Chapter Fifty-Eight Maya

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Maya

August 2023

I’m in a deep sleep when a loud sound rips through the silence. A guttural scream.

I jerk awake. What the hell was that? I sit up, filled with adrenaline, heart kicking against my rib cage. Holding my breath, I sit perfectly still, waiting for it to happen again.

The silence stretches. Nothing but wind. Crickets. I instinctively reach for Nate next to me, but instead I just feel the sheets, cool beneath my fingers.

There must be a rational explanation for why he’s not here: He couldn’t sleep. He needed something from the house.

As I stand, I’m suddenly dizzy, my head throbbing with a splitting headache. How many drinks had I had last night? Three? Four? I grasp onto the side table for support. After steadying myself, I make my way to the door and peer into the night. The wind rattles the shutters.

The pool glows under a full moon, and beyond it the lawn is dark. No sign of Nate. The windows on the main house are black save for one rectangle of light emanating from an upstairs bedroom.

On the counter, the new phone I bought, still without a case, lights up and vibrates. It vibrates again. I pick up the phone—four o’clock—and open the message.

It’s from Kai. Are you awake?

I text her back: Did you hear that noise?

Kai: Come over to the main house. I’m in the kitchen.

Tossing a loose sweater over my shoulders, I shove the phone into my pocket and rush out the door.

The air outside is chilly. The lawn wet beneath my shoes as they sink into the grass. As I cross the lawn, anxiety grips my chest. I’m halfway to the house when a bright light slices across my vision, startling me.

“Maya?” Kai grips a flashlight. She rushes over, barefoot, clutching her robe. Her eyes are wide with panic as she catches her breath.

“What’s going on? Have you seen Nate?”

Kai frowns. “No, why? I heard a scream, and when I looked outside, there were headlights on the road right outside the gate. That’s when I texted you—I texted everyone—we should check the cameras.”

But without Margaret, who isn’t answering, we don’t have access to the cameras. I follow her up the back stairs and we cross through the kitchen. We reach the front of the house and step out to the front yard, which is empty besides a few of the staff’s parked cars. Without the wind, the shriek of crickets feels threatening.

“What about Margaret? Should we wake her up?”

“I don’t want to bother her.” She shakes her head. “It could’ve been a neighbor’s car. And an animal or something earlier.”

Kai and I go back inside and do a full scan of the house, checking windows and rooms for signs of a break-in. Nothing.

Back in the kitchen, Kai removes a bottle of pills from the cabinet. “We’re flying to Milan today and then it’s a long car ride to Como. I need sleep.” She unscrews the cap and shakes two into her hand. “Here.” She hands me one. “Ambien. It’ll help you get back to sleep. No offense, but you look like you need it.” She gives me a flashlight to get back to the pool house.

—

After Kai leaves, I run a glass under the faucet and place the pill on my tongue and take a long sip of the cool water. Maybe it was nothing.

I’m about to turn back for the pool house when something catches my eye: a sliver of light runs jagged across the room, illuminating the knife block. And…one of them is missing.

—

I leave the main house to head back and am staring out at the pine forest at the edge of the property when a light flickers.

I hold my breath. Did that just happen?

Cautiously, I cross the wet grass and make my way to the edge of the woods, entering the thicket of pines.

“Nate?” A rustling of branches. I cut the beam of light toward the sound and see a fox dive into the bushes. A nervous laugh escapes my chest, but as I am about to turn back, I see something strange in the dirt: a muddy footprint. A man’s footprint.

Walking faster, I call out for my husband, but my voice falls off.

Movement in the distance. I hunch down, chest tight as I approach. Nate? Or some kind of intruder? A branch breaks behind me and I whirl around, cutting the light toward it. Nothing.

The deeper I go, the more the trees begin to look alike. The flashlight flickers, battery dying. I hit the bottom and the light comes back on. I hurry forward, lungs burning as the darkness shifts around me. It’s only when I reach a fallen tree, covered in moss and rot, that I stop. Nate isn’t out here. He’s probably waiting for me back in bed. He probably just went to the bathroom or needed to grab something from the car. I’m about to turn back when I hear a noise: the sound of a man in pain.

New fear flares across my chest. “Nate?” I run toward the sound, branches scraping my arms.

Somewhere up ahead, another flash of movement.

Heart racing, I turn around to run back the way I came when dizziness overtakes me. What is wrong with me?

