“There’s something in there,” Adam said and pushed through the barrier of greenery, as if for this one night, he’d shed all his fears.
Unease clutched at Emil’s throat though, when he realized that beyond a wall of three rows of densely-growing thuyas was a clearing that seemed to not only resemble a rough circle the size of a small church, but was also devoid of young trees, which must have been weeded out on purpose.
His shoulders relaxed though when he faced a steep rocky wall as tall as his house and an oval-shaped boulder laid out in front of it like an altar pointing away from the cliff. Evergreen bushes grew on both sides like natural decorations, and a small path led up the side of the steep hill. “Damn. I think Grandpa brought me here a few times when I was young. I barely remember, but I think he called it Devil’s Rock or something like that,” he whispered, and when he approached the ancient stone with the torch, he couldn’t help but notice the smooth surface at the top, or the dark stains that reminded him of oxidized blood—a silly notion he quickly dismissed.
At the narrow end of the altar, right under the rock face, stood a wicker bull. Its horns spiraled upwards, and its front carried more weight than the back, but it was standing proudly nevertheless, just above the traces of lives extinguished in its honor.
Or so Emil’s imagination told him.
There was a sense of calm radiating off Adam’s handsome features, but fire danced in his pale eyes as he placed his palm on the stains left behind by blood and took a whole lungful of air.
A cold shudder danced down Emil’s back, and for a moment he feared the demon was back, but then Adam’s lips spread into a wide smile. “Wow, okay… is this what I think it is? A sacred grove?”
Emil relaxed but could only offer him a shrug. “Seems like it. Someone must still come here from time to time,” he said, pointing at the wicker figurine.
“Looks like the wicker hen I’ve seen in Mrs. Janina’s kitchen,” Adam said without a care, but Emil instantly imagined the pastor’s nag of a housekeeper bleeding geese out to honor the old gods every full moon.
“The site is well kept,” Emil noted and took Adam’s wrist, leading him back. He felt calm, almost unnaturally so, which was what made his brain decide to retreat. Anyone should’ve been even the tiniest bit worried by a hidden pagan altar, which was still in use, but he didn’t want to think about the implications—not on a night he shared with someone important. “Who knows, maybe a group of people comes here to have orgies. And tonight’s the perfect time. We better go.”
Adam was hesitant at first, but in the end let Emil pull him out of the clearing. They walked on, sharing comments about the nature around them and the people of Dybukowo, though mostly they enjoyed a comfortable silence. This sense of easy companionship was something very rare in Emil’s life, something he had only previously shared with Radek, and the longer he walked holding on to Adam’s warm hand, the more he longed to get lost in those woods.
Even Adam seemed free of his God tonight, as if the dense forest protected him from judgment and took away the meaning of his thick cassock. Tonight, they were just two men, and as the woods opened up to the glow of the torch, it was easy to believe that if they chose not to leave by sunrise, the forest would accept them as its own. Forever.
Eventually, some two hours into their walk, they reached one of the tall hills surrounding the valley and faced a steep incline. Emil’s first instinct was to lead the way back, since it was deep into the night anyway, but Adam kept walking ahead, to where the approach became sharper and shot straight into the sky. The rock wall was smothered with moss, but the pillow-like softness of it did not detract from the majesty of the cliff.
Emil hurried, following Adam all the way to the rock wall, but as they walked between the silvery trunks of beech trees scattered over a bed of last year’s leaves, a shiver crawled up his back and tightened his throat threatening to choke him. He’d felt nothing but peace and excitement since they’d left behind the others, but unease was tearing into his insides in silent warning.
As if the forest didn’t want them here.
“You didn’t tell me you’re friends with Nowak’s son,” Adam said out of the blue.
“You don’t know him, so why would I?”
Adam sped up with a huff, but his foot must have slipped over a damp stone, because his breath turned into a yelp, and he would have fallen over if Emil hadn’t kept him upright with one hand.
Blue eyes darted to meet Emil’s when Adam slowly composed himself and steadied his breath, still holding on to Emil. “You two just seem very friendly, that’s all.”
Emil bit his lip, standing still for that bit longer to enjoy Adam’s fingertips on his bare forearm. Then, his thoughts lit up like fireworks. “Wait. Are you jealous?”
Adam frowned and looked away before the flush creeping up his neck could have reached his face. But in the torchlight, his nape was pink, as if it had been stained with raspberry juice. “Don’t be stupid. It’s just that he’s a redhead and has freckles. And you mentioned someone like that,” he said, continuing his slow descent.
It was nice to see Adam remembering that fateful confession by heart. “But it’s private. And I don’t want him getting in trouble with his dad.”
“I’m not gonna tell on him. Not that I particularly like Nowak.” Adam wouldn’t glance Emil’s way though and sped up, heading straight for the diagonal wall that now blew ice into Emil’s face.
He wanted to say it was late, that they had a long way home, but the words wouldn’t leave his mouth in the face of Adam’s confident strides. When torchlight slithered over the sharp stones, he expected to see bugs, maybe a lizard skittering away from the intruders, but the glow stole farther, revealing a narrow passage into the cliff.
Emil swallowed, trying to ignore the goosebumps erupting all over his body in response to the unnatural cold of the cavity. “We’ve hooked up on and off for a while now. It’s not like he’s my boyfriend,” he felt compelled to communicate this without beating around the bush, even though he knew Adam had told him in no uncertain terms that he wasn’t interested in breaking his vows.
“It’s none of my business. Maybe I shouldn’t have asked,” Adam said, touching the rocks at the entryway into the passage as an excuse to not look at Emil.
Emil ignored the unease that had bothered him since he’d laid his eyes on this very wall. The crack was only visible from up close, at a specific angle, but he supposed an average person might be able to get in there. If they were brave enough.
“It’s okay. He’s my best friend, I guess. I was never particularly close to anyone my age here in Dybukowo. I met other alternative kids once I started high school, but the school was far away and I could only spend so much time with them. Besides, many of those I got close to moved somewhere else since, so we lost touch. Now that Radek’s left for Cracow… It will be the same with him. People who leave Dybukowo visit less and less until they forget about their past and move on.”
“Didn’t he invite you to stay with him?” Adam asked, grabbing Emil’s forearm and directing it so more light could penetrate into the darkness of the passage.