displaying the feeding areas to watch the deer.

After dropping off the food order and making sure they have everything they need I head back to the bar to grab the drinks. My boss is standing there looking at me with a pointed glare. The woman is not very big with her five-foot two self but the temper she has clears up any doubt you might have that she's the boss.

"Alessia, you have been here since eleven-thirty, go home, we have it." her face softens. Smiling at her knowing she is really only looking out for me I grab the trey of drinks "Ok, let me drop these off and I'll head out." Shelly nod "Good I'll call Lyle and tell him you're ready."

Lyle is her grandson and my childhood bff. We met when I was seven and he was six. Crashed our bikes into each other, not paying attention. We laid on the ground laughing for the longest time. We were inseparable after that day, and trouble on wheels.

We liked doing all the Same stuff. Running through the woods, climbing trees, riding bikes, rollerblading, catching frogs, snakes, and well playing with anything that crawls or slithers. Lyle’s sisters Tasha and River, along with my 2 cousins Cyanic and Tessa, spent a good majority of their Time growing up finding ways to make us pay for not being them, and we spent our time paying them back for all the crap they did to us.

One Time they pinned us down and rubbed milkweed all over our faces until we agreed to be their servants for a day. It lasted all of five mins before I put a salamander in Tasha’s lemonade.

All the tit for tat seamed to only ever get him and I in trouble leaving the others free and clear. There was a total of eleven kids that were apart of the community but five of them live several miles west of town out old 16 road. Two of them aren’t allowed in town and the other three live further out so they don’t come in and play much.

Walking out I take a deep breath and look around. The air is freezing but feels good after all the sweating I did running around the bar for the last nine hours.

The streets are empty aside from snowmobiles coming off the trail to head to either the motel or the bar. Closing my eyes I tilt my head back just enjoying my moment of peace, until someone grabs my hand and yanks me out of my spot.

Tripping and sputtering "What the-." I keep my balance barely as I'm shoved in the storage cove of the bar. It's a woman, she peeks out around the corner then looks at me. "I don't have long they are coming." she gasps out clearly out of breath "Who's coming?" She shakes her head "Shush and listen, there is no time, your mother sent me to tell you," She pears out again "SHIT! Your mother sent me to tell you that your life is not what you think, and you are in danger. Get what you need from the house and leave tonight don't stay there it's not safe."

she grabs my arm pushes up my sleeve and chants something in a language I have never heard before, no matter how hard I struggle I can't get my arm away from her then she bites her thumb and rubs blood on my arm and forehead, and everything goes black.