I went into the woods to find peace Arizona's Wilderness vast and untouched was My Sanctuary hunting wasn't just a sport for me it was therapy a way to clear my head and escape the pressures of daily life when I packed my gear and left my phone behind I felt a calm I hadn't felt in months no deadlines no distractions just me and the forest by the time I set up camp the sun was sinking behind the dense canopy the crackle of my fire was the only sound in the Stillness the Stars Shone brighter here untainted
by city lights and the Solitude wrapped around me like a warm blanket but something about the forest felt different that first night I dreamed of Whispers low and slurred like voices spoken through water I woke up many times drenched in sweat but saw nothing the next morning I shook it off and headed deeper into the forest a Hunter's instincts don't leave room for fear hours passed before I saw it a weathered dirt caked shoe half buried in the soil at first I thought it was just trash then I noticed the bone it was a foot
still partially wrapped in rotting leather the flesh had decayed long ago leaving nothing but skeletal remains my stomach churned as I crouched down digging cautiously around it the Earth revealed more bones leg bones a SP spine fragments of a skull my hands shook as I realized what I'd stumbled upon I told myself it had to be an old tragedy maybe a lost hiker from years ago that explanation didn't sit right but it was enough to keep me moving by midday I found another body or what was left of one a forearm dangled grotesquely from a
tangle of roots its fingers curled as if frozen mid scream nearby a skull rested on a rock outcrop its Hollow eyes watching me my rational mind broke apart as the realization hit me this wasn't a place of accidents it was a graveyard and whoever put these remains here wasn't done the smell followed me back to Camp a rank rotting stench that clung to my clothes my skin my hair it didn't matter how far I walked the scent lingered that night as I lay in my tent The Whispers returned they were louder now distinct but incomprehensible
it wasn't the wind it wasn't animals it was voices that night I was finishing dinner when I heard footsteps they weren't like mine cautious and light they were deliberate and heavy each step crunching leaves and snapping Twigs I killed the fire and crouched low gripping my hunting knife my breath came shallow as the steps circled my Camp then they stopped stoed minutes dragged by my muscles burned from staying still then I saw movement a shadow flitting between the trees a man stepped out into the clearing dragging two large black trash bags he wore a dark
hoodie pulled low over his face the bags he carried leaked something wet and black and the air grew thick with that same rotting stench I watched in Frozen horror as he began digging his movements were methodical practice like he'd done this a 100 times before he muttered to himself low and Angry Words I Couldn't make out when he opened the first bag the pale glint of human flesh Spilled Out I couldn't look away then I stepped on a branch the man's head snapped up and his muttering stopped he turned slowly his face still obscured by
the Shadows who's there his voice was sharp ragged laced with Fury my body was Frozen with Terror then in one horrifying motion he picked up a shovel and started toward me I bolted the forest exploded around me as I ran branches slashing at my face and arms his shouts echoed behind me closer than they should have been I could hear his boots pounding against the dirt the shovel scraping against Roots as he chased me my lungs burned and my legs screamed for rest but I didn't dare stop I glanced back once and saw him not
20 ft behind me his hood Fallen back to reveal wild sunken eyes and it face Twisted in Rage I tripped hitting the ground hard the impact knocked the wind out of me and I scrambled to get up he was almost on me the shovel raised High ready to strike but then a sound split the air a distant truck horn on the highway it was enough he froze his head snapping toward the noise at that moment I lunged to my feet and kept running I didn't stop until I reached my truck I fumbled with the keys
bloodied and shaking and barely managed to shove them into the ignition the engine roared to life and I tore down the dirt road tires kicking up dust I didn't look back when I reached the police station I told them everything they didn't question me the look in their eyes told me they'd heard similar stories before but none had lived to tell them the Walter Herold Mitchell case gained detention in December 2020 when human remains including severed body parts were discovered in multiple locations near Prescott Arizona by some Hunters on a hunting trip investigators traced the
