Transcription
I had booked an Airbnb in spring of 2022. It was a small getaway cabin in a forest with several other identical cabins spread throughout the owner's land. There were some very faint trails or paths leading between all the cabins, but none of them were marked, likely only there from when the owner was building them and moving through the forest constantly.
I had nothing exactly planned for this trip. It was only 3 hours from my home and I just thought it'd be nice to spend some time away and hang out in the woods. I slept in on my second day, waking up at noon, making some coffee and relaxing inside by the fireplace. Just before sunset, I threw on a hoodie and went out on a walk. I wasn't sure exactly where I was going. I was just following a thin path in the forest that was behind the cabin. I assumed it would take me to one of the other cabins, though, and hopefully loop back around.
At some point on this trail, once I was a bit deeper in the woods, I noticed some people standing out in the forest, maybe two or 300 yards out, pretty far. But the way they were standing was odd. It was two men standing motionless and looking down at something on the ground. It didn't look like they were talking or really doing anything except looking at something on the forest floor. It was weird enough for me to sort of watch them as I kept moving along the trail, eventually getting too far to see them anymore. Had to be just two guys from the other cabins wandering the forest. And from my distance, it might have looked stranger than it was. At least that's what I hoped.
I kept walking for another few minutes, but I started to notice this trail wasn't really looping or curving at all. It was just going straight into the woods, nowhere near where the other cabins were. I think having seen those guys out there a few minutes ago, adding on with the trail seeming to not be what I thought it was, I felt like maybe I should just head back. Almost right when I started to think about it though, there was a sudden sound that caught me completely offguard. It came from behind me and sounded like some strange scream or maybe animal call, kind of like an elk bellowing, but something about it felt unnatural.
I turned around but immediately froze. The two men were on the trail behind me, still really far, maybe 150 yard down, and they weren't moving. They were facing me, though, maybe even staring at me. I couldn't tell from that distance. Honestly, whatever that sound was that I heard felt like it was too loud and unnatural for it to have been from them, even if it was them trying to mimic an animal sound or something. The sound I heard echoed through the whole forest. It was nothing like anything I'd heard before. But why were the men here following behind me?
After standing there looking at them for about 10 or 15 seconds, I started taking a few steps back and that's when they suddenly walked off the trail and into the trees. They continued until they were out of sight. I didn't really move for a few minutes because I'd have to go down to where they were to get back to the cabin. So, I wanted to make sure they were really gone. I definitely didn't want to go further down the trail either. After 5 minutes and being pretty certain that they were away from the area, I hurried back down the path and got to the cabin.
I thought about messaging the Airbnb host and asking if they knew anything about that path or the two men, but I figured that might sound sort of strange and unnecessary. I kept it to myself, throwing some wood into the fireplace and taking a breather. The sun was mostly set by then, so the rest of the night, I didn't plan on leaving the cabin. Not that I would have anyway, after what I saw out there. I made some tea and sat by the fireplace. After just a half hour, I felt much more comfortable and was able to actually start relaxing.
However, I only got a short 15 minutes before I heard that sound again. The same one that I heard out in the woods. It was a bellowing scream that sounded like it was still pretty far out there. But I didn't know how much sound these cabin walls blocked out, so I couldn't say for sure how close it was. I got up and looked out the back window. I genuinely couldn't see anything except for the faint outlines of trees. It was way too dark out there. But the longer I stood there, the more unnerved I felt. A chill ran through my body as I pulled the curtains back over the window.
I started looking up on my phone what that noise might have been. Maybe it was an animal sound that was common around here, and I just didn't know about it. I was never really a nature guy, so I wasn't knowledgeable enough to know. After a bit of research, I didn't find anything. The more I kept looking into it, the more creeped out I started to get. So, I put my phone down and tried to not think about it.
Another 30 minutes passed. I can't say that I did a good job at forgetting it. But through the crackling fireplace, I heard a few sudden footsteps on the doorstep at the front of the cabin. Boots thumping on the wood. They stopped right outside the door. My heart was pounding. A long 20 seconds passed before there was a slow knock at the door. I couldn't tell you how terrified I was as I crept up to the door and looked out the peepphole. Standing right outside the door were two men. I assume the same ones I'd seen out in the woods. They had masks on, those cheap plastic animal masks that only cover the front of your face. They had hoods over their heads and looked nearly identical to each other.
