It’d been a fairly uneventful evening for my first few deliveries, but then came the one that would change everything.

We moved back to my boyfriend Brandon’s tiny hometown about a month ago. He’d been passionately talking about the place since the day I met him, so I wasn’t too surprised when he’d finally asked if I’d move with him.

There were tons of delivery jobs available, so I was able to find something quickly. I liked getting discounts on fruit bouquets and it was nice to get out of the house, so I enjoyed it for the most part.

Well, up until last night.

My boss had hand selected me for the delivery – she’d even told me up front that she’d heard there would be a massive tip. I thought was strange since she never actually seemed to like me all that much, but I wasn’t going to argue.

The address she’d given me didn’t look familiar at first, but as I pulled up to it, I recognized it as the site of the new warehouse. I won't say which company just because I don't think they had anything to do with what happened.

This town, much like most of the surrounding area, had seen better days, so to speak. Their primary industries had fallen either out of demand, or were nearly completely automated years ago, so a lot of people were struggling. It wasn’t uncommon to occasionally see warning signs surrounding closed off mines throughout the area, to serve as a reminder of what was.

On my way there I had driven by countless empty houses in various states of disrepair – homes where the windows were either boarded up years ago or just dark voids framed by broken glass. I understood why the promise of several thousand new jobs had the entire town excited.

It was a bit intimidating, pulling up to the giant building. There were so many cars in the parking lot, too – I was surprised, since it wasn’t open yet. The instructions told me to hand the delivery directly to the customer, so I tried to find an open space.

I felt a chill when I got out of my car, I had the feeling of unseen eyes watching me. I looked around and there didn't seem to be anyone, but quickened my pace as much as I could without risking dropping my delivery.

After wandering around I finally found a door that was propped open in, so I just stepped inside.

When I entered, I was somewhat overwhelmed – I’d walked into a huge gathering. Everyone was dressed impeccably – it was all expensive looking suits, sequined dresses as far as the eye could see, and what looked to be diamond jewelry glinted in the cheap fluorescent lighting.

From the moment I stepped over the threshold, the massive room fell silent, and all eyes turned to me.

I very much regretted wearing my bright green Crocs to work. When I clocked in that night, I hadn’t been expecting to walk into the middle of a fancy party.

A strange smell filled the air, a mixture of the musty scent of wet cement, a hint of fresh paint and something else. Bleach? Something about the whole place creeped me out. Even though it was well lit and brand new there was a sense of stale fear that lingered on the air, as if an indication that something awful had happened there. The party goers watched me with a mixture of hunger and excitement that I didn’t think someone like me would necessarily elicit from this group in most circumstances.

So, there I was, in the middle of the fanciest gathering I’d ever been to, holding a Christmas tree made of pineapple slices and sporting neon Crocs.

After a few long moments, I spotted a woman with blonde curls who was directing people around, and assumed she was in charge.

She was friendly enough when I approached her. She flashed white teeth at me in a disconcerting way that she seemed to think was welcoming, but the smile plus the look in her eyes gave me the impression of a ravenous animal. As we walked together, she lamented about how people had strayed from the old ways, which was why the town was struggling, how for too many years we took more from the land than we gave back. I nodded along, only half listening, already thinking about my next delivery.

She told me I’d need to wait because they weren’t ready to accept the delivery yet. For the amount they were supposedly tipping, I agreed, although I found it strange – I mean, what were they waiting for exactly?

After my awkward entrance, I tried to stand in the least conspicuous place possible, but regardless of where I moved, the attendees always seemed to encircle me. I finally squeezed my way by them, but felt their eyes on me as I sought out one of the corners without the heavy construction equipment near it.

For such a new building, I was surprised that the floor was so sloppy looking – it was and uneven and every few feet, there were roughly 7 by 3-foot sections of cement, separated by seams. I’m no expert myself, but my dad worked in construction, and I couldn’t help but picture him seeing this and commenting to me under his breath about the shoddy workmanship.

