Chapter 2

chapter

two

The road ahead was a long stretch of nothingness, shrouded in fog so thick that Grace Holt could barely see more than a few feet in front of her car. She squinted, leaning forward over the steering wheel as if that would somehow improve her vision. The headlights cut twin beams through the mist but did little to help.

A shiver ran down her spine. Something about this stretch of road felt wrong, almost otherworldly. The shadows seemed to move in unnatural ways, and more than once, she thought she glimpsed something dart across the road beyond the reach of her headlights.

She drew a deep breath and let it out slowly. She was just paranoid. Mom had been acting weird for weeks now, and until yesterday, Grace would have sworn she was imagining things. But then Mom had insisted that Grace take Noah on this impromptu “vacation,” practically shoving them out the door with hastily packed bags. The urgency in her mother’s eyes had been unsettling.

Grace drummed her fingers on the steering wheel in rhythm with the soft music on the radio, then glanced at her brother in the passenger seat.

Noah was glued to his phone, scrolling through something, his face illuminated by the blue glow of the screen. He hadn’t spoken much since they’d left home—no surprise there.

“Can you at least try to enjoy the scenery?”

Noah snorted, not looking up. “You mean trees? Super exciting.”

Grace sighed. Typical Noah. “ Big trees. The biggest.”

“I’m here because Mom made me come. I could be at home gaming right now.”

“Well, I’m excited,” she said, injecting as much cheer into her voice as she could muster. “A whole week away from everything. No work, no school, no stress, just some quality time in nature.”

“I’m not sure I’d call this ‘quality time,’” Noah muttered, but he finally lowered his phone and gazed out the window, a frown tugging at his lips. “It’s all foggy. Where even are we?”

“Middle of nowhere, obviously.”

Noah stared down at his phone for a moment longer, then grumbled under his breath and leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms over his chest. “There’s no signal.”

“That’s the whole point.” Grace forced a smile. “Come on, it’ll be fun. We can play board games, roast marshmallows...”

“Yeah, sure,” Noah mumbled, his eyes still fixed on the foggy landscape outside. “I’d rather be in school with my friends.”

A beat of silence passed between them, the soft hum of the car’s engine filling the gap. Grace glanced at her brother again, noting the dark circles under his eyes. He was only twelve, but lately, he seemed so much older. Too much time glued to a screen. Too little time out in the real world. She was hoping this week would change that. Maybe get him to open up and talk to her again.

“It’s kinda creepy,” Noah finally muttered. “Like we’re driving through Silent Hill or something.”

“You play too many video games, kiddo.”

He lifted a skinny shoulder. “Gotta game if you wanna build games.”

Grace opened her mouth to reply, but her words caught in her throat as a dark shape suddenly loomed in front of the car. She slammed on the brakes, the tires screeching against the wet pavement. Noah yelped, bracing himself against the dashboard.

“What was that?” he gasped, his eyes wide with fear.

Grace’s heart pounded in her chest as she peered through the windshield. The fog seemed to have thickened, swirling around the car like a living thing. She could see nothing beyond the reach of her headlights.

“I... I don’t know,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. It looked like... a person? But it was so tall...

And suddenly, she remembered that creepy nursery rhyme kids used to freak each other out with on the playground:

In shadows so deep, the Stalker hides.

Fear his presence where moonlight dies...

That was about a serial killer in this area, wasn’t it?

But he was caught, right? Cold Truth, her favorite true crime podcast, had dedicated six whole episodes to the case.

Noah unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned forward, pressing his face against the glass. “I don’t see anything now.”

Grace’s hands trembled as she gripped the steering wheel. “Noah, sit back and buckle up. Now.”

He reluctantly complied, his eyes still scanning the fog-shrouded road ahead. “Maybe it was an animal?”

“Yeah... yeah, probably,” she agreed, trying to sound more confident than she felt. She took a deep breath and eased her foot off the brake, allowing the car to inch forward. “We’re almost to the cabin. Just a few more miles.”

A tap on the driver’s side window made them both jump.

Grace whipped her head around, heart racing, to see a man peering in at them. She couldn’t really see his face under the hood of his jacket, but there was something… not right about it. He gestured for her to roll down the window.

Where the hell had he come from?

Her initial instinct was to hit the gas, but then she noticed the headlights off to the side of the road behind them. Not from a car—they were too small. Probably an ATV.

If he were local, he could maybe give them directions to the cabin. She didn’t want to tell Noah that the GPS had stopped updating a few miles back due to the spotty signal, and she was afraid they were lost. She reached for the window button.

“Don’t,” Noah whispered. “Let’s just go.”

Grace hesitated, her hand hovering over the window control. Noah’s warning echoed in her mind, but the practical part of her reasoned that they needed help. Still, something felt off about the whole situation.

“It’s okay. I’m going to ask for directions.”

She lowered the window a couple of inches, enough to hear but not enough for the stranger to reach inside. The fog seemed to seep into the car, carrying with it a damp, earthy scent.

