When the group returned to the hut, the sun was already high in the sky. The canopy above could no longer shield them from the harsh rays that beat down directly onto the winding trails, where red clay and exposed roots jutted out like bulging veins. Lucy was the first to step into the hut’s perimeter. She took a long, refreshing breath and exclaimed with delight when she saw Stella and Mary safe and everything inside undisturbed and untouched.
“No one snuck in, huh.” she said, unfastening the bundle of leaves tied around her waist and collapsing onto the large rock beside the stove.
Stella looked up at them, a hint of concern in her eyes: “Did something happen? You all look… not just tired from the walk, right?”
Ethan didn’t answer immediately. His eyes swept around the hut, scanning e
