Rushed by Brian Harmon Page B

Eric.”
    “You the groundskeeper here or something?”
    “Not officially.  But I do keep my eye on things.”
    “Because of the fissure,” Eric guessed.
    “Because of the fissure.”  Still smiling, Taylor turned and walked toward the nearest cabin and Eric, having not been given any instructions on what he should do next, followed.
    “So you guys are what?  The honor guard or something?”
    Taylor stepped into the open doorway and surveyed the interior of the cabin for a few seconds before pulling the door closed.  Turning around, he replied, “Something like that.”
    Eric followed him to the next cabin.  “What is this place?  Or was , I guess.”
    Taylor stopped and turned to face him, his smile broadening.  “About forty years ago, it was a naturist resort.”
    “Naturists?”
    “Naturists, nudists, whatever you want to call them.  This was Gold Sunshine Resort.”  He turned and continued to the next cabin.  “ Clothing optional .  Naked people everywhere.  Naked swimming.  Naked sunbathing.  Naked volleyball.  Naked basketball.  Naked campfire singing.” 
    Eric laughed.  He couldn’t help it.  It just seemed so completely absurd that he should find himself in an abandoned nudist resort of all places.  And then there was the way Taylor kept pronouncing the word “nekkid.” 
    “I didn’t know there were nudist resorts in Wisconsin.” 
    “Well, I can’t imagine it was all that popular a hobby in the wintertime, to tell the truth.”
    “I wouldn’t imagine so, either.” 
    Taylor stepped into the second cabin and Eric followed.  A piece of plywood that had been mounted over a broken window had fallen and was lying on the floor.  Taylor picked it up, produced a hammer and some nails from his belt and fixed it back over the window.  That done, the two of them exited the building and Taylor closed the door firmly behind them. 
    “Something happened here,” Taylor said as he walked back out into the sun.  “Something bad.  I don’t recall which story was true and which were just rumors, but the place closed down.  It’s been sitting here empty ever since.”
    The idea that something bad had happened here was unsettling. 
    Eric turned and caught sight of the two creatures that had been following him.  They were standing between the farthest two cabins with their backs to the cornfield.  Apparently they were hiding out there.  They had probably been watching his every move.  As he eyed them, a third crept out into sight. 
    Taylor followed his gaze.  “I see you’ve got some admirers.”
    “Looks like it.”
    “They’re real curious creatures, but pretty well harmless.”
    “Are they?”
    “Oh yeah.  Like most animals, really.  I’ve never heard of them attacking a person.  Not even in large packs.”
    “Huh.” 
    “Ugly suckers, though, ain’t they?”
    Looking at their too-large heads and mangy hides, he couldn’t argue.  But there was also something almost endearing about them, too, now that he knew they weren’t determined to tear out his throat.  They had a characteristically puppy-like quality.
    Remembering the cell phone’s camera, he pulled it out and snapped a picture of the three animals.  “I still have reception,” he noticed. 
    “Yep.  We’re in Wisconsin.”
    Eric sent the picture to Karen, thankful again for the opportunity to prove that he wasn’t completely out of his mind.  Obviously, he was only partially nuts at best.  “Speaking of Wisconsin,” he said.  “How far have I gone this time?”
    Taylor gave him another endearing smile.  “You’re about eighty-five miles north of where you left Grant.”
    “Sonofabitch.”
    “Pretty cool, huh?”
    It wasn’t entirely un -cool, he had to admit. 
    Eric glanced around the resort.  “So where do I go now?”
    Taylor scratched the gray stubble on his chin.  “Well…  That’s the problem, isn’t it?”
    “There’s a problem?”
    “There is.”
    “Of