The Wodewose

Three orphans find out the hard way that striking gold isn't all it's cracked up to be.

[Ed. note: This is a scary story perfect for telling around the campfire, but some of the content may be a little intense for young children. Use parental discretion.]

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Once upon a time, there were three siblings who lived in an orphanage. 

The oldest was Daniel, a daring and fierce teenager, always looking for adventure.

Next was Oliver, an intelligent but cautious lad a year younger than Daniel. Oliver loved reading, learning, and planning things, usually to give Daniel practical ways of fulfilling his wild schemes. 

Janie was the youngest, a year younger than Oliver. She was tender of heart and loyal to a fault. Janie loved her big brothers and always looked for ways to make them happy. The two boys, in turn, were fiercely protective of their baby sister. 

The children never knew their parents, and had no memory of life outside the orphanage. They spent much of their time imagining their family’s rich past, and dreaming of their glorious future. 

One day Oliver read an article in a newspaper about a gold rush in the Oregon Territory. He told his siblings about it, and Daniel decided on the spot that they would run away from the orphanage and strike it rich in the mountains of the far west. 

After that, Oliver set to plotting a route across the country. He knew they needed money to make the trip but Daniel told him not to worry about that. 

One night, after several days of preparation, Daniel snuck into the orphan keeper’s office and stole a box of money from a locker. He woke up Oliver and Janie and told him they were leaving immediately. They spent the entire night wandering the streets before buying train tickets heading west the next morning. 

After weeks of traveling across the country, by train, carriage, horse, and foot, they arrived at last in the Oregon Territory. Stopping to rest in a small outpost on the banks of the Columbia River, the siblings were amazed by the huge crowds of people coming and going. The town was crawling with fortune seekers from around the world, carrying axes and rifles, trailed by mules with carts loaded down by supplies. 

They checked into an inn for the night, and there in the common room met a peculiar old Indian who took an interest in the three siblings. Looking directly at Janie, he asked:

“Are you here for the gold, young lady?”

Daniel cut Janie off before she could answer. “What’s it to you old man?”

The old Indian laughed. “I mean no offense, young one,” he said. “I only wish to know if you have time for a story. A story about gold.” He winked at them. 

Daniel’s eyes lit up at the mention of gold. “Do you have information?”

The Indian took a long drink from a dark bottle and said, “I know things that could save your life.”

“We’re listening,” said Oliver, suddenly interested.

“Well then,” said the Indian, “I will tell you a tale of tragedy and woe. A very long time ago, before the gold rush, there was a tribe of Indians who lived deep in the woods, where no one dares to go. This tribe discovered gold and gemstones in the foothills of the Cascade mountains, and with this treasure, they became rich and powerful. They were so rich, in fact, that they were said to have built their houses out of solid gold.”

Then the old man leaned in and dropped his voice down to just above a whisper. “But they were greedy, you see. They dug so deeply into the mountains and cut down so many trees that they angered the spirits of the forest. So the spirits of the forest decided to punish them.” The Indian stopped and looked around to see if anyone in the room was listening. “They sent a Wodewose to haunt the tribe.”

“A-a-a what?” asked Janie.  

“A Wodewose, half-man half-beast of the wilds. It is not clear what happened next,” said the old Indian. “But no one ever heard from the tribe again. They disappeared completely. Only scattered stories and legends remain.” 

“What use do I have for ale room fairy tales,” said Daniel rudely. “We’re here to get rich.”

The old Indian sighed, and then reached into his pocket and pulled out a rolled up parchment. He told them it was the only remaining map that showed the location of the golden village. He unfolded it and briefly pointed to a spot in an undiscovered wilderness. Then he rolled it up and put it back in his pocket. 

“If that map’s real, why are you sitting here in a tinpot town spinning yarns, when you could have enough gold to marry the queen of Spain?” asked Daniel.

“This map is real, but I will never use it,” said the old Indian. “Let this be a warning for you nice young people. The treasure is cursed. The gold is cursed. For the Wodewose comes for anyone who seeks it.” Everyone was silent, hanging on his words. The old man took another drink from his bottle, then sat back and stared as if into nothing. At that, the three siblings got up and went to their room to turn in for the evening. 

Later that night, Daniel got up from his bed and went down to the common room, where the old Indian had passed out by the fire. He snuck up to the man, reached into his pocket and stole the map. Then he woke up his brother and sister and told them to prepare their packs. “We leave at first light,” he said. 

The next morning Daniel showed them the map, and told them they were all going to be rich. “Are you sure this is a good idea?” asked Oliver. But Daniel didn’t answer. His mind was already made up. So the three siblings set out into the woods in the opposite direction of where all the gold miners were heading. 

For many days they traveled, deeper and deeper into the uncharted forests and hills of the Oregon Territory. Oliver studied the map every morning and made guesses about how to read the land. They survived on wild berries and vegetables, mostly found with help from a book on foraging Oliver had picked up along their journey. Occasionally, they trapped small animals to cook by campfire. 

After a long time, they were exhausted and hungry and had sores on their feet. The days were getting shorter and the nights colder. 

Late one afternoon as they were passing through a deep forest of tall cedar trees, a storm crept over them. The wind howled and the rumble of thunder echoed across the sky. The rains came just as night fell, and they were drenched and shivering. Then Daniel saw a light ahead in the distance. It was the first sign of other people they’d seen in weeks. They ran to it without thinking.

The rain fell heavier as they dashed through the woods striving to get to the light as fast as they could. Daniel shouted to urge them on. Then Janie caught her foot on something and fell down hard. The boys ran to her aid. They had to pick her up and help her limp the rest of the way. 

