The Fourth Name
1092 Words
“Lina, hurry!”
Milie’s grip tightened around my hand as she pulled me down the stairs like the building was on fire.
“I’m coming... slow down!”
She didn’t.
My foot caught the edge of a step, and everything tilted. For a split second, I could feel my stomach drop, the sharp rush of panic as my body tipped forward. I was going to fall.
Then strong arms caught me from behind, pulling me close.
Lucien.
My back pressed against his chest, heat seeping through my shirt. One of his hands was wrapped securely around my wrist, the other steady at my waist.
He didn’t let go... no not yet.
“Careful, Lina,” he murmured near my ear. His voice was low. Like he wasn’t surprised this had happened.
“Wouldn’t want you getting hurt.”
The way he said my name didn’t feel new. It felt familiar. Like he’d said it many times before.
I pulled away quickly, my pulse uneven.
“I’m fine.”
Milie stared between us, wide-eyed.
“Sorry,” she said, though her attention stayed fixed on him.
Lucien released me slowly but still kept looking at me. That was the first time he spoke to me directly.
After that it didn’t stop. He observed my every move and tried to always start a conversation.
“You shouldn’t eat that. The chicken here is undercooked more often than not.”
“You read Hollowvale. I didn’t expect that.”
“You don’t like sitting near windows unless you can see an exit.”
I frowned. “How do you even know that?”
He tilted his head slightly.
“I pay attention.”
That’s what he called it. Attention, but it didn’t feel normal.
It felt like I was being studied.
“You’re left-handed.”
I stopped walking.
“What?”
“You write with your left hand,” he continued calmly. “But you open your locker with your right. That usually means you were trained to use both, but you prefer precision with your dominant side.”
I stared at him. “That’s not observant,” I said slowly. “That’s creepy.”
He didn't say anything. He just looked at me.
“Noted.”
Sometimes, I would look up suddenly and he was already watching me.
*****
The first announcement came two days later.
“Riley Grant has been reported missing. If anyone has information, please contact the main office.”
The speaker crackled, then silence. No one listened, they didn't show concern. Just the usual noise of students talking, laughing, moving on. Like nothing had happened.
Riley wasn’t the kind of person who disappeared.
He was quiet, awkward, the type who avoided eye contact and collected old video games like they meant something.
He once helped Milie fix her locker. Blushed the entire time. People like Riley didn’t vanish. Not without someone noticing.
Two days later, another person went missing.
Then another.
Three students in five days, and Ravencrest… didn’t react.
Principal Arah’s voice remained calm.
“Remain focused. Authorities are investigating.”
That was it.
“Don’t you think it’s weird?” I asked Milie during lunch. She didn’t answer right away.She was staring across the cafeteria. Watching.
“Yeah,” she said quietly. “It feels like everyone’s pretending.”
“Pretending what?”
“That this isn’t happening.”
That evening, we went to the football field.
The stadium lights were off. The sky hung low and heavy, clouds still thick from the earlier rain. The metal bleachers were cold beneath us.
Milie climbed up and sat, pulling her knees to her chest. I sat beside her.
“You disappeared after class,” I said.
“I had a headache.”
“You’ve had a lot of those lately.”
She didn’t argue. That scared me more.
“Does it scare you?” she asked after a while.
“Does what?”
She turned toward me.
“The missing students. The feeling that someone’s watching… even when everything’s quiet.”
My throat tightened. “Yes.”
The word came out softer than I expected.
“It does.”
She rested her head on my lap.
“After the attack… I haven’t been sleeping,” she whispered. “Every time I close my eyes, I hear it chasing us. I hear you screaming.”
I swallowed.
“You tried to protect me,” she continued. “You stood in front of me.”
“I was terrified.”
“You still didn’t run.”
Her voice dropped slightly.
“If something comes for you… I won’t run either.”
My chest tightened painfully.
“Don’t say that.”
“I mean it.”
The wind moved across the empty field.
For a second, I felt it again. That same feeling from the forest. Like we weren’t alone.
Days passed and it seemed like everything has gone back to normal. No one was panicking and the disappearances stopped being discussed.
Like they never mattered. And that... that was the worst part.
Why wasn’t anyone angry?
Why wasn’t anyone asking questions?
Why did it feel like Ravencrest was… swallowing people?
****
It was raining the day she disappeared.
A cold, steady drizzle that soaked through everything. My phone buzzed that morning.
MILIE: Ugh… it’s freezing. Bring coffee?
LINA: Already on it. Same spot?
MILIE: Yep. Hood up. Ghost mode.
I smiled. Ghost mode.
By the time I reached the bench she wasn’t there, but her scarf was. It lay on the ground, soaked, twisted, like it had been ripped away.
My stomach dropped.
“Milie?”
No answer.
I called her phone.
Once.
Twice.
Voicemail.
The air changed. I searched everywhere. The bathrooms, library, her locker, but I didn't find her.
Students passed by like nothing was happening.
Like this was normal. A security officer walked past, speaking into his radio.
“…another one confirmed,” he muttered.
“That makes four.”
Four.
The coffee slipped from my hand. It hit the floor and burst open, dark liquid spreading across my shoes. I couldn’t feel my fingers. Breathing became too difficult. No. Not Milie. Please... no.
The hallway felt smaller, like it was closing in on me. The air turned cold, just like the forest. I turned slowly and Lucien stood at the far end of the corridor, watching me. And in that moment I knew, this wasn’t random.
This wasn’t coincidence. Milie was gone, and whatever had been hunting in the dark had finally taken something from me.
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