“Can I help you?” Grace asked, her voice steady despite the unease churning in her stomach.

The hooded figure leaned closer, and her breath caught in her throat as she stared at the grotesque, nightmarish face before her. His features were uneven, twisted by jagged scars and patches of flat, almost shiny skin.

The man’s distorted lips moved, but the words were muffled as if coming from underwater.

“What?” she managed to croak out.

“I said, are you okay?” the man repeated. His voice was rough, like he didn’t use it enough, but surprisingly gentle. “I saw you swerve back there. These roads can be tricky, especially in the fog.”

Grace swallowed hard. “Um, yes. We’re looking for Whispering Pines Retreat. We, um... we can't find it, and there was an animal or something in the road and I swerved and…” She realized she was babbling. “Can you help us?”

The man nodded, leaning back slightly as if he knew he was making her nervous. “Whispering Pines? You’re not far off. About two miles up this road, you’ll see a fork. Turn right, and it’ll lead you straight to the cabins.”

“Thank you,” Grace said, her finger already on the window button.

The man stepped back, his scarred face disappearing into the shadows of his hood. “Be careful out here,” he said, and there was something like sadness in his tone. “These woods... they’re not always kind to kids.”

Grace nodded quickly, rolling up the window. As soon as it was closed, she let out an unsteady breath.

“That was so creepy,” Noah whispered. “Did you see his face? Like it was melted.”

“Yeah,” Grace muttered and knew she'd be seeing that face in her nightmares tonight. “Let’s get to the cabin.”

She accelerated slowly. In her rearview mirror, she saw the man standing in the middle of the road, watching them drive away. A scruffy dog jumped out of the brush beside the road and sat by his feet. He reached down to stroke the animal’s head but otherwise didn’t move.

Eventually, the fog swallowed them both.

The next two miles seemed to stretch on forever. Grace kept her eyes fixed straight ahead, afraid to look to either side. Noah was tense, his body rigid in the passenger seat as he stared out the window into the foggy dark. She found herself holding her breath, straining to hear anything beyond the soft rumble of the engine and the rhythmic swish of the windshield wipers.

When they finally reached the resort, relief washed over her. The quaint wooden cabin nestled among towering pines, its windows dark but not unwelcoming.

Okay. This wasn’t so bad.

“Home sweet home,” Grace said, forcing cheerfulness into her voice as she cut the engine.

Noah didn’t respond, his gaze on the shadowy forest surrounding them. Was he still thinking about the… thing that darted in front of them? Or the man with the melted face?

She reached over and gently squeezed his shoulder. “Hey, it’ll be okay. We’re safe now. Let’s get inside.”

They grabbed their bags from the trunk and made their way to the cabin’s front door. Grace fumbled with her phone to find the combination for the lockbox. Luckily, she’d taken a screenshot of the email because she had zero bars of service here.

Please let this cabin have wi-fi.

The door swung open with a creak, and she found the light switch, filling the room with a warm yellow glow. It was nicer than she expected. Rustic but cozy, with a stone fireplace dominating one wall and comfortable-looking furniture arranged around it. A small kitchen area occupied one corner, and two doors led off to what she assumed were bedrooms. A large window in the living room overlooked the dark forest beyond. From the pictures Mom had shown her of the place, she knew that the ocean was out there, too, but she couldn’t see it.

“Not bad,” she said, trying to inject some enthusiasm into her voice. “What do you think?”

Her brother shuffled in behind her, dropping his bag to the floor with a heavy thunk. He gave a noncommittal shrug. “It’s okay, I guess.”

Grace locked the door behind them, double-checking it was secure. “Why don’t you go check out the bedrooms? Pick whichever one you want.”

As Noah trudged off to explore, she busied herself with unpacking some of their supplies. She filled the small refrigerator with the groceries they’d picked up on the way, trying to shake off the lingering unease from their encounter on the road. The cabin felt safe, at least— solid walls and a sturdy lock between them and whatever might be lurking in the darkness outside.

“Grace?” Noah called from one of the bedrooms. “There’s only one bed in here.”

She frowned, moving to join him. Sure enough, the larger bedroom held just a queen-sized bed. The second room was barely more than a closet, with a small desk and chair.

“Huh. I guess we’ll have to share. Unless you want to sleep on the couch?”

Noah wrinkled his nose. “No way. That thing looks old. Probably full of spiders.”

She chuckled, ruffling his hair. “So we’ll share. Just like when you were little and afraid of the dark, huh?”

She missed those days when Mom worked nights, and he’d come running to her room in his little footie pajamas, his blond hair a mess.

Noah ducked away from her hand, but she caught the hint of a smile on his face. “Yeah, whatever. I call the side by the window.” He flopped down on the bed and looked at his phone again. The dramatic sigh told her everything she needed to know.

Still no signal.

“Give it a rest for tonight,” she said. “There’s gotta be wi-fi here. We’ll figure it out in the morning. How about some hot chocolate before bed?”

