Chapter 17

Mason let out a loud yawn, stretching his arms. “I don’t know about you two, but I am really tired!” Without another word, he turned on his heel and headed for his tent, not even waiting for a response.

Zariyah sighed, rubbing her temples. “It’s really late, Tyler. Get some sleep. We’ll talk about this in the morning.” She stood up, ready to retreat to her own tent.

Tyler nodded absentmindedly and pushed himself up from his seat. But just as he did—

Chim!

The sharp notification sound cut through the quiet night.

Zariyah froze mid-step. Tyler, still hunched over, glanced down at his phone screen.

Chim!

Another ping.

Mason, who had already crawled into his tent, suddenly stumbled back out, gripping his phone tightly. His face was pale, eyes wide with horror.

“Do you see what I see?” His voice was barely above a whisper.

Zariyah and Tyler turned their screens toward him, their own faces mirroring his terror.

“Uhm…” Tyler swallowed hard. “Yeah. I do.”

Tyler’s breath hitched as he stared at his phone screen, his fingers frozen over the glowing display. Zariyah’s heart pounded as she slowly turned her own phone toward her. Mason, still half out of his tent, was gripping his phone so tight his knuckles had turned white.

There, on all their screens, was the same image.

A photo.

Of them.

Sitting at the campfire. Right now.

Taken from behind.

Zariyah’s stomach twisted into knots. Her hands trembled as she zoomed in on the picture, scanning the dark edges of the image for any sign of movement, any hint of who—or what—had taken it.

But there was nothing.

Just them. Sitting, unaware.

Mason swallowed hard, his voice barely above a whisper. “This… this is from right now.”

Tyler’s throat was dry. He forced himself to swallow before speaking. “Where… where was this taken from?”

No one answered.

Because they already knew.

It was taken from the trees. The same dense woods surrounding their camp.

The realization sent a cold shiver down Zariyah’s spine. She lifted her eyes from her phone and slowly turned her head, dread creeping through her veins like ice.

The trees stood still. Silent. Watching.

Just like whoever—or whatever—had been standing among them.

Mason took a step closer to the fire, his voice barely controlled. “Tell me one of you is messing with me.”

Zariyah shook her head. Tyler did too.

No one was messing with him.

And that meant…

They weren’t alone.

Zariyah clenched her fists, her phone hanging at her side as she took a deep breath. Her voice was steady, firm, filled with an unshakable determination.

“Go to sleep. All of you. We’ll talk about this in the morning.”

She didn’t wait for a response.

Neither did the others.

Without another word, Mason and Tyler turned away, retreating into their respective tents. The fear was still thick in the air, but exhaustion weighed heavier. No one wanted to fight it anymore—not tonight.

Zariyah lay in her own tent, staring up at the thin fabric ceiling, listening to the rustling of the trees outside. She turned onto her side. Then onto her back. Then onto her other side. Sleep refused to come, no matter how much she willed it.

Her mind was a whirlpool of memories. Every moment from today played over and over in her head, the laughter, the fear, the pain.

And then—

"Alicia..."

She barely realized she had spoken aloud, her voice fragile in the silence.

But then—

“Alicia… why’d you go…?”

Zariyah’s body stiffened.

That wasn’t her voice.

It was muffled, thick with grief, but still unmistakable. The pain woven into the words made her chest ache.

She sat up, straining her ears.

Another quiet sob.

She knew where it was coming from.

“Tyler…” she whispered to herself, already moving.

Carefully, she unzipped her tent and stepped out into the cool night air. The fire had burned low, only faint embers left glowing in the dark. She followed the sound, her bare feet brushing against the cold earth.

As she neared Tyler’s tent, the soft glow of his phone screen flickered inside. His shoulders shook, his breath ragged with suppressed cries.

Zariyah hesitated for only a second before slipping inside.

Tyler didn’t flinch. He didn’t even try to hide his face. His eyes were red, cheeks damp, his thumb swiping over the screen, stuck on a single image.

It was the group photo.

The one they had taken at the start of their journey.

When Alicia was still here.

The sight of it made Zariyah’s throat tighten.

Tyler barely managed a weak, broken laugh. “It’s stupid, isn’t it?” His voice cracked. “We only started dating a week ago, and I—I shouldn’t feel like this. But I do.”

Zariyah’s heart clenched. She moved closer, hesitating for only a second before reaching out. With the back of her hand, she gently wiped away a stray tear trailing down his cheek.

“It’s not stupid, Tyler,” she whispered. “We all miss her. We all do. Deeply.”

Her breath shuddered. The weight of everything pressed against her chest, suffocating.

A single tear slipped down her cheek.

And for once, she didn’t fight it.

T. B. C.

What do you think is going to happen next?

Happy Reading!