Page 10

My heart raced, and my vision tunneled on the collar swaying gently from the branch. A person clearly had to have done this. I stepped toward the tree, my breathing sharp and shallow.

Gabe caught my arm, his grip firm yet gentle. “Autumn, wait,” he said quietly.

“Move,” I snapped, glaring at him. My entire body was thrumming with rage and adrenaline.

“Let me grab it,” Ryan volunteered. He stepped around us and grabbed for the collar. As his fingers closed around it and he undid the string, I noticed the way his shoulders stiffened, a subtle but unmistakable tension rolling through him.

“What is it?”

When he didn’t answer right away, I struggled against Gabe, breaking free from his grip with a sharp yank.

“Autumn,--,” Gabe started, but I was already moving.

Ryan turned reluctantly, his face taut and unreadable as he held the collar up for me to see. Inside, written in thick, black marker, was a note. “Can I come in now?”

“What the fuck?” Gabe rasped, taking the collar from Ryan and examining it, his expression darkening with every second.

Ryan’s jaw was clenched tight, his eyes scanning the surrounding woods, every muscle in his body coiled like a spring. “We need to get back to the house. Now.”

I shook my head as I looked between them. If someone did something to my dog, I would be going to jail. I’d smile in my goddamn mugshot. I’d plead guilty as fuck because I would get it all back in blood. Every single ounce. That must have reflected on my face. Ryan stepped closer to me, cautiously.

“Hey, we’ll figure it out, but right now, we have to move.

My eyes darted back to the empty woods, the stillness now feeling more ominous than peaceful. Swallowing hard, I forced myself to nod, my hand trembling as I reached for Moose’s collar.

“No,” Ryan objected gently, pulling it back. “I’ll hold onto this for now. Let’s go.”

Gabe placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder, gently steering me toward the clearing as Ryan led the way. My legs felt like lead, my mind racing with a thousand questions that had no answers. Who lured him out of the house? What were they doing to him?

We made our way back through the woods, the crunch of leaves and twigs the only sound cutting through the eerie silence. To our left, something moved. The sound of snapping branches broke through the stillness, sharp and deliberate. That wasn’t the damn wind.

Gabe’s eyes widened, his voice dropping to a hushed whisper. “What the fuck was that?”

My breath caught, my pulse hammering in my ears. I turned my head just enough to meet Ryan’s gaze. His posture was rigid, ready.

“Fuck this,” I hissed, my voice trembling with both anger and fear, I grabbed them both by their sleeves. “Go.”

Without another word, we quickened our pace, practically running along the narrow path. Every rustle of leaves and every creak of the woods seemed amplified like the entire forest was watching us. My heart was in my throat by the time the house came into view.

We stumbled inside, and I slammed the door shut, locking it with shaking hands. My chest heaved as I moved from the patio to the kitchen, trying to catch my breath.

“Autumn?” Daniella’s groggy voice drifted from the foyer as she came around the corner. Her hair was a wild mess and there were hickeys all down one side of her neck.

“What the hell are you guys—”

“Someone has my dog,” I cut her off, the words sharp and clipped.

Her eyes widened as the haze of sleep left her in an instant. “What?”

When I didn’t stop to explain, Ryan handed her his collar.

What was I supposed to do? Arm me and go traipsing through the woods? That seemed like a fuck yes , but I wasn’t that stupid. A loud knock echoed through the house, the sound like a gunshot against the quiet. I turned toward the door, my body moving before I could think.

“Autumn!” Ryan’s voice called sharply as he lunged forward, catching me before I could reach it. His arms wrapped tightly around me, holding me back as I struggled against him. “I know you’re pissed, but you can’t just open that door, sweetheart. We have no idea what the fuck is going on.”

I stilled for a moment, glaring at him over my shoulder. “I’m not opening it,” I snapped. “I just want to see who it is.”

He hesitated, his grip loosening slightly, and I moved forward, stepping up to the peephole. My fingers curled into fists at my sides as I pressed my eye to the tiny glass. On the other side, staring directly was the girl from the gas station.

My blood ran cold.

Her face was pressed so close, it was like she could see me, her lips curved into a slow, unsettling smile. Her eyes seemed to bore into mine as if the door wasn’t even there. I froze, unable to move or breathe, my mind screaming at me to step back, but my body refused to listen. This creepy bitch had walked into a field. How the fuck did she get here? How did she know this was where we were going?

“Autumn?” Gabe’s voice was low. “Who’s out there?”

I didn’t answer, my gaze locked with hers through the peephole. Her lips moved, slowly, forming words I couldn’t hear but understood perfectly.

“Is Kristy home?”

I stepped back, bumping into Ryan’s chest. His hands steadied me as he looked toward the door, his jaw tightening. I swallowed hard, forcing myself to speak. “It’s her,” I whispered. “The girl from the gas station.”

Daniella, who had moved closer, paused mid-step. “How is that possible? That place was at least two hours away.”

Ryan glanced at Gabe, who was standing by the living room entrance, his face grim. “We’re not opening that door,” he stated firmly, his hand tightening on my arm.

Another knock came, louder this time, followed by a long, dragging scrape against the stone. I backed away, my eyes locked on the door as if it might burst open any second.

Gabe stepped in front of me, his broad shoulders blocking my view. “Get everyone in here.”

That was directed at Ryan.

“How many doors does this place have?” I asked, my voice tight.

“I don’t—I don’t know,” Daniella stammered, glancing toward the living room as if the answer might materialize there.

Ryan was already moving, heading toward the bedrooms to wake everyone else. Another knock echoed through the house, louder and more deliberate, and Daniella snapped, her nerves clearly fraying. “Go the fuck away!”

