Image Credit: Diane Finlayson

From: Chapple Public Library
Sent: Wednesday, October 23, 2008 3:17 PM
To: dwatkins@nytimes.com
Subject: A story for you
Attachments: summer emails. PDF

Mr. Watkins, I’ve a story for you, but even if you can’t print it, at least someone else will know. Maybe you could pass it on to other reporters.

My parents, Tom and Mary Cooke spent half the year in a cabin Summer, WI (Sawyer County) and the other half in Lawrence, KS. This year they didn’t return, instead I got these increasingly weird emails from my mom who was a very down-to-earth, rational woman. I’m attaching the entire series of emails so you can judge yourself. In the middle of July, I got in contact with the Superior police (I couldn’t raise anyone closer than that) and they’ve never got back to me. When I tried to call back, I got an out of service message.

After my mom’s last email, I contacted the FBI office in Kansas City and asked them to look into it, but they acted like I was crazy–just another UFO crackpot.

But then in the end of August they came to the house, confiscated my home computer and drove me back to the Kansas City office where they questioned me for 2 days. My husband didn’t know where I was and he reported me missing to the local police. They had neglected to get the laptop out of my car as it was in the shop, but they did close down my email account. I had archived it at work in the company account so I’m able to pass these emails on to you.

The Homeland Security agent—he said his name was Al Murphy—said that there had been a chemical spill near Summer and that the area has been quarantined indefinitely. He said that the chemical slowly killed everyone who came in contact with it. It caused hallucinations and bizarre behavior. They had cremated all the bodies and the ashes were also quarantined. I was told that it was a national security matter and that it was vital that it remain quiet while they investigated whether it was an act of terrorism. I was informed that it was illegal for me to talk to anyone about it, and then they let me go.

After that, there was always a car outside the house watching us. My husband and I each had an agent following us whenever we went to work or ran errands. Once we’d get there, they’d disappear until it was time to follow us back home. There were also signs that they had been in the house while we were out—things slightly misplaced, missing mail, garbage pawed through—things like that. Someone poisoned our dog and we had to put her to sleep. The vet didn’t know what kind of poison; he’d never seen symptoms like that before.

The phone had a hollow tone to it and one of the people I work with said that she got a disconnection notice when she tried to call me. It seemed to only work to call out of, no incoming at all. My husband took one of the generic, employee use cell phones from work and we’ve been using that away from the house.

By the middle of November we decided to leave. In the early evening, my husband went off to the mall and I later put the kids into the car and headed off to my parents winter home in Lawrence– which is in an old neighborhood with an alley which backs onto a wooded park. I asked the next door neighbor (who I’ve known all my life) if he would mind driving Dad’s old Buick over to the park and leaving it in the lot with the keys under the floor mat. I told him some stupid story about showing the car to an interested buyer and he looked at me funny but thankfully he did it.

My husband used a pay phone to have a friend pick him up at the other end of the mall and drop him off at the park. I went out the back door and walked the kids through the woods to the parked Buick as soon as it got dark. We left with nothing but the cash we’d been able to get out of the ATM in the weeks before the account was frozen. We started north, staying off the interstates and crossed over into Canada at International Falls. We stopped at this library to send you this material and are going on. You won’t be able to reach me, but then, neither will the feds. The present administration doesn’t care about individual freedoms so please be careful as a free press is probably not on their agenda either. We are choosing to voluntarily disappear and not wait around for the government to arrange a house fire or a car accident and take us out of the picture.

We are going to go off the radar for a few years and sit out whatever is happening. Good luck to you. I hope that my email does not bring the feds down on you too.

Catherine Duffy

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Wednesday, June 4, 2008 7:02 AM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: WI arrival

CJ, we spent the week cleaning up the winter debris from around the cabin and are both stiff, sore and scratched up. Lost that beautiful old maple on the south end of the property. You know, the one Nathan ran into with the moped when you were both young. It took Dad 2 days to cut it into firewood and I’ve got splinters all over my wrists where the gloves rode up while trying to stack it.

Tomorrow we are going fishing on Thompson Flowage and hope to catch enough walleyes to have a cook-out with the summer people.

Give the baby a kiss for me and a hug and kiss to Lindsay. We hope you can get away sometime this summer and relax a little.

