Chapter 8 - The Cabin in the Woods
The logging road was a treacherous nightmare of slick mud and deep ruts. I drove without headlights, relying on the faint moonlight cutting through the storm to track the fresh tire tracks.
Three miles deep into the woods, the tracks ended at an abandoned hunting cabin. David’s SUV was parked out front.
I killed the engine and grabbed the heavy iron crowbar from my backseat, the same one I had used to pry up the floorboards. The rain soaked me to the bone as I crept up to the rotting wooden porch.
I peered through the grime-caked window. Inside, a solitary lantern cast eerie, flickering shadows against the walls. David was sitting in a wooden chair, calmly wiping down a hunting knife with a rag.
On an old mattress in the corner lay Leo. He was clutching his stuffed bear, his chest rising and falling in shallow, panicked breaths. He was alive.
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"I know you're out there, Rachel," David's voice boomed through the thin walls, chilling me to the marrow. "You always were predictable. Come inside. It's time for our family meeting."
I didn't hesitate. I kicked the fragile wooden door with all my might. It splintered and flew open, crashing against the interior wall. I stepped inside, raising the crowbar.
