Page 70 of Into the Dark, We Go

Nick interpreted my silence as me being offended.

"I’m so sorry, I’m not sure why I even asked."

I shook my head. "It’s okay. I just don’t know what to say."

His face flushed with embarrassment. "It was such an asshole question."

"Honestly, it’s fine. And the most asshole question I was asked was whether I murdered him. So, you’re good."

A sad chuckle rumbled from Nick’s throat as he looked over at me, probing for signs of pain or hurt, but I kept my emotions in check.

The gentle uphill slope warmed me up, and I shed my raincoat and then my hoodie, wrapping them both around my waist, opting for a few mosquito bites over dying of heat stroke. Nick’s T-shirt clung to his back, damp from exertion.

We reached a scenic overlook, where the trees gave way to a stunning vista. The hills unfolded before us, fog settling in the hollows and ridges. Nick’s gaze immediately locked onto the mountain alignment. "Look," he said, "the three sisters."

"Okay?" I replied, unsure what he was getting at, and then remembered the witch’s words. "Oh."

"We should get off the trail here."

"What if we get lost? We don’t have food, and I’m the least useful person to be stuck in the woods with!"

Nick’s hands settled on my shoulders in a reassuring gesture. The warm pressure poured down my arms like sunlight. "It’s going to be okay, I promise. I’m not Mitch, but I know a thing or two about being in the woods."

I hesitated, peering into the trees, as if trying to see if anything dangerous was hiding there.

"I am not sure about this. We can get lost, especially without cell service."

"Whatever we’re looking for won’t be on the path anyway. Can you wait here, then? I’ll be back in a few."

I looked back and forth at the empty trail, weighing my options.

Staying here alone wasn’t the best choice either. What if wild animals saw me as easy prey, vulnerable in my solitude? Tilly’s ominous warnings flooded my mind, and I let out a nervous whine, quickening my pace to follow him through the dense thicket.

20

Chapter Twenty

September, 2020

"Are you scared?"Nick turned to check on me, and I didn’t bother pretending I wasn’t exhausted.

I didn’t know what prompted his question. I hadn’t spoken or made a sound. For the past half hour, I’d been following him like a trusted dog through the woods. We were both tired, and our conversation had long since run its course. We trudged uphill, my legs burning with each step, then descended again. I was adrift, disoriented, and steeped in misery.

Then Nick turned back to the path and froze. Concerned, I stopped dead in my tracks beside him. "What is it?"

A deer stumbled onto the path, its movements stiff and erratic, like a puppet on tangled strings. It halted before us, its glassy eyes fixed in our direction but seemingly unaware.

"Nick," I whispered.

He extended an arm, guiding me to stay close.

The deer’s body was grotesquely distorted, as if it had been pieced together by a blind taxidermist. It gasped for breath, its ribs threatening to pierce the paper-thin skin. Its fur was dulland matted, with limbs splayed at unnatural angles. One antler was severed, leaving only a jagged stump. There was no blood, no visible wound. But something truly horrific had happened to it. I could only fathom that it had been ravaged, mangled into a macabre parody of what it had been.

"What the hell is that?" I whispered.

I feared the animal was sick, that it might attack us. But the deer didn’t move. It stood rigid, its unblinking gaze trained on us. Then, slowly, it turned its head away. Without a sound, it stumbled back into the woods.

I let out a trembling exhale.