Chapter 7: The Book of the Forgotten
The school library was almost empty when we arrived. Rows of dusty bookshelves lined the dimly lit space, and the air smelled like old paper and ink.
Zoey walked beside me, her presence making my skin prickle. No one else could see her. No one else could hear her.
I felt crazy.
But I wasn't.
At least, I didn't think so.
We made our way to the archives section. It was a small, neglected area in the back of the library, filled with old newspaper clippings, town records, and historical documents.
Zoey hovered beside me as I ran my fingers over the spines of old books, searching for anything that could explain what was happening.
Then, I found it.
A dusty, leather-bound book with no title.
I pulled it from the shelf and opened it, the pages brittle beneath my fingers.
And then—
A name.
Zoey Williams.
I sucked in a sharp breath.
"What the—"
Zoey leaned over my shoulder, her eyes widening.
The page was old, but the writing was clear.
Zoey Williams—Vanished without a trace. Last seen near the old bridge. Witnesses claim to have seen her walking alone before she disappeared. Some believe she never truly left.
I turned to Zoey, my pulse pounding.
"You didn't just… die." I swallowed. "You vanished."
Zoey's hands clenched into fists. "That's not true. I—I remember what happened."
But the way she said it—hesitant, uncertain—made my stomach turn.
What if she didn't remember?
What if something had changed her memory?
And what if that thing—the one following us—was the reason why?