Scarlett’s POV
The cabin was still.
Nestled deep within the evergreens, its wooden frame creaked under the wind’s hush, as though the trees themselves whispered warnings. Elias led us in first, silent as a shadow, his boots brushing pine needles and grit. I clutched the strap of my bag tighter, scanning the interior. It was simple, almost too simple. A fireplace, a narrow bed with an old quilt, a rusty kettle on the stove. Dust floated in shafts of moonlight that slipped through the cracks in the walls. It looked abandoned, forgotten.
But someone had kept it ready. A lantern sat freshly filled with oil. The floor had been swept.
I glanced at Miriam, who stood just behind me in the doorway, her eyes sharp as knives. She hadn’t trusted Elias since the first night, and tonight was no diff
