The woods had always carried a certain silence that felt wrong....an emptiness too heavy, too deliberate, like the land itself remembered the massacre that had once bled into its roots. Evelyn Marrow had only walked its edge before, never daring to step deeper. Tonight, though, the trees loomed like an army, their skeletal branches clawing at the black sky as if trying to drag the stars down with them.
Her throat was dry as she stared at the dirt path stretching forward.
"We don't have to do this tonight," she whispered, more to herself than the others. "Maybe… maybe tomorrow. Or after we—"
"No," Silas cut in, his tone low but steady. He was standing just a few feet ahead, hands buried in the pockets of his jacket. The bruises from Edgar's last encounter still colored his jaw, but his expression was sharp, burning with that stubborn determination she'd come to know. "If we wait, he'll make the next move. And when Edgar makes the move, people die."
The words twisted in Evelyn's chest. She hated that he was right.
Amara lingered close to Evelyn's side, a hand brushing her arm like she could anchor her in place. "He's right," she said softly, but her green eyes never left Silas. "But you don't have to be the one he uses as bait, Evelyn. Let us handle this."
Evelyn shook her head, frustration and fear battling in her chest. "You both keep acting like I'm fragile porcelain. If Edgar wants me, he'll find me anyway. At least this way… we're prepared."
Silas turned to face her fully, his hazel eyes glinting in the moonlight. "You're not fragile. But he's obsessed with you. That makes you his target, not me." His gaze softened then, voice lowering. "That's why we can't leave you out of this plan."
Amara's hand curled, her nails almost pressing into Evelyn's sleeve. "And what if Silas isn't fast enough to protect you?" The edge in her tone was sharp, though masked beneath worry. "What if one mistake costs you everything?"
Silas's jaw tightened. "I won't let that happen."
For a moment, Evelyn stood between them, feeling the weight of their stares pressing against her....one heavy with promise, the other with something darker she couldn't quite name.
The plan had been simple in theory: lure Edgar into the woods, corner him where there were no witnesses, and finish what they started. But theory always sounded cleaner than reality, and as the three of them began to walk deeper into the forest, Evelyn couldn't shake the sensation that the very air resisted them.
Every step felt too loud. Every breath seemed to echo.
The whispers of knives that haunted her mind stirred, faint but persistent, as if carried on the night wind. She tried to steady herself, but the closer they moved to the center of the woods, the louder the whispers grew....like a chorus of unseen voices pressing against her skull.
"Do you hear them?" she asked under her breath.
Silas slowed his pace but didn't answer right away. He only glanced back at her, expression grim, before giving a slight nod. "Yeah."
Amara squeezed Evelyn's wrist, almost too tightly. "Ignore it. That's what he wants. To rattle you before he shows his face."
But Evelyn knew better. The whispers weren't random they were warnings, always warnings. And right now, they felt louder than they ever had before.
---
They reached a clearing at last, the moonlight spilling through gaps in the trees. The shadows of branches stretched long across the ground, like blackened fingers reaching for their ankles.
"This is it," Silas murmured. He crouched near a fallen log, scanning the perimeter like a soldier about to set a trap. "We hold here. He'll come."
Evelyn swallowed hard, rubbing her arms as a cold shiver cut through her. "How can you be so sure?"
Silas's lips thinned. "Because he always comes when he smells fear. And tonight…" His eyes flickered toward her. "…he'll smell it."
Amara's jaw tightened, but she said nothing, keeping herself pressed close to Evelyn, as though shielding her with her presence.
The silence that followed was unbearable. Even the insects seemed to have gone mute. Evelyn's heart pounded loud enough she was certain the others could hear it. She kept glancing at the trees, at the yawning shadows between their trunks, convinced she'd see a figure step out at any second.
Minutes dragged. Her palms grew clammy. Her breathing turned shallow. And then....
Snap.
The sound of a branch breaking echoed through the clearing, sharp as a gunshot.
Evelyn's entire body went rigid.
Silas straightened instantly, eyes narrowing as he turned toward the sound. Amara's grip on Evelyn's arm tightened again, this time painfully.
Another snap, closer.
The whispers in Evelyn's head spiked into a shrill chorus, and she stumbled back, covering her ears though she knew it did nothing to stop them.
And then....
A voice drifted through the trees. Smooth. Mocking. Like the hiss of a snake.