When they came closer to the light they saw the form of a dirty old cabin with a hint of firelight twinkling through the window. They ran up to it and knocked on the door. After an uncomfortable moment, the door swung open and standing in the doorway was a very old man, with a slightly hunched back. He wore gloves and a hood so they could barely see his face. All they noticed was a long gray beard and piercing blue eyes. 

Daniel spoke. “Please sir, it’s frightfully cold and wet outside. Can we come in and warm up until the rain passes?” 

The old man nodded without saying anything and waved them inside. When they entered, they immediately felt a sense of coziness and were overcome by the mouth-watering smell of something cooking. All three of them gazed hungrily at a large stone hearth, where an enormous iron pot hung simmering over a crackling fire. 

“Come in, come in, sit by zee fire. You are velcome here,” said the old man in a surprisingly friendly voice and thick accent. The siblings did not wait long. They crowded around the fire and dropped to the floor in a tired heap. 

A moment later, their mysterious host brought out bowls and spoons and served them heaping portions of piping hot stew. It was chock full of potatoes and chunks of meat, and it was delicious. They each asked for and were given second helpings. 

When they were finished devouring the food, the three siblings relaxed and spread out on the rug next to the fire. 

“Vhat are you doing in zeez voods?” asked the man. His tone was genuine. 

Daniel relayed the entire story of their cross country journey, and then told him about the Indian tribe and the lost village made of gold. 

“It eez not a good idea,” said the man, when Daniel’s story was finished. “Zeez village you speak of eez no longer here, but zere are darker things that lurk in zeez voods.”

“Are you talking about the tree fairies and wood monsters?” said Daniel. “Here we go aga—”

The shrouded man cut him off. “Zee Wodewose eez not something to joke of.” Suddenly the flames in the hearth dropped to a flicker and the wind howled outside. “It eez nights like zeez when the Wodewose prowls zee forest, looking for zee greedy ones.”

The room went quiet, except for the steady pattering of rain on the rooftop. “My friends, you are velcome to sleep here for zee night, but pleaze take care.” He handed them blankets and retired to a room in the back of the cabin without another word. Though they felt uneasy, sleep took the three siblings quickly.

In the middle of the night, Daniel got up to stoke the fire. Their host was nowhere to be seen, so he decided to have a look around. Feeling curious, he went to the man’s room in the back and opened the door. The room was empty save a bed, small dresser, and an old wooden trunk. Never a boy of great politeness, Daniel decided to open the trunk. 

A warm glow reflected on his face as he gawked at the contents of the trunk. It was filled to the brim with jewelry and treasures of indescribable beauty. In the center, the largest piece was a carving of a great cedar tree made of solid gold. Daniel grabbed it without a second thought. 

Just then, there were three loud knocks at the door. Daniel slipped the golden tree under his belt and ran to the front of the cabin and opened the door. There was no one there. But the wind picked up, and lightning flashed through the windows. 

Daniel ran to his brother and sister and woke them. “Did you hear that?” he asked as they rubbed the sleep from their eyes. Then there were three more knocks at the door, louder this time, shaking the door frame. 

Daniel was always the most courageous of the three, if not the sharpest. He hid the golden tree under a blanket and ran to the front door. Once again, when he opened it, there was no one there. He turned to the others. “I’m going to look around outside. You two, stay put.” Then he went out into the night. 

Oliver hugged Janie close as the two waited for his return. The rain fell harder and cracks of thunder answered the lightning outside. Then all was quiet for a few moments. Suddenly, they heard a deep unnatural voice that chilled them to their cores:

“GIVE ME BACK MY GOLD.”

It was followed by a bone chilling scream that sounded like their brother. Oliver jumped to his feet. “I have to go help Daniel!” he shouted and ran to the door. As he stepped outside, Janie thought she caught a glimpse of a large fur-covered hand palming the window at the front of the cabin. 

Alone now, Janie backed close against the fire, eyes peeled and glancing toward every sound. The rain was pounding against the house, and the foundations of the cabin felt like they were shaking. Then there were three more knocks on the door, thunderous this time. Gathering up all her courage, she limped gingerly on her injured leg toward the door. She reached for the knob. 

Then she heard the monstrous command again:

“GIVE ME BACK MY GOLD.”

Seconds later came another horrible scream. This time it was unmistakably Oliver’s voice. 

Without hesitating she threw open the door. But there was no one there. Outside there was only blackness and driving rain. She couldn’t see more than five paces in front of her. As she leaned forward to get a better look, a gust of wind sailed through the door and knocked her clean off her feet, blowing her back into the room toward the fire. 

From her back, she looked up and saw a figure in the doorway, a hulking form in the shape of a man with grizzled fur and heaving chest. Stone cold blue eyes stared into her. 

“GIVE ME BACK MY GOLD.”

She scurried on her backside away from the apparition, clutching on the floor for anything she could find to defend herself. The phantom beast slowly closed in on her, snarling as its footsteps shook the floor. 

Trembling with fear and crying, Janie grabbed a hold of something solid and metallic underneath the blankets. She threw the object at the creature with all her strength just as its huge claws swung toward her throat. That was the last thing she remembered, before she passed out from fright. 

Early the next morning, when the sun rose, Janie awoke with a sudden jolt. Sleeping soundly next to her were Daniel and Oliver, both lightly snoring. The scent of freshly cooked eggs wafted over her from a table in the corner. Each of them got up and ate their breakfast without saying a word. Then they packed up their things and left. Their host was not around to say goodbye. 

As they were walking away from the cabin, Janie noticed a glimmer of light reflecting off the cabin door. She looked closer and then scratched away some of the grit and grime that covered the entire cabin. Below it was a surface of shiny gold. She noticed it in a few other places too and realized the entire cabin was made of solid gold.

Janie didn’t say a word to her brothers. She quickly caught up to them as they started their journey back the way they came.