The flashlight slips to the ground, flickers and dies, and when I look up, I see her: a young woman, no older than twenty-two, standing in the moonlight. I strain my eyes in the dark, my blood turning cold.

Her skin is pale, her red hair darkened from rain and spooling around her neck. It can’t be…No…That’s not possible. It’s Lila.

I take a shaky step back, drop to my knees. I have to get out of here. The exhaustion and anxiety and fear have me seeing things again. The ground sways beneath me as I frantically search the dirt for the flashlight.

Filled with panic, I try to find my way back out of the woods. When I finally reach the fallen tree, I break into a run. But the strangest thing happens: Rain falls from the sky…and then it turns to snow. I blink hard, catching my breath. It’s August. Snow doesn’t make any sense. What is happening?

Up ahead, something or someone is dragging Lila’s body behind it. It’s hard to see through all the snow, but when I focus harder it becomes clear— Matthew is dragging her body through the snow.

Heart pounding wildly, I open my mouth to scream, but no sound comes out. Stop hurting her! Let her go!

I yell until I catch up to him, but he doesn’t turn to me. His focus is on Lila.

Get off her! I grab at his arms and finally he turns to me. He looks awful, the whites of his eyes black, irises disappearing into nothing.

I freeze, too shocked to move, and before I know what’s happening, someone shoves me out of the way and lunges at him. He stumbles back, clutching his chest. A thud, a body falling onto the damp ground. And now there’s blood. So much blood.

—

I jerk awake with a gasp, heart racing, fingers tearing at the sheets of the bed. In my panic, it takes a moment to realize the scream I hear is my own. But soon, another voice joins it, soothing, familiar.

“It’s okay, it’s okay, you’re safe. Everything’s fine.” It’s Margaret.

Slowly, the fear fades. I’m safe. Back in the pool house. Disoriented, I sit up and try to place the furniture in the room. The wicker chair in the corner, where I threw my gown from last night. The wooden blades of the fan overhead. My head is throbbing with a massive headache as I squint at Margaret until her face comes into focus. “What happened?”

She pats the bed and stands. “You had a nightmare, that’s all. Come on, love, let’s get you cleaned up.” She reaches out a hand and helps me out of bed.

I’m drenched in sweat, the sheets are soaked under me. Had I really dreamed all of that? Reaching up to touch my hair, I find it matted with twigs and leaves. My hands are covered in dirt. Nails caked in dried blood. What happened last night? I’m glad Margaret is the one with me. She’s never been one to pry.

“Come here,” Margaret says, as she turns on the hot water in the shower and steps out of the bathroom to give me some privacy.

As I’m peeling off my clothes, I remember—the scream. Nate missing from bed—and I go cold. “Where is Nate?” I ask her, shakily, from the other side of the door.

“He’s off for a run. He said he texted you.” A pause. “Well, if you’re feeling better, I may go back to the house and whip up some coffee and crepes for everyone to help with the hangovers. You’re welcome to join.”

I shake my head. He’s on a run. Everything’s fine. Get a grip. “Yeah, okay. Thank you.” But something doesn’t feel right. Nate was drunk last night. When was the last time he woke up from a night like that and went on a run? He hasn’t been up that early since he was training for the Boston Marathon, and that was before Dani was born.

I step under the hot water and close my eyes, suddenly exhausted like I hadn’t slept at all. Leaning against the tile, I will the throbbing in my skull to ease.

By the time I emerge from the shower, the darkness has sifted away, replaced by a soft lemony light. The air outside is still cool and crisp, but I can sense the imposing clouds overhead. I step out onto the patio in my robe, and as I’m having coffee on the chaise longue, I see Nate approaching in the distance. I scan his body for any signs of distress, but he looks fine. Perfectly fine, in running clothes and a gray sweatshirt. I exhale.

“You’re up,” he says.

I nod, not sure how to react. Is this all in my head? Am I so paranoid about Matthew that I’m seriously losing it?

He gives me a peck on the cheek and looks me over with a puzzled expression. His eyes stop. “What happened to your neck?”

Reaching up, I wince at the frayed skin where I must have scratched myself. I pull my hand back, blood on my fingertips, and cringe. “I had a nightmare again. I woke up in the middle of the night, you weren’t in bed.” I pause, studying him. “Where were you?”

He frowns, shakes his head. “I woke up early. Went for a run. I must have been getting ready when you woke up the first time.” His face is blank.

I swallow the knot that’s formed in my throat. Nate’s expression sends a chill through me…because I’ve been with my husband for over ten years. I know when he’s lying.