"Well, well… what a gift. The lambs walk into the forest all on their own."
Edgar.
The clearing seemed to shrink around them as the shadows deepened, as if the forest itself bowed to his presence. Evelyn's knees nearly buckled, her breath catching in her throat.
Silas stepped forward, shielding her with his body. "Show yourself, Edgar!"
A low chuckle answered him, the sound slithering from every direction at once.
"Oh, I think I'll enjoy this little game."
Evelyn's pulse hammered wildly, the taste of fear sharp in her mouth. This was it...the plan in motion. Except every instinct in her screamed that they weren't the hunters tonight. They were the prey.
---
The clearing erupted in chaos.
Edgar stepped from the shadows at last, his face stretched into that devilish grin that had haunted Evelyn's nightmares. The moonlight glinted against the edge of the knife in his hand, the same kind of blade she had seen in her visions, dripping with whispers of the past.
Silas didn't wait. He lunged forward, fury blazing in his eyes, throwing a punch at Edgar's jaw. The strike landed, but Edgar barely staggered....like the blow had been little more than a gust of wind.
"You'll have to do better than that, boy," Edgar sneered, slashing his knife upward. Silas dodged, but the blade grazed his side, leaving a streak of blood across his shirt.
"Silas!" Evelyn's scream tore through the clearing.
Amara moved next, fast and sharp as lightning. She grabbed a thick branch from the ground and swung it with a force Evelyn hadn't thought possible. The branch cracked against Edgar's arm, making him grunt, but instead of retreating, he only laughed, eyes glowing with something inhuman.
"Two against one," he taunted, his grin widening. "How unfair."
But it wasn't unfair. It was hopeless. Edgar moved with a predator's speed, knife flashing, blows landing too quickly. Silas fought desperately, Amara striking with surprising ferocity, yet every second they fought only proved one thing.Edgar was stronger. Too strong.
Silas caught Amara's eye, chest heaving. "We can't win this here. Take her!"
Amara didn't hesitate. She grabbed Evelyn's hand with crushing force, dragging her away from the fight. Silas followed close behind, blood dripping from his side.
Evelyn struggled, protesting as Edgar's laughter rang behind them. "No—Silas! We can't just leave him!"
"We're not leaving him," Amara snapped, voice harsh, though her grip tightened like chains around Evelyn's wrist. "We're surviving!"
The forest swallowed them whole as they ran, branches clawing at their faces, roots snaring at their feet. The air was heavy with whispers....shrieking, pleading, warning....and Evelyn's chest clenched like it was caving in.
She couldn't breathe. The darkness pressed too close, the sound of her own pulse deafening in her ears.
"I—can't—" she gasped, stumbling. Her legs trembled, her vision blurring with tears. The panic attack slammed into her like a wall, freezing her lungs, locking her throat. She dropped to her knees, clutching at her chest.
Silas skidded to a stop. "Evelyn!" He crouched, hands shaking as he tried to steady her. "Breathe with me—look at me—"
But the forest didn't wait.
A guttural laugh boomed behind them, closer now, threading through the trees like smoke.
Amara's grip on Evelyn faltered as she scanned the woods. "We have to move, now!" She pulled at her again, urgency cutting through her sharpness. "If you stay here, you die, Evelyn!"
Somehow, Evelyn forced her legs to move, leaning on Silas as they staggered deeper into the woods. But the darkness was endless, and in their desperate running, the path twisted, split, and swallowed them.
It happened so fast one wrong turn, one sharp sprint through a thicket and suddenly Evelyn was alone.
Her breath hitched as she spun, arms outstretched, reaching for the warmth of Silas's jacket, the tug of Amara's hand.
Nothing.
Just trees. Just blackness.
"Silas?!" her voice cracked, desperate. "Amara!" She turned in circles, her heart racing, tears blinding her. "Please! Where are you?"
No answer. Only silence.
And then.....
Snap.
Her stomach dropped.
A figure emerged from the shadows between the trees, tall and steady, his grin carved into his face like a wound. The knife glimmered in his hand.
Edgar.
Evelyn stumbled back, her scream catching in her throat, the whispers in her skull swelling into a deafening roar.
Far away, Amara and Silas fought against the forest itself, stumbling, calling Evelyn's name into the dark. Their voices were lost in the void, swallowed before they could reach her.
And Evelyn… Evelyn was alone with him.