I immediately began dialing 911 and backing away from the door. I heard them knock again as I got through to the police. I tried to talk quietly, but I was pretty sure that they could still hear me. I only got halfway through explaining my situation when a sudden hard thud hit the door. For a moment, I thought they were about to break in, and I felt the most intense fear I'd never even come close to experiencing before. But after that thud, I heard their footsteps leave the doorstep. I managed to get back up to the door and look out, seeing both of them walking back into the woods.
It took nearly 30 minutes before a cop arrived. He found a mark on the outside of the door like the men had stabbed a knife into it before leaving. The cop took note of everything, but it was hard to tell if he believed me or not. I knew it sounded crazy, though. I got out of there afterward and obviously never went back to those same cabins. Every couple of months, I'll look up news in that area, expecting some strange disappearances to happen in those woods. But so far, I haven't found anything. What the men wanted remains unknown to this day.
Just last year, I'd gotten a promotion at my job. It wasn't too much extra pay, but part of the new position would have me traveling a ton to different locations all over the states. I was single and really had nothing else going on at the time, so I was really excited to travel. As for where I'd stay, it was always pretty random. Sometimes hotels, sometimes resorts, and every once in a while a small Airbnb. I'm not sure why they switched it up every time, but I thought it was interesting at the very least. Anyway, this week I was heading to a new town to visit their department of the company, and I was booked for an Airbnb nearby. I'd already had the promotion for 8 months at this point and had gotten fairly used to it, so the excitement of seeing where my next stay was at had kind of died out.
Once the plane landed, I got my rental car and started heading to the address of the Airbnb. I noticed right off the bat though, it was farther than usual from where the company building was. Usually, if it was an Airbnb, it would be because it was very close to where the site was, but I think this time the drive took 40 minutes. And when I arrived at just about 1:00 a.m., I thought there was a mistake. The place was huge. I mean, at least 4 or 5,000 square ft with a huge yard and everything. I had to triple check this was the right place, and it was. I got everything inside, and I have to say, although the outside looked really nice, it definitely didn't look quite as good on the inside. Maybe just a bit old-fashioned for my taste. Still, I couldn't complain. There was a ton of space, way more than I could ever use.
After the long flight, I was too tired to explore the entire place right away. I just brought up all my stuff to the bedroom, turned off the lights, and got in bed. As I laid there, I noticed how creaky the house was. It felt like it was making a lot of noise. Nothing concerning, but just these creeks and thumps in the walls. I thought it must have been just how bigger houses were. I mean, I wouldn't be one to know. I don't think I'd ever been in a house this big. But unfortunately, I'm a pretty light sleeper, so the constant noises kept me up long enough to realize I needed some water. I hadn't even eaten or drank anything since the flight.
Sort of frustrated that I had to get up, knowing it only make it harder to sleep, I tiredly got out of bed and headed through the long hallway and down the steps to the kitchen. Strangely, once I was downstairs, all the creeks and thumps I'd been hearing for the last hour were gone. Like, at some point between me getting up and moving from the bedroom to the downstairs hallway, all the sounds. It was one of those moments that had me scratching my head. Like, what were the chances of that? Anyway, I grabbed a glass of water, not even bothering to turn on any of the lights, and headed back upstairs. I was able to fall asleep after that, as the rest of that night, I didn't hear any more sounds or noises.
In the morning, I only spent maybe 30 minutes there, waking up late and still tired, but having to rush out of the house to get to work. After being at the office all day, I went out with a couple guys from work to get drinks. So, I actually didn't get back to the Airbnb until sometime past 11 p.m. I headed inside and sat on the sofa relaxing for a minute. I was exhausted, but I remembered I still hadn't yet checked out the rest of the house. It felt almost mandatory to at least give it a look around. So, I got up and just casually walked through the rooms. Walking through it, I honestly couldn't think of much use for an Airbnb this large. I even got so curious that I looked it up to see how much it was, finding it was actually priced the same as other much smaller places in the area, which I found to be a little odd.
Also, it looked like some parts of the house weren't reset from the last guest. It looked clean, but some pillows were all over the couch, and some of the chairs and stuff were just in random places. It kind of looked like someone had just been here. And the most strange thing was that one of the kitchen chairs was pulled out. I was in there for a minute earlier that morning and never sat down. And I could have sworn all the chairs were pushed under the table before. Must have just overlooked it, I thought. I pushed it back under the table.