remains to a single victim and identified Mitchell 59 as the suspect he had owned a business dealing with cadavers for medical research but reportedly transported body parts after closing his company in Washington State Mitchell was accused of improperly discarding the remains in the Arizona wilderness he was arrested and charged with multiple counts of abandoning or concealing a dead body the case highlighted ethical concerns and the handling of human remains hello I'm Susan kousen I was 51 years old when it happened September 6th 2006 was a normal day just another shift at the hospital just another
evening alone in my house in Portland Oregon I'd worked a long chaotic shift at the ER it wasn't unusual patients flooding in everything from minor injuries to life-threatening traumas after years of nursing I had seen it all when I finally made it home I didn't have the energy to think I closed the door behind me locked it and let out a sigh the fridge hummed softly in the kitchen and my tabby cat brushed against my leg everything felt normal I chucked my bag on the floor and went to change in the bedroom walking down the
hallway I could have sworn that it felt cooler than normal it was Portland in the evening so that meant nothing I went into each room and turned on the lights a comfortable warmth that seemed normal for a place like this then I stopped I was certain that I had already turned on the light in the hallway earlier that morning I stopped and placed my hand on the switch my stomach grew a little tight at this moment with a tiny bit of unease I rubbed It Off off you're imagining things Susan I told myself but the
feeling wouldn't go away completely I pushed open the bedroom door and reached for the light before I could flip the switch something moved a shadow my brain barely had time to process it before he was there stepping out of the dark corner of the room a man I didn't know him older stocky his face hard and expression less he was holding something it took me a second to realize it was a hammer my mind froze but my body reacted I stepped back heart racing don't make this harder than it has to be he said his
voice cold and mechanical his eyes bored into mine as if he'd already decided I was good as dead Instinct kicked in I screamed and he lunged the hammer swung toward me and I dove just in time the air whooshed past my head head as the weapon smashed into the wall plaster flew everywhere and I stumbled back adrenaline surging through me this is real Susan fight he came at me again this time faster I grabbed the first thing I could a lamp and I threw it at him the base shattered against his shoulder but he barely
flinched his expression Twisted with frustration and I realized he wasn't just here to scare me he was here to kill me I dashed into the living room my feet sliding on the hard wood floor he was right behind me his footsteps heavy and Relentless I could feel the heat of his rage his presence consuming the space he swung the hammer again and I dodged grabbing a chair and hurling it at him it barely slowed him down what do you want I shouted my voice shaking but I already knew the answer he didn't want money or
valuables he wanted me dead we struggled and he crashed into me like a freight train I felt myself fall to the ground round his hands went around my neck I scrabbled with everything scratched and clawed and kicked years of nursing made me strong and I put every ounce of it into surviving in the scramble my hand found the hammer I rested it from his grasp a jolt of adrenaline gave me a power I wasn't aware I had and I swung it at him his face Twisted in amazement the first hit stunned him he was on
his knees in the second he wouldn't stop even with blood dripping from his face he thrust himself at me once again I shrieked the mix of Fury and fear somehow forming something primeval in me I struck again and this time he fell his body slammed to the floor with a horrific crack the house grew quiet except for my panting I backed up shaking bleeding and barely able to stand my hands fumbled for the phone and I called 911 gasping out what had happened the dis pastor's voice was calm but I could hear the urgency in
their tone help was on the way it was only then that I learned the entire truth the man was a hitman for hire and who hired him my ex-husband Michael I couldn't process it at first the man I loved the man I had built a life with had tried to have me murdered but in the end his plan failed I fought I survived and my attacker never left my house alive in 2006 Susan kousen an ER nurse from Portland Oregon fought off and killed an attacker hired by her estranged husband to murder her the as