Noah perked up slightly at that. “With marshmallows?”

“Of course.”

As Grace busied herself in the kitchen, Noah wandered into the living room. She could hear him rummaging through drawers, probably searching for the TV remote.

“Don’t get your hopes up,” she called out. “I doubt they have Netflix way out here.”

Noah groaned in response. “This is going to be the longest vacation ever.”

Grace smiled to herself as she stirred the hot chocolate. Despite his complaints, she knew Noah would come around eventually. Maybe not tonight, but give it a day or two, and he’d be exploring the woods and skipping stones on the beach.

She carried the steaming mugs into the living room, where Noah had settled onto the worn leather couch. He accepted his mug with a mumbled “thanks” and took a cautious sip.

“How long do we have to stay here?” he asked after a moment.

“A week. Mom thought it would be good for us to get away for a bit.”

“But why? She’s never taken me out of school for a vacation before. And why was she so... weird about all of it?”

So Noah wasn’t as oblivious as she’d thought.

She sank onto the couch beside her brother, cradling her mug in her hands. “I don't know,” she admitted softly. “Mom’s been... stressed lately.”

“So if she needed a break, why didn’t she come with us?”

“I don’t know. Things have been tough since Dad left. Mom’s struggling, and I think she just needed some time to herself. To figure things out.”

“So she shipped us off to the middle of nowhere? She practically threw us out the door.“ Noah’s voice rose, a mix of anger and hurt. “And why couldn’t she tell us that?”

So many questions and Grace didn’t have any answers. At eighteen, she knew she was legally considered an adult, but inside, she still felt very much like a little girl, and she wished her mom was here with some answers more than anything.

Grace sighed and set her mug down on the coffee table. “I know it’s frustrating, Noah. I’m confused, too. But Mom loves us, and I’m sure she has her reasons. Maybe... maybe this is her way of protecting us from whatever’s going on.”

His eyes widened. “Protecting us? From what?”

“I don’t know. It’s probably nothing. Adult stuff, you know? Bills and work stress.” But even as she said it, she knew it wasn’t true. The fear in her mother’s eyes when she’d rushed them out the door... that wasn’t about bills or work or even about Dad leaving them.

“Grace?” Noah said after a long moment of silence, his voice small.

“Yeah?”

“Do you think Mom’s okay?”

Grace swallowed hard. “I’m sure she is.” Suddenly restless and unable to stay seated, she popped to her feet and picked up her half-finished hot chocolate. “I’ll go clean up the mess I made in the kitchen.”

At the sink, she scrubbed the cocoa pot with more force than necessary. Something about this whole situation felt off.

Mom’s erratic behavior. The hurried packing. That desperate look in her eyes as she’d practically shoved them out the door…

Then, the fog-shrouded road. The strange figure that darted in front of the car. The scarred man who’d given them directions.

All of it added up to a gnawing unease in the pit of her stomach, but she pushed the feeling aside. They were safe here, she told herself. Everything would be fine.

A loud thud from outside made her jump, the pot clattering in the sink. She froze, straining to hear over the pounding of her heart.

“Noah?” she called. “Did you knock something over?”

No response.

Frowning, she dried her hands and walked back to the living room. “Did you hear me? I—” The words died in her throat.

The living room was empty. Noah’s mug lay tipped over on the coffee table, a dark stain spreading across the worn wood. The front door hung wide open.

Grace’s heart leaped into her throat as she rushed to the door. “Noah!” The fog had thickened, swirling around her ankles as she stepped onto the porch. “Noah, where are you?”

Silence answered her, broken only by the soft rustling of leaves in the night breeze. She squinted into the darkness, trying to make out any sign of movement among the shadowy trees.

“This isn’t funny!” Her voice cracked with panic. “Come back inside right now!”

A twig snapped somewhere in the forest, and Grace whirled toward the sound. Was that a figure moving between the trees, or just her imagination playing tricks on her?

She took a hesitant step off the porch, then another. The damp grass soaked through her socks as she moved closer to the tree line. “Noah, please. Where are you?”

Suddenly, a hand clamped over her mouth from behind. Grace tried to scream, but the sound was muffled against the rough palm. An arm snaked around her waist, lifting her off her feet. She kicked and thrashed, but her attacker was impossibly strong.

Then she saw Noah hanging limply over another shadow’s shoulder, and tears flooded her eyes.

What had they done to him?

This couldn’t be happening. It had to be a nightmare. Any moment now, she would wake up safe in the cabin, Noah snoring softly beside her.

Grace fought wildly, clawing at the hand over her mouth, but it was like iron. She couldn’t breathe. Spots danced in her vision as her captor dragged her into the forest, dead leaves and twigs crunching underfoot.

Who were these men? What did they want?

The pieces started to click into place with sickening clarity: Mom’s strange behavior, her insistence that they go on this trip, and the remote location.

Oh, God. Had Mom known this would happen?