After the quick five minute tour of the house, I figured it best to take a shower and head to bed for the night as I had another long day tomorrow. I turned off all the lights, went upstairs, showered, and got in bed. I was just on the verge of falling asleep when a familiar sound suddenly came from below me. It was those creeks. They suddenly started again. The fact that I was just about to fall asleep made it a h 100 times more obnoxious. I sat up and listened. And even though I was annoyed, a part of me felt like it didn't sound like your typical house noises. So, it made me a little uneasy as well. I started to think I could make out individual footsteps walking around under me and maybe even cabinets being opened and closed. I couldn't tell if it was just my mind making up things, though.
I got up and quietly opened the door. The sounds didn't stop this time. I could clearly hear them from the hallway. I carefully walked down and up to the stairs, which were wooden and kind of creaky, and as soon as I took a step, everything went quiet. My heart started racing. I moved to the bottom of the steps and looked down the hall. I could tell a light in the kitchen was on. I swore I turned off all the lights before going to bed, but there was still a small chance I just forgot about that light. I quietly walked down the hall and looked in the kitchen. My eyes widened. That chair in the kitchen was pulled out again like someone had just been sitting there.
Only a second after seeing that, I saw something else behind the chair. In the far back room, where all the lights were off and it was nearly pitch dark, a figure was peering around the corner watching me. We held eye contact for a moment as I completely froze up before they jolted back behind the corner. A few seconds later, I heard a door slam shut. I don't know what the hell I was thinking, but I ran up to that corner and flicked on the lights, searching around for a second to see where he went or if he was gone. But I didn't see him. I didn't even see what door he possibly could have gone through that I'd so clearly heard him slam shut. I ran upstairs, got my phone, and sprinted out of the house. I drove away and called the police.
As far as what was going on in there, I'm afraid that I got very few answers. The host and the police talked for a while, but the host felt like he wasn't taking me seriously or like he thought I was lying. Maybe he just didn't want to be responsible. But in all fairness, I had no proof of anything. I wasn't even able to see what the guy looked like. And the host claimed that there were no doors where I'd supposedly heard the man run and slam a door from. Everything just felt really weird about the whole situation after the fact. My company was nice enough to just move me to a hotel for the rest of the week, but honestly, I was pretty shook for the rest of that trip. Had I stayed in that house any longer with whoever was in there with me, I'm afraid that things could have gone a lot differently.
[Music]
I was seeing a few relatives during a trip I was taking across the country. They lived in a city I was passing through about halfway along my drive, so I thought it'd be nice to see them and spend some time there. I booked an Airbnb in their town. It was just a typical small home in the suburbs. Nothing too fancy or cool, just a place to stay at for a couple of days. I got there really late. I think it had to be 10 or 11 p.m. There was an email from the owner, Jay, that I got earlier with a passcode and everything to get in.
While I was getting some stuff out of my car in the driveway, though, I was partly alarmed by a man walking right up behind me. It was Jay, the host. I'd maybe been in the driveway for less than a minute, and I wasn't expecting him or really anyone to be out here this late. He started casually talking to me and offering to help carry some things up to the door and also showed me into the house. I was tired, too much to be confrontational, but I did feel weird he was even here. Usually, I never even met or talked to the other hosts of Airbnbs. I was sure he was just trying to be nice, though. Maybe I was one of his first renters. He gave me a quick tour, even showing me up to the bedroom before saying good night and walking back downstairs.
I started unpacking a bit, but really was waiting for the guy to leave so I can rest for the night. I thought if I went down there while he was still around, then he might strike up another conversation, which I was not in the mood for. After a minute, I never really heard any signs of him leaving, like a door opening or closing behind him. So, I went downstairs real quick and just made sure he was gone. Didn't see him anywhere. So, I locked up the door, grabbed what was left, and went back to the bedroom. It was late, so of course I just unpacked and went to sleep.
In the morning, I saw my relatives, but only spent a few hours with them. So, I was back at the Airbnb around noon and stayed inside just watching TV until dinnertime. I went out to pick up something quick for dinner. But when I pulled into the driveway and headed up to the front door, I noticed it was unlocked. That was really weird because I don't think I'd ever forgotten something like that, especially not while staying in a foreign town at a rental property. My mind instantly thought back to the owner, Jay, and how sort of invasive he was when I first met him the night before. This seemed like much more of an overstep, though, so I hoped it wasn't him, and was actually me just forgetting to lock it.