salent Edward hay broke into her home armed with a hammer despite being ambushed Susan used her self-defense training and sheer determination to overpower him in the struggle she managed to choke hay to death the investigation revealed that her husband Michael kousen had orchestrated the plot he was later convicted and sentenced to prison Susan's bravery and quick thinking turned to lifethreatening attack into a story of survival and resilience never in my wildest dreams I thought I'll lose my brother too soon Kennedy was the joy of our family that kept us together it All Began one evening
as Kennedy came downstairs clutching his throat it feels like something is stuck inside he croaked he was pale and small droplets of sweat beaded on his forehead mom always a warrior advised him to gargle with saltwater and rest over the next few days things began to shift at first it was subtle he stopped cracking jokes his usual humor replaced by a strange silence he spent hours locked in his room refusing to come out even for meals when Mom knocked to check on him his replies were Curt and cold I'm fine then one night I heard
him muttering I was heading to the kitchen for water when I heard Whispers coming from Kenny's room the door was half a jar and I peaked in without hesitation Kennedy was standing there looking at the ceiling then suddenly looked at me with wild red shot eyes you shouldn't be here he said Hollow is an empty shell it's watching come on man don't scare me half to death I teased him but he made no reply he didn't even blink instead he went back staring at the ceiling the rest of the days went completely crazy Kennedy was
neither eating nor sleeping and his behavior was getting weirder one morning I was shocked out of my sleep by the thumping sound from downstairs I rushed to the kitchen and found Kennedy attacking dad with his teeth bared like an animal get out of my head it took all of us me Mom and Dad to pull him off Kennedy glared at us his chest heaving and pointed one trembling finger you're all against me he spat but I'll kill you first that evening I walked over to Kennedy's room I wanted to talk to him thinking it would
make him feel better he was standing at the window staring at the woods outside do you see it John he whispered without turning around the snake it's looking at you too a cold knot formed in my stomach Kennedy there's no snake you're just you're not well let's go get you some help he turned then his face inches from mine and hissed you think I'm crazy you'll see soon you'll all see the breaking point came the next morning mom's screams jolted me awake and I bolted downstairs to find Kennedy in the kitchen holding a knife it's
inside me he shrieked his voice cracking with desperation I have to cut it out I tackled him pinning him on his back and wrestling the knife from his hand he wrestled like a madman flailing and kicking with a strength that wasn't human it took us all to hold him down Dad pulled out some cable ties and we fastened him to the bed with his wrists and ankles roped tight Kennedy shrinked curses in a voice that wasn't his low and guttural giving me Goose flesh I wanted to take Kennedy to the hospital to make him go
see a doctor but some of our relatives suggested otherwise they all told my parents that Kenny's possessed and we must call priest to save his soul when priest arrived and sprinkled holy water Kennedy leted out a laugh that wasn't his it was deep guttural and mocking you think you can save him he growled He's Mine the priest's hands trembled as he started chanting his prey his voice raised to pleading desperation Kennedy's body convulsed in Savage spasms as he let out a scream that did not sound human mom clutched her Rosary sobbing pleading with the priest
not to cease but it was too late by the third day Kennedy had stopped eating and drinking his body grew weaker but his voice dark and otherworldly never lost its strength late that night I stayed with him while everyone else tried to rest John he whispered suddenly his voice fragile and faint for the first time in days he sounded like my brother again I leaned closer my heart pounding I'm here Kenny what is it it's gone he whispered his lips cracked and dry but I'm dying no you're not I said Panic flooding my chest you're
going to be fine just hold on he smiled faintly it never really leaves he said that's when I call called the paramedics refusing to listen to anyone anymore but it was too late Kennedy was gone his body still his face eerily calm 26-year-old Kennedy eay died in August 2016 in London under mysterious circumstances his family restrained him for several days believing he was possessed by an evil spirit after exhibiting erratic Behavior they attempted to perform an exorcism instead of seeking Medical help during this period Kennedy was tied up deprived of food water and medical attention
ultimately dying from a combination of physical restraint and neglect his parents and siblings were charged with manslaughter false imprisonment and causing or allowing a vulnerable adult's death but were eventually cleared off all charges in March 2019 after a trial
