Eyes wide, Garrett nodded. "I won't tell."

"Do you swear?"

"Uh-huh."

"Do you blood blood swear?" swear?"

"What's that?"

"It's where we cut our hands and press them together, and swear in blood that we won't tell."

Garrett looked a bit tentative, but nodded.

"I won't really make you blood swear. Mommy wouldn't like that. But I think you're old enough, so we're going for a walk in the woods..."

"If you get scared, it's okay," Toby assured him. "I'm not going to make you do anything you don't want to do. Just know that you'll be safe, I promise. I'll take care of you. Are you scared now?"

"No."

"Good."

They weren't far from the shack-maybe another two minutes of walking. What if this was a really, really, really bad idea?

It wasn't. He'd taken almost absurd safety measures. There was no possible way Owen could escape. Even if he somehow developed supernatural strength and broke free from one of the chains, there'd be two more holding him, each fastened to a different tree so even if the tree itself ripped in half he couldn't get loose. And if a chain broke, Garrett wouldn't be anywhere near close enough to get hurt by a swinging claw.

It was completely safe.

Maybe not safe from weeks of nightmares, but Toby just knew that Garrett would understand. He'd be delighted.

The three of them, friends forever.

The shack came into view. "Remember your promise," Toby said. "It's a blood swear."

"I know."

"We're almost there, then. It's behind that little house."

Owen looked extremely unhappy in his chains, but that changed as soon as he saw Toby and Garrett. His face lit up and he stood up straight.

Garrett stopped walking. He gasped and clenched Toby's hand tight.

"It's okay," said Toby. "He can't get loose."

"Daddy, I want to go home."

"He won't-"

"Daddy, I want to go home!"

"Okay, okay, we can go." Toby led him back through the trees, away from Owen, who let out a whine of disappointment. "I should've told you what we were going to see, it was my mistake, I'm sorry."

"What is it?"

"It's my friend."

Garrett scowled as he tried to process that. "Is it-is it a guy in a costume?"

"No. He's real. He won't hurt you, I promise. He lives in the forest. I've known him since I was a kid."

"You have not."

"I have! I blood swear that I have. I wouldn't play a joke like this on you. He's my best friend. His name is Owen."

"Owen?"

"Yep."

"Is he always locked up?"

"No. I did that for you. He won't hurt you, but I didn't want you to be scared of him. He'd like to say hi to you."

"He talks?"

"Not like you and I talk, but he can do hand signals. I'm going to leave it up to you. We can go home, and maybe come back some other day, or we can go over now and see him. Just remember that you promised not to tell anybody."

"I won't."

"Do you want to see him?"

Garrett considered that for a long moment. "Yeah."

They walked back around the shack. Twenty feet away, Owen's chains rattled as he signaled: Hello. Hello.

"Say hello," Toby urged.

"Hello, Owen."

Hello, Owen repeated.

"Is he a Bigfoot?" Garrett asked.

"I don't think so. He might be a Bigfoot's cousin. I don't know what he is, for sure. Nobody else knows about him, though. Just you and me."

Well, nobody else alive... alive...

"Can I go closer?"

"No."

"Does he like the chains?"

"He hates the chains. Don't you, Owen? You hate those things."

Yes.

"See? He can do thumbs-up to mean yes. Ask him a question. He doesn't always understand, but he can get it a lot of the time."

Garrett seemed hesitant, but Toby nudged him. "Go ahead."

"Owen, are you going to eat me?"

No.

"Owen," said Toby, "are we best friends?"

Yes.

"And are you and Garrett going to be friends?"

Yes.

"And would you ever do anything to hurt Garrett?"

No.

"See, Garrett. He understands. Ask him something else."

"Owen, is one plus one two?"

Owen didn't respond.

"Smart-ass," said Toby. "I didn't teach him addition. Ask him a real question."

"That was was a real question!" Garrett insisted. "Owen, could you get loose if you wanted?" a real question!" Garrett insisted. "Owen, could you get loose if you wanted?"

No.

"Ask him his favorite food," Toby urged.

"Owen, what's your favorite food?"

Owen mimed scooping a spoon into a bowl.

"That means ice cream."

"I like ice cream, too," Garrett said. "What's your favorite flavor?"

"He likes strawberry," Toby said. "But I don't think he much cares one way or another, as long as it's ice cream. Sort of like your mom with pie."

"I like mint chocolate chip," Garrett told Owen. "There was one kind of mint chocolate chip that Daddy brought home one time that I didn't like, but usually it's my favorite."

"Isn't he cool?" Toby asked.

"He's supercool. Does Mommy know?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"She'd be scared."

"But he wouldn't hurt her."

"I know, but you can be scared of things that wouldn't hurt you. You have to admit, it's kind of weird weird to have a best friend who's a monster in the woods, isn't it?" to have a best friend who's a monster in the woods, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"We're a couple of weirdos!"

"Yeah! Big weirdos!"

"Big weirdo dorks! But that's okay. There's nothing wrong with being weird. Do you know anybody else who has a monster friend?"

"No way!"

"You think the kids at school would be jealous?"

"Yeah! I bet nobody would pick on me if they knew."

"They sure wouldn't. But you can't tell them."

Garrett rolled his eyes. "I know. You've already told me a bazillion times."

"So I'm telling you a bazillion and one times."

"Can I touch him?"

"No."

"Next time?"

"Maybe."

"You're going to bring me back again, right?"