I opened the door and stepped in. "Hello. Anyone in here?" I called out just to be safe. There wasn't a response, and all the lights were still off. So, I closed the door behind me and went on with my night. I tossed the food on the table in the living room, turning on the TV and preparing to spend the rest of the night there, when something got my attention. It was a noise in the other side of the house. It sounded like something hitting the wall. I turned my head and looked down the hallway toward the sound, but I knew I wouldn't see anything.
Now, even recounting for what happened that night, I find it odd that for some reason I was very fixated on that single somewhat unprovoking sound in the house. I felt like I had to know what it was or like it was something I should be cautious about even after just hearing it once. I got up from the couch and walked into the room on the far side of the home, which I think was the family room or maybe just a reading nook. Not sure what it was exactly, but it was a very small room in the back of the house with a sofa and a nightstand, but just a sofa and nightstand. No windows, no decorations, no TV. It was very plain and empty, which made it feel kind of off-putting.
I flicked on the light and just sort of looked at the room, getting that off feeling about it before noticing something else. Behind the couch coming just up above the top, there was a crease in the wall. I looked a bit closer, eventually moving the whole couch over to the side. It was a door, not a regular sized one, but like a small, maybe 3-FFT hatch door. I mean, had I not heard anything and been looking around so intently, I never would have noticed it, especially not behind the couch. I felt uneasy as I reluctantly tried to open it, but it was locked. There wasn't a lock on the outside, though, so it had to be locked from the inside, which made no sense at all.
Something in me felt like there was something really disturbing behind that door and I would not be able to stay here and feel safe unless I knew what it was. I couldn't just break down the door, though. I pulled out my phone and called the number on the Airbnb, Jay's number. My thought was that if he acted weird about telling me what's back there or if he tried to come over or if I just got a bad vibe, then I'd leave right away. I walked up to the front window and looked outside as I called Jay's number. It was dark, but I wanted to be prepared if he just suddenly showed up at the house like he did on the first night. The phone rang through, so I dialed again. I tried over and over for a few minutes, eventually giving up.
Honestly, I didn't know what to do. It was hard to know if I was overthinking this or if this was something where I should actually just trust my gut and pack up and leave. I walked back down to the small room and stared at the door for a minute. As I stood there thinking, I just pressed on the door again, not really trying to do anything. But this time, it creaked open. It wasn't locked anymore. I nervously stuck my head through the gap in the wall. The only light was what bled through the doorway from the room, but I could see a dark staircase going down into some sort of unfinished basement with old sketchy wooden steps. I couldn't even see the bottom. It was too dark.
However, I could see the lock on the back of the door. It was one of those bolt locks that you slide back and forth, meaning it was manual. Someone had to have just been behind this door and physically unlocked it. My face went pale. I backed away from the wall. I was so horrified I couldn't even think for a moment. Was someone inside the house with me? It felt like my whole body was shaking as I started to creep down the hallway. Most of my stuff was still upstairs in the bedroom. It wasn't much, just two suitcases. I could probably have them packed and get out of there in 3 minutes. Not my best move, but that's what I decided to do.
I got upstairs and started throwing everything into the suitcases. The paranoia of someone possibly being in the house with me had me glancing at the doorway to the room constantly, afraid someone might appear there any second. I was just able to stuff the last suitcase when I heard a creek from the hall outside the room. When I got up and looked out, though, nobody was there. It was really hard to hold myself together, but I knew I had to get out immediately. I picked up both suitcases and started hurrying toward the stairs, half expecting one of the doors in the hall to swing open suddenly. But I got down to the front door, running out. And with both hands full, I didn't even bother closing it. But not three seconds after I left, before I even reached the car, the front door slammed shut behind me. That only confirmed my worst fear. I got in my car and got the hell away from that place.
Later, once I got to a hotel, I tried calling Jay again, as well as texting him. He never answered or responded. Personally, I think Jay had a hidden basement below the house that he was staying in, possibly used to spy on me, or maybe even worse. What's really strange is how after I found the doorway, Jay completely cut me off and stopped responding. He probably snuck out while I was trying to call him, but what he was going to do after knowing I'd found the room, I really have no idea. I guess it depended on what he was hiding down there. Honestly, I think if I had gone down there and figured out what was going on, I don't think Jay would have ever let me leave that house.