Her shout was met with silence.

One by one, the others began to shuffle toward the foyer, hungover and half-asleep. Naija was the first to speak, her locs swaying as she rubbed her eyes and glared at Gabe. “What the fuck is going on?”

“Where’s the phone box?” Gabe asked urgency in his tone. “We need our phones.”

Naija scowled, visibly trying to think past her pounding head. “It was in the kitchen, by the paper towels.”

I bolted, Daniella hot on my heels. My eyes scanned the counter as I rounded the corner, but there was nothing. “It’s not here,” I called out. My hands fumbled over the counters and pulled open cabinets as if I might have missed it, but it was nowhere to be found.

“It’s gone,” Daniella announced, her voice rising as she turned with disbelief.

“It’s not there?” Ryan questioned.

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “It’s not.”

Another knock came.

Ryan muttered a curse under his breath, running a hand through his hair. “Stay here,” he instructed. “Don’t move. I’m going back to the foyer.”

“What is happening?” Daniella gripped the edge of the counter to steady herself.

I crept forward and peeked around the wall to watch him.

After a second, Daniella was right behind me. Ryan moved toward the front door cautiously and pressed his face to the peephole.

“There’s no one out there anymore,” he said finally, though the tension in his tone betrayed his unease.

“What you mean is that there’s no one at the door right now. Someone is most definitely out there,” Naija corrected. She’d fully woken up at this point.

Cherish joined us, rubbing sleep from her eyes. “What’s going on?”

I didn’t even try to explain. “We can’t find the phone box,” I divulged instead, frustration thick in my voice.

“Alright,” Jason began, his voice gruff, “we need to figure out what’s happening.”

Liza nodded, crossing her arms tightly over her chest.

“If someone’s messing with us, we need to stay inside and keep the doors and windows locked.”

I pressed my hands flat against my thighs, squeezing my eyes shut to think. The panic wasn’t helping. I needed to calm down. Around me, the group buzzed with scattered questions, fragmented ideas, and mounting tension. Cherish stepped up beside me, her hand finding mine and squeezing it firmly. “I’m right here with you,” she said softly.

I nodded, forcing myself to breathe deeply. “Okay,” I said, my voice steadier than I felt. “Let’s figure this out.”

Ryan rubbed his jaw. “First things first—our phones. Naj, you said you left the box in the kitchen, right?”

“Yeah, I did. Right by the paper towels. It was there last night. I know I was drunk off my ass, but that happened before then.”

“Well, it’s not there now,” Gabe pointed out. “And unless someone here moved it, there can only be one other explanation.”

The implication hung in the air, unspoken but crystal clear. Liza frowned. “If it’s not inside the house then that means someone came to get it. And then they just left?” Her words dripped with skepticism, but there was a nervous edge beneath them.

“Someone is clearly fucking with us,” I stated the obvious. “My dog didn’t just open a door and walk away. And how did that girl from the gas station know to find us here? We’re hours away from that place.”

My sister shook her head. “It doesn’t make sense. This house is in the middle of nowhere.”

“Are we sure someone was inside the house, why didn’t we hear them? Why didn’t they… do anything?” Naija questioned.

“Because they didn’t need to,” Gabe replied.

“They wanted to mess with us. It’s psychological. Freak us the fuck out.”

“They’re doing a damn good job of it,” Daniella snapped, rubbing her temples.

“We should search the entire house. Every room, every closet, every corner. If the phones are gone, we need to know how they got in. And if they’re still here…”

Jason, now leaning against the banister, scoffed. “So we just wander around this big-ass house like it’s a Scooby-Doo episode?”

Liza shot him a glare. “Got a better idea?”

“Alright,” I said, taking a steadying breath. “We need to search the entire house. If the phones are still here, we’ll find them. If not, at least we’ll know for sure someone came inside.”

Cherish nodded, moving closer to me. “We’ll stick together. I’m not letting you wander off alone.”

“Same here,” Ryan added. “Gabe and I can take the first floor.”

“Daniella, Liza, and I will check the basement,” Naija said, her tone clipped. “Let’s grab anything that can double as a weapon while we’re at it. Just in case.”

“We’ll start upstairs,” I said, glancing at Cherish. As we headed toward the stairs, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched.

“They’re gone,” Ryan announced, his voice grim as we all returned to the foyer. “All of them. The landline too.”

“Fantastic,” Liza muttered, crossing her arms. “So what do we do now? Wait for whoever this is to knock again?”

“No,” Daniella objected. “We grab our shit and leave. We’re sitting ducks here without any way to call for help.”

“That’s not an option.” My voice was firmer than I expected it to be. “My dog is still out there with some psycho. I’m not leaving without him.”

“Autumn.” Naija turned to me, her tone gentle but unyielding. “You’ll be no good to him dead.”

Cherish groaned, raking a hand through her hair. “We’re jumping straight to someone trying to murder us now? That’s where we’re at?”

“What else would you call someone taking all our phones so we can’t call for help?”

Cherish’s lips pressed into a thin line. “Okay. We’re leaving now.” She turned to me next. “I know you don’t want to leave without Moose, but if we’re going to find him, we need to get somewhere safe first. We’re not going to be able to do this from here, Autumn.”

Every instinct screamed to stay, to tear through the woods until I found him, but I knew she was right.

I’d be no good to him like this and I refused to believe he’d been harmed. I couldn’t let myself go there. “Let’s get the fuck out of here then.”

Jason stood taller. “Everyone grab your stuff and meet back here. We should walk out together.”

Our group dispersed, adrenaline pushing away any lingering hangovers. Cherish stuck by my side as we headed for our room, her hand gripping my arm.