Miss you all, love, Mom

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Monday, June 9, 2008 10:18 AM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: funny story

CJ, we’ve been bass fishing every evening on the river and the fishing is so-so. Saw John Lloyd down on his dock and he told me that some folks up in Deer Run had seen some UFOs last Friday. I thought he was just pulling my leg, but then I heard about it at the Co-op too. It seems that there have been numerous sightings since mid April all over Sawyer and Rusk Counties. Must have been a hard winter as people are acting a little spacey (sorry, bad pun).

Went to the nursery and got a replacement for the blueberry bush that the maple crushed. It’ll be another year before it starts producing, so no jelly for you this year. But the raspberries are looking good and should start producing by the end of July. I know how much Lindsey likes her rasp. jam. Tell her Grandma will make her an extra jar this year. I really miss seeing the kids, but you would miss them more if I took them up here for the whole summer. Kisses all around. Love, Mom

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Friday, June 13, 2008 2:42 PM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: Happy Birthday!!!

CJ, Happy birthday. How does 40 feel? Hope you got the gift; post office in Summer is sometimes hit and miss lately. We’ll take you all out for a belated celebratory dinner when we get back in the fall.

Miss you lots and love you always, Mom

Your Dad sends an especially long, hard hug also.

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 2008 7:02 AM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: bad phone lines

Phone service (and thus my DSL) is browning out off and on throughout the day—they can’t fix it cause they don’t know what’s causing it. So I’m composing my emails and then sending them when the line is working again.

Sammy brought in 2 dead squirrels this week; he is feeling his age right now so I know he didn’t catch them. It’s been a chore to get him in at night as the woods are full of animals right now. Dad saw a fox this morning and a pine martin came and sat on the porch railing for hours last night. Hope it isn’t rabies or some mammal form of the avian flu. We are staying clear of them just in case.

Love you all, take care, Mom

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Friday, June 27, 2008 9:33 PM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: reporters

CJ, the TV 3 news crew from Duluth was down all week asking people about the weird things going on in Sawyer County. I guess a lot of people have seen UFOs and they’re also talking about unusual animal attacks. Apparently a lot of different animals have bitten or clawed at least 25 people just in the tri-county area. We didn’t tell anyone about the crazy fox that kept coming back in the morning and would just stare at your dad while he drank his coffee on the porch. On Wed. it ran at him but he managed to get the slider closed just in time. That crazy fox kept beating its head against the glass until we could see bits of bone and fur in the blood smearing the window. Dad took it to the vet yesterday, but he said that it was happening all over here and so far everything he had sent in to the state had come back negative for rabies—or anything else for that matter. No one can figure out why they are acting like this.

We don’t go out without the pistol just in case and we are keeping Sammy in to. He would try to protect us, but would probably come out the worst in a fight. He’s been limping a lot. Hips are in poor shape. It might be his last summer up here. I really hate to see him like this, but I would miss him so if he were gone. He doesn’t seem all that anxious to go out anyway—just a quick zip out to pee and right back inside.

Is any of this nonsense making national news? Radio has so much static that we can’t get anything clear except that crappy polka station in Clear Creek. Even your heavy metal would be better than that God-awful polka music.

Dad wants me to go down to the dock with him—he doesn’t want us separated in case of an animal going berserk and he won’t leave me the gun.

I’ll call you this Sunday if the phones cooperate. Love, Mom

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Sunday, July 6, 2008 10:47 AM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: more craziness

CJ, Went into Summer but the Co-op was closed and we didn’t see anyone around; even the Lakeside Café was closed. So we went to the Moose Creek Wal-Mart instead and got the groceries for the week. What little we could anyway. They were kind of low on produce—manager said that deliveries were getting unreliable and he never knew if or when a truck was coming. We decided to get a refill on your Dad’s blood pressure meds and my scripts in case that became a problem too. I’m kind of glad that you guys couldn’t come this year as things are just not the same here. Tues.Dad had to shoot a deer that kept charging his car. We dragged it off with the tow chain as far into the woods as we could, but we’ve smelled it rotting back there when the wind comes up. Sammy has taken to peeing on the rug and won’t go out at all anymore. I hope he isn’t failing; but for a Lab, he’s pretty old. I keep telling him it’s okay and he’s taken to sleeping under the bed at night.

