Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 23722 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 119(@200wpm)___ 95(@250wpm)___ 79(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23722 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 119(@200wpm)___ 95(@250wpm)___ 79(@300wpm)
I’m a city girl. I’m not used to all the animals and noises that fill the forest surrounding the cabin.
But then I see a figure. Whoever’s out there is standing in a deep pocket of shadow between the tree trunks, making it difficult to see them. I squint my eyes, making sure I’m not just seeing things and jumping at literal shadows. But when they move, my heart leaps into my throat once more.
I’m not seeing things. There is somebody out there.
I pull my phone out of my bag and quickly dial the number. Keeping my eyes on the figure out there, I press the phone to my ear and grit my teeth.
“Pick up, pick up, please,” I cry, my voice trembling as hard as my hand. He picks up on the third ring, and I don’t let him get a single word out.
“Eli,” I cry. “There’s somebody out here!”
8
ELI
The panic in Emery’s voice sends a flood of adrenaline rushing through me. I grab my shotgun and sprint across the grounds to Cabin B. She must have seen me coming because the door opens and she comes flying out, white as a sheet, her face etched with terror. My heart jumps into my throat when I see her, and I have to fight the urge to scoop her up and hold her to me, to make sure she’s okay.
“Are you all right?” I ask.
“Somebody—I was—”
She’s practically hyperventilating and can’t get her words out. Putting her behind me, I turn and scan the tree line. She’d said something about somebody being out here, so I search the shadows between the tree trunks. I don’t see anybody.
“Where was he, Emery?”
She points to a spot between a pair of soaring pines. Her hand is trembling as she does, and it hurts my heart to see. It surprises nobody more than me, but the last thing I ever want to see is this girl as terrified as she is.
“Wait here,” I tell her.
“But—”
“Wait here,” I repeat.
My shotgun at the ready, I walk to the point between the trees she’d pointed to. I glance over my shoulder to make sure she stayed put. She hasn’t moved, but she’s wringing her hands together and nervously shifting on her feet, fear in her eyes. It’s completely inexplicable to me, but I hate seeing her scared.
When I reach the spot between the trees, I look around. There’s nobody there. But somebody was. There are footprints in the soft dirt at the base of the trees. It looks to me like somebody stood there watching her cabin, just like she thought. Clenching my jaw, I walk back to where she’s standing.
“Whoever it was, they’re gone,” I tell her.
“There was somebody there, I swear it.”
“I know. I believe you,” I tell her. “I found some footprints out there.”
She shudders, and the fear burns bright in her eyes. I can tell she’s terrified that whoever it was will come back once I return to my cabin. And if I’m being honest, it concerns me too. Especially since I already have an idea of who was standing out there watching her.
“Come on,” I tell her.
I lead her back to her cabin, and I set the shotgun down beside the door as we step inside. I sit her down at the small table in the dining nook, and she folds in on herself, putting her feet up and hugging her knees to her chest. She’s trembling, and her face is still unnaturally pale. I walk into the kitchen, pour a glass of water, and then return to give it to her. Emery’s hands are shaking so hard, she nearly drops the glass, so I hold it and help her take a drink.
The moment our hands touch, I feel like I just grabbed onto a live wire. Electricity crackles through my body, and my heart races like I just ran a marathon. My eyes widen, and she raises hers, looking at me over the rim of the glass. I can see she feels the same thing. Clearing my throat, I quickly pull my hand away. But I notice the tremor in her hand has begun to ebb.
“It’s all right,” I tell her. “You’re okay now.”
She takes another drink, then blows out a long breath. She seems to be settling down now.
“Want to tell me what happened?”
She takes a sip, then sets the glass down. “I was out in the woods taking pictures,” she says and motions to the bag sitting on the sofa. “Anyway, I was getting some really great shots of these deer—just beautiful shots. That’s when I heard somebody in the woods.”
“Lots of animals around here—”
“No, I heard them, Eli. Somebody was walking around out there,” she insists. “And so, I packed up my stuff and got out of there. But they were following me. And when I started to run, they ran too. They chased me all the way back here. And I saw them out there… between those trees I pointed out.”