The ride out of HQ was quiet. Ezra was behind the wheel, humming a tuneless sound that felt more like mockery than music. Nia sat in the passenger seat, eyes fixed on the road as though daring the night to blink first.
Kyle sat in the backseat, staring out the window. His stomach still ached faintly from Rhonda's punch and his head was crowded with everything Nia had told him.
Ezra was at the wheel, one arm resting lazily on the door, the other flicking the wheel with careless precision. He drove like someone who trusted fate to bend for him. Nia sat up front, posture straight, her gaze locked forward.
The sign for Elmore Road appeared after nearly an hour: a rust-bitten rectangle hanging crooked, paint eaten by weather and time. Just before it, a small brick building squatted under yellow lamps... the local police station.
Ezra pulled in with a grunt, tires crunching gravel. "Before we dive into the haunted road, we need to check in with the locals." He cut the engine, twisted toward Kyle with a grin that didn't reach his eyes. "Ever meet a Snitch, rookie?"
Kyle blinked. "Huh?"
Nia sighed, unclipping her seatbelt. "He means a Liaison." She glanced back at Kyle. "P.O.A places certain operatives in police stations around the country. They look like regular officers but their real job is to monitor incidents that lean toward… our side of things."
"So like… undercover?" Kyle asked.
"Not undercover." Ezra smirked. "More like watchdogs... snitches." He shoved his door open.
Inside, the station was half-asleep. A single fan buzzed in the corner, shuffling warm air. Two uniformed cops shuffled paperwork, their eyes ringed with exhaustion. They barely looked up as the trio entered.
Ezra didn't pause. He walked straight toward a glass-walled office at the back. A man was waiting there, already on his feet. He wasn't in a uniform black shirt rolled at the sleeves, tie loose, eyes sharp and aware in a way that didn't fit the rest of the sleepy station.
"Voklov Squad..." the man said, voice low but clear. "You're here about the disappearances?"
Nia gave a curt nod. "You're the Liaison?"
He extended a hand, though there was nothing polite about the gesture. "Detective Macik." His eyes shifted to Kyle, assessing him in a glance. "Where is the famous Voklov leader?"
"He's sitting this one out." Nia replied.
Macik's gaze lingered to Kyle. "Alright then." He motioned them closer to a desk cluttered with maps and reports. The top file was stamped in red: P.O.A : CLASSIFIED.
"Here's what I've got." Macik began, tapping the papers. "The disappearances line up perfectly with this road, whatever's out there, it's cause a public panic. We've noticed disturbances in the woods running alongside the road. A couple of our detectives went deep inside but also never came back."
Nia absorbed it without flinching. "We'll handle it."
Ezra whistled softly. "Creepy road and woods... very classic. Guessing it's not just bad asphalt?"
"It might be." Nia said turning to leave. "Let's head out."
They left the station. Outside, the lamps buzzed but beyond their reach, the woods of Elmore stretched like a wall of ink.
The night swallowed them as they drove again, this time pulling closer to the stretch of road everyone had been whispering about.
Elmore Road wasn't just another route. It was a long, winding scar through dense woods, flanked by trees so thick they seemed to lean inward. No streetlights lined the way, the only illumination came from the squad car's headlights, cutting narrow beams through the oppressive dark.
Kyle pressed a hand against the window, his breath fogging the glass. "This place… feels like a nightmare."
"That's because it is..." Nia said softly.
Ezra smirked, rolling his shoulders as he drove slower. "Well, let's see if it chokes on us too."
They pulled over at a crooked mile marker, the van's engine rumbling low. Ezra killed the headlights and darkness swallowed them.
"Alright." He turned in his seat, teeth flashing in the faint glow of the dash. "Welcome to Elmore Road, Kyle. And for the love of hell, don't touch anything that touches you first."
Nia opened her door with a creak, stepping into the suffocating black. Her voice was steady. "Stay close, whatever's here… it's probably watching already."
And with that, the three of them slipped deep into the road.