There were more sections spread out every few feet, across the entire warehouse for as far as I could see. Some were stilling drying, and it even looked as if there were a few of those sections that weren’t yet filled in on the far side, meaning the building wasn’t even done yet. I remembering finding it strange that there was a black tie gathering going on in an active construction site, but to each their own, I'd thought at the time.

While I was waiting, I walked around and looked at these rectangular sections, curious. In one of them, I noticed clumps of dark brown hair mixed in messily with the dried cement, the source of the hair seemed to be coming from the small gap between that section and the next.. As I leaned in to examine it further, light reflecting off something in another plot off in the distance caught my eye. As I approached, I realized that it looked to be a wedding band, embedded in the cement.

A crazy thought crossed my mind, but at the time I had told myself it was just my overactive imagination. Regardless, I did decide sticking around was probably not a good idea, especially since I had other deliveries I’d need to make and well over 45 minutes had passed since I’d arrived. There were so many people in front of the main entrance so I placed my fruit tree on the ground and had started quietly heading towards a side exit when the lady from earlier started to make a toast.

The hum of background conversation ceased immediately.

“For centuries, we had given to the land. For each living human being that entered into the earth to never return, we were rewarded, and our town thrived. As we gave less, we have received less in turn. What good are more lives if they are miserable ones? Our mines, our industries, our livelihoods have dried up. Now that we have begun to return to the old ways, after our initial offering, we won our bid to host this warehouse. We are finally bringing jobs back!”

She paused for a moment as everyone around her applauded and cheered.

She continued, raising her voice to be heard, “Tonight, we make good on our final offerings, and in return we ask for prosperity for ourselves, this building, and our town.”

The crowd had begun chanting something I couldn’t understand as the party goers closest to me began to approach. Suddenly, the look in their eyes made more sense. I realized why there was a cement mixer near the few remaining open sections. Some cement with enough lime mixed in, that would be all you need to make a few hundred human offerings disappear into to the ground without the layer sinking or cracking enough to betray what was underneath.

I made a run for the exit that I’d been inching towards since before the toast and despite all the people that had been heading towards me, I managed to make it back to my car – it probably didn’t hurt that I was the only one not wearing heels or dress shoes.

As I floored it, tiles screeching as I turned back onto the road, I thought of all the cars in the parking lot, some of which looked to have been there for quite a while, and which greatly outnumbered the party goers. I wondered how many other people had already been ‘offered’, were already below the ground. I remembered what she’d said in her speech – living. I shuddered as I imagined what my fate would’ve been I hadn’t run in time, if I too would be in the ground, screaming until crushed and suffocated under the weight of the cement.

I was so shaken that I found myself driving back to work out of habit. When I got there, I was prepared to recount the entire odd experience but instead my boss seemed surprised to see me, upset even. She angrily insisted that I go back immediately, or risk losing my job.

Suffice to say, I didn’t. I went straight home.

When I stepped in, Brandon turned pale and demanded I return to the warehouse right away and finish my delivery.

I tried to explain what I’d seen but he ignored me. He got progressively more upside and insisted I go back. So, I wordlessly grabbed a few things and pulled into a little motel right at the edge of town, I figured I’d sort things out the next day.

The guy at the front desk stared at me with sharp intensity in his wide blue eyes while he checked me in. I still had my uniform on, so at the time, I thought maybe that was the reason. As I’d headed towards my room, out of the corner of my eye, I saw him pick up the phone and call someone.

It didn’t even click until I had sunk into the hotel bed that I had never actually told my boyfriend where my delivery had been, when he’d told me to go back to the warehouse. As soon as I realized that I didn’t even check out of my room; I just drove as far away was I could.

Maybe I’m overreacting, but I think there’s something wrong with that town and the people in it. A part of me feels guilty, too – I can’t help but think about the poor soul that they found to fill my place. I just hope I can find someone that believes me, before those last few sections get filled in.