If things don’t improve here, we’ll leave out of here in a couple weeks. Love, Mom

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2008 10:02 AM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: problems ahead

Dad and I went to Summer yesterday, but like before, no one was around and nothing was open. It smells like some big animal died behind the Co-op.

We tried to go into Moose Creek and Hwy B West was blocked by a line of pines down across the road. We turned around and B East was under 3 ft. of water; looks like the dam backed up. We tried to get around on the gravel roads, but couldn’t get through to anywhere and went back home as the gas was low and no stations were open to refill. I’m really starting to get worried.

At night we see lights moving under the trees and mists drifting around in scattered pockets where it shouldn’t be. It’s in the high spots and not the low, wet ones. The animals are getting bolder and more aggressive so we are going to pack up the essentials and get out first thing in the morning– even if we have to do it all off road. Mom

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Saturday, July 19, 2008 11:52 AM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: Stay put!

CJ, we couldn’t get out—it was totally impassable—there’s a tree down over our road and we can’t even get out of the truck to move it as a group of animals paced us all the way up the road and they tried to attack us the minute we opened the door. We are parking right up against the cabin door, but even then when we tried to get in the front door, we were attacked by a couple of bats,. I was bitten on the cheek and Dad got his hands all scratched up. We can’t raise the county or state cops on the phone. I’m sitting here waiting for the DSL to connect so I can hit send so if you get a partial email, it’s just cause I really need this opportunity to reach you.

Do NOT come up here, CJ. Just contact somebody who can evacuate us. I’m serious CJ- don’t come up yourself. Don’t send John. Promise me or I’ll come back and haunt you.

We tried to photograph the lights but even though we could see the lights they wouldn’t show up on the digital image. Same with the mist, it getting heavier and closer to the cabin but doesn’t seem to do anything. Sammy won’t come out from under the bed and it’s starting to smell down there. Lately there’s been a

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Wednesday, July 23, 2008 2:24 AM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: desperate

CJ, the cabin is surrounded by animals pacing about keeping us inside. I don’t think that they are eating at all by the look of them– all thin and anxious. There’s a black bear that is lying by the front steps and she growls if we go near the door. When she first showed up she had two young cubs but she wouldn’t feed them. Their bodies are lying next to her and starting to decompose in the heat. Something is trying to chew through the roof—probably a squirrel or raccoon from the sound of its feet. A fox usually sits in the truck bed watching us. The deer just keep circling the cabin—always moving. We’ve shot some of them, but more just keep coming and the smell is tremendous. It’s not much better in here as Sammy seems to have died under the bed and there’s no place to put him. He’s so swollen up that I can’t even pull him out.

My cheek is infected and all puffed up. I can only see out of my right eye as the other is swollen shut. The power is intermittent and we managed to fill the tub the last time it was on and I also sent you that last email then. Food is getting low—what didn’t rot. Having to eat it cold. Your dad is starting to look exhausted and he’s sleeping a lot more now. If you don’t hear from me again, I want you to know how much I love you and how proud I am of the woman you’ve become. I’m going to miss your kids growing up and hope I was around long enough for them to remember me. I’m going to sit here and wait for the electricity to come back on so I can mail this. It usually comes on briefly in the middle of the night. Love you tons and tons, Mom

From: Cooke, Mary
Sent: Tuesday, July 29, 2008 4:03 AM
To: Duffy, CJ
Subject: goodbye, I love you

CJ, It’s Sunday and this is going to be my last email to you as the electricity has only been on briefly twice in the last 4 days.

Your dad had a stroke last night and can’t move his entire left side. He’s confused and in and out of consciousness. I’m going to take care of him before I go—it’s the last act of kindness I can do for him. I’m running a fever and my cheek is oozing bloody pus and turning black. Damn bat. Damn animals.
Totally out of food and the water is very low. Just totally out of hope, CJ. The misty things come out at night and try to slip in through the chinking. I’ve stuffed clothes between all the logs but it’s only a matter of time before they find a way in. There are small holes appearing all around the windows as the squirrels and chipmunks gnaw away at the house. I’m going to sit here until I can send this then use the gun on your dad then myself. It’ll be quick and better then waiting for the animals to find a way in.

Remember that you promised me you wouldn’t come up here—I’m holding you to that.

Never forget that we love you, CJ.

I love you.

Goodbye baby
Mom